#i love when we bully Nate like this

[dspd]

I'm crying this is the best and funniest addition to a post I've seen in years

OK, the idea of a soulmate au where you can't look anyone but your soulmate directly in the eyes was not done with me yet.

Leverage version:

Sophie knows all the tricks for faking full eye contact. For a third-party observer, it's nigh-impossible to tell that she's not quite achieving direct eye contact short of using cameras with very good eye-tracking software. Trying to fool a mark into thinking she's their soulmate via “eye contact” is tougher, but on a mark who hasn't met their own soulmate (and thus has never experienced true full eye contact), Sophie still has a pretty good success rate. Every member of the team has been drafted as her fake soulmate on a con at least once. Or, at least, Sophie has tried. Parker failed to pick up on any of the hints Sophie was able to drop without blowing their cover, so Sophie had to switch tactics. Hardison tried valiantly to hold the near-eye-contact, and they pulled off the job, but he was struggling and his resulting nervous blather did not help the illusion at all. Eliot picked up her cues and pulled off the illusion flawlessly… and hated every second of it. The first time they faked prolonged eye contact, he ducked away to Nate's bathroom the second they got in the door, and Sophie (slightly insulted) wondered if he was going to throw up. He didn't, just practically boiled his skin off in the hottest shower he could stand. Nate is by far Sophie's most frequent “soulmate” on the job… None of the rest of the team are entirely sure whether the eye contact is fake or not, and neither Nate nor Sophie is telling.

Parker has never had any interest in making eye contact, and was genuinely unaware that this was a serious thing people actually believe in. (Sure, people talk about finding their “soulmate” through eye contact, but people also talk about summoning Bloody Mary through the bathroom mirror. That doesn't mean it's real.) The first time she looked directly into Hardison's eyes was both accidental and jarring. She averted her eyes and assumed they would never mention this uncomfortable situation again. She was not expecting Hardison to suddenly want to have an intense, excited conversation that was clearly loaded with some meaning she wasn't picking up on, and she definitely wasn't expecting him to do so while trying to eagerly stare into her eyeballs. When Eliot happened to walk in, she latched onto him like a spooked cat, demanding he do something about Hardison; there was something wrong with him, like he's possessed or something; make him stop!

Eliot has habitually avoided even the possibility of eye contact with anyone since he was in high school. (He certainly wasn't trying to lock eyes with people even before that, but, well, he and Aimee had tried once, back when they were young and naive and thought maybe they were meant to be. They weren't.) In his line of work… it was better not to know. There was just no way that would end well. He doesn't have anything against other people finding their soulmates, though. Really. So he's not quite sure why there's such a bite to his words when he snaps at Hardison to knock it off—that “soulmates” is no excuse for trying to look someone in the eye when they don't like it. But he's sure he can feel a headache forming as he's stuck between Parker's “'Soulmates'! Ha! …Oh, come on. You're kidding, right? That's not real” from one side and Hardison's horrified “Oh my god, I'm sorry! Parker, I am so, so sorry—I was just so excited, you know? I didn't realize—” start of what was clearly going to be a long and heartfelt apology on the other.

Hardison thinks soulmates are very romantic, and he's always hoped, you know? He tries not to talk too openly about it—dreaming of finding your soulmate was deemed “girly” and “wussy” by the popular boys at his high school, and he had more than enough targets on his back for bullying as a kid without drawing attention this one. He's always kind of thought he'd probably never find his, if he even had one. He did so much of his socializing with like-minded people online, and you can't make eye contact—not real eye contact—over a webcam. There have been some near misses that made his heart flip (Hell, back during that first Dubenich job, when Eliot had taken out all the Pierson guards and then given him that smug little smirk, for an instant—just for an instant—Hardison had almost thought their eyes met directly. He must have imagined it, too caught up in the incredibly sexy and unexpected display of competence on display in front of him to avoid a split second of daydreaming about what it would feel like to look straight into those incredibly blue eyes. Anyway, it had never happened again, and after working together for so long, they surely would have looked each other in the eyes by now if it were possible.), but no dice. Until now. Parker, though… Even while apologizing (he should have realized to be more careful with Parker), Hardison could barely keep the absolutely giddy smile off his face. There had been no mistaking that, and god when people talked about “getting lost” in their soulmate's eyes… Wow, they weren't kidding!

Nate will expound at length about how the concept of “soulmates” and consequently the act of making eye contact have been exploited and commercialized for all of recorded history, the absence of any scientific evidence that the rare ability to make eye contact with another person actually correlates with any real measures of relationship compatibility rather than being a random biological quirk that has been superstitiously fetishized, and (if the person who brought it up isn't desperately trying to escape the conversation yet) whether the concept soulmates is compatible with Catholic theology. Very few people last long enough through his disparagement of the entire concept to notice that he has skirted around ever actually saying whether or not he's ever made direct eye contact with another person, and even fewer are willing to risk touching off another lengthy tirade to press him on the matter.

Thanks @soulmate-au-bargain-bin for the fun idea!

[deliciousangelfestival]

The Imperfect Couple - 15

Character: politician!Bucky x ex-wife!reader

Summary: A separated couple must pretend to be happily married while the husband runs for Vice President, dealing with old issues and political pressures during his election campaign.

Warning: The couple's arguments could be triggering.

Series Masterlist

Main Masterlist || If you enjoy my work, please consider buying me a coffee on Ko-fi 🙏🏻

Thank you to everyone who has read this chapter. Leave a comment and Reblog, please. I'd love to hear your thoughts. ❤️

“Seems like you're declaring war on me,” Bucky said, his voice steady but his eyes narrowing slightly.

“Does it sound like that? Forgive me.” Steve set the golf club down, a smirk playing on his lips. “What I meant is, we have to be aware of everything. We're this close to winning.”

“I agree.” Bucky replied, his expression calm, though his mind churned with unspoken thoughts.

“This is why I trust you.” Steve clapped him on the shoulder. “Remember, we're playing in the highest league now.”

Steve paused before adding casually, “By the way, my son wants to visit Nate. Is that okay with you?”

“I'll let my wife and Nate know,” Bucky responded, his voice neutral, though he felt a flicker of unease.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

When Bucky got home, he saw you sitting cross-legged on the floor with Nate, working on a puzzle together. You both seemed relaxed, unaware of the weight he carried from the conversation with Steve. He walked over, his movements deliberate, and knelt beside Nate.

“Nate, buddy, can you go to your room for a bit? I need to talk to your aunt,” Bucky said gently, placing a hand on Nate’s shoulder.

Nate, always obedient, nodded. “Okay, Uncle Bucky,” he said before scooping up a few puzzle pieces and heading inside.

Once it was just the two of you, you glanced at Bucky and noticed his exhausted expression. He looked like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

“What? Did something worse just hit you?” you asked, raising an eyebrow.

Bucky took a breath, his jaw tightening. “Did you just involve Ian?” His tone was calm, but his eyes betrayed his frustration.

You widened your eyes, momentarily caught off guard by the question. That single look was enough for him to sigh deeply, running a hand through his hair. “I…” His hands clenched into fists momentarily. He wanted to be angry, knowing full well this would put you on Steve’s radar.

“Just… tell Ian to slow down,” Bucky muttered, clearly uneasy.

“I can’t,” you said softly but firmly. “The way Ian works is far more efficient than anything I could do.”

Bucky rubbed his temples, his frustration mounting. “Then I hope God protects him.”

“Bucky…” you stepped closer, your voice serious. “Be honest with me. Is he in danger?”

Bucky looked down, his hands braced on the counter, his shoulders tense. “Steve just gave me a warning. It won’t matter to him if there’s blood on his hands.”

Your heart dropped. ‘Fuck,’ you thought as panic began to bubble inside. You immediately grabbed your phone and dialed Ian, but there was no answer. Frustration and fear mingled in your chest as you quickly texted him instead: Be careful. Eyes and ears everywhere.

You glanced at Bucky, your stomach twisting. “By the way, the Rogers twins want to come here to play with Nate,” Bucky added as if it were a casual comment, though his voice carried an edge.

“You allowed that?” you asked, the disbelief evident in your tone.

The mention of the twins unsettled you. Your mind flashed back to watching The Shining in secret with Tim, and how the twins in that movie had always given you the creeps. That eerie feeling wasn’t just from the film anymore—it was rooted in real life. You had learned the truth: William and Charles, Steve's sons, had a reputation for bullying other students. The thought of them around Nate made your skin crawl.

Would they be a good influence on Nate? You highly doubted it.

Bucky gave a tired shrug. “I can’t say no to the future president, right?”

You pressed your lips into a thin line, knowing there was little you could do to stop it. But one thing was clear—you would be keeping a very close eye on them when they came to visit.

🌸🌸🌸🌸

The twins arrived at the house, their faces lit up with matching grins, excitement practically radiating off them. Nate, catching sight of them, bolted to the door, his small body bouncing with joy.

"William! Charles!" Nate called out, bouncing on his toes as he welcomed them in. His innocent joy was palpable—he was simply happy to have people he knew coming to play with him.

"Hey, buddy," William said, ruffling Nate’s hair as they walked inside.

After a brief exchange, they settled in front of the game console, and soon, the twins had chosen a violent shooter game. The screen flickered with gunfire and explosions, the sound effects jarring in the otherwise quiet room. Nate, seated between them, initially watched in awe but quickly became uncomfortable.

