#jay trash pile

[fishybehavior]

Idk y but jay strikes me as a guy who owned at least one rodent as a pet

[roxierae]

wanna comfort bsf!jj after a run in with his dad…

him turning up at your door, his glazed over eyes avoiding yours, face bloody and beaten as he sniffs. your eyebrows knit together in a sorrowful expression but he brushes it off, not wanting the fuss. without another word you’re welcoming him inside and quietly leading him up the stairs into your bathroom, careful to make sure your parents don’t wake up.

once he’s situated, calloused and bruised hands resting on your thighs, sitting prettily on the bathroom counter infront of him. you begin dabbing a cotton pad of rubbing alcohol onto the worse cuts, his thumb rubbing comforting circles onto your leg.

“‘y gonna tell me what happened?” you ask quietly, breaking the comfortable silence whilst clicking the bottle shut and disposing of the cotton pad in the little trash can, reaching for the disinfectant cream.

you’re patient as ever, waiting until he’s ready to give a truthful answer. he sucks in a breath, blowing it out of his lips, clearly stalling. you squirt the cream onto your middle finger, carefully dabbing it over the graze on his nose bridge.

“‘s just my dad, y’know. nothing that hasn’t happened before.” he sees the sadness glaze over your eyes and his hands finds your waist, encircling it softly as he reassures you. “you don’t gotta worry about me sweet cheeks, just lucky i got a hot ass nurse to patch me up, right?” he grins at you as tears cloud your vision.

“just wish there was something i could do to make it all go away, jayj..” you sniffle, downcast eyes meeting his own, smirk painted on his rubied lips as an idea struck him suddenly.

when jj said he could think of something that’d make him feel better you were more than happy to oblige, wanting nothing more than to see him smiling and joking like usual, without that sad glint in his eye that he tried ever so hard to hide from you.

that’s how you’d ended up on top of him in bed, fingernails biting into his strong chest as you use them as leverage to bounce. little pyjama shorts discarded on the floor, on top of the strewn pile of jj’s clothes.

“mm- yea just like that baby, you got it-“ he chokes out through a whimper, squeezing your hips tighter as he guides you, biceps practically bulging as he does so. you throw your head back, little mewls of pleasure leaving your parted lips, his praise spurring you on further.

despite his calm demeanour, he was practically frozen in shock on the inside watching the star of every one of his wet dreams since he’d known you, pretty tits bounce in his face as you took his dick all the way to the hilt, his needy tip kissing your cervix with every bounce of your hips. he was finding it impossible to believe he wasn’t imagining it.

“jay! ‘m gonna cum!” you squeal out, and he feels your pussy clamp down on him, letting out a low groan at the feeling as he brings you closer and closer to your breaking point. “c’mon pretty girl, ‘m right here with you. let it all out, i got you.” he praises mindlessly, eyes squeezed shut as he pleads with himself to hold out a little longer.

the slapping of skin becomes more miscalculated and faster as both of your orgasms hit you like a train, a choir of moans, groans and whimpers echoing around the room as jj releases his warm seed inside of you.

you sigh tiredly, pressing your sweat-slicked body against jj’s as you both pant for air. “shit..” he whispers quietly, running an absentminded hand through his hair.

“thankyou jj.” you manage after a few seconds of comfortable silence, cheek pressed against his pec. he chuckles tiredly, craning his neck a little to meet your eyes, “yeah? for what, baby?” he asks, a hint of a smile on his lips.

“‘f making me feel good.” you smile, eyes full of adoration for the boy you’d loved all your life, but you could never quite say it. you’d settle for this.

“damn, i should be the one sayin’ that to you. hardest i’ve ever nut in my life.” he jokes, leaving a kiss on the crown of your head. you giggle, flustered, tucking your face further into his neck, and breathing him in. a scent you could recognise anywhere.

[moon7jay]

Enhypen with a s/o who suffers from an ED (hyung line)

Warnings : ed behaviours, body dysmorphia, low self esteem, self depreciation, suggestive in jay's, fluff, comfort, triggering content ahead, please proceed with caution<3

Requested by .・゜゜・ @onlyni-kis (I tried my best to make it realistic, I hope it helps you somehow)

Heeseung

He'd be so attentive and accomodating to your needs. As someone with an Ed, you're often not taken seriously. Your mental problems are not considered valid. And so you usually avoid social settings where people can pass up unnecessary comments on your body or eating choices and heeseung never pressures you to get out if you don't want to. Because you lack confidence and even slight comments trigger you, heeseung makes sure that no one can do so while he's around. If he's around, you can freely go anywhere and do anything. He would have a reputation of a 0 tolerance boyfriend who did not like people perceiving you in anyway. So whenever he is around, people usually know to keep their words in check. He's your safe blanket. The only person you can be yourself with.

You were hanging out with heeseung's cousins in a family get together, sitting on heeseung's lap and indulging in oily food for once, trying to let go of the food guilt.

"y/n that's a lot of food for one sitting" one of them commented and even though the comment was harmless with no real intent to hurt you, it did hurt. Your appetite dying instantly as you gave them a sheepish smile ,standing up from heeseung's lap and excusing yourself from the setting, not wanting your useless tears to fall and ruin everyone's mood. Heeseung let you walk away to collect your emotions but the instant icy glare he shot towards his cousin was something his family would never forget.

"I thought I made it clear that when y/n comes over you better watch your fucking mouths" he gritted through clenched teeth, the nerve on his forehead throbbing with how much effort it was taking him to stop himself from punching his cousin's stupid face. He found you standing in the kitchen, the food that was previously on your plate was now in the trash can and you just stood there staring at it, your small sniffles reaching his ears. You jumped upon feeling two strong arms wrap around your waist but melted into heeseung's touch in an instant.

"Baby, it's okay, have you seen the amount of food that i eat? On the daily basis?" His words made you snort, how ladylike. It was true, heeseung always made sure to load his plate full, piling stuff to the top just so he could make you laugh and forget about your own portion size. It always worked.

"Let's get out of here and I'll take you to this new ice cream parlor I've been meaning to try, would you like that baby? Just me and you?" He peppered small kisses along the length of your neck tenderly, making you close your eyes and just bask in his love. "Yeah I'd love that" you whispered. He was enough for you. You could deal with anything as long as you were in his arms.

Jay

Watching yourself in the mirror was always daunting for you, having no idea of what you really looked like, just constant voices in your head chanting "ugly" were all you could focus on. The dress that you were trying on was tight, it was suffocating. Not thin enough, not pretty enough, starve, starve-

A choked sob escaped your lips and you covered your mouth instantly, realizing that you were in a public space and your boyfriend was right outside. Jay's thought made you cry more, all of your self doubts creeping in and you turned away from the mirror, unable to look at your distorted reflection any longer. You often questioned why he was with you, you were nothing but a mess of a person, not pretty, not normal... just a gaping wound was what you were. Always bleeding. A sudden knock at the changing room's door jolted you out of your thoughts and you quickly wiped your tears, breathing in through your nose to make your voice less wobbly "yes?" you asked, hoping it was just a staff.

"baby let me in please" came jay's sweet voice and you closed your eyes, a defeated sigh leaving your lips. He knew you were having a breakdown, of course he knew, he always knew. You trudged towards the door and yanked it open, presenting your tear stained face to your worried boyfriend. Jay took you in his arms in an instant, cooing and shushing you when you started sobbing in earnest. "talk to me love, I'm right here" he whispered, running his palms all over your body, caressing you with so much tenderness it made you tighten your hold around his neck.

"I just-i don't like this dress" you choked out in the crook of his neck and he hummed in understanding "but I think it looks stunning on you baby" He whispered. His words made you pull back, still sniffing but staring into his eyes to detect a lie being told to placate you.

"You do?" you asked softly, not trusting your voice just yet. He nodded and turned you around, a gasp leaving your lips while your back rested against his chest. Your eyes met his in the mirror and you shied away from the intensity of his gaze. You watched as he ran his hands all over your body, your breath hitching when he cupped your chest, travelling down to your waist, then to your hips "so perfect" he whispered in your ear, making a shiver run down your spine. "look at the way it hugs your curves sweetheart, and the vibrant blue which brings out the color of your eyes", your eyes widened upon realizing that he was right, the dress did do wonders in highlighting your eyes. " look at the way it hugs your hips baby, driving me crazy" and it did, it hugged your hips so snugly, the fit so perfect now that you were seeing yourself in new light. His fingers dug into your waist, his lips touching your earlobe while he told you how beautiful you were. "let me take you home and show you how much I like this dress" He groaned and you bit your lower lip at his suggestion, suddenly feeling so sexy and so desired. He was so good at making you feel like this gorgeous person that you never thought you were. But he was here. And he wanted you. He thought you were pretty and that's all that mattered to you. It didn't heal you but it did make things easier.

Jake

He would be the type of boyfriend who keeps you stacked with your diet soda and 0 calorie foods. After he started dating you he had quickly grasped the severity of your condition, and even though it was out of his hand to actually help you, he did try his best to just be there for you.

"Jake I didn't order these" you asked your boyfriend in confusion, pointing towards the two full boxes of konjac noodles sitting on the kitchen counter. He walked towards you with a smile and pulled you into him. "I did, aren't they your favorite noodles? I was just trying to be a good boyfriend".

Favorite noodles. No they weren't. And you knew that jake knew that, but he didn't like to make you feel like there was something wrong with you, and you appreciated that so much. Your lower lip wobbled upon seeing the new cans of coke zero stacked on the side counter as well. Never had anyone cared so much about your needs and it was making you choke on your emotions. You had been running out of your ed foods and were trying to push back buying them because of the increasing prices, not wanting to waste money on your own hunger because according to you, you didn't deserve to eat anyway.

"How'd you know?" you whispered through a sniffle, already feeling the onslaught of tears. "because I know you, and I love you" He whispered back, wiping your tears and capturing your lips in his own, kissing you through your breakdown.

Sunghoon

You didn't want to overthink it. You really didn't, but your boyfriend was gorgeous and so it was inevitable that he got female attention wherever he went. And most girls ignored your presence beside him, fawning over him as if he didn't have his fingers intertwined with yours. She was beautiful, the girl your boyfriend had been laughing with when you stepped into his office unannounced. That was your biggest mistake because now you couldn't help but compare. Compare the thighs, the arms, the waist... you were nothing like her. Were these the women sunghoon spent his entire day with? and he still chose to come back to your plain self? What were you even doing with yourself? You should be starving harder, you decided. Just a few inches more and your waist might start looking like her, and maybe a few more inches on your thighs would make everything better and the- you were spiralling again. Unable to stop it even though you knew the consequences.

"This is the 3rd order this week baby" sunghoon's voice made you turn towards your bedroom door, mentally cursing upon finding the packaged waist trainer in his hands. You panicked and snatched it from his hands, mumbling a quick thank you and not meeting his eyes. You could feel his probing gaze on you. "You haven't stepped outside of this house in weeks, care to tell me what's going on?"

