#super why teen trio

[izztreme-art-n-stuff]

Chapter 2 is finally out after a long time wait.

Let's just say things have escalated real fast.

[targaryenluvs]

— OPPOSITES ATTRACT

pairings: clarisse la rue x aphrodite!daughter!reader (romantic) percy jackson x reader (platonic)

summary: the one where percy jackson has to wrap his head around the fact that the nicest person he’s met at camp, is dating clarisse.

warnings: kinda crack ficy in my opinion, fluff, smooches, capture the flag, reader is percy’s saving grace, percy sees the reader as a sister

a/n: i just got inspired okay? ✊🏽

percy’s feet were booming, heard from afar as he ran to the creek’s shore. the ares trio hot on his tail as they chased him down. he knew he couldn’t run forever, he’d have to fight, but how on earth was he going to win against three trained teens?

as if clarisse wasn’t frightening enough already, her scream sent literal chills down percy’s back, guess she really likes spears? he thought to himself.

the sounds of cheers and celebration drew the pairs attention as luke planted the opposing teams flag into the floor. they’d lost. percy felt clarisse’s grip falter, only slightly, but not when she saw the flag, clarisse’s eyes were currently trained on something behind him. more bullies? “there you are! i was waiting for you, wanted to show you my new and improved skills.”

clarisse let go of him and he couldn’t believe it, the rage in her eyes seemed to dissipate the second you came around. you, the sweetest person he’d met here, were friends with that thing?

that thing was capable of feelings?

his jaw dropped at the sight of clarisse’s hands on your cheeks, listening to you ramble on about who you’d fought and defeated in the woods, the pretty butterfly you’d seen. percy’s eyes were so close to popping out of his skull as clarisse kissed you, deeply. then he wanted to vomit as hands traveled and tongues met.

at dinner that night you sat by luke and chris, happily eating away as your hand rested on a book infront of you. “hey perce! come sit down.” you patted the space next to you as he accepted. “what’re you reading?” percy stared at the cover you’d flipped over to display to him, well he wasn’t expecting that. “where’d you get it from?” you pointed towards your girlfriend proudly, “she said she knew i’d like it, isn’t that sweet?”

percy’s weird version of a smile caused you to frown, “your smile is scaring me.” he immediately dropped it as you laughed, causing him to nudge you. “don’t be rude, i’m just a baby.” percy hadn’t felt so comfortable with someone since his mother. you pinched his cheeks, “naw, yes you are.” he swatted your hands away as you giggled, percy stared at you, studying you.

shining eyes, a beaming smile and an enchanting personality, truly a daughter of aphrodite, yet you dated clarisse. it didn’t make sense in his head, but from what little scenes he’d seen between the two of you, if you were happy than he was too, “what do you see in clarisse? why are you with someone so—” you turned to look his way, percy was worried you’d be offended.

but of course you weren’t, “because i like her percy, and she likes me. she’s absolutely gorgeous, if she wasn’t already a daughter of ares or i didn’t know? for sure aphrodite. and, people are always misunderstood, just because someone seems like a bad person, doesn’t mean they are. when clarisse and i are together, i see the best parts of her, always. i love her regardless, but there’s obviously things that you don’t tell everybody you just meet, or if you aren’t super comfortable with a person then you won’t show all the parts of yourself. i think, when you love someone you accept all parts of them, the good, the bad, the worst. you love someone despite their flaws. clarisse is good to me, and i like her, that’s all that matters. you’ll understand when you find someone yourself perce.”

he sat still, raking over your words in his head, “if one person can feel that way about someone else, they’d explode.” you laughed at his words, he was still young of course, he’d understand soon, you had a feeling. “i’d happily explode because of how much i love her.” you glanced back at her, only she wasn’t there.

“well i don’t want you to explode, i do want to spend my night with you.” clarisse stood behind you with her arms crossed, you could see percy tense up at her presence. with your hand on his, and your eyes reassuring him, he smiled, “i’m happy for you, but if she try’s anything i’m more than happy to beat her ass for you even if i’m broken in half.”

clarisse couldn’t hear his whispers, thank god. your smile was small, placing a hand on his shoulder, you kissed percy’s forehead, “my protector, now no one can try anything with me huh? thank you perce, if you need anything here at camp, or if you just want to talk and eat those blue foods of yours—” his arms wrapped around your neck tightly as you recovered from the force.

“thank you.”

“any day perce, any time.”

and percy sat back, watching the two of you walk away hand in hand. a clear thought rung through his head.

opposites attract.

[eggieeggman]

I've never done one of these challenges but I'm hoping to stick with it! Dannymay art for days 1-4

They're all in black and white with ecto-green accents because I wanted them to be in a similar style and drawing in b/w can be fun! Plus the green looks so cool and glowy.

I wasn't super inspired by the first prompt, so I drew Phantom chatting with a ghost bug who's in a bit of a rush. A little Business Bug.

I love de-aged Ellie and teen dad Danny AUs, so it's her birthday! Make a wish, but make sure you don't say it out loud! (Ft. Everlasting trio my beloved)

This one inspired me to draw a whole scene! Not sure of the context, but Jazz is looking for Danny on a dark foggy night. Why do you think he's hiding?

Space boy! Looks like he wandered a little far from home. I love how dynamic this one is!

Can't wait to make some more!

[qianqiancandyjar]

Secret Trio shorts collection

Title: Secret Trio

Introduction: Well, you know them. Three teens with superhero duties and secret identities. It's them being bros. What could possibly happen?;)

Short comic list:

#1 Molting cycle | #2 Cooling off

#3 Super senses | #4 Battle suits

#5 Duplicate | #6 Weaknesses

#7 Stretch | #8 Choose your flight, Ninja

#9 the Sauce Trio-Halloween

#10 Cellmates in Time Prison

#11 Arm Wrestle | #12 Company on Christmas

Some blabbering:

Okay, originally I just want to draw some funny stuffs to balance with the angsty long comic I'm doing on the other side. Then I can't brake the brake. 🤣

Mostly I'll make shorts considering their similarities and differences in charaters, experiences and powers. Not sure if I made anything similar with others' works. If so, I'm really sorry it's a coincidence!

The quality is unstable, depending on the idea and how much I want to draw it. :T (Actually all my drawings are, which is why practice makes perfect)

Little bonus:

(This cover is killing me🤣)

[restinslices]

I think I asked this before I’m not sure. I’m pretty senile 😭 but I was wondering if we can get a pt.2 of the Lin Kuei trio with the delinquent kid? Like they have a twin sister who’s the exact opposite and is pretty much a goody two shoes suck up but she tries to defend their sibling and get them out of trouble and is just so loving but this makes them (the delinquent) mad because they don’t need her help and one day they snap and just hit her. Like I just KNOW Bi Han putting belt to bare ass bout his babygirl 😭🙏🏾 like the girl is just following her brother or sister around trying to start a conversation and *BAM* she gets hit in the face and yelled at for being annoying

Omg anon I remember you. You definitely asked for a part 2 but the wording on who hit who confused me a lil. I don't think you saw when I asked for clarification but we've found ourselves here again :D I wrote Bi-Han’s part then became brain empty for the other 2😭. It’s been 6 days since I last posted so imma just post this one, but if you still want the other 2, hit my line again

Bi-Han's patience is already low

You know this. I know this. The neighbors know this. A random bitch in a different country knows this-

I fully believe he's a black mom on the inside. No I will not be explaining

The twin sister would be a relief to deal with since they're not constantly arguing with him

I can see him getting annoying with them defending their delinquent sibling because he sees it as not letting them take accountability

Still though, one of them gets the bigger picture frame when shit is hung and I think we both know who it is

I think when the situation happens, he needs a second to process what he saw

He's not like "omg violence. I can't believe that happened!". He's like "now this kid is a lot of things... Stupid is not one of them. Let me rub my eyes. That had to be a hallucination"

Once he realizes that what he saw was real, that black mom is really coming out-

Idk how someone can say "you done lost your raggedy ass mind!" in a sophisticated manner, but he does it

Did he permanently scar his brother? Well yes! But he thinks that was valid. What he just saw was unnecessary

There's a lot of yelling and for some reason my brain thinks Bi-Han would have the twin sister hit them back. He's gotta make it fair

Oh but that's not the only punishment. The delinquent is already super disrespectful and now they're physically lashing out

Welcome to Bi-Han's Bootcamp For Troubled Teens

More training, more physical labor, more chores, more everything

This kid is finna be working like them kids in Holes until this rebellious phase is over

The disrespect, not taking anything serious, then not being able to control their own emotions? It would annoy tf out of him

As for our punch victim, he’s like “see? This is why you have to stop defending them and let them take accountability for their actions”

I don’t see him lessening their work load so to speak, but they definitely aren’t working to the bone like their twin is

“I have let myself be run over for too long. There will order in this fucking house”

[thecursedanon]

Rainy Day

Characters: Lee!Yuji, Ler!Nanami, Sukuna(only in Yuji's head), Megumi, Nobara, Inumaki (because I love this little dork, okay? lol) Genre: Comfort <3 Word Count: 3166 Summary: Yuji Is super down today, that and he's not been sleeping well due to the nightmares he's been having. His friends, concerned about him go to Nanami with their concerns, and the stoic teacher takes it upon himself to cheer Itadori up. A/N: Hey, Curse here! This was originally intended to be part of the Amusement Park Aftermath fic, but I couldn't organically fit it in so I split them up... so that's why there are similarities in the setting. Enjoy!

Though the mood had been upbeat and calm in the days before, today it seemed as though a rain cloud loomed over Jujutsu Tech-- both figuratively and literally. Everyone seemed a bit more somber today.

Even Yuji wasn’t immune to the effects as he gazed out his window at the bleak gray sky, winds whipping the trees around and causing the leaves to drift around with reckless abandon.

He sighed softly, leaning over and resting his face on his palms as he watched the gloominess outside from the edge of his bed.

He heard his door open, but didn’t turn around or acknowledge it. Nobara and Megumi had been peeking in on him periodically to make sure he was still alive, clearly unused to the pink haired teen being a recluse.

“He’s still moping.” Megumi sighed.

“Should we go get Gojo sensei?” Nobara asked.

“We want to cheer him up, not make him worse.”

“I dunno, he seems pretty good at this kind of thing...”

Inumaki poked his head into the room with them, signing as he spoke. “Bonito flakes…” Megumi is right… “Mustard Leaf.” Gojo would just overwhelm him more.

“Well, do you have a better idea?”

Inumaki paused, the blonde tapped his chin as he became deep in thought. Nobara shot Megumi a look that screamed; ‘this is who we’re taking ideas from?’ as she gestured to the other teen.

“Tuna mayo?” Maybe Nanami can help?

“If Gojo can’t help, what makes you think Nanami sensei can?”

“He’s right.” Megumi nodded in agreement with Toge’s idea. “Nanami is our best bet. If something serious is going on, Yuji might be more comfortable talking to Nanami about it.”

Inumaki nodded his head, looking quite pleased with himself as Nobara sighed. “Fine, let’s go find him…” With that, the trio headed to Nanami’s classroom and explained the worrying situation to him.

“That explains why he hasn’t been blowing my phone up this morning…” He sighed softly. Yuji had a bad habit of spamming his phone with an overabundance of positive texts, or any and all memes he found that he thought were funny… most of the time they weren’t.

“I’ll go talk to him,” He nodded, standing up from his desk. “Thank you for coming to me.”

Back In Yuji’s room, he had actually started to doze off watching the rain fall down his window when there was a knock at his door. He sighed, trying to ignore their efforts.

There was another knock, this one softer and a bit more hesitant than the first. 

“Guys, I’m not dead in here. you can stop checking on me.” He called out, half asleep.

“Itadori?”

Yuji perked up at the sound of the voice. “Nanamin?”

“Is it alright if I come in?”

The pinkette nodded, but realized he couldn’t see him. “Yeah, you can come in.” he responded, turning around to look at the door.

Nanami walked in and closed the door behind him, assessing Yuji carefully for any signs of distress. “I haven’t heard from you In a while… I wanted to check in on you.” He said, his voice softer than usual.

Itadori smiled a little, and when he did, Nanami could see just how exhausted the teen looked. “Yeah, sorry… I haven’t been on my phone.”

That in and of itself was alarming.

The blonde teacher approached him cautiously. “Yuji, you look like you haven’t been sleeping.” He observed out loud. “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Itadori brushed off his concern, trying to shake off the fatigue. “Just didn’t sleep well last night.”

“Watching too many Jennifer Lawrence movies, again?” There was a note of teasing on his words as he spoke to the pink haired boy. (Okay, more than a note.)

Yuji felt his face heat up. “Noooo…” He subtly nudged his chair to conceal a stack of Jennifer Lawrence movies he had in fact been watching the night before. 

Nanami, of course, saw this. He let out a small chuckle as he idly picked up one of Itadori’s blankets from the floor, folding it as he spoke. “Yuji, if something is bothering you… you know you can talk to me, right?” He asked, glancing up at the teen as he neatly set it down on the bed. “Even if you think it’s something minor…”

Yuji bit his lip and looked back out the window. “Yeah… I know that…It’s just my thoughts are so scrambled right now… I don’t even know how to start talking about what’s bothering me...”

Nanami frowned, picking up another blanket and approaching the pinkette with it. He carefully draped it around him and sat down next to him. “I understand…”

A memory flickered to the forefront of his mind, he recalled saying something similar to his best friend when he was Yuji’s age. Haibara had responded by looking for the fluffiest, most comforting blanket he could find in their dorm room and damn near smothered Kento with it as he wrapped him up in it and hugged him tightly.  

It was times like this that he wished Yu had still been alive, he’d be much better at this sort of thing than he was… “I’m sorry.” Kento said softly, his hands firmly grasping his students shoulders. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Yuji looked at the window, the rain and wind had kicked up even more outside. “Can I… have a hug?”

Nanami nodded, not hesitating to engulf him in a big protective hug at his request. “Of course you can.”

Yuji smiled, the warmth from the blanket and the warmth radiating from the tight hug was soothing to him. He wrapped his arms around Nanami in response, resting his head on his shoulder. 

As he sat there with him, the room silent save for the rain falling outside and the soft breathing, he felt his racing thoughts slowing down a bit… making more sense rather than being incoherent whispers speaking over each other.

But that soon became a problem too, as the reason for his anguish presented itself.

He was sad.

He was really fucking sad… He missed his grandpa. He was exhausted from trying to put on a brave front all the time, when the truth of the matter was; he was still just a scared, sad kid who missed the only family he had ever truly had...

