#ok yes mostly talk about vlog or life stuff

[collophora]

Oh my thank you so much!!! Tbh I have other ideas for animatic, in particular, I would love to do what could be pilot (ok only a part of) of a mini batch ep. The thing is I'm really not a writer, even less a scenarist (writing for a fic vs for comic/animatic form is different) so I don't know where to start DX Anyway. Thanks again!

Happy may the fourth have a 4 minutes animatic about Crosshair and Omega bounding over sniping stuff.

[uwua3]

hi! first off, congrats on the new blog!! i read that misumi piece and i really enjoyed it hehe,, if it's alright, may i request some domestic fluff with kazunari? mayb looking over old photo albums of each other from when they were kids and laughing and telling stories about what happened in the photos? thank you very much and i hope u have a nice day :D

hi!!! this made me so happy 🥺 thank you so much, i hope to keep this blog running for a long time! also, i saw your reblog of my jealousy hcs and i wanted to say thank you for your sweet comments!!! i go back to it whenever i need motivation, you inspire me to keep writing ♡ thank you! i hope to continue making you proud as a writer :D <3

summary: kazunari had to stop living in the past and make new memories outside of his yearbooks with you

author’s note: this is definitely a much happier piece than my others! this was refreshing to write and i treasure it dearly, it’s definitely much more on the humorous side! no angst today, folks!!! (ok just a little, but it’s barely noticeable!)

this is just a little look into a hoarder named kazunari and his sentimental, nostalgic personality ♡ i, myself, am a marie kondo supporter so i love decluttering! if you are a hoarder like kazunari, honestly go you! you keep those knick knacks that remind you of memories! do whatever makes you the happiest :D

word count: 2,151

music: make you mine – public, tongue tied – grouplove (this song is so Kazunari !!!)

nostalgia.

🌻🎨 miyoshi kazunari

it was that time of year again

kazunari hated spring cleaning with a passion. so what if his art supplies were all over the dorms? he knew where everything was! uh, mostly...

(if you ignore his daily panicked house searches which kept everyone up way too late if he couldn’t locate a very specific paint shade for a big project he definitely procrastinated)

so, it took, so much bribery to get kazunari to even consider cleaning out his entire dorm room

(muku was a very Good Boy and already had his side of the room perfectly dusted and organized)

yes, you had to promise to pose as a model for one of his paintings one day (hopefully, not the type of class you were thinking) (kazunari’s suggestive wink didn’t help)

the thing about kazunari was he was somewhat of a, putting it politely, hoarder

as an extremely sentimental person, it would take the whole mankai company to even force him to throw something away

(“no! it has a special meaning to me! i remember what happened when i got this~” kazunari would whine, holding the useless item between his hands with no intentions to ever look at it again)

so the boys employed you to be kazunari’s rational judgement when cleaning that day

(“please actually make him do something.” sakyo looked like he was on the border of begging; kazunari’s abundance of random knick knacks and shopaholic addiction problem was becoming an issue that affected everyone)

rule #1 of cleaning kazunari’s storage room: don’t open anything because kazunari will become very sentimental and nothing will get gone

so therefore, as a team, you two tackled the rather spotless room. the interior was minimal and modern, just like kazunari liked it with pops of color here and there

(he had one blank white wall and you realized it was the backdrop he used to film all his social media posts [dancing tik toks, fashion #ootds on instagram, daily vlogs on his growing youtube channel])

at first, you were confused where all his stuff went until you opened a closet against his terrible and unconvincing distractions

without time to react, you found yourself buried in tens of books you couldn’t even fathom how it all fit

(“i’ve played way too much tetris.” kazunari would admit later on when asked about his immaculate stacking)

“you’ve got to be kidding me!” you groaned, pushing your head above the surface of book covers that have either never been opened or were way too old to even be functionable

“i’m sorry~ please, forgive me!” kazunari pleaded, immediately pulling you out of his own mess and using all his cuteness to make you roll your eyes fondly at your best friend

you almost started ranting at him about the dangers of taking up too much closet space with useless items before you realized:

wait! stop! he’s trying to get you to forget about throwing these books out! you thought suddenly, crossing your arms as you stared at the pile, trying to figure out how to approach the situation

“you cannot distract me. we are going through this mound and you will be getting rid of something today.” you ordered, seeing his shoulders drop in defeat as he nodded solemnly, but accepting his fate without any arguments. thank god for that

you two bent down and organized all the books into categories. popular photography instruction guides, creative advice columns, and all his past art textbooks kazunari couldn’t sell were put into a seperate group because luckily, they were relevant to his art school

things like old newspapers with funny comics were recycled (you refused to let kazunari read them in fear of invoking some form of nostalgia) (also because he had the whackiest sense of humor ever and would die laughing)

it was going well, until you reached the thickest photo books of them all (you had almost forgotten what you and kazunari’s school mascot was)

but unsurprisingly, kazunari had every single yearbook from each year of his education all the way until his last year in high school piled high to his chest

even he looked somewhat shocked from his mass accumulation from his teen years

“ah! i’m so old now~ look at all this! what else can i do except die?!” kazunari dramatically flopped onto his bed, tired of lifting so much weight. hey! his arms weren’t meant for exercise, he was a painter!

lifting his head to see you were distracted from alphabetically sorting the first section lovingly dubbed, “art shit”, kazunari mischeviously grinned as he leaned down to snatch a random yearbook

flipping to a random page, kazunari smiled as he realized it was the first time he ever met you back in elementary

kazunari sang your name as he sat upwards, having a shit–eating look on his face as he started swinging his legs back and forth

oh no, he was up to something no good, you knew it but humored him anyways

“yes, kazu?” you turned your line of sight to the most horrible picture possible: you with the ugliest haircut in the entire world with kazunari’s black hair taking up the entire photo as you two sheepishly smiled for the camera. it was not a proud moment

okay, maybe it wasn’t that bad, you just couldn’t help but shriek at the sight of your hair

“oh my god! you can’t just jumpscare me like that!” you laughed despite yourself. you knew you had to be serious and focused on decluttering, but one look at your past made you remember all the good times before so–called “adulthood”

“look at your hair!” you cackled, reaching up to playfully yank at his mullet as he yelped and lightly smacked your hand away. rubbing the back of his neck, kazunari huffed childishly and pouted like he was back in his youth

“come on! this was the pinnacle moment i realized, i should not be a hair dresser.” kazunari commented, making you remember how you just let a random 8–year–old boy waddle up to you with safety scissors and advertise his salon business like a professional

(yes, you bought into it right away. your teacher had a heart attack when she saw you with a majority of your hair on the floor and kazunari keeping small talk like an actual hair stylist)

thinking back after the haircut incident, you weren’t allowed to chat with the funny class clown anymore as you were forced to wear a hat every day

(it was either that or go completely bald to fix the job kazunari did to your head)

it wasn’t until you received a very creative and colorful apology letter with tons of sad faces drawn with waxy crayons that you snuck out to play with him on the swings in recess

“i can’t believe we became friends because i wanted free hair cuts for the rest of my life.” you added, staring at the picture with a sense of nostalgia. you kinda got where kazunari was coming from, memories were fun to look at every once and a while

at least, eleven years worth of memories after being inseperable from that moment forward

(maybe, you should’ve held onto it, you thought, not knowing that would be the first of many art pieces you would be gifted by him)

kazunari knew he won. excited, he dropped down to lay on his stomach as you leaned against the bed, watching as he thumbed through the pages with ease, leaning his head on yours comfortably

it was rare to find kazunari quiet, he must’ve been like this all the time when going through his stuff, you thought, at peace for once

lazily smiling, kazunari put his finger against your yearbook pictures as he reminisced on the past. something about everyone ever in your grade, how kazunari knew everyone and had a special memory with each person, no matter how big or small

“—and here, the teacher somehow caught a pic of us swinging wayyy too high for kids our age!” kazunari laughed, breaking your train of thought as you snickered at the absolute joy radiating from both your faces as you two competed to see who could reach the clouds

(kazu won. you fell off right after and had to get picked up from your parents after badly scraping your knee. it took another sorry letter and art of you two holding hands with a heart for your parents to forgive kazunari)

“let’s go back.” you interrupted him, making him sit up confused as you swung your keys out from your back pocket. it didn’t take any convincing for kazunari to nod right away and took the elementary yearbook into his arm

you two only had to exchange a secret look before formulating a plan to sneak out, leaving music on from kazunari’s speakers to act like kazunari was still cleaning

you two giggled amongst yourselves before clambering into your car, speeding off and laughing loudly from your successful getaway. the manager was none the wiser!

during the short car ride, you and kazunari played your favorite mixtape of all time

(“you kept this?!” kazunari yelled, giddily bouncing up and down from excitement when he discovered the mixtape stash)

he slipped the disc in as you two yelled along to childhood favorites with the windows rolled down, letting the entire neighborhood know the best duo were back in town

(seriously, there were so many you stashed away in your glove department. all labeled in sharpie with compelling titles connected to the inside jokes only you two found funny)

arriving at the destination, you two exited the vehicle to see the play pen was abandoned as the teaching staff went home for the day

the sun was setting and it felt like the playground was in another rift of time as you approached it, hearing the weak movement of the swings going back and forth on their own. you sat down, holding onto the chains. you hadn’t been back ever since you graduated. it hadn’t changed at all

kazunari opened the elementary yearbook back to the original page, pulling out his tripod and phone he always had on hand in his backpack as he set it up right across the swing set

“what are you doing?” you inquired, tilting your head as he fumbled around pressing different buttons and filters too complex for you to remember

looking up, kazunari grinned as he set a timer for 10 seconds before sprinting back to the swing next to you

“swing contest right now! i bet i could swing higher than you ever could!” kazunari challenged childishly, quickly kicking his legs for the momentum. you narrowed your eyes, refusing to lose as you two laughed over the sound of his phone taking a burst of photos

you realized what he was doing. he was re–creating your memories together

but you turned to look at him and your heart skipped a beat. you never remembered him looking this, different, in the purple lighting. for a flashing moment, you swore you saw the silhoutte of his black–haired, child self sit next to you before you blinked and saw him. kazunari was the same, just older now

you slowed down your swing by dragging your sneakers against the wood chipped ground. you grabbed both the swings’ chains to hold them together

you didn’t want to live in the past anymore. you wanted to grow up with him, too

“what—” kazunari started, matching your pace before being cut off by your lips against his, the phone going off for one last time

you pulled yourself in close enough just to smile. he smelled the exact same as he did when he discovered cologne for the first time. he never changed

you pulled away first even if he tried leaning forward for more, like he was waiting all these years just for that one moment. like he saw you in the same light, too

“i wanted to do that for years.” you confessed, watching as he took your hand carefully, like he was afraid you were going to leave. for once, he didn’t know what to do, which face to show

“me too...” kazunari agreed, seemingly speechless before straightening his back, like he was about to run away. the hair on your neck stood up, what was he about to do?

“i promise i won’t cut your hair anymore, unless?” kazunari winked dramatically, mimicking the shape of scissors with his fingers as he tried snipping at your hair

he laughed as you shoved him with all your might, hopping off the swing to chase him throughout the school parking lot

now this was a memory kazunari would never throw away, no matter what

(no one thought the two of you escaped until kazunari posted the pics on his instagram, both of you getting a scolding from sakyo this time)

(busted!)

[birlcholtz]

you did bittyholtz so now how about bittyrans

bittyrans you say??? this is so fucking long it’s over 2.5k i’ve written full ass fics shorter than this i am going to bED

it starts with the PSLs, as so many things do. (do they???? idk i’ve only had like 2 psls in my life) PSLs turn into rans and bitty having weekly scheduled ‘get coffee and talk about the absolutely obscene lifestyle choices of the rest of our team,’ featuring holster and jack’s wardrobes, the green couch, and shitty’s inability to chew without talking at the same time, among other things

and THEN ‘coffee and bitch’ sessions turn into 'coffee and talk about whatever u feel’ sessions and eventually it just becomes a Thing. saturday mornings are for ransom and bitty. there’s still a lot of 'coffee and bitch’ happening, because it’s not like holster’s adidas slides and socks combo just went away, but they realize it’s not just expensive lattes and a half decent sense of fashion and hygiene that unites them. 

they deal with academic pressure in such different ways that it’s almost impossible to notice the similarities until they start talking more and more and realize they both feel that pressure (ransom because everything he turns in has to be perfect, bitty because he has a ridiculously hard time concentrating on things that don’t interest him, like for instance many of his classes), it’s just that ransom has nervous breakdowns that feature a lot of crying under the table and bitty bakes things as therapy until he’s forgotten all about whatever he needed to do.

so what happens when eric bittle (unofficially voted cutest member of smh 80 times) and justin oluransi (the most beautiful man at samwell) hang out a lot?

well, the first thing that happens is that people stare at them a lot as they walk around but ransom genuinely doesn’t notice because this happens to him all the time it’s never *not* happened and bitty notices but he figures it’s just because Ransom. u know.

ransom also finds bitty’s vlog, watches like 8 videos immediately (holster: dude are u ok), and barrels into the kitchen with his laptop in hand like BITTY CAN WE MAKE THIS

and bitty’s like oh sure! and ransom’s like. no. i mean can WE make this. i want to learn to make it and bitty’s like FUCK yeah

over the course of learning to make this dish ransom successfully wheedles bitty into letting him be on his vlog, bitty’s subscribers are Shook at this beautiful man just suddenly appearing when bitty has literally never had a guest before. he and ransom struggle to call each other by their first names the entire time and it’s fun and silly and they DO actually get a decent pie in the oven so it’s a success ('teaching my teammate to bake a _____’ sorry i didn’t think of a recipe lol. fill in whatever u want)

and then the comments on that video blow up, mostly with comments about ransom, some are just about how beautiful he is, some are like eric…. >.> why is this man on your channel when nobody else has ever been. eric do you have a boyfriend and where did you find him

bitty reads all these comments and does Not mention them to ransom but he’s mildly flattered that these people just assumed he was dating rans. because it’s hard to stand next to ransom and still feel attractive oops

BUT he also gets a bunch of new subscribers, which is why he asks ransom if he wants to be on the vlog again a few weeks later and ransom is like oh HELL yes

but it’s too late. bitty’s read all the comments asking if they’re dating. he never thought about ransom in that context before but he’s read all the comments now and he can’t stop thinking about what it would be like to date him. oops

they do the second video, and bitty firmly tells himself that they’re just friends and he’s just overthinking all of those comments, but also ransom smiling directly at someone is a force to be reckoned with and bitty literally cannot stop himself from smiling back (it’s a good thing they’re the only ones in the kitchen because anyone else would probably explode from observing it. bitty smiling is much more powerful than he knows)

okay and like. if bitty thought the comments on the first video were a lot. the sECOND video with justin oluransi?? it blows up. particularly because of one part where bitty catches ransom stealing a strawberry and just gasps and goes “justin” and people lose their minds over it. eric is so appalled. justin grins in a way that is only half apologetic and immediately reaches for another one and eric literally almost yeets the pie down the counter away from him. people set it to music on tiktok (i know tiktok wasn’t a thing while they were in college let me h a v e this)

and let it be known, ransom is also reading the comments on these videos, and he sees all the ones asking if he’s bitty’s boyfriend and he’s like haha wait what and tHEn he goes back and rewatches the videos he’s been in and like?? okay he can see why they think that. bitty puts his hands over ransom’s a lot and ransom slings an arm around bitty’s shoulders a lot but that’s just normal for smh??????? right??????? RIGHT??????????

too late. they’re both overanalyzing every single interaction now

(holster: bro did you see this tiktok of you and— ransom: and bitty losing five years off his life expectancy? yeah holster: nono this one’s set to don’t rain on my parade/the sound of silence/et cetera you have to watch it)

ransom still isn’t in most of bitty’s videos because honestly most of his stuff goes way over ransom’s level of baking knowledge. but he still watches them and it’s kind of nice to watch vlogs where bitty is so obviously in his element? the way he talks to the camera is so friendly and charming and the way he bakes is so efficient and professional. and because he’s a masochist he reads the comments on those ones too and finds a lot where people are asking where justin is. but mostly he’s focused on bitty and how obvious it is that this is bitty’s THING. he just exudes confidence and happiness and it’s kind of hypnotizing honestly

(he also goes back to bitty’s earliest vlogs and is like holy shit BABY BITTY. SO SMALL. and bitty in those videos is still charming but a little less calm and collected— the editing is a little less smooth, and he can’t quite stop himself from adding editorial comments about his aunt’s and his mother’s different techniques. it’s kind of adorable. and like, bitty is still adorable— wait what just crossed ransom’s brain???)

because bitty IS adorable, just a little more put together now. he still gets more excited by discussing types of flour than anyone else ransom has ever met, and he still bops along to whatever song is stuck in his head while he bakes, and when ransom sees bitty after bingeing roughly half of his videos and feels something in his chest lighten, he figures that’s probably going to be his new normal.

and people in the comments clamor for more videos with ransom, and ransom sees these comments, and bitty does too, and ransom seeing these comments is why he pokes his head into the kitchen when he knows bitty is filming, silently waves at the camera, and then leaves again before bitty’s even noticed that he’s there. it makes it into the final cut of the video and the comments section goes wild.

ransom and bitty still hang out plenty outside of doing vlogs together— bitty eventually gets a few dollars in ad revenue from the first video ransom was in and insists that they go on a celebratory unscheduled annie’s trip. (annie’s date energy intensifies)

and while they’re at annie’s/hanging out around campus/bitty has let ransom drag him to the library for some reason bitty can’t help but wonder what it would be like if he was actually dating ransom. he can’t deny that he thinks about ransom in that way now— it’s hard NOT to honestly?? like ransom has been objectively beautiful since the first day bitty met him (and before that, but y'know, not as relevant to bitty’s life) and maybe it’s just his imagination but he thinks that ever since they’ve started making these videos ransom’s smiles have lingered just a little longer and there are more of them, too. and the vlogs have also shown bitty a side of ransom that he doesn’t see a lot, because nobody sees it a lot— ransom trying something he isn’t already good at. throwing himself into it with enthusiasm, actually, and that NEVER happens. ransom is not great at handling failure? but bitty gets to see him cut loose and relax and laugh at his mistakes and he kind of loves it and loves this version of ransom he hasn’t seen before

and ransom, for his part, has been steadily falling for the sheer force of bitty’s charisma when he’s doing something he loves, ever since he first found bitty’s vlog. and as he looks closer he realizes it’s not just the vlog— bitty has always had these depths to him, he just kind of lets them out when he’s baking? and ransom feels kind of privileged to be able to see that side of him so regularly

(also i’m just saying that ransom is very into intelligence and watching bitty fire off answers without even blinking to obscure baking questions where ransom only understands about 30% of the words is a turn on)

but ransom’s become a fan favorite on bitty’s vlog, and he keeps making recurring appearances and even improves a little at baking (which bitty always comments on when he notices an improvement— it’s half chirpy and half genuine pride), and people in the comments BEG them to do a q&a for like. a couple of months. before bitty is like uhhh if i want to make money off of this channel i gotta give the people what they want

so he makes a normal vlog but at the end ransom pops in and they’re like hey we’re gonna do a q&a for our next video where eric answers baking questions and justin is also there since y'all really want him there for some reason??? (but bitty says it nicer and less confused than that)

bitty immediately realizes why ppl want ransom to be in the q&a so bad when about 25% of the comments are about baking and the rest of them are about bitty and ransom. roughly three-quarters of THOSE fully assume they’re dating and the rest of them are just asking if they’re dating.

so bitty is like um ransom?? we should probably address this in our q&a?? everyone really wants to know if we’re dating??

and this interaction is incredibly awkward. i need you all to know that. it’s incredibly awkward because bitty is like 'okay so like YES i like ransom in more than a friend way but this is literally the worst scenario ever i literally can’t believe my subscribers are calling me out for making eyes at him’ and ransom is like 'fuck fuck fuck i want to date bitty but i don’t want to make it weird is it weird??? because of his vlog?????? what do i do??????’

but anyway then ransom is like uh yeah we should address that! and then like. says nothing

and bitty’s like uuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhh. sooooooooooooo. what do we say

and ransom’s like. :0. um. (the amount of ums and uhs in this conversation are astonishing let me say) well. are we dating??

and bitty genuinely can’t tell if ransom actually meant that as a question or if it was sarcastic and he says as much and ransom is like no that was a real question i actually don’t know if we’re dating or not?

and bitty is like holy shit i can’t believe this is happening what the fuck and he says well. we should um. clear that up. before the q&a

and ransom’s like yeah we should. uh. like. we COULD be dating.

and bitty’s like ….yeah yeah we could. are we?

and ransom’s like do you want to be?

and bitty’s like do you want to be?

and ransom’s like i asked first and bitty’s like damn u got me there. and then he’s like yeah i …. kinda want to be dating and ransom is like swawesome me too glad we cleared that up, how was ur lit seminar and bitty is like HOLD ON JUSTIN OLURANSI because did that just fuckin happen??? we can’t just MOVE ON from that conversation that fast????

so they wind up talking about how basically bitty’s vlog inspired Feelings in both of them and it’s very emotional because ransom is like i love that i feel like i can make mistakes around you and bitty is like i love that you put in the effort to learn about what i care about and they go to annie’s because That’s What They Do and get matching drinks as they always do and smile at each other the whole time (bitty is also literally pinching himself because What The Fuck, how did i wheel JUSTIN OLURANSI) and then they go back to the haus and start picking the questions to respond to in their q&a

ransom does get busier and can’t spend as much time in bitty’s vlogs as usual but he helps bitty plan out what he’s going to talk about when, when to post, the ideal ratio of how-to videos versus just answering questions, and with his help bitty’s vlog starts getting a lot of attention and a lot of subscribers, like, exponentially fast

(it helps that they got memed so early on)

(it also helps that their q&a video where they confirmed they were dating was fucking adorable because they talked about how they got together and how a big part of it was bc of bitty’s vlog and it’s just the sweetest goddamn thing and that video totally blows up too)

(intentional celebrity eric bittle. accidental celebrity justin oluransi.)

it gets to a point where bitty is like. making legitimate money from his vlog and he INSISTS on compensating ransom in some way (ransom: i like helping you??? bitty: and i like making my vlog doesn’t mean i don’t like getting things out of it) so they work out a system where ransom gets some money for helping bitty plan out videos and edit and he gets some more for videos he’s in and like?? they’re icons. 

some headcanons: 

ransom successfully convinces bitty to wear sperrys

bitty boops ransom’s nose so often that there are compilations of it

bitty also spends a lot of time with ransom when he’s studying for tests because being just like. physically there, like leaning on ransom’s shoulder or holding his hand helps reassure ransom a little

ransom always holds bitty’s face in his hands before kissing him and bitty thinks it’s the best thing ever

there’s an entire swallow issue about them

bitty’s name in ransom’s phone is 'eric butter

bitty tells his parents ransom has been helping him with his vlog before he tells them that they’re together, and coach is like 'nice’ and suzanne bursts with such effusive joy (because ransom is great with parents) that bitty feels himself grinning

the Thesis Battle of 2017 is less increasingly sneaky methods of convincing bitty to write his thesis and more 'bitty read this article on the pomodoro method and then work on ur thesis for twenty minutes so you can bake pie later’ (dex asks ransom if they should cut off bitty’s oven access and ransom is like hmm. well if u do just make sure it doesn’t affect how the kitchen looks because if he can’t even film vlogs answering people’s questions then he’ll be really frustrated)

ransom and bitty shop for clothes together all the time and when it’s winter clothes it’s a constant battle between things that will keep them warm and things that will look cute. they definitely have discussions where bitty’s like 'okay do you think this is warm enough for me’ and ransom’s like 'no that’s warm enough for me you’re from georgia’

both of their snapchat games are INCREDIBLY strong. ransom’s stories are a work of art and bitty is a master of filters and they are constantly communicating via snapchat

ransom also keeps track of all the memes that surface from bitty’s channel and saves them to show bitty later

bitty’s channel gets bigger and bigger and more and more popular and his creative team gets bigger and more complicated to reflect that? but at the same time ransom is always his no. 1

[cuddlepilefics]

Whumptober Day 18 – Cold

Fandom: GOT7

Sickie: Bambam

Caregiver: mostly Jackson & Jinyoung

 Bambam’s POV.:

We were all in a hurry this morning, getting ready for a fansign. I was really struggling to find an outfit I liked and kept asking for advice. I could tell my members were getting fed up because I was making them late. Being afraid of holding them back more, I quickly settled for dresspants and a tight turtleneck shirt before meeting the rest of the group by the front door. “Alright, sorry for taking so long, I’m ready now.” – “Umm, Bambam-ah, don’t you want to take a jacket? The fansign is outdoors and although it looks sunny, it’s not all that warm”, Jinyoung gave me a questioning look. “No, that wouldn’t go with my outfit at all and I just found one that looks okay”, I refused. “Come on, don’t be so stubborn, we don’t want you to get sick” – “You’re not my mom. I’m a fucking adult, I can make my own clothing choices”, I snapped. “Bam, don’t talk back at your hyung like that!”, Jaebeom gave me a stern glance. “Alright, just don’t complain about being cold, we need to leave now anyways”, Jinyoung said, holding his hands up defensively. We left in a tense mood and I have to admit Jinyoung wasn’t lying, there was really a cold wind blowing. Crossing my legs in an attempt to keep them warm I smile at the girl in front of me. I’m just now realizing how much ahgase must love us to wait out in the cold for so long just to talk to us for a few seconds. The thought warmed my heart as my limbs started to feel colder. An hour into the fansign I can’t really feel my fingers anymore. I’m aware of the concerned glances Jaebeom keeps sending my way but refuse to meet his eyes. The way I had acted this morning made it impossible to admit feeling cold now. I rub my hands against my thighs waiting for the next fan to take a seat in front of me.

By the end of the fansign about two hours later I had lost all hope of ever feeling warm again. We gathered in a small circle waiting for our manager to tell us about the change in schedule he had just announced. I had my arms wrapped around me, hugging myself for warmth but when I saw the look Jinyoung gave me, I quickly dropped them to my sides. “This afternoon we want you to go around the city vlogging so we can get some bonus footage for the new album release”, manager-nim told us and I groaned inwardly. Jackson shot me a look and I tried to smile at him, hiding my shaking hands behind my back. When the manager had left we discussed spitting up in smaller groups for the afternoon or staying together. It was decided to get coffee together first and then maybe split up. Well, this was a misunderstanding, I had thought we’d stay at the café but we only grabbed a drink and left for the nearest park. There went my chance of warming up for a few minutes. I sighted holding on to the hot papercup for dear life. Slowly my sense of feeling returned to my fingers and I sighed. “Are you cold?”, Jackson asked walking closer to me. I noticed Jinyoung looking over at me and denied with a forced smile. Jinyoung-hyung hasn’t spoken a single word to me since this morning. I guess he’s really pissed at me for talking back at him and yes, I’m sorry, I know it was wrong but I don’t know how I can admit that now. Jackson wasn’t fooled and after disposing of our empty cups he grabbed my hand in his gloved one. We kept walking beside each other and he slipped our intertwined fingers into the pocket of his jacket. I gave him a grateful smile which he returned with a knowing look.

