#mediocre explanations? you got it!

[once-in-a-blood-moon]

Obey Me Boys as Tarot/Oracle Decks I Own

Is this stupid? Yes. Am I doing it anyway? Absolutely.

To make a long story short, I have a problem and I compulsively buy tarot and oracle cards, so I have...quite a few. So, I was looking at them and thought, "which ones would fit the characters?" And now look where we are! :) I do have exactly fifteen decks and had planned originally to assign decks to the new side characters as well, but I, A. got tired and B. couldn't find one that fit Mephisto, so I just scrapped that idea altogether. Anyways, here's what literally nobody asked for!

Disclaimer! I did pick out cards that I thought matched the characters as well, based on both meaning and look. I'm not going into detail on all of the cards either...because I will ramble forever. I'm did my best to keep these as brief as possible!

Lucifer - Archangel Animal Oracle Deck

Okay, so this could've been a great deck for Simeon or Raphael, but out of what I had, this fit Lucifer the best! It ties back to his origins of being a seraphim. I did pick a card or two that have Archangel Micheal and Raphael in them, and they do fit Lucifer in needing to let others in and to not let pride get in the way of being dependent on others.

Mammon - The Illustrated Crystallary Oracle Deck

Mostly picked this one due to the fact that crystals can be expensive and high-dollar, which Mammon would be into and exploit (and he has). If not him, this one might've gone to Solomon, but I had a better one for him >:) I picked Mammon's cards based off his greed and his love for the MC...and which crystals would cost a pretty penny.

Leviathan - Mystical Manga Tarot Deck

My tried and true deck. It was either this one or my Skyrim tarot deck, so I went with this one. It felt more him to me. I picked the Seven of Cups, the Hanged Man, the Hermit, and the Nine of Swords for Levi. In some cases, the Seven of Cups gives me feelings of envy for choices that may seem out of reach or wanting it all when you have to pick and choose, so I went with it.

Satan - The Language of Flowers Oracle Deck

This is the best I had for Satan, but I feel like he'd be quite knowledgable on flower language. I had several other cards that I had in mind for him as well, namely Action - the Venus Fly Trap, but I wanted to keep the number of cards to four, so... Also, when I first started using this deck, it took a lot of warming up to, (it was shy...if you can believe that or not), which is how Satan is in both games, not shy just...needs to get used to people before opening up.

Asmodeus - Romantic Tarot Deck

This is the pairing that kicked off this idea. This deck is new, my mom gifted it to me for Easter! She's a sweetie. And I kept think about how Asmo would adore the art and vintage depictions in the cards. Since the cards aren't labeled, I picked the Lovers, the Two of Cups, the Empress, and the Three of Swords. Most of these are "romantic" in nature, or with the Empress, embodies confidence and embracing femininity. Three of Swords because of how dramatic and tragic love and can be, and I'm sure Asmo has had his fair share :(

Beelzebub - Moonology Manifestations Oracle Deck

This is my second Moonology deck, my other-half, if you will. (Another gift from my mom:)) I really don't have much to say about this deck for Beel, but I figured it would be fun to assign the twins with these decks. The cards were picked based on his feelings of guilt of his past from the Celestial War.

Belphegor - Moonology Oracle Deck

My first Moonology deck! I think this was the first oracle deck I ever got, so it has a special place in my heart. I obviously had to give this one to Belphie since his theme revolves around the moon and space. Notice in both Beel's and Belphie's I picked one Gemini card each, hehe...

Diavolo - Dragon Wisdom Oracle Deck

Considering Dia's demon form is draconic (dra-ICONIC! Heh, anyone?), this seemed right. I'm less familiar with this deck since it's not one of the primary ones I use, but it was fun to go through it again like it was new, lol. There was another card I almost picked for him, Initiation. But I thought these ones fit best.

Barbatos - Celtic Healing Oracle Deck

Once again, this is one of those scenarios where this was the best I had for Barb. There's a strange energy to these cards, mysterious and timeless almost, a little spooky. Kinda reminds me of him in some way. I'm the least familiar with this deck as it's relatively new and I haven't really used it yet, so apologies for lack of substance with this one.

Simeon - The Field Tarot

This was a gift from a friend of mine. It was theirs originally, but they so thoughtfully handed it down to me, and I use it quite a lot! This deck felt very mellow and light compared to my other ones. Very minimalist, so I thought it fit Simeon's vibe. To note: the Perspective card is this deck's Hanged Man. The Three of Cups reminded me of the og Purgatory Hall gang.

Solomon - Oceanic Tarot Deck

Based on his love for marine life and his...past with the ocean, how could I resist! Also, didn't mean for two of the cards I picked to be king and queen of the same suit, but I thought they fit his personality and way of living. The suit cards are pretty basic, featuring some marine life behind the pictures and whatnot without having too much imagery.

Luke - Tiny Tarot Deck

Come on...I had to. I put it in my hand so you could really get the perspective of how small it is. It's cute! I didn't pull any of the cards out since the box struggles to hold them in and I'm afraid of getting them everywhere, but they are your standard Rider-Waite-Smith deck! I probably would've picked the Sun or the Six of Cups for him, something along the lines of youth and vibrancy. (MY GOD, MY VEINS LOOK LIKE A STAR WTH?? I just noticed that, omg) Well...that's new...

[ckret2]

This is an earnest question - it came up in one of my fics and I'm curious how other people interpreted it.

I know that the Westmore-Backupsmore dichotomy is supposed to be a joke. It's a kids show, the depth of Ford's disappointment and failure has to be made obvious in the span of a few seconds, and hyperbole is funny.

However, it has always pushed my suspension of disbelief that Ford was being evaluated for a place that was supposed to be in-universe Stanford University or something, and when he didn't immediately get a full-ride scholarship to one of the best universities in the country, his alternative was a place with such a poor reputation that it was literally marketed as a backup plan.

I've seen several explanations for this. I've seen it suggested that he was just too arrogant to apply for a wide variety of schools, and by the time he realized he couldn't do Westmore he was scrambling for the only place with a long application window. I've seen it suggested that Backupsmore was actually a pretty good school, and that its poor reputation was unearned and due to classism because it made an effort to cater to lower-income students. The one I personally went for is that his family was skeptical about his academic aspirations, and as a result Filbrick would only pay the application fees for a small handful of schools.

Do you have an explanation?

When the principal calls the family in to tell them that Ford's a genius and has a shot at getting into West Coast Tech, they're all surprised and thrilled—including Ford. This isn't a case of "I just won't bother applying anywhere but WCT." All evidence suggests he didn't apply to WCT at all... since it seems like he'd never even imagined going until then. It sounds like, until then, Ford's post graduation plans really were sailing around the world with Stan.

I think it's the complete opposite of arrogance: I think he didn't apply anywhere because he assumed college just wasn't in the cards for him.

His family's poor. His family's also Jewish, which probably wouldn't actually impact anything in Friendly Disney Channel Show For Children but in real life it would be a reason for a lot of colleges to quietly turn down his application in the 60s. His family probably also knew that Ford was smart, but unless someone else told them, none of them—Ford included—had enough of a basis of comparison for just HOW smart he was.

They probably thought, sure, Ford's a bright kid, but, HOW bright? Yeah, brightest in the school, but that could be a "big fish in a little pond" deal, this doesn't look like the preppiest high school. Bright enough to be accepted into the fanciest schools in the country? They're not sure—until he's told he has a shot at West Coast Tech. Bright enough for his education to be worth the strain on the family that paying for a college education would be? DEFINITELY not... until that education became worth potential millions.

Bright enough for him to apply to the in-universe equivalents of Harvard and Yale and Columbia and Brown etc? Why bother? West Coast Tech was only interested in him when he had an amazing science project, and lost interest when he didn't. His stellar grades clearly didn't matter to them without that science project. No point in applying to the other equivalent schools now.

Or, hell, maybe he did apply—and, without a big flashy in-your-face wow-worthy science project, all they saw was a poor kid who got good grades from a mediocre school. Unless a poor kid is something really special, a 1960s Ivy League college would rather accept middle-or-upper-class kids with equally good grades—those kids will actually pay their tuition fees.

Or maybe they even did accept him! ... But, didn't consider him quite impressive enough for scholarships, and were too expensive without them.

Sure, we know Ford was a super genius—but a college would need some kind of proof he was a super genius rather than just Really Smart, and he didn't have that proof.

He didn't even consider going to college until probably late in the school year (assuming their science fair was probably in the spring). Within a couple of days he suddenly had WCT offered ("you're worthy of the greatest schools in the country!") and snatched away ("nvm you're not worthy"). Now suddenly, possibly for the first time in his life, college is on the table, and he's been told that he could be REALLY successful if he goes to college... but, the big fancy colleges won't take him. What does he do now?

Backupsmore might have been the best school that 1) he thought would take him (or actually WOULD take him), 2) he could still apply to, and 3) his family thought they could afford.

[ssivinee]

✧Magnetic✧

Bada Lee x F Reader: You, the popular and cheerful cheer team captain, and Bada, the blunt and somewhat rebellious dance team captain, never crossed paths, but she may have had a crush on you. But someone was standing in Bada's way.

Word Count: 4.1 k

Note: Sorry for being gone for a while guys, finals were hitting hard AND THEN I got sick😭. BUT IM BACK AGAIN, AND THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR 700 FOLLOWERS🥹.

Character Vision Board

College life was the epitome of deteriorating mental health, but for some people, it was somewhat enjoyable. It was the years of exploring early adulthood, something that helped people look forward to the long years.

You were one of them.

You stood there with your friends at the side of the hallway, pretty in your cheer uniform with the school colors. Your long dark hair was tied up into a high ponytail, revealing your beauty to the student body. The way you stood there, hand on the curve of your hip, your stance looked powerful and cute at the same time as a laugh escaped your lush lips.

“Bada, you need to stop staring at the girl. You’re gonna burn holes into her,” Tatter tells the older girl, and Bada rolls her eyes. “I can’t help it, she’s just so-“ Bada couldn’t even let out a sentence as her eyes drifted back onto you, letting out a groan. “-so beautiful.”

“Literally, just go talk to her,” Lusher suggests, and Bada scoffs. “I can’t be so random. We live in two different worlds.”

Which was true. You were the captain of your school's cheer team, had good grades, and a well-known sweetheart. Bada, on the other hand, was captain of the dance team, had mediocre grades at best, and seemed to have a slight attitude problem with strangers.

Yet here she was, head over heels for you, only gazing from afar. She didn’t understand what it was about you, though. There was no interaction. The two of you were polar opposites. So what truly was it?

It all started in her first year when Bada was in Biology class, grueling over the topics on the first day. You walked in late, sporting a tight-cropped hoodie and some sweatpants. You spoke to the professor in private, trying to give a proper explanation for your tardiness.

Meanwhile, in Bada’s eyes, you looked adorable with your messy bun and glasses. A picture she couldn’t get out of her head for years. Then she saw you in your uniform for the first time after two weeks. If only you saw how Bada almost kneeled for you in front of her friends. No decorum to be found in sight.

She would’ve gone up to you… only if she didn’t see a man’s arm wrapped around your waist.

Unfortunately, you were dating Choi Hanseoul, the school's most popular jock. You guys were the embodiment of a power couple. Your boyfriend was the captain of the football team, rich, and his face made everyone fall for him. Not Bada, though.

She never knew what you saw in the boy. Feeling as if a hefty amount of fog clouded his true self. It had girls in a trance that Bada couldn’t understand.

She would have cared less, but he has you.

Hanseoul was the biggest obstacle in Bada’s way. It made seeing him an all-out war in her mind. Every. Single. Time. 

All she wanted to do was punch the dude hard and run off with you. But she knew how much you cared for him. It was evident in your eyes, and every time Bada saw it, she felt as if she had been stabbed multiple times.

Why couldn’t you just be hers?

That’s been her dilemma for the past three years, and now you two are seniors, yet she still did nothing about her feelings. It was just that difficult for her.

“Is there a game later today?” Minah asks, a bit confused at your choice of attire. “Yeah, later today at six,” Lusher says, checking her phone to make sure she’s correct. “Are we going to that?” 

“Of course, we are since Bada unnie is quite literally in love with the girl that cheers for our school,” Tatter responds, cutting off Kyma as she teases the older girl. “Oh please, I’m sure you wanna see Audrey as well,” Tatter shrugs at Bada’s comment, “at least I admit that.”

“Oh, whatever.”

Bada usually didn't care much for the games; her focus was solely on you. When halftime rolled around and the cheer squad made their way to the field, Bada's attention intensified. You stood at the center of the group, ready to perform. As the music started, you danced, pom poms in hand, your face beaming joyfully. These moments were always different for Bada, who usually paid little attention to the sports events. She couldn't help but be captivated by how you moved, your energy infectious, and your happiness evident.

With each jump, twirl, and wave of your pom poms, Bada drew herself further into your presence, making her feel warm inside. The cheers from the crowd faded into the background, and it was as if there were only you and the music, creating a vigorous atmosphere. Even though the routine seemed straightforward, you managed to pack it with a surprising amount of emotion. Your genuine smile never wavered, and it seemed to Bada as if you were dancing for the crowd and the sheer love of the moment.

As the choreography reached its peak, the applause from the audience echoed around the stadium as everyone stood up, guaranteeing the success of the halftime show. Bada, however, remained in her seat, still caught in a trance. The world outside the bleachers ceased to exist for her, leaving only the lingering echoes of the dance and the desire to understand the joy that seemed to feel at that moment.

Bada kept her eyes on you while your attention faded from the crowd as you ran up to Hanseoul. He lifted you by your hips, twirly you around in his arms, and Bada heard the squeals of joy from your lips. You giggled at the warm feeling of Hanseoul’s face on your stomach, balancing yourself by placing your hands on his shoulders.

Every other student ‘awed’ when seeing the two of you…

and Bada just wanted to puke. 

Why did it feel like the world wanted her to suffer?  

Yet she wasn’t aware of what was happening behind closed doors.

“Are you fucking serious right now?” Hanseoul asks you, arms resting on his knees, anger seething face. “I can’t help it when people talk to me, Hanseoul. Besides, it was for our damn History project,” you explain with frustration, gripping your hair. You were annoyed, constantly having to explain yourself. 

“Seungjae shouldn’t be talking to you, period, Y/n. He could just text you,” Hanseoul says, poking at your chest lightly several times. 

This was how it always was. The constant arguing and the absurd amount of jealousy were unbearable. It was like being locked in a cage, an animal wanting to taste the sensation of freedom. 

Almost every night, you cried and hated yourself for it. 

You put up this everlasting strong front to be “miss perfect” because it was all you knew. It was exhausting, needing to hide the fact that you were only human like everyone else. So why were you staying with Hanseoul?

Well, you did love him at the start. He was a sweetheart, someone who was willing to put you before themselves. Then, something shifted in the air when you both hit your third year of university. The two of you got busier, becoming vice-captains of your team, having multiple advanced placement classes, and being in different friend groups, which caused a stir within the relationship. 

You were noticeably blossoming into even more of a woman, triggering something in Hanseoul’s mind. The man suddenly became possessive, which you thought was cute at first… until it wasn’t. He inserted himself in areas of your life that were supposed to be for your enjoyment only, seemingly becoming rather obsessed with you.

The reason for staying with Hanseoul was to stay afloat within the school. The thought of being a nobody terrifies you, not because of the popularity, but because of being alone. Hanseoul at least kept a certain comfort around, even if it was suffocating.