You hadn't lost weight, you weren't pretty enough yet, didn't he understand?? You couldn't just go outside looking like this, was he out of his mind?. Warm hands cupping your cheeks pulled you out of your inner monologue and you looked up at his intense eyes staring down at you. He rubbed his thumbs onto your cheeks and rested his forehead against yours

"Do you remember the first day of high school? When you had the biggest zit on your nose?" He asked and you looked up at him confused, not knowing where this conversation was headed but nodded regardless. "I loved you then" he whispered and your throat tightened, remembering how he was probably the only one in your entire grade who didn't make a comment on your acne. "And the time when you fell face first into the muddy water before class cuz you were an idiot who never looked at the ground while walking" The memory made you giggle but sunghoon only smiled fondly , kissing your nose "you were drenched from head to toe but i loved you then. I loved you so much y/n". You could feel the moisture gathering in your eyes at his confession, knowing that you spent your entire teen years hating yourself so much to the point that you failed to see the love that was around you. Remembering how you would shy away from your own reflection in the class windows because you despised yourself to the core. "And I loved you when you slapped me, loved you so much that it hurt". Tears were falling freely now, the painful memory of you slapping sunghoon after he confessed his feelings for you because you thought he was trying to make fun of you, coming back to you. cuz in your head there was no way that a guy like him could ever want something to do with you, so you automatically concluded that it was a prank, a distasteful one. "and I love you right now y/n, I love you because you're you. I can't live without you because your soft snores are the only thing helping me fall asleep most days. Because your stupid jokes are the only ones I'd ever fake my laugh for- you gasped through your tears and slapped his chest lightly, making him chuckle. "I love you because I can't help it. It's that easy to love you. " he continued , wiping your tears, "don't you understand baby? You never had to try to make me love you, so why now?". You buried your face into his chest and sobbed, feeling like a huge rock had been lifted off of your chest. His assurance was what you craved the most. The reminder that you were enough for someone. For him.

"I want you just like you are sweetheart, flaws and scars intact. Raw and unfiltered. Now that I have you in my arms, please don't take that away from me" He whispered, wrapping his hands tightly around your heaving body.

"If it's hard for you to love yourself,please let me do it for you" and just like that, he was again fixing the parts of you that he didn't break.

[nhularin]

icky! series (1/7) HES COOL! BUT......

OR : three things that make you question your relationship

Choose your member❕ ⌨️ loading. . .HEESEUNG 💢

jay - jake - sunghoon - sunoo - jungwon - Niki LIBRARY

GENRE established relationship, crack hcs WARNINGS none

!! CANT COOK

Mark lee actually wrote the egg part with heeseung in mind

because homeboy would burn HARD BOILED eggs and risk the lives of six innocent boys

Even jay cant help him

(he actually cries himself to sleep every night out of frustration)

The only dish he cant fuck up though are jin ramen!

The cup version tho

His sodium level is concerning but at least he can feed himself.

Call gordon ramsey!

!! HIS PHONE IS ALWAYS AT MAX VOLUME

Shit is louder than a dad in traffic!

Dnd does not exist in hee's vocabulary and you're already used to the constant pings of notifications, them being mostly from his group members.

I You don't really mind them though, since his attention is always on you.

But shit gets really annoying when you guys are laying in bed and all you hear is a loud TASTY! and SODALICIOUS!

his screen is bright as fuck too, its like getting blinded at the dentist

nd hes confused why you reject his cuddles 🤦🏻‍♀️

lower your damn volume gramps!

!! MESSY BOY

he has piles of dirty laundry and soda cans scattered around his room and can't be bothered to clean them up.

He denies it but you swear you saw a roach emerging from his trash can

Just imagine a hot domestic seungie sitting at his desk

playing his newest video game while red bull cans are stacked up left and right

All you need is a ball and you have an at home bowling alley.

When he thinks its getting a little extreme, he just shoves his clothes into his closet (yikes!)

✰ haew0nz 2023

꩜ NETWORKS @k-labels @hyfenet @kflixnet

[thesandsofelsweyr]

I have an idea similar to this prompt. (Ok, not really, but the prompt reminded me of the idea that's been rattling around my noggin.)

When Slade arrives in Venezuela with his damaged ex-Robin in tow, he orders Jay into the shower since the kid smells like dogshit. (He considered hosing the boy down but decided that was too much work when the kid’s arms and legs still functioned. Mostly.) Jay's still traumatized by the last time he set foot in a shower, and just crouches on the floor, unmoving, except for the trembling that shakes his entire frame. While the hot water floods over him, he grits his chattering teeth and squeezes his eyes shut, trying desperately to think of anything except the feeling of the Clown's hands all over his naked flesh again, those pasty-white fingers crawling over his skin like so many roaches skittering over a pile of trash. An hour later, long after the water turned cold, Jay limps out, covered only by a towel wrapped around his waist. He’s visibly uncomfortable—shoulders hunched, head sagging, eyes downcast behind a curtain of stringy black hair plastered to his skull, scrawny arms crossed over his gaunt chest in a futile attempt to hide his ruined body from view. The kid’s shaking like a leaf; dripping wet, yeah, but still crusted with what looks like dried blood, dirt, and probably his own shit. Goddamn it. Slade's annoyed. That pasty-faced asshole neglected to tell him that he'd have to play nursemaid or he'd have demanded double. Fast as a striking snake, he grabs the kid by the skinny arm, drags him back into the bathroom, rips off the towel, then shoves him back under the shower and turns on the hot water. The pathetic kid lets out a whimper as he stumbles to the wet floor, then he's cowering in the corner of the shower, bony knees pulled up to his chest, fleshless arms curled over his head. Hard to believe this mewling heap of skin and bones is the same loud-mouthed little prick he'd brawled with, who'd given him a bloody nose on one occasion. The Clown really did a number on this brat. Not only is he afraid of his own shadow now, there's hardly an inch of skin not marked by cuts or burns or punctures or abrasions. Slade even spotted some words carved into that skeletal torso. How long had this kid been a guest of that psycho? He idly wonders as he picks up the bar of soap and lathers the tattered oil cloth before tossing it on top of the boy. The boy jolts at that like he'd been kicked in the ribs. Slade folds his arms over his chest and stares down at the sniveling hunk of human Jell-O. "Get yourself clean, or I'm taking you out back and using the hose. Don't think you'd much fancy that." Slade waits for another "yes sir" as the boy slowly uncurls, although he'd already warned the kid to knock that shit off—he wasn't into whatever fucked up roleplay those two had going on. But a trembling hand only reaches for the cloth then starts to scrub his filthy body. Well, at least the kid's obedient.

[goldenavenger02]

i said "i love you" (you say nothing back)

After defeating the Hoarder, Nya finds out exactly what Cole means when he says that it feels like the earth is screaming. Meanwhile, Cole knows that his and Geo’s time is running out.

“We’re gonna need to head out first thing in the morning,” Nya explained as she followed Cole around, the two of them on their own journey to find two sufficient air mattresses for her and Sora to sleep on for the night, but she had a much more pressing matter on her mind, “so, you and Geo?”

“What about Geo?” Cole asked, kneeling down next to a pile of junk and starting to dig through it.

“I just think it’s nice that you found him and the others, that you had others after the Merge,” Nya shrugged as she got down beside her best friend and started to dig through the pile of trash beside him while a much simpler time came to the forefront of her mind, “remember that true match machine?”

“Oh my god,” Cole laughed despite the thin lines of pain around his lips that Nya could only see in a certain light, “I nearly forgot about that stupid thing.”

“What, the machine that resulted in you and I going on one date? Where afterwards you said “I’m not talking to Jay, but you can’t pick me”? How did you forget that?” Nya couldn’t contain her laughter as they stood with zero luck and continued to walk, no longer in fear of the Hoarder now that it was trapped in a jar.

“I still can’t believe that was the last piece of the puzzle.”

“Yep, one date with me. That’s all it took for you to realize that you were gay,” she grinned, but it was quickly replaced by a frown of worry about where her yin was bubbling its way back to the surface of her mind, “I hope that the others find him.”

“Hey,” Cole’s voice was comforting as his hand rested on her shoulder, forcing her attention to him, “we will find him. One of us will find Jay, I promise. I mean, you and Sora found me in a place that, according to most people, doesn’t even exist. That’s gotta mean something.”

“I wish you would come with us.” Nya sighed, pulling an air mattress pump off of the top of a pile of junk, relieved to find that it was only slightly dented and battery powered.

“You know I can’t. Not until I can find a way to bring them with me,” Cole sighed, examining the device, “it would kill me to leave them-” the cry of anguish as he dropped to his knees forced a horrific scream from Nya’s lungs.

“Cole!” She rushed over and knelt down before pulling her best friend into her arms, “Cole, what’s-”

“Get Geo.” Was all he said before his eyes fluttered shut and his body went limp in her arms, making Nya’s stomach churn with worry; she tried to lift him so she could get him back to the Rookery, to find his boyfriend like he said to do, but despite her own share of muscle from the years of being a Samurai and then a ninja, he was still too heavy for her.

So she did the only thing that she could think to do and started to yell out, “Sora! Geo! Riyu! I need help!”

…

Nya’s heart pounded painfully in her chest as she looked around at the others surrounding her; Bonzal was crocheting, her boney hands working slowly but expertly with the light blue yarn that was reminiscent of her own gi. Fritz and Spitz were sitting on the ground, gluing together popsicle sticks into what she assumed was a log cabin, similar to how she had done it when she was their age. Sora and Riyu had gone out to resume finding mattresses for the two of them to settle for the night, insisting that since they had found a pump, a mattress had to be close by.

Nya couldn’t help but wonder if Bonzal’s crocheting was nerves or not with how slow she was working; she couldn’t help but remember her boyfriend’s anxious movements, his hands working nervously on all sorts of projects and inventions if only just to calm his overworking mind.

If he had been with her in this current moment, Jay would focus on trying to comfort her own nerves, using his own words to ground himself, but she didn’t dare wish for him to be there even in the comfort of her own mind, not even a good experience with a Dijin could change that.

With how at ease the boys were, even if they weren’t outwardly showing their nerves, Nya couldn’t help but wonder if what had happened to Cole was somewhat normal for the children he was now practically calling his own, for the skeleton who outwardly didn’t care for much but her craft projects as well as her weird collections and for Cole’s boyfriend, who was in the room just down the hall, tending to him.

It wasn’t that it was unexpected for Cole to have a boyfriend; ever since he came out to her, Nya was aware of the persistent crush he had once had on her brother as well as the brief romance that he had shared with Plundar. If she was being completely honest, she had been expecting it for a long time just like she knew the others had been expecting her to get back together with Jay.

But she couldn’t stop herself from wondering about Geo, the outcast of Shintaro that had found his way into Cole’s heart. They hadn’t spoken much to each other aside from the explanation of his own elemental powers, not that it wasn’t either of their faults given the attack from both The Hoarder as well as Dr. LaRow.

Admittedly, Nya couldn’t help but wonder if it was just her wanting to get to know the Munce, or if some part of her was still guarded from the mess that had been what had gone down with Harumi and Lloyd and as a result, wanted to protect the others from going through anything like that again.

She was so lost in her own mind that she hadn’t even registered Geo, slowly opening the creaking, wooden door until he approached the line of her vision, “how is he?”

“He’ll be okay,” Geo’s voice was steady, like anything about Cole passing out for seemingly no reason after expressing earlier in the day that it felt like the earth had been screaming ever since the Merge was okay.

“How are you so calm about this?” Nya questioned with a raised eyebrow, “this isn’t normal and not just in Ninjago. It’s not normal at all.”

