#it makes me insane when i can’t get as much product out of something as i should be able to

[mildmayfoxe]

there has to be a better way to get all the stuff out of the tube. any tube. they have to be able to make us get all the stuff out of the tube. i want to know ive gotten everything out of the tube

[motorsportbarbie13]

What's A Soulmate? - Part 1

In which something magical begins.

Warnings: none, just a bit of mutual pining. but this will be an angsty one i think. Pairing: Lando Norris X SainzSister!Reader Words: 2.6k

Master List

(a/n: new series alert! friends to lovers featuring lando norris. this one will be several parts spanning from 2019 to present day. I've tried my hardest to make sure the timeline/race results are accurate but I may have adjusted something to make it work a bit better for the story line. this is a total work of fiction, purely for entertainment.)

February 2019 

Woking, Surry, England

“This is not going to be a year of partying and laziness, Chiquita.” Carlos throws you a sidelong glance as he pulls his new McLaren into a parking spot early one February morning. “You are here with me to work, not spend your gap year playing.” 

“If I’m here to work, then you can’t me ‘little girl’ while we’re here, Carlos.” You bite back, hauling your tote bag from the floor of the low slung sports car. 

Carlos chuckles, throwing his arm around your shoulder as you both begin the walk into his new workplace: the McLaren Technology Center. “Fair enough, Chiquita.” 

Last spring, you had graduated from high school and had spent one miserable semester at the University of Madrid in the fall before dropping out just a few months ago. 

Carlos dodges the swat that you aim at his bicep, taking a few quick steps ahead of you as you approach the front door of the large white building. The sprawling MTC is an intimidating building and you knew that if you hadn’t been here with Carlos, there was no way you’d be able to find your way. 

After spending a few listless months bouncing from Carlos’ couch in Monaco back to your parent’s estate in Spain, they had laid down the law. You needed to figure out what you were going to do for the foreseeable future if going back to University wasn’t in the cards for you at the moment. They were fine with you not going back to uni right away, in fact, they encouraged you to take a gap year but they expected you to do something productive with your life while you figured out what you wanted to do. 

And that had been when your older brother had entered the chat. He had finished third year as a Formula 1 driver a few months ago and would be changing teams come the new season in March. In December, he had parted ways with his long time assistant, who wanted to spend more time with her new husband and less time traveling. Carlos and you had always been the closest of the four Sainz siblings despite the six year age gap (his 25 years to your 19) so it had been the most natural thing in the world to have you be his assistant and social media manager for the 2019 F1 season. 

Up until today, Carlos had been attending pre-season meetings and putting time in at McLaren’s sim setup by himself but you had arrived at his flat five minutes from the MTC yesterday, suitcases in hand, ready to get started as your brother’s assistant. It had been ages since the two of you had spent this much time together and while you were mostly excited to spend the year traveling and reconnecting with your big brother, there was a bit of trepidation and anxiety sitting in your chest as you walked through those sliding glass doors this morning. 

You were barely 19 after all, little real world experience and you knew absolutely no one in this entire country beyond your brother. All of your friends were attending university in other countries, far away from the world you now found yourself in. Yes, you were excited but you were also insanely nervous. 

Carlos leads you down a long hallway, lined with trophy cases filled with motorsport winners trophies on one side and sleek F1 cars on the other. It was an entire shrine to McLaren history, of which there was a lot, and you were in awe as you followed after your brother. “Where are we going?” You ask as he turns down another quiet hallway, convinced you’d be utterly lost if Carlos asked you to show him how to get back to the front doors. 

“I have a little office tucked away back here next to Lando’s, I wanted to get you set up with the laptop and sync my calendar so you could get yourself ready.” 

You nod, ears perking up at the mention of your brother’s new teammate, Lando Norris. You knew a little about him from a few causal Google searches. He was 19 like you and this was his rookie season in Formula 1. From everything you read, he was a karting prodigy that had been signed by McLaren for a while and had been tapped to drive opposite of Carlos this year. Just knowing that there would be someone around the offices and on the road that was your age made the tight anxiety that sat in your chest ease just a touch, even if you two didn’t end up being more than acquaintances this year. 

Carlos hadn’t been lying about his ‘little’ office. It was barely more than a broom closet if you were being honest. Just enough room for a desk, a pair of chairs, and a bookshelf, but there was a large window that faced south so at least there’d always be sun spilling into the small space making it feel a little airier. 

You pull your MacBook out of the Dior tote Carlos had gotten you for your birthday last year as Carlos chatters away about schedules, press duties, and what he expected out of you. You listened carefully, taking notes in a little spiral bound notebook as you waited for your laptop to boot up. 

“Are you in here talking to yourself again, Carlitos?” 

Your head snaps up at the sound of an unfamiliar voice and you find yourself smiling at the boy standing in the doorway. He’s a few inches taller than you, with short brown hair, and bright green eyes surrounded by thick black eyelashes. The deep tan of his skin surprises you a bit, considering its February in England and you hadn’t seen the sun since you left Spain yesterday. 

The boy’s face instantly sobers when he sees that your brother isn’t alone. “Oh, I’m sorry.” He blushes, hand coming to cup the back of his neck. “I didn’t realize you had a guest.” 

Carlos laughs, “This isn’t a guest. This is my sister, the one I was telling you about Friday. She’s going to be my assistant this year.” 

“Of course, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Lando.” 

You stand, crossing the small office in just 2 quick strides to shake Lando’s outstretched hand, “Nice to meet you too, Lando.” You say, polite smile playing on your lips. 

Lando turned around then, not wanting to intrude on the sibling time but also needing a moment to collect himself. He had known that you would be spending the season with your bother and that you two were around the same age but what he hadn’t prepared himself for was for how pretty you were. Your hair was even darker than your brother’s and it tumbled over your shoulders in layered waves that shined in a way that made Lando’s mouth go a little dry. Those dark eyes, round and doe eyed, threatened to swallow Lando whole and he’d barely spent more than a handful of seconds in your orbit.

He leaned against the door frame leading into his office, the sound of your laughter drifting through the walls. He had been used to the constant travel that was required of drivers of his caliber, having spent most of his teenage years on the road but all that time, he always had someone with him. His father, mother, manager. Someone that was ‘in charge’ of him and his schedule.

Now though? Now everything is different. He’s of age, a driver in the pinnacle league of his chosen sport, and totally alone. His friends are either jealous of his success or away at school and Lando often finds himself spending the entire weekend alone in his little flat down the road from the MTC. He was happy, of course, ecstatic that he had been given this chance by McLaren but the truth of the matter was, Lando Norris was quite lonely. 

As the image of your face flickered through his mind, Lando felt the tight grip of anxiety ease just a little bit. There was something so open about the way you had greeted him, something about how easy your laugh seemed to come, that told Lando that you were a good person, someone that would somehow be very important to him this year. 

“That is your teammates sister, mate.” Lando mutters to himself as he pushes off the door frame, making a beeline for the sim rig that was on the other side of the MTC, hoping that the time spent focused on racing would be enough to get your image out of his brain. 

April 2019 

Baku City Circuit 

“Lando, I swear to God if you’ve slept in again I’m ordering fish whenever I eat with you for the rest of my life.” 

Somewhere between Australia and China, you had morphed into not only Carlos’ personal assistant but also the assistant and babysitter of sorts to his stupid, idiotic, hilarious teammate. You adored the boy but most of the time he drove you to the brink of absolute madness. 

“I didn’t sleep in! My alarm didn’t go off!” Lando groans, breathless on the other end of the phone. 

“That is literally the same thing. I have one simple job here, Norris: get you and my brother to where they belong during race weekends and right now? You’re making me look like an amateur.” 

“I just got into the paddock, relax darling, no one is even remotely close to being fined by the FIA. I’ll be on the fan stage in five minutes, meet me there?” 

Pinching the bridge of your nose, you desperately try to will away the Landache, the term you’ve come up with when you get a headache caused by the Brit. “Fine.” You breathe. 

It’s your fourth race of the season and while Lando and your brother were seemingly hell bent on driving you to an early retirement, you had never been happier. Managing the busy schedule and life of now two Formula 1 drivers had come naturally to you. Engineers and mechanics in the garage were always a little in awe of your ability to keep the two drivers in line and where they needed to be when. The communications team at McLaren loved you because sometimes, you were the only one who would be able to get the Carlando, as the duo was coming to be known as, to behave. 

It was total chaos pretty much all of the time but you were thriving. You and Carlos were closer than ever, working tighter like a well oiled machine. But Lando and you? You two were the textbook definition of Partners In Crime. While you were the picture of professionalism on the track and during business hours, you were the other half of the chaos gremlin duo that terrorized half the grid. 

Right now though? Now the chaos gremlin was the perfect paddock princess that had to make sure her best friend and brother got to the right places on time. You round the corner of the back stage area, desperately searching for the mop of wavy brown hair covered by a papaya colored hat. 

“Lando!” You call, relieved when your dark eyes catch with a familiar pair light colored eyes. Today, they were an icy blue thanks to the bright desert sun of Baku. “I didn’t think I had to add ‘alarm’ to my list of race weekend duties.” You grouse, brushing at the dust on his team polo. 

Lando shakes his head, easy smile spreading across his face. “Am I late though?” 

You glare at him, “No.” You huff. 

“I would never make you look bad, pretty girl.” He winks and your stupid stomach does its traitorous little flip that it’s been doing lately. It’s disgusting. 

“Flattery will get you nowhere, Norris.” 

“And please welcome to the stage, McLaren drivers Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris!” The presenter calls from behind Lando’s shoulder, interrupting your sparring match. 

Lando gives you a wink before spinning around following your brother up the stairs of the stage. 

July, 2019

Germany 

“That was my fifth DNF this year.” The pain in Lando’s voice sends your stomach twisting. You follow behind him, hands wringing together, as he stalks down the hallway of the hotel in Germany. The race had finished up hours ago but Lando had just been released from media duties a bit ago. Carlos had been caught up in some post-race meetings so you had hitched a ride back to the hotel with Lando instead but now, as you followed his stiff frame stalk down the hall, you wondered if that had been a good idea. 

“Lando, it wasn’t your fault. Your car lost power, it’s not like you binned it into the wall or anything.” 

Reaching his room, Lando stops and pulls out the key before letting himself in. He leaves the door open though, indicating he wanted you to follow him. “I know that.” He groans, scrubbing his hands over his face. The hotel room is pretty normal where hotels are concerned, 2 queen sized beds dominate the space with a large flat screen tv on the opposite side. Lando flops down on the farthest bed, his eyes closed. 

“I’ve barely finished in the points yet this season. Haven’t had a sniffing chance at a podium. I feel like such a fucking fraud.” 

You had stopped just inside the door, wanting to give Lando some space as he had his tantrum but now, seeing how truly upset he is, you cross the carpeted floor and sit down next to your best friend. “Lan.” You coo, running your fingers through his hair, knowing how the scratches from your nails relaxes him. “Lan, it’s okay. You knew coming in, just like Carlos, that McLaren is in a bit of a rebuilding stage. This isn’t unexpected.” 

The problem with Lando is that he is utterly too hard on himself. You had clocked the fact quickly, by the time you had been landing in Australia for the first race of the season, you knew he needed to work on his confidence. 

“I know. I mean, I don’t know but I know that you know and I trust you enough to know that you know what you know is right.” 

Your head spins. “Pardon me?” 

Laughter spilling from your lips pops the bubble of tension in the room, Lando unable to keep the smile off his face either.

“You heard me.” He gripes, sitting up. “And I know -” He stops, glaring at you when you double over with laughter once again. “I know you understood me, you cheeky monkey.” 

“I’m sorry but I’m just so terrified by the fact that I did understand that whirlwind of a sentence and can’t decide how to process it.” You say, chest heaving from laughing so hard. “We’ve been spending too much time together.” 

