#i was waiting for this bc they already have started with the introductions from other guests

[a-reality-dream]

cavatinaguitarfestival When Miles Kane invites you to a concert you can't say no

[ashtxrie]

oh no... am i falling in love? (sunoo)

PAIR. high school!sunoo x gn!reader GENRE. fake dating au, high school au, best friends to lovers, fluff WORD COUNT. 2.2k WARNINGS. none! NOTES. first post kinda nervous!! <//3 i need a sunoo irl he is truly the greenest of green flags

you and sunoo are those friends

you’ve got that type of friendship where something clicked and suddenly you were both attached at the hip for years

because apparently having the same clear muji pencil case with the holy grail 0.5 black muji pen at the beginning of middle school meant best friends ride or die in seventh-grade culture

like, someone who prioritized aesthetics in notetaking as much as you did? even in the confines of this crusty campus? crazy.

but anyway, with you being absolutely intent on making friends, sunoo couldn’t get rid of you if he tried but pls he could never survive without you anyway... who else would he trust enough to exchange his top-tier notes with?

and since then you’ve both been best friends for life! well, ever since the +6 with the introduction of sunoo's other friends [read: the rest of enhypen...]

and at first you were super happy because new friends!

but then they kind of stopped hanging out with you in the middle of sophomore year or so and went off into their own little world

and you were a little sad

ok maybe a lot sad. devastated, even.

but that was okay because that meant you were able to meet new friends and expand your horizons! you even got the chance to focus on yourself and join some new clubs, too!

who even is sunoo anymore lmao you don’t know him

but anyway

it was junior year and you were so tired of your friends bugging you to get a s/o

“[name], why don’t you date someone?”

“you’d really hit it off with so and so, don’t you think?”

“just put yourself out there”

ರ_ರ

ayo... excuse me

so one day you just can’t take it anymore

and maybe you should’ve thought this through but... nope

you don’t pause to think things through

because life is for living in the moment hell yes yolo gang

“umm guys i’m already dating someone!”

needless to say your friends go INSANE

like who tf is [name] gatekeeping from us they’re so fake /j

so like any sane and mentally adept person, you say the first name that comes to mind

“hahaha … sunoo!”

your friends stare at you. flabbergasted, shocked, stunned beyond words.

blink blink

“but … weren’t you guys just friends”

“NO”

you’re panicking but

trust

“we’re in LOVE”

ur friends are really like ok whatever, but go off

and that is how you find yourself dragging yourself over to sunoo's fifth period and placing your hands on sunoo's shoulders

“promise me you won’t freak out”

and ofc sunoo is already freaking out

bc why are you standing in front of the ap lang classroom with this crazily determined face and forcing him to listen to you

and this is how you get into this situation

with sunoo having a literal double take and you doing your best "pls help me out i beg of you" impression

“i can’t DATE you”

what

you give sunoo your best professional face even though inside you’re ???

bc um is it that bad to date you??

you are confused???

you’ve saved sunoo thousands of times in his high school career in both academics and social standing he can afford to pretend to date you ONCE

“WHY NOT”

“BECAUSE”

...

is he being fr rn

obviously you’re not getting anywhere and you turn around to walk away, kind of annoyed

“fine then, i’ll just find someone else to date me.” shrug (dies inside).

as soon as you say that, it’s like you’ve flipped a switch and suddenly sunoo is very concerned and almost a little upset

and when you don’t notice him contemplating something, he runs in front of you and nearly knocks you over

“second thoughts?”

sunoo scowls

although it looks more like a lil pout pushing at his lips and he crosses his arms

lmao who is this and what’s happened to sunoo

you shrug and start to leave for real until sunoo reaches out to tug at your arm

“NO, NO WAIT … I’LL DO IT”

you whirl around immediately and you are needless to say, very relieved!

｡◕‿◕｡

“perfect!”

but apparently sunoo hasn’t recovered from his fall from before

bc he can’t stop rubbing his hand against his neck and his face is all blotchy and pink

kinda cute, but in a best friends way.  like wowie my best friend looks kinda adorable look at that boy go

but ofc sunoo has to ruin the special moment because he offhandedly says, “shouldn’t we have rules or something?”

rules???

RULES???

this is fake dating sunoo wdyfm rules? that's so silly goofy

“huh?”

“like … things not to do? maybe one big rule is not ruining our friendship???”

ʘ‿ʘ

oh

he kinda smart for that

“ok easy then, just don’t fall in love with me”

apparently this is the WRONG thing to say?

sunoo is RED like boy is not pink anymore his cheeks are burning red

“you can’t just say that?”

????

you are confused bc what does that even mean

“why not?”

“that’s like ...  y-you you can’t just say that.”

you are, if possible, even more confused?

“okay and?”

sunoo blinks

pls this boy has the audacity to just shrug

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN

u are dumb af sunoo bout to throw hands here

but he won’t bc he loves u <3

so fifteen minutes later you guys decide to make three big rules

sunoo had a whole list of like twenty but you narrowed it down to these:

1. don’t ruin ur friendship

2. no kissing

3. and ur paying for three rounds of mint choco ice cream after this is over

honestly you think this is kinda rude considering sunoo is richer than ur entire life but whatever, at least he’s not leaving you out to the wolves

so when it’s finally time to put this fake dating thing to the test, you tug sunoo over to your side of the table during lunch and make sure to swing his hand

which actually feels kind of nice??

like you’ve never actually thought about this before

but sunoo is comforting

his hand fits right in yours, and he’s so warm

and i mean haha it’s not like this is a new thing, you two hold hands all the time!! but adjkaldjkfl not in a dating way

ur friends are shocked. bamboozled.

like they never thought you’d actually show up with a DATE

and bc they’re all RUDE they grill sunoo

but sunoo is best boy

best bf

and answers all their questions like a pro

that's my man

i mean what???

ur so proud

you let ur head rest against sunoo's shoulder and BITCH

sunoo presses a kiss to ur forehead

YO........................ insane.

why are u so happy? what is this??

it’s just so gentle and soft and you feel your heart getting all mushy and warm

your friends all give a big collective aww because one, they’re annoying af and yes y’all are cute cute and this is cute

but ur going through some existential crisis

and later when you’re walking with sunoo to all your classes, you can’t stop thinking that hey, this fakedating thing isn’t that bad

but whatever it’s just cause u miss spending time with sunoo!

yes, that’s it!

you’re just sad that sunoo always hangs out with his new group and you don’t get to see him as much

so this is nice!

you’re just going through some bff nostalgia rn... it's just gonna take some time for [name].exe to start working again

anyway now bc of this fakedating thing, you and sunoo just spend so much time together

like you guys have always been best friends, but this feels different

sunoo will run over to you when he sees you and wrap his arms around your waist

the first time he did it, he had the cuteness to go “is this okay? are you okay? is this too much?"

and YOUR HEART WENT !!!!!

you might’ve blushed

okay you did

but you convince yourself it’s just because ur touch starved and bitchless

c’mon... get it together

but whenever you call sunoo and wave at him, his face just LIGHTS up

and you’re pretty sure yours does too

(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ ✧ﾟ･: *ヽ(◕ヮ◕ヽ)

needless to say, you kinda don’t want this all to end

because somewhere in the middle of all this, your head has gone from calling sunoo your fake boyfriend to your real boyfriend

and you don’t really want to go back to just being friends if you’re honest

wait hold up

uh oh

UH OH CODE RED

INTERPOL INTERPOL.....

did you just admit you liked sunoo?? in a FOR REALS way?

UMMMMM

so like the only way you know how to deal with things, you avoid it!

you start to act really distant

and now whenever sunoo wraps his arms around you, you stiffen up

and sunoo like the angel he is pulls away so quickly bc ?? is his best friend upset? uncomfortable?

did HE make his best friend for life, his 4lifer, uncomfortable? omg this isn’t ok what is happening

everyone can tell something is up

ofc they can, what with you going to the extent of running away whenever you see sunoo and sunoo reacting like the entire light got blown out his life

and bffr sunoo may be innocent but he ISN'T dumb

he knows your schedule he KNOWS you’re ignoring him

and baby is upset

because lately you’ve been starting to feel a lot more to him

and now you’re just gone??

that’s not okay and sunoo isn’t just gonna sit around and be sad

if there’s something he can do he’s gonna do all he can to try to fix it!

he corners you one day and holds up an angry piece of paper

“excuse me but you broke rule number one which is, in case you forgot, don’t RUIN OUR FRIENDSHIP”

“oh haha uh sunoo! hi uhh i gotta go 👉👉 ”

sunoo's face falls

and that was it

you just wanna hold his cheeks and tell him things are fine and that you love him

wait WHAT

but sunoo is still staring at you with that wounded look

like you’ve just ripped up his heart and torn it to shreds

bc that’s kinda what you’re doing

omg what’ve you done

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE

“sunoo…”

his eyes lock onto yours so fast that you’re afraid he’s got whiplash

your mouth goes dry, and for a few moments it’s hard to talk

but you finally manage to tell him that “i don’t think we should fake date anymore.”

sunoo's face breaks

his eyes go wide, and it looks like he wants to stagger. and he almost does, just a little bit

“is it something i did?”

WHAT

this boy

kim sunoo is really gonna be the death of you

you’re shaking your head back and forth so fast because NO of course not of course this isn’t his fault

sunoo is Not Okay, and he looks so, so concerned for you. “because i swear i didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. if i screwed up just tell me and i can fix it, [name], please”

you shake ur head, already starting to panic.  “of course not.  it’s not YOU sunoo. i just can’t fake date you because--”

you clamp your hands over your mouth

“because?” sunoo prompts, his voice careful

you just shake your head, already starting to turn and run back to somewhere, anywhere because this is stupid and you’re scared

terrified, actually

but sunoo just takes your hand and tugs you backward a bit, almost like a scene from a movie

you do that little twirl back and are face to face with the one and only

“do you … do you like me?” sunoo asks

that’s it

it’s out

you’re ready for your entire friendship with sunoo to come crashing down

“do you?” he repeats softly

you try to pull away but sunoo isn’t having it

he’s still holding onto your hand, gently, of course, and his eyes are boring into yours

you’re too scared to look because you’re afraid of what you’ll find

but when you can’t take it anymore and finally tilt your head up you realize something important

because his eyes aren’t full of disgust

in fact, that’s further from the truth

kim sunoo is staring at you with the biggest heart eyes you’ve ever seen and you’re confused as to how you’ve never seen this sooner

it’s almost like you’re his whole world, and now you can’t fucking breathe

is this real? chat is this fr rn??

your heart’s pounding in your chest so fast and there’s something bursting at your lungs

you nod faintly.  “yes. i like you”

the huge grin that spreads across sunoo's face is everything

he rushes forward to pull you into a gigantic hug, even lifting you up a little as he spins you around and lets out a little happy noise

“i’ve liked you forever, [name], i can’t believe this is real”

what

so u could’ve been dating sunoo before??

“you dork why didn’t you tell me?”

“because you didn’t like me like that!”

BITCH WHAT

“well maybe i was confused” you pipe back

sunoo just laughs, burying his head in your shoulder.  “i’m so happy right now.”

and honestly ?

so are you !!

[ashwhowrites]

Older! Rockstar! Eddie Munson x Rockstar! Reader, what if they have to do like a tour together, and they realize that they hate each other, like hate to share the stage, hate to spend time together, until the two of them end up hooking up after some drinks at some bar, then, they find each other being like all nervous with each other, because of what happened and bc they're catching feelings, but they hate each other, right? (You can write a tiny bit of angst for the "hate" part, smut and fluff!)

I hope this is what you wanted and you enjoy it! I had a lot of fun with this 🫶🏻 thank you for requesting

We got angst, we got smut and we got fluff

Rockstar love

Y/N was excited as hell when her manager, Samantha, told her she had a summer tour lined up. Y/N was a small independent artist and she couldn't headline a tour on her own, she was grateful for the opportunity to be an opener for one of the biggest artists in the industry, Eddie Munson.

She loved his music and she loved his style. Their writing dynamic was very similar and their music blended well. Even Eddie's manager couldn't pick a better person to open for him.

So Y/N was all packed up and ready for the summer of her life, on tour with someone that she admired. She couldn't possibly think of one bad thing to change her mind.

Well, that was until she met Eddie.

~

"Hi! I'm Y/N, I'm so ex-" Her introduction was cut off when Eddie's painted nails waved in her face.

"I know, baby. You are so excited to finally meet me, and you're my biggest fan. But I'm in a rush, so why don't you just give me your number and I'll call you tonight?" His smirk was so confident and smug. She couldn't believe he was this conceited.

She scoffed and crossed her arms. "Is that how you talk to women?"

Eddie blinked at her aggressive tone but shook it off. "Women? Nah, that's how I talk to my girl of the night. So interested or not? Like I said I'm in a rush for a meeting." He checked his watch, knowing he was meant to meet whoever his opener was going to be for his tour.

"Not. Nice to meet you, asshole." She gagged and walked off.

This summer started a whole lot worse than she thought.

~

"Eddie! Glad you made it!" Samantha said with a big smile, no idea Y/N already had a run-in with the man of the hour.

"I'd like you to meet Y/N, she'll be your opener for the tour!" Eddie's eyes switched over to the girl that sat at the table. He choked a little on his spit when he realized it was the girl from outside the building.

"Oh shit, you're my opener?" Eddie asked. He did not make a good first impression.

"I know, baby. You are so excited to finally meet me, but I'm in a rush so can we sign the contract and get a move on?" Y/N said, his words leaving her tongue in a sassy way that Eddie couldn't help but like and hate.

Eddie sent a glare her way but signed the papers.

After the meeting, Y/N was quick to leave. Eddie ran out after her, an apology on his tongue.

"Hey, look, I'm sorry for how I talked to you. Can I make it up to you? Maybe dinner?" Eddie asked, a hopeful smile on his face.

