#i know kids in those years sent stuff into magazines but. as one of those kids in those years. i was not a dw fan bc
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it's funny bc, i was thinking about that letter baby peter capaldi wrote about wanting to be an actor to help the doctor when he got older, and how when he was the doctor they dug it up again.
Then I thought how, it's unlikely anybody born somewhere between like 85-95 would ever have that happen to them bc said sentiments would probably have been posted online when tweens or teens, and people born between said years were taught the dangers of the internet and would have been conscious of anonymity.
Then i thought how, people born after that in the years of facebook's normalisation campaign to have you put your whole name and face and personal details online means that we've probably sprung right back round to being able to dig up stuff said as children or teenagers and say it on tv.
I know i, on one of my 'you'd never know it was me bc i practiced internet safety' accounts, when i was 14, spoke about loving doctor who on the internet. Was probably obnoxiously 14 and sappy about it. Would bother me if it got out. Account still exists. I could become the next doctor and you'd never know, though.
#i know kids in those years sent stuff into magazines but. as one of those kids in those years. i was not a dw fan bc#it really wasn't On tv#and kids born in 85 even weren't gonna be old enough before it got axed lbr#even if it Was on#so why'd they be getting a magazine#idk i'm rambling but it's a complex salad of circumstances of it being off air and the ages of actual internet safety#my niece (10) is being taught internet safety as part of the basic curriculum now.#i suspect there will be a bit of another turn in trends once this generation gets a bit older#(when i say i could become the next doctor i mean in an au where i don't hate acting and actually did that thing and tried to become#one of the 28 actors we have here in britain)#.. basically i think statistically it'd be far less likely they'd dig anything up on Gatwa who was also born in said internet safety era#not impossible. but far less likely.
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Muse interview - Matt Bellamy [INROCK (September 2002)]
MUSE FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL'02 7.26 FRI/GREEN STAGE
Matthew Bellamy / Muse INTERVIEW
"When you love someone, you can relax."
INTERVIEW: YUKO KATO PHOTOS BY MIHO KATO
Just an hour after the show, the members had finished their catered dinner and were doing TV interviews one after the other in high spirits. Matthew, who was sent to us last because we were taking the most time, looked extremely happy and excited from start to finish. "Our prince is very happy today," said the person in charge. However, I don't think I've ever seen him in a bad mood.
Today's show was amazing. Matthew Bellamy (vo./g.): Really? But I made a pretty big mistake at the beginning. It's the first song I played today, a piano piece [1]. The ending was supposed to end nicely, but we forgot about it⊠I also played a cover of "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" for the first time at the show today. Once we got over the mountain of new songs, I think we had a pretty exciting show until the end.
About that cover song (laughs), I was surprised by the unexpected choice. Matthew: In the UK we do it almost as a joke. That song was originally our tour manager's favourite, and it's a popular song in the UK. n the UK, there's a new TV show called "We Covered," where bands play cover songs one by one, and when we appeared on the show, we chose that song. We later put it on the B-side of a single. They said we should play it this time, and we hadn't done it for a while, so maybe our performance was a little bit lax, but we gave it a go.
How was Karuizawa by the way? Matthew: Is that the name of the place I went to before I came here? It was cool. I stayed at a Japanese-style inn with an onsen⊠I also tried golf for the first time. I was pretty bad at it (laughs).
You come from Teignmouth, which is famous for golf [2], and you've never played golf! Matthew: Yeah, I know. But this was my first time, and every time I hit it (over-actively), I just scattered dirt all over the place (laughs). There was a lot of sports equipment, like tennis and table tennis, so I worked on my fitness a lot. When you're on tour, you want to do as many things as possible, don't you? You want to stay healthy.
You were planning to bring your family and girlfriend? Matthew: That was the plan. It didn't happen because of all the travel arrangements. Me and Chris (Wolstenholme, b.) each wanted to bring our girlfriends to Okinawa. But we couldn't get a hotel! So next time we want to come about a week before and relax in Okinawa. Next time I'll have to prepare well in advance. My girlfriend is Italian, so last week she and I went to Italy to meet her parents.
I hear your new single "Dead Star" reached number 8 in the UK charts. Congratulations! And look at this. I'm surprised Muse is even in Smash Hits magazine. Matthew: I remember doing the interview. You think it's surprising that a band like us is in a magazine for young kids? (amused) I think in the last few years rock has been reaching kids who listen to pop and boy groups without soul. I try not to overdo the interviews with this kind of stuff (Smash Hits magazine). The reason I did that interview is because I want those readers to listen to different kinds of music, especially alternative music as well.
So, according to that article, the mayor of Teignmouth ran an anti-Muse campaign? Matthew: It's funny, we said a few things about Teignmouth that were a bit unnecessary. It's a very small town, and like any small town, people get frustrated and do violent things at night, or do drugs to vent their frustrations. When I told the press that Teignmouth was like that, the mayor was very disappointed and used a picture of our album in a bin on the cover of the local Herald Express or something.
(laughs). When was that? Matthew: A long time ago. Around the time "Showbiz" was released.
Did you talk to the mayor after that? Muse isn't a band that everyone knows anymore. Everyone should all be proud of Muse. Matthew: (laughs). I think all the citizens are proud of us now. At the same time, some people are jealous that guys from small towns have become so successful, so you have to be careful going back to your home town. I live in London now, so it's fine.
"I'm going to write the next album in an environment where I have my family and my girlfriend around. Inevitably, the songs will be personal."
I thought you lived in Brighton? Matthew: I did live in Brighton, but only for six months, then I moved out. From January to June. July, that's July now, yeah, I moved to London recently. Dom (Dominic Howard ds.) and Tom (best friend) moved to London last week. We've got another place in London, like a rehearsal room. It's a great placeâŠ
Did you buy it? Matthew: No, no, not at all! We just rent it (laughs). It's a very strange place, it's usually a chemical factory with pipes and stuff sticking out of it. It's got bedrooms, so Chris can sleep in there, and we rehearse together. We always have to do interviews and stuff in London anyway, don't we? So I'm thinking of living in London for now, until after the next album.
When I spoke to you last year, you told me that you were thinking of buying a house in the countryside and moving in together. Matthew: Come to think of it, we didn't buy one. Instead we rented a big house that used to belong to Winston Churchill. It's a classic quaint place, perfect for us because we love ghosts and stuff. We lived there for six months and did about eight songs on the next album there. I realised that it was better for the band if things kept changing.
You don't want to stay in one place? Matthew: Maybe. We're thinking of settling in London at the moment, but that changes every few years, so you never know. Maybe in the future I'll be living in America. We wrote all the songs on "Origin of Symmetry" on tour or while travelling, but I think we'll do it differently next time. I'm going to try to write the next album in the presence of my family and my girlfriend. Inevitably the songs will be more personal.
I hear people want the new album to be released in March of next year! Matthew: Well⊠The recording itself could be finished by the end of the year, but we have to take America into account⊠Because System Of A Down have invited us to tour the US with them. That would take up a lot of my time, but I'm still on the fence about it because it's such a good offer. If we accept the offer, we won't be able to record until February or March next year⊠If we don't tour the US, we could record by the end of the year and have it out by next summer.
Is America still a fascinating country for you? Matthew: It's a huge country. It's strange and the culture is completely different.
Do you think you guys would be accepted? Matthew: I don't know. The problem in America is that they only accept people who play on the radio, and if you want to be played on the radio, you have to sign with a very corporate, capitalist, global record company. But we're signed to individual labels in every country, aren't we? Right now, in the US, we're thinking of leaving Maverick and releasing on System of a Down's label. That's one of the reasons why they've invited us. It's very difficult to get into America and still be independent⊠There's a lot of money involved in releasing an album in the States and getting it played on the radio, isn't there? That would require a big record deal, which would cost us the contracts we have in each country⊠I'm really scared that the big American labels will get involved in the Japanese and European regions and decide everything on their own. That's why I'm wondering if we can do something with System of a Down's label, while protecting our own position.
You seem to have a good handle on the management side of things. Are you a control freak? Matthew: (laughs). Yeah, I guess so. I think it's not that I want to feel like I'm in control, I just want to know what's going on in my life. Not just in music, but in real life, it's better to know the cause and effect of things, isn't it? But it's impossible to know everything. I never had a manager.
Why don't you hire a professional who knows the ins and outs? That's your personality too (laughs). Matthew: No, no, that's not it. I think if we eventually set up an office in London and hired a couple of people there to do the accounting and stuff like that, things would be a lot different.
By the way, Kerrang! magazine said you were so ill you couldn't drink water for eight days. What happened? Matthew: (chuckles in amusement) That was exaggerated. And that was a long time ago, when I was on tour for the first time. I wasn't sick. I'm not a water drinker by nature, but on tour you have to hydrate more than usual, don't you? I was on tour in the States at the time, and I wasn't drinking as much water as I normally do, so I was getting dizzy. I didn't realise I was dehydrated until the doctor told me I had to drink six litres every day. Until then, I drank at most one cup of tea a day, plus a little alcohol. Alcohol is counterproductive, I was told. "Micro Cuts" is about that. I was in a lift somewhere in the US when a complete stranger suddenly said to me, "Hey, are you okay? Maybe you should see a doctor?" I did have a terrible migraine-like headache that hurt like I was being stabbed. It's a classic sign of dehydration. It went away when I started drinking more water.
How much are you drinking now? Matthew: (pointing to a 500ml bottle) About this much. But I'm sure that's still not enough.
Matthew, are you the type of person who finds it difficult to relax? Matthew: I don't know. I'm in a very serious relationship with my current girlfriend. I've known her for about six months to a year now, and since we started dating, I've changed a lot. Thanks to her, I can forget about everything. I can relax a lot when I'm with her. Before that, I couldn't relax at all when I went home alone, and I was always in a hurry to do something! When you love someone, you can relax (laughs shyly).
(laughs). That's nice. Is she the "most beautiful person in the world" you mentioned before? Matthew: Maybe (laughs).
Around the time you recorded your second album, you broke up with someone you'd been with for six years. It was a very painful experience and it seems like those feelings are reflected in the album, but you say you learnt a lot from that time. You say you've started to think about the quality of your friendship with Dom and Chris, how about now? What's your relationship like with them now that you've had that experience? Matthew: Up until around the time of "Showbiz", I was pretty distant from the band. But after I broke up with her, I realised how much I appreciated the band. I think I would have been too lonely without the band. Because I had the band, I was able to get more into music and distract myself. Especially writing songs, the rewards are so great, aren't they? I became addicted to it. At the same time, I realised how close I was with the two of them. After all, they're my best friends.
But you don't have a serious girlfriend now, do you? Doesn't that affect your friendship with them? Matthew: I don't know. Chris has kids and we've grown up. The music is absolute for us now, and we're confident that we'll be doing it for the rest of our lives. We were unstable before the first and second albums, but now we feel very secure in the music, in the band, and in the band members.
What's your third album going to be like? "Origin of Symmetry" was a success, but it was an album heavily influenced by classical music, wasn't it? Or rather, you say it was too influenced? Matthew: Was it (laughs)? My emotions change every dayâŠ
But I hope you don't change your music or direction too much. Because I like you guys a lot right now. Matthew: If there's anything I can say about the direction now, there are two directions we're going in, one is a techno-metal heavy rock sound, like the fast stuff by Nine Inch Nails. You could say it's a bit like punk rock. A sound with a digital hardness. The other sound is quite the opposite, influenced by classical music, especially soft classical music.
What composers, for example, are your influences? Matthew: Liszt. Debussy. I've recently started listening to Beethoven, and I like Rachmaninoff a lot. I'm listening to particularly soft, deep, and dark classical music at the moment. I'm also listening to opera, like Carmen. I also like slow, not to say heavy, big, epic, melodic classical music, which is a great contrast to fast-paced music. It's too early to say how we'll be able to put that into one piece. Those are the two things I can say for now.
According to Kerrang! magazine, you take magic mushrooms once or twice a year. Why do you have to take them? Matthew: It's not that I have to eat them. But they're not very strong, they made me laugh a bit, but they didn't do much for me. I did it twice last year. And that time it was extreme, I did it for two or three days straight. It's interesting, isn't it? It was a trio of me, Dom, and Tom. Chris was there too, but he didn't do it, he just had a few drinks. We were the only ones in the park in Amsterdam at the time and it was like a mental experiment, so to speak. An experiment to see how much you can accept your subconscious. I mean, when you do hallucinogenic drugs, you start to hallucinate parts of your subconscious that you are not normally aware of. It's interesting because it helps you get to know yourself better. I don't recommend it to anyone, and if you do it, you should do it in a safe environment with a very close group of people you trust.
Are mushrooms a type of drug? Matthew: Yes, they are natural. In Dartmoor, Devon, they grow mushrooms naturally and harvest them twice a year. So it's very familiar where we're from and it's culturally inseparable. Everyone has had experience with it, and we make tea from it. It's similar in Wales. They say that mushrooms are quite popular in places where there's not a lot of nightlife (laughs). It's a natural thing, so when you do it, you develop a love for nature. I've never done any artificial drugs.
When we spoke a couple of years ago, you told me that your mother was a medium. You also told me that you had some strange experiences yourself. But recently you have stopped believing in such spiritual things. Why is that? Matthew: I still believe in them sometimes. I do believe that it is possible to make contact with the memories of dead people. Sometimes that contact is through someone's subconscious, but I no longer think that it is necessarily contacting the dead person themselves. I think that you can contact memories, but I don't think you can talk to someone from another world. If you get in a group and look up at the sky and ask "Is there anyone there?", I think it will help your subconscious come out and expand your imagination. We don't realise how many people we have close contact with in our lives, our parents, aunts and uncles, family⊠If you were close to your parents, you must have been close to your parents' parents, and you must have had a lot of relatives. In that case, your family relationships will spread out widely. Is it the same principle as "Being John Malkovich"? Or maybe my way of thinking changed after seeing that film. Maybe when memories are connected, a new person is born.
Have you ever seen ghosts? Matthew: I see all sorts of things.
But you don't believe in them? Matthew: When I say I've seen them, I'm sure it's just my subconscious. Do you believe in ghosts?
Yes, I do. I'm surrounded by a lot of people who say they see them. Matthew: Hmm. I have to admit that sometimes I'm scared of them, and sometimes I'm not. But sometimes when I see them, I try to think that there's something deep inside me that I'm not aware of. If something terrible happens, I sometimes wonder if it's a horrible memory from the past that the person has erased, or an event from the past that they didn't realise was happening. My girlfriend is studying psychology. So what I'm talking about is actually something she told me.
You're too logical to talk about that kind of spirituality, don't you think? Matthew: (laughs). Logical? Maybe. I'm interested in the uncharted territory and mysteries of humanity too.
Recorded on 26th July in Naeba.
Translatorâs Note: [1] The piano piece that Matt mentioned that he messed up on was âApocalypse Pleaseâ. You can listen to the messed up piano piece and the whole live show here.
[2] Iâve checked on Google, and what do you know, Teignmouth does have an impressive 18-hole golf course that has been there since 1924.
The editor referring Tom Kirk as their best friend in the brackets is a pretty sweet gesture.
Please do support me with my ko-fi! â
#Matt Bellamy#Muse#Muse band#Origin of Symmetry era#smol meerkat#my scan#translation#interview#INROCK#INROCK September 2002
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Letters From Watson Liveblog - May 3
The Naval Treaty, Part 1 of 4
There's some build up here for The Second Stain, and at first it doesn't seem to correlate with the story we read. Apparently, it was published 11 years after The Naval Treaty, so there's your Doylist explanation (literally) for any discrepancies.
However, looking closer, it's not that far off. The Second Stain was published in 1904, so it did come after the "new century," and it was indeed a very important case for the British government that involved an unknown "foreign potentate" that has been theorized to be Kaiser Wilhelm II, so close enough.
No mention of Monsieur Dubugue (Dubuque?) or Fritz von Waldbaum though, but that doesn't necessarily mean they don't exist. The case did involve an investigation in Paris, so perhaps the interview Holmes had with them occurred after the case was over, in which case they wouldn't be involved in the actual story.
Aw, poor Percy Phelps. So Watson was a bit of a playground bully, or at the very least participated in some widespread teasing and harassment.
I wonder how he got that nickname. Was it as simple as him looking at a tadpole one day, so everyone started picking on him for it as kids do, or did he get really invested in frogs and tadpoles for a time, as kids do.
Mary appearance! In every story where she appears for just one line, I like to imagine an alternate universe where Mary is a chronicler and it's Watson who gets referred to as "my husband" all the time.
It's stuff like this that probably occupies most of Holmes' time, the "boring" crime solving that Watson doesn't really write about. The chemical works, sending telegrams, even the consulting he does for other investigators, all in the background of the more exciting adventures he goes on.
Damn, Holmes just got got by Joseph Harrison. I like this guy already.
You know, Watson has written some descriptions for people ranging from slightly mean to outright insulting, and I just wonder how those people react when they read back these stories. How would Ms. Harrison feel, knowing that thousands of people have read this and will think of her in their minds as "a little short and thick for symmetry?" I'd love to see someone write out the fictional mail sent to The Strand Magazine by those Watson has described.
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4
#letters from watson#the naval treaty#sherlock holmes#john h watson#mary watson#percy phelps#joseph harrison#annie harrison#arthur conan doyle#liveblogging sherlock holmes
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Blackjack - Gifts Will Not Arrive: Chapter 1
Location: Yumenosaki Studio Characters: Arashi & Mika Season: Autumn
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€< The next day. Yumenosaki Academy Studio â âKnightsââ gathering place. >
Mika: Ohh, and then?
Arashi: So I gave it straight to him!
I donât know if Ritsu-chan just likes battling or hates Christmas, but it looks like he has zero motivation for this yearâs âStar Festâ...
He says that Christmas is essentially a âcelebratory day for couplesâ in modern-day Japan!
Itâs fine when youâre a kid, though â since all you have to do is to wait excitedly in bed to see what Santa brings you.
But once youâve grown up and learnt the concept of romantic love, then Christmas is basically the same as Valentineâs Day.
Mika: Ngh~ Iâve heard that sorta opinion a lot. Plenty of magazines tend to have articles âbout dates and stuff during Christmas.
Arashi: Right? Weâre idols from the old era where dating isnât allowed, but weâre humans too, so itâs natural for us to fall in love!
Neither God nor Santa would forbid us from having romantic feelings!
Mika: Ngh~... Naru-chan is burninâ up with quite a temper. Itâs a fiery Naru-chan.
Arashi: Of course Iâd be burning with anger! Sure, itâs not like I have any plans every year, but itâs still something I look forward to! I love the warm atmosphere that makes you feel like youâre floating on clouds!
But a lot of things happened last year and I was in a bad mood, so I want to be happy and spend Christmas in good spirits this year!
Mika: Uuu. Sorry, Naru-chan⊠That was âcause of me, right?
I was also feelinâ kinda weird âround this time last year and I was the one who made you lose your temper, right?
Arashi: I didnât lose my temper â Youâre my friend, so I was worried about you.
Mika: Thatâs what everyone whoâs angry says⊠It couldnât have been helped â You probably saw me as an eyesore who you were arguinâ with on stage.
Arashi: Thatâs standard business with us. Weâre always rushing around on stage.
Mika: Yeah but I should also reflect on my behaviourâŠ
I got confused when Nazuna-nii appeared wearinâ âValkyrieâsâ outfit when I was feelinâ unwell and nervous.
But I think Iâll be able to stand on stage without feelinâ anxious this year.
Arashi: Yeah, weâll be participating individually instead of in our units this year.
On top of that, we wonât be battling it out with someone else and itâll just be a peaceful event where weâll be making everyone smile.
I regret getting so agitated during âTanabata Festâ, so I want to be the ânormal Arashi Onee-chanâ, whoâs cute and innocent, for the other âS1sâ.
But it doesnât look like anyone in âKnightsâ is feeling up for it.
Mika: Ahaha. They probably just donât wanna move about so much âcause theyâre cold.
Arashi: You think my members are such cowards? Theyâll be completely fine even if theyâre sent to the North Pole!
But, you know, Tsukasa-chan is getting all stressed about being in charge of âKnightsâ and he himself doesnât seem to be on his mind â all he has in his head is âSSâ.
I donât know if Ritsu-chan is busy with personal affairs or whatever, but he doesnât have any motivation to do anything for Christmas or any of the religious events.
Mika: Ngh~ He is a vampire, huh. Ritsu-kun has those sorts of preferences.
Arashi: I bet heâs just taking advantage of the nature of those holidays to slack off. This big sister here wonât let him do that. Christmas should be enjoyed with family.
Mika: Still, this yearïżœïżœïżœs âStar Festâ is individual participation⊠If Ritsu-kun doesnât feel like takinâ part in it, then thereâs nothinâ we can do âbout it.
I donât think you have the right to force him to take part, Naru-chan.
Arashi: I know I donât have the right, but Iâm just saying that Iâll be lonely! Geez, Iâll look like a fool if Iâm the only one getting excited all by myself!
Mika: Ahaha⊠Iâll be takinâ part too so Iâll do my best to make sure youâre not feelinâ lonely, Naru-chan.
Arashi: Youâre so sweet, Mika-chan~ I love you to bits âȘ Iâd also love to swap Ritsu-chan out with you!
Mika: Ritsu-kun didnât do anythinâ wrong⊠Thereâs âSSâ too â I think itâs smart not always goinâ full-out and slackinâ when appropriate, though.
Arashi: Thatâs not being smart â itâs called being sly! And itâs not cute at all!
Mika: âKnightsâ isnât a unit thatâs based on being cute.
Arashi: Yeah but⊠Geez, whose side are you on, Mika-chan?