As Nanami sat there holding the student, he felt him begin to tremble in his arms. “Itadori?” He asked softly, holding the teen tighter to try to silently reassure him he was okay.

“I’m… sorry…” Came the small, whimper of a reply. Small sobs escaped his shaking form as he buried his face in the blonde’s chest, his tears soaking into the blue fabric.

“Hey… don’t be sorry.” Kento responded, keeping his tone low and gentle in an attempt to soothe the boy. “It’s okay… shh… you’re okay.” He began rubbing circles into the pinkette’s back as he spoke. “I’m here with you and I’m not going anywhere…”

If Yuji hadn’t have already been crying, he would have been now. He clung onto his mentor like a scared child as he sobbed harder.

It became clear to Nanami just how much pain the boy was in, his muffled cries sounding anguished and terrified. It absolutely broke his heart, he wasn’t sure how to take the pain away from the usually bright light hearted teen, and he desperately wanted to.

“I’m so tired of being scared, Nanami!” he cried into his chest.

“Yuji… It’s going to be okay, you have nothing to be afraid of here. I’ll protect you.” The usually stoic teacher whispered in response.

“But who will protect you?” Itadori whimpered, burrowing further into his protective hold. “I can’t lose you too!!”

“Yuji…” Nanami felt his heart twist at the student’s outburst, he wished more than anything he could say that he wouldn’t lose him, and that everything would be okay in the end… but he knew from his own experience that wasn’t the case. He knew how cruel this line of work was… it didn’t discriminate with the lives it claimed.

“I can’t lose you…!” The boy sobbed, his frame shaking like a leaf in the blonde teacher’s strong arms. “P-Please…!”

“Shhh… hey, listen to me okay? I have no intentions of going anywhere.” Kento whispered, gently rocking Itadori in his arms. “Why are you so worried about me? I haven’t died yet.”

“I…” Yuji pulled back, looking up at Nanami with tears falling down his face. That also broke his heart. “I-I’ve been having these nightmares… Where y-you… you…”

“Shhh…” Nanami reached forward and gently pulled the crying pinkette back into his warm embrace, stroking his hair gently as he guided his head to rest against his chest. “Yuji, they’re just bad dreams… do you hear that? My heart is still beating. I’m still here. You’re okay… I’ve got you.”

This seemed to soothe some of anguish the boy was feeling, his sobs becoming small whimpers as he began to calm down at the sound of Nanami’s heartbeat in his ear.

They sat there In silence together for a while, the only other sound in the room was the rain hitting Yuji’s window and his sniffles and whimpers.

But soon those would silence too, and Itadori would slowly pull away from Nanami again. His eyes were puffy from all the crying he’d done, and his face was tear stained. “N-Nanamin?”

“Yes?”

“Th-Thank you…”

The blonde smiled softly at him, gently wiping away some of the remaining tears from his face. “Of course…” 

Yuji giggled a bit as Kento grazed against his neck when wiping his tears away, causing the blonde to pause and give him a confused look. “What was that?”

“Nothing.” Itadori said quickly, smiling nervously as his mentor stared at him.

Oh?

Nanami smirked, ghosting his fingers along Itadori’s neck, causing him to squeak and recoil with a giggle. “Nothing? Are you sure about that?”

“Nanami…”

“Itadori… you wouldn’t happen to be… ticklish, would you?”

“W-Well would you look at the time? I’m gonna be late for my training session with Gojo and-- ACK!”

“Oh no you don’t.” Kento grabbed onto the pinkette before he could escape, pulling him back into his arms and pinning him against him. “Even if you did have training with Gojo right now, which you don’t because he’s out of town… I’m not letting you off the hook that easily.”

“Wh-What did I do?”

“I told you I’d protect you… that includes from yourself and your sadness.”

“But Nanamin… I’m not sad any--eeeeehehehehehe!” Yuji’s protests were interrupted by a squeal followed by adorably bubbly giggles as Nanami began to tickle him.

“Oh please, don’t insult my intelligence… I know you’re still sad, you’re just not crying anymore.” Nanami rolled his eyes fondly at the boy, squeezing at his side teasingly.

“Nahahahahanami! Ihihihit tickles!” Itadori whined, but despite his complaints he made no attempts to get away.

Nanami chuckled at his reactions, sneaking his hand underneath Yuji’s shirt to lightly tickle his bare side. “Does it now~? How unfortunate for you… because I have no intentions of stopping until you feel better~”

Yuji giggled harder as he leaned into Nanami’s hold. “Ihihihihi’m not sahahahahad anymore!”

“Itadori, It’s okay to be sad…” Nanami said soothingly, skittering his fingers up and down his ribs as he spoke. “It’s okay to feel what you’re feeling… but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you suffer through it alone.”

The most adorable thing about this whole thing? Yuji wasn’t resisting, he was actually angling himself in ways that would give Nanami more access to his ticklish spots… which he found utterly adorable.

“Itadori, you know… you could at least pretend to want to get away~” Kento chuckled in amusement at his student.

“I dohohoho want to get ahahaway!” Yuji lied… because If he really wanted to get away, he totally could.

“Oh, you do, hm? Is that why you’re rolling around like a puppy trying to get me to scratch its belly?” Nanami couldn’t help but tease the boy, his fingers drifting to Yuji’s stomach. “Is this what you were looking for~?”

Itadori squealed as he felt Nanami’s fingers lightly dance across his toned stomach, practically melting in his mentor's hold as he laughed harder. “EHEHEHEHEEK!”

It’s now coming to Itadori’s attention that he may… and I repeat; may be… enjoying this. (He is.) 

Sure, every once In a while he’ll get the occasional poke here and there, or Gojo will be… well, Gojo… and tickle the absolute snot out of him but… Nanami’s tickles are much more gentle and affectionate. It’s almost relaxing in a sense… plus he never knew his parents, and his grandfather wasn’t exactly the most physically affectionate so it’s kind of healing to his inner child right now to be tickled by someone he views as a father figure.

Also, he just really loves playing around with him like this… this isn’t a side anyone sees of Nanami.

Did I mention Yuji is an adorable ball of sunshine yet? because he totally is.

“Ah, that was definitely what you wanted…” Nanami teased, his fingers tracing teasingly along his stomach, producing the most adorable giggles he’s heard in a very long time.

“Nahahahahanamin! Nohohohoho! Nahahat the behehehelly!” Yuji squealed, covering his face as his half hearted protests fell on deaf ears.

“Not the belly? why not? It seems like as good a spot as any…” Nanami hummed thoughtfully, pretending to consider it for a moment. “Hmm… Nope, sorry. I think I’m going to stay right here for a bit longer, you’re a tough kid, you can take it.”

Yuji squealed again as his stomach was tickled with more vigor.

‘Seriously, brat? He’s not kidding… You really are like a dog who wants his stomach rubbed. The only thing you’re missing is the damn leg kick.’ Sukuna taunted Yuji internally.  

‘Suhuhuhukuna shuhuhuhut up!’ Poor Yuji couldn’t even escape the teasing in his mind.

‘You know you could easily get this to stop, don’t you? Just allow me control and--’

‘Absolutely nahahahat!’

‘Why not? Don’t tell me… you actually ENJOY this, do you?’

‘Ihihihim not gonna lehehehet you hurt him!’

‘How pathetic… you truly are an annoying brat.’

“Nahahahanamihihihi plehehehease!”

The blond relented his attack, allowing the pinkette to catch his breath. “Are you feeling any better yet?” He asked gently, keeping his unofficial son trapped in his grasp as he calmed down.

Yuji nodded, giggling a bit still. “Y-Yeah.. thanks dad.”

Oh fuck.

He didn’t just…

Nanami froze as he heard those words come out of Itadori’s mouth.

Itadori panicked inwardly, his distress making Sukuna chuckle in amusement in the back of his mind. “I-I mean… yeah, thanks dad.” He said much more sarcastically this time, hoping that Nanami would go for it.

He did not. 

“Yuji… did you just… call me dad?”

Yuji felt himself tear up, fearful that he just ruined the relationship he had with Nanami. “Y-Yeah, but I meant it in a joking way.”

Kento frowned, he knew by the way the boy’s voice quivered that he was lying. “Yuji…”

“I-I’m sorry.” Yuji shook his head and closed his eyes, trying to contain his emotions. “I-I didn’t mean to… I-It… It jus-- EEK!”

Yuji shrieked as Nanami resumed his ticklish attack, now holding the teen’s arms above his head and tickling under his arms.

“NAHAHAHAHANAMI?? AHAHAHAHAHAHA! WHYHYHYHYHY ARE YOU TICKLING MEHEHEHE??”

“Because you’re sad again.” Nanami answered simply.

“AHAHAHAHAREN’T YOU MAHAHAHAD AT MEHEHE??”

Nanami leaned down a bit so he could speak directly into Yuji’s ear. “Why would I be mad?” His voice was low and calm, as if he wasn’t completely annihilating Yuji with tickles right now.

“BEHEHEHECAUSE IHIHIHI CALLED YOU-- EeEeEeEeEEEEK!” Yuji shrieked as Nanami blew a raspberry against his neck, cutting him off. “NAHAHAHAHA!!”

“I seem to have missed the part where you did something to make me mad…” Nanami smiled a bit, his fingers not slowing their pace against Itadori’s ticklish armpit whatsoever.

“BUHUHUHUT IHIHI… IHIHI CALLED YOUHUHU DAHAHAD-- AIEEE!”

Itadori was interrupted by another raspberry against his neck. “And?”

“IHIHIHIHIM SOHOHOHORRYEEEEHEHEHEHE!” Yuji shrieked again as he dealt another massive raspberry against his neck. Before he could form semi coherent sentences again, Nanami laid him down on his back on his bed and pinned his arms down above his head.

“Yuji Itadori… If you apologize to me again, you’re going to regret it.” Nanami said sternly, though his green eyes sparkled as his gaze remained gentle on the teen. “My cursed technique isn’t just useful for inflicting pain…It can also be used to make ticklish troublemakers even more ticklish…”

Yuji took a moment to catch his breath, and tried to collect his thoughts before responding. “N-Nanamin… Why aren’t you mad at me…?”

“I told you, you haven’t said anything to upset me.”

“But… I called you… D-Dad… That doesn’t upset you?”

Nanami smiled. “No… It doesn’t.” He let go of Itadori’s arms, and just let him lay there instead.

Yuji frowned, tears quickly flooding his eyes as he looked away. “You can’t possibly mean that… you’re just trying to reassure me-EEEE--” the pinkette squealed and began cackling again as Nanami blew a raspberry on his stomach.

“New rule, every time you apologize for no reason or overthink, I’m going to tickle you.” Kento smirked, watching as the boy composed himself again.

“B-But…”

“Yuji… I’m not just trying to reassure you. I meant that.” Nanami’s voice was gentle as he spoke. “If calling me Dad makes you happy then… you can call me that any time you want.”

Itadori sat up slowly, his eyes still sparkly with tears. “Y-You… really don’t mind?”

“Of course not.” Kento reached forward and wiped Yuji’s tears. “I happen to care about you.”

Welp. That did it… again.

Yuji started sobbing again, leaning forward and burying his face in Nanami’s chest as he ugly cried

Kento pulled him into a comforting hug, rubbing soothing circles into his back. “Shh… It’s okay now… You’re safe.”

‘You truly are a pathetic creature, you know that?’

‘That may be… but at least I’M loved sooo… suck it.’

After a few more minutes Yuji began to calm down, and he pulled back from Nanami. “Thank you… I needed that.” He smiled, wiping his eyes.

“You don’t have to thank me for comforting you, you know…” Nanami mused. “I really don’t mind.”

“Heh… Yeah I guess you’re right… sorry-- EEHEHEHE!” Yuji shrieked as Nanami reached forward and tickled his stomach, after using ratio to make him even more ticklish, of course.

“You never learn, do you?” Nanami sighed, though his words may have come out as disappointed, the playful glimmer in his eyes betrayed him.

It seemed It was going to take some time for Yuji to learn not to be so apologetic and overthink so much, and Nanami was content to keep tickling him until he got that message through his skull… Yuji was also content to let it happen.

[leoruby-draws]

Kid Villains, pt 2.

Decided to post more kiddy villains, bit of a sequel to this. First up is Kitten, Mothman's bratty daughter from the 2003 teen titan cartoon:

Modeled her costume after the Rosy Maple Moth, while there are species of moths with the name kitten on them I figured she would prefer a pink outfit.

Thought it'd be kinda cool for her to be a villain for the batkids, she's already evil so why not. I don't imagine her to be all that talented at the job tho she would still be very dangerous if you underestimate her. I think she would work particularly well against Steph, being that Mothman started as a villain for Barbara (Cass might be too high level for her tbh).

Here's some more doodles:

Here's my Scarecrow's sidekick oc, I should probably name her something like Rag Doll or Raggedy Scream maybe? The three boys are oc's modeled after the Terrible Trio, criminals who commit crimes wearing animal masks. Their identities change a lot over continuities, so these kids are probably aspiring to be the next incarnation of this group.

Here's another random oc, a sidekick for White Rabbit (Jaina Hudson). Thought it'd be funny if it was just a kid in a silly rabbit suit, like what the kid wore in that movie, A Christmas Story. I'm not sure on what his personality should be. Maybe someone genuinely nice, a cheerful, polite boy who likes to hand people bombs (unintentionally dangerous) or maybe someone pretending to be nice but is actually malicious. Whatever's funnier I suppose.

Here's some characters inspired by the Super Friends enemies, the Super Foes. You'd see some of them return for the Robins 2021 mini, except for Toy Boy. Giggles and Guffaw are newer, only appearing in the mini.

I messed with their designs a bit to make them more unique looking. Honeysuckle for example was shown with either red or brown hair but I gave her a sorta dark maroon, thought it contrasted well with her green outfit. Honeysuckle btw, is older than the rest, and is more of an enemy to Dick and Barbara, tho her teenage self has no problem attacking the younger sibs.

Also Giggles and Guffaw might look a little similar to a certain anime starring a group of sextuplets, just being a little funny there. I gave these kids some made up names, mostly taken from whatever writer created them. Couple of them worked out pretty well actually, like Bridwell (well, spring, stream) and Estrada (Road).

This next one is a character from the 2004 cartoon The Batman, which I never actually watched but I did see commercials of. His name is Prank ( Donnie ?), a protege of the Joker. He wasn't evil enough to stick it out, but I gotta say I just loved his costume (esp how the jacket resembles Robins coat a bit). Made up a last name for him, just a random one from searching up famous clowns.

