#i like to imagine every band member would have made a playlist with their favorite songs to share w/ the fans... as a way 2 get 2 know them

[khiita]

S/TELL☆R, a group of friends that met in high-school, have been making giant leaps with their catchy, space-inspired songs and their energetic indie rock and electropop sound. If you like what you hear, make sure to support them in Battle of the Bands season 4! If you like what you see, follow them on social media!

freddie's band for @infamous-if ❤ [ x / x / x / x / x ]

[d0g-water]

Quackity giving reader a surprise visit after a long distance relationship? :o

I imagine he he would not tell the reader anything until he met her face to face 😭😭

you and quackity have been dating for months now, yet still haven't met.

he's always busy with these giant projects and events he participates in; you, on the other hand, had a full schedule as well. so meeting up was a plan that was pretty difficult to arrange a date for.

you are a member of a small rock band, with many rehearsals and meetings up your sleeve. the band has been growing as of lately, and you always think about how supportive your lovely boyfriend is. telling you how talented you are, how he'd love to watch you perform one day, even though you weren't the main vocalist. however, you did have your own song, and alexis added it to his public playlist.

he's so adorable. he knows that none of his fans have a single clue that he is dating someone who wrote one of his favorite songs, but he still tries his best to help you and your bandmates out.

right now, things are getting a bit shaky. since the band finally has enough fans to go on tour, it meant more practicing and less time with alexis.

you were going to perform near his city, but he said he couldn't come. he talked about being just as upset as you were, and that he'd rather go see you than leave to a different state to participate in one of his friend's projects.

you didn't take it to heart because you two still had so many opportunities to see each other.

the night before the concert, you suddenly had an empty feeling. you were going to be near your boyfriend, but you couldn't see him.

you tell him about it, his messages making you feel better, but you still wanted him to show up...

[Today, 3:04 A.M.]

alex <3: hey, we'll see each other soon, okay?

alex <3: i love you so much.

alex <3: i'm going to spend hours scrolling to find video concerts of you.

you hold these messages close to your heart, wanting to tear up and just sob your eyes out but you couldn't.

tonight is all about singing for a crowd that sold out this venue. everyone is cheering for you,

but something felt odd.

your gut tells your eyes to scan the front row for some reason, even though you shouldn't, otherwise you'll get distracted and mess up.

and... despite doing it anyway, you realize that...

you really shouldn't have.

alexis was literally in the fucking crowd.

he wore a white shirt with your band's latest album on it and a black bucket hat. you nearly choked, your eyes widening, as he's looking directly at you and giving you an idiotic smile.

he really made sure this was a surprise.

as much as you wanted to throw your guitar and run off stage, you couldn't. you have to wait a whole two hours to do so.

......

post-performance, your bandmates noticed that you performed less decent than usual. they wanted to check up on you and possibly lecture that this is something serious, and if you wanted to grow bigger, than you have to do your best.

you didn't really want to hear that right now.

you want to see your boyfriend.

"fuck, where is he..." you pant out, running around the empty venue with your bandmates chasing you from far away, praying to god that alexis didn't leave.

you've been waiting what felt like years for this, you spent so long yearning for his touch, you spent so many nights crying over the letters and gifts he's sent you.

now, he's somewhere within a five-hundred feet radius.

you call out his name after breaking into every single room in the damn building, desperate, and out of your mind trying to look for this guy. your bandmates were trying to stop you, telling you that he's left already and that you should go.

you're not a stubborn girl, but today, you're not letting anything get in the way of meeting the love of your life.

there's so much you want to tell him, there's so much you want to do, there's so much you want to give him...

but it seems like everything is worthless, you can't find him. you've completely lost all home. you spent almost thirty minutes looking for him, you looked through the whole place, yet you still couldn't find him.

black tears roll down your face, your eyelashes getting sticky, your vision getting blurry. fuck, maybe you should have ran off the stage after all...

your bandmates lost you, and you don't really feel like finding them. instead, you're going to sit outside and cry.

the front is so empty, the ticket booth was closed, as well as the merch shop. the only thing available was some lonely bench by the singular trash can in front of the gates.

however, there was something in the distance, but you couldn't tell what it was. you're still crying your eyes out, almost cleaning up your makeup.

you sniffled and hiccuped on your way to sit down, wiping your tears with sweaty palms, not noticing the figure growing bigger...

something was white and tan, it was taking up your view of the world.

you were about to walk away, as you couldn't deal with anything right now, until that same unusual stature had a voice you recognized almost immediately--

"oh my god, is that y/n from the band i just saw? i'm a huge fan!"

...asshole.

you sprint into his arms so fucking quick, as they wrap around you so tight it almost relieves every single need in your body.

god. you're finally in them, and you're not even dreaming.

you're in so deep, and what brings you in even more is his voice, right in your ear, say "i love you."

you can't take these words anymore, you're sick of them, you need something more. you pull away from his grasp, using the collar of your shirt to clear up your vision and wipe the lower part of your face.

he looks at you with the shiniest eyes, looking like he was about to say something, but was too late to say it.

you forcefully grab his shoulders, stealing his lips quickly, acting like somebody was around and getting to it before you could.

you've never felt so strong about something. you sing and write these things like it was a goal in your life, merely convinced that you wouldn't experience shit like this...

he could feel how bewildered you are, he could sense that you didn't want to break this kiss, knowing that the two of you are losing oxygen...

alexis holds your waist, as his lips leave yours, making you upset.

he smiles so widely, his face turning pink.

"you're not the type to want breaks, huh?" he teases.

your eyebrows narrow, grumbling at him, "you kept me waiting for so long."

his giggles in person were so much cuter than over-the-screen...

you love him so much.

[flippyspoon]

Chess Vignettes: #1

(Ficlet- STRANGE NEW WORLDS)

Note: Okay, I think I've found my lil tropey thing wherein I'll likely write a million versions of pretty much the same thing lol. Chess flirting! Let's do this. These will all be stand-alone ficlets- no continuing story per se (probably).

Kirk nodded his head to the music playing in the Port Galley. He missed the ambiance the band had provided, but whoever oversaw the entertainment had put on an endless playlist of recordings for the evening. That could sometimes go awry. In an effort to be equitable, often the playlist was a diverse mix of genres from widely varying eras and cultures. It was a nice idea, but the whiplash of transitioning from a twangy Andorian blues song to an atonal Vulcan theramin ballad to a Terran hip-hop dance number could be…disorienting. Tonight, however, was devoted to Terran music of the 1950s and 60s. It was not played too loud, so he could continue the meandering conversation he had going with his favorite chess partner.

“I like this song.” Kirk rested his chin in his hand, elbow propped on the table, while across from him Spock glared at the chessboard as if willing his game to improve without his having to make a move. Kirk hummed along to the song. “What song is this?” He did not expect Spock to know. But the Vulcan had been so quiet and part of the fun of playing chess with him was usually the conversation.

“‘My Baby Just Cares for Me,’” Spock replied. “Nina Simone. Nineteen fifty-seven.”

Kirk perked up. “Now why do you know that? Not that you shouldn’t.”

“They have played it before. It is a favorite of Ensign Uhura’s. She often requests it.”

“Hmm.” Kirk smiled to himself. “I’ll have to ask her for recommendations. I like listening to old Terran music. I have my own favorites. But there’s so much of it. Then I think I should explore other cultures more often. Doubly overwhelming.”

“You would need several lifetimes to catch up on the cultural contributions of every Federation planet,” Spock said. “Several hundred lifetimes.” He finally made his move, snagging Kirk’s rook and coming perilously close to putting him in check, although the path was so obvious, Kirk would have no trouble avoiding it. That was good. He didn’t want the game to be over.

“Do you like music?” Kirk said.

“I play the Vulcan lute,” Spock said.

Kirk widened his eyes, a note of astonishment caught in his throat. It was difficult to imagine Spock playing a lute. Although, once he put it into his head, it was…not an unattractive thing to imagine.

“Uh, what songs do you play?” Kirk cleared his throat.

“Vulcan songs.” Spock met his gaze over the chessboard. Kirk had not made his move yet. He was pretending not to know what to do next. “Most non-Vulcans who are not also ethnomusicologists do not enjoy them. But…I have also learned to play cover versions of some songs at the request of crew members.”

Kirk had noticed that Spock liked to put on a pretense of disinterest sometimes, or at least that was how he read it.

Then he’d go and throw out chum like this and Kirk was only too happy to take a bite like the hungry little tuna he was. At least he was aware of it. He tried not to look too eager, shifting slightly in his seat and covering the giddy smile on his face with his hand.

“What- uh what songs have you played for the crew?”

“Captain Pike is partial to ‘A Boy Named Sue’ by Johnny Cash.”

Kirk had been taking a sip of his drink and started to choke. He knew the song. His grandfather had been a Johnny Cash fan. The thought of Pike singing ‘A Boy Named Sue’...

“Are you well?” Spock asked.

Kirk nodded, slowly wiping a few drops of Scotch from his lip with two fingers while pretending not to notice that Spock followed the motion with heavy lidded eyes.

“Pike sings?” Kirk said. “I mean, Pike sings when an anomaly is not forcing him to?”

The corner of Spock’s mouth turned up just enough that Kirk considered it a victory. “I do not know if what he does could accurately be described as singing.”

Kirk blurted a laugh, the unexpectedness of the joke making him guffaw right from his gut, a tear coming to his eye. Spock looked away, but Kirk could see it. He was pleased with himself. Kirk saw him breathe in, that almost-smile growing just a tick. 

Another song started and Kirk sighed, pleasantly warmed by nostalgia. He stroked his chin and thought of his mother playing the song–’I Only Have Eyes for You’ by The Flamingos–as she danced around the kitchen, on furlough in Iowa, making cupcakes for Jim and Sam. Jim had not remembered how sultry and haunting the song was. He leaned a little further to one side in his chair, as the chessboard slightly blocked his view of Spock, but glancing away he noticed that people were leaving their seats in the Port Galley in a rush to look out the windows.

The neutron stars, Kirk realized. Pilo and Aero. The Enterprise had been watching them for weeks.

He looked across the table, anticipating that Spock would want to leave the game and watch a significant celestial event.

Spock was staring at Kirk, fixed to his seat.

..But I can’t see… a thing in the sky…

Ortegas walked by them, and thwacked Kirk on the shoulder. “C’mon, guys! Pile and Aero are merging finally! Don’t you wanna see?”

Kirk kept his eyes on Spock. He had a strange stinging feeling in his wrists and his palms were sweating.

I only have eyes for you…

“I’m good,” Kirk murmured, but Ortegas had already passed them by.

The people at the windows oohed and aahed at the merging stars and the music continued to play as Spock and Kirk stared into each other’s eyes for so long, he could not think of what excuse he could possibly make that would not sound nonsensical. 

Do I need one? He wondered.

Spock opened his mouth, and just that slight movement made Kirk inhale, he gripped the arms of his chair.

“Your move,” Spock said.

...Sha bop sha bop..

[groovesnjams]

2 / 50

"Not Strong Enough" by boygenius

MG:

Writing about boygenius, at this point, feels impossible. I have an urge to defend them, to shout down some anonymous but not entirely imagined comment section* (it felt like everywhere I turned on the internet just fucking hated this group and it always always always boiled down to some projected misogyny) and a world that just couldn’t…quite…admit this was the greatest song of the year. Even in the places where boygenius unequivocally ruled there was this little whiff of embarrassment like they’re great but, ok, not that great. Well, they are that great! They don’t have to do something wholly original or reflect everyone’s personal identity back to them to be great! 

But we don’t need more of that, it’s a stupid feedback loop, I have to be the change I want to see in the world and that change is to write about this song without defending it! To do that, however, would not be entirely honest because, to be entirely honest, I was very much that person I outlined above for most of the year. I put “A&W” at the top of my dopey playlist and felt very vibey about it and even had a period where I got into Father John Misty a little bit because that made sense. And then when it got closer to calling it, as I was listening through that playlist a whole bunch to make cuts and remember things I’d forgotten, I listened to “Not Strong Enough” for the first time on headphones and it fucking ripped. It ripped my brain right open! This song is gorgeously produced, full of rich instrumentation that colors neatly in-between the wavy lines of the storytelling. It’s the kind of thing I want to choreograph a dance to, I want it to soundtrack a movie about an aimless, broken person who surrenders to life’s enduring beauty and awakens to their own possibility, I want to watch a music video where boygenius play in a barn with vaulted ceilings. Every detail of this song feels so specific and fully realized that I can’t help but play along. It speaks to some half-remembered, half-imagined past but it’s also coming to, in the front seat, still happening, still going somewhere. 

I get it, what I said about Chappell Roan, about being unlikable and thus lovable, applies here, too. I can’t make you like this song, it is unlikable and it got better every time I heard it (a lot, it was blessed and highly favored by Sirius XMU, who chose to make Mitski’s TikTok hit “My Love, Mine All Mine” their song of the year) and I love “Not Strong Enough.” It is my favorite song of the year.

*(To my complete and total amusement, shortly after I finished my first draft of this post, the comment section I was thinking of voted "Not Strong Enough" their song of the year. I'm not sure if there's a significant disconnect between commenting members and voting members or if I'm a woman of the people, charting the course of lukewarm acceptance to full on wholehearted embrace of this song. But, either way, good for all of us!)

DV:

Wow it's really tough to talk about "Not Strong Enough" without talking about boygenius and parasociality and fandom in 2023, huh? This may also be true of a lot of this year's list, but with the rest of the lot it's relatively easy to find other angles into the song. With boygenius the angles all lead back to the band, their dynamic, their process, their relationships. It's a little gauche isn't it? I don't feel like boygenius meant for the story of their 2023 to be about themselves but here they are at the end of the year where they went viral for Halloween costumes and they're winning gendered awards like Ron Swanson from Parks & Recreation, and we just have to hope things age better in reality than in fiction. But also, boygenius made "Not Strong Enough", which some days felt like it might actually be my favorite song of the year (a distinction shared by many others on this list, but one this song got more than most.) It's a song built out of climaxes, rolling and building, with hooks to spare and a secret weapon in the drummer, whose name is weirdly difficult to find but whose fills do more to make the song than even the jangliest guitar. So on one hand, I know more about this band's lore than I do about any other artist who I can't name a second song by. But on the other: "Not Strong Enough" is straightforwardly a gorgeous, propulsive power pop banger, delivered beautifully. When you have a Lucy Dacus and can hold her in reserve for a climax like this one, taking fully a minute and a half but never losing momentum, you're simply operating at a level that few other artists are capable of.

[mt07131]

hiii 👀 for bestie maeve: retro, persona, bandmates, lyrics, seven <333

Hiii bestie 💕💕💕 Under the cut bc it got long

Infamous ask game

Retro: What was the first CD they ever bought with their own money? Do they still have it? Do they still like it?

