#in a way nobody else ever could. it means SO much to him. it sticks with him.. you can see it in the way he incorporates them

[sensesdialed]

can i talk about how much being around other spider people would mean to peter after he's been so incredibly lonely post-nwh. can i talk about it

[byproducts-of-my-imagination]

Everyone Hates Todo Except You

The best part about Todo is that you don’t have to put yandere in front of him because his normal behavior already screams delusional and obsessive.   You cannot convince me that he doesn’t sniff all your things as soon as you’re not looking.  He’s just so intense.  I love this man, need to catch up on jjk.

~1k words. Thank you to whoever requested this and I hope you enjoy!

At the Kyoto branch, nobody really bothers sticking their nose in Todo’s business.  But when there’s an enormous mound of trash bags outside his room that just keeps getting bigger, concerning glances and eyebrow raises no longer cut it.  Normally his antics earn a side eye or two, but lately it’s been a little much, even for him.  At the breakfast table the next day, the girls decide to draw straws to see who has to tell him to move his shit.

“It’s not fair!  Why do I have to do it?”  Miwa groans, cursing her bad luck for the thousandth time.  

“It is fair, you just happened to draw the short straw now go deal with it!  We'll back you up.”  Mai grins, knowing full well she rigged it.

Kasumi Miwa would rather be doing literally anything else at this moment.  She timidly knocks on the door, and says, “Todo?  Could you move all this stuff please?  You’re starting to block the hallway.”

“Yeah I’ll get to it whenever I get the rest of this junk cleaned up.  Don’t worry there’s no food waste so there shouldn’t be any smell.”

“B-but Todo…. It's been almost a week now…”  The only response was the muted sound of shuffling.

Miwa looks back in defeat at her so-called “back up” as they peek from behind the corner.  Their best bet now is to get one of the boys to convince him.  And if they fail it’s straight to Utahime-sensei.  

Todo looks at his room, emptier than it’s ever been.  He knew this was the likeliest outcome.  Takada-chan was a beloved idol, and even if she liked him back (which he thought she might have at some point) there was no way she could be with him.  He knew, but it doesn't mean it hurt any less.  There were years of carefully collected merch, thousands of dollars being stuffed into trash bags to be thrown away.  But instead of the despair he carefully denied for years, he didn’t feel any loss throwing away all the autographed posters and pictures.  No, he had something much better now, someone who could actually be with him in this wretched, boring world.  He had his wonderful, gorgeous, beautiful, perfect in every way girlfriend.  And while you weren’t aware that you were destined to be with him yet, he would make sure you’d know soon.  As soon as he finished purging his space of Takada-chan (it wouldn’t do to have pictures of an old flame) he’d confess.  

A few days later he was tying up the last trash bag, ready to enact his plan.  He asked you to meet him under the largest tree in the forest on the edge of the training field.  Several hypothetical scenarios floated through his mind, and he focused on the one where you’d enthusiastically said you loved him back and then he married you and had many children.  As he neared the confession site, Todo felt yet another arrow go through his heart as you came into view.  I’ll never get tired of seeing her.

“Todo, is everything okay?  What’s up?”  A shiver ran down Todo’s spine, goosebumps rising.  God, even your voice was perfect.

“I love you.  Promise me, y/n.  That we’ll spend the rest of our lives together.”  He got down on one knee like a proposal, looking up at you like a devout follower.

“Todo… I don’t know about the rest of our lives but why don’t we start with a date?  I like you too.”  While you were a bit taken aback by his forwardness, you brush it off as Todo being Todo.  You never disliked his honesty and unabashedness.

“My girlfriend!! I knew you felt the same!”  A single tear ran down Todo’s face.   

Back to the dorms, it wasn’t long before everyone found out and congregated at your room to badger you with questions.  

“Ugh that gorilla?  You guys are dating now?”  Nishimiya asked, firmly believing Todo to be an improper and inadequate boyfriend.  

“I thought he only had eyes for that idol Takado or whatever,” Miwa chimes.

“It’s Takada,” Mai corrects, not able to make eye contact with Nishimiya’s suspicious glance in her direction. 

“We’re dating now!  He just asked me out, and he’s really good to me.” you reply, thinking of how Todo insisted on carrying you back to the dorms, gently setting you down before running off saying he needed to ‘prepare’.  

“You can do way better than Todo, trust us.” The girls all nod in agreement.  However, Todo is outside your room balancing a tray of perfectly cooked lunch and a cold pitcher of water.  

“What are you guys talking about?”  he knows already, but wants to hear them say it to his face.  

“How y/n is too good for the likes of you.”  Mai minces no words for Todo.  With the uncomfortable tension rising, the Kyoto girls hastily make an exit.  

“My love, I made lunch for us.  I know I am not handsome, or come from wealth and a good sorcerer family like some of our classmates.  But I will be devoted.  I will never stray from you, I’d die if you asked me to.”  he says, as he sets the meal on your small desk, pulling out utensils and napkins.  His normal confidence seems to waver a bit, and it seems that not even Todo is immune to worrying about what other people think of him.  

“Todo, don’t worry about what they say and please don’t say you’ll die for me.  I like you a lot, I wouldn’t have accepted your confession if I didn’t.  I also think you’re quite handsome.”  

“You love me back?”  he whispers, kneeling at the edge of your bed, looking up at you.  While it’s a bit too early to tell, Todo’s hopeful, reverent look has you obliging him. 

“I do love you back.”  He embraces you, and you can hear his heartbeat in his bare chest.  It feels good to be loved so wholeheartedly, and you’ll give him all the love you have to repay him.  

[parfaitblogs]

you know what would be cool? A blurb about Spencer and girly!reader who's a total nerd and loves ribbons, dresses and jewels. I HATE the stereotype of nerdy people who don't care much about how they look and dress in a ""weird"" way

spencer reid x girly!reader. fluff. 0.6k words. fem reader. reader likes harry potter (it's briefly mentioned. fuck jkr!)

a/n: so u mean penelope garcia?? kidding! idk how good i feel about this but i really wanted to get this request up sorry it’s so late :( thank you for the request ♡

spencer reid who did not expect to feel anything other than fleeting attraction for the pretty girl he had bumped into at the coffee shop closest to the quantico building. or to actually see you again other than that one moment in the midst of his running-late-to-work panic. only to have found out that the brand new member that aaron hotchner was introducing that day was none other than that same pretty girl. 

who had stammered out another apology — the stack of them were growing quite high for a man you had only met that morning — and introduced himself to you, properly. spencer reid who you could hear telling morgan to shut up, because "she might hear you!" because he was teasing spencer about the way he was looking at you and he feared the absolute worst when it came to girls like you. 

spencer reid who's nerves melted away the first time you contributed something to the team during a briefing — something about the statistics of the child abduction you all were currently investigating, that he was able to bounce off of and agree with. you both had to dumb down the words you had used and explain it to the rest of the team again. which he was used to. he didn't think he'd ever find someone who had to do that as well. 

who listened to you when you began to ramble about this book series you were reading and how cool it is because "it spans like three different continents and there's so many different sub-series but they all connect somehow!" and nobody else was listening. but he was.

spencer reid who began to accept your rides home after you had learned he usually catches the train, because you had discovered he lived only a block away from you. rides home that eventually turned into going over to each other's apartments after that one time he said he wanted to show you the hogwarts lego set because you mentioned liking the series. 

he stopped coming up with excuses to have you over the fourth time, and had simply said "i just want you to come over". that was the day you had discovered you think you might like him. 

spencer reid who let you sleep on his bed despite your own insistence when it hit two in the morning and you both had work the next morning and you were still at his apartment watching doctor who together (he was flabbergasted to learn you had never seen it). 

and he had woken you up the next morning and he was so cute and his hair was sticking up everywhere and he was kind of smiling at you and you confirmed with yourself that yes, you liked him. 

spencer reid who had properly asked you on a date after a long three months of you flirting with him because morgan had been seeing it and was getting sick of him doing nothing about it. who picked you up this time, and had laughed when you wound the windows of his car back up because "my hair will fly everywhere!" and "if i lose this bow, you're paying for a new one spencer reid!"

but he had also kind of forgotten how to talk, when he sat across from you at the kind of dingy italian restaurant (he didn't know where else to take you, okay?). because while he had fallen for a girl who shared so many interests with him he was sure she might be his carbon copy, he was also violently reminded (as he was every time he looked at you) how pretty you were. 

and spencer reid wishes he could describe you with any other word, because he's sure there's bigger and harder to say words out there that could describe you. but none of them made sense the way pretty did. 

you had questioned his silence and he had stammered as much as he did the day you met, and you smiled because if all it took was you dressing up to fluster him, you decided you'd do it a lot more often.

your reblogs and replies are always appreciated dearly ♡

[pjackk]

Extremley Urgent Action Needed

Hi everybody i hate to to it but im in a realy bad spot and ive been pretty much bummed out really badly lately and lots of people on here are actually being really bad to me constantly and telling me lots of mean shit all the time and im pretty much in a super bad spot because im mentally fucked up badly right now and the theres some some holidays and shit comign up and i dont give a fuck about heaven or hell cuz my life is fucked anyways and going to shit so i dont know how it could really get worst but i pretty much want to treat myself and practice self care by making the right choices for me and getting shit that i really want as a gift to myself since nobody else will ever get me free shit since im a societal freak and a piece of shit apparently and something i really want is a Cast Iron Money Man

So the great part about the guinness Stout moneyman is that on top of making me enjoy my life for once in my fcking life if i had him it would teach me how to save my coins and put them in a safe place so they dotn keep falling down the drain because whenever im counting my pennies and other brown or shiny colored coins its always in the sink cuz thats the only place not filled to the brim with stupid shit i keep finding LOL i keep finding shit on the ground and in the trash and its often interesting as fuck shit like a stick that would be realy goood for turning into a weapon if needs to be if i was attacked from every angel a great way to fight them and a perfect advantage to have is to have the range advantage so if the thieves and other bandits were coming at me with knives and shit i would be able to bash them with my stick and maybe break there bodys while im at it and i could legaly say i killed them to defend my self and all my other shit so anyways theres tons of shit everywhere and since i just throw away my dishes when im done with them because they are way to dirty and beyond even the level to get it cleaned no more cuz shit is dried on there and wont come off if i make it wet i just gie up so that means theres never shit in my sink exept for the coins when im counting them but the big problem is i dont have a money man made out of cast iron to keep my coins safe so they fall down the drain and when i try to pop them up by dumping oil in the drain and using gargage disposal switch it just crunches them up and shoots fragments into my glasses and always breaks my glasses so i always have to get new glasses since they are always breakign whenever i lose my coins but the big problem is since i dont have my coins no more since they all get all torn up and shit its super hard to afford new glasses or food at all even though i dont technicaly have to eat its always fun to eat yummy shit so please consider to send me money to help muy shit as fuck mental get better and invest in my prosperity i promise u it will trickle down to u and u will benefit from my well being im actually working on a new CD right now with dope as fuck music but its realy really hard to be creative when i dont want to get out of bed because im always hung tf over from drinking a shit load of top notch gin a the pub all night and feeling super depresed basicaly my Guinenss beer Shaped money man would be a perfect way to solve my problems let me know if u want to help by clicking the beer above and giving me money to spend on my cast iron money man

[endofthelinepal107]

sukuna - a deal with the devil pt. 3/3

{a good old-fashioned timeskip. where do you and the king of curses stand a year after your alliance?} 3.6k words

part one + part two + part three

notes: he's even softer, definitely OC sukuna at this point but who cares i'm delusional

warnings: cursing, nudity (no smut)

tags: @missroro + @doodle-cat16

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

"Guess what day it is today."

