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kkodzvken · 4 years ago

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suit up - hawks x f. reader

the one where keigo marries the girl of his dreams, and then takes her home and shows her just how loved she is. title cred/inspo: suit up by jonghyun

notes/warnings: smut and fluff (your teeth may rot and fall out, you’ve been warned), soft dom!keigo, praise kink, slight size kink, oral (f. receiving), unprotected sex + creampie. reader and kei use the traffic light safe word system and they review it beforehand, and he checks in with her at one point but she’s green, so everything is 100% consensual. they flirt + kei says explicit things at the reception but nothing /actually/ happens in public. mentions of alcohol

wc: 5.3k

a/n: this idea’s been bouncing around my head for a while bc i wanna marry this dumbass so bad :’) my first full hawks fic!! im so happy hehe

Beautiful.

You’re so beautiful.

Keigo’s always known, of course. He’s found you beautiful since the very first moment that he laid his eyes on you, all those years ago. He tells you that you’re beautiful every single day, no matter how much you roll your eyes or jokingly tell him to shut up.

You’re beautiful all the time, but there are certain moments that leave him especially breathless. The day that you foolishly challenged Rumi to an arm-wrestling match. The determined look in your eye as you clenched your fist, sweat dripping down your brow and arm muscles straining (you lost, of course – the rabbit hero was ridiculously jacked). The brilliant smile that graces your face whenever he brings you flowers or little souvenirs from his work trips. The very first morning after you moved into his penthouse, when he woke up next to your peaceful sleeping form, and realized that he’d have mornings like this for the rest of his life.

The day that he flew you up to the mountains for a starlit picnic. The smile on your face as you polished off your meal, and the way that your hand flew up to your mouth when he got down on one knee. Your teary-eyed look of pure love as he slipped the ring onto your finger, the diamond gleaming like one of the stars that shone down on you. The way that your eyes rolled back and your legs wrapped around his waist when he took you home and fucked you for hours.

And right now. Keigo swore that his heart damn near burst at the sight of you. The organist was playing, but he couldn’t hear the notes, couldn’t hear anything besides the blood rushing in his ears. Your hands clasped an elegant flower bouquet, and Keigo was sure that the blossoms were pretty, but he couldn’t spare even a second to glance at them. No, his entire focus was trained on you. You, with your beautiful dress that perfectly accentuated the body that he loved so much. When your eyes raised to meet his, and that perfect smile worked its way across your face… he had to bite his inner cheek to try and hold the tears back.

In a simultaneous eternity and heartbeat, you were handing off your bouquet to a bridesmaid and clasping Keigo’s large hands with your much smaller ones. The officiant was speaking, but Keigo didn’t process any of it. The sight of your eyes shining up at him, more beautiful than any of the stars in the night sky, was the only thing anchoring him to the world. He felt like he was floating through a dreamscape with only you, the happiness in his chest powerful and all-encompassing.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

You’re talking to a group of your old friends from high school when a tap against your shoulder grabs your attention, and you turn to see your fiancé – no, your husband – smirking down at you. He wraps an arm around your waist and pulls you close. “Excuse me, ladies,” he says to your friends. “Mind if I steal her for a moment?” His amber eyes glint mischievously, and you swear that a whole swarm of butterflies take flight in your stomach.

Your friends giggle and nod, and then Keigo’s spinning you around so that you’re face-to-face. He’s stunning, in his black suit and red dress shirt, the shade of crimson matching his wings perfectly. “Dance with me, dove,” he says, before leaning down to press a quick kiss against your lips. You nod, and he leads you towards the center of the venue, where most of your guests are dancing to some cheesy pop song. Keigo nods at the DJ, who nods back and switches to the music. Soft synth notes travel through the speakers, before the singer’s dreamy voice floods your ears.

Your hands find their way to his broad shoulders. His wings move to wrap around you protectively. You’re not sure if he even realizes that he does it – it’s such a normal thing, now, for him to shield you, to create a little cocoon for the two of you. You frown as you feel his muscles moving underneath your fingers. “You’re too tense,” you say, fingers gently kneading at the parts of his back that you can reach. “Let me give you a massage once we get home.”

He chuckles, one of his own hands coming up to capture yours. He laces your fingers together before bringing your hand up to his lips and pressing a gentle kiss against your skin. The look he gives you is so tender, the love radiating off his body so palpable, that it makes your knees feel week. “Sweet, but I’m the one who’s going to be taking care of you tonight.” You open your mouth to protest, but he tuts, and a feather flies up to shush at your lips. “No, listen. You’re driving me crazy. Every time I turn my head, I see you looking so damn beautiful that my heart stops. Makes me wanna just pull you away and rip that pretty dress off.”

You gasp at his words, a pretty blush dusting your cheeks. “Kei! People are gonna hear you!”

He shrugs, pulling you even closer and swaying your bodies lightly to the music. “Let them,” he says nonchalantly, but the glint in his eye is pure sin. He leans down so that his lips brush against the shell of your ear. You can’t help the shudder that wracks through your body as his warm breath hits your skin. “You’re so cute when you’re blushing like that. Did I make you flustered, baby?” His fingers release yours, instead gripping your chin and forcing you to meet his eyes. “Answer me, love.”

You nod, feeling small. Only Keigo can affect you like this, can reduce you to a trembling mess with just a few words.

You love it.

He smirks at your confession, pressing a kiss against your cheek before leaning his forehead against yours. “What do you say we jump ship, babe?” Your confusion must show on your face, because he continues. “I think I might die if I have to wait much longer to get my hands on you. And judging by the way you’re acting… I’d bet good money that you’re already dripping for me.”

“Kei!” You swat at his chest before burying your face in it. He laughs, one of his real, genuine laughs that makes your heart soar, before kissing the crown of your head.

“I don’t see you denying it.”

“Shut up.”

“Aw, is my cute little wife flustered?”

Wife. The word sounds so pretty rolling off his lips that you can’t resist retreating from the safety of his chest to press your lips against his. He cups your face with one of his large, rough hands and kisses you back. His wings shift to cover you up before the hand on your waist moves down to pinch at your ass – or, at least, it tries. The layers of your dress obstruct him, and he growls in frustration.

You can’t help but whine as well. You want him all the time, of course. Years of being together haven’t changed how fucking badly you want him all the time. You’d used up all your willpower behaving for the ceremony and the reception so far. You’d been good, had kept your hands to yourself throughout dinner and the toasts. But now, the mix of his body against yours, the dirty words that he’d whispered into your ear, and the cocktails running through your bloodstream were making it very hard for you to ignore the pooling heat between your legs.

You wanted him. You wanted your husband.

“Please,” you whisper. Under normal circumstances, you’d hate how whiny and pathetic you sound, but you’re too far gone to care. “Please, let’s go, Kei. Need you.”

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

A few whispered words to Rumi, and a knowing smirk from her, and you were gone. It was surprisingly easy to slip out the venue. You’d expected to be stopped by some nosy family member, but it seemed that everyone was too tipsy and having too much fun to care. Nevertheless, you had to be careful once you stepped out into the fresh night air. The number two hero’s wedding was perfect paparazzi bait. You didn’t even want to think about the feeding frenzy that the media would go into if they caught sight of you now.

The night sky was like a shield, though, and it protected you from prying eyes. You’d been discreet when picking the wedding and reception venues, and even more discreet in choosing your honeymoon destination. Tomorrow morning, you and Keigo would fly up to the mountains, where he’d rented a little cabin for the two of you. By some miracle, he’d managed to get a whole week off work – a whole week where you’d have him, entirely to yourself.

But right now, you aren’t thinking about tomorrow morning, or the lovely, peaceful honeymoon that you were about to embark on. Right now, the only thing you can think about is Keigo. Keigo, with his beautifully messy hair that moved like ocean waves as you soared through the air. There’s nothing in this world that you love more than flying with him, pressed against his sturdy body with his strong arms wrapped around you. Light pollution makes it hard to see the sky from the ground, but up here, the moon and stars are breathtaking.

Almost as breathtaking as your husband, who’s eyes are prettier than any stars could ever hope to be.

He looks down and catches you staring, taking him in with your wide, wondrous eyes. You can barely hear anything through the noise-cancelling headphones that he makes you wear whenever you fly, but his words reach you, clear as day – “I love you.”

“And I love you.” Your voice comes out small, stolen away by the rushing wind. You try again, louder this time. “I love you!”

He chuckles, chest shaking as he tries to keep his laughs contained. “You trying to one-up me? I can be loud too.” He takes a deep breath, before tipping his head back and shouting an I love you up into the heavens.

His lips are soft and sweet as candy when they dip down to meet yours. “I’m just so happy,” he whispers against you. “You make me so happy.”

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

The moment that you set foot into the penthouse, you gasp.

“Oh, Kei,” you breathe, hand flying over your mouth.

He bounces nervously as he locks up the balcony door, not meeting your eye. “Do…do you not like it?”

You march up to him and grab his face in your hands, before standing up onto your tip-toes and planting a kiss on his forehead. “I love it, baby. Really, you’ve outdone yourself.”

He perks up at the praise, kissing your lips once before his hands move down and he picks you up, clean off the ground. You can’t hold your shrieking laugh back as he spins you around, a smile lighting up his face like a god damn Christmas tree.

The house is beautiful. Really, he did outdo himself. Back when you’d first started dating, he’d had to call off your six-month-anniversary date because of a mission. You’d assured him that it was fine, that you understood, but you’d be lying if you said that you weren’t upset. He promised that he would be back in a week at the latest. You’d spent the night with your friends, eating ice cream and watching shitty movies, and left for work the next morning. You weren’t expecting him back for a few days at least, but when you opened your door after an exhausting day at work, he was there, waiting for you. Scratches on his face and bandages on his arms, but he was there. And he’d decorated your apartment with flowers and fairy lights, centered around a haphazardly made blanket fort in the center of the living room. Little candles were placed across the room, each with a red feather standing guard, making sure that the flames didn’t accidentally get knocked over and grow. After you’d gotten over your initial shock – how the hell did you get in here, Kei – you ran into his arms and squeezed him, tight. He didn’t let go of you for the entire night – his body always pressed against yours, fingers constantly entwined, even as he made you cum so many times that you forgot your own name.

It was one of your fondest memories, one that always brought a smile to your face. You’d mentioned it offhandedly last week, while you were in the weeds with wedding planning. Honestly, you didn’t think that he’d even heard what you said, with how stressed and busy the two of you were. He was picking up extra patrols to make up for his honeymoon vacation time, and you were working your ass off to get your overbearing boss off your back.

But he had heard. He heard, and he listened, because that’s just the kind of lover – the kind of husband – that Keigo is. Attentive, sweet, and intuitive. You swear, he spoils you beyond belief. You don’t even know when he got the time to decorate the apartment today, but it’s beautiful. Even more beautiful than the decorations from your six-month-anniversary, because this time, the sight is sweetened by the knowledge that this is your shared home. This isn’t just your apartment, that your friends helped sneak him into so he could fancy it up. This is your shared space, where you’ll spend the rest of your lives together. Where you’ll wake up in his arms every morning, his wings wrapped around you protectively, fragmenting the morning light into shards of red. Where you’ll make meals together and laugh at his bad cooking, where you’ll take sanctuary from the harshness of the world. This place is your home. Keigo is your home.

He finally stops spinning, but refuses to set you down. Instead, he readjusts you so that he’s carrying you bridal style. You almost laugh at how cliché it is. It feels like something out of a cheesy rom-com, but you’re so happy that you feel like you’re in one of those rom-coms.

You do laugh out loud when you see the trail of petals leading to your bedroom. Keigo feigns disappointment, dramatically sighing. “Don’t laugh, princess, you wound me.” That just makes you laugh even more, and soon, he’s joining in, burying his face in your hair as he walks the two of you towards the bed. “C’mon, I’m trying to be romantic! Quit making me laugh!”

“I can’t help it,” you giggle as he gently places you onto the bed. Thankfully, he had the common sense to not put any petals on the actual bed, but the floor is absolutely covered. Blossoms line the walls as well, along with candles that bathe the room in their gentle glow. You take a second to admire how beautiful your husband looks in the soft light. The shadows make his wings seem that much bigger as they unfurl to their full size. He looms over you, looking like the most delicious mix of devil and angel that you’ve ever seen. There’s still a playful smile on his face, but something mischievous simmers beneath it.

“Hope you didn’t forget what you said at the reception hall, baby,” he says, eyes glinting. “What was it? Hmm, something like, need you, Kei, need you to take me home and fuck me, I’m already so wet for you.”

You groan and try to bury your face in your hands, but he’s too fast. He grabs your wrists and pins them above your head, easily wrapping them with just one of his large hands. “You’re making shit up,” you pout. “I only said the first part.”

“So you admit you said it? That you need me?”

“Shut up.”

“Mm, no thanks.”

You groan again, trying to suppress your smile. There are plenty of times that you and Keigo have had “serious” sex, but you mostly find yourself like this, devolving into giggles and teasing. There’s something about him that makes you feel so safe and at ease, and you can’t help yourself from giggling at his stupid remarks. He laughs, and releases your wrists to cradle your face with both his hands. He shifts so that he’s properly on top of you, his thighs on either side of your hips, and bends down to press kisses all over your face.

“My wife,” he breathes, in between kisses. “My sweet, beautiful, amazing wife. This dress is so pretty, but let’s take it off, my love. You don’t need it anymore.”

It takes a few minutes of awkward wriggling and tugging to finally remove the lace monstrosity, but at long last, the dress ends up on the floor. Keigo’s hands are on your body in an instant, fingers trailing over the curve of your waist and snapping the waistband of your panties. “God, you’ve got such pretty little lingerie on.”

“Wanted to dress up for you,” you say, pawing at his tie and trying to loosen the knot. It makes you feel small, to be so exposed while he’s still fully dressed. Normally you love to savor in that feeling, but right now, you need to feel his bare skin against yours. “Now take your clothes off, please.”

You finally manage to loosen his tie enough to pull it over his head. After stopping for another deep kiss, your hands continue their path over his body. His suit jacket comes off next, although he has to help you gently maneuver it off his wings. His cuff links clatter to the ground as you almost viciously rip off his dress shirt, and you moan when you finally feel his warm muscles.

You’re practically grinding into each other by now. Little whines leave your lips as you shamelessly roll your hips, seeking any friction you can get. You can feel his hardness, even through his thick pants, and you chase it with vigor. He’s not much better, a light blush dusting his face as he meets your rolls with shallow thrusts of his own. “Off, off, Kei, need to feel you,” you babble, fingers desperately trying to undo this belt buckle. Breathlessly, he pushes your fingers aside and pulls his belt off, unceremoniously throwing it across the room. You half expect it to collide with a candle and set the entire building on fire, but a few feathers fly out to catch it and gently set it down.

You don’t waste a second in pulling his pants down and throwing them as well, trusting that a feather will keep it from crashing into anything. Your fingers try to pull down the waistband of his boxers, but he tuts and grabs your hand.

You look up at him with pleading eyes. “Please,” you whine.

The smile on his face is gentle beyond belief as he answers. “I told you that I was going to take care of you tonight, baby. Let me make you feel good, okay? Can I make you feel good?”

You want to protest, want to beg him to stuff your face or your cunt and fuck into you until you’re lightheaded, but Keigo’s insistent about making you cum at least twice before even thinking about his own pleasure. And you can’t deny that you’re aching for him. You’re certain that you’ve soaked through your flimsy panties by now, and your mind is hazy with want.

You nod. Keigo takes your face in his hand, gently stroking your cheek with his thumb. “Can you give me your colors too?”

You force your mind to push through the fog, force your heavy lips to move and form words. “G-green for good, yellow for slow down, red for stop.”

“Good girl.” The praise goes straight to your core, and you whine. “Oh, baby, I know I just vowed to give you everything you could ever want, but you’re so damn needy. Be patient for me, okay? Let me touch you.”

You nod obediently, but you can’t fight the urge roll your hips and feel him again. With a soft, scolding noise, he presses one of his hands into your hipbone, effectively pinning you to the mattress. Try as you might, you can’t squirm away. He’s so ridiculously strong, his muscles toned from years of training and hero work, that you’re no match for him. But it’s not so bad. You love the dominance that oozes off his body as he moves down, his hands and tongue exploring every inch of skin that they can find. His teeth nip at the sensitive spot on your neck, the spot that always makes you melt for him. You shamelessly sigh and tilt your head to give him more access.

His right hand, the one that isn’t currently pinning you to the mattress, plays with the lacy edges of your bra. He palms you through the thin fabric, making you groan and arch your back into his touch. It’s not enough, you need more, need to feel more of him before you lose your mind. He seems to read your mind, because he doesn’t even bother to unclasp the bra, electing instead to rip it clean off your body. The snap of the straps breaking makes you gasp, but you revel in the sting of the elastic bouncing back against your skin.

“Couldn’t wait,” he says, not a hint of shame on his face. “You know how much I love to tease, but fuck, I need you now.”

He’s a bit more ceremonious when he removes your panties, choosing to use a hardened feather to slice through the fabric instead of just ripping with brute force. He fucking moans at the sight of you, wet and needy for him. It sounds like absolute heaven, but you don’t have even a second to revel in it before he’s diving into you. The sudden rush of pleasure is electrifying, and you go to instinctively slam your legs shut, but Keigo’s hand is too fast again. His tongue doesn’t falter for even a second as his fingers dig into your thighs and push you open. His lips wrap around your clit and suck, and he’s outrageously loud as he moans into your sex. It’s all so much – he’s licking at you like a man on death row, coaxing little whines and gasps from your lips.

His beautiful eyes are trained on yours, pupils blow out with love and lust. He memorizes every little expression that flits across your beautiful face as he eases a finger into you, eyes only leaving your face to admire the way that your little cunt sucks him in. But he can’t tear his gaze away from you, and the way your mouth falls open, or the way that your eyes flutter and roll back. The way that your hands ball up into fists, alternating between grabbing the bedsheets and lacing through his hair. Fuck, he loves how you pull at his hair when his fingers curl up against that spongy spot inside of you that makes you see stars. Loves the little curses and gasps of his name that spill past your lips as he scissors and thrusts his digits deeper and deeper into your perfect pussy.

“Cum for me, princess,” he groans. “Please, cum for me, need you to be a good girl and cum for me.”

And, well, you did just vow to give him everything that he could ever want.

You throw your head back and almost sob as you gush all over his face and fingers. He’s insatiable, licking and fingering you all through it, desperately trying to lap up every single drop of your juices. Your body is shaking, and you whimper, the overstimulation building until it’s too much, until you’re crying out too much, Kei, ‘s too much!

“Give me your color, baby,” he says, slowing his assault against your body.

“G-green,” you stutter out, the words as shaky as your legs. “Green, don’t stop, it’s just – ah! Kei!”

Your verbal confirmation was all he needed to dive back in, sucking at you with even more vigor than before. His fingers twist and curl against your spot, and his tongue lashes at your clit. He doesn’t stop for even a second, burying himself in your heat. It’s all you can do to maintain your grip on his hair, tugging at it just the way that he loves. You’re thrust headfirst into your second orgasm of the night, crying out his name and positively sobbing at the onslaught of sensations.

When he finally pulls away, the lower part of his face is soaked with your cum. He makes a show of licking his lips clean, not breaking eye contact with you, no matter how much you blush and squirm. He saves his fingers for you, though. A gentle tap at your lips is all it takes for you to obediently open your mouth and take in his digits. You swirl your tongue around, eyes lidded with the afterglow of your pleasure.

But you’re not finished, are nowhere near finished. You suppose that you are being needy, but how could you not, when your husband looks like an absolute fucking god? The candlelight makes your cum on his face glisten beautifully. You whine and pull him in for a kiss, mashing your lips against his and greedily swiping your tongues together. It’s sinful. You can taste yourself on him, and it makes you shudder, makes you need him that much more.

“Please, please fuck me,” you beg, wrapping your legs around his slim waist and trying to pull him closer, closer, closer. “Please, Kei, need you inside me, need my husband inside me.”

“Fuck,” he breathes, so quietly that you would’ve missed it if you didn’t feel the word formed against your lips. “Fuck, baby, okay.” His hand slides between your bodies and quickly pushes his boxers down. He uses a feather to pull them all the way off, because he can’t be bothered to focus on that, not when you’re practically drooling at the sight of his cock.

Your fingers twitch, and you aren’t able to hold back any longer. Your hand finds his cock, marveling at how heavy and perfect he feels as you wrap your fingers around him and guide him towards your sopping cunt. You pause before you slide him in, though, looking up at him with wide eyes. “Can I ride you? Please?”

He curses again under his breath, practically shivering at your words. His strong hands reposition the both of you, until you’re sitting on his thigh and he’s leaning back against the headboard. He cocks an eyebrow and smirks. “Well, then? Get to work, princess.”

You roll your eyes, trying not to laugh at his antics. “What happened to Mr. Let-Me-Take-Care-Of-You?”

“He’ll come out later. If my pretty wife wants to ride me, she gets to ride me.”

You laugh for real this time, but it quickly turns into a moan as you sink yourself down on his length. No matter how many times you take him, he always overwhelms your senses, always stretches you so deliciously. You lean your forehead against his and give yourself a second to adjust, and then you’re rolling your hips, little whines leaving your lips.

“Feels so good, Kei.” You throw your head back, your fingers digging into the strong muscles of his back to anchor yourself. “You always feel so good.”

His eyes are half-lidded and dark as he takes you in. He’s memorizing every inch of your body, every detail and movement that he absolutely fucking adores. “You’re the most beautiful thing in the world,” he whispers, seemingly more to himself than you. “So beautiful. I’m so lucky.”

Your thighs burn, but you force yourself to ignore the pain. You’d rather die than stop right now. His strong arms encircle your waist, and his wings surround your bodies, ruffling with every one of your movements.

You want to ignore your exhaustion, but your husband is perceptive as ever. His hips raise up to meet you, and it sends a fresh wave of pleasure through your body. You’re shaky, though, and you’re getting sloppy.

Before you can even process what’s happening, you’re being spun over and pinned to the mattress. A gasp leaves your lips, and you whine as his cock slips out of you. Your hand reaches out and paws around wildly, searching for him through your haze. Keigo’s quick to kiss you and shush your protests, entwining his rough fingers in your searching hand and stroking his thumb against your palm.

“Relax, angel. Let me take care of it.”

He slides into you again, making you both moan. Your pussy sucks him in greedily, clenching and fluttering around him. He pauses once he bottoms out. His face buries into the crook of your neck, and he presses sweet kisses all over your skin.

You wrap your legs around his waist and squeeze, trying desperately to make him move. “Keigo, baby, please,” you whine, fingers digging into the strong muscles of his back.

He coos, cupping your face and kissing you before he readjusts himself. “Of course, pretty girl.”

His thrusts are deep and hard, so hard that they make the entire bed shake. Your eyes flutter shut, but he grips your jaw and begs you to keep them open – please, baby, look at me, need to see my pretty wife fall apart.

“You’re so fucking perfect,” he moans, teeth nipping at your lips. “So perfect, and all mine.”

“All yours,” you agree. You’re practically babbling by this point, unable to stop the noises slipping past your lips. You’re floating on a cloud, soaring through the sky, anchored only by his body against yours. “You’re so deep in me, Kei, can feel you so deep in me. Please, ‘m so close, just a lil’ bit more, Kei.”

He coos again, hand slipping down to toy with your clit. You wail, sinking your teeth into his shoulder as the coil in your stomach snaps and you gush uncontrollably. You can’t do anything but cry out for him, can’t do anything but cling onto him and shake and twitch. The feeling of you clenching around him is too much, and with a broken fuck and a cry of your name, he spills inside of you. He fucks you through it, the obscene sounds of your combined release making you feel lightheaded and weak.

He holds you for a few minutes, just like that, bodies entwined. You both pant and try to catch your breath. The weight of his body on top of yours is comforting, so you protest when he finally pulls out and sits back to admire the way that his seed drips out of you.

“Come back,” you complain. “What kind of husband doesn’t give cuddles to his wife?”

“The kind of husband who needs to clean her up,” he says with a chuckle. “C’mon, let’s go take a bath.

Your body feels boneless with exhaustion and the hazy afterglow of your three orgasms, so you’re grateful when he scoops you into his arms. You tuck your face into his neck and hum contentedly, unable to stop the giddy smile that blooms across your face.

“I love you, Kei,” you say, planting little kisses over his neck and jaw.

“I love you too, princess,” he says, grinning and poking your nose. He laughs when you scrunch it up and scowl at him. But, with how cute he looks, you just can’t hold the scowl for long. Soon, you’re giggling too.

You look up at him with so much love that it makes his heart ache. His eyes grow a bit more serious, and he dips his head to kiss at your swollen lips. “I mean it, baby. I’m so happy to spend the rest of my life with you.”

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chrisevansjellybeans · 4 years ago

Text

Whole Again | Chris Evans

Separated Chris x Fem!Reader

Warnings: angst, fluff, allusion to smut nothing scandalous

*not my gif all creds to creator*

“‘Scuse me.”

“Oops, sorry.”

“My bad.”

You glanced up from the bulletin in your hand as your ex finally made it to you in the long row of people.

“Took you long enough.” Scott laughed from next to you.

“The airport was packed. Sorry I’m late.” He reached around and gave his mother an affectionate squeeze on her shoulder before patting Scott on the back. When he finally reached you he leaned down and gave you a quick peck on the cheek. “Hey, sweetheart.”

“Hi, I’m glad you could make it.” You smiled, moving your purse so he could sit down.

“And miss this? Never.” He sat down and immediately threw his arm over the back of your chair. You and Chris had been separated for nearly a year, but it was still hard to break habits that the two of you had been doing for years.

“She’ll be excited you’re here. She’s been rehearsing with Ma all week.” Scott leaned forward to speak to his brother.

“I heard.” Chris chuckled, leaning forward as well, but his arm still stayed rested behind you. “Ma says she’s a natural.”

“Well she is an Evans.” You shrugged.

“That she is.” Chris smiled at you.

Yours and Chris’s daughter, Lily, was the light of your life. Much like her father, she had an affinity for tap dancing. The moment she started walking she also started dancing. When you and Chris were still together your favorite family activity was watching them make up dances for them to perform for you. Now at six-years-old, Lily was old enough to be in tap class. You had been a bit nervous about Chris making it for her first recital since he had filming commitments but like the super dad he was, Chris managed to pull through.

You tensed when you felt Chris’s fingers play with the ends of your hair, another one of those habits that just seemed hard to kick. He had been doing that ever since the two of you had started dating, saying that he liked to keep his hands busy. You didn’t mind though, you loved having your hair played with. But now you didn’t know how to feel about it. It all just seemed too domestic and confusing. And the last thing you needed for Lily’s sake, and honestly your own, was any more confusion.

“Ooh, it’s starting.” Chris leaned back once more as the stage lights dimmed and the faint sound of tap shoes backstage could be heard. You sat up a little straighter as Lily and the rest of her class waddled out.

Lily looked adorable in her costume. The purple sequin number had a bunch of fringe to go with the 20’s song that they were dancing to. Her brunette locks pinned up tiny diamonds placed in the updo. Her brilliant blue eyes, another thing she inherited from her father, searched the auditorium and lit up when she spotted you guys. Her smile grew when she realized that her daddy was there and she started waving like crazy.

“Fuck.” Chris cursed quietly as he looked down and wiped his eyes.

“Oh bubba.” You cooed, placing your hand on his thigh and giving it a squeeze. Chris looked up at you with tear filled eyes and you froze when you realized the nickname that you used to call him slipped out. You hadn’t called him that in a year. But your freakout was over when his other hand covered yours and intertwined your fingers.

You watched her perform like that, holding each other as your daughter kicked some serious tap butt at her first recital. In that moment, you weren’t separated individuals, you were just two parents watching their baby girl do what she loves.

“We made one pretty awesome kid.” Chris whispered in your ear.

“We did, didn’t we?” You turned to look at him, your noses brushing against one another. Chris’s eyes danced from yours down to your lips before back to your eyes. You both snapped out of it when Scott’s not-so-subtle cough broke you out of your trance.

You leaned away from Chris and turned your attention back to the stage, trying to ignore the feeling of his fingers still entangled with yours.

After the recital you and the rest of the Evans clan had taken Lily out for dinner and ice cream. You couldn’t keep the smile off your face as you watched her interact with her dad, their smiles and laughter infectious. You had no problem playing second fiddle to Chris in your daughter’s eyes. He earned every affection that he got from her.

But now came the hard part. The three of you were back at your house, the house you used to share with Chris, and were currently trying to put Lily down for bed.

“One more! Please!” Lily whined as she pulled at your hand, trying to get you and Chris to stay and read her one more story. You glanced over at the clock and shook your head. It was already nearing ten o’clock, well past her bedtime. You smiled softly as her blue eyes started to close before she snapped them open again.

“We can read more tomorrow, princess. I promise. Okay?” Chris ran his fingers through her hair, smiling down at her.

“But you won’t be here.” Lily hugged her stuffed bear that Chris got her before this last trip closer to her tiny body.

“Daddy will be here tomorrow, baby.” You reassured her.

“I’ll come right away in the morning. I’m just staying at Grandma’s. I’m less than five minutes away.” Chris added.

Lily sniffed as she turned her body and laid down, facing the opposite direction of you and Chris.

“Lily, baby, what’s wrong?” Chris cooed as her body wracked with cries.

“I don’t want you to leave!” She sobbed into her pillow. “I want you to stay here. Like you used to!”

Your heart broke at her tiny cries. Chris let out a wavering breath as he pulled her into his arms. The separation had been hard on Lily, especially since with Chris’s work schedule she mainly stayed with you and would only go to Chris’s on the weekends he was around. She missed having her dad around plain and simple.

You and me both, honey.

“Lily…” You trailed off as Chris just looked at you, asking silently for a moment alone with his daughter. You hesitated before leaning over and giving Lily a kiss. You squeezed his hand supportively before stepping out of the Disney themed bedroom. You closed the door partly behind you and sunk to the floor, not feeling an inch of shame for eavesdropping.

“Listen to me carefully, princess.” You heard Chris say. Lily’s response was muffled in his chest, but you could hear her cries slow. “I love you so much. You’re my special girl, you know that. And I miss you and your mommy every day. Every day I miss your laughs and how much you loved to sing when you made pancakes.”

Lily giggled at that.

“And I miss bedtime stories with you and mommy so much. And our snuggles every night.” You choked back a sob as you heard his voice crack. “So very much, princess.”

“We miss you too.” She whimpered. “Mommy cries sometimes from how much she misses you. I hear her in her room.”

You pause as you hear Lily’s confession. You had hoped that you could shield your daughter from your heartache, she already carried so much on her tiny plate.

“That makes daddy really sad.” Chris whispered. “He doesn’t like when you or mommy cry.”

“Then you should stay.” She answered easily.

“Princess…”

“Please, daddy.” Her cries resumed. You couldn’t take it anymore, you walked back into the room stifling a sob when you saw just how distraught your daughter was.

“Chris, you should stay.” You ran your fingers through her hair but your eyes on his.

“Really?” Lily sat up, wiping her nose.

“Really?” Chris echoed. His eyes searched yours, looking for any sign of reservation but you knew he wouldn’t find any.

“Really. Please,” your voice cracked. “I want you to.”

“Thank you, mommy!” Lily threw herself into your arms. You held her tight but your eyes never left Chris’s. He wordlessly mouthed a thank you and all you could do was nod, afraid that your voice would give away your true feelings.

“Alright little lady, now that daddy is staying you need to go to bed.” You blew a kiss on her cheek before setting her back down on her bed.

“We love you, princess.” Chris gave her one more kiss before standing up, his hand resting on your lower back.

“I love you.” Lily yawned, her tiny hand waving lightly.

Chris closed the door quietly behind you and you stood off to the side, suddenly remembering that feeling of uncertainty you had when you and Chris first started dating.

“Are there uh, sheets in the guest room?” Chris scratched the back of his neck. You nodded wordlessly, unsure of what to do. You hated this feeling. This used to be your routine. Your home. Your comfort. And now it all felt strange.

“Thanks for letting me stay, sweetheart.” Chris whispered, pulling you from your thoughts. You bit the inside of your cheek, hoping it would keep the tears that were coming at bay, but to no avail. You had to turn your head as the teardrops fell. “Honey…”

“I’m sorry.” You waved dismissively. You let out a laugh as you turned back to him. “It’s just been a crazy day.”

Chris tilted his head, his eyes shining with his own unshed tears. Your cheeks flamed at his gaze but you willed yourself not to turn away. After a moment of silence you cleared your throat and glanced down the hallway towards your bedroom.

“It’s late, I should…” you jutted your chin towards the room.

“Yeah. Me too.” He sighed. You both knew that there was more to be said but neither of you willing to be the first to say it.

Chris leaned down to give you a kiss on your forehead. Your eyes fluttered closed as his hands lightly held the side of your neck, his lips lingering on your skin. Instinctively your hands found place on his waist, your fingers digging into him; afraid to let go. Slowly he moved his lips away and let his forehead rest against yours. You shuttered as you felt his wavering breath fan across your face.

“Goodnight, Y/N.” He muttered, placing another quick kiss on your forehead. Before you could say anything he was walking down the hall towards the guest room. You watched his retreating back for a second before turning on your heel and heading to your room.

Your body fell against the door as you closed it behind you. You could feel the Chris sized hole in your heart only grow. When the two of you separated you had both agreed that it was better this way. The fighting, the distance, none of it was good for you or your daughter. But what the two of you didn’t consider was how much you would lose when you weren’t together. What you didn’t get to experience together with your daughter.

The two of you were far better together than you ever were apart.

You took a deep breath before turning around and opening the door, ready to march down the hall and tell Chris exactly how you felt. When you opened the door you fumbled back, surprised by the sight of Chris with his hand up, ready to knock.

“Chris.” You breathed out.

“I can’t sleep in there.” Your body erupted in goosebumps at the sound of his voice. He sounded almost angry. “I can’t sleep in our guest room. Not when you’re down the hall in our bedroom, in our bed. It’s ours. All of this is ours, Y/N. I-I can’t sleep in there.”

His voice wavered at the end as he punched the bridge of his nose and looked up before looking back at you, his eyes shining. “Don’t make me sleep in there.”

You almost didn’t hear him from his quiet tone and the sound of your heart beating that echoed through your ears.

“I’ve missed you so much.” You whispered, pulling him into the room. You let out a whimper as Chris lifted you easily, your legs wrapping around his waist and your face falling into his neck. You breathed in his familiar scent, letting it envelop all your senses. He smelled like home.

“Oh honey, you have no idea.” Chris’s arms squeezed you tighter as he walked you back towards the bed. You looked up at him as he laid you down on the bed, his body hovering over yours as he placed gentle kisses across your face and down the side of your neck before finally landing on your lips.