��I’m tired of talking about this, Han. I need to head to class,” You tell him, picking up your bag as you leave the private study room, clearly over the entire argument. You freshen up in the bathroom, fixing your disheveled hair and reapplying the pink gloss that faded from all the words being yelled at in the past hour. As you stared at yourself in the mirror, you smiled, trying to find something to grasp onto. You didn’t care if it was hope, happiness, or even the thought of your exhausting assignments. You just wanted your mind off of him.

But you fail, the smile fading quickly as a heavy sigh leaves your freshly glossed lips. A wet feeling muddled your eyes as you hung your head low, leaning on the bathroom sink. Seeing the droplets of tears coming down, you take a deep breath and wipe them away. “You’re better than this Y/n. No one can tell you otherwise,” you give yourself a pep talk, dabbing your face with the use of your sleeve, sniffling every bit of sadness that escaped.

You walked out of the bathroom, looking like your usual happy self, as people greeted you warmly. Rushing your pace, you enter the lecture hall to find the room filled, a single empty spot next to an individual with a black hoodie covering their head.

“Miss Kim, you’re late,” your professor states, making eye contact with you. You were about to say a random excuse, but your professor had a glimpse of your slightly red eyes. “You may go take your seat, and you didn’t miss much.”

You bow with a tight-lipped smile and make your way over to the only open seat. As you settle down and pull out your laptop to begin typing away, Bada raises her head from all the shuffling. The tall dancer was about to tell you to shut up so she could nap but froze when she saw you.

Feeling the piercing gaze on you, you turned to your right to see Bada’s pretty face, eyes wide, and mouth slacked open. “I’m sorry. Was I too loud?” Bada could only shake her head, not trusting any sound that could possibly come out of her mouth right now. 

You look at the blackboard, then look back at her, “I can take the notes and give them to you after class. If you’d like, at least?” Bada then shyly nods her head as you smile.

You paid attention as usual, and Bada thought she couldn’t do her usual ‘admire from afar,’ afraid of being caught. Yet you were so focused on the notes that you didn’t even seem to notice the slight peaks Bada would take.

She looked at your lips, the ones she wanted to kiss so much. Your nose, the cute shape of it, makes her heart swell. Then, your eyes, the feature that she loved about you dearly. 

But she pauses. Your eyes looked agitated, an ounce of redness prevalent. They weren’t the sparkling ones she adored. You were crying.

It had Bada’s heartbreaking in pieces, and she knew it would be weird to ask, but she couldn’t help it. “You okay?” You stiffened at Bada’s mumbling tone, not expecting the sudden question. “Yeah? Why wouldn’t I be?” 

“You’re eyes… they’re red.” You pause, not knowing how to respond. “Um, I’m okay. Thanks for worrying, Bada.” The tall girl smiles at your words as you give her your famous smile. Then Bada was hit with a realization…

You knew her name.

Bada keeps her head down as her face heats up. Of course, you knew her name. You somehow knew everyone on this campus, so it shouldn’t be so shocking. But it was to Bada, the same girl who believed she shouldn’t have even existed in the same stratosphere as you.

After classes, Bada had left the room and found you leaning against the wall, phone in hand. When you meet each other’s gaze, you pull up an empty contact profile, “Let’s switch numbers so I can send the notes?” “Oh, um, yeah, sure.”

You give her your phone, and she types away. You were almost starstruck for the quick glimpse at the tall dancer. For the first time in your life, you were close to the famous woman on the campus. 

You knew your height difference, but her practically towering over you, even from a foot away, had your heart racing. Her eyes were sleek as she focused on the screen, her pink bottom lip being bit due to concentration. She is gorgeous, you thought, as your heart fluttered for the first time in a year. 

You freeze at the feeling, not knowing how to react, as Bada returns the phone. “I’ll send them to you later.” The tall girl just nods.

For the next two weeks, you and Bada messaged back and forth. It was mainly for your notes with pretty handwriting, but there were little conversations here and there.

Every time you send your notes, you leave little messages. 

‘Hey Bada! These are the notes from today. Hopefully you have a good night😊.’

‘I heard you had a dance competition today and won first place! Congrats on the win, captain!!! Here are the notes from today's lesson. Have a good night!’

‘BADAAAA! I saw the video of ur performance! YOUR SO COOL! There aren't many notes today, but I’ve been watching the video on repeat… i just wanted to let yk, good night!’ 

Bada found them endearing, and she felt like you were trying to become her friend, so why not reciprocate the energy? The next day, Bada decided to come up to you while you sat down with Hanseoul in the cafeteria. His arm was placed around your shoulders, and you looked uncomfortable, trying to hide the fact.

“Y/n?” You look up and see Bada’s cold gaze contradicting with a small smile. Seeing the woman made you feel more relaxed in your current position. You weren’t extremely close with each other within the two weeks, but both of you gave each other the calming feeling you needed. 

“Oh, Bada, what’s up?” 

“I was hoping you could help me with the assignment Mr. Kwon gave us on Monday?” The tall dancer asked with a glimmer of hope but noticed the cold stare Hanseoul was giving you, which you clearly chose to ignore. “Oh, of course. Text me when your classes are over?” “Yeah, I can do that.”

You smile and notice the glares on your right, and you internally scoff, “Bada, Hanseoul, and I still have class, but I’ll see you later, okay?” Bada nodded and watched the two of you walk off, not before Hanseoul looked back over his shoulder with a glare.

“Gosh, I’m sorry I took so long, Bada. Were you waiting for a while?” You asked, panting as you rushed to the cafe where Bada sat, notes and laptop out on the table. “No, no, I wasn’t. I only got here about five minutes ago. I mean, are you okay though?” Bada notices your red face, and one could assume it is because you rushed to get here, but Bada knows that no matter how tired you are, you still look pristine.  

You and Hanseoul were arguing AGAIN. This time, it is about you hanging out with Bada. This time, you walked out, not even saying a peep about the situation. You believed Bada was harmless, and I mean, how bad could she be when all she wanted was help on an assignment?

“I’m fine, just a little rushed because of the wind.”

“Let’s get this started then?” You ask, and she nods excitedly, her eyes puppy-like as she looks at you. You giggle as you take out your belongings on the table. 

As you began to teach the assignment, Bada's eyes remained fixed on you. She watched your every movement, hanging on to your words with an eagerness that wasn't lost on you. It was a side of Bada you hadn't seen before – a softness and admiration that contrasted with her usual bold demeanor.

After a while, you couldn't help but notice Bada stealing glances at you, her cheeks tinted with a subtle blush. It made you feel a warmth inside, a pleasant surprise to witness this more vulnerable side of her. You continued explaining the assignment, but a small smile played on your lips as you couldn't ignore the adorable sight of Bada trying to conceal her admiration.

As the tutoring session progressed, Bada became more at ease with the assignment and in your presence. Her initial shyness seemed to dissipate, replaced by a newfound comfort. It was as if a bridge had been built between you two, connecting your worlds in a way that transcended the academic subject.

Feeling the positive energy, you suggested, "You're catching on quickly. How bout we take a break and grab something to eat? There's this new tteok shop nearby."

Bada's eyes lit up, and she nodded eagerly, her usual confidence returning as she agreed to the break. As you both stepped out of the cafe and into the crisp air, Bada hesitated momentarily as if contemplating something. Then, with a shy smile, she looked up at you.

"Hey, the dance team’s holding a party for the end of the semester. It's gonna be fun, some drinks and games. Would you, uh, wanna come?" Bada's usual straightforwardness wavered, revealing a side of her that caught you off guard. The contrast from her usual boldness made the invitation even more endearing.

You couldn't help but smile at her, charmed by the unexpected sweetness in her invitation. "Sure, I'd love to go to your party. Just send me the details?"

“You’re not going to that fucking party, Y/n,” you heard Hanseoul’s voice from the phone as you did your hair. You had already changed into a short pink velvet bodycon dress, and your face had a pretty natural makeup look on.

Hanseoul's eyes widened in disbelief as your words hung heavy in the air. The room felt tense, the weight of the impending decision settling in. Your frustration with the argument about the party had peaked, and your voice's weariness underscored the toll the disagreement had taken on you.

Ignoring the brewing storm of emotions, you continued to adjust your hair, focusing solely on your reflection. The gravity of your words seemed to take a moment to register with Hanseoul, who, up until then, had been more concerned about controlling the situation.

"Is that how it's gonna be?" he finally responded, the question tinged with a mix of surprise and frustration.

You took a deep breath, meeting his gaze through your phone's screen. "Hanseoul... let's break up."

The words hung heavy in the silence that settled over the conversation. Hanseoul's face displayed a mix of shock and disbelief as if he hadn't anticipated the conversation taking such a drastic turn. The realization of the gravity of your decision seemed to dawn on him slowly.

"All because of a damn party?" he retorted, his tone a blend of incredulity and frustration. The question hung in the air, demanding an explanation for what seemed like an abrupt and drastic choice.

You sighed, weariness evident in your eyes. "It's not just about the party, Hanseoul. It's about us, the constant arguments, and not being on the same page. Reevaluate our entire relationship, THEN come back to me when you figure out what's wrong."

The weight of the words loitered, the truth behind them almost finalizing the reality of the situation. Your phone screen displayed Hanseoul's stunned expression, frozen in time as your words sank in. The decision to end a relationship was easy, and in that moment, it felt like a necessary step towards finding the peace and freedom you sought.

As the Uber left you at the entrance of the large Airbnb, the pulsating bass of music echoed through the walls, announcing the lively gathering inside. Stepping through the door, you were immediately immersed in a sea of lively young adults, almost all grinding and throwing it back on each other. Intoxicated laughter and the scent of various drinks filled the air, chaoticness evident with the blink of an eye.

Your gaze swept through the crowd, ultimately landing at the back of the room where your eyes locked with Bada's. A warm and genuine grin lit up her face as she navigated through the lively crowd to greet you.

"I'm so glad you could make it," Bada exclaimed, enveloping you in a hug that allowed the sweet scent of your perfume to waft into her senses, prompting a contented sigh. "Let's get you a drink?" Her offer was met with your enthusiastic nod, your bright smile reflecting the excitement that animated Bada's expression.

As the night unfolded, you found relief in the company of those around you, downing the five shots as you sought a sense of comfort. Bada remained silent by your side, her attentive presence never leaving in the midst of the lively crowd.

Observing your somewhat jittery demeanor, Bada leaned in, her voice cutting through the loud music. "Hey, wanna get some fresh air?"

Your response was hesitant but agreeable, and you found yourselves venturing to the backyard together. Settling into the outdoor arrangement, the subtle ambiance of the solar lights provided a short break from the energy inside. Bada, with a discreet cough, broke the silence.

"So, what's going on, Y/n?" she inquired, her eyes reflecting genuine concern. "Something's on your mind."

Caught off guard by her perceptiveness, your eyes widened, followed by a heavy sigh. It seemed you weren't as secretive as you thought. "Um, Hanseoul and I—"

"We broke up…"

The words hung in the air, and Bada, despite wanting to be empathetic with you, couldn't help but feel a surge of joy at the news. It wasn't that she took pleasure in your pain, but the idea of being there for you in a time of vulnerability sparked a glimmer of hope in her eyes. As you opened up about the recent breakup, Bada couldn't deny the swirling emotions within her, realizing that this unexpected turn of events might have worked in her favor.

In the hushed serenity of the backyard, Bada's eyes softened as she looked at you. Her gaze showed genuine warmth as she spoke, "I'm sorry to hear that, Y/n. I'm here for you if you ever need someone to talk to or just hang out with."

Your gratitude was evident as you met her eyes, appreciating the sincerity of her offer. But you couldn’t be happier where you were right now. A party, something you haven’t experienced by yourself in years, made you… happy. The past few weeks, Bada proved to be something as relaxing as a home, a source of comfort and understanding as you navigate the rough patches of your now-old relationship.

"I was thinking... Maybe we can go to the amusement park next week? Just the two of us?" The uncharacteristic shyness in her voice only added to the charm of the moment.

Surprised but genuinely touched, you couldn't help but smile. "I'd love that, Bada."

The air was filled with silence, and as your eyes met Bada's, a warmth exuded from the connection between you two. The party continued around you, but everything seemed to fade into the background at that moment.

As the night unfolded and the stars took their place in the sky, Bada hesitated momentarily. The music played softly, creating a backdrop for what felt like a turning point. In a soft voice, almost drowned by the rhythmic beats, Bada confessed, "Y/n, I... I really like you."

The words hung in the air, and the vulnerability in Bada's admission mirrored the uncharted territory you both found yourselves in. The realization that this wasn't just a friendship but something more settled in and your heart echoed the sentiment.

A tender smile played on your lips, and with a sincerity that matched the atmosphere of the evening, you replied, "Bada… I think I like you too." 

Your words left the two of you smiling, and Bada couldn’t bear facing you as she felt her cheeks growing red fast. Your fingers steadily make their way to her hands that lay flat on the bench, and without her noticing, you take her warm hands into yours. The feeling had Bada look up in shock, and you giggle at the reaction. Bada’s flustered state always seemingly amused you. Just never used to the out-of-character responses.

“I can get used to this,” you say, smiling as you stare into the starry skies. “Yeah,” Bada responds, staring at your pretty face, “I definitely can too.”

Tag list (OPEN): @bada-lee-ily @froufrousnowman @amararosesblog @tikitsune @nimixe @lorenztired @sammybeefangirls @cephox @1luvkarina @pinksults @princhii

[bazoonga-bazinga]

watching tua s4 knowing fully how its going to disappoint me rn and something that keeps bothering me is just how awful it is that they dont show what happens during the 6 year time skip.

like in season 2 we get to see an abridged version of how everyone got to where they are. this allowed for me as viewer to at least undertsand the reasoning behind the siblings' actions and conflicts. but in season 4 there is just none of that.

instead we only get to see the after of the timeskip. Whatever bits we do hear abt the time in between are extremly limited because they are things that are told to us from biased/flawed/one-sided perspectives. I as a viewer do not get a clear idea of why any of the 8 charcters of the main cast change the way they do becuase i am never shown how this change ocurred. its more i am told things and have to accept because of the 6 year gap.

lila and diego's strained marriage is actually i think the only they showed without telling to an extent. but it still would have also been nice to see thier struggles transitioning to suburbia and would also aid me to better understand why neither of them tried to find an adequate balance in the 6 years. also like why is diego working as a delivery driver? in my mind it makes more sense for him to be a mediocre private investgator or something like that? idk just some more context behind the tension and thier decsions (especially lila dear god dont even get me started) would have been wonderful

viktor's journey to Canada and his distancing from the others sounded interesting and i would have loved to see that on screen. he clearly is unable to form long lasting intamate relationships and showing his life in the time gap would have been a great way to show his journey of accepting the loss of sissy.

allison was definitely hit hard by the lack of explanation. i understand the scheduling issues with raymond's actor but it truly was a heavy blow to season 3 allison actions when they just said he left with no other explanation. most of her conflicts in season 3 were motivated by the loss of claire and raymond and you are telling me she just lost 50% of that a year afterwards? and like this doesnt get mentioned until episode 3??

i actually enjoyed klaus's shift to a risk averse person and it did make sense to me after losing his immortality to become more aware of not only his but his loved ones mortality. the biggest glaring issue is the one everyone has talked about: the lack of dave. i think if they had shown klaus trying to find info on dave and/or even visiting his grave in the timeskip it would been fine with me that he wouldn't mention dave that much. but the dog tags being on screen and him not saying anything is actually inasne??? also it sounds like there was definitely more to his sobriety than what they have told sad that we didnt get to see that storyline....

everyone has said thier piece on how luther just mentioning sloane and then no other explanation is actually awful. like a simple flashback fo luther searching and finding sloane living a different life would have been better than them giving us nothing💀

ben i actually have nothing to say...it would have been silly to see the crypto scam ig. also an explanation of why they even showed the other ben the post credit of the s3 finale i think is warranted. like even a mention of yeah there is probably another ben who belongs to this universe walking around would have been okay ig

five oh where to even begin.... first of all how tf does a person who isnt even in thier 20s even get a gig at the cia. i know they said some bullahit abt five being a part of a relative young group/recruit (cant remember the exact wording) but like a person who is younger than 19 getting a job at the cia is a bit much. also i actually refuse to belive that five wouldn't have figured out his boss was part of the keepers there is just no way. after the handler and reggie i refuse to belive that five would lose his suspicion towards authority figures. i think the only authority figure he has ever listened to was the founder version of himself and even that took time. like if you want me to believe that bs then show me how five turned his brain into mush in the 6 year time skip. either that or show how me his loneliness in those six year because from what i have right now five worked at the cia and that is it nothing else. like from what i have been told by the show nothing else happended to him besides working. which if thier implication is that he was only working and drifted apart from his siblings that message was not clear enough to me as viewer and would have been alot clearer if i was shown such as thing.