Ryomen glanced over at you. He was working out on the lounge floor while you were on the phone. He'd figured out a few minutes ago that you were talking to Satoru. 

"What? No!" You laughed. "It's mine and Ryomen's anniversary!"

Ryomen stopped at the peak of a push up, eyebrows furrowing. For a split second, he was unsure if he had missed some social cue along the way that should have told him he was courting you. In this modern age, relationships moved much faster than he remembered from during his lifetime. Not that he'd had much experience courting back then, either. He was too busy murdering everyone he saw to bother with anything more personal.

"Our meeting-a-versary!"

Ryomen sighed and went back to his push ups. Phew. He was grateful for that. Not that he would have minded that revelation all that much. He doubted it would change much about your relationship anyway.

"Our dynamic is not weird, 'toru."

Ryomen sat up and leaned back on his hands, chest rising and falling as he caught his breath. Your dynamic kind of was weird, though. He knew you knew that. Both of you tried pretty hard not to think about it. There was more leniency from the others with him, but not very much. You were still expected to be together all of the time. That meant that, apart from the rare occasions you'd managed to convince Ryomen and someone else to coexist for a few hours so you could go do something private, you had just been together. Ryomen knew you better than people that had known you for years, and you knew things about him that nobody would ever know.

"Ugh, do you have t- No, we don't!" You crossed your arms, pouting at your phone as though Satoru could see you through it. Ryomen watched you with a tiny smile. "What? Well- No, I mean, we do still share a bed, but- No, it's not-" You let out a groan. "Satoru, if you say one more thing about 'kuna, I'm going to hang up the phone." There was a brief pause. Then you leaned forward and hung up. You scowled.

Ryomen cleared his throat. He always liked how he could get your attention so easily now. Not because it made him feel powerful, but because it confirmed that you did care for him like he cared for you, despite the singularity of your situation.

"More questions?" He asked, as though he hadn't been eavesdropping the whole time.

You hummed. "Yeah. They're all so nosy. You'd think by now they'd have.." You trailed off, unsure of how to finish that sentence. You knew why people had so much to say about your relationship with Ryomen. So did he.

"Learned not to ask?" Ryomen supplied.

You nodded, standing up and pulling a water bottle out of the fridge. "Exactly. Even if they do think it's weird, it's our business, right?" You walked over to him, dropping the bottle in his lap.

Ryomen opened it and chugged half before he stuck his hand out. You helped him up. It was more of a symbolic help because you couldn't shift his body if you tried with all your might. You didn't mind, though. He let you do it and that meant something.

He nodded in agreement to your words, sauntering towards the bathroom. "Should tell them all to fuck off."

You laughed. "Why is that your solution so often nowadays?"

"Because I got him to lower his infinity one time and you still won't let me near him." Ryomen shot you a pointed look, one that was meant to say 'let me beat him up' but really said 'you should stick up for yourself more.' And then he was closing the bathroom door.

You walked into the bedroom, changing into your pyjamas and then settling into the pillows. Satoru's words weren't anything new, but they still rattled around your brain. 

You knew it was strange for you and Ryomen to have never stopped sharing a bed. His funds had been in your bank for a long time now. The number was so high that you literally couldn't fathom it. You could've bought a bed. You could've bought a million beds made of gold. Ryomen should've insisted on it; he was the King of Curses, he shouldn't have been sharing a bed with a mere sorcerer. Especially not because of an agreement that was made all that time ago, which barely crossed your mind nowadays.

But you still woke up every morning intertwined. Usually, he was on top of you, his body draped over yours in a way that was simultaneously pulling you closer and keeping anything from disturbing you. And you liked the closeness, just like you knew he liked it, even if neither of you had ever said so.

Ryomen finished in the shower and dried himself off, padding into the bedroom in his robe. He turned off the light and climbed into the bed without a word. He rolled onto his side, reaching out until his hand found your body. His fingers dug into your waist and he gave you a tug towards him.

"Mm." You hummed and shuffled closer, letting him pull you flush against him. His body shifted so that he was partly covering you. You fell asleep.

Nothing disturbed him until the middle of the night. Ryomen opened his eyes enough to see that it was still dark and then snapped them closed again, moving to pull you closer. When he realised his arms were empty, a genuine sense of panic set in.

He took a deep breath, barely stopping himself from lashing out at the closest thing. Blind rage wasn't his style these days. He slowly rose to his feet and made his way through the house, eyes roaming the darkness until he saw you.

You were sitting on the couch, very still. You were nestled into the corner and you looked dazed, but clearly upset. Ryomen walked over and sat beside you.

For a moment, he was unsure of what to do. Even after all this time together, those few minutes before and after sleep were the only ones that held any kind of physical affection. Besides hitting each other, neither of you ever really showed it. Even then, it was usually him hitting you. He liked it, because he liked how you always reacted and he liked the reminder of how he'd learned to soften himself a little so that he could be playful with someone.

When you shuffled over to him and curled into his side, he was surprised. Surprised that he hadn't had time to think of what he was going to do, surprised that it was you that initiated the contact. Surprised that you wanted it.

His hands found your hips and he effortlessly lifted you up, resting you in his lap. His strong arms wrapped around you. He felt you stiffen for a second, just as taken aback as he was by his actions. Then you nestled your face into his neck and held him back.

Ryomen held you in silence for a while. He knew that quiet contact was what you were seeking, so he let you have it. He found himself strangely grateful that he could offer this comfort to you. Knowing someone intimately enough to know what they needed wasn't something he'd ever seen for himself before he knew you, let alone being trusted enough to actually implement it.

"What's wrong?" Ryomen murmured in your ear after a good few minutes had passed.

You sighed, leaning back so that you could see him but stay in his lap. "I can't sleep."

"Why?"

"I found out there's a secret execution out for both of us. I-I was going to tell you in the morning."

Ryomen very nearly laughed. Almost. "That's it? That's all it is?"

You looked at him completely seriously. "I'm not worried that you're going to die, I'm not stupid."

"What, then?" He asked.

You hesitated, then muttered, "I'm scared that they're going to turn their backs on us, and then all of this won't be worth anything to you, and you'll toss it all aside- toss me aside- and I'll lose you. That the agreement won't be important anymore and then none of this time together will matter."

Ryomen was stunned. Genuinely stunned, just like he had been on that very first day he'd met you.

You really cared that deeply about him? And he'd really doubted that you did?

He forced himself to mutter some normal responses.

"I'll kill anyone that tries to touch you, let alone harm a hair on your head. You are stronger than those pathetic sorcerers that would dare to do such a thing. I will split the world into pieces before they get the chance. The entirety of the jujutsu world is nothing compared to the power that you and I hold. You have the force of an empire at your behest, because I will not turn my back on you."

Normal responses for him, anyway.

You listened to him quietly, looking at him as he spoke. Ryomen's words were always slightly alarming, but you'd learned to see the comfort in them. He never lied. You knew that, to him, his strength was the greatest thing he could offer you. And so it was the greatest comfort when he goes on his little murderous tirades the moment you present him with a new target.

In the face of your attentive quiet, Ryomen found himself drifting away from the topic slightly. "It truly astonishes me that, after all that you've done for the jujutsu world, it could still turn its back on you. You have sacrificed so much. I told you it wasn't worth it and that they didn't deserve your energy, yet you continued to prioritise their collective welfare over your own. This is the price that you get for that goodness." His voice grew an edge as he grew more and more angry. "You should be good. I admire that you're good. It infuriates me when that's thrown in your face. It's something I would do, why are those self-righteous sorcerers doing it?"

A look of genuine anger crossed your face. Ryomen stopped talking, unsure of what he said that would make you mad.

"No, 'kuna, that's not the kind of thing you would do," you frowned. "You would never do that. You'd be more inclined to kill me directly. You wouldn't stoop to that low of throwing my effort back in my face, by encouraging people that I know, friends, to kill me."

And then Ryomen was getting angrier. "Don't say that," he growled. "Don't you dare use words like 'kill' and 'you' in the same fucking sentence when you're speaking to me."

Both of you glared at each other like petulant children. Slowly, the silence lengthened and then shifted as you realised that neither of you were angry for an actual reason anymore. Your eyes met his and you realised that he'd come to the same realisation.

You cracked first. You always did when it came to things like this. Despite your best effort to keep pouting, a giggle broke free.

At the first sign of your smile, Ryomen's anger completely disappeared. He was so obviously delighted to see you happy that it made your heart hurt. His arms wrapped around you and he held you close, chin resting on your shoulder.

He was so grateful. Grateful, grateful, grateful.

Your arms wrapped around him too, as tightly as you could. Ryomen always liked it when you held him. That was why you always woke up with him in your arms.

But he only had to pull back slightly to know that you were still upset about the execution. He gazed down at you for a few seconds, and then made his mind up. He would love you. That would make you feel better, if he could just figure out which demonstration of his love was the right one.

When Ryomen thought about how he loved you, he didn't think about telling you in some romantic gesture: I've always loved you, my darling angel. He didn't think about sweeping you off your feet with a kiss, holding your trembling body against his as he pulled soft gasps from your lips. Both thoughts made him smile.

No, that wasn't what Ryomen's love looked like.

He had hold of your hips again. He stood up, with you still attached, then set you on your feet. His hand slid into yours and he pulled you into the kitchen. Without an explanation, he pottered around the small space, pouring out your current favourite drink.

Then, when it was safely in your hands, he found the phone and started to play your music, the songs that he'd noticed you listening to most recently. He watched you like a hawk as you gratefully sipped your drink. But, when you smiled at him, he shook his head.

He turned and switched the oven on, found the cookbook, and tugged you over.

"Bake."

You looked taken aback, but you could see that he was serious, even if you didn't understand why. Dutifully, you began to mix a cookie batter. Ryomen hovered behind you the entire time. When you slid the cookies out of the oven, he switched into his true form, giving you no time to adjust to something you'd only seen a few times in the whole year you'd been together, and sat down on the floor. You were pulled firmly into his lap so that you could comfortably eat your cookie near the heat of the oven.

He watched you, even when you finally noticed how fierce his gaze was and looked up. He let you feed him a piece of your cookie, letting out a pleased hum of approval. Ryomen smiled when that soft interaction made you more happy than the whole process of baking had.

But you weren't better yet.

Ryomen stood up, changing back into his normal form, but keeping you in his arms. He carried you into the bathroom and started to pour out a bath. When he noticed you looking for the soap, he caught your wrist and tugged you to his side.

"Don't do anything."

You were confused, but you did as he asked, watching curiously as he pulled out a small box from the top of the linen closet. "What's that?"

"I was saving it," he murmured, opening it and letting you see inside.

It was full of special shampoos, conditioners, soaps, and bath bombs. He was saving it only partly because he knew a time would come for them. Mostly because he had never figured out quite how to explain that he knew your favourite smells and what would work in your hair or with your skin.

He was so busy checking that everything was fine that it wasn't until he turned to you to ask you to check the water temperature that he realised you were looking at him with something in your eyes that he didn't think he'd ever seen before.

You didn't give him a chance to ask about it. You stepped up to him and gave him a tight hug. He could tell that you were putting as much force into it as you physically could, so he didn't laugh when he effortlessly held you tighter. He held you close until you tipped your head back to look at him.

"Will you help me?"

Ryomen nodded, fingers sliding to your collar. He unbuttoned your shirt deftly, then slid it down your arms. He folded it and put it on the nearest surface, then gently pulled your shorts down your legs. He set that down too. Then he was inhaling the scent of your hair as he leaned over you, his fingers unclasping your bra. He was bending slightly so that he could hook his fingers in your panties and pull them down.

