#like !! we've only interacted a few times but those interactions really stood out to me 2 years ago

[strxnged]

HIII OMG I SAW UR MESSAGE ITS BEEN A HOT MINUTE

How are you??? It’s been so long lol

(Also this is so random but I remember you recommending the London Fog @ Tim Hortons and now it’s my go-to drink whenever I go to Canada <3)

MOCHA IM SCREAMING HIIIIII

i'm doing pretty well!!! i graduated high school and now i'm doing an internship until uni starts. ive sunken deeper into the lord of the rings and genshin fandoms, and i've been watching kuroko no basket (1st time) with an odd sense of nostalgia lmao

how are you doing? still in school? still into haikyuu? still making playlists on spotify?

[syndrossi]

resonant ch31 dvd commentary

This one was a doozy, as everyone on Tumblr had a front row view of. I wasn't thrilled with the draft on Thursday, but after some additional eyes and another comprehensive round of edits, I'm happy with how it turned out.

You can really see my struggles with it in the words cut, which were a minimum of 1500 (those are the ones where I extracted more than one paragraph into my scraps doc).

Favorite line(s):

The walk back to the holdfast was like a slow wakening from a dream, and yet Daemon felt desperately tired, his body aching with a fatigue so deep it seemed to scrape the very marrow of his bones.

I was quite proud of the visceral feel of this one.

Jon stood without meaning to, Jon Redfort’s hurt mingling with the rage that surged within his chest. “She hated him. She hated every reminder of him. They dyed Rhaegar’s hair until they couldn’t, and even before that, she could barely look at him. She loved me,” he said, the words choking him, the truth of it almost unbearable, Lady Stark’s love through a distorted mirror, only this time, he was Robb. “And Raymar would cry himself to sleep, convinced it was his own failing.”

The theme of Jon's role being flipped so that he is now in Robb's shoes is one we've been exploring since chapter one, where he notices the way Raymar is treated vs him. It's such a painful thing to deal with, because it both stirs memories of his own treatment by Lady Stark, and the guilt that Jon Redfort has always felt about it. Even though it's not directed at him, the secondhand experience through Raymar reopens those wounds.

Jon dealing with the part of him that is Jon Redfort is another theme we'll explore later on, particularly during the Runestone arc, but we're seeding some of his struggles now.

(Jon continually urging Rhaegar not to mourn Rhea is partly born of this, too. On some level, he believes she does not deserve his grief. And it's easier for him to ignore his own grief that way, or avoid dealing with the guilt-tangled love her feels for her.)

Favorite Details

Marriage hunt

Since the harvest ball is approaching and pretty much all of the marriage-minded misses of the court have been carrying out their pursuits offscreen/in non-canon missing scenes, it felt appropriate to sprinkle in a few hints of what's going on in the background as Daemon and the twins deal with more pressing matters.

Daemon's chair

It's hard to explain in narrative format where Jon was sitting/where Daemon always sits, but it's basically at the end/"head" of the table, while Viserys usually sits at the end of the side facing the window. It killed me a little when I realized that's where I've always written Daemon sitting in his scenes there with Viserys, and it's so obvious why: it's the closest Daemon can get to feeling like his brother's Hand. Similarly, Viserys seats him in an inverted version of that during their supper the first night in King's Landing, with Viserys at the head and Daemon to his side.

Dynamics

Jon & Viserys

This was a fun one to finally write, since we've only had brief interactions between them, from other POVs (Daemon, Otto, Rhaenys). Viserys sees Jon as a mixture of Daemon and Baelon throughout this scene, with Baelon coming out more toward the end. And we can see Viserys respond to Daemon-y Jon in a similar way that he might to Daemon, by getting defensive/frustrated.

Viserys is in a weird place with the candle business where he accepts, generally, that magic is a thing. The boys are fireproof, there is a prophecy that he thinks they will fulfill, he's read about the distant communication made possible by the dragonglass candles of Valyria, and he's seen the red candle spark to life, just as the black ones did once or twice when he was a boy.

But Jon is a child, and unlike Daemon, Viserys has a fairly good understanding of what an eight-year-old is generally like, so he approaches wild claims of high magic with a fair bit of skepticism. Over time, I expect this will change.

I enjoyed weaving in both Baelon and Daemon through the conversation, and the past bond Viserys had with his brother. Viserys absolutely cut little!Daemon's apples for him when he was old enough to carry his own knife. (As did Baelon.) And even throwing in some of Jon's impressions of Viserys and Daemon are alike and not.

And even a few small parallels between Viserys and Jon that I doubt many people will draw: an unwillingness to give up control (Jon not wanting to tell Daemon about the drag marks in the secret passage) and not trusting their brother (Jon, at the end, deciding to "protect" Rhaegar by not letting him in on his plan to go after the candle). They both are convinced of their own mandate to solve problems (the prophecy for Viserys, the candle for Jon).

Daemon & Rhaegar

Rhaegar was in a special hell with Daemon in the latter part of the chapter. He's operating at maximum Aerys damage-control mode there, reading Daemon at speeds enviable by modern CPUs so that he can figure out how to defuse the situation / "fix" him before any (unintentional) harm is done. And the parallels with Aerys's paranoia are incredibly uncomfortable, even if he understands that Daemon is suffering under an outside influence.

It's also terrifying being an eight-year-old child and being dragged along to the dragon enclosure by a father who doesn't seem to hear a word you're saying (or care, if it were Aerys), and you're pretty convinced this is some candle magic at work, but how do you stop him if he decides to take off with you on dragonback? And even if he's unwilling to force you, can you really let him go by himself, in such a vulnerable state?

Meanwhile, Rhaegar better be careful about his plan to claim that the bruise is the result of a training accident, because a blow from a wooden blade doesn't go all the way around the arm, kiddo. Imagine Daemon thinking he's trying to protect Cole after being handled roughly by him. Or just his response in general to his sons downplaying injuries that were clearly dealt by an adult.

@inkykate asked for Rhaegar's POV here for the upcoming winter promptathon, and I'm very tempted!

Quick-hitters

Lady Sera and Lady Dynessa are both from this little impromptu ficlet.

Originally, there was a plot thread where Jon and Rhaegar discussed telling Erryk and Arryk about the candle. At one point, it was in their debriefing at the start of the chapter, a request from Jon to Viserys during their breakfast scene, and even the start of a scene where they actually tell the Cargyll brothers. I cut it because there was a lot going on already and we can revisit it later.

The Rhea grief/anger outburst from Jon caught me by as much surprise as Viserys, but it was lurking beneath the surface. And I cry at a dime, so you can bet I was a mess writing it.

Can we appreciate for a moment the breathtaking gall of Viserys telling Jon he should be grateful for him repeatedly banishing Daemon because it resulted in his birth? Imagine him saying as much to Daemon himself!

The candle is candling hard.

I didn't go into the dragon dynamics with Daemon because this is already quite long, but there was some interesting stuff there for those with a keen eye, including hints at how some of the candle's (sorcerer's?) magic works.

Daemon actually did something so unthinkable (hurting Rhaegar) that Qelebrys hissed at her beloved not-Rhaegar. The heartbreak!

Lots of people keeping things to themselves. So far, for example, Daemon hasn't mentioned the bounty on him to anyone.

I have fun with Rhaegar's strengths vs Jon's, especially when it comes to dragons. Jon has a fairly significant leg-up with his warging experiences and his former quasi-bond with Rhaegal, but Rhaegar is basically a horse girl, except with dragons, so what he lacked for originally in experience, he's making up quickly. But I also like to throw in nods to Jon being able to pick things up that he's discovered very quickly, once shown/pointed out.

Finally, there were quite a few bits cut out of the chapter. I'll probably throw them in a separate post later, since this is pretty long!

[sturniholo]

pretty when you cry pt 2 - matt sturniolo

in which matt gets a much needed wake up call

based on this request !

┊ ✫ ┊ ┊ ☾⋆ ┊ ⊹ ┊ ✯ ⋆ ┊

Enough was enough. You had come to this realization a few days ago. Ever since that night after the bar, you've been ignoring Matt. He's been begging to see you. To come over and fuck you then act like you weren't anything special.

However, this time you actually answered him. He had texted you, saying how much he had missed you and wanted to come over. Little did he know you were going to cut ties with him. Completely.

You've had enough of feeling like an object. Like you were just one of the many girls he could come to when he needed to get off. You were more than that. And you knew deep down Matt wouldn't want you seeing any other guys.

As you awaited his arrival, you paced around the room. You stopped in front of your mirror, taking a good look at yourself. You brushed your hair out of your face as you let out a deep breath. This was going to be a difficult thing to do, but you knew it was the best thing to do. 

A knock on the door thankfully took you out of your thoughts, making sure you were getting any second thoughts about your decision. 

You made your way down the stairs, bracing yourself for how awkward this whole interaction was going to be. You waited a second before opening the door, your hand hesitantly reaching for the handle. Behind the door, Matt stood on your front porch. He was wearing a black tank top and gray sweatpants, which he knew made you go crazy. However, you had to push those thoughts aside and stand up for yourself. 

"Hi, sweetheart," he greeted in a low tone. 

"Hi.' You kept your greeting short, not wanting it to go south before you had the chance to shut down your little situation. You closed the door behind you, making Matt's eyebrows raise in confusion, and took another step towards him. 

"What, did you wanna go back to my place or something?" He smirked at you, trying to get some sort of reaction from you. 

You let out a deep breath. "I can't do this anymore, Matt." You made short eye contact, trying to keep yourself from backing out. 

"What?" You didn't say anything which made his face slightly fall. "We don't have to have sex. We could just watch a movie or something." He shrugged his shoulders, not even sounding remotely interested in just cuddling with you.

"No, Matt, I'm saying," you paused, "I can't continue this." You pointed between the two of you. He looked down at you with his eyes slightly squinted. 

"What did I do wrong?" For some reason you couldn't place it, his tone was off. Like he didn't actually care to hear what he did wrong. Almost as if he was trying to pity himself and turn the whole situation on you. 

"It's just unfair." A deep sigh came from your mouth, making him take a step back. The confusion on his face was now replaced with annoyance. 

"I don't understand." He crossed his arms over his chest, tilting his head at you. "You're the one who keeps coming to see me, yet it's unfair to you?"

His words made you scoff. "Don't even go there, Matt." The two of you stood in silence for a minute, anger beginning to boil in your blood. "I know I'm not the only one, Matt." His mouth slightly gaped, making you scoff. "You were literally talking to a girl the other day after we came home from the bar." 

"What? I can't have other friends? It's not like we're even together," he shot back.

"That's just it, Matt. We're not together, yet you talk to me like we've been devoted to each other for years."

"Well, how was I supposed to talk to you?"

You laughed. He sounded like a complete idiot right now. "That's not the point. And you know damn well if I was talking to anybody else you would lose your shit." He scowled at you, really letting your words sink in. "It's just unfair." 

"You don't know that."

"Trust me, I do." He looked away, knowing deep down you were right, he just didn't want to admit it. "I just can't do this anymore. I'm more than someone you use to get off when you're horny." 

He shuffled back and forth on his feet, trying to think of what to say next. "You know you mean more than that, Y/n." He stepped closer to you, trying to caress your arm. However, you took a step back, brushing him off. 

"Do I, Matt?" When he didn't answer, you confirmed that this was the best thing to do. "Look, I can't just be an object. Not to you or anyone else." You took a deep breath. "So after you leave tonight, don't try to reach out, because I'm not going to answer." 

Although it didn't show on his face, you knew how hard your words hit him. It's as if all of his blood drained from his face, leaving him pale with slightly wide eyes. 

"Okay, okay. I can respect that." 

"Thank you, Matt." 

After what felt like an eternity of awkward silence, Matt spoke. "Well, I wish you the best, sweetheart. Maybe one day I'll see you around?" His tone was hopeful, which made you slightly smile. 

"I can't say." And you were telling the truth. As much as Matt made you feel special, you knew it was an act. However, he was a great guy. He just didn't know how to properly show you that. "Good night, Matt." You headed towards your front door, stepping inside. 

"Good night, Y/n." You watched as he walked off your porch, and headed to his car with his head low in defeat. Although it was an unusual sight to see, it took a big weight off of your shoulders. You were no longer his sweetheart and you couldn't feel better about that.

┊ ✫ ┊ ┊ ☾⋆ ┊ ⊹ ┊ ✯ ⋆ ┊

a/n: no happy ending this time 😛😛

tags: @chrattstromboli @imwetforyourmom

[lovesosweeet]

better left unsaid // cth

chapter eleven

in which orion has leukemia, and calum doesn’t know.

calum hood x fem!oc

read other chapters

july 31st, 2018 los angeles, california calum

Saying goodbye has never been my strong suit. I wish it would've gotten easier over time — with as many goodbyes as we've had to give, it should be easier. It's not.

I guess it's gotten easier with people who mean less. Friends, distant family. It's fine if we don't see each other too often, because the time we do spend together ends up feeling more valuable. I don't mind the few times we see each other each year having more weight than they used to, but with Orion, it's so, so different.

She's my absolute best friend. She's my unconditional, unwavering biggest fan. She's my voice of reason. She makes the good days even better and the bad days a bit less bad.

