#it just OOF when I got done watching the film I felt like I wanted to vomit aha

[dukeofdadykes]

Finally got around to watching I saw the tv glow and I’ve had an incomprehensible sense of dread ever since 🙂‍↕️

[leeyanyanyaaan]

afterthoughts for kh3

guess who's not sleeping again =w=

listen, i really enjoyed the kh3 experience, mostly bc of my bias for kh in general, the fun new additions like exploring in the gummi ship and cooking w remi, and especially graphics wise it was very visually pleasing to play through, but if i have to be honest, some things just put me off ESPECIALLY with how the story went (but its kh what else should i be expecting 💀) and some of the game mechanics.

if you asked me what my favorite of the kh games were, i'd answer kh2 and khbbs (with the addition of the main title games too tho haha). only i hated grinding on bbs and the powers were absolutely insane LMAO

but the video in the link actually covers a lot of stuff really well; as much as he disses the game the guy makes a lot of good points and feedback for his criticism in ways it could've been done better or how the previous games have done it.

honestly just ignore me i just want to put my thoughts somewhere LMAO

DISCLAIMER: This is purely subjective opinion!

If my opinion opposes your own, all I ask is for uhm... no knives please? ;w; and by no means do I intend for anything that I've said to offend or hurt anyone :"(

Gravity - This. Right off the bat he already points out one of the game mechanics that's been... well, come to my attention? I DEFINITELY noticed how KH3 has become way more aerodynamic. I feel like one of the reasons why, that I think he doesn't state, is because from the beginning we already have so many skill moves that it felt like we were already midgame lol (it's probably the wall climb and airdiving). But yeah, Sora's floatiness is pretty obvious, like, he just has a lot of airtime. The one thing I really wanted and hoped would be in the game would be a ground slam, like the one in Genshin. I mean tbf sometimes the more aerodynamic mechanics helped in fighting but only for the typical crowds of mobs; for bosses they can get annoying and get me more caught in attacks easily (then again, I'm not the best blocker OOF)

Attractions - Okay, for my case, the attractions was a great way to keep my baby sister entertained AHAHA she would always ask me "Ate! Ate! Do the unicorns! Do the teacups! Do the pirate ship!" with the addition of the Disney characters that she's a little more familiar with (cough Frozen and Monsters Inc cough) she always liked watching me play =w= but otherwise I'd usually ignore the attractions LOL. He absolutely called me out there tho AHSDJASKBD but I did not realize they were DisneyLand attraction rides until at least three rides where I pieced it together LMAO. I can see his point about its disjointedness from the gameplay and his ideas make sense but IMO I also think that saving the attractions for boss battles would work too like the train, eg. the Pirate Ship for The Caribbean? It also kinda makes me sad how The Carribbean was the only world to stay consecutively for the three title games :"( then again, it is a nice refresher to see the newer Disney/Pixar films in the game and I liked how way more fleshed out The Carribean was this time. Plus IMO the way they tied in the concept with the possible "New Seven Hearts" and the reason for why the characters could be a new heart of light actually made sense to me, so I didn't mind it too much... except that concept kinda just gets dropped in the end so 😐 (I mean, I get that they needed to purpose for the Disney worlds to still remain, but seriously, this isn't the first time KH just decides to drop a plot point when it's no longer relevant ToT)

The Original Worlds - !!! THE FACT THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE RADIANT GARDEN 😭😭😭 WHERE DID IT GOOOOOO I WANTED TO SEE THE RESTORATION COMMITTEEEE but I mean... idk i guess we still got to have Winnie the Pooh and Remi? and Scrouge and the triplets were still there too (but no more DisneyTown.) I guess I liked that there was more to do in the Keyblade Graveyard with the labyrinth? ig? The war itself... it kinda felt underwhelming 😥 then again, in terms of combat it really pales in comparison to BBS (even tho bbs was super op oof)... that game really gave me a challenge especially with Vanitas :") as for Scala ad Caelum... this is something that plays more to UX, doesn't it? (sidenote: I got so jelly when all the UX players got to be in the final attack 😭💔 by the time I wanted to download UX it wasn't available anymore :") and even when I did see it I haven't even gotten past KH1 first so... yeah) I wanted to explore the world but I forgot that the save data would be just before the final boss battle so I was stuck going on round 2 :") at least I got the secret movie I guess? Though I may just need to play through the post-ending save data a few more times to discover more things.

The Enemies - Like he mentioned about the unique special moves for each mob... Yeah, I really preferred KH2 and BBS's game mechanics over KH3... as cool as all the starter skills we got was, the battles, especially for the bosses weren't nearly as challenging as the past two days (remember when Mickey had to save our ass?). Back to when I mentioned Ventus, you really needed to think out a game plan and actually dodge or block attacks, you couldn't just tackle him head on especially because levelling up and grinding in BBS was terrible. Even though there were insane killer moves (which, IMO while yes they look too way OP for KH3, they were really cool!) not even that would've been enough, at least, not for your first 1v1 against him.

LMAOOO THE WAY HE DISSES BBS AT THE END 😂😂😂 fair enough though, i'm well aware bbs isn't part of the best games of the franchise, but then again, a big part of why bbs is part of my favorites is A. Aqua my waifu <3 and B. the storyline :") (fun fact, I even made a stand-alone BBS!AU for OCs with two of my old friends even though they knew nothing of the franchise! I only got them to skim through a BBS gameplay video and it was coherent enough for them to understand, me only needing to fill in the role of light and darkness LOL) BUT. I'M SO SO SOOOO HAPPY THEY'RE BRINGING BACK THE REACTION COMMANDS FROM KH2 TO KH4!!!! IT WAS MY FAVORITE MECHANIC IN KH2 BOSS FIGHTS! and probably in RPG games in general, the reason why I favor the first of the One Piece: Pirate Warriors series is because of the action commands and just how much more game mechanics there was in comparison to its predecessors.

One more thing I'd like to mention is the underwhelming performance of how scenes were carried out technical-wise... I mean, at this point I know it's nothing new but come on! The least they could very do is add subtle BGM to help carry mood if they're going to have empty spaces in between dialogue 💀 I know that they only added the Frozen songs for the marketing 🤡 but hey my sister liked it. Dialogue wise if I didn't like it I would just rewrite it in my memories 🤗

So now that game mechanics are covered, let's talk about plot :) warning though that uh I might be hazy on some details of the story by now, especially as half of the games I didn't have I watched gameplays of, so my understanding might be more limited than your average avid KH fan. I'm literally hanging onto this understanding by a thread ToT also it's three a.m. and my bestie insomnia is sleeping over <3

Like I mentioned above, what I did like about the plotline was how the New Seven Hearts were introduced and gave purpose and reason for each of the chosen Disney/Pixar worlds... UNTIL IT JUST BECOMES IRRELEVANT BY THE END OF THE GAME ToT but I mean, at the very least, it did make journeying through the new worlds more enjoyable? Well, for me at least. It's probably the Disney child in me talking 🤭 plus the fact that I played with my baby sister by my side.

But just as I was finally starting to get some sense of the plotline, it felt like by the end of KH3 they kinda just... dropped the ball. Rushed the plotline? Forced even. Especially in terms of Kairi.

I feel like we were robbed of Kairi's character. What was the point of her training to become a keyblade wielder if she was only going to be a damsel in distress in the end? It really only felt like she was just there to be the push Sora needed whenever he fell into... darkness. and only that. Literally. If Kairi was going to save Sora, couldn't it have been done at the very least, physically? With the keyblade? Show her strength? (pls i wanted badass kairi so bad and where she physically saved sora for once ajsdbkas)

The Keyblade War in general was so lacking :( like, when I said I rewrite scenes I didn't like in my head it was most of the keyblade war. It's probably harsh of me to say this, but I feel like they just didn't put in the effort the story deserved, for the keyblade war at least. Especially what were supposed to be emotional and moving scenes, they just didn't have impact they were trying to convey. The way the characters were thrown into despair felt so cheap, and they barely did much to turn the tables either. I don't know. I guess I was just expecting more because of the concept of "war". Literally, at the very least, they could've shown more reaction and action when they were under attack? As overdemanding this sounds, if they're able to program visually high quality combat mechanics for the whole of the game, why not for the cutscenes? Though this might be my lack of knowledge in the game development side of things.

And then the ending? Kairi's disappeared and now Sora's going after her...? (Update: just quickly watched a summary of Re:Mind. So Sora's gone because basically he messed with the Laws of Nature/Keyblade magic so Sora's disappeared to the Human World/Quadratum as punishment... I think? Well, I guess there's a little more closure now, albeit it feels like they've found a convenient loophole to bring back Kairi 🤡 KH Lore still not making any more sense as always LMAO) Like, is this really how we're concluding KH3? What about the Heart Hotel gang? The vessels? Like, hooray everyone gets to have a happy ending and be reunited but is this book closed end of story for them? The Heart Hotel played a big role for Sora and his powers and the story (I think I saw a tumblr post talk about this). I'm just- I dunno... no closure? I don't even know what to expect for Kairi in KH4. I know Riku is gonna be following Sora, but I feel like Kairi deserved way more than the role of the damsel of distress and the shining light for Sora. Is she really just gonna be yet another Shonen Female Lead with Wasted Power?

But I myself don't think I'd know how to connect the events of KH3 to the Quadratum in KH4 with a different ending. Maybe they should've played more on the idea of Sora falling to darkness, since they've emphasised this a lot (and well he's in the "afterlife" now). They seem to have the Heart Hotel sorted so they'll probably only be briefly mentioned as like voices or shining lights in Sora's depths of despair from now on. And again, I'm still hazy on certain parts of the KH lore, so I'm not sure how the Foretellers, Luxu and Master of Masters will tie in either (though do note that I haven't played beyond KH3 yet so maybe there's answers in the preceding games).

I dunno. Maybe it's just my sleep deprived braincell not processing information XD

Anyways, I'll just be here hoping for the story to continue to unfold and for the release of KH4 :D I'll also try to navigate my way around the rest of the games that I need to go through for lore. It's nearly four a.m. so I'll try get some shut eye now =w=

[Overall score: 8.5/10 ⭐]

[chainofclovers]

Ted Lasso 2x9 thoughts

It’s no secret that I absolutely adore Coach Beard; he’s one of my favorite characters on the show, and he’s so well-written and well-acted that somehow I tend to be both perfectly satisfied with the details we see and truly curious to understand more about the way he thinks, what’s really happening re: his professional and personal devotion to Ted, where he comes from and where he’s going. I don’t need to know his name beyond the name he wants to be called, but I want to know why we don’t have any other names for him. And I don’t need him to be a bigger focal point of every episode, but I very much needed this episode’s world-exploding reminder that every single character on this show has a rich inner life, full of joys and troubles.

“Beard After Hours” is like a movie, but one that scatters its climaxes and puts off its resolutions...because it’s not a movie. It’s episode nine of a twelve-episode season of TV. When the episode ended, I felt this almost frantic “But he needed to break up with Jane for good before the end of the episode!” feeling. I was so pulled in by the idea of being able to tell an entire story in one night, of going on an odyssey alongside a complicated hero, that watching Beard and Jane find each other in that club felt as intense as the fact that we don’t know if Ted responded to Rebecca’s voicemail and we don’t know what’s going to happen with Rebecca and Sam and we don’t know who isn’t getting married and who is having a funeral in 2x10 (I mean, I have my strong suspicions, but still!) and we don’t know if Richmond will be promoted back to the Premier League. And on and on. I didn’t mind feeling desperate for the story to resolve even though I understood after thinking about it for ten seconds that of course it couldn’t resolve yet. Or ever. Or yet.

I’m a big fan of the TL episode recaps/reviews Linda Holmes writes for NPR, and I have to quote something from this week’s directly because it so perfectly explains my feelings:

The power of the scene where Beard dances in the club isn't that it's a beautiful romantic climax. It's that it's an explanation of why he cannot seem to extricate himself from this bad relationship. What makes the worst relationships so dangerous is that they have elements that feel good that are very hard to get elsewhere. Beard knows that; he tells it to God. What's concerning isn't that Jane makes the world seem more interesting; what's concerning is she's the only thing that does. That doesn't take away from the joy of the dancing; it just tells you that even happiness is complicated.

I love Holmes’ perspective here so much, because it articulates something I was struggling to figure out: how it can feel so legitimate, like such a (temporary but nonetheless powerful) relief, for Beard to find Jane in that club and to have this moment of euphoria as his night nears an end. How it is possible to experience that relief on behalf of a character while fervently wishing it could end differently, because it’s so clear from the abusive text messages and the toxic calls and the manipulative interactions that Jane is terrible to him and they’re terrible for each other. But Beard knows this. He knows it when he hugs Higgins in the parking lot after Higgins is honest with him in a way Ted and Rebecca and Keeley have not learned how to be, and he knows it when part of his prayer includes the clear articulation that Jane isn’t the cure for what “ails me.” He’s inching closer to greater self-knowledge just as Ted is.

And the two big resolutions that really, really needed to happen did. I didn’t know I needed Paul, Baz, and Jeremy to get to wrap up their own night out on the pitch at Nelson Road, but I did. It brought actual tears to my eyes. And the other resolution was Beard showing up with the other coaches’ coffees for their meeting to watch the game film. As interesting as it would have been to see what Ted would have done if Beard hadn’t shown up, I’m so, so glad that he did. He’s got a messed-up face and some truly epic pants on, but otherwise this is just Beard showing up for work, showing up for his friends. It was incredible to realize that Beard and Ted haven’t been exaggerating when they’ve referred to his sex-and-drug proclivities in the past. The night documented in 2x9 might have been particularly scary and violent and euphoric and awful and meaningful, but this type of all-night adventure isn’t a foreign concept for this guy. In all the other episodes of this show, when we see Beard we’re seeing someone who might have been out all night, who might have spent the hours the sun was down desperately pushing himself closer to whatever edges he could find.

I don’t really want to touch upon all the allusions in this episode. They are abundant, they are well-documented, and also I haven’t even seen the movie After Hours. I enjoyed this episode for its allusive qualities and I enjoyed this episode for what it was and I feel like I have to be at peace with the fact that I’m never going to pick up on every single reference on this show and that is okay.

So, yeah, if this entry on my tumblr dot com blog seems remarkably devoid of references and allusions, it’s not because I’m not into it but because I find it too overwhelming to actually write about.

Very into the Misplaced and Discovered box at the Crown and Anchor. (That’s what Mae wrote on the Lost and Found box at the pub, right? Whatever it is, it’s so funny.)

Beard hallucinating Thierry Henry and Gary Lineker was truly upsetting and a great indicator not only of how broken things are between the Richmond coaching staff right now but also how deep Beard’s self-loathing might go. If you’d asked me before Thursday if I thought Beard loathed himself, I would say no. That deepening of knowledge alone makes 2x9 worth it.

James Tartt and his friends in the alley. Such a nightmare. I go back and forth on how much of the night was real, and part of me has decided all of it is, short of the images of Henry and Lineker. (And even that is real to the extent that it was a way of articulating what was in Beard’s head.) But watching Beard in physical danger brought on by the same abuser who had him so upset in the first place. It was a lot.

I’m so excited that Paul and Jeremy and Baz got some spotlight this episode. It was so wonderful to see them out of the pub. I love that they ended up telling the Oxford snots who they really were. They got to see Beard going to bat for them and smoothing over the situation socially, and that actually made it more possible for them to end up being truthful about themselves. Because they have nothing to be ashamed of, and they deserved the magic of that night. (And for it to end on Nelson Road. Every feeling. Oof.)

I feel like I barely have anything to say about the trouser-mending lady or the many places Beard goes or his key-dropping or the nightmarish feeling of wanting to be home and being unable to be home. It all happened and we all watched it and again, it was a lot. But I do feel incredibly moved and fascinated by the fact that Beard very obviously still hasn’t been home when he brings in the coffee. He’s had to sleep at the club for Jane- and key-related reasons in the past, and this time it’s not that he’s slept there but it still feels like a kind of homecoming he was robbed of for the entire night. Ted and Roy and Nate are there. He’s gotten their coffee orders correct. Ted is growing and evolving (he wants to learn from what’s happened, he’s insisting upon it even when the others resist) but he’s done a really perfect (almost romantic in its loveliness) thing by presumably spending his evening following a breakdown of his own speeding up the game film to 10x speed and adding Benny Hill. Ted is not OK and Beard is not OK and Nate is not OK and Roy is pretty OK but could very easily be not OK because he’s just joined a coaching staff with a whole lot of not OK. But they all showed up.

I am very into the realism of the lights being off in the club other than the coaches’ office (@talldecafcappuccino pointed this out!), and the way we’re seeing their desks from a different angle because this episode is unfocused on Ted. It really added to the mindset of being hungover and exhausted and unable to go home or even to know exactly what home should be; even this warm, familiar place feels off even as it’s a relief to be back there.

I am excited to return to our regularly scheduled programming with the full cast of characters, but I really adored this episode for what it taught us about Beard and what it illuminated about the humor, pain, and complexity of each person who inhabits this universe. Beard may not be loud about his long-standing beliefs or about the things he’s learned, but there’s a lot happening in there and I appreciated getting to spend 43 minutes with him and (in the case of the ticket he scrawls on a piece of paper so the pub guys can get into Nelson Road) the moments he sets in motion.

[teresa-moyocoyotzin]

short recap of my thoughts on 5x09

okay so i was gonna rewatch the whole episode and do a blow-by-blow reaction post but i’m not sure i’ll have time and i kinda wanna focus on watching my fave scenes from the show before tonight. also, everyone else’s reaction posts p. much sum up my thoughts lol 

nonetheless, i just wanted to give my main takeaways on the episode a week later, in case anyone cares where i’m at going into the finale! gonna go over the things i liked first, anyone who wants to just remain positive and not see any salty takes might wanna just stick to reading the first part b/c i definitely rant a bit at the end lmao. we’re still having a fun time tho 😂

THINGS I LOVED

- i mean... i think we know LOL

- obviously. i loved james and teresa’s i love you scenes, and kisses, and OOF THAT SEX SCENE. if someone had told me we were gonna get that scene back in like 2017??? i probably would have started literally floating. i totally respect that people had very specific ideas of what they wanted out of those scenes and could have different feelings about it but NOT ME BABES I AM ECSTATIC!!! i did go into the episode with a ~feeling~ that we were gonna get at least one ILY in the episode, and i just had a feeling it would be james, or at least that he would say it first. i’ve already explained in my meta about the scenes why i think it makes sense that he said it first and why i love it that he did, so i won’t go into that here. but i went in having really no expectations for it other than that it was gonna happen! i was debating about whether it would happen really casually while they’re talking, or in like a big action scene, or really dramatic or what, and what i would prefer, and i came to the conclusion that i would love it no matter what lol, but i was really into the idea of james just. fucking. saying it. while they’re just talking about something really casually. so therefore i was pretty happy with it when we got sort of a mix! they’re talking about teresa’s insane death trap of a plan so there’s that drama of “i don’t want to lose you esp. not before saying ILY” kinda thing, but it’s also just. so simple and sure! and then teresa’s i love you is like the perfect scene for me where one character is super focused on something else (in this case, trying to protect the woman he loves! agh!) and the other is just like.. i love you!!!! SO GOOD

- let’s see, what the hell else happened in this ep?

- oh okay i really liked james and teresa’s vibes this episode, they were so focused on each other and had this very ride-or-die feeling about them like they knew that each of their plans was increasingly stupid and desperate and might not even get them where they wanna go, but they were IN IT TOGETHER no matter what 😭i wish we had gotten a callback to that line but at this point, i’m p. sure they Know they’re in it together, and we do too. so it’s okay. i love that teresa still asks his input and considers his opinions even if she does her own thing anyways haha 

- oh on that note, i LOVED the moment where their plans to kill Kostya aren’t working and Teresa says something like “If I can meet with him in person, I can kill him myself” and James just has this LOOK that just is the epitome of the “I am in love with a women who is DESIGNED TO STRESS ME OUT” meme lol, it made me giggle, v classic QOTS moment 

- oh and of course, I LOVED that scene with devon and james at the end!!!!!!!! i was also confused about how james was showing all his emotions in that scene esp. since he tries to be stoic about his feelings for Teresa around Devon, but now that i’ve read a few people’s thoughts about, it i’m fully on board w the theory that james and teresa already knew this was coming, b/c they’re smart, and b/c james knows devon wouldn’t have let him walk away to save Teresa at the beginning of the season without motivation (like having him in place to kill her when she’s no longer useful to the CIA) and THEREFORE james was sort of “overacting” to make it believable to devon (and the audience lol) that he didn’t know this was coming, didn’t want to do it, but felt like he had to, rather than the fact that they were already plotting a fake death. that makes a lot of sense to me and makes me really love all the layers to that scene. it does give me a little bit of hope that the finale ~teresa’s not really dead~ reveal will be at least a little well executed and not just shoved in at the very end. we shall see though! 

- alright i think that’s what i loved about the episode, if u don’t wanna hear me bitching about the little things then u should probably stop here!! just have to get out some of my saltiness lol 

THINGS I WAS ANNOYED ABOUT

- i’m just gonna get it out of the way, yes, i too was supremely annoyed at the amount of KA and Pote take suburbia; it was all 1000% predictable down to the raccoon and the cookies, and the point could have been accomplished in exactly 1 scene, maybe 2, certainly not like 10 or however many we got. whatever. ugh. 

- okay. OKAY. chicho. we need to talk about chicho. i for one, am not mad that he called pote, my boy was stressed. I AM HOWEVER, mad at the writers for making pote come back after saying he trusted chicho to take care of teresa now. like. it totally devalued THE WHOLE THING!! imo, pote shoulda stayed his ass at home where we had to watch him settle all episode, and chicho should have gotten THE HERO MOMENT HE DESERVED (esp. cuz he’s on first name basis w teresa now??) which ALSO WOULD HAVE MADE THE SCENE WHERE TERESA GIVES CHICHO THE DISTILLERY AND THE BAR SO! MUCH! MORE! MEANINGFUL!!!!! or just made it make sense at all? like .... i’m just so confused by that whole plotline like what was the point? chicho does nothing but call pote and gets T’s whole legacy in NOLA? 