Lando grabs the remote from your hand before turning on the movie you had both fallen asleep to last night before the race. “Are you going to be mean to me all night, or are we going to finish this movie?” 

You roll your eyes, but toe off your shoes before settling against the headboard of the bed, shoulder bumping with Lando’s as he joins you. “Pizza or sushi for dinner?” You ask, grinning because you already know the answer. 

“You’re an idiot.” 

“Love you too, Lan.” You counter, pulling out your phone to order some pizza. 

Tag List: @anilovessadbooks, @shelbyteller, @formulaal, @martygraciesversion381, @longhairkoo, @samantha-chicago, @stelena-klayley @dark-night-sky-99 @luckylampzonkland, @chlmtfilms , @inarabee @aykxz98 @forensicheart @cheer-bear-go-vroom @charlesgirl16

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[ducklingpia]

⋆˙⟡ Lads K-pop boy band HCs ⋆˙⟡

I couldn’t stop thinking about Lads boys in their K-pop ERA after seeing their chibi performance so here it is. I’m brain-rotting I need to get this out I'm sorry if it’s too silly 🧍🏻‍♂️

── .✦ Xavier

Position: Oldest hyung/ Main visual/ lead vocals

He will be the first member to get introduced

The internet WENT CRAZY after that

Has a nickname “Nation’s first love”

Everyone assumed he’s the maknae because of his baby face and cute image. He always looks so cute without trying.

Is actually the oldest

Usually has really calm personality. Doesn’t talk much but becomes the most chaotic duo when paired with Rafayel.

Zayne has to keep his eyes out for these two every time they are near each other.

Master of ‘aegyo’ can do the cringiest aegyo with absolutely no shame.

In terms of skills, he got a very soft- mellow singing voice. I think he will be the type to do well at what he was told to do. Can sing pretty high note. His dancing is also really good. He usually slays if he had enough practice. But can’t really do free style.

Mostly just being chill on stages. He doesn’t really give it his 100% if it’s not his part. Sometimes he will slack off a little bit when he’s in the back (Caleb is NOT happy about it)

Lowkey a musical genius, Got credits in 85% of the songs.

I think this is where his passion lies. He composes most of the songs for the group.

Xavier is the composer& producer while Rafayel& Sylus will be in charge of the lyrics.

The first one to go on collaboration.

Like one day some big name solo singer will release a song and it’s - Prod. Xavier ???? 😭

And that song will blow-up bc it’s catchy as hell?? 😭😭

Everyone were confused

All the members were confused

Also lowkey a social butterfly.

Has the most friends outside the group and also senior friends in the industry.

One time the group were on variety show with the most famous host and he was like “Yo Xavier, did you eat the pears my mom gave to you yet?” and all the members were like “Huh??”

Apparently he and Xavier went out for a drink 3 days ago??

“But you told me you were busy when I ask you to go drink with me that day?” – probably Sylus lol 💀

I think he will go on the production route after the group disbanded. Will become the most respectable producer in the industry and keep a low-profile. He will produces hits after hits for other singers.

── .✦ Zayne

Position: Leader/ Sub-Vocals / Lead Dancer

I think everyone can agreed that he will be the perfect leader of the group

Gives off Dad energy in the group despite being the middle child.

Got Street-casting due to his handsomeness. The staff had to run after him and insists he comes to audition the next day.

Went a bit viral in his trainee days while he’s outside the building. He secretly got photographed and everybody were wonder who’s this super handsome boy was.

So he already has fans even before debut.

I think he will have a pretty low-baritone voice when singing. His singing skills are decent but doesn’t really stand out when first debut. But he will improves significantly later down the line and takes Xavier’s lead vocal spot.

His dance moves are really sharp and clean but sometimes can be a little bit stiff. Doesn’t do much facial expression during performance.

He made it up with his INSANE face card tho

The Unofficial visual. His face card and auras always served.

I HC that him and Caleb will spend their time practice choreographs together a lot and became really close.

Taking good care of everyone, He’s the main cook in the dorm.

Manager’s favorite boy, Also all the staffs love him

The only member who can wakes Xavier up and get him out of bed on time (Xavier is terrified of him but will never admit it)

Has a soft spot for Rafayel. Constantly checking after him and make sure that man doesn’t injured himself doing something silly during promotions

Him and Rafayel ended up having the biggest shippers in the fandom

Half of the female idols have a crush on him.

The first one who got into acting career. He got the male-lead role in a classic romance drama plot and absolutely ATE. Became a new star phenomenon.

Constantly winning ‘The actor you wanted to introduce to your parent on this holiday’ poll

Has perfect chemistry with every co-stars he works with. The video clips about how he treats his female lead like a gentlemen always went viral.

Will have a successful acting career after the group disbanded.

── .✦ Rafayel

Position: Maknae / Main Vocals / lead dancer / Center / Ace of the group

I HC him to be that all- rounder member who can do everything and slayed it all.

A golden maknae. Naturally talented in everything he puts his mind to, Fast learner, only takes him 1-2 times to remember choreographs or lyrics. (kinda like JJK from BTS)

Really passionate member but get bored easily. He will learn new talent skill in every comeback and moves to the new one.

Extremely charming and charismatic while performing. No matter who your bias is, your eyes will always drip to him on stages

Has THE MOST angelic voice. Singing is like breathing for him. Can sing a really, really, really high note.

His voice is also really unique, you can recognize his voice immediately in every songs he’s in.

His dancing skills are excellent too, his movements are really elegant and fluid. Can do free style no problem but sometimes he will unintentionally tweaks the movement and became out of sync with the rest of the team

REFUSED to call Caleb ‘Hyung’

Always insist that Caleb is also the maknae too lol

These two are always bickering or play fighting in the background in every behind the scene videos

HATES doing aegyo but it’s his duty for the Maknae. Easily get embarrassed by it but always trying his best (All the fans think he’s very good at it)

He got the most Anti fans in the group

Like this man will get hate comments in every corners of the internet?

He’s not bothered by it in the slightest tho

And due to that reason he also got the most overprotective& loyal fan base

Most likely be the first member to have a solo career

Everyone thought he will comes out with dance- poppy album but he releases a full on slow-indie sounds???

Surprisingly the album is so chill and easy to listen to plus his insane vocals the album ended up topping no.1 on several charts

I think he will continued his solo career after disbanded and appears as a mentor/ judge in several survival shows.

He will becomes a really good mentor, although he can be a bit scary and cut- throat in his comment sometimes.

── .✦ Sylus

Position: Main Rapper

The second oldest after Xavier, but everyone thought he’s the oldest at first

Kinda broke the internet when he get introduced too.

Has that uncle energy in the group. Always in the background supporting the maknae-line when they’re about to get into trouble.

Has the most male fans

Also has the most Solo stans

Doesn’t do much in the performance. Both his singing and dancing skills are below other members but ALWAYS serves face.

Also HIS VOICE.

Has the opening line in the song when he would say some words and everyone will be like ‘oh my god’ (it’s kinda like that felix guy from Straykids)

70% of his rapping skills came from his voice. He does improves a lot overtime tho

Start writing his own verses in the song due to Xavier encouragement and developed a song-writing talent.

Opposite from Zayne, Half of the male idols have a crush on him.

Surprisingly really good at variety shows.

Every time the group were on red carpet event. He will be in the headline on every reports the next day bc of his insane face card.

Win that “most handsome man in the world” poll every years

Him and Rafayel are the English speakers of the group when promote overseas

Has the BIGGEST international fan base. Goes viral every time the group went overseas

He will dip his toes into acting career a little. Mostly playing the 2nd male-lead or the villain.

One time he play the villain in this movie, they went on promotional activities and everybody is shipping the female- lead with him instead of the male lead?? 💀

He just has this chemistry & sexual tension with everything including the wall pls 👏🏻

The first member who got a brand-deal with this big fashion house, also ended up walking the runway (I’m thinking Prada)

Randomly dropped his solo mixed-tape one day and the fandom went WILD

I think his mix-tape will not be as commercially successful as other members bc it’s not the easiest to listen to, but it will later became a cult classic and got critically acclaimed.  

── .✦ Caleb

Position: Main Dancer/ Sub vocals

I HC that this man is born to be a dancer

Probably learned how to dance since like 4

Staged kid. Perform on stage since he can remembered.

Got discovered by the casting staff when he performs at some random festival.

Has the least lines first debut but always got the solo break dance or center part in the performance

Joined the group really young, probably at the same time as Rafayel

He was the smallest in the group at the time up until like 15

Then on one summer when he turns 16 he went from 5’7 to like 6 fts ??? 😭

Rafayel is pissed

He continued to grow and became the tallest member … yeah, the giant maknae

Doesn’t really has much fans like other members when first debut.

But on the 2nd comeback, he has a bit of glow-up and the concept fits him SO WELL. Everybody agreed he owned that era. they gains a lot of new fans from that comeback bc of him.

Has A LOT of Noo-na fans

He used to follow Zayne around everywhere when he was younger. So Zayne still sees him as that lil brother despite him being so big now.

Became insufferable when playing games especially when paired with Rafayel, These 2 get competitive af.

Get along well with every members but prefer to hang around either Zayne or Xavier the most.

Pretty awkward with Sylus at first, but they became gym buddies as times went on

Easy- going boy most of the time but became really scary when practicing. He will catches even the most subtle slacking from the members through the wall mirror.

Will got quiet and silently staring at that member with the most cold-heart eyes.

I think he will developed a passion for teaching and coaching, probably open his own dance studio and work behind the scenes like Xavier after disbanded

That’s all I have babygirls 🫦 . Please give me your own Headcanons if you have any 🙏 waiting for somebody to brain rot together!! 👀

[srjlvr]

WHAT’s IN MY BAG ?!

what would ENHA members put in their bag that reminds them of you.

idol-ot7!enha x nonidol-fem!reader | genre fluff | warnings none (lmk if i missed smth) | not proofread ! | ✎ ᝰ (‘a note from jo’) . don’t even ask me how i thought about it bc i honestly dont know

희승 <> heeseung

he’d probably go around with your beauty products like hand creams and such.

it’s the ones you always use and even asked heeseung to buy them for you a few times when you ran out of it.

you sometimes happen to forget them when you two are going out—no worries!! heeseung is always here to rescue.

“what’s your favorite thing you keep in your bag?” the interviewer asks. heeseung looks through his bag and smiles when he sees something that reminds him of you, he takes it out and chuckles, “y/n always uses them, i thought it’d be good if i keep them since she always forgets them when we go out”

제이 <> jay

he’d definitely carry your perfume in his bag. he bought it to you once as a gift and ever since then it became your favorite perfume ever.

sometimes when you’re far from each other, he’d put on your perfume he carries around just because he misses you.

always buys extras and gives them to you but leaves one in his bag just incase he rans out of it and isn’t able to buy more at the moment.

“what’s the most expensive thing in your bag?” the interviewer asks, clearly making them to show off. jay immediately takes out your perfume and grins, “i bought it for y/n as a gift, but i didn’t expect her to like it as much as she does now, so i buy it more often now and it’s somehow the most expensive one”

“i use it a lot, i always think about y/n when i do” he smiles and nods, the members all sniffing him and giggling.

제이크 <> jake

before the two of you got together, you made him a heart shaped paper with a cute drawing on it.

he’d definitely carry that around, even if it looks old and wrinkled, he loves it.

always shows it to people since he adores it so much and wants to show off about how amazing you are.

“what’s the thing you’d never agree to give away?” the interviewer asks. jake, without a doubt takes out the heart shaped old and wrinkled paper with a big smile on his face, “y/n made it for me before we started dating, at that moment i knew i had to do everything to make her mine”

성훈 <> sunghoon

sunghoon loves taking pictures. he especially likes taking polaroid pictures with you, and of you alone.

he’d go around with a little album of your polaroids together, there’s nothing he loves more than looking through those pictures whenever you two are far away from each other.

would take it ANYWHERE he goes, and always adds new polaroids when he gets the time to take new pictures.

