#mostly going to her when he needs validation from her as a girlfriend… I think you need to do some thinking about this.

[cabeswaterdrowned]

‘feminism should be about supporting all women not just the parts of it that are convenient for you individually’ very true. ‘I don’t like that this female character who considers herself a feminist doesn’t really do much for women who aren’t herself and her family’ fair enough ig, although I’d be interested to see if you hold male chars to this standard when it comes to how they treat and view women. ‘How Dare this female character, who I have deemed a bad and performative feminist, complain about her own treatment and have feelings about said treatment and call out misogyny as at least one factor in said treatment, doesn’t she know she has to complete xyz to qualify her as Feminist Enough to invoke that in a conversation for me to take her feelings seriously lmao’ I want kill you with hammers 💀.

[miss-sweetea-pie]

I just saw an interesting maiko post. I didn’t want to comment or reblog because I figured that person didn’t want to have a discord considering the tags and some times tumblr recommended things to you. I probably wasn’t meant to see it honestly, But now I want to talk about it.

It was about how Zuko and Mai are just teenagers who don’t understand each other sometimes and then fail to communicate.

Also about how Mai’s emotionless trait collides with Zuko’s need for emotional validation and Zuko’s controlling possessiveness collides with Mai’s need for freedom. But they care for each other that doesn’t make them a bad couple, and Mai is not a bad girlfriend.

Honestly it a really good way to frame the relationship. I would also call it incompatible, maybe even toxic? it doesn’t make them bad people, but sometimes people do bring out the worst in you. Technically, this is true for Zuko, considering he went back to the fire nation, and he started dating Mai at the same time. Mai is the first person we see him speaking to after betraying his uncle and the show wants us to know he made the wrong choice. Mai is use as a narrative tool for Zuko’s lack of support in the fire nation,he’s miserable when he goes back home, and the one person, you would think he could connect with, his girlfriend, is cold and emotionally withdrawn. The show used Maiko to explore the the emptiness of being home in the fire nation, the empty promises of fire nation glory he been chasing and it doesn’t resonate with him anymore, also the impossible standard of gaining conditional love. (Sorry but Maiko is Zuko centric so it does makes Mai hard to read at best and abusive at worst)

I don’t deny that they care about each other in someway they’ve known each other since they were children, it’s safe and comfortable. but love is not enough. Honestly most toxic relationship in irl continue because they love each but they are not good for one other. Zuko and Mai they don’t understand each other and it seems like they don’t really want to understand each other. That’s the problem. (Mai mostly).

Maiko is really just a toxic cycle of their needs not being met

This scene where Zuko want to talk about his feeing and open up to her

Mai: *yawn* I just asked if you were cold not for your whole life story.

(Not going to lie, that was funny but it’s still a very dismissive thing to say, especially to your partner.)

Zuko is actually a little bit more sympathetic when she tells her “sob story” he didn’t yawn

Zuko: I like when you express yourself.

(her being off and on with her anger. Is like a metaphor for him being in the fire nation, trying to make something work and it’s not working. Constantly feeling like he said or does the wrong thing)

and It just bubbles over until they finally blew up

Zuko’s possessiveness is a reaction to after he feels like he has done all sorts of stuff to please her. it’s zuko reaching his breaking point. Boy is really insecure in this relationship because the feed back he gets from her is contempt. Sure we could argue and say that doesn’t make mai a bad girl friend maybe this is just her sense of humor or personality. well, it doesn’t mesh well with Zuko therefore, they are incompatible, and a bad couple with each other. 

( also Zuko is not nice here that’s kind of the point he hads regressed  in his character arc so to speak.)

and then they get back together by making out.

Sure she says she cares but why when did she actually show it? Actions speak louder than words! We never get a moment where Mai gets it and really understands him.

[dreamwreaver]

Vaggie would really benefit from having a long break from being Charlie's girlfriend and take the screentime for herself WITHOUT involving Charlie. Honestly, for the sake of keeping her a compelling character, they should have focused on her past as an exorcist and had her reflect on her actions, having an identity crisis because all she was made for was war and now that she's left that behind, what else is there for her? Who is she? Too bad she's designated as the love interest and nothing more.

Though I wonder what's your full thoughts on Vaggie since you seem to have a lot of valid arguments to say about her. Is it okay to ask for a critique on her character, if it's not too much trouble?

I couldn't resist lol.

No but for real, Vaggie could be such an interesting character on her own. She was an Angel created by the first man who ascended and proceeded to become a massive fucking dick. Her whole purpose is to be a weapon. From the way adam talks vaggie was possibly only second to lute. So what could have changed; we see the exorcists can go out and about in heaven proper without issue. They have normal lives. Heaven is allegedly perfect; so why did Vaggie change? Is it possible that (solely from a callous perspective) there was some inherent defect in her design? Like, it's very weird and considering we don't really know the strict parameters of the extermination it's cause for concern.

My basic knowledge is that so long as Lucifer allows them to come and purge sinners the rest of hell will remain untouched, including his family. That may in fact be why he showed up in the final battle. Adam was going to kill Charlie, we see his mask glitch which might have been a visual cue for the audience that the deal was broken. But back to Vaggie; without going on a whole other tangent about the possible classification of Rosie and the rest of her cannibals Vaggie spared someone and was mutilated and left for dead because of it. Why? Honestly the issue could really just be that Lute and Adam are dicks and saw this one act of mercy as weakness that needed to be culled. Whatever the reason, vaggie lost her halo, her wings, and her eye and was left to bleed out in an alley.

All of that is honestly a good setup for Vaggie wanting vengeance on those that abandoned her. But it really doesn't mesh with her being around Charlie if it is. We know from dialogue in the show Vaggie still has a lot of bloodlust in her heart and I don't think that's necessarily bad since it's all part of her makeup. But why, then, go along with a hotel to rehabilitate sinners? Honestly most of the things Vaggie does seem to be just because she's going along with what Charlie wants. Very much like Lucifer even in her "disgraced" state lets say, she still clearly sees herself as above the other sinners around her. She doesn't really do most of the hotel activities aimed at self improvement, she made 1 commercial to try and promote the thing, mostly she tends to just sit around and frown or threaten people with her spear. Again, not a bad character in and of herself but when paired with Charlie the energy is just completely antithetical to one another.

And again notice how the fallen Angel who doesn't seem to care for sinners ended up with someone half angel and half demon. Isn't that just... so convenient? And sure, it could be paralleling Charlie's parents as so many chaggie shippers are wont to claim. But tbh? Charlastor fits that bill more. A divine being falling for a mortal and willing to face down their own creator to be with this person.

I think my biggest issue is that shippers treat it like peak wlw rep. In an adult animated show? In 2024? No. You could replace most of Vaggie's scenes with a lamp and it wouldn't change a thing. The very fact that so many casual people who joined when the finished series aired had NO IDEA they were a couple until episode 5? Right, meanwhile Rebecca sugar in 2015 on Cartoon Network had an episode of steven universe where ruby and sapphire couldn't stop being gay long enough to not sabotage a mission. We got lesbian softball, we got neck kisses, we got a goddamn marriage proposal and this was at a time where the gayest rep we'd gotten before that was the korrasami handhold as they wandered into the spirit dimension.

In your ask you mentioned a really good question nonny; who is vaggie without being an exorcist? What are her goals, her ambitions, her hobbies, ANYTHING? What does she like to do in her spare time? What secret love does she have that she'd be mortified if anyone found out about? What food can she not stand? And no amount of "sexy songs" in future seasons will fix the fundamental thing broken in this relationship; vaggie is an object, not a partner.

Even if I don't ship it personally I see the appeal of ships like cherrimoth or velvette moth. They pair vaggie with strong personalities who would take serious offense to anyone thinking they're too fragile to handle a harsh truth. They don't want someone to be their armor, they want a partner.