In the back of his mind, it registered that this was the first time he'd ever seen you this exposed. It was the first time he'd touched you here, seen you there. But it didn't really feel like a first time. It felt like this was normal, like it wasn't a big deal for him to do this. Like you had always been his in this way, and he had always been yours in this way.

His warm hands were on you as you climbed into the bath. One on your hip, feeling the curve of your waist, and the other on your wrist, both making sure that you were safe and not in any danger of slipping. 

He might have nearly laughed at the prospect of a secret execution coming close to harming you, but the idea of you hurting yourself normally plagues him every day. There've been hundreds of times that he's insisted he use his RCT on you for little scrapes that you've gotten. Hundreds of times that you've had the same discussion where he's insisted that you're careless with yourself and you've said you're just clumsy and he's called you a stupid idiot and you've shut him up with a bright smile and an I've got you to help, though, right?

Ryomen watched you warily as he let go of you. He waited as you slid all the way under the water, staying under for a few seconds before sliding back up. His hands were on your face before you even had a chance to lift your own, thumbs swiping away the water from your eyes and brushing your hair out of your face. When you looked up at him, face clear of water, Ryomen finally looked relieved. This was the thing that helped, then. This was the part of his love that would make you happier and less stressed.

But that wasn't enough for him. He wanted happy, not happier.

He pushed his robe over his shoulders, letting it hang around his waist. Then he walked around behind you, sinking to his knees on the tiled floor. Without a word, he reached for your head, silently insisting on doing your hair for you. Neither of you spoke for a while. He ran the shampoo and conditioner through, then began to brush your hair. 

"You've gotten so good at managing it," you mumbled, eyes closed happily.

Ryomen grunted. "Managing what?"

"Your force. It doesn't hurt when you're doing something like brushing my hair, but it used to hurt when you even laid a hand on my arm."

He smiled, glad to hear you say it. He'd already known he had improved a lot, but it felt worth so much more to hear it from your lips.

He finished with your hair. The next step seemed obvious, but he had the awareness that, no matter how intimate this all seemed, he couldn't go further without murmuring something.

Quietly, he said, "I'll bathe your body now."

"Okay."

That soft, mumbled agreement made his heart swell. He rose to his feet and found your hand under the water, pulling you to your feet. You let out a soft protest as he made you stand up in the bath. His warm hands on your skin eased the chill almost right away.

Ryomen focussed incredibly hard. He had to make sure that he did this right, that he treated your body with the reverence he believed it deserved. That his soapy hands graced every part of your soft, blemished skin. That nothing he did hurt you.

And his intense concentration meant that he failed to notice the way that you were watching him again. This time, because you'd recognised the look in his eyes, and you were admiring the way that his hands looked against your skin.

"Happy?" You chuckled after a while. Your teasing voice broke him out of his reverie.

He looked up, smiling slightly. "Yes. Are you?"

"Mhm." You slid back into the water, letting out a content sigh. 

Ryomen wasn't really surprised when your hand found his wrist and tugged. Nor, when your pretty lips parted with a soft question.

"Will you get in, Ryomen?"

He nodded. His hand slipped out of yours so that he could loosen his robe and let it fall completely. He nudged you forwards and then climbed into the tub behind you. Ryomen rested his hands on your hips, but he let you be the one to decide whether or not you slid back or not. When you did, he wrapped his arms around your waist and rested his head in your neck.

"D'you want me to wash you?" You asked.

His reply came out like an admonishment. "No, foolish woman. You're the one that needed comforting. Stop trying to do things for everyone else all the time. Be selfish. Have you no self-respect?"

He was lucky that you knew him and his favouritism well enough to just smile over your shoulder at him.

All of the times he'd thought oh, shit to himself converged. He stared at your content smile, at the soft way you looked at him. And everything aligned in his mind and, this time, he just said it out loud.

"Oh, shit."

You looked at him in confusion, then laughed. "What?"

"You're beautiful," Ryomen stated simply. "You fill the gaps that I can't fill myself. You're the one that's meant to be by my side."

When your smile broadened and you leaned back into him again, he didn't mind that it took you a while to reply. He didn't feel nervous. Ryomen knew for certain that you understood him and you understood the weight and sincerity in his words. He didn't have any fear that you were something he could lose this way. The only thing he could lose you to was death, and he'd already begun making sure that wouldn't happen.

When your reply came, it was all he'd really wanted to hear.

"'Ryomen?"

"Mm."

"I love you."

"I know. I love you."

"I know."

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

he's softer than melting ice cream but i can't help it I LOVE HIM SO MUCH!! i hope you guys don't mind sappy sukuna, i'm planning to write something a little less OC soon. that's the final part to this series!

F <3

[fictionalreads]

Hello do you think you could do this one the reader and Mike are married and she knew about Lockwood but Mike didn't believe her because of Rita, reason, and they had an argument he said something that he should never said and she got kidnapped while being months pregnant 😦😦😦😦

A/N: HIIIII!! I'm so sorry this took so long, I was out of town and then had to get back in the rhythm of things once I got back. Writing for Mike (where it's his story and he's not playing the role of narrator for the sake of Armando) was different. I included Rita but I just couldn't make her the reason he didn't believe reader, I just felt like she and the reader wouldn't have beef so that was changed but I tried to stick to the rest of your request. I hope you enjoy this! 🥰 Title from Forget How to Love by Meghan Trainor

I Know Your Words Shouldn't Hurt Me, But They Hurt Me

Fandom: Bad Boys Movie

Pairing: Mike Lowrey x reader

Warnings⚠️: Um... Relationship issues? canon typical violence even though its mostly talked around

You knew when you married Mike Lowrey that he was used to doing things alone, that moving as a unit didn’t come naturally to him. Sure he had Marcus and they were a well oiled machine, but it didn’t start that way and at the end of the day Marcus had a family that was his priority no matter how much he loved Mike.

But Mike was your priority, you’d go through hell for him.

He knew this, but after relying on himself for so long, he didn’t always come to you first. His initial reaction to anything was to internalize and figure out a solution, only coming to you after he failed on his own. You were used to it, but it didn’t make it less hurtful every time he did it.

You on the other hand, preferred talking it out with him. You liked to explain the issue to him, not looking for him to fix it, but rather to vent it out to someone you trusted, someone who would let you think through it all out loud, sometimes offering his own two cents. You usually were able to solve the issue on your own while talking it out, but having him as a sounding board made you feel less alone. Mike was good at listening to what you had to say.

Which is why you were so surprised when he was dismissive about your concerns.

“I’m telling you, something is off with Lockwood,” you insisted.

“The man is one of the best U.S. attorneys I’ve ever worked with. He’s part of the reason AMMO exists and has tried a lot of high profile criminals that nobody else would touch cause they were afraid of the blowback.”

You shrugged, having already thought of this too. “The best criminals hide in plain sight, gain your trust and make sure you’d never think of them.”

“This ain’t Scooby Doo, alright? This is the real world, let’s get back to reality please.” You knew he didn’t mean anything by it, not really, but it felt like a dig.

“You don’t believe me? You think I’m making it all up?” You were defensive, ready to 

“I never said you were making it up, I’m just not convinced. What proof do you have?” He placated.

He had you there. There was no concrete evidence, nothing specific that made you feel like Lockwood was hiding something, but you just knew he was.

“I don’t have any, it’s just a gut feeling. Intuition or whatever you want to call it.”

“Intuition? You want me to investigate a man who will probably be the next mayor of Miami cause you feel something?”

He was being dismissive at best, belittling at worst. It irked you, especially because you knew he had done exactly that for others before. So why not for his wife?

“Would you do it if it was Rita?” It was a bit bitchy to ask, considering Rita had been nothing but kind to you despite being Mike’s ex. You had thought she’d be a point of contention for the two of you when you first started dating and you found out he worked with her all day, but it wasn’t. You weren’t using her now to pick a fight, just to prove a point. You knew if any of the AMMO team had come to him with the same amount of information you had, he’d chase every lead until there was nothing left.

“What?”

His surprise was warranted so you clarified, “would you look into it if Rita came to you and said she felt something off about Lockwood?” 

“Why are you bringing Rita into this?” His evasive answer made the hairs on your neck stand up. Why wouldn’t he answer the question? You were prepared for him to say yes and for you to point out the hypocrisy of his answer, but him refusing to answer? It put you on edge.

“Why are you ignoring the question?”

“I’m not.”

“Then answer the question. Yes or no?”

“Where is this coming from?” Another avoidance.

“Yes or no Mike?”

“Yes! Okay? Yes I would.”

“Why?”

“Why what?” He knew exactly what you were asking and honestly you were almost afraid of what this was leading to, but you couldn’t seem to stop yourself, to diffuse and come back with a calmer head so you pushed some more.

“Why would you do it for her and not me?”

“Don’t do that.”

“Is it because she’s a cop?”

“Y/N,”

“Or because you’ve known her longer?”

“Y/N,”

“Is it because she’s dating him and therefore closer to him?”

“Because I trust her!”

And wasn’t that a slap in the face.

“And you don’t trust me?” You whispered.

“Y/N,”

“What are we even doing if you don’t trust me Mike? What was the point in exchanging vows and being together if you can’t trust me?”

“I didn’t mean that.”

“You still said it.” Mike was at a loss for words, staring at you, hoping you’d understand but you couldn’t. The man you loved just told you he didn’t trust you. You had never felt so unmoored in your life. Everything about your relationship had just shifted in your view. “I’m gonna go stay in the guest room for the night,” you managed before turning away from him.

That had been the last time you saw him before he became a wanted man and you were kidnapped by McGrath. What you wouldn’t give to go back to that night and talk it all out instead of allowing hurt feelings to run the conversation. Now you could be killed before you got the chance to fix things.

You had faith in your husband’s abilities but McGrath held you and Marcus at gunpoint, blocking Mike’s view of himself.

“What you don’t know is one of ‘em can’t die.”

What the hell? Since when did one of you become immortal? What the hell was he doing? You missed his and Marcus’ exchange because you were so confused by the first statement, only jolted out of your thinking by the gun going off. Mike had shot Marcus to get him down and then shot McGrath. It was over, and Mike was running to you.

“I trust you, and I love you. I’m sorry I didn’t believe you before,” were the first words out of his mouth. He cut your restraints, pulling you into his embrace.

Too high off the adrenaline of the past day, you couldn’t have a real conversation about it with him so you let him know it was okay with a joke. “Bet you’ll never doubt my intuition again.”

He laughed and went to say something when you both heard Judy over the comms saying she’d found Armando. He looked at you in a panic, clearly not wanting to leave you but needing to get to Armando. “Go, I’ll check over Marcus and get us back to the team.” He didn’t waste another second, running to find his son.

It was later when you were escorted to an ambulance that you saw him again, rushing to get to you.

“Everything alright?”

The medic looked at you for permission to speak. “It’s okay he’s my husband.”

The medic nodded, answering his question with, “Its just a precaution sir. We just want to make sure there’s no hidden wounds that are being masked by the adrenaline.”

You were helped onto the back of the ambulance and the medic began her examination, checking your head for wounds and asking if you were hit at any point, blacked out or fell into something hard. You answered in the negative, stating you were pushed around a bit but not hit or thrown into anything. Any falling was the result of trying not to get hit by a bullet or the chopped that crashed. When it seemed she was about done with her examination you spoke up.

“Is it possible to do an ultrasound?”

“Ultrasound?” “Of course.” Mike and the medic spoke at the same time.

