#juliet tomatoes

[inthecityofgoodabode]

August 2024: Harvest, Pests & Hugelkultur

Monday harvest - complete with two rat-chewed eggplants:

Of course you realize, this means war! The trap has been set & there will be blood:

Hugelkultur container - the first layer is a Christmas tree I collected last year:

Added the first touch of native soil & decayed leaf litter:

[rocknroll2024]

Being a superhero is a lot of fun!!!

Chris Hemsworth

[grlsinterrupted]

hi can you do dally with Curtis sister reader (in between soda and pony's age) and their relationship is a secret because her brothers would lose their minds but Dal only has good intentions and is completely enamored by her. He sneaks into her room at night and the next morning when Darry goes to wake her up he flips out seeing Dallas Winston in his baby sister's bed and that causes Soda and pony to come in and freak out too

i’ll keep you my dirty little secret ✮⋆˙

secret relationship with dally | dallas winston x curtis ! reader ˚ 𖦹⋆｡˚

-

dallas winston, a name notorious even within his own gang. though your brothers were close friends with him, they never failed to remind you to stay cautious around him— god knows what he’d do to a girl like you. dallas has always been dubbed ‘the mean one’, ‘the dangerous one’, ‘the one that had nothing ahead of him.’ in the words of your younger brother, pony, ‘he had been arrested, he got drunk, he rode in rodeos, lied, cheated, rolled drunks, jumped small kids— he did everything.’

despite the number of people that warned you about dallas, there was something so irresistible about him that you couldn’t quite put your finger on. his subtle, yet flirtatious comments, were enough to turn you into a tomato-red mess. over the course of a few months, the two of you gradually spent more and more time together. from late night drives around tulsa to watching the sunrise— you name it, you and dallas have done it. if there’s one thing you’ve learned about him during your secret little dates, it’s that things are not always as they seem. dally isn’t as ‘rough’ as you thought he was, and it would be a lot harder explaining your relationship to your brothers than you thought it’d be.

the clouds outside your window are enveloping the night sky, twinkling stars peeking through the moonlight. despite how loud soda’s snoring gets, you’ve learned to tune it out by distracting yourself with a book. your nose is stuffed into little women, the book that dally recommended to you a few nights prior (and admittedly cried to while reading; his tear stains have literally seeped into the pages.) just as you were beginning to fall asleep, the sound knocking on your window startled you into wakefulness. who could be outside at this hour?

you pull your blanket off, scurrying around the room for something you can use for defense. after all those horror movies you’ve watched where the killer breaks into the victim’s house, you’d think you had at least some sort of knife or a pair of scissors you could use to protect yourself. but for now, that can of hairspray on your vanity will have to do— maybe you could spray your killer’s eyes and blind him?

as you make your way towards the window, the hairspray can in your hand, a familiarly gruff voice begins to utter something. “open up, doll! you’ve got me all romeo and juliet-ing right now!”

you let out a sigh of relief, sliding open the window. thank god it was just dallas, but what was he doing at your window while everyone else is asleep?

“you scared me, you know? i could’ve-“ you look down at your can of hairspray, then set it onto your window sill. “i could’ve sprayed you with that, and then your face would be stuck forever!”

“what, you don’t like my handsome face?” he smirks. it’s that stupid, cocky smirk that he always does, and he looks damn handsome doing it.

you roll your eyes at his remark, sliding the window back down. “just get in bed, you must be cold from standing out there.”

dallas’ eyes dart around your room, taking a moment to observe all of his surroundings. compared to all of the feminine aspects in your room, he sticks out like a sore thumb, practically drowning in a pool of lace and pearls. he then takes a seat on the edge of your bed, rubbing his hand along your floral sheets as he picks out a teddy bear from your collection of stuffed animals lined up against your bed.

“what’s with all these, uh.. stuffed animals?” he holds up your favorite out all the stuffed animals, ruffling the top of its head.

you take the teddy bear, putting it back in its original position. “i guess i never really got rid of them,” you shrug. “we need to get some sleep.”

“we?” he raises a brow.

you slide into your bed, lifting up the blanket for him. “yes, we. aren’t you tired?”

“i guess.” dallas slips into bed beside you, wrapping his arms around you as he takes in your scent. though he’ll never admit it, he’s always loved the way you smelt like freshly baked cookies— it brings a soft of comfort to him that he never received. your scent reminds him of a warm bonfire, the sound of crackling overlapping with laughter. to him, you are the home he never had, the love he never knew existed in such a cold heart like his. you were his solace.

his hand moved up to your shoulder, gently running his fingers through your hair and twirling a strand. his touch was soothing against your skin, careful to not accidentally wake you. soon enough, both of you were asleep, safe and sound.

the next morning, you’re awoken by a loud, screeching noise, but much to your surprise, it isn’t your alarm. your eldest brother, darry, is furiously shaking you and dallas awake.

“Y/N, WHAT THE HELL IS DALLAS DOING IN YOUR BED?”

you groggily wipe your eyes, taking a glance at dally, then looking up at darry. “it’s 8 in the morning, and why do you care that he’s sleeping with me?!”

“i care because it’s dallas we’re talking about, god dammit! get him out of your bed!” darry flips over the blanket, shaking him awake.

the sound of darry’s yelling echoes throughout the house and eventually wakes up pony and soda. the two of them rush into your room, and as soon as they realize that dallas is beside you in your bed, their mouths are left agape.

“holy shit, y/n! you’ve been hanging around with dal this whole time?” soda huffs out a chuckle, too stunned to even be angry at you.

pony rubs his temples, shaking his head. “you guys are gross.”

dallas sits up, groaning and putting his hands up as if he’s surrendering. “okay, we were sleepin’ together, big deal!” he sighs. “just- look, darry, i ain’t mean to make you upset or whatever! ”

darry lets out a rough exhale, taking a step back from the two of you. he motions for pony and soda to leave with a death glare, then looks back at you as they’re making their way back to their room.

“you know what, i’m not dealing with this right now. we’ll sort everything out by the evening, got it?”

the two of you nod, exchanging satisfied grins. maybe by the evening, your brothers will come to their senses and realize that dallas isn’t really that ‘mean’ or ‘violent’ guy they perceive him to be, but someone with so much love in his heart that’s hidden underneath a façade.

’i’ll keep you my dirty little secret.. ’ .ᐟ ₊˚⊹♡

⊹ side note : i’m so sorry this took so long! it usually doesn’t take me more than a week to finish a fic, but i’ve had a lot to do and this fic is a bit lengthier than my others

-

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Parts of Speech

These definitions explain the 8 parts of speech in the English language.

Noun

A noun identifies a person, place, thing, or idea.

Common nouns are generic: girl, boy, city, ship, desk, courage

Proper nouns are specific: Juliet, Romeo, St. Louis, Titanic

Pronoun

A pronoun renames or refers back to the person, place, thing or idea mentioned earlier in a sentence.

Personal pronouns: I, me, you, they, them, she, her, he, him, it, we, us

Relative pronouns: who, whom, whose, which, that, what

Interrogative pronouns (used in questions): who, which, what, whose

Demonstrative pronouns: this, that, these and those

Indefinite pronouns (a partial list): all, anybody, anyone, both, each, everyone, everybody, many, none, several, someone

Verb

A verb expresses action or state of being. “Helping” verbs (such as modals and auxiliary verbs) are used with base verbs to make a verbal phrase.

Action verbs: see, run, jump, sing, study, dance, cry, shout, buy, sell, fix, think, wonder, etc.

State of being verbs: am, is, was, were, will be, became, appear, seem, look, feel, etc.

Modal verbs: can, could, will, would, shall, should, ought, must, may, might, etc. These verbs are found in verbal phrases, seldom by themselves: can see, will run, might study, must sell, etc.

Auxiliary verbs: am, is, are, was, were, have, had, etc.

In a verbal phrase, remember that the modal or auxiliary verb may be separated from the main verb, especially in a question:

Did you hear me call?

She is not going with us.

How long have you been working at McDonald’s?

Adjective

An adjective describes or modifies a noun or pronoun: For example:

brown eyes

that person

ten players

Adjectives tell...

what kind: brown eyes

which one: that person

how many: ten players

Adverb

An adverb modifies or describes a verb, adjective, or another adverb. It usually answers “question” statements: how? when? where? why? how often? how much? to what degree?

