#seeing his people vote against him would confirm his insecurities

[bistaxx]

Canon lives and Wilbur's first death retroactively make his second even worse in my opinion. (Both deaths are horrible and I'm not saying one is worse then the other but I am saying that people don't talk about his second as much as they should imo)

In the final control room Wilbur's last words were him shouting at the others to escape but it was too late, his teenage friends and child were already doomed and he couldn't do anything to save them. He was their general, their older brother figure/father, he failed them.

So imagine how he must've felt being shot at with arrows alongside Tommy, all he can do is yell at him to run until Wilbur gets fatally struck by an arrow knowing very well the same thing could happen to Tommy... and he can't protect him. Tommy who is on his last life because Wilbur couldn't protect him during the war. The war that they only won thanks to Tommy's selfless act. Tommy thankfully makes it out alive but I can't begin to imagine how stressful that moment would've been for c!Wilbur.

And gosh... the end of the revolutionary war is just so poetically bitter. Wilbur fails to fight with words so with the declaration of war must turn toward weapons, he tried his best but the L'manburgians were outmatched and slaughtered; and all the suffering ends up for nothing because technically they lost the war when Tommy lost the duel, that was it for them.

And then Tommy makes the deal with Dream- the discs for L'manberg's independence. Now while Wilbur was definitely proud of Tommy and ecstatic to have secured independence I wouldn't be surprised if deep down it pained him and bruised his sense of self-worth even more.

Wilbur didn't just fail as a general, he failed to do what he believed in; fighting with words. But Tommy succeeded. I feel like that weighed on Wilbur a lot, even if he hid it.

Even if c!Wilbur was bad I really dont think being betrayed by a friend and slaughtered, then later shot to death listening to people cheer that he was being exiled was deserved

He wanted to do drugs on a tiny area of land? Oh boy it's not like he got suddenly and brutally murdered for it unexpectedly and also incredibly unnecessarily as a punishment while Also trying to get who he cared about who was also in danger out of the situation while the people who ordered his death and cheer. Yknow despite the whole "fighting with words" thing

He wanted to rig an election? He was a bit morally dubious during the election? Oh boy it's not like he got suddenly and brutally murdered for it unexpectedly and also incredibly unnecessarily as a punishment while Also trying to get who he cared about who was also in danger out of the situation while the people who ordered his death and cheer. Yknow despite the whole "fighting with words" thing

Bro his deaths were horrific, sudden and traumatizing and nobody talks about them like. Ever. Both times he didnt fight back, the first time he was relying on a friend to help him against their enemies who were beating them down, he had HOPE man,, the second time he stepped down peacefully, declaring himself a citizen. And he got hunted down murdered for it. Both times he was yelling at - his last words - his little brother figure to run

Do you ever think about the fact that c!Tommy and c!Wilbur repeatedly watched eachother die?

[oftenderweapons]

Love Talk - Jimin

Pairing: Jimin x reader (nicknamed Princess)

Wordcount: 6.6k words

Genre: smut, fluff, lowkey angst

Rating: 18+

Hello cuties! 💜 

I’m back with a new piece and this time we have a very soft boy Jimin with a lot of fluff (plus smut, ‘cause we all know I’m a certified slut by now). This is the right moment to remind you that if you’re a minor the content under the cut is not intended for you and you should not read. 

Anyways, quick recap: Jimin and y/n-Princess have been dating for about four months at this point, they are seeing each other exclusively, though they haven’t yet explicitly said ‘I love you’. 

On to TRIGGER WARNINGS: discussion of eating disorders (they are NOT condoned, but rather addressed and gently corrected), alcohol consumption (just mild tipsiness, nothing major). Swearing. Sub!Jimin wants a spanking. Of course he gets one. Very in-depth discussion of BDSM conditions and limits related to a spanking scene. Punishment scene and powerplay. Teeth-rotting fluff. Unprotected vaginal sex (do I need to remind you to use protection whenever you engage in oral, anal or vaginal sex? Well, this is me, kindly reminding you to keep it safe). Woah, these warnings are shorter than usual.  

Wordcount: 6.6K

A small thank you to @nervous-moon​ for the constant love and support (and for listening to me ramble for days about crazy themes and prompts) and another silent thank you goes to an amazing angel who listened to me panicking about this fic not working and putting me back on track.

Here is my masterlist!

And before I let you read in peace, please remember to vote for the next theme :) (link in my bio)! 

Enjoy!

Jimin is a tense bundle of nerves, walking back and forth at the feet of the bed, pacing anxiously before sitting and grabbing his hair, tugging it in exasperation. How could he possibly do this?

It’s not like he could bend over your lap and scream “I won’t stand up until you spank me raw.”

But at the moment he was desperate enough that he was actually considering. He threw himself on the mattress, rolling on his belly and whining loudly, kicking and punching the covers. 

Nuzzling his face into the duvet, he took in the smell of you on the bedsheets, finding small comfort. 

What if he moved your hand on his ass, leading your wrist so your hand smacked on his ass?

He grimaced and shook his head. 

Turning around he stood up and went to the kitchen. It was late. You should be here in ten minutes. Maybe tipsy from your night out with your friends. He spotted the bottle of beer in the fridge. 

A little liquid courage?

He nodded to himself, grabbing the bottle. 

The bottle was empty when he heard the door unlock. A sweet chill ran down his spine as he heard you take off your shoes, silent footsteps heading down the hall, following the light from the kitchen. 

“Hi.” You said, surprised, noticing the bottle on the table. Your mind, already growing suspicious, noticed that there was only one glass on the table. You calmed yourself down. 

“Hello.” He said with a cute blush, puffy cheeks and his sweet smile. “You’re back.”

“And you’re tipsy.” You replied, smiling at him incredulously.

He nodded, lids heavy. 

“Come with me.” You murmured. “Put down that stuff.” You invited him playfully. 

He looked at you with a dreamy look. “Haven’t you drunk?”

“No, Jimin. I was assigned to sober godmother duty tonight.” You huffed out, slightly stressed. 

He cocked his head to the side. “Don’t you want a sip, then?”

You looked at him. Your sober godmother duty wasn’t over, apparently. You were sure of it when you saw him oscillating dangerously on top of the barstool by your kitchen island. “No. I want to undress and get to bed.”

He made a grumpy face, all of his features scrunching up, his lips locked in a pout. He extended his arms towards you, making grabby hands.

You took a few steps towards him, hugging him as he smiled once more as you helped him down the chair. He kept holding you tight, brushing his face all over your neck and the small triangle of skin appearing from your demure top. “What do you want, Jimin?” You asked sweetly, your index tipping his head back so you could look at him. 

He only shook his head, trying to escape from your inspecting gaze. 

You had none of that. “Jimin, love. Do I need to take you to bed?”

He smiled, eyes closed, whining out a long, giggly “yes”.

Keeping an arm around his waist, you started walking to the bedroom, leaving the lights on in the kitchen. You had to go back for the bottle anyway. 

“You didn’t drink that much, baby.” You kissed his temple. “Did you eat?”

His brow creased as he shook his head. 

“Why not, Jimin?” You asked. 

“I wasn’t thinking about it. I had lunch with Yoongi hyung and Taetae. Dinner kind of passed by.” He mumbled.

“That’s not good, Jimin.” You reprimanded lovingly. “Your body needs yummy food. Nutrition.”

“I know. I didn’t do that on purpose, though. I wasn’t hungry. I forgot.” He admitted.

Reaching the bed, you made him sit on the edge. “I’ll go fix the kitchen. Make yourself comfy.”

In the kitchen you put some instant rice in the microwave as you threw away the bottle. Waiting for the rice, you prepared some salad, opening a small jar of kimchi and laying it all out on a tray. 

The microwave dinged and you grabbed the bowl, adding kimchi and sausage slices. Satisfied with the result, you went back to the bedroom. Jimin was laying on the bed, his back straight against the pillows by the bedpost.

“Here,” you offered, laying the tray on the bedside table and sitting beside him, on top of the covers.

“I want you here with me.” He complained, trying to drag you under the sheets. 

“I have my day clothes on.” You justified yourself. 

“Take ‘em off.” He giggled.

You shook your head, snorting. “Stay there, I’ll go get changed.”

A few minutes later you came back, dressed in your soft silk pajamas and a robe. “Time to eat, Jiminie.” You climbed in bed, settling beside him, your legs disappearing under the sheets. Holding the tray, you moved it on your lap while Jimin curled up against your side, arms wrapping around your arm and squeezing it. You took a spoonful of rice and brought it to his lips as he leaned over the tray. 

Opening his mouth wide, he put his soft, plump lips around the spoon, eyes wide, fixed on yours. 

He was teasing you. 

You huffed out a heavy breath. “Jimin.”

“What” He sputtered through his mouthful of food. 

You shook your head. 

“More.” He muttered before opening his mouth wide. “Aaah.” He said, inviting you to feed him.

You huffed out, slightly annoyed, and offered him another bite. “Come on, good boy.” He brushed the side of his face against your arm, his lips curling up in a confident smirk.

You fed him the whole bowl, alternating it with salad leaves, offering him sweet praises and cuddles. “Now, will you explain to me why you are not taking care of yourself, Jimin?”

You gave him a serious stare, your voice concerned but also caring.

“I’m just busy.” He shrugged. “No big deal.” He didn’t look you in the eye. 

“Jimin.”

This time he looked up at you. “What?” He taunted. 

“You’re tense, baby. I see that you’re stressed.” You caressed his hair. “What is it?”

Was this the right moment to tell you? He shook his head. “It’s just work. We’ve been producing more material than usual and it’s taking its toll.”

“Is that why you’re not eating much?” You moved the tray out of the way, taking your arm away from his grip and wrapping it around his shoulders. 

He hid into your chest, nodding.

“Oh, my poor baby.” You cooed, pampering him, brushing up and down his spine with your palm. “Do you want cuddles?” 

He felt spoiled. He felt cared for and loved. He felt like you could understand him. It felt right.

With a wave of courage taking over his body, he slithered out of your embrace and quickly found his way to the bathroom, fumbling with the drawer where he kept the hair dryer.

When he came back, his pace was significantly slower, his footsteps wary and insecure. His whole posture had changed as he hid his head low between his shoulders, his back hunched, his hands holding something to his chest. 

You watched perplexed as he neared the foot of the bed. “I really don’t know how to say this.” He murmured with a little lisp in his words.

You felt like melting on the bed. Ever since your first day you had grown fond both of his tender, delicate side and his flirty, cheeky one. The shift from one to another always kept you on the edge of your seat, never knowing whether you’d be confronted with the sweet, affectionate boy or the forward, bold man. All that you knew was that, since you started dating four months ago, you had started falling for him. And just now Love hit you like a train on a track. 

And he had been falling too. All he needed was the final push, confirming that you would satisfy that tiny whim of his, that recurring fantasy that he never had the courage to bring up since you two started messing around, a couple months ago.

“You can say anything to me, darling.” You reassured him. “Come here, show me what you got there.”

He climbed on the bed, crawling toward you on his knees, hands still plastered to his chest. “Will you promise me you won’t laugh at me?” He whispered. 

“Look at me, sweetheart.” You said, your voice calm and comforting. 

His wide, glimmering eyes met yours and your whole body warmed with understanding and compassion. 

“I would never, ever laugh at you, pretty duckling.” You opened your arms wide and he let his body fall gently into your hug. Now he was curled up against your side, head laying on your chest, leg wrapped around your hips possessively. 

He let the secret object fall on your belly. 

A hairbrush.

Your brow twitched. “Jimin, baby, I need you to explain.” You felt too confused to put two and two together. 

“I— You know that sometimes people feel the need to… Get a little rough?” He searched for your hand, toying with your fingers. He was looking even smaller now, all your protective instincts surging beneath your skin.

