#so when he ended up taking more of a right hand man role the team finally started to see more authority in him

[blanceyblance]

Lance ended up being the closest thing the paladins had to a Team/Space Mom since he was usually being the one giving pep talks to the leader figures or being approached by them to talk. He was also usually very protective of other members of the team and took more of a caretaker role in later seasons. In this essay I will

[bunny-jpeg]

well behaved

capt. john price

tags: smut/pwp, married life, wife!reader, husband!price, (house) wife kink, dresses, missionary position & mating press, misogyny, darker themes

price ran his team tightly. he had to. it was life or death, and the manner in which he ran his team, he saw great success. so it was only natural for price to run his home the same way. while it wasn't like a military task force, it was still ran with set roles and tasks for all members. he was the husband and you the wife.

and being the wife of john price meant tasks steeped in tradition. price wanted a proper woman to be his wife and expected only the best from you.

"don't touch those, john." you smacked price's hand away lightly, "they're for dinner, silly." then leaned over to kiss him on the lips.

"ah, sorry, lovie. couldn't help myself." he replied, "you know how much i love watchin' ya cook dinner. even the carrots." he leaned over and pinched your behind as he watched you continue to cook for a moment longer. his gaze lingered for a moment before he went back to the living room to watch the same.

that was your task, to take care of the home. you cooked price's meals and served it to him. he loved your cooking, to him you cooked like a proper chef and you were all his!

you got the roast out of the oven and asked in your sweet tone, "honey, do you want to eat at the table or in front of the television?"

"table's good, petal." he replied before he got up with a slight huff from the couch and with his beer headed to the table. he watched you serve dinner and when you finally sat down, you had your own plate of dinner. the missus gotta eat too!

price eyes the roast,but then eyed you across the table. in the dress you wore. you often wore dresses and fine jewellery. you had to look like a respectable wife after all! not the slags who called themselves 'barrack bunnies' that mactavish brought him. you were price's good girl.

before you could start your meal, price gestured for you to come to him for a moment. you obeyed and price pulled you onto his lap. he kept a strong arm around you. "my missus made this all for me, huh?" he pulled you a little closer. he got some of the mashed potatoes on the fork and fed it to you.

you replied, "no, you eat!"

"oh, don't worry. if i'm still hungry. i'll just have you." he said as his thick fingers touched your inner thigh. "pretty thing." he cooed as he played with your soft skin as he ate. in the process he fed you parts of his dinner.

price's task of the unit was to work and take care of you. you took care of the home and he made sure you wanted for nothing. if the rock on your finger was anything to go by, you were well taken care of.

"mmm, john. honey."

he chuckled beofre he kissed your cheek, "gotta take care of the wife. can't have an unhappy home." he continued to eat, only pulling his hand away from you when he had to cut the meat with a steak knife.

but even your amazing roast was nothing compared to your sweet cunt. that of course meant that you couldn't even finish cleaning up the dishes before your husband had you hoisted into his arms and headed to the bedroom.

price loved to keep you up. only right for a husband to feel up his wife. he loved his big, calloused hands on your round behind or your soft hips. he groped you as he unzipped your dress once he finally put you down on the bed. he then got you out of your string of pearls. you really did live a fairly charmed life.

your husband continued to strip you free of your clothes and he licked his lips at the sight of you when you were in only your push-up bra. he then got you out of it then felt up your bare breasts. he toyed with your nipples using his thumbs.

"my woman." he said, "nabbed yourself an older man who loved to make a mess of your pretty pussy. your love men who are bigger, hairier and who can fold you in half to ruin your cunt." he eyed you up and down, "i bet she misses me, huh?"

you blushed even more and you ended up splayed out in bed under your husband. he rubbed your hefty cock up against you. you swallowed when you felt the blunt head right up against you.

"my beautiful wife. so perfect for me. from the meals you cook to the cunt that keeps my boys safe. no need to masturbate when i got myself a wife to fuck every night. making me food, keepin' my house clean. you have no need to think too hard when you have a husband to do it for you." he sank into you and he watched your back arch. your cunt tight around him as he started to fuck you.

mrs. price's cunt was heaven on earth.

"mmm, john!" you whined loudly. the blunt head of your husband's cock hit deep inside of you. it felt like he was past your cervix and you knew very well that john price was a womb bruiser.

he continued to move against you, he eyed you as he thrusts. he admired your soft breasts. they moved as price rocked into you. it left him hypnotized. price kept his weight onto you, he kept you pinned to the bed. you were his wife and you'd take every inch he gave you. you whined under him and he admired you. every curve you held. the softness of your body. you were a heavenly, beautiful goddess. price's loving wife.

he bullied his cock inside of you. your burly, string husband who could melt you with the warmth of his love. while your marriage was a little more traditional and a little unconventional but, you felt more loved and adored than with any other man you could ever love. your older, strong husband would always love you. he'd die for you. so it was only fair you kept him satisfied

and that wasn't hard given how obsessed he was with your pretty little cunt. no other way to die than between the legs of his missus. "you're beautiful under me, lovie. you look like heaven under me. takin' me like no one else." he chuckled, "that's my petal, takin' your husband beautifully."

you moaned a little louder as he continued to fuck your soaked cunt. this was everything. price didn't need a woman with a forty hour work week. no, he needed a wife to care for the home. to care for him. you spoiled him with love and he spoiled you with whatever you desired. whatever you craved.

that was what a proper man did for his wife, he made sure you were taken care of. he loved the sight of you as he fucked you. your knees were hiked up and his cock pushed into your further given the new angle. price knew he was a bruiser and he loved it when his pretty little wife's pussy took him. the sweet thing he got to make a mess of every night.

he moved further and laid heavy kisses on you. he couldn't get enough of you. you drove him mad. no wonder he did everything to make sure you were taken care of.

he was addicted to his wife, his little housewife.

"ah, honey." you moaned a little louder, the pleasure was realy working through you. right up to your core. price's heavy thrusts sent shocks through your blood and your achy core yearned for him. he was a good husband. a traditional one, but he loved you and you loved him. you tensed up at the hot feeling in your gut. everything felt alive in your body was you needed him. you relied on your husband, even for things like orgasms.

"ah, please!" you whined loudly. you sounded almost desperate as price fucked you faster. you felt the fire in your belly as he nudged his cock up against you.

price's pace lost focus and the man was relying on instinct to get you both to climax. you felt the immense heat take you over as the older man roughly fucked you. your sweet moans sounded whorish as he made you finish.

"beautiful petal. you know how to drive me crazy." he laugh, a little out of breath as he worked your achy pussy through climax. the stimulation made your mind go blank for a moment. he loved you, he loved your cunt. loved it so much that he didn't last much longer. it was like you had him under a spell. anything you want, you got.

price fucked you through his climax and made sure every drop of him was safe in your gummy soft pussy. he pressed his forehead against yours when he slowed to a stop. he kissed you lazily with a lot of tongue as he pressed his softening cock as deep as i would go. you made the ideal wife for him.

and in return price did anything for his missus <3

[bweeeb]

SWEETNESS

PEDRO PASCAL × READER

Summary: After an interview, the casua thing between you and Pedro ends up making the public suspect that he is not denying someone who is twenty-three years old.

warnings: nothing major, very cute, age difference but both are adults (obviously), bad writing maybe. Enjoy.

— So, according to the recordings, I think we all saw how close you two have become. How has that been?

You and Pedro smiled at the woman, who seemed to be around 35, interviewing you both.

The curiosity in her eyes was obvious.

— I think it’s been time well spent.

Pedro said, laughing and glancing at you, who was already laughing even before speaking.

— I think our characters demanded a connection of...

— Hatred and anger.

Pedro interrupted you, and you laughed loudly.

— Yes. That’s why I’ve been spending the past few months figuring out which tool is best for channeling hatred towards someone.

— Our makeup team has been covering up all the damage we’ve been doing to each other.

Pedro added, and your extravagant laughter made him laugh as well. You two really were doing some damage to each other, but that was your little secret.

— You can clearly see you can’t stand being around each other.

— No, we can’t.

You said with a smile, waiting for the next questio

— And the movie tackles a delicate theme about relationships and age gaps. What made you both accept such controversial roles? Especially you, Pedro...I���m sure you’ve broken all the minds of 20-something girls with this film.

— He definitely has.

— I don’t know what it is with you all nowadays, thinking an old guy like me is attractive. The conversation shifted back to you and Pedro, and the interviewer smiled with amusement. The chemistry between you two was undeniable, even more than you realized.

— Because you’re a man, you give off the feeling of being a man but don’t have to prove it. You know what I mean? You understand me?

You asked the interviewer, who nodded, agreeing that it was indeed a big difference.

— Of course, I’m a man, but an old one.

— Shut up and answer the question.

You said, laughing, as Pedro gave you a mock-offended look in his usual dramatic way.

— Honestly, I wasn’t going to take the role. When I got the audition, I just said, "Nope." But a lot of people kept telling me I’d be the perfect Nick for the book adaptation, and I hate disappointing my fans.

— So you still wouldn’t date someone in their twenties? Maybe?

— No.

Pedro quickly denied it, and you wanted to roll your eyes but didn’t.

— And you, darling?

Nice deflection, you thought, almost laughing at him.

— Ahm, I gave it a lot of thought, especially about the nude scenes I was informed of before accepting the role. I didn’t want to freak out my family. But once I learned more about the characters, I discovered the adaptation was from a book I love, so I couldn’t say no.

— That’s amazing. I heard you even got a real piercing for one of the scenes in the movie. Are you wearing it now?

The question was directed at you, and you smiled painfully, moving your hair away to reveal the piercings you got during filming.

— I added thirds and a helix. Yep, these guys are fine. — You pointed at the piercings farthest from the cartilage. — But I’ll be honest, this one is hurting a lot right now. I was even going to ask if someone could help me after this because it didn’t hurt this much when I got it done.

You laughed, and both the interviewer and Pedro looked at you with concern. Pedro leaned closer, moving your hair from your neck.

— Oh, crap, darling, it’s swollen. You need to take care of this. — He said in such a calm voice that even if the interview ended right then, the audience would already be glued to the screen. — Do you want to stop?

— I’m fine, thank you.

Without even realizing it, you brushed your thumb against Pedro’s wrist, where his hand rested on your neck to examine you.

Later, the interview was posted, and you almost laughed at how fast the channel edited it. Your ear was still throbbing like it was being pierced again, and lying on the couch, you felt like crying—not because it hurt that much, but because you hated the feeling of discomfort in your body.

— Darling?

You heard Pedro call you and looked over the back of the couch to see him smiling at you.

— Now I’ve finally wrapped everything up. No calls. Ugh. — He flopped onto the couch, and noticing your silence, he looked at you oddly. — What’s wrong?

— Nothing.

You denied it, not wanting to worry him.

— Look at me and say that.

He raised an eyebrow and laughed, sitting cross-legged on the couch.

— Nothing.

— Come on, baby, your ear is hurting, isn’t it?

You murmured your agreement. He then places a hand on your neck and places a kiss on your lips, you move closer, deepening the kiss until he pulls you into his chest, on the side that didn’t hurt.

— I’m sorry about this.

— It’s not your fault.

— No, but you seem exhausted by the pain, and I’m sorry for that.

— Thank you. Have you seen what everyone’s saying?

— I haven’t.

— You’re a terrible liar. They’re calling you a liar. You laughed, feeling comforted in his embrace.

— Me? A liar? Yo nunca mentiría.

— You’re a liar and ridiculously hot when you speak Spanish. “Oh, I’d never date anyone in their twenties,” and two seconds later, “And you, darling?”

— What’s wrong with that?

— Friends don’t call friends “darling.” Like, we’re friends who hook up, but you get my point.

You thought for a second and worried you’d sounded over the top in the classification you seemed to be giving you two.

— You’ve been the most argumentative exception I’ve ever made.

He said, and you nodded in agreement.

— I hope I am. I’d hate to find out another young woman took my spot as a legend.

— Legend for what?

— For being the youngest person in the world to hook up with the ridiculously hot Pedro Pascal. You said, and he laughed loudly. You didn’t know how far this would go, but you intended to enjoy the sweetness of that man for as long as it lasted

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

I hope everybody enjoy this.

Requests are opened!

[supernovafics]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄

pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader

word count: 11.7k words

summary: in which you and steve have the brilliant (and slightly insane) idea to try to get your bosses to date because maybe it’ll make your jobs and lives easier 

warnings: modern!au, explicit language, one too many clueless references, drinking/alcohol mentions (drunk!reader and drunk!steve moment toward the end)

note: i didn’t expect this to become as long as it did but here we are now<3 set it up nation please rise! this is very much inspired by that movie (that is in fact one of my favorites) and i was rewatching it a few months ago and it made me want to do something similar-ish. enjoy<333

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: i bet you ten bucks my night is going worse than yours 

YOU: that’s definitely impossible so i will happily take that bet and your money 

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: remember how i’ve been doing todd’s son’s science project for the past week?

YOU: yeah because the kid sucks at science

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: i finally finished it and gave it to todd today. he hated it and ripped it to shreds right in front of my face (i kinda blame this dumbass juice diet he’s on for him being much more of an asshole than usual). anyway, now i’m gonna have to spend all night doing a new project 

YOU: holy fuck

YOU: you win

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: i would like cash please 

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: what bullshit are you being subjected to right now? 

YOU: at 8 kristen said she didn’t want dinner because she wasn’t going to be “staying late tonight.” and then twenty minutes ago she asked me where her dinner was and gave me the most annoyed look when i said i didn’t have it….

YOU: now i’m waiting in the lobby for a delivery guy to get here with pasta :)

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: ouch

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: want some company down there?

YOU: are you just asking that because you want your money?

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: maybe….

YOU: evil man!

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

“The joke’s on you because I don’t have ten bucks right now, so you’ll have to wait until tomorrow for your money,” You told Steve when he walked into the lobby. 

“I was lying. I don’t care about the money. I really came down here to keep you company,” He said as he joined you by the front door. 

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at him. “Oh, whatever.”

He only smiled at you. “So, how much longer until the delivery guy gets here?”

You took another look at your phone and then showed it to Steve. “Less than a minute. His car’s down the street.”

“How annoyed is Kristen?”

“She got pulled into a Zoom call with the team in LA right after scolding me, so I’m ninety-five percent sure she hasn’t noticed I’m gone yet.”

“That’s good.”

“Is Todd gone for the night?” 

You kind of had a feeling that you already knew the answer to your question because Steve looked more relaxed than normal; his white button-up shirt was untucked from his nice black dress pants and the tie that was around his neck and tucked under the collar of his shirt was loosened too. 

“Yeah, he left right after destroying the science project.”

You shook your head in disbelief. “I still can’t believe that happened.”

Steve let out a tired sigh that you were certain wouldn’t be his last of the night. “What’s another suitable project for a fifth grader?”

“Sorry, but I’m not brushed up on the current fifth-grade education system,” You joked, giving him a teasing smile. When he didn’t match it, you held up your hands in mock surrender. “Okay, sorry, I’ll save all my jokes for when this is no longer a problem for you.”

His lips twitched upward in the smallest amused smile. “How many do you have?”

“Oh, a full stand-up set pretty much, but I’ll save it for tomorrow,” You said, trying to make your voice sound as serious as possible. 

He smiled wider then and seeing him look at least a little less stressed felt like a success in your book. You knew that he would’ve done the same for you if the roles were reversed in this moment, and there were many times when he had done the same. Made a joke when you didn’t even know you needed to hear one, but it still made your day better, or told you a random story about nothing when you needed a breather from thinking about work. 

This friendship you two had made your job feel a thousand times more bearable, and you were so glad that you met him eight months ago. That abrupt introduction had been another middle-of-the-night lobby situation like this one; when it seemed like everyone in the building was done and gone for the day, except for you two and your workaholic bosses. Both of you were waiting for meals from the same diner, which you didn’t even realize until your separate delivery drivers almost mixed up the orders. It was a mix-up that was luckily fixed before it descended into a bigger issue with your respective bosses. 

