#my mom and my aunt both watch and I love them and we're nearly the same person but I'd NEVER want to watch TOGETHER!!!

[clubsmarties]

"Good. I need a moment to rest after being on all night with everyone at the gala." Wally made a slight face as he knew how new schools could go. "He's in for a new adventure. I hope he finds a happy little note in his new school. Little league? That sounds fun and like something that could potentially help acclimate him to his new surroundings. Was little league your idea?' There was a slight smirk at the question. He'd once heard her talk about baseball but it had been so brief he didn't think she'd think he'd remember.

"Ours." He repeated. "Why do you sound surprised? This is a you and I endeavor. Well, she can love both of us at the same time. You can't deny that you are special to her." Dolly made it clear she liked Liz whenever she'd come over and spent the night. That pup had a lot of love to give. "Next time ask her if she wants to come with you on a new adventure. Maybe better for her when I have to travel for work."

"Penguins take the cutest cake. I'll give you that. I can't believe that they have one of the sweetest mating rituals. If I could be any animal I'd be a penguin. For multiple reasons." He watched her and felt his eyebrows knit together. "That's okay. Maybe it was for the best. You can make a better nee memory next time. But if not at the place then maybe someplace else."

He nodded his head and sighed. "It was nice but still sometimes it was a bit lonely. I was my sister's third wheel when they met their future husband's and wife. We're close and in a way I'm lucky that my brother in law's were cool with me but still somedays it was a little weird to be surrounded by couples when you were just the odd man out." Wally had never shared this part of his reasons why he left to do his own things when the couples were out for an adventure. "It worked out too because then I got to explore." Her thanks made him nod in response.

"I don't know if words do it justice. I guess it's kind of weird to assume you'd ever been to a luau? It's nothing like that," he laughed, nervous all of a sudden. "They have projections on the tallest buildings. Each year it changes but the lights are colorful. The archway you walk through moves a little bit. So you get to see the lights reflected as you walk by."

Wally couldn't help but smile as he, too would call his family predictable. But it was only because they never really had a real family holiday growing up so doing it for the kids was like they were healing some part of their childhood that had been broken. The laugh still making it clear he didn't take offense at all. "I'm with you there but no, it's more like my sisters and I didn't celebrate the holiday as kids. You'd think, why? Weren't we rich? We'd have everything. Thing was that my mom was in Louisiana. My aunt didn't celebrate any holiday. So for us growing up December was just another month. Just birthdays for half of us then normal. We'd go out to the lake to see fireworks. My aunt worked four jobs to keep herself and us afloat. Her husband, my uncle cut her off when they divorced. We still missed our mother. Wanted her to come. In our innocence we wished for Santa to bring her to us every year. Took nearly a decade and some change for Santa to bring us all together again. When my aunt couldn't take us to the lake because she was waitressing here," he pointed to the establishment they were in. "She'd take care of us and we'd see the Christmas lights from the balcony." He laughed as Liz hit it right on the nail. "We do dinner. Usually at Andy and Di's. We all help out to make sure we all get fed. We actually took on my brother in law's tradition of staying up until midnight on Christmas Eve so the kids can open their gifts and then go to bed. Then in the morning they wake up to see what Santa brought them. Every year is rotates who gets the Santa gifts. Adults get something from the guy too. Watching the kids be so happy and filled with so much joy, that is what makes the holiday worth it. What we couldn't have as kids, the second generation have."

Wally shrugged his shoulders not really knowing if they were the same. "I suppose so, never been to either. Just heard of them actually. Laser tag any fun? Do you win or do you let Orion win?" The idea of a dark room could be fun but it also made him uneasy. Dark rooms usually weren't the most safe. Things could get out of hand quickly. "This is another reason why you and I go. Lighthouses are more interesting." He smiled given the topic at hand and how it seemed like it had her excited. At least if he nerded out she wouldn't completely think he was weird.

In a show of interest he stopped eating and pulled his eyes into attentive mode. Watching her with a smile as she reciprocated a lighthouse fact. This intrigued him and liked that she felt comfortable to do the same to him. He liked that she was comfortable talking to him and not letting the conversation die out. "Actually no I didn't. We should go to Maine." He'd take some time off work and thought why not go seek adventure with her. "I promise I will keep my random facts under ten if we go together. How'd you get into lighthouses?" Anything she'd share with him he'd eat up. He wanted to know her in a way she had never been known before. "Is it being the prettiest a scientific fact or your opinion?" He asked just wanting to know why if it was her personal opinion, was it the prettiest. What made it so for her. "How many are on your bucket list?" As he asked he took out his phone and opened up his notes. He wanted to see how many they could cross off the list just by being on this side of the world.

On the side there were about five wait staff that looked over at Wally's table and murmurs could be heard over his date. The whispers kept coming as they saw how invested Wally was and it seemed like to them that his companion also shared an interest. It was all in the body language they said.

"Ah, you are a kind sir considering my charging time. So few even acknowledge that a charging time is needed for us lot." It was said in another joking manner. Had it been anyone else but but Wally, or hell, if she had just been in a bad mood, she might had taken the comment personally. There was just something else about not taking everything so personally and letting herself enjoy hanging out with the man that seemed to be in her best interest right now. Not that she didn't enjoy it normally, but she knew that she was guarded, suspicious of his want to be around her. It was natural to her survival, if she let her guard down too much, he might learn the truth of her, which would just be the worst, dangerous. End up with her behind bars and that was the last thing she wanted.

With a sigh, she answered. "Good. They're enrolling him in a new school, closer to their home. Charlie says he seems to be interested in little league, so if there's still time, they're going to try to see if they can get him on it too. So, well I would say."

"Ours?" Her surprise evident in her tone. Something about being included in this scenario of his made her feel happy, it was a strange way though. Chalking it up to just being tipsy, she shook it off. "No, I'm pretty sure she loves you too much to want to just willingly follow me anywhere I go. Maybe a day, but I'm sure she'd miss you after that."

It wasn't that she didn't want to go back, but there were places that just held onto tiny bits of her that she didn't want back. Memories that she rather not have come back, had she been stronger like Charlie, she'd have no issue going back anywhere and everywhere to revisit sites with new eyes, new perspective, but that wasn't her. Always outrunning one things or another. "Yeah, something like that," she muttered in agreement. "I don't remember much," she lied. "So I would just say the lagoon, its where the flamingos were anyway."

There were moments where Elizabeth truly felt like she was someone else. Not the criminal pretending to be a regular person, just another person having a conversation with a friend, in a place that could become a home. These were one of those moments. Talking with Wally about inconsequential things like the mating rituals of animals and going to the zoo made her feel like a normal person. "That's because there's nothing as cute as penguins." She felt the need to defend, what she now knew , thanks to him, was her favorite animal. Her brows quirked at the sound of a head flag, a closed lip smile at his laugh as she tried to hold back laughter herself at the thought of a flamingo just shaking its head around to try to find a mate. Her hand came up to her mouth to keep her from laughing too loud at the image Wally presented of a person doing such a thing. Controlling her laughter, she added. "Penguins are too. They usually don't stray unless their partner dies or never comes back when they go for food, which is a long time, when the chicks are hatched. They build their little nests, rookeries, together starting with that one rock that the mate accepted and that's where they come back, stay, hatch their eggs. Everything."

It wasn't that she assumed she knew him, because that was further from the truth. She only knew what he had shared with her, which was a lot, but not everything. The only thing she did know well was that he always had some quip, fact, remark ready at the go to fill the silence that she always seemed to want to settle between them but he never did let it. It struck her as strange now that she couldn't recall the last moment they shared in silence, and stranger still that she actually had began to enjoy their conversations. To imagine him as anything but talkative seemed farfetched but the way he spoke about that time in their lives just clued her in that the upbringing that she had assumed he had was the furthest from it. Okay, so she might have made some assumptions, but based on her old experiences, it was miscalculated assumption. "It must have been nice to have them there, growing up I mean. And I thank you," she decided to be nice. "For the access to friendliness."

"Oh, you mentioned that during Easter. What's that like?" She was nothing, if not curious. Even if she wouldn't be around to experience a lot of what this place had to offer, she would at least hear about it. "Christmas, so," she took a moment to think before chuckling out. "Predictable." It wasn't meant as a mean thing, but she knew that someone like Wally, with family, would love the holiday. Most of them anyways. More interested on the flower before her, she added. "Not in a bad way, but with the way your family is so close, I can see why you would like Christmas. I bet you guys get all together and do the Christmas dinner thing and wait until the kids go to sleep to say Santa came, huh." It was more wistful than presented as a fact. She hoped that he did, something about him, though the little time she had known him, wished that for him. The kind of families that she read about, saw through windows, an actual family.

She had to stifle a laugh at glow in the dark room, thoughts of an old dealer that ran in the same circles as her came to mind. The darkened room with tie dye glow in the dark, black light posters of psychedelic designs that littered the walls. "Umm." Thinking over how to best answer that, she took another sip from her drink and thought about a time she did laser tag with Orion, that seemed like a better answer. "Does a laser tag room count? From the way you describe it, it sounds like its something that I can totally skip. I'm more excited about this lighthouse." For some unknown reason, she felt the need to show that she took could be filled with useless facts about something they liked. "Did you know Michigan has the most lighthouses and there's even one off Lake Superior that you can see the aurora borealis at but the prettiest ones are in Maine." That was actually a matter of opinion, hers, and it would not change. "But there are some nice looking ones around the world, want to see them all one day."

[theawkwardterrier]

mediocre-mee replied to your ask: So when did you start watching Outlander? :D

I...don't know that I would go so far as to call myself a fan. 😬I watched it (with my parents, unfortunately), but I'm not on the hype train. Like, it's fine, but I don't LOVE it. But maybe you can convince me otherwise!

