#small business incentives

[thetaxguyin]

The Benefits of Registering Under MSME

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of any economy. They contribute significantly to economic growth, job creation, and innovation. In recognition of their importance, governments around the world have introduced various measures to support and promote the growth of SMEs. One such measure is the registration under the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Act. In this blog…

[bonesandpoemsandflowers]

do I spend $40 (including shipping) on a small cute ultra portable business card holder watercolor palette, or $28 (including shipping) for the supplies to DIY...several small cute ultra portable business card palettes? either way I'm filling it with my own paints.

[possiblytracker]

See you in six weeks after you've finished TOTK <3!

literally in my sleep deprived slightly-reduced-anxiety haze earlier today i just went "oh my god okay this is getting out of hand i have to do it. i have to get over it and simply Stop being scared and self isolating and all my issues will be solved" (unlikely to happen in my current state but love the optimism) only to realise only 2 seconds later that even if i theoretically DID just start throwing out DMs left and right my chances of a) remembering to respond b) getting a response from people at all are stupid low right now because not just me but (almost) everyone and their mother is currently marathoning The Legend Of Zelda: Vehicular Manslaughter/j

like i have no idea how i didnt see this coming. ill prolly give it a few days. for my sake as well as some others' ksdjJD

[linneajospeh]

Exploring State-Specific Tax Incentives For Small Businesses

Small businesses are the backbone of the economy, contributing to job creation and innovation. To foster growth and sustainability, many states offer a variety of tax incentives tailored specifically for small businesses. Understanding these state-specific incentives can help entrepreneurs maximize their tax benefits, improve cash flow, and reinvest in their companies. Here’s an overview of common tax incentives and how they can benefit small businesses.

Tax Credits

Many states provide tax credits designed to encourage small business growth. These credits can reduce the amount of tax owed on state income taxes, effectively lowering the overall tax burden. Common types of tax credits include:

Investment Tax Credits: Available for businesses that invest in qualified property or equipment, these credits encourage capital expenditures.

Job Creation Credits: Offered to businesses that create new jobs in specific industries or underserved areas, these credits can significantly offset payroll taxes.

Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credits: Some states incentivize innovation by providing credits for R&D activities, allowing businesses to reclaim a portion of their expenditures in this area.

Sales and Use Tax Exemptions

Several states offer sales and use tax exemptions for small businesses purchasing equipment, supplies, or materials. This incentive helps lower the initial costs associated with starting or expanding a business. For instance, states may exempt certain industries, like manufacturing or agriculture, from sales tax on machinery and raw materials. Small businesses should check their state’s specific exemptions to determine eligibility.

Property Tax Abatements

To encourage investment and development, many states and local governments offer property tax abatements or exemptions to small businesses. This can be particularly beneficial for businesses relocating to or expanding in economically challenged areas. These abatements can significantly reduce the cost of operating a business and provide cash flow relief during critical growth periods.

Grants and Loan Programs

In addition to tax incentives, many states provide grants or low-interest loan programs aimed at supporting small businesses. These programs often target specific industries or economic development goals, such as promoting clean energy or revitalizing urban areas. Unlike loans, grants do not require repayment, making them an attractive option for businesses seeking funding for startup costs, expansions, or innovative projects.

Workforce Development Incentives

States often provide incentives for businesses that invest in workforce development and training programs. These incentives can include tax credits for training expenses or grants to help cover the costs of employee training. By investing in employee development, small businesses can improve productivity and retain skilled workers, ultimately benefiting their bottom line.

Specialized Incentives for Targeted Industries

Certain states develop specialized incentives for industries deemed essential for economic development, such as technology, healthcare, or renewable energy. These incentives can include tax credits, grants, or grants specifically designed for businesses in these sectors. Small businesses operating in targeted industries should investigate state-specific programs that could provide significant financial benefits.

Navigating State-Specific Incentives

To take full advantage of state-specific tax incentives, small business owners should:

Research Available Programs: Start by exploring the state’s economic development agency website or contacting local chambers of commerce for information on available incentives.

Consult with Tax Professionals: Working with tax professionals offering tax planning for companies in Fort Worth TX can provide valuable guidance and ensure compliance while maximizing available benefits.

Stay Informed: Tax incentives can change frequently, so staying informed about new programs or changes to existing ones is essential for optimizing tax strategies.

Conclusion

State-specific tax incentives play a crucial role in supporting the growth and success of small businesses. By understanding and leveraging these incentives, small business owners can reduce their tax burden, enhance cash flow, and invest in future growth. As the landscape of tax incentives continues to evolve, small businesses should proactively explore available opportunities to capitalize on the benefits that can drive their success.

[artisticdivasworld]

How to Upgrade Your Truck Without Breaking the Bank: A Guide for the Individual Trucker

The new EPA regulations are probably the last thing you want to hear about right now. It feels like every time we turn around, there’s another rule or restriction. And honestly, it’s frustrating! But before you throw your hands up in anger, let’s talk about how these changes could actually work in your favor and, more importantly, what options are out there to help you upgrade your trucks without…

[powerexec]

Boosting Sales with Incentive-Based Marketing for Gig Workers and Small Business Owners

Supercharging Sales: Unleashing the Power of Incentive-Based Marketing for Gig Workers and Small Business Owners   In today’s fiercely competitive marketplace, gig workers and small business owners need to think outside the box to stand out from the crowd and boost sales. One strategy that has proven to be highly effective is incentive-based marketing, a powerful approach that offers enticing…

[dutybcrne]

Dawn Winery Head!Kae during Luc’s absence make brain go brr

[sbaincentives]

We are SBA Incentives, the nation’s first incentive, credits, and refunds advisor for small businesses. 🌟

We understand how challenging it can be for small business owners to navigate the complex filing processes to claim all the incentives, credits, and rebates they are entitled to. 😫

While Corporate America has consistently taken advantage of these opportunities year after year, benefiting from their specialized teams of CPAs and accountants, small business owners have been left behind.

While big corporations have been taking full advantage of these opportunities year after year, it's time to level the playing field for small businesses and help them get the Small Business Advantage they deserve!

That’s why we connect small business owners with our team of leading industry experts, dedicated to optimizing ALL the incentives, credits, and refunds small business owners are entitled to! 🚀🔥

Now it’s time to level the playing field!

Visit SBA Incentives online today and get your Small Business Advantage! 💪💰

NOW it's time to level the playing field and get the Small Business Advantage! https://bit.ly/3ZFx57W

[i-am-lifeform24]

Curated Companions: Part 1

--------------🔞Masterlist🔞Part 2🔞Part 3🔞Part 4🔞---------------

-------------[ Artms Heejin - @worldsover ]--------------

Your girlfriend Heejin fucks other men for money; if you weren't cool with it, you would've left by now, but it comes with enough bonuses for you. You get discounts on her coworkers, but that pales to the 100% discount on Heejin. Your apartment is small, but she makes this bedroom cozy. In this hushed evening, as you complete daily gacha game quests on your phone, she's nestling into the hollow of your throat, grinding into your thigh, leaking your creampie from her folds, and making a mess of the sheets. All there is is your heartbeat pounding in your ears, your ragged breathing, and the soft squelch of her pussy sliding up and down your leg as you open card packs to garish yet nonetheless thrilling animations.

"Hey," you whisper. You set the phone down. She is slow to reply, though a few seconds later, she raises her head and gives you a sheepish grin. "Heejin, baby, what are you doing?"

"Oh, nothing…" she replies, pursing her lips in a coquettish smile. You raise a brow; how is she able to appear so innocent even with a pussyful of cum? Well, was ful, now half ful, the other half a syrupy streak on your leg that only grows.

"How's work lately, Heejin?" You stroke her cheek. There it is: the nervous flicker.

Heejin burrows into the crook of your neck. "Same old, same old," she murmurs. Her eyes fall. Her mouth turns into a small frown.

You caress Heejin's sides. "If you want to talk about it, I'm here."

"I know. Thanks." Heejin sighs and lays her head on your shoulder. "The company expects me to increase my sales by ten percent this month. It's ridiculous. I already have the highest customer satisfaction."

"It's not your fault," you say, wrapping an arm around her waist to pull her closer. She squeezes your arm.

"I know that's just how business is. We're expected to sell more, get more clients, increase margins, yada yada."

"Hmm. You should offer incentives to your clients," you say off the cuff. Heejin looks up at you with curiosity. "If someone is going to request your services, offer them a bonus reward, like a photocard."

Heejin shakes her head and laughs dismissively. "Too much gacha on your brain. Wait… actually…"

***

Heejin fucks other men for money, and you care less than you did. You've moved out of your little apartment into a luxury house in an upscale neighborhood. Your new situation is a kind balm to resentment. On a shelf nearby, an official company plaque reads "Girl of the Month" for having the top sales in October. An understatement.

Heejin trails feather-light kisses up your thighs. She takes her sweet time reaching your erection, licking a sensuous, savoring stripe up it. Lowering herself again, her lips wrap while she lightly gags and moans between words.

"I took your idea and ran with it." Oh, she's a runner indeed: runs her mouth as she runs her mouth along your length. "Glk... Guys would get a Neejinie collectible photocard after they book me. Some of the cards are regular ones, mmm, but the rarer ones are nudes and bunny suits and cum-covered selfies. Then I started coming up with new ideas. Nngh—now I have this whole rarity system, with guaranteed rare drops after enough sessions."

You half-laugh, half-gasp. "You're the devil, getting people addicted like that—" She closes her hand around the base of your cock as she huffs out a laugh.

"I like to think I'm more like a succubus," Heejin retorts with a cheeky wink. "You don't even know the half of it."

"My little entrepreneur. I'm so proud of you." You sit up to pat her head, but Heejin presses her tongue flat against your shaft, then swirls around like it's ice cream; you're flat on your back again.

She explains how her cards have a QR code on the back that gives rewards on her bespoke app, with a convoluted currency system. Some of the rewards are in-person: extra time, special activities, or custom outfits; others have virtual rewards like exclusive videos and picture sets. Her whole schedule's booked for months, and people are paying double just to get on her calendar.

"You owe me royalties for all these ideas," you say with a laugh that turns into a groan.

Heejin scoffs. "Just to fund your gacha addiction? Yeah, right." She lets saliva drip down the sides of your erection and gets it nice and shiny before placing the tip inside her mouth again. Nursing your cock, Heejin adds softly, "Mmm… I hope my clients appreciate me, not just the cards."

"I wouldn't worry about that."

Heejin's eyes twinkle before she engulfs you. The smooth warmth of her tongue coaxes your precum onto her tongue; her drool seeps past the edge of her mouth down into her cleavage; the room smells musky and sweet. Heejin hollows out her cheeks and bobs her head faster, letting out slurps and gulps. She manages to make giving a blowjob look, sound, and feel like the most pleasurable act possible. Your hips start bucking upwards until Heejin puts a firm hand on your thigh, after which she lifts off you with a loud pop.