You two ended up talking a lot on the elevator ride up to your floors and found out just how much you two had in common— both of you being assistants to insane bosses— and the rest was history. 

“Thank you. That’s very considerate,” Steve said to you now, placing a dramatic hand over his heart, which made you laugh.

Before you could say something to keep this playful banter going, you noticed the car pulling up in front of the building. You met the delivery guy halfway and let out a quick “Thanks” when he handed over the food to you. You did a quick look through of what was in the bag and smiled in relief when you saw that everything was there. 

“How long do you think you’re gonna have to stay tonight?” Steve asked you on the elevator ride back up. 

“No idea,” You took a look down at your phone. “She’ll probably eat this once her Zoom call ends in thirty minutes, and then hopefully want to leave for the night.”

“Nice, then you’ll actually be able to get more than four hours of sleep.”

“Fingers crossed.”

The elevator came to its stop on the fifteenth floor and the doors opened, which marked your cue to leave. 

You took a few steps and then turned around to face Steve again, giving him a quick wave. “Good luck tonight, Harrington.”

“Thank you. I’m gonna need it,” He responded, waving back as the doors finished closing. 

You avoided looking at all of the empty cubicles that took over the space in the office— desks that had been left hours ago— and simply went to your desk that sat right outside Kristen’s office. You could faintly hear her talking through the shut glass door. 

You used the downtime to busy yourself with random work rather than doing anything remotely interesting or simply taking a break and doing nothing. You double-checked what Kristen’s calendar schedule looked like for the next few weeks and made sure that everything was in order, and then you went to your work email although nothing new had come in in the last thirty minutes. 

When the time hit 10:03pm and you heard the door open and then saw Kristen walk out, you stood up from your chair and grabbed the bag with the food off your desk. 

“Hi, I have your dinner here.”

She gave you a confused look and it was then that you noticed that her coat was on and her purse was hanging on her shoulder. “I don’t want that. It was supposed to be an early night, remember? I’ll see you in the morning.”

You nodded immediately at her words instead of doing anything else. You, of course, did not tell her that she had asked you to get her food, and you of course definitely did not ask her if ten o’clock could really be considered an “early night” given that the night was pretty much already halfway done and it was basically Friday. 

Nope, you didn’t say any of that, because even though Kristen was nothing but contradictory at times, which made your job absolutely suck, you still liked having one at the end of the day. 

“Okay, got it. See you tomorrow,” You told her, forcing a smile. 

She nodded at you and then her eyes fell to her phone as she walked off. 

You let out a tired sigh once you were certain she was out of earshot and then sat down once again. You could’ve grabbed your own jacket and bag and followed suit, leaving for the night and getting more than four hours of sleep just as Steve had mentioned and you had crossed your fingers in the elevator hoping it would happen. 

However, you didn’t slip on your coat or reach under your desk to grab your bag. Instead, you pulled out your phone.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

YOU: kristen’s gone for the night

YOU: do you want help with the science project?

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: please yes. definitely. thank you.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

You and Steve stared at the blank tri-fold poster board as you two ate the Alfredo pasta that had been meant for Kristen. 

The idea for the project had already been decided; it was some sort of chemical reaction thing, seeing how food coloring and dish soap react to being put in different types of milk. Steve showed you a video about it and it actually seemed really cool. 

After finishing the pasta, doing the experiment itself took less than thirty minutes because everything you needed for it was luckily spread about both of your break rooms and then it was just a matter of typing everything up and making the poster board look nice. 

“So, where does this situation lie on the worst things Todd has ever made you do? Is it breaking the top three?” You asked as you stood next to the printer on Steve’s desk and he typed away on his laptop. 

“Definitely,” He didn't hesitate to answer. “I think this takes the third spot that was previously held by him making me drive to the airport two hours away to pick up his mom.”

“Fuck, I always forget about that,” You told him. “If we knew each other when that happened a year ago, I would’ve happily gone with you. I love a long car ride.” 

“And I would’ve definitely taken you up on that offer because that was the worst drive ever.”

“God, how did you survive before we knew each other existed eight months ago?” You asked jokingly and hearing his initial laugh in response made you smile. 

“It was really hard, I honestly don’t know how I managed,” He responded playfully, making you smile wider. “Has your top three with Kristen changed recently?” 

“Nope, the third is the cheese incident, the second is the dog thing, and the first is still all of the shit I had to do the day she interviewed her favorite director for the website.”

You still considered that the worst day you ever had being Kristen’s assistant. She had wanted to make sure that everything was perfect for that interview she had been working for months to get with the infamous Matt Scott, so you had gotten stuck with doing a bunch of tedious tasks. It was still hard for you to look at Skittles and not feel immediate disdain because you had to sort through so many packs of them that day since he weirdly only liked the red and yellow ones. 

The only good thing that came out of that day was that the interview went really well and it was what skyrocketed the website into how big it currently was, and it was still growing. 

You remembered when you randomly stumbled upon the website three years ago. It was a mix of reviews, essays, and articles discussing movies and television shows, all of which interested you a lot, and you liked the website so much that you continuously kept up with it. And the day that you found out that the woman behind the entire thing needed an assistant, you jumped at the opportunity. It didn’t take you too long to realize that you hated being an assistant, but you were really good at it and you also really loved being a part of that environment; surrounded by other people who loved movies and TV and were actually making a living out of writing about it. 

“I just learned that Todd loves one of the horror movies that that director did. ‘The Damned’ something I can’t remember the full title of it,” Steve said, not looking up from his laptop and continuing to type as he talked. He was a weirdly good multitasker; you’d learned that early on in your friendship, but it still always really impressed you. 

“The Damned Rabbit,” You told him as you started cutting out the pictures on the pages you just printed. “That’s Kristen’s favorite too. I can usually stomach most horror movies, but that one was way too gory for me.” 

“Do you think I would like it?”

“Didn’t you say that you got scared watching the Goosebumps show when you were a kid?” 

Steve looked away from his laptop and at you then. “I honestly don’t remember telling you that, but yeah that’s true.” 

You shrugged. “I remember all conversations we have regarding any TV shows or movies.” 

His head tilted a bit and he gave you a look that you didn’t take notice of because you were focused on properly cutting out the pictures. “And I’m assuming you’re using that information to judge me and my taste.” 

“No, of course not,” You told him, making your voice sound completely serious, and then you smiled. “I already know you have shit taste in movies, so there’s no need for me to collect any more data about that.”  

He placed an overdramatic hand over his heart. “Ouch, that hurts. Truly. Badly.”

You couldn’t help but laugh as you finally looked at him. “Sorry, that was mean.”

“Very much so,” Steve agreed with a nod. “Please take that back and admit that I have the best taste ever.”   

You shook your head as you smiled. “I’d rather not lie to you right now.”  

He playfully rolled his eyes at you and then went back to focusing on his laptop. He finished typing out everything and then printed it all and you helped him cut everything out once you were done with the pictures. You two then set everything up in what felt like good places on the tri-fold and glued it down. The project definitely looked rushed, but it also looked like a fifth grader did it, so in your eyes it was perfect. And by the time one in the morning rolled around, both your and Steve’s tired eyes and lack of sleep thought it was the best thing either of you had ever done. 

“I can’t wait until Christmas comes and he goes to New Jersey to visit his family,” Steve said as you two began the cleanup process. “I think I’m gonna go into hibernation for that entire week.”

You nodded in agreement, balling up scraps of paper and tossing them into the garbage and deciding against reminding him that Christmas was over two months away, and then you remembered something. “Kristen’s also from New Jersey.”

“Small world,” Steve said. “Y’know our bosses are actually really alike. Even aside from them being assholes a lot of the time, they kinda have a lot in common. From the same state, same favorite movie, same favorite food place.”

You nodded along to his words again, thinking about the fact that them both loving that small mom-and-pop diner twenty minutes away was the reason why you and Steve had met in the first place. “Yeah, you’re right.”  

“Honestly, they’d probably be perfect for each other,” Steve joked with a laugh. 

And even though you knew he was joking, you immediately didn’t see it that way. 

“Oh my god,” You stopped what you were doing and looked at Steve, who was now looking at you very confused. “You’re right.” 

His eyebrows furrowed as he shook his head. “I was kidding.” 

“Yes, I know you were, but you’re actually so right. They would be perfect for each other,” You told him. “We should set them up.” 

Steve only shook his head again. “Alright, I think the sleep deprivation is getting to you because you’re saying insane things right now. We’re not gonna get our bosses to date.”

You ignored his words. “I can’t believe we didn’t think of this idea before. It’s just like Clueless.”

“Okay, I have no idea what we’re talking about anymore.” 

“You haven’t seen Clueless?”

“No.”

“Wow, and you wonder why I say your taste in movies is bad,” You said and then shook your head. “So, there’s this one part where the main girl decides to set up two of her teachers because one of them is a hard grader. And once he’s happy and in love, he starts giving all of the students good grades and whatever, whatever. Anyway, all of that to say, if we set up our bosses and they’re happy and in love with each other then they probably won’t be assholes to us anymore.” 

After a few moments of considering your words, Steve nodded. “Honestly, that’s kind of a good idea.”

“Exactly,” You said and smiled. You were still very tired, but you were now also hit with a random burst of energy at the thought of your job maybe becoming a lot less annoying.

“So, how do we do this?” Steve asked.

You considered his question for a second. “Okay, so as far as we both know they’ve never met each other, which means that we need to get them to meet and we need to give them a good meet cute.” 

“Okay…” Steve started, thinking of something as he sat back down in his desk chair and you leaned back against the desk. He looked up at you. “What about the elevator? Maybe we can figure out a way to get them stuck in it together? That’s a classic ‘meet cute,’ right?”

“That’s good, but it doesn’t feel like enough,” You said, looking away from him and trying to think of romcoms you liked, and then it hit you. “Oh, what if we got them on the kiss cam at like a basketball game or something?” 

The amused look that Steve gave you in response was immediate. “Okay, now I definitely know that the sleep deprivation is getting to you because doing that would be impossible.” 

“Yeah, but maybe not if we…” You trailed off, hoping that the rest of the idea would come to you, but it didn’t. “Shit, you’re right. It would be impossible. Elevator it is.” 

Steve nodded. “I actually know the maintenance guy that works here, so it’ll probably be easy to get Todd and Kristen stuck together.” 

Your eyebrows knit together in confusion. “How do you know the maintenance guy?”

“Long story,” He answered and you decided against questioning him further on it right then. 

“If it wasn’t one in the morning, I’d love to hear that,” You said, and then you almost asked him when you two should put this plan into motion, but you realized something. “Wait, shit, we can’t just get Kristen and Todd into an elevator and hope for the best. We need to, like, ‘plant some seeds’ first. Make them aware of each other and these few things that we know they have in common.” 

“Oh, okay, yeah, that makes sense.”

“So we just need to subtly mention to both of them that they’re from the same state and that they have the same favorite movie and food place,” You continued. 

Steve’s confused look returned. “And how do we do that?”

“Great question,” You said and for a second you considered trying to think of an answer right then, but your brain was too tired to come up with any ideas. “I’m not sure yet, but we’ll figure it out.”

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: todd liked the science project this time

YOU: thank god 

YOU: i hope that means he’ll be extra nice to you today<3

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: solid joke

YOU: thanks. i try

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: do you think you’re gonna have to stay late again tonight? 

YOU: i am almost certain of it (sadly)

YOU: kristen’s been extra stressed today which means extra scary which means i live here now

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: ouch 

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: have you thought more about how we should do this set up thing?

YOU: no. i’ve had like a thousand things thrown at me since getting here at eight and i haven’t had time to think about anything else

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: same here 

YOU: wow we’re really good at this

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: haha i agree

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

The printer was on its last few days of life. You were certain of it, but you just needed it to survive a few more minutes before it completely croaked out on you. 

“Please just ten more pages and then I promise you can go into retirement.” 

“Are you talking to the printer again?” Steve asked from where he was currently sitting at your desk. 

After Todd left for the night at ten, Steve showed up at your floor, knowing that Kristen had been gone for the last hour, but you were still stuck in the building and working on preparing everything for a meeting on Monday.

You looked over at him. “Sometimes Jerry needs some words of encouragement.” 

“Got it. That makes sense,” He responded teasingly with a nod. 

“I don’t appreciate the sarcasm tonight, Steven,” You said as you turned your focus back on the printer, and Jerry was printing out the final few pages. 

“Doesn’t me helping you right now cancel out the sarcasm?”

You promptly shook your head. “Not after the science project last night.”

“Alright, that’s fair,” He responded and once you sat down next to him after everything was finally printed out, he looked at the stack of papers in your hand. “How many packets do you have to make?”

“Twenty,” You answered. “And then I need to do the name cards and set everything up in the conference room.”

“Okay. Let me get half of the stack,” He said and you handed over half of the papers in your hand. 

You two easily fell into a routine for the next thirty minutes, a comfortable silence lingering as you focused on the mundane task at hand and let your mind wander a bit. The initial excitement you had toward the “set up” idea had worn off by the morning and instead your non-sleep deprived brain was now thinking about it all from a much more logical standpoint.

“Do you think it would actually work?” You asked once you two were in the conference room, you placing name cards down and Steve setting out the packets. “Us trying to set them up?”

He gave you an amused smile. “You’re second-guessing things already? I thought I would be the one to do that.”

“I don’t know,” You shrugged. “I’ve just started thinking that maybe it will be a waste of time.”

You decided against adding that your reasoning for thinking that way was because your and Steve’s life wasn’t a movie and maybe this idea did sound a bit too good to actually end up working as well as it did when it was a plot point in any film. And the thought of Kristen somehow figuring out what you and him were doing and firing you because of it kind of scared you too. 

“Okay, yeah, maybe it won’t work,” Steve said. “But, why not try, right?” 

You considered his words for a moment before ultimately nodding. It felt a little unexpected, but also completely reassuring, that he was entirely on board with the idea and didn’t seem to have any second thoughts about it. “You’re right. Maybe we’ll at least get a week or two of them being decent to us.”

Steve nodded in agreement. “Yeah, exactly, and that would be great.”

You shook your head and let out a quiet laugh as you thought of something. “Jesus Christ, I can’t believe the bar is so low that the thought of our bosses being nice to us for a week or two sounds amazing.”

Steve laughed too, a quick one that matched your own. “Shit, yeah, that’s actually a little sad.”

It would be a thousand percent sadder if you didn’t have each other through this shitty nonsense, but you didn’t tell him that right then. Instead, you gave him a small smile and placed down the last name card you had in your lap.

“I have some ideas about how we should ‘plant these seeds’ and get them to learn about each other without them knowing that we’re doing that,” Steve said after he set down the last packet. 

You were technically officially done for the night, but neither of you made any move to leave the conference room just yet. You sat down in one of the rolling chairs and Steve took a seat in the one across from you. 

“I kinda love that the tables have turned and you’re the one that’s super into this whole thing and I’m being slightly hesitant,” You told him, the smallest amused smile on your face. 

“Yeah, you corrupted me and now you’re backing out.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at how playfully serious his voice sounded. “I promise I’m not backing out. Tell me all of your ideas, Harrington.”

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

MONDAY 

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: i “accidentally” emailed todd the video of the interview kristen did with the horror movie director guy and he ended up watching the entire thing

YOU: solid work

YOU: and on my side of things, i mentioned the new jersey thing to kristen when she brought up thinking about going home for the holidays and she actually found it a little interesting

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: also solid work

TUESDAY

YOU: okay kristen said she wants to get food from the diner for lunch. what about todd? 