His tiny hands shot up to cover his eyes, and he flinched with every loud noise, his body tense as he pressed himself into the couch. He covered his ears, trying to block out the unsettling sounds, but he didn’t say a word, not wanting to ruin the moment.

You watched from a distance, trying not to be the nosy adult. You wanted to give them space, but seeing Nate’s frightened reaction twisted something in your gut. Likewise, you couldn’t stand by anymore. Walking over to the boys, you kept your tone polite, but firm.

“Guys,” you said, your voice cutting through the sounds of the game, “is there another game that’s not as scary? Look, Nate’s getting scared.”

William glanced down at Nate, who was huddled close to him. “Oh, why didn’t you say something, buddy?” he said, patting Nate’s shoulder as if that would fix everything.

Charles sighed and turned off the violent game, switching to something more child-friendly. "Here, we’ve got a game for you, Nate." He scrolled through the options and selected a bright, colorful one with cartoon rabbits running a restaurant.

The second the screen changed, Nate’s face lit up. “Wow!” he exclaimed, his fear dissolving as he leaned forward, eager to play. The teenage boys, now seemingly patient, guided him through the simple controls, explaining how to serve food to the cartoon animals. You felt a wave of relief. Maybe—just maybe—the twins weren’t as bad as you had feared.

Later, the boys decided to go swimming. You sat on a poolside chair, keeping a close eye on Nate. He was wearing a floatie around his small frame, happily splashing in the shallow end while William and Charles horsed around further away.

Suddenly, your phone buzzed. It was Ian. "H...ell...o"

You stood up, checking the signal, which was terrible. Frowning, you moved toward the balcony. The pool was indoors, so you stepped outside, hoping for better reception.

“I just got your text,” Ian said when the call finally connected. His voice was rough, but you could hear his smirk through the line. “You know this isn’t going to stop me.”

“I’m serious, Ian,” you replied, leaning against the balcony rail. “Bucky told me directly. You’re in danger.”

A pause, and then Ian’s voice, low and almost teasing, came through. “Hmm… Guess where I am right now?”

You sighed, trying to play along. “London? Since you went home, right?”

“Nope. Paris. And I’ve found something—something lethal enough to kill Steve,” Ian said, his tone dark with implication.

Paris? You froze. Was this related to Hazel? Your heart pounded with a new surge of anxiety. “Ian, don’t—”

But before you could finish, you heard it. A splash—loud, frantic. You turned around, the blood draining from your face. In the water, you saw a small hand desperately reaching out, the floatie floating uselessly nearby. It was Nate.

Panic gripped you like a vice. “Nate!” you screamed, dropping your phone as you sprinted back inside.

Without hesitation, you dove into the pool, your body hitting the cold water like a shock to your system. Your hands reached for him, pulling Nate’s tiny, trembling body to the surface. His arms latched around your neck in a vice grip, coughing and sputtering as you lifted him from the water.

He gasped, burying his face against your shoulder, his small body shaking as he clung to you. “He…he can’t swim!” you snapped at the twins, your voice filled with raw anger.

William and Charles stood there on the edge of the pool, unfazed. “That’s why we were teaching him,” they answered in unison, their tone almost dismissive.

Nate let out a pained cough, his voice weak. “My nose hurts…” he whimpered, rubbing his face against your neck.

Your heart ached at the sight of him, vulnerable and hurt. Anger surged through you like a tidal wave, and you glared at the twins. You remembered that they both just watched while Nate was drowning. Without raising your voice, you pointed to the door, your finger shaking with fury. “Get out. Now.”

The command echoed in the room, sharp and unforgiving. William and Charles flinched, startled by the intensity in your voice. Without a word, they quickly grabbed their things, shooting one last glance at each other before rushing out the door.

You stayed in the pool, holding Nate close, your teeth gritted in anger and your heart still pounding. You knew then—those boys were never going to be allowed near Nate again. Not after this.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

The twins walked into the Roger household, their shoulders slumped, clearly sensing the storm waiting for them. Behind them, Peggy followed with a stern but composed expression. As they stepped further into the room, the tension was palpable—Steve stood there, arms crossed, his face hard as stone. He had heard everything from you, and his sons could feel his fury even before he said a word.

William and Charles instinctively moved closer to Peggy, seeking the safety of her presence as if she could shield them from the inevitable.

Peggy, sensing the mounting tension, stepped forward slightly, her voice calm but firm. “Steve, calm down. I will talk to them.”

Steve let out a frustrated sigh, his clenched jaw releasing only slightly. “I’m not going to yell,” he said through gritted teeth. “But I need to say something.”

He fixed his cold gaze on his sons. “Both of you will be homeschooled from now on.”

The twins’ faces fell in disbelief. “Dad, no!” William blurted, and Charles’ mouth hung open, too stunned to speak.

“I know,” Steve said, his voice quieter now, but there was no softness in it. “I know the main reason for your behavior is because your mother and I have been too busy for you. We never spent time together as a family.” His arms unfolded, and to their surprise, he pulled them into a hug. “So, homeschooling is the best option, isn’t it?” His tone sounded almost tender, but underneath it lay a cold warning.

William and Charles glanced at each other, then back at Peggy, silently pleading for her to intervene. But she didn’t. She stood still, her lips pressed tightly together, offering no rescue.

“Good children don’t question their parents,” Steve said, his voice dropping low. “You just say, ‘Yes, father.’”

The twins swallowed hard, a sinking feeling settling in their chests. “Yes, father,” they muttered in unison, their voices barely above a whisper. It felt as though their every move would now be monitored.

Steve’s lips curled into a smile, but it wasn’t warm—it was the smile of a man in control. “Good. Now, go back to your rooms.”

The boys moved quietly, retreating upstairs, the weight of Steve’s words heavy on their shoulders.

Once they were out of sight, Steve’s smile faded. He turned toward Peggy, his tone biting. “This is why I never wanted to send them to boarding school in the first place. They needed parental guidance, not strict school rules.”

Peggy’s eyes narrowed, a tired look crossing her face. “Don’t start again, Steve. That decision was made by my father.”

Steve’s expression darkened at the mention of her father. His voice dripped with bitterness. “Oh yeah, him. I almost forgot. I’m glad he’s dead.”

Peggy’s face tensed, a flare of anger sparking in her eyes. “When will you stop badmouthing my father?”

Steve’s cold stare met hers. “Never.”

Steve had lived a life bound by duty, his role in the military shaping every part of him. He was a good soldier—respected, disciplined, and obedient. But despite his loyalty, promotions came slowly. His lack of a powerful family background meant he was always overlooked by those with better connections. Essentially, Steve was an orphan—without anyone to vouch for him, he was left behind.

He knew how the system worked. If you didn’t have the right name, the right family, there was always a price to pay. And Steve had paid it, doing the dirty work of his superiors without question, sacrificing his principles just to keep his place. The worst part of it all was that his commanding officer, General Carter, was his father-in-law.

Every step of his career, Steve had been a puppet for the man who held both his professional and personal life in his hands. The weight of it bore down on him every day.

“Good soldiers don’t ask why,” General Carter always said this to him. “They just say, ‘Yes, sir.’”

"Yes, sir." Steve answer it like he's a robot.

At some point, Steve had everything he’d ever thought he wanted—marriage, a steady career, money, and status. On paper, he should have been happy. But he wasn’t. His life felt dull, empty, like the spark had been drained from it.

The day he realized the truth hit him like a punch in the gut. He wasn’t his own man—he was nothing more than a tool for his father-in-law, a puppet dancing to someone else’s tune.

That was the moment he had enough. The frustration, the years of silently obeying, simmered into anger. He wanted to be the one in control. He was tired of taking orders—he wanted to be the one giving them.

Steve’s life had been dull for years, a constant routine of military duties, politics, and the weight of expectations. Until the day he met Hazel. She was much younger than him—vibrant, full of life—and he was supposed to give her advice, to help steer her back home. Julius and Caroline had asked him to help their daughter stop running away. But when Steve sat with Hazel and listened to her story, something shifted. Her reasons for running, the pressures she felt—her life mirrored his own struggles. For the first time in years, he felt empathy.

He told her, quietly, “If you ever need someone to talk to, you can find me.”

And from there, things changed. They grew closer, and eventually, more intimate. He knew it was wrong—cheating on his family, betraying his friends—but for the first time, Steve felt alive again. The numbness of his life vanished in her presence, replaced by something that burned, something real. And then came Nate, the baby born out of that connection, out of a love he hadn’t felt in years.

Steve’s thoughts snapped back to the present. His jaw clenched tightly as he faced Peggy. “Did you tell them to hurt Nate?”

Peggy stood her ground, her face a mix of frustration and cold calculation. “No,” she said flatly. “But they’re smart enough to figure out why their father cares so much about that kid, and why he’s always…” She hesitated, her lips curling into a thin smile. “Spending time with his little girlfriend. Maybe they’re just releasing their anger.”

Steve’s fists tightened until his knuckles turned white. “When I get into the White House, you won’t be coming with me.”

Peggy’s eyes narrowed, but she didn’t flinch. “And what then?” she said with a mocking tilt to her voice. “You think you’re going to put that girl in my place? Have you forgotten who you are? You were a beggar, crawling to my father for help.”

Steve’s eyes darkened, a dangerous calm settling over him. “And this beggar has crawled his way to victory,” he said slowly, his voice low but filled with menace. “You can act high and mighty because of me. Don’t forget that I can take it all away from you.” He stepped closer, his words laced with venom. “Remember how your family got their business permits? How they were saved from corruption charges and tax evasion? That was because of me.”

