#since loona doesn’t have the rights to their music yet

[pionas]

if you’re still not sure if you wanna continue with the boycott here’s a reason to continue!

[effy-writes]

How about a Loona x Shy!Male!Reader one-shot??

Basically loona had been doing various activities with her boyfriend as a way to get him out of his comfort zone (like he doesn’t really like doing them, but does it just to make Loona happy). But after getting an invitation from Beelzebub and Vortex to a party, she sees it as a great opportunity to try and get y/n out of the comfort zone. The two then go to the party where y/n end up drinking a lot of alcohol, which started out small with shots only to lead to chugging large amounts with Loona being like “HOW?!”, and ends up being VERY drunk and doing A LOT of stuff at the party. The two would later leave with y/n being all ditzy and giddy and saying a bunch of babble, along with him saying how much he loves his hellhound girlfriend.

Then later the next day, he ends up with a terrible hang over and hardly even remembers all the stuff he did the night before.

thank you for requesting! hope this was what you wanted <3

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Loona x Shy! Male! Reader: Comfort Zone

You were always shy growing up. Barely had friends because you HATED talking and didn't want to screw up. Which shocks you because you now have a girlfriend.

Loona has been great towards you. Always buying you stuff, loves cuddling, but you despise whenever she tries to get you out some more. She wanted you to overcome your shy nature so she's always inviting you to do things. You always say yes to her because you want her to be happy.

One day she called you saying that you and her got invited to Beezlebub's and Vortex's party and thought it would be a good opportunity to get you out of the comfort zone. You hesitated but then denied the invitation. You especially didn't like party's.

Loona begged you to go with her. She even told you some story's where she first got invited to this party and was a nervous wreck.

"Was it fun for you?" You asked over the phone.

"Well...yes and no. Dad..well Blitz kinda messed it up. But this time will be different! Please Y/n." She whined.

"Alright, fine. I'm doing this because I love you."

You heard you squeal, "It's going to be so fun, I promise. Pick me up at 7!" She exclaimed before hanging up.

You got all dressed up for this party and picked Loona up. She was happy of course, which in return made you happy for her but you're still a nervous train wreck.

You pulled up to Beezlebub's mansion and slammed on the breaks.

"Jesus, Y/n!"

"Loona, there's so many people here."

"So? Just stay by me. I already know most of them." She placed her hand on your thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze.

You sighed dramatically and parked the car, the two of you getting out. She grabbed your hand and lead you the way to this house. As you were walking past all of these hellhounds your heart raced. Loona noticed this and she squeezed your hand, mentally telling you that she's here.

"How about I get us drinks? Maybe that'll loosen you up."

"Eh, I don't know. What if I make a fool of myself?"

"Nothing will compare you to Blitz. Trust me on this one."

You finally agreed to her request and she got you a cup of beezlejuice. One drink turned into two, then three, then four. The alcohol completely got rid of your nerves and your social anxiety.

Loona tried cutting you off but you refused.

"Come on, Y/n! You're drunk." She smiled, but still wanting you to be careful.

"Sooo? I feel great! And I loveee my girlfriend." You pulled her into a hug but since then world was spinning you trembled a bit.

"Let's get you some water." She laughed, still hugging you.

You pulled away and frowned, "Nooo. I no no wanna."

"Christ on a stick." Loona mumbled, "You're gonna have a horrible hangover."

You yet again didn’t listen to her and started break dancing (she did not know you could do that and was VERY shocked you could).

You started to unbutton your shirt as you swayed left and right to the music.

“Keep your shirt on!” She whispered with force, grasping your hands.

You laughed, “Whyyy. You get flustered when I dooo.” You teased.

“Because we’re in public!”

“Okay, okay, I’ll stop.” You put your hands up in defense.

"Loona! Hey girl." Beezlebub interrupted. "Who's this?"

"My very drunk boyfriend."

"Wassup." You giggled, "I'm Y/n."

"Queen Bee. You having fun?"

"Mm, very." You swung your arm around Loona's shoulders, almost knocking her down.

"I can see that. Did you give him water?" She asked Loona.

"He won't take it. But I'm about to take him home and force him to chug it."

"Good idea. It was nice to meet you!" Beezlebub shook your hand.

"Do I have to shake all four?" You hiccuped.

"Ha, only if you want to!"

Loona shook her head out of embarrassment as you proceeded to shake all four of Beezlebub's hands.

"I like you! You should come party more often." Bee offered.

"Yes!"

"No! Babe I love you but I'm cutting you off for sure next time."

You didn't say anything, just kept on smiling and giggling.

Loona dragged you out of the party and drove you back to the house.

Since you couldn't walk properly she put your arm over her shoulder and guided you to your bed. She left for a bit to get you water as you whined for her to come back.

"Loooonaa!"

"I'm coming right back!" She groaned.

Your eyes lit up once you saw her again. She handed you a glass of water and forced you to drink it.

"I need you to go to sleep, please?"

"Can we cuddle?" You whined.

"I was planning on it." She said, taking off her dress and slip on some pajamas. She didn't even bother to take your clothes off.

You pulled Loona closer to you after she got underneath the covers.

"Babe, maybe you should face the other way so you don't throw up on me." She laughed.

"Mmno." You held her.

"Please." She groaned.

You grumbled and turned the other way with her being the big spoon.

"Have you ever gotten an hangover?" She asked.

"mmmno."

"Pfft, you're about to."

The next morning your head throbbed as your stomach was churning. Loona was still asleep holding you but woken up after you sat up quickly to throw up.

"Yep...knew it."

"Fuck..Loona. I don't feel good." You rubbed your temples.

“Told youuu.” She singsonged. “Need some water and pain meds?”

“Yes please.”

Loona went and fetched the water and pain killers and handed them to you. She sat down beside of you on the bed. “You’re a mess you know that?”

You chuckled, “I know. But hey, the party was fun, right?”

“You asked to shake all of Beezlebub’s hands.” She deadpanned.

“Oh shit…did I?”

“Yep.”

“Did I embarrass you?”

“Only a little, but I love you so it doesn’t bother me.”

“Did I do anything else?”

“After you shook her hands you sang opera. Which by the way, how?” She laughed.

“Oh shit I did? Was I good?” You joked.

“Sadly, yes you were. Oh yeah you also break danced.”

“Damn, didn’t know I had all of this talent when I’m drunk.”

“Yeah. You probably didn’t remember this but you kept grinding on me and I had to pull you off.”

“Ugh. No more, I don’t wanna know.”

She rubbed your back, “Yeah, you probably don’t.”

“I’m gonna frew up again.”

“Not on your carpet, go to the toilet!”

[lovelyokkotsu]

jjk boyfriend hcs !!3!::!

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

first up is… megumi fushiguro :d!

such a silly lil guy :3

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

first meeting megumi 𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪:

: ̗̀➛ if you’re a sorcerer, you’ve probably met him on a mission, or has been assigned to a mission with him.

: ̗̀➛ however if you aren’t a sorcerer, then he definitely has saved you from a curse spirit, or at calm places that megumi is fond of and visits often.

: ̗̀➛ if he’s really attracted to you, then at first he’s a little shy, not knowing if he should make the first move to talk to you, or just wait for you to notice him to spark up a conversation.

: ̗̀➛ some dialogue to help you imagine it <3:

- (you): “hello megumi..?? megumi fushiguro right? i’ve heard a lot about you from kugisaki and yuji. i never knew you loved going to these sort of places..? hm, how about we walk along that bridge over there? the setting looks so amazing with the sun setting..”

- (megumi): “oh…hi (you), i think i’ve ran into you before, but you probably don’t remember that since only i saw you, but you didn’t see me and i…….yes, we should get to know each other whilst walking, that seems pretty calming.”

: ̗̀➛ poor bookie is scared you’d find him weird if he rants to somebody he’s just met 😭

confessing <333! 𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪

: ̗̀➛ after practicing in the mirror a thousand times, megumi knew that today was the right time to spill out his feelings for you, without you feeling like you have to force them back out of pity. if you don’t return the same feelings, that’s completely fine, he’d never force you to <3

: ̗̀➛ once he’d texted you to meet up, the pressure is ON. mf would be sweating once you two meet 😭, but let him take his time !!

: ̗̀➛ “i..like you a lot. ever since my eyes landed on yours, my heart felt at ease yet it was beating so fast, thumping, and it all felt so amazing to me. nobody has ever made me feel this way except you..you, just you. i know this may be corny, but i may not live without you. i wanna know how your embrace feels like, your kisses, and espeically that gorgeous smile of yours. however, if you don’t like me the same way, that’s completely fine, i could never force it on a person like you. so..?”

: ̗̀➛ of course you say yes otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this 😒 and you don’t regret this decision!!

dates with megumi 𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪:

: ̗̀➛ all of the dates you go on with him is the absolute best! you two take turns on picking where to go, but most of the time, he pretends that he already had his turn, just so you can have the choice of choosing where to go next <3!

: ̗̀➛ whether you’re more of a home date person, adventuring, or minimalist, whatever, he WILL AGREE.

: ̗̀➛ you’re not paying. simple. no argument.

: ̗̀➛ here’s some dates you’d go on!:

- theme parks!!

- restuarants!!

- paintball!!

- movie marathons!!

- laser tag!! (he got out immediately cause of his long ahh spikes peeking out of where he was hiding 😭

- picnics!!

- sightseeing!! (though it mostly gets interrupted, because gojo spies on you two.)

: ̗̀➛ in the end of your dates, he’d cuddle you to sleep if you guys went on a more adventurous date than most, and if not, and just stayed at home or had dinner outside, then he’d stay over to keep your lonely ahh company <3

megumi’s interests/hobbies 𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪:

: ̗̀➛ he actually likes swimming, and goes underwater to relax, if he had a long day.

: ̗̀➛ as much as sweet foods are okay for him, he will always pick savoury.

: ̗̀➛ big meals that fill him up are better than anything else, so if you don’t know how to cook, well you better learn!!

: ̗̀➛ he’s a huge music enthusiast, listening to artists, such as chase atlantic, the weeknd, autumn!

: ̗̀➛ he also secretly listens to serani poji 🤫

: ̗̀➛ let’s be real, he’s a kpop stan.

: ̗̀➛ his fav groups would be twice, loona, enhypen, ateez, and txt!!

: ̗̀➛ when it comes to anime/manga, he normally doesn’t talk about it that much, or even so mention it especially in front of others, cough, cough, GOJO SATORU (we all know that gojo watches jjba for the poses and flashiness!)

: ̗̀➛ manga reader, and if you don’t shut down the conversation, he will slip out the manga plot 💀

: ̗̀➛ sometimes, he likes reading romance manhwas, knowing damn well he’ll never try the shit that the main lead/second lead does 😭

: ̗̀➛ a major insomniac!!

pet names 𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪:

: ̗̀➛ tbh he wouldn’t really call you specific names, since your name is so dear to him.

: ̗̀➛ but occasionally, he’d call you baby, cutie, sweetheart.

: ̗̀➛ his favourite would have to be “my girl/boy/person.”

: ̗̀➛ because you’re obvi his duh!

cuddling positions 𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪:

: ̗̀➛ he’s definitely big spoon, 100%!! that’s one of his favourite positions to cuddle, as he loves snuggling you from behind, wrapping his arms around your waist, so you cannot escape at all..

: ̗̀➛ his ultimate favourite would have to be face to face embrace, because he gets such a clear view of your adorable sleeping face, or awake face, staring right back at him lovingly.

: ̗̀➛ he loves being close to you, so it’s a definite that he loves the burrito, as you two are literally wrapped together with the blankets :3!!

i think that’s it! lmk who’s next!! ੈ✩‧₊˚

[proxythe]

What kind of music can you see the P3 cast listening too? Your latest post just made me wonder that. Also just curious, what music do you listen to normally? I ask everyone this lol

im kind of unbelievably horrible at knowing music genres, let alone trying to assign specific genres to characters but i’ll try my best 😭 guys plz dont cook me if its bad im not that big of a musichead plz plz

Anyways. firstly, since minato and kotone both canonically listen to the p3 ost, i can assign them hip hop/rap/pop off rip. if it’s in their playlist, i think we can gather that they enjoy it.

minato - alt rock, pop punk, gothwave, video game osts. i say video game osts bc i yhink minato would like sitting around in a video game afk just to listen to the background music. i dont think minato is a goth but i feel as if gothwave has a sound he’d find enjoyable

kotone - alt rock, hip hop/rap, pop rock. she loves to lip sync to it and u can hear the song she’s lip syncing to bc i also know kotone probably turns her volume to max so loud you’d think she’ll damage her ears someday if not soon

yukari - dance pop, new wave, pop. she’s one of those people who hates country and sucks at listening to music outside her preferred genre. secretly likes a few alt songs but she’d never put them on her main playlist

junpei - hip hop, r&b. probably also a pop enjoyer, but honestly he’d like anything if it were catchy. he loves to dance and it sucks bc he’s really good at it so nobody can make fun of him

fuuka - alt/indie, pop. she’d also enjoy video game music, like minecraft ost and she cries to it. i think she mostly likes slower music. music that makes her feel like her soul is leaving her body and ascending to a different plane of existence

mitsuru - classical. rich girl… but i also think the girls would influence her taste to expand more and she’d find herself enjoying the worst songs you’ve ever heard in your life. it’s ok tho since it’s her first time branching out. she’ll grow…

akihiko - whatever’s on the radio, mostly enjoys upbeat faster paced music that can easily hype someone up. he’s kinda that one pic that’s like “Gym Beast Playlist” and the first song is hi high by loona

shinjiro - death metal, old school hip hop. death metal came to me bc i was thinking about casual outfits for shinjiro and i really wanted to put him in a death metal shirt bc of the font lmfaoo. but i prefer more old school hip hop for him and occasionally other things like old school rock music. he hates that new shit

ken - pop, alt/indie. ken is a kid so his taste is just beginning to form. he only knows pop radio. i also think ken’s music taste is music where you’d hear it and be like “god how does anyone like this” but he’s a child so he’s allowed to get away with it. and i say indie bc i also think ken is the type of person to be sad so he listens to more sad music as if it won’t make his mood worse. he goes on youtube and types “sad music playlist” when he’s in a bad mood

aigis - feel like she focuses more on the lyrics than the sound 😭 it’s her first day on earth she hasn’t yet learned that u can listen to music for the vibe instead of the lyricism. even then, i think aigis would probably enjoy almost any kind of music bc she thinks the creativity is beautiful

koromaru - adding him bc i think he’d have shinjiro’s taste from how much he loves him. he hears death metal and it puts him right to sleep…

ryoji - similar to aigis, but he’d probably heavily prefer whatever music the protagonist also enjoys. he has his own thing for classical music as well. he plays the piano and stuff …

+ thanks for asking what my taste is. i personally prefer to listen to a lot of rock, punk, metal, etc. if my cutesy art doesn’t make it so incredibly obvious BUT i enjoy anything as long as it sounds pleasant to my ears ✌️

[taeminscoconuthead]

You know what, this makes so much sense.

Whenever people send those nasty messages, it seems as if they’re not actual Shawols and instead trolls trying to harass us.

I have a screenshot of an account who has harassed me in my art blog and as you could see, they don’t even look like a Shawol at all. (I could be wrong, but they tend to look exactly the same — also I didn’t save the message since it was very triggering)

Which makes me wonder, why are they ONLY doing this to Shawols and not other fandoms? I don’t see them doing the same with TechnoBlade, XXXTentacion or even Michael Jackson. I could name someone who has also commit suicide but NEVER gets treated like this. Etica. I’ve heard NOTHING from them and apparently he doesn’t get treated well by his fans. Never did I see a post telling them it’s “disrespectful to a deadman” but when Shawols try to celebrate his life that works for us, then all of a sudden we’re doing a bad thing.

I feel like this also plays on with the whole “terrorising K-pop fans because I’m edgy” trope. Yet, that doesn’t give you the excuse to harass someone who just want to grief in their own terms.

If they are a K-pop fan and they’re saying shit like that then, how would it make you feel if you bias passed away and then everyone treated you like shit because you’re expected to mourn and then pretend they never existed in the first place.

What if a member of Loona passes away and you’re not even allowed to say your favourite quote from them without people harassing you to “stop talking about her?”

What if a member of Stray Kids passes away and you have to pretend he never existed just to gain the approval of people around you.

What if a member of Enhypen passes away and there are people spamming his funeral pictures and clips that you can’t even go onto YouTube or Google anymore without it being shown to you.

What if a member of BTS passes away and you can’t even celebrate his life because “oh, you’re disrespecting the dead.”

What if a TXT member passes away and you have to constantly check every single person just to make sure they are comfortable to talk about him.

You could apply any group to this, and would you still like it? But oh, you was just telling people, right? No. You go up to them when they are vulnerable and start to harass them. For what?