“what’s one thing you’d never get rid off?” the interviewer asks. sunghoon takes out the little album and smiles as he shows a few pictures of the two of you together, “it’s me and y/n in those pictures, i have this album for over a year and we’re always taking new pictures, i always look at them whenever i miss her”

the poor boy blushes and covers his face, the rest are busy pouting, “it’s the fact that he doesn’t even have pictures with us in his bag that saddens us”

선우 <> sunoo

gahhh i feel like he’d definitely carry around hair products in his bag—such as hairpins and hair ties.

he loves loves LOVES styling your hair, and always has an emergency hairpins and hair ties just incase.

your hairpin broke? sunoo’s here to fix it for you. your hair tie is not holding enough? sunoo’s. here. to. fix. that.

“what’s a thing you rarely use but still have it?” the interviewer asks. sunoo knows the answer right away and takes out the hairpins and hair ties with a giggle, “i use it on y/n mostly since i can’t really style my hair with these, but she needs them a lot so i carry it around”

정원 <> jungwon

the amount of wireless earbuds that you lost is insane. jungwon, being the responsible he is—still uses his first earbuds ever.

when you bought a new pair, jungwon decided to buy an extra one. he puts it in his bag and carries it around in case you’d come up to him and tell him you lost it again.

lost a pair again? jungwon pulls out the extra he bought you last time, and would probably buy an extra one again since he can’t trust you on this one. would he mind? no, not at all.

“what’s a thing you actually have twice of it?” the interviewer asks. jungwon laughs as soon as he hears the question, taking out the earbuds he bought recently, “i have my own earbuds, and these one are extra for y/n, she keeps loosing her earbuds all the time so i keep extras in my bag for her”

“it’s quite expensive isn’t it?” the interviewer asks and jungwon nods, “but i don’t mind since it always reminds me of her”

니키 <> ni-ki

both ni-ki and you LOVE sunglasses. you even bought matching ones once! ni-ki would probably carry one of your favorite sunglasses in his bag.

you have your own that you love and usually wear, but the one ni-ki carries is your most expensive and favorite one.

as much as he loves his own sunglasses, he’d wear yours whenever he misses you a lot, that way he can feel your embrace next to him, even if you’re not physically by his side.

“what’s your favorite accessory in your bag?” the interviewer asks. ni-ki smiles and slowly takes out your sunglasses, “it actually belongs to y/n, but i took it. we both love sunglasses and we bought matching ones, but since these are her favorites i carry them around and wear them all the time”

••• copyright © srjlvr all rights are reserved.

[b-skarsgard]

Bill Skarsgård on Remaking Nosferatu and the Pressure of “F--king With a Masterpiece”

The actor on Pennywise, Count Orlok, and the lure of monstrous characters.

(for those who weren’t able to read the article due to a paywall the full interview is now under the cut)

“I’ve always been a very happy monster.” So said Boris Karloff in 1962, looking back at three decades of creatures, ghouls, and killers that defined so much of his life onscreen. Bill Skarsgård hasn’t been at it nearly as long, but his tendency to play supernatural and terrifying figures suggests that, like his fiendish predecessor, he’s made peace with monstrosity.

The blockbusters It and It: Chapter 2 made him a horror icon as Pennywise the Dancing Clown, carrying on a long tradition in his Swedish acting family—which includes his father, Stellan, and older brothers Alexander and Gustaf—of playing haunting roles in hair-raising films. Since Pennywise, Bill has specialized in sinister, scene-stealing parts, from a high-society sociopath in John Wick: Chapter 4 to his recent turn as the otherworldly avenger of this year’s reboot of The Crow. His latest turn finds him playing the vampiric title character in Nosferatu, from The Witch and The Lighthouse filmmaker Robert Eggers, in a collaboration that brings an ominous new approach to the bat-faced antagonist of the 1922 silent film.

For Vanity Fair’s 2025 Hollywood Issue, he talked about touching the void and more.

Vanity Fair: We spoke years ago when you were about to start filming It, and you talked about the challenges of inhabiting an inhuman monster.

Bill Skarsgård: That was the first time—and wouldn’t be the last time—that I was taking on this kind of iconic character that has been done before so well, and that people love and cherish. The whole journey of that was so weird. If I spoke to you after the production, I would’ve been much more confident that we had something that was very special, but in the process of it, I was just like, Why did he cast me? I can’t do this.

We did speak again afterward. You talked about going home to your parents’ house after you finished shooting and being plagued by dreams about the character.

Those dreams were so strange. Either I was confronting Pennywise and I was upset with him, yelling at him—or I was Pennywise, but I was walking around in the streets that I grew up on, and I’m like, No, no. I shouldn’t be out here in public walking around like this. This is not how it’s supposed to be done. It was this weird thing where I was trying to separate myself from this thing, literally back in the place that I grew up in, in the same apartment that I grew up in.

Count Orlok in Nosferatu also emerges from a deep, dark place. What was it like for you to take that particular emotional ice bath?

Count Orlok was very different than Pennywise in a lot of ways. Orlok was even further away from who I am than Pennywise was, in the sense that my voice, posture, age, the look of it, it was just so far out there. That became the challenge. Before putting on the prosthetics, we explored so many weird things and looked into butoh, this sort of Japanese corpse dancing. We explored so many trippy things.

Did you say “corpse dancing”?

Yeah, butoh is this Japanese corpse dance. It’s all these, kind of, mummified movement patterns. It’s spectacular. It brought this much more precise and much more rigid and slow movement. Basically the outfit and the prosthetics helped so much. The voice was what I worked the hardest on. I worked with an opera singer—she tried to get it as low as possible. My brother Gustaf came to set when we were shooting. He’s sitting there and he gets the headphones on and he hears [deep growling sounds] and is like, “What the fuck is going on?” It must have seemed very insane.

Since you come from an acting family, I wondered what role your dad and your brothers play in your decision-making process or in your professional life.

I don’t talk to them in the sense of like, “Hey, do you think I should do this thing or that thing?” Of course, subconsciously, they’re such a big part of my life. It’s hard to quantify how much effect they’ve had in terms of my taste or in terms of performances. It’s great to have their support, more so in life in general than acting itself. It’s nice to be able to talk to your family, just going, like, “Oh, this shoot was a nightmare because of this and this and this.” And they’re like, “Oh yeah, totally. Tell me about it.” The job, the profession of acting, can feel kind of lonely sometimes. It just feels nice to have so many people, close people, around you that truly know what it’s like.

Especially after Nosferatu, people are going to look at your work and see a lot of monsters and a lot of dark figures. Why do you think you’ve been drawn to these characters?

I think those characters are drawn to me as much as I’m drawn to them. It’s a mutual kind of attraction. The fact that they’re drawn towards me is a bunch of different reasons, everything from the way you look, you have a sensibility, there’s a darkness about you, or there’s an intensity.

And it’s something you enjoy too?

Even going back to some of the earlier stuff I did in Sweden, transformation has always been very appealing to me—and playing characters that are very different than me. I played a character that was autistic when I was 19, and I loved it. I had so much joy in it. He’s not a dark character, he’s a very sweet character. But you study, and you change your voice. With Pennywise, that became my ultimate transformation. I just really enjoyed it. Now with Orlok, I really enjoy transforming as much as I humanly can. I think that’s very exciting.

Do you feel a curiosity about the more dangerous side of human nature?

The darker characters also tend to be more complex. More mental gymnastics are needed. Again, with Orlok, it’s like, Okay, if it’s an ancient sorcerer that speaks from a different realm and possesses all of this power and knowledge, what makes power and knowledge ultimately corrupt a soul as opposed to creating a messiah?

Do you ever worry about getting typecast?

I definitely don’t want to exclusively play those kind of roles, but I’ve never seen the appeal of the classic star, a movie star. The difference between a movie star and an actor is that a movie star plays himself in every part, in a way. Whereas as an actor transforms. There are people that play themselves, and they’re brilliant every single time, but it’s the same thing and they have that shtick. For me, I just don’t think that I’m that charismatic or interesting, so I can’t just lean on that. I need to transform as far away from me as possible.

Do you feel a kinship with actors from the past, like, say, Lon Chaney or Boris Karloff, who played dark beings and often transformed their regular appearances?

It’s a great question. Yeah, I do. But that being said, it was never my particular goal to be the “creature actor,” if you will. There are so many [actors] I draw inspiration from. A lot of other actors that are not known for their intense transformations are some of my favorites as well. I haven’t really studied the greats of prosthetics or creature performances in that way. I’ve watched a lot of it, but I don’t watch performances for inspiration per se, because there’s always this thing of emulation that I don’t want to go down. For Orlok, predatory animals felt like a cleaner source of inspiration.

You mentioned earlier that, several times now, you’ve played a character that is well-known from a previous iteration, but you did it in a new and different way. Did you feel that again with Nosferatu?

Orlok is also Dracula. To me, in terms of iconic horror characters, the number one is Dracula/Nosferatu. It’s the most seminal work of literature in gothic horror for sure. I think it’s been adapted more than probably any other book. This story is so ingrained in our subconscious that it was very daunting to step into it. I was a huge fan of [Robert] Eggers before. He and I would have these things we’re like, “What are we doing? Why are we doing Nosferatu? Are we taking on something too big here?” We felt that kind of pressure of fucking with a masterpiece. But the movie deserves its place as a new interpretation.

What’s on the horizon for you next?

I’ve always cherished the idea of being as versatile as I possibly can. I also want to do a kitchen-sink drama, I want to do a dark, fucked-up comedy. I want to make those choices or advocate for those choices. You have to fight against being typecast or put into a box. The more you fight against it, the bigger the box tends to get.

[jinkiezzsstuff]

Rivalry To Romance

velvette x f!reader

Summary: You worked in cosmetics at the Vee tower alongside Velvette, unfortunately you’ve never gotten along. You found her obnoxious and she found you to be a pest. However you struggle with yourself on whether you truly hate her or just can’t accept your true emotions.

Warnings: Fem reader, reader throws things again so does velvette, valentinos presence yuck, suggestive but nothing serious. No mention of readers hairtype, bodytype or skin colour, shorter than i originally wanted womp but I think that’s it but lmk

Word count: 2.5k

we need more velvette i love her so much and there’s like no info on her character or back story at least that i could find woomp womp im trying clear up what i have drafted but sheesh im so picky and a perfectionist about it i wish i was a writing machine that it could come directly out of my brain like i see it y’know?

“I fucking hate her!” You screeched tossing make up across the room at your assistant. “Please, calm down, my head hurts.” Angel whined from your couch as you paced around him, your assistant booking it after the second thing, that being a vase, was thrown.

“I can't, she's intolerable, seriously. A brat.” You grit plopping down onto the cushion beside him. The two of you were in the Vee tower, you being what Velvette would call ‘the shadow of the vees’, you got in on the triangle based on accessibility; for the Vees that is. You were a cosmetic creator and produced varying products for demons of all kinds, not only was it beneficial for Valentino's pornstars but Velvette’s models.

When you were a self employed business it was still very lucrative, and getting around quickly. Gaining the opportunities to work with overlords, sinners you never expected as well as selling and gaining quicker than you could’ve imagined. It wasn’t long until Velvette had caught onto the rage, and that’s how you ended up in the tower working alongside her.

It was terrible from the start; you weren’t some meek little demon, yet Velvette treated you like you were some Imp! You hated her bratty, disrespectful loud mouth and you never failed to let her know.

BIting your nails down too low without realizing, Angel grabbed your hand successfully stopping you, and leaned forward. “Hey listen I know how it is to have a sucky boss. Heh, literally.” Angel snickered to himself while you muttered that she wasn’t your boss. “But if i’m being honest, it sounds like sexual frustration,” He twiddled his fingers at you while a sly smile pulled at his lips.

