#ricky bowen sick

[ginaporterr]

@rinacentral — EVENT 1: FAVORITES ♡ favorite song GINAPORTERR'S 1K CELEBRATION ♡ @glitterjuj asked: maybe this time or LOVE YOU FOREVER

[rickybowensfever]

sneak peak for tomorrow's sicktember post!

For everyone requesting more ricky bowen/hsmtmts fics, i know i've been focused on tsitp, but that's just my interest at the moment. Tomorrows #sicktember fic is featuring Ricky!

Day 4 is “Great. I Got a Cold for My Birthday.”

[haven-of-dusk]

Apologies everyone, but I'm writing a Caswen thing and my head is thus spinning with headcanons, and I need to share/dump them somewhere so...

Physical touch is one of their biggest love languages. Ricky has always enjoyed it immensely, but realized very quickly that EJ was a little uncomfortable with it due to his history, so Ricky eased him back into it slowly, and now anytime they're able to they'll usually be draped around each other in some way (arms around the shoulder, heads in lap, cuddled on a couch, leaning while standing, waist holding, etc).

Related to the previous one, EJ adores Ricky's curls and can play with them for hours. And it works out well since Ricky LOVES when EJ does so. And no one else. Ricky was practically hissing like an irate cat when Seb once tried.

Once married, they go by Richard and Elton Bowen, though their official name is Caswell-Bowen, having dropped the Caswell part until Cash dies and EJ feels he can reclaim the name from his father's abusive legacy.

EJ eventually worked his way up to a couple masters degrees in English and Education (with minor focus in film studies) and became a professor at a highly acclaimed college. Ricky got to a masters in psychology (with a lot of help from his husband) and now works for a local practice, while also teaching piano lessons in his spare time.

For one Valentine's Day, they both forgot to get presents, and thus both showed up with guitars in hand to use a ballad as a substitute. It was a very adorable afternoon.

EJ is the only person allowed to call Ricky 'Dick Bowen'

Ricky is a habitual sweatshirt stealer. EJ occasionally retaliated by stealing Ricky's own sweatshirts. Ricky also has pretty much permanent ownership of EJ's letterman jacket.

EJ is the little spoon most often.

EJ introduced Ricky to knitting (with a little help from Gina), which Ricky quickly fell in love with and now they can occasionally be found having quiet moments near the waterfront where EJ reads and Ricky knits.

Big Red and Gina had a feud about who would give the toast at the wedding, before it was eventually decided that they couldn't agree and the task was given to Maddox instead.

They struggle with movie nights because one or both of them usually falls asleep.

EJ is the only other person in the friend group to know Big Red's real name, which Big Red only agreed to because Ricky practically begged.

Ricky is indecisive as to what his favourite part of EJ is, but it's somewhere between his eyes or his smile.

Ricky once got sick right before a group skiing trip and EJ decided to stay behind and tend to him for a full week. He even rigged up a call button like in hospitals. (To be clear, this was an above average case of the flu)

Ricky is a fantastic cook, EJ is a fantastic baker.

It's an ongoing debate/competition which one of them has the bigger/better heart eyes.

[winterswhumpblr]

Ricky Bowen Whump List

Played by Joshua Bassett

From the Disney+ show 'High-school Musical The Musical The Series'.

A/N: This whole show is based on the drama club at East High, so there is a lot of singing and performing. If you enjoyed Glee, you'll probably enjoy this show. If you're not into singing in media, however, then this isn't the show for you.

S1.1: nervous, confused, upset, told upsetting news, (flashback: in shock) sad, annoyed, anxious, told potentially upsetting news regarding his parents, (flashback: in shock, eyes wide, stuttering, anxious) nervous, discussing strained relationship with parents saying 'I love you' to each other, upset, sad,

S1.2: upset, arguing with ex, looks sad, talks about how things at home are weird at the moment, looks sad

S1.3: sad, worried, upset, causes another student to bleed on their lip, feeling bad and guilty, told some harsh things, looking sad and upset

S1.4: upset, stressed, finally seeing his mum after ages, finds out his parents are divorcing and his mum is moving away, upset, emotional, sad, rushing to rehearsals, goes in late and gets told off, looks visibly not ok, talks about how his parents are splitting, upset, looking not ok, told to go home, stays the night at a friends, talks about struggling to cope when everything is different, struggling to sleep, staying over at his ex's house, looks on the verge of tears, upset, leaves and wanders around alone at night, ends up going home, upset, on the verge of tears,

S1.5: looking after his dad, clearing the house, lashing out at someone else, feeling bad, mentions of him liking theatre because it gives him somewhere else to go as a respite,

S1.6: stressed, gives an idea and it gets rejected by everyone, sad, stressed, upset he might not be able to continue the show,

S1.7: Mentions of his mum wanting him to contact her first, stressed, calls his mum and a different person answers, confused, stressed, anxious, being checked up on, discussing his feelings, stressed, anxious,

S1.8: spaced out, stressed, semi stressful back and forth with ex

S1.9: panicking, seeing his mum and her lover together, in shock, anxious, freaking out, anxious, concern for him, shaking, visibly looking unwell, freaking out, anxious, looking sick and pale, letting the understudy be the lead instead of him,

1.10: pacing, stressed, anxious, upset, confrontation with his mother, upset, sad, anxious, concern for him, "I'm really not my best", anxious,