 Jinyoung’s POV.:

We kept walking around the park, taking pictures and fooling around for the cameras. Youngjae had teased Yugyeom who was in turn chasing the other who tried to escape screaming. So far everything was as usual and I held the camera to capture Mark and Jaebeom doing flips. Aside from the maknae’s screaming in the distance and the hyung’s teasing each other it was strangely quiet. I looked around to see whether Jackson and Bambam had disappeared since I was so used to them being loud it worried me when I couldn’t hear them. They hadn’t actually disappeared but were standing close-by watching the hyungs comparing their acrobatic skills. Jackson seemed longing to join them but couldn’t since he was holding Bambam in a back-hug, wrapping his jacket around both of them. Jackson met my eyes and his eyes showed pure concern for the dongsaeng in his arms. I sighed, of course the younger was cold. The boy is so skinny, there is nothing to keep him warm aside from his clothing, which was pretty thin today considering the weather. Had he just dressed warmer or taken a jacket with him like I told him this morning. I hope he doesn’t get sick now. Noticing my stare Bambam looked up at me too quickly looking away, ashamed. Yes, I feel sorry for him but I’ll let him learn his lesson by himself. He should be aware that I only wanted the best for him and he kept mocking me for it. I hated to admit that it did hurt a bit even though I knew it was his pride speaking.

 Bambam’s POV.:

Of course, Jinyoung knew. He knew I was cold, even had predicted it earlier. I tried to stand as close to Jackson as physically possible, thankful to lean my back against his warm chest. Though I had his arms and jacket around me I still felt cold. It hurt, my bones seemed to have turned to ice and my fingers had taken on a slightly blueish tone. I shifted my gaze from my hyungs to my dongsaengs who were still chasing each other. On any other day I would join them without a second thought and maybe moving around would help warm me up but I felt stiff and frozen in my spot. I feel Jackson let go form a second and shudder immediately only for him to start rubbing my arms up and down. When Jaebeom finally determined that we had enough video-material I had completely withdrawn into my own mind, trying to think warm thoughts, imagining walking along a beach and feeling the sun on my face. It barely was of any use and I was soon snapped out of my thoughts anyways as Jackson shook me slightly. “Did you even hear what I said?”, he asked concerned. “Sorry, spaced out for a second”, I mumbled looking at the ground. “We decided to head home and grab a bite for dinner on the way there, you good with that?”, he repeated and I only nodded not really caring what was happening around me anymore as I could only focus on the pain in my limbs but home sounded good. He smiled and grabbed my hand while we walked lagging behind the rest. On the way home, we grabbed some gimbap and ate while walking, well the others ate, I had no appetite and just wanted to get home, the cold was starting to make me sleepy. I had tiredly declined when Jaebeom asked what to get for me and was now hugging myself because Jackson needed his hands to eat.

When we arrived back at the dorm after what seemed like an eternity, I was completely out of it. Jackson had pushed me straight towards the bathroom after I had kicked off my shoes to let me shower first. I stiffly took of my clothes and stepped into the shower, letting the warm water run down my back, goosebumps spreading over my body at the change of temperature. The longer I stood there, the hotter I turned the water. I heard the door open for a minute: “Hey, Bam-ah, I brought you some clothes, they’re on the sink.” I thanked Jackson and started washing myself down, hoping I hadn’t used up too much of the hot water. When I stepped out and toweled off, my eyes fell on the clothes Jackson had chosen for me. God, I loved him so much, he had picked out my thickest sweatpants and a large warm hoodie. I quickly put them on since I felt cold again the second I had left the shower. Leaving the bathroom my members shot me some worried glances and luckily didn’t comment on how long I took. I shuddered walking back to my room and crawled into my bed pulling the blanket up to my face trying to get warm. There was a knock before the door opened. It was Jaebeom, who took a seat on the bed next to me. “You ok, Bam?” I nodded shivering. “Still cold?” I nodded again. “You are aware that you brought this on yourself, right?”, he frowned. “Y-yes, hyung and t-that’s the worst about t-this. I have no one to b-blame excep-pt for myself”, I replied while trying to keep my teeth from chattering. He rubbed my arm through the blanket sighing before he got up and left, closing the door behind him. Being alone I finally allowed myself some silent tears over how terrible I felt.

 Jinyoung’s POV.:

Jaebeom just returned from checking on Bambam. “He’s still cold and doesn’t look to good. All pale and stuff, though he admitted he’s aware it’s his own fault”, Jaebeom sighed. I frowned walking into the kitchen and warming up some milk. Taking the cup out of the microwave I stir in two heaping spoons of instant hot chocolate powder, knowing my dongsaeng likes his drink to be extra sweet. On the way to Bambam’s room I passed by mine and grabbed a thick woolen blanket from the closet. I hid both outside in the hallway while stepping into the younger’s room and found him curled up in his bed, only his dyed hair sticking out. “Hey, everything alright?”, I approached him quietly. Bambam turned around to look at me, still hugging himself tight underneath the blanket. I could see his eyes being slightly reddened and there were tear-streaks on his cheeks. “H-hyung, I’m s-sorry about earlier. I know you were r-right but I j-just w-wanted to look okay for ahgase. A-anyways I s-shouldn’t h-have talked t-to you the way I-I did. Please d-don’t be m-mad at me anym-more”, his voice was shaking and he looked miserable. “You really learned your lesson, huh?”, I asked with a sympathetic smile and he nodded eagerly. Stepping back out I quickly get the blanket and the cacao I had prepared. After placing the cup down on the nightstand, I spread the blanket out over his. “Alright scoot over, let’s make you all warm again”, I whispered softly, climbing into bed with him before handing him the cacao. “T-thank you, hyung. I-I know I m-messed up.”- “It’s ok, I know you regret it, just don’t forget about it. You know I only care about you.”, I reassured. Hugging Bambam tight I kept rubbing his shoulderblade to generate warmth while he slowly sipped his hot drink.

Not long after I had placed the empty cup back onto the nightstand, I could hear my dongsaeng snore softly with his head against my chest. Oh, this boy, he is going to drive me crazy some day.

[meirimerens]

If you're accepting fandom questions could we have some elaboration about those mgs jupiter family alaskan daydreams please? Also your amazing TEW art got me into the series so thanks, I'm liking it a lot!!

first of all, i’m so deeply honored that my art could get you into a game, and also : god i’m fucking sorry lol

second of all

oh god oh fuck alaskan daydreams time

okay so long /, the read mores don’t work, you’re gonna have to bear with it

so tldr i have… EXTENSIVE imaginated stories about dave, hal and sunny living in a little remote cabin in alaska. 

BACKSTORY 

i’d imagine it’d come somewhere post-mgs2 even though sunny is already a bit grown so maybe like just disregard canon OR imagine a different timeline i don’t know, and it’s from a place where hal and dave don’t have anything to do after the mgs2 incidents (so no mgs4 and love of god NO accelerated aging i can’t deal with this), and there is this atmosphere of… “we’ve been sticking together for so long, i can’t see ourselves just parting ways (plus we have a kid to raise and i can’t imagine raising her alone) so how about we make the rest of our lives together” and dave is just like… “hey, we’ve been running all across the country, jumping from shitty motel to shitty motel to shittier apartments, and i have this cabin i once lived in, how about we just all move into it and re-inhabit it” and that’s just how it starts. 

THE CABIN

it’s a cabin i have extensively thought about (because i’m obsessed with cabins and being a hermit, so that helps). it’d be near the shore of the Twin Lakes, Alaska (taken from the canon fact that this is where snake lived pre-MGS1), so they’d live off-the-grid and in almost-self-sufficiency (they become more and more self-sufficient as time goes on and they make more adjustments to the cabin). 

i imagine it would look similar to Proenneke’s cabin (which incidentally is also near Twin Lakes), maybe on the other shore, all wood with a vegetation/moss roof + a slight porch/elevation to protect the entrance from a bit of the snow. it’d be surrounded by wooden little dog kennels/crates for the huskies (more on that later) similar to the ones in [this video] around the 0:59 min mark (warning for animal death/general stuff that goes on in a trapper’s lifestyle for the vid).

it here’s a floor plan of the cabin, not to proportions because i’m just shit at it :

(good luck reading that)

not pictured : when sunny was smaller (before the addition), her bed was like a little shelf just above the big bed (that hal and dave share) with little like “walls” so she doesn’t fall and a thick mattress, which was discarded when she got her new room.

later would be added an outdoor kitchen and a chicken coop (more on that…….. later)

EATING THERE

as i said, they’d first be living in semi-dependency : every ¾ weeks they’d have to go to Port Alsworth/Anchorage or somewhere else to stock tf up. Snake would fish (you can fish for subsistence if you’ve been living in Alaska for over a year according to law) and hunt (seems to be the same type of law when hunting for food, YES i’ve researched this, leave me alone) for food. As he has done odd jobs to afford his cabin, I imagine he’d have done crabbing, and would show up to help on crabbing boats from time to time to get some of them crabs.

later, I imagine they would get 4 rescue hens to get some of them fresh eggs. snake would build a chicken scoop from forest wood. 1 of the hens wouldn’t be able to make eggs because she was traumatized from the industry but they still took her in because she was close friends with the other hens and they didn’t want to separate them. 

I imagine Snake had been growing his own herbs in the kitchen but maybe they’d get a greenhouse ready.

they’d go foraging for berries, fruits and mushrooms according to the seasons and make a SHITTON of jams and preserves.

LIVING THERE

i imagine there would be a lot of solidarity with the surrounding populations. for exemple, Hal would help set up and manage online dictionaries for Iñupiat, Yup'ik or Alutiiq languages with the local communities, maybe help wire up some schools, things like that, and as thanks some people would go check on them and give em veggies or something.

THE DOGS :

Snake is getting them.

since we don’t know what happened to his huskies around mgs1, i suppose/guess they were at some time confiscated from him, so first, he’s get a lovely husky female from a shelter (i also have long thought about how he’d never go to a breeder and only adopt, because the whole “creature created with a man’s ideal in mind” hits a bit too close for him you feel) that would later be revealed as pregnant with like 5 puppies (it will come back later as relevant as promise). Then he’d do his best to regain contact with his huskies, maybe setting up a call on social media (THIS WILL BE PART OF A BRAIN ROTTING DEGENERACY I WILL EXPAND ON IN A MINUTE) to find them again. i imagined he would get to see one of his old huskies, who has well aged, who was adopted by some nice nice people. then said nice people, after his visit, insisting on him getting his husky back because “since you left she hasn’t been herself, she refused to eat. we think she misses you too much. we love her tons and it breaks our heart to let her go, but we think she would be so much happier by your side” type of deal, i’m fucking crying just thinking about it.

of course, once his team is back in shape, he’s run the Iditarod again. Hed keep contact with hal over walkietalkie during the race. hal would jump in his arms when he crosses the finish line, the pic would circulate in the news. it’d be cute i’m saying.

THE HENS :

as I said, adopted, in a little scoop snake built himself. they give eggs. sometimes they let them roam free and they bully hal when he peels vegetables (i’ve drawn smth about this). sunny feeds them in the mornings. things are good.

MORNING ROUTINE :

Snake wakes up around 5AM because he don’t need no sleep and goes to his huskies. feeds them. then make them run. when he gets back around 8 to 8:30, hal is still asleep. snake makes breakfast. the scents wake hal up. things are good.

SUNNY?

Sunny is taught by snake how to chop wood. he makes a tiny axe for her tiny hands. he and hal teach her how to swim in the Twin Lakes. the waters cold but she grows immune to it, strong and stronger. she learns how to differenciate which mushrooms and berries are edible.

they try to send her to school but she’s WAY too advanced and is bored to death. she stays at home. she’s outside all day or she learns astrophysics with Hal, who’s taking online classes in his free time. she learns some Athabaskan languages at a community class once in a while, she makes some friends.

HOW’S THE WEATHER

They go on hikes a lot. Often, and long ones. At first, sunny is in a little baby back carrier (i have drawn about this), then she walks just right. Alaska has gorgeous national parks, they explore them, year after year. They arrive in a town, exhausted and beat, they find a hotel room. It has a bathtub and warm water. Hal is OVERJOYED.

in the earliest hints of spring, snake takes them to Fairbanks through the beautiful alaskan railroad. they see the most beautiful and powerful of northern lights during the full season. hal and sunny can’t tear their eyes from the skies.

THIS IS WHERE I GO CRAZY GO STUPID.

ok…. so bear with me.

i mentioned an internet/social media presence.

it’s because in a deviation of this daydream, snake has a little youtube channel (and an instagram to go with it).

it’s not much. it’s really not, but hal has a few cameras and more that he finds and fixes.

it’s mostly lowkey, chill vlogs. stuff like 

“slow alaskan winter day (no talking)” 

“sprintime berry picking ( + jams recipes!)”

“alaskan summer outdoor fire cookout ( + wild moose and caribou near the lake)”

“denali national park hike (day 1)”

stuff that like you know. as well as some more…

“i ran the iditarod (and won)”

“we got hens (building a chicken scoop, meeting the rescue hens and more)”

“musher’s morning routine (i’d recommend you didn’t try this at home if you are not the genetically engineered clone of a super-soldier, for your sake)”

and as you guessed…

“so our rescue husky was pregnant… (i’m an idiot who didn’t notice, trip to the vet, building a whelping pen, whelping, bottlefeeding tiny pup + all the puppies’ pictures!)”

where dave would teach hal how to bottlefeed a puppy and you’d be able to hear hal’s “oh god oh god oh god oh god”s from out of frame as the camera focuses on dave’s hands holding his to have him perfectly cup the puppy in his palm and carry the bottle. this type of deal.

then follow-up videos of the puppies climbing the bed where hal is, playing on his gameboy. he chuckles nervously and then heartily when a puppy licks his face.

some winter days, the videos have snake bringing all the huskies in the small cabin. some of them sit calmly on the wide bed where hal studies his astrophysics.

and an instagram with wilderness pictures… all except a few taken by hal. some of snake posing in front of the snowed in cabin. some of warm drinks made on winter days. you know the deal.

and they’d have such a nice… positive… lowkey and easy-going comment section. dave would reply to a lot of them. 

he’d get quite a share of “hey man, i love your vids so much, thank you for posting this content. i was wondering, sorry if it’s a bit too personal, are you and your roommate dating? you two seem very close, but i don’t want to assume anything 😅 absolutely love your content either way, you’re the only youtuber i have notifs on” to which he’d reply “thank you so much, really appreciate it. and we’re not, we’ve just known each other for a long, long time. we’re aware two straight guys raising a child and living together isolated makes for a bit of confusion, but it’s totally platonic between us. thanks for sticking around.” but one day he uploads a vid that’s like 

“crabbing in juneau ! + life update (please read description)”

and the desc + the first 20 seconds of the vid is a text superimposed over embarassing pictures of hal and it reads “hey all / quick personal update, i’ll make it quick / otacon and i realized we loved each other / (as more than friends that is) / so if we seem just a bit closer in the videos from now on this is why / no idea how this is going to turn out for up / but yeah. if he seems a bit more affectionate it’s because we’re dating now, or something like that / and to everyone whom i told ‘it’s just strictly platonic between us’:  / well. ha ha. whoops. / anyway thank you for reading / enjoy the video” and all the comments would be like “that’s so dope i’m so happy for you” and other “tbf we saw that coming” and snake would smash that like button on these comments.

and he’d have a video of the whole iditarod race as taken from a camera on his jacket/on his sled… and he’d have videos of him filming hal film the landscape through the window of the train during their trip to fairbanks… and of hal and sunny in said train sharing a tangerine… and of him building a little axe for sunny…. and he’d always ask her if she is okay with being on camera, and when she’d say no he’d make sure she doesn’t appear on here or add a cute husky sticker on her face so she’s not seen.

just lowkey. chill. upbeat. simple life moments. he’d disappear off the internet for a month because he’s just enjoying the life and when he’d come back everyone would be very understanding and glad to see some cool pictures or vids. you know? just chilling. just chilling. just living.

one day before a “hiking through lake clark national park” he has the same little life update thing and it goes “hey / so otacon and i got married / sunny and aksinya [rescued pregant husky] were our flower girls / otacon cried / i cried / anyway, enjoy the video” over pictures of the tiny alaskan wedding. and it’s well.

[everyonesonthespectrum]

30 days of Autism Acceptance: Day 3!

April 3: Talk about special interests. Do you have any? What are they? How long have you had them? What does it feel like to have special interests? What does having special interests mean to you? Talk about your past special interests

HOO BOY! Ok, I’ll try not to go on too long about my special interests, but I have a lot to say about them! Also, some of my special interests are in this weird grey area of “are they a SpIn or a hyperfixation?”, so I’ll cover those as well, and make it noted when that’s the case for one. Also, this will be VERY LONG, so I’ll put it under a cut.

SpIn #1 - Pokemon

Pokemon has been my main special interest since I was 9, I believe! Black was my first game that I got for my birthday, and I was super happy to get it since all of my friends at the time would talk about it! I’ve gotten (almost?) every major release since then, thought I usually only get one out of the two versions. 

The Pokemon games that I have are *inhales*: Black, Black 2, HeartGold (got a few years after it came out), X (I have the limited edition 3DS), Alpha Sapphire, Moon (first completed Pokedex!), Ultra Moon (haven’t beat and probably never will), Let’s Go, Eevee!, Sword (still trying to beat), Conquest, Art Academy, PMD: Gates to Infinity, Picross, Rumble World, Battle Trozei, Pokemon Quest, Pokemon Playhouse (for when I’m regressed), Poke Park 1 & 2,  My Pokemon Ranch, and Battle Revolution!

I also used to play the TCG competitively, and in my first competition, I placed 9th in my division! I stopped playing about a year after that though because the cards I used in my strategy when I would practice with my Dad were too old to be viable.

I have a growing stuffie and merch collection as well! I have a lot of Unova stuffies, and a print of the Unova map that I got at a ren faire when I was younger (it currently hangs above my dresser)! My two favorite stuffies at this time are Baby my Eevee Build-A-Bear (named after my Eevee in Let’s Go, Eevee!), and Lily my Wooloo! I have a couple of Pokemon sketch cards that friends of my Dad’s drew, and some prints and figure-y things I’ve gotten in Artist Alleys over the years!

I also own a couple of different Pokemon books (not the manga, though), and 2 of the movies, along with the OSTs for B/W, X/Y, and ORAS! I don’t have much as far as clothing goes though, except for my “Gotta Catch ‘Em All” scarf and a Pikachu hat I got at an old anime store at the mall that has since closed. That’s probably all I can remember right now!

SpIn #2 - Steam Powered Giraffe

SPG has been a special interest for about 4 years now? Anyway, they’re my #1 favorite band and have literally saved my life. Watching Bunny Bennett’s (who plays Rabbit) vlogs about her transition, along with listening to the song Transform that she wrote (waaay before they just made it a single) really helped me accept myself and come out. 

They also came at a time where I was struggling emotionally a lot, and I remember being stuck in the ER hooked up to an IV, and my mom played some of their albums for me to keep me calm and grounded. More recently, I saw them perform at Anime Midwest last year, and when they performed Transform (which neither me or my friends expected), we were all hugging each other and crying tears of joy (my friends are trans as well, and have also been touched by Bunny’s vlogs).

Their songs (not including the sad ones) make me really happy as well, and Make Believe makes me stim a lot in particular! I also got to sing Honeybee as part of a voice coaching summer camp I took last year, and it felt really good to do it! I really recommend listening to them, especially if you like steampunk and/or you’re looking for trans artists to support!

SpIn #3 - Little Shop of Horrors

So this is more of a fairly recent one, compared to the first two. This special interest mostly applies to the 1986 movie, but I’ve seen the stage musical as well! The music, the cast, the plot, it’s all *chef’s kiss*. But for real though, my two favorite things about the movie are the practical effects and the endings.

With the CGI fresh hell we got with CATS, you may thing, “wow, special effects were so much better back then”. Except here’s the thing, they were practical effects. Audrey II is (I believe) entirely puppetry, not CGI. The same applies for the musical as well! It really culminated at the end of the film during “Mean Green Mother from Outer Space”, when Audrey II is at it’s biggest and most elaborate. Speaking of that scene, I much prefer the director’s cut over the theatrical cut. I know that the happy ending is much better for Audrey and Seymour, but “Don’t Feed The Plants” is an absolute banger, and I get a good cry out of it too.

I heard they might be making a remake of the movie, which I’m hesitant about, again, seeing how CATS turned out. We can only hope that they listen to the fans, and make the right decisions when it comes to making it.

SpIn #4 - Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure

Ok, so this is one of those aformentioned “is it a SpIn or a hyperfixation” moments. I’ve been hyperfixated on JJBA for the past 6 months and I’m physically unable to shut up about it XD

I’m about to start watching part 4 of the anime, I just need to set aside time to do it. I watched it a tad out of order, my ex told me to skip part 1 and watch a synopsis of it, so I started with part 2 (I’m a huge part 2 stan btw), got to part 3, was confused by everything going on with DIO, so I went back, watched part 1, and then resumed part 3.

As I mentioned, I’m a huge part 2 stan, so I currently have several part 2 character cosplays in the works. This includes (but isn’t limited to) Caesar, Suzi Q, Playboy Bunny Caesar (inspired by a piece of art that @tinypalettes drew), Tequila Joseph (but like,, actually decent drag), and Cleric Suzi Q from the JJBA D&D session me and my friends are having. I also want to do a drag/latex DIO look, along with maid DIO inspired by an old JUMP cover and a fanfic I read the other day.

I get a little nervous about doing/going to JJBA events at conventions because I’m worried about running into my ex, but knowing that I have supportive people with me helps a lot.

SpIn #5 - Homestuck/Hiveswap

So this is another one of those “SpIn or hyperfixation” moments as well. I’ve been into Homestuck since late 2016, but I’ve never been super involved in the fandom. Like, yes, I have a moirail and I’ve been in and hosted panels at conventions, but I’ve encountered some toxic people in it, so I try to distance myself.

I will say, however, that Homestucks are loyal to their fandom, and will buy merch if they like it. When I say that, yes, I mean myself, but it’s mostly about my Etsy customers. If you look at my sales history, the majority of it is quadrant necklaces, almost always the moirail ones. I get some orders for horns and pillows too, but not as often as the necklaces. When it comes to exhibiting at conventions, it depends. I normally don’t put Homestuck stuff out on the table because it’s such a niche, but when I do, people will usually buy a lot at once. For example, at Wizard World Madison in 2018, one guy bought $50-60 worth of Homestuck sprites from me. That weekend was the best I’ve ever done, and I haven’t come close since. My Etsy store started out as just me making Homestuck sprites for me and my friends too, so I’m glad that I was able to expand and give others what I like as well.

I’m also involved in a Hiveswap YouTube musical, and I’ve made a lot of good friends through it! We’re on hiatus right now, but we should be starting up again soon! I also have a lot of Homestuck cosplays! I’ve done Karkat, John, Jade, Nepeta, Trickster Nepeta, Karkat Peixes (a bloodswap), and I have a lot more that I want to do!

SpIn #6 - Danganronpa

So Danganronpa is (probably) one of those last “SpIn or hyperfixation” things. I’ve been into Danganronpa since 2018 (I think?), and DR:AE is my favorite (mostly because I’m a Kotoko and Toko kinnie oof-)!

Right now, my only Danganronpa cosplay is Toko/Syo, but I’m working on a couple of j-fashion (particularly menhera and fairy kei) inspired looks to do with my moirail (who was the one who got me into j-fashion), and just some Amazon/eBay cosplays as well! I’m also working on a Future Foundation Toko cosplay to do with my moirail so we can do Tokomaru together (though most of it is thrifting and clothes I already have)!

I own DR1, SDR2, and DR:AE on my computer, but I don’t play them much. The second trial in DR1 gives me panic attacks because of the whole breaking of trust thing (I’ve heard the audios and I just,,, break down), I haven’t touched SDR2 yet, and I’m sucky at the controls for DR:AE. However, I’ve watched the anime and I’ve seen let’s plays, so I have a feel for what’s going on, though I may not remember it all correctly since I haven’t watched them in a while.

———————————–

So that’s most (if not all) of my special interests! I probably forgot some, but it’s getting late and I need to pack for my Mom’s and go to bed. I hope you all have a good night!