I had a life without Orion, before we met, but I never want to live a life without her again.

From the moment we woke up yesterday until now, both of us have been a lot more somber. We cling to each other as much as we can, needing to be as close as physics will allow. The only times we are apart are when one of us uses the bathroom.

I tossed and turned all night, my mind racing with thoughts. Why didn't I try harder to convince her to come with us? How often will we actually be able to talk? Between her classes, work-study, LSAT prep, press interviews, soundchecks, performances, traveling, sleeping, and time zones, how often will our lives line up?

I love touring. I really do, but I love Orion more than anything else in this entire world. I would do anything for her as soon as she asked.

I try to remind myself we’ll be back in time for the holidays and for O’s birthday, so while we’re missing time together, we aren’t missing any important days. Orion already has a Friendsgiving planned and I’m sure she’s got Secret Santa in the works too. I try to just think about the good parts of traveling and all of the fun things we’ll get to do when I get back. Emelia and I have already been trying to plan a trip for her and O to come join us on tour for their fall break, but we’ll see if that actually ends up being possible.

We’re not flying out until 3:00 this afternoon and don’t need to leave for the airport until 12:00, but I wake up at 6:00. I don’t wake Orion up until 8:30, but I spend my two and a half hours of silence in bed, holding her as close to me as I can without squeezing her so hard that she’d wake up. She looks so peaceful like this, her hair loosely cascading around her face, her skin makeup free, and her eyes closed, making it even more apparent that she has long, thick lashes. This is the last time I’ll wake up like this for a few months. I sneak a selfie of us, hoping to use it to remember how it feels to sleep next to O while we’re a million miles away.

To wake her up, I just start peppering kisses all over her face. First, her forehead. Then, her eyelids. Each cheek. Her jaw. Her temple. I wait for her eyes to sleepily blink open before I press my final kiss to her lips.

"Mornin', baby."

She smiles, sleepily gazing up at me. "Morning."

I could get lost in her eyes forever.

"Wanna get pastries and coffee?"

Her smile grows into a grin. "Yes, please."

—

After a morning of flaky croissants, weird lattes, and a long walk around the neighborhood, Orion and I took our last shower together for a while. We stood under the steamy stream of hot water, just holding each other in silence. I'm going to miss those moments.

Following the shower, I dress in an all black sweatsuit and slides. Orion pulls on the shirt I wore yesterday — "it smells like you" she explained — and a pair of sweat shorts, slipping her Birkenstocks on. We cuddle with Duke on the couch while we wait for the van that Matt sent to pick us up. I make sure to pet Duke a ton and give him a few treats so that his last interaction with me is a happy one.

The call that the driver is here comes far too quickly, and we buzz him up to let him get my bags. I don't make him carry all of them. He gets my two larger checked bags, and I grab my duffel bag, and Orion carries my backpack. I probably overpacked, but things seem to mysteriously disappear whenever we're on the road.

"Are you going on vacation?" Ron asks when we're clambering through the lobby with all my luggage.

"Cal's going on tour," Orion explains. Her sad expression hurts something in my chest.

Ron smiles. "Oh, wonderful! That's so exciting. Calum, I hope to hear about your journey when you return. Best of luck!"

I smile graciously and nod. "Sure thing, thanks Ron. Keep an eye on this one for me, will you?" I motion to Orion, who glares in response, and Ron agrees to make sure she's safe.

We throw my bags into the trunk of the black van, the driver opening the sliding door for Orion and me. I let her get in first, of course, and then climb in after her, closing the door behind me. We sit as close to each other as we can in the backseat, my arm wrapped around Orion's small frame, her head on my chest, my other hand intertwined with her hands while she traces over my tattooed initials.

She's already crying, and I have to look away so I don't follow suit.

The drive is silent; the driver doesn't even play a shitty top 40 station. All we listen to is the GPS navigation.

Our driver takes us to a special entrance at LAX where we don't have to mix with the public, and as we pull up, I see Michael and Crystal getting their things out of the van that brought them.

"Hey guys!" Michael cheers.

Of course, they're happy. They're not spending this tour apart and are going to get to travel the world together. They're looking forward to this whole thing, meanwhile I'm dreading it.

Okay, I suppose dreading it isn't quite how I'd describe it. I'm excited to tour and see fans all over the world and perform the music we just released. I am dreading being apart from the girl I love most.

Orion doesn't say anything, she just waves to him.

When Michael catches onto our mood, he frowns and runs over to us, wrapping us into a hug. "Don't be sad, guys! This tour isn't that long. We'll be back before you know it, O."

She sniffles and nods, pulling back from Michael. "I'm gonna miss you guys." Her teary eyes catch Mike's gaze and then I see something in him shift before he hugs her again. Orion keeps her hand in mine while she hugs him back.

"You're gonna make me cry too! It's gonna be fine, OK? We all love you and will miss you just as much as you miss us."

Once Orion manages to regain some of her composure, we head inside. Our bags have already disappeared, except for our backpacks and Crystal's tote bag. When we get in, Matt, Ashton, Luke, Sierra, and most of our crew are already in there, milling about.

"Great, you're here," Matt says while he walks up to us. "Let's go ahead and start going through security."

Again, we're in some separate part of LAX that the public doesn't have access to, but we do still have to go through TSA like everyone else, it's just a separate, far smaller one.

Unspokenly, everyone lets Orion and me go first so we can have as much time on the other side as we can together.

Once we've gone through security and have our shoes back on, I pull Orion off to a secluded corner and just hug her as tight as I can. I can feel her tears soaking my sweatshirt, and I try to console her by smoothing my hand over the back of her head. Her small hands clutch at the back of my sweatshirt, balling the material into her fists.

It takes a lot of effort for me not to cry.

Why is saying goodbye so hard?

I don't know how long we're standing there for. I'm just trying to be here with Orion for as long as I can.

"Boys, time to board," Matt calls.

Fuck. It's time.

"Say your goodbyes," he adds.

Even though he says boys, he's not talking to Mike or Ash or Luke. Crystal and Sierra are coming with us, and Kay is at the hospital with her grandma, and the rest of our crew wasn't allowed to bring guests into the airport at all. He's just talking to me.

Orion squeezes me closer to her as hard as she can, and I just keep smoothing her hair. It's so soft.

I take a few deep breaths, preparing to speak without my voice cracking. "I'll see you when I get back. I love you."

She sniffles, and I feel her back shake while she cries. It breaks my heart to be the cause of this pain. She doesn't deserve it. "I love you," she manages to say.

I pull back so I can look at her. Her face is red and puffy, tears shiny on her cheeks, and yet, she's still so beautiful. I could look at her forever. "You're the prettiest girl I've ever seen, even when you're crying," I tell her, meaning every single word. I wipe away her tears with my thumb.

She scrunches up her face and blushes, looking so cute while she does. Everything about her is just... perfect.

"Flattery isn't getting you anywhere today, babe," she starts. I pretend like she's wounded me. "I love you. Go, board. I'll be cheering you on every night."

Instead of replying, I lean down and kiss her again. How can I not kiss her every day? I lived a life without Orion before, and I never want to do that again. I want to kiss her every day for the rest of my life. I want to make her laugh every day. I want to love her every day. God, I can't imagine not loving this girl. How can anyone not fall in love with her?

"I love you so much. I'll call you when we land, okay?" I kiss her nose. We're going to Japan first, so it'll be quite a long travel time. I don't want her waiting around trying to time the call correctly, so I'll just plan on calling her the moment our wheels touch down in Tokyo.

"Did I mention I love you?" I ask. That makes her grin, and my heart hurts a little less.

"No, I don't think so," she teases.

"I did!" I pout.

Orion gently pushes my chest. "Go."

I sigh, nodding. "I'm gonna miss—"

I'm cut off when a hand grabs my shoulder and I feel a body behind me. "Cal, mate, we've really gotta go." It's Ashton. I hang my head and nod.

"It's not easy to say goodbye to the love of your life, dude!" I defend myself.

Ashton grins, but his eyes are sad, too. He must be thinking about how Kay isn't joining us yet, either. He gets how hard it is to leave. "She also literally just told you to go!"

"I'm gonna miss you too, babe," Orion chimes in. She kisses me again and then she steps several feet away from me, too quickly for me to try to catch her and pull her back. "Go!" She laughs.

I know she doesn't mean it negatively; she's just trying to let me do my job and what I love, but it hurts somewhat that she's telling me to go. I can't explain it. I sigh.

"Okay, fine, I'll go," I decide sadly.

Orion blows me a kiss as I walk backward toward the door, and I numbly leave, trying my hardest not to cry. Once I'm through the door, I let a few tears fall. I realize then that no one else has gotten the chance to say goodbye to Orion, so I'm the only one getting on the plane from our group.

The crew, Michael, Luke, Crystal, and Sierra join me soon, each offering me sympathetic glances.

"We're gonna have fun, mate," Michael says, throwing an arm around my shoulder. "Orion's a strong girl, she'll be fine without you."

I just nod, not saying anything.

I take my seat on the plane, watching the rest of our crew clamber past me. I wonder what's taking Ashton so long to board. I know he and Orion are close, but it's odd considering now we're just waiting for Ashton and Matt. I quickly send a text to Orion while we wait.

To: my love + stars i love love love you. i wish you could come with us, maybe next tour? you say the word and i'll fly you out wherever and whenever you want. i miss you already. xxx

When Ashton finally boards, his eyes are red and he's wiping away tears, too. He sits next to me, sniffling quietly.

"I'm gonna miss her," he admits.

I smile sadly. "Yeah, me too."

From: my love + stars i'll miss you far more i promise. love you the literal most ever. go take on the world.

“She loves you so much, man,” Ashton mutters.

I’m not sure where that came from, but I know emotions are at a high. “I love her so much.”

He nods. “I know.”

Once everyone is on the plane, they shut the door and we start taxiing. Ash gets out his headphones, signaling to me that we aren’t going to be talking on this flight, at least not now. I get mine out too, send Orion a few heart emojis, text my family that we’ve boarded our first flight of the tour, and then put it into airplane mode.

I check the time. It’s 2:32. Underneath the numbers, I stare at the picture of Orion and me from the other day when we got ice cream. She looks so pure, and happy, and the sun reflected in her eyes in a way that made them almost look lit up. I can’t wait to be back and see them in person again.

God, this is going to be a long tour.

read next chapter

[eisforeidolon]

Question: I just wanted to ask you, out of all the years you've been doing this, which has been your favorite fan interaction?

Jensen: Favorite fan interaction? Whew!

Jared: Wow, that's a - I mean, we've been so blessed, man. We've had a lot of - You know what? I think as opposed to a specific instance, which I can't think of offhand? I'll think more of - this has happened a couple of times - and I've been able to kind of talk with fans and they'll say, you know they're with their friend or whatever, and it just seems like they've known each other their whole lives and then they'll go, like, 'Yeah, we met on a chat line like five years ago and then met up at a convention two years later and we're best friends.' Like, seeing connections? 'Cause obviously, my personal experience as Jared, I made a few connections doing Supernatural. [Jensen is making calm down gestures at someone in the audience] And I've got a couple friends to prove it, and I got [points at Jensen] a dude to stand up at my wedding and vice versa. So I think it's seeing that, because we can all watch just ... whatever. It's the same thing with watching sports. You know you see somebody in a Spurs jersey and I'm like, 'Hey, we're getting Wemby!' and you kinda feel like you have a connection. So I think that type of fandom - or you know, you're with your old man, he's got a cowboy hat and he's a Captain America cowboy. Cowboy Ten America! But just seeing how the show has helped not just people enjoy it by themselves, but strengthen their relationships with either their friends or family or that kind of situation.

Jensen: We used to, maybe once or twice a year we'd get Make A Wish would come to our set. And there was one in particular - it's always a real treat and we try to make it as special as possible - but it was one that will always stand out to me. And I don't even know if I can get through it without getting emotional, but it was a young lady, she was what, [to Jared] maybe 13-14 years old? And she had, I think it was maybe leukemia, or - it was something terminal -

Jared: End stage something.

Jensen: Yeah, and she came with her family and her dad was a firefighter. He had this really beautiful, ornate tattoo on his arm that was a rose that went down to where he was holding it, representing her, essentially. But what really stood out about that visit was he pulled us aside and said - through tears, big, like muscle-bound firefighter guy, through tears - was like, there's only so much that I can do as a father for my daughter, but the smiles that we bring her - he's like, the smiles that you bring her on a daily basis when she watches your show? That's something I can't bring. And so he hugged us and said thank you for making his daughter smile, even though she was dying, essentially. And that was - you know, that meant a lot to me and to Jared, and it just - It's one of those things, it's like, oh, what we do here, it does truly affect people. There's a saying in the industry, it's, 'Hey, we're not curing cancer here.' When people get crazy on set and there's egos or stress and people - it's like, hey, calm down, we're making tv, or we're making a movie here, we're not curing cancer. Like, take it easy, calm down. And we're not? But what we might be doing is giving somebody a little bit of hope, giving somebody an escape from dealing with that. And that just, uh, yeah, it just really hit home and meant a lot to us. So whoever that guy was, I don't remember his name, this was many many years ago, that left a huge impression on me.

