#my favorite four just hangin out

[crnl-chicken-tots]

They truly are the silliest of gooses

[myrockandrollking]

Unfortunately, my grandma is the only person irl who shares my love of the Beatles, so we had a movie night and watched a Hard Day's Night and it was a blast! Here are some of my thoughts and comments on the film and some of my favorite parts/quotes (sorry if it's out of order):

• the opening is obviously iconic, I love how George and Ringo fall and almost get fucking trampled and we aren't even a minute in yet

• also the way John just laughs at them took me tf out, I love it

• "he's very c l e a n"

• Paul's grandfather was fucking helarious

• my grandma was singing all of the songs so loudly that I couldn't hear any of them 💀

• "Tell me, how did you find America?" "Turn left to Greenland"

• "What do you call that hairstyle you are wearing?" "Arthur"

• the entire part where George is mistaken for a teen model had me cackling

• "do not breathe on me, Adrian"

• "grotty" should be used more

• I love how the manager was basically just like a babysitter trying to take care of four out of control children

• I did not appreciate the Ringo's nose slander, his nose is beautiful

• Ringo's wack ass dancing was so amusing to me

• "Do I snore, John?" "Yeah, you're a window-rattler, son."

• John randomly oinking like a pig caught me off guard tbh

• Ringo being protective of his drums is literally me with my guitar

• "Put yer tongue away, it looks disgustin hangin out, all pink and naked."

• all of the songs were bangers, ofc

• all of the John in the bath scenes give me pure serotonin, I love his goofy ass

• me and my grandma sang a duet of And I Love Her when it came on and it was so fun and sweet

• I'm so sad that they didn't add "You Can't Do That" into the film since it's my favorite song on the album

• since I watched Nowhere Boy directly before this and almost cried, this line tore out my heart

• the scenes of Ringo with the kid were so random but also so wholesome

• the whole mistaken identity scene with John and the lady had me laughing and blushing, oh my God

• since my grandma is a George girl, she was simping hardcore during his song, it was so cute

• she literally yelled "I've got dibs on George!"

• my grandma also doesn't laugh when she thinks stuff is funny for some reason, so it was basically just me cackling in the otherwise silent living room the whole time

• she kept looking over to me throughout the film and finally said, "man, you're all over John the whole movie, huh?" 😭

• please, she can't talk, this women literally ran up to the TV and touched George's face 🤣

• okay, I know I'm going to sound delusional as fuck but just hear me out-

During this exact particular scene:

I swear to God, for a second I thought I could smell John through the screen. So, the whole room just smelled like nothing basically, but when the camera was on John straight ahead in this scene after he's talking to the lady in the hall, my senses just exploded basically. I suddenly smelled strong tobacco and cigarette smoke, along with a clean sweet smell and citrus. It's like when someone walks by you with a lot of cologne or something and you are hit by it? It was like that with the sudden angle change when it went to this shot of John. It was the weirdest shit. I know it sounds dramatic and like I'm making it up, but weirdly enough it's happened to both me and another family member a few times with other movies, but idk why lol. Then when John went up the stairs it faded away and didn't come back. No one smokes in their house either and there was no smell like any of that in the room before, so it was really weird but also oddly comforting. Anyways, I'm probably just going insaine.

[deathbxnny]

Hey it's me the new follower of you can I request again if I can I want to request about honkai star x reader , I'm a Filipino and there is one favorite series on TV it's a encantadia and Encantadia is a Philippine television drama fantasy series broadcast by GMA Network. The series is based on a 2005 Philippine television series of the same title. It served as a reboot and the fourth television series in the Encantadia franchise and the reader is amihan, Amihan is a major character from the Philippine fantasy television series Encantadia and Etheria produced by GMA Network. Among the four elemental Sang'gres, she is considered as the main protagonist, having appeared in the First Episode. Amihan is the guardian of the blue Brilyante ng Hangin / wind

Sang'gre Amihan of Lireo, Rehav of Sapiro, was the fifth Hara / queen of Lireo. She was born in the Kingdom of Lireo during the War between Sapiro and Hathoria, as the second daughter of the Hara Minea of Lireo and the only daughter of Rehav Raquim of Sapiro. As Lireo's monarch, she was also the keeper of the kingdom's Air Gem. She became the mother of Lira and the lover of Rehav Ybrahim.

Amihan is willing to sacrifice her life for the sake of Lireo and all of Encantadia; a trait inherited by her only daughter, Lira. Despite Danaya's ( her sister) protest on her plan, using Lira in order to persuade her, Amihan countered that her sacrifice is also for Lira's welfare, to ensure a future is possible for her especially she is the successor to the Diwata throne.

the character is Dan heng, Jing yuan , welt, gepard and luocha

And take care of yourself , sorry if it's long I hope you can do my request

-----♡

A/N: Hello! Thank you for this very interesting request! I was however a little confused on what you wanted me to write about and I tried my best to understand everything as much as I could, so I'm sorry of this is not what you wanted. I was just really confused, but intrigued. So yeah, I made something up with what that you gave me and hope you'll like it!<33

Summary: Hsr men stopping you from sacrificing yourself for your kingdom.

Content: Established relationship, some angst, fluff, mentions of sacrifices/death(?), still mostly sfw(?)

Reader has no set pronouns!

((Not fully proofread))

-----♡

》Welt Yang

Welt would absolutely not let you even consider going that far. He'll try coming up with solutions to any problems and give you advice on how to proceed without anyone getting hurt. The last thing he wants is to lose you too.

If you're insisting on your stance on the topic, then he'll try persuading you gently into understanding that he won't let you do that and that he'll find a different way to keep the kingdom safe.

Either way, he'd take your protection into his own hands and make sure, you won't have to worry about a thing with him around. He cares about you and your kingdom, which is why he won't let you just die on him. It's impossible to go through with it, when he's there, that's for sure.

-----♡

》Dan Heng

Dan Heng would want to know about all possible outcomes and every single detail first, before proceeding with his next move. He wouldn't let you sacrifice himself either and help you and your kingdom out in more productive ways.

He doesn't underestimate your abilities to take care of yourself and therefore encourages you to fight first, instead of sacrificing yourself. He doesn't want you to die on him either. He couldn't fathom losing you.

If things come to a head, he'd rather sacrifice himself, before you get a chance to do so. He'll protect you with his life and he always tells you so, even if you don't want to hear it.

Trying to fool him or trick him won't work either. He knows everything about you and would stop you from doing anything foolish. Even if he has to restrain you physically himself. He won't let you die, no matter what.

-----♡

》Gepard Landau

Being the Captain of the Silvermaneguards pays off greatly here, as he could use his expertise and knowledge to guide you into better strategies than you sacrificing yourself.

He however understands your will to die for your kingdom, as he endangers his life out on the front lines practically everyday for his city. But even so, he does it to protect his loved ones and you count too ofcourse, which is why he wouldn't want you to outright sacrifice yourself.

He'll keep you close and safe, never out of his sight. Trying to fool him or going behind his back to proceed with your plans wouldn't work either, as he'd be your personal guard in everything. He just wants you to stay alive and happy. If he has to die instead for it, then so be it.

-----♡

》Jing Yuan

As a General, he has enough manpower and intelligence to keep you and your kingdom safe and sound from any threats. You don't need to worry about a thing with him around and he makes sure you know, that he'll always be there.

Whilst he understands the want to sacrifice yourself for the kingdom, he still would definitely stop you from going that far. He thinks that there are more better ways to handle the situation and will make sure you never get that far.

Don't try going behind his back either, he'll know if you try anything. He'll find it even a little amusing, that you think he wouldn't notice what you're doing, but alas, he'll keep you close and tell you that he'll deal with all your issues. He just doesn't want to lose you.

-----♡

》Luocha

Luocha is very calm and collected, never losing his cool once, when you tell him about your plans. He'll just simply listen to you speak, trying to weigh out the options, before dismissing your plan completely, telling you that there won't be any need for such drastic measures.

He'll make up a whole, more effective plan for you, showing you that there is still so much you could do, instead of just outright sacrificing yourself. He's just so convincing with his intelligent and calculated words, that it actually makes you reconsider everything.

If you however insist, he'll still not budge on his stance and keep you out of any trouble himself. Maybe he'll even ask your family to help, but he won't let you get hurt no matter what. You still have a long life to spend with him, after all.

-----♡

A/N: I hope this was alright! I'm sorry again, if I got it wrong and hope you liked it anyways. Thank you again for the cool request!<33

[7grandmel]

Todays rip: 05/05/2024

Hangin With Shaq

Season 3 Featured on: Inspector Gunner 2 With Critic

Ripped by Sharmin8r

Requested by fezaki! (Request Form)

Doki Doki Literature Club, huh...yeah, like, I've covered a rip or two from this game already - Your Silent Reality was one I chose to cover on my birthday as its one of my all-time favorites the channel has ever made - but even there, I don't believe I went too deep into covering the game's presence on SiIva. Then again, I'm not sure if that's something I could succinctly write about on here either, the game and Monika in particular have ebbed in and out of relevancy to SiIva for so long, and at this point I don't really know what to make of it all. She exists like a presence lurking in the back of it all, a secret underlying piece of channel lore that we're yet to really know what to make of, lurking underneath the rips' cheery silliness, mirroring the very game they're all from perfectly. And to be clear, Hangin With Shaq has very little to do with said lore - but it works so well as a rip for that very same contrast, that of an ominous underbelly contrasted with SiIvaGunner's patented silliness.

Because like, if you've played DDLC, or if you had it spoiled for you all the way back when - you KNOW the context in which Sayo-nara plays in. It is the very moment that DDLC's tonal shift hits you square in the jaw, the once cheerful tune of the game's title theme is twisted into something eerie and unsettling...and keep in mind, Hangin With Shaq was uploaded during the very end of the Nostalgia Critic Takeover, when the channel's avatar and theming was very explicitly in reference to Monika DDLC, you'd be ready for ANYTHING at that point...and then the joke kicks in. You've been played like a fiddle - now watch as we turn this theme of grief and introspection into a trap remix.

Like, okay, it is the same key trait of juxtaposition that I've talked about with the great seaweed and My Dr. Eggman Can't Be This Evil! and many times before - but something about DDLC's prior prominence on SiIva, that feeling that Monika is going to pop up at any moment to start shit, just adds to the absurdity of Hangin With Shaq. An eerie tune that I was initially half-expecting to spiral completely out of control along the lines of Become As Gadget instead hard-veered in the opposite direction - and right as THAT has settled in, the titular Big Shaq joins in. Yeah, Big Shaq, remember him, the "Two plus two is four, minus one that's three, quick maffs" guy? With the trap beat and remix already established, his vocals added atop is just like the cherry on top, the perfect way to round out Hangin With Shaq as a fantastic bait-and-switch. Its as if Sharmin8r looked at the audience and said aloud: "You thought it couldn't get stupider? watch this!!", yet the absurdity of the mashup only helps it bang all the more, to where you almost forget the ominous, heartbreaking context from which Sayo-nara originally plays.

I'm sure my lore and atmosphere-bias has sort of angled this post in a strange light for a lot of you, but the essentials remain the same - Hangin With Shaq is just a really funny bit. The Nostalgia Critic event, beyond its eerie lore connotations, was all about channeling the old Season 1 feel of the channel, and complete 180s like this were what that season was all about. There are tons of these simple little nuggets strewn about the channel's life, and I'm really glad that people are requesting rips like these to me, giving me a chance to re-experience so many forgotten little side shoots of SiIvaGunner's history. Who can say what Monika is up to nowadays? - but that hardly matters when her presence gave way for silly shit just like Hangin With Shaq.

[jules-has-notes]

The Sing-Off, s.4 ep.4 — My Generation

The remaining four groups who hadn't competed in episode 3 did so in this one, and the the adherance to the theme was just as loose. It seems that the groups only had to choose songs that impacted a generation, not necessarily their own. Nonetheless, they all did a great job with what they had.

.

Group opener

[WARNING: The staging of this piece includes flashing lights.]

With fewer singers in the mix, the choreographers had a field day moving folks around and giving them big, dramatic steps to do, and it works really well. The arrangers did a great job transitioning between the songs, as well. And, of course, the competitors performed everything beautifully.

Details:

title: group B opening medley

original songs / performers: "My Generation" by The Who; [0:30] "We Will Rock You" by Queen; [1:00] "It's Time" by Imagine Dragons

written by: "My Generation" by Pete Townshend; "We Will Rock You" by Brian May; "It's Time" by Imagine Dragons

arranged by: The Sing-Off arrangers

air date: 16 December 2013

My favorite bits:

Austin and Honey dueting on the lead to kick things off

the way the arrangement passes the lead vocals around, even with fewer groups to feature

Earl leading the charge for the second section

Tony going hard with the dance moves up front

the percussionists bringing back the "We Will Rock You" drumbeat underneath "It's Time"

Earl throwing the horns while belting out that high note

just how much fun it looks like everyone's having

and VoicePlay once again being in easy-to-spot wardrobe

Trivia:

One of the Vocal Rush chaperones recorded a rehearsal for the kids from the audience. The video quality isn't great, but you can definitely hear everyone.

VoicePlay later also included an excerpt of "We Will Rock You" in their "Queen in 5 Minutes" medley.

.

Theme reveal

.

Order of performances

Home Free — "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash

VoicePlay — "Don't Speak" by No Doubt

Element — "You Keep Me Hangin' On" by The Supremes

Vocal Rush — "Holding Out For a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler

.

VoicePlay performance

[Here is another version with the intro package and judges' comments.]

The show was, above all things, a reality TV competition, so appealing to the judges' tastes was pretty important. VoicePlay had struggled to truly impress Ben Folds with their ecclectic musical style, so when he asked for more emotion and consistency, they gave it to him in their own special way.

