#ive been doing so much work on myself and this summer in particular ive been turning into the most fuckable version of myself

[mothslimes]

some people are so nice to their partner for nothing. bro i would never. maybe once i made that mistake. my relationships should ideally be either mutual worship or us kinda hating each other in a fun and hot way. or both, varying day to day.

[reflections-in-a-critical-eye]

Welcome Back. 🥳

If you have to list most fave songs within album. How would each of the song rank in your list?

Thank you.

Hi @misslauwie! I assume you're asking about Face. If not, then so be it because that's what I'll be talking about 😄

I'll make this brief and not an in-depth analysis. I actually avoided Face for a while after its release. I did listen to all the songs immediately and as a first impression, I liked everything, but I took a step back. It's difficult to explain because I myself don't know exactly what was so odd. It felt like I'm listening to the music made by a stranger, but then again isn't a good thing when an artist reveals a new side of themselves through creative means? So why the cognitive dissonance? Well, one answer would be because all of us have this image in our head of that person. And while there is a general consensus, some things we perceive or make up in our heads will differ because we project onto them. And it happens often and really easy when we're focusing on that artist every single day. I find that it's a bit too much, at least from me. It was difficult to be able to fully understand, appreciate or even critique the music without some distance. Which is what I did and a couple of months later I decided that I can and want to listen to Face casually.

And I'll tell you what transpired. Like Crazy the English version is the only song from the album that I have added to a spotify playlist that I listen to everyday at work when I'm writing/editing. It's right there in between an IVE song and Kylie's Padam Padam. It's such a damn good song. From the musical arrangement, the lyrics (emotions on ice, let me have a taste???? Damn, I'd have that tattooed somewhere), the way Jimin sings. The entire production is top notch. I want to listen to it on a vinyl record at a party in an apartment at 2 am in the morning kind of vibe. An 80s throwback, but it also has that contemporary aspect to it. It's a type of song that fits well with the trends in the last couple of years, but impressive enough to stand out. If it had radio play, it would have become a hit with the gp. Like Crazy is that song that could have been BIG if only it got the means to it.

Second it would be Letter, but not for some deep reasons or whatever hidden meaning behind it. A lot of the times when I listen to music, I don't think about some back story. I doesn't mean I don't think about the meaning of the lyrics, but maybe I just like the melody and the voice. Letter initially made me think of a Studio Ghibli movie, something about adolescence and young adulthood in the summer. It would be perfect for a soundtrack. And now I also associate the song with that period in my life in March because who was on a 3h train ride running away from town because life is shitty and had Letter on repeat the entire time while crying and wearing sunglasses so the other people on the chairs nearby wouldn't see? Yep, that's Letter for me.

Coming in third, Set Me Free Pt. 2. No need to go into detail, I've written about it when it was released. But I don't listen to it anymore and I'm still not a fan of the rap part despite understanding the creative reason behind it.

Alone and Face-Off. Both good songs, but I don't think about them. For no particular reason, it's just that I'm not in the mood to have them casually in a playlist. But if from time to time I choose to listen to Face entirely (usually on a train ride), I don't skip them. I do the album entirely, beginning to an end (and skip Interlude: Dive).

[midnighteloquence]

eosinophils

this is a lot about body image and ill probably go extremely off topic at some point but whatever (i also talk about eds just warning)

a feeling ive realised is that in every point of my life i havent ever been truly satisfied with my body. when i was younger i was very skinny and im pretty sure i was underweight. and i always complained about how my ribcage would show etc. i got called a stick by some of my “friends” and i complained about that too. i hated being so thin and begged to be average weight. and when i weighed myself and found out i was average weight i was extremely happy.

for maybe a month, before getting really depressed. the way my depression works is that its rare i’ll be depressed in summer, but it’ll spike up at any other point of the year. for example, last year it was at its worst in spring. so when my depression decided to spike, my body dysmorphia formed again. (idk how to describe it other than that) i started fasting more often because i wasnt satisfied with my body. nobody could tell me otherwise that my body was fine because i didnt believe them.

then i think when my springtime depression cleared away i started convincing myself that i liked my body. and it sorta worked? like i didnt really care about comparing my body to others. but then it started to not work as well, and i started thinking things like “oh i love my body but her thighs are thinner than mine” and stuff like that.

sometimes i scroll on shblr for no reason in particular, and at some point early this year i went back to look at edblr. im not saying i have an ed rn because im not even sure what classifies as one, and if i have one. i calculated the calories my body would need every day to lose 1kg a week. but my problem is that even if ive never overpassed that limit i will still feel like im overeating?? so even if i can get pass a day without overeating, ill still skip meals just in case (ive been skipping lunch and giving a lot of my snacks to my friends so i dont waste food bcs i feel bad). and when i cant skip meals i go to the gym. and even if i have skipped meals ill still go so i can burn more calories and end my day with a very low calorie intake. a thing ive been doing recently is burning more calories that im intaking which probably isnt a good idea but i dont know any better

when i started doing this i told myself that id never go back to that place of my life again, but if im being real i think im even worse right now because if something like a drink is over 50 cal then ill simply not drink it. WHICH SHOULD BE FINE BECAUSE 50 CAL IS RLLY LOW. and idk who to talk to about this and i dont want to join a community because i myself dont believe this is an ed because idk what would define an ed.

a lot of people beforehand noted rhat i ate too much in school so now that ive stopped eating as much in front of them i wonder how they feel or if theyve even noticed

so in conclusion ive never been satisfied with my body, average or underweight. and everyone around me weighs less than me which i hate.

[madnessbymajority]

the plan.

Well to say this year has been an utter shit show would be an understatement. Not because anything in particular has happened but I’m just an utter mess, I’m clean from all substances barring nicotine (haven’t even smoked weed and that was my go to escape method for the better part of 15 years, dabbled in Coke and booze a while back but led to a suicide attempt so staying clear of them now too) I wanted to try and make a life in the same place I have lived most of my life but that’s just not possible anymore, I hate everybody around here, that’s including family members where we don’t even talk to each other and if we’re ever in the same room together it’s because somebody’s fucking died, friends(or lack of) funny how I was a go to person when I was loaded with vices but the minute I got clean none of you wanted to know, all of you are fucking scumbags and I want nothing to do with any of you, fucking cunts.

People are asking me who are still close to me, “Why are you working 60-70 hour weeks?” “Why are you always at work?” Why don’t you try to understand I am killing myself to get the fuck away from all of you! I hate every fucking one of you! Half of you couldn’t give a shit about me or what I’ve been through, all the attempts in this last year alone! Do you know how hard it is for somebody with my history to try and convince my dad that “The light fitting in my room lost a screw so now it’s hanging from the ceiling.” Knowing damn well he fitted that light and how much pressure that thing can take and how well it was screwed in before you took an extension cord and tried to hang yourself from that same fucking ceiling?!?!? , “oh don’t worry we will be there for you don’t worry about it, anytime you need it.” You fucking liars.

The amount of times I’ve gone to bed in tears and woke up in tears, the amount of times I’ve had to hide scars with long sleeves in the middle of fucking summer, the amount of times I’ve dropped my daughter back off at her mums and had to hold my self together because I miss my little girl! Stayed strong until I’ve drove round the corner and immediately broke down(I ain’t talking about the car) , because every time I give her that goodbye hug in my head I’m thinking “This could be for the last time” and having to reason with myself that if I was to do something that she would still have an amazing life without me in it, she has been the sunshine of my life while everything else has been a clouded storm. the amount of times I’ve rung Samaritans this year. The amount of times I’ve looked in the mirror and thought you will never be good enough. These all amount to multiple times this year, now for the last one, the amount of times Ive been helped, messaged about how I’m doing or just checked up on? Zero.

I’ve already accepted that if I’m not going to die, i need to get out of here, whether it’s far up north to Scotland or far down South to London I don’t care, I’ve got connections in both areas and would be exactly what I need, a fresh fucking start, I can forget about all the shit I’ve had to deal with here, reinvent myself, be who I actually want to be and not who everyone else wants me to be! I’ll still get to see my daughter and I will not have the fucking headache of having to deal with the same people who made me this sick in the first place. I’m either leaving this town in my car full of clothes and memories or I’m leaving this town in a coffin, either way whether it’s in a box or not, I’m fucking leaving.

[jaydenundercover11]

Day Fourteen Day Fifteen Day Sixteen

im SOOOOO SORRY that I left you guys hanging those two days! *cries* the first one I genuinely forget, and the second I was too busy to do it- and I think that this is not the first time this might happen, since the farm (oh yeah, if you're not one of my regular followers, you should know I'm a farmhand lol) is picking up steam, during my down time Im trying to do more physical rest for my body to recover. which means unfortuantely, Ive been spending less time on here in general, and that my longer posts that take more time to write have had to pause for a while.

so, I'm sorry to say but this is the last day i'll be able to do this for a while, but maybe forever. I've had so much fun with it and loved to see everybody's different answers, and how we've all connected!! but for at least a few days/weeks, I need a bit of a break lol. if anyone wants to pick up this game again, with the same list of people I've given already or different ones, you are more than welcome to! and I'm not leaving Tumblr, I'm just not going to do this particular ask game anymore.

our final question: what is something that you you want in your life, and what can you do to achieve it? what steps do you need to take to earn the life you see yourself living?

thank all of you so much! I hope to return again maybe sometime! I wish you all the best :)

I can't believe its ending omg - I've had so much fun with this series and I am so thankful that I ended up joining! Of course take all the break time you need Gracie, no rush from me! Anyways, here's my answer!

I honestly dont know what I wanna do with my life.. the question kinda scares me in a sense because I just dont know what i'd be good at or what i'd enjoy. There are the basic options that I kinda wanna do like being a doctor or scientist or smth like that but its just so complicated and i already pressure myself enough to stay "at the top" of my classes, so having to stay at the top on a harder train of classes seems impossible almost. And its also something that you HAVE to enjoy, because if your not good at it or not focused then that could be really bad.. Then I always have wanted to be an author, but i work so so hard in school trying to keep grades up and things like that to get into a good college - like harvard, but if i be an author then almost none of that matters. I mean yeah you can go to school for that but its not the same as if I was trying to get into harvard law, its just going to college for extra advice and learning you can use in your writing (i think i dont actually know..). And I have recently wanted to become a violinist, but a part of me just hates that idea. Like it scares me being on stage and performing for people (also why im not good at sports in a sense) and i feel like I have to be the best at the violin so its just.. yeah.

BUT, for the sake of this question, we'll say I wanted to become a violinist. First, I still do school but I focus a lot on my orchestra classes. I also sign up for things like chamber or honors orchestra to really step up music game. So i do that, and on the side or over summer I go to private lessons to keep my skills sharp. Then, I graduate and I go to a music school! For example we could say Juliard. I honestly dk what happens after that but I just practice violin a lot, learn new skills, and perform a lot too I guess!