I mean, def Curate Your Own Media Experience so if it's not your thing, it's not your thing, but I've fully fallen in love mostly because of the main ship. Sometimes there are shows where a ship is part of or supplementary to my enjoyment but I would watch without (e.g. Leverage) but this is definitely one where it's featured extremely heavily in my mind.

Which is so funny, because at the end of the first episode I literally said aloud to myself, "oh no, I'm going to be the only one who doesn't buy into the whole business and instead thinks she should be with the sensible, boring guy!" because I'm pretty strongly pragmatic. But I'd forgotten that I can be extremely into Romance too, and Jamie/Claire are some extreme Romance. Soulmates, belong together, "in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds​, in any version of reality, I'd find you and I'd choose you," that whole business.

So, yes, absolutely, the show has other stuff to offer, history and Scotland and costumes and politics, but the thing I'm most here for is two intense people who are each others' Ones and just want to be with each other and surround themselves with the family they've built. (Oh, there's also a lot of great if angsty family dynamics that I'm here for.) Plus some steamy scenes that are prob less awkward/more skippable if you're watching by yourself instead of with your parents, oh my GOD, G.

[missmitchieg]

"How do you kids feel about Miami?" Tiffany questioned with a smile, clasping her hands together.

"I like Miami." Junior decided after contemplating for a moment.

"I hear it has nice beaches." Lexy said awkwardly.

"Oh, the beaches there are lovely!" Tiffany confirmed. "You'll love it... Lexy, is it?"

"Yeah." Lexy smiled.

"I would like to get out of Hackensack." Devon said under his breath.

"Yeah, same." Lexy nodded quickly.

"Then it's settled! As soon at Junior's let out of here, we're road tripping to Florida." Tiffany giggled.

"Fun!" Junior said just as the doctor came in to update them after the surgery.

"Hi, Junior. I'm Dr. Packell. You saw me before about your smoke inhalation." The doctor smiled awkwardly. "We gotta stop meeting like this, kid."

"Hi." Junior hummed, leaning their head on Tiffany's shoulder as they took the last spoonful of Jell-O.

"You're lucky that ambulance got to you so fast. You lost nearly half your blood, and your left lung collapsed." Dr. Packell told them, making Lexy squeeze Junior's hand protectively.

"Well, I made it out alive, thanks to my girlfriend." Junior smiled.

"Yeah, well, you talked me through how to help you." Lexy pointed out.

"Scout Training comes in handy sometimes." Jake chuckled.

"Ah." Dr. Packell nodded with a chuckle. "Well, you'll have to stay for about five days. Just for observation."

"Ok." Junior nodded.

"Then you're free to go. Just take it easy. Try not to get stabbed or trapped in house fires again." The doctor joked. "And I don't think I need to explain there's an extension on that 'no running for a month' rule."

"That will be no problem, doctor. I'll take good care of my baby." Tiffany assured him.

"Oh." The doctor blinked and tilted his head. "You're not staying with your father anymore?"

"Uh, he had a little accident." Junior explained with a smile. "So my aunts Tiff and Nica are gonna take care of me and Jake now."

"Oh, I see. Well, I hope you enjoy living with your aunts."

"I'm sure we will." Jake nodded, eyeing Tiffany who was giving him a mischievous grin.

"Well, I'll let you get some rest now. Just press that call button if you need anything." Dr. Packell grinned and walked out.

Junior hummed and glanced up at Tiffany, reaching up to push their hair back. "Hey, Tiff?"

Tiffany shifted her gaze from Jake to Junior, her smile softening a little.

"Um, do you think maybe I could get a guitar?" Junior asked cautiously, biting their lip.

Jake shared a glance with Devon and turned to watch Tiffany curiously.

"Ohh, of course! Anything for my Baby Bear." Tiffany cooed and stroked Junior's hair. "No drums, though. I can't stand banging on drums."

"Fair enough." Junior chuckled. "Thanks, aunt Tiff."

Lexy raised her eyebrows slightly and gave a sad smile to Tiffany and Junior, wishing she could take away every memory of every time Logan took away something Junior loved and shoved something they hated at them, wishing she could replace that with the love they deserved. She looked down at Caroline, who was playing with the skirt of her dress. "Hey, Care?" She sniffled and knelt down to her sister's level.

"What?" Caroline asked in a monotone voice, not looking up at Lexy.

"How do you feel about going to mom's house to change into something more comfy, and saying goodbye to her?" Lexy asked, wanting them both out of their dresses and in something comfortable to sleep in.

"Ok."

"Jake, do you mind coming with us? I'm sure Jun will be fine with just Tiffany and Devon for a while." Lexy asked him hopefully, wringing her fingers.

"Uh, sure." Jake agreed so the three of them walked out of the hospital to see Michelle waiting in the car.

Lexy furrowed her eyebrows at that and walked to the car, getting in the backseat with Jake and Caroline. "Did you really just sit out here for hours?" She asked incredulously.

"Well, I had to know how my daughter's boyfriend was doing!" Michelle huffed, rolling her eyes.

"They're fine. Just take us home so we can change." Lexy scowled.

"And what about him?" Michelle asked as she started to drive home.

"I feel safer with him around." Lexy said honestly and shrugged, making Jake give her a surprised smile.

"Really, Lex?" Jake asked.

"Yeah." Lexy gave him a small smile.

"Sorry, can I ask when you two went from hating each other to best friends?" Michelle snapped.

"After he saved me from the one responsible for all of the murders." Lexy stated casually.

"Woah, what?" Michelle demanded. "When were you going to tell me he targeted you?"

"Long story. You don't wanna know. Look, we just want out of our dresses so can you step on it, please?" Lexy demanded back, crossing her arms.

Michelle rolled her eyes but nodded, speeding home in record time. "A little more respect would be nice."

"Yeah, I know." Lexy scoffed.

Jake snorted in amusement, looking up at Lexy when he felt his eyes on her. "Lex?"

Lexy just sighed, nudging her head in Michelle's direction.

Jake felt his face twitch and his fists clench but nodded in understanding. He didn't need words to know what she was asking him to do.

Michelle squinted her eyes suspiciously at the two teenagers but shook her head, parking in the driveway. "Ok. We're home, kids. Let me unlock the door."

Lexy unbuckled Caroline's booster seat and helped her out of the car quickly, watching Michelle walk to the door and unlock it with sad eyes. She took Caroline's hand and walked inside with her and Jake, shivering at the memory of Chucky trying to goad and coax the boy into letting her die. "I really hate this place." She muttered, scowling as she walked to Caroline's "bedroom" to help her change first.

Caroline hummed to herself as she picked out her Princess Ariel t-shirt and pink jeans, changing quickly. "All ready." She announced so Lexy went to her own "bedroom" to pick an outfit, not that she even had much to pick from anymore.

Lexy sighed and changed back into her black shirt, red flannel and blue jeans, and converse. She looked down at her outfit and smiled, feeling more like herself now. Or at least, a version of herself that she liked a little more. She sighed and walked out of her room, her smile fading at her mom's scowl. "Must you always look at me like that?"

"I'm not looking at you any sort of way." Michelle denied.

"Yes, you are!" Lexy shouted, crossing her arms. "You always look at me like I'm the spawn of the fucking Devil! You barely talk to me and when you do, it's always something bad!" She accused.

"Lexy..." Michelle frowned at her daughter.

"Well, I'm tired of it! I'm tired of being the one who is always doing something wrong! I'm tired of never being fucking good enough! I'm tired of you loving Care more than me!" Lexy yelled, her fists shaking. "I'm tired of you hating me." She finished, her voice cracking at the end. "Goodbye, mom."

"What?" Michelle whispered.

"Bye, mommy." Caroline said softly, letting Lexy pick her up and shield her from something she didn't need to see.

Lexy held Caroline protectively, giving Jake a look.

Jake nodded back at her, taking a deep breath.

"Lexy? Jake?"

Jake scrunched his face up and lifted his hands, tightening them around Michelle's throat.

Lexy busied herself with collecting the few necessities Caroline didn't lose in the fire into suitcases, trying her hardest to drown out the sound of her mom coughing and gasping for air. She ran to the front door, pulling the suitcases behind her. She needed to get her and her sister back out of that house, and for good this time. She sighed in relief as she heard the corpse fall to the ground, running outside with Jake right behind her.

"Think anyone in this shithole's gonna miss her?" He asked, wrapping a protective arm around her.

"Doubt it." Lexy scoffed, pressing a kiss to Caroline's forehead.

"Lexy, can we get McDonald's for dinner tonight?" Caroline asked.

"We'll ask aunt Tiff." Jake promised.

"Ok."

"Come on. I'll drive." Jake smiled, holding up the car keys he took from Michelle.

"Wh- Jake, we're fourteen." Lexy stared at him wide eyed.

"We'll be fine." Jake assured her and opened the door.

Lexy eyed him skeptically but got Caroline back in the car without a fight, buckling her in. She climbed into the passenger seat and buckled up as Jake started the drive back to the hospital.

"Hey." Lexy piped up.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for getting rid of her so she wouldn't come looking for us." Lexy smiled.

"Lexy, anything for you two." Jake promised.

"Thank you. I really appreciate that." Lexy said genuinely, looking up when they got back to the hospital. She helped Caroline back out again and walked to Junior's room with Jake, blinking as she heard Tiffany cackle her way through a story about her and Chucky. "Hey, we're back. We brought some of Care's stuff with us. Trust me, you don't wanna know what she's like without it. The other stuff can be replaced soon."

"Hey, guys." Junior mumbled, munching on ice chips.

"Hey." Devon smiled, high fiving Jake.

"Oh, my other babies are back!" Tiffany smiled, pressing kisses to their cheeks.

"Hey, aunt Tiff." Lexy said awkwardly, cringing inwardly. She would have to get used to that, though it would be a long time before she could. "Um, Caroline told us she wants McDonald's for dinner tonight. Is that ok?" She asked, placing Caroline on the floor to explore as she liked.

