#that I was wearing a cool jean jacket and I just assumed that this was bullying for no actual reason

[floccinaucinihilipilificationa]

Hello may 31th anon! Look at that, another year behind us and a new one to come. Have a nice day! ₍՞◌′ᵕ‵ू◌₎♡

[bruthaewwwww]

Jealousy

ik i spelled that wrong idc

3.1kwords

Azzi and Paige had always been the ultimate duo. On the court, they were unstoppable. Off the court, they were inseparable — two best friends who shared everything: victories, defeats, dreams, and laughter. People always assumed they were more than friends, but they weren’t. They were just... close. Azzi had always believed it was simple, that there was no complication between them.

But tonight, things felt different.

It was a Friday evening, and after a brutal week of practices, Azzi, Paige, and their friends were heading to one of the hottest clubs in the city to blow off some steam. The club was already packed with energy as they walked through the door, the lights flashing in sync with the thumping bass, people dancing, and drinks flowing freely.

Paige, as always, was a natural in any crowd. Her tall, striking presence never went unnoticed. She was wearing a sleek black leather jacket, dark skinny jeans, and boots that seemed to draw everyone's eyes. Azzi, on the other hand, kept it simple with a fitted shirt and jeans, her short hair styled in a way that made her look effortlessly cool. But she was content to stand a little more on the sidelines, surveying the scene, while Paige soaked in all the attention.

It wasn’t that Azzi didn’t enjoy the attention her best friend got — Paige was beautiful, confident, and had a presence that commanded any room she entered. It was just… sometimes, Azzi couldn't help but feel something shift inside her when other people noticed how amazing Paige was. Tonight, that feeling was much stronger than usual.

As they approached the bar, Paige quickly grabbed a drink and leaned against the counter, laughing at something one of their friends said. Azzi, standing beside her, tried not to let her mind wander. She was just about to take a sip of her own drink when a woman approached them.

The woman was tall, with dark hair and a confident smile. She eyed Paige for a moment before turning to her with a bold grin.

“Hey, I couldn’t help but notice you,” the woman said, her voice smooth and direct. “You’re stunning.”

Paige smiled in return, unfazed, as she always was with compliments. “Thank you, I appreciate that,” she replied, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

Azzi, who had been watching the interaction out of the corner of her eye, felt a tightening in her chest. What is this? She tried to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach, but it was impossible to shake. The woman wasn’t just being friendly — she was flirting, and Paige, oblivious as always, was enjoying it.

Azzi took a step back, her grip on her drink tightening as the woman continued talking to Paige. "You play basketball, right?" the woman asked, leaning in a little closer.

Paige nodded, flashing a playful smile. "Yeah, that's me."

The woman smirked, her eyes lingering on Paige a little too long. “I bet you’re just as dangerous on the court as you are off it.” She let out a laugh, which, to Azzi, sounded a little too flirtatious.

Azzi could feel her heart rate picking up, the jealousy creeping in before she could stop it. She knew they were just friends. She knew that. But seeing someone so openly hitting on Paige — seeing Paige smile, her eyes twinkling with amusement — sent a pang of something she didn’t want to name through her chest.

For a brief moment, Azzi considered stepping in, saying something to make the woman back off. She hated how possessive that thought felt, how much her mind was telling her to assert her place. But instead, she stayed silent, her eyes flicking from the woman to Paige.

“Hey, uh, can I get another round?” Azzi interrupted, her voice slightly sharper than she meant it to be.

Paige glanced at her, raising an eyebrow, as though she hadn’t noticed Azzi’s tension. “Sure, I’ll come with you,” she said, flashing the woman another smile before following Azzi to the bar.

Once they were standing away from the crowd, Azzi could feel the weight of the silence between them. She didn’t know what was worse — the fact that Paige didn’t seem to notice what had just happened or the fact that Azzi was trying to ignore the burning jealousy inside her.

“What was that about?” Paige asked casually, her voice light. She was already back to her usual, carefree self. “That girl was totally hitting on me.”

Azzi could feel a slight blush creeping up her neck, but she forced her gaze to stay steady. “I don’t know. She was a little too… forward.”

Paige chuckled, tipping her head back. ���That’s nothing new, Az. I get hit on all the time.”

Azzi nodded, trying to sound casual, but something in her tone was off. “I know. I just don’t like when people don’t get the message.”

Paige looked at her, puzzled. “What message?”

Azzi didn’t respond immediately. She couldn’t. The words she wanted to say, the feelings she didn’t want to acknowledge, were all trapped inside. She wanted to tell Paige that it wasn’t just about the flirting — it was the way people looked at Paige, like they could have her so easily. It was the way she made everyone feel like they were special. And Azzi? She felt like she was invisible. It was silly, she knew. But she couldn’t help it.

Paige, sensing the tension, put a hand on Azzi’s shoulder. “Hey, it’s cool. I don’t care about that. I’ve got you, right?”

The reassurance should have made Azzi feel better, but it only made her feel worse. The truth was, she didn’t want to just be the person who was always there for Paige. She wanted more than that. She wanted to be the one Paige chose. The one Paige cared about in that way. But how could she say that without ruining everything?

Instead, Azzi forced a smile, trying to brush off the feelings that had suddenly taken root. “Yeah, you’re right. I just don’t like people stepping over boundaries, you know?”

Paige nodded, a soft smile on her face. “I get it. Don’t worry, I’m not interested in anyone else.”

Azzi’s heart skipped a beat, but she quickly masked it with a sarcastic laugh. “Yeah, well, I guess that’s good to hear.”

It wasn’t until later in the night when Azzi realized how hard she’d been trying to pretend. They were dancing with their friends, the music pumping around them, but Azzi couldn’t stop glancing over at Paige. She was laughing, surrounded by people, completely unaware of how much Azzi’s heart was torn in two. She’s just your friend, Azzi reminded herself, but the jealousy wouldn’t go away.

Finally, as they left the club and the cool night air hit their faces, Paige looped her arm through Azzi’s.

“You okay?” she asked, her voice soft, as though sensing something was off.

Azzi smiled, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just tired.”

Paige nodded and leaned her head on Azzi’s shoulder as they walked toward the car. The closeness of their bodies made Azzi’s heart flutter in a way she couldn’t explain, and suddenly, everything felt more complicated than it ever had before.

“I’m glad you came out with me tonight,” Paige said, her voice sincere. “You know I always have fun with you.”

Azzi nodded, trying not to show how much the words affected her. “Yeah. Me too.”

As they climbed into the car, Azzi couldn’t shake the feeling that things were changing between them. Maybe it was just the jealousy that had surfaced tonight, or maybe it was something deeper — something that, until now, Azzi had been too afraid to acknowledge.

But as the night ended and they drove home, she couldn’t help but wonder if there would ever be a time when Paige would see her in the same way. The feeling of wanting to be more than just friends was growing stronger every day.

And Azzi didn’t know how much longer she could hide it.

The drive back to the dorms was quieter than usual. Azzi sat in the passenger seat, her mind swirling with emotions she didn’t know how to deal with. The night had been fun, but the moment Paige smiled at that girl — the way she laughed, the way she was so effortlessly beautiful and confident — had shaken something deep inside her. Azzi had always told herself it was nothing, that she was just protective of her best friend. But tonight, she realized that the feelings ran deeper than friendship.

They arrived at the dorms and parked in the lot. Azzi barely said a word as they both got out of the car, walking in silence toward the building. Paige, who had been trying to gauge Azzi’s mood, finally broke the quiet as they reached the door.

“Hey, I know you’re upset,” Paige said, her voice soft but concerned. “Are you okay? You’ve been off all night.”

Azzi gave a small, forced smile. "I’m fine. Just tired, I guess. It’s been a long night."

Paige frowned, not buying it for a second. “No, you're not. I can tell when something’s bothering you. Come on, let’s talk.”

Azzi hesitated, unsure if she wanted to open up. But the words had been building up inside her all night, and now that they were alone in the quiet of the dorm hallway, they started spilling out before she could stop them.

“I’m not fine,” Azzi admitted, her voice quieter than usual. She stopped walking, her back to Paige as she leaned against the wall, her eyes looking down at her shoes. “I don’t know what’s going on with me. I’ve been… I’ve been feeling things tonight that I don’t know how to explain.”

Paige stood still for a moment, then gently stepped closer to Azzi, resting a hand on her shoulder. “You know you can talk to me about anything, right?”

Azzi turned slightly, her eyes meeting Paige’s. The weight of the moment hung in the air between them, something unspoken, something raw.

“It’s not that simple,” Azzi murmured. She swallowed, trying to find the right words, but they were tangled in her chest. “The truth is, Paige… I’m jealous. And I hate it. I hate feeling like this.”

Paige’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. “Jealous? About what?”

Azzi bit her lip, suddenly nervous about what she was about to say. “I know it’s stupid. But when that girl was flirting with you tonight… I just couldn’t stop feeling like I wanted to be the one who had your attention. And then it hit me… that I don’t just want to be your best friend, Paige. I love you. I’ve always loved you, but I’ve been too afraid to admit it, even to myself. I’ve never felt like this before, and it scares me. I can’t stand seeing you with someone else, even if we’re not dating. And it’s driving me crazy.”

There was a heavy silence as Azzi finished speaking, the words hanging in the air between them. Her heart was pounding in her chest, a mix of relief and dread. She’d said it. The thing she’d been hiding for so long.

Paige stood there for a long moment, her expression unreadable. Azzi’s chest tightened. She suddenly wished she could take back everything she had just said. Maybe Paige didn’t feel the same. Maybe this would ruin everything.

But then, Paige stepped forward, closing the distance between them. She reached up, cupping Azzi’s face gently in her hands, her thumbs brushing over Azzi’s cheek in a tender, soothing motion.

“I’ve been waiting for you to say that,” Paige confessed softly, her voice barely above a whisper. “I’ve been feeling the same way for a while now, Azzi. But I didn’t know if you’d feel the same, and I didn’t want to risk ruining our friendship. But… I love you too.”

Azzi blinked in disbelief, her heart soaring as the words sank in. “You… you love me?”

Paige smiled, a small, nervous but genuine smile, and nodded. “Yeah. I’ve loved you for a long time, but I didn’t know how to tell you. You’re everything to me, Azzi.”

Azzi’s breath caught in her throat as Paige’s words wrapped around her, warmth flooding her chest. All the uncertainty, the jealousy, the fear — it all melted away in that moment.

Before Azzi could respond, Paige leaned in slowly, her lips brushing against Azzi’s in a soft, tentative kiss. It was gentle at first, as if both of them were testing the waters, unsure of how to move forward, but then the kiss deepened, the connection between them undeniable. Azzi kissed her back with a passion that had been building for so long, everything falling into place. The world outside of them disappeared.

When they finally pulled away, their foreheads rested together, both of them smiling breathlessly.

“I can’t believe we’re here,” Azzi whispered, still in awe.

Paige laughed softly, her hands still resting on Azzi’s face. “Me neither. But I’m glad we are.”

Azzi smiled, her heart light for the first time that night. “So… now what?”

Paige grinned, her eyes twinkling. “Now we take it one step at a time. Together.”

Azzi nodded, feeling a sense of peace settle over her. She had been afraid of what this would mean, afraid of losing what they had, but now she realized there was nothing to be afraid of. They had always been there for each other, and this was just the next chapter in their story.

As they walked hand-in-hand to their dorm rooms, Azzi’s heart felt full in a way it never had before. She didn’t need to know the future. All she needed was Paige — the girl who had always been by her side, now standing with her in a way neither of them had expected.

And Azzi and Paige stood there in the hallway of their dorm, hearts racing, bodies still buzzing from their first kiss. The adrenaline of the moment hadn't quite worn off, and the air around them felt charged, like something deeper and more intense was just beginning to unfold between them.

Paige’s lips were still a breath away from Azzi’s, their faces so close they could feel each other's warmth, the rhythm of each other’s breathing syncing. The tension was palpable.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted this," Paige whispered, her voice low and filled with something raw and dangerous.

Azzi’s heart skipped a beat. The words hit her like a jolt of electricity. Wanted this? Azzi’s body felt like it was on fire, her thoughts a blur as she struggled to keep her composure. But the way Paige looked at her, eyes dark and heavy with desire, made her breath catch.