Being Barbara's peer, he's also more of a antagonist for the older kids, decided he and Honeysuckle should friends. I kinda want to use them as a sorta contrast to Babs and Dick, that could be fun to do. Also look at baby Dick, I don't draw him enough at this age.

Speaking of Barbara, I've been going back and forth between having her start out as either 12 or 16. All the other kids start out really young, so it makes sense for Babs to do so as well. But I kinda like the thought of her starting out much older, makes her more unique among the batkids (in pre-crisis she became Batgirl in like her 20s btw, cool huh?)

More various rivals for the kids to fight, excluding my oc Pink Rabbit, all of them more antagonists for the kids themselves rather sidekicks of the villains that Batman fights.

Here's Jason and Steph torturing poor little Enigma, who would be considered the bad guy here?

Here's some more proteges, Holly probably exists in this world, she's a bit too old for all this nonsense tho. Kitten is also a Super Foes member and was in Robins 2021 as well, she's been shown to be a sidekick to the Cheetah and Catwoman. Maybe she's just likes to attach herself to any cat-themed villain.

Crazy Quilt is more of an enemy to Robin than Batman, plus he has his own legacy in Crazy Quilt II, so obviously I had to include them. I wonder what name should I give the younger one, Duvet? Silly Blankie? idk

Lastly here's Earth 3(?) Jason Todd as Talon II paying a visit to the Training Wheels universe, seems like hes a bit of a crybaby. I don't think we've seen a earth 3 variant of Jason, so I'm just making up my own version of him. Wonder why he seems so nervous...

Anyways!! That was a lot, hope you liked all that!

[sopaprimordialy]

Warriors HC collection - 2nd Edition

Click here for 1st Edition — The Warriors

THE HOUSE OF HURRICANE

They are drag queens. That's not even a head canon because the lyric book addresses them as "House of Hurricane" rather than just "The Hurricanes" like it does with the other gangs. Additionally, the actors playing them are all queer (Michaela Jaé [Yaya] is a trans woman, Billy Porter [Granger] is gay and Mykal Kilgore [Élan] identifies as queer).

This, combined with the music style, vogue, which originated within the queer black community, indicates which groups they're representing here.

In the movie, the gang in roller skates was called "The Punks", and I incorporated this fact to my HC that they (Yaya, Élan and Granger) used to be a trio called The Punks when they were teenagers and had to stick together to protect themselves on the streets. As they grew up and discovered more about themselves and the world they live in, The Punks eventually became a larger crew known as The House Of Hurricane.

They own a couple of gay bars, discos and pubs in upper Manhattan (here you'll have to forgive me for the lack of knowledge about locations in the US, if you have a more specific suggestion for where their turf could be, let me know!)

Since a drag family, among other things, has to do with drag style, I believe the main component of the Hurricanes' style is skating. They are known for their ice and roller skating performances, being able to move and dance freely wearing them (I'm jealous)

The three of them are drag mothers to a LOT of other queens. After the events of the album, their Hous will be long last and their legacy will be gigantic. Yes, by that I mean some future Hurricanes will participate on RuPaul's Drag Race.

Now, individual head canons ahead! Since they appear in only one song, a lot of this is just me hallucinations

ÉLAN

She's the leader, and she has always been the mother of the group. As I mentioned earlier, I believe these three know each other since they're teens, but Élan is a bit older.

Some time before the events of the album, one of the drags she mothered/recruited was killed by the police. She, and many others, quile literally went missing in the park at night. Because of this she tells the Warriors to "stand up for you and yours"; she regrets not being there for her.

She's a taurus (Idk why this felt important).

She's the kind of person who'll tell you her deepest, darkest traumas with a straight face while you're left there, horrified.

Speaking of trauma, she has a lot of it.

They all have. My poor mistreated children.

She cares deeply for all her girls, but especially Yaya. Sometimes Yaya complains, claiming that she doesn't need to be babied, but Élan's still protective of her.

YAYA

The baby of the group.

She's literally never out of drag, which made Élan and Granger start to realize maybe this wasn't the same artistical feeling they had for her.

She's trans. That's it.

And she's always gorgeous.

Also, she's autistic, because I CAN hc whatever I want. One of her favorite stims is imitating the little noises she hear, hence why she keeps singing "dong dong!" during Quiet Girls.

She's a gemini (bcs I started this signs thing and if I stop now it'd be weird).

Yaya was like, super nervous when she told the others about being trans, because crossdressing is one thing, being a trans woman is another.

Fortunately the other members of the gang are not assholes so she was well accepted, and Yaya became her actual name.

She's the most flexible of the group. As my dance teacher wisely said once: "Queers can vogue dance because they don't have bones".

GRANGER

First of all, I love her voice. Not a head canon but I needed to say that. Billy Porter I didn't know you before but holy shit I'm in love.

I feel like she's the strongest of the group, the one who can actually fight and tend to protect the others.

She was the one actually dragging the Warriors out of that train, and she is the one to confront them with the "how do we address our guests [...]" part.

At the end of Quiet Girls when she says "Stand clear of the closing doors!" I always imagined her high kicking the train door. Wearing skates. She cracks the glass.

And then death drops. That's it thanks for reading my incredible ideas for an animatic I'll never make hope it's good 🤙🏽

She's a scorpio (just to be clear here I don't necessarily know what I'm talking about)

I don't really know why but I associate her with Jennifer Lopez's El Anillo.

She taught the others how to skate, she learned as a kid.

[caw4brandon]

We Like, Are Totally Spies

When we think about shows that will appeal to boys. Action is the easiest to relate. Something like; Ben 10, American Dragon Jake Long, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Justice League will be on the list. It has drama, it has fights and it's cool!

However, there has been a movement in that era where specific cartoon shows aim to get girls into action. Kim Possible, Juniper Lee, My Life as a Teenage Robot, and The Winx Club are perfect examples of such shows.

There is an odd case for more girl-centric shows. Something about the need to balance femininity with action. The show needs to feel like an action that happens to have the main characters be girls. This is where today's topic comes in. We're talking about how;

- How's the Mission, Spies? -

< Totally Spies > by Vincent Chalvon-Demersay and David Michel follows three teens; Sam, Clover and Alex from Beverly Hills living a secret life being Super Spies for WOOHP (World Organization Of Human Protection) under their boss; Jerry Lewis.

Their missions involve travelling the world. Fighting mad scientists and twisted outcasts who seek to dominate the world with style and gadgets that conceal themselves as fashionable equipment.

The trio plays specific archetypes. Sam (green) is the brains, Clover (red) is the fashionista/ boy obsessive and Alex (yellow) is the athlete and occasional nerd. Despite their differences, they share several common interests such as their love for shopping and spy skills of agility, hand-to-hand combat and espionage.

Across six seasons, the girls matured from high school to university students. Confronting the daily struggles of homework, social lives and their petty arch-enemy, Mandy.

As a vibe, < Totally Spies > fully leans into the Beverly Hills lifestyle of fabulous fashion and some familiar pop culture names of that era. The show has a mix of the James Bond type of super spy world filled with dull henchmen, high-tech machines and some tacky villains.

- Time to go to Plan B! -

The episodes are condensed into their own episode. Although there have been some arcs that follow specific villains who have a bit of history with the main characters.

Tim Scam is a former agent who went rogue against WOOHP and Terrence Lewis; twin brother to Jerry and a sore thumb to WOOHP. There also reoccurring allies as well. Brittney (cyan) who joined the team as a trainee, Dean from the three-part series < Evil Promotion Much? > and Blaine a freelance agent who dated Clover.

The conflicts, if we can even call them conflicts at all have aged rather strangely. Some of the villains commit petty crimes like kidnapping celebrities due to jealousy or act extreme. Like being anti-consumerist with the solution of destroying malls.

Yet, some are still relatable to this day such as a kid villain who is mad at his father for being busy as a commentary on how parental neglect can cause warped ideas in a child. Whatever, it's a pre-teen show. Let's not look into it too deeply.

The world of Totally Spies is also interconnected with several other shows; [The Amazing Spiez] and [Martin Mystery].

< Martin Mystery > follows Martin, a paranormal investigator for the Center with Martin's step-sister, Diana Lombard and Java the Caveman. Fighting monsters, urban legends and aliens.

According to a special crossover episode. Martin's boss; M.O.M (Mystery Organization Manager) and Jerry know each other. Likewise, in Amazing Spiez; Jerry is also the boss of the Clark siblings. Lee, Marc, Megan and Tony. Sadly, these shows were short-lived and cancelled.

It does raise an interesting point. Why is Totally Spies more popular? As a guess, I think it's because the chemistry between the characters is a lot more interesting and fun.

The three girls are best of friends and while they sometimes bicker over boys, responsibilities and opinions. They will always put their friendship and mission first above all else. It feels more real, in a superficial way.

That an actual girl would have a girlfriend group this tight-knit and if they ever become a part of something bigger than them. They would do it together.

- Here We Go Again! -

Tacky villains, cute super spy girlfriends and awesome gadgets aside. The show has a few good jokes here and there. Its art style borrows a lot from Anime and its colors are groovy to the eyes.

For a show that was meant to attract girls into action. The show has also garnered a large following from boys as well. I think another secret to the success of < Totally Spies > can also be because of its approach to the subject. Like I said in my introduction.

There is an odd case for more girl-centric shows. Something about the need to balance femininity with action. The show needs to feel like an action that happens to have the main characters be girls.

This show is a girl's show. The girls are unapologetic being girly. Doing girl things like shopping, manicure, dating and going on dream vacations but with their secret life as spies. The show balances it out with good action and is still using that girly theme to add to its gadgets.

Heck, some of the gadgets are stuff that I would personally want to have. The Jet Pack backpack, The Wind Tunnel 3000 Tornado Blast Hair Dryer, Lazer lipstick and the Compowder are on my list. Especially with its costume change function.

It's a show that embraces both ends of the spectrum and allows it to show its respective strengths rather than shy away from the themes. With the announcement that this show is going to have a season 7/ soft reboot. It does look promising with several concerns.

But I am hopeful that for a beloved show such as this. The girls will have a proper return and inspire a new generation of girls (and boys) to be < Totally Spies >

[izztreme-art-n-stuff]

Day 22 - Get Out of Town

I just wanted an excuse to draw my Super Why teen trio together

[bugtoonz]

hii!! what headcanons do u have for the moonbase trio (362, 86, and 60)?

i always thought it was funny they were called the moonbase trio, bc isn’t patton stationed in like antarctica lol? anyways they’re super fun and i’m excited to talk about them!

for Rachel, i 1000% believe that girl lives on coffee. i know it’s like the equivalent of cocaine in the knd universe, but there’s no way she runs a worldwide organization of kids and isn’t majorly dependent on caffeine. that being said, since she’s also one of those said kids, she definitely piles it high with sugar and creamer. the sugar intake is probably worse for her than the coffee part😭 i also feel like she’s pretty tall. like especially now since she’s young, but even when she gets older i can see her being above average height. it’s definitely something she appreciates because it makes it easy to look down at people disapprovingly when they go against her orders. also, her and chad used to be super close. he was basically her older brother and the one that introduced her to nigel. since she’s soopreme leader, she’s aware of the teens next door, but Chad became somewhat distant after his fake-betrayal, and it’s something that really hurt her.

for Fanny, this is kind of random, but she’s definitely the kind of girl that reads fairy books about friendship and girlhood. she tries to apply what she reads to her real life, but for some reason it’s a lot harder for her to be kind and understanding than it is for Princess Sparklewand of Fairylandia. i also think that the reason she has an irish accent, despite having grown up in the same town as Sector V is because her parents are divorced, and she splits her time between Mr. Boss in Vermont and her mom in Ireland. it’s easy to do both when you own your own spaceship/aircraft/boat. her and her brothers all have her mother’s last name because she refused to change it when she married Mr. Boss and also refused to give her children his surname because she’s the one who had to give birth! it’s no wonder fanny is the way she is. her little brothers spend more time with her dad, though, which is why their accents are american. as much as Fanny bullies them, she’ll bully whoever tries to do the same to them 500x harder. she’s very protective of the people she loves.

i think Patton is really funny. he’s a total hard-ass that knows the KND rule book like the back of his hand, but also a total softie when it comes to his cadets. i feel like he’s from alaska. he seems rugged enough to be able to live there. i also feel like all of his time spent in freezing cold climates means that a trip below the equator might actually make him melt. Fanny doesn’t let him stand to close to her at the beach because she’s worried he’ll get his gross boy sweat all over her. Patton is also, like, super awkward outside of the work setting. someone get this poor boy an etiquette manual or something!! it’s not his fault he spends all of his time running drills and locking up villains. a lot of operatives avoid him because they always think he’s mad, but that’s just how he talks. he gets really confused when he tries to say hi to someone and they run away crying.

as for like their relationships with each other, Fanny has a huge, massive crush on Rachel that the latter is oblivious to. Rachel in turn sees Fanny as one of her closest friends, but also thinks she could maybe take a chill pill sometimes. Fanny and Patton have a sometimes-not-so-friendly rivalry with each other over which one’s the toughest out of the two. that being said, Patton is one of the few boys Fanny will tolerate, mostly because of his similar no-nonsense approach to work. Patton and Rachel are also good friends, and Patton has a lot of respect for her. when Rachel stepped up as Soopreme Leader, he was the first to back her campaign. Rachel likes Patton a lot, but he also needs a chill pill. it’s okay though, she loves her neurotic besties. (birds of a feather and all that)

[averys-happy-space]

putting this here more for myself than anything. i wanna be able to look back at it in a year and see how its changed. explanations for each section under the cut

ship i loved at first sight: tara x piper. i don't know what the ship name is. taper? pira? pira seems nicer lol. anyway, tara used to be my favourite brawler (and is still up there in my top 5) and i think the first time i saw tara x piper fanart was on reddit. it was by Xpyray and i swear to god ive never fallen in love with a ship faster. their art is so fucking good and they dont rlly draw brawl stuff anymore but i still follow them cuz their art is so so so pretty (please go follow them if youre reading this). anyway so yeah thats how tara x piper became my fav ship.