Geo didn’t answer at first and Nya assumed that it was due to the fact that he was refusing to acknowledge her question, but she was surprised when Geo led her over to a small table pushed into the back of the room and handed her a hot mug of steaming chamomile, a scent she instantly recognized from her days working at Steep Wisdom.

“I don’t like scaring Fritz and Spitz,” Geo admitted as he passed her a small dish of sugar before taking a sip of his unsweetened tea, looking right at the young boys as he spoke, “they’re just kids. Kids who look at Cole the same way that they look at me.”

“So they’re your sons?” Nya pressed while sweetening her tea.

“In all but blood,” Geo affirmed, “the four of us, we were all rejected by our biological families, so we made our own and when Cole fell from the sky, we only assumed that he was like the rest of us.”

Nya nodded; she was instantly brought back to those cold autumn mornings in Ignacia where her feet would be so cold that she would instantly go to Kai’s bed and snuggle up to her furnace of a brother; even when he complained about her cold feet on his warm legs, she knew that he was grateful that at least he could provide warmth.

It had just been the two of them surviving together, hoping that the other villagers would take pity on them to the point of at least offering them a warm meal if they didn’t buy some of the extensive stock of weapons that only dwindled as they grew up.

In a weird way, she had been thankful for being taken by the skeleton army; after all, it wasn’t like they hurt her and afterwards, they had the guarantee of comfy beds and warm meals while Kai continued his training to become the master of fire.

“So, what happened out there?” Nya questioned, now that the chamomile was starting to calm down her anxiety and replaced it with the need for answers, “and why are you all so calm about this?”

“I know you said that this isn’t normal, and you are completely in the right, but it has become our normal,” Geo explained, stopping to take a sip of his tea, “a few weeks after Cole arrived, he fought the Hoarder for the first time. But when he used what he calls his “earth punch”, he confided in me later on that the earth struggled to obey his mastery and it felt like the ground was in agony.”

“So the pain is from his earth punch.” 

“Not exactly,” Nya couldn’t stop her eyebrow from raising in confusion, but after being in so many confusing conversations throughout the years, she knew when it was better to remain silent, “after that day, he started to develop these migraines, he told me that he always hears the cries, but that he can drown them out. But some days, like today, it’s too strong for him.”

Nya swallowed in sympathy; after she had been brought back from the sea, she had been forced to go through the withdrawal of the lack of elemental power she had seen both Kai and Lloyd go through in the past. It had been painful to say the least between getting used to her own body again as well as the usual flu-like symptoms that came with having the elemental energy ripped from one's body.

But consistent migraines like that, long after the event that originally caused the internal turmoil, that was new to her; not impossible, but new. Just like everything else that she had learned within the past few weeks since she reunited with Lloyd.

“Is there anything that helps him get through the bad days?” Nya asked, pushing a loose strand of hair away from her face where it had fallen out of her ponytail, only to be disappointed when Geo shook his head.

“Not much. We haven’t been able to find any sort of medicine or herbal remedy to decrease the pain, but physical contact helps him ground himself, so it’s something.”

That was something that didn’t surprise Nya at all. Cole was always the first one to give and accept hugs to whoever might need one ever since she first met him; she had a particularly strong memory of the two of them holding onto each other tightly after a conversation about ghosts and newfound powers. 

But as Geo spoke, every word rattled inside of her mind and filled it with the fact that Geo was not deceptive and had zero malicious intent for her friend. Rather, he may very well be the best match she had ever seen for Cole.

“Then you should go be with him,” Nya insisted, putting her now empty tea cup down on the table, “I’ll clean this up and make dinner.”

“Are you sure?” Geo questioned as she stood, taking his empty cup with her own towards the sink, “you and Sora have a long journey ahead of you tomorrow.”

“Geo, you are the first person I’ve met that has truly loved Cole,” Nya put her hand on the Munce’s to ensure that yes, she had his attention, “and right now, you are the one he needs. You’ve helped him through this before, I would have no idea what to do.”

Geo nodded as he stood, and Nya could have sworn that she saw a shiny tear trickle down his cheek but he made no move to acknowledge it as he walked back toward his and Cole’s shared bedroom, only stopping to turn back toward Bonzal and say, “help Nya with dinner if she needs it.”, before disappearing behind the wooden door.

…

Cole knew that if he stayed perfectly still and kept his eyes closed, the migraine would pass. It would take time and he would be bedridden for the rest of the night, but he knew that the throbbing in his mind and the subtle churn of his nauseated stomach would pass.

In the years that had passed in the Land of Lost Things, he got used to the throbbing of the scar that had come from the rift in the sky sealing around the left side of his skull. 

He knew that any of the other ninjas would have been just as freaked out as he had been when it had started, he also knew that it had been foolish to believe that it had just been from the lack of adrenaline from fighting the Hoarder that first time.

But, he had Geo to get him through it by letting him rest his pounding head on his chest and the comforting squeeze of his arm around his shoulders. It didn’t stop the pain, the nausea or even the fainting, but it was enough for Cole to ground himself and know that he would get through it just like he had before.

“Hey,” the tender whisper broke through his thoughts, resting his gentle hand on Cole’s bare shoulder which gave him the strength to open his eyes in the pitch black room, “how’re you feeling?”

“Honestly?” Cole couldn’t stop his voice from trembling as he spoke because even moving the muscles in his jaw sent a flash of pain through his head, “like shit, the migraines…” he hesitated, but given the little of Geo’s face he could see through the makeshift blackout curtains that covered their windows, Cole knew that his boyfriend knew exactly what he was gonna say, “I think they’re getting worse. The screaming is getting louder.”

Geo’s mouth was pushed into a tight line, the face he made whenever he was deep in thought; Cole had seen it before, when the two of them discussed the Hoarder with Bonzal to try and figure out what exactly it was and how to stop it for good, as well as when the migraines first made their appearance and Geo had tried everything to remove the pain before it was decided that they should just try and manage the pain instead.

“You should go with Nya, Riyu and Sora tomorrow,” Geo finally spoke, and despite the pain, Cole immediately sat up in protest, “Cole, lay back do-”

“I am not leaving the boys, I am not leaving Bonzal and I am not leaving you,” Cole shook his head and fought back the wave of nausea that it caused as he grasped onto his boyfriend’s hands, “you four can’t leave, I can’t leave you.”

“Ninjago has more sufficient medical technology-”

“But Ninjago doesn’t have you,” Cole cut him off, his vision trying to dim around him due to the overexertion, “I need you, Geo.”

“I don’t want you to leave, Cole,” Geo’s voice trembled as he set a gentle hand on his chest, forcing his throbbing head onto the pillows, “but I also don’t want to lose you.”

Cole sighed as he chewed on the edge of his lip; he understood everything Geo was saying and he knew that his boyfriend wasn’t pushing him away because he no longer wanted him around but more so that he couldn’t find another solution to the problem and he knew that, in the depths of his mind where only the truest honesty inside of him was, he knew that the only solution had to be stopping the Merge Quakes.

“I love you, Geo,” Cole sighed as he moved to allow the Munce to get in bed beside him so he could rest his head against his chest, knowing that if this was the last night that he would be with Geo, then he was going to make sure that it ended on a good note, “and I swear that as soon as all of this is over, I’ll come back and bring you four with me.”

“I know you will,” Geo spoke softly before pressing his tender lips to the top of Cole’s head, wrapping his arm around his shoulders, “and Cole?”

Cole turned his head to look into Geo’s shiny eyes, feeling his own tears start to build up from both the migraine and knowing that this could very well be the last time that he shared the night with his boyfriend.

Despite all of that, Cole couldn’t help but smile when their lips met, the familiar sensation of nothing but pure love bringing his attention away from the pain for just a few moments before Geo pulled away and said what he got his attention for in the first place.

“I love you too, and if you can’t get back to us…” Geo stopped to push away Cole’s sweaty, raven-black hair away from his throbbing scar, never putting his fingers directly on it.

“Don’t finish that,” Cole pleaded, gently taking Geo’s purple fingers in his own hand, “I will come back to Bonzal, to the boys and to you. We’ll go back to Ninjago, and you guys can meet my dad,” he started to ramble, which he knew was from both the exhaustion and the migraine taking away his focus, but he had this conversation with Geo before deep in the night after they had their first kiss.

“And if we decide that Ninjago isn’t for us, we’ll go live with your friend, Queen Vania, in Shintaro,” Geo continued, pressing more soft kisses against Cole’s head while speaking, “and we’ll keep raising our boys where they’ll be as safe as they can be and where Bonzal will have so much thread and yarn that she’ll never run out of things to crochet or sew.”

“And when they’re a bit older,” Cole stopped to yawn, his eyes fluttering shut as he continued to mumble, “maybe we’ll have another one. I’ve always wanted three, you know.”

But as he let his eyes stay shut and his mind started to wander into dreamland, he heard Geo speak for just a few more moments.

“A girl, who we’ll name her after your mom,” one more kiss pressed to his forehead followed by a “good night, Cole” and after that, Cole couldn’t hear his boyfriend speak anymore.

He thought he heard the voice of Master Wu calling out to him, pleading with him to follow him, but it quickly faded to an empty void.

…

Spitz had burst into tears as soon as he heard that Cole would be leaving, his sobs turning into sniffles after Cole hugged him with a little bit of super strength and insisted that he would be back as soon as he could be.

Fritz was just as sniffly as Spitz when he hugged Cole tightly, but was much easier to cheer up with the promise of meeting the others, especially Kai, and the promise that he would be brought back the newest in ninja action figures.

Bonzal didn’t say much before leading the boys away, she didn’t even hug Cole, but when she stuttered over “bring me any bones you find, rock boy,” he knew that she was pushing back any of her emotions so he and Geo could have a proper goodbye without Fritz asking more questions about the dragon cores or Spitz becoming inconsolable about Cole leaving again.

But when the door closed, leaving the Master of Earth and the Munce alone, neither of them could break the silence as Cole pulled the backpack of his few things over his shoulder. He was still exhausted from the migraine that had overtaken him the day before, but the pain was gone and the screaming was quieter now.

Unfortunately, that also meant that his departure from the land he had called home, and the people he had called home for the last few years, was very real and not just an argument between him and his boyfriend.

“You be safe,” Geo’s voice broke through the seemingly impenetrable silence that had filled the living room as he rested his palm in Cole’s, the small burst of powers forming a brief heart shape around their hands, “you come back to us.”

“Geo,” Cole swallowed harshly, his mouth dry as he did, “tell me to stay and I swear, I will unpack this bag faster than the elemental master of speed,” Cole knew that he wouldn’t since he was the one who told him to leave the night before, but he was pleading just the same as his voice trembled into a honest stutter, “I-I love you.”

He should have known that Geo wouldn’t say another word, but the last thing he expected was for Geo to let his hand fall before walking with him toward the entrance. Cole wanted to take his hand again, to drop his pack and insist that he was staying, but that’s when Geo spoke one more time, pressing his hand to Cole’s cheek as he did, his eyes full of earnestness.

“You have to leave.”

And with that, Geo removed his hand from his cheek and turned around toward their bedroom, leaving Cole to stand in the entryway by himself.

His shaky breath filled the room as the water in his eyes started to fall, but he lifted his arm up, wiped away the tears, pulled the backpack tighter onto his shoulder and forced himself to walk out of the Rookery for the last time.

