#rip to the band PR

[noxianwilled]

rockstar, in a more... classic rock than metal sort of way so not exactly the pentakill vibes

daughter of a famous rockstar and a famous pop singer whose footsteps her baby sister is following (the du couteaus would be nepobabies I'm afraid — if in canon they're like. seven generations of assassins....... they're just old af music industry name)

honestly probably a teenage star raised for this since she was a child that ended up involved in all sorts of scandals before being a proper rockstar

rumored she got her scar in a knife fight with her brother (the family denies it to the press and says it was some accident/katarina makes it worse by being like no that happened my dad gave him the knife to do it actually c: but then of course everything is denied clearly the problematique child is not being serious haha there's no need to investigate anything we're such a healthy family!!1!)

du couteau family drama being speculated about (is it true your father disowned you and made talon his heir) and kat simply kicks a paparazzi in the face rip

anyway idk who she'd be in a band with but she'd sing. could also play the guitar (and would have learned to play a bunch other stuff since she was a child)

feuding with her own family since she was a teenager/moved out as soon as she could live entirely on her own and was cut off from their money/rose from the ashes of being disgraced and without support and made a big name for herself

she thinks pentakill is neat. true damage is great. kda is eh (she likes to hate on every type of pop music on principle bc of her mother being a pop singer..........nothing personal.......)

i never use the skin based aus anyway but music verse au

[astonmartinii]

rookie love | oscar piastri social media au

pairing: oscar piastri x hamilton!reader

sure it's a rookie mistake to lose it in a corner, but is it a rookie mistake to fall in love with lewis hamilton's younger sister?

request from the lovely @starfriuts

MASTERLIST | BUY ME A KO-FI?

f1

liked by lewishamilton, oscarpiastri and 1,324,772 others

tagged: oscarpiastri, yourusername & logansargeant

f1: welcome the rookie class of 2023 !! 2021 f2 champion oscar piastri will race for mclaren, 2022 f2 champion y/n hamilton will be racing for aston martin and 2022 f2 runner up logan sargeant will be racing for williams!

view all comments

user1: MY prema girlies

user2: 2019 rookies i am so sorry but there's a new favourite in town

yourusername: two hamiltons on the grid i know that's right 💅 👯‍♀️

lewishamilton: they hate us cause they ain't us

yourusername: they can't handle the sass

lewishamilton: neither can the fia

yourusername: ... yeah i've been briefed :(

user3: okay, walk with me. if y/n does all of grill the grid, lewis might do the secret santa again

user4: hopes and prayers

fernandoalo_oficial: i'm teammates with a rookie hamilton, i think i've seen this film before

yourusername: i lived through that old man, don't think i won't use your own tricks on you

fernandoalo_oficial: well there's no dna test necessary here

yourusername: the slay is hereditary, but clearly skipped your generation

fernandoalo_oficial: HEY

oscarpiastri: get her jade

fernandoalo_oficial: EY?

user5: the way the grid are not ready for how ride or die y/n and oscar are for each other

user6: bro just quoted COCO MONTRESE for her i am so ready

logansargeant: dude we're getting the band back together

oscarpiastri: f1 boyband have nothing on us

yourusername: xnda who?

lewishamilton: :/

yourusername: no one is safe sorry lew @charles_leclerc you're next piano boy

charles_leclerc: WHAT

user7: i know the aston martin pr department sweating buckets with both fernando and y/n

yourusername

liked by oscarpiastri, lewishamilton and 1,332,551 others

yourusername: the hamilton name comes with the wardrobe

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user8: finally lewis has some competition

user9: if there's something a hamilton is going to do it's going to be wearing a monochromatic outfit.

lewishamilton: was the third photo really necessary?

yourusername: yes!

lewishamilton: you're so corny

yourusername: i know this man ain't speaking.... DIGITAL FOOTPRINT

lewishamilton: girl. i've read your diary and your code names don't mean SHIT

yourusername: YOU WHAT?

lewishamilton: got bored when you had a work call ?

yourusername: come to aston's hospitality i got something to show you

lewishamilton: just text me

yourusername: no. spoiler: it's my FOOT up your ASS

user10: so i thought the tussles would be between fernando and y/n not y/n and lewis

georgerussell63: this is just how they are, they'll be besties again in like two minutes

oscarpiastri: why is my outfit not on here you said i slayed :(

yourusername: you did slay !!

landonorris: he literally wore a team shirt and chinos

yourusername: yes but on the oscar scale that is a slay

oscarpiastri: exactly

landonorris: ok?

yourusername: watch your tone mr. norris, you're being awfully loud for a ripped skinny jeans owner 🤨

landonorris: ????

oscarpiastri: :)

user11: okay i think i get the whole ride or die thing now

logansargeant: believe me it gets worse

lewishamilton

liked by oscarpiastri, yourusername and 1,844,902 others

tagged: yourusername

lewishamilton: bucket list moment ticked off to share a podium in f1 with my baby sister !!

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user14: two hamiltons in f1 and on the podium before gta 6

user15: we got two hamiltons on the podium but still can't escape a max win

yourusername: thank you for not posting the picture of me bawling my eyes out

lewishamilton: i thought i'd be nice, just this once. i'm proud of you

yourusername: thank youuuuuuuuuuuuu. insane to be on the podium with my biggest idol

maxverstappen1: y/n that's very kind of you

lewishamilton: really?

yourusername: 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭

maxverstappen1: saw the opportunity and had to go for it

yourusername: i respect that

lewishamilton: but i am your biggest idol right?

yourusername: yes.

user16: max really out here like i will make a double hamilton podium about me LOL

oscarpiastri: that's my best friend GO BEST FRIEND

yourusername: oscar piastri podium coming soon @mclaren get ur shit together

oscarpiastri: PR KNOW SHE DOESN'T MEAN THAT

yourusername: no i mean every word i wanna be on the podium with oscar :(

oscarpiastri: slumber party ?

yourusername: i'll be there @logansargeant u coming?

logansargeant: i don't really feel like third wheeling

this comment was deleted

logansargeant: if you're buying the room service - yeah

user17: LOGAN WE SAW THAT

user18: y/n x oscar truthers we have some more evidence for the board

user19: gets first woman in f1 on the podium... immediately assumes she’s in a relationship with another driver

user20: i see where you're coming from but watch the prema videos and tell me there's no tension there

user21: idk if oscar can handle all of that ...

user22: i have faith in my goofy lil guy

liked by yourusername

user22: WHAT

oscarpiastri

liked by landonorris, yourusername and 612,094 others

tagged: yourusername

oscarpiastri: pookie was on the podium

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user23: okay you shipper bitches may have had a point...

yourusername: when pookie calls you pookie you know it's real

fernandoalo_oficial: i have never felt older than when i listen to you and oscar talk for more than five minutes

yourusername: the girls who get it, get it

oscarpiastri: and the girls who don't.... well

fernandoalo_oficial: i am a 42 year old man

yourusername: and it shows

oscarpiastri: ... oop

user24: oh they annoying... KEEP GOING

lewishamilton: so this is what you left the after party for?

yourusername: yeah and what about it?

lewishamilton: okay like maybe i need to separate you and oscar cause why are you eating me up

yourusername: i'm me but oscar is a victim of the sassy man apocalypse

oscarpiastri: guilty as charged (i learnt everything from your sister)

user25: you guys acting like oscar being like this is a surprise ... we didn't all see him scalp alpine last summer?

user26: the way in my head him and y/n wrote that tweet together and were giggling the whole time

yourusername: we can neither confirm or deny

user27: that's confirmation to me

logansargeant: when will the logan sargeant erasure end?

yourusername: when you serve as much as me?

logansargeant: i am TRYING

yourusername: plus this is an appreciation post for me, stop trying to steal opportunities from women

logansargent: HUH?

oscarpiastri: so disappointing from you logan...

logansargeant: i'm so done with you two

yourusername

liked by lewishamilton, oscarpiastri and 1,309,562 others

yourusername: summer break is annoying i wanna go racing again

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user31: WHO IS THAT MAN?

user32: my brain (psychosis) tells me it is oscar

user33: i'll believe you

lewishamilton: HOW DARE YOU SOFT LAUNCH WITHOUT TELLING ME

yourusername: girl. sort the tone and i'll call you

lewishamilton: do you think i am dumb? i know exactly who that is, i just need the confirmation so i can beat his ass

yourusername: why would i tell you if you're gonna beat his ass?

lewishamilton: JUST TELL ME

yourusername: you'll have to find me to do that, see you in zandvoort xxx

user34: i think lewis is having brocedes flashbacks

user35: i know bro is PACING

fernandoalo_oficial: you wanna give me a tow in qualifying?

yourusername: why would i do that old man?

fernandoalo_oficial: @lewishamilton i know.

lewishamilton: ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? FERNANDO KNOWS?

yourusername: NOT ON PURPOSE HE'S JUST NOSEY AND LIKES TO READ MY TEXTS OVER MY SHOULDER

fernandoalo_oficial: guilty 💅

yourusername: fine. one tow.

fernandoalo_oficial: thanks girly

user36: we have to study the girlypopification of fernando since being teammates with y/n

oscarpiastri: it's missing pookie hours

yourusername: i am having separation anxiety

user37: these hoes think we don't know 😂

user38: they think they're throwing us on their scent ... YALL NOT SUBTLE

oscarpiastri

liked by landonorris, yourusername and 802,778 others

oscarpiastri: does this count as a win?