Peggy let out a scoff, her eyes filled with disdain. “You think you’re a king now?” She crossed her arms, shaking her head. “I actually pity her, you know. Because one day, she’ll feel exactly what I felt. You’ll never be satisfied, Steve. You’ll never have enough.”

She turned to leave, her hand on the door. Before stepping out, Peggy glanced back at him, her eyes filled with cold certainty. “Never.”

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

You sat beside Nate, your heart heavy as you watched his small chest rise and fall, his face flushed with fever. The doctor had just left, handing you a bottle of medicine. "Make sure he drinks this, and let him rest completely," he’d said before exchanging a few quiet words with Bucky and leaving the apartment.

Nate’s red, feverish face made your heart ache. He had been through so much in just a few hours. You gently wiped a damp cloth over his forehead as Bucky sat beside you, silent and tense.

"Never, ever let Nate be alone with them again," you said, your voice firm.

Bucky nodded, his expression serious. "I agree. And I’m sorry. I never thought they’d pull something like that."

“Don’t underestimate underage kids,” you warned, your voice sharp. “There are so many cases where perpetrators can’t be jailed because they’re underage.”

Bucky’s jaw tightened. "Noted. I won’t forget that."

A brief silence passed, then you asked, “Have you called Hazel?”

“I tried, but I couldn’t reach her. I called her assistant, though.”

You nodded, your mind still spinning. The memory of Nate sinking beneath the water haunted you, but there was something else gnawing at you—you hadn’t finished your conversation with Ian.

Excusing yourself, you left the room and grabbed your phone, your stomach dropping when you noticed the cracked screen from when you’d dropped it before diving into the pool.

You dialed Ian’s number, your fingers trembling as you pressed it to your ear. The first ring echoed, unanswered. Your heart pounded faster. The second ring—nothing. A cold sense of unease crept into your chest. Why wasn’t he answering?

On the third try, the ringing stopped abruptly, and you exhaled in relief. “Hello? Ian?” you asked quickly, your voice tight with worry.

There was a pause on the other end, then a voice you didn’t expect—familiar, but not Ian’s.

“Y/N?”

You froze, confusion flooding your mind. “Hazel? Why are you answering Ian’s phone?” Panic started to rise inside you, the pieces beginning to fall into place. Ian had gone to Paris. He had found something—something connected to Hazel and Steve.

“He… he can’t answer it,” Hazel whispered, her voice breaking.

Your breath caught in your throat, a chill racing down your spine. “Why?” The word came out in a shaky breath.

There was a long silence before Hazel finally spoke, her words hitting you like a sledgehammer.

“Because he’s dead.”

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[malereadermaniac]

Toxic ~ Nate Jacobs x Male Reader

We all love a little toxic relationship with some dick who bullies you due to his own insecurity Top!Nate x Bottom!Reader word count: 1.6k Nsfw / MDNI ~ amab m!reader / FDNI

He bullied the shit out of you for being gay

Not regular bullying, but like psychological shit

Nate would make small comments about you to a crowd of people, making you uncomfortable for the rest of the night

Or when the two of you were left alone in a room he would call you a f@g when you try to make conversation

However late at night, your phone would be buzzing with notifications from him snapping you

But you were popular, so he couldn't harass you too much - especially once you became friends with Maddy

You were a regular at parties, so he'd see you there

Every time Nate got drunk, he'd catch his eyes on you more than he'd like

On your body, warm from the heat of everyone dancing and the alcohol in your system

It didn't help that like everyone else, you dressed like a model every time you left the house - but at parties that was tenfold

You wore virtually no clothes, pretty much forcing Nate's eyes to glue to your thighs, your waist, your ass as it peaked out from your shorts

He also liked how you kept your body hairless, just like Maddy

He would be repulsed if you didn't, so when you raise your arms as you dance, he notices your freshly shaved arms and armpits

After Maddy and Nate were finally broken up, more parties happened

And even though girls tried and succeed to get with Nate, he didn't care for them

They were hookups to him, he noticed them once they put themselves out in front of him

But you

Nate noticed you the second you walked into any party

Maybe it was because when you walked in, people rushed to you to say hi and kiss and hug

But he couldn't deny that when he arrived at any party, part of him was scanning the room for you

Nate fucking hated it

He couldn't even admit it to himself that he piqued an interest in you

He reminded himself that he wasn't gay, he wasn't a f@g he would say to himself

Nate was tipsy and couldn't take his eyes off of you

He would try to find things he hated about you, but he just thought of how hot you looked as you danced with your friends, guys all up on you after they've had a couple of drinks

He noticed you were heading to the bathroom, so after taking a quick shot of whatever he could find, he followed you

Once you got into the bathroom of whoever was hosting that night, Nate forced his way in and locked the door behind him

"What the fuck Nate!?" You shout, scared by the current situation

"Shut up.." Nate mumbles as he gets closer to you

His rough hand cups tour cheek

You look up at the muscular Jock, his eyes hazy looking into yours

Nate focused on your lips, then your eyes, then you lips again

His hand was warm on your cheek

He gave in finally and kissed you

It felt warm, definitely wet and definitely very passionate

Like Nate had been waiting a while to do this

A moan slipped out of your mouth into his as the two of you made out

Nate's other hand snaking around your waist

You can feel his muscles against your body as Nate moans into your mouth, his hand on your cheek feeling hot

Nate's tongue toyed with yours as you closed your eyes, his fingers tracing circles on your skin

You felt his hard-on poke you, Nate groaning into your mouth as he pushes his dick against yours

He picks you up, Nate's strong, huge arms holding you up from under your thighs, your arms around his neck as the two of you keep making-out

The sound of lips crashing against one another and muffled moans echo inside the bathroom

Nate grinds his hard dick up against your ass

You feel lightheaded and hot, breaking the kiss and gasping for air, resting your forehead on Nate's built shoulder

"Hey... Help me out here, (y/n)" Nate whispers breathlessly into your ear, making a point of grinding up against you

"Oh yeah? And how should I do that?" You reply, just as breathlessly

More kissing takes place as Nate let's you down from his arms

His hot tongue dancing around yours, Nate's rough, big hands rubbing all over your body

You get on your knees and Nate leans against the sink counter, his body looking godly as you look up at Nate with hooded eyes

He was big, you could feel it through his loose shorts

You remember little from that night, but you definitely remember the sounds that Nate made, he was convinced that was the best head of his life

The two of you became a regular thing, he would bully u less in exchange for late night hookups in his car

He would pull up to your house, text you to come outside and wouldn't say a word to you until he pulled up to your hookup spot

The drive over was always interesting, you'd always wear something Nate liked, you could see his dick hard in his pants and Nate would look over at every chance he got but he would stay silent

He would put your seat down and start kissing you, the windows steaming up as the two of you dry hump each other as you make out

He would start gently with you, but soon Nate would get too horny and fuck you senseless

It was never more than that, you didn't allow yourself to fall for Nate cause he bullied u and was a closeted cunt

He was a dick after the two of you fucked, he would let you both calm down and then tell you to dress back up

He'd drive you home and say "night" and that's all

But Nate was surely falling for you though, after sex he could pretend to fall asleep just to hold you

His big body on top of yours, your cum and his drying on yours and his stomach, sweat making you stick to his seat but tiredness allowing you to fall asleep with him

He liked how big he was compared to you, Nate would get up after you fall asleep and admire you

He hated himself for it, but in the moment he couldn't care less

You looked hot, covered in his spit and sweat and cum, looking peaceful and moonlit as you sleep

Nate eventually invested in baby wipes that he would keep in his car, wiping you down gently as you slept, dressing you up and driving you home, but once you wake up, Nate would continue with his silence and drop you home with a short "night"

But you'd notice... you were wearing his sweatshirt

His massive sweatshirt which smelt like him and felt warm against your skin...

Fuck. You like the cunt that bullied you relentlessly and that is very much closeted

But after that, the two of u became somewhat exclusive (only secretly) Nate really showed how toxic he gets

Cause nobody knew the two of you were a thing, girls would jump on him and he would do nothing about it

Maddy didn't dare talk to him, she was better than that, but other girls definitely tried to get with Nate

He never actually did anything with them, but Nate didn't care that you saw how they all flirted with him, and he really didn't care how that made you feel

Most nights would end in arguments over text on Nate's harem of girls that would flirt with him

He would always play innocent and call you crazy, but you'd never let him gaslight you, so most nights the two of you wouldn't be on talking terms

That is until he goes through the effort of posting an "I'm sorry" card through your letterbox

He won your little game every time he apologised, because you're always sure he means it, that is until he fucks up again the next day

One day you had enough, binned his letter and stopped talking to him

Nate was fuming, he spend 6 hours in the gym that day

You had 23 un-opened snaps and messages from him

It stressed him out you wouldn't talk to him - he did like you, he was also frustrated that you were withholding sex, but most of all he was terrified you would out him

He heard that you had a free house that day and turned up at your house, forcing hid way in when you opened the door - reminiscing of that first night

A lot of shouting ensued

But after that... a LOT of making out followed

You were sat on your bed, grinding against each other, you sat on Nate's lap as you made out for ages

Once Nate started begging to let him fuck you, you stripped down for him

At some point during the night, you though you had broken your bed, from the amount of creaking you two were causing

But the night ended well nonetheless

Nate made you watch as he blocked everyone of the girls that liked him

The two of you made out until you were too tired to keep going

Nate slept over for the first time, he felt comfortable

You body against his, sleeping on his huge chest

For the first time ever, Nate wasn't arguing with himself over his very homo actions