Sorry, that was a vent here…

No, you’re totally right. It seems as if the messages are an attack on K-pop fans which makes sense due to the fact that people love to make fun of them for their music taste. This has especially been happening since the early days of when K-pop went worldwide and it has became this “alternative pop world.” I think it’s also the fact that since he’s the first idol that has killed himself, people use that to harass and terrorise others that may be otherwise trying to cope with no longer seeing their idols on vlive anymore and even music without them. You don’t see people doing the same to Sulli or Goo Hara. It’s only Jonghyun that gets this treatment.

People need to start being considerate and stop thinking that they have the rights to control how people grief and cope. Regardless if it’s a Shawol or not, they should really keep to themselves and focus on what coping mechanisms works for them. And if they’re not a Shawol and they’re harassing people for coping with death, they should be ashamed of themselves for terrorising them just because they do something that you don’t like that you’re otherwise not even a part of. They need to really shut the fuck up and know their place. They are NOT a Shawol mourning over the death of Jonghyun by referring to him as “dead man” and mentally harassing other grieving Shawols in their vulnerable state because they think they’re doing something “right” or they’re the “hero” in their story when really they’re making it so much harder for those people that they become traumatised and may need to go to therapy because of those people.

I’m not going to let that comment on hyunjin gf’s blog slide. The fact that they have the audacity to harass someone who is MENTALLY not in a good place by gatekeeping other ways to cope with FUCKING DEATH because they expect us to not treat him like he ever existed. For most people, that’s not how they cope, and it’s such a fucking unhealthy coping mechanism for most people since it could cause depression. Some people can do that whilst most can’t, and they need to understand that this is a thing that they can’t gatekeep for their own sake.

If any of these dumbasses decides to challenge me, I’ll screenshot their ask and I’ll report them to Tumblr because this terrorisation of K-pop fans needs to end. I would even bring them to the wall of shame so they can’t take back their words.

If you guys had gone through something like this, please note that you’re not alone and you don’t need to change how you cope with Dec 18th for anyone. You are allowed to grief, mourn and cope in your own terms. Remember, this is YOUR experiences and not others so YOU figure out what works for YOU and don’t cater to what those stupid delusional idiots like them say because most likely, they aren’t even Shawols themselves or even if they are, they cope with death differently than you and you don’t have to copy them just because they told you so. Please look after yourselves and make sure that you guys are putting yourselves first since mental health was the thing that killed Jonghyun, and he wouldn’t want you to be next in line.

[incorrigible-groupie]

Wow, this analysis of the last episode of Helluva Boss went way further that I wanted…

« Blitzo is in love with Stolas !!! »

What.

Hell no.

No no no no.

Did we watch the same show ?

Even since the pilot we know the « relationship » between them is an arrangement more than a love story. I mean, Blitzo doesn’t swoon about Stolas, doesn’t think about Stolas and only talks about Stolas when he remembers he needs the book, he freaking spent some time with him only because he was paid (you know… when he went to Loo Loo Land ?). He shows more compassion towards Moxxie (while treating him like sh*t) than towards Stolas, for Satan’s sake he went to the Harvest Moon Festival only because Millie’s family was there.

Did you see Blitzo’s face when Striker aimed at Stolas ? And then the F*CKING TERROR ON HIS FACE WHEN STRIKER AIMED AT MOXXIE ??? Blitzo was ready to tear an arm appart with his own teeth. But for Stolas ? Meh.

So no, Blitzo isn’t in love with Stolas.

And episode 6 proved that.

DISCLAIMER : The following post is nothing against Stolitz shippers obviously, especially because both characters are great and badass but I really think their feelings aren't synchronized and therefore their relationship isn't completely healthy. They could have a nice one... but not yet. And most importantly, the hallucination scene isn’t about Stolas. Let me explain why I believe that.

« Did you see the golden feathers that put Blitzo back to himself ? »

Oh you mean the golden feathers that turned into chains and that Stolas took to bring Blitzo to his feet ?

Yeah, I saw them.

Of course I saw them.

This is exactly what I expected how Blitzo sees his « relationship » with Stolas, this is exactly the thing that proves that I was right all along.

Blitzo doesn’t love Stolas, he is only with him because he has to.

And with what happened before the stair scene, I know now why.

Blitzo feels like trash, still feels like trash, maybe because of his older relationships, probably because he is from the lowest of the low (working in a circus, then a little bit higher when dating a pop star…).

Did we watch the same show ?

The show that talks a lot about inequality between castes, the show that talks a lot about how difficult it was for Blitzo to make his own company, made from scratch ???

Striker, IN THE PREVIOUS EPISODE, made an entire statement about how Blitzo is underestimated and Blitzo felt it. He was very close to accept to go with him… but he needed to protect his « easiest lanky ticket to Earth ».

Stolas is just a tool for Blitzo to get what he wants. At first, I thought it was because he is searching for something in Earth (and uses the missions as a distraction). But now, I think it’s about something more important : power. Stolas’ feathers have nothing to do with his « transformation », it just shows that Blitzo wears a mask, a costume, a cleaner suit to pretend he isn’t like trash, that he wasn’t trash, that he will not go back to trash.

Whatever it takes.

« Yeah but the figures that are fanning Stolas in such a caring way… »

You mean more like slaves ?

Again, castes, stairs, chains, fanning ? You see a metaphor of love, I see a metaphor of slavery. That’s really disturbing. This is a representation of how Blitzo feels towards Stolas and gosh I’m so worried about him, and them. This is about power.

« But he is climbing towards him ! He wants him ! »

No. He doesn’t want to go to Stolas. He wants to climb those stairs. He wants to go higher. He wants to stay away from the trash. This is about power.

« But the chains… »

I hate those chains.

This is about power.

This is about power.

THIS IS ABOUT POWER.

« No. I think this is about fear. I think he fears to be rejected, so he bound himself to someone, but he also fears of commitment… »

…

Fears of commitment ?

Blitzo ?

What the hell ?

Are we talking about the boss who is not afraid to show (not say, but SHOW) how deeply he cares about his employees ? Are we talking about the demon who adopted Loona and says to everyone that he loves his daughter ? Are we talking about the Blitzo who shares his passions everywhere even on Instagram ? You think someone who is afraid to be rejected would be afraid to commit ? He knows how to express his feelings, he even lies to make the ones he loves happy (yes, I’m talking about Moxxie’s taste in music, duh).

And he does talk about his relationship with Stolas, but do you remember how he calls it ? A transaction.

The book in exchange of passionate fornication.

Nothing more, nothing less.

When people says that Stolas is his boyfriend, Blitzo denies it because he doesn’t want to be seen as just a lover, just a partner, he doesn’t want to have an image of a demon who had success because he is lucky an higher being felt in love with him.

No.

He planned that.

He organized that. He slept with Stolas to stole the book, he still sleeps with Stolas FOR the book.

That demon has ambition that is not related to love.

« Have you even listened to what Blitzo’s subconscience said ? »

… Actually no, not really.

I’m sorry.

English isn’t my native language so it was harder than usual to understand ‘Moxxie’ gibberish (also, I was tripping balls listening to Brandon Rogers playing everyone voices).

I started this all post while not considering what was said, I only listened to my guts which twisted while watching Blitzo being chained because of Stolas.

I’m sorry. I may be wrong…

… But I never believed Blitzo loved Stolas and I won’t start now.

So how can I explain how what is showed and what is saying are related ?

Maybe because Blitzo is scared to be put on a pedestal in his friends minds whereas what he is doing with Stolas isn’t completely right. But he must do it for a reason. Like I said, that demon has ambition.

This is about power.

I think Blitzo has a goal in mind (which he wasn’t able to obtain alone, like Robot Beetlejuice said), a goal he will gain by sacrificing the respect his friends have for him.

You know… whatever it takes.

I think he knows he will disappoint them so he wants to enjoy his remaining time with them while not getting too close to them so the fall won’t be that hard.

« So you agree ? Blitzo is in love with Stolas but can’t make it real. »

Still no.

For all the reason I said before, Blitzo doesn’t seem attached to Stolas. It’s not that he hates him but he doesn’t really care that much.

« Or he pretends he doesn’t care, after all Moxxie said… »

Yes.

Moxxie.

Wait a second.

It started with Moxxie. 

This entire scene isn’t about Stolas and Blitzo relationship, it’s about Blitzo and Moxxie.

« I’m torturing you in your own hallucination. »

(Yep, I have access to the dialogues, you can’t stop me now.)

You are right, it shows Blitzo’s fear : his fear not be a good friend to Moxxie. How could he ? His past relationships were garbage, even recently he hired someone how wasn’t trustworthy, and he’s currently having an affair with someone he doesn’t really like.

I said earlier that the golden feathers put Blitzo into a clean costume, a disguise no one is supposed to see through.

Except that Moxxie does.

Moxxie knew all along that Blitzo is only pretending, Moxxie is more hurt when Blitzo isn’t honest with him than when Blitzo says awful comments to him. 

Moxxie sees Blitzo with the broken heart on Blitzo’s forehead, exactly like how Blitzo sees himself.

Do they talk to each other while tripping ? Do they listen to each other ? Do they only hear what they want to hear ?

Because their thoughts are way too synchronized (Moxxie talking about how Blitzo pushes everyone away, Blitzo being at the top of some stairs…).

Maybe they do talk to each other and then have their own perception of this conversation in their minds :

Blitzo feeling it like accusations that burn his skin like golden feathers who shut him up and chain him and blind him so he will have to abandon everything he is and loves to obtain his goal, Moxxie believing it like their relationship can go higher and evolve and be fine and equal finally.

OH, AND THERE’S SOMETHING MORE : I know there is a theory about Moxxie being a fallen royalty and I think this episode showed that if it’s true, Blitzo knows, with how in his hallucination Moxxie eloquently talked and then transformed into a princess while climbing the stairs (without needing Stolas’ feathers).

Maybe that’s also why Blitzo doesn’t think he is worthy to be friend with Moxxie. And why he is angry at him : because he is jealous, Moxxie gave up everything Blitzo wanted for unknown reason (but probably for Millie, why annoys Blitzo even more not to mention that while Moxxie gave up power for an healthy relationship, Blitzo is craving for power by using an unhealthy one).

« Okay, let’s say that the hallucinations were about Moxxie and Blitzo. But… But THE KISS ! »

Oh yeah the kiss, let’s talk about that !

When Stolas goes to kiss Blitzo, our favorite demon pulls the king’s hair so it won’t happen and… Gosh he doesn’t want to be kissed by Stolas, does he ? I’m sorry but, no, this doesn’t feel right. I may not be an expert about romance but… what ?

This is about power.

Blitzo doesn’t hate having sex with Stolas, I mean, he thinks the role-plays are weird but he goes with it, and I think that’s because during the role-play he is always the one who dominates the other.

Just like with the kiss. The kiss happened only because Blitzo made it so.

It makes sense, those role-plays : Blitzo wants to forget he isn’t the one with power (which is why he made that sad face when he sees Stolas on his throne or when Stolas saves them because he is so strong and Blitzo maybe feel sad that he isn’t strong enough to protect his group, that he still needs the help of someone he knows will ask for compensation after ?), and Stolas wants to forget he is the one with power (and forget that his favorite imp probably doesn’t love him back so he lets him do whatever he wants to do to him and maybe he will fell in love ?).

Anyway.

I feel… No, I’m sure this all dream sequence is more about the power people have on Blitzo.

And power shouldn’t have something to do with love.

Maybe one day Stolas and Blitzo will put aside their differences, the huge gap between them, maybe they will realize that their ranks have a big impact on their relationship and THEN have a real, romantic, healthy one.

But for now seeing Stolas and Blitzo together is heartbreaking for me because one of them feels forced while the other is completely in love.

[the32ndbeat]

𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐲𝐨𝐮 | 𝐣.𝐲𝐧 - [ 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏 ]

pairing: stalker!jaehyun x fem!reader ( ft haechan and loona’s haseul )

word count: 1.7k

warnings: mentions of BDSM and mature themes

a/n: this is kinda short but I hope you guys like the first part of the ‘only you’ series!

masterlist

You were like a breath of fresh air and something like an alluring enigma amongst the common folk the moment you stepped through those doors. Your hair is swept up into a loose bun with stray locks falling around your face, framing it in the most beautiful way possible. The white cotton shirt you’re wearing is sheer and I can almost see the outline of your bra if only you weren’t wearing a cardigan over it but it’s ok. It looks flattering on you and does nothing to detract you from your beauty.

There is a hint of a smile on your lips, the sunshine illuminating the side of your face and bringing out the liveliness in your eyes that I rarely see among people these days. As you mutter your apologies and slide past an old man who has been staring at the same hammer for the last ten minutes, you exude grace even just by the way you walk and hold yourself.

“Hi, do you work here?”

It takes me a moment to register the fact that you are actually in front of me, looking me in the eye and talking to me. Your voice is as angelic and beautiful as you are, almost like music to my ears. I can already imagine how it would sound when I take you to bed and thinking about it makes me all tingly in the inside. I tap on the brass name tag pinned to my shirt and gesture towards the tool belt I have hanging loosely on my waist. Realisation dawns upon you, followed closely by mortification.

You smack yourself on your forehead, an embarrassed giggle escaping from those cute lips that I want on mine.

“I’m so sorry, that was so stupid of me…” You say and you squint to look at the tiny black letters on the name tag. “Jaehyun.”

“It’s completely alright. We all have moments like that,” I laugh and a smile tugs on your lips.

“It happens so much more often for me though.” You sigh and I wonder if anyone has ever made you feel like you’re any less intelligent than the average person. The thought of that makes me annoyed but I don’t dwell on it.

“Anyways, I was wondering if you guys sell ropes and duct tape here?”

Ropes and duct tape? My, my. What could you possibly need them for?

The question is itching at the back of my mind but I push it away as I flash you a bright grin.

“We do. Right this way.” I turn and you follow behind me.

Manoeuvring between shelves and people, we finally reach the rope section and it takes you a moment to get past a burly man blocking the aisle. He checks you out with those leery eyes of his as you walked towards me and internally I feel irritation creeping in. Creeps like that don’t deserve to look at you that way. You should be respected and men like that don’t respect women like you. I try not to think of how many times this must have happened to you without your notice as I gesture towards the spools of rope of all thickness and colours.

“We’ve got a wide selection here and you’re free to choose whichever you want and however long you want it.”

“Wow, you guys have every kind of rope here.” You said, amazement written all over your face as you grazed your fingers over the spools.

“Yeah, kind of essential since we are a hardware store after all.” I reply. How would those fingers feel on me?

You laugh and there it is again, that smile of an angel. You are so unlike other girls as cliche as that sounds and I can’t help but want to know more about you. Just who are you?

“You’re right. I ask some of the weirdest and most obvious questions ever sometimes, don’t mind me.”

I’d never mind if it’s you.

“I won’t, don’t worry.” I smile as I stuff my hands into my pocket and watch you take your pick of which rope to purchase. As you walked up and down the aisle, I can’t help but notice how snug those jeans looked on you. They look gorgeous on you, bringing out the shapeliness of your legs. When you turn your back to me, I try not to let my eyes drift down to your bottom.

“I’ll have about ten metres of this one!” You declare with a satisfied smile after a moment of deliberation, patting a spool of thin, straw rope.

“Alright,” I pull out a pair of scissors and measuring tape from my tool belt and get to cutting the rope.

“If you’re wondering why I’m buying rope and duct tape, I can assure you I’m not a kidnapper. I just realised how my shopping list could give you the wrong idea.” You say suddenly with a nervous chuckle and I raise my eyebrow at you.

You see the curious look on my face and continue, “Neither am I engaging in…BDSM… This isn’t a fifty shades of grey thing.” The flustered expression on your face is so cute, my heart could burst. What a cute and pretty face with such mature thoughts. Nobody said anything about fifty shades but here you are, assuming that was what I thought of. I wonder, just how dirty your brain actually is and realise with a start that you probably want me to know that you harbour such naughty thoughts so that’s why you said what you said.

I couldn’t hold back the chuckle at the back of my throat as I ask, “Then what is it?”

“I’m actually an architecture student at the local college nearby.” You say and I detect a hint of pride in your voice. You want to impress me - I can tell with that overly bright smile of yours when you said that.

“That’s amazing. Architecture must be pretty hardcore to study,” I say as I loop the cut rope over my elbow.

“It is,” you roll your eyes and groan. “I’m only a freshman and I haven’t even been here half a semester and I’m already dying.”

I laugh softly at your words and you smile. You like the attention I’m giving you.

“Well, it’s only going to get worse so I suggest taking it easy…��� I trail off.

“Y/n.” You beam at me and I find myself replaying the sound of your name over and over in my head.

Y/n. Y/n. Y/n. What a charming name.

I grab some duct tape for you off the shelves and we head to the cash register which was as usual unattended to. Normally, I would have given Haechan a piece of my mind for his negligence again but this time, I couldn’t be more grateful.