"Sure, I'll pick up some Mickey D's for the little princess! What do you want, Baby girl?" Tiffany asked in her nasal voice, patting her head.

"A McChicken, french fries, chicken nuggets, and apple juice." Caroline ordered, playing with the braids Lexy put in her hair.

"Baby Girl's got an appetite, huh?" Tiffany joked with Lexy, making her chuckle.

"She does like her food. What few foods she will eat."

"What things won't she eat?" Jake asked, ready to take mental notes.

"Oh, she's big on McDonald's specifically. She'll only eat frozen bananas. Sometimes Granny Smith apples. Green grapes. Not the red ones. She hates those. Uh, she likes garlic bread, pepperoni, just not on pizza, most vegetables, and her favorite chocolate is Snickers." Lexy listed off the top of her head, smiling at the group.

"Woah." Devon breathed.

"You know your sister well, huh?" Jake asked, an impressed smile on his face.

"Oh, yeah. Just sisterly things."

"That's really cute." Junior noted.

Lexy shrugged, looking down when Caroline patted her hip. "Do you want something?"

"I want my blankie. I want my blankie. I want my blankie." Caroline demanded so Lexy fished it out of the baby pink suitcase, handing it to her quickly.

"Aww, I love my new little family." Tiffany smiled, scrunching her nose up.

"Love you, too, aunt Tiff." Junior grinned.

[thedefinitionofendgame]

A New Adventure

Marina and Surrera (+ kids) one-shot | Rated G | Canonverse

A/N: Just some cute Marina-centric (with Surrera too ofc) fluff about graduation and moving on to a different part in life. Features Marina’s son and the Surrera trio. I love both couples and love when I think of a fic that can include both of them :) enjoy!

•

You can read this work on ao3 and fanfiction.net as well

Written & cover by@thedefinitionofendgame (aka me)

The sun was shining and the birds were chirping. For April, it was surprisingly sunny and warm; there were no clouds in sight. It was perfect weather for the special event that was to take place today because in a few short hours, Maya and Carina's son would walk across the stage at his graduation ceremony. He would graduate from one part of life, and walk onward to a new adventure in life. The child they argued on conceiving for years would adjust his cap, straighten his too-big gown and put on a brave smile before stepping out for the crowd.

His three biggest supporters besides his moms, would be cheering the loudest from their designated seats in the third row, six seats in from the aisle. Non-biological cousins who were raised as his siblings because the young boy didn't have any "real" ones. He was his moms' one and only miracle. But Andy and Sullivan's kids—two girls and a boy—were all the love he needed. Emilia had done her walk years before; she was six years older than her cousin. The twins, Clara and Tanner were closer to his age, but still two years older. For their cousin’s graduation though, the trio were on their best behaviour and had put on their fanciest clothes.

Carina wiped her eyes and Maya moved a hand behind her wife's back to pat her lightly. She had tears in her own eyes yet felt the need to keep it together. Sullivan was put in charge of video-taping, as he was the least likely to get emotional and cry. Andy leaned over to Maya and whispered, "I cried when all three of their names were called."

Maya nodded. She remembered having to console her best friend about her own kids growing up before, and now it was finally Maya’s turn. She had never been prouder of her son until this moment. He had overcome so many mountains but those never stopped his short legs. He just kept climbing, more often than not with a smile on his face. Soon, people began to shush one another, as the announcer walked across the stage with a microphone in hand. The ceremony was about to begin!

“Good afternoon everyone. My name is Georgia Davis, and I am so happy you could join us today.” Pause for a polite smattering of applause. “While we know how anxious you are to watch your not-so-little ones walk across the stage, we ask for your patience as we read through their names. This is one of our largest classes yet to graduate. Let’s give our kids a huge round of applause!”

This time the clapping wasn’t forced and nearly deafened the room. After waiting for the noise to settle down, Ms. Davis began to read down her list. Maya and Carina’s son would be near the top, as his hyphenated last name gave him the alphabetical advantage. Bishop came before DeLuca in the alphabet, which was one of the reasons Maya’s last name was first on his birth certificate. For Andy and Sullivan’s kids, they had decided whose last name went first the same way; Herrera won out over Sullivan.

"Andrew Bishop-DeLuca." Maya snapped her attention back to the stage, stopping her day dream. She couldn’t believe she almost missed the moment her son walked out because she was thinking about last names of all things! The teacher smiled and began clapping. Seconds later, a young boy walked across the stage, head held proudly. He had Carina’s brown hair, blue eyes like Maya and walked just like the man he was named after. He was every bit as trouble as the late Andrew DeLuca as well, but just as kind too. Sometimes, Maya knew that it hurt Carina to watch their son embody someone Carina had grown up alongside. Though they both wouldn’t change it for the world, because their child was still unique in his own way.

"Little Andy's all grown up," the real Andy said. Maya and Carina's son had been named after Carina's deceased brother and dubbed with the nickname "Little Andy" after Maya's best friend. It fit him perfectly because some of his aunt’s fiery personality had rubbed off onto him. Whenever he sassed his moms, they blamed it on Andy.

In the middle of the stage, Andrew turned and waved at his family, ignoring the clear instructions he had been given at home to shake the teacher’s hand and not look for his moms. Everyone laughed though, and both Maya and Carina were too proud to be upset. The teacher was ready for this, and gently placed his scroll in his hands, and directed him off stage. Sullivan smiled over from his seat farther down the row; he had gotten the whole thing on video.

After Andrew’s turn, his row of supporters sat quietly and just simply watched everyone else. Georgia Davis had been right when she said this was the largest class in a while, as a total of thirty two graduates crossed the stage. When at last everyone had gone, and many parents were crying, Ms. Davis returned and thanked everyone for coming. More speeches and awards would be given out later. It was now time for refreshments and a chance to stretch after sitting for so long.

Outside, Carina was still sobbing quietly against Maya's shoulder. "We're gonna be empty nesters soon! I can't believe it,” the Italian woman said sadly.

Maya rolled her eyes. She totally supported her wife's emotions today of all days, but calling them “empty nesters” was being a little dramatic. "Babe, he's only graduating from preschool. He starts kindergarten in September, and will be with us for at least another fourteen years. We'll be okay." She had to hold in a chuckle, as she wrapped an arm around Carina.

"Only fourteen years! That'll pass in seconds! We should've had more kids!" Carina wailed, while Maya refrained from telling Carina that having Andrew almost killed her and that another child wasn't going to be possible. Like ever.

Andy sidled over and chose to make matters worse by saying, "I've only got twelve years left with the twins, in that case. And ten with Emilia." Maya's best friend looked like she was going to cry as well, and Maya couldn't handle two crying women, so she had to do something. Quickly. So she grabbed both of their hands and forced them to look at they're not-so-baby-like babies. The Fantastic Four—a cheesy nickname dubbed for all their kids—were now playing on the mini playground. Tanner, who took his role as an “older cousin” very seriously, was helping Andrew climb the jungle gym. Emilia and Clara were running around, probably scuffing up their shoes in true Herrera-Sullivan kid fashion. Sullivan was standing nearby, a grim expression on his face. He now had three headstrong women living in his house and sometimes it was almost too much to bear. But he loved them and his son more than anything else in the world.

Sullivan noticed them watching and waved, a smile lighting up his entire face when he saw his wife. Maya still sometimes wondered how her best friend and the ex-battalion chief managed to get together despite their odds at first. One look at the chemistry between them would answer all ones' questions. They were just made for each other. Sullivan was back to being Fire Chief Sullivan, a title he most definitely hung over Andy's head. Andy had finally made Captain at Station 19 four and a half years prior. Maya stepped down completely by her own accord when Carina got pregnant; having a family meant more to her than any title, now. It was a good thing she stepped down as well, because Carina was hospitalized for nearly five months and someone had to take care of Little Andy at home that entire time.

Andy waved back at her husband, and left Maya and Carina to go stand beside him. Carina was calming down, thankfully, and stared at the big, blue sky above. She rested her head on Maya’s shoulder, even though the blonde was shorter, and sighed. Maya gently reached up to wind her fingers around Carina’s curls. Her wife had once said that was calming, so Maya did it often now. They stood together, thinking about different things probably, but under one general consensus; their son was growing up way too fast. It seemed like just yesterday they were holding him together in the Labour and Delivery wing of Grey-Sloan Memorial. That was before Carina began hemorrhaging and needed lifesaving surgery, of course. But the two moms had had two peaceful hours with their new baby. Together, as a family of three. Maya had looked at her son and thought, so this is what unconditional love is. She had sworn she would love her son for whatever he accomplished, no matter how big or small. She wouldn’t push him to the point of abuse and yell at him if he came second. She would love his other mom more than the world, and make up for all the pain her parents had put her through. Speaking of her parents, Maya’s mom asked for a picture of Andrew today, as she wasn’t exactly invited to the ceremony. Technically anyone could come, but Maya had specifically told her family that it was “parents only” and just left out the fact that Andy, Sullivan and their kids had attended for Andrew. Although Andrew didn’t even care that his grandparents weren’t present; all that mattered to him were his cousins.

“Andrew, Mommy wants to get some pictures of you. Is that okay?” Maya asked, taking Carina with her as she headed over to the jungle gym where the kids were playing. Carina pulled out her cellphone and handed it to Maya, who was ready to capture whatever smile Andrew gave them. Sometimes he was silly, especially around the twins.

Maya’s reply was a fit of giggling from the kids. She raised an eyebrow at them but apparently didn’t come across stern enough. Andy ended up clearing her throat, which caused Emilia to smarten up. She prompted her siblings to listen and Tanner nudged Andrew, who guiltily turned to his mom. He was only four, though, so it wasn’t too much of a surprise that he took longer to listen.