You reached out to grab Mike’s hand, tears in your eyes. “Yeah, an ultrasound.” Mike looked dumbfounded and you continued to look at him even as you spoke to the medic, “My OB said I was about nine weeks.”

The medic noted the information and readied the ultrasound. Before long the sound of your baby’s heartbeat filled the air and the fear you’d been holding back burst through you in the form of relief. Uncontrollable sobs wracked your body knowing you had managed to keep your baby safe. Mike held you closely, trying to calm your breathing.

You knew the two of you had some tough conversations in your future but right now all that mattered was that your little family was safe.

[probably-writing-x]

Right Here

Summary:

Warnings: Slight references to sex, fluffy as ever

Author’s Note: Kind of a shorter one but this request was so wholesome to write! Thank you so much for your suggestion <3

There were a lot of perks to dating Drew. He was a good boyfriend in every sense of the word. He cared for you, he made you laugh, he checked all of the boxes. Oh, and he was obviously good in bed. But, wasn’t that kind of a given?

Your favourite part though, was always the moments after. The hours after, on more occasions than not. In those times it was like it was only you and him in the whole world. Nobody else. You saw each other in the way that nobody else did.

His legs were tangled with yours, you laying with your head on top of his chest. His arms were around your back, drawing lines up and down the smooth skin, forming goosebumps in their shadows. You’re sure that you could stay like this forever, both of you not needing to speak.

Drew dips his head down and kisses your temple and you lift your head up to perch your chin on his pecs, looking up at him with tired eyes. He smiles, the sort of fatigued smile he gave you in the mornings, his hair sticking flatter on his head now laced with sweat.

“Was it me or you that forgot to shut the window?” He comments, breaking the silence after so much time had passed that you were no longer keeping track.

You turn your head and only now realise the light spilling through, curtains swaying in the breeze as both sides of the wide window were open, “Oh shit.”

He laughs, a deep rumble in his chest, underneath you, “Let’s just hope we weren’t too loud.”

You hit his chest and sit up a little, a blush flurrying it’s way over your cheeks. You were almost one hundred percent certain that, with Drew, it was definitely too loud.

“It’s fine, babe, don’t worry,” He wraps his arms tighter around you to pull you back down to him, “We’re high up here anyway.”

You settle back onto him and he kisses the top of your head, stretching out one arm away from you to grab his phone.

“Plus,” He says, tapping the screen a few times, “What could be more perfect?”

Through the speakers around the room, the sound of the playlist he had made for you starts filling the space, quiet and floating through the air towards the open window. From the angle of your apartment, the moonlight was spilling through, a full moon tonight. From this high up, the sound of the city is almost completely drowned out, just a gentle hum in comparison to how busy it really was.

Drew hums along to the tune of the song, a deep rumble underneath you with his voice still thick.

"I never want this to end," He speaks out, and it makes you frown, pulling away from his chest just a little.

"What do you mean?"

"This, the way we are now," He smiles at you, cupping one side of your face with his large hands, stretching it along the space of your cheek, "Even in five, ten years time, I want it to be exactly like this."

You know he cherishes times like this, when you don't have jobs pulling you apart, or press taking you into two different countries. You could just be the two of you, completely immersed in each other. Every bit of time just stood still, even when it felt like your lives normally moved at a thousand miles an hour. Right now, right here, it all just seemed to stop.

"Exactly like this?" You smile, sure that you could stare at his eyes for as long as you lived.

"Well, maybe with a ring on your finger by then," He tangles his outer hand back into yours, brushing over the empty space on your ring finger, "We could be in a big house just out of the city, maybe a dog and a garden with a pool."

You can't help but look at him with adoration. As much as you wanted to live in this moment, you couldn't wait for your future with him.

"Tell me more," You mumble, resting your head back on his chest and letting your eyes flutter shut.

The moon was casting a glow onto his face but you were sure it was brightened by the excitement that radiated from him as he spoke. He told you about date nights, and decorating the house together, and picking out furniture for the nursery you'd eventually need. At some point, you could feel the sleep take over you and you drift off into a slumber wrapped up in him.

Drew stays awake a little while longer, listening to the rhythm of your breathing, the way it seems to blend with the slow beat of the music. He fixates on the way your hair falls over his skin, tickling every patch that it touched. The way your hands were tucked around the back of his shoulders like you were drawing him into you, the way your legs slotted between his as if they were the perfect fit. Every part of you made him certain that you were exactly the person meant for him. So he held onto these moments, sure that he wanted them for the rest of his life.

[junnieverse]

UNTIL WE'RE 80 ➳ P. SUNGHOON

➙ synopsis: your friend was constantly swooning over her new boyfriend and you realise the honeymoon phase wasn't really in yours and sunghoon's relationship. it was nothing but constant teasing and playfulness but you both knew you would never change anything about it for the world.

pairing: park sunghoon x gn!reader

genre: fluff, crack, friends to lovers au

word count: 0.7k

request: [ inspired by this tiktok ] " you and hoon are with your friend who just got into a new relationship and is all like omg he’s so handsome, i love him so much. you and hoon just look at her all weird and say things like “i’d never think of him that way, look at him” cause u guys were friends before dating so it’s just ur dynamic and just being overall playful together but there are still times where you also talk about each other that way. "

warnings: not proofread, alot of teasing and name calling from reader and sunghoon

a/n: here it is anon! I didn't want to make it too long but I think this turned out so cute and pretty funny so thank you for this request angel, enjoy :)

"Oh geez dude, just the sight of you almost burnt my eyes." you tell Sunghoon who entered the room as you covered your eyes.

"Wow, I'm that handsome. My beauty blinded you." he says proudly smiling.

"More like your ugliness. Man what happened to your face." you playfully remark laughing as your friend holds in her laugh.

Ignoring your response, your boyfriend sits down next to you.

"Seriously, he is the cutest guy ever, I can't believe I get to call him my boyfriend." your friend continues to tell you about her new boyfriend.

"He should run for it while he can. I wish I did." sunghoon says side eyeing you. 

"He's amazing honestly. Last time he came over, he got me a bunch of flowers with my favourite snacks and chocolate." she says sighing dreamily.

"I wish I had a boyfriend to do that for me." you playfully respond sneaking a glance at your boyfriend who pinched your thigh as you had your legs over his lap.

Your friend looked between you and Sunghoon before pouting.

"Oh c'mon, you and Sunghoon have the best relationship ever, you're both pretty much the reason I didn't like being single half of the time." she admits to which Sunghoon chuckles.

"Please, Sunghoon? He's not all that, I could do better. I mean look at him lmao."

"If anything I should get a new partner. This one is all smelly and they like clinging to me." he teases you pretending to gag.

Flinging a pillow at him, he successfully dodges it and sticks his tongue out at you.

If anyone else saw the both of you they would think you and Sunghoon were just best friends who enjoyed bantering and teasing each other but you had both actually been dating for years now.

You'd been childhood friends and that soon turned into something romantic.

Having known each other for so long, your relationship dynamic didn't change much, you still enjoyed bickering and being playful, only difference was you did the couple stuff too now, like... dates and being overly affectionate.

"Oh shut up Hoon, I'm doing you a favour by dating you, nobody wanted you. You literally look like a weird frog." you tell him as you made a look of disgust.

Your friend looked between the two of you as you bickered but despite how you were going on roasting each other, your connection was undeniable.

You could make fun of your boyfriend all you wanted but at the end of the day he still brought butterflies to your stomach with his smile alone.

"Frog? Bro you're built like the hunchback of Notre-Dame. Please look at yourself. I'm gorgeous." he retorts winking at you as he complimented himself.

"Look at you, you're a total simp, giving me those heart eyes-" you tease Sunghoon as you laughed at him and your friend joined along.

"Am not! I'm looking at you because you have a fat booger sticking out your nose loser." he defends himself before he attacks you.

Hovering over you, Sunghoon starts tickling you and he was quick to find your weak spots to make you laugh even harder.

"Stop hahaha, I-I can't take it Sunghoon." you try your best to say losing your breath.

He momentarily stops pretending to think, "Hmm... I'll stop on one condition. You give me a kiss."

"What? No way, your breath stinks like butt crack." you tease him before he starts his ruthless attack again.

"O-okay okay fine! I'm sorry, I'll do it!" you surrender and he stops.

Leaning down, you give your boyfriend a quick peck on his lips and your friend clears her throat indicating she was still there.

"Oh you both are completely whipped. I have an entire boyfriend and you still manage to make me feel single once again." she says shaking her head.

"Bros before hoes. How about I dump him and then we can have a girls night!" you suggest giving her a high five as Sunghoon scoffs.

"You know I'm not going anywhere anytime soon." he sits up ruffling your hair messing it up as you slap his hand away.

"Maybe we do have to get rid of our boyfriend's then it'll just be us. No more boys being gross around us!" your friend joins in the playfulness as Sunghoon glares at her.

"Oh you can't get rid of me, I'll be annoying you until we're 80." sunghoon says with an arm around your shoulder before kissing your cheek.

Rolling your eyes at this, you knew you wouldn't have it any other way.

[ddollfface]

𝐀 𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐟𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐉𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐲

𝙆𝙞𝙮𝙤𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙞 𝙆𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙪 𝙔𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙨 (𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩 2.)

Warnings; yandere behavior, bad writing, stalking, creepy letters, misogyny, pushy behavior, me rambling, groping, touchy behavior, reader is a girl, not proofread, Tumblr's a bitch btw :/ If I missed anything, then please let me know ♡ I'm fully aware that nobody wanted this (I see all of you in my inbox, I'm getting to you, trust), but this little rat has been stuck in my mind. Ngl I have a love-hate relationship with Kiyosumi, but it's whatever. Enjoy :)

Okay, I don't like Kiyosumi. He's mean, brash, loud, arrogant, and doesn't think before he acts, overall there are no redeeming qualities to his personality. And I don't think he'd ever change for someone else, whether it be his master, Doppo, a lover, or a friend. He's stuck in his ways and doesn't want to see the world in any other way. And I just know that if I were to ever meet Kiyosumi (if he were real), we would absolutely loathe each other.

Everything about him genuinely pisses me off, and I can't imagine how anyone could enjoy his presence, so this is why I think Kiyosumi would be an absolute freak to have on your ass. There's no way any sane wo/man would ever consider being in a relationship with him unless they were being held hostage.

I believe that Kiyosumi would be a stalker, through and through. He doesn't have the charisma that Jun or Katsumi (though it's clumsy) have. He's rude and annoying, which is clear throughout the series, but this doesn't mean he doesn't have experience with women. He does, but he doesn't retain any of the information, his head is too stuck up his ass to recognize what works and what doesn't.

He doesn't know how to get a woman into his bed without paying her; he doesn't know how to get a girl to laugh, nor does he know how to get someone to like him. Even though he's an attractive man, he can't seem to get anyone to stay.

Kiyosumi is the butt of the joke, no matter who he's talking to. Everyone makes fun of him and sees him as a weak martial artist, leading him to use extreme measures to appease his own ego, seeing as no one else will. This is why he uses underhanded tactics while fighting, and I think this applies to his dating life. Now, this leads me to the type of girls Kiyosumi would pine after.

The first type is sweet, caring, and sensitive. She can't stand up for herself and flinches at the slight raise in tone. Overall, this type of girl is very insecure and usually sticks to herself or her very, very close circle (who she's likely known since she was a little girl).

If this matches you, then well aren't you lucky. Now you have Kiyosumi tracking your ass. He won't leave you alone, no matter how many times you whisper for him to back off, albeit politely. He takes every stutter, breaking off eye contact, and flushed cheeks as a sign that you're interested in him, not able to get it through his thick skull that you're uncomfortable.