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user39: sorry max we got an oscar win we don't care about your championship win

yourusername: LET'S FUCKING GO POOKIE

oscarpiastri: slumber party is gonna eat i fear (why do we have to race tomorrow?)

yourusername: you know who else ate? YOU TODAY

oscarpiastri: hehehehe i guess i did

yourusername: no i am so fucking proud of you

oscarpiastri: love you

yourusername: luv you too

user40: okay so they're just playing with our feelings now?

landonorris: proud of you bro (please turn down the beyonce)

oscarpiastri: don't make me enter my lemonade era

landonorris: are you threatening me with a brocedes?

oscarpiastri: maybe?

yourusername: lmao watch your ass lando, i gave him the play-by-play i was in the brocedes trenches

lewishamilton: 1. happy for you oscar 2. SHUT THE FUCK UP

oscarpiastri: oops?

yourusername: sorry lewis, we'll stop joking about britney if you finally call him

nicorosberg: stop calling me that

lewishamilton: why are you here?

nicorosberg: just observing...

user41: poor lewis having his trauma used as a joke 😭

logansargeant: i'm defo skipping this slumber party

user42: you want to elaborate?

logansargeant: no. i don't think i will

user43: JUST SPILL

yourusername

liked by lewishamilton, oscarpiastri and 1,903,448 others

tagged: oscarpiastri

yourusername: got my first win, me and my boyfriend are better than you x

view all comments

user44: I FUCKING KNEW IT

user45: i'm gonna need all the bitches who came for me for shipping them so give me my flowers

oscarpiastri: finally. you're too cute not to kiss all the time

yourusername: then hurry up and come here

oscarpiastri: gladly

user46: no i think he actually went, these bitches usually never shut the fuck up

lewishamilton: ...

georgerussell63: oscar RUN THE BREATHING TECHNIQUES AREN'T WORKING

alexalbon: no he's actually going to scrap you RUN FOR YOUR LIFE

landonorris: those dumbasses don't know what is about to hit them

yourusername: why is logan texting me 911 who is being dramatic

yourusername: wait

yourusername: is that him already

georgerussell63: yes for such a short man he's surprisingly fast

lewishamilton: OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR

yourusername: no!

lewishamilton: I JUST WANNA TALK

oscarpiastri: your tone is scaring me

yourusername: OSCAR NO

lewishamilton: OPEN THE DOOR

user47: it's been 20 mins, can we have an update

oscarpiastri: i am alive!

lewishamilton: regardless of what just happened, i am so proud of you y/n !!

yourusername: i love you big brother :))))))

lewishamilton: you're such an inspiration, here's to many more!

user48: lewis being all supportive now after he's scrapped oscar?

lewishamilton: i didn't fight him, he had 30 seconds to convince me not to kill him

oscarpiastri: i did very well :)

lewishamilton: sure

yourusername: you did great babe

oscarpiastri: :)

oscarpiastri

liked by logansargeant, yourusername and 1,099,457 others

tagged: yourusername

oscarpiastri: please don't put me into the barriers lewis, i love your sister

view all comments

user51: i think it's safe to say that the 2023 rookies have out done the 2019 rookie sorry not sorry

yourusername: POOKIE, I LOVE YOU POOKIE

oscarpiastri: I LOVE YOU TOO POOKIE

logansargeant: can i like have a medal or some championship points for 1. dealing with this nonsense and 2. keeping this a secret

yourusername: you're our favourite third wheel? that's all i got

oscarpiastri: we also pay for your room service every time

logansargeant: ... fine

user52: they're all so close to me, need y/n and oscar to be the first husband and wife to both win a championship

yourusername: that's the plan 🤞

oscarpiastri: are you PROPOSING TO ME?

yourusername: not yet...

oscarpiastri: hehehehehehe

lewishamilton: SLAM ON THE BRAKES, I JUST GOT USED TO THIS LET'S NOT BRING UP MARRIAGE

yourusername: maybe you need to leave your slag era so i can wife oscar

lewishamilton: DO NOT SLUTSHAME ME

user53: the hamilton piastri house about to be ground zero for the sassy man apocalypse

landonorris: you people are so grossly in love, how did we miss it?

alexalbon: speak for yourself it was so obvious

yourusername: we we're pretty obvious

oscarpiastri: yeah i can confirm that when we told you we were having a pillow fight, we were not

landonorris: WHAT

lewishamilton: delete this.

fernandoalo_oficial: @yourusername did you guys do this so you didn't have to give me a tow?

yourusername: yes xoxoxo

note: i hope you enjoy. life is insane right now but i got my first article at the top of the google rankings so there's that. also ordered my graduation gown and dress!! much love x

[stars-and-the-min]

☆ the wrong way to hard launch (13) | OP81

summary : oscar's girlfriend is a walking pr problem for literally everyone (including herself) social media au

pairing : oscar piastri x zhou!fem!singer!oc

a/n don't you love it when your ex starts trying to get back in your life?

masterlist | last part | part 13 | next part

selinabui_news

liked by ceciliapham and 10,185 others

selinabui_news 📸 New Lina pics!!! Photos from Cami's instagram stories <3 tagged: selinabui

linasgirl4 the only cutie patootie to ever cutie patootie

2cami4lina my girls went on a date 🩷💜

MESSAGES

from the phone of selina bui

INSTAGRAM

eb_jonno

liked by thomashoward and 212,948 others

eb_jonno when the touring part of tour starts to kick in tagged: emptybottles_official and lukaszhang

tommyhoward Never change Jonno 🤣 ↳ tina_kim @ tommyhoward what. the. fuck.

cameliazzz jonathan answer your phone

mrslukaszhang why does kas look so boyfie 🥰🥰🥰

MESSAGES

from the phone of selina bui

TWITTER

Thomas Howard @THowdy · 3d Bucharest Baby!! 🤪 ↳ emme @flowersforcami · 3d take that back FUCK YOU BETTER BE JOKING

EB Updates @emptybottles_news · 1d Lina's ex-boyfriend, NFL running back Thomas Howard, is at Bucharest Night 1 of the TMD Tour. ↳ liv is SEEING EB LIVE!! @olivielina · 23h can she not catch a break--

EB Updates @emptybottles_news · 16h Thomas Howard has been spotted at Bucharest Night 2 of the TMD Tour. This is the second show he's attended.

MESSAGES

from the phone of oscar piastri

TWITTER

↳ Oscar Piastri @OscarPiastri · 4m Flattered to know 😏 ↳ piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 2m OSCAR???? ↳ emme @flowersforcami · 3m SELINA FIGHT BACK @EB_selina

lukas 🔛🔝 @lukiepookie28 · 13m i just bumped into kas and lina at my regular cafe... not even kidding like... i'm in shock ↳ lukas 🔛🔝 @lukiepookie28 · 12m they're about to leave how do i function sjdnfskdfn ↳ lukas 🔛🔝 @lukiepookie28 · 11m POTHO SCUERED DSJKFNSJKDFN

↳ kayla @luna_apocolypse · 7m STFU you got lina to take a photo of you and kas??? 😭 what was she like??? ↳ lukas 🔛🔝 @lukiepookie28 · 4m she told kas to fix his face 💀 ↳ kay ♡ @ blackcatluna · 1m i see he didn't listen

EB Updates @emptybottles_news · 20h Thomas Howard has been spotted at Vienna Night 1 of the TMD Tour. Personally, I recommend they get a restraining order. ↳ kayla @luna_apocolypse · 43m if he shows his face tonight, i will personally fly to vienna and kill him ↳ lukas 🔛🔝 @lukiepookie28 · 24m my show is tonight, i am willing to take one for the team

MESSAGES

from the phone of selina bui

TWITTER

piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 2h personally, i think it's insane that oscar is in monaco wakeboarding ot some shit and lina is freezing her ass off on the other side of europe fighting off her ex ↳ piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 2h OSCAR DO SOMETHING! HELP UR GIRL!

helen @helenjamie32 · 4h vienna n2 empty bottles fans... you have one job... we're gonna get that woman to sing something like hurt my feelings by tate with her ex in the crowd ↳ helen @helenjamie32 · 4h LET LINA BE MESSY!!! LET HER BE TOXIC!!! SHE DESERVES IT!!! IK SHE'S ON THIN ICE, SHE CAN SWIM ↳ helen @helenjamie32 · 4h you don't understand, i think i NEED her to say "she's got you right now, but i'm still on your mind" I NEED NEED NEED IT

TMD Tour News @EB-TMDTour · 18m The audience encore song for Vienna N2 was 'People Watching' by @ conangray. The band played a surprise second encore song of 'hurt my feelings' by @ tatemcrae afterward. #TMDWorldTour ↳ jules 🌿 @juliiaapxp · 8m @helenjamie32 oomf... what's it like being the oracle of apollo ↳ helen @helenjamie32 · 4m THRILLING SO FUCKING THRILLING AHAHA

piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 20m that was the biggest gag ever omg. selina bui, rip ur social media forever but it was so so worth it 10/10, do it again ↳ piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 19m changing the last lines? *chefs kiss* never change girlie, oscar u hit the jackpot with this one ↳ emme @flowersforcami · 3m "YOU wear MY number but SHE'S got what you like"??? we're planning the pr funeral but u slayed that, fck media training @EB_selina we're all hootin' and hollerin', u did so good with that baby

EB Bar @theemptybottlesbar · 14m want u so bad, baby, hurt my feelings... 🙄

↳ liv is SEEING EB LIVE!! @olivielina · 12m absolutely LIVING for the attitude, the sarcastic delivery was so cathartic ↳ emme @flowersforcami · 11m YOU WEAR MY NUMBER, GUESS I'M STILL ON YOUR MIND

INSTAGRAM

selinabui_news

liked by piastri_lina and 10,284 others

selinabui_news 17.05.24 | Lina spotted at Vienna International Airport. She's flying to Bologna, Italy ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix 💕 tagged: selinabui

piastri_lina oscalina reunion loading...

mrslukaszhang she's so happy 🥺 ↳ moonbeamlina @mrslukaszhang lmao she hates us (jk)

marie_h.sb she looks so thrilled to have verbally eviscerated her ex in front of a crowd of thousands and then immediately fly off to see her bf. she's straight-up thriving <3

✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:

taglist @ririyulife @ashy-kit @fionaschicken @namgification @cherry-piee @urfavsgf @eiaaasamantha @sp1rl @destinyg237

[kaiijo]

Hi! I was curious about your thoughts of prompt #9 from the ugly prompts list with Shidou! I feel like it would be a total mess and absolutely hysterical 😋😁

OVERNIGHT ENGAGEMENT — SHIDOU RYUSEI

pairing: shidou ryusei x gn! reader content: set in this universe (pr manager! reader + pro soccer player! shidou), references alcohol consumption + hazy memory due to drinking notes: inspired by prompt 9 on this list (tweaked a little)

It’s entirely too warm in your bed, which, you think, shouldn’t be possible given that you always keep the window screens in, even in the dead of winter. You blink your eyes blearily, wincing when the light glow of early morning sunlight reaches you. You squint at the side table; that’s funny, you can’t remember having a mahogany side table. You also don’t remember getting dark blue sheets. Something shifts behind you, and you glance over your shoulder. You don’t remember inviting Shidou into your apartment.

