#i’ve been seeing them in the tags for a few weeks but saw they’re now scamming people so i thought id make a post

[specialistpinky]

freaky ass frogs in the cut (perv!college bf!choso x plus-size!black!reader ft. roommate!dilf!toji) part 1

summary: two freaky hoes called the phone—and i answered!

tags & warnings: creepshots, panty stealing and sniffing, obsessive behavior

a/n: soooo this is probably the most feral, self-indulgent, nastiest, freaky-deakiest shit i’ve ever written next to my fanfic about T*m H*lland (DON’T ASK ABOUT IT, IT’S UP ON WATTPAD AND AO3 IF YOU’RE SO CURIOUS).

OBVI, i don’t condone creeping or perving on ppl, no matter their gender. this is just my own sick, twisted fantasy i needed to get out. am i ashamed? FUCK NO (i am never telling ANYONE that i wrote this EVER🙏🏾)

You don’t know how you ended up here—butt ass naked and folded in half on your couch with your roommate digging you from the inside out and your boyfriend whining about how good you look as he smears beaded pearls of pre on your cheek, but here you are.

Because look, Choso and Toji—them two motherfuckers are FREAKS. Capital F-R-E-A-K-S, FREAKS!

And they’re not just the “my-girl-can-do-anything-and-I’ll-nut-on-the-spot” typa freaky, but they're the “bordering-on-legalities-and-restraining-orders” typa freaky.

So, how did you get here? Let's find out!

Let’s start from the beginning with you and Choso. You two were a couple before Toji made it a trio, but loooooong before that, Choso was so into you.

Bent over to pick up something off the floor? Bricked!

Licked an ice cream a little too sensually? Erect!

Twirled your hair between your fingers? Sticky tip!

He was a straight DOG the way he fiended over every little thing about you.

He vividly remembers the day you two met—well, more like the day he met you. He watched you walk in a few minutes late to the astronomy class you two had together, scanning around the room to find a seat. He couldn’t stop staring, his jaw practically covered in drool and on the floor.

You had finally settled into the seat beside him. He couldn’t have been more fucking ecstatic such a beautiful woman graced his loner, loser self with her presence. He watched you slide into your seat: the desk slightly cutting into your stomach, your breasts perched on the tabletop and spilling over your shirt, your dimpled thighs expanding from up under your bubble skirt. He swore his nose bled but found nothing when he wiped his face. He could only imagine how much his nose would actually if you wrapped your thighs around his face.

Your pouty lips, lidded eyes, fluttery lashes, and chubby cheeks didn’t help his case, either. He remembers scanning your entire face, memorizing every pore and cater, every bump and ridge, and every twitch and move.

Before he knew it, the class was over. He snapped out of his stupor, now sad that he had to wait until the end of the week to see you again.

He had never wanted to stay in a class that badly before in his life.

He remembers the first time you talked to him.

You had walked into class, late as usual, in a strapless baby pink mini dress, your braids claw-clipped with a few strands hanging in your face, and a fresh set of nails (God, what Choso would’ve given to watch your hands stroke his cock with those nails). Needless to say, Choso thought you looked effortlessly stunning as usual, but two things caught his eye.

One) he saw your nipples were pierced through the top of your dress; and

Two) the outline of your thong popped out like crazy.

He didn’t hear shit the professor was saying by the time you sat down, nor did he fully realize you hadn’t sat beside him but in front of him that time.

That’s when he had a clever idea. A devious idea, sure, but a clever one.

He deliberately dropped his apple pencil on the floor, watching it roll from up under him to under you. The clattering caught your attention, making you jerk your head to the noise below. You moved out of your seat a tad, slowly bending down, your ass raised high and your dress rolling up enough for him to see your panties.

It was glittery, wedged between your ass so perfectly, and you had bent over just far enough for him to see the outline of your lips.

A throat being cleared snapped him out of his trance. He looked up and saw you holding his pencil out to him.

He shakily grabbed it from you, croaking out a dry “thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” you hummed sweetly with a small smile, turning back around.

Whatever cord of shame that was inside him? Shit snapped after that.

Choso stared at his pencil for the rest of class, swearing he’d never lose it so long as he lived.

Mind you, this was all before y’all were even FRIENDS.

Towards the end of the semester, you and Choso got paired for a final project.

During that final, y’all only ever hung out at the library or at a cafe during the project just so that there was some emotional distance (even though he was madly in love with you), but that certainly didn’t stop his freaky ass from perving; in fact, it fueled him more.

He’d hold the door open for you and be rewarded by the sway of your ass as you walked past. He’d order you something with some kind of cream or frosting so he can watch you lick white sticky stuff off your lips. He’d even ask you to grab something for him so that he could see your titties bounce when you stood and your ass shake when you walked.

This repeated for a couple of weeks until the night before the presentation.

His insomnia was kicking his ass, so he decided to tire himself out. One minute he was scrolling through Instagram, liking and saving funny reels; the next he was fucking the everloving shit out of his purple pocket pussy with one hand and holding your Instagram profile to his face in the other.

Then he saw a text at the top of his screen:

hey wanna hang out after the presentation tmrw?

He almost dropped his phone on his face.

A cum-filled fleshlight and some sweat-drenched pillows later, he replied:

Yeah sure :) what time?

He remembers the time he discovered his true nature.

After fantasizing about you for so long, he got to learn more about you the more y’all hung out after the project, and the more you hung out with him, the more enraptured Choso found himself.

He memorized all your favorites, your pet peeves, your interests, and your plushies’ names. He learned your food orders and your go-to snacks. You were wired into his damn hard drive.

LITERALLY! This man has folders upon folders categorized and alphabetized of just you.

Speaking of which!

Choso’s shrine collection of you started out harmless: a quick snap of your side profile here or a live pic of you strutting there, which may or may not have been super ass-centered. He was just practicing his photography skills, he reasoned. No other ulterior motive whatsoever… right?

Well, it was an accident at first!

See, he was tryna take a picture of you while you two walked back to your apartment. Choso lagged behind you because your dress was super short and flowy so he wanted to shield you from any creeps around (how fucking ironic).

He couldn’t help himself and pulled out his phone, angling it directly at your ass. Suddenly, the wind picked up and blew the skirt of your dress sky high.

Pretty pink lace flashed him and the camera. You yelped and pushed the dress down, quickly turning to Choso with your head slightly down and a mortified expression.

“Oh my god, did I flash you? I’m so sorry!”

You woulda slapped the dog shit outta him if you knew he was mentally jumping for fucking joy at the panty shot he just got.

But he played it off, waving his hands frantically and walking up to you. “It’s okay, really! Things happen.” His face morphed into one of concern. “Are you okay? That was a hard gust of wind.”

You nodded, a small smile on your face, still clutching the flimsy fabric for dear life. “I’m okay, just embarrassed. Another shred of dignity gone now,” you chuckled wryly.

Choso shook his head and rubbed your arm. “I know. ’m sorry that happened.”

He wasn’t.

You smiled a little wider at him. “It’s okay, Choso. Let’s just pray no one else saw.”

You turned around and kept walking, Choso now walking beside you with a hand on your lower back to guard you a little closer.

Obviously, because Choso was a fucking pervert, shit escalated real quick.

He snuck a few clicks underneath tables any chance you wore something short, which then turned into a few short videos. A few turned into several then turned into dozens. Soon enough, he amassed hundreds of clips and tens of hours in the span of two more months.

He memorized each pair of panties he captured, arranging his collection based on color, type, and tightness. He even had a collection called “Best Hits.”

He’d spend hours replaying footage, scrolling through pictures, printing some of them out for a closer look—always with his cock in his hand. Sometimes he’d get carried away and cover a picture of your ass or your moose knuckle in his essence, tainting you. He took pictures of that, too, hoping one day to show you how much he loved you.

He kept his dirty secrets tucked away in layers of folders on his pc, code-encrypted and secure. No one would ever find them. They were for his cock eyes only.

He remembers the first time he tasted you.

It was fall semester, football season, and you suggested that he come over to your place to get ready—well, wait for you to get ready for the homecoming game.

It was only his second time going to your apartment. The other time you invited him over was for a finals study session, and you two only stayed in the kitchen because your room was “too distracting.”

Regardless, he was happy to let you invite him over at your pace. That just meant you were trusting him more and more over time; just the in he needed to court you like you deserved.

He saw homecoming as the perfect opportunity for that.

He surprised you when he showed up with a small bouquet, matching jerseys, and your favorite sweets.

“Oh-em-frickin-gee, Cho Cho, how sweet of you,” you exclaimed as you welcomed him in. You took the flowers from him first, setting them in an empty vase. You then instructed Choso to place the sweets on the counter.

He also handed you a bag, tissue paper covering what was inside. You smack your lips and smirked. “What else did you possibly get me?” you ask. You dig through it, gasping as you pulled out two matching pink-accented black button down jerseys. Both had the football team name and founded year across the front; one had your name and lucky number on the back, and the other was the same but for Choso.

You squealed about how cute it was and throw your arms around him in a bear hug. He reciprocated, using every fiber of his being not to pop a boner in your loving hold. He cherished the warmth, taking a quick whiff of your hair.

He loved how you smelled, always noticing the smell of some kind of citrus or vanilla.

Pulling away a little too quickly for his liking, you gently requested for Choso to wait in the living room while you got ready. Of course, he obliged because he respected a woman in her home. (the word ‘hypocrite’ should be stamped across his goddamned forehead.)

You also told him not to worry if he heard the door unlocking since your roommate was away at work.

He waited patiently on his phone, just minding his business and waiting for you to finish showering, before his phone pinged.

beloved <3: heyyyy can u bring me my towel? left it in my room on accident :(((

Choso shot up and headed for your room. He may have only visited one other time, but of course he remembered where your room was.

He walked in, scanning your room and finding the towel on the bed. He grabbed it, spinning on his heel and heading for the bathroom.

He knocked on the bathroom door.

“Yeah!” you shouted from the other side.

“Brought your towel,” he replied.

“Okay! Could you leave on the sink, please?”

Holy fuck, he thought he was gonna pass out. Walking into the bathroom where you were naked, in all of your beautiful glory, even if he couldn’t see you behind the curtain? God, he hoped it was a glass shower.

With a shaky hand, he opened the door and announced his entrance, closing the door behind him as he tiptoed in and set the towel on the sink counter. He looked over at the shower; to his chagrin, a thick shower liner blocked his view of you.

“Did you set it down?” your voice startled him.

He screwed his eyes shut, feeling like he’d been caught. “Y-yeah. ‘s on the sink.”

“Thank you, honey. I’ll be out in ten minutes.”

“Okay,” he croaked. He blinked a few times, slowly walking the door, reaching for the doorknob when a certain something in his peripheral vision made his breath hitch.

A pair of your panties at the top of a haphazardly placed clothes pile on the floor—and they were his favorite pair. They sat there, tantalizing, mouth-watering, beautiful.

He looked over to the shower. You weren’t peeking around it. You were blissfully unaware that he was still in the bathroom with you, humming a random tune.

Slowly, he crouched down, inching his shaky fingers over. He hooked his pinky finger between a strap, lifting them up before quickly shoving them into his pocket.

“Cho!”

He froze. He stared at the floor, his body still like a dumb deer in front of a speeding car.

“Cho, can you—? Oh shit, he probably left already,” you hissed under your breath.

He exhaled silently in relief. But then, he realized he was still in the bathroom. He can’t exit now, or he’ll seem suspicious.

So he waited a few seconds to open the door and kept the door open as he replied, “You called?”

“Oh, thank god you heard me. Can you do me another favor? Can you grab me a soap bar from up under the sink?”

Choso obliged, beelining for the cabinet and grabbing the soap. You stuck your hand out as he handed it over.

“Thanks! I’ll be done soon, promise!” you called out to him.

“Take your time,” he said, closing the door with the quickness. He sprinted back to your room, his back slamming your door closed. He slid down, knees tucked and body trembling. He reached into his pocket.

Success!

He pulled the fabric out and just stared. He webbed it across his huge hand, swallowing the damp lace when he closed his fist.

Fuck, it was still damp from your essence. He raised it up to his nose and took a deep breath in.

He didn’t know when his cock came out his pants or when he sat on your bed or how your underwear ended up around his face, but that was what happened. He couldn’t help himself, picturing what your pretty pussy looked like in his face as he huffed your natural scent.

His fingers squeezed and stroked with reckless abandon. His cock leaked pre when he thought about you riding him. His breathing labored when he imagined your pretty little hand around his throat.

He always wondered what you tasted like. would you taste sweet like candy? Or tart like fruit? Would you have a taste at all? Would it be natural to compare you to something?

He flicked the tip of his tongue against the fabric.

With lurching hips and a choked moan, he spurted across his contracting stomach, ropes gushing out his reddened tip.

He let out a few grunts of satisfaction, smiling to himself.

You tasted even better than he imagined.

knock, knock, knock!

Choso sprung up, post-nut clarity and adrenaline pumping through his veins. He whipped his head to the door, staring at it. He knew it wasn’t you because you would’ve come in already. He figured it was your roommate, then.

But his heart raced even more when a voice spoke from behind the door.

“Hey doll, got a package for ya.”

Choso’s eyes widened.

Holy fucking shit. A guy? And he called you doll?

He ran a hand through his hair, tugging his roots in panic.

Fuck, fuck, fuck! She had a boyfriend this whole time?

“Doll? You in there?”

Choso took a small, quiet breath in and out.

Calm down, he thought. Maybe it’s just another friend or her roommate. Don't respond. Don't freak out.

And that’s what he did. He sat there with a hand over his mouth, quiet as a church mouse, until he heard padded footsteps step further and further away from the room.

Choso let out the breath he was holding, hand on his chest. He laid back against your pillows, a mixture of your panty scent and your perfume from earlier wafting. He turned his head to the side, inhaling deeper.

His dick resurrected after a few minutes, already half-hard at the aroma. He pumped it back to full hardness and patted the bed for your panties, grabbing them and draping the garment over his face. He took another deep breath in. and another. and another.

“My beloved,” he whispered to himself, “you smell absolutely divine.”

Click!

“Kid, I told you not to leave the shower—”

Bed sheets rustled under Choso as he scrambled to cover himself, only to flail too hard and fall off the bed with a thud.

“…running.”

Choso stared at the boots in front of him, not registering to move when they move toward him. Toned, muscled legs came into view as they crouched. Choso’s glossy gaze trailed up and saw an older-looking man, shaggy black hair dangling over his emerald eyes and a scar over the corner of his lips.

The man stared at Choso, his face was blank, unreadable. Then, the man slowly looked down at the panties between them before back at Choso, a smirk ghosting the man’s lips.

“Sorry, didn’t realize she had company.”

