#text threads: ryder
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cleolinda ¡ 5 months ago
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Weekend links, June 2, 2024
My posts
My mom was in a car wreck this past week, but she’s okay and it looks like insurance will pay for the massive damage to the back third of her whole-ass car, and it won’t be totaled. Panic-inducing, and my mom’s a little spooked about getting back out on the road, but it’s going to be okay, I think. 
I was going back through my #pride posts to find things to seasonally reblog, and I remembered I’d written this post about Donna Summer and Disco Demolition Night.
Reblogs of interest
Politics: Felonies Georg is the first U.S. president to be convicted of a crime! in court! a lot!
Speaking of birdsrightsactivist, who is featured in that post, it turns out that she is a delightful evolutionary biologist who coined the word “birb.”
Hot Vintage Lady Poll finals: It’s Eartha Kitt vs. Hedy Lamarr. Be advised that it’s a 24-hour flash poll, as the men’s was. Bring it home, Eartha Nation. 
Kick off Pride Month with this massive To Wong Foo post that gets better and better every time someone adds to it.
Hozier Watch 2024: A ethereal white butterfly crashed the Noblesville show, presumably with an urgent message from the Faerie Queen (Florence Welch). 
More from hellenhighwater’s minotaur sculpture trilogy.
An extra hour in the brick pit: yet another scam event in Britain. Although I’m halfway to believing that’s just the Official DashCon Ball Pit LEGO Kit.®
I am truly truly sorry to inflict this on you, but you need to know about Ogtha, an important Reddit saga. Think Snapewives, but Kafka. And then telling your parents about it in the language of her people. 
Rooster Goncharov
How a budgie tells someone to get the fuck out
“Unbelievably huge dragon d[ISCOUNT]”
Calculus Made Easy
Wake up, babe, new cat color dropped
The Velocipastor is so much
Darth Maul, second worst nightmare
I cannot impress upon you enough what a cultural icon Winona Ryder was in the late ’80s.
That said, I now want you to read this in her deadpan Lydia Deetz voice.
“No one’s really buying AI”: I am filled with a very specific kind of joy to hear that teenagers are already calling AI-generated images “boomer art.”
Contemplating this Eurasian red squirrel and his delicious apple for a while is self care. I mean, I sure felt better. 
Video
If you have ever wanted to get in a time machine and go directly back to 1994, IMAGINE A WORLD WHERE TIME DRIFTS SLOWLY
Elephants love making music, and we don’t deserve them
Pallas cats in pumpkins, because Halloween is everyday
The sacred texts
The “Backrooms” image/location from the original 4chan thread has been found. Side note, I keep meaning to post something about Kane Parsons’ new video series, because it’s very different from Backrooms and yet the absolute terror of the liminal is still there. 
While we’re here, would you care for an heirloom dancing Spider-Man?
Personal tag of the week
#pride, since I enjoy posting things for Pride Month, although at the rate we’re going, I and/or my family might be struck by lightning any moment. Here’s hoping my tag flourishes.
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choicesficwriterscreations ¡ 9 months ago
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CFWC F/AotW - Feb 18 - 24, 2024
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✒️= Fanfic | 📱= Text Fics/Edits | 🎨 = Fanart Ⓜ️ = Mature Content 18+ | 🔥 = Explicit/NSFW 18+ 🏳️‍🌈 = LGBTQIA |🔹Submitted by creator
BLADES OF LIGHT AND SHADOW
Aerin Valleros x M!Human!MC 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @oh-so-youre-a-nerd
Crossroads ✒️🏳️‍🌈 🔹| Aerin Valleros, NB!Elf!MC - @storyofmychoices
Daenarya 🎨🏳️‍🌈🔹| f!human!mc - @storyofmychoices
Kilian Clawthorne 🎨🔹 by @inlocusmads
Marya Moonglory 🎨🏳️‍🌈🔹| f!elf!mc - @storyofmychoices for @gaiuskamilah
Woven Threads & Winding Roads Parts 3 & 4 ✒️🔹| Tyril Starfury x f!human!mc - @aria-ashryver for @thosehallowedhalls
BLOODBOUND
Bloodbound Portraits 🎨| Multiple Characters by @thepanky
CRIMES OF PASSION
I don't think a million times is enough ✒️| m!Trystan Thorne x F!MC - @inlocusmads
Moja Ruza ✒️🔹| m!Trystan Thorne x F!MC - @peonierose
Of Cloudless Climes and Starry Skies (Series) ✒️🔹| Sebastyan Thorne x F!MC - @thosehallowedhalls Chapter 3
Starting Somewhere If Nowhere Tangible ✒️🔹| Mafalda Ginovese, Nora Rose (F!MC) - @inlocusmads
DISTANT SHORES
Distant Shores: An Alternate Path - Part 2 ✒️🔹| Charlie Smith x M!MC - @korgbelmont
THE ELEMENTALISTS
Beckett Harrington x F!MC Fanart 🎨by @bri1234
Shreya Mistry Fanart 🎨by @artbyalz
ENDLESS SUMMER
Estela Montoya x F!MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈by @marmolady
THE FRESHMAN SERIES
Somehow, I Never Got the Rose Tinted Glasses ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| TFS MC - @choicesmc
Zig Ortega Fanart🎨🏳️‍🌈by @/ohhhheyitsjulia (IG) (C: @choiceswithmika)
IMMORTAL DESIRES
Am I Dreaming? 🎨| Cas Harlow x F!MC - @nukritus
Cas Harlow & Gabe Adalhard Fanart 🎨by @fiyahhball
Immortal Desires Fanart 🎨| Cas Harlow x F!MC x Gabe Adalhard - @artbyalz
Immortal Desires Fanart - Cas Harlow 🎨🏳️‍🌈| Cas Harlow x MC - @your-art-is-gay
Murder at Homecoming: Harlow ✒️Ⓜ️🔹| Cas Harlow x F!MC - @korgbelmont
Please Don't Think (Series) ✒️Ⓜ️🔥| Cas Harlow x F!MC x Gabe Adalhard - @princesstutu Chapter 1 | Chapter 2
LAWS OF ATTRACTION
But I'm tired 🎨🏳️‍🌈| Martin Vanderweil x NB!MC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd
MULTIPLE STORIES
Playchoices MCs 🎨by @cassiopeiacorvus 
Six Fanarts 🎨 by @gaiuskamilah
NIGHTBOUND
The Haunted House ✒️🔹| Nik Ryder x F!MC - @ladylamrian
OPEN HEART
Open Heart Full F/AotW Lise - Week ending Feb 24, 2024
RED CARPET DIARIES
Thomas x Alex Hunt Fanart 🎨by @liiyaan (C: @storyofmychoices)
THE ROYAL ROMANCE
Wild Ride: A Bad Romance Prequel One-Shot ✒️Ⓜ️🔥🔹| Liam Rys x MC - @angelasscribbles
WAKE THE DEAD
Ash Archer (F!MC) Fanart 🎨by @roseythorne
Three of Hearts ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| Eli Sipes x Zoe Rivera (F!MC) x Troy Hassan - @jerzwriter
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ursulawrites ¡ 4 years ago
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Continued from x (@ficklehcart)
[ sms ⇄ FUTURE HUSBAND ]  All I really want to do tonight is get drunk with you and dance on tables. is that too much to ask?
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[ sms ⇄ WIFEY TO BE ]  Not at all, that sounds perfect. [ sms ⇄ WIFEY TO BE ]  I get off work at 6pm and then I’m all yours. We can do whatever you want to do tonight baby, table dancing included. 
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roseategales ¡ 4 years ago
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main ryder’s name is officially guinevere bc i wanted to make some kinda “ghost rider” pun/allusion and guinevere can be translated as "the white fay/ghost"
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l0stxpieces ¡ 3 years ago
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tag drop for cole ryder
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thisxpoison ¡ 4 years ago
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tag drop for ezra ryder
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bordeleaubeau ¡ 4 years ago
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when worlds collide - ryder donovan
chapter four wc: 1985
ryder
the house is almost completely dark besides a light in the living room and the dim illumination from the tv. ryder automatically assumes that it’s bill or katie are waiting for him to get home - it wasn’t necessarily a rare occurrence of hi  coming home later after a game, and katie usually stayed up just to make sure her middle child came home safe.
however, when ryder pushes open the door he’s surprised to see his little sister and youngest sibling sitting on the couch. “clara?” he asks, closing the door behind him quietly to make as little noise as possible. “it’s like, midnight. why are you still awake?”
the brunette turns around, both of her eyebrows raised at her brother, and slowly ryder puts his hands up in defense. “you didn’t tell me you had a girlfriend.” ryder can’t help but let out a laugh when the realization hits, which only worsens the look his little sister is giving him. 
“y/n? she’s just a friend, clar. don’t worry okay? you’re still the most important girl in my life. as long as you don’t tell mom and vanessa that.” ryder smiles at her, his hand reaching out and ruffling the top of her already messy hair. clara knew and sure the rest of the donovan siblings did without ryder ever telling them, but clara was his favorite sibling by a long mile. clara absolutely adored his little sister and vice versa. 
“are you sure, rydes?” clara’s voice is small as she talks, tucking her legs under her small frame, suddenly feeling shy about asking her brother about his love life. “you never give people your hoodies. i never even get those! i’m lucky if i get your old ones that you don’t even fit into anymore.” 
clara had backed ryder into a corner. he hated lying to clara and not once did he ever lie to her. shay was one story, but never c.
“i’m sure.” ryder says after hesitating,  sitting down on top of the coffee table in front of clara. “we’re just partners for a school project, okay c? nothing will come out of it. she may come over one day after school or after practice, but that’ll pretty much be it.”
for a second, ryder swears he sees clara’s face falter just for a moment, but her head tilts to the side. “why not? she was really nice. she bought me an icee too.”
“she bought you an icee?” he can’t help the stupid smile that’s on his face. of course she would do that. ryder was convinced she would do that even if she didn’t know clara was his little sister. “i’m trusting that you thanked her, right?”
clara is nodding right away. “of course i did. but i really like her, rydey. she’s different from the other girls. she isn’t… all over you. she’s not kiera.” clara fakes a shudder and a gagging noise, making a rather unexpected laugh to fall from ryder’s mouth. she certainly was not like the other girls that were willing to drop to their knees for him, and he liked that. it was different. 
ryder finds himself smiling down at his fumbling hands, “i know, i know. she is different, huh? but you don’t think you’d be upset if she spent a little bit of time around here?” ryder carefully glances up, half expecting a bad response from clara.
but she’s shaking her head and ryder can’t help but smile. even thinking about the idea of her and clara forming a relationship even somewhat similar to the one clara and he had was enough to make his stomach do flips. she had that with willy, and he knew that, everyone knew that. there was just something about thinking of clara and her together. 
“i think i’m gonna go to bed, clar. long night. and i think you should too.” clara is nodding, exhaustion visible on her face and the yawn that she lets out doesn’t help her case. “did you stay up just to ask me about y/n?”
clara’s face flushes a deep pink as she stands up from the couch, “i was just curious! i wanted to get the scoop before anyone else, and can you blame me? she’s really pretty, rydey.”
ryder places his hand on the middle of clara’s back, ushering her to keep moving up the stairs because he knew if he didn’t they would end up talking in the living room all night. “i know she is, c. trust me, i know.”
“you say you don’t like her ry, then why are you smiling like you’ve just won a championship?” clara is smiling up at him, and he knows that he’s caught. clara knew her older brother like the back of her hand, being only twelve. they had created such a bond that she just knew when ryder was having a bad day and how to cheer him up. only logan knew how he felt, not even ricky. and he was planning on keeping it that way.
“it’s, it’s complicated, c,” ryder stumbles over his words, not really knowing the right ones to say. it was his senior year. he would be going off to wisconsin in the upcoming fall and starting a brand new life for himself. it wasn’t the time for a relationship. “you’ll understand when you’re older. goodnight, clar. i love you.”
clara lets out a sigh, but nonetheless she’s got a plan calculating in her head. “goodnight ryder, i love you too.” 