- and don’t even get me started on how it makes ZERO sense that pote would have had to charge in at the last minute to save teresa when JAMES THE SNIPER W AMAZING AIM WHO IS LITERALLY. IN LOVE WITH HER. is standing outside like. ur telling me james and chicho (who again, is supposed to be her #2 after james now) just stood there like “oh hey pote yeah you go ahead we’ll wait here good luck” like WHAT also.. how did pote get past all the guards that made james stay outside? are we meant to believe pote is that sneaky? y’all. it just. doesn’t make sense. this whole plot situation maddens me more than anythings tbh UGH JUST MAKE IT MAKE SENSE 

- oksana’s daughter..... what’s her name again? idk b/c we only MET HER THIS WEEK....okay this amuses me but i’m also annoyed b/c like. there were so many other women who could have taken that spot in the opening sequence... Lil T, Castel, hell even Isabela??? Like idk how they could have done it but they put so much effort into her plot in the first seasons that i really thought she was gonna end up w/ Teresa in the end.. idk that would have been kind cool, Camila’s two “daughters” eventually working their way out of the life together..again idk how they could have realistically done it but i really do wish it had been someone we met before. if it had to be someone new this season, they could have introduced her earlier instead of one of the seemingly dozens of random guys we knew for 1 episode before they died... like.. give her some depth please. is she even gonna be in the finale? honestly she better be after making us listen to pote welcome her into the family... like the family u were supposed to leave so u could have an actual baby pote? the family that’s literally dispersing as we speak? also.. since when did pote love oksana so much anyways? also...... just.. if teresa’s gonna have some sort of daughter figure or whatever she’s supposed to be, wouldn’t it make sense to have her be the one to give the big welcome to the family speech? idk y’all..... i’m amused but also baffled at the sheer lack of planning behind this. did no one realize they needed someone for the opening scene until like. halfway thru the season? did they plan to have it be castel but they couldn’t get her for filming (hence all the weird castel plots?) INQUIRING MINDS WOULD LIKE TO KNOW. it’s whatever tho lol 

- i just hope that what’s-her-name gets a lil bit of plot in the finale esp. since otherwise it might just be pote running around being pissy (i don’t actually think that haha but i am a lil nervous that teresa won’t come back until the last few mins and i’ll have to spend all episode looking at boaz and devon and pote and KA.. i haven’t looked at any spoilers tho so i’m still hopeful! i will probably make a post about my hopes going into the finale a lil later, both realistic and unrealistic :) 

[cat-eg]

NO WAY HOME SCATTERED THOUGHTS (spoilers obviously)

they handled it better than i thought they would. i went into it expecting a cluttered and predictable and rushed movie, and while it was still pretty predictable, it was executed better than i expected 

a couple of things that stood out to me:

- they betrayed their own logic with the spell thing. at the beginning of the movie it’s shown that the memory spell can change so that it doesnt affect certain people. why didnt they just do that with the last spell too. why did EVERYBODY need to forget. hell, why did it even need to be that everybody forgot peter, wouldn’t forgetting that peter is spiderman still work?

- couldnt ned have just made one more portal to find peter. after tobey and andrew arrived. if they were the only two other spidermen that came across then he only needed to make one more portal. why did they need to think about where he could have been. 

and just miscellaneous thoughts:

- im like 90% sure the outfit peter was wearing when he got pushed out of his body is a reference to the spectacular spiderman cartoon so that’s cool

- that credits sequence was SO COOL when thats uploaded to youtube im going to watch it again the drawings the animations so so so so cool very inspiring. makes me want to work on stuff like that too. 

- man they were really fuckin reaching with the home themed title werent they lmao!!!!! “no way home” wtf are u talking about yes there is its right there the whole movie theyre just not using it

- i LOVED the scene where peters spidey sense goes off in happys place. super well done and i loved how they portrayed the confusion. the audio going distant and the camera focusing on and only following peter was really good.

- another thing i liked, in the bridge scene you can see the little spiderverse spidey sense lines but clear, when doc ock first arrives. neat little detail

- i have a feeling the “everybody has forgotten peter” thing is going to get resolved in the first like half hour of the next spidey movie. maybe even 10 minutes. it really just felt like they wanted a dramatic ending in the moment. 

- some of the editing in the fight scenes was really bizarre, sometimes there would be these like, SPLIT second shots for no reason it was really jarring. 

- the VFX were okay for the most part but there were a couple of shots where it was just.... oof. the lady in the car looked really weird for some reason and when tobey stepped into the portal. what the hell man 

- matt murdock was a fun little cameo but i wish it was like... explained??? lmao. he just kinda appeared and disappeared. i love daredevil and im glad his character has been featured on film now but its obvious they included it without too much relevance to the plot. hell maybe it was even added after all the chatter online right after far from home released, i remember people exploded talking about how matt murdock should be peters lawyer. ngl i did pog to my brother when he showed up tho

- seems like certain characters were taken at different points in the timeline??? like doc ock is still like he was in the original but tobeys old now. what does that mean for when they go back to their original timelines 

- the web shooter banter was funny 

- they just. completely changed electros character lmfao. he’s a completely different guy now. okay. 

- i liked the banter when andrew first came through, that was fun

- holy fuck that one scene with the goblin is fucking brutal. jesus christ

- speaking of. i fucking KNEW there was gonna be some cheesy line about responsibility. i fuckin knew it i was talking to my brother about it and it HAPPENED. 

- found it kinda funny how they just kinda danced around the whole mcu peter not having an uncle ben thing. like yeah he existed but i guess in this universe he just died some other way or something. because peter still needs to have a “with great power comes great responsibility” on screen i guess. but he already knew that. but whatever. 

- i wish flash was in it more, i thought they’d show more of him 

- some of the scenes were.. weirdly paced? sometimes it felt like they went on forever. dont know if its bc i was having a cocktail but the pacing at times was weird to me

- some of the shots were cool i wanna take screenshots and draw them but its gonna be so long until clips are available online :( 

- so everybody forgets who peter is but what about all the clips online and newspapers and articles that would have already existed about how peter parker is spiderman? did the spell erase those too? did it just delete the end of mysterios video off the internet or some shit?

- the little referential lines like “im something of a scientist myself” and “my back” and stuff is just like................. okay. i get it. i get that those are going to be there in this kind of nostalgia bait movie. doesnt mean i didnt scoff when they happened. like cmon. it just interrupted the flow of the movie :|

- i am SO fucking glad i saw this in a relatively small theatre and it was silent the whole time. seeing shit online about how people APPLAUDED when tobey and andrew showed up is just like what. why is that a good thing that is so annoying. we get it youre excited. no need to scream and interrupt the movie why is that such a celebrated thing 

- so the next spidey movie is gonna be venom related huh! i hope they do it better than spiderman 3 did it lmfao. although the way they set it up doesnt even make sense he faded out of existence theres no way any amount of the symbiote could have been left behind

overall i think it was pretty good although it still needs to sit with me for a bit. its only been like a couple hours lol. not sure how much the logical inconsistency of the spell thing is gonna bother me but we’ll see

[baepsaesbae]

Since Day One

Pairing— Park Jimin x female reader   

Genre— college au, friends to lovers au, smut, FLUFF (this is so soft) 

Warnings— oral (fem and male receiving), sex in general but nothing crazy, Jimin being a mushy baby oof my heart melted 

Word Count— ~5.1k 

Summary— You’re best friends with the sweetest guy on Earth, Park Jimin. Of course, you’d be his girlfriend in a heartbeat if he asked. If only...

Your love life has been fruitless since...well since you were born. There’s been the occasional fling here and there, but you cut it off as soon as you realized they were only after sex and nothing more. You yearn for something meaningful with just about anyone now. If a cute boy is somewhat nice to you for even a second, you catch yourself fantasizing about going on a honeymoon with him. You were lost in your thoughts until a familiar voice brought you back to reality.

“Hello? ___? Is anyone home? Oh wow look at that super cute dog--”

“Where?” you crane your neck to look out the cafe window in hopes of spotting the dog.

“There is no dog. I just needed your attention. What do you think of this layout for the presentation?” Jimin asked.

Park Jimin has been your best friend since day one. Literally. Both your moms were best friends, so it was inevitable that you guys would be besties too. You guys attend the same University now, and even though your majors were different, you managed to get into the same mandatory elective.

“Yeah, that looks fine. Sorry, you know I don’t really care for what old white dudes had to say about, well, literally anything,” you reply.

“Neither do I. But the ancient Greeks had a lot to say about the birth of philosophy so here we are. Also if you can’t pay attention to our project, at least pay attention to me!” Jimin pouted.

Jimin has always been a needy baby, but only when it comes to you for some reason. Jimin has been a heartthrob since elementary school and proceeded to become class president starting in middle school. He won every year in a row (thanks to all the girls voting for him). Even though he won because of his popularity, he was still an extremely hardworking student. He made sure the council’s ideas were all heard and worked his hardest to implement whatever project they wanted that year. You admired-- and albeit were a little jealous-- of how perfect Jimin was. During high school, you realized you might have had a crush on him, but you quickly nipped that in the bud. Having a crush on your best friend? You couldn’t risk your friendship like that, it meant too much to you.

With that said, Jimin had always looked up to you as well. He loved the way you always spoke your mind, a trait that often got you in trouble in school. He loved the way you would apply yourself to something you’re passionate about and was delighted when you announced that you would be going to pursue your passion in art. Luckily for him, you both ended up at the same University. Jimin also loved that he knew the real you. Other people would probably say that you’re “cool” but have a cold demeanor, but he knew better. He knew that you were a huge sappy hopeless romantic, but would never tell anyone that. Anyone other than him of course.

“Yeah yeah okay you big baby. You want me to hold your hand too?” you teased, looking over the presentation one last time.

“Actually, yes I do,” Jimin smiled innocently as he plopped his hand onto the table. You rolled your eyes and took his hand anyway. He always does this. You always chalk it up to Jimin just being an affectionate guy, but what you don’t realize is that he’ll look for any excuse to be with you. He’ll do anything to be yours, but you’re too oblivious to all his tactics. Had you known that he had a crush on you, you would’ve pounced on him on the spot. But for now, you’re more than happy to call him your best friend.

“Well, I just turned it in for us. Congrats, now you have the rest of your weekend free from philosophy hell! Have any plans?” you ask.

“Not yet. But we can make plans! You wanna watch a movie at my place? We can order in and celebrate by being lazy! My roommates are gone for the weekend so we can do whatever we want. You kind of have to say yes because I already got a surprise for you,” Jimin smiled deviously.

“Oh yeah? Guess we do have plans then, I’m in. What’s the surprise?” you cock your head.

“I can’t tell you because it’s a surprise, dummy. Let me go back first to clean up a little, I don’t want you to think I’m living in a pigsty,” Jimin starts packing up his stuff.

“I’ve been over there plenty of times, I already know that you’re living in a pigsty,” you tease. Jimin gives you an overexaggerated shocked face.

“Well, then you should know that all that mess is made by my roommates. Not me. Just appreciate the fact that I care about you enough to clean up for you,” Jimin sasses.

“You care for me? How sweet! I never would have known. I’ll go back to my place and take a quick shower. I’ll text you when I’m heading over,” you shoot him a smile as you turn to walk back to your apartment.

“Sounds good! Actually, call me when you’re ready, and I’ll come pick you up,” Jimin stated.

“What? No, you don’t have to--”

“I insist!”

“I’ve walked to your place countless times. It’s fine I can--”

“I wanna come pick you up!” Jimin whines. You give in. There’s no use in arguing with him when he’s like this.

“Okay fine! See you later, weirdo,” you laugh. You wave and head back to your apartment.

Back at your apartment, you slip into the shower and crank the temperature to the sweet spot between a soothing flow of hot water and scalding your skin. The shower has always been your safe space where your thoughts could float from one cloud to the next without the fear of judgment by anyone. You wonder what Jimin could possibly have brewed up this time. He was never the type to surprise anyone, so you are puzzled as to what spurred up this novel side of Jimin. Even though your thoughts beg you to stay in the shower just a bit longer, you force yourself out and quickly pat down your body.

Although you had long since snipped the feelings you had for Jimin, the small bud still had its roots somewhere deep inside of you. You realize this as your heart sputters erratically with the thought of being surprised by Jimin. Looking in the mirror, you see your face has taken on an unfamiliar glow and excitement. It’s just platonic, you remind yourself, but the flush in your face betrayed what your mind was saying.

With your towel wrapped around you, you scan your closet for something to wear. You remind yourself that it wasn’t that serious because it was Jimin. Your day one. Your supposed “brother” figure. Just one of the guys, you remind yourself. So after a few minutes of deliberation, you decide on a t-shirt and jeans (typical). However, before you walk out the door you slip on the bracelet that Jimin had made you back in elementary school.

It was weathered now, the letters on the beads were losing their colors, but it fits onto your wrist with a familiarity that calmed you. You call Jimin, as he insisted that you should, and when he picks up any nervousness that you had felt in the shower is mellowed by the familiarity of his voice.

“___! You ready for me to come over and pick you up?” Jimin’s voice is sprightly, as if the only thing containing him from bursting was a thin film of cellophane. You smile, wondering why you ever doubted in the first place.

“Yup!” you answer, “But I’m not patient, so hurry up!”

Jimin’s car pulled up to your apartment complex promptly five minutes after you had called him, and you feel your heart do a small jig again as you still haven’t got a single clue as to what surprise he had in store for you. You slip into the passenger seat as you had done countless times before, but this time...this time felt different. Not off, just...different.

The drive to Jimin’s place wasn’t long, but for some reason, the minutes seemed to drag on for what felt like an eternity. As Jimin’s car neared the familiar facade of his apartment complex, you felt the excitement build up in your chest. Jimin parks the car and promptly makes his way to your side before you can even get your seatbelt all the way off.

“I can’t wait for you to see what I have planned for you,” his usual charm is cranked up all the way, and you blush but you try to push that softness into the platonic zone.

“If it isn’t a good surprise, you’re legally obligated to pay for the pizza tonight,” you teased him lightly. Knowing Jimin and his characteristic ways of getting everyone to like him you knew that he wasn’t one to disappoint.

Jimin dramatically wiped invisible tears from his eyes, “You do not have enough faith in me, ___.” He extended his hand expectantly, and although you were caught off guard, you quickly accept his outstretched hand. Just friends, remember? As he helps you out of his car, you feel the blush bloom into what you were horrified was reminiscent of a cherry tomato. You hope your hand wasn’t clammy, but you try to remind yourself that he’s seen the worst of you since you were a child. He can handle some sweaty palms.

After making your way to the door, Jimin steps in front of you with both of his hands up, “Hold on. You have to close your eyes.”

“Jimin,” you roll your eyes, but he made his signature puppy face that had a 100% success rate of making you yield to him. You chuckled breathily, but comply, “Alright, dummy.”

You hear the sound of the rickety wooden door open and try to overcome the urge to peek. To your surprise, Jimin’s hands are on your shoulders, and you can feel his breath on your neck. It sends your heart into another race, and you hope that he doesn’t hear the pounding in your chest. Jimin guides you into his apartment, cautious to not let you bump into anything. Finally, he stops, and his hands leave your shoulders.

“Okay, you can open your eyes now!”

When you do, your eyes are somewhat overwhelmed. His living room is decorated with little fairy lights, and little glow in the dark stars speckled his usually plain white walls. The best part, though, was the tent that was smack dab in the middle of the living room. There were pillows that paved a way towards the humble abode. You hear laughter that sounds like the prettiest of bells, and you realize that it’s coming from you.

“We always wanted to make a hideout with pillows and blankets, but we never really got around to it,” Jimin began to explain, “So I...I just thought you’d like it…”

You pounce onto him with a fierceness that almost sends him backward, “Oh Jimin, I love it so much!” His arms, though initially surprised from your attack, hug you back in a warm, familiar embrace. Without warning, you feel his lips press into the side of your face, and you freeze up for a minute. The tenderness of his kiss makes you melt, and before long you thaw up and don’t even bother to break the embrace.

“___, I have something to tell you,” Jimin whispers, his voice muffled as he snuggles his face into your hair. If your heart was racing before, now it was beating absolutely manically, but you don’t move. Could it be?

You return the affection by snuggling back into him, your heart pounding so hard you’re almost certain he could hear it, “Yes Jiminie?”

“I couldn’t choose between Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings. I know you love both so I figured you can choose,” he giggled into your ear. You feel your heart deflate, but were quick to cast the disappointment aside.

“Can we pick a Studio Ghibli movie instead? I feel like that would fit the vibe better,” you hear your voice waver. You hoped Jimin didn’t notice it.

“We can absolutely do that! Great choice. Mmm, you wanna watch Spirited Away? I know that’s your favorite,” Jimin pulls away from you to venture over to his DVD collection.

You nod your head and give him a warm smile. You admonish yourself for getting your hopes up. Jimin is your best friend. He’s also such a sweetheart. Of course he would do this for his best friend. His day one bud.

Jimin puts on the movie and crawled into the tent. He wiggled his butt at you to make you laugh before turning around and gesturing for you to join him.

“Wait! Can you bring some pillows pleaaaase? I thought they’d help tie everything together as a walkway--which they totally did-- but those are all that I have,” Jimin gave you an innocent smile.

You roll your eyes at him but couldn’t suppress your smile as you launched the pillows at him.

“We can have a pillow fight after the movie! Get your ass in here,” Jimin whined.

“Coming! Wait, do you want me to get snacks first?” you ask.

“You really do not have enough faith in me. Everything we’d ever need is already here! Except for the most important thing. You,” Jimin’s lips curled into a soft smile.

“Alright you big mushball, scoot over,” you crawl in beside him. Your heart skipped a beat when he called you the most important thing, but again, you set it aside. He says these kinds of things all the time, and yet everything feels different tonight.

You sat side by side, huddled together under a shared blanket once the movie started. A wave of nostalgia washed over you as you ate your pizza topped with popcorn. Jimin thought it was gross, but you always argued that it was the most efficient way to eat during movie nights. As Haku and Chihiro made their way into the bathhouse, Jimin leaned closer to you.

“Done eating?” he whispered.

“Yeah, what’s up?” you respond, not taking your eyes off the screen.

“Can we...cuddle?” Jimin asked shyly.

“Are we not cuddling right now?” you say dryly.

“No I mean like... cuddle cuddle. I’m not really comfortable like this,” Jimin said. You look over to him and see him looking at the floor, his cheeks were barely visible in the dim lighting but you could tell they were flushed.

“Sure Jiminie, we can cuddle. How do you want me?” you ask.

Jimin pauses the movie and repositions the pillows. He lays down sideways with the pillows comfortably propping up his head.

“Come be my little spoon, y/n,” he says reaching out to you.

You smile and wiggle back into the tent to join him. You lay beside him, using his arm as your pillow (Jimin is gonna regret that later but he didn’t have the heart to ask you to move). You get as comfortable as you could in front of him, while still leaving a little gap between you two. As you open your mouth to tell him that you’re ready, Jimin wraps an arm around you to pull you into him. You let out a soft gasp as you feel your back rub up against his chest--which was surprisingly firm.

“Is this okay?” he asked, his breath tickling your ear.

“Yeah I’m good, can you see?” you’re relieved that he can’t see you, as your face heated up and was most definitely red.

“Yeah, you’re perfect.”

“What?”

“I mean, this is perfect. This uh position is perfect...I’m comfortable. Unless you’re not. Then I’m not. I mean uh--”

“Okay silly, then play the movie,” you chuckle at how cute he was.

Jimin normally never loses his charm, so hearing him stumble over his words was rare. Jimin gave you a tight squeeze after he hit play, and the two of you remained like that for the remainder of the movie.

After the movie finished, you were nearly asleep in Jimin’s arms. Spirited Away always put you at ease, since you had nothing but happy childhood memories associated with it.

“___~” Jimin softly sang in your ear.

“Whaaaaat~” you sang back.

“Thanks for coming over tonight, even though I gave you no choice,” Jimin said, nuzzling your ear.

“Of course, what are best friends for?” you giggle, he knew your ears were ticklish, “You kicking me out now?”

“Not yet. You know how I said I had something to tell you earlier?”

“Yeah, asking me to choose between Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings?”

“Yeah that. That’s actually not really what I wanted to say. I mean I was going to ask you that because I really couldn’t choose but--”

“Just spit it out, Jimin,” you turn around to face him, his face just a few inches from yours. Jimin sighed and leaned closer to you, resting his forehead against yours.

“I’vebeeninlovewithyouforsolongIcan’thideitanymore,” he blurted out in one breath.

You were shocked. You didn’t know how to react. You couldn’t tell if it was relief, surprise, or excitement that flooded your mind. All you knew was that your heart was soaring. You’ve never experienced such happiness from one sentence before. You pondered all of this in silence before you realized that Jimin was looking at you expectantly. After all, he did lay his heart on the line for you.

“Say that again, but slowly. I wanna make sure I heard you properly,” you chuckle.

“Don’t tease me!”

“I’m not! I’m being serious! You became a rapper all of a sudden and I couldn’t fully understand you,” this time it was you giving Jimin puppy dog eyes.

“I said, I’ve been in love with you for so long I can’t hide it anymore. My roommates asked about us the other day, and I told them we were best friends. They all made fun of me, saying that everyone always thought we were a couple. They made me realize that I actually was, and have been, so madly in love with you. It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way. It actually feels amazing to finally get that off my chest,” Jimin shyly looked away.

You cupped his face and responded, “Of course I feel the same way, dummy. All this time I’ve been trying to bury my feelings because I didn’t want to jeopardize our friendship. I love you too, Jimin,” you lean in slowly and kissed him tenderly.

You’ve always imagined his lips to be soft and supple. You were 100% correct.  You pull away and smile against his mouth before he pulls you back in. This time, the kiss is needier, as if to make up for all the years you guys could’ve been doing this sooner. Jimin rolls on top of you, assuming a dominant position. This time he pulls away.

“Are you sure you want to do this? Our friendship will never be the same,” he locks eyes with yours.

“You’re right. I think our friendship will be even better. As lovers. If you’ll have me,” you rest your arms around his neck.

“Of course, I’ll have you, ___. Let me show you what you’ve been missing out on all these years,” Jimin smirks as your heart beats faster and you rub your thighs together.

He bends over gently to kiss you again, but the sweetness only covers the soft hunger underneath, like a chocolate coated strawberry. Before the kiss can last long he breaks it, and you want to protest but stopped when his lips press into your neck. And then your collar bones. Your breath comes in quick spurts, and every inch of your skin is charged with electricity, like livewire. Jimin seems to hear this because he smirks and nips gently at your earlobe.

His hands gently trace your t-shirt up, and you raise your arms expectantly. He takes your shirt off in one smooth motion, and your eyes meet with his, “Are you doing okay?”

Your voice is breathy, but you manage, “Couldn’t be better.”

He smirks again and leans over you to dot your torso with gentle kisses. Then, his hands are at the waistline of your jeans, and they pause ever so slightly before undoing the button. You silently thank whatever god exists in the sky for choosing today of all days to go for the cute, lacy underwear you had gotten on sale in a lingerie store meant for women who got more action than you.

“Tell me if anything gets uncomfortable, okay?” Jimin looks nervous, and you’ve never seen him lose his composure like this. This novel vulnerability and earnest in his eyes make your chest grow warm with tenderness. You nod fervently, and he laughs into your thighs. The sensation brings warmth between your legs.