Despite that, he couldn’t stop himself from turning around for a brief second to try and get a glimpse of Geo from the window, only to remember that the blackout curtains were still up; so he continued walking toward Nya, Sora and Riyu to tell them that he would be going to follow Master Wu’s voice instead of coming with them.

But he knew that he wouldn’t tell Nya the reason that he was wiping heartbroken tears from his cheeks and if she pressed, he knew that he would have to lie to her only so she didn’t release any of her powers on the Finders.

‘I will return,’ Cole told himself as his eyes caught onto the small group in front of him, ‘and we’ll all make it back to Ninjago.’

[yourmomni]

Fix You

A/n: hi guys🥰 I hope you enjoy this I literally was so excited to write this first part of this story and can't wait to continue it ( and actually finish a series). Their will be 4 parts of this series that will be dropping every Sunday ( or if I'm feeling generous) every Friday. I have school through out the week so please be patient with me. @loveyouselfalways thank you for the request i cherish you in my heart 🥰🥰

The comments on the life were popping up rapidly on the screen as I rocked in my gamer chair that was in my room.

" Guys, what song should I play next."

I smiled as the requests were all over the screen within seconds of me asking. I was live on Weverse after our comeback on Music Bank.

" Oh I like Maroon 5, let's play Sunday morning."

I typed the song in and turned my speakers that were on my desk up. I swayed to the song bobbing my head and singing along.

Jay popped his head in as I looked up over my monitor at him. " Jake wanted to know if you've seen his black cap, and I also bought you some ramen." I shook my head. " no he probably left it at the studio but do you wanna come say hi." He smiled rushing into my room sitting the bowl down beside me, standing behind me waving. " Hi ENGENE thank you for supporting us today." He began humming the song and reading the comments.

" no, I'm not joining the live I just stopped by to say hello…now I'm leaving so goodnight I love you." He waved bye rustling my hair and then running out before I could hit him back.

" He's so annoying guys, I swear he's really like a big brother to me." I fixed my hair grabbed the chopsticks and ate a little bit of the ramen

Hoonies wife: You’re the annoying one

Jaybm: I want to see him not you

I squinted at the comment

" He's not really annoying, it was just a joke guys."

Dweakicake: look at how she's eating. What a pig

Skyhon: fat bitch

Lilsim: I can't believe they chose her as the last member, what a waste of space. Literally lol.

Jewelgold: did you guys see her outfit for comeback? They should have covered her up more, she looked like a dancing cow

You stared blankly at the camera reading the comments appearing on the screen one by one.

"I'm sorry if you guys didn't like my outfit for the comeback, maybe next show you'll enjoy the next one."

You faked a smile, your heart felt like a needle was going in and out of it, and your stomach felt like there was a zoo inside of it.

The song finally ended and you slid the bowl to the side.

You were too sick to eat

" Okay, guys I'm not feeling well so I'm just going to end the live here."

Y/Nfairy: Don't pay attention to the mean comments we love you

Enha4L: Don't go I'll miss you too much

You smiled " It's getting late and I promised Sunoo I would do face mask with him tonight so I gotta go. I love you engenes until next time." I blew a kiss and waved bye to the screen ending the live.

I exhaled, groaning, laying my head on the desk. Jay walked back in smiling holding his own bowl

" I came to- hey what happened to the live I was going to surprise them" I quickly lifted my head to face him

"Oh, I ended the live it's getting late." I got out of my chair, grabbed my bowl that was on the desk taking it to the the kitchen.

Jay was taken aback by the sudden change of mood you had. You were all bubbly and excited to get on live just a second ago.

Jake was sitting at the dinner table on his phone, probably ordering a new black cap.

" Someone needs to clean the dishes I did it last night and this morning, and they keep piling up," Jungwon said, walking in from the living room and setting his bowl in the sink.

I dumped my food in the trash sitting my bowl down beside his " I did it last week it's sunoo turn." Jay said leaning on the island

" I did it the week before," Sunoo yelled from his room.

" Hey, you didn't eat all your food," Jay whispered as I stood beside him on my phone.

" I wasn't hungry." I moved before he could ask me anything else. The living room was empty even though the T.V. was on. I sat down on the couch scrolling through Twitter trying to see if anyone posted the highlights of my live.

Enhypenlover: Y/n looked so pretty today on her live as she played songs by Tyler the Creator, Frank Ocean, Steve Lacey, Beabadoobob and Maroon 5. She even had a special appearance from Jay. Sadly she left in a hurry but I can't wait to see her again soon. What did you guys think about her live?

You pushed the comment section and saw over 2.5k people reply to her tweet

There were a lot of comments about how they liked your taste in music, or about how they enjoyed seeing you. Then you scrolled too far.

User183752890: why didn't they make her diet before coming back? So embarrassing

You sharply exhaled as you read it over and over again

You knew you weren't the skinniest person in the world, you had thighs that doubled every time you sat down, your fingers weren't skinny and Dainty like the other girl idols and your belly was nowhere near flat. It would spill out from under your shirts and poke out when you tried to hide it in your jeans.

It was nowhere around how you looked. You knew you were fat.

After I-land aired and the last 7 members were picked to be in enhypen everyone was so excited to see the new group, well until they decided to add you into it.

The boys were nice, sweet, and caring towards you but the fans were a different story. Always commenting on how you looked or saying you didn't match the boy's vibes. Telling you to leave the group every chance they got.

A tear fell from you're eyes and onto your cheek, as you gripped your phone in your hand. " You okay." You quickly whipped it away. " Yeah just got something in my eye no big deal."

Niki was standing there watching as you wiped your tears away for the 5th time that week in silence.

He walked over to you, snatching your phone out of your hand. " What are you reading?" I gasped hopping up trying to grab my phone back. " Niki stop it." He started scrolling eyebrows frowning as he continued to read all the comments

" Niki give it here." He turned his back to me, blocking my phone from me. I tried going in front of him but he ran to the other side of the room.

" Niki, this isn't funny, just give it back." He scoffed. He was still reading silently. Niki was beyond angry at all of the things he was seeing.

People who claimed to be fans hated you for no reason. It was pissing him off.

"How long has this been going on?" He asked, finally looking up from your phone. " It doesn't matter, just give me my phone back." You reached for your phone but Niki moved it out of the way.

"It doesn't matter? Y/n you were literally crying 5 minutes ago reading this trash." "It isn't trash," I yelled at him. He bit the inside of his cheek. " When did this start y/n." I crossed my arms looking away from him

He shrugged, "Fine, you don't wanna talk." He brushed past me and into the kitchen where I followed him. " Niki, what are you doing?"

Everyone was gathered in the kitchen which was just your luck.

" Jungwon, look at this." I gasped as I watched him hand my phone over to our leader. Jungwon raised his eyebrows as he received the phone.

Oh no

The one thing about getting hate was that you tried your best to hide it from your other members. You knew if they saw it they would try to protect you or worse agree with the people about you.

Everyone crowded behind Jungwon to read what was on your phone. you felt like you were living a nightmare. Your hands started getting sweaty and your legs turned to jello.

Jay was the first one to look back up at you sadness all over his face. You quickly looked away from him and down at the ground. You hated seeing them sad especially if it was over you.

You clenched your fist all of a sudden and anger filled you. " When did this Start?" Jungwon asked, breaking the silence. I couldn't look up at him. " Y/n answer me when did-" " None of your business." I spat. Everyone looked taken aback.

" Y/n watch how you talk," Heeseung said glaring at me. I walked over and snatched my phone out of his hand. " This is none of your concern I can handle this alone."

" Oh, so that's what you call crying at night in your room. You call that " handling it" because it doesn't seem handled." Niki yelled back just as angry. I pushed his chest " fuck you.".

" Y/n that's enough," Sunghoon interjects. " Niki was trying to help and-." I cut him off ." He wasn't trying to help me he was trying to embarrass me…I don't have time for this." I stormed to my room " Come back here, we're not done talking to you." Jay said following me.

" I don't want to talk to any of you EVER." I slammed the door in his face.

" teenagers." Heeseung groaned throwing the rag he had in the sink and whipping his hands on the apron he had around his neck. Niki dragged his hands across his face. " Why didn't she tell us," Jake said with frustration all over his face.

Niki's leg was bouncing so hard the table began to move with it." I don't know but I'm going to fix it." He got up from the table storming to his own room slamming the door.

[jammerskrik]

honestly I’ll never have a job as funny and wild as old 1950s cumbies. I think that’s probably the top silliest stupid job I’ve ever had. I had a coworker named kilfeather who was a late thirties obese literal fedora’d neckbeard, who unfailingly made the various (East Asian) women of Boston uncomfortable by being on brand to the point of addressing them as ‘M’lady,’ and split his time between manga and atheist reddit boards and masturbation. He gave his entire savings to The Occupy Movement, then rebuilt it only to then give it all to Bernie Sanders… he was Irish white trash from one of the most depressed towns in western mass, his parents were farmer-descended biker gang ppl that he dropped out of nineth grade to caretake once the cigarette genocide got them. He used to give me impassioned speeches about how the most important issue of our time is centering black and brown voices, and then, without fail, partially magic and partially because our boss was a black lady from Cali that hated most other African Americans, something beautiful and so fucking ironic and hilarious would happen.

Best was when we had to run down inventory to shut the gas station down around January 2019, our boss interrupted one of Kilfeather’s woke speeches about worshipping ppl darker than him to tell him to go clean out the little cup shed with me and Rokon, a banglandeshi indo-muzzy immigrant who at the time didn’t speak any English yet. Rokon began tossing all the spare foam coffee cup rolls out of the shed to me so I could bag them up, as Kilfeather waddled up through snowfall that was beginning to accumulate to watch us and, perhaps if the opportunity presented itself, resume his anti-racist speech.

About a minute later, Rokon had run out of cups and was suddenly madly pulling up endless flattened layers of shipping cardboard that had formed the flooring beneath the cup rolls, and I mean like decades of layers of flattened cardboard, the station was original from 1951 and the bottom decade or two had become dust and dirt. I stopped helping at my disgust threshold and just stood beside kilfeather in the snow watching R manically pry out every layer and heave it into a comically large pile as if his life depended on it until he suddenly froze. He stood there for a few moments, turned and looked at me n kilfeather, then smiled wide, disappearing into the small old shed like laughing, but a strange rare laugh to hear from a man like that; he squealed with absolute delight then vanished. Kilfeather looked at me like, what? does this mean??

But I didn’t get to reply because Rokon had emerged from the shed holding some kind of giant frozen tangled black disk about a meter in diameter. Kilfeather and I were both immediately instinctually repulsed though neither of us could really process what the disk was in that moment, as Rokon stood there dusted in snow and beaming… but we realised right as he spun around like a discus thrower, launching a massive frozen-solid City of Boston Real Life Rat King into Kilfeather’s face and chest.

There were two black crackheads from Kentucky who would stand outside the gas station like Jay and Silent Bob -style and by this point they were watching in the background, as was our boss. The Crackheads began heckling/roasting the fuck out of Kilfeather and calling him a faggot, and he let out a whine to our boss lady, to see if she could please make the addicts of colour stop calling him the f-slur. she was super Christian and super racist and she gracefully walked to Kilfeather through the snow and was like ‘well baby, I am worried that you never stand up for yourself, if Rokon hadda thrown that at me I wouldda whooped his ass to Death on the spot!’

idk cumbies was super funny

[mouthsfullofsharpteeth]

warning signs

cross posted on my ao3. can be read as platonic or romantic. enjoy :3

For as long as Jay had known Alex (which was an awfully long time, mind you; since Elementary school, since they both had long hair, since people still used OCD to mean washing your hands a lot), Alex had been a bit of a germaphobe. 