And honestly, that's why I like Emily for Vaggie. Yes, she's basically Charlie in true angel form, but think about what she said when Sera tried to gaslight her about why she kept Emily in the dark about the exorcisms;

"I don't need your condescension, I'm not a child to protect"

And that right there is the same thing Vaggie needs to hear. Charlie is a grown ass woman hundreds of human years old. The notion that just because she's an optimist, just because she's positive and emotionally sensitive doesn't mean she couldn't handle something that weighed on her partner like this. But truthfully? Vaggie might have never let Charlie in, but Charlie never really thought to knock, now did she?

But that's a discussion for another ask, now isn't it? ;)

[fairyboygenius]

‘#dream threesome’ yeah you’re so brave for those tags but also very valid. I need to know your thoughts on how that lil bedroom dynamic would go 🤭

you know that post sy made about different threesomes with the 141? it’s somewhere between “hope you like competition” and “hope you like seeing the gates of heaven”

(nsfw below the cut beware)

i don’t think farah has much experience with women, beyond some make out sessions in basic. the first image that popped into my mind was eating farah out while ghost hits it from the back. or sucking him off while she uses the strap. at some point ghost is fingering you to show her how to do it only for her to interrupt and make you squirt (where the competition element comes in)!

they’re both attracted to you, not necessarily paying much attention to each other because as i’ve said before. farah’s a lesbian. only doing this because you mentioned you thought ghost was hot once and now he’s all over you, never far behind or out of sight despite your beautiful girlfriend’s protests

farah is a switch and a voyeur. i think watching you get fucked by ghost could get her off purely because of how hot you look

that also comes with commentary that mostly consists of her bragging (“you see her face, lieutenant? i get to see that every night”)

you’re covered in marks by the end of it and ghost is already wondering when you can do it again (he’s cleared his schedule) but basically immediately after farah whisks you away to remind you who you really belong to

[foreverrandomwritings]

happy pride cutie💗💜💙

i was curious if you could write, someone being mean to reader for being bi, saying they’re faking it, them just being biphobic.

and from a character of your choice, have them be all protective, and comforting the reader while they’re upset. i’m a sucker for hurt/comfort 🥴

Summary: The moon boys are amazing boyfriends to their bisexual girlfriend.

Pairings: Steven Grant x afab!Reader Marc Spector x afab!Reader Jake Lockley x afab!Reader

Warnings: harassment, blood, insecurity. Thats it?

Word count: 1397

Masterlist M's PMC Masterlist

~I love me some bi pride. Also really want someone to protect and comfort me. 

~I’m gonna do MoonKnight mostly because I want an excuse to write for all the boys.

~We’ll start with Steven first. I know he’s not very confrontational but I think that after everything happened that completely changed. 

~He’s the one to use words to protect you. Even though he’s shy and pretty reserved anytime someone comes after you he becomes bold and confident. This had been shown on many occasions. 

~You had come in to visit him at work one day. He was on lunch so you guys walked through the exhibits with you asking him occasional questions about them. Which he did gleefully. 

~You had just asked him the name of one of the statutes when you felt a tug in your backpack. You turned around and saw one of your pins in a middle aged woman’s hand. 

~She had a scowl on her face and gave you a disgusted look as she looked over you, head to toe. 

~You squirmed a little under her gaze, quickly growing uncomfortable with the way she was glaring at you.

~ “Can we help you?” Your boyfriend pipped up, looking at the pin he had gifted you clutched inside the woman’s fist. You were glad he spoke up because your voice was gone as you looked at the women.

~ “I don’t think it’s appropriate to show something like this in public. Let alone somewhere that has so many children present.” She spat out. 

~ “Well, I don't think that’s any of your business and I think you need to return the item before I go and get security.” His hand extended towards her expectantly. You knew that Marc and Jake had to have been fighting to front as Steven shook his head glancing at his reflection in a shiny statue momentarily. 

~ “Being a part of that community isn’t something that needs to be displayed.” Her voice had venom in it. 

~ “Don’t worry lady, I'm definitely not interested in you.” You told her, finally finding your voice.

~ “I was not worried about that.” And for some reason she sounded offended at the fact you weren’t attracted to her.

~ “This is your last chance to give her back her pin before I get security.” He said more sternly, his accent thick as his glare darkened. She handed him the pin with a huff before turning around and running away. 

~ “Thank you, Steven.” You told him as he pinned the object back in place. 

~ “It’s alright love. No one deserves to be treated like that. I really don’t understand why people are twisted up by people in the lgbtq+ community.” He was standing in front of you now. Looking at the ground sheepishly. You kissed his cheek in a thank you causing a blush to bloom along his cheeks. Then you both continued on your walk.

~Now for Marc. 

~He is the one that comforts you. Reassures you constantly that you are valid, loved and supported. 

~You had told him of your desire to go to pride. He had reluctantly(not that reluctantly because he was actually super excited to share this experience with you) joined you in your time there. 

~He had even bought you matching shirts. Yours said I’m the bisexual girlfriend. His said I’m here with my bisexual girlfriend. The words were written in the bi pride colors. 

~You were so excited the day of, you showed up to watch the parade that morning with a beaming smile on your face. A large group of people passed you by and you could see a few of them reading your shirts. 

~You had always been a bit shy when around other people in the LGBTQ community. There had been many different instances that they had shamed you in the past. This time wasn’t any different. When one of the women started talking to someone else in the group. 

~ “How can she even say she’s bi when she’s in a relationship with a guy.” She snickered as she passed you. 

~ It didn’t seem Marc had heard, however, to focused on the parade going on in the street in front of you. No one here posed a threat to either of you in his mind so he had let loose a little. 

~ He had however noticed the way your hand slipped out of his. He looked at you quickly and saw you fiddling with the ends of your shirt. 

~ “What’s wrong?” He asked as he scanned the crowd to see if he could spot what happened.

~ “It’s nothing Marc. You can go back to watching the parade.” Your hands wrung together as you spoke. 

~ “Tell me what happened honey. Did someone hurt you?” His eyes scanned your body looking for injuries. Though he didn’t know they could’ve laid a hand on you with him standing right there. 

~ “Just someone invalidating me again. Nothing new.” He knew that you had insecurities surrounding your sexuality. Having been told many times you were faking it, that it didn’t exist or that you weren’t actually bisexual since you were with Marc. 

~He had always done what he could to reassure you that you were validated and that you shouldn’t listen to what everyone said. This time was no different as he brought you into his chest squeezing you to him. Your arms came around his middle as you hugged him back. 

~ “You are such an amazing and wonderful girlfriend babe. Your sexuality is valid. No matter what anyone else says you and I both know you’re bisexual. Steven and Jake know you are bisexual and we love you so much. We are comfortable with you exploring both sides of your sexuality as well. You just have to sit us down and talk about it with us.” He kissed the top of your head as you squeezed him tighter. 

~It was always comforting to be in his arms. He smelled like a combination of the three of them. The three that would love and care and protect you until their last breath. 

~Now onto Jakeeeeeeee. 

~This man will let fists fly with no hesitation. Very very very protective. 

~This one will be more violent than the other ones of course. 

~It was routine for one of the boys to be standing outside of your workplace waiting for you when Jake didn’t have a mission for Konshu. 

~So as you exited the building you weren’t surprised to see a familiar hat placed atop a familiar set of curls. 

~ “How was work today mi amor.” Jake had asked you as he usually did. Taking your hand in his. 

~ “Fine.” Was your simple answer, even though work had been super annoying due to one specific co worker. 

~ “What happened?” He asked you as he scanned your face with his eyes. 

~ “Why do you think something happened?” You asked him surprised.

~ “You normally won’t shut up about your work day. But today was just fine. So what happened?” His demeanor changed as he finished his sentence, now in complete protective mode. 

~ “Chad from accounting was going on again about me being bi. Told me that it was a sin. That I would feel the wrath of hell. Told me I didn’t deserve to breathe the same air as him. Just the normal gist and what not.” You shrugged simply as though the words didn’t sting you. As if you didn’t feel a deep hole within your chest as though he had stabbed you repeatedly with every word he spoke. 