"You're gonna cum for me soon, aren't you?" Heejin asks, kisses the underside of your pulsating, leaking shaft, and sucks your balls into her mouth, one by one. She swirls her tongue around the tender sack. Heejin strokes your length, rubbing it between her hand and face. "Do it, give me my reward, babe."

You're at your breaking point. All you can do is let out a guttural groan as hot cum spurts onto her. Strings stick to her lashes and eyelids, her cheeks, her nose, and her puffy lips, and dribble down to her chin and neck. You gasp, your vision returning as Heejin licks your aching cock clean.

She collects some of the seed on her face and spreads it over her lips as if applying lip gloss. Blinking, she looks up through her cum-laden eyelashes, showing off her white-coated tongue. "Ahh."

"Yeah, I'm sure it's just the photocards that make them return," you say. Heejin's lipstick is smudged; her glossy eyes flutter close, waiting patiently for your next move. You reach for your camera. "But just in case it is... smile." Shutter, click.

--------[ Le Sserafim Sakura @mintwithchoco ]--------

You’ve never understood the concept of falling in love.

Whether it’s that uneasy feeling in your stomach when someone you’re interested in is around, or missing that one person so badly if you hadn't seen them that day, it has never occured to you, despite numerous attractive women appearing in your life. There have been a few chances, but none of them worked out as well as you expected.

Until this night dawns itself upon you, as you end your typical day with an interesting experience.

You are already used to helping out your workmate with his job, but you're definitely unfamiliar with the thank-you gift that he has given you this time. Knowing that you were single and a virgin, he decides to hook you up on a special service.

“Thanks for the dinner earlier. None of my customers have ever treated me like that before.” The woman’s compliment floats into your ears, making your cheeks blush.

You let out a nervous snicker. “It’s nothing really. I just wanted to get to know you better. Besides, we’re gonna do the uhh… t-the thing. You know, so that it won't get awkward later.”

Miyawaki Sakura is a complete stranger to you an hour ago, where thanks to your colleague, you both finally meet for a specific reason. If it wasn’t obvious, you’ve never had the experience of having an escort, so it was a very awkward first meeting. Eventually, you end up inviting her over for dinner, which was successful at breaking the ice. You both talk plentifully over the meal, sharing interests and jokes until finally, the time for your reward came. As Sakura makes herself comfortable on your bed — already in her underwear — tension has been building inside of you since welcoming her into your apartment, and it couldn't be much more obvious.

Sakura smirks, looking at your clueless yet nervous expression. “So,” She makes a swift move to your side. Bringing her lips closer to your ears, she whispers, “Shall we begin?”

Her sultry tone makes you freeze up. You nod dumbly, and with a smile, Sakura straddles onto your lap, letting herself feel the excitement concealed in your pants. Her hands place themselves on your shoulders as she closes in the distance between both of your lips. Simultaneously, your body gradually becomes weaker the longer you both make out, putting all hopes on your arms to support yourself. Sakura then transitions to slow kisses, her hand now caressing your face and the other slipping itself under your shirt to feel your body. You toughen up, now reaching a hand towards her waist to pull her even closer, making her grind slightly on your lower half.

Fuck, I’m actually enjoying this. Sakura remarks in her thoughts.

Not long after exchanging soft moans, Sakura kneels down on the floor, leveling her way down towards your pants. Before you know it, your cock was released from its confines, fully hard and warm in front of her face. Her fingers wrap around your shaft, delicately, and she strokes you off slowly, causing you to throb and twitch with pleasure.

“Sakura, it feels so good…”

“It’s gonna get better now, darling.”

Almost immediately, you enter her mouth, saliva covering the tip on which her lips are gently sucking on. You let out a loud moan every time Sakura draws circles with her tongue on your tip and goes deeper down your cock. Sometimes, Sakura makes eye contact, her beautiful amber colored eyes shining amidst the sinful action she’s committing. You were nothing but mesmerized, forgetting the thought that she was merely here just to ease your desires.

A few minutes passes, and Sakura now optimizes her hand to stroke your shaft while diligently sucking on your tip. You can feel that burning sensation growing — the extra stimulation from her strokes are too good to be true.

“Don’t hold back. Just let it all out.”

Sakura increases the pace of her strokes and licks the underside of your tip. All of a sudden, your body jerks itself and your head falls back as you let out your first orgasm of the night. Two thick ropes of cum cover her tongue, before she sinks her head entirely down on your cock, so that the last few shots fill her mouth. Your eyes widen when you realize that Sakura was swallowing everything that you released without any hesitation. She then pulls away to show off her empty mouth to you, clean without any drop of semen left.

“Wow,” is all you can utter before your body comes back to its senses, your chest heaving to regain your breath.

“You came a lot for a first timer.” Sakura lifts herself back up and straddles you once more. Your cock was still as hard as it was, standing in between her legs. “But it seems that you’re not that satisfied yet.”

“I… I need more.” Sakura smiles upon looking into your desperate eyes, filled with fervor.

“You know, you’re cuter than all of the customers I had.” Sakura trails her finger on your chest and gently pushes you down on the bed . “And I’m quite fond of cute boys.”

Her kiss on your forehead made you realize how Sakura completely took over you — feeling an unbearable thirst in her burning gaze and stealing your entire heart with that beautiful smile. She then takes a hold of your shaft, rubbing her clothed pussy with it, before whispering into your ear, “Get ready, darling. I’m gonna fuck you so good.”

︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶

“Ah, fuck! Sakura! Sakura!”

“Mmmm, yes! Fuck me harder!”

The sun is about to rise, yet the both of you are still inside each other, drunk off the dopamine. The view of her breasts bouncing up and down is getting familiar to you, given that you have been thrusting into her hungry pussy for hours on end and filling her up with your load countlessly. You did not care about the risks that this night may give you. The only thing that was inside of your mind was just how Miyawaki Sakura managed to mess you up in different ways, dragging you out of your comfort zone and discovering your unknown side.

You look into her eyes once again—the prettiest you’ve ever seen—and it was obvious that she was getting closer to her peak. No words were needed because you know what she wants. You fuck her harder and deeper, hitting all of her right spot with her moans growing louder. The moans then turned into a sudden guttural shriek, with Sakura’s body violently spasming as she squirts around your cock, drenching your crotch and the bed. Not long after, with one last thrust, you erupt deep inside her as well, emptying everything that you had left in your balls. As you pull yourself out, it reveals a heavenly sight of Sakura’s sweaty body with her legs still spread out and your semen slowly spilling out of her pussy like an endless flow.

Expecting her to leave soon, you try your best to get anything that she may need—tissues, water, her clothes—but Sakura seems to not care, as if she doesn’t wanna leave. Suddenly, she hugs you from behind when you are about to grab her panties.

“Hey, can I just stay in?”

“Uhh sure, but I gotta go to work soon—”

“Dummy, don’t you understand?” Sakura then turns you around and brings you in for a kiss. “I like you. And..” Her cheeks began to turn red. “...I wanna stay with you for a while.”

You are astonished by her words because you had a similar thought—getting closer and keeping a relationship with her. She has successfully planted a new feeling inside of your heart just in one night, and you desire to learn about it more.

“Sakura… I like you too.”

---------------[ SNSD Seohyun - @kesujo ]---------------

Seohyun squeals as you push her onto the bed. Her impressive rack threatens to spill out the sides of her black cut-away dress; seeing hints of her almond areola reignites all the fantasies you’ve had about her tits.

This night, you plan on fulfilling all of them.

“Don’t lie, you can’t wait to be fucked by me.”

“You’re so full of it.”

“If anyone’s full of anything, it’ll be you with my cock very shortly.”

Despite rolling her eyes at your remark, Seohyun remains professional when you mount the bed and slip your hands underneath her dress. You can see her breath hitch from your hands cupping her boobs and scooping them out.

“I don’t know why you chose to remain a virgin until now when you have such sexy, fuckable tits.” She responds only with slight gasps and muffled moans, you sparing no expense in fully indulging in the exquisite feeling of having her brimming-to-the-top milk jugs in your hands. “Saving yourself for me, hoping I’d win the bid?”

“In your drea—” she cuts herself off again with another squeal as you pinch her nipples.

“Your voice and body give away your excitement.”

“That’s not…” Your hands dive underneath the dress, making contact with the uncovered intersection of her legs, already damp and sticky with precum. Before she can respond, your two digits are knuckle-deep inside her sweltering hot sex.

“Fuck, you’re tight.” Your two digits dig deeper, and Seohyun sighs turn into gasps. You can tell she’s trying to stifle them but failing, and that makes you even harder. When you kick your pants and boxers off, you can see Seohyun’s defiant gaze melting into awe.

Your knees push aside her legs while your hands push aside her dress. Her professionalism keeps her from resisting, even if she squirms a little under the intense gaze of you looking at her freshly shaven pussy. “No hymen?” Seohyun shakes her head. You find it adorable how she, who was so spunky and full of life just seconds prior, has now clammed up. “Good. Goin’ in.”

You watch her eyes widen and lips part as you plunge inside her, gasps turning into moans the more your dick advances. You can feel her tight, virgin walls being pried open by your girth and relish in the delectable pressure she’s exerting onto you. As soon as she gives you to go ahead, you’re thrusting with all the stored-up anticipation and lust this night had built up inside you. Seohyun’s hands tightly grip the bedsheets, red-faced in her failed attempt to hold back the sounds of her ecstasy. The adorable showcasing of her bashful indulgence makes you go even harder, deeper, causing Seohyun to get louder in tandem. “Call me Dex.”

“Wh-What?”

“For when you need to scream my name.”

Seohyun can only respond with a sharp moan, your thumb pressing on her clit. When you finally manage to fully hilt her, you keep it there for a few seconds, letting your thumb circle her clit for a few seconds.

“Wh—” the question dies in her throat, but you can see the desperation on her face.

“Hm?” Seohyun shakes her head. “What is it?” It’s a rhetorical question, though: ecstasy is written all over her face.

“N-Nothing.”

Your index finger brushes over the stub, causing her entire body to spasm. “Really?” She stays silent, but you can tell from her squirming that it’s difficult for her to do so.

So, when you suddenly extract your penis from her, she says, “What—” but catches herself. Shortly, she finds herself seated in your lap, looking at her fully nude body through a body-length mirror. “Fuck, you’re sexy.”

“What, did you just want to stare?”

“You’re gonna watch me fuck you senseless.” Stuffing your cock back inside her clams up the chatty escort. |Your eyes drink in the sight, of her round breasts rising and falling, her waist that dips inward and her baby-bearing hips that curve outward, and your cock firmly lodged between her pried-open vaginal lips.| “Watch.”