“You want to get a little rough?” You asked, still trying to understand the exact implication of that. 

“I want you to get a little rough with me.” He admitted, blushing violently and hiding his face into you. 

“You want me to use the hairbrush on you?” You asked, trying to clarify. 

He nodded into the crook of your neck.   

Well, of course you were a little shocked, but not surprised. Not at all. It was clear that Jimin liked to be pampered and spoiled. He liked praises and cuddles and attention. He liked flirting and he liked when people flirted back. He liked when people decided to one-up his cheekiness, to beat him in brazenness.

And of course he liked partners who could put him back in his place. 

“I need you to sit up, duckling.” You ordered him with honeyed voice. “And I need you to listen to me very carefully.”

He heard the change in attitude and he parted from your chest, looking you in the eye. 

“Sit up, Jiminie.”

He obeyed, bending his legs under his torso, his ass resting on his heels.

“I’ll play it out for you, all you need to say is yes and no.” You assisted him in this laboured confession. It was unusual for Jimin to act shy, and you assumed that you had to treat such vulnerability with tender and loving care, creating a positive association to him confessing his insecurities, through praises and affection, emotionally wrapping him up in a warm blanket, putting him in a pretty bubble that could become a safe environment until he felt strong enough to go back into the real world. 

“You want me to spank you?”

He nodded, hiding his face behind his lovely hands. 

“Look at me, duckling.” You told him quietly, holding his wrists and taking his hands away from his eyes. 

He whined a little but at the end he settled his hands down on his lap and looked at you. 

“I cannot use the hairbrush on you, Jiminie. Because I don’t know how to use it and I could hurt you.” You knew you weren’t ready for it. And it would have been dumb and dangerous of you to ignore your lack of experience and preparation. This is not stuff that should be played with, especially without proper research and training. 

He looked at his lap and nodded, understanding you completely, but still a bit upset at the thought that he needed to postpone this experience with you. Because it wasn’t a no, right? It was a maybe later, right?

You looked at his unhappy expression. You not wanting to use the hairbrush on him didn’t mean that the whole scene was cancelled. Maybe if you set the right terms you could be safe and still make it right for him. “Would it be okay if I used my hands? Get you used to those before we get naughtier?”

He looked up at you, eyes gleaming with surprise and gratitude at your offer. He nodded eagerly. 

“Then that’s it, duckling. We’ll go with my hand. But first we need to talk about this very thoroughly.”

“It’s okay. We can discuss rules and safewords.” He suggested.

You nodded. “That’s right. I need to know what you want me to do, Jimin. I need you to help me make it safe and pleasurable for you.” You felt like you needed his guidance. “I need you to help me, Jimin.”

He noticed you using his name, twice, and the submissive side of him subdued as he annulled the power imbalance and came in your assistance. “We can start from something very easy. I would say we could try a set of ten, but the golden rule of every first scene is to stay hungry and do only half of one of the many many things you want to try. So the best way to do this safely is to limit this to five hits. Can you do five hits, ____?”

You thought about it carefully, not letting yourself be seduced by the thought of Jimin in such a vulnerable position. “I think so. But as I said, guidance is key.”

“It’s okay. I’ll try and lead you, call that a power bottom.” He giggled shyly, trying to brighten the mood. “I’ve been trying to talk about this for a while.” He explained. “I didn’t know how to ask.” He tweaked his fingers in the meanwhile, torturing himself a little. 

“Is that why you’ve been tense lately?” You questioned.

“Yes. I mean, I think I’ve always thought about this since we started dating, but lately it’s a way more recurrent thought.” He explained, shoving his hands under his thighs.

“Okay. Let’s take this as a trial round. We’ll start with five hits. I’ll only use my hands. You can stop me at any moment. And I may decide to interrupt the scene, if I find myself inadequate.” 

He looked you in the eye. “Do you want a safeword for yourself? I mean, technically you’ll be dominating but it is not uncommon for novice dominants to have a safeword they say before they snap out of their role. It can also be a signal that determines the end of the scene.”

You took a pause to mull over it. “Good. Do you have one that you’ve used before or that you’re comfortable with?”

He thought about it, quickly, trying to remember the information he had picked up from various websites. “The most obvious one would be the colour system. Green for good, Yellow to slow down and Red to stop?”

You smiled encouragingly and caressed his face. “Yes, of course. That’s easy.”

“Usually this kind of scene is used for punishment and atonement. I think that you can interrupt it by explicitly saying “you are forgiven”, or any sentence along the lines of that.” He suggested. 

That was smart. Intuitive. 

He looked back at you, holding your face. “I trust you. You’re smart and compassionate. You’re empathetic. I know that you won’t hurt me. I value your common sense and your affection. I know you’ll keep me safe, ____.” The words were almost there. I love you, Princess.

You leaned in his hold, inhaling deeply. 

He continued your briefing. “I’ll help you through it. Five blows sound like a small number, but what’s important is the quality. Take your time after the first one, rub the spot you’ve just hit and the one you’re going to hit next. Sensitise the skin before you hit.” He directed you. “Normally a submissive can speak only when directly addressed to, however it’s our first scene, so if you prefer I can interact with you at any given time.” He explained, comforting you some more. 

“Okay, Jiminie.” 

His eyes crinkled as he smiled at you brightly, giggling slightly.

You huffed out a focused breath. “Let’s recap. Just five spanks, with my hand. If you want me to slow down, you say yellow. If you want me to stop, you say red. You can interact with me as much as you want. Between one spank and the next, I will rub your skin and receive your feedback.” You took a deep breath, preparing yourself to enter our role as a dominant. “I will take care of you, Duckling. Are you okay?” You waited for his confirm.

He nodded, looking at you with such adoration in his eyes that your whole heart melted. 

“Is it okay if I call you duckling, baby?” You asked him. 

He nodded. “Yes, ____. Is there any name you want me to call you?” He asked in return. 

“For now my name is okay, Jiminie. Are you still tipsy, baby? Your consent is important and I cannot play with you unless your consent comes as an extremely lucid decision.”

He nodded. “I am okay. I didn’t drink that much, and I ate too. The alcohol is already gone, I promise.” He wasn’t looking impatient or greedy, both things that would cloud his judgement.

“I am very thankful that you trusted me enough to talk about this with me, and that you trust me enough to let me try this with you. I really can’t wait to explore with you, but I will have to do some research after tonight.” You admitted. The nourishing instincts of a carer had always been natural to you, and his request didn't sound absolutely inadequate or unfeasible. To put it plainly, you were quite interested into becoming more dominant, and learning about BDSM practices didn’t sound bad at all. Especially if Jimin was the one you would be using them with.

He let the thought sink in. "So you would be okay with this becoming a more frequent thing?" He asked. 

More frequent? "Well, for now let's try this tonight. And then we need to learn how to do this in full safety. The best thing to do would be to learn about this first — better safe than sorry — but you said you will help me, and we’re taking this slow, so I can learn as we go. Just a few smacks, to see if you like this. Innocently. You know I wouldn't do this if there were even the smallest chance of me hurting you, right?" You reassured him, thinking of all the things that could possibly go wrong. 

"I know you would never hurt me.” He said, big, pleading eyes set on you. God, I’m such a fool for him._

“Do you want this, Jimin?” You asked very seriously.

He nodded before holding your hand. “Yes, I do.”

“I need you to be really, really sure, Jimin.” You repeated. The more times you asked, the better. He needed to understand that consent is important. For girls such a lesson is somehow engraved in their mind. They grow up learning that “yes” and “no” are very heavy, big words. Boys sometimes tend to forget that. They’ve been subjected to centuries of predator theory, being only subjects of desire, rather than objects of it, forced to actively initiate sexuality and hardly ever taught of being on the receiving end of lascivious intentions. They never had to learn to say yes or no because society never supposed that they would be the ones answering rather than asking. 

“I am really, really sure, ____.” He confirmed, holding both of your hands now. 

Nodding, you bent and kissed him sweetly. “You know I care about you a lot, right?” You whispered on his lips. You felt like the “I love you” was right there, on the tip of your tongue, still you swallowed it, letting only the watered-down taste of affection slip past your lips. 

“I know.” He blushed and kissed you harder. “And I trust you. And I care about you too.”

“Then, would you like to take off your clothes, duckling?” You offered.

He hummed in confirmation, standing up at the foot of the bed and taking off his shirt. 

You stood up next to him, your hand caressing his chiselled abdomen, running upwards, following the thin valley connecting his navel to his jutting breastbone. “Look at my lovely boy.” You whispered at his ear, standing behind him. “He looks so good when he takes care of himself.” You massaged the tense muscles of his shoulders. “When he eats he becomes a strong, healthy boy. So good looking.” Your hands dove into the hair at his nape, tugging it slightly so that his head was thrown back, exposing his sensual neckline and his strong jaw. 

“Can you take off your sweats and underwear, duckling?” You asked, your voice resembling a sickeningly sweet dark poison.

“Yes, ____.” He murmured, undoing the ribbon of his sweats and tugging both them and his briefs to his ankles. As he was bent over in front of you, you held him steady with your hands on his hips, caressing the swell of his ass as he stood back up straight. 

When he felt your hand on the muscle, a shiver ran down your spine, making him exhale and whine quietly. 

“You like it, Jiminie?” You asked kindly. “You like booty rubs?”

He blushed, nodding with small motions. 

“Say it out loud for me, duckling. Let me hear what makes my baby happy. Do you like booty rubs, Jiminie?” You cooed.

“Yes, I like your booty rubs, Princess.” He used your nickname, trying to reconnect with that fond, well-known part of you. He felt vulnerable and reminding himself all the times you’d been a sputtering mess below him, as he teased you with the nickname, brought back slight balance in his mind. 

“Good. Now, you asked to be spanked, Jiminie. Would you like to get in your favoured position, baby?” You let him choose. If it were for you, you would love to see him on his knees and elbows on the bed, but you thought it would be better to let him choose. 

“Do you think I can just lay on the bed on my belly?” He asked, insecure, waiting for you to confirm. 

You thought about it. “As long as it’s not uncomfortable laying on your front when you’re turned on.” You reasoned, thinking about his possibly painful erection. “And you need to be relaxed and comfortable. Can you breathe comfortably like that?” You checked. 

He nodded. “I just need a pillow under my chest.” He informed you, assuming his position. You were still at the foot of the bed, staring at his beautiful backside, taking in the strong lines of his back and spine, the twitching muscles resembling the fluttering feathers of a regal swan. 

“You are a vision, duckling.” You complimented him, and his blush made him hide his face in the comforter. 

“Thank you, ____.”

Miss, that’s what felt right. But that would be for next time. Right now you wanted one task and you wanted to carry it out perfectly. 

“Where do you want me, duckling?” You asked for his directions, still trying to make it sound like you were the one in control, the one making him a favour by asking for his preference. 

“Could you sit on your knees next to my hips, on the bed?” He suggested, his tone so sweet and delicate you felt like you would give him the moon if only he asked.

Following his direction, you sat beside him as instructed. “Here, duckling?” You felt like addressing him with such nickname was helping you separate your boyfriend from the splendid, unfamiliar figure on his bed.

He turned his head slightly, checking your position. “Just make sure that you’re comfortable staying like that, that you can fully control the movement of your arm. You can touch me and check whether the angle feels comfortable for you. You could hurt yourself too if the angle is wrong.”

You nodded, rolling your shoulders in anticipation. After taking a deep breath you let your hands run from the back of his knee to the full, toned muscle of his ass, your nails scratching delicately, in a barely-there motion. 

He hummed out a gentle moan at that, nodding in appreciation. “This is the right moment to locate any vulnerable parts. Careful with bones and nerves: you must not go there. Locate the tailbone. Use your thumbs side by side, down the spine.” He instructed, the briefing identical to the one he used when he massaged Taehyung after tough workouts. 