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: he wants it too. it surprisingly took very little convincing to get him to quit the juice diet

YOU: great. i’ll see you in the lobby in 30 minutes

YOU: wait i’m just now realizing how horrible this can go for us if we switch their lunches just for them to learn that they have the same favorite restaurant. maybe we should just say that the lunches “almost” got switched and still make the comment about how the person that it almost got switched with really loves the place too? that’ll let them know that they have the same fave restaurant without them getting mad at us for fucking up their lunches

YOU: or maybe i'm just overthinking this

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: no you're right. that’s a better idea 

WEDNESDAY

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: slight change of plans. we have to push the elevator thing to tomorrow 

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: the maintenance guy’s not here today

YOU: okay

YOU: i was gonna ask if we should take this as a sign to not do it at all but i’m not gonna say that actually…

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: it’s not a sign 

YOU: good thing i didn’t say it was then :)

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

You made it to the maintenance room before Steve. Mainly because you were a little nervous to see how all of this would end up playing out, and being two minutes early somehow helped ease your worries a bit. 

When you walked in, you immediately saw a guy with long curly hair wearing a black t-shirt and dark jeans and sitting at a desk with two computer screens; you assumed he was the maintenance guy Steve talked about. 

You gave him a quick wave and then held out a hand. “Hey, nice to meet you.”

His hand shook your outstretched one and quick introductions were said where you learned his name was Eddie and he and Steve went to high school together and were now friends; which wasn’t as long of a story as Steve had initially made it out to be. 

“So, you’re the infamous ‘girl from work.’”

You let out a laugh at Eddie’s words. “Steve’s mentioned me before?” 

Eddie nodded. “Oh, he talks about you a lot.”

Before you could say anything in response to that, Steve walked into the small room.  

“Sorry, I’m late,” He said, even though he was actually right on time. He looked at Eddie and a confused look crossed his face. “Where’s Wayne?”

“He still has the flu, so he wanted me to cover for him today,” Eddie answered. “But, he told me what you guys wanna do, so I got it.”

“Okay,” Steve nodded and then he gestured between you and Eddie. “You two met?” 

“Yes, and I just learned that you allegedly talk about me a lot,” You said and gave him a teasing smile. 

You immediately noticed his face flush at your words, which actually kind of surprised you and for the briefest second you wondered what that reaction meant, but then he was playfully rolling his eyes at you. “It’s only so my friends know that I don’t completely hate my job.”  

“Glad to know that I’m the only one who makes your job somewhat tolerable,” You said, smiling wider at him. “The feeling’s very mutual.”

You looked away from him then and focused on the computer screens. Eddie had now pulled up the video feed of the security camera in the lobby on one side and the hallway where the main elevators were on the other screen. 

“So, Kristen should be getting back from the coffee shop down the street any second now,” You told Steve. “She always likes going right before they close for some reason.”

He nodded at your words. “Okay, and Todd is still in the lobby talking to Martha about getting a new building ID, and they should be done any second too.”

“I still don’t get how you managed to get her to call him down for that.” 

He gave you a smile. “The ladies at the front desk love me.”

“Honestly, that makes a lot of sense,” You responded. “You are the type of person that old ladies would love.”

“I’ll happily take that as a compliment.” 

“Remember how all the moms in town were completely obsessed with you during your lifeguard days?” Eddie chimed in, a grin on his face. 

Steve rolled his eyes in response, and you laughed while saying, “Of course, you were a lifeguard. That makes so much sense too.”

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “How?”

You shook your head. “I don’t know how to explain it, but just know that it does. And I mean it in a nice way.”

Steve tilted his head and squinted at you. “I don’t know if I believe you.”

“Trust me, I’m your best work friend. I’d never lie to you,” You said, holding a solemn hand to your heart, and he couldn’t help but let out a laugh. 

You looked at the screen again and saw that Todd was still talking to Martha, and Kristen was still nowhere to be seen. 

You tapped Eddie on the shoulder to grab his attention. “If one of them gets to the elevator before the other is there, is there any way that you can not let the elevator come?”

He nodded. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

Luckily, and surprisingly enough though, it didn’t have to come to that. Because finally Kristen was walking back into the building and heading toward the elevators, and seconds later Todd’s conversation with Martha was coming to an end and he was heading in the direction of the elevators too. 

Kristen pressed the up button and then her eyes went down to her phone in her hand, and Todd joined her in waiting after a few moments. Absolutely nothing was said between the two of them, not even when the elevator arrived and they got on together. Which, honestly, made sense to you because you rarely ever talked to the strangers you ended up in an elevator with. 

“How do you stop it?” You asked Eddie after he switched the camera to the one in the elevator. 

“There’s something to press that stops them for emergencies,” He explained as he got up from his chair and went over to a panel on the wall. “And there’s also an intercom here to talk to them so they don’t freak out or start panicking.”

He then pressed the stop button for the elevator Todd and Kristen were on. “Did it work?” 

You and Steve both responded with a quick “Yeah” at the same time. You noticed the confused looks cross your bosses faces and you saw Todd reach out to press the emergency button, but Eddie was speaking through the intercom before he could. 

“Hey, sorry about that, guys. It’s just an electrical issue and it should be fixed in about fifteen to thirty minutes.” He looked at you and Steve again. “Alright, let’s see if your matchmaking thing works.”

It was quiet at first. So quiet that you couldn’t help but wonder if this was actually the worst idea ever. You and Steve were “playing cupid” for two people who only had a few things in common, and it was all for entirely selfish reasons. 

“I’m just now realizing how insane this whole thing is,” You told Steve, looking away from the screen that showed Todd and Kristen still not talking to each other.  

“You’re just now realizing that? That was pretty much the first thing I told you when you suggested this,” Steve reminded you. 

“I know, I know,” You started. “But now seeing it actually happen is making me understand that.” 

Eddie turned around in his chair and looked up at you two. “Do you guys want me to start the elevator back?”

Both you and Steve had the same immediate answer of, “No.” 

You kept going after a second. “This will either be the best thing ever or the complete opposite, but I think we should just see it through, at this point, right?”

In this moment, it seemed like things were leaning more toward the “absolute worst” side of the spectrum, but it didn’t make you entirely change your mind about doing it, and it didn’t make Steve disagree with you either. “Right.”

“Okay,” Eddie shrugged as he turned back around. “For what it’s worth, I don’t think this is that fucked up of an idea.”

You nodded, even though he couldn’t see you. “Okay, cool, so we’re not completely terrible and manipulative people for doing this.”

“Well, I didn’t say that,” Eddie responded and Steve whacked his arm. 

You didn’t say anything and instead looked at the computer screen again. 

“Come on. Talk,” You mumbled. “Talk to each other.”

“They can’t hear you,” Steve jokingly whispered to you. 

Before you had the chance to make a sarcastic comment back to him, there was finally something coming from the computer’s speaker.  

“Hey, you did that interview with Matt Scott, right?” Todd asked Kristen.

She nodded. “Yeah, I did.” 

“I just watched it a couple of days ago. It was really good,” He said, and at that, Kristen smiled. 

From there, it felt like the equivalent to watching a movie; and you could inwardly recognize how weird that sounded. They introduced themselves to each other and then continued to talk about that horror movie director they both loved, and they eventually bonded over the few things that you and Steve had told them about one another too. 

Thirty minutes passed quicker than expected and you and Steve ended up sitting in two folding chairs that were in the small room and sat next to Eddie as you watched your bosses have what seemed like a really good conversation. It didn’t seem as if it was coming to any sort of an end just yet, but you and Steve still had Eddie start the elevator back up again. And before Kristen got off on her floor first, they exchanged phone numbers— which shouldn’t have at all been surprising, but it still kind of was. 

You looked at Steve once the doors closed and it was just Todd left in the elevator. “Woah.”

He nodded, agreeing with your one word that said a lot more than just that. “Wow.” 

Eddie laughed a little. “Nice work playing cupid for these two.”

You felt relieved, but not entirely so. “We’ll see if it actually works.”

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

Incoming call from UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

Steve rarely ever called you. 

It just never made sense with how crazy your jobs were, so you two always settled for texting. Apparently, this moment was different, though. 

However, before you could make any move to answer your phone, you were getting called into Kristen’s office, and your heart was abruptly falling into your stomach because suddenly the timing of Steve's phone call felt like it had something to do with whatever conversation you were about to have with Kristen. 

“Hey,” You said, trying to make your voice sound as normal, and not worried, as possible. “Is everything okay?”

She looked up from her phone and then smiled at you. “Everything’s really good, actually. I’m going to be leaving early today, so you can head out too.”

That wasn’t at all what you were expecting her to say, but you attempted to hide your complete shock. 

“Oh, okay,” You ultimately responded. “Are you sure?”

You regretted asking the question the second you said it, but this entire moment felt like some sort of trick or test, so you felt the immediate need to question it.  

“Yeah, it’s Friday,” She said as if that explained everything, which it did not. “You can have a half day for once.”

You were convinced that this had something to do with Todd, but you still wanted some sort of confirmation. “Special occasion?”

“Remember yesterday when I told you about getting stuck in the elevator for half an hour?” She asked, and when you nodded she continued. “Well, I exchanged numbers with the guy I was stuck with because we had a really nice conversation when we were in there, and five minutes ago, he called asking to go to lunch and then to see this movie that we talked about in the elevator. It’s the last day it’s playing at that small theater on the other side of town.”

You nodded along to her words. “That sounds great.”

“Oh, and funnily enough, it’s the guy that you mentioned a few days ago who works upstairs and is from Jersey, and our food almost got swapped from the diner,” She laughed a little— happily, dreamily— like a woman with a crush. “Isn’t that crazy?”

There was absolutely nothing about how Kristen said those words that should’ve made you think she knew what you and Steve had done, but still, you couldn’t help but think it. 

Which made you force a nervous smile as you once again nodded. “Yeah, so crazy. Small world. Or, well, in this case, I guess small building.” You laughed awkwardly at your non-joke and then immediately kept going. “Anyway, I hope you have a fun time with him today. See you Monday.”

Kristen’s eyes were back on her phone, smiling again as she waved at you in goodbye and you proceeded to quickly leave her office. 

You called Steve back the moment you were at your desk again. He picked up on the second ring and the first thing he said was, “It actually fucking worked. He asked her to go to lunch.”

“I know,” You whispered, even though all you really wanted to do in that moment was let out the happiest sound ever. “Where are you right now?”

“Todd’s letting me leave since he’s leaving, so I’m about to head down to the lobby.”

“Okay, I’ll meet you there. I’m gonna grab my stuff and immediately run away from my desk before Kristen can call me back into her office and tell me that this was all some sort of elaborate prank,” You said and then hung up, stuffing your phone in your pocket and grabbing your bag from underneath your desk. 

You waved happily at Steve when you exited the elevator in the lobby and barely a second later he was pulling you into a hug. Even though that was something that had never happened before, you didn’t hesitate to return the action, wrapping your arms around him too and smiling into his shoulder. 

“You’re a genius for this idea,” He told you, words hitting right at your ear. 

“Technically, you came up with it,” You reminded him when you two pulled out of the celebratory embrace. 

“Okay, in that case, I’ll happily take the credit for all of this then,” Steve said and smiled at you. 

You playfully poked his arm. “What I meant is that we both should get credit for this plan working. You kinda came up with the initial idea and I came up with all the nitty gritty stuff.”

He shook his head. “That’s not entirely true, actually. Who came up with the elevator meet cute?”

You knew that he wanted you to say him, but you refused to give him the satisfaction so you simply shrugged instead. “A shitty Hallmark movie, probably.”

“Ha ha, good one,” He said as he rolled his eyes at you. 

“Thank you, I’ll be here all week. Actually, that’s not true because we finally just got a day off,” You smiled as you and Steve headed into the lobby. “This is the first time I’ve had a Friday off in the past two years of working here, I honestly have no idea what to do now.”

The thought of spending the rest of the day, and then night, catching up on sleep sounded very tempting to you, and it only felt a little sad that you’d be completely sleeping away a Friday when you finally had the opportunity to do something even the tiniest bit fun. 

“Do you want to come to a birthday party for my best friend/roommate tonight?” Steve asked. “We’re having it at our place and I thought I’d have to miss it because I was gonna be stuck here all night, but now I won’t be, and you should come.”

Initially, you smiled at his offer and you felt the urge to accept it on the spot. But then your brain couldn’t help but consider what saying yes would mean. You and Steve had never hung out outside of this building, and the few food spots that were on the same street as this building, before. Although you two were friends, you couldn’t lie and say that it didn’t pretty much start and end at work; mainly because that was what consumed most of your time. 

“Wouldn't that be kinda weird?” You ultimately asked, deciding against verbalizing exactly what you were thinking about. “I don’t think I’d want a random girl from my best friend’s workplace to be at my birthday party.”

“You’re not a random girl. I talk about you all the time, remember?” Steve said, reminding you of Eddie’s words from yesterday, and the playfulness in his tone made you smile.

Instead of asking more questions— like what it would mean to take your work friendship into normal friendship territory, and whether it would even easily happen— you were simply agreeing and saying, “Okay.”

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

YOU: what should i bring tonight?

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: just yourself 

YOU: that feels wrong. it’s literally a birthday party 

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: for someone you don’t know 

YOU: that doesn’t matter

YOU: so what do you need? cups? some sort of side dish? more cake?

UPSTAIRS WORK NEIGHBOR: don’t bring anything

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

“I brought alcohol,” You said when Steve opened his door and then you held up the two bottles of tequila you bought on your drive over to his apartment. 

He shook his head at you but still smiled as he pushed the door open further to let you in. Seeing him out of his typical professional work clothes and in a simple white t-shirt and jeans was a nice surprise that honestly shouldn’t have been all that surprising. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“It’s physically impossible for me to show up to places empty-handed,” You looked around the decently sized space as Steve closed the door behind you. There weren’t that many people in the apartment yet, you only noticed two girls leaning back against the small kitchen island and talking. You turned to look at Steve. “Shit, am I too early?”

Your hands were full so you couldn’t pull your phone out of your denim jacket pocket to check the time, but you had a feeling what it would say. After working for Kristen for the past two years, it was pretty much ingrained in you to never be late anywhere, and most times you inadvertently ended up being early. 

“A little bit, yeah. But, that’s fine,” Steve told you with a shrug. “I’m glad you’re here early. It’ll probably make it easier for you to meet everyone.”

He then introduced you to the girls talking in the kitchen; his roommate and best friend Robin and her girlfriend Vickie. 

“Hi, you’re my new favorite person,” Robin told you when she noticed the alcohol in your hands.  

“Thank you,” You laughed a little as you set it down on the counter, joining the other bottles that littered it. “Happy Birthday.” 

“Thanks,” She smiled at you. “How are your karaoke skills?”

The randomness of the question slightly surprised you. “Absolutely terrible, but when I’m drunk I love doing it.”

“Perfect,” She said. “You and Steve have to do a duet when we go to this karaoke bar later. The last time we went, he got so drunk he sang Footloose three times in a row.”

“I will admit, each time was very great,” Vickie chimed in. 

“Yeah,” Robin agreed. “He surprisingly has a really good voice.”

You smiled and tried your hardest not to laugh at the thought of the Steve you’d grown to know over the past eight months getting drunk and singing karaoke. “Please tell me there’s video proof of that.”

“Oh, of course,” She nodded and went to pull her phone out of the pocket of the high-waisted pants she was wearing. 

“Okay, and before things get even more embarrassing for me right now,” Steve reached out to grab your hand and pull you out of the conversation. “Let me give you a quick tour of the apartment.”

You were laughing as you let him drag you away from his friends. “You’re suddenly such an attentive host.”

He pointed out the bathroom and Robin’s room down the hall and then led you to his room. 

“It’s clean,” You said, pointing out the obvious. His bed was made and there weren’t any clothes or other random things littering the floor.

Steve let out an amused laugh at your words. “I’m scared to know what you expected it to look like.”

“I don’t know, honestly,” You shrugged as you leaned back against his dark wood desk that was tucked in a corner. “You definitely wouldn’t want to see my room right now. It’s a complete mess from me trying to decide what to wear tonight.”

You had ended up settling for the first things you had pulled from your closet— a long sleeve black shirt and a brown plaid skirt that was shorter than you had remembered but still really nice— so the clothes that had ended up making your bed a mess and floor a tripping hazard felt like a sad waste of time. And now knowing how early you had shown up to the party, you probably could’ve prioritized cleaning up before you left your home in a rush.  

