#musician!TK

[basilsunrise]

Seven Sentence Sunday

Thank you @welcometololaland @im-overstimulated-and-im-sad @strandnreyes @carlos-in-glasses @alrightbuckaroo and @lemonlyman-dotcom for the tags!

More from the musicians au:

The scene is lively and TK can’t help but think about how lucky Carlos is to have this. When he was growing up, TK’s mom did the best she could, but it was the seventies and as the only female lawyer at her company, she was forced to keep long hours to maintain the respect of her colleagues. His dad was rarely home and even when he was, his parents spent most of the time arguing, either oblivious or apathetic to the fact that TK could hear every word through the thin walls dividing them.

TK spent his tenth birthday alone in his room, listening to Morrison Hotel and eating leftover Chinese takeout from the fridge. When his mom came home late that night, she woke him up with a cupcake she bought from the corner store across the street and sang to him while he blew out the candle. She kept apologizing for being gone all day, but TK didn’t care—he thought it was the greatest thing ever that he was allowed to eat cake so late.

His mom wasn’t perfect, but TK loved her fiercely and it feels unfair that he has to go the rest of his life never celebrating another birthday with her.

Tagging @carlos-tk and anyone else who wants to join!

[hotfuss]

the killers in electronic musician, september 2012

[supercantaloupe]

i can't decide if i should bother applying to go to oboe camp this year or not. the first year was pretty good and while i still enjoyed last year too i wonder if the amount i'm getting out of the experience is enough to justify the trip anymore since i already feel like it's diminishing in terms of what i have left to learn or experience there

[paperstorm]

Thanks for the tags @heartstringsduet and @corsage! Have a slightly longer snippet than usual to introduce you to a musician AU I am in the very very early stages of working on. ([Band name] redacted only because I haven't settled on one yet 😂 My dumb brain that loves a pun keeps suggesting Strand and Deliver but that's too silly)

-

TK blinks. For a moment, he’s sure he heard wrong. “A tour?”

“Limited American, to start,” Billy says. “And then expanding to Europe if we can, depending on ticket sales.”

With another blink and a dumbfounded shake of his head, TK reiterates, “You want me to go on a world tour? When I literally just got out of rehab?”

Billy frowns. “Oh, is there like … more shit you need to do? With that?”

“I – not, there isn’t …” TK babbles, unable to adequately voice why he’s reacting this way, because really, Billy isn’t wrong. He finished his 30 days. It’s been two weeks on top of that, and he’s stayed away from anything stronger than a regular strength Tylenol for the headache he had last Thursday. He’s not on probation, he’s not being required to do another month in some kind of halfway house. The only thing on his calendar for the foreseeable future is rotting on his couch with a bowl of cereal and binging some sitcom he’s already watched a million times. He doesn’t really have a good reason that he shouldn’t jump right back into work, he just wasn’t expecting it to happen. He hasn’t even reconnected with his band, yet.

“I’m not gonna force you to do anything,” Billy tells him, folding his hands on his desk and looking at TK with a furrowed brow. “If you don’t think you’re ready, we can put all this on hold until you are.”

“But?” TK asks, sensing there’s a big one coming.

Sniffing loudly, Billy’s hands transfer to his keyboard. It clacks noisily in the quiet room as he types, and then he rotates the monitor so TK can see the screen.

The sight that greets him is a Google search of his own name, and as Billy slowly presses the down arrow on his keyboard, TK’s eyes travel over headline after headline – Musician TK Strand seen emerging from upstate drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility, and Lead singer of [band name] checks out of rehab; fans wonder what’s next for the group, and [Band name]’s critically acclaimed album dropped almost eight months ago, here’s why no one’s heard from them since.

He gets stuck for a moment on a particularly cruel one, questioning whether the band will have what it takes to pick up where they left off after a widely publicized relapse derailed what should have been their biggest tour to date.

