#like truly so much of my stress stems from not having enough money and it’s dumb because money is fake
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kingofmyborrowedheart · 1 year ago
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Genuinely wonder how less stressed I would be as a person if I wasn’t constantly worrying about financial stability.
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crystalandbow · 9 months ago
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ೃ࿐ ⋆ ۪༊ 𝒻eedback . . . ᝰ.ᐟ ˖  ݂   𓉸ྀི     ✩ ㅤ৴
Heyy Love! I here for the feedback!
7 of cups is a card that shows feeling overwhelmed, it's shows a person having way too many options choices so much that they don't understand what's good and what's bad. This card shows confusion, so one of the reasons why you still haven't achieved your goal is confusion (of some sort, depending on what your goal really is) this card also shows that this thing (goal) is the reason for your downfall/bad things/unhappiness/ feeling overwhelmed. And from this deck I feel that it shows you don't believe in it, it feels unattainable. "Too good to be true" and that's why you don't have it yet because you just don't believe that you can have it / you DESERVE it.
Alright this part hands on resonates. I think having a lot of choices is true,for me, and I can't really set my heart to something. And my goal does cause me a lot of stress and unhappiness.
King of coins shows material success/wealth, long term achievements. This shows that you haven't had your goal yet because you need to work on the basics, you need to focus on building a strong and capable foundation for it. (Depending on what your goal is) It shows that this thing will take time because you are not absolutely ready for it. You need to work on stuff and understand the reason why it's taking so long is because you haven't done your part of the work, that is building a strong foundation that will help you in the future when issues arrive. "Only if The roots of a tree are strong enough can it survive the Strom" typa situation . Or like "you need to have strong pillars for a good, stable & building"
This is also true. I am an STEM student(science technology engineering mathematics student) and my concepts in physics is rotten. My foundations are rocky at the best.
Combining both could indicate that you need to work on building a strong mindset for the future.
Again, it is true that my mindset is not very proper in a way.It cut shorts in many problems and I have gone about this wrong.
Does this goal feel like a burden or make you feel upset, heavy and low?
Definitely.
Lastly the moon, this card generally talks about confusion, illusions and trusting your intuition, etc. Well the confusion message is repeated and we'd go ahead with that. There might be a possibility that this thing looks good from outside and feels like "wow, I wish i had that" or like the shiny object syndrome-ish stuff. But it is only when you get closer do you actually realise "wtf" it looks beautiful but is just a lie. And maybe that's why this thing isn't here because it's just not meant for you. I say that because the first thing I felt I needed to pull was "what this goal is" and we have the tower. Which shows how awful this is. And if you don't know what the tower card is, it is chaos, destruction, disaster etc. So that itself shows that the further you are the better it is atleast for now.
Wow alright, this is true. I solely went into science because I thought it was easy and a good way to earn money. But it isn't easy. Getting a good college is hard and the sigma surrounding private colleges kinda makes you feel like a failure, because if you go to a private college, you are a loser in the eye of the society.
Your reading was very well in depth.It resonated. Amazing explanations. 10/10, definitely recommended. I loved your reading!
Thank you for you time and energy. Hope to interact with you more throughout the year.
ೃ࿐ ⋆ ۪༊ . . . ᝰ.ᐟ ˖  ݂   𓉸ྀི     ✩ ㅤ৴
🥹 I'm so happy that the reading reasonated & I truly hope that things get easier for you, I wish you all the very best! And thank you so much for the feedback it helps me grow and understand too!
Have a good day, sending you lights and love🎀💫
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gradstudentdrone · 2 months ago
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Grieving during the Holiday Season
I didn't realize the holiday season would hit this hard.
For the entire time I have been alive, Decembers were special for my family: my brother, dad and I celebrate our birthdays this month, my parents got married in December and of course, there are festivities that come with celebrating Christmas. We usually had five major dinners: my dad, my brother, and my birthday dinner, my parents' anniversary dinner, and then the midnight meal on the 24th.
In previous years, my family prepared for celebration season starting in November: my mom and I would start plotting our meals, brainstorming on the sequencing of dinners to make sure that there was enough variety in the food that we were eating so we wouldn't be having, like, roasted ham for all five of our dinners. It was exciting (though slightly stressful) trying to figure out what to eat when: did we truly want to order a lechon when it's a. unhealthy and b. it's so big? Did we want to try our luck with all you can eat sushi? How about fried lobster?
Then there came the question of presents.
My dad had a weird hang-up about presents, seeing these as evidence of how much we loved him. This weirdness stems from the fact that growing up, he felt that his birthday was...well, something his family just forgot. As the third son in a family of five, my dad always felt that he was in the background, with major milestones such as his birthday not even meriting much celebration. In fact, my mom would call my dad's family while my dad was still asleep to remind them to call him, and to wish him happy birthday, something that my uncle still "forgot" to do despite my mom's reminders.
There was a lot of trauma there, which I understand as explaining why my dad was so exacting about the gifts we gave, trying to see whether our gifts were given out of true love for him or whether we were doing so in a rote manner. Although I was frustrated because this meant it was so hard to get my dad a good gift - Beatles paraphernalia and biographies were inevitably deemed to be written by hacks, fancy shirts from fancy stores were a waste of money, books by authors that I thought my dad would like were not as good as writers who my dad considdered the masters - I realized, in my thirties and after my own stint in therapy, that my dad's tendency to criticize gifts were his trauma response.
Yet, later in life, he stopped being critical and grew to appreciate all of the gifts that his grandchildren gave, which he saw as being given out of genuine love. I remember a previous birthday when my then 4 year old showed the dance that she had prepared for her beloved nono. The dance went on...and on...and on...and on. I swear, it was a 15 minute dance recital, with SP clad in a pale green tinker bell costume and while I was getting antsy and started looking at the clock, my dad sat riveted, clapping his hands and saying that this was the best birthday gift EVER. So December became easier and less fraught when his grandchildren came.
(Pictured: here are my parents in December 2020, celebrating their anniversary with take-out from a now closed Chinese restaurant that served lobster)
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I miss it all: the excitement about our December celebrations, the anticipation of buying presents for everyone, and yes, even my dad's grouchiness. Although we are doing something different this holiday season because it's just too hard to do what we always do, I know that we will feel my dad's loss as my parents' anniversary, Christmas Eve, and Christmas comes. It's important for me to give my kids reason to celebrate so we will proceed with festivities but truth be told, I'd rather just sleep through the holidays and just wake up in 2025. I also, however, want to honour our loss, so I will be talking about my dad to my daughters, reminding them of him. And, in honour of my dad, on his birthday, we released an episode of Academic Aunties where my kids were my special guests and they talked about their memories of my dad.
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ruminate88 · 7 months ago
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I’ve watched way less TikTok and been trying to be careful who I listen to, what advice I take and of course NOT watching the videos that say “Your ex is coming back” 🤪🤪🤪 This particular video though, was helpful:
It ALL makes sense why I feel bad and don’t want anything. Why I don’t go for any dreams of mine or why I feel bad to ask for stuff. I jumped at the first guy who was actually nice to me and married him…. Obviously I had been given soooo little by Andrew for over a year, that I was starving for kindness and affection! Desperate for someone to truly see me, care about me and fill me up. My husband was sooooo nice but he’s not perfect. He doesn’t support me in every single area of my life. He’s gotten better and I do see he’s capable of empathy, sensitivity, change and being emotional but I jumped way too quick.
when we were engaged and bought our house, I kept calling it “his house” and “his money.” But people were saying to me, “that’s your house and money too once you get married” ahhh I was super uncomfortable with that!! I found out how much my wedding ring cost and oh I felt sooo horrible 😢😢😢
like, when my husband stresses over us not having enough money to do more things or buy more things, it just makes me frustrated and wanna push him away. Like, I don’t CARE about freakin money or stuff. I just wanna feel better and I just want him to hold me. Men are not usually super emotional like women anyway and I’m not even comfortable to ask my husband just to hug me and tell me it’s ok!!
also, I had to beg Andrew to pay me attention and that sucked. I don’t wanna beg for anything ever again. I don’t wanna beg my husband to stop caring so much about stupid money and see me. Just be with me. Why can’t being with me, even if we’re not rich, be enough??? I know men want to be the provider and that’s great, I support my husband’s job and hard work. I occasionally tell him how grateful I am for his hard work and I tell him I understand how expensive the cost of living is BUT I DON’T FREAKING CARE about all that right now!!
I’m tired of men using me and not seeing me. My husband never yells at me or puts me down. He goes to work, comes home and sometimes tells me about his day unless he’s tired then maybe he’s more quiet and he’ll watch tv with me and it’s just quiet and peaceful but I feel disconnected and all I want is for my husband to embrace me and let me feel comfortable. Instead, I just internalize everything, keeping all the pain to myself. I’m uncomfortable to talk about it all to him. plus my husband would not understand me talking about Andrew anyway, he would assume I still love Andrew and that is not worth it to me to trigger all that. My husband is the one who had to FaceTime Andrew for me and threaten him to leave me alone. He doesn’t like Andrew and I just fear he’ll be upset but maybe not 🥺 I just am too scared right now to find out. I don’t like holding it all in either and I feel very secretive, like I’m lying to my husband pretending I don’t think about Andrew when I know I do. ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹
I don’t want anymore confusion or drama. That’s why I almost always wanna just be left alone. I don’t want anybody to do anything for me or give me anything. I believe this all stems from being conditioned so long to accept nothing because Andrew, Cody and Jake gave me nothing but humiliation, betrayal, heartbreak, CRITICISM and confusion. That’s what I was fed for most of my 20’s. I never had a guy ever see me or care about my feelings. I felt rejected and attacked at every turn. Obviously there’s no real tags for this post for obvious reasons. #vent
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opalmaplehibiscus · 4 years ago
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Lion and Emerald
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**Hello Anon! (>w<)/ Writing in Leona’s perspective was fun especially knowing Leona’s personality lol. I really do you hope you enjoy this HC and again, thank you for your kind messages <3 
HC of Leona Proposing to Reader w/ Bit’s of Leona’s Past Lore
• It really wasn’t supposed to happen. Honestly. Truly
• The day he would mull over how to propose to you was something Leona didn’t even dream about
• No one would’ve ever believed that he would fall in love. Even the man himself
• He was the loathed, second prince – who would want to marry him? Cherish him? Love him?
• Yet here he is, after 10 years, being your boyfriend
• To him, it still felt surreal that he’s receiving love, care, attention. And the fact he reciprocates it back? What the hell has he become?
• Sometimes he thinks it was a mistake to fall in love you
• He’s afraid that he’ll cause you pain, that he’ll accidentally hurt you because of his outburst like he once did to Ruggie 
• After all, to him, you’re still an herbivore – small, fragile, cute, precious
• One hit and you’ll break. Even if you were strong to take on everyone who OBed back then, you’re still magicless. He couldn’t help but be amazed you’re still in one piece to this day, as he remembers all those crazy times 
• Maybe that was why he thought him and you, being together, would last forever. For eternity 
• Yes, he was badgered a sh** ton before to marry you by Ruggie and Vil every year . Heck, Vil literally sent him 10 1-hour voicemails on how he was being a useless beast last week while Ruggie came over and begged him to marry you. Rook, we don’t talk about ever. He refuses to think about that hunter who not-so-helpfully backed Vil’s threats with secretly taken photos and photoshop
• Leona( gets a package):  What the crap is th- WHAT THE LEGIT CRAP
Rook: Monsieur Roi de Lion! Did you like your collage gift of you and your lover?
Leona: WHERE THE F*** DID YOU COME FROM?! AND WHERE DID YOU GET THESE PHOTOS?!
• Listen! To be fair, de didn’t want to go through the torture of getting everyone’s approval again. It literally took him 2 years to get Diasomnia and the first-year squad to let him date you. 2. YEARS.
• He still doesn’t want Malleus and Jack to be his mothers-in-law. To hell with that really
• Leona finally curves though when he hears that Cheka was going to go to NRC next year 
• When Leona first heard about it, it takes him a while to actually realize that Cheka wasn’t the same annoying furball he took care of
• The Cheka as of right now is wiser, charismatic, and powerful. By the time he comes home for vacation? Leona knew that Cheka would be strong enough to give a run for his own money 
• It makes Leona realize how much time had actually passed. And how the time with you won’t last forever
• He suddenly feels fear as he thinks about it more. The fact that he might lose you for all sorts of reasons starts making him sweat as dread fills him as he imagines every single scenario that could happen
• For once, he’ll admit. He’s scared. He’s scared that he won’t be with you. He won’t be by your side not getting the hugs that tells him it’s okay, the kisses the seals that promises you won’t let him go, the love he never once received and finally did
• It leads to him telling Ruggie that he’s planning to propose to you very soon
• And really? The fact Ruggie did a spit take on it when he said that made Leona want to chuck his cup at the hyena’s head
• When Ruggie stutters, slowly realizing what was going to happen, Leona decides to be nice and spray water with magic at his face. Not throw the cup. Just water….that was inside the cup
• Planning took over a month because Leona wanted to get it right
• He goes over the details over and over leading him to get stressed, frustrated, and a bit worn down
• The plan had to be fool-proof and perfect. It had to work so that there’s no way you could say no. Not even the tiniest loop hole
• He even swallowed his own damn pride to get his brother to help him with this. I mean, since his brother did it before with his own wife, he would know what to do, right?
• Farena: Propose? Oh, lololol~ I just asked her after going on a date with her. Legit went “I love you, please marry me” out of nowhere with a fast-food ring. Of course, I bought and gave her a proper one but still 
Leona: You useless piece of s---
• Things gets worse though. On the day he planned to propose to you, you suddenly tell him that the two of you are invited for an NRC reunion with the rest of the group 
• My gosh. He’s about to propose to you and you tell him this? Really? Seriously, he can’t take it anymore---
• One thing leads to the next and he’s arguing with you. From talking about reunion to insulting each other to who ate the last piece of steak from last night were the things both of you yell about until Leona has enough and decides to walk out the door to cool his head
• He loves you. He really does. But seriously, can you have any worse timing? Do you realize how many physical, mental, and emotional obstacles he had to pass to propose to you? 
• A week later, the two of you arrive to NRC. The feeling of nervousness hits Leona like a tidal wave as he uses the excuse of last weeks argument to explain his “bad mood” 
• For once, he’s thankful you didn’t realize his ears twitching or the odd way he waves his tail
• Acting like himself, the minute he enters the courtyard with you and sees everyone, he goes “Alright, I’m out of here” 
• He knows you were going to yell at him for it so he adds how he’ll be napping in the Botanical Garden for “nostalgia”
• As he lies in the garden, memories of how you two begin flashes in his head 
• A grin forms on his lips as he remembers how you two first met here in the Botanical Garden and then his confession which stemmed from the Fairy Gala held in here
• He wouldn’t even disagree if someone told him his first and only love stemmed from his napping place
• Soon enough he hears you walking through the garden, trying your best to hide the sounds of your steps
• He waits for you to come closer to where he was lying down until finally, when you were in reach, he uses his tail to drag you down as a surprise
• He wraps his arms around you as he lets his tail let go of your waist, tucking your head under his chin as he nuzzles your hair
• When you start smacking his chest, telling him to let you go, he chuckles. He thinks how you haven’t changed a bit in terms of adorableness
• Finally, he loosens his grip on you, letting you turn your face towards him with a glare (well to him it’s more like a pout)
• He doesn’t answer you when you ask what’s gotten into him lately, getting lost in his thoughts and nervousness
• He could feel you resign and sigh before going back to hugging him, while nuzzling your face into his chest
• Gently he moves a hand towards your face, stroking his thumb on your cheek before lifting your face up again 
• He leans his head towards you, pulling you into a deep kiss 
• At first you yelp in surprise and struggle against him, trying to tell him this was a public area and people might catch them. But as he presses harder and deeper, you stop and start accepting it 
• He doesn’t let  go until he realizes you needed to breathe. The way your eyes were glazed and your cheeks apple red made him want you more 
• Finally, he gently moves you off him and gets up into sitting position. His heart races as he takes a glance and sees how you were looking at him curiously 
• Sighing, he scratches the back of his head. He knows that it was now or never
• Leona looks at you with eyes suddenly glowing from passion
• He gets on one knee and holds both your hand in his. After all, seeing how you were standing up, it  made it look like you were about to run away because of how he was looking at you. And like hell he’s about to let you go
• He confesses how he originally never thought he would fall in love, especially with a weak herbivore like yourself . But as time went on, your justice, your passion, and your person as a whole made him love you
• Leona talks about how recently he started getting scared that he would lose you and how he was thinking of ways to tie you to him so he could continue standing by your side for eternity 
• As he says all of this, his eyes are filled with love, adoration, gentleness yet fear for rejection. His eyes weren’t his predatorily fire green but passionate emerald, for once filled with light 
• Slowly, he uses one hand to keep a hold of your two hands while using the now freed one to grab the ring box in his back pocket
• Leona opens it and presents it to you, saying “I love you to the point that I want you to be mine forever herbivore” 
• Seeing tears roll down your cheeks as you nod, he smiles as he gets up kisses you again
• During the kiss he slides the ring onto your finger and then wrap his arms around your waist, enjoying your warmth
• When the two of you separate, he tears up a bit when he hears you tell him you love him and dives for another
• Or tries to at least if it weren’t for the sound of Ace and Sebek screaming “No” while Ruggie and Vil yells “Finally”
• He glares at them and asks how long was everyone here for as every single person starts to emerge from their hiding place
• It takes 5 hours to calm him down when Malleus shows himself and flatly says he won’t approve even if Leona were to ask him for approval
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yakultberry · 4 years ago
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daffodils in winter (1); l.jh
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✪ summary: in ancient times, only two lovers were able to sway hades into granting them a second chance at life together. even so, a single look back doomed their love story to inevitably remain a tragedy. but is fate truly set in stone or are we able to mold it with our own hands?  ✪ pairing: orpheus!jihoon x eurydice!reader  ✪ genre(s): angst, fluff, reincarnation au, modern greek mythology au, just,,,, a lot of pining ✪ word count: 3.2k words 
✪ a/n: surprise��@custardheart​!! i’m your cwc secret santa! c: <33 i had so much fun trying to not to make it obvious that it was me HAHAH i even told you my dog’s nickname in case you had seen him before. i always love our conversations hahah it feels like we could just talk for hours and hours, especially since we have so much in common hehehe you are literally one of the sweetest people i know on cwc and i’m so glad to call you my friend!!
anyway, this took me so long and it’s not even complete 😔 i really wanted to try making a fic that caters to you and all the things you like reading so i just tried throwing it all in there LOL also peep the banner bc i tried to imitate your blog aesthetic too (which i LOVE by the way). since i didn’t want to leave you empty-handed or for you to think i forgot about you while i complete this fic, i decided to just release it in parts adkjsfals hopefully that’s ok!! 
merry christmas and happy new year, taylor!! I LOVE YOUUU 🥺💖
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It was nearly 10pm but the night was as lively as ever with people bustling and weaving along like the small stream that flowed through the middle of the stone-paved walkway. They strolled down the worn path on which thousands of footsteps had passed before them, their breaths lingering in the December air as they laughed together and whispered soft wishes. The harsh bite of winter never deterred couples from coming  out to the walkway; in fact, many lovers used the cold as an excuse to clasp each other’s hands tighter, to press their warm bodies closer together. Even on the harshest nights, the walkway welcomed a handful of couples who would stay until the early hours of the morning. 