You gaped at him, head falling forward in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me, hah, no fucking way dude!” You exclaimed, leaning back, you sighed frustrated at the conversation. “Oh shit, gotta go toots, boss is calling. Thanks for letting me up, see ya later.”

You waved by to Angel watching him go. Sitting with your elbows on your knees you stared off into space. Sure you suppose you admired her, sure, she was pretty, occasionally sure you’d check her out admiring how the clothes fit her, but that was purely platonic! Velv was a fashion designer, of course she knows how to accentuate her natural beauty.

And perhaps there were times when you couldn’t quite decide what you felt for her questioning your intentions second guessing your actions. Sometimes as you gazed at her while she worked, you wanted to ease her up a little, relax her from the stress whether that be from praise, a gentle rub or kiss, or something a little more promiscuous; you simply wanted to be her relief.

Other times you wanted to fight her and bitch her out, and then fuck her? You actually didn’t know and it drove you insane, but Angel was the first to spot the way you acted, overly aggressive.

You groaned, frustration emitted from you very clearly as you tugged at your hair. Standing you walk quickly toward Velvette’s and yours’ work sections on the tower's mid floor. Velvette stood at a table when you walked in, she only barely turned her head to you, too busy studying fabrics and colours.

“What’s the pretentious brat got cooking today?” You say walking up beside her looking down at the table. Rolling her eyes she turned to you hand on her hip. “Can you piss off? I’ve got shit to do, real work, not lazing around with a whore.”

Rolling your eyes right back at her, you looked down to the table. “Angels no more of a whore than that filthy moth.” You muttered fingering the fabrics, eyes dancing around the blueprints for an outfit.

“What’re these for?” You ask, meeting her gaze, a bored look plagued her face, but she loosened up slightly at the mention of her work. “These are the new blueprints for our outfits for the upcoming broadcast Vox has planned. He wants to market tech, pornos, clothing and your cosmetics so everything’s gotta be right.”

Velvette looked down harshly at the things laid out in front of her, you could see the gears working in her head as her eyes flicked around the different blueprints, fabrics and rough drafts. You hummed, flicking through a particular set of blueprints that caught your eye. “I’m sure you’ll do great hun, always do.” You muttered absentmindedly, barely focusing on the praise that came from your lips.

Velvette’s head jerked back a bit, eyes watching you. She wasn’t expecting such softly said words to come from you so suddenly, but she definitely didn’t mind it. “Do you want something specific?” Looking toward her you shrugged, trying to ignore the yearning you had to be nearer.

“Just a dress, suppose the only request I have is that I look the part.” You didn’t mean for it to come off sad however, it did, and Velvette felt the rare sting of guilt ping past her heart. She was in fact the one who fought with you the most on who was worthy in the tower, but she always felt you were trying to replace her as “the guru”.

The fight you had earlier was present in your mind as you stood there, it was dumb another thing that sent you spiralling. You stomped off and straight into Angel, thank goodness for that because his presence calmed you surprisingly. The fight was about time slots with models, mainly because one model had been held up by Velvette because she was being a snooty princess again about what the model wore, meanwhile time was ticking on how much time you had to do said model's makeup.

Which ended up spiralling into a screaming cat fight, where you tossed things at her and she tossed them back slinging a slew of colour insults at you as she did so. Normally you and Velvette never apologised but as you stood there beside her looking over stuff you felt as though the moment of peace was close enough to an apology.

“Do you really wanna go to this?” You asked breathing in deeply, catching hints of her perfume that left a warm familiar feeling in your chest. “Hm not really, but we have to.” Picking up navy blue colours, she stacked the square fabrics together.

Swallowing you ask; “What’s your favourite colour?” Stunned Velvettes hands stalled their actions, her eyes meeting yours. You were waiting looking neutrally at her, you simply wanted to know. It was easy to see Voxs was arrays of blues, Val’s pink and red, you fancied emerald and sea greens, and her.. you didn’t know, hot pink?

“I fancy whites, purples, plums…” Trailing off finger to her mouth in thought, she nodded one sternly. “White and plum.” You smile ever so slightly it was a decent conversation for sure. But it definitely didn’t help you inner fight about your feelings for her.

~

Today was the day of the broadcast, the lot of you ventured to Valentinos floor of the tower, doing it up for a big show. There were tons of tables set up, lighting, cameras; the porn stars were done up thanks to you and Velv, they sat on a plush couch their section was going to be an ‘interview with the stars’ no doubt being entirely fake lies. Angel was a part of the cast, much to your dismay, you’d rather him be far from Valentino, but that wasn’t possible. Another area was new improved tech, with tech nerds ready to present and push the new models Voxtech had made.

Off to the back was Velvette’s section where various manikins stood cladded in Velvette’s best work, there were also models present around waiting to pose with the manikins. Your area felt blander than the rest, your cosmetics sat on varying different platforms that lifted them aesthetically, and you had a few head models with you, cameras focused in on only their eyes and lips for the occasional shot. In the middle of the room was where you, Velvette, Vox and Valentino would be.

The lot of you were going to be standing tall with wide smiles, the only one who was set to talk was Vox, the rest of you were just their to claim name to your things. Velvette was running around taking Sinstagram stories and pictures of everything around, building anticipation and hype for everything to come.

You watched her bounce around every now and again yelling at a worker or model about their place here, before getting back to puttering around. She wore a white dress with hearts at the bottom, and her hair was done up in a classic poof instead of her straightened pigtails. “Admiring the goods?” Angel asks, scaring the shit out of you, gasping you grabbed your chest in shock. “Fuck Angel don’t do that to me, and ye- wait what?”

Angel cackled an accusatory finger pointed to you. “Oh cmon! Even Val knows you’re into her, and that’s him.” You stared in disbelief before shaking your head no rapidly. “How would he even know? We barely spend time near each other, I hate him more than Velv.”

Angel scoffed, crossing two sets of his arms he leant against the wall next to him. “Please Velvette’s always ranting about how annoying you are over the phone, telling Val when Vox is probably too sicka her to hear it! Then she goes off saying how you can’t be nice and how you always make it a mission to come and pester er’ and Val said it’s because you wanted to fuck her!” Angel exclaimed slyly leaning forward into you and than backward away.

“That’s not true, we just can’t get along.” Like the devil heard your words, Velvette skipped up to you three, pulling the two of you into her. “Alright! The bitches! That’s more like it!” Velvette shouted, snapping a picture, Angel defaulted to his actor ways posing lustfully at the camera, meanwhile you just smiled unbelievably at Velvette. Once the picture was taken she wasted no time stepping back and sending off the post with a series of different hashtags.

“You look happy today?” You ask more than say watching Velvette smile around the room. “Of course people have stayed quiet, and not been a dickhead all day. Not to mention Vox and Val aren’t in moods.” You nodded in agreement, eyes casting briefly over to the TV who walked around checking the different cameras while Val smoked in the back.

Angel not so subtly snuck off giving your back a shove closer towards Velvette. Even if you could admit to yourself you felt more than platonic emotions for her, it would be extremely hard to accept it or attempt to make a move when you didn’t even know her sexuality.

She’d never seemed interested in Vox or Valentino, but you’ve not seen her eyeing women either. It made you more uncomfortable to ponder the future of accepting your feelings when you could just be cruel and ignore them. “What’s up with you spacey?” Velvette suddenly asked her phone off facing toward the floor.

You anxiously fiddled with your short dress wondering if now would be a good time to start something. “Nothing Velvette, just nerves i guess.” Velvette rolled her eyes, shaking her head disapprovingly. “You’ll be fine, always are anyways. We don’t do shit, it’s all Vox.��

Fair enough. Although that’s true it didn’t really matter considering it wasn’t what was really bothering you. “Are you straight?” You blurt suddenly, hand jerking upward to cover your mouth. Velvette’s eyebrow raised a ‘huh’ falling from her lips.

With a decision in mind, you couldn’t deny it, knowing that even Val saw something you know how you can’t hide it. The daydreams you have of her warm skin next to yours in the morning, the friendship you wish you had, the desire to have her lipstick smeared against your lips, wanting to post cheesy couple pictures together all over Sinstagram.

“Uhh, yeah, are you straight because I haven’t ever seen you around anybody, like, ahem, that.” You stutter out staring at her trying to gauge every little emotion on her face. “Suppose I could be considered, but i fuck who i want no matter the package.” She finally replied, returning to herself after spacing out, looking calmer than you.

“Would ya fuck me?” Scratching the back of your neck as her eyes scanned your face rapidly, trying to read you, trying to tell if you were serious. “Yeah, if you weren’t such a bitch.” You hum watching her once more, this time she looked a little meeker, shifting from foot to foot, her gaze casted downward.

“And what about love? Y’know not just wanting to have a hook up?” You asked a little apprehension evident in your voice, you craned your neck back trying to distance yourself subconsciously.

Softly you felt Velvettes gentle hand on your shoulder, focusing all your attention on her, you watched as her face turned out to the side, only looking at you through her peripheral. Her other hand crawled up to your other shoulder, before drifting softly to your neck, sending shivers down your spine and straight to your toes.

Velvette was still at fully extended arms length, so you stepped forward, cupping her cheeks gently like she was made of the fragilest material. Now eye to eye the two of you simply stared waiting, while invading eachothers space. Cautiously you leaned forward thankfully being her height, you hand your eyes closed already hoping she’d get the message, and either pull away running or indulge.

You were more than shocked to feel her lipstick covered lips meet with yours, soft yet eager. You kissed her back slowly, trying to convey the emotions and feelings you felt without speaking, the apology you wanted to say but didn’t know how.

Pulling you closer by the neck, you fell into her slightly, wrapping your arms around her like she was your world, fully absorbed in the passionate kiss you were sharing. Just as the kiss turned slightly heated, tongues introducing and slipping past the barrier of eachothers mouth Vox screamed. “You’ve got Velvettes makeup on your face, FUCK, why?! Why?! Five minutes before we’re live!” Jumping apart the two of you looked toward Vox who was already glitching out, meanwhile Val just stood smuggly sucking his pipe.

“Don’t worry he’s just mad that he now owes me one hundred dollars, losers weepers,” Val breathed his smoke wafting around the TV’s head. Velvette threw the bird at Vox before turning to you pulling out a handkerchief. “Weren’t you calling someone geriatric, now you’re pulling out handkerchiefs?” You teased, her hand coming up to wipe her black lipstick that stained your face.

“Oh piss off, or we’re both fired,” She scolded but there was no malice in her words like before making your heart flutter. “So how long before this gets out, our little before the air make out sesh?” You inquire as she handed the cloth to you, you wiping her smeared lipstick just as she did for you. “Based on the vibrations from my phone, not long.”

[tokiwarcube]

How They Celebrate Your Birthday

All the boys + Charles for this one!

Charles Foster Offdensen

Taking care of the boys is a full-time task, but that doesn’t mean he misses your birthday — not by a long shot. But be careful not to let your birth date slip — the guys would be all too happy to use it as an excuse to take all seven of you out to some insane party. Or you know, do, if that’s your style. A birthday is an excuse to celebrate, and there’s very little they won’t do to see Charles get sloshed — with his partner, nonetheless.

Otherwise, he really makes you feel loved throughout the day. Little notes in the morning, littered around the house — on the nightstand, the bathroom counter, by your morning mug. Among those are a request to let him know when you wake, so he can order in for you. He wishes he could stay for breakfast, truly, but he’s not going to wake you up at 4:00am on your birthday. God knows you work hard enough as is.

He checks in throughout the day, seemingly just a little more eager than usual to talk with you, and hear your voice. Call him sentimental, but he really wishes he could spend the full day with you. Alas, work calls.

