#i did it for stylistic purposes lmao

[ur-fav-inactive-writer]

𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 ____'𝐬 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞...

(A/N: Does not include Five)

𝑵𝒐. 1 , 𝑳𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 , 𝑺𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒃𝒐𝒚

girl next door trope

knew you ever since childhood

loves you to death

so soft with you

he's such a gentlemen

pulls out chairs for you and holds doors for you

butttttt you have to deal with his daddy issues

he always comes to you crying whenever something happens

a sweetheart with you though

he's very awkward at comforting you

he likes to cook for you

he's such a good chef ngl

he loves cuddling

he literally is always cuddling you

likes to be big spoon, don't get me wrong he needs comfort

but

the idea of being able to protect you by being big spoon is so validating to him

he's too big to be little spoon anyway

that is literally his one purpose

if he found you during the 60s or something and he had to leave you he'd never stop talking about you

"I miss (Y/N)..."

"(Y/N) would've liked this.."

"Luther, they're gone."

fml sobbing why did I write that

anyway his one purpose is to love and protect you

𝑵𝒐. 2 , 𝑫𝒊𝒆𝒈𝒐 , 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑲𝒓𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒏

very jealous

if he sees you with some guy who is flirting with you he will literally glare daggers into him

he will then proceed to walk over to you, sling an arm around your waist and pull you in for a kiss

he doesn't give a shit if anyone's watching

he talks shit about him siblings to you

"Luther thinks he's so much better than all of us-"

"Diego chill out."

oh my god when Viktor wrote that book

he

was

SEETHING

(no hate to viktor , viktor is baby)

the shit talk increased so much

he would not shut up about it

help diego would be such a simp for you

like I'm not joking

pure simp

in his eyes you are sweet innocent summer child who can do absolutely no wrong

stabbed someone?

pfft it was probably just an accident

he brings you to visit grace

omg it would be so cute

grace absolutely adores you

she always makes sly comments about how you and diego should get married

he goes redder than the colour red

he wouldn't tell anyone but he secretly loves the idea

he loves kissing your forehead

it's literally his favourite place

you and klaus are besties

he has to deal with you when klaus gets you drunk

"oh. my. god. im upside down."

"(Y/N), you're standing upright. we need to go home.

"... no"

he never gets drunk

fun squasher

he says his body's a temple

boring

youre his nurse

he always comes home injured and gets you to patch him up

he finds it hot

yes, he's bleeding out. yes, he finds you playing nurse to him hot.

priorities ig

he's so soft with you

would kill for you

he probably has

𝑵𝒐. 3 , 𝑨𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏 , 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑹𝒖𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒓

(refuse to make her evil so s3 allison will not be mentioned)

definitely gets you an acting job in one of her films

she buys you the fanciest stuff

literally you two have the best closet

and you have your own personal stylist

bc why not

you do interviews with her all the time

fans absolutely adore you

there's so many paparazzi pictures of you two together and they eat it up

especially if they include you being doting to claire even though she's not biologically your kid

omg her fans would absolutely love that

so would allison though

if she saw you reading claire a story or smth

her heart would just melt

she might cry ngl

her two favourite ppl in the world just being adorable

you're the cool parent to claire

both of you go to fancy parties and are the hottest couple

"Allison! (Y/N)! How does it feel knowing you're America's favourite couple!"

you're so flattered

allisons just like: yeah ik lmao

she kisses you a lot in public

she knows damn well people are gonna get pictures of it but she loves it

you watch her films with her a lot

if its a particularly old one, you make fun of it with her

"oh my god allison. why do you look like that."

"IT WAS THE STYLE."

she then proceeds to also make fun of it

you, her and claire go on lots of fancy days out

you may as well considering you're RICH

luther gets a bit jealous sometimes

you help her with her therapy

you comforted her when she custody of claire

you also fought alongside her to get her back

as soon as you do you're happier than ever

you are literally just the cutest family ahdhahfhaj

but then she loses you again when she goes to the 60's

she made it her life's purpose to get back to 2019 with the love of her life and claire

as soon as she accepts that it could take years upon years to reunite with you and claire she finds ray

she knew you'd be happy

but she also knew

she'd never truly move on

omg help I'm gonna start sobbing why do I do this to myself

𝑵𝒐. 4 , 𝑲𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒔 , 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒆́𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆

you help get him off of drugs

ben adores you

he likes that you're there to help klaus

and that you don't ever drop to his level and just do drugs with him

he also likes how you never shit talk him when klaus starts ranting about how annoying he is

klaus is a huge fan of PDA

he is obsessed with the idea of holding your hands

he is constantly touching you in one way or the other

whether it be holding your hand

or simply having a hand on your leg

it matters to him

and that's why you love it

sweet baby boi has so much love to give

he likes being little spoon

he just loves being in your arms

it helps with his nightmares

diego also approves of you

you've saved him from having to go out and look for klaus in the middle of the night in fear he's high or smth

klaus rants to you every so often

quite often you have to help him through panic attacks

he loves you sm

like he is so lovesick

if anyone were to ever ask about you

oh boy

he gets this lovesick look in his eyes

and then starts rambling about how enamored he is with you and how great you are

it's adorable

he's very clingy but in the best way possible

he matches outfits with you

never a dull moment with you two

often it's you trying to solve whatever problem klaus has somehow managed to conjure up

and klaus just being a devious little shit

but it doesn't matter cause you love him

sometimes he questions why you love him

it makes you cry whenever he asks

"(Y/N/N)..."

you hum in response

"why do you love me...?"

sobbing and you start listing all the reasons

and then he's sobbing

and then you're both sobbing

but anyway

he loves dancing with you

he doesn't care what song

it could be some crappy pop song that's somehow in the top hits

or some classical music that's centuries old

he really doesn't care

he likes spinning you around

he loves seeing how happy it makes you

klaus asks you the most random stuff at 3am

"... (Y/N"

"yeah"

"lawyers hope you get sued, doctors hope you get sick, cops hope you're criminal, mechanics hope you have car trouble, but only a thief wishes prosperity for you."

"... go to bed"

"never"

you poor thing

you never get any sleep because of how chatty he is at night

he hates being away from you

if he isn't near you he will start whining to ben

𝑵𝒐. 6 , 𝑩𝒆𝒏 , 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓

omg it took him ages to admit his crush on you

he's been crushing on you since you were like 12

when did he admit it?

when he was 18.

he likes reading to you

he loves seeing you get all relaxed at the sound of his voice

it makes him fall even more in love with you

he likes PDA but not that much

just a simple touch is enough for him

this boy blushes so easily

you'll brush his hand and he'll turn so pink

sometimes you'll just be sitting there doing nothing of note

and he'll be staring at you in adoration

he's in absolute awe of you

thinks you're the most adorable thing ever

much like diego

thinks you can do no wrong

you're his sweet, precious girl

he knows everything about you off by heart

from your favourite colour

to your mums favourite song

you thinks it's endearing

he loves holding your hand

playing with your hair is one of his favourite things to do

don't get me wrong he likes when you do it to him

but he much prefers when he does it to you

he finds it really relaxing

he's usually pretty closed off about his childhood but he trusts you

sometimes when something that triggers a bad memory happens he goes to you to rant

he doesn't know what he'd do without you

you're literally his life

omg

when you kiss his nose

he just melts

it's the most adorable thing

he's so good at cheering you up

no matter if its something minor or major

he's always amazing at getting you back to your usual self

he loves taking you on cute little dates

he reads you poetry he wrote

omg he deffo writes a piece of poetry about how much he loves you

omg help this is so cute

overall he's a simp

and it suits him

𝑵𝒐. 7 , 𝑽𝒊𝒌𝒕𝒐𝒓 , 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒉𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝑽𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒏

viktors a sweetheart

he gives you private violin shows

he also rehearses in front of you to see what you think

he tries to get you to critique him

if you don't play violin, you probably just say its all perfect

if you do, you probably give him little tips on areas to work on

you go on little dates to watch the sunset

he has to be little spoon

he just needs some comfort

just needs to be wrapped in your arms and feel safe

poor guy has been through so much

sometimes he gets mad memories of the incident with allison and you have to calm him down

he wouldn't get jealous

he'd just get rlly insecure :(

if he saw someone flirting with you he'd just get a bit sad

he would think the worst and think that you would want to leave him for them :(((

poor bby

opens up to you about how bad his childhood was

sometimes he regrets writing the book

you have to reassure him that it's okay and they don't hate him for it

sure, they did, but not anymore

klaus thinks you two are adorable together

you've got quite a few polaroids of the two of you together

he has them on those little string lights above your bed

he keeps at least one in his pocket at all times

he does that thing where you check if you still have something valuable and it's so cute for some reason

and when he checks and its still there it puts this small little smile on his face

omg it's just shfjsjfjsjf

you take care of him when he's sick

he hates it bc he feels bad that you have to take care of him

but deep down he loves it and will treasure those memories forever

but he'd do the exact same thing if you were sick

whenever you buy him something he always feels bad if he didn't get you something

"Vik it's okay! you didn't have to get me anything,"

"NO ITS NOT I NEED TO GO GET YOU SOMETHING RIGHT NOW."

it's absolutely adorable

Taglist: @book-place

[laughing-with-god]

Last question for now (apologies!)

What are the personal like… styles/ vibes of their homes? Or like, how would they decorate the inside of it? Or would they at all?

(me personally, if I just won the Hunger games, the first thing I'm doing is an AD Open Door Victor's Village edition lmao)

(( Author's Note : Don't be sorry, I love questions like these! It helps me attach visuals to characters which is really fun. For this, I pulled some Pinterest pics and did some light research on the districts, but also feel free to interpret/imagine what you feel is right!!))

Jin

I picture that the Victor homes vary depending on their district, which would make sense considering the districts are in different landscapes so not all homes can be built the same

For District One, I picture little mansions with lots of glass walls for natural light. This district is apparently in the center of the U.S. (Wyoming, Idaho, Utah) so I can see some natural materials, sun roof windows, low and wide mid-century modern houses

I think stylistically, Jin would decorate his home with lots of white and browns, a colorful rug or accent furniture here and there, but he doesn't overdo it in fear of being tacky

fireplace is probably boarded up for um, obvious reasons (war flash backs lol)

I think his favorite part of his home is the kitchen. In the games, starvation was especially tough on him, so now I think he seeks comfort in food. I can see him taking cooking classes or hiring a personal chef, maybe even throwing dinner parties.

If you were to move in with him, I think he'd be okay with you changing whatever you wanted, as long as he gets to keep all his fancy kitchen appliances

Namjoon

I dont think he'd care a lot about the style of his home, I also see him rarely being there since he has so much work to do in the capitol

District Three is apparently in the midwest, and there's lots of factories that make high end technology for the capitol

Therefore, I think the victor homes there would be simple, modern/industrial condo-style homes? Lots of grays and blacks with granite accents.

I don't think Namjoon would go out of his way to purchase furniture or decor, just accepting the furnishings it already came with. He's not a sentimental guy and a part of him is always aware that his home is technically the capitol's property, not his.

I think a cool highlight of his home would be the technology. Like his tv is just a hologram or there's just some cool tech that locks all the doors and turns on the lights on at once. other disctrict victors don't even get that, it's just district three since they rule technology

If you were to move in, Namjoon would gladly welcome any change in decor, letting you know that he never saw the point before you

Jimin

So I personally feel like District Four would make more sense in a tropical place like Florida or something, therefore I feel like there would be a "jungle/beachouse" vibe to the victor homes here

Victors row would be in a vegetated area of four, not too far from the water. I don't see the capitol wanting to have victors living right on the coast since that's most likely reserved for shipments, boating, fishing and yeah....the water is probably heavily monitered in case people get ideas...

Jimin more or less kept everything the same, though he did let his desinger team go crazy with the jungle concept

I can see Jimin liking the color green and also taking care of plants, since he's pretty lonely back at Four it gives him a little sense of innocent purpose

Again, he's def more at the Capitol than here tho, often times this feels more like a vacation home

All the guest rooms get used as extra storage for all the gifts he received from capitol women. hopes to one day fill them with kids tho :(

If you were to move in, Jimin would be estatic and gladly join in any renovation plans. He'd want to be included in the choices, pick the wrong wallpaper even and he'd be pissy about it lol

Hoseok

District Eight is full of factories and textiles, so I see victor's homes being industrial condos with brick walls, exposed pipes and wooden beams

Hoseok will try to decorate and make it feel cozy, just for the sake of his siblings though

I feel like he probably gave his siblings the bigger rooms and took one of the smallest in the home

Anything his little brothers or sisters want, it's theirs no question asked

I can see him becoming a little home maker honestly. He wakes his siblings up in the morning, makes them breakfast, sends them to school, then comes back home and cleans their rooms / common spaces, does some grocery shopping, laundry ect. ect.

It's very cute and mother hen of him but he really just can't handle freetime bc then his mind wonders to dark places...

so he throws himself into caring for his siblings

If you were to move in with him, he'd welcome you and any changes you might want to have on the common spaces, but obvi is protective of his siblings' stuff.

Yoongi

Six is said to be highly populated and overly dense, borderline too many people live here. I picture it as a city too, transportation being their main hub so there's probably even a subway system

Therefore I think the captitol would make a victor buidling or something. District Six doesnt have many victors and the place is already so dense, I think a good solution would be to make one big high rise of apartments where all the living victors have their own units

Yoongi probably threw away everything in the apartment

I can see him having some chairs and a single bed. prob doesn't even have a tv bc keeps breaking them in rage every time the capitol makes an "announcement" lol

Fridge is also always empty. Boy can go days without eating so it doesn't even occur to him to have groceries on hand

Pics below are what the place should look like, before he fucked it up

If you were to move in, good luck on even hanging up a single picture. Give it a week before Yoongi flies into another rage and rips everything to shreds.

Taehyung

I think District Eleven victor homes would be like large, farmhouses on hills away from the rest of the town

I picture feilds upon feilds in this district, since it's all about farming so it's probably very big in terms of land

I also don't think the capitol had many of these houses made, correctly assumming that Eleven wouldn't have many victors

I think Taehyung actually loves his home, quite liking the simplicity and size of it

I can see him starting a little garden in the back yard, or even getting some chickens to keep him busy

He probably would read to his mother too, he most likely set her up in the master bedroom and waits on her hand and foot

If you were to move in, he wouldn't mind little changes here and there. But at his core, he is a minimalist and would rather you not clutter up his space. Don't you two (three including his mom lol) have everything you need already? There's no shame in the simple life.

Jungkook

District Two is up in the mountains! Very cold and harsh winters, thin air but I'd imagine its very beautiful

The homes here are built in luxury cabin style at the base of the mountains. District Two also has the most victors, so I imagine their victors' village is quite the neighborhood

Jungkook is fond of the views he gets from his home. I think he'd like hiking too so he enjoys the proximity to nature

As for the interior, Jungkook doesn't really care. I know, most of the victors on this list don't care but like, kill 23ish kids in a game and ig it puts things into perspective lol

Like Yoongi, all he really needed was a good bed and he'd be okay. I don't think he got rid of the furniture the capitol provided, but he doesn't have an opinion on it either

If you were to move in, Jungkok would just hand you the cash to buy whatever decor you want, just as long as it's not "too girly"

[definitionsfading]

Aaron is still committed to dressing like a villain in an ’80s movie. Today, he looks like he’s about to get killed in a shootout against Eddie Murphy or something. This is not to say that he looks bad.

Everything about ATJ’s look – the scoop neck, the significant amount of gold, the skinny belt, the cuffed jacket sleeves, the tassel loafers with the stacked heel – it’s all so chef’s-kiss perfect. Just pure pharmaceutical-grade Hot Jerk and he’s reveling in it. Dandy Douche Chic, we’ll call it.