The orchestra played beautifully. (How?)

The band has played there. (Where?)

The choir sang long. (To what extent?)

He is extremely capable. (How capable?)

She danced very slowly. (How slowly?)

Preposition

A preposition shows a relationship between a noun/pronoun and another word. Most prepositions show motion toward a place or location of an object. The English language has more than 40 prepositions, including: above, across, behind, below, down, in, off, on, under, through, into, of, on account of, in spite of, etc.

Conjunction

A conjunction joins words or groups of words. There are three major classes of conjunctions in English:

Subordinate conjunctions: when, while, although, because, since, if, until, even though, etc.

Coordinate conjunctions: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so

Correlative conjunctions (used in pairs): neither/nor; either/or; not only/ but also; both/and

Interjection

An interjection expresses an emotion such as delight, surprise, or disgust. It usually appears at the beginning of a sentence and often is followed by an exclamation point:

(Delight) Wow! Gosh! Golly!

(Surprise) Oh! Ah! Yikes! Gee!

(Disgust) Yuck! Ugh! Bah!

Note: A Word as More Than One Part of Speech

Remember, a word can be used as more than one part of speech. The function of a word determines what part of speech it is.

For example:

Appearances can be deceiving. (Can is a modal verb)

The tin can of tomatoes is dented. (Can is a noun)

We should can peaches and plums. (Can is an action verb)

The French actress danced the can-can. (Can-can is a noun-noun)

[goodwhump-temp]

Shawn Spencer Whump | Psych

1x02 Spellingg Bee - Motorcycle crash, hospital, knee brace, limp, bumps into bin, pain 1x03 Woman Seeking Dead Husband - Held at gunpoint x2 1x05 Lives - Held at gunpoint 1x06 Weekend Warriors - Held at gunpoint 1x15 Scary Sherry - Nightmare

2x02 65 Million Years Off - Shot at, scared 2x03 Psy vs Psy - Hostage 2x04 Zero to Murder in 60s - Brief boo-boo (chair race sabatoged) 2x05 And Down the Stretch... - Childhood bully 2x07 If You're So Smart... - Bullied by children 2x09 Bounty Hunters! - Handcuffed, jumps off boat, held at gunpoint 2x13 Lights, Camera… - Nearly nailed to death (38:00), character funeral 2x15 Black and Tan - Sad (18:30) 2x16 Shawn (and Gus) of the Dead - Mummy 'curse'

3x01 Ghosts - [Flashback; emo/arrested] Increasingly angry about mothers' return, confrontation, heartbroken 3x04 Greatest Adventure in the History of Basic Cable - Shot at, chased x3, restrained, held at helicopter-point and gunpoint, betrayed 3x06 There Might Be Blood - Held at gunpoint, dangerous confrontation 3x08 Gus Walks Into A Bank - Held back, worried, bank hostage, tight gus hug, manhandled 3x10 Six Feet Under the Sea - Held at gunpoint 3x11 Lassie Did a Bad, Bad Thing - Punched unconscious, hostage, held at gunpoint, pistol whipped, fatherly care, nearly passes out (40:15) 3x12 Earth, Wind And… - Runs into burning building, oxygen mask, held at firepoint, caught in burning building, briefly thought dead, coughing/smoke inhalation 3x13 Any Given Friday Night at 10PM - 'Abducted' 3x14 Truer Lies - Held at gunpoint 3x15 Tuesday the 17th - 'Trips', held at 'knifepoint' 3x16 An Evening with Mr. Yang - Angry, mom held hostage, scared, heartbroken

4x01 Extradition: British Colombia - Held at gunpoint x2 4x02 He Dead - Daddy issues 4x03 High Noon-ish - Stampede/pushed, falls into mineshaft, pain, held at gunpoint, trapped 4x04 Devil is in the Details… - Confession 4x05 Shawn Gets the Yips - Scared/dumb ("bomb" on treadmill) 4x06 Bollywood Homicide - Slapped (39:15) 4x07 High Top Fade Out - Held at gunpoint, shot at 4x09 Shawn Takes A Shot in the Dark - Shot, abducted/missing, bleeding, pain, knocked unconscious, choked, jumps on moving car, weak, sling 4x10 You Can't Handle This Episode - Shot at 4x12 A Very Juliet Episode - Held at gunpoint, punched x2, knocked down x2, kicked 4x16 Mr. Yin Presents - Nightmare, angry, heartbroken x2, fatherly love

5x01 Romeo & Juliet & Juliet - Held at gunpoint, falls through window, kicked through wall, insane dodging skillz, knocked down, sore 5x03 Not Even Close, Encounters - Held at gunpoint/abducted by 'aliens' 5x04 Chivalry is Not Dead - Hanging upside down (tomato face), poisoned, collapse, hospital, unconscious 5x07 Ferry Tale - Held at gunpoint x2, hostage, kicked in the face, tear gas inhalation, restrained, trips/tumbles down a hill 5x09 One, Maybe Two, Ways Out - Seriously heartbroken 5x12 Dual Spires - Trapped in burning house 5x13 We'd Like to Thank the Academy - Held at gunpoint x2 5x16 Yang 3 in 2D - Held at shotgunpoint, scared

6x01 Shawn Rescues Darth Vader - Jumps off roof 6x02 Last Night Gus - Hungover, stressed, jumps from balcony, shot at 6x04 Amazing Psych-Man & Tap-Man - Trips, found unconscious, punched, kicked x2, thrown, sand to the eye, exhausted 6x06 Shawn Interrupted - Mental patient, hands covered, knocked unconscious, restrained, held at gunpoint 6x09 Neil Simons Lover Retreat - Robbed, heartbroken x2 (29:35), smile through the pain (42:00) 6x10 Indiana Shawn and the Temple - Hand stuck, slapped, manhandled, held at gunpoint, 'crying' 6x13 Let's Doo-Wap it Again - Appendicitis, collapse, hospital drama-queen, held at gunpoint, drugged, drugs wear off, le rigor mortis, le pain, le kitty cat! 6x16 Santabarbaratown - Held at knifepoint, knocked unconscious, black-eye

7x01 Santabarbaratown 2 - Scared, angry, thrown, active mine, held at gunpoint x3, Lassie love 7x02 Juliet Takes A Luvvah - Traumatized (27:00) 7x03 Lassie Jerky - Shot at, held at gunpoint 7x04 No Country For Two Old Men - Held at gunpoint 7x06 Cirque Du Soul - Pain from pull-ups 7x07 Deez Nups - Huge confession, heartbroken 7x08 Right Turn Or Left For Dead - Insomnia, regret, depressed, head slammed into glass, bruise, concussion, denial, stabbed, nearly hit by truck, headache, tackled 7x11 Office Space - Poked x2, trips, bloody nose, scared, framed 7x14 No Trout About It - Painful yoga, choked, fired

8x01 Lock, Stock… - Held at gunpoint, "restrained" 8x05 COG Blocked - Jumpscared out of hammock, painful poke, body decked by cane, held at gunpoint 8x07 Shawn & Gus Truck Things Up - Hand squeezed painfully 8x09 Nightmare on State Street - Slapped, zombie 8x10 The Break-Up - Nervous, held at gunpoint, shot at, emotional

[yjhzies]

“Unreal.” — Hong Joshua

#ver. – seungcheol

Genre: fluff, fluff and fluff! (slightly crack) Warning: use of corny pick up lines, simp bf Pairings: joshua x gn!reader(?), f!reader Word count : 0.4k

[💿] : Butterflies by Straykids

★ note · kind of similar to the seungcheol's straight out of dreams one so let's consider it as shua ver. (ALSO PLS SEND ME UR SVT SCENARIOS BCZ IM REALLY RUNNING OUT OF THEM 😿🤞)

Yes, you and Joshua have been dating for five years now. Yes, you still give him butterflies. Oh, this man is so in love with you that he can drop everything else and be with you 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

In order to spend the rest of the day with you, he even ends practice with the members early. Not to mention that he has hundreds of dates scheduled, so you get to choose where you want to go. The beach? oh well, guess what? He does not give a damn if it is nighttime; you are still going to the beach, even if it's just for a stroll. A dinner date in a fancy restaurant? All set, he already reserved a table at the city's most elegant restaurant.

