#our fav gay uncles

[shrimpscrawling]

Wine drunk with my grandma, mums dog on my lap, bowl of crisps beside me and Dr Who Christmas special on tv. Finally feels like a normal Christmas this year

[jonghyunluvr]

my fav shinee duos according to me just sth unserious for fuunnnnnnnn

jjong and jinkles: auntie and uncle who's going strong even after 20 years of marriage jjong might be the one who's putting his everything in this one jinkles is just happy and grateful to be there i'm rooting and cheering for them go hags

jjong and minho: gay edgelord x straight boy as always said with so much love they have my support

jjong and kibum: this is a tricky one bc put a virgo (yes kibum is one don't argue with me on it) and an aries man together and they're gonna be that duo that talk shit about you like team rocket style mean x meanier gay besties in crime united in hateration

kibum and taemin: do NOT put these two in the same room sibling ass relationship tomy and jerry ass relationhip they're constantly on each other's throat and their fights are gag worthy comedy gold i'm sitting front row and enjoying the chaos

taemin and jjong: the lovey dovey ass duo the in their own world duo the get a room imagine how tired we are duo with a dash of toxic like they're on that back and forth shit one day we're petty fighting just to get it out of our systems the next we're fine like nothing happened whatever they got going on i want NO part in it

[koumeowkami]

Nods nods while noting abt gyroaxia down.... Ok what else boss. Go on 👁️ (hope I'm not annoying you akajwjfnfknd..)

you're not annoying me at all!!! i love when people ask me about the things i love <3 even tho i can't articulate my thoughts at all lol

so ummm... here are random thoughts about the other groups :]

argonavis: the main guys!! they're kinda cute ngl. yuto (guitar) deadass followed ren everywhere in order to make him join the band and told him "you should join our band for two reasons: one, your singing is awesome. two, you're stupid", i think that's amazing. oh btw yuto and wataru (bass) are married i think

fantôme iris: the cool gay uncles. they all cosplay vampires. invented visual kei, they're my second fav band!! they're literally my family. felix (vocalist) is really cringefail (rei sakuma vibes) but i love him nonetheless. jun (guitar) is a pathetic wet cat, struggles 24/7 and is so damn relatable tbh (he's my beloved). koharu (bass) and daimon (drums) are basically the mom and dad of the group (also married). koharu cosplays as a woman in the band and he's the definition of slay honestly

fuujin rizing: chaotic good vibes. the silly ska band aka [playing the sax through the pain]. they're all close friends and deserve the world <3 their whole dynamic is basically futa (vocalist), misaki (guitar) and yamato (drums) being chaotic children and aoi (trombone) and kohei (bass) trying to keep them at bay and looking after them. i think they're neat

epsilon phi: chaotic evil vibes. the problematic band no one can take their eyes off of. honestly idek what goes on there, everyone hates each other. we basically have two twins in a toxic relationship (i hope kanata explodes), the less sadomasochistic version of amprule and a poor guy who can't understand feelings and is genuinely curious of all the mess he witnesses everyday in this band. also shu (vocalist) is the most insufferable kid ever seen in my life but i think he's becoming a bit more decent as time passes. their music is fire tho

btw check out the cast !!!! cause there are some popular seiyuus you definitely know (example: gakuto kajiwara, yoshiki nakajima, yuki sakakihara and shinnosuke tachibana), but honestly they're all very good!! i got to know one of my fav seiyuus thanks to argopro (jin ogasawara my beloved) 🫶🏻

[brazenedminstrel]

Watching Our Lips Are Sealed with @deadrock-n-rollsociety, some true bangers were dropped:

My favs:

- “I’m having a bad condiment day.”

- “That’s some powerful ketchup.”

- “what do you call Australian underwear? Down underwear.”

- “you septic tanks are so gullible!”

Her favs:

- “They're doing the lip mash?”

- “Vat de heck is dis?”

- “Uncle Sidney, are you wacked?.”

- “David Hasselhoff never had to deal with this.”

- "Hey, wanna go see a movie? Also, we're wanted dead or alive"

(We’re both gay for the scuba/surf/outdoor babe/secretly an fbi agent, Katie)

[hyperfixation-fix]

Lmaoooo ok so it still hits as hard in the year of our Lord 2024 as when I first read it in 2013, good to know 🤣🤣🤣

I do wish Nico hadn't been forced to out himself like that. Having said that, I don't know if I could actually see him coming out any other way. I also wish Rick was a bit more comfortable using the word "gay" (if not in this book, the next one). BUT. For a coming out scene written in 2013 by a straight Texan dude, fuckin full marks honestly

WE STAN NICO. WE STAN JASON. WE STAN UNCLE RICK.

PS my absolute fav little teenie tiny snippet of a scene is when Nico says to Jason "do you trust me?" SO REPORT BACK WHEN YOU'RE THERE TOO.

Ok so I’m reading HoH right now, and we’re about to meet Cupid.

I know what’s about to happen. I’ve read the spoilers. I’ve waited for this scene for a long time.

But now I’m scared.

Nico has been through some SHIT. More shit than anyone deserves to go through ever. And while I want to see him happy and gay and with a boyfriend, I know that’s still a long way’s off, he’s got a tonne more shit to go through through before that can happen. Rick is pushing me to my limit here, and I gotta read this scene, but I know that if I scream into my pillow too loud it’ll wake the neighbours. I just don’t wanna see my baby boi getting hurt anymore. What do I do?

[wolfstarisreal394]

Professor: Mister Black, will you tell me about the consequences of werewolf's bite please?

Sirius: well I've got a pretty dark hickey from one and I'm still okay.

Professor: detention Mr. Black.

[lovecanyon]

instagram blurb for mother's day with beau and inez

INSTAGRAM BLURB

dad!harry x reader

MASTERLIST

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liked by harryfan2, y/nfan5 and 1,940,271 others

harryflorals HARRY AND Y/N OUT IN LONDON YESTERDAY!

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harryfan3 my fav couple 🫶

y/nfan6 HARRY AND Y/N HAVE A DOG? SINCE WHEN?

harryfan4 they don’t, they’re babysitting it for emma corrin !!!!

y/nfan7 i love them so much 😭

harryfan10 MY PARENTS. MY PARENTS. MY PARENTS.

y/nfan8 they are back in london 🙏🙏

harryfan11 can they pls adopt me

liked by yourinstagram, annetwist and 38,614,990 others

harrystyles Happy Mother’s Day to my beautiful wife. Thank you for being such a wonderful partner and parent, I love you. - H

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y/nfan9 i love this so much

harryfan12 THE CAPTION I’M FUCKING CRYING WTF HARRY 😭

yourinstagram i love you so much h!

harrystyles I love you moreeeee

y/nfan13 now they got everyone asking to adopt them 🧍

florencepugh happy mothers day!!!!!

harryfan15 the styles family 🫶🫶🫶🫶

pillowpersonpp THIS IS SO CUTE

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yourinstagram so proud to be theirs.

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y/nfan14 they are growing up so fast

harryfan16 THE WAY INEZ AND BEAU ARE HOLDING HANDS 😭

harrystyles My favorite mama.

yourinstagram mwuah!

y/nfan18 they are so cute it’s sick

gemmastyles i love my best friends

harryfan20 imagine having harry styles goddamn children….

niallhoran cannot wait to see them again!

yourinstagram come over pls, they miss their uncle!!!!!

y/nfan19 NIALL? THAT MEANS HARRY AND NIALL TALK

harryfan21 y/n is our only hope of getting a one direction reunion 🙏🙏

harrystyles via instagram stories

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tag list : @harrysmatcha @harryspinkpillow @helen-with-an-a @florencepughily @peterparkerbae @toji-dabi-wife @fallonx @cherriesrae @alienorknight @valluvsu @drphilssoulmate @ivegotparticulartaste @ayeshathestyles @hazgoldenstyles @eiffelmezarry @tsukishimawhore @renatavieira @michellekstyles @eleanordaisy @shawnsblue @academiaghosts @japanchrry @agustdpeach @hannahnikohl @hrryscherrys @whoscamila @ch3rryrry @msolbesg @newyorker14 @futuristicpalacegardenpsychic @youusunshineyoutemptress @eunoiamaa @kaitieskidmore1 @gublerscherry @cherryfragrancx @ssuziess @milkiane @diorsitgirl @golden-hoax @helen-with-an-a @imthegoofyvillain @flwrmuse @leah2002 @sunshinemendes8 @your--sweetest--downfall @melllinaa @riverjane-d @iluvjj @folk1lord @tenaciousperfectionunknown @vodka-is-gay-and-so-am-i @daydreaminrry

[gunsatthaphan]

I have caught up with cutie pie, it's the exactly the fluff of my taste. But it's also a dynamic that is kind of my pet peeve.

It's the "ah, it's mutual pinning but they don't have the communication part down yet."

Unless i am wrong and misunderstood something, these two never spent much time together except their friday dates, and from that first one (the one where the annoying lady character comes in) and the continues doll mask of Kuea, those can't be classified as "quality time together". So there is a semi relationship there but i am willing to overlook the fact that those two love eachother with practically no interaction. But lovely writer is also one of my fav bls so we ain't new to the concept of childhood family friends being in love from distant memories.

But the thing that is shocking to me is,i am excited for angst between these two. And i ain't that kind of gay, I ain't thirsting for angst. But i see the way Lian is acting and doing things behind Kuea's back and i want Kuea and Diao to start screaming. I want the fantasy Kuea had on ep.1 of telling off that woman but ten fold and directed on Lian and Yi respectively.

I want Lian to be afraid and chastised the way Kuea has felt. Cause there's an imbalance in the power dynamics here and i want it leveled.

hi anon!

I got another ask which I'm assuming is the second part to this one(?) 

I agree with most of what you said in the ask above (especially the part about Kuea and Diao snapping because yes that’s long overdue haha) however I have already answered a bunch of similar asks in the last few days (also it’s quite long) so I’m just gonna leave it here and under the cut. I hope that’s okay :-) Thank you for sharing your thoughts! 💜 

xxx

Hi, my tumblr glitched and i probably didn't send my long ask but what i wanted to say was:

Cutie pie is a series that i love and is very cute but it has done the impossible and made me excited for angst and tears.

Because I don't like the power imbalance it has, in these pairs, whoever has the knowledge and the information has the balance and i hate how the older halfs of both pairs don't seem to get that just because you love someone, it's no excuse to treat them like a child and like someone with dementia that is in need of constant attention.

I don't mind needy ukes and caretaking semes but this dynamic works when both parties are in the know and understand exactly their feelings towards eachother. (It's ironic that BounPrem have a cameo on this because they have exactly that dynamic as WinTeam)

Yi is the more annoying out of the two, because Diao has no memories basically, (and i swear to god if the puppy becomes the "I'm sorry i r-word you, here's some snacks from our sponsors" of Fucking Kengkla, instead of communication i will murder someone).

But Lian the chad over there has actively had people follow Kuea around, has kidnapped him basically, has bought the Gemini off, had Kuea's mother's consent, has made the world his daycare to babysit Kuea basically.

I would feel bad for Lian because he basically can't hold a conversation with the real Kuea and Kuea doesn't communicate either, but him butting in on every aspect of Kuea's life forcefully like a website cookie that has taken your data to investors and keeps following you to report back, has rubbed off all the "gentleman" appeal for me.

And every time Lian and Yi talk to each other is hilarious to me, cause it's them seeing exactly what is wrong in the other's relationship but when get called out on it they deflect it towards one another "your communication with your nong is shit" "WELL THE ONE IN YOURS AINT BETTER" they wanna be the bigger man but act like children. They act like fathers and uncles towards their adopted 10year old sons, not like boyfriends.

So that's why i am excited with the potential of a fight between our main couple in the next episode. I am hoping for a screaming match that will make Lian as scared as Kuea has felt but i am probably shooting for the stars here.