[pomegranti]

Dirty little secret!

Ft: Gojo Satoru

Context: College AU, bully Gojo and quiet reader

Warnings!: Rough sex, quickie, creampies, hair pulling, dirty talk, blackmail, filming, spanking, mention of Geto lol, and no aftercare :(

Plot: Using reader for answers, bully Gojo ensures she’d never chicken out with some videos he has saved, but what happens when she has had enough?

✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰

5:04 PM

Laughter erupting from your lips, currently sitting on a random bench in the campus’ courtyard with one of your closest friends as you two chatted and gossiped about some of your classmates. Teasing each other with small remarks, you couldn’t help but scoff once your friend mentioned the the most annoying man on planet earth, Gojo Satoru.

“That one guy…Gojo right? He’s always sleeping or just never there, he seems to linger around you a lot though, maybe he has a crush on you?” Your friend asked, clearly annoyed by the mention, you dramatically rolled your eyes before shrugging, trying your best to brush it off and change rhetoric topic “I dunno’ he’s as dumb as a rock, thank god the years almost over, or else I might-“ Words getting cut off by the sudden buzz of your phone from your pocket, pulling it out to see the notification. Speak of the devil, was almost like he heard you both talking about him. How annoying.

It was a message from the man himself, demanding you to come over to his dorm in the next 5 minutes for one of your ‘study sessions’ that you both have “Who’s that? Ooo~ don’t tell me! Y/N’s got a hot date?~” Your friend teases, wiggling her eyebrows as she tries to peer over your shoulder. “As if, don’t worry about it. I should get going anyways.” Puffing out her cheeks in disappointment at your blatant lie, your friend almost seemed sad upon this news, simply humming in response in a suspicious tone before giving your shoulder a playful hit. “It’s ok, see you tomorrow!”

Nodding in response, you placed your phone back into your pocket before dusting off your attire, waving goodbye as you both exchange words of departure; then walking off to the dormitory.

5:26 PM

Knocking on the door to Gojo’s dorm, you had finally arrived after the mediocre walk across the campus, having to drop off some of your textbooks on the way. Before you could even lift your finger to knock once more, the door had swung open, and you were yanked inside with a small yelp.

Before you stood a pouty Gojo, arms crossed and eyebrow raised. “I said 5 minutes, it took you over 20 to get here! Did you get lost or somethin’?” Rolling your eyes at his sassy behavior, you refused to give him an explanation, simply placing your things down before unbuttoning your top, ready to get it over with.“Whoah, someone’s cranky~ Already getting undressed? I thought I taught you better than to be such a stubborn brat” He taunted, mirroring your actions as he too, began to strip of his attire, pulling you onto the bed.

5:32

“Cmon~ don’t tell me you’re already tired, we just started! You had so much attitude before, where’d it all go? I hope you didn’t lose count or else we’ll have to start all over again~” knuckles turning white as you gripped the sheets, you were currently laying across his lap as he sat on the bed, chest flat against the silk sheets while he held onto your hips, large palms rubbing over the red marks he had made. Bottom lip trembling due to the stinging on your ass, you heard him chuckle a bit before delivering yet another harsh slap, the sound echoing throughout his dorm. “I asked you a question baby, what count are we on?” Already overwhelmed, tears bubbled in your eyes as you tried to wiggle away in a futile attempt to escape the pain, only for him to yank you back onto his lap. “I-I don’t….n-number 11 right?” You whimpered, voice barely audible as you trembled like a leaf.

Bracing yourself for another torturous slap, you paused for a moment once you were met with nothing, craning your head to the side only to be met with yet another stinging hit, amusement plastering itself onto his features. Gojo reached down to grab your hair, pulling your head up to catch a glimpse of your embarrassed face enjoying how quickly your demeanor crumbled from a small punishment. “Don’t get all shy now, you’re already crying? Seriously? Pffft- I gotta show Suguru this-“ Grabbing his phone that sat next to you on the bed, he pushed the device into your face as he took a series of photos, capturing the way your damp lashes fluttered and how your mascara ran down your face. “G-Gojo stop..no more please..” Ignoring your pleas, a small snicker left gojos lips while he sent the photos to his best friend, flipping you around so rather than laying across him, your chest was connected with the sheets as your ass remained on his lap in a doggy style position.

Amused by the sight, Gojo pulled down the hem of his boxers to finally release his aching shaft, lining his leaking head up with your entrance, his hands held a firm grip on your hips. “I’m feeling needy tonight, no need for foreplay right? You’re a slut so I bet it’ll slide right in anyways~” Before you even had a chance to respond, he pushed his shaft in with one swift motion of his hips, throwing his head back at the pleasurable sensation of your velvety walls pulsing around his cock, groaning softly in response. As for you, despite his teasing words, the feeling his dick penetrating you so fast without any foreplay was rather unexpected, stunned for a few moments until your poor mind had finally registered what had happened, a mixture of pain and pleasure being woven together while you helplessly clawed at the sheets, panting heavily to try and regain your composure.

Relishing the sight of you struggling to take his length, a smirk placed itself on Gojo’s face, your reaction clearly feeding his ego plenty, wanting you watch you crumble even further, he began to rock his hips, wasting no time until he began a ruthless pace, causing the sounds of skin slapping to echo throughout the room. Moaning loudly, your back bent into an arch and your toes curled, the lewd sounds of your cries and skin connecting undoubtedly being audible from the hallway for anyone else to hear. Just when you thought it was too much too soon, you regained your senses once you heard the familiar sound of a camera shutter behind you, followed by a small fit of laughter. Was he seriously taking photos of you like this?

“W-What are you doing? D-Did you seriously just take a photo!”

“Relax~ I need to gather more evidence to ensure you won’t leave, you wouldn’t want everyone seeing these photos of you, right?”

“That’s b-blackmail you jerk!”

“I think of it more as a business procedure~”

Snickering softly at his own words, you couldn’t believe him, blackmailing you in the middle of sex just for the thrill of it. However, little did you know, he wouldn’t dare share those photos even if he wanted to, probably with his best friend, but that’s it. Maybe he’d even jerk off to them later, it didn’t matter though, why do that when you were right here. His greedy blue eyes absorbed the way your ass bounced against his pelvis with each thrust, and mentally capturing the way your cries filled the room, watching you succumb to your pleasure had to be one of his favorite things to do. “It’s fine though, no one else can fuck you like I do right? Such a slut, always crawling back to me~” Feeling his tip graze against your most sensitive parts, you couldn’t help but tighten your walls as a particularly high pitched moan rolled off your tongue. “Y-You came to me about this, asshole!”

Cocking his head off to the side at your words, he put his phone down once more before grabbing the back of your neck, pulling you up so your back could be flushed against his chest, allowing his member to protrude you even deeper. “Such a brat, it’s okay though, I’ll make sure to tame this pussy of yours real good~” Hands trying to find leverage, your fingers dug into his forearm while you blinked up at him a few times, large hues staring into his before pouting your lips in response to his words. Taking this opportunity, his hand shifted to hold your throat tightly while your lips connected, your tongues interwinding with each other as his deep thrusts caused a small coil to begin to tighten within your stomach.

It was all too familiar, you’ve done this enough times to recognize your own release when it approached, trying to alert him with the way your walls tightened and movements turning rather sluggish. Releasing your lips from his, a thin strand of saliva dangled between the two of you, hazy eyes forced to look at him as his hand held your head up. Relishing the sight of how quickly you were dumbed down from his cock, his grip on your neck tightened to hold you in place, as if you were going anywhere in this state. His other hand moving down to rub your clit in circular motions, trying to bring you to your climax while his signature smirk remained prominent as he too felt his release inching closer, abs flexing as his shaft twitched each time he dragged it along your walls.

Crying out his name, you were unable to murmur anything else, the peak of your pleasure rapidly approaching as his head continuously grazed against a sensitive spot in particular, causing you to see stars. Mouth left agape, your walls clamped down as a clear fluid coated both the inside of your thighs, as well as the sheets beneath you both. Left in a temporary hazed out state, you whined pitifully once you began to feel overstimulated, continuing to fuck you dumb even after your release. “Already tapping out? Didn’t know my dick was that good- hah- fuck..” Groans growing louder, it didn’t take much longer until his release was approaching, giving one final thrust before white liquids spurted out, coating your inner walls white as he came inside. Removing his hand from your neck, he grabbed his phone once more, taking a photo of the way his cum dripped out of you while his hand that previously stimulated your clit was now parting your folds for a better view, pulling out his shaft with a low chuckle.

“Look at that, can’t wait to show Suguru this, you think he’ll be jealous?” Mumbling incoherent words in response, Gojo simply laughed before laying you back against his bed as he began to redress himself, fixing his white hair before placing his glasses back on, collecting his items before heading to the door. “I have stuff to do, I’ll be expecting my homework tomorrow, better hurry and leave too before my roommate sees you like this~”

Watching as he left, you sighed heavily, wiping the sweat from your forehead with an irritated expression. “Asshole..”

That was my first fic! I hope you liked it, it was pretty short but honestly I just wanted to get something out, don’t forget to leave requests down for more ❤︎︎

[mrsdarkandyandere7]

College

Pairing: Dark Rafe Cameron x (female) Reader

▶ This is a yandere/dark work and it may contain triggering content so please READ THE WARNINGS before. Do not read if minor.

More at Masterlist

SUMMARY: Rafe will do whatever it takes so you don’t leave for college - even if it means breaking your self-confidence. 

WARNINGS: Toxic/Abusive Relationship; Manipulation.

AN: Please, reblog and give me feedback.

--

"You're not actually planning to go, are you?" Rafe's voice stops your imagination from running wild, your happiness dying down a bit as you look at Rafe, a bitter grimace on his face.

"Hum, why not? It's my dream college, Rafe, of course I want to go." 

His tongue presses against his cheek, his hand clenching around nothing before he looks at you, a sarcastic smile taking over his face. 

"Yeah, sure, but it's not like you're a great student. I mean, I don't even know how on earth you got accepted into it." your mouth drops with shock, his words opening a wound on your heart.

You can't possibly believe what your boyfriend is saying. 

He's quick in noticing your expression, his hand running up and down your arms in a consoling manner. 

"I'm not trying to hurt your feelings, you know that, baby." he says, tongue wetting his pink lips. "But I gotta be fully honest with you." 

“There’s no way you got in by your own merit. Your dad must've pulled some strings, that’s the only logical explanation.” 

Tears pool into your eyes as you stare back at Rafe, the seed of doubt starting to grow in your mind against your will. 

You’re not that bad of a student, you think. Sure, you don’t have excellent grades but they aren’t that mediocre either. Or at least, that’s what you always thought. 

“Hey, c’mon, don’t get all upset now.” Rafe pulls you into his arms, his arms surrounding your frame. You bury your head into his chest, sniffling. “Baby, you know you won’t last one semester at college. You’re simply not made for that type of thing.”

Rafe kisses the top of your head, his voice resonating through your ears. 

“But it’s fine, you got me.” he comforts you, his hand pulling your chin up, making you face him. 

He gives you a small smile, ignoring the tears that shine on your face. 

“I’m all you need.” 

-----

[flower-boi16]

”you want everything to be spelt out to you!” “The show doesn’t need to explicitly spell it out for you!” “You can just infer it!”

This is the exact same defense I always get whenever I argue with Viv fans when I criticize Viv’s piss-poor writing. And the thing is this IS true; shows don't need to explicitly spell things out to the audience, as there are conclusions that the viewer can draw on their own without having to be explicitly told by the text, usually by the text giving direct hints to that explanation.

The problem is that Viv fans' definition of inferring isn't "drawing conclusions on our own with direct explicit hints given from the text that is the canon explanation the story wants you to come to" it's "making shit up to try and explain and/or justify Viv's terrible writing".

There are three times where I got this defense when arguing with HH/HB fans all three times I lost several brain cells in the process.

The first time was in a discord server where I posted an HB episode tier list and put Truth Seekers in C tier (the mediocre one). One of users commented on this and I explained my reasoning why I thought the episode was meh. One of these reasons was the plot hole of why the Dhorks didn't send the footage they already had to the government.

The user then countered that with "how do you know didn't send that old footage?". Well, the reason why I know that is because the episode gives no actual indication that they sent it, and when I said that the user countered that with "because there was also no indication that they didn't send the footage". And then after that the argument spiraled into both of us repeating the same counterarguments over and over again.

The user says that it's logical for the audience to assume they sent the footage because it's the logical thing to do cuz why would they keep it. Which, ok, you can assume that they did send the footage but there's no indication of that within the story. This does not change the fact that this is an unanswered question that the story itself didn't answer, did they or did they not send the footage?

That's a pretty important question to answer and the show can't just leave it there. And then the user tells me "you don't need to be told, Its in your face how they act". There is no way to infer if they did send the footage because the story gives a SINGLE hint that they do, and the story DOES need to say if it they sent it or not.

This is not inferring. This is making shit up to explain Viv's writing for her. Did they or did they not send the footage? This is a big question that the episode does not answer even though this is a major plot hole and it can't just leave it hanging there for fans to just guess. The episode gave no indication that they sent the footage, so I have no reason to believe that they did. You can't infer ANYTHING from this.

This explanation is simply something made up, not a conclusion that's given direct hints from the show. If the next never said it happened, it did not fucking happen. This assumption is literally just headcanon.

The next argument was from an ask I got calling me media literate for my point about how fans shouldn't have to create fan theories to explain Viv's writing for her and Viv should explain her world-building herself. It stated that the explanation for why sinners are confined to the pride ring (making the exterminations more efficient/easier) is the clear explanation that the show doesn't have to spell out because 1) The show says that there are annual exterminations which aren't viable without the confinement and 2) Lucifer gets control over which ring his subjects go to.

Both of these explanations suck, here's why.

The exterminations simply being there does not explain the confinement. Also, this explanation doesn't work to begin with as I've talked about before

Lucifer having control over where he sends his subjects to doesn't inherently explain why he sends them to the pride ring specifically.

