#i did accidentally bring up dan again

[the-slittening]

Hi guys! Roommate update because I'm actually fucking insufferable and have anxiety AND a tendency to overshare, so I need to talk about this as quickly as possible. So, we met at a coffee shop, and they brought their dog and boyfriend. Their boyfriend was pretty cool, but I really only saw him for about 5 minutes. We just said hi, and then he had to go. I'll share a dog picture (and maybe another picture...) at the end! I got a lavender, vanilla, and honey frozen coffee, very good, would get again. We sat and talked for a couple minutes (really just saying hi, we already kinda know each other) and then decided to go walk around the other stores. We actually went to the park for maybe 15 minutes, then had to take their dog home. Met their siblings, very awkward, but they were just playing Minecraft, so it could have been worse. One of them said hi to the empty couch that I was nowhere near. Then we went to a candy shop, kind of uneventful. Then an antique shop! We found uranium glass, which we both thought was cool. Very glad I carry around a black light now! I can post pictures of that, too, I guess? Then, back to the coffee shop. It was kind of fun, actually! I don't know why I'm giving a literal play by play of the 3 hours we spent together, maybe because I have a terrible memory and even if this goes down in flame, I'm trying to be more happy(?) and I was pretty happy today. They're VERY respectful, it kind of shocked me. I for sure thought I'd be the one more similar to Phil, but just like in all of life, I am not. And that's okay. I kind of like being a platonic hopeless romantic. And who knows, maybe in 15 years we'll still be friends, and then again maybe not. This is actually the most optimistic I've felt in so long.

[nataliawrites]

TikTok on the Clock // Daniel Ricciardo

One of the best things to come out of the pandemic lockdown was finally giving in to the urge to download TikTok. You had quickly grown addicted to scrolling through the mix of eclectic videos that popped up on your “for you page” and soon enough decided to start posting some yourself.

It did not take long for Formula 1 fans to make the connection between your account and who your boyfriend is — Daniel Ricciardo was many things but subtle was not one of them and he had a tendency to “accidentally” interrupt you while you filmed.

You kept the account going long after restrictions eased and hopped on many of the trends that made their rounds on the app. This year, you were feeling slightly evil. You have been putting together a compilation of hilarious (if you did say so yourself) pranks that you pulled on your boyfriend since the season began and were just about to hit upload as the countdown began.

You put down your phone and turn to give Daniel your full attention.

Ten

Nine

Eight

Seven

Six

Five

Four

Three

Two

One

His lips taste like champagne.

Happy New Year!

“Hey Dan?”

“Mmh.”

“Maybe stay off TikTok for a bit.”

“What did you do?”

One

You loved the Australian Grand Prix. Your boyfriend’s home race was a spectacle on the track and a great opportunity to spend time with his family off the track.

As usual, you flew out to Perth a bit early before switching coasts for the race. You were busy in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on dinner as you prepared to host everyone that evening. When everything was mostly done, you started recording on your phone and leaned it against the wall inconspicuously before calling for your boyfriend.

“Hey, babe?” You pour a heaping pile of salt on a spoon.

“Yeah?” You can hear Daniel from across the house.

“Can you come taste my sauce?” You dunk the spoon in a pot of your tomato sauce and pick up just enough to hide the salt.

He basically runs to the kitchen, “test taster reporting for duty.”

You bring the spoon to his mouth, “I used your nonna’s recipe.”

His eyes screw shut and his mouth puckers, “my-my nonna’s recipe?”

“Your mom shared it with me. Isn’t it delicious?”

“Yeah,” his voice cracks. “Delicious.”

You look at his face again and fight a losing battle not to laugh as he desperately tries not to offend you and his grandma.

You reach towards your phone as giggles escape you.

Daniel finally realizes he’s been tricked, “are you serious?”

You point the camera towards your boyfriend, “you should’ve seen your face.”

“You’re so mean to me,” he pouts.

Two

“Babe?” You questioned coming through the front door. You had spent the day loading up on groceries and stopping by a few boutiques that caught your eye. This was the perfect opportunity to finally pull one over on your boyfriend.

“I’m in here,” you drop your bags in the foyer and follow Daniel’s voice to where he’s lying on the living room sectional.

Your phone is stuck in your bra, the camera just peaking over your shirt. “My car told me I needed windshield wiper fluid while I was out.”

He lowers his phone but keeps his focus on it.

“So I pulled into a gas station and the guy working there gave me a really good deal. He told me I got it for 50 percent off and it was only $150 for me because of how sweet I was.”

Daniel’s head snaps up as he drops his phone.

“$150?”

“Yeah.”

“You paid $150?”

“Yeah …”

“For windshield wiper fluid?”

“Yeah? He told me it was a good deal!”

“Love,” you can’t tell if he wants to laugh or cry, “I could’ve done that for free. He ripped you off.”

“But it was 50 percent off?”

“It costs less than $5 to buy and then you just pour it in!” He gestures wildly, “this is my fault. How do I race for a living and literally collect cars without teaching my girlfriend how to change her own windshield wiper fluid?”

By this point you’re silently laughing which Daniel finally notices.

“Really? Really?” He turns around to face the back of the couch, “don’t talk to me.”

“Awww, baby. Don’t be mad at me,” you coo. “I think it’s cute how protective you got.”

“Still mad at you.” It’s hard to take him seriously with his face shoved into the leather couch, muffling his voice.

Three

You walk into the gym, your phone hidden in the pocket of your leggings, and take in the view of you shirtless boyfriend.

The fans will appreciate this one.

“Dan?”

He pauses his juggling on the stationary bike.

“My back’s really been bothering since I came back from my run. Do you think you can help me stretch it or something?”

He gets off the bike and walks toward you, “do you want me to call Michael? He won’t mind coming over to help with your back.”

“Don’t bother him. It’s nothing major,” you turn away from your boyfriend and quickly stick two pieces of pasta between your molars while he can’t see, “just need to loosen it up a bit.”

“Okay …” he spreads his palms across your back and applies some careful pressure. You bite down on the pasta, timing the crack with his movements.

“Oh my god.” You let your body go limp.

“Love? Are you okay?” He tries to hold you up but you collapse on the padded floor of the gym.

“Is it your back? What did I do? I knew we should’ve just called Michael. Oh my god.”

You take pity on your boyfriend, not wanting him to think that he actually broke your back for longer than a few seconds, “it was just pasta.”

“What?”

“The sound. It was just me biting pasta. It’s a prank trend.”

He lets go of your body and you fully drop to the floor.

“Are.” He pelts you with one of the balls he was juggling.

“You.” And another.

“Kidding.” And another.

“Me?” And another.

You run out of the gym laughing as he continues to chase you through the house, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“I thought I broke your back!”

[picturejasper20]

Ghosts that were friendly to Danny Part 2

Based on a post i made years ago, i want to write a second part of it. In the first post i talked about The Dairly King, Cujo and Wulf as ghost characters that were friendly to Danny or later became friends with him.

In this post i want to cover other ghosts that i didn't get to talk about in first part. I'm going to discuss them for separate, like i did in the previous post.

Clockwork

Introduced in the episode ¨The Ultimate Enemy¨ Clockwork starts more as an antagonist that is ordered by the Observants to get rid of Danny in the present because in the future he is going to turn into a powerful ghost that destroys almost anything that he sees.

After Danny discovers the origins of his evil future self (Dan Phantom/Dark Danny) and defeats him near the end of the special, Clockwork stops the Nasty Burger explosion and saves Danny's familiy and friends from dying. He tells Danny that he was planning on going against his superiors orders and gives him a second chance in doing things right this time.

Clockwork appears again in ¨Masters of All Time¨ when Danny begs him to change the timeline so Vlad never turned into a half ghost. He warns Danny about the consequences of messing with the timeline but the teen ignoes his advice. At the end of the episode Danny returns the timeline the way it was, with Clockwork being happy that Danny seemed to learn his lesson.

It appears that Clockwork was intended to be a mentor figure to Danny. They have a similar dynamic like this in ¨A Glitch in Time¨, after Clockwork gets free from his fusion with Dan. He seems to care about Danny in general and wants to guide him in the correct path.

Often it is hard to define if he is meant to be seen as an ally or an enemy, as it depends on which path he considers it is the best that should be taken, regardless if Danny is in favor of these outcomes. Since Clockwork keeps tracks of the timelines, his morality is different from the regular human or ghost, taking different measures for the ¨greater good¨.

Princess Dorathea

Initially an antagonist in ¨Beauty Marked¨, she takes Sam Manson prisoner so her brother Aragon can marry her. Throughout the episode it gets explored how Aragon is abusive towards Dorathea, and she in part takes it because it is what is ¨expected¨ for a princess in the Kingdom. Aragon constanly threatens her, telling her that she ¨doesn't think¨ and she must obey his orders.

Sam points out to Dora that she is as strong and as intelligent as Aragon. This inspires Dora to stand up against Aragon using her shapeshifting Dragon powers to take him down. Aragon gets ripped off his amulet and it is implied that Dorathea becomes the ruler of the kingdom after that.

Dora counts more as a ghost that was friendly to Sam than Danny. However, i think it still counts because she helped with fighting and defeating Aragon at the end. On a interesting point, she shares some parallels to Wulf. Both were being controlled and pressured to do bad things and the protagonists helped them, with them later returning the favor by standing up to the one that was mistreating them.

Frostbite/ Yetis from the Far Frozen

In the episode ¨Infinity Realms¨ Danny gets to meet a group of ghosts like yetis who adore him and see him as their champion for defeating Dark Pariah in ¨Reign Storm¨. Frostbite is the first of them that Danny meets, who initially was out of control because of an icicle that was stuck on him, causing him pain. Danny took the icicle off from him and Frostbite took them to meet the rest of his people.

Frostbite lets the teen trio see the Infi-map. They accidentally activate it and later Danny uses it to go around the Ghost Zone. He later chases down Vlad to take the map back until Vlad ends up in the Far Frozen and the yetis use their powers to freeze Vlad. Danny apologizes for not bringing the map sooner, to which Frostbite says that there wasn't any harm done.

In ¨Urban Jungle¨ Danny visits him to ask for help with his ice related powers. Frostbite explains to Danny that he has an ice core all this time and he helps Danny with learning to control his ice powers. It takes him a while, but eventually he is able to grasp how to use them properly. Danny uses said powers to defeat Undergrowth and free Amity Park.

Like Clockwork, Frostbite was another character that looked like was intended to be another mentor figure to Danny. This happens in the episode ¨Urban Jungle¨ with Frostbite teaching Danny about his ice powers. It is possible that he was intended to have more moments like this with Danny if the series hadn't ended in Season 3.

Amorpho

Amorpho is a ghost that shapeshifts into other things or people. His main episode is ¨Forever Phantom¨ where he gets jealous of Phantom' popularity and takes the form of the teen half-ghost to get attention.

Because of this, both Danny and Amorpho later get in trouble with a fenton machine messing up their ghost powers. They work together to get away from the crowd that is chasing after them and go back to the Fentons to fix their powers.

Amorpho is an interesting case of a ghost as he isn't as extreme as others and most of his actions are intended to be pranks. He is able to realize when he takes things too far like he does near the end of the episode. He apologizes to Danny for causing trouble. Danny lets him takes his Phantom form as long as he stays away from Amity Park, something that Amorpho accepts with any issue.

Pandora

In the episode "Boxed-Up Fury" Danny looks for Pandora to tell her about how the Box Ghost has her box and he is using it to attack the Amity Park. Pandora is enraged by this and goes to fight Box Ghost personally. During the battle she asks Danny to help her and the two together manage to get the box back, stopping the Box Ghost.

Pandora plays the role of guardian of the Pandora's Box, keeping it safe from anyone who could use it for selfish desires. She explains to Danny and the others that the box was built with the purpose of trapping monsters and ¨a lot of evil¨ that there is in the Ghost Zone to make the Zone a better place. She uses a reverse option the box to catch all the monsters that were unleashed by Box Ghost during the story, trapping them inside again.

In spite of her rage, she can be pretty friendly when she isn't angry. Danny is seen hanging out with her near the end of the episode as they keep watch on Box Ghost and making sure he is following his punishment for stealing the box and using it to attack the city. While she could be a possible mentor figure to Danny, they seem to be more friends and allies.

-----

In all, these are other ghosts that have been friendly to Danny or became allies after Danny helped them. In this part we see ghosts that could become mentor figures to Danny and others that weren't exactly evil like Princess Dora and Amorpho.

It is certainly interesting to see ghosts that had their reasons to do bad things and others that aren't evil at all. It gives more variety to the Ghost Zone itself and ghosts than just being monsters of the week Danny has to defeat.

I'm not sure if i'm missing more of them, if not i can add them in another post and talk about them.

[danplansfwtickle-blog0]

Title: tickled blue

Description: hosuh finds jays weakness and uses it against him.