This could, in part, be attributed to the walkway itself, or rather what could be found on the walkway. Anyone who stepped along the trodden path would soon find the walkway’s source of life and warmth: a flower stand. Now there were many walkways with flower stands, some even host more than one stand, but none ever seen like this. Even in the middle of winter, the humble stand teemed as though it were early spring with its variety of soft pink tulips, vibrantly purple violas, dainty white snowdrops, and daffodils so yellow they nearly glowed. Each flower was in almost unnaturally pristine condition-- there was never one droopy petal or dried up leaf. Rumor stated that if you bought a bouquet for your significant other, your relationship would surely last a lifetime, outlasting the winters that you might endure. 
Jihoon, of course, knew that this was all a very elaborate marketing scheme to lure out crowds of hopeful couples. While he didn’t have a green thumb himself, he figured that technology must have advanced enough to allow for such beautiful flowers to exist despite the cold, but he wasn’t all too invested in finding out the how’s and what-for’s of the small stand. As long as it brought out the crowds, Jihoon couldn’t care less if the stand scammed naive romantics into throwing away their money for some flimsy symbol of everlasting love. What mattered to him was finding an audience, and he knew, without doubt, that he would find one here. He could already feel the lingering eyes of passersby as he arranged his amp and microphone, filling him with a bubbling anticipation that made his fingers itch for his guitar. 
Despite the tattered appearance of the case, the guitar within seemed to be lined with gold along its edges, gleaming fantastically under the light of a street lamp. Upon closer inspection however, it was apparent that the instrument was well-worn with its own array of scuffs and scratches along the neck and body from its many years of performance. The guitar fit into Jihoon’s hands as if it were molded to be held by him, and he smiled to himself as he strummed each string to check for tuning. Just like that, he felt home. 
“Do you always have to set up so close to me?” At the sound of your voice, Jihoon felt his grin widen, and he immediately looked up to make sure that you saw it in all its smug, cheeky glory. You stood to the side with a pair of stem clippers in hand, which he might have found intimidating had you not been holding a daffodil in the other. The endearing smile that itched at the corners of your lips didn’t do much to scare him either.
“This is where all the foot traffic is, so yes,” he mused teasingly. He then pointed to the flower in your hand. “I see you’re getting ready to shower me in flowers after my performance. People usually throw roses though, you know.”
“Okay, just don’t let it get of hand this time,” you said over your shoulder, already turning back to return to your flower stand. He didn’t dare look away, because on your third step back, you always twirled to face him for a moment to flash your unfaltering smile at him, which he mirrored.“The whole neighborhood must have thought you were having a concert with all the people that came out.” 
“That wasn’t my fault!” he called after you, but you had already returned to your post, greeting several new customers who looked at your bouquets with awe and wonder. 
As you began to gather flowers for a couple’s request, you could hear Jihoon finally open his set with a healing, energetic tune that had the small crowd clapping along to the beat. The first time he had come out to the walkway, it had shocked you how the first note he strummed had immediately taken a hold of you, how it had somehow melted your concentrated frown into a smile with ease. It had been the end of a long day and you were ready to close up shop when a boy had set up for a busking session nearby. Although he only brought one small amp, you felt each note resonate in your chest, and felt the music brush your skin as though it hung in the air like a mist. Suddenly, thoughts of your stressful day had dissipated, dissolved by the boy’s guitar and clear, pure voice. It was unlike anything you felt before.
And yet, it was so easy for you to give in to the enchanting sensation, falling into its embrace like you were reunited friends.  
Now you anticipated the way the melody gently tugged your lips into a smile and how your heart beat seemed to fall into rhythm with each chord. You knew you weren’t the only one so strongly moved by the music though. The customers you were currently tending to, a young couple new to the walkway, had immediately turned their heads towards Jihoon as he continued his set with another lighthearted tune about confessing and butterflies. Their sparkling eyes told you that you weren’t the only one moved by Jihoon’s music, and you couldn’t help but notice how they subconsciously reached for each other’s hands, fingers intertwining fondly. Much to your concern, a wistful sigh escapes your lips at the sight. Your eyebrows furrowed as you felt a dull ache blanket over your chest. 
You tried shaking your head to rid yourself of the feeling, rushing to finish wrapping up the flowers in brown paper and string. “Your bouquet is ready!” you said much louder than intended, snapping the couple from their daze. Both blinked in surprise at their clasped hands as if just realizing how close they’d gotten, and you bit back a giggle when they could no longer meet each other’s eyes. Much like many of your other customers on the nights that Jihoon busked, they immediately joined his audience after paying, unable to get enough of his sweet voice. You stared after them for a bit, feeling somewhat intrusive as they overcame their initial hesitance and held hands once more. And suddenly it was there again: this time it felt more restless like you were waiting, but for what, you didn’t know. 
It wasn’t the first time you felt this way.  In fact, every time it creeped up on you like this, it frightened you how it settled in the pit of your stomach so effortlessly as if it had made a home there, deep inside you. It made you feel like you had been waiting for tens of thousands of lifetimes. Like you had been waiting so long that you forgot what you were waiting for.
At this point, you weren’t sure if you wanted to remember. 
Throughout your life, the weight in your chest had made itself known only a handful of times, usually in quiet moments when the dark felt like it could swallow you up. It was the reason why you took refuge in the bright hustle and bustle of the walkway and why you lingered if only to be surrounded by your flowers. But now, it followed you even in the middle of a crowd, in the midst of the music. 
“Hi! Could I get some roses?” The voice of a new customer finally tugged your attention from the couple, allowing for the pressure in your chest to dissolve for the moment. 
 “Of course you can, sir,” you chirped, relieved for the distraction. “What color?  Would you like a bouquet?”
The customer, who stood alone, seemed to wiggle in thought. “Red, I guess! Don’t worry about wrapping them up! I’ll just take them as is, since I’ll be throwing them to that busker over there.” 
“Oh! Wow, he must have made a real fan out of you, sir.” 
At your statement, he let out a chuckle. “Oh, for sure. I wish he chose a warmer venue though.I guess that can’t be helped,” he said, giving you a meaningful nod, eyes gleaming as they always seemed to. You were taken aback by the sudden realization: You’ve met him before. 
“Right,” you replied absentmindedly, forcing yourself to focus on gathering the last of your customer’s order in an attempt to mask your bewilderment. You were positive that you had never seen this man’s face in your life, yet you were struck with the insistence that not only did you know him, but that he knew you too. He was there, somewhere in your memory. But the closer you tried to get, the further you seemed to step into a murky fog; was it a far away memory or was it just a dream? Chancing a glance at him only served to fluster you even further, especially with the way his smile made you feel as though he could sense your inner bewilderment. You cleared your throat and timidly returned his smile as you handed him his roses. “Anyway uh-- here is your order, sir! He’s about to play the last of his set, so you should probably get over there. Hopefully he likes them!”
“Oh, I’m sure he will love them,” the customer grinned, placing cash in place of the flowers. “Well, I’ll see you around!” 
And with a quick wink, he made his way to join Jihoon’s audience, and once more, you were left to deal with your thoughts on your own. What was it with the customers and launching you into emotional reveries tonight? You decided that that was a good excuse as any to close up shop for the night; you weren’t sure that you’d be able to handle another bout of deja vu or inexplicable longing. Plus you wanted to properly watch Jihoon’s last song, as you always did. You glanced over at him as you cleaned up,  but you were quick to avert your gaze when he suddenly met your eyes and offered you a wide grin. 
As much as you enjoyed his music, you couldn’t ignore how his appearance in your life coincided with these recurring feelings. It was perplexing how it seemed that with one strum of his guitar, he somehow brought you both comfort and simmering unease. But if you were being honest, you couldn’t say you hated it. You knew that if you asked him to set up  a little more upstream, your flower stand would undoubtedly become your haven once more. It was an easy fix. Simple. But even when his weekly busks frequented to every other day, you only found yourself clutching tighter to that moment of elation when he began a performance. 
When you stood there and listened to him play, you had a growing certainty that you would go through any length of suffering if it meant you could keep that moment. 
Jihoon was barely able to sing his last note when the crowd drowned him out with applause and, to his surprise, showered him in several roses from the stand. He caught one in his hand, eyes shining with laughter as he immediately searched for your face. Instead of finding you though, he caught sight of someone that wiped the smile from his lips. Before he could so much as curse under his breath, the man took hold of his microphone and addressed the audience.
“Bravo, bravo! Ladies and gentlemen, please give another round of applause for Woozi, Olympic Entertainment’s feature producer! Woo!” the man boomed a little too close to the mic. “Olympic Entertainment sincerely thanks you for all of your love and support from this past year. We hope that you can continue supporting us and listening to Woozi’s ballads in this upcoming year. Please be on the lookout for his new single that we will be releasing on New Year’s Day!”
As the crowd erupted into murmurs and whispers, the man turned to beam at Jihoon, who replied with a stare as cold as the wind. “Soonyoung, what are you doing here?”
“The boss wants you to stop screwing around and get back to the studio,” Soonyoung said with a shrug. 
“I’m not screwing around! You know damn well why I came out here--”
“Hey, those were his words not mine-- I’m just delivering them.” Jihoon tensed when he felt Soonyoung’s hand on his shoulder, having half a mind to shrug it off. He knew though, that Soonyoung had little choice when it came to the boss’ word, and neither did he. There was no use in taking out his frustrations on his friend, especially when the damage was already done. “You know that I would never have taken it that far if I didn’t have to.” 
Jihoon sighed, nodding. “I know. I’ll just see you tomorrow.”
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The crowd gradually dispersed as Jihoon packed away all of his equipment, and suddenly, he felt the full force of winter without the warmth of the crowd shielding him. He hadn’t expected that it would be so cold. After his previous busk sessions, several people in the audience would stay a while longer and approach him, usually to make conversation about his music or to simply thank him for the performance. Now they kept their distance, looking his way discreetly while they whispered about who he really was like he couldn’t hear them. Jihoon scoffed and slammed his guitar case shut, numb fingers fumbling at the clasps.
“Are you okay?” He didn’t have to look up to know that it was you. 
“I’m fine,” he huffed out, jaw clenched. When you didn’t make any move to leave, he gave in and looked at you, a grave mistake on his part. At the sight of your sympathetic smile, he sat back down on the bench; there was no use struggling to put up a front when you seemed to see right through it anyway. You sat on the opposite end of the bench, facing him to show that you were there to listen. After all those times he came here, this was probably the closest you’d ever gotten to him, and yet Jihoon found himself wishing you had sat closer. “Well, I’ve been better.” 
“I’m sorry that I sold that guy those flowers. If I had known that he was going to do that, I--” 
“No, that was all on me,” Jihoon said quickly, unable to let you apologize any further when you were merely doing your job. “You probably think I just came here for some promotional stunt.”
“I mean I didn’t, but now that you mention it…” Without knowing it, Jihoon let out a chuckle at your teasing.  “Even if it was for promotions, I don’t think anyone here would mind. Plenty of people busk to promote themselves. I don’t think that makes their songs any less genuine.” 
He shook his head, the sigh that left his lips hanging in the air for a moment. “I mind. I love my job and everything, but I really needed a break from all that extra stuff. I came here because I knew it would just be about the music. No one had stopped to listen because it was my music or if it was a Woozi production or whatever. They only listened because they liked it. Now I won’t know if that’s actually the case.”
“I don’t see why they can’t enjoy your music while knowing who you are,” you said, eyebrows scrunched together, and Jihoon watched as you rested the side of your head against the back of the bench. Have your eyes always been this captivating? You dropped your voice to a stage whisper. “Is that your secret? Is your music magical only for those who don’t know your true identity?”
“Something like that. Isn’t my music a bit more impressive if I’m just a regular person and not a professional producer?” Jihoon laughed. “I mean, imagine if people knew the secret behind how you grow your flowers in the winter. Don’t you think they’d be less inclined to buy them?” 
You snorted. “I don’t have a secret, though?”
“Oh come on, you literally sell springtime flowers in the winter! You must get them imported or have some kind of fancy greenhouse.” 
“I literally can’t even rent a space to sell my flowers indoors. I can’t afford any of that! They’re just flowers that I’ve grown in my garden. I tell people how I grow my flowers all the time and it doesn’t change anything. It still means something to them,” you said insistently. And then, softer, “Just like how knowing you’re some big shot producer doesn’t change the fact that I’ve never heard music like yours before.” 
Jihoon swallowed, wanting more than ever to close the distance between the two of you. It was a gravity that he felt ever since his first performance, something he had originally attributed to the walkway and how perfect it was for his busks. As he sat here beside you though, the force seemed to tug at his chest almost painfully until it was aching. With his hands clenched, he tore his gaze away from you, unsure of what he was going to say next. His thoughts were fuzzy, like a static television screen going in and out of focus, and the only image he could make out was you. Or at least he hoped that it was you. 
“By the way, ballads? I’ve only ever heard you play happy songs.” 
“This was the only place I could play them,” Jihoon replied quietly. When his eyes met with yours, he was taken aback by how much he meant it; even if he tried to play these songs in the studio, he was certain that it wouldn’t be the same at all. Forcing a smile, he finally met your eyes again. “It was nice while it lasted.” 
“Wait, are you not… are you not going to come back anymore?” 
“I don’t think I should. There wouldn’t be any point, right? Since people know who I am now.” 
“Oh.” I still don’t know who you are. This time, you were the one to turn away from him, a small frown on your lips. A harsh wind came in then, ruthlessly rustling the bare branches of trees and lifting loose petals from the ground around your stand. They swirled in the air wildly for several moments before raining down on where you and Jihoon sat in silence. Seeing how he shivered, you took the scarf off your neck and wrapped it around his own. “Here take this.”
“W-what about you?” When he moved to return the item, you shook your head and smiled.
“I’m used to the cold.”
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seeds-and-sins · 5 years ago
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That One Woman
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Pairing: Pagan Min / Reader
Rating: T (Strong language, violence, sexual undertones)
Description: Pagan Min saves you from the resistance, and you end up becoming his assistant, among other things...
    Day one was like a roller coaster for you. You distinctly remember sipping from a cup of coffee, calmly meditating to yourself, thankful to be alive; when Pagan barged into the dining room and started making demands. The first demands had almost everything to do with what you were wearing...
"Oh Darling, you need to get out of those rags immediately. I don't need my assistant looking like trash. Have you ever heard of perfume? Yes? You need it." He insisted you soak in the bath for a bit, get your hair done, nails painted, you had never felt so feminine before in your life. Of course he arranged everything, had his best designer working on your wardrobe in the meantime. Your king's kindness had no limits it seemed. All the while, he paraded you around and lectured you on taking better care of yourself, "treating yourself" as he worded it. While before you never really had the money to do so, he made every effort to ensure that you knew that whatever you wanted was given to you immediately. After the work was done and you had left your quarters feeling ever so nourished and tender, he put you to work immediately. 
"I need you to schedule a meeting with Paul for three this afternoon..." You followed closely behind him in stride, scribbling his words onto a tiny notepad he had procured for you earlier. "Make sure the kitchen cooks his favorite; steak and mushrooms, grilled onions, that special sauce-I don't fucking know what-with a side of mashed potatoes, broccoli, and biscuits..." You were already out of breath, he was a fast walker. As he spoke it was almost like he had taken you around the entirety of the mansion that was his home, before finally entering his bedroom, where his designer waited patiently for his daily fitting. "Oh, and try everything before it leaves, last time they overcooked the broccoli, and I was not pleased." You gulped, never having ever tasted for someone before, never having ever done anything like this before. In fact, you probably were the most under qualified person for this job and yet he picked you. Why?