[anyathefandom]

To Those Fortunate Enough chapter 31:

@burned-lariat

"I don't want you here."

"No," Wallace laughed nervously, "you don't mean that…you can't mean that."

"I don't want you here," Dex shook his head slowly, his voice firm.

Me: See I don't blame him because last time he saw him he invalidated his feelings and that man got so upset he passed out🤷

Dexter Heller," Wallace replied in the same tone, "relax. You're not in any danger, no one's hurting you. You're in a safe place; nothing's going to happen to you."

"Why can't you just do what I'm telling you to do, you stupid son of a bitch? Is English that hard? Should I say it a different way for you to get it? Fine: Ich will dich hier nicht haben! Raus mit dir! Lass mich in Ruhe!"

Me: Oh you know someone is pissed with you when they switch to another language to tell you to get out.🫣

"I'll calm down when you finally screw off."

"Is that any way to talk to your father?"

Both men turned to look at the door. Ava leaned against the open doorway, looking them over. She pursed her lips before slowly walking towards the bed, standing between father and son.

"Can I help you?" Wallace asked.

"You can," she replied, "Give your son and I some space to talk, if you please. Thank you."

Me: The way I imagined ava entering the scene like:

"Why?" Dex looked at her incredulously, "Ava, you were one of the few people in the family who didn't look down upon me because I exist. You didn't know what Victor knew, and you didn't know he was going to do any of what he did. You have no reason to apologize."

"Aren't you sweet," Ava smirked, briefly glancing through the window behind her, "Mind telling me why you're so irate at your father?"

"If I remembered why, I'd tell you. I just…know I should be."

"Hopefully it'll come back to you," Ava stood up slowly, gently slapping his forearm, "Take it from me: you're in very good hands here."

"Great," Dex smiled before Ava walked towards the door, "Hey, Ava?"

"Yes?"

"Thanks for visiting. It means a lot."

Me: Somehow Someway I came out of that interaction an Ava x dex crack shipper.🫢

"Valentin, you're back!" Irina rushed to hug her brother as he walked into the hotel room. He felt her squeeze him tight, earning him a giggle from Anna as she came from behind, "Where did you go?"

Me: It's really hitting that this is a relationship we've been robbed of because the writers don't respect the woman in white.😭

"Irina," Valentin looked between the two blondes, "this is Charlotte. She's my daughter, which makes her your niece. Charlotte, this is your aunt, Irina."

Me: The way my mind went "Imagine Irina took Charlotte under her wing and down the line trained her." Once again we've been robbed.

“...Something the matter?” Valentin looked at Wallace as the door closed.

“Yeah…there is,” Wallace gulped, his eyes red and bloodshot.

"And that is...?"

“My son wants nothing to do with me.”

Me: *Sings* Cause karma is my boyfriend, Karma is a god, Karma is the breeze in my hair on the weekend, Karma's a relaxing thought, Aren't you envious that for you it's not?

Also me: Like y'all know a love that problematic German man but...

"You look like you went through hell and back," Spencer remarked.

"Funnily enough, I just did."

"Is it as hot as people claim it is?"

"Worse. Not only is it hot, but there's mountains of corpses everywhere, so it reeks too. The world's nastiest men's locker room."

"...Shut up," Spencer playfully swiped at Dex, causing both men to laugh. Spencer felt his spine stiffen when Dex's laughter led to a fit of coughing, "You okay?"

Me: The fact that this is the only time I would ever support Spencer and Dex being friends😂

"...Touché," a smirk broke onto Dex's face, "But in all seriousness, Spencer, if you plan to cut your father out of your life, be sure that you're doing it with a sound mind. I did it while full of rage and adrenaline, and once I calmed down, I let him back in."

Me: Dex...

Let Spencer cut Nikolas out of his life it's for the best.🙈

Why did you let him back in?"

"I don't know."

"If you don't know, then why haven't you kicked him back out?"

"...I don't know," Dex frowned, looking down at his lap. The thought sat with him for a moment or two before he looked back at his cousin, "Look, Spencer, you're the only one who can decide whether or not to keep your father in your life, and whatever you choose to do, I support you."

Me: Good, because Nikolas has been a real shit father for a while now.🥴

"You're German, aren't you?"

"I am."

"So that means you speak German, right?"

"Fluently."

"Prove it."

Dex raised an eyebrow, "You want me to prove I can speak fluent German?"

"I'm trying to keep our conversation going, Dex. Humor me."

My instant thought: This is probably some bougie little test Spencer has going. He's probably going "Hmm he can't be a true Cassadine unless he knows more than one language.🧐"

"Alright," Spencer smirked, hearing the faint sound of footsteps approaching the room, "Who's standing in the doorway?"

"...Meine Mutter."

Spencer turned around to see Irina standing in the doorway, a hand on the door frame. Her eyes were bright with curiosity, fixated on Dex. The young man sucked in a breath at the sight of her, unsure of how to react. A heavy silence filled the room, crushing the atmosphere until a lone question broke the tension:

"Could I speak to my son alone?"

How I visualized Irina coming to his room:

One thing about Irina is that she's going to be excited to her baby.😂

[alreadyjackbestfriend]

by another man. part 3 (final). jack harlow x reader

Genre: angst, fluff

A/N: if you liked this story i would really appreciate you interacting with it as i think it is the cutest thing i have ever written in my life 😩. being 6 AM, I have fulfilled my mission, it is time to sleep.

PART 1 PART 2

As you reached for the remote with one hand to change the channel, and held the bowl of popcorn with the other, the doorbell rang. you frowned, wondering who it could be.

“mom! Can you open the door please!” you yelled, expecting to hear your mother somewhere in the house. Since you had told her about your pregnancy, she hadn't separated from you, although you hadn't lived together for years, now she visited you daily. But you got no answer. “where will she have gone?” you whispered to yourself, as you put the bowl down on the coffee table and stood up. The doorbell rang again, "I'm coming!" you yelled, annoyed.

You walked to the door with lazy steps, and what you found in front of you when you opened it, made your breath catch halfway, “Jack” you whispered, because it was the only thing that your mind could process at that moment.

“Hi” he said shyly, “can I come in?”

“Oh!” you answered, coming out of your trance, “of course” you answered, opening the door wider, allowing him to pass. You adjusted your hoodie nervously, grateful that it could hide your four-and-a-half-month-old belly. You hadn't seen Jack for almost two months, and the last time you had spoken was three weeks ago, when you told him that you couldn't go on with him anymore, but you felt as if much more time had passed; the physical changes and the emotions that you had experienced in those weeks causing that sensation.

he went straight into the living room and you followed him.

“can i offer you something? Water, maybe?” you asked, and he shook his head. you just noticed the bag he had in his hand, but you didn't dare to ask, although you didn't have to wait long to find out what it was.

“No, thank you… I… I brought you something” he told you, offering you the paper-bag. you took it, feeling completely confused. You had broken his heart a few weeks ago, and now he brought you a present? However, you opened it without asking anything, finding baby clothes and shoes, “I bought neutral colors, because I guess you don't know the gender yet” he said, nervous. Your eyes filled with tears and your hands began to shake as you held the small pieces of clothing, “Hey, what’s wrong? Did I do something wrong? I’m sorry…”

you interrupted him, shaking your head and closing the space between you, hugging him tightly. The sobs making your body shake, the pain of all these months, and especially the last few weeks, making you explode, he hugged you back, wanting to do it just as tightly, but afraid of hurting you. He held you in his arms and began to caress your hair, while hiding his face in your neck. “I’m so sorry for not being here for you… really really sorry. please don’t cry, baby girl, you’re breaking my heart.” he said, but you couldn't stop.

after a few minutes, you finally calmed down enough to speak, although with a cracking voice. You separated from him and he took your hands indicating you to sit down, “I should be the one apologizing...for hiding this from you” you said looking at him and unconsciously placing one of your hands on your belly. he watched your movement, feeling immense tenderness, but at the same time, also feeling a lot of sadness.

“I think we've both made mistakes…”

“you did nothing wrong, Jack”

“yes, I did, Urban told me the truth a few days after the last time we spoke" he confessed, “And I spent almost three weeks feeling sorry for myself, instead of coming and being here for you.”

“Jack” you said in a firm voice, despite your teary eyes and flushed cheeks, as if you were scolding a small child, “you had every right to feel that way, even to be mad at me and Urban for keeping this from you.”

He nodded, “I was” he admitted, a little embarrassed.

“It’s ok Jack, I understand”

“But now I'm not, and I can only imagine how you've felt all these months, and I'm so sorry” he said, and you nodded, looking at your hands, trying really hard not to cry again, “what about… what about the dad?” he asked hesitantly, as if afraid of knowing the answer.

“she doesn’t have a dad” your blurted out.

“It’s… it’s a girl?” he asked, and when you looked up you could swear you saw sparkles in his eyes.

“yes, she is” you smiled, “actually, I found out about it two days ago”

“that’s great, y/n” he said, smiling broadly, and you nodded again, “have you thought of a name?” he asked, curious.

“in fact, i already decided it” you said excitedly, you hadn't even told your mom about your decision, Jack would be the first to know. he raised his eyebrows expectantly, “It's Emma” you finally revealed.

“Emma” Jack repeated, feeling an almost sweet taste as he spoke her name.

**

You were already eight months pregnant and trying to sleep was an odyssey. Jack listened as you tried to accommodate yourself over and over again, without result.

Finally, he turned on the lamp on his bedside table, and you looked back at him.

"I'm sorry" you said, "did I wake you up?"

"don't apologize, baby, you're the one who's eight months pregnant, you're entitled to anything" he said, and you laughed, making him smile for putting you out of your misery for at least a few seconds, “well, taking advantage of the fact that you can't sleep and neither can I... there is something that has been going around my head”

you looked at him, somewhat worried, "go on", and he settled on the bed to look directly at you.

“I think deep down I've wanted this since I found out about your pregnancy, but I never had the courage to tell you.” he paused, and you took a deep breath, “I've been here for four months, but if I'm honest, I want to do it all my life... I want Emma to be legally mine, I want to give her my last name”

you couldn't help but cry at what you had just heard, and with a tearful voice you didn't hesitate for a second in your answer, “of course Jack, you are her daddy already” you said sincerely, and he took your face in his hands to give you little kisses over and over again, with eyes just as teary as yours.

“Emma Harlow, our Emma” he said.

***

Jack helped you out of the car, since you were carrying a small baby in your arms, just like you had four years ago. His small blue eyes looked at you, as if analyzing your face, as if he were deciphering the identity of the woman who had carried him for nine months in her belly.

The front door of the house opened, and a four-year-old girl ran out of it, her grandmother laughing from the frame.

"Daddy!" the girl screamed, excited, exactly the same as every time she saw him.

[adatheromcomaddict]

How You Meet the Cullens + Jacob

Hi! I've decided I'm going to put some of my stuff from Wattpad, over here. If you want to see my Wattpad, its the same username as I have here. Anyway, this is how you meet the Cullens, + Jacob. Probably intended for female readers, but it could mostly go either way... I think. And I do have the girls as well in here.

Edward Cullen:

Edward and you met at school. Of course.

"Um, excuse me?" You asked a small girl, with short brown hair.

She turned around, revealing her pale white skin, and beautiful golden eyes.

"How can I help you?" She asked.

"I was wondering where Mr. Molina's classroom is?" You replied.

"Oh, yes. I can show you the way!" She grabbed your hand, and pulled you down the halls. (Wow, this is turning into an Alice preference)

"Thank you!" You said, when you two arrived at the classroom.

She pointed inside the room, towards a beautiful boy, with golden hair, and dark, dark, eyes. He glared at her, with his hand over his mouth. I turned to look at her, and she winked back at him.

"Uh, thank you. Oh, I never got your name." You said.

"Alice. Yours?" She asked, still smiling.

"Y/N."

"Well, Y/N, looks like you'll be sitting next to my brother, Edward, in there." She waved, and skipped away.

I walked inside the class, towards the boy, and sat down. He looked away, took a deep breath, then turned back to me.

"Hi, um, I'm Y/N. You're Edward, right?" I asked.

"Yes. I-I am." He seemed like he was in pain or something.

Weird.

Jacob Black:

I had lived in the outermost part of Forks for as long as I have lived. (Sounds like a wedding vow)

We were right next to the border of La Push. Therefore, I go to the school in the reservation.

(I have absolutely NO clue what the school is like there, so I'm making it up)

But, I didn't really talk to anyone. I had a few friends from down in the more central part of Forks, Bella Swan was one of them. She recently moved here full time. I hadn't seen her since I was little.

There was this one kid named Jacob who I had met a couple of times, mostly when he played with Bella snd I while our parents went fishing or whatever.

But, since Bella was going to school in Forks, I decided I would try and re-connect with this Jacob, to see if I could hang out with him.

So, I asked around one day at school for what classes he was in, and found out that he was in one of my classes. How did I never notice? Oh, just me and my oblivious self. (Sorry, if you're like- not oblivious?)

Well, I found him one day.

"Jacob, right?" I asked him.

"Oh, yes, oh, oh! Y/N! Hi!" He seemed to be a very nice boy.

"Yes, it's me. Um, I haven't talked to you in years, I'm surprised you remember my name." I explained.