“I want you, Azzi,” Paige’s voice was almost a growl now, dangerous and magnetic. “I’ve wanted you from the moment we met. But I held back because… well, because we were always just ‘friends,’ right? But now that we’re here, now that you’ve said it... I can’t stop.”

Azzi could barely think straight. Her body was acting on its own now, her hands reaching up to grab the collar of Paige’s jacket, pulling her closer, her mouth crashing into Paige’s with a fierceness that surprised even her.

Paige’s hands slid down Azzi’s back, gripping her hips with a possessiveness that made Azzi shiver. She could feel the heat radiating off of Paige, her pulse hammering in her ears as their kiss deepened, more urgent now, as though both of them had been holding back for too long.

When they finally broke apart for air, both of them were breathing heavily. Azzi's lips were swollen, her mind a swirl of lust, confusion, and exhilaration. She looked at Paige, eyes searching, desperate to understand what this was now.

"Paige... what are we doing?" Azzi asked, her voice thick with the desire she couldn’t quite control.

Paige smirked, a devilish glint in her eyes. "What do you think we’re doing, Azzi?" she asked, her hand moving slowly down Azzi’s side, fingers brushing dangerously close to the waistband of her jeans.

Azzi’s breath caught in her throat, and before she knew it, she was stepping back, her back against the cold dorm wall, trapped between it and Paige. Her body was screaming for more, but part of her still held on to the familiar. Part of her wasn’t sure if this was real.

But Paige wasn’t giving her the chance to back out. She pressed her body up against Azzi’s, her lips trailing down her neck, nipping lightly at the sensitive skin. Every touch felt electrified, sending jolts of heat straight to Azzi’s core.

Azzi let out a breathy moan, her hands gripping Paige’s shoulders. “Paige… I—” she started, but the words died in her throat as Paige’s lips found that sweet spot on her neck that made her head spin.

“No more talking,” Paige murmured, her voice low and dangerous. She lifted her head just enough to meet Azzi’s eyes, and what she saw in Paige’s gaze made her pulse race.

“Are you sure?” Azzi asked, her voice shaky. She needed confirmation, needed to know that this wasn’t just some wild, impulsive moment. That it wasn’t just the heat of the moment.

Paige’s lips curled into a slow, sultry smile. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life,” she said, her voice dripping with lust and certainty.

With a growl of frustration, Azzi pulled Paige’s face back to hers, their lips meeting again with a hunger that neither of them had expected. Azzi’s hands slid up to the back of Paige’s neck, pulling her closer as their bodies pressed together.

Time seemed to stop. It was just the two of them now — nothing else mattered.

Azzi’s hands roamed down to Paige’s hips, pulling her flush against her. The feeling of Paige’s body against hers, the heat of her skin, the way their bodies moved in sync — it was intoxicating. Every touch, every kiss felt like a drug, and Azzi was addicted.

"Take it off," Azzi whispered, her voice husky. The intensity of the moment was overwhelming, and she didn’t want to hold back any longer. She needed Paige, needed to feel her completely.

Paige didn’t hesitate. She pulled off her jacket, tossing it to the floor, then reached for Azzi’s shirt, her fingers trembling with desire. Azzi quickly shed her own clothes, her hands shaking, as though this was the only thing in the world that made sense

for the first time, Azzi knew it was only the beginning.

[brenwritesss]

𝐓𝐫𝐮 𝐅𝐫𝐮 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟒

⋆˚࿔Paige Bueckers x reader ❀˖°

Summary: Paige takes you on a date to make up for an interrupted interaction, causing you two to fall even deeper.

a/n: the Paige pics above is the outfit I pictured her in during this chapter.

You were stressing. Everything that could go wrong was going wrong. First, you had submitted an assignment last night two minutes after the cutoff, guaranteeing you a zero percent. Next, you woke up and made a bowl of cereal for breakfast only to realize that the milk had gone bad. You had found out the hard way. And now here you were, getting ready for a date Paige had planned a few days ago, only you couldn’t find your shoes anywhere and Paige was going to show up to your place any minute.

After that day that you and Paige almost fucked, she didn’t fall back on her promise of making it up to you. She had asked you out on a date which meant that this was your first date ever with Paige. And to say you were nervous was an understatement. When she texted you this morning, she had said to dress “not casual” to which you assumed meant more formal than you’d usually dress and as a girl who was a biology major who never really went out, your choices on dressing fancy were limited. Luckily, your roommate was a bit of a party girl, resulting in a closet with almost an endless amount of dresses. So you settled on a short black dress that hugged your figure perfectly, and a black jean jacket. You didn’t own any fancy shoes and unfortunately your roommate didn’t share a shoe size with you so your everyday sneakers just had to do. 

Finally, you had found your shoes under your couch, wondering just how exactly they had ended up there. As you put on your shoes, there was a knock on your door which meant Paige was here. You took a deep breath and made your way to the door and opened it. You were met with Paige looking up from the ground, meeting your eyes with her cool blue ones. She broke into a faint smile as she had her hands behind her back and her hair was down and curly with two pieces pulled back. She was wearing a colorful cardigan with cream colored pants. She was the most beautiful girl you’ve ever seen.

“Hi,” you say quietly.

She looks you up and down with that same smile. “Hi,” she said back to you. “You look really pretty.”

“Thank you,” you said, smiling. Her own smile grew wider as you responded. “Not so bad yourself.”

She lightly scoffed, “I took so long to look good for you and ‘not so bad yourself’ is all I get?”

“Good for me?”

“Always.”

The two of you stood in silence for a moment just taking each other in before Paige spoke, “I have something for you.”

“You do?” You didn’t expect Paige to bring you something as she had already planned the entire date.

 Paige shrugged. “Think of it as another apology for the livestream and as a way for making it up to you for being disrupted the other day.”

Your cheeks flushed as you remember the events and almost-sex the two of you had in your bedroom. And Paige noticed the color in your cheeks deepen as she brought it up, making her chuckle just a bit. She brought her hands out from behind her back and revealed a bag of Tru Fru. The banana ones.

You laughed as you took the bag from her. “Paige, that's the sweetest gift I’ve ever received,” you said sarcastically.

Paige’s smile widened even more. “I was hoping you’d like it.”

“I do,” you say as you set the bag on your counter and walk back to her. “Thank you.”

“Ready to go?” she asked you.

You nod and without hesitation, she takes hold of your hand, interlocking her fingers with yours. Your blush deepens even more and your heart starts to race. Even though you’ve already made out with this girl, every time she touched you it only made you want more. It made you want to be held by her. As if she was the only girl in the world who was allowed to touch you.

She opens the passenger door to her car to let you get in. As you sit in her car, you are taken back by how decorated it was. All over the front of the glove box were pictures of her and her basketball team. As she got in, she noticed you admiring all the photos. “They’re my favorite people.”

“I can tell,” you responded in awe of the photos. The Paige in the photos showed the same smile that she gave you at your door and your heart melted at the sight. She looks so happy.

She lifts down her sun visor above her head to show another couple photos stuck to it. “So I keep my teammates on my glove box and I keep my siblings up here along with my parents.”

You leaned over towards her to see the photos. You smiled at the sight of her arms wrapped around her brothers and sister. “That’s really cute, Paige.”

She gives you a soft smile, closing her visor and pointing to the visor above your head. “That one doesn’t have any photos yet but that may change soon.”

You raised your eyebrows at her. “Soon?”

She chuckles, “yeah, soon. Maybe.”

She starts her car and begins to drive, her right hand finding its way to your thigh. You put your hand on top of hers and intertwine your fingers together. You’ve never been this affectionate during a first date so this was new to you. But you would be lying if you told yourself you didn’t like it. “So where are we going?” you ask her.

You turned your head towards her and admired her beautiful side profile. You had never seen something so perfect. She glances at you and then back to the road before her. “Do you really want me to tell you or do you want it to be a surprise?”

“Tell me,” you say softly. Her grip on your fingers and thigh tighten just slightly while simultaneously gripping the wheel with her other hand more tight. You did happen to enjoy the way her hand flexed when she gripped the steering wheel.

“There’s this restaurant that’s really good downtown so I thought I’d take you there.” You could hear the hint of nervousness in her voice which caused you to squeeze her hand in comfort.

“That’s really nice, Paige.”

The two of you spent the remainder of the drive in silence, stealing awkward yet comforting glances at one another. Paige’s hand never left yours as she drove you to the restaurant. The feeling of having this type of contact with her sent waves of pleasure through you and you liked every second of it. You wanted to know everything about her. Every story, every fear, every flaw, every wish, every dream. What you didn’t know was that she wanted to know everything about you too. What you also didn’t know was that prior to picking you up, a few of her teammates had to give her a pep talk in taking you out. She had been so nervous since this was the first real and serious date she’s had in a while and she was afraid of messing it up.

Paige pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant and as you looked out your window, you were met with romantically lit lighting, car lights speeding up and down the street, and the sight of a numerous amount of couples walking along the sidewalk.

Paige held your hand as you walked into the restaurant, being greeted by the host and taken to be seated at a table. Your table was illuminated by a candle and flowers in the center of the table which made Paige’s face glow perfectly across from you. “I’ve never been here before,” you said, breaking the silence between you two for the first time since the car.

“Yeah, it’s a really nice place,” she paused, “I think you’ll like it.”

“So how was that practice the other day?” you ask her.

Paige furrowed her eyebrows, not understanding what you were talking about until it clicked that you were talking about when she had to leave your dorm the other day. “Oh it was nothing new. Coach was getting on our asses so it was just a ton of drills.”

Your waiter cuts the conversation between you as he comes to greet you and take your drink orders. After he leaves, you continue, “That makes me glad I’m not an athlete.”

She chuckles. “Yeah, well in that moment I wish I wasn’t. I was sore after we finished.”

“I think I’ll take homework over being sore any day.”

“Yeah?” Paige jokingly questioned you. “I’m assuming biology isn’t the greatest thing in the world either.”

“Oh it’s not,” you respond. “It’s a lot of science and math, unfortunately.”

“Yeah no I’ll stick to being an athlete.” 

You laughed at her response as your drinks arrived at the table. You spent the next few minutes trying to figure out what you wanted to eat. There was a lot on the menu and you being indecisive was no help whatsoever. As you sat there, completely focused on the menu, you failed to notice that Paige had been admiring you the entire time with a soft smile on her face. “What are you thinking of getting?”

Her words snap you out of focus, finally looking up at her. “Oh, um deciding between pasta or something else but I’m not the most gracious pasta eater.”

That earns another laugh from her. “I find that hard to believe.”

You tilt your head to the side. “What are you implying?”

“That you’ll look good doing anything, including eating pasta.” She smirks at you, making you almost melt under her gaze.

“I’m not looking to make a fool out of myself so that is not happening tonight. That’s more of a third date thing.”

“So there’s going to be a third?” She raises her eyebrow playfully at you that makes you hide your face behind the menu.

“Are you two ready to order or still need a few minutes?” Your server walks to the table, a notepad in hand as he looks at the two of you.

Paige shakes her head. “No, we are ready.” She looks at you before looking back at the server. “I’ll have the filet mignon and she will have the fettuccine alfredo.”

You widen your eyes at her as your server took your orders and left. You shake your head. “There’s no way you just did that.”

A sly smile appears on her face. “I’m too impatient to wait for the third date.”

“To see me eat pasta like a monster?” you question her, taking a sip of your drink.

She gives you a look that says ‘what the fuck, no’ and says, “no, to prove to you that you look good doing anything.”

You two make eye contact again and this time it’s different. As if there was nobody else in this restaurant. And she can feel that too because she speaks again, “and I do mean that.”

“Thank you.” You smile at her and she returns it. 

You spend the next hour eating and talking to Paige and you couldn’t be happier. Somehow, you had managed to not make a complete fool of yourself eating pasta in front of her. The two of you talked about almost everything: school, family, friends, the future, the past. And even though you already had started gaining feelings for Paige, the things she told you made you see her in more of a different light. That she wasn’t just the playful, sarcastic basketball player that you fought over a bag of Tru Fru with one night. But that she was family-oriented, driven, strong, and didn’t have a problem with showing vulnerability towards you.

Once you and Paige finished dinner, you both fought over who would pay to which she had ultimately won that fight. She took you back to her car and began the journey back to your dorm room. Her hand once again found its way to your thigh and you looked her way. “Thank you for tonight.”