"Yes, Sir." He made a noise of acknowledgement as his designer tugged on the sleeves of a bright yellow suit jacket over Pagan's outstretched arms.
"Also, I almost forgot, do check in with Yuma about the security issue we've been having in the west. She promised me a direct report by noon and its already ten, I do not see what's taking her so long."
"Yes, Sir." You waited another moment as he critiqued his appearance in the long sided mirror, posing, cocking his head from side to side, testing the look. You were wondering if he was going to say anything else, and when he didn't, you took that as your sign to leave and complete the tasks he had assigned to you.
"Oh, and dear?" You glanced over your shoulder curiously, he snorted. "Could you also find me a new designer..." His eyes then focused harshly down onto the poor man who had created the suit jacket. Pagan angrily started to rip the thing off, the mustard fabric floating down to the ground as the stitches were yanked out. "I am trying to look like a king, not a fucking banana!"
"Y-Yes, Sir." You stuttered out, exiting the room as swiftly as you could to avoid Pagan's wrath. 
You wondered if the same wrath would ever be afforded to you. However, as time went on, as you soon became accustomed to his temper, his demands, the routines of his nation, he never quite yelled at you. Ever. One time you had made a mistake, the whole time wondering if he would at least make your death quick. At the very most, he sent you off with a light tap on the wrist and a warning, knowing you wouldn't be stupid enough to make the same mistake twice. Granted the mistake had everything to do with something as simple as how he liked his coffee, but he had killed people for far less. 
   In fact, what was once a stressful job at first, became plain fun. In the beginning, you didn't really have much of a choice but to become Pagan's assistant, but now you sat across from him, handling all of his important agenda, of your own free will. Not to mention, the gifts, he would surprise you with them almost every other day. You were practically spoiled under his supervision, sometimes even being allowed to sleep in if you had done your job well enough the day before. You didn't know why people hated your king, he was perfect in every way, you would worship the ground he walked upon if he allowed you to. Perhaps you were biased in the sense that if it hadn't been for him, your rags to riches fantasy never would have come true. 
   You had your own room, all brand new clothes, new shoes, all the food you could ever ask for, an entire library that he had dedicated to your hobby of reading, and an office that was the same size as your old shanty. Of course, with all the pearl earrings, luxurious bed spreads, the wonderful view, room service, security at every corner, why would you ever want to bite the hand that fed you? Of course, you would die for Pagan Min, because surely he had given you such a great life in comparison to your previous one, you'd gladly give your life for him. 
   And sometimes you wondered, if that was your only purpose, to make sure his affairs were in order and to make sure his food wasn't poisoned. It made sense, your undying loyalty didn't come cheap it seemed and you hadn't even realized it. These thoughts, these wonders, stemmed from the confusion that began this whole mess. Why did he pick you? A young nobody, he could have easily let you die that day. You were always too afraid to ask him the question though. You didn't want to sound ungrateful in your curiosity. You would sit across the expanse of mahogany wood as he shuffled through important papers and made signatures. Every so often sliding them across the table so you could organize them into the appropriate file.
  It was hard no to stare at him, admire everything that was Min. That fluffy blonde patch of hair that sat on his head, how the strands flickered out in front of his reading glasses. The curve of the collar on his button up, how it lead down to reveal those few undone buttons at the top of his long sleeved shirt. His sleeves rolled up, taut to the crease of his arm, slender fingers sliding between slabs of thin white paper. Every now and again, those fingers would reach up to catch the tip of his tongue, and she would find herself licking her lips with desire, imagining that tongue on her own fingers. 
"Darling?" 
"Yes, Sir?"
"Do you have that paperwork on that shipment from Rook Islands by any chance?" You steadily weeded through the files, carefully removing the proper papers. You stood to step around the table and carry them to him. He didn't lift his head as he held his hand out, accepting the papers in his grasp. You moved to go back to your seat before he stopped you with the continuation of his words. "Volker sent me a letter again, the annoying twat, something about a mistake with the merchandise. You know anything about this?" He finally met your gaze, those glasses sliding down to the tip of his nose as he considered you. You searched your mind for an answer, truly wondering if you had made a mistake, or perhaps you had missed one of Volker's mistakes. You shook your head, twiddling with your thumbs out in front of you. 
"Not that I know of, Sir." 
"Hmmm," He crowned his fingers against his lips, sitting back in his seat, elbows on the armrest. "Well, you might as well have a look for yourself, might jog your memory."
"Of course, Sir." He gestured for you to come to him, sliding his chair back to give you room. Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he waved for you keep going.
"You can take a seat, if you will." You felt your breath hitch as you lowered your bottom down onto Pagan's lap. Your whole body engulfed in his warmth as he scooted forward and his arms snaked around your waist to bring forth the paper work again. His chin rested on your shoulder, the embrace extremely close, his strong cologne floating into your nostrils. His finger pointed at the discussed shipment receipts and the letter from Volker. You tried to focus on the words as you skimmed over them in your mind, but Pagan's close proximity to you and the very noticeable lump pressing against your backside was all the more distracting. 
"U-Um..." You cleared your throat, finding yourself leaning back into his chest. He shifted his legs further apart and you couldn't hide the gasp as the hard lump was a lot more accentuated against the curve of your ass in this suddenly all too short pencil skirt.
"Yes, darling?" He whispered huskily into your ear, your entire body feeling overwhelmed by everything Pagan.
"I think everything is in order, Sir." You finally were able to form a coherent sentence surprised at yourself for being capable of doing so. 
"I agree..." You inhaled sharply, his lips barely grazed the spot below your ear drum, along your throat. "I believe you deserve a reward for your hard work, right, my dear?" Yes, a reward, please. You wanted to beg on your knees, beg him for it all. The one thing he never gave you, never gifted you, praised you with. He chuckled, hands suddenly came to your waist and he scooted the chair back again. He forced you to stand with him and then he was gently turning you to face him. "I am sure you must be confused..." And you were, being Pagan's assistant meant that you knew almost everything about his life. One of those things was his overactive sexual exploits, people, men and women alike, were constantly going in and out of his room. "I swing for both teams, Darling, and I have been swinging for you for quite some time." While one hand resided on your waist still, caressing up and down over the fabric of your clothes, the other was now propped on the edge of the table and he came closer. "You must understand, this doesn't have to define our relationship if we don't want it to, but the tension is suffocating. I would like to just finally have my cake and eat it too..." His eyes centered expectantly on you, for a response, when he added. "All of it."
"B-But, S-Sir, I just don't understand." 
"Ask your questions, but my patience is thinning, and..." He almost growled the words that followed, eyes scanning you from head to toe as he pressed his crotch to yours and you gasped. "I might not be able to contain myself much longer."
"Why, me?" You didn't think you could do it, but you did. And this whole journey with Pagan has been a game of figuring out what you could do. Your confidence had surpassed the highest summit in the world, you felt like you could jump into a volcano and still come to tell the tale, like you could fly into space and catch the nearest star. It was all because of Pagan, you owed so much to the man, and all he ever did was give to you.
"You must be joking?" He giggled deeply, like there was some inside joke that you couldn't ever know, but he was going to tell you the joke anyways. "Darling, few know there was only ever one woman for me..." He cupped your cheek, and the other came to sink into the strands of your hair. "Until I met you that is."
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galactichoneybee92 · 4 years ago
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The Importance of Separating Authors From Their Work (AKA Nobuhiro Watsuki is Pedo Trash but Rurouni Kenshin is a Masterpiece)
So I was scrolling aimlessly through TikTok (As you do) and I came across a post from a very opinionated tiktoker about how many new anime fans are getting into Rurouni Kenshin andthey don’t blame you if you didn’t know before but that the author has been charged with quite a lot of child pornography and is essentially a pedophile. They said that if you “absolutely must” watch the show, or read the manga, you should pirate it so as not to financially support a terrible person. And I so agree with that. Pedophiles are some of the worst people on the planet and I will say it to their fucking face...BUT... you know what was not needed? The goddamn condescension. 
It kind of works to exemplify some of the very black or white, all or nothing thinking that I have seen on social media these days. This person was acting like, sure, pirate it if you have to watch it. If you simply must with the implication being that they would be abstaining because the creator is vile and that they low-key, high-key thought that everyone else should too.  And I agree, the creator is vile. But the series itself is old enough that you can easily find it pirated or even just purchase the books used from secondhand sellers, and it’s good enough that I actually still think you should. And here is the kicker: You’re not a bad person if you still want to read the series, and absolutely nothing bad will happen if you do. 
I can think the creator is a terrible person while still really enjoying the series he created because the series doesn’t feel like an extension of him. I will admit that it’s been a while since I’ve read it, but I adore the series and I don’t remember there being any creepy undertones or hints of pedophilia in it at all. If there were, it certainly wasn’t glorified. And I will say that I don’t think that new anime/manga fans should avoid it because the series itself is excellent. 
If you’re really bothered by the fact that the creator isn’t a good guy than you absolutely don’t HAVE to read it, and I don’t want to make anyone feel like they do. But I also want to stress that it is absolutely still fine if you DO want to. And it doesn’t matter if you started reading it before you learned about the author or after, and it doesn’t matter if you continued to read/watch it after knowing. It’s okay if you haven’t started it yet and still want to even after learning about how gross Nobuhiro is because authors aren’t their work. 
It’s kind of like how a lot of people on social media are trying to cancel classic works of literature because they found out that the author was racist or homophobic. It just feels like performative activism because whether or not you enjoy the works of H.P Lovecraft has absolutely no bearing on who you are as a person. And you aren’t a better person for not reading Lovecraft. In that same vein, whether or not you read Rurouni Kenshin also has no bearing on who you are as a person. 
The biggest difference in my analogy is that Lovecraft is no longer profiting off of his books as he is quite dead (I’m not sure where the money is going at this point, tbh) and Nobuhiro is still very much alive, but as we have discussed it’s so SO easy to get ahold of this series without putting a single dime in his pocket. I honestly don’t even know if you CAN purchase new English editions anymore (is it even still printing?)
Basically my entire point is this: You can boycott his series if you want but it is literally depriving yourself of an excellent manga for absolutely nothing. Whether or not you BUY it matters, because that actually has a quantifiable effect on the world. But whether or not you simply read it? or watch it? That has absolutely no effect at all, aside from maybe garnering some very niche social media clout for being able to flex that you didn’t do this thing. 
And I’m well aware that I sound like a salty elder Millennial on here, and I would like to reiterate that there isn’t anything wrong with choosing not to read it if it is just something that doesn’t interest you, or if you’re truly not able to separate the author from his work and it really disturbs you. I feel like if anything, my tone is stemming from the condescension I felt from the creator of that Tiktok, but who knows maybe they didn’t mean to come off that way either. But I really just wanted to get my point of view on the situation out there.  Frankly, I never cared who the fuck the author of the series was because when I’m reading something I’m thinking about the plot and the characters and not at all about whoever wrote it. And at this point, with these recent revelations, I now care enough not to recommend financially supporting him.
 But if you like to think of it this way, pirating his work is like stealing from a pedophile. Enjoy his series for free. 
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the-sarcastic-trashmouth · 4 years ago
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No longer just the two of us
Pairing: Eddie Kaspbrak x Richie Tozier
Summary:
That night, after washing dishes and getting showers, Richie was crawling into bed. Eddie was already fast asleep due to the stress he’s been through. Richie leaned down, smacking a kiss to Eddie’s cheek before he pulled Eddie back against his chest. He loved being the big spoon because having Eddie in his arms made all the struggles he’s faced worth it.
Eddie immediately turned around in his arms before burying his face into Richie’s chest, causing Richie’s face to flush red. He smiles before leaning forward and pressing his lips to Eddie’s forehead before placing another one on his temple.
“You are going to be the best fucking dad.” He whispered against Eddie’s temple before his eyes fluttered shut, and sleep consumed him.
Edward Kaspbrak was not a man of subtlety. He’s been mentioning facts about children for a long as Richie could remember, and that was long before they began to date. It probably stemmed from the fact that he wanted to prove everyone wrong and become something so much better than whatever his mother did. So, with that in mind, Richie set off to find someone who would be willing to let them adopt a child or something along the lines.
The soon-to-be-famous comedian scraped up all the money that he had and pushed it into a savings account to find them a child. There was only one person he told, and that was Beverly. For more than one reason, of course. Firstly, because he couldn’t keep such a secret to himself, and secondly, she’d somehow find out, besides he wanted it to be a surprise for Eddie.
With over thirty failed adoptions,  Richie was holding out hope against hope that someone would look at this couple and see how amazing Eddie is so he could let them adopt a child.
Finally, his prayer had been answered. He was sitting on their bed, biting at the skin around his nails, a nervous tick he had picked up from his mother.
“Please, you don’t understand… I know we’re a little young, but I swear to God… Eddie would make the most amazing dad. I mean, he’s already there… Me? I’m still learning, but with him, I know that I will do my best… But he’s just a father without a kid… and I can’t give him a child, and it kills all the time knowing that I can’t do that for him. I know that it’s a long shot, but please, please just look inside your heart and see that we would be perfect for this child.” He begged, feeling tears burn at his water lines.
He felt so defeated right now, not wanting to hear another ‘I’m sorry’ for as long as he lived. He could feel his chest collapsing and the hope he held inside of him burning out, leaving him charred and broken to pieces.
“Okay, how about I meet you and your husband tomorrow to discuss coming to the ultrasounds?” The woman asked quietly as Richie’s eyes snapped open from shock.
“Are--Are you serious?” He felt his hands begin to shake from the happiness bubbling inside of him.
“Yeah, maybe at the Davis’ Diner on fourth street? Say around three?” She questioned, causing him to nod as if she could see him.
“Yes! Yes, thank you so much. We’ll see you then.” He chuckles softly before hanging up the phone. He held it against his chest, trying to calm the thundering beat of his heart as he leaned back in his chair.
He glanced up towards the room they all have dubbed as ‘Eddie’s study,’ and typing away at his computer was Eddie; he was working on a project for his new job as a risk analyst. Richie’s eyes softened at the tension on the poor man’s shoulders from his workload.
“Hey Eds, I got dinner almost finished. You hungry?” He asked, walking over to Eddie. He took a glance at the mirror in the hallway, checking to make sure his eyes were puffy or red from crying. Thankfully, he was okay.
He smacked a kiss to the top of Eddie’s head before looking over the words displayed on the screen when Eddie finally sighed and sat back in his chair.
“Yeah, I’ll be out in a moment,” Eddie promised softly, not taking his eyes away from his work, which made Richie pout.
“You’ve been working hard on this. You need a break before you melt out that poor overworked brain of yours,” He teased lightheartedly, earning a scowl from Eddie.
His mouth opened to protest Richie’s words, possibly with a resort of a few colorful words when he cut himself off. Richie’s long, bony fingers began digging into the knots that have made themselves a home in Eddie’s shoulder blades.
Eddie’s eyes fluttered shut as a moan of pain escaped passed his lips before leaning his cheek against Richie’s forearms. He shivered at the hot relief that coursed through his body while Richie continued to work out the kinks in his muscles.
“See, look at that. You’re tighter than your mom’s--” Whatever he was going to save was cut off by a swift slap to the thigh. “Agh! You fucking dick!” He laughs before licking at Eddie’s cheek.
“Oh, gross! You know I hate you doing that!” He groans, swiping at the saliva with one hand and pushing Richie away with the other before they both started to laugh.
“Come on, Workaholic, it’s time to eat. I promise this will all still be here when you get back.” He comments as Eddie nods, standing up from his chair, which caused his spine to crack.
They were both silent for a moment when Eddie pointed a warning finger at him.
“Not a single word from the peanut gallery,” He huffs, looking at Richie; he mimicked zipping his lips and throwing away the key.
The duo walked down the steps of their shared apartment before making a b-line for the kitchen. It wasn’t a huge kitchen, but it was big enough for the soon-to-be three.
“You got off tomorrow, right?” Richie set the food down onto the table before sitting down across from Eddie.
“For once, but I’ll probably go out shopping. It is my turn for groceries after all.” He explains, taking a bite of his dinner.
“Actually, do you think that maybe I could go with you? Make it a date?” He grins, wiggling his eyebrows, which made Eddie’s face flush gently.
“I mean… I don’t see why not.” He murmurs before noticing a weird emotion swirling within Richie’s irises. “Are you okay?” He tilted his head, causing the raven-haired man to blink at him.
“What? Of course! Why wouldn’t I be?” He frowns, tapping at his scruffy looking face. “What? Is my complexion too much for your eyes to handle?” He batted his eyelashes, making Eddie snort softly.
“More like your complexion makes it look like you haven’t slept in thirty days and only run on caffeine and junk food.” He resorts when Richie’s jaw drops in offense.
“Ass!” He exclaims, placing his hand onto his chest before shaking his head. “And I even made dinner like a good little house husband! So ungrateful!” He swoons as Eddie starts to laugh at his antics.
“You’re such a dumbass sometimes. But I guess you’re mine.” He sighs solemnly before they both start to laugh.
Eddie can truly say that he’s never felt happier than when he is with Richie, which is saying a lot considering all Richie has ever done is make horrible jokes. He didn’t think he could be happy after the horrible childhood, but all the losers stuck together when they left Derry. The clown had bonded them in ways that no one could even begin to understand. They were a tight group and only let Stan’s new wife Patty into their little circle after she proved how much she loved Stan.