S2.1: finding out they're moving houses, stressed, sad

S2.2: sad, told he's unreliable,

S2.3: sleepy, tired, running, stressed,

S2.6: anxious, concern for him, talks about not being able to handle changes, lashes out,

S2.7: feeling upset, fight with his girlfriend

S2.8: stressed, fighting with his gf, stressed, yelling, upset, hurt by his gf, mutually breaking up with his gf even though he loves her, sad, upset, crying, going to his best friend for comforting, sobbing, being comforted, silently crying,

S2.9: sad, depressed, wallowing in bed, giving little clues as to what happened with his gf to his mum, sad, discussing how his mum hurt him last season,

S2.10: concern for him, looking visibly upset and sad, looking super sad, putting himself down, talking about his feelings slightly and how he hasn't been looked at lovingly in a while, helping a friend make up with their bf, lifted from a wire high into the air, rope snaps, he falls to the ground, groaning in pain

S2.11: wearing a wrist brace, stressed

S2.12: sad, sweet moment with Ms Jenn, looking dejected

S3.1: upset, in an argument, leaving,

S3.3: startled, scared, screaming,

S3.4: upset, argument, storms off

S3.5: told to act like a 'jilted' ex, acting up, mentions of him looking genuinely heartsick, discussing how he struggles saying what he feels, mind blown, gets filmed talking about his crush on someone,

S3.6: startled away, panic mode, rushing to fight what he thought was an intruder, concerned, helps his crush plan a surprise for her bf, looking dejected, crying silently in bed, turning away from others, looking sad, concern for him, wiping his tears

S3.7: forcing himself to eat 3 whole pizzas back to back for his birthday bucket list, in shock, throws up offscreen, not confessing his feelings for his crush for her sake,

S3.8: woken up startled for his birthday (super cute), upset, pissed, watches the trailer of the documentary, shocked,

S4.1: stressed,

S4.3: visibly looking stressed out about his future/college, visibly looking anxious,

S4.4: upset gf hid that they were dating in front of her mom, storms off, sad, upset, asked if he's okay, stressed, sweet moment between him and miss jenn,

S4.5: pacing, stressed, anxious, mentions of him looking terrible, looks like he'll have a panic attack any second, concern for him, ranting about all his struggles, super anxious, venting, "I'm tired of losing people", given advice and there's a mention of how a lot of people are worried about him but he never lets them and reach out too, crying, getting soaked with rain, sad, upset,

S4.6: sad, crying, told he'll need to work super hard to get into college, stressed

S4.7: pacing, practicing his speech to FL, finds out upsetting news, anxious, hurt

S4.8: anxious, out of it, concern for him, anxious, looks visibly not okay, panicky, pale,concern for him, talking about how happy the theatre has made him, crying, emotional, sobbing, stressed,

Side note - Genuinely, Ricky has become one of my favourite comfort characters. The acting for his character is superb, and his struggles are super relatable. It's a good show that deals with a lot of mixed topics, and there is whump for other characters too, but Ricky is the main whumpee who goes through it consistently.

[jaynedolluk]

BOOKS OF 2022

Yes, you read correctly. I'm a ninny and forgot to post this last year so I'm posting it now so I can get all caught up. (2023's list is coming soon)

I got books on Inside No. 9 and Blake’s 7 (two of my favourite TV shows) plus a book about Alice in Wonderland (inspired by the V & A exhibition) and one about how Disney was inspired by rococo art (based on the exhibition that I think was held at the Wellcome but I could be wrong).

Also read Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen’s book, More More More which examined the art of maximalist interiors and Runway Bird by Irina Lazareanu which was sort of a style guide to being a rockstar’s girlfriend. I read Growing Up. Sex in the Sixties which looked at sex in society/popular culture at this time and Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall. I read Zoe Howe’s guide to witchcraft, Witchful Thinking plus Lisa Kroger + Melanie R. Anderson’s 2nd book, Toil and Trouble, which looks at notable women in the occult in America. Plus Dress Code by Veronique Hyland

Also managed to bag a copy of the book of Velour (the drag magazine) when I went to see Sasha Velour perform. I read And the Category Is by Ricky Tucker which examines the ballroom drag culture + voguing plus How You Get Famous by Nicole Pasulka which looked at the rise of some of the drag queens from the Brooklyn scene + the impact of Drag Race.

Read The Queer Bible which has various LGBT+ celebrities talking about the different people who inspired them and a couple of books which looked at the rise of lesbian popular culture in the early 2000s – The 2000s Made Me Gay by Grace Perry and Girls Can Kiss Now by Jill Gujowitz.

I don’t tend to read that many novels but I did read some really good ones this year – My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Yinka Where’s Your Husband? How to Kill Your Family and The Albion Initiative (the final part of the Newbury & Hobbes series of steampunk detective novels with an occult twist). And I finally managed to get round to reading Shuggie Bain (which I loved) as well as tracking down copies of The Elementals (Southern Gothic horror novel) and Interfictions (which contains the story about Nancy Spungen called Rats).

I read memoirs by Joan Collins + Esme Young (from Great British Sewing Bee) as well as an excellent biography on Jayne Mansfield called The Girl Couldn’t Help It and an oral history about Antony Bourdain called Bourdain.

