#my little cousin is making me watch dancing with the stars i’m going crazy

[markbandanawitts]

day 6

i have so much random art of saburo to fill these days with. in reality i’m going through crazy art block but it’s ok i’ll get on the grind eventually

[mystic-sky]

You stared at your reflection in the bathroom mirror. You could barely hear yourself think. You’d been attempting to sober up for some odd 20 minutes, whilst the pumping music faded through the tiled walls.

You’d drank plenty of water, and finally felt everything coming back to you. Once the writing on the walls started making sense again, you exited the room. The music finally filtered clear and you walked outside. 

You ran a hand through your hair, seeing your friends dancing in the distance. You were having a lot of fun actually. The only thing that slowed you down was the urge to pee a while ago. And once you felt yourself stumbling towards the bathroom, you realized it was time to chill for a bit.

You walked through a sea of people towards the bar on the terrace again, feeling like a new woman. You ordered a non-alcoholic drink with a sprite substitute for your base, sitting on the stool closest to the end against the wall.

You threw your head back, taking the deepest breath and looking at the sky. 

“Whew...” You sighed. “I almost got shit faced again.”

You heard a laugh from two stools away. You snapped your head towards the only other person on the terrace bar with you. He’d surely been sitting there when you walked past just now. But you were in your own world, and you were thirsty so you hadn’t noticed him.

“Did you just laugh at me?” You quizzed at the white haired gentleman just a few feet from you. 

He turned towards you, giving you a toothy grin. “Yeah, cause it was funny.”

You stared at him, wondering why he had the blindfold on. It dawned upon you that he was probably blind, and you didn’t want to be rude.

“Yeah, I guess it was.” You giggled in the most non-confrontational way possible.

“Good for you, though. Knowing your limits.” He said, taking a sip of his own drink. “Ugh. Yo,  bar tender, could make this a little sweeter?”

You didn’t know many guys that liked their drinks brimming with sugar like that. Then it dawned upon you about how unconventional and unsafe it was for a blind man to be at a club. He could get roofied and kidnapped and he wouldn’t know a thing. You looked down at his legs. He doesn’t even have a cane.

“Are you here alone?” You asked, almost worried for the guy. 

“Are you?” He asked smugly. Was he... hitting on you?

You instinctively adjusted your bodycon dress. It barely covered your butt when you sat down like that, making you place your purse above your lap. But then you remembered, he’s blind.

“No. My friends and I planned this party.” You asked. “Who invited you?” 

“A friend of a friend who knew my friend’s cousin, who told my friend and I that we should definitely come to this party in Shibuya City.” He explained whilst shooting you another cheeky smile. 

“Uh huh...” you slurred. You plopped your head down on the table, staring at him while you leaned on your arm. He was kind of cute, for a blind guy, you thought. You felt a little insensitive for putting it that way in your head. He had this mysterious vibe about him. 

The bar tender set your syrupy drink beside you, but you just continued to look at him.

“I hope that’s just soda.” The white haired male quizzed, picking up a skewered piece of fruit from his drink as the bar tender placed his cup back beside him.

You rolled your eyes, “Yup, just sprite and high fructose corn syrup.” 

“You’re cute.” He said, chuckling deeply. You felt your face heating up. His voice was buttery smooth. You wanted to make more conversation with him but you just shyly sat up and hugged your straw with your mouth. 

Your eyes caught on his jawline. God damn, you thought. You felt like you could ogle as long as you wanted, what was he gonna do about it?

His face is pretty proportionate. He could model if he wanted. His legs looked long on the stool, and he had broad shoulders. He probably could model, you thought. He surely had the height for it.

It wasn’t til he turned towards you and stuck his tongue out that you jumped a little. Just as he was about to say something, you heard a cellphone notification sound, and you frantically reached towards your purse. 

“Ah, that’s me.” He said, fishing his phone out his pocket. You watched him unlock his phone, and send a text.

“Wait, you’re not blind?!” You said, somehow feeling a little violated. You were the one staring through his soul this entire time.

“Is that what you thought?” He chuckled. “I was just about to ask you if you were checking me out, or possibly still feeling tipsy.”

You were at lost for words, feeling stupid. It was normal for you to assume he couldn’t see.

“Who the hell wears a blindfold to a party?”

“Hmmmm, maybe the birthday person? If it’s a surprise party. And then there’s me. I do that.” He grins.

You have a mortified look on your face, earning another laugh from him.

“If it makes you feel better, I think you’re attractive too.” He cocked his head to the side, holding his cheek in his palm.

“Thank you...” You said, head feeling hotter than it did when you were drunk in the bathroom earlier.

“I was just about to leave too. I wasn’t having that good of a time. Not to sound rude though, you and your friends planned a good party. I just finished playing wingman earlier and I was bored as hell.”

“It’s okay.. I get it.” You said, sheepishly bringing your straw to your lips again.

“Was...” He spoke again. “I was bored. Til this sweet baby girl sat beside me. Now, I’m intrigued.”

“You’re the intriguing one. I can’t even see half of your face.” You blurted out through red cheeks. He talked with such finesse. You crossed you legs, and he bit his lip playfully at you. 

“Ahh, I suppose I could show you. You wanna see that bad?” He licked his lips, leaning forward a bit. Though there were two seats between you, you still pressed your back against the wall. 

You slowly swallowed. “I mean... I wouldn’t mind it.”

“Honey, it’s yes or no. Are you as curious about me as I am about you?”

You couldn’t lie. You knew he was attractive even with the blindfold. But the eyes are the window to the soul right? What kind of man were you sitting with right now?

“Let’s bargain a little, yeah? When was the last time you did something crazy, hmm?” He hummed.

You didn’t know, you were so concentrated on the idea of seeing his face. And he’s changing the subject, but he’s still looking right at you, putting you on the spot.

“Define crazy.” You said.

“Skinny dipping, going home with a stranger, robbing a convenience store, you know- crazy shit.”

You burst out laughing at how he smoothly threw that in there. He chuckled along with you. 

“It’s been a few hours.” You say, crossing your legs in the opposite direction. 

“I like that answer.” He says. “So, if I show you what’s under this blindfold of mine, would you consider coming home with me?”

You were crazy for even considering it when he casually mentioned it the first time. You had no idea who he was, and he could murder you as soon as you both left. 

But your gut hadn’t been doing it’s usual thing for the first time in a while. You were nervous, but not because you were scared. He was simply a smooth guy. 

“Alright. Let’s see that mug of yours.” You cross your arms.

He lets out a throaty laugh. “Okay, 

sweetheart.” 

He moves one stool closer towards you and leans on the counter. No one else but you could see his face from this angle. He slowly reached his finger up to pull down the fabric.

He definitely knew how to drag on the moment.

“Or better yet, let’s let the lady of the evening do it, shall we?” He said, bringing his large hands to cover yours. They were hot, and your heart was racing. He lifted both of your hands towards his face.

“Go on, sweets.” You nervously put your fingers  into the fabric, sliding it down over his nose and mouth.

****🌏👄🌏 〰️👄〰️ 🌊👄🌊****

You were star struck. The words were dry on your tongue. He was stupendously beautiful. So beautiful you thought it was unfair. His eyes coaxed you further towards him. You could somehow see everything in them, and nothing but blue at the same time. 

He brought you back to reality when he stuck his tongue out at you. 

“Like what you see?” 

“You’re... gorgeous..” You managed to say through blushing cheeks, sitting back up straight.

“Thank you~” 

“Alright. That’s enough for now. Don’t want you passing out on me.” He slid the blindfold back up, earning a slight dissatisfied whine from you. 

“So, are you down?” He asked, putting his face right back in his palm, grinning from ear to ear. He was honest, and normally you thought you’d be offended by someone blatantly asking you to sleep with them.

Your legs stood up, pulling down what you could of your black bodycon dress.

“You better show me a good time, or I’ll give you the worst review of your life.” You adjusted your purse strap on your shoulder, swaying your hips and offering him a playful smile. The alcohol that wasn’t digested yet gave you a boost of confidence, you passed some hair behind your ears, looking down at him.

“My sex speaks for itself.” He stood up, towering above you and putting out his arm for you to hold. You blushed before loosely wrapping your hand around it. It’s like he had a response for everything, you thought.

“Lucky for you I don’t live too far from here. So you’ll get everything you’re fantasizing about real soon.” He bent down, whispering to you.

How could he be so sure he was going to pleasure you? A stranger he was, he didn’t even know your name, nonetheless how and where you liked to be touched the most.

What a cocky little-

“By the way, my name is Gojo Satoru.” He lifted  his blindfold on one side and peered down at you. You’d heard of the name before, but it could be pure coincidence.

“(Name).” You looked away, blushing yet again under his gaze. 

“Cute as hell.” He bent down towards your face. “Why don’t we tell your friends that you’re leaving with me, hmmm?”

He walked through the bar with you on his arm, finding your friends. They were in awe at the snack you’d found, realizing who he was far before you did. They coaxed you to go for it. 

You turned on your location, and he assured them he’d bring you home. 

Then you were in his car, which was incredibly spick and span. You anxiously pressed your thighs together. It smelled of new car and pine scent. Such a guy thing, you thought.

“Are you nervous?” He asked. He turned on the radio, attempting to lighten the mood. 

“No, your car is just nice.” You pouted, looking out the tinted windows.

“I know right?” He grinned. “Man I love this song.”

Cocky was an understatement.

You realized that one of your favorite songs had been playing. You watched him confidently sing the lyrics.

“You don’t know it?” He asked, turning towards you.

“Of course I do. It’s my favorite.” You say proudly. 

“I knew there was something I liked about you.” He said, humming soon after.

“Ditto. You have decent music taste.” You said. 

You both vibed, and eventually he pulled into a parking garage of a fancy apartment building you surely knew you couldn’t afford to rent.

“You live here?” You asked, as he opened the door for you. He gently took hold of your hand before speaking.

“Yup. Feel free to come visit me whenever after tonight.”

“What makes you so sure I’ll be coming back?” You stood up, looking up at him as you pulled your dress down once more.

“You will. I just know.” He chuckled. 

“You get around a lot, don’t you Satoru?” You quiz, watching him close the car door and click the button on his keys. 

“Here and there. I work more than I’d like to.” He said motioning you to hook yourself onto his arm again.

You wanted to ask him more about his line of work, but he quickly spoke again.

“I just realized you called me by my first name. What a cutie~” He teased.

“What did you want me to call you?” You asked, heels clicking as you both walked towards the elevator. 

“If you were my lover, a plethora of things. For now, you can call me whatever you want.”

You poked your cheek with your tongue. “Then I choose your first name.”

“A classic.” He said, pressing the button on the top floor. 

“What do your other mistresses call you?” You peered up at him.

“Charming, sometimes cocky.” He looked down at you. This guy was something else.

“You know what I meant.” You said, gripping his arm a bit. 

“Lighten up, honey. It’s all about you right now.” 

“Do you think you’ll ever get married?” You realized it wasn’t a tasteful question to ask in this moment, but you hoped to get some insight about him depending on his answer.

“Most definitely. My family expects me to have the strongest offspring.” He said, cocking his head back in frustration. 

“You don’t want to get married?” You ask.

“I do. But not for reasons like that.” He said, exiting the elevator with you. You caught on to what he meant. 

“So what would it take for you to fall in love?” 

“You make it sound like you want to be a contender.” He smugly smiled at you. 

“I get sappy when I’m tipsy.” You blurt out, ears hot and looking in the opposite direction.

He let out a hearty laugh. “As for your question, someone who understands me, which is kind of hard for most people. Oh, and a good sense of humor.”

You hummed, wondering if you fit the bill. You were just here for the sex, but his whole vibe piqued your interest. The blindfold, money, and the name you heard rumors about. He was handsome too, gracing you by allowing you to see his eyes. He seemed to have it all. And all this talk eluding to how he was about to rock your world made you a little nervous.

Could you deliver anything for him besides your body? 

You watched him fish out his keys and slide them into the door knob. A blast of cool air hit your skin and the scent of suede and leather furniture found your nose. You stepped inside, leaving your heels at the door. 

“What did you say you do for a living again?” You peered back at him, watching him hang his jacket and shutting the door.

“I’m an accountant.” He says slyly. You let out a laugh, and he knows you didn’t believe him, nor did he expect you to.

You left it at that, watching him approach the kitchen. He washes his hands, and motioned you to do the same. “Can I get you anything? I can make you something if you’re hungry.”

You shook your head. “You can cook?”

“In the midst of my survival, it became a necessity, alas’ I learned.” He said sarcastically, taking out two bottles of water. He set one in front of you anyway and took some gulps from his own.

“Couldn’t you have said ‘yes, my parents taught me’ like a normal person?” You said, sitting on the stool by the island.

“I could have. But I’m far from normal, if you couldn’t tell.” He pulled down his blind fold and set it on the island countertop, exposing his face again.

“Why do you wear it... if you don’t mind me asking...” 

“I’m sensitive to light. Sometimes I wear glasses. It’s a mood.” He was lying, and you knew. You didn’t actually expect him to tell you the truth. You weren’t particularly bothered either. There were plenty of things he didn’t know about you.

“Is there anything you want to ask me?” You say, tapping your fingers on the bottled water. 

He placed a hand on his chin. 

“Are you allergic to latex?” He leaned directly across from you.

“No...” You smirked. “That was thoughtful.”

“That’s just the kind of guy I am.” He chuckled lightly. He slid around the table, closer towards you.

“Mhmmm.” You say, looking up at him. It was hard to stay focused. Why did he have to be so good looking? You could see the skin of his chest through his white t-shirt when he leaned over you like that. You tugged at your bottom lip.

“Actually, there’s one other thing.” He was so close his hair nearly touched your forehead. You could smell faint remnants of fruity alcohol and mint. You never even saw him pop one into his mouth. 

And to guess what it could be, you had no clue. How could someone be so open but so hard to unveil at the same time? 

“And what might that be?” The response is barely audible, made for only him to hear it.

“What would it take for you to fall in love?” 

You were taken aback. All this time you honestly couldn’t tell how genuinely interested he was in you other than how you looked.

“You really wanna know?” You said, leaning towards him a little. His lashes were so long, he was so pretty he put your looks to shame- at least you felt that way.

“I asked you, didn’t I?” He said, cocking his to the side in the most kiddish, yet charming way ever.

“Someone who could make me feel safe. A good listener, a good communicator, and someone whose funny. And then I cross my fingers and hope for the sex to be good.”  You explain. He laughs a bit before speaking.

“And I just happen to be here right in front of you. Quite the coincidence, don’t you think?” He curls his lips into a sly smile.

“You’ve yet to show me a few things. The sex may or may not be a dealbreaker.” You roll your eyes. 

He brought a hand to your chin, touching noses with you now. “Alright, let me show you why I’m the best.”

He pulled your lips in for a soft kiss. His lips were smooth and slightly slick from whatever chapstick he was using. You had wanted him to kiss you so badly, growing anxious of the sexual tension between the conversations you were having. His teeth pulled against your bottom lip, sucking it into his mouth. The pressure from the suction sent messages to the nerves in the pit of your stomach. It wasn’t often someone could give you pleasure in your core from a kiss.

You let out delicate whine, making him let go and press his forehead against yours. 

“How was that?” He asked. The tone behind it clearly displayed that he knew he had gotten to you but he had asked you anyway, just because.

“Terrible.” You say, adverting your gaze from his eyes and towards his rosy lips.

“Guess I have to try again.” He says, taking hold of your mouth with his once again. He’s closer to your body now, touching and swirling his fingers down your back. He sent chills down your spine, sucking and pulling firmly at your lips. 

His tongue fell into your mouth somehow, and you welcomed it. You found yourself trying to stick your tongue in his mouth, oddly invested in making him see you had been a decent kisser yourself. Your hands were living in his hair, around his neck. You weren’t shy to touch him at all. 

“Look whose all over me.”  He smirked.

“You’re supposed to be showing me something, right?” You tugged at his shirt, earning a laugh from him.

He dipped his head down towards your lips again, continuing his tongue work for you. He snaked an arm around your waist, pulling you closer to him. You slipped out the stool, on your top toes. Your chest pressing against his, you could feel his heart beat. You could smell his shampoo, his cologne. All of it filled your brain. Your body felt like some sort of electric current connecting with his as soon as skin touched skin. You draped your arms around his neck, realizing just how touch starved you actually were. 

He had been pumping life into you and sucking it out at the same time. His large hot hands began running up and down the exposed back skin of your dress. 

"Jump." He barely broke the kiss whilst ordering you.

You hopped best you could, and his hands found the back of your knees. You wrapped your legs around his torso before feeling large hot hands cup your ass cheeks. Your dress riding up this far was inevitable, but you couldn’t help but let out a small yelp when he clutched your butt like that. 

He pulled away from the kiss for a moment, “Are you gonna make cute sounds like that the whole time?” 

“Are you gonna keep making commentary about it?” You mulled.

He squeezed your butt again, this time smacking the left side. “Only if you want me to.”

“You’ve been making these cute little noises the whole night. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, it’s driving me nuts.” He adds, spinning you away from where you both had been standing. 

You couldn’t say anything, and with him being so close you could only pan your glance else where. 

“And blushing so hard just like that. It’s precious.” He cocked his head in the direction you looked away from him in.

“Can you go back to kissing me?” You requested, a feeble attempt to get him to stop talking about your flushed cheeks. 

“So cute.” He cooed.

“It’s actually more unfair how good looking you are, you know that?” You managed to say.

He stuck his tongue out, shooting a wink at you. 

You eagerly kissed him, taking his tongue into your mouth. He let out a low moan against your lips. You were suddenly eager to please him, you tightened you legs around him, grinding almost. You felt him walking through the condo space. His tongue took control again, swirling around yours. You were lost in his kiss when your back connected with cool fabric. He laid you down on the bed, your small body sinking into the fluff.

“I’m about to spoil you rotten.” He sat up above you, removing his shirt and tossing it to the floor. He was fitter than you expected. Pale skin with hues of pink here and there. You wondered what his skin routine was. Or maybe it was genetics? It was a bit nerve-racking. He seemed to be this perfect human being, physically speaking.

He lowered himself to your neck, putting his hot mouth against your skin. He sucked at the soft skin, nipping it with his teeth. He cupped one of your breasts, squeezing and massaging firmly. You were ecstatic he was finally touching you. As you rubbed your hand against his smooth chest his tongue found your sweet spot. You whined again, earning a hum from him.

You felt him drag his mouth down your neck resting sweet kisses between your mounds. 

“May I?” He asked, tugging the bottom of your dress. You nodded. You sat up, pulling the thing off yourself. 

“Getting impatient I see.” He said, passing his thumb over your chin.

“Hurry it up.” You roll your eyes again.

“Maybe I want our first time to be special.” He teased. 

“I didn’t pin you as the sentimental type.” You say.

“I’m a man of mysteries, but you know that already.” He said, pressing his lips to yours again. 

Your hands gently held the sides of his head, kissing him back. His hair was undeniably soft as silk. He broke away from your mouth, kissing your collarbone instead. His large hands took to your breasts again, exposing one of your nipples to the cool air. They were already hard and swelling to be touched.

He placed his wet mouth onto it, sucking and flicking his tongue against the thing. You were squirming beneath him. Aching to be stimulated else where, your underwear was damp from your core, pooling between your legs.

He wrapped an arm around your waist, lifting you slightly while he sucked. Your placed your hands on the back of his head, almost patting him for doing so well. You whimpered softly, attempting to grind against him to give yourself some sort of stimulation down there. 

“I’ve got you, baby. You’ll get all of it. Be a good girl and hold out for me.” He said, looking up at you. You wish you could’ve watched the slick words fall from his lips, but you couldn’t see them under your breasts. 

You gave him a bashful nod. You were beginning to melt under his touch. You didn’t know what came over you, but you were ready to submit to him. Your needy and throbbing pussy was draining the bratty energy right out of you. He hadn’t done much, but you were ready to do whatever he asked of you.

You felt him unhook your bra whilst he sucked and massaged your mounds. The fabric slid off your body as he mumbled against your skin. “So sexy.” 

“You’re the sexy one.” You told him, knowingly feeding his ego.

“Thank you.” He said proudly, setting you down flat again. You watched him trail his lips down your stomach, leaving kisses in some places” He was feathering and brushing his lips on the skin more than actually kissing it, just to tease you.

He placed his fingers under the hem of your underwear, pulling them down and exposing your sweet sex. Your wetness dribbled onto the bed as he slid the fabric down your thighs and past your ankles.

“Are you this wet all the time?” You watched him cock an eyebrow through his bangs. You bit your lip. 

“You talk too much.” You turned your head. 

“You think so?” He said, spreading your legs and dipping his head towards your sex. He split your sticky, wet folds with two fingers, exposing your clit and pressing the flat of his tongue against it in an upward flick. 

“Mmm.. nnh...” You moan, showing him that you liked it. 

He hummed back at you before pressing a kiss to your clit, sucking and swirling his tongue over it. He pulled you down towards the edge of the bed, mouth still buried onto you. One arm wrapped around your body, hand cradling your rib cage. His other hand pinning one of your legs as far back as he thought you could manage. 

“Ahh... fuck.. ah...” You cursed. You wondered where he learned to eat pussy like that. You were trembling in his arms, raking your hands through his hair and undercut. 

He slipped a finger into you, curling against the roof of your sex, causing your spine to curl in response. You let out a cracked and broken moan, much to his liking.

He inserted another finger into you, allowing more slick to collect onto his hand and into the bed. He was so good, you sat up with the bit of strength you had just to watch him eat it. His deep, azure ocean eyes were resting on your frame the whole time, waiting for you to cum.

“Just like that...” Your eyes rolled back, you were reaching your end. You started clenching around his fingers and throbbing against his tongue. 

“G’head. Cum for me.” He parted his lips from your sex for only a second, flicking and sliding his fingers in and out of you.

Your body obeyed, releasing onto his hands and tongue. He kept at it, overstimulating you as he watched you ride out your orgasm.

When he finally ripped his fingers and tongue from you, you were a panting mess. 

“I’ve got a lot more for you.” You watched him lick the slick from his fingers. He towered above your body, tilting his to the side before speaking again.

“But do you need to rest?” He seemed genuinely concerned for your weak body. He almost thought he should’ve held back a little. Maybe just the tongue would’ve been fine, he thought.

“I’m fine.” You say, partially dazed. He’s definitely something else, you think.

“We can keep going.” You sit up, pushing him backwards. 

“Pants. Take them off.” You demand. 

“Anything you say.” He’s delighted, unbuckling and stripping the rest of his clothes for you. Your eyes twitch at his size. He was part animal without question- he had to be. You’d seen your share of sizes, but you couldn’t humble this guy even if you tried. 

“Are you kidding me,” you mutter. “Is there anything you don’t have?” 

“I hate to break it to you, but no.” He complacently smiled. You found yourself laughing a little before he spoke again.

“Actually, a wife and kids,” he said, turning towards one of his dressers, digging inside. 

“And frankly, I’d like to keep it that way.” He said, ripping the condom wrapper with his teeth. You watched him slide the rubber over and down his shaft. 

“That’s a little disappointing...” the words fell from your lips without you realizing. 

“Again, eventually. I’d like to start off with a girlfriend first, obviously.” His response triggered a mental face palm on your part, making you realize you’d said what you said out loud.

You felt like a teenage girl. Why did a little part of you decide he was husband material just from him eating you out? He’s still a stranger. A naked one, but a stranger. 

“You’re adorable.” He said, climbing above you. “You’ve got a crush on me now?” 

“Get to fucking.” You tugged at his ear, clearly agitated. He dipped his head towards your ear and whispered, 

“That’s okay. I’ve got a crush on you, too.”

The urge to cover your face in embarrassment was strong. He chuckled, “it definitely should be crime for anyone to be this precious.”

“You’re making my heart squeeze, looking all cute like that.” He took hold of his member in his hand, pressing and sliding it through your wet folds. 

“Alright, I’ve made you wait long enough.” He said, penetrating himself into you. Your hot sex slowly wrapped around his length, you wrapped your arms around him bracing yourself for the sharp pain that followed. You let out painful squeak.

“Oh shit- I’m so sorry sweetheart.” He shushed you. He pressed soft kisses to your cheeks and neck. You were surprised at how tender he was  being. His delicate side was seeping out at the seams.

“I’m okay... Just give me a moment.” You say, your heart skipped a beat as you adjusted to his size. He caressed you ears and kept giving you soft kisses on your face and neck.

“If you keep that up I might fall in love with you.” You tease, but apart of you meant it.

“You might.” He said, earning yet another bashful look from you.

“You can move now.” You assured him, nuzzling more into the bed. He braced his hips back before pumping in again, and again, and again. 

He kept poking parts of your vaginal canal that you never even thought possible, like he was scratching this insatiable itch you had for years now. You never knew you could feel this full. 

His lips connected to the skin underneath your ear, sucking and kissing you gently as he thrusted into your hot sex. 

“..so... d-deep... it’s so... deep.” You stuttered through every jab at your core. The heat radiating off of your body felt hot enough to start a fire. If you didn’t know any better you would’ve thought you had a fever. You raked your fingers through the smooth of his undercut and combed through his hair as he fucked you.

“Why the fuck is it so wet?” He groaned into the crook of you neck. Your other arm wrapped around his back, trying so hard not to scratch his delicate skin. You didn’t want to hurt him, nonetheless you couldn’t tell if he’d be okay with it.

Your sweet moans filled the room, which took nicely to his ears. His hips bucked into you quicker, causing ripples of bliss throughout your body. Somehow, your toes were tingling, curling even, and you could feel pleasure in more places than just the center of your sex. You barely knew what to do with your hands, gripping the sheets and pillows around you. 

“You can pull my hair if you want,” he said, lifting himself from the warm space he created between your neck and shoulder. 

You gladly accepted, pulling some hair on the back of his head as he continued to thrust into you. You realized he sort of lead you on, giving you the match to start a fire in him. He shot you the most seductive blue glare as his head jerked back in delight. He bit his lip into a smile, thrusting faster into you.

Your moans went from sweet song to broken and incoherent mess. “T-That’s not f-fair.” 

“When did I ever say I was fair?” 

You felt like he was winning again somehow, not really registering when it became a competition. You wanted to fight back, pulling his hair again, exposing his neck to your mouth. You pressed your mouth to the skin, sucking and biting against it.

“You’re playing a dangerous game, you know that, sweetie?”

He slipped both arms around your body pulling both your bodies up straight. He was still inside you, rocking your body onto his length. He brought his lips back to your neck, sucking and biting against it.

“Ahh...” you panted. “F-fuck, put me down!”

“You’re gonna cum just like this.” He said, bouncing your body up and down his shaft. You didn’t think he could go any deeper, but gravity brought you down onto his length, forcing heavy moans from your lips.

You were lost in his sex, finding yourself bucking your hips back onto his length and grinding forward against him. 

“What a sweet girl, you like that, right? Of course you do.”

You felt yourself reaching another orgasm, and your grinding became erratic against him. 

“Yeah that’s right, grind on it baby.”

You released yourself onto him, leaning forward over his shoulders, panting heavily. 

You were surprised when he laid you back down for a moment, watching him pin both your legs back and over his shoulders. 

“Let’s see if you can take it like this.”

He pumped himself into yet again, earning a ragged moan from your frail self. You could feel him so deep in your guts, you were getting light headed from the overwhelming pleasure. You braced yourself for each thrust as he pounded into you. You juices were splashing with every plunge he made. He sat up, before speaking.

“Hold the back of your legs for me, baby.” He said, watching himself pump into your sopping cunt.

“Such a pretty pussy.” If there was anything Satoru adored most, it had to be watching his partner from an angle like that. He took his thumb and held it to your mouth.

“Suck,” he pressed it to your lips; waiting for you to open your mouth while he fucked you. You let him put his thumb in your mouth while he held your jaw with his large hand. You swirled your tongue around it before he pulled it away and mouthed a ‘thank you’ at you. He placed the slick thumb against your clit for you and rubbed in circles while he pumped. 