Even the bare minimum from you puts him on cloud nine. What did he do to deserve you? God, he gets butterflies just looking at your face. Even when you just adjust his collar before heading out to dinner, give him a quick glance to make sure he is comfortable, or even just smile at him, he is o.v.e.r.j.o.y.e.d.

When he arrives home and finds you cooking food, he literally melts. He can't wait for the day you actually become his life partner. and all he wants when he gets home from a hard day at work is your comforting kisses.

He gets butterflies whenever he sees you wearing beautiful outfits on a date. You are so stunningly beautiful, it drives him insane. In a matter of seconds, all it takes is one glance at him from you to make his cheeks as red as a tomato.

And to be honest, it's the same for you. Two love birds ready to die for each other? Perfect. It's like Romeo and Juliet, but in real life. He simps for you, and you simp for him. No, actually, he simps wayyy more than you.

If he could describe how you make him feel through a song, it would undoubtedly be 'Butterflies' by Straykids.

"Baby you got me feeling butterflies, butterflies, 'cause you're my only butterfly, butterfly." You cannot tell me this is not how he feels when he looks at you.

Pick-up lines like "Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?" may seem corny to some, but Shua finds them to be kinda real. He says it half-jokingly, but he also kind of means it. Not gonna lie, did it actually hurt when you fell from heaven? It's a genuine question because you are too good to be true, it's quite literally.

"Baby, can I ask you something?"

"Hm? Go on."

"Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?"

And, well, the silliest conversation happens. Though Shua finds these lines corny, he does have a thought about it because you are just unreal to him. You're perfect.

[friendly-neighborhood-boricua]

[2] Seeing Each Other Around Town

Summary: James discovers his favorite student and his mom are his across-the-street neighbors and now he can't stop seeing her everywhere.

Notes: Marauders modern elementary school AU, kindergarten teacher!James Potter x nurse!reader, mom!reader x son!OC (Liam), inspired by this post by @ravishinglavishingluvr. Tiny little bit of angst in this one but it's negligible. Y'all this is gonna be a slow burn but we'll get there. Also I'm updating sorta regularly now yay!!!

A/N (23/5/24): FINALLY edited this. I'm out of school, so hopefully I'll have time to continue this series <3

Previous Part: Parent-Teacher Conferences Next Part: Career Fair Series Masterlist here

Poor James is completely infatuated with you after parent-teacher conferences

He just can’t get you out of his head

And Sirius and Remus are usually the ones who suffer the consequences

Their apartment is on the way to school from James’ house, so they almost always carpool

And lately, the entire car ride, James Cant. Shut. Up. about you

(“Boys, you should’ve seen her—she’s so sweet—of course she’s Liam’s mom—Pads, you don’t understand—they’re so similar—Remus, she’s gorgeous—did you see her????”)

By the end of the week, Sirius and Remus are very amused with James’ adoration for you

But it also gets kinda irritating after a while, so they’re pretty thankful when the weekend rolls around and they (hopefully) get a small break from his incessant enamored babbling

Saturday rolls around, and James is up at six thirty (hard to break out of the habit when school starts at eight) and shuffling out to the lobby of his apartment building in his pajamas, robe, and slippers to get the mail and the newspaper

But just because James’ body wakes up early doesn’t mean James’ brain wakes up at the same time so he’s out by his mailbox looking confusedly at the newspaper and wondering why he suddenly can’t read

And after like a solid thirty seconds of him just squinting really hard he finally realizes it’s because he left his glasses inside

He’s doing his best guys, he’s doing his best

So James is about to turn around and go back to his own flat to get his glasses (and probably a cup of coffee) when he hears his own name— —just … well, kinda

“Mr. Potter?”

James just about jumps out of his skin because what teacher expects to see one of their students outside of school???? Like no thank you

Don’t get me wrong, James loves his kids to death and he’d die for them any day

But it’s the weekend

So no thanks

But then James realizes it’s Liam and he’s lowkey relieved because like

If he has to see a student outside of school, he’d rather it be this one

And then it occurs to James that if Liam is in his apartment building at six thirty in the morning, then he probably lives here

And if Liam lives here, then …

“Liam?”

Poor James can’t help the full-body flush that rushes through him at your voice

Boy looks like someone dunked him in tomato juice

His head snaps from Liam (or at least the blurry shape that has Liam’s voice) to where your voice is coming from, and it hits him that you’re whispering (very tiredly and cutely, if you asked James) from the floor below his own, leaning over the railing to watch as your son presumably gets the mail

How the hell didn’t he notice you lived in his apartment building????????

Not that he’s complaining ofc :):):):):):)

James realizes after a minute that Liam asked if he’s alright, and he’s just like “Yeah!!” and utterly beaming

(Unbeknownst to James, you realize who exactly Liam is talking to and blush just as terribly as James does when you realize you’re still in pajamas and aren’t at all presentable)

You say good morning to him as well (from the balcony) and James is pretty sure he’s about to melt

(You call him Mr. Potter tho and it lowkey makes him cringe and remember that Liam is like RIGHT next to him)

So you and him exchange pleasantries like Romeo and Juliet with the balcony :) you get it?? :):):) while Liam gets the mail from your own mailbox and walks it up the stairs back to you

(he says “here you go, mama” in his sweet little voice as he hands the small stack to you and you say the gentlest “thank you, baby” back and James’ heart feels like goop in his chest)

James barely makes it back into is own apartment before he’s squealing and doing a goofy little dance out of overflowing joy

And the best part?

That's not the last time he sees you. Not even close.

Over the next several weeks, James begins to notice you everywhere around town

He sees you and Liam at the grocery store (you’re there with Liam and give him the choice between dino nuggets and spring rolls; he decisively choses the latter)

And on his way to work (on one of the few days where Remus and Sirius aren’t carpooling with him, as Remus was sick and Sirius stayed home to care for him), James sees you in your own car on your way to work

And when you and Liam go on walks on the weekends (James had taken to mowing Remus' mother's lawn, which was on your walking path, shirtless every Saturday morning—for entirely unrelated reasons, of course, and he will take no questions on the matter …)

James still isn’t sure how he hadn’t noticed you before because how could he have missed you?? You’re gorgeous????

(Of course, poor Remus and Sirius get to hear about his fawning even more now)

(They both find it cute though and they like to give him advice, so it’s fine)

So eventually one Friday night, James can’t sleep and is done with his lesson plans

And he’s just bored, so what does he do?

Go to the grocery store, of course

So James ventures out, once again in his pajamas, to the grocery store to get some treats to eat while he watches Antiques Roadshow until he falls asleep

And of course—he should’ve known at this point honestly—there you are

(Also in your pajamas)

And James says hi before he can really stop himself, and you look a little spooked for a second (because who tf would be talking to you in the grocery store at ten at night?) but then you realize it’s him and you say hi back with a sweet little smile that turns James' insides to warm fudge

Apparently, Liam is at Draco's birthday sleepover (Draco's a little shit, and James never understood how Liam could stand the kid) and you don’t have a shift at the hospital tonight, so you decided to indulge in some celebratory ice cream

James ends up helping you choose which ice cream you want (chocolate chip cookie dough—a classic) and as thanks, you go with him to the candy aisle to help him pick out treats

James ends up getting a container of pretty much every candy, cookie, and chip that grocery store because he didn’t want to leave yet lmao

And when you’re in line to check out, James mentions that there’s a career fair at school in a month and he’s wondering if you’d maybe want to come and talk about being a nurse????

Pretty please??????

James doesn’t notice how your face falls ever so slightly. You kind of forgot for a second that he’s your son’s teacher and not just some pretty guy that you’ve sorta had a crush on for the past couple weeks. Nothing could happen between the two of you—not if it meant messing with or—god forbid—hurting Liam’s education. But it’s okay. You’ll just suck it up and stick to your job and your son. It’s fine. It’s fine.

You’re agreeing in an instant, and James promises to email you the details so you can plan around it

James leaves the grocery store with like ten pounds worth of treats feeling full to the bursting with warmth and his eyes are glowing the rest of the night

He sees this really pretty pearl and gold necklace on Antiques Roadshow and catches himself thinking about how pretty it would look on you, but he doesn’t bother trying to stop himself at this point

It wouldn’t be any help anyway

Next Part: Career Fair

[cissa-calls]

Countdown to Agatha All Along: Day 843

Agatha and Y/N: *opens door*

Wanda: “Well, how was the play? Did you enjoy it?

