#r: a triple homicide | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

lucreziaq2001 · 21 days ago

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•TV show: "Criminal minds".

•Content warnings: Three human skeletons coming out of a river thanks to a storm, mentions of the fact that they have been in the river for forty-five years, all three skeletons having bullet holes in their skulls, which means the people those bones belong to were killed, the fact that the victims didn't even get to try to fight back, mentions of how the bones were preserved in the waters of the river, the possibility that since the case is old, the murderer or murderers isn't/aren't alive anymore either, a 2-year-old boy and his 28-year-old parents having been killed, the fact that the family was never reported missing, the fact that one of the victims' brother is in a wheelchair and his wife is also sick, the fact that the two of them don't go out much, him not thinking he could have handled seeing the skeletons of his sister, brother-in-law and nephew, whom he hadn't seen since 1963 and the team having a weird feeling about that man and deciding to question him.

•Detective Jameson, Dr. Patel, Kelly Lawson and Kelly's mother are obviously OCs. Kelly Lawson is mine and the other two were made up by @dan-the-womans-blog .

•A very nice person I've met on here, @dan-the-womans-blog, helped me write this chapter. Thank you very much for what you've done for me💙.

•Tags: @lex13cm, @gold-onthe-inside, @brattyspence, @floraisunwell, @esote-rika, @endearng, @darlingcharling-blog, @bohemianblasphemy, @mydear-corinthian, @little-jana, @softestqueeen, @itzvenus04, @aarxn-hxtch, @ghsface, @blackleatherjacketz, @solardrop, @icouldbeaduck, @zvdvdlvr, @elliet1ou.

Beneath the surface

Chapter 2: The river's secrets

The BAU office was quiet when the call came in.

Hotch, seated at his desk, picked up the phone with his usual calm efficiency.

A few minutes later, he gathered the team in the conference room.

"Philadelphia PD reached out to me this morning" he began, his tone serious "They’ve discovered human remains in the Delaware River. Three skeletons. Preliminary analysis suggests they’ve been in the river for fourty-five years".

JJ furrowed her brow.

"Forty-five years?" she repeated "That’s unusual. Why are they asking for us? Don’t they usually handle cold cases themselves?".

Hotch nodded.

"Typically, yes" he replied "But this case is different. The remains belong to a man, a woman and a young child. All three skeletons have bullet holes in their skulls. Philadelphia PD believes this was a triple homicide, and given the age of the case, they need our expertise to piece it together".

Morgan leaned back in his chair, arms crossed.

"So, they’ve got skeletal remains and no leads? That’s a tough one, even for us" he commented.

Reid, flipping through a file Garcia had quickly compiled, spoke up.

"The fact that the bones were preserved in the river for so long is unusual" he said "The water’s acidity, the sediment—it’s remarkable they were found at all. The bullet holes in the skulls suggest execution-style killings. That kind of violence is deliberate and personal".

Emily leaned forward.

"And if this happened in 1963, it’s possible the killer or killers might not even be alive anymore" she added.

Hotch’s expression hardened.

"That’s what we need to find out" he replied "Pack your bags. We’re heading to Philadelphia".

●○●

Philadelphia, PA

The team arrived at the Philadelphia Police Department a few hours later.

Detective Jameson, a grizzled officer with twenty-five years on the force, greeted them.

"Thanks for coming" he said, shaking Hotch’s hand "We’ve got the remains at the morgue, but the scene where they were found is still being processed. It’s not much, though. Just a stretch of the riverbank where the bones washed up after last night’s storm".

The team followed Detective Jameson to the morgue, where the three skeletons lay on metal tables.

The sight of a tiny toddler’s bones sent a chill through the room.

Dr. Patel, the medical examiner, began her briefing.

"These remains were tangled in debris pulled from the river. We’ve done a preliminary analysis. The adult male was about 28 years old, as was the adult female. The child was around 2. All three were shot in the head, execution-style. Based on the sediment and wear on the bones, they’ve likely been in the river since 1963".

Rossi stepped closer to the table, examining the skulls.

"Are there any signs of restraint?" he asked "Or ligature marks?".

Dr. Patel shook her head.

"No" she replied "Whoever killed them likely shot them first and then disposed of the bodies in the river. The lack of other injuries suggests they didn’t fight back".

"In 1963, execution-style killings weren’t common for random crimes. This was personal, calculated" Reid intervened, his voice soft but steady "The question is why someone would kill an entire family, including a child".

JJ glanced at the tiny skull and shuddered. "Do we know who they were?".

Detective Jameson shook his head and handed Hotch a file.

"We found an old locket on the woman’s skeleton" he said "On the front there were the initials: H, M and G. It’s not much, but it’s a start".

Hotch passed the file to Garcia, who was already on her laptop.

"I’ll dig into property records, old photos, anything that might match those initials" she told him, already quickly tapping on the keyboard "If this family wasn’t reported missing, we’ll need to figure out why".

Morgan folded his arms.

"We also need to consider who might’ve wanted them dead" he said "If this was personal, the motive might lead us straight to the killer".

Hours later, as the team worked through leads, Detective Jameson entered the room, followed by a woman in her late thirties, with long red hair and brown eyes, her expression a mixture of concern and determination.

"This is Kelly Lawson" he introduced, then Kelly herself spoke up.