Details:

title: Don't Speak

original performers: No Doubt

written by: Gwen Stefani & Eric Stefani

arranged by: Layne Stein, Eli Jacobson, & Honey Larochelle

air date: 16 December 2013

My favorite bits:

Layne starting with a bare percussion line, removing the need to count them in

the gradual layering and swells to reach a small emotional peak at the end of the first chorus

Geoff holding the low end steady so the higher voices can soar, and giving their sound more breadth

Eli's big old descending riff, and the moment of silence that lingers just long enough afterward

the repeated ♫ "I don't want to kno-ow" ♫ in the harmony lines after the bridge

the vulnerability of ending on just Honey's voice for the last few words

Trivia:

Layne took inspiration from Jeff Thatcher's percussion line in Rockapella's "Ellie My Love" for this arrangement.

Some viewers made fun of the gang's pattern-tastic wardrobe, but ska-punk fashion of the era was actually just kinda like that.

Of the four groups in this "my generation" themed episode, VoicePlay were the only ones who actually performed a song that was released during their formative years. Or their lifetimes, for that matter.

Layne's then-girlfriend Cyndi was in the audience cheering on her fella.

.

Judges' choice

.

Ultimate sing-off

Element vs. Vocal Rush — "Survivor" by Destiny's Child

Eliminated: Element

.

Since neither VoicePlay or Home Free ended up in the ultimate sing-off battle, they took the hard work they put into arranging and rehearsing "Survivor" and made their own video out of it.

[my-lunaberg]

I just finally finished watching the dream smp, here are my thoughts

Honestly, it wasnt that bad. Or atleast not as bad as some of the spoilers ive read wouldve lead me to believe. I think I wouldve had more negative feelings towards it if it wasnt for the spoilers lowering my standards but whatever, whats done is done and cant be undone or somwthing or like that.

I wanna try and make this a bit more organized, so I'll start with the Syndicate finale; I loved it, no notes. Everyone was great and it felt like an actual conclusion which is more than I can say for most of the other finales which is yknow, a bad sign for the series writing but whatever

Next the Dream, Tommy n Tubbo stuff; it was split into four parts and I didnt partcularly like the first three. The third one was especially bad it was just so weird and messy for the most part. I did really like the actual ending with all of them in this new world, hangin out, I think thats a bit of an unpopular opinion but I didnt have any issues with it. I thought it made sense for the whole cycles of violence theme of this big disc saga to end with the people involved breaking the cycle. I did prefer Tubbos pov of the last stream though, its probably my favorite part of the finale. Idk, I wasnt the biggest fan of Tommys characterization/dialogue, I didnt think he was ooc I just thought it was kinda boring and I really liked cc!Tubbos performance it was absolutely wonderful. Jack was great too, I love a guy whos just so cringefail. I really wish Tommy and Tubbo couldve had a little moment at the end in the new world as well, I know these kinds of post-ending stingers kind of have to be short to keep their impact but cmon, theyre bestiesssss give them a moment together

So yeah, in conclusion: it was okay i guess. I dont think I wouldve really cared if it was any better or worse because this a very character-driven story that doesnt really need an ending. Like, now that Im done with this bullshit I can just take these lovely characters and do whatever with them if that makes sense. It kinda reminds me of being 7 years old, going through my littlest pet shop phase but not having a lot of them and then my grandparents showed up to my birthday with a gigantic plastic tub that was almost as big as me full of lps and accessoires and houses for them, except with blorbos. So yeah Im off to fanart and AU land now, will not be rewatching this in the near future

[ducknotinarow]

SF Raph - Have you ever ... felt like you'll never get Splinter back? uwu

| send my muse ‘have you evers’ and they have to answer truthfully!

When Raphael got tried of April fussing over him, he took off. Not that he could go to far even the fucking sewers, their territory wasn't in the clear to freely travel. So much felt taken away from them right now, Raphael felt as he stared up through at the sewer grate just above his head. Drops of rain water slowly dripped off the metal and landed into the puddle below it was creating. Raphael would love to sneak out to the surface right now. But the streets were over ran with mousers, foot ninjas, frogs and even rats. Just not the rat he wanted to see more than anything. It was one thing to take away his favorite thing to do. Sneak out to the roof tops. Just to run across them under the cover of night where he could freely move and feel the air against his scales.

Raphael could live with not being able to go to the roof tops for a time or the docks even. But did they have to take his dad too?

Raphael couldn't really stand even a minute without Splinter being home. Wearing that dumb apron happily showing off his favorite mug to everyone as if it was the first time they gifted the mug to him. Didn't matter how often Casey and April had seen it.

"No Casey?"

"I aint with him all the fuckin' time." Raphael gruffed in return when he heard Leo speak. The eldest soon took the space next to him giving him a look that clearly said 'really?' Which yeah, that was fair. Raphael and Casey were pretty much glued to the hip since Raphael found Casey in the sewers that first night.

"Didn' really feel 'ike hangin' with him." Leo moved to rest against the wall besides Raphael. A light tap of his elbow against Raphael's own. Had him look down at his feet a moment. "I can' say it round Don. Ya know how hard he's been workin' to figure everythin' out. Or Mikey either I swear if he ain't crackin' jokes how he been he'll break down." Raphael expressed, letting his gaze drift over to Leo.

This wasn't just a talk between brothers, but to his leader. Not something Raph was always good about acknowledging or even showing he saw when it came to Leo. But also as the two oldest of the four. Don and Mikey were the youngest sure they were trying to handle it keep it together as well but they kind of worked in similar ways. 'if I do this everything will be fine.'

"Are we ever gonna see Dad again?" Raphael finally voiced his doubts, "what we gonna do if we can'? Don's bearly holding it togetha' as is. Mikey so out in the clouds and..i'm" Raphael was only holding it together thanks to Casey and having battles to deal with. But, even he wasn't sure how much longer he could do that. "How are we gonna take care of them Leo? If we can't even get Splinter back?" Raph goes on to say it had all been weighing on him more than even he had thought.

"Every time we fight shred head. It get tougher and I think maybe jus' maybe it's finally the time we'll get him." Leo cut in finishing the thought of how they only get a trophy of one of their dad's belongings instead. "Yeah, Von's around now and 'hat helps Don out some. She helps with Mikey even." Leo nodded along sharing the same appreciations and worries.

"I ain't sayin' we wont get Dad back or to even stop tryin'-"

"I know Raph"

"just can't help thinking what we gonna do about them."

Leo just playfully elbowed Raphael "Now you know how I feel"

Raph just turned away ignoring Leo's laugh but still offered a smile none the less.

"They be okay cause they have brothers who worry about them." Leo finally says and it dose ease Raph's thought enough to get him to jab Leo back a little harder than needed but that just how it was.

[writtenjewels]

Match part 5

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four

Jason tried to enjoy the night out with his friends, but his mind was off across the ocean. After a few weeks he had started mentally calculating the time difference automatically and knew that Salim was probably asleep by now. He wished the older man was sitting here with him instead.

“What's up with you, man?” Nick asked as they all headed back to Eric's car. The colonel had drawn the short straw as the designated driver this time. “You seemed a little out of it tonight.”

“It's...” Jason hesitated; he wasn't out among his friends yet. “It's this dating app,” he explained instead. “I got matched with someone, but they live in another country. We've been texting and we sorta went on a date using Skype.”

“Long-distance? That sucks.” Nick was thoughtful for a moment. “Is she cute?” Jason didn't correct his friend. He thought of all the pictures he had of Salim. One of his favorites was the man in his garden, dirt smudged on a cheek and a smile across his face.

“Yep, pretty cute.”

“Then as long as you both are willing to work with it, I say go for it.” They fell quiet then as they climbed into Eric's car.

Jason didn't drink that much so he couldn't excuse any of his actions as intoxication. When he got home, the first thing he did was call Salim. He listened to the ring a few times and then silence. A few moments later Salim's voice said something in Arabic.

“Uh, it's me,” Jason said. “Sorry I woke you.”

“Jason? What time is it over there?” Salim's voice was a bit groggy, his accent more pronounced due to tiredness. “It's eleven at night,” Salim realized, answering his own question. “Are you having trouble sleeping?”

“Nah, I just got home. My friends and I were hangin' out. I just called because...” Jason swallowed before going on. “Because I missed you.”

“I missed you too, Jason.” Salim was starting to sound a little more awake. “Did you have fun with your friends?”

“Yeah, it was all right. We talked, had a few beers, nothin' crazy. What'd you do tonight?”

“Played a trivia game with my son. Listened to the radio.”

“Sounds like you had a wild night,” Jason teased.

“Mmm. And then some bratty American woke me up. He's lucky he's cute.”

“Yeah?” Jason grinned, his heart picking up as a blush warmed his face. “You think I'm cute?”

“You will be in a few more hours when I'm awake and had my coffee.”

“I'll let you get to it, then. Have a good morning, Salim.”

“Good night, Jason,” the other returned. He crawled into bed. The next thing he knew, his phone was ringing. He swore and groped around until he found it, letting out a grunt for a greeting. “You are cute now,” Salim announced.

“You just called to wake me up, didn't ya?”

“I did,” Salim assured him with a laugh. Fuck. They were thousands of miles apart, and Jason was falling hard for this guy.

[petersnya]

SOMETIMES

PETER PARKER X FEM!READER

---NOT MY PHOTO/GIF---

PART ONE

Prompt/Summary: “...some people fall in love with the wrong people sometimes…” /// Peter Parker meets the love of his life. But is he the love of hers? Having a bad past always affects the future.

Warnings: ANGST, FLUFF, SMUT(light smut towards the end xxx tehe) ECT. 

Word count: 3026

[A/N]Wattupp! So I have been busy with volleyball lately but I finally have the time to write! I got this idea while I was in class and it seemed like it would be perfect lol. I love Marvel so much like I grew up reading the comics so I’m excited to write this ( I'm in love with Peter Parker/Tom Holland too ). I'm thinking this should be a series??? Idk. Let me know what you think! ENJOY AND SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS!! Explicit content ahead…(this was also inspired by a song I love called moral of the story. tehe I love Niall Horan bruh) 

-J.T.S xxx

“Sup Parker, ” a tall, curly-haired girl rushed through the front door of Peter Parker's apartment. “Aunt May here?” the girl questioned the brown-eyed boy who was frantically following the girl with his eyes from his seated position on the couch. 

“No, uh, she's not. She's at work actually- wait what are you doing here MJ?” Peter questioned the girl, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. He stood from the couch, approaching the kitchen counter that MJ was standing behind, putting whatever she had run into the house with in the kitchen drawer. 

“Uh, just… Hangin’ out, ” MJ explained, shrugging her shoulder as she hopped onto the counter facing Peter, swinging her legs with an innocent look on her face. 

“Yeah sure, I'm not gonna believe tha -” 

“MJ! The hell is wrong with you! Give them back you oversized giraffe!” a loud banging on the door caught MJ and Peter’s attention making them turn their heads towards it. MJ, not looking shocked at all, but Peter having a tariffed look on his face. 

“We’re the same height dumbass!” MJ shouted back to the girl on the other side of the door with a smirk on her face. Peter was confused by the situation. Turning his head back at MJ, who was silently snickering, he questioned, “Who the hell is that?”, the tan girl, who was now standing next to him, made her way to open the door. 

“MJ gets the fuck out here and give me my-” the mystery girl on the other side of the door was cut off by the door opening in her face. She stood there in shock, looking past MJ at the curly-haired boy standing next to her. Peter looked away from MJ then at the girl who was standing in the doorway. He couldn’t help but stare at her, taking in the beautiful sight in front of him. Peter was taken aback when suddenly, her lips curled into a wide smile. She pointed her finger at MJ, the at Peter, and back again. Peter had no idea what was going on until MJ’s smirk that she had faded off of her face.

“No. No, no, no, ” she said grabbing the girl's hand and pushing it down to her side. 

“And who is this MJ?” she said slyly. 

“This is…” MJ paused, glancing back at Peter then back to the girl at the door. “Penis Parker.” she then said with a slight chuckle. 

“Hey! Wha- no! That’s not my name! MJ I swear to-“ 

“Your mom named you penis?” She said, raising an eyebrow in confusion. MJ laughed walking out of the door and next to the girl. “And this is my cousin, Y/N.” 

“Sup man,” Y/N said to Peter with a big goofy grin on her face. 

“Alright we’ll be leaving now,” MJ said grabbing her cousin’s hand, dragging her away from the door. 

“Penis is kinda hot cuz. How have you not fu-“ 

“We’re leaving!” MJ shouted over Y/N, dragging her out of the way to where Peter couldn’t see them anymore, but just in Peter’s favor, he heard everything.

\\\

The next day, Peter was walking out of school with MJ and his best friend, Ned. 

“So MJ, I heard you have a cousin. Y/N…” Ned said, leaning forward, looking across Peter to see MJ who was walking on the other side of him. Peter hit Ned on the shoulder with his, silently telling him to stop talking about it. MJ chuckle. 

“Well uh, I gotta go. See you guys later! Good luck Pete.” Ned said with a wink as he walked towards the bus.

“Wait, Ned! We ride the bus- together… whatever.”

MJ and Peter walked down the stairs talking about all their classes, the teachers they hated, and other things. As they made their way to the sidewalk they heard someone yelling at them, causing both of them to turn their heads towards the loud voice. 

“Ah. I forgot, Y/N’s picking me up today.” 

“Y/N? Oh…” Peter said, trying to hide the blush on his face. Every time he thought about her, he couldn’t help but re-play the words she said yesterday: ...he’s kinda hot… Peters has never had that sort of attention given to him by a girl especially one that looked like Y/N. To him, she was an angel. But Peter, being the typical person he was, wouldn’t even think about approaching her- being afraid of rejection. 

“How old is she?” Peter asked curiously, the thought lingering in his mind. 

“Our age. She’s home-schooled.” the tall her said, stuffing her hands in the side pockets of her jacket. Peter looked at her curiously, if she’s home-schooled then why is she with MJ all the time now? 

“Her uh, her dad just recently passed, due to health difficulties, so she and her mom moved down here to get a new start. While her mom is trying to get their new house and a stable job down in Queens she will be staying with me for about… a year I think. I, of course, let her stay with me. She’s my favorite cousin and I don’t want her to be alone during this ruff time.” she explained, practically reading Peter’s expression. He nodded in response, his eyes glued to his feet.