I do tend to read a lot of music books. I read memoirs by Kid Congo Powers and Miki Berenyi plus Bodies by Ian Winwood (which looked at how the music industry affects mental health mixed in with his own story) and Exit Stage Left by Nick Duerden (which looked at what happened to a variety of stars after their fame dwindled). Also read Southend on Zine by Graham Burnett which was a history of fanzines in the Southend area which included interviews with a lot of the zine makers + touched on the history of alternative music/culture in the area.

One of my favourite books this year was Millenium Gothic by Dorian Bridges (known as of herbs and altars on YouTube) which deals with her growing up as a goth in the 00s but also deals with her mental health issues including anorexia and self harm. Another couple of favourite authors returned with second memoirs, Emma Forrest with Busy Being Free and Amy Liptrot with The Instant. Also Ione Gamble (who does the Polyester website + zine) wrote a brilliant book of essays called Poor Little Sick Girls which I highly recommend.

[melodyplucked]

[ 🎵 ] is there a specific song or songs you associate with your muse? why is that?

honestly, there are a lot... in their own ways... but i'll give you three rn because... why not... i am ALWAYS happy to talk about songs i relate to ricky bowen haha.

smoke slow by joshua bassett-

in the whole like- "she holds my guitar as i pluck out a melody" aka the basis for my url... and the like- musician ricky and the Closeness he craves and the way music plays such a big role in his emotions... but akso like- just- "take your time while you're mine..." and his abandonment issues tm and how he's scared of anyone he loves leaving... and that feeling of like- holding on tight but- knowing this could be all he ever really gets... and being willing to take what he can get even when he knows deep down it's gonna hurt...

sk8er boi by avril lavigne...

in a few ways tbh- even beyond just- obviously he's a skater boy... and i tbh should get into that aspect of things more bc idk if i've written out that headcanon on this blog before about his competitive days or not... because that Was a thing for my ricky... and not one i talk about too much bc- musician!ricky is a big part of my thing... but like "he was a skater boy..." and then "but now he's a superstar, slamming on his guitar, does your pretty face see what he's worth" and just ... the whole aspect with ricky of how he's CONSTANTLY put down and either devalued or underestimated... like "no profitable skills" and like- "you can't zefron your way into this one" and how they all act like he's shit and doesn't deserve anything he gets... but- he grows up to BE SOMEONE and that whole aspect of my ricky's character just !!! means a lot. ricky's not particularly ambitious but- he wants to be loved gosh darnit.

brutal by olivia rodrigo

this song gives me ricky vibes- which is kinda funny because it's a liv song... but- ricky would love it... and relate to it v much so... and like- while i'm not necessarily going to point out certain lyrics exactly rn... just- the generalized... lack of faith from others... and ricky's anxiety and depression... and just- everyone's disappointed in him but they also expect him to do the things but he's never gonna get praised because he didn't deserve it anyway... and just- what's there to enjoy? when his mom left and no one who's supposedly his friend actually supports him. i'm so sick of seventeen and where's this whole "the best years of my life" aspect gonna actually kick in. because high school is kinda sucking... he's doing his best out here your honor. even if it's not good enough for anyone else... where is the youth he's supposed to be enjoying?

[heartsoulrocknroll]

AEW Dynamite 1/4/23 

Chris Jericho vs. Ricky Starks -- Starks comes in hot out of the gate. Starks is on the apron, and Jericho springboards off the ropes, but Starks halts him with a big forearm! Jericho lands a suplex on Starks off the apron to the floor! Back in the ring, Jericho bounces Starks' head repeatedly off the turnbuckle! They trade chops and elbows in the middle of the ring!!! Sit-out powerbomb by Starks! Lionsault by Jericho, but Starks gets the knees up! Superkick from Starks! Cover, but Jericho kicks out! Codebreaker by Jericho lands!!! Jericho attempts a Judas Effect, Starks tries to counter into Roshambo, but Jericho turns the tables again and locks in the Walls! Starks crawls toward the ropes, but Parker stops him with a bat to the face!! Starks looks like he is out!! Ref lifts his arm. The arm drops to the mat twice, but he keeps it up the third time!! Roll up by Starks, and Jericho barley lifts his shoulder up! Starks lands a tornado DDT, takes out Mernard and Parker on the apron, and then lands a huge spear on Jericho!! Cover!!! 1, 2, 3!!! Wow!!!!!! Jericho loses again!!!!! Good match here and nice finish. Rating: 3.5

JAS comes out to attack Starks after the match! Action Andretti comes out to save Starks and avenge himself, with a burn still on his eye from the fireball. He gets a low blow from Tay Melo, and Starks gets powerbombed through a table. 

Hangman Page tells Schiavone that he is not yet cleared to compete, but he will be by next week if he doesn't get into a brawl with Moxley beforehand. Out comes Moxley! Moxley cannot get a functional mic. Lmaaoooo. Moxley says he is sick of the flowers and the sympathy cards and the candlelight vigil for Page just because he got knocked out. Page says he isn't mad at Moxley for knocking him out. That's part of what they do. Hangman says he is angry, because, when he came face to face with Moxley after the knock out, Moxley didn't let him get a word in before making a joke. Page wasn't there for revenge then, but he is now. Moxley says the only joke is that Hangman thinks next time is going to be any different. Next time, he is going to make sure Hangman doesn't get back up.