"My father, Michael Lawson, just heard about the skeletons found in the river and told me to come here" she explained "He's the older brother of Mary Elizabeth Anderson, and by the locket, he realised the remains must belong to her, her husband Howard and their son George".

"Why isn't he here himself, then?" Morgan couldn't stop himself from asking.

He didn't mean to sound rude.

He just thought that a person who had actually gotten to know the victims would have been more helpful than someone who wasn't even a thought at the time of their deaths.

"He is not that old, he is 76, but he is in a wheelchair. He and my mother haven't gone out much since she got sick two years ago. And he said he couldn't handle coming to see the skeletons" Kelly replied "But he told me to tell you he hadn't seen his sister or her family since September 2, 1963. They were supposed to move to Virginia the next day and when he woke up that morning, he thought they’d left town like they had planned. He never even thought something bad could have happened to them".

Emily stepped forward, her tone gentle.

"And do you know anything about that time from your father's stories? Did your aunt or uncle have any enemies? Anyone who might’ve wanted to hurt them?" she asked.

Kelly shook her head.

"No. Dad told me Howard and Marybeth were good people. They loved each other and adored their son. They were excited about the move. I don’t understand why anyone would do this" she told them.

Then, after a few more minutes questioning Kelly, she said goodbye to them with the promise to get in touch if she found out anything new and left the police station.

But although Kelly had described her uncle and aunt, and also her father, as good people, to the team, something seemed off about Michael Lawson.

They had no concrete reasons to doubt him, but a voice inside them was telling them that he knew more than he was letting on.

He was the first person they needed to go talk to.

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bincito · 1 year ago

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⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀rules & regulations.

⟡ byf: do not ask me "were you @/____?" because chances are, yes i was. i deactivate for a reason. do not rush me/ask me when i'll update something. i hate being perceived, and it makes me uncomfortable/unwilling to comply and create. women/fem identifying people dni. this is an n ( sfw ) account for male readers. there is no place for you here. people who report minors; dni. you were probably reading smut as a child as well. i'm literally atheist, god does NOT love me. autistic + trans + gay ( triple homicide ).

⟡ dni: proshippers, idol shippers, conflict starters, racists, transphobes, islamaphobes, sinophobes, homophobes, zionists, zionist supporters, stox people, pedos, perverts ( GAGS ), gore accounts ( pictures of sh, murd3r, etc. writing is fine with me, as long as it's within a certain sanity rubric.), people who feminize queer men because "they're girly anyways!" ( KILLLLLL YOURSELFFFFF ), stays, suju supporters, jay park stans, tlou stans, people who enjoyed jinx/read yaoi, he/him & they/them lesbian haters ( pronouns do not equal gender indentification. ), cringy ass red thoughts accounts.

⟡ i do NOT write: dub/non-con, r wording, vore, necrophilia, smut 4 minor idols/characters, pet play, bestiality, step/incest, idol ships, blood/scat/piss play, feminization, daddy kink, anything to do w pussies, fem reader, gn reader, spit kink, race play, pervert anything, pedophilia, teacher x student, yandere, bdsm, musk kink ( what the HELLLL ), foot kink ( what the hell pt 2 ), any other weird shit i haven't put on here.

⟡ i DO write: jealous idol, poly smuts ( not ones that ship them ), hate sex, under the influence sex ( both being under the influence, never one sided ), tutor and tutee, fluff, angst, horror, gore ( very rarely, & there will be various cw/tws for it ), fluffy smut, blow/handjobs, street racer au, smau, idol au, etc. anything you know is acceptable, i write.

#𝓋incente !#rules #regulations #dni #byf #i do/do not write #requests r closed btw #i'm afraid to take reqs #i'm also serious #don't ask ab my past blogs.#dpmo

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gaykarstaagforever · 10 months ago

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Wolfen (1981)

Based on this interaction, prompted by my review of Predator, I decided to seek out this movie I had never heard of before. It is available to rent for $4 on several streaming sites. But it is ALSO available via the Internet Archive to accidentally download the entire thing for free to my phone immediately, so I did that, and watched it.

And it fucking rules.

I have to spoil this shit to talk about it. It is a mystery story, so if you want to see it first without me having ruined it for you, go accidentally download it and watch it yourself.

Or DON'T, because that is stealing. And you shouldn't do that, even if Google makes it easy and simple to accidentally do that.

Ostensibly a werewolf movie, what Wolfen actually is is a slow-boil, hard-R police procedural set in the filthy ruins of 1980 NYC, where the murderer just happens to be a pack of immortal god-like wolves.

While that premise could immediately be B-movie territory, that isn't what happens here. This is more in the vein of The Exorcist or John Carpenter's The Thing, where average, messy people in the average, messy world get stuck dealing with some inexplicable nonsense they are utterly not prepared to deal with, but by gum, they have to anyway. Confusion and chaos ensue, and everyone who survives it comes out the other side physically scarred and mentally broken.

It's fantastic.

Albert Finney plays a "damn good" NYC police detective, forcibly retired due to an unexplored emotional breakdown, who is forced back into service because he is "the only one" who can hope to solve a brutal but inexplicable triple-homicide at Battery Park. He teams up with Diane Venora (Juliet's weird mother from the Baz Luhrmann's Romeo+Juliet), who works for the international private security company who was hired to protect the rich and well-connected murder victims, but failed to do so. As more brutal slayings start to pile up, they are further assisted by Gregory Hines as a forensic scientist, and Tom Noonan as a likeable but eccentric wolf-obsessed zoologist. The cast is as good as it could get in 1981, and that is very damn good indeed. The screenplay also employs them well, creating well-rounded human characters with engaging, fun interactions, at least until half of them are mauled to death by turbo ghost-wolves.

