#i might have to stop talking to everybody and change my name and move to another country

[anotherpapercut]

any other quiet bitches constantly having to shout to be listened to (not heard, listened to) only to have everyone be like "GOD there's no need to YELL just say it!" and it's like I said it 5 times actually you just literally were not listening

[nanaooyoo]

nct jisung oneshot

request for anon: you have a kid without your highschool boyfriend ever finding out. sorry this request took a long while my life has been so insane lately that I haven’t had time to do much of anything besides work. Anyways enjoy ✨

warnings/headsup: light swearing • teen pregnancy • tiny bit of angst • major fluff fest • 7.8k words • female reader • light proofread • jisung x reader kiss • melodrama • crisp autumn vibes • dad!jisung • D/N = daughters name • miscommunication • so much cheesiness

Moving On: Jisung x Reader pt. I/I

High school was a complicated time for Jisung. He was managing school, keeping up with friends, dealing with his overbearing family, and a slew of extracurriculars, all while making sure to pay attention to you; his girlfriend. Sometimes it all felt like too much, sometimes he felt like he should just quit. Nevertheless, you were always there to support him. You were constantly by his side and that’s what really mattered. Whether it was bringing him snacks in between classes, helping him study during free periods, waiting for him at the dance studio while he practiced, or just being a shoulder to lean on and a safe space to vent whenever he may have needed it you were there... Jisung couldn’t even express how grateful he was for having you around! Even with all his appreciation and love for you however, he still wasn’t aware of just how far you were expending yourself to keep him happy and healthy.

People often joked about just how close you two were, how you were like second mother to Jisung and his entire friend group, the way you were always ready and able to give them rides and take care of Jisung and all the people important to him. Jisung’s mother would have probably said the opposite. Though she was never overt about it you know she didn’t like you. She would scowl whenever Jisung left you two alone together and the smile she forced on her face whenever he brought you home was just about the fakest thing you’d ever seen. Jisung always tried his best to talk you up to his parents, but where his mother was stubborn and resentful, his father was uninterested and indifferent. He didn’t want to believe that the people that had raised him couldn’t see in you what he saw, it pained him to think about so he just didn’t. He was in complete denial most times about the relationship between your two families and the fact that you came from much lower economic means didn’t help your case. When he first pitched the idea of you being his girlfriend to his mom and dad that was the very first thing they pointed out in fact! That didn’t stop him however. He would just tell himself that they were overly protective and that you and his mom were actually quite similar. You two would have to get along at some point… at least he hoped you would…

Jisung almost never failed to point out your motherly instincts: to protect him from bad news, to make sure he excelled in everything he did, to simply keep his head afloat. Unfortunately, no one knew just how that instinct would eventually have to develop. For better or for worse that instinct might have just been the end of the life you were once so used to.

It was late spring when you started noticing a bizarre sense of dread in the air as the reality started to set in for everybody that lives were starting to shift and change, and relationships were experiencing a much different sort of ebb and flow. No wonder you felt a little sick, it was the dread in the air! Right?

Sometimes your period was late… but it was never this late... You had no idea what you were supposed to do in a moment like this! A wave of anxiety washed over you and your body as you began to feel queasy. You felt nauseous, and even a fair amount afraid. This might have been the absolute worst time in your life for something like this to happen! You were so close to wrapping up high school. Senior year was supposed to be the last year of you and your peers lives before becoming "real" adults. You were deciding which university to go to and what subjects to major in. You were getting ready to say goodbye to friends and unfortunately hadn’t yet had the sit down talk with your boyfriend about if he was comfortable going long distance or even staying together at all…

You loved Jisung, you really did, but you also loved the idea of a bit of freedom. You would never explicitly say that to him for fear of hurting him or just sounding like you wanted to complain, but you were tired. Tired of being so busy, tired of so many people depending on you, tired of always being referred to as Park Jisung’s girlfriend, tired of his family looking down on you and yours. You honestly thought that most people had forgotten your name at this point. You wanted something of your own, something to explore outside of and away from Jisung, however sweet he was. You thought that college might be time for a change! A chance to reinvent yourself apart from your high school boyfriend and the hovering hand of his mother. No matter how lovely and accomplished he was, you two couldn’t be together forever right? At least that’s what you told yourself. You thought of your parents, you thought of Jisung’s parents. You were sure that if the Park family didn’t already detest you they surely would now. You dreaded what two little lines on a flimsy piece of plastic might mean for all of that. His parents already thought of you as unsophisticated, a burden to Jisung’s future and this would not help your case. You knew you had to tell Jisung while he was still around but you just didn’t know how… but first you had to be sure what you were planning on telling him.

You sat on the cold porcelain of the toilet seat all alone but face still flushed with warmth from embarrassment. You got up and washed your hands and gave yourself a once over in the mirror. You barely recognized your own visage. The bags under your eyes had bags, and the dark circles looked more like new permanent attachments than temporary indications of sleepiness. You subconsciously prayed to whatever god was out there that your period was just late again this time. “It’s just two or three weeks” you told yourself looking back to your reflection in your bathroom mirror and plastering on your best cheery smile. It only lasted a moment but for a fragment of a fragment of a second you were almost smiling genuinely no matter the result.

You went and did a quick lap around your house to release as much pent up stressful energy as possible but also to make sure your parents really were out of the house. You peeked out through the living room curtains one last time just making sure that there were no cars other than your own parked in the driveway. You ran back up the stairs as soon as you heard the faint ringing of the alarm you had set on your phone. You couldn’t stop the trembling of your hands as you picked up the little pink and white pregnancy test you had set on the edge of the counter. You sucked in a deep breath, inhaling sharply through your nose as the sheer terror and excitement of what you were looking at created a blockade in your throat. You felt a tingling sensation all over, unable to properly breathe, only sucking in air for another few seconds before finally letting out your first breath in what felt like several minutes.

Although, it wasn’t just any regular breath, it was a laugh. Well less of a laugh and more or a low groan that slowly turned into a chortle. You practically keeled over as you fell to the ground on your hands and knees, stomach and back heaving as sloppy tears fell down on the sides of your face and almost splashed back into your eyes with the velocity at which they hit the tiled floor. You didn’t know what your reaction would be once you looked at the test but you definitely did not expect this! You were so afraid before, so worried, so adamant that you wanted, needed it to be negative! Now here you were staring at the two thin lines on the near microscopic test screen indicating a positive result and all you could think of was how you hope’d it’d be a girl.

𖦹

“So I have good news and I have bad news” you whispered to Jisung as you two sat in the back of the school library “do you want to hear the good news or the bad news first”?

“Uhm I don’t know… I guess the bad news” he said.

You screamed internally, wondering why he just had to choose the bad option first. Jisung rifled through several books struggling to pick one for a final paper, paying you little mind as he laced his fingers through yours absentmindedly and dragged you down each aisle of bookshelves behind him.

It had been about a day or two since you had taken the test and you had even talked it over with your parents. They were understandably uneasy at first when you said you planned on keeping the child but you assured them that you would absolutely keep working on your studies. You told them you would talk to Jisung yourself and figure out the rest from there, and all your parents could do was support you and whatever decisions you made, the best they possibly could. They could see the stress in your eyes as you mentioned next steps. Though your parents supported your relationship they weren’t too fond of Jisung’s family either. The pretentious nature and lack of grace when talking about their son’s girlfriend, your parent’s daughter, it made them upset to say the least. The thought of having to join your two families was the last thing they wanted to think about right now. You explained to them in detail exactly how you wanted to move forward with your life and what you planned on telling your boyfriend in the process. “Just let him down easy” your mother said, knowing how difficult of a conversation this would be, especially to have so young “don’t tell his mom… tell him.” Your mother’s voice was emotional and awkward and your dad gave you a half hearted smile and stiff hug. Their words rang in your head as you looked up at Jisung.

“Are you sure you want to hear the bad news first?” You asked, hoping that if you told him the good news was that you were pregnant, he would already be on board to end the relationship and you wouldn’t have to say what you had to say next and his mom would never have to be proven right about how messy she thought you were.

“No I want to hear the bad stuff first and just get it over with” he said reaching over you with ease to grab a book off the highest shelf. “Hey do you think this would work?” He clicked his tongue paging through whatever novel he had picked up this time.

You sighed… “okay but it’s really important so I need you to really listen!”

Jisung continued checking out books and only really half listening to you. “Of course” he said as he carried on skimming all the literature around him.

“Jisung I’m serious! I didn’t want to do this here but this is the first time we’ve been alone together all week!”

“Totally…” he responded

“Jisung look at me!”

“I am looking at you…” (he wasn’t). He kissed your hand tenderly, muttering the words on the page he was looking at to himself.

“Jisung!”

“What babe?”

His nonchalance angered you. Couldn’t he tell how upsetting this was for you? “Jisung I want to break up!” You swore you could hear a pin drop on the complete opposite side of the library. You felt like your heart was going to jump out of your chest in the time it took for Jisung to fully absorb what you had said. Those few seconds felt like an eternity, but once they were over you already wanted to go back to before you had said anything.

“You’re joking…” he said, actively scoffing in your face.

What ensued was potentially the first and only ever argument between you and your then, now ex boyfriend. All you really remembered was how he kept asking "why". You told him all the little reasons, how you wanted space, how you couldn’t do long distance, how your families would never get along, but you omitted the most important reason... Sure those other things were true but you also just couldn’t see yourself raising a child with the first guy you had ever slept with, and Jisung had so much going for him, you knew there was no way a dance career could have him stationed in one place long enough to focus on a new family. His mother would never let him have a kid with you, you just knew it! She would think you were trapping him, his father would question you incessantly, and Jisung would eventually have to choose between his prospective future or yours. So you decided to choose for him.

“So we’re just over then” his voice was hoarse and defeated “you don’t want to see me again”…

All you could do was nod “this one should work well, it fits all the criteria for the paper”. You said, handing Jisung a hefty book of the shelf, helping him for seemingly the last time…

You couldn’t completely avoid Jisung the last few weeks of school. You both had sort of silently agreed to keep as much distance as possible, only speaking to each other when absolutely necessary. When people asked why you two had broken up you both had slightly different answers but they both went along the lines of “growing apart.” It really hurt to think about, especially all that was left unsaid but you simply had to trudge forward. The last time you saw Jisung was at graduation where you each exchanged a friendly yet faintly sour handshake and wished each other good luck. You watched the smug smile on his mother’s face as you two parted ways and the way she turned up her nose when your dad foolishly went in for a cordial handshake.

You sort of regretted not telling him about your ‘situation’ but you also felt like it was for the best! You thought you might never see him again and once your daughter D/N was born nothing else mattered. You put off school for a bit, moved to a new town and got very used to living alone with just you and your little girl. You put all your best skills to use once you had entered university. All your experience planning, keeping others organized, staying on task, and being a mother really lended itself to your field and your incredible business acumen was undeniable. You worked hard to make sure that you and your daughter could live in the best house, afford the nicest dinners, get the very best babysitters, and whatever else would make the little one’s life easier.

Obviously you still thought about him. Every time you looked at your child’s face you saw him. Every laugh, every cough and sneeze, every silly statement, every whine just reminded you of him. She never asked about her father but you wondered if she would eventually start. You sort of did want her to meet Jisung but your life had changed so much since, you wondered if after all these years if he would even care. You weren’t immune to looking him up every now and then or asking your parents if they had heard any news about him or his family. You suspected he would be angry or hurt if he found out, and he had every right to be. Despite that though, you still just wanted to see him again, even if it was just to yell at you for lying or cuss you out, even for just a brief moment you wanted to see him…

𖦹

“There’s no way… there’s no way…” Jisung muttered to himself slowly bringing his shopping cart to a halt and planting his feet firmly in the middle of the aisle. People gave him dirty looks and confused stares. He stood there, oblivious, only focused on a woman about his age, a woman he’d recognize anywhere even from a hundred feet away, a woman who nearly shattered his heart into a million pieces and broke up with him before moving across the country and becoming the most successful person from their high school by a mile. It couldn’t be, or rather it shouldn’t be!

What were you doing back in your home town? He wondered. The last he had heard you graduated college with about a million academic achievements under your belt, and were making more money than he could ever dream of at some big conglomerate. Though there you were, same put together appearance, same pretty face, same sweet voice, bending over to talk to a little girl who looked just like you. He did a double take, rubbing his eyes underneath his glasses just to make sure he was really seeing what he thought he was seeing. He squinted and blinked and did just about everything he could to clear his vision but nothing changed. All he saw was you.

He felt like he had to say something… if he didn’t he thought he might go insane. What kind of guy would he be to just ignore your presence. Sure you two hadn’t ended things on the best note but that was years ago, and you were just kids at the time! Maybe you’d forgiven him at this point. At one point Jisung wasn’t sure if all the resentment he once held for you was gone but seeing you in person just confirmed that it was. There was no reason to be mad anymore. He really missed you. He just wanted to talk to you again…

Was it really you standing there? The child didn’t look that old but was she really yours? Had you moved on so quickly after leaving town, after leaving him? Who were you with now? His head was spinning like a freshly oiled revolving door and full to the brim flooded with questions.

Jisung felt like his stomach did a 360 degree flip as he tepidly approached you. “Y/N” he stated more than asked hoping but already knowing it was you. Though, in case he was wrong he braced himself for a much more awkward encounter.

You almost dropped the can of food you were holding blinking rapidly and registering the person before you. “Jisung?” You said, giving him a once over. He was somehow even taller now with jet black hair and dark thick rimmed glasses slightly covering his tired brown eyes. He was as cute as ever. There he stood looking pretty much the same as he did when you left, but boy was he handsome!

“Jisung what’re you doing here?” You asked out of impulse, already knowing the answer. You acted like you hadn’t heard he was in town from your mother who ran into his folks a couple weeks ago, who proceeded to unabashedly brag about their son to her. Of course you then immediately went and stalked him on social media.

“I- I came back recently for a family reunion…” his face was a bit strained as he said it and then he trailed off, noticing the little girl who shyly held your hand once more. Up close she looked ever more like you, down to the way she looked him up and down and examined him with curious eyes. She stared without a shred of recognition on her face or in her eyes but still refused to break eye contact with the strange adult towering over her. He also couldn’t help but notice the way her cheeks rounded out the same way his did as a child and how her face transitioned into the same confused expression he made, mirroring him perfectly.

“What are you doing here?” He said trying his best to look at you and to not stare back at the little girl clinging to your side examining him like a foreign creature trapped behind bars at the zoo.

“I’m visiting my parents” you said clearing your throat a bit “with my daughter.” You raised her little hand trying to make her wave.

“How old is she?” He asked, mentally doing the math of just how long ago you two broke up.

“She’s five…” you said bashfully. You tried to run every possible scenario in your head about what the best course of action would be in this moment. Was it selfish to just keep the information to yourself, or was it better to just tell him now. Maybe the grocery store wasn’t the best place to let Jisung know that you’ve sort of been hiding a secret daughter from him for the past five years, but also the longer you hid it from him the worse you felt. You had to tell him, it really felt like now or never. You had kept her from him for so long it just felt cruel at this point. Plus, even though your daughter was young the way she eyed Jisung up and down made you feel paranoid enough that she had already figured it out herself. Maybe Jisung already knew too, maybe he wanted nothing to do with you or more importantly with her, but you still had to tell him. The words had to come out of your own mouth whether you wanted to speak them or not! You had to make up for the immature decision you made at that time. It was like you were in that library all over again...

“Hey do you want to meet up- I mean we should probably talk, it’s been a long time”. You fumbled over your words not sure exactly what to say.

Jisung perked up “I’m free tomorrow. If you wanna grab coffee!” He was happy you took the initiative to invite him out because god knows he didn’t have the courage to do it himself.

“That sounds... nice!” you said as the little girl tugged on your arm mumbling something about wanting to watch some tv show at grandma and grandpa’s.

“I assume your number’s still the same.” He said remembering all the times he meant to text you but stopped himself out of fear.