We haven’t seen the film yet, but we’re going to go out on a limb and suggest that he doesn’t play a sensitive, bookish type. In other words, this sudden turn toward Miami Vice Drug Kingpin Chic could be seen as a sort of thematically appropriate way to dress for a testosterone-fueled action film.

the way Tom and Lorenzo dot com [x] analyzed Aaron’s fashion choices all during the Bullet Train press tour kills me, but it’s also fascinating that they repeatedly peg his style as something in the same vein as a TV criminal would wear lmao. it makes me wonder; did Aaron [or his stylist] dress him like this on purpose to better represent his character and vibe in the film (aka casual Tangerine chic), or was it just a serendipitous coincidence other people were copping that read? see how the chest and necklace are ALWAYS out for the peanut gallery to see. thank god for small favours.

anyway, I choose to believe Tangerine wears short sleeve silk button-downs open to his sternum on his days off. don’t even get me going on the heeled boots

[kafus]

Got any rambles on Kaf's eyes stored up?

no but i got a ramble on kafu's eyes close enough

it's so funny how they can't keep kafu's eyes consistent. like okay kaf's eyes have changed in palow's recent art but that's a stylistic decision by him that he made after years of drawing her probably to spice things up. with kafu they haven't been able to keep her consistent since the beginning and it's really funny. all of the following kafu eye depictions are from early on in her existing/not a new development

her official box art:

three rings, very similar to kaf's eyes but ever so slightly different with the pink dot and the pink ring thinning out at the top. still though pretty obvious these are just kaf's eyes with a different splash of paint. personally when i draw kafu i make her eyes look like this because i appreciate the mirror imagery shit she has going on with kaf

her concept art (also by palow):

okay this one may not have made it to the final stage but i'm bringing it up anyways because for reasons you'll see later it may be part of what causes the confusion with official kafu eye depictions. no white, just one inner yellow pupil and a pink highlight on blue. okay

edit: clarifying palow did post this to twitter as a reference sheet but i'm assuming this is an earlier draft of the box art regardless lol

her official 3d model:

lmao i caught her on the most empty brain frame okay they really just took all the creative liberties here and i kinda wonder why because this model is in the style of kaf's model, they could have gone full mirror imagery and just color swapped kaf's eyes but the shape is still the same so whatever. regardless i actually really like these but they aren't like any other official depiction of her eyes?? the pink has been moved to a curve/highlight at the bottom of the iris and they just spawned some neon aqua-y color around the white pupils LIKE okay guys awesome

various other official art (this is from the early isotope 4koma):

these are just straight up kaf's eyes lmao. i do kind of wonder if the yellow being present in kafu's concept art/reference sheet is part of the reason that this has happened multiple times other than simply Well She's Kaf But White Hair. for the record the 4koma draws her with white pupils now like her box art. btw you may have noticed that despite her hair diamond thingies being open in the other eye examples, they're closed here. that's also a thing that changes all the time don't worry about it

honorable mention of the kaf/u cover arts:

this one doesn't really count? it's official art because kamitsubaki hires kisumi rei specifically to illustrate all the art for the kaf/u covers on kaf's channel, but kisumi rei loves to take artistic liberties and also draws kaf's eyes "wrong" for the sake of their art style which always has black pupils. it's worth mentioning though

for the record i just find this all super interesting and my autistic ass likes hoarding information, i'm not bothered by this and in fact them not keeping kafu's eyes consistent could very well be on purpose because of the whole vocaloids are whatever you want them to be thing, even their official artists and whatnot should be able to take creative liberties fuck it go wild

[auspex]

2, 10, 26, 33 for mr mark!!

Im gonna put this under a readmore because the last question made me go Insane and it Got Long

2. Can your oc play any instruments? Have they ever wanted to learn how to play any? Why?

hell no mark has no rhythm. fucking nerd. ez. next question.

10. How open is your oc to trying new things? Are they the adventurous sort, or would they rather stay in their comfort zone? Why?

You know you'd actually be surprised, he does have a lil adventurous streak in him. citations: Street Racing in high school; earlier dates with sampson where they actually did interesting things; being willing to investigate Dangerous Places that he was specifically told to avoid

As for why? Well uhm he is a curious person ! I think it stems from that. He's very dedicated to whatever his focus is though, and so it is more like he's open to doing these things rather than seeks them out.

26. How stylistically fancy is your oc? Or would they rather go for comfort and plainness instead?

Mark recognizes he's a nerd and so dresses as such. He embraces the professor aesthetic. Honestly though his fashion sense is very intentionally crafted because of the image he wants to project, but it has been so long its hard to tell where his Intentionality ends and actual preference begins! Kinda sad. Embrace some Slay Gay Looks Mark, cmon. The most stylish thing he has is a handbook that, if you are looking for it, might be considered, perhaps, a lil fruity.

33. How does your oc’s own perception of themselves compare to how other people see them? Is your oc aware that other people see them differently (if it’s different)?

SOOOO THIS QUETSION MADE ME REALIZE MARK DEFINITELY HAS LIKE. ISSUES WITH SELF PERCEPTION.

Like he worked so hard to project this image of a put-together, unassuming but driven person, and still does work to project that image, so much so that I think he's started to perceive himself that way even if he is not. He's NOT put together he's hanging shit together by Fucking Threads and Resolve and it could all go horribly wrong very easily. He's NOT unassuming he has a LOT of shit going on and a very powerful sire who is invested in Mark. Ok he actually is driven so he has that at least.

The point is is that there is discrepancies between How Mark Is, How He Sees Himself, and How Others See Him. I feel like most other kindred who are not close to him see him as suspicious as hell, awkward, and still a lil too soft generally, as well as perhaps intelligent due to his quick learning of blood sorcery. They also do see him as surprisingly competent, someone to avoid under estimating, and a threat due to his sire. But lmao overall 'what a fucking loser, this guy won't last 4 years,' is prob the perception. His coterie mates probably see him as again, competent, a little sus but whatever, but also a decent guy overall yanno? They're literally all fledglings just trying to stay decent people and make the best of things T_T which is accurate.

To continue. Mark does hide his convictions pretty deeply so in that sense, none would think him a romantic person or someone who loves humanity. But that is true. He himself is aware of his romanticism, so that is a way his self-perception is different than others. But it's On Purpose. The only person who would be aware of the romantic parts are his ex Sampson; and only Dr. Armatto (faculty advisor in grad school and another touchstone), would be aware of the love for humanity/knowledge (and prob sampson too but he doesn't Get It you know).

As for if Mark is aware of this discrepancy, I'd say, yes he very much is aware of it. Some parts of it, as stated, are curated. In some ways he considers it a good thing - the convictions for example - and in others bad - kindred thinking lowly of you makes you a target and that is Scary and he does really want to work to change the perception of himself as insecure and struggling (even if that part is TRUE he believes it is NOT because he is in DENIAL AUGH).

[cakejerry]

Idk if u care but since I saw u tweet about the video: le serrafim’s stylist called out iu and v’s mv for being exploitative of queer and disabled people. Then Taekookers got mad that she called tae straight (but not mad she called them ableist lmao). She deleted the post but they’re still in her comments

https://x.com/koreaboo/status/1750238306468814900?s=46&t=XuCx8v8aEyRQWy2cALbK1Q

I also felt gross about the video’s narrative but I didn’t see anyone else feel weird about it so I thought I was just being a sensitive lib. But apparently on the kside the disability community is also upset

awe honestly I just now watched it to answer these. I do love IU and I find the song aka her voice to be a tearjerker regardless of the mv. my honest first impression is that both the mv and the lyrics were well done but kind of... not saying anything. while I really like some lines (loneliness's antonym etc), the lyrics are kinda just your regular shmegular soliloquy about an all-encompassing love/relationship. so, a love song, basically. I like the mv visually and they're jonna a match, visual bomb fr, she's the most beautiful woman in korea and he's taehyung. love her hoodie too, the styling in general. I like that they tried doing something new and interesting and told a story but it also... didn't seem like it had a deeper meaning to me. call me anti-intellectual. I think they just wanted to do an apocalypse concept and left the 'symbolism' open ended on purpose. the cube? the cube represents prejudice guys, did you know, omg im so smart for figuring this out holy shit. whatever. I liked the camera idea.

and once again damn they're both so beautiful. I need to see them scissor. anyways

idk where queer people come in besides the redacted title (which was done very respectfully btw). I suppose the lyrics are as relatable to the queer experience as any other song about forbidden love written with.., not-that in mind. and those are aplenty. and I hear the worries about the disability stuff and I agree it would've been cool to show her still being deaf in the 'happy' universe and him still vision impaired, absolutely, but also it's an end of the world apocalypse narrative. I see how they reached for permanent physical injury as a shorthand for 'everything is fucked'. and I'm usually a sensitive lib too but I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt because not everything has to be about everything all the time. sue me. I mean it's not like I'll be streaming or buying the album anyways but I have a feeling this won't affect either of their careers at all. especially as an (imo) minor first offense. so, whatever the fuck

[illmoraineakoi]

OhhhHHHHH That's actually a pretty neat idea!

The Void could have engulfed and then solidified over the original eggs, so that inner 'layer' is the actual egg while the outer one is that Void casing.

That implies that the Void was actually doing more with those eggs than just seeping into them and the nymphs, which is actually a super cool concept. The Void just autonomously altering or manipulating the things that come into it's domain in strange ways, either intentionally with a sort of 'psudo consciousness' or just mindlessly.

Reminds me a lot of how some slime molds are capable of some really fascinating stuff despite being literally just a mold.

Whether or not the Void did it for 'protective' purposes probably depends on weather or not it was capable of identifying them as something to protect. It could have just been trying to amalgamize the eggs into itself, or it was just a side effect of being altered/affected by the Void. Or, a really interesting idea, if it behaved like an immune system would and surrounded/consumed the 'foreign objects' in the Abyss as a defense mechanism.

Or, since the eggs were probably bright glowing white at first, to just consume the pale light. Light and Darkness opposing each other fundamentally is a huge theme of the game, and the Pale King's lore tablet mentions it specifically. The light of those eggs could have played a part in whatever the Void did, either in provocation or in reaction.

I personally like to headcanon the Void as being mindless, but not incapable of behavior. It's capable of doing things, like defend itself via Void Tendrils, there just nothing that's really 'controlling' those actions outside of 'instinct' until Ghost obtains the Void Heart. Something that borders of edge of even being considering 'alive'. Again, like slime molds. Or it's just weird magical shadow goop with no irl equivalent. That's always a potential interpretation too lmao

The Void is just so fascinating to think about in terms of how it functions and what it's capable of.

Another thing I hadn't mentioned was that it seems like the process of infusing into the eggs caused them to calcify or do something similar. The egg shells found it game seem to be harder than one would think an egg should be. PK's egg in the Wyrm Carcass looks like it peeled open no issues, while the Vessels eggs are fractured and really jagged. They're like really shattered. It could just be the stylistic choice, but it really gives off the impression that the egg shells were really hard. Just an extra little interesting thing to think about alongside everything else lmao.

Friendly Reminder that the Vessel Eggs are Freaking Huge.

Also Obligatory Birthplace Egg is the only Egg Asset with Void Vines attached to it remark.

It was always strange to me how large Vessel eggs really are, especially because there really seems to be little need for it. Vessel hatchlings/nymphs are Tiny. Why are the eggs so big in comparison?

There seems to be waaaay too much unnecessary/excess space in each egg if there's only one Vessel per egg. Usually with eggs, by the end of the gestation period, the spawn is cramped in there with very little excess room. Extra unused space is wasteful, and biology hates being wasteful.

This is why I've personally always subscribed to the headcanon of Vessels eggs actually being more like Egg Sacs/Egg Cases than typical eggs. Both are when, for irl bugs, multiple larva/nymphs hatch from the same "egg"-like gestational container. Egg sacs are common for spiders (they make the actual sac itself with silk; here's a great video showing how one is made.) while cockroaches are know for egg cases (Here's a video of some hatching.)

Ghost's egg clearly isn't that much bigger than the other egg assets, it's just less destroyed, so it's size is a good reference for how big all of them would have been. And it's big enough for at least a handful of Vessel nymphs to have fit inside at once.

^ Case in point.

(You could probably squeeze a few more in there if you treat it more like a the sphere it's supposed to be and also depending on the horns. The main limiter are the heads/shells, since those are the hard parts* of a Vessel; Vessel nymph bodies seem to be quite squishy and flexible.)

(*= This is assuming that Vessel shells were hard during their gestation period. There is a chance they might not have been, since newly hatched nymph insects tend to have flimsy bodies for a while. The Birthplace memory shows that Vessels had hard shells at that point, and that seems really close to the point of hatching, so it seems likely that they hatched with hard shells rather than needing to wait a bit for them to harden up. Also, Vessel biology is weirdly wonky, so irl stuff doesn't really matter.)

Also, curiously, it seems Vessel eggs have two layers:

There's the outer shell, but there's very clearly a second, inner thing that has been broken out of. The different in the breaking look from the outer shell suggests this inner layer is made of a different material. The Pale King's egg lacks this, to it's at the very least unlikely to be a Wyrm thing, or at least not a Wyrm thing on it's own. It might be something unique to the union of Wyrm and Root and thus unique to the Vessels.

It could be a Root Thing, but we know jack shit about the White Lady and exactly how much she contributed to the Vessels.

I mean, we know literally nothing about how the Vessels were made besides Pale Babies Get Thrown Into The Liquid Shadow Pit To Get Stuffed With Black Goop, but that's besides the point.

There's also two alternative theories for why the eggs are so big that I'd like to touch upon: Void Swelling, and Stunted Development.

Let's go with Void Swelling first.

In snake eggs, the eggs tend to get a bit bigger by the time they hatch. Normally, it's not too much. Sometimes, however, the eggs really seem to swell up. Most people I've heard/seen talking about this think that the eggs are absorbing and retaining water from the humid incubation environment. Sometimes it's indicative of a problem; sometimes those swollen eggs start to rot, making it clear that that gestation has failed. Other times, the snake just hatches with a lot of egg goop.

It's possible that the Vessel eggs are so large because they've just been swollen up from the Void infusing into them.

Two problems with this theory: Vessels eggs are clearly hard-shelled, and hard-shelled eggs don't swell. At least, I've never heard of them doing that, but I'll admit I'm not a bird person. Perhaps some eggs got stuffed with way too much void and popped open before it was ready to hatch.

The second issue is that the Abyss is not what I would call a humid place (or, at least, it doesn't LOOK humid), and we don't see any liquid Void anywhere near where the eggs are in the Abyss. All the liquid Void we see is to the left of Vessel Corpses, and we see no egg assets anywhere on the way to and around the Lighthouse.. This makes it rather ambiguous how the Void even infused into the eggs at all, let alone if liquid Void was involved. Given how deep the Birthplace goes, it's impossible to tell what was at the bottom of that shaft before all of the corpses stuffed it up.

Unless ambient smoky environmental Void could have stuffed into the eggs enough to engorge them, which is also a possibility. Void is weird and we know little about how it works/behaves. Still unlikely due to the hard shells, but it's a theory.

The second theory is less about too much Void in the eggs and more about not enough Vessel.

It's possible that, at the time of Void infusion (and thus, death for the gestating Pale Children nymphs) the influence/corruption of the Void caused the Vessels to just stop developing. Dead things don't grow or develop after all.

Perhaps the eggs are so large because the original offspring that was supposed to hatch from those eggs were really supposed to be that large. They were supposed to be the spawn of a Wyrm and a Root combined. Even if the White Lady hadn't of been so big at the time of the Vessel Plan, she's shown she was always capable of eventually growing large. And if the offspring took aspects from PK's original Wyrm form over his dinky bugsona, which I would assume to be possible bc DNA and Genetics, then a larger size would also potentially be expected.