Edward James Olmos plays an ex-con Native American construction worker who knows exactly what is going on but won't admit to it until it after it doesn't matter, charismatically toying with Finney the entire time.

He has luxurious John Travolta hair, and gets naked and wet at one point. If you don't need to see that, I don't know how to talk to you.

He is part of another interesting (if ham-fisted and dated) aspect of this, a low-level commentary on race and class, including but not limited to how the US has treated and continues to treat Native Americans. It is done as well as a movie from 1981 made by white people was going to do that, and it does effectively tweak the emotional sympathies of the audience. Your personally milage will vary on how problematic you might think that is, but I thought it was at least a valiant effort, that sets the movie apart from standard fare.

Technically speaking, this is kind of a low-level masterpiece. It was shot on location in NYC, and everyone who worked on it was/is a filmmaker, so despite being mostly filmed in the drug-addled wasteland that was The Bronx at the time, it is beautiful and well-paced and scary when it needs to be and funny when it needs to be and even the saggy middle of the movie is not allowed to get boring. The James Horner score is mostly incidental, but hits hard when it needs to, just exactly suited to what this is and how it should work. This little movie is a masterclass in great filmmaking. Watch it solely for that, if nothing else.

No movie is perfect, and this is not. At nearly 2 hours, it is exactly a half-hour too long, with plenty of things that should have been cut as totally unnecessary. The production was troubled and the director was fired and replaced, specifically because he wanted it to be longer than the studio did. While it pains me to say it, the studio was absolutely right. Adapted from a novel or not, this is "exactly 90 minutes" material, and in no way benefits from another half-hour of visually impressive but plot-irrelevant guff.

The movie was recommended to me on the basis of it having way too many distorted "Monster Vision" POV shots. And it absolutely does. Now, compared to Predator, I think they are done better here, and actually serve something of a purpose, some of the time - we immediately notice the perspective means we're seeing things from a dog's view, it is playing a precise and gleeful hunting game with its victims, we see its presence impacting the behavior of other animals it comes across. All fine, but there is still twice as much of that as we need. Like, we get it. This is cheaper than showing the monster. Good job. Now stop.

There is also a continuous call-back to the security company's local base of operations, where they use magical NCIS computers to fill plot holes the screenwriter was clearly afraid we'd notice. I appreciate the effort, but I also hate this stupid magical-realism tech crap, essentially because it is always written by someone who has no idea how actual technology of the time works. I understand that in the early 80s, most people still thought of computers as mystical boxes that would just do everything in the next ten years. But they weren't, and they aren't, and tossing this nonsense in just raises distracting questions and overcomplicates everything in a rock-stupid way.

The plot-holes this is supposed to fill in could have been dealt with in better ways, or simply ignored, honestly. It was just an added expense that ended up being nearly entirely pointless.

The last problem may not necessarily be a problem, depending on who you are. The "monsters" here are magical wolves. But they are portrayed by...actual wolves. They're cool wolves and pretty wolves and good wolf actors, but if after an hour and 20 minutes you are expecting to see a gnarly werewolf puppet or guy in a costume or a stop-motion beast, you're shit out of luck. They're just wolves. I didn't mind because I'm a World of Darkness and wolf fan, but it does feel like they knew this was kind of a cop-out, so they waited until they absolutely had to to show them.

But if they're just wolves (physically), why not just show them earlier? All this build up for...kind of nothing. Certainly could feel a bit like "...That's it? Really?"

I mean they still snarl and there are all-black ones and an all-white one, and they still fly around and maul people, so it's okay. But it also is utterly that.

For a movie this good, which was also well-reviewed then and now, it being kind of lost is a real shame. I'm a huge fan of werewolves and werewolf movies, and I'd never even heard of it before. It apparently came out between The Howling and An American Werewolf in London, two movies that aren't as good but are certainly a lot more fun. That's a shame, because there should be room for all of them.

Solid A-. Go watch it. Just don't expect a shlocky action-horror movie. This one is trying to class up the joint, in its dark and grimy way.

#wolfen #1980s #werewolf #horror movie #movie review

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seattlereddit · 1 year ago

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Seattle residents express safety concerns as September homicide rate nearly triples compared to previous years

https://www.reddit.com/r/SeattleWA/comments/16wsaqo/seattle_residents_express_safety_concerns_as/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

#seattle

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beatlevmania · 5 years ago

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This is the most cursed photo I’ve ever seen in my whole life

Brb gotta wash my eyes out

#LOOK AT JOHN #WHY HIS FACE SO S Q U A R E #paul looks like he just committed triple homicide #no regerts amiright #george makes me want to gouge my eyes out #and im just not going to say anything about ringo.#i feel so bad for him #sorry ringo buddy #beatles cartoon

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billsfangearring · 3 years ago

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So you want to read about 2000s Harry Potter fandom drama

Let me introduce you to my favorite subreddit, r/hobbydrama, by way of posts about some of the most sordid moments in early Harry Potter fandom history.

Content warning: While most of these are amusing Internet dramas, the first one is genuinely awful, as will be clear from the summary.

I've put them in chronological order and pulled the summaries from the posts. Many thanks to everyone on Reddit who put these posts together!