Another note — Check under the sofa, be ready by 6:00. I love you, happy birthday.

He really shines when he comes home, though. A hand on the small of your back, adjusting the nonexistent imperfections in the perfectly-tailored outfit he had left for you, purely for the sake of touching, of holding. And from there, the night is yours. Dinner, dancing, a show… it’s all so cliche on paper, but he really makes you feel loved. A classical romance. He makes the cliche seem new, seem real, seem genuine.

Charles is a very, very attentive man, so it’s really no surprise when he brings out your real gift at the end of the night, and it just so happens to be the perfect thing. Although surprisingly, it’s not something you’ve ever asked for. Perhaps never even thought of, or seen — and yet, it’s so clearly tailored to your tastes. He’s good like that.

As the two of you are falling asleep towards the end of the night, he can’t help but check in — Did you have a good time tonight? As though he didn’t serve you your very own Hallmark moment. Again, he’s sweet like that.

Nathan Explosion

You know, for a man, who hates the media, he is pretty adamant on having a big party for you. Like yeah, he hates the publicity, but it’s you. And you deserve the darkest, most brutal birthday party of them all.

He knows you very well, don’t get me wrong, but he’s liable to overthink things a little. He could benefit a bit from some hints as to what exactly you’d like to do for your birthday… he’d like to avoid another Rockzo incident, if possible. But even if you do drop a few hints, he likes to surprise you with the results. You’ll have a lot of fun, but you might have a little heart attack first. He makes up for it, though.

Most of the heartfelt things are done earlier in the day, and the real party is reserved for night time. The boys already give him enough shit for how whipped he is for you, so a live performance is basically out of the question (lest the two of you be subjected to a healthy amount of ribbing from your peers), but that’s not to say he doesn’t attempt something similar. Instead, he writes, and has everyone record their parts individually — never quite saying what it’s for — and compiles it himself, solo. It’s not the usual production quality, but that’s not what you’re looking for — it’s sweet. Steeped in ichor and shadow, sure, but sweet nonetheless.

He’s usually pretty insatiable with PDA, and that doubles when drunk. But when drunk, on your birthday? You have to pry him off with a crowbar. He usually doesn’t talk actively about you in front of the cameras — God knows the media already knows way too much about the two of you — but tonight, he can’t seem to stop talking about how fucking awesome you are, and how it’s your birthday, and—

You’ll have a good time teasing him about it in the morning, once the hangover dulls.

Pickles the Drummer

Just when you think he’s partied as hard as he can, he finds a way to outdo himself. And your birthday is quite the opportunity, no?

Listen, if you want to have a nice, quiet day in, he’s happy to oblige. It’s your birthday, and he’s damn determined to make it the best one yet. And if that’s your version of a good time, he’s ready to get some takeout from that random place on the corner that you like — even though there’s a perfectly good Michelin 5-star restaurant in their house — and just hang out. Yes, really.

But if you want to get fucked up? Babe, we’re partying around the world. Fuck it, let’s go for a week! Best birthday ever, right? Whatever you say, goes.

It’s not all drugs, mind you — he’s got other things planned, too. The schedule just allows for a bit of inebriation in-between… or during. Listen, if you can deal with crowds while high, it’s real fun to go to a show or two. Everything is just so vibrant, so fluid — whether you’re up front with wide eyes or twirling in the back, Pickles makes it a very, very fun experience. And as much as he would like to get trashed beyond belief, the high tolerance does come in rather handy in moments like these — he’s happy to babysit you a bit, if it makes you feel more secure.

Surprising noone, he is a very, very good gift giver. After everything is said and done, and you’re both blinking awake the next day, that’s when he shuffles around to find the gift he set aside. He wanted to make sure it didn’t get lost in the haze, after all. Despite everything, he’s a fantastic listener, and somehow, he always seems to find that one special thing you’ve been looking for.

Skwisgaar Skwigelf

Complete royalty treatment — so long as he’s there (or, perhaps more aptly, the Klokateers are), you won’t be lifting a finger. He’s such a diva about it — you thought he was bad when it came to him, but with you? Beyond words. Consequently, this also means that everybody within a 50mi radius will know that its your birthday. He’s very embarrassing about it too, with how he takes the chance to coo about it whenever he gets the chance. Very saccharine — borderline patronizing, if you didn’t know him so well to know its the opposite — with an undertone of something you just can’t place. Although despite the embarrassment, you can’t lie — it does make your heart flutter just a little bit. You can’t tell if he’s getting off on it, or if he’s just excited to have a day where you have to let yourself be pampered.

He is very adamant about getting you an actual gift — not just sex, surprising everyone — and he’s really rather thoughtful about it. He listens a bit more aptly than usual in the months leading up to your birthday, and does his best to actually keep it a secret… with varying success. But it’s the thought that counts. When morning comes, he’s already at the foot of your shared bed, gift in hand. He doesn’t like extracting himself from your hold in the morning, but today, he’ll make an exception. Hard not to, when you tiredly paw at the gift — he places a quick kiss to your forehead before the gift is fully unwrapped, just out of softness.

He’s generally up for anything you want to do, and with the seemingly unlimited funds that come with stardom, nothing really bars you from fucking around on the daily… but now, he’s especially game for whatever you want to do today. If there’s anything you’ve been begging to drag him to do, now’s the time — he’ll do it for you, with only minor complaints.

To that end, while he does have the Klokateers wait on you hand and foot, you’re in charge of where the day goes. It’s your big day after all.

But yes, the birthday sex is phenomenal. That’s a given.

Toki Wartooth

Every birthday Toki’s had since joining Dethklok has been nothing if not extravagant — he makes it a point to live every day like it’s his last day on Earth, but birthdays? Birthdays go above and beyond — no holds barred. So with his partner, the love of his life? You may as well be royalty.

Although, in typical style, Toki strikes a perfect balance between heartfelt and lavish. He’ll buy you the world if you only ask — or perhaps, even if you don’t — but interspersed are his own, handmade gifts. This year he planned a worldwide adventure, but he also slotted in your favorite hole-in-the-wall restaurants into his scheduling. His planning abilities are lackluster for the average event, but he really puts his all into it for birthdays. (Although if you walk into Charles’ office at just the right time, you do gain a little bit of insight into who did the actual “organizing” part. Toki has the ideas, and Charles organizes it into something that won’t give you whiplash.)

He’s honestly so excited for your birthday, you’d think it was his own. He lets you wake up on your own, despite his own eagerness — but he can’t help placing a kiss to your lips as you blink the sleep from your eyes. Light, still floating on the ghost of your dreams, it’s a very sweet moment. That is, until he’s tugging you upwards to go on your adventures for the day.

One tradition he is very insistent on, is birthday cake. Very adamant about having a candle for every year of life — the number candles do not count — and making a wish. He always asks what you wished for, but don’t answer — it’s a trap. He’ll actively cover your mouth if you try to tell him, scolding you — didn’t you know the wish doesn’t come true if you say what it was?

William Murderface

Birthdays fucking suck — it’s another year closer to death, and nobody will fucking leave you alone, they give you all this shit you don’t want, and—

Yeah, that’s all bullshit. He loves birthdays, he’s just… never really celebrated them in a way that’s fun to him. Growing up it was all about going to the shitty little community park in town, with the hot metal slides that always managed to burn him, and if it wasn’t that, it was going to the run-down minigolf place on the outskirts that always reeked of stagnant water and old cheese. Boring. A chore. But recently, his tune has changed a bit. I mean sure, the boys aren’t always great at showing that they care, but they certainly make birthdays fun. Worth having. So despite having very little frame of reference, he really strives to make every one of your birthdays memorable, too.

Except again, he has… no idea what to do. Sure, he knows what you like to do, but you do those things every day. And it would be weird to ask, because isn’t it supposed to be a surprise? He spends night after night, quite literally, googling ideas on what to do. Unsurprisingly, Google isn’t very helpful in this department, considering the mass amount of wealth and time William has. It’s a miracle how he hasn’t been caught in planning.

But he really does put so much thought into the celebration, and is very, very particular about getting everything just right. He really takes the “diva” crown from Skwisgaar, on this occasion. This color is not the same shade he sent them, he’s certain of it, and it will be corrected before you have the chance to see it. Wh- yes it matters, this isn’t your favorite color, the one he sent was. Jeez, some people.

You’ve always known that he loves you, but it really bleeds through in all of the little decisions he makes for your big day. He’s more inclined to go big and flashy — and if you’re the type, he really does go above and beyond — but if you’re the quieter type, he sets the atmosphere perfectly. And he might be sweating a bit beneath the collar in the latter case, but it’s the thought that counts.

[https-florals]

jj maybank is a munch and i will not be taking any arguments. 18+!!!

a/n: this is just a little blurby blurb!!! (the product of scrolling through the new touch tank trend on tiktok and being in desperate need of good head) my requests are still very much open please i will not write if i don’t have inspiration

he definitely has a little bit of a reputation in kildare for knowing how to eat it. when the two of you start dating, he can’t keep his hands off you. he’s constantly making jokes about you sitting on his face, or how sweet you’d taste. you’re a little scared, honestly. all your past boyfriends treated giving head like a chore. you’re more comfortable giving than recieving, but jj won’t let you go down on him. he’s adamant about the “ladies first” principle.

you finally decide to let him after a dinner date, you’re all dolled up in a pale yellow sundress and a light sunburn coloring your shoulders and nose bridge. jj always thinks you look like a goddess, but something about a fresh sunburn and the way your hair falls after it air-dries drives him insane. the whole ride home you’re talking about how you’re ready to just get home and relax, and being the gentleman he is, he’s fully prepared to beg to climb in the shower with you so he can wash your hair (his other favorite pastime).

jj limits himself to one joke as the two of you walk through the door, saying “really craving a little snack right about now, baby.” you think he’s gonna ask to run by the gas station, which puts a little dent in your plans, but he runs right with your little thought out scenario when he follows up with “you’re looking extra sweet tonight.”

he’s all smiles as he wraps his arm around your waist, wiggling his eyebrows in attempts to make you laugh. jj is a little concerned when you’re silent, pulling him into the bedroom and shutting the door without even giggling. you sit on the bed and begin to take your heels off, and the blonde boy just stands and watched you. he’s so very lost. a couple of minutes ago you were happy as a clam, all over him at the restaurant and in the car.

“come here,” you ask, so soft and timid.

“yeah, honey?” he swallows, cause the way you’re looking at him is giving him butterflies. your lips are a little parted, eyes wide as you look up at him. when he gets close to you, you tug on the bottom of his shirt. jj leans down so he’s eye-level with you, and then all it takes is a quick push to his shoulders, and you have him on his knees.

you’re blushing so hard, but you stand, albeit a little shakingly. you didn’t have a plan to stand up, in fact you’re pretty sure you’re gonna be on your back in a few seconds, but there’s something so nice about jj kneeling in front of you. your hand slides through his hair, tilting his head back with a slight pull to the hair at the nape of his neck. your other hand rests on his jawline. his hands come up to the back of your thighs, thumbs rubbing gentle circles. “i’m not wearing panties,” you kinda hiccup out. the phrase isn’t as sexy and seductive as you had hoped it be, because you’re nervous and tingly and giggly.

but you think it works, because jj’s eyes light up like you’ve just told him he won the lottery. his hands move to your ass and he buries his face right where your thighs begin to touch. you squirm a little, but he doesn’t let you move. you can feel his breath through the thin fabric of your dress, hit and heavy and inhaling like you’re a respirator or something.