(Gentle) ler: hosuh

(Shy) Lee: jay

——————————————————

“Quick jay! Distract hosuh while I get Dan!” Stephen yelled, pointing to the silver haired boy that stood in fright, looking at jay who stared him down.

Daniel yelped as Stephen took chase, separating him from hosuh into another room, while Jay, had hosuh all to him self.

“Well hosuh, now that you can’t protect Dan like you always do, what are you gonna do now?” Jay asked smugly, repeatedly batting that back of the knife in the palm of the opposite hand of his.

Daniel and the rest of the group had decided to play a game of how well hosuh can go without Daniel’s help in a serious situation, but instead of Stephen chasing hosuh, it was Jay, since Stephen could always keep Dan distracted and held back. It was also a test to see how hosuh would do and what he would use to defend himself.

“Uhmm, *gulp* run?” Hosuh nervously replied, before making a B line for the front door, but jay was faster and had sped in front of him and blocked hosuh’s only exit.

“Wanna dance scaredy cat?” Jay mocked, before grazing the edge of the prop knife with a pointer finger.

Hosuh turned the other way and ran down the long hallway, jay slowly getting closer behind him, it was obvious that Jay clearly didn’t like hurting Hosuh, but still wanted him to learn self defense, he was his friend after all, a very caring one at that.

Hosuh then turned a corner and felt a hand grip the back of his collar. Hosuh yelped and turned around, only to be faced by Jay who was clearly putting in effort to be intimating, his eyes shone his multicolored irises, sharp and predatory like a cat.

Hosuh shuttered and shoved him out of the way before running into the bedroom and shutting the door behind him, but failed to realize there was no lock on it. Hosuh found out that the beds where too low to hide under and the closet would be too obvious, he trapped himself by mistake.

Oh no.

Suddenly the door swung open and closed, jay blocking the door. Hosuh turned and held out his hands as if trying to calm down an angry animal.

“You trapped yourself hosuh, what a foolish move~ you really gotta think more clearly next time” Jay slowly approached hosuh, building tension to the act.

Hosuh backed up until a wall made contact which made him jump. Before Hosuh knew it jay had him in a corner, Jay looking down on him similar fashion how Stephen would trap him.

“Please don’t do this, let’s try another way to do this” Hosuh said with fear dragging in his tone.

“Oh no hosuh… we don’t need another way to do this, this is the only way, and believe me I wish there was” jays voice was menacing and dark. “But Im afraid your life has to end here”

Hosuh panicked, he knew shoving him would only stun him and not give him enough time, so what can he use?

Jay raised the prop knife, ready to bring it down hard on hosuh, but hosuh in a deep state of panic, place his hands on jays sides and tried shoving again, but only ended up in accidentally gripping sides too tightly, which caused Jay to recoil and yelp, protecting his sides.

“What?! Sorry did I hurt you?” Hosuh asked in a panic, thinking he might of did his training a bit too seriously.

Hosuh was gonna ask again, but noticed that his body language did not give the intention that he was in pain, but jay was covering his mouth, his face reddening.

“Jay?” Hosuh was now puzzled. “Jay are you okay?”

Jay nodded slightly. “Y-yeah, just…”

Jays train of thought paused, refraining from looking at hosuh. Hosuh tried to look at him but he refused to make eye contact back.

Hosuh was even more puzzled, then attempted to place a hand back onto jays side but Jay swatted his hands away.

Hosuh was slowly putting two and two together.

Then it hit him but jay was getting back into character as if nothing had ever happened. Pinning Hosuh back against the wall.

“Alright, enough stalling, let’s get this death over with here and now- AHAHACK!” Jay was cut off by a hand touching his side, making his drop the fake knife and stepping back.

Jay was finally able to make eye contact with hosuh and this time he looked more like the victim.

Hosuh looked at Jay and then his hand, then gave a compassionate smile, giggling.

“Heh heh, someone has lost their touch” Hosuh joked, walking up to Jay making him back into the bed, on all fours crawling backwards before hitting the wall.

“Hosuh don’t!” Jay said, trying to stay strong, but his pink face gave him away.

“Why? Is there something wrong with your side?” Hosuh teased lightly.

Jay thought for a moment started to agree. “Y-yes! I h-have uhhh… a disease that is very contagious” he lied.

Jay covered his face with his fists, hoping Hosuh wouldn’t do anything for the love of god. His face became redder when he felt and heard hosuh talk and touch his side at the same time.

“Riiight hereee? This side?” Hosuh asked, a smile still lingering on his face.

“y-yes! hahahaha! Stohohohp! IHIHITS SENSITIHIHIVE!” Jay cackled, feeling five fingers brush against his side just barely.

He really is sensitive.

Hosuh smirked sheepishly, but playfully. Deciding that he would play with him a bit.

“Hmmm, you said diseases huh? Well I think I know just the cure!” Hosuh cheered, noticing jays face go extremely apprehensive.

“Then maybe this other side must need to attention too, don’t want it be left out~” Hosuh said, using two pointer fingers to rapidly but gently jab at his side making jay giggle and jump like crazy.

“N-no! PLEHEHEHEASE! NOT THERE EHEHEHEITHER!” Jay begged.

*he kinda acts like a dog..* hosuh thought to himself, invisioning a blond dog wagging its tail to the sensation of tickling. *aww*

“Oh, not there?”

“Nohoho!”

“Wait! I just noticed something!” Hosuh alarmed, stopping his small attack.

Jay still covering his face, peaked through his fingers to see hosuh frozen for a second before he spoke.

“Hold still..” Hosuh said, jay wasn’t sure why he listened but part of him said that Hosuh was just messing with him. And then he felt it. A hand sliding up against his bare skin under his hoodie, let alone his shirt.

“Hohohohosuh! Wait! No!” Jay cackled. “CUHUHUT IT OHHAHAHAHAOUT!”

“Awwwww does someone have a ticklish side? Why are you giggling?” Hosuh teased, watching jays face go red from the teasing.

Jay tried covering his face but it didn’t seem to matter anymore, he just used a pillow instead, half-hazardly covering his blushing face.

“What? Does it tickle? Does it tickle when I wiggle my fingeeerrs alllll ovverrr yourrr siiides~” hosuh now using both hands to attack both sides.

“NOHOHO NOT BOTH HAHAHANDS!” Jay cackled again.

Hosuh grabbed the pillow from Jay and tossed it to the side.

“Come on I wanna see that innocent face that you have been hiding” Hosuh said, continuing his poking torture at jays sides.

Yep the dark stare jay had once claimed was a now shy and timid face trying it hide it self from the world with a pair a of hands.

“Come on, I wanna see the hole face” Hosuh urged playfully, using each poke to line up to each he spoke out next, leading up to his belly. “Come on. Come on. Come on. Commmeee oonnn~”

Jay was refusing to show but hosuh knew the exact way to get him to open up.

Hosuh stopped his torment and looked down at jays stomach and lifted his hoodie/shirt. Jay instantly looked down and froze in terror. Without warning Hosuh place both hands on his stomach but held them there.

“When I count to three, you better have that face unveiled…” hosuh warned, but jay was now stuck in a mental game of tug of war with himself and hosuh. “1…” Jay squeaked feeling hosuh’s fingers flex slightly. “2…” Jay started to squirm, hosuh had started to wiggle fingers ever so lightly but naturally. “Aaaaannndd…don’t make me reach that belly button…” Jay pulled his legs up and was about to kick Hosuh off, but hosuh was faster this time.

“Not so fast you adorable rascal of a friend!” Hosuh called, getting back into position.

Hosuh then called out “3!”

And then jay was met with hosuh scribbling his fingers across jays belly.

“AHAHAHAHA STOHOHOHOP IM GOHOHOHONNA DIE! Hahaha!!” Jay tried curling into a ball, but hosuh eventually had to use a bent knee to hold his legs down, then eyes jays belly navel.

“N-no! Hosuh please! I beg of you!” Jay pleaded with a few giggled escaping him.

Hosuh went to reach for it but jay grabbed his arm, to which. Held that hand and the other and held them just high enough above the both of them before Hosuh started to tease effortlessly at jays belly and his center.

If jays wasn’t howling with laughter before, then he was now. “HOSUHUHAHAHA!” Jay threw his head back, spilling out what ever laughter was held back from before.

“Aww your shy~ the sociopath is not only ticklish but is shy, how ironic haha” Hosuh continued his feet when jay spoke again.

“N-NO TEHEHEHEASING!” Jay howled.

Hosuh smiled brightly, a smile that had an evil trap behind them.

Hosuh let go of his hands and started to reach under his clothes again and went for his ribs, jay tensing up.

“Wow your just one big ticklish spot, let me ask you something though, does this sociopath have any cracked ribs I need to check?” Hosuh teased like he always did but raised his voice to sound more playful, tracing each rib on jays body, making him shift.

Hosuh fake gasped. “Huh? You have broken ribs? Well we need to get those fixed!” Hosuh started to tap each and every one of them. Top to bottom. “I need to check how many are broken first though, hold still”

“Stohohop! IT TICKLES!!” Jay clenched his arms down but failed to move hosuh’s hands away.

“Awww does Jay have ticklish ribs? No wonder he’s been all giggly..” Hosuh stopped for a moment, the. Said.

“I have one more question for you jay, then I’ll stop” Hosuh promised.

Jay tensed again, waiting for his fate one last time…hopefully…

“What is a tickle monsters favorite fruit?” Hosuh asked, seeing jays eyes go wide, knowing the answer, he looked away and not even answering.

“It’s…” Hosuh put both hands down on jays stomach, to which Jay tried pushing him off but obviously failed again. “RASBERRIES!!”

Hosuh took in a deep breath and blew into jays belly button, sending a wave of intense ticklish energy into his system, causing him to squirm like a kid, a huge wave of laughter over took him and Jay was crying laughing, squeaking, wheezing and giggling intensely.

He couldn’t breathe.

Hosuh stopped after a second blow and let jay breathe for a good minute.

“You doing alright Jay?” Hosuh asked, laying a hand on his shoulder.

“Y-yeah, just a little…winded…” Jay said with a breathy but tired giggle.

“Well that’s good” Hosuh sat up at the edge of the bed and jay sat up and came up behind and hugged Hosuh.

“Hosuh?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you know that you would look just as cute if this were to happen to you?” Jay joked, feeling a painful jab in his side.

“Jay!” Hosuh screamed, blushing, getting up from the bed and turning around.

Jay out his hands up, knowing he had just set himself up for some more torture. Which he will regret later….probably…

End.

——————————————————

Author: hey so I wanted to try and take a jab at what I think would happen if hosuh was a ler against jay, and I love every moment of what I put into this, you guys better like it too lol 😂 got mild inspiration from @ghostlee and the story they wrote, that they traded with a story of mine! Ok it was some inspiration not just “mild” inspiration now that i think about it.

Have a good day/night/noon everyone! I know this is long but I enjoyed it too much to stop 😅

[goldenseresinretriever]

False Confidence: Chapter 2

Pairing: Javy “Coyote” Machado x Reader

Part of the San Diego Dogfighters universe

Summary: The Athletic named Javy Machado the fifth sluttiest player in the NHL last year. He’s a known playboy who leaves every game with a different girl. As far as he’s concerned he’s living the dream, playing his dream job with the dream lifestyle. Unfortunately his friends and bosses don’t agree. At 33, they think it’s time for him to settle down. You’re a kindergarten teacher at an esteemed private school. You don't expect much when you finally accept your colleague’s invitation to attend her husband’s hockey game but when you accidentally get separated in the post-game rush, you find yourself in a compromising situation with the last person you’d ever expected to meet. When his PR rep suggests a mutually beneficial agreement, your hands are tied. How long will you have to keep up the act? And how long will you be able to?

Series CW: 18+ ONLY, swearing, angst, fluff, fake relationship, suggestive language, mentions of sexual harassment, anxiety, school system inaccuracies, hockey inaccuracies etc. There will be individual chapter warnings. No use of Y/N.

Word Count: 4.7k

A/N: This is a repost from my series, False Confidence. It was originally posted in March 2023, and was lost when my blog was deleted.

Previous Chapter // Series Masterlist // Next Chapter

Everyone’s waiting for your answer but your head is spinning. The silence stretches for just shy of too long before you finally clear your throat. “Can I have a minute?” You stand, shakily, pushing your chair back and making for the door. You curl your fingers around Josie’s wrist as you pass her, tugging her after you. No one tries to stop you and when you exit into the hallway, it’s empty. You glance in both directions, find them unfamiliar and then just pick one, dragging Josie behind you. Once you think you’re out of earshot of the office, you round on Josie who’s regarding you calmly. Your hands are still trembling but you can’t hide your anger anymore and you snap. “What were you thinking!” You snap and Josie’s eyes widen in surprise. Your voice trembles but the bite is still there. “First you tell me to sue him for sexual assault and now you want me to date him?!” Josie sighs, rolling her eyes.