"I'm surprised you remembered mine." He laughed.

"So, uh, I"m kind of wondering if you want to like, hang out or something. Anywhere works. I just need some company." (Bella who?)

"Sire! You could come by my house today after school and we can catch up. Do you like cars?" He asked.

"Depends." I laughed in response.

"Well, you can come help me too. I like to re-build them."

"Sounds like a plan."

Emmett Cullen:

(for this one you are a vampire already, and yes I basically stole Rosalie's life. Also, if I get facts wrong, don't come for me, just tell me *kindly* and I will fix it)

I became a vampire in 1920. Two years after my brother Edward, and one year before my mother Esme.

I'd been a vampire for 15 years already. How time flies

One day I was running through the forest when I heard screams coming from a small patch. I sprinted towards the place, and saw a boy, probably 20, getting attacked by a bear. I shoved the bear off of him instantly, and bit into it, getting it's blood.

I remembered that the boy was watching, and was probably shaken up, not to mention, he was most likely dying. I turned back towards him, wiping a small bit of blood off of my lip, and said,

"Hello, I'm Y/N Cullen."

"E-Emmet. How did you do that?" He asked, very weakly.

"I have my ways. What hurts?" I asked.

"Everything." Of course-

"I'll be right back. Don't move." Not that he really could. I sprinted back to my house. I opened the door, and Carlisle, Esme, and Edward turned towards me.

"Y/N? What is it?" Carlisle asked.

"There's a boy, Emmett. He got attacked by a bear. He's very weak. You need to turn him Carlisle."

They all sprinted into the woods, and I led them towards where Emmett lay. He was still there, but weaker.

Jasper Hale:

(you're a vampire)

Jasper became a vampire in 1863. (I think)

He was telling me his story.

I had recently been turned into a vampire by Carlisle, after he rescued me, and I hadn't really met the rest of the family yet. (You can make up why you had to become a vampire)

When Jasper had finished the story, I said, "Wow."

"That's all I could get out. His story was just, wow....

I forgot, Edward could read my mind. I only remembered when he chuckled after I thought that.

I gave him an internal glare.

Bella was sitting in the corner, with him.

"So, Y/N, tell us your full story." Jasper smiled.

(Sorry, his is kind of short..)

Carlisle Cullen:

It was my first day working at the Forks Hospital and I needed some directions.

I walked up to mid-height man, with blonde hair, and very pale skin.

"Hello, sir?" I asked him, and he spun around.

"Yes, Ms. Y/L/N?" He asked.

"H-how do you know my last name?" I asked in response.

"I heard someone talking about you coming, and you're the only new face around here. We don't get them often." He smiled, and my heart fluttered. Good thing he wasn't like a super-hearer or anything. {;)}

"Well, uhm, I was just wondering where the surgical ward is?" He pointed towards the left, and I smiled slightly, walking away, and quietly looking back at him after I was sure he couldn't see me.

Alice Cullen:

(You had already seen Alice before, but never interacted with her much, like most of the students)

I was walking around in the forest, when I heard footsteps.

"Hello?" I called out.

"Y/N!" A girl replied, I noticed it was Alice Cullen.

"Oh, hello, Alice." I was a bit confused to how she knew my name, but to be honest, I knew her's too and that's a bit strange. But, everyone does talk about the Cullens.

"What are you doing out here in the forest?" She asked me. I didn't have a valid answer. I could say "Just felt like taking a stroll..." or "Oh, I'm working on my steps." but, none of those were true, I really didn't know what I was doing here.

"Uhm, working on my steps, and taking a stroll....??" I questioned myself.

"Oookay then. Would you like to come with me? I can show you some of my favorite spots to relax." The way she said relax made me think she wasn't relaxing, and probably meant running around and exercising. Just what I needed.

"Sure, sounds great." I smiled.

Rosalie Hale:

Everyone that lives in Forks knows about the Cullens. Even the people in the reservation.

There's the three boys, the goofy one, the silent one, and the constipated one.

Then there's the two girls. Alice and Rosalie.

I've talked to Alice, we've said hi.

But in general, I know nothing about Rosalie.

All I know is she is incredibly smart, beautiful, and did I mention gorgeous?

I've never had the guts to talk to her. Maybe it's that I'm a wimp, or maybe it's that she is very intimidating. Probably a mixture of both.

But today, I got lucky, and didn't have to talk to her. She talked to me.

I had noticed her eyeing me a few times, and I never knew if she was looking down on me, in a bad way, or if she was interested in me. Both ways scared me.

Today, she came up to me.

I was sitting at the lunch table with Angela and Jessica, and the new kid, Bella.

"Y/N, can I talk to you really quick?" She asked.

"Uh, uh, yes, yes, sure." I stood up quickly, and while walking away with her, I turned towards Angela and Jess, and they smiled and winked.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" I asked.

"Well, I wanted to know... did you want to hang out sometime?"

"Like, a date...?"

"Uh, yeah. Like a date." She smiled and we both laughed.

"Sure." I smiled back.

Bella Swan:

Apparently, today Chief Swan's daughter is moving to the school.

I'm looking forward to it, I want to make more friends.

I was standing outside, waiting to see if I spotted her, when a big, orange-red truck pulled into the parking lot.

It must be her! I've never seen that truck before.

I ran up to it, when I saw people laughing at it. Whatever, I think it's cool.

She climbed out of her truck, and I probably startled her, standing there.

"Hi! I'm Y/N Y/L/N. You're Chief Swan's daughter, right?" I asked.

"Uh, yes. Bella Swan." She stuck out her hand, and I shook it.

"So, do you want to know anything, anything special?" I asked.

"Um, I'm not sure...." She said, tucking her hair behind her ear. (Ugh, a classic Bella move)

"No worries. Let me show you to your first class." I smiled, and took her hand, pulling her down the hallway.

Esme Cullen:

I was walking around town, alone. A kind of dangerous move, since there have been so many mysterious attacks lately.

I was looking through random stores, when I noticed Esme Platt, (we're just saying she isn't a Cullen because I guess they aren't married...????) Carlisle Cullen's old friend. (I don't even know how to write this...)

"Hi, Esme." I said.

"Oh, hello, Y/N." She smiled.

"How have you been?" I haven't seen her in a while. We've talked a few times.

"I've been good, how have you been?" She replied.

"I'm great. We really should catch up sometime." I said, trying to be subtle.

"Yes, we should. Do you want to go to lunch tomorrow?" She asked.

"Of course! Where do you want to go?"

"Don't worry about me. I won't eat much anyway."

******

So, yeah, that's it. I'm aware that these aren't perfection, bur they were fun to write so, yeah!

I will be posting a lot more now since I'm getting really into writing again ;)

Thank you all for reading, (not that a ton of people are going to read this lol)

And yeah, see you soon! :3

-Ada

[prof-peach]

I do wonder, do you have any tips on battling with mildly disabled pokemon. My partner in crime is a cinderace named Sage. She has cataracts (born with them) and as she has gotten older her eyesight has worsened. We have found ways to battle and work around the fact she is visually impaired. Such as audio only commands, using vibrations, and straight up physically guiding her when needed, but I'm curious on your thoughts. What about other disabilities?

You should perhaps consider getting a professional to look at your buddy, if the retina is still attached, Cataracts can be removed, and a new artificial lens put in their place, thoughif your buddy is quite old now, they'll need to relearn some stuff. Theres a bunch of other reasons to not go with surgery to correct that, and I assume you've had specialists look into it further, but just in case you haven't, heads up, that might be fixable? I don't know enough, i'm sure you've done your homework though. As for working with Disabilities, we literally handle those cases ALL the time. Half our job is taking in those mons, working with them as best as possible. People like to give up on them fast if they don't meet the bar, and normally all it takes is thinking a little different, and adapting. Missing legs on hitmonlee, arms gone on Bewear, wings shredded on flying types, tail fins missing on water types, all the physical things can either be helped with prosthetics, physio, and relentless training, or adjusting how the pokemon functions. We often make tailored training plans for those who need it, some use items to help with balance, with seeing when they've got less vision, for hearing when they can't. Visually impaired pokemon who want to battle often get fitted with audio pickups, so they get a heightened sense of hearing, to give them a better chance. If they're beaf entirely, we use ASL to interact a lot, teaching them, and our staff. Most of us know it now, newbies get the course as part of their training. Items are pretty custom here, we assess a patients needs and create based on that, and when i say "we" I mean Grey. He's found a great use for gauntlets of sorts, that the pokemon and trainer share, pressure points on the inside of them are shared between the pair, so a trainer can touch a certain point, that is mimicked on the pokemons set, letting it know commands even with its back to the trainer (because mid-battle its hard to keep both your opponent, and your trainer in sight). this helps the hard of hearing too, and the mechanics are adjustable. You can get super complex sets, or real simple ones, depending on the needs. A pretty incredible patient we've recently adopted out with its partner, was a Lombre, poor thing had damage to its spine, pretty bad, couldn't walk anymore. We did a few surgeries, got the back on their feet, but only JUST. It was pretty sad it couldn't dance anymore, really got it down. We couldn't fix the physical issues internally, but decided that perhaps if it had a dance partner? So we found a Grumpig, one who just couldn't sit still, and started to train the pokemon to help, not only with lessons on support and care, but some of the ore coordinated staff taught it to dance more, to use its energy for something fun, which it loved. With its psychic abilities, it could decompress the Lombre's spine when they stood, and gave it near enough full mobility. The two started physio together, started to dance again, and now a lovely young man has adopted them both, they moved to Unova not too long ago now, and both are very happy. I heard they started to teach others how to dance too, perhaps if the Lombre evolves one day it'll help the issue, but they seem happy, and have a good life back because of their buddy. Pokemon helping pokemon, all we did was facilitate it. Theres a bunch of needs we cater to, but the list is so big I literally could just go on and on, so i'll call it, but let me say, you've got a tough buddy, who might just benefit from a specialist item to help them fight to their fullest, if thats what they want. Consider coming in for a fitting, or a checkup on those cataracts if you've not done so yet.

[mellow-em]

Bittersweet Temptations

CHAPTER 2

[special dt @bluewingedangel <3]

Your neighbors, Nathan and Elena, have been friends with your parents for years. Whether it’d be family gatherings or vacations, they were around; they were family. But when you return home from your final years of college, what will happen when you find that it isn't just them living in the house next door anymore?

_____________________________________

The afternoon sun brought in a relaxing mixture of natural light from the windows, but I wasn’t even remotely focused on it.

My right leg was bouncing hastily under the kitchen table while I prodded my salad with a fork. I tossed a particularly small carrot around in the bowl, swirling it around the sea of other vegetables.

“Are you gonna eat that or play around with it sweetie?” The sound of my mothers voice raced right through one ear and out the other one.

I only sighed in response, and leaned the side of my head on my hand, not bothering to look up at either of my parents that sat across from me.

They urged me to consistently have family meals with them today, in an attempt to dine on the experiences I had away at college. If they’d asked me to do this at any other time, I wouldn’t mind.

But my head was clouded by something else; or should I say by someone else.

Last night refused to escape my line of thinking. Even after it all went down, I went back to bed to try and fall back asleep, but it was absolutely no use.

The cunning quirk of his lips as he smirked back at me was an image that glued itself to the front of my brain. I reeled around in bed until sunrise, unable to silence my thoughts regardless of any persistence. So as of now, I was beyond exhausted.

“y/n? Are you alright?”

I jump faintly in my chair, with my fathers words pulling me away from my cogitation of the man from the pool, “I’m um.. I’m fine, sorry.”

I gave them a toothless smile as reassurance, but by the exchange of looks they both gave each other, they didn’t seem too convinced.

I shifted uncomfortably, and stabbed the carrot I was messing with. I slowly bring it towards my mouth, finally having the compulsion to take a bite.

Until the man’s wink decided to project in front of me, as if I was experiencing the whole ordeal all over again.

I abruptly dropped the fork into the bowl, resulting in a reverberating clash that not only startled my parents, but it startled me back into reality again.

“Jesus y/n, what’s gotten into you?”

I’m asking that same question, mom.

“Nothing, I uh- think I’m just tired,” the excuse flew out of my mouth in a panic, “I’m just.. I’m gonna go shower for the party later.”

I hurriedly sprung from my seat, and scurried up the stairs to the bathroom.

“Well that was smooth, dumbass,” I muttered out in the open, while slamming the door behind me.  

That son of a bitch is driving me crazy, and I haven’t even had a single conversation with him.

I take a few steps into the bathroom, placing both of my hands on opposite sides of the sink, leaning over with my body weight. With my head bowed down to the direction of my feet, I suspired deeply.

This was stupid. The brief interaction was embarrassing, yes, but with how I reacted today during lunch, especially when the party was happening later on today..

I just needed to stop thinking about what happened last night.

Act like it didn’t happen.

It didn’t happen.

____________

Turmoil carried on in the form of muffled conversations, and distinct bass from the speakers on the lower levels of the house. Even being upstairs in my room, the walls weren’t thick enough to block the noise that derived from the party.

Of course, my dad’s annual excuse backfired, and instead of the party being fairly small, it was as big as the rest of the parties we've had in the past. Although I really shouldn’t be surprised, knowing this really has carried on for 10 years at most.