“Do you want us in the picture Auntie Maya?” Emilia asked, gesturing to herself and her siblings.

“Of course.” Maya let them all strike a pose in front of the playground. She clicked away and let Carina try to make them laugh behind her. Sullivan put an arm around his wife, and they just watched the four kids goof off. After the candid moments of sorts, Maya did get Andrew to pose with a proper smile on his face. The twins ambled over to their parents and though they were getting too big to be carried, Andy held Tanner on her hip while Sullivan scooped up Clara. Emilia stood in front of them and they looked ready for a picture. Maya also seemed to think so, and turned the camera on them. “Smile!”

The Herrera-Sullivan’s smiled like their lives depended on it. “Want me to take pictures of you three?” Andy offered, putting Tanner down.

Maya handed her phone over in answer. “Do you want to sit on my shoulders, Bambino?” That was another one of Andrew’s nicknames, dubbed by his Italian mother. Maya was doing her best to learn Carina’s dialect but still could barely keep a basic conversation. Ten year old Emilia was better than her Auntie Maya, and Italian was just one of the four she was learning. Besides English, all the Herrera-Sullivan kids had been taught Spanish. The twins were just starting German and Italian, while Emilia was half fluent in both. It amazed Maya how quickly kids could pick up another language. Andrew was even interested in Italian, though it was mostly because the twins were learning it. He was a bit of a copycat at four years old.

Andrew held out his arms for his mom to pick him up. Maya hoisted her son over her head and he let out a giggle. Carina smoothed down his small collared shirt and straightened his pants, before turning towards the camera. They all smiled really big as Andy snapped picture after picture. As image after image was taken, Maya couldn’t help but wonder where she would be right now if she hadn’t changed her mind about kids. It had taken quite a lot of convincing from her Italian wife—plus babysitting Emilia and the twins constantly—before Maya felt like she was ready to become a mother. Craning her neck to look at Andrew now, everything made sense. Everything had worked out and Andrew was perfect. Of course Maya was being biased because he was her son, yet she couldn’t help it! It was a parent’s right to think their child was perfect even though sometimes they did things that drove them crazy.

Andrew had a habit of copying everything someone said, for either three sentences or three hours. It was very aggravating and Maya had accidentally raised her voice at him a couple times. He also refused to pick up toys—cancelling his cousins coming over was the only thing that made him do chores at this point. But those were small things and they were part of growing up. Heck, Maya knew she did things that probably drove her wife and son crazy. Maybe by the time Andrew graduated high school, their bad habits would be gone. One could only hope.

“Should we head back to our place now?” Maya asked, pocketing the cellphone Andy returned to her. The families had planned for a sleepover with all the cousins plus ice cream and more treats at home. They only lived a ten minute drive from the preschool.

The happy screams that followed were enough. Andy, Sullivan and their kids left first, giving Maya and Carina a moment alone with just Andrew. Carina didn’t say anything, but enveloped Andrew in a hug, that he returned with a smile on his face. “I’m so proud of you, Bambino. Mamma loves you.”

“Mommy loves you too.” Maya crouched down and opened her arms for a group hug. “We are both so proud of you, Andrew. We always will be. You can always count on us to love you for whoever you become.” Together Maya and Carina would fix the mistakes their own parents made and teach their son acceptance and kindness no matter what. It was only right.

Andrew pulled away from the hug and cupped his moms faces in his hands; first Carina, then Maya. “I love you Mamma. I love you Mommy.” Pause. “Now can we go eat ice cream and play with my cousins?”

Both of his moms let out a laugh. “Yes sweet boy, we can. Today is your day! Are you excited to start Kindergarten in the fall?” Maya got Andrew all buckled up and then began the drive towards home.

“Sorta. Tanner says it’s fun. Clara doesn’t like art but I like art!” Andrew informed them. “I didn’t ask Emmy yet. It’s gooder than fifth grade I bet. Uncle Sully says he’s too old to remember Kindergarten, even though I asked him.” In the front passenger seat, Carina snickered. Sullivan hated the fact that people called him ‘Sully’, especially attached to something as endearing as ‘uncle’. Jack Gibson had taught all the firestation kids what to call everyone to get under their skin just a little. Ever since Andrew had heard his Uncle Sullivan’s nickname, ‘Sully’ was the only name he used. While Sullivan was chagrined about it, Andy loved her nephew for using it to bug her husband.

From the driver’s seat, Maya replied, “I’m sure it is buddy.” In the rear-view mirror, Maya looked at her son and smiled. He was looking more like Carina every day, just with blue eyes. Carina was biologically related to Andrew, conceived with the help of a sperm donor. But he was just as much Maya’s as he was Carina’s, and shared more personality traits with her than his ‘Mamma’. He was smart and caring and worked hard for the most part; just like Maya. He was handsome and sweet and loved life, just like Carina. Though preschool graduation was big, high school graduation was going to be bigger.

Like Andy said before, in eight years Emilia would graduate high school. In twelve years, the twins would follow suit. And Andrew would bring up the rear fourteen years from now. Each time all four adults would cry and wish their babies stayed little for just a while longer. They would marvel over what the kid was like as a baby, as a child and as a teen. Comparing who they were before, and who they had become. Maya knew she wasn’t ready to think about Andrew’s future past Kindergarten, but sometimes she wondered.

Whatever he did with his life, he would be good at it. He would do his best and smile and try to get better no matter what. That was something good Maya had passed on to him. Andrew Bishop-DeLuca was a force to be reckoned with and everything he would one day overcome, would only make him stronger. Though what would never change, would be the undying love and support of his moms. Of his cousins and aunt and uncle. Friends he would meet along the way. Maybe a partner down the road. Andrew was going to love and be loved, that was something Maya was certain about. Even if he was only four years old.

The two families would cheers later, with ice cream cake forks and a small sip of champagne for the adults. They would congratulate Andrew and give him hugs and advice for the future. His cousins would tell him all they could remember about Kindergarten, and Uncle Sully would claim he couldn't remember his days in school, then come up with some crazy tale about his life that had everyone in awe but also giggling. Andy would reminisce about her own kids’ graduations in the past and those to come in the future. Carina would cry more tears and Maya would brush them away like she always did. Life would go on, and things would be okay as long as they remembered they would always have each other.

To new beginnings and new adventures with love always guiding the way.

[spacesuitsforemergency]

The Rise Of Iron Maiden

Chapter 4: Failure to Launch

Word Count: 2.9k

Originally Requested by: @amateurwriterbigdreamer

Previous Chapter: We’re in the Endgame Now

Next Chapter: The Return Of Iron Maiden

A/N: this chapters kinda slow, but I gotta fill the plot. Next chapters gonna be pretty Tye heavy (mostly from his POV)

“Wrah!” Nebula stood up, putting her hands in a fighting stance.

“You don't need to do that. Because uh... you're just holding position.” Tony mimicked a football goalpost with his hands as she flicked a paper football towards him. “Oh yeah, that was close.”

“I would like to try again.”

You and Tye watched from the front of the ship, both of you previously watching the stars. Both of you are silent, neither of you wanting to talk. You were still too shaken up from the events of nearly last month. Nebula had attempted to fly you back to Earth, but the Milano broke down and now you were floating in space, hopeless.

“Fair game. Good sport. Have fun?” Your dad asked Nebula.

“It was...fun.” She nodded slowly.

“Tye, Y/N, wanna play?” Tony looked over to the two kids.

“I’m good.” Tye mumbled.

“Hey, come on.” Your dad urged. “It’s fun. Right, Nebula?”

“It is fun.” She nodded, face deadpanned. Tye sighed, but eventually joined them.

“Y/N?” Your dad offered.

“Um...I’m tired, I’m gonna go sleep for a little bit.” You give him a small smile as if to say you were okay, before retreating to the back of the ship towards the bedrooms.

You lay down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. You think about everyone at home, and the frustration of not knowing who was still alive. Were Eduardo, Jaime, Peter, Quill, Drax, Mantis and Doctor Strange still alive? Or did they die? Would they ever come back? Could you bring them back?

Usually Eduardo was there to tell you you were overthinking and to calm you down, but he was gone. He turned to dust in your hands, and you couldn’t do anything about it. You hated it when you couldn’t control something, much like your father. If you couldn’t protect the ones you loved, you felt useless. You felt guilty, believing it was your fault that Eduardo, Jaime and Peter were gone. You were even guilty about the Guardians of the Galaxy, even though you barely knew them.

You looked over at your pile of armor on the floor. You dragged yourself out of bed, sitting against it. You clicked a button on your helmet, and waited for it to light up.

“This thing on?” You ask nobody in particular, then let it scan you. “Alright. Hey mom. Uh...sorry for not listening to dad. Again. I should be down on Earth, I’m sorry I’m worrying you. Dad makes you do that enough already.” You chuckle softly. “Um...it’s day 22, just floating in space. The blue meanie tried to fly us back. You’d like her, she’s very practical. It’s only her, me, dad, and Tye left. He doesn’t talk much-well, not that he did before. He’s pretty broken over Jaime. Peters gone too, poor kid. Aunt Mays gonna kill him. Um...I lost Eduardo. He just...turned into dust. I couldn’t do anything about it...I really miss him, mom. I won’t miss him much longer though, in fact, I might see him in the next...48 hours of oxygen. It won’t last long with four people on here though. I didn’t think I’d die like this, it’s so pathetic.” You scoff and shake your head. “I thought I’d die saving people. I want to die saving people, that’s how I’ve always wanted to go but...nope. I’m gonna die because this piece of junk broke down in the middle of the universe. So uh...I’m gonna go play some paper football with the two grumps and dad. I’m really sorry, mom. All you do is put up with our shit, and tell us when to stop. I should’ve listened this time.” You go to turn it off, quickly saying, “I love you.”