He just let himself feel you and enjoy you as he fell asleep

[austronauts]

we need to talk about mitch’s interview on 32 thoughts can u please gather around

first of all mitch sounds so congested it’s no wonder he’s always sneef snorfing

i’ve never heard mitch sound more articulately authoritative than when talking about the evolution of building in fortnite (also jeff and elliotte enthusiastically guffawing in reaction to mitch talking about fortnite LIKE THEY HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT HE MEANS lmao)

apparently the leafs teammate he plays the most video games with is RYAN REAVES. for about an hour and a half after leafs games to unwind. REAVO. and MITCH. mitch also made sure to point out that reavo has TWO KIDS and is a busy father bc of course he did. “this busy working father of two still makes time after a long grueling workday for me :3” mitchell marner do u hear urself?

also u know how uncles hate mitch bc he plays video games and wears hats and hits the griddy instead of benching testosterroni pizza at the gym to get swole, and they had hopes that reavo would bully mitch into growing tf up and being a MAN - well. the reavo in question is dialed in on CoD with mitch marner rn taking out NPC’s. lol and lmao even

mitch mentions zeus so many times like. so many times. he also takes the time to explain “zeus, my chocolate lab” as if every human and dog in canada don’t already know mitch’s dog is a chocolate lab named zeus.

he mentions his dog so much i got confused when mitch started talking about “the dogg” aka nathan mackinnon bc i was like wait zeus did what now

his story about him and nate at biosteel camp had me GIGGLING bc you can so see nate doing exactly this: “i skated with [nate] at biosteel camp a couple of yrs ago. i didn't make a play to him & you would've thought it was an olympic gold medal game based on how he was talking to me on the bench. i was like 'nate. we're sitting here at this camp. what do you want me to do?’”

obviously i know mitch and nate are fond of each other (the dynamics of which in itself are so funny to me)

but i just love how nate has been like: ohhhh tiny nerdy mitch i wish i could kidnap him and take him to colorado what a great little marns

and then mitch is like: that man is insane!! he yelled at me!!!!!!!

mitch got all modest and shy when asked what it would be like to be on a line with nate representing canada in the olympics and demurred like “ohhhh gosh 🥹🥺 well first i have to make the team and it would just be an HONOUR to be chosen for such a thing 🥹🥺 im just little ole me” like…first of all ok girl we all know ur gonna be there

[itsclydebitches]

We've all rightly been gushing over Trent listening in on the parent-teacher conference and there are a lot of cool interpretations for why he'd eavesdrop: a crush on Ted, a tendency towards gossip (as seen in "International Break"), the fact that you just can't take the journalism out of the boy, Trent is clearly picking up personal tidbits for the book if the group's initial "Don't print that" worries are any indication, etc. So yeah, it's clear why he'd want/be okay with the door staying open.

Meanwhile, I'm slightly feral over Ted letting the door stay open and what that conveys to Trent.

Based on what we've picked up about his personal life and the direction of this season, we have good reason to believe that Trent was a deeply isolated man prior to Ted arriving. His job makes enemies simply by virtue of the profession itself, especially when you "bring the heat" as hard as he did. Roy flipping the press off at the gala in Season 1 and Nate sneaking out at dark this last episode shows us how journalists are treated on the regular: ignored, dismissed, told to "fuck off" as a matter of course. That's often well deserved, as Roy's two personal stories (Trent's article about him + the response to Isaac's attack) attest, but the end result is still a profession that alienates you from anyone other than your peers. When you're a "colossal prick" in your articles, people hate you all the more.

So Trent at least has other journalist buddies, yeah? Well, not that we've seen. I always think back to that chorus of "--The Independent" in the press room when everyone knew what Trent was going to say and how it... wasn't entirely fun ribbing. I think there's a fair bit of mockery there. Even if others disagree, I doubt that was received well by someone who wears their professionalism as an armor, who takes off his glasses as soon as they're complimented, who was, notably, closeted into his 40s. Trent is a man who is deeply aware of how others perceive him (pointing out his "vibe" feels quite calculated now: highlight what you want people to notice rather than waiting for them to find something on their own) and he is likely to read the worst of most interactions. Cue his shocked, "You really mean that, don't you?" when faced with someone like Ted who is not only genuinely nice, but blunt about it in a way that Trent can't misunderstand, or brush off via denial.

What's his home life like? Married to a woman when he's gay and that's putting a serious strain on them both. He tries to come out and isn't believed. The only other family members we know about are a toddler (who, while lovely I'm sure, can't provide Trent with the kind of emotional support an adult needs) and a father who, if we read the series through Lance's headcanons, may not have been very supportive of his son. Who else does Trent know? Uhhh... other subjects who hate him? Owners like Rebecca who want to use him? A random, potential date that he felt so little for he ditched to get a quote?

(EDIT: I can't believe I forgot to mention the strong implications that Ted was bullied in childhood/as a teenager, based on how he reacts to the whole of the club ignoring him -- resigned but unsurprised -- his reaction to Roy telling him to fuck off after he tries to mend that relationship -- disappointedly awkward "I can't believe I even tried that. What was I thinking?" -- and his body language during the locker room scene -- jumping, furtive glances towards Ted, backed up against the shower stall because shit, he's been in this situation before.

So uh, yeah. Trent may not have had a lot of friends growing up either! That was not the response of a social butterfly, but rather someone who is already very used to being ignored/dismissed/cursed out/threatened, not just within his profession, but within the school-like atmosphere of Richmond's family too.)

I'm by no means reinventing the meta wheel here, but Trent has truly undergone a STAGGERING transformation in Season 3 and the result of that is the reframing of his Season 1 and 2 scenes as, frankly, more depressing than they originally seemed. Seeing him now smiling, singing, gossiping, dressing just in t-shirts, casually snacking, making jokes, letting go enough to be a complete, hyperactive "dork" in front of others... it just hammers home how deeply unhappy Trent was before. How closed off. How closeted--in more ways than one.

So what must it mean to someone like Trent for Ted to leave the door open?

It's not just an open invitation towards community--sit near me, listen in, quietly participate, there's literally no barrier between us--but a staggeringly personal one too. I don't care if a 10-ish year old failing science is inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, the fact remains that letting anyone hear a parent-teacher conference with your ex is a hell of a show of trust. That would mean a lot to Trent in general, this acknowledgement that someone trusts the ex-prick journalist with that amount of personal information, but Ted in particular? Oh boy. Ted is the one Trent betrayed with that article! And yeah, Ted forgave him the instant he learned of it, but Trent himself was obviously feeling a lot of guilt, hence him burning his source and orchestrating a firing. Toss in the fact that Ted, despite being a VERY open man on the regular (I still laugh at his "I don't mind" to Rebecca when over-sharing about Michelle) has in fact denied Trent information in the past. No, I won't tell you that was a panic attack. Yes, I will continue the lie that it was food poisoning. Perhaps for Ted it was less about Trent knowing and more about anyone getting at the truth, but at the end of the day it amounts to the same: there was a time when Ted did not fully trust him and Trent justified that fear by writing the very article Ted was looking to avoid, even if Trent approached that situation with as much grace as he could.

So this moment, beyond the humor, just makes my brain go !!!!!! for Trent. Ted Lasso, of all people, has left the door open for Trent Crimm, also of all people, to hear the messy details of his, Henry, and Michelle's life. He is not at all afraid that this information will be spun in a bad light--Local Gaffer's Son Suffers While Father Plays at Coach Across the Pond--despite the fact that Trent is actively writing a book about him. Trent himself is so unguarded in this moment, dressed only in a t-shirt, playing around with his orange, making little quips. The Trent of Season 1 would NEVER. I mean, I think we see small glimpses of the real Trent back then, especially when Ted amuses him enough to coax his guard down for half a second (Trent's reaction to “Make like Dunst and Union and bring it on, baby!" comes to mind. That's a gesture we're seeing a lot now that he's comfortable around the club), but on the whole he was still so, so, so isolated. No one knew the real him: gay, funny, dorky, inquisitive, longing for companionship and using the artificial 'closeness' of journalism to cover that ache up.

Now? Trent is fully a part of the Richmond community and he knows he's a part of it because everyone--Ted, Beard, Roy, Colin, Rebecca--are going out of their way to tell him that, notably in very overt ways. Trent strikes me as someone who wouldn't fully believe it when he's told someone enjoys his company; the kind of wounded, anxiety-prone person who, if casually invited to participate, would assume they're just being polite and he'd actually be an annoyance to them. Trent needs overt, obvious, beat-you-over-the-head-with-it reassurance, which is why Ted is so very good for him because Ted is composed of THE most over-the-top positivity you've ever seen. (Compare that need of Trent's to Michelle thinking that Ted is too much...) When faced with a defensive journalist Ted says explicitly that he liked spending time with Trent. When faced with a still unsure writer who thinks of himself only as an observer--never a part of the team himself--Ted literally begs with monkey noises to hear Trent's opinions. He's blunt to the point of absurdity and someone like Trent who has likely spent the majority of his life hiding/being told that his true self is inadequate needs that level of constant, neon-light reassurance.

So Ted leaves the door open to a personal conversation, refusing to literally bar Trent from his life. The best part? Colin re-opens the door because he understands Trent and he knows his coach; of course Ted wants him included. Colin asks permission to CLOSE the door, not open it, and Trent is seeing this openness again and again over the course of several months, with each episode bringing him further out of his shell as he slowly unlearns that self-doubt. Yes, please stay, please tell us what you think, please offer your advice, please join our Diamond Dogs, please ask us questions (they're no longer perceived as a threat), please become an integral part of our lives. We trust you and we like you and we want you here.