Or maybe some Pale Children would have gotten the Wyrm gene while others got the Bugsona gene, which is what Hornet got, and is absolutely hilarious to think about. Imagine getting riffed on by a twelve foot high sibling bc you got dad's Short Gene.

There's one issue with this theory, and that is of course, Broken Fucking Vessel. Broken Vessel always throws wrenches into Vessel theories, it's like their favorite past time.

Broken Vessel has aged. And, Hollow, more obviously, but BV is the main confusing one. Broken Vessel proves that Vessel can age on their own, without the potential influence/assistance of the King. BV proves that Vessel development isn't permanently stunted.

The most logical solution to this issue I've seen is exposure to the Void. Vessels, on a fundamental level, are made up of Void. It is intrinsically entwined with their very physiology. They're not just walking corpses stuffed full of Void and a Shade, their very flesh IS Void and that Shade.

Case in point:

BV, out of any other Vessel outside of Hollow, is the one who could have potentially come into contact with Void after leaving the Abyss. They're found in the Ancient Basin, which at the time of the game is heavily Void tainted (likely due to the Lighthouse being off and PK fucking off to Buzzsaw Land. That light had likely been the only thing keeping the Void suppressed underneath the Basin.)

PK could have used Void to supplement Hollow's growth into adulthood because Vessels probably literally cannot grow or age without it. Hence why Ghost and all the other escapee Vessels are stuck as nymphs while BV grew a tiny bit.

Of course, the solution to the BV issue also ruins the stunted embryonic development theory too. It's a rather poor and weak theory that I've included only because I though it was a bit interesting. Thinking about what the original Pale Spawn would have been like is always interesting to me.

With that, I have just one more thing to point out.

Ma'am, how the FU--

[fyodorscenarios]

This scenario is based off of a really great movie that I recently watched. I decided to use the universe it’s set in as an AU. The film is called The Lobster. You can of course read this without having watched it, but I really do recommend the film if you have time for it. Plus the film does a way better job of introducing the viewer to its world than I do.

I also tried to emulate the film when it comes to the style this is written in. So if it seems unconventional that’s probably why. It was certainly fun to write for that reason.

This is just a self indulgent thing in the long run. I didn’t write this for a request, but I hope you enjoy it regardless.

-

First, they shower you so your skin is soft. That way, they can peel it all off.

And, what happens after that?

I don't know. But the procedure would surely depend on the animal.

-

You woke up to your new alarm.

"Bzzt, bzzt. Room 304, day three. 42 days remaining. Breakfast is served." it said.

You got up and walked to your closet, putting on the clothes they had assigned you. There was no choice to be made, the clothing was identical after all.

It was still strange seeing the dinning room. You weren't used to seeing everyone wear the same bland outfit each morning. The men in blue shirts and black suits, and the women in the same cream floral dress.

You almost felt sick as you were forced to sit in your now usual seat. The woman beside you was terribly vain, and loved to talk all breakfast. Luckily, she showed no interest in you, but it was still a wonder that you were able to deal with her.

She ended up blathering on, as per usual, about how she would certainly find someone. However, she always complained that no one was worthy of her.

Sometimes, you thought her words might drive you to suicide before your time was even up.

-

Later that same day, when you had walked to the dock to stare at the ocean, the alarm rang. Luckily you weren’t far from the hotel, so you ran.

Upon finally entering your room, you were quick to gather your ammunition and dark coat, before meeting all the others at the bus up front. There were some that were quite late, despite all of you knowing what was at risk.

On the bus, you wondered if you could be cruel enough. You’d never shot a human being, and you still weren’t sure if doing that here really meant that they would be dying. Their old self would die, but would they die with it?

You weren’t desperate now, but eventually you might be. Therefore, every day truly counted.

Upon arriving at the forest, most sprinted into the trees as fast as they could. You however, decided that using stealth was the best option. With your gun in hand, you quietly made your way through the brush, careful not to even snap a twig.

After a few minutes of walking, you spotted a flash out of the corner of your eye. You quickly followed in its direction.

When you arrived, about a metre’s distance from you was another hotel guest, and a loner. The man from the hotel had grabbed the loner woman roughly by the hair. He must have just caught up with her.

Her hair was very long. You wondered why she hadn’t been smart enough to cut it.

The man gripped her hair tightly. The woman whimpered and a thud echoed through the trees. He had slammed her head against the nearest tree, and he let her body crumple to the ground before he shot her.

You watched on, rooted to the spot, as the drugs took effect and her eyes fluttered shut.

The man looked over her, his face had remained neutral throughout the act, and was still like this now.

You almost dropped your gun when he looked up and met with your eyes. There was an eerie smile etched on his face. His strange purple eyes seemed like that of a predator.

You wanted to say something, but you soon realized that you couldn’t even try. You peered back at him as if in a daze.

The grin, only momentary, was gone as he left you. Feeling drained, you leaned against another tree. You hoped for the end of the hunt to come soon.

-

Half an hour later, each guest was lined up. On the ground in front of you lay the fallen loners. You wondered what the punishment for them would even be. What would they make the loners into?

The staff member went through each person, calling out their room number and what they had accomplished.

The man from before, was room 206.

“Room 206,” said the staff member, “5 loners. 120 days remaining, now 125.”

So he was like that. This should not have surprised you.

“Room 304,” you flinched as the staff member called on you, “42 days remaining.”

-

Bzzt, bzzt. Room 304, day seven. 38 days remaining. Breakfast is served.

-

You find him at the shooting range. Seemingly, he’s predictable.

You had mulled it over, and glanced at him when you could. Sometimes, you even caught him looking back at you. Today was the day.

You watched him from your chair. He was certainly skilled, perhaps from being at the hotel for so long.

When he was finished, he placed the gun back on it’s rack and sat beside you. He glanced down at you, and you looked back.

“Did you need something?” he asked.

“I want to get to know you.” you said.

He hummed. “Simply translated to: you’d like to see if we’re a match. Are you desperate? Or do you figure that I’ve likely grown tired of this place?”

You flush. “I just want to get to know you. If we end up being a match, then that’s great for both of us, isn’t it? I’m not desperate yet.”

“This system they use, you know it won’t make you happy, right? Compatibility cannot be determined by one matching trait alone.”

“Do you think that I like that I’m being put through this? Nobody does. I loathe this way of life.”

“Then why are you still looking for some kind of trait to latch on to?”

You stood up suddenly. “Maybe it’s because I for one actually want to get out of here!?”

He stared up at you, still blank faced. You almost screamed because of it, but instead swiftly turned away and left the area. You dug your nails into one of your palms as you trudged back to the hotel in silence.

-

Bzzt, bzzt. Room 304, day twenty. 25 days remaining. Breakfast is served.

-

The woman from breakfast was running out of time. Everyone knew it.

“Why do you never respond to me? I’m always talking to you. You won’t even nod!” the woman spat at you that morning. You swore she got saliva on your toast.

This is just too good, you thought.

“You haven’t gotten the hint, have you?” you began, “I’d rather not talk with you. You only ever talk about yourself.”

“Well I’m so sorry for attempting to be your friend! Considering you don’t have any here. If you don’t come out of that shell of your’s you’ll end up a hermit crab!” she spat again.

You turned to her, an oddly sweet smile plastered on your face. “I’m sorry too, because you definitely won’t make it here. Nobody would ever want to match with such a vain woman like you.”

Her palm collided with your cheek in a second. You turned back to her as the sting of it spread across your face, and smiled once more. “It appears you couldn’t form a proper argument against that.” you said.

You realized soon after that your side of the dinning room had been watching the whole thing. The man from before was staring at you with an amused grin on his face, it vanished a second after you looked to him.

-

You found him once more at the shooting range. He was on the same chair as before, as if he hadn’t moved since your last meeting.

“Hello,” you said.

“Hello,” he replied. “I liked what you said this morning.”

“So you did.” you sat beside him, in the chair from before. “I still see you staring at me. So excuse me if this is too blunt, but do you like me?”

“Perhaps. Or maybe, I’ve been leading you on. Then you would waste your time on me, and not spend enough time finding someone who will actually match with you. Then, with little time left, you would become desperate, run away, and join the loners. Finally, I would find you in the forest, and shoot you like all the others.” he turned to you, staring cooly. “Have you considered the possibility?”

“No. I don’t get that kind of feeling from you.”

“I’m surprised. Most people judge me as untrustworthy, and they aren’t wrong half the time.”

“You’re just lonely, like the rest of us, right? Nobody wants to be lonely, but you can live like that. For some time, loneliness is okay. I would’ve found someone at my own pace if it wasn’t a crime.” You sighed, slightly nervous now. “I wish we could have met under better circumstances, but even so, will you consider leaving with me?”

“Talk with me more, and I’ll consider it.” he said.

You smiled slightly, and it was then that you noticed a specific trait of his. He was bitting one of his fingers, you couldn’t tell if it was from nervousness or not. When he registered your staring, he stopped.

“Do you think loneliness really does kill, like we’ve been told all our lives? Or it is just a combination of circumstances?” you asked suddenly.

He cracked a slight smile. “Interesting question. If someone’s loneliness causes them to commit suicide, perhaps it would kill. However, I think that might be the only situation where it would.”

You nod. “Yeah, that makes sense.”

“Have you considered what animal you would be, if you had to become one?” he asked you.

“No,” you said, “I don’t want to think about it. Even though my days are running out, and they told me I have to. I want to be disobedient. Even in the smallest way if that’s all I can manage. You?”

“I’d become a rat.”

“Really?” you asked incredulously.

“I wouldn’t want to live very long if I wasn’t a human. I’d miss a lot about living like this,” he explained. “Rats are also very intelligent, and exhibit affection like humans do. Most people see them as pests however, like those who stray from society. I feel like I can relate to them somehow.”

You stared at him, somewhat amazed. “You’ve put a lot of thought into it then. It seems like something no one would choose, but I think you’ve convinced me. If this doesn’t work out, I want you to keep me as your pet when I become a rat.”

“That won’t be necessary. I’ll leave with you.”

“You didn’t just decide that now, did you?”

“No, I decided much earlier, before you even came here today.” he cracked a small smile.

“We can tell them in a few days. I’ll start biting my fingers like you do around the cameras for a while. I’m sure they’ll let us through.” you smiled back. 

-

It had worked, and the two of you were later placed in a double room. You in particular, were relieved.

One day during this time, as you were reading in the room’s armchair, he tapped you on the shoulder.

“You’re doing it by yourself,” he said.

“Doing what?” you asked. You quickly noticed what he was referring to however. His habit you had attempted to imitate had now become something you did unconsciously as well.

Dropping your index finger from your mouth, you smiled into the pages of your book. Despite all you tried to do to deny it, there was something undoubtably good about having something in common with another person. It wasn’t all based on lies, you concluded.  

-

About two weeks later, the two of you had moved on to your last trial. Two weeks on a yacht, then marriage, then freedom. Or at least the freedom the city provided.

You were looking over the balcony of the yacht, the wind moving lightly through your hair. He was sitting on a chair on the deck with you, staring out at the water.

“Do you regret coming with me?” you asked him.

“I don’t,” he said simply.

“Are you sure?” you asked again, “We could always drown ourselves here, if you like.”

There was a moment of silence. Perhaps more of an almost silence, as the small waves below still continued to splash across the bottom of the boat.

You decided once and for all that he wasn’t someone who was likely to kill himself, and then made to ask him something different. “Do you think that the people who fail still remember their human lives?”

“I had a good friend once,” he began, “he was called here first because he was older than me. He didn’t have any family or any other friends, so when he failed he was my responsibility. He had become a beautiful songbird, and I tried my best to treat him well. He was a type of songbird, but he never sang. He had no reason to, I suppose, or maybe he just didn’t feel like it. He stopped eating after a few weeks, and died shortly after. I felt like I could still see him in that bird, though I could have been imagining it.”

You hummed. “Perhaps it would be better not to remember. However, your memories are a large part of who you are. Without those, you aren’t really you anymore, are you?”

“You might be right, but I don’t think we could ever know something like that for certain.” He replied.

“If you die, I’ll follow right behind you.” you said.

He laughed slightly. “I hope not. But if you do, I’ll introduce you to my friend after we’ve left here.”

[sukirichi]

Bonten husbands messing up their child's haircut idk if you got this one cus my tumblr's acting up :(

Ran: panik. He's sURE he followed the tutorial correctly, but something must have gone wrong. After struggling to fix it he just accepts his fate and vacuums the carpet for the night. "Ran" "I know."

Rindou: Tried to impress you by doing it but it backfired. Waits for you to get home since he doesn't want to mess it up any more. Poor bby cries a lil and is so guilty, pls give him love🥺 "Care to explain?" "Not really"

Kaku: Internal screaming. There's no way this could've happened. Not to him. Tries to fix it and does a pretty decent job but he knows he can't fool you "What happened to their hair?" "Iaccidentallymessedup"

Koko: The only reason he was doing this is bc he heard the other members fvked up their kids hair and tried to one-up them. Calls every professional in the area. Just for backup he bought a wig. "Why are there hairdressers in my home?" "That's a good question"

Sanzu: Desperately tries to save it but it only gets worse. In the end he acted like it all happened on purpose. Also made your favorite meal to distract from the hair. *Unimpressed Wife Noises* "iT dOEsn'T LoOK thAt bAD"

-✎

I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS 😭💕

omg ran would definitely be very excited about it. he’s quite proud of his hairstyles from his youth up until his bonten self, so its almost hard to stop him from wanting to be the one to snip snip his kid’s hair. so daddy! ran stands there, proud and confident as youtube tutorials play in the background. but then it doesn’t turn out the way he likes, and his kid is speechless at the rather...questionable new look. as if things can’t get worse, you come home with a frown. “ran?” you gently pat his shoulder, the muscles under your touch slumping in defeat. and when he says yes, he knows it looks bad and he should’ve just went to professionals, you can’t have the heart to scold him on it ://

now see, rindou may look aloof or unbothered most times with a permanent lazy frown, but he does like the attention and praises you shower him with. he gets the idea one day to surprise you by cutting his kid’s hair so you won’t have to take him to the stylists this weekend. but his hands are shaking, his kid won’t stop fidgeting on the chair, and on top of the pressure of wanting to impress you, along with the fear of not pulling this off - it backfires. rindou doesn’t even try finishing the look his kid asked for before he’s giving them snacks to make up for the mistake. and when you get home, rindou begins to tear up. thankfully, you appreciate that its the thought that counts (though your kid didn’t have to suffer this heinous cut lmao) so you don’t push him too much to explain 🥺

kakucho refuses to believe it !! him, best daddy kakucho, messing up his kid’s haircut when he even practiced on so many wigs and watched more tutorials that it put ran’s effort to shame? him, best daddy kakucho, who was intensely focused and careful in everything he did yet it still turned out this way ?? poor bb is so shocked he can’t even form coherent sentences anymore

out of all of them, kokonoi is the most reassured he’s got this. he’s been styling his hair since he was a teen - he’s got this !! and just to prove a point that he’s the best daddy who won’t mess up his kid’s cut, he happily facetimes the other bonten members while a group of professional stylist supervise and nod in agreement at his techniques and swift cuts. don’t get him wrong though, there’s a number of wigs and professionals on standby if ever he messes up, giving him a perfect excuse that “its time for a break” before he ends the call. better safe than sorry, Koko tells himself, because alas, he ended up needing them after all 💀

sanzu - as insane and daring he may be - knows his limits and is most definitely aware how scary you can get if you see how he messed his kid’s haircut up. but ah, sanzu gives in when the other bonten members bribe mikey to order sanzu to at least try so all the bonten daddies could finally crown who is most deserving of the ‘best daddy award.’ he messes up though, which is expected, and there’s no more taking it back so he simply whisks you into the kitchen before you can hear your crying kid, your favorite meal prepared and kisses littered on your face. until your kid comes to greet you and your mouth falls agape at the mess. *cue unimpressed wife noises and defensive husband noises*

[dreamkidddream]

I really enjoyed your writing on the ADA members with a younger sibling like partner <33 I was wondering if you could write the same scenario but with Chuuya and Fyodor? Except the younger partner in question has a rough past and cheery/joking personality similar to Dazai(?) I'm super excited to see more of your writing!! c:

Hi anon! Thank you for the compliment and for reading (here’s the scenario for those that want to read it)! The only difference is that instead of this reader being pure, they’re going to be like a mini Dazai (or at least similar to him). One change that I did make was that Reader isn’t as suicidal as Dazai (ie. constantly trying to find a way to end their life), but Reader is ready to go whenever and wherever, whether it’s on their terms or not. Reader is gender neutral and hope you enjoy!