You followed his directions, finding the delicate spot a couple inches down the seam of his ass. “Here?”

“Exactly. Before you go, place your non-dominant hand on the spot you’ve just found. That will keep you from hitting anywhere dangerous. Identify the soft, fleshy parts — the lower part of the cheek, the upper thigh — there, you can hit without worrying too much.” He was relaxing you through the briefing. You felt already more confident, his calm voice leading you and making you feel like everything would be okay.

With one hand blocking the no-zone, the other one on your target, you started massaging the skin gently, correcting your posture as you went. You found yourself sitting with your thighs perpendicular to him, your palm caressing his butt cheeks, just like he’d told you. “Is it okay?” You asked. 

He turned, looking at you, enjoying how he had to twist and arch his back to see you. Analysing the position quickly he nodded. “That’s good posture, princess. Check that your wrist doesn’t strain. Check if your hand creates a rough angle with your forearm.”

Your wrist kept a neat line. You nodded. “Okay.”

“I trust you, princess.” He reminded you, caressing your calf before tucking his hands under his chest.

You smiled, confidence renewed. Your aim is to take care of your man. That’s all you want. You would do anything for him. And to see him relaxed and sated? Because you gave him what he needs? Yes. Anytime, anyplace. “Are you all set, puppy?”

He released a tight breath. “Yes, ____.”

“Perfect. Do you remember your safewords, duckling?” You asked, making sure that he remembered that he could stop you at any given time.

“I do, ____.” He confirmed, his voice firm but incredibly sweet and slightly high-pitched.

“Okay. I’ll start.” You rubbed his flesh a couple times, then you lifted your hand, aiming for the lower part of his ass, where it curved downwards into his thigh. When your hand was a foot or so away from your target, you stopped, gathering the tension necessary to smack him. Biting your lip, you struck. 

He chirped out a “yes” while your hand stayed on his skin rubbing gently. 

“Are you good, duckling?” You checked. 

“Yes, ____. Yes. That was a perfect thud. Keep rubbing.” He directed. 

Fuck, that was truly a lovely thud: heavy handed, with a nice, rigid wrist, the palm sufficiently cupped to adhere to the skin. 

“Any feedback?” You asked. 

“Not really. Just advice. Hit with your wrist and your elbow, not with your shoulder.” He hummed as your hand stilled and just pressed more firmly against his reddening skin. “That’s good, ____. Keep your elbow tucked into your side. Try again, on the other leg now.” He suggested. 

Adjusting your angle, you mentally repeated the instruction. Elbow tucked in, rub. Check the wrist angle. Check the other hand covering the tailbone. Move your dominant hand away. One foot roughly. Deep breath. Focus. Release. 

The breath Jimin was holding came out as the softest, angelic sound, his head hiding in the sheets, his legs twitching while your hand on the small of his back kept him still. 

Focusing on your task, you didn’t let his sound distract you as you kept your hand pressed into his bum. “You liked that, duckling?”

“Yes.” He giggled, huffing out a quiet whine. “Can you go harder? Just like before but harder?”

You took a deep breath, your palm raising from his skin so it was only the tip of your nails drawing small circles on the blushing imprints on his ass. “I can go harder, duckling. Are you uncomfortable on your lap?” You worried, thinking about how hard he must be by now. 

“No, I’m okay. Thank you, ____.” He reassured you. 

“Perfect. Harder?” You asked, removing your hand, letting some anticipation slip in. 

“Please, ____.” He moaned. 

You knew what you wanted, right in that moment. You could handle just that one more thing. So you asked. 

“Do you think you would enjoy calling me Miss, duckling?” You questioned very carefully. 

He turned towards you. “Are you sure?” He asked, eagerness filling his voice. 

“Yes.” Just like you called him “duckling”, you wanted your identity as his girlfriend the be partitioned from what you were doing right now. “What do you say to this, duckling?” Use that name for me.

“Thank you, Miss.”

Satisfied with his reply, you let your forearm swing and hit. You slightly reprimanded yourself for your shoulder slightly accompanying the motion, but how could you feel sorry when Jimin moaned like that?

The movement felt more familiar now, your arm getting used to measures and intensity. 

You rested your palm for a few seconds. “What do you say, duckling?”

“Thank you, Miss.” He cried out deliciously, voice dripping in pleasure.

“That’s a good boy.” You cooed. “Ready for the next?”

“Yes, Miss.” He replied quickly. 

“There we go, duckling.” You said. This time you carefully took initiative. Elbow a foot from your side, you rubbed your target. Check the wrist angle. Check the other hand covering the tailbone. Move the hand away, this time a foot and a half. Deep breath. Focus. Release. You let your forearm swing back a little, gaining momentum, before lashing forward, hitting him with a last minute flick of the wrist, curving the swipe upward. 

“Oh, Miss, thank you.” He squealed, his hips thrusting against the bed. 

“You’re welcome, duckling. You liked it more or less than before?”

“More, Miss.” He chirped enthusiastically.

“It’s the last one, duckling. You want me to give you another like the one I just gave you?” You asked, glad that he was enjoying the scene.

“Please, another stinging one, Miss.” He pleaded.

“Here it comes, duckling.” You took a few more seconds, feeling more comfortable, prepping just like you did before. Big breath. Swing back and… smack.

“Thank you, Miss.” He breathed out.

“Are you okay, duckling?” You asked, massaging him before bending down to kiss his reddened skin. You kissed both his reddened glutes, your other hand caressing his spine now that the spanking was over. Raising up, you kept stroking his back until you reached his head, moving his hair off his face, inviting him to look you in the eye. 

As soon as he established eye contact, you gave him your agreed cue. “You are forgiven, Jimin.”

His lips parted gently, his eyebrows arching and knitting together, his soft features expressing confusion. “Is it over already?” He asked. 

“Yes, baby.” You comforted him. “Five hits. One set. Just like we had agreed.” You reminded him. 

“Oh.” He sounded disappointed. “Okay.”

“How are you feeling?” You asked, even though you had just checked in. 

He looked at you as you sat on your hip, moving closer to his face, bending down to press a kiss to his forehead. 

“I’m very glad I did this with you.” He whispered.

You kissed his lips. “I am glad you asked, baby.”

He slowly brought his arms out from below himself, letting the one on your side fall heavily on top of your body. “Can we make love now?” He asked with the most tender, vulnerable voice you had ever heard from him. 

You felt like crying. Because of his request, of his word choice, of the gentleness of his voice. 

“Yes, if you want to.” You murmured intimately. “Let me undress.”

He let go of you and turned on his side to look at you standing by the bed, removing your clothes in an absolutely ordinary fashion. The room was basking in the yellowy soft light coming from the bedside table, turning your skin a mild golden shade. 

“You look so pretty.” he whispered, completely enchanted by you. 

Smiling shyly, you let your panties fall to the floor, climbing on the bed. “Thank you.” You whispered. 

You were laying side by side, naked, looking in each other’s eyes, no embarrassment between you. It felt right. 

“I love you.” He whispered, his arm coming around your waist. 

It was your turn to stare at him with your mouth agape. 

“You don’t have to say it back.” He said, at the same time as you told him: “I love you too.”

He giggled, eyes disappearing, lips stretching in a fond smile. 

He rolled on top of you. “Say it again.” He ordered sweetly.

“I love you too.” You murmured, chuckling. 

“I love you too.” He said right back, leaving playful, messy smooches all over your face. You laughed even more, basking in the warmth of this moment, in the domestic surety that it will be forever saved in your memory, with its colour, sound, scent, and feeling. That such tenderness would always be associated with Jimin’s smiling face hovering over you. 

He used his knees and one elbow to sustain his weight as his palm reached to cup your cheek, thumb pressed on your lip. “I love you a lot, princess.”

Your eyes closed as you smiled at him. “I want you, Jimin.” You said, opening your eyes and biting your lip. 

“Want me to grab a condom?” He asked, always considerate. 

You thought about it quickly. You were both tested and clean, you were monogamous and you were in a committed relationship. You loved him and trusted him. And he loved you and trusted you too. What could possibly hold you back at this point?

“We can do it without, if it’s okay with you. You know I’m on the pill.” You stated.

“Are you sure?” He waited for you to confirm. 

Nodding, you moved your hand into his hair, bringing his face closer to yours so you could finally kiss him a you wanted to. 

You immediately took his plump lower lip in your mouth, sucking on it as he growled, letting you do what you wanted with him, too lost in you to do anything but follow your lead. Your hand moved down his abs, landing on his hard length. 

He drew back from your mouth, kissing your jaw, moving to your ear. 

“Touch yourself, princess. I don’t know how long I’ll last bare inside you.” He explained, his mind set on making you cum around him before he lost his cool. 

You obeyed, fingers finding your clit as he slid a bit lower down your body, so that his mouth was at level with your breasts. Sucking your nipple in his mouth, he focused his eyes on the expression on your face, bliss making your features flutter. As his mouth moved to the other nipple, you thrust your hips upward, into him. 

“Are you ready, princess?” He asked, moving towards your face, looking at you intently. 

You nodded, moaning. “Please.”

Propping himself on his elbow, he used his free arm to stroke himself a couple times, dragging the tip against your slit to make the access more slippery. “Ready, princess?” He asked. As you nodded he reminded you once more: “I love you.”

“I love you.” You replied as he slipped in. 

It wasn’t easy. But it was not difficult either. It was different. He felt warm. Warmer than usual. And slippery. Everything felt wetter. Maybe because you were.

“Hell, princess, I can fell everything.” He growled. “So damn good, baby.”

You grunted quietly, panting, trying to adjust to him. One of your hand stayed on your clit, drawing small circles on it in hope that the stimulation would help you relax and stretch for him; your other palm moved to his waist, caressing his spine. 

“Can I?” He asked, grunting himself as he tried to keep still. 

“Just another second, love.” You murmured, closing your eyes and taking a big breath. 

He bent down and kissed your cheek. “I should have prepped you.” He whispered. 

“It’s fine.” You reassured him. As his small gestures of affection calmed you down, you felt ready for him to move. Pushing your hips away from him, you started grinding on him, letting him slip out only for an inch before taking him inside you again. 

“Dammit baby.” He murmured. “So tight.”

You kissed his furrowed brow, eyes shut tight in concentration. He tried to open them to look at you, dropping his head to kiss your mouth, your chin, the crook of your neck. “You’re perfect, baby. I love you so much.” He repeated once more and you knew, right in that moment, that he would never get tired of telling you. 

“Jimin, faster, please.” You begged. 

He growled and smashed his hips against yours. “Baby, I need you to...” Still supporting his weight with one arm, he used the other one to bring your hand from his waist to his ass, where you knew his skin was still stinging with your spanks. You felt the skin grow hotter there, probably because it was red and tender. “Grab it, princess. Use it.”

He looked you in the eye with scorching intensity before his mouth dipped to your breast while his fingers unlatched from your wrist and landed on you breast, his digits tweaking your nipple. 

His pace got incredibly faster, encouraged by your hand leading him, setting the pace and manhandling his sensitised skin. The lewd sound of skin slapping against skin drowned your laboured pants. The hand on your clit stopped just as you threw your head back with a silent scream, your climax surprising you, and Jimin too, your tight grip on his cock becoming even tighter. He completely lost his pace, hammering furiously inside you until relief washed over him, his orgasm filling you so deep you felt your bones melt at how hot he was inside you. 

“I love you.” You murmured for the millionth time as he collapsed over you. 

“I love you too.”

⁂⫷ ⁛ ⫸ ⁂ ⫷ ⁛ ⫸ ⁂ ⫷ ⁛ ⫸ ⁂ ⫷ ⁛ ⫸ ⁂ ⫷ ⁛ ⫸ ⁂

I left the book in Jimin’s office. Joon let me in. I left you some notes in it, including other useful resources. We can talk about it anytime. 