ships i initially didn't like: rico x piper, shelly x colt imma be fr at the start i didn't really Get these ships. but after watching some of the official animations and learning more of the lore, i started to appreciate these ships more. i don't love them or anything but they can be cute

ships i don't like anymore: sandy x nita, leon x jessie, sandy x leon there is no real reason for this other than the fact that i simply stopped liking them as i grew up. as i was making this i realised that when i was younger i used to like the ships with the kids/teens more, but now i'm 17 and i'm just not interested in them anymore. i guess thats what happens when you grow up lol. these ships are still cute, but i just don't engage with them anymore

favourite popular ships: mandy x chester, fang x buster so a bit of background, i actually quit brawl stars for a while, i think after the gale brawl pass. i dont really remember why, but its probably because i just got bored of the game lol. i think that also played into why i'm no longer interested in the same ships as before. anyway, i came back this year during the bizarre circus brawl pass and accidentally fell in love with these two ships. honestly, i'm not even entirely sure why i fell in love with these two ships in particular. chester definitely caught my eye when i came back to the game because a) i love clowns b) i love a good troll c) i love the random XD energy chester has and d) he has super interesting & fun game mechanics. i have no interest in mandy really but then i saw One suggestive mandy x chester fanart that went hard af and suddenly i was on board lmao. on the other hand fang and buster were two characters that i took some time to fall in love with, but now they're my favourites lol it's so strange. i really don't know how it happened.

favourite rarepair: amber x maisie i was looking at a diagram of all the trios so far because i was brainstorming ideas for who to include in a fanfic and as i was looking at it, suddenly it Clicked in my mind that amber x maisie would go hard af. like think about it. overconfident fire entertainer who gets so swept up in performances that she forgets about safety x safety coordinator with a fire extinguisher for an arm who secretly likes being in dangerous situations? come on!!!! im surprised more people havent thought of this pairing cuz as soon as it clicked for me it seemed like such an obvious pairing to do. but then again they've never interacted in any animation/promo material/etc so i guess it's not a pair people would just think of without prompting. but it's so fucking good!!!! more people need to get in on this ship.

controversial ship: none here's the thing. i don't know any controversial ships that i can see myself shipping. the most controversial one i know is probably edgar x colette but i see them as siblings so i don't ship it nor do i engage with fanart of them. edgar and colette ships in general are probably controversial seeing as both of them don't have canon ages and it's vague enough that people are always talking about whether they're adults or minors. but i personally see both of them as older teens so i don't ship them with anyone. (to me, they're too old to hang out with the kid brawlers but also too young to hang out with the adult brawlers. it's weird because there's no other brawlers where i see them as teens, so in my mind edgar and colette both have 0 shipping potential)

ships i want to become canon the most: amber x maisie, fang x buster they're my current favourite ships. what else to say.

comfort ship: fang x buster i think about them All the Fucking Time. lowkey i started to project on fang a bit just cuz i like him so much. i don't even know why or how i started liking him this much but he's my favourite brawler now and it's horrible. i think the seal in the coffin was @/giveittomegay's fanart of them. THEY'RE SO FUCKING CUTE. like omfg. confident, charismatic chinese immigrant who just arrived at starr park x introverted insecure white guy who doesn't know how to approach others. slowburn where they become closer through working at the cinema and buster realises he's fallen in love basically immediately but fang hasn't realised his own sexuality (has had crushes on girls before so always assumed he was straight) and doesn't realise he's in love with buster until maisie straight up tells him. fang's confidence means he jokingly flirts with buster all the time because he thinks it's funny to tease the guy and make him flustered but doesn't realise buster gets flustered because he likes fang. fang is fucking stupid. also, i think using fang x shelly here as a conflict plot point would be so good. like, fang seeing a pretty girl and approaching her, flirting with her, etc. i like to think fang is dense as fuck and would genuinely believe he's in love with shelly despite buster occupying 90% of his thoughts because his thought process would be something along the lines of "oh, i just think about him a lot cuz he's my best friend, i'm sure this is all regular, normal bff things". and buster just fucking dying inside but not saying anything because he thinks it's none of his business and he shouldn't interfere in fang's love life. MAISIE WATCHING ALL THIS HAPPEN AND WANTING TO MURDER BOTH OF THEM FOR BEING SO DENSE. like ohhhhhh my god there is so much potential here it's fucking insane. side note: fang doesn't have anything against gay people. i like to think maisie x amber comes way before fang x buster, so fang knows gay people exist and like he is perfectly fine and comfortable being around them, he's just so stupidly dense that he doesn't realise HE is gay (or more specifically bi). he also assumes buster is straight because default sexuality and whenever fang makes jokes based on this assumption buster never corrects him. because buster is a pussy. god. i want to write this fanfic so bad but i'm so fucking bad at writing dialogue it's insane.

ships that deserve more attention: amber x maisie, brock x bibi, barley x bull, max x janet LET ME COOK HERE OKAY. amber x maisie i already explained above. brock x bibi (i call them bibrock) is because it's noted in bibi's bio that she's secretly a huge nerd and i think it would be super cute for her to have a bf who she can indulge in nerdy and geeky shit with. to me they're both massive comic book fans who become close by playing all the superhero video games together before branching out to other games. they're console gamers btw and they get SUPER competitive whenever they're playing against each other. but they also do play coop games where they work together. usually brock is the one who does a lot of theorycrafting and tries to minmax his grind so he can get all the resources in the most optimal and time efficient way possible, whereas bibi prefers just going into fights and wrecking havoc lol. barley x bull is because they're both restaurant owners/servers (barley has his bar, bull has his diner) and i think they would bond over shitty customers and interesting food/drink recipes. they're both also familiar with having fights break out in their establishment and are fully capable of shutting fights down, even if it means getting their hands dirty. they think they're on opposite ends of the spectrum but they're actually more similar than they realise. for sure a very slowburn romance (especially because i think bull would be denial about liking a fucking robot lmfao) max x janet is because they're both celebrity entertainers. yeah, that's it. no but seriously i see max as someone who puts up an outgoing persona in public and is generally a very hyper, high energy person but at the same time, she tends to keep people at a distance because she's scared of intimacy. before janet, her closest friends are surge and meg. surge kind of Knows something is up with her because every time he tried to ask about her past she clammed up and gave noncommittal responses. he worries about her but doesn't know what to do about it so he just tries to make her happy in the present. meg is a kid so she doesn't realise anything is wrong lol. hanging out with meg and surge makes max happy and she considers them family, but she still has a wall up around her true self. janet is the one who is finally able to help max come out of her shell and address her past trauma. it also helps that max thinks janet is very pretty and desperately wants to kiss her. this is canon btw don't question me.

first otp: tara x piper | current otp: fang x buster i basically said all i have to say about these ships so yeah. that's it.

[careful-wish]

I know that Eddie had to die bc plot reasons yada yada

But they could have done that in season 5. We had so many deaths deaths in 4 (tho Max did end up living). The stakes are higher in season 5 and having a beloved character die halfway through would have had such an emotional impact

But also Eddie and Argyle not being included in season 5 with the other older kids feel like a joke, especially Argyle.

Nancy is the only one of the older teens (now young adults) to have a real close friendship with someone (Barb). Could probably argue Eddie too bc of Gareth, Jeff, and that other guy in Hellfire but they're younger than him so Idk how long they've been friends or how close they actually are.

In s4, though it's through super unlikely circumstances, Eddie does develop friendships with Steve, Nancy, and Robin. Probably, he already has had some interaction with Robin and Jonathan in the past due to the fact all three were considered weirdos or freaks (Jonathan was The School Freak(tm)) but he had no interaction with Jonathan this season.

Jonathan after being apart from Nancy for a few months then meets Argyle and they become pretty close mates, weed aside. Jonathan finally has someone he can talk to and open up to, and you can tell Argyle genuinely does care for Jonathan and is a LITERAL ride-or-die for him.

Why, WHY did they take Eddie and Argyle away? Yeah, we get the monster-hunting trio back in s5 along with Robin and Vickie in the group, but why'd they take Argyle away? He is also wanted by the government and knows everything. We're just going back to Jonathan having no friends, Nancy really having to confront what happened to Barb, and only Steve having a best mate? Why does Steve get to keep his best friend and Jonathan doesn't?

Also, the group would have been a little bigger than the Party but the dynamics and just absolute chaos would have been amazing.

Steve realising he is absolutely outnumbered by nerds and that he is not the leader, that role goes to Nancy and her babygurl Jonathan.

Vickie being introduced in a group that has several very loud ppl (Steve, Argyle, Robin), joins them immediately and Jonathan goes insane bc the four chatter like kookaburras at three am.

Nancy insisting they need to be discreet and Argyle explaining that while yeah, having an all black van would be cool but bad guys have those too and they would blend in better with a pizza van bc "Who would question the pizza man, Wheeler?"

Eddie secretly having tons of respect for Jonathan and nearly falls over himself trying to make up for the fact he tried to push another guy at Jonathan's girlfriend. Also develops similar respect for Nancy and feels guilty after seeing how happy Nancy is with Jonathan, and also realising it was never his, Robin, Steve, or anyone else's decision what Nancy does or who she wants to be with, it's all her.

Vickie learning about everything but still not knowing the kids very well and fellow newcomer Argyle is like "Idk about the others but Little Byers and Wheelie-boy are good, and of course our amazing super-powered little friend"

Steve discreetly being a terrible wingman for Robin without accidentally outing her. She comes out to Nancy first, then Argyle on accident after they have a weed sesh ("You're good, Batman's sidekick, boobies are great"), and of course ends up with Vickie.

Mike being the one of the Party Vickie ends up bonding with the most, mainly so they can make fun of Steve together but also other reasons

Anyway, we were robbed of these seven chaos nerds being a group together.

And if Eddie were to die halfway through, the turmoil. Dies similar to s4, Dustin is there, but it not only affects Dustin and Hellfire, but the other six he'd started becoming close with.

[legalownerofufoemoji]

Hi I'm unwell. Another long post probably, thank you @es46 for giving me an idea !! click readmore for accidental aroace rants plus some silly shenanigans (the aroace rants happened on accident my bad)

So I one million percent agree that Ingo and Emmet would probably clock Elesas crush right away, even if they are aroace themselves, they see Elesa as a sister basically and know how she is (useless lesbian (she is bisexual w/ a woman leaning preference)) I definitely think of them as a trio who grew up together so they probably watched her go through her awkward teen years getting crushes on every pretty woman who was nice to her, but Skyla is a different situation obviously so they mutually agree to come at it from a different angle this time, much to Elesas dismay

I think Emmet would be super direct about it but think he's being slick because he isn't SAYING what he really means, right? But saying "I am asking for no reason in particular if you are single and also into women :>" and then dropping a "thank you for answering my random question that has no ulterior motive!" and Skyla would be like . Uh huh. Okay . (I don't know her personality SUPER well but I know she and the twins have slight beef over the more superior form of transportation planes v trains)

Emmet would also definitely try to be a "just go for it why are you so scared??" kinda guy because his concept of romance is heavily based on how he's seen it in media, but he hates watching it so it's really only the stuff he can't avoid? So hes like "obviously most relationship drama comes from not confessing so just get that part over with before it causes an issue" and doesn't ENTIRELY understand the nuance of being scared of rejection even if the other person seems interested (as well as adding on the sapphic problem of "is she flirting or just Really Friendly?")

I think Ingo is a little (lot) more empathetic than Emmet, not on purpose I just think Emmet genuinely lacks empathy and forgets to make up for it with sympathy at times, Elesa doesn't take it personally, but Ingo is absolutely a little more in tune to a social situation being stressful

Ingo, though, is also painfully aroace and his concept of love and romance is less whst you see in (straight) media and moreso in how he's defined it personally as somebody whose never felt it . He imagines it feels different from how he cares about Elesa, but she has to explain it's not that easy to really differentiate, because to love somebody you also usually love them a lot platonically as well as romantically. And that would absolutely perplex him just a smidge, because he sees love as this unreachable thing for him that's so distinct from everything else when it's really not. People just hype it up so much because of how it feels in the moment, but in reality it's actually rather difficult to define and Ingo thrives off precise definition.

He would encourage her to go for it, maybe a bit too obviously at times (no Ingo, deciding to loudly exclaim that you and your brother have somewhere to be, conveniently leaving Elesa alone with Skyla is not slick as you think it is!)

Ingo and Emmet would also absolutely try to set aside whatever feelings they have on Skyla and fully support Elesa in her relationship until the 4 actually managed to start getting along naturally, which happens eventually, it just takes time because the twins are very stubborn

It would absolutely lead to scenarios though where the twins are just a bit too pushy out of love and Elesa would probably have to tell them to back off, because romance is finicky and you have to let it happen naturally or else things get janky. I don't think they would fully get it until put into a train metaphor though

"If you try and run a train before the tracks fully built, or the engine is installed properly, even if it goes somewhere for a little while it likely won't reach it's destination" and they both go ohhhh.

Honestly I think that metaphor Ingo would come up with on the spot in an attempt to relate or process what Elesa is trying to explain, and then once they hear it everything clicks much better and they back off from trying to "speed things up", though in true assholeish brother-y nature, they have to bully her juuuust a little bit (Emmet going "WOW ELESA your face sure is red, is it too hot in here? Maybe you and Skyla should step outside for some fresh air :>" and Elesa making a strangling motion with her hands while Ingo is fighting off a laugh.

I do think that it would earn some laughs once Skyla and Elesa are actually together, and Skyla would probably have to drop the fact that she was painfully aware of the brothers attempts to push them together, much to Elesas horror

[multi-kpop-fanfics]

Remember When

pairing: vernon x fem!reader (ft. Chan, Seungkwan, Jeonghan, Jihyo, Dahyn)

genre: fluff, comedy, angst, suggestive, childhood friends to lovers to exes(?)!AU

warnings: alcohol consumption, unresolved feelings, mentions of political beliefs, propaganda, bullying, violence, cursing, anxiety

word count: 10.5k

summary: growing up in the suburbs of Athens during the seventies was turbulent to say the least - but is it turbulent enough to break the backyard trio friendship? only time could tell.

Author's note: This is my entry for the 70s;teen collab hosted by @svthub! It is based on my all time favorite greek TV show Τα Καλύτερά μας Χρόνια (alt: Remember When, Our Best Years), which takes place in the 70s and very early 80s.

p.s. 1: this fic ate my soul, spat it out and put it in the blender to repeat the process.

p.s.2: a HUGE thank you to @playmetheclassics for beta reading this monstrosity ;-;

Character introduction:

Vernon: The main character of the story and one third of the backyard trio.

Chan: Vernon's childhood best friend and one third of the backyard trio.

Seungkwan: Vernon's childhood best friend and one third of the backyard trio.

Y/N (fem!reader): Vernon's childhood friend and classmate.

Jeonghan: Vernon's older brother.

Jihyo: Vernon's older sister.

Dahyun: Chan's girlfriend (introduced later in the story).