The Acclaimed (c) vs. Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett for the AEW World Tag Team Championship -- This is a fine match. Good action from The Acclaimed and Lethal, but the mere presence of Jeff Jarrett, who is too senile to know which corner to stand in, takes it down many notches. Bowens with a nasty rolling elbow to the back of Lethal's head to counter Lethal Injection. Jarrett lands the Stroke on Bowens and covers. Bowens gets his foot on the rope, but Dutt knocks it off. The ref doesn't see this and calls for the bell. Wtffffff. Aubrey comes in to tell the other ref what happened and they restart the match. Bowens lands a superkick, but Lethal with a roll up! Bowens kicks out and rolls Lethal up for the three count!!!! Acclaimed retain! Thank god. Rating: 2.75

Hayter and Baker sit down with Renee. Baker asks how Saraya has not decided who her partner will be in their tag match when she has had two of the best wrestlers in the world, Storm and Shida, next to her. 

Bryan Danielson vs. Tony Nese -- Massive ovation for Danielson in his home state!!!! Danielson's elated smile at the crowd reaction has my heart overflowing!! Danielson puts on a clinic of hard chops and kicks. He lands the psycho knee, kicks Nese's head in, and then locks in an STF-esque choke to put Nese out for the win in a three and half minute squash. BEAUTIFUL!!! Rating: AWESOME SQUASH 

After the match, Danielson grabs the mic. He says he is feeling a little froggy and is ready for another fight!!!!! He tells MJF to get his ass out there!!!!! AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!

MJF's music hits! Max comes out, takes his gum out of his mouth and slings it, and greets Danielson, calling him "Brain Damage Bryan." Lmao. MJF says he is not going to wrestle Bryan tonight. "Unlike you Bryan, I don't get my rocks off by putting my body on the line to entertain these schmucks. I don't care about them at all. Cause you're a mark, bud. I'm fully aware I've got a big fat check in the mail whether I wrestle or I don't. That's what makes me a special attraction. These people clearly love you. They chant your name every single week. I'll give you credit. You're pretty solid. But I was just standing in the back while you were talking. With all due respect, Bryan, if Lance Storm and Dean Malenko were somehow able to procreate and have a child, it would still be more charismatic than you. Just cause you look like a goat, it don't make you the greatest of all time. I mean, you really look like a goat. Matter of fact, I wouldn't be shocked if back in 1981 in rural Aberdeen, Washington, mama Danielson, much like all the mothers here in Washington, couldn't find a human suitor." 

Bryan responds, "I'm glad we're making jokes, because in the back, all the boys talk about your mother and how many human suitors that she's had. In fact, probably enough human suitors to fill this whole arena. Hell, she might have had some human suitors who are in this arena right now. Who here has been Max's mother's human suitor?" Lmaoooo, go off, Bryan. MJF says Bryan is delusional. MJF says Bryan really buys the hype and thinks he's the best wrestler in the world, but that can't be true, because MJF is, and the Triple B around his waist proves it.  "I'm just curious, Bryan. Who died and made you the king of wrestling? Journalists who have never stepped foot in the ring, let alone stepped out of their mother's basement? Or even worse, these MARKS, who don't have one athletic bone in their parasitic bodies. See unlike you, Bryan, I am touted as being the best in the world by some people who have actually been in this business. (Asshole chant!!) Top names, guys that are putting me over, like Disco Inferno, Eric Bischoff, and the smartest man of them all and my number one fan Jim Cornette." Looololol. 

Bryan cuts MJF off and tells him to just shut up. "We've heard the spiel, we've heard it a million times. I hate you, and I think it's time for us to fight." MJF freaks out and quickly runs farther back up the stage toward the commentary table, yelling, "Wait, hold on, hold on one second, slow your roll. Jesus, Taz, the anger issues on this guy, can you believe this?"

MJF says, "You might not realize this, Bryan, but I actually came here as a favor for you. This ain't play wrestling, this is pro wrestling. In this company, wins and losses matter. If you want a shot at the grandest prize of them all, you have to become number one contender. I talked to that nerd Tony Khan in the back. He said if you were to wrestle every week on Dynamite and win from now until February 8th, you would be number one contender. I usually make my opponents jump through hoop after hoop to get a match with me, but I'll make an exception for you. If you can do that, I'll give you a match for the title at Revolution, no questions asked." Bryan says no, he will wrestle whenever he wants, beat his opponents, and then beat MJF for the title at revolution. MJF says, "That's not how this works. Tony Khan doesn't run this company, the EVPs don't run this company, I do, me. If you don't become number one contender the way I am telling you to, you will never wrestle me for this belt. It's my way, or it's no way, got it?"

Bryan: "I'll agree to your cute little stipulation if you agree to let me make the stipulation for our match at Revolution." MJF: "You wanna make a stipulation, so I can cheat in front of the ref? Go ahead, please, pick any stipulation you like." Bryan: "I don't think you understand. In this stipulation, you won't be able to do anything that gets you DQ'd. This is the true test of whether you're a great pro wrestler. My challenge is for a 60-minute iron-man match." After taunting from the crowd, MJF finally accepts. 

AWESOME SEGMENT HERE!!!! I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS MATCH!!!! THIS RULES!!!!!! CAN'T WAIT!!!!!! 