-
“the one thing i asked you was to not get close to my teammates and that’s exactly what you did!” you wince at your little brother suddenly raising his voice at you, and you glance over your shoulder just to make sure your parents aren’t coming down the stairs. the last thing you needed was your dad finding out what had happened.
“i know, will, i know,” you sigh, hand running down your face. “i promise, it was only just going out to dinner. we’re not even that close, just partners for a school project. plus how do you think i felt when i heard you went out on a date and you didn’t tell me?”
will’s eyes narrow, and it looks like he’s ready to blow any second. “this is different, y/n! i’m being a regular teenager and going out on dates. but being with my teammate, my captain, one of my best friends? that’s a different story. ryder is just going to use you and you’re going to be exactly what you never wanted to be. but if that’s okay with you, fine. just don’t come crying to me when he breaks your heart.”
“he wouldn’t break my heart, william.” your voice is small and you can barely look at him. of course you don’t know if he would or not. the only proper conversation you had with ryder before high school was in the seventh grade. and senior year ryder was a lot different than seventh grade ryder.
will scoffs immediately, “i’m the one that sits with him in the locker room. i’m the one that sits with him at lunch. he tells me so many things, y/n. i hear things. if there was anyone on that team that would break your heart it would be ryder donovan.”
“well then it’s a good thing that we’re just friends, isn’t it william?”
by his side, william clenches his fists and he lets out a shaky breath. “you don’t get it, do you? just friends don’t get that close to each other. he was going to kiss you! why can’t you just let me live my life completely separate from yours? why do you always have to ruin things?”
“he’s the one that likes me, will!” the words leave your mouth before you an even comprehend what you’re saying, arms flailing in exasperation as you watch the color drain from your little brother’s face.
“goodnight.”
and without another word, the brunette boy turns to go up his stairs, defeat making his shoulders sag. you watch silently as he trudges up the stairs leaving you in the darkness of the corridor. it takes a few seconds, but once you regain your composure you’re following in the ghostly footsteps of your brother.
once you get up to your bedroom you change into sweats and a t-shirt to get ready for bed, cozying yourself in your blankets laying on your side typing out a text.
-
y/n: guess who’s brother just freaked out at her for hanging out with you:)
rydes:) : what? no way, willy wouldnt do that
y/n: yeah well he did.
rydes:) : what the hell? why?
y/n: i already told you, rydes. i broke the one promise i made to him, we got close
-
the bubbles pop up on your screen but just as quickly as they appear they disappear, and the words “rydes dono would like to facetime…” pop up instead. you hesitate, but you swipe the little bar on your screen and ryder’s face pops up right as he’s getting into his bedroom.
“talk to me, baby mama.” he says, tongue darting out to wet his lip as he sets his phone on his dresser.
your mouth opens and closes, not really knowing what to say. ryder’s hands reach for the collar of his shirt, pulling it over his head with ease. “will’s just, moody. he’s pissy that we’re friends because you’re one of his best friends and you’re his captain. there’s something about it that sets him off.” of course you aren’t actually going to tell him what william said - that ryder would break your heart. because part of you didn’t want to believe that. 
“he’ll get over it, okay? i’ll talk to him at practice on monday and-”
“ryder no!” you cut him off, sitting up in your bed. “you cannot talk to him. you can’t play hero, will isn’t gonna like that. he’s just as pissed at you as he is at me. i don’t want him to lash out at you like he just did to me. i can’t let him do that.”
the pleading in your voice is enough to pull on ryder’s heart strings, and there’s a soft smile tugging on the corners of his lips. “you really care about me, huh y/n/n?”
“of course i do,” you mumble, eyes not meeting the screen as your fingers pick at the threads of your blanket. “i don’t want, you don’t deserve it okay? if anyone deserves it, it’s me. i knew what i was doing, and i knew i was going to upset will one way or another. he knew you were going to kiss me.”
“and i would have.”
his words make your eyes go right up to the screen. there’s an annoying smirk on ryder’s face, one that nearly sends shivers down your spine and one that intensifies the blush on your cheeks.
“‘m just playing,” he finally adds on with an eye roll. you’d be lying if you said you weren’t just a little bit disappointed, but like hell you were going to show it.
“yeah, yeah of course.” you  mumble. “i should probably go to bed, rydes. and so should you, i can’t imagine how tired you must be after tonight.”
ryder nods his head, “yeah you’re right. goodnight y/n. i’ll text you in the morning okay? maybe you can come over and we can work on the project.”
“i’d like that a lot.” you smile, a smile of ryder’s own forming on his face. “goodnight, rydes. i’ll talk to you in the morning.”
“goodnight baby mama.”
and with that, the end call noise sounds. you let yourself fall back against your pillows, a blissful smile gracing your lips. god you were falling hard and you were sure everyone around you could tell.
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blazehedgehog ¡ 4 years ago
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So rather than attach it to the last (rather large) post thread, I’ll start a new one. If you didn’t catch it on Twitter, friends managed to raise some money through nothing but sheer good will and I ended up booking a stay at the same hotel we should have gotten for free.
I’m starting a new thread because I want to ask a question, but first I want to clarify and provide a better timeline of everything that’s happened. This isn’t exact, but it’s as close as my memory can remember right now:
Late 2019/Early 2020: Whoever owns my apartment complex sells it to a new company in California. The complex is in Nevada. It’s a big apartment complex; it used to be two separate ones that were right next to each other and they merged to create a “project” that houses something like 150-200 units. If you consider families, somewhere in the realm of 300-700 people live here.  
April/May 2020: We get a notice on our door announcing that our new owners want to renovate the complex. Every single unit. It’s such a big ordeal that they have to put in to get funding from the State of Nevada to do it. The initial claim is that they will move us out of our apartment unit in to a new unit for up to a month or two (at no cost to us) while they renovate. More information will come in summer 2020 during a town hall meeting we will attend in person. I expect that with the pandemic starting and “shelter in place” orders going out that there’s no way they’d be dumb enough to go through with any of this. The notice ends with them pleading with people not to take this as a cue to move out. In the months to follow, we spied at least four people who were smart enough to get out before the renovation hit. We considered it, but the housing authority we have to rent through went dead silent the moment the pandemic ramped up and have yet to say even a single word to us (even now).  
Late October/Early November 2020: The town hall meeting finally happens, online, in a Zoom meeting. Three people in California dictate to the 40 or 50 tenants (maybe more) that attend the meeting how this is going to go. Plans have changed: the renovation will take place across ten days. Very tight schedule. In and out as fast as possible. In batches of 4-5 units at a time, going alphabetically across the complex, units will be renovated. New paint, new carpet, new cabinets, new sinks, new toilet, new shower, new appliances, redone balcony. Renovation teams will come in at 8am and work until 5pm. After 5pm, we will be allowed to return to our unit and sleep there. We will be allowed to keep one bed (per person) and one TV, which the renovation team will move out of the way during the day and return to our unit when they leave. We are also told we will be getting a sealable plastic tub to store personal items (toiletries and such) that the renovation team will also handle. We are assured they will be adhering to rigorous sanitization standards, with multiple temperature checks daily, masks, and gloves. During the day, we are free to go wherever, but the complex will be setting up what they call a “hospitality trailer” -- a communal space for everyone currently effected by the renovation to hang out inside, together. There will be port-a-potties and wifi. We’re told meals will also be provided, possibly in the trailer, but details are unspecific. We’re also told some landscaping will be done. All told, between renovating units and landscaping, they say the whole process from beginning to end will take 18 months or more. Tenants in the Zoom call ask questions -- if we don’t want to stay at the hospitality trailer, we’re told we should consider staying with family during the day. They ignore multiple questions from people asking if this will cause the rent to go up.  
December 2020: Renovation begins, starting with apartments in the A block. We’re somewhere near the middle of the alphabet, and going by the ten-days-per-unit estimate, we’re expecting the renovation to hit us around March-ish, maybe even as late as April. I develop an ugly toothache; my face swells up. I do a phone visit with a dentist and he prescribes me antibiotics and schedules me for an appointment on January 18th to pull the tooth.  
Early January 2021: Going to check the mail one day, I notice it feels like they’re spending a long time on the first few sets of units. Then, all of a sudden, renovations surge ahead, and units worryingly close to our letter start putting tarps up over their balconies, signalling they’re either mid-reno, or at least packing.  
January 18th, 2021: Tooth is “fine” (big cavity, no pain) but we discuss options for pulling multiple bad teeth with this problem tooth, since a lot of my upper teeth aren’t in great shape. Will require multiple rounds of surgery to remove them all and set up replacements. First round of surgery is on February 24th. I immediately wonder if we’re going to get called early for renovation and it’ll land simultaneously with the surgery. I try not to think about it.  
January 30th, 2021: We receive a notice that our apartment’s number is due. It’s post-dated, which means the notice is late. We’re supposed to have 45 days notice, and the move-out date listed in the notice is February 23rd. By the 45 day rule, this notice should’ve arrived January 9th. There’s also a degree of confusion: the notice was delivered to our apartment, but the notice is addressed to the apartment below us. Parts of the notice still mention our apartment number. We call the front office for clarification, and they tell us that the notice was indeed meant for the people below us. According to them, we’re in the clear for now. “You’re close...” tells us the person on the phone, “But it’s not your time yet.” We consider preparing early, but it sounds like we have to use the provided packing materials for organizational reasons when the movers come.  
February 5th: I record my Patreon Podcast. I mention the renovation. If you consider 10 days per renovation, based on when the notice was actually delivered, I’m expecting we’re going to get our notice in the next few days.  
February 8th: We get a knock on the door. A man from the front office is checking in with us to see how packing is going. Packing because the notice was actually for us. It was for all four units in this block. We tell him: we called. They said it wasn’t our time yet. He just kind of shrugs and asks if we need boxes. Of course we do. Our 45 day notice has been cut down to less than 14 days. On top of that, we’ve got doctors appointments and things coming up that’s going to eat in to this time. He says everything has to be in the office-provided UHaul boxes. Even if we have items already in cardboard boxes, they have to be specifically repacked in UHaul boxes.  
February 13th: After days of trying to contact my dentist office via email, I finally get a hold of them via text. I try to reschedule my appointment, but the receptionist tells me it’s just another consultation, not surgery. I hope she’s right. The stress of all of this is making it hard to get packing as fast as we need to.  
February 15th: My Mom tells me she’s managed to book an appointment for her first round of covid-19 vaccinations. Unfortunately, it’s on February 23rd, the day we’re being moved out.  
February 16th: We talk to the people below us, an elderly couple. They’re panicking about packing because they have so much stuff. They mention that the front office booked them a hotel for the duration of their renovation. All they needed was a doctor’s note proving they needed it. Given that my 75 year old mother has a doc appointment literally the next day, this seems like extremely good timing. After doing curbside pickup for a grocery order that day, we pass the movers on our way back in as they are loading a unit in to their Ryder truck. None of them that I see are wearing masks or gloves.  
February 17th: Doc visit happens, she implies that he kind of blew her off. She’s had chronic pain in her hands and knees for years, and in particular, the pain in her hands has been getting bad, fast. She wraps her thumb in sports tape because bending it hurts. She used to be a waitress, she used to be a cake decorator, she did data entry for a couple years, and now she’s dabbling with painting. Her carpal tunnel is severe and its accentuated with arthritis. Doctor just kind of shrugs it off, tells her if it gets worse to come back in a few months, even though arthritis can kill people if not treated properly. Still, he writes her a cursory note for the apartment front office. She talks to them and they’re very glad she contacted them about this; it sounds like the kind of thing that’s only available to people who ask, since presumably the owners don’t want to shell out $900,000+ rooming the entire complex in a hotel. Either way, we’re excited; maybe this renovation won’t be so bad. They tell us the name of the hotel and where its located.  