[kinkymagnus]

Twi YouTube AU?? 👀

dlgjk ok i dont have a coherent au idea i just like the idea of like. 

alec being this confident youtuber man who does all sorts of shit, like funny vlogs and maybe some sketches with his siblings or some lets plays or something, idk, he’s just a popular youtuber like, idk, fuckin markiplier or something, you know, kinda does a lot of stuff. maybe some fashion/interior design shit? idk? but like. he’s pretty popular and if there’s any list on tumblr that’s like “some queer creators you should try watching” he’s always up there because he’s pretty open about being gay. maybe at first he wasn’t in the earlier youtube days but he had a pretty emotional coming out video and everyone was like “holy shit” 

meanwhile magnus is like, a quietly popular youtuber, you know? kind of a niche audience, but with decent numbers. he does a lot of things, like vlogs about being trans. like, oh my god. magnus documenting his transition? would that even be a thing? wait oh my god is this mundane au, or is this canon? because twi magnus who’s actually a warlock with a youtube channel would be hilarious but maybe not a good idea. you know what? how about a mix. he’s mortal and was born in modern times and all, he’s like the same age as alec–idk why but i’m thinking he’s like a few weeks older or a month or two older than alec and alec jokingly teases him about being old–but he like…. still has magic, because why the fuck not. actually, you know what? fuck it? it’s an au where magic is just openly a thing. not even necessarily canonverse magic, just. some people have magic. magnus does little tutorials and shit, he has a real talent for it and he’s actually really powerful but he hides that. (possible plotline: some paparazzi discover he’s like, a level ten mage, and it’s a scale from 1-10 and 8 is the most powerful u get most of the time, there’s been a few really famous 9s and there’s been one 10 ever and that was fucking merlin. you feel. because why not. idek fuck.) anyway he has little diy make your own magical charms and weaving enchantment and safe summoning circles and tips for writing magical contracts and shit like that. he’s this cute little nerd but he’s like incredibly knowledgeable and he knows how to teach it in a way that’s understandable and accessible? and he answers questions in really clear ways, and he does amazing demonstrations that look so cool people accuse him of editing but he’s just That Good. and he’s like, actually a really well-published wizard/magic scientist, he invented the fucking portal, but probably under a pseudonym because he doesn’t really want the attention. (his last name is fell in honor of his mentor. yes. although if he does multiple ones he may or may not also use loss, santiago, rollins, etc.) anyway he’s just so fucking good, he has all these videos explaining magical theory in pretty easy to understand ways (maybe going from really simple to like “i understand the basics here and am ready for the technical terms but need an overview” videos you know. 

also he doesn’t just do magic videos, because i said so. also maybe some blogs, and like. because i want to. some fashion/makeup tips. and it’s weirdly endearing because it’s not something you’d expect since he doesn’t wear makeup that often–although a) there are def gifsets of his full makeup looks on tumblr, and b) when he does occasionally decide to wear lipstick or eyeshadow or whatever, most of his fans are like omg yes!! u look cute! also headcanon: twi magnus wears less makeup in general but he still indulges in nail polish. mostly dark/muted colors on his fingers, but bright silly colors on his toes. NAYWAYWYA

also magnus bane is his chosen name because he wanted something cool and wizardy sounding and undeniably masculine. 

also he’s so fucking sweet like look his videos are pretty popular because they’re just handy but he’s not exactly like, a super popular celebrity or anything, you know? but when he does meet fans he’s so incredibly sweet and he does selfies and he’s very appreciative of his followers? he’s so genuine? 

and alec is way more popular–not that he’s not kind and appreciative of his followers. it’s just the thing is, magnus and alec are totally opposite sides of youtube. alec is friendly charismatic completely non-magical youtuber, he plays video games with his sister and like, does vlogs and reaction videos and shit you know. magnus is out here with educational tutorials and excited rambles about magical theory. (i feel like sometimes he accidentally starts doing groundbreaking research for a video and forgets to like, publish it first, and people are like wait what the fuck holy shit) 

but then they fucking meet. 

and a) they’re Instantly smitten. b) this will eventually result in the weirdest collab ever. 

like NO ONE would expect magnus bane, tarot reader and tutorial on magic diy and shit, occasionally does makeup videos and little vlogs and talks about Issues sometimes, to collab with typical hot vlogger gamer man alec lightwood. but it happens, and somehow it’s the best fucking thing ever.

i’m not sure how their channels collide. maybe alec plays a game involving magic and magnus talks about all the ways it’s right/wrong but it ends up just being bantering and giggling and magnus may or may not end up leaning into him on the couch their sitting on and giggling as he makes a stupid joke with the character in the game and immediately everyone’s like…… we ship it

not that i support irl shipping but u know how it goes, everyones like “damn they’re cute” and they’re both openly queer so there’s that. i mean, still not cool, but you know

but really tho they keep doing collabs after that and become actual friends and both start kind of….. doing things for each other’s channel? magnus does a thing like “interview with someone who knows nothing about magic” and we just see a total mundane take on magic and honestly it’s really interesting for both of them, we have more “magnus, who’s an Old Soul and despite having a youtube channel is actually not that great with technology, raphael does all the editing, tries to play video games and kinda fails at it but he gets the hang of some of them”?? he likes puzzle games and mariokart, he does NOT like super smash bros because “THE CHARACTER NEVER DOES WHAT I WANT IT TO ALEXANDER” “you’re just jealous bc i beat ur ass” “you wanna play mariokart again, lightwood?!” 

magnus does a tarot reading for alec, alec does a vlog with him just like “day in the life of alec lol :P” and there’s moments where he just comes up behind magnus like “hey what’s up” and magnus, who’s in rumpled home clothing, sees the camera and chuckles and kinda half heartedly waves it away, and the audience loses their mind at how cute he looks lkdhjgfh

they just become actual good friends, you know? it’s weird bc you wouldn’t think it would work but it really, really does

also on of alec’s fans at some point tries to make a transphobic crack at magnus during a livestream and alec goes OFF on his ass and it’s trending for the next week, the clip goes viral, it’s like “HIMBO GOES OFF ON HATERS FOR BEING TRANSPHOBIC TO HIS FRIEND/POSSIBLE LOVER?” and alec apologizes to magnus for all the attention it brought them but magnus is like “it’s okay, we can use this” and they end up using the hype to do one of those charity livestreams youtubers do and all the proceeds go to something like mermaids or the trevor project, you feel? they’re like “suck it transphobes look at all this money you got trans ppl” khjfgh

ok but eventually they do get together, not on camera, and while it’s slow at first and kind of secret (from the internet, not from friends and family) they’re also not super subtle. they know they’re not, but they’re just sort of like “it’s no one’s business, we’ll announce it when we’re ready”

and honestly tho they love each other so much

also i’ve just decided it’s not uncommon for strong magic-users, even like, level 4 or 5 and up, to have marks, so while his cat eyes are usually glamoured maybe he showed them after a q&a or in a vlog or something? and there are like. lots of gifsets of this, okay, and like, lots of thirst comments. which are like, this weird mix of slightly uncomfortable, really flattering/validating, and embarrassing (in a good and bad way). anyway, magnus has cat eyes in this au, because i fucking said so.

ANYWAY back to their relationship, they’re in love

how did they meet? maybe at a con they bumped into each other, or a totally random fan was like “y’all should do a collab” and everyone was like “what”

or maybe a mutual friend and fellow youtuber, meliorn, who is a nonbinary youtuber who fucking has a sword don’t question me, introduces them? 

idk. but when they meet they hit it off instantly and flirt and end up getting coffee and they don’t date for a while (maybe mutual pining/misunderstandings like “oh he doesn’t like me like that, but it’s okay, we can still be friends :)” or something lkfgjhfgh) but eventually they end up getting together

how? no idea. let me think about it.

idk why but im thinking they’re filming at magnus’s apartment and they’re on his couch and just. late night. they’ve finished up filming but they’re still bantering and maybe playing some video game like mariokart or watching a movie together and just. magnus is leaned all the way into alec, just snuggled up and pressed close against him, alec ends up putting an arm around him, and alec cracks a joke or teases him and magnus sits up a bit to like, poke his chest or flick his nose (you know what i mean? like in an otp person a shifts, still kinda sitting in their lap, and is like [playfully hits shoulder or boops nose or something] and now they’re making eye contact and person b ends up pulling them into a soft kiss???) anyway THEY MAKE EYE CONTACT AND ALEC PULLS HIM INTO A SOFT KISS and alec almost pulls away when he realizes what he’s done but magnus makes this soft little happy noise and leans into him, kissing back, and they just end up kissing for a bit and when they break apart alec is just looking up at him with breathless wonder and magnus is looking down at him with that same soft reverence and alec blurts out something like “you’re magical” and magnus just loses it and he’s giggling and leaning against alec’s chest and alec starts laughing too and magnus can feel the vibrations in his chest and it’s just so nice and pleasant and wonderful and they may or may not end up making out 

they have to talk about it in the morning when they end up falling asleep together in magnus’s bed, cuddled close, but they find, to both of their delights, they both want to date and be in a serious relationship and it’s so fucking good ok 

they go to dinner and the transition from friendship to romance is a little awkward but so worth it, especially when they realize HEY IT’S BOTH YOU DONT STOP BEING FRIENDS WHEN YOU DATE. i mean like, they didn’t not know that, but it’s like, idk how to explain you know they’re kinda like “are we doing this right” and then they’re like “fuck doing it right we can keep cuddling on the couch and giggling and bantering over stupid shit and watching dumb movies and kicking each others asses in video games it doesn’t matter we just also kiss and have dinner more often and sleep together and also we may or may not be in love” 

also they’re That Couple. they’re like straight to the honeymoon, they’re domestic from the first week. magnus is casually doing magic around the house (imagine: he just dyes his hair on a whim and grows it out a little bit and alec is like “i love u no matter how u style ur hair and stuff, and like, ur usual look is so fuckin cute and handsome, but also I Love This.”) but like he’s like (casually summons small ball of light to read book at night) (casually makes alec little protective charms–side note alec def makes him some of these too, but he asks magnus’s old mentor, ragnor, and two of his friends that can do magic, catarina and dot, to enchant it, since he can’t himself, and having magic woven by people who care about him will make it stronger. oh mhyhogfd) and just like. magic used to be something he mostly kept to himself (this def has something to do with his parents–his mom, who he thinks killed herself because of his eyes/magic, his birth dad who’s a powerful sorcerer–level 9, actually, and they think magnus is level 8 for a long time–who was an abusive fuckstick) and then he started doing youtube and it was a kinda show, a gift, something to share, but still not really something he just used openly in front of people he cared about (other than his close friends, since most of them do magic too anyway) but with alec it’s so easy to do that casually?? it’s so easy to just feel comfortable and safe????? yes

anyway they do eventually “come out” as boyfriends, maybe something short and sweet like just. a tweet of magnus sleeping curled up on alec’s chest and he’s like “god i love my boyfriend

they were already not subtle but now that they’re not hiding it they’re so fucking blatantly in love tbh. they do one of those boyfriend tag videos and it’s fucking adorable, at high request they do some couples games kind of videos, like the newlywed game and fuck marry kill (mostly on alec’s channel but magnus has a few, too) and it’s just HIGH QUALITY FUCKING CONTENT

also originally i was just thinking something along the lines of “in canon verse, twi alec is instagram famous/famous on social media and he gets cute tarot boyfriend and is like look at my cute boyfriend and then magnus’s small insta account mostly for his business gets a fuck ton of new followers and alec’s gets a considerable amount too” and now i’m imagining everyone from their respective audiences first thirst-following the other, then actually getting invested 

but really tho they’re the internet’s hottest couple for a while it’s great

for some reason i’m picturing them doing a live tour now, with like, accessible tickets and magnus does magic live on stage and idek what else they’d do tbh but it’d be fun as fuck

anyway this au got away from me

me: i dont have any real coherent ideas

also me: [vomits a 2,500+ word ESSAY] 

[lindsaykk23]

Evan got trinity into her car seat as I grabbed her stuff for the two days that we’re gonna be at Tyler’s house. Let’s just say 4th of July this year was gonna be fun. I grabbed our essentials and put them in the trunk and then get into the passengers side of the car. Trinity has her tablet so she will be distracted most of the ride. It’s about 4 hours to get to Tyler’s house. At least I was gonna see Kelly. You see me and Kelly have always been close. When she found out I was pregnant with trinity she said that if Evan doesn’t want her then she would raise her with me. Anyway you could probably tell I’m excited to see her.

“Alright I think we have everything” I said as Evan got into the car.

“Finally” he said while chuckling. I mean we did wait to pack till this morning. And we had to leave at 8:00 am. We actually made it.

Time skip-

“Welp trinity’s passed out. Do you want me to get her or do you have her?”

“I’ll get her” I said and picked her up. She immediately hugged closer to me and dozed off as soon as she was comfortable. I rang the doorbell as Evan told me to go up as he got the bags. Kelly opened the door.

“Omg hi babe!” She said as she hugged around trinity.

“She’s passed out” I chuckle.

“Hey Evan” she says as she hugs him.

We go inside to see marcel and Simone.

“Y/n!! It’s been to long!” She jogs up to me and hugs me.

We greeted everyone else as trinity wakes up and is greeted by everyone. She’s shy so she cowers back into my neck. She makes grabby hands to Evan who grabs her.

“Welp you can tell Evans the favorite” I say and smirk towards him. He kisses my cheek but smirks.

“Of course I am! I mean I’m look at me!” He says sarcastically.

“Damn that hurt haha” we laughed and waited for everyone else to join us. We were going golfing tonight to start it off before 4th of July. Trinity didn’t want to try and play the whole time. We would ask her and she wouldn’t want to. Jigglypanda was vlogging so he got some family footage of us/ clickbait. Trinity was being watched by Kelly most of the night because trinity wanted to. So that means me and Evan had some time at golf to ourselves. I was playing around with Simone and Tyler most of the night. Evan seemed to be a little out of it though. He doesn’t really like to be on camera around a bunch of people. He just payed back on one of the coaches at the golf course and watched me. He seemed off though, I went up to him by the time he looked pretty pissed off.

“Hey. You ok?” I said as I sat down close to him.

“Ya ya I’m great” he said sarcastically. I don’t know what was up with him.

“Come on Evan tell me” I smiled.

“No it’s nothing just go on and have fun with Tyler all you want.” He sounded pissed when he said Tyler. I knew what was up.

“Are you jealous?” I smirked and turned my head.

“No y/n” he said trying to play it off.

“Awww baby, you don’t need to be jealous around anyone. Especially anyone here.” I said to annoy him a little.

“Your so lucky that we’re staying at Tyler’s tonight.” He said through gritted teeth.

“Oh really? Who said it has to stop because we’re at Tyler’s” I said and smirked

I crawled up to his ear and whispered, “come on,

Punish me daddy” I said in a low voice.

He grabbed me and asked if Kelly could watch trinity for a little while longer. After she agreed, Evan dragged me though patty’s of people to get to the bathroom. It was a small handicapped bathroom. He pushed me up against the sink and I hopped up.

“Whatcha gonna do daddy?” I said in a baby voice. He chuckled and moved closer to me.

“You don’t know when to stop do you?” He grabbed my thighs and slid them up to my ass. He then let go which made me whine, he locked the door and walked towards me again.

“Your gonna get on those knees right now” he said as a first step. “Then your gonna take your sweet time and suck me.” He said while grabbing my shoulders and put me down to my knees by my head. I slowly palmed him a little before he yanks my head up to face him.

“Did I say your gonna tease me?” I shook my head no.

“No daddy” I said as I pulled his shorts and boxers down at the same time. His dick sprung up and ready for me. He puts his hand on the back off my head and uses his other to grab his dick and guide it towards my mouth. I slowly went down his length while he groans. We do this for a few mintutes before there’s knocking at the door.

“Anyone in there?” The guy yelled.

“Yes” he said as he thrusted his length down my throat. I gagged as he held my head down on him. He started to face fuck me. He was quick in pace so we didn’t waste anytime from our friends.

“Just like that... yeah... milk my cock baby.” He said shock made me whine around his cock. He moaned at the vibrations and bucked his hips into my mouth harder.

“Do that again baby, make me cum” He groaned.

I felt the heat pool between my Legs as wetness was clear through my panties. I hope it doesn’t get through my jeans. He soon finishes up and he pulls up his shorts.

“Jesus Christ baby” he said as he hugged me around my waist against the counter. I giggled and pushed him off.

“Shut upppp. We gotta get back so no one suspects anything. Also your daughter is probably scared we left her.

“Oh shit!” He grabbed my hand as he checked outside the door to see if anyone was looking he dragged me out and held my hand as we walked back to the area with our friends.

“Where were you guys?” Panda asks us.

“Oh we went to get a drink. We just got caught up talking sorry.” He said nervously. Obviously panda wouldn’t say anything in front of everyone but I think he knows a little more. I go over to Kelly who has trinity busy with her phone. Trinity gets off Kelly’s lap to come over to mine.

“Thank you Kelly, sorry we took so long” I said whole smiling.

“It’s ok y/n really, I love playing with trinity!” She smiles. “By the way what did you and Evan do?” She smirks.

“You can’t say shit Kelly. Panda already pretty much knows..... well Evan got a little bit horny? Or jealous? Probably both, he took me to the bathroom and you know, he was being a daddy.” I winked at her.

“Damn girl get some” we laughed together as the guys were gonna get going to Tyler’s house to drink as adults and just be together after a while. We get into the car and trinity passes out. I hope she stays asleep for the rest of the night. She was up pretty much all night last night. Mostly because of Evan because he was being to loud with the guys when they were filming. We got to Tyler’s house and Evan took trinity upstairs to the room Kelly has made for us. We lay trinity down in her little bed and leave the door open to hear if she cries or not as we go downstairs to our friends.

“Ah you got the kid to sleep?” Scotty asked

“Yes pretty sure she’s gonna make it through the night because her father couldn’t stop waking her up from filming with you guys last night.” They laughed. Evan took a white claw and got one for me. He sat down on one of the stools and pulled me onto his lap. We talked about life, Scotty got a little to wild, and Evan was pretty much passed out as we walked upstairs to the bedroom. Evan took off his clothes except for his boxers and then payed down with his hands on the back of his head. He watched as I changed. He seemed like he was enjoying it so I took it slower, but there was no way he was gonna start something right in front of trinity. I finally got into bed and got jumped on by Evan who wanted to cuddle apparently. He hugged my waist and lays on my boobs. I run my fingers through his hair and sigh in content. We slowly fall asleep.

-

Welp do you guys think I should turn this into a series with trinity (their daughter). Tell me ASAP and I’ll get more of them out. Also do we like the smut parts? Idc if you guys want me to write smut about anyone. Anyways that is for the feedback and I’ll talk you all later!

[wii-nter]

uhh... fairy tail youtuber!au (pt.1?)

because i'm on a vlog squad hype, i wanted to make this 

eh i’ll probably make more later

okay so everyone has separate channels except natsu, gray, gajeel, mira and lisanna 

natsu gray and gajeel share one channel where they occasionally do podcasts with people, play games together and do random shit that often ends in chaos and giggles 

but they also have their individual channels- natsu who does alot of vlogs and WILL prank his roommates (firing off fireworks around the house is a guilty pleasure) 

gray mostly does gaming videos and the occasional vlog 

gajeel’s videos consist of only music and compilations of his cat. while he isn’t the best at singing, for some reason, he has the power to play any guitar he picks up like a god 

mira and lisanna make diy videos and baking vids separetaly, called ‘’strauss creates’’ 

juvia doesn’t have a channel herself, but she does appear in a lot of the other’s videos since they kinda all know each other??

 natsu, gray and lisanna are childhood friends, natsu and gajeel are cousins, levy is gajeel’s girlfriend and lucy’s best friend, juvia is gajeel’s step sister and that cute barista that gray totally doesn’t have a crush on 

lucy’s channel consists of many show/anime reviews and vlogs while levy’s channel is ALL about books, book reviews, the books she’s read and little challenges. she does book hauls every month and talks about the latest stories she’s read 

she’s also lucy’s #1 fan!! 

seriously girl tho that novel needs to be published stop denying your talent 

yeah so juvia works at this cute coffee shop and she’s good friends with lisanna

ju’s also the reason why gray comes in all the time 

ok to the real story now 

natsu and lucy first run into each other at walmart, ironically both were looking for stuff for a prank 

levy has been ditching her for her mysterious boyfriend a lot of times this month so obviously lucy has to get back at her 

and natsu naturally just wants to fuck up gray and gajeel’s life 

again, ironic, because they were both recording 

lucy actually is the first one to talk since she recognized him as that one pink-haired weirdo that dropped off levy at her house once 

so like: ‘’omg hey i know you!! wanna run down the aisles of walmart screaming and prank our friends together?!’’ 

and that’s the day natsu fell in love

kidding 

but he does end up liking her a lot right there and then

so yeah, natsu and lucy became good friends and quickly became the best chaotic duo when it came to pranks 

they also start to appear in each other’s vlogs A L O T 

and when she’s doing her reviews, natsu loves running into lucy’s room and crashing her entire vid

he kinda just,,, lays down on her bed or beside her and says stupid stuff off and on camera 

same goes with lucy!! 

so like he’ll be recording in his room before the door fucking slams open and lucy starts screaming and jumps on his back

and clings to him for the rest of the day

it’s so cute and annoying everyone gets cavities and throws up 

lisanna and juvia are besties!! they share a love for baking and often exchange recipes 

juvia also tends to end up in lisanna’s and gray’s videos the most, making snide comments behind the camera when everyone least expects it 

at the beginning, gray wanted nothing to do with juvia since she knew he was a youtube celeb and he didn’t want to deal with an annoying fangirl all the time 

so for a while gray is an absolute cold-hearted douchebag until gajeel snaps his bones beats some sense into the guy and he finally opens his eyes 

juvia is all forgiving and an absolute angel, how can you not love her

when she finds out about gray’s not so secret love for lemon sponge cakes, she makes a habit of making some for him more often than not every time she visits

levy called it bribery 

juju called it payback, making him fall in love with her 

gray is fully aware that she has his heart in her hands and has no problem with it

but lord knows what will happen if she hurts him 

(the guys will come after her) 

gajeel and levy

oh boy 

they’ve actually been dating a few months prior their friend groups merging together 

they became friends when levy realized he was nursing a little kitten back to health in his apartment back before he lived with natsu and gray

she helped him take care of pantherlily (it’s a badass name, no matter what anyone says) and it turned into some sort of co-ownership 

later gajeel asked her out when he realized he’d fallen hard for this tiny goddess with messy blue hair and a personal library that probably rivaled the library of congress 

(fortunately) she said yes and ever since they have a pretty nice relationship

but dear god 

when they’re both in the same room you better fucking run because they turn into the sappiest morons in the world 

it’s so disgustingly sweet and makes you wanna barf rainbows and shit sparkles 

who knew gajeel could do romance?? 

ha he can’t 

he just has a lot of experience charming ladies when stupid 13 year old natsu did something stupid in front of them

he did it to mask his shame and disappointment 

why his dumbass cousin thought it was a good idea to try juggling with two staplers he will never know 

ah whatever they love each other

[purplesurveys]

739

Do you enjoy watching birth vlogs? OMG never. Those are a thing? I would imagine there’d be enough butthurt people flagging them enough to be taken down YouTube, but if they’re being uploaded there and are able to stay uploaded then that’s a really good thing. I’ve seen birthing photosets on Facebook but I’ve never watched an actual video. Would you rather paint on canvas or wood? I don’t paint but if given the chance I’d probably pick canvas just because it’s more common. What regret keeps coming back to haunt you daily? Recently it’s the daily decision to keep ignoring my thesis. UHGJGHFKD I’ll do it and have it finished in May I fucking swear, I just can’t right now. Do you miss someone? I miss all my best friends, close friends, friends, acquaintances, classmates, groupmates, and everyone I’ve ever come across in school including the cats and dogs. If you could cure yourself of one allergy, what would it be? I don’t have any allergies but I wish the irritation in my eye that will occasionally annoy me like an allergy would go away forever.

Do you know anyone else with your name? Yeah when I was applying for AIESEC there were two people there with the same name and even the same spelling - I had never felt so common until then lol. I know more Robins with an i. Have you felt like the main character in a book was you? No, but I know if I read more then I will probably be able to name a character for you. Which country's flag is your favorite? Nepal’s. I also found Libya’s old flag interesting since it used to be just green with no designs whatsoever. What would you be most afraid of happening if you were to visit Africa? This has some pretty awful undertones but uhhh I’d be wary of being attacked or scammed as a tourist, which is just the same thing I’d be scared of if I went to a different continent. Where are you tempted to move to sometimes? Chicago. Have you ever hiked a mountain? I’ve hiked before, but not for a mountain. Who seems like they have the perfect life? One of my acquaintances, Chesca, is reeeeeally intelligent but also incredibly rich and funny and POPULAR and pretty and trendy and an insanely talented speaker and very well-loved. I know no one has a perfect life per se but out of all the people I observe, she’s definitely the one who seems to authentically have it all. Do you ever take pictures of negative moments? I only did that once. The only thing it did for me was remind me of how much I was in a shitty place then. Do you think it would be a good idea to post photos of negative moments as well as positive? ^ Clearly, no. I never wanted to take photos of shitty moments after that. What time zone are you in? I never memorized the format but it’s something with +8 in it. Would you ever post a picture of yourself crying on social media? No. ^Why or why not? Because I find that extremely personal/private. Do you like dark blue jeggings or light blue jeggings better? Light blue even if I don’t wear jeggings, I guess. Dark blue isn’t as trendy these days. What color is the rim of your whiteboard? I don’t even own a whiteboard. Do you have trouble staying organized? For some spaces, yes. I can’t ever keep my car clean, for one. Throughout college it’s kinda served as my second home so I’ve never been able to avoid having my stuff from home pile up in there instead lmao. What was the last thing you cried about? The Philippine Bar exam results got released today and there was a video that quickly went viral of a family finding out their daughter/sister passed before she knew, and the passer only found out because they were all whooping and screaming downstairs. When she realized what they were making noise for she fell to the ground and started crying and oh my god there is a lump in my throat right now just thinking about it again. Have you ever held a newborn baby? No, I’ve never been in a delivery room nor met a baby a day or two after they were born; there’s just lots of sanitary/hygiene stuff to worry about and I’m ok with getting out of the way for a few days to ensure their health. Do you know anyone who has twins? I know sets of twins, which I guess kind of means the same because it means I am at least remotely aware of their mom lolol. Would you rather look older or younger than your age? Younger. Where do you buy calendars from? I don’t. Do you shop at the dollar store often? That’d be impossible to have here because we don’t even use dollars. But we don’t have anything equivalent to like a peso store either, so no I don’t. What does your name rhyme with? Foreign. Are you following in the career path of any family members? Yep. I have two aunts who worked as journalists; one of those aunts also worked as a radio DJ at one point; my great-uncle was a historian, author, and a professor and dean of history; and I have too many lawyer relatives to count on one hand. Have you ever met anyone who talks like a robot? Yeah, some really bad reporters in some of my past classes. Name something unique about your town. We have an authentic Swiss restaurant. That’s genuinely the most random, unique thing I’ve seen come out of any towns lmfao because any restaurant that isn’t Chinese/Japanese/Italian/American/Mexican is just not a common concept here at all, much less Swiss. I haven’t tried it yet since it’s fine dining but hopefully soon. Who does all the chores in your home? My mom. She’s super particular about chores and likes things to be done her way. Every time we’ve tried to help her we just end up getting yelled at because as much as we try to imitate her, somehow we always do the chore wrong. Do you feel you missed out on a lot as a kid? I missed out on the emotional foundation/support, for sure. I had to figure all that out on my own. What is your best kept secret (or one big secret you have right now)? This blog that to this day, only my sister knows about. Do you have anyone you can tell your secrets to? Yes. ^If so, who? You. Hahahahaha Who was that best friend you ever had? This is in past tense, so my best best friend that I’ve since lost was Sofie. I’m sad we drifted apart but we both seem a lot happier today and that’s what matters. She was an important person in a certain period in my life so I don’t regret the friendship. Do people appreciate you and accept you for who you are? I feel this from them, so I guess they do. What color is your laptop? Silver. What class would you like to repeat over again just for fun? Bio 1 because it was easy and POLSC 180 because I learned so much.