His fingers hesitate over the edge of the lacy fabric before he gently tugs your panties down the length of your legs. You can feel the ache, the need for him to lay his hands on you. Jimin kisses the inside of your thighs, murmuring, “I will always love these thighs you always complain about.” His lips linger daintily on your skin, and you try not to squirm or move, as if this moment would evaporate if you made any sudden movements.

Almost instinctively, your hand finds its way to his soft, shiny locks. You have imagined the feeling of his hair running through the space between your fingers, but no imagination could do the real experience justice. He pushes your legs apart, and you almost want to scream in anticipation.

Then his head dips into the aching place between your legs, and you feel yourself gasping in pleasure as his mouth finds its place to where you wanted him most. His tongue slowly glides over your clit, and your back arches, moving your body against his mouth. Your fingers grip his hair as if it is the thread of life, and your breath comes faster and shallower.

He chuckles, and the vibrations of the sound make you ache for him all the more. In your frenzy, you let the words slip from your lips, “More, please.”

His tongue picks up its leisurely pace to a more rhythmic motion, and just when you thought it couldn’t feel better you gasp when you feel his finger push through your entrance. His free hand rested on your torso, a cooling patch to your otherwise hot skin.  It was as if you were made only for him, and he was only made for you. The way in which you both moved brought you to a point of madness from the pleasure. As he continued, you felt the pleasure spike, climbing and climbing to its highest point.

But before you could be let off the cliff, Jimin pauses, “What do you want, ___?” His eyes stare at you with its familiar charm because knowing he was the cause of your pleasure brought back the confidence you were used to.

“I want you,” you practically whimper between pants.

He smiles mischievously, and his head and fingers return where they were, working you quickly back up to the peak. This time though, he continues his motions pushing you closer to the edge, until finally, finally you are given your release. Your release courses through your body like a storm, your body almost convulsing with pleasure. His hair is now a rat’s nest from your fingers, and he smiles into your legs continuing. He doesn’t release you until you practically scream from the stimulation, causing waves of pleasure.

Finally, he lets you go from his mouth, and his lips make a pathway up from your crotch all the way back up to your lips. You taste yourself on his lips, and you want to drown in him as his kisses grow hungrier. You finally break the kiss, and look up at him with a boldness that you had never felt before, “I suppose it’s your turn now?”

Jimin’s eyes lit up, “Only if you’re feeling generous.”

Without another word, you took Jimin by surprise as you shifted your weight to flip yourself on top of him. You pause before straddling his waist.

“I don’t think it’s fair that I’m completely naked and you’re not,” you say as you begin to tug at the end of his shirt.

“That can be fixed,” Jimin smiles as he removed his shirt to reveal his abs. You caught your breath. You knew Jimin was fit, but you never realized he looked this good.

You begin to unbutton his pants and attempted to strip them off. They were a lot tighter than you anticipated so you were struggling. Jimin couldn’t help but laugh at how determined you were as you began to aggressively tug at his legs. You tried to give him a sad pouty face, but couldn’t resist in joining his laughter. There you both were. Sitting in a tent in the middle of Jimin’s apartment. One of you completely naked, while the other was getting there with a bit of conflict. And you guys were laughing your asses off. The atmosphere didn’t feel sexy or seductive at all. Instead, you two were completely comfortable and were vibing off of that contentment.

Jimin finally helped you take his pants off, but left his underwear on. You never really understood the expression “pitched tent” in this context until now. Jimin’s raging boner stood high against the restraints of his underwear. You couldn’t help but stare at it for a second before palming it gingerly. As soon as you touched it, Jimin shuddered and let out a sigh.

“Sorry, I’ve just been dreaming about this for a while now. Hope that’s not weird…” Jimin blushes.

“Let’s see if I live up to your expectations,” you look up at him with a wily smile.

You tug at his waistband down, allowing his erection to spring free. You were impressed and a little intimidated at its sheer size. Not wanting to disappoint, you started stroking him slowly from the base all the way to the tip. You watched his face contort with pure bliss as you applied more pressure and used a faster pace.

You couldn’t hold in your lust any further. You teasingly licked the tip of his cock. Jimin whimpered in response. This peaked your intrigue, you never thought you’d hear Jimin like this. Yeah, he could be whiny on a daily basis, but you wouldn’t have imagined it in the bedroom.

With the head of his cock in your mouth, you start to swirl your tongue around it. Jimin starts to whine louder and his hands entangle themselves in your hair. Deciding not to tease him any longer, you experiment to see how much of him you can take. You can’t even get to the base of his dick without gagging. As you bob your head rhythmically up and down, you hand glides over what you can’t fit in your mouth. This seems to be working beautifully for Jimin, as his grip on your hair became more firm and his whines turned into drawn out moans.

“Oh god, ___. You’re better than anything I could’ve ever dreamt of,” Jimin groaned as he pulled you off of him, “If you keep going like that, I’m gonna blow my load way too soon. I still wanna dick you down tonight. If you want to, of course.”

“I would love nothing more. Do you have a condom? I’m not on any birth control,” you say.

“When I said this tent has everything we’d ever need, I wasn’t kidding,” Jimin beamed as he pulled out a condom from under the pizza box.

“What would you have said if I moved the pizza box for some reason?” you asked, giggling.

“I dunno. I just prayed that you wouldn’t. Either way,” Jimin pushed you back beneath him, “I’m glad I put it there. May I have the honors?”

“Go for it dude,” you stick your tongue at him. You loved the way that everything felt so natural with him.

Jimin slips on the condom before aligning himself with your entrance. He leans over to kiss you as he slides in slowly. The stretch caused you to moan into his mouth. Once he bottomed out, he slipped his hands into yours. Gazing into your eyes, he started to buck his hips into yours faster. You started to moan and closed your eyes to fully enjoy the pleasure.

“Keep your eyes on me, ___,” you hear Jimin say, “I want all of your attention on me.”

You open your eyes and smile up at Jimin. You wrap your arms around his neck and pull him closer to you. Jimin plants kisses along your neck. Your moans become more haggard as you feel a familiar knot coil within you.

“Ji-Jimin I’m close,” you pant.

“Me too, ___,” Jimin responds, his eyebrows furrowed, “Let’s finish together. Can you do that with me, ___?”

You didn’t get the chance to answer. You let out a loud cry as your high overcame you. Feeling your pussy tighten over his cock, Jimin drilled into you even faster. It wasn’t long before Jimin all met his sweet release. With one final thrust, Jimin groaned as came inside of you.

You were both spent. Jimin collapsed beside you, pulling off the condom to inspect it.

“Nice, no breakage!” Jimin cheered as he tied it up. Jimin wrapped his arms around you, pulling you in for a big hug.

“Jimin, I’m all sweaty,” you say, trying to wiggle free from his grasp.

“Oh yeah? Well so am I! I’ve been covered in worse than your sweat now anyway,” Jimin nuzzles into your neck.

“Gross! But also true,” you couldn’t help but laugh, “Jimin, you know we can never go back to what we were before, right?”

“Yeah, I know. And why would I want to? We both admitted that we love each other, I don’t see a problem. I love you, ___. I always have. And I’m pretty sure I always will,” Jimin whispers into your neck.

“Same goes for me. I’ve been head over heels for you ever since high school,” you kiss his forehead.

“I’ll do you one better. I’ve been in love with you ever since day one,” Jimin plants a final kiss before you both drift off to sleep in each other’s arms.

Published August 7, 2020. No editing, copying, translating, or reposting allowed. All Rights Reserved © 2020 Baepsaesbae.

[zoomy-brain]

Y’all. I cannot explain how relieved I am Shadow and Bone turned out so good!!! I’m so happyyyyy!!! Thoughts and rambles under the cut!

Commission Info || Ko-fi

OKAY SO, short version: it’s really good, hot damn!!

Long version (spoilers btw): I was so worried mixing the six of crew with Alina’s story was gonna be weird and not work. But thank gods they have great writers on the team (and Leigh Bardugo), and it works very very well.

Alina’s story is, let us be honest, pretty dry and boring as a series. Most of the book goes into her inner struggle with her grisha powers and her self-image and her relationship with the Darkling, a lot of it is inner turmoil. Not so interesting for a series. So adding the Six of Crew before the plot of Six of Crows is a really good idea to fill up a lot of empty space, and introduce the much more complicated characters, as well as how they work with each other. And after all the build up, when all the mains meet in the end, it’s so satisfying. Six of Crows andthe trilogy have always felt like seperate entities, but they somehow made me WANT to cross each other and be buddies. (Also Inej feeling enlightened by meeting Alina had me soaring, it was something I didn’t know I wanted 💛💛💛)

Casting is freaking perfect. The Darkling couldn’t be anyone BUT Ben Barnes, fuckin nailed it. Everyone‘s acting was amazing, Jesper especially was spot-on, Mal and Alina really took what they got and made it charming and interesting, Nina and Matthias are perfect in every way. The characters aren’t 100% the same as in the book, which is dangerous but they didn’t take anything away. In fact, they added and made it work for a tv-series format. Kaz is intimidating but he’s not all-powerful from the start, which is very different from the book but it still works. Alina is half Shu now, which I didn’t think would be necessary until she ran away to a Ravkan village, where they immediately look at her with suspicion, making her struggle to stay out of the limelight (heh) harder, so it DOES add something. There’s a lot of little things like that in every character that wouldn’t have worked as well in the book, but it does here because it’s acted and framed very well 👏👏👏

I’m surprised how much I love the magic system in the series. Reading the book, you can only do so much with your imagination. In the series, the effects are well done but what makes the grisha powers work, is the actor’s mannerisms when they use them. The harsh arm movements and the sound effects added to it, really make it feel like it’s an effort they barely have to think twice about. Aka, what the last airbender movie SHOULD have done.

If I HAVE to complain about 1 thing, it’s just that I wish the world was a little more interesting. I blame this on my own imagination going wild when i was reading the books, but Ketterdam felt massive AS WELL as claustrophobic. The show has the claustrophobia down, but not the whole Capital-City-ness of Ketterdam. Maybe that’ll happen once the Six Of Crows arc starts? I also thought the Little Palace was wayyyyy underwhelming. Especially knowing the kind of architecture Russia can come up with when they built palaces, that shit should’ve had more domes, bruh. But then again, alternatively, the Fold was really well done. A problem a lot of films have these days is that none of them know how to film Dark Scenes. As in literal dark, lights out, scenes. See: any DC film ever, except Wonder Woman. The Fold wasn’t blindingly dark, you could still clearly see the characters and their expressions. What made the Fold work was the pressing dark mist that was always hovering over them and how people talked about the Fold. Kinda like how Voldemort became intimidating solely by how other people talked about him. As well as the Stag’s forest. Mmmm that’s some good snowy scenery 👌👌👌

Other notable moments that made me go “FUCK YES, GOOD SHIT”: Nina gets her waffles in season 1, Jesper meets the second love of his life Milo, 2 heists, Kaz announcing them as heists, mission impossible-esque filming of said heists, plottwists that weren’t in the books (which means the writers thought of us, the fans, and i love them for it), Alina’s Sarcasm, Ben Barnes, Inej gets to circus, Jesper gets frisky in the stables, Jesper gets to Show Off, Kaz gets to Go Off, Nina has Volumes, the Shag’s Majestic Antlers (tm)

Just- oof- so good. I need more people to talk with about Shadow and Bone, the adaptation that’s doing it Right. It’s sooo good, I finished yesterday and I wanna watch it again already.

[trivialoveclub]

2020 Year in Review!

hey! i was tagged by the absolute angel that is ⚘ @unefleurofferte ⚘(tysm my love! 💞) for this 2020 tag! first off (even tho it's the middle of january already 🤡) i wanted to wish everyone a happy new year! not to get sappy 💀 but even tho i don't rlly talk/interact that much, it brings me a lot of happiness seeing u guys on my dash 🥺💗 i genuinely am supporting and rooting for you all and i wish u guys all the love and kindness in this new year bc you deserve it babes 💖

Rules: answer the questions about 2020 and tag some people to pass it on!

5 Fav Films You Watched in 2020

🎬 Soul (2020) "Your spark isn't your purpose. That last box fills in when you're ready to come live."

🎬 Onward (2020) "I never had a dad, but I always had you."

🎬 Klaus (2019) "A true selfless act always sparks another."

🎬 Diecisiete (2019) "You think I'd be doing all of this if I had no heart?

Maybe you're trying to get it back."

🎬 East Side Sushi (2014) "You know behind every great restaurant here, there are great latinos, in the back, in the kitchen, hidden. Prepping the food and making you all look good. Well, I don't want to be in the back anymore."

5 Fav TV Shows You Watched In 2020

📺 Like in The Movies (2020) "Do you ever feel like you're not the protagonist of your own story?"

📺 Given (2019) "Do you have anyone you like, Haruki-san? If that person suddenly disappeared from this world, what would you say?"

📺 Banana Fish (2018) "My soul is always with you."

📺 Masterchef Junior (2013-) Not a quote but Gordon Ramsay always says the dishes has "finesse" and now i can't stop saying it in everything 😭

📺 Next in Fashion (2020)

5 Fav Songs You Listened To In 2020

🎶 UGH! : BTS 🎶 "You're allowed to be angry, but bothering someone else's life, I don't like"

🎶 Fuyu No Hanashi : Given 🎶 "Just like the snow that hasn't completely melted in the shade I continue on with these feelings inside of me."

🎶 So Beautiful : DPR Ian 🎶 "My love is turning kinda gray / My heart is looking the other way."

���� PSYCHE : Joohoney 🎶 "All of the world pay attention"

🎶 Stay Tonight : Chungha 🎶 "Tell me what you wanna do, run away or stay tonight"

Top 5 Albums of 2020

💿 Map of The Soul 7 : BTS

UGH! ⏯ Black Swan ⏯ Inner Child

💿 Fatal Love : Monsta X

Sorry I'm Not Sorry ⏯ Nobody Else ⏯ Guess Who

💿 Ungodly Hour : Chloe x Halle

ROYL ⏯ Forgive Me ⏯ Lonely

💿 Mixtape [ PSYCHE ] : Joohoney

PSYCHE ⏯ Intro (Ambition) ⏯ DIA

💿 Chromatica : Lady Gaga

Replay ⏯ Sour Candy ⏯ Alice

Top 5 Books You Read in 2020

🤡 🤡 🤡

...i haven't read for fun in years 😔 i used to read a book every single day :(( but! i already have a list of ones i want to read so this year for sure im gonna be that girl again 🤧💅🏼

💌 How did you spend your birthday this year? 💌

uh hahaha 🤡 suddenly i can't read 🤡

well...i had to take my drivers test but i had no idea how to park so i mean obvs i was gonna fail 💀 so i got super anxious and then had a breakdown in the back seat when it was getting closer to my turn 😭 my parents had to reschedule it and take me home. i felt like such a disappointment. so it started off absolutely horrible, fortunately the rest of the day was a lot better but oof 🤪

💌 What was your most memorable day? 💌

i honestly cannot remember anything 😭 it's like one big blur but ummm...probably finishing high school! i felt like i could finally breathe 🥲

💌 What was your most memorable meal you had this year? 💌

hmm...ooo probably when my abuelita made us a bunch of paches de papa 🥺 i ate them for a whole week and i loved it entirely...my heart is pache shaped 🤧💘

💌 Did you find any new hobbies or interests in quarantine? 💌

hmm i don't think i got any new ones but i did get to be reminded again on how much i genuinely enjoy making food and like decorating/personalizing things! ☺💖

💌 What was the last big event/thing you remember doing before covid? 💌

uhhh i honestly can't think of anything? i literally don't go out 🤡 like im in chilling in this quarantine lifestyle bc nothing has changed for me 🤪

💌 5 good/positive things that happened to you in 2020? 💌

🌱 i finally escaped high school! 🎓🎉

🌱 i decided to take a gap year and the burnt out student inside me feels like she can finally exhale

🌱 i can't remember if it was in early 2020 or late 2019 but anyways I GOT MY DRIVERS LICENSE 😝😝 i honestly...do not know how i got it...i took 15+ minutes to park (as u can see your girl didn't learn her lesson) but bless that man for passing me i hope u have a beautiful life sir 😭💖 however i have not stepped in the driver's seat since then 💋 i refuse 💋

🌱 i honestly would say watching Soul 🥲💗 i've always been obsessed w my meaning and purpose in life and that movie rlly just hit home for me...i think about it everyday and im literally starting to tear up right now so let me just stop 🤪

🌱 hmm honestly just being home 💗 i now have an excuse to stay in all time and that brings me so much peace in my heart 🤧

💌 Biggest messages or lessons learnt from this year? 💌

that there's a lot to live for. and i rlly want to enjoy it? and like w the gap year i still feel guilty and still feel like im wasting time and not being productive (love being a capricorn 🤪) but im trying to not think like that...and the fact that Soul came out and it's whole message is literally like life is beautiful and it's meant to be lived 🥺 it rlly like...set that for me u know...there's so many little things that truly make me excited about life and i want to enjoy it and after those 4 years in high school of constant work and stress and losing my entire mind maybe i actually deserve it 🥲 so um yeah..sjdkajd

💌 And what are you most looking forward to in 2021? 💌

a lot ☺ everything honestly...wow omg that's so weird asjakjd ahhh 😭😭💘 [insert that paul rudd who would have thought not me meme] but i wanna do sm much!! bake and cook and learn to knit! and personalize my clothes and READ! and watch movies and shows! and i'll also be going back to school so i rlllllllllyyyyyyyy want to learn how to manage my time bc my procrastination truly fucked me in the ass in hs 🤡 but yeah im excited ahh! ☺

And We're Done!

oof my memory is so awful i feel like i can't remember anything that happened in 2020 🤡 this ended up being a bit long 💀 so if u made it to the end...thank u for reading...ily 😚💌 besitos for you! 💞

tagging these cuties 💘: @moonlattae @fluorescente @glossierjoon @ardores @star99 @jooniephoria @ahearthrob @catboyjm @yoongidisease @violetmoonlits @koyan @stardustyoongi @7blueside @m1amor @sobsyub @m8nstruck @souheii @1okyos @virgomoon @alevchaan @jihyoist

[chainofclovers]

Grace and Frankie 7x1 - 7x4 thoughts

Meh? Like...I love them so much, but...meh?

(I did enjoy this line about brunch.)

I really loved season 6 of Grace and Frankie. I thought it was well-paced, largely very well-acted, generally well-written, and it culminated in a massive moment of character development for the title characters, who, having spent years growing closer and being there for each other when others could not or would not be, finally articulate to each other that they are the primary person in each other’s lives. Platonic gal pal soulmate BFF emotional support witches 4 lyfe!

I know progress isn’t always linear, and in fact is very rarely linear, but after a moment that significant, you’d think the writers on this show would maybe come up with some more interesting things for these characters to do than spin in circles?

@bristler and I watched on Friday night, and just this morning over breakfast had a good conversation about the first four episodes of the new season now that they have settled in our brains a bit. We concluded that the writing (often noticeably clunky, like the dialogue is responsible for more narration than usual) and the tone (aggressively wacky) feel really off, especially compared to the prior season. I think we diagnosed the big issue, which is that Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda are by far the most talented actors on this show (if you disagree, fight me in the parking lot) and it feels surprisingly unfortunate that their characters have, to this point in the new season, pretty much figured out their perspectives on each other. No matter how people feel about Grace and Frankie’s sexualities, the whole show has been about them finding each other and getting in deeper and deeper, and it’s less interesting to watch other characters have realizations about that than it is to watch Grace and Frankie having realizations about themselves. If the title characters are now limited to reacting to other people’s actions, and the title characters are played by the best actors on the show, the whole show’s gonna suffer. And is suffering, very much so, at least for these first four episodes. I’m definitely still excited for the final twelve in 2022 (twelve! I cannot believe this season will have sixteen eps!), but I’m pretty disappointed so far.

Stuff I Loved:

The family brunch. These families have been entwined for so long, and the backstory for this particular brunch was so fun (even though I didn’t care for the effects they did to depict Grace and Robert 25 years ago; there was no need for a visual flashback in the scene). I love that Grace hit Frankie with a wiffle ball bat. I love that the two couples realized some of the emotional reasons behind their decisions to lie to each other about Bud’s Bunny and about M’Challah. I love the way Jane Fonda sounds uttering the phrase “Bud’s Bunny” with little to no irony. I love that Grace is able to recognize and articulate just how deep and miserable her anger issues were, albeit with the continued help of her omnipresent martini, and that Frankie told her she’d now make up a holiday in order to spend more time with Grace. I really, really hope Frankie does exactly this at some point in the remaining episodes of the season. I love that Grace is generally a pretty good person now, with aspirations of being a delightful person. I love that she and Frankie don’t have it in them to stay angry with each other, and I love all the evidence that they really, really talk to each other about everything now.

Frankie talking to the man at the office (I don’t remember who he was supposed to be? A toilet manufacturer? I didn’t mention this before, but I actually got pretty high while watching?!? Believe it or not, this was the first time I smoked pot and watched Grace and Frankie at the same time despite having enjoyed both activities on their own for quite some time. I would recommend the combo! And I think I still pretty much got what was happening) about paying for the toilet parts with candy. This whole subplot with the money laundering was absurd and not that interesting, but I loved this particular scene because it was finally evidence of some really thoughtful writing. The concepts aren’t enough! You have to write them into good dialogue! And the whole cash/candy thing was a moment of dialogue that only someone as hilarious as Lily Tomlin could pull off. Which she did, IMO.

In a show about super messy people, Coyote has stayed sober this entire time. He is sober, employed, in love, and preparing to buy a full-sized house with his partner. He hasn’t murdered anyone in his family. Hasn’t even attempted murder once.

In 2017 or whatever, Grace Hanson would have been furious about Frankie using obscure Beatles references like a treasure map when hiding the cash. But here in 2021, she cooperates and even gets in on the fun. The writing is very unsubtle this season, but that did feel like a reasonably subtle moment that shows how good of a partner she is for Frankie. (Platonic, of course! So platonic. Female friendship, amirite?)