February 18th: While doing laundry in anticipation of packing things up for the hotel/renovation, we happen to catch someone in the laundry room who just got back in to her apartment after her reno finished. She tells us a horror story: everything they told us in the Zoom meeting was a lie. They are renovating way more than 4 units at a time, they aren’t going alphabetically anymore, and she theorizes they’re going with a cheaper renovation team because half of her apartment straight up wasn’t done. The new tile was cheap plastic, which was already gouged by the time she got there. No new fridge, no new shower or tub, no new toilet. “Those will be happening this summer,” she tells us. Sinks got replaced, but the new sinks are apparently bigger than the old ones, leaving less counter space (a particular problem in the bathroom). Carpets were new, but already a dirty mess because of the movers. She had to go around and pick up nails stuck in the carpet that were left behind by the renovators. Since they didn’t take the fridge, she got to keep her food in there, which was important for her because she had special dietary food that needed to be refrigerated. The bad news? Some of that food was stolen. She had a broom and a dust pan stolen, too. She mentions how poor communication has been. We mention the hotel, and she lights up. She didn’t stay in her apartment either, they put her up in the hotel, too. So at least there’s that silver lining. Though she regrets it, because they damaged her TV while she was away. She finally helps clarify the food situation for us, too: we’ll be receiving a “food voucher” to pay for our meals, whatever that means.  
February 19th: My Mom was supposed to call the front office to confirm we got the hotel, but in all the confusion, she didn’t get around to it. We’ll have to wait the entire weekend to get confirmation. But if the elderly couple below us got a room, and the lady we spoke to at laundry got a room, it sounds like we’re a lock.  
February 22nd: The front office checks in on us again, shrugs their shoulders at how behind we are on packing, and offers us more boxes. They only give us large boxes; we need small, medium and especially rolls of packing tape. They mention they’ll have more later once they open the storage unit, but we never get any. Across this entire ordeal, we’ve only gotten a single roll of packing tape. We bought several rolls of our own after being tired of waiting. Front office guy says our fridge is being replaced, but we can still keep food in our old one and we’ll just “come in and change it out.” Whatever that means. Later, after getting off the phone, we learn we were rejected for the hotel. The doctor’s note wasn’t good enough and the head office in California denied our request. My Mom tries to contact her doctor again to get a more detailed note, but he doesn’t return her call. We’re going to be living out of the car for the next ten days. We talk about protesting this; by stopping packing right now and refusing to leave, but eventually decide that would be a bad idea. We don’t want to risk the movers breaking any of our things. A couple friends start spreading around my paypal.me link in the hopes of raising money for us to stay at a hotel. They raise a little over $200, but it’s hard to justify spending that on a hotel.  
February 23rd, Morning: By this point, we’re running on empty. No sleep, physically exhausted, stressed out of our minds. Both of us on the verge of tears several times. With everything going on, we’re a little over halfway done packing and there’s no time left. We quickly move from “pack everything” to “pack what’s important so the movers don’t have to touch it.” Whatever we can’t finish, the movers will pack for us. At 7:30am the movers arrive, and they knock on the door at 8am. They are very polite. They are all wearing masks and gloves. We tell them they are nowhere near ready, and they offer to do our unit last. We do the best we can and leave the rest to them. On our way out, we talk to the elderly couple that lives below us, who claim the moving truck won’t be enough to hold everything in their apartment. It’s a big truck and a small apartment. I find that hard to believe. We go park somewhere and doze in the car until my Mom’s vaccination appointment at 10am. More friends, some of them with very large followings, start spreading the paypal.me link around. Momentum begins to build.  
February 23rd, Midday: We get to the vaccination place only to realize we forgot some things at the apartment. We quickly jog back across town and plan to ask them if it’s okay if we can go in to the apartment and retrieve it. When we get there, they’re still unloading the couple below us, and I notice they aren’t just taking UHaul boxes, but regular cardboard boxes, too. Given it’s been almost two hours, this might be second truckful, maybe even the third. I grab the stuff we’re missing and we head back to the vaccination park. Afterwards, we hang out at my brother’s just in case my mom has an allergic reaction to the vaccine and she needs help. She’s fine, and by the time we’re through there, it’s getting to be time to head back to our apartment for the night at 5pm. Before we leave my brother’s, I use their wifi to check my Paypal account. I joke, “I’m worried that I’ll open my account and it’ll say $2000.” Combined with the little bit of money I already had in my Paypal, the donations have pushed my account close to $2200. I burst out laughing. “YOU WANNA GO GET A HOTEL?!” I shout. We agree we’ll spend the night in the unit tonight and decide what we’ll take with us to the hotel in the morning.  
February 23rd, Evening: It’s close to 6pm and the movers are still there. They were supposed to clock out almost an hour ago. I browse Tripadvisor and Expedia in the parking lot and decide to just book the same hotel they dangled in front of our faces, since reviews specifically point out it’s clean and has extremely good quarantine practices. Expedia lets me pay with Paypal directly, but there’s a problem where it won’t connect to my Paypal account. As I go to transfer the money out of my Paypal and finish booking the hotel, the wifi dies. The movers just unplugged our modem and packed it up. They probably weren’t supposed to do that, and they picked the worst time, too. We spend the next 45 minutes driving around town trying to find free wifi so I can book this hotel. We end up parking at my brother’s place and leeching his wifi from the driveway. Hotel booked, check-in is at 3pm on the 24th. For now, it’s back to the apartment to decide what to take with us.  
February 23rd, Night: Upon getting back to the apartment around 7pm, we find it’s... a disaster area. They spent so long unloading all the other units, they did not have time to finish packing and unloading what was left in our unit. There’s garbage everywhere, it’s mixed in with the stuff we want to keep, some of it’s broken, it’s horrible. It looks like they just swept everything off the tables on to the floor. TV remotes and mail are spread out all over the place. They didn’t leave us any lamps, so the only lights in the apartment are the front door light, the kitchen light, and the bathroom light. They might have left us our mattresses, but they didn’t leave us any pillows or blankets. Still, we spent the better part of the night sorting through the “trash” and separating it out in to the stuff we wanted to keep. We pack up most of the apartment with whatever materials the movers left behind, but we eventually run out of boxes and tape. We still managed to pack 99.9% of what was left. From 7pm to 2:30am.  
February 24th, Morning: At 7:30am I'm woken up by the movers pulling up. I can hear them joking in the parking lot about who gets the honor of being called "papi" and cracking rude jokes about "assuming gender." They probably think nobody's around to hear them. We ask them for more time so we can wake up and get dressed. As we're loading up the car with stuff to take to the hotel, we overhear the movers complaining about how they are being made to wait because we were supposed to be out of here by 8, and it's close to 9. My Mom gives them an earful about how little time we had to pack compared to how long we should've had. "That's been happening to a lot of people here." one of them tells her. My whole body hurts after days of little sleep and packing extremely heavy boxes. I’ve had a throbbing headache for almost 48 hours. With the dentist appointment at 3pm that afternoon, we go to a park and I doze in the car for another five hours.   
February 24th, Afternoon: Dentist appointment goes smoothly; they offer to start surgery, but I explain to them what happened with the renovation and they are perfectly fine postponing until a later date. By now, my feet hurt where the soles of my shoes have been rubbing. My ankles and knees are hurting from being crunched up inside a car for two days. My back hurts from all the lifting. I’m beyond miserable and realize there’s no way I could bare to spend 10 days living in this car. Thankfully, with the dentist appointment out of the way, it’s check in time. The hotel room is nice, but given I’ve never stayed in a hotel before, I don’t have much of a comparison. But when I fall asleep that night, I sleep harder and longer than I have in years.  
February 25th: The elderly couple that lived below us at the apartment are here at the same hotel we are, and we talk to them. Turns out, the lady has the same doctor as my Mom, and they were rejected from his note, too. The approval they got for the hotel came from her husband’s doctor, who wrote an extremely detailed note about his oxygen needs. They mention that people living in our complex with disabilities weren’t housed here and they don’t know where they are or what happened to them. They also claim that the food provision stuff from the apartment front office is apparently some kind of a $45/day meal credit we get at the end of the renovation. But again, it’s still not clear, and the apartment itself has never clarified. That night, we return to the apartment again to raid our fridge for stuff to bring to the hotel. Now, if you remember, we were supposed to be able to sleep at the apartment every night. The apartment we returned to was in such a state that it would have been impossible to sleep in. No sinks, no toilets, no stove, no running water of any kind, and all of the outlets stripped down. Literally the only thing we could have done was sleep there; nothing else was possible. And even then, remember: no bedding. No pillows, no blankets, and it’s still winter out there.  
Update on things I forgot: Also on the 25th, elderly couple in the unit below us also told of how the movers had thrown their $950 couch outside and left it in the dirt for multiple days, asking if it was “trash” because one of the washable seat covers had a single pet stain on it. (When we visited the apartment that night to raid the fridge, we even saw it) Not only that, but last year, our bathroom tub had been leaking in to one of their closets. They had to shut our water off for several days and fix the pipes. Apparently this caused black mold in their apartment that wasn’t discovered until they started hauling boxes out. Upon bringing it up with the renovation team, they got told “there’s black mold everywhere! it’s in the grass! it’s fine!” The husband went in to take pictures of the black mold, but by the time he got over there with the camera, the renovation team had already painted over it. Apparently another tenant on the other side of the complex had mold problems so bad that she’s been paid to stay at this hotel for more than a month already while they deal with it.
Which brings us, roughly, to today.
Now, the question I mentioned way back at the top: what are my options here, legally? A lot of friends have told me up and down that this is either illegal, or should be illegal, but I have no idea where to start with any of this stuff and frankly I’m a little gun shy. I don’t know what Nevada housing law is like, what renters rights are, and I don’t want to risk being evicted. But I also know that the threat of being evicted is also what keeps people complacent.
All I really know is that basically everything they originally told us was a lie, and they never informed us of most of these changes. As for the rest, well... just read for yourself.
Whatever you know, I’d like to know.
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canadianabroadvery ¡ 4 years ago
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“ ....Twenty-five years ago, they might have lined up in the sweltering heat or skipped work to camp out for days in front of a venue’s box office. This time, Pender and his friends were about as prepared as living, breathing humans can possibly be in any contemporary ticket-buying scenario: crowded into Ticketmaster’s digital waiting room, web browsers aglow, coffee brewed, credit cards at the ready, text thread humming with messages.
“You ready? You ready?”
It was no use. Almost instantaneously, all the Ryder Cup’s official inventory was gone. Sold out. A twist of shock, then frustration, washed over the prospective buyers.
“We’re all sitting there, ‘Did anyone get tickets?’ ” Pender recalled. “No, none of us got tickets. I had other friends that were doing it with a group. My brothers were trying to do it. Nobody I knew got tickets.”
They still had options, of course. Minutes after the event sold out, plenty of inventory suddenly became available, priced well above face value, on a variety of secondary market sites. “
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glittering-snowfall ¡ 4 years ago
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Since I always seem to be “in the middle” about Frozen 2 (I have mixed feelings about it and sometimes I defend it and other times I critique it a whole lot), I’ve been thinking about Elsa’s characterization in F2 and what does and doesn’t work for me.
I know I’m an EA shipper and that colors my perspective. A part of me is always going to dislike the ending of F2 - although it’s not entirely shipping-based. I’m of the opinion that F2 made missteps in the Frohana dynamic and that the focus on characters’ individual personal journeys at the expense of working together did a disservice to the final film.
At the same time, I’m not against the ending of F2 on principle the way some of my friends are. This is going to be controversial, but I do see some potential in F2′s ending. And I think there are some ways it fits with Elsa’s character. (In the same breath, let me say that there are some ways I feel it doesn’t fit with Elsa’s character, but let me make my first point first.)