Paige smiled. “Of course, I just hoped you liked it.”

“I did,” you paused. “I like spending time with you and getting to know you.”

“Yeah?” she asked with that smugness that was always underlying every word she said.

“Yeah.”

On the way back to your dorm, the two of you just talked more. However, it was harder to hear her with the noise of your own heart beating in your chest echoing in your ears. When she pulled into the parking lot of your dorm, she put the car in park and turned her whole body towards you. “I hope I made it up to you.”

You nod. “You did.”

“Good,” she spoke quietly, looking intently into your eyes. “Listen, I had a great time with you tonight. Well, I always do.”

“I had a great time too.”

“Oh, I have something else for you.” She reached into the back seat of her car and pulled out a target bag full of stuff. She hands you the bag and you look through it. It had to have been more than ten bags of different Tru Fru snacks.

“Oh my god, Paige,” you said, shocked as you looked through the bag. “This has to be over fifty dollars worth of Tru Fru.”

Paige just shrugs. “Don’t worry about it. It was worth it.”

You sat in silence for a few seconds, contemplating if the next move was the right one or not. But judging the situation as Paige staring at you and you staring back, there was no denying the obvious tension that could almost fog up the windows of her car.

“I have something for you too,” you respond.

“Oh yeah?” Paige leaned forward just a bit. “I thought I was the one who was giving the gifts tonight.”

Your eyes flickered between her eyes and soft lips. “Change of plans.”

Before you can think twice, you crash your lips onto hers, earning a small groan from her in response. She instantly deepened the kiss and caressed your cheek with her hand as your hands flew to her neck. Your lips moved together with hers in the most perfect way possible, igniting that same fire you felt when you kissed her for the first time back at your dorm.

Moments later you see a flash beside you as you kiss her. She keeps your bottom lip between her teeth as she pulls away slowly. She has her phone out in her left hand and you nudge towards it. “Did you just take a picture of us?”

She laughs. “Yeah,” she says as she pulls down the visor above you that had no photos. “Gonna have to start filling up this space with some new pictures and I think pictures of me and my girlfriend would be perfect.” She flashed her signature smirk as you froze.

“Girlfriend?” you ask quietly.

“If you want that, yes I want to make you my girlfriend. Things are still new but I just want you to know that I do plan on making you mine.”

Everything inside you wanted to scream out of pure happiness but you kept it together. Even though you and Paige hadn’t been talking for long, the two of you couldn’t mistake the undeniable chemistry the two of you shared. “Yes, I want that.”

“Good,” Paige said before she kissed you again. “I’m glad I fought with you over that bag of Tru Fru.”

“Me too.”

[elusivecagedmockingbird]

Untitled

[jungkook x reader]

"You wanna know about art? When the class president starts touching my face on darkened street corners, and talking about my eyes, there's a word for it. There's an entire movement in the 20's—it's called surreal."

Or THE popular fuckboy in your campus suddenly signs up as the figure model to one of your extracurricular activities and starts showing his interest in you.

A/N: I'm not sure where I went with this. Thus, untitled. I'm not even sure where this falls in the tags. But, enjoy!

-

Jungkook is at odds with himself.

Part of him wants to leave and forget about this stupid idea. He doesn't know what compelled him to listen to Jin. What exactly does the old man know about dating anyway? As far as he knows, he's never seen him with the same girl, so maybe he should have reached out to Namjoon instead. The other part is hyping himself up. In about a few minutes, you’ll be coming through those doors. It would be too late to back out now.

He chugs his bottled water as if he were thirsty. Jungkook thinks he'll pass out from anxiety. If not that, then from how warm it is inside this garage turned makeshift studio.

He feels the beads of sweat trickle down his back and pits.

This is not good.

The class is about to start and he'll be stripping down to his boxers and he's all sweaty. Thinking about that uneventful possibility makes him sweat more.

Fuck.

He notices someone walk towards the corner he has been hiding in. Judging by how good-looking his face is and the vintage clothing he wears, Jungkook surmises this must be the Senior organizing this art class. Taeyong? Taehyun?

Ah, Taehyung, he remembers just before the elder stands infront of him.

"You're Jungkook, right?"

Jungkook only nods as a response. His dry throat keeps him from speaking, afraid he squeaks out a reply and embarrasses himself more.

Thankfully, the other man is kind enough to not assume his silence as being standoffish.

"Nervous, huh?" Taehyung smirks, but Jungkook doesn't feel like he's being provoked. Rather, it actually calms him—at least the idea that it must be a common occurrence for models to exude this much anxiety that it's the first question people assume.

"That obvious?" He squeaks before clearing his throat. "Do all models get nervous on their first time?" Jungkook finally grounds his voice. Albeit, a bit meek for someone with a strong commanding aura and in a leather jacket.

Taehyung smiles and nods. "More than you expect. Which is understandable. Jin hyung told me you're doing this to learn more about art?"

No, he isn't, he internally protests. He doesn't know what Jin told Taehyung. The real reason he's here on a Sunday, as a supposed 'volunteer' model for a drawing class, is because of you.

The rest, he let Jin fill it out so Jungkook can secure the spot.

But of course, he wouldn't divulge those. So, Jungkook once again clears his throat before responding with a meek 'yes' as he shoots his empty water bottle in the can, making a clanging noise. He smiles sheepishly at the circled crowd whose attention he caught. He cringes at how much he's going out of his way to act cool. He's never this way, and yet, he wants to make sure you witness him with his best foot forward today.

Jungkook sways on the balls of his feet, taking in the space when he sees you—just as you were hooking your bag in your chair.

Goddamn, you're pretty. He's watching you laugh with another girl stationed near your table as you lay out your tools.

"Ready when you are." Taehyung breaks him out of his trance, and he replies with a sheepish nod—hoping he wasn't caught staring at you.

Jungkook starts by taking off his shoes, then his leather jacket. He unbuttons his pants with briefs in tow and the thought that you would be looking at his crotch makes him blush. He shamelessly imagines you and him as Jack and Rose in that sketching scene. But, before he can pull his jeans down, a booming baritone voice hollers at him.

Taehyung hurries towards him. "What the fuck are you doing?"

Jungkook freezes at the sudden aggression. His mouth puckers open and close like a fish coming up for air, as he struggles to come up with a reply.

Taehyung tilts his head and assesses the young man with a pout. "Did Seokjin not tell you this isn't a nude class? We just need you to strip to your shirt and jeans," Taehyung clarifies in a whisper.

Embarrassment floods Jungkook and he sputters out an apology. He silently curses himself between nervous laughs and incoherent words of what seemed to be apologies. Shy doe eyes peeps at you and the confused and scandalized look painted on your face makes him want to get swallowed by the ground and never reappear in front of you ever again.

You must think he’s some kind of a creep or worse, a flasher. With a big exhale, he tries to set aside the embarrassment and go through this. It's already bad enough that his nerves and recent embarrassment made a sweat stain on his shirt.

Not long after, Jungkook stands in the middle of the circle of easels. It actually isn't bad, he thinks. Most of the time, he's staring at wood stands and the occasional heads peeking out of the canvas.

You're on his side, so he can only see you through his peripheral vision. Even so, he can already visualize the vein popping on your forehead when you concentrate—just one of the things he adores on your face.

That afternoon, Jungkook finds out he likes the thought of you paying this much attention and focus on him, instead of the other way around.

He holds his growing smile at bay.

-

The hour-long class went quicker than Jungkook wanted. He takes his time picking up his jacket and pretends to search for something in his bag as he waits for you to pack up. However, you never rise from your seat.

It takes Taehyung tapping your shoulder to bring you out of your world. "You still get tomorrow, Y/N," he hears Taehyung remind you before walking around the room, checking progress.

Jungkook didn't mean to eavesdrop more, but when you stood up and followed Taehyung, he couldn't help but tune in to your conversation.

"I need a little more time to fix a few edges. Can I just extend for a while? I'll clean up the supplies room." You bargain, voice kept low as if you're making an illegal trade with Taehyung.

Jungkook hears the older man sigh and call your name softly. "You still have tomorrow to work on it, and the next few days. Plus, I can't suddenly ask the model to stay just for you."

You whine petulantly like a child and Jungkook wonders if he can make you whine under different situations. Perhaps, under hi—

"He can go. I just need—"

The moment he makes out your reply, Jungkook was quick to cut you off and offer his time. "I can stay for a while."

Both you and Taehyung turn your heads to face the man who looks like a deer caught in the headlights, but he might as well have been. Your glowered confused eyes stare into him. "I-if you want," he stutters, so he tries to salvage his image with an obviously feigned nonchalant shrug.

Taehyung holds back his laugh but the sudden expulsion of air from his nose wasn't amiss, earning a side eye from you.

"No need," you answer with finality. "You get paid by the hour, right? I can't pay you and—"

"You don't have to pay me. I'm offering for free." Jungkook internally winces at how quick he was in offering himself. But if he were being honest, he would stay in this shoddy garage all night, through the blazing summer heat, as long as it's time spent with you.

Is it a crime that he's quick to take an opportunity when it has presented itself?

He thinks abso-fucking-lutely not.

Your eyebrows furrow, the 'I wasn't done talking' death glare you directed at Jungkook has him shift awkwardly on his foot and look everywhere else but at you.

"Still, I'd get in trouble for requesting more time, anyway. Can't have other students think Taehyung here has favorites." You press and it chips a bit of his confidence. It was obvious you didn't want him to stay. If he keeps insisting, you might think he's creepy.

Jungkook didn't want to seem too pushy anyway, and so, lets out a defeated "Oh.." and nods. His round eyes making it easy to see his dismay as it curves downwards a little at the sides.

"I wouldn't worry about that," Taehyung intervenes. The older man was amused as he watched Jungkook flounder around you, he also knows how oblivious and dismissive you are of guys like Jungkook to a fault. And so, he helps.

Ah, young love, Taehyung muses. "Just make sure to clean up and lock up after, like you promised." He tosses the keys to you, but you make no movement of catching it, letting the keys hit your chest and fall to the ground.

Now your glare is directed towards your sunbaenim. "On second thought, I'm wrapping it up for tonight then." You head towards your easel to pack up your stuff.

Taehyung sighs.

He tells Jungkook to wait a bit and pick up the keys as he follows after you, calling your name.

“Just take the guy's offer to help. He’s trying to learn more about art, too,” he whispers, arms crossing across his chest. "Isn't this the piece you're submitting with your application? I know that head of yours will run nonstop if you don't finish what you intended to do tonight." Taehyung nudges you with a smile and softly jabs his pointer finger to your temple, making you chuckle with a pout. You shoo his hand away from your face and he knows he got you to stay.

This Jungkook kid owes him, Taehyung thinks.

However, from where Jungkook stands, he sees you breaking out the cutest smile at Taehyung. His eyes even going bigger at what he believes is an affectionate touch to your face when Taehyung boops your forehead.

Is that even ethical or something, he wonders irately. Taehyung isn't much older but given that he's your sunbaenim, Jungkook thinks he shouldn't be doing that. Or even be standing close to you. He's currently throwing imaginary lasers at Taehyung's back when you both turn to him and he immediately unsquints his eyes.

"Jungkook, do you still want to stay?" Taehyung shouts at the young man.

Yes.

A hundred times yes. He's a lovesick loyal puppy and if you ask him to bark, he'll bark for you.

Jungkook nods enthusiastically and rushes closer to where you stand, eager to wedge himself between you and Taehyung.

-

"Jungkook," you sigh his name tiredly. "I really need you to stop moving your head. Is there something more interesting behind me?" The question was rhetorical, but you're starting to wonder what he keeps on staring at behind you that you turn your head, only to be greeted with a wall filled with hanged canvases.

You hear him mumble out a you with a smirk, but was quick to cover it up with a sorry. This guy think he was slick.

Jungkook turns his head to assume his supposed pose. His eyes still filled with mirth. And he lasts about four minutes before his head starts turning towards you. Again.

You throw your head forward with an exhausted groan. This was a mistake. You're growing more frustrated by the minute. Maybe you should call it a night.

Looking back up at your model, you tell him he can leave.

Jungkook breaks his stance then quickly poses as he quickly persuades you. "No, I'll stay still. Look," he promises and follows through quickly by holding the pose.