Seohyun obeys, instantly zeroing in on the same thing you are looking at, watching you fully hilt her. “Hm…”

You can see how much the sight turns her on. “Fuck…” Her tightness serves as resistance, but not enough: soon, Seohyun is bouncing on your lap, your tip repeatedly battering her cervix at the apex of each thrust. Her eyes fixate on your connection, each bounce splattering more juices onto both of them. Eventually, Seohyun is unable to contain her moans, joining you and the wet slapping sounds of her ass on your crotch.

“Fuck, Seohyun…”

You start playing around with different angles until she lets out a squealing moan.

“Oh, there?”

Seohyun refuses to say anything, but is soon lost in ecstasy as you repeatedly assault that very spot. Her hands climb up her body and start playing with her own boobs; her head leans back on your chest and her eyes close.

“Fuck, you’re so hot.”

“Shit…” You use a bit more force, causing her to moan a bit more loudly than before. “A-Ah!”

“Tell me how much you love it.”

“F-Fuck…”

Both index fingers surround the sensitive nub sitting atop her pried-open folds. “Say it.”

“Damn it—” she lets a muffled scream as your fingers apply pressure to her clit.

“Say it,” you growl into her ear.

“F-Fuck…” The swear is barely audible over the sound of your balls slapping against her ass. “…please…”

“Hm?” Your fingers dance around her clit. You can see her impatience in her body, feel her impending climax as clearly as your own.

“God, god, please…”

“Louder.”

“Please, please!”

You reward her by squeezing the sensitive nub, eliciting a loud moan. “Watch. Watch yourself cum all over my dick.”

She eyes blink open and land back onto your connection. “Oh, fuck…”

The force of your thrusts increases, invigorated by her gaze. “You like that?”

Seohyun unabashedly nods, and when your fingers squeeze her clit again, her eyes roll to the back of her head. “Oh—”

“Cum for me, Seohyun.”

“Fuck, fuck—DEX!”

Watching her screaming orgasm overtake her is what pushes you over the edge. Your bodies ram against each other relentlessly, Seohyun depositing buckets of fluids onto your groin while you deposit yours into the condom. Her firm, hot walls convulsing against your shaft milks out the last few streams, and by the time your orgasm subsides, so too is Seohyun’s.

Exhausted, Seohyun’s head leans against your chest, her hands coming down to her sides and her shoulders relaxing.

“Pretty good, aren’t I?”

Gone is the combative, stubborn brat, replaced by a teasing smirk playing at her luscious lips. “I’m not sure if I can tell just yet…”

You push the seductress off your lap and throw her onto the soft mattress, face down. She expertly lands with her knees tucked in, pointing her shiny, battered pussy right at you. You take off the condom, tie it up, throw it into the trash, and reach for another one.

“Then I guess I’ll have to beat it into you.”

--------------[ VIVIZ Eunha - @0cta9on ]----------------

“Do you think I would be a good escort?”

You spit out your coffee, nearly choking to death from utter shock. “Eunha, what the hell are you talking about?”

She shrugs, not looking up from her phone. “Just a thought. Job hunting is a bitch, but I need money.”

“Why don’t you work at the cafe down the street?” You suggest. “They’ve had that ‘We’re Hiring’ sign in front of their store for weeks.”

Eunha groans, sinking into her chair. “I’d rather eat glass than spend a second working food service.”

You furrow your brow at her. “And you think sex with strangers is better than making coffee?”

“If I’m getting paid $800 an hour, then absolutely. All I have to do is sleep with some guy once a week and I’ll be making at least $3000 a month. That’s more than your silly little subway job pays,” she says smugly.

You open her mouth to argue but concede after realizing she’s right. “Still, I don’t think it’s a good idea to sell your body just because you don’t want to work a normal job. How do you plan on getting ‘clients’ anyways?”

“What, you don’t think people would pay just to see these puppies?” Eunha squeezes her breast, soft yet hefty in her small hands. You look away, blushing profusely. “Don’t pretend like you don’t stare at my chest whenever I walk around the apartment in a sports bra,” she teases you.

“I- W-well, uh… N-no, I… Hmm…” You blabber like an idiot, trying to scootch away from her as she leans in with a mischievous smile.

“C’mon, just a few hundred bucks and I’ll let you touch them~ I’ll even give you a little roommate discount,’ she giggles, deriving great pleasure from watching you squirm in your seat.

“H-how… How much?” You stutter, keeping your gaze away from her.

“Oh my god, really!?” She exclaims. “Hmm, how about $500?”

“$500!?”

“Ugh, fine, $450. But that’s the lowest I’m going, that’s nearly half of my hourly rate!”

“You didn’t even have an hourly rate until two seconds ago…” You mutter, taking out your phone. You can’t believe you’re about to do this. If Eunha was a guy, you would’ve kicked her out of the apartment ages ago with how awful of a roommate she is, but unfortunately, you’re a sucker for petite girls with big tits and you would be lying if you said you didn’t have hot roommate fantasies about her. $450 is nothing compared to the experience you’re about to have.

You send her the money, watching her face light up as she gets the notification on her phone. “Woohoo! Alright, first customer, what do you wanna do first?” She asks, leaning in with intrigue.

“I-I, um…”

“C’monnnn, what are you getting nervous for? There’s gotta be something in that perverted little head of yours. Plus, I’m not issuing refunds, so you better make this worth your while.”

“O-okay, fine! Uh…” With shaky hands, you grab her tits, giving them a gentle squeeze. They’re softer than you could ever imagine, yet still firm like weighted pillows on her chest. You lift them a bit and drop them, slowly becoming hypnotized by the way they jiggle to and fro.

Eunha giggles as you play with her breasts. “They’re nice, aren’t they?”

“So nice…” You glance at her lips, supple and glossy, and suddenly you find yourself on top of Eunha, kissing her puffy lips as your hands explore her curvaceous body. She moans into your mouth as you lift her top, tweaking and pinching her exposed nipples. Fuck, her moans are so high-pitched, it's adorable. You want to hear that sound all the time, put it in your playlist and listen to it 24/7.

Clothing flies all around the living room as the two of you are caught in a tornado of lust. Your shirt by the front door. Her panties hanging off of the TV. Your boxers are probably underneath the sofa, but that’s an issue for a later time. Eunha pushes you against the sofa, stroking your cock as she gazes into your eyes with intensity.

“I was expecting you to be a bit bigger, but this isn’t bad,” she teases with a smirk.

“Are you gonna insult all your clients like this?” You run your thumb over her lips, grinning as she takes it between her lips for a split second.

“Just the perverted ones that stare at my tits.” She winks at you before running her tongue along your entire length, producing a guttural moan from your mouth. Watching her cute and innocent face inhale your cock is a sight that you’ll surely remember forever. 

Your tip barely grazes the back of her throat with each pump of her head, sucking you off like it’s the last dick she’ll ever suck. Eunha’s pretty round eyes never leave yours, watching contentedly as your face morphs with pleasure. Suddenly, she removes your cock from her mouth, jumping onto your lap and lining up your rod with her dripping hot core.

“I need you inside of me,” she says, her lips coated in saliva.

“Who’s the pervert now?” You tease, watching with bated breath as your tip slowly disappears in between her legs.

“Don’t act like you haven’t imagined this before.” Eunha’s smirk fades into a look of pure ecstasy as you bottom out inside of her. Her velvety walls squeeze and cling to you, never letting you go as she bounces on your cock like a good girl.

Her tits jiggle tantalizingly in front of your face, practically begging you to suck on them. As you succumb to your basest desires, your fingers sink into the meaty flesh of her ass, pulling her into you as you thrust up. The sound of skin slapping against skin and Eunha’s pornographic moans is like music to your ears, a sentiment your neighbors definitely won’t share. 

Pretty soon, you feel that familiar pressure in your stomach, and with one last thrust, you shoot the biggest load you’ve ever had straight into your roommate’s waiting pussy. Eunha collapses on top of you, her hot breath hitting your ear.

“H-holy fuck… M-maybe we should… D-do this again…” She utters in between breaths.

You chuckle, placing a gentle kiss on her lips. “Fine, but I want a 100% discount next time.”

-------------[ Aespa Karina - @sumirhatos ]-------------

"I've told you I won't go for that old schmuck", Karina complains to her manager, "He's a creep, he's ugly and he's old as my grandpa", she continued while her face is visibly fills up with an absolute disgust.

"But, imagine how good would it be to get this company in the palm of your hand?", the manager replied to the idol's antics.

"Yes, but even imagining it makes me want to vomit", she gagged demonstrating how much aversion she has and started to sob...

"Okay, okay I understand, I won't insist on that", the manager got close to her and hugged Karina, comforting the girl sitting in front of him. She eased accepting the embrace.

"You know what? I actually have an idea!", the manager wiped the tears from her cheek and continued, "He has a grandson, quite young and handsome, it's not a 100% chance that you will get any sort of a benefit from this, but there is a possibility he's going to be of use.

"Fine... Worth a shot, I guess...", she yearned with no interest in her voice.

"Okay, I'll get in touch with you later, when I arrange the meeting", manager said standing up and leaving her place.

@Later that night@

The taxi brought her to the destination, getting out of the car Karina can see a mansion hidden behind high fences. Getting to the gates she's faced by two big men, supposedly guards.

"May I help you miss?", one of the guards asks the girl.

"I'm expected, my name is Yu Jimin", she replies in a low voice.

"Please wait", the other guard said and then reported to someone on the radio about her arrival, "Please go ahead miss Yu", he said opening the gates for her.

She goes past the gates and to the entrance door. Entering the manor, she's greeted by a butler wearing a gray suit.

"Greeting miss Yu Jimin. Please leave your belonging here, young master is at his office at the 2nd floor, he's awaiting you", he rambled pointing at the counter near the door.

Jimin took off her coat and left her bag on a counter taking just her phone with her, after which she followed the butler upstairs to a fancy office room.

"Master, your guest is here", butler says entering the room to the guy sitting at the desk.

"Thank you, that would be all", he replied to the butler. Butler bows and closes the double doors behind him.

"Miss Yu Jimin", he gets out of his chair and rushes to the girl, "it is such an honor to meet you", he greets her and kisses her hand, causing her to jerk her hand away in surprise.

"Just Jimin", she replied awkwardly.

"Okay, Miss Jimin. My name is Lee Seokjin, but call me Seokjin" he points to the couch and the table set out in front of the desk, "please sit"

"Listen, we both know why I'm here, so let's just get it over with", she spills starting to unbuckle his belt.

"Woah woah woah, Miss Jimin let's not rush things", he said getting her hands away from him, "I know you are not a slut, you just pretend to be one, we both know that".

"What is it I'm after then?", she leans back on the couch folding her arms on her chest.