One of the good things I can see in the ending (and in Elsa’s personal journey across the film and her characterization therein) is that the journey ultimately allows Elsa to broaden her horizons. This seems like a good thing, especially for someone who was cooped up in a castle for years of her life in childhood without the ability to truly live. Another good thing might be (keep a pin in that “might be,” I’ll come back to it later) that it expands Elsa’s support network because now Elsa can have the Northuldra and the spirits around her - and so she can meet new people and expand her horizons that way. Again, I can see a lot of good in that, especially for someone like Elsa who was isolated for years of her life.
Here’s the thing though (and this is part the where I start getting critical of F2). F2 doesn’t really focus on Elsa expanding her support network. It never capitalizes on the idea that, hey, this young woman was isolated throughout her childhood and she deserves to have the ability to make connections with people. Frustratingly, F2 doesn’t focus that much on Elsa’s connections with the people who live in the area she eventually decides to call home. Outside of her brief conversations with Yelena and Honeymaren, the film barely shows Elsa interacting with the Northuldra. In fact, the film basically drops the Northuldra characters from the second half of the film. Yes, they are integral on a conceptual level for the plot because the plot hinges on the wrong that Arendelle did to the Northuldra, the developing Northuldra characters from the film’s first part vanish for a large chunk of the runtime - which, in my opinion, has negative consequences for the Northuldra as characters and for Elsa’s choice at the end of the film.
Since the film isn’t as focused on Elsa’s interactions with her new and old friends - on tangible people living in the world around her that she can bond and interact with - it puts its focus on Elsa’s magic, her connection with the spirits, and Fifth Spirit stuff - which was a mistake, in my opinion.
I’ve talked about this before on my other blog, but I fundamentally disagree with the idea we needed to know “the origin of Elsa’s powers.” In my opinion, that puts more focus on what Elsa is rather than who she is. Moreover, making Elsa’s powers a gift for Iduna externalizes something that worked beautifully as a metaphor for something unique that was internal to Elsa. The “gift” plot thread also introduces aspects of predestination to the narrative that the film really could have done without. And before someone jumps in and says, “But Elsa still has the free will to accept her place as one side of the bridge or not and it’s still her choice,” it’s a choice that is fundamentally muddied by the fact her life has been influenced before she was even born by sentient forces outside of her control. I know the world generally influences people, but we tend not to think of the world as having a Will. And even if we look at things from a religious perspective, God never interacts with us as directly as the spirits interact with Elsa, making the comparison between Elsa’s life and the lives of ordinary people influenced by worldly forces outside their control particularly murky.
Now, some friends of mine talk about Elsa making her home in Ahtohallan at the end of F2, while other friends of mine talk about Elsa making her home among the Northuldra. People have very strong opinions about this, but I’m going to toss something out there: both interpretations of the text are valid and that ambiguity is a problem. 
People who argue that Elsa’s home at the end of F2 is Ahtohallan... aren’t wrong, exactly. The film puts way more focus on Elsa connecting with Ahtohallan and the memories of the Northuldra than actually having her connect with the Northuldra. Like I said previously, the actual human Northuldra characters vanish, abruptly cutting off beautiful potential for character development. Moreover, Elsa’s profoundest declaration that she’s “home” comes at Ahtohallan - and there’s some evidence that the writers tossed around the idea of tying Ahtohallan in firmly with the concept of home.
Now, people who disagree with that reading will probably point out that, just because the writers tossed around that idea, doesn’t make it so in the finished film. Just because there are lines in deleted scenes (like Elsa’s declaration that she doesn’t know what the spirits want from her now, but she wants to be there when they do) that suggest the writers didn’t quite know what to do with Elsa and leaned too heavily on the magical destiny aspect, doesn’t mean the finished film totally reflects that.
I’d still argue there are vestiges of it in the finished film, though. We don’t see Elsa living among the Northuldra at the end. We see her standing outside the village instead of within it. We don’t see her riding with the Northuldra at the end, she just waves at them from a distance. But still, she does wave at them! That suggests a happy closeness towards them! She joins hands with Yelena and Honeymaren as she decides to stay, after all. She could indeed live in the village with them.
We just don’t know. It never comes up. I certainly want her to live in the village. I want her to connect more with her mother’s people and explore her culture. It’s a headcanon I find infinitely preferable to the headcanon that her home is the glacier.
But that’s the vexing thing. They are both headcanons - and there are enough details in the finished film that you could plausibly argue either way.
And while I do love the idea of Elsa bonding with the Northuldra in the film’s conclusion, that interpretation also unfortunately highlights the fact that we didn’t get to see that much of Elsa interacting with the Northuldra characters across the movie.
And that just makes me wish we got to see more of the Northuldra - for the Northuldra’s sake, and for Elsa’s. 
And all that kind of comes together to establish why the ending of F2 (at least as it pertains to Elsa) doesn’t exactly work for me.
The way I see it, you could fix this either by having Elsa not stay in the Forest at the end (because that conclusion doesn’t quite feel earned) or you could expand the Northuldra characters’ roles - maybe have Honeymaren and Ryder tag along on the adventure. Then we could see Elsa engage with them, learn more about them, maybe better set up her decision to stay at the end.
Both of those fixes work. And I know the EA shipper in me prefers the first option (and, even divorced from shipping, I enjoy the idea of the found family from the first film staying physically together; it’s a personal bias of mine.) But I also really, really would have loved to have seen more of the Northuldra and the expansion of their role because the Northuldra are pretty awesome.
Sorry, this was really long and rambly. I also know I usually write my rambly analysis posts from my other blog, but I wanted to talk more openly about how my being an EA shipper shapes my perspective. 
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jacobbenisrael ¡ 5 years ago
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Helping Hand _ Jacob&Ryder
Thread Tag: @theoneryderlynn Date: March 14th 2020 Location: NY ____________________
Since moving to New York, about a decade ago, Jacob had focused so much first on his studies, then on work, that somehow without realizing it, he’d spent a big part of his life, on his own, without many friends or family he was close to, other than his father who he tried to visit often, back home in Lima.There was only a handful of people that he would call friends, some of them being recent additions in his life since he decided to be more active on social media and catch up with a few people from the past, that he’d tried hard to forget and ignore ever happened. One of the people he got in touch with, was Ryder. One of the few that had been kind enough to give him a chance and chat without bringing up his “good old self” that he’d been trying to hide away. To his surprise it was his job that got them talking, a subject not everyone wanted to hear about, considering it wasn’t exactly a cheerful topic. Hearing that he’d decided to move to New York, he was more than happy to offer his help and so it wasn’t long after that they’d arranged to meet up and move some boxes and maybe soon Jacob would have the chance to show him around a bit, give him a bit of a New York tour. As much as he didn’t like admitting it, he was hoping for a new friend. Following the directions to his address, he made it there a few minutes earlier, used to driving a bit faster than most and knowing what time was best to avoid traffic, considering a big part of his job was driving around New York. Once he was there, he sent Ryder a text to let him know and made his way to the apartment.
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hunnybadgerv ¡ 4 years ago
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Writer Ask Meme 3. What is your favorite/least favorite part about writing? 10. Pick an author (or writing friend) to co-write a book with 12. Which story (or: stories) of yours do you like best? why? 17. What things (scenes/topics/character types) are you most comfortable writing? 29. Is writing more of a hobby or do you write with the intention of getting published? 36. Post a snippet 49. Favorite fictional world?
Behind the Scenes of Fic Writing: 30 Questions for Authors
3. What is your favorite/least favorite part about writing?  Getting started. Once I’m writing, I can usually find the zone. But it’s getting started that is always the hardest for me. Like this morning, I didn’t know where to even start. So, I opted to edit, since it is something I wanted to accomplish this week. And I know that in the revision process I also tend to refine my prose, i.e., write, so my editing and writing work today coincided. 
I have, however, written every day this month and I’m hoping to continue that trend. But regardless of the time of day, getting started tends to be my biggest obstacle overall. 
10. Pick an author (or writing friend) to co-write a book with. Must it only be one? Gosh. 
There are so many great writers I know, more than I could ever even try to consider for this.  
I’ve always admired @theoriginalladya for the uniqueness of her ideas and character development are second to none; I equally love and hate when she and I talk about her characters because I get super excited about them because of how amazing they are. Then I quickly become obsessed, which may or may not be the only “bad” thing. @painterofhorizons has angst super powers; even in a snippet of text she can rip your soul clean from your body. Her writing is so evocative and emotionally striking. Then there is @chyrstis, whose ability to seamlessly weave humor into her fics sparks more than envy. She manages to put characters into such believable, yet laughable situations that it only serves to endear them to readers. 
I’m not sure I could ever co-write a piece, but I would count myself lucky to write with any of the writers I regularly associate with, especially one of these three. Apologies to all the amazing writers I know who I did not mention by name, but I already didn’t follow the question in the first place by mentioning three rather than a single one. 
12. Which story (or: stories) of yours do you like best? why?  Oh gosh. This is so cruel. One story! Really? That’s all. Honestly, First Watch of the Night (Guardians in the Darkness Series) is one of my favorite. I think that might be in part because of nostalgia--it is Nyx Shepard’s WIP. I actually have it planned all the way through ME3, though I’ve currently stalled in the revision process in the ME1 timeline. I’m not sure why either. 
I find myself wondering if the reason I have not finished it is because once I know what happens, maybe I won’t have the drive to finish writing it. Maybe I can’t get past the block because I’m worried that finishing their story will vacate those muses from my mind, which I kind of don’t want. I really have grown quite attached to Nyx, Kaidan, and her crew. 
Honestly, I think that might be the struggle I end up in with all my longer fics. Short fics in collection are so much easier because the story never has to end. A long fic follows a certain line and has a definite conclusion, which I think worries me.
17. What things (scenes/topics/character types) are you most comfortable writing?  Umm, If you were to look at characters like Tayen Quick, Nyx and Feign Shepard, Furia, Remy McGinnis, Mari Ryder, Cyna Mahariel, and Laerke, you’d see a common thread connecting them. I tend enjoy writing strong female characters, especially those that are flawed or broken in some way. Honestly, Nyx and Furia, also to some extent Leah Rook, all share imposter syndrome to one degree or another--so does Mari. I always tend to have one or two characters that share a flaw. I have Mari, Laerke, and Furia who have all lost their entire families. Characters that come from big families. But I tend to write female protagonists more so than males. 
29. Is writing more of a hobby or do you write with the intention of getting published?  I published a short story in college. And I really would like to be published some day. Right now, I am mostly writing for me. I’ve got original fiction ideas, but I don’t work on them currently. I focus on my fandom work in order to practice and hone the skills and plans I have for future pieces.
I want to write something in the mix of fantasy/sci-fi. But I also have a strong sense of realism. I still hold tight to Mark Twain’s statement that the difference between real life and fiction is that fiction has to make sense. Things have to stem logically from one another in a story, and I always try to ground my writing in experience--sights, smells, sounds, textures that my readers can be familiar with--in order to add some sense of connection. I try to make my characters flawed in ways that feel accurate to them. 
A part of me screams in the back of my head that I am a writer. I can be an author, but a part of me worries that perhaps it may not happen. I keep writing. And I keep trying new things. I’ll always be a storyteller. I will keep writing and falling in love with fictional beings and places that I cannot resist exploring.
36. Post a snippet  This is from First Watch of the Night. I really love the characters and depth I managed to capture in this piece. Honestly, it’s one of the pieces of my own writing that intimidates me ... a lot. I don’t write the same way anymore. I feel like my writing lacks the same emotional depth right now. And I’m not sure why. It might have to do with how disconnected from other humans I have been in the last decade.