“The most surefire way to shut all this up, is to get right back on the horse,” Billy says, in a voice that’s serious but not unkind. “You’ve still got an album full of new songs that your fans are dying to hear live, it’s just a few months later than it was supposed to be.”

“They don’t think I’ve got what it takes.” TK nods toward the computer screen.

Billy rotates it back toward himself so TK can’t see it anymore. “They’re wrong.”

“What if they’re not?”

“Only one way to find out.”

“I guess,” TK concedes, swallowing over his dry throat.

“There’s one more thing.”

“Okay.”

“The label suggested it, just so’s you know.”

“God, what?” TK groans, expecting the worst.

“If you agree to this tour, they want to pick your opener.”

“Oh.” TK frowns. It’s not nearly as bad as some of the things he was imagining. “That’s all?”

Pursing his lips, Billy asks, “You heard of Carlos Reyes?”

The name sounds vaguely familiar, but TK doesn’t recognize it well enough to be positive as he asks, “Carlos … wait, that song that’s been all over TikTok? That people are like hoedown dancing to?”

“That’s the one.”

“He’s a country singer,” TK says, stating what surely must be obvious.

“He is,” Billy agrees without further explanation.

“I don’t feel like we’ll have a ton of crossover fans.”

“He is up and coming.”

“Does he even have more than that one shitty song?”

Billy turns to his keyboard again and shows TK the guy’s Wikipedia page. He’s a year younger than TK and handsome in that wholesome, good Southern boy sort of way, complete with a cross necklace glinting against his clearly shaved chest. As Billy scrolls to the bottom, TK’s gaze catches the information that the lead guitarist and bass player for Reyes’s travelling band are a married couple, and TK barely holds in a scoff.

“He has two albums and an EP,” Billy points out. “He just hasn’t really taken off much, until now.”

Annoyed, TK asks, “And the label thinks, what, we can’t put asses in seats anymore without some lame TikTok star? That I can’t?”

“He’s not a TikTok star, he’s a musician with a growing fanbase. And he’s got a reputation that is not, unlike yours at the moment, covered in shit,” Billy explains in a no-nonsense voice.

“Right.” TK huffs and slides back in his chair. “So, that’s what this is. I was high at a Grammy party three months ago and now my name is mud, so the label wants me to bring some Mouseketeer in a cowboy hat along to calm the shareholders down.”

“I doubt they’d put it exactly that way.” Billy exhales and shrugs. “But basically, yeah. That’s the long and short of it. Reyes and his band are good clean fun, whereas people are still circulating pictures of you almost puking on Ariana Grande, so they’re not willing to put up the money for the tour unless you agree to bring him with you.”

“Fabulous,” TK mutters. “What could go wrong.”

“For the sake of your future in this business, you better hope absolutely fucking nothing,” Billy warns, and it still isn’t unkind, but he isn’t joking.

Tagging @theghostofashton @birdclowns @reyesstrand @strandnreyes @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut

@carlos-in-glasses @actual-sleeping-beauty @thisbuildinghasfeelings @herefortarlos @heartstringduet

@goodways @alrightbuckaroo @lightningboltreader @freneticfloetry

@liminalmemories21 @nancys-braids @whatsintheboxmh @bonheur-cafebonheur-cafe

@reasonandfaithinharmony @thebumblecee @never-blooms @lemonlyman-dotcom

@sanjuwrites @orchidscript @jesuisici33 @kiwichaeng @honeybee-taskforce

@fifthrideroftheapocalypse @butchreyes @just-inside-her @firstprince-history-huh @captain-gillian

@tellmegoodbye @anactualcaseofthetruth @ironheartwriter @eclectic-sassycoweyes @ditheringmind

@emsprovisions @irispurpurea @nisbanisba @corsage @cheekgirl89

Want to be added or removed from the list? Lmk

[not-your-asian-fantasy]

🇲🇲| National costume of Miss Universe Yangon East.