Wait a minute…

You shoot up abruptly, head pounding, and do your best to survey what is definitely not your bedroom. You peek over at Shidou again and dread fills you. Fuck, what the hell did you two do? You venture a very cautious gaze under the sheets and are relieved to find both of you still in your underwear (and upon further inspection, you realize you’re wearing one of Shidou’s old soccer jerseys). It still doesn’t quell the building anxiety within you.

Beside you, Shidou’s hand blindly feels around the sheets before landing on you and, with a surprisingly strong grip for someone who is half-asleep, yanks you back down. He moves to curl around you, burying his face into your neck. You squirm when you swear you feel teeth graze your skin.

“Shidou!” you hiss, smacking his arm. “Wake up!” He mumbles something and his hold only tightens around you, but you feel his smile curl against your neck and you just know this bastard isn’t asleep. “Get up!” He doesn’t move and you resolve to do your best to grab your phone off the side table, hoping there’s something that will jog your memories.

You’re greeted with dozens of texts, missed calls, and social media alerts. You decide to click the most recent notice, a comment from a former classmate you haven’t talked to in years on the most recent Instagram post you don’t remember making. 

congrats on the engagement!!

Your blood runs cold and you stare at the post in horror. There’s a sparkly band around your left ring finger and tagged in the post is none other than the man beside you, Shidou Ryusei. When you look at your hand in front of you — the real flesh and bone one — you see the same ring from the photo. 

“Shidou!”

He finally deigns to sit up, blanket pooling around his waist and you try your best not to take a second glance at his well-toned chest and abdomen. He gives you a smirk, eyeing you, and he says, “You look good in my clothes.”

Your face bursts into flames and you huff, “Not the time, Shidou! Do you remember anything about what happened last night?”

He tilts his head. “Not really. Remember meeting you for drinks—”

Right, you two got drinks after a hard won victory of PXG against Real Madrid. And did shots, a lot of shots. Fuck. Shidou hums as he scoots closer to you, tugging on your (his) jersey and he says, “Wish I could remember more of this.”

You gulp as when he rests his chin on your shoulder, but you don’t pull away. He reaches around you and plucks your cell phone out of your hand, taking a look at the post you have open. You feel his breath hitch and you’re not sure what to expect as he then grabs your left hand and inspects it. He’s way too quiet, which honestly scares you more than when he’s yelling and kicking, but then Shidou grins wide. “Well, well, what do we have here?”

“Shidou…”

“Where do you want the wedding to be? I, personally, am a fan of a beach wedding.”

“Shidou—!”

“Think Underlashes will be my best man?”

“Shidou, focus,” you yelp, ripping your hand from his grip. “We need to fix this!”

“I think you need to fix this,” he says. “That’s what PR agents are for, right?”

This fucking jerk. But he isn’t wrong and you groan, throwing your phone further down the bed and flopping back down, staring at the ceiling. How were you going to maneuver your way out of this one?

“Hey,” Shidou says, laying back down and turning to face you. He uses a surprisingly gentle grip on your jaw to make you look at him. “I think we should keep it. We were going to get together eventually anyways. Just skipped a few steps.”

You glare at him and he just pokes your nose, snickering when you wrinkle it and slap his hand away. What the hell were you going to do? Then, another thought dawns on you: “Shidou, please tell me you bought this ring.”

[majaloveschris]

At this rate if these two are indeed actually married, why all the stupid games and the need for certain blogs to keep trying to prove crap happened?

Like rip the band-aid off and call it a day…..

Ooops then there’d be no one left to talk about either one of them. 🙄

The entire reason many are still here is because we refuse to believe Chris married a racist or for those who claim “shes not racist”, he married a woman who is BFFs with people who have been proven to be RACIST!

I’m sick of all this back and forth from the extreme sides.

Time reveals all truth because if she ends up pregnant then welp there it is, but based on Chris’ actions/inactions alone I refuse to believe THIS is who he chose for endgame.

I believe this is PR and yes that’s the hill I’m willing to die on, if I’m wrong, I’m wrong, don’t care. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Because that's what this whole thing is about. It's not about love. It's about clout and attention. They need clicks; they need people to talk about them, because this is business and nothing more. 

If this was about more than spreading a narrative and selling a relationship, then there wouldn't have been articles out about them getting married after, like, a day? It wasn't even 24 hours between the alleged wedding and the first article. That's how private and laid-back they are. If they indeed want to live a private life and be in a private relationship, they could. Chris has done it several times, right? But with the love of his life, who makes him happy, he can't...

As you said, sooner or later we will find out the truth, but it's really hard for me too to believe he would be okay with her and her friends behavior. 

[ladykailitha]

Star Child Part 15

So, I am procrastinating writing the ending. Because I love this story so much I don’t want it end. But I also have so so many other stories waiting to be written...

Steve gets more closure and huge settlement.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13  Part 14

*

Steve was back in LA and he loathed it. He knew he couldn’t stay on tour with Corroded Coffin, but he hated being away from Eddie. From all the Corroded Coffin members, if he was being honest.

But they were close to a deal with the label and then Steve could get actually writing. Real music. Music he always wanted to do. He wanted to cut his hair and get more tattoos. He wanted to wear what he wanted and not be pigeonholed into a certain look. He wanted to be able to go out in ripped jeans and a band shirt and not have TMZ talk about his ‘decline’.

But for the moment, all he could do was FaceTime his boyfriend and his band and chat with Robin. A Robin who was nourishing her own budding romance over FaceTime.

He was about to claw his hair out from cabin fever, so he called up Max and Lucas and went for a drive.

He went out to his favorite bakery for cinnamon rolls and good coffee. None of this fancy over priced stuff that everywhere else charged.

They sat out on the terrace and ate while Max and Lucas talked about planning their wedding.

“Please tell me you aren’t having it LA,” Steve begged. “You know this town is overpriced everything.”

Max blushed. “Actually we were thinking of going back to Indiana. Have the reception at Hopper’s Bar. Low key, you know?”

“That sounds amazing!” Steve said. “And have you thought about where you want to go for your honeymoon?”

Lucas opened his mouth to answer when someone called out Steve’s name.

Steve frowned and looked around. That’s when he spotted her. He turned to Max. “Any chance you can shoot me to get me out of this?”

Max grinned. “Not a chance. Eddie would kill me.”

Steve sighed and turned toward the person that had called out to him.

“Nancy Wheeler,” he said bitterly. “As I live and breath.”

She turned a bit and Steve wanted to curl up into a little ball shrivel up into nothing. Jonathan was with her.

Yup. Steve was in hell.

They walked over to the table. “Nancy, Jonathan these are my bodyguards, Max and Lucas. Guys, these are my exes. My ex-girlfriend, Nancy Wheeler, and my ex-bandmate Jonathan Byers.”

Both Jonathan and Nancy had the decency to wince.

“And despite what the news outlets said,” Steve continued. “She did in fact cheat on me with him. So you guys finally tie the knot or is she still holding out on you?”

Jonathan stepped in front Nancy and barked, “Hey!”

“Oh she is still holding out on you!” Steve said, voice dripping with disdain. “You guys have been together for what? Eight years now? And still no rings, no wedding bells, no martial bliss. I’m starting to think dodged one hell of a bullet.”

He stood up and threw money down on the table for the barista. Max and Lucas were on their feet in a heartbeat.

“We just wanted to talk,” Nancy said gently.

“About what?” Steve asked. “About how much what you did to me ruined my life? About how the two of you got off scot free and I had to face question after question about your relationship for months? You swan into my life again just as I get happy and I have to wonder how much of this is a coincidence and how much of this is a publicity stunt.”

“Hey, man,” Jonathan growled. “Like she said, we just wanted to see you and congratulate you on coming out.”

Nancy wrapped her arms around her waist and stared at the ground. Steve raised an eyebrow and even Jonathan looked down at her in shock.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Jonathan growled. “First you tell me that you broke up with Steve before we had sex. And kept to that story for years even after Dustin let it slip that that wasn’t the case. And now you’re telling me that this is a PR stunt? What the hell Nancy? What did he do to you that made you this pissed at him?”

Nancy looked up and stomped her foot angrily.

Steve cocked his head. “Oh. You didn’t tell him.” A slow smile crept on his face as he realized the absolute damage he could do in that moment.

“Don’t you dare speak her name!” Nancy snarled.

“I don’t have to, though, do I?” Steve said. He turned to Jonathan. “You remember the pool accident a year into our first tour as The Kings, right?”

“She blames you for Barb’s death?” Jonathan asked, rocking his head back in confusion. “That was an accident. She slipped by the pool’s edge and hit her head. All the outlets reported that even if you guys had been on hand, she still would have died from the head wound.”

Steve’s smile turned feral. “Oh it’s way more than that. You see she wasn’t supposed to be there that night. It was just supposed to be me and Nancy. But she had to put her nose where it didn’t belong. So while Nancy and I were having sex for the first time, she was snooping around my house and my pool, trying to prove...something. Hell if I know.”

“She thought you were gay,” Nancy said to her feet.

Steve tilted his head and licked his lower lip. “And there you have it. Nancy blames me because she still thinks Barbara Holland was right about me. And if I had ‘owned’ up to it, she would still be alive.” He leaned in close. “But she wasn’t. I’m not gay. I’m bisexual and I don’t need validation from you.”

He turned to walk away when Nancy shouted, “Why do you get to be happy and I don’t?”

Steve stopped and looked at her in utter shock. “Because I paid my penance in the spiral I found myself in afterwards. I got therapy. I moved on. You should too.”

“Steve,” Jonathan began. “I am sorry. For role I played in all this, wittingly or not. And I am happy for you. For coming out. For finding someone who is over the moon for you.”

Steve nodded. “Thanks, man.”

He walked away, feeling lighter than he had in years.

*

Steve had continued to do talk shows and radio shows talking about his coming out and the abuses he had suffered at the hands of his parents, his former manager, and the record label.

It was Monday again before Steve got the call from Erica.

“Steve!” she greeted warmly. “The label has offered a huge settlement to make it go away.”

Steve licked his lips. “How much are we talking about?”