Y/N debated for a while but figured making amends might be better for the summer ahead.

"Dinner is good."

~

Y/N applied the final touch of her lipstick before she walked out of the small hotel room. Eddie's room across from her. She knocked on the door, waited, and waited.

She huffed when she checked the time and realized she'd been outside his door for five minutes. She gave up and went back into her room, figuring she'd just wait there until he came to her.

But he never did. After two hours, she heard his voice slurring in the hallway as he tried to open his door. She looked out the peephole and saw his arm wrapped around another girl.

She gave up on him immediately.

~~~

Half the summer was sour, they hated to be in the same room with each other. She knew she had a right to be pissed, but Eddie didn't. He hated her because she hated him. He never bothered to apologize or admit he was a selfish asshole. And that's all she wanted.

"Can you stop moving off your X? It's there for a reason!" Y/N snapped, she groaned as they had to stop rehearsal, yet again.

"I'm a rockstar! I'm meant to move around!" Eddie argued. He wasn't used to sharing the stage and he hated it.

"I'm one too! And in case you haven't noticed, I'm doing perfectly fine on my X!"

"You want a fucking gold star for being boring? Difference between an opener and the main show" Eddie snapped, Y/N didn't fight back. She just growled and began the song again.

~

"Y/N, THAT WAS SO GOOD!" Samantha cheered as Y/N walked off the stage. The first night of your was in the books and Y/N loved the way she felt on the stage. The crowd seemed to like her and she felt like she got them pumped for Eddie's set.

Even though she hated him, she looked his way for approval. After all, she was his opener and cared what he thought about his tour.

"Why the hell are you looking at me?" He asked, his guitar strapped to his body as he waited for his cue.

"I don't know. Just maybe thought you'd like to share your thoughts?" She said, a little shy that she had to admit she wanted to know.

Eddie was taken aback by the nervousness in her eyes, for once she looked vulnerable and not ready to shoot fire. But he couldn't give in, the hatred between them was too powerful and he refused to give in first when she chose to be a bitch towards him.

"I've seen better, you're nothing special." He shrugged and jumped on the stage as his cue was hit. The screams of the arena sounded muted as his words rang in her ears.

She marched off into her dressing room. She didn't bother to watch his set. Unlike him, she can admit when someone has talent and he doesn't deserve her compliments. Instead, she focused on the anger she felt and put it into a song. If he wanted special, she'd show him special.

~

Within a week, she finished the song and began performing it. It was full of anger and the crowd loved it. The music was loud and it shook the whole place.

Eddie knew the song was about him. She stood there, banging on her guitar as she swore about the big-headed men in her life. He was pissed, it was his tour and here she was bad-mouthing him to his fans. The fans didn't know it was about him, they just related it to a man in their life. But still, he didn't take the disrespect lightly.

And she didn't care. Ever since that first show on tour, she never asked for his thoughts again. She'd get off stage, place down her guitar, and walk straight to the dressing room.

It bothered Eddie that she never sat to watch his set, but he refused to let her know that he cared.

~~~

About a month and a half into the tour, they barely spoke. And if they did, it was to tear each other apart.

But when Y/N's new song was officially released and hit the radio, the crew wanted to go out to celebrate. And to her shock, Eddie showed up.

"I'd like to make a toast!" Y/N slurred, already a few shots in and the alcohol was taking over her body. The table raised a glass, and Eddie rolled his eyes. He might have been a little irritated by all the success she earned from a song that was about him.

"...and thanks to Eddie, the man who inspired the song. Thanks for being an asshole and treating me like shit. Cheers!"

Eddie bit his tongue as he took the shot in front of him, he didn't want to make a scene in a public place. He knew better than that. There would be cameras everywhere.

As the night went on, the more drunk she and Eddie became. The crew called it a night and left. Bad move to leave them alone.

"You know that I can't fucking stand you sometimes." Eddie hissed, trying to ignore the way her lips were wet and glossy from all the drinks she had.

"Yeah, I got the message." She laughed sarcastically. She hated how he got hot and had to throw his hair in a bun. With stupid curls hanging down to frame his perfect face.

"Why did you write the song? Just knew making money off me would be a career move?" He argued, the venom on his tongue was strong and she knew a fight was brewing.

"Oh fuck off. I'm going to the bathroom." She said as she rolled her eyes and walked off.

But Eddie was too mad to let it go. He followed her into the bathroom, locking the door behind them.

"Are you crazy!? This is a bathroom!"

"Answer my fucking question!"

"Yes, Eddie. It was a career move! You were a complete dick the second I met you and looked down on me all because I was an opener! I was grateful for the opportunity and now I realize, you are a selfish prick who only cares to get his dick wet." Her words were knives and perfectly sliced into Eddie's skin. Her eyes are dark as she gets in his face. Every word against his lips as he puffed and huffed.

The fire in his body with all the anger he felt. She stood tall and confident. Right in his face with no care in the world. Her lip snarled and her eyebrows scrunched.

"Jealous or something baby?" He smirked, he noticed the flicker of lust in her eyes before she remained unbothered.

"Of what?" She sneered

"The girl I took to my hotel room instead of you." His smirk was a target and she wanted to smack it off his face. He knew she was waiting and watching. And he had the nerve to never once apologize.

"Not. I like to end my nights with an orgasm." She said with a bitter smile, her hand reached behind him to grab the door but the growl that left his lips made her stop.

She looked up into his eyes and knew she struck a nerve. And she couldn't help but feel how wet her underwear became.

Before she could say another word, insult, or make a noise, his hot mouth was on hers. His hands dived into her hair as he took over her body. His tongue was in her mouth before she could blink. And she hated how easily she moaned.

Her body was against the sink as his hands scrammed to take off her jeans. He pulled away to unbuckle his belt and yank down his jeans, she took a second to catch her breath and remove her shirt. Her head against the mirror as his mouth attached to her chest, his teeth biting down on the flesh as she whined out.

She wasn't thinking, and she knew that. But his mouth felt so good and her cunt ached.

"Is that what this has always been about? Jealous I wasn't fucking your cute cunt?" Eddie teased, and he pulled away his mouth, which allowed her to understand his words.

"No, it's not. You were a dick the second I met you, and discredit me because I'm younger and newer to the industry. Don't flatter yourself." She scoffed. He was so big-headed and she couldn't believe he still didn't understand where he went wrong. "plus I wouldn't care about the girl if I wasn't waiting for you for dinner." She barked out. The hatred and anger filled her body again. Almost like it reminded her why she shouldn't be doing this. She pushed him back and reached for her shirt.

"Oh come on! Don't take it so personally. I forgot we had plans, okay?" He tried to defend but she was already throwing on her shirt.

"Forgot? Or decided that getting a quick fuck meant more?" Maybe in a way, she was hurt by the fact he completely shoved her off for someone else. She liked Eddie, and she always found him attractive and it sucked to meet him and see he was nothing like she thought.

"DO YOU WANT ME TO ADMIT THAT? Would that even make it better?" He laughed out, he couldn't believe it was even a big deal. "if I sat here and told you straight to your face that I wanted some wet pussy wrapped around me instead of sitting at a dinner with you, that make it BETTER? Huh?"

She shouldn't care, she really shouldn't. They weren't even friends and she had no reason to feel the burning jealousy in her stomach that someone got to spend the night with him when it was supposed to be her. She hated that no matter how much he made her hate him, she still felt something pulling her towards him.

She didn't have words, and she wasn't sure how to respond.

All she wanted was an apology

"Because that pussy was the best I've ever had and I don't regret it." He seethed out, and that struck a nerve in her. Apart from the jealousy and stupid high school games, he felt she wasn't worth apologizing to. She realized she'd never get that apology.

This time, she did go to smack the smirk off his face. Her right hand was high in the air as she aimed for his cheek, but his hand caught her. A deadly look in his eyes. They were breathing hard into each other's faces. She felt her cunt pulse, and he felt his cock pulse in his boxers, his jeans still on the floor.

She whimpered as he took control, again. He kept his grip on her arm, turning her around and pressing his cock against her ass. He held her arm behind her back, she was trapped between him and the sink.

No words were said, both relieving their aches as his free hand ripped off her underwear. The sound made her clench, then his fingers were inside of her. She moaned as he didn't care to be soft or gentle. Three fingers deep inside her cunt as his cock pressed against her ass. She moaned out and her head was thrown back into his shoulder.

His hand let her arm free, and she moved it to grip the sink, his fingers pumping inside of her. He was skilled, experienced, and knew exactly how to hit the right spots. Her head was fuzzy as she got lost in the feeling. With his free hand, he grabbed her chin and turned her head towards him. Her eyes closed in bliss as his lips touched hers.

His fingers moved faster inside of her as his lips tasted her. He felt the moan in the back of his throat as she clenched around him. His stomach flipped when her warm tongue worked inside of his mouth. He growled as her tongue dominated his.

The aching in his boxers became too much, he removed his fingers, smirking as she whined at the lost touch. But he was quick to fill her again, but this time with his pulsing cock. She moaned as she fucked into her. Nothing about it was romantic. It was heavy breaths, growls, moans, and the sound of their skin smacking. Her nails dug into the sink as he destroyed her. His mouth was on hers again as he moved his hips against her, loving the way she clenched around him. Her knees were weak when his fingers began to rub her clit.

She couldn't focus on anything except that burning feeling in her stomach and the build-up of her orgasm.

"Eddie." She squeaked, her hands moved up her body and reached behind her, feeling him underneath her fingertips.

"Shh, I know, baby. Let it go. I got you. Cum for me, gorgeous. Be right here." He said softly, she didn't think she'd ever heard him sound so sweet. She nodded as she gasped, letting herself go. She shook on his cock as she came. The relief she felt from every aching part of her body vanished.

She hissed as he slipped out of her, but she was fast to wrap her hand around him. Jerking him off as she looked in the mirror ahead. His forehead was against her shoulder as he breathed hard. His hands gripped her hips and he moved his hips to her rhythm.

"Watch yourself." She said, her tone demanding. He looked up, his blown-out lustful eyes took in their reflection. The sight of her hand wrapped around his red cock made his thighs shake.

He kept his eyes on her reflection as he painted the sink and her hand with his cum. He panted hard as she needed him off through it.

~

She washed off her hands and got dressed. Awkwardly handing Eddie his clothes.

He silently grabbed the jeans from her hands and put them on. He watched as she dressed herself.

"I'm, um, I'm sorry for the way I treated you and for ditching you," Eddie whispered, not to her but to the floor.

"Thanks, Eddie." She said, and she meant it. She knew that's all she would get. She gave him a small smile and walked out.