“Yeah it is.” You said. You felt the same giddy feeling you got on the first day of high school when a cute boy in your homeroom asked for your number for “study purposes.” There was that cute boy once again standing in front of you giving you the same smile he gave you when you first met. A smile you hadn’t seen in years, but healed a hurt you didn’t know you had inside instantly.

You had to chew on your cheeks to hide your smile as you drove home. You could see your daughter in the rear view mirror drumming her little fingers on the arm rest of her car seat along to the music on the radio. You would peek at her every once in a while and try to gauge her focus. What was she thinking about? Was she afraid of him? Was she curious about him? Did she even care?

You cleared your throat only half getting her attention as she sang along to the words of whatever song was playing, mostly making up her own lyrics and swaying in her seat. “So what did you think of mommy’s friend?” You asked.

She didn’t respond for a bit or even give you any indication that she heard you. She was silent for a few minutes before speaking. “He’s nice… but… too tall…” she said.

“You might be tall like that one day” you chuckled “would you ever want to meet him again?” You wanted to at least have an idea of what to tell Jisung when you saw him next. In your mind, your daughter’s opinion (though still young and uninformed) mattered the most. If she wanted nothing to do with him at this time it didn’t matter what Jisung’s response was. All that mattered was her and what her needs were.

“Is he good at playing games?” She added out of the blue.

“What?”

“Mommy’s friend... Is he good at playing games?”

“Uhm, I guess so? From what I remember he was always fun. I’m sure he’d be good at playing games.” You smiled at her through the rear view mirror a little “Why D/N? Did you want to play a game with him?”

Your daughter just looked out the window and nodded her head, soon after getting distracted. “When are we getting home? I wanna watch my show.” She huffed and grumbled almost like an adult. Almost like Jisung.

“Soon.” You said.

As you pulled into the driveway and walked into your parent’s house, your daughter was practically vibrating with energy. She practically dove out of the car as you unbuckled her seatbelt, running into the home as your mother opened the door and greeted her with a big hug.

“How was the store?” Your mother asked as she ushered your little one down the hall to go bother your father in the living room.

“It was alright… I ran into Jisung…” you walked over to the kitchen and placed a few shopping bags on the counter.

Your mother looked surprised “both of you?”

You sighed “both of us.”

“What did he say?”

“He asked to grab coffee, he actually seemed happy to see me!”

“Were you happy to see him?” Your mother asked.

“Of course I was! It was awkward but I have to tell him sooner or later. Whether he wants to be in her life or not I have to tell him.”

“-and you think the best way to do that is over coffee?”

“No!” You said. “But I might not have another chance.”

Your mother looked at you with this awkward guilty expression on her face. She started to unpack the groceries biting her lip and looking everywhere but into your eyes.

“What? Do you really think it’s that bad of an idea?”… there was silence as she opened the fridge and began to rearrange some condiments, suspiciously shaking her head as if to neither completely agree or disagree. “You think I should keep it from him? Mom it's been long enough, it would just be wrong to not tell him. D/N wants to meet him! Why are you being so weird about this? Aren’t you the one who told me I should tell him the next time I see him?”

“What if he already knows?” Your mother blurted out.

“So what if he already knows…” you furrowed your eyebrows “wait… what do you mean?”

“Nothing” your mother said.

You knew that was bullshit. “Did you tell him?” You asked in a frustrated tone. “You told him didn’t you—”

Your mother looked at you and then went back to avoiding your fiery gaze. She was never good at keeping secrets but you thought something of this magnitude would be able to stay hidden. She promised to let you tell him on your own terms, so why had she betrayed you?

It took her a while to fess up but eventually she did, sort of… “I didn’t tell him directly, it just sort of slipped out… I— I just had to say something she was so… ugh!” Your mother groaned.

“What the hell are you talking about?” You asked and took a deep breath. Your mother swallowed harshly and looked down at the floor. “I promise to hear you out, I just want to know what I’m getting into mom.”

“It was around last month… Your dad has been golfing so much lately, so he got us a membership to the country club with the money you gave him for his birthday. I don’t personally use it much but he loves it down there, and I like to use the pool, and the tennis court is nice, and every once in a while I like to just sit in one of the dining rooms with a glass of wine, and…”

You sucked in your cheek as your mom rambled knowing that she couldn’t avoid the point forever. “Yeah exactly.” You said dryly.

Your mother gulped once more “To make a long story just a bit shorter… The Park family also goes there and I ran into Jisung’s mother, and she was just bragging about him nonstop and she hinted that he was better off without you and I just remembered how much you loved that boy! She was talking about some date he went on and how great this girl was. Greater than my daughter? I doubt it! She thought her son could do no wrong! That he was so perfect and you were so not… I just couldn’t help but tell her that whether she liked it or not you two would always be connected! I- I looked at her and I said ‘ya know you may want to let your son know that you already have a granddaughter and she’s not related to that rich heiress you want him with so bad!’ That’s what I said to her for looking down on us all these years… I told her about how my daughter and my daughter’s daughter were just about the most wonderful thing in this world and she had no right to talk about you or even her own son that way.”

“You really said all that stuff?”

“Yes…” Your mother replied hesitantly.

You could feel the tears welling up in your eyes and a swell of emotion inside you. You put a hand over your mouth to stop the audible sobbing that threatened to leave your mouth. You could tell just how long your mother had been holding in those words. She was always so non confrontational but the fact that she said all that warmed your heart. You were angry at first but in this moment you realized that it didn’t matter what Mrs. Park or even your ex boyfriend thought of you. You had some choice words for Jisung’s parents as well but you knew it would create more trouble to let them out. All that mattered was that your mother loved you guys enough to be proud of you. You always felt a bit embarrassed when having to explain to others that you weren’t the babysitter you were just a teen mom, but your own mother didn’t even care. She loved you all the same and made sure that no one would let you feel ashamed of yourself. “I should’ve known you couldn’t keep a secret anyways.” You said choking up a bit. You gave your mother the biggest hug you had probably ever given in your entire life, and she hugged you right back!

“You aren’t angry?” She asked.

“Oh I’m furious” you said “but not at you. I have no idea what I did to make that woman hate me so much but I’m glad you stood up to her!”

Your mother sighed. “I know you wanted to do it on your own terms but I feel like she might’ve already told him… I just don’t know for sure.”

“It’s alright.” You said. You and your mother finished unloading the groceries, tearfully laughing at how strange the whole encounter must have been. The thought of your soft-spoken mother raising her voice at a stern and snarky lady filled you with joy. Just imagining the shocked look on Jisung’s mom’s face was enough to keep a slight smile on yours for the rest of the day.

Later that night, after putting D/N to bed, you sat on the couch with your parents commiserating about all the awful experiences you had with the Park family over the years. It had been pent up for so long that all of you took the opportunity to air out even the smallest of grievances.

“I don’t know how such a sweet kid could be related to such obnoxious people” your father said as a small ping emanated from your phone.

You couldn’t stop the butterflies in your stomach as you saw the first text from Jisung in half a decade appear before you.

“Wanna grab that coffee around noon tmrw?” It said.

You considered being coy and waiting a few more minutes to reply but your fingers worked faster than your brain. Before you knew it a “sure!” was sent in response.

Then there was one more ping. One more text. It was small. It was innocuous. It could have meant nothing. But to you, it meant everything. It was one small red heart, one little emoticon that hinted to you that he still might feel the same…

𖦹

The next morning was an early one for you. You spent hours perfecting the exact right image that would make you look good enough to go on what was essentially a date, but not so good that Jisung would immediately clock that you two were on a date. Sure meeting up with an old fling to talk about a secret child over coffee wasn’t the most romantic premise, but you couldn’t help but want to put your best foot forward when it came to him. It was almost shameful to admit internally how much you felt for him, but it was the honest truth. You still loved him.

The ding of the coffee shop door seemed to ring out like a chorus of hollow bell chimes in your ears as your head began spinning. Jisung was sitting at table to the far end of the cafe. You could see the rays of somber light peeking in through the window, diffused by the dusty oranges, reds, and browns of the fall leaves. Jisung fidgeted in his chair looking down at the table, and then his watch, then his phone, and back to the table. Two brown paper cups stood tall on the table in front of him, steam rising from them and collecting on the lenses of his glasses. He cracked his knuckles and gnawed at his fingernails nervously until finally catching a glimpse of you walking towards him. “Y/N” he exclaimed, clumsily getting to his feet and lightly tripping over a leg of his chair.

You tried your best to hold back laughter as he bumbled around, rushing to pull out a chair for you. You smiled and thanked him as you sat down. The rich pungent smell of freshly ground coffee beans and sweet steamed milk filled your nostrils and Jisung gently pushed one cup over to you.

“I assumed you still drank the same coffee. If that’s okay.” He cleared his throat hesitantly.

You could just about burst into tears at this very moment. After all these years he still remembered your coffee order. He was only missing one thing...

“Wait just a second…” he fumbled through his pockets for a moment and pulled out two small packets of sweetener. “I know you like to stir in your own sugar” he said.

Now it was perfect!

“Did you sleep okay?” He asked.

Jisung’s consideration for others, you in particular was always so evident. It’s like he couldn’t stop himself from making the kind of small talk that involved checking in on people. “I did.” You replied.

The two of you spent some time just sitting and catching up. You talked about school, work, old friends, tv shows, and just about everything you two would have talked about and experienced together had you been in contact for the past five and a half years. You didn’t really realize when, but the both of you had slowly transitioned to taking your coffee shop 'date' outside of the coffee shop and made your way to the park across the street. The air was cool and refreshing and Jisung couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud but the way you were bundled up with your scarf, gloved hands clutching your coffee like it might run away from you if you let it go was adorable. He also took not of how your coats subtly matched. Yours a light brown, and his a deep tan color made you two look complimentary, almost like a couple… almost.

“Did your daughter make it in time to watch her show?” He asked out of the blue.

You chuckled “You remembered that? She did actually. She even talked about you a bit after… before she went to bed she asked if I was meeting up with you soon.”

“No way!” He said and bumped your shoulder lightly with his coffee cup.

“Really I mean it! She’s so interested in what I do. She always asks about my friends.”

“Are we still friends?”

Your eyes went wide, your hands tensed up and a chill ran down your spine. “I mean- We were good friends at one point!” You choked on your words not knowing what to say.

“We were more than just good friends Y/N” he said.

“I know…”

Jisung bit his lip and you both looked at each other sheepishly, you caught his gaze and he caught yours before you both broke out into a fit of laughter. You two as a pair had a way of bringing out a silliness within yourselves that had you cackling like hyenas together but looking like absolute madmen to any onlookers passing by.

Your walk in the park was peaceful and comforting. So comforting in fact that you had almost forgotten why you wanted to meet up with him in the first place.

𖦹

“So what was the good news?” He said, taking a sip of his drink.

“What?”

“The good news! Remember before we broke up you said there was good news and bad news… the bad news was the break up and the good news was…” he giggled awkwardly “well I never got to find out”.

Why now of all times did he have to bring that up? What could you even say? You couldn’t run, you couldn’t hunker down somewhere and hide. You had to talk to him. It was now or never.

“Yeah about that… the good news was mostly good news for me”. You were internally facepalming at your high school self’s method of delivery when it came to something so important. ‘Good news and bad news’, how idiotic could you have been.

“That’s okay, I still want to know-” Jisung gently placed your hand in his, picking it up to wrap your fingers within his warm grasp. He knew it might be wrong but he really didn’t want to ask about your relationship status right now. “I was obsessed with everything you did back then, that part of me still really wants to know… Like would it have changed anything? I know that sounds stupid but it’s true…”

You couldn’t help but melt a little being in his hold once again. It lulled you in a way that made you forget the gravity of what you were about to abruptly spit out. “The good news was D/N”! You felt a lump form in your throat and you were jolted back a bit as Jisung stood there frozen in the midst of the cobblestone path. You immediately went into panic mode. Why wasn’t he saying anything? “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, it just felt like the right thing to do at the time and my parents pretty much told me to do whatever I thought was best! I didn’t want to push something so big on you right before graduation” You rambled on and on watching as Jisung seemed to only take in bits and pieces of what you were saying. Still you weren’t sure if he was buying your excuses or if they were going in one ear and out the other. He continued to just stand there stiff as a board tightening his hand around yours as you tried to usher him to a bench to sit down. It took a few minutes, but eventually you two found a quieter more private area of the park to talk it out. Jisung mostly sat and listened to you explain your reasoning for keeping D/N a secret from him for so long but he also acknowledged how this wasn’t information he would have wanted to receive any other way than in person and face to face.

He had always wanted to hear something like this from you but he always imagined it was going to be far in the future after you guys got married. Jisung’s thumb lightly caressed your knuckles and you thought your fingers might go numb from the prolonged hand holding. He looked down at your hand and as quiet as a mouse he laughed.

He laughed… Right there on the bench as the cool breeze swept his hair out of his eyes, he laughed. He slowly met your worried gaze, tears pooling at the corners of his eyes just as they did in yours. “Of course you went on to have the perfect life and be the perfect mother all without me.”

His words caught you off guard “Perfect? I’m like a mess ninety percent of the time, I just keep it together in front of my daughter.” You sniffled a bit “I did- I mean I still do want you to be in her life, it would be good for her…”

“Just for her” he asked playfully, tears still welling in his eyes.

“...and for me…” you looked down at the ground.

“Would your boyfriend be okay with that?”

“Boyfriend?” You felt the embarrassment return to you. “I haven’t dated anyone since you and I-” you could barely finish your sentence before Jisung’s lips were crashing into yours. His hot breath made the hairs on the back of your neck stand on edge. His eyelashes gingerly brushed against your cheeks as he caught his breath. Exhaling through his nose he went back for more. Maybe it was because it had been so long, maybe it was because he was older and more experienced, but Jisung had never kissed you like this before. There was quiet desperation in the way your lips melded together as if he was asking you, begging you to be his again.

“Me neither” he said breathlessly finally letting you come up for air.

“I thought you had a girlfriend?”

“No way, I haven’t gone on a real date since I started college…”

“But your mother said-“

“My mother has been trying to set me up with some girl whose parents own a couple buildings downtown for ages now.” Jisung cupped your cheek affectionately. “She seems nice and all but it’s hard to go out with anyone else when all I do is think about you!”

“I think about you too.” You treasured the way such simple touches and matter of fact words could flip your worlds upside down. “I wish I had told you sooner… I really wish I told you so much earlier…” You really couldn’t stop the tears from flowing now. You imagined just how crazy you looked crying on a public bench. “One second” you said reaching into your purse and pulling out a few tissues and some baby wipes. You lightly dabbed at the corners of Jisung’s eyes.

He reached over to you and used his thumbs to wipes your face simultaneously. “You’re such a mom.” He joked.

“I don’t understand how you aren’t mad at me right now?” you said.

Maybe he should have been, you wouldn’t have held it against him if he was. “Being with you is the only thing I’ve ever wanted. If that makes me crazy then so what. I’m crazy about you.”

It was hard to hide the shock on your face, you couldn’t believe he had just outright confessed his feelings to you before you even had time to process that wonderfully unexpected kiss.

“Anyways, it’s a relief that D/N is mine. If you had a kid with some other guy I don’t know what I’d do…” he planted another small kiss on your forehead.

“I think your parents would have been elated…” you trailed off.

“Who cares what my parents think! We’re not in highschool anymore!”

You couldn’t help but smile.

“I always knew we were meant to be family, it doesn’t matter how long it took. Just never keep a secret like that from me again” he laughed.

“I promise it’s all honesty from now on” you replied as Jisung pulled you into a warm embrace. He brought your body closer to his, wrapping his arm around your shoulder as you two took in the autumn scenery.

𖦹

It took a few weeks of coordinating but Jisung had finally come up to visit you in your home in the city. D/N was probably more excited than you. Your last couple days back at your parent's were spent watching Jisung play with your (now his) daughter in your parents living room. He seemed to have lived up to all her expectations and she had gotten over her qualms with his height one she realized how high up she could sit when on his shoulders.