Kinnari, a Buddhist and Hindu mythological creature, in Burmese art ✨

Kinnara and Kinnari are mythological beings in Southeast Asian culture, particularly within Burmese arts and traditions. These celestial beings, often depicted as half-human, half-bird creatures, embody beauty, love, and artistic grace. They are significant in various forms of Burmese art, including painting, sculpture, lacquerware, and literature.

Kinnara and Kinnari originate from ancient Hindu and Buddhist mythology. In these traditions, they are known as celestial musicians and dancers, residing in the mythical Himavanta forest. In Buddhist mythology and Hindu mythology, a kinnara is a paradigmatic lover, a celestial musician, half-human and half-horse or half-bird. Their character is clarified in the Adi parva of the Mahabharata.

There are three distinct types of Kinnara in Burmese tradition:

▪️ Bird Kinnara: These are the most commonly depicted in art, characterized by their bird-like features such as wings.

▪️ Human Kinnara: These Kinnara are portrayed with human features, often adorned in traditional clothing ornaments.

▪️ Deva Kinnara: Representing the highest form, Deva Kinnara are depicted with elaborate ornaments, reflecting their celestial nature.

Kinnara and Kinnari are prominent figures in Burmese arts, depicted in various art including painting, sculpture, and lacquerware.

Photo credit: TK

Miss Universe Yangon East, Zin Moe Pyae

[rainbowdaisy13]

Woke up thinking about this verse from TTPD and how it’s a good example of how Taylor creates art that can be about whatever Muse you want it to be

MH fans were very insistent this verse proves this album is about MH—he has tattoos, is a musician, and openly discusses smoking weed in interviews, on stage, or to whatever 11 year old is around to be impressed by that

Kaylor fans were convinced this song is from Karlie’s perspective and the line “tattooed golden” could also be a play on words of “golden tattoo” from the ultra gay super Karlie heavy album Rep, and the gayest song in history, Dress

TK fans made the Google search for “does Travis Kelce have tattoos” explode exponentially after this song was dropped and then still decided it’s about him because he has golden hair & is about as smart as a golden retriever

Do you see what I’m getting at? She does this because she knows it works—it’s worked for the better part of a decade

This fact doesn’t mean I don’t believe in Kaylor—it’s just something to keep in mind when we are going apeshit over lyrics—everyone else in the other parts of the fandom are doing the same thing for their muses too

[deebeeus]

A #MarshallMonday portrait of my very furst burst:

- 2014 #Gibson Custom #R9 1959 #LesPaul Standard Reissue. - 1970 #Marshall#Model2022#Lead20 with original 4 x 10 cabinet.

PS: as you can see I have broken out the ol' white backdrop again, which can only mean one thing! Yep: I, and my invaluable photographic partner @michaelsegui, are tuning up our camera gear because @dlott65 and @chriswstringer8 are tuning up to host #UnionSound24, their annual guitar nerd-fest event at Chris' recording studio, @unionsoundco, in #Toronto, Canada.

In the past 2 years attendees, which include some well-known musicians and guitar collectors from the Toronto area and beyond, have brought in plethora of insane guitars for this show-and-tell, nerd-out and noodling extravaganza.

At the previous events Mike and I have had the honour and pleasure to photograph (and try out!): a REAL 1958 Flying V, a couple of REAL 1959 LP Bursts, a '57 Goldtop, a '55 "All Gold" LP, a couple of early 50s Teles, a 1959 ES-335 & ES330, a huge selection of Juniors and Specials, an early Coronet, a few Custom Color Strats, A White Falcon, an Ebony Block SG, a minty Gretsch Sparkle Jet, a TK Smith, several incredible @bartlettguitars, and a 1961 ES175...and that is only off the top of my head!