Where the hell do they stand now?

~~~

After that event, things between them got blurry. They found themselves feeling something different. Almost like they got out every bit of anger inside of them. Like the anger was just the first layer. And now other feelings were being revealed.

Y/N couldn't help but notice she was putting more work into her appearance. More makeup touches and asking for more sexier clothes for when she performs. She almost felt like she wanted Eddie's eyes on her all the time. Because she couldn't help but have her eyes on him.

Eddie couldn't help but stare whenever she was near. It was like his eyes automatically found her in the room and he couldn't get enough. He noticed things about her that he didn't see at first. He always found her attractive, but now it was deeper than that. He found a new favorite thing about her every day. He started watching more of her performances and found the compliments slipping off his tongue.

The air changed between them. Now they were nervous and didn't know what to say. They didn't talk about what happened but both wished that the other still thought about it.

They tried to ignore how nervous they were and how awkward it made things. Y/N felt like they both needed to talk about what happened to either go back to normal or discuss what was next for them because this situation was too weird.

It was nearly midnight when they made it back to the hotel after their show, Eddie went to head into his room when Y/N spoke up.

"Do you think we could talk?" She asked, the shakiness in her voice made it clear she was nervous.

"Uh sure," Eddie said, his nerves kicked in as he unlocked the door.

She followed behind and took a seat on the bed. He removed his shoes and then took the spot next to her. His shoulder against hers as he waited for her to speak.

"About the thing that happened," she started, already hating the conversation. Eddie coughed awkwardly as he stared at his hands. "I'm just going to be fully honest and I can leave right after. But, it hasn't left my head. I know it was full of hatred and anger. And it probably didn't mean anything and I didn't think it would. But it almost feels like I let out all that anger and now I'm left with other feelings." She admitted, slowly looking towards him to read his expression.

"What kind of other feelings?" He asked, he turned his head to look at her. He hoped she meant the same feelings he'd been feeling. The feeling of wanting each other again. And maybe wanting each other always.

"Feelings like that I like you and my stomach hurts when I think about all the girls in the crowd that want to go home with you." She admitted, looking down at her own hands as she blushed.

She was surprised when Eddie reached for her hand and laced their fingers together. He reached over and used his pointer finger to tilt up her chin. Her eyes looked into his as she anxiously waited for him to speak.

"I tend to be a dick so girls want anything to do with me after sex. But, I'm fucking grateful to hear you still like my dumbass." He joked, a smile on his face as she laughed. "Even though we had sex out of anger, there was something so real there and it hasn't left my mind. The way you pulled so much emotion out of me. I've never had someone do that. I like you too, and I'd like a chance to take you on a date and treat you the way you always should have been treated."

She felt her heart skip at his words, and a feeling of excitement bubbled in her stomach.

"I'd like that." She said as she tried to bite back her smile.

"Perfect, let's go right now." He said he stood up with their hands still laced.

"What? Right now! It's midnight!" She argued, her eyes looking to the clock.

"Don't care. I'm not wasting a second to take you out. The world is asleep, let's go have our fun before it wakes up ." He said with a wink, smiling as she stood up and together they ran out of his room like idiots.

Maybe the summer was finally looking up.

Tags!

@bmunson86 @mxcheese @ladymunson @michaelfuckinglangdon @z0mbie-blah @biittersweet @mirrorsstuff @somethingvicked @micheledawn1975 @ago-godance @magnificantmermaid @tlclick73 @hargrovesswifee @cityofidek @manyfandomsfanvergentreblogs @silky-luxe @lokiofasgard616 @loving-and-dreaming @eddiemunsonsbitch69 @thegemaqua @ashlynnkennedy @strangerthingsstories5255 @harringt8ns @pleasinghellfire @whoscamila @stusdollface93 @gretavankleep37 @bellaisswagger

[mando-fando]

Blue Sky Thinking

Idek I have CEO Miguel brain rot (esp bc I started my new corporate girlie job two weeks ago!)

So here’s this!!

Pairing: CEO Miguel O’Hara x Corporate!Female Reader

Words: 1.6k

Warning: CORPORATE AMERICA

You’d been a CXO at Alchemax for two weeks now. You’d done some consulting work beforehand, and when the job opened up, an old mentor gave you a call to set up the interview.

“Alchemax needs a strong Chief Experience Officer,” she said over the phone. “Their products are good, but their image is…lacking. With no help from the CEO.” She added.

Oh yes, the CEO whom you haven’t even met yet, Miguel O’Hara. He had no interest in partaking in the several interviews you had for this position, and he was out of town for your first full week.

What a nice way to welcome a colleague, you thought.

Regardless, everyone else was competent and friendly, and you already had big ideas for the next few months.

The elevator doors opened and you began walking towards your office. Your heels click-clacked on the marble as you made your way down the hall.

You stepped into your office and began powering up your computer. You had a meeting this morning with the fellow chiefs of staff, and you wanted to go over your notes one last time before delivering your presentation.

“Good morning!” A chipper voice drew your attention from your screen. You looked up and saw your assistant Jeanine.

“Good morning Jeanine,” you smiled at her.

“Are you excited for your meeting? Nervous?” She grinned.

“A bit of both,” you leaned back in your seat, “but mostly excited. We have unlimited potential, and I intend to tap into that!”

“Let me get you a coffee,” she said with a wink.

You turned back to your computer and began rehearsing your presentation. It had taken you the entire weekend to gather all the data and put the slideshow together. You spent hours practicing, and you could probably deliver every word in your sleep.

“Here you go,” Jeanine returned with your coffee, exactly the way you liked it.

“Thank you.” You stood up and gathered your things and headed to the board room. “Wish me luck!” You called over your shoulder.

20 minutes later, a small bead of sweat ran down your back as you stared at your fellow chiefs of staff. Only one was missing: the CEO.

You’d been waiting anxiously for him to show up, silently cursing him for delaying something you’d worked so hard on.

“I think we’ll go ahead and start without him,” the CFO said.

You nodded. “Alright, let’s get started.” You turned towards the projector. “Firstly, I wanted to th-“

The conference room door opened, interrupting your introduction.

He’d finally decided to show up, the minute you began talking.

Although you’d seen photos of Miguel, they did him no justice. He was tall, taller than any of the other men sitting in the boardroom by almost a foot. He filled out the expensive Armani suit in a way you’d never seen before, and his hair was perfectly groomed.

His face was gorgeous, but it took you a moment to realize that his breathtaking eyes were gazing at you with an unimpressed look.

“I don’t think we’ve had the chance to-“ you stuck your hand out to shake, but he interrupted you for the second time that morning.

“I’m well aware of who you are. I’m also well aware of the fact that you hijacked this meeting to go over your silly ideas rather than going over the financials for Q3. Hi This,” he gestured to the presentation on the board, “can be sent out as an email. We have real work to do.” He said dismissively.

Frustration flooded your chest. You’d worked all freaking weekend on this presentation! Who was he to tell you it wasn’t ‘real work?!’

“Excuse me?!” You said with a raised brow. It had come out of your mouth before you realized it.

The other chiefs of staff looked up at you with wide eyes. You had heard that Miguel wasn’t one to take any kind of back talk.

A look of surprise flashed across his face before a stern expression replaced it.

“What did-“ he began.

“No.” You said firmly, taking a step towards him. “Myself and my colleagues had decided to change the theme of this meeting, so we can discuss some changes that need to happen this quarter to ensure client satisfaction. I’m not hijacking anything.” You spoke in a calm and eloquent manner as you felt every set of eyes in the room trained on you.

“Client satisfaction is not more important than the quarterly financials.” He challenged.

“Yes, it is.” You stated factually. “Since you stepped into your position, it’s gone down drastically. There have even been whispers amongst the board blaming you for the decrease.” You crossed your arms and looked at him.

Miguel blinked at you. You could tell he hadn’t been challenged this way in quite some time.

“This is a discussion we’ll be having in my office.” He said flatly before turning around to walk out.

“I’ll see if Jeanine can squeeze you into my calendar,” you clipped.

He turned back to you for a moment with a deathly glare before leaving the room.

“Apologies for the interruption, everyone,” you turned back to your colleagues and began delivering your presentation again.

After the meeting was over, the gravity of your interaction with Miguel began setting in. Your second week at the job, and you’d all but made enemies with the CEO.

You sat in your office and ruminated over the encounter. Emails began flooding your inbox as your colleagues began looping other employees into the process of implementing your ideas.

You scrolled through them mindlessly when a message came through from Miguel’s secretary.

Please meet Mr. O’Hara in his office at your earliest convenience.

You rolled your eyes and stood from your desk. Your office was on the opposite end of the hall from his own. You trekked down the long corridor towards his secretary’s desk.

“Is he available?” You asked flippantly.

“Yes, go in.” She said dismissively without making eye contact. She was just as rude as her boss.

You walked into the office and found him sitting at his desk with a pair of glasses sitting on the end of his nose, looking intently at his computer screen.

You waited for him to acknowledge your presence for a moment as you closed the door behind you.

You waited at least 2 minutes. He still hadn’t said a thing to you.

“You know what? I’ll come back later.” You turned towards the door.

“Sit down,” he said, still not looking up from his screen.

“I was under the impression that this was urgent,” you said, still standing with a hand on the doorknob.

He sighed and looked over at you as he took off his glasses.

“You’re mouthy for a new hire.”

“Did you call me over here to insult me?” You scoffed.

“That wasn’t an insult. Sit.” He gestured to the chair on the opposite side of his desk. You finally sat across from him.

“Then what is it, if it’s not an insult? A compliment?”

“I suppose. You’re new to this position. You’re young, too. Standing up to me, especially in a room full of other people is not something most people would do.” He said.

“So you’re commending me for undermining your authority in front of our peers?” You questioned skeptically.

For some reason, that made him chuckle. The sound reverberated through your ears, and a slight blush tinted your cheeks. The animosity you had towards him seemed to vanish.

“How did your presentation go? I heard that you have ‘big plans.’” Miguel leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms with a smile.

“It couldn’t have gone better,” the excitement in your tone was obvious. “And I do have big plans. I’d like to get our stock back up to its former glory, and maybe get the board to stop churning the rumor mill about our chiefs of staff. It freaks out the shareholders,” you said casually.

“Rumor mill?” Miguel questioned.

“Oh don’t play dumb,” you smiled. “They say you’ve been genetically experimented on.”

He laughed. His eyes lit up and his white teeth glimmered as he bared them. “And I take it you don’t believe the ridiculous rumors?”

“Of course not,” Your shoulders relaxed a bit. Whatever tension there was between the two of you had melted.

“Well, that’s good to know,” he sat back up in his chair and looked back towards his computer.

“Look, I’m going to be transparent with you about something: I’m not super personable. But my job isn’t to be personable. It’s to strategize and manage our operations. I’m good at what I do, but the board always loves the ones who they can show off at their fundraisers and shit like that.” He looked you in the eyes as he said it. You could swear that his eyes had a touch of red in them, but told yourself it was a trick of the light.

“I understand,” you nodded. “I am personable. I actually really enjoy those events. I’d also like to make a better name for CXOs since the position is becoming more popular, so I don’t mind the attention,” you smiled.

“Well, it’s settled then.” He stood up and you followed suit. “You’ll take care of our horrendous client satisfaction, and go wherever those assholes on the board need you to go.”

“Sounds like a plan,” you stuck a hand out to shake. He met your grasp and you almost gasped at the size of his hands.

“Glad we ended things on a better note than we started them on,” he winked. Your heart fluttered.

“Me too.”

[asordinaryppl]

A3! Main Story: Part 4 - Act 13: Budding Spring - Episode 28: Welcome Home

Itaru: (No good. The line is too long and there’s no more taxis… All I can do is find a rental nearby–)

Sakuya: Itaru-san! Welcome back!

Itaru: ——

Masumi: You’re late.

Citron: We came to pick you up~!

Chikage: You did good.

Tsuzuru: To think this plane would be delayed too, what a disaster.

Itaru: Huh? What? Why are you here? What about the performance? Why did all of you come here!?

Sakuya: We were going crazy with worry, so we made a bit of an unreasonable request.

Chikage: We had to practice our lines during the ride, because we'd be wasting precious time otherwise. 

Masumi: The Director was supposed to be the first person I’d drive somewhere…

Tsuzuru: As one would expect from him, Masumi’s a careful driver, so there’s no need to worry.

Itaru: Why would you all come together… Aren’t you lot being a bit too reckless?

Chikage: It turned out alright, didn’t it?

Tsuzuru: You couldn’t catch a taxi, could you?

Itaru: I mean, you definitely saved my butt with this.

Itaru: Pause, rewind. I didn’t realize your faces are so tan… What did you guys eat?

Tsuzuru: There’s nothing we can eat that will make our faces tanner! We just got our makeup on already!

Masumi: To save time.

Itaru: I C.

Citron: Itaru, now is not the time to be fooling around!

Itaru: Having Citron of all people tell me this is kinda…

Chikage: Guess there’s no need to worry about you if you’re this carefree.

Sakuya: Let’s hurry! Everyone is waiting for us!

-

Manager: Thank you very much for coming to today’s performance of “Romeo and Julius ~Rosso e Blu~”, by MANKAI Company’s Spring Troupe.

Manager: The performance will be starting shortly.

Towa: …

Audience A: I wonder what the sequel will be like?

Audience B: I hope the members are the same as last time.

Audience A: This is the first time MANKAI Company does a sequel. I don’t know if I’m excited or scared…

Audience B: I know, right! RomiJuri was the first performance I saw, and I fell head over heels for Romeo…

momo has entered the chat shiki: hi? i thought you were going to the opening day performance today? Iv: you were yapping about it earlier momo: i had to make sure i don’t butt in on other people’s conversation, so i came here Kar: that’s some thinking w Iv: yeah you’d look sus momo: i was also shocked when they announced the romijuli sequel. i understand why they’d be both excited and anxious and tbh i feel the same way momo: i can’t stop thinking about what i’d do if they announced a sequel to my fav play. i think i’d kms if they changed my oshi’s role tho Iv: woah woah woah  momo: also bc i went on the stage itself during the workshop, i think it looks even brighter now that i’m here to watch a performance momo: i think about all the people working bts and i’m overcome with emotion before the performance even starts, i don’t even know if my heart will last till the end Kar: momo the yapper is back shiki: isn’t it starting soon? have fun!

Towa: Whew…

Towa: (I think I’ve calmed down a bit.)

Audience A: It’s almost time, are they not starting yet?

Audience B: They should be ready around this time. Did something happen?

Towa: (Eh, is there some kind of problem? Are they okay??)

Audience A: This reminds me of that time the Autumn Troupe took too long to prepare, and the Summer Troupe had to make a really long introduction.