You squealed in delight, finding yourself starting to beg him to make you cum again.

“I will honey,” he grinned, “I will.”

Your arms and legs were weak from being pinned back, falling to his sides. You had just enough strength to wrap your arms around his neck and pull him down towards you again, connecting his mouth with yours. You begged for his tongue, moaning against his lips. 

“Fuck..” he mumbled into your mouth. You clenched yourself around him. He could feel himself nearing his orgasm but he had promised to spoil you first. It was getting harder for him to fight back the urge to release. 

Your clit was throbbing, and you were dribbling a bit at the mouth. He pulled your bottom lip into his, sucking hard. You couldn’t hold it any longer. 

“You’re cumming again, aren’t you? Moan my name for me, pretty please?”

The pace of his thrusts didn’t falter, giving you the final orgasm you so desperately deserved. You screamed his name, voice cracking whilst he battered your pussy.

Your voice was hoarse, riding your orgasm out as he approached his. It was enough to send him over the edge, satiating his ego and so much more. You’re throbbing erratically, and all he could feel was his cock being gulped swallowed by you. He shuddered against your lips, releasing himself into the rubber he wore inside you. 

He collapsed beside you. Your brain was cloudy from pleasure. You watched his chest rise and fall as he peered and panted back at you, holding his member in his hand. He slid the condom off and tossed it to the floor.

You were alarmed he was still hard. You could barely move, hips gyrating and insides throbbing a muck. Trying your best to gather your thoughts, you turned your body towards him. 

“Will I be getting my review now or later?” He snickered, damp bangs sticking to his forehead. You took hold of the nearest pillow, and slammed it onto his face. 

“Later I presume?” He laughs. “I’ll give you time to think it over.”

You would be thinking about it for while. It wasn’t often you’d meet someone who delivered on everything they said they’d do. It was uncanny how perfect he was. Could you fall for him because of it? Or should you keep your qualms to yourself and try to forget everything about tonight? And now that you remembered, he told you he had a crush on you, or was he egging you on in the spur of the moment?

“Do you want a t-shirt?” He asked, breaking you out of your thoughts. He had already managed to get some underwear on while you laid there lost in thought.

“A t-shirt?” You say, puzzled. Your arms go to cover your bare chest as you sit up, hair completely messy. 

“I’m kind of tired. I thought I could drive you home in the morning instead.” He yawned, pulling on some sweat pants. 

“You’re not kicking me out?” You say, catching the shirt he tossed you as he tied the strings to his pants. 

“Just what do you take me for?” He said, cocking his head to the side. You were starting to wonder if his neck hurt. You watched him bend down and pull out what seemed like a hot towel from an incubator and hand it to you. 

“I can wipe you up if you’d like. Front to back!”

“I’ve got it.” You say nervously, wiping the insides of your damp thighs. 

You slid the gray t-shirt over your head, “And I dunno, I just thought this is where the night would end for me.”

“Sweetie, I literally just told you that I like you. Did you forget?”

“Y-You were serious?” You stutter. 

“Did you not want me to be?” He casually walks towards a mini fridge sitting in the corner. He pulled out two more bottles of water and handed one to you whilst drinking his own.

“It’s not that at all, it’s just we hardly know each other and-

“So you do like me?” He quizzed.

“I mean I wouldn’t say that I don’t but-

“So we can work out the details later.” He grinned. 

You facepalmed. He looked down at you as you sat there on the edge of the bed before letting out a sigh.

“Why don’t you drink some water and then we can get ready for bed? Unless you really want to go home. I’ll drive you. Tell me what you want, it’s no problem at all.”  He kneeled in front of you, showing you that he did have compassionate side. 

You couldn’t lie, you did want to lay in bed with him. It wasn’t a matter of trust anymore. You felt confident that he wouldn’t hurt you. You were more concerned that he decided he liked you on the spot like that. Actually, you were more concerned that you decided you liked him on the spot like that.

“I’m staying. I’m tired too.” You smiled. “I wasn’t trying to fuss. I do like you a lot.” A little more than you should, but you decided to leave that part out. 

“Then that settles it.” He smiles back, holding your chin. “Now, it’s important to stay hydrated! Especially after a work out!” 

He held the water up to your mouth.

“I can do it myself.” You say, grabbing the water out of his hands, taking a few swigs. He holds up his hands in defense.

“Well, the bathroom is down the hall to the left. You can also use my personal bathroom, which is through that door right there. I also have spare tooth brushes too!” He assured you.

“So you do do this often. Hmph.” You say, laying back on the bed. 

“Girls have it rough. I try my best to have the necessities.” He shrugged, laying beside you. Your eyes drag down towards his bare chest skin before looking right back up towards his eyes.

“I can also go sleep in the other room if you need more security.” He suggests.

“I was looking forward to sleeping with you in here.” You say quietly.

“What was that? I couldn’t hear you.”

You glared at him, acknowledging that you know that he heard you and you wouldn’t repeat yourself. 

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” He laughed. He tucked himself underneath the covers before lifting the other side and patting the empty space for you. 

You crawled up and slid underneath the cool fabric. He reached over your body to turn the lights off. 

He snuggled himself down to your height and you could still faintly see his face.

“Comfy?” You nodded shyly. His bed was undeniably firm yet fluffy. 

“Good.” He smiled.

He’d been so kind yet so arrogant at the same time. Just how were you going to figure him out? He said there was time to work out the details, but your head still spun a thousand miles a minute. For someone who had it all, and clearly many secrets, he was seemingly cheery. You had no idea what bothered this guy. But he’d taken a liking to you somehow. And you couldn’t stop blushing at the fact that he literally just fucked you senseless and now he’s smiling at you in his bed like nothing happened. 

You inhaled and exhaled deeply, earning a confused look from him.

“10/10 oral experience. 10/10 sexual experience. 10/10 aftercare experience. 8.5/10 for not giving me pants. Overall rating is 9.6/10. Would come again.” 

“You could’ve asked for pants,” He smirked getting up. You tugged his arm, shaking your head.

“You’re gonna let all the heat out. Stay.” 

“But my score? I deserve a 10/10.” He argued playfully. 

You wrapped your arm around him, pulling him back down underneath the blanket with you.

“Here’s your extra credit. Cuddle with me until the morning. It might change your grade.

Results may vary.”

He laughed lightly, wrapping his arms around your body. 

“About that ‘would come again’ part. When will that be?” He said, looking down at you. 

“Soon.” You said, burying your head into his chest.

Part 2

[dynamightsfave]

Hidden talent - Luke Patterson

(gif not mine! credits to owner)

AU: alive! luke patterson x oc

summary: in a world were none of the boys have died and instead live in the same timeline as julie, luke’s girlfriend has a hidden talent only her mother knows about

warnings: slight cursing, nothing much

a/n: this is the first thing that i publish, and i’m still trying to figure out how tumblr works, so if anyone reads this, please bear with me people

masterlist

***

Heather had been friends with Alex since they were in diapers. Every memory of her childhood she had, he was there too, since the beginning. The only ones she had he wasn’t in were the ones at family meetings. He was even there when she went to the dentist! That’s how tight these two were.

So it was kind of inevitable her meeting his band. Sunset Curve had been all he and Julie —her other best friend, along with Flynn— could talk about since they had started it. They had met the other members in the music program, something Heather had never even thought about joining, regardless of how many times her mother had told her she had an incredible voice and should definitely let the world listen to it. However, the raven haired girl preferred to keep her voice to herself, like her small little secret.

Meeting Luke and Reggie —she already knew Bobby— was easily one of the best things that could’ve happened to her. She hit it off with them instantly, as she had never really had any trouble with making friends —she was the sociable one out of the Heather-Alex duo, and the mom friend out of the “Triple Trouble” trio. Her and Flynn had denominated themselves as the band’s managers and marketing team, and the others had to admit, they were doing a pretty good job.

While Flynn took the social media part, promoting the band on every platform she could think of and posting stuff like teases of new songs, short rehearsal videos and performance dates and places; Heather had taken the people approach. She had recruited her cousin, Willie —who she suspected only wanted to help her because he had a massive crush on Alex, and not because he “wanted to help his favorite cousin”—, and they had both skated the streets of LA, putting up posters and throwing them around, telling people to “tell their friends!”, a catch phrase Reggie had come up with.

 [...]

“I got us a night at The Hollywood Club!” Heather entered the Molina garage with a proud smile and arms on the air, getting immediate cheers “I know, I know, I’m awesome” she bowed.

“Hey, I was there too” Willie pushed her aside, leaving his skate on a corner and plopping on the piano seat “In fact, if it wasn’t for Caleb owing me one, you wouldn’t have gotten that gig. I’m his messenger boy”

“Okay, listen you little shit, it was me that had to offer herself to clean the place up after the show, so I don’t wanna hear any more lies coming out from you” she narrowed her eyes at her cousin, but the skater only rolled his eyes.

Luke, beaming, reached out to Heather’s arm, pulling her onto the couch with him. The two had been dating for nearly three months, and anyone that didn’t know that could’ve thought they’d been together for years, just by seeing how deeply they cared for each other. Alex had been a tad overprotective of the girl when Luke started to flirt with her, but Julie and Flynn made him realize that if anyone could match Heather’s adventurous and forward personality, it was Luke.

Heather came up with an idea, something to do, and most people —including Alex, who over the years earned experience in this kind of things— would disregard it immediately, because it sounded, and most likely was, crazy. Not Luke. Luke would just smile and do it with her. Hype her up even. They found in each other a safe to talk, the craziest ideas and dreams coming to life. Still, they knew when to draw the line, and realize that maybe cliff diving in the middle of November wasn’t the best thing to do.

Luke liked to get the things he planned, make them real, and with Heather he felt like it was possible. Sure, he had the band to make his music dreams come true, but —and this can come out as shocking— he wasn’t just music. There were so many other things he wanted, and Heather was the first person that encouraged him to let them all out, the first person that listened to all the things he wasn’t as good at but he still liked, and forced him to get out of the studio to do them.

They were basically perfect for each other.

“Besides,” Flynn had pointed out with a teasing smirk and a knowing look that was also in Julie’s eyes “you’re going to end up dating her cousin, so it’ll be fair in no time” Alex had left that conversation blushing like a fool and with his mind a little more at peace.

“You’re incredible, babe” the lead guitarist kissed her cheek “When is it?”

“This Friday night” she answered, making herself comfortable in his arms “That gives you two days to rehearse some songs, maybe even come up with a new one. How’s my musical genius doing with that, Jules?”

“We have a few lyrics left on Finally Free, but I’m sure that we can have it done and perfected by Friday” she smiled, showing her adorable tooth gap “I’m gonna need to borrow your boyfriend for that, though”

“Sure, two musical geniuses work better than one. Meanwhile, Reggie and I have a date”

“Huh?” Luke’s head turned so fast, Heather thought for a second it would snap from his neck.

“Yeah, we’re going to watch the last Star Wars movie. We told you guys to come and you didn’t wanna, so we’re going by ourselves” Reggie could barely contain his excitement, the smile on his face making it impossible for Heather not to copy him.

“Speaking of which... if we don’t leave now, we’ll be late. Let’s go!” the girl pecked her boyfriend as a goodbye, ruffling Bobby’s hair after and blew a kiss to both girls and her best friend.

“I don’t get a kiss?” Willie pouted, but Heather only kissed her middle finger and flipped him off “Love you too, cuz!” he called, but Reggie and her were already out and the only response he got was his light laugh.

  [...]

The two friends were meeting Carrie Wilson at the theatre. Nobody would’ve guessed that the lead of Dirty Candy liked Star Wars, but Heather had known her since kindergarten, and she knew the girl.

They all technically knew her, being Bobby’s fraternal twin and all, but the boys didn’t consider her an actual friend until the girls started inviting her to their hang outs, seeing as they were all friends. Luke and her often had friendly bickering of which band was better, Reggie discovered that she could be a wonderful addition to the mischievous duo Heather and him had formed, and Alex found his perfect dance partner one night playing Just Dance. It was safe to say that she had been welcomed into the group.

“You guys are playing at The Hollywood Club?!” was the first thing he strawberry blond said when they arrived.

“Tell your friends!” Reggie winked, then turned to Heather “Damn, Flynn is fast. We have good managers”

“That you do, Reg” she passed her arm over his shoulders. It was a little awkward, because she stood on her tippy toes, but they made it work.

“Can you get me a performance too?” Carrie pouted and made puppy eyes “I need a marketing team like yours”

“C’mon Care, it’s literally my cousin and I in his skate and my roller skates and Flynn with a phone and Wi-Fi. You could do that too” Heather waved it off “Plus, you can have daddy make a call and you’ll be able to play at the Madison Square Garden. Shit, we could do that too, we have Bobby. Why am I putting so much effort into this?”

“You know I’m trying to earn my own spot, Heath. Being famous because my dad isn’t as satisfying as knowing I made a place sold out because they liked me and not the daughter of Trevor Wilson”

“You’re doing great, Carrie” Reggie encouraged “Your songs are good, and your dance moves are killer. People don’t just go to your shows to see if they can meet your dad”

“Thanks Reggie, but I’m pretty sure you only go to my shows to see Kayla” she smirked, and both girls watched their friend flush red.

“T-That’s not true!”

“Really? I guess I won’t give her your number then; she’ll be real disappointed”

“She asked for my number?”

But Carrie just chuckled and walked ahead with Heather by the arm, leaving the gaping boy behind for a few seconds before he snapped back into the real world and chased after them, asking the same question again.

“I’ll see what I can do for ya” Heather smiled “But you’ll have to fight Luke by yourself when he finds out I’m helping our rivals” she finished in a dark tone, laughing along with Carrie.

“Yes! You’re the best Heath!” she squeezed her in her arms.

  [...]

Friday arrived sooner than planned, and that left Flynn and Heather to get the band’s asses to the place. Flynn was on the phone with Caleb, assuring him that they were just stuck in traffic and they’d be there soon. They were actually trying to calm Alex down.

“Hey, look at me. Bird, look at me” Heather had her hands on his shoulders, doing her best to get him to breathe with her “You’re the best drummer I know-”

“I’m the only drummer you know, Feathers!” the anxious boy stressed.

“You’re the best drummer I know!” she exclaimed over him “This isn’t any different from our other gigs. You’re gonna get up on that club’s stage, and you’re gonna kill it. I’m gonna be on the side of the stage like I always am, with Flynn. I’m there if you need anything, which you won’t because once you get into the song, you’ll be crazy amazing”

“Okay, I can do this” he nodded to himself, taking deep breaths along his best friend.

“Hell yeah you can” she laughed softly “You good?”

“Yeah, I think so”

“Great, then let’s go people! We have an audience to impress!” the others, behind them, cheered with her and started to go to Ray’s van, were the instruments were waiting.

“Hey” Alex took a hold of Heather’s wrist “Thanks, Feathers” he smiled at her, using the nickname he gave her when they were three.

“I’m always gonna be there for you, Alex. You know that. I’m the Feathers to your Bird, we’re a package deal” she smiled back, then wrapped her arms around him “I love you”

“I love you too”

  [...]

Alex did amazing. Obviously.

The whole band was incredible, and the people in the club absolutely loved them. Heather had stayed at the side of the stage like she promised, but from where she stood she could spot Flynn with Carrie, Willie, Nick and Kayla all jamming and moving their bodies along to the song in their chairs. She clapped and hollered once the show was over, a huge smile adorning her face.

“You were right” the man himself, Caleb, clapped next to her “They are really good”

“I told you, dude. Any chance we’re able to play here again?”

“I’ll call you” he offered, and Heather didn’t think it twice before shaking hands with him “I’m closing in half an hour, and I want this place spotless for tomorrow” he smirked.

“I thought you were joking! You have people for that”

“A deal is a deal” and he left. Heather groaned and threw her head back.

“Why the frown, Princess?” at the voice of her boyfriend, the smile was back on her face.

Luke was a sweaty mess, not that she cared. She took a couple of seconds to admire his “after show” glow. Because yes, he was glowing —both literally, because sweat, and figuratively. After every performance, there was a glow to all of them, pure happiness radiating from them. You could see it in their smiles and heavy breaths, but Heather liked to see how their eyes glinted with the ecstasy of doing what they loved. It appeared while they were on stage, and it stayed for some time after performing in front of an audience. When they were rehearsing or jamming in the studio it was more relaxed, content, but on a show it was almost magical.

“What are you looking at?” Luke laughed after drinking some water, with his eyes squinting as he smiled out of pure glee.

Heather too his sweaty face in her hands and planted a firm kiss on his lips. She had never cared if the boy was sweaty and therefore by hugging or kissing him she’d get all dirty and smelly. If she wanted to show him affection, then she would.

“You guys killed it up there” she told him after a moment with a proud smile “Amazing, baby”

“Thanks, Heaths. Sang that solo for you” he added with a smirk, hand slipping around her waist.

“I saw” she answered as she passed her arms over his shoulders and around his neck “You looked really good while doing it too” the smirk widened and the hold tightened, bringing her closer to him to kiss her again.

“Take your lovey dovey acts somewhere else!” Bobby booed, nearing his friends.

“Hey, just because your sorry ass is alone doesn’t mean you have to hate on us” the raven haired girl replied with a teasing smile.

The boy scrunched his face and mocked her, which went back and forth between the two until Heather’s teasing and playful smile turned to a excited one.

“Wait! Oh, she’s looking again!” confused, the rhythm guitarist went to look behind him, but Heather shot her hand to stop him “Don’t look! Not yet... Okay now. See that pretty blond? She’s been eyeing you all night, dude!”

“For real? You think I should go talk to her?”

“Are you stupid? Of course you should go talk to her, did you not hear what I just said? Wait, here, clean some of this sweat” she took a towel and dabbed it over him, then pushed him forward when he didn’t move “Move, Bobs!”

“Thanks Heaths!”

The couple watched their friend jog over to the girl and introduce himself, saying something that she found funny. “I’m an amazing wing woman”

  [...]

The club was officially closed. After a couple of Caleb’s songs, that Heather had danced to with Flynn —more like they made a fool of themselves, but at least they had fun— and then she helped them put their instruments back in the van. Now, she held a mope in her hands, swinging aimlessly from side to side, humming to the band’s songs.

“I believe, I believe that we’re just one dream...” she picked up the pace of the song, closing her eyes as she jumped on top of a chair, spinning on her spot and using the mope as a micro “And we’re standing on the edge of great!”

The girl continued to sing her heart out, unaware of the pair of eyes that followed her very movement, watching the private show she put up for herself. When she finished the song, she let out a content sigh and a small chuckle.

“Woah” the word escaped Luke’s mouth before he could stop himself, causing Heather to jump and turn around.

The boy stood just by the entrance, an awestruck expression on his face. Red flushed Heather’s face, and she opened her mouth to stutter out something, but Luke didn’t let her, taking long strides to her.

“Heather, that was incredible! Why didn’t you tell us you could sing like that?”

“I usually like to keep the singing to myself, when I jam with you guys it’s quiet”

“Babe, you could be the lead singer of Sunset Curve! I’ll retire if that means you get to show everyone your voice”

“No” she quickly dismissed “Do not give up your dreams, Luke Patterson, you’re not allowed to do that. Not for me, not for anyone”

“But, Heath, your voice!” Luke was making big gestures, trying to get his point through.

He couldn’t understand how his girlfriend didn’t let anyone know of her huge talent. When he walked inside of the club again to help her, he couldn’t have imagined the scene that was playing in front of him, how she looked so carefree. She sounded like a goddess. It was a pleasant surprise, to say the least.

“I don’t like to be in the spotlight, Luke” she explained “You guys were born to perform in front of people, but I like to keep it behind closed doors. You understand that, right?” she took his hands, looking up at him through her lashes. He sighed and nodded.

“Yeah, I get it. But I really hope it’s not the last time I hear you sing” Heather laughed and shook his head, as Luke’s face lit up with an idea “Oh! You could perform for all of us in the studio! You’re cool with that, right?”

“I’ll sing with you and perform with you at the studio” she agreed, squealing when he picked her up and twirled her around “But you have to promise that if you guys record it, it won’t end up on social media”

“Of course, anything you need” he nodded quickly, bringing her lips to his “If I get to hear that voice again, I’ll even sell my guitar”

“I told you not to joke with that!” she chastised, hitting him on the chest and getting out of his hold. She rolled her eyes at his laughter and smirked to herself, handing him a piece of cloth “Make yourself useful and clean those tables, Rockstar”

Luke frowned, but complied.

He made her sing along with him in his car all the way back to his house, and suddenly realized that he had been an idiot for a long time. Why hadn’t he made her sing with him before? It was his new favorite thing to do.

[nadineeb]

CRAZY RICH ASIANS -  MOVIE REVIEW

Hi dears! It’s me again. After my tech review, I’m navigated to this 2016 movie -  Crazy Rich Asians which came from the first book of its trilogy novel. This is always at the top of my list and my favourite movie. Hope you’ll enjoy this movie review as it feels like you’re watching it when you’re really just reading. All credits goes to the owner of the photos and GIFs. Thank you so much!! Enjoy it as much as I do. 

- XOXO, Nads <3

New York City - Rachel Chu, a young, lovely, part-timer economic professor who dates for over a year now, a hunk, eye-turner, history professor, Nick Young, at New York University. Rachel already introduced Nick at their family dinners but since Nick's family are from Singapore, he hasn't presented Rachel formally to them.

Nick's closest female cousin, a double - heiress in her family, an icon in the fashion industry, had already chatted with Rachel. She's the only one that has known her cousin's girlfriend. Astrid was always busy with the Paris' fashion week, shopping spree every week, buying ancient jewelries that costs a fortune and building her own family with her only son and her husband who's also busy gaining investors in his technology business. 

(Astrid down below)

Being that it's Araminta and Colin's wedding, Colin, who happens to be Nick's bestfriend and cousin since their diaper days. Colin wants him to come home for he is his bestman in his wedding. He wants to take this chance for Rachel to meet his gigantic family and have her experience his childhood in the country where he grew up. It's also a great opportunity for her to visit her college bestfriend, Peik Lin , who always asks her to come to Singapore where she lives.

Excitedly, Rachel asks his mom for help with what dress will she be wearing when she meets his boyfriend's Ah-ma (grandmother in Chinese) during the family dinner to welcome the guests of the wedding. She forcibly agrees when her mom tries to get her wear the red dress. Her mom says that red is a color of good luck in Chinese traditions and also a little bit more of a plus point from Nick's Ah-ma though she also got a pure Chinese blood but grew up in America which promotes an entirely different culture.

Amazed by their First Class seats and soft silk pair of pj's given by the airlines, Rachel couldn't contain her happiness while sipping on their glass of champagnes on their flight to Singapore. Astonished as she seemed, she nags Nick on why he can afford the First Class tickets to a country miles away from them while Nick uses her Netflix password. He admits that they are living "comfortably" which what exactly a member of a crazy rich family says.

As soon as they land in Singapore, Araminta and Colin, the soon-to-be wedded couple was there at the airport with balloons in their hands and joy in their auras. After introducing them to Rachel, they plan to eat Newton Food Centre, a place where they serve delicious street foods especially laksa curry and satay bowls from street food vendors which gained Michelin stars.

Right before the Nick's family welcome dinner, Rachel visits Peik Lin in her house which everything is brilliantly gold-plated and was inspired by the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles. While catching up over their food for lunch, Peik Lin's mom interrogates her about her coming to Singapore. When she said that it's for the wedding of his boyfriend's bestfriend Colin, Peik Lin's family were shocked, they said that it is the wedding of the year and even them having that rich, they aren't invited to the wedding. It seems like Rachel didn't do a research at his boyfriend's family!

Peik Lin also warned Rachel that the Youngs are kind of snobbish that would belittle a commoner. She would not let Rachel wear that little red dress to the dinner so she gathered all of her fancy clothes and choose the best for Rachel to wear.

The Youngs - migrated in the 1800's to the small island of Singapore from their main land, China  with a vast amount of fortune. They started real-estates business until this family became most probably the landlords of Singapore.

Nick escorted Rachel and Peik Lin to his Ah-ma's house which is the largest, most beautiful house that Rachel didn't expect to see. A house that Nick and Astrid grew up in. A house that has lots of wings that you'll probably get lost once you enter the wrong one.

Finally, Nick introduces Rachel to all of his cousins. Nick's mom, Eleanor, is busy in the kitchen scrutinizing every detail of the food to serve to their guests. When the couple went down to the kitchen, Rachel thrillingly hugs Eleanor which made Eleanor uncomfortable around Rachel. That is why Rachel immediately concluded that Eleanor doesn't want her for his son.

In the middle of the garden, sits a fragrant Tan Hua flower which usually blooms fully once a year, a great opportunity for the guests to see this once in a year. While waiting for it to fully bloom, Nick introduced Rachel to his Ah-ma, surprisingly, she likes Rachel the moment they talked in Chinese. She said that Rachel should come back to the mansion when there are no more craining necks so that she can teach Rachel how to make their family's traditional dumpling recipe which was passed to generations.

The Bachelor and Bachelorette's  Party where Nick and Rachel's love was tested. The Bachelor's party is located literally in the middle of the ocean, filled the cargo-like ship with sexy girls and men that is enjoying the scenery. As they are talking about anything under the sun and with the influence of alcohol, some men questions Nick on Rachel's details. Though the men want to know more about Rachel, Nick went hot-headed as the men start to sexualize his girlfriend. He decides to leave the ship that day with Colin, the bachelor, to an island with a small wooden floating house and a raft.

On the other hand, Rachel met Nick's ex-girlfriend, Amanda, in Araminta's Bachelorette party at a private island. She did not know that Amanda wants to be friends with her so that she and her mean friends can pull off their plans and that Rachel would want to leave. Their plans succeeded, while crying Rachel went to her villa to get her things and leave, she bumped into Astrid. They two found that Rachel's bed was covered in tuna's blood with a tuna head at her headboard.

That incident led to them to the seashore talking about why Amanda is like that. Astrid also opened up to Rachel how she found out that her husband is not really busy going to business trips but rather he is busy having an affair with a woman she doesn't know. It seems like the two found comfort in each other.

Dumpling day comes and also another day to test their relationship. While making dumplings, Rachel found out that Ah-ma doesn't want Eleanor for Nick's father way back then and she doesn't have the heirloom engangement ring of the Youngs since Ah-ma didn't approve of her. Ah-ma arrived at the dining table exactly after Rachel knew the backstory of Eleanor and Nick's father. Ah-ma was pleased after seeing Rachel again. She adoringly expressed her interest in Rachel's face features which made Eleanor jealous of Rachel.

On her way to the toilet, Rachel's lost in the mansion and was shocked that Eleanor found her. Eleanor talked to Rachel and frankly told her that she will never be enough for her son.

(Rachel and Eleanor Scene)

The wedding of the year came, famous business elites and the royalties attended. Rachel wore a pretty blue elegant dress paid respects to Eleanor and Nick's aunties though Eleanor doesn't want her to sit with her.

Princess Inta, who demanded a whole row of the front seats to herself so she would not be bothered by anyone, approached by Rachel who doesn't have seats, she talked about the princess' book about economics and that they have the same stand. They immediately been comfortable with each other. Escorted by Astrid, Ah-ma came and everyone was shocked at her presence. They said that Ah-ma never came to such events.

Not long after Ah-ma arrived, the grand wedding started which left everyone in awe on how beautiful the oriental, Gothic-themed was.

After the ceremony, the program continued at the Gardens by the Bay, a reception for the wedding. It was filled with laughters, everyone is having a great time dancing and enjoying the beat. In contrast with this, stands Rachel and Nick called by Ah-ma and Eleanor for the truth behind Rachel's identity. They said that they cannot let Rachel join their family for the fact that she lied to them about his father after they hired a peivate investigator. Little did they know that Rachel only found out then that her mom's husband, which all throughout her life she believed wa sher father, isnt really her biological father. Rachel walked out for she is deeply hurt by their actions. Ah-ma later then gave Nick an ultimatum. Once he leave, he can't come back. Who will he choose? His family or Rachel?