"No, I'm just really too tired for tonight. Thank you for staying a bit longer." You busy yourself by grabbing at your stuff, cleaning pencil shards here and there to keep the lurking unease.

You can't have a breakdown here again, you admonish yourself. And it's going to feel worse after if Jungkook's here to see it happen. You keep your head down while your hands wipe the charcoal dust on the table.

You hear footsteps nearing you, and you pray to whoever listens that he's not actually coming closer. He calls your name, his voice close and soft. You hum in response, head still hung low, refusing to face him.

Jungkook sees you rubbing an eraser at a blank surface and purses his lips. He finally got the chance to spend time with you and he was hoping to break the ice and get closer to you, but he does this—he upset you and wasted your time. You're not gonna want to spend more time with him after this.

"I-I'm sorry. I really wanted to help. I can stay again tomorrow to make up for tonight," he offers. Everything about him screams eagerness and he must really be interested in art to be willing to stay in the garage-slash-studio during this Summer heat.

You feel the tingling pressure in your throat and your lips quiver. You clear your throat and will away the tears before it breaks through your paper wall.

"No. You did great, Jungkook. I'm just not feeling well tonight." Your voice was too soft, but at least it didn't break.

Jungkook walks around you and turns to face you, hands making contact with your shoulder. "Are you sick? I have some medicine in my bag," he offers. He retracts his hand and unzips his bag to take out whatever medicine he had stashed inside.

It's his genuine concern that does it for you. You suddenly sob and cover your face with your hands.

"Oh, Y/N, are you okay? Does something hurt?" He didn't expect this. Jungkook was taken aback and his worried eyes looked for signs of where you could have been hurt.

Your sobs turned to full-on bawling and Jungkook was quick to take you into his arms. He lets you cry and occasionally whispers assurances between your weeping despite not knowing why you suddenly burst into tears.

In that moment, you stood illuminated by harsh yellowish fluorescent lights like a Gustav Klimt painting on display. The A/C humming noise drowned out by your hiccups and his whispers.

You were the first to pull away. He didn't mean to, but the moment you separated from Jungkook and lowered your hands from your face, he laughed.

Offended at his reaction, you push him away and quickly gather your bag hanging on the chair.

"Wait," he calls for you as he fumbles to pick up the bag he let fall to the floor.

He calls your name but you decidedly ignore him, feet shuffling quickly to leave the garage.

Fucking ass, you think. You're mortified. You already dread tomorrow as your imagination runs wild. What if he tells his friends about your ugly crying? You think you don't care what frat guys think, but you still definitely don't want to be the talk of the campus. You've only transferred here last year and after being briefed by your friend on who to avoid, you made sure not to have a run in with guys like Jungkook.

This is exactly why you were holding everything in earlier. Every stereotype of frat guys being huge assholes behind the charming facade were true.

A flash of high school memories ambush you and you just want to get to your dorm and hide under your blankets. You'll just have to miss tomorrow's class, you plan.

You violently shrug when you feel a hand grip your wrist.

"Hey, will you wait," Jungkook pleads. You turn to face him and see him reach something in his pockets.

Fuck. He's not going to take a photo, isn't he?

You were ready to lunge at him, anything to prevent him from taking a snap at your post-bawl blotched face, when all of sudden, a soft cloth touched your face.

Jungkook chuckles at your startled face.

"You have charcoal smudged all over your face," he points out. His bunny teeth peeks through his curved lips and the sides of his eyes wrinkle from amusement.

"Oh." You visibly flinch when he uses his thumb to brush the apple of your cheeks.

"There," he smiles, eyes fixated on his finger caressing your skin.

"You know you really have pretty eyes."

If you were in a romantic movie, his line would have panned out well. But you're not, so cue the sound of glass breaking to signify a shattered moment.

To think, you bought his act. You thought, here's a deviant frat boy species. Maybe not all of them are only interested in girls and booze. You even thought this Jeon Jungkook isn't so bad.

Until he says that.

Breaking away and stepping back from him, you humorlessly laugh in disbelief.

"You're a fucking cliché, Jungkook. Does this babble usually work on chicks?" You take a look at him and he has the audacity to look unaware of how hokey the situation is.

"Wha—" Poor boy couldn't even finish his sentence, you thought.

"Y/N, I'm not following."

You were about to make a joke on flies flying straight to his agape mouth but you hold yourself back. Instead, you make a gesture of shaking your head as you force out another dry laugh. You look at him one last time and walk away from the frat boy once again.

You hear his footsteps follow you, along with calls of your name. "Did I say something wrong?"

You stop as you reach the threshold—you're almost out of the garage and out into the cold dark night, ready to rush into the safety of your dorm and away from sleazy college boys.

But something in you compels you to turn, and so you do. "Yes, Jungkook. You did." Your hands grip your bag tighter, feet taking a couple of steps back into the garage, to the shoddy light so he can see you.

"Did you really think this charming ‘oh-i’m-clueless act was going to drop panties? You wanna know about art?" You hurl the question; voice no longer shaky and unsure. "When the campus playboy starts touching my face on dimly lit spaces, and starts talking about my eyes, there's a word for it. There's an entire movement in the 20's—it's called surreal." You roll your eyes at him before making your exit.

It takes a minute for Jungkook to get his body to move. And when he does, you're already a distance away. Almost gone from his sight.

This is the second time today that you rendered him immobile and speechless. Just what the fuck did he do?

-

Meanwhile, you cursed at Jeon Jungkook on your entire walk home. Fuck him and his round innocent eyes for throwing the bees and butterflies in your stomach into chaos.

You tell yourself you dodged a bullet and that was just a ploy for him to get into your pants. You should actually congratulate yourself for turning away one of the notorious womanizers. Your roommate would be proud of you.

Still, you couldn't deny the jolt you felt in your chest when he touched your face and spewed those cheesy lines about your eyes.

You grunt as you slam the door to your dorm.

"Damn. Who pissed you off?" Jihyo, your roommate stares at you across her table.

You heave a sigh of exhaustion and plop yourself on the carpeted floor. "Had a run in with a frat guy," you spit with a scowl. "You remember the guy you were talking about last week? Jungkook? He's the model for this week."

"Seriously? That's..." Jihyo's head tilted sideways as she looked for the right word, brows furrowing. "Out of character for him."

You raise your head and prop your arms to face your roommate. "Right? That's what I thought, but Taehyung said he was interested in learning art."

At this, Jihyo pauses while eating and guffaws. "Is he for real?"

You roll your eyes at no one in particular and rest your head on your palms as your other hand plucks at the carpet. "Nah, I'm pretty sure he was just there to pick up girls."

Jihyo squints at you, suddenly alert as she senses something you haven't told her yet.

"He hit on me," you start. Already growing flustered at the recollection of the afternoon. "You know those cheesy lines from romcoms, he actually used them on me." You went on detail by detail about what happened and ended your story with a shudder. "This is the first time I might dread going to the class."

"Yep, I see why he thinks he could get away with the cheesiest line," Jihyo murmurs. Apparently, during your story, Jihyo picked up her phone and started to stalk Jungkook's profile. "I mean shame it wasn't nude because have you seen this body?" She flips her phone so you can see her screen.

"What? That's not Jungkook." You stand from your spot and walk closer to Jihyo and snatch the phone. "This isn't Jungkook."

"What are you talking about? That’s literally his profile,” Jihyo takes her phone back, wanting to take another look if you’re looking at the same thing. “See, Kim Jongkook. He’s the notorious fuck boy, probably in all departments. Good thing is, he’s graduating this year.”

Oh, fuck.

-

>> Still Untitled

[ratridingaskateboard]

Tear You Apart

Eddie Munson x Fem! Reader!

TW: 18+, wet dream, p in v, cursing, bdsm, sexual acts, sexual fantasies, etc.

A/N: The trigger warnings would be too long if I mentioned every sexual act ever done in this story. We would be here all day!!

Synopsis: Eddie has had a crush on Y/n since the day she stepped foot into Hawkins High School. After constantly fantasizing about her, will fantasy finally become a reality?

-

The second Y/n waltzed her way into the main hall of Hawkins High, Eddie was awe-struck. She was clad in a bleached jean jacket capped in patches and pins of metal and rock bands. Many of them Eddie hadn’t even heard of. The Black Sabbath t-shirt she wore had been ripped to shreds, showing only a tanktop underneath. Her plaid red skirt swayed as she walked and had boys and girls anticipating for a gush of wind to reveal what was hidden under that scanty piece of clothing. To no one’s surprise, within minutes of walking in she was quickly pulled into the principal’s office for dress code violations.

The hall had erupted into gossip over who this mystery girl was. No one at Hawkins had a single clue who she was or why she chose their school to be graced with her presence. Eddie had never seen anyone like her in Hawkins, if he had he would’ve known. Just seeing what she was wearing made the blood rush to his cheeks but the second he saw her patched covered jacket he was practically on his knees.

This was his chance to finally get with a girl who he shared similar interests with. Don’t get him wrong, Eddie loved getting laid no matter what type of girl it was. But most girls had little to no interest in Eddie, they just wanted to see what it was like to fuck the school freak. They didn’t complain but they didn’t speak about it either. He was, to put it simply, a conquest. Now he had the ability to be around someone who, he hoped, wouldn’t shun him away like the others.

Eddie’s friends gathered around him at his locker, passing comments about the new girl and her clothing.

“God- I hope they don’t give her a pair of pants to wear.” Gareth hissed under his breath.

“I think I saw her bra underneath her shirt” Jeff added.

“The second you guys see a girl you are like dogs! I am surrounded by barbarians!” Dustin was quick to be the voice of reason. It was hard for teenage boys to view any girl as a person much less a girl who showed a little skin.

“You’re right Dustin. Did you see her jacket? It was covered in Metal patches. She seems cool.” Eddie finally added.

“Sorry Eddie- I was a little busy looking at other pieces of clothing she was wearing.” Gareth said.

Eddie rolled his eyes. One of the things Wayne had taught Eddie once he had reached puberty was to be a gentleman. Apparently, Gareth was not given this pep talk. Obviously, Eddie was attracted to her but he had to push down the want to tear her clothes off in order to form a relationship with her.

Hours had passed and she was still no where to be seen. Eddie assumed the principal must have sent her home with the list of violations she had achieved on the first 15 minutes she was inside the school.

Lunch was no different than usual except for the extra chatter of the mysterious new girl and her fondness for revealing clothing. Eddie pushed the food around on his lunch tray, disgusted by the unknown meat with the rancid smell.

“Hey-“ A gentle hand pressed against Eddie’s shoulder. The smell of cigarettes and vanilla filled his nostrils. Eddie looked up to see his friends wide eyed, staring at this unknown figure behind him.

“I like your Dio patch. That’s my favorite album by them.”

Eddie moved his neck to look at her but he found himself too embarrassed to look her in the eyes. Instead, his eyes focused on the jacket she wore, naming each band in his head- trying to get his mind off the absolute fool he was making of himself.

Shit, her hand was still on his shoulder. His face turned to a shade of red he didn’t believe was possible to achieve unless in scorching hot weather.

“Don’t mean to be an asshole but your sewing isn’t the best.” She traced a line with her finger against the trim of the patch. Eddie could still feel the softness of her fingertips even through the denim of jacket and cotton of his shift. Suddenly, Eddie felt the warmth of her breath against his ear.

“If you ever need someone to teach you, I would love to.”

Her hand moved back to his shoulder and lightly squeezed it, sending spikes of electricity through his spine. Then, she was gone.

Eddie’s face remained just as red as before. His fellow Hellfire members tried to help him regain consciousness but Eddie remained silent. He was stunned. He had never felt so weak. She toyed with him and he didn’t even fight back. He had never felt so powerless. In most situations he had had with girls, he was the one who approached and the one who lead. But, she… she was different.

“Eddie, dude, you should probably go to the bathroom.” Jeff patted Eddie’s shoulder, finally getting his attention.

Eddie looked down to find his dick as stiff as a board in his pants. Jesus Christ, he needed to get his shit together. This girl was messing with his fucking head.

After a moment in the bathroom, Eddie was able to go about his day as normally as he could. He still stumbled whenever he thought of the softness of her hand or the smell of her perfume. But as long as he didn’t see her he was fine. Right?

After Hellfire, Eddie returned to the trailer he shared with his Uncle and plopped himself on his bed. God- was he exhausted. Didn’t know being teased by a girl would make him so tired. His eyes fluttered closed and he gave in.