You reached up, your arms wrapping around his neck, pulling him closer to you. He braced himself on his elbows on either side of your head as he dove into the kiss.

“I don’t know how I could have ever let you walk away.” He murmured as he pulled away. “You and Lily. You are my life. I would give up acting in a heartbeat if it meant that I would have you two forever.”

“You have us, Chris. Always. You don’t need to give up your dream to have it.” You ran your fingertips across his chest.

“You guys are my dream.” He dipped his head back down and took your lips with his own. Expertly, Chris flipped you over so now you were straddling his hips, your mouths never disconnecting.

“I love you. Always have. Always will.” You pulled away, pulling your shirt over your head as you did so. Chris’s eyes blazed as he took in your naked chest before meeting your eyes.

“I love you so much, sweetheart.”

You and Chris made slow, passionate love that night. You rediscovered everything about each other; bringing each other pleasure that you know didn’t exist with anyone else except for Chris. You fell asleep to Chris curled around you, his face pushed against your neck and his arms securely holding you as if you would vanish in the middle of the night.

“Momma.” You slowly opened your eyes to find a pair of bright blue eyes staring right back at you. Lily’s lip quivered as her eyes watered. “Daddy’s not here. He promised.”

Thankful that you had thrown on Chris’s shirt last night you sat up and pulled your daughter into your arms. You glanced to the side of you and your own body froze for a second when you saw that the spot that Chris had slept in was now empty.

“Oh baby, he’s-“

“Daddy had to go get a very special breakfast order.” You both turned as Chris walked back into the bedroom with a Dunkin’ bag held securely in his hands. “Now there’s a cream filled long John in here that I might just have to eat if I don’t get my morning hugs and kisses.”

“No, daddy!” Lily removed herself quickly from your arms before springing into her father’s. Chris caught her with ease and let out a boisterous laugh as she attacked his face with kisses.

Setting the bag down but still holding Lily, Chris walked over to you and leaned down. He gave you a soft and short kiss but one that said I love you nonetheless. “Needed one from you too, momma.”

You blushed as you stuck your tongue out at him, but you knew that your eyes were only looking at him with complete and utter adoration.

Lily quickly but carefully reached for her donut after you warned her not to get any on the comforter. She nodded, jelly smeared all over her face. Chris slid back into bed, arms pulling you so you were leaning against his chest.

“A whole year.” Chris muttered, holding you close. “A whole year without this. I don’t know how I waited so long.”

“But now you’re back.” You tilted your head. Chris looked down at you and gave you a smile but you could see the regret that flashed behind his eyes. “We both let this go on for too long, bubba. But now we’re a family again. And we always will be.”

Chris nodded, his words stuck in his throat as he turned his attention back to Lily who was now licking off any jelly remnants from her fingers.

“Princess, how would you feel if daddy stayed with you and mommy again? Just like before?” Chris beamed as Lily looked like a kid on Christmas morning.

“Like everyday? Not just Saturday and Sunday?” Her tiny voice rising in excitement.

“Like everyday.” You confirmed, laughing.

“Yes!” She launched herself at the two of you, her arms doing their best to wrap around the both of you. Your heart burst as you finally felt whole again.

#chris evans imagine #chris evans fluff #chris evans angst #chris evans x reader imagine #chris evans x reader

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phoenixrising0308 · 2 years ago

Text

The Time Apart : Coming home

@wackydrabbles Prompt #102*: “You keep a photo of ________ in your wallet? ” Note - the original prompt was “us” and not a fill-in, so use “us” for bonus drabble cred this week! ☑️ *challenge accepted*

Books: The Royal Romance

Rating: G

Triggers: None Identified by this author

Pairing: (no pairing) Jessica, Maxwell, and Bertrand

A/U: Agent Phoenix: Forged in Fire - The time apart: This timeline occurs during Jessica's absence in Cordonia or when not formally paired in Cordonia with Liam as the TRR cast and original characters deal with her absence as well as Jessica and Liam attempt to go through life without each other. Stories may or may not have an in the present timeline component and are not always in order. It depends on the prompt, random inner thoughts, and the muse whenever they stop by. There are no chapter numbers as they are written as just a series of events in story form. Multi-part stories, as always, are labeled.

Detailed disclaimer

Catch me here

A/N #1: Jessica is adopted legally by the Beaumonts

A/N #2 This is my first Agent Phoenix forged in fire directors cut one-shot and drabble series timeline. This story has been in my drafts for 2 years and I was able to play around with the prompt for it to work :)

Song Inspiration: Coming home (CLEAN)- Diddy ft. Dirty money & Skylar Grey &

Photograph - Ed Sheeran

Word count: 1,996*As always, forgive my typos and grammatical errors.*

Reading time: 8 minutes

Years ago in Cordonia...

Liam's Office in the Capital

Liam's red-rimmed eyes looked at his brother, and he said, "He changed the law. I can't believe he terminated RG- 7 visa status three days before the wedding, and the state offices are closed. What good is all this power if I am just following the laws he made that can not be overturned? He has stolen our happiness together, and now with this law, he is taking my ability to just see her in any capacity."

"Liam, we will figure it out," Leo assured his brother.

"Leo, I don't know what to do. I just need time to rid myself of this marriage. But if she doesn't have status in the next day or two, she is gone forever, and there is nothing I can do."

"Liam, I will have to go to archives to find the canon law to refer to. But I can outmaneuver this. The archives are only open to the sovereign and their regent...which is you. I need your permission to enter. And I need an order from you to restore my Bastier privileges.

"Of course you have it." Liam quickly began working on the order.

Ramford Vineyard

Jessica sat on her bed looking through her suitcase as tears streamed down her face as she thought out loud, "What do you wear when you watch someone you love marry someone else? Black? Red? Well, I guess if heartbreak was a color, you would wear that."

*knock*

Jessica wiped her tears and took one shaky breath, and said, "Come in." As she zipped up the suitcase.

Bertrand entered the room with a blank expression on his face "Lady Jessica, I would like to broach a difficult subject with you."

"Sure, Mr. Rogers lay it on me." Jessica teased

Bertrand took a deep breath. "I have come to talk about your intentions of staying here."

"Bertrand, I came for the wedding. I haven't thought past that."

"We are forever grateful that you have. I regret to inform you that your RG-7 visa has been revoked."

Jessica's lips trembled, and she began to cry. "What?"

"Jessica, it means that you will have three days after the wedding to settle your affairs and return home."

Jessica took a deep breath. "OH. Then I guess I will just reapply for a travel visa and come back after settling back home."

Bertrand sat next to her. His eyes began to water. "Jessica, you cannot come back. The status is extended to Royal Guest as a suitor you were a guest of this house. With the ending of Social Season, you are not. For you to be granted privileges to enter as an unmarried suitor with no relations to a royal house, Liam would need to sign for your entry."

Jessica smirked. "Well, of course, he would. I will be back as soon as I can."

Bertrand's voice wavered, "The Queen would also need to sign… We all know she wouldn't because you are a threat to her even if you are not in that..." he paused, then said, "Cordonian arrangement."

"So I won't even be able to see my friends or come back to my second home?"

Bertrand reached for Jessica's hand and said as his voice wavered, "You will be prohibited from reentry for either five, ten, or 20 years. It's even possible that you will not be allowed to return at all. It is out of Liam's hands. Should he divorce, the ban remains intact."

"God, Constantine made sure to not just screw me out of a future with Liam. He made sure I would never see you guys ever again...at least in person on Cordonian soil. All I'm guilty of is loving Liam."

"Jessica, I have not been able to offer you financial assistance, and it is a regrettable shame that I couldn't. You have comported yourself with grace and dignity, and we are proud of you. Leo has found a law that gives us time. I can adopt you as a sibling. So Maxwell and I would like to offer you our name. You will have the right to be affiliated with our house and part take in court events. I expect it. It is an honorary title and one that you have earned and brings me great joy to give you… as the sister, you have become to us. Should you decide to stay past the grace period, you can be given citizenship through us, which I will gladly sponsor."

Jessica gave Bertrand an embrace that he accepted without hesitation.

Bertrand then said, "However, this means that you are in my care. SO if someone would like to court you, they will approach me as it is our custom."

1 day later ...

Ramford Vineyard

The sibling adoption ceremony took place at 3 pm. Jessica proudly wore her house colors light blue. Her dress was a stunning A-Line scoop neck knee-length chiffon cocktail dress with ruffles as she signed the document that would tie her to the Beaumont's forever the late Duchess's ring adorned her finger a gift from Bertrand. The brothers wanted to tie her to their house not in name but spirit by bestowing her an heirloom that would have been passed down to her if she were a natural-born daughter of their house. In their hearts, they knew their mother would have never objected to her personal effects being passed down to someone so loved by them.

Jessica gave them both a glowing smile as she stood in front of Liam, who oversaw the proceeding. He looked at her signature, and his heart ached. It was signed as Jessica M. Garcia - Beaumont instead of Jessica Garcia - Rys. The document notarized in the house sigil a cephalopod instead of the sigil he yearned to give her his mother's house sigil a Phoenix. The Beaumont's were able to give her the things he couldn't. He gave her a soft smile, happy she was staying in Cordonia but uncertain of their fate by the end of the week, he would be married to Madeleine. He wanted so badly to abdicate in Italy, but she wouldn't allow it, and now the only way to love each other until he was free was to do so in secret.

Liam collected himself and said, "Lady Jessica of house Beaumont, you are now bound to this house not only by name and but by spirit. Cordonia welcomes you with open arms. I look forward to signing the order that makes you a subject loyal to its crown in due time."

She gave him a deep, flawlessly executed curtsy taught to her by Bertrand on her first night in Cordonia, Leo turned to them with a camera in hand and said, "Okay guys, big smile on the count of three say 'Swear Vest.'"

A rare proud smile formed on Bertrand's face as he got closer to Jessica, and both he and Maxwell placed their hands behind her waist.

Leo counted down "1 2 3."

Jessica, Maxwell, and Bertrand smiled as they said in unison 'Sweater Vest.'

*click*

Years later ...

Ramford

Jessica froze as she walked into the Beaumont Estate...So many memories coming back to her. Even more so when she saw Bertrand ordering a staff member at the staircase.

"Maxwell! There you are! Where have you been off-" He faltered as he turned towards them. He looked genuinely surprised for only a moment before schooling his features. His aristocratic training coming second nature.

"Ah, Lady Jessica...It seems you remember your way back."

Jessica came towards him, Maxwell right beside her. Bertrand scowled at his younger brother before barely suppressing his glare at Jessica.

"Bertrand-"

He caught her off with a polite raise of his hand.

"I do not care to hear any half apologies or excuses. You did what I suppose you needed to do. You just wanted a life of your own. Why you couldn't do it here will remain a mystery to me. I did, however, expect more from you."

His words cut deep before he sighed, his features softening.

She felt her chest ache when she saw the hurt in her old mentor's eyes.

"We never knew what happened to you or if you were okay… We waited for a letter, at the very least. I couldn't even find you a suitor to marry you into another house so you could stay and try to live life here. This house was broken and had no prestige; we had nothing to offer anyone."

Jessica felt offended at his accusation.

"What? Do you think it was about money?! Or prestige?! Damn it, Bertrand!- I would have married Liam if he was a regular guy; his status didn't matter to me."

He interrupted her with an enraged glare. "Why else would you abandon us?!" He argued.

"Bertrand-" Maxwell interjected but shut his mouth from a glare shot his way by his older brother.

"I love Liam. That's why! Because I couldn't share a life with him. Whatever we did have was only temporary until he ran back to being Madeleine's husband. I was not meant to be the other woman. I wanted to be the only one, but I couldn't. So, I wanted to try and see if I could find someone to share my life with or at least have some sort of purpose."

"All we knew was that we did EVERYTHING in our power to help you! You were our family. We accepted you not only into our home but our lives. All for you to leave without even a proper goodbye. It's Liam's place to tell you about his heartbreak, but it's my place to tell you about ours. Savannah, Bartie, Maxwell, and mine! You were close to all of us. My son looked for you, my wife cried over you, Maxwell found comfort with the loss of you with Drake. I had no one to talk to about how much you left a void in my heart. Again, another woman that just upped and left."

Jessica's stomach sank as she saw tears forming in Bertrand's eyes.

"Bertrand…" She whimpered, reaching out to him. He shrugged away from her.

Bertrand reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, and handed something to Jessica.

"You keep a photo of us in your wallet?" Jessica asked.

Bertrand looked at Jessica and said, "Yes. Since the day it was taken. It is what the American's do when they love someone. They carry pictures of people they love in their wallets to reminisce. I adopted the custom. I can't tell you how many times I found myself looking at that picture and wondering what life you made for yourself in our absence." His voice cracked. It made a tear escape her eye to gently fall down her cheek. Her heart hurt badly at seeing how painful her disappearance had made it for those she loved.

Jessica opened her wristlet purse and pulled out the same picture. "I spent the most meaningful years of my life here and learned so much. I hated walking away, and as the years passed, I held on to this picture, wondering if I could ever be your sister again."

Bertrand walked over to Jessica and gave her an embrace. They stood there silently, crying into each other's arms. He whispered to her, "Tungsten, you are where you belong." Jessica sniffled and whispered, 'Mr. Rogers. Thank you for loving me. I missed you all." After a few moments passed, another set of arms wrapped around them, and she could feel his warm tears on her as his soft voice spoke, 'Blossom, I'm glad my dance partner is back. It was never the same without you. '

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binniesthighs · 4 years ago

Text

what you heard | reader x changjin

a/n: hi. its missing changjin hours also now I am addicted to poly r/ship fics so here is what my brain came up with hehe (pic creds to OPs!)

what you heard | reader x changjin

Pairing: self insert, hwang hyunjin x gender neutral reader x seo changbin

Genre: smut w/ fluffy tones

Tags: poly r/ship, comfort fic, outdoors sex, friends to lovers, discovery of feelings, idiots in love, with a lil bit of comedy, college au, teehee switch!changbin, switch!hyunjin, switch!reader, they’re all kinda fighting for dominance muhaha (its those bestie vibes ahaha), bratty behavior on all sides, jinnie kinda flips a switch when he gets in the mood (hehe pun intended), spitroasing (r), unprotected sex (stay safe!), sex under the stars hehe, penetration and fingering (r), oral (r & m), face fucking, cumshot, cum eating, that good, good makin’ out, soft and intimate body touching hell yeah, fluffy ending

Word count: 6.8k

Recommended listening: what you heard by Sonder

If there was something that you and your two bestfriends were the best at, it was getting your heart broken.

Hopeless romantics you all were, in one way or another. In fact, it would take even more than your set of three hands to count the number of times that the three of you had come over with a broken heart, seeking ice cream, hugs, or plates to break.

Changbin was the kind to fall in love slowly, but when he did, it consumed him, and everything that he was. He would become convinced that there was no one better for him in the whole world. He would spend sleepless night writing songs and poetry about those who would occupy his mind. Changbin would write love letter after love letter to never send them, or to have them crinkled into papery balls, and slam-dunked into his waste bin. He would often joke that he was ready to love someone, but he just didn’t quite know how to. Under it all, you and Hyunjin knew that he must’ve been scared if they didn’t love him back.

Hyunjin fell in love with people at the drop of a hat. It was his “fatal flaw” as he liked to to joke about too. The gorgeous blond man would fall in love over hearts scribbled on coffee cups, smiles in passing, and compliments on days when he had caught the bus late. This man was the kind to sing love songs loudly in the shower no matter who heard him, and would often have a new crush by the week. Unlike Changbin, he had no fear when it came to confessing, but had even worse luck getting someone to take his words seriously. Hyunjin had too much love to give, and never received enough back.

You, on the other hand, delayed love for as long as you could, no matter how much that you would dream of it. Love came to you in the forms of movies and books, fictional characters and song lyrics. You wrote about the love you had to give in countless journals and on the back of sticky-notes that had been used on the front-side. Love was more of an abstract concept to you. It was never something that you could touch but rather dream about. However, while this wasn’t the worst way to view it all, you still thirsted for something more. A hand to hold, a warm body to tangle up in the sheets with you.

On this day in particular, you and your friends had gathered for a meeting: your “Unofficial Lonely Hearts Club” as you called it. You couldn’t recall who had called the meeting after the long week that you had, but it was likely what each of you had needed.

These nights would often start the same: the three of you shoved into Changbin’s pickup, windows down, night air in your lungs, some song on the stereo that Changbin had been into these days. The three of you lived in the typical college city nestled into the side of some mountainside--a stark contrast to where you had come from before. It was the kind of place where people went to forget about who they were before to become new people. For some reason, some crazy fraction of the people who moved there, never left.

First chance you got, you would move the hell out of there: a place full of so much heartbreak and disappointment…who could dare to stay?��

Hyunjin stuck his hand out the window, making little waves with his palm in the wind. You wondered what he had been thinking of that night; if he was sad or if he was happy. After knowing him for nearly four years now, you knew there was nothing in the world that he deserved more than to feel all the warmth that he had conveyed to others. It was a crime that he never got it back.

Changbin’s free arm held to the handle above the car door frame, and he flexed and relaxed his muscles as he hung his fingers there. You too wondered what thoughts floated on his mind: if he was making up lyrics or if he was putting together some grad story or gesture only for it to never see the light of day. He too deserved all the love the world could offer.

Changbin’s car sped up the dirt road to the lookout spot where kids would go to get drunk, high, or possibly both. It was a dreary and empty Wednesday evening, and secretly you hoped that no other rambunctious students would be there to shatter bottles on the craggy rocks. His headlights lit the path ahead, and the car bounced on the rough road with dusty orange rocks. The higher you got to the mountainside, the more static-y the stereo would buzz until soon all that was left were broken lyrics.

There was one spot you liked particularly: it was a ledge that would jut out horizontally, giving a clear view to the whole of the land below: you would see the white lights from the nearby hospital, and the stadium lights from that god-awful football stadium that had sucked up your student loans. Further, you could see river on the edge of the city-line, and how it would ripple in dark blue sparkles under the moonlight.

Your two best friends would grab the blankets that were habitually kept in the backseat made of scratchy wool, but this only made them warmer. Changbin also kept a couple camping lamps in his car to light up the dark space of his cargo bed. The weight of your bodies would shake the space and make the car bounce a bit on its wheels when the three of you would cuddle up between eachother to take in the scene.

On nights like tonight, neither of you would say much, but just look out and feel it all. There was a kind of beauty in the simplicity of the way that everything seemed so still up there, or how time had appeared to stop somewhat. If you were lucky, you could hear the hoot of an owl, or some other critter rustling in the bushes.

Hyunjin was always the one to sit in the middle, and he would take turns resting his head upon your shoulder or Changbin’s sighing deeply into how they would rise and fall. You hugged your knees to yourself and wondered how many more times you would come up here with them, or if after graduation, it would happen at all. It was painful to consider, but you even wondered if they would be in your life at all after everything ended.

“I’m sick of being lonely.” Hyunjin said into the cold air. He shifted, looking both you and your other friend in the eyes. “Its depressing and exhausting.”

“What are you talking bout ‘Jin?” Changbin threw his hoodie over his head.

“I mean moping about people who don’t ever feel the same...feeling sad when it doesn’t go my way...I’m sick of it!! I just wanna like, give up!! Would it be so hard for me to just like, stop feeling??”

“Oh Jinnie...don’t be ridiculous. You can’t just stop falling in love with people. It’s impossible. Not just for you but...” You exhaled out, “...for all of us.”

“Yeeeah, I don’t think that you have much control over that.” Changbin agreed.

“No, seriously!! It’s shit!!”

You wrapped your arms around him lovingly, nuzzling into his shoulder to sooth him, “I know, I know.”

“Aren’t you guys sick of it?? The three of us must be cursed or something.”

Changbin laughed out his little trademark chuckle and ruffled up his friends blond locks. “You’re being dramatic again Hyunjin. It’s not that bad.”

“Psh! Says you who hasn’t gone on a date in months!”

“Hey!!”

You flicked both of your friends on the sides of their heads. “Cut it out, will you? We came up here to relax and forget all that stuff, remember?”

Hyunjin gave out a sign in his exasperation, turning to fiddle with his little Bluetooth speaker that had definitely seen better days. The last crickets of the season chirped in the early fall air, and the little device booted up with the tiny ringtone that you knew well.

“Anything we want to listen to in particular?”

“Whatever you feel like Jinnie.”

The little blue-white light of his phone illuminated his face, and Hyunjin picked a song that you had likely heard dozens of times before. It was from that artist that he had adored to bits, but only really listened to when he was feeling down.

“Oh Jinnie.” You hushed, then wrapped your arm around his wide shoulder. “No one deserves you.”

Changbin let his head fall on the other boy’s shoulder too. When the three of you were close like this with your body heat shared between you, it was cozier than anything imaginable. While you and your two friends weren’t the most touchy of people, there were still times when you could huddle up, and it was no secret that it felt safer than anything.

Hyunjin chuckled a bit, causing his shoulders to shake. “You know what they say in those movies about people who can’t find love after long?”

“What’s that?”

“They say, “By the time that we turn thirty, if neither of us have found love, lets just marry eachother.””

Changbin scoffed, “And you’re bringing this up why?”

“Well, I guess it wouldn’t be the most ridiculous idea if the three of us decided to do that, right? Seeing how the current trend is going?”

You exchanged adoring and teasing glances with Changbin over your adorably naïve friend.

“I think you’re missing something out of that equation Jin.”

His doe-eyes widened, “What’s that?”

“In all of those movies, it was usually two people who made that promise.”

“Two people, three people, what does it matter? As of right now, its looking like the only people that we’ve got is eachother.”

Hyunjin stretched out his hands into his sweater paws and made a little squeak when he cracked his back.

“What do you say?”

“Hm.” Changbin cleared his throat, “So you’re being serious?”

“What’s so crazy about it?” Convinced as ever, he counted out the points on his fingers, “We could all live together like we’ve always talked about, we’ll never be lonely and have someone to do things with, we don’t have to be second guessing ever, waiting for someone to call us back...we all already know eachother really well so there will be no surprises...”

“Oh, so you are being serious about it then?” You ruffled his hair up a bit, just to get a rise out of him like it usually would.

“I mean...it’s not like it would be hard...right?”

Changbin sucked at his teeth, “Mm. I guess not.”

“But isn’t a marriage supposed to be like, having kids, being in love, being...partners?” You added.

Hyunjin stammered with frantic hands, “W-well, we don’t have to do everything!! Marriage is so conventional these days, we don’t have to follow all the rules, especially since there will be the three of us anyway.”

Changbin sighed, casting his head up to the ocean-blue sky dotted with silvery constellations and the red blinking lights of airplanes overhead.

“You’re still forgetting something Jinnie.”

The blond tiled his head.

“The part about being in love?”

The tallest boy shied his hair behind his ear, then tucked his chin into one of the blankets.

“I mean...I know that I love you guys. I wouldn’t mind spending the time...”

Your chest buzzed with warmth hearing your friend say it for the first time. It previously had been somewhat of an unspoken phrase between the three of you, but now that he had said it out loud, it felt even more real.

“Awww, I love you too Jinnie.”

Changbin scoffed once more and picked with the fraying ends of the blanket. “I guess I do too.”

The cargo bed grew silent while the three of you chewed on the idea. The longer you thought about it, it started to make sense bit by bit. After all, through all the confusion and the broken hearts, ice cream and broken plates, your little group understood each other better than most. When there were tears to dry, each of you knew exactly what to do. You had loved them all along, you always had.

“I really love you guys...I think.” Hyunjin finally said, and linked his arms with yours and the other man’s.

“What are you doing getting all cheesy for, huh?” Changbin nudged him with a smirk.

“I don’t know, I guess I just never really thought about it like that before.”

“Like what?”

“Out of all the people that I’ve “loved” I don’t think that I’ve ever loved them like I have with you both.”

“What do you mean?” Under the swath of blankets, your knee nudged against his, and he jumped a bit from the feeling.

Both you and Changbin looked at him attentively and how his lip quivered, and soft eyes glistened from the glow of the lanterns.

“M-maybe all along...I’ve been in love with you?”

“Like, in love, in love?”

“I don’t know...maybe?” He rubbed his eyes like he would’ve had they been lured with sleep. “Maybe I’m just, making things up...I don’t know. It’s getting late.” He laughed out with a tentative breath, “I’m saying things that don’t make sense.”

Changbin looked out at the stretch of city lights as if he was contemplating the idea himself.

“I guess that it wouldn’t be impossible.” He said blankly.

“What!?” You tried to look at both of your best friends as seriously as you could. While your heart started racing, it was as if it was against your will.

“It’s kinda funny,” Changbin began, “The three of us always complain about how love never really comes our way when we’ve already got it...right here.”

Logically speaking, it made sense. You and your two best friends really did know eachother better than anyone else ever had. When you had met as scared little 1st years without a clue in the world how to be your own people. You had figured it all out together. The ways that you had showed love to each other had been a bit different--but it was still all the same. If you were to have not met them all those years ago, your life would’ve been drastically different. You couldn’t even picture it.

Perhaps in all of your little rambles in journals and daydreams, was what you were looking for...them?

“Maybe we were just looking in the wrong place?” You offered, and both of them shrugged.

“It’s possible.” Hyunjin pulled both of your arms closer to him, and rubbed his cheek into the top of your head, then Changbin’s dark curls. He giggled out, tackling the two of you to lay flat on the cargo bed. It crinkled with a plastic sounding thud, then he wrapped his legs up in both of yours the best that he could.

Under his arm, you choked a little from his tight grasp, but you eventually let yourself mold into the curves of his body and soak up his warmth. The scratchy wool tickled at your cold fingers, and you soon felt Changbin’s hand come searching for you under the blanket too. It was a bit startling at first, but he reached out to hold your arm, then rubbed small circles into it with his thumb where you rested them on Hyunjin’s chest.

It was as if he was a bit delirious, but Hyunjin chortled with laugher until he had lost his breath, and his lyrical sounding voice bounced off the cavern of the mountain and echoed up into space.

“Why do I...weirdly...kinda...wanna make out with you guys right now?”

Changbin pinched his friend with a teasing grin, “You mean it?”

Hyunjin pouted with his plush pink lips, “I thought we all just agreed that we were in love with eachother??”

“Jinnie...” You settled your head into the crook of his neck, right by his collarbones.

“Damn. Glad I’m not the only one.” Changbin bit a smirk into his lip, then propped himself up on his forearm to gain better ground on you and the other man.

Your fluttering heart beat it’s way up your throat and into your ears, and your two friends looked at you expectantly.

“O-outside? Right now?”

“Yeah, I guess. Why not?” Changbin traced his thumb and index under Hyunjin’s smooth jaw.

“Aha! So you admit that you want to too!!” Hyunjin beamed and tugged at the sleeves of your own hoodie.

“I-I didn’t say that...”

Hyunjin leaned over on his side to face you. “Y/n, how about lets make a deal. We try it out, see how it feels, if it feels weird, we stop and pretend it never happened?”

“I don’t know Jinnie...this seems pretty friendship ending to me.”

“Isn’t that the point?” Changbin said with a sly grin.

The tallest boy pleaded to you with nearly needy eyes. “I think that it would feel nice? Besides...none of us have really...felt that...in a while.”

Changbin’s creeping hands came surveying over Hyunjin’s deep green pullover, and the other boy shivered out a little feeling the touch.

Hyunjin’s own curious hands reached out to hold both sides of your face gingerly with pink fingertips.

“I know that I’d like to kiss you...if you’ll let me?”

Both of your friends waited for you as you took turns checking with both of them. The whole prospect was unimaginable, but now...with both of them in front of you, both more real than anything you could have ever thought up, it started to make all the sense in the world.

“What do you say?” Hyunjin asked with a dreamy air. It was chilly on that early fall evening, so he tucked up the blankets even higher. It was a simple gesture, but still held multitudes of his care.

“It doesn’t hurt to try...”

You felt your face pulled closer to his, and all at once his warmth flooded your lips. It was a strange feeling your friend’s lips on yours like this, but while it was new, it was comfortable. Your friend relaxed himself over you, smiling with the corners of his mouth, and slowly sucking at your lower lip like he didn’t want to startle you with anything too fast. His glossy lips stuck with his favored strawberry flavored Chapstick, and you only wanted to taste more. He hummed with a little happy sound, and his larger hands nearly covered your whole face where he helped tilt your head a little so that he could gift deeper kisses to it.

Beside him, Changbin shook with a sigh watching the two of you, a different kind of passion growing within him seeing the two of the people that he loved most do something like this. He was a bit unsure at first, but he tucked back his friend’s blonde edges to free the skin of his neck, then sucked little kisses there too. He to was careful, and didn’t want to leave marks, but rather feel the way that Hyunjin’s skin dotted with goosebumps from the feeling and then let kitten-sounding whimpers go from the pressure on his neck.

While the night itself was nearly too cold to bear, the three of your bodies heated instantly, and you nearly felt as if the sweater that kept you warm was even too much. Hyunjin parted his lips slightly to enter your mouth with his tongue, and it was a feeling so indulgent that you tried to hide from your friend how good he could make you feel out of your own embarrassment.

Your name slithered from his lips to yours, and you tucked your hands under his sweater, finding Changbin’s hands there too on the other boy’s bare skin. Hyunjin flinched from feeling both sets of hands on his muscles. His abs flared from the attention, and he accidentally bit into your lip feeling the cold pads of fingers on him.

Now that you had one taste of him your body could only crave more.

Changbin tilted Hyunjin’s gasping and swollen lips to his own where he took his own turn gifting the other boy his affection. Hyunjin pressed his whole chest into the other man in an attempt to get closer and Changbin’s hands splayed across his back to hold him tightly. The two of them giggled a bit as they roughly worked their way around each other’s mouths. Changbin, a little smaller in the other man’s wide and long arms appeared to swim in him, and the two of them melted between the thick fabric of their clothes.

Once more your hands went journeying up Hyunjin’s shirt, and you ran your fingers over every curve and twist of his back: from the little dimples above his hips, his ribs, his sweeping shoulder blades and each swelling bit of fleshy dorsal muscle you could get your hands on. You had never realized how curious you had been for him in this way, but it delighted you to feel him this close.

Legs became anxious under the wool blankets, and tangled up with little regard for personal space, and hips writhed asking for attention that had been kept for them for far too long.

Changbin moved down Hyunjin’s jaw to give him more kisses to his tender neck, sucking harder this time to imprint little purple marks. You had never taken Changbin to be one to do so, but something told you that he was one to take pride in those that he loved, and wanted them to be his only.

“B-Bin...” Hyunjin’s voice wavered, no longer loud enough to bounce off the rocks surrounding you.

From the way that Changbin kissed the other boy, you instantly craved for him to do the same for you. Across the width of your gorgeous blond friend, you tossed around Changbin’s dark and curly strands, and soaked up his warmth to your hand cracking from the cold.

You called out for him too, and found your hips grinding into Hyunjin’s back, becoming more impatient by the moment. The way that both of them touched you, and each other was...different. There was no fear, no heartbreak, no uncertainty or loneliness. When you thought of it later, it was if the three of you could actually heal from it all for the first time.

Changbin’s eyes softened hearing you beg for him, and he helped you slide closer to him.

“Hm. You’re so cute.” He muttered before filling your mouth with his own kisses. Changbin appeared to channel everything that he had in him to give to you--it was no surprise considering the romantic that he was. He was attentive and slow; rough at first, but then melting into something much more infatuating. Hyunjin took his turn swiping his hands up and down your thighs, kneading into the skin, and then tucking up your sweater. He shimmied down your body, pressing soft lips into your belly to make you tremble from the pleasant gesture. He made his way up higher, up to your chest where he exposed even more skin to the cold, but was sure to make up for it by keeping the blankets close.

Changbin swiped his thumb over both of your lips, smiling as he did so.

“Have I ever told you that you’re really breathtaking?” He said with a tone so sultry it was a bit laughable.

“I don’t think so?”

He too took a greedy hand down your chest where Hyunjin nipped lightly, admiring the way that you had looked under the moonlight. He brought his fingers back to your lips, giving you a tiny and accidental taste of his fingertips, then promptly resumed the kisses that you had asked for.

Hyunjin worked his way back up your body, stopping at last to lap lightly into your neck with tiny fleeting love bites and delighted in the way that he could see them fade onto your skin--almost like you and him were a matching set now.

Changbin broke his lips from yours, creating a tiny wet sound with a thin string of his saliva on your your bottom lip.

Hyunjin played with the elastic of your sweatpants, gasping out a bit once he saw your legs rub together in the absence of friction. His eyes wandered slowly to his other friend who had grinded his hips down into the cargo bed with a quivering length.

“Are we about to do what I think we are?” He asked, both thrilled and shocked.

“Seems like it.” Changbin said simply after going to caress the other man’s cheek.

“Damn. I was not expecting this night to go like this.” Your voice shook, either from anticipation, or from the cold--you couldn’t quite tell.

“Me neither...but I’m not mad about it.”

“Friendship offically ruined?” Hyunjin said with a mischievous little smile.

The breeze blew through, wrapped up in the smell of the crisp mountain air. Hyunjin’s little speaker played on with his songs that you still knew the names of. There wasn’t too much light, just the glow from the inside of Changbin’s car and his lanterns, but it was just enough to take in your friends fully--the ones that you had cared for so much, you didn’t even known how much you had. While you would’ve been worried about getting caught on that Wednesday night, this mattered little.

“I’d say so.” You answered, and it was exactly what they had wanted to hear.

The three of you opted to keep your tops on to fight off the elements, but under the covers, you each jiggled off pairs of joggers, jeans and sweatpants. The car bounced once more as the three of you readjusted. As soon as bare legs intertwined and the thin fabric of undergarments got thrown into the mix, you each got louder and more desperate for wandering touches that could quell your desires.

With twisted and oversized socks, Hyunjin straddled both sides of Changbin’s head, letting the other man palm the outline of his dick and squeeze at it harshly until he shivered over the smaller man’s frame.

“Damn Jin...” Changbin groaned seeing the other’s length. “You’ve been packing and didn’t feel like sharing?”

“S-shut up.” Hyunjin whined as the other teased him.

You worked bite after bite down Changbin’s torso, sucking lightly, then harder. After long, you found that it tickled him a little--this knowledge you would save for another time.

He wore baggy boxers which hid the full girth of his dick that swelled with his erection that bopped and only appeared to grow larger once you and released him. Thick veins wrapped around his length, and his tip flared where you grabbed him into your palm.

“I could say the same to you, Bin.” You teased your friend.

Hyunjin turned to see for himself, laughing out, seeing the way that it looked in your smaller hand.

“Bin, what the fuck?”

“...Intimidated are you?”

The other boy tossed his head back, hair getting caught in his hoodie. “No...”