However, some skills that can be used for all potential careers could be things like perseverance, practicing a lot on my skillset, no matter what it is. Also, time management is a huge thing to be able to manage all work and stuff. Mainly just soft skills i guess! (if u you dont know soft skills are just the skills you learn over time at jobs, so things like kindness, compassion, teamwork, etc)

And thats it! thank you so much for these amazing questions and have a great break from them/whatever else! 💕💕

[necromancer-nonbinary]

Ughhhhhhhh I have to figure out something to do this summer so I'm not stuck in a house with my parents 30 minutes from town in a state where I don't know anyone, but apparently the only place in Richmond to get a decent summer job in theatre is Virginia Rep, and I can't get an internship there because that's the place I had to leave two weeks early LAST summer because I was miserable and overstimulated for two months straight! And I doubt I can stay the summer at school doing research because I don't even know for sure what my capstone is going to be, but I don't think anything related to my ideas is going to require much in the way of research. The only two job listings I've found that interest me are either in Colorado 6 hours from where my parents are going to be (an ideal minimum distance from family but even more isolating than living in a house with just them, and also far from Richmond which I'd like to stay near, plus I can't tell how heavy the workload is or what the environment is like from the job posting) or doing haunted ghost tours at Colonial Williamsburg, which is wicked cool and pays like $15 an hour, but does not provide housing and is still further away than I'd like to be. AND there's no interesting summer classes I can take. This feels like a silly problem but here we are

[farsailing]

i really want to try and center my practice around goddesses, partially because as a sexual abuse survivor i often feel uncomfortable around men (despite my most recent assault being by an ex girlfriend) but also because i feel very guilty that (before i practiced, but still dearly loved greek myth) i lashed out a lot against Demeter and Hera in particular bc i was going through a lot of personal things and had a very strained relationship with my own mother so i kind of hated what they represented and i fell very much into the line of thinking of Hera as a vain, jealous wife to be scorned and Demeter as the antagonist in the story of Persephone

and i dont think that way at all now and i actually really. find comfort in Them, particularly in Demeter, and i want to idk. make amends

[gobstoppr]

a ramble about . having hand and wrist pain that all started hitting me at once .theres no real thesis i just have been thinking about shit . happy disability awareness month .

god for what, over 4months now , ive had chronic hand/wrist pain thats made it fucking frustrating as all hell to do . the things i want to do . i cant play games for hours at a time . i can barely draw for over 30 minutes at a time without a break (oftentimes i have to take breaks long before that point) . i cant scroll on my dash forever since even with the keyboard shortcuts it strains over time (sidenote but CHRIST can i just . but a bookmark on a point on my dash. i want to come back there later and scroll from there . iwant the site to stop lagging ). everything i do i have to consider how bad my bones will hurt from it and if i can do it, if its something i can adjust to make easier on my hands, if its something worth 'wasting' what i call my 'hand stamina' for the afternoon. like oh if i play video game then i wont be able to draw or do shit for like at least 30min .

ive gone to the doctors. ive gone to the tests . its not carpel tunnel they say ! thank you for clearing that option after 3.5 months of pain. now i get to do more trial and error tests to see what i have . ive finally gotten at least like. the orders to let me get physical therapy so hopefully that can help . just side note i fucking HATE decentralized medical care holy SHIT why cant this info just be fucking shared between u guys . i wait 2 weeks between getting to go into the doctor and say 'yea mate it still fucking hurts' so they can give me a different appointment 2 weeks later and so on . its so much fucking treading water . weve been over this bullshit . why do i have to wait 2 weeks to see the dr for 10 minutes and then figure out an appointment . i just fucking . god .

i have to go to college in a month . im not going to be better in a month . im definetly never reaching what was once 'normal' condition for a long time . its . its hard to think about that shit . i feel like ive been trapped ykno.

i remember . for about 3 months. starting in late september 2021. i was having an absolute fucking blast . i had spamton brainrot . i could pump out several small doodles a day, sometimes multiple cleaned up/colored sketches, every couple weeks i might make a fully finished piece . i could spend hours upon hours just. doing what i loved . drawing silly guy who i liked . seeing what the other people in my community were doing . art, creativity is a conversation to me. i see peoples works, i get inspired, i want to create, even if i don't have anything in particular to say at that moment . it doesnt matter i have no ideas for posing or anything . i wanted to create . and i created .

i could be in my element . have this conversation . this feedback loop of inspiration . a constant improvement to my own skills as i just enjoyed art how i enjoy art . i'm mad at myself for not taking more breaks. im mad at myself for not fucking stretching all these years . but i will never regret my time . it was worth every second . and even if im not always interacting with everyone i met thru that time, im forever thankful for getting to meet all of them .

this is sounding a bit mopey huh . ok some quick advice then for this sorta shit in general.

for one . yes i know its fucking hard . but please just stretch a lil sometimes . even just learning one or two u can do pretty consistently can help u get going . this page has alot of good ones.

two . get yourself a good dumbass friend to watch stupid cartoons with you . yes im serious . if it were not for having my sister this summer to watch anime for children i would have gone insane with boredom whenever my hands hurty so i cant do shit . find yourself some bullshit to binge and laugh at . highly recommend the yokai watch dub of seasons 1+2 . good head empty but very entertaining shit . incredible for passing the time

three . find shortcuts for doing smaller straining tasks udont really think about . for example, theres the more prominant things like using keyboard shortcuts to navigate ur dash, but then theres stuff like realizing . oh trying to cut my sandwich with a knife is a kinda weird strain and because the bread is so soft its hard to cut super easily . so now i just . tear my pb+j up with my hands to cut it . jsut rip it . its not fucking worth the nonsense

yeah ok i think im out of things to say for now but yea. fucking hands huh . take care of yourselves gamers . i apologize if this is a bit gloomy

[itsclydebitches]

Hi Clyde 👋🏻 So Ive been watching as your response posts come thru about RWBY and you obviously know alot about it. As someone who knows nothing at all about it, I was wondering if you could explain it to me. Supernatural I get. Jupiter Ascending I get. Even that Jar Jar Binks post floating around Tumblr (if you havent seen it yet, it’s probably a good thing) I get, but RWBY im still sort of having trouble getting up the interest to watch. Is it worth it?

Hello! I'm definitely answering asks in a timely fashion. Watch me go! 😅

Ah, is RWBY worth it. That there is the million dollar question. Not to give a copout answer, but I really think it depends on what you're looking to get out of the show. Our beloved JA and SPN are great comparisons because they're both extremes too. They're doing something really interesting that succeeds in captivating its audience... and then, arguably, faceplant when it comes to a lot of basic writing expectations. SPN far more-so than JA imo, just due to being a 15 season show vs. a 2 hour movie. Though not quite of the same caliber, RWBY has a lot of the same whimsy and creativity. A sort of, "Go with the flow not because it necessarily makes sense, but because it's fun." Or, as the RWBY fandom puts it, everything follows the "Rule of Cool." If you like JA's awkwardly delivered "I love dogs" you may also like the awkwardness of Ruby eating cookies by having them disappear when they approach her face. The self-awareness that RWBY had in the beginning — we're a low budget webseries created for the fun of it with lots of ridiculous gags and flashy action — feels, to me, similar to the self-awareness of JA: "We're a film that's going to take a 13yo girl's fantasies very seriously, right up through getting an angel-wolf-alien as a boyfriend." There's even a lot to be said for RWBY's similar motivations: a girl power story, a focus on the action (with Monty's fantastic choreography), meant to be progressive in particular ways, etc.

Personally, I really love the first three Volumes of RWBY. They're ridiculous, badly animated at times, and mishandle a racism allegory like whoa... but they've got a lot of heart. They're fun. They're enjoyable in that "Turn your brain off" manner. The basic premise is that a girl with silver eyes gets into a Huntsmen Academy two years early — a school that trains young adults to battle the monsters that populate their world. She's set up as the pure hearted hero with the mysterious power via her eye color. She gains a team of three other girls who must learn to work together as they navigate school and a coming war. Everyone has crazy outfits, crazier weapons, and at one point there's an epic food fight battle that I've watched on Youtube too many times. It's playful and has just enough worldbuilding to spark the imagination; just enough solid characterization to get you to fall in love with the cast. If it were the summer of 2016 I'd recommend RWBY wholeheartedly as the webseries equivalent of a beach read.

The problem is that things #happened at the end of Volume 3. No spoilers, but suffice to say things got intense during that finale, thrusting the show into a very different era. Suddenly, the show wanted to take itself seriously in a way it never had before... so many in the fandom, such as myself, started taking it more seriously too. We had higher expectations for the show since the show itself was egging those expectations on, tackling sensitive material and talking up the impact of their work. Yet, sadly, these expectations weren't met, with the problems becoming more pronounced with each new Volume. The retconning added up. Certain characters were done dirty. The allegories got really offensive. RWBY's idea of feminism became warped. We've got a ship that many consider queerbaiting at this point. Morals are all over the place and there's no longer a consistent message to the show... it's a lot. The sort of "It's a lot" that we might say about SPN too. Fans are right to point out the laundry list of bad writing choices and offensive content strewn across SPN's 15 seasons. Fans are also right to point out the many aspects that kept its audience hooked despite all that. Same with RWBY. Me? I think RWBY is a very badly written show now... but I enjoyed it enough, for long enough, that I'm still invested enough to see it through. Meanwhile, others don't see anything wrong with the writing at all. They've hailed the last two Volumes as the best to date, with even better work to come. There's a pretty intense split between those who critique the show and those who insist on its near perfection.

So I suppose I'd recommend it, just because I'm not confident in giving a definitive "Lol yeah this is trash" condemnation. Not just because there were things I did (and at times still do) love about RWBY, but because my interpretation, quite obviously, is subjective. I can't ignore that those of us who critique the show are the minority. So statistically, if RWBY ends up being your thing, you're probably more likely to enjoy all that the show has produced thus far — within reason — than you are to have a falling out with it. I think overall there's enough good in RWBY to give it a shot, especially when, depending on how you approach your shows, that good might still be there for you 8 Volumes later. Just go in knowing that, if you enjoy the first 3 Volumes, you might be severely disappointed down the line.

The other upside though? The initial episodes are very short! So you can try a couple out without giving RWBY too much of a time investment.

(Also, side note, but WHAT Jar Jar Binks post?? Oh god I'm scared lol)

[ficcrimes]

junctures

Fandom: Helluva Boss Characters: Blitzo, Stolas; mentions of Stella, Octavia, Moxxie, Millie and Loona Ship: Stolas/Blitzo A/N: this is my piece for the Stolitz zine, Seasons, over on twitter! My bit’s finally been released, so I can publish this here now!  Summary: To everything, there is a season. 

——————————————————————————

i. summer

It was supposed to be a one night stand, and nothing more than that.

When presented with the opportunity to get his hands on that one particular grimoire, Blitzo didn’t think twice about worming his way into the Geotian Prince’s bed. What was one hot night with an ancient, entitled demon? Of course, he hadn’t stopped to question just why it had all happened the way it had, either. Whatever made Stolas not only agree to but pursue this whole lewd affair was really none of Blitzo’s business. Maybe he had a thing for imps, or some sort of weird, classist fetish. It really didn’t matter. At a glance, and that was all Blitzo had allowed himself to take when it all started, it seemed simple enough.

But it didn’t quite turn out that way, did it?

What started as something that had been meant to be short and sweet and fleeting turned into much more than Blitzo had bargained for. It’s nothing he can’t handle, of course, but Stolas calls on him frequently and comes on incredibly strong. It’s a little jarring, to say the least, but Blitzo can’t bring himself to outright turn the advances away.

He needs the book, after all. And, all things considered, this isn’t the worst possible thing he could have been doing to keep it. This is what he tells himself, anyway.

It has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that, for all the fuss he puts up whenever Stolas calls, at least Stolas makes him feel… something. Wanted. Needed. Even if it’s only physically. Even if it’s only temporary.

But then Stolas makes the once-a-month arrangement with him, and an already hazy situation becomes a little hotter and a little heavier. Their meetings are no longer quick and to the point. Suddenly Stolas wants to have fun with it; he incorporates games and costumes and silly little things into the affair that Blitzo’s not above or below doing. He’s a performer, after all - and at least Stolas seems to be enjoying the act.

He spends the night and wakes up in Stolas’ bed more times than he’d like to admit. Most of the time, he’ll leave before Stolas wakes up. But there are some days when he wakes up to Stolas propped up and leaning over him, all four of his red eyes heavy-lidded and bleary with something Blitzo pretends isn’t there.

He also pretends the rush of heat that surges up his spine isn’t there, and that it doesn’t count for anything.

As sleazy as it all is, it’s a good business deal and he wants to milk it for all it’s worth while it lasts - because he’s sure that it won’t. Nothing that burns this hot for too long is meant to last.

ii. fall

There is something so incredibly and unconventionally charming about the little imp.

It’s not every day someone like Stolas came across someone like Blitzo, and he’d been intrigued almost immediately by him. He was crass and rude and didn’t seem to think twice before speaking whatever happened to be on his mind in the moment, and Stolas found himself liking that more than he should have.

So, when Blitzo made his interest in the grimoire known, and it was evident all he had to offer in exchange for it was his own body, Stolas didn’t put up much of a fight or fuss. He knew he shouldn’t have been traipsing about behind Stella’s back and closed doors, but the supposed-one-night-stand promised to be the most exciting thing he’d experienced in a long, long while.