He didn’t like getting dirty. He didn’t like his living space to be dirty. He was the tidiest teenager Jay had known in high school, his floor always devoid of crumbs and trash, and bed always made. Unlike Jay, who had lived in what Alex described as “complete filth, what the hell is wrong with you?”. 

Alex would scrub his hands for multiple minutes if they felt sticky, and would scold Jay for just dumping his stuff on the floor whenever he came over. Jay didn’t always understand it, but he respected Alex’s need to keep things nice and clean. He thought it was admirable how, even when they were both moved out and Alex had three random guys as his roommates, that his kitchen counters were shiny and his floor was swept. Sure, it was annoying when Alex complained about Jay’s own messy house, but that usually ended with him taking matters into his own hands and dedicating an afternoon to ‘fixing it’ for Jay. Which was awesome. Multiple comments were made about getting Alex a little feather duster and apron, how he could dress up as Cinderella whenever he did this. 

This behavior started to decline around when the filming of Marble Hornets picked up. Jay didn’t think much of it at first. Alex left his obsessively organized director’s binder spread out on the floor, copies of scripts and critiques from professors circling it, pens and pencils and highlighters a jumbled maze leading from his door to his bed. Jay didn’t notice when Alex started to leave his backpack and jacket and shoes in a pile by the front door, nor did he notice when his socks picked up dust and dirt as he walked across the kitchen floor. 

Jay paid no attention to when he had to navigate across piles of dirty clothes in order to get to Alex’s desk. He didn’t notice when Alex retreated to a messy nest of blankets and sheets on his bed, absentmindedly making Jay brush some crumbs off in order to sit. 

Alex’s cleanliness was such an ingrained part of him, that honestly, Jay just stopped noticing the behavior after a while. And so, he just… didn’t pick up on the change. 

Not until July. 

“Alex?” 

The front door was unlocked. None of Alex’s roommates' cars were in the driveway, only Alex’s. Parked on the curb, haphazard, a few feet away from being lined up. 

Jay walked inside, listening for the sound of Alex from anywhere inside the house. It was dark, and warm, like the A/C wasn’t running. The couch was gone from the living room, and boxes were spread around the halls. 

“Alex? You in here?” He flicked the lightswitch, and the entryway illuminated. Clothes were piled up in the corner, dirty and damp looking, like they had been used to clean something up. Jay could see one of them was the Deftones t-shirt Jay had given Alex for his 19th birthday. 

“Your car was out front.. Uhm. You missed filming today. The guys are all kind of pissed..”

He began to walk upstairs, a little unsure. Was Alex even here?

The carpeted stairs were dirty and stained. Dog hair covered them. 

“Dude, where are you?” He reached the top of the stairs, about to turn on another light switch, when his wrist was suddenly grabbed. “AH!” Yelped Jay, gasping when Alex stepped out of the dark bathroom, hand cold and tight around Jay’s wrist. 

“What are you doing here?” Alex asked, a stormy look on his face. 

“I-I just told you! We were supposed to shoot today, and you weren’t there! I texted and called you, like, a million times! What’s going on??”

Alex finally let go of his arm, and turned away, heading towards his bedroom. Jay followed, incessant. 

“Alex?”

“I was busy.”

Jay stepped over what looked like a broken pile of wood from a dresser drawer. He could see the knob on it. There were wood shavings around it, splinters and scratches on the floor. 

“Well, you could have, you know, communicated that?”

Alex turned on the light in his room, and Jay followed him in. It was a complete disaster. His desk was stacked on top of his dresser, blocking the window. His dresser was missing two drawers. Clothes covered the floor like a second carpet, papers and food wrappers and water bottles piled up with no order to them. The sheet had peeled off one corner of Alex’s bed, the mattress showing underneath. A pillow was on the floor, and the blankets were squished up to the foot of the bed. The room smelled stale and sweaty. 

It was safe to say, Jay noticed now. 

“Jesus Christ, Alex. What happened in here?”

Alex shook his head, walking to his bedside table and picking up a video camera. Jay could see the red light blinking. 

“Wha- why are you recording? Alex, seriously. What’s going on?”

“Stop asking questions, you’re giving me a headache,” grumbled Alex. Aiming the camera at Jay. He sat down on the edge of his bed, dropping his head into his hands, rubbing his forehead. Alex was wearing shorts, two different socks, and a black t-shirt with a drooping neckline. Jay didn’t even know what shirt that was. It looked like it might be inside out. 

“Alex… are.. are you okay?” Jay asked in a softer, gentler voice. Face all creased up and worried. He stepped around the disaster on the floor, coming to Alex’s side, and sitting down beside him. Alex’s camera lens followed his movement, his hand angling it to focus on Jay like he wasn’t even thinking about it. Jay felt unnerved, and uncomfortable being filmed like this. 

“What would you say if I wasn’t.” Alex’s words were flat, lifeless. Not even a question, just… resigned. Like he thought Jay would ignore the horrifying implications of what he’d just said.

“I wo-would say that, uh, that I’m worried? That I’m here for you, and want to help. That I will help, as soon as you tell me what’s going on?” Jay’s heart was steadily picking up speed. This was feeling an awful lot like sophomore year of high school, when they both learned what being transgender was and then what intersex looked like, when Alex stopped getting out of bed and looked moments from death for months until he was allowed to cut his hair. 

Alex scoffed. “Alright, Jay. Sure.”

Jay frowned. “I mean it. Something is clearly wrong, and I’m your best friend. I want to help.”

“Did Brian put you up to this?”

Brian? Jay’s eyebrows creased. 

“No..? What does Brian have to do with this?” 

“He came by yesterday, with Tim. Made a big show of how worried he was, how he wanted me to talk. How he’d noticed how bad I was getting. Fucking liar.” Alex’s voice was dark and angry. Jay shivered. Alex used to talk about Brian like he was the sun in the sky. Why was he so mad that Brian had come by?

“Well… no, he didn’t ‘put me up to this’. I didn’t know he visited. Neither of them said anything when we met to film today.”

Tentatively, Jay put a hand on Alex’s back. It bowed underneath his touch, but Alex didn’t shove him away. Jay relaxed, letting his palm rest there. Rubbing a little. He could feel Alex’s spine. Had Alex lost weight? They had gotten lunch together not that long ago, he thought. Or… no, the last time was in June. Was Alex eating poorly? Alex had a job still, didn’t he? The last time he’d lost his job and couldn’t afford food, he had kept it a secret for ages… what if that was happening again.

“Why are you here.” Jay could feel Alex swallow. 

“I wanted to check on you. You’re my best friend.”

“Am I?”

Jay’s entire body stiffened. His hands felt cold.

“Yes. Yes you are. What’s going on, Alex? Please talk to me.”

Alex looked up through his shaggy hair. His haircut had grown out a lot. His glasses had slid low on his nose. 

“I wish I could,” he said softly. Staring up at Jay. “I don’t even know what to say.”

Jay started back. Heart sinking. 

“You don’t have to say anything… I… uhm.” He puffed out air. “Want me to clean your room for you?”

Alex blinked. His face twitched a little. God, he looked exhausted. Eyes all bloodshot and veiny, deep dark circles beneath them. Face a little waxy and hollow. “What?” He asked, like he hadn’t heard Jay. 

“Do- uh, do you want me to clean your room? I can run a load of laundry for you, uhm. I can vacuum? Help you change your sheets and stuff?”

Alex stared at Jay. Seemingly in disbelief. “Uh. I- I guess- are you sure?”

Jay nodded quickly. “I’m positive. I’ll do it right now. You don’t have to do any of it, I can do it.”

Alex sat up a little more. The camera lowered from how focused it was on Jay. 

“Uhm.. okay. Okay, I guess. If you really want to-”

“I do, I really want to.”

Alex swallowed, staring at Jay like he wasn’t convinced Jay was real. “Okay, then. Uhm. Go ahead.”

Jay smiled, a little nervous, a little relieved. Progress was progress. Whatever was going on with Alex, Jay would get to the bottom of it. He would never give up on Alex. 

[jenthebug]

I have the dreaded Mom Cold: a cold, combined with shit to do.

There’s no coffee or cough syrup in the house. The sink is overflowing with dishes. The trash and recycling had to go out this morning. Laundry is piling up.

Husband is just as sick as me. He got ZERO sleep last night.

Jay is also sick. He’ll be doing his own laundry though.

Anyway, someone email me a pound of coffee plzkthx

Tea with honey is working alright, cough drops are working alright, I just need coffee.

Library books are overdue, too

I’m gonna start doing stuff, slowly, with lots of breaks. And a mask, of course. Far be it from me to inflict this on anyone else.

[spicyicymeloncat]

Okay so I have a draft detailing how I think a Ninjago “greatest fear” episode would go down, but it got very long. So I’m gonna try and shorten it.

The gist of it is that somewhere along the way, the ninja come to fight someone who has the ability to trap them in a nightmare (idk elemental master of sleep? Or fear?), and they each have to face a scenario representing their deepest fears. This story would have to take place before Seabound bc Nya’s still kicking and Lloyd hasn’t gotten over his angst that is addressed in Crystalised. Warning, I’m going brutal with the angst :). Tw for discussion of Cole’s dead mother, loss of autonomy in Zane’s, and severe unreality in Jay’s section.

Kai is traversing through a dark dungeon, much like the pyramid from s11, except it’s so dark he can’t see anything. The other ninja are there and ask him to light the way with his fire powers but he can’t seem to get his powers to work. Something mysterious seems to be attacking them because one by one the other ninja seem to disappear violently, while Kai struggles to help. His fear is based on feeling useless, especially without his powers, and consequently losing the people he cares for.

Cole is on an ordinary street. Some people come up to him and ask him favours to hold stuff, like their shopping or their cat. He starts to carry everything and these tasks pile up, becoming more important, someone’s baby, and old person trying to cross the street, a car. He starts struggling under the weight and can hear the crowd of people whisper, thinking he’ll drop everything, when suddenly he sees his father who tells him “Do not disappoint this family”. Suddenly the giant statue of his mother (from s13) falls to land on Cole’s shoulders. Cole’s fear is based on the extreme pressure he feels he has to live up to, as the strongest ninja on the team, and as the son of his hard to please father, and heroic deceased mother.

Zane can feel someone replacing his body. Replacing hard drives and his internal cores and coding something into him that he does not want. He feels his feelings change to thoughts he cannot control and he feels the warm memories he cherished start to disappear. He feels disoriented and alone, not knowing who he is and what he must do. He hears cold voices give him cruel orders and he is unable to disobey being he no longer has that ability. He is ordered to destroy life, starting with a small, helpless bird. Zane’s fear is based on both the fear of having your robotic body being taken advantage of, and losing his sense of self to become purely a machine. It’s very reminiscent of Vex’s control of him as the Ice Emperor as well as his frequent experiences of losing his memories and subsequently his self purpose and sense of identity. Also the bird is his own falcon.