It was a text from an old highschool friend of yours, who apparently had been dating Namjoon for a while now. You had met maybe a bunch of times during group celebrations, small dinners, birthday parties. It didn’t take long before you got acquainted again, going for coffee dates, hanging out together, especially when the guys were busy — you also found out that your university flatmate and her knew each other, which really seemed a strange twist of fate. Your first reaction the day after your steamy night with Jimin was to text her. You knew it would be absurd and possibly uncomfortable or embarrassing, but it’s not like you were unused to gossiping about your sex lives: your partners too famous for the two of you to confess anything to anyone else. It was a strange friendship, but somehow, among all that madness you both found solace and companionship with each other. So, when you texted her, you somehow expected her to help you, however, her reply surprised you. 

It’s okay, I’ve got something for you. But we better call Lace too. She’s the best.

It took you a few days to read the book. As soon as you were done reading the guide, you texted both Lace and Vixen. 

Dinner at mine this Friday?

And that’s how you found one trained brat, one certified rope bunny and a BDSM guide in front of you, at the dinner table of your apartment. 

“Where do you want to start, sweetheart?” Said Vixen. 

“This is gonna be so fun!” Chimed in Lace.

Thank God there was wine in the fridge and a long night before you.

[cowabungacafe]

hi! could i request a tmnt matchup please? i'm rather short (1,60cm), chubby, and i look like a mix of 90's grunge and early 2000 emo. i'm anti-authority, and i am a leader, not a follower. if i don't think that a rule makes sense, or is useful, i'm not going to follow it. however, i'm mostly pretty obedient, and i don't cause much trouble. some people see me as a big brother type of person, because i protect and support when needed, and i have a 'caretaker' type persona. i can succeed at everything i *want* to succeed at, the rest doesn't interest me. i present myself as incredibly confident, hella sassy, sarcastic and like i don't have a care in the world, even though i'm really sensitive, introverted, kinda timid and insecure. i cry a lot over small things, and beat myself up relentlessly when i make mistakes. in general, i don't think highly of myself at all, but l would never outright admit that, or speak up. i just really hate having to trust someone with my emotions. i love making people around me laugh, it makes me really happy. i can be a bit petty, and teasing, but only in a joking manner. i actually get flustered really easily, and i never initiate anything, even though i adore physical affection of any kind. what most people are surprised by is my fair and unbiased way of judging. i stand up for anyone who is treated unfairly, even if i have to stand my own against authority (which makes me incredibly nervous). then again, i'm unable to protect myself, and i just quietly take everything that is said to me. i get scared really easily, and i'm afraid of being hit or yelled at. hope this was okay♡

My oh my! I have to admit this was pretty hard. And i thought about this for one whole day and then it hit me who im gonna match u up with. Thank you for requesting, i hope you got who you wanted.

The above gif is the vibe you gave me and also i love this gif

I match you with

Raphael

Why i matched you with your result

You are leaderly and hardly wanna be a follower and an anti-authority, which resonates with raphs rebel vibes. If there's a rule that you think is wrong, you dont follow it no matter what. Just like raph, if raph thinks there some rules that literaly have no meaning he wont follow it and none can make him.

You show as if you are tough and dgaf about the world but deep down you're just a soft plushie baby who needs to be hugged tightly, same as raph, raph shows as if he doesn't care about this world and often talks about leaving his bros and starting his life separately, but the truth is quite opposite. He is very insecure and he thinks he doesn't deserve his bros.He cares and loves his brothers and the world deeeeply and can't think of a live without them. He says those stuff to maintain the "hardcore" persona. He too carries the sarcastic and sassy af vibe.

You will help someone and anyone in need no matter what the circumstances, even if its one man vs the world. Raph too will fight the demons if he have to to save someone he thinks is in need.

Just like you, raph too shows as if he doesn't get shy but thats not true, he is just a soft cinnamon roll in "badboy" skin. So any type of physical touch makes this red bandana mutant a full on tomato. Yes he is that flustered.

Raph is the most sarcastic of the brothers(i just checked that from the tmnt wiki)and will always go around throwing petty snarky comments on his smart-brain brothers(leo and donnie especially lol) so here too you resonate with him.

Raph is a pretty good brother i like to think even more reasonable than leo (as he argued with leo why mikey doesnt get a vote on the secrecy of purple ooze). Maybe thats why mikey is seen around raph more bcus raph too gives those protective big brother who may come off as harsh but will listen to your problems with open ears. (Maybe thts why he became the eldest brother in rottmnt). Here too you match with him.

Raph is reluctant on telling someone about his emotions as he thinks it will hamper his hardcore mode, until you came( read along the random hcs )

Although considered the hothead of the group, raphs sense of judgement isnt that far behind fron leos.

After mikey, raph is probably the second jokester, maybe not on the same level of mikey but pretty snarky and petty jokes lol.

Sometimes he breaks down when he realises that how the decision he took was wrong and how much it has affected not only him but his near and dear ones too. Like in the 2016, the stealing of the purple ooze from the police hqs made their existence known and April and Casey were taken into custody.

Random headcanons of both of you when together

Your first meeting is prolly when he was out on a patrol and saw u trying save an old lady who was getting mugged. He was watching from the rooftop the whole time, of how you advanced and told the robber to leave her alone with apparently no weapon in hand, until he came down when he felt like its showtimee!!

When you find some fault in Leo's plan/strategy you point them out right away and raph cant help but admire you and mouth the word "thats my girl", finally he has someone to back his ass up.

Your leadership qualities are excellent and even sensei confirmed that and raphs chest grew 4 inches wider with a permanent grin on his face and sending snarky looks towards leo, who is just rolling their eyes away.

Though he is usually the tough guy, but with you its a whole different thing. He shows a diff side to you, the side not many has witnessed. He is usually soft and goofy around you, if you're tired he will bring some food over at your place or just take you out for a lil dinner on the rooftops. He will spoil you with things you like.

He knows that you're pretty sensitive and flinch and gets scared of scolding or yelling(he knew it from the first time he had a fight with you and he raised his voice then suddenly he saw your eyes filling up with tears. From then on, he is always careful around you)

Everytime you cry whether be it a sad movie or someone which made you cry, he will cuddle with you and cradle you while brushing your hair and humming some lullaby which sensei used to sing to him.

[v-hope]

You're his celebrity crush and meet at an awards show

Pairings: OT7 x International Artist!Reader

Genre: Fluff, crack ig

Request: "hii ! i love your work and i've been having major feels with the boys at the bbmas so i was wondring if you could write a reaction for u being an artist they have a crush on and they meet you at an awards show and it's all cute and stuff?? 💜"

A/N: I really loved writing this! I'm just gonna do what I do with Shipping Material, for those of you who don't know hahah:

“English”

«Korean»

Kim Seokjin

“You know BTS?”

You couldn't help but giggle at the man's words, nodding your head right after, for there was really no other answer to that.

When you had gone to the restroom earlier that night, only to find people waiting outside of it because of how full it was, you had considered turning around and coming back some time later, but it just so happened that no other than Kim Seokjin had arrived two seconds after you, and had decided not to let his chance to talk to you slip away; even if he didn't have Namjoon to translate for him.

So now here you were, both of you not even bothering on lining up anymore, and instead moving aside not to block the way.

“Who doesn't know BTS at this point?” you answered after having uselessly tried to conceal your smile, raising one of your eyebrows and earning a proud yet shy smile from Jin. “You know Y/N?” it was your turn to cheekily ask.

He stretched his arms out before folding them over his chest as he leaned against the wall. “Ah, yes” he tried to play it cool, “very beautiful” he nodded like it was a fact, bringing immediate heat to your face, “voice… yeah” he emphasized, holding one of his thumbs up.

You gazed down in embarrassment, allowing another laugh to escape your throat – an action of yours he found to be quite adorable.

“I'd have to say the same about Kim Seokjin then” your eyes locked with his once more, ones that had sparkled at the fact that you actually knew his name. “10/10 vocals and looks”.

At that, he unsuccessfully tried to erase the smile that had already formed on his lips – his ears turning a furious red.

“Me? Oh, no” he denied, waving his hands in front of him, “no... you are best”.

Out of your mouth came what was a mix of a scoff and a laugh. “What? No way, hear me out–”

Who would've thought your first interaction ever would turn into a ‘no, you're better’ contest. At least you made him comfortable enough to fight you from the beginning.

Min Yoongi

“You mind if I join you?”

Yoongi's head snapped up at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, his eyes opening wide in shock when he realised he had no other than you in front of him.

Being too caught up in the sight of you, he could do nothing but absently shake his head, moving a little to the side for you to sit next to him.

“Why are you here and not inside?” you wondered in an attempt of making small talk.

“Um, air” he motioned around.

“It does get a little suffocating inside, huh?” you leaned back to take a better look at him.

He simply nodded his head, gazing down to his lap before a small smile took over his factions.

“You're sure I'm not bothering you?” you worried, noticing how quiet he was. “I didn't know you'd be here, I can leave if–”

“I'm just…” he interrupted you, looking up to lock eyes with you, “shy...” he admitted sheepishly.

Not only because he was insecure about his English, but also because it was you.

Your lips curved up as you stared fondly at him. “Okay then” you looked ahead, “let's just stay quiet for a while if that makes you feel better”.

So the two of you did just that; remaining silent for a little while, doing nothing but enjoy each other's company. Anyone who saw you would've thought it was such an awkward scene, but it was the complete opposite, actually. It was weird to find a stranger you could be so comfortable around with. It was nice, for both of you.

«Yah! Yoongi, we've been looking for you everywhere» the quiet atmosphere was disrupted faster than you'd have wanted to by Seokjin. “Oh, hello…” he awkwardly greeted you, receiving a smile from you before his eyes were back on Yoon. «They're announcing the Top Artist Award, come on!»

At the sound of that, Yoongi stood up immediately. “Sorry, I have to go, uh– award...” he spoke softly, almost scared of messing up his English.

Biting your lip, you squinted your eyes as you looked up at him. “Go get ‘em, tiger” you encouraged him with a grin, watching for the first time in person his signature gummy smile.

Thinking for a second before turning around to leave, he digged his hands in his pockets, staring down to you. “You don't... wanna come?”

“Um…” your eyes travelled from him to the door. “You know what? Yeah, I do” you stood up as well, a smirk forming on your lips before you added: “I don't wanna miss all the madness when you guys win”.

If you hadn't won him over already by being understanding about his shyness, with that vote of confidence you sure as hell had.

Jung Hoseok

“Y/N!” he enthusiastically shouted the answer he had been saying over and over every single time the interviewers asked them who they wanted to meet that evening.

Only this time you heard him.

Your head had snapped up at the sound of your name as you walked past them a few meters behind on the red carpet, looking around before your eyes locked with the guy's who was currently interviewing BTS.

“Y/N, hi!” he waved for you to go over there. “Come here, someone wants to meet you!”

Not only did you freeze at that invitation, but so did Hoseok, earning loud laughs from his members as you got closer to them.

“Hi, guys” you shyly greeted with a smile, receiving instant cheerful replies before you stood by Hobi's side, since Joon had stepped aside for you to be in the middle.

Hoseok's eyes were soon to lock with yours – a shy smile parting his lips as he quietly admired your factions, having you unconsciously do the same.

“So, J-Hope right here just told us he was excited to meet you” the interviewer informed you with a smirk, causing Hoseok to tilt his head and turn to his friends as he complained in embarrassment.

Your reaction, however, was something Hobi did not expect at all; for not only did your lips part in what the thought was the brightest, most beautiful smile he had ever seen on you, but you had also covered your face with your hands, letting out a giggle that was soon followed by one of his own.

“Ah, don't tell me that” you told the guy holding the mic in front of you, “he's my favourite, my heart just did a thing”.