Audience B: Ah, I watched that on stream!

Audience A: They’re probably doing their best backstage right now.

Audience B: Stay strong…!

Towa: (Good luck, Spring Troupe, everyone on staff…!)

-

[Door slams open]

Sakuya: We’re here! Sorry for the wait!

Izumi: Thank goodness! Welcome back!

Yuki: You’re late!

Azami: You’re late.

Itaru: Three combo…

Azami: I gotta do your makeup, so hurry and sit.

Tsumugi: I’m glad you made it in time.

Itaru: I really troubled you this time. I didn’t think something like this would happen…

Izumi: But it all turned out okay, didn’t it?

Itaru: Pretty much. And my body’s still tingling from all the passion the overseas fans showed.

Itaru: It made me feel like there’s still lots of this world left for us to explore. All that’s left is for me to pour all this enthusiasm into this performance.

Izumi: That makes me happy

Itaru: Ah, but my stamina stats are lowered because of my fatigue and jet lag. TY for the support.

Tsuzuru: I’m pretty sure there’s barely any time difference, though?

Citron: It's better than fumbling and freezing up on stage because he hid it~!

Masumi: Like in the debut performance, huh?

Itaru: Pretty much.

-

Manager: The show is starting soon!

Itaru:  kk.

Chikage: Seems like we made it in time, somehow.

Tsuzuru: Doesn’t change the fact that we were all over the place this time, too, though.

Sakuya: We each took on new challenges in preparation for the New Fleur Award, so I feel like we can return to this stage with new feelings.

Sakuya: Although we can only stand on stage for the first time once, we can have many other “firsts” from now on.

Sakuya: We can remember those feelings again and again. That courage we had when leaping into a brand-new world–

Sakuya: Let’s take all our “firsts” in a positive light and have fun together!

Citron: Yeah!

Tsuzuru: Yeah.

Chikage: That’s a good way of putting it.

Itaru: All set over here.

Masumi: Let’s go, Romeo.

Sakuya: Yes! Let’s start our journey!

previous episode | masterpost | next episode

[f-ngrl]

rap:public 1st episode :D incl spoilers :D

(part 1, i'll keep watching later)

"Politics, betrayal, scheme, strategy"??? NO!! I want rap :(

The voice of the one guy who's fighting sounds like kaogaii, the other idk

I kinda feel bad for them, sounds hard

didn't expect Gamma to go up first!! No surprised with Khan. I think Khan will win, he's much better and also has more friends. (and I think friends counts much more)

yeah as expected. Kinda sad for Gamma, maybe the writers forced him to go up? If he had gotten much more votes I would've said it's scripted too though 😅 I wonder who the 2 ppl who voted for him are

taking the mask off is a joke, everybody knows their voices :D

lol next is kaogaii. he's like out for trouble but he doesn't mean it seriously but just to put on a show.

huh i can't recognize the opponent

kaogaii swearing a lot, the others are already laughing haha

wait is it not kaogaii?? ooops? i'm not sure now that he's rapping

the opponent's rap is not strong either, a little weaker even. i mean if it's really a freestyle ok, but they probably prepared this, right?

so the opponent was o'domar. i think he's from osamari crew? must have heard him on feats, but not really familiar with him.

ok the first one was kaogaii, at least i wasn't wrong about him :D they're playing kitsyojii in the bg haha, true love. kitsyojii's not participating btw and made an album in the meantime, shoutout to him <33 (i'm gonna spend more time and have more fun listening to the album than watching the show so)

2 people jumped up at the same time but the 2nd person left again :D they're saying it's roh yunha, i wouldn't have known.

again idk the opponent just by his introduction voice

now i can tell it's yunha by his rap. he's really good and his style sounds fun. it'll be hard to go up against him, he's popular

is the opponent skyminhyuk? if it is, his rap is better than it used to be but not better than yunha's imo.

seems the most important part of the show is having friends with you. it's not really about the rap, that's just a side entertainment factor? that's not really fair, but friends is still better than "mnet editing" being the deciding factor

polodared went up and forgot his lyrics. i don't like him but he has a lot of friends. let's see who the other person is. if they don't mess up they should win.

they didn't even show the other person? and he still won bc he took off his own mask is it? now the editing is going faster

they're just showing some participants now. there's drain k and jp!! i really enjoyed their soundcloud songs back in tHe DaY lol.

more female rappers who i hadn't known! they all lost but hopefully some are good and here to stay active in khh

i didn't know a lot of these people. maybe they're not rappers? one is a youtuber

another battle. idk them i think? the first one is familiar, rap is really good. i'm sure i've listened to him before but don't really know the voice?

the other one is showing off his american accent. his rap style is also copying an american rapper idk who. skrrt yeah i'm not that impressed. he's just shouting and the rap is kinda lame brr brr?

the opponent won??? were they impressed with his americanness??

hahahahaha the first one is fleeky bang haha i've been listening to his album a lot and still didn't recognize him :D

the winner is double down, never heard of him. from new york, real gangster uhuh. he came with nosun and foggyatthebottom. i used to listen to foggyatthebottom a bit, i think he's good but kinda problematic so

double down doesn't even speak korean apparently. but i want korean rap :D

i can't tell who the next pair is by their talking voices.

the first one is quite good in korean and english. maybe it's foggyatthebottom already? can't think of anyone else with that tone. or i'm completely mixing it up. if it's him the style is reaaaally different though so maybe not. also 2 opponents ran up to him so maybe not :D

opponent a little weak from the start and then he messed up pretty bad. the music ends, he keeps rapping and still messes up ah 😅 no idea who he is

result is not surprising. the opponent was goldbuuda. idk his music at all but i don't think he deserved the messing up :/ a pityy

the winner is xwally. idk him really, just heard his name

the day must be getting long, they're all trying to compete now

SINCE!!! <3<3<3 who thinks they can compete??? she's crazy i love her. this part SO STRONG <333 they're all cheering like crazy she's on another level

the opponent is ok. the breaks are too long between the lines, time wasted. he had no chance from the start anyways :D

it's geegooin. idk his music. apparently he confessed to since on smtm :D he says that's why he lost? but then why did he go up against her? :D

more skips. reddy with a new style? go gwangil rapping at normal speed

next pair. a 19yo, young rapper are rare these days. idk who it is, but pretty good imo. the opponent is really good, he's totally won. i think it's haon maybe?? different speeds flawlessly, few are that good.

the starter was osun. idk his rap :D as said he did pretty well :) but few would have a chance against haon.

haon looks a lot like bobby sometimes, with certain hairstyles and from certain angles, this is one of those moments :D

osun says haon motivated him to start rapping 🥺 so sweet!

they're giving screentime to the girl with long nails :D the guy she's going up against is v good, i know him 100% aaah it's driving me crazy :D

it's zene!!! as i was listening to think i saw his green hair 😭😭😭 i'm so sorry zene ilu 😭 his rapper is even better than what i had in mind

her song is funny! :D the first one with melody, i don't approve of that tbh, but otherwise cool. they're already saying "it was catchy", but people shouldn't win for pop here :/ her voice is familiar but she seems out of breath and her voice isn't stable so i'm not sure

zene won ok, that's fair then :) the girl is cocona, never heard of her.

they're spoiling the next one is don mills right away :D the opponent is a fan, idk who :D

don mills' rap is good but not crazy good. he said mills gon do it lol :D

aah the opponent is reallllly good. i know his voice!! i know him 100%! he has a deep voice. who is it aaah. i'm sure i listened to him a lot before!!

the opponent won ok, he did so well. it's daniel jikal?!?? idk him at all?!? 😂😂 did he change his name? lol

ok i'll take a break here but it's fun :)

[sapphire-weapon]

another broke take i keep seeing is that ashley develops feelings for leon but that it’s not mutual, which is dumb bc even if leon isn’t as open about it (the ‘running from creeps’ and ‘good company’ lines notwithstanding), his body language is very telling imo.

holding on to her a little longer than he needs to during the church escape, touching her shoulder to check on her (when they’re saved by luis) or in reassurance (post-stabbing), gently cupping her head and tracing his fingers down her arm, reaching for her face again when she’s on the altar, grabbing her hand to pull her into the lift, and the way he always stops to help her up with both arms when she’s downed by enemies

even the fact that he’s literally being paid to protect her can’t justify the tenderness of all these little touches. i highly doubt “touch the president’s daughter like she’s the only thing that keeps you going” was in his job description. don’t even get me started on his boyish, almost bashful, “i can catch ya” like literally what the fuck

I think, after being forced into the shadows for eighteen fucking years by this fandom -- and by Aeon fans especially -- I've been hesitant to make any definitive statements on Leon and Ashley's relationship outside of its effects on Leon's character arc (and reaffirming over and over and over again that Ashley disappears from the series, as though to soothe people's reactions??).

But I was on discord talking to @godtier earlier, and once I actually said it out loud and then actually got an agreement from someone who could not be paid to give a fucking shit about this ship -- I'm just going to go ahead and say it for the wider fandom.

Resident Evil 4 Remake was written as a romance, and the romance is between Leon and Ashley.

With the new scenes they've added in, it's literally structured like a romance story is. I'll even outline it for you.

1) Call to Adventure / The Meet Cute

Literally their first meeting in the church, culminating with the catch and that moment of longing as they lock eyes while Leon continues to hold her just a few seconds too long.

2) Refusal of the Call / Rejection of the Relationship

At first, Leon treats Ashley solely as his mission objective. ("Hey can we take a break?" "Sorry, we need to keep moving.") And Ashley, for a good bit, doesn't trust him at all but goes with him because she has no other choice. ("Seriously, this cannot be happening.")

3) Acceptance of the Quest / Giving the relationship a chance

The escape from the cabin sequence up to the "seems this isn't your first time running from creeps." line. This is where we see them actually start to warm up to each other, and Ashley, for the first time, believes Leon can and will really get her out of there.

4) Trials and Temptations / Three Dates

The three dates are:

1) Ashley busting the window open after the Mendez boss fight, helping brush the embers off of Leon, and helping to pull him to his feet

2) Salazar's introduction ("The girl's just fine. With me.")

3) The road to the Water Hall (Leon jumping across the chandeliers + this is the first time the "knight and the princess" allegory is stated)

5) Midpoint Crisis / I-need-you-but-can’t-have-you

The stab followed by Ashley running away in tears, terrified of hurting Leon again and horrified that he saw her like that. This is also the second time that the "knight and the princess" allegory is stated.

6) The Road Back / Pulling Back Together

The pep talk. Leon is openly vulnerable for the first time ever in this game, and Ashley is grateful to have him with her. Note that Luis calls Leon "Prince Charming" immediately following this scene.

7) The Fall

Ashley stating "I won't run. Wait for me, Leon." And then Leon following up with the "I can catch ya" line.

8) Dark moment / The Break Up

Leon sitting at Ashley's bedside waiting to turn and ready to shoot himself. He's already half given up, and some part of him has started to believe that they won't actually make it out of here -- not together, at least.

9) The Sacrifice

"This time, it has to be different." Leon is forced to challenge the assertion by Ada and Krauser that he hasn't changed, and he even has to prove it to himself. He destroys Ashley's plaga, holding her hand the whole time, smiles breathlessly, then collapses to the floor.

10) Declaration

"Hey... we're a team, right?" "Keep this up? I'll be out of a job."

11) The HEA

Leon and Ashley literally ride off into the sunrise together towards a happily ever after.

The original RE4 is not structured this way. Even if I tried to, I couldn't slot Leon and Ashley's scenes from OG into this outline.

And the romance angle is reinforced over and over and over again through repeated use of the "knight and the princess" allegory beyond what I've even listed in the outline. You know, the fairy tales about the knight who saves the princess and they fall in love and live happily ever after. In addition to Salazar saying it, there's the "Prince Charming" line from Luis, Ashley references it when she jokes that Leon should literally put on the knight's armor -- and, on a meta level, Leon has a fucking fantasy hero costume.

There's even goddamn dialogue in the game where Ashley says to Leon, "I knew you'd come" -- which is basically just ripped right out of the Princess Bride.

And to continue the meta reinforcement of it, Leon and Ashley literally have a matching set of alternate costumes called "Romantic" -- and they are fucking Romeo & Juliet inspired. Come the fuck on, man. They couldn't have been more on the nose about it if they'd tried.

And this is in addition to all the other shit you already pointed out in your ask.

And there's the fact that they completely removed any hint of Ada possibly even remotely being a love interest for Leon in this game. The focus remains solely on Ashley and the bond that she and Leon build together.

Leon and Ashley's relationship in RE4 Remake is canonically romantic in nature, and I'm so fucking tired of pretending like it's not.

[1-love-shifting]

⇢ ˗ˏˋ THE shifting explanation ࿐ྂ.

(Aimed for beginners!) 🪼🪬🧿

Introduction to this explanation on shifting .·:*¨¨* ≈☆≈ *¨¨*:·.

This explanation/guide consists of these things:

What shifting is.

Shifting terms and abbreviations

Random things about shifting and tips.

Misinformation, doubts, and anti-shifters

This is aimed to be a simple guide! I do not want beginner shifters to be confused or overwhelmed with information. My aim is for this to reach out to baby shifters to help them in every way possible. Now, get some sort of drink, get comfortable, and let's begin!

(EXTRA INFORMATION IS IN BLUE)

What is shifting?

Shifting is the act of becoming aware of another reality or moving your consciousness into another reality. It could be ANYWHERE like an anime or Harry Potter, your favourite show, or even the past.

It has become popular on Tiktok in the last couple of years, but really, shifting has been around for most likely centuries!

Shifting abbreviations and other tenses

Online, there are many shortened terms that are just useful to know.

Dr: Desired reality!

This is the reality you desire to go to.

Cr: Current reality!

This is the reality you're in right now.

Wr: Waiting room!

Some shifters like to go to their waiting room before they go to their actual desired reality [dr] it's mostly just a place to relax and chill out after you shift.

Safe word: This is a word that you say to go back to your current reality when you're in your DR.

Symptoms: This is where your body starts to fall asleep, and you could tingle and feel like you're floating.

Scripting: Writing down how you want everything to go, basically. Like this:

I have blue hair, and everyone thinks I'm pretty.

Affirmations: Words like "I can shift" and more!

Tips and information!

Tips: ⬇️

Don't overwhelm yourself with information. Believing in you can shift is really all you need. You are the key.

Dont just listen to online information. Some of it can be misinformation, so just find out what works for you.

Subliminals are helpful.

Meditation is helpful.

Taking breaks are helpful.

Information:

You can not get stuck in your DR.

Everything in your Dr's is real. Do not destroy it for your own entertainment.

Your "clone" in this reality won't be completely different from your usual self. (I believe you can use manifesting to make them different bc like... why wouldn't that work?)

Ratios: Ratios is the time in your DR and your CR. For example, in here 1 hour would go by but in my DR a week could have already gone by.