So I touched on this in one of my snippets for her (shameless self plug 😌) but the first CD she was ever able to buy with her own money was Riot! by Paramore. She still has the original copy she bought at the solid age of 10, and yes she still likes it, loves it actually. It was her first rock album and to see one with a female lead singer is what planted the seed of her being able to do that.

Persona: How does their day-to-day personality compare to their on-stage persona?

The biggest difference between Maeve Divine and Maeve is that she's way more exaggerated on stage. She really leans into the performance aspect of everything when on stage, but all of those elements of her personality are still present when she's not screaming on stage. She's maybe a little toned down and there's a more vulnerable side that really only comes out around people she's close to (i.e. the band), but she really doesn't put on that much of an act on stage.

Bandmates: How do they feel about the members of the band? Would they still be interested in stardom if they weren’t with that group?

She loves the rest of the band, they’re her best friends. Meeting them was really the first time someone else (other than Seven) understood her. With August in particular, since they’re new, she was a little hesitant because of the fact that they weren’t there since the conception of RS, but their skills were impressive enough that she was willing to take that chance. Because of that, she wants to make sure that they feel welcome, that they’re not an outsider simply because they weren’t in that core founding group. And I think she would still be interested in stardom without this group, but having this group makes it infinitely better. She wants to be seen and be heard, and doing that with her closest friends is something she is extremely grateful for.

Lyrics: What are some songs you associate with your character? Any specific lyrics that really scream your character?

So I do have her character playlist (which I am gonna push again because I’m annoying about it) but here’s a few highlights:

Halestorm- Strange Girl Cast me out, abandon me / Write me off for dead / Ridiculed, made to feel like I'm your deepest dread / You say, "She's such a strange girl" / Such a strange girl / The world needs strange girls / Just like me

Tessa Violet- YES MOM 20-20 vision with ambition's how I'm made / I can't keep from winning when it's in my DNA / Push me down and I bounce right back / Trampoline and it's in my past / Rising like a phoenix making fire from the ash

Black Veil Brides- Heart Of Fire This heart of fire is burning proud / I am every dream you lost and never found / This heart of fire is stronger now / Build your walls but you can't keep me out / I'll burn 'em down

(Ask me one day about the playlist analysis docs I have for both the her + her/seven playlists)

Seven: Do you have headcanons about their friendship and/or romantic relationship (past or future)? What do you imagine some of their best memories are? What do you think some of Seven’s favorite things about your MC were/are?

I do headcanon that their friendship started because Maeve chimed in during a class with a very strict teacher and saved Seven’s ass from a question he didn’t know the answer to. He wanted to thank her afterwards, they started talking, and the rest was history.

At some point in high school, both of them had a crush on the other, but neither of them said anything because of not wanting to ruin their friendship if the other didn’t feel the same way. That goes to show just how connected they were that they had the same reasoning. It was also incredibly obvious to the rest of the band that they liked each other that way, they were not subtle

Honestly, some of their best memories are the most mundane. For example, Maeve is a very physical person with her affection, so even when they were just friends (and crushing) she was all over Seven when they hung out. Head in his lap, on his shoulder, sprawled all over him, she’s clingy. That’s how they wrote songs together, literally on top of each other.

I like to think that one of Seven’s favorite things about Maeve is just her dedication to this dream. She threw everything she had into it, he watched her toil for hours over things like hand-studding her lucky leather jacket (one that she still wears to this day, like to the BOTB auditions). She had a dream, and while the plan came eventually, she never stopped dreaming, which he admired.

[literallymitch]

𝐑𝐞𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 || 𝐌𝐚̊𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧

requested: kinda

summary: The reader is a close friend to the band, and after they come home from the promo tour through europe they spend some time at the maneskin house

pairing: Maneskin x Friend!Reader(also GN)

word count: 931

what kind of content: fluff

warnings: none

a/n thank you for everyone that shared an idea for this imagine!! I tried to combine them all. I also changed up theone prompt a bit :) @maneskinweek​​

masterlist        new taglistform

“Hello rock stars.” You greeted them as you walk into the garden of the Maneskin house, where the four of them waited for you.

As soon as they saw you, they all came running to you, pulling you in a group hug. You haven’t seen them in a while now, since they were on a promo tour through Europe. They asked you to join them, but because of your job, you sadly couldn’t join them. Everyone around you called you the fifth member of the band, since you were so close to all of them. Thomas always said that you are free to join them, but you sadly lacked the musical talent to actually do so. Still, you loved to watch them from the crowed or just hang around while they are doing their music stuff.

“We missed you so much Y/n/n”, Ethan said, resting his head on yours.

“I missed you guys too, but you have to stop squeezing me like that I’m running out of air.”, you joked.

They let go of you as they started to laugh.

“Sorry, love, we just really missed you and your dumb jokes.”, Damiano confessed.

“My jokes are the best, I don’t know what your talking about. By the way, we really have to go to an amusement park together now. Seeing all the content of you in that amusement park in Sweden made me jealous. But first let’s go and cook something, I bought some stuff from the local market.”

The five of you made your way inside. Ethan placed the bags full of grocery on the kitchen counter, starting to unpack them. You could see his eyes widen when he saw that you bought fresh bread from his favorite bakery. You just smiled to yourself, because he was just too adorable. After everything laid out on the kitchen counter, you made teams. Damiano and Thomas would make “Bruschetta” and Vic, Ethan and you would cook “Paccheri al Forno”.

“Guys, don’t you dare to ruin the bread!”, you could hear Ethan say to Damiano and Thomas.

After some time, the kitchen already smelled delicious. All of you were having a great time singing along to some classic Italian songs. You were probably acting cliché Italians right now, but who cares, right? As long as they were happy, you didn’t care if you look like the biggest idiots right now. You could tell your friends were tired and glad to be home again. Usually they would never put on some Italian opera, but rather a rock playlist. Who can blame them after travelling a lot of countries in such a short time, having tons of interviews and meeting lots of fans every day.

“You burned the bread, you monsters?”, Ethan pulled you out of your thoughts.

You turned around to see Damiano and Thomas putting two burned slices of bread on a plate. Now you also noticed, the delicious smell of fresh cooked tomato sauce was overshadowed by a burnt smell. Vic watched the scene in front of her, being clearly amused by it.

“Which Idiot does not know how to toast a bread?”, Ethan continued to playfully shout at the two boys.

“The two idiots who haven't toasted bread in a while. Sorry Ethan, I know this is your favorite bread, like ever.” Damiano apologized.

Both Vic and you started to laugh. The way they were being so fake dramatic over the bread was too funny. Ethan helped the other two to toast the bread right, while you and Vic started to set the table. When everything was finished, you but it on the table as well. Damiano opened the bottle of wine you also bought at the market today and opened it.

“God, this is so good and the wine is literally the best.” Thomas stated after he took a bite of his Bruschetta. The others agreed with him. You just sat there smiling again, admiring how happy they all looked. You really missed them.

After dinner, you cleaned everything. At least you tried. Ethan threw a rag right into Damianos face.

“That’s for burning my bread.”, he said

“Hey Thomas also burned your bread”, Damiano groaned, trying to dry his face.

“Well, yes, but I only had one rag, and you were closer.”

“Now I’m fully convinced you never graduated kindergarten.”, you interrupted them.

“Good thing you didn't either.”, Thomas responded.

Now it was you who threw a rag across the room, hitting Thomas with it. You continued to throw the rags at each other, laughing like some maniacs. You started to chase each other through the living room and into the garden. That turned out to be a big mistake, as Vic pushed you into the pool. After you were back at the surface, you gave her a shocked expression, splashing some water at her. Luckily, karma aka Thomas got her back by picking her up and jumping into the pool with her. Damiano and Ethan followed him and also jumped into the pool.

Afterwards, when you all were dry again, you sat on the couch together watching some Italian show. To be honest, you didn't sit on the couch, you were a huge cuddle piled that was placed on the couch. Thomas and Damiano fell a sleep shorty after you went onto the couch. You braided a strand of Ethan's hair.  Vic watched you with a huge smile on her face. The three of you just enjoyed each other's company. You looked at your four best friends and started to smile, being glad you finally had them back.

[misticloyal]

FingerBang AU ft. Kyman, stendy, and bunny

-They make covers and choreographies of popular songs

-Butters actually became a solo singer and is popular because his whole shtick is that his songs reflect his feelings about his alter ego “Margerine”

-When they do dances Kyle and Cartman try to one up each other even if they’re just backup dancers in a song

-In every song they sing people can see how whipped Stan is for Wendy masculine presenting

-Kenny is the one in charge of doing stunts and when he actually dies for the first time on set (It was a practice, not a show) the gang got low-key protective over him and he had to switch to dance choreography after that. Though he still occasionally does them when he can weasel out of getting scolded by Wendy or Kyle (and sometimes Cartman).

-Every month, there comes a week where one member of the band can chose which song they’re gonna cover, in which Wendy picks a Kpop song, Stan picks  some 90′s rock, Kenny picks EDM, Cartman picks Lady Gaga and other pop artists, and Kyle doesn’t have a favorite genre so he just picks whatever he’s listening to that week.

-Usually their performances involve all five people, but if they find two songs that they can’t pick between, Kenny and Wendy agree to try and design choreographies that are designed for a duet or a trio and instead of a group dance they would split into 2 groups.

-As much as Cartman hates to admit it, Kenny and Wendy pick the best songs to dance to mostly because they have a good ear for pop songs that are powerful and flow really well

Here’s a playlist I can imagine them doing really over the top dances to

- Cartman insisted they have a Tik Tok and managed it but after Kyle lost interest in complaining about it he wasn’t putting as much effort into posting content so instead Wendy took over.

Since she dragged Stan with her to co-own the account they started to post behind the scenes content of Kyle and Cartman arguing (which caused their whole fan base to be like “Kyman cannon?????”). They thought doing this would be their middle finger towards Cartman for essentially creating another problem for the group to manage along with their actual shows and videos to post on YouTube.

Kenny heard about this and then contributed his own clips of choreography practices just to mess with Cartman even more.

This whole time Kyle thought the Tik Tok account fiasco was over and done with especially since he literally saw Cartman announce to the group that he was passing off the account’s access to Wendy. So when shipping stuff was made known to him and Cartman he was so confused and it was hilarious.

Jokes on them though because the group agreed to never confirm Kyman publicly so the fandom is in a state of perpetual discourse lol.

-Speaking of ships, when Stendy went public everyone freaked out cuz everyone was shipping my them (while they were dating which they were never able to live down lmao) so it gave everyone the satisfaction they wanted.

-And of course, when Kenny designed a choreography for one of Margerine’s songs, everyone lost their shit and during a con meetup Kenny and Butters did a fan service where they danced together.

-There was a moment where the problem of who is going to keep track of the budget and money management…

Safe to say Cartman was trying not to bust a nut laughing when Kyle looked up from his phone to find everyone staring at him like 🥺

��Please Kyle you’re the one that’s good at math-“

“No fuck off. I’m not doing this shit guys-“

“Cmon Kyle you were the only one who even knows SHIT about accounting”

“And?? Make Wendy do it!”

“Excuse you Kyle do you KNOW how long it takes to make a choreography that ranks up to Fatass’s standards?!”

“PFFT- Yeah Jew, I have really high standards-“

“Shut the fuck up.”

“…”

“Dude please-“

“NO STAN.”

“…”

“Alright how about this Kahl, if you be the accountant for us, I will NEVER steal your drink from the fridge. On god broski, I will never steal your Jew ass Liquid Death shit again-“

“Are we really debating this? You’re not supposed to steal my shit anyways”

“Well yeah, but if you have a guarantee then you have a REAL reason for me not to steal your drinks”

“…”

“Fine.”

“HAHAHAH- OW FUCK KAHL JESUS CHRIST”

[ultraintrovertedgryffindor]

First Post

So, the first thing I’m gonna post up here is a fanfiction...probably not the best of ideas but screw it I’m gonna do it anyway.

A Ghost fanfiction since I’ve become obsessed with the band as of late so...here you go I guess.