“A three quarters of a billion dollars,” Erica replied, a feral grin evident in her voice.

Steve’s jaw dropped. “Holy shit, but why?”

Erica giggled. “They are already hemorrhaging artists and management. They’re hoping that if they pay you enough, it’ll stop the problem and they can go back to whatever the fuck it was they were doing before all this came out.”

“But they won’t be able to, will they?” he asked chewing nervously on his lower lip.

“No,” she said firmly. “I have also turned the blackmailing and abuse over to the LA county DAs office.”

“And they’ll actually do something?” Steve asked timidly. These guys at the record label weren’t small fry. They were men of importance and that never bode well for people like Steve.

“They will,” Erica said with another of her grins, “if Samuel Hayward knows what’s good for him. He might find himself sleeping on the sofa if he doesn’t.”

Steve huffed out a surprised laugh. “You are truly a force to be reckoned with, Erica Hayward.”

“And don’t you ever forget it, Steve Harrington.”

*

To say Steve was pleased that Corroded Coffin’s label Thacher Records signed him a alternative rock artist, would have been an understatement. Of the decade.

Between Erica and Robin, Steve deal was the best it could possibly be and he was excited to enter the studio for the first time since he started performing.

He pulled out all his song notebooks and all his composing notebooks and got to work. He founds some real gems amongst the dross and worked them together.

Soon he had five songs that he was really proud of and couldn’t wait to show the producer, Sam Owens.

He was just waiting to hear back on his thoughts.

Steve was so excited that he wasn’t watching where he was going and ran into someone coming out of the studio.

“Shit,” Steve murmured. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re Steve Harrington, right?” the very British voice asked.

Steve looked up to see Luke Spiller standing there. “Uh, yeah...that’s me.”

“I really loved the metal arrangement of our song,” Luke said. “And if you decide to ever get away from pop crap, have your agent give our agent a call.”

Steve huffed out a short laugh. “Yeah. That would be amazing. I’m actually working on a alt rock album right now. So if you’re in town for a bit, I’d love to work with you.”

“Killer!” Luke said. “Keep in touch, darling.”

He walked off with a swagger in his step that Steve only wished he had. He immediately pulled out his phone.

“Dustin,” Steve whispered into his phone. “Do you know how to get in touch with The Struts agent would you?”

“Uh...” Dustin replied. “I mean, I guess, theoretically. Why?”

Steve started jumping up and down, “Luke Spiller wants to do a collab with me!”

“Holy shit!” Dustin said. “When did this happen?”

“Like just now,” Steve squealed with delight.

“Yeah,” Dustin said. “I’ll get right on that. I’ll let you know the details when I get them.”

“You are the best, Henderson!” Steve said.

“Only because you deserve the best, Stevie,” Dustin said, a smile in his voice.

Steve’s excitement level had entered the stratosphere. He was going to collaborate with The Struts and Corroded Coffin.

Pinch him, he must be dreaming.

***

Part 16

Tag List:

@bejeweledbaby @eboyawstenn @moonshadows-13 @ohlook-afrog @goodolefashionedloverboi @linkydinky06 @livelaughlexa @spectrum-spectre @cutepumpkin4 @whatthemeepever @gleek4twd @anything-thats-rock-and-roll @novelnovella @celtrose-ish @artiststarme @plasticcrotches  @failedstarsandgoldenclouds @anaibis @nelotegreitic @steddieassheg0es @abstractnaturaldisaster @scheodingers-muppet @tiny-enthusiast @yes-im-your-mom @thegingerrapunzel @milf-harrington @avacrebs @gregre369 @raisedbylibrarians @reverseteehee @lillys-weird-world @deadlydodos @runyousillydetective @justrandomfandomstm @piebook67 @clumsywriter @donttouchmycarrots @fiore-della-valle @idkareallyreallygoodname  @idontgetpaidenoughforthisshit @imfinereallyy @ravenpainter @ellietheasexylibrarian @maya-custodios-dionach @child-of-cthulhu @estrellami-1 @lillithhellfire @nerdsconquerall @space-invading-pigeon @localgaydisaster @bookbinderbitch

[minisnacc]

First time ever writing something like this on Tumblr, so it’s most likely hella messy because this is just a very IMPROMPTU BRAINSTORM :( I also got the German translations for stuff from a friend who lives in Germany :) ((he says, and I quote, if you need anything in German I’ll be your guy))

Anyways,

Imagine ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ Loser!Konig, Yknow, the kinda guy that’s like ‘I listen to rock hurrhurr no one understands me hurrhurr’ the ‘NEVER interacts with anyone (other than his best friend Hong Jin) ESPECIALLY women’ trope.

Like imagine König with a wardrobe FULL of band shirts, and ripped tank tops, and he’s obviously got a bass guitar, his dorm room is filled with band posters and he has medium length hair, and he like, never ever interacts with women cause ‘he’s not like that’ ((sure bud, sure)) and he only ever listens to rock and metal to ‘drown the voices out’ ((definitely not cause he’s edgy or anything 🙄🙄🙄))

Sees you, who has the smile of an angel, and at first tells himself he’s DEFINITELY not enamoured by you, your laugh, giggles, the way you speak, the way you just… are.

“Agh, nein, I’ve just been lonely, these are just delusions, why the hell would she be into me anyway,” shakes it off and goes back to his dorm and goes to sleep thinking about you (because well, he was… trying NOT to think about you).

Sees you repeatedly on campus, like as if you’re TAUNTING him with your presence, and he then begins actively avoiding the places you frequent, like the library, the canteen, even starts sitting on the COMPLETE opposite end of the classes you share with him, to the point where even you notice it.

Now you.

You, who have been hypnotised by this behemoth of a man wandering around campus, in his band shirts (and your personal favourite, his tank tops, cause, you know, his big meaty arms…), and think to yourself that someone as cool and attractive as he is would NEVER be into you anyway.

The way he always chuckles deeply at what his friend says, this Hong Jin guy (who you think you kinda have a crush on too, ugh, why are there so many cute guys on campus?), and the way he flips his hair out of the way when it gets into his face, sooooo majestically… (okay, so you might be slightly delusional, so what?)

One day you notice he starts… disappearing from the campus… like there’s a lack of presence from him. How? He’s like, the Hulk 2.0, HOW IS HE GONE??

So you start actively going out of your way to ‘bump’ into him. You go to places where you think he’d be on campus - to classes you KNOW he has, with the excuse that you’re there to say hi to a friend, or to the vending machines scattered throughout the compound, cause he loves his canned drinks, and even to the GYM, just lurking around long enough till the staff ask if you’d like a membership (to which you sheepishly decline, then scurry away).

Two whole weeks go by and you begin to think he doesn’t like you, and in fact, think he HATES you.

Then you see Hong Jin, by a vending machine, alone. You stare at him for a good minute, contemplating on whether to just approach him outright and ask him about König. You vigorously shake your head, hype yourself up, and approach him at an alarmingly quick pace, to which he notices, and is startled when you abruptly stop right in front of him, interrupting him as he chooses his drink.

“Jin, right? Nice to meet you, does König hate me?” You ask, almost rapping it like as if you had 1 second left to live, eyes wide and brows furrowed.

Jin simply looks at you, flabbergasted, so shocked because that was NOT what he expected to be asked today. Or by anyone. Or by YOU. The girl König had been talking about, the one he said he thought looked ‘kinda cute’, which, he never ever says, cause he’s way too busy raving about new albums or songs or his new PR at the gym.

He chuckles, which then turns into a laugh, as he looks at you through forming tears. You feel like a puppy with its tail tucked in between its legs, shy, scared that you pissed him off with your (unintentional) direct attitude.

“You’re funny, you know that?” Jin says, wiping away a tear, his laughs tapering off. “To answer your question, no, he doesn’t hate you,” he smiles, a glint in his eyes… a hint of deviousness, you decipher.

“Let me let you in on a little secret,” he leans in close, to your ear, and takes a quick glance to his left and right, “Reason he’s not been around is cause he reeeeeaaaaaaaalllllyyyyyyyyyy likes you,” he drags the word out, taunting you almost, and you jerk your head back and look at him dead in the eyes.

“Really?” You whisper, a smile creeping on your lips.

So this guy liked you this entire time? Who would’ve thought?!

“Yeah at one point he couldn’t shut up about you,” he grins, gaze shifting behind you, his voice now louder than before, “Oh, and don’t tell him I told you this, but he LoooooOooOOOOves thinking about you at night,” Jin leans backwards to an upright standing position, and smirks in the direction behind you.

You turn, and see Konig standing behind you, eyes blown wide, mouth slightly agape, frowning. You can’t tell if he’s shocked, mad, flustered, or all three.

“Oh, right, and I think you’re real cute too,” like pouring gasoline on an already ABSOLUTELY BLAZING DUMPSTER FIRE, you see König’s face shift to that of anger.

You can physically see him tense up and turn red, and the once stoic giant you (thought) you knew explodes, “HÄ?! DIGGA WAS MACHST DU?!” he practically screams.

You flinch, instinctually, from the giant getting mad, like he’ll actually charge straight through you to get to his best friend. König notices when he glances over to you, and loosens his body a little, as well as his expression, but still maintains a glare at Jin.

The Korean man taps you twice on your shoulder, dragging your attention back to him, and he winks at you, “good luck,” he clicks his tongue twice, and promptly RUNS away (rightfully so, or he would’ve been ripped apart by the angry Austrian), leaving you and König alone together.

You’re frozen in place. Don’t even turn around to look at your crush. Well, more like can’t.

His best friend just admitted to the fact that he likes you… like, REALLY likes you. Your mind races with so many thoughts, like, what did Jin mean by König thinking about you at night?? And why did he not shut up about you??? Is this real?? Is this a dream??

A loud sigh interrupts your train of thought, urging you to look behind you.

“Sorry,” König says so quietly it almost sounded like a whisper. He looked like a kicked puppy. Then, a moment of awkward silence. Your eyes dart EVERYWHERE but at him, you don’t even know if you can bring yourself to look at him, such a pitiful sight, but you do, and your heart aches. His eyes are glued to the ground.