“MJ! MJ come on! Harry Potter re-run of the first two movies start in T-minus 10 minutes and I have to go pick up my new sweatshirt!” Y/N yelled from her car while honking the horn. The upper half of her body sticking out of the driver’s window while her forearms supported her on the roof of her car.

“Annnddd, she kinda a nerd, but she considers herself just ‘well educated’.” Peter chuckled as he looked at Y/N. Once they got to the car, MJ threw her backpack in the passenger window. Y/N slide back into her window, shoving the bag in the back. MJ then opened the car door and hopped in, clicking her seat belt. She waved bye to Peter.

“Bye Peter Parker.”

“Later MJ.”

“Oooh, so his name isn’t penis… I knew it! Peter, it’s cute. Sup Parker!” 

Peter started to blush but it was hard to see from his face already red from the heat of the sun. He smiled and waved to her, noticing how her Y/E/C eyes glistened in the sun.

“H-hey, Y/N.” He said toying with the strap of his bag, his curls in his face. 

“Heyyy! You should come watch the Harry Potter movies three and four with me and MJ Friday! You can even bring that one guy you guys are always talking to.” She said leaning on the steering wheel, looking at Peter through her long, mascara coated eyelashes.

“Sure I’d love to come… wait- do you have your driver's license?” the question lingered in Peter’s mind.

“Nope!” Y/N yelled as she sped away, the tires of the car screeching on the road. Peter could still hear their loud laughter of the two cousins as they drove away.

That night while Peter was patrolling as Spider-Man, he stopped and landed on the building next to MJ’s place. There was a window that was the only lit room. He thought it was MJ so he was going to go up and scare her, but once he got closer, he could see that it was Y/N. His heartbeat quickened as he watched her walk over to her bed, putting her hair in a ponytail. She was wearing an oversized black T-shirt. As she was putting her hair up, she stretched her arms causing her shirt to reveal her very small underwear. Peter could feel his suit beginning to get uncomfortable at the view in front of him.

Quickly, Peter swung away from the building making his way home before Y/N or anyone could see him.

He crawled back into his window making sure to stay quiet so that Aunt May wouldn’t hear. Once he had his suit off, he showed and got into bed. Peter couldn’t sleep that night. He couldn’t help but think about Y/N. She was tattooed in his brain and, of course, tattoos don’t go away. 

///

The days went by slow, well, they went slow to Peter. He was overly excited to go to MJ’s place and watch a movie with Y/N. That was the only person on his mind, her. But those slow days soon went by and it was Friday afternoon. Peter was so anxious he practically ran home to put his school stuff away and then ran to MJ’s. 

He approached the door to her place and knocked on the door with his fist. Peter whipped his sweaty palms on his flannel, waiting for the door to open. 

“What up Pete! MJ said you would be here around this time. Come on in man.” Y/N said as she flung open the door with a soft smile on her face. Peter couldn’t get enough of her energetic personality. He followed Y/N, closing the door behind him. The brown-eyed boy couldn’t help but admire her as she walked in front of him. Her outfit consists of high-waisted but loose jeans, a plain black tube top with a very large flannel that was left unbuttoned. 

“Uh, Michelle and your other friend… Ned! That’s his name, I can never remember,” she chuckled nervously, “they uh- went to the store to go get snacks and food so they should be back in a little while. I’m gonna go get some blankets and stuff from my room for the movies, there pretty long so I wanna be comfortable. Wanna help?” Y/N said as she started to walk towards her room, looking over her shoulder to see if Peter was following.

“Oh, yeah, sure I’ll help you,” he said, slowly trailing behind her. As they went into her room she started to grab blankets and pillows, tossing them by the door. Peter couldn’t help but admire her well-decorated room, it fits her personality so well, he thought to himself. He walked over to her tall nightstand and saw a pair of glasses sitting on them. For some reason, they intrigued him. 

“Do you mind?” he asked. “Nah, not at all,” Y/N replied not looking up from the pile of blankets in the corner, waving her hand in a ‘go ahead’ motion. Peter shrugged and turned his attention back to the glasses. They were small and black, they didn’t look like they would fit her face. He picked them up, examining them curiously. Y/N looked over at Peter, immediately dropping everything in her hands and rushing over to him. She snatched the glasses out of his hand and put them in her drawer. Peter was taken aback by this sudden action, raising his hands in a surrendering motion. 

“Don’t touch those,” Y/N said harshly. She looked at Peter’s face that was plastered with an apologetic look. “I- I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. My… my dad gave me those,” she explained. Peter mumbled an ‘it’s ok’ under his breath. 

She walked over to the edge of her bed, scooting over to give Peter room to sit down. He took the hint and went to sit next to her. Y/N sat there, her leg bouncing as she tried to take steady breathes to calm herself down, fiddling with the many rings on her fingers. 

“Hey, you ok Y/N?” Peter asked, placing a hand gently on her shoulder. She looked up at him with glossed-over eyes. She let out a shaky breath and nodded. Licking her lips, she began to explain. 

“Well uh, m-my dad, he uh… he passed away about two weeks ago. When I was younger we used to always read together and I would have trouble saying some of the words. My mom thought it was just cause I couldn’t read properly yet but my dad always said ‘my little girl is the smarts little girl I know… she’s just as blind as a bat, like her father,’ Y/N paused, sniffing while wiping the tear that rolled down her cheek before continuing, “He bought me those glasses after the eye doctor told me my vision was terrible. The day before he passed away, he took the glasses off that he had and handed them to me. I tried to stop him and tell him that I had some, but all he did was look at my mom and then back at me and said, ‘she’s just as blind as a bat, like her father.’” the last part came out in a whisper. 

Reaching over to her bedside table, Y/N grabbed a pair of circular glasses that looked like they were from the Harry Potter movie. “My dad loved Harry Potter, I never wear them though cause I-I’m just...scared. I don’t know why though. It’s just silly.” she said with a slight smile. “MJ took my contacts from me just a few days ago to get me to wear them and I still haven’t gotten them back.” so that’s why she came over that day, Peter wondered. 

Peter was about to say something but MJ and Ned came into the apartment, yelling that they were back with the snacks and food. 

“T-minus 10 minutes Y/N,” MJ yelled from the kitchen.

“Yeah, I’ll be out in a second,” Y/N shouted back to her, “you should go ahead.”

Peter got up to leave the room, but before he did he turned to say something,  “I think that your dad would want you to wear them, Y/N. Trust me,” he said with a soft smile that caused Y/N to smile back at him.

///

“Dude, where’s Y/N? She’s never late for an H.P movie,” MJ questioned. Peter and Ned looked at each other shrugging before looking back at her. Only two minutes later, Y/N came walking out of her room, they all turned their heads to look. 

“Ok, I’m ready for the movie,” she said with a big goofy smile on her face. Peter and MJ looked at her in shock. Ned had no idea what was going on and just sat and ate popcorn. Y/N had on some shorts and a Slytherin sweatshirt, but that wasn’t the shocking part. She was wearing her dad’s glasses. 

“What? Do you guys not like my sweatshirt?” 

“I think it’s great,” Ned said giving her a thumbs up. 

“Thanks, Ned, glad to see someone appreciates it,” Y/N said sarcastically. MJ and Peter looked at each other. Peter was about to say something but MJ put a finger up signaling for him not to. Y/N sat between MJ and Peter on the couch, grabbing a bag of chips while adjusting the glasses on her face. She looked over at Peter mouthing the word ‘thank you’  causing Peter to blush but hid it quickly.

About thirty minutes into the movie, Y/N got comfortable and snuggled her head into MJ’s shoulder while MJ laid her head onto of Y/N’s. Y/N had her exposed long, smooth legs draped over Peter’s thighs. This sent Peters mind wondering: 

As she slowly straddled my lap, I placed my hands on her thighs, keeping her steady. My large hands squeezed at her exposed skin. I ran them to her ass, repeating the motion causing her to jerk, rubbing her core against jeans, making her moan quietly in my ear. Her arms hugged around my neck. She moved her head to where her lips were perfectly leveld with mine. She connected her lips with mine in a soft kiss, but I wanted more. I needed more. I ran my tongue over her bottom lips, squeezing her ass in my hand once again. Her lips were parted slightly, giving me access to slip my tongue into her mouth. She surprised me with her next move. She wrapped her lips around my tongue then released it with a slight smacking noise. This made me harder than I was before- if that was even possible. We sat there for a second, staring into each other’s eyes, noticing how they were filled with lust. Before I could even think my actions through, I removed my hand from her ass, grabbing her jaw and pulling her facing into mine, catching her lips and lustful but passionate kiss. My tongue almost immediately won the dominance against hers. I flipped us so that I was on top and started to trail kisses down her exposed stomach. Her thighs wrapped around my head as her back arched off of the bed. I put my hands on her lower back. I started to tease her soaked-

“I don’t see how you like Draco Malfoy?” Ned’s voice snapped Peter out of his daydream, turning his head over to Ned who was munching on a handful of popcorn.  

“What!” MJ and Y/N screamed. Ned and Peter both turned their heads to them, wondering why they seemed so upset. “What do you mean why do we like Draco Malfoy,” MJ said.

“What type of question is that?” Y/N said, finishing her sentence. This caused MJ and Y/N to go into a whole ordeal on why Draco is their favorite character. All Peter could do was watch the way her pink lips moved as she explained. 

This helped Peter calm down from his daydream and stoping his hard-on to be seen. Thank God…

///

That night, Peter laid awake in his bed, thinking about how Y/N looked in his fantasy. He wished that it was really like so so badly. He couldn’t help to feel this attraction towards her, from the first time he saw her. It wasn’t just her good looks, even though to Peter she was stunning, it was her style, her personality, the way her eyes squinted and her cheekbones rose when she laughed. The way she would ramble about anything and everything. His last thought before he drifted into sleep rang in his brain,

Does she feel the same? 

[A/N] Hey bestie :))) hope you liked this chapter! Thank you for the support and make sure to send me ideas for imagines you guys want! IM GONNA TRY TO UPLOAD EVERY DAY OR EVERY OTHER DAY AT 5:30/6:30 PM. 

 DISCLAIMER!!! THE NEXT CHAPTER IS FULL OF SMUT.. are you ready?

-J.T.S xxx

[jojoboisimagines]

Josuke x Reader :: Promposal :: Ch. 5

previous chapter                 next chapter

summary: A strange new transfer student has enrolled in Budogaoka High School. Josuke falls head over heels for her, but has a limited time to win her over before the school prom.

.::.

The accusations thrown at Josuke by his baffled mother were hard to listen to, especially with your face practically burning from it and hearing only ringing in your ears from the shock alone and having to sit in the midst of the two arguing. You decided your best bet was to hurry, pack your stuff and leave. You’d maybe call him later to let him know why you left and tell him that your time together was great, lest he get the wrong idea.

It was easy to sneak past them. They did seem like the types to block everything else out when stubborn. Perhaps that's why some considered him and his friends delinquents.

.::.

About an hour later, you found yourself dialing Josuke’s number (or well, his house number) while lazily lying on the bed of your temporary apartment. He had written it at the bottom of his love letter, which you actually bothered to keep amongst all the other ones. 

“Yeah, I see. Thanks for calling me instead of just leaving me hangin’.”

“No problem...I’ll see you tomorrow at school. Sorry for any trouble I’ve caused.”

“No no”, he was quick to disagree, “It’s fine, my mom just gets fussy like that sometimes, its not your fault at all. To be fair I should’ve been paying more attention.”

You frowned. He shouldn’t have blamed himself. You weren’t being entirely courteous as a guest either to fall asleep on him like that. He spoke up before you could say anything about it.

“Did you have fun though---er, get a good study in? I know I did. Cleared up a lot of stuff I was missin’ during class. Thanks a lot for that!” You could hear the grin in his voice. Admittedly, he had a nice voice to listen to. But you convinced yourself that was just a supplementary compliment rather than you starting to have a school girl crush on him like the rest of his groupies.

You wondered what drew them to him in the first place. Was it his hair? It would seem like he’d take pride in having groupies if it was for that reason, being so uptight about his hairstyle and all. Yet he would always look so annoyed whenever they came up to him, so that probably wasn’t the reason. His personality? No, they hardly let him get a word in whenever they bombard him. His height?

...Fair assumption.

“Hey, (Y/N), you there?”

Crap, had you been spacing out?

“Yeah, I’m here.” You replied, rubbing your eyes.

“Do you have time tomorrow for ice cream after school? Its totally cool if you’re not, I understand.”

You did have a bit of studying to do to keep your grades up (and to keep up appearances, but that was less important) but keeping Josuke happy in your friendship did also mean something to you. Skipping one study session wouldn’t be that much of a deal, you could skim through it once you get home anyway.

“Oh no no, I’m down for it.”

Josuke’s tone noticeably turned up an octave after hearing that. “Cool! You wanna come by my house or I’ll come by yours?”

After saying he could pick you up from your own house (especially thinking about how Tomoko would react) he joyfully lets out a ‘sweet!’ and you exchange your goodbyes before hanging up.

One thing you could safely say about Josuke at this point is that he was certainly...interesting. If you had to weigh your options between giving everyone that sent you a letter an opportunity to court you and just only giving Josuke a chance for the time being, the latter set well with you far more.

.::.

Classes had passed by rather quickly. It almost seemed like a blur but you didn’t mind it. At first the thought of instantly going home and looking over the notes you took to refresh your memory came into your head, before Josuke and Okuyasu voices behind you made you realize what you had planned already. You had recognized the other two, but hadn’t bothered to hold a single conversation with either of them. 

As far as you knew, they were just ‘the guy who looks like he’s still in elementary’ and ‘the guy that looks like he’s committed a crime before’.

However you would withhold your assumptions for the time being and attempt to get to know them truthfully. They seemed excited to see you, anyway.

“Glad to see you waited for us (y/n!)” Josuke happily said.

You didn’t really. But you forced a smile as if you did anyway.

Josuke stopped behind you and contemplated putting an arm around you like he would his other buddies, but decided against it, thinking maybe the two of you weren’t at that point yet. You didn’t exactly seem like the touchy type either. Instead his hand firmly rested on your shoulder, his face offering a kind, genuine smile towards you. 