Summary: Reader goes to their first Ghost concert and a little mishap happens on stage during the show.

~~~~~~~~~~

Today’s the day!

I was finally going to my first proper ritual with a friend of mine.

I had seen Ghost live before a couple years back, but I had no idea who they were or what they sounded like. It was a concert where they weren’t the ones headlining, and I was only there for that specific headliner.

Going into it blindly probably wasn’t the best, but I ended up blown away by how amazing the band sounded. The frontman had a hypnotizing voice, and even though the rest of the band members looked the same besides the instruments they played, you could easily tell they had their own unique stage presence.

I was instantly hooked.

Going home that night, I kept thinking about the band and had some of their songs stuck in my head the whole way home.

I ended up getting little to no sleep with how many times I listened and re-listened to every song they had. Trying to memorize each one. Let’s just say it was rough trying to wake up for work in the morning.

Now, knowing all the lyrics to most of their songs and being obsessed with them, I finally going to one of their headliner shows.

My friend, who was thankfully another fan of Ghost, and I sang along to every song of Ghost that came up on my playlist on the way to the venue.

Unfortunately, there weren’t options for paying for a VIP ticket, so we left extremely early to try to be the first ones in line to be in the front row.

Fortunately though, I tend to speed when driving. Plus, I am a very competitive and determined person and I ended up getting to the venue on our preferred time and not many people were in line thankfully.

My friend joked around that Cardinal Copia, the frontman, was going to pick me when they performed their song Cirice.

If only I was that lucky.

The many hours of waiting for the venue doors to open were excruciating long and tiresome. Trying not to use my phone to cure my boredom was harder than expected, but I was so not going to waste battery power.

Thankfully, the waiting was able to cease and security checked us and let us all in to the venue.

All of us basically stampeded in, trying to get to the barricade first. 

I almost jumped and squealed in joy when my friend and I were one of the lucky people to get to the barricade first, in the middle no less. Thus, making my hopes for getting Ciriced even higher. But I tried not to think about it too much. It probably wouldn’t happen anyway...

The opening bands were pretty cool, as they usually are. I always enjoy openers even when I get super anxious to see the band I most want to see.

Finally, the lights dimmed, the fake fog rolled in, and the crowd roared, chanting, “Ghost!” over and over.

I eagerly joined in with roaring crowd when the Ghouls came out their instruments, the Ghoulettes stood at their keyboards, and finally Cardinal Copia.

There he was, in all his glory. Not gonna lie...I might’ve had a major crush on him.

Amazing after amazing song went by and I’m pretty sure my smile did not leave my face once. The band sounded even better than when I last saw them, if that was even possible.

My friend raising their eyebrows suggestively during the whole show so far, because to quote them, “Copia kept giving me eyes.” Which I did see, and yes, it almost made my heart explode.

I tried to slow my heart down once Dewdrop and Aether started duel, because I knew that meant the band was going to be playing Cirice next. My friend knew that too and they playfully elbowed my side.

And as per usual, Aether purposely threw off the duel and Dew had the crowd cheering him “winning” the guitar battle. Then, he started playing to opening notes to Cirice, making to crowd cheer even louder.

But what was strange is that, even over the riffing Ghouls and crowd’s cheering, I was able to hear a creaking noise from above the stage. I was surprised no one else heard it because to me it was so loud and annoying. I looked up and saw nothing out of the ordinary from my perspective, so I internally shrugged and tried not to think anything of it.

My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest when the Cardinal finally came back out on stage, singing the first verse.

Not only was my hope to get Ciriced, but this was also my favorite Ghost song; so even if I didn’t get chosen, I was still going to enjoy every bit of the song. The lyrics were basically etched into my heart. I knew every word.

Soon the time came for the second verse, and I was extremely anxious to see who the Cardinal picked to sing it to.

Everyone at the barricade had their hands outstretched, trying to get a shot of being Ciriced. Of course, mine was out too. If I had even the slightest chance, I was going to take it.

And by come luck, or most likely a miracle, Cardinal Copia reached out and chose to take my hand out of the hundreds that all reached for him.

My hand, that was so insignificant to him, but felt so special to me. He could’ve chosen anyone’s, but he chose mine.

The Cardinal and I locked our hands together, his mismatched colored eyes meeting mine. His beautiful voice reached my ears. If I didn’t have self control, I probably would’ve screamed.

But I chose to wear a grin instead.

Unfortunately, good things don’t last forever and my head was involuntarily upturned when I heard that same creaking noise I heard when the two guitarists were dueling.

Only this time, instead of seeing nothing out the ordinary like I did before, I saw one of the huge overhead speakers swaying...right over the Cardinal.

My eyes widened when it made another loud creaking noise, to which even the Ghouls seemed to have heard which made their heads look up in curiosity. But Copia was the only band member to not have heard it, and he continued to sing his little heart out to me.

Looking up again, the speaker was swaying violently and was sure to fall any second. 

I was probably going to get in serious trouble for this, but I’m better safe than sorry type person.

Cardinal Copia yelped, and the whole crowd seemed to gasp at once, when I gripped his wrist tightly and pulled him off the stage with a jerk.

My brain was so hyped up on adrenaline that it didn’t even process that I had pulled the Cardinal off the stage just as the speaker detached from its hooks and wires and fell to the stage.

Everyone looked to the speaker in shock and horror. It had fallen completely into the stage.

When I saw the huge speaker shaped hole in the stage, I knew I made the right decision to pull Copia off the stage.

All the Ghouls stopped playing their instruments and Copia stood up from where he fell on the floor. All the members looked at the fallen speaker then back at me, and then I realized everyone who could see me was looking at me.

I quickly released my hold on the Cardinal’s hand once I saw I was still holding it.

Copia put his hand over his heart and was visibly shaking. I was guessing nothing like this had happened before.

And before I knew it, Cardinal Copia and the rest of the band members were escorted out by security and I was harshly taken into custody, despite my friend’s overly vulgar protests.

I was placed in a room with a large man wearing a security vest. I was so screwed...

A slightly less large man entered the room and sat down across from me. “I have a couple questions for you, ma’am.” His deep voice rang out.

“O-okay.” I tried not to stutter. Failing, clearly.

“How did you know that the speaker was coming undone?” He asked, not even trying to hide that his voice was blatantly accusatory.

“I, uh, heard creaking from above the stage. At first, I didn’t really think anything of it. I thought it was maybe my imagination. But during the song, I saw that it was swaying a lot.”

“So, you thought it was okay to pull the frontman off the stage because of that then?” He snapped.

“Leave the girl alone.” A familiar voice said to the security guard that was interrogating me.

I looked behind me to see two men, one was another security guard and the other was a rather handsome man. But he was wearing the Cardinal’s outfit and had some black face paint around his eyes.

I had never tried to find out the identities or names of the members of the band, but I could easily guess that this man was who was behind the mask of Copia.

“Somehow maintenance didn’t see that clearly one of the holds on that speaker was loose.” The security man beside Copia said. 

“This girl assaulted Mr. Forge.” The interrogating guard said, pointing at me.

“This girl probably saved my life.”

My eyes widened in shock when I heard this “Mr. Forge” say that. He thinks I saved his life?

Soon after, the man who I only knew as Cardinal Copia came over and sat down beside me. And me being the awkward individual that I am, I shifted nervously in my seat and tried not to blush. “What’s your name?” He asked.

“Uh, Y/N.”

“Y/N, you saw that that speaker was gonna fall and you saved me. It might not have not killed me, but I definitely would’ve had a very bad injury.”

It was odd hearing him talk normally, usually he had a played up Italian accent (which I kind of thought was real at first). But now, he wasn’t. I couldn’t quite place it, but definitely still European.

“Well, I just did what anyone else would’ve done I suppose.” I laughed nervously.

“Well, you just might’ve saved a father from abandoning his family.” He smiled sweetly.

Goodness, I probably should’ve researched a bit. “I must say, it was amazing meeting you Mr. Copia.”

Copia’s eyebrows furrowed a little and chuckled. “You don’t have to call me that.”

“I don’t know what else to call you.” I blushed.

His eyes widened a little. “Huh, I thought most fans of Ghost would know who I was.”

“S-sorry...”

“No, no, it’s okay. It’s refreshing.” He smiled, and then gently grabbed my hand and kissed it like he would’ve done during the show. “I’m Tobias Forge, and it was a pleasure to meet you miss Y/N.” 

~~~~~~~~~~

[stardewhqs]

YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO GLORY VALLEY’S YEARLY BLOCK PARTY - LOVER FEST !!

the script of the bubblegum pink flyer found in your mailbox is cute, loopy; perfect for the occasion - someone put a lot of time and effort into the presentation and aesthetics of the message that everyone around you seems to have also gotten in their mailbox this morning. it’s a party to celebrate the month, something to bring everyone together. just below is a list of sorts, describing the event taking place and just what will be happening ...

MAD BATTERS & HONEYBREWS COFFEE HOUSE will be partnering up for the weekend to provide all sorts of themed refreshments at a discounted price. from heart-shaped shortbread cookies and rose-and-lavender tea to selling handmade mugs themed for the holiday, the two shops have come together to provide something for all ages to enjoy throughout the event.

THE DAPPER OWL is also offering themed drinks at a discounted price, but these are for the older crowd - cocktails colored pink and red, some with glitter infused in them, some smelling of strawberries or watermelon. they’re as much a treat for the eyes as they are for the mouth, but that typical alcoholic sting still holds a sharp bite that will keep everyone on their toes.

MAXIMUM GAMES is coming in from sunset beach to provide the entertainment ! classic boardwalk games such as ring toss, balloon popping, water gun races, and even a few pinball machines, air hockey tables, and arcade cabinets have been rolled out to their area for everyone to enjoy for the classic price of twenty-five cents. tickets will be available for purchase for the booth games at hang loose. you’ll be able to find this section of the block if you listen for the throwback ballads of all the boy bands we grew up loving and swooning over.

THE REEL will be dedicating all of their screens to the romance genre this weekend. from modern rom-coms such as 30 going on 30 and 27 dresses to the classics such as casablanca and singin’ in the rain, couples and hopeless romantics alike will find something to spend their time watching for the first time, seeing again after years, or enjoying it as their favorite movie of all time.

ROSE PETAL NUSERY has put together something truly special that will bring back memories of elementary school - flower grams ! operating from their booth near their shop, you can send a single rose bloom or a bundle of three roses to the person of your choice for a reasonable price, keeping it anonymous or signing your name with it. there will be a ‘rose ceremony’ at the end of the weekend to pass them all out, the post office providing their hand in helping as well.

HANG LOOSE SOUVINERS has taken their normal beachwear and replaced it with pinks, whites, reds, and lots of sparkles. in town for the bash as well, you can grab anything from a cute bauble-headband to some adorable heart-shaped sunglasses for a good price. a sticker and small holiday-themed button comes with each purchase as well. they are also the hub for purchasing tickets for maximum games’ activities - twenty-five cents per ticket, with discounts on rolls.

POLARIS STARGAZING will offer anyone who is looking for something quieter and a little more intimate something to take part in. along with selling art prints of the night sky painted each night for couples to take home as a commemorative decoration, every night starting at 9pm they will be holding their special night under the stars on the edge of town - bring your blankets, pillows, and some hot chocolate from honeybrews to look on at the gorgeous night sky with friends, family, your significant other, or your crush.

the entire weekend will be hosted by town hall in close partnership with MIGHTY RIVER RADIO. the station will be providing the music and nightly entertainment, with a dancefloor set up right in front of the founder statue that changes colors - going from soft white to red to pink and back - once the sun goes down. their playlist will provide something for everyone, from slow jams to hold your loved one close to something everyone can jump around to all the way down to original works from members of the town.

( under the cut you’ll find a summary of the event !! )

hello everyone, and welcome to our grand opening and inaugural event !! with it being feburary, the month of companionship, tor and i decided that it would be a great idea to immediately bring us all together with something really fun, easygoing, and light ! basically, this block party is like most other block party town events you might have experienced in the past - shops from the beach and the river are coming into town to provide entertainment, food, drinks, and activities for everyone to take part in. themed food and drinks, handmade goods and cute souvenirs to take home, games to play, people to interact with - the works ! and to end every night, the radio station sets up the dancefloor for everyone in town to enjoy with their drinks and snacks and get their last bits of energy out. keep reading for a summary of the event requirements !!

EVENT DURATION IN-CHARACTER : four days ( from the 19th to the 22nd of february )

EVENT DURATION OUT-OF-CHARACTER : eight days ( from the 19th of february to the 26thth of february )

PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENTS : this is a mandatory event to participate in !

STARTER REQUIREMENTS : every character will be allowed one free starter ! after that, two open starters must be answered before posting another open starter, and one open starter must be replied to before posting a closed starter.

ACTIVITY REQUIREMENTS : normal activity requirements still apply - five posts must be made in the first two weeks or your role will be subject to reopening.

REMINDERS / NOTES / MISC. COMMENTS : with this being the opening event of the group, please make sure to remember that all secrets are still secret ! please also make sure that you assume connections to the best of your ability, because while plotting is of course encouraged, we don’t want the dashboard to go stagnant just because things haven’t been pre-established. and finally - have fun !! get creative and dynamic, let your muses and imagination run free, and don’t hesitate to reach out to the main if you need any help !

[txtdiaries]

Six Twenty Four - Chapter Two

SUMMARY | You’d think that two years apart would change the way you felt about a certain blue-haired boy you met that fateful night long ago, but it did just the opposite. By now, you’re both passing constellations, fighting to collide together again. But it’s all up to fate - to decide whether it will ever be possible for you two to cross paths again. 

PAIRING | Yeonjun X Reader

CATEGORY | soulmate au, idol au, angst, fluff, sadness, etc.

WORD COUNT | 5.6k

WARNINGS | a major time skip, swearing

SONG REC | Clocks - Coldplay

PLAYLIST | six twenty-four playlist

TRAILER

Chapter One / Chapter Two

If someone had asked you early on in your life if you believed in soulmates – love at first sight, and all the other clichés books and movies teach you when you’re a child – you would have laughed in their face and said, “Not for me, no.” Because it is true.

You did not believe in love at first sight, or love at all for that matter, and you did not believe in soulmates. You did not believe in the stars aligning for two strangers who stumble into each other’s’ lives on nights of pure chance, and you did not believe in fairytale scenarios where anyone, not even you, happens to meet their perfect person and wants to spend the rest of their life by their side. You just didn’t.

And then you met him.

The boy you met so long ago, in such a short amount of time. You wouldn’t be wrong to think the whole thing was one night long dream, or even a vivid fantasy you created in your head, if it wasn’t for the very real, very solid band around your ring finger. The same one you twist around anxiously at night when you go home to an empty bed, the same one you fiddle with on the train, and the same one you’re staring at now, as you sit on the cold bench in front of the barely lit city before you.

You glance down at your watch and catch sight of the time displayed for you.

6:24 A.M.

Something in your heart catches and stutters out before beating normally again. No matter how many times you try to convince yourself you would give anything to go back to this time, this same time so long ago, you don’t know if it’s entirely true. The feelings, the hurt you went through that early winter morning – it never leaves you. If anything, it has stayed with you this whole time. And you don’t think it will ever disappear. It’s one of the things that hasn’t.  

You close your eyes, focusing on the same person you try to imagine every single day. The boy with blue hair who still lives in your heart, who’s laugh still makes your stomach flip. The boy you still love.

If you focus hard enough, it’s like he could be here next to you. Sitting arm to arm, giggling and rambling on about the city, or hot chocolate, or how the weather is starting to change and how the trees are rapidly dying, causing the leaves to litter the park around you. He could be rambling on about anything and you’d listen. Because it’s still the same – your heart. It’s still his.

“I-I don’t want you to leave.”

You remember how badly your voice was shaking as you stared into his watering eyes, only taking a deep breath once he had pulled your body against his. You remember how hard his heart was pounding in his chest, against his ribcage. The moments you shouldn’t relive, the moments of pure devastation, are the ones you keep coming back to. The ones you come back to the most.

“Close your eyes and you won’t have to see me leave. Just close your eyes. Count to ten.”

You shake your head, as if it will somehow rid your mind of the sad thoughts playing through it, but it doesn’t. You’ve replayed this scene a hundred, maybe a million times over in your head, desperate to somehow uncover a new ending. A new ending where things don’t hurt as much, where things don’t hurt at all. But you never do.

In one version of the endless scenes you’ve created for the two of you, you rushed after Yeonjun in the bright light of the early winter morning. You stopped him in his tracks and demanded an explanation. Anything, as to why he was leaving and how he could do it so easily. Hell, you asked him for anything. You asked him for his phone number, like any logical person would, and you didn’t let him leave you as easily as that.

In another, you chased him to the airport, and it was all very dramatic. You searched for him in the terminals, and after finding him - after locking eyes, he realized he made a mistake and you’re who he should have been with after all. That you two were supposed to be together.

In your least favorite, the realistic version, there was no chasing and no demanding. In the real version, you sat on the bench, and once he was gone, you were alone. You were alone, and you stayed put, because it is what he had wanted. And you wouldn’t dare hurt him by breaking his trust like that.

And here you are.

Not days later, not weeks later, and sadly, not even months later.

It has been two years since you last saw Yeonjun, and you still miss him like it was yesterday. And you don’t think you’ll ever stop.

