#rafa writes

[this-sapphic-paradise]

Something Christmas themed for Emily/Sue?

Like sharing caught kisses, they blame on getting caught under mistletoe or something like that.

Emily unfolded the little scrap of paper she had been hiding all day in her pocket ever since Sue had slipped it into her hand that chilly December morning.

She was careful not to rip it, tender with the parchment as if Sue herself could feel every touch of her fingertips. The handwriting was one she would be able to recognize anywhere on Earth; one so familiar, it had pierced her skin like the thorn from a rose — so beautifully intended, yet sharp and unforgiving — and carved itself into her heart.

"Midnight tea. -S"

It was all that was written, but it was not all that it said, no. To Emily, it said:

"My beloved,

"Your absence is a presence in and of itself; it lingers in the shadows, it stalks and lurks just outside where my sight can reach; always present, always felt.

The cold winter air has nothing on the frigid temperatures that takes hold of me lying beside someone who is not you.

I cannot withstand this freezing void any longer. Please meet me tonight so together we may know what warmth feels like again.

Forever yours,

-Sue"

Smiling to herself, Emily folded the paper again, neatly slipping it under her mattress before dawning her robe and quietly tiptoeing down the stairs of her Amherst home to make her way into the kitchen.

The soft glow of flames gave the room such an inviting atmosphere that for a second, upon laying her eyes on Sue, Emily felt like one of her dearest flowers in the greenhouse — bathed in warmth and light, ready to be watered and nurtured by the one person whom she loved.

"You came." Sue all but whispered, meeting Emily halfway into the kitchen.

"I always will." Emily breathed out, eagerly holding Sue's hands. "Whenever you summon me, I will always come."

Sue could never understand how Emily was always able to find the correct words to move her. She wondered if God had blessed the woman with such a boon, or if He had cursed her with always being weak to Emily's whims. Whatever the answer was, however, Sue could not deny the thunderous beat of her heart or how it drowned every other noise the nighttime brought upon their home now that Emily was touching her.

"I..." Her eyes roamed over the delicate features of Emily's face and she rued not being a poet herself to put into words what her heart desperately ached to express, settling on an awfully shallow, "I missed you."

If only she knew, if only Emily had been made aware to warn her, Sue would have known that despite having an affinity for words, Emily did not need them to feel, for you see, a poet is someone who is moved by beauty in its many forms. And to Emily Dickinson, Susan Gilbert was the epitome of beauty in its full fluidity.

Emily smiled unabashedly, her hands moving, enveloping Sue in a starving embrace.

"Not nearly as much as I've missed you." She grinned, slowly leaning down to claim the lips of the one who had become the reason she both yearned for Death and prayed He would delay in His coming for her.

Matching her smile, Sue let her eyes flutter closed, whispering, "Merry Christmas, Em," before kissing her beloved, hoping her lips would be able to express that way everything they could not say.

[iliothermia]

Was sent a pic of my book cover for @nicosraf's book Angels Before Man in a real book store and I wanna cry.. My art in real store wow

[feral-ballad]

Rafa Matar, tr. by Sayed Gouda, ed. by Kate Rogers and Viki Holmes, from Not a Muse: The Inner Lives of Women: A World Poetry Anthology; "Strength"

[Text ID: “I write and write… and write. / And afterwards / I lose myself in a mass of words. / I cannot find myself. I cannot find you. / I have lost you with an exhausted strength, / And have consumed my reserves with longing, / And it has become fear. / As strength fades softly away, / I find harmony in lost love— / We exchange sadnesses, / And my strength recollapses / With a new force. / I come back… and write… and write…”]

[kryptonbabe]

Further study

Intense study

He smelled amazing

Oh Lois, I see you're the same obsessed woman in every universe, don't ever change

From Absolute Superman #2 (2024)

[rangersoup]

So anyway, I’m forever bitter that they snuck in that little piece of Carlos lore about him being good with horses, and then never had him do anything with horses. I’m a horse girl with horse girl needs. And Owen did not satisfy those needs.

[a-swiss-and-a-spaniard]

Grigor “I think it's nice when you see the guys when they're like strong with big, big legs” Dimitrov (x)

[sailorsally]

All of this letter is absolutely wild but this whole paragraph and this sentence particularly has me in a chokehold

[bubblepopsims]

~Bunny Bear Madalyn Marie ft. bunny boop

i couldn't pass up on not putting my bun in these accessories by @1-800-cuupid CC set💘Bunny Bop || VENUS💘

and fits perfectly with my naughty innocent Maddi

[janesurlife]

Imagine being 17 years old and being told that you may never be able to do this one thing that you love SO MUCH ever again. I couldn't..... Rafa is something else. He'll always be an inspiration for not just tennis players or fans but anyone who is fighting against impossible odds. You have to be persistent, keep fighting... fight hard enough and miracles will happen. “Victory belongs to the most tenacious” remember that, Rafa is the literal embodiment of that quote.

[rqgnarok]

did someone say barba/price/reader love triangle?