Shouldnât you be agreeing with what Iâm saying at times like this?
Mika: Thatâs not what a friend would do⊠They have to disagree when they should disagree.
Just like how youâre always helpinâ me out, Naru-chan.
Arashi: Uuu~... Thatâs not fair, putting it like that. Youâve grown, Mika-chan â this must be the fruit of my teachings.
Mika: Yup âȘ
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€â Previous Chapter á â ËâčË â á  Next Chapter â
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Interesting that True Babe was initially written by another writer.
More from Fault Magazine:
"Talking of your husband, your new single âTrue Babeâ is definitely about your love for him. How does Blake feel about the song?Â
Gwen Stefani: He likes the song! Whatâs weird about it is that the girl that started the song sent me this song pretty much half done. When I listened to it, I was actually on this ranch with all the kids. This guy, JKash, that Iâm working with sent it to me and said, âWhat do you think of this?â And I went, âI love this. This sounds like my song!â They told me, âOh, they wrote it for you.â They came to me with the lyric idea and then I went in with them and finished the song and put in some of my own lyrics to really make it feel more custom. Itâs interesting because also the girl is a young girl that grew up in LA, her nameâs Nico and sheâs very cool, but weirdly grew up on my music too. I just feel so blessed to have those experiences because itâs almost like you can see the trail of what youâve done as an artist and how it does affect people. To then be able to go in and work with a young girl thatâs in her twenties maybe, it was just a really cool experience to watch her talent and the way she sees me.
I think those kinds of experience are what keeps me inspired because otherwise you just sort of become a cartoon version of yourself and you donât know who you are anymore and donât know what direction to go in. Itâs just a whole evolution because when you start out, nobody knows who you are and you think no oneâs ever gonna know who you are. Youâre so innocent, you are just putting out stuff that you believe happens to you. And by chance, someone happens to identify with that or relate to it. And that was what the Tragic Kingdom was. And then Return of Saturn was already in a place where for me, I was like, âWhoa, I became this huge thing over kind of overnight, but after a nine-year period.â And then youâre like, âOh my god, I wanna be a writer. I need to be a better writer.â It changes the way youâre gonna write because the innocence is gone. Now I ask, âHow do I find a new way to evolve?â And for me, thatâs by collaborating. I think all the best things Iâve ever done have been just working with other talented people that have either just been inspired by me or we inspire each other and then something happens. But truly songwriting and music is just a gift from god. I always feel like it just comes to me and I donât feel I really have a part in it except for just the prayer and the hope that something will come down. Thereâs nothing like it. Even though thereâs designing, doing the makeup, photoshoots, whatever it is, even live shows, nothing touches when you have a new song, it just never gets old. To be able to share it is kind of scary now, but also fun. I know there are people out there that still maybe would wanna hear new music. I just like making it, itâs amazing."
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Books and Voice
I really don't understand why my voice changes. I have always been trying to hone my voice most especially when I'm using this language.
There is always a heavy baggage in my chest whenever I have Kris Aquino's kind of voice.
By the way, I bought a few books yesterday. I'm planning to donate them to a public school where I am immersing. They only have a small library. When I was a student, I don't usually have textbooks and workbooks. They are expensive. We just borrowed from other people. I was even sent outside class because of a rule that my teacher (who happens to be one of my brother's god mother) said. She didn't expect that I'll be the only one who will not bring a book in class. She gave me an old copy after. I don't really feel down just because I don't have school books. My mother was an English teacher. I have more access with reading books. All kinds since I was young. My classmates won't be able to read the books that I had. All stories. It started with fairy tale books that my mother's students lent me. Fairy tales and toy magazines. My mother has lots of reading books also that she uses for teaching. My kuya (cousin) has so many comics, he had daily supply of a local comics here in the Phils. Yes, Funny comics made me learn how to read. He had another collection when we got older. I was his book thief. He was also like my father and grandfather. They have favourite newspapers that they read every day. My family actually love the English language so much or we are so engrossed with foreign stuff. I also frequent the library because I always stay at school after class to wait for my mother who was teaching. It was my turf. One of my regrets, I refused to take the presidency of Book lovers club because I was already chosen to succeed a post in another club. It was a new club. Really made me sad that the officers aren't readers. Top students but not readers. Not book lovers. I had lots of reading books but I don't keep them, I lend them because borrow too. We passed on books.
I want to share what I thought was my advantage to some other kids. Maybe they won't be around the same people that I had or experience what I had. I want to leave the skills and knowledge. I thought if you are not rich in money, you can be with knowledge, and that is a good start.
I don't like this voice, my voice is skidding. My high school voice.
Another thing, some people are like leech, right? Like the G.
I made mistakes? because I am skeptic. I can list down what I did. they always put me in positions vulnerable to mistakes. I have no routine. Most of them prepared. Doing the same work in a day, in weeks and months and years (Hello brat). Me, changes tasks more than once in a day. I'll guess, the G managers are paying my cousins now? I have two siblings who said that their school is owned by a G but they were not mentioned in the school's history. why do you think I will not think that they are related to those who sent me to rehab? My siblings studied there during high school only. Just 4 years. They were already Valedictorians before enrolling. They can be good students anywhere. They don't have any right at me.
Yesterday, I also saw a man who looks like my molester. Scary. I was just too young to remember the exact face. A bit taller than the average, thin and crew cut hair. Ugly. the kind who wears dog tags. Illiterate kind of boys here. Dependent from family. Japayuki. You know my mother's family were poor mostly girls in a brood of 10. In that small puritan town, there are so many Japayuki's. My mother's sister had fights with those who were forcing them to be Japayuki's. Base on my orientation they are drinking club entertainers. Maybe the name was taken from the word Karayuki. I heard this from my History professor in UP. It means travelling prostitutes. I hate it that I was added to my family. I was a very, very minor then. My tito also worked in Japan. He had a very distinct position. We don't need them for any connection. They are probably lower than my tito's staff.
Maybe you get warried of me mentioning my family here. I miss my father's family. They are old, even my siblings who can reach them are parting away. I am the only one who is stagnant. Still a child. I helped raised my own family. I hope they will look back to those who help my parents raised us. We only joined my mother's family when I was already in college. My mother had again a longer feud with my father's. I mean, my younger siblings only got to know my mother's at that time. I hate it that we are parting from my father's because we have to help my mother's. But they are not like us. We strived to be independent. I don't see any hint that they are making moves to be independent someday. All relying to my brother. Me temporary because I don't want to be with them.
Cherry leech. I don't need their visa stamps.
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#im in this fandom for 3-4ish days#and every day i find out something new#and it keeps getting increasingly cursed#im terrified about what ill find out in a week from now if things keep going this rate#also to the person who says they watched the show when they were 10 and enjoyed it#youre stronger than me i wouldve had nightmares#i only screenshot the second comment but the first one is actually really informative#but i didnt get past the mental image of a 8 year old watching sponge bob#then the next show is about a 10 year old getting his organs harvested#invader zim
Welcome to the fandom!
So, Jhonen Vasquez started in comics. In high school he created a character, Johnny The Little Homicidal Maniac. I think it ended up in the school paper, but I'm not sure. After high school he made Johnny older, so he wasn't little anymore, and he got some single page comics put in a goth magazine that existed at the time, Carpe Noctem.
When he was 19 he saw an ad during a fishing show (can't remember the name now) to send art in to maybe get published by a small publisher, Slave Labor Graphics. He sent in what he had and yeah, he ended up getting published. It was his first time doing a comic longer than a page, so it takes a while for the plot to come in. It has 7 issues and started in 1995 and ended 1997. I do want to add that it's not just about him murdering people, there's also supernatural stuff going on. It just doesn't get as fleshed out because Jhonen was still trying to figure out where anything was going.
But really Zim happened because of Squee! So, Johnny has this little neighbor kid with awful parents who sometimes hears the murders next door. Johnny sort of looks out for him and stuff. He got his own spinoff 4 issue comic that was seen by someone at Nick. The stuff in Squee is a lot less bloody and has more to do with kids and things they could be freaked out by. Like giant bedbugs, aliens abducting you, weird old people, school, being friends with the antichrist and coming over to their house for dinner, ghosts.
Anyway, yeah, so she saw he could do kid stuff. Ms. Bitters originally was from Squee. I don't know if you've see the episode Abducted yet, but those aliens are originally from a Meanwhile in JTHM and show up in Squee. And in the latter half of Squee you start seeing lots of familiar drawing of aliens. That's when he was starting to figure out the characters for Zim.
(And, in the same universe, while working on Zim he also made I Feel Sick, a spinoff about an ex of Johnny's. (she beats him up. It's awesome) It's also colored by the guy who voices Gir and did the colors for the show, Rikki Simons.)
#also to the person who says they watched the show when they were 10 and enjoyed it#youre stronger than me i wouldve had nightmares
Yeah, I've kind of always liked that stuff. My parents were actors, so I'd been on sets since I was really little and I liked A Nightmare On Elm Street when I was 3 and I never had any nightmares.
ok so i just finished watching invaderâs zim organ harvesting episode and i only have one comment: what the fuck
#jthm#there's also filler bunny and the bad art collection#but no one seems to care much about those#invader zim#jhonen vasquez
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notoriously yours | jay park
â° summary: jay park is a rich kid. itâs safe to say he has everything every broke college student on his campus could dream of and more. but the one thing he doesnât have, which money definitely canât buy, is a girlfriend. and his friends wonât see of it. literally.
so what happens when his friends bet him to date someone for more than three months? what happens when jay decides that fake-dating someone would be easier than actual dating (because god forbid Jayâthe campusâ notoriously known fuckboyâdecides to commit to something once in his life)?
and what happens when that someone is you, his childhood best friend he hasnât spoken to in years..who has absolutely no interest in being in his life anymore?
â° pairing: jay park x y/n [ft. members of enha]
â° genre: fluff, comedy, angst | fakedating!au, college!au, childhoodbestfriends!au, (kinda) e2l!au
â° warnings: cursing, nothing suggestive but jay's a fuckboy so slightly suggestive themes, mentions of parental neglect/leaving, it's hella long (and i thought my last fic was long)
â° wc: 14.7k (how did i get it this long oh lord)
â° author's note: picture creds go to original owners/editors! peep that edit of jay that lowkey inspired this entire fic đalso this took me so, so long bc i lost motivation half way thru and bc college is a thing,,,so i honestly don't know how to feel abt it so pls bare with me :')))) ALSO the dividers are weird bc idk how to add more than 10 pics for the dividers so pls excuse those Ù©(Ă Ă)Û¶i hope u guys enjoy!! <333
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Jay Park is a rich kid.
Jay Park has enough to buy every textbook he needs for his courses without having to look up the free versions online. Jay Park has enough to bribe his professors to let him pass every class with a perfect 4.0 GPA (but because the boy has morals, he doesn't). Jay Park has enough to afford a car to drive to his furthest class from his dorm building instead of walk or bike like every other college student, meaning he also has enough to afford a parking spot on campus (those things aren't cheap!).
Jay Park walks around your school's campus like he owns the place (and considering the amount of money his family has donated to the school, he practically does), looking like he just walked out of your local coffee shop's newest fashion magazine. His blonde hair is never seen untouched, his attire usually consisting of an undoubtedly high-end all-black fit, accessorized with multiple earrings and rings that probably cost more than all the overpriced textbooks you had to rent out this semester. It's safe to say that everyone knows Jay Park.
Bottom line is, Jay Park has everything.
Well, his friends beg to differ.
In their eyes, Jay Park has everything but a simple factor in the equation of love (or whatever love is to the minds of a couple of 19 year olds): commitment.
So yes, it's safe to say that everyone knows Jay Park. Because everyone knows he's the campus' rich fuckboy. (What's a college fanfic campus without one anyways?)
Jay doesn't go unreminded of this by his friends, to the boy's annoyance.
Jay is aware of this on a Sunday afternoon, in his dorm building's first floor lounge, where he and his said friends are having a study session.
They're doing anything but studying.
In fact, no one has any books out or anything. Not a single laptop in site.
"You don't think it's the slightly bit concerning?" Jake's words are muffled as he continues munching on the fried chicken that he spent majority of this study session debating if he should have it delivered through UberEats or not.
"I really don't, no," Jay shrugs as he continues mindlessly scrolling through his Instagram feed. They're having the same argument conversation that they've revisited multiple times over the course of their friendship, one that Jay has been lectured on too many times for his own good. He thinks his friends could become his new parents if they really tried.
"Look at it this way, okay. You're about to graduate college in a couple of years, into the big world. Like the actual, adult world. And that means you'll have to settle down. Which you can't do when you. have. no. commitment!" Jake punctuates each word with a single clap of his hands, desperate to get his point across.
Jay simply rolls his eyes. He looks over to Sunghoon, who's minding his own business, not bothered by the same topic he's heard over and over again. His eyes tell Jay you're on your own, in response to his blonde-haired friend's look of despair.
Jay thinks that maybe he should get new friends. Yes, that's the only solution here.
"My love life," Jay reaches across the table for a drumstick from the greasy tub seated in Jake's lap until Jake swats his hand away, "is none of your business. Also, ouch."
"Uh, it kinda is. Because of you and your reputation around campus, it kinda affects us, your best friends. How do you think we look, hanging out with the guy who's known to ghost every girl in existence after one night with them? No offense to you," Jake deadpans to him. Jay mentally reconsiders the term best friends.
Tough love. Jay tells himself it's tough love.
"Yes, because every girl totally hates Jake Sim, the teacher assistant of a physics class who volunteers at the pet shelter every Sunday and brings their pet golden retriever to campus every two weeks," Jay rolls his eyes at his Australian friend.
Jake sighs. "Okay, then I'm coming from a place of worry for you."
Jay groans. "Again, none of your business!" This doesn't stop Jake. He comes from good intentions, really, but Jay wants nothing more than to stuff the kid's mouth with some of that chicken to shut him up.
"What are you gonna do if one day you meet someone you like, genuinely like, and you screw yourself over because you've never been in an actual relationship before? A real, committed one. Like one that lasts at least three months."
"You don't think I can last three months in a relationship?" Jay questions the boy currently taunting him.
"Honestly? No. What's the longest relationship you've been in?" Jake cocks an eyebrow at his friend across from him.
One month and two weeks. But Jay's smart enough to not say that out loud.
"I can so last over three months," Jay mutters more to himself than Jake.
Jake laughs at that, pausing to take another bite of the drumstick in his hand. "Jay, I am willing to actually bet you. Bet that you wouldn't be able to." He leans back on the couch, the ball now in Jay's court.
Jay freezes, looking up from his phone, narrowing his eyes at Jake.
"Forget it, Jake. He's not gonna agree even if you offered him money," Sunghoon finally perches from beside him. Well he's not wrong. It's not like Jay is exactly in need of more money, per say.
"What kind of bet are we talking here?"
Sunghoon's right. Jay doesn't need the money, but he does hate being wrong. Even if it's over something as stupid as this matter.
Caught off guard by the blonde's answer, Jake blinks blankly at him and takes a second to think.
"Hmm..what about...what about if you can date someone for at least three months, and I mean an actual, committed relationship, then I'll do all of your physics homework next semester."
Jay's eyes sparkle at that. If there's anything he despises more than commitment, it's physics.
"And if I win, you have to buy all of my textbooks," Jake sits back from the edge of his seat with a smirk lying on his face.
Jay pauses to think about it. I mean, what does he have to lose? A couple hundred dollars over college textbooks? No. Because he just simply won't lose.
And maybe he'll learn what it'll be like to actually be in a committed relationship for once. Maybe he'll finally learn what it's like to actually devote yourself to someone, open up to them. He shivers at the thought. Never mind. He'll warm up to it. Baby steps.
Nonetheless, what could go wrong? Even if he does lose, at least his money would be going somewhere productiveââtowards his friend's education. Jay was probably gonna use that money on something useless like a blanket that resembles a tortilla (a burrito blanket, he calls it)ââsomething he doesn't necessarily need, but must have, he would argue.
"Fine. Whatever, okay. Deal," he grabs Jake's extended hand in front of him and shakes on it.
Jake's impressively smiling at the boy as Sunghoon lets out a sigh, in disbelief with the two guys he calls his best friends.
Jay concludes that this will be easier than his Introduction to Photography 101 course he took his freshman year. How hard is it to find someone to date the Jay Park? Surely, everyone will be lining up once Jay switches his FaceBook relationship status from "it's complicated" to "single".
Turns out, it's not as easy as his class where all Jay had to do was take pictures of a pretty sunset, slap a VSCO filter on, and call it a day.
He comes to this realization on a Wednesday evening, as he's seated at one of the many study tables lined in the middle of the campus' library, staring down at his phone's dry iMessage app, with his laptop and blank sheets of scratch paper scrambled across the entire table, as an attempt to look half as studious as the other students studying in the facility.
Turns out, being known as the campus' fuckboy who ghosts every girl on campus isn't a good thing when it comes to wanting to find a real relationship.
He comes to this realization after failing to receive a single text back to the many ones he sent out throughout the first half of his day. The ghoster gets ghosted. Oh how the turn tables.
Jay groans dramatically as he tosses his phone on the hard surface of the table, earning himself a harsh shush from the librarian filing books in the aisle beside him.
He sheepishly smiles back as an apology, directing his attention back to his open laptop screen, where his untouched calculus homework stares back at himââhis mind preoccupied with the looming threat of Jake's bet. Not that it was threatening in any way, per say, but Jay just hates losing. And from the looks of things, it's safe to say that Jay won't be celebrating any victories anytime soon.
Jay thinks he should just change his identity and just transfer to some boarding school in Switzerland. Yes, that's a much better solution than admitting defeat to Jake.
Jay sighs as he lies his head on the table, figuring he might as well just write the check for Jake's textbooks now. He wonders how he got here in the first place. Not how he got into the bet, and definitely not how he's sitting in the middle of the library, having yet to start his calculus homework due at 11:59PM tonight (he should really start that).
But no, he wonders how he gained the reputation as the campus' playboy. To be fair, his friends (mainly Jake), are constantly reminding him of his notorious habits. But how did they come a habit in the first place?
The idea of being in a relationship is nice, sure, but the commitment that comes with it? The idea of being dependent on someone? It's scary, vulnerable, and one that Jay can't picture for himself.
Maybe some people just aren't meant to be paired. Maybe some people, like Jay, like being independent and are meant to stay that way.
But Jay also likes affection. He likes the fleeting, warm feeling he gets every time he finds himself under someone's sheets. He likes the short-lived comfort he receives from someone else's touch, even though he knows it's going to cease to exist the second he steps out of those bedroom's doors. He just likes affection, simple as that.
That and he's a 19 year old teenage boy with needs, what did you expect?
And so what if he likes the idea of affection minus commitment? Is that so bad? Apparently it is, to people like his friends and the entirety of his school's campus, at least.
At this rate, he might as well pay someone to date him.
Wait. Jay lifts his head off the table's surface in realization.
He might as well pay someone to date him.
There's no harm in that, is there?
He wouldn't have to endure through an endless amount of dates to find someone he clicks with, then continue going on dates with said clicked person, all while trying to develop an actual, serious relationship.
He'll win the bet, get his physics homework done for an entire semester, and some lucky girl out there will be making profit for the small price of hanging out with Jay Park for three months.
And lucky for him, Jay knows the perfect candidate for this scheme.
Simple as that.
Just as long as said perfect candidate says yes.
And as long as Jake and Sunghoon don't find out. Or else Jay might really have to move to Switzerland after all.
You love your friends, you do.
Hana and Heeseung have been there for you when others haven'tââthey were by your side when you knew no one entering high school, and they were still by your side when you were all graduating said high school. Needless to say, you're eternally grateful for friends like them.
But right now, in this momentââwith you seated in the middle of the campus' library, trying to write your essay, as your two friends blabber on and on about the most recent gossip across from youââyour two friends could be your villain origin story.
But again, you love your friends, you do. So you don't have the heart to tell them to leave. You've managed to naturally tune out most of the conversation, anyways, for thisââyour friends coming to hang out while you're trying to studyââis no rare occurrence by any means.
"Oh yeah, Jay Park texted me last night."
You hate how your brain's filter suddenly turns off at Hana's words.
You hate how your ears catch the sudden mention of Jay Park's name.
You hate how the thought of Jay Park gets to even occupy a single brain cell of yours.
You hate how you even know who Jay Park is. Well, knew.
Past tense. Because up until eighth gradeââwhen Jay decided to just suddenly pretend you didn't existââhe was attached to you like a koala to a eucalyptus tree.
And if you had asked past Y/N, ideally, Jay would've never left your side. Ideally, he would've never left you to fend for yourself when entering high school. Ideally, he would've stayed your best friend through out all four years of high school and ideally, you would've eventually told him how you really felt about him after growing up with him all your life. And maybe it would've lead to a completely different story. But for the sake of this fic, we don't live in an ideal world.
So yes, if it wasn't for his attendance at the very same university as you, you would've forgotten about the boy who brought you the painful memories of your childhood.
And since the universe clearly doesn't work in your favor, avoiding Jay Park's existence like he's the plague would have to suffice. And it works.
For the most part.
Until some people, bring him up uninvited into your conversation. Like now, for example.
"When was the last time you guys talked anyways?" Heeseung mindlessly asks as he reaches across the table to grab one of the many snacks you usually bring to your study sessions.
"Uh..like a few weeks ago. Give or take. Whenever you threw your house party. Can't say there was much talking involved however," she teasingly says with a giggle and wiggle of her brows.
Heeseung's rolling his eyes as you scoff and chuck a nearby crumpled piece of paper that was once one of your many essay drafts at her.