That first night with Blitzo had been unlike anything Stolas had ever had before, with his wife or otherwise. The sheer amount of skill the little creature had was surprising, and the way Stolas’ body had ached for him after he’d gone spoke in volumes.

Maybe it’s not in his best interest, or even in good taste, to start calling on Blitzo whenever he feels himself craving what only the imp can give him. And maybe he should learn how to properly manage and articulate the desperate desires he feels, instead of going off on long, unfiltered, filthy rants.

But Blitzo never explicitly tells him to stop, and so he doesn’t.

There’s a part of Stolas that understands Blitzo seems to merely put up with these antics so he can continue to use the book, and that’s alright. For a while, anyway. The more Stolas finds himself thinking about that, the more he can feel something creeping up on him, slow and steady. The ache he feels for Blitzo starts to change, and it’s not just his body that needs him.

He doesn’t really notice at first, continues to mistake the desperate need for the imp’s attention as something carnal and older than even himself. How silly to think his entire foundation could be shaken after so, so long, and by such a small and silly creature. And yet, eventually he catches himself drawing silly little caricatures on important papers of the two of them. Or he finds himself staring longingly at his phone when he can’t seem to get a hold of Blitzo.

By the time he’s suggesting they make their meetings a little more frequent and planned, Stolas realizes he’s in over his head. Or, perhaps he’s just head over heels. There’s really no difference here.

The whole situation is a little messier and more complicated than he would have liked it to be, but Stolas tells himself it will be worth it in the end. Until then, though, even if it’s only once a month, he feels like his walls can come down and he can be himself while Blitzo shares his bed.

He doesn’t mind when he wakes up to find the imp’s already left him. He understands. But it’s when he wakes up to find Blitzo still in bed beside him that makes his heart swell with something unspeakable.

He thinks, if things were just a little different, he could have this feeling always.

But Blitzo always leaves, and Stolas is always left with the weight of this feeling that’s too big for either of them.

iii. winter

Blitzo is right in thinking that things couldn’t stay so simple forever.

An already complicated situation gets that much worse when things like feelings and wives and daughters get caught up in the mix.

When Stolas calls him up out of the blue one day and says, very quietly, very seriously, that they “need to talk,” Blitzo almost wishes it had been one of his usual calls. Something cold and dreadful shoots up his spine by the time the call ends, and he’s already preparing himself for the worst. His mind is already racing, torn between coming up with some other lucrative back up plan and trying to persuade Stolas not to do this.

However he chooses to define ‘this’ in the moment, he doesn’t spend too much time thinking about it.

Stolas is quiet as Blitzo lets himself into his office space, book tucked under one arm. There’s no coy smile tugging at his beak.

Blitzo knows, and so he drops the book onto the desk that separates them. “I figured it’d only be a matter of time before you called this shit off,” he says through a sneer.

Stolas winces, and draws the book just a little closer to himself, fingering the crescent moon. He can’t bring himself to make eye contact.

“It’s not - You wouldn’t understand,” he sighs quietly.

“Oh, you’d think so, huh?” Blitzo replies, because he understands more than Stolas thinks. Stolas doesn’t know anything he doesn’t want him to know - and maybe this is happening because of that. Maybe if he’d been just a little less guarded and a little more obvious, things could have been different.

However… None of that would have changed the fact Stolas was a Prince, with a wife and child. And Blitzo understands that, too.

“No, no. I get it,” Blitzo starts, and waves Stolas off with one hand. “You got your weird royal bird shit to do, and fucking an imp on the side’s getting in the way.”

Stolas wants to say something else, Blitzo can see it in his eyes when all four finally meet his, but what actually comes out of his mouth is a quiet, “...that’s one way of putting it, I suppose.”

“Yeah, yeah. Quit looking like some sort of kicked hellpup. It’s not like you’re losing anything by taking the book back.” Blitzo almost regrets those words the moment they leave his mouth, but decides maybe they’re for the best. If Stolas is angry instead of just sad, it will make this easier.

But Stolas doesn’t get angry; he just looks all the more hurt. He sighs and steels himself. “I’ll see what I can do about loaning you my grimoire in the future, Blitz,” he says, “but for now, I can’t allow it.”

Hearing Stolas call him by his name instead of ‘Blitzy’ is what turns that cold trickle into a flash flood of ice. Something cold and hollow fills him, and Blitzo wishes it didn’t sting the way that it does, wishes he could feel anger instead of this.

“Sure thing, Your Highness,” Blitzo mumbles back, flipping Stolas off with one shaking hand. “If that’s all you got me penned in for today, I’ll see myself the fuck out. Thanks.”

Blitzo slams the office door on his way out, and Stolas can hear Stella screaming after him as he leaves. It’s only a small relief to hear Octavia chime in, telling her mother to leave him alone.

“At least he’s leaving,” Stolas hears her say, and he wishes she were just that little bit older so she’d understand this situation better. He had ever slept with Blitzo because he didn’t love her, but because he’d long since fallen out of love with her mother - but a royal marriage was not so easily left behind.

He sinks back in his seat and sighs heavily, pinching the bridge between his eyes. His heart no longer feels airy and light; instead it feels heavy, like it’s sinking into the pit of himself and weighing him down.

iv. spring

It’s weeks later and well into a work day when Blitzo emerges from his office. The first thing he notices is that his employees all seem to have disappeared, though he doesn’t have much time to wonder about that. His foot catches on something, and he stumbles forward, barely catching himself on a nearby desk. He twists around to look at the offending object that he knows should not be there, and sees that it’s a package of some sort. Brown paper-wrapped and addressed to him, and distinctly book-shaped.

He groans inwardly and hefts it up, the weight familiar, and the scent clinging to the wrapping even more so. Not that the break had been clean, but of course Stolas would have to go and try and make things complicated.

He doesn’t know if Stolas dropped it off personally or had it specially delivered, but he understands why the others left when it got there. Had he been in their shoes, he probably wouldn’t have wanted to risk it, either.

There’s no call or warning before he shows up at Stolas’ mansion, book in tow. He doesn’t use the front door, because he knows other, quicker ways to get to Stolas personally. And, surprisingly, none of those ways have been deterred or altered. It’s almost like Stolas had hoped he wouldn’t actually stay away.

It doesn’t take him very long at all to find Stolas, in his bedroom and lounging about as though he hadn’t just tried to lay some sort of intricate trap. It says something that the Prince’s surprise is entirely feigned, and there’s a grin tugging at his beak as Blitzo kicks the bedroom door shut.

“Ooh, what a surprise~” he coos, and Blitzo rolls his eyes.

“Cut the crap,” Blitzo mutters, dropping the book heavily onto the bed.

Stolas smiles and shrugs his shoulders. The robe he’s wearing slips from one lithe shoulder, and he doesn’t bother to adjust it. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. That,” he gestures to the book, “is just a gift. Circumstance aside, I’d hate to see your business fail.”

Blitzo snorts and grins in a way that shows his teeth. “Don’t you worry about I.M.P. We’re doing just fine without your borrowed little magic tricks.”

For just a moment, Stolas seems to falter, frustrated - not with Blitzo, but the situation itself.

“You really couldn’t think of any other way to get my attention, besides throwing me your scraps?” Blitzo presses on, crossing his arms over his chest, one brow raised.

“I didn’t think you’d return a call, or want to see me,” Stolas admits, and makes a vague gesture to the mansion. “And inviting you back here seemed… uncouth, at the very least.”

“Never stopped you before, did it?” But now Blitzo’s grin seems a little less antagonistic, a little more playful.

Stolas lets out an airy, half-laugh. “You’re not wrong.” He finally adjusts the shoulder of his robe, and rubs a hand against the back of his neck. “I’ve just spent a lot of time thinking about… Well, us. And I was thinking that, maybe we could… I mean, to start, we never should have - but…”

He sighs, and offers Blitzo a weak smile.

“I’ve missed you, Blitzy.”

It’s short and sweet and simple - just like this whole mess should have been from the start. But it’s not, and it never will be, because those three words and that sickeningly sweet rendition of his name coming out of that horrid bird’s mouth send that familiar warm rush right through Blitzo’s entire body.

“I see what you’re doing,” Blitzo says quickly, narrowing his eyes.

Stolas chuckles, shrugging. “I’d like to try again. Only no strings attached this time.” To make his point, he raises one hand and urges the grimoire over to himself, letting it hover between the two of them. “You’d be free to use this whenever you like, and though I would greatly appreciate your… company, there’s no need for a strict schedule.”

Blitzo eyes the book for a moment, and then shoves the magically aloft object aside. “And what about your ball and chain? You sure you wanna put up with her conniption fits?”

“You let me worry about Stella,” Stolas waves the thought aside. “A very serious discussion is long overdue, anyway.”

“And your kid?”

“Via will be okay. She’s young, but getting old enough to understand, I think.”

Blitzo looks the owl demon up and down, then shrugs a little himself. “Not the freshest start of the ages, but I’ll take it.”

Stolas smiles and breathes a sigh of obvious relief. “I’m glad,” he says quietly and moves closer. He lets one hand wander admiringly over one of Blitzo’s horns - and, for the imp’s sake, pretends he doesn’t notice the way he leans in to the touch.

“I have to wonder, though,” Stolas says after a moment, before the quiet becomes too much too soon, idly stroking the inner curvature of the horn, “how did you manage to keep I.M.P afloat without my grimoire?”

Blitzo leans away from the taller demon, and he grins again, wide and sharp. “I copied the spells out of it ages ago,” he admits, shrugging one shoulder. “Just in case this whole shebang went down the shitter.”

Stolas stares at him, a grin of his own tugging at his beak. “Oh, you clever little thing,” he muses, reaching out and taking Blitzo’s face into his hands. One thumb moves gently over where white meets red.

Blitzo has a nasty habit of speaking before he thinks, and Stolas has to wonder if he realizes what he’s admitted to. If he’d had the pages copied this whole time, either he’s a very dedicated actor and didn’t want to tip Stolas off - or, perhaps, it was all just a very convoluted excuse to keep coming back.

A blush starts to bruise the bridge of Blitzo’s nose. Stolas smiles.

“And here I thought you’d needed the book,” he says. “How silly of me.”

[cunaeparker]

the underdog | peter parker x reader

Pairing: Peter Parker x Fem!Reader

Summary: Peter’s feeling grateful for his friends during the graduation dance, his best friend decides to go out clubbing, and a particular bouncer gets on Peter’s nerves too much for his liking 

Word Count: 6.8k

Warning(s): Sexual content, alcohol

Mini Playlist: The Underdog by Spoon // I Got You Babe by Sonny and Cher // No Rain by Blind Melon

this is more smut and best friends to lovers :)) tis cute and i hope yall enjoy!! also sorry if my portrayal of clubs is inaccurate i haven’t been to one yet. ALSO i couldn’t help the eminem reference in here too i had to do it — apologies for not getting more stuff out ive been in a kind of weird place lately but im trying to force myself to write again :)

masterlist // peter parker masterlist

Peter Parker had this kind of infuriating habit of being drawn to danger at the most inconvenient of times.

Balancing Avenger duties and school duties simultaneously had worked out pretty well in the past because he could get by with daily after-school patrols and nightly cramming that made his head hurt, but it worked and was routine; his school and patrol schedule was well-thought out and structured because if he didn't organize his daily rituals he would be a complete mess and he knew that as well as any other person.

Peter's elaborate system had worked through freshman year and seemed to be working quite well until he had started sophomore year with a more energized pep in his step and a thirst for community wellbeing — fifteen, slightly irresponsible and reckless yet impeccable in the street-smarts department, ready to quench his thirst for answers and follow in his mighty mentor's footsteps.

Tony Stark was his role model, and even in saying so was an extreme understatement. Peter longed to be like him and he strived to show attitude likewise, because God, Tony was smart and cunning and able to work his way out of things, and if that wasn't the complete opposite of Peter he wouldn't know what was.

Sophomore year was fine, save for a few nasty interruptions by one Adrian Toomes and a concussion.

But the time in between? It was awful.