«Did she, did she say I'm her favourite?» Hoseok turned to ask Joon with pouty, incredulous lips; later giggling like a little boy on Christmas when their leader confirmed his beliefs. «She did?!» he covered his smiling mouth with his hand.

“Aw, that's so cute!” the other guy gushed at your previous words, for neither of you had any idea of what Hobi's previous gushing had been about. “So you'll be cheering for him tonight?”

“Of course!” you turned to the seven guys. “I mean, I'll be chanting for all of you guys, but if you hear someone screaming ‘J-Hope’ at the top of their lungs, that's probably me”.

And later that night, when he did indeed hear someone screaming his name somewhere in the first rows during his part, his heart sped up uncontrollably, and not precisely because of all the dancing around.

Kim Namjoon

“Oh, f– I'm so sorry” he apologized as soon as his foot had stepped on your long dress, causing you to stumble over.

Luckily for you, just like he almost made you fall, he had also been the one to make sure to catch you – his hands being quick to hold you firmly by your arms, and staying there for a little longer so you could regain your balance.

“It's okay” you let him know with a shy smile, “I've been stepping on it all evening as well” at that, Joon exhaled the air he had been holding, gently letting go of you for once and for all. “It's such an awful, uncomfortable dress. I hate it”.

“Oh” he pursed his lips, eyeing up and down the dress he believed so perfectly hugged your body, “this might not help at all, but I think you look beautiful”.

It did help. Quite a lot, actually – that simple statement itself being enough for a shiver to run down your spine.

“Thank you” you replied, feeling yourself once again becoming shy. “I'm Y/N, by the way”.

“I know” he answered with an obvious tone, later letting out a breathy, nervous laugh, at the realisation of how he had exposed himself. “I um, I'm Namjoon”.

“I know” you repeated his previous words, biting down on your lower lip in response to his dimples showing up as he smiled.

Just like that, your manager called you from the other side of the hall, for you to go change into the outfit you'd be wearing for your performance.

“Seems like I'm finally getting out of this dress” your voice came out with a tone of relief, grabbing the sides of it and pulling it a little bit up so that you could walk properly. “It was nice getting stepped on by you, see you later!”

“It was my pleasure, I hope we can do this again sometime soon!” he played along as you walked away, smiling widely after watching you tilt your head back to let a laugh escape your throat.

Clumsiness? That he could always count on.

Park Jimin

Taehyung sneakily nudged Jimin as you got closer to greet him, for he had frozen on his place as soon as he heard you call them from the other side of the hallway – his eyes in absolute awe as he watched you hug his members one by one.

And when you finally got to him, he didn't really know which one of you was shaking more.

“Sorry” you apologized to all of them once you had pulled away from him, knowing well enough they had all noticed your body slightly tremble, “I'm really nervous, I'm a huge fan of you guys”.

A unison “aw” came out of their mouths.

“Don't be nervous” to everyone's surprise, it was Jimin the one to speak up first, with what you thought was the cutest of pronunciations.

“Yeah” Namjoon backed up his friend, “we're huge fans too, so we're just as nervous, to be honest” he laughed, making you laugh in a way that had Jimin staring with even more admiration.

“Yeah!” Jimin spoke up again, “your voice!” he paused, pressing his lips together and effusively nodding his head to let you know how much he liked it, bringing instant heat to your face as you blisfully thanked him.

He wanted to say something else, to talk more to you, but you were interrupted by your manager tapping your shoulder to hurry you up.

“Oh, um…” you looked around, “I wish I had more time but my performance's about to start” you stuck your lower lip out. “I just wanted to wish you guys the best of lucks later tonight, you're gonna kill it”.

“Ah, thank you!” they all answered once again, with grateful smiles.

“Wait, let's take a picture!” Joon proposed out loud after one of their staff members showed him a camera.

You didn't have to think even once before accepting, turning around to look in the same direction as them. On the other hand, Jimin didn't even try and stop his legs from moving closer to you in the middle, quietly asking Hoseok to move over and let him be by your side – placing his hand over your shoulders without getting to touch you as he smiled brighter than the camera flash itself.

And so when you turned around to say goodbye, he opened his arms to quickly hug you once more before you took off to the stage.

«Aw, she's so beautiful, how's that even possible» he gushed to his members, receiving multiple amused smiles when his smile turned into a pout. «Why'd she have to leave so soon?»

Little did he know that was far from being the last time you met each other.

Kim Taehyung

He was dying to talk to you.

The moment they were guided to their seats and he noticed one of them would be sitting next to you, he had rushed over there to claim it as his. However, just as much as he was dying to say something to you, his confidence was betraying him.

From time to time, he'd turn to you with the intention of starting a conversation in between performances, but nothing would come out of his mouth, turning his head in the opposite direction before he could make a fool of himself. You had said “hi” to each other already, why couldn't he bring himself to say something else?

It was when he noticed you were asking someone for some water, that he decided to take his chance – picking up the bottle of water under his seat to hand it to you.

“Have it” he spoke after your dumbfounded eyes travelled from the item to fix on his. “Is not… open…” his eyebrows knitted together as he looked up, wondering if he had managed to make his point clear.

An understanding smile curved up your lips, taking the bottle from his hands and thanking him before you opened it and took a sip.

Say something else. Tell her she looks pretty. Make small talk. Anything. He repeated over and over in his head, yet nothing came out. So, he smiled once more and turned his head back away from you, internally beating himself up for it.

It was you, later that night, the one who made his wishes come true; when you noticed how one of his members had taken away from him the popcorns he had been munching on, leaving him sulking with a pout on his lips.

“Here” you handed him yours, receiving a baffled expression from him. “You can have mine”.

In the end, what happened was that he did not take yours, but accepted to share them instead – leaning over to your side and finally relaxing next to you as the two of you ate and commented on the show, which lead to lots of laughter througout the night.

Never had he ever thought he'd thank Jeongguk for stealing his food.

Jeon Jeongguk

“Don't be so nervous” you tried to encourage him with a small smile, having his eyes move up from the paper note he was tightly holding to focus on you – a smile of his own curving up his lips as well.

“My English…” he begun, trying to translate the right words in his head, “is not... good”.

“It's pretty good, actually” you once again tried to make him gain some confidence.

Neither of you understood why they had settled things up this way – each one of the BTS members having to present an award with someone else, instead of doing it all together like they always did. In Jeongguk's case, he had been paired up with you, which is why here you were now, both of you sitting backstage, going over your dialogue a few times as you waited for your turn to come.

And he didn't know if it had been a blessing or a curse, for he had gotten to meet you, the one artist he had been crushing on for years… but, at the same time, there was a high probability of him messing up at some point and make a complete fool of himself in front of you.

“You know what?” you spoke after taking in his uncertain eyes. With a raised eyebrow, he let you know you had his attention. “If it makes you feel any better, I can make a fool of myself in front of everyone”.

His eyes opened wide. “W-What?”

“Yeah” you nodded your head, “I'll just mess up the words or something and then you'll have nothing to worry about!”

“No, no” he shook his head, holding his hands out as if to signal for you to stop. “You don't– have to…”

“Oh, I will do it, my friend” you raised an eyebrow in determination. “I already thought of it, there's no turning back now”.

That serious statement of yours managed to get a breathy laugh out of him.

You were his crush for a reason, but knowing you were willing to sacrifice your public image just to help him out with his nervousness? He might as well have fallen in love right then and there.

[ultimateshc]

Welcome to the blog, Mod Ouma and Korekiyo! Could I get an imagine of Makoto, Hajime, Shuichi, Kaede, and Nagito reacting to their s/o being the blackened? Thank you!

Oh that sweet, sweet angst…

———————————————

Makoto Naegi

    He was looking for anything, anything at all, to prove your innocence. You were so, so kind to him after Sayaka’s death that he completely disregarded you as the potential culprit of the latest murder. He spent nearly an hour beating around the bush until Togami decided he had had enough Makoto’s denials. Ignoring his shouts of your defense, Togami questions you directly, and takes your silence as confirmation of your terrible actions.

    You had disappointed the boy you had loved oh, so much. You made no attempt to defend yourself, knowing the longer it took, the more pain he would be in. After half an hour of Togami’s harsh questioning, the other students were convinced, though Toko needed no convincing after her prince spoke a single word. 

    Makoto looked at you from across the courtroom, his eyes brimming with tears that have yet to be shed. When voting time comes around, he has yet to admit that you had committed an act of murder. He decided that he would rather vote for himself than for his lover, who cared for him since the beginning of this horrible game. Despite his act of self-sacrifice, the majority vote was still against you, and you were sentenced to death. 

    The voting time was over, and it was time to say your final goodbyes to those still standing. Almost immediately, Makoto made his way over to you, wrapping his arms around you and burying his head into your chest. He holds you tight, not wanting to let go, fearing Monokuma would take you too early. “Why, why would you do such a thing?” His question was so quiet, so soft, that you could barely hear it. You respond simply by giving him a squeeze. You could already hear the chain falling to take you to your doom. You pull away, leaving a kiss to his lips. You roughly push him away, allowing another execution to claim another soul. He reaches up to you as you’re pulled away from him, his screams getting more and more distant.

———————————————

Hajime Hinata

    Hajime knew it was you, and he knew Komaeda would never let him live it down if he attempted to sacrifice the rest of the class for your escape. He knew you could not escape your demise, but he tried anyway, to prove your innocence. Komaeda’s laughter could be heard ringing throughout the courtroom, knowing what Hajime was trying to do. 

    Luck did not seem to be in Hajime’s favor this time, the class deciding that they would rather trust Komaeda and his reasoning the one time Hajime needed them not to. You were voted as the culprit, and sentenced to death. Hajime walked up to you, prepared to say goodbye one last time as the rest of the surviving students looked on, filled with guilt as they watched their friend’s lover prepare for their execution. 

    Hajime approached you, tears filling your eyes as your boyfriend takes your hands, giving them a soft squeeze before speaking. “I’m sorry I couldn’t let you escape.” You shake your head. You wouldn’t let him blame himself for this. “It’s not your fault, Hajime. You did what was right.” He presses a kiss to your lips before burying his face into your neck. 

    “Hurry up, lovebirds!” Monokuma’s voice rings through the room. He steps back, placing another kiss to your forehead before stepping away, holding onto your hand for as long as possible. The second your hands part, you’re dragged away, but not before seeing a single tear run down his cheek.

———————————————

Nagito Komaeda

    He knew it was you before the trial even began. He stuck to your side the second he came to this realization, wanting to spend as much time with you as possible before your inevitable demise. He was bolder, stealing a kiss every chance he got, and holding your waist in the elevator to the courtroom.

    If you were voted as the culprit and sentenced to death, then so be it, but he would take any chance he could to derail the trial. You were his hope, and hope should always prevail in the end. It didn’t take long for Hajime to catch on, calling Nagito out every chance he could. Despite defending you and being in the middle of a class trial, his thoughts were elsewhere. If he were to acquire such back luck this time around, something amazing must be in the near future, right?

    The students, as usual, supported Hajime throughout the trial, and voted you as the blackened. Nagito waited for you to say goodbye to everyone else before he said it himself. Trash that couldn’t even let his hope escape an island of hell was not worth anything, in his eyes. When he finally approached you, he gathered you in his arms and began to weep, asking through his tears about your motive. You could feel his hair brush against your neck, deciding to move your hand from his back to pet his hair, attempting to comfort him in your final moments.

    With you gone, he would be alone once again, his luck cycle claiming yet another life. Monokuma seemed to have gotten bored of your eternal embrace, decided to tear you away from the one you promised to protect, leaving behind a broken boy reaching for you as your taken away from him.