"You are after my grandfather's money, everyone wants a piece of that", he sighs, sitting down on the couch on the left side of Jimin, "To be absolutely honest with you I'm also after it, that old fart is not giving me shit", he exclaims.

"Oh really? I feel sorry for you Mister Seokjin", she says sarcastically glancing at the whole place, "you're having such a bad life, such a poor guy".

"Nah, that's not it Jimin", he said," all of this is nothing, just a drop in the ocean", he continued.

"What do you want then?", she asks curiously.

"That's when you come into the play", he says putting his hand on her knee, "I have a proposal for you", he ran his hand over her dress covered thigh.

"Mmm, I'm all ears", she said biting her lip, leaning towards him, her cleavage is now right in his face, "what is it you crave for Mister Seokjin?", she whispered, tracing her hand over her cleavage.

"I want you... Umm...", he was a bit startled by the last move, but quickly recovered he continued, "I want you to help me get what is rightfully mine", he leaned towards Jimin, getting his face closer to hers.

"Yes? Tell me more Mister Lee", she leaned forward him, their lips are almost touching.

"I'm the heir of this family and you can be a part of it", he traced her face with his left hand while the right hand was still remaining on her thigh, "I'm going to look as very perspective heir for the family if I land myself a girl like you".

"Oh my, is that a marriage proposal?", she laughs, "are you that desperate that you want to marry a complete stranger?" she asks grinning at him.

"Not a marriage proposal, silly", he leans away from her stopping the touchy-touchy act, "You just need to pretend to be my girlfriend, so I can get my old man's approval and you can get the money you want so much", he continued.

"So that's what you think of me?", she asks angrily, "Am I some kind of a fucking whore to you?", she continues getting angrier.

"Are you not?", Seokjin asks her calmly.

"W-what?", she responds confused and agitated, "NO, I'm not, who the fuck do you think you are?", she asks furiously, starting to shout.

"That's what I thought", Seokjin responds calmly, "I don't think that you are a whore, I did not say that, you said it yourself", he continued.

"But you implied it!", Jimin exclaimed

"I did not imply anything, I simply offered you a job, no implications, just pure logic, so do you want the money, no?", he asked curiously.

"I'm don't need your fucking money", she exclaimed jumping up from the couch "I have enough money for the rest of my life, I just want fucking respect, recognition, that I'm not some sort of a fucking toy that you can play with", she continued in a lower tone, tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

"Turns out we are not so different after all", Seokjin got up, handing her a handkerchief, "I also want the recognition from others, my whole life I was just a son and grandson", he continued, "I want to be Lee Seokjin, I don't want to dwell in the shadow of my relatives. Same as you I want power".

For a minute there was nothing but the silence. Jimin wiped her tears and handed the handkerchief back to Seokjin.

"So, what's your decision", Seokjin broke the silence first.

"I'll do it", Karina replied extending her hand.

"Deal", Seokjin said shaking Jimin's hand.

----------------[ IVE Yujin - @craycr4y ]------------------

“Ohh fuck you’re tight” you unconsciously uttered as you what’s the right word? plow? pound? Yujin. You don’t remember if that was her really her name since both of you just went down into it the moment, she stepped foot on your room. As you try to rest on your bed, a knock on the door got your attention, walked up to it, asked who is it, “Your dinner’s here Sir” she answered, for a moment it made you think if you ordered something that you totally forgot and when you opened the door there you saw her, wearing a black leather jacket, crop top that perfectly hugs her perky chest, leather shorts that envelops her ample ass, fishnets stocking on her toned legs, and some weird ass heels. You’re not staring at her; you’re ogling her. “You done stripping me with your eyes perv?” she said, you were kind of embarrassed that you were caught, and “Welcome make yourself comfy” is all what you can manage to reply. And oh boy she did. As soon as you turn your back from the door, she jumped you, like a hyena to a deer, full of hunger, consumed with lust, that got you surprised but you have no plans on backing down, she started kissing your lips that lead to your tongue fighting back hers. She’s short and light so you pulled her up carrying her by her plump ass and walked to the bedroom. “I’m gonna fucking cu……” your thought was cut off by the woman shuddering in front of you that you totally forgot. You slowed down your thrusts as you let her enjoy her climax, you can feel her pussy clench in every thrust. You leaned then kissed her back, giving her time to breath.

“Lay down, I want to ride you.” Yujin told you. You’re now on your back and in front of you is her full glory, perky chest, lean stomach, toned thighs, her tight and wet cunt lowering on you. You finally penetrated her again, she stopped for a moment trying to get used to your size. Yujin feels wet, warm, and so fucking tight. Her hands on your chest and hips bouncing on you. Wet sound started to echo and her movement becomes more powerful, more frantic. Her pussy perfectly hugs your dick as she fucks herself on to it. You pulled her into a hug lifted you hips and started hammering her “You fucking like huh you slut? Bouncing on my cock when you don’t even know what my name is” right to her ear and you felt it again her pussy squeezing your cock again, she’s mewling, body convulsing, possibly creaming on your cock. “I want it ….” Yujin uttered. You moved her beside of you and now face to face with her, swiped her disheveled hair, “She’s so cute what the fuck” you told yourself. “Finish your sentence baby, you want what?” “I want you to fill me up” she finally managed to finish her thought “And I have no plans of pulling out” Now your places are switched you are now on top of her. It still impresses you how tight she is when you entered her again, she closed her eyes and bit her lips. This time it’s you who will chase your climax, just spreading her legs and your hips thrusting vigorously, her pussy is so wet it’s squelching, you proceeded to suck on her tits, nipples razor sharp, licking one and pinching the other, this made her a mess and whimper. You felt your balls tingle and abdomen tighten. “I'm cumming baby” you said as you make out with her while painting her insides white. You keep on thrusting on Yujin. After you filled her, you lay down beside her and she unconsciously went to your arms and snuggled with you.

------------[ Busters Takara - @writerpeach ]------------

“Ah, I’m so full,” you say with a sigh, wiping your mouth with a napkin and sitting back in your chair, utterly content. “This is the best ramen I’ve ever had in my life.” 

“Told you.” Across the table, your date smirks, with this look of smug elation on her face, taking one last slurp of her own meal as if she’s savoring every little drop. You’re not quite sure what her secret is to keeping a figure like that—especially when she can pile on the food. 

Her name is Takara you’ve been told—but you’re not sure if that’s her real name or not. Not that it matters much. Takara’s a local to the area, which means she’s the perfect person to guide you around the city, letting you know all the ins and outs, including this little hole in the wall restaurant that you never would have known about otherwise. 

She’s incredibly gorgeous, showing off her body in this tight little gray crop top and jeans that you can’t take your eyes off. But hey, you’re allowed to stare—it’s what you’ve paid for after all. 

“So,” Takara starts, right by your side with a bright smile on your face while you two leisurely traverse the riverwalk, taking in the medley of colors, the vibrant lights, and the serene water. “You’ve got a little over an hour left. If we keep heading in this direction and take a right, there’s a cozy little hotel that I like to take people to. I think you’ll like it.” 

“Yeah? Well, lead the way then. You haven’t steered me wrong yet.” 

No more than a few minutes later and you’re whisked along to a more docile part of the city, where the nightlife lingers in the distance. Takara speaks to the man at the front desk, and while you don’t quite understand every word, you get the gist of it. All that really matters is she gets handed a key, one that soon becomes yours as you follow her into an elevator. 

A short ride up and you’re at a door with a number that matches what’s in your hand. You don’t have a second to spare, so the lock clicks open, and shoes are off before your next breath, heading towards a surprisingly large bed. It’s unexpectedly gorgeous, illuminated by red lights, with more amenities than you can count. But you’re not here to gawk over what this place looks like—not when Takara is right there.

“I assume you’ll want to start with my tits?” 

“You read my mind, Takara.” 

She giggles, gesturing for you to take a seat at the foot of the bed while she lifts her shirt off, exposing a huge set of breasts hiding underneath that you get a much closer look at when her body straddles your lap. 

“What exactly does platinum get me again? The details were a little vague.” 

Takara gazes upon you, and you can’t hide the lust building in your eyes when she reaches behind her back to unclasp her bra—and in a matter of moments, those pale breasts are freed, ready to receive your full attention. “Whatever you want, sweetie. You’ve got me for the full hour.” 

You take one good look at her heavy breasts, so full and inviting, with this immaculate shape that you immediately dive into, latching your lips onto a nipple, suckling harshly. “Jesus, Takara. Your tits are fucking perfect.” 

She moans at the praise, fingers working your zipper at the same time you cover her pretty nipples in saliva, only coming up for a breath when absolutely necessary. 

“That’s what everyone says. Even people who aren’t my clients.” Her head tilts back while you feast on her tits, taking your time, slobbering them up so well before you get another pause in. “If you like the way they taste, wait until you try out how they feel.” 

There’s a moment of disappointment when Takara dismounts your lap, dropping to her knees to get your pants off, boxers falling down right after. She gets this glint in her eyes, not so dissimilar to when you first laid your eyes on her delicious chest. “And you—have a perfect cock.” 

Takara looks around the room, leaving her position when she finds her target and reaches into a small box on the counter. Not gone for long, she returns with a small bottle in her delicate hands that she unwraps. The top flips open, and your eyes widen when she drizzles clear liquid onto her breasts, pouring a little extra for good measure. You’re practically hypnotized 

by how she rubs it into her chest, those immaculate tits even better all slicked up, glistening, waiting for one thing left—

She slides your cock in between the oily flesh, and you groan so desperately when she cups her breasts, squeezing them so tightly around you. Then she begins to move, up and down, and you fucking lose it. 

“Fuck, Takara—this feels so fucking good.” Your breath gets taken away whenever you disappear into that delicious cleavage, as she uses her heavenly, soft breasts to repeat it all over again. 

“Just a little warm up. Like the way your cock looks between my tits?” 

A weak nod is all you can answer with, because before she can even get a rhythm started, you’re falling apart. The pleasure only gets better, a deadly smile on her face while her tits squeeze and squeeze around your cock, creating all this delicious friction. Clearly, she’s good at her job—the look on her face knows how devastating all this oiled up flesh that surrounds every inch is, the intoxicating bliss spiraling out of control. 

Takara keeps looking into your eyes with every pump, her amazing tits massaging your cock in ways you’ve never felt before, an absolute dream come to reality. “Talk to me, baby. Want me to slow down? Go faster?” 

“Just stay like that. Fuck, those tits—not gonna lost long, oh my god, I love these tits around my cock—“ 

“That’s what I like to hear, make a fucking mess all over me. You can cum as many times as this beautiful cock can handle.” 