Y/N: “It was wonderful!…at least what we saw”

Agatha: “The theatre has changed a lot since I last went, the etiquette? The structure? Dull.”

Wanda: “Wait, back up: what you saw? Did it not finish?”

Y/N: “The finale is actually happening as we speak, but we had to depart early…for reasons.”

Agatha: “Apparently you’re not allowed to “throw rotten fruit at the actors anymore” or something silly.”

Y/N: “You grand-slammed a tomato into Romeo’s face when he was crying over Juliet’s corpse!”

Agatha: “How else are you supposed to let the actor know they suck? It’s called audience input! Can no one can take a critique anymore?”

Y/N: “Yes, but those are usually transmitted via an online review! Not by making Elizabethan instant pasta sauce on the actors!”

Y/N: “The worst part of all of this? Now I’ll never know how it ends!”

Wanda: “To Romeo and Juliet? THE most popular Shakespeare tragedy?”

Agatha to Wanda: “Can I throw a tomato at them?”

[svnnyd4ys]

final part of SFTH plays as Siken quotes!!

plays 23-38~

BEETROOTS AND MURDER "Shame means you're guilty, like the rest of us, but you think you're better than us. Maybe you are." (self-portrait against red wallpaper - War of the Foxes)

SUSAN'S HOLIDAY "The yard is dark, the tomatoes are next to the whitewashed wall, the book on the table is about Spain, the windows are painted shut." (seaside improvisation - Crush)

THE EVIL MAKE-A-WISH KID "A man with a bandage is in the middle of something. Everyone understands this. Everyone wants a battlefield. Red. And a little more red. Accidents never happen when the room is empty." (detail of the fire - War of the Foxes)

PRISCILLA'S FINAL PETAL "Hold onto your voice. Hold onto your breath. Don't make a noise, don't leave this room until I come back from the dead for you. I will come back from the dead for you." (you are Jeff - Crush)

THE MYSTERY OF THE MIDNIGHT CIRCUS "This is not your problem. You have your own body to deal with. The lamp by the bed is broken. You are feeling things he is no longer in touch with." (a primer for the small weird loves - Crush)

CAESAR & JULIET "We were in the gold room, where everyone finally gets what they want, so I said 'What do you want, sweetheart?' and you said 'Kiss me.' Here I am leaving you clues. Here I am singing while Rome burns." (snow and dirty rain - Crush)

WINE UNDER THE BRIDGE "And everyone secretly wants to collaborate with the enemy, to construct a truer version of the self. How much can you change and get away with it, before you turn into someone else, before it's some kind of murder?" (portrait of Fryderyk in shifting light - war of the foxes)

THE UNRELENTING AUBERGINE "Names of spells and names of hexes, names cursed quietly under the breath, or called out loudly to fill the yard, calling you inside again, calling you home." (saying your names - Crush)

THE LIGHTHOUSE "The walls were strong, the nails: reliable. The room grew darker or lighter depending on the placement of the lamps; the hands of his hands alluding to a secret world beyond the frame he shouldn't have any knowledge of." (the field of rooms and halls - War of the Foxes)

MURDERS IN SPACE "History is a little man in a brown suit trying to define a room he is outside of. I know history. There are many names in history, but none of them are ours." (little beast - Crush)

MARIGOLDS, BLUEBELLS & HUGH "Crown yourself with leaves and stake your claim before something smears up the paint. I turned away from darkness to see daylight, to see what would happen. What happened? What does a man want? Power." (landscape with a blur of conquerors - War of the Foxes)

MOIST & MAGICAL "Anything past the horizon is invisible, it can only be imagined. You want to see the future, but you can only see the sky." (road music - Crush)

BURGLARY & BOBSLEDDING "We collide with place, which is another name for God, and limp away with a permanent injury. Ask for a blessing? You can try, but we will not remain unscathed." (landscape with fruit rot and millipede - War of the Foxes)

TOBY'S SECRET POCKET "They want to stop but they can't stop. They don't know what they're doing. This is not harmless, the how to touch it, we do not want the screen completely lifted from our eyes, just lifted long enough to see the holes." (the dislocated room - Crush)

BALLET ON THE BATTLEFIELD "The entire history of human desire takes about seventy minutes to tell. Unfortunately, we don't have that kind of time. Forget the dragon, leave the gun on the table, this has nothing to do with happiness." (litany in which certain things are crossed out - Crush)

THE PHANTOM OF HORNCHURCH "I'm not sure why I do it, but in this version you are not feeding yourself to a bad man against a black sky prickled with small lights. I take it back. These wooden halls with caskets. These terms from the lower depth. I take them back." (litany in which certain things are crossed out - Crush)

[freedelusionshere]

Mikey, Cicero, and the mob as a representation of toxic masculinity.

Keep thinking about how Mikey is denigrated by Lee and others in Fishes for trying to come up with side businesses constantly, but to me it reads like someone who desperately wants to go legit but can’t? Same thing with franchising The Beef. Gets him out from owing Cicero or passing on that legacy to Carmy or Sugar. Mikey always has to act tough and untouchable and fake confidence to navigate this, which was probably handed off to him when his father went wherever he went. And it earns him admiration (Mikey was "cool") while internally he's self-destructing. And like Donna, whatever he wanted or dreamed for his life was pushed to the side.

Btw, the name Cicero could be a very “on the nose” reference to a Chicago town that was taken over by Al Capone to protect his territory. Like Capone, Cicero really “owns” The Bear one way or another right from the go. On the surface it appears he has guilt over Mikey’s death, wants to help the Berzatto family, etc.

But the entire time he’s around the family, even in flashbacks like Fishes, he’s trying to talk business in one way or another. Think about him (update: it was Lee, not Cicero, but my point stands, because Lee is also in on this) trying to bring up real estate to Donna in the kitchen (which she tried to beg off) or him jumping in on convos, Richie’s ask for a job, etc. Later all his convos are about money, about how he doesn’t want to take it from them, but he will. Tapping Sugar to handle all the financial stuff for him (I bet it will come out in S4 Donna does that for him on the real estate side).

Here are several other examples:

Mikey hid Cicero’s money away in tomato cans for Carmy to find and Carmy tells Cicero and his reaction? Thank God he didn’t put it in a bank. LOL.

Carmy “joking” in S1 about how he doesn’t want to get his legs broken. (Carmy is portrayed as very straight-and-narrow, not tolerating drugs being sold in the alley outside, and having a strong reaction to Claire admitting she liked to shoplift as a kid).

Richie having a gun to protect the shop and later telling Carmy he’ll come after Cicero if he comes for them.

Richie dealing with the mob associates lingering on the sidewalk outside The Bear, who are obviously conducting business of some kind.

The way The Beef has magically always had just enough money to stay afloat all this time and has things hidden in its walls. The story about Mikey trying to burn it down to collect the insurance money rather than allowing all this to continue when he spiraled.

Claire “joking” about sending Faks to beat up Carmy. I guarantee you there are Faks who do this, the Cena character 100% reads as a body man, you see him physically intimidating his brothers to be "funny".

The sudden presence of The Computer as a numbers guy coming to reconcile Cicero's accounts for someone(s).

Mikey not allowing Carmy to work at The Beef and pushing him away emotionally to make him want to GTFO of dodge.

The partnership agreement that seemingly comes out of nowhere, as Cicero now tries to rope Sydney into the family operation? Which is super triggering for her because she already has trust issues around Carmy as a business partner?

This also plays into the show liking to make references to Shakespeare which had violent family factions who controlled things (Romeo & Juliet being the most obvious) and Michael Mann who often focuses on organized crime in his storytelling.

This is all background noise and not the main driver of the show, but I was curious to see what others think about this and if anyone is noticing all of this? Especially when it comes to the kind of masculinity that is being idolized by characters like the Faks, even though it appears to go against Neil's actual nature.

[cinnamongorll]

a fragile line - chapter 21

read on ao3! (111k words) | previous chapter | next chapter | masterlist

Pairing: Joel Miller x Female OC

Tags: extreme slow burn, age gap, older man/younger woman, protective joel, jealous joel, hurt/comfort, pov third person, mutual pining, angst, sexual tension, friends to lovers, canon-typical violence, feral joel, parental abuse, eventual smut.