With this type of reader, I see Kiyosumi being an abusive, manipulator who's taking advantage of someone who's smaller than him, both physically and mentally. Kiyosumi enjoys the control you give him, seeing as you don't demean him like everyone else. You're nice to him, though you shouldn't be. You're unnaturally giving, and at first, it makes him conscious, believing that you've got some trick up your sleeve.

Kiyosumi has genuinely never felt such kindness that he's developed major trust issues, which have formed into anger issues. He belives that he's being underappreciated in the martial arts, but you give him the recognition he's looking for. You don't say anything mean to him, if anything you're complimenting him (you're not)!

I feel horrible for this type of reader, far too much of a nervous wreck to say shit to Kiyosumi, letting his hands wander where they shouldn't be. You feel as if you're not in a place of power, in a high enough authority to say anything. Maybe if you just keep your mouth shut he'll leave you alone, right?

It's better to just ignore how his hand slowly creeps down, down, down, settling on your ass, cupping the fat, and squeezing; to ignore how his eyes linger on your cleavage, which you've covered as much as possible, not wanting any attention from Kiyosumi. Or how he wraps his arm around your shoulder, pressing his chest to your back, forcing you to feel ever muscle, the raw power they hold.

Though Kiyosumi is weak in the grand scheme of things; you don't know that, so he uses that to his advantage, forcing you into compromising situations. You're clearly not comfortable with his advantages, tugging on his hand when he caresses your waist, his sweaty hands practically leaving stains on your light sundress.

He chooses to ignore when you actively lean away from him, not wanting to catch a whiff of his alcohol-drenched breath, no gum can fix his rank breath. The grease colllecting in his onyx hair, made the gel shine a little too much.

Kiyosumi is just gross, and clearly not a ladies' man. Hell! You doubt that Kiyosumi has even interacted with a woman who isn't his mom! But you'd never tell him that, you don't think you'd survive the stare he'd give you seconds after. Living for others' approval has been your goal since you were a little girl, and seeing such a disapproving stare would break you.

But that's what Kiyosumi likes about you. You're just so soft, so nice, and sweet. You'd never undervalue him like all the other women do, like Doppo does. No, you wouldn't do that to him, you're far too kind for that (he acts like he knows you better than you know yourself).

Kiyosumi will try to pressure you into advancing your "relationship" at a rapid pace. At one moment, he's following you around work, trying to get your number and the next he's sleeping in your bed, hogging the blanket like an ass.

It makes your head spin and knees quake. Your life has spun upside down, no longer looking the same as just a few months ago. Kiyosumi has weaseled his way into your life, securing himself in your home like a leech.

Now he can make sure that no other man is getting even close to you. No, no, no you cannot even speak to other men. Kiyosumi wants your eyes on him, and only him. He's not letting you go, not after he's found the jackpot, you. You're the only person who's "appreciated" him on this level; you're like his sweet, little honeypot, that only he has. He doesn't want to share his new toy with the other boys, not when you're so damn cute.

UGH! He's literally the definition of an ICK. I hate him so much because, c'mon angel face, don't you know we're in this together? All you have to do is trust me, and let me take the reins, yeah? Just let me be the man. Now, just sit your cute ass down, and shut your mouth.

[shiut]

How much did Yakou know?

Very long and detailed analysis of Yakou's involvement in the plot beneath the cut.

Yakou is an interesting character to me. He gets his own mildly insightful short story about his detective origins. However, I crave to think that there's gotta be more to him than just the kind of pathetic (affectionate) stressed out dad-like figure that mostly kind of nags and bosses Yuma around for the majority of the game.

Ok, it sounds like I'm ragging on him, but he does have an occasional side of him in dire situations where he shows a selfless loyalty and trust in his team that proves he takes his leadership position seriously, even if he does really rock the irresponsible mess look. And he gets to be cool in his own chapter for a minute.

But there is a moment that sticks out to me, especially in hindsight after finishing the game, and that's the prologue where you get your first and probably most substantial talk with him.

He says that he does not want Kanai Ward to change practically within the same breath where he explains how terribly he's treated as a detective in this horrendously corrupt murder infested police state.

Although he makes it clear that he has a deep personal affection and nostalgic attachment to this city that shows a bias for why he would say this, we hear from multiple people throughout the game that Kanai Ward has not been the same in recent years as it has been in the past that Yakou has rooted his love in.

So why does he feel as if any change to the current state of Kanai Ward would disrupt the "peace and quiet" it deserves?

Unless he knows something about the city that's just so fundamentally irreparable that this is the closest to peace and quiet that it'll ever get again, and trying to fix it would only somehow destroy it.

Everything about the rooftop scene, from talking about the city, to Shinigami commenting on how ominous he feels to her, to the fact that he's the person who explains the rumor that the rain affects peoples' bodies.

Highlighted text tends to be easy to overlook, but I can't help but feel like there's some significance to his usage of "illusion in the rain". It's like he knows something that nobody else can see (and an obvious foreshadowing of how the rain is one of the main means of covering up Kanai Ward's mystery).

But this segues into the themes of his later chapter which also focuses on Vivia, who mirrors Yakou in a lot of ways, beyond just being another guy who muses on about peace and quiet.

Speaking of, a mirror is what Vivia uses as a metaphor for the benefit of blissful ignorance and the potential catastrophic dangers of the painful truth.

For the purposes of this chapter, he is explaining the type of pain and the effect on Yuma's world view that uncovering Yakou's crime will incur. It also acts as a setup for the development of Yuma's conviction that he will later need to use in the final chapter of the game. But the distorted reality the Vivia explains in the mirror does call me back to Yakou's "illusion in the rain" comment.

Vivia also explains that the truth that Yuma uncovers for truth's sake will lead to the destruction of the world. While he could be referring to the world and humanity in general, in the context of this chapter, world can mean a lot of things though, such as Yuma's innocence in the way he views the world as he knows it.

Or namely, from Makoto's point of view, it could also mean the destruction of the homunculi and the only version of the world that Makoto believes they can exist in.

Did Yakou come to a similar conclusion as Makoto based on what he found out?

Like Vivia in chapter 4, who did not want the culprit to be revealed, it seemed like Yakou had the full intention of not cooperating with investigating the Kanai Ward mystery until he was forced to by a directive from Number One. Even so, he came off as if encouraging the detectives to drag their feet on it for the sake of staying out of trouble.

But we know that he is not lazy, unmotivated, or stupid. In a world where you're competing with people who are fast-tracked into the WDO if they have literal super powers, Yakou was inducted by pure detective skill. He had definitely been spending a lot of his time laying low and investigating Kanai Ward himself, because he didn't trust the UG or the WDO if they turned their attention to the city.

Yakou already knew about the homunculus research in some way.

Even if he didn't know about everyone being a homunculus, he at least knew enough that he believed that the city itself would be shattered by the involvement of the UG and WDO.

And then we get to chapter 5 with the mindless zombie homunculi.

Except, they're not all completely mindless. As a matter of fact, I had come to notice something about all the non-aggressive homunculi: they all seemed to have some degree of awareness about Amaterasu's research.

The fake Zilch, who was one of Yomi's closest advisors and knew about all of Dr Huesca's and Yomi's activity in the lab concerning homunculus research, and was implied to be the one who killed Yakou's wife for whistleblowing. Fink, who was propositioned by Makoto himself to infiltrate the lab, and who was then killed by Makoto for 'knowing too much'. Dr Huesca, who was the head researcher for the homunculi. And the former CEO, who was the prime overseer of the research.

And then there was Yakou, who gives Yuma the video evidence of Dr Huesca's death at the hands of the homunculi as he explained the results of the experiment. The easy explanation is that Makoto planted this video on the zombie Yakou to be given to Yuma in the restricted area.

However, another thing that the non-aggressive zombies had in common is that they seemed to be stuck thinking about what seems to be their final thoughts before their death, barring the former CEO who was unusually lucid compared to all of them.

Considering this, I feel like Yakou's final thoughts were for Yuma to expose the truth about the homunculi for him, and to give him the DVD as the key evidence he needed. Whether Makoto gave Yakou this video, or if Yakou already had this video himself, his final thought before dying was to make sure Yuma got it.

I always thought it was a bit strange for Yakou to go and decide to murder Dr Huesca at the slightest provocation by Yomi, and then had this whole complicated coverup plan. If Kurumi could look into Yakou's background for only a day and come to the conclusion that Amaterasu had killed his wife for whistleblowing, then Yakou himself would've definitely already known and could've tried to kill Dr Huesca a long time ago.

I don't think the provocation was by Yomi's letter. I believe at some point, he had found out that Huesca and Yomi could possibly leak information about the homunculus research. He decided to kill Huesca as a gambit reveal Yomi's involvement with leaking research before it could get out into the public and destroy Kanai Ward, and he entrusted this truth to Yuma and the rest of his detectives. Yakou knew that the lie that they were living, the one that was keeping Kanai Ward together, wasn't going to last much longer.

This conveniently aligned with Makoto's motives to oust Yomi. Makoto, the one who also knew that Yomi would cause the lie holding Kanai Ward together to unravel, and who happened to introduce Fink to Yakou. Fink thought that Yakou did not know about Makoto orchestrating their meeting, and perhaps he was right in that Yakou didn't know that it was Makoto specifically, but maybe Makoto was the one who tipped Yakou off to Amaterasu's homunculus research possibly being leaked and may have even given Yakou the DVD.

Makoto may not have exactly manipulated Yakou. It just simply that both Yakou and Makoto similarly knew that the UG sticking their nose into Kanai Ward about the homunculus research was incredibly dangerous. Makoto simply gave Yakou the ultimatum and means to stop Yomi. The difference is that Makoto's goal was to get rid of Yomi and assume full control of the city in order to further suppress its secret, but Yakou's goal was the provide the truth to his detectives in order to fix things.

And I wrote all this BEFORE the Yakou DLC came out.

Where we find out that Yakou has had the prototype cure for homunculi the whole time. And depending on whether or not his wife here is a ghost or a hallucination, it seems like she had always known that there would be a need to regenerate the zombified brain cells of homunculi. Yakou might've been biding time not only to try and figure out how to reconcile the whole homunculus research issue without the UG destroying Kanai Ward, but maybe also for someone to finish research on this medicine.

TLDR; Yakou had always known about the homunculus research and was hiding it because he believed that the info getting leaked would cause the destruction of Kanai Ward by the hands of the UG. In the end, he figured out that the secret would not keep up for much longer, and his plot in chapter 4 wasn't for revenge, but to entrust that Yuma and the rest of his detectives would be able to uncover the truth and work out a way to save Kanai Ward.

[laundrybiscuits]

(continued from this snippet)

“You could—” Jonathan moves his hands through the air like he’s conducting an invisible orchestra.

“I don’t know what that means,” Eddie tells him. They’ve been smoking all afternoon, so Jonathan’s even more of a space case than usual.

“He means you could pretend, dude,” says Argyle, who is putting little braids into Eddie’s hair. It’s very soothing. “Like, fake it ‘til you make it.”

“I mean. It would be good for Will to see, like…happily ever after. But gay. You know?” Jonathan tips the last of the Dorito crumbs into his mouth and contemplates the empty bag with devastatingly sorrowful eyes.

“That is the worst idea I’ve ever heard,” says Eddie. “Congrats, by the way, because I’ve heard a lot of bad ideas in my time, and I thought I knew all the major contestants. But lo and behold, dark horse Byers swoops in to steal the crown! The crowd goes wild.” He makes a raspy aaaaaah sound and wiggles his fingers to symbolize a packed stadium at the Bad Idea Olympic Games.