Gesturing toward his friends, he began to introduce them. “(Y/n), this is Okuyasu Nijimura and Koichi Hirose. They’ve kinda been excited to meet ya ever since we started hanging out.” Josuke lets out quite the cute chuckle as his free hand finds itself sheepishly behind his neck now.

“Yo!” Okuyasu was quick to greet you with quite possibly the biggest grin you’ve seen anyone sport since you’ve gotten to this country. Koichi on the other hand seemed a little more calm and reserved, saying a simple ‘hello!’ with a wave.

They didn’t seem too bad now as you had thought before, but you’d keep your eye on them. After the introduction Josuke had mentioned that itd be wise to get to the ice cream truck as soon as possible, seeing that it might leave the neighborhood soon. You still were a bit unfamiliar with the area, so you followed behind the other three and let them lead the way.

.::.

When the four of you finally arrived to the spot of the parked vehicle, you had just noticed that you’d tuned out the conversation that was had on the way here. Now that you think about it, Okuyasu was pretty swift to wrap an arm around his taller friend’s shoulder and immediately start talking about something else. Maybe it was just your imagination, but you had thought Josuke would’ve been inclined to talk to you during the brief walk. That’s what you were invited for, right? Or is this just what he does with all his friends?

The lack of attention didn’t bother you that badly, as you’re generally used to it, but you still couldn’t help but wonder.

You had walked up to the window to get your own ice cream, before Koichi promptly stopped you, pulling out his own wallet.

“Hey, I can pay for your ice cream for you!”

You blinked, not exactly sure how you were supposed to respond to that. “It’s alright, you don’t have to.”

“No I insist! Don’t worry about it okay?” The small boy smiled at you, a face that was pretty hard for you to resist. Giving a slight nod, he proceeded to pay for it. You did get the biggest size they offered though, who’s to say you couldn’t after he graciously agreed to pay?

You and Koichi walked back to the others, already sitting down in the park with the ice creams and chatting. As you were making your way over there, Josuke looked back at the two of you, his happy grin melding into a guilty wide-eyed frown.

He turned back around when you and his other friend walked past the bench he and Okuyasu sat on to go to another one across from them. Without even glancing at him, you started to eat your ice cream. From the corner of your eye you could see the pompadoured teen lightly tap his clueless friend, motioning them to move to the same bench you and Koichi were.

Trying to prevent things from becoming awkward, Josuke immediately started talking to you as he sat down. “So, (Y/n), is that your favorite flavor?”

You nodded, not trying to get distracted from your melting ice cream.

“Cool, I like that flavor too. I really really like strawberry though, especially the kind they have at the truck.”

“Strawberry’s a good flavor.” Okuyasu chimed in. “But Koichi likes nasty shit, like pistachio. Bleh!” He stuck his tongue out to emphasize his disgust. The shorter teen was slightly offended.

“Hey, its good with the right toppings! At least I don’t bombard my ice cream with everything, if you’re careless like that, you’ll get a cavity!”

Oku dismissively waved his hand. “Whatever. I’ll just go to Tonio’s again and it’ll be good as new, so there’s no problem!” He grinned.

Koichi sighed, and you were left wondering what kind of place “Tonio’s” was.

“Oh right, we need to take (Y/n)-chan there someday!” Josuke added. “Maybe we should do a little tour thing of Morioh for you, would you like that?”

You happily nodded, almost at the end of your ice cream. The three of them had gotten along so naturally

Eventually everyone else got done with theirs and began to throw everything away. Koichi had started on his way home, saying that he was going to start on his studying before his goodbye. Thinking you should do the same, Josuke walked in front of you.

“Hey me and Okuyasu are gonna hang at my house, so we can walk you home first okay?” 

“Okay.” Probably the first time you said something in about an hour. You saw Okuyasu about to walk up with Josuke again, but was stopped immediately and whispered something by Josuke. After which, he hung behind the two of you for the remainder of the walk.

When your apartment was reached, The boys asked if you enjoyed yourself and you happily responded with yes and that you’d love to hang out again, before going up the stairs and waving goodbye.

The two of them stood there for a while, making sure you were safe up until you got inside the house. As you closed the door, Josuke let out a groan and his head sunk into his hands. Okuyasu, obviously concerned by this, put a hand on his shoulder.

“Bro? You okay?”

Jojo shook his head. “Ughh..I can’t believe I let that happen. She must’ve felt so left out. I didn’t even pay enough attention that Koichi paid for her stuff..god..That didn’t look good at all.”

“Hey, you’re not obligated to treat her like a queen or anythin’. You’re still just friends right now right?” He tried to reassure his downtrodden friend.

“Yeah but...I still feel like a dick. I invited her there..Plus there’s also the fact that she’s got a limited time here in Morioh..” His blue eyes widened after saying that statement, the realization just now hitting him. It was so silent all the boys could hear was the slight breeze ruffling the trees.

“Huh, now that I think about it, why are you tryin’ to woo someone who’s a transfer student? Seems kinda rough to get someone to fall for you in a few weeks...unless you’re Yukako.”

“Goddammit Okuyasu, I don’t get to choose who I fall in love with!” 

His fist balled up again, lips going dry as he resented saying things before thinking about them first. 

“Woah...Josuke..”

Before he could say anything else, the teens noticed a slight shift in the window blinds where a light was on in your apartment. 

‘Holy crap, i hope thats not her, i’d shit myself if it is!’

“C-C’mon Okuyasu, lets get out of here, I-I’ll race you!” He bolted down the sidewalk in the direction of his house, with his best friend in tow. 

It was you who had peeked out the window from your living room, but only because you were startled by the sound of someone shouting. You didn’t see anyone when you fully pulled the blinds back, must’ve been your imagination. Putting the window back as it was, you returned to your studying.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #462

i am way too tired to mentally flip through lyrics to put here, rip

Who in your family has been married the longest? (and how long?) I have zero idea. When did you last travel alone? Where were you going? The last time I visited Sara in Illinois. Do you take your shoes off when you come inside? Yes. What was the first color you ever dyed your hair? I think I got purple highlights? What was the first social media site you ever used? MySpace. Do you have any exes you really regret dating? One. Of all your friends & family, who has the most nicely-decorated home? Sara's house is lovely. Have you ever been catcalled? No. Are you allergic to any dogs? I might be. Have you ever touched a plant and had hives shoot up your arm? No. Do you think dragonflies are cool? Absolutely! What’s your favorite thing to draw? Meerkats!! Did you toss your hat in the air at graduation? Not high. I wanted to keep it. Do you like fudge? I CAN FUCKING DESTROY SOME FUDGE. Are you an affectionate person? Very. Name something you have to do today: Girt and I are hangin', making fun of bad Netflix anime and going to Buffalo Wild Wings. :^) Would you ever write to a death row inmate? No. People don't get on death row for no reason. I ain't got shit to say to them. Do you reckon online friendships are real? No fucking shit. Most of my most genuine friendships began online. Do you like Slipknot? Yep. Can we talk about how fuckin BADASS Corey's new mask is btw?????????? What do you think of Gorillaz? I like "Feel Good Inc." and one other song I can't remember the name of. Bow ties on guys, dorky or adorable? BOTH!!!!! :') What is the cutest Halloween costume for a baby to wear? GUYS I recently saw a picture of a little baby dressed up as a Little Oogie Boogie and it made my ovaries cry. Which of your friends is the tallest? Which of them is the shortest? Jesus, Girt is a giant. I don't know about my shortest... If you could re-paint your bedroom, what color would you choose? Pastel pink. :') What has been the best night of your life so far? Why? Probably something sexual so let's keep it on the down low lmfaooo Would you ever even think about taking part in a wet t-shirt contest? Uh, no. Even if I WAS confident in my body. Is you hair color the same as it was when you were a baby? No. It was dirty blonde. Have you ever been in trouble for being too loud? Ha, yeah, at school with friends. Not big trouble or anything, we were just hushed. Did you ever attend a wedding that was a complete disaster? No. What is something that you were surprised you were able to do? Hm. What is the most bullshit-sounding true fact that you know? Male cats have spiked penises lkasdjfal;kje;kjwr it's something to do with preventing other tomcats from mating with her. What Oreo flavor is your favorite? Gimme that Double Stuffed, friend. Sour gummy worms or plain gummy worms? SOUR. Ever been in a talent show? How many times? What did you do? Nope. Ever try out for the talent show and not make it? Did you cry? Nope. What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever cried about? Y'all when I was a very little kid, during my older sister's b-day party, I sobbed because I couldn't pin the tail properly on the donkey lmaoooo How do you feel about the use of nuclear weapons? Absolutely fucking barbaric. What song has the most meaning to you? "Life Won't Wait" by Ozzy Osbourne. What is your favourite dinosaur? Spinosaurus!!!! :') Have you ever made bread? No. Has anything ever fallen asleep on you? Pets, a baby I was watching after, and Jason. Ever been dominated in a game you were/are really good at? yep alskdjfla;jwej Have you ever decided to set fire to something out of anger? No. Would you rather be a house pet or a wild animal? Wild animal, I guess? Have you ever listened to a group of chanting monks? I haven't. If you had to get a portrait tattoo, who would it be of? Probably of Teddy. I've still yet to decide on the total design of his tribute tat I'm getting. Do you like the smell of men’s colognes better than woman’s perfumes? I think so, yeah. How mad would you be if someone copied your original work (story, poem)? I'd be pretty fuckin pissed. Have you ever blown something up in science class? Ha, no. Have you ever gotten a serious wound from shaving? Not serious, no. Have you invented anything, only to find out it actually exists? I feel like I have? Ever realize you never truly LOVED your first love? Absolutely not. I loved him. Would you want a Bachelor/Bachelorette party before you get married? Sure, sounds fun. Do you prefer pads, tampons or something else? As of very recently, I returned to using pads. I used tampons for most of my maturity, but I got annoyed with them for TMI reasons and resorted back to pads, even though I don't like them either. Have you ever dated a model? No. What is your ultimate goal in life? To die happy with my life and what I (hopefully) accomplished. What colour are the socks you’re wearing today? I’m not wearing any. Who was the last person you sent a Facebook message to and what did you say? Girt. It was something regarding how I once considered doing the suicide mission at BWW where you eat a select number of their hottest wings, but I didn't wanna die via chicken. :^) Are you tall, short or average? Would you change this? I'm average in height. I wouldn't change it, nah. Especially now that Girt and I are together the ridiculous height difference is hilarious but also cute lmao. Have you ever worked in a store while someone shoplifted there? Like, while I was there? No. Have you ever had casual sex? Nahhhh. What’s your favourite flavour of frosting? Chocolate. @_@ When you think of your childhood, are the memories mostly happy or sad? Mostly happy, I guess. What is it like being you? Is it enjoyable? It's very boring with few sources of joy. What are your thoughts on the cause of homosexuality? I would *assume* it's a genetic mutation. Reason being, having a romantic partnership without the ability to reproduce defies the motives of science. There is nothing, absolutely NOTHING, wrong with said (and hypothetical) genetic mutation, though. Mutations are just another part of science. They occur naturally. What subjects did you find most interesting in school? Least? Most interesting: literature/English (especially reading like, old mythology and epics and stuff like that), LOTS of branches of science (but primarily genetics), art, and I looooved my four semesters of German. Least: ANY and ALL math, history, economics, social studies... that kind of stuff. Which do you enjoy more–hot or cold beverages? Cold, for sure. What were some of your favorite bands from childhood? Green Day was one. Would you be more afraid of drowning or being buried alive? Buried alive, for sure. It would be much, much slower. Should you really be doing something more productive right now? Well, I SHOULD be sleeping. Today's going to be a long day, because when Girt comes over, he has a tendency to not leave until like fuckin midnight or later alksdjfl;waje Have you ever lived out of your car? No. Does your family own more than two houses? HUNNY we r poor. A relative just committed a very serious crime, do you turn them in? It depends on the exact crime, but odds are, yes. If you're endangering others, byyyyeeee. You’re in the woods, alone, at night…are you honestly not afraid? Bitch I'm terrified. I have zero survival skills. You are on life support, what would you want a loved one to do about it? For the love of god, please kill me. Your child has only a while to live, do you still enroll them in school? That would be up to them. Also, define "a while." How would you feel if you met your idol and they ended up being rude? WELP I have a tattoo in his honor so that would suck ass lmao According to the tale, was Eve wrong for eating and sharing the apple? "God was wrong for even setting up an apple tree and making up rules in the first place." <<<< There ya go. And the punishment was fucking ludicrously extreme. Are you working on any goals? Yes. I'm currently going to the gym regularly to try and better my physical health and then find a job. I know that being connected sounds odd, but trust me: I can barely carry out very simple tasks just because I have absolutely ZERO stamina to do almost anything. I need energy and endurance. I'm also working towards developing some self-love. Which parent named you? I wanna say my mom. Are you currently frustrated with someone? I mean, myself. Aforementioned self-love is hard. I'm just annoyed my head is so reluctant to accept that I'm not a piece of shit for a million reasons. Why have most of your past relationships ended? They all ended for different reasons, really. Are you having any online conversations, currently? I'm not. What’s on your mind? I'm just tired and going back to bed real soon. Have you ever had an argument with a teacher? No.

[mymindwide]

Madness

Pairing: Ashton x Female reader

Word count: 3464

Warning: jealousy, angst, feelings, smut with fingering, male receiving blowjob, riding and fluff. A little from everything.

Summary: You started out as part time lovers, but maybe one of you want more?

Author’s note: The inspiration behind this piece was a part of the lyrics of the song - Escape from LA by The Weeknd.

She pulled up to the studio Nobody's watching She closed the door and then she locked it For me, for me We had sex in the studio Nobody walked in I cut my verse and then she popped it For me, for me

...

She got Chrome Hearts hangin' from her neck And them shits going wild When she ride, she hold tight She gon' ride 'til sweat fall down her spine

My beautiful angel, my nr. 1 supporter, my partner in hoeing @littledrummerangie (aka @littledrummeraussie) asked me/convinced me to post this. If you’ll like it, thank her. Take care and enjoy your read.

*****

“Should we maybe test it together?” his eyes bored into yours leaving no doubt about his intentions.