You still hadn’t told her he was her father. You and Jisung agreed to wait to tell her until you two were more established. Sure you had dated before but this was now a whole new relationship. Your daughter practically leaped from her spot on the couch once she heard the doorbell ring and her dad’s signature tepid knock on the door.

You opened the door to see your boyfriend’s smiling face as he reached down to pick up D/N as she peppered him with questions. “Hey you!” He said nuzzling her nose and leaning over to give you a kiss as your daughter winced in disgust. He lugged in a large rolling suitcase with his one free hand as you ushered him through the front entrance.

“That’s all you brought?” You asked.

Jisung nodded “yeah for now… I was so eager to get over here that I only packed the essentials, I didn’t want to overwhelm you with all my stuff at once.”

“Please Jisung you’re getting ready to move in. You’re going to overwhelm me anyways” you teased.

“I’ll get the rest later! Right now I just want to hang out with you guys!” He put your daughter down and ruffled her hair. “So are you going to give me a tour?” He said leaning down to talk to her at eye level.

She just wordlessly dragged his wrist along to show him all her favorite spots in the house as you trailed along.

Much to the behest of his mother Jisung planned on having many more days like this and little did you know that the ring burning a hole in his coat pocket back in your hometown was the thing he was most excited to bring back in the next suitcase...

- 🍌🍶

[mylovesebastian]

Hello tumblr!!

This is my first post here, and it’s literally just going to be me rambling about why I love Sebastian from Stardew Valley. I started playing Stardew about 4/3-ish years ago and have over 550 hours on it so far and Sebastian is my favorite marriage candidate. Now I hope to post about all the marriage candidates and my thought on them, why I like them or stuff that feels off. Idk maybe I’ll make a tier list when I’m done.

Anyways! Sebastian, my love🖤 (can’t remember the name of the mod but thanks to my wife for providing the photo!)

So starting off with the basics, he’s emo. That’s hot… not much else to say.

People like to talk about how marrying the candidates can stop them from having the future they dream of, Alex being a big football(I know it’s different but y’know) player or whatever. However you don’t ruin Sebs plan, yes he says he wants to go to Zuzu city but that’s to move away from his family, and while yes it is not a big change he his still moving out. He is arguably much happier on a farm with a wife/husband/spouse that helps make money and treats him nicely than alone in zuzu city.

This isn’t as important, more of an observation. He has a gigantic hyper fixation on frogs. This man could sit there for hours and tell you about all 5,000-8,100 types of frogs there are (maybe, i don’t know and neither does google).

I freak out when people do fan art of him. Any fan art really, but specifically ones that give him facial piercings. They make me go feral, and I cannot describe the feeling that fills me when I see the art. He looks like he’d build legos for fun and display them on shelves.

Again, not important but I feel like he’d listen to Ghost and SleepToken. I’m totally not projecting but he doesn’t seem heavy metal all the way but likes songs and bands that go somewhere in between or have different types of songs. He also looks like he had a massive Greek myth phase but is embarrassed to talk about it. I mean not saying everybody who plays DnD had a Greek myth phase but he plays a game like DND… enough said.

Whenever I do a Sebastian save I feel like I have to do it with a cat. I think he likes all animals but would feel too tired having a dog. He’d like a black cat cause he thinks they’re underrated and over hated but he loves all cats.

Anyways, this started as more of a reasoning of why I liked him and turned into head canons I made up with my wife about him. I also hope to do this with all the marriage candidates and maybe even the other towns people and whoever, making different saves to get a full romance experience with the candidates but it might take a while. If you have a certain request for the next candidate please go ahead and give them, I’m happy to rant about one of my favorite games.

Thank you for reading!!🫶🏻🫡

[goodnightmemes]

CATCHING FIRE (2013) SENTENCE STARTERS

feel free to change pronouns / terms / tense as needed!

❛ You're okay. You're safe. It's okay. You're here with me. ❜

❛ It's only a few weeks. I'll be back before the snow melts. ❜

❛ A lot can happen in a few weeks. ❜

❛ I did what I had to do to survive. If I didn't, I'd be dead. ❜

❛ If you wanted to be babied, you should've asked [name]. ❜

❛ You are a strangely dislikeable person. But you do have your virtues. ❜

❛ Such bravery. Such spirit. Such…contempt. ❜

❛ My dear, I think we can make this so much simpler if we agree not to lie to each other. What do you think? ❜

❛ What is to prevent, say, an uprising? That can lead to revolution. And then, in a fraction of time, the whole system collapses. ❜

❛ You should imagine thousands upon thousands of your people dead. This town of yours reduced to ashes. Imagine it gone. ❜

❛ Tell me. At what point did he realize the depth of your indifference towards him? ❜

❛ I don't want to kill you. I want us to be friends. But if not friends, then allies. ❜

❛ That was nice acting. Almost thought that kiss was real. ❜

❛ All you need to do is give a few speeches, wave to the crowds, and enjoy your time in the spotlight. ❜

❛ I'm really not in the mood for a lecture. I'll apologize to [name] later. ❜

❛ You don't have to apologize to anybody. Including me. ❜

❛ If you can stop looking at me like I'm wounded, then I can quit acting like it. ❜

❛ I've never been very good at friends. ❜

❛ She was too young, too gentle. And I couldn't save her. I'm sorry. ❜

❛ Wait! No! Leave him alone! ❜

❛ I never meant for anyone to get killed. ❜

❛ I'm sorry. I didn't know what to do. He threatened to kill my family. ❜

❛ Well, I have family, too. Okay? People that I need to protect. ❜

❛ Come here. You're gonna be okay. I promise. ❜

❛ It was just a dream. I'm sorry. ❜

❛ Will you stay with me? ❜

❛ We could get married. ❜

❛ Eyes bright. Chins up. Smiles on. I'm talking to you, [name]. ❜

❛ Everybody who's anybody is here. And they all want to meet you. ❜

❛ It's appalling. Still, if you abandon your moral judgment, it can be fun. ❜

❛ Well, maybe it was you who inspired me to come back. ❜

❛ She's not who they think she is. She's not a leader. She just wants to save her own skin. It's as simple as that. ❜

❛ I agree she should die. But in the right way. At the right time. ❜

❛ It's moves and countermoves. ❜

❛ It won't work. Fear does not work as long as they have hope. ❜

❛ They're gonna hate her so much they might just kill her for you. ❜

❛ If we leave right now, we can be far away from here by tonight. ❜

❛ [name] threatened to have you killed. ❜

❛ You know how I feel about you. But I can't think about anyone that way right now. ❜

❛ The only thing that I can think about every day, every waking moment, is how afraid I am. There's no room for anything else. ❜

❛ You haven't hurt people. You've given them an opportunity. They just have to be brave enough to take it. ❜

❛ We have to go before they kill us. They will kill us. ❜

❛ People are looking to you. ❜

❛ I don't want anyone looking to me. I can't help them. ❜

❛ Look, you're new here. Trust me, I'm trying to help you. ❜

❛ Thought you'd be gone by now. ❜

❛ I'm not going anywhere. I'm gonna stay right here. Cause all kinds of trouble. ❜

❛ How can we live like this? How can anybody live like this? ❜

❛ You understand that whatever I do comes back to you. I don't want you to get hurt. ❜

❛ You don't have to protect me. ❜

❛ If you cannot contain [name], then I will have to terminate her. ❜

❛ And you've come to, what? Ask me to... die? ❜

❛ What's it say that [name] was here 45 minutes ago begging to save your life and you only just now show up? ❜

❛ You could live 100 lifetimes and never deserve that boy. ❜

❛ There are survivors. There's no winners. ❜

❛ Do whatever you can. [name] lives. Not me. Promise me. ❜

❛ How could any of us even trust each other? ❜

❛ It's not about trust. It's about staying alive. ❜

❛ You look pretty terrifying in that getup. ❜

❛ I haven't dealt in anything as common as money in years. ❜

❛ I'm an open book. Everybody always seems to know my secrets before I know them myself. ❜

❛ So what do you think? Now that the whole world wants to sleep with you? ❜

❛ I guess we just try to figure out who we trust least and work our way backwards from there. ❜

❛ There's always a flaw in the system. ❜

❛ How are we gonna kill these people? ❜

❛ God! Does anybody actually believe this? ❜

❛ You know, I'm getting totally screwed over here. ❜

❛ Well, you know what? Fuck that! And fuck everybody that had anything to do with it! ❜

❛ Just be your usual self. Actually, be your happier self. ❜

❛ Make him pay for it. ❜

❛ We're a team. Aren't we? ❜

❛ You both deserved so much better. ❜

❛ Any last advice? ❜

❛ Stay alive. ❜

❛ Remember who the real enemy is. ❜

❛ I don't want to be with anyone else in there. Just you. ❜

❛ Look at this. They're holding hands. I want them dead. ❜

❛ Good thing we're allies, right? ❜

❛ Well, I guess we're not holding hands any more. ❜

❛ I don't care about any of them. ❜

❛ Be careful. There's a force field up there. ❜

❛ Oh, my God. You were dead. Your heart stopped. ❜

❛ Someday I want to love someone that much. ❜

❛ We should set up camp. Take turns sleeping. I can take first watch. ❜

❛ That thing I did back there for [name]? That was called "saving his life." ❜

❛ If I wanted to kill either of you, I would've done it by now. ❜

❛ Don't worry about anything else. I'll be right here with you. It's okay. It's okay. ❜

❛ She sacrificed herself for me and I didn't even know her name. ❜

❛ They know they're outnumbered. I doubt they'll attack again. ❜

❛ They can't hurt me. There's no one left that I love. ❜

❛ Love is weird. ❜

❛ I don't want to be the one that shoots first. ❜

❛ They're not gonna make that same mistake again. ❜

❛ You know and I know there's only one person walking out of here. ❜

❛ If you die and I live, I'd have nothing. Nobody else that I care about. ❜

❛ See, this is why no one lets you make the plans. ❜

❛ We couldn't tell you with [name] watching. It was too risky. Better for you to know nothing. ❜

❛ You have been our mission from the beginning. ❜

❛ This is the revolution. ❜

❛ You promised me that you would save him over me! ❜

❛ You promised me! You're a liar. ❜

❛ You're okay. You've just been asleep for a few days. ❜

[weirdmarioenemies]

Good morning, everybody! I'd like to welcome you all to Typical Trout Friends Hatchery, "Where Milt And Roe Are The Way To Go"! As your o-fish-al tour guide, I'm excited to tell you all you'd ever wanted to know about Trout! I see you've signed up for the "Fun With Fins" program. Let's get started, and learn all sorts of fun and fin-tastic fishy facts!

So, kids, what kinds of fins do you know? Raise your hand if you have an answer. Yes, you! Can you name a fin?... No, "fish" is not a kind of fin, but fish do have fins, so that's a pretty good answer! Anyone else? Yes, you in the back!... Bathrooms are right over there to your left. Okay, I'll just tell you. There's the dorsal fin on top, the pectoral and pelvic fins on the sides, the caudal fin- that's the tail fin!- and the anal fin on the bottom! Yes, yes, I know. Funny word. Everyone giggles. But there's another fin. A secret fin! A fin not that isn't found on every fish, but it is found on our friend the trout!

It's Adipose Fin! From Trout! And various other fish, but also Trout. This is no ordinary fin! There are no bones in there, it's just soft and fleshy! Truly a lump if I've ever seen one. No one is quite sure exactly what its purpose is, but it seems to be able to sense things such as changes in pressure. If removed, fish will swish their tails more often while swimming, so it might actually be important for their swimming ability, if they have to start doing extra work without it! Also, the adipose fin has evolved multiple times, in unrelated groups of fish! Everyone wants an adipose fin!

At hatcheries like this one, the adipose fin gets removed from our fish before they're released, to distinguish them from the wild-born ones in the same environments. We may have to find a new way to tell them apart, though, now that we know the adipose fin is useful after all! Oh, question? Where do we keep the adipose fins we remove? I'm... not allowed to answer that. I think it's best you move on to the next part of the tour. Have fun seeing egg fertilization in action!

Oh, hello, my manager who is standing offscreen! Did you want to tell me something?

The adipose fin isn't in our tour curriculum?

Kids don't care about the adipose fin and by talking about it I'm discouraging visitors from returning?

I need to stop focusing on the more obscure aspects of trout biology or I'm fired?

Okay... I understand... see you later. Sigh. I thought working here again wasn't such a bad option after all, but not being able to share obscure information that the general public isn't interested in... I can't handle that.

"Hey. Over here. There's something you should know."

Who said that? It sounds like it's coming from... NO WAY...

TO BE CONCLUDED

[glacierbash]

Y'know, any time I start to talk about this game, I feel obligated to lead with the funniest fact I have: I absolutely hated Final Fantasy, for myriad reasons both personal and amusing. I hated, for example, the way Elezen were shaped. I hated that Lalafell looked so young. I hated that everybody acted like it was so great, and by sheer contrarian nature I decided I would simply never play this game. And for quite some time, that worked! I'd bombard my partner with whatever media algorithms recommended me involving FFXIV, just to make fun of it. I detested this MMO, without having ever tried it. And yet, deep down, I knew I wanted a community. I wanted to be around people, even if through an online medium. When I worked at the library, my coworker set up a WoW private server that I spent some time fucking around in, but deep down I wanted people. Try as I might, I couldn't deny some part of me wanted to see what the game was all about.

So, I tried it. I spent 30 minutes exactly between opening the character creator to first posting a name that, genuinely, would define more than 2 years of my life: Iverelle Vauvenelle.

I spend about 2 days playing the game, one being chased around by strangers who my partner swore were good people, and one just questing on my own--and it was fine. I got to MSQ level 24, quite literally one quest away from being able to travel to other city states, and I stopped. I played my fair share, I played 5 hours, and I decided the game wasn't for me. I put it down for several months, when I was approached by somebody who I am no longer friends with. He said I should play the game again, keep going just long enough to travel to Gridania, so that I could see one of his alts--and maybe, we could play together! I didn't want to upset him, so I said "fine," and gave it another try.

By the end of the week, I was finishing up ARR, and moving into post patch, and something just... Changed for me. I'm not sure what it was, honestly. It's not like the game magically changed for me then, or if Iverelle had become perhaps my most meaningful character ever, but something shifted, and I found myself enjoying the game. It didn't even make sense to me then when I bought a subscription to the game, but I knew that something here was special. I just... Had to.

Post patch took me about a month, with multiple days spent stressing out over queuing into Good King Mogglemog out of fear and anxiety, because the trial was labeled as hard and my disorder was, frankly, at its worst. But, I managed to do so anyways. The victory was meaningless for most people, but for me? It was beyond words, just how important it was that I did content with other people, especially considering I went through all of ARR solo.

I made it to the end of ARR, to the infamous cutscene, when I realized I was sick with covid. In VC with two of my friends, I said the infamous line: "I think I have a fever." What a way to enter Heavensward, huh? I think it is in no small part due to Covid that Heavensward ended up being my favorite expansion of all time, and why Ysayle Dangoulain ended up being my favorite character of all time. Sickness and quarantine gave me all the time in the world, and being far too sick to be anxious, I sped through the story. One week later, I was done with Heavensward.

And of course, by now, I am finished with Endwalker and awaiting Dawntrail. For 2 years of my life now, I have been playing this game nigh daily. I stay up late playing it, I finish my daily responsibilities as soon as possible to play it, and I find myself enjoying it. I never thought that would happen, truth be told. More importantly than enjoying the game itself, though, is the friends I met.

I have lived a very isolated life. Partially due to my anxiety making me extremely averse to interacting with people, and partially due to how I've been raised, I struggle a lot with people. Autism, anxiety, and having not been properly socialized made me terrible. I longed for new friends, but I hated the effort that went into it. Imagine my surprise when one day, I found myself driving out to meet people who I play this game with, to spend time with them? When I found myself wanting to meet them?