[8pxl]

PSA 🗣️ another scammer using genAI without disclosing it

mixlgirl (used to be pixgirl) has been posting generated AI (targeting fandoms) without disclosing it, passing it off as their genuine art and has apparently scammed at least one person into ‘commissioning’ them. this is a public PSA so yall can block them, and not interact. please do not harass them!

it’s incredibly shitty to be disingenuous while posting AI but even shittier to scam people with it 🤢 stay diligent yall

[mxtxfanatic]

Just wanna say for those of y’all who came into this fandom late: just a few years ago, speaking on Jiang Cheng with anything less than glowing praise used to bring so much harassment that “angry grape”-related tags had to be created to circumvent jc stans finding and subsequently dogpiling your posts. I’ve since seen this tagging convention appropriated by his stans to be an “affectionate” petname for his character. If you wrote a wangxian fic in which Jiang Cheng did not appear, your fics would get bombarded with stans flooding your comments with their own headcanons on why Jiang Cheng isn’t around but “this is how he’d react if he was” and “everyone loves him, they’re definitely thinking about him, rn” and “when is he supposed to show up, op???” If you read a wangxian fic and Jiang Cheng did appear, there was a 95% chance that you would have to slog through thousands of words of abuse apologia paired with every character (except maybe Lan Wangji, maybe) claiming that Wei Wuxian deserved to be abused and should just learn to handle it better because abuse is really love. It took me a year of reading purely (only, exclusively) wangxian fics to find a single fic that had both 1) canon Jiang Cheng and 2) did not twist the other characters into fanon iterations to justify canon Jiang Cheng’s abusive behavior. When more canon writers started appearing, their fics got flooded with negativity, claims that the fic wasn’t realistic because “jc isn’t like that,” and demands to change things. They started moderating their comment sections. Eventually, jc stan writers even stopped tagging Jiang Cheng in their fics despite writing him as a major character because people began to avoid reading fics if they knew from the tags that his character appeared.

The “canon jc” tag was created on tumblr because jc stans said that if we didn’t like being attacked for canon opinions we should “create our own tag.” It was not a tag that always existed. Nobody used it until my friends created it. And every few months after that, we’d get a new “flood the tag” campaign by jc stans pissed at the name until it died down… until twitter refugees arrived, bringing with them a new faction of jc stans. That jc appreciate week or whatever they call it that starts on Halloween? Created by jc stans in an attempt to flood out Wei Wuxian appreciation posts on his birthday by making sure that new Jiang Cheng content would dominate all the major tags on that day. I watched the creators brag about that.

One BIG fandom upset happened when a jc stan wrote a horribly mistagged rape and murder wangxian fic and had their friends promote it so that wangxian lovers would read the fic and be traumatized. They gloated about having "successfully baited people," then tried to delete their tweets admitting it when they got them in trouble. I was there for that, too, and I only dodged being triggered because I saved the fic to read for later instead of cracking it open immediately.

Some of y’all may see me around now, but I’ve been watching this fandom for much longer than I’ve been making posts, before even the friends and mutuals I know now even knew I existed (yes I was a lurker lol). I’ve seen the development of all this play out across tumblr, ao3, and twitter (despite my best efforts to avoid the twitter side, that’s how ubiquitous it was). That’s how inescapable it was. I saw so much shit go down that I already had a mile-wide blocklist before I made my first post, and even then, I still got hate commentary on some of my posts the moment I dipped my littlest toe into metas. I had anon off for like a year because I didn’t want to deal with any harassment, and the moment I turned it off, I started getting bait anons (though not as bad as the others I’ve seen, holy shit). When I started this blog, all I did was liveblog and reblog other people’s art and metas. I was so stressed entering this fandom because the shit I had seen off rip was absolutely disgusting. That’s why I have very intentional rules of engagement that I try to hold to for myself. I may never be the first to start the fight, but I damn sure will defend myself and my friends. I also will never run away from admitting my mistakes, but I will also never be bullied into treating someone’s personal fantasies as equal to the actual factual text.

This isn’t to say that fanon enjoyers don’t get harassment. Another big fandom scandal was that a popular fanfic writer obsessed with canon had been harassing other writers through a series of bot accounts into leaving the fandom. What a lot of people don’t bring up in their bid to paint canon enjoyers as particularly prone to “fandom bullying,” however, was that the “canon” they were obsessed with was tied almost exclusively to the canon wangxian’s top/bottom sexual dynamic. I’d read that person’s works before—enjoyed them, even, before the scandal happened. They wrote fanon into their fics in other ways. The fanon/canon divide isn’t the problem; entitlement to unanimous fandom praise and recognition is.

There’s nothing wrong with enjoying canon or fanon, nothing right or wrong or morally superior for either camp. But do me a favor: go into the main jiang cheng character tag right now, and count how often you see a post about Jiang Cheng that portrays him in a negative light. Not one that portrays him as an snarky asshole or a teacher’s pet or a helicopter parent or a crybaby who only wants to be loved, but one which shows him in all of his uncensored glory as a piece of shit antagonist. How often do you see fanart of Jiang Cheng that isn’t “best jiujiu” or “sad didi” or “badass sect leader”? How often do you see metas that don’t include some iteration of “everyone is just so mean about poor little jc who just didn’t have a choice in anything he ever did 😢”? Go to the main novel tag and do the same. Hell, go to the wangxian tag and see what you find while you’re at it. How many of those posts are viral compared to “look at jc with his dogs!” or “look, I made lxc and jc kiss!” Then tell me whether or not you believe that jc stans are being specifically targeted for some unique and undeserved persecution by the fandom at large.

[urfavteengirl]

little naked angel babies — chris sturniolo

“it’s so sweet; knowing that you love me” ♫ sweet —cigarettes after sex

⋆˙⟡ in which: you have a newfound hyperfixation on sonny angels and drag your boyfriend chris along with you to buy your first ones.

a/n: this is my first fic so if it’s not the greatest, feel free to leave suggestions in the comments. i apologize DEEPLY if it’s cringy or bad :/ also my requests will be open, as i don’t have many ideas for fics rn! (no smut pls💔) but i’ve had an obsession with sonny angels lately so here’s this, enjoy :)

Dull light shone in through the windows of you and Chris’s small apartment. It was drizzling out, and the sky was full of dark clouds, your favorite weather.

You had been awake for a while now, but couldn’t bring yourself to leave the comfort of your warm bed. You had spent the last 15 minutes scrolling on TikTok while your boyfriend was in the shower. You continued to obsessively watch one thing: Sonny Angel unboxing videos. You didn’t know what it was about the mini dolls, but they brought you a sense of happiness that only came from little collectible trinkets.

You had been checking the online store, but it was always sold out, so a couple days ago you’d opted to check if there were any verified sellers in LA. Sure enough, the mall right around the corner from your apartment had them. You planned to go today, you just had to ask Chris if he wanted to tag along.

A few minutes later, Chris came out of the bathroom in a white t-shirt and jeans, ruffling his wet hair with a towel. He discarded it on the floor (he’s messy) and flopped on the bed next to you, peeking at your phone.

“Whatcha watchin?” He asked.

“Sonny angel unboxing videos.” You responded, laying your head on his shoulder.

“I don’t get it. What’s the hype with those little naked angel babies?” He leaned over to peer at your phone again, scrunching his nose when he noticed just how naked they were. “Do they have tiny penises?”

You ignored his question and instead began to rant about them. “They’re adorable, baby. Look, they have so many different kinds. There’s a marine series, flower series, fruit series…” You continued to talk about the dolls for a minute straight while Chris smiled at your apparent interest. You finished up with, “They have some at the mall, I was wondering if you wanted to come with me today to buy some? We could visit that store you like.”

Chris grinned and answered, “Sure, kid. Whatever makes you happy.” He patted your head affectionately and you giggled softly.

An hour later, you and Chris were in the mall, at the store that had the Sonny Angels. As soon as you saw them, you gasped with happiness— you had been hyper fixating on them for weeks, and to actually be able to buy them made you bubble over with joy.

You immediately started grabbing some of all different kinds and putting them in your shopping basket. Chris smiled when he saw you take so many.

“Easy,” He teased. “Leave some for the other naked-baby-obsessed maniacs.”

You rolled your eyes at him, but smiled as you put a couple back.

“I was just joking, baby. Get as many as you want, I’m paying.” He smiled at you and ran a hand through his still-damp hair. You tilted your head at him and started to protest, but he cut you off. “Uh-uh. You’re gonna let me buy these for you. They make you happy, and I love seeing you this excited. C’mon, you ready check out?” You gave up attempting to argue and nodded. He threaded his arm through yours, leading you over to the counter.

Back in the car, you set up your phone to film a TikTok. You knew Chris’s fans would go crazy over seeing him with the latest popular toy, as they tended to overanalyze every piece of content of him that was put out on the internet. The fandom, though there were bad sides of it, seemed to be supportive of you and Chris’s relationship.

As the phone recorded the two of you, you handed a Sonny Angel to Chris and kept one for yourself. You introduced what you were doing and unwrapped the plastic around the packaging. You had decided to open the fruit series, as it was one of your favorites that you had seen on TikTok.

“I really want the strawberry,” You said to the video. “But the raspberry is super cute as well.” You looked to Chris who was grinning at you and nodding.

You popped open the box and pulled out the bag, ripping it open and keeping your eyes closed as you pulled the mini figure out, letting the camera get the first look. You heard Chris gasp excitedly and your eyes shot open. It was the strawberry sonny angel.

“Oh my gosh, baby, you got it!” Chris said, even more thrilled than you were. You giggled at his enthusiasm.

“Your turn, Chris.” He obliged and peeled the plastic wrap off the marine series box that you had given him. “Tell them which ones you want.” You instructed, and he turned the box to inspect the options.

“Hmm. I want the shark for sure, he looks super cool. Or the penguin, maybe the blowfish. If we get that one, we should give it to Nick,” Your boyfriend joked, to which you rolled your eyes, knowing the fans would definitely clip that.

He proceeded to attempt to pop the box, but it crushed under his fingers, which caused him to make an expression of mock annoyance. Chris did as you had before him, making a big silly show of pulling out the plastic bag and squeezing his eyes shut. He ripped it open and pulled out the mini figure, giving you and the camera the first look.

You grinned at what he had gotten, knowing he would love it even though it wasn’t one of the choices he had mentioned— the clownfish. Honestly, it was a perfect fit for him. He opened his eyes and burst into a big smile.

“It’s Nemo!” He said, grinning widely. You laughed and admired how cute he looked in the dim lighting of the cloudy day.

After opening a few more boxes for the TikTok, you turned off your phone’s video and put it in your pocket, smiling over at Chris, who was staring in wonder at the little toys you had pulled.

“Y’know babe, I might’ve lied. These things are kinda cute.” He looked over at you, then back to the figure. “I wonder how they paint the eyes. They’re so tiny.”

You just stared at him for a second before leaning in and kissing his cheek softly. “Thank you, Chris.” You whispered lightly.

“Oh, it’s no big deal. You wanted them, so—”

“Not for the toys, baby. Well, yeah for those too, but not just that. The fact that you bought them because they made me happy, makes me happier than the actual sonny angels.” You confessed.

Chris looked away, biting back a smile. “Don’t get all sappy on me now.”

“Chris, it shows that you care about how I feel, and that’s more important to me than anything else. I’m so grateful for you. And I need you to know that. I love you.” You grasped his hand gently and ran your finger over his knuckles.

“I do know that. I do. And I love you too, more than anything in this world.” Chris’s serious facade lasted about 2 seconds. Then he began to grin, and you knew he was about to say something dumb. “Except maybe for Nemo over here.”

You rolled your eyes and hid a smile. One of the things you liked so much about Chris was his goofy behavior, which only continued as he lifted your hand to his mouth and began to pretend to eat your fingers. Giggling loudly, you tried to pull your hand away but before you knew it, you were kissing Chris.

When he finally pulled away, his eyes flicked between the two of yours and he spoke softly, “I love you.”

You tilted your head and smiled before ruffling his hair. “I love you too, dumbass.”

if you don’t know what the sonny angels they pulled look like, here’s pics for visualization ;)

[snotbuggle]

Omega when she gets to jail and realizes that she now has to big sister four other children. One of which is nowhere near her age.

Going to try and condense some more serious thoughts about these episodes down below so I can avoid spoiling someone as much as possible and not post a dozen times. I don’t want to miss tag any one of those.

Jex/Jek?? I can’t completely remember his name, but the mirialan kid is for sure not going to trust her at all. Can’t say much for the pantoran kid since they haven’t shown much of them so far, but Eva is going to love her.

I think the mirialan kid is definitely going to be skeptical of Omega’s prior knowledge of the facility, Emerie, and why they’re there. Although he might overlook these things hanging on her promise that her brothers will get her, and in turn them, out of there. I can’t help but wonder what Omega and the others will think after about a week and there still not being a rescue. (These two are assuming that she will be placed with the other force sensitive children. Although she may be moved since her blood actually works for project Necromancer)

Crosshair is definitely going to hear it from Hunter. ESPECIALLY after he threw Hunter’s past failure to keep her out of Tantiss in his face. What I think will weigh on his conscience more though is the fact he thinks she’ll be alone this time. In a way she definitely will, but I have no doubt that he realizes he was probably the highlight of her day. He was probably the one thing that kept her hopeful even if he tried to talk down on her and get her to leave. Yes, she had hope that Hunter and Wrecker would find her, but she also needed someone there with her. A familiar face and not someone who just revealed they were your sister out of the blue. Her situation has changed, but Crosshair doesn’t know that. The Crosshair guilt is going to be so real in these last episodes.

Switching gears, CX agents are always a cool and interesting topic for me. While the identity of CX-2 isn’t usually as engaging, I have to say that I’ve drifted from the standpoint of “there’s no way that’s Tech” to “it’s a possibility” over the course of the last two episodes. I’ve seen some fun ideas for who it is otherwise. Personally, I think that they’re probably just another copy paste man with no autonomy anymore.

ANYHOW! I haven’t seen anyone talk about it much, but the scene with Hemlock reviewing the CX agent data and the capsule has me thinking a little harder on their creation/conditioning. The way Hemlock talks about the other operatives as well. “The others aren’t ready to join you” (paraphrasing) seems to show that after the mental conditioning through obviously brutal means, it takes a load of time to physically condition the agents. Seeing as CX-1 was most likely initiated around the same time as Crosshair (I choose to believe that they were near each other’s tables which is why they’re familiar), that took around five months to half a year. In that time span there had to be a lot of soldiers who Hemlock saw fit to be “reprogrammed” but we see very few operatives throughout. This means that if they make it out of mental conditioning, physical conditioning is most likely very dangerous and often times fatal. I’d like to draw attention to the capsules as a part of that physical conditioning. There were several capsules that Hemlock was observing, along with the foggy one that is most likely that new Huyang-lookin-ass operative. If these capsules are the final stage of physical conditioning, it adds meaning to CX-2’s first line, “Why have I been activated?” (Once again paraphrasing). Although the capsules could be for something else entirely.

Also a bit of a gripe, why in the world do you need a new secret-secret operative, Hemlock? You have the commandos, and then the first X troopers, now the CX’s, and what? You wanted a new one? I can’t tell if this man is an overachiever or just way too absorbed into the advanced trooper rabbit hole. Also for you Tech theorists, it’s kinda suspicious that he makes a new version of agents isn’t it? Almost like there’s something…deviant about him?

Completely side tracking here, I really like Phee’s awareness in the station. Yeah she didn’t hear the blaring alarm, but she was in a room where it’d be hard to hear anyways. However, when she got back she felt something was off about the ramp. We’ve seen how slick CX-2 is, so her noticing something is up was a nice touch imo. Also was very appreciative of her caution and readiness with her knife. I love when female characters get to be aware of their surroundings and ready to throw hands if things go south.

In conclusion, thank you for listening to my dump-rambling. I’ve been trying to keep my lips shut so I don’t miss tag anything and spoil it for someone (because I know that I’ll forget to tag everything right). I hope Wrecker is okay. And even if I’m not a Tech CX theorist, I have to admit that I’ve been seeing some fairly strong parallels.