~ “Where is Chad now?” Jake was seathing as you spoke. The boys were all talking loudly within his head wanting to find the guy and put and end to him. 

~ “He’s probably out back. He takes a shortcut through the alley to get home.” You knew he was going to find him anyway so you figured you’d save him some time. 

~ “Go Home. We’ll be there shortly.” You nodded your head, giving his hand a squeeze. 

~ “Just don’t kill him okay?” You gave him a peck on the lips before you were slipping away. 

~It was almost an hour later that Jake slipped through the doors. Hands and shirt bloodied and you knew his point had been made to Chad. You cleaned him up and thanked him for helping you. 

~ “I will always protect you amor.” Was his response. 

A/N:I love the moon boys with all my heart. Oscar Isaac puts me in a chokehold with every role he plays. Happy Birthday Bestie❤️

Tags(open): @wkndwlff @sylviebell

[midnight-blue-goth]

Do you think Gwen was the better girlfriend for Duncan than Courtney?

Oops, sorry for late answer. But here it is! Remember, this is my opinion.

-

This is a tough question because it really depends on how we define "better." Both Gwen and Courtney have their own unique ways of expressing love, and it’s important to acknowledge that all three—Duncan, Gwen, and Courtney—have been hurt in different ways, whether physically or emotionally, during their relationships. I wouldn’t say one is definitively better than the other, but they express love in vastly different ways.

Courtney’s Love for Duncan: Courtney's love seemed rooted in wanting to “improve” Duncan. Her idea of love appears to be: “I can help you become a better version of yourself.” This mindset is evident in her behavior—especially in All-Stars, where she acknowledges she has a “type,” which are people she believes need “fixing.” I don’t think Courtney saw her behavior as controlling or out of line; it likely stems from how she was raised, though we don’t have much background on her family life to know for sure.

Rejecting her attempts to “fix” someone would hurt her deeply because, for Courtney, that rejection likely translates to a lack of trust or love. This could explain why, despite everything that happened between them (like the TDA contract fiasco), she repeated her pattern of making lists to change Duncan. To her, this may be a valid expression of love. I sometimes wonder if, subconsciously, she seeks out people who need the most "fixing" because it boosts her pride when she can claim she’s “saved” or improved them. It’s like she views fixing someone as a trophy, a badge of honor she can show off.

One big challenge for Courtney is that she tends to put her pride and reputation above everything else, including relationships. While that might work for her personally, it does have consequences—like a lack of close friendships or support when things go wrong. Did she end up with any friendship at the end of the show? Whether she’s aware of how her actions come across is up for debate, as we mostly see her in competitive situations, not everyday life.

I wish we could see her outside of any romantic relationship because she doesn’t need one right now. Especially not with someone like Duncan, who, no matter the situation, seems to pull her down.

 I truly believe she’s better off alone, focusing on building meaningful friendships and growing as an individual. But unfortunately, it feels like we’ve missed that chance.

Gwen’s Love for Duncan: Gwen’s relationship with Duncan feels a little less complicated, but not without its challenges. I don’t think Gwen was necessarily a “better” girlfriend than Courtney—she just loved differently. 

After being cast on the Villainous team, she became hyper-aware of how she was being perceived. That shift likely triggered her need to be seen as “good,” which might explain why she distanced herself from Duncan. By that point, their relationship represented the very thing she wanted to avoid—being perceived as bad.

While I don’t fault Gwen for stepping back, I do think it would’ve been better if she and Duncan had some kind of closure or a more meaningful conversation about their relationship. It felt like a loose end, considering how much she fought for that relationship in the previous season. 

I guess that's something left for fanfiction, lol.

But more importantly:

Duncan’s Role: Ultimately, being Duncan’s girlfriend is highly circumstantial. His mood, his level of emotional investment, and the loyalty of the other person all play a huge role. We know he values loyalty (even though there’s some irony there, given his actions in TDWT). He also craves freedom and doesn’t want to feel restrained. A partner who can meet him with the same level of affection and loyalty without trying to “control” him seems to be key for him. If he feels any of these needs are neglected, he would dip out of the relationship—no questions asked.

But that’s not all:

I’ve got a pretty dark theory about why Duncan seems drawn to difficult, even physically violent, romantic relationships. It’s not just about Courtney, either. Remember when he was literally wrestling an alligator and said, “I’ve had tougher girlfriends than him, and uglier.” That line hints at him being used to dating people with aggressive or combative behavior.

My theory is that Duncan is unconsciously seeking out girlfriends who remind him of his father—especially the controlling aspects of their relationship. His dad being a cop probably meant Duncan grew up with a strict, authoritative figure constantly trying to control or “fix” him. In this sense, Duncan’s relationships could be a way for him to relive or rebel against that dynamic. It’s almost as if he’s continuing the fight he had with his father but through his romantic partners, engaging in a kind of resistance that mirrors his rebellion.

Gwen as an Exception:

Gwen doesn’t fit into the violent, combative dynamic that Duncan seems to be drawn to, and this is where my theory takes a different turn. With Gwen, Duncan may have found something new—someone who wasn’t trying to control him but also wasn’t afraid to accept him as he was. Their relationship feels more introspective than confrontational, very different from the clashes he had with Courtney. Instead, it’s centered on emotional vulnerability.

This might be why some people found their relationship “boring”—it wasn’t meant to be an explosive drama. Instead, it quietly opened up the softer, more vulnerable sides of both of them, and I can’t emphasize this enough: We are not meant to see them. Us watching them feels like an invasion of privacy (which is, again, ironic given how their romance started)

This sense of privacy also explains their disdain for Sierra, despite her being supportive of their relationship. For Gwen and Duncan, their relationship was personal, their own business, and they hated the idea of someone else prying into it.

If given more time, their relationship could have revealed a different side of Duncan. It would’ve been fascinating to see him lower his defenses even more, showing how a relationship built on mutual understanding could shape his character. We had a little bit in TDAS, Episode 3. Saving her from the leech, without any reservation. 

We’d already seen the endless downward spiral of his conflict-based romances over two seasons. This one had the potential to break that cycle, offering something deeper and more meaningful for both of them.

–

Uhm.. conclusion? I’d say: Miscommunication and trauma response, all around. See you in AO3 🤙

[sometimes-men-need-help-too]

I wanted to share this reddit post with you. The comments are primarily in his favor so I don't have any screenshots to share. It's just crazy. So this guy was asking if he was in the wrong for asking his girlfriend to use a different body wash. Here's the original post:

The main thrust of this post is, I am allergic to nuts and my girlfriends bodywash contains almond oil. It isn't life threatening for me to come in contact with it but it does cause hives. I asked my girlfriend (Jess) to change the body wash she uses as I am getting hives from residue of her body wash in the shower.

Jess was initially fine with it after a small back and forth but has since spoken to friends and believes that I am being too controlling, as do her friends. My friends are mostly neutral with a couple saying that I need to "nut up" and let her use whatever she wants.

A little bit of added context is that we recently decided we wanted to move in together and decided to do a "trial run" as Jess still lives with her parents and I rent my own place. So it's easy enough for her to move in with me for a few months to see if living together full time works for us.

It's never been a problem before now as I've never had a reaction from touching Jess after she uses it, but I am having a reaction from the residue that is left in the shower, usually on the removable shower head which I need to use to get clean because I'm a big dude and just leaving it up there doesn't reach everywhere.

Jess has always been aware of my allergies, she doesn't eat nuts if she knows we're going to do anything together and the few times when she has, she thoroughly brushes her teeth before seeing me.

And here's the update:

I know that I only responded to like one comment, but the amount that I received was honestly overwhelming. So, thank you to everyone who responded. I did read all of them. I thought I'd post this update to tell you guys what happened and explain a little bit of why I made the initial post. For those who were wondering about ages, I'm 21 and Jess is 25. My friends hover around my age and hers hover around her age.