The "sinners are confined to the pride ring to make exterminations easier" was a fan theory created by the fans to explain this because the show itself didn't bother giving an answer. That's bad world-building.

The show itself needs to explain these things rather than having fans create explanations for it. There isn't any way to infer that because the show never once gives any hints that this is the reason. And, like I said before, the explanation doesn't even work anyway.

There is no way to infer why the sinners are confined to the pride ring at all, this explanation is once again a headcanon. But when I pointed this out, the anon said that I just want everything spelled out for me.

The third and final instance of this is with our good ol friend truffhollowell. Ya know, the person who's been going around on Hazbin critical posts spouting nothing but complete bullshit.

This argument was under this post about why Vaggie's turn around made 0 sense. In the post truff tried countering my argument with "uuuuh, actually, not all murderers are heartless monsters!" even though that is explicitly what the exorcists are shown to be.

They then go around and say that Vaggie could've been thinking "how could a child end up in hell" and she realizes Heaven's corrupt systems and develops her own identity (at least that's what I remember them saying since they deleted all of their replies once they lost the argument lmao)....even though there is NO indication within the show that this is what's happening.

This is not inferring. This is just a headcanon. But truff says that you CAN infer it because...child murder is bad...

...umm...WHY TF WOULD THE EXORCISTS GIVE A SHIT IF CHILD MURDER WAS BAD IF THAT CHILD IS A FUCKING SINNER????? And THEN they hit me with that same fucking claim of "oh, you want shows to spell things out for you!".

Ya, well, guess what, I can't infer any of this because that's not what's happening. This is not what's happening in the scene, this is just a headcanon truff made up.

There's more to their arguments than just that but that was the general point they were making.

I'm so sick of always getting this stupid-ass defense because NO, I DON'T want everything spelled out for me, I want things to actually make sense. I'm looking at specifically what the text itself is saying, the information that it gives out and what's happening within the show.

Not your headcanon you made up to explain Viv's terrible writing. None of these explanations are people infering things based on direct evidence from the show. They are just headcanons/theories with nothing in the text hinting towards it.

So, to anyone who is going to give me the "you can just infer it yourself!" excuse to defend these shows whenever I criticize them...

Shut the fuck up.

[fuck-customers]

Huh. It worked.

So, I'm unbelievably burnt out at my job but I guess a tiny part of me either still cares like 1% or is OCD because there are certain things that drive me absolutely up the wall and I really, really want them changed/fixed. But each time I bring up suggestions to my managers, they swiftly ignore me.

Just to be clear, the suggestions are "hey maybe we should have price tags on the products that we're selling in the store. I'm willing to take the time to tag things if you could provide me with the machine that prints the tags. Customers complain to me every shift about our products not having visible prices." Or "hey whatever happened to the price scanners? We used to have them on the main aisles and then one day they disappeared. They weren't malfunctioning before that. And if they were, why weren't they replaced? It's been years. Customers hate having to track one of us down to price check something." Or "hey our online inventory is completely inaccurate and it makes finding products difficult for us and customers. Is there any way to fix this? Can we employees be doing something?"

Of course I get brushed off or told some vague bullshit like "oh corporate made the decision" "it's up to corporate" with no further explanation.

HOWEVER.

I realized my manager was paying attention to some reviews because she had us change some things based on some survey. Like greetings. I figured out that we had receipt surveys. (we have never been required to push these and only management can read them, so there was no reason I would know about them before this) I tested out ny theory by artificially tanking our greeting ratings and my manager almost immediately was on us to greet every customer. I realized I could use this to my advantage and make complaints/constructive criticism as "the customer" (nothing obvious that would come back to me. I'm not stupid. It's not like I'm leaving reviews that say "give OP a raise! They're the best!" I'm not that stupid)

And you know what? It's slowly working. I had heard many customers complaining about the lack of price tags, so some "customers" complained about them in the reviews and a few weeks later, my manager was tagging everything in the queue line. I'm currently still working on getting the entire store properly tagged and getting the godawful music they play on the radio changed. (Ok fine, that one's for me, I can't stand that garbage, specifically Lovefool by The Cardigans. It's a mediocre song on its own, but I am not exaggerating when I say it plays at minimum twice an hour- I counted) But it's fucking working. No one is more shocked than me. Because my main motivation when starting this little project was to prevent myself from completely losing my mind and also screaming some of the things I hated about the store into the void and would you fucking know it? The void is responsive.

HEY! I like that song. I know Malwart got rid of the price scanners around the store to force customers to download the app. And are even making some self checkouts pay to use by making them only available to Malwart+ subscribers.

-Rodney

[realitys-ex]

A Mediocre review of 'Fourth Wing' by Rebecca Yarros

I'm going to be up front: It was awful, if you loved the book and don't want to be frustrated by someone who 'doesn't get it', all the power to you, and stop reading!

My review will only aggravate you to no purpose.

Also, I will be fully spoiling the book, so fair warning.

That aside...This book was bad. It checked off every trope on the list of 'shitty generic fantasy book with smut tropes' and wasn't even well written.

But hey, why don't we delve into why it sucked?

The writing itself was poor. I could barely make through the first 10 pages, and though it was better for the majority, it is some of the worst I've ever read for the back 10-20.

Next, the setting. Your M.C. is the daughter of the general of the Dragon portion of the Army, and though she was training to be a scribe, last minute her mother forces her to attempt to become a Dragon rider which is terribly physically difficult.

Oh, also like....50%+ of dragon rider trainees die.

Why? To prove that they will be tough enough to ride dragons. Would it work just as well if at every occasion they would 'die' they just... got drummed out instead? Probably! Would that save your best and brightest for other rolls in the military? Sure! Will they do that? No! Why? BECAUSE! (like, obv. there is the in world explanation that this way only the most dedicated apply, but.... that is clearly post fact. An excuse to allow there to be stakes rather than a true reason)

Next our fearless (or rather, fearful) lead runs into her romantic interests: The law abiding dude from her youth, and the edgy, sexy son of a rebel who has a tattoo marking him as such! (all the rebels children have these marks)

Why do they have these marks, and why are so many of them in the Dragon Riding School? Because they were allowed to live only if they watched their parents die, got these marks, and entered the school, which if they survived would turn them into some of the most powerful and dangerous people in the country.

WHO THE FUCK THOUGHT ANY PART OF THAT PLAN WAS A GOOD IDEA?

But, w/e, she will stay away from this sexy bad boy because he is 'toxic' and she doesn't do 'toxic'. the implication should be that she was in a terrible relationship before, which would give some fun character building.... but nope never addressed.

Against all odds she survives to dragon selection day, dodging classmates who are attempting to kill, which is more or less fine with everyone!

And she gets selected by the mythical Feather Tail! Now, dragons are divided along to axis: Colour and Tail type. Colour gives you your standard mixes, which says certain things about the dragons temperament (how to aproach it, intelligence, etc.). Tail type says.... also something about fight type? I'll be honest I was slightly zoned out there. But like there are club tails, sword tails, etc.

Now feather tails are crazy rare, and don't do combat, so she saves it from some of her classmates who were going to kill it b/c it was so weak, and b/c of this she gets selected by a Black Dragon (one of the best ones!) and also the feather tail!

Bonding two dragons, unheard of!

(TBH, this bit I was ok with, she isn't super special or anything, the black dragon was just 'oh, you saved a weak dragon, I like you. Lets bond' and the feathertail was 'oh, you saved me. Lets bond')

Now it turns out that Feathertails aren't rare! They are just children/babies. So aren't allowed to bond (also their magic works funky, but I'll get to that later).

Why aren't the dragons open about this? Fuck if I know!

Anyway, she continues to dodge murderous colleges who think there is a chance if she dies the dragon will bond with them instead (which apparently happens? wtf?).

And because her dragon is the mate of the dragon bonded to dark and sexy, they are bonded also!

So when their dragons are fucking, they both get super horny, but dark and sexy turns her down b/c she can't really consent.

UhHuh.

Oh, and now DarkandSexy needs her to stay alive b/c there is a chance if she dies her dragon dies, if her dragon dies his dragon will die (b/c mated pair), and if his dragon dies, he dies.

Don't worry everyone, they fuck and it is awesome for everyone!

Anyway. That is the book, there is actual plot of world politics, but eh. As shitty as that was, I am sure the sequels make it less stupid then it appears from the get go.

But yeah, 1, maybe 2 redeeming features from the whole book.

(The dragon bonds overall are actually kinda interesting, it's just with relation to everything else they become dumb. Like, ok. If you are unbonded and look at a dragon the wrong way, your'e dead. Fair enough. But... that still applies once you bond? Like Dragons see the bonded of other dragons as fair play? It seems that after a month it is pretty emotionally devistating for their humans to die. Why wouldn't there be social rules about that?

Oh and.... no one invented harnesess for dragons yet. You need to stay on your dragon via thigh grip. Sure makes for decent sex acrobatics... but wtf?)

Anyway....

Cons: -The first and last parts of the book(Arguablly the most important) are *terribly* written -The 'Constant risk of death' doesn't actually make sense -Everything done with 'children of the traitors' seems designed to set up a coup in like 10 years (which... if that was by design of someone who wanted a coup in world, 10/10, but I am not reading more to find out) -The secrecy around the young dragons makes no sense (like, there is a pseudo in world explanation to do with magic, but the dragons could said 'oh they are our young. no bonding.' and skipped the bit about magic) -NO ONE THOUGHT ABOUT HARNESSES? I was legit confused about that the entire book! -The 'romance' in its entirety was awful -The way dragons interact with bonded, and students interact with bonded was illogical at best

Pros: -The magic system (such as it was) was actually kinda cool -The bonding system was decent -'Why main character is so special' was actually good!

Overall.... there were about 100/450 pages I enjoyed it. So I'll give it a 4/10.

I will not pick up a book suggested by this friend ever again.

[campbell-rose]

Helluva Rewrite: Millie

Okay, i dropped my phone in water and was so scared i'd ruined it, but thank the gods it was fine. Though it's fucked so i'm going to post all the IMP redesigns in short order before it dies and i lose them forever. Onto Millie!

I wanted Millie to read as a country girl. I remember being like ‘oh, that’s her voice?’ when I watched the first episode, because for some reason it just didn’t match her design for me. I considered giving her back the white splotch in her hair, but decided to change imps and give fem imps white horns. I’ve got two guesses for why it was removed: 1) she was originally trans and it was changed 2) the dimorphism of imps was thought of after the pilot. Either way, I like it. I suppose the explanation for this version since her horns are fem is she might have been born intersex?

I wanted her and Moxxie to contrast in their designs, as such she’s wearing less while he’s fully covered, she’s tall he’s short, etc... Now, as a Wrath imp, she has a darker skin tone and has spikes on her body.

Now, as a character, i'll build off of what the show has given us.

Supposedly Millie is secretly very insecure? From leaks she’s like willing to die because she thinks she’s holding Moxxie back and in Unhappy Campers she had that whole breakdown. Now, I think this actually could’ve been built up a bit.  

In the rewrite, Millie is the youngest of her five siblings and the second girl. Now, from the bat lets make her a bit of a drain on the family. They hadn’t planned for her birth, and it was another child her parents had to take care of with limited money. She picked up on this when she was little, realizing that her parents often cut corners and struggle, and she perceives this as her fault. This ties into how she mentions her family going to Loo Loo Land, except in this it was once and was specifically for her birthday. She knows her parents had saved up for months to afford the trip and feels innate guilt for it. Boom insecurity explained. 

Now, in this Millie meets Blitzo first. They bump into one another once Millie moves away from the Wrath Ring to Pride to try and alleviate her parents’ stress. During this time Millie has been working as an assassin for a couple months and ends up bumping into Blitzo who was hired by a different person to kill the same target. This would be during Blitzo’s attempt to start his business in hell killing demons. They fight for a bit, then realize ‘oh wait... let’s work together!’ so Millie was the first to join IMP. 

Millie trains endlessly. When she isn’t doing her job, she’s at the gym. She is constantly striving to be the best because her parents pitted her and her siblings against one another (unknowingly, with things like the harvest festival). As a person she is very observant and emotionally intelligent. She is very kind and loves conversation. She also is very tight with money, and very appreciative of any gifts she receives because she grew up with little. She treasures things genuinely and is just all around a very genuine girl. 

Now, other than fighting, she is fairly mediocre at anything else, due to the culture of Wrath mainly being kill or be killed and you have to be tough. One hobby and talent she does have and is working on is singing, something she shares with Moxxie and works as something they can do together. Millie loves to play guitar and sing and is constantly striving to improve. On the topic of Moxxie, Millie loves him deeply and wants only the best for him and some part of her feels like she isn’t enough. 

All around I want this Millie to come off as a very confident and genuine person, trying her best to push down the deep feeling within her that she is a drain on everyone around her. So when people start showing her with praise rather than screaming in agony she is enthralled. She loves the cheers of crowds, as it was often Sallie Mae getting cheered on during the Harvest Moon Festival while Millie was always second best. She wants that kind of adoration and acknowledgement. 

That’s it. Gotta work on finishing Blitzo and Moxxie rn

[maevy-dol]

Evil, But Lame

(Why I dislike Leighton more than Bailey or Whitney)

DOL Character Analysis/Comparison (sort of)

Disclaimer:

This post contains Degrees of Lewdity (DOL) content and spoilers, as such sexual themes and violence. No minors allowed.

Please don't take the listed explanations below as 'excuses' for criminal behaviour. I am not defending or condoning the actions done by these fictional characters.

Also, the sprites are just the result of me fucking around Character Viewer + bad edits.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everything and everybody sucks in DOLville (or my other favourite nickname - Rapechestershire), but in my books, Leighton deserves a special mention. 

This dastardly disgusting failure of an educator cultivated within me a personal vendetta and now I always make it a point to antagonise them and make them the butt-monkey in all my playthroughs. The reasons are as follows:

They love to power-trip and lord it over students and teachers alike.

Their demeanour is so slimy. Compared to two other ‘villains’, he’s all gross but no substance (at this rate, their personality can be used as mediocre lube). 

Bailey (the main villain) is impassive and mostly fearless, and Whitney (the school bully) is sometimes so over-the-top that it comes across as theatrical (which makes sense - they’re putting on a show for their gang and the nearby audience) that I don’t take them seriously (most of the time).

I currently have minimal info on Leighton’s backstory, but I have yet to see a ‘sympathetic’ reason for their actions and behaviour.

Leighton's victim count is high and he has been blackmailing/molesting students for decades, and it’s not a stretch to say that he’s probably a big reason why so many adults (Spoiler: D) in town are also traumatized or fucked up.

He revels in the current power structure and town dynamics, while Bailey (implicitly) and Whitney (explicitly) acknowledges how fucked up everything is.

Also, here’s a comparison (again, I only included Bailey and Whitney as these are the two ‘antagonistic’ characters I have the most interactions with):

Vs. Bailey

Bailey’s motivation is primarily money. They will blackmail you (among other things) for profit, whereas Leighton will blackmail you to satisfy his lust and ego.

I can respect Bailey's character (not his actions 😭) -  they’re callous and ruthless, but they’re also strong and reliable. Personality-wise, I like that they’re impassive, calculating, and dangerous, fitting for the overarching villain. Bailey generally won’t regard you lustfully, unless you go out of the way to do so (cough Troublemaker cough). While steep, their payments do have a cap. Also, I personally believe they dislike orphans who play it safe to gain money because they themselves got their hands really dirty to make money (like the PC, potentially).