Swerve Strickland vs. AR Fox – Swerve lands a DEATH VALLEY DRIVER OFF THE TOP ROPE ONTO THE APRON! OH MY GOD!!!!!! Swerve rolls Fox back in the ring and lands his stomp from the top for the pinfall. Great match here. Rating: 3.5

Saraya, Storm, and Shida sit down with Renee. Saraya very rudely announces that she has chosen Storm as her partner, turning her back to Shida to say this to Storm. Shida looks offended. Hope Shida kicks her ass! 

The Gunns have a funeral for FTR's career, with a large graphic reading "FTRIP May 2020 - December 2022" on the big screen. They talk about how FTR lost to them and lost all their titles. They bow their heads for a moment of silence. Lol, ridiculous. 

Samoa Joe (c) vs. Darby Allin for the TNT Championship -- Darby with a suicide dive out of the ring to Joe on the outside before the bell!!! Darby smacks Joe's back with his skateboard! Darby lands a huge diving stomp off the stage with the skateboard under his feet, driving the board into Joe's back!!! Holy shit!!!! Darby lands a senton off a huge ladder onto Joe on the ramp! Darby tweaks his knee on the way down. Back toward the ring now. Joe slams Darby down back-first, uranage-style into the edge of the ring steps! Joe bounces Darby hard off the ring post, and Darby sells that shit like a pro, flying off the apron onto the floor and lying there lifeless!! Darby finally makes it back in the ring. Headbutt and kicks from Joe! Joe misses with an elbow, and Darby jumps onto his back, locking in a sleeper! But Joe reverses, jumping down onto his back and nailing Darby with a senton in the process! Chopblock and big double knee breaker drop by Joe! Joe with a vicious kick to Darby's chest and a senton onto Darby's knees, but Darby kicks out!! Single-leg crab by Joe, but Darby gets to the ropes! Darby escapes a Muscle Buster attempt and goes for a roll up, but Joe stops it, deadlifting Darby up to his feet! Standing switch and waist lock by Darby. Into the corner, and Darby keeps the waist lock on. Joe holds onto the ropes to resist, but Darby finally lands a German suplex!!!!! Wow!!!! Joe pulls the top turnbuckle pad off in the process. Darby with a pin attempt, but Joe kicks out and immediately transitions into a sleeper!! Darby with a slick reversal, rolling back into a pinning combination! Joe slips out at two! Darby lands an elbow and attempts a stunner, but Joe reverses into a sleeper! Darby does the Sting chest pound and escapes by driving Joe into the exposed turnbuckle!!! CODE RED BY DARBY!!!! COFFIN DROP OFF THE TOP FROM ONE CORNER, BUT DARBY ISN'T FINISHED!! COFFIN DROP OFF THE TOP FROM THE OTHER CORNER! Darby covers!!!! 1, 2, 3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahhhhhh heck yeah!! 

Really great match here. Both guys were awesome. Love seeing them wrestle each other. Darby's selling was fantastic here, but that is nothing new. Rating: 3.75 

Sting comes out after the match and picks Darby up in a hug. My heart. What a nice moment for Darby here, winning the title back in his hometown. Two-time TNT Champion!!!!!

[arandomblackgirl]

MALE LEAD REACTING TO THE FEMALE LEAD LOOKING FABULOUS IS MY FAVORITE THING THANK YOU

[squishymar]

I am so unwell 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫

[taylorkellyreporting]

remember when all nini got for valentine’s day from ricky, her boyfriend, was a song because he spent all of his money on chocolates he bought for gina?

[27emailsicantsend]

WE COMPLETELY MISSED A RINA CUE.

We’ve all been talking about the one where Ricky is crying on the bed. They actually did the first one in Color Wars (it was very short, mind you, so I’m not surprised it was missed) when Ricky tells Gina “I’m gonna go” after bringing EJ to her. 😭😭😭

[rickybowensfever]

"Great. A Cold on My Birthday" (Ricky Bowen) - Sicktember 2024

IT'S HERE!!!! And it's over 2k words. So for my fellow Ricky lovers...you're welcome.

Here is sweet, sneezy Ricky on his birthday. Poor Ricky! Also sorry E.J. but you *can* be a gullible. We still love you. 😍

Sicktember 2024

"Great. I Got a Cold for My Birthday"

The Sniffles

AO3 LINK @sicktember

*SET AT CAMP SHALLOW LAKE*

“LET IT GO” S3, EP8 of HSMTMTS (REIMAGINED)

Ricky Bowen woke up on his 18th birthday feeling congested as hell but he was not going to let a little cold stop him.

 He sat up in bed, his nose tickled and he let out a wet sneeze. “Aah-tschieww!!”

“Gesundheit” Carlos said, looking up at his sneezy friend.  Ricky muttered a thank you, pulling the covers off of him and swung his legs over his bunk to face his friend. 

“Great. I got a cold for my birthday” Ricky announced with disappointment in his hoarse and nasally voice.

Carlos scrunched his face at him, “Maybe you should go to the nurse,” he suggested. Ricky’s eyes bulged, jumping down from the bunk. He sniffled, “No way, dude! It’s opening night. E.J. will kill me if I’m–” Ricky paused, unable to say the word. 

“Sick” Carlos added, finishing his friend's sentence. “No, no, no. It’s just a cold. I’m perfectly fine” he said feeling another tickle in his nose, “Aah-tschieww!!” he leaned into his elbow, catching the sneeze.  