[livfastdieyoung69]

same anon as previous: consider it requested, chief 🫡

(Current!Triple H x Photographer!Reader)

I’m Gonna Crawl

You never expected to end up where you had, not really. You graduated high school, went to college like everyone else, got a shitty paying job and an internship like everyone else. Still clueless on what you wanted to do, you figured a degree in marketing with a minor in photography (mostly just as a hobby, you’d always been interesting) would be useful for something. Everybody needed social media teams nowadays. Shortly after you walked the stage for your degree though, was when things began to change.

Of all businesses’ and companies, WWE reached out to you. The multimillion dollar company saw the Instagram post you tagged them in, full of pictures taken at the Smackdown you happened to grab tickets for, and reached out to you.

That was years ago. Now the damn boss is your husband.

“I just don’t get why you won’t let me.”

The two of you are in some conference room, many floors up in the huge WWE Headquarters. Hunters reading glasses clambered in front of him at the head of the table, where he always sat, and he leaned back in the leather office chair.

“You know why. It’s dangerous.” He’s had a long day. A very long day, and the last thing he wants to do is fight with you over the same thing you’ve been fighting about all week.

“I’ve done it before!” You scoff from the chair next to him. “I’m not going to get hurt, I’ve worked with both of them before, and they’re great at watching out for me.”

You could usually be found near the commentators table, or in the little cubby for the announcer to snag some pictures. Every here and there though, you got to do some fun stuff. You’ve hidden under the ring a few times, snapping pictures while superstars grabbed ladders and tables, that was probably one of your favorites. Naturally, you wanted to give it another go.

“You’ve done it for normal no holds barred matches, and I was already nervous about those, you know that.” His arms move up, and his big hands are planted on the sides of his head. “I can’t let you do it for a cell match.”

You can’t really find a response, not with him showing his big hands off and his exhausted, pleading eyes. You just cross your arms, pouting, and look to the other side of the room.

“Honey,” He starts again, his long, suit covered legs pushing his chair closer towards you. His hands, still calloused from his years in the ring, pull your crossed arms from your torso before sliding down them and squeezing your hands in his. “When’s the last time I told you no?”

Naturally you go to tell him that he just told you no, and that he told you the same thing yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that.

“About anything besides this?” He interrupts as gently as possible, giving your hands another squeeze.

Goddamnit. Goddamnit, he’s got you and now you feel like a spoiled brat. (You are, sometimes. It’s okay, he likes you that way.)

“I don’t know.” You mumble and pout back, shoulders shrugging weakly, and staring down at his thumbs brushing your palms. When he leans in closer and hums for you to repeat yourself, you finally look back up at him just to pout some more.

He’s exhausted, it’s easy to see, but he looks more at ease. Less worried and stressed, less business-man. Still, how hard he works and how much you’ve been fighting over this with him makes you feel even worse than you already do.

“Fine!” You finally wave your white flag, rolling your eyes. “I won’t do it.”

You pull your hands from him to cross them back over your torso, quickly standing and starting to leave the room in your defeat. You only manage to take a few steps before Hunter is pulling you into his lap with a couple grunts of disaprovement.

“Thank you.” He mutters into your hairline, where he’d just pressed a few kisses. You can’t help but lean against his broad shoulders with a ‘hmph’.

Your fight has already worn off, not that it took much, but with his fingertips trailing up and down your spine, the very trace of what’s left has vanished.

“I’ll let you do a couple NXT’s instead, how ‘bout that?” He moves back just a little to properly look at you after muttering the promise in your ear all gruffly.

You didn’t usually work Tuesdays, just because of how much more you would have to travel, but when you have the opportunity, it’s an absolute blast. Most of the newest generation are the kindest souls on the Earth, and you and Shawn get on incredibly well. Sometimes Hunter is a little scared you’ll leave for a random NXT day, get caught in the loop of traveling, and never find your way back to him.

You sigh against his heavy chest, and let your fingers scratch through his beard, gazing up at him with a tiny, guilty smile and heated cheeks.

“You don’t need to do that.” One of Hunters hands leaves your back, to palm your cheek. (It’s more like the entire side of your face, though.) The other one lowers down, just enough for his pinky to fall on the waist band of your pants.

“But i’d like to, if you’d let me.” He kisses your temple again. “So can I?” He raises his eyebrows down at you, smile growing just a little.

You take a second, glancing down at the broad shoulders your arms are wrapped around and the biceps, covered in a crisp black suit jacket, your pressed against. He’s done a lot more for you than let you take pictures for NXT, but there’s something about this that sticks to your heart. It grabs onto your face, and brings heat down past your neck. It sticks to your ribs and warms your stomach, makes your legs all light and tingly.

“Okay,” You grin up at Hunter with a little nod, clinging just the tiniest but closer. (There’s no possible way to get any closer. Not appropriate ways, at least. That’s business for later.)

“Okay?” He leans in again like he did earlier, nudging his nose against the side of your face because he knows his beard will make you ticklish.

“Okay!” You scooch from him, full of giggles, but his hand on your back crowds over your waist and pulls you to fall back against him with a final nod.

“Okay.”

boom shakalaka

i’m so sorry this took me so long everything takes me so long AUGHHHH I HATE IT IM SORRY <\\333

title is the led zeppelin song i’m gonna crawl :)) thought it was perfect

i have a headache and it’s almost 3 am, i can’t reread this again so once more i say im sorry

[ford-pines-lover]

Sweet Dreams ~Chapter 1~

stanford pines x oc

tags: scientist stanford, sfw (suggestive kissing), fluff

word count: 1125

prologue

summary: Celeste and Ford settle into their cozy Gravity Falls home.

Moving in was a struggle. Not only did my parents think I was making a huge mistake, but I realized that keeping focused in the lab while your partner is irresistible is frustrating. Ford will just be writing something in his journal or doing experiments, and I won’t be able to keep my eyes off of him. 

It hasn’t been very long since we have moved in together, just a few weeks, yet there are so many things we have discovered here. Our first day here, we discovered these things we call "eye-bats." They’re exactly what you think they are. Eyeballs flying around with bat wings. I was terrified when I first saw them. Now that I think about it, I think that’s when I starting growing a fondness for the scientist that I’m living with. Not to say I wasn’t fond of him before. 

Going to university with him was fun, but I didn’t see him all the time. I had little flings off and on. Not with him. He was always reserved and standoffish. I could tell he had a lot on his mind, constantly. When he presented me with the idea of researching with him AND he bargained with the “grant money people,” as he called it, just so I could move in with him, I was ecstatic. 

“Celeste, are you doing alright?” 

Ugh. I can’t help my heart racing when I hear his voice. I don’t know what’s come over me. I have known him for years. There is no reason for me to be feeling this way. It’s really not reasonable. I take a deep breath and hope that he cannot see the crimson on my face.

“Yes, why wouldn’t I be?”

“You’ve been staring off into space for the last 10 minutes.” His eyes narrowed, focusing on my face, making sure I was “all there.”

Oh. Yikes. Okay. I hear him clear his throat, signaling him wanting to talk again. He comes closer to me, and I can feel the heat radiating off of me as he gets closer. 

“Sorry if this is off topic and unnecessary, but,” he pauses, “would you want to go out to a diner with me tonight?”

I give him a confused look, “What for? We have food here. And don’t we need to-” I was cut off by him pressing his lips to mine. I pull away, breathless and heart racing. 

“I was trying to ask you out, Celeste.” Ford rubs his thumb against my cheek, his face close to mine. I stand up so he doesn’t have to bend down to my level. Well, I am quite a bit shorter than him anyway, so I guess it doesn’t make too much of a difference. I think he can see that I was too stunned to speak. Ford furrows his brows, “Was—was that okay? I’m sorry. I should have asked if I could do that.” 

I smile at him and kiss him again. He tastes of morning coffee. His left hand finds its way to the small of my back. Ford pulls me closer toward him and I can feel his heart racing as well as mine. We move like we were meant for each other. Like nothing could stop us from being together. It was me and him against the world. 

We pull away and I look at him with love in my eyes. “You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to do that.” 

He chuckles and replies, “Does that mean we are on for dinner tonight?”

“Absolutely, I apologize for not agreeing at first; I just didn’t want to disappoint you.” 

“You could never disappoint me.” 

We decided on the diner that was closest to us. It was “Greasy’s Diner,” and it seemed to be only breakfast food. Delicious. I ended up on waffles with strawberries, and Ford got an omelette. It was quiet at this time in the evening. To be fair, it is a small town. There was an ambience that was unmatched in here. Maybe it was just because I was with someone I really liked. I dunno. 

We get back home, and as soon as we close the door, Ford doesn’t hesitate to press me against the door and kiss me. I am filled with bliss and affection as we begin to get more frisky. Hands touching all over. I reach for the hem of his shirt and tug at it; he seems to get the signal, and he takes it off, revealing a slightly muscular man. It was a lovely sight. I ran my hands along his barren chest, taking it all in. I could feel the tips of my ears burning as I saw him smile and kiss my forehead. 

“Stardust, I don’t want to get too... risky tonight if that’s alright with you,” Ford rubs the back of his neck, visibly nervous. Stardust. I feel a chill run up my spine when he calls me that. I hope that becomes a regular thing. Stardust. Just hearing his voice say that over and over in my head makes my heart palpatate. This makes me wonder how long he had been thinking up nicknames for me.

“Hm? Oh, yeah, no, that’s no big deal, love.” I smile, pat his barren chest and walk over to the couch. “Want to at least cuddle and watch some shitty TV?” 

“Of course, darling.”

***

I open my eyes, suddenly feeling a chill. Not a good one. I am in a dark space; I can’t tell where anything is or where I am. All I know is that there is a frigid breeze. Immediately I feel a sudden rush of panic as I hear this maniacal laughter. It’s taunting and haunting. Yet this all sounds familiar. I hear a cryptid voice in a language that I couldn’t understand. 

Zkb glg brx gr lw? 

Then it was gone. 

I was falling. 

***

I wake up, panting and in a cold sweat. I look around the room. Room… I’m not in my room; my heart rate is increasing. I can feel my blood pulsing through my veins. 

Where am I? What is going on? 

Is all that is coursing through my head until I look to the left. There was a man sleeping next to me. 

A man? Man… 

Ford.

I must be okay. I’ll be fine. 

I lay back down for bed as I felt him turn over to me. I froze, worried I had just woken him up. Ford puts an arm around me and snuggles into my neck, getting comfortable. As I relax, understanding he just wanted to get comfortable as well, I hear him whisper to me. I feel I am starting to crash again. 

“You’ll be okay, stardust.” 

Stardust…

[shadows-over-the-wastes]

Shadows Over the Wastes: Chapter Six

It had been a few days since Chopper found me. He was odd, but he was helpful. He was strong, fierce, and surprisingly intelligent. Maybe not quite as smart as his vocabulary let on, but he was clever in a way that was hard to describe. He had a lot of things I lacked. A spine, for one. He sewed up my flank. It wasn’t pretty, a few bits of flesh were missing, so my cutie mark is all broken up, but it’s good enough. The gash on my neck was healing up well enough, it was small, but it would still leave a pretty noticeable scar. Not even a week out and I was already injured. It was hard sleeping near him though. I always felt like he’d end up the same way as Swiss. Only, this time, I wouldn’t be able to stop him. Not even if I got lucky. Even as passive as he was, I always kept him at leg’s length. I couldn’t cease that sinking suspicion. Something deep in my mind festered with that paranoia.

I was in a lake, washing myself off, the blood and skull bits sticking into my mane were driving me mad. Not only that, but the dirt I’d collected on the road. Chopper sat on the shore, away from me, choosing to give me privacy. “So, uh, if you don’t mind me asking…” I began, calling for his attention, “you never explained what the whole Rusteater MO is.”

“I don’t plan on it. Need to know basis.” He staunchly, unflinchingly replies. “And as far as I’m concerned, you don’t.”

“How am I supposed to be anything but dead weight if you won’t answer any of my questions? Celestia’s sake, we’ve been slogging on the road for three days and all I know is your name!” I sighed, running my hooves over my mane, scooping water to wash myself down. The water ran red and black as it pooled off me. Dirt, oil, and blood.

The stallion snorts like a bull, shaking his head. “Those Fiends you encountered. They’re cannibalistic Raiders. They raze villages and eat the stragglers.”

“Yeah, you established that.” I snapped back, scoffing.

He takes a deep breath, hesitating to continue. “Rusteaters are pretty much the same. Save for the eating ponies part. We wipe out or enslave anypony we can manage. Then we strip their villages for parts to make weapons and armor.” He looks over his shoulder just enough so I could see one of his eyes, but he couldn’t see me. “We sell those ponies we capture for anything we can get. Or we keep a few healthy ones for breed-stock.”

My heart sunk into the pit of my stomach, my intestines twisting. Sickened by his words. “Am… am I breed-stock?”

“Generally speaking? Probably. I mean, you’re more than a healthy weight. Even if you’re a little short, you have desirable genetics. Plumpness is a very valuable trait out here.” He explains, “Hell, if you did get captured for breed-stock, you’d have one fatass price tag. And whatever bidder you went to would probably treat you at least half decent. They’d have to, to afford you.” Shrugging, he then shakes his head, “But right now? No, I didn’t capture you. I’d never subject you to that. Not as long as I was alive.” He lets out an exhausted sigh.

Letting out a sharp exhale through my nose, I cleaned my wounds. “Why are you being nice? What makes you different from the other Rusteaters?”

“They’re fucking dullards. Every single one of them. Please, I almost ripped my mane out being sent with my squad; Blockhead, Bonehead, and Pinhead. They’re ignorant. Psychopathic.” Kinda rich, considering I saw how he dealt with any hostiles on the road. “They tear everything down time and time again. It’s… cruel, and unsustainable.” Chopper laughs a little to himself. “Bunch of mud-munching, junk-scraping, illiterate, lead-skulled know-nothings.”

I chuckled at his description. “Wow, you’re pretty eloquent for a wastelander.”

“I get it from my mum. She was the sassiest mare I’ve ever known.” He inspects his rifle. “Everypony thought my dad was in charge, but no, she had him by the balls. Literally. Her intelligence was unrivaled. She was a Steel Ranger, and she wasn’t about to raise a half-wit.”

“So uh…” I slowly pulled myself from the lake, sitting on a rock to let my coat and mane dry. “What’s the plan for you then?”

He sighs, running his hooves over his rifle. “I cut you loose before I get too close to home. Considering we’re-“ he stops, and his ears shoot up to attention. “Hide.”

“Why?” My ears swivel around, and I listen out for whatever freaked him out.

“I said hide!” He growls, looking over at me, before he retreats into a small alcove under the rocks.

“Fuck…” I mutter, looking around. Then I realized. The water might have been clean, but it was difficult to see through. The setting sun reflecting off the surface made sure of that. So back in I went, as carefully and quickly as I could manage. Taking a deep breath, I laid on my back under the surface. I watched, eyes open, looking up to see if anypony approached. And something did.

Fizzling into existence, coming out of some kind of cloaking device, was an unnaturally massive earth pony mare, I think. Her  coat had fallen out completely, as well as her mane, if she even had either of them. What was left exposed was sickly blue flesh, a mutation of some kind, that allowed me to see hoof-thick layers of rippling muscle. Her lips were peeled back with some kind of sling, hooks keeping the flesh back, making sure her massive, yellow teeth were on display. Her eyes were bloodshot, with a deep-seated aggression within. She wore armor made from pieces of military vehicles, a massive weapon with a rotary chain-blade hanging on her side.