Changbin snapped the elastic to Hyunjin’s briefs just because he liked the sound, then pulled the other’s member out to pump at the considerable length with his fist. The blonde boy choked out a gasp at the strong grip, and Changbin dug his fingers around the other’s waist to bring in him closer.

“What me to suck this pretty dick of yours?”

“Do I even need to answer that question?” Hyunjin snarked.

Further down, you worked your own hand around Changbin’s cock which you had lathered at first with your spit. Obscene sounds of the liquid cupped in your hand, then you worked your mouth down to his gloriously thick thighs. Something overtook you then, and all you wanted to to was ravage them, make them all yours, mark them as yours, and make the quiver all because of you.

Your fingernails dug into the fleshy and squishy skin, and Changbin moaned out forcefully feeling the sting.

“Feels good?” You asked with a wicked grin, then returned to sucking bruises into the inner parts of his thighs.

“You’re gonna...gonna distract me.” He sighed out, still jerking the other boy away.

Hyunjin swiped away the other man’s curly bangs so he could see him fully. He guided his length over Changbin’s mouth, teeth clenched with a tight exhale once he felt the warmth of the other’s tongue lapping up the sides of his shaft.

Your teasing was enough, and you finally granted your friend what he wanted. With a girth as wide as he had, it was somewhat of a challenge, but a challenge that you gleefully expected. He had puffed up your cheeks fully, and you could barely take in half is length without it testing the back of your throat. Still, you focused your breath coming out of your nose, and swallowed him down deeper. Your eyes wetted from the simulation to your gag reflex, but you held on for as long as you could. At last, your wish was granted, and his marked up thighs shook just for you.

“Bin...fuck.” The blond shuddered upon coaxing himself fully into his friend’s mouth. He moaned out sinfully feeling the twist of the other man’s tongue.

To give yourself a moment’s pause, you stopped, gasping over your friend’s slit, teasing your tongue around his head, dipping down to the place where he dripped with beads of precum.

Changbin laughed out breathily, swearing easily and calling out your name too with a rasp to his tone. “S-shit...”

“Getting too distracted?” Hyunjin purred, seeing the other man made a wreck by you. “What about me?”

“S-sorry.” Changbin admitted, wetting his lips and taking back Hyunjin’s cock into his hollowed cheeks.

As you swallowed around him, your friend rutted his hips just slightly, his lust overtaking him.

“Oh fuck, just like that, mm--” Hyunjin cooed, getting lost in his own ecstasy with head thrown back, and his sweater paws melting down to Changbin’s quaking chest where he supported himself.

You worked your hand and mouth up and down around the pulsating vein’s of your best friend’s length, lazily letting him feel your flattened tongue, then switching to let him feel the tightness of your throat.

Hyunjin sighed out heavily as looked down at his friend who had taken him so well. It was almost as if he felt cheated from the crappy head that he had been getting in dirty bathrooms and semi-public dressing rooms. It was dangerous in the way that Changbin would stroke him languidly, then let his drool wet his tip.

Further down your hips, the pent up heat from your own sex ached on the cool plastic of the cargo bed, and you grinded your hips down for any simulation you could get.

The blonde man whimpered out after long, feeling even hazier the longer that Changbin continued on. “Binnie...you’re...feels really--fuck--so, good...”

It was as if the words hand been a trigger for him, but your friend pulled his length for your mouth, panting out like a dog, while also robbing Hyunjin of all feeling.

“Don’t-don’t wanna cum yet...” He laughed out, “I was really fucking close.”

Hyunjin pouted, then turning back and look at you with a bit of your own saliva running down your neck.

“Your turn now.” He nearly whispered, then crawled down the other man’s body to jerk at him lightly.

“Jin! I-I--” He clenched his teeth.

“Lay down, y/n. Is there any way that you want it?”

“A-anything. Anything that you want to do. I-I don’t care.” You begged, falling under his spell.

“Aw. Cute.” He added once he had seen the purple marks on Changbin’s thighs.

You fell back under the two of them, opening yourself up for them to do as they wished. First, Hyunjin crept down your body with as much care as he could--beautiful in the way the he looked close to you like this.

Hyunjin’s hand cascaded down your chest, then belly, all the way down to your own twitching and wetted sex, and you keened directly into his touch.

“Wouldn’t you like my fingers? Filling you up...” He asked softly, finally sinking down far enough so that you could feel his words swirl over your exposed arousal, then pressing light kisses into you. “...as deep as you can take it?”

“Mm-yes.” You squeaked, opening your legs further for him.

Your other friend settled beside you, tilting your chin nearer to him. Just barely, his lips grazed over you, breathing in your air with his hooded eyes glued to your weakened form under the hands of the other boy.

“You’re that excited?” Hyunjin mocked, “We’ve barely touched you.”

“Quit talking and just get to fucking me, got it?” You demanded, mustering all of your strength.

“Oh-ho! I didn’t take you for one to bite back.”

Changbin bit a proud little smile into your lip, wrapping his arms around you. The blond man then toyed with your entrance, licking his fingers, wetting them, then pushed them slowly into your needy hole.

“Ahhh, look at that, so fucking tight around my fingers, You want it that bad?”

His long and lithe digits filled you up where he started to thrust them in and out, using his free hand to push your jolting thighs back. Your right hand traversed it’s way under the blankets which you had readjusted, all the way down to Changbin’s leaking length which still blushed red. You wrapped around him carefully, promising his to lips that you would go easy on him.

As Hyunjin curled his fingers, the other man then reached down to rub at you fervently, matching the pace at which Hyunjin flicked his wrist. Your hips lurched feeling the combination of each sensation, and you cried out loudly for the two of them--the sound itself bounced off that empty space where the three of you existed, almost as if you were calling out for the whole starry sky to hear you.

“I-I think that we were really missing out on something...” You joked with an airy breath and both of your friends joined you.

Changbin’s teeth caught his lip as your hand squeezed and twisted, and you could see with every ounce of restraint that he had, he was holding back.

“Way to make me want to fuck you sideways, huh?” He said with a little grin, observing the size difference between your hand and his member.

Your back arched when Hyunjin reached in even deeper, and you dissolved into the pleasure that he brought you--an amazing kind of all-consuming feeling that shattered your will, and sent you mewling out into your other friends mouth.

“I-I can’t wait anymore,” You begged, clawing right into Hyunjin’s golden trellises.

Changbin scooched up quickly, taking half of the blankets with him, thankfully giving the other boy a nod when he let him be the one to use your entrance. With his brutish hands, he flipped you to your stomach, and hiked up your hips too, cold fingers holding them in place. Hyunjin kneeled permitting you access to his cock which as softened slightly, so he pumped himself back into place with his eyes holding yours.

At first, Changbin teased you with his tip, adding pressure to your twitching hole, then guided himself in bit...by bit.

The blonde tapped his dick to your lips, holding firmly the back of your neck as you took him in and choked out at the way that the other stretched your walls. Changbin grabbed at your ass in handfuls starting slowly, grinding his hips in little circles to simulate you deeper.

“Hm. Who would have known that your pretty little hole would be so perfect for me? Guess we really were missing out on something.”

Hyunjin growled lowly feeling his cock slide down to the back of your throat, brows crossed, and the bottom of his hoodie resting just above his hips.

“Squeeze my leg if it becomes too much, okay? ...I’m gonna fuck your mouth, okay?”

You nodded best you could, and he started to thrust carefully, every few seconds you would hold his member to drag it against the sides of your cheeks, causing him to huff out loudly at the fleshy bits of your mouth.

Changbin quickened his pace, doubling over your back as he lost himself in you, grunting out in his rhythm. From both sides, your best friends used you, resorting to something much more feral as they edged themselves closer. From the motions, the car rocked back and fourth like a bed and it’s headboard.

You too felt the tension build deeply in your core, and it begged with reckless abandon at your dizzy mind that drew itself closer and closer into the feeling of being utterly all theirs.

In many ways, you guessed that you always had been--while it had been unspoken at the time. Now, having the two of them wholly like this under the silver sheen of the moon, the cold biting at your skin, then furiously met with your heat, you could no longer see them as the two broken souls whom you had bonded with at first. They were now everything, everything that you had wished and hoped for.

Even now that you had become much more to each other, there was nothing that could take away the closeness that you had shared with them.

“F-fuck--gonna cum--” Changbin announced while he pounded frantically. The other man rolled his hips into your mouth quicker too, seeking the same kind of release.

“Y/n?” He said with a broken breath, and you muffled out a moan to let him know that you were nearly there too.

“Oh shit, oh shit--”

Changbin grunted out, with a bit of panic to his voice, forcefully removed himself from you seconds before he spilled his white seed onto your hole, then sending it dripping down your leg.

“Oh fuck--s-sorry--” He gasped out, still jerking his cock while he pulsed.

“Bin!! What the fuck??” Hyunjin yelled out, his words quickly turned into mumbles of nonsense when you took him down as deeply as you could manage without gagging, focusing only on him even though your sex ached feeling so empty.

When he had come down after a few moments, Changbin took to fucking your walls once more with his thick fingers, not even caring that he had fucked his white warmth back into you at the same time. Meanwhile, he returned to rubbing of your sensitive flesh, trying to replace the feeling he had robbed you of.

“Cum for me baby, cum for me.”

On cue, you came in waves, shuddering over Changbin’s fingers slicked with his cum, just as your other friend released down your throat and the warm liquid painted your tongue.

His blissful moans turned into light chuckles as he milked himself into your mouth, giving you every last drop. Changbin drove you further, overstimulating you to the point where your knees nearly gave out, and you had to beg him to slow.

After each of your bodies collapsed weakly to the bed of blankets and rejected clothing, you drew the covers back up over yourselves, feeling the cold seep in once more. Both of your friends kissed perfect adoring kisses into your raw lips, tasting the both of themselves on your skin. While your thighs still stuck with your friend’s cum, it didn’t matter as much now that you had huddled up cozily into their arms.

“Bin, you asshole!!” Hyunjin jested, and flicked the other boy’s forehead. “You fucking finished before you were supposed to!!”

“What the hell was I supposed to do?? I’d already edged myself enough!!”

“You could’ve tried!!”

“Whatever, it felt fucking amazing, don’t blame me.” He added with a smug smirk, “You felt fucking amazing, y/n.”

“Did it feel good for you too, y/n?” Hyunjin gingerly asked, falling right back to his soft and adorable composure that you knew well.

“Like Bin said, it was fucking amazing.”

“So we all agree then? We won’t forget that this happened?”

You gave Hyunjin a little nod to say yes, and your group of three hugged eachother even closer. You hadn’t noticed it, but at some point, Hyunjin’s music had turned off.

“So, this means that we’re like, a thing now?” Changbin asked, playing with the drawstring to your hoodie.

You peppered Hyunjin’s forehead with a tiny kiss. “I’d like to be.”

He nuzzled into the crook of your neck and reached out for Changbin across the expanse. “Me too.”

~🌹~

Bunch of (Ro)ses!

@minaamhh @dazzlehoseok @synnocence @jjewibeans @hyunsluvv @unexceptional-h @bobawithchaitea @lechanters @sailorhyunjinz @silencefavarchive @eunaeiekim @lunarskzzz

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obxparadise · 5 years ago

Text

Rebel Love Song

JJ Maybank x Female Reader

Word count: 3,836

~JJ’s had enough of his abusive father and life on the Cut, so he tries to convince you to run away with him~

Song: Rebel Love Song by Black Veil Brides

A/N: Leave a comment please :)

*GIF is not mine, but found on Google. Creds to the owner!*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I cannot hide what’s on my mind

I feel it burning deep inside

A passion crime to take what’s mine

Let us start living for today

“You are a worthless piece of shit.”

“Shut up!”

“Your mama knew!”

“Shut up!”

JJ’s fist strikes his bedroom door, although he wishes it were his father’s face. It probably wouldn’t be as painful, and he’d feel good about it. But his dad would retaliate like he always did, and JJ’s face couldn’t handle another black eye or split lip. Luke had already done a number on his face twenty minutes prior.

Luke turns up the volume of whatever rock song is playing throughout the house, and JJ clutches the sides of his head, digging his palms into his temples, the thoughts in his head drowning out the song. What the hell was he listening to anyway? Judas Priest? Black Sabbath? He had no fucking clue.

He should be used to it all by now. The loud music. The constant drinking. The verbal violence. The physical abuse. The mental manipulation. It’s been going on for years. And there’s no way to stop it.

The cut on JJ’s lip burns as a salty tear mixes with the dried blood. He drags his fingers across the bottom of his lip, wincing. Thirty grand in restitution for a boat he didn’t even sink. He should’ve seen the punch coming, anticipated it as soon as he slid in the passenger’s seat of the beat up pick up truck. But it happened so fast, over and over, until Luke’s knuckles were painted red with blood.

He doesn’t regret taking the blame, though. Even if he now has to scramble to come up with thirty thousand dollars, JJ’s glad that he did the right thing for once in his life. Pope was a good kid, had too much to lose. But JJ? He had nothing.

The music dies down in the living room and JJ peers toward the door, heart hammering against his chest as he waits for Luke to bust into his room. His fists are balled by his sides, ready to attack if necessary, but the door never opens.

JJ takes it upon himself to crack open the door, just enough for him to peer out into the living room and see Luke passed out on the sofa. Empty beer bottles are scattered along the coffee table and a pill bottle is just barely sitting in Luke’s hand that dangles off the couch. Just another typical Tuesday in the Maybank household.

It’s times like these JJ wishes he wasn’t an only child. Although he’s glad no one else is subjected to Luke’s abuse, the house gets lonely. Talking to his father is impossible. His mother is nowhere to be found, and he resents her for leaving him to live with a monster, to fend for his life.

He could always talk to his friends, though.

Ah, scratch that. They’re all busy tending to their own lives.

Pope’s in and out of scholarship interviews.

Kiara’s working overtime at the Wreck.

John B is glued to Sarah Cameron’s hip.

But there’s one more person left. One person that would always make time for him. One person he could confide in no matter the circumstances.

JJ retrieves his phone from the back pocket of his shorts, typing out a quick message.

Can you meet me at the dock?

He smiles as your name pops up on the screen, promising to meet him in ten minutes.

You watch from afar as JJ stands at the edge of the dock throwing rocks into the bay. The sun has begun to set, the sky now painted a light orange and pink, and there’s a slight chill in the air thanks to the open water. Tugging the sleeves of your hoodie down to cover your hands, you shuffle quietly along the wooden boards.

JJ’s body instantly relaxes when your arms circle his middle, forehead resting against his back. The cologne on his body mixed with his natural scent is what keeps you still against him until he turns around to hold you. He needs this hug. You can just tell.

“I owe thirty grand for sinking Topper’s boat.” His voice is defeated, arms limp around your body.

Wherever trouble was, JJ found it. He was always getting into scuffles with the teenagers on the other side of the island, parents turned their noses down at him, and the cops had no problem blaming JJ for crimes he didn’t commit. The boy was an easy target.

You shake your head, refusing to believe his story, but asking the question anyway. “Why’d you do it?”

JJ pulls away, stuffing his hands in his pockets, eyes downcast on the dock. He doesn’t want to tell you the truth, but you have a guess as to who he’s protecting. “Just sick of everyone treating us differently because we live on the poor side of the island. Money isn’t everything, but it’s all these people on Figure Eight know.”

He’s not wrong. The rich kids on Figure Eight can’t separate fantasy from reality. They’ve never known struggle. They’ve always had designer clothes, food on the table, a roof over their heads, plus the perks. Motorcycles. Boats. Cars. Status. Friends. Opportunities. So much more than the average person could afford, or wish for.

And you were one of them.

It’s a wonder how you and JJ became friends. You knew of his hatred for rich kids before you’d even met him. But JJ saw something in you. You weren’t like the rest of them. You had a pure heart, kind soul. Being rich wasn’t a personality trait for you.

“I just,” Dragging a hand through his hair, JJ gazes at you sadly. His frown tugs at your heart. “I just want to get away, you know? I can’t hide it, but I’ve had thoughts about leaving the Cut, the OBX in general.”

Now that’s something you never would of thought would come out of JJ’s mouth. He lived and breathed the Outerbanks. He didn’t know anything else.

“Where would you go?”

He takes a seat on the end of the dock, feet dangling just above the water. You join him, sitting close, head on his shoulder, toes skimming the cool water. “Paris. England. The Yucatan,” JJ chuckles, nudging you. “That’s long term.”

“What about now?”

JJ exhales, thinking hard. “Maybe Florida. Or Texas. California, possibly. I want to go somewhere warm, like OBX, with a beach and some palm trees,” JJ looks down at the top of your head, resting his cheek on your hair. Your presence calms him. “And I’d take you with me.”

He knocks the breath out of you. You were never one to plan for the future, but the future is all JJ can think about it. And he sees you in his future, wherever he decides to be. How could you possibly tell him that the life that was destined for you would always be in the Outerbanks, breaking his heart in the process?

“Don’t you want to start living? The way we want to?” JJ asks softly, fingertips grazing your leg. Goosebumps rise on your skin at his intimate touch.

“I already am,” you say, considering his words. “My life is here, JJ. I can’t leave it behind.”

“No, it’s not,” JJ retorts instantaneously, voice unwavering. “This life you’re living? It’s not yours. It’s your parents’.”

Bringing your knees to your chin, you reposition yourself to look at JJ, whose staring out at the bay, blue eyes scanning the water, tuffs of blonde hair dancing in the breeze. It’s the first time that night you really took notice of his face. Dried blood dots the corner of his mouth, and a purple bruise rings around his eye. There’s a tick in his jaw and his fingers drum quickly on his leg. He’s tense. “How so?”

He’s never been anything other than blunt. He hides nothing, letting you know how he thinks, what he feels. “Because you don’t stand up to them. They drag you to yacht parties on the weekend because you’ve never told them who your real friends are. They think Susie Milligan and Delia Pratton are your best friends, except they have no idea that you can’t stand them and would rather be surfing with Kie and John B. They make you stay in and study your dad’s old college textbooks, convinced you’re going to be the world’s greatest attorney, but you complain to Pope that the material is dry and you’ll never be happy working as a prosecutor.” Pulling a cigarette from his pocket and then lighting it, JJ takes a drag, puffing out the smoke before turning to face you. “You let them dictate what should be your life. What is it that youwant to do? You never talk about the future, but one day it’ll be here, and it’s sooner than you think.”

His eyes are focused as he waits for you to consider his question. The truth is, you know what you want, but you’ve never said it aloud. No one ever cared to ask, except for now. Except for JJ.

“I want to be a marine biologist,” you’re confident in your answer, and it leads you to spill more. A weight lifts off your shoulders. “I want to go to school in Hawaii or Australia and learn about animals, nature, sea life. I want to surf, fish, and wear flowers in my hair, embrace my free spirit.”

JJ’s smile encourages you. Opening up to him is so easy because he understands. He listens. And he wants the same freedom as you do. The only difference is, JJ will chase after his dreams.

“I want to learn how to play guitar, climb a mountain, run a marathon, learn Chinese, ride in a hot air balloon,” you take a second to catch your breath, feel the chill of the breeze on your legs. “I want to find love. Maybe get married, have a kid or two. Adopt five kittens. Build my own home with a pool that has a waterfall. I want to try escargot, visit a rainforest, and see the Northern Lights. I want so many things, JJ.”

“Then let’s do it,” JJ says, standing and pulling you to your feet. A smile lights up his face as he grabs your hands in his. It’s the happiest you’ve seen him in the last hour, but it contrasts with what you feel inside. “Let’s start living.”

Never gonna change my mind

We can leave it all behind

Nothin’s gonna stop us

No not this time

“Hawaii, huh?”

You look up from your soup. Kiara leans against the bar top, watching you curiously. JJ has gone off to the bathroom, the perfect opportunity for Kiara to grill you with questions.

“He seems pretty adamant,” she remarks, flipping hair over her shoulder. “What’d you say?”

The spoon clinks against the metal bowl as you set it down, dabbing your lips with a napkin. “I didn’t answer.”

“Don’t you think you should?” Kiara asks, playing with the beads on her bracelet. “From what JJ said, he seems pretty sure that wherever he goes, you’re following.”

“Oh, he’s set on us moving to the west coast, but I can’t just leave the OBX,” you counter, shoulders slumping. “My life is here.”

“Then why did you tell him all the things you wanted to do if you don’t ever plan on doing them with him?”

The million-dollar question.

“Because I knew he’d listen,” you say quietly. “I didn’t think he was serious about us leaving together, though. We’re sixteen, Kie. What sixteen year olds do you know drop everything and leave their home behind? And besides,” your laugh comes out strangled, “My parents would never let me leave. You know how they are. They don’t even like that I’m friends with JJ. They think he’s trouble, a bad influence. How do you think they’d react if I just up and left with him?”

Kiara leans in close, whispering, “That’s why you don’t tell them.”

You roll your eyes as Kie laughs. “I’m not going to change my mind on this, Kiara.”

Her face turns serious as she chews on the corner of her lip. The gears turn in her head as she contemplates. “Would it matter if I said JJ’s in love with you?”

Your eyes roam her face, waiting for a laugh, a smile, a teasing wink, but her composure is kept intact as she stares at you. Your face falters. “He—what?”

She nods. “What boy asks a girl to travel the world with him if he’s not in love with her?”

Color creeps up your neck, mouth dry, heart beating irregularly. Your body is jelly, almost sliding off the bar stool, but you slink back further into the chair, hands gripping the arm rests. “Are you sure?”

“If I was a gambler, I’d bet it all. That’s how sure I am.”

“I—no,” you dig in your purse for some cash, slapping the bills down in haste. “I’m either going to disappoint JJ or my parents, and I can’t disappoint my family. So, no, JJ being in love with me doesn’t change anything,” you say, exhaling a breath. “I’m not going with him.”

“Well, that’s good to know.”

Kiara’s eyes expand, and you freeze. JJ’s boots pad against the floor as he pushes through the front door, angrily stomping into the night. You thank Kiara for the dinner before rushing outside to chase a visibly irritated JJ.

“JJ, wait!” Your hand clamps down on his shoulder, spinning him around. The look on his face is disheartening. You try to cradle his cheeks, something you normally did to comfort him, but he pushes your hands away. “Please, stop.”

“You were never planning to come with me, were you?” JJ questions, twirling a few of the rings on his fingers. “You were just…what? Entertaining me?”

“JJ, my life is here, in the OBX!” The words that use to flow perfectly off your tongue don’t even sound right anymore. Part of you doesn’t believe them. “I can’t just leave it all behind. And my parents…God, JJ, they’d never let me go with you. I mean, we’re so young.”

JJ nods, although he doesn’t understand. He knows you. He knows your heart. He knows where you really stand. But he can’t persuade you anymore than he’s tried. “I’m taking my dad’s boat and I am leaving tomorrow. I’m getting out of here because I know what I want and nothing is going to stop me.”

JJ turns, and your heart squeezes as you watch him leave. Your fingers twitch, begging to reach out to him. This can’t be it. He can’t be leaving you. “Is it true?”

He stops in his tracks, glancing over his shoulder. “Is what true?”

You choke back a soft cry, voice croaking. “Are you in love with me?”

JJ faces you, staring absentmindedly. He wants nothing more than to hold you in his arms, kiss your breath away. But he keeps his distance, shoving his hands back into his pockets, whispering, “It doesn’t matter, because it wouldn’t be enough, anyway.”

Back home, you’re surprised to see your parents still awake, chatting softly at the island in the kitchen. You hastily wipe away any leftover tears before they can hound you with questions.

“You’re home late,” says your father, giving you a look. He’s the stricter parent of the two. “I assume you have a good reason?”

You keep the conversation short. “I got caught up talking to JJ. I lost track of time.”

Your mother wrinkles her nose, wine sloshing in her glass as she takes a sip. “How many times have we told you to stay away from that boy, Y/N? He’s trouble.”

“He’s not trouble,” you fire back, wishing you had come up with a lie instead of telling them the truth. “You’re just judgmental.”

“That’s enough,” your father snaps. He runs a hand over his tired face. Being an attorney has aged him ten years. And to think he wanted to send you down the same dreadful path. “I’m having lunch tomorrow with DA Lance Nicholas. I figured you could come along, ask him some questions--.”

“No.”

Your mother stares at you quizzically. “No?”

“Is tomorrow a bad time?” asks your father, loosening his tie. “I’m supposed to meet with him next week as well, if that’s better for you.”

You feel the rage building up inside of you as you remember JJ’s words. You let them dictate what should be your life. What is it that you want to do? “No, dad, there will never be a time that’s good for me to meet the DA, because I don’t want to meet him. I don’t want to be a lawyer.”

You’re sure they’ll yell, give you a hard time, but the laughs that come out of their mouths are surprising. You don’t understand why they’re laughing, but you’re determine to stand your ground, speak up.

“You’ve never once asked me what I wanted to do with my life.”

“Well, yes, because—.”

“Because you planned it for me.”

Your mom glances at your dad, unsure of how to continue the conversation. “Sweetie--.”

“I’m not going to law school,” The light dims in your father’s eyes, face growing red as your tone grows serious. He’s silent, but it doesn’t scare you. “Because I want to be a marine biologist.”

“Honey, listen,--.”

“I want to travel, see what the world has to offer me. I’m tired of being your puppet. I’m tired of pretending to like Susie and Delia. I’m tired of going to stupid yacht parties with out of touch rich people. I’m tired of reading college textbooks about a career I don’t even want while I’m still in high school. This is my life, and you don’t get to choose how I live it.”

Your mom speaks up after what feels like an hour of silence. Her eyes are full of sorrow, voice low, disapproving. “What happened to you? You’re so…outspoken.”

“It’s that damn Maybank kid,” your dad’s forceful voice cuts right through you. He slams his fist on the counter, startling your mom. You stand your ground, unflinching. “I always knew he’d corrupt you sooner or later.”

“Corrupt me?” A laugh escapes you. He can’t be serious. “He helped me, dad. He taught me to stand up for myself, which is what I’m doing right now. He taught me that there’s a life outside of our world in Figure Eight. JJ helped me realize that I don’t belong here,” your mother’s face drops. Guilt briefly flickers across your face. “I belong with him, wherever he goes. Whether it be California or Texas or Hawaii. I belong with him.”

“You are sixteen years old,” your father reminds, looking at you in disgust. “You have no clue what you’re talking about or what you are doing. Go on, get out of my sight.”

You shake your head, turning your back on your parents. It didn’t matter what they said. They wouldn’t be able to stop you from chasing your dreams, from living your life the way you wanted to. They could say you were too young, too naïve, until they were blue in the face. But you know what you want, and no one, especially not your parents, would stop you.

So take your hand in mine

It’s ours tonight

This is our rebel love song

Staring down at the note in your hand, you exhale a sigh before dropping it on the kitchen counter. You sign it with a kiss, letting your family know you love them, before venturing outside, quietly closing the door behind you.

The last night in your house was spent packing, constantly checking that your bedroom door was locked to keep the helicopter parents away. There wasn’t much you could fit into the duffel bag, but you squeezed as much as you could, the contents varying from clothing to toiletries to small mementos you didn’t want to leave behind.

The plan was to surprise JJ at the dock. Tugging your duffel higher onto your shoulder, you walk with a content smile.

When you reach the dock, your heart rises to your throat. JJ stands with his back to you, one foot on the dock, the other in the boat. He’s ready to take off, and your legs break out into a sprint, daring him to leave you behind. “JJ!”

The voice makes his ears perk up. He turns, wide-eyed, smile brighter than the gleaming Carolina sun. JJ’s heart swells as he watches the girl he loves run after him, one hand waving frantically in the air, the other tugging the bag higher on her arm.

“JJ, wait!”

But he’s not going anywhere. He’d never go anywhere without you.

You drop the bag onto the dock, launching yourself into JJ’s body. He wobbles slightly, arms coming around your middle, pulling you as far into his chest as you’ll go. You fit perfectly.

“You came,” JJ breathes into your hair, kissing your forehead. The soft pecks are quick, friendly.

It’s not enough for you, though.

You grab his cheeks, pressing your mouth to his, hard. Your heart reacts, beating wildly. The feeling in your body, the sensation you get from kissing JJ, it feels like sunshine. Warm. Blissful. Happy.

There’s no hesitation as JJ kisses you back. His hand creeps up your spine, pressing you impossibly closer to him, almost as if he’s testing to see if you’re real.

It’s all real. You, the kiss, the moment.

He pulls away, slightly breathless. His eyes flicker to the dandelion lying on his drawstring bag, and a smile tugs at his parted lips. He’d picked it for you on his way to the dock, just in case.

“It’s true,” JJ says, reaching down to tenderly pick the flower. Doe-eyed, you watch as he tucks the dandelion behind your ear, shielding the stem with a few strands of your hair. “I am so deeply in love with you.”

“And you were going to leave without ever letting me know.”

“A part of me hoped you wouldn’t let me leave without you,” JJ answers, helping you settle into the boat.

“You’re right,” you smile. “I couldn’t let you leave without knowing I’m in love with you, too.”

The kiss that follows is better than the first. It’s softer, more intimate, and it feels like a rainbow.

It completes him.

It completes you.

After grabbing your bag from the dock, you help JJ untie the boat before joining him at the wheel. The boat rumbles to life, sailing slowly across the open bay. A new life is just in the distance.

“You ready?” JJ asks. There’s nothing in his eyes other than hope, nothing in his grin other than happiness.

Taking his hand, you smile. “I am now.”

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howaminotinthestrokesyet · 4 years ago

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Behind The Album: In Utero

The third and final studio album from Nirvana was released in September 1993 via DGC records. The band wanted to make a clear departure from how their second album sounded. They felt that their huge hit album, Nevermind, was too polished as a record. The producer of that second LP, Butch Vig, would later note that Kurt Cobain needed to “reclaim his punk ethics or cred.” For his part Cobain would tell Rolling Stone in early 1992 that the record would have elements to it much more raw then found on the second album. However, he did emphasize the fact that the pop sound would not disappear entirely. He had hoped to start working on it l in the middle of 1992, but distance between band members getting together was an issue as they all lived in different cities. Another issue came in the fact that Courtney Love was expecting their first child. DGC was hoping to release a new record by Christmas of the year, but instead they were forced to go with the compilation album of all the early material from Sub Pop, Incesticide. For In Utero, Cobain showed interest in working with former producer of Bleach, Jack Endino and Steve Albini. They brought in Endino to work on a few instrumentals for the record that were eventually re-recorded, and he was never asked to produce in any capacity. The group went back and forth debating whether to hire Albini or not. In January 1993, the group recorded another set of demos while on tour in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. This would later become the track, “Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip,” which originally had the working title of I’ll Take You Down to the Pavement. The latter represented a direct reference to an argument between Cobain and Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards. The band finally decided to go with Albini as a producer despite his reputation of strict discipline within the studio and remaining one of the most opinionated producers out there. He was said to have referred to Nirvana as “REM with a fuzz box, unremarkable Seattle sound.” He would later say that his decision to work with the band came out of sympathy, feeling smaller groups like Nirvana were at the mercy of the record label. This particular statement should be taken with a grain of salt as Nirvana had just released the biggest record since Appetite for Destruction. Cobain had been a fan of the producer based on his work with the Pixies and the Breeders.

Producer Albini wanted to complete recording within a strict two week timeframe. Nirvana paid for the recording sessions themselves on Albini’s suggestion to avoid interference from the record label. The band paid him $24,000 for his services, while he refused any royalties whatsoever, which would have amounted to $500,000. He would continually say that royalties were immoral and a complete insult to the artist. They recorded at Pachyderm Studios in Cannon Falls, Minnesota in February 1993. Krist Novoselic would compare the environment to a gulag. “There was snow outside, we couldn't go anywhere. We just worked." Nirvana during this time emphasized to the record company that they wanted absolutely no interference from them, which meant they did not share anything from these sessions with their A & R representative. For his part, Steve Albini followed suit by only speaking with members of the band. He characterized anyone associated with the group as “pieces of shit.” After a short delay, the band's equipment finally arrived, so the actual recording of the album went very quickly. Each track began with the group playing together as one doing the instrumental aspect of it. For some tracks, Dave Grohl did the drums in the kitchen due to the natural acoustics sounding better. Albini had also surrounded his drums with 30 microphones for each track. They did not remove any take from the album, but instead kept them all. Cobain even added more guitar parts at the end of each day before doing the vocals. Although Albini had a reputation for being opinionated, he let Nirvana decide what to keep. “Generally speaking, [Cobain] knows what he thinks is acceptable and what isn't acceptable [...] He can make concrete steps to improve things that he doesn't think are acceptable." They did all of their musical work in six days, while Cobain said that it was the easiest recording he had ever done. Albini proceeded to mix the album in five days, which actually was slow by his standards because he usually only spent 1 to 2 days on it.

After completion, the band began to send the unmastered tapes to various people including the president of the DGC records. They absolutely hated it saying the songwriting was mediocre, the entire album was unlistenable, and radio would never except Albini’s production. Cobain took the comments personally to mean that the label wanted him to start from scratch and record again with a new producer. He would say, “I should just re-record this record and do the same thing we did last year because we sold out last year—there's no reason to try and redeem ourselves as artists at this point. I can't help myself—I'm just putting out a record I would like to listen to at home." Yet, the group remained dead set on releasing this version of the record as late as April 1993. They had played it for a number of their friends, who had liked it. The singer said, “Of course, they want another Nevermind, but I'd rather die than do that. This is exactly the kind of record I would buy as a fan, that I would enjoy owning." Around this time, some doubts crept up with all members of Nirvana because the mix of In Utero did not sound right. They asked Albini to possibly remix the record, and he flat out refused. “[Cobain] wanted to make a record that he could slam down on the table and say, 'Listen, I know this is good, and I know your concerns about it are meaningless, so go with it.' And I don't think he felt he had that yet ... My problem was that I feared a slippery slope." They took the record to Bob Ludwig for mastering, while at the same time mentioned their issues with the mix to him. Upon completion, Krist Novoselic said he was happy with the result, but Cobain still felt it was not perfect. At this time, Steve Albini gave an interview with the Chicago Tribune, where he doubted whether the record would ever be released. Newsweek would run another article that echoed the comments made by Albini. This caused Nirvana to write a full page letter to the magazine denying the label was putting any undue pressure on them. The same letter would be reproduced as a full page ad in Billboard not long after. The head of Geffen Records, who owned DGC made the unprecedented move of actually calling Newsweek to complain. The band thought about having Andy Wallace remix the release, but once again Albini refused saying they had only agreed to work with him. At the time, the producer also would release any of the tapes that were now in his possession. He only did so after a phone call from Krist Novoselic. The entire album for the most part was not changed at all, except for a remastering. Yet, the producer continually made comments that it was nowhere near the album he recorded in Minnesota. “The record in the stores doesn't sound all that much like the record that was made, though it's still them singing and playing their songs, and the musical quality of it still comes across." He would go on to say that major labels refused to work with him for the next year or so because of In Utero.