What are five careers you think you'd be good at? Corporate lawyer, any job that requires a lot of spreadsheet-y and internal work really, PR, a consultant for something I’m interested in, historian. I tried to delete this question but I brought it back at the last second because now is so not the time anymore to still dodge my future career prospects lmao. Are you thriving in your life right now? I don’t think anyone is at the moment, and that’s okay. Who do you have moral support from? My girlfriend and close friends, mostly. Who encourages you to go after your dreams? Them, and sometimes my parents. Do you have people in your family who want you dead? That’s horrible lmao I wouldn’t think so? Are the police criminals in your town? Yes. List all the antiques you have in your room. I don’t have any. What Bratz doll resembles you the most? JADE. My homegirl through and through. Do you have a walk-in closet? No. What was the last thing you ate? I had a chocolate chip cookie. What would you do to save money for your wedding? Allot some money from my salary for it, lmao. Have you ever been manipulated, lied to, abused, or controlled? Yes, of course, yes, and sure. Are you against plagiarism? Of course. That’s literally the biggest no-no in journalism.

[beihonglin]

anyway i met bei honglin and he’s an actual angel and we don’t deserve him: a recap

also this is more than 5k words so like ! prepare yourselves!

fhdjjd okay so in april honglin’s hyh brought up his birthday party in his gc and I was like :——) that’s when spring sem ends I could actually make it

 fast forward through a lot of encouraging by summer miss @91percentchaoze​ (sobs I rly owe summer my life) and a lot of anxiety about flights and a lot of other stresses in between

and June 2nd I’m in shanghai with mirthe miss @honglinsmacaroni​ and meggi and summer ie three of the cutest people in the world!!!

when we get to banana there were already other fans there waiting at the event space and the hyh was giving out seat numbers and stuff

so meggi was 10, summer was 11, mirthe was 14 and I was 15

and we started giving out the slogans and stuff we printed until the staff chased us out so they could set up

and so we were chilling first in Starbucks w the other fans fhdjjfjf they’re rly so cute I was finally able to put faces to weibo handles & they finally realised they were talking to someone who’s actually shit at speaking Chinese lmao

then when it got to 2 o’clock we moved outside near the entrance of the event space (since the event space was supposed to be open to us at 2)

but they got the time wrong and we ended up only being able to go in at nearly 3

which isn’t important anyway bc !!! we saw tangram walking in !!!

okay so we saw this white blob coming out from the main banana building and walking towards one of the side buildings and we were like

whomst

and it wAS JINGZUO JSDKAHFKJDH

and summer or mirthe waved at him and he was like bitch wtf and squinted

like ??? who the heckity is waving at me but then eventually he connected the dots and was like o yah fans so he waved back fhdchdkhcjdjf

and he just walked on what a king ??????

summer was right I was surprisingly more chill than I thought I would be fhdjfjfjjf I thought I would cry but I didn’t

so we waited around a bit longer, got suntans and sunburns and slightly dehydrated

and then honglin walks out

my god y’all he’s a whole goddamn angel he’s not real I’m telling you he’s unreal

I KNOW I said the last time that yanjun is rly unphotogenic and all the photos don’t do him justice but leT ME TELL YOU

THE ENTIRE BANANA FAMILY IS LIKE THIS THEYRE UNREAL

THEYRE ALL BANANA PEELS IN HUMAN SUITS THEIR VISUALS ARE ??? NOT HUMAN

but yah at first I was like o he’s gonna go through the back exit to the event space he’s not gonna come this way

AND THEN HE CAME THIS WAY

fhdjfjfj i didn’t take a video but if I did u would probs hear me go “o shit he’s coming” fhdjfjfj

and mirthe was like I’M GONNA TELL HIM UR WEIBO HANDLE I’M GONNA TELL HIM YOU’RE ASTROFIREWORKS and I was like NO so then we had a little back and forth for a while tHAT HONGLIN SAW FBDJHFJF

I don’t rmb a lot of it bc I was mainly in shock that he was in front of me so I was mostly like :——) heckie!

but he went through the front entrance and the moment he made it inside I lost my shit fbdjfjjff

mirthe sent a picture of me just kneeling at the entrance contemplating my entire life to the group chat fhdjfhdj apparently I said that I wanted to go home fhdjfjfjjf

and then zhixie and jingzuo came out soBS

ZHIXIE IS SO BEAUTIFUL IRL U DONT UNDERSTAND HIS CHEEKBONES ARE INSANE

also he had black hair again and the cuTEST HAT ON and we promptly lost our shit

Jingzuo,,,,, in a plain white shirt and blue jeans and converse,,,, someone PLEASE stop him

but they went in and we cried

and waited outside bc ruotian and chaoze still hadn’t gone in but then someone came to tell us chaoze was off filming for his show so he wasn’t coming & somehow ruotian had alr made it into the building without us noticing so eventually we all went in

and the chairs were so comfortable o my god they swivelled and they were like super squishy I love chairs

and then the best two hours of my tgm stan life started :—(

my god the moment honglin stepped on stage my entire heart melted he rly looked so good sobs

you’re completely right I’m dedicating an entire portion to his visuals

his eyes :—-( are so sparkly my god

and when he smiles his eyesmile???? he gets those rly deep wrinkles around his eyes and they’re actually beautiful????? ;;;;

he Radiates joy like i know i say this so often but their debut song??? radiant??? written For him,,,

also when he smiles it’s so warm like you find yourself smiling along bc he rly and genuinely means it and is happy and your heart just warms up bc he’s happy and i just

man i l*ve him

okay so the first segment zhixie was like “what do y’all love about beibei”

and everyone was yelling different things like “he’s so handsome” and “so talented” and “his vocals” and someone also yelled “he can eat a lot” and zhixie was like ??? bro whAt

also someone said “he spoils his fans a lot” and my god y’all it’s so so true but more in that at the very end of this recap

I couldn’t even say anything rip bc my entire brain was set in English and I was like ???? my god i wrote an entire post about the reasons I l*ve him but my mind is blankity blank

but then he was like well beibei’s great at pick up lines

so he did pick up lines based on scenarios zhixie gave fhdjfjfand most of them were old tsk

but he made up this rly cute one that went like 看花开不如看着你发呆 ‘people like looking at flowers bloom, but i’d rather look at you daydreaming’ and i UWUED SO HARD

and I didn’t realise this until meggi pointed it out after but when they put the scenarios on screen, they used a gender neutral “TA” instead of the gendered 她/他 ;;;;;

then they did this segment where honglin was supposed to go against three fans and do a tongue twister in the shortest time and in order of time they got to choose foods under cloches

honglin did so badly fhdjfjfj he got last place but idk if he did it on purpose so his fans could win

one fan got wasabi disguised as ice cream and zhixie was like EAT IT and honglin was like DONT

and he offered to eat the wasabi for her I’m sobbing he rly is so sweet

but zhixie was like NO SHE HAS TO EAT IT and everyone laughed bc he was so adamant fhdjfjfj i love zhixie with my entire soul

and thEN honglin goes okay y’all know how I posted that picture last night

(this picture)

my god I died when he posted it bc

1) I love that shirt what an expensive look

2) he was baking ;A;

and he made a half-baked cheesecake s o b s

he was like: “since i’m always posting vlogs and y’all always watch me eat I thought I’d make food for y’all this time” and I WEPT

and he was like oh give me a theme and i’ll decorate the cake around that theme

so they pulled out the box again and he picked random numbers

and they called out 4 and 15 and 27 to go on stage and I was like

wow I wonder who they are omg

and suddenly summer’s in my ear going MY GOD 15 IT’S YOU

me:

me: what

zhixie: STOP DREAMING IT’S YOU

me: WHAT

hdsflgkjhdfkhgjdsfgkhksfgkdjhdfgkjhsdgjh

and the entire time i was mouthing to mirf and meggi like I CAN’T SPEAK CHINESE I’M GOING TO GO UP AND FORGET THAT I’M BILINGUAL I’M GOING TO BE BYELINGUAL I’M

and they were mouthing back sPEAK ENGLISH and i was like oK

and then it was my turn and i was shaking so so so hard ????

like i’m so so so bad in front of crowds i’ve shaken my way through every marketing presentation ever bc i hATE public speaking and now i have to go up in front of two angels?????

mirf and meggi were like THAT’S ASTROFIREWORKS and i didn’t realise until i checked the group chat after that zhixie said yAY KJDHSKSJAHKJA

and summer was like SHE FLEW IN FROM NEW YORK kjdshfkahdgjfhagjd

and zhixie was like wait do u speak chinese

and i blANKED OUT I WAS LIKE YES BUT FAM NO

but he only took the yes and was like ok thaNK GOD I DONT HAVE TO TRANSLATE

inside i was like fAM WHO THE HECKITY DO U THINK TRANSLATES YOUR VIDEOS I CAN DO IT FOR U KASJDHFLSKJDHKH but outside i was just ah yes :—)

and zhixie and honglin said something about english but my mind was blank all i could do was stare at honglin like

y’all

i know i said he was unreal but

up close

he’s literally ??? a whole angel like ????????????? his eyes sparkle so much when he laughs my heart STOPPED

and when they asked me to step closer i was like

actually i can translate for u i’m-

and zhixie was like NO THERE’S NO NEED like akdsfhkjkjdshJKASDHK OK

then honglin asked what theme i wanted and i was likE FAM IDK I’VE BEEN BLANKING THE ENTIRE TIME STARING AT YOU

so i was like okay i know u rly like one piece so something maybe one piece related

and he was like fam that’s difficult sadjkfhalsKJSDHLKJASD

but the moment i opened my mouth

zhixie: ARE YOU SINGAPOREAN OR MALAYSIAN

me: uh i’m singapor-

honglin: uwu i can hear it

me: about to die

zhixie (in english): ur accent !

and god yall my entire heart burst into flames like

i’ve said it before here but i’ve spent quite a bit of time being ashamed of my accent bc when i first got to america nobody could understand my singaporean accent and everyone kept asking me to repeat myself and eventually i was like ok u know what it’s better if i just shut up and not talk

and so the reason why i’m so so so proud of zhangjing (and jj) is bc there finally is ?? some south east asian representation and there are even people complimenting his accent and calling it cute and it ?? finally felt like i shouldn’t be embarrassed about the way i speak??

zhixie: when i heard you i was like eh? it’s almost like i heard you zhangjing

and i

Cried

and then zhixie turned to meggi and mirthe and were like yall come from beijing?

like fam what

and meggi was like no we come from belgium

zhixie: malaysian? you?

about ten people correcting him: belgium

zhixie, again: malaysian?

kajsdhflasjdkhfkj

and then zhixie said some other words but yall i was

just watching honglin

his hands are so so so so beautiful like his fingers are rly nice and

his nose ??? work of art

also his hands looked so soft like :—(

he was just bent over the cake and he :—( rly truly a goddamn angel

summer took photos of me that i’m never releasing ever sakdfhaksjdhfds i look so COMPLETELY WHIPPED FOR HIM LIKE

and at one point he started plucking cherries and one stalk fell on the floor and i was like o no so i went forward to pick it up and he

looked up

and said ‘oh it’s okay�� and smiled and

my heart stopped i think i left my soul on stage

O SHIT OKAY AND THEN ZHIXIE WALKED OVER AND WAS LIKE

CAN I ASK WHAT YOU’RE THINKING U LOOK LIKE YOU’RE LOSING UR MIND

AND I WAS LIKE FAM U DONT UNDERSTAND I A M

and i was like ‘idk i’m just ?? very shookt’

and zhixie was like what??? shy????

me: 很惊讶 (very shocked)

zhixie: shy? ? ??

me, thinking: fam this is how i feel when i translate yall captionless vlogs

zhixie (in eng): is this ur first time seeing honglin?

me: my first time seeing you also !!!!!

zhixie, suddenly shy: ah okay thank u

UWU!!!

and then honglin was done and looked up and i might have died inside again

AND HE WALKED OVER AND I WAS LIKE FAM NO DONT IF YOU COME CLOSER I’M LITERALLY GOING TO DI E??????

and he was like ‘oh this is zoro’

the sane part of me: oh wait ur favourite character is zoro???

bc liTERALLY TWO DAYS BEFORE HE POSTED ABOUT SANJI AND SO MY SISTER AND I WERE LIKE OH HE PROBS LIKES SANJI

BUT HE

LIKES ZORO

(my sister, afterwards: wtf i feel lied to)

but he was so heckin close to me like fam my heart

stopped

honglin: i hope u like it uwu

me: heck !

honglin: take one bite!

me: HECKITYHECK

zhixie (in eng): i wanna see ur facial expression

aND THEN THEY WERE BOTH LOOKGIN AT ME LIKE FUCABJS,BCD

FUCINADJCNSAKJDKJ

honglin: is it okay? ;;

me: FUCIJNSKCSADJ YES TAKE MY HEART TAKE MY SOUL

and i finally FINALLY FUNIAJKNSSK FINALLY GOT OFF THE GODDAMN STAGE

zhixie: WHERE’S HER APPLAUSE

anD EITHER RUOTIAN OR JINGZUO UPSTAIRS STARTED CLAPPING AGAINST THEIR MIC LIKE ASDFAHKSDHFAKSJD SHUT UP

 AND I WANTED TO DIE I WALKED ITNO A CARDBOARD CUTOUT RIGHT AFTER BC I WAS SO SHOOK

and honglin was like be careful! there’s a cardboard cutout right there! bc he’s a whoLE ANGEL

but also like GKASCKASHDHFAJDSHLFKJ PLS STOP LOOKIGN AT ME PLEAS E MY HEART IS WEAK I’M

my god

collapsed into summer’s arms right after thank god for summer !!!

okay then the next segment zhixie was like o yall know honglin’s position in the group is main vocal so next he can sing something for yall

honglin: actually i prepared an entire song for yall but music copyright means that i can’t sing it w a backing track

bc if he sings w a copyrighted backing track or if he sings more than half the song the livestream video would have to be taken down or something??

but it didn’t matter bc the moment he opened his mouth my entire heart STOPPED like

if he stabbed me in the stomach it would have hurt less his voice is so so sososos ososososososoosososo beautiful ????

and he sang without a backing track to like ????

i’m telling yall he’s a whole angel like he’s not real

and then honglin was like oh i also prepared another song but bc i now see there are overseas fans here i’m gonna sing an english song

and he sang when i was your man by bruno mars and when he hit the high note i think i ascended into the afterlife

about the 46 minute mark here i RLY AND TRULY RECOMMEND LISTENING TO IT SOBS HE SOUNDS LIKE THE PERFECT ANGEL HE IS

AND ZHIXIE HARMONISED AT THE BACK LIKE AHHHHH THAT’S MY BABE MAIN VOCAL TAGTEAM RIGHT THERE

and then zhixie asked if there was any other song we wanted and i was immediately like JJ!!

i’ve been ??? pleading for a jj cover forEVER ND HE

FINALLY PULLED THROUGH

honglin: i’m going to do Those Were The Days bc like the song says (那些你很冒险的梦 我陪你去疯 - all those adventurous dreams, i’ll chase them with you), i’ve been chasing my dream and yall have been here with me every step of the way

and i think the moment he said it i DIED like ???? jj is one of my favourite singers and nearly all my faves have covered his songs at least once, astro included???

and everyone who knows me knows i love jj like nini miss @tanqram​ has literally made a tangram singing jj compilation that i watch religiously ??? and this is one of my fave jj songs?????

and the moment he opened his mouth like ???? i KNOW i said that i died the last two times he sang but

firstly he sounds so much like jj?????

and secondly everything was ???? perfect??????

like i judge jj covers hard bc i’ve listened to the originals so many times everything is ingrained and the moment something is off i cringe but

yall

honglin’s perfect honglin is Actually Perfect

ALSO HE SOUNDS SO MUCH LIKE JJ LIKE HE RLY WASN’T LYING IN HIS IP INTRODUCTION

and afterwards honglin was like lol jj said before that whenever he sings high notes he starts sweating and immediately jingzuo (???) was like TAKE OFF UR CLOTHES LKAJDHSFKASJDHFK

jingzuo chaotic good!!!

also i didn’t know until afterwards when the fantakens were out but ruotian was eating chicken wings and slurping noodles the whole time upstairs aksjdflhaksdjfhaksj why is didi line chaos

and then zhixie was like yall know what other things beibei is good at?

like fam he’s good at everything we rly can’t

also someone in the back was like he’S GREAT AT DOING THE SPLITS and honglin’S FACE AJSDFHKSJDHF

but it was languages and so zhixie was like we’re gonna make him say i love u in many different languages

and i could FEEL marta miss @honeyforzhixie​ going ????? isn’t that ur thing zhixie jsdgflasjdhf

and so they started discussing languages and zhixie was like o i know u can speak a little japanese bc i know u memorised the entire one piece theme song

and i SCREAMED INSIDE bc we literally juST TALKED ABOUT IT THAT MORNING WHEN WE VIDEO CALLED NINI nkfhakjsdhf we were like uwu we hope he sings a jj song but then we were like o lol what if he ended up singing the one piece theme song instead bc we bet he knew the whoLE THING AND HE DOES KNOW IT AJSDFHLAK

but then zhixie made honglin imitate maotong and say ‘i love u’ the way maotong would and my heart ached a little i miss my baby boy so much ??

but JINGZUO CHAOTIC GOOD JSDHLAKJ ‘could u imitate chaoze too’ jaskdlfhkjd

and so he did a couple different versions like Japanese (he and jingzuo screamed lines from one piece at each other ajdkhflksd) and korean (he took a line out of some korean drama?????)

and someone suggested french (was it mirf?????) and i lAUGHED rip his french vlog sorry honglin i swear i love u !!

and then they were like ok time to play his fan video

okay listen i have to preface this by saying that when i got the brief from the hyh she told me ‘it’s best if we make him cry!’ and i was like ok! sure!

turns out it made ME cry i stressed out over the video for two entire weeks sobs the moment my finals were over i locked myself into nyu’s computer lab until moving out day but still couldn’t finish it so i had to work on it on the plane ride home too sobs my roommate connie miss @ynajun​ saw the worst of it bc every time i came home from the lab i’d stress about it ???

but my god it was worth ??? everything ????

he ?????? cried??????

and like on one hand i’m happy that i managed to fulfil the brief but also i feel bad bc he cried but also mostly i laughed bc he’s such a sweet emotional bub

BUT ALSO BC HE CRIED MEGGI GOT TO OFFER HIM HER TISSUES!!!!!!!!

like we specially bought tissues before we left for banana bc we were like we’re gonna need them bc we’re gonna cry

BUT IT TURNS OUT HONGLIN NEEDED HTEM MORE AJSDKFHLASJDHFKAJ

zhixie: he cries every year during his birthday

zhixie: but also even when it’s not his birthday he cries he cried at my birthday too

and afterwards in chaoze’s birthday post he called honglin a crybaby too UWUWUWUWU

tangent but on his birthday when he came into the group chat he thanked us again for the video and i Died

okay this next part is purely speculation bc i honestly might just be overinflating myself and he might have done this purely coincidentally but when he thanked us for his video he looked at me and i ?????

when the video was playing nini and marta were yelling in the gc that they knew the video was done by me bc i overuse cc particle world on after effects jasdhlfksjdh but in that moment i briefly entertained the thought that he was familiar enough with my edits to know that the only idiot who keeps using cc particle world was me ??

but also as i said purely speculation and probably coincidence so

anyway you can watch it here 

and then they played the birthday video messages from fans and i think i died from embarrassment let’s Not talk about it

but also i only realised it after they pointed it out in the gc but apparently zhixie and honglin were both singing along to the jj backing track i added to my video ajsdfhlaksjd

my god another tangent but on his birthday when he came into the group chat we were talking about the videos we recorded

and hh (one of honglin’s og fans she’s a whole angel too I love her !!!!) was like my gOD i rly am so unphotogenic (when she filmed her video she put a ‘FAT’ over her face sobs but like mood) and i was like yah same lol i had to record myself like ten times in times square bc i looked so bad in all the takes

and honglin was like HH WHY DID U CENSOR UR FACE UR CLEARLY SO CUTE and we collectively died for her uwu !!!!

then honglin rePLIED ME SAYING ‘OH BUT TIMES SQUARE HAS SUCH A GOOD VIBE’ and i died for the nth time ??? and then he followed up by saying ‘i rly want to go to times square i’ve gone to america a lot of times when i was younger but i’ve only ever been to the west coast’ jksadhlfkjshekj pls come i’ll bring u around east coast best coast

but back to the point he was like ‘i’ve said it before during ip (and he did!!! during the fanfan episode where he was talking to the rubbish bin he rly has said it before!!!!) but i rly try my best to remember every single person’s face and all my fan’s weibo IDs’ and my heART MELTED HE

and then it was his ending ment!!

he said something that rly threw my heart off a cliff he said that he’s so grateful for the hyh and fans for listening to him and donating to charities in his name instead of buying him extravagant gifts bc when he makes it big, if he makes it big, the thing he wants to do the most is to donate to children who come from a less privileged family background bc he knows what it’s like coming from a single parent family and ;n;

then they showed wishes from other idols!!!!!

there was wang ziyi, zhou rui, the twins my ip hEART

LISTEN I ??? when zuo qibo showed up my SWIN HEART EXPLODED I ??? MISS ??? MY SWIN ANGELS ????

AND THEN RUIBIN SHOWED UP IN ALL HIS UNKEMPT AND UNSHAVEN AND RAMBLING GLORY AND MY PRINCERUIBIN HEART WEPT I THINK I HELD SUMMER’S ARM SO HARD SHE GOT BRUISES AJKSDHFKSJD I’M SO SORRY SUMMER I LOVE U

and then cHAOZE APPEARED !!!! and everyone immediately melted he’s the softest leader alive i love my baby!!

and honglin was about to say something but ruOTIAN

ruotian showed up w a cake w sparklers???????? like fam???????

and eventually we had to say goodbye :—(

but honglin was like o i rly and truly thought that there would be lesser people at this birthday than there was last year and my heart ??? broke ????

bc the room they were in last year alr was so small and there were rly little roses but he ??? genuinely thought he had so little fans that he wouldn’t even fill up the room ;;;;;;;; bc there rly are v little active roses both on weibo like there are less than ten of us who actively post in his chaohua and at tgm events like they’re mostly lrt/jjz fans and there’s usually only one rose ;;;;

but listen honglin our entire gc would die for you we will never stop loving u until every last one of us is found dead in a ditch

and then we’ll love u into the next life

also after he said goodbye he was like sike!

he kept singing behind the cardboard cutouts and peeking around them to say hi again

at some point I poked my head over and went PLS COME TO NEW YORK and he said something back that I alas couldn’t hear rip

and then he started singing along to jj again sobs

but eventually at some point they left via the back door and I was like GOTTA GO THIS IS LITERALLY WHAT I’VE BEEN TRAINING FOR sobs going to the airport for yanjun and wenjun and jeffrey and ziyi and kunkun rly was to prepare me for one thing and one thing only and it was to practise getting good non-shaky fantakens without dying???

jingzuo rly truly looked AMAZING he rly rocks the white tee blue jeans and converse look jingzuo stans stay winning!!!

and honglin ;;;;;;; was holding my banner ;;;;;;;;

and he looked directly into my camera a couple times sobs and he shot hearts too I rly ???? Editing the photos made me cry so many times fbdjhfjf every time I got to those photos I lose my mind

ALSO ONLY AFTER EDITING THE PHOTOS I REALISED RUOTIAN WAS JUDGING ME SO HARD GHDJFJ my eyes were glued to honglin the entire time but looking at the photos again ruotian looked so unamused fhcjfhfbfhbf

speaking of ruotian my gOD editing photos with him in it is a nightmare y’all he’s either blinking or looks like he’s about to sneeze in nearly every picture fhdjfjfj summer and I generally make it a rule not to blur other members’ faces out of our fantakens but ruOTIAN RLY TESTING ME

but we made it to the banana lobby and I didn’t want to follow them and their fansites in so I stopped walking and honglin turned back to wave at me ;;;;;;;;;;;;;; and i think i died again

and so I went back to the event space where summer and mirthe and meggi were waiting and sat down and blanked out sobs

but it diDNT END THERE FHDJFJJF FOR SOME REASON HONGLIN DECIDED TO WALK OUT AGAIN A BIT AFTER

so mirthe and I were like omg gotta blAST so we speedwalked over

and he :—-( saw and shot signs at my camera again fhdjfjfjjf I ???

and then it was Actually Over god I was a shell of a person after that

still am tbh I’m not sure how I survived sorting through our 2000+ fantakens fhdjfjfj

but I’m so spoiled y’all I’m really truly so spoiled by him :—(

like I said earlier he rly spoils his fans so much????

that night he posted on Instagram and immediately summer and meggi and mirthe and I commented and he replied all four of us ;n;

earlier on in spring semester there was a third party event that Tangram was invited to but the organiser was a MESS and tgm wasn’t treated very well??? but honglin was worried that the fans who travelled to the event and didn’t get to see them were upset so he came into the group chat to console them ;;;;;

and I was talking to another fan and she said that even during other events he kept turning around to wave at the fans and acknowledge them and it’s ;;;;;; as someone who has ?? waited in the rain / stood for hours waiting for idols something as simple as a nod or a smile rly warms u up and makes the wind and cold worth it ;;;; and he makes sure to do it all the time ;;;;;;;;;

on his birthday !! his birthday !! when he was in Taiwan and should be resting and enjoying time w his mum and not thinking about us !!!! he still came into the group chat for an hour and talked to us ;;;;;;

and he named all his sort of more well known fans’ IDs, even the ones who weren’t online and sending messages at the time ;;;;; like he rly wasn’t lying when he said he remembers us ;;;;

also fhdjfjfjjf god I’m so spoiled he replied me so many times ?? like there was the times sq thing and the east coast thing ???

and when he said he was training for the next archery competition I was like “o are u shooting recurve or compound this time?” and he was like “o idk if I shot recurve or compound but it’s the one I shot the last time” and I fhdjfjfjfhfb

tangential but 1) my god y’all his form is beautiful my archery heart: exploded

2) his rhotics are so beautiful too my phonology heart: also exploded

also when he was about to leave the gc I was like “huh but u just got here, why are you leaving?” and he sent another voice message “astrofireworks, why are you becoming shameless too, when did I just get here, I’ve clearly been here for a long time already” fhdjfjdjfn fhdjjd

also my GOD He was reading some IDs and summer and lyla were like what about @astrofireworks and I was like fchjfbhjdf y’all it’s ok he’s alr said it in another voice message two months ago in the gc I’m alr so spoiled I ???? rly shouldn’t ask anything else of him or he’s going to hate me

but then he

sent

a whole

nine second message

“hey astrofireworks, I hope one day I can go to New York and maybe... I’ll meet you there, okay?”

and I ??,?? Sobbed

ndjdbfjvcchhxhdhfh

and then Connie went to send him off at the airport in Taiwan the next day and ????? 