“Takara—“ All you can do is groan, your length trapped in this slippery flesh, giving the perfect view of how she slides you in and out. She grinds her chest, never losing eye contact, keeping up the pace as she squeezes, right until the last moment—

When your cock disappears in between the delicious valley of her breasts, you fucking explode, and your cock shoots hot cum in thick, white spurts, filling up her cleavage. A stray strand hits her chin, making her gasp in surprise. Takara milks it all out with a smile, keeps the friction going to get your balls all emptied, these creamy streaks painting her chest like a canvas. 

“Now that’s a good first load,” Takara says, letting your cock slip out from her oiled breasts with a few lazy pumps, before rubbing your hot mess in all over until it glistens even more. You’re spent, but not exactly exhausted, not with how this pretty girl looks up at you, like she’ll be disappointed if you stop now. 

“F-fuck,” you manage to say, voice all heavy and shaky, leaning back on the mattress. 

“What do you think, got more in you?” she asks, so proud of a job well done. “Because we’ve got plenty of lube left…” 

And before Takara climbs up the bed, she gets rid of those bothersome clothes, heading up to join you with bottle in hand, all naked, giving you such a good glimpse at the rest of her divine figure. 

“I think we’ll figure out a good way to use it all up.” 

-----------[ Kiss of Life Julie - @authorhjk1 ]------------

“Well, that’s awkward.”

You break the uncomfortable silence in your hotel room.

“Julie, how could you do this to me?”

The man in the doorframe looks at the woman in front of you.

Julie slowly lifts her head and you have to force back a groan as her lips glide along your length. Still on her knees, she turns around, her hand holding your cock.

“What are you doing here?”

She sounds more annoyed than ashamed.

“I work here! Who the hell is this guy!?”

You guess he must’ve seen Julie go to your room and followed her.

“I’m working too.  Now get out, we can talk about this at home.”

“Talk about this? Julie, you’re sucking another man’s cock! You’re married for god’s sake!”

Groaning in annoyance, you grab Julie’s shoulders and turn her around.

“I’m not paying you for talking.”

When you push her head into your lap, you can’t tell if she opens her mouth to suck your dick or to protest. Either way, Julie’s lips close around your cock when she is just about to choke.

“P-Paying?”

Her husband covers his mouth in shock as he watches her sucking off someone else.

“Yeah, she isn’t cheap, man. But so far, she is worth the money. Except for…”

You loosely gesture in his direction.

 Julie keeps bobbing her head on your shaft as you talk.

“Julie, stop! Please!”

His voice sounds like he is about to cry. You can’t blame him. If your wife did the same, you’d be devastated too.

When Julie looks up at you, you raise an eyebrow. She rolls her eyes. She suddenly opens her mouth wider and shoves your cock as deep into her throat as it would go. Her choking makes some of her spit fall into your lap and onto the carpet. You groan, feeling her tight throat. After gagging a couple of times, Julie raises her head. Your wet cock leaves her mouth. She keeps stroking it, without looking at her husband.

“Do you think this the first time? I’ve been doing this job for years now. How do you think I was able to afford this new dress?”

She gestures at her own figure.

“You have a choice here, man.”

You talk again, but not before guiding Julie’s mouth back onto your cock. She diligently resumes her blowjob.

“You either leave and wait for her, until we’re done here, or you can watch, if that’s what you’re into. But stop yapping already.”

You almost have to chuckle at his shocked expression.

“Just telling you the facts man. Although I doubt you will enjoy what the two of us are up to.”

Julie lifts her head again, looking up at you.

“If you want anything ass related, you will have to pay extra though.”

Your eyes are focused on her, but you can tell that her husband just sank into one of the chairs.

“I thought I already paid for everything.”

“You did. Everything. Except anal.”

You roll your eyes.

“You are already expensive enough. I’m not paying you more.”

“No anal, then.”

Julie shrugs her shoulders.

“Fine.”

You snarl, grabbing her chin with one hand and forcing her mouth open. You spit into Julie’s mouth, before dragging her onto the bed.

“Let’s get this little dress off of you.”

Her husband is making some noise in the background, but you’re too busy with robbing Julie off her clothes. You pull at the black fabric, exposing her tits. The lack of a bra enables you to dive in immediately.

“Julie…”

Her husband cries as you suck on his wife’s tits. You fondle them, enjoying how they feel in your hands. Her smooth skin tastes wonderful. Julie moans, when you flick your tongue against her nipples. One of your hands wanders down her body, while the other keeps playing with her tits. When you reach her ass, you give it a hard squeeze, making Julie yelp first and then giggle.

“Bad boy.”

You squeeze her ass for a second time.

“Turn around, slut.”

Julie gets on all fours, her face turned towards the chair her husband is sitting in. The lower part of her dress rides up by itself.

“Huh, no panties.”

You remark, as you glance at her husband. He is still sitting there, his face in his hands. As you align yourself with Julie’s pussy, you give her ass a nice slap.

“Let’s see if this pussy is worth the money.”

Your words make her husband look up. He can’t believe his eyes as he witnesses the exact same moment you enter his wife. Her mouth falls open, her eyes wide in surprise. Julie’s hands have formed fists as she holds onto the sheets. You give her a deep thrust, not allowing her to get accustomed your size.

“Oh damn, that’s deep!”

Her slutty moan spurs you on. You hold her waist with both hands and start to fuck her. Your thrusts are quick and hard. You pull her body back into you, whenever you thrust forward. It makes you hit spots her husband probably will never be able to reach.

“Such a nice cock.”

Another moan from her, another cry from him. You take a fistful of her hair and push her face into the sheets. It muffles her moans, but by the time you fuck her with all you’ve got, it doesn’t make much of a difference. You swear, Julie’s pussy tightens, whenever she accidently makes eye contact with her husband.

“I’m a whore for your cock.”

You have your first orgasm about twenty minutes later. Julie is lying on her back, pressing her tits together with her hands, while her legs are wrapped around you.

“Fuck!” You groan as you pull out. Your cum paints her tits and her face. Julie’s whole upper body is covered in your semen as you walk around her husband and the table. When you reach her face, Julie quickly opens her mouth to clean your cock.

You have three more hours.

------[ Dreamcatcher JiU - @midnightdancingsol ]-----

The hour passes and lets another take its place.

You know it’s supposed to be different now, that everything’s changed, but how is it that it feels the same?

It was supposed to have long gone by then, a distant memory to place out along with the rest of the last few years of your life, but all it took was a single shadow of a shadow to pass you by, and once again that feeling floods back by the time your other foot steps off the stage, engulfs you as you walk back to your seat, submerges you well before the applause concludes.

Afterwards, there’s no quiet moment for you to find out at the end of the anxious anticipation, where time slows for you as you make your way through a parting crowd—it’s quite the opposite that greets you at the end of the faceless celebration, a speeding pulse that follows you, pushes you everywhere in the clumping press until it finally leaves you, alone, soaked in its wake.

From here, it’s just a short walk down the washed stone steps, and then from there to the grey pavement outside where you finally find her patiently waiting, a black-clad figure that briefly tips her cap to you, wearing a smile that you had never forgotten, familiarly unfamiliar from how deeply it’s been etched into your memory.

She steps forward to meet you at the gates, and then once again past, and then again until it’s just you and her in the shroud of the afternoon.

"Congratulations, darling," she murmurs fondly in her lofty drawl still as clear as the bells that continue to ring out above—the sound of crisp white linens and sweet red wine, of tickling bruised lips and warming light touches, of lonely whispered goodbyes and set uncertain futures.

“Thank you, for everything, Miss.”

Yes, it’s so easy to ignore the howling wind, the drizzling rain, to focus on her fingers thoughtfully tucking your hair behind your ear, fixing the loosely ribboned silk around your neck, closing around your chin with her thumb resting upon your lip—like no time had passed, it’s so comfortable to leave behind the chilly admiration in the eyes of strangers you’ve barely known even up until these last hours of your shared existences and climb up into the comfortable warmth of her fond gaze where you spent the best years of your life.

“Have you decided?”

Of course you had—it was the most selfish, stupid thing you could have asked of her then, of her now.

Though heavy with anticipation, the memory is light with hope, and so languidly, it makes its way on top of thin envelopes, tiny trinkets, and tender surrender, where it stays, it stays, and it stays, until languidly, it finally leaves your lips.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life…

"I want you to buy me jjajjangmyeon…

“Unnie.”

…but, maybe yesterday can stay with you for a little bit longer.

“It would be my pleasure.”

--------------[ TWICE Sana - @co-reborn ]---------------

“What do you want to do?”

You’re not entirely sure. You don’t even know how this stunning woman ended up knocking on your hotel room door. The only clue you have is the text message from your friend: ‘Happy Birthday bro. Enjoy the gift :)’ 

“Can I see more of you?”

“Of course, dear.”

That sweet angelic voice of hers just pulls you in as you sit closer to the edge of the bed, eyes glued to the sinful performance. The slow pull of the zipper behind her, then the dress off her shoulders. When it finally falls into a crumpled mess by her feet, you’re salivating. Her figure looks great, and she looks a thousand times better when just in her bra and panties. It’s a sight to remember, you’re sure it’s going to be carved into your mind, but you want to keep a souvenir for the night. 

When you pick up your phone, Sana seems to get your idea and starts posing for you. First, she leans a little closer to you and brings her arms together to accentuate her cleavage. Then more pictures where a strap of her bra is off her shoulders, then both straps. Just as you’re waiting for the inevitable complete removal of her bra, she turns away from you and flaunts her ass. She’s bending over, looking back at the camera with a seductive smile. By this point, you’re in a trance and mindlessly clicking away to gather as many photos as you can. 

She sits on the bed next to you and leans in close. When you turn to face her, you find yourself face to face with her, nose almost touching hers, and the first thing you notice is how attractive her eyes truly are, followed by how good she smells. You barely realise when her hand is on your thigh and dangerously close to your bulge. 

“Do you want to spend all the time taking pictures? Your friend only paid for an hour.” She then whispers directly into your ear, “I can take good care of you if you want.”

You’re nodding like an idiot, confused and overwhelmed by the circumstances you’re in, and you find your pants being unbuttoned. Autopilot has taken over your system, you’re letting Sana have her way with you. It does seem that she knows what she’s doing given that she’s smiling while kneeling between your spread legs and your erect cock in front of her. Her lips press against your cock, her tongue teases your tip. You’re tense on the bed, nervous yet excited for the moment when she opens her mouth to take you in. 

The sheer hotness of her mouth all over you, the pure filth of her lips at the base of your cock in contrast with that happy glimmer in her eyes are all too much to take in. As much as you’d like to keep your eyes on Sana, you just can’t. You’re left gripping the bed sheets and tossing your head back to gather your composure. 

It’s almost a new experience for you. The expert mouth bobbing up and down your cock works in perfect tandem with her hands twisting the base of your length. Time feels foreign to you. You don’t know how much time has truly passed. All you know is that you’re about to cum and trying to hold it back is just going to end up with torn bed sheets. 