As of now, I could only assume that the booze was already out for everyone, and by the end of the night, I could guarantee that almost half the people here will be drunk. It reassured me though, especially when I’ll probably end up being one of those people.

I could use a little alcohol in my system; to let myself go a little bit.

While fixing the straps of my white sundress, I looked at myself in the mirror, making sure any scraps of exhaustion were not visible on my features. Despite longing for a few hours of rest, I knew for a fact that I wasn’t going to get much yet again.

With satisfaction, I back away from my vanity, and start for the door that barricaded me from the chaos.

The exchanges of laughter became much more pronounced as I slowly opened the door, and traveled down the hall. My feet carried me towards the stairs, shaking from the rumble of the speakers seeping through the walls and floors.

It was a blessing that the noise didn’t affect our neighbors enough for them to make complaints; but that was mostly because they were all here.

With each step down the flight, more of the party overtook my vision. Guests were dispersed amongst every room as far as I could see, gathering around each other in hopes of starting conversation over the music. It had been fairly crowded to say the least.

Immediately after I make it to the ground floor, I’m bombarded by my mother.

“Hey honey, Nathan and Elena are outside if you want to say hello to them!” her slightly raising her voice didn't really help much, with us being right next to the speakers. But I nodded letting her know I understood.

Turning away from her, I then faced the crowd of people in front of me. I start to weave my way through, making slight pauses along the way to thank them for coming. Most of the people around me had a slight stench of beer already, making me scrunch my nose; that smell is definitely going to linger afterwards.

Eventually making it to the door, I slide it open and step out, letting the freshness of the outside air fill my senses. I quickly noticed the difference between the outdoors and the impeded aura from inside the house. It felt like I was finally able to breathe.

After shutting the sliding door behind me, I strolled away towards the yard.

I made sure to make a slight detour to the cooler to grab myself a beer though, rashly cracking it open as soon as I got my hands on one. I take a swig while observing the guests around me.

As soon as I saw a familiar head of blonde hair a few yards away, I could feel myself smile widely. I hadn’t seen Nate or Elena in four years, and being back home now is making me realize how much I missed them.

The both of them had moved into the neighborhood about a year after my family, and that was over 15 years ago. Ever since then, they hit it off more than you could imagine.

They had all gotten so close to one another, that they’d have annual dinners together, game nights and tag along on all of our family trips. They would even bring in their ideal vacation spots up to us, which evolved into us traveling to entirely different countries most of the time.

While Elena and my mom went to any beach they could find, and my dad found the bar, Nathan really wanted to drag me along to the historical landmarks and teach me about everything he knew. It made our relationship blossom, and now I considered him my second father.

Plus, because of him I began to develop an endless love for history.

I liked it so much that I made the decision to go to college for it. Nathan’s reaction when I told him before I left was something for the cover of a photo album, and I just knew already that a million questions were going to arise when I got to them.

I stepped down from the deck, and walked towards them with my lips still curled in a smile.

As I made it closer to them though, my gaze became hazy. With my brows contorting, my confused demeanor became more visible with every footstep I made closer to Nate and Elena.

There was another man wrapped into their conversation. He was taller than the other two, especially Elena. I noticed his hair slicked back ruggedly, from above the others’ heads. Though, I still couldn’t get a proper look at his face yet.

I turned my direction slightly to discreetly see who my neighbors were conversing with. My curious nature was overriding my body.

I should have just listened to that universally cliche phrase.

Curiosity did kill the fucking cat, and I wish it would just kill me now.

From here, I had a clear view of his face. He stood there listening to Nate’s banter, with a cigarette wedged between his lips.

The lips I had been staring at the night before, along with the rest of him.

Shit shit shit shit shit.

By this point I would’ve  been repeating my annual habit of staring in place. But  fortunately, I turned on my heal sharply to try and escape.  

“Oh my god y/n?” My breath hitched while Elena's voice rang out towards me.

Well great.

I held that particular breath in as I turned my body once more to face her. My warm smile returned to my face, but a layer of embarrassment and panic riddled beneath the surface.

“Elena, it’s so good to see you,” I went over and wrapped my arms around her carefully, keeping her baby bump in mind, “I’ve missed you so much.”

“I’ve missed you too,” she returned the hug, leaning close to my ear, mumbling, “especially when I’ve had to deal with him all alone. I swear sometimes I really question whether the pregnancy hormones are hitting me or him harder.”

I look over at Nate for a quick second, stifling a laugh while I let go of Elena. The two of us continued laughing faintly, certainly gaining the attention of Nate.

“What are you two laughing about? What’d I do this time?” Nate looked genuinely perplexed, which made it funnier.

“Oh nothing, Nate,” Elena and I looked at each other, smirking as she spoke.

Even with Elena and I’s pleasant interaction, that uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach just wouldn’t quit. I just knew he was watching my every move.

Especially, when in the corner of my eye, I watched his travel with me as I went to give Nate his hug.

“It’s good to have you back, Crash.”

Hearing the nickname took me away from my thoughts on the man behind me for a moment, and made my smile lift. 

“It’s been too long, Aku.”

We stayed this way for a few more seconds, until I feel him pat my back. I let my arms fall away from him, and return to my spot in front of them.

I then feel my head slowly turn over to the unknown one of the three; well to me he was unknown. 

“So who’s this?” I cross my arms in front of me, anticipating an answer from one of them.

But silence continued to radiate around us. 

They all stood there, exchanging looks with one another, making me raise one of my brows. While awaiting a response I decided to take a long sip of my beer, feeling the cold liquid slide down my throat. 

That is, before Nate finally spoke up, “Y/n, this is Sam,” he paused, and I could see the hesitation written all over him, “Sam Drake.”

I almost choked on my beer as soon as I heard the last name. I thought for a solid minute that my eyes were going to fall out of their sockets. 

“Is this your-” I pointed between the both of them.

“He’s my older brother.” Nate finishes my sentence, as he scratched at the back of his neck. 

My face fell even more if it was even possible.

Wait.

Nate was in his early forties to begin with, so that would make Sam…

I looked at Sam’s face intensely again, specifically at the wrinkles that were tainted across his face. Now that my brain was functioning properly, unlike last night, I noticed how many there really were. 

Great. Not only was I checking out Nathan’s BROTHER, but the man that was more than twice my age.

Fuck.

[dragon-tamer-1]

OTP Week Day Six

Wedding

Warning: possibly eating problems mentioned(near the end), let me know how to properly tag it if it's a problem.

     After some careful planning, Dream and Error are getting married. They decided that Outertale was the best place to do it, as it's the place they first started getting close to one another, and where Error had proposed. Dream invited Blue and a few others, including Ink. Mainly because he wanted to get Ink out of his Doodlesphere, where he was moping around. Sure, things have calmed down between him and the others, but the damage was already done. When Dream came and invited him to his wedding, he was shocked, he thought Dream wouldn't want him anywhere near Error anymore.

       Dream had asked Error if he was alright with Ink being there before inviting him, of course, and Error said it's fine as long as Ink didn't bring Broomie. The only time he had Broomie with him was when he was going to attack him, so if he didn't bring his weapon, he'd be fine. That didn't mean he was going to be hanging around Ink, though. He knows Ink was a friend of Dream's, and wasn't going to force him to not interact with him just because he doesn't like him.

        Ink accepted the invitation, and came to the wedding, he stayed near the back though. Nightmare and his gang also came, invited by Error. The only issue that arose there was the fact that Error has never told them about his relationship with Dream. Nightmare practically blew up at him when he invited him to his wedding.

        It went like this: "Hey, you want to come to my wedding?" Nightmare sputtered, "Wedding!?!?" "Yeah." "With who!? When did this happen!?" "With Dream, and we've(well, Dream has) been planning it." "Since when were you and my brother dating!?" "A few months or so ago, I think." "When were you going to tell me!?" "I just did, though." *Sigh* "That's not what I meant." "So, do you want to come, or...?" "Yes, I'll come. And so are the others." "Cool, it's in a month from now."

       A few others came as well, Outer, Classic, Life!Toriel, Reaper, Hearts(Lust), and Sci(Science!Sans). They were the few that either didn't attack him or were reluctant to. Error never really held a grudge on anyone, much to the surprise to many. "What's the point of staying angry at anyone if there isn't anything you can do about it?" was his response to those who asked why he didn't seek revenge on those who hurt him.

      And so, Dream stood at the altar, wearing a suit. He didn't really like the idea of wearing a dress. It was blue, with a red shirt vest. It was meant to represent the colors Error wore. As the music started playing, Error stepped out. He was wearing a golden dress, with orange accents. He didn't care what he wore, clothes are clothes. And he looked great in it.

      The wedding went as a wedding goes, and they exchanged vows. "I, Dream, vow to always care for you, in your good days and bad days. And to help you through any problems we come across." "I, Error, vow to always love you and care for you. I will always protect you from any threats, whether it be people or your own mind."

       And so their wedding ended with them kissing and cutting the cake. Dream had to make sure Error got one of the slices, as he knew that Error still had problems remembering to eat. It was something he found out after a couple of weeks, that Error was so used to not eating anything that he didn't think he needed food. And while he did technically not need to eat, eating food was found to give him the extra energy he needs to heal all the wounds he gained over the years. Dream helped get him used to eating regularly over time, but there are still times where Error more or less skips meals.

@reshramlove1ob here's day 6! Hope you like it! Also, thought I'd mention it here, Life!Toriel was the one who wed them.

Error belongs to @loverofpiggies

Dream and Nightmare belong to @jokublog

Ink belongs to @comyet/@myebi

Undertale belongs to Toby Fox

US!Sans belongs to the Undertale community

Science!Sans belongs to (I don't know)

Reaper!Sans and Life!Toriel belong to @renrink

Outer belongs to @2mi127-blog

Lust belongs to @nsfwshamecave(don't go there if you are a minor)

First Previous Next

[queenxxxsupreme]

Marks on the Boss

A/N: I am super bad at naming this shit This was requested by

Warnings: implied smut, hickies/love bites

Word Count: 1.4k

Summary: Prentiss sees Hotch has some love bites on his neck....

It was early in the morning. The BAU team was slowly walking in through the doors one by one. The only ones in the bullpen were Morgan, Reid, and JJ.

"I can't stand the smell of lavender." Morgan shook his head.

"Lavender? You don't like lavender?" JJ couldn't believe what she was hearing. "How could you not like lavender?"

"I just don't." Morgan shrugged his broad shoulders. "Never have."

"Lavender works as an anxiolytic to increase relaxation and helps you sleep." Reid pointed out. "It interacts with the neurotransmitter GABA to help the brain calm down and quiet nervous system activity."

"That why I use it for Henry." JJ nodded her head.

The three profilers watched as you and Prentiss walked into the bullpen and went to your desks.

"Good morning, guys!" You chirped, setting your bag down on your desk before you went to join their little group. "What're we talking about?"

"Uh, smells." JJ answered with a little laugh.

"Ones we like or don't like?" Prentiss leaned against Reid's desk while you leaned against Morgan's next to JJ.

"Take your pick." Morgan replied.

"Ooh!" Your eyes got really big for a second as you thought of what to say. "Garcia has this really nice plug in air-freshner in her cave that smells like fireball."

"I think us non-alcoholics call that cinnamon, Y/L/N." Rossi spoke as he passed the team.

"I'm not an alcoholic!" You mockingly gasped. He grinned.

"Is Hotch in yet?" He asked over his shoulder. You stayed silent, knowing very well he wasn't. But you'd just arrived. Answering his question would make you look suspicious.

"Haven't seen him." Morgan shook his head. "Which is a little weird. He's usually here first."

"Guys!" Garcia called from the doorway of the roundtable room. "We've got a nasty one."

"I don't like the smell of cinnamon." Reid scrunched his nose up as all of you started to move towards the roundtable room. "It's too.... spicy." You laugh softly at his choice of words.

***

Shortly after everyone got settled around the table, Hotch showed up.

"Sorry I'm late, everyone." He moved to take his seat at the end of the table towards the back of the room. You very briefly met his gaze but it didn't linger for long. You diverted your eyes down to the tablet in front of you. "Go ahead when you're ready, Garcia."

Prentiss was the first to see them. There was one dark mark just under his right ear, then another little further down on his neck. Hotch could feel her eyes on him. He glanced up and met her gaze. She quickly looked down at the notes in her hands.

"Is something wrong, Prentiss?"

"No, sir." She answered a little too quickly. You peeked up through your lashes to see what she was looking at. Your heart dropped at the sight of the markings you'd left on him. You both agreed no visible marks. However, last night you must've gotten carried away.

You stood up suddenly, catching everyone's attention.

"I-I need to use the, uh, the restroom." You hastily made your way towards the door. Smooth on, Y/N. As you walked to the bathrooms, you pulled your phone out to text him.

To: Aaron Hotchner <"She saw the bite marks on your neck.">

You gripped your phone tightly in hand. The door to the bathroom was pushed open. You slipped into the restroom and went to lean against the counter. A few moments later, your phone silently buzzed.

From: Aaron Hotchner <"What bite marks?">

You bit your bottom lip.