I’m not gonna say much because it’s rly conno’s story to tell and I’m not sure how much I’m allowed to say outside the gc but he rly spoils his fans so so so so much ????

anyway bei honglin rly and truly is the sweetest boy on earth we rly don’t deserve him ;;;;; this first week of June truly has been the best week of my cpop stan life and i ????? love mister bei honglin with my entire heart and soul ;;;;;;;;;;;;

[stan-and-the-newbie]

A kpop newbie’s reaction to LOONA

you know i had to do it to ‘em

Alexa: bold

Alex: italic

okay so today you're reacting to Loona!

o, noice

they just debuted like two days ago and everyone is crying

damn. ok but do any of them speak english <<

y es

n  u  t

i believe i already told you, they built this Loonaverse, and released a girl each month

yeh, you told me a few things

right. all of them have an animal and a color. the first five girls have an additional location, then the next three girls have a superpower, and the last four girls have a fruit

...alexa. t-twelve

yeah

<-<

>->

alright fam hit me up

okay, the first girl that was released, back in 2016, is heejin

damn she looks like a disney princess

she does;;

this is aN INSULT

isnT IT

someone arrest her, she's not allowed to be so cute. it is illegal.

how old is she and what does she do

uhh she's 21and she's a singer

she iS BORN IN 2000

... ALEXA WE'RE MOVING TO KOREA PACK YOUR SHIT

ill give you her music video now

alright

the location is hard to guess, so just try to guess her color and animal

hmm

*ViViD*

i'm not watching this u freak, you know about my arachnophobia

y tho. there are no spiders

THERE IS ONE IN THE THUMBNAIL, BIG AND RED

there are no spiders, so play the song, its good. no girl has the spider as her animal u coward

the song's aight. i'd listen to it in a cafe. her animal is obviously a bunny and her color is either red or white. asian girls with thick thighs are too powerful alexa. someone needs to do something about them. it's a health hazard.

omf. her color is actually hot pink;; but u got her animal right lol

o damn. well pink is the mix between red and white isn't it >>

ooOOO

pFFF

she's part of the first subunit, 1/3

ah, so she's a colonel

omG. i mean, y'know, subunits are some of the members that form like a band of their own and put out music

with 12 bloody members, i can imagine

loona has three. anyway, a few things about heejin

hit me

she’s a whole cutie

o gee i couldn't notice

sdfdsdf she likes dad jokes and randomly breaks into silly and awkward dances but she doesn't care. she's also afraid of pigeons 

the guards would have to restrain me from pinching her cheeks if i was ever in the same room with her. and to be fair those things are chaotic evil. one literally flew into my face once.

omf

they also carry diseases similarly to rats. except they fly. so yeah, i can see why one would be afraid.

she also named a rabbit from the set "heekki". hee from her name, and kki from the korean word for rabbit, tokki. and proceeded to ask if she could adopt it.

that's adorable go away i am stone cold

is there anything else u want to know about her. her location is paris, and the first ever video of her beside her mv was her repeating random french phrases she knew in the airport

pfffF.

the next member is hyunjin

they’re all so pretty i cry

they are :(

they are like porcelain dolls, but without the creepiness of a doll, just the beauty and cuteness

i KNOW. so, how old is she

hmm 20 and she's a rapper

she is ALSO born in 2000 ;D and she's a singer

i-

here's her music video

after mark's video on that cat game, the thumbnail horrifies me

o-oh

alight so her animal is a kitteh. so she's the neko of the group, noice... is this a thriller film, geez.

ghjkjhghjk its just a kitten smh

an e v i l kitten

cats cant be evil. her song is very kdrama-ish

her color is... i honestly have no idea

her color appears in the first third of the video

green? blue?

she wears it

lemon

yeh, yellow. and yes her animal is cat lol. what about the song? it’s a drastic change from the last one

ok that last part horrified me. idk it's a weird mix between depression and a drug trip

so, about this baby. her location is tokyo, and she is the savage one

o-oh

shes the one that kept a blank face on a rollercoaster while the others were screaming. also, she really likes bread and croissants

and she's not a rapper smh. well, she does have a pretty voice.

she does~ and shes really sporty, practiced a lot of sports before becoming an idol

alright, off to my wife. this is haseul.

and no photo makes her justice

i-

UGH queen

that jawline fam

i’m sorry i just. literally have never seen such a beautiful woman

alright by now i'm about 70% convinced that these people are created in underground governmental labs

m e. aight, how old is she

fucc it, she's uhh 18

she's actually born in 1997 dfgfdsdfgh

OF COURSE. sigh. that's just my luck

but i understand u

they all look between 15 and 20 anyway does it really matter- i- she's more pretty than she is cute. respecc.

this is her music video

her color is bleagh. i mean bleuugh. blue

omf

she's a parappa the rapper. but she's also a singer. idk her voice sounds like she can rap. was that plane just there and they used it or did they buy a gigantic plane prop for the video

(i really hoped alex would say this because this video exists)

i-

she’S TRYING. her color is green but her location is iceland so liek,,, i guess the writers clashed ideas

blasphemy. they should have went for turquoise

her animal is a dove. she’s also the leader of the group, and the mom friend #1. she can speak english but she has a cute accent which i Love

awh

aaaand she’s a seal enthusiast

o. that's something

they went to iceland so she was like "omg a seal!!! hi !! that was a seal!!"

pffa whole cutie

she is :( she’s also really funny

anyway, the next one makes me feel worthless. this is yeojin

another flawless creation of the secret korean labs

her age?

that tissue-printing chamber in that korean lab from avengers 2? not fiction - they use it to create idols. uhh 19

:D she is 15!!!1

...

and turns 16 in november !!

Goodbye. Tty later, i gotta pack my stuff

dfgfdGHJH here is her song. its very cute because, well, shes a child

L O L I C O N    A L E R T. those three dudes are terrifying. is that the joker wearing a frog head

mmmmaybeh

this is weird lmfao. aaand there's the foot fetish

you’RE HORRIBLE

why is the frog dude going all roaring reeo on her only to give her a fucking present

well, its a song about how she doesn’t want the relationship to move too fast, so she doesn’t want to kiss the dude just yet

that ending was just... idk man. this one broke me. her color is red, and her animal is a frog because that's the only animal in the foreground here idfk

her color is orange, close enough. the other members call her "bean" because shes the youngest and rlly smol and chubby.

awh ;;

and everyone treats her like a baby lmao

well, what did u expect. hmm i think i like the first one the best so far

o, alright

so, these past four girls and the fifth one form the subunit 1/3. the fifth one was introduced through the subunit's first song, but i'll give u their second song cuz its Better

*check out “Sonatine it’s superior*

basically, these girls have a very dreamy concept with a lot of piano and strings. the fifth girl is the pink haired one, and baby yeojin isn’t here cuz her grades were dropping lmao

i-

shhhh just listen to the song

this song gives me the sad

u gotta appreciate the animu songs

i do, i was literally gonna say that this one somewhat reminds me of miia's second song

same !!

her color is W H I T E like my teeth. p u r e  w h i t e

she haS HER OWN mv

o

the fifth member is vivi

shes chinese and the oldest

from communism to idolization. noice

i-

so she's wot, 21? 22?

yeh, shes turning 22 this year

noice

here’s her song

a break from the animu songs. ps: they dont come back

sad. kinda stalkerish fam

ikr. shes a hooman here. but in the subunit mvs she’s an android

what

idk fam they go all out and no one knows whats happening

i am gonna get bashed for this but when she smiles her cheeks look kinda weird she kinda looks like a chipmunk? but not in a bad way

ghjkHJ she does;; shes cute though

yeah

her color is her haircolor lawl. pastel rose

o, nice

and her animal is deer

so she's basically bambi gotcha

she speaks english, and shes the reaction memes queen. and shes also very smol

awh ;;

alright, we're done with 1/3. is heejin still your favourite?

yepp

cuz we're entering girl crush land

o h

the sixth member is kim lip

LISTEN YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THIS

she’s cute tho

of course she is. they're all cute perfect goddesses. i'm noticing a pATTERN HERE

hey, shes mostly a tsundere

well, ngl, she looks like one

sdfgfds

she chose charmander tho 10/10

here’s her amazing mv. her animal appears for 1 second here so lmao good luck. her color is very obvious

white, at long last

the other one

FUCK

SDFGFDSD

red?

yes

that building is aesthetic would hang out there with my weird friends 10/10. the song is odd, but it's nice

i think the song really suits her voice

it does! that's why it works

her animal is an owl

n o i c e

also in one of her vlogs all she does is talk about food. she also keeps the members company while theyre shooting their mvs!! and shes also a reaction meme queen. she sings, but her main strength is dancing

yeah, i can tell

oh right !! she is in the odd eye circle subunit, and these girls have super powers. imma tell you now, the odd eye circle members are in different planes. like, theyre in different dimensions, not the flying planes lol

umm alright..?

anyway, her super power is speed. aaaand i think thats it with kim lip

the next one is a fan favourite. jinsoul

oof. idk man the blond is weird

oh, is it. i dunno, i feel like it suits her.

hammers in that "created in an underground lab to be flawless" vibe. idk, maybe a darker shade? like a golden blonde?

most people choose her song as their favourite

singing in the rain? is tom holland gonna come in and dance to "umbrella"?

oh my god

if not i'll be disappointed. the song reminds me of minecraft intros lmao. especially that synth part

geT OUT LMAO

the dancing is lewd af tho. so 8/10

well, so was eclipse. girl crush land

is she a necromancer? because those hips kill me and bring me back to life

i knOW. she can sing, rap and dance. triple threat. okay you cant possibly be wrong about her color and animal

uhh blue and fish. idk wot fish but a fish

y e s. its a blue betta fish. she said, and i quote "the blue betta fish is one that needs to be kept alone, because it eats the other fish in her tank. so i'm going to take over the group like that"

i- IS THE ENTIRE SECOND SUBUNIT SASSY

SDFGHGFDSSDFGH shes very oblivious and confused also idk if i should show you this but its hella funny and falls into the dumb blonde stereotype. she acts cute in a live stream and then she just

*that beautiful face plant video*

and at the enD KIM LIP IS LIKE "yes. whats next?" and looks through the comments

i-is she ok

yeah, she just stays there like ten seconds and then lifts her head while laughing. her superpower is teleportation btw. anyway, shes just very oblivious and awkward

nice man

the next member is choerry

oof, she qt. her color is purple.

yes. she doesnt like cherries btw

of course. why doesn't she like them? they're gud ;; maybe they remind her of all the bad puns she must have had to endure

i- most likely tbh. she prefers her actual name too sdfgfdsasdf. but choerry is a play on her name. cho yerim.

ah, i see

here's her song that takes a very weird turn and supports further the girl crush concept lawl

i expect lewd dancing. wot’s her animal?

a bat

e d g y. they made her eat a cherry. the monsters

i know, the madmen

o, here comes the lewd dancing. oof, that was short, but it was cool. back to... this??

it happens more than once. hmm, its a really nice song tbh

yeah, it was pretty nice

shes the bright, positive one

and managed to feed a squirrel out of her hand, so shes a princess confirmed

o damn how tall is she. she looks pretty tall in this pic

oh my god all of them are so small i literally cannot cope

;-; pure babies

hmm i think this is old information but the tallest is 165 sdfsGHJKJHJ

o damn

it says here shes 160. p u r e. her super power is plane travelling, like, shes the only one who can meet both kim lip and jinsoul. thats why i told you about the dimension thing

..alright..? this seems pretty redundant, idk. the whole superpower thing and the different planes thing is just odd. what purpose do they serve

well, its basically a whole universe, i guess it ties to the whole story

there's a story? uhh

yeah, but we won't get into that too much. here's odd eye circle's debut song

oh, this song is... something. i could live without the weird distorted voice. fucc yes more lewd dancing. well, that was trippy.

anyway, the third subunit is called yyxy, and it has "fall from eden" as their concept

o

the first member from this subunit is yves, pronounced as eve but it gotta be fancy y'know

oo, noice. please for the love of god tell me her color is white

no one's color is white

well, it’s not a color ;D

ug h. anyway, here’s her song.

hecc yes more lewd dancing

omf

the song is.. odd. GET OUTTA HERE HER COLOR IS TOTALLY WHITE. EVERYTHING HERE I WHITE. SHE WEARS ALL WHITE.

:( her apple is burgundy

what. is that- is that her color

yeah

...i quit.

fgfdghjkghjGHJ

well, that was something

her name is eve, so people speculate the song and mv are about her living a normal life after falling from eden y'know. anyway, shes the mom friend #2

o, interesting pFF

she was very awkward at the beginning, when she first was introduced

awh ;;

and her animal is a swan

AND HER COLOR ISN'T WHITE GET OUTTA HERE

fgfdsdfg shes also pretty savage now that she isnt as shy, but she takes care of the members, since shes one of the older membersGHJKJHGHJK

wholesome

shes very cute i like her uwu

the next one is an actual animu waifu. her name is chuu

i-

and she is the full of cuteness member

yeah i can teLL. the second image scraped my stone heart

yes, she softens everyone. here’s her mv, and the other girl is yves. and chuu is more or less in love with her. lesbian icon

alexa ur doing the thing, but reverse

SHES LITERALLY STALKING YVES AND GIVING HER AN APPLE AND THE SONG IS ABOUT ROMANTIC LOVE get outta here

ALL OF THESE BANDS ARE BASICALLY FAMILIES YALL SHIPPING THEM IS INCEST

ASDFGFDSDFGHJ but yves just shot a heart at her

it's a music video smh

hey, im not saying shes gay for yves in real life, just in, like, the universe theyre building

ah, i see. the choreography is gud. and the whole music video is nice. and the song is nice too. alright, what's her color

peach

do these people only know red and blue variations. THERE ARE OTHER COLORS OUT THERE

her animal is penguin, hence her posing with a penguin plushie in that photo

awh ;;

and her fruit is strawberry. she also sang a kids show ost before she became an idol :( and the other members make her act cute sometimes in front of the camera because everyone loves her. take dis

:'c

when she does the winking thing she stops and asks "why am i doing this..." and the others are just "because its cutE"

s-STONE COLD I AM S T O N E C O L D

anyway, yes, we all love chuu

we have two members left, keep your head in the game

i'm in it to win it

the second to last member is go won

speaking of winning, apparently she already did

she is a real life doll- oh my god alex

yet another qt what is new. cute dolls. cute talented dolls e v e r y w h e r e

i remember her song just because of the way she sings "baby" there

o

*check out “One&Only” yall*

ah, i see. some nice cinematography here. she has an interesting voice

shes mostly a rapper

yeah, i can picture that. that was a pretty nice song

her color is eden green :3

n o i c e

her animal is butterfly and her fruit is pineapple

but does she like it on pizza tho >> that is the question

she's kinda cold, but shes pretty oblivious, the staff messed with her saying that "adam" is her stage name (adam translates to "small" in korean) and she actually believed them and she didnt get the joke either affdsdfg

;-; god bless

shes pretty savage tho, we have three so far

oof

she is olivia hye

and she does not appreciate olive jokes

she's pretty 0^0

she is~

wot's her personality

shes very blunt and she seems like someone that might succeed at being a famous blogger

o damn

she always speaks her mind. i haven’t really seen her play around, but that doesn’t mean i don’t find her funny sdfgfsdfg

pff the mom friend

hmm, she doesnt really take care of the others, shes the second youngest

o rlly

but she does boast about how shes the only one without a fear of heights jasdfjks

pfff alright, hmu with her song

her song is my favourite

*”Egoist” ftw*

s m o o t h. yeah, this is a nice song

ikr !!

aaand more lewd dancing the world is kind to me today

they never give it up

wot's her color and animal

her color is gray, her animal is wolf and her fruit is plum

o damn

here’s their song~

this is hype af. this song is nice too but it has odd parts

i feel like the quality of their music increased with time. the first songs are also nice but you can tell these ones are better put together

well, it makes sense

it has been two years yes asdfdsdfg

o o f

here's a predebut song. the first ever with all of them, but not their debut the intro and the chorus are the best parts ngl

that's a lot of idols fam

eh, 12 isnt that rare. BRRRRRRRRRAH

where the esketit at. that was a pretty good predebut song, all things considered. they fit a bit of everything in there

yep, here’s their debut song

this one's trippy. ah, that's why it's called "hi high" they're saying hi to me, and i'm high after watching it. UOUOUOUAAAHH

I ONLY LISTEN TO MUSIC WITH MEANINGFUL LYRICS

HLBJLNKBJLNKBKLN

do you remember any of them as your favourite or did everything already vanish

i like chuu and the last one but i think the first is still my fave

oo alright, i see. any last thoughts?

well-managed for a 12 idol group, nice choreographies (& lots of lewd dancing >>), plenty of good songs, gud stuff overall, 10/10. 11/10 for the UOUOUOUOOAAAHHH

noicE

alexa here!! oof, this took so long to put together;; also if haseul sees this please marry me goddess ily

i hope you enjoy this post, even though its a little messy!! pop a little message in our ask box too, it’ll make our day~ i hope everyone has a nice day or evening!!

[notquiteaghost]

so. consider. drarry buzzfeed unsolved au

a good extention of the ‘post-war draco running away to become a muggle’ trope is he starts a vlog channel, imo. if anyone is gonna!!! & he just vlogs about weird muggle shit but in such a way it reads as, like, sarcastic irony to muggles? so he has this following of people who mostly think he’s a comedy man. he’s niche but popular for being niche, like a few hundred thousand subs at the time of this au

&, so, harry crashes draco’s vlogs sometimes. they’re not dating (yet) but they are good friends who spend a lot of time together. probly this started cuz draco owled harry to ask how the fuck various muggle shit worked & in true draco malfoy fashion it was a thinly-veiled excuse to talk & this escalated into actual friendship

they’ve Talked About Shit, ofc, post-war drarry doesn’t work if they haven’t hashed out at least some stuff, so. harry’s told draco about the resurrection stone?

cuz ofc the thing about making an unsolved au in this universe where magic is real is. well. magic is real! (ghosts are real too but let’s just pretend they aren’t. no castle ghosts in this universe. let me have my au fun.)

so as far as harry’s concerned ghosts are a real & true fact of life, they’re a thing, they’re out there, this is just how it is

but draco doesn’t...... entirely agree. like he believes harry saw SOMETHING but cmon, potter, ghosts? GHOSTS??? like this is a fake tumblr post story come on now does he think draco was born yesterday. GHOSTS.

so then while draco is filming a vlog about something else entirely, his woke rich person opinion on the tube strikes probly, harry just wanders in to pick up the latest edition of that argument from two days ago, like “aND ANOTHER THING”

and it devolves into 20 mins of arguing to the point draco refilms his intro & the video is just the arguing. “i DID have a whole other thing but potter! wont let me live!!”

he tends to keep all of harry’s interruptions in (yes ofc harry does this a lot) bc his audience likes them for some damn reason

his audience REALLY likes this one

draco’s completely fine with never discussing it again but then loads of people comment to side with harry & harry gets all smug about it, and draco does a comment response thing that devolves into a very long impassioned rant about the utter lack of PROOF, of ALL THINGS TO BELIEVE IN, 

so then somehow theyre filming a fucking. investigation. cuz draco is determined to prove harry wrong. (and also... spend more time with him..... what who said that)

and then that video is INCREDIBLY popular & people STILL KEEP SIDING WITH HARRY so (draco throws his hands in the air) its a series now!

so yes in conclusion: snarky bickering ft ghosts, muggle tech & mutual pining! draco insulting the dead! their audience getting increasingly worried draco has a death wish! whole episodes they can’t upload cuz they just straight up entirely forgot the statue of secrecy! 

and they don’t have a crew either cuz they’re #amateurs so. hotel rooms with only one bed! going out for dinner & everyone assuming they’re already dating! half the new audience assuming they’re dating! they do a postmortem type thing and half the questions are ‘you were both in this shot who tf held the camera’ & the other half are ‘ok but really when are you gonna kiss’!

aaaand then eventually they fucking. catch a ghost on camera, cuz ghosts are actually fucking real, & draco has to admit that he’s lowkey believed all along he just really likes arguing with harry & then it kinda escalated &, um, he really enjoys it just being the two of them, er, and he’s like bright red and not looking at harry at all while every confusing joke ron & hermione have made over the last year is playing back thru harry’s mind making a whole lot more sense

and then they kiss! and harry moves in with draco! and they start another series about unsolved true crime that lowkey turns into them just solving these crimes and they get a fucking. wizard netflix deal probably. and they live happily ever after the end

[imagine-some-fluffy-asks]

Anon

Yes you may, hope you enjoy the matches!
 Your matches are… Keiji Akaashi and Hikaru Hitachiin!

Authors notes: 🏐 = Keiji, 🌹 = Hikaru

🌹He loves them curves alright. Like, since he is a very touchy person, his hands kind of just gravitate towards your hips cause like… you’re so soft and he is thinking to himself like, oh my gosh what a soft cute lady I love her. Expect kisses to be placed where your hips are at cause thats his favorite place to kiss you on your body, he just loves the soft touch to his lips and he can not get enough of that.

🏐He is very impressed how you are the class monitor. But, he doesn’t get how you tend to be so lazy but yet still get perfect scores on test. Like… you are the strangest class monitor he has ever met. Don’t think of it as a bad thing or anything! Its strange cause like… he so much wishes he can be like that. Like he can skip practice for like a day or two and be totally ok. But no, if he skips a day, he would actually feel guilty about it, so he never skips practice (unless he has a very bad fever or an injury). In the meanwhile, he will scold you for not at least looking over the material for the next days test. You tell him not to worry about it cause you know you will be fine. But now he is just thinking to himself that, he doesn’t think a class monitor should act like this. But, who is he to judge? So, he mostly just leaves you alone and lets you do whatever you want, but he low-key cares a lot and just wants to help.

🌹He is actually very interested in the mystical and paranormal stuff (but he low-key likes it, cause he is afraid if he tells anyone about it they will deem him weird, so only you and his brother know about his fascination with the abnormal). So when you two found out you both like the mystical and abnormal phenomenas, many of your dates mostly consist of (well if its raining or snowing) cuddling each other under blankets, surrounded by various snacks, and watching videos about angels/devils and “the paranormal caught on camera” videos. But when you look up to see him, he is so mesmerized by the video. His eyes are practically glued to the screen, his mouth is open a little bit, plus he is drooling a bit. You giggle at him and wipe some of the drool off the corner of his mouth. He actually gets spooked and playfully punches your arm. He then wraps his arms around your shoulders and makes a pouty face, saying don’t scare him like that when he is watching something like that!!

🏐He can be kind of cold and harsh towards his teammates sometimes if they make him irritated and frustrated, its a natural human thing to do. And honestly, if you act cold towards him, he honestly wouldn’t mind. Cause he figures that you are going through a rough day and will not say anything to make it worse for you. Instead, he keeps his distance but will come to you if you need anything. But besides that, he loves how reliable you are, which means he can always count on you if he ever needs help with anything. And even if he doesn’t get some of your sense of humor or the jokes you make, he honestly just loves seeing you smile and close your eyes while you laugh at your own jokes you made, cause that makes his heart flutter a lot, and he can’t help but chuckle too.

🏐He absolutely admires your logic when it comes to respecting people, cause he is the exact same way. He likes that you are always calm and always have reasons as to why you are arguing with that person. To him you are honestly a blessing, cause some of his teammates would start arguing for no reason and he would get ticked off. But when he sees you arguing with a person and hears you calmly explain to them your reasons he can’t help but blush a little bit.

🌹He would never really thought you could be timid. You seem so confident and bright, he never would have thought about you being timid! But to be truthfully honest, he finds your timid side pretty cute, and will tease you about it by calling you out on it and giving you nicknames that is based around being timid and such. But what he didn’t expect that you would do anything to get revenge for your friends and family. Like, whoah that is super duper cool of you, he also dubs you as a badass because of that. And, because of his childish possession part of him, he will also do anything to take revenge for you, whether it be because someone told you something mean or even a family member scolded you, he will do anything to protect you and make sure that you are feeling happy.

🌹Oh man does this boy love hearing rants too. He especially loves hearing rants that are about gossip, cause he wants in on that. So if he is having a break in-between his host work, he will go into the empty room with you next to the host room, share an earbud with you, turn on youtube, and watch those rant vlogs from his phone. The host club could hear you guys laughing hysterically or raging with anger and they honestly find it pretty hilarious how you two can get so worked up over someone else’s problems.

🏐He actually low-key really likes them mystery/horror genre. Like, he thinks those two genres really fit well together and honestly appreciates the writing in those kinds of movies. So, when Halloween comes around, you two on that day would jus cuddle each other up and binge watch a whole bunch of mystery/horror movies. Even though he doesn’t get scared easily, but when you do get scared, he will hold you tight and pet your hair as telling you that its alright.

🏐He loves the winter (and not just because his birthday is in the winter)! He loves the cooler weather and thinks everything is so much prettier when snow is gently descending from the sky. Plus, since you love wearing big sized clothing, he offers up his clothes so you can wear them. And when you are walking around his home, in his white t-shirt and black shorts, he has to take a minute to look away to regain his composure cause he is blushing up a storm on his cheeks. But, when outside, you look so adorable in them oversized coats that fall to your knees and scarves that basically cover all of your face. Before going out into the snowy weather, he always adjusts your coat and scarf and hat to make sure they one, the coat doest drag behind you and you trip on it and two, so the hat doest cover your eyes and you loose your sight for a second or so.

🌹This kids playlists… its all over the darn place. Like, you would question to yourself how in the world did he find this kind of music? But then again you say you have horrible taste in music so its ok. So as pranks, you two would blast horrible music from playlists you two created together when the host club is in session and some certain hosts would get extremely pissed and chase you two down. But, if you two are just chilling, you guys would play the music in the background and try to dance to it together, with his hands on your hips and your arms around his neck, swinging each other from one place to another to the rhythm of the beat. Even if it may be hard to dance to the music since its, well, horrible, its ok, cause you two are having fun, and thats all that matters.