You fall back against the bed, feeling lightheaded and dizzy. The low oxygen levels are already effecting you, which meant your dad and friend were both feeling them too. You wanted to go join them, but you couldn’t move your whole body enough to do so. You lied there, staring at your Iron Maiden suit. The suit you used to save people, but you couldn’t even save yourself. You failed Eduardo. Jaime. Peter. Quill. Drax. Mantis. Doctor Strange. And who knows who else.

You feel yourself being lifted off the ground, and you look up to see Nebula. She was mostly machine, so the lack of oxygen wasn’t effecting her as bad as you. She carried you over to a couch that she had dragged into the control room, facing the window. Your dad was sitting in the middle, Tye beside him. Nebula sat you on his other side, then left.

Tony gathered enough strength to lift his arms, resting them around the two kids’ shoulders and pulling them closer to him. He wanted to comfort them, but he couldn’t speak. You all stared out at the stars, awaiting your deaths.

•

A bright light pierced your brain, making you cringe as you wake up. You open your eyes and blink until they adjust. You see a woman outside of the ship, looking in. You weakly shake your dads leg, trying to alert him. His hand rests atop of yours to tell you he’s okay, as he slowly sits up a little.

“Who’s that?” Tye mumbles, half asleep.

“Not sure, kid.” Tony replied. You pass out again, not able to hold consciousness. You wake up again when someone shakes you awake, opening your eyes to see your dads best friend, Rhodey.

“Y/N? Hey, think you can stand?” He asked softly. You nod, and he helps you to your feet you lean on him as he walks you down the ramp to outside.

“Is mom...?” You breathe out, still blinking away black spots in your vision.

“Y/N! Tony!” You hear her yell from somewhere, before Rhodey can even open his mouth. “Oh my god! Oh my god!”

Your mom practically crashed into you, holding you tightly to her. You fall into her, not having the strength to stand any longer. Your dad walks by himself over to his two girls, hugging them tightly. Back in space, he truly thought those would be his last moment, so he was eternally grateful that he got to live long enough to hold them both again.

Tye watched the scene from where Natasha was helping him stand, feeling alone. His mother was in a different dimension than him, and Tye felt like she probably didn’t even miss him.

“Nat?” He breathed out.

“What’s up?” She asked, looking down at the exhausted boy.

“You have food that isn’t freeze dried and in a silver bag, right?” He asked.

“Yeah, come on.” She chuckled, helping him walk towards the Compound.

“Don’t you two ever do that again.” Pepper began to cry.

“No promises.” Tony kissed each of his girls on top of the head, as Steve approached you guys. “Couldn’t stop him, Cap.”

“Neither could I.” Steve nodded.

“I lost the kids. Peter. Jaime. Eduardo.” Tony shook his head, guilt washing over him once again.

“Tony, we all lost.”

You’re brought into the compound, each immediately given an IV and some food. You and Tye eat like animals, not having any rations for the past couple of days. You watch a holographic screen listing the heroes that disappeared in the Decimation; Wanda Maximoff, Nick Fury, Jaime Reyes, Bucky Barnes, Peter Quill, Scott Lang, Sam Wilson, Peter Parker, T’Challa, Eduardo Dorado Jr...

“It’s been 23 days since Thanos came to Earth.” Rhodey announced.

“World governments are in pieces. The parts that are still working are trying to take a census. And it looks like he did... he did exactly what he said he was gonna do. Thanos wiped out fifty percent, of all living creatures.” Natasha paced slowly in front of the holographs.

“Where is he?” You ask timidly, still nervous about him.

“We don't know. He just opened a portal and walked through.” Bruce Banner said slowly, trying to not scare the kids even more than they already were.

“What's wrong with him?” Tony asked, motioning to Thor, who was staring into space.

“Oh, he's pissed. He thinks he failed. Which of course he did, but you know there's a lot of that's going around, ain't there?” A talking raccoon spoke up from behind you.

“Honestly, until this exact second, I thought you were a Build-A-Bear.” Your dad pointed at him.

“You’re with him, kid? Really?” The raccoon looked at Tye.

“You know a talking raccoon?” You asked Tye, staring at the raccoon.

“He’s not a-.”

“I’m not a raccoon!” It snapped at you. “Why do you humies keep saying that?”

“We've been hunting Thanos for three weeks now. Deep Space scans, and satellites, and we got nothing. Tony, Y/N, Tye, you fought him.” Steve interrupted.

“Who told you that? I didn't fight him.” Tony scoffed. “No, he wiped my face with a planet while the Bleecker Street Magician gave away the store. Nearly killed my daughter, and Tye. One hit away from it, in fact. That's what happened. There was no fight.”

“Okay.”

“He was unbeatable.” Tye shook his head, and you agreed.

“Did he give you any clues, any coordinates, anything?” Captain America asked.

“Pfft! I saw this coming a few years back. I had a vision. I didn't wanna believe it. Thought I was dreaming.” Tony said.

“Dad, calm down.”

“Tony, I’m gonna need you to focus.”

“And I needed you. As in past tense. That trumps what you need. It's too late buddy. Sorry. You know what I need?” Your dad stood up, slapping things off a table. Everyone winced from the sudden noise. “I need to shave. And I believe I remember telling all youse-“

Tony lunges at Steve, but Rhodey stepped between them and held your dad back.

“Alive and otherwise what we needed was a suit of armor around the world! Remember that? Whether it impacted our precious freedoms or not-that's what we needed!” Tony yelled at Steve.

“Well, that didn't work out, did it?” Steve kept his composure, only angering your father even more.

“I said, "we'd lose". You said, "We'll do that together too." And guess what, Cap? We lost. And you weren't there. But that's what we do, right? Our best work after the fact? We're the Avengers, we're the Avengers. Not the Prevengers.”

“Dad! Stop!” You shout at him, your head spinning.

“You know what, honey? The adults are talking, alright?” Your dad said, with a little more venom than he intended.

“Mr. Stark you made your point just-“ Tye started.

“Nah, nah. Here's my point. You know what?” Tony turned back to glare at Captain America.

“Tony, you’re sick.” Rhodey insisted, trying to get him to sit back down.

“I got nothing for you, Cap! I got no coordinates, no clues, no strategies, no options. Zero. Zip. Nada. No trust. Liar.” Tony slowly walked up to Steve, getting right in his face. You all tensed when Tony ripped his arc reactor out of his chest, smacking it into Steve’s hand. “Here, take this. You find him, and you put that on. You hide.”

“Dad!” You shout when he suddenly falls to the ground.

“Tony!” Steve reached down to help his old friend up.

“I’m fine. I...” Your dad trails off, falling unconsciously to the floor. You try to get up, but Natasha pushes you back down by your shoulders.

“Get him to a room. Call Pepper.” Natasha ordered the men, before turning back to you two. “He’ll be fine, Y/N. Just needs to rest. So do you.”

“Not tired.” You shook your head stubbornly.

“Nebula, Rocket, think you can handle watching them for a moment?” She asked the two aliens, sitting on the wall behind you.

“Yes.” Nebula nodded.

“Sure.” The raccoon, or, Rocket shrugged.

Natasha gave you a reassuring smile before turning to help the other bring your father to a room.

“Sorry about your friend, kid.” Rocket hopped down and rounded the couch you and Tye were on to face him.

“Yeah. Sorry about the others.” Tye nodded, expression not changing at all. Your eyes drifted back to the screen, watching more and more names and pictures appear onscreen.

“Where are you going?” You hear Natasha ask someone.

“To kill Thanos.” The lady that flew you home stated simply as they emerged from the hallway.

“Hey, you know, we usually work as a team here, and between you and I, morale's a little fragile.” Nat mumbled.

“We realize up there is more your territory, but this is our fight too.” Steve nodded.

“You even know where he is?” Rhodey joined them.

“I know people who might.” The lady said, blank faced.

“Don't bother. I can tell you where Thanos is. Thanos spent a long time trying to perfect me. And when he worked, he talked about his great plan. Even disassembled, I wanted to please him. I'd ask "where would we go once his plan was complete?". His answer was always the same: "To the Garden." Nebula stood up, walking over to them.

“That's cute, Thanos has a retirement plan.” Rhodey joked, earning small smiles from you and Tye. He smiled back, glad to bring the two kids joy, even for a moment.

“So where is he?” Steve asked, and the adults walked over to a round table. You and Tye joined them, regaining enough strength to stand. You still leaned on Rhodey, which he happily let you do.

“When Thanos snapped his fingers, Earth became ground zero for a power surge of ridiculously cosmic proportions. No one's ever seen anything like it... Until two days ago.” Rocket showed a hologram of a planet, with a shockwave visibly traversing the surface. “On this planet.”

“Thanos is there.” Nebula added.

“He used the Stones again.” Natasha muttered.

“Hey, hey, hey. We'd be going in short-handed, you know.” Bruce piped up.

“Look, he's still got the stones, so...” Rhodey said.

“So let's get him... Use them to bring everyone back.” The lady told you.

“Just like that?” Tye raises an eyebrow in disapproval.

“Just like like.” Steve nodded.

“Even if there's a small chance that we can undo this... I mean we owe it to everyone who's not in this room to try.” Natasha tried to convince everyone. You looked down, feeling the guilt from letting your friends die in the pit of your stomach.

“If we do this, how do we know it's gonna end any differently than it did before?” Bruce asked.

“Because before, you didn't have me.” The lady crossed her arms.

“Hey, new girl, everyone here is about that superhero life. And if you don't mind my asking, where the hell have you been all this time?” Rhodey put a hand on his hip, making sure to balance so you wouldn’t fall.

“There are a lot of other planets in the universe. And unfortunately, they didn't have you guys.” The lady narrowed her eyes at Rhodey.

Thor walked out of the shadows, towards the lady. They stand in front of each other as if challenging the other. Thor holds out his hand, and Stormbreaker flies into his hand. Then they both grin at each other.