Series synopsis: three years ago, Juliet escaped her father's religious survivor camp, ending up in the Boston QZ. Juliet created a life for herself in Boston, desperate to forget the trauma of her upbringing. One day, Juliet arrives home to find a mysterious letter which forces her to return to her home town. Juliet can't travel the harsh post-apocalyptic landscape alone, so she enlists the help of the grumpy and, at times, frightening man she works alongside: Joel Miller.

Word count: 4.5k

Chapter 21: 'I'm Your Man'

Juliet’s POV:

Juliet’s eyes opened to a multitude of colours. Shades of blue bled through gaps in the thick canopy of leaves above her. It was dull, but not dark. The last remnants of daylight still brightened the sky, postponing the darkness a little longer.

Juliet lay on the ground, staring up at the branches filtering her view of the sky. She blinked a few times, allowing her eyesight to focus. The fog of sleep still lingered, blocking any frightening thoughts from entering her fragile mind. Juliet stretched out her fingers and found that she was lying on something, it felt soft and warm, a sleeping bag? 

She listened. There was a sizzling sound, joined by the smell of tomatoes? Juliet wasn’t sure, but her stomach rumbled in response. A groan escaped her lips as she attempted to turn her body in the direction of the sound, and the smell. There was a blurry figure to her left, hunched over what she assumed was a camping stove. She could see the faint blue flames flickering below the outline of a black pot. Juliet blinked another few times, attempting to fully regain her eyesight. 

As her body shifted to the side, fresh pain radiated across her stomach, bringing tears to Juliet’s eyes. She almost collapsed back onto the ground, but the fog was clearing from her mind and Juliet was desperate to gain a proper grip on her reality. So she bit her lip, her teeth piercing the delicate, cracked skin, and used her shaky arms to push herself up until she sat upright on the sleeping bag, facing the direction of the blurry figure. 

Juliet was breathing heavily, her whole body echoed the tiredness she felt deep in her bones. The longer she was awake, the more pain started to travel across her body, lighting a blazing path through her limbs, across her stomach, and up to her head. Juliet reached her hand up to the side of her face, gently hovering over the crusted blood with trembling fingers. A long groan released from between her gritted teeth. 

“Juliet?” the blurry figure called, his voice sounded gentle but urgent. 

“Hmmm,” she moaned, her eyes were closed as she waited for the fresh wave of pain to subside. 

Juliet didn’t know where she was or who she was with and, as the fog continued to clear, she began to feel unnerved by this thought.

Then her eyes opened into a deep, piercing shade of green. 

“Ethan?”

His blurry figure had moved from the stove to the space next to Juliet’s hunched body, tilting sideways on the sleeping bag. 

“Hey,” he whispered, his voice cushioned with concern. 

Juliet blinked again and remembered the last time she woke. Her terror, her scream, the pity in Ethan’s eyes. She had been so delirious, so confused, so caught up in her father’s lie. God, what must Ethan think of her? To have saved her all those years ago and then watch Juliet fear the sight of him. 

“Juliet, please,” Ethan breathed. “I won’t hurt you. I would never hurt you,” he begged in a quiet voice, inching closer to her frozen form. 

Juliet forced herself not to back away, to stay entirely still as Ethan moved towards her. Juliet believed him, that he would never hurt her. He had saved her, cared for her. He had loved her once. But the sight of him brought ugly memories to her brittle mind, banging on the brick wall she had built around the worst, most disturbing thoughts that she was still too weak to remember. 

“I know,” she murmured, forcing her bottom lip between her teeth again.

A breath of pure relief rushed from Ethan’s mouth and his eyes softened as he continued to stare at her. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. It reminded Juliet of warm summer days, lounging on the grass. It reminded her of shy, gentle touches in dark rooms. It reminded her of hope, of something good in the world.

Juliet allowed herself to look at Ethan, really look at him for the first time in almost four years. His eyes had lost a little of their light, they were duller, darkened by deep purple circles beneath them. His jaw, which he had always kept clean shaven, was speckled with hair. His cheekbones were sharper, more defined and his cheeks looked sunken, hollowed. 

What had happened to him after she left? 

Juliet was desperate to ask, to discover why her father had bragged about his work with Ethan, the journey to salvation he had also promised her. But Juliet was overcome with a deep aching guilt which had wrapped around her heart for the past four years, forcing the words to rush from her mouth.

“I’m so sorry I left. I shouldn’t have let you push me through the gate, I should have come back for you earlier, I -”

Juliet’s list of regrets were cut off by the feel of Ethan’s hands as they cupped her cheeks. She flinched as Ethan’s fingers brushed the bruising on her face, her skin had instantly begun to throb under his touch. 

He tilted her face up, forcing her to meet his eyes, which were now only inches from her own. 

“You have nothing to apologise for. All I ever wanted was for you to have a life free from Elijah and everything he did to you. You were supposed to stay away. God Juliet, why did you come back?” Ethan soothed, his words rushed. 

Juliet’s lips parted as Ethan reached his thumb up to brush away the tears she hadn’t realised had begun to fall from her blurry eyes. Ethan’s words washed over her, bringing a new tide of horror. She couldn’t begin to explain the letter, or the journey back to him. She couldn’t think of anything other than her father and the memory of what Ethan had told Joel outside the dark car. 

“He’s… he’s dead, isn’t he?” Juliet breathed, struggling to get the words out as the realisation choked her. 

Shock blazed in Ethan’s eyes.

“I -” he started. “Yes,” Ethan nodded. “He’s dead.” 

Juliet was thankful for Ethan’s gentle hands as they held her upright, taking the weight of the horror in her head. 

“How?” she demanded, reaching her trembling hands up to place on top of Ethan’s, urging him with her gentle touch to clear up the confusion in her head, to fill in the gaps and the missing pieces. 

Ethan stayed silent. Juliet could almost see the thoughts swirling in his head as she stared into his glossy eyes. His eyebrows furrowed and he swallowed rough before he broke eye contact. 

Ethan looked to his left, beyond the camping stove which continued to cook whatever food he had left on top of it. Ethan’s eyes strayed into the forest around them, searching for something. 

Searching for someone.

When his gaze returned to her, Ethan realised his mistake. His eyes had revealed more than he meant to. 

Juliet started to pull back from him, understanding beginning to stiffen her muscles, but Ethan wouldn’t let her. His fingers pressed harder into her cheeks, holding her in place, forcing her gaze to remain within his eyes. Juliet’s bruises were roaring in pain as Ethan’s grip tightened. 

“Please Juliet, just let me explain what happened,” he urged. 

Juliet didn’t want to hear an explanation. She just wanted a name. She just wanted to know who had killed her father. 

But she already knew. Juliet knew exactly who Ethan was searching for with that look. 

Right on time, the sound of crushed leaves and broken twigs entered the space. Juliet couldn’t turn her head, couldn’t look at the approaching figure, as Ethan’s hands continued to cradle her face. But Juliet would recognise those thundering steps anywhere. 

“What are you doin’?” his deep, gritted, voice demanded. 

Ethan instantly let go of her and Juliet turned to stare up at Joel as he towered over them. 

“Joel,” breathed Juliet. But she didn’t need to get his attention because his intense stare was already locked onto her, his eyes roaming over her face, darkening when he caught sight of the bruises and the dried blood.

“You should be restin’” he told Juliet before his eyes darted to Ethan, who had let go of her face but hadn’t moved away. Ethan’s legs were still pressed against her own, his body still leaning towards her. 

“Food’s burnin’” Joel practically growled. Ethan’s eyes shot to the stove and he lept up, scrambling to take the pot off of the heat.

Juliet released a weighted breath. 

Joel had killed her father.

Some more gaps in her memory began to fill in, she remembered the basement, she remembered the slap, she remembered the hot poker. And then nothing.

But there was more, she knew there was more that she was missing, more gaps littered through her memory. 

Juliet’s eyes dipped from Joel’s to his hands and the bloody, open skin on his knuckles. 

Joel had killed her father and, by the look of it, used his own hands to do the job. 

Juliet felt like her whole worldview was titling. How had her life changed so much in a matter of months? And then again, in a matter of hours? 

There were too many emotions, too many thoughts swirling in her head. Threads of guilt, fear, and anger were entangled and, looking at Joel, she found that she was unable to separate them. 

Looking at Joel... Juliet was afraid.

Not so much of him, but for him. What had he been forced to do to save himself? To save her? Juliet brought him there, she had bribed him, convinced him to take her home. And now he stood before her with broken knuckles and a wide eyed, horror filled expression. 