As for the music, the producer wanted to go as far away as possible from Nevermind with this record. He felt that the second album made the group look incredibly bad because it had been overproduced at such a level to make it extremely radio friendly. He wanted to create a much more natural sound for the group. The 1993 Nirvana biography, Come As You Are, noted the vision for the band on this record. “The Beatlesque 'Dumb' happily coexists beside the all-out frenzied punk graffiti of 'Milk It,' while 'All Apologies' is worlds away from the apoplectic 'Scentless Apprentice.' It's as if [Cobain] has given up trying to meld his punk and pop instincts into one harmonious whole. Forget it. This is war." If one goes through the track listing, you can count which tracks are over the top punk, and which tracks are more radio friendly pop. The interesting thing is that they correspond equally, 6 to 6. Fans and critics alike would talk about how abrasive In Utero turned out to be, but Cobain and Novoselic really did not see it that way. The bass player had said the band had always had songs as they are found on In Utero. Yet, the group did consciously try to bring fans into the more punk sounding songs by releasing the first two singles that could have realistically been included on Nevermind. Some of the songs found on the record had been written years prior as early as 1990. Cobain used various points of inspiration for the lyrics. The track “Frances Farmer” came from a 1978 biography of the Seattle figure called Shadowland. “Scentless Apprentice” originated from a horror novel that the singer had read by Patrick Suskind. One of the central themes found on the album noted in that same Nirvana biography from 1993 was the fact that every song talked about sickness or disease in some manner. Although Cobain said the lyrics were very impersonal to him, many disagreed with this assessment. Dave Grohl would say this in an interview. “A lot of what he has to say is related to a lot of the shit he's gone through. And it's not so much teen angst anymore. It's a whole different ball game: rock star angst." The singer continued to argue that much of the album had been written years prior to any issues he was going through at the time. For example, “Rape Me” quite possibly could be talking about his frustration with the media in how he has been portrayed over the past couple of years. The track “Serve the Servants” seemed to specifically talk about Cobain’s father and how divorce affected him from a very early age. The Nirvana frontman wanted his father to know that he did not despise him, but he also had no desire to be around him whatsoever. One track, “Gallons of Alcohol Flow Through the Strip,” was actually one of the only improvisational tracks they ever recorded. The song represented a jam session that the group would frequently participate in in during down times at the studio. They had done this quite often, but this would be the first time that it was ever recorded in some form.

Upon its release, the record label took a very low key approach to promoting the album. None of the singles would come out commercially in the United States, as they concentrated all of their press releases at media specializing in alternative music. The band remained convinced that there was absolutely no way that In Utero would sell even a quarter of what Nevermind sold. The record would debut at number one on the charts selling 180,000 copies in its first week. They sold this many copies without big retail chains like Kmart and Walmart selling it because officially the demand was not there. The truth was actually these chains feared backlash due to the graphic nature of the artwork accompanying the album. In March 1994, an edited version of the album would be released with new artwork and alternative song titles. The band made this concession saying they wanted fans who could not go to a traditional record store to be able to purchase the LP. Following the death of Cobain. the third single “Pennyroyal Tea” was canceled, as well as any tour plans. Immediately following his death, the popularity of In Utero on the charts increased by 122% from 72 to 27. The album would eventually be certified five times platinum.

Critics were not unanimous in the praise of In Utero. For the most part, rock writers really liked the new sound from Nirvana. Time’s Christopher John Farley noted that once again perhaps the mainstream may need to go to Nirvana, rather than the other way around. David Browne of Entertainment Weekly emphasized the absolute contrasts on the release. “The music is often mesmerizing, cathartic rock & roll, but it is rock & roll without release, because the band is suspicious of the old-school rock clichés such a release would evoke." David Fricke of Rolling Stone would say that the record was both “brilliant and corrosive,” but undoubtedly a “triumph of the will” for Kurt Cobain. NME’s John Mulvey did not share the same sentiment as he observed the album really was not up to par with previous Nirvana standards. The review from Plugged In did not mince words saying it had absolutely no redeeming value whatsoever. Some reviews became quite bittersweet as you are reminded of Cobain’s suicide. Q said this about the record. "If this is how Cobain is going to develop, the future is lighthouse-bright." Ben Thompson of the Independent merely seemed happy that the record did not represent the punk rock nightmare the group had continually threatened to release. In Utero would go on to top several end of the year lists as one of the best albums including Rolling Stone, Village Voice, and the New York Times. The band would even receive a Grammy nomination in 1994 for Best Alternative Album. As time has passed, critics have lavished even more phrase on it seeing their work with Albini as far superior to Nevermind. Charles R. Cross would write in his Cobain biography, “If it is possible for an album that sold four million copies to be overlooked, or underappreciated, then In Utero is that lost pearl." Pitchfork named it the 13th best album of the 1990s, while it even made Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. NME named it number 35 on its greatest albums of all time list creating quite a sense of irony since the periodical did not think too much of the album at the time of its release.

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lila-sarows · 4 years ago

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my The College Tapes ep 2 thoughts

I just have so many opinions but overall i’m so excited!!! spoilers below

i love Caleb so much you guys. SO MUCH. I really missed him...

This sound design is phenomenal and the song is a BOP

The way he takes a breath to center himself... Dr Bright would be so proud. I’M so proud.

Caleb not knowing what he’s doing with his life... mood

The SOUND DESIGN. MISHA HOW

What happened at his internship??? Betting it has to do with his “evolving” abilities

Frankie is such a NERD i love him

Okay of course I’m fully committed to Adam/Caleb but Cole’s phone number delivery was cute

“You order tea, he MAKES the tea, it’s a tale as old as time” agshflshsk

Caleb is a leader who makes people feel valued... that’s my BOY

If frankie doesn’t find the love of his life during this show i will be distraught

“What do YOU mean by something” this is the funiest and least effective conversation I’ve ever heard

Caleb’s new ability... oh no. That has to be so triggering for him after everything with Damien. (Also does Caleb have a new therapist?)

Ben’s enthusiasm is the cutest thing

Ok Ben’s cheating thing is definitely foreshadowing

The music is absolutely perfect

Mark not having changed his voicemail in 3 years is HYSTERICAL to me

Unrelated but i hope tct doesn’t burst my bubble where mark and sam are together and happy bc i refuse to hear it

Also the fact that Caleb and mark talk regularly... 🥺

WHAT are we talking about. What worked?? Did he use his new ability??

Cole is eh (but I’m biased). Caleb’s adorkable.

“OOOOO!!! i’m. i’m an electropath” i am in stitches

Does Caleb have, like, atypical street cred now?

THEY’RE TALKING

“What do you need” “i need your help” talk to me” I’m going to CRY

Even broken up these two are there for each other!! No questions asked!! I’m EMO

Ok other unrelated thoughts/predictions

I’m actually surprisingly okay with them being broken up right now. They’ve had rocky periods before, it’s been almost 4 years, it’s long distance... it makes sense. I think it’ll be really interesting to see how they act around each other now. (Of course if they’re not back together by the end of the show i will be Out For Blood but I’ll give the writers the benefit of the doubt)

Thinking that their breakup must have something to do with Caleb’s new ability... if I had to guess I’d say Caleb accidentally used it on Adam and freaked out and pushed him away

The writing was so good! They actually sound like college kids and the jokes were funny. Proud of Briggon for his first solo ep!!

I’m loving these new characters and voice actors. Caitlin and Frankie have my entire heart <3

I’m kinda wary of another secret society storyline because I though the Order was ... so boring... in TBS but we’ll see how it goes

Can’t wait to hear more about this time manipulation stuff, very spooky

#the college tapes #tct #tbs #tct spoilers #the college tapes spoilers

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stereogeekspodcast · 4 years ago

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[Transcript] Season 1, Episode 9. Detective Mode – Let's Talk Future Disney Properties

Disney Investor Day was a lot! We break down the biggest announcements from the event, focusing on our two favourite franchises, Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. What are we most excited about from Disney's upcoming slate? What aren't we completely sold about? Which properties have us concerned? Find out more during this episode!

There will be spoilers for The Mandalorian Season 2, so keep an ear out.

Listen to the episode on Anchor.

Read Mon's round-up of all the Star Wars news on Bam Smack Pow.

Read Ron's round-up of all the Marvel film and TV news on GIQUE Media.

[Continuum by Audionautix plays]

Ron: Hello and welcome to the first Stereo Geeks Detective Mode of 2021.

I’m Ron, and today we'll be discussing Disney Investor Day.

There will be some spoilers here for The Mandalorian Season 2, so keep an ear out.

[Continuum by Audionautix plays]

Mon: What did you think about the Disney Investor Day format?

Ron: Well, four hours is a long time for anybody to be invested in Disney Investor Day. But, for the most part, I think it worked. I liked how they divided the different studios; I didn't feel like anybody spoke for too long. It flowed quite well.

But it definitely felt like there were certain sections which were more interesting for certain audiences whereas others, not so much. It felt very DC FanDome to me, as well, because of the blue. I'm not sure why everything is blue.

But for the most part, it went off without a hitch, so that was good. I mean I guess it had to, because this wasn't really for us, it was actually for Disney investors.

It did feel a bit like an overload of information.

Mon: I also found it a little bit corporate, especially in the beginning when they were talking about all their mergers and their new initiatives and stuff. As a fan you sort of think that ‘oh, what exactly is Disney doing?’. They really feel like a giant, don’t they, when they're coming at you with ‘we've got this going on in this country, in that country, and basically they’re encompassing it all.

I was a bit frustrated by the fact that they'd be like, ‘here's this exclusive preview or a sizzle reel’, and then suddenly you're looking at two minutes of blank screen. They got clever after a while by trying to include quizzes, though we weren't really invested by that point. So, I found that a little bit frustrating because at the end of the day it’s the press, it’s the fans who are bringing you all the street cred. So, why leave us out?

Ron: Yeah, I found that very frustrating as well. In fact, I was actually wondering whether it was just us that was having a problem with that. And then I went on the internet and pretty much everybody realized that the general public weren't getting a lot of the exclusive sneak previews. I understand, in a way, maybe these aren't finished products. I mean, we know that things like Obi-Wan Kenobi are not even in production so whatever they had ready for that was not ready for public consumption. But it still felt a little bit frustrating to look at a timer or listen to a song, when you were actually expecting to see something.

I mean, for Cassian Andor they added some concept art because they don't really have any production footage to share with us. But with the big stuff you really felt like, oh my god, we’re missing out on stuff. Thankfully, there was a lot of information sent out soon after. I don't think we got the whole picture, but we got a good enough picture.

Ron: Actually, there was a lot of information going out and for the average person, keeping track of all that, it's a lot.

Mon: And if you're only invested in part of Disney, parsing through all that information is mind boggling.

Ron: Yeah, you and I had to write separate news pieces on particular Disney properties and just putting those together, it took a lot of time. But all in all, I thought it was an interesting event.

I'm actually fascinated by the fact that Disney is able to open up a corporate event like this to the general public. They must be in a really comfortable place to let the average person who would generally be buying a ticket or buying a subscription to Disney Plus, attend something like this.

Mon: Well, I'm glad because after the year that we've had where there's been so many production delays, so many shows and movies have had to be pushed back, it's good to have that kind of excitement among the press and among the fans.

They have so many projects in the pipeline, some of them which were rumored, some of them which we knew about, and others which really have blindsided us, in the best way possible.

Ron: I think, one thing that I would have liked was a little bit more interactivity. I think that's something that they can possibly bring in, in the future. This was obviously not planned. So, the way it worked, I think it went off quite well. But for future events, I see them bringing in more interactivity for the general public.

Mon: We have to remember this wasn't a convention. This was an investor meeting. So, the format is going to be different. But if they are planning to open up this event, then maybe don't have it as an Investor Day. Have that as a separate section on that particular day which you invite only the investors for, and they had that section at the end where there was an investor Q&A. Most of us had dropped off by then—we had news to cover.

But the beginning parts, for sure, they can have more interactivity, more fun.

Considering how much has gone digital, I think a lot of people may have realized how much is achievable by going online.

Ron: I would really love to know the viewership numbers for Disney Investor Day, because a lot of people tuned in.

Mon: Despite it not being that heavily promoted among the average person.

Ron: So anyway, it's good that we all got to participate in some way or the other. And I'm hoping that other corporations also take a leaf out of Disney's book because it's really good to find out what is happening behind the scenes, because just looking at the initial Disney announcements during that event. My gosh, Disney owns a lot. It's actually a little bit creepy how much of a monopoly they're becoming, but at least we know about it.

Mon: So, let's talk about the announcements, because at the end of the day, it was still really, really exciting time to be a fan.

Ron: If you're a fan of Disney live-action, Disney Animation, Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel, Hulu, ESPN, HotStar, Star, there's just so much stuff, and it's all connected to Disney. There was going to be some announcement or the other that got you excited.

For us it was definitely the Star Wars and Marvel news that was most interesting, but there are other things as well that piqued our interest.

There wasn't much live-action news from Disney. There were a few films as I mentioned—we already knew about some things like The Little Mermaid, Cruella. A bit disappointed at the lack of Aladdin 2, not sure why we've been holding out hope for that. We love the first Aladdin live-action film, and we would love to see them again. So sad, but let's wait for that.

Aside from that, there was some interesting Pixar news as well. Lightyear, which will be about Buzz Lightyear from the Toy Story films but going to be voiced by Chris Evans.

Mon: Yes, that's because Chris Evans is playing the actor who the Buzz Lightyear toy is based on. Yes, it's confusing.

Ron: We were very confused. I had to check with a lot of people about it, and then that's how we finally figured out who Chris Evans was going to be actually voicing. So yeah, who knew Buzz Lightyear had that backstory? Definitely not me.

There were also interesting animation films and TV shows that were announced. I was actually quite excited by how many characters of color we’re going to be seeing. We’ve got, Raya, Tianna, Iwájú, Encanto, they all have characters of color in the lead. And that's really cool, because Disney’s slate has usually been quite white. Still no Indians. Mon: Someday! Ron: We need South Asian representation. I'm hoping, with Disney having bought up Star Plus, there was a lot of talk about locally-made Indian content. I'm hoping that some of that comes this side so that we can actually see that.

Mon: And that it's good and representative of more of India than just Bollywood.

Ron: Yeah, that's an important point, because there's a lot in India than just Bollywood or Mumbai. So, when they say local content, we need to see pan-Indian local content. And not just with high production values, with good stories and more representation from diverse communities in India. But nothing's been confirmed yet, so we're going to have to wait a long time.

On the live-action side, though, I don't feel like there were that many people of color on screen.

Mon: I was disappointed. I mean, you were pointing out a very important fact that it seems like the live-action does tend to veer towards safer casting and safer stories, whereas the animation is much more diverse, much more varied. I'm not sure why it can't be the reverse. Why can't we have live action Moana, for example—I'm not saying you need to have a live-action Moana, I'm just saying—or, you know, Encanto can't be live-action or Iwájú, but I guess one step at a time?

Ron: It's a start. We didn't have anything much before, so it's something to be excited about. But yeah, it does seem like they're still taking baby steps and seeing the lineup of people who were speaking at Disney Investor Day, that's actually not surprising.

Mon: Yeah, I am impressed by the fact that the animated series and films that have been announced, also have diverse creative teams behind the scenes. That can really lend itself well to the quality of storytelling that we see on the screen.

Ron: Yeah, definitely. So I guess we can move on to talking about Star Wars.

Mon: Yeah.

Ron: So Lucasfilm had a ton of announcements, and they started off by saying they had 10 Star Wars series in the pipeline for Disney Plus. Considering, till now, we've had just two seasons of The Mandalorian, that's a huge task.

So, quick rundown of what shows they've announced we've got Rangers of the New Republic, Ahsoka, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Bad Batch, Star Wars: Visions, Lando, The Acolyte and A Droid Story. If you're counting properly, that's nine, because the 10th one was a surprise that we only found out after The Mandalorian Season 2 was done and dusted.

If you stayed for the after credits scene, you would have found out that the 10th series was The Book of Boba Fett. We got to say, we're excited.

Mon: Definitely.

Ron: So, thoughts on that extensive lineup?

Mon: I'm so excited. Ron: There’s so much Star Wars. Mon: I know, it such a great thing!

Ron: I'm excited, but I'm also full of trepidation. And I’m annoyed that I feel that.

Mon: Oh, why?

Ron: Well, as much as I enjoyed The Mandalorian Season 1, there were issues with it. The lack of female characters—Cara Dune was pretty much the only female character and she came in a few episodes into the first season. We don’t see as many people of color, not that we want to see that many people of color on a show that's really about bad guys. So that was kind of confusing as well—whose side are we on?

Season 2 was much better in terms of storytelling, we got to see people of color, we got to see some badass action scenes with ladies. Awesome.

But, it's the discourse. Let's face it, it's the Star Wars discourse. It just makes you want to not be a fan.

Mon: Maybe Disney's plan is that they will bombard fans with so much Star Wars, that people will not have time to discuss it.

Here's the thing, you’ll have some good shows, you’ll have some bad shows. There'll be some good episodes, there'll be some bad episodes. We can just hope that the end product is as good as they can make it, and that we enjoy it. That it’s relevant, it is topical. Star Wars has never only been about entertaining us, it's always had a message—doesn't have to be in your face, sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't—but each show should make us go away with some kind of feeling and some kind of change in perspective. In a good way.

Ron: When we think about The Mandalorian Season 2, it really felt very Star Wars. It felt like it went back to the original series; the aesthetics, the action scenes, the way we met characters, how we got to spend time with them, it felt very much like the originals, while still diving into all these other Star Wars properties. We got stuff from the books, the movies, the games, the animated shows, it was pretty exciting. And I realize that for casual fans, it was way too much and they did feel like they were just being bombarded with stuff that they had to research, but for fans who have watched and played all these things and read these books and comic books, this was great.

Mon: It really feels like it's part of a larger universe, and I appreciate the fact that they tried really hard to do that, they pulled it in.

And I think that nowadays it's easier to find out a bit of information about properties that you haven't been engaged with, so that makes sense.

Ron: So, I guess it makes sense that we're getting all these shows and that some of them are tied into The Mandalorian.

Mon: And perhaps even the Extended Universe.

Ron: It definitely feels like some of these are going to be Extended Universe stories, we just don't know how close.

The Rangers of the New Republic, I don't know what this is about.

Mon: Yeah, I agree. The assumption is that it's going to be about Cara Dune and the other Marshals, but they’re called marshals not rangers, so I'm a little bit confused. Ron: Yeah.

Mon: It does sound like a cop story or something, but at the same time what is it? I mean, it make sense, it is the New Republic, and they need somebody to…

Ron: Keep an eye on the Galaxy. We're gonna have to find out more about this when they make more announcements.

Ahsoka, I guess we have a pretty good idea of what her show is going to be about. When we met her in The Mandalorian she was very obviously looking for Grand Admiral Thrawn, presumably that's going to be her mission in her show. Will we see Sabine Wren, will we see Ezra Bridger? Will we see Hera Syndulla? I don't know, I would really love to see that.

Mon: Only if they cast them well.

Ron: Yes. Good point. Mon: I’m excited for that show. It's a limited series as far as I could tell, but you never know, a limited series could turn into several seasons if something is popular. But I'm excited for this, because we like this character—I'm still not sure about the live-action version—but I'm excited. Even more so if they can bring in the Rebels cast.

Ron: Yes.

With Andor,we got a sneak peek of the concept art, and it feels like the supporting costs seem to be very white, once again.

Mon: Yeah I'm not entirely sure about it. It sounded very exciting when they first mentioned it. Now I feel like maybe it's already feeling a little bit over-bloated with so many people thrown into the cast. Well, let's see. I mean Diego Luna is so excited to be back in the Star Wars universe and I'm hoping that his enthusiasm and excitement just screams off the screen, and pulls us all in.

Ron: Yeah, because Rogue One is probably my favorite Star Wars film. I love those characters; I would love to spend more time with those characters. I'm really hoping that they make Andor well, that it’s well received, that the fans really enjoy it, and that it gives them impetus to create a solo series for the other characters. I would love to spend more time with Jyn Erso, and Bodhi Rook and Chirrut and Baze.

Mon: I agree with you.

Ron: The Obi-Wan Kenobi series, we didn't get to see anything from that because…

Mon: We got to see the logo!

Ron: Yeah, we got to see the logo. Yay.

But they did make the surprising announcement that Hayden Christensen would be back as Darth Vader.

Mon: Yeah, I'm really confused about that because they specified Darth Vader, and not Anakin Skywalker.

It doesn't make sense to me, because Hayden Christensen is Anakin, Darth Vader is some guy in a suit voiced by James Earl Jones.

Ron: Yeah, that's definitely got me confused as well, because James Earl Jones's voice as Darth Vader, there is no other version. And putting him in the suit doesn't make much sense—he was in the suit in the final act of Revenge of the Sith, but what's the point then?

Mon: Yeah, not sure. I feel like they have a plan. They wouldn't be telling us that it's specifically Hayden, specifically playing Darth if there wasn't a reason for it. Ron: Yes.

There is some speculation that it might be part of Obi-Wan's quest to become one with the Force, and he sees Anakin. We don't know. From what we understand of the process, it's mostly Obi-Wan communing with Qui-Gonn Jinn and maybe Master Yoda, but Anakin isn’t really even mentioned in this part of the process. But he could be.

Mon: Kathleen Kennedy mentioned that it's going to be the rematch of the century, between Obi-Wan and Darth. So, let's see. I'm excited for the show. I think it might be one of the more pensive, cerebral shows in the Star Wars universe. Ron: Yeah I'm definitely excited for that.

The Bad Batch, what are your thoughts?

Mon: I was excited mainly by the confirmation that Fennec Shand will be showing up, and she’ll be voiced by Ming-Na Wen, that the actual Bad Batch themselves.

Ron: When we met with in The Clone Wars Season 7, like they’re interesting, but I didn't quite take to them enough for me to want to watch an entire series about them.

Mon: There was something about the trailer that really threw me off, which was that the Bad Batch appear to be working with the Empire and the Imperials. They're definitely in cahoots with Tarkin. So, are we watching the series about the bad guys? Ron: The Imperials are interesting in their own way because whenever we meet them they seem to be cowardly, they seem to be a bit stupid, so that's quite fascinating. But an entire series of superpowered clones helping them out? I'm not sure about that. The reason why The Clone Wars worked for me was that they made me really care about those clones. Like, 99, I mean, come on. We wept. We wept at that episode. It was so sad. But everybody else, like Rex and Fives and that entire contingent, you really cared about them.

And despite the fact that most of them looked alike, they had these little personality traits, they did things that were different so that they could stand out from each other. I think the Bad Batch is too far away from the clones that we're used to seeing. And the time that we got to spend with them, it wasn't very meaningful. And the other thing is that we watched The Clones Wars Season 7 after the announcement that The Bad Batch is going to get a spin-off. And I remember being like, ‘okay, we have to see what these guys are all about’. And they weren't very interesting. So yeah, I'm a bit unsure about this. Mon: My biggest worry is that they won't have a good enough foil for us to be invested in these characters. With The Clone Wars series, you had these armies of clone troopers, and you'd be like, ‘oh, they're all these guys’, but they had the foil of Ahsoka, of Padmé and the other Jedi, so you felt like yeah, there was some balance in there. I don't know if just Fennec Shand can do that. She's just one character.

Ron: Yeah. Mon: Look, you know, if they've got a supporting cast of diverse and varied characters, we could be in for a really fascinating show which shows us the darker side of the Star Wars universe, which we always like, but we don't get as much. Or, it could be the Bad Batch, if they don't have the same chip which makes them go Order 66 on people, maybe they’re double agents.

Rob: Oh, that’s interesting. Let's see.

Mon: I'm still excited because the production values on that animation, wow! There's no doubt about the kind of quality that we're going to get, it's the quality of storytelling that we’re worried about.

Ron: Yeah.

So, we also have the Lando series. There's so little information about this.

Mon: Is it live-action? Is it animated? Which Lando are we going to be following?

Ron: For some reason, when I heard the announcement my first thought was, ‘oh this is totally about Donald Glover's Lando’. But then when I was reading up about it later on, everybody was like is this about Billy Dee Williams, is this about Donald Glover? And I was like, oh okay so we're not sure about that.

We need a Lando series, in all honesty. He was the best part of Solo, that film was a disaster, and we need more Lando—that movie needed more Lando. So yeah, a series is a great idea, but I don't know what we're gonna get.

Mon: I hope that whatever they do, they make him fun and outlandish, but also a really complex character because we know that Billy Dee Williams’ Lando he's always been like that. He's so layered. So, let's hope that the series itself does justice to that character and his legacy.

Ron: Yeah. So, we also have a couple of other series that were mentioned. Star Wars: Visions, The Acolyte, A Droid’s Story, there's not much information about these and they don't seem to be tied in directly with the properties that we've already seen.

Mon: Yeah, so A Droid’s Story seems to be like a family-friendly animated show. It's gonna follow C-3Po and R2-D2, and they're going to be guiding a new hero in the Star Wars universe. Not sure what that means but I'm sure it'll be family-friendly fare.

Ron: It’s definitely going to be made to sell another new little droid toy. Mon: Oh, god not another D-O. [laughs]

Star Wars: Visions, that's a really interesting one. It’s going to be anime creators creating their own versions or visions of Star Wars characters and worlds. I'm really interested to see what they do this, Star Wars has always borrowed heavily from Asian cultures, Japanese culture especially, so this is a nice way to give back. I'd like to see their take on it.

Ron: Yeah, I don't quite understand the concept, but it seems like something that might be interesting to watch. So, let's see where that goes.

And The Acolyte is the only show that's really set outside of the time period that we're used to watching in the live-action and animated series and films. I don't mind getting to know a little bit more of the universe, before and after the periods that we’ve seen. The Mandalorian is set shortly after the Battle of Endor. so that shows you how well that concept can work. The Acolyte is going to be a little bit more about the Sith, which should be interesting.

I quite like the Sith, they’re quite fascinating. But I don't want to feel like I like the Sith, if you get what I mean.

The 10th series in the lineup, which was not mentioned was The Book of Boba Fett. Boba Fett appeared during the second season of The Mandalorian. Temuera Morrison is back as the character, and I think it's awesome. He's awesome in it. He looks like he's having a gala time playing the character. I can't wait to see more of him and Fennec Shand taking over the Hutt Empire.

Mon: I foresee them doing good in the galaxy far far away.

Ron: We also got a hint of some of the Star Wars movies that we can expect in the next few years. We know the Taika Waititi is going to be working on a Star Wars film, but there are no details available on that.

And the surprise announcement was Patty Jenkins is making a Rogue Squadron film. I love the video announcement that came out just after the Disney Investor Day. It's just Patty Jenkins talking about her father who was a fighter pilot and how she wanted to make a movie about pilots, and she also loves Star Wars. And now she gets to bring both her two loves together, and it was just great.

I'm really excited to watch a Rogue Squadron movie. I used to love the Rogue Squadron books in the Star Wars Alternate Universe. So yeah, a film would be great.

Mon: And I can imagine that she’ll bring all that unique depth and diversity that she's brought to Wonder Woman. Let's just hope that Star Wars and Disney really let her spread her wings. Ron: Yes, absolutely.

So that was a lot of the Star Wars announcements, but another studio that we're really excited about, of course, is Marvel. The Marvel announcement was massive.

Mon: We have to ask ourselves, at this point, what isn't happening in the Marvel Universe?

Ron: Oh my gosh, it's all happening, dude. It’s all happening. Now, Marvel was supposed to debut a few series this year on Disney Plus, but of course the pandemic came in the way, so that did not happen.

We're actually going to get our first Marvel Disney Plus series on January 15, 2021 with WandaVision. I am really excited about that. We got to see another brand new trailer for the show on Disney Investor Day. It looks very kooky, and kind of fun, but also seems to be a little bit dark. At least the latest trailer definitely shows that it's a bit darker than we thought. And you know what, it's been a long time since he saw Vision, I miss him.

Mon: Yeah, I'm intrigued by this series. It seems to be a combination of the multiverse and time travel. We've not seen a lot of that in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Any chance to give Wanda some extra screen time and to really grow into her powers and her character is awesome.

Ron: Wanda is one of my favorite Marvel characters in the MCU. I think she is great. She is so powerful and she's… she's really cool. She's just really cool. She and Quicksilver are twins so, of course, you and I are going to like that. But, yeah, Wanda is amazing and I can't wait to see more of her.

Mon: Yeah, and that's tied into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Ron: Yeah, I'm totally excited about this. I know a lot of people didn't take to the Doctor Strange movie—I kind of liked it. I have seen it a couple of times after that, but I haven't seen it in a couple of years. But, I think Doctor Strange is really cool and his aesthetic is awesome.

Like, in Infinity War, every time Doctor Strange did anything, I was just like, ‘that is so cool’. And a friend told us that the golden things he makes in the air, they’re called Mandalas. So yeah, those are awesome. I totally want some more of that.

Mon: Yeah, I think it's nice that the Marvel Universe is really expanding on its own mythos. Like in Avengers: Endgame, they totally went into time travel. Now, we're gonna actually have some multiverse and not the fakey stuff that Mysterio talked about. So, let's see, I'm excited.

Ron: I think that's gonna be so fun. But I also think the MCU needs it. Avengers: Endgame kind of messed everything up. We've been tearing our hair out for two years now trying to figure out what state the Marvel Universe is actually in, because the Avengers made a mess of the 2012 timeline. We need these movies to fix them.

And if WandaVision ties into Doctor Strange 2, and fixes that, that's awesome. One of the interesting things is that WandaVision is also going to be tied into Spidey 3.

Mon: Considering Spidey 3 has basically turned into Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, but live action and with Peter Parker, yeah sure, that makes sense.

Ron: I don't know how I feel about all these announcements. Spidey 3 really wasn't mentioned much during Disney Investor Day.

Mon: Yeah, that's because most of those are unconfirmed rumors. We don't actually know what is going to happen, who's gonna be in there. People are just conjecturing left, right and center. I don't want it to be over bloated. I don't want them to forget about Peter Parker, and the rest of the crew, because they want something big, but we do have to remember that Marvel is playing ball with Sony once again, so we may have a change in temperament and quality and storytelling.

Ron: But I also don't want a live action Into the Spider-Verse when we have an animated Into the Spider-Verse which is really good!

Mon: Which is awesome and hello, it won an Oscar.

Ron: Exactly. And it had Miles Morales as the protagonist. Peter Parker has already stolen like a lot of Miles’ comics stuff for the live-action series in the MCU. We don't need him to steal this. As much as I love the MCU Peter Parker, that still stands.

Mon: Yeah, he needs to be unique in his own way and I'm really worried that they're just jumping on the more popular bandwagon—which is really funny to say that. But anyway, so be it.

But it was interesting to note that there was no Spidey information or confirmation at Disney Investor Day. So we'll have to see.

Ron: Yeah.

Mon: So, moving away from those guys, we have The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Now this series is what half the universe is excited about because everybody loves Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

We got our first proper look at this show. It looks dark and grim. And lots of action. And then there’s some banter shoehorned in because they have to. Man, that trailer was not good.

Ron: I was hoping you would say that because I didn't feel like it did anything either. This trailer does not make me feel excited.

Mon: I'm really hoping that they just slapped something together because production was delayed, and they had a deadline to meet. So, you know, we all feel you Marvel trailer people. But yeah, I was not sure, I just didn't feel that kind of chemistry that we are so used to seeing from Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie from the MCU films. Ron: Yeah, the chemistry did not come across; the banter that we saw was very forced. It just looked like it was not well made. Mon: Yeah, the production values look amazing.

Ron: Always

Mon: like Falcon flying—looks so good! It takes you back to when you first saw Falcon flying.

Together: So good, so good.

Ron: The rest of it, not so much.

Together: Yeah.

Ron: Why’s Bucky so grumpy?

Mon: Yeah, what’s his problem? Like, smile a little bit! Well, his friend, kind of… it doesn't matter.

Ron: Steve was both of their friend. So, yeah.

Mon: I don't want them to be like Falcon’s got this huge weight on his shoulders—quite literally because the shield is probably heavy—and like that's why he can't smile anymore. Sam is funny, he is such a sweetheart…

Ron: Yes!

Mon: And Bucky, he has this really snarky sense of humor. And I didn't feel that.

Ron: It didn’t like it was them.

Mon: We’re gonna give them the benefit of the doubt, because I really do feel like they had to put in whatever footage they had to give some character and action, you know, they just follow the notes. I think that the show is going to be better than what the trailer showed us. Ron: It had better be. Mon: Also, what was up with that weird, long joke about Bucky’s positronic brain. Bucky’s human!

Ron: His brain doesn't have any machinery in it.

Mon: Yeah, I mean, unless in Wakanda he became an Android.

Ron: I don't know. Man, I hope this stuff gets explained.

Mon: This is like six episodes of a Marvel film—basically that's how they said it—but it better have the quality of the writing too, not just the look.

Mon: Yes. Okay, so, Loki. This is the other half of the universe who's excited for the show.

Ron: Yeah, people are losing their minds over this Loki trailer.

Mon: Were you underwhelmed?

Ron: I loved it.

Mon: No way! I was so not into it!

Ron: Okay, so when I first saw it, I was like, what is going on? Then I did some research and I found out more about the timey-wimey stuff. And then I was like, okay, you know, this is kind of exciting. But yes, I did need to do some research.

Mon: Okay, because like Kevin Feige introduced the Loki trailer by saying, if you're confused watching it, don't worry, Loki feels the same way. And I was like, I am more confused than Loki watching this. It didn't make any sense to me and I'm like, who are these people, what are they doing? And I'm like, I don't understand Loki either. Loki is an understandable kind of guy, but I didn't feel him. So, I don’t understand.

Ron: I was surprisingly excited to see Loki again. I thought I had said my goodbyes in Infinity War. And then when I saw him again in Avengers: Endgame, I was like, awww, Loki. And then I was like okay, now I’ve said my goodbyes again. When I saw this trailer. Oh, Loki, you’re back.

Mon: We have to, as fans, sort of change gears, about which Loki this is. This is because the Loki who was killed in Infinity War, he was the kind of guy, like we're bleeding hearts for him. But this one? This one's the meanie.

Ron: Yeah, this is a different version. So, I'm interested to see how that goes. It's got time travel in it and so I'm excited.

Mon: Look, time travel is your boo! So, they do it right, this could be something spectacular.

Ron: Yeah, and I really hope that this is also a kind of a way for Loki to be reintroduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I don't know, but that's my hope. It'll be good, you know, Thor and Loki together again. That'd be great. He misses his brother.

Mon: Yeah, Thor’s kind of had a bad time. He really deserves to have his brother back.

Ron: Now, a series that I am excited about is What If…?

Mon: Oh my god, I couldn't believe it. When they first announced it I was like, no way, they’re actually going to do this? And then we saw the trailer. This was a good trailer.