And this year's event is shaping up to be bigger and better than ever...which is actually pretty mind boggling. 😮

[heda-heather]

I think part of what bugs me the most about the Neanderthal storyline Taylor's got going on is that Taylor's much maligned actual partner (KK) is completely her equal. Karlie is so ambitious, intelligent, curious, and well-spoken, among many other positive adjectives. She isn't JUST a famous person who made her name on one talent. Taylor is also special in this way. She's not just a wonderful musician. She's basically a poet and wordsmith, deeply passionate, ambitious and a shrewd business person. TK doesn't even compare, and it's so frustrating to see how so many millions of her fans would rather think of her as his future trad wife than as a full human who deserves an equal.

I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but it just pisses me off on a cosmic level. It pisses me off as a queer woman, but also just as a woman living in this fucking society.

Yes, yes. I agree with all the above. It’s what bothered me about it from the start, but the reaction to it is what makes me cringe. How quickly women will support a boss ass woman shrinking herself to become a man’s cheerleader for their singular talent. And for that to be the main thing they can’t shut up about now.

[basilsunrise]

WIP Wednesday

Thank you @welcometololaland @strandnreyes and @alrightbuckaroo for the tag! I appreciate the consistent tagging (from @lemonlyman-dotcom too) despite my lack of posting!

This is from the musicians au that I’m determined to finish no matter how long it takes lol

Carlos’s room is just up the stairs to the right and a memory of being pinned to the bed flashes in TK’s mind. He can almost hear Carlos whispering in his ear, “You like it when I fuck you like this, don’t you?”

TK did. He liked it too much and that’s the problem, isn’t it? One night at Carlos’s place and it felt more like home than TK’s own apartment ever will.

[bakuhatsufallinlove]

the new op is totally katsuki to izuku. its over, we are done for. WHAT DID HORIKOSHI SAY TO THEM??

The process for how music is selected or created for anime isn't very clear to me. I have no idea how much, if any, direction musicians are given. But one thing that is clear is that a number of the opening and ending song musicians have professed themselves to be fans and talked about particular themes or characters inspiring their work.

The official lyrics of this opening song, like many of the songs found in MHA, are fundamentally about hope and selflessness; a desire to ease the suffering of others and the drive to better oneself to reach that goal, no matter the cost. To reinvent yourself into someone who can the leave the world better than it was when you came into it. It's about looking outside yourself and seeing something worth protecting.

This is heroism. This is the through line of the series. It is found in Kirishima's story, Ochako's story, Mirio's story, hell, even Mineta's story. It's All Might's story, Izuku's story, and of course, Katsuki's story.

The visuals of the animations always remind us of how interconnected this story is--how interconnected the world of MHA itself is, because that's the point. Every piece belongs, every piece completes it. A broken piece cannot be abandoned, for it leaves us incomplete. It must be mended and made anew.

It's beautiful and good. Izuku and Katsuki are our two thematic halves, completing each other and themselves to reach this pinnacle, so of course they come to mind.

--And, frankly I'd be fuckin' hard-pressed to believe when TK wrote the line "I resurrect time after time — for whose sake?" he wasn't thinking of Katsuki, because what the fuck. But even if he wasn't, BONES sure as fuck understood the assignment when they had Katsuki look directly into the camera over these lines. What the fuck!!!!

I very much doubt TK is privy to the ending, but you don't need to be to write a slammin' song that incorporates the core themes from the perspective of the character who encapsulates yearning and redemption. He rose again, motherfucker, and he's going beyond.

I can't wait. >:D

[spade-riddles]

Just out of curiosity, IF her current relationship was all real and wasn’t PR would you still support her?

I would find her a lot less interesting. He is really a turnoff with his attention-seeking behavior (both TK and his brother are obnoxious), and he is a stereotypical meathead. I definitely would not run a blog about her, but I would probably still listen to her music.

Understand that I fell down the TS rabbit hole with the release of 1989 back in 2014. That album struck a cord with me, and I raced out to buy it at Target (something I had never done for any musician before). I was even perplexed by my fascination with the album, so I started googling her. I ran across kissgate - which led me to Tumblr - and here I am. I was so fascinated with Kaylor initially because of the PR narrative that had everyone thinking she was straight. So it is hard to say how much I would have fallen for her music if she was straight all along and dating someone like him. But I am certain it would be a lot less.