“E-Eddie please,” Y/n wimpered, looking up at him with big doe eyes, her hands restrained behind her back.

“Please what?” Eddie persisted, his leg pushing in between her thighs, feeling the warmth of her.

“P-Please fuck me!” She huffed, grinding her hips against his thigh. She seemed so helpless now. Her dominance was subdued by him and she had become a mess of herself.

“How much do you want it?” Eddie whispered in her ear, her perfume smelled even stronger when he was this close to her neck.

“I-I want it so bad, Eddie! Please I’m begging you!” She wailed.

He loved seeing her like this. Fuck, it made him feel like he was gonna cum in his pants. He couldn’t make her wait any longer and neither could he.

He started to reach his hand under her shirt when-

He woke up. It was a dream. It was a fucking dream. And one thing he knew about dreams like these, they always end the same.

Eddie lifted his comforter to find his boxers covered with jizz as well as the sheets underneath him. Eddie’s face crumpled into a frown. He had to get her back for this.

-

A/N: Dont worry there will be a part two coming soon!!! Hope u enjoyed

[illdowhatiwantthanks]

The Halloween Party

Lee Harker x fem!autistic!reader Warnings: brief mentions of drinking/intoxication, smoking, awkward autism times, explicit language (let me know if I've missed anything!) Word count: 1.7k

Summary: You and Lee meet in the most unlikely of places (at least for you two): a party. But it's your mutual awkwardness that endears you to one another.

You couldn’t believe you’d let your friends drag you to this Halloween party… You weren’t a party person, especially not big, loud ones like this. But they’d insisted, said they were going all out for their costumes. When you’d clambered into the back seat of the car as they picked you up on the way, you realized that you’d wildly misunderstood what “all out” on costumes meant. All your friends… their outfits were skimpy and sexy. They looked amazing.

You, on the other hand… well, you’d spent three hours spiking your short hair up with gel and drawing a beard on your face with eyeliner and a brow pen. When you got in the car, you swear you could’ve heard crickets.

“Um… so who are you exactly?” one of them asked.

You shuffled awkwardly. “Gay Fieri.”

“You mean Guy Fieri?”

“No, no. Gay Fieri. Because I’m gay, get it? Like drag, kind of.”

They all laughed, and you blushed a bit. It was all in good fun, of course, but this wasn’t the first time and it wouldn’t be the last time that you’d unintentionally missed the memo on what a particular turn of phrase meant. You'd missed what kind of costumes all your friends would be wearing. Not that you’d have worn something like that anyway… You were much more comfortable in your loose button-up and jeans.

You knew, ten minutes into the party, that you’d probably end up Ubering home after a while. There were too many people for you, many of whom you didn’t know. It was too loud and chaotic and your friends were having fun in places other than the corner with you. Which was fine, you just weren’t cut out for parties like this.

Another woman–a little taller than you, sunglasses on even in the dimly-lit house, sidled up to the corner with you, sipping quietly from a cup. She wore an FBI jacket and a lanyard with what you assumed were fake credentials.

“I hate parties,” she muttered over her drink.

“Me too,” you agreed before settling into a comfortable, people-watching silence.

After a few minutes, even behind the sunglasses, you noticed she was watching you.

“What?” you asked, flushing a bit.

“Who are you supposed to be exactly?”

“Gay Fieri. Like, the Food Network guy, but gay. Here, like this.” You set your drink down on a nearby counter and stood up tall, doing your best to adopt Guy Fieri’s voice and personality and, you weren’t gonna lie, you were pretty good at it. Call it a remnant of a childhood hyperfixation on Triple D. Your voice immediately shifted into that particular Guy Fieri cadence. “I’m Gay Fieri, and we’ll see you next time on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dykes!”

The girl cracked a smile, just a small one, like she was trying to keep her face passive, and you grinned, knowing that even if she didn’t want to show it, you’d made her laugh.

“Anyway,” you said, rubbing the back of your neck nervously. “Your costume’s pretty obvious.” Then you realized your words could sound insulting and backtracked quickly. “Not in a bad way or anything! Just… uh... clear, you know? Not… ambiguous?” Jesus, this conversation was going terribly. You probably should go home while you were ahead or, well, not so far behind.

“It’s not a costume,” she said, her voice blunt, almost flat.

“Oh…” It took a minute for your brain to register what that meant. “Oh, so you’re… a real FBI agent?”

She nodded, taking another sip of her drink.

“That’s cool.”

You sat in silence for a few more minutes. Normally, you’d be nervous about the silence, it’d make you feel like you were doing something wrong. But somehow with this girl, it didn’t feel wrong, just felt like how both of you would be most comfortable.

“I’m Y/N,” you blurted out, realizing you’d forgotten to introduce yourself or even ask her name.

“Lee,” she replied, watching you stim your hands awkwardly at your sides for a moment. She slumped against the wall. “So who’d you come here with? Boyfriend?”

You scoffed, amused. “Do I look like the kind of person who has a boyfriend? Please. I came here with my friends. I don’t like boys, not my type.”

Lee had that look on her face again, the almost-smile, but she was hard to read with the sunglasses on. People were hard for you to read anyway.

“What is your type, then?” she asked, fiddling with the zipper of her jacket.

Your answer was honest, blunt, and you blurted it out before even thinking, before making the connection, not realizing how it would sound: “Women in law enforcement.”

You meant it as a joke, you meant it as a stupid, stupid reference to your obsession with cop television shows, like Criminal Minds or SVU, but… there was a real, live woman in law enforcement in front of you and… well, you’d just accidentally been more forward than perhaps you’d ever been in your life.

“I mean, uh… anyway…” You shuffled uncomfortably, your body and brain screaming at you to get out of there before you dug yourself further into a hole. “I gotta… one of my friends… see you later.”

You found one of your friends and joined the group she was talking with, not really wanting to converse, but trying to at least act intrigued, act… not as flustered as you were. But you noticed her all night–Lee–in your periphery, and you thought it might be just your imagination, but it felt like she was watching you. It made you both embarrassed and excited. On the one hand, maybe she… maybe she liked you, too? But, no, why would she? You looked ridiculous. You acted ridiculous. Probably she was watching you because she couldn’t believe anyone could be such a huge, raging idiot.

A little bit later, you were sitting on the curb outside, relishing the quiet of the night, waiting for your Uber, when two women sat down on either side of you. They weren’t your friends. You didn’t know who they were at all.

“Uh..” you stuttered.

“You’re Y/N, right?” one of them asked.

You were very confused. You weren’t a popular person, and there’s no reason at all why these two random women would know you.

“Yeah…?”

“Our friend Lee really likes you. She thinks you’re cute.”

Your stomach dropped nearly to the asphalt underneath you. No way. No fucking way. “Uh… what?”

“The FBI dweeb who didn’t even wear a costume,” the other said, describing her. “She couldn’t keep her eyes off you all night. You should ask her out.”

“Oh, I don’t–”

At that exact moment, Lee herself appeared in the doorway, her face immediately turning crimson as she saw her friends sitting next to you.

“Guys,” she grumbled, walking quickly down the porch steps. “Oh my god… seriously?”

Her friends giggled, obviously a little drunk, as Lee approached, hands crossed over her chest.

“Get out of here,” she chastised as they stood, laughing, and made their way back inside. “Jesus… leave her alone.”

Lee sat down next to you, sighing heavily as she removed her sunglasses. Your breath caught in your throat, and your cheeks burned. She was already pretty, but her eyes. God, so lovely and deep and–and… You had to look away.

“Sorry about them,” she said, her voice flat.

“It’s okay…”

“Did they, uh… did they say…” Her face was turning red, too, and you could tell what she was trying to get out.

You nodded, your voice quiet, timid. “Yep.”

She blew out her cheeks, letting out a shaky breath. “Okay…”

You sat in silence again for a minute, and you still loved having her there, still liked the way the silence didn’t feel uncomfortable. Lee pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one, holding it gently to her lips before exhaling. She was so pretty. So cool. Why would she ever like you? But you knew you’d never forgive yourself if you let it go without even trying, without even just seeing if maybe it was real, the things her friends said.

“Was it… were they right?”

She looked at the ground, taking another drag on her cigarette, blushing a little. “Yeah.”

Your stomach did a little flip. You couldn’t believe it, couldn’t quite wrap your head around it. You knew you had to make a ridiculous picture, you sitting here with your fake beard and your spiked hair, Lee next to you looking impossibly cool like, apparently, she did every day. And she'd looked at you and thought… more?

“Um…” You weren’t really sure how to go about this. “We could… maybe we could… hang out sometime?”

She still didn’t look at you, her eyebrows furrowing thoughtfully. “Hang out?”

Be clear, you thought. Say what you mean.

“Go out… on a date.”

Now, Lee did turn to look at you, her wide, brown eyes piercing and intense as they took you in. You couldn’t read them yet, couldn’t tell what they were saying, but god you’d like to learn.

You were quick to backtrack. You didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. “Or just hang out. Either one. Or neither… or–”

“Give me your phone.” She tucked her cigarette behind her ear, so that both of her hands were free, typing her contact info in. You could barely breathe, barely believe this was happening to you, it was like a dream. She handed it back, looking you in the eye again, retrieving her cigarette and taking another drag. “I’m free tomorrow. If… if you are.”

“I–” You stumble over your words. “Uh… yeah. I’m free. I’m 100% free. So free, you wouldn’t believe.”

She gave you that half-smile again, looking at the ground, and you felt your stomach erupt in butterflies. Oh, you didn’t think you’d ever get tired of making her look like that.

Your Uber pulled up, and you were reluctant to leave, but you held onto the promise of tomorrow. “Tomorrow then?” you clarified. “I’ll text you?”

She gave you a little wave, smiling softly, for real this time, her whole face. And it was as if the sun itself had shone on you. “Tomorrow.”

It was all you could do not to scream in excitement the whole way home.

[feral-ferrule]

Saturday's Child, Chapter 3

Fic overview: The Bad Batch modern AU. Echo/OC this is part of the Hunter and the Librarian universe by @clonethirstingisreal in which the Batch brothers live together, raising Omega.

OC Althea is a university student with a medical delivery job. Echo is a combat veteran who volunteers at the VA hospital where they meet.

Warnings: akward and uncomfortable social situations, unwanted male attention, but nothing scary or violent. Mentions of disability and prosthetics, mutual attraction dynamics. Very tame still.

Notes: This chapter introduces Tulip, @substantial-exposure ‘s OC who also lives in the Library AU

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Ding!

Althea pulled the brownies out and set them on the stove to cool, leaving the oven open to warm her little studio more. It was colder than it had been in a while and had rained the night before. Outside clouds were breaking up and blue skies were peaking through.

She tidied up a bit before copying her notes from the previous week’s classes then checked the brownies. They were cool so she heated up some cream and added chocolate chips, stirred it into a thick glossy ganache. She let that cool a little and spread the chocolate over the brownies giving it a swirly texture with the icing knife. After searching which teams were playing in the Super Bowl and what their team colors are, she pulled out the box of baking sprinkles she had collected. She found some jimmies, nonpareils, and stars in the colors she needed and shook each team's colors over half the pan each. There, she thought, kids’ll like that. Assuming there’s more kids and Tech was the big brother and the rest were more Omega’s age, she couldn’t remember if they’d mentioned that. Just to be safe she hadn’t put any nuts in these since she didn’t know if any of them were allergic.

Now what to wear? She was tempted to just throw on some jeans and a hoodie and leave it at that. But her jeans were muddy from helping her landlord with his compost pile. Why not dress up a little? she said to herself. It was pretty chilly so she opted for black fleece-lined leggings that had a subtle geometric pattern on them, a dark plum sweater dress that was pretty short, black weatherproof slip-on sheepskin boots with extra fluff at the top and one of her own crocheted duster cardigans made from recycled yarn from thrifted cashmere sweaters. It was extra snuggly and intricately stitched with mandalas and hearts. Althea took down her hair from the bun it was twisted into and brushed it out into soft waves. She put on some mascara and a bit of lip gloss.