🌹He loves how you smell of milk and strawberries. He wants to know your secret why you smell so sweet and lovely. Is it the shampoo you using? Thats probably it. So then he steals it. Like literally, one day he would be at your house chilling with you, and he had to use the bathroom before he left. So after using the bathroom he put the shampoo underneath his shirt and walked out with it. The next day you noticed all the girls petting and smelling his hair, how it smelled like milk and strawberries. So he was the culprit all along. Oh jeez, he could have just asked you to borrow it instead of stealing it.

🏐He likes how you do not always follow the latest trends. Cause sometimes, the latest trends can look pretty foolish and stupid to him, and he is very glad that you do not easily get into them quickly. Cause some certain teammates would talk about these new trends and he would think to himself on how weird and foolish they are. He is so glad that you are not like that.

🌹He honestly loves your style?? Like, he loves the balance between masculinity and femininity when it comes to clothes, and you fit right into that. He likes how you would wear a basic t-shirt, pair of jeans, and a pair of sneakers. Like, thats it. No makeup, no jewelry, nothing extra. Just, simple. He honestly wishes he can dress up like that to go to school instead of wearing his uniform all the time. But, when you two go out, you two don’t dress extravagantly or anything, just simple t-shirts and jeans or sweatpants and converse or vans.

🏐He also loves to read when he isn’t practicing or doing schoolwork. And while reading, he would occasionally doodle whatever he is reading and draw it to life on paper. You find this very cute, so as dates, you two as a activity would: one would read, and the other would draw the scenes out. Then after reading a couple chapters you two would color the drawings one of you made and hang them on the wall to see your guys hard work. A simple and fun activity you two enjoy immensely.

🌹You like rings and wristbands? Good, cause thats what he is gonna buy you pretty much everyday. Well, for wristbands, if he’s one that reminds you of him, he will immediately buy it with no hesitation. As for rings, he only buys you one ring. And what is this one ring? Well, its a promise ring. So on this ring, it is gold, with tiny little orange and blue crystals dotting all over the ring. And on the top is a little chocolate-diamond. In the inside of the ring it is laser-written which says “to my beloved rose, I shall love you to the moon and back forever ~Hikaru Hitachiin”

🏐He claims he aint a nerd, but, he actually is. He a mystery/horror nerd ok he geeks out over detective novels and can’t wait to see the next psychological horror movie so he a nerd even though he denies it. As for anxiety, he doesn’t really get it much often, but when he notices you going through anxiety, he knows that it sometimes it helps people to trace over objects. So he would stick his hand out to you with his other hand on your back bringing you closer. You would then trace his palm while he traced circles on your back to help calm you down.

[5hineesback]

of pianos and playstations 1/2

A gamer is introduced to a cute musician's Youtube channel. All the gamer does is send the musician a message, letting him know he likes his videos. After that, the gamer plans to get on with his life; he wouldn't contact the musician again. Then he receives a reply.

it’s ya girl back with another 2min fic. this time it’s a youtube au, something i’ve always wanted to write. enjoy~

alternatively, click to read on aff

The atmosphere in the apartment was still. To an outsider, it would have seemed empty, not a single person currently occupying the house. However, this misconception was betrayed by the sound of faint music resonating from the living room.

Taemin drifted his fingers across the ivory keys delicately, sounding note after note, the sweet melody filling the air. He knew the tune off by heart; he didn’t need to think about what he was doing, his fingers were moving purely through muscle memory as he played the piece. He was lost in the music, but before he knew it his digits were playing the final notes, and he came to a slow but sure stop.

The boy turned his head, smiling into the lens of the camera across from him. “Thanks for watching, guys,” he said, shifting his body to angle himself slightly more towards the camera. “If you have any music requests, let me know in the comment section. See you in the next video.”

After the words had left his mouth, Taemin stood up, walking over to the camera and stopping the recording. He switched off his filming lights, packing away the camera and tripod as he waited for the lightbulbs to cool down. He knew exactly what he was doing, this was routine. He’d made almost a hundred videos and he’d only burned himself, like, seven times. Which was pretty good going, he thought.

Taemin placed his equipment in the corner of the living room, turning the memory card from the camera over in his hands as he made his way over to the faux leather couch, dropping down onto it and picking up the laptop from the coffee table. He imported the newly created video files to his hard drive, before opening them up in his editing software and getting to work. He felt quite experienced with Youtube now, and he knew that it was better to begin editing as soon as possible after filming, or else procrastination would become a real issue. It had taken him around a year to realise that.

Taemin started Youtube on a whim, four years ago. He’d been practicing a new piece, a recital of a song of which he’d just nailed down the last few notes. He had received a camera from his parents that year for his seventeenth birthday; he’d been interested in filming from a young age. He had been planning to use the camera to document trips with his friends, or for the creation of short fiction films. But seeing the camera in his peripheral vision as he was practicing, gave him an idea. And then, what started out as a simple recording to check his own progression of piano-playing skills, turned into an unedited upload to Youtube, which then turned into twenty subscribers overnight.

However, Taemin wasn’t sure why he decided to make his music public. He had never been an attention seeker, quite the opposite. But he was proud of what he’d learned, and before he knew it he was sharing that pride with… well, five hundred people in one night, according to his view count. He’d even received a few of comments under his video, praising his skill.

From there, Taemin had started to upload more frequently. First, around once a month, then a few times a month, until he reached his current stage, uploading a new video twice a week. He didn’t just sit at the piano in his videos. Somewhere along the line, around the fifty thousand subscribers mark, he’d become interested in recording his activities and filming small weekly vlogs. Taemin didn’t really think his life was that compelling, his vlogs mainly consisted of him talking about his day, or talking about music, or featuring his friends in the rare chances Taemin got to see them. But, they brought in new viewers, so much so that after four years, Taemin was approaching the one and a half million subscribers mark which… completely blew his mind. He was impressing a lot of people, it seemed. This meant he also had a lot of people he had to keep impressing.

The recitals were easy. He had to learn the piece well, of course, but when it came to filming, all he had to do was play the right notes at the right time with the right passion. And the editing was a breeze. He just had to cut together the introduction, the footage of the recital, and then the outro. That was it, and his viewers loved it. The vlogging days were more difficult. Taemin only uploaded vlogs once per week, but they took a lot more work. It wasn’t worth thinking about the amount of hours he’d spent editing together those twenty minute videos. They were worth it, he had fun filming them, and he got a good amount of views on each of his uploads, but it got quite tedious at times. Especially when he was snowed under with college work, whether it was an essay on music theory or a practical project for assessment. But he never failed to upload according to schedule. He had made a promise to himself that there would be a new vlog every Monday, and a new recital every Friday, without fail.

So, it was according to his usual routine when he ended up making this newly filmed video public on his channel a couple of hours later.

____MINHO P.O.V____

“No, no, no!”

“What?”

Minho ignored the question, clicking frantically on his editing software with wide eyes. Please, don’t crash, don’t crash…

Application not responding. Click OK to force quit.

Minho let out a loud whine, his head hitting the desk as he, for all intents and purposes, pretty much gave up on life.

“Did you lose it?” Jaewoon’s voice sounded from the laptop speakers. Jaewoon had been editing videos long enough to know the response to a software crash.

“Do you mean my work or my sanity?” Minho groaned, his voice muffled by the current placement of his head on the desk. “The answer is yes to both.”

“How much?”

“The last three hours, at least,” Minho replied, lifting his head slowly off his desk to look at Jaewoon in the corner of the laptop screen. “I’d have remembered to save my progress if I hadn’t been talking to you!”

“You must be the only person in the world who doesn’t yet own an application which saves your work automatically. I know what I’m getting you for Christmas.”

“Cool. Until then I’ll just cry,” Minho mumbled, resting his head on his hand as he reopened the software. Maybe the universe would be kind to him and somehow, his progress would appear before his eyes…

Nope. The universe was being an asshole, as usual.

It wasn’t a huge deal. It had only been a few hours. He hadn’t lost everything; he had managed to save a rough cut of the funniest moments of the gameplay. But, to go through the dreary re-editing of something he’d already completed just a few minutes earlier… oh, well. Looking on the bright side, he now had the chance to make the video even better than it would have been.

According to his schedule, this video had to be uploaded by the end of the night. Today was his FIFA gameplay day. But even if the software hadn’t have crashed, Minho had started editing this video later than he should have. His brother had come to visit after being away at university, so of course, Minho had been spending time with him, putting his Youtube commitments on the back burner for a couple of days. In fact, he had recorded this gameplay with Minseok. His subscribers always enjoyed when he played with others, whether it be his friends or collaborations with other Youtubers.

Ideally, this video should have been edited and completed the day before. Minho always gave himself a day in advance to finish the video in case… well, in case something happened and he lost his progress. At least the memory card hadn’t corrupted, which would cause him to lose the actual footage. That had only happened to him once before, but it was not a great time.

It suddenly registered in Minho’s brain that Jaewoon was talking.

“…He’s really good, you should check out his channel.”

Minho looked up at his friend in the corner of his computer screen. “What? Who?”

Jaewoon rolled his eyes. “Should’ve known you weren’t listening. Lee Taemin. He’s got a music channel, he does covers of songs and anime OSTs and stuff. He’s good.”

“Oh,” Minho replied. He’d never really paid attention to the sides of Youtube outside of gaming. “Does he sing?”

“Dunno,” Jaewoon shrugged. “In the videos I’ve seen he’s just playing a piano. And maybe doing a vlog or something. He’s talented though.”

“I’ll check him out,” Minho shrugged. “After I get this video done.”

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

Taemin hummed softly to himself as he scrolled through Twitter, absentmindedly glancing through his timeline and tweets from subscribers. He’d only just gotten the hang of Twitter. He’d never been very good with technology to begin with, so becoming a relatively successful channel provided him with a massive learning curve - he wanted to communicate with his viewers somehow, and Twitter seemed to be the best way to do it. Before his channel, he’d never used Twitter in his life. He hadn’t done many things before he started Youtube.

Taemin brought up his private message inbox, as he usually did when he went on Twitter. He received private messages a few times a day from subscribers, although most people chose to tweet publicly to him. Taemin tried his best to keep up with reading the private messages, but he was only human. He couldn’t be checking the inbox constantly. And because it’d been a few days since he last had a look, he probably had… maybe a hundred messages he hadn’t yet opened. Usually he picked the most interesting ones to read, but they were mostly from viewers just wanting to chat with him.

He had intended on scrolling through the unopened messages, however the very first message caught his eye. Specifically, the icon of the sender. It was small, taking up maybe a square centimetre of Taemin’s laptop screen. But that didn’t change the fact that the face in the icon was a… very cute face. Taemin’s eyes darted to the time he’d received the message from this stranger - only a few minutes earlier. Meaning the sender was probably still online. So he’d see Taemin’s reply immediately.

Oh. He should probably read the message first. That’d be a good start.

Choi Minho (@MinhoPlaysGames)

‘Hello! I just wanted to say I really enjoy your covers, especially the medley of the One Piece openings. One Piece is one of my favourite animes and you really did the soundtrack justice :)’

Taemin scanned the text, a small smile spreading across his lips as he took in the message. He always smiled at complimentary words; he never stopped being grateful for the praise people had for his passion.

Ignoring messages wasn’t something Taemin set out to do. He usually tried to at least say thank you to as many people as he could. But that was it. He never really delved further into who these people were. But something made this time different, and suddenly Taemin had clicked on Minho’s username, the guy’s twitter profile loading onto his screen.

The first thing Taemin noticed was that Minho was obviously very interested in sports. His header image was of a soccer team Taemin didn’t recognise, and the first few retweets on Minho’s profile were updates from basketball, soccer… and so on.

The second thing Taemin noticed was the link to a Youtube channel in Minho’s description. Was this guy a Youtuber too? If so, it wasn’t that difficult to guess what his content would be. No doubt sports would be involved.

Clicking the link, Taemin quickly saw that he was right. A gaming channel, with a subscriber count of 700,704. FIFA, NBA, countless other games appeared in the thumbnails of Minho’s videos. Taemin couldn’t say he was familiar with most of them. He hadn’t played any video games for quite a few years, especially since he’d started college. But it wouldn’t hurt to check out some of Minho’s content.

Taemin had set about ten minutes aside to check out the most popular of Minho’s videos. Ten minutes became fifteen, thirty… by the time Taemin’s eyes drifted to the clock in the corner of his screen, he’d been watching Minho for an hour and a half. The guy was just so funny. Taemin had enjoyed the actual gameplay somewhat; he’d always enjoyed playing FIFA when he was younger, but what kept him around was Minho’s personality. The guy seemed extremely sweet towards his viewers, he’d greet them and thank them for watching sincerely, and from the short look at the comment section Minho also replied to a lot of them. He was also very animated in his videos, he was lively and excitable and upbeat, so Taemin had expected the guy to be the type to take defeat well. He was soon proved wrong, when Minho missed a free kick that would give his team the win. Taemin watched as Minho’s eyes widened and he started shouting at the game. It wasn’t off-putting in any way, in fact it was absolutely hilarious.

Taemin ended up clicking the little red button below one of Minho’s videos, watching as ‘Subscribe’ became ‘Subscribed’. He almost decided to continue on with his day, when he remembered exactly how he’d found Minho’s channel. The message.

Taemin didn’t hesitate to click on the Twitter tab and begin typing out a reply to Minho.

‘Thanks! I love One Piece too, obviously ^_^ I found your channel link on your profile - your videos are great :)’

He almost left it there, but he had the urge to add something more… a proper conversation starter. Just… on the off chance that Minho would want to reply to him again.

‘I like your FIFA videos the most. I used to play it a lot with my brother before I went to college and sold my console, so you brought back memories. What’s your favourite game to play? ^_^’

Taemin stared at his message for a few moments, before sucking it up and hitting ‘send’.

Then he started doubting himself. Would Minho want to talk to him? Did he write too much? Oh, well. Nothing he could do about it now. Something he could be doing now, is getting on with that essay…

____MINHO P.O.V____

“Excuse me?”

Minho had just set a can of soup on the shelf in front of him when he heard the voice. He turned with a smile, being met with an elderly lady pushing her shopping cart.

The lady spoke again. “Where can I find the Red Pepper Paste?”

Minho quickly told her the aisle she was looking for, giving a short bow as she thanked him and followed his direction. Minho knew he had sent her to the right place. He’d been working at the supermarket for about a year, and since the beginning he’d had every row memorised. It wasn’t a small place; it was one of the largest markets this side of Seoul. Minho’s co-workers constantly voiced their awe at how quickly he’d learned the store’s content’s whereabouts, but all he’d done was begin to memorise each aisle the day he came in for his job interview. He wanted to do well, even before he was hired. It may not be the most important job in the world, but at least people could find what they were looking for a little quicker with Minho around.

He hadn’t expected to work in a job like this, especially after graduating university with honours. But the job market wasn’t great, especially in the area Minho was interested in. It was difficult to find a job in sports management. So, he had to earn a living somehow.

If anyone had looked at Minho’s Youtube channel, and seen the revenue of his videos, they would probably tell him that he could earn enough to live just from uploading. And Minho had considered the possibility. But he had more than enough time to get outside and work. He didn’t see Youtube as his job, even with the money cashing into his bank each month. It was a hobby. And Minho thought it was important to keep the two concepts separate. The last thing he wanted was for Youtube to become his only source of income, and feeling pressure and resentment when it came to uploading. Youtube was fun. He loved playing games, he loved interacting with his viewers, and he loved that he’d met some of his best friends through the platform.

Speaking of friends, Minho was snapped out of his thoughts as he heard an alert on his phone. He usually had his phone turned on silent while he worked his shifts, but today he must have forgotten.

He pulled out his phone quickly, just to check who had contacted him. Most likely, it would be Jaewoon or Gunho. He’d met the pair online a few months previous, what with them both being gaming channels with a similar amount of subscribers to Minho. Jaewoon lived in Busan, Gunho in Daegu, but the two had become his best friends in a very short amount of time. Minho had many friends, people who he’d kept in contact with from school and college, and they were all precious to him. But he treasured Jaewoon and Gunho the most.

Therefore, Minho was shocked to see that the contact had not only come from neither of his best friends, but nor from anyone he knew. It was his Twitter app on his phone, alerting him to a new message he’d received. The notification only showed the username and the first few words of the message.

‘Twitter: New private message from Pianotaem: Thanks! I found your…’

It took a second to click, for Minho to remember who exactly ‘Pianotaem’ was. Then his mind drifted back to earlier that day when he’d spent at least half an hour making his way through a playlist of Taemin’s piano covers, when his fingers had hesitantly typed out a message to the boy who had enthralled Minho with his music.

The urge to check what Taemin had said in response was huge, bigger than Minho had expected. It took all of his self-control to drop the phone back in his pocket, but he was working. He had a job to do, a job that coincidentally did not allow mobile phones during shifts.

Which meant, of course, that the moment Minho had helped his final customer of the day, the clock striking ten o’clock to mark the end of his hours, the man once again had the phone in his hand, quickly eyeing the notification before swiping the screen, entering his passcode and waiting for Taemin’s message to appear.

It shocked Minho that he was so eager to see what the boy had said to him. Shocked that he was this excited over a reply. It wasn’t like he couldn’t think about anything else during his shift, but every once in a while his mind would once again land on the memory of the first four words of that message, and Minho had passed the quieter moments by trying to guess the end of the sentence. Taemin had found his… videos? Home address? Nudes?

He was right the first time, Minho discovered when the message thread opened, displaying the few exchanges between the pair. Taemin had not only read his messaged, but he’d been interested enough to watch Minho’s videos and reply back to him. Did this guy do this with all the viewers who contacted him? Minho had a lot to learn, if so.

Minho said goodbye to his co-workers and boss before exiting the store, focusing on the screen intensely as he walked, preparing a reply to Taemin. He could have waited to reply until he was in the comfort of his home, but he had always been a fast replier. Gunho had joked that Minho must spend twenty four hours a day watching his phone, with how quickly he was able to answer a call, or respond to a text. Anyway, something about Taemin’s message was so endearing that Minho couldn’t bear to see it unanswered. Maybe it was the cute emoticons.

‘The FIFA games are my favourite,’ Minho typed, glancing up to check for oncoming vehicles as he crossed the road. ‘I started my channel with them :) How long have you been playing the piano?’

He ended the message with a question, just as Taemin had done previously. This boy seemed nice, and Minho wanted to make sure he had incentive to answer. Just on the off chance that Taemin would want to reply to him again.

The walk from Minho’s workplace to his home was about fifteen minutes long. The amount of minutes between Minho pressing ‘send’ on his message to Taemin, and hearing the alert of a reply, was about sixteen. As he closed his apartment door behind him, Minho opened up the private message thread once more, a small smile on his face as he absently dropped his keys in the dish by the entrance and turned his full attention to his phone.

‘Fifteen years. I’m twenty-one now, started when I was six. I’d hear my mother playing a lot and I wanted to learn. Have you been playing video games that long? :P’

Minho’s attention stayed in the first half of the message. He raised his eyebrows slightly and exhaled, impressed at Taemin’s dedication to the instrument. He knew the boy had to have been playing for a good few years, for his performance to be as seamless and effortless as it was, but fifteen years was a hell of a long time. He hadn’t even been playing soccer that long. Or video games, as Taemin had asked.

‘No,’ Minho typed, collapsing onto his couch lengthways and throwing his feet up onto the cushions. ‘You beat me by about five years on the video game front. As for playing soccer, you only beat me by three.’

Minho could barely return the phone to its original position on the couch before another alert came through.

‘I win :)’

Minho was surprised to see a reply so quickly, and chuckled to himself softly as he read it. He wasn’t going to give up the competition, which is what this had somehow turned into, that easily.

‘But since you’re twenty one years old, and I’m twenty three, I’ve been breathing for two years longer than you, so I claim that title.’

He sent the message and dropped his phone onto the cushions next to him, picking up the television remote and switching on the set, flicking through the channels before settling on some show about dog training. Minho family dog still lived with his parents, and he didn’t have time to look after one himself, so watching shows about puppies always made him feel happy.

It was about an hour before Minho noticed that Taemin hadn’t replied yet. But it didn’t bother him… is what he would say if he’d wanted to lie. The previous reply had been almost immediate. Had Minho put Taemin off the conversation with the reveal of his competitive streak? He hoped not. Taemin seemed nice.

However, it wasn’t long before the notification alert sounded once more, filling Minho with hope that maybe he hadn’t made the situation awkward.

‘Jaewoonie: Coming online later? Wanna play Halo or something?’

Oh. False alarm. Minho quickly texted Jaewoon back with a confirmation, almost locking his phone when a new message alert appeared at the top of the screen. A message from Twitter.

‘Wow. King of breathing ^_^’

Minho found himself chuckling, honestly relieved to see Taemin’s name materialise on his phone. Maybe his joke hadn’t flopped like he had been so sure it had.

‘That’s me :),’ Minho responded. He paused for a moment, trying to think of another question to ask. In the end, he went with an obvious one, under their circumstances. ‘How long have you been on Youtube?’

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

Over the next month, each day had Taemin waking up and feeling like the sun was shining brighter and brighter. Not in the way that made Taemin groan and bury his face in the pillow to escape the light, but in the way that gave him energy, as if he were absorbing whatever excitement the world was radiating. Coincidentally, these feelings were correlated with Taemin’s conversations with Minho. Rather than Twitter, the two had added each other on Facebook in favour of using the messaging system there. Trying to find each other’s Twitter threads through the many private messages from fans had become a task to say the least. And that wasn’t the only thing that had changed since their first contact. Compared to the pair at first exchanging a small handful of messages each day, Taemin didn’t go half an hour without a message alert from his friend. At this point, Minho was the friend Taemin spoke to the most. Not that Taemin didn’t have his own tight-knit group of friends. He just didn’t see them very often. He often messaged Jisun and Chansung, but having two friends studying abroad was tough. The time differences between Seoul, Paris and New York weren’t the easiest to work around. His two other best friends were still in South Korea, but without Taemin even realising it, they had slowly reached the age where life takes over; where you suddenly stop and notice that it’s been months since you’ve seen the most important people in your life.

College had given Taemin acquaintances, especially after his Youtube success became public knowledge. That was it though, acquaintances. No one Taemin clicked with, not in the way he had with his best friends. Not in the way he had with Minho.

Because somehow, at this point the pair had exchanged hundreds of messages back and forth, talking about nothing and everything. Taemin had learned big things about his friend, like where Minho was raised, what his hobbies were, how he’d grown up in competition with his brother, how his dog had almost died after being hit by a car when Minho was nine. He’d also learned small things, tiny things, like that one ex-lecturer Minho had whom he still hated to this day, and how Park Jisung, one of Minho’s favourite soccer players, had favourited a congratulatory tweet Minho had sent him for one of his matches.

Taemin had told Minho things about him too, from his inspiration to begin his Youtube channel, to his career goals in music, to how after almost two years living alone he still can’t cook up an edible meal and tries not to rely too much on takeout.

Trust didn’t come to Taemin easily; at least it hadn’t, before last month. But Minho was easy to talk to, he was curious and caring and positive, a safe place for Taemin to turn to when his college work was too difficult, or when he was missing his dogs, or when he just needed to talk to someone.

And yet, the two had never spoken face-to-face. Taemin had been tempted, so tempted, to ask Minho for his Skype account. He was bored of staring at boxed, worded replies from his friend. But would Minho want to speak to him on a more personal platform? Or was the continuing grey and blue message thread enough for him?

One Wednesday morning, Taemin decided, as he made his way to the kitchen to prepare his cereal, that he was being fucking stupid. He would be asking Minho for a better way to communicate with him, not offering him to move in.

So, a short while later, Taemin found himself opening Facebook as he perched on a chair, his so-far untouched bowl of cereal placed next to his laptop on the table. He entered the site, noticing that he had one unread message from Minho. That wasn’t unusual, the two had ongoing conversations and would often exchange messages until one of them fell asleep, replying in the morning when they woke up. Last night, it had been Taemin who had succumbed to sleep the fastest.

Taemin read Minho’s message as he lifted the filled breakfast spoon to his mouth, crunching on his cereal as he moved his fingers to the keyboard, mapping out a reply in his head. The conversation had run on from the previous night; this conversation was based around Minho’s holiday in Thailand a couple of years ago. Taemin had barely even left Korea, so he had been fascinated by Minho’s account of the vacation. However, now would be the time Taemin forced himself to change the subject. He typed a sentence to wrap up the Thailand topic, just to ensure Minho knew Taemin cared about what he had said, before staring down at his hands as he considered what to write next.

Anyway, I

This is off topic but

You can say no but

Taemin shook his head at himself as he backspaced on each sentence opener, telling himself to stop being so fucking pathetic and typing his proper, final message. ‘Do you want to Skype with me?’

He pressed enter before he could stop himself, sitting back. Minho probably wasn’t awake yet, and wouldn’t reply for a while. Was that a good or bad thing?

Unable to decide his position on the matter, Taemin simply resumed his breakfast, scrolling mindlessly through his news feed as he tried to keep his eyes off the little message tab with Minho’s name on it.

It was about seven mouthfuls of cereal before Taemin heard the message notification, not that he was counting. Okay, so the other boy was awake earlier than Taemin had expected.

Taemin opened the tab, running his eyes over the reply he had received.

‘Sure, I should have asked you sooner. What’s your username? :)’

____MINHO P.O.V____

Minho sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, his eyes on his phone as he received a new message, which stated Taemin’s answer to the question he’d asked. He had only woken up a couple of minutes previous, and on empty days like this, where his shift didn’t start until that evening, he’d usually spend at least half an hour lounging around in bed before even thinking about getting up. But Taemin’s message, read with bleary eyes, woke him up quicker than any alarm clock could.

He probably should have expected it. Both boys had mentioned Skype to each other before, they both knew the other used it. So it made sense that they would eventually move from text messaging to a more… friendlier way of communication. But they hadn’t even spoken on the phone before. Minho had presumed Taemin was too busy to dedicate his time to face-to-face conversation. Taemin had told him how busy college was getting, and how he was trying to balance his time between vlogging and learning new recitals. It made Minho incredibly happy that Taemin would set aside time to talk to him properly.

Before he knew it, Minho was at his desk, typing Taemin’s username into Skype on his laptop and adding him as a contact. He was almost buzzing with excitement, finally he’d get to speak face-to-face with the boy he hadn’t known for very long, but whom had quickly become one of his most cherished friends.

Minho’s phone lit up, showing a notification from Facebook; he’d received another message from Taemin.

‘Will accept you later so we can chat, I’ve gotta head to class now. Have a good day ^^’

A sigh escaped Minho. That’s right, just because he had nothing to do today doesn’t mean Taemin didn’t. It would be a few hours before he would be able to talk to his friend.