Otherwise i love the series 7/10

[sips-tea-cutely]

here’s a small confession, not particularly dirty but still:

i don’t get the hype over harry potter. and getting sorted by your personality or whatever? it doesn’t really interesting.

percy jackson is really good though. it’s historically accurate to greek mythology. plus, getting sorted by your parent is pretty interesting. i’d love to be an athena or hecate kid. the characters are really good, reyna’s curse to never find love, it’s so sad. OH, AND- THERE’S A BUNCH OF REPRESENTATION. Nico Di Angelo, my favorite boy. he’s italian, goth son of hades, gay. his mistaken crush on annabeth, when NO- ITS THE BOYFRIEND, PERCY FUCKIN JACKSON.

and then piper being cherokee and a vegan, i love her sm. PLUS JASON’S SACRIFICE IN TOA. and, oh, the angst is something i’ve cried days over.

“say hello to the stars for me”

“bob says hi”

BOB ILYS, SJSPSSOSKSKS. but i seriously wanna talk about nico, my fav. he visited Iaeptus every day and just because of that, he helped Percy and Annabeth in Tartarus. not to mention, he is a 14 year old Italian son of Hades, one of the big 3 gods. he was born pre-WWII, and lost his sister and mother. he had to go through Tartarus, ALL BY HIMSELF, mind you. and was forced out of the closet by Eros, seriously, talk about asshole. i’m so happy nico is dating Will now. Jason is def Solangelo’s biggest shipper

PLUS WE LITERALLY CALL OUR LORD AND SAVIOR UNCLE RICK. HE POSTS MEMES TO HIS Q&A

“so greeks fight more slashy slashy, while romans fight more stabby stabby// i’ve taught you all that i know”

[eurosong]

Undo my ESC '21 (semi-final two)

Good afternoon folks, and welcome to the second part of Undo my ESC – my annual quest to make the year’s Eurovision better (at least, for me xD) by making a feasible change in each country – it could be something as small as altering a lyric or a staging detail, or as big as a different artist entirely winning the NF. Semi-final one was here so let's jump straight into SF2!

🇸🇲 San Marino: We're thrown into the deep end here with a fan fav that doesn't do at all for me. I'm one of maybe 5 people on the planet who prefers Freaky by far, I guess? I'm happy for Senhit to be getting so much love and for the diminutive serene republic to finally have a shot at a good result - but I'm not so keen on the way it's been done. There's a bit of cognitive dissonance for me because my favourite thing about Adrenalina is Flo Rida's rap, but I don't like the idea of bringing in famed American artists like "ringers" to elevate a song above one with "only" local talent. I would be so tempted to give the rap part to local artist IROL instead to spit some hot bars in Italian.

🇪🇪 Estonia: I had hope this year, I really did, for my era of absolutely adoring Estonia at ESC to be revived after 4 painful years. There were so many good songs at this year's Eesti Laul, like those of Ivo Linna, Egert, Gram of fun, Heleza - but ultimately, my huge favourite was, as expected, Jüri Pootsmann. Anyone who followed this blog back in 2016 knows how much I adore Jüri and was desperate to see him get a redemption arc at ESC itself. Magus melanhoolia was one of the best songs of the season for me and one of the best stagings. As much as I prefer '20 artists to get their shot in '21, problematic Uku with his toxic ex vibes song will have to step aside and let the Jüri renaissance happen here.

🇨🇿 Czechia: I really dig Benny Cristo - he has personality, presence and his own enjoyable style. At first I was kinda disappointed with Omaga because I was expecting something more in the vein of Kemama, with more pronounced Afrobeat influences. But it has grown on me a lot too. My change? Add more Czech than just one blink-and-you-miss-it line, mate! (Article continues below)

🇬🇷 Greece: I see this being talked up as potential televote top 3 and I just don't get it. Maybe it's the way the chorus rhymes dance with itself three times (and uses the term rockin' romance unironically); maybe it's the way that there are better 80s-inspired songs both in ESC and many fallen tributes in the NF season... it just leaves me cold. I actually preferred Supergirl and my change would be for Stefania to bring something with some actual Greek flair.

🇦🇹 Austria: I’ll echo what I said last year about Österreich – how did they go from Conchita to a guy who wished he wouldn’t have gay kids like this? I find both of this guy's songs insipid in different ways and I would invite Pænda back instead to avenge her getting robbed with the beautiful Limits. Or give a second shot at glory to the incredible Cesár!

🇵🇱 Poland: Unpopular opinion, but I absolutely love The Ride, and I feel bad for Alicja, but I much prefer it to Empires. What started as an ironic fondness for Rafał's cringy uncle vibes ended up being genuine appreciation - it's one of the few 80s-inspired songs that sound like they actually could have come out of that decade rather than like modern pastiches. And Raf actually does have an awkward charisma. My change - insert some Polish! Poland does so well with natural sounding bilingual efforts in JESC, they should bring it to the main contest too!

🇲🇩 Moldova: I was lowkey prepared to be disappointed by Moldova - I actually enjoyed Prison a lot and the news that they were going in a completely different direction didn't sit so well with me. And yet, I also love Sugar. Natalia's power! My changes: get rid of that weird scene with literally egg on her face - too on the nose for me. And incorporate a bit of the stellar Russian translation, Tuz bubi, because I'm always going to be advocating for more linguistic diversity xD

🇮🇸 Iceland: Daði Freyr can literally do no wrong with me. Whilst it doesn't have the same intense extra-fandom hype that Think about things did, I think I like Ten years even more. Nothing to change here.

🇷🇸 Serbia: It's no secret that Hurricane were far from my favourites at Beovizija 20, and that I find this a downgrade for Sanja compared to her powerful '16 song. And yet... Hasta la vista grew on me a lot, and so has Loco loco. It's something that is definitely scratching an itch at this year's ESC and the burst of anarchic energy it'll provide will be amazing. I am seriously tempted to change to the acoustic version, though, which has all the attitude of the original but is more beautiful for me and lets the girls' voices shine more.

🇬🇪 Georgia: Georgia keeps serving acquired tastes, and as a patron saint of marginal genres and I love them for that. This year, they've gone for something that even many fans of Tornike find hard to swallow - gone is the roaring rock of last year, replaced with a much more contemplative, soft effort that reminds me a little of Lou Reed. I enjoy both songs, but I can't deny preferring 2020. At the same time, I admire the chutzpah required to send something so different. I just wish there could be a moment to properly showcase T's powerhouse vocals.

🇦🇱 Albania: It was an odd Festival i këngës this year, outdoors in the freezing cold and without the orchestra that makes the songs soar so much more for me. Karma is a perfectly respectable winner, albeit one that lacks the immediacy and rawness of Shaj, Ktheju tokës and Mall. In my ideal alternate reälity, Arilena Ara would have been invited back. She'd bring a song as beautiful as Shaj - and not do a revamp into English that removes its edge this time.

🇵🇹 Portugal: 2015-2020 was a full on Portugal stan era for me. I want to believe that this year is an aberration and that in 2022, our lusitanian neighbours will produce the goods once again. Because ending a colossal streak of not sending songs that don't include Portuguese for this? I am baffled. I wanted the anthemic Joana do mar, produced beautifully by Luísa Sobral, or the timeless Contramão, which sounds like it escaped a Nouvelle Vague soundtrack. Saudade, Por um triz or a number of others would have been grand too.

🇧🇬 Bulgaria: I wasn't expecting much from Bulgaria - I really didn't and don't like TGS and the majority of songs in Victoria's NF-but-not-really aren't my cup of tea. I was happy she got her second chance, but resigned to not liking the song much that would get picked. And then, my fav, which was last in many community ratings, ended up being her pick. I adore GUIGO and believe it has the possibility to do very, very well at Rotterdam and be one of the 'moments' of the evening.

🇫🇮 Finland: CRIMINAL how YLE treated Aksel - it felt like he wasn't the defending champion, and that Erika Vikman had won the previous year. They also - I believe, deliberately - split his vote by making his just one of a number of ballads, so of course what stood out most were the two decidedly non-ballady songs. Finland only two years ago had a single-artist UMK. They could and should have brought it back for Aksel. I'd hope Hurt would win it, because that song is stunning.

🇱🇻 Latvia: I was, and am, delighted that Latvia stuck with Samanta Tina. The lady lives and breathes ESC, even wrote a university thesis about it, and if she tried so many times, finally won and then DIDN'T get to go to ESC, I would have gone to LTV headquarters personally to remonstrate. I really like both her songs. The moon is rising is poised, powerful and like nothing else this year. The only thing I'd change is adding some Latvian because it's a gorgeous language and we've been waiting for ages to hear it again.

🇨🇭 Switzerland: Gjon's song is once again not really my cup of tea, or tears - but I enjoy it better than last year's and I'm glad he's back. Highkey wish it did include Albanian or Romansch like confused commenters last year thought it did.

🇩🇰 Denmark: There is literally no excuse for Denmark's treatment of Ben & Tan. I'm not even a big fan of their music at all, out to not even allow them to compete in DMGP to defend their win with Iron heart? Even though there are songs that competed in DMGP that I prefer a lot, most notably Står lige her, I would probably have let them have a proper second chance.

And the automatic qualifiers voting in this semi -

🇫🇷 France: For me, France had an absolutely enthralling, sincere, perfectly Gallic entry that hit me so hard in the feels. And whilst I respect Voilà, no, that wasn't it. It was Pourvu qu'on m'aime, easily one of the best songs I heard all year inside NFs or out. I find Voilà a little too mannered and affected, whilst PQM is a shot straight from Juliette's heart into mine. In my dream, it'd have won CVQD and be receiving the same love that Voilà is right now.

🇪🇸 Spain: Whilst it is getting next to no love in the fandom and seems quite forgotten, I find Voy a quedarme one of the best songs sent from this country in several years - and I say that having preferred Memoria. I am proud of Blas and love that he had a hand in writing this song. My change? He said recently that the staging in Rotterdam won't be inspired by the poignant music video despite wanting it to be - I would incorporate elements from it in the live.

🇬🇧 United Kingdom: Frankly, I think almost all the Big 5+1 brought it this year, with the notable exception of Germany. Embers is the banger that I never thought was coming from James Newman, and it's been one of the biggest earworms of the season. I wouldn't change anything about it - I'd just ensure that the staging replicated the energy of the video as much as possible!

[oceanselevenism]

I've seen that most of the stories on ao3 about them are mostly canon-compliant (and I don't have anything against that tbh) but I was wondering if you have any aus that you think could fit them or that you'd like to see?

omg i have SO MANY aus!! (it got Very Long so its under a cut)

- college au! danny gets kicked out (hes on full scholarship and does Thiefly Things to cover his expenses so hes not endangered just fairly fucked up abt it) (does it count as kicked out if u only live w ur dad three months a year) in freshman year, he befriends rusty (1 year below him) in sophomore year, debbie also befriends rusty (she and danny dont talk much but shes 2 yrs below him at the same college), and when reuben comes calling for a job he thinks debbie has a boyfriend (thanks to debbie telling her dad that she does) so she fake dates rusty. who ends up joining the job. and danny is Very Jealous

- snl ripoff au! danny and rusty are the weekend-update-adjacent anchors and they get gay. i Would have this take place in la (reuben is taking A Risk producing a late night sketch comedy show on the west coast but the 11/12/however fuckin many are fantastic cast members so even though they lose revenue from the other timezones not watching as much as they watch snl or whatever, they still make BANK... but danny and rusty getting gay throws the equilibrium out of whack) BUT la sucks DICK so its happening in new york. also this way u get Ocean Sibling Banter (debbie and lou are the anchors for The Actual Weekend Update and when debbie/lou get together and also when danny/rusty get together there are so many ‘just switch out the blondes/brunettes nobody will be able to tell and we won’t have hr down our necks’ jokes)

- au where the caldwells, abt to go deep undercover on a Huge Fucking Case, have to give up custody of 6 year old linus to tess and danny. the case stretches on for twelve years and linus grows up w tess and danny (who get divorced like right after they adopt him bc tess finds out abt dannys Thiefly Activities-- he confesses to her bc he doesnt rly want to predispose the kid to said thiefly activities) and also isabel (she and rusty break up like Right Before tess and dannys wedding and its very funny; she then goes on to marry tess) parenting him (rusty isnt as much in the picture bc he doesnt feel bad at all abt stealing and tess doesnt want linus to pick up that mentality also rusty Feels Things abt danny)! then when linus is like 18 or 19 danny disappears (tess and isabel think its Thiefly Activities again and arent concerned, just disappointed, but linus is very concerned for his dad-slash-stepdad-slash-sort-of-uncle) and he tracks down rusty so they can find danny. they roadtrip across america and eventually catch up to danny, who is helping the caldwells, and the five of them take down whatever gang the caldwells were chasing. linus now has 6 parents

- au based on this post where some archaeologist finds a bunch of dannys [french person voice] Love Lettairs 2 rusty and so obviously the logical course of action is to rob the museum (which happens to be the museum that tess is curating. funny how things work out) without telling his team What Theyre Stealing. they successfully pull off the heist but turns out the letters were not among the items they stole!! danny is getting desperate. as a last-ditch attempt he calls tess and asks her to let them rob the museum. shes like Why The Fuck Would I Do That. he explains and she begrudgingly agrees. danny and livingston go break into the museum Again but rusty tails them bc dannys been acting Weird and he finds out abt the letters bc livingston sweats more whenever he tells a lie. they live happily ever after (literally, theyre immortal) the end. also even though dannys a werewolf the 11 all call him the new jersey devil (its not his fault that legend came to be ok!! he was very drunk!!)