“That’s my boy,” says Argyle, reaching over to ruffle Jonathan’s hair. “Great job, brochacho.”

Eddie’s never totally sure whether Argyle’s doing an extended bit or not, and it’s the fucking best.

“So, you’ll do it?” Jonathan asks hopefully. He’s like a puppy dog, the way he perks up.

“Fuck no,” says Eddie. “Absolutely not under any circumstances. Fuck off.”

“Dude, I totally respect that,” says Argyle, starting on another braid. “Gotta honor your truth, Ed-head. Can’t shine a hella dope light from a flashlight powered by lie-batteries.”

“Every day I thank a god I don’t believe in for your presence in my life,” Eddie informs him.

———

Annoyingly, Jonathan doesn’t give up on the idea. What’s worse, he tries to be sneaky about it.

Eddie rolls up late to the next movie night, because he’s not always great with things like having a basic understanding of time and space. When he walks into the Byers-Hopper living room, Jonathan calls out, “Eddie, hey! There’s—you can sit here on the couch if you want. By Steve.”

Eddie gives him an unimpressed look. Jonathan doesn’t even have the decency to be phased by Eddie’s scorn, just shifts over to make room on the couch between him and Steve.

“Aww,” coos Eddie. “Did you miss me that much, Johnny-boy?” He drops right into Jonathan’s lap, slinging an arm around his neck.

“Why are you so heavy,” says Jonathan. “You look like if a stick figure had a baby with a mop.”

Eddie cackles. “It’s all the heavy metal. Weighs down my soul with whips and chains and demonic energy.”

“Jeez, you two, get a room.” Steve rolls his eyes.

The look of pure panic that crosses Jonathan’s face is pretty hilarious, all things considered.

“I’m not gay!” Jonathan blurts out. “Not that there would be—anything wrong with it. If I were. Because, um, gay people deserve love too. Because they’re just like us. I mean, people who aren’t gay. Which is me. I’m not. But it would be okay if I was.”

Will looks like he wants a rift to swallow him up where he sits, but Eddie thinks he looks a little bit pleased, too. It’s nice that Jonathan is trying so hard, even if Eddie has one or two notes on the execution.

“Okay, big guy,” says Eddie, patting Jonathan on the cheek. “Don’t have to throw a parade about it or anything.”

The movie’s okay, Eddie guesses. It’s Nancy’s pick, which means it’s a fast-talking political thriller that nobody but Robin can ever really follow. Afterwards, Steve leans over to him and says, “Hey, are you still out of Coke? I can pick some up on my way over after I drop Dustin off.”

Will gives Eddie a look, which is totally unjustified because this is a completely normal friend thing. Steve’s parents are in town, so he’s been spending a few nights camping out at Eddie’s, because everyone else has parents who’d probably object. It’s perfectly logical and completely normal. It’s not like he can bunk with Robin. Also, Robin kicks like a horse in her sleep.

But even though Eddie knows it’s a completely normal friend thing, he can also kind of see why Will might’ve gotten the wrong idea.

“Um,” he says. “Actually, maybe—not tonight? I just, Wayne’s been wanting to spend some more, like, uncle-nephew quality bonding time. You know he’s still kind of…” Eddie shrugs, grimacing. It’s true; Wayne’s been making a real effort to know what Eddie’s up to these days. Even though he hasn’t said anything, Eddie knows he’s traded some shifts to make their schedules line up a little better. So, everything Eddie’s saying is absolutely true and above-board, and there’s no reason for a weird squirmy guilty feeling to take up residence in his gut.

“Oh,” says Steve. “Sure, yeah, no problem.”

(ETA: yeah okay it's technically a series now)

[sehtoast]

Tender Threads CH7 (Homelander x OC)

chapter seven: a real hero

chapter directory | slow burn, hurt/comfort, fluff, spidersona as original character, original trans male character, smut, sublander

summary: there's more to being a hero than the strings in your back. isn't that right, little spider?

“You ever run out of that, uh… goo?”  

Now it was time to learn the ropes for saves.

“I uhm,” thwip. “No, not really.”

Not saves saves, of course.  No.

“What, d’you make it constantly then?”

Scripted saves– the ones The Seven really did.  It wasn’t just The Deep whose heroics were orchestrated and directed.  Even Homelander was subject to Vought’s oversight when it came to being a superhero, which was far from what Benjamin expected.  See, it made sense for someone like The Deep to be fully scripted. Realistically, nobody was going to be committing crimes underwater in the traditional sense in a way that Vought could market.  Even then, he isn’t quite bright enough to catch the common smuggler anyhow.

So it came as a surprise that the others were restricted in the same way.

“Uhm… sort of?”  Ben says, arcing through the air and shooting his next web while Homelander floats leisurely beside him.  “Just kinda happens, y’know?  I don’t make it on purpose.”

They’d just finished their third official save.  Some stunt man paid exorbitant amounts of money by Vought to stick up some mom and pop joint that likely also received a nice payout for their manufactured troubles.  

The usual:  swoop in, stop him, web him up, Homelander brings him to justice– i.e. Vought Tower– while the adoring public watches and records the whole thing.  Cut and dry, just like the last two had been.

“Gross.”  Homelander smirks, eyes rolling.  “Sticky and strong.  Anything else, or are you just boring?”

Ben signals for them to land atop a well known little place, hopping onto the wall to prepare to run alongside it only to be thwarted by Homelander’s arms hooking under his and zipping them to the top.

Benjamin peers off the edge of the eagle shaped perch.

“Show off,” Ben accuses with a light laugh, stomach fluttering at the smirk and wink Homelander gives in response.  

Oh…  that’s not– 

“I’m…”  The bug hums.  Truthfully, it’s always easier to show instead of tell.  “I mean it’s mostly a ‘what you see is what you get’ kind of deal with me, but I can–”  

Ben holds a hand up, fingers splayed, and he closes his eyes.  He musters that odd feeling, like floating within the realm of himself, letting every speck of his being flow through his body, to his arm, to his fingertips, willing the electrons to release and–

A small zap of electricity crackles from the tip of his index finger, fizzling out as fast as it arrived.

Ben huffs a sigh.  “Harder than it looks.”  And, with the way it’s always been, never to be anything more than a teeny tiny party trick.  Some kind of bio-electricity, he’d surmised years ago, but never anything he’s had much control over.

Homelander snorts a laugh, but the fascination in his eyes betrays him.  For a second he seems to lose himself, lips parting, an unfocused look overtaking his features before he blinks rapidly– a tic of sorts Ben has begun to notice more and more.

“You okay?”  The bug asks, head tilted with a lens surely mimicking the arch of his brow. 

“Peachy.” Homelander deadpans, giving his head a small shake.  

But he doesn’t seem that way at all.

Think, Ben, think.  

“D’you wanna…”  He tries, foot scuffing on the ground to fidget out his nerves.  Strange, though, that none of that anxiousness was fear.  Not at all like when Homelander dropped that bomb on him or when he saw old glory swaying behind the proscenium wall during his speech.  It’s… different now, somehow. Maybe he’s just starting to get used to everything. The threats have faded, the danger has passed… It’s not the same as it was a few weeks back.  “Wanna go find like, actual assholes?”

Great phrasing, dumbass.

The brow raised in his direction makes the bug stutter out a correction.  “Like, y’know, real criminals.  We could take five and… I dunno, swing around– er, swing and fly, I guess.”

“What, were three saves not enough for you?”  Homelander asks, blinking as an unreadable smile settles upon his lips. False and genuine all at once. 

“Afraid you can’t keep up?”  Benjamin teases, once again scuffing his foot against the surface of the perch.  “Scripts are boring.  If we’re stuck together ‘til nine, we might as well have fun, right?”

The corners of Homelander’s lips quirk up a little higher.

He’s rebelled in his time as a hero.  Flown off to fuck knows where, run away from the noise of the city and isolated himself in the stratosphere any number of times.  But he’s never done this. And, frankly, why the fuck would he?  

Homelander was an icon of heroism.  He didn’t need to actually go snooping through the city's troubles to retain that status, nor did he particularly want to.  But somehow this is the one time he doesn’t find himself gnawing his bottom lip in annoyance at the mere thought of helping the poor denizens of New York's disgusting, piss-reeking streets.

He keeps his eyes trained on Benjamin’s form the whole time.  Even that was odd.  Trailing behind the bug, letting him lead.  Sure, Homelander could focus and hear each and every little disturbance at the cost of his sanity, but Ben practically knew where things would go wrong.  What alleys to check, which streets, parks, everywhere.

It’s the first time it strikes Homelander that the bug has been at this for quite a while.

Their first catch of the night is a gaggle of filth trying to break into a car.  They’re not even smart about it, talking loudly, rattling a wire hanger against the slightly cracked opening of the passenger side door in an effort to hook the lock.   The bug toys with them, quipping here and there as he knocks them around.

The best, though, was when Homelander descended from the sky and the group collectively pissed their pants.  Just a flicker of red in his eyes was enough to have them quaking, sending a shiver of exhilaration down Homelander’s spine at the sight.  Their fear is delicious.   It’s what those fucking scripted saves always lack.

It’s real. 

Were he on his own, he’d have just let loose a beam of heat to cut through all of them and call it a job well done.  Sure blood and guts would spill everywhere and there'd be a little property damage, but Vought had cleanup crews for a reason.  Wasn’t his fault if a little crime fighting made a mess.

Instead, he helps round them up.  Watches as Ben webs them into one big mass and then, ever the gentleman, he hoists them by a thread to dangle from a nearby streetlight to save Benjamin the effort.  He makes sure to smile pretty for all of the cell phones that get pointed in his direction.

Beside him on a nearby rooftop, the bug swats his hands clean of dirt and huffs a laugh.  “Much better than that bullshit earlier, yeah?” 

“Mm,” he hums, cocking his head to the side. “I would’ve left ‘em with some permanent reminders for not being fucking degenerates, but I guess.” 

“Yeah… let’s– that’s doin’ a little too much, y’know?” Ben says, clearly put off by the implications.  “C’mon, let’s go.  Cops’ll be here soon, and I’m pretty sure I’m still on their shit list even if Vought settled my warrants.”

Exhilarating was too weak of a word for it.

They’ve been out all night at this rate.  The city was a mess on a good day, but fate must have been cooking up an especially busy night just for them.  Muggings, burglaries, assaults, fires.  And with a speed like Homelander’s, it wasn’t hard to cover that much ground.

Something he has no problem bragging about to Ben.

There came a point where the best course of action was for him to zip around the city with the bug in his arms, listening closely for trouble, then hurling Benjamin at whatever scum decided to bless their night with a little fun.  Hell, even with Ben’s do-good mentality and infuriatingly noble no-killing rule, there was still so much enjoyment in doing something real. It’s almost a pity that it came to an end.

The two decided to call it a night, but still somehow ended up lingering with one another on top of the Queensboro Bridge.

“What do you mean she’ll be mad at us?”  Ben asks, brows furrowed as he leans forward to verify Homelander wasn’t simply lying for fun.

“Oh yeah.  Madelyn’s a thorn in the fuckin’ side about following rules.”  He says nonchalantly. Truth be told, he was in no rush to be met with the backlash they’d both inevitably be receiving for their work tonight.  Paperwork!  Verifications!  Legality! All the bullshit he’s sure to have thrown in his face tomorrow with, hopefully, Benjamin at his side to suffer with him.  “She didn’t give you the talk yet?  You were supposed to stop your antics as soon as you signed on.”

“HUH?”  

“Them’s the rules.”  Homelander purses his lips, gaze falling to the heights below.  Cars passing, headlights dancing along the bridge, the water glistening along the shores of Roosevelt Island.