Defeating Bailey is also incredibly difficult...because they're impossibly fit and tenacious.

Leighton is petty (they will retaliate if you blackmail him), weak-willed, complacent, (his computer is easier to break into and he easily gets distracted by his own lust), and a serial molester (with a high victim count and long track record - it’s not a stretch to say that he’s probably a big reason why so many adults in town are also fucked up).

Defeating Leighton is way easier and he’ll throw a lame insult at you afterwards.

In terms of administration, I dare say Bailey’s better at running the Orphanage than Leighton running the School.

Spoiler: IIRC, Bailey was also an Orphan, he made the Orphanage better since the last caretaker, and he also has debt. I believe the money they collect from the orphans goes into that debt.

Vs. Whitney:

There’s little revealed about Whitney’s actual motivations but their demanding and bullying behaviour is most likely because of their personal circumstances, the need to gain status, and maintain the approval of their gang. In the most sympathetic light, they’re a neglected teenager who thinks being bigger and badder is the best way to protect themselves in a shitty town. Private moments (esp as an LI and w/o his gang’s influence) show they can be rather responsible and capable of showing concern for the PC.

By contrast, Leighton is an adult authority figure who perpetuates systematic abuse and currently shows no sign of remorse as this helps to keep themselves in power. With their backstory unrevealed, they’re just a pervert who likes preying on the young and vulnerable. They either view you as “Oh, you’re still here?” or “I’m gonna have my fun with youuu”🤮

As shown in some Whitney scenes, Leighton still has some sort of control over Whitney (they give Whitney lighter punishments in exchange for keeping other students in control, and even Whitney won’t refuse a summon from the Headteacher) and most likely has the means to harshly punish Whitney if they’re not useful to them anymore.

You can make Whitney pay for their crimes or retaliate against them, but Leighton, as a major figure in town, can easily get off scot-free (in most cases).

While Whitney will pimp you out (which I hate, they're my primary LI ffs, I really hope this improves in future updates), you can escape some encounters (if you have high Athletics or they have Low Dom) and he mostly does so for the money (they even split the profit with you in one encounter lol). Leighton will force you to have noncon sex (with other students or a freaking dog) as a punishment.

Tbh, both are bad: Whitney can also force you into noncon but they can be fought off easily and they often do so in the spur-of-the moment if you defy them (please don't interpret this as excusing this unhinged behaviour), but Leighton plans their attack, coerces multiple students, and records it for blackmail, which I think is more damaging to multiple parties and harder to navigate (game-wise).

Honestly, Whitney, if left unchecked and goes the criminal route, can probably end up similarly like Leighton (abusing power), but I imagine they’d be more dangerous and calculating as an adult (more similar to Bailey, but cockier).

And if you guys are interested, here’s what I’ve done as revenge so far 😈:

Overpowered him (as a Tiny MC) during his spanking detentions with an audience

Humiliated him and made them cum (Feat: Leighton’s Nightmare)

Eloped with someone else during the aftermath of their card game victory 

Pegged them and took their butt v-card (in their own words: “Yes! Make me your strap-on bitch!”)

In progress: Sending him to the Pillory during the Police Infiltration quest

In conclusion: Leighton is a slime ball, currently has no sympathetic reasons for their behaviour, and is an old pervert with an ego. I also like picking on them but I have to say, my initial vehemence for them has now softened into petty annoyance (possibly even grudgingly fond).

If you read up to here, bless you. Gotta go make cream buns now.

~ Magda's Maker

[coeurcanelle]

☆Baby,the stars shine bright☆pt6

pt5

inspired by the 'kamikaze girls',♡ always had unconditional love for lolita fashion and nothing else but when she met ellie,an auburn haired girl whos part of a gang with a dad's fashion sense ,her love for clothes begins to compete with her growing feelings for ellie

strangers to friends to lovers,love-hate friendship,opposite aesthetics,early 2000s

wlw,fluff

wc:8k

loud scream was heard all around the house, immediately waking up Ellie. The bed was empty beside her, and you were nowhere to be seen in her room, so she ran to search for you.

Mars ran away from the bathroom door, using the chairs in the living room as her hiding spot. Ellie's eyes drifted from her cat to the bathroom door. She approached it, turning the doorknob while imagining the worst.

There she found you.

"wat's wrong with you? don't tell me you got jumpscared by a spider or something."

Mixed emotions washed over her: relief and confusion. She hated waking up to clock alarms, but your screaming was by far the worst. She was even more puzzled seeing you standing next to the large mirror, holding the same bonnet you wore yesterday.

"it's worse than that," your voice filled with sorrow, making Ellie furrow her eyebrows in confusion. Only her fear of spiders could make her scream like that. But when you clearly showed her the small holes in your bonnet, she didn't need any clearer explanation for your reaction.

Your ears quickly turned red when you saw Ellie raising one eyebrow at you; you might have overreacted. "sorry, but if you think about it, it's not entirely my fault."

Ellie scoffed. How was she to blame?

It was you who fell on your own that night you both left the casino. If you didn’t call her the names you did, she wouldn’t have chased after you. She didn't need to lift a finger to make you regret your words, not when gravity became your worst enemy at that moment.

"you're such a drama queen. Just get a new one. Besides, what's done is done. At least next time you'll watch your mouth before calling me stupid names." Her hand still reached to grab your bonnet, wanting to know if it was that badly messed up for you to react so negatively.

"you sure don't get anything in fashion. It was a limited edition, dumbass." You handed the accessory to her. Since it had gotten into a mediocre state, its worth was now reduced to nothing to you. It would finally meet its destined fate and be thrown in the trash.

Carefully, Ellie inspected your item and even tried to slide her fingers through the small holes.

"well, you're definitely not a smartass for wearing this AND trying to annoy the shit out of me." Her fingers swiftly passed through the holes; she wiggled them at you, doing a good job of pissing you off.

It was just morning, and you could already feel grumpiness sticking with you all day.

You snatched your bonnet out of Ellie's hands, earning a smug grin from her that you couldn't snatch away from her face. "you're so fucking immature."

All you wanted to do was to go home and start all of this over, wishing for a miracle and hoping to find the exact same bonnet in any nearby shops.

"you can't call me that too." Ellie crossed her arms and blocked the way out of the bathroom so you couldn't leave, even if you truly didn't want to.

You were for sure overreacting, and Ellie wasn't going to let you be all grumpy to her, not when she thought of a solution to help you and not when both of you spent a dreamlike night yesterday.

The clock was ticking 9 am, signaling it was her breakfast time, but the only thing she needed at the moment was that smile of yours to make a comeback.

So she suggested: '"you know what, I'll let that slide because you're-your hat's cute."

"bonnet" you corrected.

"whatever. Just give it to me. I don't know anyone around who can do it for free, so I'll try to fix it up."Her words were anything but convincing to you. "plus, embroidery is like stitching someone up except with fabric. I'm sure I can do this with my eyes closed." she sounded more confident until she saw reluctance reappearing on your face at the last sentence.

"It's fine"*you're going to mess it up even more* you carefully didn't add.

Ellie wanted to help, and she started to get desperate. Fashion wasn't something she was particularly interested in, but she was certainly interested in you.

The way your face would beam at the sight of Lolita dresses, the way you'd work hard (scam) to get money for the sole purpose of upgrading your wardrobe, and the way you looked in the clothes you liked didn't go unnoticed by Ellie,in fact,there was nothing else she liked more than seeing you happy.

It was at this moment she also realized your connection was so strong she started to match your emotions too, and the last thing she wanted right now was to feel sad because you did.

"just give me one chance," she said, letting herself get carried away by the waves of love and affection. It was undoubted that she would do anything for you. "and if it doesn't look fashionable enough, you can lock me in your basement and leave me dying of hunger and boredom."

Your lips curved into a smile at the inside joke. "you're lucky I'm not as unhinged as you", after debating whether or not you should let Ellie fix your bonnet, you reluctantly gave it to her to put an end to her persistence, but not without lessening your worries.

Ellie was thankful that you trusted her, and now that your bonnet's future was placed in her hands, with hope and determination, she would give it to you all fixed up to thank you back.

"damn, you can't take a joke, can you? I don't even have a basement and even if I did— i mean..do you see me doing this kind of stuff? thats just fucking crazy. What kind of psycho would do that just for getting scammed?"Her tone was exaggeratedly bewildered as if it was something morally unthinkable, as if she didn't joke about it last night.

"It doesn't sound that unbelievable since you did think about it." Your arms crossed and you straightened your back. You recalled Ellie's serious face from last night and how she easily sent shivers down your spine. Your opinion today hasn't changed; you still found her kinda hot. "trust me, those psychos think exactly like you. They're just a little more deranged."

A sigh escaped her lips as she inspected your item, using her imagination to figure out how to sew the small holes. But if you kept teasing her, she would start to reconsider helping you.

"you can play this spot-the-difference game and all you want. You could do the same with your hat and Joel's socks once I'm done fixing it."

Yesterday, when you passed through the kitchen, the open windows offered a view of the small garden outside. The hung-up clothes slightly moved back and forth with the wind, and a few holey socks were strongly attached to the cord.

Now you know who they belonged to.

"please don't."

☆°☆•°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

With eyebrows pulled together, focused eyes, and gentle yet ineffective movements, Ellie’s determination wasn’t enough against her lack of experience. Many things that looked easy often revealed themselves to be the complete opposite.

Some stitches were too tight while others were too loose; Ellie had difficulty hand-sewing up the hole.

You both had left Joel's house to head to your own, not expecting to see your dad bringing people into the house too. It turned out he had finally found a job—something that wasn’t drastically different from what he used to do before but made him satisfied. However, you never imagined he’d once find money through being a fortune teller. But only a scammer like him didn’t mind looking absurd while predicting obvious events that eventually occur in everyone’s life.

You had led Ellie to your room at the end of the corridor and now you were sitting at the edge of your bed, with your face resting in the palm of your hand when you weren’t leaning over your desk, taking a closer look at what she was doing.

If it wasn’t for her kindness and how adorable she looked, you would have definitely taken back your bonnet already, not letting her continue her terrible job at pushing the thread in and out.

Since it was her first time doing something like this, she judged the uneven stitches to be fine, while you grimaced at the sight of them.

After finishing one hole, Ellie turned to you and held the bonnet up to you expectantly.

Your lips pressed into a thin line quickly formed an embarrassed smile.

You didn’t know what to say.

“is my work so good it got you speechless, or you don’t wanna say anything because you envy my skills?” Her grin was cocky despite her awful work. You had to do something about it (both her cockiness and her work).

“I’ll give it a 2/10 for effort and also because it’s your first try.” Your bluntness instantly made her cocky grin disappear, her lips pressed into a thin line instead.

“never meaner... and why not 3?” Ellie asked for justification. She had spent a hot minute trying to copy what you had shown her, but she couldn’t even get through the basics.

You wanted to laugh at her desperation. “maybe you’re right, I should reconsider...” You pretended to think as you put your finger on your chin, not surprising Ellie with your comeback, “1/10.”

“alright, for effort or first try?” she asked as if your answer was going to have life-changing consequences.

“whatever helps you sleep at night,” you shrugged your shoulders and tried to think of what to do with your ruined accessory. Now that Ellie had tried to help, you didn’t want it to end its life in the trash. “I’ll do it myself, I can’t stand seeing my bonnet like this.”

“then sit,” she didn’t fail to make you roll your eyes at her, smirking in return.

After giving it some thought—something Ellie is highly unlikely to do—you carefully removed the thread Ellie had stitched on the hole, throwing away 30 minutes of hard work and determination.

You told her you had another idea when you heard her dramatic gasp, and all she could do was trust the process.

As your hands were busy hand-sewing, your mind brought you back to a memory that still felt like a vivid dream.

The scent of Ellie on her clothes that you were wearing, her playing the melody of your favorite song, and her strong arms embracing you.

You slightly shook your head.

No.

One thing was in fact from a vivid dream.

At least you still got to wear her clothes, get her to play your favorite song for you, and even gaze at the stars while your heartbeats rhythmically synced.

However, you couldn’t ignore the painful pang in your chest when you remembered her embracing you with affection was just a dream.

You wanted her to hold you like this in real life too.

Once again, you shook your head to arrange your thoughts.

You were so crazy about her that the lines between imagination and reality uncontrollably started to blur!

Then 1... 2, and soon 5 petals were meticulously sewn around the hole. You had never thought of doing something so original before; maybe it was because you felt Ellie’s attentive gaze on you.

You made sewing look so easy while she struggled to get one stitch right.

Thoughts like "maybe if I'm better at this, I could make her like me more" resurfaced in Ellie’s head again.

At first, it was envy, but her admiration for you made her gradually seek approval from you, which wasn’t any easier.

Her mind was still filled with the newfound memories of yesterday: how good you looked in her clothes, the way your eyes would sparkle under the moonlight, and the sound of your uncontrollable laughter when she’d tell you something stupid. This was the recipe for making her heart melt. Words weren’t enough to perfectly describe how happy she felt, knowing she was the reason behind your bright smile.

One night wasn’t enough to satisfy her; she wanted to spend as much time with you as possible.

Maybe tonight you could hopefully recreate yesterday again, even better?

Caught staring at you, Ellie snapped her thoughts away and drifted her eyes away from you.

You had noticed Ellie’s devotion to proving herself to you, but you were against it, believing this whole comparing thing was pointless when you liked her just the way she was.

“there are about 2 holes left,” you stated, reaching your hand out for Ellie to grab your bonnet. “here, take the needle. I’ll teach you how to make flower petals instead.”

Ellie’s hand didn’t budge, and you saw the hesitation in her eyes. “bet you could do this with your eyes closed after some time,” you added before taking her hand to place your unfinished accessory in it.

She scoffed as her eyes glanced at what she was holding, the pressure to be successful coming back “I don’t think you actually want me to do that.”

“hey, you might be slow, but you’ll get the hang of it at some point,” you reassured her.

You always believed that humans were gifted with potential; they just tended to limit themselves.

Plus, it wouldn’t hurt to have something handmade from the girl you liked. “Also, my hands are getting sore.”

“so, you’re basically using me? didnt know you were like this” she exclaimed with a smirk.

“you literally begged to help me.”

"omg, I literally didn’t... why’d you—I wasn’t even that desperate.”

And the teasing went on and on until she started to turn her attention back to your bonnet.

☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

Once again, getting attention was something you were used to by now. You've seen so few people wearing lolita clothes that you could count them on one hand, so it was a normal reaction for people to curiously stare at you. Hence, you brushed it off when you felt the employee from your favorite clothing shop's eyes on you.

"maybe it's been a while since she last had a customer," you thought.

Totally lost in your own world, you shuffled through the stunning dresses crafted with luxurious fabrics and adorned with intricate lace, pearls, and embroidery details that were to die for.

Since Joel didn't want to spend his time shopping at the convenience store, he had sent you and Ellie with a list of things that mostly consisted of food. But after you were done with the task Joel had given you, you couldn’t wait any longer to visit the Baby, the Stars Shine Bright shop nearby, which you judged to be the best shop to ever exist in the world.

After taking a quick look at their newest collection in their showcases, you didn't waste a single second and stepped in.

Ellie aimlessly followed you around, carrying the plastic bag containing your groceries with one hand and holding yours with the other, languidly dragging her feet.

After finding your happiness, you headed towards the cashier. Faint dimples appeared on both sides of her cheeks as she smiled, enlightened to see you again. You dropped Ellie's hand as you paid for a brand new white headband, and the same employee from earlier approached you, as pleasant as the cashier, but her staring started to make you self-conscious.