It looks like he thinks you hate him, almost like as if he’s holding back tears and ready to beg for your forgiveness for being such a fucking creep, for being such a loser in love with someone like you, and you deserve someone soooo much more manly and cool and handsome and actually likes something other than dumb songs and dumb drinks and dumb gymming routines and…

“Hey, it’s alright,” you break the silence, approaching him slowly, “If it makes you feel any better I really like you too,” you smile softly, offering comfort. You look up to the poor man, into his eyes, and take his hand gently.

You wipe his shame away with those words, and there is a spark in his eyes, which you notice.

“Wirklich?”

“Yeah, wouldn’t believe how much I think about you too,” you blush, now you’re shy, because this is way too much for one small meeting. You’re pouring out intimate secrets to him, ABOUT HIM, while he very very very intently listens.

Again, there’s silence, and it’s a little awkward, considering now you both are in close proximity, being intimate, your neck craned upwards just to be able to maintain eye contact with this giant (HES a tree, you swear).

“So, uh,” König gulps, now taking your hands in his, “Wanna come have dinner with me?” He asks, slight blush dusting his cheeks, “At… my place?” He smiles.

[borderlinebox]

Sup! hope you’re having a great day 😮💗 having childhood best friend brainrot- “you have my back right?” x “lmao probably” cheesy but I eat that shit up every time

could you write a oneshot or headcannon

for chishiya? He’s gotten/done something that’s worth celebrating (maybe it’s his birthday, got first place or a hundred on his test, got into the college that he applied to) he’s never been told by someone that they’re proud of him not even from his old man so he went on with his day expecting nothing special

But but BUT chishiya hears the familiar patterned knocks on his window, how they managed to get up there without his father knowing is beyond him but he’s relieved considering his old man isn’t all that fond with them (In this scenario id imagine that chishiya’s father wouldn’t really like us bc of our shortcomings? something like that...and if he isn’t friends with our parents)

they sneak (more like drag) him out with a lot of convincing and celebrate by going into places he would tolerate or enjoy,,rip his friend’s allowance 💸 At the end of the night they both end up on a park bench with store bought cake with messy written icing “I’m so pr he I did it bitch!!” done by yours truly. they do say it to him and give him a short side hug before he gets back home tho

Feel free to decline this! take care ⭐️

Celebrate With Me!

Summary: Reader acknowledges Chishiya's accomplishments.

Pairing: Chishiya x Reader

Warning: That good cliche shit, FLUFF, cuteness overload, not proofread!!!, changed a few things up!

A/N: ISTG I'm boutta make a Chishiya X Bestfriend! Reader bundle because these requests are too cute!! Hope you have a great day as well and take care too ^^ <3 I am incredibly happy and proud on how this turned out!!! Spent a literal 2 hours straight on it because I lost some progress and I'm gonna have my ass whooped later but this should cover the blow LOVE YALL AND THIS REQQQ ♥

Feedback is highly appreciated!!!

Chishiya sat upon his desk chair, currently finishing up some notes. Just things he's learnt or felt like he found interesting. He could use it in the future. Distant music playing from his favorite band echoed softly in his room.

There wasn't much to do. He'd recently gotten a letter from a university he had applied to - which he was successfully accepted in. He could say he was happy for himself but it just wasn't that exciting or celebration-worthy to him.

He continuously tapped the tip of the pen against the table in a rhythm, re-reading the paragraphs of various words.

SMACK

The sudden noise caught Chishiya's attention as he quickly twisted his head towards the loud noise. There, on his window, a handprint was seen as it was slowly sliding down the window, failing to stick.

Its fingers soon danced on the window, creating multiple and small taps across the glass pane without a proper flow of beat.

Chishiya sighed and stood up and opened the window to reveal his friend struggling to hold onto his window's support,

"Y/N, What are you doing here?" He wasn't at all surprised. He was just more so concerned why you were currently hanging by a thread on his window.

"I'll tell you when I get inside. Right now let's focus on the part where you shoULD BRING ME INSIDE." You flailed your legs around as you struggled to even breathe properly.

He hissed at you to stay quiet and helped you up to sneak inside.

There was a voice, somewhere in his mind where he actually wanted to leave you hanging for a while to amuse himself but that would have been a bad idea.

Once you had both your feet on the floor of his bedroom, you dusted yourself off and took a much needed breather. You had been running to his house since 45 minutes ago. It was hard with the troublesome traffic and people yelling at you as you swerved your way through them, you're just glad you've finally reached his humble abode.

"Right, Explain." He said bluntly, doing his signature move; placing his hands into his pockets. "How did you even get up here?"

You shaked your hand profusely, deflecting the topic. "Never mind that-, guess who found out when your birthday iiiisss?" You looked up at him with a tired yet mischievous grin.

"I'm guessing you."

"Me," You announced proudly while facing your thumb towards yourself, chest up in victory. "And you wanna know what I'm gonna do about it?"

"Please don't." Chishiya sighed, point-blankly. Unfortunately, there was no hope of changing the situation's circumstances because he knew when you were hooked on something, it's sure that you'll be hell-bent on getting it, no matter how stupidly dangerous or ridiculous it may seem.

You laughed before dropping down to the carpeted floor of his room and picking up your sling bag. "Now, as I was saying," Your finger dramatically pointed towards the bag. "We gotta celebrate! So we're going out and hang!"

"I really rather not." He stood his ground, stubbornly declining your offer.

"Come on, you're gonna celebrate your birthday with me!" You teased with the same playful grin you gave him. He was always so stubborn when it came to things he accomplished or failed - whether you wanna celebrate it or cheer him up. Either way, you were going to be even more stubborn than him this time.

"No." He muttered out sternly.

"Yes," You pushed with determination. "We are."

"No."

"Yes."

"No"

"Yes"

"No-"

"Why not??" You broke the repetitive, single-worded debate and gave him a sad look. "You never celebrate anything. Don't you want me to show you how happy and proud I am for you, Chishiya?"

Chishiya seemed to be broken from his train of thought at his words. He was silent, but you could tell that he was processing your words and calculating a response as if he was some kind of robot. You'd have to be honest, he kind of is one sometimes-

"Fine, I'll go and celebrate my birthday." Was all he said, his condescending look seeming to have disappeared - replaced with an unreadable expression.

It didn't feel like an answer at all - you felt disappointed. But you decided to push away those feelings for later because you were still ecstatic about your achievement and that's what mattered.

"W-Wonderful! You go get prepared or something!" You told him in a panic frenzy and opened the window from where you cam from. "I'll wait for you to climb out the window!"

And before waiting for his response, the last thing Chishiya saw of you was you already dipping out of the window and landed on the lush grass, in pain - as he presumed. He quickly changed and made his way down the stairs, being granted the permission to leave.

Chishiya would probably be lying if he said he wasn't at least a little bit concerned for your well being when you jumped out of that window.

To his surprise, when he went outside, he saw you standing proudly with a little dirt in your hair and face.

"You goof??" He asked, eyeing you up and down.

"Perfect, Great! I didn't get hurt, totally didn't - I think I sprained my wrist but that's totally fixed now." You spoke quickly, not even giving him a chance to say another word since you had grabbed him by his wrist. "Now come on! We don't have all day."

-

"Was this necessary?" Chishiya mutters blankly as he takes in the view of the park. It was a rather quiet, and less populated park wherever you and Chishiya both lived. Not many people visited everyday but there were still some who came often. Parks that were more widely known had a bigger crowd and you know Chishiya enough to know that he doesn't like big crowds. Especially the noise that comes with it.

"It was either this or the carnival next place." You turned to him and raised your brow.

"I think I prefer the park." He shrugged. It wasn't a bad place at all - Fairly clean and a decent view. You would sometimes come here alone and think, maybe even attempt to bring Chishiya over. But he was either busy or too stubborn to go. Thankfully, you managed to corner him.

Even though Chishiya let you take him here this time.

Both of you took your time there, having deep talks which mostly started off with why he hadn't really celebrated many past birthdays, which made you frown a lot. Chishiya thought it was half a mistake to give you that information after you had told him that you were gonna celebrate his birthday for him every year instead.

He may be lying if he didn't appreciate it.

The rest of the time, both of you walked and talked on the more philosophical topics. Just the precious quality time between two great lov friends, walking underneath the cloudy weather with strands of sunlight pushing through and landing on the cobblestone pavements.

It didn't seem much as a birthday celebration to the regular human etiquette but you could care less because both of you were having. swell time. Even if neither of you said it. It was a bonding time that didn't need the use of an explanation and more of a feeling.

Your eye was caught by a flock of ducks roaming around a side of a pond next to a woman selling duck food or pieces of bread. Chishiya must've noticed this since you had fully stopped walking and stood in place, staring at them.

"You wanna feed the ducks?" His voice brought you out of your mini daydream, he had his natural high charm evident in his face and voice.

"I, well, if you want to. It's your birthday, not mine.." You mumbled out, it was a bit low for anyone to actually process your words, seeing that you would be a little upset that you didn't feed those ducks.

"Okay then," He lightly smiles and walks his way past you with a bored yet slightly amused expression. "Let's go feed those ducks."

Like a little kid who had been given permission to sleep over at his friend's house, you giddily smiled and practically swooshed right on past him and over to the woman selling the small bits of food.

You quickly bought two small bags and handed one over to Chishiya. He took the bag filled with small, multiple pieces of duckfeed into his hands and looked back up at you. "If I'm gonna feed the ducks, you've gotta feed them too." You told him with a bright smile before kneeling down to the ducks.

Chishiya opened the bag and shook around its contents before taking out a handful and throwing it onto the ground the ducks stood upon with a blank face.

However, you had a cute and dorky smile on your face while you handfed them all equally. Some of them bit you by accident but it was no more painful than a light pinch. Your smile was bright enough to light up a whole room, Chishiya thought as he held back the urge to smile at your antics.

A chuckle from the old vendor caught both of your attention. When she noticed she sighed softly, "Sorry,"

You smiled, "No worries! It's absolutely fine! Why were you chuckling anyway?" Hand finding its way to the bag full of duck feed to gather some more and hand over the pieces to the ducks.

She grinned at the both of you. "Both of you are so cute, are you a couple?"

The question caught both of you off guard. You could quite literally feel the tension rise in the atmosphere. You felt your breath hitch and your lungs close as it denied you to breath from the sudden question.