“Is that all you’re purchasing for today, y/n?” I ask as I scan your items. I love the way your name rolls off my tongue, I could say it a thousand times and never get sick of it.

“Yup! Can’t really afford anything else at the moment either but I’ll probably be back when I need more supplies.” You sigh before adding, “College kid things.”

I’ve never been to college but I nod in an understanding way anyways and you grin.

“It’s just so tough these days, you know? Student loans and all plus the costs of living in the city? Insane.”

“Insane, indeed.” I repeat after you and as you hand me your credit card, our fingers touch briefly. Did you do that on purpose?

I take a good look at your credit card as you were staring out at the streets, seemingly preoccupied with a child who was chasing a flock of pigeons.

Y/n l/n.  

Hm, you could have given me cash but you gave me your credit card instead. You want me to know your name, not just your first name but also your last. I see what you’re doing.

I smile to myself as I proceed with the transaction. Bagging up your purchase, I pass them over to you and you say thank you. As you head out onto the street, you turn back and give me another of your dazzling smiles and I feel my heart stutter. How do you already have this effect on me?

I watch you glide down the streets outside with your hair flowing in the wind and the sunlight bringing out the brightness and liveliness in your eyes. The group of girls walking by can’t even hold a candle to you and as you walk past them, they regard you with envious looks which I can’t blame them for. You look simply beautiful.

Once you are out of sight, I whip out my phone.

Y/n l/n. Architecture student.

First, I open up instagram. A quick search of your name doesn’t yield any results. Huh, figures. I try searching up your college instead and this time, I’m slightly more successful.

I find the architecture faculty’s instagram page instead.

A simple scroll down the page shows me a freshmen group photo and I easily locate you within a heartbeat. How could I not?

In the list of tagged usernames, I find yours and…

Bingo.

I’m at your instagram profile and I’m shocked to find it on public mode. You’re not very cautious online and I’m not sure if your parents ever taught you about staying safe on the internet but even if they did, you clearly didn’t take them very seriously. I understand why you left it on public though. You want to be seen and to be heard. Well, here I am.

Barely a minute into looking through your instagram, I already have to control myself. The pictures you take are extremely flattering and you look exceptional in every single of one of them even though some of your post captions say otherwise.

I see a picture of a room’s interior from the corner of my eye and I click on it.

It’s a picture of you and another girl which I presume must be your roommate in a small room that looked more like a broom closet than an actual room. The captions say ‘Move-in day! Super excited and unfortunate to be in the same dorm as Haseul ugh ( jk love you )’

I smile despite myself. How cute.

You have a goofy smile on your face, your friend has her arms around your waist and the two of you look so happy. Yet, I find myself looking at something else instead.

Your window.

(part 2)

thank you to @ihearttbz​ for helping me to proofread this! ily ><

tagging: @hae-sicheng​ @soothingjae​ 

do send me an ask or pm if you want to be included in the taglist for the next part! 

[on-the-shelves]

on my shelf: soundtrack to MA year 1 - summer

That was the most stressful semester of my life, which is saying something since it was my 10th uni semester. It was all still online which has its benefits, sure (no commute! sleeping in! not having to get dressed properly!), but even an introvert like me likes to be around people sometimes. It really feels like everyone, including the lecturers, has kind of lost it at this point. That's the only explanation I can find for the unusual amount of work thrown at us. Okay now that that's out of the way, let's get to the ~music~

BTS: "Butter" and "Permission to Dance" (2021)

Summery goodness from BTS following last year's Dynamite that's just fun to listen to, to figure out the pop culture references to, and to cheer on as they make the Hot 100 their playing ground (thanks in big part to very dedicated US/PR Armys). "Butter" features very cool, more minimal verses with an explosive, big chorus. It's filled with calm confidence. Learning the previous English song "Dynamite's" lyrics was pretty difficult, but "Butter" was even harder, even for native speakers, which just makes BTS' efforts all the more impressive. I immediately loved "Permission To Dance" and its very musical-theater, feel-good vibe. It just makes you feel happy! Here I found the rap line's vocal chops especially impressive - I love how BTS is constantly trying out new things in all their music, including the English singles.

ITZY: GUESS WHO (2021)

This EP is a lot like ITZY's usual output in its bold confidence and electronic sound, but it feels more refined and even a bit more experimental this time around. Listening from top to bottom, there's a good flow where the songs don't blend into each other and can stand alone, but don't rub against each other either. My favourite is closer "Tennis (0:0)", their calmest song yet. The instrumentation is more traditional (featuring some acoustic guitars) and very minimal, so the focus is on the group's vocals. The melodies would work in a louder song too, which just makes this stripped back sound stand out even more.

TOMORROW X TOGETHER: The Chaos Chapter: Freeze (2021)

Following on from the album series The Dream Chapter and the summer album minisode 1: Blue Hour, TXT introduced a new chapter, that focuses on the confusing and conflicting feelings of growing up and showcases yet more diversity in their sound. This album features a lot more input musically and lyrically from the members, like Huening Kai produced rock juggernaut "Dear Sputnik", and feels all the more richer for it. In general, the album moves between clear rock ("Dear Sputnik", "0x1=Lovesong"), pop ("No Rules", "Magic"), hip-hop and electronic influences, sometimes also mixing them to create interesting fusions, like on "Freeze". The one thing that stays consistent throughout is the angst, in all its various forms. It doesn't ever go full on overboard emo with it though, making it more palatable. My top 3 songs are "No Rules", "0x1=Lovesong" and "Ice Cream". They recently released a repackaged album including two new songs: "LO$ER=LO♥ER" (emo rock that made me very happy to hear since it's executed so well) and "MOA Diary (Dubaddu Wari Wari)", a super cute fan song.

WENDY: Like Water (2021)

Red Velvet member and vocal powerhouse Wendy released her first solo EP, after having recovered from a serious injury she suffered at the end of 2019. The songs suit her voice perfectly. There's a lot of ballads, but she makes them sound effortless, even in the highest notes, where her voice stays rich and full. She's able to convey the emotions needed sincerely, without being overbearing, a lot of it owed to the lyrical topics centering around themes like being there for each other, instead of very heavy, sad ones. In the musically lighter songs, like "Why Can't You Love Me", she's skilled in her playfulness, with an audible smile. Wendy's love for music and singing is tangible and makes the EP feel very comforting to listen to.

IU: A Flower Bookmark, Pt. 2 (2017)

I'd been wanting to go through IU's older music since her new album Lilac was released this year, and doing so, I got stuck on this EP of reworked covers. I don't know any of the original songs, but if I hadn't known they were covers I would've never guessed it just by listening. IU has a knack for making things distinctly her own - no matter what style or genre she's trying out, she'll fit into it perfectly while still being recognisable. This EP features a range of different styles, from different decades and artists, but it all flows together, like they were always meant to be here. My favourites are "Autumn Morning" (featuring an acapella intro), "Last Night Story" (reminds me a lot of late 80s German rock, like the song "Westerland" by Die Ärzte, but more fun), and the pretty and calming "Everyday With You".

LOONA: [&] (2021)

Loona have become one of my favourite groups, even more so as I've been getting to know their pre-debut solo and sub-unit songs. So I was very happy when they returned this year with all 12 members for the first time since 2019. Lead single "PTT (Paint The Town)" is similar in sentiment (and somewhat in sound too) to their 2020 lead singles with its fierceness. It gives space to welcome Haseul back too, even presenting her as a risen phoenix in the music video. At first I felt like the song "WOW" would've been better as lead single but then I couldn't get "PTT" out of my head for days every time I listened to it, so I had to admit it was the right choice. [&] feels like a mixture between what a lot of fans call "typical Loona" and the direction they went in on previous EP 12:00, especially on city-pop leaning closer "U R". My favourites are the bouncier "WOW" and "Be Honest", as well as "U R".

Some singles I loved:

Ji Jin Seok: "Come With Me" (2021)

-> a chill, K-R&B summer track featuring Ji Jin Seok's beautiful, calm voice

Epik High: "Rain Song" (2021)

-> perfect for rainy days. walks the line between sad and okay perfectly.

JOY: "Hello" (2021)

-> fun, upbeat song (actually a reworked cover!) that showcases Red Velvet member Joy's vocal colour perfectly. the album (also reworked covers) is lovely too, but I didn't listen to the full thing that much.

[cherryonigiri]

Hello! May I ask headcanons for Kiseki no Sedai? Their reaction to their girl being cool and sexually dancing (something like k-pop girl group cover dance, if you know it) with her dance team at a school festival (or something like that).

A/N: Since my character limit is five I chose to do hcs for Akashi, Aomine, Kise, Murasakibara and Midorima, hope that’s fine with you! I immediately thought of Loona’s dance cover of Cherry Bomb by NCT 127 (https://youtu.be/s7kxoMYg3l8) which is so BADASS (both the song and choreography) and Move by Taemin (inspired by Twice’s cover: https://youtu.be/QTfzryUBlO0). Reader is in a group that dances to both in one set! Also I’m assuming the reader is in the school’s dance club/group that decided to do a cover of a lit K-pop song for some kind of school festival!

Akashi Seijuro

Since he is president of the student council, he is backstage helping ensure the performances/festival runs smoothly

Has timings of each performance down to the second — and he knows exactly when you and your dance group is slated to perform

Since your dance group had to submit the songs + a short clip of your performance to the student council, Akashi already knows what songs you are going to perform

Was going to do some more research on what the choreography involved, but you begged him not to because you wanted to surprise him at the festival

Doesn’t stop him from listening to the songs and familiarizing himself with the melodies and lyrics - k-pop is something you are passionate about and he always want to learn more about his girlfriend

While you and your group are on deck and getting ready to go on stage (he knows there are still two more acts before you) he stands next to you

Maybe kisses your forehead I AM SO SOFT FOR FOREHEAD KISSES FIGHT ME

“I’d say good luck, but I don’t think you’ll need it darling” afjaofe;ja;feka

You’re Akashi fucking Seijuro’s girlfriend - he has high standards and probably would date someone who is equally as hardworking + high achieving as him 

Besides, outside of basketball he knows Rakuzan has an equally formidable dance program so the boy knows you are talented

Is so impressed when you start dancing to Cherry Bomb - the choreography is intense and requires so much synchronization as you switch between all the complex formations - he thinks you could teach the basketball team a thing or two about teamwork

You go HARD with the tutting at the end before you start doing edging your feet out until you’re almost doing the splits - Akashi respects how much strength and training went into performing the dance break + ending flawlessly

When the music changes to Move he is STARING at you - eyes are glued to your form as you perform

The moves are so sensual and he can see how you intensely look out into the audience - he can sense the sexual tension that fills the room 

At the same time is awed by how much control you have over your body - he can see how every movement is planned, from the position of your hands to the way you shift your weight between each dance move

As your hands glide along your body, he can’t help but get slightly turned on

Also glares at all the male members of the student body who are looking at you a little too intently

When you finish your set he calmly hands you a water bottle while smiling proudly

May ask you for a private encore later

Aomine Daiki

You mention the performance in passing, probably while you and Aomine are having lunch on the roof 

Despite his nonchalant response, Aomine remembers that you’re performing in the back of his mind - although he does get the occasional reminder from Momoi or teasing remark from Imayoshi 

Doesn’t really want to get too involved in the school festival - it’s far too rowdy and he thinks the idea his class came up with for the festival is a hassle (imagine if it was a butler cafe LMAO poor Aomine) 

Probably sneaks away from his shift managing his classroom’s booth or to find you and wish you luck (or uses you as an excuse to ditch his shift for a couple of minutes)

He knows you’re good at dance - he’s seen how many hours you spend rehearsing and how much you love dancing (and Kpop) 

Will sneak into the auditorium and probably stand in the middle of the crowd - probably doesn’t see the point of cramming in the crowded area right in front of the stage

Impatiently waits for you to come up on stage, he’s bored and is sick of the skits that other groups are putting on 

When it’s finally your turn he’s focusing intently on the stage. The instant you come out in a badass outfit with dark makeup and a black crop top he grins because you look AMAZING

The music starts and you launch into an intense sequence of tutting and formations shifts that has his eyes widening in surprise 

now he understands why you always felt the need to drill the choreography into your muscle memory, because remembering moves on top of switching spots with everyone else makes the performance that much more impressive

Proud of his badass girlfriend

When Move comes on he smirks - although you can’t see him, he watches you move your hips and trace the outline of your figure 

Can appreciate the sensual yet serious expression on your face that makes you look gorgeous, but definitely does not appreciate the dumbass boys in the audience who are drooling over your body 

After the performance he finds you and kisses you before wrapping his arm around your shoulders

Scowling at the now intimidated boys from before, he says “Gotta remind those idiots that you’re mine”

Will definitely invite you over to his place to spend the night for some “quality time” 

Kise Ryouta

Kise knows you’ll be performing a kpop dance at the school festival and is super excited

He probably helped style you and your team for each song - pulling out some leather jackets and ripped jeans for Cherry Bomb and picking out a diverse all black ensemble + accessories for your cover of Move

He hypes you up all day about the showcase: sends you good luck texts and gives you a hug before you have to go backstage + will keep you company when you do your make up before hand

Is not afraid to elbow his way through the audience so he can have a front row seat to your performance

Made the entire Kaijo basketball team come with him and instructs them to cheer loudly for your performance 

He’s pretty up to date with current music trends and listens to a fair amount k-pop himself so he’d probably recognize the songs you were dancing to + be somewhat familiar with the choreography

When you come on stage he’s already shouting “Go y/n-chii!!!” which makes you smile and you manage to make brief eye contact with him right before you get into your starting pose

It’s like a switch is flicked - you went from being his cute and smiley girlfriend to a serious BADASS - your expressions are so intense and serious Kise can’t help but be drawn in

When he hears the opening line of Cherry Bomb he’s thinking oh shit because damn that choreography is tough

From the tutting, to moving in sync with all the other members, to all the different formation changes - he knows this is a challenging piece to perform

Gave you his leather jacket (he probably got it from a modelling gig or something) to wear and seeing you dance in his jacket is just *chef’s kiss* stunning 

and it lets all the other annoying boys in the crowd know that you’re his because it has his jersey number embroidered on the back 

If people start shouting the fanchants he’ll join in because anything to support his amazing girlfriend

When you all change outfits and switch to move he is dying

He’s right in front of you and you are making very direct and SENSUAL eye contact with your boyfriend while you move your hips into another body roll

Kise smirks back and will pin you with an equally intense and lustful stare

When he sees you after the performance he immediately strides towards you and pulls you into a fierce kiss 

Spends the rest of the festival with his arm around you, bragging about his amazing girlfriend to anyone who will listen, then he’ll take you home and ;) 

May take advantage of perfect copy and learn a duet/routine with you sometime in the future

Midorima Shintaro

MY CARROT BOI — I swear I am taking this seriously

Midorima probably doesn’t listen to too much kpop - he prefers being able to enjoy the lyrics of a song and listening to Japanese music means he won’t have to look up lyric translations

Maybe has heard some Japanese versions of kpop songs on the radio, but is overall unfamiliar with the genre (context: Since Japan has such a huge market for K-pop, it’s not uncommon for groups to release Japanese albums where they sing the the in Japanese) 

When you first mention that your club is going to be performing at the school festival, he probably pictures some cutesy, bubblegum pop girl group song 

Is putting this into his calendar and making sure he sets reminders because he is NOT about to miss his girlfriend’s performance

Secretly happy because you are putting in extra practice for the rehearsal which means you stay late at school. Since basketball practice always runs late he’s glad he now has the chance to walk you home

Day of: checks your Oha-Asa horoscope and makes sure that you have your lucky item - he will buy it himself if necessary 

Knows you worked super hard on this performance so he knows you’re going to be fine

This tsundere carrot shyly wishes you good luck before you head backstage: “Good luck y/n, not that you’ll need it! Nanodayo…” with a slight blush on his cheeks 

Makes his way back to the audience - he made Takao save him a spot

Somehow Takao got his hands on a setlist/hear rumors and figured out what you were performing and is secretly filming Midorima’s reaction because your boyfriend is about to COMBUST

Cherry Bomb comes up and Midorima immediately realizes this is NOT the cute girl group dance he was envisioning

Is probably watching your performance intently - he never realized that your choreography would be this intense and physical 

Probably not as blushy during this one, just entranced and absorbed into your performance (will refuse to admit that he stared at you the entire time, even though Takao teases him about it later)

But when you transition to the cover of Move, oh gosh, this boy goes from stony faced to bright red tomato

Is 100% blushing and gaping at you while you perform the sensual routine, especially when your hands move across your body and you purposefully make eye contact with him

Realizing holy shit my girlfriend is so sexy holy shit you thought he was staring at you during Cherry Bomb his eyes are glued to your figure during Move

Probably rushes up to you awkwardly and gives you a surprise hug before whispering “Give me a little warning next time y/n.” 