(Cr: 1 hour =Dr :one week)

Don't let anti-shifters bring you down. They have completely different beliefs and shove that into people's faces.

No, there isn't a shifting police and no, you don't need to lay down in starfish position, drink water, clean rooms, that was all misinformation in like 2020 but doing things that clear your mind is helpful for shifting.

IT'S NOT LUCID DREAMING. Lucid dreaming is when you take control of your dream, and shifting is going to another reality.

Doubts don't stop you from shifting completely.

Things for shifters that have been trying for a long time:

(DONT LET THIS OVERWHELM YOU LADYS AND GENTLEMEN)

Search these up on Tiktok or any other reliable site.

Reprogramming your mind with Reya

Robotic affirmations

Law of assumption/Manifesting

Meditation (This is good for focusing)

Connecting to your DR self

Motivation

Are you scared of shifting? Do it scared.

Almost all shifters that have shifted didn't believe how easy it was until they did it.

Your day of shifting is BOUND to come one day or another.

We are the most special humans on the planet. We have the ability to see anime and movie characters. Use that ability and prove others wrong.

Conclusion

Oh, jeez, you read all of that? Thank you, and well done!! If you would like, feel free to share this with other people who ask what is shifting because I KNOW how annoying it is 😭

I tried my best, and if I did do anything incorrect, PLEASE let me know ASAP.

Hope this helped. Happy shifting!

[suratan-zir]

I am just curious about how Ravlyk is doing? And if any progress has been made with Gronk?

references: Gronk the house mouse, Ravlyk the new rat

Hey, I hope you don't mind me replying publicly, just in case anyone else is curious.

Let's start with the sad news. Gronk was found a few days ago dead on the bathroom floor, she (it was a girl) never fell for any of the traps. There were no signs of injuries, so it was probably not the cats. I keep the live traps set but they haven't caught anyone so far.

Now to the better news. The new ratty boy is alive and doing great. The name Ravlyk didn't stick though, and my partner didn't like it, so after a few days we finally decided to name him Syrnyk (Сирник).

It's a Slavic dessert, pancakes made of sweet cottage cheese, served either with sour cream (the superior version) or with jam (the objectively worse version).

edit: tumblr wasn't showing this post in the feed so I had to upload the video on youtube to fix it :(

Since he's still a baby, the medication worked on him really quick. I haven't filmed any of his worse respiratory distress moments, but even in the treat video you can see that, although not suffocating, he's not breathing that easily. But it's all gone now, another week on meds and he's officially healthy.

магазин розетка не платив мені за рекламу, чекаю на пропозицію

He came out of his shell very quickly. Started licking my hands on the day two, playing in about three days. I still didn't want to share his photos or videos because I have this fear…that introduction might go wrong and Skritch will kill or seriously injure him.

Skritch is unlike any other rat I've had before. He is just something else, I don't know what to expect from him. He haven't yet met Syrnyk face to face, although their cages are close enough to smell but not to touch each other. And Skritch is mad as can be. No matter how much experience or knowledge I have, it takes only a second for Skritch to bite, and he often shows no warning signs. I will not forgive myself if Skritch kills the little Syrnyk. So I'm waiting for a moment when I feel like Skritch is ready and not as mad as he is now. It's sad that the baby has to live all alone though.

Syrnyk already met Baton and Cactus, they get along extremely well. Syrnyk has absolutely no fear of other rats, even much bigger than him, so he just goofs around and tries to play with them. They're not interested, of course, but at least Cactus got groomed by another rat for the first time in a long time. Baton and Skritch never groom him, and he desparately needs it, he has a brain tumor for almost 5 months now, and sometimes his fur under the chin and on his back gets crusty (he hates when I try to clean him). So Syrnyk helped him with that.

I have no good photos of Syrnyk. Only these.

maybe the post doesn't show up bc of the photos? hold up

update: seriously tumblr? offended by rat balls? lol

[trashcatmonster]

title: a little snack

summary: You're going to kill your friend. When they had said they'd found a great match for you, you thought they meant someone really nice and patient, you didn't think they meant a skeleton practically the size of a mountain.

And they're not even wrong! You just can't think when he is that attractive!

notes: based on this art by @hashileio​!! the scene in the art is directly in the fic have fun getting to that point bc i sure did have literally so much fun writing this.

ao3 link: here!

fic text under read more!

You squirm awkwardly in your seat, hyper aware of the heat in your face as well as the unwavering gaze of the skeleton sitting on the other side of the table. You’re refusing to look at his face, too worried that you’ll trip over your tongue if you have to look up at him again and try to carry a conversation.

Not that any conversation is really… happening right now. You’d managed to squeak out an introduction, and he’d given you a joke you couldn’t remember the phrasing of right now but it had been funny, and you had managed a giggle in response.

But not much else has been said ! And you’re pretty sure it’s entirely because you’re too flustered by the skeleton’s sheer size (He! Dwarfs! You!) to be a very good conversationalist. You’re usually so much better at reigning yourself in, but this skeleton (who’s name you definitely remember) hasn’t once taken his single red eye light off of you and really! That is not helping your case!

“Sorry for the wait!” your waiter greets, and you jolt a little in surprise because you’d forgotten the two of you were in a restaurant.

Because your friend had set you up on a blind date. Insisting you’d love this guy and oh stars you were going to have to give them a piece of your mind after this was over!

“Have you guys figured out what you want or do you just wanna start with drinks?” your waiter continues when neither of you say anything. You clear your throat, impulsively fanning your face with your hand in a feeble attempt to cool your cheeks down.

“Um… Just a water for me, thank you,” you finally answer them, awkwardly forcing your hand back to your lap when the waiter eyes it with a raised eyebrow and an amused smile.

“Perfect, one water and…” The waiter trails off, turning to the skeleton (Who is! Your date! Oh stars.) with a patient grin.

Your date (Date! Yours!) finally, finally, turns his gaze from you to the waiter. He’s quiet for a moment, and then he speaks up with a deep rumbling voice that has your face heating up even more.

“Water for me, too.”

You feel like you’re on fire, you just know your whole face is red. Blush spreading from your neck to your ears. He hasn’t even done anything! He’s just sat there, staring at you again.

Stars you were going to have a melt down. You start fanning yourself again, but you drop your hand to the table awkwardly once you realize what you’re doing. For a second, you think the skeleton’s grin grows just slightly at your actions but you can’t really tell for sure so you just put it down to wishful thinking.

Okay, surely this date is still salvageable? You haven’t totally ruined it by being your usual, easily flustered self! Just push through, you’ll learn his name eventually! It won’t be painfully awkward and embarrassing to not remember the first thing he told you on this date while you were too busy floundering over the size of him to properly process any of the words he was saying to you.

You can’t do this. You so can’t do this, you’ve definitely already messed this up just so incredibly thoroughly!

Abruptly you stand, and the skeleton startles back in his seat, watching your movement as you flail awkwardly for something to say.

“Um! Sorry!” is all you can manage to squeak out before you’re rushing out of the building.

You don’t get very far, barely managing to get out of the building and around the corner before the massive skeleton is suddenly right there caging you in against the wall, keeping you from running further away. You jump with a squeak, staring at the skeleton with wide eyes while you press yourself back into the rough wall behind you.

“where do you think you’re going?” he asks, and stars! He is so close to you! How are you going to survive this encounter when just looking at this skeleton gets your heart beating rapidly in your chest and your face turning into an oven!

You open your mouth, trying to attempt an explanation of your kind of rude actions actually! But you’re staring at the skeleton in front of you, so you notice when his single, large eye light sweeps over you from your feet to your face a couple times before his grin definitely widens.

Stars. Fuck. You can’t do this, you can not function with literally the most attractive person you’ve ever seen blatantly checking you out after you had very rudely fled the restaurant that was the location of your blind date.

The skeleton chuckles (even his laugh is attractive! This is not fair!) and he leans forward into your space.

Your heart leaps into your throat, and you finally snap your mouth shut as you impulsively look at his teeth and wonder very briefly what a skeleton kiss would feel like.

“stars, you’re so jumpy,” the skeleton teases you, and that! Is not fair actually!

Before you can say anything in your indignation, the skeleton closes his empty socket in what you think might be a wink and continues his apparent observations of you.

“i could just eat you up.” The words are spoken in almost a purr, ringing in your ears and already looping in your mind incessantly.

That’s it. You’re done for. You can’t do this anymore! Your overheated flush somehow gets worse, and if you were in a cartoon there would be steam coming out of your ears because you have reached your limit.

Your hands come to your face, splaying over it in an effort to hide just how flustered you are. And if that wasn’t bad enough, your legs choose right then to go weak under you so with the wall as support, you slide down to the sidewalk making unintelligible noises.

There’s quiet around you for a moment, and then the skeleton above you snorts out a laugh and takes two steps away from you.

You’re expecting him to leave, finally done with tormenting you with your own attraction to him. So when you peek out from behind your hands, your surprised to see him crouched down, balancing with his feet flat on the ground in a Slav Squat, his arms resting over his knees. Your eyes trail up to his face, noting that his grin is a lot softer than it was when he’d been teasing you.

“you alright?” he asks in that deep baritone that nearly vibrates in your chest now that he’s so close to you.

You cover your face back up with whine that trails into more garbled, flustered noises. You can hear the skeleton huff a laugh, but he seems content to wait for you to regain enough composure to actually answer his question.

So you put in the effort to take in deep breaths and calm your racing heart. It’s still pounding, and you can’t bring yourself to look him in the eye again because you know you’ll be right back where you started if you do.

“I’m… okay. You’re just! A very attractive skeleton! And I’m struggling very hard to cope with that!”

Your voice raises in pitch right at the end of your sentence, and you swallow hard and take a few more calming breaths.

“…heh.” Is all you hear before the skeleton is reaching forward and using his very large fingers to push your chin up and get you to meet his eye.

“don’t think i’ve ever seen someone this bent outta shape over me in a positive way, it’s pretty cute.”

You! Are suddenly very red faced again! The skeleton snickers, his thumb coming forward to just… rest against your lips and he winks at you again before tugging your bottom lip down and pulling his hand away.

“wanna come back inside? bet if you keep that breathin’ trick up we could even have a conversation.”

It is taking everything in your power to not have another flustered meltdown right now, but you nod anyway. You don’t actually want to abandon your date after all, and if he doesn’t have an issue with how much you’re struggling with coherency around him…

“Um—“ you cut yourself off, face heating up out of embarrassment when the skeleton looks down at you because he’s stood up now.

“’sup?” he asks, offering a hand towards you that you take so you can get off the sidewalk.

“What… What is your name?”

The skeleton stares at you, and you can see the active effort he is putting in not to laugh at you even as he fails at keeping his amused grin in check.

“didn’t catch it the first time?” he teases, and you resent that actually!

“You vastly overestimate my ability to think when someone as big as you is directly in front of me!” you protest, squeaking the last few words when you realize exactly what you just said.

The skeleton stares, and then his grin turns almost predatory as he looks you over.

“you like ‘em big, huh?”

You regret everything!

“I mean— That’s not! I didn’t…”

“Sans,” the skeleton— Sans interrupts you, shoving his hands in his jacket pocket. You’re incapable of answering, and all you can do is follow him when he heads back to the restaurant.

Before the two of you re-enter the building, you hear him tack on something else that probably has your entire being, soul and all, flushing bright red.

“and don’t worry, i like ‘em tiny.”

[mizho-babe]

Orgullo thoughts because…..he’s kind of the best? Who doesn’t love him

Orgullo and Akira are bros right from the start and had the most chill doji-master introduction. I’m imagining their first meeting went like Orgullo: hey, want to blow people up and have unlimited power? Akira: hell yea dude. They remain close for the rest of their lives after Orgullo becomes human (wait why am i tearing up already).......just…..guys being dudes. Hard ship, but at the very least they’re each other’s wingmen, and have totally tagteamed hookups

During the WWII three-year bad doji bonding arc, Akira and Orgullo still pursue Akira’s golfing career. The nation is shocked by Akira’s sophisticated, ahead-of-his-time golfing techniques, and the two literally receive national medals / ties to the imperial family for advancing the sport in Japan (idk why else does Akira wear that stupid top hat when we see him)

When Orgullo becomes human Akira promotes him to become his manager. Eventually Orgullo gets an MBA & becomes the head of his own management agency and one of the richest / most famous behind-the-scenes players in the world. Fussa has him on speed dial when WTI runs into any issues and Orgullo professionally (and sometimes cracks his knuckles and literally) fucks up anyone who tries to cross the band

He easily becomes the most well-adjusted doji-turned-human. I think all of the doji hang onto their quirks/emotional disorders for the rest of their lives but Orgullo integrates well into society

He’s spent most of his time as a doji in Brazil before he traveled to Japan & met Akira.

He absolutely hates snow & cold weather and whenever fall comes around in Japan he flees to Brazil for the cold seasons. Once he becomes established as a human he moves to Brazil full-time

He is closest with Desir out of all the doji because they both enjoy human culture. Desir introduces Orgullo to bespoke tailoring & gets him his first custom suits.

Orgullo is a heavy dom, obviously. He refuses to take a passive role during sex. Desir knows his type (power issues, superiority complex) and thinks Orgullo would love sub play. Orgullo gets angry and flustered whenever Desir broaches the idea

Overall he’s the Big Bro to all the evil doji but he has a low patience with them & is def that toxic family member that rags on others when they’re not ‘taking full advantage of their potential’. He yells at Eater, Avaro, and Hana when they get bad grades and though he still retains a small fear of Vice, he secretly judges him for living a chill vagrant life with K after he becomes human. He vents to Akira that he totally believes Vice could still take over the world if he wanted to, he has the intelligence & batshit savagery to do so

He doesn’t like Gauge. No reason - he just doesn’t like that there’s another guy as big as him. Slow thinks this hilarious and likes to egg Orgullo on and say he thinks Gauge is bigger/stronger whenever they have doji reunions

Orgullo hates golf but is cursed with knowing literally everything about it because of Akira. His favorite sport is soccer (bc of Brazil) and he’s also an avid UFC fan. Him and Desir become sports betting pros, and eventually Avaro joins in once he grows up but Orgullo always has to hold him back from making ridiculous parlays