“Oh, fuck that.” Ben declares, defiance heavy in each word.  “Someone’s higher than a kite if they think I’m stopping.  This is like my whole thing!  You promised I’d–”

There’s a touch of guilt, oddly enough.  Sure, he had an inkling that Vought would start putting such restrictions on the bug, but he mostly expected them to let him carry on.  Like Benjamin said, that is his ‘whole thing.’  It was the niche that made him into the hero he was.  There had been no mention of a cease and desist during the selection stage.  The bug was simply an emergency candidate with stellar public reception despite the media’s distaste for him.  A perfect fit.  Easily marketable, already well liked, enough controversy to keep his name in headlines for eternity… 

What wasn’t to want? Homelander signed off on him within seconds.

“Did you know..?”  Ben asks, defiance turning to something far more somber.  Homelander peeks over to find the bug staring down at the abyss of the river, feet kicking from over the rail they sat upon.

“No.”

It’s not a lie.  Not the truth, but not a full lie.  So why the fuck does his mouth keep running? 

“I thought they might, but I didn’t think they would.”  Shit, shit, shit.   Say something, say it fast, recover now. “But, as far as you're concerned… I’m your boss.”

Benjamin’s brows furrow.  “You’ve said as much, but–”

He holds up a hand to silence the boy.  “Which means it’s up to me if you have to stop.  Not some chucklefucks in suits who have never been heroes a day in their pathetic little lives.”  That hand lands upon Ben’s shoulder, gripping firm, but not too tight. “We’re heroes, not them. You and me, tonight?  We were fucking superheroes! D’you have any idea…”  He stops to clear his throat, looking away briefly as his eyes glass over.

The last time he tried to genuinely be a superhero and stop wrongdoers flickers through his mind like a picture booklet with all the haze of the projectors from the lab.  The screams echo in his ears, the ammunition in those guns bursting from the heat of his lasers, all those civilians howling in terror as he fucked up every goddamn step of it all just to have his ass covered by Noir.  Twenty-some years in the past, but the taste of smoke and death has never left his mouth.

Tonight was nothing like that.

“Tomorrow, when Stillwell’s up our asses…” No, no… that’s not how he wants to say it.  “Keep being you.  Keep being a goddamn superhero.  That’s your job.”

How long has he so desperately hated being a fucking marionette for Vought to yank around to sing and dance for their gain?  All the times he’s grilled the team about who they’ve saved just to hear the garbage fucking fake stunts Vought had coordinated for them that he’d already read about in advance… Now, to have someone legitimate, to have someone breaking the corporate mold?

Benjamin was a fucking godsend.  A genuine superhero.  A building block, if not the foundation, to the dream of true heroism that’s festered within Homelander’s heart since childhood.

The smile that greets him makes him feel like he might just be one too.

The flight back to the tower is slow.  Benjamin is sleepy in his arms– something that’s started to seem like an extremely common quality of the bug.  Even during the daylight, he always seems to be ready for a nap.  Despite that, though, Ben continues engaging in their banter.

Just before they’d decided to call it quits and get some rest, the bug raised yet another invasive question that he had zero reason to even be interested in.

‘What’s your name?’ Ben had asked.

Other than annoying, it was somewhat amusing to see Benjamin once again trying to get to know him.  The time in the makeup room had been bad enough, having been accused of his whole public life being a lie.

Having been accused accurately…

It made his teeth itch to know someone could see past it all.  That there was an inkling of doubt in what he’s been convincing the public of for decades was… unsettling.  The bug was smart, though– almost to a fault.  All the intellect in the world wouldn’t necessarily stop him from poking the bear until he’d find his hand trapped between its teeth.

“C’mon, it’s only fair since you know mine!”  The way he giggles as if he weren’t asking something so… difficult.

There is no good relationship between Homelander and his given name.  It was simply a label assigned to a product in development, nothing more.  An echo of humanity forever chaining him to the tortures he’d never asked for.  Why should he give that away? Why give it one more hold over him? 

“No.” Homelander says for the umpteenth time.

“Fiiiine,” Ben whines, yawning right after.  “I’ll get you some day, though.  You like me, I can tell.”

Whatever that’s supposed to mean…

They’re outside the access panel to Benjamin’s apartment, but the bug doesn’t let go.

“I’d rather be your friend.” Ben confesses, and it’s so fucking earnest that it almost makes Homelander drop out of the air entirely. 

The first thing he does is check if it’s a goddamn lie.  Heart rate, cortisol, adrenaline– it’s all in check.

That’s the worst part.

“We got off on a pretty bad note, I’ll give you that,” Ben chuckles. “I mean, you gave me one hell of a run for my money, but I’m starting to think you’re not as bad as you wanted me to think you are, y’know?  You’re weeeeird, but I get the feeling there's more to you under all that.”

If he only knew the real you, eh tiger?

The bug departs from his hold to cling to the wall, turning to rest against it and stare into what must be the most pathetic fucking expression Homelander’s ever had on his face.  He can practically feel that damned deer-in-the-headlights look settling in.

“And if you ever decide we’re good enough buds that I can learn about you, then I, Benjamin Elliot Colyer, would be happy to know what Mister Homelander’s name actually is.”

His gaze falls, dropping all ninety-nine floors to the streets below.  He can’t explain why the corners of his mouth tug.  Why, even with all of his expertise with acting and self control, he can’t quite contain the way the odd sensation in his gut manifests into the smallest sign of happiness– or maybe it was appreciation.  Maybe it just felt nice to have someone nipping at his heels for the chance of getting to know him.

The real him. 

He floats closer to the bug, lips parted as if he means to speak.  But he doesn’t.  He simply extends one hand and presses against the wall panel, opening it the whole way.  With the other, he reaches out for Ben and guides him inside.

“Get some sleep, Benjamin.”  Homelander murmurs.  

Something in his chest feels tight.  Their time ending seems like a tragedy.  But why?

Ben offers him a drowsy grin in return. “You too, Homie.”  He says.  This time, Ben gets to see the amused roll of the eyes such a nickname deserves.

“And make sure you wake up on time.  I don’t wanna have to face the big bad wolf all by myself.”

[piratefishmama]

Crossing The Line | Part 14

Said metalhead was wearing a leather jacket, black, ripped at the knee denim jeans with a wallet chain dangling from a belt loop draped round to his back pocket, a bullet belt, that shouldn’t have been as attractive as it was, combat boots, and an iron maiden tee.

His hair was its seemingly usual unruly mass of dark brown curls, and he had lightly smudged dark eyeliner around his eyes to make his eyes pop. That was the extent of how much effort Eddie had put into his outfit. And yet he looked like the tastiest little snack Steve had ever seen in his life, he loved it.

They were like polar opposites style wise but from the look on Eddie’s face they were both exactly what each other wanted.

“Sweater vest for Eddie” Steve parroted with a warm smile and a bashful little, “I figured… I mean… I thought you’d like it.”

Now, Eddie had turned up at that apartment, with the intention of figuring out whether or not Steve was wearing ear plugs at his gig and just lying to him to get into his pants (which, flattering, but also rude), and going from there.

But then Steve opened the door in that sweater vest. With that smile. Claiming he wore it because he thought Eddie would like it and his heart just did a series of pathetic flip flops and any hope of Eddie ever being mad even if he did wear earplugs went out the window because what the fuck. What the fuck.

What the ever-loving fuck.

How was this man real?

He needed to send Mike Wheeler a goddamn gift basket for sort of introducing him to the guy although he was pretty sure Mike would blow a gasket knowing he was severely crushing on the guy who apparently ‘ruined’ crazy train.

He didn’t even ruin it, it was just… a different style than Crazy Train was supposed to be in! “I love it… suits you way more than the metal look, definitely should have worn it for the gig.” Would have stuck out like a sore thumb but by god he’d have been the prettiest thing there.

Cool as a cucumber, Steve leaned himself against the doorframe, that bashful smile turning coy with just the raise of a brow and the flash of teeth “I dunno, then I’d have missed the look on your face just now.”

“Well I mean, sweater vests, cute glasses, slippers, are we having a cosy night in, Stevie?” Be cool, be cool, be super cool, don’t be a weird little nerd, don’t be a weird little nerd.

Steve reached out, warm hands taking Eddie’s own, then gently, he tugged Eddie inside. “Well, we can if you come in.” And he was hit by a wall of something delicious. A smell so delightful that his stomach just had to rumble in protest over the fact that he wasn’t already eating it.

Ear plugs? Who gave a shit about ear plugs really?

Okay no, he had to stick to some morals, even if his stomach was angrily telling him to wait until after dinner because then at least if Steve turned out to be a very sneaky asshole, he’d at least have gotten a meal out of the night.

“Wait wait” the door was closed but at least Steve seemed to pause, that smile dropping, replaced by curiosity, god how did he make that look cute? Stupid knitwear an glasses combo. “Okay so… this is probably gonna sound dumb, but Frank noticed it, y’know Frank, our bassist? He uhm… he noticed you were wearing what looked like ear plugs at the gig and uh…” oh god the eyes widened, his eyes widened, Eddie wanted the floor to swallow him whole. First real date in god. How many years? And he was fucking it up by bringing up something nobody else would bring up on a date with Steve Goddamn Harrington. “…Were they… earplugs?”

Fuckers would probably just be happy to be there. Could wear those big ol construction site noise cancelling headphones and nobody else would bat an eyelid, but it was about PROFESSIONAL COURTESY, Eddie was a musician too!

He didn’t want to be on a date with someone in the industry (wildly different success rates with it but WHO CARES) who was lying about liking his music to get in his pants.

It could have gone a few different ways, gaslighting being one of them, but Steve smiled, he had such a pretty smile good lord. “Mmhm, c’mere I’ll show you.” Steve was still holding his hand, so Steve had the full capability of pulling him through the entryway toward one of the two bedrooms in the obviously temporary apartment, probably just rented for the time they were there like an Air BnB situation. The room was pretty tidy, save for a little dressing table covered in hair products. “Theeese are them.” And he produced a little silver cannister from his bag and deposited it into Eddie’s hand.

Curious snooping was pretty much accepted in that situation, so Eddie unscrewed the top and emptied the contents into his palm, two sets of black earplugs with a little hole running through the centre, fitted with a sort of white mesh material which sat snuggly within the hole.

“…What am I looking at here, Steve?” Steve just breathed a little laugh and took one from him, then popped the centre circle out of one, the little white mesh disk sitting perfectly in his palm.

“So, short story long, I was a dumb teenager. Rich kid surrounded by bad influences, y’know the whole stereotypical drill, pretty much every magazine in the country and some outside of it painted me as kind of an asshole, ‘King Steve’ they’d call me. I hated it but it’s kind of like quicksand in those old adventure movies, y’know? Just dragging you under, inescapable. Anyway, I also walked headfirst into a low set doorway ogling Chris Hemsworth’s biceps so... I’ve had a few brain injuries.” He tapped the side of his head with his index finger twice in rapid succession. “That uh… it has side effects… brains are tricky, a few too many concussions can get you hearing loss, sight loss, it can get you chronic migraines, aversion to sound, lights, it can do a lot of invisible damage… I… struggle with sound sometimes. And my sight too hence the glasses, but sound is the relevant one here.”

Eddie tilted his head a little in question, a silent motion to continue, research had given him none of this information. Maybe that he was a shitty teenager once but nothing else.