I could feel her growling cause ripples on the water’s surface, further shrouding not only mine, but her own image in distortion. She leaned down, loudly sniffing, her massive nostrils flaring. Then, I heard someone say something, and she barked something in reply, hurriedly making her way away from the edge of the lake. I could feel myself becoming lightheaded, on the verge of jumping up for air, but I had to give it a few more seconds. I counted out 15 seconds, then pushed my snout up through the surface of the water, and took a breath as quietly as I could. Rolling over, I slowly peeked up, looking around. Nopony. They seemed to be gone. “Chopper?” I whispered, “Chopper, are they gone?”

He slowly comes out of the alcove, crawling on his belly with his rifle. He looks around, “No glimmering… they’re gone.”

“Glimmering?” I glanced over.

He nods, “Nightkin. They’re super mutants. They have the ability to shroud themselves and become invisible whenever they please.” Standing up, he slings his gun over his back. “The only way you can see them before they see you is by seeing if the area around you has any uh… what’s the word? A ‘shimmer’ so to speak, shaped like them.” He points at me, “Good job, hiding in the water was really clever, I’ll have to use that sometime.”

Shaking myself off to dry, I go back over to the rock that had my clothes. “Surprised they didn’t see this and look around.”

“They probably figured you were dead.” He chuckles, “I don’t really blame them. Any number of things in the water could’ve gotten you.”

My head whipped over to him as I zipped up my Stable suit. “I’m sorry, what? There are things in the water that could’ve killed me?? And you neglected to say that until now?”

“Well, I did say there are things everywhere that can kill you.” He sighs, looking over at me. “Everywhere includes lakes, mountains, forests, deserts, roads, other Stables, towns, and cities. Oh, and the ocean. The ocean is terrifying.”

Rubbing my cheek with a hoof, I shook my head. “Fuck’s sake… is there anything out here that won’t try to kill me?”

“Actually, yes, Sprite-Bots. Don’t kill them, they’re nice. And usually Assaultrons in towns and settlements. Protectrons too.” He begins to root through his bag. “Like I said, I’m sending you on your way. I can’t keep you around. Especially not if I just saw Nightkin come from the direction of home…” He groans. “Anyway.” Dumping out some things onto the ground, he waves a hoof to them. “Take these.”

Approaching, I scooped up some of the items. Two bottles of Sparkle-Cola. A package of “Mint-Als”, featuring a cartoon zebra on the casing. Eight loose revolver cartridges, and a mouth-hold revolver with a five shot cylinder. One stimpak. Three bottles of medicine labeled “RAD-X” and an IV bag labeled “RAD-AWAY”. I took everything except the radiation meds, putting the cola, mints, stimpak, and ammo in my saddle bags. Tucking the revolver into my waistband, I looked up at Chopper. “Is now a bad time to mention that I don’t know how to use a gun?”

“It absolutely is. Why didn’t you take the rad meds??” He picks them up, offering them again.

“I don’t need them.” I replied.

“Y-what?? Yes you do?! Are you insane?!” He laughs slightly. “You’ll get fried out there without rad protection.”

Rolling my eyes, I snatched them up with my magic, stuffing them into my bag. “Fine.”

Letting out a heavy groan, he pulls something else out from his bag. “You’ll also need these.” He offers a small pouch, and a strange medallion. “Caps, and a… means of insurance.”

“What are these for?” I took them, raising a brow.

“Caps are for buying shit. That little bit-shaped thing? It’s technically the reason I found you. I stamped some Rusteater flair on it though. Flash it and ponies will know you have protection. Maybe not my clan, but mine is enough. Trust.” He pats me on the shoulder, and I flinch a little, backing away. “Keep up the maintenance on those wounds.” Pulling his helmet from his flank, he fits it on over his head, pointing a hoof at me. “Don’t die! If you do, I’ll… I’ll be pretty damn upset about it. You have potential. Head south, to Foaledo, hit that place up for some supplies and maybe even some help. Then, from there, you’re gonna want to head northwest towards Big McIntosh Bridge, you’ll see Bales on the way. Once you’re over the bridge, head back southwest, and that’ll take you straight to Whinnyapolis, just south of where Cloudsdale used to be.” He draws the whole route out in the soil, making sure I watch.

“Damn…” I recoiled, “you’re… a really apt navigator.”

He shrugs, “When you wanna be anywhere but home, you learn the roads well.” Clearing his throat, he gently places a hoof on my shoulder, leaning forward. “Good luck, Yellowcake. I hope I’ll see you sometime soon.” Those words were honest. Rife with something other than hesitation to leave. Backing away, he turns his back to me. “See ya some other time, Sardine.”

Looking down at the medallion in my hoof, I took a deep breath. I’d be on my own for a little while. A day or two, til I made it to some sort of civilized town. I didn’t know anything about this place, and the longer I dawdled, the longer I’d be exposing myself to the dangers out here. I slipped the medallion into my Stable suit, glancing at the descending sun. I was burning precious sun-lit hours. I had to find somewhere to hunker down for the night.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I headed south, making as much headway as I could manage. Unfortunately, my less-than average leg length made that quite a rockhoofean task. However, I managed to find something. A monitor station at a railroad crossing. It was small. More or less just a concrete box with a door, window, and computer console. Bucking the door open, after three or four tries, I made my way in, sweaty and huffing. “Fuck’s sake…” I muttered, closing the door again, and locking it with a small metal rod on the ground within. The window was broken, replaced with old drapes, tattered cloth that hung down from rusted bolts. There was a chair, beat up, and aged beyond all belief. I pressed down on it, checking it. Then, almost as soon as I did, a spike shot up through the cushion of the chair. One that would’ve impaled me straight through the ass, and scrambled my intestines. My eyes nearly bulge out of my head, and I sigh. “Well, that answers that question.”

I tried to make myself comfortable on the floor, sweeping away some of the broken glass. Laying down, I pulled the gun from my waistband, keeping it as close as I could. Celestia forbid I get snuck up on again, maybe they’d think twice. Maybe. I didn’t know. I couldn’t know. But that was a problem for me later. Right now, I just wanted to sleep. I was exhausted. And tomorrow would be the same. I felt my face sour, my lower lip quivering. Crying until I pass out isn’t exactly a good first step into being a wasteland pony. Who cares? Maybe I’ll be dead before morning.

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[gravehags]

ain't it a gentle sound - the beatrice edit

Pairing: Dewdrop x f!OC

Rating: Explicit

18+ ONLY MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

Tags: ghouls being ghouls, ghouls being horny, finger fucking

Words: 2,201

Summary: Swiss warned Beatrice about the other ghouls. She wasn't prepared for an encounter like this.