She rummaged through her jewelry box. There were several pieces she avoided, making a mental note to finally get rid of them. Maybe put them on eBay or better yet just donate them and get it over with. She picked out long dangly silver earrings, a long silver chain necklace with a pink quartz crystal pendant and her stacks of bangles and charm bracelet. Then she pulled on a slouchy hat made from a dark pink wool felt. She checked her reflection in her full length mirror and caught herself slouching and looking a little depressed. She took a deep breath and straightened up, vowing to not let the bad memories ruin her evening.

Grabbing her slouchy black purse, rain jacket, umbrella, and the pan of brownies, she locked up and unlatched the heavy wood gate in the fence. Some vines from the ivy trained across the top of the lintel above the gate had blown down in the storm and it was in the way when she tried closing it. She tried pushing it and closing the gate, but was one handed.

“Hey I got that.” said a man’s voice behind her. She spun around and saw the landlord’s son. Ugh, always a jump scare with him. He reached up over her head and pulled at the vines which didn’t budge. His hand slid along them breaking off some of the leaves. Althea moved away from him.

“Thank you, Heath. Maybe just tuck them up out of the way,” Althea said. “Have a nice day.”

“Wait, where are you going?” He asked. She rolled her eyes and turned around.

“Super Bowl party,” she said casually, “bye.”

“Where?”

She walked around to the driver's side and unlocked her car. “Across town, why?”

“Oh just thought maybe it was near here.”

“Alright, gotta go, don’t wanna be late.” She ducked into her car without waiting for his reply which would probably have been to string the conversation along. She plopped everything down on the passenger seat. He bent down and waved at her through the window as she started the car, deciding to not pull up the address on her phone then and there. Heath was odd and he didn’t have good boundaries. He made her nervous. She hoped he was just visiting his dad for Super Bowl and would be gone.

She pulled over a few blocks down the street and pulled up her phone’s map app and searched the address Omega had given her. She saw it was just down the street from the park she saw Echo at. Huh, ok she knew how to get there. She set the phone on its magnet dash mount and continued driving.

**********

“She’s here!” Omega shouted from the window. She’d staked it out when the pregame show started.

Hunter gave Wren’s hand a squeeze and kissed the side of her head, “You ok if I go run some interference?” he says into her hair. If it was Echo’s Althea he wanted to give Echo the ability to be surprised without a big audience and to not have to struggle to get up from sitting to greet her.

Wren, who had been updated on the possibility of who may be coming, took a deep breath, “Yeah I’m dying to see how this plays out. I’m ok, go,” she whispered. He got up, giving Tech a side glance, Tech nodded. Wrecker was ogling the cheerleaders in the pregame show, but Crosshair was watching Hunter and Tech from where he sat with Tulip. His eyes squinted, suspiciously.

Hunter intercepted Echo who was returning from the bathroom. “Echo, can you help me in the kitchen? I just want your opinion on the chili.”

“Sure,” Echo says, looking back at Omega and Tech at the front door curiously. He and Hunter disappear back in the kitchen as Althea gets one knock on the door before Omega throws it open.

“You came!” Omega cheered.

“Of course, sweetie,” Althea said, eyes wide with surprise. She patted her with her free hand as Omega squeezed her in a quick hug.

“Come in and meet everyone!” Omega’s cheeriness was warming Althea’s heart and putting her at ease in front of what looked like several adult people all watching her.

“Thank you for coming, can I take your coat?” said Tech, holding out his hands.

“Thank you, Tech,” she said, charmed and amused by his formality. He took her rain jacket, bag and umbrella and put them in the entryway closet. She quickly scanned the room. There were family photos on the wall and it was clean and simple. Something smelled delicious.

“This is Allie, everyone,” Omega announced. “This is my brother Wrecker, that’s my brother Crosshair and Tulip, and this is Wren.”

She smiled at everyone in turn, making her own observations. Wrecker was absolutely huge but felt very warm and friendly. Crosshair and Tulip, who were clearly together, made a beautiful edgy couple. Althea noticed her look at the suspicious glare on his face and elbow him. And Wren had strikingly pretty hair and seemed sweet, but shy to be meeting a new person. “Its nice to meet you all.”

Wrecker and Crosshair looked at eachother. “We thought you’d be a kid like Omega,” Wrecker laughed.

“Oh?” she looked at Tech who swallowed, smiling nervously.

“What did you say your name was?” asked Crosshair.

“I’m Althea, but Omega calls me Allie,” she smiled at Omega.

Wrecker and Cross look at each other again and Wrecker opened his mouth to say something, but Tech made the zip your lips sign over Althea’s head. Wrecker got the cue and clamped his mouth shut and looked confused.

“Ohhhh are those brownies??” Omega asked,

“Yep, just made them this morning.”

“And they have the team colors, look Tech. Let’s take them back to the kitchen, you can meet my other brothers, and get a snack, we’re having a baked potato bar and hot dogs,” Omega implored, tugging on Althea’s arm.

“Oh? There's more brothers?” Althea asked, giving the other women a surprised look as she turned and followed Omega toward the back of the house. Passing the staircase Althea noticed they were bare wood with non slip traction tape on them. She sees a rugged, darker? looking man in a flannel first then another man in a hoodie stirring something on the stove and stopped in her tracks, almost dropping the brownies.

“These are my brothers, Hunter and Echo,” Omega said cheerily as ever. Echo turned his head to look and dropped the spoon in the large pot as he turned fully around.

“Althea?” Echo asked, his face a picture of disbelief and confusion mixed with delight as his brain registered who this new woman in his house was.

“Echo, what?- are you?-“ She stumbled over her questions as her heart squeezed at how cute he looked surprised and in his home clothes. She bit her lip and tried to focus on the present as the memory of him working out in the park resurfaced.

“Do you know eachother?” Omega asked. She looked at each of them.

Hunter stepped over and took the brownies, “Nice to meet you finally, Althea,” he said, and gave Echo a wink. Omega squinted at him suspiciously.

Althea tore her eyes away from Echo to force herself to be polite, “Thank you, Hunter, nice to meet you, too.” Up close she could see the skull tattoo covering half his face. She wondered about that and looked if it continued down his neck, noticing a platinum hair glinting on his shoulder. Aha, Wren’s guy, she realized.

Echo gazed at her. Hair down, pretty eyes, sparkly lips, a soft short dress hugged her figure under a soft sweater coat. A stone on a long necklace nestled between her breasts. Her leggings, furry boots, all soft. So soft looking. He wanted to reach out and feel her and as Althea looked back over at him he suddenly felt harsh and goofy. Like a mechanical Adam Sandler in his basketball shorts and hoodie. He was grateful that he had just put his knit cap on.

Tech came in and surveyed the scene, “Ah, I was certain you were Echo’s Althea,” he said smugly.

“Echo’s?” Althea asked as she raised her eyebrows a little at Tech then turned back to Echo and gave him a hint of a smile. She watched him blush down to his neck, swallow then shoot Tech a glare.

“I’m simply saying-“ Tech began.

“Come on you two,” Hunter said as he turned Meg and Tech around by the shoulders and herded them out to the living room.

“But I want to show Allie-“ Omega's protests faded as they left.

Althea looked back at Echo and tried to hide her giggle at his siblings.

Echo shook his head, “Sorry about Tech he’s-“

“I know, I met him before. It’s ok,” Althea chuckled.

“So this was your plans then?” Echo asked.

“Yep, well this and studying, like usual,” she sighed.

“No date tonight?” Echo immediately cringed inside, feeling that was going too far.

“Well maybe after all,” Althea blinked slowly, her lips in a coy smile.

Echo's eyes widened.

“So. What’s cooking,” she asks, drawing nearer to him.

His brain had derailed and he smiled, almost mesmerized by her.

“On the stove,” she added, eyes teasing.

“Oh yeah-this is chili that Hunter made from scratch. Potatoes and hot dogs should be done before the game starts.

“Can I help with anything?”

“No, you’re our guest.”

“Echo, I want to help.”

“Sure ok,” he acquiesced, going to the fridge, “can you chop up the bacon?” Would you like something to drink? He pulled out a ziplock bag of bacon that was already cooked and showed her the fridge’s supply of soft drinks.

“Thank you I’ll have something later, after I chop this.” She grasped the ziploc bag in his prosthetic hand but he had a fast grip on it.

“Oh sorry I have to think about it to let go.” He focused, his hand opened, releasing the bag to her.”

“Wow, you control it with your mind?” she asked, astonished.

Echo released a breath he’d been holding, figuring her reaction was a very good sign. “It’s not as cool as you make it sound.”

“Seems pretty cool to me,” she said as she watched his prosthetic fingers open and close. She wanted to touch it but didn’t want to make it weird. She looked from it to his face and smiled, it felt nice to be with him and not have to run away. She should tell him that, she thought.

Echo cleared his throat, “The, uh, the knives and cutting mats are here,” he said and he stepped over and pulled out a drawer down the counter from the stove. As Althea picked out a mat and knife he set out a bowl for her to put the bacon in.

“I saw cilantro in the fridge. If you’re not saving that I could chop that up too. If you have everything I could make a salsa.”

Echo made a face, “Just don’t get the cilantro in anything else it tastes like soap.”

“Oh I don’t have to-“

“No, no it’s fine, the others like it.” He smiled at her and wanted to smack himself for seeming too rigid and picky.

They heard some clunking and bumping and Omega staggered in with the project and set it down on the table. It was pretty big, almost too big for her to carry down the stairs. “I’m just about done.” Omega sounded proud.

“Oh wow, Omega,” Althea said as she transferred the chopped bacon into the bowl. She went over to the table and gave it a good look. It was a cleverly constructed and painted model of an historical building and surrounding trees and structures. “Oh look at this- you even have a little cat in the window! And chickens! This is delightful, you did such a great job.” Omega beamed like a beacon at the praise and flicked a switch on the side making the windows light up.

“Tech helped me with the lights but I did everything else.”

The doorbell rang. Someone answered and a new pair of voices carried to the kitchen. They were kind of familiar sounding to Althea. Omega stopped fiddling with her project and skipped out of the kitchen looking excited. Althea went back over to the bacon bits and took them to the counter where all the food was being set out. Echo was grating cheese. She went back and started chopping the salsa vegetables that Echo had set out while she was admiring Omega’s project. He set out quite a few. She only cut into a third of everything, which was plenty.

“Uncle Jesse! Uncle Kix!” Omega practically shouted.

Kix? Althea wondered as she listened to what sounded like greetings and introductions. She noticed Echo seemed to straighten up then deflate and frown a little. He’d forgotten they were coming over. She was about to go peak when Hunter came back with them. “And then they drove their fire engine right onto the basketball courts,” Omega was babbling about something that happened at school to them. It was definitely Kix the paramedic. Next to him was another man who looked just like him but was a bit taller and broader and had a real swagger about him. He had a large circular tattoo across his shaved head and face. Gorgeous, really, she thought, probably a jerk. Althea worked on the vegetables while watching the room out of the corner of her eye.

They set down beer and a bag of pretzels on the counter by all the other snacks, ruffled Omega's hair and went over to Echo. Crosshair appeared, gave Hunter a raised eyebrow and glanced at the newcomers. Hunter shrugged and Cross disappeared into the bathroom.

“How you been, man? Still at the VA?” Jesse asked Echo, embracing him in a big backslapping hug. “Yeah, still helping out,” Echo answered, turning to Kix. Kix hugged him while looking over at Althea, recognition dawning on his face as they parted with pats on each other’s backs. Echo was still talking to Jesse but Althea didn’t register the conversation.

“Hey,” Kix said over his shoulder, smiling big, his eyes roving her figure. Did he just elbow the other guy? Althea was trying to ignore him as long as possible. Jesse looked over to see what caught his brother’s attention. His eyes grew keen and interested looking at Althea as she put the chopped onions, tomatoes, peppers and cilantro into a couple bowls and washed her hands. Echo eyed Jesse and Kix as they watched her drying her hands on a tea towel. Hunter stepped forward, sensing the tension.

“Hey boys this is-“

“Althea,” says Kix, smiling. Hunter’s eyebrows betrayed his surprise and he stepped back a bit.

“Hi Kix,” Althea said with a tiny hint of annoyance.

“Is this your prior engagement? Looks like Echo beat me to the punch,” he smirked, clapping Echo’s shoulder.

“Actually, I invited Althea first,” said Omega who was observing everyone and fiddling with her project.