After a few days of crying, Rachel's mom found her in Peik-Lin's house and not eating. Her mom admitted that she left her husband because she was impregnated by Rachel's father and that her husband was not kind after all. She flew all the way to America to start a new life with her baby, Rachel.

Before leaving Singapore, Rachel wanted to talk to two people; Nick and Eleanor. She ended her relationship with Nick and declined Nick's offer to marry her and start a new life in New York as he will cut his ties with his family.

Rachel meets Eleanor at a Mahjong Parlour where they had a mahjong game along with two deaf players. She told Eleanor everything that had happened before she met with her and that she knew that Nick loves his family so much that even though Nick decided to leave his family for her, she couldn't stand to see Nick away from them. He is the only son that would inherit their wealth. She decides to let him go.

Also broken-hearted with her cousin Nick, Astrid decides to leave his husband for she cannot be blinded by her husband's affair. She decides to take their son with her.

Rachel and her mom are boarding the aircraft when Nick chased her to fly to New York with her.   She don't want to listen to Nick at first but when she realized what Nick's doing, she decided to  clisten to him and is completely speechless when Nick get down on one knee. Her face brightened when she saw the small box with the emerald stone ring embedded in diamonds that Eleanor wore on their engagement with Nick's father is vividly shining right infront of her eyes. She said Yes!

Them three left the aircraft to celebrate their engagement with their friends at the top of Singapore's most popular hotel - Marina Bay Sands. Ended as Eleanor genuinely smiles at Rachel as Rachel shows her engagement ring.

This movie taught me that you can’t choose who you’ll love. If you're looking for someone with the same wealth level as yours or even the same race as yours, you may never find your true love. Given the circumstances of Rachel and Nick, they don’t want their wealth status to be a hindrance in their relationship.

Though family always comes first, if it's a matter of going through what your family wants for you or going through what you want for your future family, always choose the latter. I only get one chance to live and I don’t want any regrets, so for as long as possible, if my decisions don't violate a person's right, i’ll do everything and whatever it takes.

This part below, where Rachel met Eleanor at the Mahjong Place where they talked about why Eleanor didn’t want Rachel for Nick the second she arrived in Singapore. Eleanor said that there is a Hokkien phrase “Ka ki lang” which means “Our own kind of people.” This is why the Chinese people tend to want to marry the same ethnicity as them because they want to preserve their traditions and would want to keep it going for as long as possible, which Rachel is not. Not because she is not wealthy, but because she is a foreigner, an American, although the Chinese blood runs through her, she grew up in America and Eleanor doesn’t want that.

One of the Chinese’s cultures is that they are taught to build things that last and not to feed in what they want, but in what they need. I understand Eleanor in this part because as an Asian, we are taught by these things - to prioritize our needs and build connections that will benefit us in the future. But for me, we should give respect to other cultures and not close our circle entirely. We all have different perspectives regardless of our race, that is why we should not judge one’s personality based on their race.

Rachel said that Nick proposed to him the day before and she turned him down, though Nick stated that he will stay away from his family for good. She said that if Nick would choose Rachel, he would lose his family, and if Nick would choose his family, he might spend the rest of his life resenting Eleanor.

Eleanor shows her Mahjong tiles which she thought she won, but Rachel looks at her, sighs, and says,

“ I’m not leaving because I’m scared, or because I think I’m not enough, because maybe for the first time in my life, I know I am. I just love Nick so much. I don’t want him to lose his mom again, so I just wanted you to know that one day, when he marries another lucky girl, who is enough for you, and you’re playing with your grandkids, while the Tan Hua’s are blooming, and the birds are chirping, that is was because of me. A poor, low-class immigrant nobody.”

Then she showed her Mahjong tiles and she won to Eleanor. She left the table and fetched her mother with a smile at the other table to leave the place. What a queen! Powerful. That is the best scene ever. The feels, the script, the emotions, they are just so perfect.

Astrid, my favorite character, not just she is stunningly beautiful but among all the cousins, she has the purest heart. She doesn’t want the people around her to feel that they are left out when they are with her. She wanted everything to be perfect when it comes to her family. Though her shopping spree every time she’s going to Paris fashion week is a bit overwhelming to commoners, she deserves all of it.

Astrid and I have similarities in our personalities. I’m also calm when there are problems that are coming my way. I can remain composed and I buy my time until I can find solutions to it. I remember the time when the man I loved cheated on me just like when Michael (Astrid’s husband) cheated on Astrid.

I can relate to her when she said that she’s wrong when she’s turning down jobs because Michael might feel lesser than her. I used to lower myself when I’m with him because I worry that he might feel that I’m the superior one between the two of us. But when he cheated, I realized that it shouldn’t be like that. It will be his fault for being insecure in me. Just like what Astrid said,

“It’s not my job to make you feel like a man. I can’t make you something you’re not.”

[maladaptive-ninja-returns]

Kira Vol 2 (3)

The Mistress

CHAPTER 3: Is This Jealousy

Loki x fem!Reader (Kira)

Series: A new chapter begins in Kira’s life. Old secrets, new confessions, surprising allies and unexpected meetings. All of them have one name in common. Loki.

Chapter content: soft feels

Warnings: a teeny weenie bit of jealousy

Word count: my cousin is awesome. She is such a pure soul and I am so protective of her that I will beat the hell out of anyone who tries to hurt my little- but tall- baby.

MASTERLIST & Taglist in bio, my love

The bubble of slumber has barely found Loki when a ripple of scream shreds every ounce of peace this house knows. The silence of the autumn suddenly sounds like a Hallow's Eve blood bath when Loki's body dashes towards the source of the voice. He does not even think for a second, his body already charging itself towards the stone-y path, his son outrunning him on his fours to come to a skidding halt at the foot of her bed. "Kira," he calls out with a contrasting tone compared to the rigorous beating of his heart.

But she does not hear. Her eyes are wide open, looking at the window in her room while her cries wear her lungs out. All she screeches are the words 'no' and 'stop' repeatedly while looking at the empty space. What disturbs Loki, even more, is that she is numb to the blood oozing out from where the needles were once sticking into her are ripping her skin apart. The duvet that covers her is being used as a shield against whatever she is afraid of while the blood smears the fabric with a new hue wherever it comes in touch with it. There is fear in his eyes for what he plans to do, but the fear of watching her writhing in pain like this far outranks it. And so he takes the first lunge by sitting down next to her and slowly taking her trembling hand into his. She yelps and jolts away from his cold touch. "It's me. Kira, look," he calls out to her while switching on the bed lamp close to him, "It's Loki." Her shivering figure cowering away from him takes its time to hear his voice while he patiently waits by the edge. He knows he has to let her come to him. Or he might lose her again. And it would already be one too many times. "Loki?" She has no idea what her frail voice does to that man's being. He can feel an electric current drive from his head to toe and all he can do is sit there nodding his head. "Yes, I'm here." That man has barely finished his sentence to breathe when he feels heated arms being thrown around his torso while her head wants to hide in his chest. "There's someone out there. There's someone out there, Loki." Silence. What is he supposed to feel right now? The otherwordly elation on the touch of her arms, whose heat seeps through the soft cotton and is absorbed by his thirst-ridden skin? Or should he feel sad for the suffering that does not seem to leave her even when she heals? In the swift moment, his rational brain scolds itself for having not having any intelligible actions ready like it usually does; for being useful during the one time it should be working at one hundred per cent capacity. "Please," a whimper comes from his chest, "make it stop." Like a flip of a switch in a cornered animal, Loki's pupils go wide while his arms come around her back with a life of their own. The cold palms hold the sweaty shirt on either side, making a barrier around her. "Come here," he whispers, pulling her closer to him, letting her rest her head in the dip of his shoulder while his body seeks all the unnecessary heat from her untethered figure. "Nothing can hurt you, I promise. Okay? No one can hurt you. I'm here." The wails dilute to sobs under the rhythmic soft pats of Loki's palm on her head in between soothing strokes through her hair. "I'm here." The sobs reduce to loud inhales and exhales, trying to find the resting point of her lungs. The patting continues into the dead of the night when unexpected rain showers wash away whatever bad lurks in the beautiful dark night outside, making her eyelids heavy and her body heavier on Loki's chest. Finding the strength inside him, Loki takes her head in his palm and carefully drags her down the bed to let her head rest on the pillow. The tightened nerves inside him relax when they hear her light snores, convincing him she is finally asleep. It is not easy to drag himself away from that angelic face resting so tranquilly but he puts his foot down on the floor- ready to let her rest- only to find a strong tug on his shirt by her fisted hand, pulling that loosely woven pure threadwork closer towards herself with wrinkles in between her brows. "Kira."  That man is now suddenly a little boy standing outside the study of his father, from where a mellow golden light flows out into a river at the end of which he stands with a unicorn in his tiny hands, his green eyes twinkling with the dance of both shadows and light as he tries to look inside through whatever space the barely open door allows him. Little Loki witnesses his father carry his brother in his arms, telling him stories of kings and princes that conquered lands and brought peace by defeating all evil; narrating his love for the golden boy and boasting to the air in that room how he will be the next man to take care of the empire that his father built for him. Outside, the raven-haired boy stands patiently before turning away to walk through the endless corridors to his room where the nanny is already waiting for him anxiously. "Loki! Where were you? Now is not the time to sneak out." The little one does not bother explaining for he goes straight to bed under his covers, his eyes towards the ceiling to look at the stars put up on there by the servants for his musings. "Mother says stars walk alone," Loki stated out of nowhere for the nanny to hear as she tucks him into the bed, "because they burn bright for everyone. She also says I am a star. A really bright one." "Of course you are," the woman smiles at him while wondering where this talk was coming from. "I don't think she knows that I know stars can burn whatever comes near to them. It is not even practical to be a star without dying a cold death." Margeret has to gasp. "Relax Margeret. It is the work of gases. You would not understand." And saying that, he turns to face the other way. "I don't want to be a star," he mumbles, wishing upon those bogus stars a wish that crumbles with every passing breath in his life till there remains no evidence of these ashes that were ultimately tagged as hollow hopes. Hopes that seem to be reborn without so much as a warning when Loki finds himself lying down next to her and she- without even a conscious effort- pulls herself upon his arm, burying her head in his chest, facing away from the world. A jolt of shiver runs through her body, immediately bringing Loki's arm over her shoulder, overworking his already imbalanced heart. But the calm finds him in her presence just as it finds her in his arms. The night outside, fresh out from nature's bath feels the need to notice its presence not acknowledged by the two souls that used to let their demons roam in her robe. Now, those very souls rest them in each other's arms, devoid of the exhaustion that once haunted them in their loneliness.

"Okay, I'm already putting this out there so no judgments are made later on...I just learned how to drive. You don't get to say how bad I am. If you are scared to sit next to me hold on to your seat. If the car stops in the middle of the road do not rush me, I know I am bad with shifting gears and the accelerator right now. Oh, and at no time will you offer to drive instead. Okay?" Loki's eyes take in your body on alert in the driver's seat of your dad's borrowed Suzuki. You adjust the rearview mirror and look at the controls, mumbling some things to yourself before double-checking the seat belt and starting the engine. He cannot help but stare at your elation with heart eyes when the car starts without any trouble. What churns up the lights inside him is that crazy giggling smile stuck on your face.  "I'm driving a car," you squeak at a really low volume while your neck disappears and your shoulders go up in tender excitement. By the Norns, who made her this cute, he truly has to wonder without realising a goofy smile has invited itself on his lips and has been sitting there even for Heimdall to see outside the gate when you exit. "That good a breakfast, huh?" He teases his boss, who is quick to hide any evidence of joy on his face. Sadly the master strategist and deceiver can't hide it from his eyes. "Did you get all the work done," Loki does not even move his brow when talking to the Watcher. "I had a nice breakfast too, thanks for asking," he is quick to acknowledge that cold stare, "and yes it's done. So, where are you guys headed?" You scoff, raising your hands from the steering wheel. "At least act surprised to see me driving even if you know it already." Heimdall chuckles. "I'm taking Loki to show around my town. Wanna c-" "Oh good, Lord!" Loki blurts out of nowhere, making you jump where you sit, "turn the car, Kira! There's a cat about to walk under it!" "What?" "Turn it out of the driveway!" "But-" "Let's go! Before it tries to climb the wheel!" You are hastily shifting the gear to drive. "They do that?" "Now! Now!"

This is his first time. And he still cannot believe it is happening. Well, shame on me for thinking only Odin had the finest colonial lands. Trees line up both sides of the roads that are cleaner than the supposedly progressive concrete jungle that you two left behind for a while. The patience all the drivers have on the road with their cars in a smooth drive is really impressing the man, besides putting him at ease considering his heart has taken the wheel. There are people out and about on the sidewalks. And there are people exploiting the cycling tracks to get their blood pumping in this cold weather. Kindergarten kids, school kids, college kids- there are clusters of them coming and going; some sad to leave their parents, while others are running and skipping towards theirs. This city is coloured in every hue imaginable even in the coldest of days. And unlike the iron world, he sits atop, this one seems like it takes out time to look around. The car is parked in a spot right outside a local city museum and unlike you, someone notices the line of expensive rides next to yours while their owners are huddled together over one with beer cans and cigarettes. Every one of the five men standing on the other corner wear brands that equal your one month's salary. "Let's start with this place," you bring Loki out of the calculating trance he is in since the second he laid eyes on the men that has been staring this way, "so we can get out and enjoy something much better if you get bored of this place." Loki smiles at you and makes it a point to walk towards your side to place his hand on your back, mellifluously ask, "shall we?" and walk away with you with the energy that marks the five feet around you as a zone not to be stepped in.

Well, it is hard to get bored of your face no matter how long he looks at it because he is certain he has memorised every little scar on it till he watches you fascinated by the medieval art displays. Your eyes have the deepest ocean of y/e/c ever seen that goes shallow for that black endless void that widens on seeing something that curates to its curiosity. Your lips. Damn those lips that have been blessed by the Gods themselves. They turn and pout in question, are tormented by the teeth when something does not sit right and are touch in a peculiar fashion by your fingers that Loki forgets he has to breathe at one point. He envies the fallen eyelash that sits on your cheek; envies that it gets to touch you and be prayed upon for a wish or desire while he stands to praise nature's work from a distance. But he does not let that bother him for he cannot recall any other time when he has been this content with his life.

"Point at anything in here and you will love it." "Really?" "Mm-hmm. They are really good at everything they make." "Oh...that's-wait. Is this the place that serves that pasta you keep comparing to everyone else's?" Your face is already breaking into the smile and Loki's heart cannot help but whisper 'stop' while running a marathon. "Yup." "Okay, so I'll have a-" "Kira?" Loki turns around before you to see who recognizes you and if it is a threat. "Henry?" The marathon comes to a pause for there is a little prick that is felt right in the chest. You recognise this man with a decent scruff, wide eyes and a bubbly smile. He has already been read head to toe by Loki. He does not seem like a threat. "Hey!" greets Henry before swooping you in his arms and giving one tight hug which leads to your alleged date to grind his teeth. How dare he. "How are you?" "I'm good. What about you?" You don't have to ask him that. He looks fine for someone who just got up from his sleep and drove here. "Fantastic now that we meet." Right. As if you were miserable before. "Where are you these days?! I've met CJ and Kat but never you." "She's with me," Loki declares. And that is when you notice the shift in the energy around you. "Henry, this is my boss, Loki. Loki, this is my school friend, Henry." You watch as Henry brings his hand forward for Loki. "Nice to meet you, man." Loki reciprocates but you can tell by that sharp cut of his jaw that something bothers him even though he isn't being vocal about it like he usually is. "Wait-" Henry's narrowed eyes are already telling Loki something he is tired of hearing- "Loki as in Loki the guy from Sun Corp. The Loki who went missing for two years before-" "So I heard from Kat you're opening a rest-" you try to divert the conversation. "Yes," Loki affirms much to your surprise, "that very Loki." And a smile. "Damn," Henry whispers. "Well, I'll leave you to it then. And you two are invited to my restaurant's soft launch today. Kat will give you the deets and you have to bring Loki." "Oh." You are a little dazed by the incomprehensible smoothness of this conversation. "Uhh..." You feel the brush of Loki's arm with yours when he closes the distance with the two of you. "We will be there," he concludes with his smiling eyes while you are wondering all the reasons you could be feeling this sudden gush of warmth in your cheeks. Nothing escapes Henry's eyes and that bubbly smile. You two have never been close which is why you are wondering why this guy is so excited to meet you. It hits you after a few seconds that the reason you were noticed might not have been because of you but your company. You are still thinking about it when you and Loki settle down in the corner seat looking out the bakery shop. "You don't have to go if you don't want to," you stress, reaching out for the bill in Loki's hand that he has already paid for. But that sly man is already pulling the receipt away from your grip. "I'll go if you go. And considering you are a textbook people-pleaser around your friends, you will be going tonight." All he reflects for your slightly unhinged and offended jaw is his smirk that has a tendency to stir something up inside your gut. "Correct me if I'm wrong." "I am not a textbook people plea-" "You went out to visit Kat even when your leg wasn't healed because she said you had not met her in a while." You scoff. "W-It was true! I hadn't met her in a while and I-" "And because CJ said she was mad at you because you hadn't answered her texts and calls." You do open your mouth to contradict but nothing comes out except a defeated sigh. "You could have told her about your health." Loki tilts his head and melting eyes that have their full attention on you. And you are feeling the goosebumps all over your body from that dedicated stare. Did he always look at me that way? The sensible voice in your head clears her throat and wonders...He could look that way to anyone. But your inner voice is already dancing. Look at the face, woman. Drown me in shallow waters if he isn't head over heels for you. "I...have used my health as an excuse for multiple occasions so I don't think it'll cut for them anymore." There is a slight crinkle in between his brows that does not seem to get as much attention as his tongue that darts out to wet his lips. Why is that even legal? Your inner voice is angry while it involuntarily purrs. "It is your health, Kira. I am pretty sure your friend will understand. Would you not rather that your friends tell you they are not fine instead of hearing about it when it all gets worse someday?" You turn your toes to internally curse yourself on realising he has a point; a very good one. "I'll talk to her," you agree and thank the waiter who brings you your lemon and mint iced tea and Loki's cold brew. "Okay," you sing with crackling judgment humming in your voice as your eyes are stuck on Loki's dark drink, "since when are you into coffee? I haven't been gone that long." "My existence will disagree," he mutters without so much of a thought as he lets his lips touch the straw in great anticipation while his eyes look up at the blank bump of an expression stuck on your face.  Heart thumping to the beats of embarrassment, your brain shuts down, pulls away the glass of cold brew and pushes your iced tea towards him. "Just have the tea, you monster." You try really hard to keep up that frown on your face while your insides want to come out and confirm the words he just said. "Me? A monster?" If you did not know any better, Loki would seem flabbergasted right this second. You narrow your eyes and let sarcasm drip just from your expression. "I have seen you murder your employees without even having to raise a weapon when you aren't in a good mood. Trust your assistant, Mr Loki, coffee is not your friend." "Are you sure?" He narrows his eyes at you and crinkles his nose. "Do you see anyone else being worried about you?" you direct at the surrounding with your hand. There is a tilt of his head and crossed arms come to rest on the table. "So, you are worried about me?" Your eyes pause any movement to stare into his for a moment so long he can feel his soul bare in front of you. "Someone has to..." He is left numb with that look on your face. "Because I am too tired to find another job." Numb from the heart attack he just had till he feels his senses coming back to let him wack in the back of his head and let him know how he got played. What is better than those microscopic jolts of relief he is feeling on your skin is your wide-toothed laughter then nearly pinches your eyes close. Whoever is watching him right now can without a strain of doubt point out at the man in love, looking at his life shine brighter than anyone in the room while he pauses all that he is doing- even breathing- to look at you like it is his first and last time doing so. Whoever is watching him is suddenly craving for a longing look like that; whoever is watching you envies what you can do to that beautiful man putting a good number of insecure humans to shame. "Oh my Gosh-" you suddenly break out of your laugh with a sudden realisation- "I almost forgot about him." Loki, the stoic-as-ever man- who is nearly bending over the table ready to dissolve- furrows his brows at the thought of you remembering someone other than him! "Who?" he asks with a surly taste in his mouth. "Fenrir! How is he?" "Oh." You are somewhat puzzled at that flawless face going from a simmering stare of potential judgment to an innocuous reflection of understanding. "He is as fine as he can be," he shrugs and scratches something on the nape of his neck, making your eyes dart at the bit of exposed skin under the maroon that is royally screwing up with your head with pictures you do not want to be imagining in public right now. "So, he is being a bitch," you summarise for him. He nods in agreement, bringing back his hand and leaving that exposed microscopic yards of his shoulder and neck to be devoured by your stare so hard even the devil would blush. And unbeknownst to you, the devil hath blushed multiple times. "I think he misses his roommate," Loki throws the statement nonchalantly, pulling your iced-tea back to him. "Aw," you squeak a little putting your face in your palms and glittering eyes, "I miss him too." "Then get back to work, Miss Kira," Loki's flat and stern tone softly plays on his tongue, "you have had more than enough of vacation time." "Excuse me?" "What." "I got my bones broken for my company." Loki shrugs and sips your tea. "I nearly died for mine. Big deal." "Wow," you exhale. "Fine. I need a raise." "Okay." "..." "What."

"Just like that?" "You nearly died for the company. The company wants to thank you for your unwavering loyalty." You don't really know what to say next. You never planned this far, thanks to your impulse. That is till the socialist in you finds a silver lining. "Cool," you tilt your head in your palms, "then you can cut my salary for a few more vacation days." Concluding it with a wink. And Loki feels his insides sigh. Never in a million years could he have imagined a soft face like hers would hold the ultimate power to melt his insides like this.

Nature watches again. Through the windows and winds that enter at the opening and closing of the door. Two souls more than just content in their hearts to be in the presence of the unexplainable they thought they lacked. That little boy inside Loki is sitting at that table looking at you with all the innocence and love he can feel in his little heart; all that he wants to give to you. Little Loki knows who the star is and what it is like to be in its presence. And he would not have it any other way. The bakery plays a lofi mix of Just Want To Be The One You Love as these two closeted lovers bickered and enjoyed their much deserved time together, never knowing the company far away clicking pictures of their private time together before disappearing into the crowds and cars on the road outside.

[artificialqueens]

Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor, 10 (Branjie) (and background everyone) - Ortega

a/n: omg HIIIIII hihihihihi i’m SO SORRY for the update gap fam, i started back at work and have been crAzy busy ever since! however i tried to make this chapter one that was worth the wait…….insert one thousand eye emojis if ya know what i mean. hope u enjoy!

fic summary: Strictly Come Dancing enters its 18th series and its producers, after being goaded by a rival dance show on its inclusivity, commission it to be an all-female cast. Unlike Akeria who’s just here to bone her potential dance partner, dancer Vanessa is ready to act like a professional.

And then TV presenter Brooke Lynn walks into the rehearsal room.

***

20th November 2020

Vanessa is giggling as Akeria sits with an enormous plastic bag of snacks in front of her on the hard plastic train table. She’s looking at them with the long-suffering eyes of a wearied mother, casting her hands over them as if she doesn’t quite know where to start. She finally picks up a bag of chocolate buttons, stands up in her seat and yells out into the train carriage.

“Okay, whose are the buttons?”

“Oh! Those are ours. Thanks, Kiki,” Jan stands up from the two-seater she’s got beside Jackie and behind Vanessa and Brooke, leaning forward over them to grab the snacks.

“Strawberry laces?”

“Mine!” Crystal cries happily, leaning over Gigi from the table seat they’re sharing with Jaida and Yvie opposite them. She snatches the sweets out of Akeria’s hand and follows it up with a thank you.

“Barbecue Pringles- wait, that’s Yvie’s,” Akeria immediately cuts herself off, leaning over the aisle of the carriage and handing Yvie the tube.

“I’m nothing if not predictable,” she shrugs, ripping off the plastic covering and the paper on top to grab a crisp and then offer one to her dance partner.

“Tangfastics?” Akeria yells out. There’s a pause where nobody claims them. Akeria gives a long-suffering roll of her eyes and yells a little louder. “Tangfastics?!”

Vanessa watches Monique give a jolt in the two-seater she’s sharing with Monet. “Shit, sorry Keeks, that’s ours!”

(Vanessa suspects that Monique’s delay in hearing her snack might be because of the way Monet’s got her hand resting on her thigh and had been whispering something to her moments before, but she’ll park that for now, use it to make fun of her at a later date.)

“God damn, stop gazin’ in Monet’s eyes for two whole seconds,” Akeria teases her, to a hoot of laughter from the other girls and a glare from Monique herself.

“Can’t help it that they’re so dark and intoxicating,” Monet pipes up with a dramatic gesture. Asia yells at her to shut up from over her headrest. A little further down the carriage, Vanessa can see a businessman shaking his head in despair.

“Gigi, that’s your fruit platter,” Akeria hands the tub across the aisle, already able to tell the model’s choice of snack. Vanessa silently takes the bags of Starbursts and chilli heatwave Doritos that she’d asked Akeria to pick up for her and Brooke respectively. “Whose are the Haribos?”

There’s another silence. Vanessa has to hold in her laughter at Akeria’s growing frustration. “Girls, I swear to Jesus, y’all cannot send me to the shop to grab all your motherfuckin’ snacks and then not claim ‘em! Who ordered the goddamn Haribos?!”

Asia blinks suddenly, looks up from her phone and tugs Akeria’s sleeve. “Bitch! Those are ours, we got them! Sit your dumb ass down!”

The girls all roar with laughter as Akeria sheepishly sinks back into her seat. Vanessa can’t help but give a little bounce in her seat from excitement because they’ve made it; she’s off to Blackpool with a girl that likes her back, her two best friends, and the rest of the dorks they’re sharing the competition with. They’ve got a Cha Cha Cha this week which they’ve practised, polished and perfected, and Vanessa can feel a little bite of excitement to the cold air which makes her think maybe…maybe this week it’s their time to get a few more tens and perhaps be top of the leaderboard this week. She’s confident, and she knows Brooke is too. They chatted through their thoughts about the week ahead when Vanessa walked Brooke to the tube station the night before, and her heart still gives a little excitable thud when Vanessa remembers the way they’d stolen a kiss in the dark just beside the entrance.

Whatever it is they are feels like one of the fairytales Vanessa used to watch when she was little on VHS tape, the ones she used to rewind the moment they were done to go all the way back to the start. She and Brooke are still focused on the competition obviously, so for now they’re still content with stealing kisses behind the scenes of It Takes Two, going for dates that aren’t really dates and are more mid-rehearsal lunches, long and lingering goodbye cuddles where Vanessa rests her head against Brooke’s chest and wishes she was going home with her instead of to her own empty flat. It’s nameless and exciting and a bit of a foray into the unknown, only Vanessa knows it’s not really so much of an unknown because she trusts Brooke, she knows she likes her back and how much she’s devoted to her. It’s the way Brooke nuzzles against Vanessa’s hair and mutters a compliment about how talented she is, or the way she’ll stop mid-kiss to just murmur about how beautiful Vanessa is against her lips, or the way she links their pinkies together midway through a rehearsal break and shyly comment on how lucky she is. It all makes Vanessa’s heart feel huge and light and fast in her chest, a helium balloon filled with butterflies.

“Guys! Train selfie!” Crystal cries suddenly, jolting Vanessa out of her daydream. Vanessa leans onto the middle of the table to squeeze herself into shot and yelps when Brooke tugs her back.

“You just totally Mike Wazowski’d me!”

“Oh like anyone could miss you in any photo, fuckin’ lil miss beanstalk bitch!” Vanessa teases her, the girls all laughing in response.