You giggle a bit, not mentioning the routine you’re learning on your own (Dally by Hyolyn: https://youtu.be/b75eENj0WCQ) surprise him with it in the future hehehehehehe)

Murasakibara Atsuhi

Murasakibara is hanging out in your dorm room when you mention that you have an upcoming performance

“Ohh y/n-chan that sounds fun”

Lowkey pouty baby because he wanted to laze around during the festival and just spend the day trying all the food with you

Now he won’t have his girlfriend to keep him company for the whole day 

When you ask him if he’s going to come and watch, he’ll agree, because it’s at the school and it isn’t too much of a hassle and he knows you put in a lot of practice so he wants to support

Tatsuya probably still has to remind him about the performance on the day of

On the morning of your performance you wake up to find a bag of your favorite snacks and candies hanging on your doorknob

Murasakibara probably went to the nearby convenience store and bought you a bunch of “good luck” snacks to surprise you

Tatsuya and him walk into the auditorium, is kind of disappointed to see that it’s already packed so he has to settle for a seat farther away than what he liked

Thankfully he’s tall AF so he still gets a clear view of the stage 

Snacks through the other performances/skits and gets pretty bored, he’s here to see you and you only

Finally, they announce your club - Murasakibara immediately perks up with interest

Your group has a badass entrance before you start performing Cherry Bomb

You decided to temporarily dye your hair red for the performance and Murasakibara is surprised when you whip off the hat you were wearing to reveal bright cherry tinted hair

He’s watched you practice the moves several time and knows you struggled to master some of them - super proud when he sees you slay those hard bits of choreography on stage

Move comes on the speaker and he immediately can sense that this is definitely a very sensual dance

Like damn, watching you move your hips to the beat and confidently gazing into the crowd, he is very turned on definitely wants an encore from you in private

When you hit the last pose and the lights dim he is IMMEDIATELY walking out of the auditorium to find you 

Sees that you’re surrounded by some newly acquired fanboys and casually steps in behind you to wrap an arm around your waist

Towers over the guys surrounding at you, a scowl from him scares them off

You giggle at his antics because he’s cute when he’s jealous: “You don’t need to be that mean to them Atsushi” 

“Y/n-chaaaan, can we go get food now?” - probably buys you all the snacks you want because he is proud 

Also suggests that you dye your hair to match his purple locks just because

[sleepyowlsleeps]

Sleepy’s Favorite K-Pop Songs of 2020

1. Any Song - Zico -- this song is not particularly special, but the main vibe, “play any song that makes you happy” is exactly how my musical tastes were in 2020, for the regular reasons we all faced AND for some extra, personal reasons that made me search out happier or deceptively happy songs, or songs that lay next to me instead of crawling under my skin. I usually love when a song sings my soul back to me, but there were many moments last year that I just couldn’t handle that, or couldn’t handle it the same way I usually would. Spotify says that Any Song was played the most of, well, any song, and I know why.

2. Midnight Train - Se So Neon -- this is a song that lay beside me, from the first time I heard it and every time after. It actually doesn’t have a ton of lyrics, but the ones it has are vibrating with intention and casual pain. There is ice on the tip of your tongue but it mellows as the guitar takes you out with the tide. Sometimes the melody is clashing so hard against your teeth you’re worried it’ll just swallow you whole, but instead it falls like a heavy rain, washing everything clean. Please, please listen to this song.

3. Scream - Dreamcatcher -- they have never released a bad song, and I actually love their entire discography. It’s one of the few that I do listen to just by itself, no other artists. Dreamcatcher have never been afraid to be brash and in your face, nor do they shy away from saying how it is. There is an open wound inside this song, and your heartbeat is so loud in your ears. The lyrics are intense, the instrumentals are intense, the performances in the vocals are fire and wine and steel. I love it.

4. Can’t You See Me? - TXT -- I really loved Run Away in 2019, which for a debut year was jam packed with content. TXT has this wonderful take on youth and maturity and being real about your emotions. Their voices are soft and sweet, even while this song is talking about the disparity between reality and dreams, truth and lies. Every part of the song captures my attention, I don’t think it has any weak points, and I always picture the MV. Strawberries will never be the same. This song did sing my soul to me a little, but even though the sound was visceral it never cut through bone. It was gentle and kind, and held my hand.

5. Close - Han (Stray Kids) -- I did not expect that this little song would end up meaning so much to me, but it did. Stray Kids had an amazing year as always, but I guess my love for Han’s singing and his lyricism just got me. Han has a way of just pulling back all the weeds surrounding my feelings, but not tugging them straight out. He’s patient with the dandelions and doesn’t insist on clarity right away. This song got closer and closer to me the more I listened to it, until it was stuck in my head and I was never mad about it. There are blue skies and sunshine and someone is waiting for me, ready to smile when I turn around.

6. Back Door - Stray Kids -- the production behind SKZ’s music does continually get better, but I think the more appropriate term is “expands.” Their sound remains largely the same, while each new release tries something new, echoes the old, and continues to push the same message they’ve had since the beginning: inclusivity. Stray Kids is here for you, to welcome you into the club and to have a good time with you while we talk about the struggles we’re all facing. I haven’t yet gotten sick of this song, it goes by in a flash and for once, I don’t have a favorite part, or a section that gets stuck in my head more than others. It’s the whole package for me.

7. Kick It - NCT 127 -- NCT makes a lot of very clean, very specific sounding sounds that I don’t really care for. I have a few favorites, and actually really love the whole of the debut album, but I don’t go out of my way to listen to their music. Kick It, though, was just so much fun, it had sharp edges and and a smooth underbelly. Haechan sounds the best, I love his voice SO MUCH, but everyone sounds good. I like the unison parts, the repeat mantras, the bombastic way the lyrics aren’t really saying a lot but are so enthusiastic that you don’t care.

8. eight - IU, SUGA -- IU just continues to evolve and make music that is really, really good. None of her songs are overly complex or visionary, but they are friendly and relevant, and sit outside your door with brownies and lemonade. IU’s voice can do soft, can do poignant, can do intense, depending on her mood. She is a singer of extraordinary caliber and I love seeing everything she does next. eight was a simple but beautiful song that plays into your nostalgia without sugar-coating everything, and at the same time there’s such a lightness too it. It’s a short song and SUGA’s rap was such an unexpected addition that actually worked really well. 

9. So What - LOONA -- this is a song deserving of a much higher spot, but I think I just wasn’t quite as ready for LOONA’s next evolution as others’. Still, this song is so good, with potentially the best bridge of the entire year. Everyone sounds so good, the song hypes you up and never lets you down. Even though the concept is one we’ve seen before, LOONA never makes anything sound the same. There is no compromise, there is only awesomeness.

10. ON - BTS -- I went around in circles contemplating how much I did or didn’t like this song. BTS is going places with their music that I don’t love as much as their stuff from, say 2016-18, but they are still incredible artists and performers. And ignoring all the rest, all the talk, just focusing on the song itself, it’s really good. It’s really, really good and the kind of song that I unapologetically sing really loudly in the car. There are quieter parts that acknowledge how exhausting it is to keep moving forward when you’re in pain, strong, jagged tantrums that demand that the pain try harder to keep you down, spaces to breath and places to run. This is a song that says we’re going through a battle and it’s hard, but we can see that there is an end, there is hope, and nothing will keep us down. Even through pain and tears, we can go on. 

And now things get a little funky because I had a lot of favorites:

11. Tiger Eyes - Ryu Su Jeong Girls - Nature Villain - Stella Jang Boca - Dreamcatcher Left & Right - Seventeen

12. Come Back Home - ONEUS Summer Breeze - SF9 Apple - GFriend Bon Voyage - YooA pporappippam - Sunmi

13. Me Time - Yubin Easy - Stray Kids Favorite Boys - A.C.E Think of Dawn - Ghost9 The Stealer - The Boyz

14. One - Golden Child Alien - Lee Suhyun A Song Written Easily - ONEUS La Di Da - Everglow Blue Hour - TXT

15. Breath - GOT7 Hands Up - Cherry Bullet Answer/Inception - ATEEZ 90′s Love - NCT U End of Spring - ONEWE

[howggswouldreact]

🎼 You Are the Music in Me | Chuu

Request: Hi! Can i request a high school!au with loona’s Chuu where she and the reader are in the same music class. Chuu has a crush on the reader, and when they’re paired up for a project they start hanging out after-school etc. (e.g something like Chuu’s web drama: Dating Class)

Plot: Jiwoo has music class with her crush, Reader. The teacher put them paired up in a project and their feelings grow stronger as they spend some time together. 

Words: 3,809

Genre: fluff, high school!au 

Notes: i am in love with it! !aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! enjoy your reading!

Walking down the halls of the school towards the rectangular room hugging her notebook was something Jiwoo was already used to. Her black shoes already knew the path naturally as they hit the smooth beige and somewhat slippery floor. There were few people heading in that direction; most were going on Spanish or Geography classes, and they would be just a little bit late. But Jiwoo knew you would be there.

Her hand reached for the doorknob and she slowly opened the door, realizing that you were already with the teacher, both with your respective guitars. You were very focused and didn't notice Jiwoo's arrival. She closed the door, went to one of the last chairs in the room and sat down, all in a very quiet way so as not to bother you. She knew you were improving a lot on the guitar, every day you arrived early because the teacher knew your potential.

And every day Jiwoo arrived early to be able to see you for a while and, who knows, to talk a little more with you, always using music as an excuse to start it. It was a beautiful day, she realized as she looked out of the room's large window decorated with musical symbols made of cardboard and hand painted in black.

"You are getting better in fingerstyle, Y/N. I am really proud of you, keep practicing.", the teacher said, praising your effort and realizing that you were really dedicated to the lessons.

"Thank you." you said, smiling and getting up to take a seat while the other students arrived.

Everyone sat in different places and you sat next to Jiwoo, turning to her, still smiling and supporting the guitar on the wall behind you.

"Hey, how are you?", you asked. "Writing new songs?" you pointed to her notebook.

Jiwoo gave one of those huge smiles that would even make ice melt. She was genuinely happy that you were talking to her.

"Yes. I'm just having a little trouble finding a melody."

"What are they about? And if you want, we can work on it together."

"They are about-"

"Hello, guys. Can I have your attention?", the teacher asked, interrupting Jiwoo and everyone turned to him, silently. "Great. As you know, I like to propose different activities for you throughout the classes. And, as this class is already fixed, I know I can bring you good tasks, since you are such dedicated students.", some clapped their hands and everyone agreed. "So I had this idea for the end of this semester's project: covers."

Everyone was excited about the professor's idea. That was really cool, wasn't it? Everyone doing covers of different songs, who doesn't like covers?

"So, I'm going to divide you into pairs and one person from each pair will come to my table...", he turned, took a hat. "And will take a paper from inside this hat. Each one contains a different song. There are famous soundtracks, classical music, pop music, etc. I want this duo cover to have your identity, the signature of your art, together. Shall we start? ", he looked across the room and started forming pairs.

You approached Jiwoo, leaning on her table.

"Imagine this: Dowoon and his duo take a paper that has some Whiplash¹ music. It would be great, wouldn't it?", you said, excited.

"It would be awesome. But I'm a little worried, what if the teacher joins two vocalists?"

"Ah, he won't do that.", you said, quietly. "I'm sure he will bring the right people together."

"Y/N.", the teacher said, making you look up. "What do you think about being a Jiwoo duo, since you've been talking since the beginning of class?", your faces flushed. "Okay, one of you come over here, time to find out what song it will be."

You got up, gave Jiwoo an embarrassed smile, and went to your teacher. He held his hat full of small folded papers and all the students in the room were anxious to know which song would be selected.

You put your hand on the bottom of the hat and took what you believed was the last folded paper. You pulled it out and unfolded it. You gave a light laugh, not believing that the teacher selected that song to be part of the project.

"Say the name of the song.", some student said.

"Ahm... You Are the Music in Me, from High School Musical 2."

Some students laughed, others were a little jealous. But that had been unexpected. If the first song selected had been part of a teen musical, many surprises were hidden in that hat. The teacher smiled at you and asked you to sit down.

You went back to your chair and handed the paper to Jiwoo.

"Fortunately my partner has an incredible voice. Ready to perform with me, Jiwoo Montez?"

"Yes, I am, Y/N Bolton!", she replied, excitedly.

But in fact, Jiwoo was in a mix of excitement and nervousness. Having you as a partner for this project could be one of her greatest wishes, but it was also something that made her afraid. What if she screwed it up? What if she ruined the whole project that you seemed so excited to start? Anyway, Jiwoo would do anything to make this duet perfect. She was getting what she wanted: spending more time with you.

While she smiled, hiding her nervousness, her fingers tightened on the sides of the composition book. All of her songs were there. And they were all about you.

"So you're going to sing a High School Musical song, a romantic song, and you are really trying to convince me that this doesn't sound like a cliché musical romance movie?"

Jiwoo sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Okay, all right, Hyejoo! It looks like a musical romance movie cliché."

"I knew it. Come on, look at you, she texted hello and you're already excited."

Jiwoo and Hyejoo, her friend, reached their school lockers with red doors that stood side by side and opened them.

"I like Y/N.", Jiwoo said, taking out her geography book. "You understand what I mean, you're at the theater club because of Chaewon, not because you love acting."

"Hey! Speak louder, I don't think they heard you in Canada yet!", Hyejoo got angry.

"But you understand what I'm saying because you feel the same way. Y/N texting me, being my partner on a project and saying hello to me... this is a lot and... she's so amazing.", Jiwoo closed the locker’s door and was startled.

"Jesus Christ!", Hyejoo almost shouted.

You were leaning against the wall next to her with a smile on your face and holding the books for your next class.

"Good morning!", you said to the two of them and then turned only to Jiwoo. "I found the perfect place to rehearse. Before lunch, I'll pick you up. Class of...", you looked at her book. "Geography. I'll be waiting for you at the door, will you go?"

Jiwoo nodded. You said goodbye and she turned to Hyejoo, her eyes wide with concern.

"Do you think she heard me?"

"It would be surprising if she didn't."

You picked her up at the classroom door and you went to the place that would be great for practicing when you couldn’t do it at home. You learned from another student that, for some bizarre reason, the acoustics were perfect behind the gym's bleachers. When you arrived, you sat down on the floor and started talking.

"We have a month for that. I think it's a good time to develop a good cover.", you said, taking out from your backpack your notebook and a pencil. "Any idea?"

"I was thinking about being a cover more of the voice and guitar type, you know?"

"This is great, very natural and suits us. I think trying to use other instruments would get in the way. And your voice is very good, it will hold everyone's attention.", you praised her.

"Hey, don't say those things.", Jiwoo scolded you, cheeks flushed.

"It's just the truth."

"But you will sing with me, right? It's a duet..."

"Ahm...", you weren't sure about that. "It's just that I don't know if it will sound good..."

"We practice together, I help you, okay?"

You nodded.

Jiwoo was feeling so good, every time she was in your presence it was as if her heart had finally found some peace. For Jiwoo, you were the personification of the most beautiful song.

"What if it was like... fingerstyle?", you suggested.

"It looks great to me. I heard the teacher praising you while playing, I know you got better with it."

You were a little embarrassed but you smiled at her, thanking her. You talked for a little while longer and decided it would be cool to rehearse after school too. The next day would be Saturday so you would go to her house with your guitar and it would be a very productive day for training the song and for you two to get along.

With the end of classes, you decided to take Jiwoo to her house, so you would know where she lived. Luckily, she didn't live very far from you, not even from school, so you could walk and it wouldn't take too long to arrive. When you left her at the door, you said goodbye with a hug.

Jiwoo entered and went straight to her bedroom. She dropped her backpack on the floor and threw herself on the bed, like a girl in love. But that was exactly what she was: a girl in love with you.

She hugged the pillow, remembering the hug that had happened just a few minutes ago and remembered the compliment you gave to her voice. She kept smiling for a long time.

Saturday came and brought an afternoon of clear skies and fresh wind. You texted Jiwoo, telling her you were going to her house, and anxiety took over her heart. Would you like her bedroom? She arranged everything, even though everything had been organized since the previous day. She prepared snacks for you, left the notebook and pencil nearby for you to write down the ideas in case they came up and waited for you.

When the doorbell rang, she practically ran to the door and opened it for you. You came in with your guitar, introduced yourself to her parents and you went up to the room, excited to start rehearsing.

"Being honest, it’s been a long time since I listened to this song, I had to keep listening to remember the lyrics.", you confessed, laughing.

"Me too, it seems that I knew nothing but the chorus."

Jiwoo told you to sit on the bed and you sat down, she sat next to you and you took the guitar, tuning it quickly while she warmed up her voice.

"You have a beautiful voice, Jiwoo. I am delighted every time I hear you."