Popular author turns out to be a cult leader (Late 1990s-2015*)

TL;DR: A famous fanfiction author turns out to be a real creep. He uses a lot of pseudonyms and sockpuppets, convinces some of his fans to move in with him, claims to mind-meld with fictional characters, insists his fanfiction is better than Harry Potter itself, and has questionable views on women. Oh, and he was involved in a triple homicide and used the girl's death for fun and profit.

*Edited to fix my "2005" typo. Sorry! Thank you @olderthannetfic for the catch.

The Cassandra Cla(i)re Saga (2000-2016)

TL;DR: The author of the fanfic trilogy that popularized “Draco in Leather Pants” is also a famous YA author, with a long, complicated history involving fandom drama and Ginny/Ron romance fic.

Married to Severus Snape on the Astral Plane: The Story of the Religion of Snapewives (early 2000s-early 2010s)

TL;DR: There was an actual religion centering on Severus Snape, who was portrayed as an eternal and divine being similar to the Christian God. It had theological arguments, early schisms, and its own vows and prayers, which were all taken completely seriously by its followers, the Snapeists.

Bored woman creates 12+ sockpuppet accounts, becomes a fandom celebrity (2002-2006)

TL;DR: Woman wants to be a part of the popular clique, uses a combination of ridiculous lies, made-up fangirls, and Christian strawmen sockpuppets to build up enough fame to join the popular clique. Is eventually exposed.

J.K. Rowling's husband's "fake" appendicitis, symbolic hippogriff romance, evil Chinese abortions, and the genetics of shipping the wrong ships: tales from the Harmony vs. Ronmione ship war (2005-2007)

A not-so-brief, still not at all comprehensive account of some of the earliest, stupidest Harry Potter shipping drama. Many thanks to the archived remnants of Fan Wank for detailing all of this, and to the people who made this extra funny by coming up with some of the most batshit ship names and insults I’ve ever seen. Merlin bless the good ship Ronmione/Romione/Heron/whateverthefuck, long may she sail. And, though the HMS Harmony/PumpkinPie/whateverthefuckelse capsized long ago, may her memory live on.

Goffick Harry Potter and Fabricated Child Abuse: The Saga of My Immortal (2006-2007, 2017)

Here’s another summary of ridiculous internet drama. This time, it involves Hermione Granger being an emo weaboo who speaks exclusively in broken Japanese, a satanist vampire Harry Potter whose scar has turned itself into a pentagram, a teenage girl’s shitty Mary Sue who gets darker and edgier with every passing chapter, and a YA author desperate to capitalize on the unlikely success of an infamous fanfic published a decade ago. Welcome to the increasingly weird saga of My Immortal.

#harry potter #hp fandom history #fandom history #fandom wank #my immortal #tbh I have no idea how to tag this #enjoy!

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sleaze4sleaze · 6 months ago

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Oh my god I just remembered what I was thinking about before passing out today. I was imagining how Abbott would react to me calling him ‘honeybee’ it’s so cheesy and in my head I can hear his voice as he asks “now why would you call me that?” Genuine curiosity with an amused smile, not offended but rather, intrigued. The rest of the conversation is embarrassing as hell so I’ll keep it to myself but the point is!! He’s cute and sweet with me and so so handsome gorgeous and somehow the loveliest to happen to me and I need him to know it. By calling him cheesy pet names

#the minister speaks #r: a triple homicide #I’ll shorten it to honey in certain circumstances #usually just around his friends and stuff #save the embarrassment for both of us #and that doesn’t bother me. I like having little secrets with him even if #it’s as simple as a pet name

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velvetpantylines · 6 months ago

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I want him to choke me. I’m thinking about asking him to do it in the moment, moaned out desperately before he stops to get me to repeat myself, a smile curving his lips and a twitch to the fingers gripping my waist before his expression falls to something between uncertain and teasing. I’ll manage to assure him. His lovely long fingers coming up to wrap around my neck, with the size of his hands it’s completely enveloped. Thinking about the dark yet loving look in his eye, an interesting realization forming deep down in him, tangled closely with my own

#it speaks #r: a triple homicide #ugh. I can’t get my words out today #choke me handsome. oh please

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aftertheskyy · 4 years ago

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Merlin as things my friends have said so far this summer

this trend is old but w h o c a r e s

Leon, pinching the bridge of his nose: I’m sorry but we can’t just go around talking about turtle porn

Leon: GWAINE NO Gwaine, eating a 12-layer Oreo sandwich: GWAINE YES

Morgana to Gwen: Look at us. We’re the couple with the sensible one and the one who wants to commit triple homicide!

Arthur: I don’t have a microwave. I have a trashed childhood.

Gwen, furiously baking cupcakes at 2 AM: I NEED MORE SPRINKLES THE RAINBOWS ARE FADING

Gwaine, trying to blow a balloon: Percival, I’m blowing but it’s not working! Percival: Well don’t make it sound like I'm the one with the problem here

Elyan: I have the urge to fly to foreign lands and become a drug dealer. I dunno, I really need adventure or I might combust

Morgana: Yes, it’s about murder. But you know what? It’s a vibe.