And yet, here I was. I was driving out to meet these people who I play this game with--and more importantly, they wanted to meet me. Even as I think back on that day, I start to tear up. It was one of the most important days of my life. Were it not for this game, for playing it daily, for being dragged into a Free Company and for sitting in calls with people because of this game, I would not have known these people. They are some of the most important people in my life.

I think of the late nights playing Mahjong, or doing PVP, or treasure maps, or just sitting around talking. I think of those nights and then having to wake up early for work, waking up exhausted but so happy. I think of staying up until damn near 5 in the morning talking about whatever it is that comes to mind. I think about stupid inside jokes, and shared experiences, and the stories that I'll tell for years to come.

It's just a game. Final Fantasy XIV is, at the end of the day, just a game--and yet, that game has served as a way for me to grow as a person in ways I've never thought possible. My anxiety has not magically been cured, mind; but, when I'm able to talk to strangers and my heartrate doesn't skyrocket, when I'm able to do things in this game that once terrified me, when I'm able to exist comfortably not just in this game but in the outside world, I realize that it's done more for me than I'll ever be able to say. Yes, it is just a game, but people play a game due to a shared interest, no? And through that shared interest, friendships can blossom. To say that I love my friends, the people I met ultimately because of this game, would be an understatement, and I fear I do not make that clear enough.

Stupid as it is to say, Final Fantasy XIV has changed my life, for the better. Dawntrail is coming in just a few short hours, and though I am a whirlwind of emotions, the predominant one is excitement. I was there for the end of an era, and now I am here for the start of a new one.

So thank you. If you read all the way through this, thank you. If you skimmed just to the end, thank you. Thank you to my friends, especially. I would not be here as I am now were it not for you all.

Here's to a new adventure, friends :^] (Second screenshot featuring: @gailiag, the best viera on hydaelyn)

[cowgurrrl]

Name of the Game

Pairing: rockstar!joel miller x actress!reader

Summary: When work separates you and Joel to opposite coasts, it's nice to know that things haven't changed [1.2k]

Author's note: IT'S HAPPENING PEOPLE

Warnings: famous Joel au, no outbreak :D, baseball talk, Joel being a shithead, yearning, the lightest touch of sexting

"I hate this, by the way." You say the second the ringing on the other line stops. Joel laughs, and his studio chair squeaks. You keep telling him he needs to replace it, but he's obviously not listening.

"Hello to you, too." He says. You swear you can hear the smirk in his voice. It's been three weeks since you last saw him and the girls. He started recording a new album in Los Angeles, and you got sent off to New York City to shoot for your latest movie. You really didn't think being on opposite sides of the country would affect you two that much, but with the time change, busy schedules, and general exhaustion, you barely have time to talk. Plus, the girls are finishing up this school year, which is always a crazy time for him. You think it would be even if he weren't famous.

"Hi. I miss you." You say as you rummage through your bag for your water bottle. 

"This is just temporary. I promise," he says, and you sigh. It's temporary until the next project or album or tour, you think. Your and Joel's work ethic is very similar, and it would be admirable if you didn't both pile so much onto your plate. "I miss you, too." 

"How are the girls?"

"They're good. Sarah is stressed with finals and barely comin' out of her room, and Ellie sent me on a wild goose chase last night cause she needed a poster board for a project she's known about for a month. I swear, these girls are gonna put me in an early grave."

"You love them."

"I'd love 'em a lot more if they let me sleep." 

"Mhm," you hum as you move to another bag, still looking for your stupid fucking water bottle. At this point, you're ninety percent sure you left it in the makeup trailer. Joel likes to joke that you can't go anywhere without that huge pink monstrosity of a water bottle, but you might be proving him right by frantically looking for it. Joel chuckles at your half-hearted response.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Am I boring you?" He asks, and you smile. You give up on finding it and flop onto your hotel bed as if it were your own.

"Not more than usual."

"Very funny," he says. "How's New York?"

"It's good. I think we've got another week or two of filming. Everybody's doing great work, and the directors are fantastic, but I'm ready to come home." 

"It'll go quick. Besides, you're not missin' much here."

"I beg to differ. It sounds like I missed world-famous rockstar Joel Miller battling it out with a fourteen-year-old in a Hobby Lobby at 9pm."

"It was actually a Michaels," he corrects. You can imagine him standing there with his hands on his hips as Ellie scans the different poster board types and asks his opinion. "The girls and I will still be here by the time you get back. They want us all to go out to dinner the second you get home." 

"That sounds nice," you say. "Much nicer than long-distance phone calls at one in the morning."

"Yeah, why are you callin' so late? Not that I'm complaining." He asks, even though he's only three hours behind you. You yawn and stretch out on the bed.

"Shooting went late today, and I didn't want to go to bed without talking to you."

"You're getting ready for bed?" He asks, and you hum. His chair squeaks again, and he gets quiet. "What are you wearing?" You laugh at the question and look down at your ensemble.

"Oh, something super sexy."

"Like?"

"A ratty old Cubs jersey and a pair of sweatpants."

"A Cubs jersey?! You're breakin' my heart, baby," he says. "Send me the hotel's address so I can send you an Astros jersey to wear instead."

"I'll wear an Astros jersey when they can win a World Series without cheating."

"At least the Astros can win a World Series. What was the Cubs drought? A hundred and ten years or somethin'?"

"A hundred and eight, thank you very much."

"What if I got it signed by the whole team? Would you wear an Astros jersey, then?"

"No, but I'd give it to your daughters and take the credit for it."

"Now, that," he says. "Is evil."

"One day, I'll take you to Wrigley Field, and you can watch some real baseball. "

"Be careful. I'll take you up on that offer."

"I'm counting on it, cowboy." The line grows quiet on both sides, and you know this is the closest you'll get to him for the next few weeks. You listen to his breathing and imagine his elbows on the desk in front of him, lyric pages scattered around him, and his guitar within reach. You wish you were there so he could pick your brain about a melody or even just walk by and kiss his head when he's deep in thought. In the same way, you wish he was here so he could read scenes with you and bring your favorites in from catering. 

"I can't wait for you to come home." He says so softly you almost miss it. You let your eyes close and take a deep breath. 

"Me neither."

"It's late. You should probably sleep."

"Yeah," you yawn. "Tell the girls I say hi."

"I will. I love you."

"Love you." You say and hang up. You put your phone on the charger and try to fall asleep, but your brain is overrun with thoughts of what you need to do the next day on set, things to ask the intimacy coordinator for, and new ideas for scenes. Your phone buzzes next to you an hour later with a text from Joel— a video of him strumming a tune you haven't heard before. He hums lowly as he plays, and the gentle unfinished song continues in your dreams.

The next day is full of shoots, reshoots, touch-ups, and one exhausting scene of running through the streets of Manhattan that the director wanted to shoot at least seven different times. By the time you get to go home, you're sweaty, tired, and have at least thirty unread text messages from Ellie, almost all of them TikTok's that "Oh my god, you have to watch." 

When you get to your hotel room, you go to throw your bag on the bed but stop when you see a big box wrapped with a red bow on it. You furrow your brows as you pick up the note attached and read it. For Wrigley Field - JM, it reads. You open the box, and a beautiful new Cubs jersey sits at the bottom with a signed baseball next to it. When you pick it up to look at it closer, it has your last name on the back, and you find an Astros hat at the very bottom of the box. For the World Series, the note reads. You laugh out loud and clutch the royal blue cloth to your chest. 

You respond to any and all unread texts, emails, and notifications. After a shower, you slowly start to feel human again. Human enough to shoot a text to Joel.

Ask me what I'm wearing

Uh oh, he responds.

C'mon, you know you want to

What are you wearing?

You smirk at your phone as you shoot him a photo of you wearing the Cubs jersey, the fabric riding up your thighs just enough to show that you're only wearing a pair of lacy black panties underneath. Your phone lights up with his contact photo almost immediately, and you laugh as you answer his call.

"Goddamn," his voice is deep and gravely as he groans. "After that, I think I just might be the world's biggest Cubs fan."

[catchyhuh]

Oh god I am so in love with the way you write these, I’ve smiled like an idiot reading all of them. I laughed aloud at the idea of Goemon returning someone’s kid only for them to suddenly be a master of stealth.

If by any miracle you catch this ask and feel like thinking about it; do you have any opinions on what jobs the gang might be keeping should they belong in a universe that is totally mundane? Are they all interlinked/do they keep well out of eachothers’ way, has Lupin ever managed to stay employed for over a month etc. etc.

:,) I’d love to hear your takes on this simply because I think about it a lot. I think it’s an interesting character study.

i pride myself on my thoughts either being true or funny so it warms the lupin sized hole in my lupin sized heart that i am hitting one of those notes at least SO THANK YOU SO SO VERY MUCH LET’S TALK ABOUT MORTGAGES AND SHIT

lupin:

lupin. does not change that much as a person. like demeanor, personality-wise, he's still loud, giggly, smug even when it's unjustified, he’s just slightly less main-character-y about it, but he’s still the guy that says goodbye to everyone in the starbucks before he leaves and for some reason everyone feels compelled to say it back

jumps from job to job BUT. there was ONE time he got employee of the month. he was a solid olive garden waiter. but maybe he was just getting those favor points for being too lazy to bother the table refilling water every two minutes, and the little magic tricks he did were cute, and frankly, lupin is just a memorable name that you’d bring up if someone asked about the service there. honestly he only worked there to sneak bites of the pasta and because he thought the getup was sleek

jigen was his neighbor as a kid, and honestly they didn’t immediately like each other until they were like 15ish and caught each other trying to sneak out of the house after they’d both been grounded for completely separate events. they thought it was funny and hung out that night and after that they started to ACTUALLY grow close. nowadays they’ve got that “we’ve known each other for two decades and we’re still as close as ever” type thing everybody wishes they had, and they catch up about a week on average if they don’t just normally bump into each other. they were prob even roomies at some point

jigen:

i can very easily see his like mundane normal life being oddly content. this is maybe weird but i’m getting like. an everything-repairman here. he still has that gruff, doesn’t totally want to be here vibe, but he’s so damn good at like carpentry and mechanics that his yelp review average is pretty good! like hey. if your washer works again your washer works again. it just took two and a half hours of perfect silence with this guy sitting in your home.

as a result, jigen is unusually the tie between fujiko and goemon to lupin. he did some work at their places of business, mentioned this woman who barely looked up to wave when he came in to fix the lights, and then this man who wouldn’t STOP keeping his eyes on him once he came in, watching him like a hawk, and lupin was like wtf. weird people. unrelated uh where did you say they worked and what were their names, heights and zodiac signs?

definitely the porch guy. y’know the neighbor everyone had at some point who just gets home and sits on the porch for like three hours. jigen is that guy. the funny thing is cuz of his hat (which. maybe is like a baseball cap now idk the fedora seems unfitting for standard average joe life) nobody can even tell he’s fallen asleep twenty minutes in and isn’t actually casually keeping watch over the street. classic jigen move

fujiko: 

the funny thing is. honestly aside from the theft and espionage her CURRENT life could translate pretty well. there’s no cap to the discord kitten grindset. BUT SHE’D NEVER STOOP THAT LOW LMAO she's probably just chatting up the usual camps of nepo babies trying sooo hard to impress people and old men that miiiight write her into the will

i think she’s got a gig at a bridal shop/just a formal dress shop in general. she’s very interested in the way trends change and the sheer amount of bank people are willing to lay down just because of a brand? like she got her boyfriend last year to buy her this prada bag but that was someone ELSE’S problem, not hers! 9 times out of 10 she’s just doing her job but if she slowly starts to actually click with a client she’ll guide them to where they can find some nice jewelry that’s still quality but not highway robbery

still in that schrodinger’s relationship with lupin, it’s just, slightly more communicated between them here. if you asked if she had a boyfriend, she’d probably say no, but after spending a bit of time talking to her you notice that she keeps bringing up this one specific guy she used to be with, kinda like she. is currently with him? and then lupin comes in like “hey bbg i brought you some panera for your lunchbreak! they were outta the soup you like at the first one so i ran by two <3” and she’s like “thank you darling just set it on the table over there!” and he leaves. and you just stare at her. no further conversation on the matter transpires

goemon: 

oh god it’s so hard for me to imagine him being some average guy. first thing that came to mind is his hair is still that long, he just keeps it tied back for convenience’s sake and when he lets it down everyone’s like oh shit!! he’s kinda rocking that! also tends to wear big cardigans and coats to like. evoke the imagery of his usual attire Wait those are more character redesign notes than anything let's get back on track here

what job would fucking OHHH A MUSEUM GUY?? not really the sharing history with people half but like, keeping artifacts clean, organizing displays, having all that knowledge in his head but just not really telling anyone lol IT’S NOT THAT HE’S BOTHERED by the idea of throwing a little knowledge on the patrons, he just gets into so much of the nitty gritty that the average person has no idea how they went from talking about wood carvings to erosion on the shore of shizuoka. on that note are we set in japan here? uhhhhhhhhhhhhh?hhhh?? maybe

only really consistently hangs with jigen, and really, it’s because of jigen’s repair gig. museums break a lot! goemon doesn’t really mesh with too many people upfront, so he’s very interested in why he has some gut reaction to jigen despite only having spoken to him for two hours total in the last month. over time they’d become actual friends, but it’d take a bit for him to reach the “this is my man lupin and the purse with legs is his broad” introduction and then the way he WORDS that introduction starts an entire fight that leaves goemon absolutely baffled at how these people are. maybe friends? in time he warms up to them though, but maybe it’d take some unusual bonding experience, like a camping trip that immediately went south

zenigata:

saying he’d be a cop is BORING he wouldn’t be a COP. … there’s a distinction between a cop and a private investigator alright? BUT NO REALLY LET’S HAVE FUN WITH THIS yknow what would suck but really be funny. boring job. 9 to 5 office shit with nothing to do all day. oh he’d hate it, he’d be like pacing the room and shit just waiting for an excuse to actually DO something cuz its so fucking DULL in this FUCKING BEIGE BUILDING. like that bob's burger's bit where he has a nightmare about working in accounting or whatever

the story in the og manga was that somehow lupin and zenigata (and i believe fujiko too?) met in college. which. hey man the numbers could line up and frankly it sounds hilarious so i’ll buy that. he runs into him time to time just organically and  still doesn’t like him a lot lot but it’s more of a personality thing than anything else. and without the occasional heroics their original life has, zeni doesn’t get to see the actual good potential for a kind person like he has before so despite them having less reasons to beef HE LIKES LUPIN EVEN LESS IN THIS WORLD. maybe he’ll come around eventually 

sorry to keep going on this train of thought but really he’d be so different from his actual self just because of the different circumstances that it's really interesting to me. internally he’s the same but being subjected to the crazy shit in the franchise (strangely enough) kinda softened him up externally, but THIS zenigata doesn’t have that. so he’s like, polite to strangers and all. holds the door open for you. but he’s just so BITTER inside about how much more interesting things COULD be, like there’s envy there about how the gang doesn’t seem bothered by anything and has fun almost every day he happens to see what they’re up to. how does that even make sense?! SORRY THAT’S NOT REALLY FUN I DUNNO WHAT'S POSSESSED ME HERE just give him some time, some weirdo event will happen and it’ll knock everything within him back into place as we know him normally. he just needs the right insane motivation to fire up that deranged part of him that’s been lying dormant for a few decades

it just occurred to me i never mentioned mortgages once. damn

[henrike-does-writing-sometimes]

Wip Master List

All of my wips, both main and those I only talk about briefly, all in one place. Hope any of them will pique your interest !

( Links will be added and updated as I go )

To The End : ( Eng ) Questioning Reality, The Indifferent Cruelty of the Universe vs. The Indomitable Human Spirit, Found Family

When their timelines entwine, Samir, Eric, Thea, and Asher find themselves with the greatest friends of their lives. Never would they have imagined their friendship broke the laws of the Universe. With the Keepers —powerful deities that weave the fabric of reality from the timelines— watching their every move the four friends have to work quickly if they wish to escape their grasp. Something they’ve done over, and over, and over, and over again. And it’s starting to take its toll.