Also ayyyeeee my first time writing for Fyodor! Hope I did him justice cause his part took a while lol

TW: Mentions of suicide, dark moments (Reader is a bit sadistic, but nothing graphic is mentioned) small spoilers for Dark Era arc and Season 3

Acting as a Younger Sibling with a Rough Past and Personality Similar to Dazai with: Chuuya and Fyodor

Chuuya

Well he was extremely disturbed to say the least. Okay extremely may be over exaggerating, but the way you acted got underneath his skin bad

You reminded him too much of Dazai, minus the suicide attempts and the animosity towards him. Although that didn’t stop the morbid jokes from happening

“Hey Chu-Chu, what did the librarian say to the guy that wanted to check out a book on how to commit suicide?”

“How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that!-“

“Go away, you’re not going to bring it back. HA! A knee slapper, am I right?”

He wondered if Dazai got to you first like he did Akutagawa, and if he did, that was just another reason to strangle him

You were his partner, and you were young. So seeing the way you interacted with everyone and everything with such a pessimistic attitude while still being cheery was alarming

Not to mention how easy it is for you to just readily accept death at every turn. You’re the literal embodiment of “guess I’ll die” and it drives Chuuya up the wall every time

He remembers the one time an enemy held you hostage how you were so cheerful to finally be rid of this joke you called a life, and that you told the guy who was holding a gun to your head to “put it between the eyes, it looks 10x better that way.” And “don’t be afraid to blow my brains out either! But you do you, but I think it’s a rather stylistic choice if I do say so myself.”

The man thought you were trying to distract him at first, but when he figured out that you were serious he honestly got so nervous he was ready to just let you go and suggest therapy lmao

After he handled the situation, he took you directly under his wing. Sure, you were already his partner, but he was really going to look out for you including outside of work. If it meant that he had to “babysit” you, then oh well

Plus he didn’t want to face Mori if he just let you die while under his care

You realized what he was trying to do when you two would go off to “collect information” and would be doing the complete opposite. “Hey, I’m kinda hungry, let’s take a break and grab a bite to eat.”

“I thought we had to get this info back to Mori ASAP. Not that I care if he’s mad, he’s been holding out on me and this is the perfect way to take revenge.”

“Holding out how?”

“I told him that since he’s a doctor he would be the perfect teacher to show me some new techniques.”

“...on?”

“Torturing, duh! My methods are getting kinda stale, and I do want to perfect my craft after all. I want to be good at something before I kick the bucket, Chu.”

Poor man is honestly in so much distress because of you please help him

And the way you interacted with the other members was both entertaining and horrifying to watch at times. Majority of the time, you were this happy go lucky kid with a dark sense of humor (you still made people smile, although sometimes it was tense or apprehensive, but whatever a smile is still a smile). But when you were having a bad day or a mission was going wrong, everyone knew to steer clear of you.

A new recruit tried to cheer you up one day, telling you that “it could always be worse”. You then got pulled into the office with a very angry Chuuya and a mildly disappointed Mori.

Chuuya finally had enough after months of this occurred. It was like a never ending cycle: except your behavior was getting increasingly more reckless and dangerous. It was driving him crazy trying to figure out why you were this way and if it was any way to snap you out of it

He wasn’t a stranger to death, he’s seen it with his own two eyes, end even killed people with his bare hands. But the huge difference between you two is that he didn’t particularly enjoy killing, if it had to be done then he had no problems doing so; it comes with the job y’know? But with you, you took actual pleasure in killing. It filled you with a sick sense of glee, and it even made his stomach turn

The bond between you two grew from just a typical work relationship (as far as working in the mafia goes). He knew that from underneath your rather concerning persona, you were just troubled. Someone or something made you this way, and while he had his own troubles growing up, he was able to deal with it and overcome his issues. It just seemed like you just...gave in to yours. And it made him feel pity for you.

You didn’t mind Chuuya at all. You actually liked being his partner! He was pretty much the only person that you didn’t feel a need to harm or kill. And he was fun to be around, when he wasn’t being such a party pooper (I mean what’s the point of being in the mafia when you can’t purposely spill some blood every now and then for fun?). The only thing you didn’t like was how he would try and get you to talk about your past. You honestly didn’t see a point in it, it’s called the past for a reason, why didn’t he understand that?!

But no matter how many times you would shut down or try to change the subject, he would always try again, and again, and again. It was very annoying. And you didn’t like to talk about it. Why didn’t Chuuya understand that?!

Eventually, his pestering worked. One day after a rough mission when he had to patch you up, you opened up to him. You didn’t immediately tell him everything, but you gave him small insights to what happened, to what lead you to be this way

You could tell that he was grateful that he was finally getting somewhere with you. And you yourself was surprised that your dynamic didn’t change. He didn’t look at you with sympathy in his eyes, he didn’t baby you, he wasn’t disgusted by you, everything was normal. The only difference is that Chuuya told you that it was okay to talk to him, and that you shouldn’t be scared to approach him (psh you scared, yeah okay)

Chuuya felt like a weight lifted off his shoulders once you opened up. You were still a bit sadistic (but you did tone it back after the recruit incident, and after you saw how repulsed he looked, so you just did everything behind closed doors now) and had your cheery persona on, but it felt a little bit more real now. It felt genuine. It gave him a good feeling to see some spark in your eyes instead of the full he felt himself getting used to. And he would never say it to you, but it also gave him a warm feeling with him being your role model (you knew but didn’t want to burst his bubble yet)

Your change wasn’t very noticeable at first, but that’s okay. No one needed to know, it was fine with just you and Chuuya. You still felt the desire to just be done with life, but it wasn’t your focus whenever you were with him. You hadn’t made peace with your past yet, but you felt you could one day with him by your side. He was someone that you didn’t knew you needed (or wanted to admit to), but it worked out in the end. You had doubts that you could or would ever change, but if you did, growing to be someone like Chuuya would’nt be the worst possible outcome

Plus, whenever he did run into Dazai with his new sidekick, he is 10000% bragging about how much better and cooler you are, with him being the superior between them both. He can’t WAIT till you guys can whoop their ass

Fyodor

Well weren’t you such an interesting character

To see someone as young as you ready to just leave this world in an abrupt way was intriguing, and he realized that he could use this to his advantage. Maybe even give you something to gain in exchange

He found you hiding inside a disgusting abandoned building (a fitting place for a rat if he would say so himself), drenched in blood. Fyodor didn’t necessarily care why, but he was curious about one thing: why were you smiling? Your eyes were so lifeless, yet here you were smiling so bright, as if you weren’t covered in someone’s blood

Fyodor found himself smiling down at you. Did you think he was prey, that he was going to be your next target? He wanted you to try, he wanted to see what you were really capable of

“Tell me, what is going to be your next move? Do you wish to attack me?”

“If you do something that I don’t like, then yes, that’s the plan. Why are you here Mister? You wanna have some fun too?”, your smile turned into a smirk, twirling your very sharp knife in your hand. “You’re not even from here, so why are you trying to bother such an innocent kid like me?”

He matched your smirk, “You are from innocent, child, even a blind man can see that. To see just how full of sin you are. This wasn’t your first atrocity that you committed nor would it be your last. Which is a shame, it might be too late for me to cleanse you of your filth.”

Oh, he was going to be very amusing to mess with. But you weren’t stupid. Something wasn’t right with this man. No one would walk up to someone with copious amounts of blood on them, holding a weapon that caused said blood, while berating them about being “full of sin”. What was his ability? Did he have people with him? Was the building surrounded or booby trapped? These questions swirled around your head, all while he just kept smirking at you. He was pissing you off, who the hell did he think he was?

But you kept your anger at bay, plastering a cheerful smile on your face. “Sin? Cleanse me of my filth? I guess I do kinda stink but who exactly do you think you are, some type of God?”

“That’s exactly what I am. I’m here to free this world from this wretched curse that has been brought upon.”

...huh? Did-did he escape from the asylum or something? Did he seriously believe himself to be a God (not even a prophet but an actual God)? Seeing your confusion, he continued on, “The curse of ability users. They plague this Earth, and they need to be eliminated.”

“Why is that? What’s wrong with having abilities? Hellooooo, some people’s abilities are actually pretty cool! If you just have a terrible ability, it’s your problem, not the world-“

“Why not let me show you why it’s indeed a curse?”

“And how would you do that? You must be crazy if you think I’m going anywhere with you. I may be dangerous but I’m not dumb!”

“You poor, misguided soul.”, he tutted at you. “Look at where you have ended up at. These people with these so called “cool abilities” have failed you, have they not? Yet you still idolize them, not believing that they are the reason for your misfortunes. If they were truly your idols, they wouldn’t have left you to fend for yourself, to live among the rats. They left you to rot, do you not see that?”

He was hitting too close to home, he was getting too personal, too close. He didn’t know you at all, you’re a complete stranger to him, but why did his words hold some truth to them?

“Come with me, and I will prove to you first hand why this has to be done.”, he was now physically close to you, staring you deep into your eyes. “It would be such a waste for you to die without knowing the truth, wouldn’t you agree?”

You didn’t have much, he wasn’t wrong. But if he could take you somewhere with real food and not scraps you had to fight to find, and to have real shelter, then fine. You agreed. And if you felt that something was up, you’ll just kill him, run away, or both

After he took you away, he kept to his word. It seemed like he was really was telling the truth, you getting first-hand experience like he promised. It was scary that he was right, but you were also indebted to him. He not only allowed you to live in luxury (at least it was luxury to you considering what you had before), but he opened your eyes to what the true problem is. He gave your life a new purpose. If you two were able to successfully complete his goal, then your problems would be gone forever right? You would finally be able to feel a sense of peace, and you can’t wait till that could happen

You and Fyodor, after he opened your eyes, bonded easier than in the beginning. You were smart enough to not fully trust him after leaving with him, but after just a couple of pulled strings to cause certain things to happen, you slowly melted and molded into the way that he planned. You would be an excellent pawn in his grand plan, and you would do well in keeping him entertained at the same time

You were a joyful child, even when carrying out his dirty work, you did so gleefully. After joining the Rats in the House of the Dead, you tried to spread that joy among the other members. They didn’t find it very amusing, but you didn’t care and neither did Fyodor. You were far too important to let go of now

You were always by him, it seemed. Always in the same space, whether he was planning his next move, and playing the cello, you were always there with this look of awe directed at him. Every time he would catch you staring, he would simply chuckle and softly reprimand you about, “how rude it is to stare, but you simply can’t help it.”

He even taught you how to play the cello!

You sounded terrible but practice makes perfect

As time went on and the end goal seeming to be closing in, he came to see you as more than just an expendable tool. He found out about your past, but simply proved to you once again why you two had to make sure the curse was ridden as soon as possible. No one wanted a repeat of what happened to you to happen to anyone else, so the mission had to be success. Failure was not an option

Fyodor didn’t see himself as a cruel man towards you. He just didn’t mince his words and he made sure that you were dealing with the truth, and not some lie that was attempted to be twisted as reality. If anything, that was the way that he showed that he held some compassion for you, he wasn’t willing to let you be lead astray from the truth again, not while he was here. You had somehow wiggled your way into his mind, where he had been accepting of your close bond, and he took that into consideration

Once his goal is achieved and he has truly made his place known as a God, he’ll make sure that you gain your rightful place among him as well. You were worthy in Fyodor’s eyes, and as long as nothing came in between your bond and the end goal, then everything will work out. He will make sure of that.

[lithopsy]

i? okay.

i'm not even going to try to format this literally who cares

(getting this out of the way, this is my least coherent thought:) i think that it's useless to try to quantify the feminism in poor things, even though i feel like most discourse surrounding the film has centered around classifying it as either feminist (because of bella's journey of self-actualization) or antifeminist (because of *gestures broadly*). i don't particularly gaf. however, bella's sexual liberation is,, uncomfortable? and that’s okay but that’s the fact of it? in MY opinion, the first act feels too degrading for me to believe that the film is fully invested in bella's autonomy. have your cake and eat it too kind of situation. the most overt “feminist” message of the movie is one of sexual liberation and i don’t think that’s a good reading. i know i'm not making sense!! my head hurts!! i don't care about whether or not this movie is feminist i want to talk about cinematography!! moving on!!

i did enjoy the movie a lot stylistically!! the sets were gorgeous, the colors were great, the fun pseudoscience was interesting and pleasantly campy. the cinematography was hit or miss for me, mostly because i really wanted the radial blur effect to have more of a purpose. literally 90% of the time, this effect was tracked to bella's eyeline, so i would have liked it more if that were a consistent choice made to show how she was seeing the world instead of it seemingly being thrown onto a quarter of the close-up shots at random. i did like the vignette "porthole" shots, even if they also felt a little random. there was a sense of voyeurism in the vignette shots for the first act that transitioned gracefully into a sense of bella looking in on the world from the outside. good stuff. interesting stuff. i read a lot of reddit posts about the camera lenses they utilized and had a good time.

i love weird movies and i love when they get made. this movie is, however?? pop weird? it's weird that isn't going to flop. (beau is afraid dr. ari aster rest in peace to a real one. the box office just didn't get you and that's okay.) poor things is still weird enough to appreciate that it's weird.

i loved the scene outside the slums in alexandria with harry. i loved how overdone the set and the colors were here, as well as the melodrama of the suffering bella sees. i think bella's confrontation with harry back on the boat was my favorite scene in the whole movie!! it was such a good character moment for bella to state that she chooses to see the good in the world. harry's explicit desire to ruin her innocence was refreshing, when all the other men want to preserve her naivety. it also struck me that i preferred harry’s honest cruelty to the false kindness of the other men taking advantage of bella. it was a good contrast and a deceptively comforting moment that takes a moment to hurt.

i DID NOT fuck with max. his interest in bella was inherently predatory and i don't think that the ending was as satisfying with him in the garden with everyone else. i think the film wants us to believe that bella comes back from her adventures worldly and learned enough to reverse the power imbalance between them. i don't buy that and couldn't ever get over my initial discomfort with him.

the brothel was really a lot lmao. ambigiuous sexual liberation feminism interspersed with a few "ew this man is ugly. erm... maybe prostitution bad and not empowering actually???" scenes that didn't really take. the (nameless iirc??) socialist lesbian love interest was a fun twist but didn't make up for the rest of that section of the movie. i get it but i didn’t care for it.

there is REALLY something thematically interesting to the idea that bella is both mother and daughter in one body and that she, herself, is the child that she didn't want. i think they could have gotten some mileage out of that idea if they'd spent less time *gestures broadly*

my second favorite scene was bella's conversation with god(win) when she first returns to london. bella confronting her creator was good stuff. should have been the end of the movie tbh. i feel like she regressed from that point.

godwin backstory was maybe a little *too* melodramatic for me but i am not a dark comedy guy so that's just me.

i'm not gonna dwell on this because i'm not idfk neil degrasse tyson and i know how to suspend disbelief but this script played it sooooo fast and loose with language acquisition. there should have been *at least* more consistency with her speech toward the end. the regression was silly. however, bella kind of delivered bar after bar; her word choices were almost always interesting.

almost every establishing shot looked like a microsoft screensaver. didn't like that.

the black and white to color transition was well-intentioned but i didn't care for it, especially because the moment of transition was a sex montage. call me a prude, i'll live with that, but there is a dubious line between exploitation and liberation (i know that's half the point. i still don't have to like watching it.)

final thoughts: idk it was fine i'm normal about it three point five stars

i watched poor things,, unfortunately i have thoughts

[feeshies]

Hey Fish! Pride ask game 11, 24, and 26?