The scene here is Nyx Shepard and her father from Chapter 18:
The two Shepards watched one another for a long moment, before Taranis returned his attention to one of the soft cherries. The commander sighed, sipping her tea quietly while the captain waited. It was his usual tactic. He knew there was more and he could always wait her out. Nyx would talk to him in her own time, even if it had to be in carefully crafted abstractions. His daughter knew the drill. Taranis' methods were nothing new to her. He would take long pauses, allowing her to consider all the things she was not telling him. Then he would ask careful questions in case it was actually related to her current or a classified assignment--since need to know could interfere with her desire to disclose and his fatherly curiosity.
Whatever it was, Nyx held onto it much longer than usual, which told him she really did not want to bring it up. Despite this, Taranis knew she would relent because she kept glancing over at him with a look that suggested she was merely trying to find the way to bring it up. Nyx always came first for him; he redirected his career to give her the life she had, a life where there was always one parent there to hold her tight when things weren't just so. He knew it was not perfect, but he did everything he could to be there for her.
Nyx sighed as she set the tea cup on the table between them. "Fine," she breathed heavily.
It took another few moments for her to look up at him. Then she scooted a little closer, lowering her voice in discretion. Watching her carefully Taranis could not quite be sure what she was going to say, but she bit her lip and winced a little when she finally asked a question he never expected to hear.
"What did you do when you met Mom?"
Everything froze for a second or two as he stared at her. The little blush on her cheeks threw her father for a loop, but made him smile. "Well, damn."
The commander shook her head at him, trying to discourage him from thinking too hard about what she had just asked.
"Answer the question, please."
Captain Taranis Shepard rubbed his hand through the short stubble on the back of his head as he stared at his daughter in stunned silence. "I avoided her. Tried to just keep my distance. I even put in for a transfer," he admitted with a wry smile. "It got denied because I did not put in what command thought was a valid reason. Then, on leave, I talked to your Grandpa Shepard about it."
Nyx smiled and laughed. "And what did the old devil dog have to say about that?"
Her voice held a note of disbelief that her father was not surprised to hear. Taranis' father was a stickler for rules, regulations, expectations. He was strict and set high expectations. The captain could tell by the way his daughter eyed the dregs in her tea cup that she was as completely unprepared for what her father was about to say as Taranis had been when he heard it.
"He told me it was not a weakness to want someone to be part of your life."
Nyx's eyes darted to his. She was easily as shocked as he had been. Moving the tea cup, Taranis laid her hand out in his and covered it with the other.
"I told him all the things, I'm pretty sure you're telling yourself right now. All the excuses about regs, concerns, and bad experiences and stories you've heard," Taranis said quietly as he stroked the back of her hand lightly.
She leaned toward him. Her voice was tight with emotion. "And?"
Holding her hand tightly, her father smiled at her softly. "He told me that there are some things that outweigh the regs."
They were both quiet for a moment as Nyx let herself fall back in the chair. Her mind was clearly racing. Kirk Shepard had always stern, at best; he still was totally by the book in everything except when he met his wife. That was the only rule Taranis could think of his father ever even bending, let alone breaking out right. Nyx had been very close with both her grandfathers; she respected them as men and as marines. For her they were role models, people she that influenced her greatly.
"I'm going to tell you something you probably don't know. My parents met in the service, too. We Shepards seem to fall for our brethren," he said playfully. Nyx did not look relieved in the slightest. "He almost lost her on a mission. Even in love, your grandfather was still the same man. He couldn't justify risking the primary objective. The mission at all costs, you know?"
Taranis knew she understood it. Hell, he knew she lived that decree just as solidly as his father.
"She made it out alive, barely. Your grandfather, sentimental bastard, proposed to her when she woke up from surgery. Grandma Amelie was just as stoic as he was. Told him she would consider it, but only if he promised to do always put the mission first, even if she was in his command. She believed him when he said he would. Even lived up to it. Had to put her at risk once more in the field before they got married."
"And he told you this when you asked him about Mom?"
"Yep," Taranis said, nodding as he studied his daughter's reaction. "I was rather hoping I wouldn't have to tell it to you, but I guess it was too much to hope you'd break the trend of falling for servicemen."
She shrugged and looked at their hands for a long moment. "Seemed to be going well for a while," Nyx said quietly.
"Just tell me it's not the Zingel kid."
Her laugh made him smile, and brightened her eyes. "No, it's not Caz."
Taranis leaned back in his chair, fidgeting with his uniform for a moment. "So, tell me something about this fella."
The way she tilted her head at him suggested that the question might have been her maximum.
"At least tell me his name so I can start checking up and get a little peace."
"Da."
"Fine." Taranis let his hands fall on the arms of his chair. "Don't relieve your old father of the undue stress he is now placed under worrying about what kind of man his plucking his daughter's heart strings."
"Seriously?" she replied with a doubtful look.
They both knew she did not see herself as the type of woman who was plucked, but Taranis had a long and vivid memory and he could still recall the girl with the romantic sensibilities.
"What? I remember the shelves of Austen, Gaskell, and the Brontes. Then there were the sonnets your grandmother always sent you. And if I recall you were planning on marrying Captain Wentworth." He tilted his head at her slightly. "Perhaps I should have seen this coming after all."
They both laughed. Then Nyx sprang forward and hugged her father around the neck. "I've missed you, Da."
"I love you, Nyxy-girl."
Her lips were warm on his cheek. "Love you, too," she repeated before she stood. "I should probably go."
"We should do this again," her father offered, as he stood and proffered his arm. "Soon."
His daughter smiled and looked away for a moment. "Sure. As soon as I can."
Once they exited the little shop, they stopped and he touched her cheek before he bent and kissed her forehead again. He did not like her chosen phrase. Taranis knew she meant it, but he also knew the schedule she had kept for the past several years and there was little hope of relief given the most recent change.
"I'd prefer sooner," he noted.
It always killed him to say what he said next, the phrase was tradition, but always made his heart ache because he knew there was always a chance that he could lose his girl in the line of duty. He had been in her boots and hung them up for her. She had taken them up with fervor and so much more skill and determination than Taranis ever possessed.
"Good hunting, Commander," he said, a waver in his voice, as he saluted her sharply.
Nyx returned it as smartly as she would to an admiral. "Thank you Captain."
Taranis watched the girl with her mother's hair and his eyes weave through the crowds in the wards. He remembered meeting a boy once, at her basic graduation. Keith or Kyle or something that started with a K. He managed to stick around until a few months after her graduation from Exeter. Somehow the kid had stuck it out through three mission deployments before the relationship ended without so much as a whimper. The captain could not remember his name or much else about him. Even after a few years together, his daughter never hinted at the question she just asked. It elated and scared the hell out of him.
49. Favorite fictional world?  I really enjoy writing ME and in SWTOR. They are amazing worlds full of science, magic, adventure, and drama. Though I’m also drawn to fantasy for the same reasons. But I think futuristic worlds and space are some of my favorites.
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malnatihq ¡ 5 years ago
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              A CELEBRATION OF NOUR !! — 🥳 AN EVENT
after spending a number of days trying to convince the malnati’s to let them have the ballroom, @alexanderbae​ and @ffsviolets​ were able to convince the managers to give them the room for a fabulous evening all in honor of their pal and roommate @ofnour​ !! it was his birthday, after all, and he deserved nothing but the best even if the surprise party held in his honor was going to be a few days late !! with some help from @venicxmedina​ with the fabulous decor, and fellow bandmate @ryderxmms​ with the music, the party is certainly going to be beautiful && one jamfest after another - perfect for dancing !! the royal purple and gold drapery, balloons, and lighting is only the beginning of the temporary update to the ballroom !! some of the decadencies included will be: the finest spread of middle eastern && indiancuisinee provided by malnati catering, fresh fruits from local markets ( oranges && tangerines included ), a sushi bar, and not to mention the most delicious matcha birthday cake for the special guest !! not only that, but ryder was able to get in contact with nour’s grandmother, and the boy did his very best to bake him some of his favorite childhood desserts including: omi ali ( an egyptian bread pudding ) and basbousa ( a coconut yogurt semolina cake ) !! everyone is invited to attend the birthday bash as we wish nour a happy 24th !! don’t forget - it’s a surprise - so be sure not to say a word until we’ve all yelled HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!
                                                                                                  please like this once you’ve seen it!
where: this event is going to be held on the dash !! no discord server will be used. post any open starters, text messages, snapchats, ect., in the starter tag ( malnatistarters ) !!
when: friday, march 27th. in rp time, the event will start at 8 pm. in real life time, you can feel free to post about the event at any time starting tonight, march 26th starting at 10:30 pm EST !!
ooc: even though this event is only one day in rp time, this event will last until sunday, march 30th. so feel free to start posting starters and outfits on thursday, march 26th, so you can really develop your threads and flesh them out !! the threads will end on sunday, march 30th. we’re hoping for everyone to use this event to deepen their plots and join everyone in celebrating nour’s birthday !!
also: despite everything going on in the world right now, we think that roleplay is the best way to escape from reality, so we’re going to play as if there are no threats happening right now && that everyone will be safe as they enjoy the day - including covid-19. 
etc: anything related to the event such as social media posts, ootd, playlists, moodboards can be posted !! if you want to further your plots and character development, this will be the time to do so !! also, you can either stop your current threads and continue after the event or you can try to tie in the event with your current threads. if anyone has any q’s, please direct them our way !! this will also be a good time to try to rack up some points if you’re looking for more !!
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ofstxrdust-archive ¡ 8 years ago
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text; alex 😇
ryder: i think i had a weird dream
ryder: or just a weird trip last night
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fyrapartnersearch ¡ 5 years ago
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~ will you let me deceive you ~ (fandom cravings search)
greetings be careful who you trust, the devil was once an angel. ~ lowercase is purely for aesthetic purposes
~ feel free to call me deviation, dev, d, or lexi
~ i am a 22 year old female, meaning that i'd prefer to rp with people 18+ not only to be closer in age to me but also because my rps can venture into dark topics
~ central standard time
~ you can expect an average of four responses a week although i strive to daily respond, if possible.
~ my replies range from 400 - 4000 words, and i try to mirror my partner
~ third person, present tense although i will rp with people who write past tense (to each his own)
~ doubling is required for all fandom roleplays to keep everything fair. please do not contact me, asking if i can just play who you would like.
~ sucker for ooc chat although it is not required what I want in a partner (yes, we like to break the rules, but these aren't meant to be broken) it is not a shame to be deceived; but it is to stay in the deception 1| activity is fairly important to me because if i go two-three weeks without a response, i will likely lose interest which I don’t want to do! i would prefer if my partners could get me, at least, two responses a week.
2| because i am literate, i am looking for partners of the same! i would prefer, at least, two hearty paragraphs per response, although i am more than happy to receive more. would you like to basically create a book with me? i'm totally down!
3| please help me build our universe, and our story. i don’t want to do it all by myself. i want to make sure that we both enjoy it.
4| please don’t godmod my characters, and no mary sues or anything like that! nobody is perfect or without weakness. we love originality!
5| please be able to write in third person because first person makes it a bit weird for me, and way more personal than i'd like to go. i write in present tense myself although i am more than welcoming to those who write past tense.
6| i am ghost friendly, just please let me know if you decide to drop the rp, if you can, so i don’t find myself waiting for a response that will never come.
7| please let me know if you will be unable to respond for a week or longer, just so that I am aware and don’t think you have dropped the rp.
8| this isn’t a rule, but a preference. i love to get to know my rp partners, so ooc chatter is always welcome!
9| please have a good grasp on grammar and spelling. no text talk.
10| be willing to double if you decide to do canon x oc just so that it makes it fair to everyone.
11| please do NOT (see the caps) just send me a message, asking whether or not I’m still looking, or giving a measly sentence about yourself. i would prefer if you would tell me about your writing style, what you want to write with me, etc. give me something to go off of! let me see who you are!