a/n: TWO IN ONE NIGHT now i'm all worked up tho 😵‍💫

~~~

“Hey,” Swiss says quietly as he watches Beatrice hook the back of her bra. “I think I should give you a heads up about something.”

She leans over to shimmy her breasts into the cups and when she straightens her back to meet his gaze, he looks nervous.

“What?” she asks slowly, eyes narrowing. 

“Remember what I said about uh…marking you?”

Beatrice’s hand flies to her neck to rub against the various purple bites that decorate her throat. She had almost forgotten he had done that and she sighs when the realization hits her that she won’t be able to hide all of them with her habit. Ah well.

“They’ll fade soon, yeah?” Beatrice says, bending over to pick up her shirt off his bedroom floor. “But I like them, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

He flashes her that signature megawatt smile and preens a little before remembering what he was intending to tell her.

“I’m glad but er…just letting you know. When the other ghouls learn that we’ve…been together…they’re going to start approaching you.”

“For? I–oh. Oh.” Beatrice remembers what the other ghouls told her yesterday about how they’ve all been into her. “But now that I’m, y’know, not a virgin anymore won’t things change? Surely I’ll smell different. Whatever that means.”

“Yeah, you’ll smell different,” Swiss says, his voice going up a few octaves. “You’ll smell like ghoul.”

She finishes adjusting her shirt and puts her hands on her hips to look at him dead on.

“Swiss, what exactly are you trying to say here?”

He heaves a deep sigh and scratches the side of his head, tail flicking behind him anxiously.

“The thing about ghouls is we…we share everything.”

Oh.

“Everything,” Beatrice says flatly, to which he nods emphatically with a slightly sheepish smile. She must have quite the expression on her face as his grin rapidly fades and he approaches her, arms extended.

“Hey listen,” he says as he puts his hands on her shoulders, massaging gently, “If you’re not into it I get it. You can tell them to fuck off. I’ll tell them to fuck off.”

Beatrice’s eyes move from his chest up to his earnest gaze and the slightest hint of a grin curls her lips. Suddenly she’s filled with warmth at the thought of this frankly stunning group of ghouls and ghoulettes expressing interest in little old her. Swiss can practically see the string of filth going through her head as her eyes glaze over a little and he snickers.

“Check you out,” he says slyly, “I’ve made a little deviant out of you, huh? Get dicked down once and all of a sudden–”

Before he can finish the sentence, Beatrice shoves him away and rolls her eyes, but her cheeks flush because he’s right. And he knows it.

“Fuck off,” she snarls with no real malice behind it. “I was a virgin, not fucking ignorant. I know what gets me off.”

Swiss has his head thrown back, positively crowing and Beatrice makes a noise of disgust as she moves to the door.

“Hey!” he says, reaching out to grab her one more time and pull her in to kiss the top of her head. “Have fun.”

–

After she shuts Swiss’ door she makes her way down the long hallway and out of the den. Beatrice’s mind spins with the possibilities - what would the other ghouls say to her? How would they act? The thrill of anticipation has her practically bouncing on the way back to her quarters.

Little did she know she was setting herself up for disappointment.

A couple weeks pass and Beatrice hasn’t even seen a ghoul - none passed her in the halls, none visited her at her quarters, none sought her out in the dining hall - let alone been propositioned by one. She saw Swiss only in passing, his time consumed with practice and whatever ghoul duties entailed and she had duties of her own to complete. Frankly, she was starting to feel a bit put-out and began wondering if there was something wrong with her. Why else would all of them, who she had until recently called friends, avoid her so desperately? These are the thoughts that echo through her mind late one evening as she works library duty. The other siblings had left early after she told them she would finish shelving the remaining carts of books on her own. Tears begin to well in her eyes as she shoves a particularly large tome on binding magic into its place on the shelf. Annoyed, she brushes them away with the back of her hand and shakes her head to clear her thoughts. She’s about to pick up another book when a low voice calls out from the stacks across the aisle from her.

“Why the tears, sweetheart?”

Beatrice whirls around and sees a slight figure emerge from the darkness, eyes glowing. Her heart skips a beat when the ghoul steps into the dim light of the overhead lamp.

“Dew! Lilith’s tits where the fuck did you come from?”

“Hell,” he says simply as he saunters over to her with his hands in his pockets, tail swaying lazily behind him. Beatrice gives him a tired look and he grins, revealing sharp teeth.

“Been a while,” she begins rather coldly. “Funny how you all just disappeared and decided not to speak to me anymore.”

Dew frowns as he traces the gilded lettering of a book on the desk with a single claw.

“We were waiting.”

“For what?”

“For those fucking hickeys Swiss gave you to disappear. Fucking dramatic, I told you. Making sure all of us knew what he did with you.”

Beatrice’s irritation melts away and is replaced with something much warmer.

“So…what are you doing here?” she asks innocently, tapping her fingers against the desk.

“Called dibs on you didn’t I? I’m here to make good on that.”

She can feel the wetness between her thighs seep through her underwear and before she can utter another word, he’s on her. For someone so slim he’s alarmingly strong, pushing her back into the edge of the mahogany. His hand is threaded in her loose red hair, cradling the back of her scalp with his lips a breath away from hers.

“Do you want me?” he asks, all slyness and sharp teeth.

Beatrice nods, her head still in his strong grip as he leans in to tease his lips against hers. When she presses forward to meet them, he pulls back again with a little laugh.

“I want to hear you say it,” he purrs, claws scratching gently at her scalp. “Tell me.”

“I want you,” she says, the lowness of her voice startling her. “Here. Now.”

His smirk draws into a full sharp-toothed grin before he finally presses his lips to hers. His kiss is forceful, almost bruising as if he is trying to consume her. When Beatrice opens her mouth to his probing he groans and fists her hair, licking into her mouth as he pushes her further into the edge of the desk. She can feel his cock pressing into her belly as he takes and takes from her, tail wrapping around her to rub at the small of her back. She barely manages to pull away to breathe, causing him to growl. When she finally pulls back slightly despite his iron grip, she reaches up to touch his face. He’s taken aback by the tenderness of the gesture and nuzzles into her hand ever-so-slightly.

“Easy, Dew,” Beatrice breathes. “I’m not going anywhere.”

At this, he ducks his head into the crook of her neck to inhale deep.

“Fucking love your smell,” he groans, rutting slightly against her, “So sweet.”

“Even after Swiss–”

“Especially after that. Fuck I want you. I want to see the others with you,” he licks a stripe from her shoulder to her ear. “Want to watch you try to take Mountain’s cock. Aether’s too. Fuck you have no idea what the ghoulettes are gonna do to you, do you?”

She’s quickly soaking through her panties and she can feel her wetness sliding down the inside of her thigh under her skirt. When he takes her earlobe between his sharp teeth to nibble at it, her moan echoes through the stacks. The thought of all of them having her, maybe even several at a time, makes Beatrice arch her back and hook her leg around Dewdrop’s calf.

He chuckles softly right in her ear as his hands slide down her thighs to the hem of her skirt. 

“But for now, I wanna feel that sweet pussy clench around my fingers.”

She nods, in a daze as he puts his hands under her thighs and with his surprising strength, picks her up and places her on the desk. With some maneuvering from Beatrice he rucks her skirt up over her hips and trails his fingers along her clothed cunt.

“Fucking hell you’re sopping,” he breathes as she bites her lip and nods once more.

“All for you, Dew,” Beatrice moans as he pushes his thumb against the fabric to brush her clit.

“All for me,” he repeats, cocking his head. “Well if you insist.”

In an instant, he’s pushed the gusset of her panties to the side. When his bare, guitar-calloused fingers slowly swipe through her folds her head falls back. He repeats the action several times as Beatrice lifts her hips to make little circles, encouraging him. When his thumb finds her clit, she grips the edge of the desk with white knuckles. He takes his time spreading her wetness around the bud as she moans into the darkened room. 

“Fuck, Dew,” she whines. “Please.”

He knows exactly what she’s asking for as he slides his fingers lower and teases at her entrance.

“Gonna make you feel so good, babe,” he says hoarsely, clearly affected by her display. “Gonna make you scream.”

When he finally, slowly slips one finger inside of her, Beatrice’s eyes roll back in her head. He begins to fuck her at a steady pace, and her hips jerk to meet each thrust. 

“More,” Beatrice pants after several minutes and he laughs at her desperation but adds a second finger nonetheless. He’s pistoning his fingers in and out of her roughly but when he curls them just so–oh. She’s certain anyone passing the library at this time of night can hear her cries but she can’t bring herself to care. He’s watching her with gleaming eyes, tail shaking steadily back and forth.

“Take my fingers so good,” he breathes, “Think you could take one more?”

Beatrice almost falls backwards against the bookcase at the thought before whining an affirmative response. When he slips the third finger in and crooks it against that fucking spot she feels hysterical, cries bouncing off the walls of the cavernous room. She’s babbling desperate nonsense at him, urging him not to stop please don’t stop and he obliges, fingers pistoning in and out of her with unbelievable force.

“Gonna cum for me?” he asks, making her whimper.

“Yes, yes, yes, so good Dew, fuck I love your fingers,”

She’s almost there - so close, so close - and when the tightening in her spine slides into her core and makes her vision go blurry she does, as promised, scream.

He’s grinning wildly before he smashes his lips into hers as he continues to fuck her through her orgasm. Tongues tangling, Beatrice moans desperately into his mouth as she feels the spade of his tail rubbing circles into her lower back. He devours the sounds she makes hungrily, nose pressed firmly against her cheek. When she slowly begins to come down from her high he pulls away, panting.

“Beautiful,” he says, palm on the side of her face, thumb stroking her cheekbone. “Fuck you’re beautiful.”

When he finally slips his fingers out of her, Beatrice is filled with a sudden emptiness that leaves her wanting. The feeling is remedied as she watches him raise his fingers to his mouth and slide them in lewdly. His eyes slide shut and he moans low as he carefully sucks her juices from the digits. It’s hypnotic, watching him like this. When he opens his eyes again and removes his fingers from his lips she’s filled with a sudden deep swell of affection.

“Always knew those fingers were good for something other than guitar,” Beatrice says quietly with a small smirk which he echoes.

“Yeah? You think about my fingers a lot?”

She slides off the desk and attempts to stabilize herself. He’s got his hands on her hips steadying her and she feels that wonderful warm feeling again. It’s not until she moves in to hold him that she realizes he’s still hard.

“Do you…”

He waves her off and shakes his head.

“Another time. Wanted to make you feel good tonight. And to apologize for ghosting you the past couple weeks.”

Sweet. “Thanks, Dew. Hopefully I’ll see more of you around now, yeah?”

He nods with a sly grin, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“Oh you’ll be seeing us alright,” he says with a slight leer. “Just you wait.”

Don’t worry, Beatrice thinks. I’ll be counting down the days.

[thatmittengirl2009]

This blog has me in the first half a few weeks ago. Some things that were said matched other things I was told long ago. But then they just kinda became dumb and didn’t know how to read anons or what they were asking and would give random mean answers in return so they lost me. Then I saw they were talking to that Eva girl and crazy Angel chick and said no thanks so I blocked.

Between the concerning lack of reading/comprehension skills, using the R word religiously, and then being a hypocrite against everything they say themselves, this one sealed the deal for me:

One, they use AI for almost everything. That’s how chatGPT writes and Grok.

Second, so now you’re saying he called up management and said “please yes can I please have a wife?” And later “but not like that!!!” Because that’s how this comes across. They can’t even keep their own narrative or information correct or straight to save their life and when someone challenges it, they resort to name calling and bullying. Or all they do is repeat what the anon wrote as if they came up with the answer themselves. It’s called parroting in the communications world and it’s when someone doesn’t know the answer or doesn’t want to be caught so they mirror the person back hoping they won’t notice or that the person will be satisfied and go away. In certain cases it’s used to show understanding but more often it has a negative reception.

Also for the love of god, IP tracking cannot be done on tumblr!!! You cannot add it to the platform as tumblr disarmed that feature years ago for security purposes. Unless you work in government, it’s actually illegal to track someone’s IP address. And the only way civilians can do it now is by hiding the tracking in a link, and only when someone clicks on it, can it send results. ONLY WAY. And even then it’s only 60% correct. Everything is protected by federal law and can only be accessed via a court ordered subpoena. You cannot hide an IP tracker in asks. It’s impossible and one Google search will tell you this. So all these years of people saying they were getting IP - y’all look absolutely insane. Twitter was different because you could look up geotags if the account didn’t disable it but IP tracking is not available to ordinary citizens.

All sides are insane as shit. That girl in Lisbon is not sending your blog asks. She doesn’t care. She is doing whatever the hell camgirls do and living her best life. I don’t like her but she’s not wasting time online harassing your account. Go outside and touch grass.

Talk about main character syndrome and obsession. This is the same account I scolded like a year ago because she kept using NPD in her tags and talking about how they’re all horrible people and then said she was coming in her asks and harassing her. Like don’t use that tag? Plenty of people with actual NPD have communities on here where they’re trying to heal and learn and here you are clogging their tag saying they’re all psychos and need to jump off a cliff. Yeah you’re gonna trigger that disorder and get those kinds of asks from very real people who were offended and upset. Dumbass.

This is still the craziest and toxic fandom I have ever stepped into. Still. And I’ve been around so many of them. I don’t get it. I really don’t. How are women in other fandoms so mature and sane by comparison? And these women are older too and should know better. It’s like he attracted only the stunted women. I’ve never seen a celeb date someone, real or not, and see soooo many grown women have real life breakdowns over it and dig and investigate every detail. How many told me “they want him happy but he should stay single.” Like y’all hear yourselves?

Yes this PR should be studied for the communication classes but also? Can this fandom be studied for psychology? Cause this ain’t healthy or normal.

[ask-icancraft-it]

Love's Retribution: Chapter 3

((Chapter 3 of the Western AU is here! Tamora and Felix clear the air for the coming weeks they'll be spending together. Tagging friends for visibility @sgtcalhouns, @bashfulgnome, @sadboytristan))

Chapter Master List

—

It had been a few hours before Felix returned. Tamora could tell he’d been working away at something out there, but she didn’t know exactly what until he walked through the door with simple, wooden crutches. 

She was shocked, and couldn’t help her burst of amusement.

“What?” Felix asked, worried that something was wrong.

“You were angry with me, so you made me crutches?” Tamora grinned.

“I wasn’t angry with you,” the handyman blushed. 

“Sure. And that isn’t why you said we both needed a break?”

“Well…you were getting angry with me, I was just trying to be polite,” he joked with a bashful smile. He was glad that she appeared to be in a better mood. 

“About that…” Tamora sighed. “I figured since you’re graciously letting me layabout in your home, I should try not to drive you up the wall. I am sorry for calling you foolish and for snapping at your throat. I’m just…on edge.”

“It’s alright,” Felix seemed to appreciate those words.

“Also, it’s been eating at me. What did that doctor say when he saw me?”

“Pardon?”

“He said something in Italian. I know you understood.”

“Oh, that,” the handyman recalled, scratching his head. “Well…he said you were a rose with thorns.”

Tamora laughed again, which sparked a warm feeling in the handyman’s chest. She had such a wonderful, hearty laugh.

“I suppose that’s a fitting description,” she said.

 Smiling, Felix held the crutches out, inviting her to try them. 

“How do they feel?”

Tamora quickly adapted, rounding the kitchen table with ease. 

“They’re perfect,” she smiled. “Can we step outside?”

The handyman held the door open as she worked through the narrow frame. She didn’t realize how much she missed the sun until it was there, kissing her skin.

“There is someone who’s missed you,” Felix said before letting out a whistle. 

Moments later a pair of horses rounded to the front of the house. The first was a Golden Appaloosa, followed by Tamora’s black Dutch Warmblood. Both excitedly approached the handyman and he patted them both on the neck. 

The blonde got some acknowledgment from her horse before it turned back to Felix, attempting to lick his face. 

“Oh dear,” the man laughed, gently pushing the horse away. “Your rider is right there, say hello!”

“That is not my horse,” Tamora joked as the mare showered Felix with affection. 

“Well this is mostly cause I’ve been sweatin’,”’ he grinned. “It took her a bit to warm up to me, but she’s been nothin’ but sweet since.”

“I’m just amazed she let you get close enough to get to me in the first place.”

“It took a couple of apples and a bit of determination.” 

 The handyman watched as Tamora sat in the rocking chair beside the door; it was quite the contrast, from the first time he saw her to now. The sunshine practically made her glow as it bounced off her long, braided locks, and her face had always been too shaded to see the light freckles that dotted her cheeks and nose.

“Felix.”

“Hm?” he was startled out of his thoughts. Goodness, that was the first time she’d called him by name. 

“I said you have a beautiful horse,” Tamora repeated. “But I guess you couldn’t hear with mine chewing on your ear.”

“Oh! Thank you…You are—you have a beautiful horse too,” he stammered, finally getting the mare to stop nuzzling him so aggressively. “Would you like to pet him?”

The blonde nodded, and Felix whistled again, guiding the stallion further when it walked forward. Bowing its head, the horse allowed Tamora to stroke its snout. 

“Appaloosas were my favorite when I was a little girl,” she said. “I feel like I’m living my childhood dream right now.”

“Really?” Felix beamed before receiving a light nip on his shoulder. Turning around, he looked to the mare at his back. 

“Excuse me,” he said to the Warmblood playfully, making Tamora smile.

“If it is the salt like you say, you might need to wash off,” she suggested. 

“I just might…Will you be alright if I head to the creek for a few?”

“I’ll survive.” 