Do you like your flag(s)?

The bisexual flag is pretty, but after that one post pointing out how the shade of purple is not consistent with the other color shades, that's all I can see.

I appreciate the trans flag on a historic level and a symbolic level. Also the first showing of the trans flag was in my home state, so I feel attached to it on a number of levels. Just not...aesthetically. And, yes, I acknowledge that reducing important queer symbols down to "bUT DoES IT GO WITH MY OUTFIT?" defeats the purpose. But my general aversion to pastels (especially pastel blue) is my primary (non-safety-related) reason for not having any memorabilia/clothing with the flag. I feel so stupid for even saying this lmao. It's a good flag.

Favorite LGBT+ canon character?

Maybe it's because I'm deep in my Derry Girls rewatch so she's been on my mind, but Clare is like a little sister to me now and I will kill for her.

Zoisite and Kunzite from Sailor Moon, even though I didn't know they were gay when I first watched the show. Although learning that a character I perceived to be female was actually male did awaken something in me.

Fish Eye also from Sailor Moon also awakened something in me.

Krem from DA:I, despite some of the "choices" made in the game, was also incredibly important to me.

Also Hedwig from Hedwig and the Angry Inch (specifically the film adaptation) was one of the first depictions of a character exploring the complicated side of gender identity I remember seeing. Also when I was in a writer's workshop, we doing group feedback for each other's stories and this one person's writing style and plot points reminded me of Hedwig. When I pointed this out, the writer got so excited because this was a deliberate stylistic choice on their part. We actually broke out of the circle we were sitting in to go hug. I never saw them again. It's been seven years and I still think about them from time to time. I was also crushing hard on them. Anyway, yeah. Hedwig.

Some characters you headcanon as LGBT+?

Sexuality-wise, I basically headcanon most characters as bi or ace unless told otherwise lol.

As far as specific headcanons go, seeing depictions of Pickles from Metalocalypse as a trans man was one of the first transmasc headcanons that didn't make me incredibly uncomfortable from the fandom portrayals. This hc also encouraged me to participate more in trans interpretations because I found that they didn't have to hurt me.

The Blues Devil from Metalocalypse is also agender.

This is getting long so I'll cut my answer off here.

[queenofallimagines]

Suga,daichi,tsukishima, and hinata helping 4c s/o with their hair

Tumblr stop deleting my requests challenge🔪

Saltyshima:

- I want him to help me with my wash day🥺

- Like he would be so meticulously gentle

- He has all the products in order for when he’s about to start

- Will massage your head in the sink

- Water temperature is perfect

- And he can do the best twist out don’t @ me

- Might act like your moms a little tho

- “Stop moving shorty before I have to pop you.”

- The first time he accidentally snatches a knot out

- If you’re not tender headed he will be a little rough

- Just making sure he gets all of your scalp clean

- Pretends that it’s a bother to him

- But it’s relaxing for him to help

- King of wash n go’s

- No matter if you got 3c to 4c

- High or low porosity

- The hair always comes out good

- It’s never frizzy and he will refuse to tell you how he did it

- “Very funny. But if I hide your silk pillowcase tonight Who’s gunna be laughing.”

- Always has a bandanna or hair tie

- he has a routine that works for you so if it’s messed up he will get salty x5

- “You’re not doing it right. That’s why the hair isn’t clumping.”

- “The Bantu knots aren’t even the same size.”

- He will Nah you the whole time until you let him take over

- Your personal stylist tbh

Suga:

- excited puppy noises

- He really wants to help

- Will watch every youtube hair tutorial in your playlist before even buying products

- Then they come in the mail he’s like a kid on Christmas

- “Sugar! I got stuff to help do your hair.”

- If you need it? He got it

- Wig glue? Got it

- Hair bands? Got that too

- If you need a silk tie to lay your edges he is there in a flash

- “Did you check to see if that shampoo has silicone or are we just putting anything in our hair?”

- He feels so privileged to be able to touch your hair

- He just looks at you with heart eyes as you instal your braids

- Anything looks good to him

- “What are these called again?”

- “Goddess locs.”

- “The name definitely fits.”

- Always has ACV on lock Incase you need to do a rinse

- “It’s hot oil treatment Friday babe.”

- Will have the calendar on his phone marked for your hair

- “Yesterday was wash day , so today is a deep conditioner.”

Hinata:

- “I don’t have a clue what’s going on here but I’ll act like I do.”

- He doesn’t see hair like yours BC reon has a box and my mans Aran has a fade

- So he’s excited

- Short or long he is in love

- “Your hair is so bouncy!”

- Will notice the you look uncomfortable when people try to touch your hair without asking so he’ll tell others to back off

- “You cant do that! That’s micro aggressive.”

- “It’s micro agression but thanks tangerine.”

- Since you’re an exchange student you help him with English

- When he sees all the products you have he gets hype

- “Woa all this goes in your hair?”

- “Yeah”

- “Well I definitely want to help now!”

- Not very good with routine but he can work magic with his fingers

- If you teach him how to braid he will have half your head done in 45 mins

- It’s fun for him

- Likes to finger de tangle BC he can watch your curls revert

- You’re not allowed to hate your shrinkage anymore

- Nope

- “Why is that bad? It looks like magic!”

- He’s so precious

Daichi:

- I’m so sorry

- Probably the worst out of the bunch

- Not to say he’s bad

- But he won’t have the knack for it right off the bat

- You gotta teach him

- He will try and dry comb your hair

- Has never even heard of the word detangle

- Rips your hair OUT

- He’s 10 seconds away from cutting the knots out LMAO

- “You gotta be gentle dai.”

- “Your hair is breaking the comb tho.”

- Once he learns he’s all about it

- Making sure your leave in is always full

- Buys combo that won’t break

- Likes that your hair smells good

- Will purposely kiss your forehead to smell your hair

- Has to ask what a bonnet is

- Calls it your bedtime hat

- Can’t braid, twist, or cornrow properly to save his life but he can part your shit real good

- It’s a team effort

- He parts the sections and you work on them

- He likes to help massage your scalp

- His hands big and warm too

- Probably threw your edge brush in the trash by mistake

- Lmfaoo you almost beat his ass too

- Refuses to touch your hair products because he would probably throw it out before it’s empty

- Shits half full and he’s like

- “I didn’t know there was still stuff in there.”

- Please help this clown

- He is very good at keeping you organized tho

- Has a basket for your bonnets and a drawer for your combs and clips

- Puts your hair in a pineapple or puffs before you go to bed

- Mains just because he likes touching your hair when it’s that soft

[dreamescapeswriting]

Jungkook X Reader ~ Insecure [Request]

>>> Word Count: 5,132

>>> Genre: The tinest amount of Angst I can manage to do and a Fluffy ending

>>> Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

>>> A/N: Okay if you’ve never cried to a stranger on a plane or train you’re missing out, they give the best advice and give you snacks (P.s thanks to that old lady that helped me that one time) . That shit helps so much, it’s amazing I promise. Lmao. I hope this is okay for you, I loved writing this!! but if it’s not what you wanted let me know and I’ll rewrite :)

You stared at yourself in the mirror as the stylist worked, as she said it herself, her magic on you.  

"He's going to love you!" She said in a thick British accent, you smiled at her in the mirror and looked down at your hands. You weren't used to all of this. People working around you, pampering you and making sure you looked as good as possible but Jungkook was going all out for your four-month anniversary. He'd flown you out to meet him in Paris and you were now sitting in your luxury hotel room getting your hair and makeup done.

"You now look breathtaking!" The stylist said as she finished curling your hair, you smiled again and looked at yourself in the mirror. Looking back at you was someone you didn't even recognise, you didn't even think you'd be friends with the person you could see in the mirror. You looked completely different to what you would normally look like but you didn't want to offend anyone in the room, 

"Thanks, I love it." You said getting up from the chair and going over to the wardrobe, you'd gotten the perfect outfit ready for your date before you flew out. It was a pair of blue jeans with a knot front top in black since you were just going to a small cafe for an evening meal. 

"This way my dear." Someone said pulling you through to the en-suite and unzipping a black dress bag in front of you. Inside was one of the most expensive red dresses you'd ever seen in your life, 

"Mr Jeon had it flown in for you." You stared at the dress that was hanging on the hanger in front of you. This was what Jungkook wanted to see you like? Dressed up in an expensive dress, makeup so you looked nothing like yourself and heels that looked like you would snap your neck the second you took a step in them.

"Thanks," You whispered as two women came in and helped you changed into the maxi dress, you suddenly felt insecure wearing it. It had a split up the left leg which raised to the middle of your thigh, and the front was a low V design practically leaving you on display for everyone to see. You could have sworn if you bent over too much you'd slip out of the dress and the spaghetti straps weren't doing much to cover your arms.

"Now the heels." You stared down at the rose gold strapped heels and shook your head.

"I'll break a bone." You whispered to the stylist on your right who shook her head at you,

"Wear them with confidence and you'll be fine." In translate, 'Wear them because Jungkook wants you to.' You stared at yourself in the full-length mirror and then over at the stylists who were all staring at you with bright smiles. 

"You look perfect! Enjoy your date." They said as they left the room, leaving you to stare at the woman you hardly knew anymore. Your phone vibrated on the side and you slowly made your way over to it, thinking 'confidence' and trying not to fall on your face. 

"Are you ready for the best date of your life?" Jungkook asked through the phone and you relaxed instantly as you heard his voice, 

"I'm more than ready, come and get me." You giggled back to him, hanging up the phone and going back to the bathroom. You didn't bother to take a photo of yourself, why would you when you didn't know her. 

Jungkook was sitting across from you in the restaurant, so much for a small cafe. 

"I thought we were going to a small cafe." You whispered to him after the waiter passed your table, Jungkook smiled at you and took your hand in his ontop of the table and ran his fingers along your knuckles. 

"This is small." You stared at him. This was small? Then your apartment back home was diminutive in comparison to it. He read your facial expression and he shook his head at you, 

"Let's just have fun okay?" You nodded in agreement and a waiter poured you both a glass of champagne and handed you the menus.

"How are you liking Paris?" You question Jungkook as you glanced over the menu, finally, the french glasses that were forced upon you in school were coming into use for you. He glanced up from the menu to you and you smiled, you hadn't seen him since you landed in Paris since he had a show last night but tonight he was all yours. 

"I'm loving it, Namjoon gave me a list of things we can do tomorrow." He told you putting down his menu and smiling at you, it was the most you'd seen him smile in a while and you didn't know if it was because you were there or if he was suddenly having a boost in mood. 

"I'm glad you're here with me Y/n." You smiled at him and he kissed the top of your hand.

"Are we ready to order sir?" Jungkook nodded and began reading off the menu and you stared at him with a smile, the waiter turned to you and you read off what you wanted in french, handing him the menu back and watching him walk away. Jungkook stared at you with an eyebrow raised, 

"I didn't know you were fluent in French." You sipped on your drink and wiggled your eyebrows at him. 

"There's a lot of you don't know about me Kookie." You joked as he laughed along with you, taking your hand in his. 

"Well, I hope you stay with me long enough to find out every small detail about you." You felt your heart begin to beat faster at the thought of it, your mind going back to when you first met him.

You'd gone to Korea for a trip to spend on your own, deciding you needed more adventure in your life. 

"You okay?" A cool voice asked from behind you, you turned to look at who was talking to you and you were met with the most beautiful man you'd ever seen in your life. He was around 5''10 and had the most gorgeous sparkly eyes you'd ever seen and he had a tiny dimple on his cheek as he smiled at you, 

"Y-Yeah, just a little lost." You stuttered out, still stunned by someone so good looking talking to you. He chuckled showing his bunny smile and you could have died on the spot. 

"Where are you trying to go?" You looked at the map in front of you, 

"Back to my hotel, I forgot my camera and I need- You don't need my life story, sorry." You laughed looking back down at the map and trying to figure out where you were on it. 

"What's the hotel?" You told him and he nodded taking out his phone and typing in the address, 

"I'm heading that way, I'll walk with you." You thanked him and you both started walking to your hotel in silence, 

"You said you forgot your camera, you're a photographer?" You shook your head, 

"I just take photos and film things for a hobby. I enjoy editing them all together." You told him as you continued walking, confused as to why people were turning to stare at you both so you looked at the ground. 

"Me too, it's a little hard at the moment. I'm always busy with work." You nodded in agreement with him, 

"Oh, I feel that. Took me five years to save up for this trip, so I'm loving it up as much as I can and filming every moment." He chuckled at you and you stopped outside your hotel.

"Thanks for bringing me back, I probably would have been lost all day." He laughed at you and then scratched the back of his neck, 

"How about I be your tour guide for the day? I'm not busy and I'm sure it'll be fun." You stared at him faking a glare, 

"You sure you're not some serial killer?" He shook his head at you, 

"I'm almost 95% sure." You giggled and nodded along with him, 

"I'd love that...Oh, I don't know your name?"

"Jungkook, and you are?" You smiled, he even had the perfect name. 

"Yn," He repeated it back to you with a giant smile on his face.

After the day together you got closer, he asked you out on a date where he told you about who he really was and it scared you at first. You knew why people were staring at you in the street now but he assured you it wouldn't affect your dates together and you would still have fun together so you continued to date him. Four months later and you were sitting in the most expensive restaurant in Paris together.

"We should film some of our time together like we did in Korea." He suggested as if he'd read your mind about your memory of first meeting him. 

"It'll be fun, what's the first thing we're doing?" You questioned,

"I was thinking we could go to Louvre first, and then Namjoon said there is a cute cafe around the corner and we can have some lunch." You nodded along with him and leant back against the chair when the food was brought over to you. 

The bill came at the end of the night and you stared at it, it was more expensive than a year worth of rent for you. Jungkook took out his card as if it was nothing and paid for it, helping you up from the chair and slowly walking out of the restaurant with you, hand in hand.

"Thanks for a wonderful evening." You told him as he helped you down the last step of the restaurant, he shook his head. 

"It should be me thanking you, you look incredible." You looked down at the dress and smiled softly, did he only say that because you were dressed up fancy? Everything you'd been thinking back in the hotel was coming back to your head. 

"We should go and have a photo taken before we go back to the hotel." You shook your head at him, wanting nothing more than to go back to the hotel, strip out of the dress and change into one of his shirts and cuddle him all night long.

"But you look amazing!" He chuckled spinning you around under his arm, but you tripped over the heels and dress, falling back into his arm and looking up at him, people around you all 'aweing' at you both as if he'd purposely dipped you. 

"See, they all think so too." You stood up straight and followed him over to a wall of flowers, and he asked a passer-by to take your photos. You did your best to fake a smile in the pictures and then followed him back to the hotel in silence. 

"You okay? You've been quiet," You nodded at him, holding your head. 

"Just a headache, think it's the champagne." You lied looking at the floor. 

"You should go lay down in your room, I'll come and get you in the morning." He told you as he pushed the hair from your face, you smiled at him and he kissed your lips. You tried not to act as though something was wrong and kissed him back, smiling as he pulled away and walked you up to your door. 