[everyl1ttleth1ng]

For reasons I will blame on a tweet that said “I just saw someone refer to TS and TK as ‘The English teacher and PE teacher getting it on’ AND I LOST MY MIND” and one of Taylor’s many amazing new songs on TTPD, “So High School,” it appears that I have joined the ranks of the psychos writing fanfiction about real people. We do AUs pretty well here on tumblr so, in this alternative universe of mine, the names, appearances and some elements of what is publicly known about these real people have been borrowed from actual reality and used to populate an entirely fictional story about teachers in a cross-discipline romance. Obvs I do not know any of my “actors” in real life and obvs this is not meant, in any way, to speculate about any of the named people’s actual lives. Also, some of my “actors” are just identified by their first names here but they are all played by real people in my head and you’ll probably pick ‘em if you’re even vaguely aware of actors, musicians and prominent figures across and around the NFL. And it’s set in the high school that Devi Vishwakumar goes to because, why not?

…

“She’s back,” announced Dalton, slumping into his chair and dropping his head dramatically onto his desk amid a tangle of whistles.

Pat chuckled. “Sorry dude, I was going to warn you but I never thought she’d agree to sub so soon after getting back into the country. Tammy must be desperate to cover classes. The poor girl’s probably still jet-lagged.”

“She doesn’t look jet-lagged,” muttered Dalton without lifting his head. “She looks like her perfect Disney Princess self, just more tanned from a year under the Spanish sun.”

“Dude,” said Pat, shaking his head. “Sometimes I wonder if PE is the right spot for you. You’re still young, it’s probably not too late to switch to something more dramatic.”

Travis looked from one colleague to the other. “What am I missing here?”

“Dalton has a crush,” said Pat. “It’s kind of endearing. She’s only a full decade older than he is and completely out of his league.”

“Shut up,” groaned Dalton.

“Knock, knock!” called a voice from the staff room doorway. “Paging Mr Travis Kelce.”

“English teachers?” said Travis, getting to his feet, his tone incredulous. “Are my eyes playing tricks on me or is that a pair of lost English teachers at our door? What are you two doing slumming it over on our side of the school?”

Dalton looked up in wide-eyed horror which quickly turned to relief when he saw which of the English teachers it was, or rather, wasn’t.

“Hey, Trav,” said Jack, accepting the embrace the bigger man offered with a grin and thumping him warmly on the back. “Em and I are worried we might have developed some kind of Stockholm Syndrome since our shared week on Grade Seven Camp. We really miss you, buddy.”

“Jack and all his pretentious poet friends are used to looking down on jocks. Now that he’s embroiled in a bromance with one, he’s finding it all very confusing.” Emma waited until Travis had released her from her hug before she added, “And we’re here to use you for your access to sports equipment.”

“Hurtful,” said Travis. “But it’s nice to have you guys visiting me in my staff room for a change. I kind of stick out like a sore thumb in yours.”

Jack snorted. “You know those old ladies love you.”

“They’ve started bringing in packets of those chocolate cookies you like just in case you pop by,” said Emma. “Better not leave them hanging, Trav.”

“Cookies, huh? Ok, I’ll be round tomorrow recess.”

“Nah, that won’t work,” said Emma. “Taylor swans in for thirty seconds this morning in a sleep-deprived haze-”

In the background Dalton surreptitiously lifted his head off the desk, the faint imprint of a whistle on his cheek.

“- mentions she watched Dead Poets Society on the plane ride home from Spain and suddenly they're all selecting extracts of poetry, dusting off an old gramophone and sending us over here to you lot to borrow some soccer balls.”

Travis looked from Jack to Emma with a bemused expression on his face. “Am I the idiot here if I have absolutely no idea what you two are talking about?”