A quick peek down at Sana makes it tenfold worse. She’s so damn hot, especially when she’s making eye contact with you with those seductive eyes of hers. It’s like she knows how close you are. How could she not? You’re moaning without restraint. You can’t help it of course, but it seems like the louder you are, the more intense Sana gets with the blowjob.

The pleasure suddenly diminishes. “Where do you want to cum, dear?”

You struggle to choose, especially when she’s still jerking you off rapidly. “Your face. Please!”

“You might want to record this.” She winks before going back down on you.

Your hand is shaky, you can barely hold your phone up in place. You aren’t completely sure if it’s even capturing all the action. What you’re sure of is that Sana is blowing you faster than earlier and that you’re about to cum and that your other hand is guiding her head, almost pushing her deeper onto yourself as if that’s possible. Then your grip loosens, your self control vanishes. 

Without warning, you cum inside her mouth. She reacts quickly to the first shot, pulling your cock out and aiming the rest of your shots on her face. The pleasure is immeasurable. It’s been too long since you’ve relieved yourself and the volume of your load surprises her as her face is painted white.

“Fuck Sana!” 

You remain seated, exhausted, and appreciate the sight of Sana painted with your cum. She cleans herself up with her fingers and licks them clean while you catch your breath before she dresses back up. God how can a woman look so sexy putting clothes back on. 

“It’s a pity we don’t have more time together. It seems like you need it dear.” Right before she exits the room, you hear a faint “Call me again.”

You just might do exactly that.

[adventures-in-a-world-of-fiction]

I've seen a couple of comments from someone around paying Tumblr for stuff that I want to address. I'm not going to mention the person who made these comments because I'm not trying to pick a fight, but I think they're worth talking about. The comments in question are: "you think user money is anything compared to advertisers" and in a pinned post they tell people to not give money to Tumblr.

The thing is, user money can definitely be something compared to advertisers. There are multiple ways that an online company (in general, not just Tumblr) can make money, but let's break them down into three categories:

A. From the users - selling merchandise, subscriptions, premium packages, asking for donations, etc.

B. From advertisers - selling views and space on the platform to companies that use it to try and sell stuff to the users

C. From data - selling information about the user base to other companies that might use it in a whole bunch of dodgy and malicious ways, or just try to find better ways to sell stuff to us

All three of these are viable ways for a company to make money, and many companies use some combination of the above. What matters is what the company sees as their PRIMARY method of making money, because that is what drives their corporate decisions.

If none of the methods are making money, the company will shut down, and I don't want Tumblr to shut down - I like this hellsite. If option B is what makes them the most money, then they will make business decisions that make the platform look better to advertisers and this is likely to drive everything in a more algorithm-centric direction and give users fewer options to curate their own experience. If option C is what makes them the most money, then they will focus on features that enable privacy invasion and data harvesting. If option A is what makes them the most money, then they have to think about how to keep the users spending that money. Now, option A doesn't always lead to good outcomes - in mobile/online games it can end up as loot box gambling add-ins and pay-to-win options, but thankfully Tumblr isn't the sort of site where loot box mechanics would make a lot of sense. Which makes it more likely they'll go the other option: delivering the features that users want to keep them coming back and paying for subscriptions. 

I would much rather Tumblr goes for option A than options B or C because it means that Tumblr is more likely to put the user base first when making decisions instead of advertisers. We just need to show them that it's a viable option.

Tumblr is trying what online games have done for years - crabs and checkmarks are the equivalent of horse armour DLCs and cosmetics. They're trying to make the business work through microtransactions. If enough people spend a small amount, it can add up to a large amount of money. The point of crab day is to send a message to Tumblr that option A is viable so that they make the choice to focus on that. If everyone goes, "No, don't spend money on Tumblr, you're nothing compared to advertisers," then it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy and Tumblr will have to go with options B or C if they want to keep making money.

I'm not giving Tumblr money out of naivety or because I think they're somehow deserving - I'm giving them my money because I would much rather they make money directly from me and give them an incentive to provide features I like, than by making the site worse so that they can exploit me.

[thetaxguyin]

The Benefits of Registering Under MSME

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of any economy. They contribute significantly to economic growth, job creation, and innovation. In recognition of their importance, governments around the world have introduced various measures to support and promote the growth of SMEs. One such measure is the registration under the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Act. In this blog…

[neopuppy]

first, jeno with a mouth fixation. secondly, jeno with a fixation on your mouth but...well, you reject him each time he's made a move on you...that is...until you can't reject him anymore. how does that come to be? idk. but he knows how to get what he wants i'm sure. (you know how to make him get what he wants)

“Pay attention.”

Jeno blinks furiously, sitting up and wiping his chin of imaginary drool. It’s only about the fifth time you’ve scolded him, or maybe the sixth, who's counting. 

Right. Pay attention. 

“This final counts for half of your grade.” You remind him, peering up from behind your glasses. “Are you even listening?”

No. Jeno hasn’t listened once throughout the duration of this semester. He gave up the first day of class when he saw you chewing on the end of your pen, tapping it against your lips as you followed along with the professor’s introduction.

It seemed to only worsen from there, pens turned to your pinky finger, dragging the nail between your teeth. Hard candies that you’d suck on and hold between your teeth, lightly licking the sugar coating off to make the treat last longer. 

That gave him the idea to approach you, finally finding an excuse after receiving his first graded test, not even bothered by the bold ‘D’ circled at the top.

‘These are for you.’ He said flatly, setting a bag of caramel apple suckers on your desk. 

‘Huh? Wait, I love these..’ you mumbled, picking up the bag full of 60 suckers. ‘But how—‘

He shrugged, turning around to make way to his seat without another word. Not bothering to explain that he’d noticed the pattern in flavors you always seemed to have stockpiled inside your hidden candy drawer. 

Without fail one of those lollipops would end up in your mouth a few times per week as you took notes and graded assignments. Swapping between drinks of water from your overpriced adult sippy cup, biting on the straw attached to your iced coffee, scouring through your drawer after an hour of lectures to find a treat to wake yourself up. Somehow your lipgloss managed to stay intact through it all, making Jeno’s fingers twitch as he grasped onto the edges of his desk. 

It’s not only how perfectly juicy your lips look sucking around various objects, but how obscene they hang open when you’re thinking too hard, casually tucking your bottom lip in under your teeth. The meat filling your bottom lip sinking in as you bite down harder, raising the beat of his heart to pump faster through his veins.

At this point he looks forward to another disappointed frown dragging your pretty mouth down when you place another failed test on his desk. He shrugs and smiles, mentioning by the third fail that he may need extra help, assistance if you have the time for him.

Each time you coin up some excuse, too busy for study sessions. He needs to learn to study on his own, teacher assistants are not tutors.

But the day he presents you a gift card for your favorite coffee shop, you begin to relent, smiling softly as you refuse to accept bribery. He didn’t stop there of course, opting to learn your order and show up a few minutes earlier to have everything set out on your desk. Even throwing in a pastry that you munched on once getting halfway into your coffee, tearing off small pieces to chew on which he thoroughly enjoyed.

The next upside test you hand him had an extra note to meet after class.

Finally.

Only now that he’s alone with you, it’s even worse. Hyper fixated on your lips moving as you explain the subject he’d just failed, a big fat F on his test that he could really give a shit about right now.

“Jeno, it wasn’t easy to get this room at the last minute.” You sigh, waving a yawn away. “You seriously need to turn around your grade, at this rate you’ll never pass.”

He hums, agreeing with you, digging into his bag for a sucker. “I don’t work well like this, the pressure,” unwrapping the candy, he drags its dry coating across his lip, slowly blinking at you. “With no incentive—“

“The incentive is your grade.” You interrupt, snatching the lollipop away from him before he can pop it into his mouth. “You need to focus.”

“Make me then.” He shrugs, wrapping a firm hold on your retreating wrist. “That’s mine.”

“Fine.” You scowl, shaking him off. “Finish this practice quiz and I’ll give you your candy back.”

He has to hide a smirk when you raise it to your mouth, eyebrow cocked. “You get more than half wrong and it’ll be mine.”

“Keep it.” He says, leaning over the desk. “In fact.. I’d love to see you try and take it from me.” 

Quickly clutching your wrist, he draws your balled up fist back toward his mouth, the lollipop stuck between your fingers. “Get it back from me, and I’ll pass whatever test you throw my way.” He finishes, lips sucking around the candy, sleek gaze burning into yours.

“Want it?” He says between slow, long licks. Grip staying tight on you.

“Let go of me.” You grit, jerking away without budge. “This isn’t proper behavior between students and teachers.”

“You’re not my teacher.” He corrects, sucking the lollipop to one side. “But you want me to pass right? Because if I don’t..”

Trailing his free hand up your arm, he glides past your shoulder and throat, pinching your chin roughly. “I’ll have to repeat next semester when you take over. And I’ll make sure to show up everyday, miss every assignment, fail each and every test.”

“Why—“

“Because,” he tugs the lollipop free, pressing the saliva coated sucker to your pursed lips. “I want you to open up that pretty mouth.” Digging in his fingers, he forces your jaw to unhinge. Whimpering as he invades your tongue and drags the sucked on lollipop down the middle.

“So good at using your tongue, aren’t you?” He jeers, tapping the roof of your mouth with the lollipop until you gag around nothing. “Be good, push those pretty lips together.”

Shaking his ruthless grip on your jaw, he pulls harder until your neck cracks and you cough from the stimulation against your tongue. Lips wrapping shut around the stick.

“Very good.” But not enough. He stands abruptly, chair scraping nastily across the floor. Without losing any tension clenching your jaw and chin, he pulls the corners of your lips open. Thumbs piercing past the seam to watch your tongue struggle to not swallow down the lollipop. Saliva spurting out and running down your chin as he licks at his lips. 

Yes. Very good.

“But I want more.” He whispers, thumbs deeping in to push your cheeks open from inside out. 

“Pl-please.” You gurgle, moist eyes blinking up at him. 

Ignoring your pleads, his fingers drag out, smearing drool down your cheeks and chin. The lollipop stem hangs between your pouty abused lip, covered in slick spit. “This won’t do.” He chuckles, dragging it free from your lips and returning the lollipop to his mouth. 

Fingers dig back into your cheeks to keep your head in place, dragging a thick rubbery plastic from his bag. “You can do better.”

[stsgluver]

Can I get a uhhh...hurt/comfort Choso drabble where he snaps at the reader? Maybe because he's worried about Yuuji or something?

𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐆𝐎 — kamo choso

synopsis. choso's parent's relationship is struggling and he doesn't know how to handle it.

wc. 1.4k

tags. very slight angst, happy ending, yuuji is choso's 10yo half brother, choso and yn are 18-19, both went to the same school, yn is yuuji's tutor, possible ooc choso I've never written for him before

a/n. MY FIRST CHOSO WRITING!! you never specified an au so I did a post-highschool!au-ish. I hope that's okay <33 thank you for requesting!!

2k event

“can’t you tell i’m busy?” choso uttered through gritted teeth, not even bothering to glance up at you from his sketchbook he was hunched over on his desk. you’d been trying to tell him about the sweet old couple you always saw at the cafe and hadn’t seen for weeks until today. the two of you had become invested in their wellbeing and you’d thought that had been something he would’ve wanted to hear about.

“oh, sorry.” you frowned at how unintentionally pathetic your voice sounded. despite his cold demeanour, choso was probably the, if not the, sweetest person you’d ever met. he was always doting on his younger brother and showing up at your day job unannounced to bring you something whenever you tell him you’re having a bad day.

for all intents and purposes, he was the blueprint, so for him to lash out at you for no explicit reason was the total polar opposite to his usual personality.

“sorry?” choso mocked, leaning his head back to push his hands through his hair which was still damp from showering. still, he seemed more preoccupied with the ceiling than his concerned girlfriend who sat cross-legged on his bed, “geto’s going to be pissed that i’m behind on these designs and you constantly talking in my ear is not helping.”

after graduating, choso had initially taken on an admin role at a small tattoo parlour in town. a couple of months into the role, the owner, geto, had offered him a proper apprenticeship. you’d met geto on a handful of occasions and, from how choso had previously described him, he didn’t seem like the type to be annoyed over a few incomplete designs. especially not considering the additional hours and effort choso always puts into that place.

“you invited me over choso,” you pointed out. it was a sunday and, while you usually have work in the evenings, you’d been given the day off due to staff sickness. your boyfriend’s first message had been to excitedly offer for you to come over and stay the night at his which of course you said yes to.

somewhere between sending you that message and you making the fifteen minute drive to his house, he had a drastic change of heart.

choso sighed, picking up a different pencil to continue his sketch. “well, now i’m uninviting you.”

the bluntness in his tone had you blinking back tears. it was the first time he’d ever been so intentionally dismissive towards you. you didn’t give him the satisfaction of a response or an argument, if that was what he was after, and picked up your coat and left his room. 

you hadn’t needed to bring over any clothes or essentials since you’d come over so often his room had designated areas for your spare bits. as upset as he had made you, you weren’t about to scare him with a breakup threat because he was having a bad day and lashing out at you. 

“yn!” yuuji’s bright voice spooked you from your thoughts as you made your way down the stairs and you had to quickly wipe away any tears so as to not worry your boyfriend’s ten year old brother. choso’s golden personality was hidden by dark hair and an introverted front whereas yuuji’s was clear from his pink hair to his loud voice. “are you leaving already? you haven’t even tried my pancakes yet!”

one of yuuji’s incentives to attend the lessons that he didn’t like (ie. anything that wasn’t sport) was for him and choso to make homemade pancakes together. it was a weekly thing that you usually missed because of work and yuuji had been jumping up and down when he had found out you’d be there this evening.

your heart broke a little more at the fact you’d now be upsetting him.

“sorry yuuji,” his little face dropped slightly, bounce in his step gone as he clasped his hands together. you gently rubbed his shoulder, “i’ll be here for friday?”

yuuji scrunched up his nose. “that’s so long away!” it was also the day he’d be sat at the kitchen island with you for several hours doing catch up on his classes.

yuuji was the reason why you and choso had reconnected after graduating school – because when you agreed to tutor a student how could you have known that itadori yuuji was kamo choso’s little brother? you’d never been close in school so you hadn’t even known he had any relatives.

“i’ll bring you a treat,” you promised, making your way out of the house after saying a quick goodbye to his parents. 

the pouring down rain coupled with the ever flowing tears that stained your cheeks meant you had to stop your car several times on the way home just to ensure you wouldn’t crash. each and every time you checked your phone to see if he’d sent you a message, apologising and asking you to come back (which you would have in a heartbeat). there never was.

you didn’t see choso for the rest of the week – not until friday, your usual tutoring session with yuuji. 

he had messaged you a couple times, asking about your day and sending you several pictures of tattoos he had done himself which you always responded to quickly. but the conversations were short and filled with unanswered questions.

most days that you didn’t sleep around his, the two of you would call until one of you fell asleep. for the last five nights both of you had made excuses for why you couldn’t call. 

your relationship was still fairly new and this was the first spat that you had had. neither of you really knew how to cope with the aftermath or even the initial falling out. you missed your boyfriend, though, and you couldn’t avoid this forever.

“is yuuji here?”

you’d knocked twice before the door had been opened by choso. he looked just as tired as you felt (you’d done your best to cover it up with a bit of concealer and highlighter), and his shoulder length hair was messily framing his face. the hoodie he wore was a matching one that you had still hung up in your wardrobe at home.

“no,” choso shook his head, “he’ll be back from fushiguro’s kids in about fifteen.”

yuuji had spoken about megumi a lot to you – his best friend in the whole world, he’d described him as. he told you he’d bring him around one day to meet you.

“okay,” you said slowly and there was an awkward silence that settled between the two of you. on a friday night whilst you were with yuuji, their parents went out for their weekly date night, so right now it was just choso in his house and you at the doorstep. you take a step back, “i can just wait in my car till–”

“i think my parents are splitting up,” choso said quickly – almost too quickly for you to understand – and his eyes dropped down to the ground below, avoiding your worried gaze. “friday date nights are now for marriage counselling,” he continued when you didn’t say anything, still in shock from the confession, “jin… he’s a good guy, but my mum is stressed with work and–”

“and she’s taking it out on the people closest to her.”

choso picked his head up and there was an unspoken understanding that that was what had happened on sunday. he looked guilty as he nodded.

choso and yuuji were half brothers – choso’s dad had up and left when he was only a couple of years old and his mum had had to single-handedly rebuild their life. he didn’t want yuuji to have to experience any of the hardships he did in his broken family.

“i’m sorry for hurting you. i don’t want to lose you too,” your boyfriend apologised and you made the first step on closing the gap to wrap your arms around his waist. he smelt like home, you realised, nestling your face into his hoodie, and you didn’t want to go five whole days without him again.

you lifted your head up to press one kiss to the corner of his lips, “we’ll get through this together, no matter what happens.”

[linneajospeh]

Tax Credits And Incentives For Small Businesses: What You Need To Know

Running a small business comes with numerous challenges, but taking advantage of available tax credits and incentives can provide significant financial relief. These benefits are designed to encourage business growth, investment in technology, and job creation. Here’s a comprehensive guide to understanding the key tax credits and incentives available to small businesses in the United States.

Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit

The R&D Tax Credit is one of the most valuable incentives for small businesses investing in innovation. This credit applies to businesses that develop new products, processes, or technologies or improve existing ones. To qualify, expenses must be related to qualified research activities, including wages, supplies, and contract research expenses. The credit can offset income tax liability, and for eligible small businesses, it can also offset payroll taxes.

Small Business Health Care Tax Credit

The Small Business Health Care Tax Credit is designed to help small businesses afford the cost of providing health insurance to their employees. To qualify, a business must have fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees, pay average wages below a certain threshold (adjusted annually for inflation), and pay at least 50% of the employees' health insurance premiums. The credit can cover up to 50% of the premiums paid, making it a significant benefit for small employers.

Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC)

The WOTC provides incentives for businesses to hire individuals from targeted groups who face significant barriers to employment. These groups include veterans, individuals receiving government assistance, ex-felons, and others. The credit amount varies based on the employee's target group, wages paid, and hours worked, but it can be as high as $9,600 per employee. This credit not only supports business growth but also promotes diversity and inclusion in the workforce.

Disabled Access Credit

Small businesses that incur expenses to make their facilities accessible to persons with disabilities may qualify for the Disabled Access Credit. This credit is available to businesses with gross receipts of $1 million or less or fewer than 30 full-time employees. It covers 50% of eligible expenses, up to a maximum of $10,250, for a maximum credit of $5,000. Eligible expenses include removing architectural barriers, providing interpreters, and acquiring adaptive equipment.

Energy Efficiency Credits

Various tax credits are available for small businesses that invest in energy-efficient technologies. The Business Energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC) allows businesses to deduct a percentage of the cost of installing renewable energy systems, such as solar, wind, and geothermal. The credit percentage varies by technology but can be as high as 30%. Additionally, deductions are available for energy-efficient commercial building property under Section 179D, which provides incentives for installing energy-efficient lighting, heating, cooling, and building envelope systems.

New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC)

The NMTC program encourages investment in low-income communities by providing tax credits to investors. Businesses located in qualified low-income communities can benefit from increased access to capital, as investors receive a tax credit worth 39% of the original investment over seven years. This program helps small businesses in underserved areas grow and create jobs, contributing to community revitalization.

Employer-Provided Child Care Credit

The Employer-Provided Child Care Credit incentivizes businesses to support their employees with child care. Businesses can claim a credit of up to 25% of the expenses incurred for providing child care facilities and services, plus an additional 10% for child care resource and referral services. The maximum credit is $150,000 per year, making it an attractive benefit for both employers and employees.

Conclusion

Navigating the landscape of tax credits and incentives can be complex, but the financial benefits for small businesses are substantial. By leveraging these programs, businesses can reduce their tax liabilities, invest in growth and innovation, and support their employees. Small business owners need to stay informed about available credits and consult with tax professionals offering tax planning for small business owners in Fort Worth TX to maximize their benefits and ensure compliance with all regulations. Taking advantage of these incentives can make a significant difference in the financial health and long-term success of a small business.

[mareastrorum]

These are just initial thoughts, and perhaps I’ll learn something that changes my mind on it, but I’m glad to see Critical Role making the leap to their own subscription service with Beacon.

As a lead in: I’m an attorney that has some background in IP law, though it isn’t what I practice currently. I’ve kept in contact with several active practitioners, particularly those that represent small-time creators either in their own independent practice or via nonprofits. I do not have an extensive Rolodex of IP peers, nor do I spend the money to keep up on IP CLEs. I’m just someone who used to know a ton because I did heavy research and work in that space, and that hasn’t been the case for years.

So here’s my thoughts a bit on the IP angle:

The primary reason I’m happy to see this leap is that CR is taking active steps to keep control over its IP. It’s a boring thing to most people, but when I start paying attention to a specific creator (authors, directors, companies, etc.), I tend to be very attentive to how they use their IP. How freely do they license their marks to partner with other creators to make merch? How often do they allow others to make adaptations or derivatives of their copyrights? What is the quality of those products? What is the supply chain like? Are those third parties objectionable in some way? Were the other parties faithful to the original works or marks? Was this a cash grab or an earnest effort to make something worth the price tag?