“Lead the way, handsome…” came the immediate response from you, as you slithered your hand in his leaving no doubt for him about your consent.

The offering referred to the club’s renovated bathroom where the two of you locked yourself up.

That’s how it all started, how you ended up on the counter of the VIP club’s bathroom, your skirt rolled up to your waist, your panties pulled aside, being fucked by a handsome stranger you just met but immediately found a mutual point regarding why you visited the club in the first place.

None of you thought it could be more than a one night stand, but you officially became fuck buddies. Both of you went there to have fun and find someone who could possibly help release the tension and stress that slowly aggregated in you and couldn’t find a quick way out for lack of a partner. You thought you’d just “fallen in love” for that particular night but it was good enough for both of you that you changed numbers and agreed on that you have to repeat it sometime in the future. But your second quickie was followed by another and then another one…

Actually you were surprised how easily and smoothly you came to terms over what you two had – high-class sex, no strings attached. It is what it is, without complications. You enjoyed each other’s company and body and with that you took everything the other could offer. As it turned out on the day of your acquaintance in the club, both of your latest failed relationships taught you enough to not get involved in anything serious, at least for now, and this was good enough for the both of you. The only rule you insisted on was that there are no rules. You called or texted each other whenever you needed each other, but otherwise everyone could go on their separate way, and do whatever they wish with whoever they please.

Over the course of your ongoing fuck buddiness various locations provided a safe place for you to luxuriate your desires - sometimes he invited you to his home, sometimes it was you who had him up to your flat, but if you lost the fight against your eagerness, on several occasions you did it in his car as well – all in the name of mutual agreement of the friends with benefits state, except that you couldn’t even be called friends. You talked, of course, beside the sex, and you know little things about the other, but serious or deep things? Heaven-shattering big secrets? Not so much.

And this is exactly why you were so surprised by your own reaction at finding out that most likely your part time lover has someone else to have fun with. It’s been a pleasant Friday afternoon, you were spending your lunch-break sitting on the terrace of your favorite restaurant at noon having just finished with your lunch, when surfing through the daily news at the tabloid section you found paparazzi pictures of Ashton with a seemingly nice-looking girl while they’re having breakfast and coffee, smiling and laughing. You felt a strange grip in your heart - a painful reminder of something you tried to push back into the depths of your mind, something you didn’t want to acknowledge, something that you realized just recently yourself. That although according to your agreement you’d have had every opportunity and right to meet or date other men, you didn’t. You simply weren’t interested in anyone else, because he was completely enough for you. He takes good care of your physical needs; he is smart, handsome and has a sense of humor that just cannot be competed with. The long and short of it, he’s a decent guy you could imagine more with, if you weren’t so disappointed in your previous affairs or relationships. This was too good with Ashton to ruin it. You needed him in your life. But it looks like you are not enough. Again...

You haven’t seen him in a week cuz they started working in the studio on their upcoming material, so much you know. You missed him, which was already a warning sign for you about your possibly changing feelings, but for this particular reason you wanted to give him even more space than he already has based on your very open and sex oriented relationship. No calls, no texts, no requests for impromptu meetings. You lost all your concentration skills for the rest of the day and you thank god that you have a pretty silent afternoon in the office. Your mind had been clouded with questions like ‘why’ and ‘what can that girl give him that you can’t’? Thoughts and images of your encounters torture you that also can’t give you reassuring answers to your constantly popping up questions.

When you close your eyes you hear yourself chanting his name after your second or third orgasm he gave you…; you hear him praising God while you suck him off; you hear him whispering ‘how much I love fucking your tight little pussy’ in your ear while you’re on all fours in front of him; and you just love him doing exactly that. God, how much you love his dirty mouth, sometimes you think you could just get off simply by hearing him talking dirty, because he’s that good with his words… Sex works perfectly between you two and you understand each other on the little things you share with the other. The unanswered questions riled you up so much that a thought has planted itself in your mind. You’ll show him. If this is the last thing you two will do, you’ll show him what he’ll miss and beg back.

You drove home and picked out your sexiest short mini dress with a very nice cleavage that does justice to your breasts he loves oh so much. ‘They are wonderful, my angel’ Ash’s words echoes in your mind as the image of his lips closing on your hardened nipples runs in front of your mind’s eye. To the picture in your head a familiar ache would start to build in your core but your anger and desperation is stronger now. So the dress is on, lingerie is not… You spray on from his favorite perfume and get in your car again to drive a good twenty minutes to the studio they use and he showed you once.

It’s kinda late now when you arrive, you assume they are about to finish their day and it turns out you’re not wrong as you bump into the other three guys in front of a door that has a red flashing RECORDING sign above. Three very surprised pairs of eyes looked you up and down.

“Hey guys… Is Ashton here?” your eyes have scanned the hallway behind the three men.

“Sweetie, fans are not allowed here. How did you…?” a scruffy faced blond guy questioned you, who you know for a fact is called Michael.

“Oh, I’m not a fan,” you interrupt Mikey immediately, “I mean, I like your music, you are great and all, but I’m really just here to see Ash” you tried to remain as calm as possible seeing their confusion getting bigger.

You’re not surprised the slightest bit that they have no idea who you are. But you’ve been doing this for almost four months now and they are not suspecting anything? Now that amazes you. Ash is very clever at keeping things private, except when it comes to breakfast dates with pretty blond girls. This tiny fact just adds to your growing inner fury.

“Guys, are we gonna leave...” the door has opened and Ash’s words stuck in his throat the second he saw you standing in the hallway with his bandmates.

You can see the surprise in his eyes as he’s still taking your sight in, but you’re not the only one, the other three looked at him and then each other, possibly considering calling the security on you, but fortunately Ash could sense this and with finally opening his mouth he prevented further unwanted complications.

“Y/N…” at least those three worried eyes could see he knows your name, so probably you’re not a random stranger from the street.

“Can we talk?” your voice remained soft, but your eyes mirrored sadness and impatience and he could read that that second.

“It’s okay guys. See ya tomorrow.”

After a ‘Tomorrow’ a ‘See ya’ and a suspicious ‘I’ll call you later’ from each of them, they left you two there not taking the trouble to say a single word to you. If you weren’t in this stormy state of mind you’d let yourself be moved over the fact how cute is that these young adult men are worried about their brother.

The door has been closed behind you and you turned back to turn the lock shut making sure no one can disturb your rendezvous. You walked towards him without saying a word, your eyes refused to leave his, and you saw he probably would have liked to say or rather ask something but his eyes wandered on you - exactly the effect you wanted to go for with that dress.

Tiptoeing you cupped his cheeks in your hands and captured his lips with yours in a feverish manner, and his in response jump automatically onto your hips. Your hands don’t spend too much time on his face as they slide down his chest and reaching between you, you start to unbuckle his belt.

Ashton pulls away just enough to ask ‘What is going on’, which comes out rather breathy, and your hands halts for a second on his zipper while you answer a quick ‘I need you’ back to cut your conversation short, and seeing the desperation in your eyes he decides not to force it for now, just give himself in to whatever you’re about to do – which he has an idea for as your hand slide in his boxer and your warm palm wraps around his still limp member to free it.

No matter how worked up or angry you are, in its weird twisted way what you were about to do turned you on and holding his soft cock in your hand figuratively made your mouth water. You dropped yourself on your knees in front of him and pushed him in your mouth immediately, you wanted to enjoy his softness and that this way he still fits fully and perfectly in, which will change as soon as you’ll start sucking him, so you wanted to lengthen and luxuriate these moments a bit. Especially as this is probably your last opportunity to do this to him, to hear those beautiful and breathy moans. Because if your suspicion proves to be true, no matter what you agreed on at the beginning of your “relationship”, you have changed your mind, and don’t want to share him with anyone. Then that’s it for you, you’re ready to walk away.

You started with slow movements, just suck him in and pull him out as your lips brushing against his shaft until he hardened enough; then you let your tongue play along his velvety skin leaving open mouth kisses on his shaft while palming his balls for the better and quicker effect. When his tip started releasing his pre cum, you happily smeared it on his tip with the circular motions of your tongue while looking straight in his eyes receiving the same admiration and lust you’ve seen every single time you did this to him. The only difference had been that his hands are resting on the mixing desk grabbing onto its edge instead of being buried in your hair guiding your movements and praising your lips wrapping so perfectly around his cock. He really is a clever guy, and respects that for now you are in control, he most likely sees that you are in need of it, and he’ll do whatever you give permission for.

You made this blowjob sloppy for him to slick him up enough and reaching the desired condition you pulled him off of your mouth and standing up quickly you pushed him by his chest until he bumped the couch with the back of his legs and dropped down onto it. You straddled him but before lowering yourself on him he asked something for the first time during your studio invasion.

“Can I touch you?” his voice surprisingly insecure as his hands rested on your bare knees.

You looked him in the eye and just nodded, although for a quick moment you played with the thought of saying no just out of some sort of punishment.

His hands slithered up on your thighs; one reaching and grabbing your round butt, the other one slid between your legs to palm your pussy just to find out you have no panties on. A smirk appeared in the corner of his mouth but didn’t comment on the surprise, just stroked his fingers along your already wet lips making you even wetter as his fingertips circled your entrance. None of you saw what he was doing as the skirt part of your dress has covered both your lower half and his hands, and this just doubled your excitement feeling how skillful he is. By now he more or less knows your own body as well as you do.

Holding onto his shoulders you leaned your forehead against his as he expertly pushed two fingers inside you, starting fingering you slowly. His motions were sensual and you whined and writhed on his hand already regretting that you let him do this to you making you just more aroused, aching for feeling something bigger inside.  

You felt yourself close to cum on his fingers and that reminded you why you are here in the first place. A part of you wanted to go on to chase that first orgasm, but another part of you wanted to fuel your anger that feeds upon your betrayed heart, even if you’re perfectly aware that it’s not Ashton’s fault, he just grabbed the opportunity your agreement provided for him.

Reaching down you got hold of his hand and without explaining yourself, slowly pushed it away while your other hand let go of his shoulder as you slightly rose on your knees to reach behind you and take his cock in your hand, pump it a few times and finally position him right under your entrance. As you slowly and carefully sat yourself back on him, the incomparable feeling of his shaft stretching you engulfed you making you throw your head back with a half-suffocated whine torn out of your throat. He slipped his hands under your dress to grab onto your butt and a low ‘Fuck’ left his mouth when he felt how deep he is inside you as you went all the way down to make him bottom out.

“The way you take me…” escaped his lips and you just bit on your lower lip as you weren’t exactly in a chatty mood, but his compliments and praises always appealed to you.

Your hands found their support on the back of his biceps as you started fucking him with a quick and harsh zest, grinding your hips on his for getting the most friction you can just have. You were bouncing up and down on his cock and he watched your clothed breasts precisely follow the intensity of your movements, your hard nipples darting out the fabric of the dress, sweat fallen down your spine. You could see in the way he looked at your heaving chest that he’s fighting the urge to touch your tits, to get them out of the cruel imprisonment of your dress.

However your own completion wasn’t priority in this current situation yet you got closer and closer to it and listening to Ash’s groans and the way he was taking breath, he was close too and his voice always added to your own pleasure, it could singlehandedly push you over that particular edge. As your moans got louder and more frequent, your arms wrapped around his neck, your temple pushed against his, and you gave yourself in to the feeling; his hands on your butt and his own moans in your ear encouraged you to let go. As your walls started to squeeze around his thick cock, your climax washed over you; closing your eyes, one of your hands slid down to the side of his neck as your lips brushed against his ear. In that moment his fingertips pushed into the soft flesh of your butt, his lips captured your earlobe, teeth slightly scratching the skin as he released his cum inside of you followed by a faint groan.

Your hips slowed down to a full stop and you two spent a few moments in silence to catch your breaths, foreheads touching and only your heavy breathing could be heard in the soundproof room. You rose just enough to pull him out and sat back on his lap.

“Now would you tell me what this was really about?” his index finger reached under your chin to gently tilt your head in order for your eyes to meet his gaze.

“Do you… erm... Are you seeing someone? I mean besides me” you don’t know what he could hear out of your voice but it sounded sad and ashamed even for you.

“No” came the surprised but firm and peremptory response immediately.

“Ash… I know I have absolutely no right…”

“No, I’m not lying to you. I’m not seeing anyone.”

“Then who was that girl you had breakfast with at the Breakfast House this morning?” you left a few seconds time for him to react but he was just staring at you like someone who had been caught, so you continued. “By the way, she’s beautiful, really. And I know I have absolutely no ground to even ask this from you since we agreed on no rules. But… Fuck it, it’s all the same now. A few weeks ago I started just realizing that I think of you more often. I’ve been out and saw something and my first thought was that ‘Ash would like this’. I tried to coerce these thoughts because you and I both hurt enough, but I had to admit, at least to myself, that I want you. I want more of you… not just the sex” you shyly played with the bottom of his t-shirt, but as you looked back up at him, you could see his lips slowly forming into a smile.

“Are you jealous?”

“Maybe I am, yes” your eyes poured out lightnings seeing that reckless and smug smile spreading on his face.

“You know, you’re not wrong. She’s really beautiful, indeed. She grew out to be a gorgeous woman,” his smile just grew bigger as he saw your puzzled expression. “But she’s my sister, Y/N.”

“Lauren Rose?”

“She’s here to visit some friends, and it turned out I could be grateful that she found a few hours in her strict schedule to meet his older brother at all” he chuckled.

“I’m an idiot” you leaned your forehead against his collarbone.

“No you’re not” he reached for your hand and intertwined your fingers. This is the very first time you two did this. And weirdly it feels incredibly intimate now. “Actually… I have no idea how much longer I could have waited to confess the same feelings to you… feelings I also carried for weeks now.”

“Why- why didn’t you say anything?” you asked in awe as your thumb drew soft circles on his hand.

“You seemed so persistent on the no relationship thing that I thought if I bring this up, I’ll lose you. And that was the last thing I wanted to risk…” hearing this confession your hand reached out to caress his face and you leaned in to kiss him gently. “I didn’t want to lose this… whatever we have. What do we have, Y/N?”