Everyone's waiting for Trent to catch the door again because, you know, the rule of three, but what if he doesn't need to? What if he's past slipping a hand or a foot through the crack and scraping by on what that gets him? He caught the door before it could close to get closer to Colin. He caught the door before it could close to get closer to Ted. Now they've both kept the door open for him, his presence welcomed from the get-go.

Trent doesn't need to sprint for that opening anymore.

[imagininghim]

Go ahead, try me.

A/N: I had a very spicy dream of Nate Jacobs so of course I had to write it for you guys to enjoy too 😘

Now, this isn't fully based off the storyline of Euphoria because I know Nate had a list of standards but I wanted to change it up and match my spicy dream.

So, please sit back and enjoy!

Nate Jacobs x Plus size!Reader

Trigger warnings: smut, fingering, sex, oral (f receiving), swearing, drug use, and if I forgot anything else please tell me and I will add it.

Being Nate's best friend and occasional hookup wasn't all it was cracked up to be but who said it was?

Nate and I had been best friends since we were in the fourth grade. It all had started when Nate beat up my bully for calling me a fat pig. You see, I have always been more on the plus-size and to some people that meant I was the butt of their cruel jokes but Nate didn't.

As the years went on, Nate and I stayed inseparable. Well, that was until he met Maddy.

Now don't get me wrong, I love Maddy and she is one of my best friends but when she started her on and off again relationship with Nate I couldn't help but envy her but that all changed one night.

The power couple had gotten into another one of their arguments which eventually led to them breaking up to which then led Nate into texting me to come over.

Nate 😈

Come over, Maddy and I broke up.

Me

I'm on the way.

This was typical of Nate, he and Maddy would break up, he would text me to come over and then we would fuck all the pent up jealousy and anger the two of us had before smoking a joint out his bedroom window.

This leads us into the start of our story.

"So, what happened this time?" I questioned taking a hit before passing it over to Nate.

"Stupid bullshit as usual, nothing new."

"Seems to be like that all the time, lately" Nate shrugged before handing me back the blunt. "I know it's not my place but, have you ever thought of just staying broken up? Instead of doing the on-again-off-again." I questioned as he chuckled.

"I have, but I don't know. Something keeps dragging me back." Reaching over, he took the blunt from between my fingers and began to speak. "Sometimes I wonder about us." I furrowed my brows at him in confusion.

"Us? What about us?" Nate smiled before turning his head to blow out the smoke.

"What it would be like if you and I were a thing and not me and Maddy. I wonder if I never had've went with her and you instead, would it be better? Would've we been happier?" I stare at Nate as he stares back.

"I wonder that too sometimes. What it would be like to wake up in your arms, to not have to watch you be with someone who brings out the worst in you." Before I knew it, we began leaning into each other, glancing at each other before he pressed his lips to mine.

At first it was slow and passionate but then it turned into rough and needy before I knew it, Nate had put out the blunt and pulled me onto his lap.

"You know something," He began, pressing kisses to my neck and occasionally sucking. "I've always thought about what it would be like to call you mine."

The next day:

After last night with Nate, I swear he was falling for me but little did I know I was dead wrong. I was standing at my locker, getting ready to head home for the day when Kat approached me.

"Hey (Y/N)! Did you hear Maddy and Nate are back together?" I felt my blood run cold.

"What? When did that happen?" I questioned still staring into my locker and trying to avoid making eye contact with her.

"Apparently last night, Maddy said that Nate had called her and told her how much he fucked up, how she was the only one for him, and a bunch of other bullshit." Kat said with annoyance lacing her tone. Trying to keep a facade on for her, I turned closing my locker and faced her just as Nate and Maddy made their way down the hall.

"Hey bitches!" Maddy said coming towards Kat and I. Nate stared me down as we talked.

"Hey, I see you or two are back together." I responded not taking my eyes off of Nate.

"Yeah, we made up last night. You know how it is." Maddy said clutching Nate's hand. "(Y/N), are you coming with Cassie, Kat, and I to the carnival tonight?" Breaking my eye contact from Nate, I looked back at my friend and responded without thinking.

"Uh, I'm not sure. I might have plans with someone." I blurted out before I had the chance to think about what I had just said. This made Nate's eyes narrow at me.

"Oh yeah, with who?" Nate finally spoke.

"Just someone. Anyways, I gotta run but I'll try to make it tonight!" And with that I brushed past Nate and made my way down the hall.

As, I made my way down the street I began to think of ways to get out of the plans for tonight when a car horn breaks me out of my thoughts, turning to look, I was surprised to see Aaron Jacobs staring back at me.

"(Y/N), right? Nate's friend?" He questioned, I nodded in response. "Did you wanna ride? I'm surprised Nate didn't offer one." I was surprised at first before nodding again and walking over to his car.

"Yeah, he and Maddy are back together so I didn't wanna wait around and be a third wheel." Aaron nodded back before starting the car and making his way down the street.

"Understandable, to be honest, I always thought you and Nate were dating. Every time I asked about you, he would get all defensive and protective." My heart skipped a beat at the thought of Nate being protective of me.

"You asked about me?" I questioned looking over at Aaron who stared back at me.

"Yeah, I always thought you were really pretty and was kinda hoping you were single." Until now, I never put much thought into Aaron. I only ever seen him as Nate's older brother but now that I really get to look at him, I've taken note he's really cute and sweet.

"Awe, that's so sweet and yeah, I am single."

"Really? Would you maybe wanna go out sometime?"

"Yeah, sure! How about tonight?" I questioned with hopefulness.

"Yeah, I'll pick you up at 7." The car came to a stop as I got out and waved to Aaron.

Nate will never see this coming.

Time skip:

"I had a really great time Aaron." I said with a smile as we approached the Jacobs chilly table. Nate's head shot up at the sound of my voice, his eyes immediately narrowing at the sight of my hand intertwined with Aaron's.

"I did too, maybe we can do it again sometime soon?"

"Yeah, I would love that." Aaron leaned down and placed a kiss on my lips to my surprise. After a few moments, I kissed him back. Once we pulled away, I looked over to see an extremely angry Nate.

"Well, well, well, look who we have here." Marsha said coming towards Aaron and I. "I have to say, I didn't see this coming (Y/N). I always thought you would end up with Nate and not that god awful Maddy." With a small chuckle, I responded.

"Nate and I are just friends but I ran into Aaron on my way home from school and he asked me out on a date! So, here we are!" I smiled but as Marsha was about to respond Nate stood up.

"(Y/N), can I talk to you for a moment?" Before I had the chance to respond, Nate had ahold of my wrist and was dragging me into a dark alley between two trailers.

"Nate, stop! You're hurting me." He turned and let got my wrist and wrapped his hand around my throat while slamming me against the wall of the trailer.

"I don't know who the fuck you think you are, coming in here and thinking you run the fucking show but news flash you don't." Nate seethed with anger. My nails clawed at his hands as I tried to get him to loosen his grip.

Through baited breath, I sneered out "Fuck you Nate Jacobs." I could see his jaw clench from anger as he stared me down.

"No, but you will." And with that he released his grip on my throat for a second to only flip me around so my cheek was pressed against the cold metal of the trailer and reposition his hand onto the back of my neck. "You like acting like a little whore out there? Trying to make me jealous with my own brother." Nate spoke into my ear, his hot breath sending chills down my neck as his hand laid a smack onto my ass, all I could do was whimper. "Did you fuck him?" I could hear the slight concern in his voice.

"What if I did?" Nate made an animalistic growl as he layer another smack onto my cheek.

"You'll regret that you said that." Ripping down my bottoms and panties, he laid another smack. "I bet you Aaron didn't make you this wet, did he?" I felt Nate's fingers slide down in between my legs and between my now soaking folds. Teasing my clit, he whispered. "Nobody is allowed to fuck you but me, do you understand?" Before I had the chance to respond, he slammed two fingers into me as his thumb massaged my clit.

"Fuck, Nate!" I moaned out, his fingers were moving at an ungodly pace.

"I asked you a question, do you understand?" He questioned, stopping altogether.

"Yes! Yes! Nate, please don't stop." But instead of continuing, he pulled his fingers out completely.

"Get dressed, we're leaving." I stood up and pulled my pants and underwear on before following Nate out of the alley and to his truck. Once we got to his truck, he opened the door and helped me in then slammed the door shut. Walking around, he got in and immediately put it in drive without saying a word.

"I don't understand the issue, Nate. We're not together, and you're with Maddy. Why does it matter if I went on a date with Aaron or even fucked him?" I watch his grip on the steering wheel tighten.

"Because it does. I don't want you hanging around Aaron or even talking to him." I scoffed in response.

"Who are you to tell me what to do? You don't own me!" I snapped back at him.

"Just do what I said, is that so fucking hard?" This time I laughed out loud.

"Why should I? You can fuck around with whoever you want, whenever you want but I don't? News flash, it don't work that way! I can d-" Before I could finish Nate screamed out as the truck came to a halt.

"Because I'm in love with you!" I stared in disbelief. "I have been since the fourth fucking grade but I never thought you'd go for someone as fucked up for me so I never told you but seeing you with Aaron fucked with my head, how could I not be good enough but that asshole was." I was speechless.