She bats it away right as it's about to hit her face as she laughs. "Doesn't matter anyways. He ghosted me the next morning, as he does with everyone else. Telling you this now," she extends a finger right at you, "stay away from Jay Park. That kid's just bad news."
You nod in response, mentally telling her she has nothing to worry about.
Been there, done that.
College. Ah yes, the very concept of spending four years of your life imprisoned on a campus where you'll be tearing your hair out from stress and spending all your life's savings just for a laminated sheet of paper with a golden stamp at the end of it all. We live in a society.
Because of said college, and all the weight that comes along with it, you had adapted a strict daily schedule in order to not completely lose your mind. It's a simple schedule really, one of a typical college student who's just trying to get by everyday with as little mental breakdowns as possible.
Wake up, get ready, go to class, go to the library to do your homework, walk all the way across campus to get back to your dorm, shower, then sleep. Oh and eat, of course. And maybe if time permits, be an actual social being and socialize.
It's gotten you this far into the college life without dropping out so, you conclude, you must be doing something right.
Sometimes, if you're feeling nice to yourself, you'll tweak the schedule a bit to fit in some exceptions. Maybe squeeze in a little trip to the bubble tea shop that's on the other side of campus, or maybe get dinner at that one dining hall that you don't usually go to because of the unncessarily long lines (but because they serve ice cream, you go anyways). It doesn't matter what the exception is, you still plan it out to fit into your schedule somehow. Everything is planned out.
Sometimes, however, the universe disagrees with your schedule, to your demise. Such as today, for example.
Because what you didn't expect for today was for a particular blonde-haired boy who you haven't spoken to in almost six years (but who's counting?) to approach your table in the libraryââa table you were sure no one could find you at, as it was quietly tucked away in the back corner, right next to the Astrophysics shelves. Because who browses the Astrophysics aisle for fun? Actually, maybe Jake Sim would. Anyways.
You definitely didn't anticipate a visit from the boy you've been actively avoiding, so you definitely didn't expect the first words coming out of his mouth when he sees you for the first time in six years to be:
"Fake date me."
You blink up at him.
Yeah, definitely not expected.
But you only let it phase you for a split second, until you feel a slight annoyance beginning to bubble up deep inside of you.
"Wow, hello to you too Jay! It's been whatââhalf a decade? Yeah I've been pretty good, thanks for asking!" The sarcasm is practically dripping off your tongue.
You don't know what runs through Jay's mind, but apparently it isn't common senseââor the ability to read the room. Because next thing you know, he's sliding the chair across from you out from underneath the table and making himself at home.
And he's smiling right at you.
Curse him and his smile.
But no, you're not giving into it.
Not yet, at least.
"What do you want?" You deadpan at him when he makes no sign of making the next move.
"A girlfriend," he deadpans right back at you, as if he was casually telling you what he wanted for dinner. As if you two were close-knit friends that could approach one another without any proper greeting. As if you two had kept your friendship all these years. As if you two even had a role in each other's lives.
"Can't help you there," you scoff, deciding to not even question his lack of manners on top of his uninvited presence.
"Aren't you gonna ask me why?"
"Well gee, seeing that the first few words you decided to say to my face for the first time in forever were a demand, a demand to date you no less, then....no," your monotone voice says as you keep your eyes focused on your laptop screen, not daring to look at the boy across from you.
In the Introduction to Sociology course you took your freshmen year, you had learned of one important term: interactional vandalism. Textbook definition being: "ignoring signals of disinterest in a conversation, leading it to an offense."
Your definition being: "are you oblivious or just plan dumb, read the room!"
This was interactional vandalism, alright. Whether Jay's truly oblivious or just trying to annoy you until your head explodes (it's really the former, but you're convinced it's the latter), he takes your signals of disinterest and tosses it right out of his head to continue the conversation.
"I'm stuck in this stupid bet with Jake--do you remember him? He bet me that I couldn't date someone for more than three months and I figured having someone fake date me would be easier than actually dating someone, right? That's where you come into the equation," he proposes as he leans back in his chair, as if he had just finished a sales pitch to a prospective customer looking to buy a car.
You couldn't believe this. You're 98% sure this has got to be a prank. You're mentally preparing for a camera crew to jump out from in-between the library's aisles any moment now and scream into your ears that you've just been punk'd!
The remaining 2% of you, however, wouldn't put it past the two boys to get themselves in such a situation. The last memory you had of Jay and his friends were pretty much their childish selves back in middle school. And by looking at the current scene unfolding in front of you...it's needless to say they haven't changed much.
"Again, can't help you there. Ask one of the many girlfriends I thought you had." Ouch.
"But Y/N, you've known me all your life--"
"Up until you dropped me a few years ago but sure, let's call it that."
"--and convincing other people is gonna make me look--"
"--desperate? Yeah."
"C'mon, Y/N. What do you have to lose anyways?"
"Uh..my dignity? Pride? Self-respect? Sorry Jay, not happening," you turn your attention back to your unwritten essay in front of you, mentally checking out of this conversation. This would be a good time for that camera crew to jump out now.
"Look, no one else is gonna do it, Y/N." Jay has always been stubborn, you suppose. But so are you.
"Yeah, because you've managed to push every being of the opposite gender away from you. You gave yourself this reputation in the first place," you give it to him straight. It's not like you had a relationship with him to uphold anywaysââJay himself broke that friendship years ago.
Jay hates that you're right.
You're always right. He remembers how he used to always go to you for advice and clarity on the world's biggest problems. Granted, the world's biggest problems to him at the time equated to what he should dress up as for the fifth grade Halloween party, but still. A tough decision, for the mind of a ten-year-old.
You abruptly stop typing and begin putting your laptop and textbooks away as you huff in frustration. There's no point in trying to get your work done now. The longer you stay arguing with Jay, the bigger your headache gets. The longer he continues to occupy any part of your brain, the bigger your headache gets.
Getting up from your seat, packed and ready to slam your head into your pillow, you turn to the blonde one last time.
"Look Jay. We went on our separate ways years ago. If you weren't so notoriously known around campus and my friends would stop talking about you, I would've long forgotten you. I'm sorry you're in this situation, really. If I were you, I'd just tell Jake I can't do it. Or don't, I can't tell you what to do. Just don't get some innocent girl involved in whatever stunt of yours this is."
Jay stares at you, mouth agape, as you find your way out of the library and through the main doors. By the time he comes back to his senses, he realizes how he looks plain stupidââstanding in the middle of the library, the look on his face screaming befuddlement, to say the least. Jay quickly makes his way out of the building, in hopes of convincing you one last time.
Jay catches sight of your figure already half-way down the walkway that connects the library to the main quad of your school's campus. Geez, you walk fast.
Not fast enough to outrun Jay's legs, however. If Jay running after you through the middle of campus in order to convince you to fake date him doesn't show how desperate he is to win this bet, I don't know what will.
"Wait, Y/N!"
You groan to yourself before turning to face the boy who can't seem to take a hint and leave you alone. You stare at his out-of-breath state as he heaves up and down from the slight jog he had to endure to get to where you are. If you're humored by him chasing after you, you do a good job of hiding it.
He meets your unimpressed state before stating his final proposition: "I'll pay you. Five hundred dollars."
You nearly stop breathing.
Now this catches your attentionââafter all, you're but a broke college student who's just trying to survive. And preferably not by feeding yourself instant ramen cups every night.
And so, naturally, you begin rethinking about the opportunity presented in front of you. You narrow your eyes at the boy as you weigh your options.
The first problem being, it's Jay Parkââthe bane of your very existence. You spent the last few years of your life pretending he didn't exist...for good reason. Not only did he do you dirty when you were merely a couple of 13-year-olds, but you just didn't want to be involved with someone like him. Someone known for his nature, someone who left your own current best friend ghosted. And not that Hana herself would care, for she has called herself the "female Jay Park", but you're sure this would be breaking some rule in the girl code handbook. Plus, if you agree to this, you'd be betraying 13-year-old Y/N, the one who decided to never speak to nor think of Jay Park againââwhich by now you've failed, but you get the gist.
Second problem being, three months is a long time. Three months is practically the rest of this semester, and did you really want to spend the rest of the semester tied down to the label of being Jay Park's girlfriend? There would have to be some negative connotations that came along with that title, right? No offense to Jay, but being his first girlfriend since, what, high school could make you come off as..naive, for lack of a better term. As if the only person you could settle for was Jay Park. As if you barely had any standards for yourself. Again, no offense to Jay.
Needless to say, if your school's debate club had to argue on why you shouldn't be doing this, you're sure the negating side could win with these two reasons alone.
But before you're rejecting the boy currently standing in front of you one last time, you find yourself mentally listing rebuttals.
First of all, you'd be getting paid. And again, you're merely but a college student living the stereotypical broke college student lifeââburdened by the costs of tuition, textbooks, and midnight McDonalds runs for when you're out of aforementioned instant ramen cups. Five hundred dollars could provide you with more than enough chicken McNuggets to last you the semester, and maybe some more to treat yourself to an online shopping spree.
Second of all, it's not like you were going to do anything better with your next three months anyways. It's safe to say you were too busy being a diligent student to actually look for anyone to date, per say. And if anything, having a fake boyfriend might actually be helpful in your case. Your mom would be off your ass about how you're still single, for one. And two, your friends (though it's really just Heeseung) would stop trying to hook you up on blind dates with guys that you would choose Jay Park over any day (and that really says something).
Third of all, it's Jay Park. As much as you despise the kid, you still know him. He's not a complete stranger to you, no matter how much you try to deny it. It could be worse, it could be a complete rando asking you to date him. At least you two have some sort of history, which would take care of the typical small talk and getting to know each other bit of this equation. And truth be told, you'd be lying to yourself if you said you weren't a tad bit satisfied by the fact that Jay chose you, of all people, to pull off this stunt with him. You don't know if it's the nostalgia of your childhood memories rushing back to you, but it reminds you of the endless schemes you two used to plan behind your parents' backs all the time. Granted, your childhood schemesââsuch as the both of you faking sickness so you could skip school togetherââdon't even fall close to being in a fake relationship with one another, but still. It's the thought that counts.
All of those reasons plus, Jay isn't the worst to look at. He may have a spoiled reputation, but at least he has his looks going for him, you'll give him that (you're still secretly wondering when and how did he get his glow up, but don't tell him that).
And so by the guidelines of a college student's logic that states the pros outweigh the cons, you come to the overarching conclusion that maybe, this won't be so awful after all.
"Five hundred?" You ask, just for clarification. Jay's immediately nodding at your words. You continue to ponder on your thoughts as he stares at you hopefully.
The silent atmosphere of your campus heightens the tension so much, you swear you're in one of those overdramatic pausing scenes that occur too many times in k-dramas.
You sigh, then nod.
"Okay," you're internally praying that you won't regret this decision. "I'm in."
The next time you see Jay is at 12:17PM on a Friday afternoon, as you're exiting the doors of the lecture building that's home to your awfully long Capitalism in the Western World class.
You're going down the steps of the building, mentally deciding where and what you're going to treat yourself to for lunchââas the three hour lecture you had just attended drained all the life and energy out of youââwhen you hear the slight call of your name.
Turning to the source, you're met with a waving Jay, leaning against the passenger's side of his car, parked in front of the lecture hall building you were currently leaving.
Great.
You walk over to where he's casually waitingââhe's unaware of all the stares he's attracted from fellow students leaving the same lecture as you. Can you blame them? It's not everyday you see a sleek, black BMW that probably cost more than your tuition pull up in front of your Friday afternoon lecture. It's not everyday you see Jay Park waiting for anyone outside of his said sleek, black BMW that probably cost more than your tuition.
"Hi," you simply let out as you plant yourself in front of him, not sure whether or not to question him why are you here? Surely, he wasn't waiting for you?
"Hi," he smiles down at you. There's a beat of silence. "I was waiting for you."
Bingo.
"Oh. What are you, my chauffeur?" You raise an eyebrow, unimpressed.
"Maybe. I am your boyfriend, after all," he says into the air, loud and clear, as if he wanted people to hear. Well that is the point, you suppose.
But still, all you want to do is smack the smirk right off his face.
Before you have time to put your next question into words, he answers it for you.
"I'm taking you out for lunch," he declares as if you have nothing else planned for the day. Well, to be fair, you didn't have anything else planned for the day. Except for your usual library run. But you figure the library could wait.
"Oh, like on a date?" You raise your eyebrows teasingly at him as you get into the car, Jay holding the door wide open for you. "Is Jay Park treating me to lunch as a date?"
Jay fights the scowl (or is that a smile?) growing on his face as he bends down to meet your eye level from inside the car. "Don't flatter yourself, princess. We've got fake lives to live."
"Call me princess one more time and you won't have a real life to live," you flash him a sarcastic smile and slam the door in his face.
Jay meets his own shocked reflection on the passenger's side window.
Cute.
"When you said you were taking me out to lunch, I expected like...I don't know...the diner on campus. Not whatever this is," you mutter to Jay as the two of you are brought to your table by a waitress at an upscale sushi restaurant, one that is undoubtedly out of your usual budget, but for sure an upgrade from your dining hall's pizza you were planning to have. You should've figured as much, the drive here was a little more than out of the way from campus, and who are you kidding, it's Jay Park you're eating with.
You stare down at your current outfit, which consisted of a hoodie you've owned since your junior year of high school and leggings that you threw on without second thought this morningââbecause you didn't exactly wake up and decide I'm going to go to a fancy sushi bar for lunch today!
"Why are we here anyways?" You ask him when you're both settled in your seats and the waitress walks away after listing the chef's specials for the day.
"Oh, they have killer dragon rolls here, you have to try it," Jay tells you nonchalantly as his eyes rake the menu in front of him, blocking your view of him.
How dense can one be? Your hand snatches his menu as you stare into his unamused eyes.
"No, Jay. I mean, why are we here? It's not like anyone's around to see us put on a show anyways."
"Oh. I figured," Jay's quick to grab the menu back from out of your hands as he continues, "that we should sit down and establish how exactly we're going to deliver this performance. After all, you're stuck with me for the next three months."
Again, smacking the smirk currently resting on his face would satisfy you beyond relief. Just once.
"If I drop out halfway through, do I still get $250?" You tease, leaning back.
"Ha ha. Funny. No," he narrows his eyes at you from across the table. "It's all or nothing."
You dramatically huff to make a show just for his annoyance.
"Worth a try. But sure, let's solidify this. What's the game plan?" You sit up in your seat, leaning over the table as if the two of you were hosting a secret meeting.
"It's simple really," Jay mirrors your actions, face leaning in close to where yours is hovering over the table. "Just pretend to be deeply in love with me for three months, and try not to actually be charmed by my cunning looks."
If someone gave you five dollars for every time you've already rolled your eyes at him today, you wouldn't even need to be in this deal for the five hundred dollars.
"Wow, smooth. Can I just remind you you're the one paying a girl to be in a fake relationship with you because you're just not competent enough to find an actual girlfriend?" You lean back, arms crossing over your figure.
Jay, unfazed, laughs, tongue briefly hitting the inside of his cheek. "Touché."
Your eyes go back to the menu in front of you as a silence falls over the table. Because you're not a loaded trust fund baby who comes to fancy five-star sushi restaurants for lunch on a daily, you don't recognize half of the entree names on the menu. You spot the dragon roll Jay suggested, but seeing that a basic California roll is less expensive, your natural broke-college-student-instincts figure the California roll shall do.
"Okay, in all seriousness," Jay begins as he puts his menu down. "It's simple really. We'll just go on weekly dates and post cute pictures of each other once in a while and a little after three months, I'll just say it didn't work out. I'll give you the five hundo and boom, we move on with our lives."
It's clear Jay's put some thought into this. Safe to say he's put more effort planning this out than the amount of work he's been putting into his classes. Someone's got their priorities straight.
You're impressed to say the leastââyou figured Jay would just be the kind to go with the flow and wait for the situation to unfold on its own and maybe blow up into flames. But seeing as he was just as serious about winning this bet as you were with making five hundred dollars, your doubts about this entire situation were slowly withering away.
Don't get it wrong, though, you still despise him. To an extent, at least.
"And don't worry about the dates. I'll pay on your behalf, as the loving, doting boyfriend I am," Jay finishes with a wide, cheesy smile you can't help but return a growing smile back at.
"Well then, as the loving, doting girlfriend I am, I shall gift you coffee, breakfast, all that fun couple stuff, whenever you please. Or maybe unannounced, if I'm feeling nice," you figure you should pitch in as much if he's paying for all your dates. And deep down, you find the idea kinda cute. But don't tell anyone that.
"Wow, look at us. We should become Dispatch's couple of the year already!" Jay exclaims, earning himself a small giggle from you, which pleases him to say the least. He thinks that maybe when this is all over, he'll hopefully make a good friend (well, for the second time) out of it.
And you're thinking that maybe the next three months won't be as bad as you initially had thought.
As the two of you delve deep into a debate about who would be the better significant other to each other, the waitress comes over to take your orders.
And because you're laughing and Jay's brightly smiling at you from across the table, you order the dragon roll.
The second time Jay takes you outââthis time he gives you a heads up to get readyââit's at a, once again, high-class steakhouse.
The third time, you insist on the on-campus diner that's popular amongst the student population. Partially because you feel bad for the amount of money he's spent on you (even though he couldn't care less), but mostly because if you have to put on another fancy dress to just eat an overpriced meal that doesn't even fully satisfy your hunger, you might lose your mind.
And by this third time, Jake is aware of this newly blossomed relationship.
"Three dates! I didn't know you had it in you, going on three dates with the same girl!" Jake excitedly exclaims as he jumps into the empty spot on Jay's dorm bed and shoves his phone's screen into Jay's face.
The smaller screen displays Jay's most recent Instagram post: an image of you sitting behind your too-small-to-be-this-expensive-steak and smiling right into Jay's cameraââa memory that brings a smile to his face:
~ ~ ~
"C'mon! We said Instagram posts would be a part of the deal! How else can we convince people we're dating?" A pout rests on Jay's face as he stares at you from across the table in the middle of the extravagantly decorated restaurant he picked out for your second date. You remember your eyes bulging out of their own sockets when you saw the "$$$$$" rating Yelp gave the place when you searched it up earlier.
"Okay, okay! One picture," you give in, already slightly annoyed that you were here instead of the comfort of your own bed, where you could be rewatching your favorite Netflix show for the third time. But because you made a deal and because you're desperate for money, you had to follow throughââso here you were.
You flash an unconvincing smile to Jay's camera, which doesn't satisfy him, to say the least. "At least pretend you're somewhat enjoying this date," he frowns at you.
You sigh, until a thought crosses your mind and a smile grows on your face. "Only if you get me boba afterwards."
He narrows his eyes at you, but then meets your smile. "Sure, whatever you want. But only because I've been craving some mango milk tea lately."
"You're a fruit milk tea kind of guy? Sorry, but I might have to fake break-up with you," you tease as you take a sip of your overpriced drink to go with your overpriced meal.
Jay scoffs, feigning hurt by placing his hand over his heart. "Ouch. But before you break up with me, let me get this Instagram post in."
"Wow. Your priorities are so straight," you roll your eyes at him, eliciting a cheeky smile from him as he watches you through his held up phone screen.
"3,2,1."
"Hey, I wasn't ready! That was like mid-laugh!" You reach over the table to grab the phone, but not quick enough for him to put his phone back into his pants' pocket.
"Nope, nuh uh," he laughs as you quickly sit back down into your seat, not wanting to cause a scene in an establishment as proper as this one.
"It's fine. It's a good picture, you look cute," he casually lets out, unaware of the blush rising to the surface of your cheeks, thanks to the fact that you were suddenly interested in playing with the left-over food on your plate.
"Jay! Delete it, I'll let you take another one," you whine from your seat, imagining just how bad a candid picture of you could be.
"Ugh, fine. Ever so picky." He playfully rolls his eyes at you as he takes his phone out and opens the camera app as you prepare yourself.
"Okay, how's this?" Jay turns the phone screen to you after he takes a few snaps on his phone.
"I approve," you grin at him as he goes through the pictures himself, unaware of the smile growing on his face.
"Okay now delete the first one," you point your finger at him, narrowing your eyes at him.
"Okay, okay! Bossy," he laughs as he raises in hands in surrender.
When Jay gets home that night, he recovers the image from his Recently Deleted folder, telling himself it's for the sake of the memory.
Obviously.
~ ~ ~
"It's not that big of a deal," Jay mutters from his spot as his eyes go from the Instagram post to his Exile and Belonging in Modern Literature reading that's due tomorrow, bright yellow highlighter in hand. Typically, you'd find the reading buried deep at the bottom of his school backpack. But because Jay ran into you this morning and because he complained to you about the amount of work he's fallen behind on and because you had threatened him to do his work or else you're not going on another dateââa fake date that isââwith him, he figured he should at least get one reading done and annotated, despite his strong dislike for highlighters (they hurt his eyes, okay?)
What he doesn't know, however, is how your threat was completely full of bluffââbut don't tell him that.
"It is so a big deal, for you at least!" Jake hops off the bed and lands on the wooden floors of Jay's dorm room so hard, Jay winces and sends a mental apology to the poor person who lives below him.
Jake suddenly gasps. "I have to meet her, Jay! As your best friend, it's practically mandatory that I meet her."
Jay opens his mouth to protest, but not before Jake interrupts him once again. "Oh! We can bring Sunghoon too, it'll be so fun! The best friends meet the girlfriend."
Jay can't think of anything worst. Jay imagines that bringing you to meet his best friends would just intimidate you out of dating himââfake dating him, that is. Obviously.