I wish I could come back and say that I had seen my own value and got myself out of the relationship, but the truth is that Jess broke up with me two days after the post. I was still thinking, and she asked to meet up to discuss things. I went in hoping for the best but was met by her telling me that it wasn't working, and she didn't see a future for us where we're both happy. That hurt a lot.

I've spent the past few days sort of realising how stupid my original post here was, OF COURSE I'm not an asshole for not wanting to come into contact with something I'm allergic to.

I think a lot of you probably wondered why I even had to ask. The truth is that I felt like I was going crazy. I genuinely liked and respected her friends, I thought they were really smart. So, to be told that this was the opinion of my girlfriend as well as theirs made me take it very seriously. When I went to my friends and received no support or validation, I started to convince myself that I was wrong.

I also actually learned from the comments that continued exposure could worsen my reactions so that's handy to know now.

This is so messed up. I have a pretty serious garlic allergy that I have to take precautions for so I get it. The reaction from the friends just screams ignorance to me. It isn't about control, it's about his life. Besides, even if he would never have a bad reaction, it's still something that should be respected.

[deyasworld]

Deedark heacanons?

I loved the ones you made a while back and was wondering if you had more!

Awww! Thank you, you’re very sweet! 😊💕

Sure! Let me remember them.

• I used to headcanon that Dee Dee snores, but when rewatching the show I noticed that Mandark is the one that Canonically snores, and they usually write Dee Dee as a silent sleeper. Now that I think about it, it might make sense, since he has a very narrow neck lolllll Edit: I forgot to mention that Mandark canonically Talks In His Sleep!!!!

• I also used to headcanon that Dee Dee is an early bird and that she sleeps early, and that Mandark was the night owl, but now that I think about the kinds of jobs they have, maybe their sleeping schedules should be the other way around 😆. I mean, ballet studios tend to be an after school activity, meaning that she would be working in the afternoons, and he runs a laboratory, so his office hours would be from 8 AM to 5 PM, but he stays up late working extra hours. I like to think their sleeping schedules sync because of it.

• They live together by 23, but have probably been roommates since before. I don’t know why I’m fixated on 23, I came up with this when I was 19, and 23 sounded like a very exciting age at the time. I’m turning 31 in June, and giving this some thought it still feels like a good age! It’s a challenging time for many, there’s so much societal pressure to get your shit together after college, but you still want to enjoy life ““before 25””, so it would be very nice if they’re together through it.

• They probably don’t marry until 25 though, because it feels like a “serious” age to them, but mostly because I want them to still call each other boyfriend and girlfriend for a while ( and Fiancé for a while too lolll ). Although 25 is still young! Don’t hurry things just because that age sounds scary 💝 People will think you’re 21 at 30, and 16 at 21. There’s always time; take things slow. ( I’m only keeping the headcanons because they feel lived in ).

• For Dee Dee’s job, I like to think she joined a ballet company, so in her early adulthood she’s doing a lot of performances. She gets the instructor job later, to get a steady paycheck. She begins to suffer muscle pains because she’s not 10 anymore, so I like to imagine that Mandark helps monitoring her muscle health and he’s Very serious about it, I’m talking massages, 3D diagrams they update every week, keeps a journal and plans a diet for her. At some point she retires from the performances and dedicates herself to be an instructor, but she returns to the stage every other year. Edit: I’ve been following ballerinas on social media and watching documentaries to learn about their life styles, so I think she’ll be healthy for a very long time. Mandark is still concerned about her health though.

• I have several AUs for these two, but most of my headcanons for them are in the FusionFall verse. I really really like that Universe! It inspires me a lot. I should illustrate some headcanons someday. If you want to hear any FF specific headcanons, let me know!

• From their personalities in canon, I like to think they’re both very clingy, in particular Mandark. He’s very needy, needs lots of validation and has tendencies of low self-esteem, and she’s too cuddly, she’ll walk in on you when you’re busy to shower you with attention. I think it makes them perfect for each other; they’re both smothering with affection, and it makes them natural outlets. They probably tire each other sometimes, but they’re back at it again afterwards.

Thanks for the ask! Hope these work for you! 🫶💖💕

Have some Milk and Mocha, they’re my go-to DeeDark mascots 🐻‍❄️🐻

[anewstartrekfan]

Spock and Chapel fizzled out so quickly because Spock was trying too hard to correct what he did to piss off T’pring. Meanwhile Chapel was too focused on herself.

Spock was distant and dishonest with T’pring, and despite his efforts to impress and not worry her, it all backfired hard. Hence he wants to come out the gate when he sorta starts dating Chapel, and even give a go at being more human. Despite T’pring putting their relationship on pause, Spock was on a high of mostly positive reinforcement of human values, both after sticking up for his mother and when the relationship with chapel first kicked off. Chapel doesn’t kiss Spock the Vulcan way, she starts crazy making out with him. Point is he wanted it clear cut, direct, and above all else, open. And Chapel wasn’t gonna give him that.

I’ve seen people call Chapel’s self centered ness something forced into the episode, but it’s not. It’s been a theme since the dinner episode. Yes she was doing everything in her power to get Spock back to normal, but her big takeaway after meeting those aliens and getting Spock back to normal was “wow. I’m awesome. I did something super cool that’s way more fufilling than your validation. Fuck you Vulcans, goodbye.” And to be clear she earned that. She is awesome. But it influenced how she approached her relationship to Spock.

To Chapel, how she feels takes priority. She tells Spock not to think about it when they start making out because she’s too into the moment. She doesn’t want to get interrupted by Vulcan logic. And this continues into the next episode when they’re playing chess and she tries to change it into a sorta relationship. She doesn’t want it concrete cuz that will fuck up her plans for the other 3 month think she signed up with to do with Dr. Korby if she’s accepted. Plus when Bolmier tells her she’s not in Spock’s future she’s destroyed. She puts up walls around her self to the point that in the next episode when she’s clearly going through some rough shit with that Klingon defector on the ship, and Spock offers a shoulder for her to lean on, she refuses, and indeed I don’t think ever tells him what actually happened to the Klingon.

And so we get to sub space rhapsody. Wherein she’s burying the fact that she values her career more than her relationship with Spock but also values that relationship enough to not want to tell him that.

But Spock wants to know.

So she gets forced to sing about it instead.

I realize more of this was dedicated to Chapel than Spock but I felt like her’s needed more justification/explanation.

I liked how this episode (or well this season) re-contextualizes when Chapel confesses her love to Spock in the Naked Time.

Just like in sub space rhapsody Chapel could only confess her true feelings while under the influence. And just like last time, Spock is so heartbroken he leaves and goes off to have his own emotional episode.

“I’m in love with you Mr. Spock.”

Look at that face. That is a face of a man who just heard his ex girlfriend (who broke up with him mind you) confess she loved him. He’s holding his hand out to her for a kiss,

I CAN PROVE IT

(No I can’t)

Chapel spending the whole conversation begging him to call her Chiristine, like he use to,

“I’m sorry, I am sorry.” From Spock hits so different now. He isn’t telling he he’s sorry because he never felt that way, he’s apologizing because even if he does have feelings for her still, he does not want to peruse them. Chapel had her chance and she blew it.

Look never been a Spapel fan but I do love angst and this is plenty of that so I will take it.

[pftones3482]

Okay I can see why people are bummed about certain parts of the Season 5 finale, but it was genuinely??? So good??? Like it was not bad at all, it's wild to me that people are calling the whole thing terrible because of like. Two plot points.

Spoilers and thoughts under the cut (in no particular order):

I fucking loved the Bug Noire design, her eyes were so COOL LOOKING

The classmates all getting their kwamis back STOP 😭😭😭😭 Wayzz and Trixx get to hang out all the time now that's so cute I'm gonna die.

I need an entire episode about what the fuck Jagged Stone, Penny, and Luka were up to because WHAT WAS THAT?