“No-take-backsies.” Richie shrugs, bringing Eddie back to reality. Eddie took notice of Richie playing with his food; he was about to ask what’s wrong when Richie spoke, “You know I love you, right?” He asked quietly, making Eddie blink in shock.
“Of course, I do. You know that I love you, right?” He questioned as Richie nodded quickly. “Good… Now, what did you do?” His sharp gaze bored into Richie. He shrugged in response as Eddie crossed his arms and sat back against his chair. “Richie--” He’s cut off by Richie waving his hands.
“You’ll see it tomorrow. But--I--I promise it’s nothing bad.” He assured quickly, but his tone left no room for argument.
“Richard Wentworth Kaspbrak-Tozier, what did you do?” He demanded slowly, making Richie wince.
“Ooh, why did you have to bring out the full name?” He pouts before shaking his head. “I guess you’ll find out tomorrow.” He grins before shoving food into his mouth so he couldn’t speak anymore.
Eddie didn’t look too convinced, but Richie immediately changed the topic of conversation to something else so Eddie couldn’t grill him for information anymore. Soon the comedian was listening to his beloved husband banter about people at his work who were absolute dumbasses that were going to send him into an early grave.
Eddie had been ranting so much that he didn’t notice the lovestruck look on Richie’s face as he watched Eddie. The younger man gestured wildly as Richie’s mind began to wonder about what Eddie’s face would look like when he found out what the surprise was.
That night, after washing dishes and getting showers, Richie was crawling into bed. Eddie was already fast asleep due to the stress he’s been through. Richie leaned down, smacking a kiss to Eddie’s cheek before he pulled Eddie back against his chest. He loved being the big spoon because having Eddie in his arms made all the struggles he’s faced worth it.
Eddie immediately turned around in his arms before burying his face into Richie’s chest, causing Richie’s face to flush red. He smiles before leaning forward and pressing his lips to Eddie’s forehead before placing another one on his temple.
“You are going to be the best fucking dad.” He whispered against Eddie’s temple before his eyes fluttered shut, and sleep consumed him.
It was the sun shining through the curtains that woke Richie up. He grunted softly, rolling over only to find Eddie’s side of the bed empty and cold. His eyes snapped open as he looked around the room to see if his beloved was there, but he was alone.
That’s when the door opened, causing his head to jerk towards the sound. Eddie stepped into the room carrying a tray of food and two cups of coffee resting on the tray. The two shared a smile as Richie sat up with a chuckle.
“Oh, wow, breakfast in bed? If you wanted me to put out, Eds, all you had to do was ask.” He grins, making Eddie roll his eyes.
“Shut up and eat your breakfast, you absolute wet noodle.” Eddie snorts before taking his cup of coffee.
“Thank you,” Richie comments before taking a drink of his own. “Mm, good coffee,” Richie moans softly.
“How would you know? It’s mostly creamer in that cup.” Eddie points out.
“That’s how you know it’s good coffee. Get a little hint of coffee with my creamer.” He flashes him a grin.
“You’re ridiculous.”
“No, you’re ridiculous. The only people who drink coffee black are really old people and people who want to punish themselves for no good reason.” Richie resorts.
“Eat your breakfast.” Eddie huffs playfully as Richie dug into his pancakes.
“So, what is on the agenda for today? Where all shall we be going?” He asked, looking up to Eddie.
“Probably just the mall. We can get everything we need in one place. I need to look for a new belt, and you need new shoes because you’re a psychopath who wears out his shoes in like two uses.” He points out.
“What can I say? It’s a gift.” Richie shrugs with a grin.
Eddie stood up before he started to get dressed, sipping at his coffee after he was done. Soon Richie finished his coffee and his breakfast before setting the tray on the floor and standing up. He stretched out before moaning out at the feeling of his body cracking back into place.
“Alright, I’m going to get dressed, brush my teeth, and then we can get going,” Richie explains, glancing at the clock. With how efficient Eddie is with shopping, Richie wasn’t too worried about being late to meet Betty at the diner.
Of course, it was at that moment that Eddie pulled out a list of things they needed. He began to ramble them off while Richie got dressed. He smiles softly at Eddie; he wasn’t even paying attention to Richie at that point.
After they got outside, Eddie complained about Richie not wearing a jacket since it was mid-fall and he was going to get sick. Richie’s mind thought on a tiny little bundled up child with Eddie towering over them, adding more layers to keep them from the cold.
“Are you even listening to me?” Eddie huffed as Richie started driving down the road.
“Mmm, nope. Should I be?” Richie grins at Eddie’s scoff before turning his attention back on the road. “Alright, let’s make this quick, yeah?” He asked.
“What? Why? Something important you need to attend to? I mean, you didn’t have to come. You were the one who insisted on coming.” Eddie frowns.
“No, no, I mean… The surprise?” Richie asked, hoping it would ring some bells. “I just--I’m antsy, and I wanna see your face. Is that so wrong?” Richie tilted his head to look at Eddie.
“No, but if you would just tell me the surprise, you would already know. Besides, you know I don’t really like surprises.” He points out.
“Trust me; you’ll love this one.” Richie grins before pulling into the parking lot of the plaza.
The two began to walk around the mall. Richie held Eddie’s hand as the shorter of the two dragged him off towards the stores that they needed items from. Richie was off in his own world, letting Eddie drag him along when suddenly Richie bumped into Eddie. He stepped back a few steps so he could look at Eddie and see why he had stopped.
Richie’s eyes flickered to where Eddie was looking. He was staring into a display area that had baby clothes and small toys hanging on the walls. Richie glanced back to Eddie, taking in the look of longing that made Richie’s heart cease up painfully. He looked back to the display and thought about the future of Eddie with their child.
He squeezed Eddie’s hand, bringing him back from his little fantasy before offering a smile to him. “You wanna go in there?” He asked, causing Eddie’s face to flush.
“Nuh--No, no… We shouldn’t. We don’t have a child.” He points out with a grim expression.
“Still, wouldn’t hurt to look right?” Richie asked, glancing down at his watch. “You want me to take this stuff to the car? I’ll be right back.” He promised before rushing off with their stuff.
After he came back to the store, Eddie was already deep into the back of the store. Richie finally caught up to him, watching as Eddie looked over the small clothing with a fond grin. He walked up to him before taking Eddie’s hand, causing him to jolt before looking at Eddie.
“See anything you like?” Richie asked.
“I see a lot of things. I would love to buy all of these.” He whispered before biting his lip softly.
“How about we buy something? If nothing else, we can give it to Stan and Patty-cakes?” He offers when Eddie looks at him.
“Yeah, I guess we could,” Eddie comments softly before looking at all of the clothing again. “I like this one.” He held up a small yellow onesie with little ducks on it.
“That’s so cute. And perfect since yellow is a gender-neutral color.” Richie chuckles softly. His heart was fluttering excitedly at the glitter of happiness in Eddie’s eyes. Who knew something so simple could make Eddie look like an absolute angel?
“I like this one.” He confirmed before looking at Richie.
“Alright, then we’ll get that one.” He grins before they went towards the front of the store. He knew they would be back; even if this adoption didn’t work, Richie would make sure one of them would.
“Well, we got done a lot quicker than even I anticipated.” Eddie chuckles softly.
“Yeah, you getting hungry? It’s almost three.”
“Hm, yeah, I could use a bite to eat. Where do you wanna go?”
“How about Davis? I want a cheeseburger and their seasoned fries.” Richie grins before opening the car door for Eddie.
The car ride was a little quiet; only the sound of the radio was playing through the speakers. It wasn’t an awkward silence, more of an understanding of the reason behind the quietness. Richie didn’t make a joke or try to break the silence. He reached over and squeezed Eddie’s hand gently, never taking his eyes off the road.
Richie turned off the car before locking the doors, causing Eddie to frown. Richie’s heart thundered against his chest as he looked over to Eddie. The two locked eyes as two different emotions swirled between them, fear and longing.
“Okay, Eddie, there's something I need to tell you before we go in here. This is where the surprise is.” He gestured, making Eddie’s head jerk towards the building to see if he could see anything. “It’s nothing grand like you think it is. But we are going to meet someone here.” He explained quietly.
“Okay? Why? Richie, you’re kinda freaking me out here.” He huffs when Richie chuckles, tearing up.
“Do you trust me?” Richie asked instead.
“What? Why?”
“Do you trust me, Eds?” He asked again.
“You know I do, even if I don’t want to.” Eddie snorts softly.
“Then trust me right now, more than you’ve ever trusted me.” He begged, taking Eddie’s hands into his own before squeezing them gently.
Without waiting for Eddie to respond, Richie unlocked the doors and got out of the car. He leans down before flashing Eddie a quick grin, causing the younger one to roll his eyes and get out of the car.
“This better be good.” He grumbled, following after Richie.
They both stepped into the restaurant, taking in a warm atmosphere and the scent of good food. Richie’s head tilted as he looked around the restaurant before finally locking eyes with Betty. He grabbed Eddie’s hand before walking him over to Betty.
“Oh, you made it.” Betty smiles, going to stand up when Richie waved his hand.
“Of course, you don’t need to get up for us. It’s a pleasure to meet you face to face finally. He doesn’t know why we’re meeting you.” He explains softly as Betty looked at Eddie before smiling.
“Well, I hope you don’t freak out too much.” She chuckles, causing Eddie to look between the two.
“Freak out about what?” Eddie huffs, growing impatient.
“Eddie, this is Miss. Betty Novak.  She’s the lady who has been so gracious enough to let us adopt her baby.” He comments quietly, causing Eddie’s eyes to widen. He jerked his head to look at Richie.
“She--She what?” He asked, feeling his throat close up from the overwhelming emotions burning through him.
“Yes, we came here to discuss how this is going to work. She wanted to know if we wanted to come to her ultrasounds and everything.” He explains as Eddie started to nod his head immediately.
“Yes, yes, of course!” He gasps, feeling tears start to trickle down his face as he looks at Betty.
“Richie and I already went over the paperwork,” Betty explains with a warm smile. “I’m not showing just yet, but then again, I’m only about to be three months in.”
“How long have you been planning this?” Eddie asked in shock. “You can’t keep a secret to save your life!” He exclaims, causing Richie to laugh.
“Two… Two years.” Richie chokes up slightly. “I’ve been going to couples after couples in hopes that they would agree. Betty and I started talking about a month ago.” He chuckles before Eddie surged forward and hugged Richie tightly.
“You asshole, how could you make me cry in public!” He huffs softly before laughing as he looks up to Richie.
“Because you did it when you proposed, so I think it’s a fair trade.” Richie grins at Eddie.
Richie gestured for Eddie to sit down before sliding down next to him. They both looked to Betty as she chuckles softly at their antics. Eddie took Richie’s hand into his own, squeezing it tightly as they began to talk to her about what Richie and Betty had already discussed.
It was about closer to five-thirty when they left, promising to see Betty on Friday for their first ultrasound together. Richie glanced at Eddie when they were back in the car. Eddie had been rather quiet after Betty had left, which kind of worried Richie.
“Eds, you okay?” He asked softly before Eddie slowly looked at him.
“You… You are the best thing that has come out of all the shit in my life.” Eddie smiles, causing Richie to blink in shock.
“Eddie--” He’s cut off by Eddie surging across the console between them and jerking Richie into a passionate kiss.
Richie grins before cupping Eddie’s face and deepening the kiss. The two got lost in each other as they have done so many times before.
“I love you so much,” Eddie whispered when he pulled away.
“I love you too… so much,” Richie promised quietly. “I’m just glad it finally worked. I’ve been keeping this inside for two years. All because I wanted to see that dumb face of your smile. You’re going to be the best fricking dad in the world… And I’m the one who gets to witness all of it.” Richie smiles.
“What about you?” Eddie asked with a tilt of his head.
“What about me?” Richie frowns.
“Don’t you think you are going to be a good dad?”
“Oh, fuck no.” Richie bursts out laughing. “I am going to suck so hard, but… but as long as I have you… I think I have a chance of being a good Pop, hm?” He asked before petting at his five o’clock shadow. “Might grow out a beard and get salt and pepper hair.” He grins as Eddie started to laugh.
“How is your hair going to be grey when you haven’t even hit thirty yet?” Eddie held his stomach as he laughs harder.
“Um, duh, I’ll dye it. Come on, Eds! Keep up with the times’ old man!” He snorts.
“So, you’ll be the cool trendy Pop, and I’ll be the worry-some Dad who plans and organizes everything?” Eddie asked.
“God, you’ll be so frickin hot pulling out a calendar for play dates.” Richie laughs when Eddie pushes at him.
“Says the hot Pop who is gonna wear socks and sandals together.” Eddie chuckles.
“I’m gonna fucking rock the shit out of them, too!” He grins before looking at Eddie again. “But… You’re okay with this surprise?” He asked softly.
“I’m more than okay with this surprise, Richie. I can’t wait to meet them.” He smiles before they shared one more quick kiss and went home.
Maybe Richie will show him the nursery he had created. I mean, Eddie thinks that it’s Richie’s workroom. Or maybe he’ll wait for another day.
Richie stole a glance at Eddie; his beloved was looking over the onesie they bought with the biggest grin on his face. Oh yeah, Richie knew Eddie was always meant to be a dad, and seeing this only proved it.
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thepursuitofunderstanding · 4 years ago
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January 31/2021
Well, hello new journal! I look forward to our explorations together. Now, what shall we begin discussing this morning? Nothing feels important enough to mark your first pages [this is from before I switched from paper to digital journaling]. I guess that I could say that I’m starting to catch a glimpse of what I might like my life to be like once I graduate Uni. That’s long been a giant question mark for/with me. Due in large part, I’m sure, to the fact that the conventional path seems to be a sort of settling down. That is, graduates go out and find a job; make a home in some place or other; date/get married; essentially people seem to settle onto one path--at the expense of all other paths. Which is fine--for them. I think that there shall be no settling for me. I must keep moving. This seems to be a condition of my existence. Whether this movement is within or without seems to be irrelevant. Or, rather, I do seem to to particularly prize/regard the internal movement, but I have found external movement to be a great stimulator of internal movement.  And, alas, as long as I have books and you [that is, my journal] I seem to never stop moving within. So that helps that. 
Most of all though, I don’t want to chain myself to some job that stymies my movement. Especially my internal movement. If I’ve learned anything about myself in these 24 years, it’s that such is a death sentence for/to me. I must keep moving. Inertia is death. Because a self-imposed death is still very much a death. Perhaps an ever deader death (if that’s possible). Now, of course, this whole ‘not letting a job chain me down’ does get rather complicated by the fact that I do need money to maintain my survival. It’s not like everyone in the world enters into the contract (or bondage, depending on how you look at it) of a job because they’re just total masochists. No, I recognize that for the most part people consent to have a job for the simple fact that it is required for their continual survival. As it is for my continual survival. Plus I’ll have some student loans to pay off (I try not to stress too much about that one. Uni is absolutely imperative for/to my development. I’ll figure out how to pay for it later.), so it seems that I will definitely need to figure out some way of generating moneys. But, alas, I aim to keep my expenses such that I won’t have to chain myself to a full-time job. I aim to do this by living in my van when weather permits and then...figuring something out for winter. I’ll live frugally--my only indulgence being books. For it turns out that one really doesn’t need as much money to get by as one might think. You cut out all that useless shit that people buy, get back to just the basics and suddenly things become much more manageable.  
This, I hope, will be what the outward appearance of my life will look like after graduation. And inwardly, well, I can’t even imagine that--I’ll be moving, that’s all I know. Working towards Greatness, looking at perhaps getting myself published; learning, always learning. This is how I’ll fill my life. It makes me so full and content to consider that I could cry. Oh what a feeling it is to actually want; to crave to live one’s life. It’s not exactly a feeling that I’m familiar with. Usually I tend to attempt--by any means necessary--to avoid gazing too long into the/my future. For the wretched weight of it felt only like a jail cell beckoning me towards it confines. Time, at my back, preventing my retreat, the chains of life always an inevitability; I could see no way around it. Or, rather, I could imagine ways around it (my power of imagination being what it is paired with my insatiable need to read anything that I can get my hands on (that makes it sound like I’m not a discriminating reader, which is false: I might just be the most snobbish reader that I’ve ever encountered. I’m so intimately aware that I’ll never be able to read all the books that I want to, therefore I must be very careful to give my time and energy to only those books that I deem to be imperative to my development. God I sound like such a cocky asshole. But hopefully a cocky asshole that is tempered with the realization that I’m not shit yet and I never will be unless I really... strain myself. I’m not sure how this spiraled into a poop(ing) metaphor, but here we are nevertheless.)) but I never felt myself to be capable of the strength and individuality required to evade that jail cell that I’ve witnessed so many people around me imprisoned by. 
Alas though, I realize now that the only thing more terrifying than attempting such an evasion is to not. For, to not attempt such an evasion is to surrender myself; to fail to become myself: of which I agree with Kierkegaard is a fate worse than death. I have discovered that I can withstand a lot of pain and discomfort in life--but not that. To lose myself, especially like that, to (how did he put it?) “pawn” myself to the world is not something that I will ever be able to withstand. I know this. Any leanings in the past towards such have led--always--to a crushing compulsion to end it all. I seem to be so constituted that such a pawning is simply not an option to/for me. Which is something that I’ve only just now grasped in its entirety. I seem to have had some hunch of it for a few years here now (thus the talk of the conditions of my existence) but only now have I managed to grasp (or begun to grasp) the full weight of all this. I can truly do no other. I have never, nor will I ever, have any choice in the matter. Or, rather, since I don’t believe in determinism, I should say that my choice is to either live “myself” or to not live at all. This is the ultimate condition of my existence. All other conditions stem from this ultimate one. 