“You really think that little of me, Roadie? Look, what he did was fucked up, and I knew you wouldn’t want to press charges because you’re well, you, but I want to support you if that’s something you really want. Either way he deserves to pay for what he did. If you don’t want to take this to court that’s fine, but why not benefit from this? You said it yourself, you’re worried about Dan’s rule, so play the system. Also, I didn’t say you should date him because I wouldn’t wish that fate on my worst enemy, I said to fake date him. It’s just a game, like playing pretend. It’s January, Dan makes his decisions on renewals by April at the latest and then maybe you stick with it until the end of the year and then you can say you broke up over summer break and it’s over. Plus it’s perfect, just have him show up to a few school events. It doesn’t have to be every one since he has a career that has him traveling most of the year, so you have a good reason when you don’t bring him to something. And since he’ll be gone most of the time anyway, you don’t have to put much effort into the ruse.”

“Plus,” she gives you a rueful smile. “As much as it pains me to say it, Javy’s not such a bad guy. I don’t approve of his choices but I know from seeing him with the guys and Zam especially, he’s got a good heart. When he says he’s sorry and that he didn’t mean to hurt you, I think he means it. The guy has three sisters for heaven’s sake. I wouldn’t even think of suggesting this if I didn’t trust him in some capacity. And like I said, it’s not like you’re actually dating him.” She shrugs again.

“I couldn’t do something like that. Using someone that way? It’s not right.” Your heart squeezes as you force the words out and you try your best to ignore the way your voice shakes. Josie gives you a pointed look.

“He’s using you too, remember? Zam needs him to fix his reputation. A steady girlfriend is exactly what he needs, or at least the illusion of one.”

“Does he need it, or does the team?” Your words have more bite than you intended and Josie regards you curiously.

“He is the team. It’s his job, the way your teaching position is yours.” She says coolly. “I’m not going to force you one way or another, but I’m just saying, an opportunity like this isn’t going to come around again.” Your stomach is a tangle of nerves as Josie goes back inside and you consider her words. It would be mutually beneficial for both of your jobs, and he clearly wasn’t attracted to you, so perhaps some kind of agreement wouldn’t hurt. You can’t believe you’re actually considering this but you think about your kids, your classroom, and your job that you really do love. If this was what you had to do to guarantee that you kept it, you could play the game. Your kids are everything and you take great pride in your work. As a kindergarten teacher, you’re the kids’ first impression of the school and you take that job very seriously. The idea of having to hand that over to someone else makes your heart twist painfully in your chest. You can do this for them.

“Hey,” a voice breaks through your train of thought and you jump in surprise. Javy holds his hands up in front of him, backing up a step to give you space. “Easy, I didn’t mean to scare you, I’m not going to hurt you.” He says, brown eyes widening at your terrified expression. You feel your body curl into itself instinctively and see a flicker in his eyes that you can’t read. “I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.” He says slowly, eyes running over your figure but not in a scrutinizing way. If you didn’t know better, you’d think he was checking you over. “So,” he says, posture relaxing as he leans a shoulder against the wall as he regards you. “How are you feeling about this agreement?”

You pick at the fabric of the skirt of the dress, averting your eyes so you don’t have to look at him. After it’s been a little too long without you answering you give a slight shrug before you force the words out, your voice quiet. “I really love my job. I don’t want to lose it.” It’s not an answer, not really but he nods slowly as you chance a peek at his face to see his reaction. He catches your gaze and gives you a small smile. It feels like the first peek of the sun through an overcast sky after a storm. It sends an unexpected droplet of warmth plummeting straight into your stomach. You find that you don’t want to escape his gaze nearly as much after seeing that soft quirk of his lips. Cautiously, you turn to face him fully and watch as the corners of his mouth slowly tick up in tandem. The clouds move apart and as you’re bathed in his warmth, you wonder what it would feel like to experience the full force of his smile. You think it might destroy you.

“What about you?” You don’t recognize your voice when you find it. You clear your throat and try again. “How are you feeling about the agreement?” He shrugs his broad shoulders.

“There are worse things.” You suppress the urge to flinch at his casual words that send a slice of cold down your spine. “Zam’s been on my ass for months about settling down, that’s true.”

He pauses so you ask, “And you wouldn’t rather have an actual girlfriend? A real one, I mean.” He gives you a curious look.

“I could ask you the same thing,” he points out and you feel your cheeks heat as you avert your gaze from the intensity of his.

“No,” you answer softly. “I wouldn’t.” You don’t offer any additional explanation so he just nods.

“Well, I wouldn’t either.” He says and you realize you’ve unintentionally placed the two of you at a stalemate. “So, that’s it then?” He asks, finally breaking the silence. “We’re doing this?” You swallow hard before nodding firmly.

“We’re doing this.” He nods back before extending a hand into the buffer of space he’d left between the two of you. You stare at it for a long moment before extending one of your own. He holds his hand still, leaving it to you to wrap your digits around his larger ones. He curls his around yours then and you’re reminded of how they felt on your hips, pressing into the flesh like a potter molding clay. When he shakes your hand you watch the muscles flex in his arm and wonder if you’ve unknowingly thrown yourself into the deep end, condemned to a death by drowning.

“Hi, I’m Javy, nice to meet you.” Even though he’s told you his name once before, this feels different. You introduce yourself as well. It feels odd. You’ve known him before ever being introduced. This feels different, almost like the air between the two you had shifted. He lets go of your hand as quickly as he grips it and holds out his hand back towards Zam’s office.

“Shall we?” He asks and you nod, turning to go ahead of him. You feel the ghost of fingertips against the small of your back and you stiffen instinctively at the unexpected contact. “Shit, sorry, I didn’t mean to,” he apologizes instantly, pulling his fingers away. “I’m a naturally touchy guy. It’s a bad habit, I’ll try to be more aware of it if it makes you uncomfortable.” He sounds genuinely apologetic and maybe a tiny bit embarrassed. He holds the door to the office open for you as you both enter and you square your shoulders, willing them not to shake as you approach Zam’s desk.

“I’ll do it.” Zam looks surprised but nods before turning to Javy.

“Javy?” You don’t turn to look at him but the pause before his answer tells you he’s nodding.

“I’ll do it.”

“Good,” Zam says, not sounding very convincing before she tries again. “Good. I’ll draw up something official that the two of you can sign. In the meantime, the two of you should get to know each other. Javy, I’ll arrange a press conference at which you’re going to address the photos and ask the press as well as your fans to respect your girlfriend’s privacy. After that you’ll need to start appearing together in public: dates, Roadie you’ll need to start attending home games and maybe even an away game or two where your schedule permits.” Your brain starts getting hazy as the weight of what you’ve just signed up for settles onto your shoulders. Zam’s still speaking but your brain is louder as it gets heavier and then Zam’s dismissing everyone.

You feel Josie’s hand on your shoulder, steering you towards the door. You file out of the office with everyone else and follow behind Josie, your mind still so busy that you don’t hear the calling of your name until a hand curls around your wrist and you jump, letting out a squeak of surprise. The hand retreats instantly and Javy gives you a guilty look. “Sorry, but you weren’t answering.” He scratches the back of his neck. You give him a shy nod, twisting your hands in front of you. “I don’t have your phone number. I figured that’s probably important.” You fumble to extricate your phone from your purse, tapping at the screen with trembling fingers before handing it to him. He inputs the digits with ease before handing the phone back. “Cool, well I’ll be in touch.” He says before giving you one last smile before turning to jog down the hallway in the opposite direction.

Once he’s gone you look down at your phone, and your eyes widen as you see what he’s done. Your texts are open to a new conversation with a contact named “Big Sexy ;)” with a single bubble from your side of the chain reading “How’s dinner sound?” Your phone chimes and a message pops up from the opposite side of the screen.

“It would be my pleasure.” Followed by an unfamiliar address. Your breath catches in your throat. Not for the first time today you wonder if you’re in over your head.

***

Your kitchen looks like a hurricane’s gone through it. The result of the storm perches on the corner of the counter, prompt seated in a frilly baking dish. The lemon-blueberry loaf fills the space with a delicious aroma as you frown at your reflection. You’d finally invested in a full-length mirror at Josie’s behest and you’re still getting used to using it. You smooth your hands down the surface of your light-wash jeans, resisting the urge to tug at the sweater you’re wearing as you regard your reflection. Your eyes shift to the sliver of the kitchen that you can catch in the mirror and frown at the mess. You’re a stress baker and so far today you have the loaf you’re taking to Javy’s along with muffins for your class tomorrow and another tray for the teachers. You glance at the clock on the wall and grimace. If you don’t leave now you’ll be late and you don’t need that extra stress on top of everything else on your mind tonight. You begrudgingly grab your purse and the loaf pan, heading out as the sun starts to paint the sky with the warm pallet of sunset.

***

You googled the apartment complex before you left but that doesn’t stop you from craning your neck up at the impressive reflective surface of the luxury apartment building. It’s smack in the middle of downtown San Diego and you’d passed a packed highway of commuters heading in the opposite direction on your way here. As you step into the opulent lobby, you feel severely underdressed, especially as you approach the front desk. You’ve never seen an apartment with a front desk but then again you’ve never had reason to interact with the extremely wealthy aside from teaching their children. The woman at the front desk doesn’t look much younger than you but she could be older. It would make sense that a job like this would age you less than corralling elementary schoolers all day.

“Can I help you?” She asks with a nasal voice that has everything to do with her pinched expression of thinly veiled disgust as she gives you a once-over that’s definitely not in her job description. You give her a tight-lipped smile in response.

“I’m here to see Javy Machado.” You consider calling him Mr. Machado but if he’s supposed to be your boyfriend you need to sound comfortable around him. Especially since this probably won’t be the last time you have to interact with… Emma. You find her name tag as she finishes her silent assessment of you, a pitying smile on her lips.

“Oh honey, you’re not going to need that.” She nods at the loaf pan in your hands. “It’s not the kind of cake he invited you over for.” She smirks like she’s won some sort of game and you wonder exactly how many girls she’s seen come through here. You plaster your polite smile on even harder, imagining her as one of your students’ mothers. You’re not sure where your confidence comes from but maybe Roadie, fake girlfriend to superstar hockey player Javy Machado is braver than Ms. Roadie, kindergarten teacher, because you respond coolly.

“I’d appreciate it if you let my boyfriend know I’m here, please, Emma. We have dinner plans.” She looks like she’s about to snort but then her expression changes completely and you don’t understand until she addresses someone who must be behind you.

“Mr. Machado! Good evening!” She chirps cheerfully and she reminds you of a baby bird. Desperate. You steel yourself and turn to face Javy, keeping your brave face in place as best as you can.

“Perfect timing, sweetheart.” The words sound clunky and unfamiliar in your mouth and you see Javy’s eyes widen almost imperceptibly before understanding fills them.

“Hey beautiful, ready for dinner?” He leans in then, eyes watching you carefully as if trying to convey his intentions before his warm lips meet your cheek in a chaste kiss that sets your skin ablaze in its wake. You give him a simple nod, words failing you as you turn over the casual term of endearment in your mind.

Emma’s watching your exchange with barely contained shock. Javy doesn’t even pay her a moment of attention, nodding to the left in silent instruction and you follow him to an elevator bay. You register then that his hands are full of takeout bags and you immediately wrestle one from his grasp as he juggles them to free a hand for the keypad to the elevator. “Thanks," he says and you arrange the bag in your arms. “I hope you like Cajun.” The smell escaping the bags hits your nose then and your nostrils fill with the rich, spicy scent and you feel a little of the tension slip out of your shoulders even though the smell is entirely foreign to you.

“I’ve never had it.” You admit as the elevator arrives and the two of you board it.

“Never?!” He looks surprised before it melts into a grin that knocks the air out of your lungs. “Well, then this is the perfect place to try it for the first time. Well, other than New Orleans.” He amends and you nod along. The two of you fall into silence as the elevator climbs. You notice then what he’s wearing as you stand on opposite sides of the elevator. You’d felt underdressed in the lobby but he’s dressed in a faded ASU shirt and athletic shorts over socks and slide sandals. He notices you looking and gives you a rueful look. “I was banking on having time to change before you got here.” He explains and you shake your head, dismissing his half-apology.

“It’s fine. It’s your house after all.” He smiles again and the silence is back before the door slides open onto an entryway. You’ve arrived straight into his apartment and you let your eyes explore the beginning of his home. The entryway is sparse and undecorated. It looks stiff, devoid of personality. There’s a hallway that turns out of sight to your left and a closed door to the right.

“That’s the spare bedroom.” He explains as he slips off his shoes and you follow suit. “It’s a weird layout but it suits my needs.” You’re not entirely sure what he means until you follow him down the hallway. Once it opens onto the living room you think you understand Javy Machado just a little bit more.