Loved getting to see the other heroes again, it was a nice change of pace

GOD TIKKI AND PLAGG??? WHAT?? The lighting in that scene was so pretty 10/10

I'm glad Gabriel fucking died he deserved it 🖕

Following that, I truly think that if Gabriel's plea had come even one season ago, I would have felt more sympathy for him. I felt none. I was rolling my eyes while he was crying. You locked your son in a literal prison Gabe. You are beyond redemption.

Really liked the parallel of this episode with Ladybug fighting w/o Chat while the classmates help out and the episode Representation, where Chat was fighting w/o Ladybug and the classmates were helping out. Not QUITE the same, but I'm glad we did get a fairly Chat-centric episode before the finale

Adrien absolutely deserves to know that his father was Hawkmoth. But he's also had like. The SHITTIEST fucking life the last year or two. His mom fucking died, his dad stopped being a dad, he was overworked, never allowed to see friends, was a whole ass superhero on top of that, and then his father sent him to a different fucking country so he couldn't be with his girlfriend. And then said father DIES and suddenly his mom is magically alive and Nathalie isn't on deaths door??? Yeah, I'd give him some time to process and just be a kid for once too. He is definitely going to find out, and when it does it'll be angsty and I will enjoy it

I really hope they don't drag out the Lila plot five more seasons. This show has fallen victim to the "too many seasons" problem and at this point I'm mostly in it for the kwamis and the classmates relationships lol

God poor Nooroo can't catch a break 😭

While I was low-key hoping for a reveal, it would have felt really forced and out of place given that Chat Noir literally didn't show up until the very end of the season finale, so I'm glad they didn't shoehorn it in

Alya. Round of a fucking plause for Alya please and thank you. Also please I need more of her and Plagg they were adorable the way he went to her for help when he couldn't find Marinette

Actually round of applause for all the classmates trying their damnedest to keep the city from falling to chaos I love them all so much together

Love that these kids have just fully accepted that their principal is a little wacky and they continue to include him

BABY BUSTIER I WOULD DIE FOR YOU

Marinette was so fucking snappy and good with the comebacks during her fight with Gabriel it was fantastic

Also the way she reacted to seeing him as Gabriel was INSANE the animators did such a good job with that

Back to Alya for a hot sec, the way she looked at Nino during the classmates group hug was so soft 😭❤️

Adrien understanding that he was at high risk of hurting the world as Chat Noir and being under the influence of nightmares is such a mature move. Alya realizing the same thing? God give them more SCENES together

Once again. TIKKI AND PLAGG???? TF???

In conclusion:

The finale wasn't bad, you guys are just upset there wasn't a reveal and that Adrien still doesn't know his dad was a literal terrorist. Which is valid, you can be upset about it, but the rest of the finale was pretty damn satisfying and it's a disservice to the crew who worked on it to just dismiss it entirely.

[demetriandelibinaryboyfriends]

Pride Month Character Sexuality Headcanon Moodboards 1. Yasmine - Lesbian 2. Demetri Alexopoulos - Gay 3. Moon - Bisexual 4. Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz - Bisexual

Next up is everyone's favorite Demetri Alexopoulos-obsessed slightly evil predatory bird boy, Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz! Unlike with Demetri, I am fully aboard the Bisexual Eli Express. Justice for bi guys!!! We need more in media because it is in fact sexy and valid to like dick AND boobs!!!

Now, quick disclaimer that there is not a single mlw Eli ship that I personally fuck with in the least. I've been pretty loud about the reasons for my immense distaste of H*wkM**n, and could in fact write a 20 or so page essay on why they're one of my all-time NoTPs if prompted. Furthermore, my first impulse upon seeing any other female character paired with Eli (or...really, any character who isn't Demetri, or possibly Miguel in extremely specific circumstances) is to keep said pairing approximately 491263844976 feet away from me. BUT, despite my personal feelings of revulsion upon seeing Eli paired with anyone who isn't his soulmate Demetri Alexopoulos, I fully believe Eli is bisexual and that there's plenty of textual evidence to support this!

So let's dive in!

The first thing that comes to mind is how Eli vents to his mom in the 2x05 flashback about how he's "never going to get a girlfriend." Granted, as I've mentioned in some other posts, high school dating is often more about social status (i.e. being seen as "desirable" enough to get an SO makes you more popular) than genuine romantic attraction. BUT Eli voicing his concerns to someone he clearly trusts more than most people indicates to me that he wants a girlfriend more than just for show--he's attracted to girls.

I have a friend who since moved on from the fandom who did autistic analyses of Eli, and pointed out that he's often uncomfortable with eye contact. Pre-Hawk, the only two people we see him make consistent eye contact with are Demetri and his mom. This seems like a pretty good indication that these are the two people he trusts the most, and can most honestly "bare his soul" and be himself around. Another reason I think his vent to his mom about worrying he's never going to have the experience of dating a girl has authenticity to it. I can't compare this to Demetri's interactions with his mom, unfortunately (and it's a damn shame!!! I demand to see Ms. Alexopoulos in S6!!!), but I can say for certain that Eli has expressed wanting a girlfriend from a (presumably) vulnerable and honest place, while S1 Demetri only ever seems to do so performatively.

As previously established, there is no bigger H*wkM**n loather than I. I make no secret of this. HOWEVER!!! I feel like it'd be naive--and maybe even dumb--to pretend that there isn't at least some physical attraction there. Granted, they're definitely emotionally incompatible in a way I wish the show had the balls to actually address (like how the fuck is a pacifist gonna last in a relationship with a dude who loves fighting more than just about everything else lmao), but I can buy they find each other physically (and probably sexually) attractive. Moon basically says as much when she's dumping Eli in S2! They very much strike me as one of those teenage couples who are all over each other 90% because of hormones. I'd say the main difference between them and Dem and Yas is that the performative aspect doesn't seem to be there. While Dem and Yas feel like they're putting on a show, it seems like Hawk and Moon really were just that horny.

So throughout S2, we see Hawk treat Moon in kind of a possessive way, and more as arm candy to make him look good than as her own person (yet another reason I am such a Hater lmao). Despite this, he spends so much time in S3 and S4 moping over her and pining for her that I do think they had somewhat of an emotional connection, even if it was pretty surface-level. I still think their relationship was mostly based on looks and social status, but him being that hung up on winning her back (a frankly unhealthy thing that should not have been narratively rewarded btw) instead of just moving on to some other hot girl who'd give him the time of day indicates that Moon was more than just a beard.

So like. I feel like if you weren't convinced that Eli has feelings for Demetri, you wouldn't be reading a post written by tumblr user demetriandelibinaryboyfriends XD But to briefly summarize: Eli spends much of the show shooting Demetri Yearning Looks and being the only one amused by his antics. Even when they're falling out, Eli is borderline obsessive about harassing Demetri when he could just ignore him and focus on his Cool New Karate Friends. He often seeks Demetri out in fights in a way that feels pretty damn fruity. He's pretty physically affectionate with Demetri, and never seems to mind when Dem is physically affectionate with him (to the point of near cuddling in S4). This is...unusual for teenage boys, to say the least! Oftentimes even the straight ones are so terrified of being perceived as gay that they're super stingy about all but the most "no homo" type of physical affection. The fact that Dem and Eli pretty liberally put their arms around each other and give each other little gestures of physical affection makes me think that they've been in a homoerotic friendship so long that they like. Don't even realize it comes across as kinda gay??? Like Miguel and Demetri are physically affectionate too, but it's much more casual and doesn't feel as intense.

Also worth a mention that Eli is literally simping for Demetri so hard that he joins Demetri's karate dojo right after being terribly traumatized and deciding to quit karate. Why??? Because Demetri said some encouraging things to him, cuddled him on a couch, and basically confessed his love by being like "hey I'll always care about you no matter how you wear your hair or what name you go by." This man is whipped as fuck. His actor basically confirmed he won the championship for Demetri! And lest we forget, the final push that got him to betray the dojo he'd previously devoted his entire life to--also led by a dangerous war criminal sure not to take betrayal lightly, might I mention--was seeing Demetri in danger. Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz is in fact Down Bad.