“Bless you. Right…Maybe a hot shower will help?” Carlos suggested. “But make it quick, we have to get over to The Barn for the final run-through.”

“Good thinking!” Ricky replied. As Carlos gathered his Olaf costume, he rooted around his bag with first-aid supplies including a packet of tissues and Vicks Vapor Rub. 

Then a familiar brooding voice chimed in, “You might be able to get around E.J. But Val will smell you from a mile away. She’s like a hawk” Jet added looking at the two boys, wearing all black as usual. Ricky shuddered, forgetting about his other roommate. 

“What…do you mean?” Ricky answered, slowly. Jet was right. E.J. could be gullible. So he shouldn’t have a hard time hiding this from him, but if Val was on high alert, he was doomed. The show would be ruined as well as his birthday. 

“Val is a super sleuth. She can smell a sickness before it’s even coming” he said, his voice low and mysterious as if he were telling a ghost story, “A few summers ago, when some of the cast for The Music Man got food poisoning, she knew the minute it happened. Last year, she sent home a girl with pink eye during auditions for Annie. You can’t get anything past her” Jet said, shrugging his shoulders. 

The mysterious boy walked toward the front door and wished his roommate “good luck” as he disappeared out of the yurt. 

Carlos walked over to his curly-haired friend as he gathered his shower essentials out of his duffle bag. He tapped him on the shoulder, startling the boy. Ricky jumped in place and turned around to face his friend. 

When he looked down at the gifts, Ricky grinned.

“Happy Birthday, Ricky” Carlos said, handing him the sick supplies.

 “Thanks, Carlos,” he croaked, his voice hoarse, giving him a side hug. 

The two parted ways, Carlos to The Barn for rehearsal and Ricky to the showers. He grabbed his towel, clean clothes, and toiletries, hoping and praying that no one saw him. 

Ricky tried to hide himself from any friend he saw which wasn’t as easy as he thought it’d be. As he walked, he hid behind trees and bushes, trying to hide himself from his fellow Wildcats. 

As he walked closer to the showers, he saw Ashlyn walking right toward him. The fortunate part of being at camp was the trees. They made great hiding spots. As he stood behind a tree waiting for Ashlyn to pass him, he started to sniffle. “Nooo”, he groaned at the thought of sneezing again. How was he going to make it through the day unscathed when he was drowning in mucus and his nose wouldn’t cooperate. 

Ricky groaned loudly. “Oh, Ricky! There you are” Ashlyn said, looking at her friend with a puzzled look as he stood by the tree pinching his nose. 

“Happy Birthday!” she exclaimed giving him a big toothy grin. 

He tried to hold in the sneeze which was successful at first. He sighed of relief, “Ahh” feeling the sneeze pass. Unfortunately, the sneeze crept back up without warning. 

“Hnn'gtt!!” Ricky caught the sneeze in his elbow, pulling out one of Carlos’ tissues. 

He sniffled, “Thanks, Ash. Allergies, right?” he said laughing nervously, trying to play off his symptoms casually. 

Ashlyn was quiet for a moment, noticing his pink nose. Maybe he should be playing Sven tonight… 

Ashlyn was healthy as a horse. “Nope, not me!” she answered, patting him on the back. “See you later!” she said, walking off toward the girl’s yurts.

Ricky sighed, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Today was going to be difficult and his chest was starting to hurt. 

Carlos was right, a hot shower did help. His congestion had subsided for now which was going to help in convincing everyone he was perfectly fine. He wore his Kristoff costume which consisted of a dark pom-pom hat, a long sleeveless tunic with a long sleeve dark gray thermal shirt underneath paired with black pants and winter boots. Despite it being 92°F outside in sunny California, Ricky shockingly felt warm and cozy. 

He cleared his throat, puffed his chest out, and fixed his posture, then walked into The Barn with a brave face on. Everyone was rearranging furniture, transforming the small space into a suitable arrangement for friends and parents to come watch their children perform their role on stage. Luckily since everyone was preoccupied, the attention would be off of him for the time being.

Ricky walked over to Gina who sat on the edge of the stage holding a piece of paper, mumbling to herself. 

“Because she’s my sister!” she enunciated.

Ricky furrowed his eyebrow. “Hey G,” he said, standing next to her with a big grin on his face.

Gina put the paper down beside her on the stage. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at Ricky, suspiciously. He was acting strange, she thought. Ricky was a chipper guy but to her, it seemed today, he was playing up his positive vibe.

“Hi” she said hesitantly, furrowing her brow at him.

“Ready for the big night, Anna?” he said playfully elbowing her in the side. Gina laughed, cracking a big toothy grin at him.

Moments later, E.J. stood by the stage shouting to get the room’s attention. Ricky held his ears at the sound as it felt like the boy was screaming in his ear. “I don’t think that was loud enough” the curly haired boy teased, plugging his ears which were beginning to ache.

His stomach dropped, anxiety fluttering in his chest as Val came and stood beside the director. Ricky got up and walked to the back of the clutter of people, to hide himself from Val as much as he possibly could. As everyone began to move and get to their places, Ricky couldn’t help but feel on edge.

Finally, it was Ricky’s turn to rehearse for "Kristoff’s Lullaby", his solo. He cleared his throat and crossed his fingers, hoping that his body would cooperate for the duration of the song. He grabbed his acoustic guitar, strummed the strings by the sound hole, and began to sing.