- childhood friends au!! danny and rusty were best buds as very young kids and then the oceans had to move. flash forward 2 present day where danny and debbie r robbing a museum (theyre building a flower shop over the vault and tunneling in, the dudes in brazil who came up w it are very very clever) and guess which two people are the assistant curators (is that even a title?). guess. ill tell u its tess and rusty! danny recognizes rusty, rusty ‘does not recognize’ danny (which is valid. look at photos of child george clooney and tell me you would recognize him). the 11 demand that they use this to their advantage and so danny and rusty Sort Of Date while the rest set up for the robbery, and danny feels really bad abt it so on the day of (after everyone has gotten away, ofc, he might be a lovesick bitch but hes not a snitch) he confesses and rustys like lmao i was onto u from the start. what kind of a name is [insert alias here] anyway. then they go live a life of crime and its great

- @sanduschism came up w a fantastic au where danny pickpockets rusty and feels bad so he sends the wallet back and they strike up a Correspondence

- HOSPITAL AU!!! danny and rusty r er techs while theyre doing med school and nobody knows how they juggle their shifts w school but also rusty can do a tracheotomy in like 5 seconds and danny can tell when a person needs an mri before they even list their symptoms so nobody questions it and nobody splits them up Ever. when they eventually become surgeons, danny does cardio and rusty does neuro, and whenever they have to work together not only do they never have to say what theyre doing, they don't even have What Do U Want To Cook For Dinner convos fully out loud. tess is head nurse... she makes so many excel spreadsheets... they are ALL color coded. isabel is head er doc and nobody dares to halfass things on her watch. reuben is head hospital admin, saul is chief surgeon, basher is head of the burn unit, the malloys r the HUNKIEST nurses in town, frank does plastic surgery/ent (every patient loves him bc he is just So Calm), livingston is The IT Guy, yen does like orthopedics or physical therapy, and linus is their fav resident who they all lovingly tease 24/7. the ocean sibs r both Cardio Gods and each dominate their respective coasts. debbie is an nyc doctor and if she sees a mass gen doctor its on SIGHT. the few surgeries that she and danny collab on go so fast that the med students in the gallery Cannot tell whats happening. lou is also a plastic surgeon and she and frank r best buds. linus requests time off like 6 months in advance Every Time and everyone hates it bc then They have to be on call but he doesnt realize his Extreme Overachieverness is causing so much strife. whenever tess and danny get in an argument she colorcodes his rounds spreadsheet to be the most neon shit youve ever seen. can you tell i never fully progressed past my greys anatomy phase this one is like 93489302 lines long

- superpower au where rusty has midas touch and danny has corrosive touch and when theyre too young to have control over their powers (abilities develop throughout adolescence and the user gains control at the end of adolescence) they accidentally brush hands and are terrified they just killed each other but turns out their powers like. cancel out. so until they reach like 21 or 22 and can touch things without fucking them UP they just. hold hands all the time. bc otherwise they have to wear gloves to prevent Accidents and both of them “hate gloves” (and also love holding hands. gayasses)

- uhhh hallmark au where danny is a crime fiction writer out on some beach north of ocean city nj and rusty is his fancy nyc editor. everyone else is a thief including debbie who is just Very weirded out that her brother, who robbed boston’s institute of contemporary art at age 22 and got away with it, has decided to spend the rest of his life churning out books. he is very critically acclaimed and about half of the 11 are buds with him and use his published books as heist inspo. the other ~half of the 11 are buds with rusty, and they tell him if danny’s heists are feasible or not (they always are. scarily so.) anyway rusty and isabel break up 12 days before xmas and danny and tess break up 8 days before hanukkah so dannys heading to debbie’s place in upstate new york to mope for the holidays when A BLIZZARD HITS and he gets stranded in midtown. and he and rusty are buds but like. Email Buds. they dont hang out irl and therefore they dont let their Totally Bud-Like Feelings mess up their professional relationship. but danny is stranded and its hanukkah and he ends up crashing at rustys place for the duration of the blizzard. and then rusty ends up coming to debbies place for the rest of the holidays. and then they kiss on new years eve and debbie kicks them out bc theyre being gross

- And More! thanks for the ask, anon! sorry it got so long lol i just have Many Thoughts

[dxxdlexxdle]

Mr. and Mrs. Prongs Love Story Headcanon!

my fav heteros deserve some love tonight. it’s raining currently where i live, and it’s a good night to write some heart-wrenching headcanons, i think!

words: 1,694

warnings: fluff, hints at smut, maybe? pain. eternal fucking suffering cause this fandom kills me. some of the storyline may be fucked my memory is HORRIBLE and i tried to base some scenes off of MsKingBean89’s all the young dudes

—

In their first year at Hogwarts, the very first day they had even been inside the castle, actually, James Potter realized something.

The copper haired girl across from him was awfully pretty.

She was disgusted at the way he declared someday they would be married. “WHY would I ever marry you?” She had shouted, moving down the table to the blonde and curly haired witches she had met earlier on the train. James stared at her, doe-eyed. She was perfect.

This did however mean he was the first of the boys to take an interest in girls. By girls I mean, well, just Lily. Sirius Black thought it was awfully funny. “Mate, girls have cooties.” Remus Lupin was too shy to have an opinion. Peter could hardly even tell his own feet apart from left and right, and his lip trembled when he got yelled at, so there was no hope for him.

James took to teasing Lily to try and get his point across. Lily thought it was horrible. Why was he being so horrid if he supposedly fancied her? Why did he even fancy her in the first place? Somebody like her, a witch from non-magic parents, and somebody like him, a pureblood wizard?

It wasn’t until one day in potions she told him just what she thought of him. His tormenting had gone on too long. He had bewitched one of her pigtails to tug on its own from across the room.

“You are foul, James Potter!” She had shouted, resulting in thirty points from Gryffindor. James had just beamed.

James was a smiling mess, really. For starters, she had said his name, out loud, to him. Secondly, her nose scrunched when she was angry.

Anybody would notice a girl’s nose scrunch when she was angry, surely?

In second year, he announced that this would be the year she would want to marry him too. Alas, no luck. If anything, this year, she came prepared with snarky remarks to his teasing. It made him swoon.

In third year, Lily Evans overheard the boys whispering in the common room.

“What are you four planning?” She had asked, plopping down beside her lanky, slightly edgy looking best mate Remus. She avoided James’ eyes.

“Look at this, Mrs. Prongs come to join the party.” Sirius chuckled, and James punched him in the arm.

“Mrs. Prongs..?”

“SIRIUS.” James hissed at his friend who was doubled over.

In fourth year, she had begun to tolerate him. The teasing from Sirius was what did it. James was bad enough, his almost-brother was as relentless as him, but for different reasons.

“Prongs and Lily, sitting in the Whomping Willow, S-N-O-G-“

“Sirius!” Lily and James shouted in unison, equally red.

Fifth year changed them both. This was when Lily realized Remus was a werewolf. She swore secrecy, and promised to tell nobody else, as long as she lived.

James had already known. Once a month he was running in the woods as a stag, pushing his half-wolf friend around playfully with his antlers- or should I say prongs? ;)

In sixth year, Remus Lupin noticed Lily sitting in the stands, watching Gryffindor’s quidditch practice.

“What’s got you here? Marlene isn’t at practice today?”

Lily had turned a shade almost as red as her hair. “Oh Remus, don’t make me say it,” she hissed. Remus was in a fit of giggles.

“You fancy James!”

“Hush!” And she whacked his arm with her textbook.

To be honest with herself, this was not the beginning of how she felt for James. It had been a fluttering feeling in her tummy when she noticed him in the common room a few weeks earlier, sweater sleeves rolled up, reading over the quidditch signups. His messy hair, his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose..

But, anybody would notice the way a boy’s sleeves were rolled up, exposing brown skin and pretty veins, surely?

Lily never knew this, but James had noticed her watching him. He kept the smirk to himself. He felt the flutter too. Ah yes, twitterpated.

Sixth year was also the year they learned how to cast a patronus. A silver doe shot from Lily’s wand on her first try, which elicited squeals from the girls and cheers from the boys. The deer pranced around the room, as if looking for something. As if missing something.

James purposely disrupted the class that day, so he could be sent out. It cost 50 points, but he didn’t care. He knew as soon as he cast the stag that would shoot from his wand everybody would know, and he just couldn’t do that to Evans.

In 1977, when the Marauders and co. went on their camping trip, James and Lily really had only stayed up talking that night, despite the somewhat knowing looks Sirius tried to pass to James in the morning.

It had been late, after Remus had come out, and the other girls crashed in their tent. Sirius had gone down to the beach after him.

“Sirius ought to leave him be, reckon that was difficult to admit..” and James scratched the back of his neck. Lily had turned to him then. Their eyes met.

“Are you joking? They’re both gay, you idiot. They’re very clearly in love. Look at the way Sirius looks at Remus, he looks at him the way I look at you.”

Their kisses had been hot and heavy in the darkness of their tent, but that was it. Kisses the two had waited far too long for.

That night, James admired the girl lying beside him. He pulled out his wand and cast his patronus, and due to the size of the tent the stag was tiny, dancing over their heads. Lily blushed and cast hers. For the first time, the doe wasn’t searching anymore. She had found the stag.

Their relationship was as expected. Letters all summer, Lily even taught her boyfriend how to use a muggle phone. Then, in the autumn, they were all over each other. Holding hands in public, snogging in broom closets,

“You are foul!” Lily had giggled, smacking her boyfriend on the hand as it slipped up her skirt in potions.

“What was that, Princess?” He murmured, and she couldn’t argue with him anymore

James admired her every minute he had the chance. How she looked reading, sleeping, spilling tea down her sweater, and especially how she looked at him with her heavy, fluttering eyelashes.

Because, how could he not admire the prettiest girl in the world when he was on top of her?

After they graduated, they immediately moved in together. Due to the war, Lily promised her muggle parents she would be safer. Although they didn’t understand (or like) the idea of their daughter fighting a war, they let her go with warm goodbyes.

They fought. They attended order meetings. They had lunch with Peter and Sirius and Marlene and Mary and Dorcas when they could. They fretted over Remus’ whereabouts. They paced.

Lily proposed. Well, I suppose James proposed first every damn year at Hogwarts, but she meant it for real that time. They were married by the fall. They invited everybody still alive, and they danced, and they seemed to glow under twinkling fairy lights. They had cast their patronuses again that night, just so the doe and the stag could dance over their heads.

“Reckon they like each other?” James smirked, and Lily just laughed.