Stelios: The father of the family (name taken directly from the TV series)

Mary: The mother of the family (name taken directly from the TV series)

©multi-kpop-fanfics, 2023. No reposting allowed. No translations allowed without permission.

August, 1970.

“Hnngh……”

“Mmmphhh…”

“Gah, I can’t keep it up anymore!”

“Ding ding ding! Vernon is the winner!” Seungkwan announces the result, “He was able to hold out for longer. Chan, hand me over your cards. I need to count them.”

Vernon checks his biceps, a proud smile on his face.

“Have you noticed any change?” Seungkwan asks.

“Yeah! My biceps have gained more volume!”

“Why do we call them biceps? They look like uncooked chicken wings.”

“They look exactly the same as yesterday and last week to me,” Chan squeezes Vernon’s arm, “All this sweat was for nothing!”

“It takes time and a lot of dynamic exercise to build up muscle.” Vernon rolls his eyes. “It’s clearly written in the magazine as well.” 

“Anyways, at this stage, you’ve managed to win a super rare Pelé card, the footballer who scored his 1000th goal last year! He’s an amazing player.” Seungkwan hands the card to Vernon, who is ecstatic to add this newfound treasure to his collection.

“A rare Pelé card? I don’t have that one.” Another boy sneaks behind Vernon and steals the card.

Ah, Ares. The new kid in the school and the one who has taken up the bully role.

“Hey, give it back!” Vernon tugs at the flimsy paper until it’s torn in half.

“Aw, your little card is all torn up now.” Ares mocks him.

“You’re stupid and mean another word my brother has taught me, but I can’t say it!” 

“What did you say?” Ares pushes him onto  the ground and starts hitting him, but Vernon tries to fight back, kicking his feet to hit the other kid.

“Ares! There you are!” 

The high-pitched voice attracts the attention of both boys, the owner of the voice being none other than Helen. AKA, Vernon’s crush.

"I've been searching for you." She crosses her arms in front of her torso. "Can we go now?"

Ares spares her one glance before he punches Vernon in the eye, leaving him on the ground with a fresh bruise as he walks away with the young girl.

Helen briefly looks over her shoulder at Vernon, but Ares pulls her by her arm to follow her until they disappear from the backyard.

It's not long before Vernon returns home, sitting right next to Jeonghan, who has a similar bruise as him.

"I seriously cannot believe both of you are years apart, yet act the same!" Stelios reprimands both sons.

"Can you stop shouting for a second?" Jeonghan grimaces.

"And what do you want me to do? Sit around and congratulate my kids for getting bruised up? I can accept a nine-year-old kid being immature, but you? You're supposed to be studying to be a lawyer, not running away from the cops with a girl!"

"Stelios!"

"Mary, that's enough!" 

"No, you stop it!" Jeonghan roars, "There was no way I'd let the fucking cops arrest us!"

"Can you be realistic for once?"

"No, I prefer being idealistic."

"Idealists cannot survive in a world where dictatorship exists!" 

"That's why we try to overthrow the goddamn dictatorship, Dad! Not that you could ever understand since your best man is literally in cahoots with them!"

Jeonghan angrily storms off the living room and heads straight to the bedroom, Vernon scurrying off right after.

The boys remain silent on their respective beds, save for a few hisses coming out of Jeonghan’s mouth. He rummages through his jacket to seemingly find something necessary to him.

“What are you looking for?”

“Beeswax ointment.”

“What is that?”

“It’s an ointment that helps your skin when it’s bruised. Now come over here so I can put some on your eye.” Jeonghan opens the small tin jar, and Vernon sits on his brother’s bed.

“Ew, that stinks!”

“Shut up, sprout. I’m doing this for your sake!” Jeonghan carefully swipes a small amount of the beeswax on the boy’s eye.

“Where did you get that from?”

“Martha gave it to me.”

“Is she a friend of yours?”

“Not exactly…”

“She’s your girlfriend then!”

“Shh! Don’t shout!” Jeonghan puts his hand over Vernon’s mouth. “I can’t have Mom and Dad yelling about this again!”

“Is she against the dictatorship, like you?”

“Even more than me, given the fact that her dad is part of it.”

“Were you together at the protest?”

“Yeah,” Jeonghan sighs, “I got punched by a cop while trying to protect her, but she didn’t seem to like that.”

“I got punched by a guy in the backyard because he’s hanging out with the girl I like,” Vernon admits.

“Is that why you’re reading all these dumb magazines about body growth and exercise?” The older sibling chuckles.

“They are not dumb! They will help me get bigger and impress Helen so I can win her back!”

“Okay, okay, lil mister! No need to be so dramatic.”

No matter the teasing remarks, Vernon is dead set on building muscle and transforming his body to win the girl of his dreams back.

“What do you mean he’s trying to build up his body?” Sir Nick raises his eyebrow.

"Vernon asked his dad to fill some tin cans with mud and stick them to metal bars," Chan says.

"He's definitely doing this for a woman." The older man fixes his glasses.

"He's salty about losing Helen to Ares, but we aren't supposed to know that." 

"Love is full of hardships and abandonment, young lads," Sir Nick reads from his magazine, "It's written clearly in the books!"

"This isn't a book, this a magazine," Seungkwan replies, "And a women's magazine at that!"

"It is condensed wisdom, you uncultured twats!" 

"At least girls aren't paying attention to us."

"But what about when we grow up? Then we'll definitely be in trouble, especially me, who's gonna be very handsome like my dad." Chan shrugs.

"You two are supposed to stay away from temptations like proper scouts!" Sir Nick reprimands them. "And the biggest of them all are none other than the spiders-"

"Women!"

"Exactly! Even the bible is full of them - they are the pinnacle of temptation!"

“Yet Vernon is willing to change himself for one.” Seungkwan pouts.

A week later, the trio regrouped in the familiar backyard where Ares is seen with Helen sitting on the edge of the old truck.

“Are you sure you’re just gonna take him head on? He’s taller than you!” Chan whispers.

“He gave you a good beating last time too…” Seungkwan adds with a defeated expression.

“I wasn’t as strong as I am now! Besides, none of you tried to back me up last time!” Vernon retorts.

“We won’t back down this time, though!” 

“You better!”

They approach the truck with bravery, noticing how Helen nudges Ares who turns his attention to the trio.

“You came for another round of beating? Wasn’t last time enough for you?” He picks up a twig and swings it back and forth.

“You’ll be the one to get beaten this time!” Vernon yells and picks a twig of his own from the ground, running towards Ares.

He catches the taller boy off guard and successfully tackles him on the ground, the rest of the trio ganging up on him.

“Say you surrender! Say it!” Vernon points his twig at Ares.

"Fine! I surrender! I'm sorry for hitting you last time!"

Vernon lifts his head and looks at Helen. She flashes him a toothy grin, and he reciprocates it with excitement.

He won.

November, 1971.

“A newspaper?” Helen asks.

“Yeah, like the ones Sir Nick is selling!” Chan chirps.

“And what are we gonna write in them?” Helen asks

“We could write about the things happening in the neighborhood!” Seungkwan adds.

“That’s boring,” you scoff, “The grown-ups can just talk with each other and learn everything.”

“And that’s where we come in,” Vernon straightens his back, “We can spy on them and dish out their secrets!”

“Are you crazy?! We’re gonna get yelled at by everyone!” Helen whines.

“If you don’t want to participate, then you’re free to walk out of this,” Vernon shrugs, “No one  is stopping you.”

“Okay, even if we do manage to find interesting topics to write for, how are we gonna print the actual newspaper copies?” You cross your arms in front of your chest.

“That’s a secret,” he smirks, “But my sources are well-trusted, so you don’t have to worry about it.”

“That makes it even more suspicious, Vernon.”

“Again, if you don’t trust me, you can walk out of this while it’s still early!”

"Even if we don't, what are we even supposed to be doing?" Seungkwan tilts his head.

"Easy - You guys will be the reporters, and I'm gonna be the chief editor who publishes the newspaper!"

"That sucks! Why can't I be the chief editor?!" Chan grimaces.

"Because I was the one who had the idea in the first place!" Vernon replies.

"Okay, okay, no need to fight. You can keep the role of the chief editor! But if we get caught by the headmaster, you’re gonna get the entire blame!” The rest of the group point at Vernon. And one by one the kids disappear, save for Chan who asks him, “Are you sure about this? We could get in serious trouble…”

“I’d rather get into trouble for defending myself and speaking my mind, rather than just messing up on tests!” Vernon stands his ground.

"Did your brother teach you that?"

"My sister, as well! If she hadn't stood her ground, she wouldn't have become an air hostess."

"Wow, you really have a rebellious family after all."

---------

A few days ago….

“Tell me what that thing is!” Vernon pulls his brother’s sleeve.

“I cannot! I’m supposed to keep it a secret, you damn sprout!” Jeonghan loudly whispers.

“Aha! It’s a printing press, isn’t it?”

“Shh! Shut the fuck up, nobody should know I have one of these!”

“Is it because they are banned?”

“That’s one way to put it -  But it’s because we use them to print papers against the propaganda created by the dictators,” Jeonghan explains.

“What is propaganda?” Vernon asks, intrigued by the word.

“It’s a tactic used by governments to make people believe they are doing good things for their country, while in reality, they are just trying to gain more power - Basically, they are trying to change the people’s opinions to fit their narrative.”

“So, it’s like they are taking the people’s brains, throwing them in the washing machine, taking them out and putting them back in the people’s heads?”

“Yeah, that’s a good analogy!” Jeonghan pats his brother’s back, “Now that you know everything, keep your mouth shut, and nobody is gonna get into trouble.”

“And what if I want to use the press for a newspaper as well?”

“There’s no fucking way you’re gonna do that, sprout.”

“If you won’t let me use it, I’m gonna tell Mom and Dad everything!”

“You little fucker-” Jeonghan grits his teeth, “Fine, you win! But you better keep your promise. Otherwise I’m gonna burn all your football cards.”

“I always keep my promises, big bro.”

“....What do you even want the press for?”

“I want to publish a newspaper, like the leaflets you put around law school with your friends!”

“These aren’t just leaflets. They send serious anti-junta messages! Plus, do you really want to make yourself a target at the age of ten?”

“But I’m not gonna put the content you put in yours! I just want to write the news of the neighborhood!”

“Hey, I’m serious!” Vernon punches Jeonghan’s arm. “I even want to have my own reporters!”

“Reporters, huh?”

“Yeah, they’ll be hiding around the neighborhood and be on the lookout for juicy topics!”

“That’s just paparazzi work, sprout.”

The newspaper copies were indeed printed out and distributed on every single corner of the Gkyzi neighborhood - after an entire week of the group hiding around in public spaces to observe and eavesdrop on the grown-ups and elders.

It most definitely caused a ruckus around the residents since many secrets were out in the open, and many misunderstandings were caused - along with the school’s headmaster having to deal with aggravated parents.

It wasn’t long before the headmaster found out who the culprits were, and it definitely wasn’t a nice situation.

“What was even going on in your brains when you came up with this stupid idea?!”Stelios yells.

“We just wanted to make a newspaper like the ones you read!” Vernon defends himself.

“The newspapers we read include politics and finance, not if the food of the local tavern is poisoned!” “But everyone who ate those Cretan snails went to the hospital right after!”

“That was a one-time thing!” Mary almost pulls at her hair, “This could have easily dealt a fatal blow at the poor man’s business!”

“But-”

“No buts! You messed up big time, and you have to make up for this - you’re grounded for the rest of the month!”

“That’s unfair! Grown-ups are unfair!” Vernon yells and rushes to his room, slamming the door behind him and hiding under the blankets.

So much for trying to look smart, is all he thinks before tearing up.

February, 1972.

“Chan is still gone, is he?”

“Yeah, a lot of family trouble lately.” Vernon throws another stone towards the red bin. “He must feel terrible now that his parents are giving all of his attention to his younger sibling.”

“Thank God I have no siblings then,” Seungkwan huffs, “That would have been very draining.”

“Helen disappeared as well. Do you think something happened to her?”

“Nah, girls are cunning. They can escape things like spiders,” Seungkwan shrugs, “By the way, what are you gonna dress up as for the carnival? I’m gonna dress up as a soldier!”

“I’m gonna dress up as a cowboy, like the ones in Bonanza.”

Despite the calm discussion about their upcoming carnival activities, something was bugging Vernon about his friend’s lengthy absence. It wasn’t usual for Chan to be away from the trio, as it felt like the balance was disrupted.

The carnival celebrations would soon arrive at the neighborhood of Gkyzi, the concrete buildings dressing up in confetti and carnival masks hanging from the door frames.

The residents have all chosen their own carnival costumes - some of them decided to play safe by dressing up as a famous celebrity, and others chose to unleash their inner animal (literally).

Seungkwan and Vernon held up to their end and indeed showed up as a soldier and a cowboy, respectively.

“What do you need the binoculars for?” Vernon raises his eyebrow in question.

“Don’t be dumb. All great soldiers have binoculars to watch the enemy from afar!” Seungkwan holds them up, “Plus, you can see what other people are doing without getting caught.”

“Lemme see.” Vernon snatches them from his friend, putting them on his eyes to spy on other people.

“What do you see?”

“Uh… a gorilla chasing Marilyn Monroe…..My sister dressed as a wildcat… Bah, that’s boring!”

“Hey, I wanna see too!” Seungkwan grabs his binoculars back and starts scanning the area again, but it ends abruptly after witnessing something very disheartening.

“What’s with the long face? What did you see, Kwan?”

“Nothing.”

“Seungkwan!”

“I told you, it was nothing!”

Vernon steals the binoculars once more and focuses on the spot Seungkwan did a few seconds ago, anger overcoming his facial features as he sees Chan playing with Helen around a tree, gingerly holding her hand.

“Traitor.”

“I’m sorry, Vernon-”

“It’s not your fault, Seungkwan. He’s the one who should apologize for stealing my girl.”

He wishes Sir Nick had taught him about the pain of betrayal by a best friend, aside from the Boy Scout principles, because nothing had prepared him for this.

It’s not long before a piece of cardboard is hanging from the back on the abandoned truck, “traitors and girls are not allowed”, written with bold red crayon and a ton of grammatical errors - dictation was never Vernon’s forte.

March 25th, 1972.

It’s been roughly a month since Vernon saw Chan playing with Helen and the two boys haven’t spoken since then.

Despite the celebratory atmosphere of the day, he’s far from happy himself - there’s a consistent frown on his face, one that stays on even now, all while he’s trying to fix the tyre of his wooden cart.