“I was the one who established that she was free today,” Tech called from the kitchen entryway, swapping out Crosshair in the bathroom. Crosshair got Hunter's attention. Hunter looked over at Echo, raised an eyebrow and gave Jesse and Kix a glance. Echo gave him the tiniest nod and blink which was good enough for Hunter who left the room with Crosshair.

“Hey I was the one who really asked her!” Omega called out to Tech’s back.

“It was a team effort,” Althea laughed while walking the bowls over to the rest of the food, “But Echo did invite me, although I didn’t realize all the invites were for the same exact party,” she added looking at Omega.

“Guess I was meant to be here,” she smiled at Echo catching his eyes.

Jesse and Kix followed her over. “This is my brother Jesse,” Kix said, studying her eyes for interest. He was either willfully blind or just couldn’t read her cues.

“You were definitely meant to be here,” Jesse practically purred and took her hand and kissed the back of it while maintaining eye contact. Althea blushed deeply. Jesse turned to stand on her other side, effectively boxing her in with his brother. And I thought Kix was cocky, she thought to herself. She was about to excuse herself to the bathroom or anywhere when-

“Excuse me,” Echo growled, shouldering his way between her and Jesse to set the pot of chili on a large trivet. “Potatoes should be done soon, help yourself to snacks.” He went back to grating cheese.

Althea could feel tension radiating off the three of them. She started to walk out of the kitchen for that bathroom when the way out was filled up by a huge figure.

“Hey kickoff in three, guys,” Wrecker said as he came in. Althea craned her neck to watch him as he walked up next to her to grab some chips. He looked down at her, his face breaking out in a big grin, crinkling around his eyes. His real and glass eyes, Althea noticed. “Did you get a drink, Allie? Althea?”

She smiles up at him, “Either name's fine. Echo offered already. I just didn’t pick one yet.”

“You want one of these?” asked Jesse, as he pulled a can out of one of the packs they brought.

“Oh ho- that’ll put hair in your chest!” Wrecker laughed.

Althea eyed the label. Triple Barrel IPA,10%. Absolute swill, Althea mused. “I have to drive, I’ll stick with soft drinks. Thanks though.”

She scooted over to where Wrecker was opening the refrigerator and pulling out soda waters and colas. She picked out a bubbly water. Jesse cracked open the beer and leaned over to Kix who was patiently listening to Omega give a tour of her project. “So that’s the one you told me about, yeah?” He said over a swig.

”Mmhmm, real flirty,” Kix hummed as they headed out to the living room. Wrecker followed them with a plate of chips and salsa and a cola.

Flirty? Althea tried to think of when she’d ever flirted with him. She felt a bit bothered by that. This wasn’t the first time a guy thought she was “a flirt.”

The room instantly felt less charged when they left. Althea sighed and looked over at Echo who was glaring toward the living room and putting the cheese in a bowl. He’d heard that comment, too, and saw that she’d heard it and noticed her confusion and her sparkle dim a little. He didn’t like that. She was really just a nice person and those two were circling her like sharks.

“They are our cousins,” Omega said, Althea turned to her. “Well, they are Echo’s brothers on his side but also basically our cousins but they are like my uncles so I’ve always called them Uncle.”

Althea was very confused and looked over at Echo, “Your side?”

Echo said, ”It’s a long story, big family.”

“So you are all siblings here though?”

“Yes,” he explains, “they are all full siblings and are my half siblings.” He checked the potatoes. “These need ten,” he said as he closed the oven.

“Omega!” Hunter called. Omega went out to see what he wanted and came right back. She lifted the model off the table, “Hunter said I have to put this away,” she said and walked carefully up the stairs with it.

Althea watched her then turned to Echo. He was finishing cleaning up some stray cheese and had sort of a hard sadness in his eyes. She felt like he probably didn’t like her or was upset with her which was confusing and started to make her feel bad but then she realized she was just picking up on his feelings. Ugh, why do I do this? she grumbled at herself. She picked up her drink and walked closer to him. “Echo? Sounds like the game started, wanna go watch?”

He looked up from wiping off his hands and carefully inspecting the prosthetic one for water or debris. His golden eyes softened. She looked at each of them in turn and then at his mouth as the corners twitched up. “Or we can hang out in here. If you’d rather.” He really smiled at that and she stepped a little closer to him. The sound of small feet thundering down the steps interrupted the haze Echo was trying to find his words in. Omega popped in the kitchen. He side eyed Omega and Althea stifled a laugh.

“Hey Althea, do you want to come out to watch the game? There’s plenty of seats, we brought the garage couch in so everyone can fit.” She said that part like it was a very exciting development.

Althea smiled at her and turned back to Echo, “Well you guys went to all the effort I’ll definitely go watch with you.” She tipped her head toward the living room.

Echo sighed, “Yeah Meg we’re coming.”

They followed Omega out to the living room. What’s your favorite part of superbowl, Allie? I like the commercials,” Omega bounced onto the larger couch between Hunter and Tech. Wren was at the end by Hunter and Wrecker was next to Tech. Crosshair and Tulip were now sharing a large stuffed chair, her legs in his lap. Jesse and Kix were on the other couch. Next to them was a recliner by the window.

“The commercials are my favorite, too,” Althea said as she approached the couch to leave the recliner for Echo. She noticed his jacket he usually wore at the hospital on the back of it and figured that it was his usual spot. Jesse and Kix slid apart from each other to make room between them.

But Echo touched her elbow and held his arm out to offer the chair gently leading her over. “Please,” he said and she met his eyes. “There’s a cup holder on the arm.” He took the can out of her hand and put it in that spot. “It has a remote that will recline it and it has heat,” he explained as she sat down. She blinked at him feeling cared for and her heart felt fluttery and her elbow tingled. The chair was a bit higher than the couch she noticed with some concern as he motioned for Jesse to move over to the middle and he eased himself down with his hand on the arm of the couch.

“Aw come on!” yelled Wrecker at a referee on the screen. He and Crosshair started arguing about the play.

Jesse elbowed Echo, getting his attention. He inclined his head briefly to Althea. “So you calling dibs?”

Echo scowled back at him. Jesse held his fist low for a bump. “It’s all good man, make your move though,” he looked over at Kix who was facing the TV, but had his eyes turned to Althea.

“His foot was clearly over the line,” Tech joined in the argument across the room. Crosshair shook his head and scoffed. Althea was trying not to laugh while Tulip rolled her eyes.

The kitchen timer beeped shrilly. Echo started leaning forward and Althea could tell the low couch would be giving him a challenge. “I’ll go check the potatoes,” Althea said, jumping up. She grabbed her soda and could feel three sets of eyes linger on her as she walked around the couches.

She pinched one of the potatoes in the oven, it seemed soft so she looked around for mits or towels to grab them out with. “Let us help you,” said a woman’s voice behind her. Althea looked around and saw Tulip and Wren. She smiled, “thanks, do you know where the oven mits are?” Wren was already fishing a pair out of a drawer. She pulled the cookie sheet of potatoes out onto the stove and Tulip searched the cabinets finding a platter. “These guys never put anything away in the same place twice.” she sighed. Wren put the potatoes onto the platter and covered them with a clean tea towel.

Tulip tapped at her phone and music started playing on a little speaker on the table. She adjusted the volume up just enough to mask their voices and turned to Althea, smiling and a little excited to be in the middle of some family tea, “Ok- So who all invited you here?” Tulip asked. Althea smirked, she was sure this was a better show than the game.

Tech appeared at the kitchen entrance and walked over to the snacks to get the chips and salsa he saw Wrecker eating. He looked over at the women and froze, noticing they’d stopped talking and were all staring at him, Tulip looking a little fierce.

“I’ll just, uh, yeah.” He turned tail and left with his plate.

“Well, I met Omega and Tech at the store on Monday and they asked me there.” She began, looking at both of them. “Then Echo a couple days after that, and then Kix on Friday. I had no idea they were all related or it was all for the same party.”

Wren and Tulip looked at eachother. Wren explained, “But Tech figured out you must be who Echo knew from work so he didn’t really ask for himself. Hunter explained this all to me earlier. Tech had asked him about the situation and if he should tell Echo that Althea was coming, but Hunter said keep it quiet in case she’s a different Althea. Also Hunter had mentioned the party to Jesse and Kix when we saw them a couple weeks ago.”

“Wow that’s really wild,” Tulip huffed a laugh.

“And a little bit awkward,” Althea added, looking toward the living room. They laughed and Wren, realizing the hotdogs never got grilled, pulled them and sour cream from the fridge and the buns from the pantry.

“Should I go get Hunter to grill these or should we pan fry them in here?” Wren asked about the hotdogs.

“I’ll grill them myself. It's a gas grill on the patio, right?” Tulip said. “Follow me.”

They went out and scared a little calico cat who was eating out of a bowl on a table. “It’s not too cold I guess, shouldn’t start raining for a bit,” said Wren, removing the cover off the grill. Tulip fired it up with her lighter and closed the lid to let it heat up. She turned around to face Althea.

“So. Would you have said yes to the others if you hadn’t run into Tech and Omega?” Tulip wondered.

Althea thought about that. It sounded a little like she was asking who she liked without asking. “Yes, well maybe. I’m a little raw from my last relationship. But Echo was so sweet about it.”

“How long ago?” asked Wren.

“It’s been a year.”

“Girl, it’s time. You gotta get yourself out there,” Tulip said, and waved the tongs in her black and silver manicure up and down at her. “You are too cute to keep to yourself.”

“Yeah but it, it was bad. I haven't felt I can trust anyone again.”

“You can trust these guys,” Wren said softly.

“Yeah the whole family is solid,” Tulip agreed. She opened the grill and scrubbed the rack with the grill brush. Althea noticed they could use a new one.

Wren opened the pack of hotdogs and started putting them on the grill.

“Echo really likes you, Crosshair told me,” Tulip said.

Althea’s eyes opened bigger. “Oh really?”

“Yeah- Hunter mentioned that Echo likes someone from the hospital. Like really likes. But he’s unsure of himself,” Wren said.

“Cross is not really crazy about Jesse and Kix.” Tulip glanced at the house. “They are family and all adults now but I guess they’ve had their differences when they were younger.”

“Yeah I kind of noticed there’s like a tension between the guys in there,” Althea mused.

“Hunter is ok with them, they’re not bad guys they just are different,” Wren said.

“Hard to handle?” Althea smirked.

“Yeah, that's a good way of putting it, especially Jesse. He’s pretty hot headed.”

“Which is funny ‘cause he’s a firefighter.” said Tulip.

“We’ll watch the game at a local pub and they are there sometimes with other guys from their crews and they are definitely rowdy.” Wren divulged.

“Mmmhm, I know the type.” Althea said.

“Whatcha doing?” Omega asked from the back door.

“Just girl time, with some hotdogs,” Tulip said in her best Jennifer Coolidge impression as she pulled the done ones onto a plate. Everyone laughed. Omega peaked over her shoulder and closed the door.

“So, Allie, who are you picking?”

Althea choked on her fizzy water she’d just sipped.

“Omega…” Wren said in the tone Hunter usually warns her in.

“We were just talking about that,” Tulip smirked.

“Well I think you’re going to have to pick soon because the guys are starting to argue about you.”

Taglist: @adamime @substantial-exposure @clonethirstingisreal @crosshairs-dumb-pimp-gf

🌺If you’d like to be added just let me know🌺

[algerian-lady]

The Genos style analysis i was talking about (only it's just an amateur's rumbling)

I just love clothes and fashion and rumbling about them, just like everyone i know, and it can keep me up to unholy hours of the morning lol, anyways, Genos is one of my fave opm characters, i just love his design, his personality and ofc his fights! He's one of the characters that changes his style often in the series and i find that really interesting, we gushed over it a bit earlier but i wanted to make a more detailed analysis over it. (i say that, but don't expect much from me, i'm not some proessional fashion designer or stylist, i just love clothes)

Season 1:

Earlier Genos style, he wears jeans/plain trousers, simple sleeveless shirts showcasing his cool intricate high-tech arms, he wears knee length boots in his first outfit and sneakers on the others. For accessories, he does like to wear different types of belts and he has earrings on (both earrings and shirts are practical, I assume his whole outfit is supposed to be light for his fighting, also as it was pointed out in the comments, he does destroy his clothes a lot so he probably need a change often). His hair is styled down, it's disheveled in a stylish way.

don't get me wrong, he looks good but it's pretty basic and doesn't say my about his tastes as you may say.