12| i will rp smut, but it needs to be apart of the story and not overtaking it 
fandoms belief is the deception you play upon yourself now, let's move on to the fun part, and what i'm sure you guys are waiting on... the fandoms! because of all of the television i watch (is that a bad thing...?) i have fandoms all over the place that i'd love to rp! unless it is crossed out then i am still looking to do it, so feel free to contact me about it! i will have the fandoms divided up and under each, i will include characters i'm willing to play, and who i'd like to play against. again, just a reminder that doubling is mandatory although it doesn't have to stop there. i'm down to double/triple/quadruple, whatever you want. i also am down for au's and using the universe but using ours ocs. just shoot me ideas of what you want.  tv shows we often shed tears that deceive ourselves after deceiving others 1| arrow i'm currently in season five of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: oliver)
2| flash i'm currently in season three of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: barry)
3| vampire diaries i'm currently in season five of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except enzo, kai, vicki, april, kol) (characters i'm looking for: kol, damon, elijah, klaus)
4| glee i'm completely caught up with this show! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: noah (puck), Jesse, brody, jake, ryder)
5| game of thrones i'm currently in season six of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except gregor, eddard, sandor, oberyn, brienne, melisandre, jorah,) (characters i'm looking for: gendry, ramsey, joffrey, khal drogo, jaime)
6| pretty little liars i'm currently in season three of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: wren, alex, ezra)
7| outlander i'm currently in season two of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: jamie)
8| 13 reasons why i'm currently in season two of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except hannah baker, tony, sheri, skye) (characters i'm looking for: bryce, zach, tyler)
9| elite i'm currently caught up with this television show (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except valerio, fernando, christian, marina, omar) (characters i'm looking for: polo, ander, guzman)
10| shadowhunters  i'm currently caught up with this show and have read the books! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except lucian, jonathan) (characters i'm looking for: jace, magnus, sebastian) 
11| the fosters i'm currently in season two of this television show; meaning that i am not caught up although it does not mean that i won't rp it, just no spoilers, please! (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: brandon) movies it is more tolerable to be refused than deceived  1| mcu (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except strange, peter parker, peter quill, thanos, ant man)
(characters i'm looking for: tony stark, thor, loki, steve rodgers, clint barton, bruce banner) 2| after (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: hardin, jace)
3| twilight (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except emmett, james, sam) (characters i'm looking for: seth, embry, paul)
4| matched (not a movie, technically, but it is in my heart) (characters i'm willing to play: ky, xander) (characters i'm looking for: ky, xander)
5| divergent (only the first one) (characters i'm willing to play: al) (characters i'm looking for: four, eric, peter)
6| the host (characters i'm willing to play: jared, ian) (characters i'm looking for: jared, ian)
7| disney (special plot, shh, it's a secret. message me if you're interested) asian dramas it is amazing how complete the delusion that beauty is goodness 1| crash landing on you (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: junghyuk, seung-joon, kwang-beom)
2| boys over flowers (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: jun-pyo)
3| i need romance 1/2/3 (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: sung-hyun, seok-hyun, joo wan)
4| heirs/inheritors (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: kim tan, choi young-do)
5| good morning call (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: hisashi uehara, daichi shinozaki) anime time will inevitably uncover dishonesty and lies; history has no place for them 1| devil’s line (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: anzai)
2| vampire knight (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: zero, kaname)
3| amnesia (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: toma, shin, kent, ikki)
4| dragon ball z (characters i'm willing to play: goten, gohan, krillin, android 17, yamcha) (characters i'm looking for: trunks, vegeta)
5| kuzu no honkai (scum's wish) (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: mugi) cartoons  life is the art of being well deceived; and in order that the deception may succeed it must be habitual and uninterrupted 1| teen titans (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: robin)
2| young justice  (characters i'm willing to play: anyone) (characters i'm looking for: superboy)
3| adventure time (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except ice king, lsp) (characters i'm looking for: marshal lee)
4| avatar: the last airbender/legend of korra  (characters i'm willing to play: anyone except toph) (characters i'm looking for: zuko, bolin, mako, iroh (younger)) last words deception may give us what we want for the present, but it will always take it away, in the end thank you for reading through to the end of my thread, and i do hope that you found something you liked. just a reminder that all fandoms can be changed to use ocs or au's, i'm very open to those kinds of things! in addition, if you would like to contact me about a fandom, please send a message as opposed to posting on this thread (so i can keep it clean). i am only looking for a few partners, but i'd love to hear from as many of you as possible! thank you lovelies!
contact me 
feel free to email me ([email protected]) to talk about rping with me! 
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bordeleaubeau ¡ 5 years ago
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when worlds collide - ryder donovan
chapter two wc: 6868
you pull the black sweatshirt over your body, the duluth east logo spread across the front, along with hounds hockey’ written across it. you swapped your black leggings for a pair of dark washed jeans, deciding you look decent enough for ryder’s game. you keep your hair down, running your fingers through it before grabbing your phone out of your pocket to send a mirror photo to ryder.
y/n: attachment: 1 image
how do i look?
rydes dono: rydes dono loved an image incredible
y/n: sorry, i’m probably messing up your pregame stuff, aren’t i?
rydes dono: not at all. i only just got to the rink, i’m not even in the locker room yet, no worries y/n/n
y/n: good, because i thought you also deserved to see a photo of our girl. i figured we could use it in our scrapbook thingy
attachment: 1 image
you send ryder a photo you had taken of saylor, where you grabbed an old hat you had from one of your american girl dolls and placed it on saylor’s head, along with a little button up jacket.
rydes dono: she almost looks as good as her mama
y/n: oh shush, donovan. don’t you have a hockey game to warm up for?
rydes dono: okay okay fine, i’ll let you go since you’re so eager to. sit as close to the glass as you can on the visiting side, and then i’ll meet you in the lobby after the game got that?
y/n: sounds perfect to me. see you after donovan:)
rydes dono: see you y/n
y/n:  oh, and try to go easy on my dad, will you?
rydes dono: no promises;)
you find yourself smiling at your phone. your dad had already left about an hour ago, and all you were waiting for now was for josie to tell you she was here with kennedy. once you got that text from her, you were grabbing your lanyard and your baby carrier with saylor in it. william was long gone as well, along with your mother, leaving you the last to leave the house.
“there’s our favorite future donovan!” josie yells out her driver’s side window as soon as you step out of the house. you shake your head with a smile trying to hide your blush as you go to get into the back seat. 
“oh come on, y/n. you gotta give us more details. because i’ve been on the edge of my seat since you told us about class today,” kennedy says, looking over her shoulder at you as josie pulls out of your driveway. of course, the second you had told kennedy about the little incident - or moment, rather - in child development, kennedy went insane. as predicted.
you heave out an exaggerated sigh, grabbing your phone from the pocket of ryder’s sweatshirt and opening it to your messages thread with him, then handing your phone to kennedy. as soon as she sees the name at the top her eyes are lighting up. 
she starts mumbling the texts you guys were sending back and forth, and a gasp falls from her lips. “y/n m/n!” kennedy screeches, whipping around in her seat to shove your phone in your face, as if you didn’t already know what the text messages say. you have a shy smile on your face. “he likes you, you big idiot!”
“i wanna know!” josie yells, stopping at a stop light. “gimme her phone, i wanna see!” kennedy hands josie your phone, and josie starts yelling just as loud as ken had been. “kennedy’s right! i don’t know why you’re saying he doesn’t!”
“okay, okay, gimme my phone,” you giggle holding your hand out for josie to give you your phone as the light turns from red to green. you see ryder had snapped you, so you open up snapchat and see ryder along with logan and ricky. ryder is in the middle of laughing, ricky is smirking and logan is grinning like a fool. you can’t help but screenshot the photo. “look at our boys!” you give your phone right back to kennedy who begins to squeal.
“look at logan!” she gushes, and from the backseat you can see the grin on the blonde’s face. 
josie pulls into the parking lot of the duluth heritage sports center, looking over her shoulder at you with a smile. “ready to see your baby daddy?”
“shut up!” you laugh, reaching forward to hit josie’s arm. the three of you get out of the car, you reaching over to grab saylor’s carrier. you walk into the arena with the girls by your side, already earning a few weird looks from people in the lobby. “i knew this was gonna happen.” you grumble. 
josie sighs, “they’re just judgemental people, y/n. don’t worry about it. it’s not like the baby is real or anything.”
“ryder likes to think so,” you roll your eyes at the thought, following the girls to the ticket booth to buy your tickets for the east game. once all three of you have your tickets you walk into the rink that’s still fairly empty, going straight towards the front row behind east’s net. 
“i know dono wanted us by denfeld, but, that’s not gonna happen,” kennedy sighs, getting comfortable in the seat to the left of you and pulling out her phone, smiling when she saw that logan had snapped her. “look!”
you and josie both giggle at the blonde's reaction, watching her blushing cheeks as she fumbled to unlock her phone. she opens the snap and her smile widens, angling her phone towards you to see the photo of ryder and logan. “smile!” kennedy says, and you do so before she snaps the photo and sends it to logan. 
“i wouldn’t plan on him answering you, kenny. boys got a pregame schedule, you know that,” you advise her and kennedy nods, knowing exactly what you meant. kennedy wasn’t exactly a stranger when it came to hockey boys. 
“yeah, he sent me that ten minutes ago. they’re probably gonna get ready to- never mind!” kennedy starts to giggle as the red box appears next to logan’s name, and then you feel your phone buzz in your hand. 
rydes dono:
tell kennedy she’s throwing my boy off, he can’t stop smiling at his phone
you laugh out loud, quickly typing a response. 
y/n: as if i’m not throwing you off yours? ryder donovan aren’t you supposed to be warming up soon?
rydes dono: been thrown off since you sent me that photo an hour ago, not gonna lie y/n/n
rydes dono: and only gonna be more thrown off when we come out to warm up, that im sure of
“would you look at that! ryder donovan, flirting with you in plain sight. come on, y/n. even a blind person would be able to see that,” josie says as she reads your texts from over your shoulder, a smug smirk on her face. “god, you’re both goners.”
y/n: don’t blow it, dono. it’s a big game for you guys. 
it’s only a matter of time before the rink starts to really fill up. you’re minding your own business, looking down at your phone before kennedy starts to repeatedly hit your arm. “y/n, y/n, y/n, y/n!” she squeals, pointing up towards the walk way the teams normally warm up on. 
sure enough, ryder is leading his team out to start their warm ups and logan is right behind him. you watch as ryder slowly starts to scan the home section, and once his eyes land on you you watch as a smile crosses his lips. he stops dead in his tracks causing logan to run into his back, and then logan shoves ryder to get him moving. you watch their lips move, but of course you can’t hear what they’re saying, but ryder shakes his head and laughs as he begins to lead the boys in leg stretches.
“okay, that was adorable,” josie smiles over at you. “he’s got it bad, y/n. and i’m the first one to call it.”
kennedy’s mouth drops open and she leans forward to look at josie, “nu uh! i was. cool it, jose. i called the first shot.” kennedy pouts, her arms crossing over her chest. but regardless of how annoyed she is, her eyes are trained on logan and there’s a smile forming on her face. 
“y/n!” you hear the voice of the girl you expected to be here, but hoped to god she wouldn’t be. her hand rests on your shoulder and you turn around to face her. “love the sweatshirt. surprised ryder would actually let you wear it, you know, he doesn’t give his sweatshirts to just anyone. i think i would know.” 
your eyes narrow at the brunette girl, “someone’s jealous she’s never worn dono’s sweatshirt, isn’t she?” you ask keira, and besides her one of her friends has to hold back her laugh. 
“yeah, no. dono’s not exactly my speed… anymore.” keira rolls her eyes before sitting back in her seat allowing you to face forward once again. 
“just ignore her, y/n. chances are she’s lying,” kennedy mumbles next to you, low enough that keira can’t hear you. “plus, would ryder even go for a girl like her? i highly doubt it. you’re much better than her, and i don’t think i’m biased.” kennedy’s nose is turned up, a sweet smile on her face.
“thank you ken, i love you.”