So I'm not a big fan of the migu/eli ship for reasons I don't want to get into here, but imo it's completely possible Eli had feelings for Miguel at some point (I just don't think they were ever reciprocated because Miguel is in love with Sam!). He definitely idolizes Miguel and puts him on a kind of "coolness" pedestal that feels like it could easily be romantic. He also gets so obsessed with avenging Miguel that he breaks the arm of the other guy he has a crush on, so...there's also that!

Come to think of it, there are actually some really interesting parallels between the Miguel/Eli and Moon/Eli relationships. Both are kind of a case of Eli getting really enamored with this idealized idea/concept he has of a person and getting so wrapped up in that that he has a fundamental misunderstanding of and neglects the actual person's wants and needs. Hence why he's so confused when Moon and Miguel tell him they don't want him in their lives if he's going to be an ass--this isn't how the doe-eyed ever-adoring hot girlfriend and stone-cold, super aggressive badass bestie he built up in his head were supposed to react! Why are they acting like independent people with agency who don't conform to the versions of themselves in Eli's fantasies???

(This is also why I think Demetri's the healthiest and most sensible romantic partner for Eli btw. Eli doesn't idealize and borderline deify Demetri the way he does for other people he has feelings for/seems to have feelings for. He's known Dem so long that we can reasonably extrapolate any feelings that developed were based in the Demetri that was actually there, and not a fictional version he built up in his mind. In fact, it almost seems like Demetri knows Eli has a tendency to do this and won't let Eli project an untrue version of Demetri onto the real guy. That might be why Demetri staunchly refused to change himself to go along with Eli's karate shenanigans in early S2--he was basically saying "I am who I am, and I refuse to become this impossibly glorified image you're projecting onto me." And I can't blame him--I actually get really annoyed when people try to put me on a pedestal, and will often go out of my way to break their illusion that I'm whatever perfect, wholesome box they try to shove me in XD Bottom line being that between Moon, Miguel, and Demetri, I think Demetri has the healthiest relationship with Eli because it's, at the end of the day, the most honest and doesn't hinge on any untrue and unfair projections.)

At the end of the day though!!! The fact that Eli is able to separately idealize both a guy and a girl and both in a pretty romantic or romantic-coded way is pretty damning proof to me that he is in fact bisexual! Look, not all bisexuals process their feelings in healthy ways okay aiksjuuhfkdhg

He dyes his hair ALL THE DAMN BISEXUAL FLAG COLORS. And on the order they're on the flag, too??? Red (S2 - S3) to purple (S4) to dark blue (S5)??? Fucking wild. If this was a fanfiction I would joke about it being too on-the-nose, BUT NO. THIS IS CANON MATERIAL IN THE SHOW.

Okay, I'm sorry, but. NO non-queer dude dyes his hair bright-ass colors like that. Red or blue maaaaybe, but PURPLE??? NO. Straight men simply do not dye their hair purple. Like speaking as an LGBT I'm here to tell you that in the community, brightly colored hair (but especially more "flamboyant," girly colors like purple or pink) basically a signal that says "hey, I am also queer!" ESPECIALLY if you're a dude. Straight girls dyeing their hair bright-ass colors is more common, but I have never known a single straight guy to. And that's because it's associated with being gay af.

Also I can't tell you the amount of times they've put this dude in bisexual lighting. The ones I can think of off the top of my head are S2 Valley Fest and the S3 arm break, but I'm sure there are more I'm forgetting. Demetri is there both the times I mentioned. Hmmmm.

Took some liberties with the bisexual flag in this moodboard to better fit Eli's vibe...and also like. These are literally the three colors he dyes his hair in canon. I had to XD

I'm still not over that btw aksjdkhuef like it's so bisexual it's PAINFUL

I really like how this one came out <3 Hopefully I was able to capture the full scope of technonerd, avian motifs, and that one S3 angerboi I-want-to-punch-everything-and-everyone arc!

Btw the top middle picture is just supposed to be neon fire because our boi is Fiery™️, but then I realized it...kind of also looks like a mohawk??? So kudos to me for the accidental character accuracy XD

Okay so. Would you believe I have several more of these that I didn't have the chance to post? ^^; I uh. Guess I'll have to make July Pride Month 2.0 and post them then XD This is what happens when I'm too overambitious in my shitposts, eh?

As always, pic credits available upon request!

[dogsliampaynedoesntinstagram]

Maya was clear that she saw Liam's abuse as a result of distress that ran deep and his coping strategies with that distress. So if I talk about Liam it will be in those terms. ///

In her book she said some of the distress arouse from the contrast between his career and Harry's and the poor reception of LP1. I remember the same Guardian critic Laura Snape was very cruel about LP1 (awful 1* review) and very nice about Fine Line which was released a week later.

I just think the whole solo fandom thing is fucking toxic. The fans, the media, the industry ... all pitting them against each other and the same person coming out on top year after year.

Oh anon - I know fandom is notorious for blaming women for the actions of men - but responding 'Laura Snapes wrote a negative review of Liam's work' in response to a description of Liam's abuse - is taking fucked up fandom to another level.

But far more importantly - the way you present mental distress here You focus on the fact that Liam is being compared to other people and the fact that in this comparison external validation is not being distributed equally. Suggesting that if only external validation was distributed equally - if he got enough of it - Liam would not be experiencing this distress - is a model of mental distress that sets you up for failure.

(And of all the forms of external validation to suggest should be distributed equally - using reviews as your main example is completely absurd. People respond to art in all sorts of ways - which will always be complicated. When you put something out into the world you are taking a huge risk - including that people won't like it. But I'm mostly leaving that alone and are going to pretend to focus on a form of external validation where some form of equity of distribution would be reasonable)

External validation can be nice (although it can also be complicated), but it will not and cannot address the fractures in our psyches. There is all the evidence in the world (including within 1D) that external validation is not a solution to mental distress.

We need some kind of recognition - we need to do things people value and we need to be seen. We don't need, and can't all have, the extraordinary recognition that you describe as Harry coming up on top. Stadium tours, awards, even someone with authority engaging with and appreciating something we've created - those only go to some people - and they never have been distributed fairly and never will be.

Our mental distress lies to us - it sends us in completely the wrong way to try and fix it. Chasing after external validation as a way of trying to eliminate mental distress is a fools errand. Short term distress around rejection, or not getting something we want, or failure - is really normal. Learning to sit with that distress and get through it rather than running in all sorts of directions is a skill that it's possible to strengthen (one of the most important changes of my adult life has been experiencing applying to jobs as something that felt unbearable distressing, to something that was possible, with a significant toll).

Of course Liam experiences some distress at career difficulties - we all would. That's not what his ex-girlfriend wrote a book about. Liam responded to his distress by being cruel and abusive to people around him (particularly his ex) and seeking relief in substances that had a history of making him more abusive - in this condition he chased his girlfriend with an axe.

Our brains are lying to us. It's really common to feel distress and think 'I must do X then I will be valid and not feel distress'. That's a trap that will only keep people on a hamster wheel of distress - chasing relief that will not come. Even if you do achieve X it will not be enough - your brain will give you another goal. I think it can be useful to think of eating disorders here - the idea that being thin enough will cure someone's eating disorder will strike a lot (not enough) people as obviously illogical. The same is true for Liam and success (or Harry and success for that matter) and for so many people in different ways - if we chase things because we feel like we're not good enough - then getting those things are unlikely to make us feel good enough.

There is an alternative (although it is not to listen to that voice, and build our ability to tolerate our distress, manage triggers, and eventually heal some of the wounds that made our distress so strong in the first place.

[bardicious]

Is it fair for Spirk fans hate Spock/Chapel more than Spock/Uhura

Spirk fans were not so kind to spock/uhura but they seem to hate spock/chapel a lot more and I think I can understand why.

spock/uhura was an alternate reality and did not violate canon.