Wow, okay, so this is why I love writing--why I absolutely need to write. Just as my physical body needs food and water to sustain itself, my soul needs to write. For through/by writing I come to be/tough ‘myself.’ Perhaps f I did not write I would become a pawn to the world. And I would never realize that although I might be physically alive; conventionally regarded as a living being; I never became anything more than a living death. For that’s what it feels like to pawn oneself to the world. I feels like one’s ‘self’ and one’s life is not one’s own; that one is merely a spectator to the unfolding of a dreary and rather impersonal drama.--Gross. That is, if I had it in me to even put up with any of that. I imagine that, being who/as I am, I wouldn’t live to see too many seasons of a life like this: the cape of despair eventually suffocating me. 
I wonder, what is it about me, my ‘self’ that makes it wholly impossible for me to ignore my ‘self.’I look around me and see the majority of people managing it just fine (or, rather, as fine as one can manage the pawning of oneself to the world.). Why is such a path/manner of Being one that is closed to me? I couldn’t attempt it even if I wanted to. Why/how is this??? What is it about me that makes this so? Because I realize now that my inability to do such a thing/live such a way, has defined my entire life thus far. It doesn’t seem to be something that I learned or picked up from anyone else. That is, I can think of no one who modelled anything like this in my early life. It was only later on, when the definition was making itself felt more and more that I managed to find others who also felt such a condition defining their existence. But those others didn’t birth it in me, they only (not only, for their friendship has been everything to me.) helped me recognize what was already there. 
My need to be/become my’self’ seems to be an inborn requirement of my Being. The condition of my existence. But how can this be?? For this condition doesn’t seem to be present, or at least, not nearly as stressed, in the people that I observe around me. It is this condition that has made me feel different--pathological--my whole life. Even when I couldn’t grasp it, it was always there, whispering to me from the darkness. It was never not there. Thus, I though that there was something wrong with me. 
It would seem that the entire trajectory of my life has been defined by the attempt to understand this whispering from the darkness. For I discovered early on that I couldn’t silence it without simultaneously doing away with myself. Because it is more me than I am... Whatever that means. And it is this whispering, this me, my ‘self’ that I am now engaged in consolidating; I am collecting from the darkness and attempting to explore and understand. This is what my life is about. Or, at least, it is the meaning of my life. My defining commitment as Hubert Dreyfus would say? And God is that which makes it all possible is what Kierkegaard what would say? God is the ground where all of this takes place; God is the sun which allows for the illumination of these dark places. It is only with/through God that the whispering can be understood? Is God that which whispers to me? That would indicate/imply that my ‘self’ is God; a fragment of God? My ‘self’ is atman? So many things to consider here...
Atman, my ‘self’, might this bear any relation to the concept of Nothingness that Sartre is acquainting me with? He does talk about how this Nothingness “haunts” Being. And I would certainly say that this whispering from the darkness of my Being has haunted me. Haunting is actually a perfect word for it. I seem to be more (profoundly?) haunted than others. Is this possible? I wonder, will Sartre ever discuss the possibility of some being more “haunted” or possessing more Nothingness than others? 
It has become apparent to me recently that this is my work. It is my play too actually, all woven into one. That is, when I sit here with you, when I lose myself in books, when I wander around and think/imagine, I am working. It may seem like such a minor distinction to focus on--such a trivial thing to notice and distinguish. But to/for me it is everything. I have always craved to be one of those people who is consumed by their work. I has always thought that there was something to important and noble about it. I bestows one’s life with an importance that isn’t there otherwise. That is, a life without this emphasis on one’s work is a life without a defining commitment. This seems to be an awareness that I apprehended before I was ever able to understand or articulate it. All I knew was that I was missing an importance/meaning to my life. I could see that others (though few) had it. But I never really believed that I would come to experience it myself. I had resigned myself to merely watching those others from the sidelines. Always to be aware of the game that I so desperately yearned to be a part of, yet never being chosen to participate. For, alas, it does seem to be a game that one must be chosen for. You can want to participate with your whole Being, but that means nothing unless one is animated from within. Otherwise one will simply be going through the movements; it will be purely mechanical. A true experience of/participation in the game requires that one lose oneself in/to it. And to lose oneself to something is never a choice made by oneself. That is, one can offer oneself up to this losing, but one can never control whether/if one will get swallowed up. I so wanted to be swallowed up by the game--by my work--and now it seems to be happening. I wonder, if one consistently offers oneself up to such a swallowing, is it inevitable that one will eventually get swallowed up? So many questions. And I’ve gotten so abstract and... mystical(?) in my thoughts now that I can hardly ask anyone else these questions. For, even the formulation of these questions requires such a lengthy and convoluted explanation that I’m unsure if I could even construct them, let alone hope that anyone might be able to follow my train of thought well enough for anything close to a satisfactory answer. It seems that I must wander the path of my questioning alone. And my writing is my mapping of the territory that I come across. This is my contribution to the literary community: to add my mappings to the mass of mappings that have been done before me. Because, after all, aren’t we all just trying to make sense of this crazy thing we call life? And isn’t life continuously evading our attempts to do so? 
The closer I get to Greatness the deeper I’ll be able to penetrate into (the mystery of) life. And, thus, the more precise/profound/meaningful my mapping will become. 
It seems to me that the only way for me to draw closer to this Greatness (my Greatness?) is by following the whispers of my ‘self.’ That is, I may learn from those around me, but I can never rely on them too fully lest I imitate them and lose the thread/path of my ’self.’ For Greatness seems to be... wholly individual, in a certain regard. By that I mean that... what do I mean? Every artist has their own particular flavor of Greatness. And it is only through/by this particular flavoring that Greatness appears. Because Greatness is... well, it’s not black and white; it’s vibrant and lively, it dances and lives. It is transcendent. It cannot be created/pursued mechanically. Sure it requires discipline and control, but it also requires personality and deviation. It requires that one break rules and forge new paths. These things can only be done by the individual. For it requires that one step outside the boundaries/limitations that had previously been set. This is a task that can only be done by the individual. It is not a collective activity, not something that any machine (mechanized something) might be able to do/engage in. The mechanized something is unable to do such because, as I understand it, these things necessarily require boundaries in order to operate in the first place. Or else these get swallowed up by possibility and are unable to function at all. Thus limitations must be set and can only be sidestepped by direction from some external tinkering/director. And, in the case of the collective... there seems to be a sort of inertia in the collective. As is a certain level of inertia is one of its defining features. For it is only by standing still that things (people) can collect after all. Yes, that seems right. Thus, only the individual, through their individuality, may pursue/tough Greatness. Although, of course, in saying that I also recognize that the individual is an amalgamation of everyone and everything that said individual has ever encountered (or will ever encounter?). So, in a sense, the individual is, in the individual self, a collection of Being. But, alas, a different sort of collective than what one conventionally thinks of when they consider a collective. 
Damn, I gotta say, I really covered some ground today. So odd too, I really had no idea that all of this was welling up within me. When I first sat down with you this morning I had absolutely no idea what we would be exploring together. Alas though, is it time to move onto some Being and Nothingness now? I’ve got to tell you, if I keep going at this pace, finishing it and The Second Sex by the end of the semester will be a piece of cake. I maybe should have set my aim even higher and also included Being and Time. But then, is it too late to make a change? Let’s just think about this for a minute... I’m at such a point in Being and Nothingness that I could reasonably leave it aside for a moment and return to it without too much confusion (I think). Being and Time only has 415 pages. And Dreyfus’ commentary on it is only 281 pages. Do I dare raise my aim? Doing so would mean adding another 700 pages to my goal, making it 2300 pages of dense philosophical treatise to complete in 3 months while simultaneously juggling 5 classes. Do I dare attempt it? I ask but I already know the answer. Now, the only question is, do I start Being and Time first or ought I take a bit of a wander through Dreyfus’ commentary first? 
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movedkagen · 4 years ago
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NATSUO TODOROKI  STUDY  /  MASTERPOST .
This is also mostly ripped from discord so if it’s choppy that’s why ---
TRIGGER WARNINGS : DOMESTIC ABUSE, CHILD ABUSE, LOSS OF A SIBLING, ANGER ISSUES, BODY PERCEPTION ISSUES.
Natsuo is loyal.  Literally he loves his family so much. like between natsuo and fuyumi, fuyumi has the stronger quirk 100%. Natsuo HAS an ice quirk but he can only freeze things that fit into the palm of his hand...so all he does is make the cola nice and cold before his siblings drink it.
So Natsuo wants to be a family practice doctor and he wants to do outreach work. Pretty much his coping mechanism with being ignored and hating being home is he threw himself really hard into studies, and just did his HW all night in his room. To tune out the yelling anf the negligence. He got good enough grades where he got into University of Tokyo which is good but like basically he almost didn't go bc like. 
his relationship w enji is nonexistent. He was an immediate failure in his eyes, he literally SAID enji didn't look him in the eye ever until recently....he never rly saw him or hung around him. and then like. by the time touya was starting to rly get shit / by the time he was "dead" and shouto got burned and rei got sent away natsuo was only five or so. So to Natsuo? enji was just the guy who lived in his house and ruined his life basically. he hated him. he didn't love him at all. He’s hated him since he was a small child. NATSUO WILL NEVER FORGIVE ENJI AND HAS NO DESIRE TO.
Me and Inad have discussed it but  because  fuyumi is the only girl, Natsuo is the true middle child. The one who was never looked at or spoken to by Enji. And FUCK ENDEAVOR STANS for saying otherwise, but natsuo ISN’T “the only child who wasn’t abused” or the one who “should be the least angry”. Negligence IS child abuse. 
As a kid, Natsuo had a stutter. He acted like a baby for a long time. He was also chubby as a kid -- ate a lot to cope. He was always bigger than Touya, and it continues into adulthood --- Natsuo is now. thick / buff. He was a chubby kid growing up, but now he works out and has muscle however he still also stress eats bc premed is hard and gains like 15 pounds during the school year, then loses it during breaks. it's just the way his body is. This is relevant because Natsuo does have extremely low self esteem -- he thinks he’s very plain looking, that his body is big and awkward and ugly (I have him as growing to be 6′6″ at his full height, taller than Enji), and it all stems from Enji’s negligence. At his core, because of his father, Natsuo believes there is absolutely nothing special about him and that physically and personally he is a worthless person.
Natsuo has anger issues unfortunately (as we’ve seen) but does judo to let it out. tbh he storms out of the house a lot because he doesn’t want fuyumi to see him fucking lose it.
me and inad discussed this but but natsuo HAS put a hole in the wall before and Like he was maybe 15 when that happened. it scared the shit out of fuyumi and he felt so upset he literally like. ran away for two days and when he came back he cried rly hard and promised she would never see him lose his temper like that again, so he storms out so she doesn't see him angry.  It was the summer before he started high school and as soon as he got into high school he started getting into judo and joined the club for it and that's been his outlet ever since. And whenever he storms out of the house it’s to go do that.  He's ashamed of reminding her of endeavor somehow. he knows he’s got enji’s hairstyle and body type, and that contributes to why he hates his appearance so much.
The reason he never brings his S/O around his house is honestly that... he doesn’t like himself when he’s home. ppl love 2 say natsuo has the least right to be mad because enji didn't "abuse him" but don't realize negligence is abuse. it's literally classified as abuse. he was literally born thinking his dad felt he was a disappointment to the point where he didn't talk to him or let him talk to his youngest brother and it HAS an effect on him. natsuo has a lot of self perception issues, he thinks he's ugly and he panics if he doesn't do things perfectly in school and just. is very easily made to feel inferior and puts himself down. he doesn't consider himself special at all. He believes he lacks intrinsic worth as a human being.
Natsuo only went to college after his sister told him to go and do what he wanted to do…I promise you he was going to not go at all and was going to stay home with her until she told him she wanted him to go. BECAUSE natsuo doesn't rly consider enji a member of the family at all, natsuo has this goofy lil quirk where he thinks he's the "man of the house" even tho he asks fuyumi for help with basic things!!! most of the time it's funny but it's honestly just him being protective of her. And natsuo does cope with some perceptions of toxic masculinity --- he’s NOT abusive at all himself, but he’s goofy in the sense that he thinks he has to be the New man of the house, has to take care of his sister, has to never cry or show weakness, all because he’s male.
ENJI TAKES NO PART IN PAYING FOR NATSUO’S TUITION. He doesn’t even agree to go until Fuyumi insists she will use her own money to pay for it, and Natsuo works and studies because he wants to pay her back for every cent someday. Endeavor DOES NOT EVEN KNOW natsuo’s current address or which exact school he attends. natsuo wants it that way, but it’s also important to note that Enji never bothered asking.
Honestly Natsuo and Fuyumi probably argue a lot about endeavor, But that’s okay because they still love each other. Natsuo knows fuyumi puts everyone above herself and rly wants her to be happy, which is why.......frankly.....he’s glad kenta barreled into their lives. Because he’s like this is something Just For Her and I hope she likes him and it works out.
continuing on natsuo hates heroes and he hates his dad and frankly if he had a strong enough quirk he would have probably become like dabi. he really would have and he truly hates endeavor that much.
sb: so u agree with stain? natsuo: idk i just want someone to kill my dad.
Natsuo doesn't forgive endeavor, doesn't fuck with him, and blames him for everything that went wrong in his family. He honestly wants him to die! and he HATES the hero industry bc a literal monster like his father is praised and rewarded and they HELPED COVER UP TOUYA'S DEATH!!!!
and like with natsuo + touya.... time for pain. “Touya told me everything” / “I still hear his voice constantly” ... i think about those quotes always every time i think of natsuo. natsuo was the closest with touya and I truly believe that. He loved him more than anything . He really loved touya so much and he never got over losing him. 
kinda like inad hcs fuyumi saw shouto in the kitchen, i think natsuo saw touya last bc the way he describes touya telling him.... natsuo is shaking when he says it like. That shit traumatized him. And he’s just so angry. He did not leave touya. They had to PRY NATSUO OFF OF HIM. Because natsuo is loyal. 
like me and inad hc that fuyumi wouldn’t tell Natsuo where rei was for years because she knew even at 9 years old, he would have snuck on a bus to see her. Natsuo is so loyal to his family he loves them so much. He would have done anything for them. He wouldn’t have left Touya. He wouldn't have let touya go without him there. Not anywhere he couldn’t follow. Not even as a child.
and natsuo would NEVER be able to juxtapose that dabi isn't touya. I think the first time he saw Touya he would know but it wouldn’t be like. An instant look. He’s probably seen clips of some of the shit he’s done on tape and it’s always given him this unsettling feeling. But then he looks in his eyes...and he knows his eyes.
I always picture it like Natsuo forgetting however dangerous the surrounding is and chasing after him, he doesn’t even know why he’s running; he knows he wouldn’t stand a chance against him. But he sounds like a child again when he says “Touya?”. He sounds like the annoying, chubby little brother that followed him everywhere. And yeah, he would simply need that confirmation that Touya is alive to take his side because he knows more than fuyumi did. Simply seeing him alive again, and I think he’d know EXACTLY what Dabi wanted to do with Enji.
Dabi trying to scare Natsuo and Natsuo just “Touya cut it out talk to me” / “Touya I’m on your side” and it’s because Natsuo could never EVER see Dabi as a monster once he knows it’s Touya.  I don’t think he could ever feel fear based simply on the fact that he loved him that much. Touya was his favorite sibling he followed him around like a puppy and copied everything he did. 
Touya is the sibling he was closest to and i think the same in reverse since Natsuo is the one Touya vented to. I think fuyumi was probably really shocked when they were kids and Natsuo would suddenly say he hated enji. that he wished he was dead. She’d gasp and be like "Natsuo!"
But he’s HATED HIS GUTS since he was a little kid. He didn’t grow to resent him either. He basically didn’t care about him/was afraid of him when he was super super young, but the moment touya’s quirk didn’t work out and he was like what, 7-10? I’d say like 7 or 8 when shit started just Not Working. Natsuo was probably 4 or 5 when his own quirk manifested and was weak. Had this initial “why doesn’t dad like me” phase, but Touya just told him once something endeavor did to him or why his skin is starting to scar, and Natsuo instantly went from fear to hate. There was no build he simply hated him from that moment on. That’s how loyal he is!
He said he hated endeavor for the first time when he was five, but anyway i think a lot abt how natsuo like.... has the least ties w them all. That's why I say he’s a true middle child because he doesn’t have anything he’s good at that binds him to the family or makes him especially important to anyone. Like...he CARES about and loves shouto of course but i think if fuyumi weren't there natsuo wouldnt be in the picture at all. He just wouldn’t talk to them. Especially before he started talking to shouto? Absolutely. After now that he talks to him he would definitely stay to hang around him but before?
unfortunately because enji KEPT SHOUTO AWAY FROM THEM i think about how natsuo probably had what inasa felt where he saw shouto's eyes and saw endeavor and like. kept up that distance because of the trauma (tm) and i think when shouto got some friends and got out the house he tried talking to natsuo and natsuo was like "wait...me? you're...talking to me?" and like as soon as shouto started trying to talk to him he was rly receptive and was like shit i have 15 yrs of info to catch up on. 
but i rly think that's their relationship bc he literally didn't even know what kinda food shouto liked until now?? but he loves himand has become instantly very protective of him and once again things that because he’s the big brother he HAS to teach him things and be his “positive figure” and frankly I think shouto feels a little thrill whenever natsuo openly shittalks their father because out of all of them natsuo IS the one who hates him the most openly.