He stares at his friend in agony then back at the reading in front of himââthe one Jake said he'd come over to help annotate, but the intention completely left Jake's head the second he heard about Jay's recent dating life.
"You don't have to meet her," Jay says pointedly. "Plus, you already know her."
Jake frowns at his friend's excuse. "Yeah, but that was in middle school! This is different."
Jay's hands shuffle through the reading's pages in front of him as he realizes there's no way the two of them are going to finish the assignment at this point. He supposes he'll have to save death by blindness from highlighters for another day and hope you still agree to go out with him.
Jake suddenly gasps in realization.
"Oh my gosh! Childhood best friends turned college sweethearts," Jake says so dreamily, he might as well plaster heart eyes on. Hopeless romantic, this one.
Before Jay can argue, the piercing sound of three loud knocks echo through the small room, followed with a:
"Jay, are you in? It's me!"
Jay stills at the sound of your sweet voice. He whips his head to Jake, who is also frozen in place.
But the widened-eye boy is quick to come to his sensesââunfortunately quicker than Jay himselfââbecause the next thing Jay knows, Jake's eyes are lighting up and he's running to the door, ignoring Jay's screaming whispers through this seething teeth that were somewhere along the lines of Jakeââstop, I swear to god if you open that door I'm gonna fucking--
"Y/N!" Jake swings the door wide open, revealing an overly excited him and a frozen Jay half-way to the door, as if he was about to grab the very boy welcoming you in. It's as if we're living in a Sims game and the player clicked pause on this very moment.
Jake's eyes are wildly going back and forth between you and your supposed boyfriend, as if he was waiting for Jay to run over and smother you in hugs and kisses...or something couple-y like that. Jay wouldn't know.
"Uhââhi," you're awkwardly standing inside the room now, a relatively large paper brown bag resting in your palms as you look around for a surface to place it on. Jay makes his way to you without a second thought, quickly taking the bag out of your hold.
"You seemed stressed out earlier, so I figured I could bring you some food as a little pick me up. I didn't know what you liked, so I kinda just got a little of everything from the dining hall. Nothing fancy," you're rambling, but smiling so excitedly at him, Jay doesn't know what to say.
Instead, his mouth slightly drops open as he stares at you in awe, mostly because he's not used to being on the receiving end of such spontaneously generous actionsââall while Jake's still excitedly looking back and forth between the two of you, as if he was expecting a marriage proposal to come next.
"Oh wow. Thank you. Really," Jay, still touched by your simple act of kindness, softly says as he places the bag on the limited amount of empty space on his desk surfaceââthe rest of it is covered with his untouched textbooks and unfinished assignments. He wonders if you did this out of playing your role or just because you wanted to. He internally hopes it's the latter. "Seriously, you didn't have to do."
"Nah, don't worry. I wanted to," you shrug with such a genuine smile that Jay realizes he actually missed your smile.
Despite having seen you during your brief run-in this morning when you were fetching your morning coffee, Jay realizes he missed you. The two of you haven't been seeing each other recently because of your busy schedule and if Jay didn't realize it before, he's now sure he missed your company and presence around.
Weird.
"Well, you two have fun! Sunghoon needs me for something," Jake suddenly chirps from his place near the front door, halfway through with putting his shoes on already, breaking the comforting silence that fell between the two of you.
Jay frowns. "But you said you were free all daââ"
"SUNGHOON IS CALLING BYE!" And before Jay can even register what's happening, Jake's out the door without another word.
"Er..sorry about him, he's...weird," Jay scratches the back of his neck as he returns to his spot on his bed, mentally setting a reminder to yell at Jake later for leaving the two of you alone. Jay doesn't know exactly why, but he's nervous at the fact that you're here in his room. It's not like you two are complete strangersââor whatever you guys were beforeââanymore. "Good job on your part, though. How'd you know Jake was here?"
"Oh uh, I didn't"," you let out an awkward laugh. "I just felt like doing it."
Heat rushes to Jay's cheeks and he's not sure 1) what this newfound feeling is and 2) how to respond, yet again.
Having expecting you to leave after dropping the food off, Jay's taken by surprise when you take your shoes off and come over to his bed to look at the pile of work he's spread out.
"Is this everything you have to do?" You question the stressed-out boy as you flip through the various assignments, readings, and essays he put off in the past week.
"More or less," he groans. This is no rare occurrence by any meansââJay being behind in his workââbut this time, Jay realizes he may actually be in deep shit, considering he has no idea where to begin.
Right as Jay's expecting a scolding from you, he looks up to meet a look of sympathy on your face. "Well, I mean, I'm pretty much done with my day. I can try to help, I recognize some of these readings from last semester."
Jay thinks to himself that the universe has sent him an angel through the form of you.
"Really? Wow, you were't kidding when you said you'd be a good girlfriend," he sends you a surprised look.
"I'm just being nice, Jay. A concept I'm sure you're not familiar with," you remark back at him, causing his forming smile to grow into a laugh.
"I can too be nice! Need I remind you of who's paying you $500, covering all of our dates AND giving you rides to class everyday?" He remarks pointedly at you, a teasing look resting in his eyes as you're reminded of the first of many times he's come to pick you up before class:
~ ~ ~
You're late.
This never happens.
But then again, your life's been a series of unexpected occurrences lately. Such as the fact that you're currently known as Jay Park's girlfriend, for one.
You're scrambling out of bed once you take one look at your phone and realize shit, you're already late for class. Throwing on whatever articles of clothing your eyes land on first, you're already mentally groaning at the fact that you'll have to skip breakfast and run across your campus to get to said class.
Curse your professor for hosting her lecture at the furthest possible building away from your dorm. Curse the architect who decided to make your campus so large.
You're running down the steps outside of your dorm building's doors when you're abruptly stopped by a familiar sounding cough. You look up from trying to gather all your belongings together at once to meet the gaze of the source of the soundââJay.
"Wow, you're a mess," he smirks as he gets up from the spot on his car he was leaning against to make his way over to you.
"Gee, thanks! Good morning to you too," you flash him a sarcastic smile before your default frown quickly makes it way back onto your face.
"Aren't you gonna ask me why I'm here?" He grins as he grabs hold of your backpack to sling it across his own back as the two of you walk towards his car.
"Why are you here, Jay?" you sigh, your sarcastic tone hard to miss.
"To give you a ride to class, of course!" He's beaming at you, as if he's a pre-pubescent teen who just won their first girlfriend a prize from the arcade's claw machine.
Oh. That explains the car, you figure. Deep down inside, you're relieved that you'll no longer be bursting through the lecture hall's doors as a sweaty messââa result of having to run across campus to get to class.
Determined to not let your satisfaction completely show, you resort with a little smile directed towards Jay as he opens the passenger door for you.
The second your enter Jay's car, the strong scent of coffee hits you, and your attention is targeted at the two small cups of coffee sitting in the cupholders of the car.
"Breakfast?" Jay asks as he enters through the driver's side and reaches into the backseat to whip out a small pastry bag. A small, deliciously smelling, pastry bag.
Okay, well. You suppose you could drop the annoyed act now.
Your eyes widen with joy as you grab the bag from him and open it to reveal your favorite breakfast sandwich. He's been taking notes, you'll give him that point.
"Okay, you win. Thank you," you grace him with a soft smile before taking a bite into the glorious gift in your hands.
"Of course, I was just feeling nice," he grins at you as he starts his car. "But don't get used to it." His tone is serious, but his smile directed towards you says differently.
And the fact that he still showed up to drive you to class the next morning.
And the next.
~ ~ ~
"And need I remind you who has to date your dumb ass for the $500 in question?" Your eyes narrow at the boy who can't seem to get that damn smile off his face.
Jay sticks his tongue out at you, ending the conversation. Really Jay? What are you, five? Well, mentallyââprobably.
You're looking around his minuscule dorm room for a place to sit down, and Jay can't help but feel embarrassed now that you're here, in his messy single studio room that pretty much reflects how Jay treats every other responsibility of his oh so hard life: neglected.
"Uh...here, you can sit on my bed," Jay immediately offers as he moves to the side to make room for your presenceââand it isn't much, considering the university only provided him a twin XL bed which is definitely not built for two grown college-aged kids.
If you told yourself a few weeks ago that you'd be shoulder to shoulder on a bed belonging to the guy you cringed at the very thought of, you wouldn't have believed yourself. You wouldn't have believed yourself if you said you were actually glad Jay let you stay instead of kicking you out after delivering the food. Huh.
Weird.
"You know, this kinda reminds me of when we were kids. I always carried us through those horrible multiplication tests in the fifth grade," you wink at him as you settle in the spot next to him, hands grabbing hold of the papers in his lap.
Jay let out a laugh, nudging your shoulder with his. "Hey! The twelve times table is hard, okay?"
You roll your eyes at himââa habit of yours he's noticed whenever the two of you are together, but more recently, he thinks it's been more out of fun than annoyance.
He wonders why.
When Jay had first brought up the idea of bringing you as his date to his father's company dinner, you had expected a fairly fancy five-star restaurant with a formal dress codeââfor you've become accustomed to Jay's lifestyle. Turns out, your expectations can continue to be exceeded. Because what you had expected to be a simple dinner with a few other business men and women turned out to be an entire party, hosted in a hotel whose interior resembled something close to a castle (Or what you assume a castle looks like, as you've never personally been into a castle yourself, but this hotel is close enough).
Your eyes sparkle at the extravagant columns and diamond chandeliers hanging high above you, and Jay smiles at the expression on your face; like a little girl being brought to the amusement park for the first time ever.
"Wow, this is...wow," you mutter as you drink in the scene in front of you: people dressed in formal attire likewise to yours and Jay's, mingling and drinking what you imagine to be beverages that cost more than your entire life's worth.
Jay laughs from behind you, "Yeah the company goes a little...extra when it comes to these company dinners."
You scoff as you look up at him. "Oh really, you don't say?" You look around and you're suddenly aware of the many people surrounding the two of you and the attention you've acquired ever since entering the building.
"Jay, people are staring." You shuffle closer to him, your voice lowering down to a whisper.
"Well, it's not everyday the son of the company's CEO brings his girlfriend with him, so...looks like we'll be the talk of the party tonight. Smiles on," he winks at you, and you just know he's loving the attention the two of you are receiving right now.
"Jay Park? Is that you?" You hear a warm voice call out from behind the two of you.
The two of you turn around to meet the owner of the voice, a middle-aged woman dressed in an evening gown that matches the pattern of high-end brands you've been recognizing ever since arriving.
"Mrs. Lee! It's so nice seeing you again," Jay cheerily addresses the woman as the two of you bow in greeting.
You internally giggle at the thought of your Jay being so picture-perfect in the eyes of his father's co-workers.
"This is Y/N," he continues, his hand finding its way to your back, protectively resting it there as you go to introduce yourself. "My girlfriend."
You swear you feel goosebumps rise from where he's lightly touching you, and more so when he introduces you as his girlfriend.
You tell yourself it's just your nerves. Yes, that's it, you're just nervous. I mean, you're in a room filled with people who could easily pay off all your college loans with just a snap of their fingers, who wouldn't be nervous? Right? Right.
"Y/N! It's a pleasure to finally meet you, I've heard so much about you!" Mrs. Lee excitedly exclaims as you turn to Jay with a slightly confused look plastered on your face. He mirrors your expression as he shrugs, moving to stand behind you completely, bringing his hands to rest lowly at your hips.
His hands feel like feathers on the thin fabric of your evening gown, so light, so delicate, as if he's unsure if he's crossing a line. It leaves you wanting more, wanting to naturally lean against him and his warmth. You quick to shake the thought of your head as Mrs. Lee chirps up again.
"Jay's father is always talking about how you've been keeping Jay pleasantly busy nowadays! Good thing too, about time this poor boy settle down for someone as beautiful as you," the woman rambles on as you feel a blush creep up on your cheeks at the thought of Jay talking about you to his dad. If only they knew.
"We should probably go find our seats, I think the dinner is beginning soon," Jay says from behind you, saving the two of you from having to listen to Mrs. Lee's story of how she's known Jay ever since he was five years old and seeing him grow into this mature, loving, young man is so amazing. Oh look! I have baby pictures.
Yeah, he was more so saving himself from embarrassment.
The two of you bid your goodbyes before Jay gently uses the hand on your back to maneuver you through the crowd of socializing business moguls.
"She's not wrong, you know," you feel Jay dip his head so he's speaking near your ear, his warm breath tickling your earlobe, as the two of you make your way through the large foyer room.
"Hm?" You hum in question, turning your head up just enough to be able to make eye contact with him as he responds to your look of confusion.
"You look beautiful tonight," he says, eye contact not breaking once. You freeze in your steps.
You stare back at him in silence. Oh.
Your mind is panicking as it flips through your mental book of responses, unsure of what to say back. But because your mind is cloudy from staring at a put-together Jay in a dark navy suit to match your dress (mixed with the nervous butterflies in your stomachââhave they always been there?), the only sound that's able to leave your lips is the small stutter of a:
"Huh?"
Wow Y/N, you had one job. A simple "thank you" could've sufficed! And you went with "Huh"?
You felt like a fifth grader who just learned from a friend of a friend of a friend that their crush likes them back.
"U-um. Mrs. Lee. What she said about you. You look good, really," somehow your nervousness made its way over to Jay nowââhis eyes flickering from yours to anywhere, anything, else in the roomââthe awkward tension growing tenfold each second.
Goddamnit Y/N, this is just Jay you're talking to, get a grip.
You're knocked back into reality when he slightly nudges your back to continue making your way to the main ball room, where the dinner is being held.
"Is that a compliment from the Jay Park?" Your smirk can't be seen by Jay, since he's still trailing behind you, but he can definitely hear it through your tone.
"Don't make me take it back," he chuckles, his words felt against your neck, leaving behind a tingly sensation you're not sure why you're feeling. You're glad he's behind you, so he isn't able to see the blush creeping onto your face for the second time tonight.
Jay gives a small nod to the people behind the check-in desk stationed at the entrance as the two of you waltz right into a large ball room lined with countless circular dining tables. So much for a small business dinner.
As the two of you approach one of the tables placed at the front of the room, you notice a familiar figure seated next to the seats reserved for you and Jay.
"Y/N!" Jake exclaims as he gets up from his seat to greet the both of you. "I'm so glad you made it, Jay was so excited to bring you tonight. Deadass would not stop talking about it."
Jay lets out a noise that falls somewhere between a cough and a goose being strangled, his widened eyes warning his talkative friend to just shut up. He's silently cursing the company for always seating his and Jake's family at the same table for these events.
"Aw, is that so? He's lucky he's cute or else I wouldn't have agreed," you grin, winking at your assumed boyfriend sitting next to you.
"Hey, YOU were the one excited to come! I recall a certain someone's face lighting up when I suggested we go shopping for tonight," Jay immediately retorts.
"Only because you were buying," you giggle, causing Jake to laugh as well.
"Damn, Jay. Tough," Jake jokingly adds as you laugh alongside him. The scowl sitting on Jay's face expresses the opposite of what he's feeling right now: warmth filling him up from the sound of your laughter and the image of you getting along so well with his best friend.
"I'm gonna get us some drinks, you two have fun making fun of me," Jay narrows his eyes at the two of you as he gets up from his seat. You bid him off with a smile before turning back to Jake.
"No but really though, this boy would not stop talking about you coming tonight. Then again, he doesn't really ever stop talking about you," Jake nonchalantly says, not knowing how much he was exposing his friend to you right now.
You raise an eyebrow up in response, "Oh really?"
"Seriously! I don't know what you did to him, Y/N, but this Jay I've been seeing recently is new. He complains a lot less about life nowadays, especially on the days he sees you," he leans back in his chair as his comment brings a smile to your face. Little does he know.
You stretch your neck up to find the boy in question and spot him right as he's returning to your shared table, two drinks in hand. You lock eyes with him from across the room and without a second thought, you're giving him a genuine smile that he's immediately returning.
Your heart beats faster at the view.
You wonder why.
It's 3:07AM when you hear the first ding.
You're not 100% sure as of why you're awake at this hour on a Tuesday nightââperhaps a combination of your restless thoughts and feelings not letting you sleep plus the typical stress that comes hand-in-hand with the life of a college student.
It's 3:09AM when you hear the second ding, and you brush it off, assuming it was just Heeseung spamming you with memes againââsomething he does often when he also can't sleep (you found this out the hard way).
It's still 3:09AM when you hear the third ding, and at 3:10AM , you finally reach over and decide to acknowledge the being who's bothering you at this godforsaken hour.
Jay [3:07AM]: Y/N
Jay [3:09AM]: hi
Jay [3:09AM]: r u awake rn
Y/N [3:10AM]: unfortunately so
Y/N [3:11AM]: why are you up
Jay [3:11AM]: come outside
Y/N [3:13AM: jay it's 3am
Jay [3:13AM]: ye and? don't tell me ur a college student with a curfew
Jay [3:14AM]: plus im alrdy waiting for u outside so u have no choice
Jay [3:15AM]: :)
You groan at your bright phone screen currently illuminating your dark dorm room.
You ponder the consequences you may have to suffer tomorrow if you stay up any later than you already have. But considering the fact that you're probably just going to stay awake lying in bed for god knows how long anyways, why not?
(And you would like to point out that this decision has nothing to do with the fact that you haven't seen Jay in a few days and that maybe a tiny, tiny, tiny, part of you may have missed his presence. Nothing.)
And since that logic is obviously valid (you really gotta work on justifying your life choices), you're suddenly grabbing a hoodie from your closet and hoping it'll be enough to keep you, who's merely in an old band t-shirt from high-school and pajama shorts, warm.
The breeze hits your skin the second you open the doors to your dorm's building, and you're met with the view of Jay's sleek, black BMW that probably costs more than your tuition. He waves at you from the driver's seat, motioning for you to get in.
"To what do I owe you the pleasure at this hour," you deadpan at him with a stone-cold voice as you enter through the passenger's side door, hoping your tone was enough to hide the fact that you're giddy at the fact he invited you out at 3AM in the morning. Like a high-school girl sneaking out of her house to meet up with her bad-boy boyfriend that her parents dislike.
The second you enter his car, you're instantly comforted by the warm air blasting through his vents and his playlist softly playing in the background. Jay's pajama pants and messy hair give you more than enough information to know that he probably just rolled out of his own bed as well. You don't know why, but your view: Jay in his oversized hoodie with his unkept hair in front of your dorm building at 3AM on a Tuesday night, gives you comfort in weird ways you can't explain even if you tried.
But it's obviously just your cloudy, 3AM mind not thinking straight. Obviously.
"When I can't sleep, I go on drives around campus. It helps clear my mind," he says, looking over at you to give you a quick smile before starting his car. "Plus, SnapMap said you were still awake, so...figured you'd wanna join."
"Oh so what, you're my stalker now? You're not driving to the woods to kill me now, are you?" You tease, an eyebrow brought up. Jay lets out a laugh from beside you as he begins to drive further into your campus.
"Guess you'll just have to wait and see," he throws you a wink before reverting his gaze back to the road, mindlessly driving to wherever the road decides to take him.
A comfortable silence falls in between the two of you as Jay continues to drive endless routes around your campus. You look over to the boy driving next to you and take in his featuresââyou don't know what changed, but you no longer feel the same anger or annoyance bubbling within you when you're around him. You're not sure when this changed, but you figure it's just the effect of desensitization. After all, you've been spending so much time with him, you're bound to get used to it. Right?
"Why were you up?" Jay finally asks after a few minutes of just the two of you silently basking in each other's presences.
"Ah, you know. The usual. Endless thoughts running through my mind, stress from school, nothing new," you sign, giving him a soft smile followed with a shrug.
"Penny for your thoughts?"
You answer him with silence as you search your head for the answer.
"I don't know. This is kinda weird, isn't it?" You don't know why you get a sudden surge of confidence, but before you can stop yourself, you find yourself rambling on. "If you had told me a month ago that I'd be here driving around with you when it's nearly 4AM, I would've laughed in your face."
Jay doesn't know whether to laugh or scoff. "Is the idea of hanging out with me that unappealing to you?"
You give him a serious look back. "I mean, up until a month ago when you needed me for whatever this game is, you literally pretended I didn't exist."
Oh. Awkward.
You freeze at your own words, mentally screaming at yourself for letting the words leave your mouth. Why, why, why.
"Y/N..." Jay says after clearing his throat after a few seconds of silence.
"No it's fine, it was a joke," you awkwardly cough and direct your attention to anything else around you right now. The view of your campus' buildings zooming by. The clicking of Jay's blinker when he switches lanes. The quiet roaring of his car's engine. The nervous tapping of his fingers against the steering wheel.
The rest of the ride is excruciatingly silent as he exits the main road and into an empty parking lot of some administration building made out of glass that has too many floors for you to count.
You don't know why you feel your heart beating in your throat as Jay puts the car into parkââwhy you feel uneasy. You slightly turn towards him in your seat, hoping to pick up any sign of well...anything from him.
You don't know why you feel a twinge of guiltââit's not like what you said was necessarily wrong. If you were being honest, you were slightly bothered by how the two of you seemed to silently agree not to mention your past all this time. You were always one to seek answers, to seek closure. You couldn't help but bring it upââJay was your best friend during those years. For him to just wake up one day and pretend you were nothing to him hurt you, and you couldn't help but still wonder what in the world you did to initiate his actions.
"I'm sorâ" You're interrupted with his timid voice, as if he was almost afraid to speak.
"I'm not good with people." He's nibbling on his bottom lip, fingers nervously picking at a spot on the steering wheel.
You're opening and closing your mouth, unsure how to respond. You're 100% positive you look like a fish right now. Good for you.