"No! No, heh, we're just friends." You shot up with an awkward smile at the lady who had understood the tension between her and you both. You look back up at Chishiya with a nervous look on your face. "Isn't that right, Chi?"

He appeared to have froze due to your question. Or was he just standing still and silent because he had zoned out? Was he deeply immersed in his thoughts?

"No, we're friends." Chishiya confirmed. You expected that answer but you couldn't help but feel the pang in your heart when he actually said it.

The vendor nodded and apologized once again for asking such a question. She went back to her small stand to mind her own business instead.

Now you and Chishiya kept on feeding the ducks until both your bags were completely empty, all in awkward silence. Not one of you tried to break the ice since it appeared that no one had anything to say after that question.

You turned to thank the lady before leaving with Chishiya without a word.

Upon arriving back at the park's entrance Chishiya decided to finally break the silence. "Well? Where are you dragging me off to next?" He asked, raising a brow at you. You had almost completely forgotten the reason why you had went out in the first place.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot." Slipping your hand into your slingbag, you pulled out a small crumpled paper and unfolded it.Chishiya tried to lean in and read but you pulled the paper closer to you. "Hey! Don't peek on the surprise." You pouted, forgetting all about the question for a moment.

He put his hand up defensively but it was no more than a sarcastic tease. "No peeking." He repeats before shoving his hands into his pockets once again. Chishiya was almost never seen with his hands outside his pockets outside of his home. It was almoat natural and expected.

Once you were sure he wouldn't peek again, you opened up the piece of paper before folding it once more.

"I got an idea."

"You looked at the paper which most likely had the idea.

"I have an idea." You repeated, dismissing his smart assness. "Follow me!" And once again, you boldly took a hold of his wrist and started to dash to whatever place you were dragging him to next.

-

The warm light of the welcome sign greeted the both of you as you stood outside a relatively new, and decently small café. And sketchy enough, the stores it was between in was a shady dentist's office and a run-down, forever closed drug store.

"This is the new coffee shop that opened last week." Chishiya noticed, looking up at the hangout's name to remember it. "It certainly has a sketchy location."

"That's cause this was the only place the owner could afford. In fact, they're actually quite creeped out by the stores beside it. I feel bad." You explained briefly, glancing at the side shops. "But that's not what we're here for, dear friend."

You pushed him inside the cafe and it was definitely much better on the inside than the out. It had relatively creamy walls and warm lights. You were surprised that the place wasn't filled with people. Tempting enough to keep this place as a secret, all to yourself.

"Sit the hell down." You brought Chishiya to a corner seat - which is, in a natural rule, one of the best seats a restaurant or any place could ask for - and sitting in front of him.

"It isn't a bad place, I'll give it that." Your bleach haired friend admitted, his eyes still roaming around. "What gave you the idea?"

A giggle escaped your lips, "I wanted to try it out. I actually visited the place a few days ago. It was completely different than now. They changed it a lot." You shrugged, "And I thought of you when I stepped in here. I thought you'd like the place."

Chishiya smiled lightly, which was again; rare. "It's good."

"Better than-"

"I haven't decided yet." He cut you off before you could finish which resulted in you giving him a cheeky smirk.

He couldn't help but feel good about himself when you admitted that you thought of him when you found this place. It felt truly honorable than his straight A's and cards with that big ol' red 'Accepted' on it. It was something near to a foreign feeling.

"About what that vendor said-" You were immediately cut off by a waiter coming up, asking for your orders. You coughed into your arm at the sudden surprise and ordered your preferred drink.

Chishiya glanced at you and the waiter, what was with the question? He quickly ordered his own drink as you thanked the waiter before they left.

Another set of an awkward silence filled between the both of you. He was curious about your earlier question but didn't want to push you, you looked embarassed enough after choking on your own spit.

"Don't think about it. She just made a mistake, it's fine." Chishiya wanted to say something else but decided to take matters into his own hands instead. "It's not that uncommon. Sometimes expected."

You nodded at his words. "Right.. I forgot, they have board games here! You wanna play?" You beamed up, changing the subject. He glanced his eyes to the side, finding the board games that you were talking about.

All of them were stacked on a small bookshelf that had a good amount of books on it as well.

"Sure, we'll play." He shrugged without a care. "Why don't you choose the game, Y/N?"

You hummed out a yes and took your time; reading all the board game labels. There were many of them but you wanted to try out something bold, something Chishiya would actuallu want to play with you. "Ah! Chess."

Why Chess? You finally processed your declaration.

"Oh, Chess?" Chishiya looked back at you. What a bold declaration of war. "Sure, why not."

You felt yourself gulp and begin to pray for your mistakes and for your well being, choosing a game like this against a guy like Chishiya. You've already made a decision and stood up and made your walk of shame towards the small chess board.

Bringing the board to your table, you gathered yourself the confidence and smacked the board down.

"Bring it on, Shuntaro." A smirk appeared on your face, a bold glimmer in your eyes.

-

"I think I'm gonna be sick." You burp out, watching your side of the chess board with bored and tired eyes. You've already accepted your death wish an hour ago.

Now you were here with two empty cups, 3 hours that passed by and found yourself with only a King and a Pawn against Chishiya's fucking army. You've paid for your drinks an hour ago and you were still here, suffering.

"You chose the game." He defended. He looked unchanged - just the same guy three hours ago. Meanwhile you sat in front of him, a hand in your hair and tired eyes.

You weren't sleepy, you were just tired of watching your entire empire fall.

"You're enjoying this, I know it. Behind those blank eyes of yours? You're enjoying this." An almost pathetically dramatic voice of sulking came from you as you connected your forehead onto the table.

You could feel him shrug in front of you.

"But alas!" You rose dramatically, "That was my plan all along!" You moved your king to the line of sight of his queen, making yourself lose. "I forfeit. Besides, we're gonna miss the best part of today!"

Chishiya watched as you obliterated yourself and throwing the chess pieces off the board and clean up. "Fun game." He responded to your actions.

"It was not at all fair." You pushed and closed the board up when you finished counting off the chess pieces and went off to put it back in respect. "You're far smarter than me and you know it."

"You chose th-"

"Yeah, Yeah. 'I chose the game' and whatnot, I get it." You echoed him in an immature tone of voice, but you'd never deny his intelligence. He technically carried you through physics and math.

He stood up and walked out beside you, hearing the same waiter who served you both give their thanks.

"The last stop shouldn't be too far from here." You were looking at that old crumpled piece of paper you had a while ago.

After just a few minutes, maybe 10, of walking, you found both yourselves in front of a popular convenience store joint that you and Chishiya always went to for a quick lunch or snack break when you were both in highschool.

You lead him to a black bench right across the small store and placed your things down, taking your wallet out your bag.

"Stay here." You smiled before running into the building.

Chishiya stared at the all too familiar black bench. No, he didn't sit, the black bench gave him an overflow of memories when you both hung out here. You and Chishiya would buy anything you both wanted and were able to buy from the store and sit out here, exchanging notes and occasionally jokes. He smiled at the thought.

"I told you to sit!" You pointed at him accusingly as you held a brown paper bag in your other arm. The sounds of the bells on the doors clinged together when you exited the building.

"I was." Chishiya turned his way to you.

"After almost 10 minutes of me being in there? Come on." You chuckled and decided to sit down on the black bench yourself. He followed right after you. "Check out what I got!"

You ruffled your hand into the paper bag with joy, tongue sticking out and biting softly on the muscle. "Boom!" You cheered when you took it out.

It was a small almost medium, cute pink cake - which was his favorite whipped strawberry flavor - with Chishiya's favorite cookies decorated on the outer curve.

You handed it to chishiya with the same dorky smile you had when you were feeding the ducks at the park. He observed the writing on the cake with narrow eyes.

'Hapi'

'You de'

'Congratatulations!!!'

Despite the spelling error, and the very messy writing, you still smiled like an idiot and Chishiya couldn't help but appreciate the fucked up cake. He actually showed you his smile that time.

Can you believe it? Making Chishiya smile 3 maybe even 4 times today?

It made yourself smile even wider that you had to put your chin on your hands.

"You spelled 'Congra-"

"I'm aware of my mistake Chishiya but there's clearly no more room for anymore mistakes on that cake." You pointed at the cake which really did have no more room for anymore icing.

He exhaled with a smile, his way of laughing or chuckling at you genuinely at best, before opening the plastic lid.

"Oh and, if you want anymore of your bland ass cookies, there's more in the bag. Can't understand why you like that crap." You jokingly gave him a cringed look and stuck your tongue out in disgusted exaggeration. But, you got it for him.

"Fork?" Chishiya asked, looking back up at you.

"Oh shit, yeah I forgot." You opened up your sling and pulled out two plastic forks. "I figured that there wasn't going to be any free forks in the store so I decided to bring some."

Handing him one, you were more than ready to eat the cake with him.

As both of you dipped in for the first bite, you both heard the sounds of popping in the sky which caught Chishiya off his guard.

Fireworks were in the sky. All different colors, blending in so well in the night sky.

"Would you look at that." You said in awe through the cake in your mouth. "I wonder who put that there."

"You did something, didn't you?" Chishiya looked at you, unamused but still appreciative. You could tell it through the way how soft his eyes looked. It was much softer and quite happier than usual, and you were proud.

"I may have asked some friends." You shrugged, meeting his gaze.

Both of you had not only the warm light emitting from the convenience store, but the different colors of the fireworks that temporarily glowed on both of your faces.

You thought he looked so pretty in all of the colored sparks of light. You could get used to his eyes if it were like this.

"I'm really happy and proud of you, Chish." You said all full of truth, hitting his shoulder playfully. "You need to hear it sometimes, no?"

"I guess." Chishiya answered with a shrug again, lifting another fork full of cake near his mouth. "Thanks, I think."

You chuckled, finally hearing those words come out of his mouth felt so satisfying to you. You were even sure he never really said it all to anyone. The sparks in the sky continued to flash in the sky all so beautifully. "Don't mention it."

Maybe he could get used to this, having someone like you. It made him feel all warm and proud for once.

[louisisalarrie]

hi! Keen to get your view on the reason for thinking that Zayn’s leaving stopped LHs coming out. I saw this theory floating around in the past but always thought that would not be the case as at that time it was already clear that Harry was set to venture out as the solo artist eventually. Also see one of zayns recents interviews where he confirms that.