Those few hours passed unexpectedly quickly. Minho spent the time filming a FIFA video. He was slightly ahead of his filming schedule, this one didn’t have to be completed for a few days, but what was the harm in getting it done early?

After a couple of hours, Minho headed down to the gym to fit in a quick workout. From what he’d gathered from Taemin’s class schedules, Fridays meant that Taemin would arrive back home at around four o’clock. Right now, it was just gone one. So, Minho would spend two hours at the gym, giving him time to shower, head home and make himself presentable. He certainly didn’t want Taemin’s first impression of him to be a scruffy, sweaty one.

Sure enough, a few hours later at ten minutes past four, Minho looked towards his desk from his place on the bed as a Skype notification sounded out of his laptop, alerting Minho to the fact that Taemin had accepted his friend request. Minho had been focused on the small television that was perched on the chest of drawers facing his bed, catching up with the scores of an American soccer match which had taken place in the early hours of the morning. But all of that was forgotten when he received confirmation that Taemin was online. Well, maybe not all of it. Minho made a mental note to catch up on the highlights of the match at a later time.

Minho sat down in front of his open laptop, smiling as he saw a new tab on his Skype window: ‘Lee Taemin has accepted your friend request’. This was it, this is what Minho had been waiting for for days. Weeks, even.

He waited a few more moments. Just to see if Taemin would begin the conversation first. Then he waited again. Longer, until the clock in the corner of the laptop screen marked five minutes since he had sat down. But, maybe Taemin was waiting, too.

Minho swallowed, deciding to bite the bullet as he opened a conversation with Taemin.

‘Hi :) Do you want to chat now or are you busy?’

Almost immediately, ‘Taemin is typing…’ appeared just above the chat box.

‘Yeah :)’

‘I mean, yeah I want to chat ^^’

A smile drew itself from Minho’s lips, his heartbeat picking up as he moved his cursor to the top of the screen, clicking the video call button. He was so damn nervous. Why? He was in front of a camera every week, to every viewer of his live streams. This was just one person.

He counted six seconds before the ring tone ended as Taemin accepted, and the video call opened up.

On Minho’s screen, appeared the image of Taemin, a soft smile blessing his features as he sat on a brown couch, his eyes seemingly focused on his own screen. He looked just like his selfies, and of course just like how he appeared in his videos, but seeing Taemin now was just… surreal. He was seeing Minho right now, just as Minho was seeing him, and suddenly Minho felt very self conscious about his appearance. Taemin really was good looking.

“Hi,” Taemin smiled. “Fuck, this is weird. And awesome.”

Minho laughed softly, absentmindedly straightening out his shirt. “Yeah… how are you?”

Taemin shrugged, the bright smile still not leaving his face. “College was tiring, but I’ve had a good day… I’ve been excited since I got your reply this morning.”

“Me, too,” Minho replied, adjusting his laptop a little closer to himself. “I guess… I thought it was time for us to have a proper conversation.”

“So our conversations so far haven’t been good enough?” Taemin asked.

“No - that’s not what I meant,” Minho said, pausing when Taemin laughed.

“I’m kidding, Minho,” the boy smiled, and Minho’s mood lifted even further at the sound of Taemin saying his name. It just made this more real. “What did you do today?”

Minho recited his day’s activities to Taemin, from his video filming to his adventures at the gym.

“Do you work out often?” Taemin questioned, reaching to something off screen but keeping his eyes mostly on Minho.

“At least five times per week,” Minho nodded. Taemin did know a lot about him, but fitness schedules hadn’t really been brought up before. Which was strange, actually, since fitness was a big part of Minho’s life.

Taemin pulled his arm back, a cookie now in his hand as he looked at his screen for a second. “I wondered,” he murmured, before taking a bite of the snack.

“Could you tell?” Minho asked. He was quite proud of his body, and the idea of Taemin noticing it pleased him. Not that it was about Taemin, though. He liked everyone noticing it.

Taemin simply nodded, not offering any further means of confirmation as he chewed on the cookie.

“So, do you work out?” Minho asked Taemin. He honestly wasn’t sure what he thought. For someone of Taemin’s skinny build, the boy seemed to have quite broad shoulders. But Minho didn’t know whether to put that down to built up muscle mass or just Taemin’s natural shape.

“Ah, I don’t really commit to it,” Taemin answered. “A couple of times a week, maybe. Sometimes less. I spend most of my time playing music.”

Minho nodded. “Of course. Are you learning anything new?”

“A few pieces. I’m working on my own compositions, too,” Taemin smiled, suddenly a hint of shyness in his voice.

“Really? That’s great,” Minho grinned. He’d already seen Taemin’s piano skills, and to think he was putting them to use with his own creations was a joyous thought. Of course, he wouldn’t ask to hear Taemin’s pieces. Not yet, anyway. Not until Taemin was ready, and the one to offer.

“They’re nothing special, but I’m proud of them,” Taemin continued, his eyes flickering to gaze into his webcam as he spoke. Much like Minho, through filming youtube videos the boy seemed to have become used to looking into the lens while talking, rather than becoming distracted by the video feed on his screen.

Although, Minho was unsure how to look away from his friend. Something about Taemin was so… interesting to watch. His mannerisms were nothing short of adorable but there was a confidence in the way he carried himself. Not conceitedness, for the boy seemed, in general, like a very modest person. But yes, there was confidence there that Minho quickly began to admire.

Between them, there was never a lull in conversation. Never an awkward moment, just as there hadn’t been during their text based communication. Minho felt so comfortable talking to Taemin. They spoke a bit about sports, a bit about Taemin’s college and Minho’s job, what sorry excuse for food that Taemin would be concocting up for dinner that night.

A short while later, Taemin quickly excused himself without much explanation and disappeared from frame, leaving Minho alone as he wondered what the boy was doing. Before he had much time to create possible scenarios in his head, Taemin re-appeared in front of him, holding his video camera.

“You’re filming?” Minho asked.

“Do you mind?” Taemin glanced up at Minho as he turned the equipment on. “It’s just for this week’s vlog. I’d like to include it, to show people I actually do have friends,” he chuckled softly, opening the viewfinder.

Minho laughed with him, feeling some warmth in his chest when Taemin referred to him as a friend out loud. “I don’t mind. Maybe if my viewers see it, they’ll realise I have friends, too.”

Taemin scoffed. “You play games with your friends all the time in your videos. Since my friends moved away, I’ve been making videos alone. So, you’ll be a nice addition.”

And with that, Taemin turned the camera to focus on himself, pressing record. “Hi, guys! Today’s a good day, because I’m talking on Skype to one of my friends for the first time. I know you’ve been wanting me to film with people again, so technically that’s what I’m doing. I’m sure this will make you very happy.”

He turned the camera to focus on the laptop screen. “Say hi!”

Minho didn’t quite know what to do except smile and wave awkwardly. “Hi, I’m Choi Minho. I make videos, too.”

Taemin turned the camera back to himself, rolling his eyes into the lens. “Shameless self promo.” He returned the focus to Minho. “Advertise yourself, then,” he grinned.

Minho smiled, shrugging. He’d never really explained his channel to anyone, not even his friends, he’d just waited for them to find it for themselves and see. “I do gaming videos and stuff. FIFA mostly, and I talk about sports news sometimes.”

“So, basically the exact opposite to my channel,” Taemin chuckled, keeping the camera focused on the laptop screen. Minho could see that he was still smiling behind the camera; the way his eyes were lit up was adorable. “I’ll put the link to Minho’s channel below in the description, in case any of you are interested in that. Or, if you just want to see who I associate with. I warn you, he does get very angry when he loses, it can be quite scarring,” he boy said, trying to sound serious but the edge in his voice giving him away.

Still, Minho objected to the boy’s words. “Hey, I don’t get angry!” he replied. “I just get annoyed when the game doesn’t do what I tell it to. Not my fault if the controller stops working properly…”

Taemin turned the camera back on himself. “It’s hilarious, you guys should should watch his ‘Manchester United vs. Real Madrid’ gameplay. He really loses it there.”

“I don’t lose it,” Minho protested, slightly amused by the whole situation but refusing to admit it. “You’re tarnishing the Choi name, Lee Taemin. What kind of impression are you giving of me to your subscribers? You’re meant to be making them like me.”

“Who said I wanted them to like you?” Taemin grinned as he looked at Minho through the laptop screen, the camera still on himself. “Also, since I’m letting you promote yourself, I think I deserve some sort of payment.”

“I’ll pay you in lessons on how to not be an ass,” Minho suggested, a smile hinting to break onto his face. An appropriate payment, indeed.

“I’m lovely,” Taemin teased. “Give this video a thumbs up if Minho’s the one who needs not-being-an-ass lessons,” he said into the camera.

“I hate you,” Minho murmured, before pausing. Despite this being the first time talking to Taemin physically, what he’d said was okay, right? Were they close enough for Taemin to not take his statement seriously?

Luckily, Taemin just laughed. “You love me. Really, though,” he looked into the lens of the camera, “his channel is pretty cool, and I like him, so you guys should like him, too,” he smiled.

Minho couldn’t help but smile then, a warm feeling rising in his chest at Taemin’s kind words. “That’s better,” he chuckled.

Taemin laughed. “I’ll check in with you later,” he said to the camera. “Bye.” He stopped recording, setting the camera down out of frame. “How are you going to pay me, then? Since we established those lessons are off the table.”

“I’ll think about it,” Minho said, with absolutely no intention of thinking about it.

“Good,” Taemin grinned.

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

The pair spent most of the evening talking to each other on Skype, but eventually, Taemin had to stop putting off his college work and actually do something, especially if he wanted to spend the weekend focusing on piano practice. So, he said goodbye to Minho at around nine thirty, five hours after they’d begun their Skype call, before beginning to work on his other commitments.

He worked a little slower than usual. His Skype call with Minho kept popping into his head. The other boy was so easy and fun to talk to. He had been slightly worried that despite, conversation flowing over text, they wouldn’t be been able to keep it up. But it seemed all his worries were unfounded. Minho was awesome, he was wonderful, and Taemin definitely wanted to speak to him again soon.

After finishing his work at around eleven, and vlogging the final part of his day, connected his camera to his laptop, beginning to transport the video files into his editing software. He wouldn’t have time to edit his vlog that night, but he could at least transport the video files so it was ready for tomorrow.

Therefore, the next day was spent filming a piano recital video, vlogging some of his Saturday activities, and continuing with college work. His vlogs were always set up become public each Sunday morning, so Taemin always made sure he had all his content filmed to be added into the video by Saturday afternoon, latest, so he could get them exported.

He didn’t manage to speak to Minho much that day. Minho’s job made sure of that. Today’s shift was from twelve in the morning until nine in the evening, his longest shift of the week. So, only at four, which Taemin guessed was Minho’s break, did Taemin receive any message from his friend. They had had a short conversation, but Taemin was left with a strangely hollow feeling when Minho announced his boss was calling him back in. He missed looking at Minho’s face while he spoke to him, wondering how he wasn’t a model with looks like that. But their Skype conversation was less than twenty four hours ago, and Taemin felt like a desperate loser.

It was reaching eleven when Taemin received a message alert, just as he was washing up his plate from dinner.

‘Hey, you busy?’

Taemin read the message and quickly texted back a ‘no’, before putting his cutlery away and heading into his bedroom.

‘Do you wanna talk? I’m exhausted and today wasn’t great’

Taemin’s heart sank at the thought of his friend being sad, sending a reply to Minho saying he’d sign into Skype. He felt flattered that Minho wanted to talk to him to be cheered up, but maybe Taemin wasn’t his first choice, and Minho’s other friends were just busy. He’d probably never know.

Nevertheless, soon he and Minho were face to face again, Taemin watching as Minho picked up his laptop, placing it on his bed and laying down in front of it. It was no joke, Minho really did look tired, visible dark bags below his large brown eyes. Taemin almost told him to just go to sleep, but if Minho wanted to chat then that’s what they’d do.

Minho told Taemin about his day, about what had happened at work. Taemin didn’t get all the details, but it was something to do with an incorrect delivery which Minho had ended up getting the blame for, since he had been in charge of stock checking and ordering. Minho was usually a star employee, but as he’d told Taemin, it was very easy to be placed in the boss’ bad books.

Naturally, Minho quickly asked to talk about something else, so Taemin rambled on about his own day, despite the uneventfulness of it. Minho seemed to appreciate it though, chiming in with his own comments once in a while, but mainly just listening.

It wasn’t long before Taemin noticed Minho’s eyes drooping closed, and he smiled. He really was so cute. “Go to sleep, Minho,” he said softly. “You need rest.”

“Mm,” Minho hummed in response, moving his arm to place his finger over the mousepad. “Yeah, I will. Night, Tae.”

Taemin froze at the nickname momentarily, before a sense of pleasure replaced the surprise. He could get used to that.

“Goodnight,” he smiled, watching as Minho ended the call before beginning to get ready for bed himself, Minho’s nickname swimming around in his mind as he did so.

____MINHO P.O.V____

Taemin had texted Minho the next morning, informing Minho that his weekly vlog had been uploaded. It took Minho a second to remember why Taemin had told him this - he already knew Taemin’s upload schedule pretty well, and anyway, he was subscribed to him. But then he remembered what was different about this one. Minho himself would be featured via Taemin’s laptop screen.

Naturally, Minho quickly headed to Youtube, wanting to check out the video. He remembered the exchange Taemin had filmed, but editing could do wonders to a situation, and Minho was curious.

So, a few minutes later, Minho was watching the video. Turns out, Taemin hadn’t really edited it at all. Just a few cuts here and there. And it was entertaining. Minho wasn’t as whiny has he’d recalled being. On the other hand, Taemin was just as much of an ass as Minho had remembered, but much like at the time of filming, he didn’t come across as rude. Minho struggled to find the word for what Taemin was. Endearing? Something like that.

Taking a delve into the comment section, it seemed that most people were thinking along the same lines as Minho. Most of the comments were about their Skype conversation. People thought it was cute, people thought Minho was cute, there were even people saying they’d want to see he and Taemin officially collaborate. Minho didn’t really know how that would work; their channels were so different. And they hadn’t even met in person.

Less than five minutes later, Minho received a text from the boy.

‘Did you watch it? ^_^ looks like you have some new fans’

‘Say goodbye to your subscribers, they’re mine now :P’

Minho could imagine Taemin’s scoff at that text as he sent it. It was less than a minute before he received a reply.

‘Wow I’m so scared~ I need to study now, have a good day ^_^’

‘You too Tae :)’

That was the second time Minho had used that nickname for his friend. The first time, the night before, was sort of an accident. Minho had been almost deliriously tired and the word had just left his mouth. But Taemin didn’t seem to mind. And Minho… liked calling him it. So, he figured he’d continue until Taemin told him to stop.

That night, the two were face to face on Skype again. This seemed to be becoming somewhat of a routine.

Their conversation was light, flittering around topics such as the best type of meat (Taemin was adamant it was steak, and Minho was fighting pork’s corner) and where they’d most like to visit in the world. So, Minho was shocked when Taemin suddenly looked serious.

“Minho, can I ask you something?” His tone was a lot shyer than it had been just a second ago.

It got Minho a bit scared. What did Taemin need to ask him that he couldn’t just say outright?

“Yeah, of course.”

“Did you see the comments on the vlog?”

Minho’s forehead twitched into a frown, unsure exactly what Taemin was referring to; there had a been a lot of comments. “You’re gonna need to be more specific than that.”

Taemin licked his lips, adjusting himself slightly in his seat. “Ah, well… a lot of people wanted us to make a video together. A proper one, I mean. Like, in person.”

“Oh,” Minho nodded. “Yeah, I saw… would you want to? Not just make a video but… would you want to meet me?”

“Of course!” Taemin replied, and Minho thought he saw the boy turn slightly red after his enthusiastic outburst. But the camera quality wasn’t great, rendering him unsure. Nevertheless, Taemin cleared his throat slightly, nodding. “Yeah. I know we haven’t been speaking for long, really, but yeah, I would. I mean, I know you’re not… some kind of predator or something. You’re you. You know what I mean? So… yeah. Would you? Want to meet me?”

“Yeah,” Minho said, unable to stop smiling due to Taemin’s cute reaction to Minho’s original question. “It would be great to meet you. Not just for making a video together… just in general.”

Taemin grinned at his laptop screen, nodding. “Awesome. When? Where? I’m busy with college for a few weeks but it’s summer break soon. I guess it’s up to you, you have a job and stuff.”

“Well, we don’t have to sort it out now, I’ll let you know,” Minho suggested.

Taemin nodded again. “Yeah, sure. Sorry, I’m just excited.”

Minho chuckled. “Me, too.”

“By the way,” Taemin started. “You know before? When I mentioned I was creating new pieces on the piano? Well, I finished one, and I’m not going to be filming it for a few weeks but… can I show you? So you can tell me if it’s shit or whatever.”

Minho’s eyes widened and a strong, unplaced feeling spread throughout his chest. He hadn't really thought Taemin would share his work with Minho, especially as the first person to hear it.

“That would be… really nice,” Minho confirmed, trying to control just how widely he was smiling. “I’d love to hear any of your - what I’m sure are definitely not shit - compositions.”

“Okay,” Taemin replied, smiling shyly. “Do you want to hear it now? I mean, I know the webcam sound quality isn’t that great, but I think it’d do the job well enough.”

Minho thought for a moment. He really, really wanted to hear Taemin’s work, but even more he wanted to hear it for the first time in the best quality he could.

“Actually, could we wait? If it’s okay, I’d like to hear it in person first. Whenever that might be,” Minho told Taemin. He hoped Taemin wouldn’t take any kind of offence at Minho wanting to wait.

“Oh,” came Taemin’s reply. “Yeah, that’s a good idea.” Well, he hadn’t seemed to take offence. “Honestly I think it’s one of my best compositions so far, but I don’t want to leave it too long, and get your hopes up too much,” he smiled. “So, we should meet soon, before you become convinced I’m the next Beethoven.”

Minho laughed softly. “Sounds good to me.”

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

As Taemin had mentioned to Minho, he was busy with college for the next few weeks. Very busy. His deadlines seemed to be piling on top of each other, he had finals to take, he still had to find time to film piano covers and vlogs; before long his conversations with Minho were what got him up in the morning. They didn’t talk every day, and actually, some days, few and far between, Taemin did manage to speak with his friends from high school. But, he and Minho made time to talk for around half an hour on Skype every couple of days. They were light conversations, usually. To relax Taemin from his school stress, and other times Minho would even help him memorise parts of the curriculum he was finding it impossible to learn. Taemin was sure that if it weren’t for Minho, he would have absolutely no hope of progressing to final year.

Finally, one day, Taemin arrived back at his flat, dropping his bag as he strolled through the door and collapsed on the coach. That was it. His last deadline, his last exam. The year was over, and he could finally relax.

He was extremely excited to work out plans with Minho. In all practically it would be very easy for them to meet; Taemin only lived about an hour and a half away. The choice of Taemin coming to Minho rather than the other way around was not a difficult choice to make. Taemin loved Seoul, and loved to visit any time he could; Minho travelling to Taemin’s town would result in some very subpar scenery for the two. Plus, Minho had a better filming set up, plus more room, so it hadn’t taken long before they had decided who was going where. But there was the matter of how long he’d be going for, where he would stay… he hoped Minho would offer up his couch, but he couldn’t be too sure.

“Taemin, of course you can sleep on the couch,” Minho told him a few hours later over Skype as Taemin lay sprawled across his bed, looking at his laptop screen.

“Are you sure?” Taemin asked. “I don’t want to take up your space, or whatever.”

Minho only laughed. “Really, it’s fine, you won’t be taking up any space at all.”

Taemin smiled, relieved that he wouldn’t have to pay for a hotel. “Thank you.”

“You’re adorable,” Minho told him fondly, before sitting back in his seat. “Do you want to come on Monday?”

That was only a few days away. Taemin grinned, having not expected Minho to offer a date so soon. “Monday would be great. I’ll be right back.”

Taemin quickly hopped off his bed and went to fetch his camera, soon returning and beginning to record his laptop screen.

“So, guys, guess what we’re discussing? Minho and I are going to meet each other next week!” he said happily, zooming in on Minho’s face on his screen. “Minho’s very excited.”

Minho laughed, obviously watching him. “So is Taemin.”

Taemin moved the camera up and down as if it were nodding, laughing softly. “We’ll be hanging out, maybe filming a video or two, you’ll see!”

“I can’t wait,” Minho said, sounding so genuinely happy that it made Taemin feel a lovely warmth in his chest.

“Me neither.”

____MINHO P.O.V____

Minho would be meeting Taemin at one o’clock. The boy was currently on the subway from just outside the city, due to arrive in within the next twenty minutes. It was only going to be a short trip - Taemin was staying at Minho’s for two nights, and before returning home the following evening. Minho had set up the couch for Taemin, and had discussed with Taemin what they’d be doing during his trip. But that was the easy part. The actual meeting was what was making Minho almost nauseous with stress.

It wasn’t that he was worried, per se, about meeting his friend. It was just… what if they didn’t get along as well in person as they did over an internet connection? What if Minho bored Taemin, or said something stupid that would make Taemin vow to never see him again? Minho didn’t know exactly what he would say to make that happen, but he was sure there was something.

Nevertheless, there Minho was, almost obsessively tidying his house in preparation for his friend’s visit, the strange cocktail of emotions manifesting in what was probably the most extreme excitement Minho had ever felt. He couldn’t wait to meet Taemin, to see the boy in front of him. He couldn’t wait to film with him properly and travel around Seoul with him before Taemin had to catch his train home.

Minho didn’t live far from the train station, only ten minutes, and by the time he’d convinced himself his home looked presentable enough for his guest, he had thirteen minutes until Taemin’s train would arrive at the platform. Taemin had offered for Minho to stay at home, and he’d use a combination of Minho’s address and the internet to find his house, but Minho had shut him down quickly.

So, thirty seconds later, Minho was walking down his street, a spring in his step as he went to meet his friend.

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

Taemin stepped off the train, overnight bag in clutched in his hand as he made his way along the platform and towards the main entrance of the station. He made eye contact with an elderly woman and smiled - he’d been so lost in his thoughts, thinking about meeting Minho, what they’d talk about and do together, that he’d not only almost forgotten to get off the train, but it wasn’t until he was about to walk down the aisle that he had received a tap on his shoulder from the old woman, and realised his overnight bag was still in the overhead luggage rack. If it wasn’t for her he would have waltzed over to meet his friend without any of his belongings, which would not have been ideal.

Taemin’s gaze darted around as he reached he main area of the station, scanning the faces of everyone he saw, looking for some recognition of Minho’s features. But, no luck.

That was okay. Maybe he was running a bit late. Or maybe Taemin was just too small to see him through the crowd. He wasn’t that short, but he wasn’t tall. It wasn’t often he was able to look over the top of people’s heads. Well, except for Chansung, who made Dobby the House Elf look like Hagrid the giant… well, half giant, but the point still stood.

The station was huge, the biggest in the country, but Taemin was sure he gave Minho the right terminal. After a few minutes, he decided to try to contact Minho - text him to see where he was. He moved off to the side to avoid the rush of people and set his bag down between his feet, before pulling his phone out of his jacket pocket and opening up his message thread with Minho.

He was just typing the first word of his message, when he felt a presence come up next to him, and a second later, a tap on the shoulder.

“Taemin.”

Taemin turned his head so fast he almost got whiplash, feeling his face light up as his eyes met his friend’s. “Minho!”

For a split second he didn’t know what to do next - should he hug him? Was Minho a hugger?

Minho answered his question for him, stepping forward and throwing his arms around Taemin. Taemin laughed - mainly at himself for being so hesitant - and hugged Minho back, his hands grasping Minho’s jacket and his smile unable to leave his face. The smell of Minho’s cologne entered his nose. It brought with it a lovely scent of sweet, aromatic cinnamon, reminding Taemin of velvety hot chocolate and cosy autumns, and he could probably get lost in it if he wanted.

“I couldn’t see you,” he told Minho, pulling away from the hug slowly as it came to a natural end. “Which is a mystery,” he continued, glancing over the length of Minho’s body, “because you’re tall as fuck.”

“Well, taller than you, yeah. Maybe you just weren’t looking in the right place.” His eyes fell on Taemin’s bag between his feet. “I’ll carry that for you, if you want. You’re sick of holding it, right?”

“Ah, that’s okay,” Taemin replied, picking up the bag. “It’s not heavy.” It was a bit heavy, actually, but he wouldn’t let Minho know that. He appreciated Minho’s offer, but he could carry his bag himself. Plus, how much of an asshole would he look if he made Minho carry his stuff while he walked empty handed?

“Okay, if you’re sure,” Minho shrugged, smiling softly. His smile was even nicer in person. “Let’s get going, then.”

Taemin smiled, and the two fell into step alongside each other as they exited the station.

“Are you hungry?” Minho asked, eliciting a nod from Taemin.

“Yeah, I haven’t had lunch yet,” he replied, licking his lips as if only realising just how hungry he was. He’d woken up later than he’d meant to that morning, and had shoved a piece of toast in his mouth as he left the house, making him wonder if he’d somehow woken up in a different universe and was now starring in some high school anime.

“I can make us something when we get home,” Minho suggested. “Or, we could drop your bag off and go out to get something?”

Taemin thought for a moment, and thought back to the many conversations he and Minho had had about their cooking skills before. “How about you make something? I’d like to see if your food is as good as you’ve said it is.”

“I invited you over to have fun, not to present my dishes to Lee Taemin, apparent food critic. And anyway, if you’re comparing my food to your own, there won’t be much competition even if my food is terrible, will there?” Minho laughed, nudging Taemin gently.

“Hey, only I can trash talk my own food,” Taemin chuckled, unzipping his bag and reaching his hand in to search for his camera.

“We’ll see about that,” Minho said in a sing-song voice. “Don’t forget, you’ve told me about your honey and milk ramen.” Taemin noticed a pause before his friend spoke again. “What are you looking for?”

“My - ah. My camera,” Taemin said, locating the object he was looking for. “I’m going to vlog a little. Do you mind holding my bag for a bit?”

“Now you want me to carry it,” Minho mocked a dramatic sigh. “Fine,” he smiled, taking Taemin’s bag from him.

“Thank you,” Taemin sang and switched the camera on, turning the lens on himself as he set the focus and pressed record.