"I don't know why. Jake calls it commitment issues but in order to have commitment, people have to stay in my life. And people just...don't. They're all bound to leave at some point. So what's the point of putting in effort into relationships if they're just going to leave you at the end?"
You're stunned by his sudden confession, not having been prepared for such a heavy topic to arise between the two of you. Up until tonight, your interactions had always been light-hearted and easyââyou guys got along well. You didn't know this is how he felt all along.
But you knew where he was coming from.
You knew what Jay had gone through as a childââhis mother having left him and his dad when he was young. You remember when your parents had told you the news at the young age of 13, and you remember the pain and sorrow you felt for your then friend. All you wanted to do was go to him and comfort him, but he had already cut you out from his life by then.
"Or maybe I'm the problem. My dad barely acknowledges my existence because he thinks giving me an allowance is all the parenting I need, my friends probably only stick around because they feel bad for me, you wouldn't even be here if it weren't for the bet, and, fuck, I'm literally known as the campus' fuckboy," Jay continues, falling deeper and deeper into the hole he dug himself.
He hates this, he hates opening up and feeling vulnerable, so he doesn't know why he's doing it now. He doesn't know why he feels comfortable voicing out his fears and worries when he's around you. But he does know it's a new feelingââone he doesn't know how to deal with.
"Jay," you lace your voice with as much comfort as you can provide. None of this is his fault, you want to tell him. "I'm sorry."
"Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything," he says with a hint of bitterness and you can't tell if it's directed towards you or the topic at hand.
You're completely turned in your seat now to face himââdespite the fact that he refuses to meet your gaze, afraid that looking at you is gonna bring out the most vulnerable in him. "You can talk to me. Talking about it makes it a lot easier. I'll always be here for you, as a friend."
Jay doesn't know what it is or why, but something in him snaps at the sound of a certain word falling out of your lips. Friend. Friend.
Friends don't make his heart beat nervously whenever he's around them. Friends don't keep him up at 3AM in the morning, pondering about his feelings for them. Friends don't provide him with this new, warm comfort he's become accustomed to whenever he's around you.
Deep down, Jay knows you didn't mean to add fuel to the fire. But because he's strong-headed, stubborn, and hates how vulnerable he feels next to you, he unleashes his emotions without thinking about the destruction coming along.
"It's none of your business, Y/N. Forget I said anything. You're just a toy for this stupid game and when it's all over we can go back to our own lives and forget this ever happened."
His sudden words cut deep, but they hurt him more than you. The second the words tumble out of his mouth, he's hit with the feeling of instant regret washing over him, and the lump forming in his throat restricts him from finding the right words to take them back.
The silence that falls between the two of you this time is different. It's a cold silence. A loud silence.
Jay feels his walls coming back up around himââthe ones you managed to get throughââand all he wants to do is apologize but he's terrified. Terrified of seeing your reaction, terrified of losing you again. For the second time.
You tell yourself he doesn't mean it. You tell yourself that he's just enduring more pain that one should ever receive.
But you also tell yourself that this wouldn't be the first time Jay leaves you in the dust.
You tell yourself that you're foolish for ever believing a friendship, or more, could come out of this act at the end. That you're so naive for feeling those stupid, stupid butterflies you've started to notice in your stomach whenever you see, or even think of, him.
"Okay," you begin with a firm tone. You're hurt, but you refuse to show it. You won't let him hurt you for a second time. Not again.
"Just...find me when you need me. As your fake girlfriend or just...me. I'm still here for you," is the last thing you say before un-clicking your seatbelt and leaving his car, beginning your walk back to your dorm hall.
Jay is unsure about many things in life. He's unsure about what he wants to do in the future, he's unsure of where he's going to settle in life, heck, he's unsure about what to have for lunch tomorrow. But he's sure about one thing.
That he's wearing his heart on his sleeve right now, and it's all because of you.
That you've become this new lifeline and he has to choose between holding onto you or drowning.
When Jay wakes up the next morning, his first gut instinct is to get ready to pick you up for class. But today's different. Jay doesn't know where the two of you stand now, especially after last night.
Jay doesn't know how to deal with this combination of unknown emotions he's been feeling lately. They didn't come out of no where, by any means, he realizes. They've been slowly growing over the past month of seeing you so oftenââlike a plant he's been watering overtime, not expecting it to bloom into a flower so suddenlyââbut he figured it was nothing more than just enjoying the company of a friend.
Until he realizes that the term friend just doesn't suite you anymoreâânot to him, at least. And that scares him. It scares him that you've made him genuinely smile more in this past month than he ever has in his 19 years of living. It scares him that when he's around you he can't comprehend his own thoughts, his feelings. It scares him that you make him vulnerable, that you've changed him. That you've managed to make the walls that he's spent so long building and polishing to crumble with a simple tap of your finger.
In a perfect world, Jay would have already told you all thisââhe would be unafraid of how you would react, unafraid of your rejection, unafraid of losing this growing relationship with you. But alas, we don't live in a perfect world. And so when Jay drives to class that day, he drives right past your dorm building.
"Where's Y/N?" is the first thing Jake questions when he enters Jay's car that morning, confused by your absence, having been used to you being in the front seat every morning when Jay goes to give Jake rides to class as well.
"I don't know," Jay mutters, unemotional eyes focused on the road in front of him, not interested in continuing a conversation that involves thinking about you.
Jake hesitates as curiosity gets the best of him. "Did you guys get into a fight or something?"
Jay's hands tighten around the steering wheel of his car. "Or something. Let's just leave it at that."
There are a few beats of silence before Jake speaks up again.
"Well, I guess this works out because I wanted to talk to you about something."
Jay continues to stare straight ahead of him, focusing on just trying to get by without mentally beating himself up at the simple thought of you.
The simple thought of you and your smile. Your witty remarks. Your stupid eye rolls. Your laughter. Your kindness. So much for not thinking about you.
"I'm calling it off," Jake's words catch Jay off guard.
"Huh? Calling what off?"
"The bet. I'm calling it off. I don't care about the textbook fees I'll have to pay next semester. Look, fight or not, you and Y/N are good for each other, everyone can see it. And I really don't want this to end up being one of those messed up teen TV shows where the girlfriend finds out the entire relationship was based off of a stupid game and then they break up and the boyfriend falls into eternal sadness and regret. And I don't wanna see you sad, dude. So yeah! Congrats," although he's admitting defeat, Jake's beaming widely, just content with the fact that his best friend has finally found happiness through the form of you. "You win."
But Jay feels like the opposite of a winner. Because even though his only intention coming into this was simply winning the bet, his life isn't as simple as it was a month ago. Because he discovered something much more valuable than some stupid textbook fees or five hundred dollars or getting his physics homework done for an entire semester.
Something he's scared he's already lost.
You.
âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș
The next time you see Jay is at the same time and place as when he first ever appeared to pick you upââat 12:17PM on a Friday afternoon, as you're exiting the doors of the lecture building home to your awfully long Capitalism in World History class. This time, however it's different.
Because this time, it's one month later, and Jay Park is no longer a forgotten side character in the story of your life. This time, you're frustrated because it's been three days since you've last heard from Jay. And because it's been three days since you've last heard from him, you can't focus on anything else, and because you can't focus on anything else, you're falling behind on every other aspect in your life. Jay's somehow managed to become the center of your life without even having to be present.
Well, up until now. Up until you go down the steps of your lecture hall's entrance and look up to be met with a figure leaning on a car you're far too familiar with. You freeze in your steps as you make eye contact with the boy you've been thinking about non-stop for the past month three days.
Your mind tells you to walk away, to just follow your flight instinct instead of fight, to just go back to your normal life. But here's the thing. Ever since Jay's made his way back to your life, it's been far from normal.
And if you're being honest, you had no interest in going back to your normal life. Normal's overrated anyways. You find your legs bringing yourself over to him, your heart leading the way.
"Hi," you simply say, planting yourself right in front of him.
"Hi."
"What are you doing here?" You already know the answer, but you want to hear him say it.
"Waiting for you," Jay doesn't hesitate in answering you. This time will be different, he tells himself.
"I can walk myself home, thanks," you state, but your actions tell differently, as you make no sign of moving from your spot in front of him.
Jay's mind contemplates telling you everything. About how he regrets that friendship-breaking decision he made that one fateful day in the eighth grade, about his true feelings, about how he first suspected these feelings when he was 11 years old and saw you in your fancy get-up for the sixth grade dance but put it off as a little crush, and about how the same feelings grew into something so, so much more in the present. But seeing that putting all these thoughts into words would involve more than one functioning brain cell (which is all he's convinced he has in the moment, for the view of you staring up at him, looking like that, has his brain short-circuiting), he settles with:
"He called it off. It's over. The bet."
"Oh."
Silence.
Okay, Jay. This is your chance. Say it.
"Is that it?" You lift an eyebrow, awaiting for more explanation. When it doesn't come, you slightly nod and start backing away. "I'll see you around then."
Is that it? Do the two of you just go back to your respective lives now? How can Jay do that, when he doesn't even recall what his life was like before you entered itââand especially when he has absolutely no interest in going back to that life?
Fuck it.
"Y/N!" He stands up straight, a newfound confidence taking over. This time will be different, he tells himself. Because now, he knows what he wants. For sure.
You turn towards him, to see him already making his way towards you, stopping in his steps when he finds himself close enough to you that he can't concentrate anymore.
"I'm sorry for ditching you in the eighth grade. I'm sorry for ignoring you since then. I'm sorry for dragging you into this stupid mess and for pushing you away and I'm sorry for calling you a toy. Because it's far from truth. I like you. A lot. Andââand I'm scared. I'm scared of what this means for us, because I just keep messing things up and all I know is that I don't wanna wake up tomorrow and realize you're not in my life anymore andââ"
"Woah, woah, Jay. Slow down," you look up at him, the corners of your lips threatening to curve up into a smile. "You're an idiot, you know."
Jay's never really confessed his feelings to anyone before, per say, so he doesn't really know what to expect. But he's watched enough Netflix rom-coms in this lifetime (which is still not that many) to know that hearing the words "you're an idiot" isn't what you're supposed to hear after pouring your heart and soul out. Surely not, right?
"IââI'm not sure how to respond to that," he quietly says, searching your eyes for a sign, for anything. You giggle at his sudden shyness as you grab both his arms and look at him right in the eyes.
"It's okay. I get it, if anything, I'm also scared. But you somehow got me wrapped around your stupid finger, and I hate it," you smirk at him, your hands slowly making their way up his arms to circle around his neck.
Jay's hands naturally fall at your waist as he lets out a breathe he didn't even know he was holding as he returns your smirk. "Well, I could say the same about you. And I also hate it, for your information."
"Hmm, is that so? I guess it cancels out then, right?" You smile at him as he's pulling you in so close, your head turns cloudy.
Jay grins at you, his eyes holding so much joy and endearment as they quickly flicker down to your lips before returning to your own eyes. "I guess this only means one thing then."
"Mm, and what's that?"
And before Jay can answerââand because your life's been anything but normal latelyââyou make the first move this time, moving your head up to close the small gap between the two of you.
His arms instinctively tighten around you as you capture his lips with your very own, and Jay swears he's about to lift off into space right now. He's on cloud nine, and he makes no plans to touch the ground ever again.
The kiss quickly becomes fervent, all the pent-up tension that the two of you had for one another finally finding its way out, all the words that were previously left unsaid finally expressing themselves. You don't even care if you're being judged by the conservative faculty members of your school right now, or by the looks of fellow students walking past the two of you.
You try your best to keep yourself from smiling as he continues to press his lips against yours, his hand moving to hold your chin, guiding your mouth with his.
Before you find yourself getting carried away, you step back to take a breath, resting your forehead against his chest as his hands rest against your back. He smiles at the sound of you giggling against him.
Jay takes a step back to take one look at you and realizes, in this moment, that change can be good. And he's willing to undergo this change. As long as it's with you.
âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș âžș
The next morning, you bounce down the steps of your dorm building's entrance to meet the wide, bright smile of your ex-childhood-bestfriend-turned-fake-boyfriend-turned-real-boyfriend waiting for you in front of his car, small pastry bag in hand. You smile back at him.
Jay drives you to class that day.
And everyday after that.
. â
ËÌŁ- : ⧠: â â âč â â : ⧠: -ËÌŁâ
.. â
ËÌŁ- : ⧠: â â âč â â : ⧠:
â° let me know what you think! if u made it til the end, mwah :') <3
#finally finally finally#im so sorry this took so long#anyways#enhypen#enhypen imagines#enhypen fics#enhypen scenarios#enhypen oneshots#enhypen jay#jaypark#enhypen jay park#park jongseong#jay park#enhypen fluff#enhypen angst#enhypen x reader#enhypen jay fluff#enhypen jay angst#enhypen jay fic#jay park x reader#enhypen jay imagine#enhypen jay oneshot#jay fluff#jay park fluff#iland#iland jay park#iland jay#iland imagines#jay#kpop
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MLB x DC Universe Headcannons
I just love the idea of MLB and DC (expecially Batfam cuz Mari is such a Wayne) being in the same universe and crossing over. So one night, I just had an idea overload of different ways the Marinette would know the batfam/be a part of the DC universe. And if any of my shitty ideas somehow inspire or prompt you, then please be my guest. đ _
1) âLadybugs of Past and Presentâ
Hippolyta, Wonder Womanâs mother, was once a previous holder of the ladybug miraculous. When Fu activated the miraculous and put them in circulation, Hippolyta could feel its magic waking back up. Knowing there must a reason for it to be out, she sent a message to her daughter. Diana searched, finding Marinette and Adrien as the present holders of the ladybug and cat miraculous. She vouched and brought them into the Young Justice program while they also made their own team, Project: Zodiac (or something like that).
[Sometime when Diana takes Marinette to meet Hippolyta]
âGreat Hera, Tikki, you have not aged a dayâ -Hippolyta, cause she does know how to make joke.Â
âAnd I would say the same to youâ -Tikki
âMother, you can make a laugh?â -Wonder Woman, honestly a bit confused cause her mom have never not been serious before.
And Marinette is just speechless cause sheâs starstruck meeting Wonder Womanâs mom AND a previous Ladybug holder.
_
2) âRockstar Nieceâ
Jagged Stone is Marinetteâs Sweet Uncle J. During the summers, Jagged Stone would take Mari with him on tour. HIs summer tours are throughout America, so Mari gets to sightsee the country. Jaggedâs first tour that he gets to take Mari on (5-ish), heâs also booked for the annual (for whatever reason) Wayne Summer Gala. When Marinette meets the Waynes, they are so enamoured (Dick and Tim couldnât help it) that they tell Jagged heâs always invited as a guest, Mari of course being added to the permanent guest list too. About 6 years later, Mari is practically adopted, spending the first half of her summers with Jagged, going to the Wayne Gala, then spending the rest of her summer with the Waynes. Overtime, she figured out the secrets of the family and was there to welcome Jason back from the dead (when that happens). Anyways, now 11(-ish?) Mari meets Damian and the two become good friends⊠after an⊠impressionable first meeting.
âTch, let me guess, youâre another one of fatherâs adopted straysâ -Dami
âYOU MUST BE DAMIAN!!! DICK TOLD ME ABOUT YOU!!â -Marinette, who just ignores what he said for a hug.
âhiiiiiiiiissssssssâ -Dami, touchy with touch
â...â sprays water in his face since he decided to act like a cat.
âI say, Master Bruce, the children are getting along quite wellâ -Alfred
_
3) âPen PalsâÂ
Jon Kent and Marinette Dupain-Cheng are part of an international pen-pal program, starting when they were very young (maybe like 4 or 5-ish, super super young) where they told each other everything (Jon canât just say that his older bro is a clone made from Superman and Lex Luthorâs DNA, or that his dad is Superman, or that his best friend is Robin, but yea. Lois and Clark probably proofread his stuff until heâs like 9) with pictures and everything. When theyâre old enough to get phones & stuff, they call, text and vid-chat along with their letters (love without blood). When Mari is maybe 9-11 (somewhere around there) she starts flying over during the summers to hangout with Jon (and his friends and big brother). While there, she meets Kon, Bat fam, and Clark (some who she already knew, some who she didnât) & lightly hints that she knows who all they are once she figures it out (it didnât take her long to do so).Â
Now whenever she visits and is at Wayne Manor (Jon likes to have sleepovers practically every weekend) while theyâre on patrol, Mari subtly messes with their minds (super subtle, theyâre the worldâs best detectives after all) until they finally look through the cams and see Mari giving them one of those smiles (those shit-grinning cause itâs just so hilarious how itâs gone on for so long) & and a playful wink.Â
[5 seconds later]
âMari!â âPixie-pop!â âAngel!â âTeacup!â
âSeriously, am I the only one with a normal nickname for her?â -Tim
âMs. Marinette would like to inform you that âit took you long enoughââ -Alfred (who so knows that the girl has been playing them since the third night she stayed at the Wayneâs)
âWhere are my adoption papers?â -Bruce (who is seriously adopting any talented black-haired child)
_
4) âMari and MarâiâÂ
When Marâi is young, Dick and Kori take her with them to see Paris (btw, this would be during the winter). Theyâre strolling along through a park and lose track of Marâi who finds Marinette (9-10 ish). Marinette comforts and distracts Marâi while noticing the young(er) girl is Tameranian (her hair is very warm and sheâs wearing significantly less layers than should be worn for a human of that age during the winter, plus that sun-kissed skin tone. Sheâs seen Kori in her fashion magazines (and, from time to time, on the news as an ambassador) so she easily make the connections). Dick and Kori finally spot Marâi with Mari who introduces herself to them. Marâi asks if she can see her âAuntinetteâ again and Marinette just goes âif your parents are okay with it.â Dick and Kori are totally cool with it (not many are willing to watch her and have the time to do it) so they ask Marinette if she can babysit Marâi whenever (with good pay of course) if sheâs up to it (cause sheâs still pretty young). Marinette canât say no to Marâiâs babydoll eyes (and sheâs so much easier compared to Manon, whoâs only 2 rn), so of course, she says yes.Â
Now Marinette is Marâis official babysitter and sees Marâi often whenever her parents drop her off (using zeta tubes to quickly get to Paris and back). Marinette gets treated like an honorary Wayne (cause sheâs the most responsible) and gets invited to their family stuff (w/ travel pay taken care of, of course). It doesnât take her long to realize the fact that she babysits Bruce Wayneâs & BATMANâS granddaughter, but of course, being the responsible one she is, keeps the secret⊠while also playing with them via Marâi.
[One Day]
After Marinette leaves for her planeâŠ
âUncle Dami!â
âYes, Spawn?â
âAuntinette said to tell you after she left that Robinâs sut needs a major upgrade & that you look like a traffic light⊠whatever thatâs supposed to mean.â
[Another Day]
âUncle Jay!â
âWhatâs up kid?â
âAuntinette said that to let you know that Red Hood doesnât make any sense âcause Red Hood wears a helmet. Not a hood.â
[The next time]
âUncle Tim!â
Yawn. âyea?â
âAuntie told me to give you thisâ (pulls out super caffeinated coffee) âand that Red Robinâs cowl is a menace to all things fashionâ
[AgainâŠ]Â
âDaddy!â
âYes, Starshine?â
âAuntienette said sheâs proud of Nightwingâs costume âcause itâs one of the only in the batfam that isnât an astro-city to the fashion society.â
_
5) âMarinette, the one whoâs always getting chosenâ
Before Mari became (becomes(?)) LB, she comes across a different powerful piece of jewelry, from a different order of guardians where her will of mind is not only her shield from being akumatized, but it is also what drives her powers. Thatâs right, Mari walks past a flea market and activates a GL ring. The guardians pick up on this activity and send Hal (it is his sector) to check it out. Hal finds the ring with Mari but it still needs the light of a GL to charge and fully work.Â
[During the explanation]
âLook, kid-â
âMarinette.âÂ
âLook, kid, I just need to know why you have that ring.â
âYou think I know? I was just walking through the market and all of a sudden, this possessed ring, if thatâs even what this is, started following me, then zipped in front of my face til i held my hand up so it can put itself on my finger.âÂ
âKid-â
âItâs MARINETTE. Get it wrong one more time and youâll see why I donât need a possessed piece of alien jewelry.â -Marinette, making sure you get her name right. âBesides, if I stole it, I would remember. Iâm a kleptoâ -Marinette, probably holding his ring too at this point.
Hal obviously doesnât want the wrath of the Dupain-Chengs (just the kid Marinette scares him enough), so he tells the guardians that JL will take care of most of Mariâs training (once they get her a lamp for her ring, of course) & has her take part in training at Mt. Justice with the Young Justice team and special training with the Bats. Mari does all this under the guise of an international student exchange program for Mari to stay with the Waynes (not yet knowing that itâs the bat fam) and attends G.A. Mari doesnât do much, but it takes her 24-36 hours to know who EVERYONE is.
[the next week after settling in]
âHey, Mars,â -Dick, in his Nightwing gear
âHey, Di-is the GREATEST SHOW!â -Mari, changing the subject(⊠not really)
âHow long did it take you?â
âNot as long as the KryptoniansâŠâ -Mari, going off into a tangent (still trying to change the subjectâ
[When Marinette meets Tikki]
Back in Paris:
âSooo⊠Iâm getting powerful jewelry that gives me powers and a suit, needs to be recharged, and comes from some Order of the Guardians? Whatâs the difference between you and my ring?â -Marinette, who at this point is very confused as to why she keeps getting picked on for this kind of stuff.Â
âOneâs alien, oneâs magicâ -Tikki, hoping Mari will end it there & lowkey hates that the GL Corp. got to her first.