“Are you still mad at your friend, sprout?” Stelios asks and Vernon nods.

“I can understand how you feel, but you’re still a kid - Not to mention that Chan is your best friend.”

“But he stole my girl!”

“Hasn’t Sir Nick taught you about the meaning of friendships and forgiveness?”

“Sir Nick constantly talks about women acting like spiders,” Vernon pouts, “But nothing about betrayal!”

“Listen here, kid.” Stelios tightens the cart's tyre. “It won’t be long before Chan comes back to you and asks for your forgiveness.���

“How do you know that, Dad?”

“We’ve all been through similar situations when we were kids,” he reminisces about his childhood with a small smile. “And what I’ve learned is that deep down, nobody wants to sacrifice their friendship for ephemeral flings, no matter how old you are.”

Stelios sets the newly fixed cart on the asphalt, patting it on the driver’s seat.

“Come on, won’t you go for a ride with your trusty car?”

“Thanks, Dad!” Vernon excitedly jumps into the seat and rolls out to his destination - his beloved backyard.

He’s surprised when he sees you sitting on the edge of the truck, but he doesn’t mind your presence - in fact, he’s starting to get used to it, even if he’s still salty about losing the car race to you.

“Hi Vernon.” 

“Hi Y/N.”

“You were really good at the school celebration today,” you swing your legs back and forth, “Your poem was nice too! Mine was kinda boring.”

“I don’t think it was boring,” Vernon replies. “You recited it nicely.”

Suddenly, the both of you hear footsteps from afar and you soon see Chan appearing in the backyard, out of breath.

“Go away, you traitor!” Vernon yells.

“Let me explain!” Chan pants out. “I don’t want to have a girlfriend anymore! I want my best friend back! She’s unbearable!”

“And why should I believe you - Ow!” Vernon groans as you nudge him on the sides.

“I don’t want to be with Helen, I want to play with you and Seungkwan again! Sir Nick was right. Women are like spiders!”

Chan kneels on the ground, not hesitating to soil his clothes in order to show his regret.

You nudge Vernon again, nodding towards Chan’s direction.

He jumps down and walks towards his friend, kneeling down in front of him and giving him a tight hug.

“I missed you too, buddy.” Vernon giggles and softly headbutts Chan, finally making peace with his best friend.

June, 1973.

“Are you seriously going on a date with Y/N?”

“I can and I will! I’ve even written a letter for her.” Vernon shows the folded piece of paper.

“And you’re just gonna give it to her?!” Chan’s eyes widen in surprise.

“Of course not, you dumbass! I will ask for help from Sir Nick. He always knows best.”

“Why do you even want to go on a blind date with her? She doesn’t even like you!” Seungkwan rolls his eyes.

“That’s what you think! I’m sure that behind her tough act, she’s madly in love with me - all women act like that before the first date.”

“Who even told you this?” Chan raises his eyebrow in question.

“Sir Nick, obviously! And the pocket-sized book he gave me to read.”

“Wasn’t that a romantic novel for women?” Seungkwan grimaces.

“Well, yeah, but it helped me write the letter, so it works for me!” Vernon grins, “Gotta go now. I have a mission to accomplish.”

“Tell us how it goes!”

“Will do!”

Vernon leaves in a haste and runs towards the newspaper stand to find Sir Nick.

“Good morning Sir!”

“Hello there Vernon! What brings you here today?”

“I wanted to tell you to take a look at a letter I’ve written.”

“A letter? Destined for whom?”

“Y/N! But she doesn’t know I’m the sender, because I intend to meet her on a blind date.”

“So you’re really into her, huh?”

“I know we won’t be in the same school starting from September and I want to take my chances.”

“Ever the brave boy scout. Bravo!” Sir Nick applauds the boy, “Now give me the letter.”

Vernon hands over the letter and sits next to the older man, waiting for his approval.

“So, here we go.” Sir Nick puts on his glasses and unfolds the letter.

Hello Y/N,

You may not know who I am, but I am sending you this letter to tell you that I want to see you before we part ways this autumn.

I will wait for you this Sunday in front of the neighborhood cinema. I will be wearing a knitted yellow beanie and neat clothes.

I look forward to the moment I’ll bring you into my arms and hold you close to me.

Sincerely, 

your secret admirer.

“Well well, I’m impressed! Especially with the last sentence.” Sir Nick removes his glasses and puts them in the front pocket of his shirt.

“I took it from the pocket-sized novel you gave me! I thought it would suit the message nicely.”

“It definitely does! Now what else do you want me to do?”

“Is there a way to deliver the letter to Y/N without her finding out it’s from me?”

“Youngster, you’re talking to a former scout and military soldier. It’s a piece of cake for me!”

As if on cue, you walk down the street and stop right outside the newspaper stand.

“Hello Sir Nick! Hey Vernon!”

“Good morning Y/N!”

“Is the new issue of Manina magazine here?”

“Of course!” Sir Nick goes behind the stand to search for the magazine and hides the letter inside it, “Here it is! It will be twenty drachmas.”

“Thank you! Have a good day sir!” You take the magazine and walk away.

“What now?” Vernon watches you from afar.

“Now we wait. She will notice it soon enough.”

Sir Nick is proven correct as the letter falls from the magazine and it definitely catches your attention. You step aside and sit down on the pavement to read through the letter, checking your surroundings for any suspects.

"See? Told you she would notice!"

"Let's hope she will actually appear on the date."

"I'm sure she will, lad."

Vernon keeps spying on you from afar as you keep reading his letter and an idea pops into his head, making him rush back to his friends immediately.

"Guys!"

"What's up? Did Y/N get the letter?" Seungkwan asks.

"She did, but I need to make sure she will come on the date!"

"What does that have to do with us?" 

"I need you two to be my spies!"

"You want us to spy on Y/N?!" Chan almost falls on the ground.

"Don't shout, you dumbass!" Vernon shushes his friend. "All I want you to find out is how she feels about the letter. I'm sure she's already on the way to talk about it with her friend!"

"He has a point," Seungkwan ponders, "But I'm not very good at spying on people. My mom always catches me whenever I try to steal cookies from her jar."

"I guess it's up to me then." Chan sighs as he cleans his glasses and gets up, “Thank God I’ve read lots of comics with spies.”

“Oh God, this won’t end well.” Seungkwan facepalms.

Surprisingly, Chan was really good at it. He managed to remain undetected all while trying to find out your true intentions about the letter and the blind date.

“Vernon!” He comes running to the backyard.

“What’s the rush, Chan? And what….are you wearing?”

“Oh, this? It’s my spy attire! Cool, right?” Chan flexes his black coat and sunglasses, 

“Ugh, just tell me what you found out!” Vernon stomps his feet on the ground.

“Y/N accepted the invitation!”

“Really?!”

“Yeah! Although she did say that guys who write letters like yours are most likely ugly.”

“Sounds exactly like something Y/N would say.” Seungkwan snickers.

“That’s just one more reason for me to do my best for the date!” Vernon straightens his back and puffs out his chest.

Sunday night comes around and Vernon is standing outside of the cinema, fixing his yellow beanie and the bowtie around the collar of his shirt.

He has already bought two tickets for the Papillon movie and now waits for you to appear.

A couple of minutes later, you walk up to him and you scan his entire outfit.

“Hey Vernon. What are you doing here?”

“I don’t think I have a lot of explaining to do…”

“You’re wearing a yellow beanie….Did you send the letter?”

“Yeah, that was me.”

“Why did you have to go through this hassle?” You ask.

“That’s because….We won’t be able to see each other on a daily basis, since I’ll be attending a boys’ middle school.”

“That’s nonsense! We will never part ways, because we’re buddies!” 

“Yeah, but….This is supposed to be a date…” Vernon scratches his head.

“Did you buy tickets for the movie?”

“I got one for you and one for me.”

“Why not three?”

“Three? Who’s the third?”

“Chan! He’s right there!” You point towards the trees and Vernon mentally curses his friend, who appears from the shadows like a Matrix character.

“Hi guys…”

“Hi Chan! Do you want to watch the movie with us?” 

“Uh, yeah….Sure, why not?” He replies and Vernon throws him a nasty glare.

“Great! Let’s go to the vendor, there must be more tickets left!” You exclaim happily and go to buy a third ticket.

“What are you doing?! You’re not supposed to be here!” Vernon angrily whispers to his friend.

“I’m sorry! I was worried about you and I wanted to make sure everything would go well! I had no idea she would notice me!” Chan tries to defend himself.

“...Some top-class spy you are.”

July, 1974.

“I can’t believe I have to keep the splint on for almost the entire summer. That sucks!”

“Hey, at least our parents agreed about me coming with you, so it won’t be terrible!” Chan grins.

“And what exactly can you help me do?” 

“I can be your butler! I have read about them in comics - they know their bosses' secrets and always take care of them.” He pulls out a pair of gloves from his pocket. “They even wear gloves, like these ones!”

“Okay, mister butler, help me get up.. These crutches are almost as tall as me.”

“If only Seungkwan could spend the summer holidays with us as well…” Chan pouts.

“I don’t think his mom would have let him come either way.” Vernon supports himself on the crutches with his friend’s help. “Besides, he’s probably swimming in the sea of an island right now, so definitely a better choice than my dad’s village!”

“Not to mention that he would have to put up with you and your broken leg.”

“Shut up, Chan! I don’t like it either!”

“It must really suck to have a splint during summertime, though.”

“You have no idea.” Vernon balances himself on the crutches, “I wish I hadn’t joined you in that football match in the backyard.”

“But we would have lost without you!”

“Yeah, but I made myself a fool in front of Y/N!”

“She only sees you as a friend! Didn’t you learn your lesson last summer?!”

“I can’t say you are wrong…”

“What if you meet a girl here? What if she’s prettier than Y/N?”

“There’s no way it will happen!”

“Fine, if you say so,” Chan shrugs, “Anyways, enough about girls - When will the doctor remove the splint from your leg?”

“End of August, most likely,” Vernon whines, “And it sucks!”

“Can you at least take walks at the beach?”

“That I can.”

“Then we should ask your parents if they let us go to the beach!”

“Unlikely, but we can always try!”

“You’re not wrong.”

“Besides, there’s no way they would let us help around with cleaning in your state.”

“You make it sound like I’m handicapped or something…” Vernon pouts.

“You sort of are since you can’t even kick a ball!” Chan giggles and sprints away.

“Get back here, you skunk! You’ll pay for this!” Vernon tries to catch up with his friend while menacingly holding one of the crutches in the air.

July, 1975.

The neighborhood of Gkyzi is celebrating once again and of course, Vernon is dressed to the nines. 

He holds a film camera in his hands and he tries his best to take pictures of his aunt walking down the street in her sequined wedding dress, her blonde hair styled to perfection to uphold the veil as she holds onto his dad’s arm - the tradition of a man walking the bride down the aisle still holds strong.

Amongst the pleasant ruckus of family and friends flocking towards the bride, Vernon snaps one photo with the intention of creating a memory of his aunt’s happy moment.

But instead, all he manages to capture is Seungkwan standing behind a tree holding his mother’s hand. 

He watches them walk away in silence, fear and sadness overcoming his senses as he slowly realizes that the backyard trio will soon become a mere memory of his childhood years.

A few days later, Vernon celebrates his 14th birthday in the living room of his house. He’s surrounded by his family and Chan, waiting for the familiar birthday song to end and finally blowing away the candles on the cake. The words “Happy birthday sprout”, written with bright red syrup steal Vernon’s attention that causescausing a small smile to form on his face as he knows that soon he won’t be called a sprout anymore. The end of middle school is just a year away.

But at the same time, the years of his innocence and the adventures of the backyard trio come to a painful yet silent end.

July, 1977.

The birthday song ends, and the freshly sixteen-year-old Vernon blows away the candles of his chocolate-covered birthday cake.

As soon as he gets up, he's welcomed with a flurry of hugs and kisses from people wishing him nothing but the best.

"Thank you for the cake and the wishes, buuuut I must take my leave now, everyone," he announces with a cheeky smile.

"What? But I canceled my rehearsal so I wouldn't miss your birthday!" Jihyo pouts.

“What is even so important that you have to leave right now?” Stelios asks.

“I have to meet with Chan in less than ten minutes. We want to go south and see Jeonghan’s live performance.”

“Ah yes, the lawyer turned musician.” The father rolls his eyes.

“It’s a shame, though,” Mary sighs.“I even prepared roasted beef with potatoes for you!”

“Mom, you can just keep a portion for me!”

“Fine, if you say so,” she sighs, “Hope you have fun, darling.”

“And no alcohol!” Stelios yells right before Vernon closes the door behind him.

He hastily walks down the stairs of the apartment block, noticing Chan waiting for him on a sleek red Vespa.

“Where the hell did you get this from, skunk?” He asks.

“Surprise! Happy birthday, idiot.” Chan grins.

“I thought we would go south by taxi?”

“Are you dumb? Everyone knows my dad, and if word gets out, we’re done for!”

“As if stealing your dad’s Vespa is a mightier act.”

“Shut up and get behind me already!” Chan yells and turns on the engine, trying his best to drive in a straight line and not like a wobbly baby.

After an hour or so, they made it to the bar where Jeonghan was playing with his band, only to catch him right at the end of the live performance.

“Hey, you guys made it!” The man greets them happily, “Happy birthday, sprout.”

“Stop calling me that. I’m not a kid anymore!” Vernon playfully shoves his brother.

“What the hell are you even wearing?” 

“Aunt gifted it to me.” Vernon fixes his new shirt. “What, it’s not nice?”

“It’s fucking terrible, dude,” Jeonghan laughs, “Couldn’t you have worn a normal tee like Chan did? Anyways, should I get you a couple of beers?”

“What? No whiskey?!” Chan complains.

“It’s either beer or lemonade.” 

“Beer it is, then.” Vernon agrees.

“Okay, it’s settled then!” Jeonghan clapped his hands in excitement, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, but the cute blondie over there has been checking me out, and I’d hate to disappoint her.”

“Are you sure she wasn’t looking at me?” Chan points at himself.

“Shut the fuck up, you skunk.” Jeonghan smacks the younger man’s head and takes his leave.

“So…. Should we get those beers?” Vernon turns his attention to his friend.

“Not before the girls arrive.”

“The wh- Huh?”

“Surprise again! I arranged a date with two girls. They will be here soon.”

“Uhh, thanks? I guess?”

“Don’t thank me yet, skunk.”

Soon enough, the two girls arrive, introducing themselves with giggles and eyelash-batting - Vernon didn’t pay attention to their names.