Rafael isn’t proud of it– he makes slow work of gathering his things to watch you tap your knuckles on Price’s desk from the corner of his eye. Barba grits his teeth when said man makes a pleased sound at the sight of you, brows raised. “If you’re here to ask for a life sentence, forget about it,” Nolan says, though his voice and lopsided smirk are nothing but teasing. “They’re giving out parking tickets right now in the next room, maybe you’ll get some luck there from some poor sucker who just passed the bar.” “Funny, don’t quit your day job,” you quip back. Still, you’re nervous, Barba knows you enough to tell. You’re still tapping your knuckles against the wood, a gentle, senseless rhythm to keep you grounded. “I wanted to thank you, actually. I know the family already did, but still. It was a good thing to do. Brave as hell.” “Stupid, others might say,” Nolan finally looks at you and doesn’t see a hint of a joke in your features, softens. “It was the right thing to do.” “You could’ve said no. Most people would’ve,” a moment, then– “Most people did, actually. You were the first and only crazy enough to even consider it.” “You can go to the part where you thank me, now,” he says.  Your lips stay tugged up into a smile, helpless against his charm. Barba wonders if he can get the guard standing outside to shoot him so he doesn’t have to witness this. “Thank you, Price. It means more than you know. You brought someone’s son home today.” “You gave me the chance,” he turns the tables on you, leaning into you and eyes gazing into yours, terribly honest and enchanting. Barba hears you exhale shakily and crumbles up the papers in his hands without meaning to. “I forget sometimes why I took this job. Thank you for reminding me.” “Alright, well,” you shift in your place, a little overwhelmed with his attention. “Still. If there’s anything I can do for you–” “Have dinner with me,” he interrupts. Rafael finally gazes up, directed by surprise alone. Neither of you notice– you’re speaking in low voices and no one else in the mostly vacated courtroom can hear you– and it’s then he realizes how badly he’s intruding. If Rafael were to speak up he thinks you’d struggle to even remember his name.  “What, now?” Nolan shrugs. “Yeah, now. You got anything else going on?” Barba had been planning on buying the first round at Forlini’s. “No,” you say, sounding far, far away. “No, nothing at all.” “I’m not kidnapping you here, am I?” he asks, suddenly hesitant. “If that’s not where this is going…” “It’s where I’d like it to go,” you admit, suddenly brave, mending Nolan’s heart and breaking Rafael’s all in one swoop.  “Okay, then,” he says, giddy, and he walks you out of the courthouse with a prep in his step Rafael abhors.  He hates it even more that Nolan’s a nice guy– a decent enough lawyer, he’d admitted to Liv earlier, half compliment half complaint. Price was already working for the defense but Barba hadn’t thought this was a field he’d compete in, too. He’s been struggling enough on his own for your affections, what will he be to you now that Nolan’s filling the space he’s always wanted to? Rafael knows this game well. He played it with Yelina and lost. He’s not sure he’d survive losing it again. 

[radiantcircle-if]

💘 HEART W/ ARROW - what traits do they look for in a relationship? do they believe in love at first sight?

i tried to be more general rather than answer about mc but made a note if there's potential for mc to be their exception. answering the second question first...

believes in love at first sight: gazi

yep just gazi (atp) lmao now for the first question.

out of all of the ROs, gazi is probably the only one who is looking for relationships. they believe in love and want to be in love. they love love. they look for people who are fun to be around, supportive and responsive, and physically affectionate. they look for people they can trust, who can they be completely vulnerable and themself around, who love openly and honestly.

emotionally unavailable #1 césar looks for reliability, dependability. his plans for the night circle include him getting married, having/adopting kids, raising the next night luminary while raising the status of the night circle. if he's going to have a relationship, it likely won't be about love but about realizing his dream and goals. he needs someone at his side who has those dreams and goals as well and can be counted on to walk the path alongside him. if love happens past that, it happens (ofc it will happen with mc).

emotionally unavailable #2 rather than looking for a relationship, rafa tends to chase what's fun, interesting. if he's going to be in a relationship with someone, they'd have to be fun, they'd have to keep his attention and interest. he likes a little mystery. he likes trying to figure out an enigma. in his experience, he usually figures out people pretty fast, and then he gets bored and doesn't let them truly know him. if he falls in love, it'll be with someone who found a way to read him despite all that (and ofc mc knows how).

deniz isn't looking for relationship(s) but hopes that one day they'll find someone who is patient and understanding (or more than one someone, if they're lucky). they know they can get really into their work, that their tunnel vision and hyperfocus might make someone in a relationship with them feel lonely. they need someone who will get that about them and navigate that complexity together. if that means their partner also sees other partners, that's okay with them.

emotionally unavailable #3 noel has been content to live without a single connection in the world for a really long time, and she would be content to continue living that way. there was a time, when she was young enough to still live at home, that she thought she'd fall in love and get married and have kids. she doesn't see that for herself anymore. so in a relationship, she's looking for something that's easy, lowkey, unobtrusive, for someone who'll go with her flow and never get in her way (and mc knows how to be that).

[this-sapphic-paradise]

Being hella sleep deprived and hyperfixating on something is a strange combo, my guys

[rafasbiscuits]

do you think roger is crying just as hard as us that's why he's not appearing in public just yet??

[papayafiles]

okay. tennis rpfers. i get you. you win.

[melk917]

Slow dancing in the living room

[sailorsally]

I need a fedal fic where they are both retired and casually spending time in each other's company. Rafa goes to Switzerland to spend his winter holidays there and Roger comes to Mallorca to enjoy some sunshine. One evening Rafa cooks, the whole family is there and it's loud and they have some wine and then sneak out to take a breather and Rafa tells Roger "Come. I want to show you" and he leads Roger down this secluded path towards the shore. He stops looking out to where the purple sky meets the blue waters and smiles to himself. "Here. I had my first kiss". When he turns around he sees Roger's looking at him. The intensity makes him grow shy suddenly, "Ah. was long time ago," he says waving his hand away when suddenly Roger is in his space and the next thing he knows he is being kissed.