âTheyâre both non-human made energy sourcesâ -Mari, cause once youâve seen it once, youâve seen it all before.Â
âYou canât heal the Akuma without the miraculous, and there are more than just rings. Yours are earrings, there are hair clips, bracelets, necklaces and moreâ -Tikki, after having a minute to think
âFine, only because you said theyâre the only way to heal the, what was it again, akuma?â
_
6) âTheir Unofficial Official Baristaâ
Part of Timâs job as Co-CEO, is to make sure all the branches are running smoothly, sometimes that means he has to fly abroad to manually check in. Tim goes to Paris to check on the W.E. Paris branch. He goes to a nearby Patisserie (Tom and Sabineâs) to see a young Marinette (somewhere from 8-11) drawing in her sketchbook at the counter. She explains that her parents are at a catering event, but sheâs there to man the little bakery. Tim asks for a super caffeinated coffee and Marinette makes it with ease, claiming it was on the house with how bad he looks (and how much sleep the man clearly needs). Tim begs for her knowledge and asks if she can teach his butler. Mariâs willing to show him the next time he comes, so he gets the whole fam to go (viz tubes so they donât waste time) maybe a week later. Everyone gets their own drink (plus a free pastries) and Marinette teaches Alfred her coffee, but itâs just not the same so Tim, using the tubes, goes to get coffee from the girl whenever he can.Â
Mari is horrible at getting up on time (the life of an insomniac, never getting to sleep even if you want and then barely waking up on time) that she is up super early, makes Tim his coffee (plus a croissant) and tries to go back to sleep (making her inevitably late). Tim would walk up to the pick-up counter where his cup and to-go bag is while Marinette runs out of the house to get to school. Eventually, the rest of the Batfam (as well as the Laegue, TT, and YJ) frequent the place, slowly becoming (Dami too)Â Mari hides it, but she knew all the batfam the first day they came and she showed Alfred how to make the coffee. When the others start making more regular appearances, she learns the identities of YJ team, WW, GLs, and others. Obviously when LB and CN appear as heroes with HM as their villain, they immediately reach out to help. Because 1. Batfam clearly notices that itâs Mari and they sure as heck wonât let her deal with that by herself, and 2. The JL is worrying too much about their favorite barista (even though sheâs not really one), especially with the Gigantitan scare. So, of course LB & CN (canât make him bad everytime) get inducted into YJ.
[After Ladybug finishes defeating Gigantitan and detransforms]Â
âBean! Are you okay? Youâre not hurt, are you?â -Tim, being an even more protective older brother than Dick, which shouldnât be possible
âYes, I promise. Iâm fineâ -Marinette, who just accepts the fact that sheâs adopted an older brother (and his famliy)
âTube over, weâll have Alfred make sureâ -Dick, already pulling out the medical supplies for Alfred.
âI-âÂ
âYou shouldnât worry your brothers like that, Marinette. Now come over so Alfred can clear you,â -Bruce, who just happens to overhear the conversation
âIâm sorry, Miss Marinette, they are very adamant that youâre in pitch perfect health before going out again,â -Alfred, whoâs not actually sorry
âFineâ -Marinette, accepting her fate of her adopted, protective family.Â
_
7)Â âThicker Than the Blood Weâve Shedâ
Why is Marinette so freakishly strong? Because she was trained to be. Before she could even talk, Mari was taught to be an assassin. She and Damian were frenemies, both competing for top spot as best in the League (of Assassins). They often spared together and became rivals who pushed each other (which sounds great in that context if you forget about the fact that theyâre killing people and turning it into a competition). When Damianâs care is turned over to Batsy, Mari also comes along for the ride. She implements herself into Damiâs classes at G.A. & watches him from afar. (Damian, not being an idiot, of course knows all this and knows that itâs probably for Mari to give a report to Talia.) When he becomes Robin, Mari obviously knows, but waits to see if anything drastic would happen (his care was given to the Batfam, they had already expected this to happen.) She then heard word of the bounty Talia put on Damianâs head. Marinette knew there wouldnât be much she could do to help, but she ave Dami a warning about the upcoming situation before fleeing the country.Â
From there she got to France, changed her name (it wasnât originally Marinette, it was ShĂ©nqĂ, chinese for miraculous/magical (or something else if you want)), was adopted by Tom & Sabine, and left her time in the League in the past. When she received Tikki, she didnât want to be a hero because she didnât think she deserved it after her up-bringing. Eventually, she did become LB (being a trained assassin does help with lucky charms, considering she was taught how to kill with basically every and anything), and life was good for her. Then Rossi came.
[Gotham field trip]
While at Wayne TowerâŠ
âHow idiotic are they?â -Damian, who after reuniting with his long-lost sister-from-a-different-mister (yes, Marinette was able to convince him to say it once), canât understand the stupidity she has to deal with.
âAre you Robin?â -Mari, who is too tired, so just goes straight into the analogy
âYes.â -Obvious and simply is.
âExactlyâ -Mari, who canât even put a limit to the amount of thought the one brain cell the class shares doesnât use. I mean please, the so-called âreporterâ believed that the first cosplayer she saw was the actual LB when they donât even have the same hair! And letâs not forget the origins arc, where LBâs first citizen save was Chloe.
#miraculoustalesofladybugandcatnoir#miraculous ladybug#no ships stated#but add them if you want#headcannons#maribat#marinette dupain-cheng#marinette x dc#marinette x batfam#dick grayson#tim drake#damian wayne#bruce wayne#hal jordan#nightwing#batman#red robin#robin#green lantern#diana prince#wonder woman#just a bit of salt#jason todd#red hood#koriand'r#starfire#mar'i grayson#nightstar#writing#klepto mari
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Can you do a supernatural cast series where youâre the wife and you do different interviews, like the videos on YouTube like Ad or thirst tweets or just answering fan questions whatever plz. If you have questions just message me and Iâll try to explain it further
Lol sorry itâs been like four months so donât hate me but itâs been hard work juggling trying to write, school and work so sorry. I think it sucks but hopefully youâll like it and Iâll be tagging the other parts in this one
Burning Fan Questions
Other parts
Alexander Calvert
Misha Collins
Jensen Ackles
"Hi I'm Yn Padalecki and I will be answer the fans burning questions about my life" I say smiling at the camera as I grab the bucket that's full of questions.
"I'm super nervous for this because before I got here Jared double dog dared me to answer literally every single question so I can't use my skip button" I say and the crew behind the camera laughs.
"Please for the love of god let their be questions to embarrass Jared more than me so he can eat it" I say giggling.
"First question" I say grabbing a folded up piece of paper from out the bucket.
"Who is the rudest celebrity that you've ever had the chance of meeting?" I read and I laugh.
"Oh that's a lot of them, there's an unsurprising amount of rude celebrities who think that they own Hollywood" I say laughing.
"But enough stalling because I have to answer this question anyway, the rudest celebrity that I've ever met was Christian Bale, no offense but he was a total dick to literally everyone around him, on set, off of set just everywhere" I say digging around the bucket for another question.
"What scandals has your team had to cover up?" I read and I start laughing.
"Noooooo" I say laughing even harder because I know I have to tell them.
"Okay okay. When I was 23 I had first met Jared and we got caught you know doing the deed and then the pictures were about to go out and they had to buy all of them back for double of what they were going to get" I say laughing shaking the bucket up and grabbing another one out.
"Have you ever used your celebrity status to get something for free?" I read.
"One time when I was out my daughter, Harlow we were getting frozen yogurt and I left my credit card at the restaurant we were at before without realizing it and at the register she goes oh my god are you Jared from supernatural's wife and when I'm with my daughters I usually pretend like I'm not but I totally knew she was going to give us the yogurt for free so I was like yeah, and then I asked her how she was and she was like oh this is totally on the house" I say laughing.
"I eventually went back and tipped a massive tip because I didn't pay last time" I say.
I grab another one out and I put the bucket down opening it "how many kids do you actually want?" I read.
"Well I already have two now but I'm aiming for at least five" I say laughing.
"I have a big family I'm one of 9 so I've always wanted a big family but not as big as mine so four or five would be a perfect size family for me, I honestly have a enough love for a million but four or five is definitely good for me" I say grabbing another question.
"If we came to your house what would we find in your cabinets food wise?" I read laughing.
"What an interesting question" I say.
"Everyone in the Padalecki household has their own cabinets because they are huge smackers. Harlow's is filled with the stuff she likes such as teddy Grahams, fruit roll ups, dried Cranberries, jolly ranchers stuff like that. Mine is filled with little cakes, gushers, banana chips which I swear by, peanuts, popcorn and Jared's, he has tons of candy, he is absolutely in love with white chocolate macadamia cookies and he always has those in his stash and Kiernan she's still on baby food so she's fully stocked on that" I say grabbing another question out.
"If you had to marry anyone that has starred along side your husband in his show supernatural who would it be?" I read.
"Oh hmm" I say laughing.
"Okay, Jensen is like Jared's best friend but I'm way closer to Misha so I'd definitely have to say Misha but no offense to his wife because I'd totally marry her as well or maybe even Rob, I love that man to pieces, he's a really good friend but then there's Rich, no offense to his wife Jaci but Rich and I have the best dance off's so that would be something to look forward to" I say laughing as I grab another question.
"If you woke up in Jared's body and had to stay in it for a day what would you do?" I say laughing.
"Easy, I'd leave myself little notes with plans for tomorrow so when I switch back he'll have to go through with them and we could have a perfectly planned out day because I planned it" I say laughing.
"If you go out to dinner with your non-famous friends, do you all still split the bill or do you pay?" I read.
"It depends really, my childhood friends don't like for me to pay for their stuff so we'll all split the bill but if I'm the one inviting everyone out then I'll pay before hand because then it'll be a lot of work trying to break it up" I say grabbing another question.
"What's one thing that Jared does that absolutely pisses you off?" I read cracking up.
"Breathes" I say smiling at the camera.
"I'm just kidding" I say laughing.
"When I'm super busy and like concentrating on my work he'll come over and innocently wrap his arms around me but then when I'm not paying him enough attention he'll start softly biting me and while I'm trying to work that can be so annoying" I say.
"What was the worst rumor that has been spread about you?" I read.
"I've had some pretty bad ones that I like to pretend didn't happen because they were literally so outrageous but I guess the worst one was that I was cheating on Jared. A few years back Harlow and I flew to my hometown for a few weeks and we spent Halloween out there and my twin sister and I dressed up as Sally from nightmare before Christmas because we've always done matching costumes whenever we're with each other and I posted a selfie on Instagram so everyone knew what I looked like but no one knew my twin sister was dressed identical to me and she took Harlow around with her now husband while I helped my parents be set up for the party and the paparazzi caught them together while they shared a kiss and while Eric played with Harlow and she was giggling and they put the photos on the front of the magazine and I was getting so much hate before I even knew what was going on and I was getting calls from our friends and they were asking me like how I could do that and then I had to go and post my pictures with my sister and write this long ass message about it and it was super bad" I say moving on.
"Who do you look up to the most, and what qualities do you love about that person?" I read.
"My grandma, she pretty much raised me. My parents weren't around often so I had to live with her for like 5 years, me and all of my siblings" I say digging in the bucket.
"But the qualities that I love about her is one, the fact that she is the strongest person I've had the honor of meeting" I say holding up one finger.
"Two, her boldness is like unbelievable. I took her to the oscars and she started flirting with The Rock and that's when I realized my grandma was my hero" I say laughing and I pull another question out.
"What's something you did as a child that no one knows about outside of your family?" I read.
"For two years I only spoke in a British accent, I had everyone confused at school because I never broke" I say laughing.
"How often do you and Jared have sex?" I read burying my face.
"No, I'm not going to be embarrassed. Sex is a normal thing, it brings about joy, relaxation, sometimes accidental pregnancies" I say laughing.
"But back to the question, I don't know. He's gone for like nine months out of the year but if he has a three day weekend or whatever then we'll spend a night together but when he's home in the three months he's off of filming it's literally whenever the kids are gone if even just for 20 minutes. We try to keep it as normal as possible" I say laughing.
"What's the last text conversation you had?" I read pulling out my phone and I laugh.
"I texted Robert about his new Batman movie because it was announced the other day and I just seen it this morning so I had to quickly congratulate him and he tells me that while I'm super late he still appreciates it and won't hold anything against me when it's time to hand out movie tickets and I said I'd never forgot about you shiny and he sent the middle finger emoji" I say laughing.
"What are your pet names that you and Jared have for each other?" I read.
"Ha, finally a question that he'd normally not talk about but I was dared so I call him Bubba or bubs" I say laughing.
"Literally it's how he's saved in my phone and he thinks it's so embarrassing" I say pulling my phone out and showing his contact name and photo.
"He's Bubba and he calls me a lot of different things but the one he always goes back to is beautiful or baby" I say smiling at the camera.
âDo your siblings and Jared get along?â I read and I laugh sighing.
âLike I mentioned earlier Iâm one of nine so thatâs eight siblings and then all of my siblings are older than me. Iâm the baby and they are all married so my older brother and his husband love Jared and Jared loves them, weâre actually both of their kids godparents but then with my third oldest sister she doesnât like me so she doesnât like Jared by default you knowâ I say grabbing another question.
âOkay this is a question I have to know how often you do and Jared shower together?â I read laughing.
âDo you have to know that?â I ask laughing harder.
âSorry to let you down but we donât really, weâll not anymore with kids itâs best one of us is out the shower while the other one quickly showers because we canât leave them along for too longâ I say knowing that my answer is not what they were expecting.
âBut before kids itâs was an every morning thing we did together before heading out for our different business or whatever we had to do that dayâ I say.
âDid you have an oh shit moment at your wedding, and if so what was it?â I read and I nod.
âYeah actually I did. But itâs been so long since we got married that I actually forgot until I read this question. My brother bless his poor heart showed up drunk like he was pregaming our wedding and the security didnât know he was my brother so they were like kicking him out and my sister runs in like âoh my god Yn, the security just kicked Kalin outâ so Iâm like half dressed and I go down to try to figure out what the hell is happening and then I meet up with him and he throws up all over me like Iâm talking full body covered and the make up artist just left and I had to shower and call her back so she could come fix my face and it was very traumatizing because it was so grossâ I say laughing.
âBut the whole wedding was beautiful and he didnât drink at allâ I say.
âIf you had to pick a song from the late 10âs-2020 to be you and Jaredâs couple song what would you pick?â I read and I awe.
âThatâs a cute question. I guess Iâd have to say Flicker by Niall Horan, we danced together to that song when Alex Calvert and his wife got married and it literally felt so magical and now whenever I hear it, it takes me back to a happy place and I just think about slow dancing with my best friend and husbandâ I say smiling.
âDo you and all the wives of the supernatural cast get along?â I read and I quickly nod.
âThose girls are some of my best friends, they know what itâs like to have a family and their husband work on supernatural so automatically we have something to bond over also with Alexâs wife she has a massive family so we often talk about the drama and problems that come along with itâ I say laughing.
"Last one. What celebrity have you had beef with?" I read laughing.
"Daniel Radcliffe" I say quickly.
"But it was when we were younger filming the Harry Potter movies. We didn't like each other for like the first 4 movies" I say laughing.
"Our characters were close in the movie but on set we hated each other, I don't know why and I don't think he does either, I guess our energies just clashed but when we got to order of the Phoenix and we talked it out before we started filming and have been best friends in person ever since" I say laughing and tipping the bucket over.
"That was my last question. I'm Yn Padalecki and this has been answering fan questions. Thank you for watching and I hope you got a laugh out of at least some of these questions or you learned something you never thought you would learn about me" I say smiling at the camera
#jared padalecki#jared padalecki x reader#jared padalecki x you#spn cast#supernatural cast x reader#sam winchester#jensen ackles#misha collins#alex calvert#Spn cast x reader#cast x reader#reader insert#supernatural#celeb!reader#famous!reader#actress!reader#celebrity!reader
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When I was in my early twenties, I used to occasionally submit poems to an online magazine that publishes local poetry. Even more occasionally, Iâd get one published, and theyâd pay me $15. The price point should give an idea of how not difficult it was to get published in this. But one time, in 2015, I got a poem into a publication that was slightly less unimpressive. They paid me, still not much, but more than $15. They sent me a free copy of the print edition, which my local one did not do, because my local one did not have a print edition. It was cool. I was proud of it.
They asked me for a bio, and I used the same one that I sent to my local online magazine. A couple of lines about where I was from and what I did, and then the quirky bit, which Iâd put a lot of thought into when I first wrote it: â[Name] loves Canadian folk music, British comedy, and American whiskey.â I thought it sounded whimsical and funny, and it was accurate, so I just reused it every time I submitted anything anywhere.
Iâm now back at my own place for the first time in a couple of months, after spending some time housesitting for a family friend and then some more time at my parentsâ place. Iâm enjoying being back in my bedroom, surrounded by all my own stuff. I looked around and realized this room is very much a celebration of those three things. I wrote that bio when I first started submitting poetry, in about 2012, and the way I have set up my space makes it evident that not much has changed in ten years. I present below, in the form of pictures from my bedroom: Canadian folk music, British comedy, and American whiskey.
(For the record, one of those is a birthday gift that Iâll give to my friend this weekend, I donât usually have more than two of those going at a time.)
I also still have my copy of the journal in question. I feel like I should say Iâm embarrassed about what a bad poem it was, thatâs what Iâd normally say about something I wrote so long ago, but I just read it again and I think I stand by it. Itâs not bad. Makes sense that it was the only thing I wrote that got accepted by anywhere that pays more than $15. I mean, I did originally build it backwards from a line I really like in the TV show Angel. But the people who printed it donât know that.
For the Kids Who Never Learned
I)
As it turns out, knowing when to leave is more fundamental than originally thought.
II)
There are places with grounded birds where blood that congeals on feathers will rush like white water taste like nickels and stick to the pads of your fingers, your clothes and your cranial matter.
They will ask why you stay until walls spatter red. As explanation, you will have tiny white lines across the backs of your hands; the fact that starved psyches seek substitutes like anorexics suck on hard candy; a sense that in this space, you are more than the stains on your skin or the bourbon on your breath.
III) Still, a chorus has questions. How did you think this was going to end?
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Would You Go With Me? - Prologue
Hey besties!Â
Personally, I think Din Djarin would make a great country singer. So uh, enjoy this!
Nashville Star, December 11th, 2021
âBreak-out country star Din Djarin has received an early Christmas Gift this year in the form of his two year old cousin. The singer was recently granted full guardianship of a distant cousin, Garret Grog, after the death of his parents in a fatal car crash in Philadelphia.â
âAre you fucking kidding me?â Cara threw the magazine on the desk between them.
âLanguage,â Din chastised lightly, the toddler in his lap squirming to get free. The little boy grumbled, but didnât say anything. In fact, he hadnât said anything since the social worker had dropped him off the previous day. Sheâd said kids often had responses like that to trauma, and that he should look into therapy for the kid.
âI can handle a lot of things,â she continued, choosing to ignore his language comment. âItâs my job to handle things, but you make that a little difficult when I wake up to this all over the fucking internet.â
âIâm sorry I canât control when people die and leave their kid to me,â he spat back. He knew that she was trying to be realistic, to do the job that he paid her to do. But the kid had kept him up until late when he refused to go to sleep, and then had woken him promptly at five for breakfast. It had been a rough 24 hours, to say the least.
âYou could have told me it was a a fucking possibility!â
âI forgot, okay. They sent me the paperwork so long ago, and she was a distant cousin, so I thought someone else would intervene before it got to this point. But clearly that didnât work out. So what the fuck am I gonna do?â
âLanguage,â she sighed and sat down, folding her hands together and setting them under her chin. âYouâre going to buck up and be a father. Thatâs literally the only option you have left, and youâre gonna hope that your dedicated fan base of single men doesnât abandon you.â
âJust the men?â He asked.
âThe women will love seeing you softened with a baby.â She waved her hand dismissively. âItâs a good thing he doesnât really look like you, aside from the hair, so thereâs not gonna be too many theories that youâve got an abandoned mistress somewhere.â Din glanced down at Garret. He supposed they did have the same hair, brown and curly, but the kidâs was lighter. The eyes were a family trait too, he thought. But he wore his hat low enough that not many people ever really saw them to connect those dots. He breathed a small sigh of relief.
âI can work with this, but youâre going to have to play the role of father to a T, do you understand me?â Cara continued.
âYeah,â he said. He didnât know shit about being a father, but he supposed he better learn fast. Maybe heâd stop and pick up a parenting book or two on his way home. Actually, it probably wasnât a good look. Heâd overnight them from Amazon instead.
âHave you thought about child care?â
âBeen a little preoccupied,â he said, adjusting the kid in his lap again. God, he was a squirmy little thing. âThe social worker brought some of his toys and most of his clothes and stuff, and he slept with me in my bed last night. I ordered a bed for him, itâs being delivered and assembled as we speak. Beyond that, I havenât had time for a thought.â Cara sighed.
âIâll find an agency and get you into contact with them. The faster we can get someone in to help you the better,â she said. He nodded. This was why he paid her so much: she was ruthless, efficient, and ballsy. He needed someone like that in his corner, especially now.
âGreat,â he said, adjusting the kid again. Finally, he seemed to be distracted by one of the buttonâs on Dinâs jacket and didnât seem in danger of slipping off his lap and landing in a pile on the floor.
âGo home, get him settled, and put together that set list I asked you for two weeks ago. The boys want to practice.â Din grimaced. The tour was the last thing on his mind at the moment, but it wasnât like he could use the kid as an excuse to back out of his first several shows; there were too many people counting on paychecks for him to even consider that.