Felix grabbed a few items from the house before he left towards the woods, the black mare closely following him until the tree line.  

“My horse has gone crazy,” the blonde chuckled, giving the gold stallion another pat. She was even more amused when the man returned, the mare trotting along his trail back to the house.

“Well, I’m not sure that did anything, but it felt nice,” Felix smiled, his short, brown hair still soaked. He lifted a bucket he’d filled with the spring water. “I brought you some, in case you wanted to wash. I can heat it for you.”

“Cold is just fine.”

Using the basin inside, Tamora used a rag to wipe down her body before letting out her hair and dipping it in what was left. Trying not to overuse her injured arm, she rinsed her hair and toweled off. And using her new crutches, she roamed to the dresser Felix said she could take her pick from. 

“Alright,” she called out once she was buttoned up.

The handyman stepped into the house moments later, pausing when he saw her by the fireplace. The shirt she’d put on was a saffron-yellow which harmonized with her platinum locks. 

“That color suits you,” he complimented.

“Thank you…I see you like a lot of blue,” Tamora noted that his fresh top was just a few shades lighter than the previous one. 

“I do,” he chuckled, doing a double take when the blonde cursed under her breath. “What’s the matter?”

“My shoulder, I can’t—” Tamora fiddled a bit more with her hair before giving up. She’d done too much with her arm, and it simply wouldn’t cooperate. “I can’t braid my hair.”

“Oh,” Felix said simply. “I know how if you’d like me to.”

She seemed hesitant but softly nodded, and the handyman set to the task. 

“How did you learn to braid?” the blonde asked.

“A friend of mine has a little girl. She’s got thick, raven hair,” he smiled as he worked. “Yours is quite a bit longer than hers though…���

She felt the handyman pause, a finger smoothing over a pink scar on her neck. 

“That’s old,” Tamora explained, not wanting him to worry. “I’m sure you’ve seen plenty more like that elsewhere. Just another occupational hazard.”

“The…Cyrus Gang?”

The blonde nodded slowly. 

“They made me a monster. So a monster’s what they’ll get.”

“I don’t think you’re a monster.” 

“You don’t know me.”

“I’d like to,” the handyman said, fastening the end of her new braid. 

Tamroa let out a puff of amusement. She had to hand it to him; that was pretty slick.

“No, you don’t,” she waved him off.

“But I do!” he insisted, sitting in the chair beside hers. “Like when you told me Appaloosas were your favorite as a girl. Things like that.”

“Small talk?” And here she thought he was getting bold. Maybe he was, in his way.

“Why not? We’ve got three to four weeks and I’m chatty,” Felix grinned. “Indulge me.”

Tamora couldn’t help the reserved smile that crossed her lips. 

“Alright. What would you like to know?”

Leaning forward, Felix lightly pinched the fabric of her shirt. 

“Is this your favorite color?

[ellekhao]

Well hello! Saw ur post about the thing with the gfs and i kinda hate that i'm invested but i am. I'm usually in that part of the fandom that doesn't know a lot and i don't go in those "circles" (i actually have no friends in the fandom lol). I've heard some rumors since 2023 but it was always very surface level, never any evidence, never any names, any pictures. So seeing the actual "proof" recently took me a bit off guard. i'm actually a bit shook that first is still with the same girl to this day cuz it seems like most of the ppl who "knew" thought they had broken up already. Ppl seem to think neo and mint have broken up too but i don't think there's any solid evidence of that, is there?

Anyways, idk, as someone who's inevitably very realistic about stuff i knew it was to be expected that they would date ppl like anyone else who is young and attractive would. Gonna focus more on first cuz i'm more invested in him. Knowing what i know now i feel a bit discouraged when it comes to enjoying the ship and the fanservice, as to me it feels like all the big words first has been saying to khaotung for the last few months don't sound genuine to me --as in, those words are actually meant for someone else. Not that i actually believed he and kt were ever more than friends (although once in a while i might've questioned it), but... it would be better not to say it? idk. Fanservice can be really treacherous in cases like this. And when i know those words are NOT genuine, i can't enjoy anything. Bc, as i said, i can't really separate it like that. Personally i would rather if he would just stop saying things that sound too ambiguous and baity, but i know he's doing his job trying to sell the ship (and maybe even shut those gf rumors up, a theory of mine ok!) and a lot of fans do take his words as gospel anyways so maybe i'm just not supposed to be the target (at least not anymore). I'm kinda sad bc of that actually, i would love to stay delulu!

Hi anon! First of all, thank you for your message. I want to start by saying your feelings are 100% valid and you’re not alone. It’s completely okay to feel affected by fandom stuff especially when you feel like you've invested time and emotion into it. Fandoms are meant to be fun but that doesn’t mean they’re immune to disappointment especially when real-life elements are mixed into the fantasy you know.

Honestly I think a lot of people relate to what you’re saying more than they let on. I believe Tumblr is one of the few spaces where it's still “okay” to talk about these kind of things openly without being immediately teared apart. Twitter is... a different thing. I don’t support tagging the actors or “exposing” them, like exposing them for what exactly? Having a private life? Dating like normal people? That doesn’t sit right with me. But on the other end it’s also frustrating when the fandom acts like even acknowledging the possibility of something different is “hate.” It’s not. The last few weeks, and honestly, months have been exhausting for anyone who’s been paying attention. I’ve followed them since the Only Friends era, and I’ve seen some rumors here and there before but isn’t that like in every fandom? What’s different about FirstKhao is that their bond always felt very real. They’ve been friends long before being a CP and they never leaned into fanservice the way most others pairs do. They’re also both introverted, private, and the fandom always had this shared belief that they both have some kind of a queer vibe, whatever that means to each person. I’ve seen the thing about the supposed trip to Korea or Japan that included Neo, Mint, First, Khao, and the girls. Some of those pics are still on IG, others apparently were deleted. I don't know what makes people think they are still together or not together though? And I haven't seen anything official about Neo and Mint being broken up. I don’t know if all of that is “proof,” exactly. I’ve also seen the other things on twitter, the pictures, the theories, but I still think what counts as proof is subjective. Although it can definitely cause a shift in the way people are looking at things, and I understand that it shook you. Here’s where I stand: I don’t think it’s inherently wrong to want to know or try to piece things together. People spend years in these fandoms. They buy merch, attend events, follow every update and form emotional connections with their idols. Of course it matters to them. And the fact that these pictures are on public accounts does make a difference to me, if the accounts were private or clearly meant to be kept lowkey, it’d be another story. But crossing the line is harassing them, tagging them in invasive posts, or making hateful comments. I saw someone tag First under the girls tiktok post, and I still don’t know what they expected to achieve with that. That kind of behavior isn’t okay. As for the rumors, I’m a pretty logical person too, and I don’t believe in too many coincidences. But even now, I can’t say it’s 100% confirmed or fully proven. These rumors always exist in every fandom. What’s different now is how far and wide it spread. About the CP dynamic: I’m not from an asian country or too familiar with the culture either, but I’ve been in enough fandoms to have a picture of how the industry works. I don’t think any of them, especially CPs in the BL industry could go public with a relationship without consequences for their careers. Neo’s situation is a bit different since he was never part of a fixed pair. But with First and Khao, being a CP is part of the brand. And part of that is selling a fantasy of some kind of love or bond, which a lot of fans really do buy into. Sometimes want to buy into. And I don’t blame them at all.

A few weeks ago, the fandom was arguing about literally everything? Then one event happens and now suddenly half of Twitter is now convinced First and Khao have been secretly dating each other for years and were about to go public in that event. This is how fandoms work: people interpret things in wildly different ways, often based on their own hopes or fears or insecurities.

I want to say this directly to you: your emotions are valid. If it’s harder for you to enjoy the ship or the fanservice now, that’s okay. You’re not being petty you’re just being honest with yourself. You said it perfectly, fanservice can be treacherous. For some people it’s fun, for others it starts to feel tiring or fake once certain things come to light. And when it feels fake to you, it’s hard to look past that. I really get it. I also agree, there’s been a shift lately. First seems to be doing more fanservice since the THK era, while Khao seems to have pulled back a bit. During Only Friends, it felt more balanced to me. And while part of it might be strategy or management, part of it may just be who they are and where they’re at in life, and that's okay.

My suggestion is don’t feel bad if you need some space. Or if you want to focus on other things for now. Try rewatching your favorite scenes, focus on their friendship, look up their older interviews, those are really fun! Their bond, whatever shape it takes, still seems very real to me. And if you ever want to talk, my dms are open. Tumblr can actually be a really welcoming place, especially compared to Twitter, and I think you’d find supportive people here.

And I also want to say, you're not "not the target." You’re part of the fandom too. Even if you feel discouraged right now there’s still a place for you here, whether you're staying in delulu mode or stepping back for now.

Whatever you choose, I hope you find a way to enjoy things again that feels good for you. 💌

[doodlebug-aboo]

Get to know your mutuals! 🥰

tagged by @impracticalantlers 🫶

i don’t do a lot of these because i tend to forget about them if i don’t have time to do them right when i first see them, but this one resurfaced again while scrolling so i thought why not 🫡 this got LONG tho so i’m just putting all of it under a read more lmao

favorite color: i’m pretty shit at picking singular favorites so i can offer you a few options. i love a good mustard yellow, a good pumpkin orange, or a good emerald green. (or most other dark greens, they’re all gorgeous. i just look best in emerald so i’m slightly more biased towards that one) however i will say there are no colors that i truly dislike!! huge fan of colors in general over here tbh. happy pride.

currently reading: eeeeeehhhhhhh i should be reading more. i have such a long list of books to read and so many books in my bookshelf that i havent even read, and most of those aren’t even on the list!!!! it’s bad, y’all. i’m sure the last book i had open however would have been my copy of Howl’s Moving Castle that i was reading for like the fourth or fifth time?? so obligatory shout out to my favorite book of all time (remember how i just said how bad i am at favorites? that’s how much i love this book) other than that: the next book i plan to read (and hopefully soon at that) is the colorado kid by stephen king, because the show i just finished watching was based on that book and i feel the need to compare the differences now that i’ve finished the show.

last song: any number of songs from epic: the musical. i have been listening to that musical nonstop for at least a week now? maybe longer?? idk it has me in a chokehold right now. my sister hasn’t listened to it and has the songs stuck in her head just from how often i’ve been singing them/talking about them. but also i do believe the first time i saw the tag for this technically the very last song i had listened to was broadway here i come from the television series smash as sung by jeremy jordan.

most recent film: listen i. simply do not watch movies. not with any sort of frequency or regularity that i could even begin to try and accurately remember the last one i watched. i am sorry. to make up for it i will instead substitute a topic not already listed in this tag game: most recent game. for that, i would say that i’ve been playing almost exclusively dragon age games for over a year now, and that also i play a lot of different games at the same time. i don’t always stick to one, i’ll hop around. so at the moment i’m almost done with my first run of veilguard, while also playing origins for the third time, i finally completed inquisition right before starting veilguard, and i’ve already also started another inquisition run. (i’ve only played 2 like one and half times. i intend to play it again soon tho because i miss kirkwall). on top of that i’ve also been playing stardew valley again, as well as i picked up night in the woods again. been a while for that one and i don’t fully remember everything but i’m using it as inspiration for a kids on bikes one shot i’m working on. (and of course deltarune is deltasoon, so i’ll be hopefully able to play that soon as well)

most recent series: haven! a syfy show from 2010-2015 that, as mentioned previously, was based on the colorado kid by stephen king! i really quite liked the show, i thought the premise was interesting and i loved all the characters and that’s enough for me! sure the effects look a little funny sometimes but that only ever adds to something’s charm for me personally. sometimes it’s good that media shows its age, it shows the progress we’ve made. this goes for visuals as well as general content within btw. anyways. watch haven. scream with me about audrey/duke/nathan. you know you want to.

sweet/salty/savory/sour: hard for me to choose between sweet and salty. i’m a big fan of mixing the two in fact, and if that’s an option then know that that is in fact my preferred answer. for the sake of choosing one however probably salty? a good crunchy, salty snack is all i need sometimes.

currently working on: oh, just a mountain of drawing wips in so many different stages of completedness. here’s a non-exhaustive list if any mutuals want to (lovingly) pressure me into completing any of them

-drawtectives midnight alley fanart piece

-klavier’s tattoos

-fhsy kristen fanart that i’ve been trying to finish for over a year (may or may not have a little smth to do with a unicorn iykyk)

-abernant sisters “will you be my big sister” comic redraw (of youve seen the original, you get it)

-klapollo howl’s moving castle au joke piece (single scene from the book as a two-panel comic)

-every dragon age companion from every game. (this one is hardly more than an idea currently. i’ve only barely started just figuring out drawing them in my style. it will take a lot of time.)

-ace attorney fantasy au (this one is purely idea right now i don’t even have sketches started but trust me when i say i have IDEAS for a whole WORLD with these guys) (this could potentially go from drawing idea to writing idea bc i do have a full story thought out but i feel less confident in my abilities to write the full story than i do in my abilities to draw them all in fantasy designs and then talk about the story behind them)

whew! this got away from me but with the amount i love to ramble on and on in my posts or my tags, this is what we signed up for. i never know who to tag for these things and i’m always worried i’ll bother my mutuals with them (despite never once myself feeling bothered by them, so why do i think others would be???? couldn’t tell you) but you know. so i’ll just be tagging a few but anyone else feel free and anyone i tag do not feel obligated. there. bases covered.

@fastidious-and-a-mess @dani-the-toad @patrocool @rainbow-nerdss @chandclicrsandcaviar

and if i tagged you and you read this far: i’m sorry that you read through all of that. if i tagged you and you didn’t get this far: i’m apologizing to you, too, but you’ll never see it :(

[lovesosweeet]

better left unsaid // cth

chapter twenty

in which orion has leukemia, and calum doesn’t know.

calum hood x fem!oc

read other chapters

june 7, 2016 london, england orion

Somehow, my roommates chose not to join me in London to see 5SOS again. We’d had so much fun at the Madrid show, but after Calum extended the invite to visit the band again, they all declined the offer. I didn’t like the thought of not seeing Cal at least once or twice more, so I booked my flight as soon as I could, choosing the cheapest option possible. It meant spending the night on the floor at the airport so I could catch the earliest flight today and still take the metro before it shut down at 2, but that also meant I landed pretty early on in the day.

Calum and I will have the whole day together. Well, the whole day aside from their soundcheck and other band obligations. I’ll be here with them tomorrow, too, but Calum said they’d have press for most of the day, so I’ll get to explore alone, and then after tomorrow’s show I’m tagging along to Brighton before flying back to Spain.

He’d offered to send a car to pick me up at the airport, but I declined. He tried to fight back and insist, but I felt like it was incredibly unnecessary. I can handle myself. So, once I made my way through customs, I followed the signs to the underground station and hopped on the next train that goes toward the direction of the hotel Calum said they’re staying at.

While I ride the tube, I text him.

To: calum 5sos

hi! on my way to you now. probably like 20 min!

I told him that I would be here early, so I’m hoping he’s awake.

The train is packed with commuters, so I feel extra cautious of being pickpocketed. My valuables are in my crossbody that I have in front of me, but my backpack is stuffed with clothes and makeup. I grip my phone as tightly as I can.

Calum texts me back quickly.

From: calum 5sos

hi pretty! I’m ready to go whenever you get here. can’t wait to see ya!

Suddenly I feel nervous to see him. I did my makeup on the plane and used a ton of overpriced dry shampoo I’d bought at the airport, but now I’m wondering if I look pretty enough to be hanging out with an internationally famous musician.

It’s also funny because it’s only been a few days since I last saw him, and yet, here I am, excited to see him. I’m borderline missing him, which feels wild considering I’ve only known him for about a week. I do my best to push away those kinds of feelings — this is just fun. We’re just having fun together. I’ll probably see him this trip, maybe try to see him one other time, and that’ll probably be it. I’m sure he’s got other girls who’d like to see him, and they’re only in Europe for a month and a half or so.

The rest of the ride to my final station seems to creep by slowly, my nerves just building while I stand awkwardly on the train, clutching my phone and the metal pole that’s keeping me steady.

When we get to the station, I quickly exit the train with an onslaught of other passengers. Most of them are dressed in business clothes, on their way to work. I’m wearing jean shorts and a cropped t-shirt with a linen button down on top, making me feel like I stand out. I’m casual, and I feel quite American in my outfit. My San Diego Padres baseball hat really adds to my American-ness, and I suddenly feel like I should’ve possibly rethought my outfit choice.

My hands are sweaty as I ride the escalator up to the exit. I route my way to Calum’s hotel, trying to at least know which direction to start walking in when I get to the street. Those efforts prove to be unnecessary because when I get to the street, I see Calum waiting for me.