After getting dusted by Thanos and returning five years later, the universe's war declared its long lasting effects on him. Sixteen year old Peter Parker was traumatized. Traumatized to the bone and with every centimetre of his being. Especially after basking in the depressing grey wasteland that was Tony Stark's grave.

But, Peter persisted as much as he could, and in going back to school to begin his junior year with Ned, he decided that high school was not so bad after all. Things were flowing nicely and through his trauma plagued him and infected his dreams, he really tried to keep going with every ounce of willpower he had. And with the looming thought of their trip to Europe — which burnt a permanent halo of joy onto Peter's head — he was absolutely elated.

Until Nick fury hijacked his summer vacation and made him fight for something against unwillingly, of course. The trauma that followed that wasn't easy either.

But, where he was now, dancing and laughing amongst his closest friends and continuously offering his best friend his most dazzling smiles as she threw her head back in laughter, feeling nothing other than pure release and the joy of persisting, Peter knew all of his pain was worth it. He persisted and fought and now here he was, dancing euphorically with his friends at the graduation dance, feet pounding into the gym floor with purpose and vibrating throughout the entire gymnasium — reminding him with the collective shrieks of song lyrics and jokes that he made it.

Peter Parker was at the end of his high school career and though the majority of it was awful, he pushed through and deserved the outcome.

He deserved it.

Pete surveyed the room with a wide smile, hands flying freely above his head as he moved his hips to Fergalicious by Fergie, singing along to the lyrics he knew by heart — feeling such a large surge of love for friends that he felt as though his heart was stuffed so full it would burst.

Michelle was standing still though a small smile ghosted her lips as she rocked up and down slightly on the balls of her feet, regarding the group lovingly in the most MJ-like way — stoicism and silence.

Ned was panting and gasping as he jumped with vigour, sweat beading his forehead underneath the strobe lights, and Betty was swaying rhythmically beside him as she peered at him with the utmost admiration.

Flash — even though they didn't really know how he got there — was pursing his lips in concentration as he focused on his dance moves, pumping his arms beside him as he bent his knees in tune to the music. It was more of a contemporary twist as opposed to the free arm waving thing the majority of the graduating class was doing but Flash was doing his thing and Peter was eating it up with kind-hearted amusement.

But, Y/N... God, good and kind and undoubtedly sarcastic Y/N — she was entrancing in the most effortless way possible. Her head was thrown back in genuine laughter, eyes crinkling and nose wrinkling cutely at something quippy MJ had said that had her knees folding. Her eyes glimmered happily from underneath the strobe lights, showcasing the flecks of colour within them; defined cheekbones lightly dusted with freckles seeming to change colour to the neon illuminating the gym. Her hair that had been styled in nice loose waves before the function had fallen out due to her erratic jumping, now spilling over her lean shoulders in messy frizzy tangles that had Peter longing to thread his fingers through. Y/N's long eyelashes brushed the tops of her eyebrows and her lips were curled up into a smile as she busied herself with conversation with Ned and Betty, jawline and ear piercings shining in the lights.

And as she talked animatedly, hands flying in the air and almost whacking Ned in the chin, Peter remembered with a swell of admiration that they had come all this way together, and had endured the same amount of pain and loss.

They were fighters together and he couldn't have asked for a better group of people.

His eyes flit towards Y/N, ignoring the way his heart started to speed up when he noticed how well her formal dress hugged her figure. That odd occurrence had been happening a lot lately, and he wasn't quite sure as to why — but he usually brushed it off as soon as the thought popped up.

Peter walked over to her and nudged her lightly on the shoulder.

She turned around with an expectant smile, expecting it to be Betty or something along those lines, but her glossed lips tugged upwards into a fully genuine one once she saw Peter standing there with his hands in his pockets.

"Hey!" she said happily while perking up, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "What's up?"

"Not much, not much..." Peter trailed off, continuing to smile as he bounced lightly up and down in time with the music, which was now playing — is that Piano Man? — waving his hands in the air and swaying his hips like before. "This is a cool dance. Didn't expect Meej to actually move."

Y/N snorted. "Yeah." She wiped at her perspiring forehead with the back of her hand and smirked. "You know, I've never really seen you dance like this before. Only once when you and Ned opened Stark's old Playboy mags."

Peter gave her a scolding look. "Compulsive lying is a disorder."

Her lips twitched upwards into a grin and she peered over the rim of her Solo cup. "So is being manipulative, Peter Parker."

He paused for a moment, mouth open and aimed to fire a predisposed retort, before he realized he couldn't come up with anything. He sighed. "Touché. Touché."

"That's right, don't try that shit with me," she joked, taking another sip from her drink. As she drank, her defined throat contracted and tensed with every swallow — making Peter's heart beat a little faster as he observed her neck, skin begging to be marked as she — what? No. No no no.

Peter wrinkled his nose.

Not happening.

But, luckily, Y/N didn't notice.

"Did you bring your fake?"

Wait... maybe she did notice, because Peter had never been good at hiding things, his face was too expressive and always gave things away — like how MJ had found out his most closely guarded secret without any input from him — but, maybe, Michelle was making him paranoid. Her constant observing and analyzing had made him more aware. Yes, that's what it was; MJ had made him paranoid —

"Peter?"

"Yes?" he responded quickly, "What is it?"

He mentally cursed for being so awkward and putting a damper on his mood. Thanks to his overactive and whirring brain, he now had a whole new set of things to worry about.

Y/N raised an eyebrow. "You zoned out for a minute there, Pete. You okay?"

No because his heart was now hammering inside his ribcage and his eyes were fluttering as he tried to focus intently on the girl standing in front of him, palms starting to get clammy as he stretched his hands —

"Peter!"

He whipped his head up, eyes wide. "What?"

"Did you hear what I said?"

"...no."

Y/N peered at him incredulously. "Did you take shrooms before this?"

Peter frowned and opened his mouth to protest but she cut him off with a wave of her hand.

"I know for a fact Flash did," she continued, which explained the weird dancing from earlier, "and he said that the strobe lights will make him have a good trip, but you're being..." she paused and glanced at him warily. "You're being weird, Pete."

"No, I'm not," he protested, still sweating nervously. "You're being weird."

Y/N stared at him.

A small silence passed, and God, how Peter hated tense silence — all of his stammerings and reveals-of-secrets took place in wired silence and he nearly caved. He hated it hated it hated it —

"Okay," said Y/N suddenly, eyes unphased. She sauntered closer to stand by his side, seemingly fine. "I definitely don't believe that you didn't do drugs —"

There it is —

"—but I am going to repeat myself again. Can you hear me?"

"I'm not deaf."

"I have no other reason but to assume that you are, Parker." She raised an eyebrow. "Don't be coy with me."

Ah, there we go. Typical — always demanding respect.

"Got it, Sergeant," said Peter, saluting. He stood up straighter and his lips quivered, trying to hold back the twitching of his mouth into a grin. "Don't make me do push-ups, Y/N. Please. My body is too weak from yesterday's work —"

Y/N propelled herself forward with a random burst of strength and slammed her shoulder into his.

Peter gaped. "Hey!"

"Listen!"

Peter glared at her grudgingly and staggered backwards. Y/N looked small and petite, but with the amount of training they did together — she could pack quite the punch. His enhanced body would undoubtedly be adorned in some kind of purple bruise tomorrow.

"God, I'm listening," he grumbled, rubbing his tricep gingerly. "You have really bony shoulders."

"My best feature," she smirked. "Now — did you bring your fake?" she repeated.

Who knew such a simple question could diffuse such a tense moment?

Peter grinned.

They had a plan — a very well-thought out, elaborate plan, because Y/N's eighteenth birthday had coincidentally fallen on the same date as the dance and since Peter had turned eighteen the August following the Europe vacation, he promised not to go out or do any felony-like things (ironically) without her. She wanted to join in his fun because he was the oldest in the group whereas she was the youngest — hence her reluctance on him taking tab earlier with Eugene.

Y/N and Peter definitely had some certain... moments throughout their high school careers — okay, more like multiple moments all piled collectively into senior year — that involved alcohol or drugs or whatever other miscalleneous items the underages teenagers could get their filthy hands on.

There was one the time Y/N had so many shots Peter had to physically drag her back to his apartment via train and be interrogated intensely by May.

They had experience and knew not to walk blindly into a club filled with horny college students and intimidating bouncers, but after all, they were excited.

(And Y/N knew that Peter would be internally crying at the bouncer encounter but he had become better at hiding it over the years.)

"Y/N," Peter sighed, giving her a look. Pulling her close, he wrapped an arm flush around her waist, giving her a reassuring smile. "Of course I brought my fake," he chuckled, "We've been planning this for ages. Who do you think I am? Flash?"

Y/N raised an eyebrow. She stifled a laugh and reached forward, tucking an unruly strand of curl behind Peter's ear.

"I mean... there are some resemblances."

Peter sucked in a breath and winced. "Okay. Low blow."

"I only speak the truth," she winked.

"And that's the truth?"

She hummed. "Definitely."

Adjusting her stance and resting her forearms on Peter's lean shoulders, Y/N snaked her nimble fingers back behind his neck and unconsciously began to untangle the small ringlets of chocolate curl that seemed to fall right below the nape. Peter placed his hands on her waist and offered her a dazzling smile, fingers gently kneading the exposed skin on her hips.

They were gazing admirably at each other, stuck in their own content subspace and not even knowing it.

Swaying slowly back and forth to "No Rain" by Blind Melon, which seemed to be the graduation class' theme song, they fell into a rhythm that wasn't really ballroom dancing because they were both awful at dancing (and are just lucky that no toes were broken during the mandatory dance unit hence being each other's partner), just a nice, easy flow that definitely had some jumping in there — a lot more upbeat compared to ballroom dancing. The song was fun. A throwback.

Y/N smiled.

Gazing up at Peter, giving him time to notice how well the neon strobe lights complemented her freckles, she bit her lip and looked conflicted for a moment; all before nuzzling her head into the crook of his neck and closing her eyes. She inhaled deeply.

"I love you, Pete," she whispered, pulling away.

Peter closed his eyes and rested his head on top of hers.

He wasn't phased. They said it to each other a lot and he knew she meant it every time.

"I know," Peter said softly, lips quirking up into a smile, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "I love you too."

And that's what it was — platonic.

Genuine.

-

-

-

The bouncer squinted suspiciously, raising an unconvinced eyebrow.

"You're twenty one?"

"Y-Yes, sir."

His gaze was scrutinizing and Peter almost disintegrated.

After the dance finished, everyone went their separate ways. Ned and Betty went to Ned's house, Flash went with a group of varsity football players to smoke in the parking lot, MJ went with another friend of hers, Cindy — she was a lovely Korean girl with beautiful long hair and eyes everyone envied — to her house. Admittedly, there was a running joke in the friend group that she and Cindy might be something more, but when it was brought up, MJ's glare was so penetrating Y/N claimed it punctured her soul.

It was never brought up again.

But now, Peter's knees felt weak and his arms were heavy, and he was convinced he had a stain of some sort on his nice sweater that smelled suspiciously of spaghetti.

He smiled weakly and swore he could hear Y/N snicker from beside him.

The bouncer gave him one more suspicious look, eyes going over him a few more times before deciding it was enough. He sighed and handed Peter's card back to him.

"Have a good night, Mr. Parker," he said tiredly, glancing down to look at something he wrote on his hand with blue pen. Peter found it amusing, though he understood — he was smart, not far off from prodigious, but his memory? It was atrocious. "There's a new DJ and drinks are 50% off if you have your student ID with you," the bouncer read off his palm, eyes flitting boredly up to Peter before raising an eyebrow, "and I'm assuming you do?"

Peter nodded quickly. "Y-Yes sir."

He dug through his pockets with intentions of digging it out, but with a nervous start and a hard kick to this shins from Y/N he realized it was nonexistent. The stupid ID didn't exist. His heart stopped, and his brain started whirring so fast he swore he got whiplash — how could he get himself in this situation? How could he be so stupid? How did he convince himself, for some strange reason, that he had a student ID?

Peter's mouth went dry.

"Uh, I don't have it on me," he stammered, shoving his hands in his jean pockets and coughing awkwardly. "S-Sorry."