“Joel, what happened? Where are we?” she whispered, staring up at him through damp eyelashes. 

His eyebrows pinched together as a muscle jumped in his jaw. Joel’s eyes darted to the forest around them before his hand found the back of his neck and his eyes found hers again. 

“We’ve been drivin’ bout a day and a half, since we left…” he cut himself off. 

Juliet nodded, the action forcing more dizziness to invade her vision. She thought she saw Joel move to step forward, his hand widening towards her. But when she looked up again, he was standing as still as carved marble. She must have imagined it. 

There was so much to say to him. So many questions to ask. He had killed her father, and Juliet couldn’t make sense of how to feel about it. The most prominent emotion firing through her mind was guilt, an unbearable feeling of remorse pressing tight against her chest. 

“What happened?” she pressed again, desperate to gain a full picture of that night. How had Joel and Ethan met? Did Joel find her after she had passed out? Every question that floated through her mind was accompanied by a new flash of pain in various parts of her body. Everything ached.

Joel gritted his teeth and Juliet watched as his jaw moved from side to side ever so slightly. Then he parted his lips and Juliet’s heartbeat quickened with anticipation. But before Joel could utter a word, or even give a hint of an explanation, Ethan appeared between them with two metal plates in his hands, each containing a strange looking red sludge with dark, burnt patches.

“Here,” he muttered as he handed one to Joel without looking up at the daggers in his eyes. Then Ethan bent down and gave Juliet the other, placing it carefully in her lap. 

Juliet nodded her thanks before her eyes returned to Joel. She started to remember what happened in the car. The way he touched her face with such tenderness and the soothing words he whispered. Juliet craved that closeness again, she needed him next to her, to hold her as she was falling apart. 

Juliet blinked, startled as Ethan sat down beside her with his own metal plate, shifting so that their knees touched. Juliet watched Joel follow the movement with a lethal focus before he clenched his hand around his plate, took two steps back and sat down on the ground opposite to them.

As the sky darkened, Joel brought out his torch, placing it on the ground to illuminate the small patch of forest the three of them occupied. Ethan started eating with a ravenous pace, Joel was slower, more careful of the food, savouring it as he ate. Juliet worried for Ethan, when was the last time he had a proper meal?

Juliet looked down at her plate. It didn’t look edible, but most foods didn’t look edible nowadays. Still, she couldn't bring herself to eat. 

Juliet bit her lip hard to stop tears from forming in her eyes. She had done enough damage, she refused to show Ethan or Joel more of the mess that lived inside her head. Juliet picked up the metal fork Ethan gave her with shaking fingers and started to push her food about the plate, putting on a show.

“Need to decide where we’re going, Juliet,” Ethan said between mouthfuls of food, nudging her with his knee. 

Juliet’s eyes darted to Joel. He wasn’t looking at her, but she noticed that his hand had stilled over his plate, and she watched as his fingers curled tighter around the fork. 

Slowly, she turned her head to Ethan. He had continued eating but Juliet knew he was awaiting a response. 

She had never considered where she would go after leaving her father’s community because she hadn’t even considered that she would have a life after returning home. Ethan’s question seemed like a fairytale, the idea that Juliet could choose what to do with her life was a fantasy. Her brain struggled to conceptualise a future for herself beyond the forest they sat within. Juliet found her mind drifting to the man who sat opposite her, his broken knuckles flashing red in the torchlight. Having spent years working alongside Joel in the QZ and then months sharing every moment of every day together… Juliet struggled to imagine a future beyond him. 

Juliet made a noncommittal sound with a shrug of her stiff shoulders. “I’m not sure,” she answered, staring down at her plate. The guilt in her chest grew again. Ethan had never left the community and had always dreamt of leaving and travelling the country, finding other survivors, making a life for the both of them. 

Her heart squeezed with shame when she realised that she didn’t share that same desire. Juliet had been on her own for a while now, had travelled the country, and had experienced the worst parts of humanity. She was tired and weary of the world. Juliet just wanted to feel safe. 

Ethan should have been the one to escape that day, not Juliet. She didn’t deserve the freedom, it was never her dream.

“Come on,” he urged. “We always talked about leaving, going anywhere we wanted.” Ethan’s voice was confused and almost pleading. 

Juliet had tried not to indulge Ethan’s fantasies in the past. Even when she responded with polite words, her chronic cynicism had always shone through. Ethan must remember a different image of her, one tinted by the rose coloured lenses of hope and fear. 

“We could travel the country, meet new people,” he continued, now turning to face her again. “Even see the world!” Ethan said with a laugh. 

Juliet flinched, stilling her fork over her untouched food. She saw Blake’s face in her mind, the night he found her in the woods. She had been so afraid, so utterly unprepared for life outside of the gates of her father’s community. Juliet paid a lot for his protection. And god did she need it. Her journey to Boston taught her a lot of things. She learned how to kill and how to not feel bad about it. She learned how to swallow her tongue and she learned how to survive. Ethan had no idea what he was talking about, and she was glad. Juliet never wanted Ethan to see the things she had seen or experience the things she had experienced. Ethan was a logical person, having spent his days studying medicine, but he had one fault and it was his unflinching ability to preserve his hope at all costs. Juliet just prayed his hope wouldn’t get him killed one day. 

“I -” she began, stopping when the words almost choked her. 

“She’s already seen it all,” a gruff voice interrupted. 

Ethan stiffened, sitting up straighter. Juliet risked a glance at him from the corner of her eye and found that he was staring straight at Joel, his mouth transformed into a tight line. Juliet’s eyes flickered to Joel next, surprised by his words. But he wasn’t looking at her, his eyes, blazing with fury, were positioned on Ethan’s irritated expression. 

“It’s a big world, Joel,” Ethan argued, his eyes darting to Juliet. “Juliet and I have been given a second chance, we’re not going to waste it.” 

Juliet frowned, reaching a hand to rest on Ethan’s knee, attempting to get his attention. The air had grown incredibly tense and Juliet was too tired, and in too much pain, to bear witness to whatever pissing contest was going on in front of her.

Joel’s eyes followed her movement, his jaw hardening at the sight of her trembling fingers on Ethan’s leg. 

“What does Juliet think?” Joel mused, his words dripped in bitterness as the sly shadow of a smile darkened the corners of his lips. He still didn’t meet Juliet’s very pointed stare, rather continuing to pierce Ethan with his downward gaze. 

Ethan, finally noticing her touch on his knee, turned towards Juliet. A crease formed between his brows. Her heart skipped a beat when she realised they were both awaiting her answer. 

Juliet stared into Ethan’s eyes and took a deep breath. She had to be truthful with him. “I don’t know what to think, I just want somewhere safe. I’m tired, Ethan. I’ve seen enough,” Juliet explained, softening her words to ease Ethan’s discomfort. 

Ethan’s eyes flickered with hurt, and fractures formed in Juliet’s heart as she eased her hand off of his knee. He swallowed rough then turned his attention on Joel, attempting to mirror his look of contempt. 

“Well, what’s your plan then?” Ethan demanded. “You’ve saved Juliet, you’ve got your supplies - where are you going?” 

Juliet looked between them both. There was such anger in Ethan’s words, Juliet wondered what had caused such a rift between them after knowing each other for such a short time. 

Joel completely ignored Ethan, instead choosing to stare directly into Juliet’s eyes. She found that she had to stop herself from squirming under the weight of his sole attention. 

“Tommy’s still out there, I’m gonna go find him,” he began, his words quiet but forceful. “And my guess is he’s found somewhere to hole up, maybe... somewhere safe.”

Juliet’s breath caught in her throat. His words were clear, Juliet understood exactly what he was saying.

He had presented her with an offer, another amendment to their original deal. 

“Somewhere safe,” she instantly repeated.  

Ethan’s head whipped between them. 

“Juliet you can’t seriously want us to go with him,” Ethan argued, realising what her words meant, leaning closer into Juliet, attempting to speak into her ear. “You know what he’s done.”

Juliet’s head turned sharply, her nose almost touching Ethan’s as she stared at him with a piercing look. “Ethan, Joel got me to you. He helped me save you. I know exactly what he’s done,” she whispered back, her words almost transforming into a hiss as they continued to rush from her lips. “The only difference is that you don’t know what I’ve done, what I’m capable of now.” She paused, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment, then opened them back into Ethan’s shocked stare. Her anger had taken over so suddenly, Juliet hadn't realised how much rage bubbled under the surface of her skin.