âThanks, Cara,â he said, standing and holding Garret on his hip. She nodded and he turned and hurried out of her office before she could ask him anything else. His brain was overloaded already as it was.
âGet me the set list!â she called after him as the door closed behind him.
#din djarin#the mandolarian#mando#din djarin x female oc#din djarin x reader#mandalorian#star wars fic#baby yoda#grogu
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The Boys in Lingerie
OK FIRST EVEN VAGUELY SMUTTISH POSTÂ
Basic warnings in order please donât interact if you donât want to see this. Use basic judgement. You know if youâre too young to read something
Once again, I try to keep it house, gender, and year neutral so anyone can fill in the blanks where they wish, guys, gals, and nonbinary pals alike
We have standard lineup- Fred, George, Draco, Neville, Harry, Ron, Oliver, Cedric, and now Charlie and Blaise have been added!
ON TO THE FEMBOYS IN LINGERIE
Fred
You and Fred had messed around before with kinks and lingerie
He always liked how it looked on you, how the lace hugged you perfectly
Freddie is a very forthright person, if he wants to try something he will tell you in advance, and so he talks to you about him wearing some
You agree immediately and the two of you find a magazine to order some because there is no shop that sells that in Hogsmeade, unfortunately
He finds a pair of pink panties and chooses those because of course he does and when the box arrives (he has to avoid Georgeâs questions about what's in the box)Â
He puts them on and then sends you a notes asking you to come to his room while no one else is there
And when you find him
âBaby boy, you look amazing.â He smirks and spins in a circle before leaping on the bed, you following close after
George
George wandered into a strange shop in muggle London when you and him were exploring during Christmas break
He found a sex shop where they sold a lot of lingerie and before he got yelled at by the shop owner to âget out, you tosser!â
He couldnât get the lingerie out of his headÂ
He didnât think about you wearing it, well maybe a little. No he actually thought more about the cloth on his own body
So about a couple weeks after seeing those and getting back to school he plucked up the courage to ask you (he was a Gryffindor, dammit, he shouldnât be scared)
âHow would you feel if I... wanted to wear panties?â âSure, love, sounds good if thatâs what you want.â âWait, thatâs it?â âYea.â âOk good, cause I kinda already ordered them.âÂ
He darts into the restroom to put them on and then comes out to show you and holy fuck
Heâs in this pale blue pair of flower lace bikini panties and walks out looking just a little timid and you fucking jump himÂ
DracoÂ
Draco saw a pair of Pansyâs underwear during a game of strip poker and while most of the other guys were ogling her, he was thinking about how the silk would feel on him
He buys a pair, but then they just sit at the bottom of his trunk for about a month and a half
Then he wears them once or twice around the common room under his trousers before he even thinks of telling you
He writes you a note during History of Magic (its not like Binns will notice anyways):Â âCan you come to my dorm after classes today? I want to show you something.â
So you go thinking its gonna be some gift his mum sent again but you enter the dorm and see him in a pair of silk black pantiesÂ
âHoney, you look fantastic!â
You may or may not have torn them off of himÂ
He may or may not have had to buy another 10 pairs
Neville
Neville sees a girl in a thong in one of his dormmates old magazines and he just gets a little spooked
Because his immediate thought isnât about you in them
Itâs about him in them
So he panics
Slowly but surely, as your relationship progresses he gets a little more bold, in general, since you make his confidence skyrocket when youâre around him
So he wears them around during the day and when he pulls you into a empty classroom youâre a little scared about what heâs gonna do because of the timid look on his face
But he pulls down his trousers to show the pastel yellow thong heâs wearing and he slips on his old cat ears
You let out an audible groan
âKitten, you look beautiful.â
He blushes and looks down in embarrassment just a little
âNuh-Uh, donât you dare look embarrassed kitten, come here.â
âYes, maâam.â
Harry
You and Harry had a very honest relationship
He is a rather frank person and is not afraid to tell you want he wants in a relationship, but of course, you know that right out of the gate
Plus after the heels debacle, he knew never to try and hide what he wanted to wear from you
So when he discovers your collection of lingerie, he straight up asks you if he can try them on
âYou sure?â âYes please.â âYeah ok go ahead, sunshine.â
He grins and snatches his favorite pair, a red set of satin underwear that barely cover anything
âYou ready love?â âOf course sunshine, come on out!â
He steps out and you are speechless to say the least
He looks amazing and you pretty much drag him over to sit on your lap while you kiss him
So now he wears panties all the damn time because why not
If he likes it and heâs confident wearing them, youâre all for it
Ron
Ron is still a bit wary about wearing lingerie
Heâs been wearing more stereotypically feminine clothes, but wearing panties is a whole other game to him
But you suggested it, and he was willing to try
It takes him a bit to warm up to the idea of lingerie
Ron has you walk him through it, what would be comfortable, what wouldnât be, and he settles on a pair of black satin ones âTheyâll be comfortable, promise!â âIf youâre sure...â
You do a trial run where he just kind of lounges around the common room wearing them underneath his normal clothes
By the end of the day heâs hooked on it and you are too
He likes the softness of them
Ron has always felt like he had to be strong, and measure up to his brothers masculinity, but when heâs in the lingerie, he feels like he doesnât have to conform to that
Anyways yes he likes the panties
Oliver
Oliver saw a pair on you once under your sweatpants when you were cuddling
âOh, what are these?â âMy panties???â âTheyâre pretty... do they make them for guys?â
Bro was straightforward
So you buy him a pair âI trust your judgement love, buy whatever you want!â
So he ends up with a pair of red silk ones that feel amazingÂ
He wears them whenever possible
About a week after he starts wearing them, Angelina somehow finds out and the Gryffindor quidditch team dares him to ride on the broom in only his panties
So he tries it... before immediately slipping off and falling on his ass
âStupid fabric.â
He manages to stay on the second time, and well, now you have a few candid shots of your boyfriend riding a broom in lingerie
Not that youâre complaining
Cedric
I need to stop calling Cedric Pretty boy, but does that mean i will? no
Pretty boy loves you in lingerie
The fabrics are always so pretty
And he has never been shy about this, so he just asks you if he can try on a pair of yours
âYeah, of course pretty boy go ahead.â he kisses you on the cheek and runs off to find a pair
He puts on a pale yellow satin pair of briefsÂ
And walks back into your dorm
âFuck, pretty boy!â âYou like it?â âBaby, I adore it!â
Cedric begins wearing them around campus
He likes how his thighs look in them, and soon he starts wearing them under his skirts
If he bends over, you can see it pretty easily, he knows exactly what heâs doing
He tries to rile you up
Fucking tease
Charlie
Charlie is a very muscular personÂ
It isnât that he doesnât like traditionally feminine stuff, he just never thought he had the build for it
It takes a while for him to change his mind, since contrary to popular belief, he is actually pretty insecure
âDonât you think Iâd look strange in them, stocky kid in girls underwear?â âWell, itâs not just for girls, and no you would not! I happen to think that you would look beautiful!â
He likes that word. Beautiful
People have always described him as handsome, cute, but never beautiful
So he agrees
Maybe itâs something about wizarding Romania thatâs more accepting but when the lady at the shop you go to sees that the panties are more fit for Charlie, she winks at the two of you and says to âhave fun with thoseâ
So he puts them on and holy shitÂ
He understands it now
He feels beautiful
Blaise
Blaise likes being pretty lets be real
He doesnât really give a flying fuck what people think of him
So he jumps on panties real quick
Finds the prettiest pair of emerald panties he can find and he loves them almost immediately
He likes putting on a short skirt and makeup on to top off his whole vibe because why not
Another thing about Blaise is that he is a fucking flirtÂ
With everyone, not just you
And while you trust that he would never cheat on you or betray you, if he gets a little too flirty with anyone else, all you have to do is creep your hand up to the satin undergarment and give it a little tug to remind him who he belongs to
You, bitch, itâs you
Ok thatâs it for now idk what Iâm doing next so if you want me to write something please send me an ask. Also I rarely write suggestive/smut fics if you know ways that I can make this better please for the love of god let me know.
This feels like a good time to say that this is the final set of characters. I have 10 right now, and if I keep accepting more people Iâll just end up doing 20 characters every time. I love doing these but I donât have the time or energy to do every single character, it just would not be good for my mental health. That being said, if you want a specific headcanon of a specific character, please SEND ME AN ASK so I know that you want that directly. I would be more than happy to write it for you.
#fred weasley#fred weasley x reader#fred weasley headcanons#george weasley#george weasley x reader#george weasley headcanon#george weasley imagine#draco malfoy#draco malfoy x reader#draco malfoy headcanon#draco malfoy imagine#neville longbottom#Neville longbottom x reader#Neville longbottom headcanon#harry potter x reader#harry potter headcanon#harry potter imagine#ron weasley x reader#ron weasley#ron weasley imagine#oliver wood#oliver wood x reader#cedric diggory#cedric diggory x reader#charlie weasley#blaise zabini#femboy#dom!reader
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Pinehallow Summary & Character List
This is my main WIP, if I'm complaining about characters doing whatever they want, this is them.
Pinehallow Summary-Monty, an eleven year old boy who has spent most of his life traveling from place to place with his in-demand lawyer mother, Irene, is sent to live at his uncle's horse ranch because she thinks he needs roots. Used to nearly everyone but his mother not being around long enough to get to know, Monty is more than a bit uncertain about this. But in scrambling to find his place in a town different to anything he's ever known, he finds friends, both human and animal, makes discoveries, and even manages to foil a plot against Pinehallow Ranch itself.
Character List
Monty (Montgomery) Cade Waller- Main character, 11, white. Monty is curious, bright, and more than a little awkward. He has a tendency to state the obvious, which can be endearing or annoying depending on your perspective. Big vocabulary and grown-up way of speaking because heâs spent more time around grown-ups than other kids. Heâs quietly stubborn, particularly when it comes to being told heâs wrong when he knows heâs right. Insecure about socializing and friendships because of constant moving and traveling. Canât hold a grudge for the life of him, even when he likely should. He likes bugs, birds and turtles, would rather read nonfiction than a story. Fills lonely afternoons with sketching, nature sketching on the ranch.
Irene Waller- Montyâs mother, 36, white. Irene is a powerful corporate lawyer, either full of energy or exhausted, never in between. She loves using words to sway minds and deciphering documents to find exactly what the opposition doesnât want her to find. Sometimes Irene wishes she was using her skills in more meaningful ways, but also really likes the money, the traveling, and the competition. Has an almost encyclopedic knowledge of show tunes from musicals. She has a hard time letting people get close. Would stab someone for her baby, but knows itâs better to teach him to stab for himself. Only partially joking. Dolly Parton is her hero, and as much as she loves her music, itâs Dolly the business woman and Dolly the philanthropist that she strives to emulate.
Keith Waller- Montyâs uncle, 34, white. Horse Rancher. Keith loves working hard and getting dirty, and if heâs not exhausted at the end of the day heâll be looking for something else to push him there. Otherwise he gets antsy. Loves animals and absolutely will not tolerate anyone mistreating any of the animals on his ranch-ordinarily heâs very careful of his size and strength, in that situation, all bets are off. Times that by about ten for any of the âbarn ratsâ that help around the ranch for riding lessons/time. Loves romantic comedies and telanovas and doesnât care who knows it. Keith doesnât read a lot, it never came easy to him, but if heâs taking a long trip heâll always check an audio book or two out of the library instead of just relying on the radio.
Juniper - Keithâs goddaughter, 15, white. She has a calm, confident personality with a smile for most everyone she meets. If she doesnât have a smile for you and it isnât because her head is in the clouds over a girl, youâve probably earned her scorn and will be ignored as much as possible. Juniper raises rabbits and itâs taught her patience, and a lot about unfairness when a kit doesnât make it. She helps out with riding lessons at the ranch in exchange for riding time of her own, and has become a fixture, spending more time there than she does at home, and when she can get away with it, school. Loves sunflowers and her sunflower comforter is probably her most prized possession.
Nell - Caretaker/cook for the ranch house(would cooking lunch for the workers still be a thing on a modern ranch?). 38, white(?). Not about to put up with nonsense. Will make you cookies if she doesnât have to put up with nonsense. Please. At one point she wanted to be a chef and has a year of culinary school under her belt, but quickly decided the super fast paced and competitive environment wasnât for her. Anything that was making her hate one of her favorite things that fast could not be good for a person. She intends to live a long, long life and that kind of stress can just walk right out of the door. Loves to go on long walks, often into the hills (BLM land) behind the ranch. (maybe she was taught/took a class on foraging, and teaches Monty to find wild onions and stuff? But this would mean *I* have to learn about foraging in Idaho.) This leads to a contented, if often silent, companionship between her and Monty, who desperately wants to explore/record/sketch everything about the natural world of his new home, particularly the parts that are off limits to him without an adult along.
Ray- Family Friend/Co-Owner of R & M General (designed to feel vintage, but shiny. Bit of a tourist stop now, they decided to lean into it.), 50, Black. He uses his background in chemistry to make amazing looking candies and chocolates, using that to deal with a time he used it in less pleasant ways when he was in the military. He never expected anybody outside of his small town, or maybe the folks at the county fair to make so much fuss over them. This might embarrass him, if he werenât so delighted. A cheerful man with a dreamerâs heart, a magazine once referred to him as a small town Willy Wonka. He dotes on his wife, often making and gifting her small surprises. An amputee in honor of my Grandpa (missing left leg at the knee, possibly missing one arm as well, but Iâm not sure how that would affect candy making.). Has certain parts of his past he just doesnât talk about.
Mavis- Co-Owner of ____ with Ray, 48, Black. Fierce and kind in equal measures, Mavis believes in protecting whatâs hers, and as far as sheâs concerned the entire town of (oh my god, it needs a name) is included in that. Mavis is very selective about the battles she fights, but when she chooses one she throws herself in whole-heartedly. On several committees around town, sheâd be on more, but then she wouldnât have enough time to really get into the work of the ones she loves. She knits in her limited free time, often while listening to the news, but sometimes opera. Has started knitting stuffies in the shapes of the more unusual candies Ray makes, itâs silly, but fun, and tourists and the local kids love it. Still head over heels for Ray, even though his often dreaming about things for ages instead of just doing them is also still baffling to her.
Leanna - Juniperâs sort-of girlfriend, 15, Vietnamese. Quiet, a little cynical, but very empathetic. She avoids the news because itâs that or be mad and want to cry all the time-until she hears about something she canât not research, and goes on a 24 hour google search and learns far more than is probably good for her about a species going extinct due to logging in prohibited areas, or genocide being covered up by claims of violent uprisings. She loves manga and comics. Leanna sometimes tries for a cottagecore* type aesthetic, but mostly thinks it's too much work. Sheâs starting to worry about what sheâs going to do with her future, and people telling her that sheâs only 15 and doesnât have to worry about it yet is NOT HELPING.
*even though cottagecore isnât a thing in the early-mid 2000s this is maybe/vaguely set in. Shh, let me have this. Anne of Green Gablesesque maybe?
Winnie - Leannaâs mom, 45, Vietnamese. Widow? A little ditzy, but a lot loving. Everyone in town is convinced sheâs the stoner type of hippy, but no one minds as sheâs someone who truly wants to know how youâre doing when she asks and strangely almost always has very spot on advice. Sheâs rarely on time anywhere, but thatâs because sheâll have stopped to talk, and often to help, whoever sheâs run into. Leanna and her bicker over this when sheâs late picking her up. Always wears bright colors. Loves Agatha Christie books. Calls everyone, even people 50 years older than her, hon.
Logan - Juniperâs stepdad, 40, white. Kind of a jerk, but most of the jerky things he says are actually jokes that fall flat or have simply gotten old. Tries really hard, like *really* hard, but has a tendency to get annoyed if people donât appreciate his efforts right away-more in his personal life than professional, possibly because of his profession. A contractor, hard worker, loyal, has worked for the same company since he was twenty even though they donât often treat him right. Sometimes tries to buy peopleâs affections. Wants to have better communication with Juniper, but itâs gotten really hard the last few years and heâs never quite sure why.
Candice - Juniperâs Mom, 39, white, works at a nursery that sells seedlings and baby fruit trees, has a cheerful, calm personality, but a lot softer and more lowkey than Juniperâs version. Very house proud, but has a âmaximalistâ approach to decorating-everything is in its place, but there are places for lots of things. Loves spending time outdoors, but would rather spend it tending her garden than hiking or riding, preferably with a cup of tea by her side. On the weekends, a fruity beer or wine instead. Wants to go on one of those train rides where you get to drink wine, eat canapes and try to solve a mystery, thinks Winnie might be a good candidate for someone to go with her.
Ura - a âbarn ratâ, 12 and a half, white(maybe a Czech immigrant? 2nd generation?) . A cheerful, rough and tumble boy who is always climbing things, and often being told to stop when he gets too high for other people's comfort. Ura is fearless when it comes to physical feats, but has a fear of âslimyâ things like worms and frogs. He has a thick layer of pudge and a big appetite, but is athletic and strong enough that anyone bullying him over it would be doing it at their own peril. Not that heâs the type to start fights, or even finish them most of the time. Doesnât feel he quite fits in with his family, who are all more serious, reserved people. Redwood is his favorite of the horses, and Keith has all but given up on telling him that sitting on the floor of Redâs stall to talk to the horse isnât exactly safe.
Elliot - Ray and Mavisâs son, Black, 19 and a college student-maybe/probably at U of I. Lives on campus, but comes home at least a couple weekends a month. Has an older car that he and Ray fixed up together, that is his pride and joy. Quiet, with an irreverent sense of humor that he unleashes somewhat at random. Interested in robotics, engines and mechanics and generally has some project heâs working on, a piece of which may or may not be in his pocket. Often has oil, grease, or ink on his hands, either from working on or designing a new project. A bit of an overachiever, he can spread himself thin trying to live up to all his responsibilities at once. Heâs best friends with Randy, a friendship his parents want to disapprove of, because the few times Elliotâs gotten into trouble not only was Randy there, but 99% of the time whatever it was is Randyâs idea, but never quite manage too.
Randy - Handyman at the ranch, mixed race Hispanic and white, 21. Technically head handyman, because the old head retired six months ago, and is a little young/inexperienced for the job, but heâs not the type to back away from a challenge and has risen to the occasion beautifully. Loves rock and metal music, and spends a lot of his free weekends at concerts, the ones crammed into little venues and bars where people are practically on top of each other and the beat is so loud and solid it throbs through you, connecting you to everyone even before you hit the mosh pit, are his preference. Heâs been working at the ranch since he was 16, and feels like he has a claim on it, not afraid to speak up if he thinks a decision Keith is making isnât right or that he isnât taking something important into consideration. Can be a bit wild when heâs not being the responsible one, definitely doesnât always think before he acts.
Alma - Local artist/worker at R & Mâs, Hispanic, 25. Alma is a painter and poet, a confident young woman whoâs figured out that half of surviving as an artist is being your own agent/a salesperson as well, and in addition to several shelves at the R & M that hold postcard prints of many of her pieces, both the coffee shop and cafe have some of her larger paintings displayed, and she always has a booth at the Saturday market, though the majority of her sales come from her website. Alma is cheerful, and likes to tease, and growing up the middle child of four brothers, is very able to hold her own in verbal sparring. Sheâs close with her family, still living with her parents, and while at first her father was dismayed at her choice of career, he now hands out her business card to basically everyone he talks to.
Miriam - Nellâs Mom, white, 71, a little deaf, speaks loudly, partially because of the deafness, partially because she spent too long letting other people push her around and when she hit about 50 decided she was going to be the one talking over people now. Sheâs earned it. Age has made her more delicate than she likes, bruising and scraping easily, but sheâs determined to do most things for herself. Those that are beyond her she has no problem loudly ordering someone else to take care of. Volunteers a lot, often fosters kittens for the local animal shelter. Used to chain smoke, quit when Nell was a teenager because she kept leaving pictures of diseased lungs everywhere. Still uses the candy ones as a substitute.
Places
Unnamed Town- Somewhere in Latah County, Idaho, where there is not already a town in the way. Around 200 years old and has grown and shrunk and grown again, and currently has a population of about 12,000. Having grown out from a traditional mainstreet, _______ no longer has the western style boardwalk seen in old pictures, but it does have a large cluster of local businesses and âhot spotsâ still along that old main street, a coffee shop, a diner, a combination bookshop and independent library, a hardware store, a bar, a few places I havenât thought of yet, and of course R & M General. There is a historical barn half a mile or so away from mainstreet that has been converted into a theater/meeting hall/dance hall, and a community center was added onto it in the early 90âs. During the summer there is a farmerâs market on the property every Saturday. The elementary school and junior high are all on one property, several miles out of town, because the majority of families live on farms, ranches or small rural properties rather than in one of the neighborhood clusters in the town itself. The junior high is 7th, 8th and 9th graders, in a newer two story building, and the elementary school is divided into lower and upper elementary with the bracket shaped building basically being cut in half, K-3 on one side and 4-6 on the other. The high school is outside of town on the other side by several miles, and actually serves kids from another town(s) as well. There is also a trailer park with about forty units, not exactly sure where it is yet, but Miriam(Nellâs Mom) lives there. There is also an animal shelter, a vetâs office, a cemetery, and a couple churches, and Iâm sure more things to come.