Merlin: I’m not even a disaster Slytherin, I’m just a disaster

#bbc merlin #merlin bbc #merlin incorrect quotes #merlin emrys #merlin #arthur pendragon #knights of the round table #knights of camelot

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leejungchans · 4 years ago

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— i have you.

word count: 4.1k

pairing: choi san x gender neutral reader ; mentions of other ateez members

warnings: explicit language, mentions of the pandemic, mentions of food, very slight mention of ghosts and possession (?)

genre: fluff, humour, non-idol au, university au, roommate au, friends-to-lovers au

notes: i was thinking of which idol to write for this, and then pink san happened and i just had to :’))) his pink hair is a d o r a b l e

summary: to put it simply, 2020 sucked. but perhaps 2021 will be kinder, especially with the company of one choi san.

a/n: happy new year everyone!! honestly it feels like a lot has happened in 2020, yet at the same time i feel like i haven’t done anything at all. 2020 was really hard for a lot of us, and i just want to say that i’m really proud of you for getting through another year!! remember it’s okay even if all you did was survive a day, it’s still progress, you tried your best, and that’s all that matters. i love you and i’m here for you, and i hope that 2021 will be a better year for all of us. wishing you all nothing but the best!! 💕

— 23:28

“No, no, no! Grab the onion! GRAB THE ONION! I NEED IT NOW!”

“I KNOW, I’M COMING! STOP SCREAMING!”

“SHUT THE FUCK UP! MY SOUP IS GOING TO BURN! SAN! SAN! SAN!”

“I SAID I’M COMING!”

“FUCK! IT’S BURNING! GET THE FIRE EXTINGUISHER! GET THE FIRE EXTINGUISHER!”

“WELL, WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MY FUCKING ONION?”

“PUT IT DOWN!”

“YOU JUST SAID—”

You screech incoherently as the timer counts down to the last few seconds. The scoreboard pops up and your expression sours when you see the less-than-satisfactory score you and San get.

Grabbing the nearest throw pillow, you whack your roommate and friend repeatedly with all your might, ignoring his yelps and pleads for you to stop. “This. Is. All. Your. Fault!” you seethe, landing the final blows before deciding to have mercy on San.

“My fault?” he echoes indignantly. “You told me to get the onion and I did!”

“Well, we didn’t need it anymore because the soup was going to burn down the whole kitchen!” You huff heavily, sinking into the sofa. “I am never playing Overcooked with you again. Mr and Mrs Kim are going to hate us even more now, by the way.”

You wince at the (very likely) chance of your neighbours giving you an earful tomorrow morning from all the ruckus you and San are making. To be fair, the two of you are highly competitive when it comes to Mario Kart and Overcooked, so you probably definitely deserve that impending talking-to.

In your defence, though, Mr and Mrs Kim complain about every little noise that emits from your apartment. One time, you sneezed (perhaps a little too loudly, but it was purely accidental!) at 2am while cramming for an exam, and as you were leaving for school the next morning, Mrs Kim stuck her little head out from their apartment next door and yelled at you for five minutes in the hallway, even as you apologised and tried to explain that you were going to be late for your exam.

Fuck university and the education system, but tuition is expensive, and your mom was going to have your head if she found out you missed an important exam because of a goddamn sneeze.

Your neighbours are also the reason for why it’s impossible to have company over, and why parties are to be held at Wooyoung and Yeosang’s place and their place only. If the former ever step foot into your apartment, Mr and Mrs Kim might genuinely commit a triple homicide. Wooyoung is loud.

Sometimes, you have half a mind to snap back at your grouchy neighbours and give them a piece of your mind, but your friend Seonghwa, who is also the person who introduced you to San in the first place, persuaded you not to many times, saying that it was better for everyone if you maintained a (somewhat) civil relationship with your neighbours.

Seonghwa has always been a much kinder person than you.

“We’ll just...not leave the apartment tomorrow,” your pink-haired roommate says half-jokingly, but you know you’re both considering the idea. Starting the new year with San holding you back from fighting your neighbours isn’t exactly a good idea.

— 23:32

“What do we do now?” You rest your head against the back of the sofa. It sucks that you were both stuck indoors for New Year’s Eve this year, but you know it’s the right thing to do. All day, you’ve had to put up with Wooyoung’s lamenting about how he now has to think of something for next year’s New Year’s Eve party that will make up the inactivity that has plagued 2020.

You don’t even know what to have for breakfast tomorrow morning, and that’s assuming you’ll get up before noon, which never happens unless absolutely necessary. New Year’s resolution: drink more water and fix your sleeping schedule? Will you stick to it? Ha, no. But it sure feels nice to be a part of something.

“I don’t know,” San replies, sounding defeated. “Any ideas?” Your night so far has consisted of ordering an obscene amount of takeout and pigging out on pizza, fried chicken and Chinese food. Hey, it’s the holidays and you survived another semester of (very draining) online classes. You deserve it.

Then, San suggested a round of Mario Kart to pass time until the fireworks show came on TV. One round turned to two, then three, and ended in a screaming match that definitely earned you both a lengthy complaint. After which you made the horrible mistake of switching to Overcooked, because people truly weren’t exaggerating when they said that the game ruins friendships. You might as well move out after that disaster of a match. How did the two university students manage to fuck up virtual soup that badly?

“Nope,” you reply, popping the ‘p’, “I think I’m just going to go on YouTube or something? Unless you’re up for another round.”

“Ugh, no way.” He sticks his tongue out at you as he tucks a throw pillow under his head. How mature of him. You also don’t know why he picked that cushion—it’s so scratchy and uncomfortable because of all the sequins on it, but it was a gift from Seonghwa and you think it looks pretty on the sofa. “You’re like, the worst Overcooked teammate ever.”