♪ What is this hollow kind of helplessness I'm feeling? ♪

♪This type of terror is new ♪

♪And, the fact that I can hardly breathe is now revealing ♪

When the chorus came, that is when all hell broke loose. His voice cracked as he tried to reach the high note, but his scratchy throat wasn’t doing him any favors.

Ricky’s chest tightened as E.J. started to bark at him, “Ricky, this is not what we rehearsed! You’re not supposed to sound like there’s a frog in your throat. This is Frozen” the taller boy flailed his arms in the air in disappointment.

Ricky frowned, holding his throat and stood up. “Why don’t we take 5?” Val intervened. She stood for a moment staring into Ricky’s eyes. This gave him goosebumps. He shuddered and turned his back toward her.

As he and his castmates were backstage taking a breather, Val worked on calming E.J. down. Ricky sighed loudly, relived to be out of the spotlight. He felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see Gina with her long-braided hair in Anna’s winter costume.

“Hey, are you feeling okay?” she asked furrowing her brow. “Yeah, yeah. It’s just allergies” he said clearing his throat and wincing at the discomfort. He tried to brush it off with a grin but seeing Gina frown, he knew he was doomed.

“Ricky, you have to tell somebody” she said cocking an eyebrow at him, placing a hand on her hip and stared him down until he confessed.

Ricky shrugged, “But the show!” he whispered, his voice cracking as he spoke.  “I’m sure you can still do the show. Why don’t we go and ask Val?” Gina suggested. Ricky immediately put his hands up in defense. “No way” he cried, envisioning the worst outcomes.

If what Jet said earlier was true, Ricky would be saying goodbye to his friends and fellow campers. Ricky started to feel sad as he thought about packing his bags and going back to Salt Lake. During his daydreaming, he completely missed Gina pulling him by the arm and over Val and E.J. who sat next to each other on the chairs for tonight’s audience doing breathing exercises.

“Hey guys. Ricky, how’s that cold?” Val asked, smirking at the curly haired boy. Ricky stood dumbfounded. Jet was right.  “How did you—what?” he said frantically, stumbling over his words.

Val stood up and placed a hand on Ricky’s shoulder, “I have eyes everywhere” she told him. Ricky gulped in terror. “It’s just allergies, really!” he tried to reassure her, flailing his arms in the air to prove he was “healthy.”

 His shoulders slumped as she nodded in disagreement.

What came next didn’t help Ricky’s case. A big ole’ sneeze escaped from his nasal passages.

“Haa'ekkSHIEW!!” Val stood in front of him holding out a tissue which he grabbed, blowing his nose hard.

“Don’t worry ‘bout me, guys. I’b fide! It’s just by dose, by ears, by throat, by chest” he explained in his nasally voice, as E.J. pulled up a chair for him to sit in.

Val kneeled on the ground making eye contact with him. “Ricky, I know it’s your birthday” she began. The barn erupted in chatter all wishing him a happy birthday. Ricky waved, thanking everyone and looked back at Val. “But you’re clearly not 100%. So, I have a proposition” the barn grew quiet as they awaited the girl’s next words.

“You have to go to the nurse with me, get some medicine and some rest. Then, you can perform tonight. But these are the conditions” she explained. Ricky frowned. His list still wasn’t fully complete. He checked the pizza off yesterday at Camp Prom but he was missing a lottery ticket, still.

Finally, as he thought about it, he was surprised Val wasn’t shipping him off on the next bus home.

“Fide” he muttered. “The show bust go od. Ab I right guys?” he announced to crowd. Everyone erupted into applause mixed with laughter.

Val stood up and gestured Ricky to follow her. He complied holding the packet of tissues in one hand and walking out of the barn doors following her lead.

When he got back to the yurt, hopped up on cold medicine, he raised his arms and yawned. The nurse checked his temperature, it was normal. That was a relief. But his sore throat, congested nose, aching ears, and headache confirmed it was indeed a cold.

“A cold on my birthday. Pssh” he mumbled in frustration as he slipped out of his costume, storing it away for that night and changed into joggers and white shirt and dozed off to sleep.

He woke to Carlos shaking him. “Ricky! Wake up! Curtain call is in 20” he said. Ricky woke up groggy, his throat was hurting, and his head pounded. He pulled himself out of bed slowly and walked over to his bag, grabbing his costume and leaving the yurt quickly with Carlos.

When they got backstage, it was dark and quiet. Ricky thought this was strange as Carlos had informed him about curtain call. This close to curtain call, everyone was usually pretty frantic. But maybe they did things differently at Shallow Lake than at East High?

Ricky shrugged and walked closer looking for a light. He turned on the light and jumped, dropping his costume as everyone surprised him. All of his cast mates and Wildcats including Big Red and Miss Jenn smiled big. “Happy Birthday, Ricky!” they shouted, cheering. The room was filled with balloons, streamers, and there was a cake sitting on a lone table.

Ricky sniffled, standing there in disbelief. All of the sudden commotion had him winded. He began to catch his breath and walked over to everyone giving side hugs and thanking them.

Maybe this wasn’t an awful birthday after all.

[trips2saturn]

East High’s “it” couple aka Troy and Grabriella

[nyikondlovu]

Not gonna lie, I am shipping Rina but before it was more of a wish-ship (I don’t watch the show and didn’t follow along on Twitter during s1) so I thought it was a unrequited requited mess from day one but episode 6 really said ‘here’s Rina.’