The living room is a complete 180 from the entryway. The furniture looks expensive and the floor-to-ceiling windows overlook a breathtaking view of the city but the end tables are littered with picture frames and the space has a distinct lived-in feel. You get the feeling that his overnight guests don’t make it this far into the apartment. He makes a beeline for the kitchen and you hurry to catch up with him. You manage to catch sight of at least one of the frames’ contents and a soft smile quirks at your lips. A younger Javy and Jake grin back at you. Their arms are slung over each other’s shoulders, faces sweaty, wearing red and gold hockey jerseys that you assume are from ASU given Javy’s shirt of the same color. You make your way into the kitchen where Javy’s opening the bags and accounting for all the food. He looks up when you come in, depositing the extra bag next to him and the loaf pan beside it. He snatches it up, groaning as he takes a deep sniff of the contents.

“Roadie, this smells delicious.” He remarks before excusing himself to his bedroom to change leaving you in the kitchen. Once you’re alone, you feel the nerves start to creep back in. You worry the hem of your sweater as you wait until a faint jingling reaches your ears and you turn just in time to see a wary black snout make its way around the corner into the kitchen. Of all the things you’ve seen so far in Javy’s apartment, this is the biggest surprise. The tiny dachshund regards you curiously and you do your best to manage your nerves, knowing the dog can definitely sense them and squat down.

“Hi there,” you whisper cautiously and the dog approaches carefully. You reach a hand out and she sniffs it suspiciously before licking at your fingers and you can’t help the giggle that escapes your lips. You catch sight of her collar as you scratch her head gently. “Roxie” it reads and you smile wider. “Hi there, Roxie, it's nice to meet you.” Roxie seems equally pleased and rolls over onto her belly to encourage further scratches and rubs. You’re so consumed with her that you don’t notice Javy return until Roxie squirms into your grasp to face her owner, giving a playful yip. He’s gaping at the two of you and you’re instantly nervous again. You stand quickly, dusting your hands off on your jeans.

“S-sorry I didn’t mean to intrude I just- She came in here so I just- I’m sorry.” You sputter but he’s still staring at Roxie before he slowly moves his gaze to you. Something unreadable passes through his eyes and then he shakes his head.

“No, it's fine I just, she was supposed to be in the laundry room. And I…” he trails off before continuing. “She doesn’t usually like other people, especially strangers.”

“Oh,”

“Yeah,” he says, looking back down at where Roxie’s sitting, regarding him with a cocked head on the floor. He looks back at you, expression unreadable. “Should we eat?” You nod and follow him to sit at the countertop. He pulls two bowls out of the cabinets and opens up some take-out soup containers. “How do you feel about seafood?” Your stomach drops as nerves twist your gut. He looks up and must see your expression because he just nods and grabs one of the containers, dishing the hearty-looking stew into a bowl before passing it to you. “That one’s just sausage. I didn’t know where you stood on seafood, so I got both.” Your heart aches slightly as you thank him and take the bowl. He fills his bowl from a different container before taking a seat next to you. “So, Roadie,” he says after taking a few bites in silence, “tell me about yourself.”

You squirm slightly in your seat. You’ve never been one to talk much about yourself so you decide to stick to the basics, and treat this like a job interview. It kind of is a job interview, except you’re interviewing for a position after taking it instead of before. “I’m almost thirty. I’m a kindergarten teacher at Acacia Academy. That’s how I know Josie and Reuben. Josie and I are colleagues and their daughter Skylar is in my class.” Javy nods, before asking.

“Do you like it? Teaching?” You nod vigorously and you think you see a ghost of a smile on his lips.

“My kids mean everything to me. I can’t imagine doing something else.” You admit and he nods again.

“What do you do other than work?” You give him a confused look so he clarifies. “What are your hobbies?”

“I’m an artist,” you answer easily. “It’s not in any way professional by any means, but I like doing it.” You shrug.

“What kind of art?” He asks and you shrug again.

“I work with lots of mediums, I don’t like being limited to just one.”

“What’s your favorite?”

“Painting,” you answer easily.

“Why?” He rests his chin on his hand and you feel pinned under his casual gaze. It feels odd, and unfamiliar, being the sole focus of his attention. It’s like walking to your car on a cloudless day and feeling every inch of your cool skin prickling under the unyielding warmth of the sun.

“It’s so versatile,” you explain, dropping your gaze to where your fingers pick at the napkin pinned under your bowl. There are so many styles and techniques and nothing is clear-cut. You’re not limited by the colors you have in front of you, everything can blend. Anything’s possible. The only limitation you have is your creativity.” An unreadable look passes through his eyes but then he’s back to normal. You don’t get long to dwell on it, though, before he’s back to asking you questions.

***

“So, you said your principal doesn’t care about making illegal rules because it’s a private school, so why not teach at a public school?” You fidget with your spoon, looking away from him before answering.

“Public schools aren’t really a good fit for me. I can’t get comfortable.” He doesn’t push and you’re thankful.

“Speaking of comfort, we should talk about how we’re going to do this.” At your confused expression, he elaborates. “Pretend to be in a relationship, I mean. For starters, if we’re really going to sell this, you can’t be jumping out of your skin every time I touch you. People are going to expect at least a little PDA.” He must see the wide-eyed dread on your face because he holds up a placating hand. “I’m not saying we have to make out every time there are cameras around, but holding hands, hugs, and the occasional kiss here and there are going to have to be something you’re comfortable with.” You nod, weakly. “That being said, if there’s anything specific you don’t want me doing, tell me. I don’t want you to be scared of me. We’re on the same team here. This doesn’t work if we’re not working together.” You nod, nervously. It wasn’t like this last time, this is all new territory for you. “If it’ll help you loosen up, we could just have sex. No strings attached, obviously, but if it’ll make you more comfortable-“

“NO.” Your voice comes out with more force than you intended it to, laced with terror as your heart hammers in your chest. What are you doing here? What were you thinking, agreeing to this? Of course, he’d expect you to have sex with him. He’s used to having a new girl every night. You’re losing the battle with your thoughts when Javy breaks right through them.

“Hey, HEY, easy Roadie, it was just a suggestion, we don’t have to.” He looks like he’s fighting the urge to grab your hands in his.

“Please,” you hate the way the word sounds. You want something to feel real. One first to be yours, truly yours. Clearly, he hates the way it sounds too because his face contorts into something unfamiliar before he nods.

“No sex, done.” He hesitates for a moment before he opens his mouth again, choosing his words carefully and you see a flash of rage in his eyes and you bristle in fear. “Roadie… I know I’m probably the last person you want to talk about this with, but I just,” he shakes his head, pushing forward. “Did, did someone hurt you?” You realize what the rage in his eyes is now. Not anger at you, for turning him down, but protectiveness. Because he’s taken your vehement refusal as something else. You faintly remember Josie mentioning that he has three sisters. Of course, that would be his first instinct. You shake your head quickly.

“No, no, it’s not that.” You can tell he doesn’t believe you and thinks you just don’t trust him as the fire in his eyes doesn’t dim.

“If you ever need someone to talk to, all the girls on the team are really sweet and would be willing to-“

“It’s not that.” You insist and you can tell he’s still unconvinced.

“Not that you have to talk to someone but I’m sure it might help-“

“JAVY, I’m a virgin.” You squeeze your eyes shut before blurting out the words, hiding from the shame that coats your throat in their wake. The silence between the two of you stretches long enough that eventually you crack open an eye to see his reaction, but there isn’t one. He’s just sitting there, waiting for you. You wrench your other eye open, struggling to get comfortable in the silence. Your fingers twist together in your lap as you wait for him to say something.

“That wasn’t your first kiss, was it?” He says, finally and you can see the gears turning in his mind as he follows his new line of thinking but you shake your head.

“No, I, I’ve been kissed before. It’s just… it’s been a while. I’m a little out of practice.” He nods, contemplating something unspoken before he nods again and looks you straight in the eye.

“Roadie, can I kiss you?”

[godlizzza]

holiday themed prompt!! pre-relationship danbert accidentally ending up under a mistletoe

Dan wasn't sure if Herbert was aware of the reindeer antlers headband clinging to his head. Ignorance was the only logical answer. Otherwise, it would be that Herbert knew they were there and had deliberately not removed them, which was a little too far-fetched for Dan to consider. He did, however, catch Herbert's elbow and bring him up short as he passed through the doorway.

Herbert turned to him, his nose wrinkled with irritation. "What?"

Dan stared at his antlers. "Do you know you're wearing those?"

Herbert's answering look was withering. "Do you know you have lipstick on your cheek?"

Dan's hand flew from Herbert's arm to his own face. The hospital Christmas party had been sabotaged by someone clearly intent to stir up drama, as people kept finding sprigs of mistletoe hidden throughout the floor. Dan had already been caught in the entranceway by Denise, who had planted a messy smooch on his cheek. A smooch which had left behind evidence.

Herbert took a sip from his cup of eggnog, eying Dan coolly. Dan had been nursing his own cup, though, truth be told, he wasn't the biggest fan of the drink. He'd always preferred mulled wine. Still, the alcohol must've been affecting Herbert a little, if the pink blush in his cheeks was anything to go by. It stood out starkly against his pale skin. Dan found himself wondering if he blushed like that all over.

Woah.

Dan slammed the brakes on his own mind. What the fuck? Maybe this eggnog was spiked or something, because why the fuck else would he be having those thoughts about Herbert? The holiday rush must've taken more out of him than he'd thought.

He lowered his hand and stammered, "Um, I-"

"Oh! Looks like you've got another one, Dan."

Dan turned at the sound of Denise's voice. She was grinning ear-to-ear, but her eyes weren't on Dan. They were on something just above his head. He glanced up, his stomach curdling with dread at what he was sure awaited him. Big surprise, a little clump of mistletoe had been taped to the arch of the doorway, in the spot directly above where he and Herbert were standing. How had Dan not noticed it until now?

"Oh, no," Dan hurried to say, huffing out a nervous laugh. His head swiveled back and forth between Denise, who was smiling expectantly, and Herbert, who was staring at him, nonplussed. Dan swallowed against the sudden constriction in his throat. "Um, no. I don't think that would be- I don't think that's what it was intended for."

"Now, Dan," Denise chided, hands going to her hips. "That's not very in the holiday spirit, is it? Ignoring mistletoe is bad luck, you know."

Dan didn't know that. In fact, he was pretty confident it wasn't true.

He sighed. "I think the mistletoe can turn a blind-"

He was abruptly cut off by Herbert fisting his free hand in Dan's garish red and green sweater emblazoned with a smiling snowman, before yanking him down into a kiss. Dan's eyes nearly bugged out of his head at the press of Herbert's mouth against his own. His lips were soft, surprisingly warm, and tasted of eggnog. The kiss was as brief as it was sudden, lasting only a couple of seconds before Herbert released him and casually stepped back.

"There," he drawled, the pink in his cheeks even more prominent now. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

Dan just gawped at him, his mouth hanging open wide enough to catch flies. Herbert lifted his cup in a salute, before turning on his heel and vanishing into the crowd of over-worked hospital staff all wearing tacky sweaters and drinking more than should've been allowed on a Tuesday. Dan stayed where he was, unable to flip back whatever switch Herbert had flicked with his mouth.

"Well," Denise said, breaking the silence that had begun to gather on them like a thick fog. "He certainly is full of surprises!"

Dan finally closed his mouth and nodded dumbly.

She could say that again.

[chaisarinawat]

distance

Timeline: 2024 October 14th, Monday, midday Location: Dragon Entertainment Office, Bangkok Mood: Stressed, discouraged, worried Attire: See this post. Baby boy is in oversized clothing and a more relaxed fit, since he's been banished to the mail room With: @ippotis Music: N/A

Chai was stressed - but then again, these days, when was he not? He had become so familiar with the feeling because it followed him around all day and all night, keeping him on his toes and also weighing heavily on his mind. The young man was always rushing, trying to prove himself worthy of holding down a good job, because he couldn't afford to leave Dragon Entertainment - even if, every day, there was a chance he would bump into him.

Khun Dan hadn't fired Chai after the Japan trip almost a month ago, but was very obviously putting distance between them. Since... the onsen incident... Khun Dan had been virtually absent from Chai's life.

Chai went to work as normal on the Monday after his arrival back to Thailand, nervous about what was going to happen now between himself and Khun Dan, only to be told by his boss that he'd be moving to a different department in the company. He was no longer needed as Khun Dan's assistant.