He’s wearing his standard black pants and a pair of black Vans with a black and white striped t-shirt. He’s somewhat disguised with a pair of Raybans covering his eyes, but his height makes the grinning boy stick out to me as soon as I step off the escalator. He raises his hand in a wave when he sees me, instantly starting to walk towards me.

“Orion!” He calls out. As soon as he’s a few steps from me, Calum opens his arms wide so he can wrap me into a tight hug.

I’m somewhat stunned, truthfully, but try to hide it. I hug him back instantly, feeling safer in his grasp. He doesn’t hold onto me for too long, but I’m not sure if it’s because I step back after a few seconds in his arms or if he lets me go.

“No security?” I ask when there’s a foot or so of space between us. I look around, trying to see if there’s a guard hiding a few people away or something, but still don’t see anyone.

Calum shakes his head and smiles. “Nah, convinced Matt to let us free roam today. A trial run.”

I nod. “Got it, I’m on my best behavior.”

He laughs, throwing an arm over my shoulders. “Let’s go drop off your bag at the hotel, and we can get breakfast?” He asks as if it’s a question, even though it’s technically a sentence. “If you’re hungry, I mean.”

“I’m hungry,” I tell him. I feel his shoulders relax. “And I love breakfast.”

“I know you do,” Calum says.

He knows I love breakfast? Had I told him that? Maybe when I was drunk I mentioned it. I do tend to rant about things when I’m drunk.

“Sorry, didn’t mean that to sound creepy,” he then blurts. “I looked at like… your entire Instagram account like a creep, so maybe it should’ve sounded creepy. Sorry, now I’m showing you all my cards, I just—”

I cut him off with laughter. I’m flattered that he had scrolled through my feed. I was shocked to get the follow request, but I accepted it, assuming he’d just follow me and not ever interact with me. I figured it was a nicety. He probably follows every girl he hooks up with as some weird way to document them.

“It’s fine, I looked through yours too.” I did. I saw mostly what I expected. A bunch of stage photos, pictures with his bandmates, a few pictures with his family mixed in. I felt like I got a glimspe into who he is, beyond what I’d learnt during our day and a half together in Madrid.

“I’m flattered,” he says, chuckling.

“I mean it’s not every day I meet someone who knows Harry Styles,” I tell him. “Naturally I needed to see how close of friends you guys are.”

Calum scoffs. He turns me suddenly, onto a new street. I don’t question it and just try to keep up with his long legged pace. “I thought you weren’t a 1D fan?”

I laugh, but it comes out more as a giggle, which for some reason feels embarrassing. “I’m not, but you can’t deny that the man is dreamy.”

Calum laughs, but I’m not sure if it’s at my comment or at my awkward giggle. “I get it, you’re just pretending to like me so you can meet him.”

I’m so wrapped up in my conversation with Calum that I don’t even realize that we’re walking into an alley behind a hotel now. The only reason I realize it is because I can hear the echoes of a crowd from the other side of the building, chanting “5SOS” — it’s 7 in the morning, which is far too early for that in my opinion.

The security guard, Gus is his name, is the same one who had been in Madrid. He smiles when he sees me, or maybe when he sees Calum, or maybe it’s the combination of us. Either way, he waves his hand hello.

“Hi, Gus!” I call, offering him a smile.

“Good morning, Orion.” He remembers my name?

I look at Calum with a surprised look and find him already smiling at me. God, I like him. I smile back and mumble a quiet thank you when he opens the door to the hotel for me. We walk to the service elevator, Cal leading the way, and he presses the button for the seventh floor.

“For the record, I don’t need to meet Harry Styles. I’ve already met the coolest bassist that’s come out of Australia this decade.”

Calum rolls his eyes, feigning annoyance. “Just this decade?”

I throw my head back with a laugh. “I don’t know enough about bassists, and especially not Australian ones, so I didn’t want to oversell you.”

His annoyance evaporates and then he’s giggling with me. The doors open to the floor, Cal holding his arm out so they don’t close on me, and then he grabs onto my hand to pull me to his room. Once the door is unlocked, he opens it for me and lets me walk in ahead of him.

“I’m probably the coolest bassist to come out of Aus in the past century,” he announces, flicking the lights on. “And the hottest.”

I purse my lips. I’d agree, but I can’t inflate his ego. He’s already here, claiming to be the hottest and coolest bassist of the century. “You can keep telling yourself that, bud.” I’m also trying to avoid appearing completely smitten with him, even though I am.

He laughs again. “See, I like how you knock me down.”

I drop my backpack onto the armchair in the corner of the room, next to his open suitcase, messily piled with clothes and a few packs of cigarettes and then I hold my hand out to him. “I’ll pull you back up, too.”

“My dream girl.”

I do my best to ignore the sudden flutter in my chest, settling on smiling cheesily at him.

It’s just a fling, I tell myself. I need to keep my expectations low.

“You said there’d be breakfast?” I ask.

Calum’s expression turns unreadable, but his eyes are still kind and sparkling, so I don’t worry about it. “With me, there will always be breakfast.”

My dream boy, I think.

–

After a few hours of roaming London with Calum, I’ve fallen in love with the city. Despite it being a massive city, something about it all feels quaint… in a dirty, gloomy, stinky kind of way. My only request is that we go on the Eye, which he manages to get us on for free by taking a selfie with the girl at the ticket counter.

He and I also take a selfie with the view at the top. It’s our first picture together, and it might end up being the only photo of us together. I decide it’s a sweet memento to hold onto of this brief study abroad adventure. I haven’t told my moms yet that I’ve decided to take a weekend trip to London to visit a boy, but maybe someday I’ll show them this photo and they can understand why I made the choice to get on a plane to see his show.

We’re making our way to the venue now, the O2. He’s trying to be chill about it, but I can tell Calum is both stoked and incredibly nervous. I think it’s their first time headlining, but I’m not completely sure, and Cal seems too out of it to answer if I did ask. We’re on a train — I have no idea how he managed to convince Matt that he can take a train to the venue without a security guard, but again, not going to ask. He’s drumming his hands on his thighs in a pattern nervously, looking straight ahead of him at the blurry view outside the window.

I grab his left hand in both of mine, steadying it. He stops his tapping and whispers a quiet ‘sorry’ to me. In response, I just squeeze his hand tightly.

When I look away from his face, I face forward at the blurry view too. The train stops at a station, and I look down at the people sitting in front of me, which I quickly regret. A girl is sitting directly across from us wearing a 5 Seconds of Summer t-shirt and wide, shocked eyes while she stares at us.

My eyes mirror hers then, wide and nervous. I let go of Calum’s hand quickly and stand up, moving to his other side and holding onto a metal pole instead of holding his hand. Calum looks startled when he stares up at me.

“Are you okay?” He asks, his forehead wrinkling with concern.

I nod, clearing my throat. “Yeah, yeah, fine. Just…” I sigh, trailing off. “There’s a fan, across from you,” I whisper to him as quietly as I can. I feel incredibly self-conscious now, and I don’t want Calum to be so clearly seen with me. I know he’s said — a few times now — that he doesn’t mind being seen with me, but I don’t know how true that can really be. Female fan bases are incredibly powerful and a wonderful thing, but they’re not exactly known for being welcoming or kind to the women seen with their favorite men.

His eyes flit to behind me, up to me, and back behind me. He looks back up at me again. “Just a sec.”

Calum then stands up, walking the handful of steps over to the fan. I don’t watch, but I’m sure she’s peeing her pants. “Hi, I’m Calum,” I hear him say.

I think he sits down next to her, but I’m too scared to look.

“I know,” she squeaks out.

“Do you want to take a picture?”

“If you don’t mind, I don’t want to bother you.”

“Nah, of course you’re not bothering me,” he says in his normal kind voice. “Here, want me to take it?”

They’re quiet for a moment, taking their pictures, I’m guessing.

The intercom then announces that we’ve gotten to our destination. I turn around then, both Calum and his fan standing up as well. Calum grins at me and holds out his hand for me to take. Instead of taking it, I clasp mine together and just start walking off the train. I just try to avoid the gaze of the fan and walk quickly, following the signs for the exit.

When I make it to the street, I turn around, finding Calum struggling to catch up to me. He looks confused.

“What was that?” He asks. He’s laughing slightly, but his eyebrow is still quirked.

“Sorry, I just…” I don’t know how to finish my sentence. I feel my forehead wrinkle with anxiety. I don’t know how to explain it to him.

His eyes soften and his expression returns to a slightly more neutral one. I think he’s willing to drop it, so I take my chance and run with it.

“Which way are we going? I don’t want you to be late.”

Calum nods, pulling his phone out to check the directions. “This way,” he says, and we start walking.

As we walk, I look around at the crowd around us. There is a sea of people wearing flannels, black clothes, and 5 Seconds of Summer merch. They all seem too busy with whatever they’re doing, and I don’t see any eyes on Calum, so I take advantage of our chance to camouflage him. I take my hat off and stop, stand in front of him, and put my hat on his head. I grab his sunglasses from where he has them hanging on his shirt and hold them in front of his face.

He chuckles, putting on the glasses.

“No one will ever know it’s you. You’re unrecognizable.”

“Am I allowed to hold your hand in incognito mode?”

I’ve let him hold my hand all day, and he’s kissed me in public, so I don’t know that I should really be so weird about it now. It’s just the eyes boring into me at such a close proximity. I feel watched and judged, and I haven’t even done anything wrong.

“Maybe another time,” I say quietly. I feel guilty. I want him to hold my hand, but I don’t want an army of haters to follow me around for holding a guy’s hand for a few minutes.

We walk in silence, and I’m acutely aware to the presence of Calum’s hand on the small of my back while he guides me to the unmarked side of the building where I assume Matt said to meet him. We pass a handful of security guards, which Calum takes off his sunglasses for so they can see his face. They all just nod as we walk by.

As soon as we’re out of the view of the crowds of fans, I grab Calum’s hand again.

“It just feels very… smothering,” I say while we walk. “To have all of those eyes on me for just existing in your presence.”

“I’m sorry,” Calum says. “You don’t have to do anything you want to do, and that applies to far more than just holding hands.”

I squeeze his hand gently. “I know. I just don’t want you to get any negative backlash for holding some random girl’s hand.”

Calum squeezes my hand back. “I think I can handle it.” He gives me a jokingly cocky smile.

We walk into the back door of the arena, which, as we walked around it, is absolutely massive. So many people will be here tonight, and I get to be backstage? It’s somewhat unbelievable.

As soon as we’re inside, I can hear the hoots and hollers of the rest of Calum’s band. I got to meet them for a bit back in Madrid. They’re all very nice, but very loud and rowdy. Which, to be fair, makes sense considering they’re all roughly 20 years old and famous and somewhat rich. They can kind of do whatever they want.

“Has anyone seen Calum?” I hear one of them ask from some distance away. I don’t know their voices well enough to know which one it was and I don’t know exactly where they are. I’m just following Calum’s lead.

“He’s with that girl, Orion, today, remember?” Another one says.

“Oh! Right,” the first one replies. “She’s—“

They stop talking as Calum and I enter the room, and I am glad I don’t get to know how that sentence is going to end. I don’t think I want to know.

“Orion!” The blonde one, Luke, calls out when he sees us. “You made it!”

I smile at him and he’s running over to me, wrapping me into a tight hug. “Hi, nice to see you again.” I’m still tethered to Calum with my hand in his. I’d let his hand go but he’s got a tight grip on mine.

“Pssh, no need to sound so formal,” Luke says, letting me go.

“It is nice to see you again!” I argue.

Michael and Ashton also come over to give me hugs.

“Did you guys have fun today? Cal told us all about his plans,” Ashton says, looking back and forth between Calum and me.

I nod, smiling up at Cal. “Yeah, it was great.”

“It’s a miracle you guys are back on time. Calum is known for getting lost,” Michael tells me and laughs while Calum turns slightly pink.

Luke throws an arm around Calum’s neck, yanking him towards him. “Y’know how people have ‘Find My iPhone’? We need ‘Find My Calum.’”

“Well, if he’s with me I promise to get him where he needs to be on time.”

“I knew I liked you,” Matt dryly says from across the room. It’s probably the nicest thing the man has ever said because all of the guys look awestruck from the comment.

“C’mon, let’s sit down. We’ve got some time before soundcheck.” Calum pulls me toward the black sectional in the corner of the room. He flops onto it, kicking his feet up on the coffee table littered with empty beer bottles, Red Bull cans, solo cups, and a half empty bottle of vodka.

I don’t flop onto the couch, but I do sit next to him, letting him wrap an arm around me so I’m pressed into his side. It’s nice to be this close to him.

“Do you guys want a drink? We’ve got beer here but there’s other stuff they can grab for us if you want it.” Ashton calls out to us while bending over a cooler.

“I’ll do a beer!” I yell over to him and he nods, reaching into the cooler.

“Same, thanks, Ash!”

Luke jumps over the back of the couch to join us, but he’s so lanky that he ends up knocking over some of the bottles and cups on the table with the flailing of his limbs flying through the area. What looks like mystery liquid pools on the floor, some combination of beer, vodka, Red Bull, and some mysterious blue liquid.

“Seriously, Luke?!” Ashton yells. He’s laughing, holding three bottles of Stella Artois in his hands. He gives two to Calum, who hands one to me.

“This is what happens when you let me take four shots of vodka and shotgun a Red Bull at 2 in the afternoon!”

Jesus, I think. I know they’re used to partying and Luke isn’t exactly a small person, but still. Luke is off the couch again, walking around the room. He returns with a large handful of paper towels to clean up his mess. While Luke mops up the traces of beer and Red Bull from the table and the floor, Michael and Ashton join us on the couch, still snickering about Luke’s clumsiness.

I set my beer on the table and decide to help prevent anything else of the sort from happening again, so I start stacking up the solo cups and grab as many cans and bottles as I can hold. I meet Luke at the trash can to drop them in after his soaked paper towels, and he gives me a puzzled look.

“What are you doing?” Luke asks with a chuckle.

“I just thought it would prevent future spills,” I defend myself, going back to the couch to collect the rest, but Calum followed my lead and grabbed what was left.

“It wasn’t your mess to clean, but thank you,” Luke says and he gives me a bright, genuine smile.

When we sit back on the couch, Luke manages to put his feet up on the coffee table without spilling things, and we can all relax for a minute. Calum’s arm is back around me, and I take a few sips from my beer. All of the boys, aside from Cal, are tapping around on their phones. I try to decide if I want to talk to them or just whisper to Calum, which sounds kind of awkward, so I clear my throat.

“What did you guys do today?” I ask.

They all look up at their phones and at each other, surprise written on their faces.

“Not much, really,” Ash says, shrugging. “Got lunch at a place near where we used to live, reliving the glory days.”

“You guys used to live here?” They’re from Australia and they’ve toured a lot in the last few years. When did they live in London? Calum hadn’t mentioned it at all.

“Yeah, not for too long. Before the One Direction era.” Ashton smiles, amused by my surprised expression.

They had to have been babies then but still moved all the way to London for their careers. I can’t imagine my family being OK with shipping me across the world at that age, but I guess it must just be a testament to just how special and talented the four of them are. They were born for this life. Their parents must have known it.

“Anywhere else you’ve lived besides Australia, London, and LA?” I ask. I direct the question at Calum, even though he’s not the one saying anything.

“Cal almost moved to Brazil,” Ashton answers, making Calum shoot him a glare.

I raise my eyebrows. “Brazil?”

Calum flushes pink and avoids my gaze. “Yeah, but it didn’t happen.”

“Well, we moved to London because he didn’t move to Brazil, basically,” Ashton clarifies.

“What the hell was in Brazil?” I ask through slight laughter.

“Football,” Calum replies, the moniker supposedly enough information to explain the whole thing.

“Man, you really don’t know anything about us, do you?” Michael asks. He looks incredibly amused and he’s giggling after his question.

“Oi, Mike, be nice,” Ashton scolds while whacking Michael’s head softly.

“Soccer was in Brazil?” I ask Calum, trying to understand the bigger picture.

“Yeah, I went for some training,” he says. “Was supposed to go back, but decided I’d rather be in a band with these losers instead of playing footy.”

I look around the room at the rest of them, trying to see if any of them care to clarify. He was going to move to Brazil for soccer… like, to play professionally? I go to ask another question, but then a loud group of people walk in, demanding all of our attention.

They all look vaguely familiar, probably because I’ve seen pictures of at least a few of them on Calum’s Instagram. Cal’s bandmates all stand up and greet the crowd, embracing them, making a lot of noise, but Calum stays seated right next to me.

“Do you need to go say hi to them?” I ask. When I look at him, I find he’s staring at me.

“No, I was with most of them last night,” he shrugs.

I nod, glancing quickly back over at the people. The other three boys are totally swallowed by the mass of their friends. I look back to Cal and he’s inched his face closer to mine.

“I was supposed to go pro,” he says quietly. “With soccer, I mean. My parents were pissed when I told them I wanted to do this instead.”

“I’m sure they’re happy with the decision now.”

He grins, leaning a few inches forward so he can kiss me. It’s swift and short, but it’s still as sweet as can be. “Are you always like this?”

I furrow my brow. “Like what?”

“Always making the person you’re talking to feel like the most important person in the room.”

Then it’s my turn to blush. My cheeks get hot and I look away from Calum nervously. I try to always include people and ask questions, but I know sometimes it doesn’t come off well and it seems like I’m being annoying. It’s a relief that Calum thinks positively of my conversational habits.

“I like learning about you,” I confess. “And the rest of them. You’re all fun.”

Calum nods and then kisses me again. “Learning about you might just be my new favorite thing.”

My heart soars and I have to look away. If I look into his eyes, I’ll be a goner. I’ll be totally obsessed with this guy. He’s saying and doing all of the right things to get me to like him, and I have to protect myself. This is just temporary, while they’re touring Europe.

“Who are all those people?” I ask him, looking down at my lap.

He sighs. “It’s a mix of some of our music friends from LA, a few people we knew when we lived here, uh… oh, Mike’s girlfriend, Crystal. She’s the one with purple hair. There’s a girl Luke’s dating here, too.” Calum leans closer, so his mouth is by my ear. “But none of us like her,” he whispers.