A bottle of beer turns into two and two turns into three. He starts feeling a bit hazy, but his friend seems completely unfazed, as he keeps disco dancing with the girls.

“Hey, how about we walk at the beach?!” One of the girls suggests.

“Sure, sounds fun!”

“Wha- uh, s-sure, yeah.” Vernon stutters and rubs his face to wake himself up, but it’s no use.

He lowkey thanks the heavens for the bar being just a ten-minute walk from the beach.

“Dude, can you believe it? They are infatuated with us!” Chan excitedly pats his friend’s back.

“I just think they are just excited by nature…”

“Then how do you explain THIS?”

Vernon’s eyes almost fall out of his skull when he sees the girls taking off their clothes one by one, ready to dive in.

“What are they doing?!”

“What do you think they are doing?” Chan grins like an imp.

“Hey! Are you coming or not?!” The ladies wave at the two boys as they take a few steps into the ice-cold water.

“Vern, are we going in or not?!”

“I…don’t feel so good…”

“Oh come on, don’t be a coward!”

“I’m not a c-coward, my stomach f-feels weird…”

“Okay birthday boy, now is not the time to play games!”

“I need…water…”

That’s all Vernon manages to say before he passes out on the sand, the alcohol proving a little too much for him to handle.

“Vernon!” 

Chan kneels down and shakes his friend’s body, tapping his cheeks in an attempt to wake him up, but his actions are futile.

“Why isn’t he waking up?!” One of the girls shouts.

“I don’t know!” Chan panics. “Fuck!”

July, 1977 - one day after Vernon’s birthday.

“It was sheer luck that Jeonghan passed by the same spot where you passed out.” Chan gulps down his lemonade. “Otherwise, mister Stelios would have kicked my ass.”

“Yours and mine both, skunk,” Vernon laughs, “Can’t believe I passed out from just two bottles of beer.”

“Real loser behavior from you, Vern.”

The two boys turn their attention to you, watching you tower over the tabletop football game with a playful grin on your face.

“What’s wrong, boys? Cat got your tongue?”

“Shut up, Y/N, just start the game!” Chan lets out an exasperated groan as he takes over the opposite side of the table, “Can’t wait to win this game and get back at you for the last time.”

“Dream on, skunk.” You scoff and throw the small white ball in the pit.

The handles on both sides are on fire, the wooden football player-shaped figures hitting and stopping the ball when needed. Vernon’s eyes are fixated on the way your hands skillfully switch from handle to handle, earning you another fair and square victory in a matter of minutes.

“This is bullshit!” Chan protests, “How do you keep winning all the time?!”

“It’s called skill, Chan.” You stretch your arms above your head. “Something you obviously don’t have. Now pay up.”

He lets out a sigh as he hands over the spare change in his pocket to his friend. Vernon goes to the bar counter and gives the money to the owner.

“Y/N has really been kickin’ your asses in games lately, huh?”

“You have no idea, Uncle Thomas.”

“So, when are you doing it?”

“Do what?”

“Confess to her, you blockhead of a youngster.” Thomas smacks Vernon’s forehead, “And don’t even dare to deny it.”

“I don’t really think I had a chance to actually confess to her…”

“Then create one, you idiot! You’re supposed to be the lovesick smartass.”

Vernon takes a look at his two friends, and you look back at him with a beaming smile.

“Take the shot while you can, lad. Time waits for no one.” 

He leaves the counter and rejoins the other two, who are still bickering about tabletop football.

“Vernon, tell her that I’m actually good at this game!” Chan points to you, visibly annoyed.

“Chan, you fucking suck at that game.”

“Fuck you, Vernon.”

“Love you too, skunk.”

“Okay, enough with the talking!” You wave your hands to calm down the two boys, “Wanna take a walk to the backyard?”

“How did this come into consideration?”

“It won’t stay as it is for long, you know.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“The mayor has received a grand sum of money from the government to reshape the neighborhood, aka make even more apartment blocks.”

“Okay, yeah, but what does our backyard have to do with it?” Chan asks.

“The excavators will dig the entire backyard and throw away everything. It’s part of their plan.”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” Vernon frowns.

“I wish I was, but I’m not, sadly.”

“Well, I guess that walk to the backyard is necessary now,.” Chan straightens his back and starts walking towards the bar exit. “Come on, whatcha waitin’ for?”

The walk to their destination doesn’t take them more than ten minutes. They have developed a strong muscle memory throughout their childhood years with the hours upon hours they spent playing there which resulted with them often returning home with dirt and sweat all over their skin and clothes.

Everything remained the same - the empty oil cans, the rusty old truck, and the scattered metal bars from past working sites that were never made into real buildings.

“Nothing has changed here, huh?” Chan lets out a laugh, “I still remember the time when the girls tried to claim the truck for their own.”

“That’s because we wanted equal rights to the backyard! And we gained them through hard work!”

“Are you referring to the cart race?” Vernon scoffs.

“You’re quick to catch on, Vern.” You grin and he nudges your shoulder playfully.

“You mean the one where your cart got stuck on the edge of the pavement and you couldn’t take it out?” 

“How do you know that? You weren’t even there, Chan!”

“I met Seungkwan the day after the race and he told me what happened.”

“Ooh.” You narrow your eyes in anticipation. “What did he tell you?

“He said that Vernon was really mad at himself and couldn’t understand how in the world he lost a driving race to a girl.”

“Shut up, Chan!”

“It’s not like we didn’t know, Vern.” You sit on the edge of the truck. “You were clearly pissed off that day.”

“Guys come on, it’s been years since that! I think it’s time to drop it already!”

“That’s cute.”

“Ugh, you two are insufferable!” Vernon rolls his eyes.

In a split second, you exchange quick nods with Chan and he gets the message you’re trying to send him.

“It was nice to see you again my dear friends, but I’m afraid I have to leave now.” Chan announces with a beaming smile.

“And why are you so happy about it?” Vernon questions him with a neutral expression.

“Well, that’s because…” Chan skillfully lies, “I have a date soon and I need to get ready! Bye-bye!”

The two of you watch as Chan almost runs away.

“Hm, that’s weird.” Vernon grimaces.

“What’s wrong?” You ask.

“Chan never told me he has a date today.”

“Maybe he forgot to tell you?”

“Nah, he would never do that. Something is fishy here.” 

“Or maybe you’re hallucinating!” You jump from the truck.

“Haha, really funny, Y/N.” He deadpans.

“I know I’m hilarious, thanks for the reminder, buddy.” You stand right in front of him.

“Can you…stop doing this?” Vernon’s voice grows softer.

“Do what?”

“Calling me your buddy.”

“But…Why would I stop doing that?” You let out an awkward laugh.

“Because I cannot be your friend anymore, Y/N.”

Your blood runs cold.

“Wait, what? What is that supposed to mean?” 

“I cannot be your friend anymore because I like you, Y/N.”

“O-Oh.” You stutter.

“Remember when I sent you that letter back in middle school?”

You gasp.

“You’ve liked me since then?!”

“Yes, but you never reciprocated these feelings! I gave up after some point, but-”

You cut Vernon off by kissing him on the lips, your hands resting on his cheeks.

“Is it too late to reciprocate them now?” You whisper.

His lips curl upwards in a fond smile and his arms bring you closer to his body.

“Of course not.”

December, 1977.

“Come on, we’re going to be late for the premiere!” Mary yells from the house entrance.

“Oh shush, woman, I’m here!” Stelios fixes his tie, “So, how do I look?”

“Like a mannequin - Can we go now?”

“Fine….” he mutters while rolling his eyes.

“Darling, are you sure you’re gonna be okay?” She asks Vernon.

“Yeah, I just took a painkiller. I’ll be fine!”

“Don’t you want some of us to stay here?”

“No! I swear, I’ll be fine,” Vernon whines, “Just go, you shouldn’t miss the premiere - And say congrats to Jihyo from me.”

As soon as his parents and aunt bid him goodbye and close the door behind them, he jumps off the couch and picks up the telephone to swiftly dial your number.

“It’s me, yeah.” He lets out an awkward laugh after you pick up. “My parents just left the house, and they won’t be back until way late into the night. I’ve turned on the stove. Everything is set.”

“I’ll be there soon.” You answer and end the call abruptly, unknowingly leaving Vernon giddy in his spot.

When the doorbell rings, Vernon believes he’s prepared for everything.

But he’s most definitely not prepared to see you all dolled up at the doorstep of his house.

“What… happened to you?” He asks, dumbfounded.

“What do you mean?” You tilt your head. “How do I look?”

“You look… different. Or maybe I’m just not used to seeing you like this.”

“Be honest, do I look like a clown?”

“No, of course not!”

“Your nose will grow bigger like Pinocchio’s with your lies.” You walk inside with a laugh. “The house has changed a lot since the last time - I like how it looks now.”

“If you say so, would you like to see the rest of it?” Vernon offers his hand, and you gladly take it as he guides you straight to his room.

You make yourselves comfortable on his bed amidst the dimly lit room and the small candles burning on his nightstand.

“You’re really staying true to your romantic nature, aren’t you?” 

“Well, it depends on how you see it.” He fishes a coin out of the pocket of his jeans. “Heads or tails?”

“Heads,” you pick. “What’s that for?”

“The loser has to take a shot of liquor.”

“Sounds fair enough.”

Vernon tosses the coin, and it lands on heads. The result causes a grin to form on your face.

“No need to be so happy about it,” he chuckles and takes the first shot.

“No need to be so salty about it,” you retort. “Can you close the curtains?”

“Sure.” He gets up and closes the curtains, returning to his seat.

You clear your throat and fill up the glass to the brim before downing the shot in one go.

“Oh wow.” Vernon lets out a small laugh.

“Stop laughing, I’m serious!” You slap his arm playfully.

“Me too.” He grabs your wrists and brings you in his arms. “You’re really pretty, you know?”

You stay silent and allow your lips to be captured by your boyfriend’s, letting him take the lead.

The feeling is euphoric, and neither of you want it to end - but luck isn’t on your side tonight.

The sound of the door opening and the voices of Vernon’s parents echoing in the corridor send the two of you in a state of panic.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” 

“What do we do now?!”

“Under the bed, quickly!” He almost pushes you off the bed, and you scramble to hide under it, pulling your shoes and bag close to your body.

Vernon pulls the covers over himself, picking up the sick act once his mother opens the door of his bedroom.

"Hi honey, how are you feeling?"

"Kinda better…..Why are you back so soon?"

"Your father felt faint right before the performance, so here we are," She sighs in disappointment, “I feel really sorry for Jihyo. She was so looking forward to it…”

“Is Dad feeling any better now?”

“I think so, although I hope you’re feeling better as well,” Mary checks his temperature, “Hmm, it’s not as hot as it was before…”

“Mom, I’m sleepy…” Vernon mutters.

“I know, sweetie, I just wanted to check up on you. I’ll leave now, okay?”

“Close the door as you leave!”

Mary closes the door once she walks out of the room, and Vernon jumps out of the bed, checking underneath it.

“You can come out now.” He stretches his hand, “Careful not to make any noise.”

“No need to tell me what I already know, Vern.” You roll your eyes.

“I’m really sorry about this, I had no idea things would go that way.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” you whisper and cradle his face. “It was just…really tough luck tonight.” Vernon sighs in defeat.

“Let’s hope next time will be.” You kiss his cheek and put on your shoes.

“I think it’s better to wait until they have fallen asleep. I don’t want to startle my parents.”

“I don’t want that either.”

June, 1978.

Vernon feels like he just got thrown in a freezing cold lake.

“W-What do you mean you’re leaving?”

“We have to go back to my mother’s hometown,” you frown. “But it’s just for a month!”

“We?”

“My mom and I. She has some business to take care of back there, and I don’t want her to go on her own.”

Vernon lets out a sigh while running a hand through his hair.

“Hey, I’ll be back, I promise! Besides, we’ll always be together.” You caress his arm in an attempt to comfort him. 

“This month will feel like an eon to me,” Vernon admits with a sad smile.

“Same here.” You reciprocate his smile and lean in to press a chaste kiss on his cheek. “But it’s only temporary.”

“But damn, we didn’t even manage to go on a proper date all this time.”

One month turned into two in the blink of an eye, and you still hadn’t returned. Vernon was rapidly losing hope that your stay in Ioannina would be something more than temporary.

He’s quietly reading 1984 by George Orwell, a book Jeonghan gifted to him for his 16th birthday - a very Jeonghan-coded pick that matched his rebellious character.

“Vernon! Lunch is ready!” His mother yells from the other end of the corridor.

“Coming!” He yells back, sliding his bookmark over the most recent page he read. He leaves his room, walks over to the dinner table, and sits down, his eyes gleaming at the sight of piping hot Bolognese pasta.

Time passes by and the sound of clinking cutlery on the half empty plates fill the living room.

“How’s studying going, son?” 

“It’s going well so far, except for some...turbulence.”

“Turbulence? What turbulence?” Stelios raises his eyebrow in a rather menacing way.

“He’s been feeling down because Y/N left, Dad, that’s what he means,” Jihyo huffs. “Our sprout misses his girl.” She ruffles Vernon’s hair, and he pushes her hand away with a whine.

“Speaking of Y/N.” Mary flashes a playful smile and gets up from the table. "She actually sent you a letter. It arrived this morning."

As soon as she picks up the letter with her hand, it's snatched by Vernon who immediately dashes back into his room to read said letter while the nagging voice of his father gets drowned in the background.

He closes the door and sits on his bed, ripping open the envelope to reveal the neatly folded piece of paper. He gently unfolds it and your familiar handwriting appears right before his eyes. Vernon’s heart starts beating faster.

Dear Vernon,

I’m sorry I wasn’t able to write back the past two months. Things here are worse than I thought, hence why my temporary stay was extended by one month.

Which brings me to the bad news - I won’t be able to return to Athens to take the national exams.

My mom cannot handle the monthly expenses on her own anymore, and she thinks it’s a better option to stay at Ioannina since she already has a place of her own that’s good enough to house two people.

I truly don’t like this change of events, but I’m afraid there’s nothing else I can do. I just don’t have it in my heart to leave her alone……

“I know this isn’t what you wanted either, but I assure you, the distance will not get in the way of my feelings for you. We’ll always be together, no matter what.” Vernon finishes reading the letter and folds the paper back in half.

“Damn, did you learn the whole letter by heart?” Chan’s eyes widen.

“I’ve read it 45, no…..47 times by the time I got it in my hands.” Vernon sighs in defeat.

“That fucking sucks, dude.”

“I know.”