Chai was conflicted about that. On the one hand, he was relieved; Khun Dan had apologised to him in Japan, but they hadn't talked about what transpired, because Chai had been a wreck. But now they were back in Thailand, and they still hadn't talked, leaving everything kinda... unfinished. And he wouldn't even know how to face Khun Dan everyday after what happened, if they didn't talk about it - not that Chai was going to bring it up. No way. He was terrified of confrontation. He had also decided not to file any kind of complaint or report against his boss. For everything that went wrong at the onsen, he didn't think Khun Dan was a monster like other men he knew. If he was, then Chai believed that more would have occurred in that hot spring. Still, not having some kind of resolution kept Chai in an anxious state, so having a job away from Khun Dan would definitely help settle his nerves.

The other part of Chai though... felt like he had failed. He failed himself, he failed Khun Dan, and he failed his P'Rachi. This was one of the best jobs he had had in terms of prestige and income, and Chai had been getting so much better at it. He hadn't had the experience, but was still lucky enough to have the chance to work it because of his mommy Rachi, and now it was gone.

Instead of being Khun Dan's assistant, Chai had been moved elsewhere - set and costuming, because they needed extra hands. He worked his best, as he always did, but on his third day he tripped over a paint bucket and fell through one of the backdrops, ripping it straight down the middle and getting himself and his colleagues covered in paint. The next day, he was moved to the script-writing room; but after he accidentally jammed the photocopier and then mixed up the order of the scripts, he was moved again. Then again. Then again. Until finally, Chai was put away in the mail room. He... he didn't even know mail rooms still existed these days...

At least it was... just him. Nobody else would be caught in his accidental line of fire. But Chai didn't know who half the employees were in this place, so it was taking him time to deliver everything - and he knew that was pissing people off.

Trying to be quicker, Chai was rushing down the corridors while staring at the names on the envelops before he bumped into someone's back. Like some kind of goofy cartoon - and in true clumsy Chai fashion - the young man fell back on his ass with an eep! with his papers and envelops thrown out of his hands and scattered on the floor.

"S-sorry!" Chai said to the person in front of him, immediately giving them a wai. "I didn't hurt you did I- o-oh... Khun Dan..."

Chai didn't know who he offended in a past life to be so unlucky. Because the person he had collided with was none other than his old boss - who he hadn't seen in a while...

[sinlillith]

Vox Sine Voce

chapter one, a misstep.

Perdue dans l’ombre de ce que j’étais."

I fell.

It wasn’t a stumble, or a trip, or the accidental plummet of an unaware being. It was a descent, vast and terrible, through fire and air and silence. The kind of fall that strips you bare—of memories, of meaning, of everything that makes you something other than a hollow shape.

13 5 18 15 18 25

The impact. I don’t remember it clearly. There was heat, an unrelenting force against my body. Then a moment where the world seemed to hold its breath before releasing me into oblivion. I think there was light—my light, burning bright and alive across my forehead, illuminating the desolation around me.

But that, too, was stolen. When I woke, there was nothing left. No warmth, no recognition. Just me, lying among unfamiliar shapes and shadows.

I woke in a small, white room.

The air here feels dense, clinging to my skin like a mist that I can’t shake off. The walls hum faintly, a rhythm I cannot place, and the light above flickers just enough to keep me uneasy.

I sit up, slowly, each movement stiff and foreign. My limbs feel heavier than they should, bound by gravity more oppressive than what I once knew. I reach for my head, my fingertips brushing against something faint—a memory, like the ghost of a flame. My forehead tingles, as if it remembers something I can’t.

The door opens.

A figure enters, their form soft, almost blurred. They make noises—sharp and unintelligible, their lips moving with a precision I can’t follow. I tilt my head, trying to decipher the sound. It comes in waves, crashing over me, but none of it makes sense.

"...What is this language?"

It’s not the words that fail me—it’s the rhythm, the structure. The way it twists and folds into something I cannot process. My mind reaches for meaning and finds only static.

I try to respond, but my voice is not a voice at all. It emerges as a series of tones, vibrating and distant, like the echoes of something lost. The figure—she, I think, though I’m not sure how I know—pauses. Her face shifts, pulling into an expression that might be concern.

She says something else, softer this time. I want to tell her I don’t understand, that I’m trying, but my throat tightens, and all I can do is shake my head.

Her smile falters. She places a hand on my arm, a gesture meant to comfort, but it only makes me feel more other. Her touch doesn’t carry the resonance I once knew—the connection I remember so faintly, like a dream slipping through my fingers.

9 19 15 6 20 18 1 3 5

The whispers start again.

They are faint at first, just a brushing at the edges of my thoughts. Words I cannot place, images I cannot hold onto. A voice, familiar yet distant, calls out: “You must not be alone.”

She leaves me alone.

The quiet presses down, heavy and suffocating. I stare at my hands, turning them over, tracing the lines of my palms. They are familiar, but wrong. Too solid. Too human.

A flash of memory—my hands, glowing, weaving light into threads that sang as they moved. The threads stretched across vast spaces, connecting me to others.

Others.

There were others. Weren’t there?

The thought slips away before I can hold onto it, like sand through my fingers.

They bring me food. Strange, square shapes on a round plate, with colors that feel wrong. I poke at it, trying to find something familiar in its texture, its scent, its taste. Nothing.

A nurse watches me from the corner, her eyes kind but distant. She tries to speak to me again, her voice rising and falling in ways that should carry meaning.

It doesn’t.

Her face is soft, but her movements are mechanical. She reaches out to brush a strand of hair from my face, and for a moment, my forehead glows faintly.

Her hand freezes.

“Did you see that?” she asks, turning to someone I cannot see. But when she looks back at me, the glow is gone, and her face smooths into that same neutral concern.

She leaves. They always leave.

5 18 1 19 5

The night here is suffocating. The silence is never truly silent. There is a hum beneath it all, faint and steady, like the heartbeat of a machine. I stand by the window, looking out at the darkened world.

The sky is wrong. The stars are unfamiliar—foreign constellations scattered across a canvas I don’t recognize. I try to find patterns, to trace them into something meaningful, but they twist and shift the longer I look.

I press my hand to the glass. It’s cold, unyielding.

“Where am I?” I whisper, though no one can hear me. My voice is faint, distorted, as if it isn’t mine at all.

The whispers return, louder this time. They aren’t coming from outside—they’re in my head, coiling around my thoughts, dragging me back into that void where memories flicker like dying embers.

A city. Towers that pulse with light, their glow reflecting in an endless sea.

A voice. “You cannot stay.”

Hands. My hands. Reaching, glowing, trying to hold onto something that is slipping away.

The memories fade, and I am left staring at my reflection in the glass. My face stares back, hollow and unfamiliar.

I am alone.

Not just here, in this room, on this planet. I am alone in a way I cannot describe, a way that suffocates and crushes and stretches across infinity.

I close my eyes, but there is no relief. The darkness behind my eyelids is the same as the darkness outside.

the whispers don’t stop,

it appears as if they never ever will.

[hauntingcryptids]

And His Heart Grew Three Sizes That Day

Dhawan!Master x Reader

Summary - After everything that happened in the universe, you just wanted a calm Christmas with everyone you cared about, including The Master.

Based On This Request -

Warnings - The Doctor and The Extended Fam being a bit rude, The Master feeling depressed, some suggestive bits, some references to season 12 canon. This is a canon divergent fic - let’s forget that The Power of The Doctor happened for a bit.

Word Count - 4593

A/n - Gender Neutral Reader. Requested by @sessa23. Thank you so much for this request! I really enjoyed writing it, even though it made me emotional. I hope that you enjoy this and have a great Christmas!

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It was almost time for everyone to arrive, and you were dreading the decisions you had made leading up to this day. Even How The Grinch Stole Christmas playing in your living room couldn’t calm you down!

A couple of weeks ago, after The Doctor had brought you, Dan, and Yaz home for the beginning of the holiday season, you had the brilliant idea to host a Christmas dinner for everyone. And your tired, adrenaline and adventure-muddled brain meant everyone, including The Master. 

You had plenty of opportunities to change your mind and not invite The Master or uninvite him even, but you could never bring yourself to do it. Despite how The Master treated The Doctor and The Extended Fam, he tried to treat you with the utmost respect, always. 

You don’t think The Doctor knew, or if she did, she didn’t tell you, but you had texted and written to The Master many times. He initiated contact first. He was supercilious and threatening, with an undertone of flirting, during his first message to you. You knew that he meant to scare you, even though he was probably joking. You didn’t respond to his threat, though. Instead, you asked him where he had found his coat; you declared your desire to have a coat like that, seeing how warm it looked on him. This began a series of communications between the two of you. You talked about everything, including your shared pain of being ignored by The Doctor. 

It was probably dangerous for you to share such personal information with an intergalactic criminal, but you couldn’t stop. The Master just seemed to understand you on a deeper level than The Fam and definitely more than The Doctor ever could.

Things became serious between the two of you, though, when the two of you began calling and face-timing each other. Again, he called you first. You were having a panic attack over something minor in retrospect, and somehow The Master knew and called you to help you. He took your panic very seriously and quickly calmed you down. Now, on top of your regular texts and letters, you and The Master called nearly every night before you, at least, went to bed and sometimes in the morning or throughout the day.

It never seemed to cross your mind why The Master was so attached to you until today. Finally, you realised that he was lonely. You obviously couldn’t assume everything, but after all the conversations you had with The Master, you came to the conclusion that he was, at least, a bit remorseful for the things he did and he just wanted, or needed, someone to want him in return. Maybe he was only remorseful because he had accidentally hurt you in the past because of your closeness with The Doctor. Either way, The Doctor was wrong about him; The Master wasn’t an irredeemable monster. You just hoped that putting The Master in this environment today wouldn’t trigger him. For his sake, you hoped that this Christmas dinner went smoothly.

You were setting up your dining room table for the fourth time when Graham and Ryan arrived at your flat. You were glad that they arrived first. Graham especially always managed to calm you down. He was probably the person you opened up to the most other than The Master. Your relationships between the two obviously weren’t comparable, but Graham was definitely a support person for you. 

After placing some presents under your Christmas tree and putting some food away, Graham helped you organise the table to where it wasn’t so cluttered and busy while Ryan prepared the three of you some drinks.

Dan arrived next, with a bundle of presents under one arm and a stack of tin boxes filled to the brim with homemade cookies in the other. A bag filled with Christmas crackers hung precariously from one of his pinkies.

Yaz arrived with The Doctor, which didn’t surprise you. It seemed to not surprise Dan, Graham and Ryan either, so you were happy to not be the only one to see the obvious connection between the two. The Doctor had brought some alien dish that you were frankly scared to eat, while Yaz made up for that by bringing two large dishes that looked delicious.

You still hadn’t told any of your friends of the other suspected guest, however, The Master still wasn’t there, and it had been about half an hour since he was supposed to arrive. Maybe he wasn’t going to come. If he wasn’t, there was no need to tell your friends that you had invited someone that tried to murder them on multiple occasions to Christmas dinner. You could just enjoy the day with them and stop stressing about losing them as long as they didn’t ask any questions.

“Why do you have an extra seat set up, Y/n?” Yaz asked after the current conversation the six of you were having dried up.

“Oh, I just think that the table looks better that way. If I don’t set up that seat, then it just feels weird.” You lied, but you hoped that no one would question you too much. 

“That makes sense. One of my previous regenerations was like that! You would've gotten along well with him.” The Doctor stated before slurping up the neon green, spindly food of the alien dish she brought.

You were going to ask about The Doctor’s previous regeneration because you loved hearing about her past even though she rarely talked about it, but then there was a knock on your door. You thought it was a neighbour at first, but then three more knocks followed. It was him. The Master actually showed up. 

“Who’s that?” Yaz questioned.

“Maybe carolers?” Dan pondered out loud.

“I’ll get the door! Everyone stay here. Enjoy the meal.” You jumped up from your seat and ran to the door of your apartment. You opened it frantically to see an anxious-looking Master. You had never seen him like that before and worry instantly washed over you.

“Happy Christmas.” You commented in the hope that it might ease his worry, but it did not.

“Yeah, happy Christmas.”

“Are you alright?” You were about to reach out to hold his arm reassuringly, but you decided against it.

“Everyone else is here, aren’t they?”

“Yeah. I didn’t tell them that you were coming, just in case …”

“Just in case I backed out. I’m not The Doctor, love. I don’t do that to the people I care about.”

“Are you ready to meet them or … ?” You cut yourself off when you heard The Doctor shout about what was taking so long.

“I think we should just get the confrontational bit over with. I am starving and I heard that you Humans eat loads at Christmas!” The Master bumped your shoulder reassuringly as he showed himself into your flat. He wanted to try and seem calm for you so as to not worry you more than you clearly already were. He looked around for a bit, fascinated by being in your space and finally seeing how you live. After closing your apartment door and pulling The Master away from sneaking away to look into your bedroom or break into The Doctor’s TARDIS, you lead The Master to your kitchen and to all of your other guests.

“Who was at the door, Y/n? Are we expecting someone else?” You stuttered for a moment, unsure really of what to say. You had not prepared enough for this part of the day. You felt The Master walk up behind you and into the kitchen. You then saw the faces of your friends contort into various forms of fear, disgust, anger and confusion.