“Sharp noises, like uh… electric guitars played in a certain way, speakers turned all the way up, I get migraines basically and these are designed to filter out certain pitches to make things easier on my ears. Maybe… maybe I missed a few chords here and there, maybe some of it sounded a little off, but I can still hear through the plugs just fine. Robin got them for me, they’re supposed to help people with tinnitus, sensory issues, migraines…” he took the plugs back one by one, placing them back into the cannister and dropping it back into his bag, before he returned to Eddie and retook his hands, giving them a gentle squeeze “I swear I could hear just fine during your gig, and I really enjoyed it. I really like your music, Eddie… I think you’re amazing.”

Eddie felt like he was going to spontaneously combust right there on the spot.

Flattery always did have a certain effect on him, and with it being laid on so thick, honeyed words without an ounce of dishonesty in them… there was really only one response he could conjure in the moment, “…can I kiss you?” And the smile it earned, worth the brain dead moment.

“Well since you asked so nicely, but only one, dinner first, kisses later.” Kisses. Kisses. Plural. Many many kisses. Eddie felt like one of those cartoon characters that got all flushed and then just simply melted. Even though the kiss Steve gave him was chaste, a gentle, but lingering press of soft lips against his own, one of Steve’s hands cradled his cheek and god,

How had he lived until that moment not kissing Steve Harrington?

“Nono one more” was his sole complaint when Steve eased back, feeling the breath of Steve’s laugh dusting his damp lips, and the caress of his lips so very close whispering,

“Okay, just one” before doing just that.

Part 16

[jamandjazz]

The Curtis Brothers Getting Fear Gassed

Okay so for those not familiar with Batman fear gas/toxin is something one of the villains use that causes the victims to hallucinate their own worst fears becoming a reality. They can’t see it’s not real and you’re pretty much seeing/hearing/in some cases feeling your worst fears happen to you. Okay now that that’s out of the way here’s what I think would happen if it ever happened to them:

Darry:

I think if Darry was hit with fear gas he’d see Soda and Pony just absolutely HURT yknow? He’d see them far away, bleeding out, crying for someone to help them but he wouldn’t be able to move. He wouldn’t be able to reach them no matter how hard he tries, which he is. He is trying! But they keep asking why he won’t help them, why he’s just watching them, and he can’t do anything but watch. Then it would change and suddenly he’s in front of four graves instead of the usual two. And he can hear everyone around him ask why he didn’t save them. Why he didn’t keep them safe. Telling him that he failed. That it’s no wonder they died because look at how much of a mess he is. He can’t even keep himself together obviously he wouldn’t be able to hold what was left of their family together either.

And the whole time the gang is trying to stop him from just running, having to listen to the strongest person they know break down sobbing calling out for his brothers. Begging them to just wait for him. But they’re right there! They’re right there and they just need to calm him down so he can be still enough that they can stick the antidote in him!

Sodapop:

I think Soda would have to watch everyone he loves leaving him. They aren’t hurt, they aren’t even mad, in fact they’re perfectly fine! They’re just done with him. This is a choice they’re making deliberately, this isn’t one of them leaving because they died which is completely out of their control, they’re choosing this! He has to listen to them all say he’s just too much of a hassle. That he’s just not worth staying for. That everyone knew they were gonna leave eventually. That he was just too clingy, too annoying. That nobody wanted to deal with him. They wouldn’t even turn back as he called for them, begged them to stay, to just give him another chance, that he’ll be better, he swears! He’ll be better if they just come back! But each one of them without fail will just keep walking. He’ll hear conversations between them about how much they just can’t stand him. He’ll hear Pony will say how he doesn’t know how he ever looked up to someone so pathetic. Steve wonder if he really thought they were friends. Everyone will be talking about how stupid he is, how he’s completely useless and no one with a brain would ever want to keep him around. And Soda won’t even get to chase after them and hold them and plead and cry because he can’t move. Oh my god he can’t move, he’s stuck, he’s stuck and no one will come save him because they all hate him.

And all everyone else hears is him sobbing and begging them to stay as they hold him down, mostly to make sure he doesn’t suddenly start thrashing but also because when he finally comes out of it he’ll know they’re there. That they aren’t going to leave and that they do love him.

Ponyboy:

Ponyboy would see the gang living their lives happily without him. He’d chase after them, as the image of them shot farther and farther away but he could never just catch up. He wasn’t fast enough. Wasn’t good enough. He’ll see them not even realize he was gone, like he never existed. Darry will seem happier, less angry and stressed like not having Pony to worry about made all the difference in his life. He’ll see Sodapop happily talking to Steve, without him in the way. Without making him worry because that’s what he did to Sodapop. But he didn’t mean to! He didn’t mean to have nightmares so bad he woke the house up with them, he didn’t mean to make Sodapop move rooms because he was too much of a baby to handle sleeping on his own! He didn’t mean to make everything about him! That wasn’t what he was trying to do, so why were they all so much happier without him?! Why was Johnny so much more confident without him around following him everywhere? Was he bothering him? Did he just not realize that Johnny didn’t talk around him because Pony made him uncomfortable? How come no one had noticed he was gone?! …was this how it would’ve been if he just never existed? Would everyone have been happier, less stressed? Would that be better, he’ll wonder as he slows down and stops chasing after them. Crying and mumbling that he was sorry. That he didn’t mean to be the reason no one could be happy.

And the gang will be out of breath as they finally catch up to him, they’ll have been worrying that he’d run into a busy street because he just didn’t know what was going on but thank god because he finally stopped. They’ll have to listen to him apologize over and over for ruining their lives, wondering what he meant by that because he didn’t do anything!

[pilabutsp]

UNTITLED STENDYLE COMIC - PART 3.5

EXTRA III: Craig Knows Stuff 2.

On this occasion, we follow Craig's gang, who are at a sleepover at Tolkien's place.

Like a group of girl teenagers, they are gossiping about all their classmates until the focus falls on…

Clyde: Have you seen The Golden Trio today? They were sitting together on a bench at the park?!

Tweek: Are we really surprised tho? They’ve been joined at the hip lately. 

Jimmy: Kyle is su-su-such a thi-thh-third wheel! I-It is a bit sad at th-thi-this point!

Clyde: For real! He is not going to get any bitches if he does not leave them alone! Aren't they tired of him?

Tweek: UGH, and you haven't see them at the shop dude.

Clyde: We gotta go find him a girlfriend! Help the little dude.

Tolkien: Or a boyfriend! He is Bisexual.

Jimmy: Da-damn, nobody wants him f-for real.

Craig: You are all sooo blind.

Tweek: ARHG! Not this again!

Clyde: Not what again?

Tweek: Craig has this stupid theory-

Craig: It's not stupid! And I'm totally right let me tell you.

Tweek: You don't even have proof!

Craig: I don't need proof! Just look at them!

Tolkien: Hey! Dads! Chill out! You keep arguing and you haven’t even told us the theory yet!

Tweek: Craig thinks they are all dating! All three! Together!

Craig: Thank you for letting me talk, honey.

Silence

Clyde: Naah

Jimmy: I don't th-think so.

Craig: woah, how can all three of you be so blind.. whatever I know I’m right. 

Tolkien: I mean! I know where you’re coming from but...

Tweek: but what?

Tolkien: I still talk with Kyle sometimes, He did mention being in a sorta situationship at the moment but I haven't thought too much about it.

Craig: And you are telling this now? This is perfect.

Tweek: Ugh god, Craig he could be with anyone.

Craig: But at what time? Huh? You said they all stick together, all the time.. How can Kyle see anyone else, honey?

Clyde: He does have a point! But I have my own theory now!

Jimmy: We-welp, what is it?

Clyde: Kyle is totally a house wrecker.

Tolkien: Home wrecker. 

Clyde: Yeah.. yeah.. whatever.. house, home.. he’s a wrecker. 

Craig: oh my god that is so stupid.

Tolkien: but with who?

Jimmy: He is t-totally with Stan.

Clyde: Have you seen how Wends and Kyle act around each other? It's totally with he-them! 

Tolkien: It could be either of them.

Craig: Ok, Ok, GUYS, you are totally proving my point in a WHOLE different way. Would you rather believe they are cheating on each other? Instead of believing all three are dating?

Tweek: Ack- we shouldn't even be talking about this! This is literally what we've been through before!

Jimmy: I-It is more common that t-they are cheating... We-we live in a s-ss-small t-t-town!

Clyde: I guess South Park is woke, but THAT woke? Have you ever heard of a couple of three people before? and here?

Tolkien: Well, those couples are called Poly, but yeah, I don't think I've seen a poly couple in this town.

Craig: I'm so confident about this, I'll even bet money on them, here! A hundred dollars.

Tweek: You are going to lose a hundred dollars thanks to Kyle and Stan? Again?

Craig: That time it was all four of them, and I'm not losing money, I'm going to be fucking rich, who is in?

Jimmy: I-I'll bet Kyle is with Stan!

Clyde: And I'll bet he is with Wends!

Tolkien: I'll just bet they are friends and that's it.

Tweek: Mm.. I’ll bet with Tolkien. Anyways, whatever, if I lose my money, I'm getting it back when those three go for coffee again.

MASTERLIST

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[roe-and-memory]

lightning and his struggle with emotions save me….

those feelings of inadequacy that suffocate his every thought, that fear that if he messes up — acts in a way that nobody wants him to — then he’ll lose everything.. and how, for a little while, all those feelings carry over to radiator springs (maybe they even stick around for the rest of his life)

i cant see lightning as much of a crier, he doesnt seem like the type to want to express those emotions, especially in front of people, and thinking about this concept in the context of radiator springs is sooo…

hes finally got those people that love him and hes so terrified that if he makes one wrong move, says one wrong word, then they’ll kick him to the curb and he’ll be alone again that he just. Stiffles. these feelings.

for a while no one really notices, but flo is the first one to realize she’s never seen him in any negative mood aside from anger like.. ever? she tries to brush it off, make an excuse in her mind for him, but the more she tries to neglect it the more obvious it becomes that he’s purposely hiding his feelings from them and she cant figure out, for the life of her, why. she mentions it to doc, asks him quietly if hes ever seen or heard lightning cry, and the silent pondering from the man is enough to tell her that he Hasnt.

she doesnt wanna be nosy, but shes so concerned because she KNOWS there has to have been something thats upset him in his time here, he just hasnt expressed it to anyone…

but imagine her shock, three months into lightnings life in the town, he comes into the cafe on the brink of tears with scraped shins, blood staining his now torn jeans, and a glimmer of fear in his eyes.

he apologizes to her, sits down in a booth — seemingly not realizing hes wiping blood everywhere — and buries his face in his crossed arms that are resting on the tabletop. its the first time flo has seen him look this scared, and it brings up those thoughts of how long he’s been hiding these emotions from everyone. she watches from behind the counter, a half dried bowl in her hand as she finally catches the slight trembling of his shoulders and her heart just Breaks.

lightning had nowhere else to go for this — docs clinic was closed and doc himself was at home, sally was at home, Everyone was at Home — so the best idea he could come up with was hiding at flos in an attempt to get away from everyone else because when the string of events that went wrong occurred, he Knew then it was that final straw that was gonna rip the carpet out from underneath him and bring him to exhausted, overstimulated tears.

i think at some point flo stops what shes doing, studies the empty cafe, and abandons her dishes to sit down at the table with him. she scooches into the booth beside him and rubs gentle circles on his back like a mom would, and, unbeknownst to her, that just makes him sob harder.

part of her is happy that hes feeling this, but oh Boy, that mom part of her is genuinely heartbroken for him. she doesnt know what happened but she can safely assume hes in pain and startled, and she knows shes willing to sit here for as long as she needs to make sure he feels safe and comfortable again, even if it means keeping these tears a secret from people like doc and sally at lightnings request.