“You look nice,” Steve told you, and you didn’t expect to feel so affected by his words— which you knew were just a simple compliment by a friend— but you did. “Do you want me to take your jacket?”

“Yeah, sure,” You pulled off the dark denim jacket you were wearing and handed it over to him, and he went to place it on the hook behind his open door. 

“So, what did you do after we were set free?” He asked as he sat at the foot of his bed. You got the sudden urge to join him, but you didn’t, deciding to stay right where you were at his desk. 

“I had the best four-hour nap of my life and then I played really dumb games on my phone while still in bed,” You answered. It had been the most perfectly boring evening. “What have you been up to with your past free hours?”

“I also took a nap, and then I watched Clueless.”

A smile immediately started to tug at your lips. “No, you didn’t.”

“I did,” He nodded. “It felt like good timing.”

“I think good timing would’ve been if you watched it before we did the plan, but better late than never,” You said and then asked the important question. “Did you like it?”

He gave you another nod. “Yeah. A lot more than I expected to, actually.”

“Nice, I knew there was a part of you that had, at least, a kind of good taste in movies.”

“I’m still very offended that you think it’s mainly bad.”

“You told me that one of your favorites is the first Fast and Furious movie, and that was all I needed to know,” You said and then gave him a smile. “It’s honestly funny because an article about the entire series was actually the first thing I read on Kristen’s website.”

“And did it speak highly of the franchise?”

You nodded, holding back a laugh. “For the most part, yes. Surprisingly. I’ll find the link later and send it to you.”

“Thank you,” He said and then a beat of silence lingered before he asked, “Hey, is that why you work for Kristen? Because you eventually wanna write for the website?”

“Yeah, kinda, yeah,” You started with a quick nod. “It didn’t initially start that way. I just loved the website and wanted to be a part of it in any way I could. But, the thought of actually writing has only become more and more interesting to me, and yeah I think I wanna do that sooner than later.”

“You should let me read something you’ve written.”

Your head shake was immediate. “No way.”

“Why not?”

“One, because that’s embarrassing. And two, because I haven’t even finished anything yet because of how busy I always am.”

“Well, we’re gonna start having a lot of free time on our hands, so it’s the perfect time for you to actually finish something,” Steve told you. “And also the perfect time to let me read it once it’s done.”

“I’ll think about it,” You ultimately conceded and then proceeded to shift the subject away from yourself. “What about you, though? Why do you work for Todd?”

“Honestly, I don’t really know. My dad helped me get the job, actually, which is a long story in itself. I initially hated it a lot more than I do now, but I knew that my dad would give me shit if I quit. And he probably still would,” Steve explained. Just from the brief way he talked about his dad, you could sense how tense that relationship was, and you really wanted to know more about it, but you didn’t push further in that moment. “I don’t even like this finance stuff, but I still don’t really know what I really want to do, so I’m kinda okay with dealing with Todd and all of his bullshit.”

You nodded understandingly. “That makes sense. You never once gave me ‘finance bro’ vibes.”

Steve tilted his head at you amusingly. “What does that mean?”

“You’re not an asshole mixed with a huge hint of douchebag.”

He let out a laugh which made you smile. “Thank you. That really means a lot.”

“You’re very welcome,” You told him, still smiling and matching his playful tone. “Okay, okay, enough work talk. We need to use our freedom to its maximum potential.” An idea was hitting you as you stood up from his desk. “Let’s get drunk.”

Another brief amused laugh fell from Steve’s lips, but he still nodded at your words. “Solid idea.”

It had been a long time since you drank so your tolerance was terrible. You felt effectively drunk after just two shots— one with Steve to celebrate being free from work and then a birthday shot with Robin that she made everyone do once more people showed up— and you forced Steve to keep up with you, which he happily did. He was five shots in to your three and both of you were on the same level; a level that also exceeded everyone else at the party. 

You learned that the initial plan was to “pregame” here at the apartment for an hour or two and then head to the karaoke bar that Robin had mentioned earlier and spend the rest of the night there. However, you and Steve took pregaming to an entirely different level. 

You two ended up staying in your own little bubble for most of the night— holed up on a spot on the couch as you talked only about non-work related things for the first time probably ever. You wondered if this bubble was because Steve wanted to make you feel comfortable in this space where you didn’t really know anyone aside from him, and Eddie kinda, but you didn’t question it. 

A friendship that had initially felt as if it had started and ended at work easily shifted into something else as you two learned random things about each other and exchanged silly stories that could be deemed as unimportant nonsense, but it didn’t feel that way coming from a person that you really cared about. And it was when you were laughing and telling Steve about the time you crashed into your childhood neighbor's mailbox just one day after you got your license when you were sixteen— a story that you couldn’t remember the last time you told anyone because of how embarrassing it was— you realized that there was something entirely different about Steve. 

What you and he had wasn’t just a work friendship, and even now in this space outside of work, it also didn’t feel like a normal friendship either. Maybe it was never supposed to be limited to something as simple as that. 

There was an unfamiliar feeling that settled in your stomach as you watched him happily stand next to his best friend and hold the cake that she blew the candles out of moments after everyone loudly sang “Happy Birthday” in the kitchen. You quickly pushed the sudden feeling away because it felt easier to not think about it for the time being.

You and Steve ended up back on the couch again after the cake was cut and you two shared a piece, a corner slice that you both thought was the most perfect thing you had ever seen. 

At some point, you couldn’t tell exactly how much time had passed, Robin came over to the two of you. You noticed the amused smile take over her features as she looked at the close proximity between you and Steve; there wasn't an inch of space between you two because you both wanted the plate to balance equally on your laps. “I think you guys have had more than enough to drink tonight, so you should just stay here.” 

“You sure?” Steve asked, looking up at her. 

She nodded. “Yes, I’m positive. If you puke in the karaoke bar and we get banned I’ll never forgive you, dingus.”

“That’s fair.”

You looked up at Robin and smiled. In a way, it felt wrong that your conversation with her had been so limited earlier, she seemed really nice. “Happy birthday again.”

She smiled back at you. “Thanks again.”

The apartment became empty minutes later and the quietness reminded you of when you had first showed up. There was still music coming from the speaker set up in the living room, but Steve got up from the couch to lower it and then it became a soft hum in the background.

“I’m sorry I suggested the getting drunk idea,” You told Steve as you grabbed the now empty plate in your hand and stood up to toss it in the trash in the kitchen; with your drunkenness, it was a task that felt as if it took forever. “I messed up your night with your friends.”

You saw Steve shake his head when you turned to look at him again. He joined you where you were in the kitchen and grabbed a couple cups off the counter to throw them in the trash can. “I’m happy here with you.”

“Is that because you really didn’t wanna do our duet and because I can help you clean up the mess in here right now?”

“Sure.”

You wanted to ask him what he meant by that, because it felt as if there was much more to that one-worded response, and even in your current inebriated state you could see that. Instead, though, you were asking, “Why are we friends?”

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the randomness of your question. “Because we met that night in the lobby eight months ago?”

You shook your head. “No, I mean, why are we just friends?”

You weren’t sure why you were suddenly asking this— or even where your abrupt courage was coming from to ask it— but in this moment, with you two standing in his barely lit kitchen, it somehow felt right.

Your question was met with silence, though, and that lack of a response from Steve made you suddenly feel as if you actually shouldn’t have asked that question; because maybe it said way too much. 

“Oh, actually, never mind,” You abruptly said and pulled your eyes away from his, and went to grab the half-full red solo cup off the kitchen counter to toss it in the garbage. 

However, in what should’ve been a short and simple journey to the trash can, you roughly bumped into the side of the counter and spilled the entirety of what was leftover in the cup on yourself. 

“Shit.”

“Shit,” Steve immediately echoed, looking at the mess on the lower part of your shirt and the front of your skirt. “Um, let’s grab you something to change into.”

Wordlessly, you nodded and followed him to his bedroom. You weren’t entirely sure what you were more embarrassed about— you spilling a drink on yourself and now smelling so disgustingly like alcohol or the stupid question you asked him that led to this happening.

“You can grab whatever you want from in there,” Steve told you and pointed toward what you assumed was his closet. “I’m gonna get a towel for you.”  

“Thanks, I’m sorry about all of this. I swear I’m not usually this annoying of a drunk person,” You joked because it felt like the only right thing to do in that moment. 

“You’re not annoying,” You heard Steve say from somewhere behind you. 

You wanted to follow up with another sort of playful and witty response, but you couldn’t think of what to say. So instead, you silently pulled a long-sleeved white button-up off a hanger and turned back to Steve, who handed over a towel for you. 

You headed to the bathroom that wasn’t too far down the hall and as you closed the door behind you and were left alone, you refused to think about what happened in the past few minutes. You focused solely on the mundane task of pulling your shirt off and drying your damp skin with the towel and then moving to take off your skirt. 

You weren’t sure where you thought Steve was, but you didn’t think he was standing right outside the bathroom door, so abruptly hearing his soft voice on the other side of the door made you jump as you slipped on the white shirt. 

“I think we’re just friends because…” He trailed off. “I don’t know, honestly.”

You wished that your question could’ve simply been forgotten about, and you wanted to tell him just that; to forget it. However, there was a small part of you that wanted to push the conversation forward and actually talk about it, and somehow that small part managed to take precedence over logical thinking.  

“Maybe we shouldn’t be friends,” You responded, not outwardly saying what you really meant because you knew that you wouldn’t be able to take it back once the words were out in the open and that was a slightly scary thought, even your drunk brain knew that.  

“I think you’re right,” Steve said, and somehow you could practically hear him nodding. “So, what should we be instead?”

It was obvious what he wanted you to say, and even though the words were on the tip of your tongue, you still couldn’t seem to actually say them. You finished buttoning the shirt and then let out a quiet sigh.

“I don’t know…” You ultimately answered. Selfishly, you wanted him to be the one to say it out loud first. “What do you think we should be instead?”

Hearing his soft laugh made you immediately smile. Somehow, this back-and-forth conversation between two half-drunk people who were beating around the bush about their feelings for one another was becoming more and more teasing, and you honestly didn’t mind it because it just felt so typical of you and Steve. 

“I don’t know, either,” He answered, and for a second, you thought that the conversation was going to come to its end there— without either of you mustering up the courage to actually say the words— but then he continued. “But I’ll admit that whenever I see you, it makes me really, really happy.”

You could only smile wider at his words. “Okay, and I’ll admit that sometimes I like when we’re both forced to stay late at work because it means that I get to spend more time with you.”

You didn’t realize just how true those words were until you were saying them. You had long accepted that Steve being in your life made your job a thousand times more bearable, but you were now finally seeing that it was so much more than that. You were suddenly so certain of the fact that you would’ve quit your job long ago if going to work and dealing with Kristen didn’t mean eventually seeing Steve at some point throughout the day, even if it was just for five quick minutes. 

“Honestly, those late nights are kind of my favorite,” Steve responded to your previous confession and you felt yourself nodding in agreement even though he couldn’t see you.

“I like you,” You told him. Your voice was soft but you knew that he could hear you. “And I don’t mean that in a work friend or regular friend kind of way. And I’m just now fully realizing it tonight, but I think deep down I’ve felt this way for a long time.”

“I like you too,” He responded, voice matching your softness and you could hear the smile in his tone. “And I don’t mean it in a work friend or regular friend way either.” 

Things got quiet for a second and then you were opening the bathroom door and meeting Steve’s eyes. Neither of you said anything at first; mainly because it felt as if the contented smiles on both of your faces managed to say it all. 

“I forgot to grab pants,” Were the first words you said after a minute of comfortable silence. Steve’s shirt on you was long enough and its length matched where your skirt had ended, so nothing new was really revealed. 

Steve laughed a little at your random statement because it made it seem as if a huge thing hadn’t just been admitted by both of you only moments ago. 

“We should probably get you those,” He looked down at your new outfit, or lack thereof, for a brief second and then met your eyes again. 

You gave him a quick nod. “Yeah, I guess that would make sense.”

Neither of you made any move to head toward his bedroom again, though. Instead, another handful of moments passed and then you were silently reaching out and letting your hand find his. You pulled him into the bathroom with you and softly shut the door behind him.

With two people now in it, you were realizing just how small the bathroom was, but this closeness felt perfect to you. And you could tell that the feeling was mutual because Steve’s hands were finding your hips, and then you were being shifted around so that you were pressed back against the sink. Your arms reached up to circle his neck and your hands settled in the hair at the nape of his neck; it all felt so instinctive— as if this was something that had happened a bunch of times before. As if this entire moment was something that had happened a million times before.

Your eyes drifted down to Steve’s lips for a quick second because they were only inches away from yours and you wondered who would be the one to close the final bit of distance between you two, or if you’d simply just meet in the middle and the rest would be history. 

Before anything could happen, though, the annoying logical part of you was taking over and you got the urge to ask something. “We’re not just doing this and saying all of this because we’re kinda drunk, right?”

Your words were whispered and your eyes were closed because you knew that your question had the opportunity to be a mood killer and ruin this moment entirely, and for those exact reasons, you immediately wanted to take it back. But, Steve was answering before you could. 

“No,” He whispered back. It was such a short and simple answer, but it somehow managed to say enough. 

Your eyes opened and you could tell that he was about to say more, but you leaned in to kiss him before anything could be said. It was soft at first, soft and tentative, like you both were testing the waters and trying to correctly navigate this uncharted territory. 

But then it was as if the same switch was flipping for you two at the exact same time because, after the briefest second, you both were simultaneously pushing any and all thinking to the side and simply leaning into what felt right. Steve deepened the kiss and you reciprocated immediately, pushing yourself as close as you could to him and closing any and all space between you two. 

Your hands went from softly tugging at the hair at the nape of his neck, to fisting themselves in his white t-shirt. And then, with Steve’s help too, you pushed yourself up so that you were sitting on the sink counter. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but you didn’t entirely mind it right then. Steve settled between your now parted legs and one hand was still on your hip, while the other was playing with the hem of your, his, shirt that was now riding further and further up your thighs due to your new position.  

“I can’t believe out of everything, you grabbed this shirt,” Steve said in between kisses. 

You let out a contented sound when his lips moved to your neck. “Why?” 

“Because you look very, very hot right now,” He didn’t hesitate to answer. “And your outfit earlier was really great too, and honestly you always look hot so maybe this shouldn’t even be surprising to me right now.” 

You let out a soft laugh at his rambling. “I’m hot even when we’re at work and I’m wearing a boring cardigan and jeans?”

Steve nodded and pressed a quick kiss against your lips. “Especially then.” 

It was hard not to feel so affected by the two simple words; your heart quite literally stuttered at how certain he sounded, and you leaned in to kiss him again instead of saying anything in response. Your fingers carded themselves in his hair, eliciting a soft groan from him that made you smile into the kiss. And then both of his hands moved to your hips, pulling you to the edge of the counter so that you were flush against him. 

In a way, it felt a little silly that you two were making out in his bathroom when there was a perfectly good bed right down the hall. But, it was a kind of silliness that made sense for you and Steve and everything you two built over the last eight months of knowing each other. 

There was the friendship side of things that happened so effortlessly following that night you two met in the lobby, and now there was this new side that, weirdly enough, so quickly felt the same way. Kissing him for the first time right here, right now made you wish that you two had been doing this a lot sooner because of how irrevocably happy it made you. 

“We’re stupid for taking so long to do this,” You eventually told him when you two were in his bed. You were moments away from falling asleep, but you felt the need to finally say those words. 

The two of you were under his grey covers and you had traded the button up for one of Steve’s t-shirts and a pair of his basketball shorts that were really comfortable. His warmth enveloped you completely beneath the blanket as he pulled you closer, wrapping an arm around your waist and finding your hand to intertwine it with his. 

“Like we were stupid for not getting Todd and Kristen together sooner?”

You nodded, a small smile gracing your lips that he couldn’t see because you were facing away from him. “Yes, exactly like that.”

Steve pressed a kiss against the side of your head and then his lips tickled at your ear. “I agree.”