“what are you doing!” you’re scared you smell funky, even though before dinner you took a very thorough everything shower.

he shushes you, and pulls back with a groan. “let me just take a sec,” he mumbles. “been praying for this.”

it takes maybe fifteen seconds for the two of you to be on the bed, jj on his back with you straddling his chest. your dress is off, and you’re totally bare over him. this is a whole new kind of vulnerability, all your insecurities on plain display. you’re thinking about your stomach, or how your tits sit naturally.

in turn, there’s not a thought going through jj’s head except for “girlfriend!!” he pulls you up a little closer, so he can lay a chaste little kiss on your skin. you flex your thighs so you’re hovering over him, but you’re already shaking when his tongue lightly skims over you, and you don’t know how you’re gonna hold yourself up.

he murmurs something you can’t quite hear, and then he’s yanking you down on his tongue.

“jj!”

“shit, darlin’, just sit down and hold still!”

“i’m gonna suffocate you!”

“i’ll tap out if i’m about to die.” he reaches his head up a bit to smile at you, all punch drunk like a kid in a candy shop. “but damn, that would be a way to go, huh?”

[ileftmysoulinnorway]

We all had a tough end of the week, so I thought I would put together something about my IWTV set lurking experience in Prague, hopefully to cheer someone up and show you that the people working on our little show are incredible, everything is well thought out, and we have a lot to look forward to.

Locations

I am confident that Prague will be a good substitute for Paris. I love this post comparing Prague's Théâtre des Vampires location with a real Le Grand Guignol in Paris. But similar care is given to other locations as well.

I like to joke that I enjoyed a month-long tour of Prague's most famous landmarks, only to have the actual filming take place in nondescript alleyways right next to them. But it makes perfect sense. They want to capture the nicer and older parts of the city that suit them, but not anything that would tell you it's Prague.

Production design, costumes

I saw them build everything from scratch on several sets. And I'm in awe. From putting up posters that will probably only appear in the background of a single shot, to street names that fit the exact topography of Paris and make sense in the context of the scenes that take place on them, to storefronts that they really didn't have to pay that much attention to, or a menu at Le Dakar Café that you could only read up close, but someone took the trouble to make it anyway?

And maybe this attention to detail is normal, I don't know, but I still think Mara and her team deserve all the praise they get.

S1 showed us how much attention is paid to the costumes. I can assure you that has not changed. All the hats, coats, capes and dresses. I can't tell you how many times I've been pleasantly surprised. By the choice of colors for Lestat. By how beautifully all of Armand's black clothes come to life with little details.

People

There are so many people (and I mean SO many) working on the show and they all know exactly what is expected of them, everything runs like a well-oiled machine. I haven't seen any problems, any conflicts, any excesses.

I'm not under any illusion that everything was trouble-free, but really the only complaints I heard were about the horrendously hellish schedule (I guess that's normal) and then the occasional person wishing they had finished earlier (they never finished earlier).

They are all heroes to me.

Directors

Levan is the only one I saw. He seems so focused and professional. His "rolling...and action" is unforgettable.

Actors

After six locations and about fifteen scenes (and countless rehearsals and takes), I think I managed to get at least some idea of them, and yes, they really seem to be such nice people.

- Jacob, I don't envy him at all the emotional strain of playing Louis, but at the same time I love his portrait of Louis so much.

- Sam's transformation into Lestat is something to behold.

- Assad was the only one present on every set. I don't think we've fully realized how big a role he's going to have (at least in S2).

- Delainey, Ben, Roxane and everyone else 💜

Scenes

They were far from finished when the strike started, but at least (in my opinion) they got to the last block of episodes. 

I'm not going to pretend to have a concrete idea of what to expect from S2 based on what little I saw. But I do have a few guesses, and I'm insanely excited and thrilled. And, in the case of the 1700s flashbacks, totally confused. I can't believe they're going to do so many unexpected things, or other things so soon.

I truly believe that S2 will not disappoint any of us. We just have to wait a little longer. But if this strike means that everyone gets a better deal and the studios are forced to change their ways, it will be worth the wait.

[chungledown-bimothy]

it’s wild to me that people are conflating the issues with jkr herself and issues they may have with the story that is hp, and couching it purely in rhetoric regarding transphobia and transmisogyny. hp is not a transphobic book/movie series. the author is the problem here

hp was written by jkr and going back to it as an adult and also with the context of the type of person jkr and the hate she spews means you can see some things definitely stand out as Not Great. but there are two things to that: one is that it’s mostly racist and antisemitic tropes or lazy stereotypes—not great but abundant in fiction, and in particular the context of these books being written in the late 90s/mid 00s by a white christian british woman means it’s entirely unsurprising in the context of when it was written. the attitudes shown in the books were typical of the time. we’ve come extremely far since 1997 and not everyone remembers that

and, more importantly, two: the books themselves are not overtly transphobic, and i’d argue that perhaps with the exception of certain interpretations of chamber of secrets, aren’t transphobic at all, and at the very least are unintentionally insensitive

jkr is the one who’s transphobic. and again, going back in time, she was actually considered quite progressive at the height of this franchise. she’s been radicalized over time, especially online, as many people have been in the last decade or so. it’s unfortunate that she’s a high profile enough person for that to be a really big problem, and it’s no excuse. she’s a vile person, and she spews vile filth, and many people listen to her because she’s jkr, and that hurts many people, and there’s unfortunately little to be done to stop her

but we also can’t pretend that hp wasn’t a cultural touchstone for an entire generation, and dominated media significantly for a decade. most people who were kids, teens, and young adults in the 00s- early 10s have core memories attached to the series. that’s not going to just drop from memory. but she doesn’t actually own an entire genre of children’s literature (even though she may have revolutionized its expansion). unless she dies tomorrow, it’s unlikely that we’ll be able to divorce the author from the work completely for a good few decades

so what’s left? we do what aabria did with the story. we pull the parts that were good, flip it and change it into something else. make new stories in the magic school genre. if hp is the only recent thing in that genre because people don’t want to go near it, it’ll only ever remain that way. if it makes you personally uncomfortable that’s fine, no one’s making you watch it

but it’s insane to act like watching a show that’s not actually hp on a platform unrelated to wb made by people entirely unrelated to jkr and her team is actively funding jkr’s crusade and giving it visibility and a platform. it’s really really not

while i largely agree with you, i do need to push back on a couple of things.

first: your claim that there isn't transphobia in the books.

rita skeeter, whose whole thing is disguising herself to spy on people- specifically children in the books- is described as physically "mannish" a lot, specifically her hands, shoulders, and face. and, iirc, her hair, nails, and other denotations of femininity are described as Very Obviously Fake.

while it's not the most explicit transphobia jk's written, that very much is a Fucking Problem.

second: while i get that the horrible take that sparked this is mostly about transphobia, some of your phrasing comes across as dismissive of the other bigotry.

the racism and antisemitism absolutely go above and beyond what could possibly be excused by "product of the times" shit. that cannot be ignored.

BUT all of that is secondary to the topic at hand, which is summed up very well in your last two paragraphs, i think.

[panda-panoptic]

How do Alfred’s parental issues manifest (and more)

GOOD QUESTION I think he’s a workaholic and is constantly seeking praise.

He’s very status-conscious and always looking towards achievements, so he can come off as narcissistic because he’s trying to get the praise that was inconsistent to him as a child.

His trauma is based on “I got praise and care by doing this/being this way but that nurturing feeling became inconsistent or changed, so what can I do to stop it from changing?” so he’s constantly trying to be the “best” version of himself for other people to prevent the praise and support from changing again.

His biggest fear is being worthless or feeling like he’s not enough for others. He never wants to be a “nobody”. To try to stop this feeling he’s always looking to do the next great thing and improve and be admired by others. He wants affirmation and to be distinguished by his accomplishments.

Ironically, when he does this from an unhealthy place he becomes overbearing because he’s doing it from a place of apathy and selfishness. When he’s doing these things from a healthy state of mind he becomes more cooperative and committed to doing things for people.

He’s always focused on doing and getting things done and “how do I look right now? Do people like me? Am I doing things right?” He’s always sort of going “oh look at me! Do you like what I’m doing? Look at my achievements. Do you think I’m good?”

So he’s a people pleaser by trying to be a show off lol. He changes himself based on how other people may want him to be to get that nurturing feeling that he missed out on.

At his worst he’s vindictive, obsessive over shortcomings, destructive towards things that get in his way, and untrustworthy.

He has an insane pride and ego so of course he’s not going to admit these things easily or openly. It makes him cringe to think about how similar he is to the person who was supposed to care for him but didn’t. If he went on an inner healing journey it would be one of the first things he works on: the fact that him and the person who caused him so much pain are so similar and so he has the capacity to do the exact same things that person did to him (and has done them)

To me, I think this manifests in a feeling of resentment for his caretaker, and by extension himself. He ends up taking that out on himself through self deprecation when he feels inadequate. As well as on the people he’s closest to when he feels like they aren’t doing the things they’re “supposed to be doing” or could be doing to be the “best” version of themselves out of fear that they’ll feel or experience what he’s feeling. He becomes anxious when he thinks someone is being lazy, and he can be unsympathetic to others when he feels like they’re slacking off.

He has trouble “just playing around”. He’s a playful person and of course he has fun, but he has difficulty setting aside unstructured free time. He can set aside designated time to have fun, but that’s not unstructured. The struggle comes when he has room to do nothing or is able to do nothing in particular. To him he can’t just sit around doing “nothing” to relax he has to be doing something remotely productive.

On a more healthy note, he can be a very inspiring force because he loves to develop himself and contribute his abilities to the world. He enjoys motivating people to find and explore their own strengths and personal abilities. He’s well regarded by his peers as an efficient person and a go-getter. When he’s at his best people are able to see their own goals reflected in him and his abilities.

At his best he’s self assured, has a clear sense of direction, is energetic and adaptable, can be charming, and is a generally caring personality.

[moonlightspencie]

you’re a cowboy like me

Part 8 of ‘the sweetest con’

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x fem!Reader

Word Count: 2.4k

<- LAST PART

Recovering was a nightmare. I couldn’t be in the field for the case that came after we got home, and even worse, she had become ten times more caring and attentive. 

“I brought tea,” she sang out.

She walked into my office for the sixth time that day, two cups of tea in her hands. 

“Tea?”

“You don’t need coffee right now,” she stated, setting one mug in front of me as she sat. 

I chuckled. “Okay, mom.”

“Ew,” she laughed. “Don’t call me that.”

“You’re the one treating me like a child,” I replied, sipping at the drink. “Is this chamomile?”

She smirked. “I thought maybe if you started getting sleepy you’d go home at an appropriate time.”

“You’re insane,” I laughed. 

“You’re healing. Stop staying all hours of the night.”

“Either way, I’ll just be sitting around. What’s the harm in being productive?”

She quirked a brow, just staring at me for a moment. I sighed, setting down the mug, waiting for her reply with half a smirk on my face. 

“Sitting down and relaxing is very different from sitting down and working,” she said, leaning back in the seat. “How about I come over and make you some dinner again?”

I swallowed. “This feels like a trap.”

“Maybe it is,” she smiled softly. “We still need to talk. But it might be a little better if you get a free meal out of it, huh?”

“I guess so,” I agreed with a smile. “I thought maybe if I really played up how bad the healing process was you’d forget about it.”

She scoffed out a laugh. “And you thought I was the ridiculous one.”

“Can’t blame me for trying.”

“Actually, I think I can.”

I laughed as she sat up straight again, leaning in closer. 

“You’re not escaping this, Hotchner,” she said, hands folded on the desk. 

I breathed out, watching her for a moment. She looked at me expectantly, but that little smile of hers never quite left. 

“Alright. When do you want to leave?” I asked. 

“When can you be ready? Mostly everyone is gone already anyways.”

“Five minutes?” 

She nodded. “Good. I’ll go get my things.”

She stood, heading towards the door. Then, she turned back around. 

“Maybe this time I’ll drive over separately. I think everyone knows too much already,” she said with a light laugh. 

I furrowed my brow. “What exactly do they know?”