To: Aaron Hotchner <"The ones I gave you last night.">

A few more minutes pasted before you decided it would be wise to go back to the roundtable room. You didn't want to seem suspicious.

Just as you were walking out of the bathroom, someone grabbed your arm and pushed you against the wall just beside the door. You were ready to fight whoever it was until you saw that it was Hotch.

"Hi." You smiled innocently up at him.

"How the hell are we going to hide this from them?" He was stressing out about it. Of course he was. He always had something to stress out over.

"If they ask, just tell them you were with someone last night." You shrugged your shoulders. "You don't have to tell them who."

Hotch sighed through his nose and looked down the hall to ensure you two were still alone. You reached up to straighten his tie, even though it didn't need it.

"Aaron, I'm sorry." You apologized quietly. "I'll be more careful next time."

"It's unprofessional." He muttered, bringing his eyes back down to you. There was a little something in those icy blue orbs you adored so much. He liked the marks. He wasn't upset like you thought.

"Yeah?" You raised your brows. "Well you know what else is unprofessional?"

"What?"

"Me kissing my boss." Your fingers curled around the lapels of his suit jacket and pulled him down so you could steal a kiss from him. His hands found your waist, his long and slender fingers almost making you laugh. But he didn’t allow the moment to last long. He pulled away and stepped back, straightened his jacket-which you had messed up-and running his fingers through his hair. 

“Is it really that noticeable?” He turned his head a little and reached up to rub where he thought the marks were. You bit you bottom lip, secretly admiring the marks you made on him. 

“I can fix it. Go into the men’s bathroom. I’ll be in in a moment.” You turned to go back to the bullpen but he stopped you.

“Where are you going?”

“To get my makeup bag out of my go-bag.”

***

“Aaron, hold still.”

“Y/N, I don’t like this.”

“Then we can finally tell the team.” You perked up, only for him to shake his head and mutter a ‘no’ under his breath. “I’m almost done, Aaron.”

After mixing your foundation with moisturizer, you got the correct color to match his neck. Then you proceeded to add the foundation to the markings on his neck but this was easier said than done. Who knew Aaron Hotchner was such a baby?

“I don’t like the way it feels.”

“Oh please.” You rolled your eyes at him. “You can’t feel it.”

“Yes I can.” He countered. 

“There.” You wiped the remaining foundation off on a paper towel and admired your handy work. 

“And what about Prentiss?”

“She can keep a secret. I trust her.”

He let out a sigh and looked back to the mirror.

“Next time, keep the love bites off my neck.”

“Oh, I’ll try to remember that one, Agent Hotchner.” You rolled your eyes again, a smirk playing on your lips, and started to walk away.

“Agent Y/L/N?”

You turned on your heels to face your boss slash boyfriend. 

“Don’t roll your eyes at me.”

You grinned a little, feeling warmth stir in the pit of your stomach. You bit your lip for a moment and taking in the peace and quiet. It wasn’t often that you two got to be like this during the day, to be carefree and let loose. 

“Yes, sir, Agent Hotchner. I’ll see you on the jet, sir.”

***

"Hey, Emily.” You smiled to Prentiss as you sat down across from her. She was sitting by herself towards the back of the jet. Morgan had been with her but he left just a few moments before you took his seat. 

“Hey, Y/N.” She greeted you. You glanced over your shoulder to Hotch, who sat towards the front of the jet facing. He was with JJ and Rossi going over the case. 

“Um, I wanted to talk to you about-,”

“Shut. Up!” She cut you off, a big grin crossing her lips. “No way.”

“What?” The smile fell from your lips. “No way what?”

She deadpanned and raised her eyebrows.

“I wasn’t born yesterday, Y/N. Hotch has hickies on his neck-,”

“Shh!” You hushed her, reaching across to put your hand over her mouth. “Emily, I’m telling you this because I trust you.”

“How long?” Prentiss leaned forward in her seat, now completely captivated by the conversation. 

“A few months.” You smiled shyly. “But we aren’t just messing around, Em. We’re serious.”

“Ah, Ms. Y/N has a boyfriend?” Morgan nudged your arm with his hand, wanting you to scoot over a seat so he wouldn’t have to climb over you. You opened your mouth to speak but no sound came out. What the hell were you going to say?

“She was telling me about this guy that just moved in next door. Things are getting serious pretty quick.” Prentiss spoke quick, almost too quick. She looked to you, her eyes widening just slightly as if to signal you to say something. 

“Is that a bad thing?” You looked to Morgan.

“How long have you known him?”

“Couple weeks.” You blurted out with a shrug of your shoulders.

“I guess it depends on how you feel, kiddo.” He reached over to ruffle your hair but you took the chance to elbow him in the ribs. You hated when he did that. “Good one. Y/L/N.”

You settled back into your seat, stuck there for a while longer now that Morgan had taken the aisle seat. You looked out the window, watching the clouds below pass by. Your phone buzzed in your hand. 

From: Aaron Hotchner <”I’d love to meet his boyfriend of yours.”>

You peeked over your shoulder between your seat and Morgan’s to see Hotch looking at you, a little grin on his lips. 

[suckerforspace]

Saturday's class, or Thursday's coffee? Part 1

A few days ago @skam-mix asked for a story where Sander has a child who wants to learn to skate. And when Sander takes his kid to the skatepark for classes he finds the the teacher to be very hot..

I tried to write her a story based on her ideas and this is what I've come up with. This is my first attempt at writing a fanfic, please let me know what you think. I'm currently working on part 2 but for now, enjoy part 1 of Saturday's class, or Thursday's coffee?

Artwork by the amazing @skam-mix

----

"Are you nervous?" Sander asks his mini-me as they are making their way to the skate park. "No daddy, I'm excited! I'm gonna be the best skateboarder at school!" his son squeals happily.

About a week ago Tomas got home from school, knees and elbows scraped as well as the palms of his hands covered with scratches.

Sander had to ask three times before his son admitted that his friend had brought his skateboard to school. "I wanted to be tough like you dad", Tomas had explained while Sander took care of the injuries.

Tomas had wanted to show his friend how well he could skate (even when he had never stood on a skateboard before) but actually lost his balance and collided with the ground.

As soon as he had put Tomas to bed that night, Sander had opened his laptop and searched online for skateboarding classes in Antwerp.

Sander had insisted for Tomas to wear every form of protection possible. The little seven-year-old had refused, claiming he didn't need it because "he is a big boy".

Which is why they are now running five minutes late, but Sander had gotten his son to wear a safety helmet as well as protection pads for his knees and elbows.

When they arrive at the skatepark, Sander looks for Tomas' teacher, who should be around his age. He sees a young man with messy hair leaning against the wall, holding his skateboard by his side.

Tomas walks up to the boy, leaving Sander behind, who is mesmerized by the beauty of the young man in the oversized hoodie.

"Are you my teacher?" Tomas asks. "Are you Tomas? Because if so then yes, I am your teacher. My name is Robbe." Robbe extends his hand to shake Tomas' hand.

"Do I really have to wear this, Mr. Robbe? You are not wearing these either." Tomas points to his safety gear.

"Yes, you have to wear those Tomas. Mr. Robbe here is an actual big boy and he is a teacher and won't fall. If you fall and don't wear these, you're gonna get hurt and we don't want that." Sander says, now joining his son and his teacher.

He looks up, "Sander, trouwens", he smiles and extends his hand for Robbe to shake.

"Now Tomas, you'll be nice and do what Mr. Robbe says. I will be watching you from over there." Sander gestures to a bench away from the skatepark but still close enough so he could watch Tomas and his teacher, who he thinks is even more good-looking from up close.

Robbe chuckles, "Okay dad, we've got it from here. No worries, I promise I won't let him fall or get hurt. You'll get him back without a scratch." Robbe sends Tomas a wink before playfully shoving his student's dad away.

Sander feels his knees get weak, that chuckle, that touch, and even though Robbe didn't wink at Sander, it made him feel things.

He hurriedly makes his way over to the bench, not wanting Robbe to notice the effect he has on him after only that small interaction.

"Are you nervous Tomas?" Sander hears Robbe ask while leading Tomas towards an empty space of the skatepark. "No, but daddy is. I am excited! And I want to be the best skateboarder ever! Even better than you!" the little boy exclaimed hyper.

Watching Robbe teach his son how to skate melts Sander's heart. So far the big smile had not left Tomas' face.

Even now when Robbe isn't able to catch him in time as the board slips away from under the little boy, he was still smiling. Tomas falls and makes contact with the concrete.

Robbe immediately looks up to where Sander sits, a combination of worry and guilt present in his eyes. Sander sends him a playful glare as if to say 'I saw that'.

After a while, he gets up from the bench and makes his way over to a Cafe nearby. Having to stretch his long legs and also craving a cup of coffee.

He comes back just in time to see Tomas successfully skating on his own and even going off a small ramp, Robbe still by his side ready to catch him in case he loses his balance again.

Sander looks from the coffee cups in his hands up to his son's handsome skateboarding teacher.

He takes a deep breath in and then exhales, hoping that with the air leaving his body, he can also get rid of the nerves he has for what he's about to do in the next minute.

Sander walks up to where Robbe and Tomas are finishing off their first skateboarding class. "Thank you for today. I think he's had a blast."

Robbe turns around at the sound of Sander's voice. "Are you free next week, Robbe?" Sander asks, offering Robbe one of the coffees in his hands which Robbe gratefully accepts.

"Thank you. Tomas is an angle. How about the same time, next week?" Sander smiles, shaking his head a little.

"Yes and no, are you free next Thursday? If you want, I would like to take you out for a coffee."

Robbe looks up with big eyes and a big smile crawling on his face, kind of shocked by this offer coming from such a handsome man.

Trying to keep himself together and act tough Robbe answers "Are you asking me on a date? I don't usually go on dates with dads of kids I teach."

"Well, I think you kinda owe me a date, Robbe. Don't think I didn't see you drop my son when you promised you wouldn't." Sander playfully smiles, feeling some kind of chemistry between the two of them as well as this desire to get to know Robbe better.

"Okay, fine," Robbe sighs, but the smile on his face gives away how excited he actually is for this date, "Thursday, two in the afternoon at the cafe over there."

Sander's smile matches Robbe's as the two boys stare at each other's eyes. It is like they get pulled towards one another by this unknown force.

Both of them leaning in, slowly closing the distance. Gazes moving from their eyes to their lips and back before they are rudely interrupted.

"I did it, Mr. Robbe! I did it, daddy! All by myself!" Tomas proudly exclaims as he successfully made it off of the bigger ramp by himself.

Part 2

[one-boring-person]

What Kind Of A World Are We Living In?

The Lost Boys x The Walking Dead Crossover

Warnings: blood imagery, death, some very vague TWD spoilers, bad language

Context: So @browneyes528 , @lostbetweenvampiresandmusic and I kinda came up with an idea for a crossover between these fandoms, and it basically entails David meeting Negan for the first time.

A/N: This is my first time writing Negan, so I hope it's not too bad! I enjoyed writing this; it's quite fun to combine the things I enjoy 😂😅💛

Masterlist.

Originally, David had made it clear that he wanted no part in joining any groups they came across on their travels, impressing this on the boys on multiple occasions, especially when "food" was scarce. Even before he'd turned, he'd never been a particularly social person, so the outbreak of "biters" as one group they'd encountered had called them was perfect for his naturally guarded personality, as it meant he never had to interact with people he didn't like as much as he used to, back in Santa Carla in the good old days. Only one problem came with the outbreak: the amount of available people to feed on was slowly decreasing, and the biters do not taste nearly as good.

However, this changed when he came across a rather interesting character, whose name he had yet to figure out, whilst on a hunt, the others having spread out through the area to find possible sources of blood. For once, David was walking through the dense forest rather than flying over it, avoiding the biters wherever possible, easily decapitating those that stumbled too close to him with the machete he "borrowed" from a previous victim, though in theory there was no need to do so, seeing as they didn't seem to care about the taste of vampire flesh, and their bites wouldn't do anything to them anyway. He'd started to give up hope of finding any source of life, until he picked up the sounds of voices a little way off, interest spiking as he headed off in that direction, hunger growing as the familiar scent of fresh blood reached him, the smell clearly emanating from a large area ahead of him. Following with more vigour, he soon came across the odd gathering of people; a semi-circle of sorts was formed around an old RV, a number of them kneeling on the floor in front of a horde of armed soldier-type men and women. Vehicles surrounded them, a collection of armoured trucks and pickups, as well as a couple of motorbikes (which he greatly envied, seeing as he and the boys had had to leave theirs back in Santa Carla for lighter travel) solidifying the would-be intimidating group into an almost impenetrable wall. Normally, he'd signal for the other boys to join him, there being too many for him to finish off alone, but something stopped him in his tracks. Or rather, someone.

A tall man went to the RV, having said something relevant to the kneeling people, opening the door to reveal another man, who stepped into the light with a large grin on his face. Instantly, David's focus was on the newcomer, eyebrow raising at his choice of attire - a black leather jacket, red scarf and dark jeans, though what really caught his eye was the baseball bat, which was wrapped in barbed wire, a deadly weapon he wished he could see in action. Despite the circumstances (it being an apocalypse and all), the newcomer was clean and undirtied, as if he had somewhere to return to where he could shower and change into clean clothes, and his entire attitude around the gathered people only proved to David that this man was the leader.