The one thing he misses about being a doji is his speed - he forever hates cars and thinks most forms of transportation are dumb and too slow. He totally becomes one of those environmental menaces and takes 5-minute private jet rides just to avoid traffic

I now have an extreme desire for Orgullo / Akira content… hot bara assistant/manager that takes care of his top client….pl..s…

[misterradio]

house of leaves has my mind blown at such random stuff. page 97 has a check mark in the corner.

[i'll add random other musings below]

notation 127 references a real book which is even on archive dot org..!!! and it says to check out a diagram But you need to log in to view the book. AAGHH!!

page 119 it is now time to be confused on how to read this 👍

nevermind the box is just all one long footnote. and the backwards box is like a reversal of the previous box.

"this is what happens when you hurry in a maze. the faster you go, the worse you are entangled"..... UH OH !

the footnotes along the sides are just BUILDING NAMES?? and then ARCHITECTS ??????? i do really like the cyclical nature of these notes, one makes u flip thru several pages and then you have to turn the book upside down and flip back thru the same pages. the last note in this series is right at the 2nd page in this sequence but along the side. makes me think of. a spiral ::-) makes me smile.

im just now realizing some of these notation marks are letters instead of numbers....X appears several times (that footnote is on page 107) but theres also like, LL (but if the first L was reversed)? and this one is F (page 122). not sure if there is a meaning here

page 127 guys this is scary

(page 151) "I was sorry to hear he disappeared. Do you know what happened to him?" HE WHAT?????

(page 620) okay i decided to read some more letters from (checks her name) Pelafina and. this is one is. ::-(

okay i finished her letters and wah........... sad. i wonder what was the one jewelry johnny kept from her.

(page 154) i already forgot what these different names were for ermmm lol. great hall and antechamber. i forgor

(page 159) the fact that the stairwell was around 13 miles long for Roberts' crew and then for Navdison its 100 feet.... LOLLLL F--K the explorers in particular

(page 192) YAY JED and wax !!! i never thought id be so so happy to see them again. yayyy. but now getting out is the next obstacle.. F--K OFF I CANT BELIEVE HOW SOONI SPOKE f--k this book

SICKENIINNNNGGGG!!!!!!!

(page 263) I LOVE THAT there are occasional emails from people after the 1st printing and someone says "what was all that crazy stuff in the introduction about guns and blood?" THATS WHAT IM SAYIINNGGGGG

(page 272) this makes me think that the stairwell is analogous to a throat..

(page 305) once again. witnessing the staircase lengthen and groan. makes me think it is literally swallowing navy.

(page 318) im so so glad wax survived YAY

(page 320) this made me get up and start pacing and smiling. like. this house wants navy so bad. SO BAD

(page 326) JOHNNY BECOMES SELF AWARE THAT HE A FICTIONAL CHARACTEr (scary)

btw i did find ouf the letters used in notations are actually symbols bc there is a photo of a graph of them on the inner cover. i dont actualy know how to look up what they are called at all tbh. theyre like. aircraft related.

(page 342) bruh this is new and scary. fhe house's shifting horror now extending beyond the imposible hallways but into the main house ...... what the......

(page 397) everyone in this book is so FREUDIAN !!!! like all the psychology is so fruedian i think.

(page 402) im so fascinated by these dream scenes i didnt expdct this book to really have a dream scene but there u go ^^__^^ im sad the promised third dream is missing......

OH YEAH BABY WE ACTUALLY HAVE A MINOTAUR PRESENT also in a dream scene. EVERYONE GIVE IT UP FOR A MINOTAUR PRESENCE

(page 406) this is some like. reverse tma thing. you know how in tma everyone who gives a statement to jon has nightmare of him. this is like what if jon did something to absolve everyone of their nightmares. huh. (also i havent gotten past this part i dont even know what navidson Does back in the house yet.........)

OH I JUST REALIZED THE SKETCHES IN APPENDIX II ARE JOHNNY'S. he mentioned doodling on any scraps of paper he had like mail and i was like heh. just like in the appendix. OH WAIT

i love that tgis chapter does NOT end in a period and ends with an open-ended sentence that segues into the next chapter. thats so neat ::-) idek if navy is still alive like wtf i dont know yet SHHH shhhh

(page 425) the dread this is imbuing in me. the floors tilting slightly wherever navy goes to guide him along. youre at the mercy of this house now..

(page 465) WHAT THE ? THIS BOOK IS WITHIN THISBBOOK? (navidson has a book titled house of leaves) WHAT?

(page 468) this desolation almost made me cry somehow . maybe logcially its not the worst thing thats happened in this book but the nothingness is crushing

this part makes u turn the book around a lot and i really did get a sense of dizziness while reading bc i realized i didnt know whether the text i was reading was really along the bottom of the page or what... also im still so tripped up that they mention this book by name, even say how many pages it has, and that 'maybe some of the pages are hard to read'. bro.

the song on page 479 is apparently "when johnny comes marching home" which i had to look up but thats where the tune of that song the ants go marching one by one comes from???? u learn something new every day.

i like that the footnote on page 488 is another of those aeronautic symbols (theres a chart of some of them on a collage in the back) and this one means "heavily injured, need a doctor"...............

(page 527) "and whenever she laughs the notes sing a call to Victory" STARTS BAWLING

okay i done YAYYYYYYYYY AAAUUUUUHHHHHHHHHGGGGHHHHHHHHHH i have yet to finish the appendices....

[primeministerofantarctica]

A3! reading club: prologue

Starting off with a prolepsis is a nice technique, although I think it's interesting that only Harugumi gets spotlighted here. Probably to avoid spoilers from later troupes.... Either way, I love how Sakuya's observations serve as an introduction to the other members. Masumi's cool-headed, Tsuzuru won't rest until his scripts are perfect, Itaru's anxious about pulling this off successfully (he does care :')), and Citron's a man of mystery.

I never really thought about this before, but I like that the prologue establishes that Izumi has the experience and knowledge necessary to qualify as a theater director. She's not just diving in headfirst with no idea what she's doing.

Also, this whole "street act" thing sends me every time it's mentioned. Veludo Way has to be a tourist destination, surely Izumi's not the first person to freak out over someone faking an illness. You know those horror stories about comedians dying of heart attacks on-stage bc the audience thought they were doing A Bit; this seems like a disaster waiting to happen. What if you got into an argument with someone and a bunch of strangers started clapping.

At least Tasuku's nice enough to come over and make sure Izumi's alright. He's not going to be really relevant for a good long while, but we're already establishing that he does care about other people, despite Godza's "every man for himself" culture.

Oh, Tsuzuru, just be glad you're not a college student in the US. >_>

Sakyo, you JUST recognized the first and only person you had a crush on, the daughter of Yukio himself, and you're telling her to get lost? Why? Are you trying to save Izumi from the heartbreak of caring about something futile? Because if so, you absolutely suck at it.

Izumi's reactions are the best. Also, shout-out to Sakai-san for being able to pull off "bad at acting" without dissolving into the 100% flat monotone typical when actors try to play bad actors. You can tell Sakuya's trying, but his pauses are placed just randomly enough to be awkward. From an acting standpoint, that's got to be incredibly hard to pull off.

This makes me wince. In retrospect, it's so obvious how much Sakyo cares about this theater. He was willing to pause the demolition project for the absolutely miniscule chance that Matsukawa had somehow, miraculously, secured a bestselling performance. Of course he hasn't, but the fact that Sakyo was still willing to give him one more chance speaks volumes.

Unfortunately, he's also a realist, and he's right. People love touting "hard work" as the only thing an artist needs to succeed, but without money, most people simply don't have the financial stability to really dedicate themselves to their craft. It's harsh, it sucks, and it's unfair, but it's also true. I don't remember if we get Sakyo's backstory in the main story or a later event, but going off it it makes sense that this is the additude he's adopted.

This hits harder after finding out Sakuya basically ran away from home :(. Not like he couldn't go back to his aunt and uncle, but that's got to be crushing.

I love how Izumi is mentally pspspsing Matsukawa SO HARD to back her up, just like he did with her earlier. There is a single braincell ping-ponging between these two and Sakyo's just watching this trainwreck.

Sakuya's reaction to Matsukawa saying he cooks all the food is gold. Ofc he's too polite to say it outright, but the fact that even Sakuya feels the need to warn Izumi about Matsukawa's culinary skills is just. So funny.

Speaking of which, I think it's interesting how Sakuya's (known optimist and sunshine child) first reaction to realizing Izumi was lying is a despondent "Does that mean the troupe is going under after all?" He immediately cheers up and snatches the smidge of hope offered to him, but this little piece of character writing goes a long way in setting up his hopefulness as something that isn't based on naivety.

I'm running out of screenshots and too far in to consider making another post, but gosh. Masumi, I love you, but you are making it REALLY easy to remember why I didn't at first. I will concede that his blushing and not being able to look Izumi in the eyes is cute, though. If there was more of that and less of...this, I might have warmed up to him a lot earlier.

Also, Tsuzuru agreeing to join after finding out there's free food is an absolute Mood. Five minutes of screen time and he's already a voice for college students everywhere.

The last few minutes are pretty much what we'd expect - Tsuzuru (very conveniently) says he's a scriptwriter, Izumi eagerly accepts the free labor before he can join a union (I'm joking, I'm joking.), they run back to the theater and Sakyo says he'll give them one more chance. The conditions won't be revealed until the next chapter, but it really is a testament to Sakyo's love for Mankai just how lenient he's being. A month might be cutting it pretty close when prepping for a play, but Sakyo's a debt broker in the freaking Yakuza, and almost definitely acting as a middleman between this company and someone higher up. Ofc the Yakuza here are a lot more lighthearted than the ones in real life, but that's still got to be incredibly risky.

[inquisitoradaar]

feel like i need to elaborate on musics love shape. long post ahead bc god there is so much explaining that needs to be done here. the situation is Intricate and Dire. also spoilers for balding gate or whatever

i went in without any idea who i was gonna romance but then i met gale and was like ok. i think this is the guy. and had made up my mind on it until wylls introduction where i was like oh fuck hes so hot but i couldnt change my mind id already promised myself id romance gale.

anyways. the party ends up being music + shadowheart + gale + wyll for a while. this is not because of preference but bc i literally managed to miss astarion (i went to the bottom of the hill hes on and then said out loud to myself 'nothing else here' and went back in the nautiloid.) and lae'zel (saw the two tieflings that caught her but didnt see the cage and decided to avoid conflict). i eventually swap out shadowheart for karlach when i meet her (it was besties at first sight for me) and then get told by some friends who r also playing that im a fucking dumbass and completely missed astarion and lae'zel (id already saved the grove by this point so LMAO)

i go back to the crash site, grab astarion, then use a scroll of revivify on lae'zel bc shes dead in the mountain pass (whoops). theyve both missed literally everything. i go to camp and astarion immediately reveals to music that he is a vampire. awesome. theyre also both charlatans which is a lil funny to me. i add neither of them to my party bc by this point im extremely attached to gale wyll and karlach and music has rlly high approval w all three of them.

now in truth the love shape was already in the equation bc gale is still not over mystra. music is unclear as to whether or not this affection is still reciprocated on mystras part (and tbh so am i . i havent finished act 2 yet ok) but when they shared a Moment in the weave gale enjoyed it so clearly thats also happening. so we have a love triangle going on. this is fine and manageable even if music is not a big fan of the whole the-guy-im-into-has-a-bomb-in-his-chest-bc-of-his-ex-who-he-still-loves thing.

we get to the underdark. i have a long rest. astarion has smth to say. in-game it has been two days since i finally grabbed him from the crash site (has he just been waiting that entire time for someone to walk down that path so he could stab them?). cutscene plays out, he wants music to tell him hes pretty, music responds w 'gales more my type', and astarion makes a comment abt how hell have to work on himself if hes to 'catch up w the competition' um?

so the love triangle is now a sort-of love square. could be just a lil silly fun joke and i think of it as such (at least when ignoring the meta (thats another story)) until i get to act 2 and have a long rest in the shadow-cursed lands. and astarion says to music smth like 'were kindred souls, were walking down the same path, we should take over the absolutist cult and rule the world together' WHAT IS HAPPENING. what coded declaration of love bullshit is this. music and astarion barely even know each other.

so, great, love triangle is now officially a partially unreciprocated love square. but then. but THEN. to make matters WORSE for ME PERSONALLY. having another long rest in the shadow-cursed lands and a cutscene starts to play. wyll is dancing and so music joins in (naturally, theyre best friends w wyll (literally, they have maximum approval from him) and a BARD) and then things start getting. quote. "intimate" and i go oh no i have to put a stop to this bc things have started getting more serious w gale. and when i tell wyll that they should both step away from this he looked so genuinely heartbroken it made me feel so horrifically sad.

so the partially unreciprocated love square is now. even worse. a love shape of no real design. with music, some random loser tiefling bard charlatan in the middle of it all. gods help them

[c0ffinrehearsal]

Omg where to start. I have already been punched in the heart over and over with just this first chapter of ywlm. I guess here are just some rambling thoughts?

- that hello kitty boombox. Something that was a symbol of the role you could never fulfill, but also gave you the first thing you could really claim: music. And now claiming it as a tether to your Inner Child, to keep what you choose of Little Sirius and spend some time seeing him and telling him "it's going to be ok see we have our boom box our stuffie our proof we were a child once we existed and that childood happened and now I'm the grown up I'm here and I'm going to take care of you"

-I am ill for the Black brothers and always will be. The "I'm proud of you" is truly the most emotionally poignant thing a younger sibling in a family like that can say to their elder sibling who doesn't quite fit the mold. And the gender validation "big brother" I cry and laugh and celebrate so intensely with Sirius there. And how Sirius wants to protect Reggie but Sirius needs his own protection more than Regulus does. That's a brutal reality for an older sibling: because your younger sibling "fits the mold," they will be more ok than you will be if you don't save yourself. You have to give up the one role you did have: big sibling. Protector.

- the shopping scene omg. I was curious what reading this would feel like, since I am not trans but have major body ish leftover from growing up in the 00's and my god. Wonky sizing, feeling overwhelmed, being able to pick your own clothes instead of your mother doing it and not knowing where to start. I was FEELING Sirius there. It was giving the fitting room in the junior's section of Macy's. And I loved seeing him be brave and pick that skirt because he LIKED it and he could PICTURE himself in it, and start to dream about presenting the way HE wants rather than having to miserably exist in these extreme binaries to try to make things easier for everyone else except himself.