“So funny that half your fans think you’re datin’. You two fight like cat an’ dog on the daily,” Asia rolls her eyes and snorts. Vanessa feels her body spark with electricity as Brooke takes her hand under the table and squeezes it a couple of times in secret.

She feels guilty as she looks to Akeria who’s raising her eyebrows at her, still very aware of her crush. It’s not that Vanessa has kept things secret from her and Monique intentionally. It’s just that she and Brooke have been so wrapped up in each other and their rehearsals, not to mention the fact that they haven’t had a girls’ night in forever. Vanessa resolves to tell them this weekend, having to bite back a smile as she thinks about their potential reactions.

“Guys, get in the fucking selfie already! My arm is hurting!”

Vanessa leans back into Brooke’s chest and feels something in her ribcage blossom as Brooke puts her arms around her in a hug for the photo.

The train starts moving and all the girls give an excited squeal of delight which makes two old ladies a few seats down look at them all suspiciously. There’s a flash of recognition in their eyes after a second and their attitude changes, judgemental eyes becoming kind. Vanessa wonders if it will ever fully sink in that she’s ‘famous’, a public figure. Right now it just feels as if she’s going on some big mad girls’ weekend away with her second family and a girl she really fucking likes.

The evening is mostly taken up by the train ride, all the girls having rehearsed during the day and trundled their suitcases to the train when they were done. Yvie vlogs, Crystal and Gigi chatter excitedly, and Akeria and Asia bicker about who’s eaten the most buttons. Vanessa and Brooke for their part hold hands underneath the table, share little smiles that speak both volumes and a thousand words, and flirt just enough to make Vanessa’s heart beat out her chest but not enough to arouse suspicion. All the while they speed past towns that she’s never heard of and will never visit, blurs of green and grey shrouded in the dark of the Autumn night sky.

The train doesn’t go all the way to Blackpool so they have to change at Preston, which Vanessa knows nothing about other than the fact it’s got a train station. The girls find the platform for their connecting train and mill about, stopping once to take photos with an adorable little Strictly fan who can’t be more than eight years old. Vanessa chats away with her way more than the other girls do because the little girl’s dark hair, nut brown skin and huge brown eyes make her miss her own little cousins back in Puerto Rico. She asks her about school, and if she dances, and what she wants to be when she grows up.

When the girl replies, “a dancer like you”, Vanessa almost tears up.

She tells her not to give up on her dreams- because it’s what eight year old her would’ve needed to hear- and then waves her and her Mum goodbye. By the time she’s finished chatting and she turns back around, Brooke is waiting for her with a little smile on her face.

“What? What’s that look for?” Vanessa laughs a little. She wants nothing more than to wrap her arms around Brooke’s waist in a hug but the platform is busy and the other girls could see them.

“Nothing. Just you’re really cute with kids.”

Vanessa smiles bashfully, looks to the ground. When she looks up again Brooke has come a little closer to her. Vanessa pouts as she very gently threads the tips of their fingers together, the closest they can come to holding hands in public.

“I wanna kiss you so bad right now.”

“Let’s do it,” Brooke giggles quietly, a little sparkle in her eyes. “Let’s just start making out and watch how the girls react. Yvie would put it in one of her fucking vlogs.”

“Storytime- my Strictly co-stars just kissed?” Vanessa jokes, and Brooke wheezes a laugh which in turn makes the other girls turn round. Vanessa immediately drops their hands as Asia eyes them both with suspicion.

Brooke looks back at her and Vanessa can feel her pulse speed up at the adoration that’s in her eyes. “You look so good today, let me take a candid that’s not really a candid.”

“A plandid,” Vanessa shrugs back, then screws up her face. “I look like shit though. I sweated all my makeup off in rehearsal, my skin’s all dry from that train heater an’ I’m wearing sweatpants I’ve owned for six years.”

“Still cute though,” Brooke winks, and Vanessa tries to suppress a smile as she relents, shakes her hair out and looks down the platform. She’s surprised to find the train making its way up the tracks and after a second she leaps back, grabbing her suitcase and Brooke’s arm and yelling to the other girls.

It’s only when they’re on the train again when she gets an Instagram tag and realises that Brooke managed to take the photo, and she has to admit she doesn’t look too bad. She’s confused, though, when she sees what Brooke has captioned it.

bhytes: sls 🧡

Vanessa looks quickly at Brooke before tapping out a message to her.

V: what’s sls mean??? x

She watches Brooke’s reaction in real time as she receives the message. Her eyes widen a little and a pink blush appears on her cheeks, almost as if she’s been caught at something. Vanessa watches her fingers hover over the screen, typing against the air as she tries to figure out how to reply. Eventually, Vanessa’s phone buzzes again.

B: Oh I meant to type sis!!!! Silly typo x

Vanessa narrows her eyes- she’s not buying that for a second. Sure enough as she goes back to Brooke’s Instagram page there’s a small “Edited” beside her caption, and it now reads what Brooke had just told her she’d allegedly meant to type. Feeling a little guilty for snooping, Vanessa scrolls through the comments- there’s one from Yvie already, and another from Jackie, and some from Brooke’s friends and colleagues of course, but eventually she reaches the fans.

branjie2020: SHE EDITED IT IM-

strictlybranjie: Brooke we see u girl

brookelynnbites: not little mix secret love song…………

Intrigued, Vanessa looks up the lyrics and instantly she knows why Brooke had been shy with her. Now blushing herself, Vanessa puts her phone face down on the table and loses herself in thought. She thinks about the lyrics. Why can’t I say that I’m in love…it’s just a song, Brooke probably just meant the sentiment generally, but still. Vanessa can’t help but wonder if maybe they could make something of whatever it is that they are, a fling between two members of a TV show. Maybe they’ll be together when this is all over, and maybe…well. Vanessa hasn’t told anyone that she loves them like that since Kameron, and it would be a big deal if she said it to somebody else again. She’s not falling for Brooke yet; that would be ridiculous, especially given that they’ve not even so much as seen each other naked, but all Vanessa knows is that she really likes her, cares for her so much that it almost scares her, and whenever she’s around Vanessa feels as if she’s levitating.

Vanessa puts her jacket over her lap and wordlessly takes Brooke’s hand underneath it. She doesn’t miss the smile on Brooke’s face when she squeezes it reassuringly.

They all eventually reach Blackpool, the windy seaside weather and the sound of the seagulls greeting them as soon as they’re out of the train station. Their hotel isn’t far from the Tower Ballroom and Vanessa’s glad that they’re not staying at some run down B&B although the BBC, always eager to cut costs wherever they can, has booked them all in with each other in twin rooms. Vanessa isn’t mad about that. Admittedly after that moment they had in Brooke’s dressing room last Saturday she’s been thinking ever since about how she could engineer some form of sequel. She’s narrowed it down to finding an excuse to crawl into Brooke’s bed at night, bullshitting something about it being too cold in her own and how it would be so much warmer if they just slept together. That’s if she needs to be subtle, of course. Knowing how Brooke had practically slammed her against her dressing room door last week there’s probably not going to be much need for subtleties.

“I hope you don’t snore,” Brooke laughs, rolling her suitcase out of the lift and onto the carpet of the hotel corridors. Vanessa lets out an incredulous snort.

“Bitch! Do I seem like the kinda girl who snores? I’m insulted.”

“No, that’s true. I need to worry about you talking in your sleep instead. The loudest girl in the fucking cast,” Brooke laughs, Vanessa kicking a leg forward to knock Brooke’s suitcase off-balance as revenge. Even though it wobbles on its wheels, Brooke is undeterred. “I’m going to be trying to get to sleep and just as I think I’m drifting off all I’ll here is…AN’ FIVE, SIX, SEVEN, EIGHT!”

“Shut up,” Vanessa giggles, giving Brooke a push as they both arrive in front of the hotel room door. Brooke presses the key card to the pad and walks in first, and Vanessa is too busy struggling with her case to gauge her reaction at first. That is until Brooke turns around from the spot she’s rooted to in the middle of the room.

“Oh.”

Vanessa frowns. She doesn’t really know why Brooke’s grown so awkward and quiet all of a sudden until she takes three steps forward and can see their room properly.

‘Oh’ is right. Because there, in the middle of their room, is a double bed. No, not double. King-sized, a king-sized fucking bed that’s probably the size of a small country village and is just for the two of them. All Vanessa’s plans go out the window because this is…new, and unknown territory. A quick makeout session in Brooke’s dressing room is one thing but the two of them haven’t even stayed over at either of their flats yet, they’ve never shared a bed in any context before. Vanessa bites her lip.

“Well…” Brooke says finally, trails off. Vanessa realises that she’s not going to finish her sentence.

“Um. I can go down and get ‘em to change it?” she offers, regretting it as soon as she’s said it because despite it all being new territory she’s not exactly opposed to it.

“No! No, it’s fine,” Brooke says- a little too quickly, Vanessa thinks, which causes her to suppress a smirk and try not to let her thoughts get carried away. “I mean, we’re both adults, it’s fine. Plus it’ll probably be comfier, right?”

“Yeah. Sure, right,” Vanessa nods and agrees, trying not to seem too eager.

It’s late by that point, so the pair of them unpack, trying to chat easily but the elephant in the room shaped like a king-sized bed is still very much present. Vanessa showers before bed and changes into her pyjamas, a little embarrassed at how scruffy her small black cami top and mid-length bottoms are. When Brooke comes back from her own shower, though, already changed into her pyjama set, Vanessa’s mouth dries up. She’s dressed in a matching set made up of a little pink satin shirt and shorts, the black cording at the hem of which is only drawing Vanessa’s eyes to Brooke’s thighs and not at all helping the bed situation.

Brooke clearly sees her looking and raises an eyebrow. “Cute, right?”

Vanessa snaps out of her daze. “What?”

“The pyjamas. They’re from like…Asos or Missguided or something? One of them,” she replies, hopping into bed and under the covers on the other side. Vanessa inches away from her a little, careful not to make their bodies touch because this is different to dancing and it’s not as simple as just being able to wrap her body around Brooke’s or make some stupid move because there’s no performance high or adrenaline or alcohol, it’s just…them. The pair of them in the same bed with the silence of the room surrounding them and the dark of the night outside hidden from view by the blinds Vanessa pulled down. As Brooke gives her a quick kiss and leans over to her side of the bed to turn the light off, she gives a quick look back to Vanessa.

“Night, babe.”

Vanessa gives a small, nervous smile back as she says goodnight. They shuffle under the covers to get comfortable and the silence falls again. Vanessa should say something, do something, reach out and take Brooke’s hand or lean in again. But everything is new and different and the time just isn’t right and she has no idea if Brooke even wants to go there with her yet, so instead she closes her eyes and attempts to sleep.

But in the morning, things are different. The moment Vanessa stirs she can tell there’s something in the air. She blinks open her eyes, the sun peeking through the slats of the blinds already too bright. That’s not it, though. That’s not what’s different.

And then as she gains a little bit more consciousness it hits her like a ton of bricks.

Brooke’s leg is thrown over her thigh, her arm around her waist, and her body is pressed up against hers. Vanessa feels a little tingle flash between her legs. For one thing, it’s cute that Brooke’s sought Vanessa out to cuddle during the night- whether she was asleep or awake for that decision Vanessa doesn’t know, but it’s nice either way. But on the other hand, Brooke’s little satin shorts have risen up to expose most of her thigh, and it’s not helping Vanessa think rationally right now.

Slowly, Vanessa starts tracing soft patterns on Brooke’s arm in a bid to wake her up: little figures of eight, then her name, then love hearts because if Brooke’s asleep she can’t work out that that’s what they are. Brooke’s leg shifts against her, and Vanessa can feel a heat against her thigh which she can’t decide whether or not helps or worsens the situation she’s in. Just then, she feels Brooke’s thumb give a little movement, a small stroke against the skin of Vanessa’s stomach where her cami top has risen up during the night. When her thumb moves again, Vanessa knows she’s woken up.

Neither of them have spoken yet and Brooke’s still stroking at her stomach, so Vanessa shuffles back in her arms just in case she’s still half asleep. She hears Brooke give a stifled yawn on the pillow behind her, hears her breathing shallow out. She’s awake, so Vanessa can take things up a gear. She moves her fingers from her arm to Brooke’s thigh, keeping her touch light and gentle as she traces a little patch of skin just at the outside. She feels Brooke shift against her in response, tries not to think too much about her thighs or what’s in between them because she knows she’ll overwhelm herself, flip round to straddle her and end up begging her to make her come apart. This moment is good. It’s gentle and tense all at once, the pair of them just touching and teasing each other, a mutual understanding even though nothing’s been said. This is different to last night- there’s no awkwardness, there’s no tentativeness, there’s just Brooke’s body wrapped around Vanessa’s and there’s only so many places that situation can lead.  

Vanessa feels Brooke press a small kiss to her shoulder blade and it makes her heart flutter, a hummingbird caged in her ribs. Brooke’s fingers trail a little higher to stroke under the material of her top and Vanessa feels herself melt. She wiggles in Brooke’s lap, knowing how it’ll drive her crazy given the amount of comments the girl’s made about how much she loves her ass and how completely obvious she’s made it. In response, Vanessa feels Brooke sigh against her neck, kissing it once, twice, three times.

Vanessa feels her resolve cracking so she traces a little higher on Brooke’s leg, decides to break the silence. She tries to keep the smirk out of her voice but it’s hard when Brooke bucks against her thigh again. “Good morning.”

Brooke gives a little whine against her neck which makes Vanessa press her thighs together, raising her own hips in an attempt to gain some sort of friction. “Morning.”

Vanessa presses her lips together in a suppressed smile, her next move falling into place in her head. “Y’know, I think I’m gonna get up an’ start gettin’ ready.”

“No,” Brooke whines, the arm around her waist pulling her closer, and Vanessa can hear the pout in her voice. She feels Brooke rub against her thigh again and it’s almost impeding her ability to think straight at this point.

She’s having fun winding her up though and she knows she’ll be able to have Brooke begging for her if she keeps it up, so she attempts to turn around a little to face her. She can’t really manage it, but she doesn’t mind too much. She just wants to see Brooke’s face when she delivers her next line, keeps her tone light and ever-so-slightly mocking. “Why not, boo?”

Vanessa decides to shuffle round, can hear Brooke whine in frustration now that she no longer has something to grind against. When she sees Brooke blushing, biting her lip with her hand now pressed between her thighs, it’s the hottest thing Vanessa has seen in probably years.

Brooke’s still not answered- instead she’s trying to shuffle close to Vanessa, presumably to kiss her, but Vanessa’s enjoying her moment of being in charge, so she lays her hand against Brooke’s chest to stop her and narrows her eyes. “Uh-uh. You gotta tell me why I shouldn’t leave this bed.”

Brooke only blushes harder, and Vanessa’s knocked for six. Brooke is actually shy. This confident, stone-cold goddess is getting embarrassed at the prospect of talking dirty to Vanessa in bed.

Vanessa’s brain is hotwiring.

“Don’t go quiet on me, princess,” Vanessa murmurs, bringing her other hand down to stroke at Brooke’s exposed skin again, this time against the visible strip of her inner thigh. “Can’t give you what you want if you don’t tell me what it is.”

“Please…kiss me, fuck-”

Brooke’s barely got the words out when Vanessa bridges the gap between them, meets Brooke’s lips with her own and kisses her softly and gently. She knows Brooke wants more, knows she’s getting herself worked up beside her but Vanessa’s enjoying having the power for now because knowing Brooke it won’t be long before she tries to take it back. When Vanessa pulls away Brooke is pouting, all disappointed that Vanessa’s lips are no longer on hers. Vanessa hears Brooke give a little gasp and then a whine as she takes her hand, the one Brooke’s grinding against, brings it out from between her thighs and places it by her side. There’s an unspoken rule between them that Brooke’s not allowed to replace it.

“Please, ‘Ness,” she pouts, and Vanessa would find it cute if her hands weren’t trailing up and down her waist. Brooke paws at her, needy and desperate, stops to rest her hands on her ass.

“You’re so polite. Such a good girl for me,” Vanessa praises her, kissing her pouty lips and delighting in the way Brooke moans against her. Vanessa strokes her hair with the hand she’s not propping herself up with and she can tell Brooke wants it somewhere else.

“Please,” Brooke says again, her eyelids heavy and her pupils blown. Vanessa feels herself give a small laugh.

“I don’t know what you want, baby.”

“You know what I want, fuck,” Brooke whines, her eyes fluttering closed. She thuds her head against the pillow in frustration, grabs at Vanessa’s ass in an attempt to pull her closer.

“You want me to touch you?” Vanessa murmurs, and Brooke nods her head frantically in response. She trails her hand down Brooke’s neck and down her chest, stops when she sees Brooke’s nipples poking through the satin fabric of her pyjama top. Vanessa bites her lip as she flicks her thumb against one, squeezes her thighs together for the hundredth time when she hears Brooke let out a moan. She teases her slowly and gently, can feel her own breathing deepening as Brooke writhes against the sheets. Brooke’s hand drifts from Vanessa’s ass to the waistband of her own shorts and Vanessa stops touching her, moving her hand to her wrist instead.

“You want me to just sit and watch you touch yourself? Sit here on the bed with you fuckin’ yourself with your fingers instead of letting me fuck you instead?” Vanessa asks her, making sure to keep a warning tone to her voice as she draws away. Brooke whines, instantly ripping her hand out from between her legs and pulling Vanessa close with it instead.

“No, baby, I’ll be good.”

“You gonna be good for me?”

“Uh-huh.”

Vanessa feels sorry for her at this point so she lies on her side against the mattress, tucks herself in beside Brooke and traces the skin just above the waistband of her shorts. Brooke is letting out a litany of whines as Vanessa inches her hand under the material, stops and presses a gentle finger against Brooke’s slit. Vanessa feels herself gasp as she feels how wet she is already, slick against her finger and dripping on the inside of her thighs.

“Fuck,” Vanessa whispers, leans in to kiss Brooke’s neck. She’s managed to find herself an actual Aphrodite and she’s never felt more religious in her life. She tilts her head as she slides a finger up to brush against Brooke’s clit, eliciting a gasp from Brooke who bites her lip and squeezes her eyes shut. “What would people say if they knew that Brooke Lynn Hytes, confident, boss-ass, sex-on-legs bitch, turns into a lil’ whiny, bratty, needy princess when she wants to come so badly?”

“Vanessa, please,” Brooke practically sobs in response. Her hips lift high off the mattress as Vanessa rubs little circles against her. Vanessa desperately wants to feel how wet she is again but she’s wondering if she can wind her up even more, so she moves her lips up to whisper in Brooke’s ear.

“Remember when I sent you that message by accident?” Vanessa asks, her voice a low murmur. Brooke hisses in response and Vanessa sees her grab a fistful of the duvet.

“Shit, you know I got myself off to the thought of you lying in bed all wet and needy after you had that dream,” Brooke gasps out, and Vanessa’s eyes fly open in shock. If Brooke didn’t have her knees bent and propped up then she would probably straddle her thigh and try to ride it until she came because God, the idea that Brooke touched herself thinking about her in the morning and then came into the studios and acted as if it had never happened with her afterwards is just too much. Almost as a reward for the information Brooke’s just given her, Vanessa slides a finger inside her and hears Brooke moan in response.  

“Y’know you were the girl from the dream,” Vanessa drops her lips down to Brooke’s neck, kissing it hot and slow as she slides a second finger into Brooke and presses the rest of her hand gently against her clit. Brooke gives a gasp that’s almost sacrilegious.

Brooke is writhing beside her, frantic and desperate and frustrated and Jesus fucking Christ if Vanessa couldn’t just come from the sight of that alone. “Tell me. Tell me what happened.”

So Vanessa whispers in Brooke’s ear about how she’d kissed her, how Brooke had told her how much she’d wanted her, how Vanessa had begged her to touch her and how Brooke had got her off through her underwear, and she hears Brooke gasp and moan and whine in response to each new revelation. Vanessa fucks her gently with her fingers and Brooke is so wet around her that it’s sending her into a frenzy herself. Suddenly, Vanessa has an idea.

“And you told me you thought I would taste good,” Vanessa tells her, tipping her head up a little to gauge Brooke’s reaction.

“Fuck…want to taste you so bad,” Brooke pleads.

All her shyness seems to be gone now that she’s riding Vanessa’s fingers desperately, and even though Vanessa thought shy Brooke was cute, this version of Brooke- the Brooke that knows what she wants, the Brooke that’s loud and vocal and messy- is her favourite. Vanessa gently removes her hand from between Brooke’s legs, ignoring the nearly apocalyptic whine Brooke lets out in response to the lack of contact, and takes Brooke’s hand from where it’s still digging into the duvet. Vanessa shifts a little, spreads her own legs as she guides Brooke’s hand between them, and her heart is almost beating out of her chest as Brooke eagerly brushes two fingers over her, hears her gasp as her fingers slide up her slit easily from how wet she is.

Brooke’s fingers feel like heaven as they push softly inside her, pumping gently, and Vanessa’s moan is cut off by Brooke’s lips against hers. Brooke’s kisses are slow and wet and she teases Vanessa’s tongue with her own as Vanessa bucks her hips underneath her. For a moment, her plan to make Brooke come is thrown into disarray as she thinks maybe she could just lie here and let Brooke tease her and finger her until she does instead.

“Oh my fuckin’ God you feel so good,” Vanessa whispers out in one breath, the way she sounds so broken already making her blush and bite her lip. Brooke’s gaze is dark- she’s watching the way Vanessa bucks her hips up to meet her fingers as they slide out of her, greedy and desperate just like Brooke had been.

“So wet and I never even touched you,” Brooke whispers, the little bit of awe in her voice sending Vanessa into the stratosphere. “You got this worked up over me?”

“You should see how good you look when you wanna come so bad,” Vanessa murmurs back, turning to watch as Brooke takes her fingers and wraps her lips around them, slides them into her mouth and sucks on them.

Every single time Brooke does something new Vanessa thinks it’s the sexiest thing she’s ever seen, so the fact that Brooke’s no longer touching her isn’t helping at all. Brooke’s a goddess though and she wants to worship her properly so Vanessa leans over her, doesn’t even bother trying to manoeuvre around the waistband of Brooke’s shorts this time and instead just trails her fingers up Brooke’s inner thigh, moves the material to one side and teases her again with her fingers. She rubs gently against Brooke’s clit and can hear her breathing coming in short gasps, knows she’s close so Vanessa kisses her, deep and fiery and hot, then murmurs against her lips as Brooke’s hisses and whines get increasingly louder.

“You know once you come I’m gonna let you do whatever you want to me.”

Brooke gasps and Vanessa watches her eyes roll back into their sockets. “Fuck, I’m gonna get you back for teasing me so fucking bad you won’t be able to sit right for a week never mind fucking dance- ah!”

Brooke’s reacted to Vanessa pulling her hand away. Vanessa’s making sure her eyes are dark, giving Brooke a warning. “Is that trash talk, or are you gonna be good for me?”

“Please, Vanessa!” Brooke nearly yells into the room, and Vanessa thinks that perhaps she’s put the poor girl through enough so she replaces her fingers, works Brooke’s clit until she’s gasping beside her, little shudders racking her body.

“‘Ness, I’m gonna- ah!”

As Brooke comes, Vanessa crashes their lips together, and the sound of Brooke’s muffled whines gives her a better high than any drug ever could. When she’s sure Brooke’s finished Vanessa leans back against the mattress, exhausted. Her left side is practically numb from propping herself up, her neck is tense and her right hand is aching but fuck if that hadn’t been the best sex of Vanessa’s life and she hasn’t even come yet.

“You good?” Vanessa asks Brooke once she’s got her breath back. Brooke is on her back, her eyes wide and staring up to the ceiling, her hair plastered all over her face and her chest shiny with sweat. Vanessa watches as she moves her mouth once, twice, trying to come up with something to say and failing.

“I don’t have any words,” she finally says, and Vanessa bursts out laughing beside her. Brooke giggles, then suddenly scowls, reaches behind her head for her pillow and thumps Vanessa with it.

“Hey! What the fuck was that for?”

“You were so mean!” Brooke half-pouts, half-laughs and she leans over Vanessa, cages her in with her arms. Even after sex she still looks incredible in her pyjamas, and Vanessa finds herself rubbing her thighs together, trying and failing to find something to rut against. Brooke obviously notices this and Vanessa watches the little flash in her eyes as she grabs Vanessa’s wrists, pins them above her head in one swift motion.

Vanessa almost dissolves.

“You know I’m used to being in charge, right? That was very out of character for me,” Brooke cocks an eyebrow at her. Vanessa smirks back at her, anticipation building low in her stomach at the thought of Brooke bossing her around and roughing her up a little.

“Well then maybe you need to put me in my place.”

When Brooke straddles her, leans down and meets her lips in a kiss, Vanessa feels as if she’s made entirely of embers and flames. She pulls away and Vanessa realises that she’s tugging her pyjama bottoms off so Vanessa brings her knees up to her chest to help make things easier. Once they’re off Vanessa’s heart crashes against her ribcage as Brooke takes her legs and spreads them apart quickly, her palms holding Vanessa’s thighs down. As Brooke leans between her thighs Vanessa tangles one hand in her hair, her heart rate rising in anticipation as she feels herself throb. She waits for the contact of Brooke’s tongue, tipping her head back against the pillow.

It doesn’t come. Instead, she hears Brooke’s voice.

“You know, maybe I’m tired now after you played with me so much earlier. Maybe I just need to go back to sleep.”

Vanessa brings her head back up in shock and looks at Brooke’s face. She’s got a glint in her eye and a smug smile on her lips and Vanessa has never wanted to kiss the smirk off her face more. As much as she thinks the girl is a goddess, there’s no way she’s giving her what she wants that easily. “Uh-uh. I ain’t beggin’ you, Brooke.”

Brooke raises her eyebrows lazily, lightly scratches her nails down the insides of Vanessa’s thighs and in turn making her rapidly regret her last comment because she knows she’s going to be yelling Brooke’s name in probably a matter of minutes once she puts her mouth on her. “That’s some awfully big talk from someone who moments ago was trying to grind against air.”

“But I know you wanna feel how wet I am an’ hear what I sound like when I’m about to come,” Vanessa whispers, bucking her hips up because Brooke’s touching every little bit of her except the place she needs the contact most and it’s starting to kill her very slowly. “You want me ridin’ your face.”

Vanessa sees Brooke blink slowly, the composure and power she’s just built up wavering just a little. Then she makes eye contact again, presses kisses up Vanessa’s inner thigh that make her feel as if she’s burning up.

“Yeah,” Brooke murmurs against Vanessa’s skin, punctuating her sentence with kisses. “But I also know that I want to hear you beg me for it, and you’re not going to come until you ask me nicely.”

“Fuck,” Vanessa whines, letting her head thud against the pillow. She regrets teasing Brooke so badly. Actually she doesn’t at all, but her behaviour is coming back to bite her and it’s not fun. She’s shocked into a gasp as Brooke licks up her slit, the contact gone almost as soon as it’s there. “Brooke, baby, c’mon, this ain’t fair.”

“Is it not? I think it’s perfectly fair,” Brooke laughs softly and traces patterns into her inner thighs that make Vanessa want to scream. “I had to be a good girl for you, now you have to be one for me.”

“Honestly you could be doing whatever you want to me right now an’ all you want is for me to say fuckin’ please?” Vanessa hisses, frustrated and incredulous and ready to fucking explode.

“I want you to be good for me. Good girls use their manners.”

As if to drive her point home Brooke kisses up her thigh and then licks against her again, too much and not enough all at once. Vanessa needs Brooke’s mouth and her tongue and her lips and so her resolve cracks all too quickly like a sheet of ice.

“Okay, okay, okay, God fucking damn it…please, Brooke.”