“Each other, I guess” you smile at him. “So… can we give this… us a chance?

“I’d like it very much. And you know what else I’d like? To take you out on a date. A real date.”

“I’d be very much into that. After changing into something drier. And cleaner…” hearing that he kisses into your neck smiling.

“Are you free tonight?” he grinned.

“I don’t know… I’ll ask my boyfriend. He’s a famous rockstar, you know…” you cupped his face in your hands and immersed in a gentle kiss that meant a new beginning for both of you.

[ichigo-kamome]

Start Over - Imagine Dragons - Sakuatsu One Shot

Okay HI GUYS so first post

(wow how cool)

I wanted to do a little writing exercise and shuffle a playlist I really enjoy and then write for characters based on the song. So, Start Over by Imagine Dragons was my first song <3 here’s a link to the song!! https://open.spotify.com/track/2Iug43iQrHN8CbGsUd2tEt?si=CrDSFtEpRKe1UkYojJwWiQ&dl_branch=1

This is just going to be a quick one shot because I can only listen to a song on repeat so many times before wanting to scream, so it stops whenever I get annoyed of the song :) ig this is angst with like a good ending? IDEK HAHA BUT ENJOY!! 

oh and there is a bit of language in this? :,D also I didn’t edit this because I didn’t have time to so my apologies for unintentional grammar mistakes and misspellings! :,>

The plane was filled with hardly any noise at all, but in Atsumu’s mind there was a storm of noise, emotion, and words. So many words. Words he was told, words he said, words he shouldn’t have said, words he should have said. 

Actions. Ones he did take, ones he didn’t take, all of them ran through his mind faster than the plane was soaring in the air. The silence around him felt entirely deafening, and there was nothing he could do in this moment but sit there and replay the memories of the past night.

He was more than aware that he had royally messed up. Sakusa Kyoomi had informed him of that. Yet, his own ego rendered him completely blind the moment he heard such words.

“You care so much about appearances, yet you refuse to work on your own. Becoming a better version of yourself on the court is something you’re more than willing to do, but outside of that? Where the public eye is blind to? Well, so are you.”

Those words replayed countless times, echoing off walls and coming back to him. It was all he could think about. How he had done Omi wrong, and how all he wanted to do was fix their situation. 

However, that wasn’t exactly possible in the present situation. 

Miya Atsumu was on an airplane with no cell service, and he would be stuck there for multiple hours. It felt like hell, having to sit there for so long with his own thoughts and the words that he heard last night. The words that were true. Then again, it wasn’t all a bad thing that he had to reflect on the situation. 

Sakusa Kiyoomi was also left alone with his own thoughts, emotions, the words that were spoken last night. This odd feeling of the presence and absence of regret plagued him in his isolation. He knew that what he said needed to get to Atsumu in some way. 

Lately, the setter had been so concerned with who he was on the court that he had forgotten to examine his character off the court. Of course, this led to mistakes, apologies, more mistakes, more apologies, an endless cycle of hurting those around him, and Sakusa left alone many nights in which he shouldn’t have been. The pain he felt wasn’t sharp, however. It was more of a dull, emotionless pain that caused him to feel somewhat repulsed.

“Ya shouldn’t be hangin’ around someone who makes you feel like trash, right? So, I’ll do the honors and kindly fuck off for a while. See how ya like it, Omi.” He still was dumbfounded by those words. He knew Miya to be someone who would sometimes speak first without fully evaluating how it would effect the other party, but he didn’t realize just what it was like to be on the receiving end of one of those comments. 

Sakusa and Atsumu had a relatively healthy relationship. Of course, they had their disagreements, but there had never been an explicit moment in which Sakusa could remember that Miya would have the chance to lash out so harshly.

That’s a good thing, at least. It’s only happened once. He thought.

But, how long until it happens again? 

Omi felt his heart sink and he sighed, trying not to think too much about that right now.

What if there isn’t an “again”?

---

Again. A word Sakusa didn’t seem to be fond of in the recent weeks. Atsumu had always made the same mistakes, again. He had always been out too late with other people, again. He had always come home the next morning, again. Apologized, again. Said he’s never do it, again.

But now, the word had new meaning. If there was no again for Atsumu to hurt him, would that mean that he had moved on? Would that mean his leaving was final and there wouldn’t be any risk to get hurt again?

There was always a risk to get hurt. Sakusa knew that full well. And, he knew there was a risk to get hurt repeatedly. However, if there was no risk, that meant there was no Atsumu. While he didn’t like risk, he didn’t like the idea of never being able to say “I love you,” again to his best friend.

Miya Atsumu had been gone for a couple weeks for training in another country. He had been so far, and yet all he wanted to do was go back home to the people he cared about. 

He had messed up so many times. He had his “fall” and realized he sure as hell didn’t like how lonely it was on the bottom. The people he had neglected to care about recently weren’t there, and everything that came along with promise was so far from that. He didn’t want to be there and longer, and knew he had to change his habits and lifestyle outside of the court to better himself and lend more towards those he truly cared for. 

One of those people being Sakusa Kiyoomi. 

God, I need to call him before my flight back home, was all he could think. He was sitting in the airport with less than 5 minutes until he was to board. I have time, he thought. 

He grabbed his phone and dialed Sakusa’s number by instinct. Omi <3 read the contact. He hesitated only slightly. Maybe this is better to settle in person. A phone call isn’t the best way to discuss this, especially when I only have so much time.

He sucked in a deep breath. There was no way he could do this properly

“But, I hafta at least try.”

One ring. 

Two rings.

Three. 

Damn, Omi, pick up...

Four

Five.

“Hello?” He heard at last. 

“OMI!” Atsumu practically shouted in the middle of the air port. People turned their heads towards him dramatically, some looking aggravated, some confused, some about to laugh. He didn’t care. The noise in his mind had already been that loud, so he had hardly noticed the stark contrast when he spoke at such a loud volume.

“Ow, okay, no need to shout. It’s a phone call, I’m right here. Why did you call?” Omi said monotonously. Atsumu felt a cold shiver run down his spine, and all at once he wanted to hit the large red button on his phone screen and pretend he never called and their argument never happened and everything was okay. However, that would get them nowhere. That’s not what Atsumu wanted.

“Heya, uhm, I don’t exacly have a lot of time?”

“Mm. Figures.”

“But all I’ve been able ta think about lately is how ya were so right.”

Sakusa Kiyoomi wished he had been recording this call, because he might not ever hear those words again. Before, it was always ‘I was wrong,’ never, ‘you were right.’

“And I’ve been treatin’ like so much less than ya deserve. Yer one of my favorite people, Omi, and I have don’t nothin to show that ta ya.”

Silence for the first time in two weeks.

“I wanna do better by ya. And, I don’t have a lot of time ta get into details because I board the plane shortly... and I don’t expect an immediate answer from ya, but, can try again?”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t push your luck, you heard me the first time. Get home safely.”

“Oh. And, of course, we can talk more about it later and everything, because I still have a lot ta say and I wanna hear what you hafta say too because what you wanna say is important to me an-”

“Miya?”

“Yes?” he sucked in a breath, holding it in the absence of conversation.

A pause.

“Get home safely. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Yeah, you got it. Me too.”

“Goodbye. See you soon.” A beep.

“Bye, Omi. Cya soon.”

[watusichris]

Betty Davis: They Say She’s Different

It appears that everything anyone has written for the old Music Aficionado site has now disappeared from the web. A random Facebook post has prompted me to re-purpose this story, written in 2016, about my favorite funketress. **********

To this day, the name Betty Davis – Betty with a “y,” that is – remains best known to connoisseurs of Miles Davis minutiae and ‘70s funk obsessives. While it’s true that Betty played an important off-stage role in the career of the jazz trumpeter, to whom she was married for just a year, and she undoubtedly made some of the best hardcore funk records of her era, she deserves to be recognized beyond the relatively narrow provinces of the jazzbo and the crate-digger.

Uncompromising, intelligent, brazen, aggressive, and not incidentally gorgeous, sexually provocative, and a fashion plate always ahead of the curve, Betty was a prophetic figure. Spawned by the explosion of music, fashion, and alternative culture of the late ‘60s, and by concurrent leaps in black consciousness and feminism, she was a take-no-prisoners singer and writer who presented herself as something new, rich, and strange with her self-titled debut album in 1973.

There were some badass contemporaries working the soul and funk trenches– gutter-tongued diva Millie Jackson and one-time James Brown paramour Yvonne Fair leap to mind immediately – but they seemed to be adapting tropes previously worked by male singers in the genres. Betty still sounds like something new: a tough, smart, demanding woman who reveled in pleasure and insisted on satisfaction, unafraid to claim what she wanted.

Despite the fact that she was associated with some high-profile male musician friends and lovers – beyond Davis, the roll call included Hugh Masekela, Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone, Mike Carabello, Eric Clapton, and Robert Palmer – she was no groupie or bed-hopping climber. Possessed of her own self-defining vision, she was producing her own records and leading a tight, flexible little band by the end of her brief run.

In 1976, after completing four splendid albums (only three of which were released at the time), she disappeared, not only from the music business but from the public eye entirely. What happened? It’s an old story that many women in the industry will recognize: Her record company didn’t know what to do with her, and wanted her to tone down her act. Betty Davis wasn’t having any of that, thank you, and she hit the damn road.

She was born Betty Mabry in Durham, NC, in 1945. She grew up country, and was exposed to down-home, get-down music early. On the title track of her second album, They Say I’m Different, she runs down the artists who served as inspirations: Big Mama Thornton, John Lee Hooker, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Howlin’ Wolf, Albert King, Chuck Berry. The blues, in one form or another, is the backbone of her style.

Her family relocated to Pittsburgh when she was young, but at 16 she left home for the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. There she was hurtled into the roiling cultural vortex of the Village. She took up modeling, working for the toney Wilhelmina agency, and began running with a posse of similarly disposed, equally beautiful women who called themselves the “Electric Ladies.” Sound familiar? One of her closest cohorts was Devon Wilson, for many years a notorious consort of Jimi Hendrix known for her freewheeling, outré sex- and drug-saturated lifestyle.

Mabry began to try her hand at singing, and cut a few self-penned singles. They were in an old-school mold in terms of structure, but her very first 45 hints at things to come. “Get Ready For Betty,” a 1964 track released by Don Costa (discoverer of Paul Anka and Trini Lopez and a key arranger for Frank Sinatra), is stodgy early-‘60s NYC R&B to its core, but its message is pointed: “Get out my way, girl, ‘cause I’m comin’ to take your man.”

She also made a stolid romantic duet ballad with singer Roy Arlington and, produced by cult soul man Lou Courtney, a homage to the Cellar, the New York club where she DJed. But she didn’t start reaching the upper echelon of the music biz until one of her songs, a hymn to Harlem called “Uptown,” was cut by the Chambers Brothers for their smash 1968 album The Time Has Come, which also included the psychedelic soul workout “Time Has Come Today.”

The Chambers association probably secured a singles deal for her at Columbia Records, and her first session for the major label was produced by her former live-in boyfriend, South African trumpeter Masekela, in October 1968. By that time, she had split with him: A month earlier, she had married a far more famous horn player, Miles Davis, whom she had met in 1967. Davis and his regular producer Teo Macero would head her second session for Columbia in May 1969.

Those two dates were released for the first time as The Columbia Years 1968-1969 earlier this month by Light in the Attic, the independent label that has restored Betty’s entire catalog to print over the last decade. While devoted fans can be grateful that the work is finally seeing the light of day, it does not make for easy listening, for it was clearly made by people groping in the dark.

Betty’s artistic persona was at that point completely unformed, and so her male Svengalis did their best to mold the clay in their hands, with feeble results. Masekela evidently completed just three tracks, two of which, “It’s My Life” and “Live, Love, Learn,” were issued as a flop single. The homiletic song titles give the game away; the music, straight-up commercial soul backed by a large group (which included Wilton Felder and Wayne Henderson of the Jazz Crusaders and Masekela), has nothing original to say.

The date with Miles is a bigger waste, if a more spectacular one. The personnel couldn’t have been more glittering: Hendrix sidemen Billy Cox and Mitch Mitchell; ex-Detroit Wheels guitarist Jim McCarty; bassist Harvey Brooks, studio familiar of Bob Dylan and former member of the Electric Flag; and Davis’ then-current or future band mates Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, John McLaughlin, and Larry Young.

But nothing jells. The material is either weak (Betty’s directionless original “Hangin’ Out” is the best of a bad lot) or incongruous (lumbering covers of Cream’s “Politician” and Creedence’s “Born On the Bayou”). Worse, the jazzers are unable to lay down anything resembling a solid soul-rock foundation, and even reliable timekeeper Mitchell blows the groove on more than one occasion. Miles gets impatient with his spouse at one point, rasping over the talk-back, “Sing it just like that, with the gum in your mouth and all, bitch.”

Apparently intended as demos, the failed tracks were consigned to the tape library. By late ’69, Miles and Betty’s marriage was history. She left her mark on his music: She appeared on the cover of his cover of his 1968 album Filles de Kilimanjaro and inspired its extended track “Mademoiselle Mabry” (based on the chords that opens Hendrix’s “The Wind Cries Mary”) and “Back Seat Betty” from his 1981 comeback album The Man With the Horn.

Moreover, she moved him toward the flash style that would dominate his music through the mid-‘70s, by exposing him to the slamming music of Hendrix and Sly and exchanging his continental suits for psychedelic pimp togs. Would we know Bitches Brew, On the Corner, and Agharta without Betty Davis? Maybe, maybe not.

For her part, Betty remained in the wings for a while. She collaborated on demos for the Commodores; in London, she modeled, worked on songs for Marc Bolan of T. Rex, and declined a production offer from her then-paramour Clapton. Drifting back to New York, she met Santana percussionist Carabello. They became involved romantically, and in 1972 she relocated to the San Francisco Bay area, where Carabello’s local connections led to the formation of a stellar band to back her on a debut album.