Wip Intro | Playlist | Tag

The Neon Trilogy : ( Eng ) Found Family, Humanity, Chosen One

André’s eyes are weird. Everybody knows that. They’ve been changing colors for his entire life, and what started as brown eventually became violet. The doctors have diagnosed it as chroma flux, a rare eye condition wherein the iris changes its color every so often. So when André’s eyes one day become a vibrant pink, life simply goes on as normal. However, that changes when it’s soon discovered that André’s blood has taken on the same color. And even glows. Not long after he’s targeted by strange Alien creatures, claiming him to be both a savior and a doomsday machine. Which one it is? No one seems to have the answer. And André might break before he ever finds out, desperate to figure out who he can trust.

Wip Intro | Playlist | Tag

Realm of Mirrors : ( Eng ) Dark Academia, Body Horror, Loss of Innocence

In the coastal town of Grimmvik, six friends find themselves wrapped up in the mysteries surrounding the old castle up on the cliffs. With ghosts roaming the halls, reflections acting on their own, and rooms that seem to breathe and have a pulse. At first it’s a thrill. Excitement filling their veins as they sneak out in the dead of night to catch glimpses of these unexplained phenomena. That is until they discover the dungeons. Where a shrine for an old and grand mirror rests, whispering their names. What once was nothing but fun and games turns to life and death as Grimmvik’s dark history is revealed. And they’re much more involved than they could ever imagine.

Wip Intro | Playlist | Tag

Gammellunden ( A Beauty and the Beast gender-swapped retelling ) : ( Eng ) Soulmates, Monster-Human Romance, Curses

In the inlands of Sweden lies Gammellunden, a massive land of dense forests and clear waters that breathes pure magic. It is a place no human ever enters, for it’s the home of the urroa; large beasts with skin as rough as stone and antlers like the branches of oak trees. Stories have traveled through generations, cautionary tales of the beasts to keep humans far away from the border.  Ruben Hylén is very familiar with these morbid tales, but that doesn’t stop his curiosity, and one day he crosses the border. Stumbling upon an urroa in the middle of her bloody feast, neither has any clue of what Gammellunden has in store for them.

Wip Intro | Playlist | Tag

The Wayward Carnival : ( Eng ) Prophecies, Cults, Divinity

What kind of teens wouldn’t love to find a magical carnival that never closes and only responds to them? With endless food and drinks and spectacular shows, providing an otherworldly experience that leaves you in euphoric drunkenness.  Though all good things eventually come to an end, for the battle of the carnival has been foretold in ancient prophecies. And nothing is quite like it seems. Not even the carnival itself.

Wip Intro | Playlist | Tag

The Garden of Corpses : ( Eng/Swe ) Cottagegore, Magic schools, Morality

As you get older, your magic begins to solidify into an affinity — From sacred bonds with animals to the divine light from above. It is then you go to attend one of many schools specialized to train your kind of affinity. One such school is Liegården, one of Sweden's oldest schools for Elementals. This is where Isak, Heidi, Janan, Alejandra, and Nils find themselves in late August one year. Ready to learn everything they can about their powers, and maybe make life-long friends at the same time. Their plans quickly change, however, as something strange begins to take root within them, and a long-forgotten form of magic makes itself known once again.  With rotting corpses resting in the forests, a conspiracy brewing within the school’s faculty, and a primal hunger steadily growing, the five friends must work quickly to uncover the secrets of the elemental. Lest they too be left to decay in the gardens.

Wip Intro | Playlist | Tag

The Divine : ( Eng ) Magical boys, Fond Family, Mental health

When danger lurks on the horizon, far greater than any Human or Calidrim can handle, Kayara awakens the Wielders —powerful warriors carrying the combined force of light and darkness— to defend the worlds.   And so, five boys must learn to navigate school and their personal lives while also keeping the worlds safe from monsters, cultists, and an approaching deity of chaos.

Wip Intro | Playlist | Tag

Ode to an Angel : ( Eng ) Family, Expectations, Doomed at birth

Kit Kumar, the oldest child of Jashi and Maia, the greatest friend you’ll ever have, a musical genius, and the biggest anomaly known to the Angelic.  Being born the fifth child to a fated quartet, many believe Kit to be a bad omen, and thus their birth tainted what else would’ve been an honor and a blessing. And as the coronation of Kit’s siblings approaches, the Kumar family’s dedication and loyalty is tested one last time.

Not a main wip

All The stars Are Watching ( Part of the Chimeran Universe ) : ( Eng ) Mental Health, Cults, Body Horror

Life, Light, and Magic. These three elements lay the very foundation of both the universe and reality itself. Elements that can be found in every living creature. Life lets you breathe, Light lets you see, but Magic is only for a few. Few known as Chimeras. They look just like normal Humans and for their own safety that's what they pass as in public.  But just because Magic is a natural part of their everyday life doesn't mean strange occurrences are any less strange.   On the first day of her new school, Vega Dahl breaks the first rule; don’t talk to Leo Holm. A rule they themselves have enforced over the years. Surprisingly, they end up in an unlikely friendship. However, things quickly take a turn for the worst as strange people appear seemingly out of nowhere, and they seem to be after Vega. For reasons no one seems to know. Could it be because she's a Chimera?

Not a main wip

En Väktares Saga ( A Guardians Tale ) : ( Swe ) Mental Health, Found Family, Cosmic Horror

A group of teens wants nothing but to fit in. To be accepted or left alone. To heal or to damage. What none wanted was to have the fate of the entire universe placed on their frail shoulders. It seems innocuous enough at first; learn to control and master their new elemental abilities, and once they’ve outgrown their mortal bodies enter the Astral plane. Where they’ll guard the gates to the universe. Simple. Well, not when you take the God of the universe into consideration. Hellbent on revenge there is only one thing she needs; for them to submit and let her back in. A goal that involves their seemingly endless torment.

Not a main wip

Häxkonst och Alkemi ( Witchcraft and Alchemy ) : ( Swe ) Magic Society, Body Horror, Accidental Chosen One

Thrusted into the world of the Magical, Felix, Elias, Lukas and Jonathan try their best to adapt. It’s not easy. Especially when, as Magicians, they’re expected to know the Magical like the back of their hand. Even though they’ve only been aware of its existence for less than a week. It’s made worse when they’re brought in right during a growing crisis. Something or someone is placing harmful sigils all over Sweden, and seemingly the entire world, causing both the Magical and Mundane intensive distress and harm. In an attempt to help in any way they can, the boys wind up making themselves the biggest target for the source of the sigils. For they’re now, somehow, the only ones capable of stopping them.

Not a main wip

Maledictus : ( Swe ) Body Horror, Dark Magic, Found Family

Even in a world full of magic, mystical beings, and power-granting Curios, people still can’t help but find themselves stuck with no idea where to go next. Which is where Emilio has ended. Fresh out of high school and future goals, they go about their monotone life of working at a small cafe and writing poetry. This all changes when they win a game of chess for one of the café's patrons. Perhaps a bit passive-aggressively, but it does catch the attention of a group of surprisingly powerful magic users. And one night their leader —a charming young man by the name of Ivan Fellin— approaches Emilio, presenting them with one of the world's most powerful Curio’s; The Maledictus' Queen piece. And just like that their life is turned upside down, with the violent secret of the Maledictus's power looming over them like a suffocating shadow.

Not a main wip

! Please note ! My writing is an outlet for and my way of coping. Because of this, most of my work deals with, in one way or another, mental health, abuse, heavy violence, death, and trauma. They might not be obvious or major parts of the story, but they’re there. Stay Safe y’all <3

[bafflement]

Deaged Oz AU - After The Meeting

Tip looked up as a knock sounded at the door to the set of rooms they all shared in Atlas. He wasn't expecting anyone, but everybody else was away at the moment. He shrugged, putting his book down and getting to his feet, maybe they were after Qrow?

Moving over to the door, though, it revealed a boy not much older than Tip was, who blinked down at him in surprise.

"Uh... Wintertip Pine?" The boy enquired, sounding rather doubtful.

Tip nodded. "Yes, that would be me. Why?" His hand crept towards the hilt of his rapier as he spoke, though, eyes busily scanning for anyone else that might have come with the boy. To catch him alone was rare enough that this just seemed to scream 'trap' to him.

"I have something I need to deliver to you. Your eyes only, though... I was expecting you to be rather older?" The boy shrugged and held out a bound scroll. Tip took it, one eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"Any idea what this is about?" He asked, hoping to at least get some context clues from the strange event. Though he doubted Salem would have provided any written evidence of her plans if it was actually her, that would be so far out of character that... well, never mind.

He slit the seal open and scanned the contents, stopping halfway through to adjust his glasses slightly. The paper was a strange shade of almost purple, though the ink seemed normal enough. Was it... scented? His eyebrow rose further upon the discovery that yes, yes it was... this was not exactly normal correspondance to send to an eleven year old.

He noted the name and almost smiled. Lady Greenbriar had been the older woman on Atlas Council, the one that had taken none of James' attitude and had seemed to recognise him. He had no real memory of her, but maybe this meeting could change that?

She wanted him to come alone, which was slightly problematic, but she had specified a time about an hour from now, the others wouldn't be back yet. If he was quick enough, maybe they'd never need to know? He was pretty sure she wouldn't harm him, at least.

He smiled at the boy who'd delivered it and nodded to him. "Please inform her that I'll be there and thank you." The boy looked weirdly more intimidated by Tip's calm acknowledgement of what was really a summons than he had to delivering the letter. Ah well, maybe this wasn't the normal reaction, but Tip was highly curious now...

Picking out clothing took less time than it might have, had the lady in question not probably once been a friend of his father's. Ah well, at least Winter might be happy that he'd chosen Schnee colors for this? It felt slightly manipulative, but it could give him an advantage if the talk went south... and if Winter found out where he was, he knew she tended to be more gentle when reminded forcefully that they were related.

Brothers, but he hated doing that... he wasn't a child, he wasn't helpless... he wasn't even really that sickly anymore with the help of his aura. They needed to stop treating him as though he would break, he was an accomplished Huntsman, after all...

He froze in the doorway to the room where he had been told to meet her. She wasn't alone, a man sat with her who was familiar. Why was Lark Winchester of all people here, though? He was aware that like the Ironwoods... and the Schnee's, the Winchesters had lost a child to that same kidnapping circle, but why would he be interested in Tip, of all people? He wasn't Wren Winchester, after all... he couldn't bring her back.

A flash, then, briefest memory hitting. Wren, her blonde hair and her... oh no... her bright green eyes. He shook himself out of it, though. He had to be imagining things.

"So, this is the child you wanted me to meet, my lady?" Lark's voice was light, but his eyes were hard as he stared at the tousle haired little boy.

"Does he really look that unfamiliar to you, Lark?" Lady Greenbriar's tone held laughter, her eyes soft as she, too, looked at Tip.

"I..." Lark broke off, sweeping a second, more assessing look over Tip. He shook his head slightly, looked again. Tip felt rather like an insect under the microscope at that point, but suppressed the feeling. His shoulders straightened as he met Lark's eyes.

Lark Winchester, pillar of the community in Atlas that he was, proud chairman of the Winchester Military Equipment Company, started to swear. Lady Greenbriar looked impressed. Tip just grinned at him, which seemed to set off a fresh round of profanity, slowly getting more impressive before Lark regained control of himself.

"... Winter?" It wasn't really a question, though. Tip nodded, grin more rueful now and Lark just closed his eyes briefly.

"What happened to you? How are you... why are you...? You know what? Never mind, that can wait. I'm just so damn glad you're alive!"

Tip blushed, even as Lady Greenbriar sighed. "Unfortunately there's more to it than that, Lark. It turns out that little Winter Schnee here is the wizard."

"Excuse me?" Lark stated it flatly, disbelief in every iota of his body language.

"Unfortunately, yes." Tip agreed, calmly. He adjusted his hold on The Long Memory pointedly and Lark's eyes flew to the cane.

He promply started swearing again.

[aonoexpat]

26-11-2023

Not very sure how to start this one. Returning to Te Whanganui-a-Tara has been a bit of a wild ride.

After sleeping in my van for 125 nights, moving back into a house was a welcome change. I was so happy to be able to shower again, do my laundry, and get some social contact. I had definitely been alone for long enough. I was very grateful to be welcomed back to my old job, and to get to work with some beloved colleagues once again!

But I've been experiencing the same thing that happened when I returned home from Australia eight years ago: in going back to "normal life", it seems like the entire Te Waipounamu trip has been one long dream. Nobody that I know here was there with me, which means I'm the only one who really knows that it happened, and it changed me. I have grown in those 125 days, and I have experienced an incredible collection of sights and adventures. And now it almost seems like ancient history. I don't talk about it anymore. I answered the initial questions of 'how was it' and 'what were the highlights', but after that I've switched my focus forward and I haven't really looked back since. It saddens me, because that trip meant the whole world to me. It was a very emotional time for me, both for positive and negative reasons. I had to spread out getting my stuff out of Elrond over several days because it made me cry too much to take apart what had been my home, my safe space, for four months. I hated it, and I hate seeing him empty and stored in the garage. And now, I almost feel emotionally stunted. Like I'm grieving the loss of that lifestyle, that sense of adventure, but I can't even identify where the hole is that it left behind in me. It's invisible, partly because to everybody here, it might as well not have happened. I was gone for four months, but now I'm back, and it's business as usual again. That confidence I gained in driving? Gone, because driving in this city is not comparable and absolute hell. The skills I learned in surviving and making do with very little resources and luxury? No longer necessary. The solitude that I did enjoy? Over. The sense of freedom, and the ability to truly relax? Ruined by both real and imagined expectations, and unlimited access to the internet again that I absolutely indulge in distracting myself with non stop.

However: the discomfort from not knowing when or where my next shower or even toilet was going to be, the struggle of trying to cook on a little gas stove in the whipping wind, the cold, the sandflies, the leaky manual faucet, the weird people, the feeling lost, the loneliness? Also gone. It does help me to focus on that every now and again. My god, the places I've gone were worth all of it. But I can't let myself forget that it was still a challenge. It was never going to be a lifestyle that I could keep up. Not like that, at the very least. I knew that, and I still know it. But damn it, now that it's over, I really, REALLY miss it. And I don't know where to go with that feeling. It's like this lump in my throat that I can't get rid of, and don't even know how to name.

And I'm still not even home-home. I'm still traveling, but it doesn't feel like that at all right now. I'm in a weird limbo, where I'm not really on an adventure, but not really not either. I've got the luxuries of being back in a city, of getting to rest from the trip, but it's not home. I'm almost just waiting until I get to go back to The Netherlands. I've seen most of what there is to see here. I struggle to enjoy myself at all, and I feel like I haven't truly relaxed since getting back to Te Ikaroa.

This is partly due to my mental health taking a bit of a hit since getting back. With the Dutch elections having come and gone and witnessing a lot of global unrest, I've been having almost non stop political and philosophical talks with my new housemates, and it's been extremely destabilising for me. This is far from over, so I'm not even quite sure how to describe it right now. I feel like I've been hit with the realisation of how easily I believe people, and I don't really know what that means for me going forward. It's made me doubt a lot of things I used to take for granted, and pretty much shaken the very fundamentals of my world view. I think I had, at some point in my life, made peace with not understanding everything in the world, and that has been damaged. This past week has been especially bad, as hormones have been messing up my system even worse, and I barely go a day without crying. In my worst moments I feel like I'm truly losing my mind, in my more lucid ones I am hopeful it'll all make sense again soon. But right now my world is nothing but uncertain and it's a very disconcerting experience. Because I can't just stop and figure everything out in one afternoon. I'm trying to have many conversations, across several time zones, some about very polarising topics, all while still going to work almost every day, trying to catch up with friends, and just putting on a smile while my head is spinning with questions. I'm actively working on dialing back the talk of politics at home and getting some more alone time, which is helping a little. I've spent some time organising my new room, and trying to get a grip on everything on my to do list that I've been really dropping the ball on lately. Writing this post was on there too, so I feel like I'm slowly catching up a little!