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rotten-whispers · 4 years ago
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Trump Card - short story
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This piece was written directly before the 2020 presidential elections, but has no affiliation to any political leaders of any kind. . . Nor was it written out of humorous anxiety or political parody, all of that is simply a coincidence of course.
(Also available on wattpad, link in bio)
The year is 2116, and you have just sat down to watch the news.
Hopefully, of course. Because there hasn't been any good news in a very long time. The world has gone downhill in the past 100 years, people have said. And now it's a caricature of what it used to be, ripened by catastrophe and apocalyptic apathy in every corner of the globe.
You sip your coffee and wait.
The news will come on at 11am and play until 2pm, where, on the dot, it will be shut off. People should not be over encumbered by disaster, the news stations were told. Our country should only have to stomach it for a few hours every day.
You've never cared very much for the news yourself, of course, because it isn't very interesting. All of the suffering is so overdone, honestly, you've seen it all in the past 30 years that you've been around. Plague, war, environmental catastrophe, attempted alien invasion, progress toward time travel – pish, posh, uninteresting! What new disaster could ever hope to capture your attention? They were fighting a losing battle.
But still you watch the news, because there isn't anything else on right now. Plus, the presidential elections are coming up, and perhaps there will be something interesting there.
All sorts of candidates have appeared in the past 100 years, but they've all been eerily similar. All with the same unprofessional, almost childish ignorance. They have all had the same taste in fashion, and the same swirl of golden hair.
How odd, you and the rest of the world thought. I wonder if these people could be related.
Every year, one of these people would win, too, but every year, there was still a fool who would try to run against them. A poor fool, growing ever more desperate, who would rant and pull their hair and emphatically struggle to get the country to just once, god, just once vote for the other party.
Never any dice, of course. And so the clonal line would continue to win, year after year, and the world shrugged its shoulders and said well, you voted for him, cannot help you there, sorry.
The problem was, you don't believe that you did vote for him -- you didn't vote at all in the last election. Or the one before that, or the one before that. And the one before that? Then, you did, but you definitely voted for the other party.
The poor woman, dressed in blue, who turned directly to the cameras and begged your country to vote for somebody else.
"Not even me," She had said. "Just anybody but him again!"
So you had voted for her. And so had all of your friends, and your friends' friends, and their friends, and everybody that you had ever met. All of you voted for the frantic lady in blue, because you felt that she was right.
Those people did win every year, come to think of it. Perhaps it was time for a change.
But still one of them won. And still they laughed, wearing the same triumphant smirk that your country had become accustomed to, as the frantic lady shook her head and shouted: "What is wrong with you people?!"
That was the last year that you or anybody that you knew had voted. Now even the act of signing the ballot was a waste of time, because our fate was sealed long before the numbers would even be counted.
And this strange line of people, all with identical faces, all with identical heads of strange, golden hair – which had to be toupees, of course, because they looked so unbelievably false – they continued to rule.
And you continued to watch the debates, with a shrug for the other side, who never once gave up trying.
But there is always the hope that this year will be different.
You really, genuinely pray that it will be, because things really seem to be getting worse. The amount of caffeine in your "coffee" is negligible at this point -- hell, the amount of coffee in your coffee is negligible at this point! And don't even mention chocolate. You had dreams of chocolate, the forbidden crop from the dying rain forest. Every year, for your birthday, you scrounged up enough money to buy a single square, and by god did you cherish it. It was a bittersweet reminder of how the world used to be, a hundred years ago.
At least now, however, there were plenty of things to watch on Tv. Plenty of drama to keep yourself occupied.
When the news begins, you eagerly settle down into your favorite chair.
Saturday mornings, a wonderful time to catch up on the rest of the world. It was the perfect escape from the dreary office in which you worked, toeing the line hour after hour, trying to reach that sweet 10pm when you would be released. The new work day was 8am – 10pm, or hadn't you heard? We have to break our backs to afford air conditioning, of course, because the globe has gotten so unbelievably hot as of late.
That was the first story that you sat through, bored to tears almost immediately. Bored of the weatherman as he predicted another record high temperature.
"Wow, and we are going to be at triple digits for our record fifth month in a row! This is truly an unbelievable event!" He said, nearly word for word as his announcement last week. You change the channel.
This one is delivering an update on the plague. It has gotten worse, of course, as it does every week.
"In these troubling times we ask that you keep faith in our government, which is taking every possible precaution." The man said. His words were immediately interrupted by a commercial, advertising a new theme park which had opened in Oklahoma, and which promised a 10% discount to anyone who bought a group pass for the new season.
"You won't regret it!" Chittered the tv. "Nobody has ever regretted having fun!"
That's the usual entourage of disaster, you think. The world always ends the same way, and it does so about five times a month. You flip to the next channel.
Don't worry, they always said, we have everything under control. And then there would be an update with more bad news, and so the cycle would repeat. Sometimes the news felt more like a punishment than a privilege, these days.
But still, there is something that keeps you glued to your seat, the remnants of caffeine racing through your veins. You desperately want to find something new, something to distract yourself from the dreary world outside your doors. Because this is your day off, and you feel that you deserve a break.
Eventually, just before 2pm, on a research channel that you or hardly anyone ever watches, you find your distraction.
"A strange new discovery has been made that promises to change the course of history forever!" The woman on screen says, excitedly. "Dr. Dire, an entomologist has come all the way from South America to talk to us today about a strange little bug! Dr. Dire, what do you have for us?"
Coolly, a man appears. "Thank you, Miss Waters. My research crew and I have discovered a very unusual new form of parasitism that we have never quite encountered before. Have you ever heard of Ophiocordyceps unilateralis?"
"No," The announcer says. "No, I can't say that I have."
"Well, it's more commonly known as the zombie ant fungus. It's a parasite that penetrates the exoskeleton of ants, using them as a tool for reproduction. Essentially, this fungus changes the ant's behavior by forcing the host to climb to the top of a leaf or stem and permanently clamp its mandibles on the plant. Then the fungus will develop a stalk from the ant's head, releasing spores and mummifying its prey."
"That sounds horrifying! And this mind control fungus is what you wanted to talk to us about?"
"No, no." Now his cool attitude shatters, for a moment, filled with scientific intrigue. "I am here today to talk to you about Megalopyge opercularis, the southern flannel moth. Because we have just proven that as a caterpillar, this species is capable of the same complex parasitism and mind control as the zombie ant fungus. And from our experiments, depending on the host of the caterpillar, the lifespan may increase severely as well. We're looking at 30, maybe 40 years of parasitism! While an oblivious host is completely overtaken and used for this insect's needs, unable to communicate, cry, or even scream for help."
"Scream?" The woman repeats, with a laugh, but his eyes are serious when they train onto her.
"Yes, scream, because this creature can parasitize humans as well. We had an accident in the lab," He leans in closer to the camera, suddenly very, darkly serious. "One of our researchers, his suit broke. And this caterpillar crawled on top of him, pinning itself to the top of his skull. We heard him scream, from the horrible stinging hairs -- but we weren't able to reach him in time."
"Did he die?" Both you and the woman are completely enthralled.
"Oh, no," Dr. Dire says. "He was perfectly fine. Or so we thought. . . until a week later, when we discovered that his personality had almost completely changed. He had always been very. . . progressive," The scientist looks uncomfortable. "But now he was almost like. . . Like a caricature of himself."
Dr. Dire narrows his eyes. "My friend had become a completely different person overnight, and we could not find a reasonable explanation for his behavior. . . I thought that it might have been stress, or trauma from the incident, until one day when we ran into each other outside of work -- outside of our protective suits. And then I saw the top of his head."
"And?" She leans toward him.
"And the caterpillar was there. All of his hair had fallen out and the beast was in its place, like a wig, like a toupee. It had become him, Miss Waters. I know that it had. This ignorant, sexist fool is not one of my colleagues anymore. He is not one of my friends. He is a monster and the entire world must know what this parasite is capable of."
"I'm afraid that we're running out of time," The host begins to say, with a smile, but Dr. Dire frantically interrupts, forcing the camera back onto him.
"Listen to me, this caterpillar can infect anyone! We have noticed unusually high populations in the wild, with a distribution that has overtaken most of North America. This creature is not suffering from the changing climate, it is thriving. It is almost as though each and every one of our catastrophes has been a benefit to this beast. It thrives as we perish!"
"Dr. Dire, please-"
"No!" He yells, slamming a fist down onto the table. "This thing has taken over our world! Can't you see? Our ruined planet has become the perfect place for this moth to reproduce. Our bodies have become the perfect hosts for its young to inhabit! And all of us are just sitting by and waiting while it makes everything worse!"
"I think that you're overreacting," Miss Waters says. "How could a caterpillar possibly make the world a worse place? Even if it can control its victims, it's just a bug, isn't it?"
"It isn't just a bug," The man says, and he buries his head in his hands, suddenly looking very, very tired, like he had not slept in weeks. "My friend has never expressed an interest in politics before, but do you know the first thing that he said to me, before he left the lab?"
She shakes her head and Dr. Dire gives a dark, desolate laugh.
"He said: "The elections are coming up. I think that I'll run for president this year."
Something about this story has started to deeply unnerve you, and you are grateful when the news finally ends.
Perhaps it was that horrible desperation in the scientist's eyes -- like a man who had given up entirely, because everything was already lost.
You need to distract yourself from the prickling discomfort in the back of your mind, so you scrounge up some rationales. This caterpillar cannot possibly be that bad -- the researcher was only trying to fear monger because it's election season.
In fact, maybe he was crazy – they always say that you can't trust science these days. Maybe this caterpillar doesn't even exist.
With the news ended, the presidential debates would begin soon. But you feel too unnerved to simply wait -- it's time to settle your suspicions once and for all. So you pull up the caterpillar species on your laptop, and start reading, as the Tv flickers behind you.
Megalopyge opercularis, also known as the southern flannel moth, is renowned for its strangely shaped caterpillars, which are covered with stinging golden hairs, resembling a badly made toupee. The species has adapted readily to the changing global climate, and is now very common in all areas of the globe, particularly North America, where it reproduces in swarms every 4 years.
Every four years, you think, checking the date of its last swarm. 4 years ago, almost exactly. Just a month ahead of the presidential debates, just in time for the upcoming election.
The feeling of discomfort has blossomed into full fledged anxiety, now, as you stare at the television, waiting for the debate to begin.
There is something horribly familiar about this caterpillar, you think. Something that very strongly resembles its golden hair.
"Hello everyone," The president says, as he approaches the stage with his usual grin, like fangs locked in a sneer. He knows that this debate is just a formality, because there is no fear of losing, not anymore. Not since the past 100 years, when his party would win, year after year after year.
You and the thousands of other viewers wait for him to speak, anxiously studying his form. Thinking to yourself that he really does resemble the last president -- and the one before that, and the one before that, ad infinitum.
You wait, and you watch, and eventually, you finally start to realize the source of the scientist's desperation.
On the top of your president's head, as with all of the previous ones, is a mop of wispy golden hair, completely and utterly identical to the parasitic caterpillar.
"Let's get on with it then, shall we?" The president says, leering at the camera. "I have a feeling that this year's election is going to be especially interesting."
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braveboldbasra · 5 years ago
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my college decision experience II
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Hello bees! 
I’m part with part two of my college decision experience story. I just finished my freshman year at university studying Neuroscience (pre-med). When applying to schools last year it was stressful enough without a worldwide pandemic so I wanted to share my story in hopes of giving some insight into what deciding college is like. 
DISCLAIMER: I am NOT a college counselor or an expert in college admissions. I’m reflecting on my experience to provide insight on the process. I’m also reflecting on the AMERICAN college admission system. 
---------------------------------------------APPLICATION TIMES-----------------------------------------
The biggest piece of advice I can give any student applying for college is take advantage of THE SUMMER before your SENIOR YEAR. This time was when I truly took time to consider my future which was scary in hindsight, but I found ways to make it fun. 
First: Testing 
The not so fun part is testing and I used the summer to patent and pull up my test scores. It’s a great time because I don’t have other school work and can focus on testing. I took about two tests over that summer. The one thing to remember is that since it’s the summertime, there will be less test location available. I had friends who had to go to a different state to take their test and driving at like 4 am is not a vibe ;). I recommend picking test dates at the beginning of the summer because there will be more locations. It is really nice to have testing done in the summer because trust me things get intense after that. 
Visit/Tours 
The best way to get a feel for the campus is always to visit. Sadly due to current circumstances that may not be possible. That’s what is great about technology. I couldn’t visit most of the schools I applied to and that made me lose a lot of perspective. That’s what’s great about virtual tours. I also recommend talking to current students if possible. Some schools have programs where you can pair with a student, talk to them or video chat to get a realistic perspective of what life is like. This is a big thing that is very useful especially in the case you cannot visit. There’s no problem in asking questions. 
Let Senior Year Begin…………………………………… 
When senior year started I had a general list of schools that I wanted to app;y to, but not definite. One resource that was incredibly beneficial was college visits. This when admission officers from different schools visit your school. Now this may not be available in every high school, but in some cases, universities will post when they are in the area on their website. I got information on a visitation for the school I currently attend at another local high school and I actually got a free application from it. If you don’t see such information on their website, CALL THEM. Universities have phone numbers for a reason, to call and inquiry for information that can help in this life changing decision. Since school events are kind of up in the air, calling is a great way to see what this school has to offer.
Pros and Cons List Are Friends: I know I love lists and organizations, but honestly a good old spreadsheet can sometimes be your best friend. I applied to a total of 11 schools. To some that is a lot, and to some that’s not enough. For me, I can come up with this list based on factors I discovered while touring and researching schools. Now these factors are subjective to the programs I wanted to partake in. 
Factors: Financial Aid/Scholarships, Campus Size, Diversity, Study Abroad, Undergraduate Research/Clinical Work, Jobs, Academic Support 
This wasn’t everything that I based my decision on. There was also the X factor. That gut feeling you get when faced with someplace new. I am a STEM major who wants to go into medicine. While doing research into different schools, I looked at not only good programs for my major, but what they can help in view of my future. I’ve always wanted to do research and travel, but also am not oblivious to the fact that anatomy and chemistry might be a challenge. This list took me months to make, so take your time and find what’s important to you. 
From here I compared these factors for all my schools on a spreadsheet while also counting the biggest factor being money. I was able to boil down which schools I wanted to apply for to 11. 
Application Process: I used the Common App which is really useful, but also confusing, but the biggest thing in applying especially to a lot of schools is organization and pacing. There was a lot of essay to fill and a lot of files to send. What I did was separate the more important tasks like finishing the overall common information versus university specific essay. Then I prioritize when schools I applied Early Action and which schools I applied Regular Decision. From there I chose the applications that took the least amount of time to do first. Remember some schools require multiple essay prompts especially if you want to apply to Honors or Speciality programs. It’s all about timing and organization. Now applications are expensive to apply. The reason I was able to for so many schools was I got a fee waiver from Common App. These you can request to throw out your school or if you got a fee waiver for the SAT/ACT you can inquiry one for applications. Also be mindful of documents like transcripts and test scores. Sometimes they can take longer than the Common App and can cut the deadline short. I recommend submitting documents before your application because they do take longer and if you wait you may have to spend an extra $75 express delivery. When SENDING IN applications, it’s okay to keep an eye on those document statuses, but not too close. Once you send it in though, leave it to the college admission powers! 
Now Some REAL TALK……………………..
College admission is a system filled with unfair subjectivity that favors rich and connected people. I am grateful for the schools I was accepted into, but it was no piece of cake. 
I got into my dream school. I have known of this school for a while.
Close, but still far away from home. Challenging, but had the familiarity. I was really excited because it made me feel like all my hard work in high school paid off, but this is where that unfairness comes into play. I had applied to financial aid months prior, but there was an error. So I redid my financial aid on the phone and papers. Mailed them within a week of the paperwork made available. I was patient until about a month from decision day. I spent the following three weeks on the phone with their financial aid department until decision day where I was hung up three times. At that moment I committed to my current school. I would like to say this was isolated, but there are a lot of stories like. I learned that my dream school, not so much a dream school. It was terrifying and heartbreaking because I thought I made the best choice. Turns out I did. I committed to a school that I have family that went to it and I live down the street from. It tends to get a bad rep at my high school because I went to a competitive high school where a lot of students go to name brand schools. The thing is no matter the name is on your degree, what matters is having a degree. Don’t let anyone make your future feel smaller. I made that mistake and it caused pain. Your future is up to you. Don’t let anyone control that. 
I hope that everyone is staying safe at home and to all the students out there, I hope this helped. I went through a tough decision process and I made some mistakes, but I wanted to share it because everyone deserves as much as a fair chance at their future. I wish you luck on all your future and feel free to leave questions and I’ll help in any way I can.  