You scoff. “That’s rich coming from the person who couldn’t hand me a damn onion.”

San opens his mouth to retort, but his phone rings—the caller ID says that it’s Wooyoung, you should’ve known, they’re practically two peas in a pod—and he shoots you an apologetic yet pointed smile, as if to say “this conversation isn’t over yet” before stepping into the kitchen to take the call.

— 23:37

With nothing to do, you put on your AirPods (you really don’t use them enough for how much you paid for them) and click on a YouTube video about bullet journaling. It would’ve been interesting if you were more artsy, but even your stick figures look extra sad, so you start zoning out. Even with your headphones on, you can hear San’s voice from the kitchen as he cheerfully chats with Wooyoung about God-knows-what. You hope it’s about how much he sucks at Overcooked. Yes, you’re still somewhat bitter about it.

Just the sound of his voice makes you smile with contentment. It’s so warm, and happy, and—holy fuck, you’re so whipped.

You never really believed in fate, but you’re happy that it brought Choi San into your life, because now you can’t imagine it without him.

You remember being stressed as fuck almost a year ago. Your old roommate moved out because she decided to study abroad and you were in desperate need of a new one. Your job at the coffee shop on campus definitely isn’t the worst thing on Earth, but no way in hell can it pay for a two-bedroom apartment without an additional tenant.

Thankfully, your very kind friend Park Seonghwa told you that his friend was looking for a new place and that you should contact him. The very next day, you met Choi San at Star1117 Coffee right after your shift to discuss the details, and he seemed more than happy with the somewhat reasonable rent and location of your apartment, which was just a few bus stops away from the university. He was incredibly sweet and kind despite his sharp features which intimidated you at first glance, and you had a good feeling with him as a roommate.

That is, until you fucked up royally.

Just two weeks after San moved in, quarantine happened and your university reverted to online teaching. It wasn’t all too bad at first because you and San got along well even though you were still slightly awkward around each other, which was to be expected with new roommates.

Leave it to you to screw things up.

You returned from the supermarket one day with groceries, and once discarding your mask and washing your hands you decided to take a hot shower. Without giving it a second thought (or knocking), you swung the bathroom door open rather violently, only for your eyes to meet the widened ones of one Choi San who evidently just got out of said shower.

Oh, and he was half naked.

The two of you stared at each other with your mouths agape until you finally came to your senses. Screaming apologies at your poor roommate, you dashed back into your room and face-planted onto your bed, completely mortified and also feeling very sorry for San. He moved in weeks ago and he’s probably already contemplating on moving out after what just happened.

“You did what?”

“Joong,” you groan before covering your face with a pillow and letting out a muffled scream. “It’s not funny.”

Your best friend cackles at the other end of the phone. “Not to you,” he sneers, and you can picture his devilish smirk in your head. “How did you manage to make a fool of yourself already? Didn’t he just move in?”

“Fuck you, Kim Hongjoong. I might just replace you with Seonghwa as my best friend.”

“Oh no, I’m terrified,” comes the flat reply, and you just know Hongjoong is haughtily examining his nails like one of those snobby heiresses in movies. You decide to make a Google Form application and send it to Seonghwa first thing after the call. The title can be “New Best Friend Wanted”. Not the most creative, but you’re no Kim Hongjoong, so this is as good as it’s going to get.

“By the way, I’m thinking of dyeing my hair blue. Like, brighter-than-my-future kind of blue. Nice, right?”

“Are you seriously talking about your hair right now?” you ask incredulously. “In case you forgot, I walked in on my half-naked roommate and I don’t know what to fucking do!”

Your friend sighs deeply like he’s tired of your shit (which you have no doubt he is). “What else can you do? Just apologise again and act normal. I’m sure he knows it was an accident.”

“You don’t understand!” you wail. “The problem is that I have to face him every second of my life because we’re stuck in a tiny apartment together in quarantine!”

“I don’t know what you want me to say. Accidents happen, might as well take this as an opportunity to bond with your roommate, then maybe it won’t be so awkward anymore.”

What a supportive friend. Maybe you should send an application to Jongho too for good measure.

Deep down, you know Hongjoong is right, not that you’d ever admit it to his face. The logical thing to do would be to put this incident behind you and act like nothing had happened, and perhaps months later it’ll just be a fun little inside joke between you and San. That is, if he doesn’t hate your guts. You wouldn’t blame him if he does.

“So...the blue hair?”

“Good-fucking-bye, Hongjoong.”

Much to your best friend’s exasperation, you in fact did not act “normal” because you have the social skills of a slug. The atmosphere in the apartment was so awkward that each day made a part of you shrivel up on the inside. It didn’t help that you had nowhere to go unless absolutely necessary, as you had previously mentioned to Hongjoong. Seonghwa says you’re being irrational. Hongjoong says you’re being irrational and stupid. Friends, gotta love them.

You and San had your online classes in the comfort of your bedrooms, which was incredibly distracting when it wasn’t mandatory to turn on your camera and microphone. One too many times, you found yourself falling asleep halfway through a lecture, waking up to a “The host has ended the meeting” window on your laptop. Big yikes.

You only saw your roommate around mealtimes, where the two of you would exchange simple dialogue along the lines of “I’m ordering food, you want anything?”; or “I made some food, you want some?”; or “I’m going grocery shopping tomorrow, anything specific you want me to get?”