“I know!” piped up Dalton. “Are you guys gonna recreate that scene with Robin Williams on the oval?” He nodded knowingly. “Iconic. I should tell Taylor I’m a fan too.”

Pat laughed. “Yeah, Dalton, you should. And maybe Taylor could come over while you watch the movie with your girlfriend. Remember her?”

Dalton glared at him then resignedly dropped his head back to the surface of his desk.

“Who’s Taylor?” asked Travis. “Is she another one of the old ladies with the cookies?”

Dalton scoffed dramatically, muffled though it was.

Pat cackled. “You okay there, Kinkaid?”

Emma pushed on Travis’ arm to get him moving. “C’mon, we’ve all gotta get to our homerooms eventually. We’ll explain while you take us to the soccer balls.”

…

“You are a lifesaver, my girl,” said Tammy, patting Taylor fondly on the arm. “I cannot thank you enough for coming in today.”

Taylor pushed her blonde hair out of her eyes and blinked sleepily. “What if I fall asleep on them? You don’t understand. I think it’s a real danger!”

Tammy laughed. “Hard to fall asleep in PE. Besides, you’re just there for the supervision ratio given that this is all of Grade 8 combined. Travis will have it all under control.”

“Travis?” asked Taylor. “Am I so tired that I’ve forgotten the name of a guy I’ve worked with for six years or is this someone new?”

Tammy looked up from her laptop in surprise. “Oooh, no, you wouldn’t have met Travis yet. He’s an old friend of Pat’s from college. Apparently they used to play football together. When Bill retired at the end of last year, Pat put in a call to his buddy and this place has not been the same since.”

Taylor nodded. “Ok, yes, this is sounding familiar. Britt did mention that some old friend of Pat’s had started at Sherman Oaks and that he was always at their place. I’m a bit worried he might have muscled into my spot at Friday Night Wine.”

Tammy considered her a moment. “So did you meet anyone in Spain? On your big single girl adventure?”

“I mean, I did.” Taylor shrugged. “He was nice, I guess, but nothing really came of it. We went our separate ways after a month or so. If I’d found the one, I might not have come home.” Taylor narrowed her eyes. “Hang on, why do you ask? What does this have to do with PE?”

Tammy patted her hand and handed her the class attendance papers. “You’ll see. Let’s go introduce you to Travis.”

“Okaaay,” said Taylor warily, as she followed Tammy dutifully out of her office. “You’re the boss, Mrs Reid. I’ll just grab a coffee and meet you there.”

…

The local school district’s baseball competition had half the PE staff out at a neighbouring school for most of the school day and long into the afternoon but Travis wasn’t worried, even in the face of all the Grade 8 PE classes combined. Tammy would find him a spare adult or two to stand around the edge of the gym and take care of supervision and he would get to teach more of his favourite unit - Grade 8 Dance. Last combined lesson they’d learned the Electric Slide and totally nailed it. Today he was gonna make the kids partner up and learn the Cha Cha. 

He plugged his phone into the sound system and cued up his playlist of Latin beats, cranking the volume as high as it would go, then headed over to unlock the gym doors and usher in the waiting students.

“Mr Kelce?” a familiar voice called from the gym entrance once the students had all shuffled in.

Travis turned to see the wife of his former football coach, now one of the Sherman Oaks deputy principals, waving to him. “Mrs Reid!” he boomed back, dancing his way over to her. “Come and cha cha with me. Let’s show these kids how it’s done.”

The older woman laughed and said, “Why not?” momentarily placing her ever-present sheaf of paperwork on a table near the door and giving him her hand.

The kids whooped and cheered as they watched Travis demonstrate how to be the perfect dance partner. He had particularly high hopes for these Grade 8 boys. They sorely needed a good example of how to treat other people, especially girls, and he hoped he could fill that role for them. The song playing came to an end and he spun Tammy out into the middle of the floor so they could both bow extravagantly, hamming it up for the student reaction.