“Hey, guys! Can you guess what’s happening?” he grinned, making sure to keep Minho out of the frame. The sun was high in the sky due to the hour of the day, which, in Taemin’s opinion, didn’t make him look the best. “The sun could use a softbox, this is awful,” Taemin murmured, adjusting his hair as he looked at himself in the lens.

“So, some of you saw on Twitter that I was heading into Seoul today, right?” he said, forgetting about the lighting issue. “Well, I arrived a few minutes ago and guess who is here?”

He panned the camera’s angle across to Minho, whom he found was grinning back at him.

Minho laughed, moving his gaze from Taemin to the camera lens. “What a surprise, right? Yeah, I’m losing all my personal space for the night,” he told the camera, before looking back at Taemin.

Taemin turned the focus back on himself. “Minho’s couch space is obviously very important to him. Maybe I’ll have to sleep on the street.”

He heard Minho laugh again next to him, a joyous, light sound, which prompted a large grin from his own lips. Taemin swore that he’d pass out if Minho was any more loveable. “So, what are we doing today, Minho?” he asked, turning the focus on his friend again.

“We’re filming a video for my channel, MinhoPlaysGames. Subscribe for weekly uploads,” Minho replied and winked at the camera, and Taemin rolled his eyes at the self-promotion.

“Don’t bother, his videos suck, my presence will be the only quality content,” Taemin grinned.

“What was that about you sleeping on the street?” Minho threatened jokingly, and Taemin smirked into the camera.

“He’d never let me sleep on the street, he’s too nice,” he said to the camera, before speaking again. “We’re gonna head back to Minho’s place now, catch up with you later,” he said, before stopping the recording and closing the viewfinder.

“You have no idea if I’m too nice,” Minho said to Taemin as he handed his friend’s bag over, allowing Taemin to put the camera away.

“Come on, you’re the nicest person I know,” Taemin replied, zipping up his bag after making sure his camera was safely tucked away. “I may have been talking to you through a screen this whole time, but I’ve still been talking to you.”

“Have you got me all worked out, then?”

“Maybe,” Taemin hummed. “We’ll find out when I see if your food is what I’m expecting.”

____MINHO P.O.V____

“So?”

“Hmm?”

Minho looked over at Taemin from the other side of the table, setting his chopsticks down. “Is it what you were expecting?”

Taemin swallowed his mouthful of kimchi stew, glancing up at Minho's hopeful expression. “Well, you were right, if that’s what you mean,” he said. “It’s delicious.”

Minho grinned, probably a little too widely. “Good,” he said, sitting back in his seat in satisfaction. “Next time, how about you make something? Let me see if you’re really as bad as you say you are.”

“Not sure you’d want that,” Taemin chuckled, collecting some more food with his chopsticks.

“Just leave the honey and milk out of it and you’ll be fine,” Minho laughed.

Taemin smiled back, before shovelling more stew into his mouth.

About ten minutes later, the pair had finished eating, and they worked together to do the washing up.

“What game do you want to play?” Minho asked as he dried his bowl, moving his gaze to Taemin.

Taemin shrugged as he rinsed his own bowl. “I dunno, FIFA? Judging by the games you’ve played on your channel, it’s the one I’m most familiar with.”

“Meaning it’s the one you think you’ll win at?” Minho smiled. “Good luck.”

“You never saw me play against my brother,” Taemin countered. “I’m better than I look. Also, I’ve been playing the piano for years - my fingers are very good with controllers. I’ll bet yours just bumble all over the place.”

Minho scoffed. “Keep telling yourself that, Taeminnie.”

He saw Taemin smile as the boy looked down at his bowl, whether it was at the nickname, or the response in general, Minho wasn’t sure.

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

A short while later, Minho led Taemin to his room, where his filming set up surrounded his desk. Taemin sat down on the edge of the bed while Minho brought a chair in from the kitchen area, setting it next to the chair already placed in front of the desk.

Taemin looked around Minho’s room, taking in the sense of atmosphere the area gave off. The walls were painted a pale blue colour, allowing natural light to bounce of the walls and illuminate the whole space. And as Taemin had expected, sports memorabilia took up a large section of the space. Minho had posters of his favourite teams and players on his walls, a couple of them even signed. But it wasn’t all sports. There were some movie posters that he didn’t recognise, rows of DVDs and games, and some framed photographs of family and friends around his desk and on his bedside cabinet. Minho obviously loved the people in his life a lot.

Taemin looked away relatively quickly, not wanting Minho to think he was being nosy in any way. He simply watched the other boy retrieve the FIFA game, smiling as Minho turned on his console and inserted the disc.

He was about to sit down on the wooden desk chair from the kitchen, when Minho took hold of his arm gently, stopping him. With someone else, Taemin might have backed away from the unexpected touch, but nothing about that physical contact with Minho bothered him.

“Take the comfy chair,” his friend said. “You’re my guest, and I can sit on the wooden one for once.”

“You sure?” Taemin asked, but was already shuffling across to the comfortable chair. If Minho was offering, he wasn’t going to say no.

Minho laughed softly; he must have noticed Taemin’s eagerness to sit down, too. “Yeah.” He sat down next to Taemin, picking up a controller and beginning to set up the game.

Taemin glanced around at Minho’s belongings again. “Your room is cute.”

Minho hummed questioningly, his eyes on the computer screen. “Why? It’s just a room.”

Taemin shrugged, glancing at Minho before also looking at the computer. “Dunno. Just shows a lot of your personality. What’s important to you.”

“I guess all bedrooms are like that,” Minho replied.

“Not mine, really,” Taemin started. “Most of my stuff is still at my parents’ house.”

“Why?”

Taemin paused for a second. “I thought it’d be easier to leave it there. The apartment I’m living in for college is temporary, and I visit my family home often. You’ve seen my room, didn’t it look empty to you?”

“Well…” Minho hesitated. “I’ve only seen it through a camera. I thought there was more I wasn’t seeing,” he said.

“Not really,” Taemin replied. “I’ll have a proper bedroom after college, one with all my stuff, when I can move to the city. But for now, my room is fine.”

“Do you like college?” Minho asked suddenly.

Taemin blinked at him. They’d never really talked about their opinions on their college experiences. “It’s alright. Why?”

“It just… you seem… I don’t know. Lonely,” Minho told him, still occupied with setting up the game. Taemin noticed Minho glancing at him, though.

He didn’t really know what to say. Yeah, he was lonely. A bit. But he was sure other people had worse college experiences than him. He had good grades, he wasn’t a victim of anyone’s bullying or anything like that. He was fine.

“I like being alone,” Taemin said, and it was true.

“You can like being alone and still be lonely,” Minho pointed out, and yes, Taemin knew that.

He simply shrugged in response, not quite knowing what to say.

“Just remember, you have me, right?” Minho turned to him properly then, smiling sweetly.

Taemin smiled back, touched at how caring his friend was. “I know. Thanks, Minho.”

The next thing Taemin felt was Minho placing his hand on Taemin’s knee, squeezing it quickly in comfort. It made Taemin smile just a little bit wider, the warmth of Minho’s hand seeming to radiate through Taemin’s entire body.

“I’ll set up the camera,” Minho said after a moment, standing up and retrieving the device from a shelf above the desk. The tripod was tiny, and was already set to the correct height to film, so Taemin watched Minho assemble the equipment while sitting there quietly. Minho also turned on the couple of lights he used for filming, ensuring that the shot wasn’t too dark, as well as his screen capture software. All the equipment looked quite expensive; they were obviously of a much higher quality than what Taemin used.

“How much did all that cost?” Taemin asked.

“More than I like to think about,” Minho chuckled. “I took a couple of extra shifts at work to save up for it all. Even though Youtube is still a hobby for me, I want my videos to look professional.”

“Me, too,” Taemin replied. “There’s only so much I can afford as a student, though,” he smiled. “Any money I get from Youtube goes towards my tuition. I’d probably have to sell my liver for those lights alone.”

Minho laughed. “Liver might not be the best idea. You’d be dead pretty quickly. I’d recommend going with a kidney instead.”

“Okay, Doctor Minho,” Taemin rolled his eyes jokingly. “Thanks for the advice.”

“You’re welcome, Tae,” Minho teased. “All done,” he announced a second later, pressing record and sitting back down next to Taemin, handing him his own controller. “Ready to start?”

“Yeah,” Taemin confirmed, turning the controller over in his hands as he got used to holding it.

He quickly ducked down out of the seat, below the desk.

“What are you doing?” Minho asked quizzically.

“Surprising your viewers,” Taemin grinned up at him from below the desk. “Just say you have a guest.”

Minho shook his head fondly, turning back to the camera. “Okay, I’ll start.”

“Hi everyone,” Taemin heard his friend begin the video. “Today I’ll be playing FIFA on PlayStation 4, I haven’t played it for a few weeks and I know some of you like these game plays the most. But, today I’m not alone, I have someone here with me.”

It was at that moment that Taemin decided to make his appearance. He used the chair to hoist himself up from under the desk quickly, showing himself to the camera. Or, that was what he was meant to do. What actually happened was very different. Taemin grabbed onto the seat of the chair, ready to pull himself up. He’d forgotten the chair had wheels, and in pulling himself up, managed to push the chair away from him. He lost his grip and crashed back down to the floor, disappearing from view just as quickly as he’d reappeared. “Fuck!” he exclaimed, curling up on the floor in defeat.

Minho burst out laughing above him, a high pitched sound that Taemin had heard a few times before over Skype and had quickly grown to treasure.

“Stop laughing!” Taemin moaned from his foetal position on the floor, but Minho took no notice, and Taemin continued to hear the contagious laugh that very soon had him chuckling, too.

“You’re not putting that in,” he told Minho, pulling the chair towards him carefully, and finally getting up off the floor, sitting down where he was supposed to have ended up just ten seconds ago.

“I definitely am,” Minho replied, and Taemin thought he’d managed to calm down before the other boy dissolved into another fit of giggles. It was adorable, but that didn’t mean Taemin was okay with it.

Taemin forced himself to stop laughing and his lips formed a small pout as he picked up his controller.

“Taeminnie, you’re so cute,” Minho grinned, turning back towards the camera. “Today I have Lee Taemin visiting, so we’re going to play together. I’ll put the links to his channel and social media in the description. Although, his content isn’t as entertaining as what just happened.”

“Yeah, well, I just gave you the best moment of your channel, too,” Taemin mumbled, trying to hide his amusement at the situation.

Minho laughed again, scrolling through the game’s menu. “So, which team are you going to play as?”

____MINHO P.O.V____

“Yes, yes, yes!”

Taemin cheered as he scored yet another goal against Minho, causing other boy to cry out in frustration, close his eyes and fall back in his seat so hard the chair almost toppled over.

Minho really hadn’t expected Taemin to be so good, especially being years out of practice as Taemin had claimed in their first conversation, but right now the score was 3 - 1 to Taemin. Maybe what Taemin had said about piano playing helping his fingers was true, because Minho couldn’t see how else Taemin was managing to beat him so completely.

“Thought you said you were good at this?” Taemin’s voice suddenly whispered in Minho’s ear, and Minho could fucking hear his shit eating grin. He opened his eyes as Taemin sat back, trying not to pout at Taemin’s words. Choi Minho was not about to sulk.

“Aw, look who’s sulking,” Taemin cooed teasingly, grinning as he turned back to the screen.

“I’m not!” Minho argued, sitting up straight again and even more determined than he was before. “You’re going down, Lee Taemin.”

“You wish,” Taemin smirked as the game refreshed from the goal, beginning the next round.

By the end of the game, the final scores were 3 - 2, Taemin being declared the winner. If he’d only had a few more minutes, Minho was certain he would have been able to make it a draw. But no, he had to deal with Taemin’s smug expression as they filmed the outro to the video.

“Thanks for watching, and don’t bother telling me you want Taemin in another video, because he’s not being in one,” Minho said, causing Taemin to laugh.

“See you next time, guys!” Taemin grinned, waving to the lens.

“We’ll see about that,” Minho smiled, pushing Taemin playfully, his smile growing when the other boy pushed him gently back.

“We will.”

Minho decided to leave it after that last line from Taemin, standing up and turning the camera off, along with all the other equipment.

“I really didn't expect to beat you,” Taemin told Minho as Minho turned off the console.

“That makes two of us,” Minho laughed. “You’re really good.”

“Maybe you’ll somehow be able to play the piano better than me,” Taemin suggested, obviously not serious.

“I have a keyboard under my bed,” Minho said as he sat down again. “I can show you how good I am.”

That seemed to genuinely catch Taemin off guard. “You have one?”

Minho nodded, standing up and heading to his bed. “My mum got it for me for my birthday one year. I was in the mood to learn an instrument, and I thought a keyboard would be fun. The interest died out pretty quickly, but I still kept it,” he said to his friend, reaching under his bed and pulling out the keyboard. It was a little dusty, but Minho wiped it quickly before turning to Taemin again. “I don’t even know the notes or chords anymore, the most I can play is nursery rhymes.”

Taemin stood up, approaching Minho and the keyboard. “Play something?”

Minho thought for a moment. “I’ll play something, if you play something, too.”

Taemin nodded. “Okay.”

Minho brought the keyboard over to the desk, clearing a space and setting it down. He considered what he knew how to play, eventually settling on his favourite nursery rhyme from when he was young. It was simple, but it was genuinely the best he could do.

He finished playing after a short amount of time, and looked at Taemin for his approval. The other boy was smiling at him, his eyes bright.

“That’s really cute.”

“Yeah, well,” Minho shrugged. “Like I said, that’s the best I can do. What are you going to play?”

Taemin was quiet for a while, and Minho was just about to ask him if he was okay, when he spoke again.

“You know I said I’d composed something recently? And you said you wanted to hear it in person? I could play that. It probably won’t sound as good on a keyboard but…”

Minho’s eyes widened slightly at Taemin’s proposition. He knew what he was about to hear was very personal to his friend. “Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

Taemin nodded. “I’d like you to hear it. Do you want to hear it?”

Minho mirrored Taemin’s nods, stepping aside for Taemin to reach the keyboard. “Of course.”

“Okay,” Taemin said, and stood in front of the keyboard as Minho went to sit on the bed.

The room was silent for a moment, before the first notes of Taemin’s composition began to fill the air. Minho watched Taemin’s fingers move elegantly across the keyboard as the music entered his ears, and it was as if each note was being absorbed into his body, suppressing his thoughts and his ability to breathe.

The tune was astonishing, encapsulating so many mixed emotions and feelings that Minho recognised. Hopefulness, melancholy, loneliness and longing, so many contrasting features which somehow formed coherently beautiful melody that Minho could listen to forever. Taemin was so, so talented. Minho had always known it, but this was something else.

Minho was so lost in the piece that he almost didn’t notice when it finishing, but his eye was caught by Taemin turning around and looking at him expectantly.

“Well?” His voice was small, as if he were scared of what Minho might say.

“You’re amazing, Taemin,” Minho breathed, and the sentence felt like the truest words he’d ever spoken.

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

Minho uploaded his collaboration video with Taemin a couple of days later. Taemin had arrived home the previous afternoon, having caught a train from Seoul at lunch time. And he already missed Minho. Actually, from the moment he said goodbye to him he missed him. The two had experienced so much fun together, from filming Minho’s video and Taemin’s vlogs, to just leaving the cameras behind, talking to each other and going on a walk around the city centre. It was exactly what Taemin had needed and he couldn’t thank Minho enough for it.

Taemin hadn’t seen Minho editing the game play they’d filmed; he didn’t know what the other boy would have emphasised or edited out. He was sort of hoping Minho had chosen to get rid of Taemin’s unfortunate incident with the chair at the start of the introduction, but he didn’t want to be too optimistic.

There was only one way to found out - he’d have to see it. The two had been in a Skype call for a few hours; Taemin was sitting on his bed, mostly reliving with Minho the events of the last few days and laughing about the good times they had shared. Minho was currently uploading the video to Youtube, talking to Taemin as he did so.

“And you’re sure the couch was comfortable enough?” Minho asked, slightly distractedly as he typed, probably entering the video title and tags.

“Yes, it was fine, stop worrying,” Taemin smiled, watching Minho through the screen. Despite Minho focusing on his video upload, he still sounded genuinely concerned, and it made Taemin��s heart melt. “It was almost more comfortable than my own bed,” he continued, and that statement was true. His bed wasn’t of the highest quality, and Taemin had to toss and turn some nights just to reach a part of the mattress that wasn’t annoyingly lumpy. Sleeping on Minho’s couch was like being in a five-star hotel.

Minho shrugged. “If you say so.” He clicked once more and sat back, staring the screen. “There, it’s just processing. Should be up in a minute or two.”

“Cool, have you cut out the moments of you being a sulky toddler?” Taemin teased, grinning at Minho. “Although, you’d have no footage left.”

“This kid…” Minho said under his breath. “Why did I ever think you were nice?” he asked, smiling. “If you want the entire video to be a repeated clip of you falling down, I can re-edit it right now.”

“Hey, do you want to die?” Taemin laughed. “I’ll take the first train back to Seoul and physically stop you.”

“Yeah?” Minho raised his eyebrows. “How would you do that?”

“It’s a surprise,” Taemin smirked, as if he actually had ideas running through his brain. He’d think of something. “You should be scared.”

“How can I be scared when you’re so cute?”

Taemin huffed in protest of the adjective, his cheeks heating up slightly in what felt like embarrassment, just like they did whenever Minho called him ‘cute’, or anything of the sort.

“Yeah, well, people can be cute and scary,” he objected.

“People, not you,” Minho grinned.

Taemin was about to reply, when he heard a notification from Minho’s laptop.

“Ah,” his friend said. “The video has finished processing.”

____MINHO P.O.V____

A couple of hours later, Minho was still talking to Taemin over Skype, except now they were scrolling through the comments on the video, discussing them as Minho replied to a few. They had watched the video together, and Taemin had been seemingly pleasantly surprised that Minho, really, had done minimal editing to the footage. Barely anything had been cut, because Minho thought it was all so good. The fall, the ‘sulking’, it was all there. And it seemed that not only did Taemin like it, but the viewers did too.

“They love you,” Minho laughed as he typed out a reply to a comment talking about Taemin’s fall, smiling as he glanced up to his view of Taemin in the right hand corner of the screen.

“Love is a strong word, but there’s no hate towards me yet,” Taemin nodded.

“Of course there’s not,” Minho murmured, continuing to scroll.

As they talked, Minho saw a comment noting a specific time code, followed by a heart emoji. He frowned, wondering what the person was referencing, and clicked the time code, redirecting him to the video. Minho played a few seconds, his eyes quickly being drawn to his own face. He watched himself watch Taemin as the latter spoke to the camera, swallowing as he realised what the comment was referring to. The way, well, past-Minho was looking at past-Taemin was… full of adoration, so much so that it caught him off guard. He didn’t remember looking at him that. Not that he didn’t adore Taemin, the guy was one of his closest friends, but-

“Are you watching it again?” came Taemin’s voice from over the speaker.

“Hm?” Minho jumped at Taemin’s question, looking away from the video to the view of Taemin’s webcam.

“Are you watching the video again?” Taemin shrugged. “I heard a few seconds.”

“Oh,” Minho replied. “No, someone just time coded a funny moment,” he lied, scrolling down to the comments again.

The two kept talking for a while, until the conversation died down, and they scrolled quietly. Or, at least Minho did. He couldn’t be sure that Taemin hadn’t switched to another webpage.

There were countless comments like the first one. Time codes, quotes, and not just focused on him. Lots of them were focused on Taemin, too. Someone had even created a makeshift pairing name for them - ‘2min’. Had Taemin seen it all too? He must have, but Minho was scared to ask. Why was he scared? Taemin would just see it as funny, right? Wasn’t that what Minho wanted?

He would ask. Just to see what Taemin thought.

“Tae, have you seen the comments on-”

“Minho, did you see what people are-”

____TAEMIN P.O.V____

Taemin ran the dish towel over his plate, drying it carefully before placing it carefully in one of the kitchen cabinets. He was just about to start filming a new video, and this one was going to be interesting. He dried his hands quickly and stepped out of the kitchen, humming to himself as he made his way towards the bedroom. He smiled as he entered the room, sitting down on a wooden chair in front of the desk.

“I really should buy another desk chair,” came a voice from beside him, and Taemin turned his head to see Minho looking at him.

“That’s probably a good idea,” Taemin chuckled, shuffling the chair closer to Minho’s so they were both in frame. “Is everything set up?”

“Yeah, we’re ready to go,” Minho confirmed. “There’s just one more thing.”

“Hm?” Taemin questioned, turning his head to meet Minho’s eyes.

Minho simply raised his eyebrows. “You know what it is.”

Taemin rolled his eyes and leaned in. “You’re so fucking corny,” he murmured, his eyelids fluttering close as he pressed a soft kiss to Minho’s lips.

His boyfriend pulled away a few seconds later, grinning. “Now we can start,” he announced as he reached over and pressed record, before sitting back in his previous position and looking into the lens.

“Hey guys! Once again, I have Taemin with me today. Before we start, we have something to share with you. And I think you’ve all been expecting it.”

sequel

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

'Billionaire's son' Bobby Misner knows YouTube doesn't like him

Bobby Misner knows people don't like him, and he is more than OK with it — he's still raking in views. 

The 23-year-old YouTuber went viral in late 2018 when his video "LIFE of a BILLIONAIRE'S SON" became the subject of popular reaction vloggers. It's something between a travel vlog and a movie trailer, flaunting a rich kid's glamorous, privileged life across yachts on tropical beaches and helipads in major cities. Hate him as much as you want, but the video has more than 4.6 million views and Bobby now has 188,000 subscribers. 

SEE ALSO: YouTuber perfectly parodies pretentious Genius videos

Here's the TL;DR so you don't have to watch all eight minutes and 31 seconds of millennial flexing: Bobby was born into a financially comfortably family in Australia, but it all changed when he was 15, because his father sold his company for $300 million. From there, he bounced between schools, partied with celebrities, and lived the life of the nouveau riche. 

"I've always hated that how just because someone is born into a family of wealth, people automatically label them as a spoiled brat," Bobby said in the video, bizarrely lit so that he appeared like a disembodied head. "Yes, my dad has a private jet. And I love flying it. Yes, my dad has a mansion and cars, and I love making videos with them." 

It's difficult to take anyone seriously when they list "fast cars and beautiful girls" as their major interests. Bobby comes off as incredibly out of touch throughout the video — he even pulls the classic, "I'm not rich, my parents are!" while bragging about attending a party with Kate Moss.

"But I never pretended that those things were something I owned," Bobby's floating head continued in the video. "And I recognize that my dad is the one who worked hard for them." 

Can someone really be so oblivious, though? During a FaceTime call with Mashable, Bobby clarified that it was mostly an act to catch views.

"Basically I see 'Bobby' as a character," the real Bobby said, calling from London. He bounces between cities, and is currently looking to set up a base in Los Angeles. "My name on paper is Robert. Realistically, no one's portraying themselves, everyone pretends they're on holiday the whole time, doing these nice things. If I'm gonna do that, I might as well create a character who ... lives in this dream world."

He has a point. In a twisted way, it's refreshing to see a YouTuber who doesn't rely on being relatable to build an army of subscribers. If anything, he's the embodiment of everything unattainable but highly desired in this capitalist hell. As much a dick as he appears in his videos, Bobby is surprisingly self aware — he notes that he isn't "disadvantaged in any way," and clarifies that he is in fact "a really down to earth guy." 

At times, Bobby does seem like he gets how most people actually live. In a recent Instagram story, he complained about paying $43 for cucumber Juul pods. During the FaceTime call, he notably opted for traditional (wired!) earbuds over the current meme marker of wealth, Airpods. 

"I don't necessarily wake up and drink champagne or something," Bobby laughed. "I feel like a lot of people think that from that video, I'm living this ridiculously lavish lifestyle but I'm actually quite a simple boy." 

But then again, it's hard to believe that when he captions his Instagram photos with "Money is the drug and I'm a junkie." He even uploaded a video that's a cross between a flex and a manifesto called "RICH KID'S rule book to WEALTH," instructing his followers to avoid getting scammed by "keeping your friend circle tight and small." 

View this post on Instagram

Money is the drug and I’m a junkie

A post shared by Bobby Misner (@bobbymisner) on Feb 18, 2019 at 9:55am PST

"When there's someone like me, who has everything and everything appears to be perfect, it's prime," he responded when questioned about being the subject of scathing reaction videos. "It's easy to hate on me because you can." 

It really is too easy to hate on him, because he seems so stuck in his own world. Search "billionaire's son" on YouTube, and you're sure to find titles with his name adjacent to spoiled, arrogant, and cringe.

"It sounds so weird to brag about something your dad did," YouTuber Danny Gonzalez joked in a reaction video. "My dad started bringing really pretty girls around. My dad has a really good work ethic. And I was also there." 

It's clear that Bobby idolizes his father, School of Audio Engineering (SAE) founder Tom Misner. The institute has private, for-profit college campuses worldwide and was sold in 2010. He talks about the elder Misner reverently in his vlogs, and his IMDb bio says he's "learnt the most important aspects of life from his father, and that is to follow your dreams and work hard at attaining them." 

His father still bankrolls Bobby's lifestyle, to an extent. Bobby receives "an allowance" from his old man, but "it's nowhere what people think." He noted that he now makes more money than what his father gives him.

"My dad knows how to do it, right," Bobby said during the call, explaining his channel's goal. "I'm not gotta sit here and tell people, 'I know how to make you millions.' I don't know. I'll just tell you certain philosophies and stuff that I go by, but what I can tell people that when you're here, living this life, there are things that I know." 

He doesn't believe that other YouTubers put in the same amount of effort into making a video that he does. In a subtle dig to the Vlog Squad's style of quick cuts and daily video diaries, Bobby said other vloggers will "just use iMovie and put together some stuff from a day and be like, 'This is it," while his videos involve higher production quality. 

"Longevity is much more important to me than clout," Bobby said. "Each video I put out, I want to watch it myself." 

Even if it means being YouTube's most arrogant influencer — maybe even usurping the Paul brothers from their asshole throne — Bobby is committed to his channel. While other YouTubers strive to be personable, Bobby does the opposite, basking in surreal luxury. He derides the more "authentic" social media stars who FaceTune their photos, perfect themselves with makeup, and then "tell you to be secure in yourself." 

"I'm quite narcissistic," Bobby concludes at the end of our call. He says this with like it's a fact of life instead of a brag. "I like myself. I like the life I live and I'll tell you straight up in my videos. As long as you're honest about that, your viewers — even if they don't like you — will feel like you're telling the truth and they'll follow your story."

WATCH: These 3D printed shoes were inspired by nature and look fierce