Stuff I Did NOT Love and Felt Incredibly Negative About:

Brianna. I can only conclude that June Diane Raphael has decided she’s happy with playing a character whose primary role in life is to be hot and mean. She succeeds at being hot and mean, but I have reached my limit with this character. I realize we’re only a quarter of the way into the season, but I don’t think I can take another arc about her learning to compromise only to reveal to Barry that she never intended to compromise at all. At this point, it’s both abusive and boring. How?! The Grace/Brianna parallels aren’t interesting anymore, because one character has grown and the other is stagnant. I get that Brianna was raised in an emotionally stilted environment by two unhealthy people. But I think it would be very cool if she could learn something from her mother at this point. Grace has put a ton of effort into dealing with her “rabbit-killing, mad-at-the-world anger.” She’s put a ton of effort into figuring out what makes her happy, what she wants her life to look like. She’s even started accepting her age and abilities without shame. And that growth is believable; Grace is still short-tempered and she still slugs back way too many martinis and she struggles to articulate certain things, but she’s grown into a truly lovely human. And while, as a daughter with a mother, I can absolutely attest to the fact that it can be difficult and uncomfortable to learn lessons from one’s mother, Brianna really, really should. Grace spent decades letting anger and shame trap her in a small, miserable life. Brianna—and even Mallory, who just seems like a vapid idiot this season—are traveling that same path, but there’s someone right there who could really help, maybe even more than Frankie helped when the Hanson girls were first growing up.

The arraignment. The scene might’ve been salvageable if it was filmed from Grace’s perspective, and filmed to reflect how surreal and improbable it all was. But speaking of non-linear progress, this scene erased everything Nick Skolka has done to put himself in my good graces (LOL) over the past couple seasons. I mean, I tried, man. I even wrote fic about Nick, Grace, and Frankie making a genuine effort at polyamory. But the arraignment is so emotionally manipulative, such a slap in the face of everything Grace has worked for, and while we’re certainly “supposed” to feel the weight of the moment, I mean, it’s not like we’re supposed to be like, “Oh, cool, we’re in a rom com now! This is adorable!” it still felt bad and unearned and slapdash.

And I want Frankie to process these things with her! Frankie seems so happy to have all this information about Grace and how Grace feels, but I want to see scenes in which we can gain an understanding of how Frankie actually feels. Hearing Frankie talk to other people about how Grace feels is interesting, but it’s like there’s no room in these episodes for us to learn anything new about Frankie herself.

Grace’s transitional wig. Is so. Bad. It is. Such a. Bad wig. Oof. I mean, I like what they’re doing with Grace’s hair from a plot perspective, although (see one bullet up) I would really like to get more of an understanding of what’s happening in Grace’s head, not just on top of her head. And gosh, Frankie would be a really good person to talk to about this in a conversation that lasts longer than 30 seconds. But the wig! She’s in a wig in all four episodes, of course, since Jane Fonda went grey and cut her hair short before they started filming this season. The wig for episodes 1 and 2 is fine; it’s a good approximation of Grace’s typical hair, and of course we know that canonically Grace’s hair isn’t 100% her own hair anyway. But the wig with grey roots looks so weird. The part that’s growing out doesn’t look the same as the hair on the wig from 1 and 2. And the grey roots look like a yarmulke. I cannot wait to get to the point in the season when Grace goes all the way grey.

(One more thing about the hair. I can’t let it go. I paused the show while we were watching to rant, but I’m not done.) I had the great privilege of seeing Jane Fonda in person at a protest in 2019. She is an insanely beautiful human. She was growing her hair out and it was partially dyed blonde and partially grey. It looked really cool. I am not ashamed to say I spent that day learning many things about the climate crisis and about Jane Fonda’s hair. Having seen her in real life with her real hair looking that fucking great, I just have a an extra-large grudge against everyone involved in that horrible wig. The wig is necessary, but it didn’t have to be this bad.

What Do I Care About Now?

I am pretty intrigued by the way Grace threw out her real age in a conversation with Nick and Elena. She has nothing to fear anymore! She’s so chill about aging! What could go wrong? I assume that Nick and Elena maneuvering for Nick to be on house arrest in Grace's house specifically has to do with the fact that Grace is 82. She’s gonna find out that Nick is allowed to be with her because she’s ancient and helpless and the court took pity. Or something like that. She’s going to feel betrayed on top of feeling stifled and overwhelmed by Nick’s presence. I want to see where this goes for sure.

Other than that, and other than the fact that I really do continue to believe this show is moving in a direction in which Grace and Frankie will choose each other, I feel very whatever about this whole thing. I love this show and I will always appreciate this show for giving me some incredible characters to spend years of my life writing about, and for bringing me some pretty amazing friendships. Speaking of those friendships, yesterday @ellydash and @telanu and I were talking about some of the incredible TV we’ve watched recently, like Ted Lasso and Hacks and Fleabag and Killing Eve, and how great it feels to watch beautifully written TV crafted by writers who are profoundly—organically yet intentionally—attuned to even the most minor character’s rhythm. The disappointment of these first few episodes of the new G&F season feels like a mild disappointment rather than a sharp heartbreak, and that has a lot to do with being deeply invested in other shows that could also go in all kinds of different directions but with writing I fundamentally trust.

Also Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin are my forever faves and my appreciation for their performances and general awesomeness onscreen and in life is undiminished. So that’s pretty cool.

[punkpoemprose]

December 1st- Lights Out

Universe: 1970′s AU (The Great NYC Blackout of ‘77)

Rating: M (Mature, Sexy times)

Length: 3077 Words

A/N: So here we are again. Advent fics, and also decades AUs! I wrote from 1900 to 1950 for last year’s advent and I did 1960 in the spring, so here we are picking up where I left off! If you can guess what company Anna works for in this fic I will give you a cookie and a sticker. 

Lets see if I can finish at least the decades this time around, shall we?

Anna sighed as soon as she walked through the front door of the apartment, letting her hair fall out of the low bun she’s had it up in all day. She knew that it was probably silly to keep it up. After all she hated it being that way, but she wanted to make a good impression at work. The better she did, the quicker she could get a good reference, and the sooner she could get out of the city.

She was a bit amused though, despite the hairpin headache it had given her all day, that a coworker had compared the look to something out of the sci-fi flick that had come out some months back. She hadn’t seen it yet, but she imagined that being compared to the princess in the film was probably a good thing, she did know that it was exceedingly rare that a princess was evil or ugly. Her experience with children’s content was, of course, what she’d in part been hired for in the first place.

She shook out her hair and heard some of the little metal bobby pins fall to the floor, they clattered and skidded, undoubtedly falling into cracks and corners she didn’t have the time, energy, or light to locate. She knew that she’d find them again someday, but she hoped that it would soon be because she was busy moving furniture into a truck and her belongings into boxes. New York was interesting, to say the least, but she’d decided that she was much more of a small-town gal than a city chick.

She gathered up the rest of the pins in her hand as she raked her hair through the long and snarled mess. Those pins that hadn’t jumped ship with the initial shake had found themselves tangled in the waves of descending hair and were sometimes angrily biting at strands and taking pieces with them as she removed them. She could already feel her headache easing as her scalp tingled and readjusted to the natural weight distribution of her hair.

The worst part of her job was not the headaches, the hairstyles, or even the momentary concerns that maybe the princess she looked like was the rare evil and cruel type. No, it was much more mundane and far more upsetting, the factor being, of course, the hours. She had been working since noon and it was one of the rare days that she was able to get home before nine at night. Of course, she had expected this when she joined on the CTW’s education research and grant writing division. Kid’s television didn’t exactly make itself, much less make itself educational, but she was looking forward to going elsewhere and working for a less high-profile program and company. A nine to five, she thought, would suit her just fine, especially if it meant that she’d spend more time actually working with kids.

She kicked her shoes off and let herself breathe for a moment before turning around to lock the apartment door behind her. Kristoff has been asking her to be more careful lately with the door, and on the subway, and doing just about anything. They weren’t in a particularly dangerous area of the city and the office she worked out of was only two subway stops from their apartment, but she understood the worry. She was young and pretty in his eyes at least and there was talk in the news about some psycho attacking women. She couldn’t let herself give into the fear of it though, she was done being afraid. She had spent too much of her life being scared and lonely to let it ever happen again.

The bathroom door opened on the opposite side of the room and Anna grinned at the familiar creak of the hinges. She turned and saw Kristoff, fresh from the shower with steam rolling out from behind him, looking as happy to see her as he felt seeing him.

“There’s takeout in the fridge,” he said, looking a bit sheepish, “I was going to cook but I didn’t know when you were getting home tonight and I forgot to pick up the egg noodles on my way back from the shop.”

She wondered how he’d react if she told him that he was the only thing she was hungry for. She’d forgotten to call him to let him know that she’d had a sub at the office while finishing up on some research for an upcoming episode about astronomy, and while she appreciated his efforts at takeout, she didn’t need to eat. She was much more interested in the feast for the eyes before her. She was starving for his attention, to let her hands wander down his chest and to the towel slung low over his hips the way her eyes were traversing the same path.

They were both working crazy hours, saving up as much as they could for their dream of moving to the suburbs or to upstate or wherever they could both find jobs in their fields with a nice little starter house that they could set up a life in. Consequently, they’d both been too exhausted lately to spend their time together doing anything other than eating, sleeping, and maybe listening to the radio before falling asleep. The monotony of it was more exhausting than the workload, particularly when she spent a fair amount of her day wishing for the opportunity she now found before her.

She saw him grin when her eyes wandered back up to his. She knew that he couldn’t have planned to be just getting out of the shower when she got home given he hadn’t known when she would get home, so she called it kismet instead. She shrugged off her blazer, barely turning as she hung it up on the coatrack and returned the smile, throwing in an eyebrow raise for good measure.

It made him laugh, and that let her know that she had looked exactly as mock-lascivious as she’d meant to. She’d learned that when it came to Kristoff, she never really needed to try to flirt, he just gave her the love she needed on demand. Any flirting between them was, at this point in their relationship, mostly for the laughs.

As she stepped forward to meet him she watched as the room went from softly lit to pitch black in an instant. It caused her to jump about a foot, rush forward, trip, and encounter Kristoff who had been, in return, crossing the room to get to her. The impact wasn’t gentle, he was normally her favorite pillow, his largeness being mostly a virtue given the fact that despite his muscle he was overwhelmingly soft, but she had never run straight into his chest before. It was a bit like what she felt running into a padded wall would feel like.

“Oof.”

His grunt of discomfort was a strange comfort when compared to the more concerned sounds, shouts, and confused cries that came from the surrounding apartments and the street below. That, Anna realized, meant that they were certainly not the only ones who were out of power.

“Sorry!”

She offered the apology meekly as his arms wrapped around her. He gave her a little protective squeeze and she rested her weight against him a bit more fully, still recovering from the impact of their bodies that had her a bit shaky on her feet. Normally she enjoyed the sensation of him thoroughly wrecking her, but crashing into him unexpectedly was significantly less enjoyable.

Power outages weren’t exactly uncommon in the summer as everyone ran their fans and air conditioners, but it normally wasn’t something that lasted exceedingly long. This already felt different though, particularly as Anna heard the hollers and shouts coming from through the window from the rest of the block. Whatever had caused their power to go out was not localized to their apartment or building it seemed.

She let her eyes drift over to the window as they adjusted to the darkness they’d been plunged into. She could see past the no longer running fan that there were no lights to be seen in the park across the street from it, nor were there any beyond it.

“I think it’s the whole block,” she said quietly, “maybe even more. There’s no lights in the park and I can’t see any light past that either.”

They were both quiet for a moment as she felt him turning to look as well, turning them together to the side so that they could both look through their dark window, into the dark city beyond.

“Crap,” he groaned, “Might be the whole borough.”

Anna shook her head. That would be insane. They were in Manhattan, it was massive, and for the sheer amount of different areas it contained there was really no logical way for her to wrap her head around the power being out across it.

“If Manhattan is out, the whole city might as well be. I don’t know what it would take for it all to go out.”

Kristoff sighed and Anna’s eyes finally adjusted well enough for her to see his grumpy expression, or at least the shadowy set of his displeased jaw. They sat like that for a while, eyes adjusting to the dark, waiting for the power to click back on and for them to be proven wrong about any more than just their block being out. It didn’t return after minutes passed like hours, and they were forced to move from their standstill.

“Well… guess it’s a good thing that Elsa bought us candles for an apartment warming gift. Do we even have a lighter?”

Anna sighed, “Honestly I don’t know? I think I have a box of matches in the drawer next to the stove because we needed them when the igniter wasn’t working. One of us needs to take up smoking if this is going to become a more frequent event.”

That, she was pleased to report, made him laugh again. She stepped out from his arms to bump into furniture in her search for the drawer containing the matches. She never truly realized how many obstacles their apartment contained until she crashed her hip into the table edge, bumped into a basket of laundry she’d only half folded, and stumbled across a chair leg.

“That seems like an extreme option. We could just buy a lighter and not smoke. I know you don’t like the smell. You always complain about it when we go out to eat and someone lights up at a table near us.”

Anna hip checked the counter by accident but managed to find the drawer handle with one hand as she rubbed the now sore skin through her pant leg with the other. Somewhere on the other side of the apartment she heard Kristoff open the closet door and make a valiant attempt to dig through out-of-season coats, miscellaneous pieces of décor, tools, and sundry to find candles that, like everything else in their apartment, he couldn’t see.

For her part she was rummaging through the junk drawer, fingers making contact with buttons, patches, glue bottles, tape dispensers, and all manner of unnecessary-until-they’re-necessary items. She always told herself when she went into the drawer for something that she needed to clean it out, but it was one of those tasks that never made itself a priority.

“I don’t like it, but I’d probably have a lighter in my pocket if I did.”

She could practically feel his eyes rolling when her fingertips brushed against the rough, sandpaper-like striker of the matchbox. Her hand wrapped around the little box, and she was grateful to feel something rattle around inside. It would have been just like her to have thrown an empty box back into the drawer, and she couldn’t help but appreciate past Anna for leaving her at least a few matches.

“Found them,” Kristoff called just as Anna was about to do the same. It was a small mercy, she thought, that they’d managed to be prepared despite not intentionally preparing for anything. She held the match box up in the dark and shook it hard, the rattling heard across the apartment even with their neighbors still grumbling and shouting.

“Great,” he replied, hearing the sound or seeing the movement confirming the existence of the matches. “Though you should know… Anna I think I lost my towel somewhere near the closet.”

***

The lights hadn’t come on. They’d spent hours in the living room, reading, lazing, complaining about the heat as they read and lazed and sweated in their underclothes. The possibility of going out and seeing what everyone else was doing was offered and quashed by them both on a few occasions, ultimately with them both deciding that they wouldn’t be leaving the apartment that night, nor would they be doing so in the morning, even if the power was back on.

“I deserve a day off,” Anna moaned as Kristoff’s hips rolled into hers.

They’d went to bed innocently enough, planning to sleep in and catch up on rest. The plan had lasted all of a few moments until Anna took advantage of Kristoff spooning her to press her rear suggestively into his crotch. She thought that they deserved some sort of prize for making it into bed in the first place. She’d wanted him since she walked into the apartment, and though he’d managed to put on underwear out of the half-folded laundry basket after losing his towel, Anna had been more than willing to spend the rest of their evening on the couch in candle light.

Their current arrangement was better on their backs, and less likely to start a fire.

“You do baby,” he agreed, his voice deep as they engaged in the only agreeable activity a young couple could possibly agree on when it was late, the power was out, and there was nothing to be done about the heat.

His hands were on her waist as she moved above him, his fingers pressing into her skin as he helped her find a rhythm. She loved the way it felt to have him below her, to give him the pleasure he deserved while taking it for herself.

“You deserve a day off,” she added, “We can spend the whole day in bed.”

           He groaned and she felt his fingers squeeze a little tighter at the idea of spending a whole day alternating between making love and napping. Though, she supposed that he might also be reacting to the fact that she was speeding up her pace, riding him hard and fast, trying to make up for weeks of unwanted celibacy in one night.

           She was full of him, each time she rolled her hips and sank down on him brought her closer and closer to the edge. She’d spent hours daydreaming of it, feeling the stretch of him filling her, watching the euphoric daze come over his features as he let her give herself to him again and again until they were tired and sated. To see it now in the dim flickering candle light brought an intimacy that she hadn’t imagined before, the light dancing over his kiss swollen lips as he groaned and panted along with her.

           “Anna, if you keep doing that I’m going to…”

           She rocked her hips and his rolled in return, seeking just the right angle together and finding it as the friction of their joining brought her to her climax before he could achieve the same. She kept her pace, riding out the euphoric sensation as he panted out her name. She let him take up the lead then, letting him set the pace as she moved along with the urging of his hands on her waist.

           “Kris,” she encouraged, “Gosh baby you make me feel so good. Please come for me.”

           She settled her hands on his shoulders, using him for support as they sped up and worked together to find his end.

           He came for her, his grip tightening and his eyes fluttering closed as she watched his face. That was her favorite part of being on top, the view it afforded her of his features softening as she felt him go pliant below her.

           They stayed like that for a moment, his hands on her hips and her just holding his shoulders for support, watching him. When he caught his breath and her thighs began to shake from the effort, he pulled her to his side and kissed her lips softly, almost chastely.

           “I hope the power stays out,” Anna teased as she got comfortable on the bed at his side, “I know we agreed not to go to work tomorrow, but I think I could live without electricity if it meant more of this.”

           Kristoff chuckled against her ear as he pulled her back into him. It was too hot for it, too hot for what they’d just done, but a slight breeze through the window cooled the sweat on their bare skin and made it bearable. She felt him kiss her throat and she hummed appreciatively at the contact, her arm settling over his where it crossed her stomach.

           “Or we could just move sooner than planned. Imagine all the free time we’ll have together when we’re on the same schedule. I’ve been looking at jobs North of Albany and I think with our savings we can live on one income for a little while if you want to move up the timeline.”

           Anna smiled at the idea.

           “Want to hear something crazy?”

           He didn’t speak but instead she felt him nodding behind her.

           “I’ve been thinking the same thing. I’ve been looking at open positions upstate too and Fisher Price is looking for someone with an education background to join their research and design team. I was thinking about calling about the position and setting up an interview, but it just seemed like it was a little fast.”

           “Anna that’s not crazy… baby that’s wonderful.”

           “You’re wonderful,” she teased, leaning back into him and turning her head to give him a peck on his arm.

           He laughed and kissed her on the top of her head in retaliation, and as they quieted and dozed off to sleep, Anna could not help but to think that maybe the blackout was fate after all.  

[goth-girlfriend]

Endeavor’s Intern

(3/?)

Request: Quotev

Pairing: Enji Todoroki/Endeavor x Reader

Type: fluff,

Warnings: Reader is a student, even though that was clarified in the beginning.

(If there is any misspelling or improper grammar I apologize in advance.)

💙❤️🖤💙❤️💙🖤❤️💙💙❤️🖤💙❤️💙🖤❤️💙

“Nani!?” A mans voice screamed.

I tilted my head watching whatever drama Todoroki played on the secretaries computer.

She called in sick so we’ve both been manning the desk. So on my third day, I’m doing exactly what I threw a tantrum about not wanting to do.

“Wait wait wait,” I paused the show, “So, his wife is pregnant?”

“Yes?” Todoroki answered.

“But He had a vasectomy four months ago.” I pointed out.

He looked at me, a blank expression, I looked back and his eyes widened slightly. “What a scandalous woman you are Sakura Tsukino.” He looked at the screen and went to push play.

I smiled and shook my head, I leaned my head into his shoulder and went back to watching.

“Who do you think she cheated with?” He asked as her husband sat down and hurried his face in his hands.

“Hinata, that guy from her work space.” I mumbled staring as she broke into tears after her husband told her about what he had done.

“That’s messed up, he was all, not good looking.” Shoto mumbled and sighed.

‘HOW COUKD YOU DO THIS TOME?!’ She screamed.

‘DO WHAT?! YOURE THE ONE WHO CHEATED ON ME! YOU SLEPT WITH ANOTHER MAN! AND YOU WERE GOING TO PLAY IT OFF AS MINE?! THIS IS RIDICULOUS!’

Her husband was standing and screaming back at her. I bit my lip becoming more interested.

“Divorce.” I said, as he pulled his ring off placing in on the table.

‘I should’ve never given you my heart, everyone told me you’d only turn out like, like this. I denied it I trusted you and believed you changed.’

He backed up to the door, ‘I was wrong.’

He left, the camera moved to her sitting on the sofa. Her elbows on her knees, she looked down, eyes dripping tears, body shaking.

The screen went black and asked to start the next episode.

“Oof.” Was all I said as Todoroki clicked next.

“W-” i was cut off by the phone ringing.

“Hello, Endeavor Hero Agencies how may I help you?” I asked.

Todoroki just eyed me and paused the show.

“Hello yes? This is I’m calling to talk to Enji Todoroki. I was given this number to get into contact with him.” It was a WOMAN.

“Oh, of course. Please hold, I’ll see if his line is busy.” I lied.

“Of course, thank you.” I put her on hold then mute and sighed sitting back.

“Being a Secretary is so hard.” I stretched in my chair.

“Yeah.” Todoroki said stretched.

“Let’s get something to drink, also someone has to tell your dad he has a call.” I yawned and stretched up.

“You do it.” Was all Todoroki argues back.

“Alright.” I didn’t even argue back.

I knew his office was free, the only people who showed up for a meeting had left already. So I walked into his office, he quirked his brow at me and then looked back down at his paper work. I walked over to his desk and looked at his phone. A red light was blinking, the lady was still on hold. Okay, this is great I walked around his desk and squeezed my way onto his lap. I smield up at him and he looked down at me. He hand little Endeavor and Todoroki sitting infront of his monitor blocked form public sight by a stapler.

“You have a lady on hold. She didn’t tell me what she’s calling for just that she’s trying to get in contact with you.” I sighed and leaned against his right shoulder.

“Did you get her name?” He asked.

“No, she just asked for ‘Enji Todoroki’ because she told she could get into contact with him.”

“Then Get her name and figure out what she wants. I can’t waste time on useless things.” He argues and rolled his chair closer to his seat.

My stomach and hips pressed against the edge of his desk as he got back to work. This man made a great booster seat not going to lie. I sighed and picked up his phone, taking it off of hold.

“Hello, are you still there ma’am?” I asked and leaned onto the desk.

Fingertips ghosted my right hip.

“Yes, I’m still here.

“Alright, I’m calling to ask for your name and purpose of call. Endeavor is a bit busy but is able to call you back in thirty to fourth minutes if you can leave a name, number and purrpose of call.” I lied to her easy.

“Oh well, I’m Inosu Nara, I’m calling because we met almost a month ago. He gave me this number to get into contact with him.” She answered.

“Alright, well thank you Ms.Nara, I’ll tell him what you’ve told me and you should get a call back from this number in about thirty minutes. Can I get your number?”

“Yes it’s xxx-xxx-xxxx”

Alright that should be everything I need.”

“Thank you.”

“No thank you for being patient and calling Endeavor Hero agencies.”

I ended the called and wrote down the number, Inosu Nara

“Inosu Nara.” I picked up the sticky note, “She says you meet a month ago and you gave her this number to call you.”

He tended a bit and his face turned into a scowl. Wait half an hour and then Call her back, tell her the position I was offering has already been filled.” His left has copied his right and grabbed my other hip.