"is there anything else you need, miss?" she asked, her eyes not leaving your bonnet. You readjusted it a bit nervously.

"that will be all for today, thank you" you returned an awkward smile. The employee felt sorry for her persistent gaze, but she needed to take a closer look at your accessory.

"is this bonnet purchased from here?" The employee thought it was strongly similar to one bonnet from their previous collection, except it didn't have embroidered flower petals adorning it.

She received a silent response with a positive nod from you, and you suddenly became shy.

The employee rapidly called another worker, "regina, come here, you have to look at this!"

In just a span of seconds, you became the center of attention of the whole place. Everyone was looking and pointing at the details on your bonnet, still sitting at the top of your head.

They were women with taste, and you hoped the surprise painting their faces didn't mean something about the retouches looking horrendous.

A feeling of reassurance washed over you when they started to praise you.

"beautiful, beautiful!"

"did you make this yourself? You truly are talented!"

"i wish I was this creative and knew how to do embroidery as well," they all exclaimed enthusiastically as their eyes shifted from your creation to your face repeatedly, admiring your bonnet like it was a piece of art displayed in a far-famed museum.

You were far from accustomed to getting praises, and Ellie wondered why they were all acting so excited over an accessory.

But when you told them she had helped you fix your bonnet up, all eyes turned to her, flattering her with praises as well.

One of the employees managed to get the boss out of his office upstairs, leading him to you.

It felt like time instantly stopped.

You couldn't believe what was happening.

The CEO of your favorite clothing brand, walking up to you?

It must be a dream, right?

You were too busy trying to distinguish your imagination from reality to react when he asked if he could take a closer look, suggesting you hand your bonnet to him.

Your legs suddenly felt heavy, and your vision started to darken though you had your eyes open.

You weren't here.

"wow, this is beyond wonderf-" The man didn't even have time to compliment your work before you helplessly fainted on the floor.

Alarm bells went off in Ellie’s mind. Standing beside you, she rushed down to catch your head before it could harshly hit the 'white tile,' blaming your sudden unconscious state on the tall man.

"what a reaction for a burst of joy," she sighed as she slightly shook you in an attempt to bring you back to her.

☆°☆°☆°☆•°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

It didn't take long to wake up, but wake up from what? Because right now, you could literally say you're living a dream.

Ellie's heart returned to its normal pace. "are you alright?" she softly asked, brushing a strand of your hair behind your ear to see your awakened face more clearly.

"yeah." The realization that you had fainted in front of everyone, especially the CEO of your favorite shop, made you extremely embarrassed. After a moment, you slowly stood up, cleared your throat, and turned to the girl who had just saved your life. "you?"

Your unnecessary concern for Ellie elicited a light chuckle from her. "thanks for asking, but you're the one who nearly passed out here."

The whole room was filled with awkward and short laughs. The feeling of embarrassment flashed across your face once again, and you refused to look ahead and meet the eyes of the man who had created the source of your happiness.

Your fixed bonnet was still held by his hands. His eyes darted from you to it, with many questions eager for answers popping into his mind.

Curiosity bubbled up inside him as he wondered how one's mind could go that far and how you and your friend had created such a wonderful replica of what you had just imagined. His mind was like bubbles of curiosity ready to explode.

He carefully approached you and Ellie, offering you praise and asking various questions.

Ellie's eyes never left your face, studying every single feature as you did your best to answer as clearly as possible. Her heart swelled uncontrollably with warmth when you'd mention her helping you a lot.

After what seemed like a lifetime to Ellie, he finished interviewing you both.

He just needed one thing from you.

The sight of his hopeful and impatient eyes made your heart burn with anticipation. You tried to control your breathing, which quickened its pace, refusing to succumb to the menacing fainting.

"with an imagination and talent like yours, it would be regretful for it to go to waste," he stated, reaching out to return your item. But he didn't hand it to you when your hands nervously grabbed for it. "I wish to hire you as an embroiderer. What do you think?"

Your mind was flooded with racing thoughts about working here.

It seemed like the ideal workplace, but was it truly your ideal job?

"I just love wearing cute clothes, not necessarily making them," you confessed after a moment of silence. The female employees exchanged glances, curiosity on their faces as they wondered why such a talented person would pass up such a fortunate opportunity.

Refusing to let this be your final words, Ellie gently touched your shoulder, encouraging you to step out of your comfort zone. "are you serious? Do you realize i know how to do embroidery thanks to you? me...someone who couldn't even hold a needle without shaking and pricking my finger" Ellie took your hand, squeezing it as she urged, "this is your chance, dont fuck it up"

Refusing wasn’t an option when such a suggestion came from the CEO of your all-time favorite brand, but hearing the desperation in Ellie’s voice made you accept right away.

Working in your favorite place, surrounded by stunning dresses and accessories, and earning money from it was literally a dream job. To you, it wasn't as if he was asking you for something but rather offering you a present. You told him you could work from 8 to 6, Monday to Friday.

His eyebrows furrowed in refusal, and he thoughtfully reduced the amount of work hours since you were currently on summer break.

And just like that, you left the shop with the same smile you entered with, except it was slightly wider and brighter than usual. The realization that this dream-like moment was indeed a reality would hit you later.

You walked down the streets with ellie,both of you not knowing where to go and just mindlessly following each other.

"uh, where exactly are we going right now?" Ellie questioned, her eyes squinting at the bright sunlight directly assaulting her face.

"I don't know. I was following you." You stopped mid-track and tried to put your mind on pause. The scenes from earlier replayed in your head non-stop.

"don't freak out, but I kinda don't have a sense of direction when it comes to wandering in places I don't know." A tired sigh escaped from Ellie's mouth. When she turned around, she couldn't even recognize where you both had come from.

But this place wasn't more unrecognizable than you. It felt like your soul had left your body since you passed out, that it had stayed in 'Baby, the Stars Shine Bright,' and that you were now working on autopilot.

Ellie's eyes fell on the white summer houses around you. With such little details to distinguish them from one another, they all looked awfully similar.

Silence reigned over the avenue, unlike your mind, which was anything but quiet at this moment. "ellie," she directly shifted her gaze from the houses to you, more worried about your overwhelmed state than the fact that you were lost. "god is real."

Pure confusion replaced her worry in a split second. "what the fuck are you on? I told you, you should never try smoking."

"listen, I'm serious." Your hands found their way to her shoulders, an attempt to make her carefully listen to you. "I received his blessings, and since I'm blessed and you're my friend, it means you can be too."

If she wasn't sober right now, maybe she would have taken you a little bit more seriously.

"friend?" Her voice carried genuine surprise; she realized she forgot to ask you what you both were after last night.

"so I would be cursed if I happened to be your girlfriend?" She tried to hide her genuine surprise with sarcasm and get a possible hint from you.

Her delusional side convinced her you were her soon-to-be girlfriend, that you followed her around because you loved her, and that your love language was annoying her,secretly liking the way she looks when you succeeded.

"what? no, I mean—my point is..." Ellie's heart felt less heavy seeing you avoiding eye contact suddenly, her lips curving into a proud smile knowing the effects she had on you. "I'll help you find the founder of your gang. I can also sew your gang's name on your jacket sleeve."

At first, she didn't know why. But the pieces of the puzzle started to connect together as she realized she was your only friend.

"you don't have to look for some designer to do it for you," you continued.

It was like playing baseball with her being good at throwing the ball and you not knowing how to properly catch it.

When Ellie was openly affectionate to you, you didn't know how to receive it.

Ellie smiled a bit. "Are you sure you don't mind doing it? I mean...no pressure, okay?"

How could you know how to receive love when you didn't even know what it was to begin with?

Your parents separated when you hadn't even hit puberty, and no amount of romance novels could make up for the lack of experience of a strong and passionate bond between people in love.

For this reason, you never truly knew what that feeling was.

To make things worse, whenever you felt yourself falling for something close to love, you would unforgivingly push it and the person involved away.

Even though your mom had cheated on your father, she was still the one who had welcomed you to this world. The guilt has never left you when you chose to live with your dad over your mom, although he was a good and loving person.

You couldn't put a face onto the word 'love,' and it gradually became meaningless to you, an unfamiliar word you'd come across when flipping pages in a dictionary. But as time went by, you had rediscovered it and put clothes onto it that were also the definition of your happiness.

"I want to do it for you," you smiled back.

But if all of this was in a book, Ellie would be the major plot twist. Her definition of happiness was short and precise: you.

Ellie reached her hand out to take yours, giving it a gentle squeeze. " 'kay, if you're in, you have to promise me something."

Love hurts when one-sided. If her definition of happiness was you, she had to change your definition of happiness and add herself in it too.

If you've never learned how to receive affection, that's okay. She'd proudly volunteer to teach you and only you.

"promise me," her eyes bore into yours expectantly, "that you'll never leave me."

Because, from you, she's learned that it wasn't impossible for love to go with happiness and that pain could step out of their business.

At least, that's how she felt about you.

"of course, I promise." You stuck out your pinkie, but to your surprise, Ellie didn't.

Instead, she wrapped her arms around you before pulling you into her embrace.

Your warm hearts beat faster in sync by the second, exploding in affection.

Except Ellie's heart missed a beat when you hugged her back. She never knew she needed it until now.

Her hair smelled like vanilla, and her body felt so warm against yours.

Both of you stayed like that for God knows how long. You had lost the notion of time, and it was the least of your concerns at this moment.

Her arms were over your shoulder, a sign that she deeply trusted you.

Pulling you out of your reverie, a red Suzuki Wagon drove past the both of you. Your arms stayed on hers for a little longer, an unspoken and double-meaning promise that you'd never let her go even if she did.

It seemed the car came from the same place you both were, meaning you weren't totally lost.

So after turning on your heels, both of you started to walk your way out of the unknown avenue, hand in hand.

In the end, everything turned out fine, and you soon found your way back to Tokyo.

This time,despite the comfortable silence it was ellies mind who couldnt keep quiet.

Her giddy smile not leaving her face ever since she wrapped her arms around you,as well as the warmth in her heart.

For how long will she able to keep her feelings locked in her heart?

Though your hug meant an unbreakable promise bonding you two,she hoped it also meant something more.

She cleared her throat,when you both stopped at the train station,it was surprisingly sparse of people for such a busy time.

"so like...you have a thing for tall guys or...?"

The sight of the tall man holding your bonnet in admiration and you fainting right after this flashed before your eyes"oh my god shut up"you retorted,rolling your eyes at her whose eyes shortly sparkled with hope.

☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

This time, despite the comfortable silence, it was Ellie’s mind that couldn’t keep quiet. Her giddy smile hadn’t left her face ever since she wrapped her arms around you, and warmth filled her heart.

For how long would she be able to keep her feelings locked away?

Though your hug symbolized an unbreakable promise bonding you two, she hoped it also meant something more.

She cleared her throat as you both stopped at the train station, surprisingly sparse of people for such a busy time. “so like… do you have a thing for tall guys or…?”

The sight of the tall man holding your bonnet in admiration, and you fainting right after, flashed before your eyes. “oh my god, shut up,” you retorted, rolling your eyes at her, whose eyes shortly sparkled with hope.

☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

“…but still… you’ve never fainted like that when you first saw me.”

After stopping at Joel’s to drop off what you had bought before, both you and Ellie returned to your house, which was quieter than usual.

Your empty schedule became busy in the blink of an eye. With a brand new simple white dress needing final touches and the famous gang name to sew in under three days, there wasn’t a single second to waste. Not to mention that traveling across the country to find the mysterious gang founder was also on your ambitious list.

“why would I?”

Turning your attention away from the jacket sleeve, your eyes shifted to Ellie instead.

“maybe 'cause I carry a tremendous amount of swagger like nobody else can in this world,” her voice sarcastically filled with confidence. She said this like it was an obvious fact, and you couldn’t really disagree.

Someone who clearly doesn’t know what they’re doing but lets themselves be guided by adrenaline and curiosity. Someone who doesn’t mind taking risks as if their life could be restarted by passing a video game checkpoint. Someone who didn’t mind getting lost in the most unknown places as long as it was with you.

As much as you tried to think, no words could perfectly describe Ellie’s unequaled aura.

But you weren’t going to let her know that, not when you liked teasing her so much. “you’re still not the CEO of Baby, the Stars Shine Bright.”

“you’re right,” she started before looking away, gathering inspiration from her heart. “But I’m the CEO of making you smile.” You proved her point as your lips immediately curved into one, as if her words put a spell on you.

“It shines brighter than any star too,” she added with a playful wink, mentally cheering for having the courage to compliment you. It was a small, yet hopefully significant, step forward in what you both had.

Her words flew straight to your heart, coloring it red because of the blood but also because of your newborn love.

The transition from liking to loving Ellie had started the night you spent stargazing with her.

And now you could no longer carelessly brush off her flirtiness, not anymore.

Her compliments were seriously starting to make you feel things.

Ellie’s eyes didn’t miss yours trying to push away the effects she had on you.

“did you train yourself in the mirror say this one too?” you asked.

It seemed you dodged Cupid’s bow again. “why? Is it a crime to be a natural flirt?”

“It’s far from natural; it almost sounded scripted.” your voice dripping with sarcasm as usual

The truth is if you followed her, borrowing the path of truth, you’d end up either literally confessing your feelings or shyly stammering on your words and making her childish smirk come back.

And above all, teasing was more fun.

“your reaction didn’t seem like it followed a script though,” a soft chuckle followed her words. Before you could turn back your attention to the dress in front of you, she reached her hands out of her pockets to direct your turning chair towards her. “I think you just can’t flirt back, so you talk shit. Just admit I’m a smooth talker and you like it. It doesn’t hurt.”

There was a small gap between you, and when you turned to look at Ellie’s face, her kissable lips formed a smirk and her eyebrows waggled together.

Her sudden proximity made time stop, and the soft music playing in the background faded as you felt your heartbeat getting louder.

An unfamiliar feeling bubbled up in your stomach, something that seemed ready to explode as her gaze on you intensified.

Your body reacted before your mind, and her chest met your hand. Ellie understood she would cross the line if she leaned closer.

You kept her eyes on hers. "it does.it hurts my ego and pride." Ellie obviously understood your sarcasm—not because it's part of your nature, but because she also paints her buried feelings with jokes.

She took a few steps back before you could add another layer of satire, her eyes not leaving yours even when they looked away from hers.

"but objectively speaking, you're charming with your words."The honesty contrasting with your previous words made her snicker.

Today, at 5:36 pm, an hour when she usually lets herself be consumed by boredom, a new memory was engraved in her mind, and she wouldn't forget to write it down in her journal once back home.

Her heart would swell with joy as she'd quoe you calling her charming. Her stomach would birth butterflies as she'd remember this compliment coming from a pretty face.

But with a closed mouth to keep quiet and not make Joel think she'd gone crazy. Even though that was kind of the case.

"shut up, that's nothing but objective." Ellie scratched the back of her head, being the one avoiding eye contact now that your eyes peered at hers.

"don't your friends think the same when you flirt like that?" A natural flirter, smart and beautiful, kicking ass to do justice—to you, Ellie was an all-in-one, and you wouldn't be surprised to learn that she made other girls feel special too.

That you were just, hopefully not, one of her other friends.

"I don't flirt with them."

Whether it was the truth or a lie, a part of you wanted to believe her anyway. Maybe that was another effect, a result of her irresistible charm.

☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

Overthinking was one of your worst habits, controlling your mind and replaying your most embarrassing conversations on a loop.

The best way you could have replied to Ellie complimenting your smile could have been simply thanking her and returning the compliment.

WHY DID YOU NOT THINK ABOUT THIS EARLIER?

You wanted to hide your face in your hands as unanswered 'whys' and 'hows' progressively took over your mind.

It felt like losing the 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire' game over the most evident and unmistakable question.

Except you weren't losing money but Ellie's interest, but that's just what you thought.

Suddenly, the same girl you've been thinking about spoke up again. Ellie's voice was a remedy to your overthinking; it was seemingly curious since a hint of interest influenced her tone. "do you ever look at guys and get... i dont know, like you find them so attractive you want to hug and everything... maybe ki-'

With a swift move, you pulled one thread out of Ellie's jacket sleeve. The details on the dress were unfinished; switching up between sewing the jacket sleeve and the dress so you could finish them both by your deadline was much smarter and also because doing repetitive things bored you.

After hearing her words and the mention of men, you stopped sewing for a second. "ew, why?'

"just asking"she snickered when your first reaction was disgust.

He appeared again. The man selling most of the clothes you had in your closet. The same man who praised your job at embroidery and who now wanted you to work with him. You physically shook your head to mentally shake the thoughts of him away.

"I'm not into him, okay? It just felt like meeting a celebrity; it's hard to control your emotions,"you clarified. You loved his work, not him.

"but in general? does it ever... happen? Idk how to make it not sound weird" Ellie started to fidget with her fingers, her black nails painted by you. Her mind took her back to yesterday again when she'd admire you whenever your sparkling eyes were fixated on the moon, wishing you were thinking about her too.

"it sounds weird no matter how you put it. But no, I guess puberty came late to me."

" 'mkay."

Before turning your attention back to her jacket sleeve, you caught Ellie nodding, putting her hands back in her pockets casually, turning her face away to forcefully stop her lips from forming a smile.

For the first time in her life, she believed in luck.

"you?" The initial of Ellie's gang name started to take form as you repeatedly pulled the golden yellow thread in and out of the fabric.

"ew, no, I'm not interested either. Just thinking about it grosses me out."Her brutally honest answer made you chuckle softly; you weren't that much different after all.

"really? Even if I was a man?"you joked.

"yeah, plus you couldn't even get to wear those dresses and stuff. Just seeing you wearing formal clothes to fit in with everyone else would feel weird."

She tried to imagine you wearing casual clothes or anything not extravagant in general, and you laughed at her unpleasant expression.

"that's funny to think I'd finally look normal for some people,"you said between laughs, and Ellie joined you in your laughter.

Now that you think about it, it was a pretty rare occurrence for you to wear something other than lolita clothes.

You paused and put the needle down before turning to Ellie.

"do you want to see how I used to dress before? It doesn't look that weird, trust me."

After last night, the magical night you spent over at Ellie's, you can officially say things changed.

Your past self would definitely not recognize you now for trusting someone enough to have the courage to show a different version of yourself.

"my brain does that thing when it erases traumatic memories, so you're fine."you rolled your eyes at her teasing tone, her jokes getting more creative as time went by.

"that was backhanded, wasn't it?"

Ellie shrugged her shoulders as she smirked, her impatience growing stronger as she followed you out of your room.

"whatever helps you sleep at night.'"

In the corridor, you slid open a door, keeping the boxes of furniture inside, and tipped onto your toes to reach the medium cardboard box

The dust that had accumulated on top of it over the years, quickly flew away as you brushed it off, before opening what had been closed for God knows how long.

The "you" that was once buried to give birth to the "you" now resurfaced.

Ellie grabbed a few pictures before you could change your mind.

Smiling and chuckling at how different you looked compared to now, she carefully scanned all the pictures in front of her, noticing one thing that had never changed.

"I gotta say... you still look so fucking cute."

Your brain stopped functioning at her words.

Her eyes darted from the pictures to yours, not really expecting you to respond to her compliments, just admiring your flustered reaction.

You tried to think of a response that wouldn’t make you cringe when you overthought it later.

Those words, coming from someone infinitely prettier, whose eyes regarded you like you were a masterpiece belonging in a museum, whose arms made you feel like home, held significantly deeper and more impactful meaning. It was as if Ellie knew what she was doing to you and wanted your heart to explode just for her.

To her, it was just a matter of time before you completely let yourself fall for her, unaware that it was already the case.

"thanks,you’re cuter though," you smiled back at her.

But if time really isn't real, then she would learn to be patient, knowing you'd be timeless.

☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

It was Ellie's turn to sleep over at your house.

Despite wanting to stay awake a little longer, both of you found yourselves surrendering to unconsciousness faster than last time.

Imaginations and dreams enveloped your restless minds, quieting them down.

The smell of breakfast was more effective than an alarm clock at waking you up.

Your body was as cold as the inside of a fridge since Ellie kept unconsciously pulling the covers over her.

After warming up with some tea and filling your stomach with fluffy pancakes, you and Ellie continued with your day separately.

After spending two full days with her, her sudden absence felt strange, but you decided to put this feeling aside and focus on your new job to avoid having a wallet as empty as Ellie’s absence.

Sewing fabrics here and there to train yourself before working on the actual dress and jacket sleeve.

Walking back and forth around your room thoughtfully.

You spent most of your time sighing in frustration, as creativity refused to show up at your door.

Staring at the unfinished project in front of you, without new ideas in mind, began to take an awful toll on you.

Roses, tulips, and other flowers floated in your thoughts.

If there was one thing you wished for right now, it would be for your imagination to be as abundant as the richness of nature.

So, you ventured closer to nature and away from your trapped thoughts, wandering aimlessly around the nearest park while trying to empty your mind and let creativity flow naturally.

After a while, with plenty of walking and silent contemplation, your watch ticked to 5 PM. It was almost evening, but the sun was still shining in the sky, illuminating the blue lake beside you.

Ellie once told you that the reason the sea looks blue is because of the reflection of the sky.

A few ducks flew above the water before landing.

Some ducks swam in another direction, leaving two of their companions alone. They didn’t seem to mind the others had left, focused on swimming their own path, just the two of them.

Eventually, you dragged your feet out of the park, leaving your energy behind. A place as energizing as nature had unexpectedly drained you because no matter what you did, you always thought of her.

Whether she was around or not, Ellie lived in your mind rent-free.

When you contemplated the sky,the moon wasn’t out yet, so you stole one last glance at the lake.

Maybe you shouldn’t give up now; doing so would mean your entire day would have gone to waste.

Not to mention,facing complaints instead of praises from the CEO of your favorite shop would surely tear your heart into pieces.

So you called her.

You took your phone and dialed her number, biting your lip in hope she would respond.

Desperation was overpowering you, and Ellie clearly noticed it.

“what’s wrong?” her voice slightly modified by her phone.

A moment of silence passed as you repeated in your head what you wanted to say.

"everything,” you look pitiful.

“nothing,” you're wasting her time.

“are you busy right now?” just go straight to the point.

“I miss you,” too honest.

Ellie patiently waited for you to speak up, leaning her arms on the railing of the bridge, eyes peering at the lake while inhaling deeply.

“I need your help.”

Her eyebrows instantly furrowed in worry; you usually tried to handle things on your own, and it was unusual for you to directly ask for her help. “where are you?”

You had been wandering away from the park for so long that you didn’t even realize where you were heading. The area you found yourself in was sparse of people, resembling an abandoned train station with overgrown herbs on the rails.

When you sat on a bench, you heard an engine roaring toward you.

Ellie saw you alone on the bench, and your face instantly beamed at the sight of her arrival.

She parked her motorcycle next to the entrance of the train station and carefully crossed the rails, making her way to you.

“I’m away for one day, and you’re already missing me?”

You didn’t even have the energy to roll your eyes at her cocky smile; her words were harshly true.

Suddenly, the temperature began to cool down, signaling that evening was approaching. Ellie locked eyes with you, intently listening as you ranted about your struggles with creativity. As an artist herself, she thought of creativity like a battery that often needed recharging.

The thing was, Ellie was your recharger. Talking with her and spending time together felt like a mental cleanse, refreshing your mind. Her absence felt so unfamiliar to both your heart and your brain.

Asking for her help made her smile blissfully, unable to describe how happy she felt to spend time with you again.

Without hesitation, she took your hand right after you finished your monologue, bringing you to a familiar place—the one holding your best memories. Among them, searching for your bag with Ellie was your favorite so far.

So far, because you believed the future held even more thrilling and joyful memories with her.

Most of the stores still had the "open" sign in their showcases, including "Baby, the Stars Shine Bright."

Unexpectedly, you refused to let your inspiration come from the clothing brand you were now working for.

"You said you're on a creativity block," Ellie said, her confused eyes meeting your self-assured ones.

The CEO of this brand had praised your work for its originality, something he had never seen before. "exactly, so we need to think outside the box."

To keep satisfying him and his expectations, you decided to remain on the same path, coming up with unimaginable and creative patterns.

The puzzles instantly assembled, forming a clear image of understanding in Ellie’s head, your words failing to prevent her from holding back her laughter.

You were picking up the same sarcasm as her.

"My jokes are better."

Clothing shop after clothing shop, going from bright to dark areas, and the excessive bright lighting contrasting with the dark hues of the blue sky outside, was overstimulating Ellie’s mind.

But she kept dragging her feet to follow you around.

You could tell her anything, and she would do it without a second thought.

So that’s what happened.

The faltering and desperate look in your eyes disappeared, replaced by bright sparkles and dilated pupils as you rummaged through the clothes.

Your imagination started to paint Ellie wearing the type of clothes you had grown fond of—clothes she would never dare to wear, not because they weren’t aesthetically pleasing, but because she thought she wouldn’t look good in them.

Yet here she was, looking at your cheeky smile as you scanned her in an extravagant lolita dress you pleaded her to try.

There was no doubt you felt immensely proud to make her wear lolita clothes.

To you, Ellie was still the cutest human being you’d ever seen; the lolita dresses only enhanced her cuteness, something she strongly disagreed with.

Sensing your eyes admiring her, adding makeup felt unnecessary with her naturally blushed cheeks.

A sudden urge to squish them in your hands settled in your core.

Ellie’s face reddened even more when her cold cheeks met your warm hands, unable to ignore the temptation.

"you’re so—" you started, but Ellie immediately cut you off, her gaze dropping to the floor, embarrassed.

"don't say it."

She knew what you were about to call her; it was the complete opposite of the image she wanted to project—a thick wall of intimidating and cold exterior she had spent years building.

Yet in just a few days, she’d allowed herself to let her guard down. This wall, carefully constructed to give her a good reputation among her acquaintances, felt totally useless around you.

"alright," you retreated your hands and let out a giggle.

It was like a fierce missile flying right at this thick wall, crumbling it down with such ease, allowing her to be cheeky, goofy, flirtatious, embarrassed, flustered, happy, and in love—allowing her to be who she truly was.

☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°☆°

What is the common point in Ellie's loving smile, the stars at night, and her making you the happiest being on Earth?

It all puts sparkles in your eyes.

The inspiration you had difficulty finding found its way back to you like a lost pet, except it always came from one person and the things that made you think of her—which was a blessing when she was present but a curse in her absence.

So you desperately hoped this night would never end. It became a message the universe was now used to getting because when the clock ticks morning, that's when the magic ends.

And you wouldn't be peering at the horizon ahead of you anymore, sitting behind Ellie as she focused on driving across the city lights. Your mind filtering out her friends driving with you at midnight, only caring about the person you were holding in your arms, trying to bring her what she brought you: comfort.

To your surprise, this dreamlike feeling repeated itself again when you woke up with her in your arms once more. She wasn't listening to your heartbeat anymore, totally absorbed in whatever dreams she was in, so you decided to oversleep with her, hoping to appear in one of her dreams.

In one of her dreams, you and Ellie were traveling across the country on her motorcycle, often stopping at car stations when her gas was low and eating breakfast in local coffee shops working early in the morning.

Both of you were unstoppable, searching for the infamous founder of her gang, grabbing clues from door to door and heading to as many cities as you could.

Your world was so small until you hopped on Ellie's motorcycle and discovered new places, unfamiliar routes, and different types of vegetation.

Thinking back to the time you accepted to help Ellie, despite the bumpy and narrow path, today you didn't have any regrets.

Everything went smoothly. When exhaustion enveloped you, you would stay in a nearby hotel; when hunger crept its way into your stomach, you'd find a restaurant to fulfill your wishes; and when you needed more money for the road, you'd stop at the city casinos, always going for the pachinko machines.

But again, it was just a dream.

Refusing to let disappointment consume her as the alarm went off, Ellie quickly woke you up and got ready. The festival's date was approaching with big steps, and Ellie found the perfect partner to help her find Himeko.

Since the perfect partner was you, you threw away your usual routine for the next days, trying to make her dream come true.

Dreams and reality, when you're blessed with luck with many ups and rare downs, there's not a significant line separating dreams from reality. However, when reality turns to look somewhat closer to a nightmare than a dream, a dream is often an escape.

"Dream" is such a small word for its numerous meanings, but even if it can be a subjective term, both you and Ellie can agree that your current situation was progressively drifting away from the aspect of a dream.

"I can't," you said as your walk came to a halt, still holding Ellie's hand. If you could describe the word 'inseparable' in three words, you would say you and Ellie; however, it seemed circumstances were starting to change that.

"what? What do you mean?" She hoped she had heard it wrong, that the sound of engines and powerful winds had made her a bit deaf after traveling for two days.

"I can't go any further," you clarified, your eyes dropping to the floor.

"listen." Ellie's mind froze for a second; your expression was unreadable to her. You were just lacking a bit of sleep, tired, maybe a little demotivated, right? "we've come a long way, to Tokyo, down to Yokohama, just you and me alone. In just what, two days... we already have a clear destination, and it's not like people don't know her at all..."

She gently squeezed your hand, a gesture that always brought your eyes back to hers. "I'm sure we'll gather more clues on our way there. Just trust the process... trust me. I promise we'll find her soon enough."

Even when you tried to seek comfort in her words, your mind wasnt set on it, not after what happened in the last casino you stepped foot in. "I literally gambled all of my money away."

Noticing the exhaustion in your voice, Ellie reassured you, lifting your chin up to hers. Both of you had already talked about this. "You're not gonna be broke... I can lend you some, y'know it's not a problem."

You went silent, and Ellie concluded it as the end of the discussion.

She didn't want to stop here, not now, when you were midway to reach your destination, so close to finally make her dream come true.

But when you gently pushed her hand off your chin, she sensed this situation was more complicated than she had expected.

"you don't understand..."

It's when Ellie was brought closer to her dream that she would get pulled back into harsh reality, something closer to a nightmare now that she felt that you were going to break her promise.

[billys-pretty-babe]

Uh-Oh

Billy Hargrove x Fem!Reader

Summary : A night alone leaves you and Billy doing some physical activities but can your bed withstand his stamina?

Warnings : Swearing, smut (giggly sex because that's what Billy deserves), uh bed breaking

Word count : ~ 2k

A/N : I have no explanation for this, I got bored. Hope you enjoy ;) requests are open :)

Your parents decided to leave you alone for the night, that was the biggest mistake they could have made. Being 18, you still had rules living in their house and you abided for the most part except when it came to your boyfriend, Billy.