“I got us some coffee from the cart down the path.” A voice suddenly cuts through your thoughts, sweeping the daydream fog away, and pulls your attention to them unwillingly. You’re startled as the boy sits next to you.

“Coffee’s my favorite, so I got you one too.” He says, lazily slinging an arm around the back of the bench after he hands you your beverage. He blows into the cup harshly, steam pooling off the liquid in thick, curling clouds.

The boy, who is made up of styled dirty blonde hair and an aura of cockiness, is called Leo, and he’s the most irritable person you’ve ever met in your entire life. Which is exactly the reason you’re sitting here with him.

You figured if there was any possible way to get over the blue-haired boy, it was through seeing other people. To be fair, you didn’t know Leo was that bad when you first met him, but he’s the kind of person who sets up dates at almost seven in the morning, so there’s that. You don’t know why you keep seeing him, but if you had to give a definite answer, you’d chalk it up to loneliness. Because no one wants to be lonely, not even people like the nauseating boy sitting next to you.

“City looks nice, huh?” He asks, giving you a small grin, the corner of his lips lifting just slightly. You nod, expressionless.

“It’ll be winter soon,” You comment, “I really hope it snows.”

“God, why?” He rebuttals, “Snow is the worst.”

“I like it.” You defend yourself, finally trying a drink of the coffee he got you. It’s bitter and burns all the way down. You grimace and set the drink down in-between the two of you, deciding it’s better if you don’t have another sip. The blonde is yet to learn what you like and don’t like, but you’ve let it slide for some time now. No one’s perfect, you keep telling yourself, it’s fine if he doesn’t remember what you like right now. Leo starts up again, babbling on louder than you expect.

“If it snows maybe your trip will get cancelled! Wouldn’t that be exciting? You can finally come meet my family for Thanksgiving. Wouldn’t that be something?”

You nod absentmindedly, eyes skittering over the lights finally twinkling off the tall buildings in the distance. That’s another thing about the boy next to you, he has a habit of speaking in question marks.

You sigh loudly, slumping down in the bench a bit. Leo looks at you.

“Are you even listening to me?”

You nod again, “Yeah, I’m listening. Go on.” You say, urging him to continue. He pouts slightly and moves his body in a dramatic way to express with his arms how distraught he is.

“You aren’t even listening-”

Clumsily, his arm harshly collides with the coffee cup, and its contents go flying to the ground. The lid breaks from the cup, and the liquid spills onto the cold, dirty sidewalk. Leo is leaping for the cup before you can even blink.

“Shit, your coffee!” He says, making a bigger deal out of it than you want him to, “I paid two dollars for this.”

You want to help, but you know that it will just make his fit worse.

“God, this is so annoying,” He groans, trying to shake a wet leaf off the cup after a moment, “I’ll get you another one, babe, don’t worry.”

You watch him clean up the mess with expressionless eyes, heart feeling hollow.

You think of the blue-haired boy, suddenly, hastily, and you can almost picture a sneaky smirk etched onto his face. How is eyes glint with excitement, and a small giggle leaves his lips.

You think of what it would be like if he was here instead of Leo, and you have to turn your head to hide the tears welling up in your eyes so suddenly.

“All good?” He asks, still shaking leftover mud from the lid.

“Sure thing.” You reply, jaw clenched, “All good.”

“Ten minutes!” The stage manager shouts, making sure all the boys hear the announcement before making their way back out the door, leaving the dressing room occupied with the four boys and their staff, all of them practically shaking with nerves.

“Where is he?” The youngest member asks, typing frantically on his phone, trying again to reach the eldest member. It was so, that the boy had slipped out of rehearsals early, and could not be found anywhere. And everyone had searched, the members especially.

“Soobin,” Snapped the blonde boy, taking control after discussing with their manager, “Can you go look for him? We literally have no time for this right now.”

“How should I know where he is, Beom? We already looked everywhere.” The tallest boy replied, heaving out a groan before running a hand through his hair. They were screwed if they couldn’t find him, and they all knew it. He’d be anxious himself if he wasn’t livid.

“Well go look again, please!” He says, turning to get final makeup touch-ups before the former boy finally stomps out in search of his friend.

The tour had gone great so far, he must admit, but something was off about Yeonjun that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. It seemed that the farther they got into the tour, the more distant he got as well. And now, on their final show, and in New York City, no less, he had somehow disappeared into thin air. Soobin was worried to say the least. Everyone was.

The door leading to the venue’s rooftop isn’t one he expects to be half open when he passes it in the dimly lit part of the hallway, but when he sees it, he leaps up the stairs hurriedly. If there is any place his friend would be, it is probably here. He just doesn’t know why no one had checked before.

“June, you up here?” He calls for the boy, only to be met with the view of a hunched figure, leaning against the railing built around the surface of the rooftop. He moves closer, tilting his head up momentarily. The nighttime sky is dotted in bright, twinkling stars, and Soobin notices how bright everything looks. 

“Man, you alright?” He asks after looking back towards the figure and stepping forward hesitantly. Yeonjun perks up just slightly, when he hears him now, and Soobin continues near him with furrowed brows.

The brunette a few feet away sniffles and then clears his throat, a sound much like a sob leaving his mouth as he does so. The taller boy knows he is invading his privacy, but he’s worried. The show can wait, he thinks, I just have to make sure he’s okay now.

“Yeah, man, what’s up?” Yeonjun speaks in a shaky, unstable voice. He wipes hurriedly under his eyes with his sleeves so Soobin doesn’t see, and his breath trembles before he turns his body slightly to face him. Soobin stops walking when he does.

Yeonjun is a mess when they come face to face, and Soobin feels his heart break.

Yeonjun’s faded, dark hair is a wreck - sticking up from all angles - and looks like a sad, flat clutter atop his head. His eyes are still watering, lashes glinting with tears, and his cheeks are red. Soobin has never seen Yeonjun cry this hard, except for their debut, and he suddenly feels sick.

He sees Yeonjun clutching his necklace tightly, the necklace he’s worn for about two years straight, before he turns away again. Soobin’s never asked what it is, but he feels like it’s important now. He feels like that’s the reason he might be up here and upset.

“We have ten minutes.” He says carefully, leaning against the railing now while trying not to disrupt the older boy, “Is everything okay?”

The brunette just laughs, completely void of humor or any happiness as he only answers the question he wants, “Yeah, I figured you guys would have just gone on with it when you couldn’t find me.”

Soobin doesn’t know how to reply to this, so they stand like that for a minute, both staring at the bright city lights shining amidst the darkening sky.

“If something’s bothering you, you can tell me you know.” The younger boy finally breaks the silence, seeing how the other boy winces as he does.

“You wouldn’t understand it, Bin.” He says back dryly, fingers tracing over the ring clutched between his fingers. It’s attached to a chain necklace, Soobin can see it fully now, and it’s the one he never parts with. Soobin wonders if a family member gave it to him. Maybe that’s it, he thinks, maybe he’s just homesick.

“I can try my best to.” Soobin says, moving a bit closer, “I might not understand it now, but I can try my best, Yeonjun.”

The older boy simply shakes his head and looks somewhere else in the distance, as if changing thoughts completely, “Do you think they’ll notice if we’re gone?”

The taller boy breathes out a laugh through his nose, “Considering we’re a group of five and there would only be three, yes.”

The brunette sighs and stands up straight, snapping out of his daze suddenly, almost determined as he speaks again.

“I’ll finish this show if you buy me a drink.”

“Buy you a drink?” Soobin asks, voice lifting in curiosity.

“We have to go to a specific place, but I’ll do the show if you take me there, okay?”

Soobin looks down at his watch anxiously, and sees that they only have around three minutes until show time.

“I-“ He stops, not knowing what to say.

“Just one drink, I promise.” Yeonjun nods, already walking away from the railing.

“Uh, fine? I guess. One drink-”

The darker haired boy is nodding quickly before he even finishes, and then he’s passing him and walking towards the stairs.

“Let’s go then, we have no time to waste.”

“Dinner was good, don’t you think?” Leo asks, flashing a toothy smile your way as the two of you walk down the crowded sidewalk. Dinner lasted longer than you thought it would, and it was nearing eleven at night now. You don’t know where you’re going, but you feel like you’ve been down these sidewalks before. Besides, you’d rather walk around than do something like invite him over. You’re yet to do that, and you don’t think you ever will.

“Yeah, we should go back there again sometime.” You say.

It’s not exactly that you don’t like Leo, you just don’t really see an end with him. Your relationship is just you wandering aimlessly as he suggests things to do and places to go, and you comply, simply because you don’t know what else to do. When you two first started this thing, whatever it was, you thought it would be good for you. Turns out, it just made you realize everything you didn’t want.

Your relationship with Leo leaves you feeling hollow, an empty shell of a person, and you are constantly thinking of someone other than him the whole time you’re together. You’ll admit, you don’t exactly deserve best girlfriend award, but he doesn’t deserve best boyfriend award either.

The buildings the two of you pass begin to get smaller and more cozy-looking, and you smile softly when you catch sight of giggling couples exiting bars, holding onto each other as laughs leave their lips.

“I hate this part of town,” Leo comments, but you shake it off. You’re too distracted due to passing a familiar place you haven’t been to in years.

The bar from that night sits in front of you, in all its glory, and you almost don’t realize it’s there, just like how it used to be. It’s shocking, but it’s exactly how you remember it. The lights are flashing on the inside, and a crowd of people have surrounded the entrance, chatting and laughing loudly. The atmosphere itself warms your heart, and you wish you could stay here, but then you’re being pulled along the sidewalk again. Leo doesn’t like crowds, and he makes sure to keep you under his arm as you two walk again.

Strangers pass all around you, and you’re trying to listen to him talk again as you scan their faces absentmindedly, but something jumps out at you when two taller boys pass you, and you stop dead in your tracks.

You yank your body away from Leo as you turn on your heel quickly, and your heart is beating in your chest so hard you feel like it might just break through it. All too quickly, you can’t breathe, and it’s like your entire body, every single cell, is screaming at you.

“Woah, what’s wrong?” Leo asks, trying to pull you to face him again, but you don’t comply. You search for the face you saw, the face you know you saw, but are met with nothing. You try to sort everything in your mind, as if it would even be possible to, but you can’t. You don’t know how any of it would make sense. The club, the flashing lights, everything.

It must be my imagination, you think, but then you know better. You take deep breaths, trying not to panic.

“Seriously, is everything okay?” Leo nags in your ear again, and you finally settle down, feeling like the whole moment itself must have been some fabrication you thought up. Because it had to be. He could not be here. He couldn’t.

“I- yeah, um,” You start, rubbing at your eyes harshly, “I’m sorry I thought I saw something and I just, I didn’t mean to freak you out.”

You think this is the most expressive you’ve ever been with the boy in front of you, but he doesn’t notice. All he does is shrug and pull you against him again, continuing your walk.

“It’s fine, should we look for a nice place to sit down?”

You nod at his words, not looking back over your shoulder. You don’t see the flashing lights anymore, you don’t see the crowd again, and you don’t see the two boys; one taller, and one with faded brown hair, entering the club behind you.

“Don’t fall in love, Soobin.” Yeonjun slurs to his band member after what is most likely his fifth drink of the night. Soobin downs his own drink and then gives his friend a questioning look. Yeonjun continues.

“Don’t fall in love, because life will ruin it for you, and you’ll be left missing the other person more than breathing. You’ll miss them more than life itself, and you’ll miss them until the day you die.”

“I think you need to slow down on the alcohol.” Soobin suggests, easily taking his friend’s drinks away from him. The brunette just sighs, deep in thought as he lays his chin on his hand, pouting lightly.

“I met a girl here, you know.” Yeonjun continues, ignoring the funny look his friend is giving him, “I met her here in this club two years ago, you know, and then I spent the whole night with her.”

Soobin’s eyes go wide, but then Yeonjun backtracks, “We went everywhere, Bin. We went to a diner and drank the best hot chocolate, we went to a rooftop and we kissed. We even got matching rings.”

The younger boy nods as he listens, but he is more confused than he was when Yeonjun started telling him this story. For his sake though, he keeps on listening.

“After all that, after one of the best nights of my life, I had to leave her.”

Yeonjun’s voice is hoarse now, something close to a whimper leaving his lips before he continues.

“Remember when you called me from the hotel and we had that flight to catch? It was our first showcase and I locked myself in the bathroom the whole plane ride back?”

Soobin thinks about this momentarily before adding, “We all thought you got motion sickness and were puking your guts up in the bathroom.”

Yeonju nods, “Right. Well, that was the morning it all happened. I had to leave her that morning, and it was the worst thing I have ever done. I wasn’t puking, I was sobbing. Leaving her, it’s the only true regret of my life. I miss her everyday, Soobin.”

The brunette ponders this for a moment before sighing at the older boy, “So, if you loved her, why did you let her go?”

Yeonjun runs his fingers along the necklace he now clutches, eyes burning from all the alcohol running through his veins, and heart aching deeply. He takes a deep breath and finally meets Soobin’s eyes again.

“Because,” He says, a tear finally escaping from his glazed over eyes, “I loved her too much. And I was too terrified to actually admit that to myself, let alone her.”

The problem with being with Leo, you finally come to figure out, is the fact that time passes very quickly when you’re together. One moment you’re getting dinner, and the next, you’re packing for a business trip you don’t even have much interest in going on. Sure, it was supposed to snow, but Leo insists you go anyway, not wanting you to miss the flight that is probably going to be cancelled anyway. He was annoyingly persistent in his orders, and it made you want to skip even riding in the same taxi with him altogether, if you are were being completely honest.

“You’re taking that weird neck pillow thing, right?” He questions you as you walk into the airport, coat clutched around your body tightly as you drag your suitcase behind you. The strong wind follows you in, and Leo does nothing to block it.

“Yeah, it’ll help me sleep on the flight.” You say, quickly taking out your ticket and ID, making your way to the departure lounge with Leo in toll.

“I still think it’s sucky you can’t stay for the holidays, babe.” He says, “I really wanted you to meet my family.”

“Next time.” You nod, giving him a sad smile. You wonder if it will always be like this. You then wonder if this is how relationships actually are; just one person giving their all while the other agrees to everything they suggest and do. You shake your head, blowing out a long sigh.

“How long do you have until your flight?” He asks, checking his watch before craning his neck to see your ticket. You shift your weight uncomfortably, knowing that he already knows what time you leave.

“Maybe half an hour, I don’t know.” You say, wanting to get the whole goodbye thing over with before he does something like cry. You don’t know if he’s a crier, but you think that maybe he could be, for the sake of showing his dramatic side.