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bgn846 · 4 years ago
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Worthy Chapter 6: Trapped FFXV A/B/O Promnis
<Previous Chapter 5
A faint buzzing noise drifted in and out of Noct’s dream. His brain finally latched onto what it meant and woke him up.  His phone was vibrating with an incoming call, and it was three in the morning. A quick glance indicated it was Prompto, and Noct scrambled to pick up the phone.
 “Hey! Are you alright? What happened? I’ve been trying to call you all night,” the prince admitted.
 “Um – I might have to hide in my room for the rest of my life,” Prompto admitted in a small voice.
 “What the hell happened?” he asked, concerned.
 “That lady, um – Saeva. She tried to get me.”
 “What do you mean get you?  Are you hurt?” Noct asked, sitting upright in his bed with alarm.
 “She cornered me, and she had a knife.”
 “I’m waking Ignis up, and we are coming to get you right now!”
 “I can’t leave my mum, Noct. She doesn’t think anything’s wrong.”
 “Did you tell her snaky threatened your fucking life?!” Noct yelled into the phone.  “That’s gotta mean something.”
 “Hey, calm down, buddy. I can’t tell her. She wouldn’t believe me, anyway,” Prompto lamented.  “I can hide at home for a little while, but I’ll have to eventually leave the house. I don’t know what to do!”
 “So what do we need to do to get your mother to leave?”
 “I don’t know that either!” he wailed.
 “It’s okay, we are going to figure this out.  I gotta talk to Ignis, though, and see what he can do.  We need to get you outta there, like, yesterday.”
 Noct listened as Prompto recounted his whole ordeal.  It sounded terrible, and thank the six something had distracted her when they were alone together.  It took some convincing, but Noct finally agreed to not come and get him right then and there. The omega wasn’t going to leave his mother, so Noct needed to figure that out first.   Unfortunately, he had no time if this nasty woman was after him.
 After forty minutes, Noct could barely stay awake, and Prompto kept yawning.  He made the omega promise to call him when he woke up the next morning. He needed to be sure his friend was safe.
 Sleep was fitful at best, but morning finally came, and Noct exchanged text messages with Prompto.  He was still in his room with the door locked. Good. He was safe for the day, hopefully. Now to get Ignis updated and on the case.
    --
   “Are you sure he’s up for the task, dearest? I mean he’s not exactly – bright,” Saeva pondered in a hushed tone from behind a large column.
 “I’m telling you he’s perfect. Besides, I can’t really ask Alban, now can I?” Otho frowned.  He really was desperate to make the dark-haired woman happy. She’d unexpectedly visited Otho last night, and he was still feeling the effects of their activities.  A very small part of his brain recognized his actions as a betrayal to his older brother Alban. However, this opportunity was too good to pass up.
 Saeva had begged his help in a certain matter regarding his omegan step brother Prompto.  Turns out the little stinker was trying to work his way to the top of the line. Otho rarely spoke with Prompto, but according to Saeva he was plotting something nasty.
 Apparently, Prompto’s whole painfully shy routine was a façade. Saeva recounted how the blond had cornered her at the banquet and threatened her life.  The little bastard wanted her to leave and drop the engagement.
 Saeva had stopped several times during the retelling of the incident to cry.  Otho had made sure he was nearby to provide a shoulder to cry on. The most shocking part of the story was Alban’s reaction.   His older brother had supposedly dismissed the whole thing and claimed she was drunk. Then, to add insult to injury, he’d tried to force himself on her, but Saeva had managed to get away.  It was amazing that even as a rare alpha female, she still had trouble with this sort of thing.
 This beautifully delicate woman was in fear for her life, and Otho was determined to save her.  Otho had consoled her most of the night, offering to help in any way he could. Saeva had tearfully admitted the only way she would feel truly safe was if both Prompto and Alban were gone.   Without hesitation, Otho had pledged his assistance. He had to save her. His first task was to get Prompto out of the way; the wiry blond seemed like an easy target. Alban was another matter.
 Currently, they were both hiding behind a column waiting for Amet, one of his other brothers.  Otho knew he would be a perfect match for the job he had in mind. As Saeva had so pointedly noticed, Amet wasn’t the brightest.  However, his lack of basic life skills was essential if he got caught. Amet would most likely forget all important details pertaining to his given task.
 “Wait here, dove. I’ll be right back.” Otho offered as he slipped out to speak with Amet.  Saeva nodded and stayed out of sight.
 Sauntering over, Otho greeted his brother.  “Amet, I appreciate you meeting me away from the palace.”
 “Anytime, brother. You seemed stressed over the phone.”
 “Oh, very. Some information has come to light that indicates Alban’s life may be in danger.”
 Amet blinked stupidly for a few seconds before he could answer.  “How?”
 “This will sound crazy, but it appears our step-brother may be plotting against us all.”
 “Who?” he asked with an equally dazed expression.
 Sighing through his nose, Otho worked to control his temper.   Dealing with Amet came with certain challenges. “Our step brother, the omega,” he tried again, unwilling to actually say Prompto’s name.
 “Huh, which one?”  
 Otho was working hard to not yell.  “Not our half-brothers, Amet. Our step-brother.”
 “Oh right, Cirus.  He seemed fine when I saw him yeste--.”
 “Prompto!” Otho hissed, cutting his younger brother off.  “Our fucking step-brother, you nitwit!”
 “Oh, right, that one. I get them all confused.  Do you need me to deliver a message or something?” Amet asked innocently.  
 “What do you mean that one?” Otho sputtered. “We only have the one step-brother! Astrals, never mind. I need you to hire someone to make him leave the city.”
 “Cirus?”
 “No.” Otho growled, “Prompto.”
 “Oh, yeah. Right, the omega.”
 “Yes. Now can you handle that?”
 “Yeah, for sure. I can deliver a message to Cirus, no problem.”  Amet smiled.
 “No. Not Cirus. Please forget you ever mentioned his name.”
 “Of course, brother. Now what did you want again?”
 Otho balled his fits up and took a deep breath. He tried to control his scent. The last thing he needed was to set off Amet’s alpha rage inadvertently.   “I need you to hire someone to make Prompto leave the city.”
 “Who?”
 “Preferably someone that knows how to use force.”      
 “Right, that makes sense.  You know I could do it myself. I work out.” Amet beamed as he flexed his right arm.
 “I know you do, but hire someone.  I need Prompto to be gone by the end of the week.”
 “Consider it done, I’ll make Cir — I mean Prompto — leave right away.”
 “Good. Be sure to use the private account if you need to pay the person you hire.”
 “Uh, how do I find this person, anyway -  the one I need to hire?” Amet questioned with a furrowed brow.
 “Go to the shitty part of town with some cash and start asking people to help you get rid of someone.  They’ll want a name and money.”
 “Huh – that easy, eh.  Great, I’ll go get some money now.  Do you want to do dinner later?” Amet asked eagerly.
 “Forgive me, brother, but I’m otherwise engaged. Perhaps another time,” Otho offered as he backed away. ��Amet waved goodbye and smiled as he turned to leave the empty corridor. Phase one had been set in motion.  Otho knew Amet would draw far too much attention during his mission, and once things were said and done, he’d probably go to prison for his role.  However, that would mean there was one less person to threaten his claim to the throne.
 Saeva was still waiting for him behind the column.  “Dear heart, I must go run an errand. Will you be free for dinner?”
 “Where are you going? What if Alban sees you?”
 “I’ll be alright; this is something I must attend to privately.  Women’s matters. You understand, don’t you?” She crooned.
 “Of course, dove. I’ll be waiting.”  Otho smiled. He watched as his dark-haired beauty quietly slipped away into the shadows.  Things had been set in motion. Now he just had to sit back and wait.
    --
     Ignis had been on edge all morning.  The prince had actually called him before Ignis had left his apartment.
 That never happened.
 Ever.
 Noct had been in a panic about Lady Saeva and how she was out to get Prompto.  The advisor listened dutifully and tried to calm his charge, but Noct was truly fearful over what might happen if they didn’t intervene.
 Thankfully, Ignis had enough foresight to send Nyx back to keep tabs on Saeva and Prince Prompto.  His nervousness at the moment stemmed from not having received a check in from Nyx. The soldier had arrived in Niflheim sometime in the middle of the night. Aside from a short text indicating he’d landed, Ignis had heard nothing else.  He knew he was riding a fine line sending a glaive into another kingdom to spy, but someone’s life was in danger.
 The person who      had     managed to clog his inbox was Noct. The prince had been texting him nearly every fifteen minutes wanting an update.  Ignis almost regretted telling him that he’d sent Nyx. However, the advisor knew if he hadn’t said anything, Noct would have been a total wreck.  This was a lesser of two evils.
 Finally, at around one thirty in the afternoon, Ignis received a text that wasn’t from Noct.
Nyx Ulric 1:32pm: This shit is real… o-o  sunshine still beaming, snaky is scary af.  Got job interview to go to now.
 Ignis stared at his phone. What in Titan’s name was Nyx up to in Niflheim?  Opting to keep it simple, he replied      good luck     and pocketed his phone.  He knew they couldn’t text exact details, but Nyx definitely had a way with words - or the lack thereof, Ignis wasn’t sure.
 Taking a deep breath, he continued on in his day, clinging to the small bit of Nyx’s text that read,      sunshine still beaming    .  Prompto was safe for now.  That’s what mattered.
     --
     Nyx had been following Amet Clavus, the third in line to the Niflheim throne, for an hour.  He’d been trailing Saeva Pravus all morning after she’d left Otho Calvus quarters. Nyx was too far away to hear what had transpired between Otho and Amet during their meeting, but he was sure it was important.
 Hoping his hunch was correct; Nyx chose to follow Amet for the afternoon.   His efforts were about to pay off big time. The hulking form of the alpha strolled ahead at a leisurely pace in the most disgusting part of town Nyx had ever seen.  If it weren’t for the fact that the man was clearly a body-builder and stood damn near close to Gladio’s height, he would have been robbed ages ago.
 Finally, Nyx was able to overhear what Amet had been asking people.  He needed a hired gun to run someone out of town. Putting on his best smile, Nyx wandered up to Amet and slapped him on the arm.   “Oi, I hear you’re in the market for some hired muscle. Can’t imagine why, though. You’ve got plenty to go around.”
 Amet stared at him for a moment and then smiled back.  “I do work out quite a bit. Every day, in fact,” he announced proudly. A burst of pheromones soon followed, confirming his happiness regarding the topic.
 “That’s excellent, gotta keep those muscles in peak condition.  So, I hear you need help with something?” Nyx tried again.
 “Oh!  Yes, I need someone to leave town by the end of the week.”
  “Uh – sure, I can help out with that,” Nyx replied, suddenly realizing that Amet was a few players short of a full team.
 “Great!” Amet breathed in relief.  “I really want to get back so I can work out again, and it was taking too long to find someone.”
 “Right, well, I’m your man.” Nyx grinned as he smoothed out his black denim jacket.  Ignis had instructed him to go undercover and not wear anything that could tie him back to the crown.
 “Ok, then, if you could swing by later and let me know when you’re done, that’d be great. I have to tell my brother.”
 “I can do that, no problem.” Nyx answered slowly even though the large alpha hadn’t given him a location.  Amet made to walk away, and Nyx scooted around in front of him again. “I just need a name and a deposit.”
 “Yeah! So it’s my half – no wait!” Amet paused dramatically holding his hands out. “It’s my step-brother, Cirus! Oh no, that’s not right, either!”  The man sighed and furrowed his brow clearly deep in thought.
 “Would it help if I tired guessing?” Nyx offered dryly.
 “It’s on the tip of my brain.”
 Nyx figured a lot of things were on the tip of Amet’s brain, but they’d been ignored for so long they’d turned to dust ages ago.  The glaive was about to start throwing letters out to help when Amet sprang back to life.
 “The omega!  His name begins with a P.  That’s all I remember.”
 “Where does this omega live?” Nyx questioned further.
 “With me.”
 “Oh – like, um, in the same house?”
 “No, a different one.”
 Nyx decided to take a different direction even though he knew who Amet was talking about and where Prompto lived. “So where do you live?” he asked gleefully.
 “Under the old keep. You know, in the government compound where the royals live,” Amet whispered as if it mattered.
 “Gotcha, I know where that is.  So I just need a deposit, and I’ll be on my merry way.”
 “Perfect. I really gotta go,” agreed Amet as he dug around in his pocket and handed over a wad of cash.
 Nyx nearly busted a blood vessel when Amet gave it to him.  The glaive pocketed it as fast as he could and hoped no one would come after him for it next.  
 “Bye!” Amet cheered as he turned and left.
 Nyx literally ran back to the airfield where he’d been hiding out.  The shed Prompto had hid his clothes in proved to be a perfect base of operations. Thankfully, no one followed him, and he hid the money after wiping off his prints.   Now to find out what Saeva was up to. But before he left again, Nyx texted Ignis once more.
 Nyx Ulric 3:48pm:          Got the job but it's night shift, boss doesn’t mind if it’s dark all day long.  I might have to take my work home with me if it gets difficult.  
     --
   Prompto flinched when his phone chimed.  He’d been on edge all day wondering if Saeva would try something again.  Prompto wouldn’t put it past her to visit his house; she truly was a snake.  Grabbing his phone revealed a message from Ignis.
Ignis Scientia 3:55pm: Are you doing alright?
 The blond blinked a few times.  Ignis was checking on him, but why?  He knew the advisor was aware of his predicament, but he didn’t think he’d text him directly.
Prompto Argentum 3:58pm: I’m okay, just nervous about seeing Saeva again.
 Ignis Scientia 4:00pm      :          I would advise you to stay in your room for as long as you can.  Do you still have Nyx’s phone number?  
 He thought about the nice beta soldier that they’d stationed outside Noct’s suite in Insomnia.  He still had the number, but he’d never used it.
Prompto Argentum 4:02pm: Yeah I still have it.
 Ignis Scientia 4:03pm:          Excellent. Keep it and call or text that number if you need immediate assistance.  Is that understood?  
 Prompto stared at his phone. Did that mean that soldier was here?  Was Nyx in Niflheim? That meant he could leave, if he had an escort.  However, he remembered he still had to convince his mother to leave.    
 Prompto Argentum 4:05pm:          Ok I will.  Thanks for checking on me.  
Ignis Scientia 4:05pm: Of course, anything to help.
 Waiting a few minutes produced no more messages, and Prompto focused on taking deep breaths.  He was going to survive this. He had people who wanted to help and who wanted to be friends with him.
    --
     Checking her phone once more, Saeva looked up and smiled sweetly at Alban.  The dolt was clueless about everything. He’d already completely forgotten about her issue with Prompto.  He was prattling on about the latest model car that had been released in Altissia and showed no signs of stopping.  “Darling, I feel a headache coming on. I’m going to retire to my rooms for a nap.”
 This comment seemed to shut Alban up.  “Oh, can I come?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.  
 Working to hide her disdain, Saeva smiled again. “Oh, I would love to have you, but I fear my headache is too great.  Rain check?”
 The slightly balding alpha seemed upset, but he backed off.  “Of course. Perhaps we could do dinner together?”
 “Wasn’t this lovely lunch enough? Besides, I fear I may still be sleeping later. Tomorrow?”
 Alban agreed, and Saeva finally stood to leave the stuffy room they’d been confined to for over an hour.  She had her own meeting to attend. Smiling, she quickly left the suites and went outside the royal compound.
 Things were going well.  The groundwork had been laid linking Otho and Amet with the plot to harm Prompto.  However, she still needed to arrange his actual death. She didn’t trust either of them to accomplish the task.  Amet was a good looking lump of muscle and nothing more. Otho was blinded by her kisses and promises. He didn’t stand a chance.  Now when the lowly boy turned up dead, they would go down for his murder.
  Alban, on the other hand, was moldable; she could work with that later.
 Meeting with an assassin for hire in the late afternoon wasn’t normal, but nothing Saeva did followed the rules.  Ducking into a side street, she huddled into her fur lined coat and waited.
 “I didn’t think you’d show up,” a sultry voice nearby called out.
 “I have a tight schedule to keep, so this was my only availability,” Saeva replied.
 “Hmmm, I see.  Details please?” the voice asked as the figure came out from an overhang.
 Saeva pulled a small envelope out of her inside coat pocket and handed it over to the woman approaching.  She was wearing a long fitted trench coat and military grade boots. After pocketing the item, the light haired woman smiled ever so slightly and stared at Saeva.  She made no move to say anything else, and appeared to be studying her.
 Taking a deep breath Saeva nodded curtly.  She was done with this transaction and needed to return to the government compound.   Suddenly, the other woman shifted and was directly in front of her. Saeva was unable to fight back when the assassin roughly shoved her into the wall.
 “Something about you doesn’t sit well with me,” she offered in a hushed tone.
 Saeva went to push her away, but something sharp poked her in the side.  This fucking bitch had pulled a knife on her. “If you want the rest of your fucking money, whore, I suggest you back off,” Saeva spit.
 “Oh no, how scary --” The woman drawled coolly.  “Listen up, gold digger. If you want to stay pretty, I suggest you keep your end of the bargain.  Also, my price just went up for your brass assumption regarding my sexual habits. Now, off you go. Run back to your big, strong, stupid alphas and play with them.”
 The anger bubbling up in Saeva’s veins was causing her to shake.  How dare this woman talk to her in such a manner. “Fuck off!” she hissed.
 The woman shrugged slightly and tilted her head. “If that’s what you want.”
 Biting back a yelp, Saeva felt the woman get      even     closer, as she leaned in with her full weight.  What in Shiva’s name was happening? The knife was a steady presence in her side, so she couldn’t move away.