“Hello. Happy Christmas, everyone.” The Master gave an awkward wave to your friends as he anxiously shifted back and forth on his feet.

“Y/n, can I speak with you for a moment?” The Doctor asked, but it wasn’t a question. She was already beginning to stand from her chair and walk out of the kitchen.

“Of course, Doctor. Master, you can sit in the open seat next to mine.” The Doctor and the Master glared at each other when they passed. The Doctor felt betrayed that you would invite him here. The Master was just upset that The Doctor was choosing to ruin your holidays with bickering.

“Why did you invite him here, Y/n?” The Doctor asked angrily once the two of you were alone and as far away from your kitchen as possible.

“Because I wanted to.”

“Y/n?”

“Isn’t Christmas a time for forgiveness, Doctor? And besides, no one should be alone on Christmas, including him.” The Doctor sighed as if she were trapped. She understood your position, but she continued to be sceptical of The Master’s motives. But it was Christmas, so maybe he deserved one more chance.

“I don’t like that you’ve done this.”

“Fine, but can we yell at each other later and just enjoy ourselves today?” The Doctor nodded defeatedly. Then you and The Doctor walked back into the kitchen in silence. You could tell from the faces of The Master and your friends that they all heard your conversation, and frankly, you didn’t care. The Master was there for you when you needed him, probably more than The Doctor and The Fam had, and you didn’t care who knew about it.

It was uncomfortably silent while the seven of you ate. This isn’t what you wanted. You don't know why, but every time you imagined today, the seven of you were happy and joking around. No one would be mentioning the Kasaavin or Gallifrey or the Timeless Child; it would just be a fun day between unlikely friends. It was just seven people with a lot of trauma having a bit of fun. But you now thought that to be a naive daydream and you cursed yourself for setting this whole dinner up. 

You felt The Master bump the side of your leg with his knee. You looked over at him. The Master, you could tell, was trying to ask you if you were alright without using telepathy. He knew that The Doctor would have called him out for doing that if he had. You smiled at him before returning to stare at your food. You didn’t want him to know how upset you were.

The atmosphere was still incredibly tense. You racked your brain for a moment about how to salvage the day because the food wasn’t working. But nothing popped into your head. You couldn’t take it anymore. You felt like the day was ruined, that all of your friends were disappointed in you, and that you had forced The Master into a difficult situation for no reason. You needed to get out of this suffocating environment. You stood up abruptly and left the room.

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

“What are you doing here?” The Doctor immediately sneered at her best enemy as soon as you had left the room.

“Y/n invited me.”

“You are planning something! I know it! You’ve hypnotised Y/n in order to get closer to us and you are planning something horrible and deadly!”

“I just want to be here because Y/n invited me.”

“No. It’s got to be more than that. Everything you have ever done in your life alludes to you doing something colossal! You would never do anything out of the kindness of your hearts!” The Doctor pointed her finger accusingly before slamming her hand down on the table.

The Master took a deep breath in order to calm himself down after withstanding to The Doctor’s tirade. He wanted to explode on The Doctor; to pull out his TCE and shoot his best enemy in each one of her hearts, but he wouldn’t ruin your Christmas like that. The Master took another deep breath before responding.

“As I stated before, Doctor, if you ever listen, I am here because Y/n invited me. And I didn’t want to disappoint them on Christmas. I’ve heard that holidays during this season of the year are fairly important in Human culture.”

An awkward silence fell over the table. The Doctor was glaring at her companions to back her up for support, but they remained silent. Even though they had been hurt by The Master in the past, and they were currently sceptical of him, but it was Christmas. They just wanted to have a calm and loving holiday season with their friends and families. The Master hung his head low and was wishing for your swift return.

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You initially left the freakishly silent table to just have a breath alone, just in case the tears you were fighting won the battle. You spun around your living room, looking for where you had placed your tissues, and then you caught a glimpse of your Christmas tree, which had many presents beneath it. You grabbed the lot and returned to the kitchen. 

“You don’t have to open them now. I just wanted to give them to you before I forgot. Not to mention that this might defuse some of the tension.” 

You handed each person their presents. The Master did a double take when you initially handed him his present. He didn’t think that he would be included in the majority of the holiday festivities, let alone this one. He held the present carefully, delicately in his lap. He couldn’t stop staring at it as if it were his most prized possession.

The Doctor almost instantaneously seemed to forget her anger towards The Master and immediately opened her present, which didn’t surprise you. But you breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing The Doctor return to her usual childlike self.

“Oh! It’s present time! Amazing. I’ll get my gifts for everyone! Do you want me to get yours, Yaz?” Dan jovially questioned.

“I’ll get mine and The Doctor’s. Ryan? Graham? What about you two?” Yaz responded.

“I’ll get the presents from the both of us, son.” Graham sounded as he joined in the present retrieving.

Once everyone exchanged presents, Graham and Yaz thanked you and tucked their presents away to open up once they got home. You did similarly to them and put your presents under your chair for later. Ryan and Dan, however, followed The Doctor’s lead and opened their presents as soon as their hands were on them, Ryan more rambunctiously so. The Master just continued to stare down at his present in disbelief. He couldn’t remember the last time someone gifted him something. The Master was going to refuse the present and give it back to you because he didn’t deserve it, but then Dan gave a raucous cheer upon opening Graham’s present to him. It was a brand new and expensive wok.

“Y/n relayed your handiwork with a wok.” Graham said, causing Dan to chuckle in response. But unfortunately, silence quickly returned to the table once the gift exchange was over. To your surprise, The Master was the first to speak up.

“I’m sorry that I don’t have anything to give any of you. I’m not particularly knowledgeable about Christmas and its specific traditions, or any holidays around this time of the year really.”

“That’s perfectly fine, Master. I’m just happy that you’re here with all of us.” You smiled at him genuinely.

“Yeah, you not leaving us on a crashing plane is present enough.”

“Graham!”

“I’m sorry. I-”

“There’s no need to apologise. I haven’t exactly been a joy to be around for the majority of you. So, I’m not going to be petty about just retaliation.” The Master spoke sullenly, and it broke your heart. Yes, he hurt The Fam and The Doctor and threatened them, but you could see that he was trying. You just wished that your friends could see that, too. You laid a hopefully reassuring hand on The Master’s shoulder, but then you felt him tense beneath you and saw that all of your friends gave you pointed looks. So, you removed your hand.

Dan then coughed awkwardly. He didn’t know much about The Master’s antics, mostly just what Yaz had told him, and he just wanted to have a good day with his friends. Despite The Doctor’s trepidation and Yaz’s ice-cold stare, Dan saw The Master as a friend because The Master was a friend of yours. Dan also noticed all the trouble you were putting into the event, and he just wanted to try and help you in cheering everyone up.

“I brought some homemade cookies from my parents and some crackers, too.”

“May I join in this festivity?” The Master asked politely as Dan retrieved a tin of cookies for the table. 

“Of course, mate. They’re for everyone.” Dan clapped The Master on the back. You gave The Master a look to not comment and thankfully he just enjoyed the cookies while Dan and Yaz began handing out some Christmas crackers.

Maybe it was the presents or maybe the crackers, or even the cookies, or maybe it was just Dan being friendly and nice as always that helped lighten the general mood of the room. All of you ended up talking about fun things and laughing at random stories. Everyone even enjoyed the stories The Master told. And there was no talk of the bad things that The Master had done in the past, only the fun and funny things. 

Yaz and Ryan opened a couple of bottles of wine, everyone pulled some Christmas crackers. You exchanged prizes and paper crowns and all of you seemed to be thoroughly enjoying yourselves. Everyone in attendance had wide smiles and full stomachs and so many presents and knickknacks to take home.  But unfortunately, the day had to end.

“Despite the  … surprises … I had a brilliant time! Absolutely brilliant.” The Doctor said before giving you a ‘goodbye’ hug.

“Thank you, Doctor.”

“I can’t wait to do this next year!” Ryan excitedly shouted.

“Well, I don’t know about that …” The Doctor muttered softly, but you and The Master both heard.

“Oh, come on, Doc, you just said that you had a good time.” Graham countered as your friends clambered into the TARDIS and said their final goodbyes. The Master, though, hung behind in your apartment for a moment to have a quiet conversation alone with you.

“Thank you for inviting me. You obviously didn’t have to. But I very much appreciate it.” The Master handed you the present you have given him.

“Do you not want it?” You were hurt. You put so much effort into the day and the present. You wanted him to enjoy it and to see how much you cared for him.

“Of course I want it. I just don’t deserve it, Y/n.” You sighed at The Master’s self-deprecation. Thankfully he wasn’t rejecting you, but you hated seeing him this sad. That was part of the point of the present, to cheer The Master up during the holiday season.

“Just take it, Master, please. It’s Christmas.” You forced the present back into The Master’s hands and then tackled him into a hug.

“And take care of yourself, Master.” You kissed The Master's cheek and with that, the two of you said your goodbyes for the day. 

The Master walked away from your flat bittersweetly. He didn’t know how to process the event that just occurred to him. He felt like he experienced a fever dream of a day filled with his wildest dreams and his deepest fears. And he still had a present to open, so the turmoil of emotions he experienced today were likely not finished turning in his brain.

When he arrived in his TARDIS, The Master brought your present out of his bigger-on-the-inside pocket and stared at it again. You were too sweet for your own good. First, you invited him to join you in your Christmas celebrations, then you got him a gift. Unbelievable! It was as if you were begging for The Master to become obsessed with you.

The Master carefully untied the purple bow and carefully unwrapped the wrapping paper in an attempt to not rip it. The Master wouldn’t describe himself as a hoarder, even though other people had, but he wanted to keep every part of this gift to remember it, and your effort and kindness, properly.

You got him a couple of sets of purple and orange socks. He smiled at this. You noticed his proclivity for statement socks. He took one pair out of the box and observed how heavy it was, not like any pair of socks he had before. He wondered if these were some new Human inventions, weighted socks, maybe made for anxiety havers. The Master then looked inside the socks and saw that there was an item inside them. Before discovering what you had hidden inside the pair of socks he first held, he looked into the other pairs you had given him and, like the first pair, you had hidden more gifts in those socks. 

Upon unrolling each pair of socks, The Master found that you had also gifted him a pair of expensive-looking cufflinks, a quaint key chain with a Spotify code of one of his favourite Human songs, “Rasputin”, and a small rubber ducky wearing an “I raided Area 51” shirt. He rolled his eyes at the last gift. He never should have told you that he was actually responsible for that “meme”. Under all of the socks was an illustrated copy of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. If the socks were anything to go by, you hid something in the book. And The Master was correct. In the section where Dorothy’s house flies up into the air because of the tornado, The Master found a letter addressed to him. 

Just like the box, he opened the letter with care. In your handwriting, written by a purple inked pen, you wrote:

Master, 

I never want to intrude when it comes to you and your personal space and needs, but I want you to know that you are always welcome at my flat and in my life. I’m not going to judge you or pressure you or rat you out to The Doctor in any way. I just want you to have someone, and I hope that I could be that someone for you.

I know that things are complicated because of your long history with The Doctor and, more recently, everything revolving around the Kasaavin and Gallifrey. But I have really appreciated all of our communications with each other. I actually felt seen and heard by you, and I hope I made you feel the same way. Maybe I could one day get everyone else to see the softer, more caring and more protective side of yourself that you so often hide. You probably wouldn’t like that, though. But thank you for allowing me to see that side of you. I really do love talking with you, and I appreciate everything you have done for me.

I hope to see you again, preferably in a non-threatening environment. :)

Happy Holidays

Y/n

The Master sighed deeply trying to hold back his tears, but apparently, his emotions won over his resolve. The Master burst into tears. Emotions from decades and centuries that he had pushed down now rose up and flowed through him; his loneliness and isolation all becoming painfully aware to him as he read your letter. You really were the only person he had at this moment, maybe in his entire life. The Master would have to prove his worth to you properly. Get you a coat like his, at the very least.

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You stumbled out of your room, still dizzy from sleep, to answer your door. An incessant knocking woke you up from where you had fallen asleep while watching How The Grinch Stole Christmas. Despite being incredibly drained from the anxiety of the day, you tried to cheer yourself up with some Christmas spirit. You grew incredibly annoyed, however, when there was no one behind your front door. You looked around; no one was down the hall, no one left anything for you, not even a note on the door!

You shut your door, disgruntled, but made your way back to your room. You stopped suddenly in your path, though, upon seeing something previously not there out of the corner of your eye. Under your Christmas tree sat a square, purple box tied up securely in gold ribbon. 

You strode up to the box and investigated it curiously. It looked safe, but you were still cautious.  Before opening the box, you opened the letter, addressed to you, which was placed on top.