Jay wakes up on a movie set. They had just finished filming an episode of Ninjago, a hit tv show. Jay is confused when the people he thought were his teammates and family, turn out to be actors who don’t even know him. The actress for Nya doesn’t recognise as anything more than a coworker. Jay is greeted by a stranger who claims to be Cliff Gordon, his real father. Confused, Jay leaves, and drives through an unfamiliar city, to find a junkyard. In the junkyard he thinks he sees Ed and Edna, only to look closer and it was just odd piles of trash. Jay’s fear is falling out of touch of reality, losing all the things that ground him and losing the people he cares about. In the series Jay has a difficult relationship with reality, and in times of stress he tends to turn to deluding himself about his situations (like crystalized or s9). Also he also has s6 trauma of none of it happening and also having the secret of his adoption revealed the manner it was.

Nya is alone on a ship in the middle of the ocean. She watched as the other ninja summoned elemental dragons and left, saying they were on an important mission. They left to where she can’t follow because she’s just ordinary, and she has no potential unlike them. And she’ll never catch up. The boat’s training course is still up and so she runs through the course, falling halfway through at the same place each time. She can’t shake feelings of doubt as the sea rocks the boat in a painfully steady rhythm. The sky never changes from its murky stillness, and time doesn’t seem to pass. Everything stops aside from the tired rocking of the sea and a begrudging Nya continuing to go through the course with the knowledge she’ll never pass it. Nya’s fear is based on her feeling isolated from the ninja and feeling like she’ll never be respected or treated like them. It’s also based on her fear of never realising her true potential and feeling like there was nothing inherently important or talented about her, feeling ordinary and mundane. It’s also based on all the times she was left on the Destiny’s Bounty alone.

Lloyd looks at a mirror and cannot see himself. Instead he sees a monster. Curved horns and deadly eyes. What’s worse is that he can’t feel himself. He feels anger, the sting of a betrayal, disappointment for letting himself be vulnerable, for failing to save others, for letting his emotions get to him and turn him from this. He’s the green ninja. He’s supposed to be a beacon of hope, of never giving up. And yet he’s giving in to these emotions and feels himself losing any qualities that he liked about himself. Qualities his family loved him for. What’s left is a despicable monster, unfeeling and underserving of love or forgiveness. He laughs knowing this isn’t just his fear, but also his father’s greatest fear, of Lloyd following in his footsteps. Lloyd’s fear is becoming the worst of his father as well as failing as the green ninja, two concepts that are actually the same thing, as the evil Garmadon is a representation of giving up, and the green ninja is a symbol of not giving up. Lloyd is also afraid of his own emotions and failures (at least post Harumi, when being vulnerable combined with feeling responsibly for letting her down, carried on being an issue for him all throughout wildbrain). This also links to Lloyd feeling unlovable all the way back in s1 when he was literally ostracised from all societies because of his father, and Lloyd feeling like because of how much he hates his father in the present, it makes him more afraid of himself.

I feel like the way the ninja escape their nightmares are through merits of their own, and I kinda want it to be linked to the 6 virtues of spinjitzu bc it works.

Kai ends up forgoing his powers, realising he alone is enough and he’s capable of protecting others with or without his powers, charging into the dark to save the ninja, having courage.

Cole takes a breath and start putting things down and organising how to carry his burdens and making it more stable, having balance.

Zane is tricky bc in his scenario he literally lost the ability to feel kindness, but perhaps he has to let himself accept kindness as he manages to stall himself and let the falcon help him idkkk.

Jay has to face his father, and confront the truth that Cliff is his birth father, and as a result, Cliff guides him out of the dream and into the real world, having honesty.

Nya must break out of monotony and start to explore her other options, herself and the sea. She realises there’s more to the rocking, and the waves seem to have a life it’s own. She befriends the ocean and allows it to help her, realising her hydrokinesis once again, after having the curiosity to find out.

Lloyd visualises his redeemed father, and hangs on to his words of wisdom, to not be afraid (from s4). Lloyd rationalises, that he can be loved, even in s1 when he was at his worst, he was still taken in. And even now, as his father is at his worst, in their last interactions, his father fought on the side of good. Hope is not lost and he can learn to control this fear, using his and his father’s wisdom.

Side note: Wu’s greatest fear would be living in an unkempt monastery alone bc he failed every single person he had ties with and as a result they are gone and he is alone. And Pixal’s greatest fear is not being useful, not being able to do anything to help her friends and family (survivors guilt and loss of autonomy).

[the-ninja-legacy-whip]

OC Musings #56

Today's Musing: What would your character’s locker look like? What is inside it? Jesse: Organized, clean, with a few photos of friends and little magnets stuck to the inside of the door. This nerd probably has a air fresher of some kind in there too Olivia: Her books are in an disorganized pile, there's assorted papers just crumpled and squashed everywhere, and there's a ton of sticky notes full of reminders of things she can't afford to forget, but nothing really personalized Miranda: Organized chaos—somehow is able to reach her hand into a menagerie and pull out precisely what she needs. Has more notebooks than a person probably should, and attempts to put a touch screen inside her door (Mr. Menloi puts a stop to that though) Samantha: Treats her locker more like a trash can, with all the junk on the bottom and all her essentially squeezed up top as a result. The inside of her door is chock full of photos of her and Sunni, and pad to take notes on, and probably has a picture of Jesse from the yearbook tucked somewhere in there— Sunni: Relatively clean, but her scatterbrained tendencies make her unable to keep track of where she last left specific things. Has a couple photos of her and Sunni with some positive stickers and rainobw magnets everywhere, but while she's dating Jay, pictures of him start to take over snksnksn Harleigh: It's literally just a backpack with all her stuff inside lmao

. . .

Question Inspired from this Prompt List

[sparrowmoth]

Carlos and the (...) No Good, Very Bad Day • [AO3]

Teen | 1.6K+ | Carlos-centric | Crack/Humor, Magical Accidents

A/N: You can read this as platonic Core Four or shippy OT4 or even Jaylos and Malvie if you squint. It's functionally a gen fic, but I don't care how you read it in terms of relationship dynamics, so be free!

CW: Some dark humour, swearing, and minor angst at the end of this chapter.

Chapter One: Escape Room (Fail)

Carlos De Vil would have his revenge—starting with Mal’s favourite pair of leather boots. Oh yes, he was coming for those boots. Just as soon as he figured out how to reach the doorknob in his current…

Predicament.

Carlos De Vil, you see, was not usually a puppy.

It is thus only because he weighs, at this moment, less than a pile of potatoes on a kitchen scale that he whines in frustration at the sky-scraping knob. His stupid little legs aren’t as springy as a rabbit’s and his stupid little arms are just another pair of, well… legs.

He knows somehow, someway that Mal is responsible.

He growls at the thought, but it’s embarrassingly squeaky, and that is all the more fuel on his fire for revenge. He won’t just chew on her boots, he’s going to pee on her bed—and eat her Valentine’s cho—

Wait, that might actually kill him.

Damn you, Mal.

He squints up at the doorknob, then turns to look behind him. He’s in his own dorm room—the one he shares with Jay; but Jay isn’t here and who knows when he’ll be back? He needs some sort of plan…

His eyes flick to his desk chair.

Maybe, he thinks, taking a bounding leap forward—just to trip on his own paws and go tumbling like a slinky, head over tail, over and over until he lands a little dizzy in a pile of sweaty laundry.

He whines in a way that translates to “fuck this.”

Then, he shakes off the shirt that’s gotten caught on his head, bares his teeth at the pile, and continues on his mission—only stumbling a little on his too-big little feet. He makes it to the desk chair, where he goes to grab it with his teeth and pull with all his might, but—

Nothing happens.

Except it’s… satisfying.

His puppy brain wants him to lay down, chew, forget all about—

VENGEANCE, Carlos barks—a fervent, high-pitched declaration to the dorm room and himself. So what if he’s trapped in a body with less brains than usual? Make no mistake, he’s still—

“Carlos? Jay…?”

There’s a soft knock at the door before the knob begins to turn.

Carlos perks up his ears and dashes under his bed, crouching down in the shadows to assess the opportunity. He lets out a small groan when he sees who it is: Chad Charming, of course, peeking in around the door like he’s the world’s worst Double 007.

“Anyone home?” asks Chad, stepping into the room.

He’s about to close the door, and Carlos can’t have that—

Rushing out from under the bed, he barks for Chad to stop, but Chad only starts screaming and falls back against the door. It closes with a slam that must be heard down the hall—if Chad’s screaming isn’t louder—and Carlos barks more in frustration, trying to yell—

He cuts off when a dress shoe goes whizzing past his snout.

“STAY BACK!” Chad screeches, contorting to pull off his other shoe with one hand, groping blindly for the door knob with the other. “I MEAN IT!” he insists, voice pitchy and quavering. “I’LL—I’LL—”

Thud.

His other shoe hits the bed frame, right behind Carlos.

Annoyed, Carlos growls—puppy teeth on full display. He advances on Chad, not so easily intimidated. This prince is soft. He can take him, even like this. That’s what he’s thinking as he stalks toward Chad, and it must show in his eyes, because Chad scrambles up.

He looks like a lost deer, gangly and stupid, searching desperately for escape from a pair of headlights. It’s laughable, really—

The way he sprints to the bathroom…

And comes out with the trashcan.

What is he doing?

Carlos yelps and tries to run, but trash is falling all around him. The next he knows is total darkness and this strangely… soothing smell. What is that? Oh, that’s Jay. He’d had a nosebleed, yeah, and—

Wait.

Carlos scrunches up his snout. He starts to claw at the walls of his prison. He can hear Chad talking, voice muffled but mocking, and oh, it’s more than his shoes in trouble when Carlos digs his way out through—the carpet, right. He growls and tries a new technique, putting all his weight against the wall of the can until—

He goes tumbling out in surprise, blinded by the light.

Laying there on his back in the mess of tissue paper and q-tips and empty toilet paper rolls, he sees Chad has backed away, looking sheepish—and Jay is stepping through into the dorm room.

Carlos rolls onto his feet and barks as if to say, HEY!

Jay freezes, noticing Carlos—or, well, from his perspective… the all-too-apparent puppy in a pile of garbage—and then, of course—

“Chad, dude, we talked about this.” He sighs. “Where’s Carlos?”

Carlos barks again, running forward to leap up Jay’s leg, using his thigh as a springboard to send him flying back in Chad’s direction.

Except, well, Jay catches him easily mid-flight, and a desperately wriggling Carlos finds himself unable to escape from the sandwich of Jay’s large, calloused palms, which is humiliating enough that Carlos seriously considers adding Jay’s shoes to his hit list—

He’s distracted from the thought, though, by the realization that Chad has been speaking, babbling something about he “doesn’t know where Carlos is,” but he’d only come in because “that thing” had been barking, and what do you know, he’d found “it” tearing up the trash, and “it better not have rabies, because it tried to bite me, and I’m in line for the throne, so if anything happens to me…”

Jay had nodded politely to the point he shut the door on Chad’s face, having shepherded him out while holding Carlos at arm’s length, trying to keep from getting scratched by flailing paws—

“Alright, alright, alright,” says Jay now, slowly crouching to the ground and letting Carlos down on his feet with a bemused look.

Carlos takes a few indignant steps backward, snarling at Jay.

“Feisty one,” Jay teases, offering a finger that is quickly bitten. He doesn’t flinch, since Carlos doesn’t manage to even break through the barrier of callouses. That only seems to amuse Jay as much as it pisses off Carlos, who tries with all his might to get another bite in.