The bouncer looked him up and down again, increasingly growing more agitated. His bushy eyebrows furrowed into a confused line.

"Kid," he said in a grumbling voice, rubbing at his temple, "I don't need to check your student ID. I already checked your regular one."

Peter heard a whisper of, "Idiot," come from Y/N's glossy lips, but he ignored it and plastered on a tight smile.

"My apologies," he said, stretching out his hands anxiously and bobbing on his feet. "Sorry."

The bouncer sighed and looked as if he was contemplating asking to see the nonexistent card, but he brushed off the thought with a shake of his head.

"It's alright," he said finally, offering Peter another taut smile that was miraculously more fake than his. "Go on in."

Peter nodded. "Thanks, but —"

"Have a good night!" Y/N spoke with a wide smile, grabbing Peter by the shoulders and ushering him inside. "Don't get too crazy out here, er," her eyes glanced down to his nametag, "Josh!"

The bouncer — now known as Josh — perked up.

"You too, Y/N!" he said, though behind his eyes were remnants of something Peter noticed and couldn't put his finger on... it made him uneasy and he tried tugging out of Y/N's grip, but she made an odd hissing sound and dug her nails into his shoulder, eyes widening threateningly.

"If you fuck this up I will murder you," she hissed. "We got this far, the least you can do is —"

"Shut up. I'm trying to see why that guy's looking at you weird," Peter responded sharply, voice hushed, looking over his shoulder to shoot the exasperated girl a look. Y/N looked affronted, but she scoffed and let him go, pursing her lips and jutting out a hip.

"Thanks," Peter breathed, turning around to look at the bounce. He noticed his head duck down and tilt sideways, eyes focused on a spot oddly close to Y/N's bum, lip getting tucked in between his teeth as if the sight was the most attractive... Peter frowned, watching Josh's head follow the exasperated sway of her hips, but only before he noticed just what he was doing —

Peter saw red and his vision tunnelled.

Joshua was looking up his best friend's dress.

His dark brown eyes were following the sway of her hips and peering deeply into the thin fabric, no doubt getting hard based on the way her tight-fitting lace underwear pressed against the sheer white fabric.

It wasn't noticeable, only if you looked, and the only reason why Peter knew it was there was because she put on a little fashion show for him in the family washroom before they arrived at the club via Metro, claiming she bought it for this special event in case she got lucky. In the moment, she didn't notice the red that blossomed up his cheeks because she was too busy checking the fit of it around the curve of her bum, but it reminded him that they had come so far. It made him feel better because they established a relationship where she and he both felt comfortable enough to walk around in their undergarments without judgement, but Joshua was intruding on that special bond by tainting it with wandering eyes that had no right to be there —

Peter's blood suddenly pumped faster and he heard it in his ears.

A body that didn't feel like his pushed him forward and he succumbed to the unknown feeling — pure rage — by having his lips curl into a disgusted scowl and his fist pulling back, ready to surge forward and hit the bastard that had the audacity to look at his best friend like that —

"Don't you fucking dare," a voice said with venom, grabbing his wound up wrist. The grip was firm, grounding his enraged mind, and her voice — the most familiar voice he had ever heard — was dripping with frustration and aggravation though it trembled slightly with unease. "Don't fight the fucking bouncer. Please."

Peter's mouth fell unhinged.

"What —?" he asked with disbelief,  whipping his head around and looking at her with a look that could only be described as incredulity and disgust. "Y/N, he was looking up your dress!"

"Peter, I don't care," she said with a raspy laugh, though her eyes were narrowed and her grip tightened. "I'm used to it." She laughed again but now her eyes were pleading. "Don't fight anyone. Please. At least wait until you're drunk —"

"This has happened multiple times?" he spluttered, eyes wide and anger clouding his vision now because whoever had the audacity to look at his girl in a way as vile and degrading as that deserved to rot in a jail cell —

"You're blocking the entrance! Fucking move!"

A loud yell of agreement issued from the college students waiting in line.

Y/N scoffed and gave Peter a restless look, ripping her hand from his.

"If you swing a punch at him I will spike your drink with fentanyl," she threatened. "We're going inside and we are going to get blackout."

Peter hesitated before agreeing, rolling his eyes and before finally giving into her tugging grip (refraining from spinning around and yelling at the college kids who yelled victoriously as soon as they clambered on inside).

But, as soon as he stepped foot inside the club, his breath was taken from him and all angry thoughts and feelings dissipated, leaving only one thing — a Peter who regained his genuineness and lost the facade of rage, ready to get smashed.

There were strobe lights everywhere, and there was a massive crowd up by the DJ's podium, jumping up and down and screaming and laughing and creating mosh pits with every new song.

It was definitely a crowd he wasn't used to.

Usually at places that had a surplus of drinks, he was surrounded by horny teenagers who couldn't handle their liquor and took out their pent up energy by fucking like rabbits. But here, people were composed, and they were having a genuine, fun time. Admittedly, there were some swaying bodies and couples making out in darkened corners, but that was inevitable. Even Peter himself had drunkenly made out with a few girls here and there.

It was normal, and should've made Peter feel slightly uncomfortable based on the vigourity and fervor and stench of weed and hard liquor, but, it made Peter feel comforted.

It reminded him that no matter where you went this was the normal and that everyone here was here for one reason and one reason only — a good time.

Peter grinned to himself at the thought, following a confidently strolling Y/N with his hand in hers towards a stool near the far side of the bar where people weren't as present.

She let go of his hand and sidled into a seat.

"Why were you being so weird?" she asked, holding her head in her palm and pouting, because of course, in typical Y/N fashion, she wouldn't hesitate to bring up his little explosion. Her eyebrows knotted together and pulled out a gum wrapper from her purse to fiddle with. "You need to calm down, Peter," she said. "It's normal for women to get cat-called and hit on and stuff. There's a reason why I didn't say anything."

"Yeah, I know it's normal, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's right, Y/N/N," Peter said, peering deeply into her eyes and frowning slightly. He hesitated and began fumbling with his fingers. "I... I don't like thinking about you being helpless and alone. I want to be able to help you."

"Heroic," she mused. "You're a true saint."

Peter scowled. "Y/N, this is serious. You need to speak up for yourself —"

"Yeah, yeah, I don't care right now," she cut him off, dismissing it a wave of her head.

She stood up abruptly and shot him a mischievous smile, pulling her fake from out of her purse and waving it in front of his face.

"How about we get drunk then talk about women's rights?"

Peter frowned. "Women's rights?"

Y/N snickered, shaking her head. "Oh Pete, it's all connected. Let's get drunk."

-

-

-

Heat ravaged his body and the only thing he could focus on was the taste of her lips. She tasted like strawberries and something overwhelmingly sweet, and with the tang of cinnamon he managed to catch in between her pretty lips that brought him back to where he was, he felt grounded — he was lucky for her intoxicating taste, because without it, he might as well float away without the euphoria soaring through his veins making him high; and of course, he would never want to forget that she was here rutting against his clothed crotch, breathing heavily and throwing her head back against his headboard in ecstasy as he hungrily led his lips down to the column of her perspiring neck.

After the club, one thing led to another, and though sober Peter would never even dream of kissing his best friend, more or less kissing on the mouth, he found himself here, tangled with her and drowning in her, completely enamoured.

Y/N.

Her head was thrown back and her Adam's apple was bobbing, her body was writhing and her hair was plastered onto her forehead, eyes squeezed shut and dress absent, showcasing her lovely body that Peter never thought he'd see in this context; teeth latched onto her bottom lip that was a messy pink due to their fervent kissing as she tried to refrain from moaning.

Peter found it slightly absurd because May was working the night shift and the walls of his apartment definitely weren't thin (he could speak from experience because when he brought his absolute bimbo of an ex-girlfriend Ginger over a few months ago he definitely expected to gain a few complaints from neighbours due to her shrill and undoubtedly annoying moans), but in all honesty, he wanted to do was hear her.

Hear Y/N.

The small moans she had allowed were glorious and Peter nearly lost it every time.

How they got to his apartment was simple, though he couldn't really remember.

All he could really recall was punching that unprofessional dick of a bouncer, Josh, when he looked up Y/N's dress again when she was most vulnerable. At the time, they were both plastered, and Y/N's arms were swaying above her head as she sensually moved her hips against Peter's, allowing her dress to ride up over her bum and showcase the sheer thong she wore to the club. No one was really looking because the majority of the occupants were focussed on somebody else, doing either one of the three things: making out, making out filthily — which was different — or plain on fucking in public, but the one sober guy, that damn Joshua, was peering up his best friend's dress like the thirty-something year old pervert he was.

And when Peter noticed the tent in his pants, that's when he lost it.

So, naturally, sporting a black eye, a bleeding lip, and a funny limp, he was back home with Y/N within the hour, having been kicked from the club. But, the one thing that made his situation different from all others was the look in her eyes — the angry look that he was so expected to see wasn't there, and was instead replaced with worry.

She was drunk, of course, so it might've just been that small bit of sober guilt that sometimes manages to poke through that nasty drunken fog, but she seemed sincere. Peter pondered about asking her, but at the time, he decided against it because his mouth was so full of blood he thought it would spill over his lips.

Within the next ten minutes they were in his apartment, drunkenly patching each other up with airy giggles and jerky movements of bandaids and hydrogen peroxide.

They both had bruises now because their walk up the stairs to the apartment hadn't exactly been steady, and Peter could give himself that — hell, he could give himself all that, because he and she both had their fair share of trips and face plants into the concrete steps — which resulted in a nice shiner on her cheek and new trickle of blood down his forehead.

The lingering thought of May being livid tomorrow was in his inebriated brain somewhere, but he was too enamoured with Y/N's wide smiles and shrieks of laughter to really care.

She was gorgeous, and even when sporting a nasty bruise on her cheekbone courtesy of falling down the stairs, Peter still felt his heart stutter. It wasn't an unknown feeling around her, because he was felt his fair share of anxious around her on days when she looked particularly beautiful, but he just found a way to shove to the back of his mind for the time being.

But then, somewhere along the messy clean-up, things became elevated.

Her breathy giggles became sensual.

The feeling of her thighs wrapped around his legs was too much, and as he dabbed messily on her cheekbone he felt her gaze on him intensify, no doubt observing and taking him in.

He was sure he looked like a mess, definitely worse than her, because his face was slightly bruised due to the few good hits Joshua the asshole bouncer got in, his chestnut curls were matted and untidy, and his cheekbones were cut as well, beading with blood, but he didn't care because now her gaze was more intense and her eyes darkened and she reached a hand behind his head and bunch up his curls to tug, eliciting a hitch of breath from him as their gazes became the same, fused and fired and standing on live wires, charged with energy that had been there for so long... and then she leaned forward and now his tongue was poking between his teeth and her eyes were darting to his lips and back and then suddenly, with a surge of confidence that definitely came from the alcohol, Peter closed the distance and crashed back onto the bed, kissing fervently and bunching up her dress that was now all the way up at her breasts, exposing her legs and stomach that Peter longed to press his lips to.

One thing escalated to another, and they arrive back here, to where she's rutting her hips against his boxer-clad ones as their tongues swipe over one another.

Hot.

Sensual.

Something Peter didn't expect, but something he'd gladly take, anyway.

"Peter," Y/N wheezed, raspy, ethereal, beautiful, squeezing her eyes shut and palming at his boxers, eyes boring into his lust-blown ones. "Fuck me."

Peter nodded quickly and kissed her harder, tasting her to an even headier extent --- she tasted like him with undertones of strawberry,  lavender, and alcohol... so overwhelmingly her that it might've been the thing to bring him to his answer.

"Okay," he whispered, pulling away from her lips with a heavy breath. His breaths were quick and rapid and his chest was heaving, but it wasn't uncomfortable, he was filled with lust and love. "Okay."

She smiled softly and brought her hands around his neck to tug at his chestnut curls, rutting her hips against his. He moaned and placed his head in the crook of her neck, nipping at the skin there.

"Fuck, Y/N/N," he hissed, squeezing his eyes shut, "if you keep doing that I won't last.. you're so hot right now, babe."