My Darling Y/n,

If I had more time to plan, I would gift you something more sufficient in order to repay you for your overly caring nature. Though, I hope that this will make do for the time being. You may find some extra goodies hidden throughout, but I intend to spoil you greatly with many more gifts in the future.

With love,

Your caring Master

Of course, it was The Master! You smiled from ear to ear both because he got you a gift and because he reciprocated your feelings, but also because he opened your present and enjoyed Christmas dinner. 

You carefully, but quickly and excitedly, opened the present The Master had given you. To your wonderment, The Master had gifted you either his purple coat or a coat that looked incredibly similar. You quickly threw the beautifully crafted coat around you, and it instantly warmed you.

You couldn’t help yourself; you were so excited that you had to jump up and down and squeal in pure joy. You then skipped to your full-body mirror and snapped a photo of yourself modelling your Christmas gift.

You sent the picture to The Master, along with the text: ‘I look quite dashing, doncha think? ;)’

The Master instantly peered down at his Human phone, which he kept in order to communicate with you, as soon as he received your message. He smirked and then sent back a reply.

‘Incredibly so! Dare I say, dashing enough to conquer the Universe?’

‘I wouldn’t go that far. I was thinking more of a sexy stranger at a cosy bar…’ You removed your sleep shirt before putting the coat back on, revealing a good portion of your chest. You also moved to take the picture in your bathroom mirror instead in order to hide your Christmas pyjama pants.

‘You absolutely fit that role to a T, love! I hope to see you in that environment and in  that coat in the future.’

‘Oh, you will, Master.’

‘Good. ;) Now be a good little Human and get to bed. It might be Christmas, but you must go to bed at a reasonable time.’ You rolled your eyes at his protective nature, but you knew that he was right.

‘Only if you get a good night’s sleep, too, Master.’

‘That coat must have given you my talent for finagling and manipulation, love.’

‘Nope! That was all you!’

‘The Doctor would be horrified’

‘Let her be.’ The Master genuinely smiled down at his phone and the conversation he was having with you. You were so special to him. He didn’t need gifts or Christmas dinner or flirty texts, even, The Master just needed you in his life. You were the best Christmas present The Master could have asked for.

‘Happy Christmas, Y/n!’

‘Happy Christmas, Master!’

[littleflower-19]

hsr x reader doing til tok trend

Some NSFW so u don't wanna than don't

Gepard

U saw a new trend on tik tok where u get fake notifications on ur phone u set ur phone in a perfect position and started to record let me tell Gepard Trusts u but it went funny *blin-blink* "humming" "ur phone ban who is texting u?" "Hmm?"is all u answering he try to focus but at the end "I'm getting the phone u making me jealous of those text!" My my he ends up getting on u to see who's texting only to blush between ur neck and ur ass laughing at his cuteness (cuteee)

Welt

Getting this Mann on this trend was kinda scary bc he's ur bf but still older than u but ur his woman so u thought it was the time to prank ur lover with the fake video calling u were chilling on the couch as he asked "my love let met u the cake I bought for u"as he went to the kitchen for the cake and u prepared ur pose and phone ready it was Timmy *ring ring ring* he came back with the cake as he looked at u u played the fake voice*hey baby u forgot u -* it couldn't even end the sentence *ughhhh bubu" he looked at the record of the phone and back at u as he said "I guess no love from me for a week" dang u messed up girl better get on the knees ans Beg~

Dan Heng

It's time to laugh at ur bf with a trend it's the perfect one the one u open a bath towel but u got clothes underneath it it was perfect ready u recorded "baby can u help me" he came "so I think my phone is one love can u help me" he was about to when u got Infront of him ans pulling the towl off making him go eyes widen ans try to cover u only to realize that u have clothe on it was so funny till u got punished all night long

Blade

The kiss trend I don't need to explain more "Hun can we do a video please" he looked at u with a dead glare he sat down "yay so in need to put on lipstick and kiss ur face full of it first" kissing his face was so adorable"ok hun all u gotta do is I'm gonna gut on ur lipstick and accidentally put some wrong all u gotta do is wipe it away and look at me with love ok" I smiled as i started to film it only getting a twist i moved to the song as he wiped with his finger but than kissed u in supries making out with u !?

Argentina

To let this Mann taste evil from u u got ready as u walked with only a towel in front of him dropping it to see his shoock face but.... why is he smiling "finally i can fuck U today" huh!? Did he really said that with that innocent smile the trend didn't work but u saw a complete new side to him and ähm some good abs

Sampo

u call sampo in the living room "my love what is it"he looked at u with a smile "can u bring me a glass of water please" he went back as u got a devil's smile on ur lips as he came back placing the water down"there u go love" and know it was time"thanks bro" he stood still did u just called him bro Mann waa getting kinda mad "stop that I'm ur baby Hun lover bf not bro" he really got mad u started to laugh"come on bro" he snapped he came ok top of u "this bro is gonna give a deep lesson instead of calling me bro call me daddy" and in the end he got what he wanted

(btw I didn't look at my grammar again so pls be kind)

[halftheway]

@qspreen was kind enough to give me this url so here's a ficlet i wrote in exchange for her abt etoiles meeting mariana !!

There’s a weird yellow shape in the distance. It’s too big to be Chayanne and his floatie, Etoiles notes, so he begins moving forward with caution. Frankly, he’s also a little excited. The server has been oddly quiet lately, and though spending the afternoon with Pomme making friendship bracelets to hand out was fun (when he dropped her off with Baghera, she’d cried when she got hers), he can’t lie that he isn’t looking for adventure.

He approaches the figure sitting in the grass with a hand ready at his side, floating above the hilt of his weapon, but it’s… just a guy.

There are a lot of absent people, and Etoiles mentally runs through everyone he’s heard about, everyone that’s been gone… The list is a bit too long for his liking. Luzu is emo, he’s been told, so it’s not him. Not Spreen either, because he’s definitely looking at a human and Roier had talked just a touch too long about Spreen’s fuzzy little ears. Dan, maybe? Or Wilbur?

He reviews what he knows about Wilbur’s appearance: dark hair, glasses, yellow sweater… this person does fit the bill.

Etoiles does try to make noise as he draws closer, but he’s not quite loud enough. The man in front of him jumps when he touches his shoulder, exclaiming something in Spanish.

His heart sinks. This must be Mariana.

There’s a curse on enchanted weapons, Etoiles discovered, like the one Charlie had accidentally killed Tilín with. Breaking the news to him was difficult enough, and Etoiles had hoped if he ever met Mariana he’d have more time to prepare. He lost his own daughter because of the curse. There’s no easy way to say it.

Mariana looks up at him, brows furrowed and an axe visible on his belt. Etoiles spreads his hands, trying to communicate he’s not dangerous, and says, “I’m not here to hurt you.”

He glares at him for a second then holds up a finger as he takes out his comm and adjusts the translation settings, still scowling, then clicks it back into place on his belt when he’s done.

Etoiles does the same and repeats himself, and Mariana replies, “Then why did you fucking scare me?”

Etoiles shrugs and introduces himself, holds out a hand for him to help him up. Mariana eyes him warily but takes it, standing a good head or two taller than him, and says “I'm Mariana.” Etoiles looks him up and down, studying him.

“I'm not a fucking bug, man,” huffs Mariana. “Quit it.”

“Sorry, sorry.” How does he start? “Um, listen. Your sword, it was cursed.”

Mariana repeats cursed in a terrible French accent, making a face, and Etoiles raises an eyebrow. “Okay, sorry. Cursed?”

Etoiles nods. “All of them, the enchanted ones, the sweeping edge? It— something is wrong with it. Or, was. I think it’s been lifted now.” Mariana stares at him blankly. “What I mean to say is… your daughter. I heard what happened to her, and… I had to let you know.”

Mariana continues to look at him with no expression, so he tries again. “Her death, it wasn’t your fault.”

“My fault,” he says softly. He looks down at his hands, and Etoiles notices a bracelet around his wrist with blue pink and white stripes. He touches it, and looks up at Etoiles. “She ran in front of me, you know, trying to protect me. She was so brave.”

“I know it won’t ease the pain, but I hope it brings you a little peace.”

[sushiosims]

Billy and Morgan - Chapter 9

Billy is getting near home, when he hears a crackling noise, his nostrils fill with an acrid smell 'FIRE' Billy runs towards the junk yard, to see it up in an inferno 'DAD!' he yells, his voice lost in the roaring of the flames 'DAAAAD!' He calls the fire department

'𝐼 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 ℎ𝑜𝑝𝑒 𝑑𝑎𝑑 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑟' He checks the time, '5.20𝑎𝑚...𝑛𝑜 𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑑𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑟...𝑚𝑎𝑦𝑏𝑒 ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝑡 𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ' he thinks desperately Billy's head spins, his dad was a piece of shit, but he was all he had.

After a long day, of interviews with police, Billy sits at the bluff alone. He can't believe his Dad is gone. What was he going to do now? His phone has been buzzing all day, but he can't bring himself to answer. The police think Dan fell asleep with a cigarette in his mouth...

He hears a voice break the silence...'Billy...' Morgan says, crying softly 'I'm sorry' He just nods, but says nothing and will not look at her

She silently goes and sits beside him on the other swing. He says nothing, just occasionally takes a deep shaky breath, and then its quiet again. Morgan stays quiet, just letting him be.

They just sit there, till the sun comes up, neither of them saying a word all night. Finally Billy stands up and Morgan approaches him, he wraps her in a hug 'Thank you' he says, his voice cracking. 'I like spending my quiet time with you too it seems'

'I don't know what to do Fyre...my home is gone, my parents are gone...I have nowhere to go' his voice cracks

Morgan puts her arm around him and leans into him

'We will figure it out, for now, come home with me, my parents are away on a mini vacation, and my sister is cool. Just for a couple of days, till we figure this out' she soothes

He starts to cry again, and she pulls him into her arms and holds him 'I've got you' she says, her heart aching for him...she knew he had a complicated relationship with his dad, and she could only imagine the emotions and fear he was feeling about his future

Her mind is racing...she knows the police said it was accidental, but she is sure Bruce has something to do with it. It was her fault. She just knew it. 'Can we stay here a little longer?' Billy asked 'I'm exhausted'

She nods, and lets him put his head on her lap and he falls into a fitful sleep. Morgan looks down at him, wondering how she can help him...her parents won't give her anything beyond a small allowance, and she doubts Billy would take it anyway. even if they did

As they walk into Morgan's home, Billy lets out a low whistle...'Look at this place...I could probably live here and your parents wouldn't even notice for weeks' he jokes lamely

Morgan sniffs 'I wish you could, Billy what are we going to do?'

'We will figure it out Fyre, I promise, I have an uncle, I haven't seen him in years, but I am sure he will help me out. He just hated my dad, he tried to get me to live with him when I was a baby. Maybe I could stay at his place until I get myself together?'

He pauses, 'Only thing is, its in the middle of the country, a small village, pretty far from here...I will have to leave Morgan, I can't afford to stay here...I promise you, I will come back for you, I will make it, for you'

She looks at him, confused 'Leave?' she questions, 'Billy, if you go, I go. I'm coming with you. I hate it here, the only time I have ever felt free and happy is with you'

'But school, your trust, you have to stay' he responds 'Don't throw it all away for me, I'm not worth it'

'Don't ever let me hear you say that again!' she says 'I don't care about the money...do you?'

He is clearly torn, between wanting her, and wanting the best for her

'Well no...but...' he stammered

'Well then it's settled, wherever you go, I am with you'

He shakes his head, 'Morgan, no...'

She pulls him close to her and smiles 'This is not up for discussion Billy boy...unless you don't want me with you that is?' she asks

He smiles sadly 'It's all I want, I just don't want you giving up everything for me'

She smiles back...'You are everything to me'

They go through to the living room where Siobhan was waiting 'Whats happened?' They explain the situation to her and she sits back and lets out a deep breath 'Ok, you are fine to stay here for a day or two, gives us time to find your uncle and sort out any official stuff'

'My dad, well he didn't have anything, no will or insurance...just the junkyard, and its gone, they have already bulldozed it down, everything we had is gone. All I have is the shirt on my back' Billy says quietly, ashamed. Morgan takes his hand and gives it a squeeze

'You go have a bath, we will look out some of dad's clothes for you to wear, until we get you more, and then have a sleep' she says 'Siobhann and I will try and find your uncle online and get in touch' Siobhann nods and waits as Morgan shows him to the bathroom

Billy lies in the bath & looks around...this bathroom is bigger than his whole house had been, how could Morgan give this up for him? He couldn't let her. She was just caught up in emotion just now, the honeymoon period...it wouldn't last, then she would hate him forever...

He would have to do it on his own, he breaks down again. He was on his own now... He always had been.