"What? But you've always picked Maddy. Every time you guys would break up I would wait by the phone for your text, hoping one day I would get the chance to be with you." Nate stared back at me. I have been so in love with you for years, the other night when you guys had been off again, and we talked I could've sworn you were falling for me but when I came to school and heard you were back together, I knew there was no chance."

Nate didn't respond this time, he got out of the truck and made his way to my side. Opening the door for me, he helped me out and walked me to his front door. Walking in, he began to speak.

"Let me show you how much I've been falling for you." And with that, he picked me up and laid me on the kitchen island.

"Nate, what are you doing? Your parents could walk in at any moment!" I yelled out as he slid me pants along with my panties down my legs, situating himself on a bar stool in front of me, he spoke up.

"They won't, they'll be at the carnival till late." He said with a shrug, placing each of my legs onto his shoulders. Placing kisses onto the inside of my thighs, he spoke again. "Now, let me enjoy my desert." Before I had the chance to respond, he immediately began sucking my clit.

"Oh fuck, Nate!" I moaned out, his hand reached up and held two fingers up to my mouth. Without another word, I took his fingers into my mouth and sucked, he removed them with a pop and slid them into me.

"You're mine, (Y/N). No one else's." His fingers sped up as he placed his lips back onto my clit.

"Yes, Nate, Yes!" I threw my head back in pleasure, he sucked harder as I felt my orgasm approaching. Reaching down I ran my fingers through Nate's hair and his fingers fucked into me at an ungodly pace. "Nate, I'm gonna c-com-" I screamed out as he sucked harder on my clit. My orgasm hit me hard but was cut short by the sound of someone saying,

"What the fuck Nate?!" We both lifted our heads to the sight of Aaron standing in the doorway, staring back at us. Nate lifted his head and sat up, reaching up he's swiped his thumb across his lips and licked off my remaining juices with a smirk.

"Yes?" I immediately went red with embarrassment. I sat up, attempting to cover myself in someway.

"What the fuck?! You knew I liked her! We just went on a date!" Nate stood up without a response, reaching down he picked me up into his arms and made his way to the stairs but stopping by Aaron on the way.

"It sucks to suck, she's mine now." And with that, he led me upstairs.

[zimt-deathnote]

Hi Zimt!

So. You know how Near went to public school for a bit?

Do you have any headcanons on that?

I often imagined him in that scenario and the result honestly is pure chaos.

First of all, I think he kept tabs on everyone on a notebook, from the teachers to his classmates, and at some point someone finds his notes and he gets in real trouble because he was really straightforward about it. When asked why he was doing it he answered that it was a writing exercise, but actually he was just practicing reading people. Which lead to him writing down lots of awkward hypothesis on people’s behaviour that ended up offending them. Also he guessed a lot of the most embarrassing stuff about the school staff, like secret shenanigans and who hid a secret stash of cigarettes where and things like that.

He definitely had a fight with a teacher because he would be doing complicated stuff without following the instructions, like:

N: But Miss, the answer to 47x8 really is 376

Teacher: Nate, there is no way you could guess that out of thin air, please (very frustrated) just do the operation like I explained you.

(No idea if in your AU he did enough elementary school for his class to do multiplications, but still)

You could draw a parallel with Mello on that one, or with Light even.

In a normal classroom they probably would have been able to respectively show up the teacher about the stupidity of the question and show off to the teacher about how easily he handles it. Near however would not even be able at that time to understand why it is being asked in the first place, because he struggles to fully grasp the fact that the other children are not at his level. It all seems so easy to him.

Which lead young Nate to pick the lock of his teacher’s desk drawer to read his classmates’s child-level answers to tests and understand what they were doing right that he was apparently doing wrong.

He got in trouble for that too.

He said that he was doing research.

His teachers were very frustrated with his attitude. It’s the nineties, so they don’t really know or care on how to deal with his autism.

Also, do you think he got bullied?

Since children can really be jerks probably yes, and with that sassy attitude he probably spent his share of hours inside a locker.

He definitely corrected all the insults directed to him, (often mistaking insults for simple errors) like:

“No Jason, I am not retarded, I am autistic, asperger autistic, which means that it’s not that evident, but it doesn’t affect my cognitive abilities in any way-“

“Don’t be ridiculous Charles, of course I am not a girl, why would you make such an assumption? We go to the same bathroom.”

Etc.

Also, this one might be a bit exaggerated, but I imagine him being so bored of his own homework that he corrupted one of the older kids to let him do theirs, and when people started to get suspicious and they wanted to back out Nate threatened to let everyone know their secret plus other stuff he found out about his accomplice to use as blackmail for this specific scenario.

The kid reached out to an adult as he was very scared of Near.

Near didn’t mean to scare them, he was just testing if something he saw on TV actually worked in real people.

Poor kid probably had to change a lot of schools.

What do you think?

I can't muster up the energy to draw something for this but I don't want this to be rotting in my ask box any longer cause I think it's absolutely lovely <3 It's so well thought through and lively, I can see all of that happening!

Must be so frustrating for a nighly gifted kid to be constantly corrected and critisised despite knowing they're in the right. I wonder if it made Near feel like he's dumb at some point.

[katsona-the-katsequel]

The P1 Drama experience:

Brown is making too many jokes about kissing Naoya(Yuuya) for this to be straight.

I wish I had recorded myself when Reiji walked in. I tell you, the wheeze I whooze when the music abruptly changed sure was something.

Kei Nanjo is what would happen if Byakuya Togami was written as likeable from the start. He has a heart of gold, but he would DEFINITELY be one of those guys who posts business-sigma male posts... until his friends bully him into erasing them.

Speaking of... stop bullying Nate, guys! He deserves it, but still 😭😭😭

BRUH, THEY'RE STILL BULLYING HIM!

STAHP! HIS DAD IS RIGHT THERE

F-flashbacks of everyone as babies 🥺

Wait, now that I think about it, Yuka was the only one who wasn't there with Naoya when he woke up. Did everyone see their classmate collapse after playing a dubious game and go "oh, shit. We got to take him to the nurse's office!" while Yuka went "yikes, imma go shopping". Like???

The way everything started, it could easily make for a Zombie Apocalypse AU.

NOOO, DON'T SEND ELLY AWAY! I LOVE HER!

Kandori: CHILDHOOD-TRAUMA-BEAM, GO!

Why did Yukki and Elly have to go? I wanted to see them as babies too!

[hacash]

I know you’re a huge Nate supporter and love to talk about all the microagressions against him, and one I noticed when rewatching is that in 2x3, when ted tells Jamie he’s starting on the reserve, he’s immediately playful with Will (“Mr. Kitman! Hit me!”) and it got me thinking how badly Nate must have felt seeing the ringleader of his bullies come back and immediately be nice to his replacement. Sort of like, “oh so you were capable of being a decent human being to the kitman this whole time but you just chose not to”

I think there’s such nuance in the way the the team getting nicer grates on Nate, who put up with their bullshit for years, especially since no one ever offers him a real apology. I think he’s definitely crossed lines, but when you look at it from his perspective, it’s easy to see how he got there. Anyway I just appreciate your nuanced takes on Nate and I can’t wait to see nick mohammed pull off another stellar performance in season 3!

Absolutely!

To be fair, I think Nate's aggression from Will stems a lot from power going to his head and being a perfectionist in his work; I'm a big fan of Nate but my God, the man is flawed. However I also think Will is a walking, talking reminder of how the team used to treat Nate, simply by dint of how they don't treat Will. He comes to Richmond and immediately gets handfuls of cash from them at Christmas, he's included in their little bonding rituals, he's part of the gang...whereas we all know the treatment Nate got whenever he tried to help the team.

(And that only finished after a particularly brutal show of strength from Roy. Which, uh, certainly gives Nate an interesting impression of what tactics do and don't work with the footballers.)

So yeah, from Nate's incredibly damaged perspective, having poor Will around must be unbelievably frustrating. He's pissed, and though he handles it badly, it's obvious why he's pissed. It's the moment when Eleanor in The Good Place, seeing her emotionally abusive mum parenting a new daughter, tearfully says that if her mum was capable of parenting the little girl then she was capable of parenting Eleanor but just chose not too. It's the moment in How I Met Your Mother when Barney screams at his absent dad 'well, if you were going to be some lame suburban dad, why couldn't you be one for me?!' - because clearly the team were capable, they were willing to be nice, they just didn't want to be nice to Nate, it must be about him, how they see him, he needs to change to earn their respect, he needs to perform those shows of strength....

...Of course, an outside perspective would tell you that the team's change of attitude from Nate to Will has absolutely nothing to do with Nate, and everything to do with how Ted's philosophy has impacted the team. (If Will had joined Richmond at the beginning of S1 I've no doubt that pre-reformation Isaac, Colin and Jamie would have eaten the poor boy alive, and the rest of the team would have been egging them on or wouldn't have dared stop it.) But Nate's not in the right place to see that. And considering all the history between him and the team, I don't think he should have to just 'man up' and accept that; he deserves that acknowledgement and those apologies. Which I am very much hoping we get this season.

[ironyscleverer]

Can I do a little rant about Nate Shelley for a sec? Im gonna rant about Nate Shelley for a sec. Just becuase for a show about masculinity and healthy relationships and self-love, I HATED how they handled his character arc so fucking much.

Nate starts off in season 1 as this meek, nerdy, short, chubby Asian man who's routinely bullied by the guys (players) that he works for. He's very specifically disrespected becuase he's not conventionally masculine. It's important to note that Asian guys especially are emasculated a lot in society, doubly so if you're shy and/or brainy like Nate is.