“I need this journey to end, I want us to have a life without fear or bloodshed. Maybe we can find it there, together,” she continued after a breath, softer this time. 

After a moment, Ethan’s eyes finally softened at her words and he leaned back. He turned towards Joel, then back to Juliet, and nodded slowly. “Where you go, I go,” he declared, pinning her with his stare. 

The tension began to crack and Juliet watched Joel release his vice-like grip on his fork and continue eating. She breathed a sigh of relief. For a moment, Juliet’s panic began to subside. She knew it was selfish, but she was terrified of a possibility where she was separated from Joel, where she would never feel his commanding presence walking behind her, or feel his touch whenever he let his guard down. 

Juliet stared down at her plate. “Where you go, I go,” she repeated in a whisper. 

Juliet wasn’t entirely sure which man her words were meant for. 

………………………………….

Later, when Ethan had passed out on his sleeping bag, Juliet was still awake.

She sat hunched over, her plate of food still sat on her lap, uneaten. The pain from her burn had reached a point where she was unable to move, any adjustment of her body forced every muscle on her torso to lock up in agony. 

She could see Joel in the distance, standing between two trees, a shotgun in his hands. He had taken the first watch but Juliet assumed his watch would last the entire night. She could tell that Joel didn’t trust Ethan and Juliet was currently unable to stand. So, Joel held the sole responsibility of their safety once more. 

Sat on her sleeping bag, unable to lie down, Juliet had a lot of time to think. She recalled her time in the basement, forcing herself to re experience every horrible second to try and uncover that final missing piece of her memory. The thought of it made her stomach churn so she knew that her body remembered, but something in her mind was holding it back. 

When the memory of the hot poker and the satisfaction in her father’s eyes reentered her mind again, Juliet knew enough was enough. She had to get to sleep. So, she managed to slide her pate off of her lap and onto the ground beside her, then she sucked in another deep breath and -

“Fuck,” she gasped out as she attempted to twist her body to the side. The pain was unbearable, tears burned in her eyes as she attempted to slow her breaths. 

Seconds later, a hand gently grasped her chin, forcing her gaze up to meet his. 

Joel knelt down in front of her, his shotgun now dropped onto the ground next to her plate.

“What’s wrong?” he demanded as his dark eyes searched hers. 

Juliet was so tired, she didn’t have the energy to disguise her pain anymore. Tears began to cloud her vision.

“I can’t move. Can you help me?” she murmered, her voice cracking as she said the words. 

Joel’s lips parted as he nodded once, sharp and quick. “What do you need?” he asked softly.

Juliet was always amazed by the gentleness that lay beneath Joel’s hard, rough exterior. And she was beginning to notice that it only ever appeared when they were alone, when Joel would look into her eyes in the dark and feel the electricity spark between them. 

“Can you help me lie down? It hurts too much,” Juliet replied as a yawn worked its way up her throat. 

“I can do that,” Joel assured her in his quiet voice, thick with his southern drawl when he spoke this low.

Juliet braced herself as Joel positioned himself behind her and slowly tugged her body down onto his lap. The tears were freely pouring from her eyes, the pain was a blazing fire on her torso. But Joel’s touch was soothing and within seconds, he had her lying on her sleeping bag with her head on his lap. She wasn’t sure how they managed to get into his position but she released a quiet moan as soon as her head hit Joel’s thigh, she was so tired and his body was so warm, Juliet could feel herself drifting off. 

But before sleep could take her, she felt the rough skin of Joel’s fingers sweep a lock of hair off of her face and tuck it behind her ear. She opened her tired eyes to find Joel gazing down at her. Even in the dark, Juliet could see the way his pupils flared, darkening his eyes even further. He waited a moment, then tucked his hands under her head, pulled his body out from beneath her and laid her head onto the sleeping bag.

Juliet didn’t take her eyes off of him and, although she no longer lay on his lap, Joel didn’t move from her side. As Juliet watched him, she saw Joel’s eyes dart to the plate of food on the ground and his jaw tensed.

“You’re not eatin’” he said. 

Juliet swallowed and licked her lips. “Not hungry,” she murmured, not breaking eye contact. 

Her sleep deprived brain didn’t have the same filter as normal and Juliet found herself desperate to ask Joel about her father. She had to know if it was true. She had to hear it from him. 

“Joel,” she breathed. “Ethan told me what happened.”

Joel’s entire body stiffened but he didn’t look away, he didn’t try to deny it. 

“What he did to you -” Joel started, then paused to shake his head. “He had to die.” 

Joel’s words were so clinical and detached as though his memory had taken him back to that moment. 

Juliet felt lightheaded at the thought of Joel seeing her like that. The fact that Joel had witnessed what her father had done to her… what she had let him do to her. Juliet was ashamed and the guilt choked her. 

“I know,” she said.

Shock blazed in Joel’s eyes. Juliet watched the muscles in his throat move. 

“I never meant for you to get involved. You were supposed to get your supplies and leave. I never thought it would turn out like this, that you would have had to ….” Juliet trailed off, breathless from the release of her guilt soaked words. 

“Don’t,” Joel ordered as a dangerous look began to cross his face. He opened his mouth and looked like he was going to say something else but then his eyes dropped to her hands which hovered over her stomach and he stopped, his lips pressing together. 

He shook his head and his eyes shot to the stars that filtered through the trees above them.

“You should’ve told me,” he said quietly with an aching intensity after a long moment.

But Juliet’s eyes had fallen closed and the sound of his slow breaths had already lulled her to sleep.

___________________________________

@amyispxnk @shotgun-shelby @http-paprika

[inthecityofgoodabode]

December 2024: Chilly Nights Mean Chili Nights

The night time temperature dropped into the freezing range & my queen suggested chili on Monday. Seriously, three to four hours in the kitchen drinking beer & making culinary magic. How could anyone refuse such a quest?:

Tomato sauce made with homegrown Juliet tomatoes:

Spices & peppers. Most of the peppers were store bought bell peppers & Anaheim peppers but there is one homegrown yellow jalapeno in the mix:

No photo of the finished product but check out this link for the rough guideline recipe I use for chili. If you have questions, ask me. I have seen 54 orbits around the sun. I don't mind sharing what I think I have learned.

[corvidpaws]

🪻🦋 GENESIS. 🔮📋

kirby oc tournament entry.

“Lucky is she, who lives unaware, who doesn’t get bothered by all that’s unfair…”

PERSONALITY.

Genesis is a kind, caring figure haunted by a past only they remember- and it doesn’t matter too much in the grand scheme of things, anyway. They have taken on the role of a therapist, and their personality generally fits the stereotypical view of a therapist. Of course, they aren’t without their flaws- often trying too hard to reach a goal or blaming everything on themselves.

BACKSTORY.

Genesis is from the Forgotten Land. Or, as the residents prefer to call it, the New World.

Their origins are mostly hidden. I mean, you don’t really want to tell people that- well. I’m not going to tell you their secrets. That’s just rude. They’ll tell you when they’re ready.

Hopefully.

All I can tell you is that they have a strange connection to Fecto Forgo.

Oh, well, I’ll tell you a bit more.

Let’s see… I’m sure it was written down somewhere around here.

“Since it’s capture, ID-F85 has only shown activity once- it’s brain patterns seem to suggest that it is dreaming. But that is a fanciful observation, and we are not fanciful people. A monster cannot dream.” — Retired Lab Discovera Tour, Year Unknown

The creature known as Fecto Elfilis had split into two- Fecto Forgo and Elfilin. The Ancients had long abandoned the planet, taking off to Shiver Star. Imprisoned, alone, unable to move and lost in a world without any creatures capable of thought- yet, they drifted. They dreamed. And in their dreams surfaced memories.

A land of dust and fire. A trickster magician.

A world of flora. A sorrowful spindler.

And their own great form, lost to the cruel experiments of the people who lived here, so desperate to leave.

From those dreams, came Genesis. A creation of stardust and love. They wandered throughout the abandoned land, watching as the beasts gained intelligence, and talking with them. When trapped in a collapsing tunnel, they met Elfilin, who saved them. The two then became friends.

They also met Gamma Knight, who landed in the forgotten land after [REDACTED]. Genesis helped them flee to [REDACTED].