“Can’t give you what you want if you don’t tell me what it is,” Brooke replies instantly. The bitch is using Vanessa’s own words against her for her own gain and it’s infuriating Vanessa as she bucks her hips in the air, writhes against the mattress.

“Want you to use your mouth, fuck, please.”

“That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

All at once Vanessa feels as if she’s been shot out of a cannon because when Brooke’s tongue finally licks at her clit slowly and gently Vanessa thinks she’s ascending to heaven at about a million miles per hour. When Vanessa brings her hand back to tangle in Brooke’s hair, Brooke takes her wrist and holds it down with one hand, putting her even more in control. Vanessa can still use her hips though and she does exactly what she said she was going to do- rides Brooke’s face as her tongue brings her closer and closer to the edge and makes her even more wet than she’d been in the first place. Vanessa would probably feel embarrassed at how much she’s writhing and whining and moaning underneath Brooke if her mouth didn’t feel so fucking perfect, and with every flick and swirl of her tongue Vanessa feels more and more like a raging fire that needs to be put out.  

“Brooke Lynn, fuck, you’re gonna make me fuckin’-”

Brooke’s nails dig into her thighs as Vanessa comes with a loud cry, the blaze burning her up finally extinguished. Vanessa sinks back into the pillows and Brooke simply relaxes with her head against Vanessa’s stomach. It makes her wish that they could just spend all day in their hotel room and learn each other’s bodies, figure out everything the other likes in the space of a single day.

“Wish we didn’t have to get up,” Brooke sighs against her skin, presses a kiss to her stomach which makes it flutter. Vanessa smiles lazily, laces their fingers together which makes Brooke smile in turn. Brooke’s voice is soft as she keeps talking. “So was that, um…good? For you?”

Vanessa starts giggling, gives Brooke a gentle kick with her foot. “Jesus, dare you to sound any more like a 19 year old boy who just lost his virginity.”

Brooke gives an offended cry, plants her lips to Vanessa’s stomach and blows a giant raspberry against her skin that makes her howl with laughter and curl in on herself like a woodlouse.

Vanessa fights through her laughter. “Oh my God okay, okay! I’m sorry. Of course it was good, fuckin’ amazing. The whole fuckin’ buildin’ prolly knows how good it was, think I damn near yelled the place down.”

“Not entirely great for the whole keeping-us-on-the-down-low thing, though.”

“I guess you’d know, havin’ just spent a decent amount of time on the down low,” Vanessa wiggles her eyebrows and causes Brooke to yelp a laugh.

Charmed by the other woman’s reaction, Vanessa gently slides herself out from underneath her and steals the duvet to wrap around herself as she crosses the short distance to the window and pulls the string on the blinds to open them up. She smiles as she’s greeted by the seafront view: the sea icy but blue under the sunny November sky, the golden sand of the beach, the little rattle of the tram that’s making its way along the waterfront. The smile is still on Vanessa’s face as she turns to take in the sight of Brooke still splayed out on the mattress. She’s got that post-sex glow with the light hitting her toned skin and her hair all messed up around her face like a scribble of a halo.

Vanessa feels a tug on her heart, a longing even though she knows Brooke is hers.

“Welcome to Blackpool, baby. Let’s get those tens.”

[richincolor]

January's New Releases

2021 told 2020 to hold it's beer and what a month January has been! Publishing YA also came out swinging with a slew of new books (many already bestsellers) in what we hope will be another banner year for BIPOC stories. Click below to find books for your TBR list. 

Week of January 5th

The Life I’m In by Sharon G. Flake Scholastic Inc

My feet are heavy as stones when I walk up the block wondering why I can’t find my old self.

In The Skin I’m In, readers saw into the life of Maleeka Madison, a teen who suffered from the ridicule she received because of her dark skin color. For decades fans have wanted to know the fate of the bully who made Maleeka’s life miserable, Char.

Now in Sharon Flake’s latest and unflinching novel, The Life I’m In, we follow Charlese Jones, who, with her raw, blistering voice speaks the truths many girls face, offering insight to some of the causes and conditions that make a bully. Turned out of the only home she has known, Char boards a bus to nowhere where she is lured into the dangerous web of human trafficking. Much is revealed behind the complex system of men who take advantage of vulnerable teens in the underbelly of society. While Char might be frightened, she remains strong and determined to bring herself and her fellow victims out of the dark and back into the light, reminding us why compassion is a powerful cure to the ills of the world.

Sharon Flake’s bestselling, Coretta Scott King Award-winning novel The Skin I’m In was a game changer when it was first published more than twenty years ago. It redefined young adult literature by presenting characters, voices, and real-world experiences that had not been fully seen. Now Flake offers readers another timely and radical story of a girl on the brink and how her choices will lead her to either fall, or fly. — Cover image and summary via Goodreads

Happily Ever Afters by Elise Bryant Balzer + Bray

Sixteen-year-old Tessa Johnson has never felt like the protagonist in her own life. She’s rarely seen herself reflected in the pages of the romance novels she loves. The only place she’s a true leading lady is in her own writing—in the swoony love stories she shares only with Caroline, her best friend and #1 devoted reader.

When Tessa is accepted into the creative writing program of a prestigious art school, she’s excited to finally let her stories shine. But when she goes to her first workshop, the words are just…gone. Fortunately, Caroline has a solution: Tessa just needs to find some inspiration in a real-life love story of her own. And she’s ready with a list of romance novel-inspired steps to a happily ever after. Nico, the brooding artist who looks like he walked out of one of Tessa’s stories, is cast as the perfect Prince Charming.

But as Tessa checks each item off Caroline’s list, she gets further and further away from herself. She risks losing everything she cares about—including the surprising bond she develops with sweet Sam, who lives across the street. She’s well on her way to having her own real-life love story, but is it the one she wants, after all?

One of the Good Ones by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite Inkyard Press

ISN’T BEING HUMAN ENOUGH? When teen social activist and history buff Kezi Smith is killed under mysterious circumstances after attending a social justice rally, her devastated sister Happi and their family are left reeling in the aftermath. As Kezi becomes another immortalized victim in the fight against police brutality, Happi begins to question the idealized way her sister is remembered. Perfect. Angelic.

One of the good ones.

Even as the phrase rings wrong in her mind–why are only certain people deemed worthy to be missed?–Happi and her sister Genny embark on a journey to honor Kezi in their own way, using an heirloom copy of The Negro Motorist Green Book as their guide. But there’s a twist to Kezi’s story that no one could’ve ever expected–one that will change everything all over again.

Roman and Jewel by Dana L. Davis Inkyard Press

If Romeo and Juliet got the Hamilton treatment…who would play the leads? This vividly funny, honest, and charming romantic novel by Dana L. Davis is the story of a girl who thinks she has what it takes…and the world thinks so, too.

Jerzie Jhames will do anything to land the lead role in Broadway’s hottest new show, Roman and Jewel, a Romeo and Juliet inspired hip-hopera featuring a diverse cast and modern twists on the play. But her hopes are crushed when she learns mega-star Cinny won the lead…and Jerzie is her understudy.

Falling for male lead Zeppelin Reid is a terrible idea–especially once Jerzie learns Cinny wants him for herself. Star-crossed love always ends badly. But when a video of Jerzie and Zepp practicing goes viral and the entire world weighs in on who should play Jewel, Jerzie learns that while the price of fame is high, friendship, family, and love are priceless.

The Awakening of Malcom X by Ilyasah Shabazz & Tiffany D. Jackson Farrar, Straus and Giroux (Byr)

In Charlestown Prison, Malcolm Little struggles with the weight of his past. Plagued by nightmares, Malcolm drifts through days unsure of his future. Slowly, he befriends other prisoners and writes to his family. He reads all the books in the prison library, joins the debate team and the Nation of Islam. Malcolm grapples with race, politics, religion, and justice in the 1940s. And as his time in jail comes to an end, he begins to awaken — emerging from prison more than just Malcolm Little: Now, he is Malcolm X.

Here is an intimate look at Malcolm X’s young adult years. While this book chronologically follows X: A Novel, it can be read as a stand-alone historical novel that invites larger discussions on black power, prison reform, and civil rights.

When You Look Like Us by Pamela N. Harris HarperCollins

When you look like us—brown skin, brown eyes, black braids or fades—people think you’re trouble. No one looks twice at a missing black girl from the projects because she must’ve brought whatever happened to her upon herself. I, Jay Murphy, can admit that, for a minute, I thought my sister, Nicole, got too caught up with her boyfriend—a drug dealer—and his friends.

But she’s been gone too long now.

If I hadn’t hung up on her that night, she’d be spending time with our grandma. If I was a better brother, she’d be finishing senior year instead of being another name on a missing persons list. It’s time to step up and do what the Newport News police department won’t.

Week of January 12th

Chlorine Sky by Mahogany L. Browne Crown Books for Young Readers

She looks me hard in my eyes & my knees lock into tree trunks My eyes don’t dance like my heartbeat racing They stare straight back hot daggers. I remember things will never be the same. I remember things.

With gritty and heartbreaking honesty, Mahogany L. Browne delivers a novel-in-verse about broken promises, fast rumors, and when growing up means growing apart from your best friend.

The Meet-Cute Project by Rhiannon Richardson Simon & Schuster

Mia’s friends love rom-coms. Mia hates them. They’re silly, contrived, and not at all realistic. Besides, there are more important things to worry about—like how to handle living with her bridezilla sister, Sam, who’s never appreciated Mia, and surviving junior year juggling every school club offered and acing all of her classes.

So when Mia is tasked with finding a date to her sister’s wedding, her options are practically nonexistent.

Mia’s friends, however, have an idea. It’s a little crazy, a little out there, and a lot inspired by the movies they love that Mia begrudgingly watches too.

Mia just needs a meet-cute.

Concrete Rose (The Hate U Give, #0) by Angie Thomas Balzer + Bray

If there’s one thing seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter knows, it’s that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad’s in prison.

Life’s not perfect, but with a fly girlfriend and a cousin who always has his back, Mav’s got everything under control.

Until, that is, Maverick finds out he’s a father.

Suddenly he has a baby, Seven, who depends on him for everything. But it’s not so easy to sling dope, finish school, and raise a child. So when he’s offered the chance to go straight, he takes it. In a world where he’s expected to amount to nothing, maybe Mav can prove he’s different.

When King Lord blood runs through your veins, though, you can’t just walk away. Loyalty, revenge, and responsibility threaten to tear Mav apart, especially after the brutal murder of a loved one. He’ll have to figure out for himself what it really means to be a man.

Angel of Greenwood by Randi Pink Feiwel and Friends

Seventeen-year-old Isaiah Wilson is, on the surface, a town troublemaker, but is hiding that he is an avid reader and secret poet, never leaving home without his journal. A passionate follower of WEB. Du Bois, he believes that black people should rise up to claim their place as equals.

Sixteen-year-old Angel Hill is a loner, mostly disregarded by her peers as a goody-goody. Her father is dying, and her family’s financial situation is in turmoil. Also, as a loyal follower of Booker T. Washington, she believes, through education and tolerance, that black people should rise slowly and without forced conflict.

Though they’ve attended the same schools, Isaiah never noticed Angel as anything but a dorky, Bible toting church girl. Then their English teacher offers them a job on her mobile library, a three-wheel, two-seater bike. Angel can’t turn down the money and Isaiah is soon eager to be in such close quarters with Angel every afternoon.

But life changes on May 31, 1921 when a vicious white mob storms the community of Greenwood, leaving the town destroyed and thousands of residents displaced. Only then, Isaiah, Angel, and their peers realize who their real enemies are.

Week of January 19th

Thirty Talks Weird Love by Alessandra Narváez Varela Cinco Puntos Press

Out of nowhere, a lady comes up to Anamaría and says she’s her, from the future. But Anamaría’s thirteen, she knows better than to talk to some weirdo stranger. Girls need to be careful, especially in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico—it’s the 90’s and fear is overtaking her beloved city as cases of kidnapped girls and women become alarmingly common. This thirty-year-old “future” lady doesn’t seem to be dangerous but she won’t stop bothering her, switching between cheesy Hallmark advice about being kind to yourself, and some mysterious talk about saving a girl.

Anamaría definitely doesn’t need any saving, she’s doing just fine. She works hard at her strict, grade-obsessed middle school—so hard that she hardly gets any sleep; so hard that the stress makes her snap not just at mean girls but even her own (few) friends; so hard that when she does sleep she dreams about dying—but she just wants to do the best she can so she can grow up to be successful. Maybe Thirty’s right, maybe she’s not supposed to be so exhausted with her life, but how can she ask for help when her city is mourning the much bigger tragedy of its stolen girls?

This thought-provoking, moving verse novel will lead adult and young adult readers alike to vital discussions on important topics—like dealing with depression and how to recognize this in yourself and others—through the accessible voice of a thirteen-year-old girl.

Your Corner Dark by Desmond Hall Atheneum/Dlouhy

Things can change in a second:

The second Frankie Green gets that scholarship letter, he has his ticket out of Jamaica.

The second his longtime crush, Leah, asks him on a date, he’s in trouble.

The second his father gets shot, suddenly nothing else matters.

And the second Frankie joins his uncle’s gang in exchange for paying for his father’s medical bills, there’s no going back…or is there?

As Frankie does things he never thought he’d be capable of, he’s forced to confront the truth of the family and future he was born into—and the ones he wants to build for himself.

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo Dutton Books for Young Readers

“That book. It was about two women, and they fell in love with each other.” And then Lily asked the question that had taken root in her, that was even now unfurling its leaves and demanding to be shown the sun: “Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu can’t remember exactly when the question took root, but the answer was in full bloom the moment she and Kathleen Miller walked under the flashing neon sign of a lesbian bar called the Telegraph Club.

America in 1954 is not a safe place for two girls to fall in love, especially not in Chinatown. Red-Scare paranoia threatens everyone, including Chinese Americans like Lily. With deportation looming over her father—despite his hard-won citizenship—Lily and Kath risk everything to let their love see the light of day.

If I Tell You the Truth by Jasmin Kaur HarperCollins

Told in prose, poetry, and illustration, this heartrending story weaves Kiran’s and Sahaara’s timelines together, showing a teenage Kiran and, later, her high school–aged daughter, Sahaara.

Kiran is a young Punjabi Sikh woman who becomes pregnant after being sexually assaulted by her fiancé’s brother. When her fiancé and family don’t believe her, she flees her home in India to Canada, where she plans to raise the child as a single mother. For Kiran, living undocumented means constant anxiety over finances, work, safety, and whether she’ll be deported back to the dangers that await her in Punjab.

Eighteen years later, Kiran’s daughter, Sahaara, is desperate to help her mother, who has been arrested and is facing deportation. In the aftermath, Kiran reveals the truth about Sahaara’s conception. Horrified, Sahaara encourages Kiran to speak out against the man who raped her—who’s now a popular political figure in Punjab. Sahaara must find the best way to support her mother while also dealing with the revelation about her parents.

We Free the Stars (Sands of Arawiya #2) by Hafsah Faizal Farrar, Straus and Giroux

The battle on Sharr is over. The dark forest has fallen. Altair may be captive, but Zafira, Nasir, and Kifah are bound for Sultan’s Keep, determined to finish the plan he set in motion: restoring the hearts of the Sisters of Old to the minarets of each caliphate, and finally returning magic to all of Arawiya. But they are low on resources and allies alike, and the kingdom teems with fear of the Lion of the Night’s return.

As the zumra plots to overthrow the kingdom’s darkest threat, Nasir fights to command the magic in his blood. He must learn to hone his power into a weapon, to wield not only against the Lion but against his father, trapped under the Lion’s control. Zafira battles a very different darkness festering in her through her bond with the Jawarat—a darkness that hums with voices, pushing her to the brink of her sanity and to the edge of a chaos she dare not unleash. In spite of the darkness enclosing ever faster, Nasir and Zafira find themselves falling into a love they can’t stand to lose…but time is running out to achieve their ends, and if order is to be restored, drastic sacrifices will have to be made.

Lush and striking, hopeful and devastating, We Free the Stars is the masterful conclusion to the Sands of Arawiya duology by New York Times–bestselling author Hafsah Faizal.

Week of January 26th

Written in Starlight (Woven in Moonlight #2) by Isabel Ibañez Page Street Kids

If the jungle wants you, it will have you…

Catalina Quiroga is a Condesa without a country. She’s lost the Inkasisa throne, the loyalty of her people, and her best friend. Banished to the perilous Yanu Jungle, Catalina knows her chances of survival are slim, but that won’t stop her from trying to escape. It’s her duty to reclaim the throne.

When Manuel, the son of her former general, rescues Catalina from a jaguar, a plan forms. Deep in the jungle, the city of gold is hidden, home to the fierce Illari people, who she could strike an alliance with.

But the elusive Illari are fighting a battle of their own—a mysterious blight is corrupting the jungle, laying waste to everything they hold dear. As a seer, Catalina should be able to help, but her ability to read the future in the stars is as feeble as her survival instincts. While searching for the Illari, Catalina must reckon with her duty and her heart to find her true calling, which could be the key to stopping the corruption before it destroys the jungle completely.

The Knockout by Sajni Patel Flux

If seventeen-year-old Kareena Thakkar is going to alienate herself from the entire Indian community, she might as well do it gloriously. She’s landed the chance of a lifetime, an invitation to the US Muay Thai Open, which could lead to a spot on the first-ever Olympic team. If only her sport wasn’t seen as something too rough for girls, something she’s afraid to share with anyone outside of her family. Despite pleasing her parents, exceling at school, and making plans to get her family out of debt, Kareena’s never felt quite Indian enough, and her training is only making it worse.

Which is inconvenient, since she’s starting to fall for Amit Patel, who just might be the world’s most perfect Indian. Admitting her feelings for Amit will cost Kareena more than just her pride–she’ll have to face his parents’ disapproval, battle her own insecurities, and remain focused for the big fight. Kareena’s bid for the Olympics could very well make history–if she has the courage to go for it.

Wings of Ebony (Wings of Ebony #1) by J. Elle Denene Millner Books/Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers

“Make a way out of no way” is just the way of life for Rue. But when her mother is shot dead on her doorstep, life for her and her younger sister changes forever. Rue’s taken from her neighborhood by the father she never knew, forced to leave her little sister behind, and whisked away to Ghizon—a hidden island of magic wielders.

Rue is the only half-god, half-human there, where leaders protect their magical powers at all costs and thrive on human suffering. Miserable and desperate to see her sister on the anniversary of their mother’s death, Rue breaks Ghizon’s sacred Do Not Leave Law and returns to Houston, only to discover that Black kids are being forced into crime and violence. And her sister, Tasha, is in danger of falling sway to the very forces that claimed their mother’s life.

Worse still, evidence mounts that the evil plaguing East Row is the same one that lurks in Ghizon—an evil that will stop at nothing until it has stolen everything from her and everyone she loves. Rue must embrace her true identity and wield the full magnitude of her ancestors’ power to save her neighborhood before the gods burn it to the ground.

[jj-lynn21]

SUMMER BURN: starring Bill Skarsgard as Brian Chapter 2

Warnings: attacker play(?), heavy flirtation

@dragsraksllib @super-pink-a-palouza @grandpa-sweaters 

read Ch 1 first

“Did you scare another hottie away?” Jess smirked.

I rolled my eyes turning away from her.  

Jess sat down at the bar. All she had to do is bat her eyes at the bar tender for him to come right over to her with a big mischievous grin. She ordered bloody Maries for her and the other girls leaving me out since I obviously was not talking to her. In her mind it was all over some random guy. For me, it was because I had enough of her so-called jokes.  

“Tell us about the guy you met?” Melissa and Tami asked me in unison as Jess flirted with the bar tender.  

I laughed. “He was the same guy we saw on the beach. His name is Brian. He is kind of scary. In a good way. You know? Like give me shivers. The beard and hair were part of his job. Maybe an investigator or something. He didn’t tell me.”

“That is weird.” Melissa pointed out. “Maybe he disguises himself so he can stalk his prey?”

“People do get paid good money to be hired killers.” Tami chimed in.  

The three of us laughed drawing the attention of Jess. “So, what is so funny?”  

“We were just trying to figure out what the guy on the beach does for a living.” Tami giggled.

“We decided professional killer since his hair and beard were fake,” Mellissa was laughing.

“What the hell?” Jess glared at them. “How did you find out it was fake?”

“He was the same guy I was talking to when you walked up.” Then I warned her jokingly. “If he is a psychopath or killer for hire you better watch out and maybe the bar tender should to.” Then I laughed along with Tami and Melissa about the absurdity of the thought.  

The bar tender whispered to Jess as his replacement for the afternoon arrived. She nodded in agreement. “This whole vibe.” She waved her hand over us. “Is a little twisted for my taste.” The bar tender took her hand. She walked off with him. “Maybe I will see you crazy girls at the bonfire or perhaps not.”  

“I think she is the crazy one.” Melissa said when Jess was far enough away. “I can’t believe she ditched us on girls day again. So, what should we do next?” She looked to me for guidance because when Jess was gone Melissa and Tami thought of me as their leader to find the next fun thing to do.  

Tami chimed in. “No pressure but there is 5 hours before we need to get ready for the bonfire. You are so good at picking fun things to do.”

No pressure my ass, I thought. “We finish these drinks and swim. Then go skating on the board walk for a while. I think I saw an outdoor seafood restaurant. You know what today is don’t you?

“Taco Tuesday!” They yelled with great glee.  

While frolicking in the surf; when skating down the board walk; even at lunch I couldn’t push the feeling away that I was being watched by eyes unseen. I tried to shrug it off. I even told the girls, “I think Jess is watching us after her date was a bust, but she is too afraid to join in the fun I created so let’s just have more fun to show her we don’t always need her.”

They nodded and the three of us let out a loud “Wooooo” as we clinked pina coladas. After lunch I suggested they head back to the hotel. I would return the skates, then meet them at the hotel. “Jess will more than likely be there around the same time since she is stalking us.”  

They agreed.  

When I got back to the room that had two queen beds and a pullout couch looking out on the ocean from the 10th floor, Tami and Melissa informed me Jess never came back. There was not even a sign of her coming back to change for the bonfire. She would still be in her little bikini with the terry cloth jumper over it unless the bar tender bought her a new dress and under garments which has happened before.

“Well, I guess we have fun without her until she joins us later.” I shrugged smirking matter-of-factly. “She has ditches us for a guy before. She will have to come back for her belongings before we check out.”

They seemed a little more worried than I but agreed with everything I said. They were followers like that. They did not want to lose another group member by speaking up about their concerns. It was their flaw to bare.

It was a perfect night for a bon fire. Just a little chill to the air. I wore a wrap around my shoulder with my white multi-colored flower sundress. My hair in a ponytail with a hot pink ribbon around it. I topped off the look with white wedges and red cherry lip stick instead of the pink I was wearing during the day. The dress fit me nicely if I do say so myself. It fit my curves making my cleavage pop. The girls wore similar outfits. We were roasting marshmellows when surprise guests showed up.

“Well, isn’t it the most beautiful girl on the beach.” A male voice quipped.

“No, No, No.” The other spoke boastfully. “My girl is the most beautiful girl on the beach.”

Tami jumped excited to see her boyfriend. “Peter, you’re here!”

Mellissa followed suit jumping on her man as he chuckled struggling to hold her so quickly. “Brad, you know it is supposed to be girls night.” She bopped him on the nose with the tip of her finger. “But I guess I will forgive you this time.”

“We were not looking for you, I promise.” Brad kissed Mellissa’s nose.

“Yeah, we were having a guys night and just wondered down to the bon fire with a bag of smore stuff but if you want us to leave...”

“No, give up the chocolate.” Melissa grabbed for it as her boyfriend held it up out of her reach

I mumbled. “There goes girls night.” Popped a cooled half burnt marshmallow in my mouth and got up.  

“Uh hey there you.” Peter nodded his chin for a hello. My friends' boyfriends hadn’t bothered learning my name even after I dated some of their cousins. I barely cared. They would not last. They didn’t even call Tami and Melissa by their names. Again, I assumed it was low IQ and not planning on sticking around long. “Sorry, we didn’t bring a third for you.”

“For your information I do have a date tonight.” I walked off down the beach after that. “They were so annoying assuming I would never find anyone on my own.” I grumbled as I walked.

The sparkling sand was cool at night, so I took off my shoes off to carry as I toed the sand down towards the edge of the ocean.  Part of me wanted to keep walking into the waves that now crashed on my feet. But I am startled when a large hand grabs mine. So much that I jump turning quickly. “Oh, you startled me.”  

I looked up with a smile to Brian, my hand still on his chest since I planned to try to push my possible attacker away.

“Sorry, I startled you.” He took my hand kissing the top gently. “Forgive me?” His big green eyes begged forgiveness perhaps more than his words. “I was worried for you when I saw you walking along the water alone.”

“I can take care of myself in the dark.” I smirked. “You were a half a second from getting my shoes smacked across your face.”

He lifted a eyebrow in question. “Is that so? What if your attacker did this?” He grabbed both my wrist tightly and swept me to the ground in a blink of an eye. “Now what do you do?”

My body pinned under the heat of his body. Arms pinned above my head. The sand rough under me. “I don’t know whether to kiss you right now or knee you in the balls like I would a true attacker.”

Brian grinned as he looked down at me. He loosened his grip on my wrists. His eyes piecing mine. “I left you that move like most would, to see if you would go for it.”

“I would.” I murmured as I pulled my hands free catching him off-guard, I flipped him on his back pinning his wrists legs wrapped around his to keep him bound to my will now. The surprise in his big eyes was perfect. “Or I could do this if they were dumb enough to loosen their grip on my wrists.”

He chuckled laying there without a struggle. “My next question is, do you still want to kiss me?”

My answer came when my lips bushed against his. That is when he struggled to get his hands free. I was using all my strength to hold them.  

“Please.” He murmured between light kisses. His nose nuzzling mine playfully. “I want to run my hands alone your back to....”

“To get the upper hand?” You giggled nuzzling his nose back before kissing him more deeply.

“I surrender.” He sang breathlessly. “You win. I tap out. Game over.”

I stood doing a little victory dance shimmying and shaking my hips. Brian stood up behind me like a tower brushing the sand off him. Then grab my hips slowly sliding his body closer behind me. He started kissing my neckline. I stopped swaying with a audible “mmmm”.and took a deep breath.

“I thought you were the shy girl when your friend needed to encourage you to do more than just stare at me. But you are so much more than that little lady. You have hidden skills.”

“I’m only shy before I meet new people.” You smiled looking up at him very comfortable leaning against his body. “My skills come out when I need them without a thought. Did I hurt you?”

“No, it was hot as fuck.” He blurted. “Sorry, I don’t usually throw around F-bombs on first dates. What do you want to do tonight? I take it you are to mature for the collage drunks burning themselves on smores.” He spins yu away from  him. 

You spin back to him laughing. “There is no way I want to join them. It's never my scene but I usually make sure my drunk friends get home or in this case back to the hotel. Their boyfriends showed up so they can just sleep together on the beach if that is how their night ends. Their loyalties are always fickle.”

“If you are hungry, I know a place that is more for polite young adults instead of heathens.” He suggested as you walked down the beach. “Are you game?”

“That sound like a great change of pace.” You looped your hand threw his.  

He gave it light squeeze while leading you off the beach to the main strip parking area. He opened the trunk of his SUV with just his toe under the bumper. “You look perfect, but I need a suit to get in this place I want to take you. The condo I am at is sever miles off the strip. I think you are staying closer. Can I just change there?”

“Oh, so this is how you get me to take you upstair?” I smirked playfully.

“Not yet.” Brian winked. “I actually enjoy the art of getting to know people once in a while. If you are uncomfortable, we can go back to my place so I can change. I rather not do that without you and travel all the way back here to pick you up. Restaurant would be closed by then.”  

I thought he had a good answer for everything. “You can change at our messy hotel room. Come on.” You grabbed the suit covered in plastic on a hanger neatly so he would follow, after shutting his SUV trunk. He did.  