She smiled at you, melting your heart. And you started to rehearse.

You decided that the song should stay calm until the end, like a ballad, and when you started the first chords, Jiwoo noticed that you were playing in the appropriate tone for her voice. Did you pay so much attention to her or was it simply because she had warmed up in front of you and you noticed it at that moment? Ah, she didn't want to be fantasizing in her head, but it was impossible. She was in love with you.

After a long time rehearsing and adjusting some things, improving a way of playing a chord or another, remembering the lyrics together, you thought it would be cool to take a break.

"Do you want to eat something? An ice cream, cookies, sandwich...", Jiwoo offered, sliding her hands on her jeans, trying not to look so nervous in your presence.

"I think I will accept the ice cream, Jiwoo."

She went to the kitchen and you stayed in her room, you could see how that room had all her energy and personality concentrated so perfectly. There were pictures of her with her friends, pieces of music written on post-its spread over a single wall and you got up so you could read them better. Everything vibrated there, a positive energy that emanated with strength, making you feel good, just as Jiwoo's presence did.

On the desk, there was a picture of her with her parents and also her notebook of compositions. You knew you shouldn't get it without her permission and you didn't. You would wait her to come back. But when she came back, you ended up talking about other things while eating chocolate ice cream and the notebook was still left on her desk.

The weeks passed and the bond between you was growing stronger and stronger. Jiwoo didn't expect you to get so close, but for her it was great and being around you didn't make her as nervous as before. Of course, the butterflies in her stomach weren't silly at all and with every smile you gave in her direction or even the simple fact of calling her by her name woke up those damn butterflies. But the nervousness of being around you, the nervousness that had sometimes prevented her from talking to you about simple things, was gone. And, in its place, there was a feeling of comfort that made everything in your presence better, with the smell and taste of chocolate, and as good as only you could make her feel.

You felt the same. It was good to be with her, even a little addictive. Jiwoo's aura was very good and whenever you met in the halls or had similar classes, you made sure to spend some time talking; sometimes they were even making you get late. But it wasn’t too much, it was good for you and you found yourself thinking about here more and more. And her voice... you were sure that if angels really existed, they would be jealous of Jiwoo's voice.

With so many rehearsals being done almost daily, the harmonization between your voices was perfect. Every detail of this cover was perfectly aligned and you were sure that the A was guaranteed with this project before the summer holidays. You both made a last rehearsal on Wednesday, but it couldn't be at Jiwoo's house because it was her cousin's birthday and she and her parents were going to visit her. So, in order not to be too much work, you went behind the bleachers in the empty gym.

When you sat down and started what would be the last rehearsal before the performance, Jiwoo noticed that she never felt that kind of happiness before. She sang that song with her heart.

"You are the music in me...", she ended the song along with the last chords on your guitar, your fingers over the strings and the satisfied smiles on your faces.

You were looking at each other for a long time and Jiwoo wanted to tell you everything she felt, that seemed the appropriate time to finally talk about what filled her heart.

"Y/N, I...", the unspoken words were interrupted by the ring of her cell phone, a call from her mother, and she answered.

The mother said it was for her to hurry or they would arrive very late at her cousin's house. Jiwoo ended the call and stood up, somewhat frustrated at being interrupted and knowing that now the moment was gone.

"What were you going to say?”, you asked getting up, the guitar in one hand.

"Nothing important. Just that tomorrow we will rock!", she squeaked as she said the last word.

"Yes, we will!", you hugged her.

Jiwoo was afraid that you could feel her heartbeat beating against your chest, it was so strong, and it was due to the hug. She was loving being in your arms and realized that it was lasting longer than a normal hug, but she didn't want to let go. However, she should go, so she slowly released your shoulders.

"Let me know when you get home.", you said, fixing her bangs.

"Oookay!", she said, smiling from ear to ear and waving at you as she left.

You didn't know what was going on, but you felt like your body was screaming with joy. It wasn't just the feeling of being with Jiwoo close to you that made you feel good. Even the simple thought related to her already made you smile. And you knew. You were in love.

The day of the presentation came and everyone in the class went to the auditorium, as usual. The teacher gave the initial considerations and you were sitting in the tenth row, alone. For some reason, Jiwoo hadn't shown up yet and you were worrying because it was a long month of preparation, lots of rehearsals, a lot of closeness and affection. Was she okay?

You were about to take out your cell phone when she sat next to you, a little breathless. She had run over there.

"What happened?", you asked in a whisper as the first pair started to introduce themselves.

"I was doing something.", for the first time you were watching a Jiwoo with a serious face. "I need you to promise me that you'll read this but only after the presentations are over.", she held up folded paper in your direction.

"Okay. What's going on?", you were going to catch the paper but she moved away from you a little.

"Just promise. Please."

"I promise, Jiwoo."

Seeing the sincerity in your look, she handed it to you and you kept it in your jeans’ pocket. You didn't understand what was happening and you knew she didn't want to tell you; whatever it was, it would be on that piece of paper.

When you both were asked to perform, you went on stage to the applause of your classmates, Jiwoo took the microphone and looked at you with a big smile as you took the guitar.

"1, 2, 3 ...", you mumbled while playing the first chords.

All the rehearsals were worth it. You two sang as if you were in Jiwoo's room, as if there was no one else there but you, and looked at each other while you sang. The presentation was perfect and in the end you received applause followed by applause. The teacher praised you so much that you knew that the maximum grade would not be enough for the presentation you had just given. Everyone was delighted, including you two.

When all the presentations were over and the class was over, you turned to Jiwoo but she was already leaving for the next class. You wondered if you had done something wrong but did not find an answer to that question. You remembered the paper in your pocket then picked it up and unfolded it, noticing Jiwoo's beautiful handwriting and her name at the top of it. It was a letter.

What you didn't know is that it was actually a love letter.

"Y / N,

I'm saying this in a letter because I didn't know if I would have enough strength to get dumped right in my face. And I donn't know how your expression is now, but during the time that I'm in love with you, I notice many details on your face and would know if you were disapproving my feelings for you.

So that there are no problems, I wrote this letter.

You may not have noticed, but when I look at you, I smile. When we talk, I feel so nervous that it makes me uneasy. Sometimes, I can't sleep and that is because I think about you a lot. And the way you call my name makes it sound new every time you call me. 

The truth is, I'm in love with you. And I am not sure when it started, but I know it is strong.

I hope I haven't ruined our friendship. I will be very happy if you want to remain my friend. 

:D"

You couldn't help but smile at the letter. Both for knowing that Jiwoo was in love with you, and for the little face she had drawn at the end of it. You folded the letter and put it in your pocket again, took a deep breath and knew that even though you were late for class, you needed to find Jiwoo.

You ran through the halls looking for her but they were already empty, everyone was in class and you should do the same, so you did. You didn't dare to pick up your cell phone since the professor could collect it, but you kept thinking about that letter and what you would like to say to Jiwoo.

Jiwoo was putting the books in the school locker, worried about you showing up, so Hyejoo was watching the place to warn her if you arrived. She just didn't count on her friend being distracted by a conversation with Chaewon, who came by to ask something about the next play.

"Why did you run away from me?"

Jiwoo closed the locker’s door with a surprise and you were there beside her, staring at her, waiting for an answer.

"Oh, no, no, no!", you could see a certain despair in her voice. "Please don't hate me."

"What? Jiwoo, I would never hate you. In fact, I feel the complete opposite of that. I feel the same way as you, Jiwoo. I'm in love with you. I was looking for you to say that, but you ran away from me... "

A slight silence as Jiwoo's beautiful smile appeared on her face.

"Are you serious?", you managed to notice a sparkle in her eyes as she asked.

"Totally. We can be a pair. If you want, of course," you suggested.

"Of course I want to.", she hugged you tight, without worrying about her heartbeats, as yours beat strongly against hers.

You took her home as soon as school ended, hand in hand, and when you arrived at the door, she asked you to wait a moment while she opened her backpack. You watched as she pulled out the notebook full of lyrics that she was composing herself. Jiwoo handed it over to you.

"Take it home. I need your help with some melodies.", the smile she gave and the confidence she had in you were enough to make you feel radiant.

"Wow, that's quite a responsibility. All of your music..."

"Do not worry." she opened the door and went into the house. "It's all about you.", Jiwoo closed the door before you could answer.

You smiled, putting her notebook in your backpack and walking towards your home. You were looking forward to being able to rehearse more songs with her.

[acesian]

I don’t think I’ve talked about this before but I'm getting really uncomfortable with both intense kpop fans and intense kpop haters.

Antiblackness, antisemitism, colorism, sexual assault, underpaid or manipulated stars, sexualization or fetishization, and yellowface are all real, harmful problems with some kpop artists or fans. People do need to be aware of these problems and condemn them. They should be taken seriously. I think this is pretty obvious to most people I interact with.

Similarly, a lot of people will rightfully criticize when certain anti-kpop people say obviously racist things like "all kpop look the same" or make fun of actual korean people using their own faces for having "kpop profile pics".

However, I don't really see people talking about how those views stem from the way people talk about kpop⁠—as if it were a homogeneous group rather than diverse artists making up Korean popular music. I often see an absolute lack of recognition for Korean individuality. That's why people say "I hate kpop", because to them it is a unified concept. Condemning kpop as a whole requires viewing kpop as a singular thing. Treating kpop stars as all the same is just an advanced version of "all Asians are the same".

As such, people tend cite shitty individual actions as reasons to hate kpop as a whole, but that 1) puts the blame on people who didn't take part in the problem and 2) allows the actual bad people to escape accountability and the full criticism. It's not fair to blame all Korean pop artists because you can't identify the ones you're actually mad at.

With western music, people say things like "I hate Ariana Grande" or "I hate Taylor Swift fans". Yet when it comes to kpop, people aren't saying "I hate BTS and their fans" (racism, antisemitism) or "I hate Loona fans" (many instances of complete disrespect and lack of sensitivity to the dead). It doesn't sit right with me that you all differentiate between western artists but not Korean ones.

In addition, many of the problems rooted within the industry are also found in western industries, but aren't criticized the same way. The poor treatment and sexual assault of stars isn't a kpop issue, isn't a Korean issue, it's an issue of greedy management, entitlement, and a gross disrespect of boundaries and bodily autonomy. When people bring up the same problems in American films or music, it doesn't lead to people blaming the entire genre. Instead, people will focus their attention on the source because saying "I hate kpop/kpop fans" straight up does not help with the way kpop stars are treated.

People can be mistrustful or disapproving of kpop based on the very real issues but we should be more nuanced in the way we view and talk about kpop. For the most part, I don’t think it’s on purpose, since the people I’ve seen have been criticizing the overt racist sentiments mentioned earlier. 

I'm not asking people to change their feelings. Please be more considerate about how you express them.

[smolie]

in december i wrote a 2020 year music review for myself that i intended to post here BUT...because i was infamously restricted twice last year, i didn’t bother since you wouldn’t be able to read it anyway because it was not possible to view my blog hjfdhfd

now that my restricted era is (hopefully forever) over i just want to post it here for the sake of completion since i want to do the same thing this year

this is really long so if you actually read it ... idk you are insane in the membrane and i love you... but i genuinely don’t expect anyone to read this hjfdhjf i just like reflecting on the music i have listened to and be able to look back on what i enjoyed in certain stages of my life! okiiii bye 💗

january

mac miller - circles (album) it’s a bit funny that i worried putting my thoughts down about this album and now it turns out to be first on the list, chronologically of course … oh bittersweet irony </3 listening to this album is such a double edged sword, either way i am always hit with a truckload of feelings when i turn to this release.

this album came to me in a time of my life where i was slowly but surely sliding down towards rock bottom again just after i got out of it and thought i was okay. the times i’ve listened to this crying in the bathtub with a glass of wine….girl let’s not lol…. it’s almost strange how much i can relate to the thoughts another person brought to paper. the comfort this album brings me is otherworldly, i feel so understood by mac’s words and it’s my go-to “wallow in self-pity for a bit then come out stronger than before” album. then again, i feel a little sting when any of mac’s songs come on shuffle. a friend of mine said she cannot listen to artists who have passed because it feels too strange and most of the time i agree but this time, it’s so so different. this album would have been mac’s salvation, i can feel it. everything would have been a bit brighter and lighter for him after this, it would have had to be. i feel like i would do him a disservice if i did not listen to this album, so i will cherish this final gift from him as his legacy and my comfort. i miss him incredibly and am all the more thankful he shared his heart with us.

album favs: circles, good news, surf

tiny meat gang - broke bitch (single) MAN I TELL THAT BROKE BITCH IF YOU WANNA GET IN TUNE BETTER CHANGE YOUR WHOLE PITCH LIKE WOAH !!!!!!!!!! did that give you whiplash? hehe funny to say this about a song called broke bitch by a duo called tiny meat gang but this song actually means a lot to me! it came out shortly before their show in berlin and i almost exclusively listened to it on my 7+ hours train ride from one side of the country to the other to see my meat boys. this played out of the fat ass speakers at the venue when they stepped on the stage and i will never forget meeting them :’) also the song fucking slaps obviously

february

loona - [#] (mini album) ah yes, the most controversial loona release to date! i’m not gonna lie and say this sounded anything like i expected it to. but also, i have come to terms with the fact that loona release noise music now and personally i am here for it. why not did not have the endless energy of hi high or otherworldly vibe of butterfly, but it’s a hype song and i am always there for hype. i also have to say the b-sides were not as strong for me as on previous releases but i think i have to come to peace with the fact that loona will never top their debut mini for me. though if i can wish for one thing…… let loona have title tracks with a chorus in 2021? pls? crumbs?

album favs: so what, oh (yes i am)

tame impala - the slow rush (album) *lights cigarette* i’m listening to pretty underground music….i don’t think you’ve heard of this band….they are called tame impala *intro of the less i know the better starts playing* yes i am a basic white bitch and listen to like 3 alternative bands but damn i listen to them religiously. like any other basic bitch on this planet i found out about tame impala through the less i know the better and checked out their music. i wasn’t too much into this album as i was into currents but towards the end of the year, i was in a moody alternative music slump that took me back to this album and i like it a lot more now! most importantly, tame impala fulfills my primitive urge to listen to songs that exceed the 4 minute mark. something clicks in my brain when i see a song that is like 6:34 and chances that it ends up as one of my faves on a album are high. i enjoy tiktok like everyone else but this trend of 2:50 long songs needs to be stopped immediately.

album favs: borderline, lost in yesterday, it might be time, is it true, posthumous forgiveness

honorary mentions: onlyoneof - dOra maar, everglow - dundun

march

nct 127 - neo zone (album) ah, yes. the album that fundamentally changed me as a person <3 i’ve been listening to nct for a while, matter of fact i checked my top tracks 2019 playlist on spotify and cherry bomb was on there lol. i remember trying to get into them in 2018 when they released their regular-irregular album but the endless member & unit concept scared me off, so i only listened to a handful of songs without looking into them march 2020, the fateful month in which they released kick it and screencaps of jaehyun’s sexy ass tiddies in the kick it mv landed on my tumblr or twitter and i HAD to look up who this man is…...remember when i thought jaehyun was my ult for like, 2 weeks? me neither, johnny suh only in this house <3

anyway, i checked out this album and by god, is this pure kpop perfection. last time i listened to a god tier no skip album like this was … maybe the perfect red velvet? hype songs, well crafted ballads, love songs that make me wanna learn the lyrics, genuinely fun and interesting pop songs, this album has it all. somehow, the way this album is crafted greatly reminds me of brown eyed girls’ sound-g, it has the same vibe, concept and mix of genres to me, i’m not entirely sure how to explain. anyway, this album is one of my favorites of all time and even though i’ve obsessively listened to it (lastfm says 1.4k scrobbles as of today, december 7th…) i am still not tired of this. i recommend this to anyone who loves kpop tbh, you will have a good time with this!

other than being just a musically solid album, the emotional ties i have with this are …. isabel stop making albums your emotional support 2021 challenge. i’ve listened to this release all spring lockdown, this basically played at every waking hour for all of march and april. the promotion time of this era and lockdown are deeply intertwined for me and so i am always remembered of all the nct content i consumed during that time which inevitably cheered me up so much. this album really means a lot to me :’)

album favs: kick it, mad dog, love song, boom

honorary mentions: itzy - wannabe,

the weeknd - after hours (album) my dear melchanoly, was one of my favorite releases of 2018, so i had been desperate for a new release by abel and boy did he not disappoint. the perfect thotty, dirty emo 80s, making it clap while crying in the club album! this is a no skip from top to bottom and all i can say is that the grammys can go to hell <3 abel aoty! there is really not much i can say about this album, the flawless production, lyrics and sound speak for themself. my only criticism is that i feel overwhelmed by 14 songs, especially when some of them are really long. a few songs greatly overshadow the weaker tracks on the album for me but i still love this to death.