When the Beast Pack was formed, Genesis stayed out of the way, recognising the work of their progenitor. But when Elfilin was captured, they followed Kirby from a distance, leaving behind Maxim Tomatoes and vanishing without a trace.

When Elfilis was defeated, Elfilin and Genesis reunited, and the former took the latter to Dreamland, where they both settled.

And they decided to settle on a rather successful career.

It had been a solid five hours since Kirby had started telling Genesis about the 'monsters' they'd fought, with Dedede and Meta Knight himself chipping in when needed; sometimes to explain their actions while the puffball had been defeating the newest threat to Popstar, sometimes to correct him or add a detail. But instead of getting frustrated or tired, Genesis had only listened politely, nodding as they talked. […] "Those monsters you fought... I'd be terrified, honestly. But you've survived all of it, and you're still here, ready to face the next battle, and that means you're exceptionally resilient. But life isn't all about battles." Genesis continued. "It's pretty late, so I'll end the session here, but think about it. Come back if you need to." — Chapter Two, Session One, These Creatures I’ve Seen

Well, that wasn’t a bit more, that was a lot more. But there are still some mysteries. Will you uncover them? Let’s find out.

OTHER.

Themes:

The Dream Discoveries Tour Juliet - Cavetown Blow My Brains Out - Tikkle Me Gilded Lily - Cults Meteor Shower - Cavetown Treehouse - Alex G

Toyhou.se Page: https://toyhou.se/22030569.genesis Ginjka Design: Here

“Unlucky me, who knows way too much, and fights to make changes through music and such, unlucky me, aware of the pain, all ‘cause I happen to have some brain…”

@kirbyoctournament sorry about the lore dump! It will happen again

[polniaczek]

i love you. i'm glad i exist. "just another day in paradise" by phil vassar // big daddy (1999) // "could we" by cat power // the world to come (2020) // "the way I am" by ingrid michaelson // apples by vishalandra dakur, 2018 // the big chill (1983) // romeo and juliet by richard brautigan // fried green tomatoes (1991) // "coming around again" by carly simon // stranger than fiction (2006) // the orange by wendy cope // the siesta by vincent van gogh, 1890 // "our house" by crosby, stills, nash, & young

[thetisming]

autistic May headcanons:

they stim by twirling, playing with hair (normally their own, Juliet's or Frankie's but Romeo has let them play with his a few times), tapping their fingers, clicking their tongue and playing with magnetic rings

they love bright lights and things for visual stims but sometimes they get too overwhelming and they hate them

they used to have panic attacks very frequently but after moving to paris theyre doing a lot better and now it doesn't happen much, but still sometimes (along with meltdowns)

one of their special interests is flowers and they have a lot of books on flowers and Frankie likes to buy flowers for them and listen to them talk, also going to public gardens and forests. and they grew their own garden (Frankie likes to watch them while they plant things)

they also have another special interest in horror games which was really surprising to Frankie, Juliet had known them her whole life so she wasnt but for Frankie (and even Romeo) it was very surprising and unexpected. they also got Juliet into horror and Romeo was already a horror fan (shared special interest), Frankie not as much but he played some games with the gang and now he likes them too even if he gets scared

they claim to love parties and then constantly have to step outside or hide in the bathroom at parties, they do have a lot of fun provided they have noise cancelling headphones and can leave whenever they want but still they need a lot downtime before and after

cherries are one of their main safe foods and thats why they wear cherry chapstick, they have other flavours too but it's a safe and comfortable option

they hate tomatoes. so much. the texture is terrible and the flavour is barely better

theyre normally very honest, but learned how to hide the truth because they had to

they kmow certain cues but specifically ones of the people they love, theyre good at learning person-specific cues but struggle with other ones. they are trying their best though

LOVES the sunflower lanyard thing because like. flowers. special interest. theyre disabled. it's perfect

thats all off the top of my head!

[destinyc1020]

Confession Sunday: This is going to be very unpopular, but after SM4, I don't want Tom and Z to work with each other as love interests. Or again, if that means they can maintain privacy in their relationship. I hope Z has a smaller role in that film, and it's more on Tom's Peter and Black Cat, maybe. The backlash both of them got for TCR and Challengers because they became public is very deranged. They should be able to play characters with love interest without fear of public backlash because they are adults and professionals. Im kinda scared with Romeo and Juliet. I hope ppl are sensible and dont embarrass Tom cause it's not just him on stage. Francesca and the rest of the cast deserve their moment.

They are not the first couple to act but they the first famous couple of the younger generation that ppl are too invested in and honestly don't have the best energy towards their union depaite them being complete starbgers to us. I'm aware this is hypocritical as I am a fan of both and I'm on tumblr but I've been aware of both sides of the fandom on these blogs, solo fans of each other and I understand the frustration to want you fav to be independent of their relationship because it limits their artistry. They are actors first!!!!

Unpopular opinion, and I'm gonna get tomatoes, but looking back, SM NWH presstour was a blessing and a curse. It was a blessing for Tomdaya fans, but its a curse cause now when they do it again, the soundbites are gonna feel curated and tired. I started to see a problem when Tom kept mentioning it when he was promoting TCR because, let's be honest, he was ashamed of the results of the show. He used it as armour, and that's not fair case it was him that chose to do that show with poor execution. Using his family as pr is no better than Dom no shade. Even when Challengers was promoted and Tom was mentioned, it was cute as Tomdaya fans, but objectively, it's unheard of unless it's a podcast.

David Bowie and Iman are the best counterparts because they both were successful in their lane but were together. Iman was asked about David, but I was brief because she already had a business and foundation stand from. Both Tom and Z are in the middle of building that foundation.

I read on a blog how Riley from that Daisy amazon show filmed an intimate scene with her actor husband, and she said it was awkward because they were acting, and when they are together, it's real. I want them to have a life that we, as fans, don't know because overexposure is always bad in hindsight. Look at Jelenas. They can't get over the accessibility they had to that couple, and that's just sad.

I enjoyed the intimate scenes in Challengers and TCR because I was invested in the characters they were playing because they had respectful costars who i had little information about them other than acting, and it was great acting. I think it's even why I couldn't buy Paul and Chani in Dune 2 because I know Timothee and Zendaya are very good friends. Almost like siblings, like Timothee called her a sis!!!😭😭😭

I never have this issue when he's Taylor, Florence, or Saoirse because i know them through acting only, and I'm not invested in their lives cause its private as fck.

What are your thoughts???

Wow Anon.... you said a LOT with this ask/confession lol.

Thank you for your input and confession Anon.

Personally? I don't think there's anything wrong with Tom and Z working together even though they're in a relationship together. 🤷🏾‍♀️

Do you know how many actors have worked together in Hollywood and were in relationships with each other? Paul Newman and his wife Joanne Woodward, Elizabeth Taylor and her husband Richard Burton, JLo and Ben Affleck, Emily Blunt & John Krasinski, etc. Shoot, even Baz Luhrmann and his wife work together on films lol 😅 It's not exactly unheard of in Hollywood. 🤷🏾‍♀️

Re: The NWH press tour....

Hmm... I'm not sure why this is a concern exactly. 🤔 But I also don't feel like how TZ were during the press tour together was a bad thing either? 🤷🏾‍♀️ Even if they were to break up tomorrow, their press tour videos are endearing, sweet, and just a testament to a good friendship and casting for their Spiderman film imo.

While us shippers and Tomdaya fans may love the press tour for other reasons lol, I don't think that the general public has an issue with the press tours with TZ being together and in love etc. I think most think it's cute? 😅

Granted, I will say that if you do feel like you're having a very hard time separating an actor's character from their real-life persona, and it's hard for you to see them disappear in certain roles, then maybe it might a sign that you're following a celebrity a little too closely, and it may be a good idea to perhaps lessen the amount of time you spend tracking and following that celebrity/actor. 🤷🏾‍♀️

Re: Fans...

I def think that SOME fans get a little too invested with the lives of their faves, to the point where it can become a bit parasocial, but like I mentioned earlier, you can always take a bit of a break, and try not to be so obsessive.

Re: Public Backlash

While I def understand the concern regarding the gp and any backlash on TZ and their projects, the truth of the matter is, a lot of actors get bad reviews on their projects also, but it's not an automatic death. Many Actors have recovered from bad projects and have gone on to do wonderful films that had critical acclaim. ☺️