When she found out she was pregnant, James slung her over his shoulder and spun around with her, and they laughed. They laughed until they cried because holy shit, we’re having a baby!

He talked to her belly every time he had the chance. “Hello little boy-“

“Could be a girl,” Lily objected, leaning against the headboard, guiding James’ hand with hers over to where the baby was kicking.

“Right. Whatever they are, they’ll kick ass on the quidditch pitch, huh bub?”

In July, with a scream and a cry and a push, a slimy baby was placed on Lily’s chest. She couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe she was here, with this boy who chose her, looking at their beautiful boy. James was right, and he was ecstatic.

“A son! I’ve a son-“ and then he was too choked up.

They taught Harry how to hold his head up, they both tried to get him to say “Mumma” and “Dada.” They took polaroids of his drooly smiles and his giggles. They took pictures of Uncle Moony and Padfoot holding him. They had a picture of Uncle Peter with Harry on his hip, and the pen on the bottom read ‘future chess master ;)’

When they went into hiding, their only real fight was about whether Remus was the spy.

“He’s our friend,” Lily had argued, angrily picking up baby toys from the floor and putting them into the toy bin.

“But he’s a were-“

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence,” Lily said, tears threatening her waterline. “Remus is a good man. He’s as good as you or Peter, or Sirius. He is our friend. He’s my friend. He would never.”

And although that night they fought, James still told Lily to take the baby and run, because even though they were angry, he’d die before he ever let Voldemort touch her.

“James, wait, I’m sor-“

“You and me, right Lily?” His voice was strained. He almost couldn’t look at her. At the fear in his eyes that reflected in hers- the eyes he had to see every time he looked at his beautiful son. He wanted to run with her, but he knew he couldn’t. “Take Harry and go. It’s him. I’ll hold him off.”

Lily Evans made it upstairs by the time the front door was blown open. Harry had been asleep. She cradled him in her arms, preparing for the blast of the door being opened.

“Harry, Mumma loves you. Dada loves you. Be brave, Harry.”

James Potter died thinking Lily Evans had made it out alive. It wasn’t until the stag saw a familiar silver doe at the edge of the woods, waiting for him, that he knew.

—

#imsosorryyall

[freddiesaysalright]

The Most Dramatic Season Ever - Week 6

Summary: It’s your time now! You are ABC’s new Bachelorette and this is your journey! All these men (including our fav BoRhap boys and then some) are competing for your heart! Will you find love? Will you get engaged at the end? Or will you end up heartbroken? Find out, on the most dramatic season ever!

Word Count: 10.1k (this one’s a DOOZY)

Tag List:  @psychosupernatural​, @someone-get-a-medic​, @bensrhapsody​, @deakyclicks​, @crazylittlethingcalledobsession​, @minigranger​, @crazyweirdocalledfriday​, @the-moving-finger-writes​, @assembledherethevolunteers​, @rose-writes-prose​, @queenlover05​, @moon-stars-soul​, @danadeacon​, @deacyblues​, @thesundrop​, @cupidben​, @lostlittlenerd​, @delilahmay39​, @timmvrphy​, @queenmylovely​, @loveandbeloved29​, @free-pool-trash​, @fairestkillerqueenofall​, @local-troubled-writer​, @babyalienfairy​, @littlecarowrites​, @allthethingsicant​, @im-an-adult-ish​, @mirkwoodshewolf​, @squishy-gay-astronaut​, @sherlollydramoine​, @butlegendsneverdie​, @dogmom2014​, @rocketrhap917​, @26-7-49​, @lelifesaver​, @frozenhuntress67​ If you’d like to be added, let me know!

A/N: A note on the names in this chapter! So, I went with Ben’s family name being Hardy since we all know him with that name. I understand that in reality, his parents would be Mr. and Mrs. Jones. And with Rami’s sister, I couldn’t get a confirmation on whether her name is spelled Jasmine or Yasmine so I went with the J spelling because that was what I saw first.

Warning(s): Mentions of racism.

Night 1  Week 1  Week 2  Week 3  Week 4  Week 5

Week 6 here we go!!!

Your first hometown date was with Ben in Sherborne, UK. You met him at the center of the town, which was small and quaint. But you liked it. Especially once you saw Ben walking over to you. You ran to him and leaped into his arms. He caught you with a laugh and a sweet kiss.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” he said, shaking his head. “In Sherborne.”

“I can’t believe it either,” you replied. “But I’m so happy that I am!”

“Me too,” he agreed as he set you down. “I thought I’d just give you a bit of a tour so you can see where I grew up before we head to my parents, yeah?”

“Sounds perfect!” 

He took your hand and started down the road. At the end of the street was a vintage car. It was a black convertible, like you’d seen in old movies. It looked glamorous.

“This,” Ben said, walking up to the car. “Is our ride for the day.”

“Are you serious?!” you cried. “Oh my God!”

“Glad you like it,” he chuckled.

“I love it!” you told him.

He opened the passenger side door for you and you slid in. Then he walked around to the driver’s side and got in beside you. He looked at you, smirked, and then started the engine. He looked so sexy behind the wheel you had to turn your attention to the road so he wouldn’t see you blushing.

He drove slowly. There wasn’t much traffic, anyway, so you really could see all the places he was pointing out to you. He showed you the church he attended as a kid. Where he went to primary school. The tree under which he had his first kiss. It was all so sweet. It was all so Ben.

“I wish you could be here in October sometime,” he said. “We’ve got the Pack Monday Fair, which is always a great time.”

He told you about the fair and all his fondest memories, especially attending with his father. You were melting.

“So, how often do you get here to visit your family?” you wondered.

“As often as I can,” he said. “I’m all the way in London, and it’s not like I’ve got weekends off. But I definitely get here for special occasions and holidays.”

“Do you think you’d want to settle down here?” you asked. “When you’re ready to start a family?”

“As much as I love it here, I’d rather stay in London,” he said. “There’s more opportunity there and more diversity, which is something I want my children to experience. But believe me, they’ll be coming here to visit Nan as often as possible. My mum can’t wait for me to have kids, so she’ll be all over them.”

You giggled. “I like that. I want an involved family.”

“You might regret saying that one day,” he joked.

You drove on, and by the end, you felt you had seen almost the entire town. You stopped at the store to pick up a bottle of wine and some flowers for his mother, before at last going to the house. It was a cozy little home, and it looked inviting. You took a deep breath before starting up the driveway.

“Nervous?” Ben asked.

“A bit,” you admitted.

“Don’t be,” he said and kissed your cheek. “They’re gonna love you.”

Before you could argue, he reached out and opened the door, allowing you inside first. 

“Hello!” Ben called.

Seconds after his voice rang out, a swarm of people were upon you. All rushing to hug Ben and get a glimpse of you. He introduced you to his mother and father, and then to his aunts and uncles who were there. His grandmother remained seated on the couch, so you all made your way back to her so Ben could say hello.

“These are for you,” you said to Mrs. Hardy, handing her the wine and flowers.

“Oh, thank you, darling,” she replied. “They’re beautiful!”

You smiled as she disappeared into the kitchen to put them in a vase. Then Ben’s father approached you. You smiled and shook hands again.

“Y/N, right?” he asked.

“Yep, that’s right,” you told him.

“Come on, let’s get you a drink,” he said.

“Won’t say no to that,” you replied.

You followed him into the kitchen. Mrs. Hardy had already set out the flowers on the counter, and she was fussing around the food, which was evidently almost ready. Mr. Hardy poured you a glass of wine and handed it to you.

“Thank you,” you said.

Ben’s parents were surprisingly easy to talk to. You offered to help his mother with dinner, but she insisted you just relax. His father was a lot like Ben. A bit reserved, but friendly. So you chatted with them for a bit while Ben got caught up with the rest of his family.

When dinner was ready, you all sat around the dining room table. Mrs. Hardy served up a delicious meal, and then told you all to “tuck in.” You had a great time during the meal. His family was funny and warm. They welcomed you with open arms. You felt comfortable with them immediately.

“So, Y/N, can we have a chat?” asked Mrs. Hardy once the plates were clear.

“Of course,” you agreed.

You followed her to the sitting room. You sat together on the couch, and she gave your knee a maternal pat.

“How’s it all going?” she asked. “With Ben, that is.”

You smiled. “Ben and I have something really special,” you told her. “He told me that he’s falling in love with me, and I feel the same. Which I’ve told him.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” she said. “Has he told you that he’s never been in love before?”

“He has,” you said. “And I’m still a little worried about that.”

“Worried? Why?” she asked.

“Well, because I don’t want him to feel like there’s more out there,” you said. “Or to get confused. I don’t want him to wake up say, ten years from now and wonder if he made a mistake because he didn’t really know what he was doing.”

“I don’t think you need worry about that,” she said. “Ben is...a unique man. He’s struggled to find love because he’s quite aware of his feelings. He has told me about girls he’s gone with and expressed things like ‘Mum, I liked her, but I don’t think she’s the one,’ or ‘Mum, she’s beautiful, but I can’t go forward just because we’re attracted to each other.’ If he’s falling in love with you, then he means it. He isn’t confused.”

“That’s a relief to hear you say that,” you said. “Because I just wasn’t really sure if he knew. But you’re right, Ben is a self-aware person, and I have faith that what he’s telling me is true. I did promise him I’d never doubt him.”

You explained to her what Luke had once said about him.

“That’s ridiculous,” she scoffed. “Ben’s honest and kind. And, Y/N...he’s ready. He’s ready to find his partner and settle down.”

“I think he’d be a wonderful husband,” you told her. “And I suppose I have you to thank for that.”

She giggled and took your hand. You smiled at each other.

Meanwhile, Ben was talking to his father. They stood out on the back patio, each smoking a cigarette. You didn’t like that Ben smoked, but he did it pretty rarely since he was an athlete. And he also told you it was his goal to quit by the time he had children.

“So, Benny,” Mr. Hardy said. “How’re you feeling?”

“It hasn’t been easy,” Ben said. “I’ve...well, I’ve fallen in love with her.”

“Has she fallen in love with you?” Mr. Hardy wondered.

“She says she’s getting there,” Ben told him. “But there are still three other guys.”

“They good blokes?”

“Yeah, actually, I like them a lot. Consider them friends, even.”

“That’s good, it shows she’s got taste,” Mr. Hardy joked.

Ben chuckled. “Yeah. I’m just worried. I want to tell her that I love her. But I don’t want to get my heart broken.”

“There’s no way to fall in love without taking that risk,” Mr. Hardy said. “If you love her, love her with everything you’ve got. Pursue her. Let her know why she should choose you.”

Ben smiled. “Thanks, Dad.”

You switched parents, so Ben went to speak to his mother, and you went to speak to his father. You looked at Mr. Hardy and saw Ben’s features in his face. It was like looking through time and seeing Ben as an older man. Only, Mr. Hardy had brown eyes. Ben got his eyes from his mother.

“Can I ask you how you feel about Ben?” Mr. Hardy asked.

“I care a lot about him,” you said. “He’s probably the sweetest person I’ve ever met and...well, I’m falling in love with him.”

“He’s not hard to look at, either,” he joked.

“Well, he gets it from somewhere,” you returned, pointing at him.

He laughed. 

“You seem like a nice girl,” he said. “I think you’d be a good wife to Ben, if that’s what you both want. I’m just happy if he’s happy. And he seems quite happy with you.”

You looked at Ben through the window, where he was sitting with his mom.

“You guys must miss him a lot,” you said.

“Terribly,” Mr. Hardy said. “But once again, he’s happy.”

“I’ve so appreciated you welcoming me into your home,” you said. “A home as loving as this shows me what I can expect from Ben. Thank you.”

He opened his arms to you, and you gladly accepted them.

Inside, Ben was telling his mother exactly what he’d told his father. That he was in love with you and was nervous about telling you.

“I agree with Dad, darling,” Mrs. Hardy said. “I think if that’s what you’re feeling, you should be honest with her.”

“It’s just scary since...well, I’ve never done it before,” he said. “How do I…” he trailed off with a sigh.