You were inexperienced when the two of you got together but now, you could confidently say you know about three times as much as you did going into the relationship.

Here the two of you were, really testing the planks on your bed, hearing them creak, the legs of the bed moving, the springs whining in protest, begging you both to slow down.

"Billy," you whined as he spread your legs wider, going as deep as he could, making your back arch and he chuckled. "That feel good?" You nodded, "You know it does, you ass." He laughed and quickly pecked you on your lips, smiling against them. "You still okay?" You nodded, holding his face.

"Yeah, I'm good." He smiled and kissed you as he rolled his hips against yours and you did your best to keep kissing him but it was hard, you had to remember to breathe when he fucked you like this but now you also had to kiss him, you swore you were going to die but you weren't complaining.

He laughed against your swollen lips, "Struggling there?" He still managed to be a sarcastic ass while being in an extremely compromising position with you. "Shut up," you said, lips brushing against his. He began to go harder, your body moving up the body as you grasped onto his arms.

His curls were stringy and you were hoping his stamina would deplete soon, being an athlete and a workout junkie was a bonus for the two of you in moments like these. His pendant swung between the two of you and you snickered. "What's so funny," he asked, going slightly harder and you dug your nails into his arms. "Your pendant, it's kinda ironic in this situation." He laughed and put one hand on the top of your skull and you felt the thump of the headboard hitting his hand and he winced.

"Switch." You nodded and sat up, both of you sweaty and out of breath as he laid down, hands behind his head as he smirked. "Come on cowgirl," he said, slapping your ass with his ringed hand and you winced, "Ow." He chuckled and your eyes looked behind him at your wall.

"Uh oh," you said quietly and he turned, seeing the paint had scrapped off of the wall. "Damn, I'm good." You rolled your eyes, "You're mediocre at best." He grumbled, mocking you as he swung his head and you laughed at him. "You're gonna hit me with your big ass head again, you almost broke my nose last time you did that." Billy laughed, "My apologies for my big ass head." He got comfortable again.

He grabbed your pillows and put them behind his back as he sat up, spreading his thighs slightly. He put his hands out, helping you straddle him. His hands left yours, scaling up your thighs, up your back until they held the back of your neck gently and he knocked his forehead on yours gently, making sure he didn't hurt you in anyway.

"I love you." You smiled and leaned in slightly to peck his lips, "I love you too, B." He smiled and kissed you again, moaning as he felt you grind your hips on his. He pulled away and watched your face as he saw you slide down his cock, watching your lips part, your brow furrow slightly and your eyes going glassy.

This was one of his favorite looks on your, satisfied and high on pleasure, you looked absolutely ethereal. You touched down on his thighs and Billy moaned, hands quickly going to your hips, his thumbs rubbing little circles as he waited for you to adjust. He hissed as he felt you clench and you moaned feeling him twitch.

"Ready?" You nodded, moving slowly at first, still trying to adjust to this position. You held his shoulders before moving your hands to his upper back as you intertwined your fingers. "I need help." He softly laughed. "Okay, hold on." You nodded and moved in closer and moaned at the slight change of angle as you held onto him, his forehead on yours as he crossed his eyes and you both laughed.

You put your head on your arm as he began thrusting up into you, the mattress dipping with each movement as you both moaned, him moaning different profanities and you moaning his name. He quickened his pace, hands now on your ass, pulling you on his lap with each thrust.

The springs were crying, wanting the two of you to slow down or stop completely and you moved your fingers into his hair, pulling the hair at the nape of his neck, his head tilting back with the pull, baring his neck to you completely and you latched your lips onto his pulse, gently sucking and nipping and he squeezed your ass, moaning your name, making you clench around him.

"Faster." He chuckled, "Jesus, I'm not a machine." You pulled his hair again and he groaned in pleasure, "Fuck, feels so good." He moved faster, your skin echoing in the room, the sound of your wetness sticking to him slightly louder than your moans, groans and pants.

Two of the wood planks snapped where the two of you sat, making the mattress sag. "I told you I was good." You grumbled, "You broke my bed." He laughed, moving some of his hair. "Baby, it was bound to break. I don't exactly go slow with you."

He tried to keep moving and the bed creaked again. "How many orgasms did you get?" You laughed, "Three." He nodded, "Alright, your bed can't take anymore. We're gonna call it a night on this." You nodded and he helped you off of him as you winced slightly and he rubbed your back.

He took the condom off, tying it off as he plopped it into your trash can, finding tissues and throwing them on top just in case one of your parents found it. He helped you up, laughing as you stumbled slightly as he helped you to the bathroom, turning the shower on. He leaned down slightly and kissed you, "Go to the bathroom and I'll be back so we can shower." You nodded and he left the bathroom and you quickly did your business and looked at yourself in the mirror, noting the love bites on your chest and neck, some on your stomach, hips and thighs.

You smiled and shook your head as you washed your hands. Billy came back with towels and clothes as he helped you in the shower. He held you close to him as he bathed you as you basked in the intimacy of it all. "My poor bed." He laughed, "I'll fix it, just not tonight." You nodded and hummed as he gently rubbed the soap on your skin, easing your achy muscles and he put his head on your shoulder as he held your hand with his right hand.

"I love you," he said as he pressed a kiss under your ear and you smiled. "I love you too, baby." He smiled against your saltwater scented skin, using his soap on your body, knowing how much his scent comforted you at night.

He rinsed you off and you turned and washed his body as he washed his hair, trying to put it into a soapy mohawk and you laughed at the failed attempt as his hair fell onto his face. "Ew," he gagged, "it's in my mouth, it burns, my eyes." You laughed at him, your whole body shaking as you moved his hair and you wiped his eyes with a clean cloth.

He opened his eyes, his lashes were stuck together and his waterline slightly pink and his face screwed up. "This tastes so bad." He fought the urge to spit out the soapy taste, knowing you'd get onto him if the spit got onto your clean skin. He rinsed his hair and you shoved the conditioner into his hands and he groaned. "You always complain that it's dry." He put the conditioner in and reached up as he moved the shower head so the hot water was hitting him.

"Hey, I'm cold now." He laughed and you turned around so your head was on his chest, your back being hit by the water. He looked at your neck, tracing the patter of the bites. "Did a number on your skin." You nodded, "It's okay, I can cover them if they bruise." He nodded, holding you tightly as he leaned down and kissed one of the bites, feeling the indent of where his teeth had been, against his lips and he hummed.

"Let me rinse this out and then we'll go to sleep." You nodded, not even having the energy to protest, knowing you'd fall asleep within ten minutes with the way his warm body was pressed against yours in addition with the hot water. "Okay." He rinsed his hair, making sure there was no product life in it before the two of you got out and he helped you dry off, your eyes heavy with exhaustion.

You got dressed, slipping on underwear and a shirt as Billy dried himself and dried his hair as best as he could do before tying it up and slipping on boxers. "Come on, bedtime." You nodded and followed him, turning the lights off in the bathroom as you shut the door.

He laid on the broken side of the bed and you cuddled up to him. He rubbed your temple gently. "Do you need anything? Water, snacks, need to talk, anything?" You shook your head, your eyes shut, lashes softly fluttering on the side of his chest and he smiled, feeling the little tickles that reminded him of the little butterflies in his stomach.

"You sure?" You nodded, letting out a yawn. "Just need some sleep. I can eat in the morning." He nodded. "Are you okay? Anything hurt or sore?" You shook your head, your lips pulling up for a mere second before they fell again. "I'm okay. Are you?" He nodded as he tried to pull you closer, wishing he could attach you to him, needing you on him at all times.

"Love you," you said against his skin and he smiled, hand rubbing your temple again. "I love you too, get some sleep. We have a busy day tomorrow." You furrowed your brows, never opening your eyes, "I'm not fixing it," you slurred out, words barely making any sense. He laughed, "You're going to get more wood with me, I'll fix it, you're just gonna keep me company." You nodded and tired to move closer and huffed, your breath hitting his nipple and he squeezed his eyes shut.

"Should just tie you or cuff you to me." You hummed, "You'd like that, you kinky fuck." He laughed, "Yeah, I would." You both laughed before you yawned again. "Okay, go to sleep. We'll get breakfast if you wake up early enough." You nodded, holding him tightly, He rubbed your back, lulling you to sleep as he followed you into his own deep sleep.

[beevean]

I'm wonder how many Flynn's references will be plain wrong, like the encyclospeedia. Do you have an idea that is the case?

The original said "we're travelling through time and space", but it was shortened to "time" so that Sonic could be flummoxed that they're not using the Time Stones.

I'm going to be generous and say that they don't remember '06 and how Eggman was able to build a whole time machine, let alone using the simple Chaos Emeralds to open time portals. But if the purpose of this reference was just to say "hey guys remember Sonic CD :D", then the Time Stones were never used to time travel in Sonic CD. Collecting them gave you control of the flow of time, which translates in gameplay terms that you always got a Good Future and in story terms that if you didn't collect them all then Eggman would be able to restore Little Planet's chained metallicized status in the Bad Ending, but you still needed to use the time posts to travel.

It's not as blatantly wrong as Sage saying that Eggman helped Sonic defeating Neo Metal, but it's sloppy and forced and therefore adds nothing to this scene - and, as I said, it doesn't even fix the fact that Classic Tails joined the gang without explanation, something I used to see people criticize.

Am I being nitpicky? Yes, and I don't care anymore. I played the games. I am not amused by these "how do you do fellow fans"-tier references that try to masquerade mediocre writing. As I said: the references in the original Generations were cute, a few, and most of them much better woven in the script than "hey remember this". Now? Just move on, I beg you.

[akookminsupporter]

I'm a diff anon, but:

"Okay, but I don't understand why this ended up with BTS being dragged into a mess that has nothing to do with them in the first place? This started with the lady from the coup, right?"

Yes. In short, HYBE ordered an audit on ADOR because they found proof that MHJ and a man planned to make ADOR a separate company, Mhj and the man talked with shareholders to try to get them to back them(ador) up so they can leave hybe. This is how it started and then later on a bunch of other stuff came out.. Reddit has master posts of this, you can find them if you want to read more about it

So after the news came out about the audit, she started responding to it, she claimed hybe copied newjeans to make Illit, she claimed that she was promised to debut hybe's first gg but they debuted le sserafim first instead, she implied that she was in a slave contract. So she namedropped 2 groups first. And then somehow some article reported that she went to a shaman to discuss BTS' enlistment and when they would go and so the shaman could make sure they really go? The last part is a bit confusing because idk how a shaman could make them go but yeah. And that's how BTS got into the picture. She later basically admitted this by rambling about how this shaman is just a friend of hers who just happens to be a shaman.

"Why did BTS end up being the bad guys again?"

Because nothing unites kpop fans more than hating on bts. BTS genuinely didn't do anything, kpop fans just started hating on them for no reason and they kept making tweets about "xy group disbanded because of hybe"

"It makes sense that BigHit decided to hire an external legal team instead of using HYBE's or even their own agency's."

In my understanding, they hired this external legal team or set up this law firm to deal with the hate campaign against Bts. There are a lot of conspiracy theories going around rn, about BTS/hybe being in a cult and K-pop fans being kpop fans and bringing up everything they can about bts' past. So I think this second legal team is just for the BTS issue so that the hybe legal team can fully focus on bringing mhj to court. Again, this is just how I interpreted it.

Hello, anon. Thanks you as well for providing a bit more context on everything that's going on. If you don't mind, I have a few things to comment on regarding what you said, and also, I have a couple of questions that I hope won't offend anyone:

1. Regarding the accusations made by that woman about copying NJ: why did she say that? I don't know much about that group, but a girl group in K-pop isn't something new, right? The concept isn’t that… new, I think? And their sound isn't so... unique? From what little I've heard and some comparisons I've seen. Is the new group exactly the same, or what? Does NJ have something unique that can be easily identifiable if someone copies it? And that’s why she said that?

2. She was promised that she would debut the company's first girl group: okay, they didn't do it, and? From what little or much I've read about what this woman has said, I've concluded that she's a tantrum-throwing and pretentious person who cries when she doesn't get what she wants. You know who she reminds me of? Veruca, the character from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

3. The shaman thing is complete madness and it’s probably the comedic contribution to all of this😭.

4. The obsession of Kpoppies with BTS should be studied. I can bet that not even the biggest stan in the fandom is as obsessed with them as Kpoppies are. If only they put as much effort into supporting their favorites as they do into hating BTS, they would help them rise above the mediocrity that many are in. At least in terms of sales, streaming, charts, etc., with the quality of content they put out, there's not much they can do.

5. Ahhhh, your explanation about the external legal team makes sense, but at the same time, I wonder if BigHit does have its own legal team, and if it doesn't, I wonder why.

[ocdeeznut]

In rewatching s8 i have some thoughts. Why it didn’t work as an ending, and what i think could have been changed.

WARNING THIS POST IS LONG AS FUCK, so strap in if you’re interested.

- The feel of the writing is distinctly off. Not bad, but it doesn’t feel like you’re watching Voltron anymore. It feels grittier and more like a high stakes adult animation than the other seasons. Which, again, isn’t necessarily bad, but the shift is too quick and it could have been executed better if they spent more time digging into the individual characters and their growth during s6/7.

- The issue of ‘there’s always a bigger enemy’ starts to make the plot feel stale. You get bored of a bigger robot, higher stakes, more to lose. They start killing people and planets for a cheap audience reaction when we weren’t all that invested in the first place. It felt like a split second decision by the writers to destroy Olkarion. Something like that needs to be pencilled in from the beginning. There were too many attacks on Olkarion, and as a consequence we got too used to seeing it’s people in peril. There should’ve been a distinct shift where we, as the audience, realised Voltron wasn’t going to be there to save them this time. Whether that’s a writing, animation or atmospheric issue i’m unsure. Maybe it’s just a me thing.

- The Atlas should never have been able to transform. That for me was the biggest investment turn off. Why do we need Voltron anymore if there’s a bigger, stronger robot on their side? If they were going to replace the castle, they should have made it clear and stuck with the intention. That’s not a support ship anymore, that’s something else entirely. I’d gladly watch a show JUST about the Atlas, with Shiro at the helm, but it’s not Voltron.

- Too many things happen at once, and it’s massively convoluted. 13 episodes is not enough time to: introduce a romance, have me actually care about that romance, kill off a main character, form a new version of voltron, redeem three main antagonists, AND cutely tie up all the glaring plot holes of the show. S8 needed to be two seasons at least. If things were spread out and more passion was pumped into the writing, it could’ve worked.

- Allura’s character was ruined. She became a nagging, reckless, martyred love interest. I love her dearly, i have from S1, but they did her SO dirty. Lance, too. They both deserved better.

- I think, personally, that Sendak should’ve been the final villain. Not Honerva. Her arc was rushed and her CORE motivation made little sense. They used the flimsy excuse of her corruption to redeem her love for Lotor, and his name was literally raked through hell and back for a very mediocre payoff. If that was the plan from the start, it needed to be hinted at more.

- There was too much, as i call it, flip-flopping. The alteans are alive, now they’re evil, now they’re not. We can’t get into Oriande, but now we can! Personally, i need explanations, and strict universal rules. If those rules are to be broken for whatever reason - it has to be a show stopping exception and a main event. Everything is excused and explained away when it doesn’t make any sense.

- Now, i actually really likes the subtle art style and animation adjustments in the season, visually it was spectacular so i have no critiques there. If only the plot could have done its outer shell some justice.

AND GET LANCE OFF THAT DAMN FARM.