But then once he starts getting a little respect and attention from Ted, we first get to see his confidence grow, but then we also start to see a nastier side of him emerge. He uses his new position of power to feed his insecurities and he becomes vindictive, cruel and resentful. He takes it out on his players, his former bullies, but even then he chooses the weakest person to pick on (ie Colin, who's a closeted queer man as we discover later).

And I actually think this part of the arc is really well done and interesting; it feels very real and throughout season 2, even though he's absolutely horrible, I can still see how it's stemming from a place of pain and bitterness. Being part of a system that abuses and disrespects you, especially when race is a factor, can really turn people sour and warp their perception of reality. Frankly, I think I would have a lot less sympathy for Nate's character if he was just another resentful white man, but his being brown really adds a lot of layers to the character.

And it's important to note that even once he becomes a coach Nate still suffers becuase of how he presents himself! The people at Richmond do occasionally make jabs at him (Jan Maas and the suit), and you can't tell me the situation at the Greek restaurant wasn't some kind of racist power trip. Even though he has more systemic power now, he still doesn't get respect becuase of how he exists in the world.

In that context, his choice to go work for Rupert at the end of season 2 makes complete sense. Richmond was a toxic environment for him given his past experiences there, and he was not going to get the mentorship or understand that he needed. I hoped that his season 3 redemption arc would involve him untangling his victim complex, learning to trust and stand up for himself, and looking out for people who are weaker than him (so basically this fic lmao). Basically, I wanted him to step up to the challenge of being a head coach and really confront his insecurities and their roots. Maybe he could've talked to another coach of color or something. I don't know.

The direction they went in with Nate in season 3 was so frustrating to me because he ends up right back where he started at the beginning of the show; at Richmond, working as a kit man for a bunch of white people. Sure, he's forgiven by Ted and he learns his lesson about power, but none of the actual, very understandable hurts on his end are really addressed. He's right back to the same environment he was in before, sans locker room bullying. He isn't allowed to grow or distance himself from that chapter of his life. (the writers also decided to just give him a girlfriend and make that fix everythin which I don't appreciate, but that's another essay entirely).

If I had it my way, I would have had him do the whole scene with coach Beard, reconcile with Ted, but respecfully tell them that he can't go back to Richmond. There's too much history there, and even if they've forgiven each other, it would be a bad environment for him. Then Nate and Ted/Beard/others can have a new relationship as equals, built on respect, rather than a boss/employee dynamic. But maybe that's just me being delusional.

Anyway, in conclusion, Nate deserved a better ending and I'm disappointed that they didn't give it to him. Thank you for reading this completely unedited rant, I may do another in the future about Ted Lasso's queer rep or its female characters. Lmk if you want to hear it.

[lauranthalasah]

I believe Nate's arc is not that much about redemption, I believe it is about healing. He acted the way he did not because he is an evil person, he was hurt, always on the defensive, but there were reasons for that, probably more than the ones I can grasp, so he felt attacked and responded in kind. We know that the team, Will, Ted, meant no harm to him (at least in season 2),but we saw season 1, we saw Nate's reality for who knows how long, and when Ted came he didn't demand a stop of the bullying, like, I understand where he was coming from, but for the bullied person... it sucks, basically Ted put the team over the individual here. Listen, I adore Ted, but this was a shit move, I like it as part of the story, because it shows us that Ted isn't perfect, it shows us he has blind spots, blind spots that in season 2 covered Nate's actions. I also like it because it adds more reality to Nate's feelings, we know that Ted didn't have his back completely, so Nate is right to doubt him.

Now, of course, what Nate did/said in season 2 was not right, but it came from a place of hurt. What he said to Colin was wrong, but we do remember Colin was one of his bullies, probably for years, and I do not remember Colin actually apologizing to him (maybe he did... I really don't remember). The way Nate treated Will was the worst for me because Will truly didn't deserve it at all, but it came from the same hurt, feeling ridiculed and replaced. Then we have what he did and said to Ted, funny enough most of what he said to Ted shouldn't have been directed at him, I think it's more something that was meant for his own father, because Ted did treat him different than the previous year, but because he treated him more like an equal, something that Nate wasn't ready to see and/or internally accepted back then because he still was searching for paternal approval. What he did... by telling Trent about Ted's panic attacks, that was a low blow, but I think it is the public humiliation that Nate had to live with when being bullied all those years that moves him to do that, retaliation, the bullying did end with Ted's management, but not with Ted's direct actions.

Season 2 Nate hurt so bad for me, like at the end, when he screams at Ted and leaves... I think I felt mostly like Ted, sad. I know that in Ted's case there's a part of guilt too, but I think mostly it's sadness, Nate was hurting so bad, he was so lost, and he was backlashing at everything in an attempt to regain some control, and everything came from internal conflict. I, one hundred percent, understand why Ted forgives him immediately, I did too. What I love about Nate in season 3 is how bit by bit he claws his way back to his heart, how he learns to stand for himself, for what he believes, and starts liking the way he is, and taking risks. Now he is in a good place internally, now he has accepted himself, doesn't need external validation so much, accepts and laughs a bit about his own shortcomings, and it's finally realizing that not everyone is out to get him, and maybe, they weren't back then either. Because now he also understands his own values, and maybe... Other people did value him after all, and they weren't attacking him, maybe they weren't leaving him on the side, maybe they meant it when they called him "The Great" and "Wonder Kid", because maybe, just maybe, he is worth all of that. So now... now he can see that he acted wrongly to some people, because their intentions weren't what he thought they were, and now he can finally say "I'm sorry" and mean it.

I'm sure that there are a million things I'm missing, I've seen some people criticizing this arc and I don't meant the people who hate Nate or attacked Nick Mohammed, I mean the people that don't like the arc itself, I have to be honest, I don't even live in an English speaking country, so I'm sure there are aspects here that are controversial that I can't see simply because I lack the referential stand point for them. But it is not easy to understand those aspects through Tumblr, cause I've seen a post saying "only white people like Nate's arc" and immediately after I saw one of someone that identified themselves as having the same background as Nate saying they loved his arc... so I get REALLY confused! As someone that lives and is from a latin american country,  I love Nate's arc!

[nineteenthmay]

People point out Chuck's flaws like the hotel thing and the horse comment which is valid but will ignore Blair's. A lot of Dair fans sanitize Blair to be more pure than she is instead of accepting she's messy and enjoying her regardless. I do think in general Blair is better than Chuck but how's Blair trying to get Nate to sleep with Epperley and mocking his trauma with Catherine and saying she's like a more flexible version of the woman that violated him better? When Nate was hesitant about it she emotionally manipulates him by talking about how she was getting him to do that cause she's struggling with her internship. Chuck didn't force her to go to Jack but emotionally manipulated Blair knowing she cared for him like Blair did Nate. People also call Chuck racist even though he wasn't as much as Blair who made a lot of comments of that nature, like sarcastically telling Serena to go get her hair dreadlocked on the way to Brown right after she made an elitist comment on how it's not a real Ivy, calling Iman Princess Jasmine, accusing Penelope (who's Iranian) of something Dan did and wishing for her to be banished to a country with Sharia law, her saying she had better genes than Vanessa, etc. I don't have a ship preference but am frustrated over the lack of criticism because of the Blair worship in this fandom. She also doesn't get criticized for forcing herself on someone in 1x5 and yeah that dude was creepy after she pulled away and realizing she was a teen but doesn't excuse her. Wasn't she still dating Nate anyways? And she didn't respect that the other dude had a girlfriend when she went for a kiss just like she got in middle of Chuck and Eva. She does get a little criticism over trading Chuck for a speech. She called the hotel thing the worst thing Chuck ever did despite knowing he's done worse and she had more agency than previous girls which is self centered. No one forced her to love Chuck so while he was wrong and undeserving of a second chance she's expected to take responsibility for choosing to go to Jack and having a messed up idea of what love is instead of being infantilized. I found the DV scene in 4x20 more disturbing and a situation where fully blaming Chuck for the fallout makes sense

You and me both, anon. You know, when I first watched the series a few years ago and got to know the online discourse about it, I was genuinely surprised that Chuck was so widely hated while Blair was so widely loved. Because, as you rightly point out, Blair was very problematic and she had serious flaws. A lot of people seem to view her as some poor Chuck's victim or damsel in distress and all her nasty actions are blamed on big bad Chuck's big bad influence taking agency from her when it's objectively not true if one actually bothers to watch the series. We can see on many occasions Blair doing bad things and comments (bullying etc.) with Chuck nowhere near to her and having nothing to do with her actions. Because Blair's flaws were her own, they were a part of her irrespective of Chuck and his approval/disapproval. Yet many people refuse to accept it. I have tried to explain this phenomena to myself and one explanation I can think of is that this series is mostly watched by women and women tend to relate more to female characters and justify them, unlike male characters. Therefore, Blair can get away with behaviour - and indeed some of it even would be celebrated as "badass" - that would not be tolerated in male characters. Another explanation could be that the series addresses Chuck's problematical deeds more than it does Blair's, like if Chuck does something bad it sooner or later ricochets to him, to Blair - not so much, particularly in later seasons. Consequently if the series pays less attention to it, so does the viewer. For example, the hotel deal is brought up many times, but not Blair trading Chuck for a right to say a speech. It doesn't mean that her problematic actions and comments aren't there for everyone to see though.

I don't want this to sound as Blair bashing because I do like her as a character but I'm with you, anon, there's definitely injustice in the perception of these characters.