Jay grabs him by the scruff and lets him struggle as he looks him up and down, which has Carlos whining in abject misery. He curls up his tail, squeezes his hind legs together, and looks sullenly at Jay until he’s set back on the ground, where he tries to bite him—

Again.

This time, Jay stands up, towering above him, and Carlos is left to gnaw angrily at his track shoes. He can hear Jay musing aloud to himself about “the puppy,” wondering if Carlos had managed to sneak him in last night or in the short time Jay was gone for his usual morning run. He doesn’t seem all that concerned.

And of course, why would he?

It wasn’t exactly unusual to find Carlos smuggling animals into the dorm, be it a puppy, duckling, squirrel—even a skunk once, which, yeah, that was the first and the last time for that particular species…

Gently, Jay tugs his laces out from Carlos’ jaws, bends to ruffle him between the ears, then goes to sit on the edge of his bed. He pulls his phone out and dials a number as Carlos watches, having plopped on his haunches with a defeated little huff.

Moments later, Carlos’ cellphone starts to vibrate.

Jay glances toward it, seeming surprised. He hangs up on his end and goes to inspect, lifting Carlos’ pillow to show his cellphone where it usually is—still plugged in from the night before.

“Weird,” Jay remarks, though clearly not worried.

Carlos groans, sinking onto his belly. He’s not giving up. He’s not. He’s just… tired. This body is soft and weak and pathetic and—

He perks his head up, curious.

Jay is calling someone else.

“Hey, princess, are you with Carlos? — Nah, like an hour ago, but he was still in bed. — Uh, well…” Jay shifts uncomfortably under “the puppy’s” unblinking stare. “I think Carlos stole another puppy or something. — A dalmatian, but it’s got all these brown spots…”

Carlos cranes his neck down to study his own legs, noting the brown spots speckled over white fur. He scrunches his snout at the thought of what his mother would think, seeing him like this. Would she… even want him, without “proper” spots? It shouldn’t bother him that he knows she wouldn’t. Ugh, why’s he thinking about this? It’s stupid.

“—soon,” Jay’s saying as his voice filters back in to Carlos’ attention.

He hangs up the phone and slips it back into his pocket, then looks at Carlos. “Evie’s on the way. You’ll like her, don’t worry.” He tries to smile, but it’s clear the intensity of Carlos’ stare is really starting to get to him, so he quickly looks away with an awkward chuckle.

Carlos watches as he stands from the bed, saying something about needing to “clean up his mess.” If only, Carlos thinks sardonically, laying his head down on his paws again as Jay starts picking up tissues and such things from the bathroom garbage, never once acknowledging the hamper he’s made of his side of the room.

Man, it’s going to be a really, really long day…

But luckily, Mal’s never far behind Evie.

And when she shows up, he’s chewing on her leg.

Thank you for reading! Reblogs are always appreciated. And feel free to subscribe on AO3 if you want to be alerted when the next chapter comes out. Kudos and comments are lovely, as well! ♥

[weekend-whip]

Olivia + D

D. Subtle Kindness (Cracked!Legacyverse, prolly Season 2, but takes place post Jay’s True Potential at the very least...anyway you know what’s up @k1ngtok1 )

(Prompt List)

. . .

Jamie frowns upon opening their locker, suddenly assailed by an avalanche of wadded up papers, crumpled garbage, and other assorted bits and ends. It’s not the first time this has happened this week—or today—and Jamie has very good reason to believe it won’t be the last either. Jamie bends down, before some hall monitor—or Zane—tries to pin this tsunami of trash on him. 

One of the pieces become slightly unfolded in Jamie’s grip. Peeling it back, their eyes widen as they scan across the words hastily scribbled within. 

“Loser” “Stupid Hair” “Lose the Hoodie” “Weenie” “Get Lost” “You suck”

.......It’s nothing Jamie isn’t familiar with; these types of notes have been common ever since he transferred to Ninjago City High, slipped through the cracks of the locker in between classes or before school. The messages have never been very creative, nor particularly volatile. Easy enough to ignore...

But, the abundance of them lately is starting to become...annoying. 

Jamie sighs and continues to delegate their time to clean up duty. The halls have otherwise emptied out due to the next class starting, and yet an all-too familiar telltale clicking of heeled boots approaches them from behind. The fact Jamie already knows who it is despite not even looking is a huge indicator that she’s been hanging around him too much. 

“’ello, Space Cadet,” Olivia greets with a smirk, skipping her way up to the kneeling Jamie. 

“Hello...you,” Jamie replies lamely. So much for coming up with a snappy nickname on the spot; Jamie’s got no idea how Olivia manages to do it for everyone. Olivia snorts at the attempt. “What are you even doing here; class started a few minutes ago...”

“You say that as if the whims of the school’s schedule adhere to me.”

“They...do though?”

“Ignoring that, I could ask the same about you.”

She stops short just beside the pile of papers, leaning around Jamie’s frame to get a better look for herself. Jamie doesn’t even get the chance to explain anything before Olivia’s face is already torn with a scowl, shark teeth proudly on display. 

“...tch, this looks like Chen’s handiwork, or some goon of his tryna get on his good side.” Olivia plucks a note off the floor, reads it in the span of a blink, then tosses it over her shoulder like the worthless debris it is. “Talk about a giant waste of time! Who’s the real loser here, huh?”

Jamie’s lips twitch in brief amusement, a hand flying over their face to hide it away. Olivia studies Jamie before huffing and folding her arms.

“...I’ve seen this before too, y’know. Used to have to listen to Nya complain about all the ways Chen would mess with Stormwaker before they started dating—”

“I thought he was Thundercracker?”

“Meh, same diff. Anyway...” Olivia picks up another note off the ground. Reading the word “Freak” on it, she snarls again and tears it to shreds. “...Chen and his people just target those they think are easy to prey on. If you’re gonna mess with someone, at least make sure they’re on your level!”

Jamie smirks again, hiding it behind his sleeve. “Is...is that why you bother Kai so much...?”

“Please! He only thinks he’s on my level!” Olivia stands confidently, hands on her hips. “I just happen to think he’s fun to mess with. You could say ‘ah, cloudy weather we’re having’ and he’d take it as an offense!” 

Jamie breaks—a single, sharp pearl of laughter bursts out of him, with a half-snort escaping just as he clamps his hands over his mouth. Olivia pauses, a little bit endeared by the sound, before she laughs too. 

“Heh, mission accomplished; I have cheered you up!” Olivia triumphantly pumps her fists. Jamie finally stands up again, unable to even look at Olivia now. They turn back to the note pile, beginning to frown—

“No, NO!” Olivia steps between Jamie and the pile, jabbing a finger into their chest. Jamie freezes beneath the contact. “I can hear you thinking! Don’t even give those notes a second thought...unless, of course, you’d like me to rough Chen up a bit for ya? I’ve got nothing to lose, really.”

“N-No, please, don’t do that,” Jamie insists, looking everywhere but forward. Olivia tilts her head, raising an eyebrow.

“You suuuuuuure? It’s not like I needed a fresh reason to want to kill him, but-”

“No, it’s fine!” Jamie gently nudges her away–something plucks within him–and gathers the rest of the papers, hurriedly tossing them in the garbage. “It’s like you said, it’s not worth wasting time on anyway...and we don’t even know if it’s actually him, and...”

Jamie stares into the trash can, digging their fingers into their palms.

“It...doesn’t bug me, anyway.”

Jamie returns to their locker, snagging the book that incited this whole incident to begin with, and gives Olivia a parting wave.

“A-Anyway, thanks for trying to look out for me, but it’s okay! I should really be getting to class...! See you later, right?”

“Yeah–” Jamie spins on their heel and takes off down the hall probably faster than necessary, leaving Olivia gawking after him. “–see you later? Hmph.”

She turns back towards Jamie’s locker...which hadn’t been properly locked in their haste to leave. 

. . .

Jamie spends the next class with earbuds discreetly playing the most distracting music in their playlist, hoodie over their head and trying to drown out all bad thoughts. The notes themselves couldn’t bug him...but the sheer amount of them, and the fact that someone had to deliberately go out of their way to cram all of them in there...

Is Jamie really that terrible of a person to warrant that? What did they do to deserve that? Had they done something wrong at some point? 

...and moreover, Jamie had pushed Olivia away, even when she was just trying to reassure him (in her own abrasive, coarse, yet genuine way). She’s probably ticked off about it now, and then she’ll avoid Jamie, and then she won’t talk to Jamie anymore, and then she won’t want to be his...friend? Associate? Acquaintance? Jamie still hasn’t quite put a label on what they are yet, but...what he does know is that life would be far more quiet without her. And the deafening silence of space is already plenty enough to deal with. 

When Jamie makes the next trip to their locker, their stomach plummets at the sight of the door threatening to burst with the utterly ridiculous amount of paper peeking out of it. A few students pass by heckling at the display and Jamie’s chest tightens—more terribly written notes? But why? How? And...actually, when did they have the time, in the past hour? 

A bit skeptic now, Jamie carefully opens the locker...only to be buried under a mountain of tree byproduct. Instead of crumpled scraps and the occasional piece of trash, however, all the notes are on different colored pieces of paper, written neatly as opposed to hasty hatred. With a shaky hand, Jamie picks up the nearest one and pries it open.

“You’re cute.”

And immediately, as fast as their face goes red, Jamie’s heart threatens to explode. 

One by one, Jamie opens more notes, each one more incredulous than the last:

“You have great taste in music! (Now give me your playlist like yesterday)”

“You look like a cubist painting (and I could pin you to a wall)”

“HUNK >:3″

“Your hoodie looks comfortable (and I would like to wear it)”

“You’re always thoughtful (now keep me in your thoughts!)”

“STUD >:3″

“You are great at giving gifts (and you should totally give me one sometime! <3)″

“Your hair is wild (in the best way possible)”

“You always try your best (and that’s coming from the best there ever was!)”

“Have you noticed that I always smile when I see you?”

“Brilliant as a Dying Star!” “Possessing a Kindness More Vast than the Cosmos!” “Eyes that could put the Sun to Shame!” “You could Fill the galaxy with Your Light!” 

“A smile like a black hole—stops everything cold in their tracks upon reaching the event horizon, unable to ever look away from” “I want to create a constellation from every time you laugh!” “Your smile, like an eclipse, always hiding when it’s at its brightest...” “I just really like when you smile sue me.”

“...wait, how many times did I compliment your smile already? Shit.”

“Okay I’m running out of sappy things to say but i gotta fill this whole thing so uhhhhhh I’mma just ramble some random shit and hope it makes you laugh.”

“Potatoes.” “Popgun.” “Shark.” “Poodle.” “Noodle.” “Shark.” “Planets.” “Popcorn.” “Pretzels.” “Wow I guess I shouldn’t have skipped lunch.”  “Shark.” “Ocean.” “Monkeybutter.” “Boo.” “Loopyshoopy whoo.” “Shark Again: the Sharkening.” “By the Master why is this so HARD?!” “BAMBOO!”

...Jamie’s an utter mess at this point, tears building in his eyes, born from the laughter that roars from their chest and from just how moved he is by the insane gesture. They don’t know how long they stay on the floor, delicately unfolding and refolding each piece of paper with the plans to keep them forever, until they make a nice neat stack on the floor of the locker. By the time Jamie sorts through them all, and keeps the last one clenched in hand...they fill up all the empty space left behind, save for Jamie’s backpack. 