Ron: This was a good trailer. This got me excited. We got to see little bits. I feel that there's definitely more to this particular show than they're letting on. That's definitely exciting. Whatever we got to see, we are certainly looking forward to seeing more. So, what did we get to see in the trailer? We see a different Starlord. Not exactly Peter Quill. Now, it's T’Challa, and is voiced by Chadwick Boseman in one of his last roles. We also get to see Peggy Carter as Captain America. We get to see Bucky facing off against a kind of zombie Captain America. And we see Stephen Strange facing off against a dark version of himself. Looks exciting.

Mon: It does. Because the What If… stories in the comics really allowed the creators to investigate and examine alternative points of view, and alternate decisions by the different characters. We always used to love reading the What If… stories, and I'm glad that Marvel Studios is really using their resources to create as many stories as they can. I mean, they’re milking it, we understand, but we get a little more entertainment, we get to see different perspectives. Peggy as Captain America is such a novel concept and I love that idea.

Ron: I mean, it makes you wonder why Peggy wasn’t Captain America in the first place.

Mon: Exactly! And the animation was so different from the other Disney animations that we'd seen throughout the day, but it's beautiful.

Ron: Yeah, I like that style. It looks good.

Mon: It does. It looks like a comic book come to life and, of course, that's the point. But if they're able to execute it as brilliantly as they did in the trailer, we are in for a good show.

Ron: Yeah, I'm really excited about this one. I love alternate stories, as well, so this is definitely up my alley.

Mon: Yeah, and I hear that the late Chadwick Boseman actually contributed his voice for several episodes. I'm not sure how often T’Challa appears but he does voice T’Challa, so that’ll be great. I hope they’re nice stories.

Ron: We also got a glimpse of the Ms Marvel show. We got news about the casting of Iman Vellani just a few months ago, so they must be shooting during the pandemic. That's exciting. We also got to see some of the supporting cast. There's a lot of controversy around this. And it just makes my head hurt. I don't understand why a company as big as Marvel and DC can’t do a little bit of background research when they cast people. Regular people on the internet can find out information and Marvel and Disney didn't find it out?

Mon: Or did they choose to ignore it? But the thing is that in today's internet age, you really need to be careful about who you're choosing, who you’re giving opportunities to. Especially in a show like Ms Marvel, which you make such a big deal about because she is so important to demographics in the US and around the world. And yet you keep making misstep after misstep. You need to be careful.

I will say that they seemed to try very hard during the Investor Day announcement to veer away from the rest of the cast and talk only about Iman Vellani. It could be because this was all shot and prepared well before the controversies began and the rest of the cast were chosen. But at the same, time I do wonder if they're trying to rethink. I need to give them the benefit of the doubt because I'm hoping that they rethink and recast. It might be too late, and we’re stuck with what we've got.

Ron: Yeah, but sometimes it takes something as simple as just putting out a statement acknowledging what people are concerned about. Like, Rosario Dawson, she does know about what people are saying about the allegations against her, and she did mention it in that interview with Variety. It does make me feel a lot better. I know a lot of people still don't really take her word for it, and that's completely an understandable reaction, but at least she's saying something. The thing is, I wish she had said something earlier. But I understand that she couldn't have because, despite rumors circulating from what, the beginning of the year, that Rosario Dawson was going to be playing Ahsoka, the lead up to the actual episode was all hush-hush, and it was only when we got to ‘The Jedi’, that we met Ahsoka Tano. It did make me feel better though.

Mon: Okay. But there are other problems.

Ron: There are. There's Gina Carano and her wildly insensitive and dangerous tweets about the pandemic and mask wearing and what she put as her pronouns. The thing is that these aren't things that happen in a vacuum. People are very vocal about it, a whole bunch of us, because of Gina Carano’s nonsense, ended up putting our pronouns in our bios, because we were like, okay, this is definitive, this is what we feel. And maybe we’re not very comfortable with our pronouns at this moment, but that's the one we're going with for now.

Mon: I just think that if you're a celebrity in the 21st century, you know how influential you are. You also know how far and wide every tweet goes. You need to be more careful about who you're hiring. And for Marvel, Disney, and DC to be so blinkered about it is quite shocking. Now we don't know how far the controversy around Miss Marvel and the casting goes, we can only hope that by the time the show actually does reach our screens that it does right by the fans who are so eager to watch it.

Ron: If you want more information about the controversies around the Ms Marvel casting, you can check out the Twitter hashtag #FixMsMarvel.

Mon: All right, let's be a little bit more positive here. We've got a few more announcements for the other shows, for example, to the surprise of absolutely nobody, Hawkeye has got Kate Bishop and yes, she's being played by Hailee Steinfeld. Everybody knew it. Somehow Disney did not think to surprise us. Or maybe people just have too many cameras nowadays, because we have the images and everything.

Ron: Yes.

Mon: Lots of people are excited. I am underwhelmed by this show. I don't know why. I like Hawkeye in the movies, but Jeremy Renner is a problem.

Ron: And the thing is, the Renner problems happened after he was in the MCU. Literally, in the last year, since Avengers: Endgame, these issues with him have come to light. How is he still here?

Mon: I know. You could have moved completely away from Hawkeye and just concentrated on Kate Bishop, but no, Hawkeye is still there.

Ron: Maybe he’ll die in this show.

Mon: He should have died in Endgame! Having talked about Hawkeye, Black Widow is still not coming to Disney Plus. We do not know if Disney is actually going to change their mind about this. I understand why. I understand that they want it to hit theaters. Because, let's be honest, in a couple of years when the gurus of film sit down and talk about how Wonder Woman and Black Widow and Mulan didn’t actually hit the theaters, they’ll come up with some hogwash about why these women-led films didn't make it to the theaters, ignoring the fact that we were in a pandemic.

Ron: I still think this is a terrible decision. You know why? Vaccine or no vaccine, how comfortable are we really going to be going to a theater to watch a movie, sitting next to a person, you don't know it they’ve washed their hands?

Mon: Can you imagine if somebody coughs?

Ron: Oh gosh, the entire theater will evacuate. This has been nine months of paranoia. This is a pandemic. It's unprecedented, the kind of situation that we're living in right now. It's scary. There are some people who willingly go out there thinking, for some reason, that they are immune to COVID-19. But most of us with brains know that we have to stay home. We're not gonna run into a theater. If you put it on Disney Plus, the chances of more people seeing it are huge. You're not going to make that much money if you put it in theaters. That's what I think.

Mon: Unless they’re going around actually sabotaging this film. Wow, I’m negative. I'm hoping for the best. I hope Disney sees the light if this situation continues. And listen, with the new regime taking over in the US, it's still going to take time. Because people need to be making a difference in their daily lives. Till a substantial amount of change happens globally and in the US, trying to insist on having a theater release seems premature.

Ron: And also, let's not forget, the Disney higher-ups may be getting the vaccine first, but people who actually go to theaters, it's going to be months before we get it. Yeah, I really don't understand. Maybe they're holding out hope, but I feel like they're going to have to change their decision eventually.

Mon: Yeah, I think a year of languishing in theater-hell will make them change their mind eventually.

Ron: Yeah

Mon: And also, maybe the anticipation is built up. It’s anyway been built up for a year. Then, once we get into the groove of the MCU once again with the TV shows, maybe they'll think, okay we've got enough eyes and subscribers, people will start coming and it’ll be worth putting it on the channel.

Ron: Well, hopefully, because I'm actually beginning to forget the Black Widow movie exists.

Mon: Yeah, they have to keep reminding us.

Ron: Seriously. They need to do something. Speaking of the movies, we’ve got confirmation that Captain Marvel 2 is going to be happening. And Nia DaCosta is going to be directing it, which is great. Also exciting, Ms Marvel from the TV show is going to be appearing in that, and so is a grown up Monica Rambeau, who we are going to be meeting in WandaVision. This pretty much tracks with the timeframe. Because Captain Marvel, the first one, took place in the 90s. Monica was still a young girl then. Presumably, Captain Marvel 2 is going to be set after Avengers: Endgame. So, Monica should be grown up by then.

Mon: Yeah, I'm excited to see what this film can be. We really liked the first film. It may have been a little bit safe storytelling-wise, it was a bit formulaic, but it's definitely different from the usual so we’re hardly going to complain. I feel like a brand new voice in Nia DaCosta? Can't wait to see what she can bring to the plate.

Ron: Yeah, absolutely.

Mon: And that's what I really liked about the announcements from Marvel. It's that we get to see diversity on the screen, but there's also diversity behind the scenes.

Ron: Absolutely. Like the Ms Marvel TV show is being directed, and the showrunners are all people of colour. So that's really exciting.

Mon: Yeah. And we even have Moon Knight, for example, has an Egyptian showrunner.

Ron: Yeah, no confirmation about who will be playing Moon Knight. There's a lot of talk about Oscar Isaac taking on the role but then Moon Knight is supposed to have Egyptian roots. Feige even mentioned that there's going to be a lot of Egyptian iconography in the show, so maybe they are holding out for an Egyptian actor. I really hope so, because there's no point having somebody who's not Egyptian in a TV show that is full of Egyptian aesthetics.

Mon: Let's be honest. Oscar Isaac does not make a good Egyptian, as we saw with X-Men: Apocalypse.

Ron: He tried, poor man.

Mon: That was such a terrible film! How do you take Oscar Isaac and apocalypse and make a disaster? But anyway, moving on. She-Hulk. Oh my god, what's happening with this show? First of all, we got confirmation that Tatiana Maslany was going to play She-Hulk. But then she rescinded? And now they’ve confirmed that she is She-Hulk.

Ron: There were so many rumours this year before Disney Investor Day, and they’ve all pretty much got confirmed at the event. Is Disney even trying to hide any of this stuff or what?

Mon: I'm just trying to figure out what is going on. Why are all these rumors reaching people, whereas Disney is still waiting to make the announcements?

Ron: I don't know. It was kind of weird. Like there are certain things which I was just like, huh, yeah this is not a surprise. That was probably the one aspect of Disney Investor Day that didn't work for me because we were already writing these pieces up.

Mon: Yeah, I mean, I think that when they were making these presentations, they probably didn't know that this was going to be the reaction because people had already seen the rumors, or they'd been confirmed. I don't know how long ago they actually put this stuff together.

Ron: But Disney needs to look into their sources! Who is leaking all this information?

Mon: So, She-Hulk is also going to have Tim Roth, returning as the Abomination.

Ron: What? Why?

Mon: No idea. Mark Ruffalo will be back as the Hulk. I really hope he's just Bruce Banner, not Hulk, or worse, Professor Hulk.

Ron: I didn't take to Professor Hulk either.

Mon: Yeah, I know some people really like the character and I appreciate that, but oh no, I don’t like him. So, I read recently that it's actually going to be a half hour, law comedy. I am so intrigued and I want to watch this show.

Ron: Oh really? That sounds fun.

Mon: Yeah. I mean, Tatiana Maslany’s so talented. She can do anything so I'm really intrigued to see what they can do with it.

Ron: Yeah, Feige did mention that, since it's going to be about lawyers, we should probably expect other Marvel characters to appear on the show. So of course, everybody's got excited thinking Daredevil is going to be coming back.

Mon: Oh, I was thinking Jessica Jones. She's not a lawyer, but she's a PI, and that’s kind of connected.

Ron: Listen, just bring my Defenders back somehow. I want my Defenders!

Mon: So, a really fun, and really good, exciting announcement was Ironheart! I’m so happy that this legacy character is getting her own show. And it’s going to be live-action, which is even better.

Ron: Yes.

Mon: Hopefully, it won't be all about, oh, I miss Tony, I miss Tony. Because, you know what, I love Spider-Man, and I love Peter Parker, but he is way too wrapped up in Tony. And I understand that when you're watching the movies, you're already very into it. But when you come away from it, then it's like, Peter needs his own characterization, which isn't attached to Tony.

Ron: He doesn't have a life outside of Tony. It's extremely frustrating.

Mon: Yeah.

Ron: So, what do you think about Armor Wars?

Mon: I am all for seeing Don Cheadle back as War Machine. That character is so cool. Don Cheadle is just so effortless as a superhero.

Ron: He's awesome.

Mon: This story is based on a comic run, and of course, that has more to do with Tony. Here, from the synopsis, it appears that this is one of Tony's worst nightmares, but War Machine has to deal with it. So, my assumption is that, obviously, somehow Tony’s tech, his armor, has got into the wrong hands. Who could it be, we don't know. I’m assuming Sam Rockwell is coming back.

Ron: Oh really?

Mon: That is my assumption. People really like that guy so he might come back.

Ron: Isn’t he in jail?

Mon: Endgame happened. Lots of things have changed!

Ron: Okay, that's a good point.

Mon: This is just me speculating. So, I just feel like it will be interesting because if it’s Tony’s nightmare and War Machine’s got to deal with it, then that changes the whole perspective altogether. So, I’m intrigued, I’m intrigued. Also, more War Machine is a good thing.

Ron: Yes.

Mon: Okay. What do you think about Secret Invasion.

Ron: Dude, I have no idea what to think about this.

Mon: Disney is really running with the chemistry between Talos and Fury. But you know, the premise is pretty interesting. Because if the Skrulls, who are shapeshifters, have taken over every layer of humanity, it's really fascinating to see the whole ‘who can you trust’ issue.

Ron: Yeah, that angle, definitely quite interesting. I'm actually quite surprised that Talos and Fury are getting their own run. I like Talos. I think he's cool. And Nick Fury, you know, we really haven't got to see as much of him as we would have expected. He was great in Captain Marvel.

Mon: Just so much fun to see him.

Ron: My only concern about Secret Invasion is I don't want them painting the Skrulls as bad guys.

Mon: Yeah, yeah, no, I agree with you. Because the whole point of Captain Marvel is that the film really turned on its head who we think the bad guys are. I'm really hoping that it's just a faction of Skrulls. Because you have bad guys in everything, right?

Ron: Yeah.

Mon: There's a faction of Skrulls who are sent on Earth and they just take it the wrong way.

Ron: Yeah, I'm hoping that it's something like that. Because the refugee storyline in Captain Marvel was really hard-hitting. I thought it was really lovely. I'm not sure how I feel about Secret Invasion. We have to see it.

Mon: Yeah, there's no other species, per se, in the main Marvel Universe that they can play with in this fashion. I hope that they’re still sensitive to the topic, that at the end of the day, the Skrulls who were saved by Mar-Vell are still refugees who require and deserve to get a peaceful life. But there's always some bad eggs. Fury and Talos are dealing with them.

Ron: Yeah, yeah. We also got some Guardians of the Galaxy news. There is going to be a Holiday Special before the third film comes out. I don't know how I feel about that.

Mon: Sometimes I feel like Marvel milks the wrong things.

Ron: Do we want more Guardians of the Galaxy?

Mon: I think that having a third part is bad enough. The second film was just underwhelming to me. I have not gone back and seen it.

Ron: You know what I would like to see? A movie about Gamora and Nebula. That's all I want to see. I don't care about the others, just those two. Oh, and throw Mantis in there! Yeah. Mantis, Gamora, and Nebula, all I want to see.

Mon: I hope Disney is listening.

Ron: We're also going to get an I Am Groot series.

Mon: This is definitely a reason to sell toys to kids and make a Seedling-Groot version which is cuter than baby Yoda, so we have more Christmas decorations.

Alright, so back to the films, because we forgot a few things, didn't we? So, Ant-Man and the Wasp is going to be called Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Ron: I think that sounds fun!

Mon: I love the name so much! Paul Rudd is back. Evangeline Lilly is back. She’s apologized for her pandemic snafu, so that's great.

Ron: Oh, thank goodness.

Mon: Yeah. Michael Douglas is back, and so is Michelle Pfeiffer. So excited. I love those four, they are so good in the films. Can’t wait to see them again. I am upset that they recast Cassie!

Ron: Why do we have now an older Cassie, than the older version that we already saw in Endgame?

Mon: I have no idea. The actress who played Cassie is also upset. She found out the same day that the Disney Investor Day announcement happened.

Ron: Oh, that's so mean.

Mon: That is mean! I don't like people who do that. At least let her know that she's not coming back and she's been replaced.

Ron: That's a bit disappointing.

Mon: They are going ahead with Black Panther 2. They've mentioned that they're not going to recast T’Challa, which people had anyway surmised. I'm very glad for that. Ryan Coogler is hard at work, we were told, rewriting the script. So, let's see what they can do. Eternals, there’s no new news about that, but we’re finally going to see it in theaters. “Theaters” in quotes.

Ron: Shang-Chi is also expected to be in theaters. Looks like Marvel is just going with that tactic. Let's see. These films, Black Widow, Shang-Chi, and Eternals, they are ready for release.

Mon: Yeah, Shang-Chi finished late in the Fall.

Ron: Yeah, so they're probably gonna finish off their production and everything and be ready to go.

Mon: They’ve got a really good cast over there. So, yeah, can't wait to see how the movie turns out.

Ron: Yes.

Mon: Thor 4: Love and Thunder, now has its villain. So Christian Bale is playing Gorr. Don't get excited. Gorr is a really weird-looking creature. I have no idea about this weird casting.

Ron: I just hope they let Christian Bale have fun and be funny. We need to see a funny Christian Bale. That's all I'm saying.

Mon: Is that something that exists?

Ron: It will when this movie comes out!

Mon: Amazing. All right. So, the big news which had fans actually going insane, is that Marvel is now going to make a Fantastic Four film.

Ron: Please just let them die.

Mon: Listen, Fantastic Four are the first family of Marvel. We’ve gotta hold out hope that this is going to be something spectacular. I don't know who they're gonna get to write this film, and who they’re going to get to direct this film. I'm really worried about the cast, but I want them to do something really, really good. Because the cartoon series was a lot of fun, but it was also a cartoon. The Chris Evans movies were campy fun, there were really very silly. It was supposed to be the comic book ethos and they captured that.

Less said about Fan4stic is better. How you can take such a spectacular cast of Michael B Jordan, Jamie Bell, Katie Mara, and Toby Kebbell, and make that film is still beyond me. I'm so glad that Michael B Jordan got a second chance as Erik Killmonger. I'm hoping the others also get a second chance.

But yeah, let's see what they can do. I think that Marvel is going to do something spectacular with Fantastic Four, which we've never seen before. I say this with the confidence of somebody who knows that that's not gonna happen but I can hope.

Ron: Man, I don't know. I think some properties are just cursed.

Mon: No! Don’t say that.

Ron: Fantastic Four seems like it is. It's a mess.

Mon: I feel like there is so much expectation that comes with Fantastic Four. I mean, just think about it. Just because you and I aren't that attached to Fantastic Four, doesn't mean that we don't understand how people who are feel about this. If Marvel had announced that they were making X-Men, I don't know how we would react. The weight of expectation and the amount of history that is attached to these characters, it's huge. How do you take all of that and filter it down into one film, or one franchise? And at least, Fantastic Four is only four characters and one villain, for the most part, Galactus is also there.

If they were the X-Men, oh my god, it’ll just blow your mind. They’re clever not to have announced X-Men. Let them get through this roster because it's an extensive roster, we've been talking about it for a while now. It's a huge roster! And they’re smart to leave something which could potentially be a huge golden goose for them. But yeah, Fantastic Four, I feel good about it. And I feel good about it because I'm not attached to them.

Ron: I'm totally on the fence about Fantastic Four. I do not know what to expect. The problem is not just what has come before with Fantastic Four in the live-action universe. It’s with the characters themselves. Reed Richards is a dick!

Mon: No, but that's true. But listen, can you make somebody who is like that be a teachable moment for the character, for people who are watching him?

Ron: So, where I'm coming from is that I am now at the point where I can't stand watching or reading something about a character who's unlikable. I think they get too much time in the sun.

Mon: Okay. No, that's a good point.

Ron: Like, I just watched Mank. And I was like, why are you asking me to spend two and a half hours with this man who sucks? I don't want to. And it's not fair that I'm being asked to do that. I want to hang out with people I like.

Mon: Yeah, that's true. Maybe they should turn the tables and make Invisible Woman the dick, and Reed is the poor brow-beaten spouse in the relationship.

Ron: He will find a way to make even that annoying!

Mon: Let's be positive here. I really have a good feeling about Fantastic Four coming from the MCU. I'm telling you.

Ron: I don't know where your positivity is coming from because I have none.

Mon: Well, Marvel has had an extra year of thinking about this. Because they didn't actually do like actual work during this year because of the pandemic. So, I'm thinking that's just brewing a lot of good ideas for them.

And on that positive note, we want to know which of these Star Wars, Marvel, and Disney Productions are you super excited about? Which ones do you really not want to be watching at all? What did you expect to actually be there which wasn't and you’re super-disappointed? Let us know. Send us a tweet, send us an email and happy watching!

Ron: You can find us on Twitter @Stereo_Geeks. Or send us an email [email protected]. We hope you enjoyed this episode. And see you next week!

Mon: The Stereo Geeks logo was created using Canva. The music for our podcast comes courtesy Audionautix.

[Continuum by Audionautix plays]

Transcription by Otter.ai, Mon, and Ron.

#marvel #disney #disney plus #lucasfilm #captain marvel #loki #falcon #winter soldier #what if #star wars #ahsoka tano #boba fett #fantastic four #obi-wan kenobi #bad batch #darth vader

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bberryrach · 4 years ago

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who: rachel berry, kurt hummel ( @krt-hmml), and hiram berry (played by special guest @jstj) what: the one and only hiram berry reunites hummelberry through a variety of acting exercises where: rachel’s apartment when: saturday, september 5 triggers?: the letter “e”

Hiram Berry Hiram Berry was unhappy. His only child, Rachel, his precious jewel, was fighting with her best friend, his (emotionally) adopted son, Kurt. The world was off-kilter, and it was up to Hiram to fix it. He'd always planned for the two of them to grow old together, retiring to an upstate mansion, Rachel in the 'Barbra' wing, and Kurt in the 'Patti' wing. In the entranceway to the house would be a tasteful collection of Broadway relics, and the Berry's own grand piano, to remember songs once sung, and to bring music to a new generation...

Rachel had been a little vague about the details, but Hiram had heard something about 'lying' and 'secret' and 'doesn't appreciate what a good friend I am'. Nothing, in his opinion, that would end a decades-long friendship. So he'd asked Kurt to come to Rachel's apartment, under the guise of needing fashion help. He knew Kurt would understand that that was code for reconciliation -- as if he, Hiram Berry, would need fashion help. Taking a cold bottle of water out of the fridge, Hiram smiled as he heard a knock on the door, straightening up and looking at his daughter. "A knock on the door? Why, I think that's a guest for you."

Kurt Hummel Kurt had been keeping himself busy the past few days, which was a great way to stay numb. Luckily the wedding was only a few days away so between that, preparing for his position at work to be handed off to someone else, and working on his fashion portfolio, Kurt had done a great job of preoccupying himself. After getting a text from Mr. Berry #2 asking for fashion advice, he had yet another thing to focus on. He arranged a time to come over and so here he was, knocking on his former best friend's apartment door. It felt weird, as he'd never needed to knock before, but he really liked Rachel's dads. They were like second fathers to him, and if Hiram needed some pressing fashion advice, Kurt would give it. "Hi," he greeted, stepping into the apartment. "So what's this mysterious fashion emer-" His eyes caught Rachel's and he frowned. "I'm not here to help with your wardrobe, am I?"

Rachel Berry It was always a good day when Rachel’s dads were in town. And how could it not be? Every day in the Berry household was full of song and dance and theatrics, which Rachel, admittedly, missed in New York. Now, even more so, since she was no longer speaking to Kurt. Or any of her friend group besides Jesse, for that matter. But leave it to her dads to cheer her up.

Rachel has just gotten home from jazz brunch, where she officially introduced Jesse as her boyfriend— news which her dads met with excitement and, surprisingly, expectation. Leroy had whisked Jesse away to go suit shopping, and Hiram and Rachel we’re resting before heading to the theater to see Phantom of the Opera, a tradition every time her dads came to town. So it was surprising when there was a knock on the door, and Kurt walked through it. “Excuse me,” she started, a confused look on her face, “what are you doing here?” She turned to her dad and paused, trying to make sense of it. “Did you invite him?”

Hiram Berry Ah, the sweet young children were reunited, and now Hiram could begin to enact his plan. He ushered Kurt inside, holding his hands up in admission as Kurt cracked his code. "You got me. My wardrobe remains impeccable," Hiram grinned, taking Rachel lightly by the shoulders and guiding her over to the couch. "I don't know what is going on between you two, but we're going to work it out. Friendship can't be thrown away over petty things like clashing personalities."

Hiram gestured for Kurt to join them on the couch, leaning forward to survey the two kids. "We're all thespians here, so I've devised a number of roleplay scenarios to enable the two of you to find a resolution. We're going to start with a warm up. You're going to tell me the reason you're arguing with each other, but -- you cannot use the letter E. Kurt, you can begin."

Kurt Hummel Kurt sighed as he realized what Hiram was up to. God, he should have expected this to be a trap. He sat down as he was instructed, leaving room on the couch between himself and Rachel. An eyebrow raised as Rachel's dad put his own twist on the situation. "Fine." He sighed. "But you do realize I can't refer to Rachel at all, right? Her name has an E, and so does 'friend', 'she' and 'her'....Anyways," Kurt pointed at his former friend. "told-" 'me' had an E in it, so he pointed to himself. He then realized both Jesse and Jeffrey had Es in them, and immediately gave up. "It's not an argument anymore....Rachel has made it clear that her idea of being a good friend involves doing things she specifically knows I feel strongly against, and I think she could say the same thing about me."

Rachel Berry Rachel let her dad lead her to the couch, eyebrows still furrowed as she tried to understand what was going on. And then her dad spoke and it started to make sense. Rachel would have been frustrated, but truthfully, she desperately wanted to make things right with Kurt. Not to mention, she loved a good roleplay. After all, it was her dads that gave her such a penchant for the dramatic.

“Kurt, you’ve completely made light of the exercise at hand,” Rachel said, rolling her eyes as Kurt gave up on the warm up. She also found it very telling— he gave up on their friendship too, didn’t he? “Anyways, I’ll go,” Rachel started, turning towards her dad. “Kurt can’t...” She paused for a moment, thinking of a word without an E, “fathom that I would withhold information about my... untold suitor from him. But I only did it to... guard him from hurt.” She back settled into her seat, pleased that she succeeded in the game.

Hiram Berry Hiram listened to Kurt's attempts, raising an eyebrow at his attitude. "Kurt. That was a lot of Es. No director is going to want to work with you with that kind of attitude," he warned him, shaking his head. Hiram had hoped that he'd taught Kurt better over the last twenty years -- clearly, he'd been wrong. Turning to listen to Rachel as she gave her side of the events, Hiram nodded encouragingly. Of course she nailed the exercise -- she was his super star for a reason.

"Very well done. So you didn't tell Kurt about your new suitor and he didn't like that you withheld information." Hiram slapped his hands on his knees -- well, that was an easy fix. "It sounds like you just need to say sorry, honey, and then everyone can make up and we can go out for milkshakes at the Spotlight Diner and judge all the pitchy wannabes."

Kurt Hummel Kurt rolled his eyes at the criticism of him not being easy to work with. It was a mask, though. He was incredibly uncomfortable with this situation and wanted it over with. "In the process of trying not to hurt...uh-" he motioned to himself, although he had accidentally let an E pass through when he said process. "you did...and that's not a good....justification for lying. You could have - sorry, there's an 'e' in 'have', my bad - told....you could have said 'I want to talk to you about the amazing thing in my life, but I can't at this...." time, moment, presently, all had Es "I can't right now. I'll fill you in soon, though.' And that would've...I'd say that was okay, and I wouldn't pry or think you didn't want to talk to-....Kurt." He anticlimactically finished by changing the tense he talked about himself in

Rachel Berry “I said I was sorry, Kurt,” Rachel snapped, pausing momentarily to reflect on how well she was following the rules to this game, without even trying. “Dad, I said I was sorry to him.” She looked at Hiram for reassurance, before continuing. “It’s as if you don’t want to...” she paused to think for a second, “it’s as if you don’t want to swallow this truth. You don’t want to, um.. you don’t want to pardon us— my suitor and I.”

Finishing lamely, Rachel crossed her arms across her chest. This seemed so pointless— Kurt could never forgive her. Especially if he wasn’t using the letter E. “Dad, I really appreciate you trying to help us work things out. But I don’t think this exercise is going to do anything.”

Hiram Berry Hiram nodded as both the kids started putting more of an effort into the exercise. It was good to have them talk, and to think hard about their words as they said them. But they hadn't cried and hugged yet, so maybe it was time to move on. "I think it's helped," he replied to Rachel. "But let's move onto the next. Rachel, lie on the floor. Kurt, please stand. We're going to consider an awful, terrible world, where something desperately tragic has happened to my baby girl -- don't worry about holding in your tears, Kurt, they'll add to the exercise." Hiram stood up, waiting for Rachel to follow his instruction and lay where he'd gestured.

"I would begin with a heart-wrenching eulogy and a video message from Barbra, but... this isn't about me. I have a handkerchief ready, so Kurt, don't hold back. The stage is yours."

Kurt Hummel Kurt opened his mouth to tell Rachel how inaccurate her belief was, but then Hiram was interrupting. His eyebrow raised as he told Rachel to lie on the floor. Oh god, a fake funeral? This exercise was even worse than the last. Funerals always reminded him of his mom's death. "I.....don't want to do this one." He admitted. It was going to look like he wasn't trying to work on their friendship, but he didn't want to drag anything down even more by mentioning what his mind had associated this exercise with. But he had a feeling he was going to end up having to do this dumb eulogy anyways.

Rachel Berry The idea of a fake funeral piqued Rachel’s interest. She had always fantasized about what everyone would say about her when she tragically departed, and while Rachel had hoped to die with a few more awards and theater credits to her name, the drama was still intriguing to her. Nodding sagely, Rachel followed her dad’s instructions, lying on the ground and doing her best to look dead.

Unsurprisingly, Rachel immediately approved of her father’s choice plans for her funeral. They’d, of course, discussed such arrangements before. But a frown formed on Rachel’s face when Kurt refused to participate. “Do you even want to work on our friendship, Kurt?” Rachel asked, sitting up. “Do you even care that I’ve died?”

Kurt Hummel Kurt stood up and walked to the kitchen, getting a bottle of water for himself before he came back to the living room area. "Of course I care that you're fake dead. And I know how much you've always wanted to attend your own funeral. But...." He sighed, staring at the bottle in his hands. "I'm just not big on funerals. Even fictional ones."

Rachel Berry Rachel crossed her arms, visibly disappointed that Kurt wouldn’t eulogize her. But she also knew that Kurt was sensitive about funerals, and she didn’t want to push him. “Is it because I was such a convincing corpse? Because I can try less.” She looked back at her dad before lying down again in the hopes they’d continue her fake funeral.

Hiram Berry Hiram sighed at Kurt's refusal, shaking his head a little. He was starting to wonder whether the Patti wing of the mansion would even need to be built. "You play an excellent cadaver, honey," Hiram complimented his daughter, reaching down to touch her shoulder to gesture for her to get up. "It's understandable that Kurt doesn't want to imagine your ultimately death. My own heart is pounding. We all know that life is fleeting and mortality is... daunting." He paused for a moment, letting the moment sink in -- and then clapped his hands.

"We'll try something else. I want you to think how the other thinks. I want you to become each other. So, Rachel, you're now Kurt, married to the adorably naive and endlessly loyal gold retriever of a human being, Sam Evans. And Kurt, you're now Rachel, new girlfriend of a hot young Broadway star who, unfortunately, does not have a taste for older, married men." Hiram looked over to Kurt. "Rachel", he emphasised. "Please tell me how you feel about this unfortunate argument with Kurt."

Kurt Hummel Kurt chuckled at Rachel asking if she should be a more convincing corpse. He frowned as Hiram continued on the dark route about death, staring at his water even harder. He was pulled out of his thoughts as the other man clapped, causing Kurt to jump slightly. As Hiram started to describe their next exercise, Kurt sat back down on the couch and folded one leg over the other. He couldn't help but smile a little bit at the description of Sam, though he made a face at the description of Jesse. As 'Rachel' was prompted to start things off, it took him a second to realize that actually meant him. "Oh. Uh....I'm hurt. Because I knew sneaking around with Jesse would cause drama for our friend group, especially with Finn - who is days away from officially being Kurt's stepbrother - and that telling him would put him in an uncomfortable position. And he doesn't seem to appreciate the favor I did him by lying and keeping him out of everything. But I'm also hurt, because I think he doesn't actually like my relationship with Jesse, even though he isn't fighting with Jesse at all...."

Rachel Berry Rachel nodded along to Kurt’s words, only slightly annoyed with what she sensed was sarcasm at the end. For all of their miscommunications recently, they still understood each other well.

“Well, Rachel,” Rachel began, assuming the seriousness of the exercise immediately, “I’m hurt that you lied to me multiple times, even though I know you thought it was in my best interest. Which it was, by the way.”

Hiram Berry Hiram nodded at Kurt's attempt at the exercise. "Very good, Kurt. I'm glad you're turning your attitude around. I'd consider you for a call back." He listened to Rachel's, tilting his head -- his daughter was normally much more verbose. "Don't break the fourth wall, sweetheart. We'd like to hear Kurt's full feelings on the issue. And I'd also like to know, Rachel," Hiram turned to Kurt, "and Kurt," -- he turned to Rachel -- "what you each think the other can do to resolve the situation. What do you think will bring the two of you back together, from your point of view, and ensure that you remember to shout each other out at award ceremonies and post chummy instagram stories at brunch together?"

Kurt Hummel Kurt raised his eyebrow at the mention of a callback. He didn't play into these things as much as Rachel did, but he was glad he was no longer being seen as difficult and stubborn at least. "I'm honestly getting confused here...am I telling you what I think Kurt or Rachel can do to resolve the situation? ....I'm saying what I want Kurt to do, as Rachel, yes?"

Rachel Berry “Yes Kurt, keep up,” Rachel said with a sigh. She took her dads words to heart— Rachel was always one for notes, regardless of the role or the project.

“Okay. I guess I am upset because you lied to me, even if you thought it was for my best interest. Because that means we must have very different ideas regarding what is best for each other, and I don’t know if they are compatible. Or if I could ever trust you to be my friend again.” Rachel paused and looked down, beginning to get emotional.

Kurt Hummel Kurt watched Rachel with a frown. He knew that was the situation, in his own head. But hearing the words out loud....as true as they were, they sounded harsh. "Right...So, I think what you, Kurt Hummel, can do is....try to forgive me, Broadway's own Rachel Barbra Berry, and what I could do - even though this was not the assigned prompt - is promise I won't lie like that again. And if I do need to keep something from you because that's my idea of looking out for you, I'll just tell you that I will catch you up to speed when it's appropriate to instead of making up a fake boyfriend." He smiled at the end, so she knew he wasn't giving her too much grief over Jeffrey.