I laugh slightly, but since I don’t know the girl I don’t want to base my opinions on just what Calum has said. “Which one is she?”

Cal laughs somewhat bitterly. “Don’t worry, you’ll know.”

I look over at the group of people and try to find Crystal and this other girl. Crystal I spot easily since, like Calum had mentioned, she has purple hair. She’s tall and pretty, with a sweet smile and light eyes, talking to Michael and another couple of guys. One I recognize as one of the members of the opening act. Then I look to Luke and find a tall girl with dark hair draped over him while he talks to a few of the other people. Got it. That’s the one that’s dating him. She’s not looking at any of the people huddled with, just clinging to Luke and standing there.

When I look back to Crystal to try to get a better look at her, she’s looking at me. Michael is saying something to her, and when she notices me looking her way, she smiles and waves. I smile and wave back awkwardly. Crystal then turns to Michael, puts a hand on his arm, and says something to him quickly before she walks over to the couch, sitting a few feet away from Cal and me and still smiling.

“Hi! I’m Crystal,” she says.

“Oh, hi! I’m Orion.”

Crystal smiles. “Oh, I know. This one won’t stop blabbing on about you and that club. What was it called again?” She directs the question to Calum, who looks embarrassed by her comment.

“Space Monkey,” I say for him. “My roommate’s girlfriend is a bartender there.”

She nods. “Such a weird name. Sorry, I would’ve said hi at the Madrid show, but wasn’t sure if it would have been overwhelming.”

I look to Calum, who hadn’t mentioned that there were other guests at the Madrid show. We only hung out with the band itself and my roommates. After the show, Calum and I went back to his hotel and my roommates went out with the band. None of them really remembered much the next morning, but they did say they had a fun time.

Crystal seems to know what I’m thinking and explains everything for Calum. “We hung out in the VIP viewing area that night, and when we went out after, I did get to meet your roommates. They were all so sweet, but we were all pretty wasted, so not sure if they remember it.”

“Sorry, I should’ve mentioned you could hang in the VIP section,” Calum apologizes. “I figured you’d prefer the pit.”

I laugh nervously. “Yeah, I do prefer the pit, but just feel bad if we kept you guys out of the backstage area that evening.”

Crystal shakes her head. “No, you were totally fine! We just went out for dinner before the show.”

I just nod. I didn’t realize they all had such a large entourage.

“I’m glad we get to meet you this time,” Crystal adds, still smiling very kindly at me. “Is this your first time to London?”

Calum has his arm around me and is lightly tracing shapes into my side and I’m at ease with his presence. Crystal isn’t scary or anything, but she seems eons cooler than I’ll ever be and she’s far prettier than I am. She also just seems to have it all together. I’m trying to make a good first impression.

“It is,” I answer. “I love it. Yours?”

She shakes her head. “No, I’ve been a few times, but I love it too. Anyway, I didn’t mean to interrupt you guys, just wanted to pop over and say hi. Come find me during soundcheck if you want someone to hang out with.”

I smile at her graciously. “Thank you, I probably will.”

Crystal gets up then and walks back over to Michael, who greets her by wrapping an arm around her waist while they pick up their conversation with their friends. The whole lot of them seem to mesh together like they’ve spent a lot of time with each other. It’s just crazy because there are so many of them.

“Wait, doesn’t your sister live in London?” I ask suddenly, realizing Calum’s sister doesn’t seem to be in the crowd. I look back at him and he giggles.

“She does, but she’s in LA right now.”

I sigh with relief. Meeting all these random people is a lot, but meeting Calum’s sister would be even more intense. She’s family. She’s not someone you introduce to a girl you met at a nightclub a few days prior that you hooked up with and invited to another show.

“What’s she like?” I ask. Calum smiles at the question, a light appearing in his brown eyes.

“She’s amazing. An incredible songwriter and singer. She’s kind, and she’s like a big sister to all of us, really. She’s my best friend. I’d do anything for her.”

“What’s her name?”

“Mali-Koa, but we just call her Mali.”

I look down at his arm, the name familiar because of the tattoo there. I trace the outline of the bird. “Like your tattoo.”

He nods. “Yes, like my tattoo,” he says. “Do you have siblings?”

I grin, instantly seizing my chance to show him pictures of my brother and getting my phone out. “I have a little brother. He’s four. His name is Eridanus, but we just call him Eri. He’s the sweetest boy ever.”

I pass Calum my phone with the album of photos with Eri and me lighting up the screen. He scrolls through, stopping at the one where Eri smeared brownie batter on my face and we both were laughing uncontrollably.

“You guys are cute,” Cal comments, handing my phone back.

“Boys, stage in 5!” Matt appears out of nowhere and disrupts the entire room’s conversations.

There’s a collective groan and Calum downs most of his beer quickly before he kisses my cheek, saying he’s gotta use the bathroom and will see me after soundcheck.

“You’ll be okay back here, right? You can also come watch, but it’s usually pretty boring. Or I can give you some cash if you want to go grab a coffee nearby or something?”

“I’ll be fine,” I tell him. He gives me a grin before he runs off.

I decide to take Crystal up on her offer and make my way over to her. She lights up as I approach her, her smile widening.

“Can I hang out with you for a bit?” I ask.

“Of course,” she says. “Here, I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

Crystal guides me through the group like I’m a show pony. I try to remember everyone’s names but it’s a total lost cause. Everyone is pretty nice, but some are more interested in meeting me than others. I don’t blame them — I’m sure there’s a fairly consistent rotation of people coming through this group in my shoes. It might not be worth trying to really connect with girls like me.

After I’ve met everyone, she shows me where the bathroom is and where I can get food if I’m hungry. Then, we head to the side of the stage so we can watch soundcheck. She takes me to Calum’s side of the stage instead of Michael’s, saying she sees it almost every night, so missing it this once isn’t that big of a deal. He looks surprised, but pleasantly, when he notices us, waving at me. I give him a thumbs up.

The soundcheck lasts for about an hour, and they play a few songs that they didn’t play at the Madrid show. I’ve tried to study their discography over the past few days, but I haven’t been able to learn everything yet, so I don’t know which songs are which. When I get a glimpse of Crystal’s face while we watch, she looks so proud.

“How long have you guys been together?” I ask her as we walk back to the dressing room.

Crystal laughs. “We’ve been friends for a while, but officially together for about 6 months.”

“So you’re used to… all this? By now?”

She laughs again and shakes her head. “I don’t think it’s something you ever get used to.”

I’m opening my second bottle of beer when the boys come backstage again, Calum coming straight to me. Crystal winks at me when he approaches and ducks away to catch up with Michael. I spin around to face Calum.

“You don’t have to come straight to me, you know,” I tell him. He’s taking a few gulps of his own fresh beer.

“You’re my guest,” he defends. “I’m not just gonna leave you hanging.”

I roll my eyes. “I can fend for myself.”

Calum laughs quietly. “Trust me, I know you can.”

I raise an eyebrow at him and take a swig of my beer. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Hmm, I don’t know, maybe that you moved to a country you’ve never been to alone? You navigated two international airports alone and the transit systems? Hell, Matt likes you. That’s something.”

“It’s not that hard. You just follow signs.”

Now Calum rolls his eyes. “Let me talk you up, please.”

I bite my tongue, holding back on making a snarky comment. Instead, I do my best to smile at him somewhat sweetly. “Fine.”

He kisses me again then and when he pulls back he grabs my hand in his, pulling me away from the mass of people and out the door. Once outside, he turns us around a corner so we’re away from the bodyguards and crew. As soon as we’re out of everyone’s sight, he grabs my hips and gently pushes me against the cinder block wall with his beer bottle pressed against my side.

Calum grazes his lips against mine, hovering without making full contact. I take matters into my own hands and wrap my arms around his neck to pull him down and kiss him, but my beer bottle, slick with condensation, slips out of my hand and crashes onto the pavement, shattering.

“Shit!”

Calum falls into a fit of laughter, stepping back to assess the mess I’ve just made. “What is it with you and spilling drinks?!”

read next chapter

a/n: not that i need to justify it but flashback chapters serve as some relief for all the weight of everything going on and also i want people to LOVE orion and cal together. that's the bigger goal ofc.

[s-creations]

Fluctuates Chapter 3 - Dance

One-Shot entries for the #RadioStatic Week 2024.

Yep, I'm doing this again! I'm going to make sure that I can keep track with uploading this time. Also, I will be sticking with the Fluff path, because I need more Fluff with these two.

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Relationships: Alastor/Vox (RadioStatic) Warnings/Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Lots of Fluff because I want it, Rosie will be in this, Probably other characters not sure at the moment.

“Sir, there’s a caller on the phone for you.”

Vox held back a grumble hearing his secretary’s voice. Not pulling away from the paperwork stacked in front of him as he snapped out, “Take a message and hang up. I’m a little busy.”

“I’ve already tried that sir, they just called back. Now with the threat to come down here to meet with you personally.”

“Ha! What idiot would be dumb enough to threaten me? Tell them if they want a fight that actions speak louder than words.”

“...Do…you want me to relay that sir?”

“Yes, why else would I say it?”

“I don’t think-”

“Well then it’s a wonderful thing that I don’t pay you to work. Especially after I’ve told you what to do. Now get the fuck out of my office and do your job.”

Vox heard the small sigh, knowing the other was shaking her head as she left without the need to look up. At least he was alone again. Now, back to the more important task of figuring this mess out. 

Valentino’s movies were flopping recently, they’re not making the money they’re supposed to be. So, in order to keep that afloat, he’ll need to move money. But where to pull from? Velvette will castrate him if he takes anything from her funds. Besides, she has a show coming up and she’ll need all the spending money to make it happen. Now the question is, which pool of his own funding does he pull from? And should he make a contract so that he can make sure Valentino returns the funds once he makes profit back? Because he knew that moth was notorious for making every monetary coverage a donation. How can someone be bleeding money like this-

“Vox.”

Said Overlord jerked up hearing his name. His screen flickering out for a moment, Vox furiously blinking to gain his vision back. Confusion took over as he saw Alastor standing on the other side of the desk.

“Al? What…are you doing here?”

“Well, you said if I wanted to fight to just come here. But I’m not sure why you thought I’d want to fight, an interesting conclusion to reach.”

“...That was you on the phone?”

Alastor tilted his head with a sympathetic smile, “Oh, my dear Picture Box. I was calling because I wanted to see how terribly in depth with your work you are. Call me a worried dear when I was basically told I was instigating trouble.” 

“No. No, no, I’m sorry, I wasn’t told it was you on the phone. I wouldn’t say that to you, you know that. But…why were you calling? I was going to be home soon. I just have a bit more paperwork and money moving to deal with. I didn’t mean to work this late.”

That didn’t seem to calm Alastor. Who’s smile wilted further. “Vox, how long do you think you’ve been working?”

“Ah, um, well…” Vox looked around to try and find his clock. Only to remember that he’d destroyed it accidentally a few days ago. After his temper rose quickly and was only quelled when he released some of the energy out as an electrical blast. “I’m not sure. Only a few hours past my normal schedule? Oh fuck, we were supposed to have dinner. Am I late for that?”

Alastor let out a heavy sigh as he shook his head. “My dear… It’s the next afternoon.”

Silence.

“...What? No…no, it’s not. I had an alarm set.” As if he could prove a point, Vox pulled out his phone to show the proper time. It wasn’t that late, right? 

Vox felt his insides turn to ice when he read the date. It was the next day, well into the afternoon. There were numerous alerts of texts and phone calls he’d missed. Turning it on the side, Vox noted that the silencer was on.

He remembered turning it off so he wouldn’t be distracted. 

He hadn’t heard his alarm.

He hadn’t heard a single thing. 

Vox partially rose from his seat before plopping back down. Attention shifting from his phone, to Alastor, back to his phone, to anywhere in the room. As if the answer to this situation was hidden somewhere in the walls. Mouth left to hang open in disbelief, no noise leaving it. It was clear he was lost as to how he was supposed to recover. 

“Fuck… I didn’t… Fuck, I really didn’t mean to…” He eventually got out. His body jerked as if he was trying to find something physical to do. Soon getting to his feet to pace around the office, eyes on the phone as he took in the information once more. 

“I worked…for 36 hours? How? Fuck, I thought… Did you go to the- Fuck!” 

Seeing the other working himself into a spiral, Alastor stepped forward to grab Vox’s arm. “Calm down, this isn’t helping you.” 

“How the fuck am I supposed to be calm! I- We were supposed to go out, we had plans! And I just blew them off because I just can’t turn off need to work, fuck!” 

“You didn’t do this intentionally.” 

Vox panted weakly as his exhaustion finally caught up to him. “...How are you not mad at me?”

“Because I’m more worried about your health than a dinner date. Come on, let’s get you home.” 

There was no fight as Alastor wrapped an arm around Vox, leading the newly made Overlord out of the building. Offering a nod to the secretary as she closed up and made her own way home. Their travers was slow and quiet. Vox clearly battling his inner thoughts while fighting to stay awake. Needing to lean on Alastor as the stumble walked on the pavement. 

They made their way into their large house. Alastor fully intent on getting Vox to lay down as quickly as possible. Only for his progress to be halted when, as he moved to have Vox sit down, the Media Overlord grabbed onto him.

“Vox-”

“I’m sorry…” Vox’s voice was soft, his screen resting on Alastor’s shoulder. 

“I know, and we can talk about this later. But you need to rest.”

“Can’t.”

Alastor let out a heavy sigh, “And why not?”

“I can’t…quiet down my thoughts. They haven’t shut up since we left…” 

“Then what do you want to do?”

“I don’t know…”

It took everything to not sigh again. Instead, Alastor shifted them so Vox’s arms were wrapped around the Radio Demon’s shoulders. Who made sure the other was leaning against him comfortably, Alastor wrapping his arms around, making sure to gently rub Vox’s back. Soon, the air was filled with gentle music, a soft lullaby to hopefully sooth the stressed demon. Alastor began to sway to the slow tune, even beginning to hum along with the song. 

“Wha’re you doin’?” Vox’s voice cracked from exhaustion, hands gripping onto Alastor. 

“Helping you relax,” Alastor replied softly, “A little dance to tire you out, just focus on the music.”

“‘M sorry…”

“I know. We’ll talk later. Let’s just get you to sleep.”

Vox let out a small hum as he melted into Alastor’s hold. Eyes closing while his screen dimmed, the constant buzzing of noise quieting down as the music replaced it. Barely awake as the sway dance slowed and he was moved to the bed. Slipping out of consciousness as hears Alastor whisper, “Sleep well, my silly little picture box.”

[cadybear420]

WIP Wednesday!

Thanks to @jerzwriter for the tag!

I've got like, one or two other WIP fics, but they're currently on hiatus while I'm focusing mainly on this Evie x Aiden birthday fic. Although Evie's birthday this year has already passed, I'd still like to get this fic out by the end of her birth month haha.

Tagging: @inlocusmads @peonyblossom @aces-and-angels @aria-ashryver @lover-also-fighter-also (apologies if you've already been tagged this week, this is my first time doing a WIP Wednesday thing so I'm a bit unfamiliar with the process)

Title: [Title still pending.]

Rating: G.

Fandom: High School Story (Original Trilogy)

Pairing: Evie Ayana (f!MC) x Aiden Zhou

Friday, March 8, 2019. The day of Evie’s 18th birthday.

She’d been planning to host a birthday party at one of her favorite restaurants in the city, starting in the early evening after school. Almost everyone she knew from school was invited. 

It was late in the afternoon now. Evie took one last look at herself in her new outfit– a navy blue suit with a purple floral necktie– and grinned, before dashing to the living room. There, her dad was checking his phone. 

“Alright, I’m ready to go!” she said. 

He turned to her. “Actually… we can’t leave just yet…”

She pouted. “What??? But Daaaad, the party starts at 5 PM and it’s already 4:45!”

“The people doing the decorations are… taking a bit longer than expected.”

“Oh…”

“It’s a bit awkward to go to a party when they’re still putting decorations up, isn’t it?”

“That’s true,” her face softened. “Do the other guests know?”

“...yep! I’ve just told them, in fact.”

“Okay… but how long do we have to wait?”

“Shouldn’t be more than… ten to twenty minutes?”

Evie pouted again. 

“It’s not that long…”

“Okay, fiiiiine, I’ll be patient…”

“And I’ll be doctor!”

Evie winced. “Dad, NO…”

…

About twenty minutes passed, and then finally, her dad said it was okay to start driving to the restaurant. After a fifteen minute drive, they arrived, and Evie wasted no time going in. 

The room was alive with upbeat music, purple decorative lights and flowers, and many of Evie’s friends. It seemed like just about everyone she’d invited had shown up– her main friend group, her teammates, her friends from the other cliques and Hearst, Cher and her friends from theatre, the seniors from last year who hadn’t gone away for college… And all of them greeted her with a big “Happy birthday, Evie!!!”, in unison. 

Evie inhaled, beaming at her friends. Many of them ran over to hug her, a few others cheered for her. Then she saw Emma and Cher push their way through the crowd and grab her by her arms. 

“Evie! There’s a special surprise for you, right now” said Cher. 

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah!” said Emma. “Just come with us…” 

The crowd parted, making way for Emma and Cher to pull Evie to the opposite side of the room. As they did, the party music slowly faded out and the lights began to dim. 

When they made it to the opposite end of the room, a warm spotlight turned on over her, and there she saw it. The jazz band, all set up with their instruments and dressed in matching black-and-red suits and… devil horns?

And at the front of it all… was none other than her beautiful boyfriend Aiden. And she just about stopped in her tracks when she took in his outfit– an ivory-colored flapper dress that had silver beads sewn into intricate patterns, and hung just barely above his knees. Plus, a couple of matching long pearl necklaces, and a fluffy white halo accessory over his head.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

And that's as much as I've gotten so far. What exactly is Aiden's surprise for Evie? Hopefully we'll see soon enough.