Ion know how it’s gonna go from here on but the flashback and Ricky always trying to catch gina’s eye or partner with her while she’s trying to move awn from him is giving very much right person wrong time and I’m vibing.

However I do want that man to actually acknowledge her and their whatever-ship instead of making her his Nini dumping ground, Gina deserves better than that.

Ricky also needs some jail time for knowing how my daughter felt and still making them dumb ‘jokes’ all season long. I want him on a boat to Alcatraz expeditiously.

Season 2b about to serve I fear

Also, never thought a Disney ship would make me cry at my big age of 23 but Sofia Wylie is a TALENT.

[rinisbowen]

people are suspecting that maybe the reason ricky’s not at camp at the start of the season is because he’s with lily and they’re freaking out about it and lowkey... that might a good explanation for what’s happening here.

i don’t think she’s “holding him hostage” like everyone’s saying... but i think it’s for sure a possibility that he was planning on spending the summer with her. maybe they’re hanging out and she’s acting a bit weird / guilty and then she inevitably drops the bomb about the harness and then he’s like screw this i’m out and goes to camp with everyone and that’s why he’s late. 

unrealistic in the sense that one cannot simply go to sleepaway camp on a whim but realism isn’t the most important thing here. 

another possibility along similar lines is that they’re driving to camp together and the harness thing comes out and they kinda argue and she’s like look you can just drop me off somewhere i’ll have my dad or someone come get me- and maybe he insists on taking her home because he’s a decent human being and that’s why he’s late is because he doubles back to slc first... and then he’s maybe considering not going bc he’s moping but his dad is like listen kid i paid for that summer camp and you’re going i don’t care if your girlfriend isn’t going ‘she’s not my girlfriend dad’ ‘just get in the truck and go ricky you’re already going to be late’

-

is this all rambly / shitposting? yes. is it something i could see something maybe along vaguely similar lines happening? yes. 

[melodyplucked]

multiples of 5 for the sad hcs meme! (was gonna do multiples of 2, but figured this was a smaller number - if you're up for those as well feel free to do them though!)

sad headcanon questions

--

5. how long can your muse hold a grudge?

this really strongly depends... because i feel like he doesn't tend to hold onto grudges too much. but if it's someone who like- really properly deserves it- for years or forever even. he'll be hurt over everything with his mom for a long time- yes she's his mom and he'll try. but he does hold onto those feelings, and especially going into the future as he and nini get married and have kids- she's going to need to prove herself if she wants a relationship with her grandchildren. he won't forget the past. he needs to protect his family, even from someone who is supposed to be his family too. so i suppose to put it this way- he doesn't tend to hold grudges- but if he Does... he can hold onto that forever. people who've mistreated him are easier to forgive than those who've hurt say nini or their babies or something... it really does just depend on the situation.

10. what is the worst illness your muse has ever had?

honestly... this was a tough one bc- i feel like he actually doesn't tend to get sick very often. built up a strong immune system as a kid. which is good because his parents were very much the suck it up and go to school type unless he was like- really sick... this doesn't count as an illness per se but in a similar vein- he had a pretty gnarly injury skateboarding back in the day. it's the reason he's not pursued it professionally in all the main verses like he likely would've otherwise. broke some bones to the point of even needing surgery. that was his worst medical thing in his life.

15. what might others consider your muse’s worst failing to be?

i know a lot of people say that ricky bowen is a selfish person. i'm not necessarily someone who actually would consider that to be an accurate assessment of his character, but we can unpack it a little bit here nonetheless. ricky's very driven by his feelings. we see that fairly consistently. whether it's external stimuli or internal. he can be somewhat impulsive when put into certain situations, and do things that can be motivated by pain rather than the truth of his heart. that can go in multiple directions... he cares a solid amount about what people think, if he thinks he's "supposed to" value those people's opinions especially. he's willing to put himself on the line for others- he does so a lot. but well- people still think he's selfish and that's their prerogative i suppose.

20. what is something your muse wants to tell others, but is too afraid to? 

this was kind of hard- because even though ricky does keep stuff back, he also doesn't necessarily have any strong desire to share those things he's holding back? maybe that the snide comments they make about him actually do bother him. especially after a while. friends tease each other- he's guilty of that too at times, it's all light-hearted and fun. but sometimes people who are supposed to be his friends really do take it too far. ricky doesn't care ricky just waltzes in and he doesn't deserve what he gets in life, etc. etc. he's not okay with that from his friends. they're supposed to care about him and believe in him and it really sucks that they don't. his life isn't all too easy just because that's their perception of it. he tries to ignore it- but certain unnecessarily harsh criticism does sting.

25. does your muse recognize their faults, or do they have trouble with self-reflection?

both? both is good. i'd argue he's fairly decent at self-reflection. he can be impulsive at times- but he does his best to fix things after if he's made a mistake. it's why he does go talk to nini after the events of the 1.01 flashback and apologize to her and explain before she goes to camp. she doesn't leave thinking he doesn't love her, that he doesn't want to be with her. he's just scared... they're capable of communication, and he's capable of self-reflection. i think ricky can struggle sometimes in the moment in emotionally laden situations- things that trigger his issues with his parents especially, but i do think he's good at reflecting after the fact, knowing what he needs to do better in the future, and apologizing.