“love you too, y/n/n.”
you smile at kennedy, looking down at your phone as you feel a buzz.
rydes dono: was keira giving you any trouble?
y/n: what do you mean? and you’re not supposed to be on your phone right now
rydes dono: i saw her talking to you. just let me know if she says anything to you alright? i’ll deal with her
y/n: got it. talk to you after the game, rydes. and good luck:)
rydes dono:  thank you y/n. i’ll see you after, and that sweatshirt still better be on.
you can feel the presence of your two best friends looking over both of your shoulders. “you’re delusional, y/n. i swear.” josie shakes her head, arms crossing over her chest as she stares out towards the ice where the boys were bound to come out at any moment.
“do you guys not realize how flirty ryder is? he’s like this with everyone. at this point you guys are really just getting my hopes up.”
“y/n that boy took one glance at you and he fell head over heels - should i say skates? for you.”
“kenny, you’re the one with a little bit of inside knowledge, why don’t you spill?” josie asks, leaning forward to look at the blonde. kennedy looks like a deer caught in the headlights, eyes wide and frozen in place. she had been caught. “kennedy ann. if you don’t tell us all the information you have right now i’m not buying you caribou on monday.”
kennedy’s eyes glane around, her eyes lighting up when she thinks of an excuse. “i have to go to the bathroom!” she announces rather loudly in the rink, rising from her seat. you grab the fabric of her sweatshirt and yank her back down in the seat. 
“kenny if you leave now you’ll miss logs come out for warm ups. you don’t want that, do you?” you cock your head to the side, waiting for kennedy’s reaction. she lets out a sigh, sinking into her seat, folding her arms in her chest. “that’s what i thought.”
“yeah yeah, whatever,” the blonde grumbles under her breath, eyes glued to where the boys would eventually come out for their warm ups. “but just so you know? my lips are sealed.” kennedy puts her thumb and index finger to her lips, mimicking a zipper across her lips before folding her arms across her chest once more.
“so, big sister. did our boy william give his jersey to any lucky girl tonight?” josie asks, and as if it would help, you turn around in your seat into the sea or black and red. everyone pretty much looks the same, and you suck in a breath.
“yeah, i dunno, actually. i’d assume he’d tell me, but, who really knows? will doesn’t really like giving his jerseys out, it’s a superstition type of thing i guess you could call it.” before josie could respond, because obviously kennedy wouldn’t be, you hear saylor start to cry at your feet. 
“duty calls, mama,” josie smirks as you reach down to pick up the baby. you let out a sigh, and as if the timing couldn’t be any more perfect, that’s the moment the boys run out to the ice. 
you rock the doll in your arms as you grab the set of colored keys, grabbing the blue one for food and holding it up to the doll's chest. you look up at the ice, eyes glued to the number 22 for a few seconds, but your attention then goes back to saylor who’s still crying. you then grab the yellow key for a diaper change, and just like that she stops crying. 
you place her back in the carrier, and when you look back up, ryder is skating by, eyes glued to you as he does so. “look, look, look, look!” kennedy squeals from beside you, her hands repeatedly slapping your fabric covered arms. “look at logan!” her cheeks flush pink as she watches the dirty blonde skate right behind ryder, a smile mirrored to ryder’s on her face.
“thought your lips were sealed, kennedy?” you ask smugly, and as soon as kennedy realizes she had said something she lets out a groan, her head falling back in her seat. 
“did we really think it was going to last that long, y/n/n?” josie has an amused smile on her face, clearly entertained at the fact kennedy didn’t even last a full five minutes. you shake your head, eyes scanning the ice for the number 17, and when you spot william, of course he’s glued to ryder’s hip as they sit in the neutral zone to do stretches together. 
“look at him,” you pout, pointing to where the two boys are, and it isn’t too long before logan skates up right next to them making sure to cover them in snow. 
“look at him!” kennedy mimics you, her eyes doe like as she stares at the boy she fancied for nearly two years now. ken lets out a blissed sigh, like she always did, and keeps her eyes trained on logan. but you can’t blame her, because you’re doing the exact same thing for ryder.
you watch the boys as they warmed up, going through their normal sequence of doing shooting drills, their own stick handling, and stretches. ryder ends up right in front of you behind the net with a pile of pucks, passing them out to the two lines the boys formed to do one timers. 
ryder starts to skate slowly, his eyes scanning over their side of the eyes spending a few seconds looking over his team. that doesn’t last too long, however, as ryder is looking to the right and logan comes up from the left, hitting ryder into the boards right in front of where you and the girls are sitting. the two boys laugh, both of their heads turning to look at you and kennedy. your eyes meet ryder’s and he gives you a soft smile, gloved hand raising off his stick to wave at you. you give your own shy wave to ryder before he gives you one last smile and skates away with logan behind him.
william is the next of the pack to make his appearance, a huge smile on his face as he skates past making sure to wave at the three of you. he stops besides logan and ryder, the three of them talking before william skates off to garrett.
eventually, warm ups end and both teams leave the ice so they can zam it. you watch your dad walk off the visitor’s bench and into the locker room, already knowing this game wasn’t going to end well. you hear kennedy sigh, “gosh, our boys are so cute.”
“your boy is so cute,” you correct her, earning a pout from kennedy. “what? i’m not wrong. logan’s your boy.”
“and ryder is yours whether you like that or not,” josie points out and you glare at her. “what? i’m not wrong?” she mocks you. “come on. ryder would not interact with you like that if he didn’t have some feelings towards you.”
you let out a frustrated sigh. “i’ll believe it when he tells me. and he wont.” you say, giving the brunette a pointed look before you feel your phone vibrate in your hand.
rydes dono: that picture didnt do you any justice y/n
y/n: what’s that supposed to mean? and ryder, get off your phone, i’m serious. you are not going to get in trouble because of me.
rydes dono: you look better in person than the photo. and dont worry about me
y/n:  too late i am. i’ll text will to get you off your phone
rydes dono: okay fine i’m going i’m going! bye y/n, i’ll see you after the game.
y/n:  see you ryder
“oh come on, you have that smile on your face and you’re trying to tell us you don’t like him and that he doesn’t like you? that’s bull, y/n.” josie grabs your phone out of your hand, scrolling to look at your messages, stopping at the ones from earlier again. “seriously, y/n.” with a shake of her head josie locks your phone and hands it back to you. 
“he’s telling you without telling you. he isn’t upfront with his emotions, so this is his way of saying it,” kennedy says, trying her best to get through to you. “being friends with logan has its perks, you know. i know more about ryder than you think i do.”
“guys can we please not talk about this right now? at least not when i’m here. i’ll be back, i’m just gonna go grab a drink i guess.” without another word you get up from your seat, exit your row and start up towards the stairs that lead out to the main concourse.
no part of you wants to believe ryder actually likes you. because you know in the end, chances are you’d get hurt. that’s the type of guy you thought ryder was - pure happiness in the moment but it would only be a matter of time. 
you let out a sigh walking up to the snack stand, scanning the options as if you hadn’t already memorized them and couldn’t recite them like the back of your hand. out of the corner of your eye you can see a brunette girl that can’t be any older than fourteen staring at you. you try to ignore her to the best of your ability, but you ultimately fail when you look over at her. 
“who are you?” she asks, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion as she glances to the number on the sleeve of ryder’s sweatshirt.
you give the girl a skeptical look, glancing towards the line as it slowly moves forward. “who are you?” you retort. 
“i asked you first.” 
since she glanced to the number, you figured she at least knew who ryder was seeing as that was her main focus. “i’m y/n. i’m ryder donovan’s-”
she cuts you off with a gasp, her eyes widening. “you’re y/n! ryder’s partner for that baby thing!” she exclaims, and as soon as the words leave her lips you can feel the heat on your cheeks. 
“and who are you?” 
she smiles, “clara. ryder’s little sister.”
yeah, not exactly how you planned to meet - part of - ryder’s family. 
“well it’s nice to meet you clara. i know it’s only a little project we’re doing together, but it’s still nice to meet at least one of ryder’s siblings,” you give her a smile, taking a step forward as the line moves forward once again. “do you want anything?” you ask, gesturing towards the snack stand. she’s hesitant. “come on, clara. it’s the least i can do.” 
clara lets out a sigh with a smile on her face. “i’ll make sure ryder pays you back, okay? but an icee sounds really good right now.” 
“good choice, girlfriend. that’s exactly what i was gonna get,” you smile down at the young girl. “what flavor?”
“blue raspberry please. if you like any other flavor you’re insane,” she jokes and you can’t help but let out a laugh.
you step forward since you’re ready to order, ordering you and clara both medium sized icees and handing the cashier a five dollar bill. you drop the change into the tip jar and it only takes a few seconds before you’re handed the icees and you give one to clara. 
“thank you, y/n,” she smiles gratefully at you and you nod. “you know, i’m a little shocked he gave you this.” clara gestures towards your sweatshirt and you can’t help but let out a laugh as the two of you walk through the concourse. 
“you know, that’s what everyone has been saying.” 
clara shrugs as she sips on her icee, the brims of her mouth already starting to turn a vibrant blue. “it’s the truth. ryder doesn’t let anyone wear his hockey clothes. he doesn’t even let me! and between you and me, i’m his favorite.”
“clara i like you already,” you laugh, nudging the girl in her ribs gently. “i’ll walk you to where you’re sitting okay?” 
clara nods and you do exactly as she says, waving to the small brunette that resembled ryder in an uncanny way. you walk back to your seat, not even noticing the grin on your face until kennedy pointed it out. 
“what’s got you so smiley, y/n/n? because ryder wasn’t out there.” kennedy teases. you had been gone so long they already cut the ice and the boys were out waiting for the opening face off. 
“yeah, your smile is kinda freaking me out. not gonna lie,” josie mumbles, stealing a sip of your icee. “still cannot understand how you drink blue raspberry.” 
you ignore josie’s comment, “i met ryder’s little sister. and she’s the sweetest thing ever.” you smile, eyes trained on ryder as he goes to take the opening faceoff. your two best friends both gasp and you grin. “so that happened.”
“did she know who you were?” kennedy asks as the game goes officially underway. the three of you keep your eyes on the ice, but still focused on each other. 
“that’s the thing,” you smile to yourself. “she saw the sweatshirt. so i said my name and i started to say how i was ryder’s partner, but she already knew that. so either all he did was talk about the project to his family or he actually talked about me.”
“it’s also not uncommon to know you, y/n/n. you’re will’s sister. instead of people ging up to will and saying, ‘you’re y/n’s little brother!’ you get, ‘you’re will’s older sister!’” you laugh at josie because she was absolutely 100% right. will was on pace for a sixty point season - as a freshman. in high school.
your eyes go to the number 17, watching as will skates up to hit a player on denfeld - and will isn’t the smallest either, so you watch as the boy in white falls to the ice. when he falls, it seems like all of east’s student section is on their feet cheering for will as he receives a pass from logan. you and the girls are banging on the boards, a wide smile on your face.
“that’s my baby brother!” you laugh, unable to contain your smile. you look over to the bench, seeing your dad shaking his head with a soft smile on his face. only one that you or will would be able to tell was a smile, though. because to anyone else it would look like a frown. 
logan stops quickly, dropping his pass to will who skates behind denfeld’s net and quickly banks the pass to ryder. will scrambles to get in front of the net, battling it out with one of denfeld’s defensemen as ryder takes the slapshot. will jumps to try and get out of the way of ryder’s shot, but his stick tips it right over shawn easty’s right shoulder and into the net. 
“will!” you jump up in excitement, everyone along the boards banging on the glass as ryder throws his arms around your younger brother who’s almost as tall as him on skates. 
“that’s goal number, what. twenty-five on the season?” josie asks from besides you, her eyes glistening. you turn back to face the ice, watching william go through the handshakes on the bench before the second line goes out. you look to your dad, his shoulders dropping as he lets out a sigh, hand going up to run down his face. 