AOS Uhura is not too far removed from TOS Uhura unlike SNW Chapel where it is clear they have completely changed her entire character so the audience can find it believable why spock will love her.

let's face it, Chapel in TOS was not necessarily preped up as a hot sexy confident action blonde that SNW portrays and i think these robs spirk fans the wrong way because this is Chapel and we already know who she is.

Spock/Uhura in AOS did not take up too much screen time and did not have Spock acting out of character. I was thinking off star trek beyond and I have more respect for AOS Spock and how he deals with his love life. When he said he was going to call things of with uhura, he planned to sit down and discuss it with her of his need to be with a vulcan woman unlike SNW Spock who jumps in bed with chapel after he and Tpring go on a break.

I think Spirk fans dont like that Spock is written like a teenager from riverdale and Chapel has been retcon way too much.

This are just my thoughts, spock/chapel seem to be getting torns of hate more than spock other het ship and I feel it is deserved.

mmm, I don't really have a stake in the debate, nonnie! Though I don't really know how much hate Chapel/Spock is getting. I heard Uhura/Spock got way more hate, but that could just be an exaggeration.

Honestly I loath AOS Spock, and love the characterizations of all SNW characters. And believe SNW will easily become TOS Spock. And love what they've done to Chapel's character. Given her much more depth than her TOS counterpart, but keeping to her canonical crush. She's no mary sue, she's just as badass as the rest of the female characters they've created. This isn't the first time Trek has given their female characters more badass traits either, you know? This isn't the 1960s anymore, women are allowed to be something other than unrequited crush, or love interest. Her previous characterization was outdated and desperately needing of change.

From my point of view, Chapel's upgraded image just gives her more agency and has less to do with Spock. And Spock... well I don't think he loves her. I think he loves the idea of her. Because right now he isn't in love with the idea of being Vulcan. He tried an engagement, more Vulcan duty, but it conflicts with whatever he wants in life. So now he's going the exact opposite route. He's young and he's exploring what being half vulcan - half human means to him. And whatever he's seeing, he doesn't accept. So he'll smile more, not cause he's happy, but cause he's supposed to be normal. It's got nothing to do with him loving Chapel.

I don't think the hate is valid tho, I mean, I do hate the ship. LMAO. But to harp on people who enjoy it, or be afraid of SNW erasing Spock's intimate relationship with Kirk is silly. It's not what's going on. And the backlash is mostly from fear because people can't see the characterization that SNW is going for. Spock will become TOS Spock. Chapel will become TOS Chapel (at least in terms of her romantic feelings for Spock). This isn't the first time Spock has had a girlfriend, a love interest (Just watch some TOS episodes, you'll find them. I don't personally care for them. lmao). It will pass, and his relationship with Jim will be just as amazing as it's always been.

[h-pelessly]

June Reads

When You Left Me Speechless by Jess Christine (9/10) I loved this book so much. Most ARC reads are good enough, but they don’t make me feel anything. But this one was so cute. Not only did I enjoy it because it made me realize what I wanted in life, I loved Poppy and Logan’s story as well. Poppy is independent and wants to focus on school, so I kind of see myself through her. Logan’s a teacher, and the whole profession makes me swoon. The thing I didn’t love about the book is the FWB aspect, but other than that, I loved how patient Logan is with her. Poppy was mostly the iffy one in the relationship, but her concerns are valid. And she had a past where she let a man stand in the way of her future/education so she’s valid. The FWB aspect was unnecessary in my opinion because I feel like they were so enamoured with each other before that. The conflict in this one was stupid, but parents do unruly things for their children so I get it. I loved this one.

Our Secret Game by Janisha Boswell (7.3/10) This book wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either. The characters (found family) interacting with one another bothered me because how are you acting like this in your twenties but like I’m here for the romance which is there. Nora, which is a stupid name like how are you going to tell me this is a young adult? You can’t. Anyways, is trying to get over her ex for months, which is understandable, but like six months? Insanity like she’s still so mad like please have some maturity. Maybe it’s because I’ve never been led on or cheated on or anything? So she fake dates her best friend, who she has always thought was annoying which didn’t make sense to me. How are you claiming he’s your best friend when you act so much better/different with your girlfriends? He, Wes, is not your best friend!! Do not lie to me. But also, the girls are such bad friends like Cat is so engrossed with her bf like I get you had your book and moment, but your friend needs you???? And Elle or whatever the fuck her name is left Nora with her ex when it was clear she, Nora, was uncomfy??? Like i don’t care if u are uncomfy. If you guys are as good as friends as you claim, don’t leave her in moments of stress? Nora and Wes fake date, but it’s to Wes’s benefit because he’s always been in love with Nora so he is sweet. But also, Wes has STRONG family and individual problems. I don’t think it should’ve been resolved that quickly or a relationship could’ve fixed it. Anyway, I had iffy feelings about Wes. He was sweet and romantic, but also, like you need to grow up and realize you need help. I don’t think they should’ve ended up together. They are cute and stuff, but like Nora only gets with him due to forced proximity and her horniness. Wes deserves her, but he doesn’t need a relationship right now. I do love this was POC written and had an Asian non-MC.

Don't Let Her Stay by Nicola Sanders (6/10) This was an audiobook that I nearly DNF'ed. I wanted something like Freida McFadden bc her books are so easy to digest, but I didn't want to finish all her books so I decided to give mystery/thriller books a chance. I hated this one. It was so slow, and the gaslighting was INSANE. This woman marries a rich man, has a child, moves far in the countryside with him. Then, his daughter from another marriage visits, and weird stuff happens. False, it wasn't weird. It was just a kid fighting for their dad's love or whatever. The kid, Chloe, is 20 and calls her dad "daddy", is nasty to the wife, is creepy to their child or whatever. Everytime the wife tells the husband, he gaslights her as well as the half child or whatever. Anyways so they end up killing the husband because the wife is manipulated into thinking he is why his late wife, Chloe's mom, is dead, but it turns out that it was Chloe all along. I hated the characters so much. This book was honestly a waste of my time.

Her Wicked Plan by Hannah Jo (8/10) I really enjoyed this book. I didn't know if I'd be into it, but the blurb and tropes seemed interesting as an ARC reader. I love Veronica and the insane asylum. I love how much character Veronica had, but Leo on the other hand... he's... something. He was annoying and a little whiny bitch, but when he's with Vee, I suddenly can stand him. Leo is the voice of reason and whatnot but like he's also an overthinker and needs to be a little more professional (or vice versa, but make up your damn mind.) And the spice?! Oh lord. Makes me think unholy things I want to try. The ending definitely fucked me up. Even though it's expected, it still took me by surprise like how was she able to fake it that much? Granted, she is a patient at an asylum and pleaded mental insane, but that freaking hurt as a romance girlie. But could I have liked it if that ending didn't happen and they got their HEA?

Wrecked by Lauren Asher (7/10) This has been the best one so far out of her Dirty Air series, but the tension is so immediate and the same, it's repetitive. Like I don't feel anything at all. I've come to the realization that F1 is a hot sport, but the way it's written makes you expect it to be a hot sport and them as celebrities. Maybe because she also admitted Lewis Hamilton, a real life F1 driver, was Jax. It's weird, but I mean besides the look, it shouldn't be like him. Unless it is then it's weird. Elena surprisingly had a very heavy and dark background for being a sunny character. Jax did as well, and to find out he has the disease just killed me like this man is going through it. I also hated the way Lauren wrote about his anxiety and then it's just forgotten. Overall, the better book out of the other two with heavy characters, but some parts bored me so much.