So… look. I wrote this massive thing about this, but looking along Xarry and bbg timelines and everything, I came across the wonderful @caralara’s post here which sums this up essentially just how I believe it happened too. And it’s very articulate and there are so many resources I figured it would make sense to share it as opposed to recreating almost the same post (but more messy hehe). It makes a lot of sense in terms of music industry dynamics, gives a lot of clarity and context to the stunts and timelines around the point that zayn left, and… I honestly think more people should see it to better understand bbg.

Regarding Zayn’s interview comments over the last 9 years… well… it’s been a wild ride. They started out with “I loved being in the band but I didn’t like the music we did” to “I made no friends in that time and I never spoke to Harry” to “the schedule was too tough” to “I don’t want to go into too much detail, but there was a lot of politics going on. People were doing certain things. Some people didn’t want to sign contracts,” which, well, speaks for itself. He also mentioned he wanted to be “the first person to make their own record” so it’s all a bit muddy and jumps back and forth. Also, didn’t he say that about the hiatus “Louis and Harry are the ones that know why, you have to ask them” or am I imagining that????? I swear I saw a gif of that somewhere so if anyone can help that’d be good. But also, if it was fake, then that’s fine too.

The thing is with commentary after a band splits and the member(s) goes solo, is that they are still media trained professionals. Zayn could absolutely hate those boys and rip them, and S*mon, to shreds, but he didn’t. Because there would be repercussions. There are alwaysssss repercussions. So, even though he can point to certain things vaguely, he wouldn’t out anyone or throw them under the bus, particularly the boys, if he wants to keep his career. But yeah, Harry was encouraged to go solo, and there’s that interview ot4 do on the day of their last show before the hiatus where Harry and Louis look like they’ve been arguing and Louis was very upset about the split. It would’ve caused a rift between all of them.

Not to mention that their deal would have had a clause to say “if you all get through the whole contract, you’ll all get significantly more $$ and percentages of your music, but if one of you leaves you’ll get way less than that”, and it was only one more year. One more album, one more tour. But zayn bounced for the sake of his own health, which I’m not blaming him for at all. And Harry and Louis were undoubtedly mad about that because… well… even if they signed as a group with the label and same management again, there would’ve been some pretty hefty negotiations, including coming out. But zayn left, and it encouraged the rest of them to take a break. They needed it. They deserved it.

But listen… I mean, even if you dont wanna believe the theory I linked above, it was quite obvious that harry was becoming more free and Xander and Jeff were a big part of that. Zayn left the band via a Facebook post, which was HUGE. a massive scandal. And there’s only so many scandals a PR and management team will allow before it hits the band too negatively. Anyway, that theory makes a lot of sense to me.

Anyway, if you want more clarification on what I believe or have any questions regarding that theory or why it makes sense from someone who works in the industry, or anything, don’t hesitate to ask. And sorry for taking so long to reply to you angel. Thank you for your patience!!

[bookishtheaterlover7]

I hate Chris for making me feel crazy for questioning this entire situation all due to numerous thing’s happening that would make anyone question everything.

I feel like an obsessed nut for questioning if this man really got married or not.

Like he could have just ripped the band-aid off and put his foot down when people were questioning the relationship in the beginning but nope he just added to the questioning with his actions and inactions and even after getting “married” he’s doing the same shit, so if he’s married for real, it implies he’s the complete opposite of everything sold to us and he’s like fuck it, enjoy spending your lives questioning mine.

I loathe him for this and myself for even participating in discussions and getting updates. I’m here because I chose to believe this was bs pr and he was decent and he’s been looking stressed and like he doesn’t like her, but maybe they wanted people to talk, idk. Just weird.

Exactly!

It's why I've decided to take a break for a while. Take time to focus on myself, my family and my fics. The Fandom shouldn't be in this many shambles!!! And we shouldn't be in this mess trying to debunk basically anything and everything about it. Like, pick a side, Christopher!!!

If it's true stop baiting! Just say her fucking name! And let us be done with it. If not, GIVE US A SIGN. Bigger than what you've already put out there, because clearly, it isn't working, you jerk ass fuck!

I've got so many issues because of you, Chris! Please tell me it was all worth it in the end...

[ashadowofburnedoutstardust]

Apparently Scott didn't even know Chris was selling the concord house but whatever lol // This is false, it takes months to move and sell a place. Even if Chris wasn’t talking to Scott their mother talks to them both and would have told Scott what was going on. Fans really need to stop making up stuff.

This is just about as bad as the Team PR nuts (Captr, Midwest and co) and the TMZ junk they fell for. It is not hard to tell someone what will be on the show, they post clips before it even airs. The fact that the weekend and Monday have passed with no Chris segment on the show should tell them that they got played. Although they will never admit that. I do think the sh*t show is coming to an end but they aren’t going to be sharing online how they are ending it before they do.

Hello anon,

I was taking the piss a bit when I said that, but the reason I said that to take the piss out of Scott is because there's been a rather public disconnect between Chris and Scott

People could say that Chris is just using his IG as professional posts only, but you have to admit with Scott seemingly joining in on the trolling and Chris not following him it is a curious thing to observe

Even more curious is Scott talking about Chris on a podcast about where he lives and then the House sale being publicised right after it could be taken either way

Was Chris trolling Scott in retaliation for talking about him in a clout chasing way again?

Was it arranged that way to get the thought of where Chris is living to lead people to the house sale?

Did he actually sell the house or was that also all for show? 🤷‍♀️

Everything from the Scott podcast to the house sale, to the "blank" background in the jinx video......all the way to the end was all arranged and manipulated, including the articles now being used to bury the backlash was used to try and lift her name

Fuck all of these people and these companies for willingly participating in trying to clean up a racist

If Chris has in fact hooked him onto this girl he is simply delaying the inevitable fall into oblivion, just rip the band aid of and retire asshole, if an incel is what you are then own it like a "real man"

If its PR his fans are getting sick to death of it, and I would not blame them for never coming back

In fact at this point I would be willing to begin to recommend it

[4-nomalie]

College AU!

AG (Afterglow) has this one monthly ritual where each member going to suggest what they're going to compete on. For this month, it's Tomoe's turn and ofc she suggested a ramen eating contest.

They decided to invite Sayo. Roselia was having a band practice on that day, so Sayo decided to lie (just for once since it's a rare occasion)

(Side note: This piece was so much fun to draw because i finally tried the spotlight lighting concept. I think it turned out okay, what you guys think?)

And Himari decided to be the gang's PR agent for that night..

RIP sayo

[greywindys]

I would be more down with the Gorillaz TikTok if the only band member really running it was Murdoc, and we didn't get any other character TikToks unless it was lore-relevant (like if Russel got ahold it just to spread the word of The Static Channel, or something). Murdoc's always been the one attached to brand deals and social media since Phases 2 and 3, so it would be more in-character it was just him making videos. Just Murdoc being Murdoc and doing anything to expand Gorillaz' reach. The marketing team can keep making those bland reactions and duets, but with only Murdoc doing winks and nods, in his (bad) attempt to go viral. In fact, give him every kind of social media. Murdoc on Tumblr. Murdoc on Snapchat. Fuck it, give the man a Tinder account. Now that'd be something.

Yeah, I think it would be a lot more immersive if they tailored their social media to what would be in character for the band. Like, it *does* make more sense for Murdoc to have the biggest social media presence because realistically, he's probably a complete control freak over their PR and the amount of ~spotlight he receives. Historically, he's also been the most active online, like you said. However, it's likely that other fans would complain if they took this route, since it's more en vogue to want all the band members to have equal screen time. I'm completely biased in favor of Murdoc, so this isn't me lmao, BUT if they're that attached to pleasing the fanbase, they could also have more of an in-universe explanation as to why the social media is so bland. Is the label pushing for everyone to be online? Is the band finally being proactive and enforcing a more democratic approach to out-vote Murdoc? There are a lot of interesting directions they could go! And yet...

I also love the idea of Murdoc using other apps. It probably falls outside their family-friendly goals, but it's another direction that has a ton of potential that will probably never be utilized. RIP

[navarresimp]

Since a pride parade since took in our city yesterday, where I assisted I wanted to once again highlight HOW IMPORTANT ACTUAL DIVERSITY WITHIN QUEER STRUCTURES actually is.

Yesterdays parade was really appealing. It was not political however. It lacked the energy and actual protest needs.

The reason was for the most part a lack of people who were not upper middle class able bodied white cis people in the queer council that organised the parade and the following event. I was the only trans person, the (seemingly) only disabled person and one of the few people who were lower class, present. And it really showed yesterday. During the parade itself there were no speeches addressing anything, not even the recent homophobic action against reading stories with queer aspects to kids by city council reps or the recent rise in fascism through the AfD that ENDANGERS QUEER RIGHTS. I (as I'm representing antifascist queer youth project in our city) was asked to tell our people who were attending to not bring any political flags (no antifa flags, no Palestine flags, anything that weren't pride flags, no political symbols), cops were very present and were also TAKING PICTURES.

All of the promo "art" on the flyers were also AI generated, my gripes with this regarding copyright were shot down however, as we supposedly had a license. I won't get into detail but it's become apparent, that AI does not ask for consent of any artists it sources it's images from. To generate the promo images it has most likely taken from independent queer creators, which just saddens me. The "art" itself just doesn't reflect any queer realities or experiences as you would see in actual art, it's just a head of a (very) white woman with rainbow hair.

Since our project was the location for the afterparty, I got a feeling they were trying to communicate with us as little as possible. First of all, during preparations last year, we offered that the party take place in our youth center, which was refused. Another location was chosen, but when it had to call off the event on short notice, I was approached and asked if we could host the event. I agreed, despite it being on extremely short notice and most of our active members being away for work on another big event near Berlin. The week before I ripped out a limb preparing and cleaning the entire house, our social worker doing overtime taking care of the drinks. We asked the council multiple times about security, with we'll talk about it later being the only answer. The thing being that the same day there was a public football viewing in the city center, where known Nazis were attending. We got a yes to security one day before the actual event, which wasn't enough time to get anyone with a 34a license, so we asked another autonomous project for security backup in which 3 people could assist. Long story short two Nazis showed up and were trying to get onto the event, luckily our security handled it and we were alright for the rest of the evening. I worked 16 hours straight the entire day, with DJing for the parade itself and covering the bar shifts for the after party (I did not get a single cent for this btw).