“So....Why does Shoto watch romantic Dramas?” I asked and started to click away on Endeavors computers.

“What?” He asked.

“Watch this, it’s just three minutes it’ll summarize what he’s watching.” I said and pushed play.

He sat and watched, and cringed, he paused it halfway. “That’s Enough.”

“Yeah.” was all I said and moved to sit on his right thigh, my left side and shoulder to his chest.

“Have you ever been to Universal?” I asked and tilted my head.

“Once, I took all of my children for two days to film a commercial.” His answer was boring.

“Did you go on any of the rides?” I asked wanting to know if he liked it.

“No, I didn’t have time to do anything. I was being filmed and meeting fans.” He didn’t seem amused.

“Oh, well that’s boring.” I slouched and sighed.

We sat in silence, I was looking on my

Phone and just casually chilling. Endeavor was watching me, I could feel his stare. It was very intense but not in a scary way, more of a concentrated way.

I opened snap chat and smiled, “Take more puctures with me.”

His brows dropped, he didn’t seem interested at all. I ignored it and leaned into his chest and opens the filters. He didn’t smile exactly but he wasn’t wearing a serious expression either.

He looked cute with a flower crown. After about five minutes of me smiling and taking pictures and Endeavor slid his hand around my waist and pulled me against him. I didn’t know what to do, I just moved the side slightly and looked up at him.

His chin wa son my shoulder, the stubble of his beard rubbing on my neck. It hurt a bit, but it felt nice.

“No more.” He tried to push my phone down.

“Just one more.” I raised, “But you have to smile.”

I got the filter onto both of our faces, he had a forced looking smile, I’d take it, I had a plan anyways. I held down the button and moved to kiss right on and under his jaw bone. I felt his hands grip my hips harsh and he tended.

I smield agaisnt the skin I had just violated as he cleared his throat.

“What are you doing?” He asked and moved back to look at me.

“Spreading love.” I moved my phone and got us both into frame again, “Now really smile this time.”

I took his left hand in mine and a very faint smile came to his lips.

After that I saved the video once to snap and twice to my camera roll. Then I recorded another video, it was of mini Endeavor and Todoroki, and then I panned to him and he seemed unamused during me recording random moments. I even recorded him letting out a short chuckle as I told him a story of the first time a cat meowed at Todoroki and he panicked. It was such a beguiling sound.

I even caught the small smile he had and the joy in his eyes when I told him Todoroki actually remembered his birthday, and sent a message from a random number so he wouldn’t be caught. He smiled at the thought, a look of regret in his eyes, there was a sincerity.

“Well, I’m pretty sure it’s lunch time.” I said standing up.

“Can we go eat?” I asked looking at my phone for the time.

“Take the lunch orders for the floor, than you and Shoto can go.” I admired the way he leaned back into his chair, legs spread, arms resting on the arms rest and head falling to the side slightly.

“Yes sir.” I smiled and went to get a notepad and Shoto.

Lunch passed, time passed, Shoto and I watched more drama as we waiting for our patrol shift, we’d be on different sides of the city but that’s fine I guess. I mean we’re literally spending all day together just watching tv and eating.

I cut my noodles with my chopstick and swallowed quickly.

“I forgot to call that lady back!” I panicked, “I’ll do it tomorrow.”

Finally our turn for Paroels came, Shoto left, then a few others, familiar faces poured into the building taking a brief break from patrolling all day. I was waiting for Endeavor for my patrol to start. Finally he came down, I smiled at him and we took off. I had my cloak on and wings out. Everything was normal, it felt like just a walk. I mean, we stopped a break in at the most. Poor guy didn’t see it coming, he ribs definitely felt it before he knew what was coming. We carried on and ran into Hawks and Tokoyami. He didn’t leave, so our duo turned into a squad. We kept patrolling, nothing really happening, Hawks said something about it being to quiet lately around the city. Endeavor agreed, that was until we sat on a roof top, well, I stood on the edge, Endeavor was siting at a bench table, Hawks was walking on the edge and Tokoyami was leaning against the stair exit wall.

“We should become a squad.” Hawks said as he stopped to my right.

I looked at him, “what?”

“Imagine how cool we’d be, we could call ourselves the fire birds.” He took my hands and spun us both, to get read Incase I fell i spread my wings out quickly, the sound of fluttering and wind being pushed out from behind me was all I heard as I looked at Hawks.

“Get it? Because Endeavor is fire, I’m Hawks” he spread his wings, “Tokoyami has a bird in his belly, and you also have bird wings, I feel like your hiding more from what we know but I won’t push it yet.” He was still holding my hands in his.

“Well, it’s an interesting name. But I don’t think it’d work out.” I shrugged.

He pouted, “Why not?”

I shrugged, “Well, I don’t know actually l, we don’t always have the same patrol hours.” I shrugged.

“I see,” he spun us again and I kept my wings spread. He lifted his own.

I could definitely feel Stares, I sound of my rubbers soles scrapping again the concrete was the only thing I could hear. Hawks walked us back and forth, “let’s see who’s faster.”

He threw us off the Edge of the building I panicked and started flapping, after the third flap I caught wind and balanced myself. There I was flying above Hawks, he looked up at me. Hs was on his back his wings holding him in the air.

“Alright then.” I said and straightened out, “I could beat you anyday.

I move higher to bring myself to the edge of the building.

“Name a spot, and I can be there and back before you can.” I looked down at him.

“Great! I was hoping you’d agree I set it up today.” He came to my side, I heard Endeavor sigh.

“In the park by the koi pond, I stabbed a feather into a the ground,” he said plucking a long feather out of his wing.

I cringed and imagined the feeling, it’s all to painful.

“First one back with it wins.” He said and got ready, I squatted oh the edge and got ready.

“Toko! Give us a count off.” He screamed over his shoulder.

Another sigh from the party behind us, I smiled.

“Three,” a paused, “Two,” another, “One.”

We took off, I didn’t see Hawks ahead of and I wasn’t making the mistake of looking back. I pushed harder and gained more speed. I was focused on a short route I normally took until I felt something grab my wing.

I looked over to see Hawks, he was grinning and knocked into me, I knocked back into him and he only smiled wider.

“Oh, so you wanna play dirty.” I laughed.

I went up into a cloud and tried to time it, I saw Hawks in break, he looked around I dropped down on him and pushed his wing down he flipped onto his back and kept flying.

“Nice try but I’m all to use to it.” I scoffed.

“Sure.” I rolled my eyes and grabbed his boot to flip him around to face the other direction.

He did exactly that, flew in the other direction. He came back and landed on my back, his back to my back he just layer there.

“I don’t see why they don’t make this a way to travel it’s comfortable.

I did a quick roll over and he spread his own wings.

“WHAT?!” I asked as he didn’t leave my side.

“How do you get these so shiny and black?” He asked as he moved back to my side.

“If I told you I’d have to kill you.” I regretfully pulled a father of my own it hardened and caught a nice shine.

“I can do that too!” He cheered and pulled his own out. “WING BUDDIES!”

I rolled my eyes with a smield and dived down, I saw the feather and swooped in, hows swooped down. We’ll crash if one of us doesn’t pull back, or at least I’ll have to to use my whole quirk.

We pushed in before smoke filled the space I grabbed the wing and pulled back, I heard coughing and looked back to see a panicked Hawks. He didn’t notice me.

“(L/n)?” He looked around panicked.

“I let out a bird cry.” He looked up, there I was full form.

“YOU CHEATER.” He screamed and took out after me.

I flapped harder and tried to move faster and into places he wouldn’t be able to reach.

I saw Endeavor’s flames, I was so close, until Hawks pulled up infront of me. He grinned like a mad man, I changed back and stepped on his shoulder and made the jump. Feathe rin mouth I spit to get the taste of bird off my tongue.

“You should use dog shampoo, you’ll dull the color.” I said and waved the feather around.

He sighed, “I guess you win this round.”

We sat a whole longer, until the ground started to shake. There was the sound of rumbling and screams. We all rushed to the opposite side of the building. A big guy was trying to take down a building.

“Tokoyami, Go low with Endeavor, (L/n) and I will go ahead and try to save who we can from the top floors.” Hawks said taking off.

I looked back at Endeavor, “Go, it’s your job as a hero.”

I nodded and took off after Hawks. I caught up and we moved as fast as we could to get everyone out of the top floors. It was harder considering it was almost midnight and everyone one was home sleeping. I pulled out kids and men while woman tried to cling to Hawks at the chance they had. I laughed as one woman wouldn’t let him go. I heard a cry and dived in, the building was about to crumble, I can do this.

I found it, it was a little boy, he had red hair and white eyes. He was screaming for his dad. I picked him up a don looked for his dad. His dad was bleeding slightly.

“Hold onto my back and I’ll save you and your dad. Just don’t let go.” I calmly told the kid he nodded and crawled onto my back.

He held tighter then I expected. I grabbed the dad by his shoulders, “Come on.” I said and used all the arength I couldn’t o carry him at least bridal style.

With struggle I managed I ran to the holw in the wall and dived down flapping so we didn’t die from Just jumping.once on the ground I handed the guy over to Hawks and told the kid to sit with them. Hawks said ambulances were coming.

I looked back, this guy was kinda huge, what were we supposed to do? Endeavor and Tokoyami showed up. Endeavor rushed in and Hawks followed, Tokoyami knew what to do. I was still calculating and trying to figure out the best approach for myself. I found an opening, All three we’re taking him from the front, I found an opening form the back, I went for it. I flew up and spread my wings as far as they could go. At twenty four feet stretched out completely I did my best to blind him, Hawks was beside me in a flash.

“If you blind him long enough, I can get Tokoyami and Endeavor to help me.” He was gone.

I plucked out my longest, feather and used it to fight against his hands as he tried to grab at me. I stayed stretched out and tried to blind him. That was until I felt myself falling. I watched the sky swirl as I was pulled down. A sharp pain and a loud snap, my back arched. There was a loud crash, I was diving head first, the problem was, I could see where I was going, all I saw was a starry sky swirling as I started to spin while falling. The last thing I saw was Hawks Wide eyed reaching out to me and a deep scream. I was out, was I going to die?

I woke up from my dream as I started to hit water, everything was bright and white. I looked around rubbing my eyes. I tried to bring my hand up, it was held down, I looked at it and smield. I brought my left hand to my right. I brushed my fingers over the knuckles and skin that held my own.

“Endeavor.” I whispered.

I tried to sit up feeling pain in my back.

I brought my left hand to his jaw and held it, his eyes opened, he looked at me through his lashes.

“How are you?” I asked him even though it should’ve been the opposite.

“Are you alright?” He took his right hand to grab my right hand.

His left hand rested on my back, he rubbed it up slowly to help me sit up. His warm hand eased the pain that filled my muscles.

“Y-yeah, what happened?” I asked.

He sighed and tried to pull away.

I stretched with regret and grabbed his arm with my free hand.

“Please don’t,” I was basically begging for his heat.

He placed his hand back against my tender flesh.

“The criminal grabbed you by your wings when he started to fell back. I rushed in to catch you, and Hawks tried his best to grab you but his grip on yours wings was strong. He ripped out the feathers and fractured them.” He looked down.

I smiled at him, “Don’t worry about it, they’ll be fine by tomorrow morning...”

He looked up at me, he was soft, his eyes were glossed over. Tears filled the corners of his eyes. I moved my hand form his arm to hold his right cheek and get him to face me, his eyes held regret.

“You were my intern, I was supposed to protect you. I let you get hurt.” His voice was low.

“I’m your intern, I’m supposed to learn what it’s like to be a hero, and that’s exactly what happened. So you don’t have to worry. I’m happy that if I was going to experience this, that at least it was with you.” I smield at him, and looked down.

“I-” I cut him off with a look.

“Don’t worry about it.” I stopped him.

“I can make this up to you.” Her stated.

“You wanna make it up to me?” I asked and tilted my head with a slight smile.

“Yes, what’s something you’ve wanted?” He asked and fumbled around his costume and pulled out a wallet.

“Something? I’ve always wanted?” I asked and thought about it while staring at my hand with his.

“Well.” I looked up at him again with a grin.

“There’s this.” I pulled my hand free form his and grabbed his other cheek and pulled him closer.

His lips were soft, heat radiated form his face, quite literally because of his body temperature. His large hand landed on my cheek. He moved his hand so his forefinger and thumb took my chin and angled my head upwards. He kissed back eyes closed, I closed my own and brought my right hand down to his nape and ran it back up to feel the hairs at the base of his head. His hand still hot and comforting my back, I smield agsint his lips and pulled away.

“Okay, so I wanna go to Univeral with you and Shoto.” I smiled and he only looked down at me.

His eyes were so soft, they were clear, the bright color still outshine the bright white colors of the hospital I’m guessing I’m in.

“I don’t see why not.” He sighed and moved closer.

Kissing him a little longer the door opened and we pulled back, it was Shoto.

“SHOTO!” Enji screamed and pulled away.

His beard and mustache bursted into flames as he backed away and reached out for his son.

“Stop it dad, I already know what happening.” He sighed and looked down.

Enji sulked slightly and moved away from the bed side. I sat up straighter and smield at Shoto.

“So?” He asked.

“What?” I asked playing it off.

“Did your wings get better?” He crossed his arms over his chest the same way his dad does.

I forced them out and open, they were new and glossy.

“Of course they did!” They ruffled slightly, “I’m not an (l/n) for nothing!”

“Also, were going to universal!” I cheered and they spread out a bit.

“What for?” He asked.

“To Celebrate me becoming your step mom.” I winked at him, his eyes widened as his cheeks reddened.

“What?” He asked in disbelief.

“Why don’t you ask your daddy?” I joked.

He whipped around, Endeavor just looked at him.

“Told you.” I whispered to Shoto and smiled at Enji who was very slightly, smiling.

“HEY GUYS SORRY IM LATE!” And just like that, Hawks ruined the moment.

✨✨✨✨✨✨

Support a small business

[asteriismos]

Tear You Apart -- Bill Denbrough

Authors Note : wooo this was a whirlwind to write. self quarantine is slowly starting to eat me alive, but I hope everyone is doing good! stay healthy and wash hands! also, if anyone wants to be on the tagging list, just shoot me a message or an ask! I also changed around the request slightly but it’s pretty much the same thing. Requests are still open.

Warning(s) : smut ( obviously ), seventeen! bill denbrough, choking, this is kinda just filth but what’s new, im going to hell

Request : 

Loved your last bill smut you posted! Can you do one where the losers all have a sleepover and Bill has to share an air mattress with the reader and they end up having really hot sex while trying not to wake up the losers yet fail bc the reader is loud asf and maybe the reader has a choking kink and tells him while they’re making out to choke her harder. and the next day they have marks all over? (Sorry my thirst for Bill is unreal rn 😂). Ok so I also wanted to add to my bill x reader smut where he tries to push the reader to her limit and see how many times she can cum and it gets to the point where she’s screaming and crying at the same time bc oof 🥵 that’s hot (again I apologize for my horny ass I just wanted to add a little to my request)

When Richie Tozier gave the suggestion that the friend group should have a sleepover over Labor Day weekend, you were one of the first to scream yes. It was the beginnings of your senior year and you weren't going to waste a second of it, you wanted to spend every second you could with your friends and boyfriend, Bill.

The only problem was that it took a while to find the house you all should sleepover at. Though Richie had the idea, he said that his parents were planning something Saturday night, which meant a no from his end. Eddie’s mother wouldn't allow anyone over because of germs, and Bev’s aunt was not about to have eight teenagers in their apartment. 

Luckily, Bill’s parents were out of town for the weekend because of the holiday, so you all finally could take the plan for action.

The rest of the day was dedicated to getting supplies for said sleepover. You and Bill went to the dollar store on the corner for snacks, Mike and Stan went to get as many blankets as they could, Eddie and Richie got movies, and Ben and Beverly set up the spare air mattresses in the large living room.

Once all of you got back, the party finally began.

“We have to watch Jurassic Park. It just came out on to VHS tapes,” Richie begged to the group. “And it’s so good, you gotta admit.”

“Richie, no, come -” Eddie’s rejection sentence got cut off by Richie already putting in the tape. He wasn’t going to take no for an answer, obviously. “Fine, whatever.”

All of you laughed at the two bickering and settled in for the movie. You were sharing an air mattress with Bill, the giant bowl of popcorn sharing both of your laps. You two were all snuggled and cozy under two blankets. As the movie got started, you felt his left hand land on your thigh. It wasn’t unlike him to put his hand there, considering you two weren’t prudes to types of PDA, but for some reason it felt different this time. It felt like there was a motive behind it. 

You looked at your boyfriend, and even in the dim lighting of his living room you could see a smirk on his face. 

Well, you thought to yourself, two can play at this game.

Your own hand came down under the covers and laid on his thigh, giving it a good squeeze. Bill tensed up under your touch, breathing in a very big amount of air as he kept his eyes on the movie. He wasn’t going to give up without a fight, that was sure.

A good ten minutes passed with no other touches from Bill, maybe he had stopped for the night in fear that your friends would start to notice the strange behavior between the two of you. You two weren’t all that good at being subtle, to be honest.

However, your previous thoughts seemed to be wiped away when you felt his hand go to your waistband of your sweatpants. Your legs tensed up for a moment and your stomach churned, looking around at your friends to see if they noticed. They hadn't, all of them were focused on the movie, since it was getting to the good part. That was a good thing, considering if any of them found out about this ( particularly Richie ) you two would not hear the end of it. 

His hand slipped under the waistband and stilled for a moment, almost as if he was asking permission. You grabbed it and squeezed it, signaling that you were okay with it. And with that, he proceeded up go under your underwear lining. You breathed in sharply, causing Ben to look your way.

“Popcorn kernel,” you whispered his way. He nodded and turned his attention to the movie once again. From the corner of your eye you could see Bill laugh a little bit. Glad to see he was enjoying this. You tried to keep your face from reacting when his middle finger entered you. 

But it felt really fucking good.

He stayed with one finger for a while, pushing in and out slowly, with rhythm. You turned to look at him and awkwardly held up a peace sign, signaling that you wanted another finger. Bill happily obliged, slipping another finger into you. That was enough to start changing the pace of your breathing, your focus at the bowl of popcorn on your legs. The movie was playing in the background but you couldn’t even think about it. Instead, you were thinking about the earliest you could fuck the shit out of Bill.

Which was now. You couldn’t take it anymore. You had to feel him inside of you, all of him. The want and desire was enough for you to quickly grab his hand, stand up and say, “We’re going to go make some more popcorn.” The Losers nodded, their eyes still fixated on the film. You pulled Bill by the hand into his family’s kitchen, not wasting a second of the limited time you two had before one of them would get suspicious.

His lips caught yours first, his body pushing you up to the top of the island counter. You obliged, scooting so that your butt was seated on the edge of the island, your legs wrapping around his torso. There wasn't an open space between you two as you kissed, the air in the room got hotter and hotter. It was the thrill of you two doing this in his kitchen, but also the thrill that someone would come in and witness the very unholy thing that was going down.

Bill pulled away from your lips, his kisses instead going on your cheek and along your jaw. They got up to your ear and he whispered, “I want to see how many times you can cum.” It sent shivers down your spine. You two probably only had about ten minutes or so before someone got suspicious and would investigate. The thought made a pool begin in your panties.

His hand went back to where it had previously been prior to the kitchen, two fingers reentering you. You moaned into his shoulder, the soft cotton proving to be quite helpful in muffling your moans. But that didn’t seem to be enough for Bill, he was not looking to be caught early. So his hand came up to your throat, squeezing a little bit. Instead of pain, you felt pleasure. Bill had complete control over you and you loved every second of it.

The first orgasm came soon after that, your moans being stifled by his hand and his shirt. You thought that he would stop so he could have some action of his own, but he didn't. Instead his fingers kept going in and out at an even faster rate. It felt good to ride out your high, but now you were so sensitive to his touch.

“Bill, I’m still pretty sensitive,” you choked out against his shoulder. He just nodded his head and kept going. The dominance he was showing was unlike everything before, and you hated to admit that it was turning you on so much.

His lips attached themselves to your neck, his teeth almost expertly biting in just the right spots to get you closer and closer. You counted all the spots that he reached, but lost count in your second orgasm after seven. You’d have to do a lot of damage control with makeup the next day.

Both of Bill’s hands left your body, and for a moment you thought that he was leaving. You opened your eyes and reached out to him, putting your hands on his shoulders. He wasn’t leaving, he was just taking off his belt and unzipping his pants, quickly getting himself out of his boxers.

It didn’t take long for him to enter you, his pace slow as you adjusted to his length. Despite your past two orgasms, you still felt yourself moaning in pleasure from his actions. His hand went back to your neck, repeating the same squeezing motion every time he would thrust into you. You looked past his shoulder at the clock on the wall, seeing that about eight minutes had passed. You were praying that your friends didn’t find you in this position. 

“Bill,” you breathed out quietly, feeling the same fire in your stomach grow with each thrust. “I think I’m going to-” Your words were cut off by your third orgasm, hitting you like a tidal wave. He kept thrusting into you faster and faster, then finally reached his own peak, his thrusts becoming sloppier as you both rode it down. 

He kissed your forehead, pulling out of you and getting a rag to clean up the mess you two had made. Once you two were moderately clean enough, he redressed and helped you off of the kitchen counter. You semi felt bad, considering you have helped Mrs. Denbrough prepare dinner on this counter many times before and done homework with Bill here too. 

“I would just try not to think about it too much,” Bill said, obviously thinking the same thing that you were. Both of you laughed and hugged, your breathing coming to a safe pace again. 

When you two walked back into the living room, the movie was showing it’s credits. Both of you tried to seem as normal as possible, but it was inevitable that someone would ask something.

“You two said you were going to get popcorn, where is it?” Eddie asked, his eyebrow raising. 

“Yeah, we also didn’t hear the microwave on in there,” Richie added, a smirk plastering his face.

A blush creeped onto Bill’s cheeks and soon your own, realizing that you hadn’t been that quiet and discreet as you two thought. 

[hollabackholmes]

THINGS IN ENDGAME (SPOILERS!!!)

-Jesus Christ that first scene with Clint punched me in the throat

-how aggressive nebula was playing games with tony

- The way nebula helped tony up into his seat :,)

- “only a little bit sadistic”

- the cinematography in the moment where Tony lays down and the galaxy is behind him my god

- “I lost the kid” STOP IT RIGHT NOW

- rocket?? Or Build a bear???

- did rdj lose weight for that first section of the film or am I just tripping?

-anyone else find it funny that thanos suddenly became a cook with a nice little home and garden????

- the rest of this list will definitely be all over the place because I can’t remember the order of things happening #soz

-I really liked how they included that LGBTQ+ relationship in that support group that Steve was in.