All of the above means I unfortunately don't have any pictures to share with you this time around. Most of my camera roll is me trying on different frames for glasses, as I got lucky enough to get a friends & family discount at a high quality optician! I've just received my new glasses this week, and they do the coolest thing: when they are hit with UV light, they turn into sunglasses 😎

I do want to say that I have also had my fair share of laughs since coming back. I've been playing games with friends (It Takes Two, and ttrpgs like Ten Candles and Call of Cthulhu, would recommend!), I've gone bouldering, and I'll pick up busking and playing at open mics again soon. I know it may seem like it's all gloom and dread for me right now, but I still have good moments to compensate. The weather, while significantly colder than in Te Waipounamu, is predominantly sunny and warm, which helps a lot. I've also been helping out my housemates with house tasks, like organising the bathroom, getting furniture for the living room, and giving them ideas and tips for meal planning and prepping. These are things I enjoy, and that is all they are asking in return for me occupying a room in their house. They are not asking me for rent, which is an extraordinarily generous offer on their part. This takes away a lot of financial stress, because even while I haven't sold Elrond yet, I don't need to work full time to sustain myself. So I try to take everything nice and slow, to have a steady self-care routine, listen to calm music, cuddle with my housemates' dog, and just take my time. The coming weeks I'll have fewer shifts at work, so I'm hoping to be able to rest a little more and slowly catch up to myself. And: figure out what I'll be doing for the holidays!

[the-firebird69]

David Bowie - Heroes

Still a parallel on the max plan and some of them are saying they knew about this and I don't feel good about it I don't think they're telling the truth I can't hear them saying it I think we're in trouble we have to try and ask a Mac and he says they're around one of them is Dr Frazier crane it was no longer playing The undertaker at the WWF. And I get that and he says this is my mission this is part of the space Odyssey boldly go where nobody will go and to do some sort of anal probe and testing of the s*** for Christ's sake. I don't want to go into dune and hit used to it damn it. This is a heartache right here I'll tell you the clan is underneath a huge one but they can aim at the other one and we have to see if they aimed at the other one they may have hit the cranium empty out what might be in there we have an emergency we don't know these people at all yes we do and we don't respect them and we shall very much he says he found the biggest a-hole in the solar system and I will fall into a daze for a few days once I figure out what it is right now I'm falling into a daze and I have to go to the testing I've been asked we do have ships that can do it but we don't have people that can but we have probes and they look like the millennium falcon and that's what it means and it's the falcon in the snowman he says that there's a guy at Otis and his name is the snowman Snowden and that's who it is and I do know it it is him and it's not the guy from The high School California fast times at ridgemont high this is going to be intense everybody you have not seen anything until you've seen this and we're going to go after the worm to get the Cajun Blue from the tail end we need to test it

Bja

We're going on the space Odyssey and we might not come back we wish everybody the best this guy is fighting and these might be his Giants and we need DNA from the one up there to see we're in a lot of trouble we have to find out what this is

Trump

You think it might be days it's ridiculously huge it's so huge we can't talk about it

Mac daddy

This is on and he's doing it right now on purpose and he says you people have a few hours and Jupiter disappears trying to get there that's our style and it's his style is from us he says and his people are pushing him a little today but he's got it on the mind and we know about it

Thor Freya

We need to use ultimate Force and here it comes we also need to use caution but we need to do some things the way we're doing they did notice changes in it and they're observing it and they sent more out there and lost it and they're trying to retrieve it what's important is the curious what it is well we know is they're not going to believe what it is unless they do testing and we want to prevent that we need to stop them from doing it and it is on and we're writing up what to do and it's a military procedure and they don't need to know any of it

Frank Castle hardcastle

I do agree and it will label top secret now I'm putting it in as my recommendation and Zeus order he says and okay my order as well

Hera

Olympus we're moving on this now I'm going to publish now

[jewbeloved]

💖❁The Main 4 with a Neko s/o❁💖

A/n: This came into my head because why not? :>

Gender: Neutral

💠 Stan Marsh 💙

When he saw your ears he though it was fake.

But when he saw you move your tail, he was completely shook-

He rubbed your ears gently to see if it was really true, even If you already told him multiple times-

After a day, this boy will a huge blushing mess If you let him pet you and you start purring.

He will not let anyone else make fun of you!

Would give you his hat if you need something to cover your ears with.

Probably also gives you one of his spare hoodies to cover your tail too as well!

Overall, he loves having a neko s/o <3���💙

🎄 Kyle Broflovski 💚

Similar to Stan, he low-key though it was fake and you were just pranking him.

Immediately changed his mind after seeing you aggressively flap your ears and wagged your tail in order to prove it was real to him

And just like Stan- he was also completely shooked as well, and it took him a while to process with what he just saw.

He would ask to touch your ears after he's done having his little moment of being shooked.

While petting your ears, he is amazed by how soft and floofy they are!🥺🥺

Please let him pet your ears everyday, If you want him to stop he will :)

South park always throws shit at him every other day, so having a neko s/o really seems like a therapy healing for him💚💚💚

Will blush if you wrap your tail around him while cuddling.

🍎 Eric Cartman ❤️

He already knew that you were a neko from beginning, don't ask how he found out :)

You were worried that he was going to rip on you for it and tell everybody.

To your surprised he actually kept his mouth shut and didn't say anything mean to you, but he didn't speak to you for a week because he needed sometime for himself after finding out that his partner is a goddamn cat.

But remembering that he has a cat named Mr kitty, he just went along with it and calmed down.

After everything is cool and fine now, he would start giving you the affection that he didn't give to you since he didn't talk for a week.

This guy literally becomes so protective of you now.

Somebody made fun of you? They won't be showing up to school anymore. They either got expelled, humiliated infront of everyone, got sent to the hospital, or arrested.

He wouldn't show your Neko form to his friends either because they don't deserve to see your cuteness.

Loves seeing you having fun with mr kitty <3❤️❤️❤️

🍊 Kenny Mccormick 🧡

Personal space didn't exist anymore after he found out-

Will literally pet you everyday and even in public.

Karen is absolutely in love with your ears as well! So you might have both Kenny and Karen petting you everyday :')

Will give you his parka to cover up your tail and ears when going on in public.

Will send glares at the people who make fun of you or look at you weirdly after you accidentally meow

Calls you his very own puss, don't worry he means it in a good way thought!

Will tease you about being a Neko everyday as well.

He might make you urinate on him in like that episode where cat urinate makes people high-

Overall, he really likes having a neko s/o! It makes life in south park more interesting.🧡🧡🧡

I had a lot of fun writing this <3

[hellofeanor]

Fëanorian Quenya

Hey friends! Do you like elves? Do you like the Silmarillion? Do you like Fëanor and co? And most of all, do you like spending hours thinking about minor details pertaining to made-up languages??? If so, boy do I have a treat for you! Let’s delve into the weird world of Fëanorian Quenya and explore some history and mechanics of why they talk Like That.

I’ve seen a lot of posts joking about the Fëanorian lisp, which is about as funny as a joke about a speech impediment can be. 👍 It’s important to understand, though, that this IS a joke. No, they didn’t really speak with a lisp. Yes, they did pronounce some S sounds as TH. That’s the critical disclaimer here: SOME. It’s not a blanket pronunciation. There’s a lot of background research that goes into determining which words would be pronounced with S and which would be TH, and that’s what we’re going to look at.

So if this is something you’ve come across in fandom and you’re not totally sure on the details, or if you ARE sure and just want some more in-depth info, read on.

The stuff probably everybody knows already

For anyone who’s been hanging around the Fëanorian corner of the Silm fandom for more than three minutes, there’s about a 100% chance you’ve heard of Fëanor’s penchant for retaining an archaic TH pronunciation after the majority of the Noldor went ahead and started pronouncing this sound as S instead. You may also know that this sound is represented by the letter thorn (Þ) in HoME, but since thorn doesn’t exist in modern English orthography and it’s a pain to keep typing the ALT code, I’m sticking to TH here. Anyway, all this was due to the fact that Fëanor was a huge mama’s boy, and his mom Míriel Therindë (later called Serindë, which made Fëanor want to punch walls and possibly also fellow elves) was an outlier who retained the TH after it fell out of use. Her son Fëanor, in turn, kept this up to honor her. Now, whether or not he would have bothered if this sound hadn’t literally been a critical part of her name is debatable, but that debate is outside the scope of this essay.

Fëanor continued to use the TH pronunciation until his death, and required his sons to use it as well. Finwë, however, switched over to S after the death of Míriel and before his marriage to Indis. Fëanor, reasonable and level-headed as he was, took this as a personal insult and decided that anybody who rejected TH likewise rejected him. So presumably, his loyal followers would have obeyed his totally reasonable demands not to give in to the seductive S-shift.

Why tho

Why did the Noldor decide to alter their pronunciation from TH to S? Great question. Nobody really knows. For the hell of it? IDK. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ But the important thing to understand is that elves, and especially Noldor, were really committed to making sure their language sounds cool. This is why it changed so much and so comparatively quickly for an immortal population: they were actively invested in changing it. They liked inventing new words and exploring new sounds and messing around with grammar.

So at some point some influential Noldo might have been like, hey y’all, let’s stop saying TH and say S instead! And everyone (except Míriel I guess, who was known for her elegant manner of speech and didn’t want to muck that up by changing pronunciation of a whole letter) was like, whoa, capital idea my good egg. And they went with it. Previous ideas along these lines included ‘hey y’all, let’s stop saying KH and say H instead’ and ‘hey y’all, let’s stop saying Z and say R instead’, and those went over swimmingly. Nobody could have foreseen the problem this TH to S business would cause.

Now here’s a fun fact. There was another change to Noldorin pronunciation that happened AFTER Fëanor’s birth, that he himself was involved in. This one was all about bilabial to labiodental F. And those sure are some words, so if you don’t know what I’m talking about (I don’t blame you), BILABIAL is a more whispery sound that happens when you say F using only air passing through your pursed lips, and LABIODENTAL is when you say F with your top teeth touching your bottom lip. Going forward I’m going to use PH to represent the bilabial sound, and F for the labiodental.

So F got on the radar of the Noldor via the Teleri, who used this sound in their language. And ol’ Fëanor figured it would be awesome to incorporate it into Quenya because he thought the PH sounded too close to HW, and the two were getting confused by lazy speakers. Why did he care? Because of his dad’s name and his own, of course. If people started to get lazy in their pronunciation, we’d end up with Hwinwë and Hwëanáro, which would be terrible and stupid and unacceptable. He accused the Vanyar of leaning down that road, and he wanted to stop that kind of shift before it happened to the Noldor. How to do that? Why, by instigating a different shift from traditional Noldorin PH to Telerin F!

“Hey y’all, let’s stop saying PH and say F instead!”

“Whoa, capital idea my good egg.”

Moral of the story: Fëanor is only concerned with Quenya pronunciation insofar as it affects his own name and the names of family members he likes. He does not care whether it’s staying the same or moving to a new sound so long as it personally makes him feel good and his name sound cool. Therefore the true way to piss him off would be to call him Curuhwinwë Hwëanáro, son of Serindë.

Okay so here’s how it works

Now that history is out of the way, let’s get back to how TH was used by the Fëanorians. As I mentioned earlier, TH wasn’t a blanket pronunciation. It all depended on the original form of the word, and whether the root had a TH or an S. And some very similar-sounding words come from different roots, so this can get tricky. A great resource that’ll give you this information is Eldamo: Quenya words where the S was originally TH are marked out with the Þ (thorn) symbol in the wordlist.

Some examples:

Súlë (spirit, breath) comes from the root THŪ, which means it would be pronounced with a TH. Silma (white crystal) comes from the root SIL, so it and related words like Silmaril would be pronounced with an S. No Fëanorian would say Thilmaril. Isil (moon), however, is a similar-sounding word that comes from a different root: THIL. Olos (mass of flowers) comes from the word LOTH, but: Olos (dream) comes from the root LOS. Fëanorian pronunciation would immediately differentiate between these two words.

While Fëanorians may have retained the distinct pronunciation of TH vs S, other Noldor can still differentiate between original S and S-that-used-to-be-TH in their writing. There are specific tengwar to use depending on the word’s original form. Silmë (the one that looks like a 6) is used for original S, while súlë (or thúlë, the one that looks like an h) is used for original TH.

Which other elves used this sound in their speech?

Fandom has really latched on to this TH as a Fëanorian thing, but it wasn’t that exclusively. The TH sound was actually ubiquitous in other elven languages, and in Valinor, only the Noldor dropped it. It was still used in Telerin and in Vanyarin Quendya. The Vanyar retained the TH not because of anything to do with Míriel, but just because they were a little more conservative and their language didn’t pick up on all the changes that the Noldor made. They also noped out of the Z to R shift the Noldor initiated, opting to keep the Z around.

When Indis married Finwë, she stopped using the normal Vanyarin TH and switched over to S as a gesture of loyalty to him and his people. Finarfin, however, out of love for the Vanyar and Teleri, switched BACK to TH. I like to think about how much it would have annoyed Fëanor that his snot-nosed kid brother was speaking correctly, but for the wrong reason. Go down one more generation, and Galadriel very specifically did not use TH. But this time it was absolutely a choice made as a glaring middle finger to Fëanor.

What this means for your fanfic or whatever

The big takeaway here: you can’t just have Fëanorians replace every S with TH and call it a day.

If you’re inventing names for your Fëanorian OCs or coming up with phrases for them to say, it’s important to look into the history of all Quenya S-words you end up using to determine if they should be S or TH. If Fëanor got mad about somebody saying Serindë instead of Therindë, he’d get equally mad about somebody saying Thilmaril instead of Silmaril and assume they were mocking him. Remember: this is a dude with no chill. (On the other hand, if you WANT somebody to be mocking Fëanor, Galadriel would 100% do this because she has an equally negligible amount of chill.)

It’s also important to note that the TH isn’t a true shibboleth, since pretty much all elves EXCEPT the non-Fëanorian Noldor use it. And even the S-preferring Noldor would still be able to pronounce the TH. Those who went into exile would go on to use it commonly in Sindarin, and those who remained in Valinor would still encounter it among the Vanyar and Teleri. So if you’re writing a scene where somebody has to pronounce a TH word to prove their loyalty… yeah, everyone can pass this test. And in the opposite direction, you can’t use TH to prove somebody’s an evil Fëanorian, either. They might just be Vanyarin or something. Or, like. Really Old.

Would the sons (and followers) of Fëanor keep using TH after his death? Oh hell yeah. This is an entire family unfamiliar with the concept of not dying on hills. They will keep using it unto the ending of the world. Actually, with Sindarin becoming the common language of Middle-earth from the First Age, probably not a lot of change happened in exilic Quenya. It became a lore language: a piece of living history. It would have been preserved as it was when the original speakers left Valinor.

(And then, thousands of years later, Galadriel finally returns home to Tirion like, Long have mine eyes awaited this most blissful of sights, and ne’er hath my sprit soared with such grace, for I am returned! And all the Amanyar Noldor stare at her like, whatchu bangin on bout, eh? Because they had nothing better to do in the peace of Valinor than push Quenya to brave and frankly questionable new horizons.)

Anyway, there you go: a somewhat brief history of Fëanorian Quenya. I hope you found this informative and useful, or at the very least not boring. Obvs this is super condensed and, uh, not particularly scholarly, but I promise I know what I’m talking about. I have a university degree! (Not in anything even remotely related to what’s written above, but I hardly see how that’s relevant. It’s still a DEGREE.)

Questions? Need clarification or want more info? My asks are always open!

[neonlights92]

Night Changes: PART ONE

Jeon Jungkook has spent the last twenty years alone.  Single.  Solo. 

And that’s just the way he likes it.  That is, until he meets the supposed love of his life.  Suddenly he’s falling over himself at the chance of a real relationship with someone.

The only thing getting in his way? You.

genre: fuckboy!jungkookie, college!jungkookie, romcom, e2l (kinda)

A/N: my attempt at a college kookie story? enjooooy

--

Perhaps it is the universe telling him to stop drinking. 