"Peter Parker." Her breasts heaved as a small incredulous smile wove its way onto her face, "You don't know what you're doing. This is insane."

Peter smiled and cupped her cheek, pulling away and leaning down to press a plush kiss to her swollen lips. "It's perfect."

Y/N laughed, "You're a fucking sap, Parker."

"I know."

Y/N rolled her eyes but kissed him nevertheless, feeling their teeth clash with their wide smiles, and soon, that escalated into another heated makeout session. Y/N pulled away and palmed at his boxers, staring up into his eyes as she palmed him. He moaned and fell into the crook of her neck again, kissing her skin to muffle his own cries of pleasure.

She reached for his boxers and began tugging, and there wasn't a lot of foreplay before he slid into her. She was already wet prior so she took him easily, though Peter didn't ignore how her eyes widened and how her jaw went slack, throwing her head into the pillow and clutching at his hands behind her, squeezing them harshly as she cried out.

Peter took that as a sign to keep going, and he moved a hand to toy with the bundle of nerves between them, earning more moans on exhales. And then he was pretty sure she came and he made all sorts of sounds at the sight, lip curling and eyes fluttering — God, she was perfect. He drove further, grinding faster and chasing that cold fire.

"Please do that again," he whispered. "I need to see it again."

"Fuck," she laughed, wiping sheen from his forehead and running her fingers through his curls as he stared through a lustful daze. His thumb circled the nub, tracing patterns she couldn't pinpoint. Her lips and tongue found his, drowning out every tiny noise they made, desperation fuelling their actions. She felt limp in his arms, letting him move and touch and grip her the way he wanted, trusting him with every bit of her and letting him use her to his heart's content. She palmed over his back, feeling the muscles work and admiring his frame over hers, relishing in the whimpers and grunts, waiting to see him shatter. He eased her into a second high and when she focused on him again, he looked mesmerized.

"You have the prettiest orgasm face, I swear."

Her walls clenched and he spiralled, choking on vanilla and jasmine and euphoria and the thought of having sex with his best friend. His teeth found her neck as he reached his peak, scraping her, drooling but not biting. He waited, wanting desperately to sink his teeth in. "I'm yours, Peter. I've always been yours." And that was enough for him. He nearly drew blood but she hummed and twisted, giving him more access and crying out, still riding the remaining waves.

He stilled in her finally, swelling, and locking them together. They flipped so she could rest on him, waiting out the high. She rose to decorate his chest with kisses, murmuring sweet things to him as their heartbeats slowed. He folded his arms over her waist and dragged lazily, enjoying the novel sense of ease. It'd been long hours of being overstrung and overstimulated.

He traced the bite, feeling warmth at the thought of its implication. "Was that okay?"

"More than okay, it was perfect."

"That's not what I mean."

She turned to look at him, insistent. "I love you, Pete."

He shivered, the words still foreign. Then he grinned, bright and easy. "Man, I love you."

She'd meant it; she was his.

All at once, this giddy feeling bloomed in his middle. "Thanks for sticking with me so long."

She bumped his nose with hers. "Thanks for being my best friend."

He met her lips and this time it held every late night and early morning, every car ride and pep talk and duet, every school day and weekend, every word they'd ever spoken, and every moment they'd forgotten. It held their friendship in its entirety and, more than that, it held the promise of always.

-

-

-

TAGS:

peter parker taglist ➝ @galaxystern08​  @averyfosterthoughts​ @pparkeramorr​ @peterparkermadness​

tom holland taglist ➝ @thenoddingbunny-blog​ @galaxystern08​ @coni-martina​ @inhumanwithpowers​ @averyfosterthoughts​ @softholand​

mutuals ! ➝ @quackeroos​ @parkersbliss​ @chaoticpete​ @cosmicholland​ @stardustom​ @mannien​ @my-patronus-is-mabel-pines​ @silteplaittais-toi​ @spideygirl2003​ @yoinkyourheart​ @darlintom​ @dreamofaprilsblog​ @the-crazy-fanfictionist​ @peterspideyy​ @stuckonspidey​ @eridanuswave​ @thirzaholland​ @t-holland2080​ @peachyparkerr​ @parkeret​ @etoileholland​

[sohmabae]

hey guys. this is just a rant/appreciation post to make myself feel better lmfao.

lately ive been having a tough time. with summer break coming to an end, my schedule will be pretty busy for a majority of the day. (for some context, i haven’t had a schedule free summer in 4 years, so 2020 was a nice time to relax for a while.)

this summer, i spent 7 weeks in a test prep program. 7 fucking weeks. i’m used not having a super fun and free summer by now, but damn! let me tell you, the work was rigorous. phew! 

after constantly being called lazy, annoying, and other ugly things by the adults in my life, i finally let it all out. i cried for a good while. and actually let it happen. i used to feel ashamed for doing so (i was a sensitive child lol so i was always teased for crying) but lawd let me tell you, it felt so good. it was like a dam inside of me finally broke through the large and *not so tough* barricades. 

a good 5 minutes of negative thoughts and tears went by, and started thinking about fruits basket. i began crying even harder at the sad fact that these beautiful characters aren’t real. (yall can laugh at this part, trust me, as im writing this i am giggling at how crazy i must sound LOL.) 

then, i thought about this account. sohmabae was created right before s3 e4. my first post was a reaction to the final words in the episode LMFAO. 

sohmabae was soon an instagram and an ao3 account. on one particular night, i could not sleep. an idea kept me awake. that idea being the inspo for Who’s Your Favorite. 

so i wrote. and after around 45 minutes, the first chapter was uploaded. 

the amount of response i’d received before even beginning to write the second chapter was insane. by the time chapter two was up, 87 people clicked on my story and there were already 12 kudos. 

that one chapter then turned into 8 within two months.

currently, the story has 859 hits and 26 kudos. 

859 people listened to my words. 859 people heard my idea and liked it. 

26 people liked my work enough to give it kudos. 

26 people (and maybe more) appreciated my words. 

eight hundred and nine.

it made me feel happy. 

and wanted. 

that feeling is so indescribable. by this point, my tears were coming down out of joy instead of sorrow. 

and after thinking about it a bit more, i realized that i have so much to be proud of. not only did a write a story, i wrote it while completing a very mentally draining program! 

to sum this all up, i love you all so fucking much like seriously. y’all had me clutching at my heart while sobbing rivers. 

thank you for being here with me and remember that you are always loved by sohmabae!!! and my dms are always open if you ever wanna chat <3

[petersasteria]

Younger (IV) - Peter Parker

Pairing: Peter x Reader

Back at it again with a theme

Inspired by: Younger by Ruel

PP Masterlist || Younger (I) || Younger (II) || Younger (III)

I’m so sorry for it being overdue, but I hope 1.3k words can make up for it.

* * * *

"I saw you just the other night

I didn't even recognize you Find it kinda strange, I guess that people change But I didn't expect you to"

The effects of The Blip really took a toll on Peter. He just wasn't the same anymore and he was shutting you out all the time even though you've been dating for about two years now. Before you knew it, he was moving on without you. You started to notice the little changes Peter made.

He would look at MJ a lot more and he started paying attention to her more too. This obviously upset you and the fact that MJ would do the same whenever Peter wasn't looking, upset you even more. You talked to Peter about it, but he said that you were just crazy. It made you sad, but you decided not to talk about it anymore so that you wouldn't upset Peter.

You also noticed that MJ was beginning to talk to Peter a lot more than usual. There was nothing wrong with that, but it was just so unlike her.

When the trip to Europe came around, you were really excited. You thought that it would be romantic for you and Peter to just relax around and maybe have some gelato or something. That would be a fail, though because the whole Mysterio thing happened and whenever he was free, he'd spend it with Ned or MJ. He seemed to forget that you existed because he was surprised when you knocked on his hotel room after the whole thing.

When you got back in New York, Peter started to become really really distant. He texts and calls you less and he would turn you down whenever you’d ask if he wanted to hang out. When your third anniversary came around, he was a no show even though you constantly texted him about it. He wouldn’t reply, but he’d leave you on read. So, he knew what your plans were.

He showed up at your apartment that night and he just broke up with you. He wasn’t there to say sorry for missing your anniversary. He was just there to break up with you with no explanation whatsoever..

“I’m so sorry, Y/N. It’s just not working out anymore.” Peter said.

“Are you seriously breaking up with me today?” You asked in disbelief and he just shrugged. You rolled your eyes and said, “It’s our anniversary, Peter.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, ‘oh’. Get out of my apartment. Have a nice life, Parker.” You said angrily. Peter walked himself out and closed the door. You couldn’t believe that after three years of being together, he would throw it away for reasons you don’t know.

When school started, you wanted a fresh start. If you were being honest, you didn’t have any friends. You only had friends because Peter was your boyfriend and he already had Ned. And as much as you wanted to say ‘hi’ to Ned, you knew he would just avoid you because his loyalty stood with Peter which you completely understood.

You didn’t have anywhere to sit during lunch time, so you just sat on your own outside by the bleachers. As you were staring at the cheerleaders while you were eating, you began to think about the things you’ve always wanted to change during this fresh start of yours. Your family was well off, so cleared out your closet when you got home on Friday and went on a major shopping spree to buy new things for yourself: new clothes, skin care products, a little bit of makeup, new bags, a few accessories and even a new phone case. You also got a new haircut which you absolutely loved.

When you arrived at school on Monday with your completely new look, everyone stared at you in awe when you walked along the halls of school.

“Dude, is that Y/N?” Ned nudged Peter. He glanced at you and he had to look at you for a while because he wasn’t sure if it was you or not. Sure enough, it really was you.

“Yeah, it’s her.” Peter said in shock.

“She has a whole new look.” Ned said. “I like it, though! She looks great!”

“Yeah, she does.” Peter said softly.

During lunch time, you were on your way out to sit on the bleachers when one of the popular kids invited you to sit on their table. You smiled and immediately agreed. You learned about typical high school gossip and you learned about which skirt looks good with a particular top. You knew that those people were only hanging out with you because of your new style, but it felt good to hang out with a new group. It’s a new school year and you deserved to start new. Peter did the same, anyway.

A few months later, your eighteenth birthday came and you invited all the seniors to your summer house. Since you invited all seniors, Peter, Ned, and MJ went. Ned got you a present and you gave him a tight hug because you missed him. After that, Peter never got to give you your present because you were dragged by your new friend somewhere.

Peter didn’t see you the rest of the night, but that changed when he saw some guy trying to kiss your neck even though you tried to push him away. You were grateful for Peter because he saved you from it and it was awkward between you after that.

“Um, happy birthday.” Peter said, breaking the awkward silence.

“Thanks.” You said shortly. “And thanks again for saving me back there. If you weren’t there, something might’ve happened and yeah. Just- thanks.”

“Yeah, s’no problem. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something were to happen to you. I mean, I already witnessed it, y’know? If I didn’t save you and something bad happened to you, I wouldn’t forgive myself.” Peter said.

“Yeah, well I’m okay now. Thanks again.”

“So, new clothes?” Peter said, making small talk. “What happened to your old ones? You don’t seem to be wearing them anymore.”

“Oh, that’s because I donated them. I figured I should start fresh. It’s our last year of high school and I haven’t done anything. So, I started fresh. New school year, new me.”

“Yeah, I didn’t recognize you.” Peter said softly. “It’s like the old Y/N’s gone. I kinda miss the old you.”

“Well, she was dying when you started shutting her out and when you broke up with her, she was pronounced dead. You don’t get to miss the old me because you left the old me with no explanation. Besides, I’ve learned to accept that you most likely left me for MJ. I understand and while I’m still bitter, I can be civil.” You said coldly.

“I just didn’t expect you to change. You were still welcome to sit with us, but you sat on your own. No one kicked you out, you let yourself out. You didn’t have to change your whole look or whatever because you’re still our friend and we like you for you. Now all you have are these fake people who like you because of how you dress yourself and because you’re rich.” 

“That’s part of the change, Parker. Deal with it.” You said calmly even though you were pissed at him for talking to you that way. How dare he? “Help yourself to some food and drinks. I have to go to my friends now.”