- ok last but not least the queer gaze from James and Remus. I don't know if your James is going to be queer but to me, juxtaposing those two moments side by side is Sirius's introduction to the other side of the mirror, the queer spaces where he will be fully seen and loved for the first time. The fact that just the way they *looked* at Sirius was clocked as Different from how anyone had ever looked at Sirius before, like "he wasn't a problem to solve" (and I'm going to come back to that line), to me that puts all three of them on the queer playing field so to speak. I am wicked pumped for the found family vibes.

-and ok REMUS. Having a boy look at you like that and making you feel like LIKE YOU AREN'T A PROBLEM TO SOLVE is a big fucking deal for an AFAB or femme teen in 2005. I've written about this. A lot. Living under the male gaze is so all-encompassing, it's like the very air you breathe from the moment you're born. And it's not until you're a teen that you realize the implications of it, but in 2005, you have no idea where the exit is. You're just stuck in this maze trying to use whatever tools you have to find some reprieve from having your body always being the first and most important thing that is noticed about you-- like maybe being a "tomboy," or in my case, leaning into purity culture and patriarchal hyper-femininity. I LOVE that Remus is going to be part of that "exit sign" for Sirius- like turn here onto Lupin Avenue for unconditional acceptance and whatever the opposite of objectification is.

Um ok hope this wasn't too much but I've said before I learn so much from your writing so I wanted to share what Things you are making me Think. Can't wait to read more!!!!

okay putting this under a cut bc my response is sooooo long <3

hi hello i’m sorry it’s taken me so long to reply to this - i just haven’t had the time to really sit down and give it the kind of attention it deserves!

the BOOMBOX. one of the first things i pictured when i started writing this was sirius’s boombox. bc Little Sirius needed something to cling onto that he could make his, and that could carry over into their new life. its basically a character in itself lmao i an very attached to The Boombox

sibling dynamics are so important to me. i am the youngest, though, and so when i write about regulus and sirius it’s a flipped situation from mine - i was younger and did not fit in and my sibling was older and Normal. but yes, regulus is very aware that he needs to be a support system for sirius, and all he really needs FROM sirius is for them to be around. they’ll get there. 

a lot of fics (that i love and re-read all the time) explore sirius acting out and like, getting tattoed and stuff once they’re allowed to make their own decisions. in ywlm, sirius is acting against what his parents want, but in the way he can just - let his body exist however he wants to and it does not answer to anyone but them. there are a few other scenes coming up where we get to hang out with sirius while they do a 2000s shopping montage and i love thm.

my james IS queer, yes. everyone is queer to me at this point tbh! a similar thing happens in chapter 2 where like - quuer people just SEE each other, in a way that’s hard to explain to anyone who isn’t. sirius deserves a bizarre little family of misfits and he will get one. i

REMUS oh i LOVE him. he’s so soft in this. also like, it’s weird bc sirius isn’t as aware of that gaze bc he grew up with parents who didn’t really let them out of the house. like they know that it’s bc their parents see him as a girl and treat them differently but he won’t really connect the dots for a minute. so like, for them it’s more of a gender thing. very similar to how it was for me. i’ll go into this a lil more in depth later on, but. anyway REMUS i love the idea of him just being Some Guy and like he’s objectively handsome but sirius doesn’t fall for him bc of that, he falls for remus bc he gets them, exactly as they are. they’re so good for each other i’m :’)

anyway no it’s never too much, thank you so so much for reading my silly little fic. i LOVE talking about it, and i will continue to do so with any and everyone who will let me lol xx 

[zablife]

@brummiereader I've been anxiously awaiting this fic since I watched the gorgeous trailer you made and now I'm finally sitting down to read it 🤩 I'm in love with the summary bc it has such high potential for delightful hijinx! Now it's time to dive in! Here's my running commentary...

You've immediately created sympathy for the family's plight with Y/n's recollection of her mother. They will be yours one day, my darling girl. Her voice whispered to you like a passing summer breeze as you closed your eyes. The grief you still felt for her loss now weighed down with that of your father's recent death. 😭 Not me feeling bad for the little rich girl already!!

The introduction of her brother made me feel even worse for what she (and poor Frances) endure. He sounds like an overgrown child, selfish and completely insufferable 😩. I'd love to hear granny's take on his gambling, but I have a feeling that's coming later! (EDIT: He's TEN years OLDER?!?! Holy shit, grow up!!)

But let's address their father's plight bc that is bleak...Your warnings mentioned suicide so I assumed this was in ref to his debts, but WOW! How horrific for his children.

The gangster!" her voice pitched to an even higher note as she clutched her chest in horror... 🤭 I love granny's flair for the dramatic, but I'm upset to learn she's a Jonathan apologist 👎 At least she seems to be equally supportive of her grandchildren. I adore the advice she offers Y/n when the Shelbys arrive!

Thanks to your beautiful trailer, I could perfectly picture Tommy's arrival. I had to giggle at Arthur's reaction, pretending not to be impressed by his surroundings. Someone take him home where he can take in the fine aroma of the shit house!

A spark neither one of you expected to be ignited that day as your shared gaze remained fixed on the other and time suddenly seemed to dissipate, with everything and everyone around you blurring into nothingness. I'm squealing bc it's love at first sight and now they're going to spend a lot of time fighting it! Yup, right on cue🤣 (Bonus points for Tommy calling her sweetheart.)

I was curious to know the details surrounding the deed to Arrow House and it warmed my heart to know her mum was looking after her. "sparing you from a life of chains beautified with gold and satin ball gowns she never envisioned for you." 🥹 It's also quite sad tho as you consider the lack of choice women had when trapped in a bad marriage the way her mother was.

Secretly loving the complication of the paperwork to keep these two in the same house (even if a greedy lawyer is to blame)! I'm already loving their spirited interactions 😍 "Like hell I will!" You blurted (That's granny coming out!) And the fight over the statue was priceless 😂 But nothing could have prepared me for the explosive ending to this chapter!!! I was giggling all the way to the end when the gunshot left me gasping. This means war 😬

Amazing start to your new series, darl! I can't wait to read more!

MASTERLIST TRAILER

Uptown Girl (Part One)

Summary: When your high society life comes crumbling down around you. You are left to deal with the inherited mess your father's love of the casino tables had landed him in, and the gangster he had settled his debts with. Mr Thomas Shelby. But when heads butt during your first encounter with the notorious gang leader over the deeds to Arrow House. You both stubbornly refuse to back down, begrudgingly accepting each other as an unwelcome housemate. With your future on the line, and the arranged union you want to be free from rapidly approaching. You come to the quick realisation that if you can't force the blue-eyed squatter from your house, then you would drive him out. One way or another.

Warnings: Language, angst, mentions of death by suicide

Word Count: 4535

Authors Note: £200-£300 sterling pound in 1924, was worth between £10000-£15000 in todays value.

"So it's agreed then, Miss?" the smartly dressed man with hungry eyes questioned you, swiping his tongue over his bottom lip as he greedily beamed down at the delicate diamond necklace sitting on the plush red velvet cushion below it. "£200 for the Elysée necklace, and it's matching earrings?"

"£250 for the necklace alone, Mr Burton" you quickly corrected his value of the precious jewel sat in front of you. The last of your mother's cherished collection gifted to her on her wedding day.

" £300 for the lot" his eyes narrowed in on the lustrous stones adorned with a cluster of diamonds weighing down your ears. He would have the full collection, or nothing at all.

" Scandalous! " your Granny's voice quivered as she sat in the corner of your father's office. Exceedingly displeased with the intentionally low estimation of your family's jewels as her satin gloved fingers clutched tightly around her walking stick.

" It is but business, Mam" the Jeweler replied with an avid, gold-toothed smile. His arms flamboyantly hovering in the air as he bowed to the former Duchess of Arrow House with anything but the respect she was once shown.

" Hm!" your dear Grans voice hiccuped as she turned her head in displeasure to the gentleman who was a far cry from the considerate businessman he claimed to be. But rather, that of a man who had fallen upon a family's suffering through yet another death brought on by the woes of a troubled mind.

" £300 it is then" you announced with your head held high, removing the last remaining item of value you possessed from the soft lobes of your ears to join its sister necklace.

With reluctant hands, you gracefully placed each earring onto the cushioned fabric. The tips of your fingers brushing over the passing memories of you sat as a small child on the edge of your mother's bed. Mesmerised by her beauty as you watched her adorn her gown with each jewel that would accompany her on a soiree of dancing and champagne. They will be yours one day, my darling girl. Her voice whispered to you like a passing summer breeze as you closed your eyes. The grief you still felt for her loss now weighed down with that of your father's recent death.

" Wonderful!" the Jeweler's voice snatched you away from your cherished memories. Snatching the precious stone from under your fingers and replacing them with a stack of King George banknotes." Pity old George couldn't help you out, hm?"

" Pity? Pity?!" your Granny's voice rose to a squeaky pitched tone of offense as her stern expression homed in on the jeweler that was about to get a good old-fashioned telling off. " Well I never. If you were any the wiser, Mr Burton. I would take your insolent, blithering..."

"Yes, thank you, Granny. Good day to you, Mr Burton" you interrupted your Grans inevitable barrage of flustered insults as you ushered the jeweler from the study. Saving him from not only her sharp words but your family's faltering reputation from another scandal you wished to avoid.

" Oh, how the mighty have fallen" the Jeweler's teasing words echoed back to your Gran still perched on the small cushioned chair, outraged by the sheer cheek of the man, when your brother loudly made his unwelcome appearance through the foyer.

" Mighty, and of good stock!" your brother cheered back, having heard only a portion of what was more of an insult than any compliment his far away thoughts had understood. " Oh, I say..." your brother's eyes widened at the large stash of banknotes stacked in a pile on the polished desk as he entered the room.

" Johnathan. What are you doing here?" you impatiently asked, snatching them away and swiftly making your way across the room to Frances waiting with your brother's shotgun he had lumbered her with by the door after a day of hunting stags on the property. " For the wages, and upkeep" you discretely whispered, handing the money to your most trusted employee with only one banknote remaining for your father's impending funeral.

" Oh sissy, how dire" your brother said upon seeing the lonely note being folded in your hand and safely into the pocket of your dress as he sat down, puffing on what was left of his cigar while eyeing up anything he could sell, having already squandered his estate on the inherited trait of your father that had gotten you into this mess. Gambling.

A mess which was now, your burden. With only a penny left to his name, your father played his last and final hand in the backstreets of London's grottyest alleyway. Foolishly putting all his remaining hopes on the copper coin to win back his wasted fortune. But when the dice turned against his favour, sealing his losing fate. Your father slumped to the muddy floor, removing his gun and shooting himself point-blank in the side of the head. Left to die alone in the dark, penniless. Your father had succumbed to the very thing he had wasted his life on.

" Again Johnathan, what are you doing here? Or rather, what do you want?" you sighed with crossed arms, kicking his muddy boots from the ottoman in front of him.

" Why is everyone so glum, and in black?" your brother huffed, looking around the solemn room that was once filled with gold ornaments and neatly categorised books you would spend your time reading quietly on the feathered cushioned settee as your father mulled over the odds for his next bet at the races.

" Our father still lies cold on the morgue table, Johnathan" you scolded your older brother. Ten years older, to be precise.

Wise beyond your years, an old soul. That's what those dearest to you would say. In reality, you were nothing of the sort. But rather forced into behaving for both you and your idiotic brother, who was intent on staining the family's name with his seedy lifestyle.

" We're in mourning Johnny, my dear" your Granny looked upon your brother with an unwavering sigh of both love and tolerance that only a grandmother would show for her half-witted grandson to whom she was forever bound too. " And preparation. For a dark day has come to Arrow House" she dramatically finished as she turned her head away in disbelief about the morning's unfolding events.

" Preparation for what, exactly ?" your brother asked obliviously, or rather ignorantly to everything that had unfolded in the weeks prior to your father's death.

"Preparation for him. Mr Thomas Shelby." Your grandmother's voice rose as she turned to her eldest grandchild. " The gangster!" her voice pitched to an even higher note as she clutched her chest in horror at the situation her son, your father, had landed you in with the Birmingham gang leader your Granny could only envision to be like that of the viscous darkly creatures she had read in her nightly novels.

" A gangster, you say? How thrilling. This place could do with a little fun" your brother replied, flicking a dusty lamps weathered shade next to him. His need to live life further on the edge than what he was already precariously sat on, horrifying your Grandmother for a second time. "Does this gangster happen to drive a Bentley?"

" Oh god, he's early. Why is he so early?" You panicked at the approaching sound of a car on the gritted drive as your flustered fingers fidgeted with your pearl necklace.

" A gangster with good time keeping, sister" your brother smirked as he watched you smooth down the front of your dress, your lips silently mumbling your practiced speech.

" Johnathan, would you please shut up and stop calling him that. Would you like to get us all shot, and join Daddy in the morgue?" you huffed as the irritated former child in you made an appearance to your only sibling, who was enjoying, as he always did, purposely annoying you to the point of a foot-stomping childish outburst.

" And he brings two accompanying gangsters with him. What a burly looking lot" your brother's eyes narrowed in on the three men exiting the car behind the tempered glass.

" Johnathan! Shu..."

"Children please. I'm far too close to my own deathbed to withstand your bickering. Must I endure it until that very day?" your Grandmother sighed as she slowly approached you, her hand closing reassuringly around your jittery fingers. " Head up dear, don't let him see you falter" your Granny encouraged you, patting your hand and any lingering doubts away. "Stand firm. You'll leave this manor in grace and class" she stated, head held high as her cane came down to the floor with a thud in a show of both strength and dignity as she took your brothers' steadying arm, and he led her into the foyer.

You'll leave this manor in grace and class, your, Grandmother's guiding words sat with the uncomfortable lump of deception now forming in your throat as you followed behind her. For the days events were about to take a very different turn than planned. A plan in motion that neither your Grandmother nor this wretched gangster Mr Shelby could have ever envisioned. One that was imperative for you to escape the dreaded wedding arranged since your birth to the brute of a man you were promised to in one month's time. Cal Astor.