Jeon Jungkook really needs to start listening to the universe, and stop listening to - well to put it bluntly - his penis. 

When he wakes up in another stranger’s bed, with a splitting headache, and lipstick marks scattered across his chest, he reckons he should start making better life choices. 

The young woman sharing his bed - a girl from the party last night, with legs that go on for miles - rolls over and blinks her eyes open sleepily.  She smiles at him.

“Hi Jungkook.” 

He racks his brain for her name.  Jisoo… Jennie… Lisa… Rose? 

He feels bad - he really really does - but what can he do?  He was seven tequilas in, when Taehyung convinced him that taking her home would be a good idea. 

“Hi…. You.”  He finishes lamely, smiling sheepishly. 

She blinks again, this time a little more furious.  Her eyes narrow after a moment. 

“You don’t remember my name, do you?”  She purses her stained lips, and Jungkook really does feel awful.

Or maybe that’s just the hangover. 

“I uh - maybe.  It’s.. Last night’s a little bit grainy for me, to be honest.”

She seems unimpressed, arching a well-groomed brow, “You’re in most of my classes at college, Jeon Jungkook.”

And really that’s when he feels like a complete asshole. 

“Shit.  I’m sorry,” He tries to place her - he tries so fucking hard - but he knows he doesn’t recognise her, and a worm of guilt starts niggling in the pit of his stomach.

She rolls her eyes and sits up, pressing a hand against her forehead and clicking her tongue, “Whatever.  Just get out.  Jerk.” 

Jungkook feels bad.  Seriously, he does. 

But he can’t help but share her sentiment.  

He scrambles out of bed, fishing around her bedroom floor for the jeans he so carelessly threw off, and the white shirt he’s sure is stained with something he’ll never be able to get rid of.  He stumbles into the clothing and turns back towards the nameless woman glaring at him from underneath the covers.

“Do you hate me?”

She rolls her eyes, “Get out of my house, asshole.” He winces.  He knows he deserves that.

“See you soon?” She shakes her head, and tugs a hand through her unruly hair, “Hopefully not.” Jungkook bolts out of there like his life depends on it but just as he pulls the front door open, somebody else blocks his way.  And suddenly everything in the world shifts, and he feels as though his heart has just split open right down the middle. 

Because standing in front of him, holding two bags of groceries, is an absolute angel.  

Jungkook thinks - no he’s certain - she’s the most beautiful woman he’s seen in his entire life, and now he understands the songs, and the sonnets and the plays.  This is what love at first sight is.

It has to be.

“Oh.”  She laughs a little, “Hi.” 

Jungkook’s eyes widen, “Hi.”

“You must be Y/N’s guest.” 

Y/N.  So that’s her name.

“Uh… Yeah.”

Her cheeks flush brightly, “I’m Soomi, Y/N’s roommate.” 

“Nice to meet you Y/N’s roommate.  I’m Jungkook.”

When she giggles, Jungkook feels like he’s ascended into another plane of existence.  

“Well it’s nice to meet you too.”  Her eyes lower to his haphazardly buttoned shirt, “Under the circumstances.” Jungkook feels stupid and wonderful all at the same time, and just as he’s about to do something crazy - like ask for her number, or ask her to marry him, even - somebody clears their throat from behind him.

In a moment, Jungkook remembers exactly where he is.  His heart drops.

Shit.

Y/N.

“I see you’ve met the asshole I slept with last night,” Y/N raises a brow and clicks her tongue, “You were just on your way out, Jungkook, weren’t you?”

“I… Uh…  Yeah.  On my way out.” Jungkook knows he has no right to feel dejected - after all he was the one who couldn’t remember Y/N’s name in the first place.  But he’s sure Soomi might very well be the love of his life, and he can’t possibly just walk out like this, can he? But when he turns to face Soomi he notices she’s already stepped out of the way for him… And there’s really nothing more he can do.  

“Well uh… It was nice to meet you Soomi,” He moves into the hallway and turns to give Y/N a half smile, “See you in class.”

“Like I said.”  Y/N pulls a face, “Hopefully not.”

Soomi giggles again and he feels like he’s been shot straight through the heart, “Bye Jungkook!”

The door slams shut in his face, and the moment Jungkook is alone he notices how quickly his heart is racing.  Oh god.

He’s in love. 

He has to be.

//

“Jungkook.  You’re being ridiculous.”  Jungkook’s roommate Namjoon rolls his dark eyes, “She is not the “love of your life.”  Stop being so dramatic, you sound like Jin.” Jungkook feels like his heart is about to burst.  It’s been less than three hours since he met Soomi and all he can think about is the curve of her smile.

“No.  I’m serious, Namjoon.  C’mon, when have you ever known me to feel this way about a girl?”

Namjoon sets his mug of coffee to one side and clicks his tongue, “Never.  I’ve never known you to feel this way about a girl.  Which only further proves my point - you’re being ridiculous.”

“You’re just made of ice,” He comments bitterly, “I’m serious Namjoon.  I’m in love.”

“Listen Jungkook you know I usually love to disagree with Namjoon,” This comes from Jungkook’s other roommate Taehyung who is slung across the couch lazily, “But I’ve got to say… This time he’s got a point.  You sound like a crazy person.”

“If you saw her you’d know exactly what I mean.” 

Namjoon rolls his eyes so hard Jungkook is surprised he doesn’t lose one to the back of his skull.

“It’s a girl Jungkook.  A girl you met for all of twenty seconds.” “She was an angel.”

Taehyung giggles, “You’ve really got it bad huh?” “My heart hasn’t stopped pounding since I left her.”  Jungkook feels himself deflate slightly, “I need to see her again.” “And how are you going to do that?”  Taehyung raises a dark brow, “Surely you don’t have any classes with her, or you would’ve seen her by now.”

“No but… I have classes with Y/N.”  Jungkook knows it’s a dumb suggestion.  

But he can’t help it.  He needs to see Soomi again. 

“Y/N as in the girl who you slept with and who’s name you couldn’t remember?”  Namjoon scoffs, “Even you can’t be dumb enough to think she’d help you out of the goodness of her heart.”

“No… Maybe not out of the goodness of her heart.”  Jungkook agrees, carding a hand through his cherry red locks, “But I can figure out something she wants.  Y’know… Mutually beneficial.”

“I hope you’re not talking about your penis,” Taehyung pulls a face. 

“Have you not been listening for the past hour Taehyung?  I am in love with Soomi - I’m not about to sleep with her roommate...Again.  I’m a one woman man.”

Namjoon pushes himself to his feet, “Your only hope is that she’s in love with somebody else.  Somebody you could potentially help her seduce.”

Jungkook stands too, “That’s brilliant.” “What about Hoseok?” Taehyung cocks his head to the side, “Everybody’s in love with Hoseok.”

“Do not drag Hoseok into this Jungkook.”  Namjoon gives his friend a pointed look, “I’m serious.  He’s still heartbroken over Alexa.”

“Alexis,” Taehyung corrects, “Why can’t you ever bother to get the names of our girlfriends right?”

As Namjoon and Taehyung argue over Namjoon’s inability to remember names correctly, Jungkook starts thinking of all the ways he can convince Y/N to help him with Soomi.

It’ll be a piece of cake.

Or so he hopes.

//

Monday morning rolls around and Jungkook spends practically every minute from the moment he leaves his dorm scouring the campus for Y/N.  She isn’t in his first class of the day - or even the second.  By his third class of the day he starts to wonder if maybe she’d confused him with someone else.

Maybe there’s another Jeon Jungkook on campus who sleeps with attractive women and forgets their name in the morning.  Somebody else is stealing his game.

But then - like a vision from heaven - she walks into his political science class as if she isn’t the key to all his happiness. Her eyes flit across the lecture room and when they land on Jungkook she glares.  He wants to sink back against himself but he refuses - instead he smiles widely and gestures for her to sit in the empty seat beside him.

She shakes her head as if he’s crazy (and to be honest, he might be) and instead moves towards the very back, sliding into a seat all on her own. 

Jungkook grunts.  He can’t really blame her. 

Still.  Does she really have to make things so difficult?

He grabs his books and shuffles over to where Y/N is sat, engrossed by something on her phone.  When he looks closer he realises it's one of those pimple popping compilations on Youtube.

Gross.

Jungkook clears his throat and when she looks up her expression morphs from surprise into annoyance.

“What are you doing?”

“Sitting beside my new friend,” He grins wider, “Y/N.”

Her eyes narrow into slits, “What do you want?”

“To make amends,” Jungkook answers immediately, “I kind of feel like an asshole.” “You should.”  She gives him another look of annoyance, “But I’m also not stupid.  You’ve got the hots for Soomi, haven’t you?”

Jungkook feels his stomach drop.  Is he that obvious?

“Everyone has the hots for Soomi,” Y/N waves her hand noncommittally and gives him a once over, “Though not everyone has slept with her roommate.”

Jungkook winces.  It’s clear Y/N despises him.

“Would it help if I said I was sorry?”

“For forgetting my name or for giving me the worst head of my life?” The insult sears him.  Jungkook may be a little bit of a lady’s man but he’s always been determined to please his lovers.  He wishes he could remember any part of their tryst (to prove her wrong, more than anything) but once again he draws a blank.

“I can make it up to you.” She raises a brow, “I highly doubt that.”

Jungkook opens his mouth to argue with her - before Y/N’s attention is stolen by the figure that has just walked through the double doors of their lecture room.  Jungkook follows her gaze and smirks when he realises who she’s staring at.

“So you have the hots for Park Jimin then?”

Y/N’s eyes snap up to meet his and she seems flustered, “What?”

“You just looked at him like he rearranged the stars to spell your name,” Jungkook’s smirk widens, “You like him.”

Y/N looks ready to smack him across the face.  

“Shut up.”

“I’m not wrong though, am I?” When her eyebrows dip into a scowl, Jungkook knows he’s won this battle.  He leans towards her, conspiratorially. 

“I know Jimin well.”

That’s kind of a bold statement (and kind of a lie.)  Jungkook knows of Jimin.  He’s on the same dance team as Taehyung and Hoseok - two of Jungkook’s closest friends.  That’s enough of an in, isn’t it?

“No you don’t.”  She mutters with a roll of her eyes, “I can see where you’re going with this.”

“No seriously.  He’s best friends with Kim Taehyung,” Again a slight overstatement, but Jungkook doesn’t correct himself, “And Taehyung is like my brother.  We grew up together.”

“So what?  You help me out with Jimin and I have to do the same for Soomi?”  She scoffs, “Soomi and I are best friends.  I don’t want to lie to her.” “It wouldn’t be lying.”  Jungkook’s voice pinches a little, “It’s just helping fate along.” “Fate?”  Y/N’s expression morphs into one of disbelief, “Oh my god.  You really do have the hots for her.” “If cupid himself descended to earth and shot me in the ass with an arrow, I’d feel exactly the same for her.  Seriously.”

Y/N seems to contemplate the suggestion.  Her eyes move to meet the back of Jimin’s head - where he’s sat in the front row - and she sighs heavily.  Jungkook tries to read her face. 

Is she softening up to the idea?

“Let’s say I agreed to help you.”  Her voice is flat, “How can I be sure Soomi won’t just be another notch on your bedpost?”

Jungkook feels his chest constrict, “I resent that.  Just because I have more experience than others doesn’t mean I’m an asshole.  I don’t pursue women with the intentions of fucking them over.”

He won’t admit it but that assumption kind of pisses him off.  

When Y/N is quiet a moment longer, Jungkook sighs and tugs a hand through his hair. 

“If I do fuck her over…. Which I won’t.  I give you full permission to start a rumour that my penis is the size of a cocktail sausage.  I won’t even deny it.”

Y/N’s eyes widen and Jungkook notices (but doesn’t comment on) a red flush to her neck.

“Alright.  Fine.  I’ll help you out with Soomi, if you help me out with Jimin.”

Jungkook has to force himself not to punch the air in triumph.  Instead he grins - nice and wide - and nudges Y/N playfully, “I think this is the start of a very beautiful friendship.”

She groans.

“I’m already regretting this.”

//

Jungkook sends Y/N a text message the next morning, bright and early.  He doesn’t expect a response from her - he assumes she’s more of a night owl than an early bird - but then his phone pings in response and he has to say he’s a little surprised.

Jungkook: good mornin’ y/n… this is cupid calling 

Y/N: y’know..  I knew giving you my number was a bad idea 

Jungkook: oh c’mon don’t be like that, now that we’re friends you should definitely start warming up to me

Her reply takes a little longer but Jungkook isn’t worried.  Despite what she feels towards him, Y/N thinks her only way to Jimin’s heart is through Jungkook.  So she’ll just have to put up with it.

Y/N: I just puked in my mouth at the thought of warming up anywhere close to you.  Gross

Jungkook smiles at her response.

Jungkook: I think you like me more than you're willing to admit.  Anyway we need to get on with our…. Agreement.  Want to come round this evening to discuss arrangements?  I’ll even throw in some pizza and beer.

Y/N: I only like hawaiian.

Jungkook: Disgusting.  You and Namjoon will get on fantastically then.  Alright hawaiian it is. 

He sends her his address and when she replies with the puking emoji he laughs despite himself.

Maybe she’s not all that bad.

//

“Pineapple on pizza is a cardinal sin.” Y/N glares at Jungkook as she tucks into her third slice, “Why are you hating?”

“I just - I don’t get it.”

Y/N had arrived at his apartment earlier that evening with a six pack of beer in what Jungkook had assumed was a begrudging olive branch.  The two of them had spent the last hour discussing the delicate intricacies of mario kart, and Jungkook had found himself enjoying her company more and more.

He hated to admit it but she was kind of cool.

Only kind of, though.

“You don’t get it because your taste buds are subpar,” She moves her mouth into a small smile and Jungkook almost gasps at the gesture, “Hawaiian is the only acceptable way to eat pizza.  Period.”

“Y’know you look much cuter when you smile,” He quips, watching as she chokes on the last piece of crust, “You should do it more often.” Her eyes narrow into a glare, “I smile at people who bother to remember my name.”

“I thought you’d forgiven me for that.  I’m helping you out with Jimin aren’t I?”

Y/N laughs - and Jungkook is surprised at the warmth in her tone, “At a price.  Or are you forgetting I’m setting you up with Soomi?”

“Which reminds me,” He scoots closer towards her, pushing the pizza box out of the way, “What’s our plan of action?” Y/N seems to pause for a moment, her eyes flicking nervously across his face as she tucks some of her hair behind her ear.  Jungkook doesn’t comment on her sudden shift in behaviour, but he notices it. 

Man.  Girls are weird.

“I thought maybe… You could come over one night, to watch a movie or whatever.  And you could ask Taehyung and Jimin to join, too.”

Jungkook nods emphatically, “That’s a good plan.  Something intimate to really plant those seeds of love.”

Y/N laughs again and he notices the crinkles at the sides of her eyes when she does so.  Weird.  Why hasn’t he seen those before?  Admittedly… It’s kind of adorable.

“Plant those seeds of love,” She pulls a face, “You really are a wordsmith, Jeon Jungkook.” 

“Is it any wonder when my major is English lit?”

“Me too,” She cocks her head to one side, hair falling out from behind her ears, “Makes sense why you’re in most of my classes.”

Jungkook feels kind of (very) guilty as memories of their morning together are brought back.

“I really do feel like shit for not remembering you.”  He rubs the back of his neck in that universal boy sign for awkwardness, and clicks his tongue, “I wish I had.”

She shrugs, her eyes darkening a moment as she looks away, “It’s alright.  I’m kind of used to it to be honest.  Always been more of a... Background kind of person.” 

Jungkook clucks, like a mother hen disappointed at her chicks, “Hey don’t say that about yourself.”

When Y/N moves her eyes to meet with his own again, Jungkook notices she doesn’t seem angry or bitter.   Just resigned.