The two of you were polite and friendly, but in a distant manner. It made you feel as though the progress towards a friendship you had been making prior to the embarrassing bathroom incident had gone to waste. When you couldn’t sleep (or when you were procrastinating), you often wondered if you would ever gather the courage to break the ice (again).

Quarantine was getting terribly boring. Not being to see your classmates, professors (however shitty they may be), friends and family in person was starting to eat away at you. And while some of the customers at Star1117 Coffee were complete assholes, you missed being surrounded by the smell of coffee and fresh pastries.

Of course, you were extremely fortunate on a lot of levels, so it definitely felt wrong to complain. But you also couldn’t deny the isolation you felt from the lack of human interaction and being indoors every day aside from the occasional grocery run.

And you had a roommate who you spoke barely ten sentences to every time you had a conversation.

Hongjoong rolls his eyes at you, and you want to reach through the screen and smack him across the head. Speaking of your friend’s head, he stayed true to his word and dyed his hair bright blue, which reminds you of the time when his hair was fire truck red last year. Once a strawberry, now a blueberry.

He looks good. When does he not? Kim Hongjoong pulls everything off. It’s both admirable and annoying.

“Are you seriously telling me that you still haven’t made up with your roommate?” he asks with wide eyes. “Y/N, how are you surviving quarantine when you don’t even talk to the person you live with? You do realise he’s the most actual human interaction you’re getting besides the supermarket cashiers.”

“Easy, I don’t survive,” you answer glumly. You don’t have the heart to tell Hongjoong that you mostly use the self-checkout lane, so you don’t even talk to any of the workers at the store.

Your blue-haired friend frowns. “Come on, you can’t avoid San forever. Please, get off your ass, knock on his bedroom door and ask him to hang out. Watch a movie together, or something.” He ignores the way you wince. “If he’s an ass about everything, then you can go back to your room and drown your sorrows in cheap wine and instant ramen. Deal?”

A garbled groan escapes you. “Who are you, my mom?”

“I might as well be considering how you’d be even more of a walking crisis without me.”

You hate that he’s right. Hongjoong has helped you through more messes than you can count.

“Fine, deal. I’ll ask San to watch The Devil Wears Prada with me. I hope he has taste.”

Hongjoong makes a face. “Who hasn’t seen The Devil Wears Prada? That should be a crime at this point. It’s 2020.”

“Well, I’ve never seen Home Alone, so...”

“You’ve never—wait, what?”

You laugh nervously. “Oh, look at the time, gotta go hang out with my roomie! Bye, Joong! Wish me luck!”

“Y/N—”

You quickly hang up before tossing your phone to the side, and attempt to give yourself a pep talk so you can work up the courage you need. You’re mentally repeating the same monologue for what feels like the fifth time when you hear a soft knock on your bedroom door.

You stretch out your limbs while rolling off the bed and pad over to the door. Choi San’s sheepish smile greets you once you open it, his hands fiddling with a box.

“Can you help me dye my hair?”

“Any reason for dyeing your hair?” you ask in a pathetic attempt to break through the uncomfortable silence that settles between you and San. He’s sitting in front of the mirror in your small bathroom with you standing behind him, doing your best to coat every strand of hair with hair bleach. You feel like one of those awkward hairdressers who aren’t very good at making small talk with their clients. Oh, the pain.

San hums absentmindedly. “I’m going through a mid-life crisis.”

You snort. “Aren’t you twenty-one? Isn’t that a little too early to be having a mid-life crisis?”

“I’m here for a good time, not a long time.”

His deadpan delivery makes you guffaw. “Okay, big mood,” you say, grinning, and he returns your smile with his dimpled one through his reflection in the mirror.

The awkward silence that existed previously appeared to vanish as the two of you caught up with each other for what seemed like the first time in weeks, which was ironic considering, again, you fucking lived together. You shared funny stories from your online classes, like when someone from your Linguistics course randomly started singing without realising their microphone wasn’t turned off.

Dyeing San’s hair blonde took hours, but you thought all that time, as well as the horrible smell of the bleach and dye that probably killed more of your brain cells, were worth it because those few hours were more than enough for you to get to know your roommate. Choi San was sweet, funny, kind and very, very cute.

“What do you think?” he asks nervously as he ruffles his newly-dyed hair. You think it needs some styling, but that could wait for tomorrow because it was already 2am.

As if on cue, you yawn. “I think it suits you,” you say tiredly, but truthfully nonetheless.

Your now blonde roommate glances at the clock in the living room before turning back to you guiltily. “I’m sorry, I guess I lost track of time and didn’t realise how late it had gotten, or I wouldn’t have made you stay up with me just to dye my hair.”

“It’s okay,” you smile softly to reassure him, “it was fun talking to you. Um, sorry about...you know, the bathroom thing.”

San laughs loudly, but quickly covers his mouth with his hand to stifle the sound. “Is that why you’ve been avoiding me?”

Your cheeks feel hot from his teasing tone. “Yeah,” you admit, “I kinda felt bad that that happened to you when you just moved in, so...yeah.”

“Oh, thank God that was it,” San grins. “I thought it was because I did something wrong, but good to know that I didn’t so we can put this behind us. Do you have class tomorrow?”

“Only until eleven.”

The adorable dimpled smile makes a reappearance. “Great! We can make brunch together after class, sound good?”