“goal twenty-five of the season.” you confirm before sitting back down in your seat with a smug smile on your face. “ryder wasn’t joking when he said they were going down tonight.”
kennedy lets out a giggle, “c’mon, y/n. has that kid ever even had a bad game a day in his life? it’s ryder freaking donovan for crying out loud!”
the first period ends, you having to tend to saylor only once or twice, luckily making you miss the goal denfeld scored to tie the game up at one a piece. but there was still thirty-four minutes of hockey to play, and you had complete faith in ryder and your boys.
just like normal, you and the girls talk amongst each other and scroll through your phones. if the boys were able, you’d text will and ryder about how they both played an amazing first period. but since they wouldn’t be able to, you sit through what feels like an eternity of the girls teasing you.
the second period doesn’t exactly go as planned.
halfway through the second period, denfeld ends up scoring a goal, making them lead 2-1. ryder slams the blade of his stick on the bench out of frustration, his head shaking and you can see him yell a few colorful words before he jumps over the bench. you couldn’t blame him - the defense had been struggling that night. 
“they’ve got time, y/n. plenty of time,” josie reassures you, placing her hand on top of yours and giving you a quick smile. you nod, knowing she’s right. but every minute that goes by, the chances of the boys winning dwindle down. even with there being twenty minutes after the third period - denfeld would have most of the momentum to try and finish it off.
you just pray will doesn’t get into his own head. if he did that, he wouldn’t be able to live up to his potential and his normal game. and this was the game he really needed it, because you knew that boy wanted to show your dad in the worst way what he was capable of - and if it had to be against his own team, so what? makes even more of a statement. if there was anything one needed to know about william, it was that he loved making statements. 
when the boys come out for the third period, ryder makes his quick one lap around their side of the ice. when he he passes by you he gives you a soft smile, before once again, going to take the opening faceoff for the period. a clean win for ryder and he passes it back to logan, who then attempts a pass to ryan but it gets intercepted by a denfeld forward who then breaks away towards lukan. 
lukan is in position, shuffling along and following where cole olson was skating. but lukan isn’t enough for cole, who’s release is quicker than he originally anticipated. the puck flies over his shoulder, and at the opposite side of the rink denfeld’s student section goes wild.
“it’s over.” 
“kennedy don’t say that!” you sigh, but you can’t help think of it yourself. the boys are exhausted from rushing from each side of the ice, and you weren’t sure if they’d be able to keep up for the remaining seven minutes of the period.
coach randolph shakes his head and his hand rubs over his mouth before he calls for a time out. surprisingly enough, he doesn’t yell at his team and quickly draws out a game plan for them. when the ref blows the whistle, ryder’s line goes out for a center ice draw. 
ryder takes a quick little turn around center ice before he sets up for the face off. he loses it, denfeld’s center passing it back to a defenseman. will ends up pickpocketing him, passing the puck to logan and letting logan enter the offensive zone. he dekes the defenseman and fakes his shot to the right of the goalie, but tucks it in on the left.
“that’s my boy!” kennedy squeals, her arms wrapping around you out of excitement as she jumps up and down. “he said he was gonna score for me tonight. and he did!” 
you laugh, pulling away from the blonde. “he did,” you confirm, glancing up to the scoreboard. there were two minutes left and east was only down by one. so if they were able to pull this off, you’d go to overtime and hopefully finish the job. but anything can happen. 
“they’re gonna do this, they have to,” josie mumbles to herself seeming as if she’s trying to convince herself more than anything. you grab her hand as ricky’s line goes out, squeezing it hard.
the clock continues to tick down, the puck seeming to stay more in the neutral zone more than anything, but once the boys are able to get it into denfeld’s zone it’s like they’re trying anything and anything. but easty is able to stop and block mostly all the pucks that he faces - until ricky tucks the puck in his five hole.
“did he just score?” kennedy asks in disbelief, her eyes staying on the ice before she finally pulls them away to look at you and josie who mirrored her expression. but judging by ricky’s celly, he had most definitely scored, and the refs weren’t calling it off.
“holy shit.”
the clock ticks down until the end of regulation leaving for what would for sure be an end-of-your seat worthy overtime period. randolph of course starts out with ryder, will, and grant as their starting three. right away, denfeld is starting down towards lukan, but he makes a quick glove save allowing a quick little rest for the boys. ryder wins the faceoff, passes it to grant before grant is starting down the ice. he passes the puck to will, who goes to pass to ryder, but then will gets tripped and slides right into easty in front of you. the whistle blows, but one of denfeld’s players immediately goes to roughhouse with will.
“he didn’t do anything!” kennedy screams as if the boys could hear her through the glass. “god you’re a fucking idiot, aren’t you?”
you shake your head at kennedy, but your eyes then go to ryder who yanks the denfeld player off will. he doesn’t hesitate to cross check the kid and exchange a few words with, and for a split second you were worried ryder would actually end up fighting the kid. but he was smarter than that. 
the ref breaks the two of them up and points ryder in the direction to the penalty box. you read ryder’s lips, who lets out an, “are you fucking kidding me?” before taking his helmet off and running his hand through his hair.
yeah, it was a sight. 
“look at him,” josie sighs, and you look over at her with furrowed eyebrows.
“please, jose. back off my baby daddy.” 
kennedy and josie both let out ear piercing screeches and you shake your head with a smile at the two of them, surely not doubting the fact your cheeks were surely flaming red. you bite back your smile, your attention going to the game unfolding in front of you. a majority of the overtime period is spent in denfeld’s end, but none of the shots seem to go past easty. the time on ryder’s penalty ticks down, and you watch as the puck gets taken back into east’s zone. just as the boys kill the penalty, will gets a hold of the puck and shoots it over to ryder who sprints down the ice on the breakaway.
he’s skating right towards the net, right where you and the girls are sitting, a look of pure determination on his face. he dekes out easty, puck going over his shoulder and into the net. you jump up, a grin on your face as ryder spins around, his hand lifting off his stick to point to you. you bang on the boards as he skates over, his back hitting the boards as will and grant tackle him in a hug. 
will gives you a little wave as your student section goes crazy before the boys all go to high five the bench. then they do post game handshakes, and then you, kennedy, and josie are headed out to the lobby where you told the boys you’d meet them.
“that was crazy! did you see that move, y/n! the hands on that kid, wow, i just-”
you cut kennedy off in the middle of her excitement by placing a hand on her arm. “kenny, breathe. but yes, that was an absolute gorgeous goal. i mean come on, it’s ryder.”
“i wouldn’t expect anything less from the kid, honestly. he pulled through when he needed to,” josie shrugs her shoulders and there’s a smile on her face. “and not to mention ricky’s tying goal.”
“so all three of our boys scored tonight, i see that as a win,” you smile, and of course that’s when saylor starts to cry. you sigh, setting her down on the bench along the wall in the lobby to rock her before grabbing the keys. you fumble with them, grabbing the blue one for food, and she immediately stops crying. “and now, it’s a waiting game.”
like normal, it takes about twenty minutes until the boys slowly start to come out into the lobby to find their friends and family waiting for them. your eyes stay trained to the door, and when you see the blonde haired boy followed by your little brother, you can’t help the grin on your face.
“there’s my superstar,” you smile sheepishly at ryder, who tries to hide his smile by biting his lip.
“i’m not the superstar, willy is,” ryder shakes his head slightly with a smile, logan and ricky both following after him. ryder somewhat shocks you by wrapping his arms around your body, and in turn you wrap your arms around his neck. 
before you end up doing something stupid, you pull away from him. “yeah right, says you. you had the game winner. you don’t need to be humble about it rydes.”
ryder rolls his eyes, “i’m serious, y/n. your brother was the star of the show tonight.” he says while running a hand through his still damp hair from his shower. 
“both of you were.”
ryder shakes his head and you scowl at him, “nope, all willy. speaking of, you should probably go talk to him and your dad.”
“but rydes,” you pout, your hand fumbling with the fabric of his dress shirt. you ignore the looks you’re sure your friends are giving the both of you, and ryder smiles down at you, hand reaching to brush a strand of hair behind your ear, lingering there for a few more seconds than either of you anticipated.
“sweets, it’s okay. i have to go talk to my family. we’ll meet back here in five minutes, okay?” you still pout, but your cheeks blushing pink at the nickname. ryder’s eyes look over your shoulder where you assume his family is still waiting for him.
“five minutes tops, dono, you got that?” you ask, your pointer finger jammed right on his chest as you look up at him with the most stern look you can muster. but it’s ryder, and he looks right through that. 
ryder smiles, his hand wrapping around your wrist to set it back at your side. “okay, y/n/n.”
“okay, i’ll see you in a few.”
“yes you will, and take ken with you. i don’t need logan making googly eyes are her while trying to talk to his family.”
you glance over to kennedy and logan. kennedy is a blushing mess as she talks to logan, and being completely honest? logan doesn’t look that much better either. you smile and then turn back to ryder, “i will, she’ll want to see her superstar anyway. oh and rydes? try not to miss me too much.”
ryder pouts, “i thought i was your superstar. and don’t worry, you’re always on my mind, baby mama.”
you can feel your heart flutter in your chest. “you’re my superstar. meaning you’re only mine. but i share willy.” you say with blushing cheeks. “and don’t try to flatter me, dono.”
“you’re right, i am all yours. and it’s not flattery if it’s the truth, l/n.” 
with that, ryder sends you a wink before walking towards his family. “ken, c’mon, we’re gonna go talk to will really quickly.” you call, taking kennedy’s attention away from logan. she pouts, but you raise your eyebrows at her. 
“okay, okay! i’ll be right back, log.” she presses a quick kiss to logan’s cheek before she walks over to you. “did you see that, did you see that?” she giggles like a school girl that had her first kiss. “but y/n, you’re coming with us to old chicago by the way. ryder was gonna ask you to go.”
you smile, trying to bite your lip. “got it.” you reach your family, and just like you had suspected there’s a bit of tension. but that doesn’t mean you hesitate on throwing your arms aroun your little brother. “willy you played so good buddy.”
will laughs in your arms, wrapping his own around you. “thanks, y/n/n. it was a great game to play in.”
when the two of you pull away you allow kennedy to hug your brother while you hug your dad. “sorry daddy. you guys had your moment.” you joke with him and he gives you a half hearted smile.
“it’s okay, honey. win some you lose some. but do you have any plans after or are you gonna go home with us?” your dad asks, and you look over at kennedy hoping your parents wouldn’t see your blushing cheeks.
“oh lord,” your mother sighs, but nonetheless there’s a smile on your face. “what’s that look for?”
“jose, ken and i are gonna go out to eat i think, right ken?” you ask and kennedy nods. “of course if that’s okay with you guys.”
you mom shrugs before she looks over at your dad. “i don’t see why not. just make sure you’re home by midnight okay?”
you’re nodding right away. “okay momma. i’ll see you guys later. bye, i love yous!” you blow a kiss to your family and kennedy says her goodbyes before heading back over to the group where the boys all came back from talking to their families. logan nudges ryder and he looks up, a smile on his lips when he sees you.
“i’d like to let you know, y/n/n, you took five minutes and ten seconds.” ryder says, half smirking as he puts his phone into the back pocket of his dress pants.
you roll your eyes with a smile as you reclaim your spot right next to him. “oh shut up rydes.”
“i’m just saying.” ryder puts his hands up in defense, and you shake your head laughing at him before you look up at him with a smile. 
“but i’m here now, and that’s what matters right?”
“right.”
“that’s what i thought rydey,” you can’t even get the nickname out without blushing, and you watch as ryder’s face turns pink as he smiles.
“let’s just go get food.” he shakes his head laughing. “and i hope that’s okay with you, because we’re forcing you to come with.”
you shake your head, “it’s not force if i wanna go, is it rydes?”
ryder chuckles, his cheeks turning an even darker shade of pink. “well then why aren’t we in my car already?”
“what are you waiting for, dono? lets go.”
chapter three
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