Rachel Berry Rachel nodded, keeping her eyes down for a moment. “Yes, I think that if I, Kurt, could give you, Rachel, one more chance— a real chance, I’ll see that you’ll never lie to me like that again. Especially not about a fake boyfriend, even if he was very convincing. And you, Rachel, can work on better ways to protect the people you love.” Rachel looked up at Kurt, wiping her eyes, and then looked back at her dad. “Can I go back to being Rachel now?”

Hiram Berry Hiram watched the children, a sly smile on his face. Finally, something was working. "I think that my work here might be done," he informed them, reaching over to squeeze each of their knees. "I'm going to text Leroy and go and join him and Jesse. We'll see whether he's changed his stance on very handsome older men yet or not." HIram leant in to press a kiss to Rachel's head, hoping that this would be the end of her tears. "The three of us will be back in time for dinner. Maybe Kurt will be ready to join us by then." Hiram got up, grabbing his jacket and then heading out of the apartment.

Kurt Hummel "Yes, the Freaky Friday moment has run its intended course" Kurt agreed. He stood up and motioned for Rachel to join him so that he could give her a hug. He watched Hiram leave, but turned his attention back to Rachel. "I'm sorry I've been so distant the last couple weeks"

Rachel Berry Rachel said a quick thank you to her dad as he kissed her forehead and headed out the door. As he left, she looked up a Kurt, biting her lip for a moment in hesitation before standing up and meeting his hug. "I'm sorry I lied to you," she responded, "I really am."

Kurt Hummel Kurt tightly squeezed his best friend. "Good. You should be sorry. And I forgive you. He pulled away, taking her hand in his and sitting down. "So, I want all the gossip. Because you and Jesse seem like you're already a great couple."

Rachel Berry "You should be sorry, too," Rachel said, letting their hug linger. She followed Kurt to the couch, pulling her feet up and turning towards him. "Jesse's perfect. We're perfect. He took me on the most romantic date last week." She smiled, glad to have her best friend back. Things would be weird for a little while longer, she was sure, but at least they got beyond the communication block between them and were on the mend.

Kurt Hummel "I'm sorry I didn't have the best reaction to you and Jesse. But, to be clear, it wasn't about you and Jesse specifically. I think you two make a great couple and, in hindsight, it's absolutely not surprising that you two ended up together." He wasn't trying to make excuses, he just wanted to set the record straight that he was excited for them. His eyebrows raised as she mentioned 'the most romantic date'. "Oh? Do tell"

Rachel Berry “I know, I know,” Rachel nodded, utterly tired of this conversation. All she wanted was her best friend back. “I’m glad you think that. I do, too.” She smiled as she thought of the date. “Well, he took me out to dinner at the same restaurant we went to before opening night of our first show together. And then afterwards we went sailing down the Hudson to paint pictures of the Manhattan skyline. It was a total surprise.”

Kurt Hummel Kurt removed the cap from his water bottle and took a drink as he listened to Rachel. "Woah, that is romantic. I'm going to have to tell Sam to step up his game." Kurt joked....painting pictures while sailing down the Hudson was a great date night idea. "Or we'll just have to double date sometime."

Rachel Berry “I would like that,” Rachel said with a smile. This is exactly what she wanted— all of the people she loved most together. Smiling at the thought, Rachel leaned against the back of the sofa and hugged a pillow across her chest. “And I haven’t even told you the best part yet...” She touched Kurt’s arm, excited to tell him everything. But they had time, she reminded herself. They had all the time in the world.

#ftf:kurt #kurt

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ambitionsource · 5 years ago

Photo

AMBITION Season 2 ♫ “Valerie De La Cruz” [ 2.04 ]

CREATED BY Esther (rapunzles) & Maggie (daphnegolshiri) || S2 Tag || Official Page

MOTHER KNOWS BEST – A guest appearance by Isadora’s starlet mother throws AAA into disarray. As Jack attempts to maintain control with a full plate, Valerie encourages the students to channel their current woes into more authentic performances. But lighting a match in dry woods might just set the whole forest ablaze.

72 Minutes (21K words) || No warnings apply.

[ ← Are We Out of the Woods ] [ S2 Synopsis ] [ Cold Comfort → ]

( Follow along with the music on Spotify here! )

EXT. AIRPLANE - DAY

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “The Bitch Is Back / Dress You Up” as performed by Glee Cast || Performed by Zay Babineaux & Maya Hart (feat. AAA Juniors)

As the opening guitar riffs launch us headfirst into another episode of AMBITION, a commercial airliner makes its way into a safe and timely descent at John F. Kennedy airport.

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

But it’s ZAY BABINEAUX and MAYA HART who are leading the number, the A class goofing around before the school day officially begins. The two reigning divas don’t pull any punches with the rendition, delivering it with impressive runs, infectious energy, and undeniable talent.

The two of them interact with the rest of their classmates as the performance unfolds, grooving around and spreading the energy. Maya leans back against ISADORA DE LA CRUZ during one particular run, giving her a wink. Zay spins RILEY MATTHEWS. Amidst the spectacle and during a fun dance sequence between the two divas, CHARLIE GARDNER watches with his jaw hanging open and looking especially captivated.

EXT. NEW YORK STREETS - DAY

Intercut with the loose performance, a series of shots convey a new guest making their way into the world of AAA. A pair of glossy stilettos step their way out of an expensive town car. A generous tip drops through the window into the passenger seat.

Those stilettos march their way down the streets, heads turning as the figure passes. People whisper excitedly. Is that…?

We follow those heels as they cross a busy intersection, not bothering to wait for the signal. Jaywalking is New York tradition, and traffic will wait. Especially for them.

As the song comes to an end and Zay and Maya belt out their best ending note, those heels strut their way up the vast steps of Adams and push through the doors with a flourish.

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

The class rounds out the number with enthusiasm, Zay and Maya standing front and center back to back as they soak in the theatrics of a spectacular performance. Here we go again!

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

Well, for those in the know, anyway. FARKLE MINKUS is seated alone in the black box, glancing at the clock and all the empty seats around him. It’s clear he missed a memo, but he has no idea what he’s supposed to be doing instead.

The silence of the room is stark compared to the bombastic opening number we just saw. He slouches further in his seat, lightly tugging at his hair absentmindedly.

He’s saved from isolation when JACK HUNTER pokes his head in. He asks what Farkle is doing in there, considering they’re supposed to be meeting in the auditorium this morning. Embarrassed, Farkle quickly gets to his feet.

Farkle: Well, uh… nobody told me.

Jack waves him off, stating they can walk there together seeing as that’s also where he’s headed. Not the most ideal social cred, to be walking around with your principal, but suppose it’s better than being alone.

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

The two of them arrive right on time, HARPER BURGESS showing up as well and gearing up to start the day. She quiets the upbeat chatter of the class, Farkle feeling the sting of being left out simply based on the good mood they’re all carrying that he didn’t experience. As Harper gets them to settle in the front and center section, LUCAS FRIAR descends from the booth and comes to join the other techies.

Harper explains that they’ll be having a special guest lecturer this week, and instantly the class grows excited once again. This launches into a series of guesses as to who it could possibly be, none of them even close to the mark.

Darby: Is it my mom? They just made a huge breakthrough on her cancer research. She should’ve told me she was coming!

Haley: Again, Darbs, someone we care about.

Yogi: It has to be Dick Cheney. If Sean Spicer can be on Dancing With the Stars --

Other names are thrown around. Barack Obama. The kid who invented flossing. DYLAN ORLANDO offers another idea, sitting up in his seat next to ASHER GARCIA.

Dylan: Jesus H. Christ. It’s Jesus, isn’t it?

[ He leans forward in his seat, tapping Charlie’s shoulder to get his attention. ]

Dylan: Charlie, you’re friends with Jesus, right?

Charlie clearly has no idea how to respond to that, mildly horrified, but SARAH CARLSON beats him to it anyway.

Sarah: Why would Jesus come to Triple A?

Nate: Someone has to save us from our sins.

Dylan: If he can do Queer Eye, I think he could make an appearance.

Of course, no one can top DAVE WILLIAMS when it comes to ideas.

Dave: Is it Ice T? He’s my godfather.

Before that little bombshell can be unpacked, the mystery is solved. ERIC MATTHEWS eagerly makes his way onto the stages through the wings, followed closely behind by the glamorous VALERIE DE LA CRUZ. Tall, tan, gorgeous, wearing those stiletto heels and looking absolutely fabulous. Her smile is brighter than the stage lights as she gives a wave to them all.

As expected, the class erupts into chaos. Maya can’t believe this is happening, claiming she’s going to pass out. Isadora looks torn between excitement and dread. Lucas looks disgusted, glaring at the adults assembled on stage with his mouth hanging open.

When Valerie is ON, it should be noted that everything that comes out of her mouth is at peak theatrical.

Valerie: And let me just say -- what an honor it is to be here with all of you. This week, we’re going to reach your highest heights… but also dig deep. Do you all want this insufferable beauty of a lifestyle badly enough? Can you be the beast necessary to live it? What are you willing to share -- or sacrifice -- to have it? And, of course, do you have the talent? [ a beat ] Suffice to say, my dear, dear dreamers in training, I bet this week will change your lives.

Oh, there’s no doubt about that, Madame De La Cruz. Off her charismatic wink --

Cue title sequence.

INT. AAA - CAFETERIA - DAY

Maya is sitting with Isadora at lunch, DARBY WINTERS arguing about something with NIGEL CHEY and YINDRA AMINO a couple seats down. Maya is brimming with excitement, unable to contain it as the two of them talk about Valerie’s visit.

Maya: I can’t believe it. Did you know?

Isadora: [ mirroring her enthusiasm ] It was so hard not to tell you.

Maya pretends to swat at her, shaking her head but still grinning wide. They immediately launch into eager discussion.

EXT. AAA - LUNCH COURTYARD - DAY

From the usual techie table, Lucas watches Maya and Isadora through the window to the cafeteria with evident disdain. Dylan and Asher are seated across from him, trying to distract him and talk him down from the turbulent emotions Valerie’s presence might have brought.

The subject of the upcoming holiday of Thanksgiving comes up, Lucas explaining his and Isadora’s usual tradition of ditching their respective familial obligations (in his case, none) and just going to eat somewhere together. Nothing remotely holiday-inspired, but more fun than either of their other plans and distinctly theirs. Considering Valerie’s presence, however, he figures that will likely not be happening this year.

Dylan states that if he doesn’t have better plans, then he should come have Thanksgiving with their families. Asher smiles, taking his hand on the tabletop and agreeing. The soft moment lingers between the two of them. Dylan goes on to explain that there’s nothing better than a Garcia-Orlando holiday gathering, especially Thanksgiving.

Asher: Well, my dad did set the oven on fire last year.

Dylan: And you know, I think that was exactly what we needed. I think every holiday needs a little bit of character.

Asher: I would not call “a degree of separation away from bodily injury” character.

Dylan: And that is what you have me for.

Asher rolls his eyes, Dylan giving him one of his sunshine smiles. Lucas watches them in mild amusement, effectively distracted enough to concede and state he’ll join them for the holiday.

INT. AAA - CAFETERIA - DAY

At the opposite end of the cafeteria, Zay and Riley are eating lunch with CLARISSA CRUZ and HALEY FISHER. As Haley arrives and settles into the seat next to her best friend, she breathlessly declares that she’s figured it out. She has finally figured out why Charlie isn’t giving her -- or anyone else, for that matter -- the time of day.

They prompt her to continue, Zay subtly more intrigued than Riley or Clarissa. Haley boldly announces her revelation, convinced of its truth.

Haley: Charlie is so into Maya!

She goes on to explain how she can’t believe she didn’t see it before, but the way he was so obviously thirsting this morning before class while she and Zay were riffing off made it painfully clear. Not to mention Maya is so unattainable, so it makes sense why he’s been harboring this for so long. Zay listens and nods along, no longer the least bit concerned and fully amused.

As Clarissa pulls Haley into the holes in that theory, Zay and Riley focus on their own conversation. They get into discussing their current celebrity lecturer, Riley admitting that it’s an exciting prospect, but considering she hardly knew about Valerie before she got here it’s not quite as major for her as it seems to be for the rest of them.

Zay: I know you had a whole other life before Triple A and all that, but were you like, Amish or what?

Riley nudges him playfully. She says she can’t even think much about it anyway, as she’s totally preoccupied with the upcoming holiday. Considering the mess her family is at the moment, she has very little faith that this is going to go well. She can’t stomach the idea of having to watch her parents pretend to get along and then having Auggie ask her every five minutes if they seem like they like one another again and having to find ways to tell him they’re not getting back together.

Riley: Not to mention everyone here is still all over the place and I -- sorry for complaining, but could one thing in my life not be falling apart?

Zay waves off her unnecessary apology. He points out that if she’s frustrated with how things are going with their class, then maybe this week is the time to say something about it. With Valerie here people are going to be paying way more attention than usual, so maybe she can take the chance to actually make a statement and have people listen. Make everyone stop being so stupid, if nothing else.

A nice idea, but easier said than done. Especially when you can’t even let go of your own grievances. This is true as ever as Charlie approaches to join them, exchanging an awkward smile with Riley. She still doesn’t know how to deal with him and excuses herself, vacating the seat for Charlie to occupy.

The dismissal clearly stings for Charlie. He watches her go before plopping into the seat next to Zay, engaging in conversation about Valerie. Charlie questions if Zay is excited about her presence, which he admits to but also clarifies that he’s nowhere near as fanatic as Maya. Valerie is great, but she’s no Rihanna or Queen Bey.

More than that, Zay is intrigued by what chaos she’s going to bring to the table. Seems like it’ll be a week for bold choices -- to which he jokingly makes a quip about how maybe Charlie can admit his feelings for Maya. Charlie is confused, asking him what he’s talking about, but Zay just waves him off playfully.

Charlie: Zay, what? [ with a laugh, but also indignant ] What are you talking about?

Zay shrugs like he doesn’t know what Charlie is bothering him about, but he can’t hold back his grin. He pops a French fry into his mouth, raising his eyebrows.

INT. AAA - JACK’S OFFICE - DAY

Jack is seated at his desk, obviously already exhausted as he discusses the plan for the week with Eric and Harper. As he sees it, he’s already doing everything he can to keep the junior class from imploding, and bringing in such a high-profile figure with the means to cause chaos is just throwing a wrench into things. Eric and Harper defend their belief that perhaps her presence will actually prime the students to work together more effectively, but Jack is skeptical.

Jack: I’m just saying, I’m not breaking my back like Atlas holding up the sky only for it all to come crashing down for some Hollywood bim --

His less-than-complimentary description of Valerie is interrupted by her arrival, Jack quickly changing tracks and offering her a polite smile as he rises to his feet. She jokingly states he doesn’t need to get up on her account, accepting his hand to shake.

Jack: We were just discussing the current… fragile status of the junior class. It’s imperative that we don’t do anything to upset that precarious balance or do anything that might… aggravate rather than mediate.

Valerie: Oh, say no more, Jackson. I know all about conflict mediation. When my mentor JLo got into a tiff with my other mentor Mariah, it was basically up to me to single-handedly snuff out that inferno --

Jack looks like he is not going to survive the week. Harper swoops in to change the subject, stating that she and Valerie should go set up the classroom. She agrees happily, giving one more thanks to Jack and Eric -- especially Eric, given how wonderful he is with Isadora and for arranging this week -- before fluttering off.

Once they’re alone, Eric and Jack take the opportunity to reiterate their plans for Thanksgiving. Presently, Eric is planning to join the Hunters for the holiday in an effort to avoid the Cory & Topanga drama for the year. It’s clear they’re both looking forward to it, as they haven’t had much time to actually enjoy one another’s company outside of school-related business.

Jack also makes a point of reminding Eric that his and Shawn’s +1s will be there as well, so Eric is more than welcome to bring along a friend or… whomever. Eric nervously laughs off the notion, fumbling through an excuse for why he likely won’t have one but appreciating the sentiment either way.

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

Farkle is still sitting in the same spot as when they dismissed for lunch, flipping through Death of a Salesman half-heartedly. It’s unclear, but it seems like he didn’t bother to go for break at all.

As his classmates begin returning and settling back in around him, none of them pay him any attention. It’s like they don’t even notice him. Farkle has basically become furniture at this point -- just incidentally iced out of the picture rather than intentionally ostracized.

Somehow, this is worse than being villainized. He’s being forgotten, and it evidently hurts Farkle to realize it as he watches the rest of the class meander in. He thinks about saying something to Nigel who has sat down nearby and is discussing something avidly with NICK YOGI, but Shawn takes the stage before he can speak.

As Shawn informs them, they will not be meeting in here for class, but actually, in the black box. Although the techies point out that they always meet in here first, Shawn flatly claims that their current guest lecturer had other plans. So away we go…

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

Valerie greets the junior A class with a flourish, surrounded by a completely rearranged black box theater. Most objects have been pushed to the sides, and the desks are now organized in a circular socratic style -- with Miss De La Cruz in the very center. She opens her arms wide and welcomes them to the classroom.

Valerie: Come in, come in, and take a seat. Sit wherever your instincts draw you to go.

While most of the class is excited by this introduction, not everyone is so starstruck.

Lucas: I’m being drawn out of this building...

Shawn: [ spinning him back around by the shoulders ] Sit down, Friar.

As everyone settles in, Valerie explains what her approach for the week is going to be (and yes, her delivery does feel a little bit like Cooper Anderson on Glee). She greatly looks forward to getting to know each of them, and notes that she is endeavoring to sit down with each of them one-on-one through the course of the week to discuss their aspirations, their hesitations… and sign autographs if they so desire, ha ha ha!

In the midst of this lecture, she begins randomly picking students from the class to try and get them to speak about who they are. She picks the worst example to start with, turning to Charlie and asking him to tell her who he is in front of the entire class.

Charlie: … who, me?

Valerie: Well, you and me are locking eyes, aren’t we? We’re forming a connection. You sense that?

Charlie: Um --

Valerie: So, tell me then…

Haley, amused: Charlie.

Valerie: Charlie! Tell me, Charlie. Who are you?

Charlie is speechless, the rest of the class snickering or reacting accordingly. From where he’s sitting next to Riley, Zay grimaces. Being put on the spot doesn’t help, and Valerie catches onto this. She assures Charlie that it’s fine, and that they’ll have plenty of time to chat later. She manages to spin it into something positive, claiming his uncertainty highlights exactly what she thinks is the key to the week for them.

Valerie: You saw, there, how Charlie hesitated? That’s not a bad thing. What that is showcasing, my dears, is the internal search for authenticity. He did not merely throw out some practiced answer -- he took the time to contemplate the question, to dig deep and consider what such an answer might be.

Sarah: [ under her breath ] Like there’s any depth to dig.

Emotional authenticity, Valerie elaborates, is the core of any talented star in the making. Audiences don’t connect to glitz and glamour -- although we love some glam! -- they connect to the emotion a performer is conveying through their work.

All in all, it’s clear that Valerie really does intend to make progress with these students and wants to help them in any way she can. But the A class is far from ready for emotional vulnerability, which she quickly realizes, so they’ll have to start a little smaller first. Thusly, Valerie decides they could do with a warm up.

Maya: This is the best day of my life.

Lucas: This is insane.

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “When I Grow Up” as performed by The Pussycat Dolls || Performed by Valerie De La Cruz (feat. AAA Juniors)

Yes, this is an insane choice to sing while mentoring at a high school. Yes, it’s also a direct homage to Valerie’s actress’ PCD roots. But the good aspect to the choice is how it energizes the students, just shocking and upbeat enough to create a compelling combination to break through the uncertainty and tension.

While most of the class gets pulled into the fun and starts grooving with their celebrity teacher -- Maya the first to jump at the chance -- not all of the junior A class is participating. Farkle stays slouched in his seat and doodles apathetically in his notebook, this out-of-character nonchalance catching the eye of Eric amidst the chaos. Isadora is somewhere between embarrassed and overwhelmed, covering her eyes and peeking out between her fingers to watch. Lucas looks disgusted, glancing around him as if he cannot believe this is happening.

Even still, the song actually does speak pretty pointedly to the situation. Valerie is coming from where they all believe they desperately want to be, and perhaps that’s not as rosy and desirable as it seems on the surface. “Be careful what you wish for, cause you just might get it…”

It’s also a nice change of pace to see most of our main cast enjoying a performance. Maya, Riley, Zay, and Charlie take the brunt of backing up Valerie, and it’s fun to watch. When they break into duos, Riley pairs with Zay while Maya ironically pairs with Charlie (which Haley definitely reacts to).

Valerie finishes off the number with a flourish, back in the center of the circle with the junior class surrounding her. What a way to kick off her week!

INT. AAA - JACK’S OFFICE - DAY

On the other hand, maybe not. Jack’s expression is dismayed as Lucas sits across from him, fiercely complaining about what he just witnessed in theatre lab.

Lucas: That was the most disturbing display I have ever been forced to bear witness to in my short, lamentable existence. And I was there for when Maya attempted to get our only relatively diverse school to perform The Lion King and casted Yogi as baby Simba because he was “the right size” for the part.

Jack: Good memory you’ve got there.

Lucas, flatly: I will never be free of that.

Yes, great thanks to Zay Babineaux for shutting down that concept. Subdued theatrics aside, it’s evident Jack isn’t going to argue with Lucas. He leans forward and lowers his voice, speaking conspiratorially.

Jack: Look, to be honest, I’m with you. I don’t think Miss De La Cruz’s presence is going to bring anything but trouble… [ wringing his hands ] and a strange amount of glitter that I cannot seem to wash my hands of no matter how hard I try.

Although Lucas does crack a small smile at Jack’s commentary, he’s not so easily distracted from the issue. He asks what Jack is going to do about it, then. Valerie being here is disgusting and wrong. Can’t he evict her from the premises? Ban her from the building?

While he might daydream about such things, Jack points out that the rest of the class is very enthused about her guest appearance, so it would be more of a hassle to try and remove her than just let her stay run its course. She can’t cause irreversible damage in a week, and who knows, perhaps someone will really get something out of the mentoring.

Lucas: So you’re doing nothing.

Jack: There is a difference between doing nothing and strategically maintaining the peace…

Lucas rolls his eyes, getting up to head back to class. As he’s heading out, Jack grabs his attention once again and makes a point of tapping lightly at his temple. A subtle reminder within a dynamic that only continues to grow more interesting. Think.

Lucas makes a face, indicating that he got the message. Then he pushes out the door, Jack smiling lightly as he goes back to his work.

The smile falters when he takes another look at the messages from the secretaries in the main office. There are one or two pointed reminders regarding the “Bradfords,” which seems to put him on edge. He immediately goes to check his email.

INT. AAA - ERIC’S OFFICE - DAY

Eric is in the midst of work as well, although he seems in a much better mood about their guest. He’s humming to himself when there’s a light knock at his door. He beckons Harper in without looking up -- only it’s not Harper waiting in his doorway.

Eric, in surprise: Miss Hart?

Yes, indeed. KATY HART is peering into his office, timid as usual in the imposing presence of AAA. Eric leaps from his seat, coming to greet her and assuring her that it’s wonderful to see her again, albeit unexpectedly. He guides her inside, questioning what she might be doing there.

Eric: Hoping to catch a glimpse of our celebrity guest lecturer this week?

Katy: Oh, no. Maya definitely has already texted me about it, but… I couldn’t. That’s not what I came by for, in any case.

Eric is intrigued, settling back into his seat. Katy apologizes for stealing a moment from him, but she claims she needs some guidance. Urgent guidance. Eric’s expression grows more solemn, nodding for her to go on…

INT. AAA - HALLWAY - DAY

Maya and Isadora are chatting outside the black box, a gaggle of other students heading out from the classroom behind them. They’re not speaking softly when they discuss the new shake up for the week.

Haley: We are going to learn so much from Valerie. I can feel my star shining brighter already.

Darby: Can you really? How do I know if I’m growing brighter?

Nigel: Lost cause there, Darbs.

Sarah: She might be loony, but she’s got a fun way of teaching. She’s gonna be a better teacher than Burgess.

Focus shifts to Isadora and Maya just as Valerie flutters her way over to them. Isadora makes a point of formally introducing them, Maya more than a little starstruck as she shakes Valerie’s hand. She eagerly compliments her on her great first lecture and emphasizes how she cannot wait for the rest of the week. So Maya holds it together, but it is more than obvious how much she admires Isadora’s starlet mother.

Valerie is tickled, stating that their class is great and she can’t wait to see what Maya whips up for her performance. After a couple more stammered thank yous Maya gets going, leaving Isadora and Valerie in content but uncertain silence as they’re thrown back into figuring out what their dynamic is again.

Searching for a conversation starter, Valerie questions if that was the same girl who threw such a fit over Les Miserables. Isadora confirms it is.

Valerie: Well, she certainly seems to have screwed her head back onto her shoulders a little more securely. Wouldn’t you say?

Isadora: Yeah, well… people can change in a pretty short amount of time.

As the two of them start to head down the hall, Eric comes breezing by at a brisk pace. He slides through the black box doors, poking his head in to make sure all the students have departed.

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

Harper greets him as he enters, lightly adjusting the layout of the room without incidentally messing with Valerie’s newly preferred set up. She enthusiastically states she feels good about their guest appearance for the week, as the students seem more energized than she’s seen them this semester.

Harper: That was a good start, wasn’t it? Or am I just suffering from wishful thinking and a dose of starry eyes?

Eric: Oh, no, I’m right on your page. That’s actually what I wanted to discuss.

Eric touches base with Harper, checking to see how she’s feeling about their new lecturer stepping on her teaching time. It’s unclear whether Harper overheard the commentary from Sarah earlier, but if she did she’s doing an excellent job of concealing it. She explains that Valerie’s presence is hardly a problem for her, in fact it’s a welcome change of pace. It gives her the chance to redirect her energies towards identifying problem areas in the class dynamic.

She does admit that the day has been a draining one, however, so she’s ready to get out of there for the afternoon. She questions if Eric is planning on heading home any time soon -- workaholic -- and he claims he is, he simply has a couple last minute tasks to complete…

INT. AAA - MAIN OFFICE - DAY

One of which seems to involve Jack. He breezes past the secretaries at the front desk with an upbeat greeting, jogging back towards Jack’s office before either of them can stop him. He returns moments later in confusion, wondering where their principal is.

As the secretaries tried to tell him as he rushed past them, Jack’s already left the office. He was gone a few minutes after final bell. Some personal engagements planned, it seems.

Eric’s usual cheery demeanor deflates somewhat. The secretaries offer to pass on a message for him as he glances back towards Jack’s office, but he shakes it off.

Eric: I, um… suppose I’ll just catch him tomorrow.

INT. MAYA’S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Katy and Maya are seated in their cramped living room, spending the evening together after a long day for them both. Dinner is leftovers from the diner, sitting open on the small coffee table in front of them on the couch.

The ladies are chatting lightly, having an impromptu girls night. Katy braids Maya’s hair, the latter pointing out that she still hasn’t figured out how she manages to do this one style so perfectly. She hasn’t managed to recreate it on her own yet.

Katy accepts the compliment, but she admittedly is still wrapping her head around how Maya really got to spend the whole day with a bona fide celebrity. Exciting, isn’t it? Maya grows excited and disrupts the braiding to whip around, gushing about the situation and how amazing the rest of the week is going to be. She’s going to get real feedback from one of her absolute diva heroes.

She also lights up with an idea, stating that Katy should 100% meet Valerie. Katy humbly claims they already met at the diner, but Maya means more officially. As parents of their daughters’ new best friends, if nothing else. She’s sure Isadora wouldn’t mind. Katy tentatively agrees that might be fun.

It’s evident there’s something else on her mind, but she’s struggling to find a way to discuss it. Maya thinks nothing of it, jumping to her feet to go and prep a soothing tea before bed. Only one problem -- the stove isn’t working. It won’t light. When Maya points this out, Katy fumbles before laughing and stating she must’ve forgotten to pay the gas bill.

Maya: You? Forgetting to pay a bill? It is a week for the unimaginable, huh?

Katy laughs along, Maya settling for warm milk instead. So long as she can take care of her voice and get all ready for bed. The moment to say whatever she wanted to say passes, Katy twisting her fingers together before beginning to clean up their dinner.

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

As the school bell rings, we’re thrown into Valerie week truly beginning. This, as it were, seems to involve yoga of a certain variety -- Valerie takes a deep, theatrical inhale as she sits at the center of the classroom. The desks have been pushed along the walls and the performers are seated in a messy circle around her, emulating her breathing exercises with varying levels of commitment. Maya is following to a tee, breathing impassioned and declarative; Nigel, on the other hand, is lowkey checking his phone while everyone else’s eyes are closed.

The techies are even less convincing. They’re seated cross-legged on top of the desks rather than on the floor. Dave is seeing how long he can hold his breath as Valerie goes on to explain the importance of an even inhale and exhale, Jade and Nate timing him.

All the calm breathing puts Dylan to sleep. His head falls on Asher’s shoulder, who opens one eye to peek at him and fails to hold back a fond smile.

Lucas listens expressionlessly, watching everyone else but clearly not impressed himself. He breaks his stony facade only once, when Isadora opens her eyes to glance around and they make eye contact. For a moment, neither of them do anything -- then Lucas makes a face, almost causing her to laugh and disrupt her mother’s elaborate speech on the diaphragm.

Thankfully, the meditation doesn’t last much longer. As Valerie rises to her feet and cheerfully repeats the benefits of a nice and supportive breathing technique in every day life, the class works to put their desks back in relative circular order.

Now, Valerie declares, it’s time for the real fun to begin. Who will be the first to kick off performances and set the tone for the week? A challenge certainly, but she’s more than confident someone in this talented class will have the chops to pull it off…

Although it seems like Maya is chomping at the bit… someone beats her to it. No, it’s not Maya -- nor Isadora, as Valerie eyeing her curiously seems to wish -- but Riley who raises her hand and volunteers to step up to the plate. This causes a ripple of surprise amongst the A class, but Valerie is going to encourage whoever is bold enough to do it. She gestures Riley up, swapping places with her at her desk as she takes center stage.

Riley clears her throat and gets ready to perform, only for Valerie to immediately stop her. It catches her off-guard, wondering what she could’ve already done wrong, but Valerie merely reminds her to introduce herself. Make an entrance into their attention spans, really take the room by storm!

So Riley nods along, squaring her shoulders and trying the moment again. Who she is, what she’s there to do, and what she’s singing about.

Riley: I’m Riley Matthews, Junior A class. I’m here because I love to perform and would love to see where it might take me… but to be honest, right now I kind of just wish everyone would stop being so stupid.

A bold statement. The class reacts in amusement, Zay raising his eyebrows and exchanging an intrigued grin with Yindra.

Tell ‘em what they need to hear, Riles.

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “Come to Mama” as performed by Lady Gaga || Performed by Riley Matthews (feat. Valerie De La Cruz)

Upbeat and fun but also more than to the point lyrically, Riley delivers on this Gaga bop with the enthusiasm and gusto of a girl who truly has nothing else to lose. It’s a rallying cry just as Zay suggested she try, an anthem about letting go and forgiving and forgetting lest everything fall apart. She relays the important message of coming together to work things out while playfully interacting with her classmates.

Halfway through, Valerie jumps up and joins in on the song with her. As she goes, the two of them stay at center stage and Valerie gives non-verbal tips on how to improve Riley’s performance and confidence in the midst of the song. Adjustments to her posture, reminding her to smile, lots of cute touches and little details like that. It’s a fascinating dynamic to watch, as well as to observe how Valerie coaches.

Well, to most people. Whereas Lucas was moderately engaged while Riley was performing, he checks out the moment Valerie steps in.

As they conclude the number, Valerie leads the class in uproarious applause. She congratulates Riley for a grand performance and for being brave enough to lead the charge. Definitely a job well done!

She explains that she’ll want to meet with Riley that afternoon for their one-on-one so she doesn’t forget her notes, but she’ll also be meeting with other students regardless of whether they’ve performed yet. She directs them all to the sign-up sheet that Harper has set up, where they will sign up for a one-on-one time as well as when they plan to perform.

Valerie claps to herself again as the room moves around her, bustling to sign up and regroup. The week is off to a swimming start!

INT. AAA - PRACTICE ROOM - DAY

Well... not for everyone, exactly. Farkle is alone in the practice room, flipping through a song book and lightly tapping out starting notes on the piano. Nothing is settling right with him. The quiet of the room doesn’t offer much help either.

As long as it lasts, that is. Farkle lifts his gaze as footsteps and voices approach, Zay and Charlie appearing outside the practice room and in the midst of conversation. It seems his status as invisible is still in effect, because the boys don’t even notice Farkle in the corner as they step just inside the doorway to have a more private discussion.

They’re chatting about Valerie’s assignment and worldly advice, all of it obviously giving Charlie a good amount of stress. Did Zay see him wipe out on the first day of her visit? He laments how he doesn’t know how the hell he’s supposed to give emotional authenticity to a performance when he can’t even do that in his normal life half the time. Zay empathizes, pointing out that very truth in reference to something from earlier in their conversation -- the holidays.

Charlie: It’s like, what does she want me to do? Go up to my good Catholic mother and say “hello, Eleanor! Just wanted to give you the quick timely heads up that I, your darling only son, am a dirty sinner” --

[ Farkle visibly reacts to this, eyes widening in surprise. It’s evidently news to him. ]

Charlie: -- “and oh, can we invite my heathen bi boyfriend that you don’t know about over for Thanksgiving dinner? Hold that thought though, gotta go give a really emotionally authentic performance for my classmate’s crazy superstar mother!”

Zay pulls Charlie back from the metaphorical ledge, taking his shoulders and (ironically) encouraging him to breathe. He reminds him that he holds no expectations about Thanksgiving, so he shouldn’t consider that a concern.

And when it comes to the performance, he doesn’t have to do anything but give a good rendition of whatever he chooses to sing. Just because Valerie is here doesn’t mean that everything suddenly changes, and she’s not gonna know whether what he shows her is authentic or not despite claiming she can know them all in the span of a week.

Zay: So give a damn good performance like you always do, and you won’t have to worry about whether or not it’s emotionally “authentic” --

Charlie, in a murmur: Or the fact that she has a point…

Charlie lifts his gaze, locking eyes with him. His inability to be authentic -- or know what that even means for him -- isn’t something he can run from forever, and both of them know it. Zay gives him a soft look, squeezing his shoulders before giving him another reassurance. It doesn’t have to be solved today.

All in all, sort of an intense and intimate conversation to accidentally overhear. Farkle watches as the two of them exit back into the hall, obviously internalizing this new information but having no clue what to do with it.