R & M General (working title?)- Ray and Mavisâs store, a general store with a candy focused twist. A vintage Pepsi sign, neon still bright, and a charming green glass juke-box filled with hits from the 1940âs onward grace the front porch of the R & M, along with a long bench that locals are encouraged to use for a spell or to listen to a couple songs, provided they can behave themselves (teenagers arguing over who their favorite member of the rat pack is might be amusing, considering they were already âmom and dadâ, or at least older brother and sister, music by the time Mavis and Ray were teenagers, but when they get loud it also gets annoying.). The store itself still has the original wooden counter up front and built-in shelves along the walls, but all refinished and polished to a high shine. A mixture of display types going down the middle of the store, barrels and baskets filled with skeins of colorful yarn and cloth or Mavisâs knitted stuffies(and during winter sometimes socks and mittens), other sewing and craft supplies, display racks with local arts, postcards and carvings, sometimes wind up toys made by Elliot, and of course many, many displays of candies and chocolates. They also have a lot of dry goods, and some of the simpler candy types have little instruction booklets and the ingredients it takes to try out making them yourself stocked in the same display, drink coolers, and sometimes have local produce available. Basically, they have a bit of everything, except for building equipment/home repair supplies, and thatâs because of the hardware store across the street.
Pinehallow Ranch-A sprawling 100 acre ranch in Latah County, Idaho where the Waller family has been doing something or other with horses for four generations now. Originally it was a horse breeding ranch, but Keith and Ireneâs grandfather felt the money was in training horses, and offered boarding as well, and Keith has continued to build that up, offering lessons for a variety of styles, ages, and skill levels. Butting up against BLM land that allows additional grazing and trail riding, the ranch has four pastures, a large corral, a medium sized indoor arena and two horse barns, one for boarded horses and one for the ranch's own stock, and an equipment barn, an old bunkhouse that is mostly used to store feed-though Randy has slept there when in between places, mostly unbeknownst to Keith-and some smaller equipment sheds, placed where theyâre needed. The main house is an L-shaped ranch house with a porch that goes around the entire long front of the house with a large herb/kitchen and rock garden arranged around that. There are treed pockets scattered here and there, left alone as the rest of the ranch was developed, but the creek Monty and Juniper sometimes hang out at is on BLM land, as is most of the forested area around the ranch.
Pinehallow Taglist @sleepysera @enchanted-lightning-aes @odysseywritings @thegreatobsesso @writing-is-a-martial-art and @hiitsolivia If anyone else wants to be added just interact with the post :) (My more advanced tumblr knowledge has led me to believe this is better than asking people to reblog/comment to be added, but if I'm wrong just let me know.)
#character list#oc list#someday I'll do a proper series introduction#and an introduction for me#but today is not that day#pinehallow ranch#original writing#I tend to build my world around the characters#backwards I know
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Liamâs full interview with Tings Magazine - Part 1
Note: the interview was recorded in may 2020.
Justin Campbell: What is the weirdest YouTube/Instagram trend hole that youâve fallen into? Liam: One that always gets me is putting Mentos in Pepsi or Coke. We all know what happens, but we have to watch the ending. Iâve seen it about fifty times, and it doesnât change. But itâs weird finding out what things are interesting when youâre stuck inside. Itâs a crazy ride watching the world react to this. Itâs almost like everybodyâs become a street performer. You see these people on the street who have a special skill like magic and the internet is now the place for that and everybody does it.Â
Do you feel pressured to participate? Is there currency in that? Does that keep you relevant? I think artists have had to change a lot to fit in. There used to be mystery where you didnât know too much about their lives, whereas we are in my living room now for all the world to see. I think thatâs the biggest change of these newer platforms. I think you have to join in if you want to stay relevant. If you look at someone like Jason Derulo, he has 19 million followers on TikTok and he just started. His old songs are re-charting because of the TikTok chart. So, you canât just make music and expect it to go well anymore. There has to be a personality and a story. Itâs not quite the same anymore.Â
Thereâs so many differente avenues to keep up with. Thereâs Instagram, YouTube, TikTok. It used to be you did radio, tours and late-night television. Now there seem to be a dozen things to do. Itâs crazy, this last promo schedule for me, having to do it indoors. I had to learn how to do a bunch of different jobs for the people that couldnât be here. We put up a green screen in my lounge. We moved all the sofas, me and the camera guy that is staying with me set up the green screen and then you have to film it as well. Itâs just crazy the amount of different things that you have to get involved in right now to stay relevant. And thatâs all it is. The majority of the stuff isnât really doing anything, but itâs doing loads at the same time if that makes sense. Itâs a difficult thing to get used. And also, things have gotten jovial. So, you have to learn to make fun of ourselves. You canât be Mr. Serious pop-star anymore. People arenât really attracted to that anymore. People like the fun side of you, your personality and your humor come through on these things. Itâs crazy. I thought about when I joined TikTok the other week, thereâs a pressure to film something fun. But then if you are not having fun filming it, youâre not going to film a fun video. And I didnât want to live my life every day thinking I got to film a video or nobody is going to care. I spent an hour trying to think of stuff and I donât want to live my life like this. I enjoy then. I like going on TikTok and getting lost in a little TikTok rabbit hole, we all do, but I donât know if Iâm that way inclined mentally.Â
With the need to share more, to share a comedic side or a vulnerable side, where do you draw the line? When do you stop sharing? How much of it is constructed sharing and how much of it is authentic sharing? Itâs difficult. Iâm very prone to enjoy a moment rather than take my camera out and film it. Iâm always one of those people who take a picture of a sunset and then never look at it and say why did I bother taking the picture. Iâd rather enjoy the moment. We live in a day and age where the camera phone is peopleâs first thought for things. And Iâm just not one of those people. Humorous stuff will happen and it will be off the cuff, but we didnât film it. And it will be like âaw, should we recreate it?â But we donât want to recreate it. It just feels stupid. It always feels forced in that sense. So for me, I definitely struggle with sharing moments. And you have those people out there, who are literally willing to do anything. Thereâs a trend for people who are shaving their eyebrows off at the moment. Iâm not going to shave my eyebrows off so people will care a little more. That just doesnât register with me. You have Jake and Logan Paul, who do a lot of crazy, crazy things to get noticed. And itâs like where do you draw the line.Â
These platforms make it challenging to carve out a private life. People expect more and more of celebritiesâ lives to be shared. They feel they have ownership of every aspect of peopleâs lives. What are your thoughts on that? From the start of this lockdown, the first James Corden TV performance was filmed in the lounge and we went through my whole house. I can remember back in the day when a newspaper sent out the photos of my house. I donât like people knowing where I sleep because itâs a security problem for me. I had a big complaint about that. Now fast forward 5-6 years and the world has changed to where nothing is really a private or intimate moment. Itâs strange. As One Direction, we were in an era on the rise of Twitter. I think Twitter helped us a lot. It was the way we trended on Twitter that actually made us famous. But being on the cusp of that internet stardom, we didnât really care about how many followers [we had]. Now, itâs become a currency. I just struggle to take those things seriously, that it is part of the job because it feels so foreign. When we had apps as kids, there was no way to becoming MSN famous. Now kids want to be an Instagrammer or a TikTokker. Itâs crazy. We never had that.Â
You said something about people chasing the currency of liked and follows. Kids are thinking about that validation when they are creating content. How much of that are you thinking about it when you create music or social media/video content? I think, for me, I donât often pay attention to how many likes thing gets. As a pop star, you have to have an average amount per post. We have to have meetings now where people will go through posts, and tell you why this works. Which for me, it seems insane, but you have this persona that you have to keep up online. And definitely, when posting certain things, you are gauging whether itâs going to get a reaction or thereâs no point in posting it. And thatâs always been the problem for me. Iâm hoping for a big reaction for stuff which limits the amount you post because you think thereâs no point posting this. Often the people who do the best in these scenarios are the people that didnât mean for it to happen. Someone makes a little challenge like The Ice Bucket Challenge. Someone thought Iâll do this. It will be fun for us to film and because they are having fun, everyone is like we will get involved. If you think about it too much, it will overtake you. For the longest time, I didnât post a lot. I got off of Twitter because of the backlash and the fact that you are always going to annoy someone with a post. I was like, I canât deal with it. I might as well keep it to myself. Thereâs no disappointment.Â
I think thatâs part of the condition of being an artist. You crave a certain amount of validation. When itâs work, you can take that some people wonât get it. But because everything has become so personal now like itâs about you. You sell your personality to people. Itâs like if someone asks you âwhat five things do you want people to know about youâ. And everyone goes, well, Iâd like to be... You suddenly think, what we are doing every day online is trying to sell ourselves. Itâs a difficult balance. You have to have the right amount of humor and humility and the right amount of this. Itâs so difficult to find that person. And you see people who become caricatures of themselves online. They overdo it. You donât know what works any why it works. The internet is such an untested experiment. The public decides. Itâs so crazy.
You just said that it can feel so personal, which I think is such an honest statement because when you are putting yourself out there, it is hard to celebrate the work and you. When people donât like something, it can feel like they are personally attacking you. It genuinely scares me sometimes. Even to post a selfie, because you just donât know what the recipe is. Iâm not trying to impress anyone. Iâm just trying to stay around if that makes sense. I donât know, itâs difficult. The fact that you just let it go and itâs gone and people either take it or leave it. Itâs like jumping on stage every time you post, which scares me anyway.Â
Youâve spoken pretty openly about dealing with depression and anxiety. How does this level of exposure impact your ability to manage your anxiety? Before all of this started, the first day of school would probably be when you are your most anxious. Or itâs your own clothes day and you donât know what to wear. That feels like what everyone is going through every single day online. Itâs like the teen generation has so many more questions to answer that we had. I know as a kid I was quite stressed. I canât imagine how these kids feel these days. The only way I can relate is by how I feel in this scenario. Obviously, being a little bit older, you are a little wiser with it. I thinks itâs a different kind of pressure these days. Itâs a worldwide pressure. The fact that anyone can become a superstar overnight or also the most embarrassing thing in the world and the line is that thin. I canât imagine what is like for kids growing up in that scenario. For me, itâs raised a lot of questions about my mental health and having to deal with these things. Iâve been running a pilot with someone for people in my position, people who struggle with fame, with the position that they get themselves. You donât really realize the playbook youâre pressing. Once youâre in it, youâre in it. I started from 14-16, were my two start years. And the only answer that people had for you was that youâve got have thick skin. But I donât think thatâs really the point because once you are here, you have to find out if your skin is thick enough. You have to learn. For the longest time, if somebody wrote something about me in the press, Iâd rise back up and bring back up. I didnât realize they were trying to bait me out because they knew Iâd do that. Then theyâd write three more articles about the scenario that I didnât want them to write about. You can only know that with years of experience. If something comes out now, I just leave it to die and go away and thatâs it. I just think itâs difficult when people say the only answer is that you have to have thick skin to do this.Â
Thatâs not really a solution. Thatâs just saying you asked for this. This is just part of it, which I donât think is fair. Is fame something that you struggle with a lot? For me, thereâs different periods, severe highs with different things and a lot of questions about stuff. Iâve been going at this now for ten years, which seems insane. Iâm only 26 as well, which is quite a long time to be doing anything. And to be in this pressure cooker for that long is quite difficult, but I say Iâve learned to deal with it better now. Age and time are wonderful things. And we were buffered as teens. We had each other in the band. When I look at someone like Justin Bieber, I think no wonder he went completely mental at some point because there is no one in the world that knows what is like to be Justin Bieber, but Justin Bieber. He had no one to share it with. We had each other to share it with, to remember it with and be reminded how to behave, how to act. You shouldnât do that. It was tough at some points, but for the most part it was helpful growing up in that team exercise rather than be let off on your own and youâre the most famous person in the world. It must have been pretty crazy for him.Â
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Puzzles and Limes and Family Times
Fandom: 911 Lone Star
Characters: T.K. Strand, Carlos Reyes
Summary:Â Parenting kids is tough. Growing up and parenting your parents is even harder. Luckily T.K. and Carlos have each other to help figure things out. A post-ep for 2x11 "Slow Burn." Thanks to @bluenet13 for the help with the spicy food stuff and for inspiring what will likely be a prequel. And for just generally always being a supportive friend!Â
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âHow about a book?â Carlos asked.
T.K. shook his head. âHe has books. I want something different. Something that will really distract him.â
âI still think a couple DVDâs might do the trick,â Carlos told him.Â
âHe has every streaming service known to man. If he canât find it on one of those, itâs probably not worth watching.â
âT.K. as nice as it is that you want to get your dad a gift for his surgery, maybe we should think about it a little more since you donât seem to know what you want.â
Theyâd circled the aisles of Target more than once, T.K. turning down every one of Carlosâ suggestions. âI just want something thatâs going to keep him busy,â T.K. said. âHeâs terrible at sitting still. Iâm afraid if we donât do something heâll try and run a half marathon three days after surgery and kill himself.â
âBabe I donât think thereâs anything in the world thatâs going to keep your dad recovering the way you want,â Carlos said. âHeâs kind of a strong willed guy.â
T.K. sighed and turned the cart into the next aisle. âI know. I know, I just have to at least try.â He paused and grabbed a box off the nearest shelf. âWhat about this?â
Carlos raised his eyebrows. âA puzzle? Your dad doesnât strike me as someone with the patience for puzzles.â
âExactly. Maybe this will help him learn some. And,â T.K. tapped the box for emphasis, âthis one has dogs playing poker on it. He loves dogs and poker.â
âThat is true,â Carlos said, keeping his tone even and his expression neutral.
T.K. shot him a look of fond exasperation. âI know youâre humoring me but Iâm going to pretend that was genuine.â
âAnd now you can humor me by picking out new towels,â Carlos said with a grin.
T.K. groaned. âI thought we already picked new towels.â
âWe picked new master bath towels. We need some to match the guest bath.â Carlos grabbed his hand, towing him along toward the home goods aisles.Â
âI didnât realize you were going to use my moving in as an excuse to redecorate the entire condo,â T.K. said.
âI want it to feel like our place.â Carlos stopped and picked up a washcloth. âHow do we feel about cream?â
âI feel like towels are towels. Especially in the guest bath.â
Carlos rolled his eyes and moved further down the row. âWe have guests coming next week. Everything needs to be perfect.â
âSpeaking of which, are you sure you want to invite my dad to dinner with your parents?â T.K. asked as Carlos silently debated the merits of blue versus off-white towels.Â
Carlos looked at him in surprise. âHeâs your dad. Of course I want him there.â
âItâs justâŠhe can beâŠa lot sometimes,â T.K. said.Â
Carlos raised his eyebrows and T.K. held up a finger in warning. âIf you say Iâm also a lot sometimes Iâm taking the keys and leaving you here to Uber home.â
His boyfriend smiled and turned back to the towels. âMy parents want to meet him. And your dad is very charming.â He looked at T.K., eyes sparkling with mirth. âJust like you.â
Now it was T.K.âs turn to roll his eyes.Â
âBesides,â Carlos said, dropping the blue towels into the cart, âhaving your dad there will take some of the attention off of me so my mom doesnât tell every, single embarrassing story about my childhood. Instead your dad and my dad can try to one-up each other talking about crazy calls theyâve been on.â
T.K. wasnât convinced yet. âHeâs just really not been himself lately. And I have no idea what his mood is going to be like post-surgery. I donât want him to leave a bad impression with your parents.â
âIâm sure it will be fine. Besides, it would be good for your dad to get out of the house. Be around family.â
T.K. sighed. âI guess at least if heâs with us Iâll know heâs safe. And it will give him something to do to keep his mind off how bored he is.â
âI thought that was what the puzzle was for,â Carlos said with a teasing grin as they walked toward the checkout.
T.K. sent him a withering look. âJust let me pretend itâs going to work and not sit on a shelf in the closet until the next time he has a garage sale. It makes me feel better.â
Carlos nudged him good-naturedly. âI will let you keep your delusion.â He stopped pushing the cart and leaned against the handle. âBut itâs going to cost you.â
T.K. took a step closer and bit his lip. âOh is it?â he asked, wondering exactly how randy Carlos was going to get in the kitchen appliance aisle.Â
âYep.â Carlos grinned. âWeâre having camarones a la diabla for dinner tonight.â
T.K.âs face fell. âWhat? No! Come on I already looked at towels with you!â
Carlos just smiled and sauntered away with the cart, leaving T.K. alone in the middle of the aisle to hurry after him. âOkay but only a little spicy all right? Not âaccidentally almost kill T.K. spicyâ like last time?â
âThat was your own fault and you know it,â Carlos called back.
T.K. huffed. âThatâs exactly why we donât need a repeat!â
Carlos stopped and let him catch up. âIf weâre going to live together we have to build up your tolerance to heat. Donât worry,â he said, patting T.K.âs cheek, âIâll be gentle.â
T.K. eyed him warily. âNice try Reyes. I know behind that smile is a conniving, spice loving, diabolical monster.â
âWhat if I promise you homemade ice cream for dessert?â
âWhat because Iâm a five-year-old and can be bribed to eat my dinner?â T.K. asked.
Carlos cocked his head and raised his eyebrows.
âFine,â T.K. said grudgingly. âBut I want chocolate.â
âThen chocolate it is.â
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T.K. had never seen his boyfriend panicked before. Upset yes, excited for sure, but the most emotionally intense his mild mannered boyfriend typically got was moderately annoyed. Tonight however, he seemed like he might actually be about to lose his shit. And as intrigued as T.K. was to see where that might lead, a little voice in his head reminded him that Carlos losing his shit five minutes before his parents were due to arrive was probably not going to leave a favorable impression.
âWhere are the tortilla chips?â Carlos asked, his voice sharp and pitched a note or two higher than usual. âI thought you picked them up on your way home today.â
âRight here,â T.K. said smoothly, opening the cupboard and pulling out the bag of homemade chips heâd purchased from a favorite restaurant down the street.
âAnd you told them to make the guacamole fresh right?â
âYes, I stood there for fifteen minutes while the guy went out and hand picked the avocados,â T.K. said, trying not to let too much amusement color his tone.
Over the last few days the tension in their home seemed to have changed direction. As T.K. had grown more comfortable with the idea of his dad coming for dinner, (despite the one minor, running into a burning building incident that T.K. was trying not to think about) Carlos had gotten increasingly tense.Â
The condo, always in a state of near perfect cleanliness now sparkled like something out of a magazine. And the list of instructions Carlos had left for T.K. to complete after his shift had been so detailed and exact that T.K. wondered if heâd stayed up all night writing it. Personally he thought that doing a deep clean of the refrigerator and painting over scuffs on the baseboards was a little bit of overkill, but heâd done as asked. Now, as he watched his boyfriend dart from one side of the kitchen to the other in a slightly manic state, he was wondering if he might need to intervene.Â
Carlos pushed past him to take the perfectly made guacamole out and put it in a bowl. âDid you put a clean hand towel in the bathroom? The blue one?â
âBlue? I thought you said black.â
Carlos froze and glowered at him. âIâm kidding,â T.K. said, holding up his hands in a pacifying gesture. âBlue towel is freshly laundered and in the bathroom. Iâm not sure exactly how the color of a hand towel could ruin the evening but I certainly didnât want to risk finding out.â
Carlosâ face dropped a bit, emotional exhaustion pulling at him. âI know Iâm being crazy.â
âOh I think we surpassed crazy about two hours ago when you were picking individual pieces of lint off the throw pillows,â T.K. said with an amused smile. âRelax. Tonight is going to be great. Youâre making a damn soufflĂ©. How could anyone not be impressed by that?â
âMaybe I should have gone with something more traditional,â Carlos said, running an agitated hand through his curls for the hundredth time that evening. âMy parents are traditional people. But your dad is coming so I wanted to pull out all the stops.â He peered through the oven door at the soufflĂ©. âMaybe I should have done the beef. Iâm going to take it out just in case.â
âCarlos, Carlos whoa, hey,â T.K. stopped him by putting his hands on his shoulders. âThe soufflĂ© is going to be great. Everyone is going to love it. Do not take that beef out of the refrigerator.â
Carlosâ eyes widened. âOh my god I forgot to put the ice trays in the freezer!â
âWhoa, hey, nope,â T.K. held on a little tighter and didnât let him go. âYou asked me to do that this morning. Letâs just go sit for a minuteââ
âI need toââ
âWhat you need to do is take a few deep breaths and get yourself together,â T.K. told him, pushing him gently onto a bar stool.
âI just want it to be perfect.â
âBabe I know. But itâs not going to be. Nothing ever is, so you need to let got of that expectation. It will be a great dinner because everyone whoâs coming loves you and wants you to be happy.â
Carlos slumped a bit, mussing his curls a little more with his hands. âIâm nervous.â
âI know. But Iâm going to be right beside you the whole night. And nothing your parents say is going to make me upset. Or want to leave.â T.K. leaned a little closer as Carlos deliberately avoided making eye contact. âThatâs what youâre really worried about right? Not that theyâll say something to make you upset, but that they might hurt me?â
Carlos chewed at the inside of his lip and covered T.K.âs hands with his own, twining their fingers together nervously. âThey just might not be as careful with their words as I want them to be. Sometimes they speak without thinking. They have old biases, things from church and the familyâŠâ
T.K. brought one of Carlosâ hands up to his mouth and kissed his knuckles. âI know the difference between willful hate and accidental ignorance. Iâm not worried.â He ran a hand through Carlosâ hair, fixing some of the damage heâd done to himself. âAnd nothing, not even rude parents or a fallen soufflĂ©, would ever make me want to leave you.â
T.K. watched as some of the tension eased out of his shoulders. âI love you,â Carlos said quietly.
âI love you too,â T.K. said, squeezing his hand.
There was a knock on the door and Carlos sucked in a deep breath. âAre you sure youâre ready?â
T.K. leaned forward so their lips met in a sweet kiss. âAbsolutely.â
#911 Lone Star#Tarlos#Carlos Reyes#T.K. Strand#Tarlos Fanfic#Post-ep#Slow Burn#2x11#Fluff#Anxious boys#They love each other#And are also a little over the top
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