———————————————

Shuichi Saihara

    He was still insecure of his detective skills, thinking that the result he came to was simply a miscalculation. He continued the trial with that mindset until Kokichi decided to question others in the usual Kokichi-like way. It wasn’t long before it came out that there was a witness that had seen you out after the night time announcements. Shuichi came to the realization that he was, in fact, correct. All the evidence pointed to you.

    He had already lost Kaede, and he didn’t want to lose you as well, but it was inevitable. You were voted as the culprit, alienating you from the rest of the group. His eyes quickly filled with tears, Kaito looking on, worried for his sidekick’s mental state at this point. Tears streaming down his face as he held on to you, not wanting to give Monokuma the chance to take you away as well. 

    He pulled away slightly to grasp your hands, holding them tightly as he questioned you with a mix of crying and shouting. He didn’t want a motive, he wanted an excuse. He wanted a reason for you to stay with him. You could only stare at the ground with regret, as you had been the one to destroy the heart of the boy in front of you. 

    It was Kaito who had to tear him away from you so Monokuma could take you away. He attempted to escape his grasp, breaking away just before you were taken away. He watched, horrified, as memories of Kaede’s execution flood back into his mind. He started wearing his hat again after that.

———————————————

Kaede Akamatsu 

    She had hope for everyone, believing that working together would save them all. She trusted Shuichi to find the truth, but this wasn’t the truth she wanted. She watched as Shuichi dismantled your defenses, breaking down the events of the murder. She tried, she tried so hard to defend you, but the defense proved useless as witnesses testified.

    After you were voted as the blackened, she couldn’t bear to look you in the eye. She believed that she could trust you, that you, of all people, would not fall for the tricks of the killing game. She wanted to know why you had committed such an act, getting only a quiet apology in return.

    Her dreams of the group coming together to overcome the game had fallen apart, and she lost the one she loved with it. She held you as she cried, apologizing for not trying harder to protect you. She watched as you were taken away, a piece of her dying with you.

[darthkieduss]

Reasons I hate Fat Donnie Trump (will update frequently)

#Republican, duh. #Narcissistic Personality Order #He lost the Popular vote. #No previous political experience #Has unrealistic ideas about how to solve America's problems, such as getting Mexico to pay for a wall to keep illegal immigrants out. #Vice President is a crazy fundamentalist Christian homophobic wackjob who thinks electroshock therapy cures homosexuality and can't be alone with a woman without his wife present. #Believes in unscientific ideas such as the idea that vaccines cause autism (I am autistic so this is a bit personal) #Has made comments alluding to sexual harassment. #Can't let any slight go. Even comments made about his sign. Jeez, Obama simply shrugged off the trolls and haters. #Won't stop bitch-tweeting. #Enacted the separation of children from their parents. #Tried to ban trans folks from the military. As long as they serve our country, who cares? #Suspended CNN's press pass after some tough questioning. #Is imposing insanely high tariffs on imported goods, mostly from China. #Supports unconstitutional profiling of Muslims. #Supports killing civilians in war. “We gotta take our their families” WHO THINKS LIKE THIS? #Posted troops on the border just for political advantage in the 2018 mid-terms. #Is a shameless self-promoter. #Can't admit his own faults. #Believes he's qualified for president because he's rich (said this in 2013) #Has passed insane tax cuts for the rich, which only increase America's budget deficit and national debt. TRICKLE-DOWN NEVER WORKS. #Had to be discouraged from invading Venezuela, who hasn't done anything to us and poses no threat to us. #Gets advice from Fox News. #Pulled out the Iran deal which was working. #Thinks that the way to show strength is by being a dick. #Cheated on every one of his wives and lied about it. We impeached Bill Clinton for it. #Has increased the military budget way too much. We spend $664 BILLION on the military. It doesn't need anymore. #Claimed Obama spied on him by wiretapping the Trump towers. Provided no evidence. #When he is criticized for something, he claims “Obama started it...” *facepalm* #LIES ON A CONSTANT BASIS. I think he lies just to see what his fans will believe... #He won't admit he lost the popular vote. He says "If you deduct the illegal voters." Oh please... #Is undoing everything Obama did just because it was Obama that did it. If he could bring back Osama bin Laden, he would. #WORLD LEADERS ARE LAUGHING AT HIM AND US #He has his cabinet kiss his ass on a constant basis. #He committed campaign finance violations during the election. #He fired FBI Director Jimmy the Giant Comey just because he wouldn't swear loyalty to him and was investigating him. That’s Obstruction of Justice. #Attacked former Attorney General Jeff Sessions for not closing the Mueller investigation. #He said he wanted to lower the minimum wage back in 2015. #The infamous "Mexicans are rapists" Comment. #Attacked the late John McCain for being a Prisoner-of-War. #Gave out a Senator's cellphone number out of spite. #Blamed Megyn Kelly's tough questioning on her period. #He said "Bring back torture EVEN IF IT DOESN'T WORK". (2015) ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?! #Tried to have his political opponents locked up. #"Jokes" about being president-for-life. If Obama had "joked" about this, the right would've lost their shit. #Threatened martial law in Chicago. #Praised Protestant bigot Norman Peale, who only opposed JFK simply because he was Catholic. #He violated the Presidential Records Act. #One of his tax cuts gave the poor $40, the ultra-rich $940,000 #He appeals to insecure men. #He and Jeff Sessions said it is ok to discriminate against gay people. #Complains about people not respecting the flag, says the guy who molests it. #Wants North Korean-style Military Parades. #Started that Obama birth certificate bullshit... He only said Obama was born in America in 2016...when it was politically-convenient. (*cough* back-pedaling) #He believes women are beneath him. #Doesn't believe in Global Warming. #Wouldn't stop saying interrupting Clinton in the debates. #Has more in common with the criminal Richard Nixon than anyone else. (Edit: He called for an end to investigations like Tricky Dick did in ‘74) #3.2 MILLION Americans lost their health insurance in Trump's first year. #"A terror attack would help me politically bigly." or we could NOT have a terrorist attack, thank you. #Claimed he would've run into a school shooting to confront the shooter without a weapon. BULLSHIT. #His lawyers say "I can't let him testify because he can't stop lying." #His budget obliterated funding for Science, Education, EPA & labor. #He encourages Republicans to break the law. #Tweeted FAKE photos to convince his fans that the border wall is being built. #Has committed obstruction of justice. (Edit: Confirmed by Mueller) #Said he's in favor of bombing civilians. #He had the USAF bomb an antivenom medical facility in Syria. #He said he only received $1 Million from his father. HE GOT $400 Million. ANOTHER LIE. #He makes everything about himself. Even 9/11. Who makes 9/11 about himself? #Claims he's completely immune to lawsuits over constitutional violations. Nixon said that, but it didn't work for him. #He's driving us to another Great Depression. #He threatened to punish the media if they weren't nice to him. #He calls the press "The enemy of the people" when they don't kiss his ass. #He calls Sean Hannity every night. Sean Hannity is a partisan hack who wouldn't turn on a Republican president even if he found out he was using JFK's Eternal Flame to light farts. He’s so far up Trump’s ass he can taste his lunch. #He still uses his private NON-SECURE cell phone, creating HUGE National Security problems. #He admitted his attacks on the media are just to discredit negative stories. #He claims he has the power to pardon himself. NO THE HELL HE DOESN'T. #Giuliani said Trump can't testify because his memory keeps changing. #THE MOST THIN-SKINNED PRESIDENT. #He is against the protections for pre-existing conditions. HE is a pre-existing condition. #When told Kim Jong-Un is a murderer, he responded "He's a tough guy." #He says Americans should obey him like North Koreans are forced at gunpoint to obey Kim Jong-un. #He trusts brutal dictators, but not our closest allies. #He is jealous of Kim Jong-Un's absolute grip on power. #He lied about the German crime rate to justify his immigration policies. #He suggested destroying the Constitution so he can deport immigrants faster. #Authorized USING LETHAL FORCE ON UNARMED MIGRANTS!!! #Lied to the United Nations, saying poverty in America doesn't actually exist. I PERSONALLY know people who are living in poverty. #He issued a gag order to stop government employees from talking to reporters. #He said, on tape, that if Senator Elizabeth Warren proved she was Native American, he would donate $1 million to a charity of her choice. When she did, and someone pointed it out, he said "I didn't say that." Whether or not he’s obligated to pay, he said he would but now he’s saying he didn’t say it. #Says people who criticize him are a threat to America. #His trade wars have cost 100,000+ American jobs. #People who work for him tend to be convicted of crimes... #Makes slanderous lies about us Democrats. #Told German Chancellor she owes him $1 Trillion even though she doesn't him shit. #76% of the claims Trump makes during his rallies are LIES. #He has committed at least NINE impeachable offenses. #He said he believes Russian president Vladimir Putin over OUR OWN intelligence agencies. #He once said in December 2016, "Fuck the law! I don't give a fuck about the law! I want my fucking money!" #Claimed we've won the war on poverty, so let's cut food stamp programs. No we haven't. #He threatened to nuke the economy to spite China. #He said he'd drain the swamp, yet he was 86 lobbyists on his staff. #He thinks everyone else is as stupid as he is. #Corporations are PRAYING that Trump tweets us into a war. #He told a crowd "reality isn't real" so they should ignore it. #Wages have tanked after Trump's wealthy tax cut. #Nixon was guilty as hell and Trump sounds just like him. #He actually claimed you need a Picture ID to buy cereal....CEREAL...WHO IS THIS STUPID?!?! #He claimed people will die if we don't make cars less fuel efficient. #By August 2018 his lie count topped 4,200+. By May 2019, it’s now 10,000+. #His administration is now allowing more toxic asbestos into our daily lives. #His wife plagiarized Michelle Obama in a speech during the election. #He watches tapes of his rallies to marvel at his own "brilliance", if that's what you call it. More like jerking off to himself. #He said military might is more important that jobs. #He said violating ethics rules to meet with Fox news is in "the public's interest" #Discreetly called for Hillary Clinton's assassination by firearm (”Second Amendment people”) if she had won. #Claimed he would ONLY accept the results of the 2016 election IF HE WON. #Said "Let's fucking kill him" of Bashar al-Assad. Yes, Assad is a bad man, but WE DON'T ASSASSINATE PEOPLE. #He said he wants to separate migrants kids from parents INDEFINITELY. #He acted like a total ass on the 2018 9/11 anniversary. #He denies that 3,000+ Puerto Ricans died in Hurricane Maria. #Pentagon officials had to stop Trump from tweeting us into a war. #American taxpayers spent $77 MILLION on Trump's Golf trips. #Criticized Obama for golf trips...has taken more golf trips in 3 years than Obama did in 8. #Said the FBI is a "Cancer to the country". #His administration cut cancer research funding to pay for child prisons. #Puerto Rico won't get statehood simply because they were mean to him. *His administration said Planet is burning down, so let's just ruin it now. *Says he loves North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un. “We fell in love”. *Talked about his dick at the debates. *He is being investigated for tax evasion and fraud. *Hates immigrants, married two Eastern European immigrant, son of a Scottish immigrant and grandson of a German immigrant. *Claimed Iraq War was wrong, yet he has increased troop numbers there. *Compared sexual assault victims to arsonists. #He denied Saudi Arabia financial interests...AFTER bragging about them. #He hasn't condemned Saudi Arabia for their murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. #He mocked decorated Navy SEAL, saying they should've gotten Osama bin Laden sooner. WHAT? #He banned 2 Million Federal workers from discussing his impeachment at work. #He demanded that he leave the G20 during the climate change discussion. #He told about skyrocketing national debt: "I won't be here." when it explodes. #Called a US Senator "The Dick". #*His hush money payments were done ILLEGALLY, with campaign cash. #His cult sent bombs to everyone he criticized. Not saying he's directly responsible but that's how cultist his fans are. #He threatened to bring Saturday Night Live to court simply for making fun of him. Awww poor baby, is someone making fun of you? Good. #Never has a president been under so much investigations except Richard Nixon. #He pulled us out of the Paris agreements. #His 2018 government shutdown lasted 35 days and was over a stupid wall. #He only works 40% of the day. He's the laziest POTUS ever. #He pulled us out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. HE STARTED A NEW COLD WAR. #He won’t release his taxes. If he’s got nothing to hide, why HIDE EM? #He threatened us Democrats, saying he has the support of the police, the military and “Bikers for Trump.” Bikers for Trump=BrownShirts. #Claims that windmill causes cancer and kill birds...Are you fucking kidding me? #His son Donny Douchebag got a crowd to chant “AOC sucks” like the douchebag he is. #Claimed his father was born in Germany. Fred Trump was born in NYC, how stupid can you be to not know where your parents were born... #Claims he should get 2 more years added to his term because those 2 years were “stolen” by the Mueller report. *facepalm-cringe* #He told 4 Progressive non-white Congresswomen to “Go back to where you came from”. 3 of 4 were BORN HERE, YOU FUCKING RACIST #One-uped the “go back to your country” but viciously attacking Elijah Cummings and Baltimore in a racist Twitter tirade. #Extorted the Ukrainian President to investigate Joe Biden (finally being impeached) #He's always blaming everybody else, complaining, never taking responsibility. #"I inherited a mess." You inherited millions of dollars, you whiny...little...BITCH!