album favs: escape from LA, blinding lights, after hours, faith

dua lipa - future nostalgia (album) after the weeknd’s masterpiece of an 80s inspired pop album i was really looking forward to this. i greatly enjoyed the pre-releases, i played don’t start now and physical up and down, they are still some of my favorite songs released this year! when i first listened to the album i really liked it, songs like boys will be boys or pretty please sound like fillers to be but the rest is solid. yet a month after release you couldn’t catch me listening to this and i cannot even really tell you why. i think it was a combination of the following: 1) i greatly overplayed dsn and physical to the point where i didn’t want more of the pop 80s sound that the album has 2) there were other releases at the time that caught my attention and interest more like neo zone or after hours 3) dua herself….girl….she really gave it her all this year to make herself as unlikeable as possible. nationalist propaganda and the constant traveling during a fucking pandemic were really the kicker. i can barely stand seeing her on my instagram feed anymore, much less listen to her album. her having the nerve to go “we’re in a pandemic lol” when people asked about an animated music video …. if you don’t shut the hell up lmao … also, she takes the crown for the corniest album opener of all time. i nearly closed spotify when i heard future nostalgia (the song) lmao

album favs: don’t start now, physical, levitating, hallucinate

honorary mentions: megan thee stallion - savage

april

apink - dumhdurum (song)

listen, i’m not gonna sit here and pretend like this mini album interested me in the slightest but god, the title is such a banger.i’m so sick, eung eung and dumhdurum are a holy trilogy that i will defend until the end of time! i really hope apink stick to this mature, elegant concept, it suits them so well and goes well with their new sound. come back soon queens <3

rina sawayama - xs (song) i feel like i’m gonna catch some hands here … xs is an absolute banger, the guitar riffs and disruptive sounds really get me going every damn time! but the rest of the album … tell me why it doesn’t catch me?! i literally cannot explain. i need to take an hour, sit down and do nothing but listen to the album from top to bottom once again and see if my thoughts change but right now i only care about xs.

chungha - stay tonight (song) drama! vocals! dance break! choreography! this release served it all. i listened to this obsessively during the time of the release and it still holds up today. can we talk about the run chungha had with gotta go > snapping > stay tonight? lord have mercy.

honorary mentions: april - lalalilala, nct dream - ridin’

may

lady gaga - chromatica (album) the immense disappointment i have in this album is tough to put into words lol. any other artist might have gotten away with this release but gaga having the discography that she has, well … she doesn’t get away with it. this has underwhelming all over it. i enjoyed the pre-releases and my hope was high but the rest just doesn’t live up what i expected, i can’t even say why. it’s just underwhelming pop for someone of gaga’s calibre. i listened to this album during release week and then never again till december to write this list and i can see why.

album favs: rain on me, sour candy ft. blackpink, stupid love

baekhyun - delight (mini album) it’s confession time … this is a name i never would have expected on any of my music lists to end up. exo has always been one of those boy groups i casually listened to. i greatly enjoy their title tracks and a handful of side tracks, i have a few members that i keep an eye on more than others but that’s about it. baekhyun was never one of those members i had any interest in, matter of fact i always thought he was kinda vanilla and boring 😭 i didn’t even plan on listening to this release if it wasn’t for his association with superm and thus nct, so i gave it a shot and we have no choice but to stan. his voice is like butter and can cut sharp at the same time, his versatility is insane. i dived a bit more into baekhyun related content and he is so likeable, it’s almost ridiculous. this production is absolute god tier, not a single skip on this mini. late spring/early summer i had this weird urge to listen to songs with mellow voices but still a banger instrumental and i wholeheartedly blame this release. matter of fact, this album is so good, i had to buy a physical copy. Y’ALL. THIS IS A BIG DEAL. i haven’t bought a kpop album of anyone that’s not holy top 3 (brown eyed girls, loona, nct) in like … idk, 5 years?! baekhyun’s impact. i’m a fan now <3

album favs: candy, r u ridin’?, love again

ak aussenkontrolle - in meinem benz (song) this … is very unrelated to this entirely list but i had to put it on here. i miss my ex boss and our 3 hour drives to meetings in the south of the country where we would blast trashy german rap music </3

nct 127 - neo zone: the final round (repackage) *airhorns* REEEPACKAGE TIIIIIME!!! my first nct era that i experienced from start to finish! i remember watching nct 127’s beyond live with luna where these mfs performed punch and we finished the concert having no idea what this song sounded like. the structure is so unusual and the intro catches me off-guard every time just to hype me up beyond compare. not gonna lie, the fact that johnny has exactly one (1) line hurts but! it’s my favorite line of the entire song! possibly related to the fact that it’s his line but let’s ignore that ….

album favs: punch, make your day

kim woo seok - red moon (song) i’m not even gonna lie to you. i have not a single idea who this man is. you could put him right in front of me and i wouldn’t know … all i know is that he has a banger song. i saw him perform this on a music show that i watched for nct and i ended up loving the song … thanks for your service sir, whoever you are ...

june

stray kids - go live (album) 2020 was kind of the year of boy groups for me, i’m so sorry … stray kids promoted simultaneously with nct 127 so i ended up hearing their title track and holy hell, is that a song. god’s menu is hype from start to finish. it reminds me of good ol’ 2nd gen noise boy group song a lá b*g b*ng fantastic baby. just pure hype and fun noise. i am forever grateful to witness the birth of the line cooking like a chef, i’m a five star michelin. the title track impressed me so much that i ended up checking out the entire album which i rarely ever do with boy groups and what is even rarer is that i enjoyed the b sides lmao!!! it’s not an album that i would put on and just enjoy from start to finish but it has some really solid tracks! this release made me want to keep an eye on stray kids, they seem like a really fun bunch.

album favs: god’s menu, TA, airplane

seventeen - left & right (song) the boy group run continues … same thing with stray kids, seventeen promoted during punch era so i heard their song while watching some music station show for nct and i heard this and was sold. solid, fun pop with the catchiest pre-chorus in history and a banger chorus. i listened to the entire mini and can’t say it really caught my interest so this is a title track only release for me.

dishonorary mentions: twice - more & more (i hate this song so much lol)

honorary mentions: ryu sejeong - tiger eyes, monsta x - fantasia, chloe x halle - do it

july

irene & seulgi - monster (mini) this is a weird release because it’s good. the title track is fun enough, the b sides are dope. but my issue with this is that it’s nothing new. this sounds exactly like a red velvet release. i get that they didn’t want to a  joy, seulgi, irene, yeri release only and went for the sub-unit route instead, but why not be experimental and stray away from the usual sound of the group? also, whoever made monster and not naughty the title track deserves to be spat on. at least the choreography here is more interesting and “experimental” for kpop standards. also, why only a seulgi solo and no irene? i have no idea how reveluvs reacted to this release but this has rushed written all over it.

album favs: monster, naughty (i’m counting this to the mini idc), uncover

exo-sc - 1 billion views (mini) doing my part as a filthy casual exo listener. this release goes in the same category as baekhyun’s delight where i like the album so much that i HAD to get a physical copy. i don’t know what they put in the title track for it to be so diddly darn addictive but it clearly worked. the only bad thing about this release is how criminally mismanaged it was by sm, when i get you lee sooman ...

album favs: 1 billion views, on me, say it

baekhyun - garden in the air (song) i told you i’m a loyal baekhyun fan now <3 king releases and i listen, that’s just how it goes now! this is a cover of a boa song and i really love his version. there is not much to say except that it’s a really smooth song and his voice absolutely carries the track. i enjoyed this much more than i thought i would!

hyoyeon - dessert (song) YOU KNOW WHAT I DESERVE??? DESSERT!!!!!!! *insert tik tok challenge here* imagine if miryo featured on this instead of the ethnic hip girl … why can’t we have nice things. anyway, a banger!

johnny - sunny side up episode 1 set (spotify playlist, actual set) johnny being the skilled, talented, multi-faceted king that he is has been dj-ing since before debut (not me acting like i was around at that time lmao) and thus he decided to bless our quarantined, lockdowned asses with an online dj set! that was the most turned up sunday morning i ever had in my entire life. this set kicked off an edm/house/techno affinity that i had for the following couple of weeks. this set is an absolute banger, i would go insane to this in the club. he has an amazing ear for transitions and drops and i still just put on this set on the regular when i have cleaning to do or so. he could fill the void that rona and thus no clubbing in 2020 left in my heart and i’m so happy he decided to share this with us <3 now … john … sunny side up episode 2 pspspspspsps

honorary mentions: gfriend - apple, jessi - nunu nana

august

cardi b ft. megan thee stallion - wap (song) late summer 2021. we are vaccinated, icu beds are free, barely any new cases, clubs are open, this song plays and i can finally make it fucking clap.

troye sivan - in a dream (mini album) a cute mini album! nothing life-changing or as exciting as previous releases but easy (haha!) to enjoy. i really, really enjoy easy, can always count on troye for a dreamy sound.

album favs: easy

honorary mentions: itzy - not shy

september

wonho - love synonym pt. 1: right for me (mini album) honestly? i know like, 3 monsta x songs. i never bothered to get into them and maybe i never will, but it was difficult to ignore the whole wonho & monsta x mess that went on. i have absolutely no memory of why i decided to check out this release, i guess i was curious what he was going to do and … i was positively surprised lol. open mind is the exact time of song i had been so desperate all summer (remember mellow vocals with banger instrumentals? yeah) and uhm … can’t ignore the obvious … mr wonho is fucking fine. sir, you just gained a fan … now, where is love synonym part 2?? huh?????

album favs: open mind, i just, losing you

joji - nectar (album) this one is on tiktok. i heard gimme love in a bunch of tiktoks and had to look up the song and here we are. what an album! it came right as seasonal depression started to hit and accompanied me for a good chunk of autumn. at this point one has to ask if joji can ever really miss? the entire album is a no skip, it’s almost difficult to narrow down my favorites if my favorites weren’t so damn god tier!!!

album favs: gimme love, ew, tick tock, pretty boy, your man

super m - tiger inside / 100 / drip (songs) okay, listen. technically tiger inside & 100 were already released in august. instead of those three songs i was gonna write about the entire album until i realized i really don’t give a fuck about it 😭 i really only care about those three songs. and YES, i unironically like 100. is it a good song? no. but neither is jopping and that fucking bangs. i don’t turn to superm for life-changing, profound music, i turn to them for a good time LOL and that’s what they deliver every time! that being said, taeyong’s VROOM VROOM, UHMM UHMM, GRRRAHHHH verse is life-changing and profound! speak your truth king! also i wish drip was a b side for nct 127 that song is so damn sexy

taemin - never gonna dance again act 1 (album) this isn’t kpop, this is taemin pop. taemin never misses and the fact that hw*s* won dance performance over taemin is a literal hate crime. i will never forget the industry for this daylight robbery … anyway, nice album!!!!

album favs: criminal, black rose, waiting for

stray kids - in life (repackage) *airhorns* REPACKAGE TIIIIME 2.0!!!! i was on the edge of my seat waiting what stray kids were going to deliver after i greatly enjoyed god’s menu. i was still not over listening god’s menu when the repackage came out so i didn’t listen to it right away and now i greatly regret the few days i could have listened to back door earlier </3

album favs: back door, any

jackson wang - pretty please (song) i’m not gonna pretend like i ever listened to a song by jackson ever before. he is short king from got7 in my head and that’s all! i don’t even remember why i listened to this song but all i know is that it slaps severely. i love the wong kar wai inspired music video and the choreography is fun too! i’m gonna check out more of his music <3

honorary mentions: fromis9 - feel good, knk - ride

october

blackpink - the album (album, duh) i don’t even know what to say about this … this might be the weirdest release on the list for me. there are song i absolutely fucking hate (ice cream …) and songs i get my life to (pretty savage) on here and the discrepancy just gives me massive whiplash. i would never put this album on and listen to the whole body of work, i just cannot with the brain damage it gives me. i am still stuck in 2016, begging for bp to release music like whistle/boombayah/stay/playing with fire but i think i need to give up on that wishful thinking … i am just grateful we a got a title track with actual lyrics in the chrous for once.

album favs: pretty savage, lovesick girls

nct - nct 2020 resonance pt. 1 (album) this era was … a ride. nct 2020 happening was near inevitable but with covid it got pushed back so far, i started to believe it wasn’t even going to happen. i was semi-terrified of what was going to happen during a comeback with 21 (now 23!!) member group since i only experienced nct 127 comebacks so far and uhh … a LOT happened lmfao but let’s keep this about the album … i had no idea what was going to hit me. johnny having effectively 3 lines in nct 2018 did not give me much hope and after he got denoted to no line treatment in punch again, i was ready to not even have any expectation but this release changed everything. make no mistake that most of my favorite songs are units with johnny, we knew that was gonna happen lmaooo they dropped the teaser video for misfit and i thought i had my favorite song in the bag and then faded in my last song happened. y’all. JOHNNY SINGS? LIKE? ACTUALLY SINGS? DOESN’T GET FORCED TO RAP OR TALK-SING? MY MAN’S VOCALS??? OH MY GAAAAHD! this song is dramatic, theatrical, emo, it serves vocals and rap, it has catchy english and korean lyrics, this is THE song, the ULTIMATE song. i love this song so much, i want to belt it on top of my lungs in the pouring rain. apart from fimls, i also loveeee misfit, that was to be expected after i was going completely insane over the track video. johnny has like 3 lines but again they are iconic (WARNIN’! NCT WE MOBBIN’!) and i just enjoy the track too much to be upset over that. nectar. holy fuck. nectar!!!! wayv never disappoints with their thotty songs, they now have an absolute god tier hoe-ly song trinity with love talk > bad alive > nectar. the first chorus and hendery’s first verse (CHOP CHOP CHOP!) get me every time, this song is so insanely good i am severely upset i cannot sing along to it :( music, dance has nct 127 written all over it in bold letters, it’s so inherently 127’s sound!!!! i love this song so much, it’s so fun, upset and has massive dance-ability, i wish we had gotten a stage for it but i guess you can’t have everything in life </3 make a wish……………………………..the cursed unit. i don’t want to say anything about this except that, unfortunately, the song is fun and i enjoy it. the end. overall, this album is so insanely solid. i know i talk about my favorites A LOT but i genuinely do not dislike a single song on here, this is an absolute no skip album! that’s it. see you for resonance part 2!!!!!

album favs: FADED IN MY LAST SONG !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, misfit, nectar, music dance, make a wish

loona - 12:00 (mini album) controversial loona release 2.0! i don’t know what it is, but somehow they managed to lace the words di da dam di dam di dam dam dam dam di dam (yeah) with pure crack. i fucking love why not, i would even go as far to say it’s my 2nd favorite title track. that is right, i think it’s better than butterfly (btw: hi high > why not > butterfly > so what). so much was strange this comeback, from the inexplicable concept + teasers, the outfits, the styling (yves….i mourn your hot girl era) but the title track is just SO good, SO fun, SO catchy that i am willing to ignore it all. i also enjoy the b sides much more than on #, they are much more memorable to me. and now … HASEUL RETURN…………….i purely live to see the next loona comeback at this point

album favs: why not, voice, universe

twice - i can’t stop me (song) thank fuck twice released a good song this year. if more & more had been the only 2020 release, that would have been the real tragedy. not gonna lie, i still haven’t listened to the full album, it just keeps slipping my mind. but! i’m going to! until then i’m gonna bop to i can’t stop me.

ariana grande - positions (album) the way this album has people upset is so funny. i am a huge dangerous woman fan myself, it’s my fave ariana album to date but she has said repeatedly that this is not the sound she is striving for. now she has her coin and can do whatever she wants in music and if that is r’n’b then fuck! we have to live with it! lmao! i can live with the sex theme of the album because it’s delivered in a fun way? but it’s getting a bit old...if the next album is about riding dick only too idk how much i would enjoy that. i would probably always come back to ari because i like her voice so much but girl, there are other topics to sing about, i promise! anyway! i like this album, it’s one of those where i can hit shuffle and enjoy it in the background while doing other stuff.

album favs: positions, 34 + 35, love language, my hair, pov

tiny meat gang - sofia (song) ayyy, it’s my meat boys :’) ending the year the same way they started it, with a banger! i absolutely love the guitar instrumental, the melancholic love song type sound paired with the theme of singing about loving a robot … yup, that’s creativity and talent right here! this makes me so freaking desperate for a new ep and i genuinely have no idea how far or close we are to one but!!! i am always waiting!!!

noel - push (ep) this is something i absolutely did not expect. noel (of tiny meat gang!) released his first ep ever and i was absolutely wowed. noel has it all, the voice, the talent, the creativity and all it took him was the confidence to finally put something out and i’m so happy he did. he gets real personal on bus back, more than ever before and i always get a bit emo listening to this track </3 this man is gonna go places and i’m so happy to witness his journey.