“I like this one.” Thor said.

“Let’s go get this son of a bitch.” You growl.

“Like hell you’re going!” Natasha laughed.

“No way, kids.” Steve shook his head. “Adults only on this one.”

“Would you quit treating us like children?” You glare at them.

“We probably got more punches in on Thanos than all of you combined.” Tye said venomously.

“First of all, not possible.” Natasha said. “Second of all, you are not coming. Tony and Pepper would go into cardiac arrest if you came along.”

You and Tye exchange looks, looking to the floor in compliance.

“Look, we know you’re hurting. But going at him all malnourished and seeking revenge is not the way to do it.” Rhodey told you guys.

“You’ll stay here with Tony and Pepper, okay?” Natasha asked. “Rest. Let us take care of this.”

“...okay.” You sigh.

“Thank you.” She pulled both of you into a hug. You melted into it, Tye tensed up.

You hugged each of the remaining Avengers, even Thor let you hug him, though he didn’t hug back. You and Tye stood and watched at they boarded the now fixed Milano, then watched them take off. You stood there for a little bit after, staring at the dark sky.

“Tye?” You whisper after a long stretch of silence.

“Yeah?”

“You think they can do it?” You ask

Tye hesitates. You’re scared, he’s scared, and both of you just want even a glimpse of hope. He debates what to tell you, what he truly thought or what he knew you wanted to hear.

“...no.”

You nod slowly, agreeing with him. A single tear falls down your face, dropping onto the paved pathway.

“I miss them, too.” Tye took a shaky breath, fighting his own tear ducts. He never cried, let alone in front of anyone.

“I’m sorry you lost Jaime.” You turn to him. “I know how much he meant to you. Eduardo too.”

“I’m sorry you lost Peter. You guys are as close as Jaime and I are. And I’m sorry you lost Eduardo, too.” Tye quickly blinked away tears.

“Can you believe they’re all gone?” You ask.

“No.” He shook his head. “I wish it could just be a month ago. When we were on that one mission.”

“The one where Jaime and Peter accidentally broke into Scott Lang’s house?” You giggle.

“How do you accidentally break in?” Tye laughed, shaking his head. “They’re truly idiots.”

“But they’re our idiots.” You nod, smiling sadly at the sky.

[jojo-at-his-computer]

Of course. I gotta say, this kinda makes me think of the song Pity Party, so I love it.

Josuke X Reader: Happy Birthday To You

It was a lovely morning in Morioh when you woke up, the smell of chocolate chip pancakes and bacon greeting you. You got up, washed your face, put on your favorite outfit, brushed your hair and went downstairs. Your dad was reading the newspaper while your Mom set your place at the table with your special breakfast.

"Happy birthday!" shouted Mom and Dad. You smiled. It was your 16th.

"Thank you guys!" you said sitting down to your meal, instantly drowning your pancakes in syrup and devouring them.

"Imagine that." said Dad in surprise "16! Almost a grown-up." He and Mom smiled proudly.

"Hurry up and eat, then we'll get the decorations put up." You beemed and you finished your breakfast, appetite invigorated.

As you went around the house putting up balloons and streamers in your favorite colors, your mind wandered. Your family had only moved to Morioh a few months ago. You ended up starting highschool in town as a first year, one of many new kids, and you ended up making a few new friends there. Your best friend was Josuke Higashikata, a classmate of yours. He was a pretty nice guy, though if someone were to make fun of his hair, he'd kick their ass. He had a unique pompadour haircut, and while you were a bit nervous to say so, you thought it was cute. You thought HE was cute. Okay just admit it, you were totally crushing on him, hard! You liked everything about him, his hair, his sapphire blue eyes, his smile, and on your first day of school, he saved you from a group of bullies that were trying to shove you into a locker. You've been wanting to confess your feelings to him, but you've been so nervous. You shook your head. Today's not the day to think about mushy stuff like that. Nope! Today's the day for celebration! It's your party and your day to shine!

After putting up the decorations, Mom told you to go ahead and relax in the living room for a few hours until the time that guests would arrive. You played some Mario for a bit, but after falling down and dying for the umpteenth time, you decided it'd be better to watch a few anime videotapes for the time being. But as you went to plug in the VCR, you heard Mom slam the phone in frustration.

"Just great!" shouted Mom. She shook her head and calmed her voice down to not upset you as much. "I'm sorry sweetie, but Grandpa is sick and can't make it, and I just got off the phone with your Aunt. She had an emergency meeting that's running late and had to cancel."

"Oh!" you said a bit surprised. "I'm sorry. That really sucks! I hope Grandpa gets better." You felt bad, but you also knew that your parents would try to get them together again and you all would get to do something special altogether, like a movie or dinner at a restaurant.

"I'll tell Grandpa you said that." said Mom. "It's about time for your friends to start arriving, why not wait in the sunroom to greet them." You glanced at the clock, about 5 til 4 pm, realizing she was right.

"Okay" you answered. You grabbed a copy of Shonen Jump to read as you awaited your friends arrival. 10 minutes, no one yet. That's okay, it's only 5 after 4. 30 minutes went by. Huh that's weird, but they must be running late. 45 minutes now. You start getting a little worried. An hour. You ended up finishing your Shonen Jump magazine. Out of fear and anger, you start pacing the floor in front of the door. Tears start to well up under your eyes. It's 5:15, more than an hour and no one shown up! Without giving it a 2nd thought, you cross to the phone in the kitchen. Mom asked you a question, but you ignored her, all you could think about was knowing why the hell you got stood up at your own party.

You dial Josuke's number at rapid fire speed, hearing the dial tone indicating the phone was ringing. You heard the gentle click as Josuke answered on the other end.

"Moshi moshi, this is Higashikata!" answered Josuke. You couldn't help but feel an odd sense of joy hearing his gentle voice, followed by anger and hurt that he wasn't at your party.

"Where were you!" you said suddenly shouting. Josuke was taken aback.

"(Name) is that you?" asked Josuke. "Where we supposed to hang out or something today? What's wrong?" All of the sudden you couldn't take it anymore and tears burst from you, not being able to hold it in anymore.

"I can't believe you didn't show up for my party!" you shouted "Nobody shown up, the party has been going on since four, and nobody came! Not even Grandpa or my aunt could make it!" you were heaving in-between sobs, shaking before you realized you heard Josuke ask something. You calmed down a bit before you asked him to repeat what he just said.

"Today's your birthday?" he asked.

"Yes of course it's my birthday! I sent you the -" you cut off when it clicked in your brain. You realized what might have happened, why nobody had shown up.

"You didn't get an invitation, did you?" you asked Josuke.

"I don't think so!" answered Josuke, "I wouldn't forget your party if I did."

"Oh my God!" you said feeling weak. "Of course! Something must have happened with the invitations! I'm so sorry. I should have known you'd make it. Well now the party is ruined and it's all my fault."

"Not yet!" answered Josuke. "Don't cancel the party yet. Give me about an hour, I promise."

"Okay." you answered, taking a deep breath. "I believe you, just get here as soon as you can." You hear the dial tone that the line is now dead. You breathed a sigh as you sat on the floor waiting. It was now 5:25. You waited some more. It was 5:55. You called Josuke's house again, but his mom picked up. However she did confirm that Josuke left awhile ago. You said thank you and hung up. At this point Mom looked in the front room where you were waiting.

"I'm sorry honey." she said hugging you. "It's been a couple hours, why don't you join us and we'll cut the cake."

"No mom, I know Josuke for sure is coming." You explained how you found out there was an apparent mailing mishap that prevented the invitations from reaching your friends. Mom shrugged.

"Okay." she said. "But if he doesn't show up before 7, we're cutting the cake without him."

"Deal" you said. You looked at the clock, it was now 6:15, nearly an hour since you spoke to him. Where could he be? Of course! He must be going to get me a present, you reasoned. No sooner you finished your thought, there's a knock at the door.

"Hello", you say as you answered the door. You opened it to find not only Josuke had arrived like he said he would, but he brought some friends with him too. There was Okuyasu and Koichi, two of your friends from school, and two people you didn't recognize, an old man with a white beard and glasses, and a man in his late 20's wearing a white hat that had "JO" on it. Everyone's arms were loaded with giftbags.

"Oh my gosh!" you gushed, "You guys made it! Josuke thank you for bringing everyone here." you said giving him a hug. "C'mon in guys." you motioned for everyone to come inside.

"Sorry we're late," said Josuke, "I called Koichi and Okuyasu, along with my, er, relatives, this is Joseph Joestar and Jotaro Kujo by the way." he said motioning to the old man and the man in white respectively. You remembered Josuke saying he had family members in town recently.

"Hello there," said Mr. Joestar.

"Hello," said Jotaro with a small smile.

"Nice to meet you. Thank you both for coming." you replied.

"We realized that we didn't have any presents." said Koichi.

"And we weren't sure what to get you." admitted Okuyasu.

"Yeah," said Josuke a bit embarrassed. "We kinda panicked and went to different stores. Sorry we didn't have time to wrap anything."

"That's okay!" you laughed. "You didn't have to get me all these presents. I'm happy to have you guys present! (God that's such a terrible pun lol) I'm so glad everyone's here." You led everyone to the kitchen, having the guests put their gifts on one of the tables. There was a whole table with pizzas and potato chips and soda pops, you told the guests to help themselves. You made conversation with your friends and Josuke's relatives as you enjoyed your pizza. Jotaro talked about his marine biology work he's been doing in town. Later you opened presents from your friends. After that, your parents brought out the cake, frosted with pastel buttercream and had 16 candles all aglow. Everyone sang Happy Birthday as you blew the candles, making your wish.

Shortly after the cake and ice cream, the guests started to leave. You said goodbye and thanked everyone for coming. Josuke decided to hang around a little bit before going home. The sun had set and it was nighttime. You and Josuke decided to sit in the backyard and look at the stars.