“Well, have a safe flight.” He says, giving you a sad face before reaching out for you. You nod and turn your face as he hugs you tightly, patting his arm a few times before pulling away. He bends down and kisses your cheek afterward, and the feeling makes you move back. You feel slightly sick.

“Okay, so,” He starts again, “I’ll call you when you land. Make sure you’re safe.” He says, rambling on like he does as you look around again. You notice how crowded the lounge is, and it makes you feel slightly anxious. You don’t know what Leo is saying at this point, but you don’t really care.

“Uh- yeah, will do.” You say back, feeling hot all of a sudden. You know it’s most likely the amount of people around you making you feel this on edge, but you can’t seem to shake this as easily as you usually can. You feel your body buzzing, and you don’t know why.

“Oh, don’t forget to drink lots of water on the flight, and try to sleep. I don’t want you getting super bad bags under your eyes because you aren’t sleeping, you know?” He asks, but you’re too far gone. He’s annoying you at this point, and you don’t even know why.

“I know to drink water, I’m not a child.” You snap back, still looking around hurriedly. You don’t know what you’re looking at, but it’s better than looking at him.

“Sorry?” He asks, annoyance lacing his words, “I’m just trying to look after you. If I don’t, then no one will.”

You want to walk away from him now, because this has blown up into something it shouldn’t have in the first place, but you can’t. Your feet stay planted where they are, and everything suddenly becomes extremely heavy. Both literally and metaphorically. You can’t even handle his presence anymore, and it has become suffocatingly apparent, too soon and too fast.

“I don’t need you to look after me.” You spit back, giving him a look. He looks offended for all of two seconds before glaring down at you, “What is wrong with you? I’m just trying to help-“

“Just stop trying to help me!” You finally lash out, heart racing and pulse throbbing as he looks at you, “Stop trying to help me because you can’t! It’s so pointless, and I keep waiting to feel like things are actually okay and normal and for this to be an actual relationship, but it doesn’t.”

He’s wordless as you continue.

“I keep trying to use you to move on, and I’m sorry Leo, I really am, but it’s not working. It would work if you were a good person but you’re not and I’m sorry!”

He looks at you with what you can only label as disgust, but you can’t keep your mouth from shutting.

“You’re not him, and no matter what you do or what you say, you’ll never be him! And I can’t handle it anymore!!”

Leo opens his mouth as you take a breath, but then his eyes flash to something over your shoulder. You’d look, but you’re too distracted with spilling the truth at him now.

“I’ve waited two years for him, Leo. When we met two years ago I was in love with someone else. Two fucking years, and I’ve tried for so long to move on but it’s like my heart won’t let me. Last night, at the club, I thought I saw him again. I always think I see him. I see him everywhere and I can’t stop.”

You’re full on sobbing now, a giant blubbering mess with tears streaking down your face as Leo tries to speak, but you shake your head.

“I think you should just leave,” You say, voice breaking as your body shakes, “I can’t see you anymore.”

Leo sighs and looks into your eyes, a look of hatred evident on his face.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t break your heart.” He says bitterly, before turning on his heel, and walking away. You know he’s upset because he wasn’t the one you gave your all too, the person who could have been the one to break your heart, but you’re beyond spent at this point. And because of this, you slump down sadly and exhausted, bags dropped in front of you as you wipe at your face harshly.

You want to cry, scream, and empty the broken contents of your heart out right here on this airport floor, but you don’t know how to. You don’t know how to do anything anymore without him here. The boy from two years ago. The love of your life.

“I’m sorry.” You whimper sadly to no one, feeling like a horrible person for what you’ve just done.

“I’m sorry that I couldn’t love him enough to let him go,” You tremble, “And I’m sorry I still miss him every day.”

Movement flashes in your peripheral, but you ignore it, too busy with gathering your bags so the jumble of strangers don’t smash them as they sidestep you. You feel as if you’ve spent your whole life running on empty at this point, pretending this whole time to be okay with your relationship and with the conflict you’ve felt in your heart every single day, but you haven’t been okay. You haven’t been okay for a long time, and you don’t have any idea of how to fix it. Your tears still flow, and it takes everything in you not to collapse onto the ground fully.

But you don’t notice him yet. The figure behind you, crouched low to the ground, frozen in place. He’s still, eyes watering, hands trembling, and he knows you haven’t seen him.

He wants to cry as he looks down at you, slumped and shaking, and he ignores the constant vibrating of the phone in his back pocket. He couldn’t care less if he misses his flight, if he misses everything after this for the rest of his life, because for some reason you’re here in front of him, and he’s here with you, and you’re together. And he feels like he could sob if his body would do anything right now.

All the memories, all the moments, they all flood back into his body now, bringing him back to life. He remembers every hug, every kiss, and every touch like muscle memory. He’s hit with the realization that you are the love of his life, and he can’t let you go again. He won’t.

Your body is buzzing again, and you decide that it’s time to get up. You sigh and turn to stand, and then you freeze.

And when his eyes meet yours, it’s like no time has passed at all.

Your body feels numb, completely shocked with nerves and fear and love, that all you can do is stare at the boy in front of you. You’ve imagined seeing him so many times over, but never like this. You never thought it’d be like this.

Yeonjun looks different than he did two years ago.

His hair is no longer blue, but a faded dark brown. It looks like it’s been dyed multiple times over, and it lays flat on his forehead. His eyes are the exact same, only this time, they are brimming with tears. He’s close to crying, and you can see it written on his face.

“You. . .” You finally speak, not getting much out as you face him.

“I’m here.” He whispers to you, dropping his bulky backpack off of his shoulder loudly before pulling you against his body tightly. His smell engulfs you in a second, and it feels like coming home. Your body shakes harder than it ever has.

“I can’t believe you’re here.” You cry against him, clutching his body as he rocks you gently on the floor. The cluster of people around you both are oblivious to your reunion, but they don’t seem to mind you both that much anyway. Yeonjun coos in your ear softly, and you can feel your chest aching.

“I’m here, I’m here.” He keeps repeating, gently shushing you to calm you down as you sob still.

“I’m home, I won’t leave you again. I’m here, baby.”

You shake your head at his words, and hear how he’s sobbing now. It doesn't feel real, having him here, but you don’t want to think about it. If this is how it is, if it’s all your mind playing some twisted trick on you, you’ll take it. You’ll take any version of Yeonjun, exactly how he is. You’ll take him, and choose him, over and over, until the end of time and back. It will always be him. Always.

“I thought you’d never come back.” You admit, voice still wavering as you speak lowly.

He just shakes his head, sniffling before burying his face into the crook of your neck, still rocking the two of you.

“Not a day went by where I didn’t want to come back to you.”

Yeonjun is suddenly pulling back and yanking his necklace out from the depths of his countless clothing layers, showing it to you.

The same ring you two got two years ago, the same ring you put on him after he gave you his speech. Your eyes flash to the ring still on your hand, and your bottom lip trembles.

“I’m home, and I won’t leave you again.” He says, palms cradling your face as your cheeks streak with tears, “I’m sorry. I am so sorry. I love you.”

His words squeeze the breathe from your lungs.

You shake your head and pull him to you by his collar, lips colliding in a mess of passion and tears, and you know he means it. You know that Yeonju is home, and you know you will never be apart again.

“I love you too, Yeonjun.” You say after you detach from his lips.

And you both mean it, forever, because you are finally each other’s again, and no time apart could ever have changed that.

[dherzogblog]

songs/20

Happy Holidays Everyone! I started making these yearly playlists in 2001 as an attempt to connect with friends in the wake of 911. It was just before the dawn of ITunes, and way before social media. We were not in touch like we are today. I burned dozens of individual cd’s one at a time, printed up customized jewel case covers and snail mailed them all out. It was an annual month-long labor of love. Over the past few years, streaming music has made it much easier and faster to compile and distribute, and frankly much more fun. I still look forward to putting the playlist and blog together and sharing it with all of you. Particularly this year as it gives me a chance to connect with so many friends I haven’t seen in quite some time. It was a tremendously challenging year for all of us. I was grateful to have had my family here in LA the entire time, we remain healthy and well. The west coast Herzogs know just how lucky we have been. The next year will not be without its own challenges, but I'm hopeful we are able to move past this pandemic and the exhausting events of the past 4. More than that, I look forward to seeing each and every one of you in 2021. Until then, be safe, be well, and be good to one another. Enjoy the music.

ox peace, dh

Los Angeles CA. December 2020

Khruangbin - Time (You And I) Don’t ask me to pronounce the name of this eclectic trio from Texas, but this dubby disco tune had me returning to its chilled out groove often during the last few decidedly “un-chill” months. Dreamy and funky, the groove takes me back to NYC’s early 80′s club scene and Ze Records releases from the likes of Kid Creole and Coati Mundi.

Anderson .Paak- Lockdown Scenes from the front, June 2020

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Bill Withers (1938-2020)- Use Me The legendary Bill Withers left the playing field at the top of his game in the early 80′s, hardly heard from again. And while he didn't pass from Covid, his healing pop hymn Lean On Me seemed to be everywhere as people found music to help them cope with the challenges of the pandemic. Withers left behind a legendary and enduring group of hit songs that moved easily from soul to folk to pop, not to mention the subtle rolling funk of this one.

Black Pumas- Fire Strong debut from an unlikely Austin duo that garnerd both buzz and grammy nods. The critics are calling it “psychedelic soul”. Not quite sure that nails it, but like the artists coming up next, they’re carving out new ground while drawing inspiration from classic sources.

Gabe Lee- Babylon

Marcus King- Wildflowers and Wine

Charley Crockett- Welcome to Hard Times

Three artists that are literally changing the face of Country and Americana music. Soulful, authentic and diverse, reaching back for inspiration but always looking forward. If you like this sort of stuff they are all worth checking out. Each album is filled with quality songs.

Low Cut Connie_ Private Lives Philly’s Low Cut Connie are back at it with a double album that plays like the soundtrack to a boozy night at your favorite bar. Sweaty, funky and not a little bit messy. If Peter Wolf and Bruce had a kid it would be this blue eyed soul boy. Adam Weiner grew up in the shadow of the Jersey shore and can't help but have a bit of that E Street hustle.

Willie Nile- New York at Night One of New York’s beloved adopted  son’s dropped this love letter right into the jaws of a battered metropolis driven to its knees by the pandemic. It was heartbreaking to listen as the “city that never sleeps” came to a full stop. Somehow I still found myself coming back to it, imagining night’s ahead, when NYC is back on its feet and I’m roaming its streets. Looking for music, a beer, or maybe just a slice, and fueled by the irreplaceable energy and promise of the greatest city on earth.

The Long Ryders- Down to The Well Americana pioneers the Long Ryders reunited last year for a surprisingly solid album. This single sounds like it could have been recorded during their 80′s heyday featuring their trademark Byrds like jangle and harmonies, but the lyrics mark this song as unmistakably 2020.

The Speedways- Kisses Are History UK power pop outfit reach back to the the 60′s on this sweet slice of retro pop perfection.

Billie Joe Armstrong- That Thing You Do

In the early days of the pandemic we had all our kids (+ a significant other) at our house for a few months. It worked out great and we were luckier than most. The biggest issue was keeping enough food, weed and wine around.  There were some great nights with amazing meals, followed by gathering around the TV together. We re-watched The Sopranos, binged Billy On The Street, and revisited some of our favorite movies. One night we went back to a old family favorite, Tom Hanks’ underrated love letter to the one hit wonders of the post Beatles era, That Thing You Do!  I’ve seen the movie several times and it never fails to please. A true feel good film and a perfect Kodak snapshot capturing a simpler time in American pop culture. 

While we watch the unlikely chart topper’s The Oneders  fizzle as fast as they rose to fame, its not really the point. The movie is really an old fashioned love story. Playing like a perfect hit song you can listen to over and over, full of both hooks and heart. I always thought the title track, written by Fountains Of Wayne leader Adam Schlesinger  (who we lost to Covid), brilliantly captured the British Invasion sound every group wanted after The Beatles stormed America. Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong must agree. During the pandemic he cut an album’s worth of cool covers including a faithful version of this one.

Gerard Way (W/Judith Hill - Here Comes the End A tale of discovering music in 2020:  Heard this on a Netflix trailer for the series The Umbrella Factory. Turns out it is performed by Gerard Way (My Chemical Romance) who also writes the comic book the series is based on. (got all that?) He’s joined on this searing garage/psych rave up by the talented and versatile Judith Hill doing her best Merry Clayton.

Hinds- Spanish Bombs I’ve been following this Madrid based, all female outfit of punky garage rockers for a few years now. I think they are pretty great. This track, recorded for a Joe Strummer tribute bursts with an unbridled joy the stone faced and politically minded Clash could never muster. I bet Joe would love it though

The Secret Sisters- Hand Over My Heart Have enjoyed their harmonies for some time now. This one gives me vague Wilson Phillips vibes and I don’t really mind. 

Tame Impala- Breathe Deeper I know I’m supposed to like this guy, all the cool kids do, I’ve even seen the band at Coachella. Over the years very little of the music has stuck to me, but the pandemic offered a bit more free time to dig into this funky dubby, chilled out jam, and it stuck with me. Not to mention that 2020 was all about deep breaths.

Ledisi (feat.Corey Henry)- What Kind of Love Is That Ledisi is back with some slinky, sultry R&B and jazzy vocals

Dinner Party- FreezeTag An R&B/Jazz collective featuring Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder and Kamasi Washington use sweet soul on heartbreaking and all too familiar tale..

Toots and The Maytals- Time Tough  I’ve written an awful lot about my love for Reggae over the years. Right after Bob Marley kicked the door down for me, Toots showed me around the house. Ska, rock steady, and roots. He was true reggae royalty and sadly we lost him to Covid, just after he released what would be his last album. Check my Toots tribute blog and playlist.

Mungo’s Hi Fi- The Beat Goes SKA! These clever UK roots reggae collective never fail to surprise. This kitschy Sonny & Cher cover managed to make me smile every time I heard it. No mean feat in 2020

Stone Foundation (feat. Durand Jones)- Hold on To Love Frequent collaborators with Paul Weller  (he appears on a track on the album), Stone Foundation are back with another batch of their UK soul revival stylings. This one features Durand Jones ( of Durand Jones & The Indications) on vocals and some great reggae style horns at the top.

The Pretenders- You Can’t Hurt A Fool Can’t resist a good torch song, especially sung by the smokey voiced Chrissie Hynde. Was kind of shocked at how many good songs were on this album.

Shelby Lynne_ Don’t Even Believe in Love Sultry country soul and one of her strongest albums in awhile.

Jaime Wyatt- Neon Cross Outlaw country has a new bad girl. And in case you didn’t think she was serious, she enlisted producer Shooter Jennings (and his mom Jessi Colter on one track) to help make her point. 