[vole-mon-amour]

Every time I think about Roy x Jamie, and Jamie in particular, I'm in awe of how wonderful Jamie is. He responses not only to positive reinforcement, but he generally just listens?

Like when Roy tells him "Stop being a dick", Jamie's smile immediately disappears. He straight away realizes that he's been mean and said something wrong, and no longer seems to find anything funny in what he said to Roy a minute ago. I think that he might have not particularly realized what was wrong with what he said and just realized he said a wrong thing, but as Roy opens up and provides more context, Jamie is all positive and patient and wants to help Roy.

When we meet Jamie at the beginning of the show, he's a douche. However, when his dad's abuse collapses with Ted's kindness (and I'm talking like 1x02 where Ted tells him that if Jamie realizes he's one of 11, "only sky is your limit"), Jamie IMMEDIATELY repeats those words to Trent when being asked on how it feels to lose. Like, he immediately tried to correct his behavior and do the right thing when explained where he was wrong.

I don't remember earlier seasons and only trying to continue my rewatch, but I don't think Jamie was ever bad. He bullied Nate for no reason (low key turned out to be right but a) that can't be justified. Still was a shitty thing to do b) I feel like Nate can be brought back with kindness again so it doesn't matter), but overall, he straight away noted on Keeley's words about accountability. I genuinely believe that Jamie was like that because of all the trauma and the abuse. His excuse for a father never cared about Jamie's well being and always pushed him to be the arrogant star and abused him when Jamie refused to (frankly, when jamie did Anything. there's no peace when your parents are abusers). I won't go there but.

The point is, Jamie is GOOD. He didn't suddenly become good in s2 or s3. It was always in his core, he just didn't know what kindness was until Ted came along and basically took on a father figure role. Then Jamie learned about the magic of a human relationship when people around you actually love you.

Jamie at the end 3x06? "Hellooo lovely people! Did you miss me?" And they did! And they love him! S1 Jamie would never but not because he was bad or evil.

In conclusion? Ted Lasso is an amazing show & Jamie Tartt is an amazing character.

[lunar-years]

i sort of think that jamie's worst behavior of season 1 (bullying nate and sam) is because he's buckling under the pressure. like first he's loaned away from City (and thus several hours from his mummy), and he comes in to this club run by a mediocre prick whose only strategy is to put all the responsibility on him, roy is kind of a crap captain at that point (i love him but we all know it's true) and now this new guy who doesn't even know anything about football is changing everything again, and as much as i love ted, his circuitous method of letting other people come to the point instead of just communicating straightforwardly doesn't seem like it works great for jamie as a person. it very much feels like mind games, and jamie knows ted can have a temper because he deliberately goaded him in to losing it, probably to know where the line is, because that's a thing abused kids do with authority figures. so with all this upheaval, his own behavior is degrading, and the second he pulls back on that, as far as he's concerned, ted pulls another mind game and sends him back to manchester. then keeley sleeps with him and he thinks they might get back together but suddenly she's with roy. then ted sees his dad assaulting him and ignores it for a note and an army man toy? all that plus we know now he's prone to depressive episodes when stressed. it's honestly no wonder he imploded after all that and season one just gets so sad for him when i think about it

yeah absolutely. to all of this! there's a reason he's where he's at at the beginning of s2. Also after Mom City, I'm more convinced that ever that Lust Conquers All was the result of one of, if not the worst, depressive slumps of Jamie's life.

[dollsome-does-tumblr]

some ted lasso 3.05 thoughts, tedbecca-heavy as per usual--

this is a dumb point to start with, but the models in the car driving off listening to "wake me up before you go-go!” and being such an obvious homage to the pre-gasoline fight zoolander scene really warmed my heart and soul. FLAWLESS. that is simply what life is like when you are a model.

i think ted and rebecca might be happening. their scene in the hallway caused me to hug a throw pillow and announce to my bf in overjoyed dismay, “if they actually get together i’m going to DIE!!!!!!” he was like, “maybe they’ll die,” to which i shrieked, “NO! i need them to LIVE and FALL IN LOVE!!!!!” i’m a great tv-watching companion. (we might have a slight roy and keeley energy going.) that moment where they were both like ‘psychic? bullying? wtf is going on? why are we so freakily on the same wavelength?’ and i was like ‘FINALLY, YOU FOOLS, THIS IS HOW WE’VE BEEN SUFFERING FOREVER!!!!!!!!’ was just really almost too much for me to handle. that wide shot of them staring at each other in alarm. help!!!!!!!

john wingsnight, coming back with the unexpected shite in nining armor!!!!!!

crying over rebecca welton is actually something that can be so personal, aaaaah. i’m really relieved that i do not think we are getting a pregnancy storyline because i really didn’t want that. i’m looking forward to seeing how the mother thing might happen a different way. i’m being extremely restrained and tactful and not making any more specific predictions than that.

also, rebecca not being able to get ahold of keeley throughout this episode really had me :’(. the emergency contact moment? NO! (what if .......... ted .................)

obviously i need keeley and roy to get back together and i’m in pain, but keeley/jack is def as fun a rebound situation as i can imagine. (bi keeley, overtly confirmed at last!) also, the lamb!!! messy, but cute af.

shandy’s quitting scene was extremely hilarious. what a journey!

roy’s neverending bully revenge monologue ................. astounding.

i really liked that we got a leslie and rebecca chat in this episode. i love them together! i’m also going to believe that the biscuit box being right there open behind the matchbox was an homage to “helping us see something that we can’t quite see ourselves” ........

i know that jade/nate is kind of tricky due to their searingly tense and awkward history, but i like the idea of her really getting a glimpse of nate’s good-heartedness and his sincere love of the restaurant and that being the thing to melt her heart toward him. and i just want nate to have someone he can have fun & laugh with in an end-of-ep montage!

r.i.p. believe sign! (r.i.p., rip, it works on levels!)

ted being done with shame and all that shit!!!!! ted finding his way out of his panic attack!!!! my heart is very full!!!!!!

“where one night out unlocks truths for many”

“where one night out unlocks truths for many”

“where one night out unlocks truths for many” ????????????????????????

(chuckles) i’m in danger!

[jamiesfootball]

hey do you have an au for Jamie meeting a Jamie who didn’t go into football? ;-)

I’ll be real I read this and typed. A whole list of Jamie AU’s. Then I reread your ask and realized you specified where they meet canon jamie. Whoops.

So in most of those AUs the issue is not that Jamie isn’t playing football, it’s more that he IS playing but a change has occurred.

I’ve got s1 Jamie meets girl!Jamie. At first everyone assumes that he’s gonna be an asshole about girls playing football. They are then annoyed and a little insulted when instead he meets her and is like ‘thank FUCK finally someone who can play good.’ The two of them trauma bond and turn into a little annoying world of ‘we shall play 1-on-1 together, fuck everyone else’ (cue lots of ‘oh god there’s two of them’). Meanwhile Ted is noticing how the two of them together seem….happy? And like, they certainly can pass to each other, so Ted starts scheming on how he can leverage that to them passing to everyone. But when that doesn’t work, a version of the the ‘practice’ scene from 1x06 happens and whichever one of them is there as a witness loses their shit at Ted for it. Cue drama

I’ve got s3 Jamie meets s1 post-fire Jamie and goes ‘ooooooh, I did not realize how transparent my issues were. Oh no. Oh no, I gotta do something to help.’ This is mainly Jamie trying to give love to his former self, who is furiously jealous of everything his future self has and doesnt believe him at all when jamie tries to explain ‘no no, this can be you!’ Cue angst.

And then I’ve got a ‘Where is Jamie?’ AU that is more about the cascade of butterfly effects that he’s had on the team. Basically the two Richmonds meet, and Other Richmond is…well, for starters they got relegated in season 1 and never got promoted again. They came so very close though. There’s no Total Football, there was never even a Zava. Nate, having not been bullied as much, never went full dark side and left for West Ham (as a result though he has a LOT of unresolved anger stored up at Ted).

But the biggest domino that never fell was Keeley, who never dated Jamie, and therefore never met Rebecca OR Roy. As a result it took Rebecca a lot longer to soften to…everything. Without Keeley to force her hand over the paparazzi photo, she didn’t confess that she’d been trying to sabotage Richmond until well into season two. She’s made progress, but her and Ted are far more tentative with each other, and because of how long it took the blow up was much bigger. Roy is on assistant coach, but his retirement was more of a whimper than a bang. He’s hanging onto his job like a life raft and he is severely depressed. Keeley is still floating around, doing modeling. She has tried to work her way into a few PR companies but hasn’t had much luck, so she’s currently working on her degree. Her life isn’t much worse, but it’s not great.

So canon!Richmond looks at all of this and goes ‘okay. So where the fuck is jamie?’

Meanwhile Jamie is trying to not hear ‘we only want you for your football’ but it’s really really hard given the circumstances.

They do eventually find that universe’s jamie living as a bartender in Manchester. Life has not been kind but he’s made the best of it. That said he takes one look at this Jamie, who is softer and lighter and happier than he’s ever been and who actually plays football, and thinks his old mates from the academy are playing a cruel prank on him— the fact that they somehow got Roy Kent in on it is an extra kick while he’s down.

Ironically he has been making a killing placing bets against Richmond (and other teams, but he doesn’t tell them that) because he’s taken all his passion for football and turned it into dissecting how awful other teams play, which actually makes for really good coaching strategy advice. You see where this is going.