“Let’s thank my extraordinary partner one more time,” Travis called. “Give it up for Mrs Reid!”

Tammy waved and curtsied then grinned at Travis and made her way toward her pile of papers and the door. 

“Ok, get yourself into the grid we learnt last week,” Travis instructed as he walked over to the sound system to cue up Shania Twain’s Man, I Feel Like a Woman. “We’re gonna warm up with a few rounds of the Electric Slide and I know that you guys are awesome at this so make sure to give it your own flair!”

He cued up a few songs to follow, mainly chosen to give the students a laugh. He chuckled to himself as he selected Vanilla Ice’s Ice Ice Baby and Kool and the Gang’s Get Down On It. 

Raising his eyes from his phone and looking over the heads of the line dancing students, he saw a statuesque blonde woman walk through the gym doors, a huge smile on her face as she took in their enthusiastic movement.

“Ms Swift?” cried out one of the girls. “You’re back!”

“Hi, Sophie!” she replied, waving as she made her way around the outside of the grid towards Travis. “Keep dancing! We’ll catch up later!”

Travis suddenly didn’t know what to do with his hands. He barely stopped himself from shoving his phone into the pocket of his shorts and disconnecting the cable to the sound system.

“Hi,” she said as she drew near, smiling broadly and holding out a hand to him. “I’m Taylor.”

“Travis,” he replied, taking her slender hand in his. “Nice to meet you.”

…

“Hey Trav,” said Jack, wearily looking up from the pile of papers he was grading. “Em’s around here somewhere if you’ve come to get the soccer balls back. Thanks for that by the way.”

Travis waved a hand. “No rush. Was it a success? Should I be worried I’m gonna lose half my football team to poetry or whatever?”

Emma’s head appeared over the top of the partition dividing their desks. “Not if their essays are anything to go by,” she said dryly, yanking off her massive headphones.

“Oh, hey, Em. Didn’t see you there.”

She gestured with the headphones. “That was kind of the idea. I was laying low. But then I remembered how much I hate marking and how much more fun it is talking to you.”

Travis grinned. “So, it seems you two left out a crucial piece of information when you were talking up your pal, Taylor, this morning.”

Both sets of tired eyes lit up.

“You’ve met her already?” asked Jack excitedly. “What did we leave out?”

Travis rubbed at the back of his neck, smiling shyly. “Neither of you told me she was gorgeous.”

Emma whooped. “I’m gonna get some of those cookies.”

Jack grinned, shoving his pile of papers aside and leaning back in his desk chair. “Tell us everything,” he said.

[paperstorm]

Thank you @bonheur-cafe @strandnreyes @lemonlyman-dotcom @nisbanisba @carlos-in-glasses @orchidscript @carlossreaders @henrygrass and @heartstringsduet :)

Musician AU is really starting to take shape. I love this part of writing, where you've agonized enough over the outline that you know what actually needs to happen and the writing is flowing.

-

Carlos catches his eye and steps around his bandmates to make his way to TK across the room. He holds his hand out, a truly maddening amount of sincerity in his humble expression as he says, “Hi, I’m Carlos. This is amazing, man, thank you so much for this opportunity.”

“TK.” He reaches out and shakes, but keeps it brief and lets it fall away quickly. “And yeah, it – wasn’t exactly my idea.”

“Oh.” The line of Carlos’s mouth flattens almost imperceptibly, but TK catches it.

“No, I just mean, I’m not really who you have to thank,” TK clarifies quickly. He wants to sulk about it. He wants to stomp his feet and raise a stink and demand they be allowed to tour with no opening act at all, just to shove it in everyone’s doubting faces when he can still put asses in the seats and money in the bank accounts of their financial backers. But it isn’t fair to make his resentment this man’s problem; none of this was his doing, either. TK reminds himself of that as if he’s a schoolteacher wagging a disapproving finger in his own head.

“Right.” Carlos nods. “Well … I mean, you could’ve said no. So thanks for giving us a chance.”