You hummed in response and finally fell asleep moments later because you were in way too comfortable of a position not to. It was your first time in Steve’s bed, but how at ease you’d felt since you pulled the blanket over you minutes ago didn’t feel new or foreign. It simply felt right. 

And before your eyes slipped shut and you drifted off, you came to the final realization of the night that everything felt right with Steve, it always did, and that was the most comforting thought to fall asleep to.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

let me know your thoughts<333

[yeonbinwyd]

Jungwon next plsss

sure!

fever

pairing: soft sub! fem!reader x soft dom!Jungwon

synopsis: You and Jungwon work together in the office. He’s an intern and you’re assigned to train him. You and him get closer than you imagine.

genre (w/tags): smut, minors DNI, mentions of alcohol

Word count: 1,260

“Hi it’s nice to meet you” you greet the new employee. He has a sweet innocent smile.

“It’s nice to meet you too.” He says in return.

“You’ll be training him going forward. His desk will be next to yours so be sure to answer any questions he may have.” Your supervisor instructed. You both agree. You show him the ropes along with any tricks that might help pass the time. Though out the time you were speaking, you couldn’t help up but notice he would stare at you for a long period of time in awe. Like your word was law, he took it very seriously when you told him to be sure not to do something. It was time to be off and the team was going out for drinks but Jungwon wanted a head start on tomorrow’s work.

That happened weeks on end. He was always dedicated to the role and because of your help, his numbers were exceeding his peers. It would bug you how he wouldn’t come out with everyone though. Just to even relax a bit. This Friday, you decided that it was your mission to get this man to relax. It was 5:50 and the whole office was gearing up to go home for the weekend.

“Jungwon! Any plans for this weekend? “ you tap his desk.

“Ahh nothing really. Maybe play some league.” He rubs the back of his head, looking away shyly.

“We should get a drink. I really want to hang out with you outside work.” You try and convince. You had been wearing a lower cut shirt today which gave you some extra attention. You noticed him glancing down your shirt for a second. He looks away again.

“Aah maybe another time” he tries to escape. You grab the arm behind his head.

“Please Jungwon. For me?” You plead. His face turns a bright red.

“Ok I guess one drink won’t hurt.” He caves

“Yes. It’ll just be with me ok?” You reassure. He nods in agreement. Right at 6, you two head to a bar close to the office. He was ready to order a beer but you ask for two shots. It’s too late to stop you. You hand him the tequila shot and a lime.

“Ready?” You asked with a very cheeky smile. He sigh and takes the shot glass from you. You both down the shot and take the lime. After taking the shot, you both make a sour reaction.

“One more?” You ask. He shakes his head. “Maybe just that beer. What do you want?”

“A margarita then.” You request. Jungwon runs up to the bar to grab your drinks. You notice his built frame, standing firm. He dances a bit as he waits for the bartender. He’s always been a little silly whenever you two were together. His sense of humor was charming. As he returning with your drink, you noticed his sharp eyes, making eye contact with you. They pierced your soul. It ignited something within you. He places the drinks down, motioning a cheers. You take the glass, clashing yours against his.

One drink turned into one more and one more. Soon you find that you are stumbling out of the bar. Jungwon, barely faded, helps you make it out of there. He’s worried about you so he takes you home. You both get inside your apartment and you aim for the couch . It was such a beautiful night though, so the balcony was calling your name. Jungwon following close behind you.

“Do you have any water? I’ll get you some.” He runs back into the kitchen and spots some water bottles. He grabs a couple and brings them back to try to replenish you.

“You’re so sweet Jungwon. You gotta be mean sometimes.” You say drunkenly. He chuckles and agrees.

“It’s just easier to be nice” he admits.

“You should try being a bad boy. They’re sexy” you chug the water bottle he gave you.

“Hhhm what else do you think is sexy?” Him curious as to what you could say.

“Guys who are aggressive and assertive turn me on honestly.” You speak mindlessly. His brows jump a bit.

“I can be aggressive.” He pins you along the balcony wall. Those sharp eyes of his take you in.

“Show me then” you demand. He gets caught in the moment, kisses you lightly but in no time his tongue darts into your mouth. You wrap your arms around his neck, holding him close. He drags his hands all over your body, not missing an inch. You can feel him breathing heavy, sweating a bit even. He was still a bit nervous. You move to caress his face while moaning into the kiss. It relaxes him. He mirrors your moans, guiding his hands under your skirt, his fingers moving your panties to one side. He pulls away quickly to give his fingers a lick. He then slips his fingers inside with a strong hold. You, with your jaw dropped, groan in response. Jungwon, with his other hand, gives your ass a squeeze. He continues to finger you and giving you kisses on the neck.

“I love when you moan for me.” He suddenly drops to his knees before you staring up into your eyes. Both hands holding your thighs this time, seated himself in front of your entrance. He spreads them enough to go for a taste. You caress his chin before he goes for your lips.

“Moan really loud for me ok?” He asks. You nod, anticipating his next move. He takes in your clit giving it a lick. You listen and yell in pleasure. Music to his ears, His eyes roll back, continuing on your clit. Impressed with his skill, you push the back of his head in more so you can grind his face.

“Jungwon, don’t stop” you instruct. He takes it all in, humming against it causing you to cry out.

He takes out his length and gives it a stoke while he continues to eat you out. Extremely turned on, he rubs his face in your cunt. Drunk with pleasure yourself, you manage to bring him back to his feet. He takes the hint and turns you around, holding on to the ledge of the balcony. Jungwon aligned his cock at your entrance, fucking you slowly.

“Oh yes that feels so good.” You encourage. He grabs your neck with a light choke, picking up the pace. As your skin collides with his, you both moan so loud your neighbors can hear you. He caresses your breasts now, giving your nipples a pinch. Pulling and twisting them while the back shots keep coming. You’re pushing back to meet his thrusts. He can’t help but feel the pressure of wanting to cum already but he was going to make sure you were satisfied. He bends you over now, clenching your wrists, fucking you harder than before. He exhales, eyes rolling back, fighting hard not to cum.

“You’re so hot. You’re making me crazy”he confessed as he speeds up. He grips your wrists tighter, bruising you but you don’t feel the pain.

“Oh god I’m gonna cum.” You crumble, tightening around him. He gives in a cums with you and whimpers. He lets go but holds your waist so you don’t tumble forward. You both stay silent for a moment to take in what just happened.

“I guess this is a dead give away that I’m into you” he admits

“I had a feeling” you say with a giggle.

[afyrian]

my plus one atsumu miya x fem!reader (fluff) m.list | wc: 871 | prompts: fake dating

    "just act natural!"

  "anyone acting natural wouldn't be dating you-"

  "okay, could you just shut up then?" you question, arm wrapped around atsumu's, a fake smile gracing your face. 

  the two of you enter your cousin's wedding reception, the old italian atmosphere garnering a romantic feeling... if you were with anyone other than atsumu miya. the inside of your elbow interlocks with his arm, hand resting in front of your ensemble. "you are the one who invited me, remember?" he whispers into your ear, keeping an obnoxious smile on his face. 

  "only because you were the only one in town after the tournament," you whisper back, giving your other cousins a wave, trying to hold your smile. 

  he turns to look at you, stopping you in your tracks. his eyes are wide as his hand rests below your elbow, fingers grazing your upper arm. biting his lip, the tips of his shoes touching yours, “you’re such a charmer.. now if you really want to convince them, you’ll let me wrap my arm around your waist.”

  “taking this boyfriend role a little seriously, aren’t you?” you question, narrowing your eyes, hands reaching up to his biceps. 

  atsumu shrugs, raising his right hand to push back pieces of your hair. “only as much as you are sweetheart,” he looks past you and at your cousins, the bride included.

  they’re standing together in a group, chowing down on hors d’oeuvres featuring classic italian flavors. the maid of honor leans against the table, eyes wide open as she spots the two of you together. inciting a domino effect, she alerts the rest of the bridal party to your presence, making note of the man attached to your hip.

  atsumu smirks to himself as you roll your eyes. trying to play it up, his hand moves smoothly from your elbow to your back, pushing you slightly towards him. “now, your cousins are watching, you want to go say hi?” he smiles, raising his eyebrows, reveling in the acting performance of a lifetime. 

  “oh i would love to hon,” you tilt your head, tapping his chest with your hand before turning around to meet your fate.

  atsumu’s hand stays on your back, lowering only slightly to reach your waist. the rest of the reception runs smoothly, people dancing on the floor, the groom talking to a few of his friends. walking up to your cousin, you hold out your hands, moving into a hug, “alisa! i have to say, your wedding was beautiful. and this reception? i’m so happy i was able to come.”

  “i’m so happy you could too y/n! god i haven’t seen you in forever, and especially not since you’ve gotten with your boyfriend… who is??” she sets down her plate onto the table, hands clasped together with an excited smile on her face. 

  “atsumu miya, you might’ve seen me, i’m on japan’s national volleyball team. that’s actually how we met, right babe?” he squeezes you into his side, making sure your family can see just how ‘in love’ he is. 

  looking up at him, you purse your lips, sighing. “yes, i remember like it was yesterday. i was doing some paperwork for their team, and i ended up having to stay late. when someone,” you look up at him, a soft smile on your lips, “brought in some food, and offered it up. although, it wasn’t the perfect meet cute. he ended up spilling chili oil all over me.”

  “to be fair, you were trying to take some of my food and i was just protecting it-”

  “you had way more food than i did, besides, i know for a fact that the meal planner didn’t want you eating any of that because of the upcoming games,” you lean back, shaking your head.

  the bridal party watches with amusement as you bicker, already acting like an old married couple. reaching her hand out, you grab ahold of alisa’s hand, giving her a soft smile, “okay okay, atsumu, would you mind getting us a few drinks so i could talk to my cousin?”

  nodding his head, he lifts his hands up, “yes, i can definitely get those for you. i’m assuming from the punch table. have fun babe.”

  watching as he walks away, alisa immediately starts badgering you for more information. your first thoughts of him, how long you’ve been together, whether you’ve gone to any of games as his ‘girlfriend’ yet. the question that stood out to you the most is when she asks ‘do you love him?’. 

  “love him? i don’t know, maybe? i mean he annoys the living hell out of me. and i probably won’t tell him this, at least not till we’re dating longer, but i do think i care about him. in our own way, you know?” you shrug, rubbing your thumb against her hand, “but enough about me, how’s it feel to be married to the love of your life?”

  atsumu peeks over at the two of you, holding a few glasses on a tray he was able to steal from catering. listening to the sweet sounds of you figuring out that maybe you don’t actually hate atsumu for the night he ruined your favorite sweater… 

a/n: thank you so much for requesting @thestorytellercattie !! i hope you like it

gen. taglist (open): @eggyrocks @causenessus @applepi25 @softpia @bakery-anon

[maxinehufflepuffprincess]

Walk Home

Chishiya Shuntaro x Reader x Niragi Suguru

(So apparently I'm doing something right with these two, even though I make them out of character a lot. Anyway, time to take these two out of the comfort of the bedroom and throw you three outside.)

Also wanna say a quick thank you for all the support. I never thought people would actually enjoy anything I wrote. I thought I'd write one thing and then never again. So thank you for all the love.

Taglist. Masterlist. Progress Update. Love Line Collection.

Summary: The three of you walk home to the beach after a game.

It hurt. Your arm had been cut during the game you three had just finished. Someone from another team had cornered you after you were able to collect an item. So the man thought he could just take it from you, especially since he had a knife in hand. You two fought and you were doing well but he sadly got the upper hand, slashing your arm before grabbing you. However, before anything else could have happened, he was pulled off of you. And as Niragi beat and shot the man, Chishiya placed a hand on your lower back, leading you away from the situation.

The three of you had won. Of course, you had. The three of you worked like a well-oiled machine. Chishiya solved the clues that led you to the items. Niragi stopped anyone who stepped in your way and you got to get the items and keep a hold of them. Of course, your roles overlapped at times. There were times that Niragi's intelligence shined through all the violence when he would solve a clue easily. Or how you could take a person down whilst the boys were distracted and busy, or how Chishiya could slip in and out of a room like a ghost, holding up the item smugly.

"Sweetheart, you need to stay still so Shiya can help you." Niragi told you as he let you squeeze his hand. But it hurt. The cut was stinging and whilst Chishiya was being careful, your moving was not helping at all. The blonde had just finished cleaning the cut and was now bandaging it. The three of you were sat outside of a store that Niragi had ransacked.

"You need to be more careful, this could have been worse," Chishiya told you, his tone dry yet still held worry. He looked from your arm to you and then to Niragi. The two exchanged a look. They had been distracted and you got hurt. Which led to them feeling guilty. They were meant to protect you. To protect each other. You didn't blame them. Why would you? The guy had come out of nowhere.

The blonde finished bandaging your arm.

"Thank you, Doctor." You said with a cheeky tone, hoping to lighten the mood. You leaned forward and kissed the blonde's lips softly, another way to say thank you. You pulled away and turned to Niragi, you pressed a kiss to his lips, just as softly. "Thank you for holding my hand."

Niragi grinned at you. "I know you always want an excuse to hold my hand, baby. But getting hurt is not the way to do it." His words were teasing with a fake mocking tone in there. He stood up, pulling you up by your hand. He then turned to Chishiya and held a hand out to him. Chishiya looked at his hand for a moment.

"Come on, kitten. I won't bite. Until we get home at least." Niragi was suddenly so cocky. Like he hadn't been sitting worrying two minutes ago.

Chishiya let out a scoff but grabbed his hand anyway. "I told you not to call me that." He said as Niragi pulled him up. His words just made Niragi grin wider. Niragi let go of your hand and wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you close to his body. He wasn't letting you go just yet. He needed you close. His other hand stayed in Chishiya's. He felt a flutter in his stomach as you leaned into his warmth and as Chishiya squeezed his hand for a moment.

You were safe. All three of you were. Niragi wasn't going to let this happen again. Either of you getting hurt was not an option. He mentally scoffed. How had that changed for him? He used to shove his gun in Chishiya's face every chance he got, begging for an excuse to end him. And now- now it didn't feel like an option. Now the mere idea of losing either of you made his chest hurt. He didn't fully understand it, but he didn't hate the feeling.

Chishiya walked, all three of you did. You were heading back to the Beach. Ready to shower and crawl back into bed. He was quiet and whilst the blonde was always quiet, this time felt different. He was lost in his thoughts. You three were safe but you had been hurt. What if they hadn't got there in time? What if they hadn't been there at all? A part of him blamed himself. He had distracted Niragi when he was reading the next clue. Niragi's attention had been on him and not you. Normally Chishiya didn't feel guilt easily. What's done is done. Nothing could change it. But right now, he felt at fault. But he was the only one blaming it on him.

"Chishiya." Your voice came, he could feel a light tug on his pocket. He looked at you. You snuggled into Niragi's side as you looked at the blonde, your arm wrapped around Niragi's back, hand touching Chishiya's pocket. It was only then that he realised how close he was standing to the taller male. Both of you looking at him. You had stopped walking. When had you all stopped walking?

"We couldn't have known it would have happened." You gently pulled away from Niragi and walked to Chishiya. You took his free hand in yours. "He came out of nowhere. I got some good punches in. He was just bigger, stronger. He saw an advantage and he took it. But you and Niragi swooped in and helped me. I don't want either of you to feel bad about this. We're still here." You wanted to ease not only Chishiya's mind but Niragi's as well.

The two males looked at each other. Everything and nothing was said in the look they shared. Chishiya took in a breath. He felt light. Niragi shook his head and looked between the two of you. "Come on let's go home." He said as he squeezed Chishiya's hand. The blonde nodded his head. Niragi let go of the blonde's hand and wrapped his arm around his shoulder instead. He then wrapped his free arm around your waist, pulling you close, causing you to let out a surprised squeal. "Niragi."

You moved a hand behind Niragi's back, your hand connecting with Chishiya's. All three of you held each other. You were safe and connected, and you headed home.

"You used your brain tonight. Not as dumb as I assumed."

"Ah shut up."