You opened the door without looking around letting him in first. “I warn you it was a mess.”  

“It's not that bad for four girls staying here.” He looked around. “Bathroom for me to change?”

I finally really looked at the place. All Jess’ things were gone and the clothes that were tossed all over the room were on all the beds but mine. Any sign of Jess was gone. I thought, Did she really ditch a girls weekend to run off with some bar tender?

[des-dabbles]

Just a little Q&A with Dane from these asks. Thank you @fataleromeo, @izayoichan and @reality-refuge. 💖

Transcript under the cut.

Willow: Are you ready? Dane: Do I have a choice? W: Don’t ask like you aren’t intrigued. D: [laughs] Alright. Do your worse.

W: We’ll start easy. The moonlight is shining upon you as the stars dance upon you. There is a near by river filled with gentle waters and fireflies hang above the tall grass. What do you do next? Ash: That’s too easy. W & A: He’s swimming.  D: So... I’m predictable. You don’t have to be a mermaid to appreciate the appeal of floating down the river while Mother Nature puts on a show above you. 

A: [laughs] Smooth. W: Alright, Mr. Mother Nature, she’s sending you a bird that sits outside your window every morning. What type of bird is it and what do you name it? D: My luck? Probably a parakeet. Just to drive me crazy. He would be PITA. A: And every morning, you would make sure there was food available for him. D: [shrugs] Probably. Next question.

W: [laughs] Here’s a good one. You’re at a party and decide to start a little bit of chaotic fun, what do you do? D: Who’s around? A: Does it matter? D: Do they know we have some witchy help? A: Nooo... D, W & A: [laughs] A: I still can’t believe we didn’t get in trouble for that.  W: You’re welcome. D: If you’re going to boast about having the scariest Halloween party, you really should deliver. The paintings whispering things every time you passed were the best.   W: I was a fan of the music changing every time the parents tried to change the music.

W: Now for the dirt. Describe your ex-girlfriend.  D: It does not say that? W: It might as well. D: Willow... W: [sigh] Alright. Fine. Describe your best friend.  W & A: Esmée D: I could have described one of you.  A: But you weren’t. W: Can you truly say you’re not friends with any of your exes? Just one. D: Nicole. W: She doesn’t count. D: Why not? A: You were nine.

D: You’re all pains in my ass. Opinionated nosy bodies. Who needs a parakeet at my window when I got you? W: You love us. D: No comment.

W&A: [laughs] W: Final question. What makes you smile the brightest? D: Easy. Love. W: That’s chessy. D: Says who? A: Explain then.

D: How can you not smile watching a kid play with his pet? Or seeing two people cherish each other after putting an argument to rest? Or knowing that your cousins drive you crazy because they want the best for you.  A: See...  W & A: You do love us. D: Bite me.  

[talesofafangirlwithadvr]

JULY PICKS!

You heard me correctly, I said JULY! Whoosh, this year is going by fast-but not in a good way if you know what I mean. This will be my last monthly wrap up where I am strictly staying home in quarantine as this upcoming week I’m heading back to work in person. Wish me luck!

We had quite the range this month from newly released, reality, musical and then some favorites from last month that I’ve continued watching. Without further ado here we go....

There’s going to be PLENTY of SPOILERS this go round. ESPECIALLY with my first pick of Stargirl. You’ve been warned!!!

DC’S STARGIRL

I need to talk about 1x10 or I’m going to burst!!! As stated above there will be A LOT of SPOILERS IN THIS POST!! So scroll down to the next picture if you don’t want it to be spoiled. 

You’ve been warned...again.

IT CANNOT END LIKE THAT!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME???? Henry! Wow! 1) Epic fighting 2) The backstory and how he wasn’t going to give up on his dad AND THEN how he wouldn’t give into his dad. 3) HE DIED RATHER THAN JOIN HIS SIDE OR PRETEND (which I honestly felt was going to happen). His character arc and I can’t believe it’s over!!! 4) His speech at the end: *weeping.* I knew Brainwave was going to say he killed his mother. It just felt like the build up. Brainwave Jr. would have been a GREAT ADDITION TO THE JSA! AND OMG THE WAY THE REST OF THEM FOUGHT FOR HIM! I loved how they framed it so you could still see them in the back when Henry spoke to his father. Super heartbreaking. Man, it feels like a lot of people have been killed off this first season (or am I just still thinking about Joey?) 

Side note: Check out the Instagram Live between father and son Brainwave on Stargirl’s CW page. Jake Austin Walker did an AWESOME interview in his take over.

This was one of the strongest episodes overall and definitely one of my favorites so far. I agree with many others that while it is SOO GOOD and I want to rewatch it again, I don’t know if I can emotionally yet. I can’t remember the last time I felt that way about a show. 

Some other thoughts this episode: WAY TO GO BARBARA! Way to record them to translate later (such an awesome app btw, how do I get it?). I’m glad her and Pat came more to an understanding because I love them especially with that glimpse into how they met. Jordan’s parents give me the creeps, like the couple from The Visit vibes. I feel like Mike’s got to find out ASAP, especially because he’s spent time in the garage. Something’s got to show him the truth; because I’m really feeling he figures it out rather than being told. Very curious to see what his reaction will be. SOLOMON GRUNDY. Thank God Beth talked Rick down. She really is like Chuck in being the voice of reason. She did really well in the cafeteria too. While I still don’t believe Starman is Courtney’s dad, how cute was it when she put together her and Henry were cousins? Speaking of Court’s dad, who else didn’t feel like Starman was her dad until they saw that upcoming promo? I don’t know who that impostor is but he is not her dad. Something’s fishy.

Loving this show. So happy it’s renewed for a second season!! 

THE 100

From a show I can’t get enough of to one whose final season is a disappointment. I’m not going to spend too much time talking about The 100 because I feel I’ll just be repeating myself from previous posts. However, I did want to include it because I haven’t spoken much about the previous 2 episodes that I wound up watching back to back and I didn’t overly dislike them. 

As many have complained, when you have a final season you shouldn’t introduce SO MANY new characters and just push aside your originals (or the ones who are left). You also shouldn’t include so many confusing plots that are making it look like were the main points overall (like this many world concept was around since the first grounders) and playing with time in so many episodes is hard to keep up with too. Having so many people separated makes it difficult to remember what just happened to this specific group because I haven’t seen them in forever. ANYWAY, I did promise some positives. I didn’t except to like 7x08 because of it being a flashback episode with brand new people that was just going to feel like a potential spin-off pilot. Well...I actually really enjoyed it and the concept that the bunker was used before One Crew. The characters were easy to like and it was cool seeing Allie again (and this time not as the villain). While it felt forced including the orb (is that what it’s called? If not that’s what I’m calling it), but I liked how all the other pieces fit together (ex: the flame, the grounders’ language). Honestly, I surprise myself to say this, but I’d watch another episode. For 7x09, I liked being on Bardo and watching Octavia, Echo, Diyoza and Hope slowly get “brainwashed” I mean trained. We all knew it wouldn’t work for Hope and if I was them I would rather be on Sky Ring than Bardo (but then I guess I’d go crazy, so...) I enjoy the Octavia and Levitt relationship and would love them to work out, but if this show taught you anything it’s to be skeptical. I also want to shift to the Primes plot, just to showcase John Murphy for a second. THAT MAN! What a character development he’s had on this show. From the first season where I was like come on Murphy to now me awaiting his scenes. From cockroach to someone who won’t view himself as a hero. So good and something that is fantastic about this final season. They might have forgotten about other characters, but they’re doing it right by Murphy. 

Well, that was more than I was expecting. ;)   

THE CIRCLE

It feels like I haven’t watched a lot of reality TV this year, which makes sense because of our quarantine situation (but then again I’m watching World of Dance, but that’s a different because it’s more of a competition/dance show. I’ll stop rambling). The Circle is a reality ‘game’ show that could be easily completed during quarantine and social distancing because the contestants do not see each other in person. They each have an apartment in this complex and only communicate with each other on a social media platform called the Circle. The objective is to become the most popular and an influencer who gets power over who stays and who goes in the competition. There’s some side contests throughout, but most of the show is just people chatting through an insta messenger and trying to learn as much as they can. Alliances are formed and cat fishes try to thrive all for the grand prize of $100,000. (Wow, that’s a lot!) It is SUPER addicting and very funny. Having a voice-over narrator really makes it even funnier because she says what we’re all thinking. Just about every episode a contestant leaves and then is able to meet one other person in their apartment. It’s been cool seeing their reactions as oftentimes it’s someone they did not expect AT ALL. I can’t wait to finish it. If you’re a fan of Big Brother than this is definitely for you. Looks like there will be a second season, which I am excited about.  

THE BABYSITTERS CLUB

Jumping from one Netflix show to another. Released on Netflix on July 3rd, I tried not to binge it all in one day because then it would be over (and we still don’t know if there will be a second season yet). This is definitely my feel good watch for July. If you want something that’s a quick watch and just wholesome and fun to escape our current world than this is for you. I always felt so happy after watching and couldn’t wait to watch another. While I was familiar with the franchise--the 90s movie and of course the books (although I was more of a Babysitter Little Sister fan, so I was very excited to see Karen), you don’t have to have any knowledge of the Babysitters Club to enjoy this show. I was hooked just about right away by this new series shown by me watching the first three episodes back to back. I really like how they set up each episode with one girl as the main focus (just like in the books) where she takes over the voice-over narration. Great representation and made modern to fit in with our current times. The first example that comes to mind is when Mary Ann babysits Bailey who is transgender. I liked how Bailey says those are her old clothes while they’re playing. It’s shown in a way that explains the situation without feeling like a lecture. It fits so naturally into the episode. And then Mary Ann’s speech at the hospital is super powerful for both Bailey and herself. This is just one example of how well represented this show is. Extremely strong cast and actresses who are the proper ages. I also love the adult casting and how they threw in a Clueless reference from Alicia Sliverstone (who plays Kristy’s Mom). As someone who is writing for this age group, I really liked hearing and seeing how authentic this show is. 

FEEL THE BEAT

A Netflix original movie that has been on my list for a while that I just got around to watching. It didn’t come out too long ago. In the film, Sofia Carson’s character is a dancer who is a perfectionist. She gets on the bad side of a big NYC producer when she not only leaves her in the rain as she steals her taxi, but also knocks her, accidentally, off stage and becomes a viral video-this basically blackmails her in Broadway. This all happens within about the first 10 minutes of the film and the majority takes place back in her small home town (very Hallmark-like) in Wisconsin. While there her old dancing teacher wants her to share her Broadway wisdom with her young students. Meanwhile Carson has only been a chorus girl, so she doesn’t really have any. What draws her to helping the young girls is the chance to perform in front of a big choreographer that could get her to be the star she always dreamed of. The catch is that it’s the teacher dance in the childrens dance competition. While this might sound like a movie you’ve watched many times before, it was still worth it and a really fun watch. I think the kids really make the movie. They are adorable, funny and super talented. You feel connected with them really fast and want to see them succeed. I loved Dickie and how he joined the group. I think he was my favorite overall. I loved how inclusive the cast was here too (just like BSC) from a mixed race family, to single parents and even a student who was Deaf. It was great seeing the other actors sign to her. Carson’s character, April, can be annoying at times, but you understand it’s her character and something she needs to overcome. As I said before the plot may seem familiar, but the ending was something I didn’t see coming. Overall, wholesome, feel good and fun for the whole family. You can consider to watch while babysitting. (See what I did there??)  

VIOLETTA SEASON 2

She’s back! I know last month when I included Violetta it was mainly me being excited to see the second season FINALLY streaming on Disney Plus. I had watched a few episodes (remember there’s 80 altogether, so even if I watched 20 that’s still very early on and just a dent in the season) and was still getting used to this season. Well, now I’m happy to report I am in the 40s and more than half way. For a bit I was watching many of these episodes a day, which told me that I was loving it again. Recently, I feel I need a little more of a push to watch, but it’s mainly because of certain story-lines that feel like they’re dragging. (For example: Violetta’s voice. One minute it’s fine and the next she’s like dying). For this section I have two words: LOVE TRIANGLES. And I’m not just talking about Violetta, Diego and Leon. For a bit it felt like each character had their own love triangle, which honestly I was loving. These characters have definitely developed a lot from last season, which allows this to happen. Olga was in a love triangle, which just recently got resolved. I think German is still in one because of his alter ego Jeremias. Jackie was “kind of” in one. For her it was more of a misunderstanding, which is very classic on this show. Lots more secrets have been uncovered in these episodes as well as songs! You know how excited I am for those. Overall, I think I’m still enjoying season 1 songs more (which get referenced enough in this season), but some of the season 2 ones are really growing on me. Specifically Leon’s Entre dos mundos and when he sings with Diego Euphoria in English. Also, Yo Soy Asi has been real catchy. I know Frederico will be coming back soon and I can’t wait to see him again!  

HAMILTON

Like many I watched Hamilton this month-actually on the day it came out. It’s been a musical that I’ve been intrigued by, but never thought I’d get a chance to watch because of how popular and expensive it is to see on Broadway. So, I was very excited to hear I’d get the chance when it was to be released in theaters for a special event. Then because of Corona it was released to Disney Plus, which was EVEN more convenient and exciting. I really enjoyed it and watched it twice within the same week. I immediately downloaded the playlist and started singing it around the house. I do this a lot with many of the plays I see, but depending how good they are is shown by how long I listen to the soundtrack. (Some of my top ones are Bandstand, Once, Newsies and Anastasia.) Because there are so many songs in Hamilton it is taking me a little longer to know all the words, but I feel pretty confident with the first act. It was the perfect timing for this to be released on Disney Plus. Not only because it was July 3rd, but also because of the world we are living in. Lin’s diverse cast brings to life the world of 1776 and the revolutionary war (as well as the time after it), but it’s such a strong commentary on our world today. This is something I am continually noticing with historical dramas/pieces being released within the last 5-10 years. It feels like there’s more we can say in this genre than in a commentary piece. I also like all the analysis videos I’ve seen popping up, which just make it even more powerful. (Like it being Eliza’s story and her putting herself back in the narrative. That the play Hamilton is named for both her and Alexander.) I don’t know if all of what I see were intentional, but  either way well done. I hope it doesn’t leave Disney Plus soon. 

1917

And lastly, 1917. I promised quite the range this month and you can see that’s definitely the case. I always enjoy watching war films and with 1917 there was so much hype (both before it came out and after) that I was interested to give it a watch. Giving the movie to my dad for father’s day felt like the perfect excuse to be able to watch it. Even though our DVD stuck in a few places (still don’t know if it was the player or the DVD itself), the film was very entertaining and I would suggest it to anyone who is a history/film buff. Taking place in WWI, we follow two British soldiers as they attempt to deliver a message about an upcoming ambush that could take countless lives. I feel that I often watch more films revolving around WWII, so it was very interesting to be immersed in the first great war. After watching I am not surprised that the film was up for so many Oscars. While cinematography is the first thing everyone discusses when it comes to this movie (and it should be because the one shot/long shot is sooo impressive and beautiful to watch. It really brings you into the scene and has a way of making you feel like you’re there too. There’s a realness to it that’s raw and new compared to other war films I’ve watched in the past), there’s so much more to this film too. First, I like how it connects back to Sam Mendes’ grandfather, so while it’s not a true story it has real facts in it. I LOVE the score and music to this film. In the scene where George Mackay runs at night through those ruined buildings I could really hear how well the music worked with the action. Because of this I made sure to listen to some of the soundtrack and now I’ve added some of the songs into my writing playlist. I have chills just thinking about it. The other point I want to bring up is the cast! While there are SO MANY big names in this film from Colin Firth to Benedict Cumberbatch, the two main characters are played by George Mackay and Dean Charles Chapman and they are the ones with the most screen time. If their chemistry and acting wasn’t so great then the movie wouldn’t be as successful as it is. Because of this I have been watching non-stop YouTube interviews of the two of them for this film. 

They are so well-spoken, stand-up guys and I can’t get enough of their dialogues with each other and others. (You should watch these interviews too). While familiar with Chapman’s time on Game of Thrones, I haven’t seen him in much else, so I’m excited to see what he’ll have in the future (as well as checking out his IMDB page). For Mckay, I’ve seen him before when I just watched Ophelia earlier this summer so that was my first time watching him act. After that film I was curious what else he was in, but it was only after 1917 that I started doing more research. So far, I’ve only been able to watch the short film he was in called Infinite. While only 17 minutes it was very strong and deep. I highly recommend. As I’ve shared on this page already, in another post, the more I hear him talk the more of a crush I am developing. It’s been a long time since I’ve experienced a celebrity crush this strong so soon. This quarantine has to end so I can make it to England to just casually bump into him like one does. :) 

[the-a-word-2214]

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Raspberry Beret

Mars Blackmon x OC

Warnings: Swearing

A/N: This is the final chapter everyone! I’d love to write for Mars again in the future but this is where this series will stop.

Summary: The finale of Raspberry Beret. You’ll have to read it to find out the ending

1,537 words

Chapter 7: New Beginnings

Mars and Lourdes, aka LuLu, decided to take a spontaneous trip to Puerto Rico a year and a half after Mars and Scarlett had started dating. Scarlett obviously tagged along because their mom was dying to finally meet the girl her son was in love with. She sounded like a wonderful person from the stories that Scarlett had heard.

The pleasant smell of the ocean breeze was the first thing that Scarlett noticed as she stepped out onto the beach that was near the place where they were staying. The people that they had met had been trying to rebuild their homes from the hurricane that hit. They were some of the most passionate and hard-working people that she’d ever met. The street artists were incredible too. Mosaics and murals lined nearly every single wall that she came across.

One night while they were there, they spent most of the evening at the beach. The stars were beautiful and so the midnight star gazing commenced. In their bathing suits, they laid and stared at the stars. Their fingers intertwined. Mars turns his head to look at the woman, a smile on his face. “I love you.” He mumbled as he gently squeezed her hand. She smiled back at him and gently kissed his knuckles. “I love you too, Mars. You’re out of this world.” He raises his eyebrows and smirks. “You know it, baby. Baby, you know it and shit.” He trailed off as he leaned his head on her shoulder. She rolled onto her stomach so that she was hovering over him, his hand came up to cup her cheek. “What is it, Mami?” He questions her as her hands settle on his chest. “Nothing...I just- I love looking at you.” No words could express how she felt at that moment. She knew that he probably felt a swell of pride for his home island and the emotion of everything was getting to her.

Mars sat up with her and did the only logical thing. He kissed her, passionately. Butterflies fluttered in their stomachs as they felt an insane amount of genuine love for each other. The passion in their kiss was nearly unbearable. Once they needed air they broke apart.

The next day LuLu, Mars, and Scarlett stopped by Doña Lucy’s house. Yoruba religious symbols filled the area. The three of them sat down on the plastic-covered couch, both Mars and Lourdes cringing at the feeling of the slick plastic. “I hated this couch as a kid,” Mars said as he rubbed his hands over it. “I can imagine why.” Scarlett chuckled as she looked at the material. A short, older woman walked in who had on elaborate earrings and a white flowery dress. Mars stood up and let his mother pepper his face with kisses. “A’ight, mom! Mom cut it out.” He protested as his mom looked him over. “Look at you, you still look like my baby.” She had a thick New York accent. He laughed as he brought his hands up to her shoulders. “Ma this is Scarlett.” He says as he turns towards the blonde. She holds out her hand for her to shake. “Oh, you can do better than that.” She says as she opens her arms for a hug. Scarlett bends down to hug the smaller woman.

Doña Lucy then reaches up to pinch her son’s cheek. “I see you’re smitten with my boy. I hope you know that you’re a lucky lady.” Scarlett giggles as she nods. “Yes ma’am. I’m very lucky.” Lucy motions for her to take a seat as she goes into the kitchen. The awkward tension in the air could be practically cut with a knife. Lucy was banging around in the kitchen as the siblings and Scarlett sat in silence. Mars looked to the kitchen with a knowing look and wiped his glasses with his shirt. After she set out a bowl as an offering she motioned for everyone to sit at the table. Everyone obeyed as they sat at the kitchen table, eating out of clay bowls.

“So Scarlett, honey, do you love my son?” Mars practically chokes on the food in his mouth as his mother proceeds to grill her. She gives the woman a soft smile, “of course I do. He’s wonderful.” Lucy nods and motions towards her son. “You two are practically sewn from the same cloth. Their father and I were oil and water though.” Mars stops chewing and looks at his mother. Lourdes does the same. Their mother’s face softens as she turns her attention back to Scarlett. “You two seem as happy as you can be, though. I hope you hold onto that.” The rest of the dinner went very well. Doña Lucy turned out to be a lot like her son in the sense that she was hilarious and had just as much of a foul mouth as him.

That night in bed, Scarlett was half asleep when she felt the bed dip beside her. Mars was kneeling beside the bed, his hands together in a prayer position. “God? It’s me, Mars. I want to learn how to help these dope people. They work so hard at what they do. I’m down to learn if you’re down to teach me.” Scarlett had heard everything that he said. It was almost childlike, the way that he spoke.

The next day, Lucy called her son over for a conversation. It was more of a reality check, honestly. She called him over to sit next to her in her room. “Why’d you call me here?” He questioned as he turned his attention towards her. “I know that you love this girl but, Hijo, you’ve gotta grow up. If you ever wanna provide for her then you have to be strong. Be a man!” Mars acknowledges his mother’s words as he nods. “I know, I know. Lulu doesn’t have no trouble with tellin’ me that every fucking day.” He explains as he runs a hand through his hair. Lucy pats her son’s shoulder as she sighs. “I bet she does. Promise me that you’ll try, a’ight?” She teases as she speaks in his usual tone. He smiles, “cross my heart hope to die, mamá.” He says as he makes a cross over his heart. He never broke that promise. He had to do better for Scarlett. Mars had vowed that while they were there, with his family, he would propose to Scarlett. It would be the ultimate vow of commitment and it would show that he actually wanted to try for Scarlett’s well being. He picked a ring out with his sister one night when Scarlett was preoccupied with taking photos along the way. He had everything planned out, he would propose while they were on the beach surrounded by his family. “This is gonna be mad lit, LuLu!” He had exclaimed to his sister. The ring was perfect, the setup was perfect.

Their last night in PR was spent mostly on the beach. The Blackmon’s cousins were spending the day with them as they danced their hearts away to the music that was playing. Scarlett was stealing glances at Mars as she danced with one of his younger cousins. He watched in awe as she picked up the little girl and spun her around. The group began to gather together as Mars brought Scarlett closer to the middle of the beach. “What are we doing, Mars? Where are you taking me?” She asked as she looked around at the cousins who only smiled in response. “Trust, baby. We’re just gonna be right here.” He explained as he took her hands and began to kneel down on one knee. Scarlett had an idea of what was going to happen but she didn’t really think he would do it.

He mustered up all the courage he could as he looked up into her eyes. “Scarlett Lewis...you’re my whole world. You put up with all my shit and you don’t take anything from anyone. You’re great at what you do and there’s no one like you in this fucking crazy world. That’s straight facts.” He laughs as he looks towards his cousins who return the gesture. He looks back to her as tears threaten to fall. For the first time in his life, he’s intimidated. He begins to doubt his abilities to provide for this woman who had given him everything. She cared for him when no one else would. His voice cracked as he began to speak again, “I love you, baby. Y-You’re my everything. Now...will you marry me, Mami?” Tears were now streaming down Scarlett’s face as he pulled out a small box with a diamond-studded ring. The jewel itself was a pear-shaped sapphire. It was Scarlett’s birthstone. Of course it was. Everything about that moment was perfect. Scarlett ended up speechless as she vigorously nodded as he slipped the ring onto her finger. The surrounding future in-laws cheered and whistled as the couple shared a short yet passionate kiss. Their arms were tangled around each other as they shared a chuckle, their foreheads touching. They later shared champagne and danced the night away. New beginnings were headed their way.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

[writingfandomfeels]

Bellamy Blake - FWB P3 (Final)

Summary: Bellamy accompanies you to the wedding as your fake boyfriend

Part 1 Part 2

Smut between ~~~

Angrily you hung up on your mother. You couldn’t believe her. The event was tomorrow and she was insisting that you find a date to your cousin’s wedding or you’d humiliate the family. How does you being single and independent even make sense as humiliation? Why couldn’t they just be proud of you for the achievements you have had? Why did they feel the need to fixate on you being ‘lonely and single’. You threw your phone down onto your bed and sat on the end of it. Hopelessly you let your head fall into your hands as you softly cried. You let yourself release the emotions for a moment before you pulled yourself together and wiped away the tears. You reached for your phone again and dialed Bellamy’s number. 

“Hey” 

The sound of his familiar voice comforted you.  

“Hey, are you free?” You asked, desperately hoping he was. 

“For you? Always” 

You could practically hear him smirking. 

“I’ll be right over.” He added. 

You laid in bed waiting to hear Bellamy at your door, feeling too emotionally exhausted to move. But when he did finally knock, you scrambled to the bathroom, realizing that you hadn’t checked if your makeup had smeared across your face in the process of crying. 

“Just a minute!” You called, frantically trying to wipe away the dried mascara under your eyes with toilet paper. Once it was mostly off, you rushed to get the door. It had become almost routine for you to call Bellamy this late at night, what with the arrangement you had. But for once, you didn’t actually want to bang him. He made casual conversation as he moved to your bedroom, taking off his jacket and shoes. 

“Actually, Bellamy…” You started but felt hesitant to continue. 

“What is it?” He asked, encouraging you to go on. 

You sat down on the bed. “Would it be okay if… for a change… maybe we just cuddled?” 

“Ah, so this was a cuddle call not your regular booty call.” He teased and moved to sit closer to you. 

This made you smile a bit. 

“Yeah, that’s fine by me. As long as I can be the big spoon.” He answered, looking softly at you. 

You nodded and both climbed into your bed. He laid on his side with his arm up, waiting for you to move in closer to him. You fit your body against his, his warmth immediately relaxing you. His arm draped over your side and he took your hand, interlacing his fingers with yours. Closing your eyes, you breathed in the peaceful moment. 

“You smell nice.” You noted. 

“Thanks” Bellamy replied. 

You continued to lay in his arms for a while before you spoke up again. 

“I have to go to the wedding tomorrow.” You stated. 

“The one you needed the dress for?” He asked, his voice muffled in your hair. 

“Yeah.” You paused. “I have to see my parents.” You paused again. “They’re assholes.” 

“Why are they assholes?” He inquired, sounding somewhat sleepy. 

“I’m never good enough for them.” You sighed, feeling the stress coming back. “They say if I don’t bring a date to the wedding everyone will know I’m a spinster.” 

“What? That doesn’t make any sense…” 

“I know!” You agreed a little loudly. “That’s their logic for you. They won’t leave me alone unless they have a prospective son-in-law in view.” 

“Sorry, that sucks.” Bellamy was quiet for a bit. “Would it help if I went with you and pretended to be your boyfriend? They wouldn’t have to know it’s not true. Just so you can at least enjoy the wedding.”  

You turned so you could face Bellamy. “You’d really do that?” 

“Yeah why not. You get your ass saved and I get a free meal out of it.” He shrugged. “I could think of worse ways to spend my Saturday night.” 

You laughed a little. “Like prison?” 

He laughed with you now. “Hey, in my defense you started that!” 

“I did not!” You objected. 

“I was about to leave, but you pulled me back!” He chuckled. 

You rolled your eyes, smiling. “Oh whatever!” 

He chuckled a bit more before settling down. “For real though, I don’t mind doing it. I got a suit and tie. You wanna carpool?” 

So you brought Bellamy as your date to your cousin’s wedding. The ceremony went off without a hitch and the church was packed enough that you didn’t have the pleasure of running into your parents. The reception on the other hand, well, of course you’d see them there. It would have an even bigger attendance than the ceremony and was being held at a massive resort just off a golf course, but there was no avoiding them. 