"I'm so sorry I yelled at you earlier," you said a bit embarrassed.

"Hey, don't worry about it." said Josuke. "I'm sorry I forgot your birthday. I probably should have called earlier, but I forgot, I've just had a lot on my mind lately." You nodded understandably. You couldn't exactly put your finger on it, but a lot of weird stuff was happening lately in town.

"Anyways," said Josuke, pulling out something from his jacket pocket, "I kinda lied. I had something special I've been wanting to give you. I got this awhile ago." It was a small rectangle shaped box. You opened it and inside was a gold medallion necklace with two gold charms, a heart and a peace sign, just like the gold pins he wears on his uniform.

"Oh my, this is beautiful!" you exclaimed. "I love it. Thank you!"

"I'm glad you love it!" said Josuke blushing a little. You sighed. Guess the time is now to tell him.

"So, I've been wanting to tell you for awhile. I've had a crush on you since I started school here. I think you're cute, I love your hair, and I ended up making friends here thanks to you, and I want to be more than friends, but I was so nervous to tell you because I'm afraid you wouldn't like me that way and then things would be awkward and - "

You were interrupted when Josuke suddenly gave you a quick kiss. Both of you blushed a bright red.

"I'm sorry." said Josuke blushing a bit. "I've been wanting to tell you too. That's why I got you the medallion."

"Thank you so much." you say happily. "Now that we're together, you want to see a movie or something this weekend?"

"That sounds great!" says Josuke. You put on the madallion necklace, smiling at Josuke.

"You look beautiful!" said Josuke smiling. You happened to look at your watch, it was about a quarter to 10.

"Oh crap! It's late! You got to get home!" you said in surprise.

"Oh God you're right!" said Josuke looking at the time. "Meet you at the movies this weekend?"

"Of course." you answered. You gave him a kiss goodbye and walked him to the front door. You waved goodbye as he left, then went to help Mom clean up and put away the party decorations. While it had a rocky start, it turned out to be an amazing party. You thought about the wish you made when you blew out the candles, it had come true. You wished to kiss Josuke.

[maxthegayplantartist]

1. coffee mugs 2. chocolate 3. bubblegum 4. good student (i had a lot of fun teachers) 5. i dont drink soda, but with monster i usually drink it from a reusale water bottle 6. either grunge or goth 7. earbuds 8. both 9. its just rained, the sun's out now, im dragging the cushion from the bench putting on the sidewalk in the sun and reading 10. none 11. i dont eat breakfast often (unless eating half my pretzels when i get to school counts) 12. "Clypsie's lore playlist" (its on one of my spotify accounts, its for one of my ocs im developing) 13. keyring 14. sour patch kids 15. i didn't like any of them, we read hatchet for the one, and i forget the name of the other but it was so boring (keep in mind i LOVE reading) 16. i like sitting one leg like im sitting criss-cross and the other one pulled up to my chest

17. my knock-off black docs (we're working my way up to real ones) 18. 65-70 degrees f and sunny, or stormy and slightly breezy but still warm so i can open the window 19. i sleep holding one pillow to my face, under abt ten blankets, on my side 20. laptop 21. care bears 22. annabeth chase from pjo 23. i have a bean bag chair and it has a hole in it and i like using my nails to like slice the tiny little foam packing peanut type things 24. moonstone or selenite 25. "you are my sunshine" my grandma used to sing me it when i was little and she's push me in the swing in the backyard 26. read out in the sun 27. watch movies and drink hot chocolate by myself 28. two- sleeping at last, get jinxed- riot games, buzzcut season- lorde, haunt you- X lovers ft. Chloe moriondo, i wanna be with you- chloe moriondo 29. obsessing ovr a show, or book series with me, quality time, respecting my boundaries 30. when im with my best friend, my grandma's backyard, and the tree in my grandma's front yard

31. my vest (looks like the top of a suit minus the sleeves its so cute), my white lace shirt, my steampunk goggles (when they get here), my knock off docs, and some black leggings 32. ITS THE BUTTA DAWG, ITS THE DAWG WITH THE BUTTER ON IT, THE BUTTER DAWG 33. "your mom" (in general too not just on my phone) 34. "The snack that smiles back! G O L D F I S H" 35. about 2:30-3:00 36. the pop cat 37. duffel bag 38. tea 39. ive never had either ;-; 40. i like blanked out for a good minute and was like super dizzy and had to shake my head a ton to stop it 41. my best friend

42. pant pockets

43. either hoodie or leather jacket 44. whatever soap my aunt gets it smells amazing 45. F A N T A S Y 46. my flufy stitch onsie 47. mozzerella 48. nah you misunderstand, im already fruity (probably a cocnut) 49. "power, REAL power, doesn't come to those who were BORN fastes, or strongest or smartest, it comes to those willing to do ANYTHING to achive it" (the one thing i wont do is sacrifice my bestie) 50.sonic had ptsd 51. school, keeping my friends happy, my parents arguing 52. cinzel decorative 53. i drew crowns on my hands earlier 54. i havent had a job yet im 13 ;-; 55. beauty and the beast 56. now that my parents know i know santa's not real (i let them go on with it for the past few years, cause they enjoyed it) i now get at least one cookie on christmas eve 57. i ran away nearly a year ago (im doing a lot better), the summer of 2020 had a lot of unaliving thoughts, i havent had any scratches for 3(? i think) months now 58. im a good artist, good singer, i always know how to make my bestfriend laugh, and aparently i give amazing headpats 59. "IM GONNA PUNT YOU OFF A CLIFF" 60. slice of life 61. "power, REAL power, doesn't come to those who were BORN fastes, or strongest or smartest, it comes to those willing to do ANYTHING to achive it"- Silco Arcane, Season 1 Episode 3 62. jinx, C! niki, Luna lovegood, Rayla, Mistuba Souske, Rachel Dare, Biana Vacker 63. talk to much- COIN, Crush- Tessa violet, daisy 2.0- Ashniko ft. hatsune miku, slumber party- Ashniko, Black magic- Little mix 64. cool math games 65. two matching spots on the top of my ankles (they're not birthmarks, they showed up in like 3rd grade) 66. sunflowers, allium, and violets 67. sadly not yet

68. grape flavored stuff, it doesnt eve taste like grape it tastes like stale purple 69. you can only go ten days without sleeping before you die 70. right handed 71. polka dots, on anything other than solid color 72. language arts (i love reading and stuff but all my language arts teachers go WAY to fast 73. never taken advil or ibuprofen 74. i think i was 6? 75. waffle fries 76. i actually only have one plant and technically its an outdoor plant but i brought it in cause its winter 77. never had either (mom wont let me drink coffee yet, and we've never got sushi 78.i dont have a drivers liscence so seeing as its non-existent, my yearbook photo 79. both 80. fireflies

81. pc 82. both 83. podcasts 84. barbie 85. MYTHOLOGY 86. combine them somehow, i will find a way 87. losing my best friend 88. to live somewhere nice, with my bestie (or my future wife but i doubt i'll ever have one ;-;) working on my fashion lines 89. my best friend, even if i fall in love bestie comes first 90. i've never really had any luck mistakes 91. bags 92. fairylights 93. farquaad (LOOOOOONG story), beshtie 94. right when its transitioning from summer to fall 95. spotify, procreate, minecraft, or discord 96. my latest finished drawing 97. 2, my mom and my bestie 98. ancient greece

weird asks that say a lot

in

1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans?

2. chocolate bars or lollipops?

3. bubblegum or cotton candy?

4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you?

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups?

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear?

7. earbuds or headphones?

8. movies or tv shows?

9. favorite smell in the summer?

10. game you were best at in p.e.?

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?

12. name of your favorite playlist?

13. lanyard or key ring?

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

16. most comfortable position to sit in?

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

18. ideal weather?

19. sleeping position?

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)?

21. obsession from childhood?

22. role model?

23. strange habits?

24. favorite crystal?

25. first song you remember hearing?

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather?

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather?

28. five songs to describe you?

29. best way to bond with you?

30. places that you find sacred?

31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names?

32. top five favorite vines?

33. most used phrase in your phone?

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head?

35. average time you fall asleep?

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing?

37. suitcase or duffel bag?

38. lemonade or tea?

39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie?

40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school?

41. last person you texted?

42. jacket pockets or pants pockets?

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket?

44. favorite scent for soap?

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero?

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in?

47. favorite type of cheese?

48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be?

49. what saying or quote do you live by?

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?

51. current stresses?

52. favorite font?

53. what is the current state of your hands?

54. what did you learn from your first job?

55. favorite fairy tale?

56. favorite tradition?

57. the three biggest struggles you’ve overcome?

58. four talents you’re proud of having?

59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be?

60. if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be?

61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.?

62. seven characters you relate to?

63. five songs that would play in your club?

64. favorite website from your childhood?

65. any permanent scars?

66. favorite flower(s)?

67. good luck charms?

68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried?

69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned?

70. left or right handed?

71. least favorite pattern?

72. worst subject?

73. favorite weird flavor combo?

74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen?

75. when did you lose your first tooth?

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)?

77. best plant to grow on a windowsill?

78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store?

79. which looks better, your school id photo or your driver’s license photo?

80. earth tones or jewel tones?

81. fireflies or lightning bugs?

82. pc or console?

83. writing or drawing?

84. podcasts or talk radio?

84. barbie or polly pocket?

85. fairy tales or mythology?

86. cookies or cupcakes?

87. your greatest fear?

88. your greatest wish?

89. who would you put before everyone else?

90. luckiest mistake?

91. boxes or bags?

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights?

93. nicknames?

94. favorite season?

95. favorite app on your phone?

96. desktop background?

97. how many phone numbers do you have memorized?

98. favorite historical era?