album favs: crow, head sunk, bus back

honorary mentions: sam smith - diamonds

november

taemin - never gonna dance again act 2 (album) i’m gonna say it. idea is better than criminal. the chorus drop???? when he goes MY AH AH  MY AH AH MY AH MY IDEA MY MY IDEAAAAAA A-A-A A-A-A???? bitch … tell me you can sit still, i won’t believe you. i like part 2’s title track more, but part 1’s b sides are more interesting to me. either way, taemin delivered as expected!!

album favs: idea, impressionable, exclusive

nct - nct 2020 resonance pt. 2 (album) part two, baby! we made it! part 2 had more mellow, ballad-y songs with my everything, i.o.u. and all about you, overall less drama than part 1 but i still enjoyed it. work it is one of those controversial songs where you despise it with your entire being or you defend this top tier noise till the end and i am absolutely the latter. the agony of not being able to listen to it and seeing the timeline so divided nearly killed me, but i have concluded that people who hate work it have never felt joy in their life <3 honestly my opinion cannot be counted because i eat up anything johnny participates in … biased ass… what i’m not gonna talk about is resonance (the song), this absolute mess of a “remix”. the audacity sm had to release this as a single is insane. anyway!! this era was a rollercoaster ride. all the interactions truly made me interested in members of other units more. hendery (the rise and fall …), yangyang my beautiful son, jeno aka blue hair guy, chenle the chaos kid and xiaojun after he made make a wish his bitch in particular! all the interactions between the units were so fun to witness and it was fun while it lasted but i am … so glad it’s over lol. i miss nct 127, i miss some peace, i hope the boys get to rest for a bit and so does my bank account.

album favs: work it, 90s love, i.o.u., raise the roof

miley cyrus - plastic hearts (album) not in a thousand years would i have expected a miley release to be on here. this girl does everything to be absolutely unlikeable in my eyes but after severely banging out to her heart of glass cover, i was really excited for this and it did not disappoint. what is disappointing is that it took her so long to find a sound that fits her like a glove. i believe many people miss out on this release after her previous history and i nearly would have done the same. this alt/rock influenced pop does her voice so many favors and i really hope she sticks to this direction, i love this album greatly!!

album favs: heart of glass, midnight sky, night crawling ft. billy joel, wtf do i know

kai - kai (mini album) just. imagine debuting with an album like that. lol. what a god tier big dick move. we all knew whatever this release was gonna be, above all it was going to be sexy and boy were we RIGHT!!!! mmmh is exactly as thotty as i needed it to be and the b sides give me everything from r’n’b to trap. i love this release and i love that it’s only the beginning of kai! like!! he is only gonna gain even more experience and become even more powerful!! what the fuck!!!!!

album favs: mmmh, ride or die, hello stranger, nothing on me

honorary mentions. gfriend - mago

december

nothing? wtf?? 😭 no interesting release happened,,,,half the time i listened to christmas songs anyway lol

pre 2020 releases i only found this year

mgmt - little dark age (album, 2018) & oracular spectactular (album, 2007) another tiktok serve. i found little dark age through a tiktok trend and ended up really liking mgmt. they fit perfectly into my autumn/winter moody alt/rock mood that i had going on and i’m happy they have so much more music that i can check out!

artist favs: little dark age, electric feel, time to pretend

tame impala - currents (album, 2015) everyone’s favorite basic alt bitch album! i enjoyed this more than the slow rush for a good chunk of time, it also fit right into my alt rock autumn mood. i really love this album, like previously mentioned it has my favorite long ass tracks on there but also a good amount of short or medium long tracks. i’m still busy enjoying currents and the slow rush but i can’t wait till i finally take the leap to dive into their other releases because i’m loving everything i’ve heard so far.

album favs: the less i know the better, let it happen, new person same old mistakes

joji - ballads 1 (2018) after liking nectar so much, checking joji out was a given and i just love this album. only when i listened to this i realized i heard slowly dancing in the dark a few times on tiktok lmao that cursed app man … i would say i love nectar a bit more but this is still a fantastic album!!

album favs: slowly dancing in the dark, attention, test drive, yeah right

jus2 - focus (mini album, 2019) in my “mellow moody bangers” phase i was scouring playlists for more songs and i think i found focus on me first which fitted right into the niche i was looking to fill and i ended up enjoy this whole release! only later i realized this is a sub-unit from got7 lmao how come i enjoy solo or unit releases by got7 members but their group discography never interested me? anyway, very sexy ep!

album favs: drunk on you, focus on me, love talk

knk - sunset (song, 2019) part of my mellow bangers playlist. very sexy, i can imagine this as a runway song! i have no idea who knk are but given the fact i enjoyed two of their songs so far maybe i should look into them lol

baekhyun - city lights (mini album, 2019) i am repenting for my sins of missing out on baekhyun releases by consuming his music at an exorbitant rate. un village is one hell of a title track that i didn’t appreciate before, but i feel like in 2020 my music interests started to vary and i love the groovy r’n’b and string sound of this song so much. i also love stay up to death, the vocals baekhyun serves here are unreal. his BABY WE CAN STAY UP!!!!!!! gets me every single time!!!! what a mini!

album favs: un village, stay up

mac miller - swimming (album, 2018) i’ve listened to this album before 2020 but i had the urge to put this on here. this is going to sound so corny, but if i had to pick one song to be my life’s title track, it would be ladders. the hope this song gives me is unreal, it feels like a light at the end of the tunnel. this album is so fantastic, i love the upbeat instrumentals paired with sometimes gloomy lyrics are so incredible, mac was truly one of the greatest artists of our time. this album is  so outstanding and i miss him every day.

album favs: ladders, jet fuel, 2009, self care, perfecto

doja cat - hot pink (album, 2019) i can never decide if i like doja or not but the album slaps lol that’s it come on tiktok queen

album favs: say so, juicy, like that, streets

my fav 2020 playlists

slapping mellow

neo culture technology

malcolm

why go to therapy when this playlist exists?

top songs 2020

(by spotify)

[grlfriends]

giovanna give us your #controversial kpop takes!! you seem passionate abt ***** being mediocre 👀👀👀

omg anon this is definitely going under a read more

ok so it's not that I think they are mediocre but rather that I know how much being from a big company can determinate your success, onces will go on and on about how much jyp was broke before them and how sixteen had a low viewership rate and how jyp was almost "out" of the big3 (a lie bc if that was truly the case then yg wouldnt be considered big3 rn, big3 is about how much influence and power you have on media yes it's related to how rich the company is but not all that matters when we all know that's not even being considered by anyone lmao) but at the end of the day no matter what they were still under big3?? the amount of money they had to even START a show about the group and then to film the like ooh ahh mv was huge man, onces make it seem like they had 10 dollars and a dream when that was definitely not the case, I know I seem bitter about this but bc I'm a fan of a group who was truly in that situation it just seems so fake and attention seeking?? yall know how much an mv like like ohh ahh and cheer up cost?? yall know how much producers and outfits and hair and makeup and studio and everything else costs?? jyp was always powerful and just bc they were in a bad time and bc they got more rich after twice it doesnt mean they were # broke before them, of course luck is a factor in any situation but let's be honest, do you think if a company was that broke and if twice had done that badly in their debut an mv like cheer up would even exist?? it's expensive y'all

also about the mediocre thing: I dont think they are mediocre but rather that no twice track has made me fall in love with them, I do like some songs but that's it, I feel like after their cheer up promotions jyp was very smart and played all the right moves and got them even bigger, they are not mediocre but we all know jyp has a fucked up ear that has rejected THE iu and THE yuju which is now considered top3 best vocalists of the 3rd generation (along with eunji from apink and wendy from rv) and I dont think they have been necessarily giving them the songs that fit their voices the best, some of them are able to adapt better (nayeon) and some are not (ie: momo voice was too deep for some of her parts in more and more), at the end of the day it still sounds nice if you're not listening to the live locals, their choreography is okay but is more focused on going viral than anything lmao, it's not bad but you can definitely see the comeback their team opened their email box and found out about all the emails about onces having to defend themselves bc twice had easy choreographies and SOME members were still not doing okay vocally and then decided to turn up their difficultly level to catch up with the current trend among ggs at the time ON THE TOP OF making them a token gg (along bp) to white gays listen and like bc they werent cute like that anymore and were doing hard choreographies so they were # not like the other ggs and this only expanded twice fan numbers in western countries (I also think that the bigger a group is the more their fans get obsessed with them and stop caring about their song quality and only listen to them bc they're a fan not bc they truly enjoy the music anymore you know?? I feel like feel special was okay but if a smaller gg like idk weki meki (I know it's not their sound but bear with me) or even a nugu gg like pink fantasy had released it it wouldnt have achieved 10% of the numbers it did or even made these groups have a bigger fanbase you know??) so do I think if they were from an actual broke nugu company they would have be as famous as they are now releasing the same songs? no and there's nothing wrong with that, kpop isn't a talent show and it's more about how well known you are with the most basic stuff

once again, I know this is too big of an essay for someone who has said they dont think they are mediocre but honestly that's my opinion and at the end of the day it doesn't matter bc they're still million sellers but that's my opinion ✌🏻 also do I think they're the nation's gg? no that's snsd and will always be

other hot and spicy takes:

bgs should go cute again, where's my fresh and energizing concepts?? astro why did you leave us in the dark?? sm why did you ruin nct dream when you could have made them comeback under another name/unit and make dream remain with the cute concept still

if any bigger gg had released queen by 3ye everyone would have lost their minds, it's the girlboss anthem everyone is looking for and no one knows about, everything from choreography to the lyrics is what blinks think bp is doing in terms of power

I miss gfriend intros so much :(( source PLEASE listen to this poor soul and give us intros, i cant stop thinking about how good the sots album intro would have been with that yuju siren call notes

also about gfriend but ma'am. apple supremacy, this is hands down their best release and best album this year (even tho I'm in live with three of cups and grwm for as long and the songs have been out) and also I wish crossroad had a bigger impact in the instrumental, the guitar should have been louder and it should have appeared sooner, the post chorus (that part they sing about the star) should have something more so it wouldn't feel as flat as it kinda did

↳ and I think that the beginning and bridge choreography should have been not that, specially the bridge..... that arm movement and the walking becomes okay after a while and getting used to it but still, it should have been anything else, let sinb choreograph a part of the title track for a change please

normalize people saying gfriend were robbed in 2016, rough WAS the 2016 soty and no one can tell me otherwise, people were so mad a nugu gg had the catchiest song of the year 2 years in a row (me gustas tu and then rough) they literally boycotted my girls 🤒

CONTROVERSIAL but I dont think rv has the best choreography and bsides in kpop..... their fans are just too used to noise and saying everything is # a concept (but the Russian roulette mini album DAMN it was amazing)

↳ also their title tracks..... it's been a wild ride but the ride is in flames and about to explode

I miss seventeen fun songs, now they're all about being edgy and dark and it's okay I guess but I miss their early days so so much, everything since thanks (even tho it was released close to my bday I have to admit I dont think it's that good either....) has not been it and it made me stop being a fan, I loved them so so much once and now all I have is old pretty u performances and funny gifs of them on their gose eps 😔 svt comeback with the pastel colors I miss those days of your youth

↳ also I cant believe pledis still has trainees when they're probably going to debut another bg when svt enters military years and then will be working in their solos and/or units since a gg wil be boycotted by pledis after 2 years maximum

the loona lore is 100% more about orbits going crazy over anything than BBC actually planning out stuff, their mvs are like any other aesthetic mv y'all

↳ also on the loona topic I dont think they're the powerful dancers people make them out to be, they have beautiful choreographies and are in sync that's all

↳ can orbits please STOP the ch*ves madness, yves is so straight it hurts and people are turning this into a l*rry of kpop almost

↳ when is haseul coming back 😭 people are calling Kim lip the leader for the longest time and it makes me mad seeing haseul forgotten like that.... maybe when she comes back loona will stop having those sm adjacent (derogatory) songs

I cant believe korean people have turned as you wish by wjsn the top end of the year song to enter the new year when dreams come true is RIGHT!! THERE!!! as is just much better by simply being good where as you wish, well, it wishes 😶

↳ ot13 wjsn was the best and their only good releases as ot10 was boogie up and save me save you, yuehua and starship if any of you break ot13 I'm going insane and beating everyone involved

cant believe non stop was the sing that made oh my girl famous when closer exists and they were not problematic yet, non stop is an attack on peoples ears and sucks so bad there's nothing remotely good or even okay about it (actually, their last good song was a-ing bc that's when jine was there 😢 other than that bungee was okay and banana allergy monkey was quite catchy too) also yooa has an annoying voice idk how they chose HER to debut solo

[rukakikuchi]

LOONA “So What” analysis and theories

It’s finally time! After rewatching and analyzing the music video for nth amount of times (lol), I’m here to bring you guys my personal analysis and theories for LOONA’s latest comeback “So What”!

So, without further ado... Let’s begin.

(Remember that these are only my interpretation and are not straight up facts. These are just theories that coincide with my personal view on the story of LOONA and the LOONAverse.)

Now that “So What” has finally been released, we have been shown the next chapter of the story of the LOONAverse, as well as a new side to LOONA we’ve never seen before.

So now that the next chapter of LOONA’s story has been released, it’s time to go through the music video and see what is going on.

Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil

An interesting observation that was made after the release of the “#1” teaser was the focus on certain facial features of the 1/3 girls; Hyunjin’s mouth, Haseul’s ear, and ViVi’s eye. 

It’s been theorized this is connected to the saying “hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.”

Well, this may very well be the case for the LOONA girls now that the Moebius time loop has reset again.

Because Heejin was able to break out of the loop, the Moebius strengthened itself in order to keep the girls apart and prevent them from trying to break out again.

Yves, Chuu, and Gowon appear to be in Eden, but I don’t think that’s the case. They merged their worlds together in “Hi High”; they met to become one universe. 

Perhaps this is an Earth equivalent to Eden, a paradise that was made to keep them unaware of the truth of their world. (Think of the phrase “ignorance is bliss.”) Chuu and Gowon are happy and oblivious, but Yves is a “black swan” who is treated like an outcast.

They’ve essentially reverted back to before they ate the Forbidden Fruit and realized their true selves. Again, notice how Chuu is dressed in red (a color representing love) and Gowon in yellow (a color that can represent hope).

Without the knowledge they received upon rejecting Eden, they cannot become who they were truly meant to be. 

However, Yves being shown acting outside the norm (not dressed the same as the other ballerinas) might be a hint to that she’s still vaguely aware of that side to herself.

Odd Eye Circle are separated from each other, and have lost their powers, although Kim Lip’s situation might be different from Jinsoul and Choerry’s.

One thing that was extremely prominent to me in “So What” were Kim Lip’s eyes. Specifically, the color of her eyes. 

She is wearing pale blue eye contacts. And it’s not just in the music video; she is also wearing them in live performances of “So What”.

Now sure, K-pop idols are no stranger to this. In fact, Kim Lip isn’t the only one doing this. Yves has also been shown wearing light colored eye contacts for this comeback.

I also noticed Heejin and Choerry both looked like they had contacts in a couple performances, and I’m sure other members have done this too. But Kim Lip’s eyes have stood out the most.

This must’ve been intentional. This isn’t the first time something like this has been done for LOONA.

Remember the Halloween special stage where five of the members covered Sumni’s “Full Moon”? They had little references to the LOONAverse lore in there, too; notably, in Kim Lip, Choerry, and Olivia.

The concept seemed to be vampires, so everyone had dark red color contacts. Except for Olivia, who had pale blue/silver color contacts.

She doesn’t possess an Odd Eye, but perhaps this is a nod to her “wolf eyes”, aka the red glowing eyes we see in “Egoist”.

Choerry’s right eye, where her Odd Eye is, was a different color from her left eye; a grey blue.

As for Kim Lip, they used special makeup and placed a scar over her left eye, where her Odd Eye is.

Again, this must have been intentional.

But what does this mean for Kim Lip’s eye color in “So What”?

Well, I think that Kim Lip may still have her Odd Eye, but it has been sealed and she’s being prevented from reawakening it. 

It’s unknown whether this can be said for Jinsoul and Choerry as well, since we aren’t given any hints of them possessing their Odd Eyes. It’s possible they might have lost them completely, or if they still do have them, they just haven’t awakened them.

Regardless, the loss of their Odd Eyes means that the three have lost the special connection they shared which defined them as the “Odd Eye Circle”.

Then, we have ViVi, who is seen throughout almost the entirety of the music video with a bandana over her mouth. She’s also shown to be by herself, separated from the rest of the group.

This coupled with her lack of lines when compared to other members’ distribution of lines in “So What”, has to be more than just coincidence. 

Everything in the LOONAverse has a deeper meaning; everything has a reason for being there.