One reads the credits for Betty Davis in awe. The rhythm section was the Family Stone’s dissident, puissant rhythm section, bassist Larry Graham and drummer Greg Errico (who also produced). Original Santana guitarist Neal Schon, future Mandrill axe man Doug Rodrigues, founding Graham Central Station organist Hershall Kennedy, and keyboardist and ace Jerry Garcia collaborator Merl Saunders filled out the instrumentation. The Pointer Sisters, Sylvester, and Kathi McDonald were among a large platoon of backup vocalists.

Issued in 1973 by Just Sunshine Records, an independent label owned by Woodstock Festival promoter Michael Lang (who also released a set by another unique woman, folk singer-guitarist Karen Dalton), Betty Davis was one hell of a coming-out party. Since her abortive Columbia dates, she had developed a unique vocal attack that could leap from a velvety croon to a Tina Turner-like shriek in a nanosecond. The stomping funk of the studio band backed her up to the hilt.

Like Turner, she was one Bold Soul Sister. The lust-filled opening invitation “If I’m in Luck I Might Get Picked Up” announces that a new game was afoot. The statement of romantic/sexual independence “Anti Love Song,” the lovers’ chess match “Your Man My Man,” and the self-explanatory “Game is My Middle Name” offer up a startling, hard-edged new model of a hard-funking female vocalist.

The album’s most affecting track may be “Steppin in Her I. Miller Shoes,” Davis’ level-headed elegy for her sybaritic friend Devon Wilson, who sailed out a window at the Chelsea Hotel in 1971. “She coulda been anything that she wanted…Instead she chose to be nothing,” Davis sings, implying that route wouldn’t be one she would take herself.

“If I’m in Luck” grazed the lower reaches of the R&B singles chart and the album failed to reach the LP rolls at all, but Davis was undaunted. For 1974’s They Say I’m Different, she took the producer’s reins, which she would hold for the rest of her career. While the backup lineup is less glitzy (though Saunders, Pete Escovedo, and Buddy Miles, on guitar no less, appear), the support is still sizzling; crackling drums and burbling clavinet put over a set of songs that may have been even stronger than those heard on her debut.

No one who hears “He Was a Big Freak” is likely to ever forget it; it’s a startling dissection of a masochistic relationship -- inspired by Jimi Hendrix, and not, as many have assumed, by Miles Davis (“Everyone knows that Miles is a sadist,” Betty remarked later). Almost as notable are “Don’t Call Her No Tramp,” a prescient condemnation of what we now call slut-shaming, and the autobiographical title track, with slicing slide guitar work by Cordell Dudley.

Different and its attendant singles tanked, but Betty managed to maintain her profile with live gigs noteworthy for their uninhibited bawdiness, on-stage abandon, and the star’s Egyptian-princess-from-outer-space wardrobe sense. By early 1974 she had assembled a hot, lean road band that included her cousins Nickey Neal and Larry Johnson on drums and bass, respectively, plus keyboardist Fred Mills and guitarist Carlos Morales. This lineup would back her on her last two albums.

The end of Just Sunshine’s distribution deal liberated Davis, who, at the suggestion of then-boyfriend Robert Palmer, inked with Palmer’s label Island Records. The company released Nasty Gal in 1975, and it may be Davis’ best-executed work. The pared-down backing lets the songs shine, and there are good ones here: The shameless title song, the vituperative blast at the critics “Dedicated to the Press,” and the out-front ultimatum for sexual satisfaction “Feelins” get right up in the listener’s face. The most surprising track is the ballad “You and I,” an unexpected songwriting reunion with Miles, orchestrated by the trumpeter’s famed arranger Gil Evans.

It’s a tremendous album, and Betty supported it with live shows that ate the funk competition alive. A bootleg of an especially out-there set recorded at a festival on the French Riviera in 1976 literally climaxes with Nasty Gal’s “The Lone Ranger,” an in-the-saddle heavy breather that Davis wraps up by feigning a loud orgasm.

One should remember that at this particular juncture, Madonna was studying dance at the University of Michigan.

But Nasty Gal faded with hardly a trace, and Davis’ relationship with Island swiftly became fractious. It’s easy to see why the label declined to issue her final album, originally called Crashin’ From Passion and ultimately released, after years as a bootleg, by Light in the Attic in 2009 as Is It Love or Desire. The collection, which leans heavily on songs about sex, doping, and heavy drinking, includes “Stars Starve, You Know,” an outright condemnation of the games record companies play:

They said if I wanted to make some money

I’d have to change my style

Put a paper bag over my face

Sing soft and wear tight fitting gowns

 They don’t like the way I’m lookin’

So it’s hard for my agent to get me bookin’s

Unless I cover up my legs and drop my pen

And commit one of those commercial sins…

 Oh hey hey Island

And that was all she wrote. Until writers began to seek her out in the new millennium as her records became available again, Betty Davis was an invisible woman, one who had blazed a trail that other talents, such as Prince and Madonna, would blaze more profitably after her. She was definitively ahead of her time.

Asked by one writer what she had done since leaving music, Davis, who turns 71 on July 26, responded with the most tragic thing one can imagine any artist saying: “Nothing really.”

[nialledfromfics]

The Dating Game | Chapter Four

~~

“So, what’s up with this chick you won’t shut up about? What’s her name?” 

Niall’s fingers stopped plucking at the strings of his guitar and he looked over at his best friend, and roommate, Chris, who was slumped back into their massive couch with a beer in his hand. They had known each other nearly their whole lives, Chris moving in with Niall after he had bought his house in LA to watch over the place when Niall had to travel with his career. Chris was hilarious and had a bit of a wild streak, sometimes coming on a little too strong, but underneath it all, he was a teddy bear and had always been a huge support system for Niall. 

“Joey.”

Chris nodded his head, titling the beer bottle that rested on his thigh towards Niall. “Yeah...Joey, what’s up with her? Are ya’ll, like, dating?”

Shifting his bottom on the piano bench just a bit, Niall momentarily flicked his blue eyes up to the soccer game that was playing on the TV. “Umm, no...I don’t think so?”

“You don’t know?”

Niall shrugged and slid his fingers across the fretboard. “I mean, we hang out and chat and stuff, she’s supposed to come over here Saturday night to hang out, watch a movie. Have dinner or whatever.” 

“So...you’re dating.”

“No, we’re friends,” Niall shot back, looking over at Chris.

“But you like her.”

Niall nodded, furrowing his brow slightly. “Yeah...yeah, I like her. I mean, we’re friends.” 

“Yes, but you wanna bone her.”

“Dude…”

“What?” Chris snorted, as if he was the one offended, and held out his hand towards Niall. “Look, man, you’re taking this bird out–‘hanging out’ with her–or whatever, you fuckin’ got her tickets to her favorite band and went to the concert with her...and have been talking to her non-stop since, yet...you’re gettin’ nothin’ out of it. That’s kinda fucked up.”

Niall dropped his hands from his guitar, his mouth falling to a part as he stared in disbelief at his best friend. “Are you...fuckin’ serious, mate?” Niall said, shaking his head slightly as he ran his fingers up through his hair, “I’m not hangin’ out with her just so I can fuck her. I actually, genuinely, like bein’ around her, she’s a cool fuckin’ person.”

Shaking his head, Niall moved his stare back down to the guitar in his lap. “Jesus Christ...”

Chris shrugged nonchalantly and tipped his head back as he took a swig of his beer. “I’m just keepin’ it real, man…”

“Well, you better keep that shit to yourself on Saturday when she comes over,” Niall warned, glancing back over at his friend, “I don’t want her gettin’ the wrong impression.” 

“What the fuck would that be?” Chris chuckled, “That you wanna fuck her?” 

With an exaggerated eye roll, Niall ignored Chris’s comment and went back to strumming a riff on his guitar. Chris let out a scoff. “I’ll behave, don’t worry,” he finished under his breath, his eyes settling back onto the TV screen. 

•

It had been a little over two weeks since the night of the concert. Niall kept his word and texted her the very next day, and nearly every day following. They’d sometimes text each other in the morning or chat while Joey sat in the teacher’s lounge eating her lunch, or while Niall was on his way into the studio. Sometimes they’d text in the evenings, while they were both in the kitchen simultaneously scrounging up some dinner or randomly while watching the same shows on Netflix, timing as close as they could so that it was almost like they were watching it together. Niall would Facetime her while he was working out, or while Joey was busy grading papers. 

It was fun, easy and comfortable. There wasn’t a second that they didn’t have something to talk about: whether it be as simple as whatever ridiculous trouble Niall’s friends were getting into, or as complex as Joey’s family, how her parents had moved to Florida a year prior to take care of her sick grandmother. Joey never felt comfortable enough with anyone to get into the details of her family, but with Niall...it was so different. He understood, no matter what she told him, he understood and made her feel normal. They could just laugh and be silly with each other and Joey was becoming so grateful for their growing friendship. 

They had hung out a few times too. Heading to a small corner coffee shop one late morning, and hitting up Pink Taco for a quick bite a few nights later. They went for a casual midday hike along Runyan Canyon that following weekend, and even went out to a comedy club that next night. But they tried their best to stay away from prying eyes as much as possible. Niall had warned Joey that, even though they were only friends, word could get out if they were seen alone together and it would most likely be assumed by the media that they were more than that. It had happened to him many times before and while it hadn’t happened to them yet, Joey tried to mentally prepare herself for if it ever did. 

When it came down to it, she just really loved being around Niall. He was a blast; incredibly witty and charismatic, always up for anything and made even the simplest things enjoyable. There wasn’t a minute that would go by that he didn’t have Joey in stitches, and she found that she could talk to him about anything. He was more knowledgeable–whether it be music or politics, weird facts about space or everything else in between—than she had given him credit for. There wouldn’t be a lagging moment when they were together; Niall loved to see her smile and laugh, and Joey loved to see him flustered, especially when any topics of romance or love came up in their conversations. It didn’t tend to very often, but Niall got noticeably flushed and had the cheekiest of smirks on his face whenever it did. Joey found it all quite amusing. 

A few days before Joey was to go over to Niall’s place for the first time that Saturday to hang out, she decided to call in sick at work. It was something that was practically unheard of for her, she was always very diligent in her work and being there for the children, but something in her just needed to take a day for herself. She was far from actually being sick, Alexis being the only other soul that knew she was telling a tiny fib to get out of work, but the school always took any illness seriously. So it was an easy out for her. 

It was nearing 2pm, and she had been snuggled up on her couch–still in her pajamas, a big fuzzy blanket wrapped around her lower half and a marathon of a crime docu-series playing on TV–all morning with her little sidekick, Sadie, cuddled at her feet. She hadn’t spoken to Niall at all that day, actually she hadn’t spoken to him since the previous afternoon when he had called to ask if she wanted to come over to his house that Saturday to watch some new documentary that was coming on Netflix and maybe have some dinner. Alexis laughed when Joey told her. 

“What?” the red haired girl innocently questioned, stuffing a bite of her leftover enchiladas into her mouth. 

A playful smirk tugged over Alexis’ lips. “Please tell me you’ve heard of ‘Netflix and chill’?” 

Joey rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Not this again…”

“I’m just saying, Jo,” she snipped back, “he’s inviting you over to his actual house and I can guarantee it’s not just to watch a movie…”

“We’re just friends!” 

That was how most of their conversations went in the following weeks since the concert. And it was starting to exhaust Joey. 

Tugging on a piece of hair that had fallen from the side of her loose bun, Joey’s stare had begun to glaze over as she mindlessly stared at the TV screen. She was meant to be watching the fifth installment to Making a Murderer, but her mind was hovering on something else. Or someone else. It was weird how she felt almost...sad that she hadn’t heard from Niall at all yet that day, and she thought that maybe he was just busy and didn’t have time to chat. Which...he was a very busy man with writing and recording for his upcoming album, but she still felt like...well, like she missed him. 

The thought crashed through her and Joey scoffed lightly at herself and shook her head, nestling deeper into the couch and focusing her attention back to the TV. It wasn’t another ten minutes of Niall’s face and voice and laugh flashing in her brain that she pushed out a defeated sigh, cursing at herself from under her breath, as she leaned over to grab her cellphone from the coffee table in front of her. 

Not really thinking about what she was going to say, Joey texted him a quick ‘hey’ and clicked off her phone, turning it upside down as she tossed it back to the table. Her teeth sunk down into her bottom lip as she looked back over at the TV, trying with everything in her to not count down in her head how long he was going to take to respond. Her heartbeat was starting to pick up slightly in her chest–thump, thump thump–and she tore at the dry skin around her fingernails as she waited. 

The tone of a text coming through startled her, it shouldn’t have but it perked up Sadie’s head as well and the little dog looked over at Joey as she reached for her phone. 

N: Heya love , what’s up?

A smile eased across Joey’s face. 

J: Nothing. Just bored at home, wanted to see what you were up to. 

N: You’re home ? Are u okay ?

J: Yeah, I’m fine! Just needed a day off. Are you busy?

N: Not really, no. Just workin on some tunes .

N: Why ?

J: Hmmmm

N: Hahahaha what’s up . .

Joey swallowed hard as she hovered her fingers over the screen of her phone and it struck her as odd that she was even hesitating to ask Niall what she wanted to ask him. She pulled in her face at her own ridiculousness–it was only Niall for crying out loud–and licked across her lips as she began to type. 

J: Do you maybe want to hang out? I was thinking of heading over to Cosmic Vinyl. I need a few more records to add to my collection and I couldn’t think of a better person to help me than you. 

J: If you’re free. 

N: Fuck yeh ! Like right now ?

J: Um, maybe like in an hour? We can meet up there.

N: Sounds sick . See ya there in a bit, Jo .

Jo. He had called her Jo. There were only two people on earth that called her Jo–her brother, Carter and Alexis, her best friend. Nevertheless, it put a permanent smile on her face as she jumped up from the confines of her sofa to go get ready to meet Niall. 

•

Her hazelnut eyes studied the album covers as she flicked through them, every so often peeking over at the door to the record shop. Joey had arrived at their meeting place a little early, only fifteen minutes, and was waiting for Niall to show up. She had lazily given the shop a little stroll before settling towards the back where some of the older, more vintage records were kept. 