His eyes remained fixed on him, taking in the laid-back, yet clearly authoritative stance and movements, not listening to what was being said until the familiar sound of an old song floated up to him from the leader, each line punctuated by a point of the bat at a kneeling person, all of whom appeared terrified.

"Eeny, meeny, miny, mo, catch a tiger by his toe..."

The black-clad leader's voice was taunting, his fingers visibly clenching around the handle of the bat as he came to a halt in front of a thick-set ginger guy, who stared up the length of the weapon with a confidence only bred in the military.

David could only watch with grudging  appreciation as the leader then proceeded to beat the hell out of the guy's head, spreading the ginger man's brains all over the dusty tarmac with a brutal finality.

It only took the sight of this to change David's mind about joining a group, his mind made up as he watched the leader tease and taunt the rest of the group, nearly rising in anger when a dishevelled brunette sprung forward to punch him in the jaw, smirking to himself when another guy had his head smashed to pieces in retaliation. This guy knew how to demonstrate his ultimate dominance over his people.

Unfortunately, he had to wait another few weeks or so until he got the chance to meet this guy again, at which point he'd already informed the others of this new group he had found, eager to figure out what this guy's reaction would be to finding a coven of vampires asking to ally with him. To say the boys had been surprised was an understatement; Paul nearly fell from the roof they were perched on, Dwayne only just managing to pull him back up again, Marko staring, wide-eyed, at his leader. Unsurprisingly, they had all wanted to see this guy for themselves, not quite believing that a human could be as brutal and remorseless as David made him out to be, thus starting a search for the base of these people, though it was mostly unsuccessful, until one summer night.

The four of them hovered over the decrepit motorway below, eyes searching for any signs of movements, each of them as bored as the others, having had less luck finding food in the last few weeks, seeing as everyone seemed to be letting themselves die in ways that meant they would become a biter, which was not helpful at all. By now, they'd been out for a good four hours, their hunger levels through the roof - they'd only found a group of two loners the day before, meaning that they hadn't eaten nearly enough to satisfy them. At his point, Marko and Paul decided they needed to start acting dramatic, theatrically dropping from the sky every now and then, only to catch themselves after a few metres, complaining about how tired and hungry they were the entire time, neither of them letting up, even when Dwayne threatened to stake them both. They were whinging so much they never noticed the little band of people on the motorway below them, the tiny group having just emerged from the trees lining the side of the road, until David pointed them out, licking his lips in anticipation, his vampiric features contorting his face as he led the dive down.

Whooping in triumph and relief, the four of them descended on the group of five, each of them claiming a victim right off the bat, tearing into their chosen person with a vigour born of deep-rooted hunger, blood erupting in macabre fountains from the newly made wounds. The rich fluid coated their chins and fangs, staining their already filthy clothes further as the screaming people writhe and struggle in their respective grips, each one gradually dying in full view of the fifth, who had yet to race off in the other direction, which would've been the smart thing to do. As it happened, the horrified girl never stood a chance, swiftly being taken out by David as he took his fill from her, passing her barely alive body on to an eagerly waiting Paul, who was only to happy to sink his fangs into her skin, tearing her throat out with a grim efficiency.

In their feeding frenzy, none of them had noticed the envoy of vehicles slowly approaching from the north, a familiar RV amongst them, until the beaming headlights were focused on them, drawing the vampires' attention. Dropping the corpses, each vampire moved to stand beside David, who stuck his gloved hands in his pockets and watched the cars approach, smirking at the realisation of who it is, glad that their first encounter involved him covered in fresh blood from a victim he just spent a few enjoyable minutes tearing to pieces, knowing that his appearance must be horrifying. Beside him, the others stood their ground, Marko moving to bite at his thumb, only to swiftly think better of it, hooking it in the belt loops of his jeans instead. Ahead of them, each vehicle came to a halt, a group of armed people stepping forward with rifles and shotguns aimed at them, a sight which brought a slight grin to David's lips, the door to the RV opening to reveal the guy from before, a somewhat confused yet confident expression on his face.

"It's nearly two in the morning and I have to sort out a bunch of cannibals on the road? What kinda world are we living in?!" The leader joked with one of his cronies, eyeing the motley group of blood stained boys with no trepidation at all.

"A dying one, I reckon." David called out to him in way of response, their eyes locking, almost as if challenging each other.

"Well, then I guess it all depends on who you ask, don't it?" A wide grin appeared on the guy's face as he looked David over, clearly impressed by what he saw, "Damn, you are creepy as shit! You look totally badass!"

David's eyes narrowed a bit at his words, suspicious of the guy's odd compliments.

"If that's what you think, then sure." He responded, choosing his words carefully.

"What I think? Hell, no, that's not what I think. It's what I know." He confirmed, leaning back on his heels, his bat resting over one shoulder, "I'm Negan."

"David."

"David? Your name is David? I'm gonna have to figure out something better than that, something more badass."

For once, David chose not to let his offense at the statement determine how he acted, instead remaining in place with a neutral expression.

"If you must." He bit out, deciding to get straight to the point, "We've been looking for you."

Surprise seemed to cross Negan's face at this confession, eyebrows momentarily drawing together in confusion.

"You've been looking for me? Why in the hell would you do that?"

"I saw you beat two people's heads in a few weeks back, and you left a good impression on me. I thought you might like the help of four vampires in your group, who have no qualms about killing anyone." David informed him, nearly rolling his eyes at the disbelieving look on their faces.

"I left a good impression on someone like you because I beat the shit outta two people? Damn, you are messed up, I'll give you that." Negan smirked, pointing at David with his bat, "But I cannot give you the vampire bullshit. Who in the hell still believes in them?"

"People with sense." He grinned in reply, his features changing into their vampiric forms, lips peeling back to reveal his razor sharp fangs.

For a long moment, everyone is silent, Negan's eyes fixed on David's face, clearly taken aback by the turn of events, though the smile is quick to return.

"I owe you damn apology, David, that is terrifying. Like real, pant-pissing, shitting-yourself terrifying." He complimented again, seemingly considering something, "You still up for helping me out? Because I have a job that I think will suit you guys just fine."

"Sure thing, as long as the price is decent."

Negan stepped forwards, bat back on his shoulder, a conspiratorial smirk on his lips.

"There's a certain group of people who need the shit scaring outta them. Their leader is a prick named Rick, or Rick the Prick as I call him, and he needs an attitude adjustment."

[v-hope]

You're his celebrity crush and meet at an awards show

Pairings: OT7 x International Artist!Reader

Genre: Fluff, crack ig

Request: "hii ! i love your work and i've been having major feels with the boys at the bbmas so i was wondring if you could write a reaction for u being an artist they have a crush on and they meet you at an awards show and it's all cute and stuff?? 💜"

A/N: I really loved writing this! I'm just gonna do what I do with Shipping Material, for those of you who don't know hahah:

“English”

«Korean»

Kim Seokjin

“You know BTS?”

You couldn't help but giggle at the man's words, nodding your head right after, for there was really no other answer to that.

When you had gone to the restroom earlier that night, only to find people waiting outside of it because of how full it was, you had considered turning around and coming back some time later, but it just so happened that no other than Kim Seokjin had arrived two seconds after you, and had decided not to let his chance to talk to you slip away; even if he didn't have Namjoon to translate for him.

So now here you were, both of you not even bothering on lining up anymore, and instead moving aside not to block the way.

“Who doesn't know BTS at this point?” you answered after having uselessly tried to conceal your smile, raising one of your eyebrows and earning a proud yet shy smile from Jin. “You know Y/N?” it was your turn to cheekily ask.

He stretched his arms out before folding them over his chest as he leaned against the wall. “Ah, yes” he tried to play it cool, “very beautiful” he nodded like it was a fact, bringing immediate heat to your face, “voice… yeah” he emphasized, holding one of his thumbs up.

You gazed down in embarrassment, allowing another laugh to escape your throat – an action of yours he found to be quite adorable.

“I'd have to say the same about Kim Seokjin then” your eyes locked with his once more, ones that had sparkled at the fact that you actually knew his name. “10/10 vocals and looks”.

At that, he unsuccessfully tried to erase the smile that had already formed on his lips – his ears turning a furious red.

“Me? Oh, no” he denied, waving his hands in front of him, “no... you are best”.

Out of your mouth came what was a mix of a scoff and a laugh. “What? No way, hear me out–”

Who would've thought your first interaction ever would turn into a ‘no, you're better’ contest. At least you made him comfortable enough to fight you from the beginning.

Min Yoongi

“You mind if I join you?”

Yoongi's head snapped up at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, his eyes opening wide in shock when he realised he had no other than you in front of him.

Being too caught up in the sight of you, he could do nothing but absently shake his head, moving a little to the side for you to sit next to him.

“Why are you here and not inside?” you wondered in an attempt of making small talk.

“Um, air” he motioned around.

“It does get a little suffocating inside, huh?” you leaned back to take a better look at him.

He simply nodded his head, gazing down to his lap before a small smile took over his factions.

“You're sure I'm not bothering you?” you worried, noticing how quiet he was. “I didn't know you'd be here, I can leave if–”

“I'm just…” he interrupted you, looking up to lock eyes with you, “shy...” he admitted sheepishly.

Not only because he was insecure about his English, but also because it was you.

Your lips curved up as you stared fondly at him. “Okay then” you looked ahead, “let's just stay quiet for a while if that makes you feel better”.

So the two of you did just that; remaining silent for a little while, doing nothing but enjoy each other's company. Anyone who saw you would've thought it was such an awkward scene, but it was the complete opposite, actually. It was weird to find a stranger you could be so comfortable around with. It was nice, for both of you.

«Yah! Yoongi, we've been looking for you everywhere» the quiet atmosphere was disrupted faster than you'd have wanted to by Seokjin. “Oh, hello…” he awkwardly greeted you, receiving a smile from you before his eyes were back on Yoon. «They're announcing the Top Artist Award, come on!»

At the sound of that, Yoongi stood up immediately. “Sorry, I have to go, uh– award...” he spoke softly, almost scared of messing up his English.

Biting your lip, you squinted your eyes as you looked up at him. “Go get ‘em, tiger” you encouraged him with a grin, watching for the first time in person his signature gummy smile.

Thinking for a second before turning around to leave, he digged his hands in his pockets, staring down to you. “You don't... wanna come?”

“Um…” your eyes travelled from him to the door. “You know what? Yeah, I do” you stood up as well, a smirk forming on your lips before you added: “I don't wanna miss all the madness when you guys win”.

If you hadn't won him over already by being understanding about his shyness, with that vote of confidence you sure as hell had.

Jung Hoseok

“Y/N!” he enthusiastically shouted the answer he had been saying over and over every single time the interviewers asked them who they wanted to meet that evening.

Only this time you heard him.

Your head had snapped up at the sound of your name as you walked past them a few meters behind on the red carpet, looking around before your eyes locked with the guy's who was currently interviewing BTS.

“Y/N, hi!” he waved for you to go over there. “Come here, someone wants to meet you!”

Not only did you freeze at that invitation, but so did Hoseok, earning loud laughs from his members as you got closer to them.

“Hi, guys” you shyly greeted with a smile, receiving instant cheerful replies before you stood by Hobi's side, since Joon had stepped aside for you to be in the middle.

Hoseok's eyes were soon to lock with yours – a shy smile parting his lips as he quietly admired your factions, having you unconsciously do the same.

“So, J-Hope right here just told us he was excited to meet you” the interviewer informed you with a smirk, causing Hoseok to tilt his head and turn to his friends as he complained in embarrassment.

Your reaction, however, was something Hobi did not expect at all; for not only did your lips part in what the thought was the brightest, most beautiful smile he had ever seen on you, but you had also covered your face with your hands, letting out a giggle that was soon followed by one of his own.

“Ah, don't tell me that” you told the guy holding the mic in front of you, “he's my favourite, my heart just did a thing”.

«Did she, did she say I'm her favourite?» Hoseok turned to ask Joon with pouty, incredulous lips; later giggling like a little boy on Christmas when their leader confirmed his beliefs. «She did?!» he covered his smiling mouth with his hand.

“Aw, that's so cute!” the other guy gushed at your previous words, for neither of you had any idea of what Hobi's previous gushing had been about. “So you'll be cheering for him tonight?”

“Of course!” you turned to the seven guys. “I mean, I'll be chanting for all of you guys, but if you hear someone screaming ‘J-Hope’ at the top of their lungs, that's probably me”.

And later that night, when he did indeed hear someone screaming his name somewhere in the first rows during his part, his heart sped up uncontrollably, and not precisely because of all the dancing around.

Kim Namjoon

“Oh, f– I'm so sorry” he apologized as soon as his foot had stepped on your long dress, causing you to stumble over.

Luckily for you, just like he almost made you fall, he had also been the one to make sure to catch you – his hands being quick to hold you firmly by your arms, and staying there for a little longer so you could regain your balance.

“It's okay” you let him know with a shy smile, “I've been stepping on it all evening as well” at that, Joon exhaled the air he had been holding, gently letting go of you for once and for all. “It's such an awful, uncomfortable dress. I hate it”.