INT. AAA - JACK’S OFFICE - DAY

Eric finally manages to catch up with Jack, catching him during the lunch hour. He promises to make it quick, before throwing in some offhand commentary about Jack’s early disappearance yesterday afternoon.

Jack: I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you would be needing me. I had plans with Anne-Marie.

Eric: [ with a stiff nod ] Prior engagement.

Jack: But, in my defense, a typical work day is 9 to 5.

Eric: It was 3PM.

Jack: I put in a lot of overtime already.

Details aside, Eric explains that he wanted to touch base about how they think Valerie’s visit is going. He thinks it’s going rather well, whereas Jack is still firm on his stance that it may be fun but still feels unnecessary. He’s not convinced that she’s not going to cause more trouble than improvement. There’s an odd tension between the two of them because of it, although it’s not clear whether all of the animosity is coming from this specific disagreement.

Eric chooses to avoid it for now, changing the subject. He starts to note that he thinks they should pay some additional attention to Farkle Minkus -- he observed some odd behavior in class the other day, and given how things ended last year…

Jack is obviously on the same page, but a phone call startles them both and disrupts the train of thought. Jack asks for just a quick minute and answers the call, Eric holding up his hands in surrender and claiming they’ll discuss it later.

They exchange nods and suddenly the conversation is over, Eric looking a bit dissatisfied as he steps out of the office.

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

In this particular case, Jack might be making the right call about Valerie. Trouble begins to brew right after lunch, as Lucas returns to the auditorium to find the rest of the techie crew grouped uncertainly on the stage. When he asks what’s going on and why they’re not at their usual stations, Asher explains that Shawn directed them here. Apparently, Valerie wants to chat with them about their “expectations” for the week.

Lucas: Oh, this better be fucking good…

With Valerie De La Cruz, it’s certainly guaranteed to be a spectacle. She greets them with a flourish as she struts over to join them and the performers filter in behind her, spreading out across the auditorium for individual rehearsal time. Jade timidly asks what they’ll be expected to do during this week of emotional authenticity, to which Val delivers what she clearly believes is a wonderful declaration.

Valerie: [ with gusto ] Nothing.

Dave: Nothing?

Valerie: Nothing! We won’t be needing your specific services this week.

It’s obvious none of them know how to react to this. Sure, the performers have been flippant about their contributions many a time, but never has the dismissal been so… blatant. Or stated as if it’s the nicest little treat. They’re stunned, they’re confused, Lucas is definitely miffed. Dylan is staring at Valerie with his jaw dropped open, totally lost.

Lucas: I’m sorry, you what?

Valerie: Well, given that this week is all about emotional authenticity, I don’t anticipate we’ll be needing many of your… elements. Well, except perhaps lighting --

Jeff: Oh, thank God.

Valerie: Besides, you all work so hard every single week. Consider this your reprieve, even if only for a short while.

Lucas: So what are we supposed to do instead?

Valerie: Take it easy! Enjoy the performances! [ Lighting up with excitement ] In fact, I would love to see the lot of you try your hands at a little performance art. I bet there’s lots of talent brewing in this flock of rare birds!

That sounds like the last thing any of them want to do. Jade blushes preemptively, already mortified. Asher instinctively turns away and half ducks behind Dylan, tucking his head against his shoulder to avoid eye contact.

More than anything, Lucas is pissed. He shakes his head wordlessly as Valerie flounces off to rally the rest of the class. Before class can get going again he gathers his things that he just set down, marching back the way he came.

Nate: Don’t wanna enjoy the performances?

Lucas: I’d rather die.

Dylan: Where are you going?

Lucas: Anywhere but here.

Hard to misunderstand that. The group of them watch him go, a bad mojo settling in the air. Asher lifts his head from hiding behind Dylan, exchanging a loaded look with him.

Back at front and center stage, Harper and Valerie are convening to discuss how the rest of the week will unfold. The students are in break-out sessions right now rehearsing, but Valerie is welcome to set up camp in her classroom for one-on-ones. She hands over the roster for sign ups, the starlet taking it with delight. Let the mentoring begin!

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

A quick cut montage ensues of Valerie sitting in the black box at a desk, chatting with each of the junior A class in bursts of personality. You know how we love those montages here at AMBITION. However, there’s a lot going on in this episode already, so you can fill in the blanks for the most part. Good luck, Valerie!

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - LATER

The montage wraps up as Riley timidly enters the black box, Valerie enthusiastically greeting her and guiding her over to sit in the desk across from where she’s set up camp. She starts by sharing congratulations again for being bold enough to kick off the week. It’s clear that Riley has a lot of talent, and Valerie is fully supportive of how brightly she can shine -- when she puts herself out there and steps up with confidence, that is.

Riley: Yeah, I… [ a beat, softer ] someone has told me that before, actually.

Valerie also commends the efforts she’s putting into quelling the dissent in their class. While she’s impressed by her initiative, she wonders if perhaps there might be some… inconsistencies muddying her overall effectiveness. When Riley asks for clarification, Valerie takes a moment to compose her thoughts before speaking again.

Valerie: I have no doubt that your endeavor to heal your broken class is motivated only by good intentions. But often times, a heroic mission can be… stilted, if the words seem to be coming from an untrustworthy source.

Riley: … so, you think I come off untrustworthy?

Valerie: Oh, no! Ha, ha, no, dear, not at all. And I’ve met Justin Bieber, okay, I know untrustworthy when I see it. [ a beat ] I simply mean that… sometimes, what we preach isn’t what we practice, and that can make it more difficult for others to follow our example. You want your classmates to stop holding one another on trial for certain events, from what I understand. Forgive and forget, in a sense. [ beat ] I’m only wondering if perhaps there are places in your own life where… this logic has yet to be applied.

Although Valerie doesn’t know much of what she’s talking about, she’s doing a good job of swinging blindly. Riley absorbs this, Valerie going on to state that whatever she might be thinking about, it might be good to do it sooner rather than later -- if her fears about her class falling apart again are well founded.

Much to think about…

INT. AAA - DRESSING ROOM HALL - DAY

Charlie is heading out of the dressing room when Darby and Sarah catch his attention. They’re definitely giggly, which is already a warning sign.

Darby: Charlie, why didn’t you say anything?

Charlie: … about what?

Sarah: You know… [ knowingly ] about your little crush?

Charlie immediately tenses up, asking what the hell they’re talking about. But they’re just like hee hee hee, and generally unhelpful. He refutes having a crush on anyone -- poorly, since he’s so flustered -- which just makes them laugh harder. He rushes out of the dressing room hall, their laughter echoing behind him.

INT. AAA - COSTUME LOFT - DAY

Zay is chilling in the costume loft, jotting down some ideas for a performance for the week on his inner arm. He brightens when Charlie shows up, already out of breath as he finishes climbing the step ladder to the loft.

Before Zay can get a word in edgewise, Charlie launches into nervous musings about how people might be onto them. He paces, trying to figure out what could’ve given it away or where he went wrong while Zay just tries to keep up with how fast he’s talking. When he manages to ask what the hell prompted this and Charlie explains the moment with Darby and Sarah, Zay decides he might be reading into it.

Zay: I don’t think they’re talking about the same thing you think they are, Charlie.

Charlie: I mean, do I come off like I’m keeping a secret? Am I twitchy? Do I just radiate some kind of natural secret-y aura?

Zay, pointedly: Don’t think you want me to answer that, babe --

Charlie makes a face, taking a deep breath. When he’s pulled it back together, at least minimally, he states that he and Zay need to tread more cautiously. Clearly he’s not thinking enough, and if he’s not careful it’s going to come back to bite him.

Zay has no idea what that even means. They’re just… existing. What else does he want them to do? Charlie doesn’t know either, and Zay states that he thinks Charlie is thinking too much.

In search of ways to alleviate the imaginary problem, Charlie starts brainstorming ways to avoid any possible suspicion that they might be… involved. And lucky for him, there’s already a Broadway tune that can do just that…

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “People Will Say We’re In Love” as performed by Oklahoma! Original Broadway Cast || Performed by Charlie Gardner & Zay Babineaux

Continuing their pattern of taking romantic theater classics and making them iconically gay, Charlie takes the lead with the Laurey verses and gives Zay a list of ways for them to prove they’re not in love to the rest of the world. As he sings the line “Don’t sigh and gaze at me, your sighs are so like mine,” Zay realizes he is in fact gazing fondly and shakes it off, switching back into sarcastically amused.

When Charlie warns Zay not to start “collecting things,” and asks for his things back, Zay begrudgingly reaches into his pocket and places one of Charlie’s rosaries into his palm. Charlie uses the opportunity to take his hand, the two of them standing close as he finishes his verse.

Then Zay takes the reins, a little more playful in his delivery and somewhat mocking the intensity of all this secrecy. He jokingly points to the back wall of the costume loft when he claims he “carved our initials on that tree,” Charlie rushing to go check that he’s lying when Zay takes his arm and spins him back around. He taps Charlie’s chin affectionately as he reminds him to take some of his own advice, grinning as Charlie pulls away from him in a huff.

Naturally, Zay is much like Curly in that he personally doesn’t care much if the world knows they’re in love. The line “Don’t praise my charm too much, don’t look so vain with me” is practically custom built for them, Charlie catching his own disdainful expression and turning away from Zay in embarrassment.

While the dancing of the number is really just skirting around one another, it’s a nice change of pace to get to highlight their vocal ability and charm for a spell. Zay ends up back-to-back with Charlie as he gets to the verse how holding his hand feels, both of them obviously gleaning comfort from the touch even though they can’t see each other’s expressions.

As Zay sings the last couple of lines, he gently spins Charlie by the arm so that they’re facing one another again. All of the nervous energy that started the number has fizzled to something softer, the romantic tension palpable as always as they stand inches apart.

Problem solved or not (or problem at all to begin with), it’s clear that this is the most “emotionally authentic” performance Charlie will be giving this week.

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

Valerie is at her highest pitch of enthusiastic as Isadora comes to join her for a one-on-one. They exchange some niceties, Valerie breaking the ice by commenting how silly it is for the two of them to have a structured meeting. She claims they can just have a real conversation -- they haven’t had much time to really catch up yet, as it were.

Isadora agrees that would be nice, but she expresses hesitancy about having an open dialogue. She doesn’t want to say something wrong. But Valerie points out she’s here all week, and nothing she could say will change that nor the excitement she has about getting to spend the upcoming holiday with her. From how earnest she is, Valerie clearly means it.

This means a lot to Isadora, but she isn’t completely sold yet. She offers a timid smile, and Valerie gets the picture that a deeper conversation might have to wait. She smartly shifts gears to the assignment at hand, prompting Isadora to tell her all about what sort of number she might want to pull off this week.

INT. AAA - JACK’S OFFICE - DAY

Jack is just in the midst of a phone conversation with one of the secretaries when Harper marches into his office, obviously on a mission. He glances at her, casually telling them to reschedule his 1PM call.

When he asks what he can do for her, she launches into a metered complaint about how Lucas has skipped class once again. This time, in fact, he just walked right out of the auditorium in plain view of the entire class. Jack takes a deep breath and closes his eyes as she continues her diatribe, stating that it’s not only going to impact his education, it’s also being blatantly disrespectful. She’s trying her best to remain calm and even-tempered about it, but the repeated offenses are clearly getting to her.

Jack claims he’ll have another chat with him, but Harper is quickly learning to associate that promise with doing nothing. Jack has had many chats with Lucas since she started at the school three months ago, and his behavior has hardly improved. She questions if he truly isn’t going to do anything about it, to which Jack evenly retorts that he just said he would handle it. Harper almost lets it be...

Harper: … doesn’t it seem a bit odd, though?

Jack: Odd?

Harper: You’re such an authoritarian -- which I respect, by the way. Lucas, it seems to me, is someone who seriously needs authority. Yet you don’t seem to be taking a -- I’m not attempting to criticize, sir, but don’t you think Lucas could do with a little bit of --

Jack: Lucas Friar is… [ a beat ] a special case.

Harper: So is the whole junior class, apparently. I’m only saying that --

Jack, firmly: I’ve got it under control, Harper. That’ll be all, then?

Jack’s shift in tone is subtle, but the message is clear. Leave it alone. Harper can identify a warning signal when she sees it, so she nods and apologizes for barging in. Jack thanks her for letting him know, nodding her out.

Still, Harper doesn’t seem convinced, even if she won’t continue to argue it to Jack’s face. She makes her way out without further comment.

Jack goes back to his work, releasing a sigh. His mood is not improved by the notations on more messages he’s gotten from the mysterious Bradfords. He picks up his phone, deciding to make a call and set the record straight.

EXT. CHUBBIE’S DINER - DAY

Farkle is making his way down the street, hands stuffed in his pockets and head ducked down from the wind as he shuffles into the diner.

INT. CHUBBIE’S DINER - DAY

Farkle pulls his scarf from around his neck and steps up to the counter, requesting a pick-up order for his family. The waitress informs him that it’ll be ready in just a minute, Farkle nodding and waiting restlessly by the counter. He taps his fingers on the countertop, glancing around him at the other patrons eating in good company at the booths and tables.

He’s startled when Katy says his name, gaining his attention. She’s obviously not 100% sure it’s him until he faces her, offering an uncertain smile and asking him how he’s doing. Although Katy is on Maya’s side in all things, it’s clear that she still maintains a friendliness towards Farkle even if her daughter is quite decidedly anti at this point.

Farkle is saved from more small talk by his order being ready. He wishes Katy well and heads over to gather utensils and condiments by the door, Katy looking after him with sympathy and a little bit of concern.

Maya doesn’t even notice him as she breezes through the doors with Valerie and Isadora in tow. She eagerly pulls Katy out from behind the counter and leads the more formal introduction of the single mothers, eyes sparkling with excitement as two of her role models really meet for the first time. Katy is flustered and gives her high compliments, not prepared to meet her again in such a humdrum setting. But Valerie thinks nothing of it, easing the tension with a joke or two about her own waitressing days. Ha ha ha!

As they’re chatting, the subject of Thanksgiving comes up. Maya gets the bright idea that since they’re both working with unconventional family dynamics, they should totally do the holiday together! Especially since she and Isadora are such good friends now.

Isadora enthusiastically agrees, perhaps a little too eagerly for someone who is supposed to be thrilled to be spending time with her starlet mother. Might be easier to stomach a holiday with her actual mother if she’s not facing it alone. Valerie asks Isadora if she’s sure she doesn’t have any other plans that might be conflicting with, and she only hesitates for a moment before confirming it’s all good.

Farkle, of course, hears all of this. It’s a bit surprising to hear Isadora dismiss any other plans so flippantly, considering even he knows about how she and Lucas would usually spend the holiday together because it was so sad and often the subject of performer dressing room gossip the week back from break. He also is doing a weak job of hiding his jealousy, finishing prepping his to-go bag and starting to head out before he hears anything else.

That’s when Valerie notices him, recognizing him from school.

Valerie: Oh, hey! [ waiting for him to stop and turn ] Aren’t you from AAA? In the A class with Isadora?

[ Awkward. While Valerie is all smiles, Maya and Isadora stare at Farkle as he gawks like a deer in headlights. ]

Farkle: … yes. Goodbye.

He doesn’t give them the chance to say anything else, pushing out the doors. Valerie raises her eyebrows, giving Katy a playful nudge.

Valerie: Little wiggly, that one, wouldn’t you say? Although, don’t I know the feeling! When I am away from the stage for too long, I’ll tell you, withdrawal jitters --

Maya and Isadora exchange a look, the former shaking her head dismissively and tuning back into the conversation with their moms. Isadora lingers on it a bit longer, glancing back over her shoulder where Farkle left.

EXT. CHUBBIE’S DINER - NIGHT

The sun has set by the time Valerie and Isadora head out from Chubbie’s, Valerie asking if she’d like to do something else. Catch a movie, perhaps? Something touristy? A trip to the salon -- she’s been contemplating some new looks that she thinks Isadora could totally rock. But Isadora is feeling a bit suffocated, so she claims she really needs to get back.

As they walk in the direction of the subway, Valerie holds up the conversation. She talks brightly about the A class, sharing her thoughts on who she’s chatted with so far and getting Isadora’s thoughts on it. When Farkle comes up, Valerie comments on his perceivable ostracism and how quickly he escaped their greeting.

Valerie: A bit strange, no?

Isadora: Not really. He kind of ruined everybody’s lives at the end of last year, so they’re all pissed at him. Sort of playing the villain… at least he was. No one is really paying him much attention anymore.

Valerie: What exactly did he do?

Isadora: Honestly, it’s not even worth talking about. It was just stupid and… whatever. He got what he deserved, so I guess people are just letting it die out.

Valerie: … is that really all there is to it, though?

Isadora: What do you mean?

Valerie: I just mean… is letting it go really letting it go? Forgetting is a far cry from forgiving, and believe me when I say I know all too well how important forgiveness can be. It’s more so for the other person than the one giving it, but… you know. Take you and me. You’re forgiving me -- for much worse than I presume Farkle Minkus could’ve done -- and that means all the world to me.

Isadora absorbs the sentiment, not sure how to handle the sudden vulnerability of the conversation despite how willingly Valerie offers it. She goes on to simply state perhaps letting the issue die down isn’t going to do anyone any favors… something to think about, in any case.

The subject slowly drifts to someone Valerie thought she would be interacting with much more…

Valerie: I haven’t seen much of Lucas. [ a beat ] You don’t seem to be hanging around with him much, at least.

Isadora: … yeah, well, it’s the focus change. You know, I’m in performing classes now more than I was before. So it’s just… scheduling things. Mostly.

Valerie: Oh, of course. Don’t I know about scheduling conflicts. [ tentatively ] But certainly, for best friends, you would find the time --

Isadora ends the conversation preemptively, claiming she can walk the rest of the way to the station from here on her own. She gives Valerie a smile, thanking her for the dinner and assuring her that she’ll see her again bright and early tomorrow.

Lucas is clearly something she’s not keen to discuss at the moment. However, you can practically see the little diva wheels start turning in Valerie’s head…

INT. LUCAS’S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Lucas is gearing up to head out somewhere, phone pressed to his ear as he tears from the hall to the entryway. He doesn’t seem to be in the best mood, given the circumstances of the week.

Lucas: What do you mean Asher isn’t coming? [ a beat ] No, I mean, it’s whatever, I’m not going to force him to hang out with me. [ beat ] No, no, I don’t think it’s that deep, I just -- no, I don’t care. I’ll see him tomorrow, it’s not like the end of the world. [ beat ] Whatever, Dyl, I’ll be down in two minutes. Bye.

He hangs up without waiting for a response, huffing as he focuses on jamming on his boots. GRACE FRIAR emerges from the kitchen to catch him before he goes, letting him know that there’s been a change of plans in the family schedule. She warns him that Kenneth is going to be home for the holiday week.

Lucas is obviously stunned by this. His reaction is indignant, although there’s a hint of something that goes just beyond commonplace discomfort.

Lucas: What? He wasn’t -- I thought he was gonna be in Texas. Gone for Thanksgiving, here for Christmas.

Grace: That’s what I thought too, but he called this morning from the school to let me know. They shifted around the dates. Here for Thanksgiving, gone for Christmas.

It’s evident neither of them are exactly thrilled. Lucas is suddenly tenser than before, pacing the confines of the entryway and rubbing his eyes. He tries to search for another explanation for his frustration to compartmentalize it.

Lucas: I already made plans. I’m going to Asher’s.

Grace: Oh? What about Isadora?

Lucas, bitterly: She’s got plans of her own.

Grace: [ after a moment ] Well, don’t change your plans. I’m sure the Garcias are going to host a lovely dinner. Just given how… neat Asher is. [ Lucas scoffs ] It’ll probably be good for you to be there. Better than here.

The resulting silence speaks volumes. Lucas looks at his mother, uncertain.

Lucas: I can ask Asher if you could come --

Grace: Oh, no. No, don’t worry about that. [ Crossing her arms ] Besides… someone has to share the holiday with your father.

The statement is nice, but the sweetness that goes with it isn’t genuine. It’s not a privilege, it’s likely a punishment, and they both know it.

Grace waves him off and tells him to go have fun, disappearing back into the apartment. Lucas looks after her, suddenly heavier with the weight of the conversation. With the knowledge that there’s nothing he can do about… well, anything, really.

He grabs his denim jacket off the rack, storming out the door in a flurry. Just as his apartment door swings closed --

INT. BLUE’S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Another opens, finding Isadora standing just outside. Rather than going home, she’s found herself outside the apartment of BLUE NGUYEN. Given that it’s been a hot minute since last season, it’s nice to see him again! He gives Isadora a light hug before gesturing her inside.

Isadora apologizes for texting so unexpectedly, but he reassures her it’s no biggie. He knows how sometimes going back to the Van Herschings is far from a sweet escape. She reiterates that point, before he prompts her to talk about what is really stressing her out -- the incomparable Valerie De La Cruz.

True enough. Isadora explains that she’s glad she’s here, and it’s clear she’s making a real effort to connect with her which she appreciates. But it’s just a lot to adjust to all at once, hence why she’s glad she’ll have the buffer of the Harts there for Thanksgiving dinner. She feels ungrateful too, since this should be exactly what she wants.

Blue points out that being a foster kid, relationships with your biological parents are guaranteed to be complicated. It’s never going to be a simple dynamic, and while Isadora should feel happy Valerie is there, she is allowed to feel confused and reluctant and even bitter too. Whatever she feels about it all, that’s valid, and she shouldn’t try to shut those feelings down because of what she “owes” anyone else.

It’s a relief to hear someone say it, even if Isadora logically knew it to be true. She thanks Blue, stating that it kind of feels like she can’t really talk to anyone else about this (Valerie, Maya, least of all Lucas...).

Blue: Any time. You know that. But are you sure you can’t talk to Maya about it? Seems like she’d know a thing or two about mixed up parents.

Isadora: Yeah, but… you have no idea how much she admires my mom.

Yeah, such a level of starstruck is difficult to encapsulate. And we’re about to get a full dose of it… as the bouncy bass line floats in…

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “Valerie” as performed by Glee Cast || Performed by Maya Hart

Maya delivers a banging rendition of the song, clearly not afraid of pulling some direct punches to get across how much she idolizes their current guest lecturer. It’s cheeky fun in some ways, a little too much in others -- not to mention a sort of weird song choice that her classmates definitely don’t miss.

Dave, whispering: Isn’t this song about like… trying to get with Valerie?

Dylan: Shhhh.

Weirdness aside, it’s an undeniably well-crafted performance. Maya sells it with gusto, and her vocals and dancing are as impressive as ever. Valerie certainly seems charmed, if nothing else.

INT. AAA - ERIC’S OFFICE - DAY

Coming off of that interesting performance, Eric is checking in with Isadora to see how she’s handling the presence of her mom at school. The effort definitely means something to Isadora, considering how she was just expressing to Blue that she felt like there was no one she could talk to about the whole thing.

Although it’s not going badly all in all, suffice to say there are… awkward elements to it.

Isadora: Is there a good way to explain to your friend that she just sang a song that implies she wants to score with your mother?

Eric laughs, admitting that might be a tricky one. She goes on to say similar things to what she told Blue, lamenting the fact that while she’s glad Valerie is here, she feels as though there aren’t many people to talk to about how she feels. Eric reiterates his availability, but gently questions her perspective on it.

Eric: There’s… no hope with Lucas, you think?

Isadora: God, no way. He already hates her, and anything I say is only going to piss him off. Which I don’t want, even if it’s on my behalf. Not to mention he’s already so all over the place right now, skipping class and being careless, and then there’s the thing with the vandalism --

Eric: Wait, what? What are you talking about?

Isadora hesitates. Does he not know? Lucas was the one who vandalized the set piece during Into the Woods. Was she not supposed to say that? Eric is obviously shocked to learn this.

Isadora: … I told Principal Hunter about it. I assumed you guys just took care of it. Was I not supposed to...?

Eric: [ collecting himself ] No, no. It’s fine, you’re completely fine. It’s just… Jack told me…

A lie, apparently. He told him he couldn’t figure out who did it, but now Isadora is saying otherwise. Being hard to reach is one thing, but outright keeping him out of the loop...

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

The techies are congregated in the black box, an unfamiliar grouping place for them. But they’re not “needed” in the auditorium, so goofing off in the only place not riddled with starstruck performers is the move. Nate, Dylan, and Jeff are playing cards. Jade is doing hem work on a costume piece, Asher being her model and standing carefully on a desktop while she circles him and does her thing.

Lucas is at the whiteboard, erasing the notes Harper has written and haphazardly replacing it with his own nonsense. He continues to do so as the other techies get into making fun of Maya’s performance, discussing how weird it was. Jeff points out that Maya probably wasn’t thinking about it all that literally, but Asher counterpoints with the fact that that certainly doesn’t keep the rest of them from thinking about it.

Nate: It’s just such a kiss ass move. If she really wanted to win over Valerie, she probably already did it by getting in Isa’s good graces.

Jade: Suppose she hardly needs the song to boost her after that.

Although he doesn’t contribute to the conversation, Lucas clearly absorbs the notion about Maya using Isadora to get to Valerie. It’s nothing he hasn’t already thought about, but hearing someone else point it out sure does make the possibility seem uglier…

As if summoned, who should float into the room and disrupt their relative peace than Valerie herself. She gives all of them her usual level of charisma, asking if they’ll pardon her intrusion and how wonderful it is to see all of them enjoying their time en repose. Jade removes the needle from between her lips, hiding it behind her back.

Dave asks if there’s something they’re needed for, which Valerie waves off. She assures them that the performers are all hard at work rehearsing or debriefing, so she thought she’d take the quick reprieve of her own to stop by. In fact, she was hoping to have a spot of conversation with Lucas James.

The other techies hesitate, before immediately making excuses to get out of there. Nate pats Lucas on the shoulder as he goes. Dylan helps Asher down from the desktop, the two of them tossing a look of solidarity towards Lucas before they make their escape with Jade. It’s not long before it’s only Valerie and Lucas left in the space, the vast distance between them much more prominent than before.

Lucas clears his throat, turning back to the whiteboard and continuing his shenanigans. Valerie doesn’t seem perturbed, as she came into this meeting knowing full well it wouldn’t be easy. She keeps her smile intact, sauntering further into the room.

Valerie: I was wondering when we’d finally get the chance to chat. Must admit I’ve been looking forward to it. [ a beat ] I couldn’t help but notice you neglected to sign up for a one-on-one slot.

Lucas, deadpan: Oh, did I? My mistake.

Valerie doesn’t let the shortness deter her. She elaborates, stating that she knows what an impact he has on Isadora’s life. A true friend, certainly, and as her mother she could only hope she would have such true friends. It’s all nice chatter, but Lucas looks unimpressed as he uncaps all the markers on the whiteboard to let them dry out.

Stiffness, she can handle, but being rejected attention entirely is a tough pill to swallow for a woman who has only ever known the spotlight. She doesn’t take the hint to leave him alone and continues to fill the silence, explaining how nice it’s been to spend time with Isadora and see all the growth she’s exhibiting. It makes her happy, and really proud. It’s been spectacular, seeing her daughter make so many strides.

This gets a snort out of Lucas. Valerie pauses, asking if something she said was particularly humorous. She wasn’t going for comedic in that moment.

Lucas: I just find it funny. You know, that you’re acting like Isadora is so important to you when you only decided to show up six months ago.

Blunt and to the point. Valerie gently corrects him on exactly how many months it’s been since Les Mis, but Lucas clearly doesn’t care about that. His point has been made. And he has better things to do than talk with a Hollywood puppet, so he is going to have to cut their chat short.

Valerie searches for something to make him stay while he gathers his things, already heading towards the door.

Valerie: I know that adolescence can be a difficult time for young men. So I will begrudge you the harsh words. I’m not one for holding grudges, personally. Surely my feud with Sofia Vergara that was famously put to rest with my generosity and quick thinking is a credit to that.

Lucas, flatly: By all means, grudge away.

Valerie: But I think you could return the same courtesy in granting me my truth. I know it might be hard to believe with your biases, but I care about Isadora. She’s my daughter, and… and I love her dearly.

This manages to stop Lucas in his tracks. He hangs in the doorway, debating whether or not to say anything. His logical brain knows he should just walk away, but his temper…

Lucas: What are her favorite shoes?

Valerie: .... beg pardon?

Lucas whips around, locking eyes with her. She’s successfully kept him from slipping away, but perhaps that isn’t such a good thing.

Lucas: Dora’s shoes. What’s her favorite pair?

Valerie: I -- I apologize, but I don’t exactly see how a pair of shoes is relevant --

Lucas: They’re black converse. She’s had them since seventh grade. They don’t even really fit anymore and they’re falling apart, and she’s doodled all over the soles. But she can’t get rid of them, because they’re basically a part of her. But okay, strike one. How about her favorite color? No parent really knows their kid’s favorite color, but since you don’t know anything else maybe you’ll at least randomly know that.

Valerie: I… again, I --

Lucas: Not even a guess?

Valerie: … green!

Lucas: It’s red. Strike two. How about her favorite movie? You’ve talked about movies, right? Or what about dream vacation? What kind of food makes her nauseous? What do you do if you’re in an overwhelming social situation and she starts to shut down? What would you do, Miss De La Cruz, if you were there?

Valerie is stunned. She’s suddenly in an overwhelming social situation, and she has no idea how to respond. She shakes her head, stammering over her words.

Lucas: Strike three. You’re out.

Valerie: That’s not fair. You may be right about certain things, but… we’re making reparations. We’re trying now, and that’s just as good. And if I were there --

Lucas: But you weren’t. You weren’t, so you don’t know shit about anything.

Valerie: Now, Lucas James, I won’t be --

Lucas: No, don’t talk down to me like you know better. Don’t speak at me like you know me. Because you don’t. You don’t know me, because you don’t know her! Suddenly showing up now doesn’t erase that. You weren’t there when she got into Adams, or when she pulled off her first stage managing gig. Or how about when the secret of your mere existence blew up and Dora had to be talked down in the bathroom, huh?

Valerie: … I --

Lucas, fiercely: You weren’t there, but I was! So don’t talk to me about caring about Dora!

… whew. That’s a lot of emotion to absorb. Valerie dips her head, all of her bravado peeled away and a shaky version of her left in its place. She searches for something to say, but nothing comes out. The streetsmart starlet with a motormouth has nothing to say.

Lucas steps back a bit, collecting himself. He never intended to get so heated, let alone in front of one of his least favorite people -- not when he was doing so well at pushing it all away. He shakes his head, letting out a scoff of a laugh.

Lucas: But it’s fine. It doesn’t matter. Isadora’s following in your footsteps now, and… [ swallowing ] barely needs me anymore. So I guess it’s the perfect time for you to swoop back in and play the perfect idol mother. Role of a lifetime.

Valerie tentatively locks eyes with him, but he can’t look at her anymore.

Lucas, derisively: Break a leg.

He storms out, leaving her alone. Valerie takes a deep breath, pressing her hands over her mouth and closing her eyes. Forcing herself to be zen -- which it seems she’s done many times before. But her hands are still shaking, even as she plasters on a well-rehearsed smile.

As any actress worth her salt knows, the show must go on…

INT. AAA - SCRIPT LIBRARY - DAY

Farkle is tucked away in the script library, continuing to sort through the masses. It looks like he’s made decent progress in the time he’s been working through his punishment, but he’s listless as he alphabetizes the only shelf he’s gotten into actual shape.

He’s startled out of his funk by voices just outside the script library, causing him to jump when they pass by.

Dylan: He was really upset that you weren’t there.

Farkle frowns, recognizing Dylan’s voice but not having any clue what he could be talking about. He moves back towards the door and leans against it, eavesdropping.

INT. AAA - HALLWAY - DAY

Asher and Dylan have stopped just outside the script library, hanging back for a moment rather than continuing towards the auditorium. Asher crosses his arms.

Asher: Oh, did he say that?

Dylan: Well, no, obviously not. I think we both know that the day Lucas actually says what he’s feeling his head is going to explode. [ off Asher’s expression ] But you know how he is, you can tell when he’s not acting like himself --

Asher: Kinda feels like every day.

Oh. It’s clear Asher didn’t mean to say that, and Farkle’s expression from listening behind the door proves exactly why. Lucas, Dylan, and Asher come across as such an iron-clad united front, so any inkling of dissent from either of them seems like groundbreaking news.

Dylan states that he understands why Asher didn’t go last night, the two of them having talked about how overwhelming his shenanigans have gotten for Asher after all. But Lucas evidently has no idea, and maybe choosing not to say anything about it is doing more harm than good.

Asher: And what am I supposed to say, Dylan? That he’s being ridiculous? That I think he’s being stupid and making things worse for himself, not to mention that you and I almost got in trouble for it during Into the Woods.

[ Dylan makes a face and nods, acknowledging the point. ]

Asher: He’s being so boneheaded about Isa, and I can’t even get started on Riley --

Dylan: She’s still being nice to him.

Asher: Yeah, duh, because she likes him.

Another interesting tidbit. Farkle is certainly learning a lot while being certifiably invisible.

Asher: And I get why he’s being so… whatever about that, he’s got his thing about humiliation -- but is that supposed to last forever? Is Riley supposed to just take whatever and continue to be kind and forgiving until he decides to come around? Which he might never do? I don’t see how she could fathom doing that when I’ve been one of his best friends for two years and I feel like I’m losing my --

Asher cuts himself off, thwarting a potential anxiety attack before it starts. Dylan watches him breathe himself down, obviously wanting to help but having no great ideas about how to fix the situation either.

Dylan: I mean... do you think maybe you and Lucas aren’t…

Asher, quickly: No. No, of course I’m not saying that. I just --

He shrugs, letting out an exhale. He doesn’t know what he’s saying or thinking. Dylan searches for a way to turn things around, rubbing Asher’s shoulders comfortingly.

Dylan: Things always get weirder around the holidays. We know that. But we’ll have a great time on Thanksgiving with Lucas. And no one will set anything on fire, and everything will be okay. It always is eventually.

Whether or not he’s right, the earnest delivery Dylan has is impossible not to believe. Asher lets out another deep breath, managing a smile and a nod. Better, for now. Dylan slides his hands down to take his, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before leading the way back down the hall.

Farkle leans against the door, thoughtful. So much information he’s absorbed in the last few days, it’s like he knows his classmates better than he has in the last three years.

Yet, he’s still alone. He lets out a sigh and goes back to organizing.

INT. AAA - JACK’S OFFICE - DAY

Jack is currently focused on exactly that, going over notes on Farkle’s behavior from Harper and Eric and gearing up to set a meeting with him. But before he can make any definitive moves, who should march in a huff?

Eric: So were you just never going to tell me?

Jack blinks, holding up a hand in surrender.

Jack: Sorry, I just… I didn’t realize we had jumped back in time. When was the last time you stormed into my office like this, Eric? Early sophomore year?