She paused for a moment. I could see the gears turning in her head as she looked out over the bullpen, then turned her focus back to me. 

“That’s something we can discuss later,” she said, finally leaving. 

I finished up my work, and before I knew it we were back in my kitchen. I just hoped this time would go over better than the last. It certainly couldn’t get much worse than her getting insulted for something she had no part in. 

I sat at the counter with a glass of scotch, watching her hum to herself as she moved around my kitchen. She’d forced me to stay there no matter how many times I asked to help, and I must admit, I appreciated the view from where I was. She’d changed into more casual clothes on the way to my apartment, donning a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. I could hardly think of a time when she looked more radiant. It felt wholly domestic, especially as I wore a similar fashion. It didn’t happen often that I would dress down to that degree in front of the team, but if she was going to be cooking in my house again, I figured this was a good time. She smiled at me as she noticed I was watching her, then went right back to whatever she was working on at the stove. 

“You seem a little distant, Hotchner,” she noted, her back still turned. 

I downed the rest of the drink, then cleared my throat. 

“Just thinking.”

She hummed. “Do you like cinnamon?”

“Yes.”

“I think this week I’ll bring you some pancakes, then,” she said, turning to face me. “I just realized I almost always bring you savory food when I cook. I love baking and making sweet treats, but I never give you any.”

“You’ve been holding out on me, huh?”

She laughed. “Only accidentally.”

“Well, I’d appreciate that,” I nodded. 

She smiled, then turned around again. I watched her for a few minutes. She moved so fluidly, as if she’d been here doing these exact actions a hundred times before. There was a warmth growing steadily in my chest, and I knew it wasn’t just the alcohol kicking in.

I stood abruptly, moving carefully to stand next to her. She turned the heat of the stove off, making some quick comment about me having good timing. The second she looked at me with that little smile of hers, eyes sparkling in the dim kitchen lights, I couldn’t handle it anymore. 

Everything that had happened seemed to pale now. This brief moment I spent looking at her felt like an eternity. Maybe because I knew things would have to change if I didn’t stop myself. Maybe because I’d been wanting it to change for so long, and it finally felt like the right moment for it to happen. 

It all happened in slow motion, my body moving before I could catch up to it. I saw my hands reach for her, cradling her face. She looked at me the same as she always did, despite knowing what was going to happen. I realized she must have known the whole time. She was reading my mind from the start, regardless of my best efforts to hide it all. I moved in closer, closing the gap slowly, unable to take my eyes off of her. To my surprise, I didn’t have to go all the way: she leaned upwards before I could think, pressing her lips to mine. I let out a breath, my body relaxing as her arms circled around me.

“Hotch?” her voice called out. 

I blinked, looking at her from across the kitchen, still sitting at the counter with an empty glass in my hands. 

“I said it’s done,” she said with a smile, holding two plates in her hands. 

“Right. Sorry,” I said, standing to take one of them. 

I led her to the dining table, trying to shake off the daydream, but unable to stop thinking about it. 

“What have you been thinking about?” she asked, sitting down. 

“Not much,” I said quietly, not yet taking a seat. “Do you need a drink?”

“Please,” she nodded. 

I went to the kitchen, getting out two glasses, but realizing too late I didn’t ask what she wanted. 

“You’re being weird,” her voice noted from behind me. 

I turned, seeing her in the doorway. Her arms were crossed, but there was still humor on her face. 

“I am not,” I tried to defend. 

She quirked a brow. “Right. Totally normal behavior right now.”

I chuckled, turning back to the empty glasses. She walked up next to me, sighing softly. 

“Old fashioned?”

I nodded. “That’d be great.”

She smirked, getting the needed ingredients. I watched as she prepared the drinks quietly. 

“Were you a bartender in a past life?” I asked, my arms crossing. 

“Actually, I was a bartender for a few months in college.”

I chuckled. “Really?”

“Really,” she smiled, handing me a drink. “Try it.”

I took a sip, nodding with a raised brow. 

“Good?” she asked. 

“It is.”

We walked back to the dining room, eating without my mind wandering too far again. She laughed and told stories, and I listened with everything in me. It’s a wonder I ate at all. I could’ve sat there all night just watching her talk. 

“You know, I love the team, but they are the nosiest people in the world,” she noted, picking at the last of what was on her plate. 

“That they are,” I agreed. 

“Even Spence and Rossi are in on it, now.”

“In on what, exactly?”

She snorted. “They’ve been watching our every move. To the point of giving me sideways glances if you look at me for a second too long.”

I laughed. “What?”

“They’re crazy, is what,” she said with a laugh. “How have you not noticed that?”

“I have, I just didn’t think it had gotten that bad.”

She smiled, then stood. “Let’s go sit down. These chairs are getting a little uncomfortable.”

I nodded. “Movie?”

“Maybe we can just see what’s on TV.”

“Okay.”

We sat, and quickly found reruns of a show we both enjoyed. It was quiet for a few minutes before she started looking at me. 

“I can hear you thinking,” I noted. 

“Because I am.”

“What about?” I asked, looking at her. 

“Can we talk about why you’ve been so spacey lately?”

I sighed. “I’m just a little distracted.”

“Why?”

“That’s a hard question to answer.”

“Is it?”

I looked down. “We’re going to have to talk about everything now, aren’t we?”

“I’d appreciate it,” she admitted. “We can start off easy. Like, why didn’t you want me coming with that day? Why’d I have to stay at the precinct?”

I leaned into the couch, getting more comfortable for what was going to be an uncomfortable conversation. She mirrored my actions, facing me fully with her feet pulled underneath her on the couch. 

“I was afraid that something would happen to you. I had a bad feeling, and didn’t want to be worried about feeling like I needed to protect you.”

“Why would you be worried? That’s never been a problem before.”

“It actually has been,” I admitted to her. “I just hid it much better on those occasions.”

She sat in thought for a moment. “What changed?”

“I honestly don’t know.”

“Okay, then let’s talk about what you’ve been thinking about that gets you borderline dissociative.”

I chuckled. “Has it been that bad?”

“Yes,” she said with wide eyes, almost laughing. “You never act like that. It kind of freaks me out when it happens.”

“A lot has been on my mind.”

“I’m aware. But why has it gotten to be such a distraction?”

I knew the answer, I just didn’t know how to say it. She stared at me expectantly, but I could only stare back, trying to formulate an answer. She furrowed her brow. 

“Okay, easier question: What had you like that today in the kitchen?”

I chuckled. “That’s actually more difficult to answer.”

“Just tell me,” she said, almost whining. 

I swallowed. “You want the truth?”

“I will literally beg for it.”

“Alright,” I started, unable to stop a small laugh from escaping me. I took a deep breath. Here goes nothing. “You were— I was distracted because of you.”

She looked delightfully confused. “What is that supposed to mean?”

I smiled again. “I feel like you already know where this is going. But, to be honest, I was thinking about you. That’s what had me out of my head.”

“If I knew, we wouldn’t be talking about it.”

“Fine. You have suspicions, then, but want them confirmed.”

She tried hiding a smile. “Okay, profiler.”

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Anything,” she nodded. 

“How long have you known?”

She sighed. “I started thinking something was up a few months ago. I can’t pinpoint it, but hearing what you said after Haley came the one day… It definitely made me think a little harder about it.”

“I’m sorry about that.”

“You don’t have anything to be sorry for. She was angry, and that wasn’t your fault.”

“But I’m sorry if what I said made you feel uncomfortable.”

“It didn’t.”

I sat for a moment, not yet responding. She took that as a cue to keep talking. 

“It kind of made me start thinking about my own actions, and why I was treating you the way I was. It started off because I saw that everyone kind of lifted each other up on the team, but you were almost always doing the work without anyone helping you in return,” she paused for a second, then scooted a little closer. “I think it morphed into something different more recently. I didn’t just want to make sure you were taken care of anymore. That was still very important, but honestly, I miss being around you if I didn’t visit a couple times a day.“

“You do?”

“Yeah. I never get sick of hanging out with you.”

I took in a breath. “Every time I’ve spaced out recently is because of you. You’re always on my mind, and the more I try to fight it, the worse it gets. You’ll walk into a room and it’s everything in me not to let all of my focus stay on you.”

“Oh.”

“It honestly never was a problem when I was married. But the moment I realized you still cared for me when I was broken down, I think that’s when I couldn’t pretend you weren’t one of the best things to ever happen to me.” 

“Hotch—“

“Every time I’m with you, especially when we can really be alone like this, I just don’t want it to end. I know the team talks about things and they like to speculate for fun, but they’re right to assume that I have a soft spot for you…”

“Aaron.”

“Dave has been giving me looks, and I try acting like he’s off base, but he couldn’t be more right. And I know that getting involved with me would probably do you more harm than good. It’s selfish for me to want you in any capacity, but it’s hard not to think about you all the time and wonder what would happen if—“

She moved in closer as I spoke, and in my rambling I hadn’t noticed; until her hand was on my neck and her lips were pressed to mine, effectively shutting me up. I reacted quickly, kissing her back with everything in me. I hoped to show her through actions rather than incoherent babbling how much I wanted to be with her. It must have worked. 

She smiled into the kiss, triggering me to do the same, then briefly pulled away. 

“I love hearing you talk, but now really isn’t the time,” she mumbled against my lips. 

“Understood,” I agreed.

She kissed me again, deepening it almost immediately. We stayed that way for far too long, and it was still over way too soon. 

She ran a hand through my hair, pressing one more soft peck to my lips. 

“In the kitchen, I was daydreaming about kissing you,” I said, the words tumbling from me almost involuntarily. 

“Did it live up to your daydream?” she asked with a smile, not hiding the adoration in her eyes as she gazed at me. 

“So much better.”

NEXT PART ->

—————

the sweetest con taglist:

@evee87 @spottedzebrasinpartyhats @rousethemouse @lalalove-56

aaron hotchner taglist:

@mrs-ssa-hotch @hyunjaebaby @ssamorganhotchner @criminalskies @simp4olderm3n

[eijirousbestie]

where they would work

MHA HCs

Kirishima

Starbucks . ° •

He’s just so happy to be able to make people their favorite drinks.

It’s kind of endearing how he loves the shop as much as he does and he doesn’t even like coffee. Sometimes he’ll be curious about the taste of the various coffees he’s made.

He knows what it’s like to have a messed up order (and misspelled name) so he’s very meticulous with how he serves every order.

When writing a customers name on a cup, he’ll draw little doodles beside it.

Because of his bubbly personality tons of regulars flood the shop whenever he works. If he’s off shift, the shop is ridiculously empty.

His manager makes sure to keep him up front at all times because he brings in good money.

“Where’s Kirishima? The shop’s practically dead.”

“It’s his off day sir.”

Sero

Hot Topic/Spencer’s . ° •

You can’t tell me he wouldn’t work at one of these stores.

I can just imagine him wearing his usual clothes with a little employee name tag on his shirt as he talks your head off about his favorite bands at checkout.

“Look all I’m saying is Sleeping with Sirens were way ahead of their time. Gotta pay respect ya know?”

Will 100% be nosey about what you’re buying if it interests him in any way. Getting a graphic tee of your favorite artist? He’s all over it asking when you first stanned.

He finally found out what was at the back of Spencer’s and won’t stop cracking jokes about it.

Makes use of his employee discounts and shows up the next day wearing a shirt he got off the display for 75% off.

Kaminari

GameStop . ° •

Self explanatory really. Denks is such a dude’s dude he loves all types of games so why not work where he can be surrounded by them all the time?

He works cash and restocks merchandise, games, rentals and such.

When he first realized how broke he was he thought “getting a job” meant he was gonna have to slave away in an office somewhere crunching numbers. Who knew he’d have so much fun at work.

He’s practically best friends with his co-workers… except his discord mod manager. He doesn’t talk to him very much.