"Goodnight Kookie." You whispered, kissing his cheek and walking into the hotel room. Jungkook walked away with a giant smile on his face going back to his room and telling Namjoon about the perfect night you'd both had while you kicked off the heels in your room. Falling down onto the bed and staring up at the ceiling, contemplating everything that had happened. Your mind racing ahead of you and telling you everything you thought was true. He only flew you out because he wanted to dress you up, he made you look nothing like yourself. He changed everything about you because he doesn't love the real you. How could he? He was used to luxury things in life and you weren't. 

"Fuck." You whispered as you felt yourself crying, you got up from the bed and walked into the bathroom, carefully taking yourself out of the dress and putting it back in its bag. You turned on the shower and looked at yourself in the mirror, you took off the fake eyelashes and started washing off the makeup. Finally being able to see yourself again and you felt your eyes welling up. 

'He only wants to change you, how could he love someone so different from him?' Your mind was running wild so you jumped into the shower, trying to let the water relax you but it was doing nothing for you. 

Jungkook came to your room the next day and used the key to let himself inside, but you weren't in the bed. It didn't look like you'd slept there. He frowned looking around, the wardrobe was empty and your suitcases were gone. He walked into the bathroom and saw the dress you'd been wearing hung up and a note attached to the bag. 

'Jungkook,

I can't keep doing this. Last night was one of the most amazing nights of my life but I can't do it again. I love you but please don't come looking for me. You're used to this lifestyle, being pampered but this is all too much for me and I can't be with someone who just wants to change me to fit into their life. I want someone who will understand me, a date in jeans and a small cafe, not some giant posh restaurant where one meal would be two months of rent for me. 

You deserve someone better than me, someone, who will already be accustomed to your way of living, someone who would enjoy being spoilt and dressed up in fancy clothes. 

I love you,

Y/n.' 

Attached to the note was the bracelet he'd gotten you for your second anniversary and he took out his phone, calling your number but it was going straight to answerphone, meaning you were either on a plane or you were ignoring his calls. 

"Jungkook, what's going on?" Namjoon asked as the younger boy rushed back into their shared room and looked around for something.

"I need to leave, she left." Namjoon frowned and sat up in the bed. 

"She left? Where did she go, her ticket isn't valid until Friday." But Jungkook knew you, you would have worked your way around that. 

You did, you swapped your ticket with an elderly lady who thanked you with a giant smile, and you were on your way home. Making plans with your boss to come back to work early. You needed to keep your mind off Jungkook and throwing yourself back into work was the only way you could imagine yourself doing it. You were also going to have to find somewhere else to go, he knew where you lived and maybe you were overthinking it a little but you needed to stay with someone else until things cooled down.

"Thank you for flying with us, we'll be taking off shortly." You relaxed against the seat and closed your eyes, wanting to put everything behind you and move on. You were also trying not to cry on a plane full of people, the elderly couple next to you being cute and making you think of Jungkook.

'You're not good enough for him. He deserves better' You reminded yourself, swallowing the lump in your throat and trying to sleep the plane journey away instead of keeping your mind running but the lady next to you tapped your shoulder.

"Are you alright my darling?" You looked at her and faked a smile but she saw straight through it, 

"Tell me everything, we're going to be here a while." You smiled at her and looked at your palms, were you really about to spill your guts to someone you didn't know? 

"Did you fight with your boyfriend?" You shook your head, 

"Not exactly,"

After explaining everything to her she stared at you with a blank expression, 

"You can't run away from all of your problems." She told you, handing you a tissue from her handbag and shaking her head at you. 

"If that boy loves you, what's the problem?" She questioned as you wiped your face, you looked at the floor. 

"He tried to change me, you didn't see the way he looked at me when I was dressed up. He'd never looked at me like that before," You said between sobs and she wrapped an arm around you, dragging your head to lay on her shoulder as she comforted you. 

"My Harold," She turned to look at her husband who was snoring in the chair next to her, 

"Was the same way when we first started dating. He tried to give me all of these different presents, in a way to keep me...He thought it was the only reason he could keep me around. Maybe your man is the same?" You nodded at her, not wanting to accept that was what it was. You knew that Jungkook just wanted to dress you up, to make you look better, so he would feel good to be out with you. In the whole four months you were dating he would do it a lot, it started with the diamond bracelet he got you for your anniversary. Then the matching diamond earrings you wouldn't wear, too scared to lose them. They were locked away at home and you were going to have to send them back to him. 

Jimin was with Jungkook at the airport while he waited for his plane to come in. He was going after you, he had a week off from the tour and he was going to beg you to come back if he had to. 

"Jungkook, she said to leave her." But Jungkook wasn't going to stand for it, he was going to chase you all year if he had to, all his life if it meant you would stay with him. 

"You don't get it Jimin." He told him as his plane number was read out, he started walking towards the terminal and Jimin was trying to protest it, 

"When you love someone, you don't just stop. Ever. Even when people roll their eyes or call you crazy...Even then. Especially then! And you don't let the one you love go if they think the wrong thing." He left Jimin and walked through the terminal going to find his seat and stared out of the window. Wondering how he was going to find you, you were too smart to go back to your apartment, and the only other person he knew was your mum but you were too smart to go there. He took out his phone once he was allowed to and called your mum, to ask if she would tell him if she heard from you, to which she agreed. She adored you and Jungkook together. She didn't know everything but she knew when you came back from your trip to Korea you were happiest she'd ever seen you before and she wanted you to be that way all of the time.

"I'll be at the dance school all day, you sure you're okay here?" Zoe, your friend from work, asked as you sat on her sofa holding a cup of coffee. You nodded at her and she walked out of the door, you'd arrived early hours of the morning four nights ago and she picked you up from the airport. Telling you how much of an idiot you were to give up on an opportunity of being in Paris with the one you loved and she continued ranting for most of the night until she passed out asleep while you laid awake and tried not to turn on your phone. It was easier to ignore him while the phone was switched off and in your handbag. 

You grabbed your laptop from your bag and turned it on, deciding to go onto Youtube to try and occupy yourself with something other than him but that wasn't going to work because as soon as the laptop turned on you were greeted with a photo of you together. It was a photo of you and him in Korea, he'd taken you to the Mountain Ansan Jarak-Gil trail. You clicked on the folder with his name and looked through the video of you both together, watching with the music in the background. Why did you have to put such a sad song in the background? 'You Say' by Lauren Daigle started playing in the background and you teared up watching photos of you and him passing by, then it switched to videos of you both. Him feeding you noodles while you tried not to die from how spicey they were. More videos of you both passed, him cuddling you while you stood in front of the camera. He told you it was a photo but it wasn't, it was a video which turned into your first kiss with him. 

"Shit." You whispered as you wiped your eyes and slammed the laptop shut, not wanting to watch anymore. You knew you had to go and be with someone who would understand what you were going through.

"She'll come to her senses, you're the best thing to ever happen to her." She said one morning as he sat on the sofa staring at a photo of you on the mantle place. 

"Has she tried calling you yet?" He questioned and your mum shook her head, 

"She'll be back at work today, you could always go and see her?" He shook his head knowing that would be too creepy for him to just show up on the doorstep of your work and ask to see you. 

"I'm sure she'll call you soon." Your mother told him, patting his back and going to make him something to eat. Claiming he looked like he hadn't had a proper meal in weeks, which was partially true. He'd been staying with your mum for the last two days and he hadn't touched anything except for the odd bite of a sandwich. He couldn't eat or sleep without knowing where you were, he missed you too much to be able to function properly. He had the boys calling him every now and again to ask if he'd anything but he always said the same thing. 

"Mum?" He heard your voice before he could register anything, the door slammed shut and your mum came rushing into the living room holding a spatula and staring at you, you hadn't noticed Jungkook sitting on the sofa.

"Y/n? What's wrong?!" She questioned as she noticed your eyes were bright red and you were crying, you sniffled and Jungkook rushed to his feet grabbing your attention. 

"Jungkook?" You frowned wiping your face and looking between him and your mum who looked sheepishly at you. 

"I'll leave you alone for a moment." She said going past you and giving you a kiss on the cheek, she wondered upstairs and you stared at Jungkook. 

"What are you doing here?" 

"Looking for you, what are you doing here?" You stared at him with a blank expression

"She's my mum..." He looked at you and then to your bags, you had all of your suitcases with you which meant he was right about you not going back to your own apartment. 

"You left without saying anything." You looked at the floor, eyes filling up with tears at the thought of Paris. 

"I left a note." You told him and he brought it out of his pocket and handed it to you, 

"Don't come looking for me?" He questioned and you stared at the small piece of paper, tears falling down onto it. 

"Jungkook I-"

"Don't, don't say what's on that piece of paper. Look at me and tell me how you feel." You looked up from the paper and swallowed, he looked like a wreck. He hadn't slept right in days and neither had you, you'd missed him too much to be able to sleep. 

"I'm not good enough for you, you deserve someone better." You managed to get out and at the moment he knew you believed what you were saying. He stepped forward and you blinked, letting more tears fall from your face. 

"You deserve someone who will be able to spoil you back...Who doesn't work three jobs just to make ends met, someone who can give you the world." You wiped your face with your sleeve and he stared at the shirt you were wearing. It was his. 

"I love you too much to hold you back Kookie." You whimpered and that was it, he pulled you into his chest and you didn't bother to fight him on it. You just laid your head against his pecks and cried into them, both of you sinking onto the floor on your knees. 

"I love you too much to let you do this, I'm not leaving and you're not." He told you, putting his legs either side of your body and holding your head against his chest, his hand patting your head softly, 

"I will tell you every day that you're more than good for me if that's what it takes." You continued to sob against him and he kissed the top of your head. 

"I'll give it all up, I don't need all of the expensive things, no more expensive dates, no more meals that are more expensive than your rent. I'll do anything please don't leave me." You pushed your head away from his chest and stared up at him through your blurry vision, he was crying as well. 

"Jungkook-"

"Let me finish. I don't need any of that stuff, I don't want any of it if it means I can't have you Jagi." He whispered, tucking your hair behind your ear and cupping your face in his hair. 

"I don't want it." He repeated and you sniffled staring at him. 

"But you love it, it's what you love doing." He shook his head at you,

"I love you more than it." You weren't going to let him do this, you weren't going to let him throw everything away because of you, you pushed yourself out of his grasp and sat opposite him. 

"Jungkook I won't let you give anything up for me, it's your dream." You told him, remembering all the long conversations you had about dreams. How he told you he was living his dream life, 

"It's not my dream without you." He admitted taking your hand, you stared at your hands and then up to his face. He was staring at you, wondering what you were thinking. 

"I won't let you." He shook his head at you and moved closer to you, you stared at him. 

"I won't let you go." He reminded you and you knew this conversation was going nowhere soon.

"I don't want anything if it means I can't have you." You stared at him,

"But you were trying to get me to wear expensive dresses...The jewellery? The presents?" He shook his head at you,

"I gave you things thinking it would make up for me not being around all of the time...I figured if I gave you presents you would stay while I was away." You scoffed and he frowned at you,

"I had a conversation with an elderly lady on the plane...Her husband did the same thing when they were younger...I guess she was right." He smiled softly at you and you shook your head at him,

"But Jungkook, I don't need that stuff to stay around. I love you and only you. You could buy me a bookmark and I would adore it." He chuckled at you and pulled you into his arms again.

"I would adore you if you rocked up to a date in a bin bag." He whispered in your ear, maybe you did overreact a little bit. 

"So does this mean you'll stay with me?" He questioned as you relaxed in his arms, you nodded and closed your eyes. For the first time in days, you felt tired and relaxed enough to sleep.

"I love you." You whispered to him, and he smiled down at you, moving hair from your face so he could see you properly. 

"I love you too Jagi." He whispered looking up to see your mum coming down the stairs, he smiled at her and then looked down at you again. You were asleep in his arms and he felt at peace with you there.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to see you a lot...I'm sorry I ran off." You told him at the airport, he had to go back to the boys for the rest of the tour and you'd done nothing but say sorry for the last hour. 

"If you don't stop saying sorry I will pack you into my bag and take you with me." He threatened as he turned to look at you, you pouted and he smiled kissing your lips. 

"I'm still sorry." You giggled, he glared at you playfully and he wrapped his arms around your body, 

"I'll see you next month when the tour is over, you can take me to all the tourist spots you know here." He nodded in agreement and he ran his thumb along your cheek, smiling at you. 

"I'll miss you." He told you as he kissed your lips again, 

"I'll miss you too." You whispered standing up on your tiptoes and kissing him. 

"Flight 456 to Paris now boarding." He groaned hearing his number being called and kissed you again, his arms wrapping around your waist to lift you up closer to him. 

"I love you." You whispered as he pulled away and he grunted not wanting to leave you just yet, 

"I know I've kissed you like ten times but just like...Another ten, please?" You giggled and kissed him quickly all over his face nine times and then on his lips. 

"Go, before you hold the plane up." You whispered to him, kissing his cheek and watching him walk away from you, waving as he turned around to look at you. 

"See you soon!" He yelled making a couple behind him wince and you to giggle. 

"See you soon Kookie!" You screamed not caring about the people around you staring. All you cared about was the love you had for that man child. 

Tagline: 

@yourguessisasgoodasminemate​ @yoongisdumplingcheeks​ @snowy-meowl​ @lynnthevirgo​ @btsiguess-kpop​ @ficdump101​ @babymochichimmy​ @lyoongx​ @mitzwinchester​ @kpopfanfictionhoes​

[filmbefore]

STELLA CHOI , a member of the yale's elite , they're twenty three and a first year grad student majoring in business . they are as eccentric as they are fickle . ( park sooyoung ( joy ) / she/they / demigirl )

STATISTICS .

FULL NAME : stella rosemary choi . NICKNAMES : stel , stels . AGE : twenty three . BIRTHDAY : april 23 , 1997 . ASTRO : taurus sun , aquarius moon , pisces rising . SIBLINGS : two older twin sisters . SEXUALITY : bisexual + biromantic . HEIGHT : 5′8″ HAIR COLOR : black . HOMETOWN : london , england .

BLACKMAILS .

stella barely creates any of her own fashion designs. she regularly steals designs from small fashion houses all over the world and pays them a relatively small amount to shut down so that there is no trace of her stealing.

stella frequently buys clothing to display on their youtube channel so that they can write it off of their taxes. but they often write off more than they actually bought, meaning that they owe the government more tax money than they have been letting on.

stella’s parents actually paid yale to accept some falsified academic reports and fake philanthropic acts in order to let stella into the graduate program.