Daniel Donato- Justice 25 year old guitar prodigy call his music “cosmic country”.  Ok, now I’m listening. You should be too.

The Jayhawks- This Forgotten Town 30 plus + after their debut this Twin Cities alt country group led by founding member Gary Louris continue to deliver. They find their inner Neil Young on this one.

Lucero- Time To Go Home God I wish I was in a bar right now listening to this, even if I might be crying in my beer.

John Prine (1946 -2020)- Lake Marie We lost so many this year, but this one really stung. A true American songwriting treasure, who was still making great music against all odds right up to his untimely passing. His songs are known for their simplicity, and economy of words. but this one goes against the grain. I’m still not exactly certain what it’s about. Sorrowful and haunting, yet somehow uplifting and redemptive. I heard him perform it live here in Los Angeles a just over a year ago and it has stuck in my head ever since. There is surely a place in heaven for the great John Prine.  He sang about it on his final studio album in 2018. Ironically it became the last song on his last record.

Thanks for making it this far....

***Play the entire songs/20 Spotify playlist HERE!***

[noona-clock]

DaySense: Summer ☀️ - Part 2, Final Chapter

A Day6 collab series with the lovely @cramelot 💋

Genre: College & Soulmate!AU

Pairing: Jae x You

By Admin B

Part 1, 2

You had been an avid fan of Day6 for almost two years now, though it honestly felt like it was just yesterday when you’d seen them play at your favorite coffee shop on campus.

It had been during your second year of college, and... frankly, it hadn’t been a good time for you. Your younger sister had been going through some scary health issues, your dad had lost his job, your Chemistry professor was a huge asshole and wouldn’t let you try to bring your grade up with some extra assignments, and... your boyfriend had just dumped you.

So when you’d been moping over a hazelnut latte and heard these sweet angel voices singing a song called “Colors,” you’d fallen in love instantly.

You had recognized one of the musicians, the bass player, from your literature class, but the others you hadn’t seen before. And one of the guitarists, the blonde with the glasses, had caught your eye. By the end of their set, you hadn’t been able to take your eyes off him and had become determined to find out more about him.

Ever since then, you’d followed them around. You’d been to as many gigs and shows and competitions as you could, always sitting far enough away so they wouldn’t notice you.

You were a fangirl, yes, but you weren’t that type of fangirl.

They were fellow students, after all. It’s not like they were some elevated beings who deserved to be worshipped and treated like Gods. You absolutely adored their music, and you eventually developed a major crush on Jae, but you didn’t want to make a big show of meeting them or getting their autograph or asking to take pictures or anything.

Although... you did definitely daydream about Jae. A lot.

He was just so cute! And funny! You had his tweet notifications turned on, and it took everything in you not to like and retweet every single one just seconds after he posted it.

But you kept all this to yourself because what if you ended up in the same class together?! Or what if you ran into him on campus?! If you told one of your friends about your crush, they would tell someone else who was a friend of a friend of one of the other Day6 members, and Jae would end up hearing about this random girl who was in love with him without ever having met him and you would never stand a chance at actually dating him.

So yeah.

You were a fangirl, but you weren’t that type of fangirl.

Although last night had hit you pretty hard.

Watching Day6′s amazing performance of one of your favorite songs, “Congratulations” and then hearing their name announced for third runner up?

Yikes.

You couldn’t even imagine how they felt.

You tried not to think too much about it, how unfair it all was, but now that spring classes were over and summer classes had yet to begin... you didn’t really have much else to think about.

So when you woke up around 8 this morning, around the usual time you woke up for classes all semester, you decided to head to the closest coffee shop for an iced hazelnut latte.

When you didn’t have anything on your schedule, you tended to stay in bed (or at least in your pajamas) all day, so it was best if you made yourself get up and actually do something.

After throwing on some shorts, a t-shirt, and a baseball cap, you headed out to procure your cold, caffeinated beverage.

Not even twenty minutes after leaving your apartment, you were already exiting the cafe, iced latte in hand.

When classes weren’t in session, apparently, things around campus were pretty dead. There was no extremely long line at the cafe, and the baristas hadn’t been backlogged with orders like they usually were.

You slid your phone out of your pocket as you strode down the sidewalk, deciding to catch up on everything you’d missed on social media since before Battle of the Bands last night. (...Meaning, you wanted to see if Jae had tweeted anything or posted on Instagram.)

Before pulling up Twitter, though, you plugged in your headphones and shuffled your Day6 playlist on YouTube.

Since they hadn’t released any recorded music yet, you had to make do with the videos they posted on their YouTube channel. It was much better than nothing, and by now, you were pretty sure you accounted for more than half of their views!

Once the smooth guitar of “Out of My Mind” began to play, you let out a soft sigh of contentment and took a sip of your latte.

Could summer be off to any more of a perfect start?

Well... yes. 

If Day6 had won last night, that would’ve made things truly perfect.

But that hadn’t happened, so what else can you do?

You bobbed your head along to the music as you scrolled through Twitter, holding yourself back from singing along out loud since you were in public and all. 

A couple of tweets from Jae showed up on your timeline, so you obviously liked them.

And... you were really tempted to reply back to the one about Battle of the Bands.

...Would today be the day you plucked up the courage to actually say something to him?

I mean, say something online.

You took a deep breath, clicking on his tweet... letting your thumb hover over the ‘Reply’ button...

Oh, god.

Should you?

I mean... why not? He would appreciate the support, right?!

Definitely!

So you clicked ‘Reply’ and your phone’s keyboard popped up and you started typing and then you noticed a shadow on the sidewalk in front of you and you quickly looked up but you weren’t quick enough and you knocked right into whoever it was.

“Ooph!” you groaned as your cheek hit the person’s shoulder. You immediately stopped walking, holding your latte out to the side so you wouldn’t spill any of it. 

And then you looked up.

It took a second to realize who it was, but your eyes widened slightly when you did.

...It was him.

Oh... oh my god.

OH MY GOD.

It was Jae in all his glory. Red hat, pink shirt, glasses, plush lips, blonde hair - all of it.

(Red hat and pink shirt, though? Interesting color combination seeing as it was summer, not Valentine’s Day.)

You quickly stopped your music and reached up to yank one of your earbuds out.

“I am so sorry!” you breathed, sounding just as shy as you felt right now.

“Oh, no, it’s --” Jae had been holding out a camera, and he shifted his gaze from his lens to your face.

And, just like yours had, his eyes widened slightly. But they also looked... unfocused somehow?

“No, it’s my -- my fault --” he stammered, his eyes frantically searching you.

...Why was he frantically searching you?

And... why was his hat changing colors?

It had just been red a second ago, but now it was... you honestly weren’t sure what color that was, you’d never seen it before in your life.

Maybe a huge cloud was up in the sky, casting a shadow or something.

“Are you all right?” you asked a bit timidly since Jae wasn’t really saying anything else.

Jae shook his head slightly, blinking furiously and taking a step back. “Ye -- yeah, I just... something’s... I don’t know what’s happening.”

You also took a step back because, as Jae was talking and looking at you...

Okay, you weren’t going to believe this.

His... eyes? And teeth? Were... changing color? Just like his hat?

What?!

They were now bright and shining and sharply contrasted against the rest of his face and you had no idea what was going on.

Hold on, though. Hadn’t Jae just said ‘I don’t know what’s happening’? So he was experiencing something weird, too?

“Wait, what’s happening to you?” you asked, your heart racing with panic.

“I --”

You noticed his hat again, and now you were sure it was definitely a different color. And your mind was too overwhelmed to comprehend what was going on, so you interrupted him and blurted out the first thing which came to your mind: “I’m sorry, what color is your hat?”

Jae’s hand immediately flew up to his head, resting on top of his hat.

“Black,” he answered. His eyes flitted upward, and he exhaled sharply. “I mean, they all told me it was black, and that’s what I saw, and yes. It’s definitely black.”

“...Black? But... it was just -- I thought it was red, and your -- your eyes and teeth and -- it was red. Black? What do you mean?”

To your surprise, Jae responded to your question by letting out a huge sigh of relief.

“Okay, so, something’s happening to you, too?” he asked, eyebrows raised.

You glanced around, trying to see if anything else had changed color, but nothing caught your eye.

“I have no idea,” you answered with a shake of your head. “All I know is your hat was definitely red but now it’s not.”

Jae stood there for a second, obviously thinking about something... and then he grabbed hold of your arm, leading you over to a nearby bench. Once you sat down, he slid in next to you, angling to face you.

“My hat was never red,” he began. “But listen -- just hear me out, okay?”

You nodded.

Because what else were you going to do?! Something really, really weird was happening, and Jae was sitting next to you actually talking to you and oh my god.

So, yes. You would listen.

Jae took a deep breath, biting his lower lip momentarily.

God, his lips were even more luscious up close.

“Okay, so, my whole life -- my whole life -- everything has been basically the same three colors. I guess it’s always been black and white and gray. I don’t know, it’s been really hard to figure things out because no one else can see what I see. I would always hear about all these colors and how beautiful things were, but I never understood. The doctors said I was just colorblind. I’ve never been able to drive anywhere alone because I can’t tell what color the stoplight is, and I have to ask someone if my outfit is color-coordinated because everything looks the same, and I can’t just leave the house looking like a fool, you know?”

You nodded even though you were fairly sure it was a rhetorical question.

“I mean, I know I look good in every color no matter what, but I don’t want to go out wearing neon yellow and brown! But when I bumped into you just now...” He looked down at his shirt and pinched the fabric in-between his thumb and index finger, pulling it out slightly. “What color is this?”

“Pink,” you told him.

“Pink! This morning, it was not this color. I mean, Brian told me it was pink, but this is not the color I saw. ...But now I see pink.”

You furrowed your brow, trying to make sense of all this. “So... your shirt changed color for you, and your hat changed color for me...” you murmured with extreme confusion. “...What is going on?”

“I have no idea!” he laughed. “All I know is, just a minute ago, I still saw everything in the same three colors. And now... I don’t know, man.”

He gazed around, his eyes shining as he took in the scenery around you.

And then, suddenly, he let out a little gasp.

“Wait -- wait a minute.” He turned toward you even more, and your heart began to race even more. “You said -- could you not see black before?”

You shook your head quickly. “I kept getting confused in school when they were teaching us colors because black always looked different. It looked like another color -- purple or green or blue or red. The same goes for white and gray. I never knew -- the ophthalmologist said I must just have some unknown eye disease where I couldn’t process those colors...” You pointed at his hat. “You’re saying that’s black?”

Jae nodded.

“And what about your teeth?”

“White. Pearly white, to be exact,” he answered with a little smirk.

Your eyes searched around some more, landing on the camera he was holding in his lap. It was the same color as his hat, so you nodded toward it and said, “That’s black, too?”

“Yep.”

Okay. None of this made sense.

“Why... why am I suddenly seeing black and pearly white, and you’re suddenly seeing colors?” you asked, still staring at his camera. Because if you stared at him, you probably wouldn’t be able to breathe.

“I don’t kn --” 

Jae cut himself off, and the sudden, unexpected silence forced you to look up at him.

...Yep. You were right. You kind of weren’t able to breathe.

But it’s cool. It’s all good. No big. Who needs to breathe, anyway?

“What?” you asked softly, wondering why he had stopped talking.

Jae’s lips parted, his eyes widened. He obviously thought he had figured something out, and his head jerked to stare right into your eyes.

“Wait a second,” he breathed. “I think -- what... what if this is our soulmate thing?”

A strangled laugh escaped from your throat because what in the world?!

“Soulmate?” you repeated, somewhat dumbfounded.

“Yeah! With my parents, their names showed up as tattoos on each other’s arm the year they met, so I figured that’s what would happen to me,” Jae explained. “I was just waiting for the right time. But... but what if that’s not my thing? What if my whole colorblind thing had to do with -- with meeting you?”

Okay, you thought you couldn’t breathe before when you were looking at him. But now he was talking about soulmates. Insinuating that you were his soulmate.

How were you still alive?!

“What about your parents? What was their thing?” he asked, his brow furrowed in curiosity as he gazed at you intently.

“They could hear each other’s voice in their thoughts,” you told him. “I could only hear my own voice, so I just figured... I didn’t have a soulmate.”

“So, I couldn’t see colors. You could only see colors,” Jae said quickly. “But after bumping into each other, we can both see everything. Isn��t that -- I mean, don’t you think that’s weird?!”

Well, now that he put it like that, it did seem like it was more than a coincidence.

There was just one problem.

“But I’ve seen you plenty of times,” you admitted, feeling your cheeks begin to flush. “I -- I mean, I know your band. I’ve been to a ton of your shows. I just saw you last night!”

Jae froze for a second but then a smirk slowly began to form on his lips. “You know who I am?”

You nodded bashfully.

“Wow,” he said, sounding very smug -- and yet still humble. “Thank you for supporting us, I really appreciate it. And don’t worry about last night. We’re already preparing for next year. That’s why I was filming. I want to document our year-long process of turning over a new leaf and actually winning next year. Post them on YouTube and stuff --”

Ahhh! What?! He was vlogging?! For a whole year?! Oh, god, you would have so much to look forward to!

“But that’s not the point,” he said, breaking into your thoughts. “The point is, maybe you’ve seen me, but we never actually met until just now. And that’s the point of this soulmate thing. You have to meet them.”

...Okay, well, he did have a point.

So... was Jae your soulmate?

Was actual Jae, the guy you’d had a crush on from the band you’d fallen in love with, your actual soulmate?

Were you about to live out a fangirl’s fantasy right now?

“I’m Jae,” he said, holding his hand out toward you.

You timidly took hold of it, shaking it and pulling your lips into a little grin. “I’m Y/N.”

“Nice to meet you, Y/N. I see you already have your coffee this morning, but if you’re not busy, would you mind accompanying me to the cafe?”

Okay.

So.

Actual Jae, the guy you’d had a crush on from the band you’d fallen in love with, was asking you to go with him to the cafe. A coffee date.

Jae was asking you on a date.

“Sure,” you nodded.

He stood from the bench, smiling at you and gesturing for you to begin walking first.

And then he got out his camera and began filming again.

“Sorry about that,” he said before shifting the camera to get you in the frame. “I just literally bumped into someone, and something really weird happened... but we’ll talk about that later. Anyway, the fact is, I found a new friend, and we’re going to get coffee. Let’s get it!”

You let out a soft chuckle, glancing over at Jae and trying to keep from smirking or smiling or something which would give away the fact you were over the moon about being in his presence. 

You still didn’t know for sure if he was your true soulmate (though it seemed possible, and you were honestly crossing your fingers he was because oh my god how amazing and squeal-worthy would that be?!), but... you were more than willing to spend your summer figuring it out.