The playful tone quickly evaporates when it’s clear Eric is not being theatrical. He’s genuinely upset, wondering why Jack decided not to tell him about Lucas being the vandal. As far as he was aware, they were tackling things as a team. As far as he was aware, that meant keeping one another in the loop and not withholding information that they deem the other unable to handle. Are they just not telling each other anything anymore? Is that what it’s come to?

Jack goes on the defensive, attempting to maintain his calm as he claims he made a call in the moment that felt right. But Eric calls bullshit, considering how pro-poetic justice he was acting for their entire investigation. Did Lucas end up getting that swift punishment? Or did he make a “call in the moment” about that too?

The situation escalates, the disagreement over communication quickly devolving into the other frustrations they have with one another but have been stifling for quite some time. Jack harps on how Eric has always acted like he just knows better than him, even though Jack was here before he was and has worked his ass off for years to keep AAA afloat. Eric fires back that he feels Jack is allowing his focus to be split, leaving work whenever and prioritizing his own personal fancies over who needs it most -- the students.

Jack is deeply offended by the insinuation, retorting that it’s not his fault Eric has no semblance of a work-life balance. It’s not his fault that Jack has a life outside the school, and that doesn’t make him any less serious about the school and the students in their care than Eric. It’s bullshit, and Eric knows it. The only reason he continues to dismiss him is because he’s not an “artist,” and so he’s never going to be good enough for him.

It’s a nasty argument, and shots are fired on both sides that they can’t take back. But the comment about having a life outside of work is a deep cut for Eric, enough to stop him cold and run out of things to say back. In terms of how Jack will never be good enough for him…

Eric: [ in a murmur ] Is that really what you think I think?

Jack shrugs, crossing his arms. Is he wrong? Eric thinks so, but then, he doesn’t have the words to explain the opposite. At present, he can hardly look at him without a lot of emotion he’s not prepared to deal with bubbling over.

Well, that’s that then. As Eric is heading out, he doubles back and states he doesn’t think he’ll be joining the Hunters for Thanksgiving anymore. He supposes he should be with his brother and niece, as they actually need him right now. After all...

Eric: I know where my priorities lie.

He flurries out without waiting for a response. Jack watches him go, obviously wounded by the confrontation and all worked up. He loosens his tie and attempts to pull himself back together, startled when one of the secretaries pokes her head in and explains that the Bradfords are on the line… again.

Jack has had about enough of this. He straightens up, expression growing determined as he tells her to put them through. He’s going to put an end to this irritation once and for all.

INT. AAA - PRACTICE ROOM - DAY

Farkle is alone at the piano, playing a few notes of a song but clearly not all that into it. He’s surprised when Valerie stumbles into the room, looking for a place to escape for a moment after her confrontation with Lucas. She’s not shaking it off as easily as she’s used to. She starts digging through her bag, obviously looking for something in particular.

Even more surprising, she actually seems to notice him. When she locks eyes with him she startles, letting out an airy laugh and apologizing for intruding. Farkle shrugs it off, claiming she’s not the first. Completely changing pace, Valerie saunters further into the space and pulls him into a conversation -- the first to do so all episode. She asks him what he’s planning on doing for Thanksgiving.

Farkle: Nothing. My family doesn’t really celebrate.

Valerie: Oh? Is Thanksgiving not a Jewish-approved holiday?

Farkle: Well, it’s kind of a dumb holiday to begin with that has its roots in colonization and the eradication and displacement of indigenous peoples, so you’d think less people would celebrate... but no. Nothing like that. [ playing a few notes ] Family is just busy this time of year, that’s all. We put a lot more stake into the December gatherings, I suppose.

Valerie: Oh… yes. Of course.

Valerie notes that the two of them have yet to have their one-on-one, which is a shame considering he seems like someone greatly worth talking to. Farkle scoffs, stating she’s the only one who thinks that… but also it’s whatever. He doesn’t have much to say. Given that he just gave a mini-diatribe about Thanksgiving unprompted she highly doubts that’s true, and instead prompts him on another subject that she thinks might set him off. Or at least, get him talking… then maybe the rest will follow.

So she asks him about music.

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “I Miss the Music” as performed by Curtains Original Broadway Cast || Performed by Farkle Minkus (starting at 00:15)

Valerie takes on the role of prompting Farkle to discuss the creation of a song, which then launches him into singing about his feelings much in the same way it unfolds in the original. He expresses wanting to avoid talking about feelings and yet ends up doing just that -- only in this case, it’s ex-friends rather than an ex-wife that he’s aching for.

Still, the message of the piece is clear. Farkle lost his team and so he lost his voice, and he has no idea how to get it back the way it was before. It’s the most vulnerable Farkle has been about the situation since it all went to hell, and in front of an unlikely party at that. Valerie doesn’t intrude much on the expression, sort of fading into the background.

At the 3:50 mark when the song is interrupted, it’s Maya accidentally stepping in and claiming she forgot her songbook. It is their usual studio, after all. Although Farkle says something snarky at first, before Maya heads out he tries again and congratulates her for a great performance. She accepts it, hesitantly, another small moment of warmth much like during Into the Woods that neither of them know what to do with now.

Then she leaves him again, pushing him into the final swell of the song. Just because no one is giving him the time of day, and he’s basically invisible, it doesn’t mean all of those emotions are invisible too.

As the song concludes, Valerie startles Farkle by applauding and immediately commending his abilities -- vocally and instrumentally. She also highlights how much raw emotion he’s able to translate into a performance, which he sort of shrugs off considering emotion has never been his strong suit.

Valerie leans against the piano, attempting to contextualize whatever happened last year that people keep talking about at length. Farkle isn’t interested in discussing it, but it’s clear he’d like to be able to actually move on from it. So Valerie gets her thinking cap on and gives him… well, it’s well-meant advice, that’s for sure, but as for whether it’s good…

Valerie: You know, I’ve had my fair share of scandal in the industry. Everyone does, if you hang around long enough. And you know what I’ve always found to be the quickest fix for a story that just won’t let you live?

Farkle, flatly: Expensive cover-up?

Valerie: [ with a laugh ] No, no. Only in grave emergencies. No, generally, I’ve always found that a new scandal always swiftly pushes out the old. Once people have latched onto the next thing, you’d be amazed how easily they forget the previous one.

This seems to inspire something in Farkle. He nods, thanking Valerie for the advice as well as the conversation. She brightens, absorbing the head-turn she managed after the horrible confrontation with Lucas.

As she flutters off, pleased with her work, Farkle goes back to the piano and ruminates on her advice. A new scandal… he plays a couple of discordant keys…

INT. JACK’S APARTMENT - DINING AREA - NIGHT

Jack is having dinner with ANNE MARIE WINTHROP, the latter in the midst of giving him a well-needed pep talk after the day he endured. While it’s evident that the dynamic that they have is good and solid, it’s worth noting that their mindsets are incredibly similar. Both authoritarian, both more logical thinkers rather than emotional. Not a lot of challenging their ways of thinking.

Anne Marie backs him up in his decisions that Eric criticized him for, pointing out that him blowing up demonstrates exactly why Jack kept the identity of the vandal under wraps. She thinks Eric is an incredibly thoughtful, sweet man from the times she’s met him, but being able to keep emotions in check is a pretty pivotal skill to have in an administrative role.

Anne Marie: Certainly wouldn’t fancy him a principal, you know?

She also backs his defense about having a work-life balance. He shouldn’t feel bad for separating his personal life from school, and getting more tangled up in the emotional in and outs wouldn’t help him be an effective leader anyway. No, she thinks he’s doing the right thing, and assures him as such with a comforting touch of the hand and logical reasoning.

Still, Jack doesn’t seem entirely placated. And when she points out that she’s positive he handled the behavioral issue with perfectly rational thought, he takes a long sip of his drink rather than choosing to comment. Interesting, how Jack can talk about most things work related with Anne Marie except for that one very special case...

INT. CHUBBIE’S DINER - NIGHT

Valerie steps into the diner, scanning the counter until she finds Katy cleaning up a spot a few seats down. She cheerfully greets the waitress, evidently surprising her with her presence.

Katy: I didn’t realize -- is there something I can do for you?

Valerie: Oh, just a little of your precious time would be lovely. Oh, and a slice of that peach cobbler? I will tell you, ever since we had some of that treasure the other night I have not been able to stop thinking about it. Like pure addiction, that is!

Katy laughs, obliging and bringing her a slice. She continues to clean the counter and wipe down other dishes as Valerie chats with her, enjoying the company of another woman her age that isn’t immured in the same celebrity sphere that she is.

Valerie states that Maya is an incredibly talented young woman, which Katy proudly echoes. When Valerie states it isn’t a wonder where she must’ve gotten it from, Katy sort of waves the compliment off. She then settles into something a little more somber, expressing gratitude towards Valerie for being so willing to humor them and spend time with Maya. It means the world to her, she knows, and it’ll really make the holiday special this year.

Katy: Given how things have been going lately, um… it’ll just be real nice to have an extra special Thanksgiving. One we’ll really remember.

Valerie claims she’s hardly worth such high praise, but she’s more than happy to oblige. Sensing some of the stress surrounding it, she also offers to handle all of the food and beverages for Thanksgiving. If Katy can provide the place, she’ll handle everything else. Katy is stunned and tries to argue, but Valerie won’t hear it.

Valerie: Please, not even a dent in my pocket. You just bring one of these fantastic peach cobblers, and I will arrange the rest.

An incredibly kind gesture. Valerie waits a moment before going on to express her admiration for Katy, how she raised Maya all on her own and is working so hard to give her all these opportunities. She could never do it -- in fact, she didn’t, and now she’s paying for it. She only wishes she could connect with her daughter as seamlessly as she does, and she has so much courage for doing what she couldn’t.

Katy bashfully accepts the compliment, stating that when it comes to Isadora, better late than never. In terms of how she manages to communicate so effectively, Katy gives one piece of advice that stands truer than anything else. Something that, perhaps, everyone could consider utilizing a bit more right now…

Katy: When it comes to nurturing that relationship, for how subtly and swiftly it changes as she grows up… I just think the most important thing I can do is listen. I can be there for her, and listening is always the first step.

Food for thought. Valerie is thoughtful, considering this as the opening tones of Isadora’s performance for the week float in…

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “Don’t Watch Me Cry” as performed by Jorja Smith || Performed by Isadora De La Cruz

Valerie’s expression is still thoughtful in the darkened auditorium, seated amongst the A class as Isadora gives her rendition of this hauntingly beautiful ode to being left behind. It’s a simple arrangement, Isadora silhouetted on the stage with a single spotlight highlighting her in some places but casting her in shadow in others. It’s the most she’s addressed the impact of Valerie in front of Valerie before, making for a shaky but quite emotionally authentic performance.

In fact, it might be too much for the preacher of authenticity herself. As the performance reaches its conclusion Valerie rises from her seat, overcome with emotion. Isadora sees her rush out, not hesitating to leave the stage and jog down the steps into the house after her.

The class watches them exit, definitely getting a taste of what a truly emotionally authentic moment feels like.

INT. AAA - HALLWAY - DAY

Isadora catches up to Valerie in the atrium, wondering why she left like that. Valerie is in tears, trying to wipe at her eyes and pull it back together with minimal luck. She didn’t mean to upset her, she was just doing her best to be “emotionally authentic” or whatever --

Valerie: Isadora, I am so, so sorry.

Valerie goes on to express how horrible she feels for all she put her through. Unintentionally or not, she had no idea how much her absence must’ve hurt her -- well, she had an idea, but not a true understanding of it. She knows she could never make up for that, as much as she now has decided she wants to. She is so deeply, deeply sorry.

It’s the first real apology Isadora has ever gotten from her mother. It’s the first real emotion she’s ever gotten from her even, and perhaps there’s a truth to emotional authenticity, because it’s more effective than any overt enthusiasm or compliment Valerie has ever given her. Suddenly, for the first time, Isadora actually feels connected to her biological mother.

She gently assures Valerie that it’s okay, and that she’s glad she finally heard her. Isadora means it when she claims she wants to try and have an actual relationship with her, but admittedly it’s not going to be easy. Valerie has done things in the past that make it hard to trust her, and so it’s going to take time. But if she’s okay with that, then Isadora is willing to put in the work if she is.

Valerie is somewhat placated by this, wiping her eyes again and nodding eagerly. She lets out a teary laugh and expresses embarrassment at how much of a puddle she’s become, before asking Isadora if it would be okay to hug her.

For once, Isadora allows it. It’s their first embrace as mother and daughter, whatever exactly that might come to mean for the both of them.

It’s more than evident, however, that it means a lot to them both.

INT. AAA - HALLWAY - DAY

Charlie is at his locker, scared out of his wits when he closes the door and Maya is standing there grinning at him. He yells, fumbling back a bit.

Charlie: OH MY… ah. Maya.

She gives him a winning smile, claiming that she just wanted to chat with him about the little “crush” she’s heard going around about him. His eyes widen, but before he can get a word in edgewise Maya is off on a tangent.

Maya: I’m flattered, truly, and to be honest you do have potential. You’re cute enough, and can keep up with me physically -- as a dancer, that is, the only physical activity that matters -- but I’m simply not interested in weighing down my star with a relationship right now. Or, ever, really.

Charlie is totally bewildered, barely keeping up with her explanation. Finally, it hits him.

Charlie: You think -- you think I like you.

Maya: Can’t fault you that. I hope you understand. I mean, not my problem if you don’t, but I’m wishing you the best either way.

She blows him a couple of kisses, patting his cheek and turning on her heel to walk away. Charlie stares after her, blinking and letting out a strained exhale. So that’s the crush people have been talking about this whole time.

He leans back against his locker, finally getting to relax for the first time all week.

Meanwhile, Farkle is making moves, chasing after Lucas as he attempts to break ground on launching a new scandal. Although Lucas has exactly zero interest in interacting with Farkle, he is refusing to let the issue drop as he’s the perfect catalyst for stirring up something new. That’s the price they pay, being the most unbearable people in the junior A class.

Lucas: And why on God’s green Earth and the forsaken halls of Triple A would I be at all interested in speaking to you anymore than I am legally obligated?

Farkle, confidently: Because I know something that you’ll want to know.

That’s enough to at least get his attention. Lucas pauses, turning to face him and give him a second of his time.

From the expression on his face, we can tell whatever Farkle is going to say isn’t going to be good. What piece of information is he going to choose as the match to set off this firecracker…

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

Class is reassembling on the stage when the fuse finally blows, Lucas storming through the wings and disrupting the chatter. He’s awfully worked up for someone who doesn’t care about anything because nothing matters.

Lucas: When were you planning on telling me?

For a second, we hang on each of our potential scandal victims. Charlie jumps, spooked by the sudden volume. Asher and Dylan stare at their best friend, looking like deer in headlights. Riley spins from where she’s speaking to Zay, eyes wide.

But focus lands on Isadora, in the midst of chatting with Maya and surprised that Lucas is approaching her like this. It’s obvious she has no clue what he’s so vexed about.

Isadora: Telling you what?

Lucas: About your little Thanksgiving plans? I mean, I figured you’d be spending it with your mom considering she deemed to be in your life for five seconds, but really, Maya too? Isn’t that just the picture of best friendship?

Isadora is stunned. Although she wasn’t intentionally keeping it a secret from him, she wasn’t ever planning on telling him about it either. Maya steps up and tells him to back off lest he get his toxic masculinity all over them. Farkle saunters up onto some of the half-built set pieces and gets comfortable, watching the scene unfold from above with a neutral expression.

Maya speaking may not be the best strategy, because it’s all too easy for Lucas to turn on her. He points out how transparent she is, obviously only using Isadora to get a chance to grovel more at the feet of her favorite spastic diva idol. The insinuation is like a slap to the face, not only to Maya but to Isadora. She knows Maya loves Valerie as an artist, but the simple conclusion so many people seemed to have drawn honestly didn’t occur to her.

Maya glances at her, shaking her head frantically and immediately trying to assure her that it isn’t true. But Lucas is there to easily refute it, and soon enough it’s just a shouting match between Friar and Hart that everyone else is too stunned or entertained by to interrupt.

That is, except for Harper Burgess. She enters with Eric just in time to catch the worst of it, having officially reached her patience threshold for one special lead technician. And if no one, even Jack, is going to do something about his terrible attitude, then she certainly will. She steps into the fray and chastises Maya for feeding into the drama before turning to Lucas, asking if this is really the time or place for such harsh accusations.

Lucas: Well this doesn’t really concern you, so --

Harper: I wasn’t. Done. Speaking.

All of the oxygen is zapped out of the room. No one is breathing. Lucas is caught off-guard by being talked back to enough to go speechless, giving Harper the full power to take to the soapbox and completely take him down. She laments his absolutely abhorrent attitude, criticizes his lack of respect, all in front of the rest of the class who are all reacting in varying states of shock. Farkle has gone pale, blank-faced as he watches his plan crash and burn more horrifically than he could’ve ever anticipated.

Harper: Do you want to know what I think, Mister Friar? I think that you’re scared. I don’t know why, and I don’t know where you got the idea that terrorizing everyone else would fix it. But let the record show that you are not in control here. From here on out, you will show your faculty their due respect. You will attend class, and you will participate, and you will do it without a snide remark or unwelcome comment. You will be, as you should have been this whole time, a student amongst the rest of your peers and if you feel you deserve differently, then I believe you’re well aware of the exits to this auditorium.

It’s a complete decimation. It’s humiliation in the most concentrated form it could be administered -- perhaps not unwarranted, but definitely not the most effective treatment in this case. The techies are dumbstruck, looking at their de facto leader in concern. Isadora is mortified. Eric seems to realize that perhaps Jack was right about how to handle Lucas.

The whole class has their eyes on Lucas, waiting to see what he’ll do next, but he’s frozen. He can’t move. He can’t speak. It’s unlike anything they’ve ever seen from him.

As if she’s been gifted with the worst timing on Earth, Valerie enters right then, cheerful and unaware as she greets them all again. But she can sense the tension quickly enough.

Valerie, innocently: What did I miss?

Then Lucas is gone, marching off the stage and out of the spotlight. It turns into a run when he hits the dressing room hall, disappearing through the doors.

The rest of the class devolves into mild chaos, reacting to what they just witnessed or trying to do damage control. Riley takes off before anyone can notice, running into the wings and through the dressing room hall after Lucas. Maya turns to Isadora, frantically trying to assure her that what Lucas said wasn’t true. She has to know it wasn’t true. Doesn’t she?

Valerie realizes whatever happened can’t have been good, mostly due to the look on Isadora’s face. She tries to approach her and help console her, but Isadora backs away. She backs away from everyone, making a dash for the other exit.

Farkle doesn’t look lofty anymore from his perch above everyone else. He looks disturbed, and Maya catches sight of him so high above. She narrows her eyes, contemplating…

EXT. AAA - DAY

Isadora escapes onto the front steps, gulping down the fresh air and trying to keep her emotions in check. She collapses into sitting on the steps, digging for her phone and frantically dialing a number. They answer quickly enough, providing a much needed outlet.

Isadora: Blue? I -- everything just happened so fast. I don’t know -- [ cracking ] I don’t know what to do. I don’t know --

EXT. AAA - LUNCH COURTYARD - DAY

Riley passes by in the hall outside the courtyard, struck with realization and doubling back to step into the courtyard. Her memory serves her well, allowing her to find Lucas from experience where few other people might think to check.

He’s curled up on the bench closest to the back corner, most effectively out of sight. He’s got his knees pulled up onto the bench and is hiding his head in his hands, looking smaller than Riley has even seen before. She isn’t sure what to do, whether she should approach and try to say something or if being acknowledged would make everything worse.

But she can’t just leave him there. She tentatively approaches the table, staying on the opposite side of it but making her presence known by softly saying his name. He doesn’t look at her, but he regains his composure a bit and clears his throat.

Lucas: What are you doing?

Riley: … I just wanted to make sure you were okay.

That’s a new one. Lucas doesn’t know how to respond, especially in such a deconstructed state. He sort of brushes her off but doesn’t tell her to go either, simply stating that she doesn’t need to waste her time.

Riley obviously doesn’t consider it a waste of time. She comes around the table and sits on the opposite end of the bench, searching for something to say to make the scenario better. If there’s anything she could say at all, in the one moment where she finally has his attention.

Riley: I don’t think you deserved that.

The sentiment hangs in the air. Lucas is still turned away from her, so she doesn’t see the way his expression shifts in a dozen little ways before settling back into blank. There’s a moment where Riley moves her hand, debating whether or not to reach out to him… but ultimately deciding against it.

She quietly rambles instead, stating that she understands why Harper reacted the way she did after all the chaos she’s had to step into, but the way she went about it wasn’t warranted. And she doesn’t… she doesn’t know him. She doesn’t know him enough to say the things she did. Regardless, like everyone else in the A class, she figures Harper could’ve given him another chance before going full takedown.

Lucas: Yeah, well, some people don’t deserve second chances.

It’s unclear who the statement is directed towards. Harper? Valerie? Himself? Given how his expression twitches again and he climbs to his feet a second later to get away again, it sort of feels like the last one. Riley doesn’t try to stop him, glancing over her shoulder as he disappears back through the doors.

She sits in the chilly November air, absorbing the quiet and solitude for a long moment. A moment of still in a semester that has felt like a constant hurricane.

INT. AAA - BLACK BOX THEATER - DAY

Valerie is finally having her sit down with Maya. In spite of the awkwardness that just unfolded, Maya insists that she’s incredibly grateful and excited for this opportunity. She also makes it clear that she isn’t friends with Isadora just to get to Valerie -- considering she was barely in her life when they became friends in the first place, that wouldn’t make much sense.

Well, what a nice little pointed reminder. Valerie gently waves her off and assures her that she believes her, and she’s grateful for her friendship with Isadora. And while she only has good things to say about the logistics of her performance (Lord knows she has talent), she ends up knocking her down a peg in the sense that… Maya’s performance wasn’t authentic. She didn’t get any sense of who Maya actually was.

Maya: … what?

Valerie: Darling, your performance was entirely about me. Which, certainly, consider me flattered! But that wasn’t the assignment, and that’s not what a true artist needs to do. It makes me wonder, you know… what pieces of your own story are you hiding from amidst all the glamour?

Maya is at a loss for words. It’s hard to get criticism -- it’s even harder to get it from someone you so deeply idolize. It’s humbling in a way Maya has never had to endure before. Valerie warns her against becoming so deeply invested in a stardom persona that she loses sight of who Maya actually is, those pieces of her that make her a unique star in the first place. And if there are pieces in her constellation that feel unresolved… it’s up to her to close those chapters in whatever way she sees fit.

More well-intentioned advice. Whether it’ll pay off as intended, well…

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

Eric wanders into the auditorium, on the hunt for Isadora. He finds her where he least expects to, but maybe where he should’ve known to look -- amidst the set pieces, building something constructive to distract herself. Defaulting back to the world that feels safe when everything else is imploding around her.

He settles onto an acting block next to her, not disrupting her process but also checking in to see how she’s feeling. He doesn’t expect her to talk about it, but his door is metaphorically open for her to say whatever she wants or needs to say. He states that it’s okay for her not to be okay after all the tension of this week, in its varied forms.

Isadora pauses in her work, pushing her safety goggles onto her head. After a moment of thought, she gives her answer.

Isadora: No, I’m not fine. But I’m not gonna die either. [ slipping her goggles back on ] Same old, same old.

Eric: Well, hard to argue with that. [ a beat ] Things will work themselves out, you know. People make mistakes, but eventually, things will return to homeostasis.

Isadora, genuinely: I know.

Eric: Good. And until then…

Isadora: Show must go on?

Eric lets out half a laugh, shrugging in acquiescence. Maybe so. He gives Isadora a light shoulder pat, starting to leave her alone when she suddenly touches his hand to keep him from going. She pauses, finding what she wants to say.

Isadora: Thanks… for being there.

After the week he’s had, this hits Eric harder than he expects. He manages a smile and a nod, allowing her to get back to her coping mechanism.

INT. AAA - JACK’S OFFICE - DAY

Jack is holding a meeting, speaking very calmly and professionally about the terms of enrollment when it comes to AAA. He’s explaining what it takes to maintain one’s enrollment, so it seems at first that he might be reprimanding Lucas after what Harper said to him, but it’s not our favorite snapback in the chair opposite his desk.

No, seated in the usual chair is MISSY BRADFORD (16). She’s gorgeous, well-groomed, a walking testament to old money in her designer outfit. She keeps a pleasant, patient smile on her face as Jack finishes his lecture, ultimately concluding that those reasons are the cause for them continually dismissing her parents’ requests to enroll her.

When she simply states that if money is the issue, he should simply name the price, Jack scoffs and states that it’s not about the money. He’s trying his best to be patient, but the Bradfords are clearly pushing him to his wits end. Missy asks why their strict enrollment procedures should be so adhered to anyway, considering other students have joined the ranks of AAA under special circumstances. She mentions Riley Matthews specifically, having clearly done her research.

Jack explains that was a special case, and she filled their remaining open slot. It’s a delicate numbers game, a game of personality balancing, of course the talent of the applicant is of significance…

Missy: Special case… hm. Fascinating, what constitutes a “special case.” Isn’t it?

Missy’s tone is innocent, but there’s the slightest of edges to her delivery that speaks volumes. Jack remains strong on his stance, apologizing again but explaining that there’s simply no room for her in the junior class at this time. Missy pauses, nods, and then rises to her feet.

As she’s almost out the door, she turns back to give him a sweet smile.

Missy: Thank you for taking the time to meet with me, Principal Hunter. I think we’re going to get along swimmingly.

Whatever that is, it doesn’t sound like a goodbye. Missy steps out, Jack slouching back in his seat the moment she’s out of sight. He rubs his face, starting to feel some of that familiar AAA exhaustion…

INT. AAA - BOYS DRESSING ROOM - DAY

Maya goes to find Farkle, ending up where they seem to have all of their confrontations. He’s gathering his things together for the break. When he realizes she’s there, he attempts to fill the silence by casually commenting how insane the afternoon went. Seems there’s never a dull moment in the junior A class…

Maya, simply: I know it was you. That you told Lucas about Thanksgiving.

Farkle freezes, doing a poor job of remaining impassive. Maya approaches him, surprisingly not explosive in her accusation but rather calm about the whole thing. She explains that she knows it was him given how he overheard them at Chubbie’s, although she’s not going to pretend to understand why he did it. She has no idea what makes him tick, and she isn’t sure she wants to know anymore. She doesn’t know who he is at this point.

While the maneuver succeeded in getting her attention, what she came to tell him is far from what Farkle wants to hear. She looks him in the eye, calm as ever, and makes a definitive declaration.

Maya: This chapter is closed, Farkle. You and me, we’re not friends. We’re not ever going to be what we were before. And presently, I would like nothing to do with you.

The plainness of the statement is what makes such a deep cut. Maya leaves without another word, considering the matter of her broken constellation settled.

Farkle’s expression is blank, only crumpling into something closer to hurt as the reality starts to sink in and his eyes gloss over.

INT. AAA - PRACTICE ROOM - DAY

Charlie is just finishing up in one of the practice rooms, Riley poking her head in to find him there. He spots her and assures her that he was wrapping up, so she should be all set to take over if that’s what she needs. She steps inside and admits she was actually looking for him, and Zay said that this is where she’d find him at the moment. When she asks if he has a second to chat, he seems more than happy to give her the time of day.

She approaches the piano, keeping it as a safe barrier between them yet still coming to the table for negotiations. It’s more than she’s given him so far.

Riley: I’ve been talking a lot of talk about our class coming back together in spite of everything… but I haven’t really been walking the walk. It’s much easier to preach forgiveness than to give it out in your own... complex situations.

[ Charlie waits patiently, listening intently and holding his breath. ]

Riley: I still don’t know… why you did what you did. And I guess I never will. [ off Charlie’s guilty expression ] And I’m still not exactly happy with you, but… I don’t wanna be upset anymore. I’m tired of so much negative emotion, and I guess I should start with my own.

Charlie isn’t sure what to say. Riley states that things aren’t going to be the way they were -- although what exactly they were, she doesn’t even know -- but she’s ready to wipe the slate clean. She’s ready to start over, and let things simply be.

This is a huge relief for Charlie. He’s already smiling, but when Riley holds out her hand for a “truce” sort of hand shake he can’t help but smile wider. The two of them shake hands, a timid new start for whatever their dynamic is actually meant to be.

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

The class has gathered together for the end of the week, once again in an uncertain state. Jack and Eric are also present, although they stand at opposite ends of the stage. Lucas is pointedly absent, Harper making the observation but not looking thrilled about it.

Things feel fragile, but still Valerie’s bombastic personality adds some lightness to the situation. She applauds them all for being brave enough to confront their authentic selves this week, in spite of how difficult that can be. She would know, as they all saw her try to run from them.

The class chuckles a bit, before Valerie definitively states that emotionally authenticity is challenging, but the rewards of it -- the depth of your relationships, the ability to connect with others, the improved understanding of yourself -- far outweigh its fearsome nature. Hopefully, in her brief time with them, they at least got a taste of that.

When it seems the week has come to an end, Dave of all people claims that that can’t just be it. The class questions what the hell he’s talking about, and Dave states that they haven’t done their big group number yet. They haven’t used music to magically fix everything or make things feel light again.

Although this is sort of a silly way of putting it, Dave might actually have a point. They’ve been so wrapped up in the authenticity, they sort of lost sight of the other way music connects them -- the moments where it’s fun.

Riley picks up the slack, claiming she can kick them off. Emotional authenticity, energized fun… who says you can’t have both?

Song Cue ♫ ♪ “You Can’t Stop the Beat” as performed by Hairspray Original Movie Cast || Performed by AAA Juniors (feat. Valerie De La Cruz)

What a change of pace from the heaviness of the episode, but somehow exactly what everybody needs. It sort of feels like the presence of Valerie herself -- upbeat, a tribute of the artistic spirit, but also covering for something deeper underneath.

More than that, the number serves to give us a swift reminder of everything that unfolded this episode. As Riley launches us into the number, she pulls Charlie in to be her Link Larkin -- a duo that we haven’t witnessed in action in months. Maya and Zay take the start of the next verse, pulling Isadora into it with them for the chorus.

Eric kicks up the energy by stepping in to sing as well -- something he hasn’t done in ages. It feels timely and clearly delights the class, inspiring other uncommon performers to jump in with him -- Asher, Dylan, and Jeff hopping in alongside Yindra, Nigel, and Clarissa. Eric’s “So if you don’t like the way I am, well I just don’t give a damn!” is uncomfortably pointed towards Jack, who averts his gaze and crosses his arms.

Valerie naturally takes the Motormouth solo after the silly dance break, bringing the whole class back together behind her as a united front. The most impressive thing about the performance is how the whole class seems to be having fun in the moment -- even Farkle, who is putting all his energy into the singing and dancing.

As we launch into the last verse, we flash forward to glimpse Thanksgiving coming to fruition…

INT. GARDNER HOME - DINING ROOM - DAY

The Gardner family is assembled, extended family present as they engage in Thanksgiving traditions while ELEANOR GARDNER and her sister set up for dinner. One of these seems to be filling out “I’m thankful for” paper slips and hanging them on the wall, DAISY GARDNER and ROSIE GARDNER helping their little cousins stick them to the wall.

Charlie has already put a couple up, but he’s hesitating on this last one. Then it seems to strike him exactly what he wants to say, settling into writing.

INT. BABINEAUX HOME - KITCHEN - DAY

The Babineauxs are enjoying a comfortable and cozy Thanksgiving dinner. Zay receives a text, checking it under the table while his family laughs and debates something over their meal.

It’s from Charlie, the phrase nothing more than a happy Thanksgiving. But the picture he’s attached says far, far more. It’s the paper slip, obviously not one he plans to hang up on the wall but the most authentic one he wrote.

“I’m thankful for… Dizzy.”

Zay smiles.

INT. MATTHEWS APARTMENT - DAY

Thanksgiving dinner with the fractured Matthews clan is going about as well as it could, TOPANGA LAWRENCE and CORY MATTHEWS being quite cordial and AUGGIE MATTHEWS being cute as always. Riley smiles at something he says and then glances across the table, locking eyes with Eric and giving him a grateful look.

Eric returns the smile, obviously happy to be there. Somewhere where he’s truly appreciated, regardless of how hard or easy it is.

INT. JACK’S APARTMENT - DAY

The Hunters gathering is going well, ANGELA MOORE laughing hard in conversation with Anne Marie and Shawn helping Jack finish setting the table.

Jack almost puts another place setting than they need, but then remembers. He swallows his emotions, pulling it back and moving on from the moment.

INT. MINKUS HOME - FARKLE’S BEDROOM - DAY

As promised, Farkle’s family isn’t celebrating. He’s alone eating takeout in his room, reading The Great Gatsby as he consumes his lonely meal for the holiday.

INT. GARCIA HOME - DINING ROOM - DAY

In sharp contrast, the Garcia-Orlando Thanksgiving gathering is far more lively. They all cheer as LILY GARCIA and GRANT ORLANDO break the wishbone, the former successfully getting the larger half and dangling it in front of his face.

While the mood is upbeat, something isn’t quite right. Asher makes this clear when he looks over his shoulder towards the table and it becomes clear that Lucas is nowhere in sight in spite of the place set up for him. Asher’s smile dims somewhat, obviously concerned.

EXT. NEW YORK STREETS - DAY

Lucas is wandering the streets of Manhattan on his own, hands stuffed in his pockets and mood unstable. He gets distracted when he passes by a store window, spotting a pair of pretty nice and comfortable looking black boots. Considering how beat up his current ones are, suffice to say they catch his attention.

He glances over his shoulder, clearly contemplating. Then we see him step inside the store, disappearing from frame…

INT. MAYA’S APARTMENT - DAY

Even with all the uncertainty, it seems Isadora chose to believe Maya when she stated she wasn’t using her. Because the Harts and De La Cruz women are together for the holiday as promised, clearly enjoying a quaint but warm dinner that Valerie pulled together (aside from the peach cobbler, of course).

Valerie makes a speech, raising her glass and evidently saying something very sincere and sweet about Isadora. There’s real potential in their dynamic now, and its shining on this holiday afternoon. After they knock their glasses together, Maya shifts gears and gets them all to take a selfie. A cute photograph of some badass women, that’s for certain.

INT. AAA - AUDITORIUM - DAY

The class brings the number home, the faculty stepping back and Valerie spinning to stand with them again. She gives a proud little shrug, even Jack having to nod a compliment to how she brought the class together even if only for a moment. We end the episode on an energized high note, officially launching us into the next third of the season.

And boy, where could things go from here…

END OF EPISODE.

#s2 #episodes #204 #literally... golly gee #this episode is kind of like a 90 minute special its so packed fjdsklgds #thanks valerie!

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