“I put enough in there so that no one could ever stuff another bad note in there again.”

The telltale clicking of Olivia’s boots ring out again, but this time she keeps her distance, leaning against the nearest wall as she assesses Jamie. 

“And knowing how sentimental you are, there’s no way you would take them out either. You’re welcome!”

Jamie just stares at Olivia for a second in all her bewildering glory, for a moment finding it hard to believe that such a subtle act of kindness could come from her...and yet, only something this bizarre could ever come from her anyway. 

“You...” Jamie wipes a sleeve across their eyes, one last disbelieving chuckle leaking out. “...have to be the most insane person I have ever met.”

“Yeah, I get that a lot,” Olivia declares with a shrug. She then sinks a bit, worried for their reaction. “Did you—I mean, was this...really, really cheesy?”

Quietly, Jamie takes the final note in their hand and rereads it once again. There’s no randomness, no flirty undertones, no silly pick up lines, no side notes, no good-natured sarcasm...

Just the truth, the very thing that brought them together in the first place. 

“I like it when you’re happy.”

“...very much so,” Jamie finally replies, feeling their Heartstrings growing thicker. “And I love it.” 

Jamie smiles, unashamed and unabashed, which in turn makes Olivia smile too. 

[circus4apsycho8]

carving pumpkins. | jay & reader

𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝟺/𝟽 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚌𝚒𝚛𝚌𝚞𝚜' 𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚓𝚊𝚐𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚏𝚎𝚜𝚝 (𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚏𝚘 + 𝚖𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝).

𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐: 𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 & 𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚔𝚗𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚟𝚎

“You both did a great job decorating yesterday,” Jay comments, the two of you entering the market square together. Rows of stands line the edge of the sidewalk, complete with fully stocked bins being overlooked by sellers of all backgrounds. To make the setting complete, the air is laced with the signature crisp chilliness of fall. Pedestrians roam about, some browsing the merchandise while others pass along the open part of the sidewalk. “We probably could have made a haunted Bounty attraction if we wanted to!” 

“Well, we had to go all out this year, didn’t we?” you reply, interest already piqued among catching sight of the first stall. It seemingly belongs to a produce farmer who has all kinds of fresh, vibrant vegetables stocked to the brim. “You guys are going to have a lot of guests over, and it’s not a Halloween party without good decorations.”

“Everyone’s gonna be impressed. I know we were,” Jay responds, joining you in the survey of the stalls. Even though the two of you came here for a very specific reason, you still can’t help but be invested by all of the other goods present. “I feel like this is going to be the best Halloween party yet.” 

You nod in agreement as the two of you peruse the other stalls. “Me too! Though, I hope we aren’t too late to get pumpkins. What if they’ve sold out already? It is pretty late in the month, after all.” 

“I don’t think they are. I came here with Nya last year around this time, and they were still stocked. Besides, we don’t need that many.” 

“I hope so,” you answer, the two of you proceeding down the sidewalk. Thankfully, your worries dissipate when a mound of orange comes into view, eventually seeing a bunch of pumpkins piled neatly next to a certain stand. 

"Here we go! Okay, we have to get the biggest ones!” 

With that, you and Jay set about finding the biggest pumpkins available. The two of you pick out an assortment, deciding to buy enough to scatter about the Bounty and to leave a few outside since the ship will be grounded for the event. Once that’s done, the farmer thanks the both of you for your business before you return to the Bounty in order to get started. 

… 

“Nya might be better at decorating, but after today, you’ll be convinced that I’m the better pumpkin carver!” Jay declares as he unveils an assortment of tools. “Are the preparations ready?” 

You survey the table, running through your mental checklist. The table has been covered with trash bags, a set of carving tools placed off to the side. Atop the table lies a few pumpkins silently awaiting their fate. Additionally, a plastic container sits on the side so the two of you can collect some of the pumpkin innards for Zane to use later. 

“Yeah, I think we’re good,” you note, nodding to affirm your statement. “Can you think of anything?” 

“I might just run and grab my speaker so we can have some music too,” he replies. “Be right back!” 

With that, Jay makes a dash for the door, leaving you to yourself for the moment. You take the time to peruse the available tools, eventually selecting one of the two present permanent markers so you can outline your design first. 

A few moments later, Jay emerges from within the Bounty, Bluetooth speaker in hand as he jogs towards you. “Found it!” 

“Great!” you note, grinning as you sit down, uncapping your marker before sliding the other marker towards Jay. He scrolls through his phone, connecting the speaker before selecting his Halloween playlist. 

“Also, I put this together at, like, three in the morning, so let me know if I forgot anything,” Jay replies, setting the phone to the side after the music is at an acceptable volume – loud enough to fill silence, but quiet enough for the two of you to speak if desired. 

You nod in response, practicing the outline of your design on the garbage bag with the marker. “You got it.” 

“What are you doing?” Jay wonders, eyeing where you’re outlining on the plastic. 

“Just trying to practice my design before I do it on the pumpkin in permanent marker,” you answer. “Usually helps me to try it out a few times.” 

“That’s a great idea. Why haven’t I thought of that?” he wonders, snatching his marker up and biting the lid off. 

“It is kind of hard to draw on, though,” you mumble. “But it works well enough.” 

For a few minutes, the two of you simply practice outlining on the trash bags, extremely rough doodles and sketches soon spanning the entire surface area of the makeshift table covers. 

“I think I have mine down. How about you?” you wonder, gaze shifting to Jay. 

“I think I’m ready too,” he notes. “Ready for a knife?” 

“Always,” you reply, holding your hand out. This makes the redhead quirk an eyebrow. 

“Now I’m scared,” he jokes, slipping his grip down so that you can grab the upper portion of the handle. 

You chuckle lightly, studying the area around the pumpkin stem before finding a suitable place to begin your first cut. 

Jay does the same, rotating his pumpkin around a few times before sinking his blade into the rind, making exaggerated stabbing motions when he does. 

“I think knives bring out everyone’s inner maniac,” Jay mumbles as the two of you begin to saw around the stems. 

“It’s only natural,” you muse, narrowing your eyes as you slip the knife deeper into the cut section of the pumpkin, using the blade as lever to pry the top out of the hole. Once it’s out, you set it to the side, taking a moment to trim the hanging pumpkin guts off of the bottom. 

The conversation dies for a few minutes as the two of you start scooping the seeds and pulp out, being sure to save enough for Zane. You switch between using your hands and the utensils, face scrunching in disgusted delight upon feeling the slimy pulp slipping between your fingers. 

You’re focused on working out a particularly stubborn section when you feel something tiny and cold hit your forehead, sticking there. 

You frown, raising a slimy hand to pluck the foreign object from your head. 

A pumpkin seed. 

Realization overcomes your expression as you gradually glance up, smile fading as you eye the lightning ninja working across from you. To the untrained eye, nothing looks out of place – he's simply scooping pulp out of his pumpkin. If you squint, though, you can see the slightest smirk lining his lips. 

“Jay...” you trail off, narrowing your eyes. “If you throw another pumpkin seed at me, then the pumpkins won’t be the only ones with their guts spilled today!” 

This catches his attention, mischievous glare faltering as he spots your hand grabbing a handful of pulp. “Wait...I can explain!” 

“I don’t think you can,” you reply, tossing the handful so that it splatters against his cheek before slipping off. 

“Ew!” Jay whines, laughing as he wipes his cheek off with his sleeve. “Okay, fine, I deserved that. But we’re even now, right?” 

You nod in response, satisfied with the outcome. “We’re even.” 

“Good, because we still have a lot to do,” Jay states, effectively bringing the two of you back on task. 

… 

It takes the two of you well over two or three hours, but eventually, your masterpieces have been completed. 

“It looks like an actual haunted house now that we’ve added pumpkins,” you state as the two of you observe the Bounty’s exterior door. Paired with what you and Nya had completed prior, the pumpkins add the perfect touch to the décor. 

Soft candlelight spews from the openings of the pumpkins, offering an eerie glow to the area. With the sun now setting, you can’t help but admire the scene alongside the ninja of lightning. Accompanying the two of you is a shared sense of pride. 

“We did a great job. We should do this again next year,” Jay comments, the two of you taking a moment to high five. “What do you think?” 

“I’m all for it. We just have to go even bigger next year!” 

“No two Halloweens will be the same,” Jay agrees, grinning in determination. 

From there, the two of you turn to start the cleanup process, leaving the pumpkins’ candles to flicker gently in the evening light. 

[lex-munro]

[Princess-verse Scrap] .sense.

domestic epilogue to an unfinished fic lololol i’m trash.  all thanks to Silvarbelle not me being trash, that’s 10000% me and like 40% my mother.

following up on Bruce finding a ten-year-old on his doorstep…  Damian explains why he likes Joker.

.sense.

Three months in, Bruce voiced something that had been tickling the edge of his awareness.

“You liked Jay right away.  Why is that?”

Damian paused and looked up from his math homework.  “He makes sense.”

“Not something he’s been accused of before…”

“His boundaries and priorities are clear,” Damian explained.  “When I spoke with him, it was a similar feeling to the first time someone besides Mother or Grandfather had an adult conversation with me.  Suddenly, I was being taken seriously, by someone who wanted to listen to me.  It’s somewhat intoxicating, to meet and interact with someone who genuinely finds you interesting.”

That was something Bruce could wrap his head around.  Growing up a coveted object, he’d experienced that same intoxication when interacting with Talia, Selina, Vicki…the Joker.

“Do you know why he doesn’t face the door?” Damian went on.

“He can pretend he’s alone,” Bruce guessed.

“And then he can pretend you’re there with him.  Hallucination-Batsy, wasn’t it?  I think…maybe he and Mother have enough in common that he finds me easy to comprehend.  A piece of you that makes perfect sense to him…so he doesn’t feel a need to obfuscate.  He’s completely forthright with me, and even the League of Assassins doesn’t treat children that way.”

“I understand.”

Damian nodded.  “I think my presence fulfills some kind of strange domestic fantasy for him in a way that doesn’t feel disingenuous or oppressive.  You might give some thought to legal documents like marriage licenses and adoption papers.”

Bruce didn’t fumble anything this time (mainly because his hands were empty).  But after all, why not?  They were certainly together, it was definitely long-term…  Joker had called April their China Anniversary, and Bruce hadn’t felt any urge to refute the number of years claimed…

It wasn’t like Joker was a gold-digger:  he had his own lucrative businesses (at least one of which was completely above-board) and measured his success mainly by how many people either worshipped him or were terrified by him (money was only passingly interesting, as a means to several ends including piles of glitz and a minor addiction to Chanel).  The only thing a marriage certificate would do that he might give half a shit about was imply permanence and tie him obliquely to Dick and Damian.  And then it would be a snap to have him legally adopt Damian.

“And that’s something you’d want?” Bruce asked carefully.

Damian resumed his homework.  “What do I call the two of you?”

Bruce sighed gustily.  Damian used the word ‘father’ when referring to Bruce in the third person, but never called him by it; he called Joker ‘Mom’ almost as soon as he knew it was an option (and over Bruce’s repeated objections).  He said, “I’m not sure he’ll share your interest in the arrangement, but I’ll ask.”

.End.