You let out a deep breath as you entered the massive reception room with Bellamy on your arm. Your cousin’s wife had everything Pinterest Perfect and had chosen the venue for their remodeled barn that matched the rustic theme every girl was after these days. 

“You nervous?” Bellamy asked. 

“Yeah…” You admitted. 

“Don’t worry about it. You’ll be fine.” He said, giving an encouraging smile. 

You found your table where you were seated right next to your parents. Oh joy. 

“Y/N!!!” Your mother called and opened her arms to embrace you in a hug that was too tight for comfort. “Oh I was just talking to your uncle Martin here, we were saying-” Your mother continued to speak while picking at your hair, trying to adjust it. 

“Mom. Please.” You said, trying to push her hands away. 

“I’m sorry, I can’t help it when you show up with your hair looking like that. My goodness, you’d think birds made homes in that mess of yours.” She laughed, looking at your uncle, expecting him to join in with her. 

Bellamy cleared his throat, getting your mother’s attention. 

“Oh! I’m terribly sorry dear! I didn’t even acknowledge your presence! I’m Geraldine.” Your mother proceeded to introduce herself. “And you are?” 

“Bellamy Blake ma’am. I happen to be the boyfriend of your wonderful daughter.” He replied, shaking her hand. 

“Boyfriend?! She’s never mentioned a boyfriend before. Harold?!” You mother attempted to call over your father who was busy with his reading glasses, trying to read the paper on the table for a game of ‘who knows the bride and groom best’. “Harold! Did Y/N ever mention a boyfriend to you before?” 

He chuckled, still fixed on the paper. “No dear, if she had I’d have won the lottery and seen pigs fly.” 

Your mother nudged your father so he would look up and see Bellamy. 

“Oh!” You father exclaimed. 

“Her boyfriend.” Your mother repeated since he obviously wasn’t paying attention. 

Your father looked Bellamy up and down. “No, not possible. Why in the world would this young man be interested in her?” 

Bellamy tried to object but was interrupted when the announcement was made that the buffet was now open. Throughout dinner your parents continued to pick on you and as hard as Bellamy tried to defend you, nothing he said or did worked. Everything he said was looked at as great, until it came to you. They actually started going through people they knew trying to come up with someone to match Bellamy with since he was ‘so much better than you’. You downed another glass of wine. If you were to survive this evening you certainly weren’t planning on doing it sober. The dancing began and you, your parents, and Bellamy were still seated at your dinner table. 

“Do you want to dance?” Bellamy asked you. 

“Not really…” you replied, watching how happy your cousin was with his bride. Would you ever get that kind of happiness? 

Your mother came to Bellamy’s side now, tapping him on the shoulder. He turned to see what she wanted. She stood there with a different cousin of your’s. 

“This is Maria, she’s in MIT right now studying to be a neurosurgeon.” Your mother introduced. 

Bellamy shook her hand. “Uhh, hi.” 

“I think you’ll find she’s much better suited for you.” Your mother beamed. 

“Excuse me?” Bellamy couldn’t believe her. 

“You know what, dancing is a great idea.” You said, taking his hand and pulling him away, to the dancefloor. “Ugh. I can’t believe her.” You complained while dancing to a fast song. 

“It’s okay. Although you really weren’t exaggerating about them. They’re… intense.” Bellamy replied. 

“Tell me about it.” You huffed. 

He spun you around. “I wouldn’t have gone for her you know.” 

You looked at him, slightly puzzled. 

“I know I could’ve since, what we are isn’t anything exclusive. But even aside from me playing boyfriend for the night, I wouldn’t have done it.” 

“Not your type?” You questioned, feeling slightly annoyed he’d even bring this up. 

He shrugged. “Just… not interested.” He smirked cockily now, “You know, in case you were getting jealous or something.” 

You rolled your eyes. “Me? Jealous?!” 

“You did whisk me away from her pretty quick there.” He pointed out and winked at you. 

“Only because my mother is insane!” You defended. 

The song changed to a slower one now and Bellamy pulled you closer to him. To your surprise, you found that he actually knew how to waltz! Effortlessly he lead you in the steps, dipping you ever so often. 

He smirked at your stunned expression. “Impressed, are we?” 

“I just, didn’t expect that from you.” You smiled and leaned your head against his shoulder now.

“I’m not always predictable” He replied. “I mean you thought that I wouldn’t want to even start… this. But I did.” 

“I suppose you’re right.” You agreed, barely focusing on the conversation now. It was just so nice to be dancing with him. His arms around you, you both moving gracefully. You’d never felt all that graceful in your life and yet, Bellamy made it feel easy. You danced for a long time, until a really fast song left you sweating like crazy and exhausted. 

“Let’s get some air” Bellamy suggested. 

On your way out you grabbed a bottle of champagne, drinking it on your way. 

“Wow!! The stars look amazing tonight!!!” You blurted out, looking at the sky as you walked, tripping over your feet a little. “Whoops!” 

Bellamy laughed. “Getting tipsy?” 

“Definitely.” You nodded your head enthusiastically. 

The two of you walked down a narrow, paved road, eventually leading you both to the golf course. You spotted an abandoned golf cart and got a brilliant idea. 

“I know that wild look in your eye.” Bellamy noticed. “What are you thinking?” 

“Let’s go driving!!!!!” You suggested, handing him the champagne bottle and running to the cart. 

He took a swig of the champagne then joined you at the golf cart. 

“No keys, genius.” He teased. 

You felt at the ignition, finding a set of keys there, pointing at them excitedly. 

He shook his head at you, smiling. “Why do I feel like I’m going to regret this.” 

“Get in Blake!” You ordered, already starting the golf cart. 

He sat down and you started the cart, hurtling it away. You held your foot to the floor, speeding across the green fields and trying your hand in a few doughnuts. 

“Do you think this counts as drinking and driving?” Bellamy asked. 

“Naaah, it’d be drinking and driving if we had a driver club in the back of this golf cart!” You laughed, thinking yourself hilarious, but really you were just drunk. 

The feeling of shooting across the open, green course had you feeling free, almost like you were flying. And then you were falling. The golf cart tipped a bit on that last corner, causing you to fall out of the small vehicle and roll into a pond. You screamed as you fell and Bellamy jumped out of the cart. 

“Y/N!!! Are you okay?!!!” He yelled, jumping in the water and rushing over to your side. 

You laughed. 

He helped you out of the water and you both laughed, now dripping wet. 

“That was so much fun!!!” You shouted, falling down onto the grass. 

Bellamy laid down next to you. You moved so you were over his chest, putting your hand behind his neck and kissing him.  Roughly you pressed your lips to his, pushing your tongue into his mouth, taking control of the kiss. He didn’t like that much though. Taking action himself, he rolled the two of you over so that you were now on your back with him on top. His lips trailed kisses along your jawline and down your neck. 

~~~

Slowly he moved his hand up your thigh, rubbing the inside of your leg to tease you. He traced patterns on your leg, which tickled a bit. When he moved his hand over to your panties, he could feel through them just how wet you were already getting. Lightly his thumb caressed your clit through the fabric and you grew desperate to feel more. He popped a finger into his mouth, getting it wet. As he planted his lips on yours again he slipped the wet finger inside of you and began rubbing right against your g-spot. 

In response, you bit at his lower lip, causing him to slide in a second finger. You moaned happily against his mouth. Immediately you could feel the pleasure building from within you. It was almost as if with every motion of his fingers he was pulling the orgasm out of you. With every touch, you felt yourself getting higher and higher. 

Forcefully he kissed you, going back down to your neck and leaving small bites. His thumb moved up to circling your clit as he continued to thrust his fingers in you. You felt breathless, but wanted to go further

“More” You demanded, strained, barely managing to get the word out. 

Instantly you felt him slide in a third finger, filling you up. He pumped his fingers deeper inside of you, continuing to rub against your spot and making you more and more crazy with each time. 

Once he knew you were really close he added to the experience. Firmly he pressed against your clit, increasing the pressure and sending you over the edge. Shoving your hands into his hair, you clutched the wavy, dark brown strands as you felt the muscles in your body tighten on his hand. You gasped, feeling all the emotions flow out of you and the freeing of the tension.  

~~~

As you panted, laying on the grass, he moved to your side. 

He laid next to you again, giving you a minute to catch your breath. 

You took in the sight of the vast sky, the stars glimmering above you, seeming so close. You imagined for a moment what would happen if you reached up toward the sky, would your fingers get tangled in the galaxies. You closed your eyes, feeling suddenly very tired. 

Bellamy watched your eyes flutter closed. Deciding it was late and you likely needed your rest, he scooped you up into his arms, and began carrying you off the golf course. 

You mumbled a protest as he set you down into the golf cart. 

“Shhh,” he hushed, “rest now. I’ll wake you up when we get back to the resort.” 

You nodded your head sleepily. 

As promised, he woke you when you were close enough to the resort. The cart couldn’t take you all of the way so you’d have to walk a bit. Following a path back, you passed two people in a dark corner by the building, obviously having an intimate moment. As you neared by them on the road, it became apparent that one of the two was the bride, and the other… oh shit. Was that your ex? 

Hearing you approach, the two pulled away from each other. 

“Well, hey there Y/N” Your ex smiled, obviously drunk. “I was just congratulating the beautiful bride here.” He wiped the lipstick from his face. 

The bride was now wearing a horribly embarrassed expression. She gave you a desperate look, silently begging that you wouldn’t tell your cousin. At the moment you weren’t sure what you’d do. It was obvious that she was drunk too. 

As he started to approach you, you took a step back, not wanting anything to do with him, especially drunk. 

“Go to hell.” You told him, attempting to walk past him now. 

“You always were a feisty one.” He commented and slid over, so he was now blocking the path. There was no way you could pass him without getting too close for comfort. 

Bellamy stepped forward now, standing in between you two. “C’mon man, just let us pass.” 

Your ex looked Bellamy up and down. “So, are you my replacement?” He turned his gaze between you and Bellamy. “I know I’m a tough act to follow but geez Y/N, you could’ve at least tried.” 

“Would you just fuck off?” You retorted, hoping he’d leave you alone this time. 

But he ignored you. “Remind me why I let you go again?” He said, eyeing you up. “‘Cause right now looking at that rack I can’t for the life of me recall.” 

That was it. Bellamy’s patience snapped and his fist was colliding with the face of your ex. 

“Don’t you fucking talk to her like that!” Bellamy yelled, walloping him a second time. 

The slimeball dropped to the ground, hitting the pavement with a loud smack, too drunk to get up. 

You stood there, gaping in shock. 

“C’mon, let’s get out of here.” Bellamy said under his breath. He placed an arm around your waist and lead you on your way. 

Still in shock, you weren’t sure what to say to him. Finally you got up the nerve to in the car. 

“I can’t believe you did that.” You started the conversation. 

“He was being rude, he deserved it.” Bellamy stated, his eyes fixed on the road. 

“Well, thank you. No one has ever defended me like that.” You paused. “And earlier this evening, with my parents. You did your best to stand up for me.” 

“Don’t worry about it, it was nothing.” Bellamy smiled a bit, briefly glancing your way. 

Your thoughts wandered the rest of the drive. The day had been amazing, and honestly most of the time with him recently had been amazing. You couldn’t remember the last time you’d been so happy. 

He walked you up to your apartment but you stopped him before saying goodnight. 

“Bellamy, I…” You paused, trying to find the words. “Would you ever want more than what we have right now?” 

“You mean a relationship?” He asked to clarify. 

You nodded. 

“Honestly I’d be up for whatever you want. The last while has been great, and if I’m honest… the real reason I wasn’t interested in any of those girls tonight is because I guess I’m just not interested in anyone other than you.” He placed a hand on the back of his neck and tried to hide the fact that he was slightly blushing. 

“Really?” You said in disbelief. 

“Well, yeah. But I mean, if you want to keep things casual that’s totally fine too.” He rushed to add. “I promise I won’t do the whole feelings thing or let it get in the way if you don’t want me to.” 

You pressed your lips to his in a soft kiss. 

“Please do the feelings thing.” You smiled. “I’ve caught feelings for you too so please, let’s do the feelings thing.” You giggled. 

He grinned. “Yeah? Okay. I guess we’re in a relationship then.” 

“I guess we are.” You beamed happily. 

Even though you hadn’t seen it before and it took you awhile to get to it, you couldn’t help but feel confident. The more you thought about it the more you felt overjoyed that you’d done it, you finally found an awesome relationship. And it all started out with a friend.

[no-no-notorious-writes]

Padiddle - t.h.

Pairing: Tom Holland x reader

Summary: Driving back from a party, you can’t help but start an American game teenagers play with Tom. 

Word Count: 3,807

Warnings: getting undressed in a car, friends-to-lovers, fluffiness

A/N: A padiddle is a car with only one headlight. We played padiddle in high school a lot. Even though there was plenty to do around where we lived, no one ever had enough money and it was honestly, just more fun to drive around with your friends.

Padiddle

“PADIDDLE!” you shouted, over Tom’s obvious groan. How were you spotting them before him? He was driving. “That’s another article of clothing, Tommy boy,” you grinned. 

You and Tom had been driving back from some friends’ engagement party. Tom had been so excited to get there and spend time with the friends he hadn’t seen in awhile. It was a beautiful fall afternoon as you gathered at the soon-to-be-bride’s family home. You both ate finger sandwiches, celebrated with the champagne toast, talked to friends, but more importantly, you two giggled like the children you always were at these types of parties. 

It only took one event like this for you to realize that while Tom was so excited for his friends and family to be moving onto the next stage in their lives, he couldn’t help feeling a little farther behind. He had focused so heavily on his career that he had sort of forgotten to hit all the other milestones – to fall in love. You could see the sadness, regret, and smallest tinge of jealousy in his eyes at that first engagement party for his cousin that you attended with him. It was easy for you to understand what was happening. He was comparing. 

You quickly made it your job to get Tom to forget about the reason for the party and just have fun. At that first party, the soon-to-be-groom’s grandmother had gotten quite drunk and began to ask the young men to dance. Tom was almost one of her victims before you wriggled in impossibly close to him and placed your hand on his chest. He was a bit taken aback but fell in with your ruse quickly. His hand gripped your waist and he planted a sweet kiss on the top of your head. After some friendly, albeit tight-lipped conversation with the old bird, she finally set her sights on another young man across the room. 

The two of you stood on the edge of the party watching it from the outside. You had made a joke about a portly man whose wife kept stealing the hors d'oeuvres on his plate when he wasn’t looking. Then Tom chimed in creating a story about the couple, which made you break out into a full belly laugh. You each had taken turns the rest of the night making up lives for the people in his cousin’s fiancé’s family. 

That’s why you were in the passenger seat tonight giggling while you watch Tom try to slide his boots off quickly at a red light. Honestly, it couldn’t have been a more perfect night to play the American game on the British roadways. You each had multiple layers on, having dressed for the cool breeze of fall (plenty for you each to shed along the long drive home). Tom had looked incredible when he picked you up earlier that day, so much so that you felt like you had under dressed in just a blouse and slacks. But he assured you that you looked perfect and chic (his words, not yours). 

Your heels were in a heap in the footwell of the passenger seat having been one of the first items you pulled off in the heat of the game. The only items you had to remove so far were your shoes and the sweater you had thrown on in case it was cold. Tom, however, was down to his socks, white undershirt, and his trousers. 

“Would you honestly just drive around and look for cars with missing headlights?” Tom asked incredulous. 

“Yes, Tom, we really did,” you couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Why on Earth?”

“Well, let's see. You’re a teenager. You’re not allowed to drink. You don’t have a lot of cash. But you have the car for the night. So you all get in the car thinking that you’ll figure it out once you start driving but then someone sees a car with one headlight out and the game has started. You can’t just not finish it,” you explained. 

“Americans really do have the strangest customs,” he said, putting on his turn signal. 

You and Tom had met by chance as you studied abroad in London during your junior year of college. Tom had just recently found out that he had gotten the role of Spiderman. He and Harrison were planning a night of celebrating as they walked into the corner coffee shop. You were working on a paper, trying to get away from your roommate, who liked to entertain the gentlemen regularly. You had stumbled on this place a few weeks before and it had become a habit to work here when you couldn’t work in your room. You had loved everything about this place. It felt cozy, with a warm fire going on those cold, sodden London afternoons. The barista was sweet and always gave you a friendly smile. There was a constant stream of patrons, but it never felt like anyone was rushing to leave. 

On this particular day, you had snagged one of the squashy armchairs right by the fireplace. You pulled your laptop out and placed it on the arm of the chair and began to read through what you had already written. 

Around your second latte, Tom and Harrison had entered, laughing and planning in hushed voices. You had caught Harrison’s eye, though. (He would later tell you that he had been really drawn in by the studious look at that time.) You could feel eyes on you from behind. And as you turned around to confirm your suspicions, you locked eyes with Harrison. He gave you a knowing smirk. You could feel the light blush creep onto your cheeks as you smiled sweetly and turned back to your laptop. 

When it came time for the boys to find a seat, Harrison pushed Tom to sit in the armchair across from you, while Harrison turned a chair around and leaned on the back to talk with him. They continued their conversation in private tones, not wanting to mention the M word or the S word. You would glance up periodically and catch one of their eyes. Tom would give you that award-winning smile you’ve grown to love so much. While Harrison looked at you like a piece of meat he was ready to devour. 

“Well if you can’t decide, why don’t you ask where this beautiful girl would go on a Friday night and then we’ll know the best place to go,” Harrison said, trying to pull you into the conversation. 

You tried desperately to ignore them. You were not studying in London to meet boys. Granted their accents did drive you crazy. And they were two of the cutest boys you had seen yet. But then Tom tried his hand at getting your attention. 

“Excuse me, sweetheart,” he asked. You finally looked up and met the most beautiful chocolate brown eyes you’d ever seen. “Hi. I’m Tom and this my mate, Harrison.”

“We were just wondering, where a beautiful girl like yourself would head to have a good time on a Friday night?” Harrison asked.

“Um, I uh– I haven’t been here long,” you started. 

“An American!” Harrison exclaimed. 

“Uh, yeah, I’m here for school,” you said, looking back down at the book in your lap. “I haven’t really been out anywhere. I haven’t made many friends yet,” you blushed. 

“Well, darling, we’ll be your friends,” Tom said, reaching forward to touch your knee. 

That was the moment when your whole life changed. Harrison quickly realized that you weren’t his type, and that you were better as friends. But had you not met Tom and Harrison, you never would have asked for an extension on your studies. You never would have applied for those jobs in London. And you certainly never would have moved in with Harrison when you needed somewhere to live. It wasn’t the ideal situation, but you wouldn’t trade it for anything. 

So when Tom and Harrison left again and again as Tom’s fame grew, they kept in constant contact – texting, FaceTime, and these videos Harrison would take of Tom when he wasn’t looking. You sort of felt silly when they both flew to the States for months at a time to film and yet here you were an expat in their country, alone. You shouldn’t say alone. Nikki Holland quickly took you under her wing the first time you were ill and Tom and Harrison had no idea what to do. 

“PADIDDLE!” you heard the Brit yell, as you cursed under your breath. You were trying to find the playlist you had of the music you listened to when you were in high school; with your eyes otherwise occupied, you gave Tom the edge. 

“What should I take off?” you asked, innocently. You could admit that you might have been trying to get a rise out of him. 

Tom could feel the lump in his throat as he tried to swallow. He had never thought he would hear you say that. Unlike Harrison, Tom’s feelings grew for you as the years passed. He was enamored with you. Every moment that you curled into him earlier that night, your warm body pressing against his, your giggle in his ear, your kiss on his cheek, was like that perfect mix of the best thing ever and torture. 

“Uh– the blouse,” Tom said, trying to regain the air in his lungs. 

You made quick work of the buttons and pulled the article of clothing over your head. You threw it behind you where both of your clothes littered the back seat and floor. Had anyone seen that, they would have thought something else was happening. 

Finally you found your playlist and turned it on, letting the music flow through the car’s speakers. You belted out every word to every song – singing into your fake microphone, the car as your stage and Tom as your captivated audience. It was hard to concentrate on the road when you were in front of him, topless and singing to him like he was the only man you could ever want. 

“PADIDDLE” you screeched, as you pointed past Tom to his right. 

“Oh, come on, darlin’, I never would have seen that one!” Tom whined. 

“Too bad, Tommy!” you cackled. “Lose the shirt, movie star.”

At the next red light, Tom pulled his shirt over his head in one swift and easy movement. It was hard to pull your eyes away from Tom’s toned chest and defined abs. You were already struggling to not focus entirely on the way his biceps had been straining against the white t-shirt he had been wearing. You gave yourself exactly the amount of time it took Tom to pull his shirt over his head to rake your eyes down his body. It certainly wasn’t long enough, in your opinion.

You both had tried not to look over at the car next to you when you pulled up to a red light. It was better to not draw attention to the fact that you both were half-naked (or maybe they would think you were totally naked) driving around. But curiosity got the better of both of you and you peaked to see the older woman in the red sedan next to you looking appalled. The light quickly turned green and Tom hit the gas as you both snickered, the snicker turning into big belly laughs. 

“Oh my God, my song!” You threw your hand across the center console and grabbed Tom’s thigh, as you turned up the volume on the stereo. 

You hadn’t really meant to do it, but now your hand was there and neither of you were going to say anything about it. Tom tried not to think about how your fingers pressed into the flesh under his trousers. He willed away the pink rolling up his neck and onto his cheeks. He tried not to let his body react to the heat coming from your hand. Meanwhile, you belted out the lyrics to your favorite song when you were in high school. You could feel Tom’s muscles flex under your hand; you squeezed his thigh as the chorus came up and you sang louder, as if that would take away the red on your cheeks and the fact that you were clenching your own thighs together. 

When the song was over, you pulled your hand off Tom’s leg and turned the volume back down to a respectable level. You closed your eyes for a second, remembering what it was like to be young, carefree, and so touch-starved that you happily played the game, hoping someone would see a little bit of skin and think of you in that way. 

“PADIDDLE” Tom whispered in your ear. 

“Fuck,” you breathed. You undid your slacks and slid them down your legs, thankful that you had shaved that morning. 

Tom struggled to keep his eyes on the road, as every inch of your legs were revealed. He could barely focus with your long, toned legs on display; he was pretty sure he would die if he actually looked at the black lace panties you were wearing. 

You’re eyes were on the prize, because there was no way you could look at Tom now. God, why did you start this? You forgot that you were never really that great at this game. Your reaction time was always just a little bit slower. When you were in a car full of people, it didn’t matter too much; there was always someone slower than you. 

You hunched forward as if getting closer to the windows would give you a better view. You scanned the roads and all the cross streets. You even looked down roads as you drove past them, hoping to see one hidden in plain view. But nothing. You could feel eyes on you, though.

“Eyes on the road, Thomas.”

Tom cleared his throat and responded with a smile on his lips, “I don’t know what you mean, love.”

The silence was deafening. The air was thick and hot. And neither of you could quite look the other in the eye. That didn’t mean you weren’t sneaking glances at each other, though.

“Did you ever think that we would be half-naked in your car together?” Immediately after it left your mouth, you regretted it. “I– uh– you know what, don’t answer that.”

Tom chuckled, “No, darlin’, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine this.” Tom paused thinking of his words carefully, “But if I had, I don’t think I would have come up with this scenario.”

Was that an admission? Does that mean that he had thought of you in that way before? It couldn’t be. He said he had never thought of you, even in his wildest dreams. Right?

Tom wanted so badly to reach over and touch you. He didn’t even want it to be in a sexual way. He would have been totally content holding your hand or pushing hair behind your ear. But friends don’t do that. He had to constantly remind himself of the context of your relationship on the nights where you leaned back against his chest, his arm wrapped around you to watch a movie. You both seemed to do a lot of things that friends didn’t normally do. Friends don’t get undressed in each other’s cars. 

It had taken a while for Tom to realize the gradual change that occurred. But it seemed like either the two of you had grown too comfortable with one another or at least one of you wanted more. Tom knew that he did. But did you? After tonight, it certainly felt like you did. You were always touching him, and when he went to put an arm around you, you had snuggled in close like you do when your trying to help him lose an unwanted lady friend. The two of you knew nearly everyone there, though; you didn’t really have to try to save him from anyone. 

“You know, it’s not the worst place to be, though,” Tom added, looking in your direction. 

You ventured a glance toward Tom, not fully bringing your eyes to his. You didn’t really want to see what was there. But you gave a small smile, hoping that he meant it as a compliment. Honestly, you wouldn’t want to be with anyone else. 

Tom reached over for your hand, lacing your fingers together. He rubbed small circles over the sensitive skin between your thumb and forefinger. “Did I thank you for coming with me tonight?”

“Oh, Tommy, you don’t have to do that,” you said, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. 

You looked at his hand in yours. His hand was strong, but it held yours so softly. You could remember the feeling of his hand resting gently on your hip that night. You knew that you were getting a little too touchy than you should have been. Being near Tom, feeling the warmth of his body pressed up against yours, taking in the scent that you could only explain as perfectly Tom, it all made you so crazy. You just wanted a memory, a soft feeling, to take back to your bed at night when he was back filming. 

“No, darlin’, I don’t think you know how lucky I am to have a date like you,” Tom said gently. “I get to spend the night with this absolutely gorgeous woman on my arm. And not only is she always the most beautiful woman in the room, she is the smartest, kindest, funniest one in the room. That makes me the luckiest guy in the room by default.”

“Tom, I–” How do you respond to that? How do you tell Tom everything that he meant to you? Is this the moment that you have been waiting to present itself. Trying to find the words proved harder than you thought – that was until you saw it just beyond the next traffic light. “PADIDDLE,” you shouted. 

“Oh, God,” Tom threw his hand up and shook his head. He pulled his trousers off and tossed them behind him, leaving him in his Calvin Klein briefs. 

You had about fifteen minutes until you were home and you were tied in the game, but the thick tension in the car was not from the competition. Tom had just called you gorgeous and your head was swimming, because he was sitting right there in his underwear and socks and you could reach right over and touch him. 

But wouldn’t that be crossing a line? Had it already been crossed? Was it so blurry that you can’t even see the line any longer? When had going to parties as friends and meeting for coffee become cuddling on the couch watching movies and being each others’ dates for major life events? Haven’t you both been crossing the line for years now? 

You looked over to take in Tom’s profile. This wasn’t the first time you were seeing it, but maybe it was the first time you were in the position to make a decision, a major decision, which could change everything. You looked over at Tom’s thigh, the pale, creamy flesh; suddenly the only thing you wanted to do was touch it – lines be damned. 

Snaking your hand over the center console, this time it wasn’t a mistake. You lightly placed your hand on Tom’s leg letting it rest just below his briefs. Tom jumped a bit and his muscles tensed under your hand. What were you doing? You both were wondering. You let your fingers skim the soft, sensitive skin of his inner thigh, while your thumb rubbed slow circles where it rested. 

Finally, you let your eyes meet his. You could see the questions you didn’t know if you could answer. But a shy smile crossed your lips, hoping to tell him that the ball was back in his court. 

As Tom pulled up in front of your building, you quickly pulled your hand away, suddenly worried that you had made a mess of everything. You turned toward Tom and stuck your hand out. Desperate to ignore the mistake you had made. 

“Hard fought match, Holland. Draw?”

“Draw,” he copied. 

You each pulled your clothes back on, laughing at how silly the whole thing was. You each didn’t bother to put yourselves back together fully – tucking in shirts, buttoning every button, tugging on sweaters, tying shoes. Tom walked you up to your apartment and stood rocking on his feet as you unlocked the door. 

“Thanks for tonight,” you said opening your front door. “For going along with my silliness. I enjoyed the nostalgia.” 

Tom followed you inside your apartment and closed the door behind him. You tossed your keys on the table by the door and dropped your purse and sweater on a nearby chair. 

“Another perk of being your friend – it’s never boring.”