You giggled. They were back to bickering. The walk was long, and Niragi shot a car or two, and the boys bickered. You listened, chiming in when needed, but the three of you stayed connected. Letting the breeze guide you back to the Beach, back to your room, where you could all get some much-deserved sleep in the arms of each other.

Taglist:

@thecheshireprincess

@mocchii-writes

@moonchild323232

@potato-vagina

[daydreamgoddess14]

💫 For Your Consideration - Previews 💫

actor!Bucky x fem!actress!Reader (no use of y/n, l/n, reader is not described in any great detail. I save that for the gowns 💃)

Warnings: Hollywood AU, language, internet nasties, flirty!Bucky, a little power imbalance, age-gap (Bucky is around 40, actress reader is closer to 30 or younger if you prefer 🤭)... more to be added later.

Bucky Barnes, the suave and talented leading man of the 'Winter Soldier' movie series, finds himself on the red carpet circuit during awards season with his latest film 'The Howling Commandos'. But the season takes an unexpected turn when he crosses paths with a mesmerizing newcomer - the actress who has become the talk of Tinseltown with her captivating performance in her most recent film. Sparks fly as they navigate silly season in Hollywood, with a spotlight on their every move will their chemistry ignite a real life romance?

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist | Next Act >

AUGUST 2025

Notification after notification popped up on the screen, the phone vibrated in your hand without pause as one alert ran into the next, and the next after that, and after that. 

Eventually it began ringing alongside the buzzing and the popups.

You didn’t need to put it to your ear to hear the person on the other end.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Dani squealed, “hang on, hang on, I need to add Lu to the call.”

There was a brief silence and the screams came back in surround sound.

“Oh my god, I’m so happy for you!” Lulu cried, “it’s my right of way you prick! Sorry babe, I’m driving.”

“When are you flying out? Do you have to do the panels and conferences and stuff?” Dani cut in over Lulu.

“Do you get to take anyone with you? What about outfits?!” Lulu interrupted.

You put the phone on speaker and left it on the kitchen table while you wandered to the kitchen for a glass of water.

Dani and Lulu bartered back and forth, not immediately registering that you hadn’t joined in the conversation.

“Babe?”

“Are you there?”

“Did she hang up on us? Did you hang up on us?”

“I’m here,” you smiled. “I don’t know anything yet, I literally know as much as you do.”

“I doubt that, it’s your arse on the movie poster.”

“And what an arse it is,” Lulu agreed with Dani.

“Like a peach.”

“I’m going to set up an Insta for it,” Dani declared.

“No, you’re not.” You tell them both firmly.

“Spoilsport.”

“Girl, I’m literally taking you to Toronto with me, do not test me,” you brace yourself for more screaming.

“Both of us?”

“Yep. Can’t go around looking like I just rolled out of bed.” Your comment was drowned out by screams.

You’d met Dani first, firm friends at high school you’d grown apart on leaving - she headed for hairdressing college and you’d gone to a drama school in London. Fate had brought you back together a couple of years later when you’d tripped up the steps of the hair and make up trailer on your latest project, and landed at her feet.

That had been ten years ago.

You’d met Lulu the same ten years previously, in the same hair and make up trailer when she’d been an apprentice make up artist. She’d served her apprenticeship and, like Dani, had gone off to other TV sets but the three of you had stayed in touch.

It was rarely your decision, and you weren’t often given an input, but whenever you were asked if you had a preference for who did your hair and make up, the girls were top of the list. 

You waited patiently for the day when you’d be able to call on them full time, when you’d have a need and requirement to have someone to call 'your team'. When the decision was yours and you could call the shots.

You didn’t want the fame, the money, the status, you just wanted to look after the ones you loved, and to have them by your side throughout the chaos that had filled your life.

For ten years you’d been in bit roles on TV shows - sometimes a dead body, sometimes the main character’s daughter, a few ‘girl in pub number 2’ credits, the bitchy cousin... It had been a slog, but then you’d found a bit more of a groove on the stage. 

The TV work died away in favour of travelling up and down the country, staying three, four, five nights in mid-sized towns and playing in local theatres. 

You’d seen about two thirds of all of the Travelodges and Premier Inns the country had to offer. 

Your dad kept tabs on which ones you were missing.

Plays, musicals, pantos, you’d covered the full quota of stage shows, eaten more meal deals than any nutritionist would recommend, and had broken every toe at least once. 

It was a tiring but happy existence, you were a very minor celebrity with a handful of fans across the country who made an effort to see you in whichever show was touring their town that particular week.

The audition had happened almost by accident. 

Your contract for the touring company of SIX was due to come to an end and you were taking the opportunity of a few days off in London to audition for whatever would come next.

The auditions had all blurred into one another and when you’d bustled backstage two minutes late, an agitated stage hand had practically dragged your coat off you and shoved you onto the stage. 

“Do you know Mein Herr?” The casting agent had called out from the stalls.

“Yeah, yeah I do,” you said confidently, hoping to god that once the music started you’d remember the words.

“When you’re ready then,” they said.

So you’d done it. Belted out your very best Liza Minelli (in jeans and a t-shirt), and then gone on your merry way. 

You scrolled through your phone on the way to the tube, was Cabaret even touring? None of your friends had mentioned it, and you often auditioned for the same things. 

With a shrug, you’d gone on with your remaining days off before getting the train up to Edinburgh to meet up with your current company for one last hurrah zigzagging down the country.

The call had come between the matinee and evening shows while everyone was crowded around a big table at a Pizza Express in Preston.

“If that’s the Moulin Rouge tour, they meant to call me!” Sophia shouted with a grin as you stepped away from the table to take the call.

It was not the Moulin Rouge tour.

“You attended the audition for the Cabaret revival movie?” You couldn’t help but laugh.

“No, no, I attended the audition for the tour,” you’d assured them.

“There is no tour. We held private auditions last month under the guise of a tour.”

That had shut you up.

You were on a plane the next morning with one of the understudies taking your place.

Life had been a little more wild ever since.

Five months filming in Atlanta, dance lessons, music lessons, singing lessons had all brought you to this point.

Back in London and auditioning for TV and stage stuff as if you hadn’t been away.

Picking up bar shifts to pay the rent.

And now the movie was finished, complete and ready to be shared worldwide.

Ready to screen at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Ready to change your life again.

With the girls still chattering, another call buzzed.

“Girls, I’ve got to go. I think all the appointments they warned me about are starting.” 

You left them to make plans on your behalf and mentally prepared yourself for the next seven months.

[oldwritingm]

HI, I love your stuff! I loved the whole brainwashed thing with the Ninjago team, but what would happen if it was them brainwashed? How would they react after you got them out of it? Or maybe just their reaction to you getting captured could be one be a fun one too? Don't know, just throwing ideas out there. KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK 💜💜💜

Yes ofc!! Thank you for your kind words!! :D

Ninjago - How the Ninjas Act When You Get Captured

Jay

When he first heard you were captured, he froze where he stood

Then he comes alive with an entirely new level of anxiety

He’s running around, shaking people by their shoulders, talking at a million words a second, pulling his hair, the whole chalupa

He struggles to calm down enough to actually come up with a plan to save you

Someone has to restrain him so he stops disturbing the others while they think

He finally shuts up when they come up with the final plan

Then he’s all ears

He ends up doing more than his part to save you; he’s more violent with his opponents and he even takes over tasks that the others were supposed to do

He’s sort of ruining the plan, but fortunately it all turns out okay

He finds you tied up in a room, and he practically melts with relief

Throwing his arms around you, he buries his face in the crook of your neck

He stays like that for a while, and you realize that he’s crying

“I’m so sorry… I’m so glad you’re okay… I’m sorry…”

“Hey, it’s okay, love. But, uh… do you mind untying me?”

He sniffs sharply, snapping up and nodding aggressively

He keeps his hands on you the whole time

He insists on holding hands while you flee the base, even though that made it difficult to run

When you got back to the Bounty, he refused to leave you alone

He was scared that you’d be taken again, even when you were miles and miles away from danger

He’ll probably be extra clingy for the next while for the same reason

Cole

At first he didn’t believe it when he heard you were kidnapped

He had to hear the news a few times for it to really register

Then he had to sit down; the room seemed to be spinning

Luckily his teammates were able to pull him out of his stupor with a grounding hand on his shoulder

He was eager to come up with a rescue plan

In a rare display of initiative, he makes most of the plan himself, dishing out orders with surprising authority

And he maintains a leadership role throughout the mission, keeping tabs on everyone and their tasks

Of course, that doesn’t mean he neglects his own responsibilities

He actually gives himself the most important jobs, wanting to make sure that they’re done just as he planned

This includes locating and procuring you

When he finally finds you, he runs over and begins untying you

Once you’re free, he lifts you off your feet in a tight bear hug

His hand is pressing your head firmly against his chest, and he’s peppering you with kisses

“Oh my lord. Oh man. You’re safe. You’re safe, right? Oh lord.”

“Yes, I’m okay, Cole.”

You attempt to wrap your arms around him too, but they’re pinned to your sides too tightly

Eventually he realizes that he’s losing time, so he takes you by the hand and leads you away

When you’re back on the Bounty, everyone tells you about what a great leader he turned out to be

But you notice that their praises are going in one of Cole’s ears and out the other

He’s just staring at you, a little smile on his face as he rests his head on his arm

He’s holding your hand, gently brushing his thumb over your fingers

When they finally leave you alone again, you ask why he’s looking at you like that

“I’m just glad you’re back. Safe. I love you.”

Kai

His initial reaction was a violent panic, and he tried to run to your rescue right away

Luckily someone stopped him; he wouldn’t have even known where to look

Once the initial panic wore off, he was filled with rage

Partially at himself

He was impatient in making a rescue plan

Every time they couldn’t agree about something, Kai would snap, shouting a decision the others were scared to refute

So the plan was admittedly pretty sloppy

And of course Kai barely even stuck to it

He just barreled into action, bashing every head he could get his hands on

He was on an absolute war path, and the others just ended up kinda watching him

Blind as his rampage might have been, he was doing a good job of clearing out enemies

By some miraculous coincidence, he found himself in the room you were being held in

His rage dropped like a mask, and his face was suddenly tender as he bolted to your side

He cupped your face in his hands, turning it from side to side to check for injuries

“Y/n! Are you okay? Does anything hurt? Did they hurt you??”

“I’m fine, Kai. We should hurry.”

His face remained tender as he carefully untied you

He then insisted that he carry you out

Your objections were readily ignored, and he ended up picking you up bridal style mid-protest

He was weirdly undampered by the extra weight

It actually gave him more energy to have you in his arms, and he managed to jog all the way back to the ship

This was only possible because he’d already knocked out every guard and soldier in the vicinity

When you get back, he apologizes sincerely (he still blames himself :( ); you’ll have to be the one to comfort him

Lloyd

He’s actually pretty calm when he hears you’ve been captured

On the inside he’s freaking out, but he knows that panicking won’t do you any good

So he buries his feelings for the sake of efficiency

He’s a little withdrawn during the plan-making process because of his anxiety

He makes sure to do his part flawlessly though, especially because he knows your safety relies on it

When he finally finds you he gets right to untying you and asking if you’re hurt

His worry shines through a little with all the questions he presses on you

He barely waits for you to respond to all of them; the second you get up, you’re wrapped in a gentle hug

He’s a little afraid of hurting you, so he doesn’t squeeze too hard

But you know from the hug that he’s been worried sick (if the questions weren’t telling enough)

He forgets the mission for a moment, completely lost in the relief of having you in his arms again

You’ll have to snap him out of it to get him back in the game

He trusts you to handle yourself, so he’ll take the lead, only looking over his shoulder a couple times to make sure you’re following

When you get back to the Bounty he gives you another hug

It’s tighter this time because now he knows you’re not hurt

“I’m so relieved that you’re safe. I don’t know what I would’ve done otherwise.”

“Then let’s not think about it.”

He’ll let you have your moments with the other ninjas (who are all also glad you’re back :) )

Then he’ll make you both some tea and sit down with you

He encourages you to talk about it, but if you aren’t up to it he’ll do the talking

He’ll tell you how worried he was, and how he knows now that he simply can’t be without you

You’ll talk long into the night, sorting out your feelings from the whole affair together :)

Nya

Much like Kai, she was ready to jump into action the second she found out you were gone

She doesn’t blame herself too much; she’s mainly angry at your captors

And they’ll get the worst of it when she’s unleashed upon them

She won’t go on a totally destructive war path, but lord help any soul unlucky enough to stand in her way

She’s hasty in her plan-making

She actually made the plan as she was running to your rescue

The others scrambled to keep up, knowing it was pointless to reason with her when she got like this

Despite being an impromptu plan, it was actually pretty efficient

Of course, some people (cough cough everyone except Nya) had to improvise to patch the holes in their instructions

But it wasn’t all that disastrous

The only disaster was the state of the place when you guys left

Nya beamed when she found you, not even bothering to untie you before lifting you up and hugging you

She sets you on your feet, looking you up and down before locking eyes with you

Tears brim her warm brown eyes, and she pulls you into a second hug

This one is more emotional; in a few moments you can feel tears soaking through your clothing

She sniffles suddenly, pulling away and patting your shoulder

“Right then. Shall we go?”

“Yes, please.”

When you get back to the Bounty, she insists on having you by her side while she steers

You’ll rest your head on her shoulder, and she’ll lean into your touch

Once she gets to the point that she can switch to autopilot, she hugs you yet again

This time she murmurs about how worried she was, how much she missed you, and even how much she loves you

She smiles softly to herself when she finishes speaking, closing her eyes and rocking back and forth gently

She’ll have you stay in the cockpit with her until she’s ready to go to bed; she doesn’t want to lose sight of you anytime soon

Zane

Out of all the ninjas, he was the most calm when he heard you’d been kidnapped

Of course, he had an initial reaction of shock, but after that he was cool as a cucumber

He couldn’t deny the strange anxiety bubbling in his chest, however

He knew it was because he cared for you, and he wanted you back badly, but it was still a strange sensation

Probably because no one else made him feel that way

As usual, he was an integral part in the process of strategizing the rescue mission

Anxiety be damned, he was going to give his all

And he kept this attitude for the whole mission

Even when he saw you, he asked rather stiffly if you were okay before untying you and guiding you to safety

He gave no indication of his worry, nor his care for you in general

This wasn’t intentional, though; he was only trying to stay in optimal performance

Once you get back to the ship, then he’ll reveal how he was feeling

He’ll wait until you’re alone to say anything

This exacerbates your suspicion that he wasn’t worried at all, but you were immediately reassured when he sat before you

He was close enough that your knees were touching

He stares deep into your eyes

When he speaks his voice is filled with the tenderness he lacked earlier

“I’m sorry I haven’t been there for you since this all happened. I was only trying to execute the mission before, but now I’m here. I’ll listen if you want to talk.”

“Zane…”

Whether you take him up on his offer or not, he’ll be sure to reassure you he loves you before your conversation is done :)

And he insists that you guys cuddle close when you go to sleep

(For your comfort as much as his own)

Thank you for this request! And thanks for reading, take care lovelies <33

(divider by saradika)

[misteria247]

I need professional help at this rate I'm gonna end up writing an actual fic based on this bullshit when will I learn smh-

When Timmy loses his memories everyone reacts differently.

Spongebob is immediately upset and actually ends up breaking down. Because Timmy's one of his closest friends and his fellow free spirit of their team. So having essentially his other half of fun look at him unsure or uneasy like hits the sponge right in the chest. Despite his heartbreak over Timmy and his condition, Spongebob is the first one to try and reconnect with the magic user. He'll talk and ramble and recall events that they all experienced. In the vain hope that it might spark Timmy's memory and help him. But alas magic isn't always fair but that doesn't stop Spongebob from trying. Even when late at night when Timmy's gone to his room and everyone's retired for the day and he goes to his room and just sobs over the agony of losing Timmy, SpongeBob will continue to try to help for Timmy's sake.