Siobhann stands at the bathroom door her heart hurting as she hears the muffled sobs from inside...that poor boy. Giving it a minute, she knocks

'Billy, I have left some clothes at the door, leave yours in there and I'll get it washed' she walks away, wondering how she can help

Morgan goes for a bath too, and Siobhann goes to make food, when she hears Billy wandering around she shouts for him to come through

'Morgan is taking a bath, come, sit, I've made some Tofu Chicken for us, I wasn't sure if you were a vegetarian, so I made Tofu, just in case!'

Billy sits down feeling much better after his bath.

'Wow, 2 bathrooms...?' he says, with a small laugh 'Nice! And thanks so much, I haven't eaten since yesterday, so anything would be amazing. Thank you for being so kind...no-one is ever this kind to me' his eyes fill again

'Er yeah, 2 bathrooms' she smiles awkwardly, not wanting to correct him. They actually have 4 bathrooms... 'And if no-one has ever been this kind to you before, then you have been surrounding yourself with the wrong people, I'm just making you some chicken!'

As Billy sits and waits on Morgan and food, Siobhann studies him from behind... 'Say Billy...when was the last time you had a haircut? I am a stylist you know...I could give you a spruce up, before Morgan comes down. Only if you want...it might make you feel better!'

For Chapter 10 Clicky Clicky right....HERE

[fudgetunblr]

My gydo is one of the kindest people I know. He loves my teta so much even when she drives him insane, he won’t let anyone say anything bad about her ever.

He used to come to my theater shows in high school and no matter the quality he’d always tell me that we did a good job.

When I accidentally got a flat tire and literally everyone else was busy my Amo came to my aid and helped me call a tow-truck. While we sat and waited we ate breakfast and just chatted.

My other Amo used to always compliment my flowery pants when people thought they looked ugly. He’s always appreciated my strange fashion when others haven’t.

One of my biggest supporters in life is my Baba. He took me to see Dan and Phil with my friends when I was 14, and even if he didn’t understand shit, he did it because he knew that it was important to me. We still sing the Internet is here together to this day.

The only person who loves my cat more than me is him. During the summer he brings her watermelon on a tiny plate because he knows she loves it.

My brothers (although not actually born in the Middle East) can drive me crazy, but at the end of the day I know they got my back. My older brother called me when he got his braces off to tell me. My younger brother always calls when he’s on his way out to have someone to chat with. They joke and they tease but if I ever feel bad, they’re always there to cheer me up.

And I have so many more examples.

Arab men / Middle Eastern men (depending on how you define Arabs) are not the stereotypes you see on tv. All the men in my life have shaped me just as much as the women have. Seeing them get dehumanised is disheartening. They are human beings, with human feelings and flaws and identities. It feels important to share tiny positive snippets of my own family, just silly things that seem insignificant but that just showcases humanity.

Every single person in Palestine deserves to live because every single person there is a human being with their own story and their own past. They all deserve a future. They are not stereotypes, they arw human beings. Again, they are not stereotypes, THEY ARE HUMAN BEINGS!

The way people perceive Arab men is truly disgusting. If you “need proof” Arab men are not barbaric wife beaters, look no further than the Palestinian men who were literally shot by Israel trying to get food for their starving families.

[the-firebird69]

borat movie - Google Search

They have a routine and they laugh when they make jokes and it goes on and on until they're tired and a lot of people are listening a lot of girls and they think it's hilarious and they want to see the real thing he says he's his brother from the Ukraine and the story stayed the same he says no I think you're my uncle then you're my brother and we have another brother Dave he almost died and he sort of did we'd bring him out but he might take one of our bodies. It's a little laughing thing is funny and they know it's not true but he might so we have to watch over there. But seriously we have a serious topic to discuss and for some reason you thought of this character you don't exactly know why but there's the baby and he said when he gets bigger he would be hanging around in Jen Melissa and others who are the same girl will try and harass him and corky and corky and Mrs corky to try and move in and say where your babies and haven't grown up because of Prilosec so he says I had the same problem there's no solution that's like you have to worry most people around here are very small and they hate Giants hahaha. It's funny cuz he knows they be acting and some people do that when I send this doesn't continue on and on but it is funny. They kind of forget they're doing an act that's an idea though

Thor Freya

You should see their faces it's a bunch of cork no they're my kids and they like it about 4 ft 4 ft 5 perfect chubby fat somewhat lazy not real stupid and it doesn't say much so the smiling and the dreaming about it and I like the idea some big wealthy guy they make accidental mistakes acting like babies okay he says who s*** in the hall again and he slept on it but this is what's fun they like that idea

Dan

[jack-yells-about-webcomics]

Once again, it's time for....

Who's That Secondary Character?

with me, Jack, your one-stop-shop for catching up on ancient backstory for EGS, Girl Genius, Questionable Content, and more! Today on the show:

Noah

Noah has appeared again in recent El Goonish Shive comics, but who is he? Where does he come from? And why is he following Diane? (And yes, he's always had that androgynous Link-from-Legend of Zelda style, it's one of his defining features.)

Early Appearances

Noah is a trickier character than most, because the storylines he's connected to have been retconned multiple times. (Although it might be more accurate to say that he was simply planned long ago, and changes to the story happened over time.) Noah first appears in the comic as a mysterious shadowed and hooded figure who had sworn revenge on Damien.

From there, Noah largely disappeared from the main comic for an extended period of time. I seem to remember him occasionally appearing out of nowhere to help the good guys and then disappearing again, but I can't actually find any main-story comics where he does that. I could be conflating him with Magus, another shadowy figure who was hinted at for a long time. Noah was also popular in the non-canon sketches and comics, as well as fan theories, during this period. It is eventually confirmed in canon that Noah is the shadowed, hooded figure, but my impression is that readers were meant to have already figured it out at that point.

Tragic Backstory

Noah's parent(s) were murdered by Damien, because his father was part of the cult that created Damien. Noah didn't get a chance to enact his revenge before the events of Painted Black happened, but he did get a hint about what kind of person killed Damien, and planned to seek her out.

After his parents' death, Noah appears to have spent his time focused on becoming powerful enough to face Damien. Noah is almost matched with (non-transformed) Elliot for being extremely strong, fast, and athletic. He is also obviously in-the-know about magic, immortals, uryuoms, and possibly more. However, beyond his near-superhuman athletic abilities (and the flying), it's not known whether he actually has magic of his own or not.

Noah feels immense respect and kinship towards his guardian, Raven, whom he lives with and views as an adoptive father. However, due to Noah's personal history and a lack of social experience, he doesn't know how to bring this up. Noah also typically speaks with an overabundance of caution as a method of controlling his emotions. Therefore, he had defaulted to addressing Raven as 'sir', and sneaking around the house. However, Noah and Raven finally had a heart-to-heart after Pandora's death, and now refer to each other as father and son.

Love/Hate Quadrangle

Noah's girlfriend Melissa is also Justin's childhood best friend/ ex-girlfriend. Justin blames Melissa for outing him as gay and exposing him to extensive bullying. (Reminder: because of the time-bending nature of long-running webcomics, Justin was outed his freshman year in essentially the cultural equivalent of 2003 or thereabouts, when blatant homophobia was more socially accepted. Dan has generally opted to use the currently-preferred (at time of publishing) LGBTQ+ terminology and concepts as the comic has gone on, ((side note: I want to do a separate blog post on the different approaches different webcomics bring to this issue)), resulting in characters using 2022-esque LGBTQ+ vocab& sensibility in the end of Justin's senior year, regardless of the fact that only 2-3 years have passed in-universe.) Melissa herself had a... very rough time accepting Justin's sexuality. Depending on the point in continuity, she gets jealous of any girl who talks to him, stalks him to harangue him for dates, deludes herself into believing the two of them are in love, or (most recently) has urges to act like they're still best friends/ dating but recognizes the urges as harmful compulsions.

Elliot accidentally becomes involved when he meets Noah by chance at an IKEA and strikes up a friendship with him. When they eventually put the pieces together, Elliot, Noah, and Justin all end up angry with each other to varying degrees. The tension is exacerbated because Noah has something he urgently needs to ask Justin, directly. The questions are aimed to figure out who summoned the fire monster that attached the comic book shop (when Cheerleadra first appeared), but because Noah keeps on being interrupted, we don't actually find this out until the moment before the second magical attack on the comic book shop, when Noah assists Cheerleadra in fending off the dragon-summon. He also assists Grace and Greg at the martial arts dojo as part of the same fight. Justin never actually answers Noah's questions about the first Cheerleadra fight (thus preserving Elliot's secret identity) because the summoner's identity becomes clear at the end of the fight.

Following Diane?

Noah goes to Moperville South, the same school as Ellen, Grace, Nanase, Justin, and Diane. Diane (who has known since she was a child that she was adopted) recently found out that Raven is her biological father. Raven (who until recently believed it was impossible for him to have children) found out at the same time. They both have complicated feelings about this, and haven't talked to each other yet. Noah likely knows all of this. Raven is Noah's guardian and adoptive father. For that reason alone, Noah might reach out. In addition, Noah likely knows about a lot of the big, magic-related things that have happened to Diane recently. They potentially have a lot in common to talk about.

Incidentally, they also both have a habit of sneaking, and are both adept at getting places quickly.

I'm sure the title of the current arc is just a coincidence...

Note: originally posted before complete because Tumblr kept eating my edits

[elnotwoods]

You don’t go out in a field very often, right?   You’re being so shy.

Is it so difficult to be a super disciplined cop?

No.  Being a cop has always been my dream since I was a kid.

Is your dream as beautiful today as it was then?

Hey! Hold that pose. And hold that feeling. Can you straighten your right leg a bit?

Hands together. Hold that, please. What’s wrong?

I just feel like I’m confessing my sins.

I did something wrong before. But I can’t go back and fix it again. I tried to reclaim justice but I failed. In the end, I could do nothing.

It’s done. Do you want to see it?

I like it.

This is not the final, just the sketch. I need to redraw and color it. Just wait to see the final version.

It’s okay. It’s in the past.

You did great.

You’ll be fine.

This scene is, undeniably, one of the best scenes of this show. Few will top this, if any. The inherent intimacy, softness of it, the raw emotion that comes to the forefront once Dan strips. This could have been a very basic scene - sexually charged, filled with want, lust. Instead we got something so genuine, that it actually made me sit down and think about it for hours.  

I have tried to come up with how Dan is tied to the plot - because him just being an underground artist and a cop doesn’t feel… enough? I have the feeling that Dan is much more entangled in the conflicts and problems the gang is facing than initially thought. The first trailer for Not me made us think that maybe Dan is the reason why Black ends up in the hospital, but after today I have a different theory. Thanks to this scene in which Dan reveals his soul.

“I just feel like I’m confessing my sins.  I did something wrong before. But I can’t go back and fix it again.”

We know that Sean’s father has been shot while resisting arrest. We don’t know how long ago it was, but I think it’s safe to say it must have been like 4-8 years ago? Somewhere in that time frame. We don’t really know much about Dan yet, how old he is or how long he’s been a police officer. He is a lieutenant though, that doesn’t happen overnight. That’s why I have a feeling that maybe he was one of the arresting officers in Sean’s fathers case. He carries a burden from the past, a grave mistake he can’t undo, can’t fix. Something like bringing someone back to life….

“Being a cop has always been a dream since I was a kid.”

“Is your dream as beautiful today as it was then?”

Dan must have dreamed of a world he could change, a world he could make better, of helping people and serving them. Protecting them. And his dream must have crumbled in front of him when he saw the reality of the world he lived in, the brutality happening on the job, when he saw the way people lived and starved and existed in their own misery. And what if he accidentally killed someone on the job? Or if he was told by an older officer while arresting Sean’s father that he should shoot the moment the whole thing goes south, consequences be damned. That would leave a mark. Something Dan can’t shake, can’t change.

So how can he go on? Continue on the force? How can he make his 5 year old self proud?

What he cannot change as a police officer he ends up highlighting as UNAR. He points the masses towards these issues he would like to help solve as a cop but he cannot. Because the force itself is corrupt and he himself is now tainted by this too. So the only way to honour his younger self’s dream is to create this other persona and express through art what he cannot do as a cop. Cause that’s the only way he can still continue honouring his dream.

To express this whole inner dilemma, this torture and shame, this burden Dan carries with himself through art and being immortalised in his current state of being?

Only for Yok to tell him this:

This is not the final, just the sketch. I need to redraw and color it. Just wait to see the final version.

To me it says: You are not your biggest mistake, you are not only the bad things that happened to you or the bad things you have done. It shapes you, it will leave a permanent mark but as time goes on you can do better. You can atone for your sins and you are still good. You might not see it yet, but once you get older and look back at this past version of yourself, you will see it for what it is, was: merely a foundation for you to grown into the person you were supposed to be.

Because right now, you are not the final version of yourself. Like this artwork, you too will evolve and change. Be better. Don’t lose hope yet. Cause I can already see it.