Sungjin (Fall), Young K (Winter), Wonpil (Spring), Dowoon (Summer Finale)

[cloudyyoonji]

Unraveling.

Lee Felix x Reader.

REQUESTED BY ANON

Summary: You can always count on the boys who have made JYP Entertainment home for you.

Genre: lil angst, fluff! Super fluffy ending!

Warnings: mentions of minor bullying.

____________

Nodding along to a beat that is playing through your headphones, you rapidly tap along to the beat you’ve created, anticipating its every sound.

This was your favorite part of your job as a producer; getting to listen to your songs when it’s all completed. You almost loved it as much as when people got to finally listen to your tracks.

You’re lucky. Extremely lucky.

You hadn’t planned on being producer, more so a trainee who was keen on debuting with a group. But when your career choice had failed, somehow, you were granted a producing job; first shadowing other producers, but within a year, producing your own tracks for use.

You’d worked with some amazing artists, but you’d been completely grateful for the one group of boys you work with the most.

“Right outside the practice room Love.”

You briefly look down at your phone, the light bight in the dark room, and almost instantly a smile ignites your features.

Oh how this boy made you feel really mushy inside, even after a few years of being together.

Wrapping up your hard drive already, you’re quick to shove everything into your bag, ignoring the light that steams under the door. The light you swore wasn’t there 5 minutes ago. Or maybe that was 5 hours ago...

The beat itself had woken you at all hours of the morning exactly 2 days prior, it’s rapid thumping sticking in your brain for all the days to come.

But now it was here, in your headphones, playing through your ears; a picture perfect imagine of what you’d imagined all those nights ago.

Blinking away the brightness of the day, you’re quick to press shuffle on a playlist, a change in music filling your senses as you lock the door behind you, now a little more awake and alert for the rest of the day.

Gathered outside the training room, you can see that the group are still slightly sweating as they discuss choreography.

“Y/N!”

It’s Seungmin that sees you first, his loud exclamation making not just the rest of the band but a few trainees turn around too.

You can’t help but cringe in embarrassment, taking your earphones out.

“You look exhausted.” Chan comments as you near them, a kaleidoscope of noise now surrounding you now that your headphones are out.

“I’ve been working, on two new songs actually.” You tell him, hands rubbing together in unconscious excitement.

“For us?”

You nod your head at an eager Changbin.

“You guys and some trainees. They wanted a demo for a dancing classes.”

“Let’s get you some coffee. You’re banned from working until you actually have something to sustain you.”

You look up at your boyfriend, whose taking your laptop from your hands, his serious facial expression almost overshadowing the way his freckles only make him look more adorable.

Mocking a salute, you turn to follow the already walking boys, a laugh slipping from your lips. He catches up with you in only a few strides, hand taking yours whilst your computer is cradled safely in his other arm.

You’re quick to order a coffee first whilst the group go find seats, holding the table with a coffee in hand as they get their own food.

You pick up on stares as soon as soon as they start, your gaze going to a group of trainees who seem to be particularly interested in you, looking as their gaze flick from talking, to you.

You watch them over your cup, subtly trying to make out just some of what they’re saying.

The two males seem to be equally invested in watching you, their gazes scanning you as they estrange words in whispers with each other.

You roll your eyes.

You often got these type of looks because you were dating Felix, but perhaps they’d even heard of your trainee failure, that too was often a fuel to the malicious looks.

As Felix climbs into the seat next to you, Minho on your other side, you rip your gaze from the two trainees, a smile greeting the 8 as you take another sip of your coffee, the two trainees long gone from your mind as you listen to them discuss the new choreography.

You begin to think that you must’ve done something in your past life, because these damned boys seem to follow you everywhere.

This same day you’d seen them in a glance across the cafe, they were now right behind you as you walked to the dance rooms, and then again as you made your way to the dorms to fetch your laptop. Now again they were right here, outside your recording studio, backs leaned against the wall as they stood, smug and impressed as they watched you come through the hallway.

“Sorry guys, can I just get in?” You ask, pulling out one of your earphones as you hold up the keys in your hand.

The two don’t budge, rather opting to stay in their slightly intimidating poses, looking down at you with that same evil smirk.

“Why don’t you make us, pretty?”

You look up at the dark haired one, catching sight of his name tag. Sungwoo.

Ah, so that was this boys name.

“Sorry?” You say, looking up at the boy with a unimpressed look.

What did this boy think he was doing?

“You heard us. Why don’t you make us move?” Jungmun, the sandy coloured hair boy, tells you, eyebrow raised in an arch.

“Y/N!”

The sound of your name makes you spin around, sighing in relief when you meet the gaze of the choreographer you’re working with.

The two students have dissipated in a simple syllable when you turn back around.

Thank god.

You quickly invite her in, sitting down and opening the song as you continue on with your original agenda set for the day, the two boys now far from your mind as the beat you’ve made fills the room through the speakers.

But it’s like you can’t shake the bad luck that follows from these trainee boys, similar incidents follow over the next few weeks in the form of rude phrases and even one incident where they trapped you outside your studio in the middle of the night.

Now you’re scared, too scared to even work alone.

You know that telling Felix and the other boys this would be a simple fix, a security blanket around your shoulders. But, they were already all so protective of you after your trainee career had flopped, helping you get the producer job you would’ve absolutely died for. They’d done so much for you, you couldn’t ask them to do more.

So, you now decided that leaving the dorms would be too much of a risk, especially after that night.

You now creep out of your room in the middle of the night to take over the small desk in the corner of the living area, staying up to sunrise so you could make up for lost time you could’ve been working on songs.

The days are blurring past now, you basically a walking corpse running on so much coffee it’s almost ridiculous at this point. You’re exhausted, but slowly things are getting done, just not in the most ideal way.

Sitting in the cafe again, you can’t help but zone out, almost zombie-like as you drink up your coffee, waiting for the 8 to get their food.

Somewhat unconsciously you’re gaze trickles towards where the two trainees would normally sit, but they’re seats are empty.

Where are they? Where have they gone?

Your heart rate picks up as your eyes flick through the seats, trying to get a glimpse of the two in a desperate need for some relief.

Cmon, where are you two? What are you planning?

A touch on your shoulder sends your body flinching backwards, almost losing balance on your seat as you look up wide eyed at Felix.

Felix. Just Felix.

“Hey!” The boy says, hand on your shoulder as he bends to your height. “It’s just me, Love.”

You try to play off your wide eyes with a smile and a laugh.

“Yeah! No it’s okay! You just scared me!”

He gives you a little laugh, taking his seat and beginning to eat, hand on yours for a second longer then it normally would be, his lingering touch perhaps a way of saying “it’s okay.”

Whether he knew it or not; it was calming.

When his hand does leave yours, you zone out again, the bitter taste in your mouth most certainly not the coffee.

“Don’t you agree Y/N?”

You hear Lee Minho’s voice loud and clear, but you can’t quite register what it is the boy says.

But when he touches your arm from across the table, you body reacts first, pulling back in record speed as a flinch ripples through your body, a silent scream building in your throat, burning as you swallow it away.

Your heart feels like it’s almost about to burst from your chest, the thump so heavy you’re sure everyone can hear it too.

It takes you a full moment to completely register just where you are; at the table with the people you could trust.

You pull at your sleeves, trying to cover your own skin from the sudden chill that takes the room, that makes goosebumps form all over your body as it sleeps through the woven fabric of your hoodie.

“Hey, you okay? You look really exhausted.”

“Yeah yeah,” you brush off Changbins question like a chip off your shoulder, trying to mask your labored breaths with a quick smile.

“I’m fine.”

“You dont look fine Y/N, you look tired, exhausted actually.” Chan chimes in, Felix nodding beside you as they both peer at you in concern.

“How long has it been since you’ve had something other then coffee? Or slept for that matter?”

You stand up in an instant at Felix’s question, shaking your head at the concerned group.

“You are too worried guys. I’m fine,” You tell them all, eyes wandering to each member, smiling for reassurance.

“I’m seriously fine! Don’t stress, you’ve all got a comeback to stress about!”

And with that you’re walking back to your studio, laptop bag in hand.

Sighing at your quite suspicious response, your breath catches in your throat mid way through, eyes wide as you see them, leaning against the wall as if they’ve got something to hold above you, still smug as anything.

“Please move.” You monotone, eyes half glazed as you stare up at the boys, done with all the shit they’ve pulled.

“No can do sweetheart.”

You want to roll your eyes at the sandy haired boy, but hold back.

“One kiss and we’re gone, love. You know the deal.”

You roll your eyes, frustrated.

“Guys cmon, you’re trainees. Please, listen to your senior and move from the doorway. This is getting ridiculous.”

They seem to snigger at your attempt of trying to hold some authority above them, Sungwoo opening his mouth as Jungmun laughs.

“Why don’t you make us, pretty. Does JYP-nim still not have your back? Even after your attempts? You’ve still failed huh?”

Your fierce glare is no match for shout that echos through the halls.

“What did you just say to my girlfriend?”

Felix is behind you in an instant, his arm around going around your waist. You look up at the at the boy, who’s glaring over at the two trainees, in surprise, eyes wide as you see the anger in his glare.

They turn to scramble at just his fierce glare.

“Felix... Chan... Jisung...” Jungmun breathes, the names causing you to turn around in Felix’s grip, seeing the two boys behind you slowly materialize into 7 as they all round the corner.

“I never want to see your faces again. I suggest you leave before we change our minds on letting you go lightly.”

They scramble off, white in the face at Felix’s words. He turns to you, hands on your arms, any harshness replaced by a soft gaze as he looks down at you.

“Did they hurt you at all?”

You shake your head in reply.

“Have they done this before to you?”

Now your gaze falters to Chan, whose eyebrows are raised at you.

Shyly, you nod, eyes lowering to the ground, not wanting to see his reaction.

“Hey,” your boyfriend’s voice is even softer, fingers under your chin to push you to face him. “Why didn’t you say anything? We could’ve helped.”

“I know,” you reply, a sigh escaping from your lips, “But you’ve already done so much for me that I thought I could just ride this one out. It wasn’t a big deal.”

“Yah, Y/N, we’re always going to be here for you, no matter the issue at hand.”

You nod, avoiding eye contact with Jisung. ��Thankyou.”

The words barely leave your lips before Felix embraces you, pulling you towards the studio you’d been trying to get into.

“Let’s hear that song you’ve been working on for us!”

With a sincere laugh, you watch as all they cram into a studio only built for 5, setting up your speakers with one quick press of a button as your finger hovers over the play button for the song you’d spent so long on.

It thumps through the speakers, loud, and absolutely thrilling as your eyes slide over all the members for their reactions.

“This is so good!” Jeongin yells over the music, giving you a wide smile and a thumbs up.

“Yeah, those jerks really don’t know how talented you are, seriously.” Minho yells, a few members nodding in agreement with him.

Felix takes your hand, his wide smile almost reassuring. You take a deep breath, feeling as if the weight has finally been lifted from your shoulders.

Whether its in light of the situation, or the fact your favorite part of your job is happening right here, you feel that you finally know that as long as you have these boys, you’re safe no matter what.

[melonkooky]

bts reaction - their s/o being a bigger fan of another kpop group

requested

genre: fluff

author’s note: the reactions kinda stray away from what this post is supposed to be. i think you’ll see after you read all of them, but they still relate in a way. also, seokjin’s is a tad bit short by accident....

please do not copy my work. but please like and reblog it. thank you!!!!

kim seokjin

seokjin probably wouldn’t think much of it, until you started mentioning a member that you found extremely attractive.

“oh my god… [member] from [kpop band] is so hot.” you would say into the air, not thinking that seokjin was listening from another spot in the house.

“what??? who the hell is [member]?”

“seokjin, calm down.”

he would playfully pout as he stalked towards you. “but, my love, i’m the most handsome man in your life, right?”

and you would look at him and give him a light peck on his pout, making in smile, while replying, “of course, seokjin. you’re the handsomest of them all.”

min yoongi

yoongi probably wouldn’t show interest in your newfound interest. you could like whatever and whoever you want, as long as yoongi still stayed in the number one spot on your list.

if you ever starting fangirling/fanboying about a member or a few members, he would ask to see them. and when he did that, you knew he was jealous. yoongi hardly shared his feelings openly, so you found it amusing that yoongi was pretending to show interest in your biases of this group when really he just wanted to see who the competition was.

“yoongi.” you warned.

“what?” he would ask, feigning innocence.

you would look at him, and he would slightly panic. “this group is really good. i think i’m getting into them.”

you shook your head. “that’s a lie. you’re jealous.”

yoongi wouldn’t deny it since it was the truth. he would silently watch as you watch the group’s mvs and smile and be giggly. he would sigh in defeat, before standing up and leaving you alone.

jung hoseok

hoseok would be pretty chill about it. he wouldn’t mind because it was just you liking kpop groups. you were reacting the same way to way as you did with bts. and he knew that you were in love with him.

but besides all that, every time you came across a new kpop group, especially the rookie ones that debuted recently, you would show hoseok all their music videos. hoseok loved spending his free time hanging out with you and catching up on all the newest kpop music videos because for one, you looked adorable when you watched them, and two, hoseok always managed to become a fan as well. you and hoseok would now often sing along together or dance together, of course hoseok would already have mastered the choreography.

“oh, i like that one.” you said as you pointed to a member that was dancing in the front.

hoseok would rest his head on your shoulder. “he kinda looks like me.”

“what? no, he doesn’t.”

hoseok would smirk. “sorry, y/n, but i’ll always be in your heart. don’t deny it.” hoseok would laugh. later he found you staring at the member because you did realize that he had a vague resemblance to hoseok.

kim namjoon

again namjoon would probably be the chillest of them all. ‘oh you like this band? that’s cool’.

namjoon never accompanied you when you were watching music videos or fangirlling/fanboying by yourself. but from afar, he liked to watch you. he liked to imagine before he met you when you were just a fan of bts. he imagined that you reacted the same way to music videos, because your reaction was cute, not over the top, just enough to show that you were really enjoying it. he sometimes wondered if you would look at him and say, ‘i like him’.

now as his significant other, he could see all that. he knew you loved him, and he knew that bts would always have a very special place in your heart. therefore he never got jealous.

“which group are you catching up on now?” he would ask as he walked into the kitchen, while you sat in the living room. “[kpop group].” you would reply.

namjoon would nod. “are they good?”

“oh, they’re good alright.”

park jimin

jimin wouldn’t think anything of it. at first. he knew that you liked a lot of kpop groups, and he admired that because he knew that there were a lot of amazing and talented groups out in the world. but after a while when it seemed like a particularly new kpop group had grasped your attention, jimin felt a tiny pang in his heart. this group was your favorite now, and you were constantly watching them. jimin was a little salty about it.