“Do you think it matters to her how you say it?” she asked.

“No, I think she just wants me to be honest,” he returned.

“Then there you have it, love,” she said.

The night wound down and it was time for you to go. You said fond goodbyes to Ben’s family and he walked you out to the van already waiting for you.

“Today was such a great day,” he said. “They really seemed to like you.”

“I really like them,” you told him. “You have a great family, Ben.”

“I hope you come back,” he said.

“Me too,” you replied.

A beat passed. Ben pulled you into a tight hug. Then he lowered his lips to your ear.

“I love you, Y/N,” he whispered. “I love you so much.”

You wrapped your arms around his waist and gave a small squeeze. 

“It means so much to hear you say that,” you said.

You desperately wanted to tell him that you loved him too. Because you did. But you knew it was a bad idea. All you could do was convey how you felt through the embrace. And then when he kissed you...it was nothing like the way he’d kissed you before. This was something else entirely. It felt more like a promise.

“I’m gonna miss you,” he said.

“I’m gonna miss you too,” you told him.

With that, he opened the car door for you. You slid into the back seat and smiled at him once more before he closed it. He stood on the street and watched you go, feeling like you were taking his heart with you.

Your next hometown date was with Gwilym. Like Ben, he currently lived in London, but his hometown was Sutton Coldfield, where much of his family still resided. Gwilym had told you a little bit about his hometown, so you were excited to see it in person. You met him at Sutton Park.

He looked dashing where he stood waiting for you, despite only wearing a sweater and jeans. You ran up to him and he caught you in his arms. He planted a warm and welcoming kiss on your lips. You held him a little tighter.

“I’m so glad you’re here, cariad,” he said as you parted. 

“I’m glad to be here,” you replied.

“I figured I’d show you Sutton Park,” he said. “It’s a staple of the town and quite lovely on a day like today when we’ve got nice weather. Fancy a walk?”

“Sounds perfect,” you agreed.

He offered you his arm, which you took. It really was a pleasant day, with a rare bit of sunshine. As you walked, he told you who you would be meeting that day. His family kept it small, so it would just be his parents and siblings. Gwilym was the youngest. It was difficult for you to picture him the youngest sibling, since he always struck you as mature and grown up. He assured you that his childhood was normal, and that he and his siblings were very close now that they were all adults.

You walked together in the park for about an hour. Then he told you there was another stop to make before going to his parents’ home. You emerged from the park, walked another fifteen minutes or so, and then you saw it - a library.

“Since you saw my personal collection, I thought I’d show you where I first gained an appreciation for literature,” he said. “Right here at the Sutton Coldfield Library.”

“I can’t wait,” you told him.

He smiled, took your hand, and led you inside. The library looked fairly typical. It wasn’t grand or beautiful, but it had some charm to it. You tried to imagine young Gwilym poring over the books, trying to decide the one he’d like best. You smiled at the thought.

You were just about to tell him so when a distraction in the shape of a little girl came hurtling over, throwing her arms around Gwilym’s legs. She was maybe six years old. Her blonde ringlets settled against her face.

“Mr. Gwilym, you’re back!” she cried, clutching a handful of his jeans. “We’ve missed you!”

You blinked, shocked at the sudden appearance of the girl, but even more surprised that she knew Gwilym and was comfortable enough to hug him so tightly.

“Hello, Rosie,” Gwilym replied, patting her head. “I’ve missed you all too.”

Suddenly, more children emerged from a section you saw was the children’s library. Their little faces lit up at the sight of Gwilym, and they all followed Rosie’s example of throwing themselves on him. He laughed and then saw your bemused expression.

“I come home twice a month to read to the kids,” he told you. “To give back to this place.”

A little boy had clamored onto Gwilym’s back.

“Where’ve you been, Mr. Gwilym?” he wondered with a pout.

“Well, you see, children,” Gwilym said, nodding toward you. “I’ve met someone very special.”

In a swarm, they detached themselves from him and walked over to you, staring. You bit back a laugh.

“Hey, kids,” you said kindly. “I’m sorry for keeping Mr. Gwilym away.”

“You’re pretty,” Rosie said. “Are you Mr. Gwilym’s girlfriend?” 

“I am,” you told her.

“Are you gonna get married?” asked another girl beside you.

“Maybe!” you said. 

You met Gwilym’s gaze as the children demanded more information and you did your best to answer them. A future with him was suddenly much clearer.

“Alright, everyone leave Mr. Gwilym and his friend alone,” said the librarian, an elderly woman with her silver hair in a long braid down her back.

“Hello, Joan,” Gwilym said warmly, bending down to kiss the woman’s cheek.

Joan smiled at you as Gwil introduced you and she asked how everything was going. You told her it was all wonderful, and Gwilym agreed. Then Rosie returned and tugged on Gwilym’s pant leg.

“What are you going to read for us today?” she asked.

“Oh, Rosie, I’m sorry, we just popped over to say hello,” he told her. “We don’t have a story today.”

Tears shone in her big, blue eyes and you nearly started crying yourself. 

“Please,” Rosie begged.

“Please!” the other children echoed.

“Read them a story, you monster,” you teased, punching his arm lightly.

“Alright, I’ll read you a story,” Gwilym said. “If Miss Y/N reads it with me.”

“Please, Miss Y/N!” they cried.

You laughed. “Alright, then,” you agreed. “Story time it is.”

They all cheered, returned to the children’s library, and settled into the back corner. It was a cozy little set up, with bean bag chairs and cushions and stuffed animals everywhere. A wide bench was placed under the window, where the reader would sit. The kids picked out a story while you and Gwilym took your places. 

He started off the story, and his enthusiasm was not something you had seen him yet. He did voices, he made faces, anything to amuse the children. They giggled and snickered, enjoying themselves to the fullest, and totally riveted by him. You were too. You knew you were reading the words and doing your best to be convincing, but your mind was on Gwilym and how impressed you were with him. It showed you how much he valued learning, and the kind of father he might be.

When the story was over, you had to say goodbye and head to the Lee household. The kids were sorry to see you go, but their parents were arriving to pick them up. Gwilym even knew their parents, and said quick hellos before guiding you out and down the street.

“That was….” you trailed off. “So amazing. I feel like every time we’re together, you show me a new side of you. And I think that one is my favorite.”

He chuckled. “I just want to give back to the next generation,” he said. “Maybe they’ll go on to be great writers or professors. Maybe they won’t. But no matter what, they’ll support their local library.”

“You’re the actual sweetest, you know that?” you said.

He only laughed before throwing his arm over your shoulder and leading you away.

For the evening, you went to his parents’ home. It was a bit larger than what you were used to seeing in the UK, but looked inviting. You met Gwilym outside, and he hugged you tightly. You did your best to return it with the flowers and wine in your hands.

“Are you ready, love?” he asked.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” you replied.

“Let’s go in.”

Together, you walked across the threshold as Gwilym called out to his family. The first person to round the corner was his father, who wrapped his son up in the friendliest bear hug. His brothers and sister were not far behind. His mother approached you first.

“Hello, dear,” she said kindly. “I’m Ceinwen. It’s lovely to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too,” you replied. “I’m Y/N.”

Gwilym introduced to his father, Tom, his brothers, Geraint and Owen, and his sister, Rhiannon. They were all very friendly and gave you hugs as they met you. You followed them into the kitchen, and as you walked, you observed your surroundings. This family was undeniably Welsh, and proud of it. Gwilym told you that both his parents were from Wales, and he connected strongly to that heritage. Seeing the home, you understood why. You envied that connection a little bit.

“You have such a lovely home,” you said to Ceinwen. “Thank you for having me.”

“We’re glad to have you,” she replied. “Come, sit down for dinner.”

It was already on the table when you arrived, so she said you had perfect timing.

“I’m relieved,” Gwilym said. “We got a bit delayed at the library.”

“Oh, did you take her to see the children?” Ceinwen asked.

“I did,” he told her. “We had a wonderful time with them, didn’t we?”

He looked over at you and took your hand. You beamed.

“We really did,” you said. 

They asked how your day was overall, and you were excited to tell them that it was great. You always felt like you could gush about Gwilym. His family exchanged happy glances at your every word.

After dinner, Rhiannon asked to speak to you. You happily agreed and followed her into the sitting room. You each took a seat on the couch.

“How’s this whole process been for you?” she asked.

“It hasn’t been easy,” you told her. “I’ve had to make really difficult decisions, but I’m just following my heart the best I can.”

“How many men are left?” she wondered.

“Including Gwilym, there are four,” you said. 

“And how are you feeling about him as compared to the other three?” she pressed.

You swallowed. “That’s difficult to say. I sort of have to compartmentalize each relationship and evaluate it on its own strengths or weaknesses. I know that Gwilym and I have been strong since the beginning. He’s really opened up to me, as I have to him, and we’re falling steadily in love.”

“And has Gwil expressed his feelings for you?”

“He’s told me that he’s falling in love with me,” you said. “Which made me so happy because I’m falling in love with him too.”

“Have you told him that?”

You shook your head. “I haven’t. But I plan on letting him know soon.”

“As long as you’re honest with him, he’ll be honest with you,” she said with a smile. “Gwilym’s reserved, but not afraid of the truth.”

“I definitely see that about him,” you agreed. “We’ve always been totally honest with each other.”

You smiled at each other. You spoke to his parents next. His mother sat on the couch beside you and his father in a chair across the coffee table.

“Can I just start by saying what a wonderful man you have raised?” you began. “Honestly, Gwilym has been such a dream and completely unafraid of the risk involved in this. He’s great.”

They both grinned.

“Thank you,” Tom said. “We hope that means you’re feeling strongly for him.”

“I am,” you assured him. “I told Rhiannon that I’m falling in love with him.”

“That’s wonderful,” Ceinwen said. “He told us the same about you.”

“Now, there are still other people involved in this,” Tom said. 

“I know,” you said. “But believe me. I care so deeply for Gwilym. The last thing I’d ever want to do is hurt him.”

“You must understand,” his mother said. “As his parents, that’s our worst fear. After he lost his fiance, he was a wreck. I don’t want him to return to that.”

“I understand,” you assured her. “I will do what I can to keep him from that. But please understand my position as well. I can’t make any promises right now.”

“Right, of course,” Tom said. 

You chatted a little longer, and you once again told them how much you admired Gwilym. Meanwhile, he was talking to his siblings.

“So, how are you feeling about her?” asked Owen. 

“I’m falling in love with her, for sure,” Gwilym answered. “I really could see her being my wife.”

“But you’re not completely in love?” questioned Geraint.

“I dunno if I could say that with other men involved,” Gwilym replied. “I want to be down on one knee before I give myself that completely.”

“She seems like a great girl, Gwil,” Rhiannon added. “You two seem compatible. She’s got a good head on her shoulders. But are you sure you could propose after just a few weeks?”

Gwilym looked at his wine glass and swirled the deep purple liquid around, just for something to do while he considered this question.

“You all know how seriously I would take an engagement,” he began. “I think, if within the coming weeks, Y/N and I find ourselves at that point, then yes. I could see myself proposing.”

The siblings all exchanged a look. If he was that serious about you, they would support him.

Overall, Gwilym’s hometown went well. It wasn’t as smooth as Ben’s, but given Gwilym’s history, you understood his family’s skepticism. Even so, they seemed genuinely happy for him. As Gwilym led you out, you swung your clasped hands with joy. He smiled at you.

“Gwilym,” you said. “You told me back in London that you’re falling in love with me.”

“Yes, I remember,” he said.

“Well, I just wanted to tell you that….I’m falling in love with you too,” you said. “Hard and fast.”

His smile widened.

“I’m happy to hear it, cariad,” he replied.

With that, he turned you toward him and pulled you in for a kiss. His lips pressed into yours with a need you had not felt from him before. His gratitude for your validation was deeper than you thought. Perhaps his feelings were as well.

When you broke apart, you coiled your arms around his neck and held him close. You stood there for what felt like hours. Despite everything you had been through with him, and the beauty of that moment on the London Eye, this was the most romantic moment you felt with Gwilym. Just you and him. Outside his childhood home, knowing each other without even speaking.