I previously mentioned that ViVi might be going through another kind of identity crisis. She’s not an android anymore; she became a human in “Love & Live”. Yet her expressions in “So What” seem almost robotic.

I believe ViVi has lost something that is vital to her identity; her voice. Because she has lost the ability to speak, she does not have a way of expressing herself and her feelings. 

That’s why she seems so robotic in the music video; she’s been placed in a similar situation to when she was an android and struggled to connect with the others when she first met them. Thus she turns to graffiti as an act of self expression as well as rebellion.

All of these instances show that some of the girls have lost an important part of themselves.

Hear no evil = Blissful ignorance of the world.

See no evil = Loss of connection.

Speak no evil = Restriction of self expression.

Without these vital parts of their identities, they are unable to find each other and realize their true purpose. So Heejin has to break them free, but she can’t do it alone.

Follow me

For this section, I’m going to try and set up the order in which I believe Heejin found the other members after falling back into the loop. This is just pure speculation on my part in order to get a better grasp of the story.

The first girl who I believe Heejin finds is Olivia. The two have always been connected with each other deeply; they were like day and night.

In fact, I think it was Olivia who found Heejin after she fell back to Earth. Think of it as a potential parallel to when Heejin met Olivia at the end of “Egoist” after Olivia had her fall to Earth.

Next, I think Heejin finds Kim Lip. Again, this could potentially parallel to how Kim Lip met Heejin in “Hi High”.

Hyunjin and Choerry have already found each other. They are constantly shown together, mirroring each other.

We see the tuk tuks circling around them, symbolizing them being stuck in the loop, but we also see them get on one of the tuk tuks.

They are taking control of their fate to break out of the loop.

Heejin, Kim Lip, and Olivia find Yeojin (hence we see them together above with the dancers in this scene), but realize Haseul is now missing. They tell Yeojin what has happened, so she starts rebelling at her school to break out of the loop.

(And yes, I’ve seen it been pointed out, Yeojin literally looks like pre-debut era Jinsoul.)

Her actions end up influencing the other students of the school. So yes, Yeojin did indeed start a school uprising. 😆

Next are Gowon, Chuu, and Yves.

We get this scene where Gowon and Chuu are running down the hall together, when Gowon suddenly stops and looks behind her. As if she heard something, felt something, that told her she needed to get out of the loop.

I think this was the moment she received a message, possibly from Olivia, to tell her what was going on and help Gowon regain her memories. She relays the message to Chuu, and later both tell Yves what’s happening. 

Yet again, another potential parallel, like when Yves and Chuu approached Gowon with the offer of escaping Eden.

So Yves starts rebelling as well, dancing freely how she wants to.

Gowon sends out the butterflies again, in order to reach the other members.

Yves joins Heejin and Olivia, along with Hyunjin and Choerry, and find Jinsoul in the subway train.

(Here’s a “blink and you miss it” moment: Olivia rips off the choker around her neck. Just like when she did it in the “XIIIX” teaser. She’s freeing herself of any restrictions.)

The last girl they have to find is ViVi, but they aren’t able to find her as easily. Like I previously mentioned, she’s constantly shown being cut off from the rest of the group, all by herself. Wherever she is, her location is somewhere that the others can’t get to, or possibly even know about.

So, how do they reach her?

A message to ViVi

Throughout the music video, we are given several shots that have a VHS static overlay effect over them. I previously mentioned how the static effect is always associated with ViVi’s memories/dreams, so this gives us a better idea of what exactly these shots we see are supposed to be.

No joke, I went through the whole music video and counted every single time we saw the VHS static overlay effect. Guess how many times we see it in the MV?

1. The chains breaking

2. Shot of ViVi’s face

3, 4, & 5. Hyunjin and Choerry with the tuk tuks

6. The members on the subway train

7. Shot of Yeojin’s face

8. Shot of Heejin’s face

9. Brief cut to static after ViVi drops the spray can

10. The sign reading “Make it burn”

11 & 12. The members on the subway train again

That’s right. We got 12 total instances of VHS static overlay in the music video!

I believe what we are seeing is Heejin and the other members sending a message to ViVi, possibly using something like the cassette tapes, in order to reach out to ViVi and let her know what they’re doing since she’s separated from the group.

Shots #9 and #10, however, I think are ViVi sending a message back, the sign reading “Make it burn” signalling to them that she got their message.

And also serving as a sign to Olivia of what she needs to do.

Burn yourself

In the beginning of the video, we see Olivia standing with a torch on what we can presume is the surface of the moon (the real location is likely the black sand beach of Iceland).

And we are given some very interesting narration.

“Do not accept the fate of the moon. Get off the track. Reveal to the world the hidden side. Burn yourself.”

Let’s break this down line by line.

“Do not accept the fate of the moon.”

The fate of the girls have always been tied to the moon, aka the heart of the Goddess. It was their destiny to meet each other and complete the moon of their world.

Their goal as LOONA has always been to find each other and break out of the loop, but what if that alone wasn’t enough?

“Get off the track.”

The “+ +” and “X X” timelines showed us the unification of the girls with themselves and their shadows, but it’s always ended the same for them. They find each other, and they try to break the loop, but the loop resets and they’re back to square one.

They kept taking the obvious choices they believed would allow them to break free. They need to do something different and cause chaos to break the loop.

“Reveal to the world the hidden side.”

Obviously referring to the back of the moon; the hidden side of themselves that they’ve never shown before. Their shadows, their truest selves that existed deep inside of them.

If they bring that side out, they can find new potential.

“Burn yourself.”

The word “burn” has been used constantly throughout this comeback since we got the first # teaser last year. Fans kept asking the question, what would they be burning?

And now, we finally got the answer.

From the description of “So What”: “It is possible to make different waves more than you can imagine if you challenge yourself with your passion(BURN), and go forward.”

From the lyrics: “Burn your intense heart.”

Deep within themselves, was a fire that was waiting to be ignited by passion. By the desire to break free of everything that held them back. To take control of their destiny; to choose their own fate. To be who they truly are.

And finally, they were ready to burn.

The beginning of the end

Olivia realized what she needed to do in order to break the loop. She was the only one capable of doing it. It was her mission, and hers alone.

“You, who was sent by God. Destroy all things without hesitation.”

Olivia has always been connected to fire, a symbol of destruction as well as purification. And now that we’ve coupled the term “burn” with fiery passion in “So What”, we are shown a second and more literal meaning through Olivia.

What if the only way to break the Moebius loop was to destroy it before it was completed? If they destroy the loop before it can complete itself, then the time loop won’t be reset.

So Olivia does what she has to, in order to free herself, to free everyone, from this curse. She burns the moon, to destroy everything.

The moon, which we associated as the heart of the Goddess, as something the girls were deeply connected to by fate, is set ablaze.

The moon that could not shine on its own without reflecting the light of the sun; the back of the moon which no one knows about.

Now it’s been lit up in flames, burning to shine its own light.

Meanwhile, down on Earth, we see all the members watching as the sky is set ablaze, with balls of fire raining down.

(Even the dance shots, we start to see them!)

We see all the members lit up in red light, representing the fire.

Heejin’s expression in particular really stood out. Her expression is sad, even heartbroken, watching the place she had once flew high to reach, now on fire and being destroyed. But she knows deep down, this will free her and her friends.

And with destruction, there will come rebirth.

The phoenix and Haseul

Like I mentioned in the breakdown for the teasers, what we see in # and “So What” is the destruction and rebirth of the LOONAverse. In order to free themselves from the loop, they had to destroy their old world to create a new one. They had to burn their hearts with passion to ignite that fire in order to be reborn.

In the final shot of the music video, as Olivia watches the flames die down on the moon, she looks down…

And there are two white bird feathers on the ground, burning, and being revived.

It’s clear who and what this represents; Haseul. The reconstruction and revival of the bird feathers after being burned shows that Haseul has been reborn.

Just like the phoenix, who rises from the ashes and is born again stronger than before, this tells us, the audience (and all LOONAs around the world), and Olivia herself, that Haseul will be reunited with the others, and she will be stronger than she was before.

And the same can be said for all of LOONA. Now that they’ve “burned themselves”, they can rise from the ashes, in a new world where they are free to take control of their fate. To reach their highest goals.

Like the phoenix, LOONA has been reborn, stronger. And now, free.

...

And that concludes my analysis of “So What”!

I was so happy with this comeback and now I’m excited to see what’s next for LOONA and the story of the LOONAverse going forward. There are so many possibilities of where they can take this story, and I am all in for the ride!

I hope you guys enjoyed my analysis, so until next time...

Stan LOONA! 🌙💖

[littlepanduh-writes-365]

Day 46

Title: “Sand”

Description: So as you may or may not know, I got laid off due to COVID. I used to be a coastal/geotechnical engineer. One day, I sat by the beach and just thought about life. I was reading milf smackdown and there was a scene where Haseul and Vivi were sitting by the ocean and thinking about life. I used to do that with my friends in college so it really just brought back a lot of memories. Anyways, I was thinking about this phrase I always read how “life falls apart as quickly as you pick it up, similar to the sands at the beach” or something like that. I wanted to empathize with that, but I actually wasn’t experiencing it and it made me think. This is just a bunch of my thoughts and it kinda pertains to engineering. It’s okay if you don’t fully understand it or disagree with it. tbh, don’t bother reading it unless you have nothing to do and have time for a diary entry about life. 

Features: Jinsoul (Loona)

Word Count: 1,598

Tags: Angst

Jinsoul sits at the beach, contemplating her life. 

It’s been three months since she’s been laid off and she’s trying to find a sense of direction. Suddenly, the world is full of options and she doesn’t know which ones she wants to take and how to even go about those options. 

It drives her nearly insane, which is why she sits by the water. It’s an open and endless void where she can spill her thoughts, even the crazier ones. It’s the deep blue that engulfs her with loneliness. It’s her safe haven.

The sounds of the waves crashing and the seagulls crying keep her grounded, yet her mind is still scrambled with all the problems in her life. 

She has an endless list and she doesn’t know what to tackle first. It’s impossible to organize her thoughts.

Happiness. Work. Housing. Family. Friends. Hobbies. 

Work. That’s what Jinsoul decides to focus on today. It’s the heaviest topic and the one that’s been affecting her the most. If she can figure out what to do about her career, she’ll be able to fix the other problems. 

Again, she starts listing what her frustrations are. Why can’t I get a job? Where did my motivation go? What was the point of this degree? Did I choose the wrong path?

Her mind drags to darker thoughts. If she was sitting at home, she’d probably backpedal everything and start at square one.

You’ve already earned your degree. You can’t turn back time. 

She’s beyond annoyed. She had always thought that after she got her degree, her life would come together. It was the exact opposite. 

This is where she gets stuck.

The wind blows at her hair and the sun makes it slightly unbearable to see, but Jinsoul refuses to leave, not without an answer.

Like the openness of the ocean, she decides to let her messy frustrations out. 

Okay. What do you regret about your degree? Let’s just let it out.

I regret not taking my time with my classes. I regret having horrible time management. I regret taking specialized classes because I can’t use them anywhere. 

Jinsoul comes into terms that she can’t do anything about her regrets and decides to throw them away into the unknown of the ocean. 

Do you… really want to change career paths?

It was a thought she was scared of. The idea of starting over wasn’t new, but was terrifying. 

Ever since she was a little kid, Jinsoul had dreamed of being an engineer. She enjoyed building Gundam models and excelled in her math and science classes, so counselors encouraged her to take this course. Of course, in university, she explored other options, but didn’t dare to dig deeper.

Maybe she should have.

Jinsoul hugs her knees as she thinks about those what ifs. 

What if she pursued music? She loved choir so much. She loved her composition classes. Jinsoul never chased that dream because she knew it was going to come with a lot of emotional baggage, competition, and potential failure.

She bitterly laughs thinking that she was going through all of that right now. 

Jinsoul sulks over the “dream”, but not for long. 

The young adult remembers where she came from. 

She studied at a prestigious polytechnic school for four years. She had won many design awards and scholarships. There were many times that she wanted to give up, but she never did. This all had to count for something. 

What was that something? 

JInsoul remembers late nights at the labs. She would yell at her computer when errors popped out on her screen or when her modeling program crashes. Her colleagues would share coffee and tears together. 

She remembers the catharsis after she finished a proof, the relief of submitting a final design at 11:58PM, the drinks she had with her group mates after finals’ season. 

It was painful. It was pleasure.

“Have you been eating well?” Her mom would say during a phone call.

“Yes,” Jinsoul lied.  

It was her motivation: to stop lying about her wellbeing, to grow up. 

It was 12-year-old Jung Jinsol building a little Gundam and then 22-year-old Jung Jinsol drafting the blueprints of a biomechanical arm. 

Those four years in university meant a lot to Jinsoul. It was tiring and rewarding. Why did working for six months and getting laid off for three put that to waste. 

Everyone says that working is different from school. Was it going to be this different?

Let’s take another step. What was wrong at work?

This list was much more constructed, but also longer. 

First of all, her boss was aloof all the time. Sure, she could have been more independent, but her boss didn’t check on her work, even in the beginning. She had a hard time adjusting to her coworkers since they never really did any sort of team bonding and just kept to themselves.  

Jinsoul. It’s not your fault. No one knew COVID was going to happen. 

You can’t control the economy crashing. You can’t control the fact that you’re the newest hire and you were first in the chopping block. 

Yes, it sucks. It sucks you moved away from home to pursue your job. It sucks that your peers still have their jobs. It sucks that all the hobbies you started had no chance of developing. It sucks that you’re going to have to move back with your suffocating parents and starting from square one again. 

It’s still not your fault. You knew there were going to be risks in joining a small company. That doesn’t replace the fact that something as crazy as COVID-19 was going to turn your world upside down.

Why did it happen to me though?

Jinsoul grips at the sand at her feet. 

She’s reminded of people comparing their downfalls to the sands at the beach. How their life is like the sand falls in your fingertips despite grabbing onto it so tightly. How it falls apart as quickly as you pick it up. 

That… wasn’t the case for Jinsoul.

Sure, the finer pieces of sand fell, but there were tiny clumps that stuck to her hand and had to break apart on her own.

Jinsoul stared at the clumps in her hand. She ponders as to why she wasn’t experiencing the universal metaphor that many people used.

Is it because she’s closer to the water? Is it because it’s not too hot outside?

She remembers the foundations classes she had to take. She remembers how permeable sand is and wonders how much water she needs to achieve a relative capacity in order for it to be used as a solid foundation.

Then it hits her. 

Maybe that’s where she is in life. 

She hasn’t strayed too far away from the ocean. There was enough saltwater and maybe even some algae that could bind the pieces of sand so it wouldn’t fall apart immediately. 

Even though she’s a few feet from the tip of the waves, she must’ve been sitting where high tide may have been a few hours ago. She’s so close to the water, and who knows, maybe the tide will come back again soon. 

She can’t be too close, or her foundation will be unstable, similar to her drowning in work. She just needs a little more moisture. She needs more compaction—motivation to get her back on her feet. 

Jinsoul still had a chance. She just needed to take it. 

She closes her eyes again, listening to the calmness of the waves. 

She wants this, but how does she go back to it again? Where does she find her motivation?

It’s a new realm, but she’s creating another list. Maybe she can ask her friends about their research. She’ll try applying for a new job. She’ll reread her textbooks and solidify her knowledge. 

Her train of thought is interrupted by a vibration in her pocket. She pulls out her phone to see a text message from her best friend. 

“Are you still at the beach? Do you want me to pick you up?”

Jinsoul smiles, thankful that in these hard times, she still had friends she could rely on. Before replying, she checks the time, only to realize that she’s been pondering at the beach for nearly an hour and a half. 

She stands up and collects her flip flops. Deciding that was enough thinking for the day, she makes her way back and asks her friend to pick her up. 

Maybe Jinsoul didn’t get all the answers she wanted, but she found some clarity and that was better than nothing. 

Life is like the sand at her feet. It may fall quickly in between her fingertips, but when compacted together, it could hold her entire weight and much more. 

She was feeling hopeful. 

People make castles out of sand. You just needed water, maybe some molds, and a little creativity and motivation.

Maybe when Jinsoul comes back, she’ll be able to build her sandcastle. Sure, there are many things that could break down a sandcastle, like the wind, the waves, or an unaware passerby, but maybe at least she knows she could always build it again. It’ll be frustrating, but all she needs to do is clear her mind of negative emotions and fill them with innovation again. 

Who knows? Maybe she’ll add a mote or just build a completely different sculpture. She’ll use different materials (sand isn’t really the best thing to work with anyways) and maybe she’ll build it with someone else. 

It wasn’t the end for Jinsoul. 

Part of her thinks she’s such a nerd for comparing her life to the structural stability of sand at the beach, but maybe that’s exactly what she needed. The connection was comforting. She hadn’t lost herself under the tide just yet.

--

Socials: Twitter | Curious Cat