[dramayeoja]

Goblin ❣︎ 도깨비

Kim Shin, an undefeated war general, is ultimately killed by a jealous young king named Wang Yeo. After death, Shin is revived by the gods—but his revival is by no means miraculous. He becomes a 도깨비 (dokkaebi, goblin), and is cursed. He will have to pay for all the lives he took in battle by living alone in immortality, witnessing everyone he's ever loved, die. Remaining lodged in his chest is the very sword that killed him. There is only person who can see that sword, and draw from his heart so that he can finally rest in peace: his bride... whom he's yet to meet.

Things get spoilery under the cut—you've been warned! ;)

Chipper, yeah? Haha so, right off the bat, the premises of Goblin remind me of like, a much more morbid version of the legend of King Arthur. You know, a man draws a sword from stone to prove himself the greatest king in all of Britain? Yeah. Just to be clear: this is a good thing (imo). Like, I personally think this is just such a cool idea for a drama 😍

Let's jump right in. I'm gonna be honest and say that, at first, I felt a little turned off at the female lead, Eun Tak, being nineteen (in the beginning of the show), meanwhile the male lead, Shin, is 900+ years old (but physically looks to be in his thirties). It just... rubbed me weird. But hey, the Twilight series (both the books and the movies) is exactly the same—high school girl, century-old man, bananas yet somehow romantic storyline... And I loved me some Twilight as a young adult. So I mean, I have no right to judge, really. Plus, Eun Tak soon turns twenty anyway. So that's an improvement I guess 🤷🏻‍♀️ We follow her character into her late twenties, nearly thirty. So things are definitely fine by then haha! 👍

Don't let that previous bit make you think I didn't enjoy Goblin—I LOVED it. That detail is just a lil funky to me, is all. Back during my Twilight obsession days, I was nearly twenty myself, and the thought of being pursued by an older man was exciting. Hell, I mean, it still is! But now that I'm two years shy of my 30th Birthday, I feel differently sometimes. I think, LAWD get that girl away from that man, she too young for him LOL. I am definitely getting old... Enough about Twilight now, apologies! I'm only using it for the sake of conveying similarities seen in Goblin 🙏 Let's talk cast!

Kim Go Eun as Ji Eun Tak and Gong Yoo as Kim Shin

Eun Tak is a bubbly young woman with limitless energy! While still in her mother's womb, Mama Ji was involved in a hit-and-run incident which, sadly, took her life. During Mama Ji's dying moments, she prayed to anyone above that her child's life be spared. Sat on a rooftop from afar, beer in hand (lol), Shin hears her prayers, as he is a god of sorts. He appears before Mama Ji, and shows mercy to her unborn baby. Eun Tak grows up with the ability to see/speak to ghosts. Said ghosts tell her constantly that she is the goblin's bride. How do they know? A strange birthmark on the back of Eun Tak's neck tips them off. Eun Tak unfortunately was taken in by her abusive bitch of an aunt, who jabs Eun Tak every chance she gets. Her cousins are assholes. Eun Tak's aunt really only keeps her around in hopes of collecting Mama Ji's savings (intended for Eun Tak) one day. Sad, right? I mean, isn't Eun Tak being born without her mother enough as it is? Life can be so cruel 😔

Lee Dong Wook as Grim Reaper/Reaper/Wang Yeo

This is Grim Reaper (or Reaper for short), portrayed by the handsome Lee Dong Wook. His character is just this strange, not at all tech-savvy man with a constant deadpan facial expression. Said facial expression provokes so many giggles during funny moments, and drives home the longing and desperation during sad times. We learn quite a ways in that he, in his previous life (again, just in case: spoiler), was Wang Yeo G A S P ! The young king that is essentially responsible for Shin's death, as well as all the misdeeds that were done to Shin's family. Again, this is something I don't want to spoil. Well, more, anyway 😆 You gotta see it!

Yoo In Na as Kim Sun/Sunny

Kim Sun, or simply, Sunny (she loves to spell her name for people lol, S-U-N-N-Y!) is the second female lead. Yoo In Na is so gorgeous that one look at her makes you feel like such a potato hahhah. 🥔 This fact about her beauty bleeds over into the show itself—every time another character meets Sunny, the camera does this slow motion pan into her lmao. She really is that pretty! Sunny's personality comes across so odd at first... Having watched all of the episodes now, I feel the intention of Goblin's creators was to make her seem like a soul searching for something it has lost in a previous life. idk if that makes sense, but yeah. She has this way about her, like she's disconnected from others, and is sifting through the haziness to find this thing she feels she's lost.

Yook Sungjae (my BtoB bias 😍) as Yoo Deok Hwa

Sungjaeeee ahhhh 💘💘💘 I had to gush, sorry! Hehe. Meet Deok Hwa: unofficial nephew of Shin. Deok Hwa is a third-generation chaebol (heir to a family-owned corporation) and spoiled man-child, always seeking his credit card hahaha 🤣 But I love him so much. Between Gong Yoo, Lee Dong Wook, and BtoB Sungjae? Man, I'm dying over here! Deok Hwa's true identity is revealed later in the show, which if you haven't seen it yet, I won't spoil it. Just watch. But his ending sucked. Like where did he go? Everyone else's endings got tied up neatly except for his. What gives, man? 🤔 Edit: I was actually reading an online conversation about what happened to Deok Hwa online—someone jokingly said he was reincarnated as BtoB Sungjae LOL 💯

Other various comments

AMAZING OST 😍😍😍

Good pace, episodes drag at times. A little confusing in the beginning, but you get there eventually. Maybe this is just me though, viewers who are a little more keen than I will likely catch on sooner ;) My mom was a little confused as well, and actually said at one point, "This should be called the 'what-the-hell-is-going-on' show," hahaha. Like I said though, we quickly moved on from this, and loved all the things. There are actually, I think, three (?) specials that were made to aid viewers in making sure they understand the complex events and relationships clearly. I haven't watched them yet, but want to!

Quite repetitive tbh, as there are unnecessary flashbacks often. Probably for two reasons: the obvious of reminding you what's what, but also to create suspense. Typical duration of most tvN dramas seems to be about 16 episodes, so it's possible these flashbacks and things are, for lack of a better word, filler. I don't know how rigid or lax tvN is about having a drama set at 16 eps, but I get the idea this is their preference. Seeing as so many of their programs on average last that long, I feel this must be what they want. Such has the potential to affect the writing, either positively or negatively.

A continuation of the previous bullet: I think Goblin's creators oversimplified the plot at times. I'm unsure if this is due to possible pressures to meet a specific requirement(s), or what. I'd rather forgo ALL restrictions and let creativity flow, let the story be told without pressure to fill a specific amount of time, etc. but TV production is weird. And contracts are weird. tvN might not to blame for these issues, could simply be that storytelling isn't always easy, man. I'm a writer myself, it's hard! I'M being redundant now lmfao! Anyway, yeah ~

Absolutely LOVED all the scenes that were filmed on location in beautiful Québec City, Canada 🍁 Tall, romantic trees, the fall foliage, historic buildings... sigh. Now all I need is Gong Yoo chasing me and we're all set! ;D

In addition to Shin being revived, my crush on Gong Yoo has been revived as well LOL. He fine 🔥 A classic K drama crush, can't go wrong with GY👌

Gong Yoo is always stellar at doing kiseu (kiss) scenes, and in Goblin, he does not disappoint. He really goes at it 🙈 which is preferred vs. the typical person kissing a stone statue that you see so often. He even did a lift kiss with Kim Go Eun that was reminiscent of THEE Coffee Prince kiss he did with actress Yoon Eun Hye! 😍

I never saw it coming, how the sword would wind up being removed from Shin's chest. I worried what the writers were going to do, how would they approach this, and just wow. The way things turned out is such a relief. It also told me that Shin's love for Eun Tak is true. I mean, I didn't need that scene to occur for me to know that, rather it just adds extra oomph that yes, Shin really does love Eun Tak. He didn't want her to suffer knowing she was responsible for his "death," so he thought quick and used her hands WITH his hands asdfghjkl. How dumb (bc noooo now you're gonna die) and amazing he is at the same time 💜

I love how Shin made his way back to Eun Tak after passing away, it was such a powerful scene. I could really feel his struggle, and kept yelling at my TV for him to stand up lol!

Devastated that Eun Tak died 😭 I really thought as many times as she'd cheated death before, she would somehow continue cheating death again and again for the rest of her days. But no... What a selfless person, Ji Eun Tak. Her being reincarnated as Park So Min gave me some closure. Not the closure I wanted, but closure.

The relationship between Shin and Reaper is ADORABLE. Whenever they interact with each other, they just have this great dialogue. Shin pings, Reaper pongs, Reaper pings, Shin pongs. It's great 😄 I still laugh about the slow-mo scene of them returning from the market with green onions HAHAHA 😂

I love Sunny & Reaper ~ However, their history as Kim Sun & Wang Yeo in their past lives is so very sad. I don't even know where to start RE: my feelings on this 💔 imo, their ending kinda sucked. I just wasn't satisfied with them having had this complicated, tragic story, only to be reincarnated in this fashion that I ultimately found to be just... idk, disappointing 😩 Again, closure, but not the closure I wanted.

I thought Reaper, the other grim reapers, the name cards, the depiction of what happens immediately following death with the brewing of the tea, the afterlife, etc. was all very creative. We really don't know what awaits us when our time comes—it's interesting to wonder if it's anything like it is in Goblin 🍵

Can't stop thinking about Goblin, even though I'm now watching Thirty but Seventeen & Mr. Sunshine! I'm emotionally cheating lol halp.

Photo credits: tvN & AsianWiki

Yo yo! I'm sorry I took so long to watch + write up this review! It's been a long couple of weeks for me, I wasn't always able to watch when I wanted. It was maddening 😆 But I have finally watched, and feel like the most accomplished person on the planet hahaha. xoxo 💜