“Y/N, I’m still your friend.” Peter sighed. “And we’ll always be friends. I don’t understand why our friendship has to end just because I broke up with you.”

“Like I said, deal with it. I have to go and find my friends. I’m sure MJ’s looking for you. Good night, Parker.” You said curtly before leaving him standing alone.

* * * *

𝐏𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓: @blueleatherbag​ @harryismysunflower​ @buckys-little-hoe​ @sandystoriess​ @heeeyitskay​ @slytherin-chaser​ @quaksonhehe​ @yaya4302​ @lil-mellow-bunbun​ @starlight-starks​ @swiftmind​ @alexx-stancati​ @sovereignparker​ @nerdyandproudofitsstuff​ @pearce14​ @cherthegoddess​ @chewymoustachio​ @cocoamoonmalfoy​ @parkerlovebot​ @supred12​ @peterspidey​ @givebuckyhisplumsnow​ @beverlythrillz​ @slutforsr​ 

𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓:  @marvelousell @justasmisunderstoodasloki @rubberducky-jrr @allyz @osterfieldnholland @miraclesoflove @god-knows-what-am-i-doing @drie-the-derp @hollands-weasley @itstaskeen  @call-me-baby-gir1 @the-panwitch @iamaunicorn4704 @geminiparkers @holland-styles @calltothewild @fancyxparker @herbatkazmiloscia @whatthefuckimbisexual @justanothermarvelmaniac @unsaidholland @musicalkeys @lost-in-the-stars03 @hufflepuffprincess24 @hollanddolanfangirl @parkerpeter24 @bellelittleoff @agentnataliahofferson @aqiise @lexirv @blairscott @hi-im-maddie @xfirstfemale-marauderx @u-rrose @speedymaximoff

[gdwessel]

Wrestle Grand Slam in MetLife Dome Night 2 Title Matches Announced: Shingo v. EVIL, Hiromu Returns v. Eagles; Some Of Remaining Summer Struggle Announced Including Tsuji & Uemura Farewell Matches, Super Junior Tag League 2021; Jay White’s Warrior Wrestling 8/21/2021 Opponent Announced

A bunch of news about coming dates dropped today. Not least of which, three of the featured matches for Night 2 of Wrestle Grand Slam in MetLife Dome on 9/5/2021 were announced.

First and foremost, Shingo Takagi’s next defense of the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship will come against EVIL, who challenged Shingo post-main last night at Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome, to the consternation of a lot of (Western) Wrestling Twitter. But they can die mad about it, as the match has been booked, and Shingo v. EVIL is an unfinished business angle. 

Hiromu Takahashi’s return has also officially been set, as he will challenge Robbie Eagles for the IWGP Juniorheavyweight title that he gave up, but never actually lost (for the second time). In addition, the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team titles will be on defense, as Dangerous Tekkers will face not only just-former champions Tetsuya Naito & SANADA, but also Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI, who challenged the new champions yesterday too. Friends, have I ever mentioned how much I cannot stand 3-way matches, by and large?

No matches for Night 1, on 9/4/2021, have been announced yet. This will be a busy wrestling weekend, especially for myself, as this will be ALL OUT weekend around my neck of the woods, and I already have tickets for not only the AEW ALL OUT PPV, but several of the GCW and related shows that weekend too (in addition to AEW Dynamite on 9/1/2021). Good chance I may not be able to follow everything NJPW related that weekend!

Meanwhile, many of the remaining cards for the Summer Struggle tour have been announced, although not all of them. Many of the upcoming cards are at Tokyo Korakuen Hall (like... most of them), and several special matches have been booked for these dates.

On 8/1/2021, we will be getting the Farewell Matches for Young Lions Yota Tsuji and Yuya Uemura. The two recently went through their Trial Series’ and now it seems they will be heading off on excursion. The question is where, of course. The bad news is, the traditional venues for NJPW excursionees in recent years, CMLL, Ring of Honor and Revolution Pro, have all had their fair share of issues with COVID-19 in their native countries, especially CMLL, and it seems like NJPW and ROH are pretty much on the outs as partners, despite the continued use of some wrestlers on NJPW Strong. The good news is, with the Forbidden Door open, there are suddenly more options for excursionees, with AEW and Impact. Mind you, nothing has been said as yet as to where they will be heading, or if it will be separately or as a pair, etc. We’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, Yota Tsuji’s farewell will be against Tetsuya Naito, with whom he has lobbied for a singles match against for months, whilst Yuya Uemura gets Kazuchika Okada as his curtain call. In addition, Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI will defend the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team titles against a Suzuki-gun trio of Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr. & Minoru Suzuki, as a prelude to the MetLife Dome 3-way tag team title match.

The Super Junior Tag League returns this summer as well, beginning on 8/7/2021. Six teams will be competing this time around, in a league format, so the team with the most points (bar a tie) will be the winners, and presumably, get a shot at Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo’s IWGP Juniorheavyweight Tag Team titles. The champions will be competing in this as well. The participating teams are:

Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] & Tiger Mask IV

Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato

SHO & YOH [CHAOS]

El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG]

Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

Gedo & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

The tournament runs through the middle part of the tour, all at Korakuen Hall dates.

Upcoming cards:

Summer Struggle 2021 - 7/27/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Yota Tsuji v. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yuji Nagata

Robbie Eagles [CHAOS]. Tiger Mask IV & Yuya Uemura v. Taiji Ishimori, El Phantasmo & Jado [Bullet Club]

Toru Yano [CHAOS], Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS] v. Chase Owens, Yujiro Takahashi & Gedo [Bullet Club]

Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, Tomohiro Ishii, SHO & YOH [CHAOS] v. Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG]

Shingo Takagi & BUSHI [Los Ingobernables] v. EVIL & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

- 7/30/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Togi Makabe, Yota Tsuji & Yuya Uemura v. Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata & Tiger Mask IV

Kazuchika Okada, SHO & YOH [CHAOS] v. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato

Toru Yano [CHAOS] & Hiroshi Tanahashi v. Chase Owens & Gedo [Bullet Club]

Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, Tomohiro Ishii & Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] v. Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki & DOUKI [SZKG]

Elimination Match: Shingo Takagi, Tetsuya Naito, SANADA & BUSHI [Los Ingobernables] v. EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

- 7/31/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma v. Yuji Nagata & Yota Tsuji

Toru Yano [CHAOS], Hiroshi Tanahashi & Yuya Uemura v. Chase Owens, Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS], Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] & Tiger Mask IV v. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato

Shingo Takagi, Tetsuya Naito, SANADA & BUSHI [Los Ingobernables] v. EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, Gedo & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

Elimination Match: Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, Tomohiro Ishii, SHO & YOH [CHAOS] v. Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG]

- 8/1/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Yuya Uemura Farewell Match: Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS] v. Yuya Uemura

Yota Tsuji Farewell Match: Tetsuya Naito [Los Ingobernables] v. Yota Tsuji

Toru Yano, SHO & YOH [CHAOS] v. Chase Owens, Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

Shingo Takagi, SANADA & BUSHI [Los Ingobernables] v. EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship: Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI [CHAOS] (c) v. Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr. & Minoru Suzuki [SZKG]

- 8/7/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] & Tiger Mask IV v. Gedo & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato v. El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: SHO & YOH [CHAOS] v. Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

More TBA

- 8/8/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] & Tiger Mask IV v. SHO & YOH [CHAOS]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato v. Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG] v. Gedo & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

More TBA

- 8/9/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] & Tiger Mask IV v. El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato v. SHO & YOH [CHAOS]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Taiji Ishimori & El Desperado [Bullet Club] v. Gedo & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

More TBA

- 8/10/2021, Kanagawa Yokohama Budokan (NJPWWorld) - 8/14/2021, Nagano White Ring - 8/15/2021, Shizuoka Fujisan Messe - 8/16/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] & Tiger Mask IV v. Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato v. Gedo & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: SHO & YOH [CHAOS] v. El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG]

More TBA

- 8/17/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] & Tiger Mask IV v. Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato

Super Junior Tag League 2021: SHO & YOH [CHAOS] v. Gedo & Dick Togo [Bullet Club]

Super Junior Tag League 2021: Taiji Ishimori & El Desperado [Bullet Club] v. Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club]

More TBA

- 8/24/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld) - 8/25/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld) - 8/26/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld) - 8/27/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Wrestle Grand Slam in MetLife Dome - 9/4/2021, Saitama MetLife Dome (NJPWWorld) - 9/5/2021, Saitama MetLife Dome (NJPWWorld)

IWGP Juniorheavyweight Championship: Robbie Eagles [CHAOS] (c) v. Hiromu Takahashi [Los Ingobernables]

IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship 3-Way Match: Taichi & Zack Sabre Jr. [SZKG] (c) v. Tetsuya Naito & SANADA [Los Ingobernables] v. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI [CHAOS]

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Shingo Takagi [Los Ingobernables] (c) v. EVIL [Bullet Club]

More TBA

Warrior Wrestling has announced Jay White’s opponent for their Stadium Series show on 8/21/2021 in Chicago Heights, IL. Switchblade will be facing off against Warrior regular Sam Adonis in his debut for the Midwest super-indie. This is interesting for a couple of reasons. First, both are ostensibly heels, although let’s face it, Jay will be the de facto babyface in this match, just as he currently is in Impact against The Elite. Second, Sam Adonis is currently working for AAA, like, a lot, on their TV, and will likely be at Triplemania on 8/14/2021 as well. This is not going to make NJPW’s partners CMLL very happy, if they are even aware of this match happening. CMLL has forced changes to Warrior cards before, when both CMLL and AAA wrestlers were booked on the same shows, because they are very particular about their wrestlers not working in the same matches, or shows, as AAA wrestlers. Mind you, this is a NJPW wrestler working a AAA worker, and NJPW has all the leverage in the relationship with CMLL, so this might be all speculation, but do not be surprised if this match gets changed is all I’m saying.

[radiojamming]

Can you tell us anything more about John Hartnell's time on the Voltage?

Hell yeah, I can! I have some pictures from the log books I can post later, too. I legit sat for H O U R S reading tiny handwriting from the master’s logs. Most of the logs were lists of chores, punishments, notes on the weather, and any major events. John’s time on the Volage can be divided pretty neatly in half, between the ship’s North American tour, and its Irish Sea patrol, all between 1841-45. 

The North American part was probably pretty exciting for him, considering that he’d been a shoemaker since he was thirteen years old. Compared to what his brother had been up to on the Volage (the Aden Expedition, Battle of Chuenpi, etc.), it focused less on military ventures and more on transportation and patrol. The first major thing it did was in December of 1841, when it accompanied the HMS Warspite and HMS Thalia in taking the King of Prussia, Frederick William IV to England to attend the christening of the Prince of Wales. After that, it scurried over to Plymouth to get new fittings, and then took off for the Caribbean. 

A lot happened in the Caribbean, and reading through the log books (always written in very non-emotional language, but still entertaining) paints a very eclectic picture of their activities. The Volage went to Jamaica first, awaiting orders until they were ordered to go to Saint Martha to pick up... $800,000 in gold. Legit, that sat on the Volage for two months until they dropped it off in Port Royal. By then, half the crew was incredibly ill with a mix of diseases including what might have been dysentery. Amazingly, for all of John’s terrible luck, he doesn’t appear on the sick list, even as one of the lieutenant’s eventually died as well as the clerk. 

They scurried back and forth across the Caribbean from January of 1842 until they departed for Halifax, Nova Scotia later that summer. (Land of @theiceandbones!) In all honesty, the Volage didn’t get up to much during it’s time in Halifax. They didn’t necessarily have a mission, but it does make for some really entertaining reading! There was a lot of shore leave, for instance. Here are some of the notes I wrote on my read-through between the Caribbean and Halifax (which is from ADM 54/312):

Mondays and Fridays are mandatory clothes-washing days.

8th of July 1842 - “Punished Michael Logan with 48 [!] lashes for Disobedience of Orders and Insolence”

12th of July 1842, 6pm - “Committed to the deep the Body of Samuel Marvin (AB) Deceased.” / “Departed this life William Baillie (boy) - Buried at sea on the 13th.”