“You need to get going,” he finally said.

“I wish I didn’t,” you replied.

“I do too,” he agreed. “But there’s more to this journey.”

You stood on your toes and kissed him again.

“I’ll see you soon,” you whispered.

“I can’t wait,” he replied.

He walked you to the car and opened the door for you. With one last kiss, you got in. As you drove away, you felt your heart breaking without him.

After Gwilym’s hometown, it was time to leave the UK and head back to the states. Your first stop was in New York for Joe’s hometown. He was from Hyde Park, which you knew nothing about. You were excited to see it though and understand Joe better.

You arrived at Hyde Park and met Joe on what appeared to be a random street. You sprinted to him, eager to be in his arms. You had missed him desperately while you were apart. He caught you and spun you around with a laugh before he kissed you.

“I’ve missed you so much, baby,” he said. 

“I’ve missed you more,” you returned.

“Wanna bet?” he shot back.

You laughed. “What are you going to show me today?”

“Hyde Park isn’t exactly known for tourism,” he said. “We’ve got the Vanderbilt Mansion, sure, but other than that we’re just your average town.”

“So, are we going to see the mansion?” you wondered.

“Actually, I thought we’d do something better,” he said. “Come with me.”

He took your hand and began to lead you down the street. This community was clearly close-knit, as several people stopped Joe to talk to him and catch up. He introduced you as his girlfriend and they all smiled happily for him. Finally, you stopped outside a restaurant. The name on it was Mazzello’s. You grinned.

“Your family’s restaurant!” you cried. “I’m gonna get to see it?!”

“Absolutely!” he returned. “My brother, John, has been handling things since I’ve been away, so he’ll be the first family member you meet.”

“I can’t wait!”

You followed him inside. A wave of voices overtook you as Joe walked through the door. It seemed his whole family had surprised even him by showing up at the restaurant. His mother was there, as were his brother and sister. His nieces and nephews raced to hug him and he miraculously scooped all of them into his arms. 

There were hugs all around. The Mazzellos had spared no one in coming to meet you. Joe’s grandparents were there. His aunts and uncles. Family friends. Even restaurant regulars. It showed you how well Joe was loved in his community. It made you love him even more.

Joe introduced you first to his mother, Virginia, his sister, Mary, and then his brother, John. They were all thrilled to meet you. As you made your way through the crowd to meet everyone else, you felt there was a missing piece. When you looked over at the counter you realized what it was. A picture of Joe’s father hung behind the register.

You turned your eyes to Joe and saw that he was looking at it too. He shook his head and then looked at you.

“Come on,” he said with a small smile. “Let me show you the kitchen.”

“Alrighty,” you agreed.

You walked with him behind the counter and into the back of the restaurant. The kitchen was huge, with everything you could ever need to make Italian food. And it was authentic. Joe showed you where they made dough, how they turned it into noodles or pizza crust. The massive cooler for all the fresh vegetables. They also had a garden behind the restaurant where they grew their own herbs.

“Joe, this is incredible,” you said, still looking around in awe.

“My dad was dedicated to being authentic,” he said. “So we’ve kept it the way he started it.”

“You shouldn’t change a thing,” you told him.

You were alone together in the kitchen, so he took this opportunity to pull you into his arms. He held you for a long moment, and you felt him shake as he released a breath. You wrapped your arms around him and squeezed him gently.

“Thanks,” he sniffled. “Being back is just bringing up a lot of emotions.”

“I’m here, baby,” you said. “I’m so sorry.”

“Come on,” he said. “I’ve gotta show you how to make all this.”

“We’re gonna cook?” you asked, surprised.

“Course,” he said with a wink. He tossed you an apron. “You gotta learn if you’re gonna be a part of the family.”

You smirked. Then you tied the apron on, rolled up your sleeves, and got to work. His family joined you to help out as well, and Joe took every moment he could to flirt with you. When he showed you something, he stood behind you and put his arms around your waist. If he helped you get something, he reached over you, putting his chest to your face. If he was passing you and no one was around, he gave you a light pat on your ass. You had never had so much fun.

Together, you and the Mazzellos prepared a huge meal for everyone there to see Joe and meet you. Joe’s family was just as fun as he was. They poked fun at him - in the most loving way possible - and welcomed you warmly. As you all sat down to eat, Joe said a quick prayer. Then you dug in to the food.

“Oh my God,” you moaned as you took the first bite. “This is delicious!”

They laughed with you. Sharing a meal with them was like nothing you had ever experienced. Everyone at the table got a say in any discussion, even the children. In fact, Joe frequently consulted them. It seemed that Uncle Joe was a popular person. Many people had questions for you, and Virginia made a special effort to make you feel included. Not that she had to try too hard. You already felt like one of them.

After your meal, they opened a bottle of wine. When the glasses were distributed, you made a toast. Then, Virginia pulled you aside. You followed her to one of the small tables on the patio and sat across from her.

“It’s so nice to finally meet you,” she said. “Joe’s been talking about you since he got home and we were all so anxious.”

“I’m glad I don’t disappoint,” you replied.

“Never,” she said. “All I want is for Joe to be happy. He’s been burned in the past and I just want to protect him.”

“Of course you do,” you returned. “You’re an amazing mother. I can’t promise you that Joe and I will end up together because I’m not sure how this will go yet.”

“How do you feel about Joe?” she asked.

You took a moment to form a response. There were so many things you admired about Joe. His humor, his wit, his good heart. The way he made you feel understood and loved. The way you could rely on him. Tears suddenly stung your eyes.

“Oh!” Virginia gasped when she noticed. “Well, then. That tells me all I need to know.”

“I love him,” you choked out anyway.

It felt good to say it to someone. You were in love with Joe. But he hadn’t said it to you, so you weren’t sure about saying it to him.

“I’m glad to hear that,” she said graciously. 

She paused a moment before continuing.

“It’s funny, seeing you two together,” she said. “I’m reminded of myself and Mr. Mazzello. The way you seem so at ease with one another and have fun. But behind all of it...I see the depth of what you feel. I know you’d be there for him when things got rough, just as he would be there for you.”

“Joe has been the most solid connection I’ve had,” you said. “He’s never let me down. Truly, Mrs. Mazzello, I see a future with him. Especially after today.” You took a moment to take a breath since your emotion was threatening to overwhelm you again. “I see it so clearly.”

“I’m touched that he means so much to you,” she said, opening her arms. “Come here, Y/N.”

You melted into her and let out a small sob. It hit you so suddenly how much you loved Joe and it had caught you off guard. When you settled down, she wiped your cheeks before kissing them. You beamed at each other.

Joe spoke to his mother next, while you went to chat with his siblings. Virginia took her son in her arms and held him for a quick moment before they sat down together.

“So, how’d it go with Y/N?” he asked.

“Wonderful,” she replied. “She cares for you, Joe.”

“I hope so,” he said with a chuckle.

“No, listen to me, honey,” she said. “I asked her point blank how she felt about you. And she started to cry. You mean a great deal to her.”

Joe flushed, both pleased and distressed by his mother’s words. He hated that you had gotten upset, but he was also touched by the sentiment. He had confessed that he was falling in love with you. Was now the time to tell you that he was there? He was so madly in love with you that he’d do anything in the world for you?

Inside, you had begun talking to Joe’s siblings, but his nieces and nephew quickly interjected.

“What’s your favorite thing about Uncle Joe?” you asked them.

“He’s fun!” his oldest nephew cried. “He always plays with us when the grown ups are being boring.”

“What’s your favorite game to play with him?” you asked.

“Tickle monster!” they all agreed.

“Do you want him to get married?” you wondered.

“Yes!” said his niece eagerly. “That way he can have babies too, and we’ll have even more cousins to play with!”

“Do you wanna have babies with Uncle Joe?” asked his other nephew.

You blinked, a bit taken aback. Then you smiled.

“Very much.”

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw John and Mary grin at one another.

All too soon, the sun went down and it was time for you to go. You said warm goodbyes to everyone before Joe led you out to the car that was waiting for you.

“What a great day,” he said, before leaning forward and kissing your forehead.

“It was wonderful,” you said. “Do you think if we asked nicely, they’d let us do it again?”

He chuckled. “Afraid not, babe. But hey, I’ll see you again soon.”

You looked into his eyes. He felt the brutal urge to tell you now that he was fully in love with you. He opened his mouth to let it out, but then closed it again. Something in his heart was telling him to wait.

Your brow furrowed. You were hoping Joe would say “I love you.” When he didn’t you were a bit disappointed.

“Everything okay?” you asked.

“Yeah,” he said absentmindedly. “Yeah, I just...I had such a good time today and I’m gonna miss you.”

“I’m gonna miss you too,” you said.

You rested your head against his chest, not ready to let him go. You got a sudden burst of bravery.

“Joe, I -”

You stopped yourself. Why were you hesitating?

“Yes?” he pressed.

“I...I really am gonna miss you.”

His face fell, and you felt terrible. Why was this so hard to say? Perhaps because it meant so much.

“I’ll see you at the rose ceremony,” he said with a smile.

He kissed you once more. Then he opened the car door and you slid inside. You whispered a tearful goodbye to him, which he returned. Then he closed the door. The driver started down the street. You hung your head in your hands. 

“That was stupid,” you said to the camera. “I should have just told him.”

Little did you know, Joe was giving himself the exact same lecture. His only regret in the journey so far was not telling you just then that he loved you. He hoped it didn’t cost him a rose.

From New York, you flew back to Los Angeles for Rami’s hometown. The first three had gone so well, you had high hopes for the last. Rami’s family lived in Sherman Oaks. Most of his extended family was in Egypt, so - like Gwilym’s hometown - you would just be meeting his parents and his siblings. You were a bit nervous going in, since he had mentioned that his sister was protective.

All nerves melted away when you saw him. You surged forward to get to him and planted an enthusiastic kiss on him. He laughed into it, and held you tight.

“I’m so glad to see you,” he said. 

“I’m glad to see you too!” you returned. 

“I know you’re familiar with Los Angeles, so I wasn’t sure what we could do today,” he said. “But I thought of just a tour of where I grew up.”

“That’s perfect,” you said. “The whole idea is to get to know you better.”

“Awesome, let’s get started!”

For your tour of Rami’s corner of Los Angeles, you had scooters. They were ridiculously fun, even though frightening at first. Rami took you all over Sherman Oaks. He showed you his high school, where a few big name actors had also attended. He took you around his neighborhood, pointing out houses where his friends once lived, and the times they had together. You stopped at a park, where you got some ice cream and sat on a bench together.

“So, it seems like you enjoyed growing up here,” you said.

“I did,” he replied hesitantly.

You frowned. “What is it?”

“Y’know, growing up here was amazing,” he said. “But after 9/11, things changed. People say California is so progressive and welcoming, but after that happened, my family was treated differently, even here.”

“I’m so sorry,” you said, taking his hand. “That’s terrible.”

“We stopped speaking Arabic in public,” he said. “We tried even harder to assimilate. My father took down the Egyptian flag we used to hang outside. Even though we aren’t Muslim...or from the country that attacked that day...we were Middle Eastern enough for people to suddenly suspect us.”

“I don’t even know what to say,” you told him. “That’s just...horrible. And so brutally unfair.”

“It is,” he said. “Eventually, things settled down again, and our neighbors warmed back up. But it was never really the same. In school, I always felt like I was struggling. Having to tell people how to pronounce my name, only to have them butcher it or say it with some offensive accent. It wasn’t easy.”

He took a deep breath.

“But I’m really proud of my heritage,” he said. “I am Egyptian. No matter the generation or where I grew up. It’s part of me.”

“That’s beautiful, Rami,” you said. “You should be proud.”

“Thanks, Y/N,” he replied. “I just wanted to tell you this because my hometown isn’t all great memories. Parts of growing up were very difficult for me. And I wanted you to understand.”