BACKGROUND .

miss stella was pretty much born with a silver spoon in her mouth . her father was one of the top names in the psychiatric research field and her mother had an almost cult following on the korean film scene with her odd stylistic choices while making movies . however , the chois could not turn down a job offer that mr. choi had received to work in london . so , they bought a new home in the city and relocated with their twin daughters . 

once the trio got to london and settled down , they agreed that they had room in their family for one more little one and ended up bringing stella into the world !! 

as a kid ,, stella was about as normal as it comes . they did well in school , but weren’t stop of their class . they practiced playing instruments and making art of all kinds , but didn’t make anything exceptional . the only mf thing stella was good at was sleeping in and accidentally missing her first period class almost every day . miss girl was about lazy as hell . couldn’t get her to do anything .

the choi kids’ parents would literally take their kids traveling the world every summer to try and expose them to as many cultures as they could to try and inspire SOMETHING in them to find something that they love . they would always make sure to stop by south korea and visit their family there , but i’m talking trips to brazil , france , germany , singapore , japan , mexico , you NAME it ! but miss stella was still lazy as an old dog :/ ( just taurus tings ! )

that is ,, until she started her youtube channel when she was about eighteen years old ! she had watched about four videos about fashion week that year and decided that fashion was her life’s PASSION and she had shit to say !! 

and for whatever reason ... people wanted to listen to what they had to say about vivienne westwood’s designs ?????? idk bro but their youtube channel started gaining TRACTION and before she could even blink , stella was sitting front row at calvin klein shows , gucci shows , you know ... the works ! just think very emma chamberlain at these events , okay ? like teenage youtube girly pop sitting three spots away from anna wintour . you know the vibe !! don’t pretend like you don’t !!

and honest to god , stella’s parents were just excited that they were showing an affinity for SOMETHING after all the years of genuine laziness they had displayed lmao

and you can only IMAGINE the thrill their parents got when stella actually started designing her own clothes !!!! ( or so they thought ... ) stella’s designs were so unique and colorful and all OVER the place in the most funky way and before you could blink ... miss girl was opening her own fashion house called angel numbers !! 

angel numbers basically blew up right away and had a ton of support from the lgbt community ,,, like think very lady gaga kind of cult queer following ! especially because stella was out as a non binary individual and bi ,,, she just really appreciated the support from their own peers 

stella even went to school in london for fashion design and had no intention of returning to school once they graduated because of all the success coming from her fashion line ... but their parents literally peer pressured them into going back to school a few years later at a school in america to further widen their cultural perspective !! and the chois were dead set on stella attending yale university for grad school ,, bc it would really prove to the world that their kid wasn’t some bimbo heiress who got everything handed to them 

so now it’s stella’s first year at yale hehe and they’re more than ready to vibe on another level with everyone here

PERSONALITY .

stella is stubborn and lazy as hell . like when the shit comes out about her stealing designs , she will NEVER own up to it . even though she absolutely did it out of pure laziness . she spent so many years in college just partying it up with her parents’ credit card instead of actually learning how to design clothing lmao . she is ... fickle with a purpose . she kind of lies to herself about how intertwined she is in people’s lives to save herself the hassle of actually caring about people . if that makes sense ??? like she lies to herself and says that theres no way people care enough about her to care about whether or not she shows up somewhere just so she won’t feel bad about not showing up . and that translates into more than just attendance of events , unfortunately . she’s very blunt and honest to a fault . like obviously she is ... lying about a lot of things in her life , but she will be brutally honest with you about your issues ! like okay miss hypocrite . but she’s generally very flirty and kind of flighty and out there . like her head is always in the clouds and you will just never know if she is listening to you or not . but i promise she is fun to be around when there isn’t any definite strings attached or anything !! she will just start to pull a lil escapist act when you actually want her to commit to something . 

[lightsandlostbells]

wtFOCK season 3, episode 1 reaction

So! It’s a million years too late, but I decided to talk about wtFOCK season 3. 

I had fairly positive feelings about S1 of wtFOCK. It was the scrappy underdog of the Skam remakes, in a way, and what it lacked in polish, it made up for authenticity. I was very willing to overlook its flaws because of what I perceived as genuine attempts to connect with teenagers. I was really, really holding out hope that future seasons would improve on its flaws. And ... well. (Disclaimer: I still haven’t seen S2. Sorry! I just failed to keep up with all the remakes and S2 is my least fave so I didn’t feel that motivated to make it a priority, even though I did like Zoë a lot in S1.)

Heads up - I didn’t care for this season. A lot of people did, and I would never, ever want to ruin someone’s enjoyment of something, even if I personally didn’t like it. So please take this as a warning that I have a lot of negative things to say, and don’t read if it’s going to harsh your buzz for a pairing or a story that you deeply love. However, I didn’t want to just be grumpy and angry the whole time, so I tried to think of constructive ways to fix certain problems I had with this season. No guarantees that they’re satisfying solutions, but it was an interesting exercise.

Also, I didn’t watch this in real time, and I paid barely any attention to fandom reactions and/or drama, so it’s very possible that I am missing context, or that pacing issues didn’t register with me quite as strongly, etc. If one of the actors ate a live dolphin on Instagram, and then got into a fight with fans on Twitter about their right to eat live dolphins, and now fandom has canceled the problematic dolphin-eating actor, I legit do not know, do not come at me if I’m like “This actor is doing a good job” with “Wow, didn’t know you stanned dolphin-eaters??? YIKES.” Honestly, for the purposes of just grading this season on a storytelling level, I would prefer not to know anything about the cast or crew unless it directly has an impact on the show itself.

Clip 1 - House party

OK, I did like this flashy intro shot, immersing us in the Wild ‘n’ Crazy Teen Party of Wild ‘n’ Crazy Youths.

Amber rejecting every dude in site … When Will Gay Vilde Rise. (I know there have been some f/f storylines in the remakes, but if there’s one involving an actual Vilde, please let me know.)

Luca saying “We’re not walking around in a high school drama” - you can hear the rimshot.

I do like the transition from the party up to the bathroom, that’s a cool shot. wtFOCK’s directing so far is more ambitious than it was in S1.

Robbe is clearly a mess and they acknowledge his problems at home right off the bat.

We go back downstairs. wtFOCK’s version of Magnus knocks his drink on Amber and she gets pissed. She gives him the finger and he falls in love. Still a better love story than S3 Daphne/Basile.

It’s a small point, but I don’t get why we didn’t get this moment before jumping up to the bathroom with Robbe and the others? It would be a far smoother transition, just on a practical level and also in the sense of fully immersing us in Robbe’s POV after a quick update with the other characters.

Belgian Magnus joins the guys in the bathtub and announces he’s in love. They roast him when they find out it’s Amber and start talking about hot chicks. Moyo starts grilling Robbe about his type of girl, in a crass, sexual way.

This is honestly not a bad start to Robbe’s story at all. Robbe is clearly more reluctant to get into his interest in girls than Isak was - Isak was more fuckboyish from the start, Robbe seems like he’s about to start squirming and doesn’t really give an answer to Moyo’s questioning. Which is fine! I think it’s fine to start off the POV character at different stages of performing heterosexuality, as long as it’s taken into account in the writing of the character’s whole arc. The fact that the boy talk is so crude and sexual just ramps up Robbe’s alienation.

I swear, I will never understand how the girls in this scene just go into the bathroom and pee in front of strange boys … like maybe I am just a ~prude but that seems like a recipe for disaster and I would not trust those little fuckers to not be secretly recording me on the toilet.

Her peeing is kind of a power move, like marking her territory.

Also L M A O at Robbe starting to flirt with the girl while she is pissing … like now this comes off as a kink thing. OK, Robbe. Jokes aside, this gets across the same meaning as the scene with Isak: he starts to flirt with her because he was encouraged by the other guys.

Uh, flush the toilet, lady. And use some TP.

Now this version of Emma seriously radiates some Natalie Portman in The Professional vibes.

She orders him to stand up and then starts kissing him. I get way less of a vibe of Robbe’s mad game with women (like how Isak negged Emma into kissing him) and more like this girl is the love interest out of an indie romcom, all mysterious and spunky. She kisses him like once after taking his jay and then leaves. The boys all crack up. Moyo tells Robbe it’s his responsibility to get the weed back which lmao, no it’s not, all you assholes were there and could have intervened.

This scene is perfectly fine and even effective! Not entirely the same vibes as OG, but it still has a purpose and some obvious cause-and-effect, and there are some nice stylistic choices.

Clip 2 - Party pt. 2

Robbe is now making out with mystery girl. We already have a divergence in characterization from OG. Isak was being performative about making out with Emma and shut it down once the guys left. Robbe is making out with this girl because he wants to be straight, I guess? If it’s not to appeal to his friends, it’s likely that this is for himself. Again, I have no real problem with this change if it’s incorporated into Robbe’s overall arc and characterization. My thing is, if you’re writing this scene, do you realize the differences in characterization? Or do you think this is interchangeable from what happened with Isak? The latter is where you run into problems, because then the writing shows lack of nuance. I bring this up here because, well, you can guess how I feel about later events. 

Luca seems rather aggro about the mystery woman, which I assume is because she still has the hots for Robbe?

It makes me laugh that we got this first-person POV as Robbe leaves through the garage, because of the “Smack My Bitch Up” song being played in the last clip (the song had an infamous music video, banned from MTV in the ‘90s, that was from a first-person POV). But again, WTFock is trying harder with the cinematography and direction, good for them.

Robbe ditches the cops by jumping on the bike with Belgian Emma. OK, I get it, Belgian Emma is too cool for school. 

I have kinda mixed feelings on that, actually. I mean, I’ll be honest - I don’t see why any Emma has to be made into someone more palatable. Definitely don’t demonize her or present her in a misogynistic way! She deserves sympathy and dignity as much as any character on a Skam. But … it’s fine if she and the Isak aren’t like, amazingly compatible except for his sexuality. The Even character is supposed to be the one who really shakes up the Isak’s world! The Isak is supposed to be lost and confused and drifting and then Even comes in and is someone he can really open up to. Not just because he’s another guy who’s into guys, but because Even’s personality meshes with Isak’s so easily while still challenging him and introducing him to new things. In a way, it does kinda diminish the effect of the Even if the Isak meets ANOTHER mysterious stranger who’s an awesome person. Or at the very least, it lessens the feeling of the Isak’s detachment from everything.

And again, this could work if the writing realizes it. You can totally craft a subtly different arc from the pieces of Isak’s season. It’s just that (speaking from the future) I do not feel this is what happened.

Clip 3 - Tagging time

I don’t think it’s necessary to break up all the parts of a longer scene/set piece into a bunch of different clips. If you start a scene at 16:00, it’s OK to have the clip take place over several hours. You don’t need to chop it up unless there’s a reason why this pacing might benefit the story. Honestly, if you’re watching in real time, I think this method is often less effective at building tension/emotion/etc. But wtFOCK is not the first remake to try this tactic.

... this part where Robbe and Noor put on masks sure hits differently in 2020.

Belgian Emma’s name is Noor and she takes him to a warehouse, or something? It’s very secret and Cool Kid. And IDK, it’s fun, but again… I think making the Emma that much of a fun mysterious cool exciting person is very much diminishing the effect of Robbe’s isolation. We had a good start with establishing that alienation while he was in the tub, but now his reactions to her rad hipness feel way too sincere and act against the major character conflict of his season. He seems nervous to go with her, but not because he’s with a girl, just because it’s a risky scenario.

Noor hands Robbe a spray paint can and leads him to tag a wall. There’s  a guy taking pictures. So I’m assuming one of the guys in masks is the Even? The POV seems to shift to the photo guy briefly, like we’re seeing Robbe through his eyes. And even though I’m not a fan of POV breakage, I do think this is a cool way to introduce the Even without really introducing him, you know? If that’s him. (EDIT from the future: Ummm, so that wasn’t Sander, right? I’m rewatching and it doesn’t look like him. Soooo that part has even less relevance than I originally thought. Got it.) (EDIT from the future beyond the future: @hellswolfie tells me that this actually was Sander, so I am just bad at recognizing people, lol.)

Robbe and Noor take off their masks briefly to kiss. Uhhhh, did the scene really just … cut off there? Because L M A O what a weird choice. We don’t get to see what Robbe creates on the wall, which could be a great way to establish his character, AND we end with him on a smiley, contented note which does not boost his POV at all. It legit just makes him seem like a guy who’s into this girl, and sorry, even if that’s his public persona at this point in time … that’s not what we, the audience should be getting at all. 

Clip 4 - Boy squad morning after

Robbe skateboards to meet up with the guy squad. Again, the directing is far better IMO than in S1.

Robbe got the weed back so that conflict is over, I guess.

He gets a call from his mom and stops laughing with the guys and gets serious. He walks away to take the call. Then he starts to open up to Jens about his mom freaking out, and then Moyo spots some girls so they all ditch Robbe to go chase girls, and WOW, Jens, please turn in your Jonas card. 

Don’t love that we didn’t hear his mom on the phone. There’s no reason not to let us hear what she’s saying since it would be in Robbe’s POV AND as it turns out, they just tell us about the situation with his mom right off the bat, anyway, so it’s not like there’s much point in hiding it. 

This was effective in a sense to establish how girl-crazy his friends are, as well as setting up Robbe’s isolation, which I was worried wouldn’t come across as strongly after meeting Noor. But I think they could have NOT mingled in his mom issues to make this part more effective. Like if the goal was to show more of Robbe being alienated because he’s gay, then that’s not entirely successful, because there are non-gay reasons why Robbe wouldn’t join his pals on the girl chase. I mean, even a horny hetero Robbe might not want to chase girls with his bros because talking to his mom is a downer, so it’s not necessarily because of his sexuality. Plus he just found a girl he liked in Noor, so apparently, he’s not on the prowl. What this part IS communicating that the Belgian guy squad doesn’t have much interest in their friend’s family struggles, which ... ehhhh, maybe not great in the grand scheme of the storyline? These guys can be flawed, for sure, but we do need them to care about Robbe’s well-being. And Robbe tried to open up here, so the flaw is not in him, it’s in his friends. I’m going to let it slide because Jens was offering to help Robbe in the first clip, so it’s not like he’s been a totally insensitive friend this whole time. 

Clip 5 - Phone call from Robbe’s dad

Noor jumps on Robbe and they make out. She shows him the garage and they talk about the tagging world or w/e. Again, not sure why they are portraying Noor as like … a legit love interest. I don’t get much of a sense of discomfort from Robbe. Isak was just not into Emma and was uncomfortable when his bathroom flirting came back to haunt him. And I don’t think it’s TERRIBLE not to follow that route, but you can’t just make this huge change if you don’t account for it in future episodes and Robbe’s overall arc. (EDIT from the future: Which I don’t think they do, otherwise I wouldn’t care.) Every scene should count in furthering Robbe’s character, especially this early in the season where we’re just getting to know his particular struggles. If Robbe is trying to convince himself to like girls, then I want to see definite vulnerability in how that’s portrayed.

I blame the directing/writing more than the acting for the lack of discomfort, since I sensed Robbe’s lack of comfort just fine in the bathtub scene.

Makeouts get interrupted when Robbe’s dad calls. Again, not sure why we aren’t hearing both sides of the conversation? Because we’re in Robbe’s POV. Why wouldn’t we hear them? This seems like they just want to create some suspense or mystery over the situation with his parents. But it’s perfectly possible to do so while still letting us in on the phone calls. In fact, it’s arguably more intriguing to let us listen to some phone calls where we get some vague details but nowhere close to the whole story. It’s not like Robbe’s dad is going to explain the whole situation to his son in an exposition dump. We can get some crumbs to tease us, while still keeping us in Robbe’s POV and not feeling like the show is cutting corners.

Robbe gets mad at his dad and tells Noor he needs to be alone. Closeup on Noor as Robbe walks away. OK … why? Why on her and not Robbe when it’s his POV? Why the focus on Noor’s feelings when we really need to be establishing our protagonist’s mindset in the beginning of this season? I’m not saying her feelings don’t matter, I’m saying that well, this isn’t her story. It would be better to see Robbe’s pained reaction as he leaves.

Clip 6 - Robbe’s dad drama

Jens comes running up while Robbe is being sad. Robbe says that it may be necessary for him to stay with Jens because Robbe’s mom has been committed to a mental health institution and Robbe doesn’t want to stay with his dad. Ah, so I guess we’re hearing that right away. Which honestly makes not hearing his phone calls to his parents even funnier - like you lock us out of his POV arguably for the suspense, but then you end the suspense anyway by just telling us what happened a scene or two later? All right. I guess there’s suspense in that we don’t know exactly what’s up with the mom, mental health-wise, or the root of Robbe’s problems with his dad.

It occurs to me that maybe they just didn’t want to hire people to voice Robbe’s parents? Or put in the time to film both sides of the conversation? I have a hard time believing either of those because it’s so lazy, but. 