18th of July 1842, 10:50 pm - “Heard the report of several Guns from the North” [in Halifax]

20th of July 1842 - Halifax Citadel visit and the burial of Robert Webb (boy), Samuel Gibbon, John Barnes, and Samuel Brummage (carpenter’s mate) on shore

Godden reports that several warm nights, sailors were permitted to use their hammocks and sleep on the beach! (I put a smiley face next to my note here!)

Most of their Halifax mooring was spent cleaning. Lots of repainting, holystoning, repairing, etc.

Multiple discharges for “uselessness” and “disgrace”. 

The latter note is really interesting, considering that none other than Charles Dickens visited Halifax that same year, and made note of sailors making total idiots out of themselves on oysters and champagne. Indeed, there are plenty of punishments recorded for that summer for drunkenness, insubordination, and desertion, again sometimes up to 48 lashes. (I’ll post a picture of the log just to confirm that.) On a high note, John Hartnell wasn’t punished once! And believe me, I looked!

They did have to have some repair work done to fix a leak in October before scurrying back down south with the “Squadron”. Godden makes some pretty boring notes about looking at the United States coast (as in essentially saying, “Yep, there it is!”) before they hang tight to the coast of Mexico. 

The Volage appears to have been outfitted for doing survey work, which is part of what they did for the next few months. Between that, mooring for absolutely nothing, and hanging out with slave ship hunters (I like to think they high-fived the HMS Racer at some point) their zig-zag order of ports of call are:

Barbados > Puerto Rico > Grenada > St. Vincent > Jamaica > St. Lucie > Antigua > Jamaica (long-term Port Royal mooring) > Haiti 

By early 1843, the Volage was headed back home. They docked in Plymouth for a time before getting their next orders for the Admiralty for the apparently much-maligned Irish Sea duty. At this point, Captain William Dickson had a temporary replacement for the deceased Lt. Davey, but eventually, that lieutenant had to leave as well. Captain Dickson did get a note from the Admiralty that he was to get his replacement at the Cove of Cork, and according to the sudden burst of tiny handwriting at the bottom of the page on Tuesday, August 29th, 1843, Captain Dickson totally forgot about that. Literally, the note for the day is kind of falling off the page from squeezing it in, but reads: “Read the Commission of Lieut J Irving”.

Because Lieutenant John Irving hopped on board as a new replacement, thus using those sweet, sweet letters of his to describe the next few months. He was absolutely meticulous about dating his letters, and having them on hand in his memoir made it easy to line up with Godden’s notes in the master’s log, confirming everything between the two of them. This time, Irish patrol got kind of exciting.

First, here’s Irving talking about joining the Volage, saying much nicer things about Capt. Dickson considering the captain was probably going, “Oh shit right I forgot we were doing this.”

“To my great joy I found the ‘Volage’ at anchor here. I was afraid she might have gone somewhere else. I went on board direct from the steamer, and was introduced to Sir William Dickson, the Captain; rigged myself in a blue coat and a pair of epaulettes; the hands were turned up, and the Captain read my commission appointing me lieutenant of the ship to the ship’s company. There are three of us. I am the second in seniority. Our mess consists of seven--viz., three lieutenants, one master, surgeon, a lieutenant of marines. They are all very good fellows. I was three years messmate of one of them in a former ship, so am comfortable in that respect.”

Irving noted that the officers were frequently invited to parties in Cork (”I could be at parties every day if I liked;”), and Godden does say that the rest of the crew were given shore leave fairly frequently, even though they didn’t have enough officers to allow them to leave as often. 

For the next four months, the Volage remained at Cork, doing patrol with several other man-of-war’s. On land, there were frequent clashes between the Protestants and the Catholics, but more importantly, there were the Repealers following Daniel O’Connell’s urging to repeal the Acts of the Union and re-establish the independent Kingdom of Ireland. Between Irving and Godden, the image of this time from the perspective of the Volage is one of a lot of bloody rumors and high tension (a Protestant curate was killed, houses were being burned down). However, O’Connell’s followers were very civil to the sailors and actually invited some of the Volage officers to visit their homes. Irving called their hospitality “quite Highland”. 

The Volage was temporarily relieved of its patrol in December, and returned to Plymouth by January of 1844 for refitting and repair work after shearing off part of her keel. Godden and Irving both noted that sailors and officers were boarded on a hulk, or a non-sailing ship. Godden also noted that several sailors were permitted leave to go visiting nearby. (John Hartnell did have family in Plymouth, and Thomas Hartnell may have been visiting the area at the same time, if a pet theory of mine holds up.) 

They were back in the Cove of Cork by February, with the Volage now as the flagship. During a period between February and June, the Volage frequently made trips between Cork and the town of Bantry, after further pro-Repealer agitation began to raise tensions once more. Godden’s log doesn’t say much on the subject aside from weather reports and notes on officers leaving the ship to attend parties, major gatherings in town (there’s a really interesting bit from Irving on scaring the bejeezus out of a group of paraders and stealing the Waterford city flag), and switching out officers. However, the tensions once again didn’t amount to much more than far-off reports of violence and a few observations of pissed-off “pisantry”. The Volage did return to Plymouth for Christmas before returning for a short turn in Cork, and then being paid off completely. The log for that topic shows that John Hartnell was paid off on February 1st, 1845.

As far as what life would have been like for John Hartnell on the Volage, it’s hard to say for sure since, once again, Godden’s logs are impersonal. However, he was responsible for recording all punishments, injuries, illnesses, and deaths, of which there was no lack. He also kept meticulous note of what chores were to be done on particular days, as well as drills. I noticed there was a lot of repetition in the chore schedule, and there was a slight uptick in sailors suddenly taking ill with “unknown” illnesses about two and a half years in, especially on days that had chores requiring a little more elbow grease.

But I think, as I said, this would have been very exciting for someone like John. After all, he voluntarily signed up for the Erebus four months after signing off on the Volage. Unfortunately, we don’t have any letters to or from him that might hint to how he felt during this time, so we have to take it from his actions rather than his words. I like to think he enjoyed himself.

[artificialqueens]

Favorite Place, Chapter 1 (Crygi) - Lily Bee

AO3 LINK

Summary: Crystal works at a French literature book store, and can’t help but fall for the pretty girl that comes in -also known as a cheesy bookstore au :)

A/N: hi guys! im lily & this is the crygi bookstore au ive been working on for a while! started as a oneshot and grew into what i plan on being a multichapter fic! thank you so much jazz for editing! if you want to request more writing check out my tumblr :)

Crystal always dreamed of working at a bookstore. As a kid, she used to save her allowance and go every week to her local book shop in Missouri for a new Star Wars book. Back then, they were only $5 and her only hardship was finding the loose change to pay the taxes.

Over the course of an entire summer that bled into fall, she read every adult Star Wars post-ROTJ book in print until she finally caught up. The store always had the science fiction section right up front and after that, she would march right up to the bays, pluck the latest installment on the day of its release, and make her purchase.

It was a huge store to her then, with two entrances and a long aisle down the middle separating towering shelves of books. Some of the smaller aisles snaked around corners or opened into new clearings of sections she hadn’t noticed before.

As Crystal got older, she was surprised when the manager actually hired her. She stayed there a few years until the store was forced to close. Of course she was devastated—this store had been a huge part of her life for so long, it felt like she was losing a friend. She kept the science fiction section clean and organized, taking particular care with the Star Wars books, until the day they had to pack everything up and move out.

Years later, she now found herself the manager of the book store Albertine in New York. The store was incredible: It was the only bookstore in the city devoted solely to books in French and English. The owner, Nicky, had the store stocked with more than 14,000 contemporary and classic titles from 30 French-speaking countries. Albertine was her pride and joy, and Crystal just felt lucky enough to make a living by selling books.

The days were fun filled with locals and tourists coming into the shop amazed by the gorgeous interior. They especially loved the hand-painted mural of constellations, stars, and planets. Crystal often found herself getting lost staring at that ceiling, spending her days recommending French novels to her customers and on her down time getting to read whatever she could get her hands on in her down-time.

Today was no different. A few customers had come in, but most of them just glanced around the store, leaving Crystal to read to herself at the counter.

When she heard the bell at the door chime, she didn’t even bother looking up. Over the pages of her book, she yelled: “Welcome to Albertines, if you need any help, let me know!”

“Actually, I do,” she heard a female voice say. She looked up from her book to see a tall girl leaning over the counter, tapping her long nails against it. Her long curly hair just touched the surface as she peered over at Crystal. “If you’re not too busy,” she added with a smile.

Crystal gulped. This girl was stunning, with piercing blue eyes that were currently glancing down at her. She was wearing a long coat over a plaid dress, and Crystal assumed she must have been wearing heels because she seemed to tower over her.

Crystal tried to stand up and stumbled over her words. “Yes, of course!” She gulped. “What can I help you with?”

The girl giggled at Crystal’s clumsiness. “I’m trying to find a gift for my boyfriend. He always talks about how much he loves France and I thought I would check it out here. You guys specialize in French literature, right?”

Ouch. There goes any shot of that, Crystal thought. Why would anyone this stunning be single? Or even not straight! But, she smiled and replied, “Yeah, we do. We can find him something!”

“Do you know what genre he would like?” Crystal asked as she led the girl throughout the store.

“In all honesty, no,” she laughed. “I can’t even speak a word of French!” She extended her hand to feel the edges of the books as they passed by.

“Here,” Crystal offered, picking up a book off a display case “This one is my favorite.”

The girl took it from Crystal’s hands and examined the cover. “How do you pronounce it?”

Crystal looked down at the cover and laughed; it was quite simple. “Madame Bovary.” She looked up at the girl. “It’s about a bored housewife named Emma Bovary as she laments her position as a doctor’s wife. She rejects her loving husband, and embarks on a number of unsuccessful affairs and drowns her sorrow in debt. Over time, she becomes increasingly dissatisfied with this though.”

“Sounds like me,” the girl mumbled under her breath as she brushed her fingers across the cover.

Crystal laughed to herself and continued. “The book looks at the effects of the rise of a bourgeois culture, showing a time when people who were capable of providing a good income for themselves became focused on their social image. It’s really quite good.”

“It sounds interesting. Maybe I’ll have to learn French and read it myself.” She locked eyes with Crystal. “Thank you!”

“Oh, it’s no problem—it’s my job,” Crystal beamed. “I hope your boyfriend likes it.”

“I hope he does too,” the girl sighed. “He’s a bit mad at me right now, and I’m hoping this will help him forgive me.”

Crystal didn’t know what to say, not great at comforting strangers.

“I don’t even know why I’m telling you this,” the girl disclosed.

“Well, why is he mad? If you don’t mind me asking,” Crystal questioned. She knew she shouldn’t pry, but this girl was basically begging for someone to ask if she was okay.

The girl gave Crystal a look, but didn’t object. “I always see him texting someone else, and he always is so secretive with me. So, I thought he was cheating on me. I confronted him about it and he was so mad he…” She trailed off. “I just don’t want him to be mad at me anymore, you know?”

Crystal knew exactly what this girl was talking about. She wanted to tell her to get out of the relationship, save herself. Crystal herself had been in an abusive relationship before, and just wished someone would have told her everything would be okay. She wanted to wrap this girl up and give her a hug, keep her safe in this book store.

“I understand,” Crystal said, not sure how to make her feel better. “I’m sure he’ll love this. You seem like an amazing girlfriend.”

“Thank you,” the girl laughed and wiped a small tear that began to fall from her eye. “I’m sorry, I’m giving you my whole life story and you don’t even know my name. I’m Gigi!” She extended her hand for Crystal to shake.

“I’m Crystal!” she beamed, accepting the hand graciously. She held onto Gigi’s hand as she spoke. “If you ever feel unsafe, though, don’t hesitate to come here. I can help you.” It was sincere. She wanted Gigi to feel safe.

Gigi just nodded. “Better check this out now,” she suggested.

“Don’t bother,” Crystal started. “It’s on me.”

Gigi just stared at her, wide-eyed. “Thank you so much! I really appreciate it.”

“Just think of the pretty girl from the French bookstore when you get around to reading it,” Crystal remarked, flashing Gigi a big smile.