With only two minutes to spare, her wandering gaze spotted the one and only Niall Horan just as he stepped into the store. He was wearing a long sleeved button up that hung open and a pair of light wash jeans and Joey swore she could see the blue of his eyes shining from all the way at the back of the store. He licked over his lips as he stood there, bouncing his stare between the other five or so patrons that were browsing before he finally caught that sweet bright smile of Joey. His chest tightened a bit at the sight of her; a loose knit cream top that was modestly tucked into a pair of dark jeans and her red hair softly flowing down the middle of her back, and Niall bowed his head to run his fingers through his dark hair as he began walking towards her. 

They spent the next twenty minutes in light frivolous conversation, Niall enticing some giggles from Joey as they slowly perused through the thousands of shelved and binned records. He had already helped her find two records that she didn’t own that he thought she would like–an Eagles album and also one by Damien Rice, an Irish artist that she had never heard of. Niall spoke very highly of his music and Joey decided to give it a try. Strolling along a bit more, they came to a stop in front of the “J” section, Joey not really knowing why but obviously drawn to the letter. Niall smirked upon realizing the connection.

“I think the closest you’re gonna find is Joe Cocker,” he said, flipping through some stacks, “Or maybe Billy Joel is more your style. I personally like me some Billy Joel.” 

Joey chuckled and peered down at the bucket style shelves as she began flicking through the different albums, hoping a cover would catch her eye. “I’m not really looking for anyone in particular, just seeing what they’ve got.” 

“Ahh...I see.” 

They both continued to thumb through the albums, a content quiet settling between them for a moment before Joey remembered something that she had wanted to tell him. “Oh!” she blurted out, shaking her head as she looked over at Niall. “I wanted to tell you...um...I have another date.” 

His fingertips paused on the edge of an album sleeve and he slowly shifted his eyes over to Joey. “You do?” 

The young woman nodded, scraping her teeth at the corner of her bottom lip. She glanced down at the rows of records in front of her. “Yeah...it’s on Saturday, before I’m supposed to come over to your house..,” she went on, catching Niall’s stare again. “Obviously.” 

“Do you wanna reschedule comin’ over?” Niall asked her, hoping her answer was the one he wanted to hear. 

“Never.”

It was. 

Joey shrugged, going back to perusing through the records. “Besides, it’s not like I’m going to sleep with this guy or something,” she started to explain with a giggle, “I’ve given up on having sex with men on first dates.” 

A worrisome tightness that had built up in Niall’s chest eased at her words and he pushed out a heavy breath, the sound coming out as more of a scoff than he intended. “What?” Joey snipped, wrinkling her brow at him slightly.

“N-nothin’,” he reassured her with a shake of his head, “just...good for you.” 

Joey narrowed her brown eyes at his weird comment. ‘Good for you’–what did he even mean by that? She wondered, but she brushed it off and gave him a smile. “Do you have sex on first dates?” she then casually asked him, not certain if he would actually answer her or not as she slowly caught his gaze. Was that too invasive of a question?

He had a lopsided smirk on his face as he stared at her, his cheeks barely pulsing that pinkish hue she liked and he faintly licked across his lips. “I have,” he said truthfully, lifting his one shoulder, “in the past.” 

“But you…don’t anymore?” 

He quirked a brow. “I don’t go on dates.” 

Joey lifted her chin as she kept her eyes on his. “Mmm...right, I forgot about that…” 

They both chuckled as Niall flipped over the next album in the bin he was looking through and yanked it out to show Joey. It was Judas Priest. Peeking down at the cover of the album, she covered her mouth with her hand as little giggle slipped out. “Why’re you laughin’?” Niall asked, fighting off his smile. 

“What makes you think I would ever listen to heavy metal?” 

Niall shrugged, his mouth turning down at the corners as he slipped it back into the row of records, both of them laughing. Joey sidestepped a little bit away from Niall as she continued to browse, and he followed her with his eyes. He could not get over how absolutely stunning she was. Just the way the dim, gritty yellow light of the vintage album store was slipping down her delicate profile, it made a warmth claw at his insides. He knew by the steadily annoying increase of his pulse and the sweat that was building up on his palms, and just how she made him feel when he was around her, he knew that he was really starting to like this girl. Way more than just as a friend. Niall gently cleared his throat. “So…what happened?” he spoke up, “that made ya...ya know, stop havin’ sex on the first date?” 

Joey gnawed at her lip as she kept her stare down, flipping through more albums. “Well...do you remember, like, a month ago...the night of the festival?”

“Yeah.”

“The guy that I had gone there with, I sorta...slept with him that night.” 

Niall swallowed hard, his mind flashing to that night and vividly remembering how she looked, how she smelled...how she had made his heart race in his chest. And how he was most definitely not the one she went home with. “Did ya?” 

Not saying a word, Joey softly giggled and pulled out a Carly Rae Jepson record, holding it up as she peered over at Niall. A low chuckle bubbled from his throat and he shuffled himself over next to her again and took the record from her hand, the tips of his fingers softly dragging over hers. It made a small breath catch in Joey’s chest. “This is actually a sound record,” he said with as much conviction as he could muster. He held back his smile as his eyes danced over hers and stuffed the album back into its slot, “so no laughin’.” 

He was only teasing her and the jokingly serious look on his face made her laugh even harder. “Anyway,” Joey went on, her voice staying low, “he was a complete dick to me the next morning and, I dunno, it just...wasn’t me. And definitely wasn’t what I was expecting. I was drunk and trying to let loose and have a ‘fun experience’, but it really wasn’t the experience that I wanted to have.” 

Niall rolled his lips into his mouth as he peered over at her. “Yeah, well...when ya have sex with someone you don’t know, it usually isn’t.”

A sigh slipped past Joey’s lips and she hung her head back onto her shoulders in exasperation. “Jesus, Niall,” she said, her voice coming out a bit whiny with the mention of his name. She squeezed her eyes closed for a split second before lifting her head and glancing over at him. “I’m a twenty five year old woman, I should know these things by now.” 

Niall’s chest rumbled with a heavy laugh as he looked back down and continued to flip through the bin of albums. “The only way to know is to experience ‘em and at least you can say you’ve got that now.” 

Joey rolled her eyes in a huff. “Yeah...just never again.” 

“Here,” Niall proclaimed, yanking out an Elton John record, “I think you’ll like this one.” 

Joey leaned her body closer to Niall, that sweet scent of her soft skin violating his nose as she slowly slipped the album from his fingers. “You know what?” she said, turning her head to look up at him. “I think you’re right.” 

Niall smiled at her. “Shall we get it then?” he asked her as she rested the album on top of the other two that were nestled in the crook of her arm, “You good?” 

“Yup, I’m good,” Joey smiled. 

“Sweet,” he mentioned as they both turned to walk up to the counter at the front of the store, “maybe we can go get some smoothies after this? I know this great place just a block or so from here. Do ya like smoothies?” 

Joey tipped her head down in a giggle as they stepped up to the counter. She laid the albums down and slid them towards the cashier so he could ring her up as Niall shimmied his body next to hers and rested a hand on his hip. With a smile she glanced up at him, his eager blue eyes dancing across her face as he waited to see what she would say. 

Watching as the tip of her tongue softly ran along her bottom lip, Niall felt a rush of excitement seep through his veins as a big bright smile spread over Joey’s face. “Yeah, I definitely like smoothies.” 

[cyb3r-s1ut]

Hotline Bling • Zion Kuwonu

Summary • To be honest, I don’t even know yet.

WC • Circa 1,600

Genre • Mild Angst, nothing too bad.

You used to call me on my cellphone

Late-night when you need my love

Call me on my cellphone

Late-night when you need my love

And I know when that hotline bling

That can only mean one thing

I know when that hotline bling

That can only mean one thing

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

3 months, 1 week, and 4 days. That’s how long it had been since Zion last saw you. But, hey, who's counting? If he had been, he would have succumbed to that void feeling in his chest by now. The one created by you but ultimately worsened by his actions. His actions ruined the best thing he ever had. But it was your fault too, right?

If you didn't have such an illuminating smile, such a feather-light yet addicting touch, such an effervescent personality, such a radiant aura then the both of you he wouldn't be in this situation. No. If you hadn't wanted something more and Zion hadn't been too scared of ruining a good thing even though he knew you deserved more— deserved better. He knew you deserved the world and the stars along with it, but he was so afraid he couldn't give it to you. So he cowered behind his thoughts; he dismissed the relationship you had, shutting you out in the process.

He was expecting you to dismiss the fact that he couldn't come to terms with himself you and continue with the late-night phone calls. The sneaking out of the house at 1 and 2 in the morning — when he thought everyone was asleep — to spend hours at your place. Half naked smoke sessions with deeply thought out conversations lingering in the air with every puff. Or hot nights in your room that always seemed to end with clothes scattered here and there, fluffy comforter somehow still clinging to a corner of the bed, and the sheets tangled around only you because he was never there when you woke up. ’He had better, more important things.’ you would convince yourself. But when you finally stopped gaslighting yourself with that excuse, you found out he couldn't face his own music.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Ever since I left the city, you

Got a reputation for yourself now

Everybody knows and I feel left out

Girl, you got me down, you got me stressed out

'Cause ever since I left the city, you

Started wearing less and goin' out more

Glasses of champagne out on the dance floor

Hangin' with some girls I've never seen before

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Guilt. Jealousy. Anger. Sadness. Utter outrage. One of these emotions— maybe even a mixture— was grasping at his heart and yanking at the strings right now. Even so, he couldn’t stop rewatching the clip on his phone in front of him. It wasn’t like he was meaning to find you. He just happened to be scrolling through the explore page on Instagram and much to his sudden disbelief you were the thumbnail on some video. Against his better judgment (of course) he clicks the video, watching you hold a cup of God-knows-what in the air as your body hazily sways in a sea of people inside of what looks to be a club. Zion’s face is still one of shock as the girl recording yells something cringey about all of her friends being ‘baddies’ and ‘hot girls’ and continues to survey each of her friends, including you, while everyone gets more excited with the new song’s change of pace.

It could’ve been all in his head but that video seemed way longer than the allotted one minute. He doesn’t know how many times he watches the video before he decides to click on the girl’s profile (a bad decision on behalf of his 2 functioning brain cells). His thumbs seemed to move on their own as he scrolled down her page and searched through countless posts of herself, her with her family, and her with her friends. Zion couldn’t pry his eyes from the screen as he clicked on a picture with you in it, hoping you would be tagged. You were, of course, so he clicked. Another mistake on his part.

Your username and bio were both different. Even though he hadn’t visited your profile in a while, he did remember the main details of it. Zion repeated his earlier actions, examining your page this time. There were posts of yourself. You and your dog. You and your family. You and this new group of friends he had never seen until now. You and some MAN? You and this man hugging, holding hands, kissing, traveling, eating out together? You and Zion used to tell each other about everything, and you had certainly never mentioned him before. You People aren’t supposed to move on this fast. Hell, Zion hadn’t even moved on. He still listened to the playlist you two had created together. He still dreamed about you. He still woke up with the lingering touches of you on his body as if you had been beside him moments before. He still had late-night venting sessions with Nick as he sniffled and wiped his teary face after genuinely expressing what he was never able to tell you face-to-face.

But now, here you were. You had completely evolved from the person Zion knew almost four months ago. You weren’t the same girl who posted simple photos of herself in cute, comfortable outfits captioned with inspirational quotes, or wholesome reviews of the new Greek mythology book you had bought at your favorite Barnes and Noble. This was some girl who had grown to almost a million followers in just three months. This was some girl who posted pointless photos of her newest bottle of wine or Hennessey; some girl whose wardrobe would alternate between Burberry pantsuits and Louboutin heels, to Adidas tracksuits and air force ones, to what could very well be some bundle of strings Fashion Nova tries to pass off as a dress. This new girl — this new you — was copacetic, thriving, and glowing. You were happy with this seemingly very outgoing of people who the old you would’ve never thought about fraternizing with. Worse of all, the new you appeared to be enjoying life with some new guy, a guy that wasn’t Zion. He’s a complete mess without you laying next to him at 2 in the morning and you were supposed to be the same. Zion was supposed to have the same crippling effect on you as you did on him.

Apparently, Zion had been sitting in his whirlwind of thoughts long enough for his phone to lock. He pulled himself out of his trance and made his only decent decision of the day. He went to find Nick, knowing he would still be awake and available to examine whatever emotional baggage Zion had this time. He told Nick about his earlier revelations (leaving out the part about your apparent love interest). “Why don't you just talk to her, bro? Tell her how you actually feel.” weren't the words he expected to hear. He didn't know what to expect, honestly.

As Zion laid in his bed he picked up his phone with shaky hands. When he unlocked it, he felt another tug at his heartstrings, forgetting that his phone had locked on a gorgeous post of your beaming smile while he was in a daze earlier. The time I'm his phone read 1:46 A.M. He didn't want to call you. You might not pick up. But he wanted an immediate response. Zion needed validation right now. He silently prayed that your number hadn't changed along with everything else during your productive time period. He opened his messages and clicked on your name; ’y/n💛’. Zion smiled to himself as he looked at the last messages sent between the two of you. You had been sending memes back and forth, with the last message before the hiatus being three emojis expressing your enjoyment.

Zion pondered for a few moments on what to type. ’Yo y/n it's me.’ ’Hey it's me, Zion.’ ’Hey y/n we haven't talked in a while.’ He wasted a good twenty minutes overthinking, typing, and erasing potential conversation starters. Then he just decided to pour out what was left of his heart. Fuck it.

He didn't expect you to reply quickly, but he wanted you to, so Zion kept his phone unlocked and open to your messages as he waited. He had peeked two minutes after hitting send, but he didn't notice it then. Zion let five more anxious minutes pass before checking again. He almost didn't notice it that time, but somehow he managed to spot it.

The small subscript under his message. ’Read’

Zion didn't know if it was him being delirious with fatigue or the actual fact of you acknowledging but ignoring him, but his breathing got short and shaky and his tears started to roll. It was finally happening. That void feeling in his chest — in his heart —, that place where special memories of you were kept, had finally drawn him in and suffocated him with the realization that you didn't want him anymore. You no longer needed Zion to bring you the pleasures of life. For all he knows now, you never really did.