[newstfionline]

Monday, February 8, 2021

America’s Mothers Are in Crisis (NYT) By now, you have read the headlines, repeating like a depressing drum beat: “Working moms are not OK.” “Pandemic Triples Anxiety And Depression Symptoms In New Mothers.” “Working Moms Are Reaching The Breaking Point.” You can also see the problem in numbers: Almost 1 million mothers have left the workforce—with Black mothers, Hispanic mothers and single mothers among the hardest hit. Almost 1 in 4 children experienced food insecurity in 2020, which is intimately related to the loss of maternal income. And more than three-quarters of parents with children ages 8 to 12 say the uncertainty around the current school year is causing them stress. The pandemic has touched every group of Americans, and millions are suffering, hungry and grieving. But many mothers in particular get no space or time to recover. Philip Fisher, a professor of psychology at the University of Oregon who runs an ongoing nationally representative survey on the effect of the pandemic on families with young children, says, “People are having a hard time making ends meet, that’s making parents stressed out, and that’s causing kids to be stressed out.” This buildup can lead to toxic stress, “And we know from all the science, that level of stress has a lasting impact on brain development, learning and physical health.” Almost 70% of mothers say that worry and stress from the pandemic have damaged their health.

Pandemic’s Toll on Housing (NYT) As the pandemic enters its second year, millions of renters are struggling with a loss of income and with the insecurity of not knowing how long they will have a home. Their savings depleted, they are running up credit card debt to make the rent, or accruing months of overdue payments. Families are moving in together, offsetting the cost of housing by finding others to share it. Even before last year, about 11 million households—one in four U.S. renters—were spending more than half their pretax income on housing, and overcrowding was on the rise. By one estimate, for every 100 very low-income households, only 36 affordable rentals are available. Now the pandemic is adding to the pressure. A study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia showed that tenants who lost jobs in the pandemic had amassed $11 billion in rental arrears, while a broader measure by Moody’s Analytics, which includes all delinquent renters, estimated that as of January they owed $53 billion in back rent, utilities and late fees. Other surveys show that families are increasingly pessimistic about making their next month’s rent, and are cutting back on food and other essentials to pay bills.

In pandemic, more people choose to die at home (AP) Mortuary owner Brian Simmons has been making more trips to homes to pick up bodies to be cremated and embalmed since the pandemic hit. With COVID-19 devastating communities in Missouri, his two-person crews regularly arrive at homes in the Springfield area and remove bodies of people who decided to die at home rather than spend their final days in a nursing home or hospital where family visitations were prohibited during the pandemic. He understands all too well why people are choosing to die at home: His own 49-year-old daughter succumbed to the coronavirus just before Christmas at a Springfield hospital, where the family only got phone updates as her condition deteriorated. “My daughter went to the hospital and we saw her once through the glass when they put her on the ventilator, and then we never saw her again until after she died.” Across the country, terminally ill patients—both with COVID-19 and other diseases—are making similar decisions and dying at home rather than face the terrifying scenario of saying farewell to loved ones behind glass or during video calls.

Trump’s Senate impeachment trial (AP) Arguments begin Tuesday in the impeachment trial of Donald Trump on allegations that he incited the violent mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Will he be convicted? It’s unlikely. While many Republicans were harshly critical of Trump for telling supporters to “fight like hell” and go to the Capitol, their criticism has since softened. The shift was evident during a Jan. 26 test vote. Only five Republican senators voted against a motion that was aimed at dismissing the trial. It will take a two-thirds vote of the 100-member Senate to convict Trump of the impeachment charge, which is “incitement of insurrection.” If all 50 Democrats voted to convict him, 17 Republicans would have to join them to reach that threshold. Most Republicans have avoided defending Trump’s actions the day of the riot. Instead, lawmakers have argued that the trial is unconstitutional because Trump is no longer in office.

Ecuadoreans vote for president (Reuters) Ecuadoreans choose a new president on Sunday, with many voters weary of painful economic austerity measures and eager for a return to socialism, encouraging left-wing candidate Andres Arauz who hopes to win without needing a runoff vote. The 36-year-old economist, a protege of former president Rafael Correa, leads in polls on promises to make $1 billion in direct cash payments to families and to disavow the conditions of a $6.5 billion IMF financing package. His main rival, Guillermo Lasso, has been hurt by his image as a conservative banker, and pollsters say the possibility of low voter turnout due to the pandemic could dent his support. Lawyer and indigenous activist Yaku Perez is third in the polls. An Arauz victory would extend Latin America’s return to leftist policies, already evident in Argentina and Bolivia, a challenge for Washington as it duels with China for influence in the hemisphere.

With Carnival scrapped, Rio’s Sambadrome hosts vaccinations (AP) In a normal year, Rio de Janeiro’s Sambadrome would be preparing for its great moment of the year: the world’s most famous Carnival parade. But a week before what should be the start of Carnival, the pandemic has replaced pageantry, with the great celebration put on hold until next year as Rio struggles to quash a rise in COVID-19 cases. The Rio mayor’s office opened a drive-thru immunization station Saturday at the Sambadrome, where a line of cars queued up on a broad avenue built for floats. Rio’s city government officially suspended Carnival and warns it will have no tolerance for those who try to celebrate with open street parades or clandestine parties, saying it is monitoring social media to detect any.

Public Buildings Set Ablaze in Chile After Police Shoot Street Juggler (NYT) Demonstrators angered by the fatal police shooting of a popular street juggler set several public buildings ablaze in southern Chile Friday night, leaving a city of almost 34,000 people practically without public services. The shooting took place after the juggler, identified as Francisco Martínez, did not comply with a police officer’s request to provide identification as he performed at a busy intersection in the center of Panguipulli, a popular lakeside community, witnesses said. An argument followed, during which the officer pulled out his gun and fired at least two shots at Mr. Martínez’s feet, witnesses told reporters. Videos taken by witnesses, which spread widely on social media, show the juggler jumping to avoid the shots then running toward the officer with his props in the air. The officer then shot him in the chest, witnesses said, and he died at the scene. Police then barricaded themselves in their station. Since protesters were unable to attack the police station, they turned to other government symbols. Ten public offices in the city of Panguipulli burned to the ground, including the municipal government building, the post office, the civil registry, a local court and a water management company, the authorities said.

Himalayan glacier breaks in India, up to 150 feared dead in floods (Reuters) As many as 150 people were feared dead in northern India after a Himalayan glacier broke and swept away a hydroelectric dam on Sunday, with floods forcing the evacuation of villages downstream. “The actual number has not been confirmed yet,” but 100 to 150 people were feared dead, Om Prakash, chief secretary of Uttarakhand state where the incident occurred, told Reuters. A witness reported a wall of dust, rock and water as an avalanche roared down the Dhauli Ganga river valley located more than 500 km (310 miles) north of New Delhi.

Protests sweep Myanmar to oppose coup, support Suu Kyi (Reuters) Tens of thousands of people rallied across Myanmar on Sunday to denounce last week’s coup and demand the release of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, in the biggest protests since the 2007 Saffron Revolution that helped lead to democratic reforms. In a second day of widespread protests, crowds in the biggest city, Yangon, sported red shirts, red flags and red balloons, the colour of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy Party (NLD). “We don’t want military dictatorship! We want democracy!” they chanted. On Sunday afternoon, the junta ended a day-long blockade of the internet that had further inflamed anger since the coup last Monday that has halted the Southeast Asian nation’s troubled transition to democracy and drawn international outrage. Massive crowds from all corners of Yangon gathered in townships and headed toward the Sule Pagoda at the heart of the city, also a rallying point during the Buddhist monk-led 2007 protests and others in 1988.

Palestinian leader’s path to elections is fraught with peril (AP) Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ call for elections has thrown his political future into peril, forcing him to negotiate competing demands to engage with a friendlier U.S. administration, mend the rift with his militant Hamas rivals and keep his unruly Fatah movement from breaking apart. It’s far from clear the elections will actually be held. Doing so will require an agreement between Abbas’s secular Fatah movement and Hamas, which have been bitterly divided for more than a decade despite multiple attempts at reconciliation. The two sides plan to meet in Cairo this week. The outcome of the talks will largely depend on the 85-year-old Abbas. He has spent decades nonviolently seeking a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, territories seized by Israel in the 1967 war. Instead, he has come to rule an increasingly autocratic and unpopular Palestinian Authority confined to parts of the occupied West Bank. Reconciling with Hamas and holding elections could shore up his legitimacy and meet longstanding Western demands for accountability. But even a limited victory by Hamas, which is considered a terrorist group by Israel and Western countries, could result in international isolation and the loss of vital aid—as it did after Hamas won the last parliamentary elections in 2006.