You grin back. “Definitely. You’re cooking, though.”

“Fine, only because you helped me with my hair. But you’re not allowed to complain if I give you food poisoning.”

You haven’t known San for long at all, but you think you’d gladly suffer through the worst case of food poisoning if it meant seeing him smile.

(San tells you the next day that he has, in fact, never seen The Devil Wears Prada. The two of you remedy that over brunch.)

“Y/N. Y/N!”

Your head snaps up and your gaze meets San’s concerned one. “Oh, sorry, spaced out a bit. What’s up?”

His expression relaxes. “You scared me! I just got off the phone with Wooyoung and you were just staring blankly at yours. I thought you got possessed or something.”

He’s right, your phone screen had already gone blank from disuse ever since the YouTube video you were watching ended. Tapping on it, a few notifications pop up, mainly text messages from Hongjoong telling you that the fireworks show broadcast is starting soon.

“What would you do if I was possessed?”

San looks at you as though you asked him the stupidest question to ever exist. “Uh, pack up my shit and move in with Wooyoung. Duh.”

“At least call an exorcist first before leaving! Some friend you are,” you grumble.

Your roommate giggles as he joins you on the sofa once again. “Sorry, but you know I don’t fuck with ghosts and shit. I don’t know how you manage to watch Buzzfeed Unsolved alone in your room. In the dark, you heathen.”

You shake head in amusement and turn to the TV.

— 23:55

“Five minutes,” you breathe. The screen shows the city’s skyline as the announcer reports on the lack of crowds in the city centre due to the pandemic, and that the fireworks show will begin soon.

“Oh, shit! Hold on!” Before you can respond, San scrambles off the sofa and disappears into the kitchen. He reappears seconds later, holding two steaming mugs and carefully makes his way back to you.

You peer into the mugs when he sets them down on the coffee table. Hot chocolate with a shit ton of whipped cream on top.

“Almost forgot that I made these when I was in the kitchen talking to Woo earlier,” he says with a big smile, plopping down next to you, your crossed legs barely touching. “Start off 2021 with something sweet, you know?”

You gingerly pick up one of them and take a small sip. The rich, chocolatey beverage warms your entire being and makes you sigh contentedly. “Choi San, you are an angel.”

“I know. You’re so lucky to have me as a roommate.”

A playful scoff leaves your lips as you take another sip, but you are well aware that you indeed are very, very lucky.

“2020 really sucked, huh?” you ask, voice coming out much more vulnerable-sounding than you intended.

A few beats of silence passes before San responds. “Yeah, it did. Not that 2021 will automatically solve everything, but it will better, I think.”

His usually wide smile is now much gentler and you can only faintly see his dimples, but much like the hot chocolate he made, it brings you warmth and a feeling of hope. That maybe, just maybe, the new year will be better, or that you’ll at least be more adept at overcoming challenges. You have 2020 to thank for that.

— 23:58

Your pink-haired friend nudges you with his elbow. “Plus, I met you in 2020, so some good came out of it! I know I tease you a lot and we have the occasional roommate squabble, but you really are an amazing friend and roommate.”

You grin. “Are you going soft on me?”

San’s eyes narrow at you as he shifts to the far end of the sofa. “Way to ruin the moment,” he pouts. “Keep this up and I’m moving out next year. Good luck finding a roommate as incredible as I am.”

You snort at his theatrics. “I’m just kidding, you drama queen. You’re really great too, I hope you know that,” you say the last part genuinely, hoping he understands just how much you appreciate having him in your life.

He returns to his previous spot beside you. “That’s good, because I really like you, and I can’t think of anyone better to start the new year with.”

The sincerity in his tone stirs up something within you, and all the fondness you have for Choi San bubbles to the surface.

— 23:59

Was he always this close?

“I really like you,” San repeats, his voice now a whisper, breath lightly fanning your face.

“Ten! Nine! Eight—”

“I really like you too, San.”

That’s all it takes for his eyes to form adorable crescents and for him to gently press his lips to yours.

— 00:00

You two part just as the TV announcer yells out a jovial “Happy New Year”, and you watch in fascination as the city centre lights up with fireworks.

San’s arm wraps around your shoulders as his head moves to lean against yours. “Happy New Year,” he mumbles, fluffy pink hair tickling the side of your forehead.

Your cheeks hurt from smiling so widely while you wrap your arms around his torso, settling comfortably to his side.

“Happy New Year, San.”

You truly hope that 2021 will be the year that brings health, happiness and healing. Even if not, you feel invincible and ready to take down everything as long as San is by your side. And you know that no matter how shitty 2021 may be, he has you by his side to support him through all of it.

Just as how you have him.

(The next day, as the two of you leave your apartment to check the mail and take out the trash after brunch, Mr and Mrs Kim, as you had predicted they would, come out of theirs to give you a good scolding for all the noise you made last night while playing video games. You can’t see San’s face behind his mask, but you can tell from the glint in his eyes that he is thoroughly amused. His hand slips into yours to pull you away, shouting “Happy New Year!” over his shoulders before your grouchy neighbours can stop you.”

a/n: if you like my work and you’re comfortable with doing so, it would be great if you could reblog it and/or give me some comments/feedback!! (i don’t bite agjsha!!) any kind is highly appreciated and i’m honestly so grateful that some of you like my work!! thank you so much for your support and i hope to do even better in the new year 💕 stay safe and take care!!

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