He chucks it up with customers who come up to him asking for the latest drops or game recommendations. He knows the ins and outs of their products and always points them in the right direction based on their preferences.

“Oh you’re wanting something similar to Overwatch? Whatever you do, don’t go Valorant. It’s kinda sucky really. Here, Apex is so much better, especially if you main Seer.”

Bakugou

McAllister’s . ° •

Okay now stay with me, it sounds random as hell to say he’d work at a deli but it makes PERFECT sense.

He’s got skill in the kitchen and I feel like he can make a mean sandwich. Bakugou as a butcher also makes sense.

When he first starts working at the deli, his manager puts him on cashier and he hates it. Having to listen to overly complicated orders drives him batty.

Needless to say, his manager put him in the kitchen after that. And thank god for that because he prefers it in the back anyways.

He secretly loves cooking for people so although he might gripe about an insane amount of pastrami going on one sub, he knows someone will eat well because of his efforts.

“What kind of a shit sandwich is this? Shit’s pissing me off I’m not making this.”

[shotbyafool]

Macbeth thoughts:

There’s no point in doing a production of Macbeth without putting some energy into the insanity of you doing a production of Macbeth. one of THE most recognizable scripts in Shakespeare’s canon, littered with quite literally dozens of phrases that make ears prick when spoken aloud, cannot be said without some fanfare. You’re dropping famous lines every five minutes, let’s make a scene of it!

Relatedly, witches as stagehands. Witches as one-line messengers and murderers. Witches as minor men in the big big story being told. Witches as pre-show ushers, I don’t care. DO IT ALL.

Lady Macbeth and Macbeth should be approximately 30 seconds away from f*cking on-stage at any given moment

Banquo should be cast and performed by absolutely the most charming guy in the cast; oozing charisma, captivating audience members from across the room, and being so very sexy. this is a requirement.

drunken Porter monologue being 50% improv is the backbone of society

It should be illegal to stage the Malcolm/Macduff scene with no homoeroticism. I think staging Malcolm as petulant and lascivious at the top of 4.3 is the only thing that makes it believable, and also coincidentally allows for bisexual flirting.

on Macduff: obviously the second most important guy in the play. him as aloof soldier under immense pressure due to his belief in what is right, which finally causes him to snap in aforementioned 4.3… he CARRIES!

Figuring if the dagger and the ghost being visible to the audience is good or not. Compelling case for either. Witches being as quiet manipulators of the set/scenery could be utilized here?

What, you have a guy who used to be your friend, now your enemy, who is the only person who can kill you, due to fate and destiny? Sounds gay to me.

Trying to figure out if there’s a sexy way to have guys carrying sticks or guys touting about heads. Maybe not.

This play is so, so much better said with a Scottish accent. (intentional non-Scottish accents may be utilized sparingly. an English Lady Macbeth makes my brain go TZZT TZZT, like a live wire.)

Gender is the whole thing. It’s the whole play. Costumes are a part of the whole thing; pants vs. kilts is a very classy and sexy dichotomy, though it obviously depends on the chosen time period. Lady Macbeth in pants is obvious but always is cool. Or do it all in drag. Something to be said here about the witches but I can’t even get into it

Lines which I think need to be said with absolutely solemnity and pause: “Unsex me here”, “Dispute it like a man / But I must also feel it as a man”, “If we should fail— / We fail?”, probably more.

Killing Macbeth off-stage is the coward’s route. Blood must have blood - ON STAGE, before my eyes!

[ryuichirou]

I love your Sultan AU so much, how it shows Jamil and Kalim 5 years into the future! How do you see the other NRC guys in the future after they graduate? I'm just curious

Thank you, Anon! <3 I am very happy you like it! I really hope we’ll have more content for this AU in the future, but then again, that’s me with every AU…

We haven’t thought about other students in this universe specifically, we might come up with stuff as we go, so nothing of what I’m about to say is concrete yet. I also won’t write about every single character, just about the ones that come to mind more easily…

First of all, when it comes to Octavinelle and Ignihyde guys, there might be a crossover situation lol, maybe the AzuIde marriage AU or the Mafia AU exist in the same universe at this one. Age-wise, the second option fits more, I guess, but I’m still thinking that it’s the first one. In any case, they are definitely up to no good with Azul working hard on his rapidly growing business, with the Tweels helping him out and Idia being forced to help out too in his own way. Ortho is always by Idia’s side, no matter the AU. But he also might pursue his passion for movie-making in some ways, as least as a hobby.

(Azul also definitely does business with the Asim family, so the Octa-trio and Kalim+Jamil are still in touch, even though they don’t talk on a regular basis)

Speaking of movies, Vil’s future is pretty easy to determine. He works harder than ever, and has his own set of problems: his perfectionism has never left him; he is a workaholic that finds it difficult to slow down and relax. The industry is also as toxic as ever, so with every big win he also gets a ton of new things to fight. But he’s doing his best, as always, even though this job quite literally drives him insane, despite how much he loves it, both acting and make-up production and other project he does.

Rook and Vil are still together, but Rook also pursuits his own thing, whatever it is. It’s hard to say what the hell Rook’s doing: he is still quite an enigma of a person; even Vil doesn’t know for sure (probably something shady, so Vil doesn’t really want to know). Rook also keeps hinting that Vil shouldy ditch all of his big projects and try directing an indie movie.

Riddle is also overworked and overstressed: despite the fact that he really wanted to become a lawyer when he was still at NRC, he did end up becoming a magical doctor like his parents wanted him to. He decided that it was the right thing to do, not only because of his parents, but also because this is such an important occupation only the most brilliant mages can handle. So right now he spends the majority of his time either studying medical literature or practicing at a very prestigious magical clinic, and he knows that he should be feeling proud of himself and satisfied because of doing something he was meant to do, but he can’t shake off this feeling of disappointment and emptiness. Thus, at some point he began to also study law whenever he has free time for that, and that makes him much happier. But the drawback of it is that he has literally no time to talk to any of his friends anymore, it’s like he defaulted to his pre-NRC situation. Trey (who is a pastry chef btw, we know he would be one) is very concerned but can’t do much about it, although he is one of the few people from the NRC Riddle still talks to occasionally.

Ironically, another person Riddle talks to from time to time is Floyd, because he accidentally found out where Riddle works and now visits him from time to time just to mess with him.

Deuce is also kind of disappointed in how things are going at his workplace (the Magical Police department): he realised that it’s much more corrupt than he expected it to be. He hangs out with Ace every day, and Ace always talks about how naive Deuce is and that no one is going to take him seriously if he keeps being so stupidly earnest and hardworking instead of just making “right” friends and bribing his way into the elite squad. It pisses Deuce off, because he knows that Ace is right, and also hearing that from someone who doesn’t really have a job is annoying.

Ace doesn’t have a job because he had a fight with his boss and left. So now he spends his days sleeping, providing hot takes for every situation, earning some money by doing magic tricks aaaand probably gambling.

Hmm, I also think all the first-year boys still talk to each other quite regularly even if they don’t live in the same area. Epel surely visits Deuce and Ace at least every couple of weeks, Jack probably does too. Sebek is less likely to do that though, he is way too busy.

It’s kind of difficult to say anything about Diasomnia, so I’ll leave them out for now. Leona is doing his Leona thing, probably still complaining about not being appreciated. I don’t know what Cater does, but I hope he is happy? He might be an influencer of sorts, but he’s usually a loner that becomes visibly animated when he reunites with his college friends. He is also definitely away from his family.

So yeah everyone has issues lol The only one who is 1000% thriving is Ruggie. Things are going well for Ruggie. Good for Ruggie! He deserved it.

Ehh, I think that’s all for now. It took so long to write this reply for some reason, but I hope reading it was somewhat fun.

Thank you for your question again <3

[rosetheocto]

My Rants and Reviews on the Failtopia S2 Finale Outfits!

this post was inspired by the one made by @cosmo-production so please check out their post too! my review is under the cut

Major Failtopia Season 2 spoilers ahead!

Mar

yeah it’s the basic one, but i think that fits him! If I had to pick another outfit it would be the Pro one, but I genuinely can’t see him in anything else other than the boring chef outfit. I feel like if he wanted to change it he def could (I mean look at his imp outfit) but the basic chef outfit is very solid for him! If it ain’t broke don’t fix it! 7/10

Orion

I know the outfit is very clashing and has a bunch of colors, but in Dan’s defense: Orion’s makeup already has a bunch of colors, and when you look into it the colors the outfit has actually matches with the makeup a bit! and also, I kinda wish Dan didn’t have the makeup be as out there for the sake of those drawing fanart, but at the same time this is Daniel Failboat. Insane designs are expected. That being said though, I can’t change the clothes or makeup even if you forced me to. the context for it is just so freakin cute!! we all love great fathers in this household. He makes me wish I had a meaningful relationship with my dad. 6/10

Friend

I like it! I have a few minor gripes though. This may be a bit of a hot take, but I don’t like Zone (the hat) or Ship (the staff). Not in the Finale at least. I think Friend should’ve removed them both to show that they’ve moved on and don’t need something like Lee anymore. Symbolism and character arcs and all that other fancy stuff idk. Also I like that she looks more like a priest than a Cleric, it makes sense! He’s really religious in-universe and their war cry is literally “die, sinner :)”, so I don’t have any problems with that! As much as I like her in purple, he looks oddly good in a black and white outfit too! 8/10

Shrimp

listen guys I’m sorry but her outfit kinda sucks.. the bright pink hearts don’t really give off the same vibes as her first outfit did.. I get where Dan was coming from with it but I just personally don’t like the design :((

I think that he should’ve went with the emo goth outfit for her instead, especially since it fit her more and the fandom latched onto it like a moth to a light, but that’s just me. it gets a free half point for matching up with Bill though, 3.5/10

Erica

look I love it but the actual armor part is so overdesigned. I hate drawing that thing. that’s my only problem though the rest of her outfit is cool as hell!! Let’s go lesbians. 8/10

(and this doesn’t really count for anything, but don’t like her weapon, again I get the idea Dan, but she realistically would NOT use the giant arm 😭)

Chi

This kind of outfit fits her so well omfg. The stupid bowtie? The short sleeves and general lack of lab safety?? The triangle patterns??? It all just screams “Chi” to me! Thank you Miitopia for creating this outfit. Flawless. 10/10

(also another weapon mention, her using the ketchup bottle in the finale?? as someone who is obsessed with S1 of this series, Daniel, ty sm for including that.)

C!Failboat

the catsuit is very boring, but it is also very iconic. I like it. I’d give it a solid 7/10. But I don’t wanna talk about that one. I wanna talk about his outfit when using the Power of the Scythe.

oh my lord. this outfit. this is not me dunking on Daniel or Wafferscotch at all, I genuinely love their art and content!! but like. you’re telling me this man saved the universe in tracksuit sweatpants and an open button up shirt WITH HIS OWN MERCH ON??? He killed god in the Bee Movie shoes?? The Piss Adidas??? It just. doesn’t really fit the Miitopia vibes to me, and I think this could’ve been better as an outfit for ACNH. It could’ve looked much worse, but still. I think it’s a 3/10

Bo

perfect. love the callback to Rose (and I mean, they’re very similar characters, so it makes sense!) She also looks cool af in a suit. her new look can be strange at first but you 100% get used to it with time. And her multiclass was just chefs kiss. Absolute goddess, let’s go lesbians. 10/10

Chat

very good. very iconic. so glad this series came out before the Kirby Era cuz i think the lips would’ve ruined it. 10/10

Big Bill

It looks really comfortable!! I want this robe irl, I like the patterns! I surprisingly really like the pink for Bill! It stands out compared the rest of his appearance and I think that’s really cool!! the dark blue also fits him really well!! Half point bonus for matching with Shrimp. 9.5/10

Void

GOD TIER!! PEAK DESIGN!!! We all love Void in this household. 20/10