“Believe me, I’m glad to listen to every part of how you grew up,” you said. “The good, the bad, and the ugly. I want to support you and help you through it.”

“You’re amazing,” he said.

“You’re even more so,” you returned.

You kissed him with a smile.

You didn’t stay out too much longer before you headed to his parents’ home. It was a decent sized suburban house, and you hoped his mother would appreciate the flowers. Rami told you to skip the wine because his parents didn’t drink. Out of respect for their home, you decided you would not partake while there. Rami told you how much he appreciated it.

When you walked up to the door, you gulped. You were always nervous right before meeting them. Then Rami kissed your cheek swiftly before opening the door. 

As soon as you were into the foyer, Rami’s brother crashed into him.

“Rami!” he cried, engulfing him into a hug.

Though he and his brother were twins, they had their distinctions. Rami was slimmer and just an inch or two shorter. Sami was broader with a more relaxed air about him. 

“Oh, this must be Y/N,” Sami said as he released his brother. “I’m Sami. It’s nice to meet you.”

You shook his hand. “Nice to meet you too.”

“Sami, are they -” Rami’s sister, Jasmine, came into the hall and stopped herself. “They are!”

She went to Rami and hugged him similarly to Sami. His parents appeared behind their daughter and grinned at the sight. You went over to them and offered the flowers.

“For you, Mrs. Malek,” you said.

She grinned. “Thank you, Y/N.”

His father also shook your hand before calling his children back with him to the kitchen. Mrs. Malek, whose name was Nelly, put the flowers into a vase. Mr. Malek, whose name was Said, checked on something in the oven which smelled delicious. You told him so and they thanked you.

“So, how’s it been so far?” Sami asked. “Been anywhere exciting?”

“We’ve been to Asheville, North Carolina,” Rami said. “Then we went to London.”

“Oh, I love London,” Jasmine interjected.

“It was amazing,” Rami told her. “And after that we went to Killarney, Ireland.”

“How fun!” Nelly said.

“We had a great time in Killarney,” you said, looking fondly at Rami and recalling your magical one on one date. 

“It was beautiful,” Rami agreed. “Especially the company.”

He put his arm around your shoulders and squeezed you as you giggled. You caught a disgusted look on Jasmine’s face, which discouraged you. You had the sense that she would take a while to warm up to you. Unfortunately, you only had one evening to change her mind.

Rami’s parents were incredibly kind. His mother was already teaching you some Arabic as you helped her prepare more food. It was just simple words here and there, but she told you that you were doing a great job. Meanwhile, Rami spoke to his siblings in the living room.

“Rami, I hate to be the wet blanket here,” Jasmine said. “But what are you doing?”

“Enjoying an evening with my girlfriend and family,” he replied. “What do you mean?”

“You’ve known this girl barely two months,” she continued. “All while she’s been dating thirty other men.”

“I know what I signed up for,” he said.

“I still don’t understand why you even signed up,” she snapped.

“Hey, calm down,” Sami said. “Love happens in crazy ways. Who's to say this isn’t how it’s meant to work out for Rami?”

“Because it’s ridiculous,” Jasmine said. “How can she really love you if she is also falling in love elsewhere? And what about your career?”

“What about it?” Rami demanded.

“Don’t you think you should wait for marriage and a family until you’ve established yourself more as an actor?” she wondered. “This is a huge commitment.”

“We’ve talked about it,” he said. “She knows that we could balance it.”

“Probably not the way she’s thinking,” she said. “I saw her on the last season. This girl is ready to settle down properly. Is that something you want?”

“We can talk more about it,” Rami said. “Right now, all I need for you to do is be my sister and support me.”

“I am doing that,” she said. “And one day, you’ll see just how much.”

With that, she swept from the room. Rami scowled.

“She’s making some good points, Rami,” Sami said. 

“No, she isn’t,” Rami argued. “This is something Y/N and I have already discussed and worked out.”

Sami sighed. “Alright then.”

Dinner was ready within the next few minutes. It went smoothly. You liked Rami’s family and the way they interacted. Teasing and fun, but with lots of love. Rami was clearly the apple of his mother’s eye especially. 

When dinner was over, Jasmine asked to speak to you. You were glad for the chance because you wanted to be close to her if it was you and Rami at the end of this. Together, you went out to the back porch and took seats on the cushioned wicker furniture.

“Y/N, I want to start by saying that I don’t have a problem with you personally, but this process makes no sense to me,” she began.

“I understand that,” you said. “It’s difficult for lots of people to understand unless you’re in it. But it’s just a way for people to find love. Like any dating app or even the traditional stuff. It just happens to be on TV as well.”

“But the expectation is not traditional,” Jasmine said. “The idea is to get engaged after just two months.”

“It seems fast, but believe me, the feelings are real,” you told her. “What I feel for Rami...that’s real. Whether other people understand it or not.”

“But you also have real feelings for three other men,” she pointed out.

That stung. You understood why the families were concerned about this. They didn’t want their loved one to be the one to get hurt. But this was the process that you all signed up for, and you were growing tired of this being thrown in your face.

“I do,” you said. “But every relationship is different.”

“So, tell me what you and Rami have discussed about life outside of this,” she said. “You know he wants to be an actor.”

“He already is an actor,” you replied. “We’ve talked about how we would balance schedules with each other and if we have children.”

Jasmine sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. Then she looked at you, a hard expression in her eyes.

“Rami is ambitious about his acting career,” she said. “Now isn’t the time for him to be getting married and starting a family.”

You wanted to flare up and scream at her, but you held back.

“Don’t you think that’s something Rami should decide for himself?” you countered.

“Y/N, listen to me,” she said. “I’m not saying this to be a bitch. I’m saying this for both your sakes. Let’s say this goes well and you and Rami get engaged. If you have to wait for his acting career to take off before you can be a mother, you are going to resent him. If he sacrifices his aspirations in order to stay where he is and be with you, he is going to resent you. He’s not ready.”

“Why would he come on this show if he’s not ready?” you challenged, trying not to let her words take root in your heart. But you couldn’t deny the truth of them.

“Probably because - like anyone - he does want love,” she said. “But he’s not ready for the commitment you want from him.”

You let that sink in. Tears welled up in your eyes. You were still falling in love with Rami, and hated the thought of saying goodbye to him.

“Excuse me,” you said, getting up from your seat.

You walked out into the yard and around the side of the house, sniffling. A tear slid down your cheek. This was the last thing you expected from his family. For them to tell you that even if you and Rami love each other, these things would get in the way. It hurt so much to hear because Jasmine was right. You were afraid of resentment building if either of you had to wait for your dreams.

“Hey.”

You turned and saw Rami standing there, a little winded and looking concerned. 

“What did she say?” he demanded when he saw you crying.

You broke down and told him. He heaved a sigh and pulled you into his arms.

“Y/N, don’t listen to that,” he said. “We can figure out how to plan our lives after an engagement. We don’t have to get married and have kids right away, we’ve got a lot of time.”

You pushed him away.

“Is that what you think I want?” you asked. “To just be indefinitely engaged? Without a plan? To basically be dating each other after this?”

“No, I’m sorry,” he said. “I understand you want a serious commitment, and I’m willing to give that to you if I have to.”

“If you have to?” you questioned. “Rami, I need someone who really, really wants that. I’m upset because I think Jasmine is right. We don’t want the same things going back into the world after all this.”

His eyes filled with tears too. “I want you, Y/N. I love you.”

You blinked and looked at the ground. “I don’t know if that’s enough.”

He sucked in a sharp breath at your words, and you couldn’t look at him.

“So...what do we do?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” you whispered.

You stood there a brief moment, wondering where to go from here. 

“I’m not ready to say goodbye,” you said. 

“I’m not either,” he said.

“At least we can agree on that,” you said with a humorless laugh.

Another beat passed.

“I need to go,” you said. “I have a lot to think about.”

“Y/N, please…” he trailed off.

“I’m sorry,” you said. “I just have to go.”

With that, you walked out to the front of the house. You couldn’t say goodbye to his family like this, not when you were falling apart. Alone, you went to the car that was waiting for you and climbed into the back seat, closing the door behind you. As you pulled away, you looked into the camera.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” you said. “I really just don’t know.”

The next day, you woke still conflicted. You had a rose ceremony that night, and you had to decide who to send home. Rami’s hometown date had been the least successful, but it opened your eyes to what might happen if you went down this road with him. But you also felt confused about Joe because of the moment before you left and he didn’t tell you he loved you. But Gwilym hadn’t either. The only one you were sure was getting a rose so far was Ben. His family was sweet, and you had no doubts about where you stood with him. You were absolutely ready to move forward with that relationship. The others...you had to consider and weigh your options.

You were meeting the men back at the Bachelor Mansion, where the journey began. Chris stood out front, where you had been night one to meet the men. The remaining four were arriving one by one before going into the rose ceremony.

Joe was the first to arrive. He smiled at Chris as he walked up to shake his hand.

“Joe, how are you?” Chris asked politely.

“I’m feeling pretty good,” Joe answered. “I think my hometown could have ended better, but I hope that’s not enough to lose a rose tonight.”

“Well, good luck, my friend,” Chris said. “Go ahead inside.”

“Thanks,” Joe replied.

He walked through the house and into the courtyard. He stood to one side and looked at the little table with just three roses on it.

Rami arrived next. He couldn’t smile just yet. 

“Rami, how’re you doing?” Chris asked.

“I’m anxious,” Rami said. “Things didn’t go well on the hometown date and I...I wish I had more time to talk to her before all this.”

“If the connection is there, she knows how to move forward,” Chris said. “Go ahead inside and good luck.”

“Thank you, Chris,” Rami said.

He followed Joe’s path. He finally grinned when he saw Joe and the two embraced. Then Rami spotted the roses and swallowed, wondering if he would get one.

Ben was third to arrive. He had a wide smile on his face.

“What’s up, buddy?” Chris asked as they shook hands and clapped each other on the shoulder. “You look happy.”

“I am happy,” Ben said. “I think things went really well, so I’m feeling confident about tonight.”

“That’s great to hear,” Chris said. “Go ahead inside and best of luck to you.”

“Thank you,” Ben replied.

He walked into the courtyard and he was pleased to see Joe and Rami already there. He gave them both quick hugs before taking his place in line.

Finally, Gwilym arrived. He straightened his tie as he stepped out of the limo and approached Chris.

“Gwilym, how are you?” Chris asked as they shook hands.

“I’m nervous,” Gwil admitted. “But I think everything went well enough. I just hope she feels the same way I do.”

“I hope so too,” Chris said. “Go ahead in and good luck.”

“Thank you so much,” Gwilym returned.

He too made his way to the courtyard, where the other three men stood. They all embraced him when he arrived, but quickly resumed their spots. Things had changed between them now that it was more serious. They all considered each other friends, and they respected one another, but there was some tension now. They waited.

You were the last one to get there. As you walked into the courtyard in your gown, you took a deep breath. You had made up your mind, but now you had to go through with it. You were going to hurt someone you cared a lot about - someone you loved - and that was never easy.

“Hi,” you said meekly as you looked at the four men before you. “Thank you all for being so gracious and allowing me to meet the important people in your life. I felt truly honored. I got a glimpse into what the future would be like with each of you, and it really helped me see who has the most potential to be my husband.”

Rami hung his head at these words. Then he looked at you again as you picked up the first rose. 

“Ben,” you said.

He let out a sigh and walked up to you.

“Ben, will you accept this rose?” you asked.

“I will,” he replied.

You pinned it to his jacket. You picked up the second.

“Gwilym,” you called.

His body relaxed at the sound of his name and then he approached you.

“Gwilym, will you accept this rose?”

“Of course I will.”

You pinned it on and he kissed your cheek before returning to his spot. Your heart began to pound inside your chest. Chris came out and put a comforting hand on your shoulder.

“Y/N, gentlemen,” he said. “This is the final rose tonight. Whenever you’re ready.”

He let go and you inhaled deeply. The exhale was slow and shaky. With a trembling hand, you picked up the last rose. You looked at Rami and you looked at Joe. Your eyes watered.