“But it’s true,” She licks her bottom lip and smiles almost sadly, “Soomi’s always been the centre of attention everywhere we go.  And I’ve known her… Forever, really.  So it makes sense.  Someone always has to take the back seat.  I don’t mind it.  Suits me just fine.”

Now Jungkook really feels like an asshole.  When she was prickly, it was easy to shove everything under the carpet, and pretend that not knowing her name wasn’t sort of horrible.

But now she was being nice, it made everything a hundred times worse.

“I’m sorry Y/N.  Really.”  

She meets his gaze again and smiles - this time a little lighter, “Don’t worry about it.  Now you know who I am… And you’ll never forget it.  Not least because I’m the love of your life’s best friend.”

Jungkook feels kind of awful right now, but he knows that apologising again will probably only annoy her.  He tucks his guilt somewhere into the back of his mind and smiles widely, trying to ease the mood.

“Right.  And I’m the person who is going to help you snag the man of your dreams!” 

She laughs at that, taking a final chug of her beer before setting the empty bottle to one side.

“Park Jimin here I come!”

“You’ve got a one way ticket to Bonetown and Jimin is flying first class!”

She laughs louder, this time snorting, “That makes no sense, but I’ll take it.”

They spend the rest of the evening hanging out in a way that feels strangely familiar, and it’s only when Y/N’s head begins to lull to one side that Jungkook realises it’s past three am.  And as he orders her an uber home, and insists she takes the final slice of pizza for the journey home, Jungkook realises that Y/N is more than just kind of cute.

She’s kind of great.

//

Later on that week, as Jungkook fills Namjoon and Taehyung in on his progress with Y/N, the former seems less than impressed.

“This is only going to end badly.”  Namjoon shakes his head, “Haven’t you ever seen a romantic comedy?  Shit like this only ends in tears.”

Jungkook takes a swig from his beer and rolls his eyes, “Have you ever tried to be positive a single day in your life Namjoon?  Y/N agreed to help me.  It’s progress.”

“But you dragged me into it,” Taehyung seems unimpressed, “And I told you me and Jimin aren’t even that close.”

“Okay so I might have embellished slightly….”

“Slightly?  You called us the best of friends,” Taehyung groans at his friend’s stupidity, “I’m not sure Jimin even knows what major I’m taking.”

“This is the most Jungkook problem of all time,” Namjoon guffaws at the situation, “How the hell are you going to sort this out.” “Tae - I just need you to convince Jimin to come on one date.”

Taehyung rolls his eyes, “I don’t know him that well, Kook.  What exactly am I supposed to say?” 

“I don’t know but you once convinced your mom those nudes of you that got leaked senior year of high school were actually for an art project,” Jungkook pleads with his friend, “I know  you can do this.” Taehyung laughs at the memory and pulls a face, “If he says no though, there’s not much else I can do.” “Fine.  But at least try.”

Jungkook knows that the universe is working in his favour.  It has to be.  The moment he laid eyes on Soomi he knew he’d never be happy again without her.

“Alright Kook I’ll try.  But I’m not making any promises.” Jungkook grins, “You’re the best.”

“I know I am,” He leans further back into the couch and grabs a slice of the pizza Namjoon ordered, surreptitiously picking off the pineapple, “Now what are you going to do about Y/N?” Jungkook raises a brow, “What do you mean?” “Well you described her as a she-demon,” Namjoon snorts, choking on some of his beer, “How exactly is that going to seduce Jimin?” “Remember everyone loves him,” Taehyung tacks on - less than helpfully - his smirk growing, “She’s going to have to get in line.” “Everyone does not love Jimin.”

Taehyung scoffs, “You’re kidding right?  I once watched him turn down three girls in one night.”

“Yeah.  This girl from my psych class says he’s still heart broken from his ex,” Namjoon seems to be enjoying Jungkook’s predicament a little too much, “Says he won’t even give anyone a chance.”

Jungkook refuses to let his friends’ pessimism get in the way of his elation.  He’s one step closer to Soomi, and if Jimin thinks he can be the one to stand in his way he’s got another thing coming.

“I’ll make it work.”  He answers with more confidence than he necessarily feels, “Besides, Y/N’s not that bad.  In certain lights she might even be considered kind of… Cute.  She’s just a little...brash.”

“Could her brashness towards you be due to the fact you forgot her name after an evening of vigorous love making?”  Taehyung gives his friend a knowing look, “I mean that would probably even hurt you Jungkook.  And you’re the master of not giving a fuck.”

“I apologised.”  He says it like that should fix everything, but in the depths of his heart Jungkook knows forgetting her name was kind of (really) shitty, “Besides.  If I really do set her up with Jimin and this all works out perfectly she’ll have a lot to thank me for.  Might even forgive me.”

Taehyung laughs and Namjoon pulls a face.

“We live in hope.” “That we do Joon.” Jungkook grins, “That we do.”

//

[will80sbyers]

Let's talk about Will's playlist... just for fun!

same as with Mike's playlist the songs are born from a different context than the show, so these don't have always a perfect correspondence with the things happening in it.

This is all only my own interpretation and it's just speculation about what I think these songs could mean... the playlists were created with Netflix before the release of s2 but I believe they already knew a lot about the storylines of the other seasons and did some foreshadowing

» Songs about surviving the Upside Down / Vecna and Will defeating him

Beat the devil's tattoo - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

I thread the needle through

You beat the devil's tattoo

foreshadowing for the season two finale in which Will is using morse code to communicate with the others... kind of drumming on a hard surface with his fingers

I'm still standing - Elton John

You could never know what it's like

Your blood like winter freezes just like ice

And there's a cold lonely light that shines from you

You'll wind up like the wreck you hide behind that mask you use

And did you think this fool could never win?

Well, look at me, I'm a-coming back again

I got a taste of love in a simple way

And if you need to know

while I'm still standing you just fade away

Don't you know I'm still standing better than I ever did?

Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid

And I'm still standing after all this time

Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind

Afraid - The Neighbourhood

When I wake up, I'm afraid somebody else might end up being me

Keep on dreaming, don't stop breathing, fight those demons, sell your soul, not your whole self

Oh, if they see it when you're sleeping, make them leave it

And I can't even see if there's hope there anymore, so

You're too mean, I don't like you

Fuck you, anyway

You make me wanna scream at the top of my lungs It hurts but, I won't fight you

Will is talking about Vecna and him possessing his body

Hold on - Alabama Shakes

Bless my heart, bless my soul.

Didn't think I'd make it to 22 years old.

There must be someone up above sayin',

"Come on, Brittany, you got to come on up.

You got to hold on

Every breath you take - The Police

Every breath you take

Every move you make

Every bond you break

Every step you take

I'll be watching you.

Vecna is watching Will in s2 ready to take over and use him for his plans

Under Cover of Darkness - The Strokes

I'll wait for you

Will you wait for me too?

And they sacrifice their lives

And they're lying about those odds

This song makes me think about a battle

Upside Down & Inside out - OK Go

Inside down and upside out and you can feel it

Don't stop, can't stop, it's like an airplane going down

I wish I had said the things you thought that I had said

Gravity's just a habit that you're pretty sure you can break

So when you met the new you

Were you scared, were you cold, were you kind?

Yeah when you met the new you, did someone die inside?

foreshadowing Will being possessed by the Mindflayer

Sympathy for the devil - Rolling stones

Pleased to meet you

Hope you guessed my name, oh yeah

But what's confusing you

Is just the nature of my game

Just as every cop is a criminal

And all the sinners saints

As heads is tails

Just call me Lucifer

'Cause I'm in need of some restraint

At this point I think this partly Vecna's playlist too... no, seriously 💀

Stayin alive - Bee gees

You're stayin' alive, stayin' alive

Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin'

And we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive

Icky Thump - The White Stripes

Icky thump, handcuffed to a bunk

Robbed blind

Looked around

And there was nobody else

I won't back down - Tom Petty

Well, I won't back down

No I won't back down

You could stand me up at the gates of Hell

But I won't back down

No I'll stand my ground

Won't be turned around

And I'll keep this world from draggin' me down

Slug song - The Clean

I said don't

Don't ever change

And misarrange your mind

Run for cover - The Killers

Run for cover

Run while you can, baby, don't look back

You gotta run for cover

Don't be afraid of the fear, that's a played out trap, man

You know you're not the only one

And don't look back, just run for cover

Will hiding from the Mindflayer

Out of breath - Frank Turner

When you meet death

Be out of breath

And say you're pleased to see him

In fact you're waiting for this meeting

And well frankly his timekeeping leaves a lot to be desired

So tell that hooded huckster that he's fired

Cold Cold Cold - Cage the Elephant

Doctor, look into my eyes

I've been breathing air, but there's no sign of life

Doctor, the problem's in my chest

My heart feels cold as ice, but it's anybody's guess

Doctor, can you help me? 'Cause I don't feel right

Better make it fast before I change my mind

Doctor, can you help me? 'Cause I don't feel right

Better make it fast before I change my mind

Another one bites the dust - Queen

There are plenty of ways that you can hurt a man

And bring him to the ground

You can beat him, you can cheat him

You can treat him bad and leave him when he's down, yeah

But I'm ready, yes, I'm ready for you

I'm standing on my own two feet

Drawing board - George Erza

The meaning of this song is about someone trying to kill someone else so I think it fits better as a Vecna song than a love one lmao

Carry on my wayward son - Kansas

Carry on my wayward son

There'll be peace when you are done

Lay your weary head to rest

Don't you cry no more

Ziggy Stardust - David Bowie

this song is about a narcissistic guy that was in the band and was "special" until he ruined himself because of his big ego... I think it could fit with Vecna and if they knew about Henry since the start they knew that the Mindflayer was a narcissistic serial killer type

Come a little closer - Cage the elephant

Time shakes, found you at the water

At first you were my father

Now I love you like a brother

Earthquakes shake the dust behind you

This world, at times will blind you

Still, I know I'll see you there

Come a little closer, then you'll see

Things aren't always what they seem to be

(Don’t Fear) The Reaper - Blue Öyster Cult

This song is about accepting that death is natural and welcoming it, it makes me think about the fact that Will was ready to sacrifice himself and wanted to close the gate in season two

Blinded by the Light - Manfred Mann's Earth Band

» Songs about Will feeling different / not conforming

Walk on the wild side - Lou Reed

Holly came from Miami, F.L.A.

Hitch-hiked her way across the U.S.A.

Plucked her eyebrows on the way

Shaved her legs and then he was a she

She says, "Hey, babe,

Take a walk on the wild side."

Radio, Radio - Elvis Costello & The Attractions

I wanna bite the hand that feeds me.

I wanna bite that hand so badly.

I want to make them wish they'd never seen me.

Afraid of everyone - The National

I'm afraid of everyone, I'm afraid of everyone

Lay the young blue bodies with the old red bodies

I'm afraid of everyone, I'm afraid of everyone

With my kid on my shoulders I try

Not to hurt anybody I like

My generation - The Who

People try to put us down

Just because we get around

Things they do look awful cold

Yeah, I hope I die before I get old

Don't stop believin' - Journey

Strangers waiting

Up and down the boulevard

Their shadows searching in the night

Streetlights people

Livin' just to find emotion

Hidin' somewhere in the night

Don't stop believin'

Hold on to that feelin'

Another brick in the wall - Pink Floyd

We don't need no education

We don't need no thought control

Creature comfort - Arcade Fire

Some boys hate themselves

Spend their lives resenting their fathers

...

We're the bones under your feet

The white lie of American prosperity

We wanna dance but we can't feel the beat

I'm a liar, don't doubt my sincerity

Just make it painless

Free Fallin - Tom Petty

Now all the vampires walkin' through the valley

Move west down Ventura boulevard

And all the bad boys are standing in the shadows

And the good girls are home with broken hearts

Now I'm free

Breathe (in the air) - Pink Floyd

Breathe, breathe in the air

Don't be afraid to care

Leave but don't leave me

Look around and choose your own ground

» Songs about Will being in love with Mike:

Should I stay or should I go? - The Clash

Darlin' you got to let me know

Should I stay or should I go?

If you say that you are mine

I'll be here 'til the end of time

So you got to let me know

Should I stay or should I go?

I can't hear you - The Dead Weather

I'm gonna teach you

And keep you for myself

I'm gonna take you by the hand

I'm gonna walk you to my house

So I can hear you

Stuck in the middle with you - Stealers Wheel

Yes, I'm stuck in the middle with you

And I'm wondering what it is I should do

It's so hard to keep this smile from my face

Losing control, yeah, I'm all over the place

Don’t you forget about me - Simple Minds

Tell me your troubles and doubts

Giving everything inside and out and

Love's strange, so real in the dark

Think of the tender things that we were working on

Slow change may pull us apart

When the light gets into your heart, baby

Don't you, forget about me

Searching the blue - The Arcs

War is over now

I feel my mind returning

Carried on a cloud

Every nerve was burning over you

I never had a need at all for anyone

Anyone other than you

But now that's through

Sold fool

We're prayin' to get it fast

And we pray it's in the past

Is anything we do, ever gonna last?

Couldn't I have a clue?

Searchin' the blue

Under pressure - Queen & David Bowie

It's the terror of knowing

What this world is about

Watching some good friends screaming

"Let me out!"

Tomorrow gets me higher, higher, high!

Pressure on people, people on streets

Turned away from it all like a blind man

Sat on a fence, but it don't work

Keep coming up with love, but it's so slashed and torn

Why, why, why!?

Love, love, love, love, love

Insanity laughs under pressure

We're breaking

Can't we give ourselves one more chance?

Why can't we give love that one more chance?

Livin' on a prayer - Bon Jovi

We've gotta hold on to what we've got

It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not

We've got each other and that's a lot

For love we'll give it a shot

Start me up - The Rolling Stones

If you start me up

If you start me up I'll never stop

This song continues in a series of sexual innuendos so I guess it could be about puberty in the context of the show

Dark Days - Local Natives

Dark days in the summer

In the rain the water's fine

It was wild combination

Either that or right down the line

Foreshadowing the season 3 fight?

Howlin for you - The Black Keys

I must admit

I can't explain

Any of these thoughts racing

Through my brain

It's true

Baby I'm howlin' for you

Echo home - The Kills

And it's a long long long long drop

From the rocks to the pearls, we got so lost

We got so lost, we got so lost

For so long, for so long, so long

For so long, oh

Maybe you went out of your mind

You can lose it all if you wanna

Maybe you went out of mine

It's been so long

You can live your own dear life

And you can lose it all if you wanna

But I can't let you out of mine

It's Up To You Now - The Black keys

You wanted to love, but you didn't know how

That's okay, it's up to you now

It got so bad to where I wouldn't allow

But no more, it's up to you now

Let you go so you could go...

Go to town

It's up to you now

This song is about a divorce, the singer let go of his former lover that changed for the worst and lost their friends after the divorce... makes me think about s3 Mike

How you like me now - The Heavy

Now there was a time

When you loved me so

I couldn't do wrong

...

Remember the time when I eat you up

Yeah I was a lie that you can't give up.

If I was to cheat

Oh no, would you see right through me?

If I sing a sad sad sad sad song

Would you give it to me? Would you?

So how you like me now?

Does that make you love me baby?

Will Byers in his petty era... Mike WAKE THE FUCK UP

Blue veins - The raconteurs

And I know you won't deceive me

Like the rest

and there's nothing you need to explain

You always were the first one to believe me

When I said to you girl, I think it's gonna rain

But I could be wrong

Yeah, but all of these things

All these things

They're all truly nice but ain't nothing

Ain't nothing compared to the love

That's running through your little blue veins

Gooey - Glass animals

Heroes - David Bowie

Breakdown - Tom Petty

It's alright if you love me

It's alright if you don't

I'm not afraid of you running away

Honey, I get the feeling, you won't

There is no sense in pretending

Your eyes give you away

Something inside you is feeling like I do

We've said all there is to say

Just What I Needed - The Cars

I don't mind you comin' here

And wastin' all my time

'Cause when you're standin' oh so near

I kinda lose my mind