Overtime by Mari Loyal (9.5/10) I actually really liked this one. I thought I liked the first one, but this one felt so much better. Maybe because it seemed like the perfect book for someone who I read growing up (since the first book was 5/6 years ago and Aran, the MMC, grew up.) The tension and angst made me giggle so much, and the FMC was such a cutie pie who struggled to love herself because she surrounded herself with people who didn't love her for herself. She's also an author so that made me love her so much more. The way this book was a clean romance/closed door one, but it had me giggling and kicking my feet so much. I also loved the fact that more hockey is on page in this one. Like are you just writing about it because it's hot or because you know it? I love tutor x jock trope so this was definitely right up my aisle. I'm so proud of Mari Loyal.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelidas (7.5/10) I throughly enjoyed this audiobook. It was long and out of my comfort zone, yes. But I did love how detailed the author goes into psychotherapy and just the therapy aspect of it. Long story short, Alicia shoots her husband, Gabriel, and is placed in an insane asylum instead of jail because she goes silent. Theo wants to figure out why so he works as her therapist. I thought it was super weird how invested Theo was to Alicia's story at first like I know it's like a celebrity death/murder in a small town, but this dude was too obsessed like let it go!!! To find out he's behind why she killed her husband like that made so much sense. But the fact that he tried to drug her after he got her to talk again. I'm so fucking confused. Anyways, it was a good book, but I'm not too keen on the genre.

The Reluctant Roommate by Angela Casella (6.8/10) It wasn't horrible, but I didn't have a fun time reading it. I just got so bored reading it and it felt so long for no reason whatsoever. I got this for free during a SYK event, and when reading the tropes, I was interested, but it's part of a series. Technically it's a standalone, yes, but I believe the best way to read it is in order to feel the character development and to grow an attachment to them. Literally they were just characters on a piece of paper for me, and like the characters had zero chemistry. Like how are you going to tell me that he's been in love with her since he was six because he brings her a cup of water??? I love the FMC's sassiness, but in this case, it made her extremely childish because again, the author expects you to know her personality and doesn't explain it well in this book. Don't even get me started on the fairy godparents aka the PI investigators. Who the FUCK do they think they are? Like this bitch Nicole does some good or at least helps her out and expects her, the FMC, and literally everyone else to bow at her feet. She was so infuriating. Idk, this book was just not for me.

[hoghtastic]

Just a little rant bc I just don't get it. I was all happy for Alex when I first heard him mention he had a girlfriend, everyone deserves love but then I looked closely at her, her history and her behavior and I drew my own opinion and here it goes. If she really truly loves him and not what he can do for her why did she act so childish and horrid? The post/deletes before he went public the trolling fans and crazy obsessive behavior, his clothes, using his apartment etc. It drew some negative reaction, did they really not expect that?. She made him look like a fool , especially during her Jersey Boys postings, then I think Alex made her scale back. He has looked terrible for months now and only since in Madrid has he looked better.

Here is my question? why then do they keep trying to make this big public love show. If she is really loves him then just stop pushing this and just be together in their private life. She has a career and right now Alex may still have a chance to salvage his. So why keep up this constant push in the media, the A necklace and a section in her magazine article aboit him? I mean I know it's common for some to speak about their relationship but not to the extent mostly she has to push it so public. It is obvious they both feel the negative impact. But she clings to this association to Alex!

So why keep up this crap, why do they feel the need to convince the public that absolutely does not matter to their personal lives?? Career wise yes fans are important but at this point I don't understand why they keep pushing so hard to "convince the world they are in fact in love?? To me it makes it seem more fake and it has really hurt Alex with his fan base so why does she keep trying to make it look at me I have Alex. I don't get that and I don't understand how he doesn't see it?.

They really just need to keep it private and on their private accounts and just let her own personal talent shine without piggybacking on Alex so much. I think maybe more fans could let shit go but she just keeps pushing it.

Am I the only one who sees that or am I wrong?

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this, anon. 😊 In my opinion, you've raised a lot of valid questions. Unfortunately, I'm afraid we'll never get definitive answers to them. Although, we can speculate, and from my perspective she doesn't love him as much as she loves the idea of being with him — a hot, internationally famous actor — and everything he can do for her, both directly (like helping with the podcast, bringing her to Paris Fashion Week, etc...) and indirectly (granting her more views and exposition by association). We've also watched the downfall of "the best in the world" (aka Mikal), when she so quickly replaced him for Alex, leading me to believe that she also didn't love him as much as she loved the idea of being in a perfect relationship. As for Alex, I don't know... maybe he really thinks this is love and how things are supposed to be? Maybe he's blinded by love bombing, or maybe he actually sees things how they really are, but is okay with everything nonetheless? 🤷‍♀️

[thelasttime]

Hi Madie! I am in this weird situation where I just don't know what to do or to feel... And I don't really have anyone I can talk to about it, but I need to tell this to someone. Hope it's OK, this might be long.

I dated this guy for 10 months, 5 years ago. He had a very close female friend whom I didn't like at first mostly out of jealousy. They seemed way too close. But whenever I brought her up, he would assure me there was nothing going on between them. And when I got to know her better with an open mind, I realised how sweet she actually was. I wouldn't exactly say we became friends but I had no negative feelings whatsoever towards her. And whatever doubts I had were all gone. So he and I dated for ten months, it was great, and then we broke up because I was moving across the country for uni and neither of us wanted to do long distance. We kept in touch at first but eventually, our conversations grew duller and we grew apart and now we only speak twice a year when it's one of our birthdays. A couple days ago, I got coffee with a girl I knew from high school who was friends with my ex's girl best friend. I'm gonna give everyone fake names this is getting complicated. Girl from hs, Anna was very close to Mary, when Toby and I were dating. Anna and I recently, coincidentally, realised we live very close to each other at the moment and decided to hang out. So as we were talking she said something that prompted me to ask if she was still close to Mary and she went, "Oh no, not really. But did you know she and Toby broke up" and I was like "what do you mean they broke up???? Were they ever dating?" and she had this look on her face like she said something very wrong. She immediately tried to change the subject but I persisted and she ended up telling me everything. So apparently, Mary liked Toby the whole time they were friends (as I suspected) and she actually told him about her feelings around the same time Toby and I started talking. He friendzoned her and then we started dating. But she got over it, or at least seemed like it, and so they acted like it never happened and kept on being very good friends. I didn't know any of this. According to Anna, nothing happened during the time Toby and I were dating but a little after we broke up, Mary admitted she still had feelings for him and they ended up making out at a party. A little after that, they started dating and they've dated for 3 years. THREE YEARS. In these three years, I would sometimes talk to Toby and he never ever mentioned a girlfriend once, which okay I can understand, but Mary's name would come up in conversation and I don't know- he'd say "oh I'm hanging out with mary this weekend" and all this time I thought they were just friends. I don't know how exactly one can say "Yeah the girl I told you not to worry about, I'm dating her now" but I would like to know? And how do I even trust Anna? Maybe there is more to the story. Maybe they were romantically involved somehow even when we were together? I don't know, I feel betrayed. I am completely over Toby, I've dated other people since, I moved on, but this new information is just... How do I trust anyone now? And also after we first broke up I was so incredibly upset and I was crying a lot about how I missed him so much and he was apparently making out with her at parties!

Anyway I had "traitor" by olivia on repeat today

this new information is definitely world-shaking ground-breaking news - i think i had something pretty similar with my ex boyfriend but it wasn't to the same degree (one of his friends also liked him while we were dating and then she also told her friends after we broke up that she had feelings for him but then he ended up not liking her which, because i am a petty bitch, made me feel incredibly good - sorry)

my perspective in this case is that it's so valid to feel upset and feel betrayed. it's also really shitty that he didn't mention at all that they were dating, i know it's not an obligation but it's definitely .. common courtesy and the right thing to do. i'm sorry to hear that this is happening AND he doesn't deserve anything good that happens to him. it also sounds like he's absolutely unworthy of any of your love and appreciation and your tears!!!!!!!

and it's possible to trust again, i think it will take time but i'm here to tell you that it's possible to trust people again. you're so valid in feeling like there's no ability for you to trust someone again, but i promise that in time, everything eventually heals. i hope this helps!!