“Sure.” TK nods back at him, trying to arrange his facial features into a smile that probably ends up more of a grimace. It isn’t the truth. Billy made it very clear that TK couldn’t say no, that Carlos and his band opening was a condition of the tour existing in the first place. TK gets the sense Carlos doesn’t know that, and there is a small, bitter part of him that wants to tell him just to watch the sincerity slip off his face.

Tagging @theghostofashton @birdclowns @reyesstrand @strandnreyes @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut

@carlos-in-glasses @actual-sleeping-beauty @thisbuildinghasfeelings @herefortarlos @heartstringduet

@goodways @alrightbuckaroo @lightningboltreader @freneticfloetry

@liminalmemories21 @nancys-braids @whatsintheboxmh @bonheur-cafe

@reasonandfaithinharmony @thebumblecee @never-blooms @lemonlyman-dotcom

@sanjuwrites @orchidscript @jesuisici33 @kiwichaeng @honeybee-taskforce

@fifthrideroftheapocalypse @butchreyes @just-inside-her @firstprince-history-huh @captain-gillian

@tellmegoodbye @anactualcaseofthetruth @ironheartwriter @eclectic-sassycoweyes @ditheringmind

@emsprovisions @irispurpurea @nisbanisba @corsage @chicgeekgirl89

@carlossreaders @ladytessa74

Want to be added or removed from the list? Lmk

[zot3-flopped]

thing is, if ts and tk annouce that they are now engaged, after news that mh got engaged, or even been engaged for 6 months already or whatever, it will look like a desperate, petty attempt to "win" and if they don't get engaged, ts is gonna look goofy for fumbling one guy to pin hard over 6 weeks fling with other one and ending up with still no ring with third dude. no matter what it's gonna look pathetic on her end

Swifties are saying that 'nobody knows who Matty Healy is' but his engagement is international news and he's being hounded by paps.

[never-blooms]

hi beth 💜 say I could magically wave a wand and give you 6 months of uninterrupted writing time. what would you write?

hi Lola!

Short answer? I’d finish every wip in my docs because they’re beginning to haunt me 😅

Long answer? An AU that borders the line of devastating.

I've been toying with the idea of grief and what that would look if Tarlos were strangers. What if Carlos found a great love after high school? And what if a few years into a happy marriage, Carlos' partner suddenly passes away? In my head, this OC is a musician and he's a respected one, but no one hugely famous. And Carlos deals with his grief by (surprise) not dealing with it. He lives a quiet and solitary life on the family ranch, secluding himself to its furthest corner where he keeps his hands and mind busy, but on nights when the world falls too still, he works through his rotation of clubs and bars, settling for his ongoing string of one night stands. But Carlos has one rule: He never sleeps with the same guy twice.

Enter TK Strand, new to Austin and grappling with his own past. Maybe TK was also a musician—on the rise before a relapse forced him into hiding. Maybe (at the insistence of one Owen Strand) TK finds himself at a karaoke night at some bar with a bunch of rowdy yet lovable firefighters, who make TK feel accepted and capable of forging new beginnings. And maybe TK bites the bullet and makes his way to the stage to sing the song that was essentially his lifeline during rehab.

Except Carlos Reyes is sitting at the bar, nursing a sad drink and his own hopelessness when he hears the opening notes to a song he hasn't dared listen to in years. It's his song, one of a forever love, but the voice is different. And yet, it sounds far from wrong to Carlos' ears—which is, in and of itself, terrifying.

And then, you know. Angst, pining, and a delicious amount of poetry/lyrics set to a background of sepia sunsets and hollow bodied guitars.

This idea has been brought to you by watching too much Yellowstone and romanticizing my childhood memories of life on a ranch 🙃

[boycottmakeup]

i’ve been rotating early 70s laurel canyon folk musicians tk in my brain and i have accompanying sims is it time to make it a fic

i just fell to my knees