-Steve saying something really sweet (can’t remember the exact words but it was something along the lines of ‘you took the jump not knowing how far you’d fall’??? Or something??? Sorry I’m awful)

-Clint really does own my ass

-That scene where he was in Tokyo holy shit I would die for him

-“don’t give me hope” “I’m sorry I couldn’t give it to you sooner”

-Natasha crying after cutting a peanut butter sandwich is a MOOD

-NATASHA DOESNT GIVE UP STEVE OFCOURSE IT NEEDS TO BE DONE

- !!make that rat president 2020!!

-Scott is a cutie until you realise how much those past five years (hours for him) must’ve screwed with his mind.

-The way he searches the plaques 😥😥😥😥

- Time machine jokes

-Back to the future jokes

-Scott rushing to eat Nats sandwich

-CLINT LEANING AGAINST THE DOOR, FUCK ME WITH A RAKE

-HIS TATTOOS. I WANT THAT SHOT TO BE TATTOOED ON MY FACE

- Bruce the celeb

-“SAY GREEN! GREEN! Did you get that?” MY FUCKING GOD I LOVE HIM

-Scott feeling embarrassed that the kids don’t know who he is

- “look he’s even shaking his head” SCOTT

-I love this so much

-THOR🤯PLAYS🤯FORTNITE🤯

-ngl I’m Thor. I love beer. But shit...that belly.

-props to the prosthetics team for making that body suit look so realistic

-The way he walks into the avengers headquarters with his sunglasses on hahahaha

-HULK EATING BEN AND JERRIES IS ALSO A MOOD

-Scott being the test run for the whole time travelling stuff was such a good scene

-and then when Scott’s taco gets blown away:( but then Bruce gives him another one :,)

-“is he asleep?” “No, he’s dead” HAHA

-That scene with them all walking together big oof vibe

-Oh I forgot to say how amazing both Carols and Natasha’s hair is like damn ladies

-SEEING THE FIRST AVENGERS ASSEMBLE SEQUENCE OH MY GOD I SOBBED

-hulk being embarrassed

-hulk trying to get angry

-nebula and Rhodes watching Quill dance

-“this is the part where blades come out with skeletons on the end”

-nebula sacrificing her hand to get the stone :,) character development

-Thanos has a small dick for hurting nebula in both versions of her

-Felt weird seeing Gamora from before she became good??

-Bruce and the ancient one talking, I just really like that whole dynamic

-Tony as the security guard omfg

-LOKI BABY

-HAIL FUCKING HYDRA BABY

-STEVE VS STEVE BABYYYYY

-AMERICAS ASS BABYYYYYYYYY 😏😏😏

-Steve And tony going back in time again

-Tony and his dad. So sweet. Him talking about Morgan with him

-OH MY GODNI MISSED OUT A POINT ABOUT MORGAN

-SO BASICALLY IM IN LOVE WITH DAD!TONY AND I LOOOOVEEE YOUUUU 3000 IS THE CUTEST SHIT IVE EVER HEARD

-Steve seeing Peggy :((

-I’m here for the whole ‘Judging-Tony’s-Beard’ thing

-Clint and Natasha.... I don’t wanna talk about this yet :(

-Thor and his mums interaction. Cute. The whole thing about being a failure and feeling like you need to be more is super super relatable idk I just felt very much like Thor in that scene

-okay I’m ready to talk about Clint and Natasha now. So basically I think Natasha died a heroes death. She was so ready to sacrifice herself for the greater good. What made it fuckin hurt though was the fact that Clint was ready to die because he didn’t want to see Natasha go through that death. He wanted to protect her. He even says later on ‘it should have been me’. So I think Natasha would be proud, but Clints gonna have to live with the memory of seeing his best friend die without being able to do anything about it.

- That whole thing about making sure her death was worth it uGH

-also Thor’s denial.... yeah. Same here bud.

-Thor begging Tony to let him do this one good thing :( I was sad :( super sad yall

-genuinely thought Bruce was about to die when he put the glove on

-THANOS IS A GIANT TWAT

-HULK ROCKET AND RHODES ALL HELPING EACHOTHER OUT

-Scott being the real hero out here again

-the fight

-holy shit the fight

-StEVE BEING ABLE TO USE THORS HAMMER

-“I knew it!!!”

-That whole sequence of him using the shield and the hammer. My thighs were trembling bitch.

-THEN WHEN YOU HEAR SAM AND THEN THE YELLOW RING AND EVERYONE FUCKING ARRIVES

-PETER MY BABY BOY YOU DID SO GOOD SWOOPING IN THEN

-DOCTOR STRANGE U HOT STUFF

-PEPPER HOLY SHIT

-EVERYTHING HAPPENED SO FAST

-BUCKY

-THE WASP

-VALKYRIE

-EVERYONEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!

-OMG WANDA WAS SUCH A BADASS

-THE TRANSFER OF THE GLOVE WAS SO GOOD AND THE WAY PETERS INSTANT KILL THING HAPPENED UGH SO GOOD

-DOCTOR STRANGE CONTROLLING THAT WATER DAMNNN

-THE FUCKING HUG BETWEEN PETER AND TONY DESTROYED ME. I LEGIT SOBBED OUT LOUD.

-“Hey Peter Parker. You got something for me?”

-THE GIRLS LINING UP SENT CHILLS DOWN MY SPINE

-and now for the sad part my dudes

-doctor strange pointing one finger up. Tony knew. He just knew what he had to do.

-“I am iron man” YES YOU ARE.

-Peter sobbing “we won. Mr stark. We won. I’m sorry”

-Pepper coming to comfort Tony oh fuck i cried

-THE TAPE

-“I LOVE YOU 3000” IS WHAT IM GONNA GET TATTOOED ON ME OK

-“proof that Tony Stark has a heart” wow okay. Hit me deep then why don’t u

-the one shot of everyone at the funeral was so beautiful I loved it

-“your dad used to love cheeseburgers.... I’m gonna buy you all the cheeseburgers in the world” oh my god

-the goodbye between Steve and Bucky was perfect. I don’t care what you say. Bucky knew what was going to happen. And he allowed it because he knew Steve would be happy for a very long time.

-HOWEVER I felt like Bucky had so little screen time and the entire history between Steve and him felt so dead throughout the movie compared to how strong it has been over the past 11 years :(

-Sams panic because he thought he wouldn’t see Steve again :(

-Sam being given the shield :D

-Damn the CGI is so good in this film. Like Steve looked old but you could still see it was him. Which sounds dumb but so often, movies make it way too unrealistic to prove someone has aged. This did it just right.

-The ending scene wow. Beautiful.

-THE CREDITS WITH THE ORIGINALS AND THEIR SIGNATURES OOF!!!

-we all waited til the end of the credits just to be hit in the heart with the sound of Tony building his iron man suit.

-well thanks for going through this list :))

[yoddream]

new beginnings | n.jm

pairing: jaemin x fem!reader

summary: it didn’t occur to you how much your life would change when your mother got remarried

word count: lmao idfk it’s gonna be a long ass one so sit back and relax folks

warnings: swearing, mentions of Mark’s graduation (lmao), mentions of ‘00 line graduation (oOF), uh i think that’s it

notes: Y’all, here it is. The full-ass Jaemin imagine. I hope y’all love it. Just so you know, Korean will be in bold and English will be written without anything so that it’s easier to figure out who’s speaking what. Enjoy!

the title is so bad and doesn’t fit the fic ugh

Your mom and Jisung’s dad had met years ago on a business trip. The two of you didn’t meet until they’d started dating. Four years later, they were married, and you were spending every school break in South Korea with your step-dad and step-brother. You and your mom would video call them three times a week, always when you two were eating dinner and they were eating breakfast.You didn’t really study Korean, so conversations were stilted and awkward. Jisung seemed to always be busy with filming or practicing his singing and dancing when you were in South Korea, and then he focused more on the music when it became clear he had a future as an idol.

It was only when you finished your sophomore year that your relationship with Jisung changed. You’d found out the day before you were leaving for Seoul for the summer that your boyfriend had been cheating on you. It was the third night in the country when you couldn’t hold back your tears anymore.It was late, and your mom and step-dad were asleep. You never heard Jisung come home from practice at SM Entertainment, so when there was a knock on your door before it opened, you were surprised to see your step-brother standing in the doorway.

“Noona? Are you okay?” he asked in English.

You had shaken your head and buried your face in your comforters. The fourteen-year old took a cautious step forward before making up his mind and approached you. He motioned for you to move over before climbing in bed. He wrapped his arms around you and held you as you sobbed over your first heartbreak. He was probably exhausted, but he was staying up to comfort you instead of sleeping in his own bed.

The next morning, you had your mom explain to Jisung why you were upset. He had then excused himself to make a phone call. You and your mother were confused at his sudden absence. You two could hear him talking, and she smiled.

“He’s calling SM to tell them there’s a family emergency.”

Jisung had taken you out for the day, using an app on his phone to communicate with you. You were so touched by his actions that you told your mom you wanted to study Korean more. So that’s what you did all summer. When you weren’t studying, you were hanging out with Jisung, exploring Seoul together and watching him practice his dance routine in the basement. He would tell you about the other trainees, especially Chenle, a boy he’d met when he went to China for some TV filming a few years back. You two used the app, but you were recognizing more words by the time you had to return to the U.S, for school. The two of you shared a tearful goodbye in the airport as you promised to talk as much as possible.

You watched NCT Dream’s debut stage in the back of class instead of taking notes, a smile never leaving your face as you watched Jisung live his dream. You messaged him as soon as it was over to congratulate him, finally getting caught by your teacher and getting your phone confiscated. When you went back to South Korea for winter break, he told you about the music the group was working on, a goofy smile on his chubby face. He talked about the member that had to take a break for a herniated disc, his smile dropping slightly before it rose again as he told you about a prank he and Chenle pulled on the leader, Mark. The whole break was filled with stores of NCT Dream. You hoped you would meet them, but they were too busy working on music.

At Christmas, you gave Jisung a bracelet you’d made from embroidery floss that was black, white, dark blue, pink, and light orange: the colors of Jisung’s debut. He cried when you explained the colors, giving you a tight hug before handing you a gift, which was a necklace with a pendant that had your name engraved in it. You then started to cry, and he comforted you while still sniffling. All in all, it was a good Christmas, and your bond was even stronger.

As NCT Dream got more popular, you didn’t hear from Jisung as much. You would FaceTime, but as soon as one of the other members would enter the room, he’d end the call. You felt like a secret, which hurt. Why was your step-brother keeping you a secret?

When you went back overseas for February break, Jisung stayed at the dorms. It seemed he had forgotten you would be back home for a week (but it, once again, didn’t feel much like a home). It was only when he had watched your snapchat story that he’d realized the mistake he made. He rushed home and tackled you on your bed, crying and rambling in Korean.

“-----sorry! I----------idiot! Please---- me!” he cried.

Suddenly, you weren’t upset. You ran your hand over his head, trying to calm him down. When he pulled away, you saw the dark circles under his eyes. Of course he talked to you less; he was fifteen-years old rehearsing day and night for his group’s first album while also attending school. He barely had time to eat. You suddenly felt so stupid for being upset.

“Noona, please don’t hate me,” he whispered, his accent thick from crying.

“I could never,” you replied.

As time went on, you watched Jisung grow up and become more confident in himself. He was still shy in videos NCT Dream made, but he didn’t hide behind his friends as much. He eventually explained to you that his friends didn’t know about you because he like when it was just the two of you; as soon as they knew, he wouldn’t be able to hang out with you without one of them tagging along. Not only that, but your life could be in danger if it slipped to the fans that he had an American sister. Sasaengs were all around the world. He then called his friends clingy with a fond smile on his face. You understood his concern, so you were fine with not knowing them just yet.

///

When you were studying for exams at the end of your junior year, you desperately needed a break, so you picked up your phone to FaceTime Jisung. However, the boy that answered was not your step-brother.

“Who are you?” Chenle asked.

“Chenle, have you seen—oh shit.”

There was rustling and arguing in rapid Korean before Jisung’s face appeared. His hair was disheveled, his cheeks were red, and he looked scared. You couldn’t see Chenle anymore, so you figured he was behind the phone.

“Jisung, who is that?” Chenle demanded.

“My, uh, my step-sister,” Jisung replied quietly.

“How long have you had a sister?”

“About eight years.”

“Eight years?!”

“Chenle, can I please explain?” you asked.

He appeared next to your brother, his feelings obviously hurt at this discovery. You tried your best to explain Jisung’s feelings, having to mix in some English. You knew Chenle knew some English, but Jisung translated for him just in case. When you were done, his face was unreadable.

“I thought we were friends,” he mumbled.

Jisung’s eyes widened. “We are! I just—Y/N and I didn’t get along at first, so now I really cherish the time we have together.”

“Chenle, the relationship with my brother has not been easy. We’ve only been close for about a year, and that has been filled with his rehearsals and promotions. We don’t get as much time together as we would like,” you explained.

“You cannot tell the others. This has to stay a secret,” Jisung pleaded.

Chenle looked between you and your brother before sighing. “Fine, but don’t expect this to go -----.”

“Smoothly,” Jisung translated when he saw your face.

After that call, a door opened. You and your mom were greeted by your dad and brother (you felt it was time to drop the “step”) at the airport. Jisung looked like he was even happier. You two hadn’t been able to talk since that night, so you figured it had to do with his best friend knowing his secret. He pulled you into a tight hug, his face buried in your neck.

“I missed you so much, Y/N,” he said. Clearly, somebody had been working on his English.

“I missed you too, Ji,” you replied.

You two managed to spend a whole week together before the doorbell rang. You answered it and froze as your eyes landed on Chenle. You didn’t recognize him at first since he wasn’t dressed as if he was on stage.

“Chenle! Please, come in,” you greeted as you moved to the side.

Chenle stepped inside and slipped his shoes off. Jisung appeared in the foyer, his eyes widening at the sight of his best friend.

“Chenle, what are you doing here?”

“I wanted to meet Y/N. I know if I asked you, you would avoid it the whole summer,” Chenle responded. “Did you two have anything planned for today?”

“I was going to study Korean while he practiced dancing,” you said. “I can skip Korean for a day, though.”

“I really need to practice,” Jisung mumbled.

“We can practice together! You told me Y/N likes watching, so we can do that and go to lunch after.”

Finding out Chenle was as chaotic as he’d been in various videos you had watched of NCT Dream was surprising. He was the complete opposite of your brother, but people did say that opposites attract. You never thought it would’ve been like this.

You and Jisung hung out with Chenle once or twice a week so that the two of you still had time to yourselves. NCT Dream was preparing for a comeback, so there were days you were alone. Those were the days you hated the most.You still didn’t feel comfortable enough heading into the city yourself; you were worried you would blank on all the Korean you’d learned at would have a mental breakdown before calling your parents or Jisung to come get you. Jisung and Chenle were your only friends here, so you felt lost whenever they were at SM while your parents were working.

When it was time for you and your mother to leave, Chenle tagged along to the airport. His eyes were shining with un-shed tears you knew he would never let fall. Your brother, however, was a sobbing mess. There was a tissue balled up in his hand, probably useless at that point. His face was puffy, and his hair was a mess. You didn’t look that much better, you were sure. The three of you shared a group hug before you and your mom continued through security.

///

The start of senior year was tough. You lost friends, had a boy play with your heart, and you didn’t know what you wanted to do after high school. Part of you wanted to go to college, but another part wanted to move to South Korea. Your mom suggested applying to the schools in Seoul, but that didn’t sit well in your stomach. You voiced your concerns to Jisung one night, tears streaming down your face in frustration. You felt like you were running out of time.

“Why don’t you take a year or two off to figure it out?” he suggested. “There’s nothing stopping you.”

“What will I do until then?” you questioned.

“Move to South Korea and work with Mom and Dad or something. Maybe Mr. Lee will find a job for you at SM. It’s a great way to work on your Korean.”

“My Korean is fine.”

“You know a lot of words, but you’re not confident enough in speaking it around people that aren’t our family. Hell, you still struggle around Chenle, sometimes. That’s why you’re such a hermit when nobody is around to keep you company.”

You cursed at him and thought about it. It wasn’t a bad idea. You’d have to think it over, but at least you were starting somewhere.

///

You walked into SM Entertainment and provided your Korean ID to the secretary. You informed her of your plan and she smiled, informing you of where the Dreamies were. You bowed, thanking her before heading to the elevator. Your heart was racing as you got closer and closer to where your brother was. When the elevator reached the right floor, you walked down the hallway towards an opened door, laughter luring you in. Poking your head in, your eyes landed on a couple blonds that were too busy joking around to notice you.

“Jisung~” you sang.

Your brother’s head snapped up. He yelped and scrambled to his feet, running over and picking you up in a tight hug. You heard a certain dolphin screech before another body slammed into you. A few tears slipped from your eyes and down your cheeks, but your neck was soaked from Jisung’s.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“I couldn’t wait until tonight to see you, so I had Dad drop me off on the way to work,” you explained. You cupped his face to wipe the tears away with your thumbs as his grip on you tightened. He’d been staying at the dorms because of rehearsal after rehearsal, so he missed your arrival a couple days ago.

“Jisung, who’s this?” Mark asked.

“This is Y/N. She’s my sister.”

“SISTER?!” the four of them exclaimed.

“You never mentioned you had a sister,” Jeno commented.

It was clear the group was upset; Chenle shifted uncomfortably beside you as Renjun glared at him. You explained why they didn’t know and how Chenle found out. Some of the tension had cleared, but you could tell it wasn’t going to be easy for Jisung or Chenle for a while.

“It really was great meeting you all. These two cannot stop talking about you guys. I’m glad they have you looking out for them,” you said with a smile.

“Aw, you love us,” Chenle cooed. You pinched his cheeks, causing him to complain with words you didn’t understand, but by the looks on everyone’s faces but Renjun, it wasn’t Korean.

“Anyways, I should probably cut this visit short. I’m hungry,” you stated.

“We were just trying to decide where to go for lunch. You should come!” Mark suggested.

“Yeah, I don’t think Jisung is letting go of you anytime soon,” Jeno joked.

“If it’s okay with all of you, I would love to. I’ve been waiting to meet you guys.”

You head to a restaurant down the street, Jisung refusing to let go of your hands until your food arrived. Mark found out you spoke English and freaked out. He really only got to speak it with Johnny, so he felt a little less homesick when talking to you.

“Does this mean we get to hang out at your house now?” Haechan suddenly asked.

Jisung groaned and fell back in his seat. “I knew this would happen.”

“Yes, you guys can come over,” you replied, throwing a playful glare at your brother.

After lunch, Jisung brought you home before heading back to headquarters to meetings and practice. The rest of your break was filled with NCT Dream. You quickly found out that Haechan didn’t hold back on sass-filled comments, especially towards their maknae. Mark giggled at everything, the act doubled whenever you called Jisung or Chenle by their full names in frustration. The last day you guys hung out, you all exchanged phone numbers, you having received a Korean one for Christmas. It was an emotional departure, as they all have been recently, you not wanting to leave the friends you had quickly made.

When it was time for February break, you were unable to make it back to South Korea. Your parents were on a business trip in London, and Jisung’s schedule was far too full to keep you company. You stayed at home and studied, squeezing in FaceTime with Jisung whenever his scheduled allowed it. Your heart ached at the sight of the bags under his eyes.

“Jisung, you need to sleep,” you scolded as you made breakfast.

“But you said you wanted to talk!” he exclaimed.

“That was before I saw how exhausted you are! You could’ve told me you were heading to bed. It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve had to reschedule a call.”

“Noona—”

“Don’t. Get some sleep. I’ll talk to you soon. Say hi to boys for me.”

“I will.”

“Love you.”

There was a pause. You looked up to find Jisung suddenly looking more awake.

“What?” you asked.

“That’s the first time you’ve said you love me.”

“Well of course I do, idiot. I wouldn’t talk to you this much if I didn’t”

“Say it again.”

“Huh?”

“Say it again,” he said. There was a goofy grin on his face.

You felt a fond smile pull at your cheeks. “I love you, Jisung.”

“Love you too, Noona.”

///

Since your grades were perfect, you got permission from the school to head to South Korea without any academic repercussions. NCT Dream was performing a new song called “Go” on TV for the first time, and it would be Jaemin’s first performance since his hiatus. The whole group was a nervous wreck; the song was completely different from their others, and they were worried that Jaemin would get hurt again. Jisung had no idea you were visiting. If he knew you were watching, he would get too nervous and probably mess up the dance. This was the first performance you’ve ever seen in person, and Jisung was always worried about disappointing you.

You and your parents walked around backstage, lanyards hanging around your necks. NCT Dream was about to head out, so you guys were trying to find a way to the side of the stage without you and your mom being spotted. The group jogged onstage, and the three of you took your spots on the edge.

The performance was breathtaking. Your brother and his friends had never looked so confident dancing before. They moved so effortlessly, as if they weren’t constantly worrying about how everything would go. Jisung’s dancing had improved so much, and you could tell he was having fun.

After the performance, they headed your way to leave the stage. You were hidden behind your parents, watching Jisung through the cracks of their arms. He caught sight of your mom and smiled so big you were afraid his face would split. He ran over and gave her a hug.

“Hi Mom,” he mumbled.

“Hello, baby. You did very well,” she replied.

When Jisung pulled away, your parents stepped aside to reveal you. He had a similar reaction to last time, yelping and picking you up in a hug. He spun you around in happiness, giggles falling from his mouth. You laughed and pressed a kiss to his cheek, waving to the rest of the group.

“I’m so proud of you,” you said.

“Thank you, Noona,” he whispered.

As soon as you were set on the ground, you were picked up once again, this time by Chenle. He was letting out these soft sounds that told you he was trying not to cry, so you ran your fingers through his hair to comfort him.

“Who’s that?” Jaemin asked.

“That’s Y/N. We were telling you about her a couple weeks ago,” Renjun stated.

“Jaemin, it’s nice to meet you.” You bowed with Chenle still clinging to you. When you stood straight again, there was an odd expression on Jaemin’s face. However, he still bowed to you and returned the comment.

Your parents decided to treat the boys to dinner to celebrate the performance. Jisung kept an arm around your shoulders, pressing a kiss to the side of your head every once in a while. Moments like this had you wishing you could post pictures of your brother to your Instagram, but there was the worry of one of your followers knowing of him and his friends. You just wanted to show everyone how wonderful your brother was.

When it was time to head home, their manager said Jisung had to head back to the dorms, so he promised to meet up with you and your parents for lunch. You gave him another hug and kiss on the cheek, reminding him once more how proud you were. Waving to everyone else, you got into the cab with your parents and headed home.

///

A week before graduation, Jisung and your dad came to America to help sell the house and all the furniture you didn’t need. You were officially moving to South Korea and taking a couple years off from school to figure out your future. Jisung was ecstatic, finally being able to hang out with you without a deadline looming over your heads.