“Like, this couldn’t have come at a worse time.”

“Whose side are you on again?” 

“Hey, don’t shoot me! I’m just stating facts here!” Chan defends himself. “Besides, I’m your best friend. I’m here to help you get over the bad things and have fun like an actual boy of your age!”

“And I suppose you have an idea of what boys our age do?”

“Of course I do! If I don’t have an idea about fun, who would?”

“I don’t know, man, I don’t really feel like going out…”

“Oh, come on, stop being a buzzkill!” Chan groans.

“Oh my God, stop it already, fine!” Vernon rubs his palms all over his face.

“Wonderful! I bought three tickets for the ‘Lemon Sorbet’ movie. We're gonna meet up with Dahyun in front of your house at 8 tomorrow.” 

“Wait, what?”

“You heard me. We have a movie date tomorrow night!”

“Dude, I’ll end up third wheeling.”

“No you won’t! Now get up, we got stuff to do.”

“What stuff?!”

“Get beers, duh.”

February, 1979.

“Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable!”

“Dad, just stop it. There’s no use in yelling about it anymore,” Jihyo hands over a glass of water to Vernon, “What is done is done now.”

“Jihyo is right,” Mary agrees. “Besides, it’s not the end of the world if he doesn't get into university.”

“Are all of you even listening to what you’re saying?!” Stelios roars on top of his lungs. “He failed the national exams! Even Chan succeeded, and he was a worse student!”

“Dad, just stop it-”

“Stop it? Is that all you have to say?! Open your damn mouth and say which university you put on the entrance paper!”

“Can we just stay at the fact that I didn’t make it into university? That’s it.” Vernon wipes the sweat off his forehead.

“You have the audacity to say that?!”

“Yes, I do!”

“Then I have the audacity to tell you that you’re either going to do your mandatory service or get a job.” The man slams his hand on the table of the living room. “You have a family to take care of!”

“I don’t have a family to take care of and I have no goddamn reason to either get a job or go to the military!” Vernon yells back and rushes out of the house, ignoring the voices of his parents and Jihyo.

The only place he's able to think of is Uncle Thomas's bar, hoping he'll be able to find some solace there.

As soon as he enters the bar, he hears loud cheers and clinking glasses - they're probably celebrating their successful entries, he thinks and his heart sinks even deeper.

"Skunk, you made it!" Chan greets him with a tight hug. "How are you holding up?"

"Terribly, actually," Vernon admits with a loud exhale.

"Dude, it's not the end of the world."

"Easy to say…"

"Chan is right," Dahyun tries to comfort him, "You cannot let one exam define your entire future, Vernon. You still have plenty of time to decide what you truly want for yourself."

"If only I knew what I actually wanted for myself," he sighs again and takes the newspaper laying on top of the pool table, swiftly reading through the entrance bases of each university.

“So Y/N didn’t make it into the Chemistry department of Athens, huh?” 

“I’m so sorry, Vernon…” Dahyun hugs him, Chan follows right after. They form a small group hug as the couple try their best to comfort their mutual friend.

“It’s okay, lovebirds.” He flashes them a sad smile. “I’m glad both of you succeeded, especially you, Dahyun.”

“I still wasn’t the first one…”

“Babe, you’re the first woman to get into medical school! The most prestigious in the entire country!”

Vernon wishes he could hug you like this and congratulate you for your success - except this time, you won’t be able to come back, save for the holidays, perhaps.

Maybe that would have helped him forget about his own troubles.

April, 1979.

The phone in the living room rings for the fifth time this week, yet Vernon refuses to pick it up.

He knows you’re the one calling him, and that’s exactly why he’s not picking up.

“You can’t avoid her forever, you know,” Chan fixes his glasses, “What if she decides to return one day?”

“You know that’s not gonna happen any time soon,” Vernon replies. “She already has a life of her own there - hell, she might have already found someone else!”

“How can you be so sure about that? You haven’t even given her the chance to let her speak to you! I would have given up if I was her, but the fact that she’s still persistent means that she’s worried.”

“Listen, Chan - My life is fucked up to the point where the last thing I can deal with right now is Y/N. Nothing has been going right, and I most definitely don’t want to humiliate myself to her.”

“The only one who is humiliating you is none other than yourself.” Chan gets up from his seat.

“Wait, where are you going?” 

“You obviously need some time to work some stuff out.” The man fixes his shirt. “And I’m giving you the space you need.”

“Chan, hold on-”

“If you think I am giving up on you, that’s not the case, skunk. But if you aren’t willing to get out of the slump you’ve put yourself in, then it’s game over.”

These words are what Chan says before closing the door behind him. The sudden silence in Vernon’s house makes him feel nauseous, and he hates that feeling.

Deep down, he really wants to talk to you and let out all his feelings, yet every time he picks up the phone to dial your number, the words die down in his throat before he even turns the ring to the last digit.

Then it hits him.

He doesn’t have to call you - he can write a letter to you, just like you did when you left Athens.

Writing has been his safe haven ever since he failed the national exams and it’s the safest way to pour his feelings into something that’s not harmful to his health.

He goes into his room and turns on the lamp on his desk. He tears a piece of paper from one of his old notebooks. He grabs a pen and starts writing down everything he wanted to tell you.

Dear Y/N,

I'm sorry for staying silent all this time. Honestly, I tried to call you numerous times, but I always chickened out every single time - Real loser behavior, you'd probably say.

But I actually feel like a loser, especially after the results of the exams. Nothing has been going well for me, let alone the plans I had for the future. My dad has been pressuring me into getting a job or doing my military service - not that I would mind finding a job to get some money, but can you seriously imagine me as an ironmonger?!

By the way, congrats on your results! I always knew you'd get into Chemistry, although I wish you were able to get into Athens…..Kinda selfish, isn't it?

I don't know when you'll be able to visit Gkyzi again, but if it's within the next year, it will be hard to see each other.

Contrary to belief, I decided to enlist next month. It's a good chance for me to think through things while getting over with the service. I know it's sudden, but there isn't anything else holding me down here, especially now that you aren't here either.

I am sorry for being a loser of a boyfriend and an even more pathetic friend. You probably think I am using the military as an excuse to run away from my problems, and I can't blame you for it.

I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me. 

Love you always,

Vernon.

He sets the pen down and lets out a breath he was holding, a huge weight being lifted off his chest. 

"Well, it's now or never." He mutters and searches for an envelope to put the letter in. He folds it neatly and carefully places it inside, writing the sender and receptor details.

He puts on a pair of shoes and walks out of his room, clutching the envelope in his hand. However, he bumps into his dad on the way to the living room, the latter sort of looking down on him.

"And where are you off to?"

"I need to go to the mail post real quick-"

"Not before we talk."

"Dad, not right now-"

"There's never a right time for you, it seems!"

"Now is not the time, Dad!"

"And when will it be the time, Vernon? When you turn thirty you'll still live like a parasite?! Writing poems won't get you money, kid!"

"Can you just listen to me for once?!" Vernon yells back in frustration. "This isn't a fucking poem, it's a letter! A damn letter to Y/N and I just want to mail it!"

"Oh so now you have time for love letters?" Stelios follows right behind him. "When will you take up responsibility for your actions?!"

"I'll enlist in the military next month."

"You- Wait, what?"

"You heard me! I'm going to the military, just like you wanted me to! Hope you're happy now!" Vernon retorts and storms out of the house, slamming the door without hesitation.

"What happened? Where did Vernon go?" Mary rushes into the living room.

"Mary," Stelios huffs and rests his hands on his waist. "Our son is enlisting next month."

May, 1979.

Vernon finishes up packing the last of his belongings before leaving the house. He looks around his room, the memories of his childhood and early adolescence flashing before his eyes like a short film. 

The last box has his favorite items in it - his film video camera, the poetry books he bought one by one with his allowance, and a few pictures of his friends to accompany him for the next twenty four months of his life.

“Ready to go, sprout?” Jihyo comes up behind him, resting a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“I’m about to go into the military, and you’re still calling me a sprout?”

“Whether you complete your service or create your own family in ten years, you’re still my younger brother!” She ruffles his hair lovingly. “Come on, the others are waiting for us.”

Vernon nods as he seals the box with tape and picks it up in his arms.

It still feels like a fever dream, but reality hits him as soon as he walks out of the apartment block and he is greeted by the rest of his family, Chan and Dahyun, as well as Sir Nick.

“You have no idea how much you surprised me, skunk.” 

“I know, it took you a fucking week to forgive me when I told you I’m enlisting.”

“You caught me like a deer in front of headlights! We already lost Seungkwan, and you’re going away too!”

“Chan, he isn’t leaving forever. It’s just twenty four months - with breaks in between!” Dahyun reprimands him, “He won’t be gone forever!”

“It will certainly feel like it…”

“Don’t worry, Chan, you’ll be fine.” Vernon hugs his friend. “We will be fine.”

“I’m really proud of you, kid,” Sir Nick approaches him. “Once a boy scout, now a grown man who’s about to serve his country - You’ve come a long way.”

“All thanks to you, sir.”

“Stop with that now, I can’t be crying at my age. Now shoo!”

“Come on now, it’s time to go, son.” Stelios pats Vernon’s back. “Put your stuff in the back, I’ll take you to the station.”

He says his goodbyes to everyone, exchanging tight hugs as he knows he won’t be able to see them any time soon again.

He places his stuff in the back of the car and slides into the backseat, closing the door behind him. He waves at them one last time before his dad turns on the engine and drives away from them.

If he had turned his head just a few seconds later, he would have seen you running towards the car while screaming his name.

You feel like tearing up as you watch the car disappear in the distance, kneeling on the asphalt with a piece of paper lying in your lap.

“Y/N!” Chan and Dahyun rush towards you.

“When- When did you get back?!”

“Just….Just an hour ago,” you sob, “If only that damn letter had reached me sooner!”

“I…I am so sorry, Y/N,” Dahyun hugs you in an attempt to comfort you, “We had no idea you’d come…”

“I didn’t alert anyone beforehand, I had no time.” Your tears run down your cheeks without hesitation.

“Fuck, I didn’t even get the chance to say goodbye.”

[niconeekokneecaps]

Also, I'm curious:

Who are your 3 favourite & least favourite Harry Potter Characters, and why? And what are your favourite fanon ships?

My 3 favourite characters:

1. Fred & George Weasley - I’ve loved both Fred & George since the first time I read the books (although I think George is my favourite of the two) so it’s hard to choose one or the other for the top spot. I love how they genuinely care about Harry and they treat him like a brother. I also think that they’ve got to be really smart to pull off everything they’ve gone, in terms of pranks & the joke shop. And also, despite them teasing their siblings throughout the series, I do think that they really do care about them in their own way (e.g in CoS when they’re attempting to cheer Ginny up in their own way, even if it doesn’t end up working).

2. Ron Weasley - I love his personality in the books and that fact that Ron is always ready to throw hands for people he cares about. I always get so annoyed that Hermione got Ron’s line in PoA (“if you want to kill Harry, you have to kill us to!”), because it shows just how selfless Ron is as a character. Whilst, yes, he doesn’t always have the best reactions to things (which I think was heavily to do with his jealousy and confidence issues) he always comes back to Harry and Hermione in the end. He’s also a super brave character too (standing up to Sirius, going to Aragog) as well as his care towards those close to him. For example, in DH (the book), when the trio are in Malfoy Manor, Ron is screaming for them to let Hermione go, to take him instead. Ron defender til the day I die.

3. Remus Lupin - Now, this one can be a bit iffy because I prefer canon Remus over fanon (which is very popular). Canon Remus is honestly a bit of a coward, and I love that. Unlike his friends, he isn’t very confident, he doesn’t seem to have been popular and, as a teen, probably struggled making friends outside of the Marauders. Honestly, that’s so relatable to me as a person who has struggled with my confidence and making friends. Another thing is that Remus had been betrayed and has lost so much on top of the self hatred towards his being a werewolf. Again, canonically, Remus isn’t the smartest of the Marauders and had to work harder (than say James or Sirius) to feel like he deserves to be in Hogwarts. Overall, to me, his canon character is pretty relatable and it’s one of the reasons he’s one of my favourites.

Honorary Mentions: Luna, Tonks, Harry, Hermione, Percy

My 3 least favourites:

1. Severus Snape - I have so much to say about Snape. He’s a grown man who holds onto a childhood grudge even though the one he holds a grudge against has been dead for over ten years. He then proceeds to take this out on said dead man’s son for like 6 years because they look alike. He’s also a Death Eater who only turned to Dumbledore when Lily’s life was threatened, even though he was the one who gave Voldemort the prophecy which led to all of this. And speaking of Lily, he was not in love with her, he was fucking obsessed with her. In the books (can’t remember which one, although I’m pretty sure it’s DH), he finds a letter from Lily to Sirius with a picture of the Potters. He tears the part of the letter which Lily had written ‘my love’ or something along those lines (it’s been a while since I read DH, and I don’t have the book with me right now to check) and also tore the photo of the Potters in half. This meant that he kept Lily’s part of the picture and just tossed the part with Harry and James to the side, because he doesn’t care about either of them. I’m gonna stop my Snape rant here, but you get the gist.

2. Draco Malfoy - I really don’t like the little ferret for multiple reasons. One of which is his bullying of, not just the trio, but many others as well. One issue I have with him is that he wishes harm and death upon Hermione multiple times in CoS (wishing death upon her) and GoF (wishing harm upon her during the Quidditch World Cup), just because she’s a muggleborn. Also the way he insults and mocks the Weasley’s to the point (e.g. Weasley Is Our King) where the Weasley siblings start throwing hands. Here, George alongside Harry in the OotP book comes to mind. He’s also quite the coward in the end, during DH and HBP, when he’s realised that being a Death Eater ain’t really what he thought it would’ve been like. Once again, ending my rant here.

3. Dolores Umbridge - I think this one’s quite self explanatory. I can’t stand her.

Honorary Mentions: Bellatrix, Dumbledore, Molly

You also asked about my favourite fanon ships so here (not loads cause I do like a lot of canon ships but here we are):

- Ronarry - I know they’re just best friends, however I am a sucker for best friends to lovers

- George x Harry (I call them Firebolt) - This one did start out as a crack ship, but it’s honestly grown on me (post wars fics are so sweet)

- Fremione - It’s not my fave ship for either of ship really but the idea of it gets me (best friend’s older brother, prankster x bookworm, etc)

- Linny - They’re just neat, I just like them.

- Perciver - I love the vibes of these two being together.

Thanks for the ask as well! I like getting asks and being able to talk about these things! Enjoy!