Danny's reaction on the other hand is rage. Rage on behalf of Timmy, his little brother. Rage towards the threats that caused all this devastation amongst them. He's already planning on making them suffer in a nasty way. Because no one hurts his family and gets away Scott free. Other than anger, Danny also can't help but grieve. In a sick twisted way, Timmy not remembering any of them is like seeing his little brother die. To look at his guarded blue gaze is like looking at a stranger wearing Timmy's skin. And when Timmy flinches from Danny, it's like having a bucket of ice water thrown on him. Because Timmy has never done something like this. Never shown fear to the man who's partially dead and who has urges that can hurt someone when he's a ghost. It's an awful and bone chilling experience for Danny that makes him stare into the bathroom mirror wondering if Timmy had always been afraid of him that entire time. He doesn't go to Timmy right away, but he does become more protective of him.

Cosmo and Wanda's reactions is pure devastation. The two fairies can't help but grieve and torment themselves over Timmy's condition. Because they're his parents, they're supposed to protect him and instead they failed him. Wanda will hover around him, always keeping her distance to not make him comfortable. She's always fretting a bit, not wanting Timmy out of her sight. Cosmo on the other hand takes up the role of reassuring everyone that'll it'll be okay. Putting on a brave front for his wife and scared son because they need the support even if one of them doesn't realize it. Both fairies are scarily protective of him now, and work tirelessly to try to figure out how to help their son.

Yet out of everyone Jimmy takes it the hardest. He's immediately filled with guilt and frustration over the situation. Guilt for not being on top of his game and failing as a leader, and frustrated that Timmy Turner once again put himself in harms way to protect someone else. Timmy losing his memories essentially knocks Jimmy's world off its axis. Everything feels wrong and Jimmy suddenly feels so very alone as it becomes painstakingly obvious how much space Timmy took up in his life. He'll find himself lost on how to approach Timmy, not wanting to have him look at him like he's expecting Jimmy to hurt him. Experiencing it once was enough to last the genius a lifetime of haunting nightmares. He'll lock himself up in his lab, researching nonstop to try and fix it. In a way Jimmy will throw himself into denial about how bad this situation is because facing the reality is just too much for Jimmy to process properly. He works himself to the point of exhaustion because nothing is more important than Timmy. He'll literally tear the multiverse apart if it means saving Timmy's memories. He refuses to think about the other option. The possibility that Timmy will never remember them.

[blanceyblance]

On Lance and Keith, and the water/fire and sun/moon dynamics

Saw a post talking about how Lance and Keith are actually more like the other's element and is a really interesting but I found myself disagreeing though I didn't want to argue in OPs post.

I remember there was a part that said that Keith had to mold himself for survival, and, for what I remember, Keith very much does NOT do that.

Someone who molds himself to fit better would have gone into the Garrison to become a model of a perfect cadet, instead Keith is rebellious, and is not afraid of confrontation. He challenges Iverson and fights James and doesn't care if he makes an enemy out of the rest of the other cadets. They don't like it? sucks to suck because he is that good and he knows he is good.

In that same Garrison flashback, Lance actually tells Keith that if Keith keeps messing around he will be stuck as a cargo pilot, Lance tries to follow instructions, molds himself to be a good cadet because that's what is expected for him to be a fighter pilot, only that, things don't go that way, Keith is the one becoming a fighter pilot instead.

Even in his role as Black Paladin, Keith doesn't mold himself as much as he grows into it, like a flame growing to consume space.

Keith is a very straight forward guy, and rarely if ever, tries to hide his feelings, he is very sincere in what he does and means and he does things because he thinks is the best for everyone.

Take leaving the team for the Blades, while I do think he also did it so Lance didn't have to feel left out, I think he also did it so he could go and find more about his origins and himself, making what he thought was the best decision for both the team and himself.

What i'm trying to say is that t I never got the impression that Keith was afraid of showing himself. Just like a fire that doesn't change itself to fit in one place. He can be abrasive and powerful and hurtful like a wildfire and can also be warm and comforting and protective from the harsh circumstances like a fireplace. The presentation is the same, he just needed to learn to channel it better.

And that's why I think Lance had a bone to pick with him, or at least one of the reasons.

The previous description fits Lance to a tee, he can be downright mean and bitchy when he wants but also will give you friendly words and comfort when needed. Just like water can be overpowering and traitorous like the ocean while also bringing life and cleansing.

The thing is that while Keith didn't feel the need to mold for others, Lance does it with a lot of ease.

Being either a friendly welcoming face for the aliens they encounter, an emotional support for his team, a goodball to lift spirits for his friends, or a right hand man to two different leaders.

There is a reason he was usually referred as a jack of all trades just like Blue, not the tankiest or the fastest but it will be hard to find a place he won't be able to fill.

That's also while I support the sun Keith/moon Lance dynamic.

No matter how emo or mysterious he is, Keith shines bright not caring who may end up burning on his path, he is powerful and brilliant and good luck trying to ignore that. He burns but knowing he exists gives you hope for a new day. "He is the future" just like Lance said.

While Lance is the moon, who is always the same but will take on different faces depending the situation, the fact that you can stare directly at him doesn't mean he is letting you see the full picture. He shines in the dark offering guide in hard times but also caring for his team from afar as the resident sniper. Nurturing and kind, always tied to the waters and Earth.

They are still very similar, that's why they are a duo but I still think Keith at his core is fire just like Lance's is water.

And also to spread the Sun Keith/Moon Lance agenda.

[williceunleashed]

Any headcanons about the shadow triad? (I love them sm and they're so underrated)

Ur art is rrly amazing btw!!

Thank you so much !!! :)

I'm still building a lot of stuff, and there isn't much on the Shadow Triad in canon material to work with sadly 😭 But here is what I have :

As in general interpretation :

I personally see them going through a very similar treatment to Anthea and Concordia, in that they exist for one purpose only. Anthea and Concordia were meant to take care of N, and don't know what to do with themselves in BW2 once he is gone. In the same way, the Shadow Triad is unable to let go of Ghetsis because their whole existence, for years, has been to serve Ghetsis and N.

Unlike Anthea and Concordia, they don't even have a unique appearance or even a unique name, they are considered as one single unit, blending their identities together. I think that, pretty much like the grunts, their sense of identity is barely existant anymore and they considered themselves more like a gog in a machine rather than individuals. They are pretty much the only high-ranking members with no identity at all.

I feel like they followed Ghetsis in BW2 because it was "comforting" to them. It was an harmful environment, and Ghetsis kept considering them like tools, yes, but it is the only thing they knew. While they seem to still respect N (I believe they call him "Lord N" in BW2 ?), they couldn't stay by his side. N stopped ordering the grunts and the Shadow Triad around, and therefore the Shadow Triad would have lost the only identity they ever knew. With Ghetsis, despite being treated like objects, they still feel like they have a "purpose" to accomplish, they still have a thread of an identity.

Even when Ghetsis is defeated for the second time and breaks down completely, the Shadow Triad still tries to defeat the protagonist (If I remember well, just like N, they are stationed in a specific spot and you can battle them post-game). They tell the player they want to defeat them in hopes to make Ghetsis go back to his "normal" (very evil) state. That's how bad they lack any identity outside of Ghetsis. Even when Ghetsis is reduced to nothing and has no one anymore on his side, the Shadow Triad sticks to him because Ghetsis' orders is all they know. They are really tragic characters man,,, they are like a black mirror to N, Anthea and Concordia,,,

Their sense of identity, or lack there of, is something really fascinating to me. Obviously they serve a special purpose, like Anthea and Concordia, but never even had the basic right to an individual name. I can't help but feel like it was done on purpose and not just as a quick cut, because damn Anthea and Concordia barely have a few lines but they still have specific designs and names. Same for the Admins in other teams. But the Shadow Triad is an exception to that. They would be close to "Admin" roles, but unlike all other admins in other teams, they lack any identity. I think they represent how Ghetsis treated his team members : Never as humans, only as tools who don't even deserve to be named.

In the same way as N, Concordia, Anthea and many grunts, they were victims of a master manipulator and years of brainwashing, neglect and abuse.

As for headcanons with my OCs / general headcanons in my story :

Dardanne never interacted much with them because Dardanne respects the higher-ups and wouldn't dare speak to them if not allowed to first.

Melony, on the other hand, proves himself to be a menace to society (AGAIN) and goes out of his way to talk to the Sages and the Shadow Triad as if they were besties. Melony's out of pocket behavior was, for once, a positive thing, as he ended up being one of the few people talking to the Shadow Triad as real people. He enjoys infodumping to them about Rattatas and will show them pictures on his phone. The Shadow Triad is very confused and doesn't know how to react at first, but they don't dislike the interactions.

In BW2, they grow closer to Melony and welcome his attention. The Shadow Triad are the only members in Team Plasma that Melony doesn't boss around, alongside Colress, because they are his favorite people (He doesn't hesitate to boss around Zinzolin and to ragdoll him into the walls tho).

Because Melony talks to them quite a lot, he is capable of differenciating them. They don't have individual names, so Melony took the habit of calling them A, B and C.

Melony seems to unconsciously understand that the Shadow Triad are very fragile mentally due to the severe abuse and brainwashing, and tends to care for them in a weirdly gentle fashion. He does his best to learn about the three of them as individuals and learn about their interests to offer them gifts or talk about their interests later.

Post BW2, after Ghetsis' mega breakdown, Melony is severely injured by Kyurem but survives. Once he is healed, he is more or less the head of the household, as Ghetsis is barely interested in being alive anymore. Melony attempts to keep the Shadow Triad functioning, but struggles a lot, seeing that the three of them are now completely lost, now that they can't serve their original "purpose" as tools. The post BW2 is still a wip, but I feel like the Shadow Triad deserves to heal a bit and take some sort of independance away from Ghetsis and Mel.

Personalities headcanons :

I think the three of them genuinely love pokémons and care deeply about their own pokémons. They treat their pokémons like family, because they don't have the occasion to bond with humans much.

A might seem like the most passive member of the Triad. He is aloof and distant at first glance, but can be very fun to be around once he trusts you. He is the most mischievous out of the Triad. A loves pizza. Bro can eat 10 of them in one evening. I think he secretly enjoys watching the cringiest romance movies. In general, his media tastes are really bad, but he can't help the guilty pleasure of watching all the Twilight movies in one go on a monday night.

B is the most expressive of the brothers. He is the most happy-go-lucky, but usually hides it being a very practiced emotionless mask. His favorite food is anything home-made. Maybe he even enjoys cooking himself in his leizure time. B might be the one who misses a "normal life" the most, and finds comfort in doing domestic stuff, such as tidying up places, cooking...

C might be the kindest of the three. He displays more mercy and is generally more gentle. He has many regrets, and might be the one who is the least attached to Ghetsis. He is fully vegetarian and loves playing with Pokémons in his off-time. Outside of his Shadow persona, he is kind of shy. He is generally a rather nice person, and would have probably been similar to N in term of kindness if he hadn't been brainwashed and abused so badly.

[rei-ismyname]

Nova tries to arrest Magneto

The Guardians of the Galaxy have been invited to the first Hellfire Gala, but only Richard Rider and Star Lord are able to make it. As they pull into The Peak, Nova is feeling skittish and anxious about everything changing. Krakoa's moves in particular have shaken the galaxy.

Among other things, he finds himself allied with reformed bad guys and has that reflexive heroic urge to punch them. DOOM, Super Skrull - he doesn't like grinning and pretending he can trust these people. When he and Peter Quill are greeted by Ambassador Magneto, Nova leaves him hanging on a handshake (rude!) and declares he's going down.

Rich clearly has an amazing memory (it's Al Ewing, so duh) and huge cop energy. He brings up an ancient space crime (that was actually Melter but whatever) and charges him with it. Mister One and Mister Two weren't mutants, they were Shi'Ar Subguardians. I actually covered these events here. You can decide for yourself if Mags is guilty.

Mags doesn't respond very well to his ranting and raving. As Brand and Star Lord try to calm them down, hero and villain step into old familiar roles. For Magneto, that role involves dramatic violence - he flings a vehicle at him. Mags loves throwing vehicles around and he must be missing it. Honestly, I love Magneto throwing vehicles around. It's fucking great.

Nova punches that shit in half as they trade one liners. There's still an air of politeness as they break shit. It's almost flirting, though ASCAB.

Abigail Brand has had enough of this shit and calls for a security team. Peter isn't much help but it's probably the right choice. Nova breaks down why exactly he's the galaxy's top cop. The Nova Force.

Marvel usually avoids specificity with marking time - 'a dozen years' has many implications.

Well, the Nova Force and punches to the face. He knocked his helmet off! Mags starts to get serious, switching to Master of Magnetism mode, but this is Brand's station dammit. She tells Rich he's full of shit and just wanted someone to punch. A clear bad guy he could oppose to feel like a good guy. She's not wrong either.

Nova admits he was being a dick and Mags meets him there. They start to chat, though good luck getting Magneto to be respectful about the Avengers. He frames it as a question about the Guardians' beginnings, but Mags takes the opportunity to reminisce on times past.

Nova trying to arrest him for 70s shenanigans has Mags dwelling on them. He does it in the most verbose and dramatic way possible, but he's saying that the simpler days of black and white morality pull at him too. Al Ewing had his hands on Magneto for SWORD, X-Men Red, and Resurrection of Magneto so he nails his state of mind. The secret king that's starting to crack as every choice feels like a bad one. The traumatized and grieving man that doesn't have ultraviolence as an outlet anymore.

These two powerful men hover in the docking ring and agree that change is scary, that DOOM probably shouldn't be trusted, ha. It's a nice moment for both of them, and Rich has his own trauma/violence dynamic, but I'm mainly interested in Magneto. He was knee deep in nasty shit at this point, but he's a lot more self aware and restrained. Dick Rider ended up fighting on Arakko during Judgement Day and the Genesis War, interestingly. Curious that both men found something they were looking for in the broken land.

[hydrosspyross]

Le comte de Monte Cristo (2024) is good adaptation actually

when you look at it from the intentions of the team that made the film, it is very effective at story telling, the changes made serve the story

we cannot be scholarly, we're on a time limit, the film is 3h and very efficient at telling the story in a way that is faithful to the spirit of the book

he teams interviews are really in the spirit, i do love what they did, it is creative

did i think Valentine and Maximilien were interesting in the book? Yeah, fun for Noirtier to win in the end, love that for him

let's talk the bad, the good, the interesting, the changes

Edmond is arrested while Bonaparte is in power. He gets arrested for treason to the king when the king is not even in power! like my guys look up history, to make him be arrested during les Cent jours is so funny when that is a big point in the book. was Dumas the best historian? not always but he did have the right dates

Let's talk Villefort. In the book, he was a young and upcoming king's attorney whose father was a Bonapartiste. He did want to be a good attorney, a just one, but his first solo case has to involve his father. So in order to protect his reputation, his future marriage to a peer family, he needs to protect his father from the justice of the king. And so Edmond gets taken with no trial, no justice and he cannot be freed ever. Vengeance time Villefort has to deal with poisonings in his own home, to which he turns a blind eye, because it would be a bad look for crime to be in his house. His father who is bedridden and can only communicate through his eyes hates his grandson and daughter in law, he only loves Valentine, Villefort's daughter from his first marriage. Valentine who is basically Villefort's main redeeming quality. He will lose everything because he always tried to hide the sins of his own house - he is a man who somehow produced 2 evil sons and one angelic daughter, all black and white no shade of gray to be found here

Now film Villefort is fucking evil and irredeemable from the start. He hears his sister's name and sends Edmond to be disappeared, then sells his sister to a brothel. He also does bury his newborn son alive (the baby has the cord wrapped around his neck at birth, it was nature, not a voluntary act) - why is he such a caricature of a villain? it is an homage to french classic adventure films, the "capes et épées", very Manichean worldview, you need your bad guys, and your good guys, because Monte Cristo is so ruthless, we need the bad guys to be bad, and not just pathetic cowardly self serving men

Tiny detour to Angèle de Villefort, new character who takes on the role of Noirtier (Villefort's father) and Bertuccio, the Corsican who wanted revenge on Villefort for not trying the murderers of his brother (Villefort assumed all Corsican were smugglers so criminals) and revives the baby in the box, before bringing him to the state ward for foundlings - mixing them together into Angèle allows André to not be a caricature of a troubled boy, Benedetto is o over the top evil spawn it's ridiculous, we are humanizing him, giving him more meat!