“What about this?” Jisung asked while holding up a summer dress.

You two were going through your clothes to see what you could donate. He had insisted on speaking as much English as he could while he was visiting. Hwne you asked why, he’d said that you’d worked so hard on your Korean for the family that he thought he should return the favor.

You shook your head. “Mom bought that for me a couple years ago. I haven’t worn it in a while.”

“Donate bag!” he exclaimed before tossing it in the trash bag you had. He shouted that every time you decided to donate an article of clothing.

“Does Jaemin hate me?” you asked as you folded the clothes you were keeping.

Throughout your whole visit in March, Jaemin hadn’t been as welcoming as the rest of the Dreamies were when they’d first met you. He’d give you looks you couldn’t explain, and he wouldn’t talk to you much. You were worried you had somehow upset him.

Jisung paused to think. “I think...he does not know how to...act?”

“Act.”

“Act around you. He is...comfortable around us, but not you.”

“Was he like that when you first met?”

“Yeah. He was very shy. But I thought he was better.”

“You would know,” you said with a snort.

Jisung pursed his lips and threw a pillow at you. The two of you continued to go through your things until it was time for dinner. Dad had made tteokbokki and kimchi, your favorite dish.

“Y/N, are you excited to move?” Mom asked.

“I am. I like when the four of us are together. We don’t get to be a family as much as I want to,” you answered.

Jisung looked confused. “We are always a family.”

“We don’t get to be together as a family as much,” you translated. “We’re separated for most of the year.”

“Ah, okay. Yeah, that makes me sad.”

“Us too. The house was too quiet when it was just Y/N and me,” Mom stated. “We can also be more involved in your career, Jisung.”

“Yeah! I can see you perform more and help you practice your dances,” you said excitedly.

“Help me with English too?”

“Of course, dude. Whatever you need help with.”

A few days later was your graduation. You couldn’t wait to leave and never look back. The people you had considered friends dropped you as soon as you told them you were moving to Seoul. The rest of the school year was tough, but you luckily had the Dreamies a call or message away. Jeno was your hype man when you had to write an essay, Renjun would listen to your fears of the future. Haechan made you laugh to relieve the stress you were constantly under, and Mark would talk about about when he doubted his future in k-pop to show you that if you worked hard you could achieve whatever you wanted. Jisung and Chenle would message you every chance they got, whether it was to cheer you up or simply tell you something that had happened that they wanted to share with you.

“How do I look?” Jisung asked.

You rolled your eyes. “I should be asking you that.”

Jisung’s blond hair was parted to show his face. He wore slacks and a baby-blue button-up with the top two buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up.

“You look very handsome,” you complimented. “You’ve grown up so much, man.”

“You look more than pretty,” was his reply. Laughing, you grabbed his hand and pulled him down the hallway to leave.

The graduation was, as predicted, boring. You could hear some shushing throughout the ceremony, but it sounded tinny. When your name was called to grab your diploma, you saw that Jisung was holding up his phone. Your parents were as well, so he was probably just recording the ceremony.

“Y/N Park! Y/N Park!” you heard as you approached your parents. When you turned to Jisung, his phone screen was facing you, showing five of the six NCT Dream members in their dorms, chanting and smiling.

“Oh my god! What are you guys doing?” you asked with a smile.

“We wanted to watch you graduate!” Haechan said. “Since we can’t be there, Jisung decided FaceTime was the next best thing.”

You could feel your eyes water, but you held the tears back. “That’s so sweet.”

“We are very proud of you,” Jisung stated.

“Whoa, check out that English!” Mark shouted.

“Jaemin had to go see the doctor, but he says ‘congrats,’“ Jeno stated.

“Is he okay? Is it his back?” you questioned, suddenly concerned.

“He has to have a couple check-ups to make sure his back is still okay. As far as we know, he’s not injured,” Renjun explained.

“It’s more routine than anything,” Chenle added.

“You sound very worried,” Mark commented with a smirk.

“Well, the last thing I need is for you guys to piss yourselves if he has to take another hiatus,” you replied, immediately earning shouts of denial.

You couldn’t wait to be with them again.

///

“Park Y/N! Wakey wakey!”

You groaned as multiple bodies jumped on your bed, various male voices laughing and screaming. The jet lag wasn’t completely gone, so you were pretty pissed that you were woken up.

“You numbskulls have ten seconds to get out of my room or else I’m strangling you all,” you snapped.

Somebody landed on top of you, making your eyes fly open. Jeno’s signature eye smile was mere inches from your face. “You love us too much. Welcome home, sunshine.”

You threw your arms around his neck and squeezed tight. The others noticed and piled on top of you, complaints of favoritism floating in the air. Your eyes drifted to the doorway where Jisung and Jaemin were watching the scene unfold. You held an arm out.

“You two joining or what?” you asked.

Jaemin hesitated before stepping forward, Jisung right behind him. Your brother laid on top of Chenle while Jaemin placed himself next to you. You didn’t hesitate to throw your arm around his shoulders and pull him close with a smile before saying, “It’s good to be home with my friends.”

“I’m hungry,” Mark commented.

“Y/N, can you make us breakfast?” Haechan whined.

You threw your head back and laughed, urging everyone to get up. You missed how Jaemin stared at you while you laughed, but Jeno didn’t. You led the group to the kitchen and started to pull out ingredients for pancakes while Renjun grabbed as many eggs as possible and Haechan found bacon in the fridge. Jisung placed bananas with the pancake ingredients, making you grin at his pleading eyes.

“Noonaaaaaa, I’m hungry,” Chenle whined.

“Hey, she’s my actual noona,” Jisung complained.

“Children, don’t make me put you in time-out. Chenle, you can easily pour yourself some cereal. You certainly know where it is,” you said. “The others will gladly take your share.”

“I call his bacon!” Mark shouted.

“I’m all set,” Chenle stated.

Rolling your eyes, you turned your attention back to making the pancake batter. As you added ingredients and mixed everything together, Jaemin made a pot of coffee. When he gave you a mug, you said, “Sorry I can’t give you four shots of espresso.”

The other boy’s eyebrows shot up. “You know my coffee order?”

“Dude, Y/N watches every interview. She’s our number-one czennie,” Haechan chimed in.

You shrugged in response. “Am I not supposed to support my brother and friends?”

“You know we love how supportive you are,” Renjun assured you.

Jeno threw an arm around your shoulders and kissed your temple. “She knew all the words to ‘Chewing Gum’ before she understood them.”

“I can’t tell if you’re making fun of me,” you grumbled.

“Never, sunshine,” Jeno stated with a smile.

After breakfast and clean up, the boys had to head to practice, giving you time to start unpacking. The clothes didn’t take long since you already had some in your closet and dresser. A lot of your furniture from America was sold, so you didn’t have to worry about that, either. When you got to the box of sheets and blankets, you placed that in the hallway to put in the linen closet later. All that was really left were a couple boxes of books and decorations.

There were a lot of pictures to place around your room, even after getting rid of the ones that had your “friends” in them. There was one of you and your dad at the father-daughter dance last year that you placed on your dresser, along with one of you and your mom on your very first day of school The one of your family at the wedding hung proudly by the door. Two frames were placed on your nightstand: one of you and Jisung at your graduation, the other backstage at NCT Dream’s “Go” performance, which was also Jaemin’s comeback. There were so many pictures of you and Jisung that it shocked you. Seeing all of this reminded you of how your relationship changed the night he reached out to you, despite the language barrier. The two of you did something you never thought would happen; you became a family.

“Ow! Damn it, Y/N! Why is this sitting int he hallway?”

You turned around to face Jisung, surprised he was home. When you checked your phone, though, you realized more time had passed than you thought.

“Hey Ji! Sorry, I was gonna put them in the linen closet, but I lost track of time,” you explained. “How was practice?”

“It was okay. We’re gonna start filming the music video in a couple weeks, so everyone’s a little stressed about perfecting this dance,” he said. “I’m gonna take a nap. Can you wake me up in an hour?”

“You got it.”

“Thanks, Noona. Room looks good, by the way.”

“We Go Up” was set to debut at the end of August. The album, which was getting released in September, would be Mark’s last. It was safe to say everyone was on edge. Jisung’s mood had dramatically changed when they were told the release date. You wanted to help him, but you didn’t know how. You didn’t want to think about when the ‘00 line would graduate next year.

///

You ran errands with your mom for one day, and Jisung’s hair was suddenly rose gold. One. Day. You wanted to have a photoshoot with him to capture how cute he was.

“Chenle’s hair is mint green!”

Oh my god.

“I can’t handle it. You guys are too cute,” you whined.

“Hey! What about me?” Haechan asked.

“Ask me when your hair is a fun color.” The other boy crossed his arms and pouted.

“Jaemin’s hair is pink,” Chenle mumbled, his face red with embarrassment.

“Your team is trying to give me a heart-attack, I swear.”

“How so?” Jaemin asked as he joined you from his room.

A strangled noise came from your mouth, and you rushed over to play with his hair. He tensed up until your fingers ran through his pink locks, his whole body melting under the touch. How could hair that’s constantly bleached and dyed be so soft?

“You look like cotton candy,” you whispered.

“I hope that’s a good thing,” he joked.

“The best.”

“Now I kinda wish I picked a fun color,” you heard Jeno mutter.

You cooed and fell into Jeno’s lap, his arms immediately circling tight around your waist as you pinch his cheeks and say, “Aw, you’ll always have a spot in my heart, Jennie-bear.”

“You said you didn’t have a bias!” Chenle accused.

“As a czennie, I don’t have a bias. You all are talented, handsome, and charming in your own ways. As your friend—well, Jeno doesn’t really use skinship, but he doesn’t hesitate to with me,” you told them.

“It’s because you’re so cuddly and cute,” Jeno commented as he nuzzled behind your ear playfully.

“That’s very true,” Jisung piped up. “Whenever I’m feeling overwhelmed, Y/N will drag me to the couch and turn on my favorite movie before cuddling me. Her presence is just so...calming.”

“Okay, so I’m not the only one that’s noticed that,” Mark commented.

Jeno started to rock you back and forth slightly as they talked about their comeback. They were excited about the music, but you knew what they were avoiding: Mark’s graduation. There was a song that they wrote that made Jisung cry every time he thought about the lyrics. At one point you got up to go to the bathroom, and when you returned to the living room, Jaemin reached out and grabbed you, pulling you into the armchair with him. You were surprised and about to ask, when he whispered out a broken, “Please.”

You shifted in his lap until you could wrap your arms around his neck. His head rested against your shoulder as your fingers played with his hair, his body melting into the chair. Before you knew it, his breathing had slowed, and his face was completely lax. His body was so warm, lulling you to sleep.

You don’t know how long you were out, but when you woke up, the sun was setting in the sky. Jaemin was still fast asleep, his head resting on top of yours and small snores coming from his mouth. You grabbed your phone to check the time, but a text from your brother caught your attention.

Jisung: Don’t know if you’ll wake up before you’re back but we went to KFC for dinner. Text me if you guys want anything 🐣

“Jaemin. Jaemin, wake up,” you said groggily.

Jaemin groaned and tightened his hold on you. His eyes fluttered open slowly, eventually looking down to you. “Hey. What time is it?”

“Almost six. We fell asleep, so the guys went to dinner without us,” you said. “Jisung said he would bring something back for us.”

“Where’d they go?”

“KFC.”

“Can you pull up the menu on your phone?”

A few taps later, and you were looking at the Korean website for KFC. Jaemin had you open the sandwiches menu, and you both went “ooh,” at one that had a fried egg on it.

“I want that,” he whispered.

“Me too. Anything to drink?”

“Cola.”

You texted your orders to Jisung and went to stand up, but Jaemin held onto you. You tried again, but he wasn’t letting go.

“Jaemin, I have to go to the bathroom.”

“O-oh. Sorry.”

After washing your hands and checking your reflection, you headed back to the living room, stopping when you reached the doorway. Sitting with Jaemin was comfortable, but wouldn’t it be weird if you went over there? You decided to just sit on the couch. However, Jaemin grabbed you and, like before, pulled you into his lap. Instead of saying anything, you took your phone out and played a game. Jaemin was watching some gaming video, the volume down low.

“We’re back!” Mark announced as the door opened. He appeared in the living room first, grinning as he placed your food and drinks on the coffee table. “You two look comfy.”

“Like you guys said, she’s cuddly,” Jaemin mumbled, avoiding eye contact with either of you.

“He’s acting much different from when you first met, huh?” Mark asked you.

“Talking in English is rude, Mark,” you scolded, ignoring his comment.

“You tell him, Y/N!” Chenle cheered.

You leaned forward to grab the food. Jaemin followed with an arm still around your waist. It was clear he wasn’t letting you go anytime soon, but you were okay with that. He obviously was holding something in, and he didn’t know how to deal with it. If holding onto you helped him de-stress, you would gladly stay until he was okay.

“Are you, uh, gonna eat like that?” Renjun asked.

Jaemin shrugged. “I’m okay with it.”

“I’m too comfy,” you admitted.

Throughout the night, you and Jaemin shared memes and watched YouTube videos together. You talked to the others as well, but you two were really focused on each other. He was really easy to get along with, now that he was comfortable around you. It was like a switch had flipped in him, and it was for the better. When you and Jisung left the dorms, you had a new friend and another number in your phone.

///

As soon as the door shut behind you and Jisung, the other Dreamies turned to Jaemin. He jumped at the sudden movement, eyes wide as he waited for whatever they were going to say.

“Do you like Y/N?” Chenle asked.

“Yeah, she’s pretty cool,” Jaemin responded.

“No, do you like her? Like, do you want to date her?” Haechan questioned.

Jaemin was shocked. “I don’t really know her well enough to have feelings like that.”

“Do you think she’s pretty?” Renjun asked.

“Of course, but that doesn’t matter.”

That night, Jaemin laid in bed thinking about how the others questioned him. While it seemed like they weren’t upset at the thought of him possibly liking you, it was clear they cared about you. They would hurt anyone who broke your heart, and that was intimidating. He would have to be careful of falling for you.

A few days later, you and Jaemin were at the grocery store. Jaemin lost Mario Kart and his punishment was going to the market. The group needed food for the week, but they all hated shopping, so you offered to go with him. You two were wearing hats and face masks, you only wearing it to make him look less suspicious. You had gone to a different aisle for some snacks, but you had been gone for a while, so Jaemin went looking for you. When he finally found you, he stopped in his tracks.

You were staring at the shelves, your eyebrows scrunched together. It was clear you were pouting, and it occurred to him that maybe you didn’t know what the others liked. You knew so much about them that he never thought you would need his help with shopping. He was about to step forward when an elderly woman approached you. He smiled as he watched you follow her around the store, grabbing a few items from high shelves for her since you were the same height as Renjun.

The elderly woman hugged you once she had everything she needed, and your eyes landed on Jaemin as she walked away. You smiled sheepishly and told him you didn’t grab any snacks, but he simply smiled and told you it was okay. The two of you walked back to that aisle, and he told you about each snack he grabbed, like who liked what and why they liked it. You then went over to produce, where you were greeted by an older worker named Hosung. Jaemin eavesdropped on your conversation with the employee as he picked up some apples and carrots. Hosung commented that he hadn’t seen you in a while, and you mentioned that you were now permanently in South Korea since you finally graduated high school and were able to move in with your family. Jaemin was shocked that you two were talking like you’d known each other for a long time before he remembered that you’ve been visiting the country for years, so maybe you had.

After you hugged Hosung goodbye, you and Jaemin headed to the registers. You picked the line, ignoring the one that had less people in it. When he questioned you, you said that you hadn’t seen Yumi in a long time since she was on medical leave the last time you shopped here. The cashier spotted you two and turned her light off, a sweet smile on her face.

“Y/N! Oh, I haven’t seen you in forever,” the older woman greeted as she came around the counter to hug you and pinch your cheeks.

“I missed you, Yumi,” you stated, a huge smile on your face.

“Is this your boyfriend?” Yumi asked, glancing to the boy next to you.

“No, this is Jaemin,” you announced as he bowed.

“It’s nice to meet you,” he greeted.

“Oh! You’re one of Jisung’s friends!” the woman exclaimed. Panic rose in his chest until you grabbed his hand, squeezing it.

“Don’t worry. She won’t tell anyone,” you assured him. “She’s kept Jisung’s secret for years.”

“He’s such a sweet boy. How could I betray him?” Yumi asked.

She went back to the register to ring up the food, asking you questions about how school went and what you were doing now that you were living in South Korea. Your face lit up as you told her about what you’d been doing so far and how excited you were to figure out your future while you were here. Yumi glanced at Jaemin and saw the fond look on his face, smirking to herself.

The two of you hugged Yumi before heading back to the dorms. You had to take the train back, so Jaemin paid for the both of you as thanks for going with him to the store. When you got on the train, the two of you were squished together. You looked up at Jaemin to find his eyes already on you. His cheeks peeked from his face mask, which meant he was smiling at you.

“What?” you asked.

“Nothing,” he said quickly.

You rolled your eyes and said, “Clearly it’s not nothing. You’ve never looked at me like that for no reason.”

He shrugged. “I’m just thinking about how well you know some of the people that work at that grocery store.”

“That’s what’s making you smile?” you asked incredulously.

“It’s really sweet! I don’t know,” he mumbled, looking away from you as he blushed. “Forget it.”

You hesitating before telling him, “When I refused to learn Korean, they would talk to me in English. They were the only ones that did. Everyone else would just talk to somebody else in my family. When I started to learn Korean, they were so patient with me, even helping me when I couldn’t remember how the phrasing went. Hosung and Yumi didn’t have to do all that, but they did, and I’m grateful for that.”

Jaemin looked back to you. “All the more reason to smile.”

///

Jaemin watched as you danced around goofily with Haechan, Jisung, and Chenle. You and the Dreamies were in the practice room. You wanted to watch the “We Go Up” dance, and then you wanted to learn the “Chewing Gum” routine. Renjun, Jeno, and Mark were dancing to the song, but Jeno broke away to sit next to Jaemin. He saw the smile on Jaemin’s face and followed his gaze, Jeno’s eyes landing on you as Haechan spun you around.

“She’s amazing, isn’t she?” Jeno asked.

“Huh?”

“Y/N. She helps people whether she knows them or not, she’s mastered the Korean language while helping Jisung with his English, and she didn’t give up on becoming your friend when you were so closed off to her,” Jeno explained. “She’s exactly your type.”

“And how do you know my type?” Jaemin questioned.

“Because you’re my best friend, and you haven’t stopped staring at her the part twenty minutes.” Jeno looked at Jaemin. “You’ve been so worried about developing feelings for her, you failed to notice that you already have.”

Pink hair went flying as Jaemin whipped his head over to the boy next to him. He then looked at you. You were on Chenle’s back, laughing as he ran around. His heart raced at the sight of pure joy on your face.

“Shit.”

///

Something was up. You didn’t know what, but the Dreamies were acting weird. All you had wanted to do was go to the mall, but they were constantly splitting up. Jaemin looked like he was ready to kill them, while Jisung clearly didn’t know what was going on every time somebody dragged him away.

“Let’s go to Adidas!” Renjun said, grabbing your brother’s arm.

“Wait! I...wanna go,” you trailed off as you were, once again, ignored. The others were spread through the building, leaving you alone with Jaemin. Frustrated, you started to walk away.

“Wait, where are you going?” he questioned.

“Home. It’s clear nobody wants to hang out with me,” you said, feeling dejected.

“I do.”

Turning around, you faced Jaemin. His eyes refused to meet yours as his cheeks turned pink. His hands were shoved in his pockets, and he was rocking back and forth on his feet. There were a few seconds of silence before he said, “Come on. Let’s grab something to eat. On me.”

The two of you ended up grabbing burgers. Jaemin picked a table by the windows, so you were able to watch the bustling city below. You turned back to take a bite of your food when you realized Jaemin was staring at you with a small smile on his face.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Not this again. Is there something on my face?”

“No, it’s just—you look really good in this light.”

That caught you off guard. You knew Jaemin was a flirt, but you never expected it to be directed towards you. “O-oh. Thank you.”

“Do you mind if I take your picture?”

“Uh, yeah. What do you want me to do?” you asked.

“Look out the window again.”

You followed his instructions and looked at the world below. There was somebody dancing for tips, and you couldn’t help but smile; it reminded you of Jisung. You heard a tinny shutter-click, so you looked back at Jaemin. There was another shutter-click, and then Jaemin blushed.

“Sorry. I-I didn’t mean—”

“Can I see it?”

He poked at his phone a couple times before handing it to you. The girl in the photo was smiling softly as she looked out the glass before her. In the next photo, she was looking right at the camera, a look of adoration on her face. You couldn’t believe that was you.

“I’ve never looked like that before,” you stated.

“What are you talking about? You always look like that.”

You glanced up at Jaemin. The glimmer in his eyes changed the air between you two. You could both feel it, but neither of you knew what to do next.

Of course, that didn’t last long. The Dreamies appeared out of nowhere, complaining about how you got food without them. You didn’t let that continue for very long and immediately started scolding them over how they kept running away and ignoring you and how Jaemin stopped you from leaving early. They all hung their heads and apologized for hurting your feelings before offering to take you to the stores you wanted to go to.

“Why bother? You already know what’s in there,” you snapped with a frown on your face. “I want to be left alone right now. Because that’s clearly what you wanted.”

“That’s not—” Mark start, but you cut him off.

“Don’t bother. I know when I’m not wanted.”

You walked away, Jaemin running after you. He said, “You know that’s not what they meant.”

“Oh, I know. They deserve a taste of their own medicine, though, don’t you think?” you asked with a smirk. “Come on, there’s a park nearby I want to visit.”

You grabbed Jaemin’s hand and dragged him down the street. When the two of you reached the park, you started to release his hand, but he held on. Glancing at him, you could see a blush forming on his cheeks. You entwined your fingers, his attention snapping to you at the action. You sent a shy smile his way before turning your focus back to the trail you were walking on.

You reached a garden, no one else in sight. There were flowers everywhere,a sweet aroma floating in the air from their petals. When you looked at Jaemin, you were surprised to find his eyes on you instead of the beautiful scene sitting mere meters away.

“You’re staring again,” you pointed out.

“I can’t help it,” was his response.

Before you could say anything else, you heard the guys calling for you two. How the hell did they find you? Suddenly, you were pulled towards the treeline. Jaemin was laughing as the two of you dodged tree after tree before he finally stopped behind a large trunk. Your chests were pressed together, pants coming from your mouths. Jaemin had an arm around your back as he peered around the tree, your friends’ voices in the distance. You admired how strong his jawline was and how his skin glistened in the sun that was peeking through the leaves.

“Okay, I think we’re safe,” he stated.