Honestly, I like how CR run their business. They have a history of tapping fans and fellow small businesses when making new merch or spinoffs. They embrace the culture of fan-made derivative works, both by featuring fanart/cosplay and by sharing their success. Do you know how rare it is for a company to pay fan artists for their already-made and freely posted work and then sell books of it? Let me be clear: CR bought a limited license from each artist so they could print and sell each work in a physical book, then paid the cost of publishing that book with no guarantee that CR would make that money back, let alone profit. I have a copy of the collector’s edition art books: they’re actually very well made and the packaging definitely cost a pretty penny. That’s not a rainmaker idea, that’s genuinely risking financial loss to sell something people could access for free if they wanted to.

The art books aren’t a one-off either. Darrington Press is CR’s separate LLC for tabletop games. (It’s good business practice to split off companies that handle products in different industries.) CR has also made shows based on those games, and the Candela Obscura series has quite a dedicated audience. Everything about Candela belongs to them: the game itself, the rule book, all the art in the book, the web series based on the game, and merch. It’s so successful that they invested in scheduling a live show for Candela later this month. That’s HUGE.

Contrast that with the distribution of Campaign 1 and the first 19 episodes of Campaign 2. CR cannot host those videos themselves; Geek & Sundry still exists and still holds what I presume to be distribution rights (but I don’t have the contract to review). So G&S gets to host those videos on YouTube and reaps the advertising. I can’t speak to whatever share CR gets from that, but considering that CR is locked out of hosting their own copies of those videos, I doubt it’s much, if any, revenue. (If you’re wondering why CR just didn’t buy those rights back, I ask: what incentive does G&S have to sell something that’s making them money for no cost?)

Knowing that background about G&S, I was wary of CR choosing Amazon to host and distribute The Legend of Vox Machina. Originally, TLOVM was not the plan; CR had a kickstarter for an animated special based on C1. It was only because they blew past the goal that CR was able to make an entire season. The reasonable assumption is that choosing Amazon had to have secured CR additional funding for future seasons of the show, which seems evident from how quickly season 2 was announced, Mighty Nein Animated is also going to be a thing, and that season 3 of TLVOM is scheduled for fall 2024. CR had the option of just doing 1 season and keeping it purely in their control, but going with Amazon meant they could animate more of their works. Animation is expensive. I cannot stress enough how doubtful I am that CR would have been able to afford this many episodes and both campaigns if they had not gone this route. As wary as I was in the start, it paid off, and it’s going well—so far. Hopefully CR doesn’t regret that decision if Amazon tries something sleazy. But, as before, we don’t have the contracts and can’t know how secure CR’s position is if any dispute came up.

CR also partnered with Dark Horse Comics to make Vox Machina comics and Might Nein Origins comics. What’s especially surprising is that each of the cast had a hand in writing the MNO comics for their characters, with Matt listed for multiple. That isn’t very common with comic adaptations. Often times, IP owners let comic companies go ham with minimal oversight. Being listed as one of the authors comes with IP rights that have to be negotiated. That means that Dark Horse had to talk with CR about whether that warrants more or less revenue going to which party in exchange for that—or, alternatively, whether the comic gets made at all. That’s a ballsy move. You think people can just demand to write the comics that a publishing company is going to pay to print? Pffft. CR wanted some creative control, and that is a big ask. However, Dark Horse still has the distribution rights, both digitally and for physical copies. You couldn’t buy the comics from CR until they came out with the library edition, a book bound compilation of 4/8 comics. But the publisher is still Dark Horse; CR is just allowed to sell the book directly from their own site as well.

Contrast that with the novels about CR characters. CR partnered with Penguin Random House to publish novels about Vex and Vax (Kith & Kin), Lucien (The Nine Eyes of Lucien), and Laudna (What Doesn’t Break). Liam and Laura were vocal about having some say in K&K, whereas Madeline Roux said in an interview that she had full control over TNEOL. Both of those novels were narrated with CR voices, but narrating a book doesn’t come with IP rights, it just brings in a paycheck. There’s a lot less IP control in there compared to the comics, but this isn’t abnormal for book publishing. To be blunt, I doubt PRH would have agreed to publish the novels if anyone from CR had been a co-author or had heavy oversight over the author or the editing. I don’t think PRH even considered that as an option. Either an author that has already managed to sell X number of copies or nothing. Creative control over a book a huge ask, asks come with reduced revenue, and switching to books from a web series is already a leap. The fact that Laura and Liam had any say is surprising, really.

That was a long meandering tour of what we’ve seen CR do with its IP. The reason I bring up each of these things is that navigating the way to protect an IP in this space is rife with challenges. Different types of IP warrant different strategies because of the cost involved in creating each medium and the challenges placed by industries that have already sprung up around them. Any time that a third party is tapped to create an IP, it’s usually because they already have the funds and resources to create the work, and CR has to negotiate for revenue, creative control, distribution, and—the big one—who gets to be the owner. These are not easy, quick, or fun conversations, and CR is always going to be the smaller company at the table.

Knowing that, I’m not surprised or worried that CR is creating its own independent subscription service with Beacon. It tells me that they’re being careful with their IP whenever they can. A subscription service means they don’t have to trade away distribution rights or give up ad revenue to a third party. They’re in this for a long term investment, and that requires solid income not tied to third parties that can definitely outspend them in litigation in the event of a dispute. A subscription for bonus content is one of many parts in a diverse revenue stream.

(All that said, this isn’t meant to criticize creators that cant afford to do this type of thing. It took 9 years for CR to get to the point where Beacon is financially feasible and a desirable business decision. They have enough ongoing, popular content to warrant paying for a subscription, and they’ve built sufficient trust with their audience that more will be added. That takes time and an awful lot of money.)

As a final note, I take this step as a sign that CR definitely intends to stick around. This isn’t a move people make when they plan on ending the business after the current campaign. I’m glad to see CR is taking steps to secure their foundation and keep making new content.

I’m sure people will chime in on other issues (cost, content exclusivity, etc.), but I hope my perspective gives an idea of why this sort of thing is good for business generally and why it would be good for CR.

[emmyrosee]

“Mrs Kodzuken said if I win this I can see her boobs, so I need you to throw this.”

There’s a few chortles and some actual laughter the rings through the discord call, all voices that haven’t changed a bit since high school. Even with ridiculously busy schedules and time zone differences, they always reserved Thursday’s to either play a game or watch movies over discord.

Tonight, was no different. Fukunaga, Lev, and Kuroo stood absolutely no chance in beating Kenma this game, but the lighthearted joke seemed to reignite the group.

“Why do we have to lose so you can see boobs?” Fukunaga asks incredulously.

“Yeah!” Lev chimes. “Aren’t you married or something?”

“It’s because Kenma still giggles when he sees titties,” kuroo teases, and Kenma offers him an eye roll that he’s sure his friend can’t see, but knows him well enough to know he did.

“We are, and I do, but it hits different when you get incentive to win. So, with all due respect, choke.”

It’s the last few turns, ready to end the game for the night. Lev’s already lost his stars to Fukunaga, now he’s just playing for fun, pretending his saltiness is real to keep the mood silly, Kuroo being as cocky as ever.

But it’s obvious, to everyone in the call, that Kenma is going to win this round. By a long shot.

Kenma smirks softly to himself when he hears the door creak open and your socked feet shuffle over the hardwood and small rug in the center of his gaming room.

“You have the stealth of a turd in the toilet,” he says, ignoring his friends laughing as he hears you giggle. He swivels the chair to let you plop on his thigh, watching fondly as you get comfortable.

“I just didn’t know if you wanted me in here,” you hum, looping your arms around his neck.

“You know you don’t have to ask to be in here,” he scoffs, smiling. “You wanna come play?”

You shake your head and nudge your nose against his temple, “no… just wanted to be next to you.” You take an inhale against the warm skin of his neck, “missed you.”

“Don’t sniff me like that,” he snorts. “I haven’t showered.”

“Hey, snugglebug!” Kuroo’s voice teases through the headset, causing kenma to roll his eyes again and pause the game to give you his full attention.

“What’s up, baby?”

You smile and squeeze him tighter, “I just wanted to see you… I know Thursday’s are for the boys, but-“

“Fuck the boys,” he mumbles. Again, there’s a chorus of ‘hey!’s that come from his headset and you laugh to yourself. He clicks his tongue and mutes himself and the chat, shifting slightly in his chair to cradle what he can of you. “You just feeling needy?”

You nod softly, cheeks splitting into a smile when he noses your temple affectionately. “I’ll be down soon I’d you wanted to watch some YouTube or something.” You nod against him and he resumes the game to let you watch. “Alright boys, most important member of the band’s back.”

“I didn’t miss you,” Kuroo says confidently.

You do smile wider as you shift easily to watch the battle mini game that’s breaking out between Fukunaga and Kuroo, their screams of distress ringing over the call as you watch.

Fukunaga wins. Kuroo shrieks.

“Alright,” you sigh. “I’ll leave you alone.” You slip from Kenma’s lap swiftly, and he watches fondly. “I just wanted to see Kuroo lose.”

“You wound me,” his voice snarls over the call.

You snicker before stretching softly, and Kenma thinks nothing of it at first.

Then, his brow twitches. In his peripheral, he sees you hide your laughter. He sniffs the air, and feels fond embarrassment settle in his soul.

“Are you kidding?”

Your giggles can be heard on the discord call.

Lev, clearly confused, offers Kenma a quick “what happened?”

“Why do you do that every time I’m playing my games?”

“Why do what?” Kuroo chimes.

“You gotta come across the damn house to fart in my damn office?”

This, now, has the entire call cackling, gawfs and wheezes breaking through and cutting over the mics, and while you cackle and dash out of the door to leave him alone with your… smell, he shakes his head as the results load.

He’ll get you back later.

And as anticipated, Kenma won, and Fukunaga seems to be the only one handling the loss.

Kuroo and Lev? Not so much.

“BY THREE COINS!” Kuroo shrieks, mic cutting out at his distress. “I LOST BY THREE FUCKIN’ COINS?!”

“I LOST ALL MY STARS ON MY LAST TURN, KUROO,” Lev screams back. “GET OVER YOUR GODDAMNED THREE COINS!”

“THAT HURTS MORE, YOU FUCKHEAD!”

“Dunno what their problem is,” he sighs contently, smirking softly to himself. “I’m seeing boobs tonight.”

“You know what man, I’m proud of you.” There’s only a hint of sarcasm falling from Fukunaga’s tone, but Kenma decides to take it as the bickering of the other two fills the call once again.

Kenma decides, among the yelling and teasing and your fart-filled-affection, it’s a Thursday he’s always down to enjoy.

“Have fun with your boobs.”

“Oh, I will.”