“Oh” he pursed his lips, eyeing up and down the dress he believed so perfectly hugged your body, “this might not help at all, but I think you look beautiful”.

It did help. Quite a lot, actually – that simple statement itself being enough for a shiver to run down your spine.

“Thank you” you replied, feeling yourself once again becoming shy. “I'm Y/N, by the way”.

“I know” he answered with an obvious tone, later letting out a breathy, nervous laugh, at the realisation of how he had exposed himself. “I um, I'm Namjoon”.

“I know” you repeated his previous words, biting down on your lower lip in response to his dimples showing up as he smiled.

Just like that, your manager called you from the other side of the hall, for you to go change into the outfit you'd be wearing for your performance.

“Seems like I'm finally getting out of this dress” your voice came out with a tone of relief, grabbing the sides of it and pulling it a little bit up so that you could walk properly. “It was nice getting stepped on by you, see you later!”

“It was my pleasure, I hope we can do this again sometime soon!” he played along as you walked away, smiling widely after watching you tilt your head back to let a laugh escape your throat.

Clumsiness? That he could always count on.

Park Jimin

Taehyung sneakily nudged Jimin as you got closer to greet him, for he had frozen on his place as soon as he heard you call them from the other side of the hallway – his eyes in absolute awe as he watched you hug his members one by one.

And when you finally got to him, he didn't really know which one of you was shaking more.

“Sorry” you apologized to all of them once you had pulled away from him, knowing well enough they had all noticed your body slightly tremble, “I'm really nervous, I'm a huge fan of you guys”.

A unison “aw” came out of their mouths.

“Don't be nervous” to everyone's surprise, it was Jimin the one to speak up first, with what you thought was the cutest of pronunciations.

“Yeah” Namjoon backed up his friend, “we're huge fans too, so we're just as nervous, to be honest” he laughed, making you laugh in a way that had Jimin staring with even more admiration.

“Yeah!” Jimin spoke up again, “your voice!” he paused, pressing his lips together and effusively nodding his head to let you know how much he liked it, bringing instant heat to your face as you blisfully thanked him.

He wanted to say something else, to talk more to you, but you were interrupted by your manager tapping your shoulder to hurry you up.

“Oh, um…” you looked around, “I wish I had more time but my performance's about to start” you stuck your lower lip out. “I just wanted to wish you guys the best of lucks later tonight, you're gonna kill it”.

“Ah, thank you!” they all answered once again, with grateful smiles.

“Wait, let's take a picture!” Joon proposed out loud after one of their staff members showed him a camera.

You didn't have to think even once before accepting, turning around to look in the same direction as them. On the other hand, Jimin didn't even try and stop his legs from moving closer to you in the middle, quietly asking Hoseok to move over and let him be by your side – placing his hand over your shoulders without getting to touch you as he smiled brighter than the camera flash itself.

And so when you turned around to say goodbye, he opened his arms to quickly hug you once more before you took off to the stage.

«Aw, she's so beautiful, how's that even possible» he gushed to his members, receiving multiple amused smiles when his smile turned into a pout. «Why'd she have to leave so soon?»

Little did he know that was far from being the last time you met each other.

Kim Taehyung

He was dying to talk to you.

The moment they were guided to their seats and he noticed one of them would be sitting next to you, he had rushed over there to claim it as his. However, just as much as he was dying to say something to you, his confidence was betraying him.

From time to time, he'd turn to you with the intention of starting a conversation in between performances, but nothing would come out of his mouth, turning his head in the opposite direction before he could make a fool of himself. You had said “hi” to each other already, why couldn't he bring himself to say something else?

It was when he noticed you were asking someone for some water, that he decided to take his chance – picking up the bottle of water under his seat to hand it to you.

“Have it” he spoke after your dumbfounded eyes travelled from the item to fix on his. “Is not… open…” his eyebrows knitted together as he looked up, wondering if he had managed to make his point clear.

An understanding smile curved up your lips, taking the bottle from his hands and thanking him before you opened it and took a sip.

Say something else. Tell her she looks pretty. Make small talk. Anything. He repeated over and over in his head, yet nothing came out. So, he smiled once more and turned his head back away from you, internally beating himself up for it.

It was you, later that night, the one who made his wishes come true; when you noticed how one of his members had taken away from him the popcorns he had been munching on, leaving him sulking with a pout on his lips.

“Here” you handed him yours, receiving a baffled expression from him. “You can have mine”.

In the end, what happened was that he did not take yours, but accepted to share them instead – leaning over to your side and finally relaxing next to you as the two of you ate and commented on the show, which lead to lots of laughter througout the night.

Never had he ever thought he'd thank Jeongguk for stealing his food.

Jeon Jeongguk

“Don't be so nervous” you tried to encourage him with a small smile, having his eyes move up from the paper note he was tightly holding to focus on you – a smile of his own curving up his lips as well.

“My English…” he begun, trying to translate the right words in his head, “is not... good”.

“It's pretty good, actually” you once again tried to make him gain some confidence.

Neither of you understood why they had settled things up this way – each one of the BTS members having to present an award with someone else, instead of doing it all together like they always did. In Jeongguk's case, he had been paired up with you, which is why here you were now, both of you sitting backstage, going over your dialogue a few times as you waited for your turn to come.

And he didn't know if it had been a blessing or a curse, for he had gotten to meet you, the one artist he had been crushing on for years… but, at the same time, there was a high probability of him messing up at some point and make a complete fool of himself in front of you.

“You know what?” you spoke after taking in his uncertain eyes. With a raised eyebrow, he let you know you had his attention. “If it makes you feel any better, I can make a fool of myself in front of everyone”.

His eyes opened wide. “W-What?”

“Yeah” you nodded your head, “I'll just mess up the words or something and then you'll have nothing to worry about!”

“No, no” he shook his head, holding his hands out as if to signal for you to stop. “You don't– have to…”

“Oh, I will do it, my friend” you raised an eyebrow in determination. “I already thought of it, there's no turning back now”.

That serious statement of yours managed to get a breathy laugh out of him.

You were his crush for a reason, but knowing you were willing to sacrifice your public image just to help him out with his nervousness? He might as well have fallen in love right then and there.

[oceanivoxjoquainx]

Let's talk about Eric Effiong

Let's be honest Eric's storyline and characterization is one of the most appealing out of all the characters in Sex Education periodt. A true gay, fierce, Drag QUEEN and I feel like ranting about this amazing force of nature. (Spoilers. Duh.)

When I saw the trailer for Sex Education it didnt even hit me that Eric was gay until I read the synopsis. Was just like "Oh I wonder which one of these three mains are the gay one people keep talking about" even after I saw him in drag like a dumbass 😣😂. Personally im glad we've reached a point where gay guys aren't overly feminine and even the brightest colours won't differ a character from the rest (unless I'm just a blind bish and he was obviously gay from the trailer) ei 👏🏾 ther 👏🏾 way; his character was refreshing when I started watching the show. I immediately clicked with him and knew what every look he gave or hand gesture he did meant. Felt nice. When Adam pushed him into the locker for the first time and started with the heterohomoerotic bs I knew that Adam had a raging boner for Eric and was another internalized homophobic bully™ and wasn't really excited for what was to come but I knew it was coming and tbh I liked it in the end.

Eric and Otis' friendship is so pure. Like?!? Get me a straight supportive bestie lilke Otis? Ik they fought but even then Otis was respectful and kept his boundaries and let Eric go through the motions before immediately belting into an apology at the first chance he got. Their dancing scene?!? Iconic. The fact that Eric sees Otis' house as safe and another home?!? Iconic. Otis going drag with Eric to watch an LGBT+ movie as a TRADITION (meaning they've done it numerous times)?!?! Iconic. The fact that Otis was straight up ditching Eric and Eric STILL tolerated him and let him do his thing without too much pressure!?! The most iconic of them all. Just pure love and respect all around.

I am so proud of Erics growth over the course of the season starting from a naive and scared gay doormat to facing homophia and getting beat up by those assholes on his birthday no less to losing his best friend and becoming depressed to channeling that anger into defending himself when people tried him to getting his sparkle back and coming back more fierce that ever before.

Speaking of him getting his sparkle back lets talk about that and why that scene is so important. A random guy asked Eric for directions and Eric noticed his nails were polished and the guy was wearing earrings and he was a big ole black dude. He was like Eric. When Eric noticed that the guy was out, loud, glamorous and proud he immediately switched back into the bright colourful and wonderfully gay Eric we all know and love.

THIS IS WHY REPRESENTATION MATTERS!!!!

It shows people that its okay to be who they actually are and inspires those who are lost to find or return to their true selves. Representation isn't just some offhand thing to throw on a character last minute. And even if you can relate to other characters who arent like you, it is always an amazing feeling to have a character that IS like you. It turned Eric from a popularity seeking doormat into a hurricane with 6 inch heels who was ready to straight up beat down a bully he's had for 4 years. It even inspired him to go back to church and rejoin a community that he closed off. That's exactly how it feels to have someone successful in the media and your life to look up to. Eric only interacted with that man for a few minutes but those few minutes changed his life for the better. So that's a lovely reminder for all who love to bash representation.

Back tracking to Eric's dull colourless period after the attack and his fight with Otis. It was saddening to see one of the brightest characters go dull and even the school felt it. He turned from a guy who rarely stood up for himself and what he wanted into the sass master he reserved only for his friends. All of his built up anger was released causing him to explode on Mr Hendricks (who is adorable tbh and just trying to do his best) and Anwar (I was proud of that punch you go glenn co co) and he even sounded off on his dad who he's usually passive aggressive to at worst. Just goes to show that the happiest faces can harbor the biggest pains and can snap. Moral of the story? Protect the happy few.

Eric also has a great family. Like that obviously know Erics gay and wears dresses because its all right there in his room which his parents enter at their leisure and while it seems that they're a bit homophobic its revealed that they (Erics dad at least) just wants Eric to be safe as he's already a target for being black and apart of an immigant family. He accepts Eric for who he is and what he does he just doesnt want anyone else to give him shit for it and if that's not one of the sweetest things in this world idek what is. Eric and his dad was probably one of my favorite dynamics in the show and watching his dad slowly fully accept that his son was strong and able to stand for himself he was able to become stronger too. This dynamic is important because I never see any gay black characters have a close relationship with their fathers and it was very heartwarming to watch.

Now onto Erics love life. He has a crush on the highschools other only gay guy Anwar who's the typical mean sassy gay we've all come to expect in highschool dramas. Otis saying that Eric doesnt have to have a crush on the only other openly gay guy at school was such a mood as its commonly shown that any gays in close proximity should get together. When Eric punched him I internally went "Finally!" Because all those jeers were becoming annoying. I'm glad Anwar got to come out to his mum over it though. And straight up told the audience that Eric didn't like feminine guys (alluding to him and Adams eventual clean up scene as of we didn't see it coming already).

Moving on to Adam tho, like I said we all been knew that this

was indeed coming and even though I hate the bully x bullied trope I still ended up liking it and hoping that Adam would change. The building up to that kiss was long awaited from episode 1 straight through to 8 with all the longing looks that Adam kept side glancing Eric with and the face cupping and the growls and the lingering touches. I just kept going sthdjksksbslaldbd when one of those moments happened followed shortly after with disgust because gays falling for their abuser is washed up but then immediately going back to jajaklamabsldkd because im shipping trash so 🤷🏿. Eric stepping to Adam in at the ball was one of the most iconic scenes of the show (along with the "Its My Vagina" scene) and the exchange between him and Adam gave be actual chills. The tension was THICCCC. Erics OUTFIT to the ball gave me chills 😭😭 dude came to slay and had everyone at that school proper shook and I honestly could NOT be more proud. I was hoping Adam would become a better person over the course of the season but nope so hopefully they cover all the issues that Adam has in season 2 and properly give him a redeption arc cuz he's still a trashy pos he's just a disaster bi on top of it. (Adam immediately going to suck Eric off is confidence I can only dream of achieving 💀💀) The lab scene was also cute but made me mad because how could Adam look scared, confident and still be a douchebag all in the span of a few seconds was beyond me. A+ acting on Connor Swindells part. I can see why Adam would have to stay in the closet and keep their... relationship?? a secret because it seems like Headmaster Groff would be a homophobic piece of shit and would add to the ever growing list of things Adam did wrong. Even so it doesn't excuse the fact that Adam is in fact a bully and Eric deserves much better. Was sad seeing Adam being driven off from Eric in the end tho. Eric thought that Adam didn't want to see him at all and was probably heartbroken and probably thinks Adam left because of him (my poor baby 😭😭). I feel bad for Adam too because he was just starting to express himself and was at the beginning of a redemption arc when he was just wisked away from the boy he's loved for what seems to be a very long time. I just want my boys to be happy and non toxic and I wish their relationship and them all the best in Season 2.

Eric Effiong is my favorite character in the show and I really want to thank Ncuti Gatwa for portraying him so well and for the shows writers who gave him a very fleshed out character with an amazing storyline and conclusion. His growth was incredible and his strength is immeasurable. I'm 100% certain that he will be a character the community remembers for years to come. Patiently now waiting on what's to come in Season 2 💙🙌🏾.