He turned to you, whatever sentence was next dying on his lips. You were looking up at him with a small smile on your face, your eyes shining and your cheeks flushed. He couldn’t tell if it was from the running or the proximity, but in that moment he didn’t care. All he wanted was for you to never stop looking at him like that. You were so beautiful, it took his breath away. With a shaky hand, he pushed some hair behind your ear.

“I really like you,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

The smile on your face grew as you said, “Good, ‘cause I really like you too.”

It felt like a weight had been lifted from his chest. He grinned and leaned down, capturing your lips in a kiss as a hand cupped your jaw. Your hands clutched at the fabric over his chest. You were over the moon with Jaemin right next to you. It felt like something was finally locking into place.

“Found you.”

You jumped, bumping foreheads with the boy in front of you. The two of you clutched your heads as you turned to glare at Chenle, but you froze when you saw everyone a few feet away. Your eyes immediately landed on Jisung, worried about his reaction. However there was a smile on his face, matching everyone else.

“Well, it’s about damn time!” Haechan exclaimed.

“What?” you and Jaemin said.

“She sat in your lap before you were even friends,” Renjun stated.

“And then you guys fell asleep, woke up, and ate dinner, all while she sat in your lap,” Mark continued.

“And she’s your type,” Jeno added.

“And he’s your type,” Jisung commented.

“Okay! We get it, it was obvious to everyone but us,” you snapped. “So, what now?”

Jaemin paused. There was a dating ban in NCT, and there were some huge consequences if that rule was broken. He’d been working towards this career for years, sacrificing his old life and his health when he’d hurt his back. However, he cared about you too much to break your heart after all this, and he knew that the other members of NCT would have his back once they met you.

“We’ll have to be careful, but I want to take you on a date,” he said.

“If you’re willing to take that chance, then I’m in,” you replied.

The guys cheered as Jaemin kissed you again before the eight of you decided to head back to the dorms. Jaemin had an arm around your shoulders while Jisung’s hand found yours so it wouldn’t look suspicious. As you walked through the garden, your brother asked, “Are you happy?”

You looked at the boy that was quickly becoming one of the most important people in your life. His smile was as bright as his hair, and he had a heart of gold. He looked at you and winked, a fond look in his eyes.

“Yeah, I am.”

[eriklivesinmybasement]

Rise of the Guardians: Is it as good as we remember?

(Oof! I’ve been working on this one for a long while! Buckle up buttercup, this is gonna be a long one!)

(Before I get into this, I want everyone to know that I’m not claiming anything to be fact. This is just my personal opinion).

Back in November of 2012, we were greeted with Rise of the Guardians. This movie, based on the books entitled The Guardians of Childhood, written by William Joyce, gave us a new and unique take on our favorite childhood characters. This included Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, Jack Frost, and more.

While it didn’t do so well at the box office, it seemed to explode in popularity. It spawned a fandom fairly quickly, even spawning a couple fandoms that branched off of it. For a long while there it seemed that, wherever you looked, you saw cosplays, fanart, tribute videos, fanfiction, etc. Loads of people seemed to absolutely love this movie, and I, as a twelve-year-old at the time and thus a part of the target audience, was no exception.

Even now eight years later, I still claim to love this movie. Even though I haven’t seen it in a long while, it left a huge impact on me as a writer and artist, which is why I am sad to see the fanbase slowly dwindling away. So I went back and watched it again, and as I sat there ready to press the ‘play’ button, I began to wonder. 

Will this movie be as good as I remember it?

And the answer? Yes and no.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I still really like this movie, and I still stand by it being one of my favorites. But just like everything else in life, nothing is perfect. And while still amazing, this movie does indeed have some flaws. 

And as I like to save the best for last, I’ll start off by diving into some of the movies flaws.

Flaw #1 - Pacing

The pacing in this movie can be a little awkward from time to time. Nothing super jarring, but enough to make me go, “I’m sorry, what?”. 

Some scenes seemed to just jump from one to the other without much warning. Either that, or the transition from one scene to the next seemed a little off. One example of this is when North, Bunny, Sandman, and Jack Frost set off to the Tooth Palace. There was nothing inherently wrong with these scenes, but the transition between the two seemed a little awkward. One minute we were having a nice, calm moment between North and Jack, and then all of a sudden we get a quick, action-like sequence with the sleigh.

Another moment that felt awkwardly paced was the introduction of the movies villain, Pitch Black. It seemed like there should’ve been more buildup to him. We got a bit, but moments of buildup seemed quite few and far between. When he was introduced it felt almost a little random, him just appearing for a few moments and disappearing just as quick didn’t seem to work or do him justice.

There are other scenes, but I won’t go over those now, as I guess I’m probably already bugging some hardcore RotG fans.

Flaw #2 - Unexplored Questions and Backstories

Alright, before I get people shouting me down about how, “If I want backstory and questions answered I should read the books”, hear me out.

When you make a story, whether it be in the form of a movie or book, you’re going to want it to make sense. You’re going to want everything to tie together. It’s true that the original books do this, but it’s not seen in the movie. So for those who watch the movie, they may walk out confused about some aspects of it. The two parts I’m going to focus on here are Pitch Black’s backstory, and how Sandman came back to life.

Every story needs a good villain, and Pitch Black is certainly a well-defined villain. But here’s the problem. We get no backstory or explanation as to how he came to be. We do get a quick flashback to Pitch during the ‘Dark Ages’, which gives us his motivation as to why he’s doing what he’s doing. But that’s it. We get no other real backstory to how he came to be. Actually, we don’t get that for any of the other Guardians besides Jack Frost. But again, the other Guardians lack of backstory could be forgiven, as none of them are the main characters. But it’s important to tell a villains backstory because it gives the audience something to connect with.

Onto the next question. How exactly did Sandman come back to life?

This is a question that’s actually been on my mind for a while now. How exactly did Sandy come back? In the movie we clearly see him die, so how did he come back from the dead? The only lead I got is that maybe the kids somehow brought him back. During the final confrontation with Pitch, Jamie touches some of the black nightmare sand and it turns gold. It’s later on after that that he looks to the other kids and says, “I know what we have to do,” and they run offscreen for a little while, only for Sandy to show up soon after. Did Sandy come back through the kids believing in him again? Did they preform some sort of ritual to call him back from the dead? Who knows. It’s a dumb nitpick, I know, but I still wonder.

Well, now that I got that out of the way, and the RotG fandom is probably coming after my head, I’ll go over the strengths of this movie. And trust me, these really help the movie stand out.

Strength #1 - The Characters

All the characters in this movie are phenomenal! But to be honest, Jack Frost was the reason I originally wanted to watch this film when it first came out. Growing up I never really heard any stories about Jack Frost, and the only Jack Frost I ever saw in the media was of a withered old man. So seeing him portrayed as a teenager seemed pretty interesting. And the character was handled and written very well. His backstory was intriguing, he had a fun and enjoyable personality, but that’s not all.

One thing that was really great about Jack Frost’s character was his struggle throughout the story, and it’s actually a pretty relatable struggle as well. In the story, Jack Frost starts out not knowing who he really is or why he’s even alive. Not only that, but it seems that no mortals can see him, effectively making him invisible to the entire world. The story follows him as he looks for answers to his identity. 

This can be a very relatable situation, especially for preteens and early teenagers who are still trying to figure themselves out. And most all of us get to this point. We reach a time in our lives, often in our youth, where we start to wonder exactly who/what kind of person we are. Along with the desire to discover ourselves, there is also the fear/feeling of being invisible and isolated, not understanding where we exactly fit in. Again, everyone reaches a place like that as well, where we feel invisible to the world. Just a passerby. Like we have something amazing to share, if only we could get someone to see it. 

The other characters don’t come off as deep or complex as Jack, but that doesn’t make them any less enjoyable. Santa, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, and Sandman were all very creatively designed and portrayed. A lot of the fun from this movie actually came from all these strong, drastically different personalities clashing with and bouncing off of one another. It made for some fun dialogue and hilarious moments which had me laughing off and on throughout the beginning of the film. 

Strength #2 - The Villain

Pitch Black is, without a doubt, one of my favorite DreamWorks villains. I loved everything about this character. From the voice, the design, the aesthetic, it’s all wonderful! But the one thing that set this villain up above many others was that he straight up killed an important character onscreen.

Reminder, I was twelve when this movie came out, and up until then, I wasn’t often exposed to death scenes like this in animated films. I grew up majorly on Disney animated movies and shows, and when a character died, it was usually offscreen. And on the occasion it was onscreen? The villain only indirectly killed a character. For example, in the Lion King, Scar pushed Mufasa into a gorge where a stampede was taking place. Scar killed him indirectly, as he’s the one who put him there, but the stampede is what really did the work.

But in this case it was much different. It’s not like Pitch took Sandy off to the side and killed him there. No, we legit saw this whole scene happen and play out on screen. When I first saw it, it blew my mind! This was actually kind of new for me! We saw Pitch take that shot at Sandy, and we actually saw Sandy’s final moments as he died. When you have a villain physically kill off a beloved character on screen, it sends a message. It sends the message that this villain isn’t all talk. That this villain really does have great power of their own, and that they are serious about getting what they want. That they aren’t going to let anyone get in their way. They mean business. And that was perfectly executed in this scene. (No pun intended).

Strength #3 - The Creativity and Art

I think it goes without saying that this movie is unbelievably creative! Everything from the locations, animation, and the characters themselves in both personality and design are just bursting with creative energy! The animation is incredibly detailed, and for DreamWorks as an animation studio, I think this has to be some of their best work. The colors, textures, details, and everything in between are just so beautifully done. In terms of creativity, two of the locations I want to talk about are the Tooth Palace and Pitch Black’s lair. 

When it comes to the Tooth Palace, the artists and creators were given a lot of creative freedom. In media there is no set idea of a place where the Tooth Fairy lives or operates. We all know Santa lives in a workshop, and it makes sense to think that the Easter Bunny lives in a Warren, but no one really knows what to expect when it comes to the Tooth Fairy. When we saw the Tooth Palace, we were treated to some highly detailed and stunning imagery, all with a lovely color scheme of soft pinks, purples, and blues with accents of gold. Not to mention the design of the structural design was a spectacle itself to behold.

And then we have Pitch Black’s lair. As a lowkey goth at twelve years old in the early 2010s, the aesthetic here made it one of my favorite parts of the movie. This set here is similar to the Tooth Palace in that, the creators had a greater level of creative freedom, as we never really think about where exactly the Boogeyman lives. I mean, we know he kinda lives under beds, but that doesn’t sound as cool as living in a spooky, gothic underground secret lair. (But in all honesty, I do really enjoy the detail of the entrance of his lair being under an old, broken down bedframe. It’s a very good nod to the old stories).

It’s like a maze. A labyrinth full of shadows, and looks like the interior of an old, gothic castle that’s somewhat tilting into an abyss. It’s color scheme is predominantly full of grays and blacks, and the surprisingly elegant-looking cages hanging from an invisible ceiling really helps to establish a more gothic look. And since the lair is very dark and shadowed, it fits and aids Pitch black perfectly, in that he can morph in and out of shadows as he pleases. This gives him plenty of places to hide as he’s making an effort to mess with and get into Jack’s head.

The last piece of creativity I want to touch on is how the characters are presented. And holy crap after this movie this is the only way I can view Santa, Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, etc.!

They take these beloved characters that we are already familiar with, and, while still somewhat showing them as we know them, present them in an entirely different way. 

We all see Santa Claus as this huge, lovable man with a big belly who’s always jolly. And while that is what we get from this Santa, or North, as they call him, it’s very much flipped on its head. While still jolly, North is very eccentric, high-energy, and is strong-armed, duel broadsword wielding Russian warrior with tattoos. Seriously, who thinks of a Russian warrior when they think of Santa?! Well, now I do! Also the fact that he’s not always super happy like other incarnations of the character. We get to see that he’s very capable of getting both upset and frustrated. It’s a pretty interesting way to humanize such a beloved character.

We then have the Easter Bunny, who is played by Hugh Jackman. Say that out loud. The Easter Bunny is being played by Hugh Jackman. Growing up, me and many other kids saw the Easter Bunny as a small, cute little critter who hopped around the world leaving baskets and painting eggs. Not a tall, boomerang wielding fighter from the Australian outback. Not only that, but giving him a small rivalry with North was interesting, and snot something I ever really thought about. As well as the idea of a the Easter Bunny having somewhat of a temper.

In terms of character design, I feel like both the Tooth Fairy and Sandman had the most creative freedom. We don’t see these two characters often portrayed in media, so they were able to receive some really cool and unique-looking designs. Especially the Tooth Fairy. Did you ever think of the Tooth Fairy looking a like an elegant cross between a beautiful woman and a hummingbird? No, of course you didn’t. But Rise of the Guardians gave us just that, and it truly set its place for it’s own individual take on this childhood legend. 

Pitch Black is a fairy creative villain as well. When you hear about the Boogeyman, you don’t get very scared. The name actually sounds a little silly when you say it out loud. And even then, because of the success of The Nightmare Before Christmas, you usually think of their incarnation of the character when you hear that name. But this version of the character is actually much different. He’s not this weird, in-your-face kind of monster. He’s a very subtle, yet terrifying character. When I first saw the movie in theaters, there were kids in the room crying at moments when Pitch Black came on screen. It’s also interesting the way his powers work. We all grew up knowing the Boogeyman as someone who just hid under beds. We had no idea what magical powers he may or may not have had. So giving him the ability to morph into the darkness and into shadows was a pretty cool concept, but also solidified that he had a weakness. Light.

So, In Conclusion...

As I have gotten older, I admit that this movie does look a little different to me now, versus when I saw it as a preteen. I’ve noticed some interesting flaws here and there, but I’ve also been able to remember why I fell in love with it in the first place. It’s a very different kind of movie, but that’s part of what makes it so much fun and interesting.

The characters are delightful, the villain is intimidating, the story, while awkwardly paced, is still pretty solid, and is all tied together with a great lead character. And as you get invested in the story, you’ll find yourself getting really into the all artistry that went into creating this movie.

At the end of the day, it makes me sad to see the fanbase for this movie slowly dwindling away. But I feel there are always going to be people out there who enjoy this movie. And you know what? You never know what the future holds. Perhaps there will be a movie in the distant future. Or more likely a animated series on either TV or Netflix. And for the hardcore fans, go and read the original books. 

All I can say here is that, every now and again when it starts to get a little nippy outside, I’ll sit in my living room with hot chocolate and give this movie another watch.

[astro-break]

Quick first thoughts on the first ep of the Hypmic Anime. Spoilers beware (and im writing this as I watch so :p)

Otome’s speech is.... questionable from a persuasive point of view. Manga did a great job of introducing her (which you can read here) but they really cut out the more terrifying parts of her speech and how she uses force to show people that she's not to be messed with

Its cool seeing everyone in their respective environments though. thats cool. Though they could have added Sasara and Kuuko (shhh i know why they didn’t let me dream)

I love how poppy the typography is. Its amazing how the visuals just leap out at you. The OP does a great job of this. The first few seconds before the title really gives me Persona 4 OG OP vibes with the influx of information given. The rest is a clear concise and streamlined way that still gives character. Animation is sparse but still carries across a general idea of each character and shows off each character object. Rendering is really nice and pays a bit of homage to the posing artwork thats done for the MVs. They also do their division hand signals and thats cute

Love how the OP has blatant HifuDoppo and DRB matchup foreshadowing

so far I really like what theyre going for. BB is about brotherly familial bonds and they show the goods and the bads. Jiro and Saburo bickering right out the gate really cements the fact that they get along like cats and dogs but you can still see that they love each other, working together when the situation calls for it

Now the 3d models. Theyre... not great but usable if you don’t look too hard. They serve their purpose and don’t actively detract from the viewing experience.

Visual typography in the rap itself are fun and poppy but they dont.... speak to me? like theyre there yes and I appreciate them but the only ones that got me excited were from Ichiro’s rap

I take my words back the group portion was kickass and I apologize

I love how they interpret the Hypnosis Speakers though. Esp. Saburo’s organs. That was super creative and I love it! If there was one thing that I felt was missing from the franchise was a deeper exploration of the speakers but the anime puts a new and fresh spin on it! Love it, especially with their attack patterns!

If the production team ever feels inclined to, Id love to see those info sheets on Otome’s desk released. There seems to be very interesting info and stats written out about each member (like capabilities, personal status etc.) They all seem unique too so I really really really hope they release images of those sheets

OOOOOOOOKAY MTC. I have such a big biased for them so Im very torn to see what unfolds

Rio striking out on his own is interesting. Out of everyone in MTC hes the biggest team player yet here he trusts his teammates to go ahead. This either displays Rio’s willingness to trust his teammates or it becomes very OOC if the anime wants to set him up as a lone wolf like character

I love how they specify its a drug deal. It means that Jyuto surely will show up and it also shows that Samatoki knows Jyuto’s motives and willingly gives black market info that he knows aligns with Jyuto’s goal. Thats A+ detail writing there and a great establishing characteristic for both of them

OOohhhhhhhhhhhhh man Asunama-san’s voice acting is god tier his work as Samatoki is phenomenal. He pulls of Samatoki’s threatening voice so well with those almost calm words before his voice becomes loud and confrontational. Those rolling syllables in contrast to Komada-san’s almost lyrical and airy speech and Kamio-san’s strict and enunciated words is such a delight to hear. It just speaks to how amazing and great these Seiyuu’s are in order to pull of such amazing work

Im so biased but MTC has such a better rap than BB im so sorry. Just by watching Samatoki’s part, the imagery is amazing. Even the arrival of his Hypnosis Speaker was awesome and sent a shiver down my spine. using the lyrics to form blades and blood was such a great thing to do. Theres so much more variety that just him standing there and shots of his hypnosis speaker. The old fashioned vignette shots, the four panel spread, the nods to old Kurosawa era films are great and I love these small details. Even the typography looks better.

Again, the interpretations with the speakers is fresh and new. Its great and I love the different imagery and attack patterns. Each one is so unique but carries across each different style of rap.

The 3d modles aren’t any better tho lol

(Hi this is Astro who is reading over their assessment again and making a note. Yeah I’m a bit harsh on BB’s rap. I’m not going to change it since I still stand by it and this post is supposed to be a documentation of my first impressions. I think one of the reasons why I’m so harsh on BB is because of their dynamic as a trio of brothers. They Have to have a more uniform approach than the other divisions. Which in of itself isn’t a terrible thing, it just doesn’t catch my eye as much as MTC did. Thats all! I definitely don’t hate BB, they’re maybe my 3rd favorite division out of the current lineup [not including TDD era teams like Kujaku Posse, MCD, and Naughty Busters] its just that their rap was pretty meh)

Samatoki crouching like a real gangstar and the cigarette kiss killed me

sadjkhfjkasdghsadjkcsdjhsdfsjhf im dying i love these trio of dumbasses so uch oh y fod someone save me aaaaaaaa (Astro note here! yeah i died when the jyuto and samatoki’s stomach growled im weak please. Samatoki’s face is just so precious and funny I might set it as a profile pic somewhere)

But also my initial assessment of Rio possibly being characterized as a lone wolf is very much jossed and im very thankful for that. It seems that Rio was simply trusting his teammates to carry out their part of the plan while he carried out his own. I like that, it really shows how much of a team these three are and that they genuinely trust each other. He’s also comfortable enough around them to invite them to dinners after work casually and not just for special occasions.

I really love MTC guys

Oooh! we get Ramuda on his design process which is really cute. the inside of his studio is super cute and retro and i love it. the poppy old music you would hear in a cafe or 90′s resturaunt is also really cute (astro note: yeah i know that in ARB you see the interior of Ramuda’s office but its kinda different seeing it animated)

the translation i have has gentaro speaking in early modern english (Shakespearian english for those who aren’t english nerds like me) but from what I can hear, he doesn’t speak in a particularly old fashioned way? Its more formal than old? and hes speaking without any of his character persona lying thing that he likes to do (as he refers to himself as “Shousei” throughout the segment where hes in Ramuda’s office which is kind of his default pronoun of choice). so its kinda odd for the translation to go in that direction but im not complaining

Gendice banter is gold but it feels... flat? a little? it doesn’t have the same impact as in the drama cds or in the manga? i feel? Also Ramuda using gratuitous english is??? idk how to feel about that

kjshf thats against the rules Ramuda omgggg,,,,,,,, (astro note again: while watching i was under the assumption that using your hypmic for monetary gain such a as buskering [which is what FP is doing] is against the rules. May not be the case but whatever)

FP’s rap might be my favorite in terms of tune and lyrics though. It’s a nice laid back bop and really gives of chill vibes. the integration of 3d and 2d is really nice and i love how they play off each other in the rap. The wordplay is so fun with little nods here and there and the beat is poppy too so it really energizes me.

Ramuda’s rap concerns me slightly since he makes very subtle and small nods towards his past (being created in a laboratory, warfare, and his overall very unpleasant life experiences) but spins it into something cutesy. It could be a coping mechanism, it could be me overthinking it. But it does make me worry a bit. Gentaro and Dice’s rap really play off each other with Gentaro sticking to stories and Dice taking up the baton by carrying on that same imagery but putting his own spin on it.

the self awareness of how scattered they are as a team is interesting though. It doesn’t seem like something you’d speak about in a rap? but i guess since its not really a do or die situation they can afford to be looser on things like this.

Right off the bat, i don’t like how they handled Hifumi and Doppo in relation to Hifumi’s fear of women. Slug made a post once talking about this and I echo many of his sentiments. Hypmic has never been very tactful about tackling this particular issue and while I didn’t have high hopes that the anime would be any better it hurts to see Doppo take away the one thing that allows Hifumi to function within society.

Doppo’s breakdown mirrors a lot of my own mental state when I spiral though its shown a lot quicker than what happens to me oof. that hits close to home. though Jakurai’s advice is. Questionable. Its not the best advice to give to someone but we have no idea what kind of doctor Jakurai is so ill let it slide

Jakurai’s pose looks like hes going to do a mahou shoujou transformation lmao

I don’t have many thoughts about the rap though again. How they visualize the rap is interesting. the different imagery is quite interesting for each of them and the typography is nice a distinct but im still on the fence about the visuals here

The sound is in the same boat. The sound effects either drown out the rap or are too quet but some parts are nice at least. When they talk about Tokyo’s beating heart, the heartbeat sound is a but distracting especially since its only played once. But the imagery is at least nice

I wonder if for the eds they’re going to take a similar approach to what Enstars did and have a four different endings, one for each division. I love the blend of styles here and it really accentuates that although they’re different they mesh well together.

Ramuda’s silhouette though is hilarious. Love it.

:p and thats it. Uh not bad for a first episode. Established all 12 characters really nicely and their dynamics. I had some problems with it but then again nothing is perfect. I look forward to what they show us next week