"Here she is, boys" Tommy said, stepping out of the car, lighting a cigarette as he looked at his newly acquired stately home. " Let's hear it then. What do you think?"

" Got nothing on Small Heath" Arthur sniffed as he squinted to the very top of the sturdy bricked mansion, cautiously weighing up its threatening statue. "Nah, give me Watery Lane"

"The mud and shit too?"John asked, twisting his toothpick between his teeth as his face scrunched up at the elaborate fountain of a large busted woman spouting water from her nipples. Your brother's only, and soon to be discarded, ghastly contribution to Arrow House. "Bloody toffs"

"Especially the shit" Arthur replied, checking the imposing house's stability with a firm slap to the bricked wall. "Go on then Tom, tell us aye. What poor bastard did you fool into giving this up?" he said before tipping his hat to one of the many garden staff now scurrying off to safety in fear of his kneecaps being blown off. The result of another mighty tale from your Grandmother's overactive imagination, that had undoubtedly stirred the staff of Arrow House into a dizzy.

"A rich old bastard who had reached the bottom of his pockets" Tommy replied, blowing a puff of smoke from the corner of his mouth.

"Well, where is the poor fucker then? No grand welcome?" Arthur asked, offended the red carpet and all its thrills hadn't been laid out for their arrival for such a grand home.

"Dead" Tommy flatly stated as he approached the towering wooden door, ignoring any of his brothers assumptions that he was the delivering hand of that untimely death. "Right come on lads. Best behaviour, eh?

"Jesus, bloody, Christ" John huffed, flicking his toothpick into the neatly cut grass, wary of what his brother had gotten them into this time.

Stood in the foyer with your only two remaining family members, and the staff under your employment orderly lined up beside you. You waited. Listening to the footsteps of the man you had yet to meet, slowly approaching.

" Mr Shelby, I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding..." you quietly rehearsed under your breath when a loud, heavy fisted knock rattled the foyer door. Startling both you and your Grandmother.

" Must he be so barbaric? This house does possess a doorbell! your Grandmother fussed as you nodded to Frances to open the door and have you face the inevitable you could no longer delay.

As the door slowly opened, a low, gravely voice greeted your housekeeper. Accompanying it, three smartly dressed men, each one sporting a peak cap. As your eyes darted from the youngest of the men in front of you to the tallest with a large moustache neatly trimmed above his top lip, they finally came to land on the man stood in the middle. His steel blue stare instantly locking with yours. It was him, Thomas Shelby.

A painfully awkward silence suddenly settled in the air when all thought drifted mutually from your minds. Embarrassingly halting either one of you from saying or doing anything. Leaving everyone present in an uncomfortable shared state of confusion of darting stares as they stood silently in the foyer.

Uncomfortable for all but two, that was. For something far more intriguing had unexpectedly sparked in the silence between the daughter of high society and the Small Heath boy from the hardened streets of Birmingham. A spark neither one of you expected to be ignited that day as your shared gaze remained fixed on the other and time suddenly seemed to dissipate, with everything and everyone around you blurring into nothingness.

That was until the echo of your Grannie's cane booming on the marble floor brought you and Tommy back to the present world.

" Mr Shelby..." you began, clearing your throat as you watched him remove his peaked cap, when your intended words escaped your thoughts once again to the man stood before you. A man not hardened faced, loud and savage like your Grandmother would have you believe. But a man with striking features and a magnetic, demanding stance. Quietly stood observing you. Patiently waiting for formal introductions like any gentleman from your world would do.

"Mr Shelby, welcome to Arrow House" you unexpectedly greeted him with a politeness you had been adamant on guarding as you tried to compose yourself after your state of, confusion.

Did you come with the house too?, Tommy thought to himself, as a curious hint of a smile etched on the corner of his lips for the woman that had suddenly captivated him. Oblivious to who you was, and the pounding headache you would soon create for him.

"I'm afraid...I'm afraid there has been a misunderstanding, Mr Shelby" you said, having finally recomposed yourself as you held your head high. Unwilling to, as Granny said, falter.

"Misunderstanding?" Tommy's brow furrowed as he cautiously stepped closer, sharply aware of your Grandmother's sudden snap of her head in your direction.

" I'm here to inform you, that the arrangement you had with my father is void" you cleared your throat, watching your unwelcome guests eyes pierce through the guard you had quickly shielded yourself with as he learnt of your connection to the former owner of the house he was stood in.

" Void..." Tommy scoffed, cocking a brow. His patience with you dancing around the subject and what you really intended on saying becoming tiresome.

" Yes. Void" you firmly stated, defiantly crossing your arms in reaction to his less than pleasant tone of voice aimed solely at you. Both of your unexpected allure with the other suddenly evaporating, and swiftly being replaced with a mutual irritation for one another as the bricked walls of control over the matter began to both mutually stack themselves high. "Arrow House was not my father's to give, Mr Shelby"

" That right, eh?" Tommy chuckled, as he looked back to his brothers shared amusement for your firm, but endearing stance." Then who's is it, sweetheart?"

" Mine" you coldly gave the delivering blow, severing his entertainment before turning on your heel and making your way up the long winding stairs as the staff and your flustered Grandmother accompanied by your brother hastily scattered from the foyer. Leaving Tommy's brothers in a fit of laughter while he glared at you from below on the marble floor as the overseeing eye of the iron-clad documents of Arrow House emerged from an adjoining room.

"Mr Shelby. A word, perhaps?"

" In her name?" Tommy confirmed, clenching his jaw fiercely together as he hunched over what was, for all intents and purposes, his desk.

" Correct, Mr Shelby" your newly acquired lawyer mumbled, nervously shifting his eyes to the two brothers stood uncomfortably close behind him.

" I saw the deeds myself. Watched the lying bastard put them in my name" Tommy lifted his head, pointing his finger accusingly at the lawyer he was now convinced was trying to pull one over on him, and delay his move.

" I don't doubt you, Mr Shelby" he stepped closer, and away from the two pitbulls breathing unnervingly down his neck. " You see, before the recently departed Duke died. The late mother of Miss Y/N Y/L/N made sure the deeds to Arrow House, and its land, were put in her name"

Your beloved mother. Born into a life of poverty not so different to that of Tommy's. She too, had worked her way up the precarious ladder of wealth, further cementing her future after accepting your father's proposal of marriage. But a life of financial worries had not escaped her when she began to learn of her husband's burning pockets, and his love of the casino tables.

In a desperate last attempt on her deathbed, and to guarantee you financial security, sparing you from a life of chains beautified with gold and satin ball gowns she never envisioned for you. Your mother, the fellow owner of your childhood home, had the deeds of Arrow House signed over into your safeguard, and away from the high rolling hands of your father and brother.

" For fucks sake..." Tommy mumbled with a hefty sigh, slouching down into his chair having realised the predicament he now found himself in.

" Really landed yourself in it this time, aye Tom?" Arthur couldn't help but give his younger brother an overdue sibling ribbing.

" Fuck off, Arthur" Tommy huffed in response, earning a snigger of laughter from both his brothers, who were more than happy to see him take a spectacular fall in his climb for the finer things in life.

" There is...something though, Mr Shelby. Something I could look into. For the right price, that is" the lawyer mused, his greedy fingers perching on the edge of the desk, now summed up on who the man was in front of him, and the depth of his pockets. No matter how tainted they may be. " There is a missing signature on the papers the late Duchess had filed before her death. The Dukes, missing signature. It will take some time to look into the documents' validity, but..."

" Get it done" Tommy interrupted the lawyer, ushering with his hand for him to leave before falling back into his chair with a chesty breath. Arrow House was his, he would make it so. One way or another.

After stewing over the predicament he found himself in for the better part of an hour. Tommy sat silent, weighing out the pros and cons of his next unexpected move as his stare homed in on the bronze statue of a stallion on his deck.

" What the bloody hell is he doing?" John impatiently mumbled to his eldest brother, who he himself was lost on what exactly it was Tommy was waiting for. " Tom, what..." John began to say when the office door flew open, and you came charging through. Your own patience with the head of the Birmingham gang's presence in your home wearing precariously thin.

" Mr Shelby, you've spoken with my lawyer. You know the terms of the deeds. Now I would ask you, kindly, to leave" you huffed crossed armed as you walked through the office collecting any remaining items of value in your arms. Cautiously aware of keeping them away from the three men's reputable light fingers.

" Y/N..." Tommy began as you sauntered past him, throwing the curtains open he had closed to dull the buzzing pain rattling in his skull you had welcomed him with.

" Miss Y/L/N" you were quick to correct him as Tommy ran his fingers down his face. His emerging eyes unable to divert from your swaying hips and flowing dress brushing past his leg, capturing his attention for a second time.

Watching you walk away was now, far more pleasant than having your angry frown storm towards him, Tommy thought to himself, clearing his throat as he looked at the pitiful lack of whisky in the decanter beside him. If you didn't have such a stubborn mouth, he'd be inclined to let your pretty face hang around, his petty ego nagged him. Irritated by the fact, he had lost himself in your beauty and allure in a brief moment of confusion earlier that day.

" Mr Shelby. Please" you gestured to the door as you stood defiantly in front of your father's mahogany desk, watching him brush his thumb over the muzzle of the ornament he had taken a liking for. " Mr Shelby..."

" I'm not going anywhere, love" Tommy finally spoke, looking up at your raging face as he picked up the weighty statue in his hand. " There seems to be a slight error on the deeds, Miss Y/L/N. A missing signature. Your father's signature" Tommy raised a brow as he pointed the ornament in your direction, unable to hide the triumphant smirk behind the smugness sitting on his face as he watched the realisation of your rapidly crumbling plan start to fall apart on your flustered face. "So until the deeds are reviewed..." he paused, turning the bronze horse to look at him. "Looks like you'll have to put up with me"

For the second time that day, you were left speechless by the stranger in front of you. This time, however, with a good dose of irritation spurring it on.

"Like hell I will!" You blurted, without a second thought for just how unladylike your reaction and the following response would look, when you reached over the table grabbing hold of the horse in Tommy's hand, and a childish tug of war ensued between the both of you.

" Fine" you huffed, blowing a lock of hair from In front of your eyes as you let go.

" Good" Tommy replied adjusting his tie as he sheepishly looked over to his smirking brothers, having witnessed the entire, amusing display.

"Keep it. A small souvenir" you pouted, pointing to the ornament gripped in his hand as you turned to leave, pulling a small cushion from under the bum of the youngest gangster as he sent a wink and cheeky dimpled grin your way.

" Enjoy your brief stay, Mr Shelby. And have no doubt. My lawyer will be urgently looking into your claims" you warned, clutching the handle of the door as you watched him rise from behind your father's desk and approach you.

"He already is, love. Paid him a nice sum of money to help speed things up" Tommy said standing uncomfortably close as he looked at you from head to toe, his eyes lingering on your plush lips.

A power unmatched. Money to buy his way through life. Something you knew would be dangerously futile in fighting with your lack of current funds.

" So be it, Mr Shelby" you succumbed to the situation with as much boldness as you could muster as you turned to leave. If you couldn't force him out, you would drive him out. One way or another.

Five days later...

" Good morning, Frances" you cheerfully greeted your housekeeper as you descended down the stairs in your nightie with a hop in your step, a bounce of your hair.

" Good morning, Miss" Frances swallowed heavily as her eyes darted to the grand clock ticking loudly in the corner of the entrance. Five days and counting. Five, obscenely early mornings, you had woken up earlier than the minutest chirp from any bird that had ever lived on the grounds of Arrow House.

" A little Beethoven this morning, perhaps?" you asked, perching yourself on the stool in front of the grand piano you had the staff conveniently move to the foyer. A spot that just so happened to be within close proximity to a certain someone's bedroom. " Any suggestions?"

"Fur Elise is a lovely piece, Miss. And you play it so well" Frances encouraged the mellow tune as her eyes darted to the top of the stairs, wary of the sleeping occupant only a stone throw away.

" It is. But I feel something a little more...rambunctious is needed to start the day. "Don't you think?" you smiled, turning the page to Symphony no5 as an amused smirk played on the corner of your lips whilst your hands hovered teasingly over the ivory keys, and you began to play. Loudly.

As the sound of your enthusiastic musical skills reverberated through the walls of Arrow House, a grunting Tommy stirred in his bed at the unwelcome shrill of the piano below him.

"Fuck sake..." Tommy mumbled incoherently, awakening from a deep sleep as he rolled from his stomach to his back. His eyes slowly opening, his ears tuning in. "Shut the...!" He grumbled, shouting the rest of his intended words as he grabbed the pillow beside him in an attempt to muffle the early wake-up call from his ears as he regained full consciousness. "FUCKKKK!" He roared from the pits of his lungs, when your continued playing only increased his irritation to a heightened, heavenly high.

Looking up at the landing stairs, a satisfied smirk grew on your face hearing the beautiful barrage of curses from the unwelcome squatter in your home for the fifth day in a row as your fingers glided over the cool ivory.

Throwing the covers from him, Tommy grabbed his gun from the cabinet side table as he scrambled for his trousers, pulling them up as he stomped to the door.

" Seems Mr Shelby's awake, Frances" you spoke above the piano, as your loyal housekeeper nervously smiled to you, nodding her head. Readying herself for the fury of a thoroughly pissed off Tommy heading your way as his booming strides beckoned closer.

Encouraged by the sound of Tommy's door slamming shut, you continued your endeavour. Unbeknownst, that Tommy's hunched shoulders were looming over the banister. Gun in hand as he positioned his arm on the metal railing, aiming the end of the barrel directly at the woman whose sole purpose in life was to wake him up every morning with an insufferable racket.

"Don't move, darling" Tommy teasingly whispered as his eyes narrowed in, his breath steadying whilst he watched your fingers dance along the keys as he adjusted his shot.

As the sight of your lonely digit lingered over the next key, Tommy squeezed the trigger, shooting off the finishing note before you had the chance to give your triumphant end.

Leaping from the smoky crater now forever embedded into your grand piano, your eyes shot up to see your unwelcome roommate looking down at you with a cocky smirk as he shoved his gun against the naked skin between the waistband of his trousers.

" Morning, love"

NEXT PART Coming soon!

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