I mean, just turn the phone conversations into text conversations if you’re not going to let us listen to Robbe’s parents on the other end.

They go and play football without really resolving the situation. Sad music plays while Robbe joins in. Also, someone was calling Robbe, and I assume it was his dad, but it’s not shown.

These clips are VERY short and choppy so far. You could easily combine the last two, so Robbe is with Jens instead of Noor when he gets the other phone call from his dad, leading into this conversation.

We know immediately about Robbe’s mom’s situation instead of it being a mystery, like with Isak. Which, again, isn’t inherently wrong, but then I want them to DO SOMETHING with it. 

Clip 7 - Jens and Jana

Oh hey, Jana got her braces off! IDK if that happened last season or this one, but it was something I liked, seeing a teenage girl with braces on a teen drama. That rarely happens unless it’s a joke or a plot point.

OK, they really need to film Robbe’s phone so I can actually see who’s calling…

Jens tells Jana about Robbe’s parental situation. I’ll note that first she asks if something’s up with Noor, so news of the Robbe/Noor relationship must have traveled really fast since they’ve only just gotten together. Like Robbe and Noor are clearly dating, going off Jana’s comment, and not just hooking up. Then Belgian Magnus wants to know about hooking up with Amber. Meanwhile Robbe is having a conversation off screen with his dad? Guess it wasn’t important!

And that’s the problem, obviously. It’s his POV season, anything you decide to show SHOULD be important to his storyline. 

Also … it’s fine that we’re focusing on Robbe’s shit home life since that’s relevant to his story, but almost nothing in these clips has set up Robbe’s attraction to men, and only slightly his lack of interest in girls, which was negated by him seeming very interested in a girl afterwards. And knowing how long this season takes to get going with the Even character, it’s a pretty glaring omission.

So we don’t see Robbe’s phone call with his dad, but he gets snappy about it when Jens asks. One of the boys (I can’t tell who) says that Robbe’s on his period.  Gonna be real, I don’t care for this squad so far. 

What was the point of this clip? We already know Robbe is having problems with his dad, which is the most relevant part to the plot here. We shouldn’t be wandering from Robbe’s POV so much, but even taking that into account … we already know Belgian Magnus likes Amber, so that’s not necessary to establish. And we didn’t need to see Jens tell Jana something we already know. I assume he tells her so Zoë can find out and offer a room, but there’s no reason to see Jens tell Jana this, so. Filler clip. 

Clip 8 - Zoë and Robbe at the lockers

Yeah, Zoë offers Robbe a place to stay here, but again, we didn’t need to see the news travel down the Jens-Jana pipeline. It could have been condensed more efficiently.

Robbe doesn’t want to because he says his dad wouldn’t approve. Zoë says she hopes things get better with his mom and Robbe at first snaps and tells her to leave it, then says thanks. This is an actual good interaction, writing-wise, kudos.

I liked Zoë a lot in S1 and I like her here again. I really should watch her season despite my Noorhelm allergy. The scene of them kinda smiling at each other across the hallways reminds me that this is probably the strongest relationship in the whole season, tbh.

Why was this clip so short? So many of these clips could have been combined into one. I mean, Zoë could have said, “I heard from Jana who heard from Jens...” without us needing the previous clip. Although, did Robbe really want anyone else to know about his home life? Lol @ Jens just blabbing Robbe’s private business.

So I guess they didn’t set up the Eskild situation in S2 that would lead to Eskild offering Robbe a place to stay? 

Clip 9 - Robbe gets roommates

Robbe is in Zoë’s room. He sees her “everyone you know is fighting a battle” quote next to the mirror, which is a detail I actually quite like in context with the rest of this storyline and Even’s condition. It’s a good Skam thesis overall.

I guess Zoë met with Robbe’s dad. Zoë calls him a tough cookie. Robbe doesn’t want to speak to him. They bond a little over their parental problems. Again, a nice detail.

Belgian Eskild appears and teases Robbe a little before announcing that Robbe’s dad has agreed to let him stay in the flat. Yay!

Oh, so Senne is staying there, too? At least they didn’t do a pointless Noorhelm breakup in this version.

Milan (the Eskild) tries to go in for a hug and Robbe isn’t cool with it, so at least that’s something with Robbe’s issues with men. (I think? The thing is, Robbe also does not really know Milan, so it’s not as weird that he’s not ready to be affectionate with a near-stranger.)  (EDIT from the future: Keeping the S2 almost-kiss that’s referenced in the next clip in mind, I can rationalize this moment as a continuation of that awkwardness from Robbe’s POV.) 

They chat with Lisa (Linn) who wants to direct Robbe on what he is and isn’t allowed to touch in her room, heh.  Milan and Zoë have cute interaction, and Robbe looks happy. I do like the flatmate vibe so far, they seem fun.

Clip 10 - Robbe and Milan

Senne and Zoë get cute. I haven’t seen S2 so I can’t give my opinion on their version of Noorhelm, but I did think a few things about them were less creepy in wtFOCK’s S1 than in OG. Milan talks about how they’re a Disneylike couple and Robbe laughs.

Then Robbe apologizes for something that evidently happened in S2, where Milan tried to kiss Robbe at a party? Again, I didn’t see the scene. Milan says he’d never try to do that. He offers Robbe a hug, which he accepts - tbh I don’t know if Robbe SHOULD accept based on where he is in his character arc, maybe he should have more skittishness? But it’s a nice character moment, at least. They really have to make up for lost time with the Robbe-Milan relationship, so I can get that they need to establish some closeness fast.

Not being in the wtFOCK fandom, I kinda wonder if there was backlash to that scene from before and this is damage control, LMAO.

I feel like you could’ve tweaked this to be more representative of Robbe’s issues, like have him stress here that he’s not gay, because it’s a sweet scene but again, I don’t feel like this episode built up Robbe’s internal dilemma very well. You could make this not just about smoothing over whatever bump there was in this relationship, but also about setting up some internal tension with Robbe’s sexuality issues. Multi-tasking - it’s great!

EDIT from the future: OK, I tracked down the S2 scene, and yeah, while it illustrates some of Robbe’s internalized homophobia, I really think you needed to carry this through to this clip. Because that was a very public situation, and they made a point of emphasizing onlookers’ reactions. I feel like you need to show that Robbe’s internalized homophobia isn’t just about external reactions, but internal struggles, because ... so far, that’s what it is? Like what is he doing with Noor otherwise? 

Clip 11 - Housewarming party

Party is underway. Yasmina is there and is friendly with Robbe. It sounds like they’re working on a school project together. Aaron (Magnus) and Moyo are talking about hot chicks again.

Noor arrives and the boys tease Robbe about how far he’s gone, Robbe looks pretty chill and happy until Moyo says Robbe’s getting laid tonight and you can see the nerves and reluctance take over. Okay! A character detail that actually works for his arc! Yes!

Partying, makeouts with Noor … sorry but they are wasting a lot of time with this relationship. ROBBE ISN’T INTO HER. Here’s the thing: I don’t want to demonize any of Evak’s female “love interests,” right? It’s pointless anyway because Evak is the endgame pairing, Sonja and Emma aren’t “threats” in the end, but also because they’re not bad people just for wanting to date these two guys who happens to want each other instead. And I think you can do interesting things with Sonja and Emma as characters. I’ve read Sonja fanfic that’s really good!

But when it comes down to it … this is not the story of Robbe/Noor, and there’s a point where it feels like there’s too much development for something that is really intended to be a speed bump in Robbe’s journey. 

I guess it’s a pet peeve of mine when gay stories devote a ton of time to het relationships, to the point where it begins to overshadow the main gay relationship. Love, Victor did this to an absolutely ridiculous degree. (I actually made notes for Love, Victor reactions, but hesitated to post them because 60% consisted of me typing I DON’T CARE ABOUT THESE STRAIGHT ROMANCES.) And I GET it, this is an experience many gay kids go through in their coming out journey, but also, less charitably… you don’t need het romance to dominate everything. You don’t need to make this about how a gay person being gay hurts a straight person. I genuinely appreciate that once Isak kisses Even, it’s fucking over with him and Emma, that plot thread is done. 

Anyway, Noor tells Robbe he’s so fucking hot and Robbe looks more uncomfortable, moreso when she wants to see his room and he goes off like he’s headed to Mordor.

Aaron checking out Amber … okay, again with all the het. I don’t care!!! This is not important right now!! 

Noor pushes Robbe onto the bed, ugh please don’t have them Go There.

She takes off her top and Robbe touches her boob like he’s sticking his hand into a porta-potty. We see his discomfort so at least this part is effective and relevant to Robbe’s arc. Noor is taking off her bra when the boys come into the room, wanting the weed. Okay, you dumb fucks, you’re teasing your bro about getting laid and yet you think it’s cool to enter his room when he’s with a girl? I mean, that’s a lucky break for Robbe, but his friends are extra stupid.

The mood is killed, Robbe goes hunting for weed. Episode ends.

HOW I WOULD REWRITE THIS EPISODE:

Lmao, some of my changes sounded a lot like “be like OG Skam S3.” Because Skam S3 was well-written and made sense. But I tried to think of edits that worked with what wtFOCK was presenting, not just repeating OG.

(I’m also repeating a few things in this section that I said above, btw)

While this episode doesn’t make me angry or anything, it’s got a serious problem with dithering. The first clip is a solid start to the season, but afterwards, so many of these clips feel like filler. There’s a lack of substance to them. It was hard to write about them because they ended up feeling like two minutes of nothing. 

Did we need to see repetitive mentions of Robbe’s troubled relationship with his dad? No, it’s an important plot detail but we could have established that more concisely in fewer clips. Did we need to see the process of how Robbe comes to stay with Zoë, Senne, and Milan? No, not really. Or at least not dragged out over at least three clips. 

I don’t feel like I’m in Robbe’s head to the extent that I should be  so far. Some of this is because the show just flat-out locks us out of his POV, like not showing the phone call in the Jens-Jana clip. But a lot of it is also because of the narrative dawdling. There’s just not as much to analyze unless I bring in Skam season 3 and project what we know about Isak onto Robbe. And that’s not a good way to adapt a story.

The framing of Robbe/Noor needs to change. Combine the bathroom intro with the aborted sex scene - the boys are sitting in the tub, teasing Robbe about getting laid, so he makes out with Noor and they go into a bedroom where he’s clearly not into this, and then Moyo and Aaron come in asking for weed because Robbe still actually has the weed from the bathtub at this point. Or do what Skam France did (can’t believe I’m referring to Skam France) and have the arrival of the cops interrupt the makeout/sex session and Robbe takes his cue to exit.

But frankly, it’s not great to have Robbe acting or looking too cozy with Noor, like this is a legitimate romantic arc except when it gets to the sex. The point is that this isn’t a romance. Even if you want to show some cuddly, non-sexual scenes with Noor, you have to show more of Robbe’s reluctance and fear throughout. 

Show Robbe’s fucking phone conversations with his parents!!!! Good Lord. He’s not ordering a pizza. These are important aspects of his story. Capitalize on that family tension, show us what a bad place Robbe is in at the start of this season. 

Now, about the lack of Even in this episode. Not introducing Even is a bold move, but not necessarily a smart one. Even’s introduction in Skam is not just the intro of “the love interest” - he’s the catalyst for almost everything in Isak’s story. Consider that in episode 1, Isak is seen mostly unhappy and bored - he’s distraught after kissing Emma, he’s checked out of his friends’ lunchtime girl talk, he zones out staring at his teacher’s boobs, he doesn’t want to be at kosegruppa. Isak is actually very passive and just going through the motions, doing what people tell him to do. But once Isak meets Even at kosegruppa - well, that’s when Isak wakes up. In the next few clips, we see Isak taking action. And sure, they’re small actions, searching for Even online, watching the Even video over and over, asking Vilde if there will be more kosegruppa meetings. But we can see that Isak now cares about something, he’s paying attention. Of course, Robbe’s story doesn’t have to follow the same arc. However, it does the season a huge benefit to get him intrigued by something at this point, so we the audience are not just sleepwalking along with him for a few episodes.

There’s also just the simple fact that we have only 10 episodes to establish a love story and make us care about the Even character, and it’s a very risky move to waste too much time. If you are really killing it with the rest of Robbe’s arc, this could still work, but ... well, that’s not what’s happening here.

If they didn’t want to full on introduce the Even directly, one thing they could do is subtly and indirectly find ways to include him in the narrative and create some mystery. Let’s say Robbe sees the Even’s artwork somewhere and is like whoa, that’s cool, and we can tell that it resonates with him. Or he admires Even’s graffiti, or it makes him laugh, whatever. Basically Robbe has some kind of emotional reaction to a thing the Even has created or done, which helps to set up that relationship even before we officially meet the Even.

If we want to add a little more, perhaps Robbe sees a mysterious dude in a mask tagging a wall, but they get interrupted by the cops or something and have some kind of brief but intriguing interaction with each other, and Robbe’s like, who was that guy in the mask? Or Noor takes Robbe to the tagging place, the police/security bust them, Robbe and Noor get separated, and Robbe gets helped out by the Even so he can escape. So it’s an important moment, lots of adrenaline, we can frame it like there’s a sudden ~charge~ between them (ooOOOooo the Even helped Robbe stand up and their hands touched like this was a fanfic, etc.), but he doesn’t learn Even’s name, maybe he doesn’t even see his face because Even has a mask on, so Robbe spends part of the next few episodes trying to figure out who that guy is, casually asking Noor if she knows a guy like that, keeping his eyes open. Maybe we have some fakeouts where Robbe thinks he sees the Even again but it’s just a false alarm. He’s on edge, eager to know more about that mystery guy, and so are we. Bam, we have “awakened” Robbe from his deep sleep. 

If you’ve seen Netflix’s The Get Down, there’s even a scene like this where Jaden Smith’s character gets caught tagging by the cops, he runs and flees with another young dude, and they have a moment where they recognize each other as graffiti artists they admire. While watching that scene for the first time, without any context or spoilers, without even knowing if there would be LGBT content in that show, I immediately thought, “This guy is his love interest.” Not even because it was overtly romantic. Because the way it was written and shot told us that this meeting was important. Because they had an instant connection. Something similar could have worked for Robbe and his Even. But in any case: it would have been best to establish something between those characters, even if it wasn’t an “official” introduction.

Stop focusing on Aaron/Amber when it’s not in Robbe’s POV. Reverse the scene at the beginning with Aaron videotaping and Amber getting spilled on. She gets pissed, he falls in love, and then we follow him upstairs and we meet the boy squad. That is a very obvious, very clean transition that doesn’t interrupt Robbe’s POV as it technically hasn’t started yet. So IDK why they didn’t do that, lmao.

Some changes with the Milan relationship:

Tweak the apology scene to be more representative of Robbe’s issues. Have Robbe apologize while still stressing that he’s not gay. Have Milan be chill and not question that statement, but maybe Robbe is so defensive that it comes across as unconvincing. 

Then have Milan be the one instead of the boys to interrupt the Noor almost-sex scene. Milan wanders in acting drunk, haha Milan, he’s wacky. Robbe doesn’t realize it (though the viewers do if they’re paying attention) but Milan is only pretending and is “subtly” rescuing Robbe because he realizes, based on the earlier scene, that Robbe might be struggling with his sexuality and he wants to give him an escape option. (Although I still think it’s best to combine the not-sex scene into the opening clip, but this could work, too.)

Basic questions we need to be asking, clip to clip: what is the conflict? Where is Robbe’s head right now? Why is this scene necessary? How did this scene come to be - what’s the cause and effect here? How does it advance Robbe’s story? Is it redundant? How do we tell this story in a narratively economical manner?