Friend? When had you fallen from best friend status? Oh right, when you let your fingers caress his inner thigh. 

You forced a laugh, “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“Always good.”

You each looked at the floor, wondering what to say next. This had never happened before. Internally, you were panicking that this was going to be the end. This would be the last time you heard from Tom. When Harrison would suggest inviting you to something, he’d probably explain how strange you’d become that one night and how he couldn’t bare to see you again. 

“Y/N,” Tom never called you by your name. He always had a term of endearment to call you. Hearing it on his tongue sent a shiver down your spine. “I– uh–”

“Tom, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have done that… back there… in the car.” The words rushed together and the internal panic began to seep out. 

“No, let me finish,” he shook his head. “Those things I said, I meant them. You are incredible. You make my heart race and every touch sets my skin on fire.” He took a few steps closer toward you. “And after tonight, I don’t think we can go back to the way that we were.”

“What do you–”

Tom quickly wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you into him. “Y/N, I’m totally smitten with you. I have been for three years now,” he said softly, your faces only inches apart. 

“Tom, I–” you started. “I am so glad I started that stupid game,” you smiled. 

Tom took that as his queue to lean in and capture your lips in a sweet, soft kiss. The tension seemed to melt out of both of you. You silently thanked the stupid things American teenagers came up with to pass the time. 

[aion-rsa]

Riverdale Season 5 Episode 9 Review – Chapter 85: Destroyer

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

The mundane mingles with the supernatural in a enjoyably goofy episode.

Riverdale Season 5 Episode 8

“It is better to know the truth and make peace with it.”

In a bit of selfless wisdom, Cheryl states the above words to Betty in tonight’s bonkers installment. The context being that Betty doesn’t want to tell her mother that it looks like Polly is a goner. So she goes to Cheryl basically to inquire whether she feels that her cousin’s life would have been better had she not known Jason’s true fate.

The from-the-heart response that Cheryl gives her is quickly ignored, and Betty hides the truth from Alice. Since this is an episode of Riverdale, Betty’s deception immediately backfires on her when her FBI superior Glen arrives at the Cooper household to reveal Polly’s probable fate and kick Betty off the case. (Somewhere in the night, Veronica does a breathy cover of The Thompson Twins’ “Lies”).

Anyway, let’s get back to that quote for a second: It is better to know the truth and be at peace with it. That’s going to be the mantra for this entire review, as there are fundamental truths I’ve touched upon in the past that demand to be recognized before the healing can be reached. They are:

1- Archie’s football storyline is a total snooze.

Riverdale may have leaped seven years into the future, but Archie remains as doltish as ever. Granted, K.J. Apa is killing it this season as a grizzled version of the character, but the problem of Archie’s messiah complex still drags on. There are a lot of fascinating things happening on this series right now, and all the Bulldogs stuff does is slow down the breakneck pace that those interesting storylines are moving in. Aliens are in Riverdale, nobody cares about high school football right now. C’mon.

All that said, Britta rules.

2 – Any time that this series isn’t focusing on Mothmen Aliens is wasted time.

The show is taking serious liberties by mashing up Mothman and alien abduction mythologies, which really upends my In Search Of-influenced ideology about how the world works. I’ll forgive this because putting “aliens” on Riverdale is a work of stupid genius but also because I love watching Cole Sprouse and his starter goatee running around looking totally frantic.

3 – Hiram Lodge should be eaten by Mothmen Aliens.

Am I alone in thinking this could actually happen? What a coup for the series that would be! We know that Hiram is involved in some shady business, and all his SoDale shenanigans are a cover for some big secret. Therefore the mystery of the Lonely Highway is directly traced back to Hiram. Is he working for the government? Did aliens cure his mystery illness of last year and in turn is he feeding them Riverdale’s castoffs? Nothing is off the table here. Hiram’s machinations have been the same since he first appeared, but what if he really was working for aliens THE WHOLE TIME? Wouldn’t that be insane/amazing? No other show could pull that kind of shit off.

What I’m saying here is that Riverdale has been dancing with insanity since day one and it’s time to consummate the relationship.

4 – Betty Cooper, Alien Hunter needs to happen.

She fights werewolves in the comics, so is this really that crazy?

The ultimate mystery of whatever is happening this season will likely have a logic-based answer. That’s disappointing, as the Archieverse can be shown to handle witches, so are extraterrestrials that far off? (I’m still burned by the conclusion of the Gargoyle King saga, so I’m not expecting much here). Imagine though, the writing staff wants you to think that everything will wrap up with a plausible explanation and then, boom, it gives you bona fide aliens! A dream is a wish the heart makes…

This episode did give us clarity on a few things. We learned that both Jughead’s and Betty’s investigations lead back to the Lonely Highway and the mysteries — either terrestrial or otherworldly — unfolding there. Additionally, we were reminded that even though he’s ostensibly the lead character of this series, Archie is straight-up boring when he isn’t being attacked by bears or escaping from prison. With only one more episode before an extended hiatus, I hope next week brings us some resolution even though deep down I know that it won’t.

Riverdale Rundown

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

• Jughead’s student who writes the troubling story about Mothman abduction is Lerman Logan, a reference to The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Percy Jackson franchise star.

• Old Man Dreyfus’ name is clearly inspired by Close Encounters of the Third Kind star Richard Dreyfuss, which is fitting as the supernatural elements of this season are riffing on the sci-fi blockbusters of the 1970s and ’80s. Further proof of this can be seen by Drefyus telling Betty and Jughead about how Riverdale was a hotbed of Mothmen activity in the summers of 1977 and 1982, ones in which Star Wars and E.T. respectively ruled at the box office.

• Mr. Weatherbee threatens to fire Jughead if he doesn’t stay out of Lerman’s problems, apparently forgetting that Jughead isn’t really even a teacher and is only volunteering.

• Even objectively, Archie is a terrible coach. Can we please fold him into the Jughead/Betty storyline somehow? It’s great to see him and Veronica back together but damn do they need better plots to work with.

• One of the teams that defeats the Bulldogs is the Baxter High Ravens. In case you forgot already, Baxter High was one of the schools that Sabrina attended in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

• One has to wonder how the Vixens must feel about Cheryl, a woman in her twenties who graduated seven years ago, returning to her alma mater to steal the thunder of teenagers who live in Murdersville, U.S.A. and have no other outlet besides cheerleading by performing a self-aggrandizing Lady Gaga cover. Cheryl does a lot of messed up stuff on this show, but this act struck me as especially cruel.

• There’s no Toni and very little Tabitha Tate tonight. Boo.

• I still think they should sell the Pop Tate bobbleheads they keep showing.

• Kevin gets put through the emotional and physical ringer this episode. We learn that disparaging remarks from his mother impacted his self-image so much that he turned to cruising in Fox Forest. (The fate of Mrs. Keller is unknown, so it is possible that she will make an appearance in an upcoming episode). The assault that Kevin endured was brutal to watch, but the scene between Kevin and his father was powerful and cathartic. It will be interesting to see where the character of Kevin goes from here, because it is absurdly beyond time the writers give him a personality trait other than chronic thirst.

• Someone on the Riverdale production staff must really love Friday Night Lights.

• I don’t believe for a second that Polly is actually dead. There’s more of a chance of Hiram being eaten by Mothmen Aliens or Archie getting a compelling A-plot.

• I hate on the football storyline a lot in this review, but I do find all the talk about tainting the podunk town’s football league’s prestige to be weirdly funny.

• Pop’s sells take out cold cuts too? Helluva business, that Chok’lit Shoppe.

• “I’m saying that things happen, especially in Riverdale,” declares Jughead, in the most obvious statement in the episode.

• Please let them do a Mulder and Scully thing with Jughead and Betty.

• I think there’s more Mr. Weatherbee in tonight’s episode than there has been in the entire series to date. That’s a fantastic thing.

• So is Reggie done with Hiram for good now? He is such a key figure in the comics that it would be fantastic if the series figured out what the hell to do with him.

• Having reviewed this show from the first episode, I’ve learned a thing or two about how Riverdale storylines work. Therefore I’m calling it now: Glen is the Trash Bag Killer. You think so too, I know it.

• So far this season has drawn influence from everything from cryptozoological monsters to the real-life crimes of Patrick Kearney. Next week marks the mid-season finale, and the promise of everything from aliens to Pop’s possibly being blown up by Hiram? Whatever happens, cherish it, as the show then won’t return until July.

The post Riverdale Season 5 Episode 9 Review – Chapter 85: Destroyer appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2QBxetE

[nat-roman0ff]

lover - pt. 1

lover, pt.1 - the first wedding there’s a dazzling haze, a mysterious way about you, dear. -- words: 2k warnings: fluff, weddings and string lights

There was always something about a wedding that was just plain magical. The mix of love in the air and an open bar brought out the best in you. It was a cool early October evening when your childhood best friend married the love of her life. Crisp red and orange leaves lined the picture perfect vineyard as you watched her walk down the aisle. The air was just cool enough to prickle your skin when a breeze ran through, causing the hairs on your arms to stand at attention.

It couldn’t have been a more perfect day for the occasion; the weather was flawless, your shoes surprisingly weren’t killing your feet, and you found the perfect shade of lipstick at the last moment that matched your burgundy bridesmaids dress. The ceremony went off without a hitch, and as the glow in the sky faded into the horizon and tiny nighttime stars popped up in their place, shining down on the couples dancing you were strikingly reminded of how single you were.

The other bridesmaids all brought their significant others, and you were stuck at the table with the groomsmen you’d walked down the aisle with. You weren’t unfamiliar with him, of course, he was, after all, one of the most famous popstars on the planet currently. But to you he was just the cousin of the dude marrying your best friend. He sits across from you at the circular table, his navy suit jacket unbuttoned, tie missing from around his neck and the first few buttons of his black shirt undone. You swipe your bottom lip with your tongue as your eyes trace the chest hair that peers from above the collar of his shirt. 

 “Are you drunk or checking me out?” He asks.

 You snap back to reality, cheeks immediately flushing, “both?” 

 Shawn chuckles and washes back the last of what’s in his glass, “good, because so am I.” 

 “Checking yourself out?” You jest.

 “Clearly,” he scoffs.

 Shawn stands and moves to the chair beside you, “so you’re the bride’s best friend, right?” He asks.

 You nod and fold and unfold the place card in your lap, your mind was always calmer when your hands were busier. A terrible trait to have, really. 

 “Shawn,” he thrusts his hand towards you to shake, “sorry we didn’t get to hang out much before the rehearsals and stuff. Work has been crazy.”

 “I can only imagine,” you pip, “almost done with a world tour, eh?” 

 He smiles and scrunches his nose in that way that makes you sense his discomfort, “yeah, almost there. Always fun being on the road but always better coming home.” 

 “I couldn’t do it,” you sigh, “first of all I couldn’t bear being away from my cat for that long and secondly...aren’t you tired? When’s the last time you slept?” 

 “Probably 2015.” 

 You snort, “sounds like you need a nap,” you fold your arms across the table and rest your head on them, closing your eyes.

 “What are you doing?” Shawn asks. 

 You yawn, “taking a nap. Try it. It’s cathartic.” 

 He looks around to see if anyone is watching. 

 “Don’t worry about anyone paying attention. They’re either too busy being drunk or too busy trying to get laid.” 

 Shawn follows suit and rests his head against his arms on the table, his face just inches from yours, “and where do you fall in that?” 

 You ponder for a moment, “somewhere in the middle.” 

 He laughs and stifles it in the crook of his elbow. 

 “You laugh at me a lot, I’m really not that funny. So thank you for inflating my ego” you say. 

 Shawn lifts his head to rest his cheek back on his arm, “but you are funny. Not with what you say but how you say it. I don’t know how to describe it.” 

 You roll your eyes, “I think you’re drunk.”

 “I’m most definitely drunk,” Shawn says, “but I’m also right. Fuck - this is the first normal conversation I’ve had in months.” 

 You snort, “this is normal conversation? Shit, I am so sorry for you.” 

 Now it’s Shawn’s turn to roll his eyes, “you know what I mean. It’s hard to be me and still talk to normal people about normal things without it turning into an interview.” 

 “Ah yes, the peasants shalt dare not speak to thine King Mendes.” 

 He rolls his head to rest his chin on his elbow and glares at you, “you’re simultaneously the best and the worst at the same time.” 

 You follow suit, moving your head a little too fast and blinking the stars away, “I jest. I get it, you write mediocre pop songs for the masses and now all anyone cares about is who you’re dating this week and when your next album comes out. It all must be incredibly boring, especially when you’re rubbing elbows with Taylor Swift.” 

 Shawn’s eyebrows furrow, “I take that back, you’re the worst,” he says, shifting his body away from yours and turning his head to the other side of the table, “let me nap in peace. Maybe I’ll dream up some more mediocre songs.” 

 You ruffle his hair, “I’m kidding, Shawn. Your songs are lovely. In fact, I go super hard to ‘There’s Something Holding Me Back’ in the shower.”

 He turns to look at you and glowers.

 “I’m still fucking with you.” 

 “And you’re still the worst.” 

 You laugh and punch his shoulder, “c’mon, let me buy you a drink and I’ll make it up to you.” 

 Shawn sits back up and presses at the wrinkles in his shirt, “it’s an open bar.” 

 “Two drinks then!” You exclaim, standing and pulling at his arm. 

 Something happens when he holds your hand and you can’t quite explain it. Your fingers fit and lock like your hands have been searching for each other your whole life and there’s a warmth that spreads inside of you like the way a lava lamp ebbs and flows under the glass. It’s all warm and blobby and all over the place and you can feel the heat rise in your cheeks when Shawn notices it too.

 “Two drinks still makes it an open bar,” he says, breaking the tension. 

 You tug on him to follow you, following the zigzags of the threaded bulb lights against the murky midnight sky. You weave him through crowds dancing, reminiscing, taking selfies. Past the low orange leaved trees adorned with dimly lit lanterns. The hazy warm glow of everything masks the pinks in both your cheeks but can’t hide the wonderment behind both your eyes. Perhaps it’s the promise of something different, or the universe telling you this was the beginning of something new, but all you did know was that this wasn’t the first time you’d be crossing Shawn’s path again.

 ---

 After too many drinks, three rounds of karaoke, two dance offs and one sloppy makeout session in the mens room, you and Shawn found a quiet place to be. Now, your lipstick was worn off (mostly evidenced by the smears of burgundy across his neck and chest that he had no interest in hiding), his suit jacket long gone (now wrapped around your shoulders) and the sleeves of his button up rolled to his elbows.

 The reception seems to go on forever, and you’re not complaining. It’s reached a point in the night where everyone stops looking at the clock, and the party lives in its own timeless bubble where the sun never rises and everyone was effervescent in their own beautiful existence. The night was free to be whatever it wanted to whoever it wanted.

 It’s an abandoned little area, where you’re at. It had been the spot of the cocktail hour after the ceremony and now had about a dozen or so high top tables adorned with wispy white tablecloths that blew in the night breeze. The tiny bulbed lights thinned out here, and it was almost too dark to make out the strong features on Shawn’s face, but you do your damndest to memorize them in the darkness as he sits beside you on the grass.

 “Okay, give me your worst.” 

 Shawn takes a deep breath, “violets are red, Roses are Blue. Guess what? My bed has room for two.” 

 You choke on your lost count of a gin and tonic, tucked somewhere in the back garden of the venue. The music from the reception is faint and overpowered by the booming laughter coming out of your chest. 

 “Something in that is wrong,” you manage, “and violets are blue, dumbass.” 

 “Hey, I’m drunk, I’m trying here,” Shawn slurs, leaning in, his face getting almost too close to yours. 

 The smell of gin radiates off of him, his pink cheeks liken him to a sort of porcelain doll and the string lights in the trees around you reflect off the glassiness of his hazel eyes, “that has to be the worst joke I’ve ever heard. It doesn’t actually work does it?” 

 Shawn moves closer and brushes his nose against yours, “you tell me.” 

 You gasp, clutching your chest and leaning back away from him, “you’re fucking brilliant,” his face cortorts in confusion, “it wasn’t the joke at all that you use as the pickup line - it’s the follow through.” 

 He grins wide and takes another sip of his drink, partially missing his mouth as a dribble falls from his chin and soaks into the collar of his shirt, “you caught me,” he opens his arms out, “I wouldn’t say I’m a master, but I’m pretty goddamn good.” 

 “You’re tricky,” you swirl the liquid in your glass, “and you’re deceiving.” 

 He scoffs, “I’m deceiving. You’ve been playing all night like you haven’t been checking me out, bought me a drink at an open bar and you touched my butt. Twice.” 

 You purse your lips, “the second butt touch was an accident.” 

 Shawn narrows his eyes, “you’re a terrible liar.”

 You shrug, “maybe I am.” 

 A breeze rolls through and chills your spine and kicks up the leaves around your feet. You look at Shawn, all faded out and glossy eyed. His lips are pressed a little too hard together into a wet pout and his half hooded eyes stare right back at yours. 

 It’s quiet like this for a while, the crickets chirp along to the faded big band music from the reception and you find yourselves in a comfortable fog. Shawn’s fingertips play with yours as you try and busy your fingers to slow your brain. His face droops slowly with the mixture of drunkenness and sleepiness. 

 You reach out, running your fingers through his hair, “what are you thinking about?” You ask.

 Shawn leans forward, pressing his forehead to yours, interlocking both of your fingers together. His lips brush past yours softly like you hadn’t been biting and tugging on them barely an hour ago, “the rest of my goddamn life.” 

 He presses a kiss against your lips but as soon as it starts it fades and his head drops to your lap with a soft thud. Tiny snores emit from his lips and you chuckle to yourself as you play with his curls, twirling the soft strands of hair around your fingertips. 

 You let your fingers trace the sharpest points of his face; chin and jaw. But you also make it a point to reach the softest, like the dulling blush high on his cheekbones or the softly etched scar on his cheek. It’s not until you’ve run out of canvas on his face that you realize his hand is still holding yours tightly. Shawn moves ever so slightly when you shift, but nuzzles himself closer in. 

 There’s a creeping gnawing feeling coming on and you know this has to end eventually. Soon the party will be over, everyone will go home and the sun will rise to a new day and this encapsulated bubble of love and warmth will be nothing but a memory on Instagram feeds and yearly anniversaries. Frankly, it makes your heart sink into your ass and your overwhelming warmth is replaced with overwhelming sadness. It’s the high of happiness and a surge of endorphins followed with the crash and burn of the reality of tomorrow.

 Even though you hadn’t realized it yet, that was the very first time you ever felt the pang of missing someone who was right in front of you. 

 But it wouldn’t be the last.

[dawninlatin]

Queen of Peace, Chapter 1

A manorian high school AU

Words: 1688

Warnings: This chapter contains mentions of both physical and psychological abuse.

AO3 Link: Click here

Summary: Manon Blackbeak is flawless, untouchable. From the outside at least. Her grandmother pushes her to achieve greatness, and she doesn't let anyone get too close in fear of being hurt. How can anyone love her when not even her parents could?

Dorian Havilliard has always felt safe and confident around his friends. He might not have the greatest of families, but with Aelin and Chaol by his side, nothing can go wrong. That is until he tries keeping his greatest secret from them.

What will happen when Dorian and Manon gets to know one another? Can two lost souls find their way back together?

And we climbed onto the roof of the museum

And someone made love in the grass

And I forgot my name

And the way back to my mother’s house

-Florence + The Machine, South London Forever

Dorian Havilliard had never been happier to be with his friends. He was currently standing in Aedion Ashryver’s kitchen, drinking a beer and chatting with Chaol. The final third of their trio was busy sucking face with Rowan Whitethorn.

A lot has changed while I was away, he thought.

While his friends had been here - going to parties, hooking up with people, making memories - Dorian had been stuck at his family’s summer house, 700 miles away.

He knew he shouldn’t complain, it was a nice house - with a pool and everything - but if he had to take another day of his mother being wine drunk by 3pm, his little brother’s tantrums or his father’s extremely racist, sexist and homophobic comments he would go crazy.

Of course, not everything about his summer had been bad, but he didn’t want to think about that now.

Instead, Dorian leaned back and took another sip of his beer, enjoying the fact that he was back. «I am not drunk enough to watch this,» he said to Chaol, nodding towards Aelin and Rowan, the former now licking - actually licking - the latter’s neck.

«I know, gross right?» Chaol said, mimicking himself throwing up and earning a chuckle from Dorian in the process.

«When did this even happen?» he asked. Last time Dorian had checked, Aelin hated Rowan. Thinking back on how she always complained about the star quarterback being an annoying pain in her ass with his alpha-male bullshit, Dorian couldn’t quite fathom the sight before him.

Chaol looked towards them again with a disgusted look on his face. «No idea, I think they hooked up over the summer,» he replied, turning towards Dorian. «How about you? Met any cute girls?» Chaol wiggled his eyebrows for emphasis.

«Ehm..no,» Dorian replied quickly, finishing his drink.

Liar, he said to himself. He had hooked up with someone. Had even been in a relationship, brief as it was. That relationship had been the only good thing about his summer, the only thing making it bearable. Yet he couldn’t get himself to tell his friends about it. He couldn’t get himself to utter the words:

You know what? I did hook up with someone over the summer. His name was Vaughan and he looked like a god. Oh, I’m bisexual by the way.

Dorian had known for a few years now, but he still hadn’t come out to his friends. It shouldn’t have been this hard - he was living in 2019 after all - and they had been a trio for as long as he could remember. Dorian knew they would support him no matter what, but he couldn’t get himself to say it.

His spiraling train of thought was thankfully interrupted when Aelin finally came strolling into the kitchen.

«What’s up, losers,» Aelin announced, hopping onto the counter. She tried giving them her usual smirk, but all snark and bravado was replaced by blushing cheeks and a huge grin.

Chaol handed her a drink, before saying: «Who are you and what have you done to our Aelin? I can literally see hearts in your eyes.»

Dorian expected some sassy comeback, but she just giggled, looking towards the backyard where her boyfriend stood, talking to his friends.

Oh yes, things had definitely changed over the summer.

«I’m in love,» she declared, flinging her arms out and nearly hitting Dorian in the chest. «You should try it sometime,» Aelin continued, winking at Chaol.

There is the Aelin we know and love, Dorian thought.

She turned her gaze from Chaol to Dorian, giving him a once over.

«You,» she said - pointing at Dorian - «got hot over the summer.»

He felt a blush spread over his face at her words. He guessed he had changed a little over the summer. He had grown a few inches, let his hair get a little longer - the raven black curls almost falling to his eyes now - and put on a couple pounds of muscle. His mind wandered back to Vaughan and how he had shown exactly how hot he thought Dorian was.

He tried to change the subject over to something else, and said the first thing that came to mind: «I can’t believe we’ll all be seniors from tomorrow on.»

Both of his friends looked at him then. «I know!» Aelin said. «But I’ve got a feeling this year is going to be great.»

She threw her arms around their shoulders, before exclaiming: «I’ve got my boys with me after all. What could go wrong?»

And as his best friend grinned at him - the feeling of summer and freedom still lingering, music playing long into the night - Dorian couldn’t help but grin back, letting all worries and secrets fade away.

For now, at least.

-

Manon Blackbeak was sitting in her room, reading Animal Farm. The semester didn’t start until tomorrow, but the curriculum was always published a few days ahead, and her grades wouldn’t suffer from coming to class prepared. Her grandmother would only accept the best, after all.

She put away the book as she heard something rustle inside her closet. Seconds later Abraxos emerged, his head stuck inside a t-shirt. Manon sighed at the sight of the little black cat, but stepped over to help him.

Once she had freed him, she was awarded with a loud purr, his head pushing against her thigh. Manon rolled her eyes at his antics. «You stupid worm,» she mumbled, but gave in and stroked him behind his ears.

«It’s getting late,» she said to her companion. «We should head to bed, so we’re well rested for tomorrow.»

As if he understood what she was saying, Abraxos hopped onto her bed and laid down on his usual spot, right next to her pillow.

Manon turned off the lights before laying down next to him.

I will be a senior from tomorrow on, she thought.

Her summer had been rather uneventful, as usual. They never went anywhere, never did anything. Manon’s grandmother was always very busy, so she only had her cousin Asterin for company - whenever she was home, that was.

Manon spent her summers waiting for school to begin again, getting the time to pass by reading herself up on various subjects, always working to maintain her perfect GPA.

Only the best will do. Her grandmother’s words echoed in her mind. You don’t want to end up like your mother, do you?

Manon had never met her mother - since she had died right after Manon was born - but her grandmother liked to remind her of how big of a failure the woman was, having dropped out of college after being knocked up by Manon’s father.

She had never met her father either. Apparently the man was a drunken nobody, wanting nothing to do with his daughter.

Her parents wasn’t something she thought about often, but once again she heard her grandmother’s words. You will do better. Be better. Understand?

Manon’s summer hadn’t only consisted of tedious schoolwork, she had also spent countless hours at the dance studio, practicing new moves.

Dancing was her one great passion. She loved closing her eyes and getting lost in the music, her body moving to the rhythm on its own accord. On the good days, dancing felt like flying.

That was the other reason to why she was looking forward to school starting again. She hadn’t danced with her team in months. They called themselves the Thirteen, and she was their captain. As soon the semester started they could get back to practicing, working towards their goal of beating Iskra Yellowlegs and her team’s ass.

As she closed her eyes, ready to drift off to sleep, her mind wandered to Asterin. Manon hadn’t seen her cousin all evening, so she came to the conclusion that she had most likely snuck out to go to some end-of-summer party. It wouldn’t be the first time.

As if on cue, someone knocked quietly on her window.

«Speaking of the devil,» Manon said to no one in particular as she got out of bed, walked over to the window and opened it, only to find Asterin standing outside.

The girl looked wild, wearing her usual leather jacket, wavy, blonde hair hanging loose, make-up smudged around her eyes.

«Move your ass and let me in,» was her cousin’s only greeting as she stealthily climbed inside, barely making any noise.

Manon chose to ignore her and crawled back into bed. Asterin followed, shoving Abraxos out of the way and laying down next to Manon.

The cat gave Asterin an offended look before running inside the closet again.

«How drunk are you?» Manon asked her cousin, trying to ignore the stench of alcohol. 

This was going to be a long night, she thought.

Asterin turned to lay on her back. «Not too drunk, I can walk in a straight line,» she said, turning her face towards Manon’s and wiggling her eyebrows.

Manon wasn’t too sure about that, noticing the slur in her voice. All of a sudden, Asterin started to giggle.

«What’s so funny?» Manon asked, not bothering to hide the annoyance in her voice.

Asterin didn’t seem to care that her cousin would much rather sleep as she answered: «I’m just happy about life I guess. I have a boyfriend now.» She giggled some more, drawing out the syllables in boyfriend.

Asterin kept going, «His name is Hunter, and he’s perfect.»

So that’s why she’s been out so much lately, Manon mused to herself.

She went quiet after that, probably asleep already. Manon turned to lay on her side, -facing away from her drunk cousin - when Asterin spoke again. Her voice was quiet and surprisingly sober this time. «You didn’t tell her, right? That I was out, I mean. You know how angry she can get.»

Yes, Manon knew first hand how angry their grandmother could get, the small, white mark she bore on her left cheek proof of that.

A/N: If you finished it all, congratulations!

I never thought I would write a multichapter fic, but I got the idea for this and was unable to put it away, so here it is!

I have the full story plotted out already (although it is a mess), but don't know how often I will have the inspiration to write the chapters and post them. I don't want to make a posting schedule either because consistency is definitely not my middle name.

I just have to say that writing Manon is extremely difficult. She is one complex character. But I am trying my best, and decided to write her like I think she would be, had she been a human teenager.

Also, if it seems like the writer of this fic has never stepped foot inside an American high school, you're correct. I'm just a simple Norwegian trying my best.

Feel free to leave a comment:) Constructive criticism is always welcomed, as I am working towards improving as a writer.

Peace&Love -Dawninlatin