 Saeva then felt a pair of sharp teeth near her neck.  “Stop it. I’ll pay the extra,” she relented unhappily.  She couldn’t risk getting bitten. The other woman was an alpha and knew what she was doing.  If Saeva had gotten marked, then she couldn’t marry the king. This fucking bitch was such a hassle.  She hoped that when she found Prompto, she’d make him hurt. The blade went away, and Saeva finally pushed the woman away and walked out of the alley. 
>Next Chapter 7 
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obeymematches · 5 years ago
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Hi! I hope you don’t mind if I ask for a matchup. Just don’t push yourself, okay? You seem to have a lot to handle. I’ll try not to overload you with too much, but I apologize ahead of time if I write a whole book or get too personal. I just wanted to make sure I added a good chunk for a good comparison! I’ll try not to get too into it, though. Sorry again if I put too much!
Basics : I’m a 5’6, 19 y/o, chubby/curvy female who is a bit of an anti-social shut-in. I come across as very shy, quiet to the point of how I usually never say a word otherwise unless I’m asked a question, though can also be seen as ‘lazy’ and someone who is too addicted to technology. I’m also rarely affectionate, though not against being given affection as long as I’m asked. I’m not a touchy feely person.
Layer 1 (Flaws, problems, etc) : My behavior stems from social anxiety and from bullying experiences that have traumatized me growing up, as I had to deal with it up until maybe a year ago. Some of it was from my own family, and some from the school. I ended up with a fear of expressing myself to strangers, especially around boys. I found my way of coping was to dive into video games and anime, alongside art. Outside of this, I’m a mess. I usually suffer from many health problems (that I don’t feel comfortable sharing, but can mention it makes my efforts to find a way to get comfortable in my body with a new Workout routine very difficult) due to my body being extremely weak. It has been ever since conditions related to my birth, and my medications Needed to keep me around cause me to be big boned. I’m physically strong enough to fight for myself if I needed to, but when it comes to illness and the like, I’m the loser here. I also have a hard time keeping eye contact. I also tend to apologize a lot for everything. I can’t handle crowds, or I’ll likely pass out after a while. My body is hard to take care of despite my best efforts. However, I do have sensitive ears and tend to be jumpy when someone raises their voice. It’s not too difficult to scare me, which in the past is what usually managed to convince me to go along with things like the bullying. To this day I still can’t handle being yelled at, since I also tend to yell at myself later for messing up for whatever caused someone to yell at me. I’m extremely hard on myself. I also tend to take things to heart. My ‘laziness’ also is because I have my own fight with depression to deal with that adds a factor into this too. Consider it a double edged sword, but despite that I tend to destroy myself trying to put others first before me.
Layer 2 (Opening up) : if I do open up to someone, I’m more prone to have my ‘quirks’ show, such as bouncing in place when I’m excited. I occasionally ramble about my interests (and apologize after). I may not be the best at showing how I care, but I try to do the best I can with what little skills I have. But I do become a bit more social with a person the more I know them. However, it doesn’t change that one might have to message/approach me first, since at times it takes me ages to send a message for fear I’m bothering someone. I’ll be more willing to head out with someone if I’m closer to them, though I’m still insecure about my appearance.
Layer 3 (Pro’s?) : I’m not against trying new things, within reason. I’m not difficult to please. I would be fine sitting in a room watching critical role for the next 10 hours with someone just being quiet and consider that a bonding moment. I don’t mind over the top, but I don’t usually favor it due to my insecurities telling me that this wasn’t deserved. (Not that it isn’t appreciated, but it’s hard to fight ones inner demons, ya know what I mean?) From what my few friends say, however, they would trust me to be a leader to my friend group should the need arise, and I’m usually serious, mature, calm and collected. That doesn’t mean I don’t have my own sense of humor (usually dark humor, with the occasional laugh from a joke I didn’t expect to hear). Due to a bit of my background, I know a lot on self defense due to being in a former military family (All retired) who thought I should know how to fight due to how the world can be. This is also why I’m usually trusted to make decisions for my friend group, even if it’s in games where survival is key. I’m usually the last one standing, while being cautious enough. I also can be a hard worker when I can put my mind to it- reading a whole manga series in one day or finishing an anime? Finishing art? You name it. Though a double edged sword trait I know I have (Since it can be both a blessing and a curse) is my perfectionism. Everything has to be perfect. The decorations? Yes. Everything has to match? Yes. I have to make the most detailed building in Minecraft? On it. My fashion sense also plays a part in this too, as I try to make it work with my task too. (I can tend to overdo it and sometimes don’t give myself breaks when I’m in this mood though.) I’m usually good on saving money, and I try to see the best in people despite my experiences. I’m not easily persuaded by looks, as I usually don’t care for them much. I am a creative person as someone who strives to be good at art, but also as someone related to a medic, I also have been learning what to do when the need arises for someone to need a medic. I can be motherly at points, considering some of my other friends to be like my kids. I fret over them constantly. There are times where the tables end up turned. I love acquiring new knowledge that’s something I’m not used to. Oh, you’re a witch? Cool I’m a (religion I’m not sharing due to it being a touchy subject to most). Can you tell me all about it? I’m really curious.
Layer 4 (Hobbies and everything else?) : I do like swimming, drawing, creating characters for my own stories (as a dungeon master in dnd), reading (mostly manga), collecting gemstones and anime merch, playing video games, and cooking on occasion. I also love my pets (currently a rabbit and a puppy) and enjoy cuddling with them. Despite finding cats to be cute, I happen to be allergic to them (as in my skin will break out mostly- it’s not severe but annoying nonetheless). I also have a fear of bugs. Despite only losing myself maybe 3 times in my whole life, I do have a nasty temper if someone gets on my nerves too much. I usually end up punished for it, hence my bottling up of emotions. So otherwise, it’s hard to get me truly angry to the point of where I’m raising my voice unless someone crosses a line. I’m slowly learning to speak up for myself more.
Alright, that’s the end! Again, I’m so sorry if this is too much information! I have never done one of these before. ^w^’
------
Hi!!!!
I put a keep reading button because it’s a long text and sometimes it gets very personal, so yeah
Sorry for the wait, and I hope you like the result!
Tbh I was thinking and I had several ideas while reading it, for example I can see you with Levi and maybe Belphie. I decided to go with Levi. Your sense of humour is a good match with Belphie but he can be so sassy and can have such an attitude that I think Levi works better, as you said you tend to take things to heart. I know you said it’s hard to actually upset you but I think Levi occassionally calling you a normie is so much less stressing than Belphie and I think you really deserve someone who doesn’t give you a hard time. (No offense to Belphie hes cool and as a friends thats alright but yeah)
So I think Levi is good with someone who’s not too affectionate, like he can get so flustered, it’s easier for him with someone like you!
He also has a quite severe social anxiety so he really gets you when you say you’d rather stay at home than go to a convention or party.
My hyphothesis is that he has online classes because of that. Like I don’t think he was bullied, he really just can’t stand being around people that much
He is also accepted in his family, like everybody is chill with him being an otaku. (I guess sometimes he gets teased but it’s mostly just him talking down on himself) So the point is that at home he can be himself! I think he would reassure you that liking what you like is totally fine.
At first he will 100% call you a normie until you prove yourself otherwise but that shouldn’t really be an issue - especially if you open up to him about it. I think he is the best candidate to understand your feelings. Not just “oh that sucks babe, iloveyou” but like really get you, you know what I mean. Even if he is not always great at expressing himself, you’d just know he means well.
I think he would also accept you the way you are. Of course your well-being is going to concern him sometimes but he knows you can take care of yourelf. Although if you need help he will do whatever you need. He can be pretty determined when it comes to something/someone he loves
I think he would be very surprised by the fact that you are physically strong in a good way! Like wow babe you can really do that...🥺
He would definitely see a part of himself in you and he would make sure to remind you that you don’t have to apologize for everything you do. Even if he does so himself, that doesn’t mean that you have to be insecure like him! ���
He’s not really the one to shout at you since you can probably accept him, and he can accept you even if at first he thinks you a boring normie
I think after you two actually spend time together and open up and really get to know the other he will see that you are soo hard on yourself because of your past and he will definitely try his best to cheer you up and have you loosen a bit.
Or if you’re not into that then he can just listen. If you don’t want to talk he can play multiplayer games with you or watch anime, etc, anything to make you feel better!!!!
I think he is also more likely to get into DnD than Belphie, thats also a reason why I decided that Levi is better. I’m personally not into it so I don’t know for sure but if you have an anime/Japan related game/story then you don’t have to say no more, he’s in a 100%!!!
After that he will probably try like...less otaku-friendly DnD games/stories! Just be patient with him. He will learn all the rules and read all the books to a T but actually speaking in front of a group of people he doesn’t know won’t be so easy!!!! 🥺  
After that he will probably convince his brothers to play too and now you have DnD night with the bros, yay! (i let you imagine how the details go!!)
I think he would approach you first with his anime-related topics and I think you could probably answer him! And that would be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!
He can also ramble about the things he likes and he would make sure that after a while you don’t apologize for talking about things you like! He probably likes something similar too, so he could suggest some things!
He said he prefers someone who he can be in the same room with and not really interact that much actually? so like you watching critical role while he watches anime is a good way to spend time!! stay at home dates are dates too!
Hmmmm i think he would definitely like to play a survival multiplayer with you, so be prepared!!!!!!
Hm I think he would take your fashion related suggestions for him, even if he himself isn’t a perfectionist. But I mean if you look at his room he is pretty organized and not too messy, so that’s a bonus I think.
I think he is a good match because you can balance out his reckless money spending tendencies! Not sure if it’s possible to change that completely about him, but at least one of you is responsible with money, so thats a good enough!
Hm I think he could talk a lot about being a demon with you, so thats really nice that you’re interested in his culture! I don’t think he has ever considered that as anything special, but now is the time!
It’s good that you can’t have a kitty because he has a fish and that wouldn’t really be a good combination now, would it?
I think he relly appreciated a responsible and caring partner like you, because he really needs all the extra care he can get to boost his confidence! He is usually rather child-like, so that is also probably a bonus!
Conclusion; definitely he is the one to initiate first interaction, but it’s probably just looking at the other for a while until he gains enough confidence to actually talk to you. This is a very accepting relationship with lots of caring and confidence boosting involved on both sides! Theres also this deeper understanding due to insecurities and social anxiety. I think after a couple years in the relationship both of you change in a good way as you are very mindful of the other’s insecurities. Definitely not a lot of arguing going on, he is a very loyal and caring partner once you earn his trust, so zero lines crossed! Dates are mostly at home, but thats cool! You are the more responsible one while he can be kind of reckless with his impulses, but that just leads to a good balance and he knows he should respect your advice regarding impule buyig stuff for example.
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voidiots · 5 years ago
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⚔️- Celtic Cross "What possibilities can I look forward to with the recent decisions regarding my personal and professional life?" - From Gan Raizure at @ganshands
IC Tarot Readings 
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Una’to studies the Sun Seeker before him from under his mask before allowing a smooth smile to over take the exposed features of his face. “Quite the reading to request, more than just the possibilities, I will tell you the challenges you must over come, the past, the future, and many a number of things that lead to an outcome with the path you travel yet”. He cants his head to the side, his smile growing all the more playful and curious. “Shall we begin?”
He picks up the black and gold deck, adorned with marigold on it’s back and shuffles the cards for some time. His ears twitching as he does so until he seems entirely satisfied with the feel of the cards. One by one, he lays them down, flipping them skyward before allowing them to touch the matching cloth they lie on. He does this until ten cards are before him. He studies the entire spread for a time, before pointing to the two center most cards, surrounded by four others.
“Here in the center are the heart of the matter regarding your query and the challenge you must overcome in the future. The heart are the issues around your query. Simply, how will things in these parts of your life change as you move forward on the path you’ve decided to follow? The heart is the focal point of the reading from which all other cards stem from, and impacts all events to follow. In this place we have feelings of need, poverty, and insecurity. Either this is the present or the events that have transpire to make you take this road.  The card speaks of all things material being scarce, thus creating desperation. Often in regards to money. There is a plea here to reach out for help, as it is there for you. As for the challenge card…,” he trails off, reading it again. “In this place is the challenge you must overcome, the opposition you face as you travel on this road. The card is one of emotions, but here they are wasted, creativity is blocked, and the well of creativity has run empty. Something wonderful is being cut off from being and flowing. The challenge here it to take away the blockage and allow it to flow out once more”. With that he moves his hand to tap the bottom most card of the four around the center two, moving his finger along that outer circle in a clockwise motion. Showing his reading path to the woman before him.
“With our bases covered, we move to look to your unconscious. Here we see how you feel about the heart of the reading and possible hidden emotions you have that may impact you as you move forward on this road you’ve chosen to take. The figure on the card here is one of leadership, who sees the big picture, and is apt to overcoming challenges. With these qualities they are able to inspire those around them. You’re ready for the challenges ahead of you, and to rally those around you with your passion,” he says with a kind smile before his head twitches up to read the next card.
“We now turn to your past. These are the attitudes, feelings, and beliefs past lessons have impressed upon you and have shaped your current situation. Why you’ve picked this road that leaves you wanting and needing help. Here is a card speaking of apathy, contemplation, and a disconnectedness. So deep was this contemplation in the past that you became disconnected and ignored gifts before your feet from the world around you. Potential joys rotted away. Though your intentions were well and noble, the world around you was treated with an air of apathy in favor for the world with in you. I should think you learned from this though, and to look outside of yourself for the small joys before you in your path. You need not forsake one for the other after all. Balance is important”. His smile is somewhat knowing now as he tilts his head up once more. He’s seen the entirety of the spreads most basic of meanings already, and knows where this map leads to an extent.
“The card to follow takes the place of you conscious thoughts. How you are seeing the road right now, as well as the assumptions and beliefs you have for this reading. The card here is of a grand weight, and demands special attention be paid to it when it appears, as it is a major way marker on this road you travel. This card is one of partnerships, union, duality in balance, and choice. A harmonious partnership exists upon this road you travel now, an inner harmony between the aspects of your personality, or those who endeavor with you on this path. I should think that this reading itself is opening you up to the idea of choices you may need to make that are looming over the horizon that could be difficult for you...” he says as he reaches for the final card of the four encircling the center two, tapping it’s face lightly.
“I believe in the end this is the card you are most interested in now, however. The future that is fast approaching made up of all these parts. The influences to come that will change how you see your path, and developing concerns you may have. The future holds beliefs of work life imbalance, the feeling of smothering as well. While difficult you will have troubles balancing your work and home needs. You can’t give enough to both after all.Remember, you can ask for help to achieve this balance however,” he muses in warning, an attempt to have her recall the heart of the reading, a solution of sorts.
With a small stretch he sits up slightly, getting some stiffness from his bones before turning to the line of cards to his right, pointing at the card closest to him. Taking the time to run his finger up an imaginary line towards the farthest one, indicating his plan of reading once more. “From here things get a little more personal. Our next card is you the querent, and how you are approaching the problems and challenges you face on this road. The beliefs, fears, and the perception you have of yourself that impacts how the situation turns out. It should seem based on our card that you are approaching the problem as one learning still. It’s a card of education, apprenticeship, and achievement. You are muscling through with hard work and diligence as you travel this path to try and make things work, with or with out help from others. You are trying to change something. Of course, the fear here is that things won’t work out, the work won’t be enough and changes won’t occur. If you are truly learning, than ask for help with the things that bog you down”. His smile grows slightly before moving up the line to the next card.
“Then comes the environment from which you must work while attempting to fix the problems with this road you traverse. This environment is one that is charitable, generous, and full of sharing. This card speaks similarly to our heart card in regards to the material things, but the message is clear that there is help around you, should you only reach out and ask for it. For those around you are compassionate and understanding. After all, things may switch someday, and you they may need the help that they give you today,” he says smoothly with a smile. Happy to be nearly done with the reading. Large spreads tending to take the most out of him.
“Our second to last card represents your hopes and fears, the expectations you have for the reading. To me it seems the fears are more prevalent in this card. Similarly to the consciousness you bear, this card is another one of great importance. The fears here center around extremes, excess, and a lack of balance. These fears seem to be fair and well founded with what I’ve been able to read. There is too much of something here, likely what run creativity dry. Things are forgotten despite mercantile focus as sharp as a blade. Is the fear that which was forgotten to retain and regain balance?,” he muses aloud with a sly sort of smile taking over the exposed features of his face. At last they come to their final card. He picks it up and holds it before her dramatically, ever the performer.
“Finally, the outcome should you continue on this path with out changing. This is where all this leads and what it ends as, the situation to come once all parts come into play. The card here speaks of a lack of communication, instability, and home conflicts. As stated before, there is an imbalance on the horizon that could be a part of this. Friends and family here are embroiled in tension as communication breaks down. The home life becomes more difficult as a result. In the end the greater message is to ask for help so you may keep balance and harmony in your personal and professional life. If you would like it short, sweet, and simple for a wrap up”. He grins as he collapses the spread upon itself, returning the cards to the rest of the deck. “Now tell me, have you need for more insight that I may offer you?”
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Thank you for letting me read your cards @ganshands! I’m sorry it took me a while to get to, I knew it was going to be long and didn’t want my overly anxious energy to impact the reading while things were stressful and gross. I hope it was able to hit home somewhere and give your muse some sound advice. Thank you again!
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