If you ever plan on doing a pride event, make that shit political and make sure the people involved are not worked beyond their limit. I genuinely think we achieved nothing yesterday and I have never felt this empty and exhausted after a supposedly queer event. Speak about injustices within your city and band together as a community to change what's bothering you. Break what breaks you. Visibility is nice, but why would we want to be seen when we don't show actual color, actual humanity. If we form ourselves to the view cishet people have of us, then what more is there for them to see? We spent so much time and money on a PR event, that doesn't focus on the community or of what makes us stronger together. We were literally parading through the streets in an orderly line like circus animals. Always to be observed, but at the same time always subservient.

[therealitychecksneakpeek]

Chapter 3

If you missed Chapter 1 & Chapter 2, make sure you take a look!

He repeats the question, this time using my name, “Mandy? Can I kiss you?”

I stammer a bit before blurting out, “In what capacity?” which somehow breaks the tension, making us both laugh.

“I’m sorry,” he says. “I just realized that of all the things I’m nervous about having to kiss you next week in a room full of people when I barely know you takes the cake. I was hoping we could just rip the Band-Aid off so I don’t have to spiral about what that’s going to be like. That way, things can just be smooth when we actually start filming. Is that weird?”

Shit. It’s not fair he gets to look like that and also be totally adorable.

“No, it’s not weird. Believe it or not, I’m nervous too.”

“Really?” He looks both surprised and relieved.

“Yeah, I mean you’re my first fake, on-air boyfriend.”

He motions for us to take a seat on one of Lucy’s worn couches and I reassure him that it’s not usually like this. It’s strange actually, I know that Casey is being paid to be with me but it doesn’t feel like he sees it that way. It might just be me being a bit delusional but it feels like we already have a real connection.

I tell him about how the show started when I was 22 and how it went from being a vehicle to promote myself and my music to my sole career. It’s the first time I’ve actually said a lot of this out loud, not to mention to the hottest guy I’ve ever seen in my life, but Casey makes it easy. He’s told me about his family and what they mean to him, which makes me open up about my mom’s battle with breast cancer when I was 26 and how suddenly the income from the show meant the difference between her getting the best treatment in the country or what was available in her limited health plan.

It was because of that I had to do whatever it took to stay on the air, even if it went against my core beliefs. I went from this fearless 22-year-old who wanted to show other women confidence comes from within and can happen at any size to an overburdened 26-year-old reality tv star shilling weight loss teas and bending over backwards to accommodate whatever the network wanted.

Two of my best friends that started as cast members don’t talk to me anymore.

They still sing at the church we all met at, but I had to fire them because they became moms who audiences felt had “boring storylines” and “reads as tired all the time” in exchange for Katrein who was also plus size, “dynamic,” and “aspirational”. My family still made a cameo from time to time but they went from being a huge part of the show to an occasional FaceTime in order to pay a revolving door of new friends including hot trainers, singing coaches, life coaches, and whatever trends the network deemed timely.

The whole time I had been assured that the show was still mine.

That I was the star that kept it afloat and everything I did on my Instagram and TikTok helped keep me relevant. At one point I worked with a PR person named Jenna who encouraged me to move to Nashville for the summer and collaborate with up and coming country music artists to help expand my fanbase.

Thinking about it now, it’s hard to believe I’m 34-years-old and just as close to achieving my dream of pop star stardom as I was all those years ago. The realization hits me like a ton of bricks and Casey, who has somehow been absorbing all of this, reaches out and takes my hand in his.

“See, you don’t need to be nervous,” I joke. “You’re a natural at this boyfriend stuff.”

He blushes a little but doesn’t let my hand drop.

“I suppose that’s thanks to Kelly?”

The question is asked tentatively, even though he brought her up when it had been his turn to monologue about the life circumstances that led him to me. I know I’m playing with fire a little bit, because most of what he’s shared is fairly surface. The thing is, I know he’s playing a part but I’m starting to want this to be real, and that’s a very dangerous thought.

My heart doesn’t give a shit though and wants to know if I have a chance. Maybe they’re not as serious as Ben and his bio made it out to be.

“Probably,” he says. “You’d like her. You’re a lot alike in some ways.”

“How so?”

He shrugs.

“Big dreams and not afraid to go after them.”

“So, you’re telling me you have a type,” I say way too flirtatiously than I should. “Glad that your real girlfriend and fake girlfriend are similar in that way. Is she fat too?”

I can tell he’s a nice guy by the way he recoils a bit when I say “fat” as if it’s a dirty word. Ben once explained to me that even though I own it and it doesn’t bother me, it still feels like an insult somehow. I get what he means too, of course I do. I’ve been fat long enough to know what it feels like to have it shouted at you or weaponized against your worth as a person. That’s why I don’t shy away from using it or calling myself fat.

I’m a 2x on a “thin” day and I have been for the past 15 years.

I’m lucky that I carry my weight in a way that society deems as more acceptable than other fat women, but I’m still fat – just with big boobs, a big ass, and a whisper of an hourglass figure.

“No, she’s not,” he finally says.

“Too bad,” I say, adding a playful wink. “You don’t know what you’re missing then.”

“I can already tell that any real boyfriend you have will be lucky to have you.”

I smile through the knife he’s just pushed through my heart and pretend to be unphased as I ask him about all things Kelly. I’m hoping that by doing so it will be less obvious that I have a very real crush on him and perhaps my brain will actually register that this man is totally off limits.

Ben and his bio were correct in assuming their relationship is serious. Casey and Kelly have been an item since college where she majored in art history as he pursued an MBA. I discover that Casey is actually five years younger than me, and Kelly three years younger than him. At twenty-nine, Casey is really ready to start settling down but Kelly isn’t totally ready which is why this whole thing doesn’t bother her.

I guess it’s easy to take a five-month breather from your serious relationship when you feel like you have all the time in the world.

He assures me that they’re still very much together, but for optics and other reasons their families and friends think they’re taking time to really explore who they are as people before they finally make that inevitable leap. She’s not planning on quitting her full-time job, but without Casey consuming all her time on weekends and after school she’s hoping to really see if she can create art and make a living at it.

He shows me that she’s already opened a shop on etsy and has a few prints for sale. I can tell that he’s genuinely proud of her, and I also make a mental note of her shop name so I can later look it up and obsess over the picture she’s uploaded. On his phone it’s too small to really see but I get the gist. Kelly is a blonde woman wearing a big smile and painter’s smock, holding up a painting of hers. I wonder if he’s only into blondes and if I wasn’t fat, if my brown hair and brown eyes would be a deal breaker. I wonder if he only dates women her size or if he’s one of those rare guys that values an emotional connection as much as a physical one.

“Are you worried at all about being apart for so long while we film? And then of course there’s the press obligations and the stuff we have to do for a month after wrap to make sure our relationship looks legit…”

“Maybe a little,” he admits. “But I also believe what’s meant to happen will happen, you know?”

“I do.”

Except what I’m hoping is meant to happen is probably not what he’s hoping. Especially now that we’ve had this conversation that could have been awkward or uncomfortable and instead has me feeling like we’re friends at the bare minimum.

“Should we kick this thing off?” I ask, taking my phone out and flipping the camera into selfie mode.

“Let’s do it,” he says.

I start to hold the phone away from me, but Casey moves closer to the point I can feel his body pressed against my back as takes it out of my hand.

“My arms are longer.”

He speaks right into my ear and his breath tickles my skin to the point I feel as if I’m covered in goosebumps and praying he can’t tell. He drapes his other arm around my shoulder, as if he were claiming me, and snaps a few shots. As if that weren’t enough he nuzzles my neck, still snapping away as I try to keep my face smiling and composed as if this is my real life and not just for show.

God, I wish it wasn’t just for show.

It’s taking all of my self-control not to make this incredibly inappropriate for him. I want to pounce on him, straddle his thick, muscular thighs and rub myself against…

“Can I kiss you Mandy?”

I want to scream, “OF COURSE YOU CAN!” but I just smile and nod. He cradles my face with his free hand, still holding the camera still with his other. I wonder if the selfie taking is making this less real for him, since social media assets were just talked about in our kickoff meeting, or if there’s more going on for him too and the camera gives him an excuse to indulge a little bit.

I don’t care either way but it’s confusing, and his touch doesn’t feel completely platonic or innocent. It feels like he’s reciprocating this blossoming crush, even if I’m not his usual physical type.

His thumb brushes over my bottom lip and I hear the shutter sound from my phone camera before he leans in and kisses me.

It occurs to me that someone has told him that kissing in film and tv is typically chaste and without tongue. I want to murder whoever told him that and wonder if that makes me a bad person. I continue to play with fire a bit as we kiss, parting my lips ever so slightly against his so should he want to slide his tongue into my mouth he’s able to do so.

To both my relief and dismay, he does not oblige.

The shutter continues to snap until he pulls back with a smile, one hand extended to offer me my phone while the other still gently strokes my face.

“Should we do another for good measure or do you feel like you’ve got that down?” I whisper quietly. I don’t know when it happened but my hands have found their way to his chest and it’s fair to say there has never been a man whose physique has made me feel this small in his arms. Not that I have to be small or anything – I just have never experienced anything like this. The worst part is I can’t seem to control myself either, and instead of pulling away I look at him, challenging him to kiss me without a camera.

I hate myself for this too.

This man has a girlfriend and what I’m doing is wrong.

I can’t seem to help myself though – I’ve never felt this kind of pull before. Even with Evan, whom I loved with my whole heart, this type of attraction was missing. I have judged so many people for getting close to doing what I’m tempting Casey to do, and I’m judging myself but something about him has me already losing control.

Casey’s gaze flickers between my eyes and lips and just as I could swear he starts leaning forward to kiss me again, a voice pulls us both back to reality.

[ptsilencedhill]

One of the funniest moments of the last few years of pop was when Olivia Rodrigo’s team made her pose for a complete rip-off of Live Through This’s album cover because they were trying to market her as The Cooler Avril Lavigne and Courtney love made an Instagram post about it making fun of her and Olivia Rodrigo’s directed PR reply was “omg thank you <3 love you and your band!”