“Joe,” you choked out.

Joe’s relief was written all over his face as he walked over to you.

“Joe, will you accept this rose?” you asked, trying to keep your voice even.

“I will, Y/N, thank you,” he replied.

He had to help you put it on since your hands were so unsteady. Then he gave you a quick hug before returning to his spot.

“Rami, I’m sorry,” Chris said. “Take a moment, say your goodbyes.”

Rami was shaken. He had hoped that you could move past what Jasmine said and work through those issues together. Especially since you told him you weren’t ready to say goodbye. And here you were, saying it anyway.

He gave short hugs to the remaining men, who all whispered some words of comfort to him. Then he slowly walked to you. You had tears streaming steadily down your face. You tried to inhale, but you were short of breath.

“Can I - can I walk you out?” you asked through a sob.

“Yeah,” he said gently.

You took his hand and started back inside the mansion to exit through the front door. When you got to the driveway, you stopped and sat him down on a bench.

“I’m so sorry, Rami,” you whimpered. “I just...I don’t ever want to hold you back. You’re so talented and you’ve got so much to give, and I never want to stand in your way.”

“I don’t think you would…” he said.

Rami was numb. He still could hardly believe it was ending.

“I would,” you sobbed. “I want to settle down and have someone who comes home every night to me and the kids, y’know? And with what you want out of your life, that could never be us. As much as I care about you…”

He blinked and you saw a tear roll down his cheek slowly.

“I love you, Y/N,” he said.

“I love you too, Rami,” you replied. “But that kind of love isn’t enough to have a successful marriage between people as different as we are.”

A beat passed and you sniffled again.

“I want you to know that you’re amazing,” you said. “My feelings for you are so deep and so real, and that’s why this hurts so much. You deserve a successful career and someone who can be there for you through it. But that’s just not me.”

“I understand,” he said.

He began to move, as if suddenly gaining feeling back in his limbs.

“This is where we say goodbye, then,” he said.

“Goodbye, Rami,” you returned.

He hugged you. You held him for a moment, but you knew you had to let him go.

“When you win an Oscar, I’ll be cheering for you,” you teased, forcing a smile through your tears.

He chuckled halfheartedly. “Thanks. Bye, Y/N.”

“Bye,” you breathed.

With that, he opened the door and climbed in. You closed it and watched the tail lights disappear through the gate. You let out one final sob and dabbed at your eyes.

Rami, once inside the car, put his head in his hands and tried to breathe. He released a small whine, but kept his face covered. Then he took a deep breath and moved his hands to wipe his face.

“God,” he sighed. “I’m...I hate this. I really wanted to be with her and I hate that she couldn’t see a future anymore. F**k.”

He paused.

“I still love her.”

Back at the mansion, you had your makeup touched up before returning to the three men you had left. Your nose still ran and bit, and your eyes were still red and puffy, but you went to them anyway. They offered sympathetic smiles as you walked up.

“So, um,” you began, voice shaking again. “That was really difficult. But, I really am happy to be moving forward with all of you.”

Joe handed you a glass of champagne. They all already held one.

“Next week is a big week,” you said. “It’s fantasy suites, and where we’re going really is a fantasy.”

“Where is it?” wondered Ben.

“Gentlemen, we are going to New Zealand!”

They cheered and toasted to that. You hoped you were ready for the overnight dates. But you looked at the faces of each of these men and smiled. You were ready. You absolutely trusted them with your heart.

[purplina]

Okay okay but imagine a ✨talkative✨ Lan zhan..... how would it be, what is he going to talk about

Hear me out ✨picture this✨ : young talkative lz going to lan xichen three months after meeting wwx and being aaaallll crazy about the dumbass who sneaks out after curfew, had a fight and got away with it the first night he came, pranking and annoying the fuck out of him BUT at the same time, lz is confused because he grew FOND of wwx bc he enjoyed the rebellious side, he found him pretty even AND GODAMMIT THE WAY HE SMILED and young lz is confused and very gay and Xichen is just there🧍‍♂️listening like a good bro but he has to proceed all of that in one take bc lz just talks THAT much

Just imagine him having to do all the copying in the Lan's library and finding grammar and spelling mistakes in the manuscripts and he just VENT ABOUT IT WHILE WRITING : "I can't believe the people who wrote this were the highest brains of our clan, manner is spelled with 2 n dumbass"

I know he would not stop from insulting people bc he would be just as honest as he is when he is quiet in the cannon material

(blakitu) Lz talking an entire evening to his uncle to explain why he should marry wwx

(blakitu) He will fornite dance when he got captured by the wen

Him always over talking when speaking to wwx to hide his feelings and ending everything with "I DON'T EVEN LIKE YOU" then hating himself and going crying on Lan xichen (he would be good friend with master Tsundere boy Jin Zixuan lmao)

(blakitu) But lz talking to the rabbits about wwx for an entire day bcs he is scared to annoyed his bro (this one is my fav)

Just ✨imagine✨

(Thanks to @blakitu for supporting my late night random mdzs thoughts hehe)

[henrik-von-schneeplestein]

Hewwo. You mentioned liking certain albums and songs for the jse egos and ships, what about for the Sander's sides? 👀 Are there any songs you like for certain ships you like? ❣️

HFJDHGJG YEPPP! Not quite as many, just bc I’m new to the fandom but I definitely have thoughts! 

Before y’all who are annoyed with me ranting about Taylor jump ship:

-”Pioneer” by The Band Perry is SUCH a good Roman song omg just the softest song about the creative spirit & bravery

-”Lovefool” by the Cardigans is... Deceit’s karaoke song. I have no rationale or defense for this statement whatsoever it just came up on shuffle the other day and I for some reason could picture him singing it perfectly and now I can’t let it go. Roman’s karaoke song is probably like “Any Man of Mine” by Shania Twain. Idk what the other sides’ go-to karaoke songs are but PLEASE lmk what y’all think bc I wanna know 

Anyway Taylor time. People w/ bad taste in music you’re free to go now. Have a nice night and please don’t unfollow me

Roman is both the side I think would most be a fan on Taylor and also who has the most Taylor songs that remind me of him.

“White Horse” is definitely a Roman song. Like just change the gender (from ‘princess’ to ‘prince’) and it fits perfectly - a “dreamer” who has the beautiful, romantic fantasies they believe in challenged and emerges stronger but still believing in all those wonderful things... catch me crying

“Starlight” is the other song that has strong Roman vibes to me again bc of the ‘dream impossible dreams’ thing & another ref to a prince (and a ‘duchess’ ((duke)) but it def feels more roman than remus to me). Could definitely be a prinxiety song given the second verse: He said, “look at you, worrying too much about things you can’t change. You’ll spend your whole life singing the blues if you keep thinking that way.” He was trying to skip rocks on the ocean, saying to me, “don’t you see the starlight? Don’t you dream impossible things?”

Honestly the whole Red album has Roman vibes to me which makes sense assuming his color is red for the same reason she chose that title: bc it symbolizes passion. It really specifically reminds me of him in the ‘Moving On’ videos - him having a hard time letting go of a relationship but ultimately realizing it must be done strongly reminded me of “Red” (the song), “I Almost Do,” and “All Too Well”

LOVES “Wonderland” bc it’s gay uhhh Disney references no but he’d be all over that ‘too in love to think straight’ pun.... and the sheer DRAMA of writing your ex’s fucking TUMBLR URL into a song

“Love Story” and “Today Was a Fairytale” need I say more

Virgil is definitely AT LEAST a Speak Now stan - some of you are too young to remember it and some of you are still too salty to acknowledge it but from like 2008-2011 especially there was the Emo Swiftie phenomenon where a bunch of us very edgy emo kids who liked Panic! & MCR were also Taylor fans. Like she wasn’t considered emo at all but she had the same lyricism & theatricality, and the rampant slutshaming didn’t really start until 2012 so it wasn’t nearly as uncool to like her. So yeah Virgil’s been a secret passenger on the Taylor train for a while

He’s SUPER unwilling to admit it at first but as soon as Roman figures it out they bond & talk about their fav songs

emo boy is most definitely a “Haunted” stan

All I WANT is Virgil in the famous purple Speak Now tour dress and if I had a shred of artistic talent him in that dress under the glowing tree would be the first thing I drew

“Out of the Woods” is a Virgil song - Taylor literally said that the main feeling she was trying to capture is anxiety (x). I would also like to see Virgil in the OOTW music video. Give my baby some WOLVES.

“The Archer” is very literally about anxiety & imposter syndrome I don’t think I need to defend that being a Virgil song

“Afterglow” and “Delicate” belong on any ship playlist involving Virgil

Someone sing “Innocent” to this boy immediately

My favorite Virgil song actually isn’t “The Archer” even though that’s the most obvious - I think “Daylight” is the best one. He’s wounded the good & he’s trusted the wicked y’all!!! But it’s brighter now!!!! I love him!!!!!

With Deceit I see the obvious comparison to “Look What You Made Me Do” and it works pretty well but I think the best Deceit song is def “I Did Something Bad” - ‘for every lie I tell them they tell me three’ ‘this is how the world works; you gotta leave before you get left.’ Also my position just in general is that IDSB is the Distinguished Gay Villain Song & LWYMMD is the Disaster Gay Villain Song.

That said, the only reason Deceit’s never done the traditional Rise Into Frame is to keep me specifically from making a joke about Karyn rising out of the stage during LWYMMD (x) - it’s true my cousin’s best friend’s uncle was an extra in the Sanders Sides he played Roman’s sword

Deceit’s real name is Karyn I cracked it y’all

Also it makes me really excited that the LWYMMD tour outfit is kinda similar to Deceit’s. Something about having the initials TS just makes you go ‘snake time’ and put on a black cape/shirt/jacket thing with yellow/gold accents I guess

“End Game” is a Remus/Deceit song - ‘you like the bad ones, too’ = they’re both dark sides, “you’ve been calling my bluff on all my usual tricks so here’s the truth from my red lips” = Deceit

“New Romantics” is just like ‘let’s lie our way through society’ so

Remus really reminds me of the swift fandom itself and idk what else to say about that bc if you’ve never been in that fandom I don’t know how to explain it to you and if you’ve been in that fandom for even 5 minutes you don’t need me to explain it to you

ME! is such a Remus song!! ‘I know that I’m a handful, baby, UH! I know I never think before I jump’ & ‘I would never bore you baby;’ also ‘like a rainbow with all of the colors’ reminds me of Remus saying ‘if you want the spectrum A-Z then you’ll need a little help from ME!” AND the song tends to get stuck in your head (or it does for me anyway) - kind of Remus’s M.O.

We already know he likes “Shake It Off” lol

Those of y’all who are horny for Remus and I know you’re out there.... “False God” is the song for you

could also be Remus/Deceit - Remus does use Deceit as the serpent in the Garden of Eden after all

Patton is just all the soft love songs lbr. “Stay Stay Stay,” “Paper Rings,” “Our Song,”etc. Also “Never Grow Up” and “Fifteen” and bc he’s nostalgic but also a father w/ good advice.

OK before I do Logan songs I just gotta tell you I was listening to “Tim McGraw” recently and my mind went “he said the way my blue eyes shined put those Georgia stars to shame that night; I said ‘FALSEHOOD’” but anyway

“New Year’s Day” - the references to books/pages fits and also the sort of comforting vibe that Logan can have; it’s a more realistic view of love about how there’s no way to know for sure what’s going to happen but knowing that you’re in it even for the worst

“I Think He Knows” belongs on the playlist for any ship involving Logan

He’d love “Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince” but when she’s like ‘where are the wise men?’ he’d be like ‘I’m right here beech’

And with that, I think I need to be done for now lol. Thank you so much for asking & letting me dump all this here. I love you!!!!

[wolfstarisreal394]

Snape: Listen to you two, quarrelling like an old married couple.

Remus: My deepest apologies for not inviting you to the wedding Severus.

Sirius: Yeah, we didn't want to. We even thought of inviting my mother just to make her angry, but we never wanted to invite you.