[jjamwal]

http://ift.tt/2xVuhZB Profiling Narendra Modi’s Critics Note: This is a guest article by Sri Narasimha. India’s honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the person people love to hate. Of course he does have his supporters and his sympathisers across all walks of life and demographics, particularly in non-urban places but the folks who own the presses and the airwaves, so to speak, dominate this emotion of hatred. I am a US citizen of Indian origin. I live and work in India for personal and professional reasons. I have `skin in the game’ here and want India to prosper. With that as background, I must first confess that I am both mystified and disturbed by what I see in India. The most appalling thing that I have observed among many Indians is this deep desire for India NOT to be strong. NOT to succeed. NOT to really change. Certainly NOT to win! I’m truly mystified by this self-loathing and overweening self-centredness, a fundamental inability to put the society and country ahead of personal or sectarian interests. Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Pic Courtesy: Google Image Search Categories of Modi Critics and Baiters Over the years, I have observed and met many Modi critics. These critics range from folks who either outright hate him or folks who are disappointed. In between, are a few other categories. 1. Professional Modi baiters: Essentially a variety of media persons and industry professionals who either did the brainwashing or were brainwashed about Modi being an evil person and point to the 2002 riots in Gujarat as evidence. Includes self-proclaimed leftists-liberals, supporters of the Congress party and its clones. Obviously, the political party ecosystem did the brainwashing. Many regular folks who got brainwashed will not change their minds. After all, it is easier to be fooled than to admit that you were fooled. 2. The aggrieved set: In this category are the folks who believe that the Hindu majority, over the last 70 years, has been marginalized by minority vote banks. They point to government control of Hindu temples, reservations and subsidies given to minorities as evidence of being systematically disenfranchised. The media has enabled and fuelled this picture by selective reportage of events and facts. By a variety of perception management tricks that preys on low critical thinking and built in prejudices, the media has demonized millions of ordinary folks while elevating others who suited their agenda. This category feels nothing has changed under Modi and feel let down by the first PM who conveys India and her civilizational pride. They see this social and legal distortion as the burning issue to be fixed and are losing hope that it will ever get fixed. 3. The closet `Singhis’: Overtly they say they support Modi as PM but have already decided that he has failed. These are not necessarily Congress party supporters but many well meaning folks who took pride in claiming that India had a PM who was an accomplished economist and decent human being. I have observed this pattern especially among a few smart, successful Sikhs who cannot digest the failure of Manmohan Singh as PM. This is clearly not about religion, it is just that a PM who was one of their own could have made them proud but ended his two terms being ridiculed and insulted. 4. The Status quo-ists: They have nothing against Modi personally but they hate him because he represents change. They see an orthogonal mind at work and a move toward structural disruption and this threatens their linear plans. Traders, Brokers, Industrialists, the Bureaucracy, and Intellectuals with preprogrammed DNAs who clearly found it easier to thrive under a predictable, venal arrangement. In this bucket are also people who like to claim that they are fair minded. `I actually want Modi to succeed but…’ is typically how they will start their narrative about how he can’t scale from a CM to a PM and how he needs to carry people with him and not be so autocratic. And with confirmation bias, they cherrypick slanted statistics. 5. Short-rope snipers: While they have given Modi a rope, it is very short and on the other hand they hold a sniper’s rifle. These are typically very smart academics and think tank types who are willing to hold their noses for some time only because they recognize that India was made ungovernable between 2012 and 2014. This category also includes folks who think he is a `vernie’ (someone who studied in a vernacular medium) and lacks the western sophistication. These snobs don’t fool me because I used to be one of them. Their mantra is `Not that we love Modi less but we love Raghuram Rajan more’ and includes economists and commentators on India’s economy. This group has a fantastic intellectual capacity but is theoretical in its approach. Most of them have never run anything in their lives, leave alone a turnaround situation. Their filters are macro and super macro. The types who are now saying `I too wished things would get better but you know I told you so, winning an election and running a government are different things’. 6. The Chatterati: This category has the glorious inheritors among in its club. They belong to tabloids and an assortment of institutions that exist only because of loyalty to some political dispensation. They have created halos around themselves through systematic PR. They are the celebrities whose only achievement is celebrityhood. This group prescribes what Modi should say, what he should wear and what he should do and not do. They even comment on the Defence and the Economy ! 7. The Glitterati: Bollywood, and a few of the assorted `woods’ of India that are still unable to coin an original name for themselves and have a deep and long history of aligning themselves with the Modi baiters. From time to time, they smell the coffee and attempt to pay lip service to Modi’s governance. It does not take a lot for the façade to slip. A shout out from one of their pet categories about a crime and they quickly line up to blame Modi for creating an environment where `free speech’ is being trampled upon. 8. The Bitterati: Former Modi supporters who were hoping for some role in the government but have lost hope of getting anything. These are the folks who can easily put the nation ahead of themselves, and often struggle to do so, but the deep down, ambition gets the better of them. This includes politicians, former star CEOs, academicians, authors. They have allowed their feelings of self-aggrandisement transcend their feelings for the country. Among some, this bitterness is turning to schadenfreude. 9. The Forwarders: Urban India has millions of this category working in a typical corporate environment. Their world view is shaped by snatches of newspaper reading and TV and typically have that dangerous `half knowledge’ about most things. They will then troll social media for articles or commentary that confirms their bias and do their bit for the country by forwarding material and `Liking’ what they forward. They latch onto keywords like `Bhakt’ and paint Modi as someone who `spins’ achievements. And then go after his supporters viciously by denigrating their intelligence. 10. The insiders: As history has taught us, the one to fear the most is the enemy within. There are many in Modi’s party who will not want him to succeed. The fact that he is streets ahead of them in political astuteness, geopolitical vision and influence and in outcome-oriented governance makes them insecure. There are survival issues for them as well as issues of growth within the party and the government. When merit becomes the watchword in a feudal ethos, picture the panic. The simple fact is that many of these folks agree that Modi is honest. They will broadly agree that he works hard even while pointing out that he travels too much. Pushed to the wall, they will even agree that his intent and commitment are strong. They will further ventilate that India is a mess and point to other countries (ah see Singapore!) as role models. Further, they know deep down that the earlier dispensation put the country in the Intensive Care Unit. They recognise that transmission of policy and governance sits on a complex, self-serving bureaucratic machine that can’t be wished away or transformed overnight. They frequently shout about how much India is divided on various lines, over centuries. Now these same folks can see that many macro parameters are in India’s favor. They can see the strength of the Indian rupee after years of free fall. They can spend more time, do some independent research and understand the bottom up efforts being delivered through targeted governance. But they will not give Modi an honest chance. They will not say `Finally we have a person of integrity who cares about our nation, who works hard and is getting folks around him to work hard, who is trying to make a difference, who has inherited a horrible situation, who has accepted that he could make mistakes, has reached out for ideas and help, who needs our support, our encouragement and reasonable time to repair the destruction’. I wonder why.

[thefabulousfulcrum]

A woman was convicted after laughing at Jeff Sessions. It’s my patriotic duty to call bullshit.

I’ve made my career using comedy to expose the hypocrisy of the powerful. It’s dangerous that the Justice Department can’t take a joke.

via Vox

Updated by Lizz Winstead

Maybe we should have guessed that an administration led by a man who didn’t want to be made fun of at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner also may send a lady in a pink crown to jail for laughing at its attorney general. Big shocker. Our overreactive, thin-skinned, sexist thug of a president has created an overreactive, thin-skinned, sexist, thuggish Justice Department.

Earlier this year Desiree Fairooz was arrested for the crime of laughing at a particularly gaslighty comment during the confirmation hearings of Attorney General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions. And last week, we learned that she was convicted and could face 12 months in prison, $2,000 in fines, or both.

I’m personally offended by the idea that a bunch of powerful men could lock up a woman who has an appreciation for irony. I’ve made my career using comedy to expose the hypocrisy of the powerful. It’s the whole point of the very popular television program The Daily Show, which I co-created. It’s also the point of Lady Parts Justice League, a cabal of comics I brought together to expose creeps hell bent on destroying access to birth control and abortion.

So when the government comes after a woman for laughing in the face of political hypocrisy, it’s my patriotic duty to call bullshit.

Fairooz was right to laugh at the Sessions confirmation hearing. Everyone should have been laughing.

Here are the horrifically dangerous actions of Desiree Fairooz at Sessions’s January confirmation hearing:

In his glowing remarks about the future attorney general, Sen. Richard Shelby was prattling on that Sessions’s history of “treating all Americans equally under the law is clear and well-documented.”

This is when the laugh came out of Fairooz’s mouth. I am sure it was similar to a variation of the guttural utterances anyone with a heart, a pulse, and a thirst for facts has been spewing during this unintended comedy show we have all been living in since the election.

In fact, Fairooz’s response may have been even more reserved than the spit takes that have wound up on our computer screens, as those sitting near her during the hearings have said her laugh, or gasp or cough or whatever, was so inaudible they couldn’t tell what it was.

I’ll wait for your own laughter to die down, and if jackbooted thugs did not bust your door down and arrest you for letting out a chuckle, read on.

My question is, “Why didn’t the entire room convulse with laughter at that point?”

Jeff Sessions’s history of “treating all Americans equally under the law is clear and well-documented.” LOLOL.

That is comedy gold.

I mean, this is the guy who in 1986 was denied a federal judgeship after it came out that he allegedly said he was okay with the Ku Klux Klan until he found out they smoked pot.

HIS PROBLEM WITH THE KKK WAS THEY SMOKE POT.

In fact, his ties to racist factions at the time were so alarming, Coretta Scott King personally wrote a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee asking that Sessions be denied the position because he “used the awesome powers of his office in a shabby attempt to intimidate and frighten elderly black voters.” Back then, the Senate Judiciary Committee understood that if the widow of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is saying you’re racist, there’s a problem. But in 2017, they seem to say, “Hey, why limit yourself?”

And his “clear and well-documented” treatment of people is not limited to racial inequality. It never is. As senator, Sessions consistently voted against rights for LGBTQ folks. His nomination to attorney general was cheered by anti-abortion extremist Troy Newman.

Jeff Sessions is beyond laughable, and to me the crime is that the whole room wasn’t laughing. Laughing until they were crying.

As a nation, we should all be laughing at the suggestion of Jeff Sessions as a civil libertarian, a fighter of freedom, a person qualified for the job of attorney general of the United States.

And now that he has it, a few months in, his department is prosecuting a woman who laughed at him.

The Trump administration seems to think it can end criticism by punishing it away

As a comedian and satirist, what scares me most is that not taking these licks in stride is the backbone of this administration. And they seem to think they can end criticism by punishing it away.

Even Joe McCarthy is saying from his grave, “Lighten up, man.” Fragile egos are the worst, and those who can’t take a joke are announcing to the world they are impostors. Since laughing at someone creates a status shift, a perceived loss of power is transferred in that moment of release. If you believe you are an impostor, you panic at the loss of even a drop of it and become angry and belligerent as a counterbalance. I watch it with dude hecklers all the time. They can’t shut me down, so they just become loud and rude.

Now we have a president who is basically that insecure, belligerent heckler. But with a Justice Department who can arrest people for “acting up.”

It is scary enough that as comedians and social critics we are facing an ever-growing totalitarianism. I mean, the Federal Communications Commission is investigatingStephen Colbert for a presidential dick joke, for Chrissakes. But when we start arresting and convicting people for laughing, we have created a society that outlaws thinking for ourselves and reacting when we are fed bullshit.

That is literally what happened. Laughing at an outrageous statement from a politician has led to Fairooz being convicted on two counts: engaging in disorderly or disruptive conduct with the intent to disrupt congressional proceedings; and parading, demonstrating, or picketing. It’s been pointed out by people who miss the point that the convictions are not for the actual laugh, but for the disturbance made while she was being escorted out of the hearing by a police officer. But because of her laugh, she was seen as so dangerous that she needed to be arrested, so nice try.

Desiree Fairooz laughs for all of us as we watch dangerous incompetence take center stage, from Rick Perry becoming the head of a department whose name he forgot while promising he would abolish it to Betsy DeVos becoming the secretary of education although she has never taught public school — and never attended one either.

Did Fairooz’s laugh sexually assault someone? Did her giggle shoot an unarmed black teenager? Did her chuckle have suspicious connections to Russia that affected our democratic elections? Of course not! Had that been the case, she wouldn’t have to worry about arrest, conviction, or sentencing.

We are all Desiree. Laughing to keep from crying, resisting to keep from hopelessness.

They say it’s the best medicine, and with the health care bill Republicans are trying to pass, we’re gonna need all the free meds we can get.

I’d love to give the administration some advice and alternative rules to try. For example, it’s important to take criticisms with a grain of salt. That’s “salt” not “assault,” just incase you misheard me the first time. Also, try to see the humor in yourself. It’s better for people to laugh with you than at you. Then while you’re laughing, try not destroying the world in a nuclear war over your own fragile male ego.

As for the rest of us, if this is a taste of things to come, you better stifle that cough or that hiccup, because you could do time in the hole.

Lizz Winstead is co-creator and former head writer of The Daily Show and one of the founders of Air America Radio. She is a co-founder of the Lady Parts Justice League, which is going onThe Vagical Mystery Tour, bringing comedy and music shows to 16 cities, joined by a rotation of the biggest names in comedy. A performer and standup comedian, Winstead frequently appears on MSNBC, CNN, and Comedy Central. She lives in Brooklyn. Find her on Twitter @lizzwinstead.