André de Villefort, Andrea Cavalcanti, being more than just some opportunist, but the hand of vengeance molded by Edmond gives him a much needed depth, the audience gets to feel sympathy for him. He was abandoned, the only person who cared to love him died in misery, Monte Cristo gave him the means to avenge her! Angèle, his angel of mercy. I do think giving him all that depth did serve the story and allowed the audience to feel more, to feel his loss, to rejoice when he goes fro the jugular (metaphorical and physical)

Making Fernand and Villefort friends is such a concept, they did it all together knowingly, it was not serendipity that put them on the same path years later when in Paris, it was their sins coalescing and keeping them together

Now onto Danglars, an accountant in the book, who becomes a huge and rich banker. Sent to a bank on the recommendation of Morrel, there is no betrayal there, no backhand, just a man scared his actions may be found out by a man of honor. Morrel is losing it all more to fate than anything, a sad tale so Edmond can become a hero to the Morrels. He need to be a hand of justice, not just vengeance. Danglars is always very much a coward. he is calculating, allows his wife to have her lover come into their house, letting her take some of "his" money to place and play with investments, so long as it does not cause his own ruin. He is a man disinterested in his daughter, self important, and obsessed with his money. it is not about being mean, it is always about his own interests, he is a jealous beast

Film Danglars is another beast entirely, relishing on the pain he causes others, delighting in ruining Morrel, rejoicing in being a slave monger. He hurts people to hurt them, the justice he gets is honestly a bit more fitting to his book counterpart, but the loss of everything is still the biggest blow this tiny selfish man could suffer. It could be said he lacked development. sacrificed on the altar to develop other more interesting parts of the plot

We'll get to Fernand, but first i wanted to talk about Faria, because it so very classic adventure films to make him a knight of some secret order instead of the secretary of the last in the line of Spada, the one to inherit when Spada the original said it would be ok to retrieve the treasure so very "capes et épées" very fun detail to have thrown in i love that - we are paying homage to the films that came before

The Morcerf meeting Monte Cristo and why it was changed, or at least why i think it was changed. in the book, Monte Cristo saves Albert from bandits in Rome, later they meet again in Paris, where Monte Cristo will later be introduced to Comte Fernand de Morcerf. In the film, it is all still very much staged, but so much more masterfully. Paris, the home of the Morcerfs becomes Monte Cristo's stage, everything happens as he dictates, they are his puppet but don't know it. We follow Edmond, and everything is always exactly as he predicts, to the letter - Fernand is at a disadvantage from the start, but he does not even have an inkling of doubt.

we, as the audience need to see who is in control, what the rules are, no all knowing narrator will tell us, this is a film, we need to show not tell, also we can cut the Italy voyage for budget reasons, and with no Epinay and no Valentine, and Danglars having another punishment, things can and should be changed, Vampa, is after all the last piece of a puzzle we're not building here, so might as well trim the fat

Monte Cristo has set the stage, he is in power, this is a master class

But then we see moments when Edmond admits to needing to keep the wounds open, the vulnerability that he refuses to have for most of the book, we make him human, we ground him a bit more. If the wounds heal, which they start to do around André and Haydée, then he might abandon his vengeance. The mvie said let's start to give this man a heart before the end!

i love the scenes o plotting with Edmond Haydée and André, those are the only moments Edmond takes the mask off before the end, he gets to be more vulnerable with his chosen children (as he does with the Morrels in the book but still, i find it so meaty for the story and the characters) the plotting, the scheming, the moments of fun they get to have!

André being in on it, being loved and a part of the team, not just a pawn for Edmond, Benedetto is a simple criminal, nothing interesting, but in the film, he is so much! so so much more! The remorse at André's death, completely absent in the book, because he is the evil spawn of Villefort, like give me some meat!! There is love, there is heart, there is pain unknowable, unbearable, you put the knife in his hand, you're the reason the child you love is no more

Mercédès, be in it in the book or the film knows that Edmond is doing something, she does nothing to stop him, she knows people will be hurt, but the guilt she has (i don't think she should feel guilty, but misogyny has been alive for centuries) stops her from stopping him. she cannot make herself stop the justice he doles out

Edmond and Fernand both having scars on the left of their faces (the heat side, yes they are foils) - lets add some visuals!!

We don't get to see how much of a coward and a backstabber Fernand is. Not only did he betray Ali Tebelin Pacha of Janina, he also betrays the Spanish and the British, all that after having betrayed both Edmond and Mercédès, he is watered down in that aspect for the film. But he does it so willingly, with his eyes wide open. His actions will hurt the one he claims to love the most. All that he did it for, he loses it, Albert leaves, Mercédès leaves and cannot respect him anymore

Albert gets more development, he gets to be more than just a tool to hurt his father, he is the avatar of young Fernand that Edmond cannot hurt anymore in the book, he's more in the film, also we don't get to see how much of a mama's boy he is

Haydée and Albert as avatars of Mercédès and Edmond, who could not get to be happy together, but their children can!!

Haydée is the heart, but she is so much more representative of that in the film. The film allows her to be so much more than just one of Monte Cristo's tools, also she gets to not be his prize in the end

Albert is very lonely, all is friends absent from the film, we have to make room for him to be the young man in love from all adventure films, it's about the meta of knowing those classics

actually i think Mercédès telling it all to Albert when he goes to kill Monte Cristo is something that should have been kept, Albert being told, understanding the sins of his father is a very important bit to his character growth, he needs it to become a man and stop being so innocently childish

Edmond sending his daughter with the son of the woman he loved and the man he hates to be happy, to live and to love, yeah no there is something about that, poetry

the duel! Fernand, finally actually fighting, the most cowardly man in the world, the expert in backstabbing, and selling his friends, finally has to have a confrontation! and he loses, but he will have to live, live with the shame, live alone, without the woman for whom he did all that, the woman who never asked for this, who was actually not even happy with him, the woman who only chose him because he was the last thing she had in the world

that is so much more "capes et épées" than if he just blew his brains in one of his most cowardly moves ever, "you shall live with your shame there is no escape", that is a change that was needed for the story the film was telling

also killing yourself to avoid the shame is not something that will speak to wider audiences nowadays

kind of loss that only Morcerf knew the hand of fate was Edmond Dantès the young man they screw over, but i get it, it was all about the dramatics

Edmond's letter to Maximilien and Valentine (in the book) instead being addressed to Mercédès the woman he loved, the woman that loved him, the woman he could not be with anymore, because life changed them so is so poignant, it is such a fitting goodbye for the film and the characters as they exist in the film, they shall be alone and separated, but they live on in their children who will live for them, love for them, be for them

they broke the curse!

[sl-walker]

⭐️ for that fanfic directors commentary ask game?

Since you said Guy--

The Ocean Inland was the holiday piece that @daraoakwise requested as her present. The series it's part of (Carbon Cycle) is essentially the 'Rebirth' era of comics, versus the post-Crisis, pre-Flashpoint era (which I'm writing in Past Resolution's Power) and the New52 era (which I don't really touch on since it didn't interest me that much, aside Guy's Red Lantern book). But I treat all of those as separate 'reboots' because that makes a much more interesting story, especially as echoes from prior lifetimes keep pinging on our heroes in the modern day.

So, The Ocean Inland is essentially-- "How did Rebirth Era Guy get his ring?" It's also intended to set up a story Dara's working on with him by having a look at his first mission.

New52 reestablished Guy with a different backstory, but his post-Crisis one was my favorite -- abuse survivor manages to get out, earn two graduate degrees and become a teacher, only to have Hal's battery literally explode in his face, but only after getting hit by a bus. His personality 180, then his slow crawl back to something more like 'asshole with a heart of gold'. I didn't care for the modern revisions of it, so much.

So, this Guy went to University for criminal justice, played for Michigan, ended up hurt on the field, but even as he was graduating with his bachelor's at age 22, he was turning his attention towards-- maybe being a teacher, instead. He keeps feeling this tug towards it, but before he's even put his nice dress clothes away from commencement, the ring shows up.

Unlike prior versions of Guy, this one actually sits with that ring hovering there in front of him. He doesn't take it right away. I wanted to show that this version of him is impacted some by the subconscious influences of past lives; that he's got a more balanced view of the world, and even more importantly, a more balanced view of himself. He's still foul-mouthed and can be crass and crude, but he didn't spend seven years in a vegetative state. As he reflects-- it woulda been different when he was sixteen, an angry, abused kid, but he's not now.

He takes the ring and gets dragged to Oa for training, and there he meets teenage John Stewart, AWOL from his team. They fall in instantly together. I loved writing John here, because I love how their friendship quickly feels familiar and seasoned for both them and us, but have to acknowledge that they're both like-- really, really young, too. Like these guys are no where near the veteran Lanterns we knew pre-Flashpoint. They're rookies who don't even have the right to wear the corp's sigil on their uniforms yet.

A lot of this backstory is just setup for Dara and kind of a look at Guy as, basically, a kid. Both his cynicism as he was growing into his own skin, realizing how broken the system is, but also his innocence. This boy who reads by a dirty little creek, daydreaming, and pretends he's some run-away with a pack lunch in a handkerchief, free of all of the intersecting miseries of his lives and world. A kid who likes to imagine he can smell the ocean even from deeper into Baltimore, the salt and wind and water like a benediction that could wash him clean.

And he carries that forward to the Corps, where he finds himself in a leadership role, even though he's still a rookie. But he's John's right hand and when John asks him -- begs him -- to hold the line, then Guy does. And he gets banged up for it, and in the medbay on Oa, drifts in half dreams where all those lives he didn't live (but that were lived by him before him) are closer to the surface than ever.

So-- basically that. Backstory, introspection, asking what kind of man Guy is at such a young age, and how he handles his first FUBAR of a mission.

Thanks for the ask! ^_^

[ecargmura]

Wind Breaker Episode 13 Review + Final Thoughts - Second Season Announced For 2025!

With the way this episode ended, there’s definitely no way they wouldn’t announce a season 2 and they did—it’ll come out in 2025! It’s to be expected because this was one of Spring 2024’s biggest hits. I certainly enjoyed this and it’s high up on my midyear anime list that I’ll be posting  next week!

Meeting with the Four Kings of Bofurin is going to help Sakura open up a lot more, even though he’s still taking baby steps. The Four Kings have such cool designs. We all know Hiiragi, but there’s also Tsubakino (he’s male), Mizuki and Momose who are very cool on their own! None of them speak, unfortunately. The purpose of the meeting with the Kings and the Grade Captains to let them know that they will always have people supporting them so it’s fine to let them rely on their senpais. Umemiya always knows how to ease someone’s spirits!

Sakura’s taking baby steps as leader of his class! He actually decides to take on Anzai’s matters into his own hands and the rest of the class tags along too because they’re a team. It’s so nice to see Sakura, who was super distrustful, slowly grow into someone who can be relied on! I really liked the scene with him talking with Anzai’s childhood friend Tsuchiya. He normally doesn’t try to start a conversation towards others, so for him to initiate talk is such a novel but welcome feeling! I even liked how Sakura was thinking about Kotoha’s advice on leaving the matter to him. If you look at Sakura at the beginning to the finale of the first season, there’s some solid growth there.

Anzai may be a bit of an obscure classmate in Sakura’s class, but It’s obvious that, while he’s a nice guy, he’s trying too much to take things by himself. He’s also a bad liar to the point that the gullible Sakura can see right through him.You know you’re a terrible liar when Sakura knows you’re lying. His story with Nagato was really sad. It’d break my heart if I learned my childhood friend was hanging out with the wrong crowd. I hope that things can patch up between him and Nagato once Furin goes to beat Keel’s ass. This might be a bit of rambling, but I just learned that his voice actor is Shogo Sakata, who’s known for voicing Aki Hayakawa from Chainsaw Man. I didn’t know he can produce such a childish voice.

Speaking of Keel, the gang is so creepy. Even when I was reading the manga, they gave me cult-like vibes. The member that Sakura meets on patrol is voiced by Junya Enoki. I’m as shocked as you are! I always familiarize Enoki with heroic roles like Totomaru Isshiki from Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective that it’s sort of hard to imagine him as a villain, but he’s here in Wind Breaker as a villain. This will seriously be a treat to watch because this is probably one of the rare times he’ll voice a villain and I can’t wait to hear it! Rambling aside, Keel is very cult-like because they have such a terrible method of discipling their members. If someone failed to do something, they get hit. It’s seriously awful. I do wonder how Nagato got entangled in all of this.

Even in the finale, the animation still is amazing. The way Anzai was fighting off Keel members and even the part where he was catching the purse thief, who turned out to be Nagato, were so good. My favorite part was when Sakura was chasing after Anzai and the camera pans to him going down the stairs and then jumps down to cut him off. Cloverworks really likes showing off why they’re so good with animation.

I seriously cannot wait for next year. It’s crazy how Wind Breaker is getting a second season already! If you’re curious about what happens next and want to read about, please start from Chapter 42, which is the beginning of Volume 6! Season 1 covered the first 5 volumes! I wonder how many volumes the next season will cover. What are your thoughts on the finale?

Final Thoughts

To be very honest, Wind Breaker was one of those animes that I wanted to watch primarily because of the stellar voice cast and that I had a very sour experience watching Bucchigiri, which was also about gang fighting. However, it slowly became one of the most exciting anime watching experiences I had. It’s because of Wind Breaker that I got a lot more online friends! It’s always nice to meet new people who watch the same things as you! While the anime is fun, I think what I gained these past three months feels as precious. Seriously, it’s such an amazing feeling.

Wind Breaker may be a straightforward story about gang fights and action, but the writing is a lot more heartwarming than you expect. It’s more about seeing the characters, specifically the MC Sakura, learn and grow. We learn why Sakura is the way he is and how being around people is beneficial for him. The concept of him going to a delinquent high school, but it’s also a place where the delinquents also have double duty as police officers of sorts. I also love that the fighting is just pure action and not crazy magic stuff. I love that it’s a little different from the usual delinquent stories in that it focuses more on characters and not fighting all the time.

The characters are the highlight of the show. Each of them have their own unique design and personality. It’s just so nice to see how well they mesh together. Not only does Furin have intricate designs, but Shishitoren does too! My favorite part of the characters is learning that their names have a theme! Bofurin characters’ names all revolve around plants. Shishitoren’s names revolve around animals. I can tell the author took so much time and effort to name these characters. As a writer myself, naming characters is both the funnest and the most tiresome aspect of the writing process.

Cloverworks did an amazing job with the anime adaptation. From the memorable first episode where Sakura goes all out against a gang by himself to animating the Shishitoren fights were so great. Though, my favorite part of the animation was seeing the studio elevate some of the characters’ backstories. I really loved how they animated Togame and Choji’s backstory! Togame got a backstory extension and Choji had such quality detail in his! Let’s just hope they keep that quality next season and not turn it into a mess like The Promised Neverland Season 2. Don’t f*** this up, please. The music was also really nice! The OP and ED songs were catchy and the OST were good! I especially loved the song Stronger! I love how there’s a piano remix of it too whenever something emotional happens.

The voice actors are seriously amazing. They legit casted extremely star-studded voice actors for this anime. We’ve got Yuma Uchida as Sakura, Nobunaga Shimazaki as Suo, Koki Uchiyama as Sugishita, and even Yuichi Nakamura as Umemiya. Look at those names! Shishitoren got some big names too like Yuichiro Umehara as Togame and Chiaki Kobayashi as Sako. If they’re going all out for this season, I can’t wait to see who’d they cast for the Keel characters because having Junya Enoki as one of the members is INSANE!

Like I said before, if you want to start reading the manga, start from Chapter 42 because Episode 13 ends on Chapter 41. I hope that you all had a wonderful experience with this manga! I hope that energy returns next year!