“y/n. do you remember bts?” he asked.

you would look at him confused. “jimin, what are you talking about?”

“you seem to really like that [member] person more than me.”

you stood up and walked to him. “that’s a lie. i can’t love anyone more than i love you. you’re my prince, the one that has my heart.” you placed a sweet kiss on his cheek.

jimin smiled, pulling you into a hug. “good.” he was messing around with you, playing the guilt-trip card was easy.

kim taehyung

taehyung would ask very similar to hoseok. especially because this was something that you really liked, taehyung showed a lot of interest and it made you happy. the feeling of someone else showing interest in something you like was an amazing feeling, and you knew that taehyung wasn’t just doing it to make you happy, he actually was interested in these groups you liked. sure you liked a particular one more than bts, but that was just you.

“taehyung, taehyung, taehyung.” you yelled excitedly, patting the couch.

taehyung walked in from the bedroom. “what?”

“they’re going to perform next, in a few seconds. will you watch it with me?” you asked.

taehyung blushed a bit at how cute you were reacting. he sat down in the spot next to you, just as the lights were dimmed before lighting up again, showing the kpop group that you had been head over heels over lately. you reacted enthusiastically, lightly chanting the fanchant while stopping to sing along with them. taehyung smiled, knowing that this was how you were when bts performed. he enjoyed times like these with you.

jeon jungkook

lastly, but certainly not least because this man is the love of my life, jungkook wouldn’t mind either. sure, he was a little salty that bts weren’t your favorite group, but after you introduced him to your favorite group, jungkook found himself getting excited. this group was actually very talented, and he was intrigued as well.

this would become a thing in your relationship. you would show jungkook a new song or watch a kpop group’s comeback together and he too would show you a  song that he thought you would like and watch groups together. it was a lot of fun, getting excited about something you shared interest in. you and jungkook had a shared playlist together, where you and him could both add the songs you both liked or would like to listen too.

“y/n,” jungkook would say as he walked into the bedroom where you were. “you have to listen to this song i found.”

he fell onto the bed as you stopped whatever you were doing. jungkook would lay next to you, watching your reaction with his cute doe-like eyes as you listened. “i really like that.” you would reply with a wide smile.

“alright, i’m adding it to the playlist.” he was proud that you liked the song he showed you.

[dustedmagazine]

Listed: Cable Ties

Cable Ties, from Melbourne, formed in the mid-teens and has one self-titled and a clutch of singles and splits in its catalogue so far. A trio, the band is made up of guitarist/singer Jenny McKechnie, bassist Nick Brown and drummer Shauna Boyle. Band members are active advocates for women’s and LGBTQ rights. McKechnie co-founded Wet Lips, a Melbourne festival focused on inclusion of female, gay and non-binary musicians, and both she and Boyle volunteer for Girls Rock, an organization that promotes opportunity for women, trans and gender diverse musicians. Jennifer Kelly reviewed their second album recently for Dusted, observing that, “The easy thing would be to compare McKechnie’s vibrato-zinging vocals with those of Sleater-Kinney’s Corin Tucker or her verbal agility to Courtney Barnett, but the blunt force and agile violence of the music, brings to mind post-punk bands like the Wipers, Protomartyr and Eddy Current.” Shauna Boyle contributed this cooking-themed list.

Ten songs to listen to while cooking vegan mac and cheese on an iso-Saturday night

I was chatting to a group of my mates online and I posed the question, “what kind of list would you like to read about right now?” We’ve all been discussing the elaborate meals we’ve been cooking and the bizarre TV shows we’ve been bingeing on so this list feels like something everyone could get behind right now. This mac and cheese is famous in my house. These are some songs that I hope will help to evoke the feeling of one of my most cherished and comforting meals.

Orange Juice–“Rip It Up”

Put this song on first to get limbered up while you’re prepping your ingredients. This song never fails to prop up my mood – there’s something about the rubber-y bass line and Edwyn Collins’ earnest declaration of his favorite song (with a cute nod via the single note solo in Buzzcocks’ “Boredom”) that melts my heart every time.

Dave Edmunds–“Down Down Down”

I found this song on a playlist recently and it was a delightful treat surrounded by a bunch of familiar suggestions. Sometimes you just need a little upbeat dad-rock for your evening. There’s something about the weird key changes towards the end of the song that are so unexpected but intriguing.

RVG–“Christian Neurosurgeon”

The most recent single from fellow Melbournians and a band that Cable Ties have always been huge fans of. This has an elegant simplicity to it that has literally drilled itself into my brain. The sound of the drill over the track might have something to do with it?

Pylon–“Cool”

By now hopefully you should hopefully have some progress with your cheese and it’s starting to get fun. This song is matched with my excitement levels as you start to imagine the meal ahead. A few jogs on the spot aligned with the verse riff will help it along.

Ty Segall–“Everyone’s A Winner”

Needless to say we’re all winners but this song will make you believe it. You deserve it! You’ve worked hard for this meal and it’s gonna be yours! I love a bit of grit in my guitar tones generally so this version of the Hot Chocolate hit is so satisfying.

The The–“Uncertain Smile”

Did you ever feel like a song can really give you that helping hand that you might need every now and again (ironically given the lyrical content is pretty dark)? If you ever needed a song to dance to in your kitchen, one of whimsy and sway, this is here for you any time you need.

The B52’s–“52 Girls”

Well you need to remember that you gotta celebrate the people in your life who make these meals special. Who made you your first mac and cheese? Was it one of these 52 girls? This song is also special to Cable Ties as it was covered by our amazing friends Georgi and Kim who play in a band called Shrimpwitch. Go listen to them!

Jen Cloher–“Strong Woman”

Jen Cloher is an artist who has been a supporter of Cable Ties from very early on in our career – so much so that she took us along on tour with her in Europe. Singing this on stage with Jen will forever be one of my favorite memories and hearing this song always reminds me of the joy and pride I felt up there. Much like my cooking.

Billy Idol–“Dancing With Myself”

You can’t expect to make a meal like this and not hear just a little bit of cheese? But look, we all secretly love this song and to be honest you are on your own so no-one cares. There are NO guilty pleasures.

Sheer Mag–“Expect The Bayonet”

You did it! You should be proud of yourself and your amazing skills. If anyone tries to tell you otherwise (or decides to steal your leftovers out of the fridge) then you know to steer clear. This song will always help me to turn off the negative talk and leave me with a feeling of resilience, tenacity and strength.

[phonaesthemes]

a list of asks

@padawanyugi tagged me in this, but Tumblr decided to eat any notification that I got tagged, so I’m glad I saw it on my dash because I like filling these things out. Thanks for tagging me! I may have typed A Lot.

Favorites: What types of books do you enjoy? Tell about what you’ve read recently (Or maybe about a book you hated recently!)I like spec-fic and sci-fi, although less “hard” science fiction, and I also enjoy fantasy. I read a lot of YA even though I’m in my 30s just because it seems easy to find a story I want to read and I’m not usually in the mood for dense prose.

I’ve been rereading the Wheel of Time series since it’s getting an Amazon TV show; it was my first non-LOTR fantasy series and I love it to death, warts and all, although I love joking about the weak points with other people who’ve read it. I think the last other thing I read was A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, which was a queer YA historical fiction, and it was a lot of fun. I wish I’d had access to all these queer stories when I was an actual teenager, but better late than never.

What types of music do you like to listen to? Share five songs from your music library. I really do like a bit of everything, although I gravitate towards certain genres more often depending on the season or time of day, so I’m going to cheat and pick 5 per season. Summer for me is lots of peppy pop (pride playlists!), punk and rock and punk-adjacent stuff, just upbeat stuff in general. -Weekender, by The Royal They -Break My Heart, by Dua Lipa -Toutes les femmes savent danser, by Loud -Ruby Soho, by Rancid -Womanarchist, by Bad Cop, Bad Cop

In the fall, my inner goth kid craves darkwave, goth rock, dramatic folk, roots rock, and also anything that reminds me of Halloween. -Iuka, by the Secret Sisters -Bela Lugosi’s Dead, by Bauhaus -How’s It Gonna End, by Tom Waits -Under the Milky Way, by The Church -I Put a Spell on You, by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins I could go on about the Christmas music I like at length (Boney M’s Christmas album slaps, ngl) but I’ll just skip that and say that I listen to more classical and piano pieces in the winter. I’m terrible at remembering names, so artists only: -Ludovico Einaudi -Chopin -Debussy -Saint-Saëns -Dvořák And in spring I’m usually just depressed af and listen to whatever. -FML, by K.Flay -Weird Part of the Night, by Louis Cole -Juodaan Viinaa, by Korpiklaani -P.O.H.U.I., by Carla’s Dreams -Marryuna, by Baker Boy

Do you have a show or movie that you can just put on anytime and it’s your comfort? Definitely Star Trek. I’ve rewatched the various iterations (except TOS) so many times. Also Mean Girls and Bring It On, idk why.

Do you have a favorite dessert? Tiramisu or creme brulée! Or macarons. I don’t eat dessert really unless I’m at a restaurant.

Do you have a favorite cold drink? Sparkling water, hands down.

Do you have a favorite game? The hours I have put into the SIms in my lifetime is probably shameful, although I haven’t played in a while. Don’t Starve is another contender for hours played, but I am also really fond everything by Amanita Design

Do you have a favorite part of your self care/beauty/health routine? I haven’t been doing it much lately since I’ve been dealing with some uncertain health issues with my joints (actually have a rheumatologist appointment later today), but savasana after a long yoga workout is borderline ecstasy.

Do you have a favorite type of take-out food? Indian for sure.

What’s your favorite type of exercise/physical activity? I have a love-hate relationship with running. I don’t actually love it but I love how I feel after. I really enjoy yoga. I love playing in the water at the beach, bodyboarding and swimming.

Pick between: (you choose the context)

Cook or bake? (I love cooking A Lot)

Space or ocean? (Hard to pick, but I grew up by the ocean and it’s 100% my happy place)

Chocolate or vanilla?

City or suburb or rural? (I grew up in an isolated rural village and I miss the quiet and the slower pace of life, but I do not miss the lack of amenities and opportunities, or the smalltown gossip. I also don’t drive bc of epilepsy, so I’m fucked as far as transport in rural settings.)

Past or future?

Shower in the morning or evening?

Mac/Apple or PC/Android? (Linux in general!)

Sing or dance?  (I don’t have an amazing voice but I can carry a tune without it being painful, and I love singing along with songs.)

Get up early or sleep in? (I actually love sleeping in but with two kids, early morning is my only time to myself, so I wake up before 6 most days AGGH.)

Shoes, socks, or bare feet? (Hate socks. I’m barefoot at home all year round.)

Marker, crayon, or pencil? Pen!

Tea, coffee, or hot chocolate? (Coffee in the morning, tea later on.)

Random questions:

Have you ever had any pets? (Had dogs and a cat as a kid, and as an adult I’ve had betta fish and cats, and I have a cat currently.)

What is your academic background/job field? I did my undergrad in linguistics, and I am currently a stay-at-home dad lol. I do freelance editing and transcription on the side. I don’t think I’ll ever work in my field bc I really don’t have the energy to go to grad school.

What’s something random that you’re into (even if you aren’t good at it)? I signed up for a Cape Breton step dancing class in university and I loved it.

Are you good at putting away your clean laundry right away? It depends on the day, but generally yes. Mine and everyone else’s. When I lived alone? Absolutely not.

What’s one of your pet peeves? Someone trying to have a conversation with me when they have the radio or TV on. I can’t follow what you’re saying if someone else is speaking! I hate having that stuff on as background noise in general.

What’s something you’re pretty good at? I’m a great cook.

What’s the most recent nice thing you bought for yourself? A new conditioner ig? lol

Can you sew? I can mend a small tear or sew on a button, but it’s been years since I did more than that.

What’s a chore you hate (or a chore you enjoy)? I hate vacuuming so much. So much. Maybe if I had a better vaccuum cleaner I wouldn’t mind it, but I just feel like I’m fighting with the stupid thing, getting caught up on its own cords, caught on furniture, can’t quiiiite reach a spot... HATE IT. I like shoveling snow sometimes, though.

Tell us a fun fact about yourself. I am 20 years older than my youngest sibling, and five minutes younger than my “oldest” sibling.

Never have I ever... Gone fishing, even though I’m from a fishing community.

What extracurriculars did/do you do in school? In high school, I played trumpet in band until the band got dissolved from lack of funding. I played soccer one year, was in a play another year. We had an art club for like a semester that I was in. In university the first time round, I did step dancing and intramural hide and seek  Second time around, I was in the linguistics club to help with assignments. (We were very much encouraged to work in pairs or groups for a lot of different classes. The only thing was that you did need to list your group members on the assignment so the prof knew who you worked with. My first morphology class in particular, we had a whole homework club where a huge portion of the class got together to work through assignments and help each other understand, and the prof would quite often show up. </tangent>

Deeper questions:

How’s your quarantine/last few months been? The cabin fever was really bad before the weather warmed up. I struggle with seasonal depression every spring, and it’s gotten much worse since we moved to Edmonton because of how long the winters are. (Snow from September to May/June? Fucccck.) It’s frankly horrifying to look at what’s going on in the US, but even though we have far fewer cases here, I’m really anxious that we’ll see another wave soon. Otherwise, I think I’ve adjusted. Home-schooling, hand-sanitizing, social distancing, masks...All feels kind of normal now, which should maybe concern me.

What do you think of human nature/society/etc.? I am like the least philosophical person you will meet so I don’t think I really have many thoughts.

What’s something you are insecure about? Writing my L2 if a native speaker is gonna read it.

What do you think is the meaning of life/reason that humans exist in the universe? I don’t think there is one, and that doesn’t bother me.

Do you think you’re better (whatever that means to you) than you used to be? Definitely. My adolescence and early adulthood was rough. I was dealing with a lot of trauma, untreated bipolar disorder, and I self-harmed for a very long time. I could not imagine making it to 30, let alone being stable and happy. I actively avoided thinking about the future because it made me spiral. But I was lucky enough to get help, consistent help from a doctor I clicked with, and it made a world of difference. I think younger me would be disappointed at how mundane my life is, but I’m thrilled to be boring because boring means no life-upending mood episodes. I have a happy partnership and two delightful kids and I couldn’t ask for more.

What are your thoughts on religion? I’m not religious and my own experience being raised in the Catholic church was frankly traumatic, but I know that it’s a source of comfort and community for many others and I think that’s awesome for them.

Do you think that there are aliens out there? I think so, although I think that we may not even know what other kinds of life to look for and may not recognize it even if we find it.

What’s something that’s been on your mind recently? We’re moving cross-country in less than a month (driving, no less, nearly 5000 km) and I still have so much to do to get ready aosjdoajdoasijdoaijsd