Now starts season two: (that's when i started the manga and started to notice his style, i didn't give it much attention before)

immidiately we can see a little style improvement with the addition of accesories like a jacket i'm sure he doesn't need for anything else than to look cool, and that such a nice fit on the lower pics, i love the turtle neck and truck pants tucked in those stylish boots (especially coupled with those new part.)

(the first pic seems to be his default outfit at home, nice armor tho), the second pic is so nice? like the baggy pants and big ass belt, also the insane armsi love that, not to mention we got a new haircut;

it saddly only lasted for one arc,

We se variations of that outfit throughout the arc, for me it's the arms, how can Murata manage to draw such amazing designs?

Monster association arc:

right off the bat, it starts pretty strong. i mean look at that hoodie, i want it! but if this was good then wait for it...

This look is gorgeous!!!! look at that jacket and pants and more importantly his centipede gear!! (it's so sad it had to go)

Honorable mentions:

in conclsuion, Genos's style and looks is his way to express himself and the more we progress down the story the more we see him in some really good items, i feel like it's not about a change of style completely but the existence of two styles, one more plain and simple for everyday wear and another for when he wanna make an entrence and is feeling pretty confident and good about himself, bless ma boi.

Side notes:

Neo Heroes saga:

this is so funny, i bet he does it on a daily basis at this rate lol (the only thing that doesn't change is his face, but you can't change perfect 🥺 my Boi is, soft features and demon eyes 👌 so endearing) .

There's nothing much to say here, he's shirtless, he's going for that apparently (again very confident), the armory is simple enough, except for the chest, i like that sobre darker look, reminds me of drive knight and i love that guy's design.

in fact, i have a feeling Genos machinery is gonna look simpler in the future but also more efficient, i wanna see the strongest cyborg Genos design, i imagine it'd be the most simple but solid and unbeatable.

unpopular opinion i'd appreciate more parted hair/pulled back:

it'd be cool if i found an analysis on Amai sweet Mask or Sonic's style, these are the stylish trio in my heart. if it had already been done i'd love to read it, although doing it myself would take years since this took a week and i'm not ready to do it again anytime soon lol XD

[xzerosparrowx]

For week six of @astrangersummer

Prompt: Ice cream/sweat | wc: 741 | rating: E | cw: mild language, strong sexual themes | tags: gratuitous use of a popsicle, Jawbreaker-esque, horny.

popsicle

✨️🍦✨️🍦✨️

The sun is bearing down on them, the oppressive sweltering summer heat forcing the residents of Hawkins to use their air conditioners, fans, and fridges in an attempt to cool down.

When Steve invited Robin and Eddie to his house to cool down he never thought about what Eddie would wear. He just sort of assumed the resident metal head would just be wearing his usual clothes; jeans, leather jacket and a band shirt. What Steve never imagined, or at least never imagined in broad daylight was Eddie wearing black cut-off jean shorts and a threadbare Elvis shirt that had been cropped haphazardly.

Steve wondered if he was hallucinating, or had died suddenly and his brain was showing him random, horny images of Eddie Munson as a last fuck you from life. It felt like he was in that scene in the Breakfast Club where Emelio Estevez had finally realised how pretty Ally Sheedy was before her awful makeover, or that fucking volleyball scene with Tom Cruise.

The outfit simultaneously exposed too much and not enough. Too much thigh, and frustratingly not enough waist. He felt out of sorts when Eddie walked through his door, his eyes catching on tattoos he had never seen before, the black ink swirling down his right thigh and up his waist. He caught himself staring way too often when the three of them laid on the kitchen tiles, the open fridge cooling the air slightly around them as they shared whatever was left of the vanilla ice cream.

Apparently, the meager offering was not enough for Robin, who sprang to her feet when the familiar tune of an ice cream truck rounded the corner onto the street. It didn't take much convincing to get Steve to pay for all of them; Robin bought an ice cream sandwich, Steve bought soft serve with hardened chocolate topping and Eddie bought…

Well he fucking bought a popsicle, the asshole.

So here Steve was, sitting out by the pool with his friends, their legs dangling in the cool water and watching the, frankly disgusting, scene of Eddie Munson practically blowing his popsicle. He looks to Robin to see if she is also witnessing the borderline porno happening right in front of them but she's too busy reading Slyvia Plath and eating her ice cream to notice.

Steve wonders if this will be a formative experience, if he will look back on today in twenty years and say “yeah, this is the day I associated eating popsicles with head.” He tears his eyes away from Eddie's now bright red lips, only to be met with large chocolate brown eyes staring straight at him.

He shoots up, mumbling an apology to Robin for splashing her and practically running inside the house. He can feel bullets of sweat line his forehead as he scrapes what's left of his ice cream in the kitchen sink and throws the cone in the trash. He readjusts himself when he opens the fridge, taking a bottle of water and swallowing down large gulpfuls of it in an attempt to calm the fuck down.

He startles when the backdoor clangs shut, spinning on his heels to face Eddie walking into the kitchen. Steve watches him throw Robin's wrapper in the trash, Eddie's own, mostly uneaten and melting, popsicle still in his hand. There is a cocky grin plastered on Eddie's face, a knowing mischievous glint in his eyes as he saunters towards Steve.

“Hey big boy, you ok?” Eddie's voice is low and Steve's brain is working at max capacity to take everything in. Taking in the way Eddie's hair is tied up, the way a bead of sweat drips down the length of Eddie's long neck and how warm Eddie is as the guy crowds him against the fridge.

“Yeah, I'm uh- I'm cool-” he stumbles through, swallowing when he watches Eddie bring the red popsicle back to his lips.

His eyes are glued to Eddie, breath hitching watching this fucking guy in front him swallow around the iced treat, his head bobbing up and down its length and those large brown eyes staring straight into Steve's as his tongue slurps around the popsicle. It's obscene, it's disgusting, and it's one of the hottest fucking things Steve has ever seen.

Eddie finishes the show with a kitten lick at the head- top, the fucking top of the popsicle before turning it towards Steve.

“You wanna taste?”

[foxufortunes]

Some random tips and trivia for anyone wanting to take a slightly more realistic look at exy and sport in their fanfics:

Long jogs are not good for sports like exy. The best you can say is they're good cardio, but most exercise they should be doing anyway is good cardio. To oversimplify: long term energy and fast action energy have different power supplies and training one doesn't really help the other. There's a reason sprinters and marathon runners are not the same people. Exy is a sport of fast bursts and in some cases long jogs can actually be detrimental to your ability to play these sports.

Dear lord, warm up and cool down. I know most of us just assume this is in there and glossed over, but if you're going into details, warm up and cool down and wear warm jackets after. Especially cool down. I know Kevin and Neil have already fucked their bodies but don't make it worse. Also, rest days. You body needs time to recover. Kevin and Jean will be lucky if they recover enough not to have any career after college given how much Tetsuji has fucked the Ravens with his training. Thea is probably in agony the entire time and she doesn't have long left playing.

Goalie's lead the defence line. If you want to throw around a defence captain type plot, it's your goalies, it's always goalies. Because they have the best view of the entire court. You dealer should control the entire team's plays, as the person who should be going from defence to offence and back (assuming they work similarly to other sports with a similar position) but the defence is always run by the goalie, and your goalies are usually really fucking loud about it.

Your division/class is actually nothing to do with your team's skill, but your school's sports program and budget. The Foxes are not a Class I team, Palmetto is a D1 school. To get this status, your school has to have a certain level of sports program, featuring a certain number of sports, sports for women, upcoming/rarer sports and certain required sports. While EAU blatantly ignores all of this as presented in canon (they seem to be D3 status, maybe D2 at best) who got their status through bribery and corruption and their coach, Palmetto, as presented in canon, clearly meets D1 school status. Your school's division also affects what kinds of scholarships they offer. Typically, only D1 schools offer full ride sports scholarships. It's most likely Palmetto was looking to fund an exy team and Wymack went to them because they're a D1 school, or they approached Wymack, unlike the Ravens who clearly don't understand how this works.

On the topic of Wymack: the ERC couldn't have had anything to do with Andrew's miracle in October. We'll get to this but the ERC is just not that powerful, and, see above point, they have nothing to do with Palmetto's status. Now, Nora actually gives us a far more likely and better reason in the EC, that she then overcomplicated in canon trying to make the ERC more powerful for no reason, especially given Kevin wasn't even with the Foxes at the time. In the scene where we see Wymack recruiting the cousins, Andrew brings up the idea that Wymack's initial four year will be on it's last year that year and he needs results or the school will decline renewing his contract and rebuild the exy program from scratch under a new coach. This is far more likely a reason for him to need Andrew's miracle. It's his final year of his contract, the school wants results, and if they drop out now with so few games won, he's done for. And given how many NCAA rules he and Abby help the Foxes break, it won't be long before the rest of the Foxes lose their scholarships too.

Four years might seem like an odd amount of time for an initial contract, and it sorta is, but one thing mentioned in TSC that's never brought up in the original trilogy is redshirting. Basically, for all you have a five year contract, you can only play four seasons. One season, you get to practice, but not play games, this is called red shirting, and in my experience and what I've heard from others, it's typically the freshman, for obvious reason, but this does bring up issues for Wymack's team design, and means Neil will have to take a year off eventually. And don't even think about how this affects the Ravens.

Speaking of Ravens, this is honestly one of the most basic NCAA rules: you cannot play professionally and play NCAA. Kevin and Riko literally cannot be playing for professional teams and be playing for the Ravens, the NCAA would boot them instantly. And, up until very recently, you also cannot be paid for your photoshoots, or using your likeness or sponsorships. To play NCAA, during the period AFTG is set, you cannot make any money as a player. Now, there's an argument that Tetsuji could probably make that Kevin and Riko didn't make money as players, but as celebrities in their own rights, but that's a very grey area. But, no, they weren't getting paid for photoshoots or interviews or sponsorships or anything like that. The only exceptions are tournament winnings, and there is a very strict cap on that, and stipends which there was a lot of debate over whether that counted as payment or not. They cannot be paid for anything related to exy because the second the NCAA makes an exception for exy, every other sport wants it too, and I'm sure some of them are mafia backed too. Mafia bribery doesn't fix everything, and if your trying to write your mafia as not a bunch of idiots, they'll know where to stop.

And then the ERC. They're just not that powerful, y'all. I get that Nora wanted to make them seem powerful, but given how Riko does most of the shit not Tetsuji, even that's pointless. So, for a start, the ERC needs specific scope. It's cool to call it the Exy Rules and Regulations Committee, but for what? Sports tend to have an overall ruling body, but they don't actually control everything. They control things like national tournaments and teams. Then you have the country's body, that controls things like the leagues, and they often have different rules that take time to catch up to each other. Different leagues within the same country can have slightly different rules. And often the NCAA also has its own rules. (To use volleyball, because that does have wildly different rules, in the NCAA liberos can serve in certain conditions, and that's about the only place in the world this rule exists). Basically, they only have control if you're competing in their tournament or affiliated. For the ERC to have such control over the Foxes, they're likely an NCAA committee, this means the ERC only has power over rule and regulations of Class I exy (oh yes, each division has their own committee), meaning they control things like gear regulations, rules on bench size, foul rules ect. Not which class the Foxes are in, not if Andrew's allowed to play with them, nothing like that. It's strictly the rules of the game. And they are the bottom of the power chart. Above them you have things like the division committee, the student athlete's committee and so many others. The ERC actually has very little power because the NCAA is a massive, slow moving, complicated bureaucracy. Even if they could drop the Foxes a division or get rid of Andrew, it would take years.

[aclowntiny]

The Dancing Effect- Best Friend!Dino x Gender Neutral!Best Friend!Reader (College AU)

Word Count: 3,434 | Fluff, Best Friends to Lovers, College AU | Warnings: 💋 hehe

“Admit it, you love it.”

You turned to meet the eyes of your best friend, upturned in pleasure as he grinned at you, shaking your head in amusement as he ran a hand through his bleached-blonde hair.

He’d invited you to join a dance class with him, just a beginner one rather than the advanced stuff he did for his major, and out of need for an elective you’d agreed. The class was a mix of styles, ranging from swing and waltz to some fun Latin steps. Partners were assigned and you got given a guy named Jihoon who wasn’t exactly the tallest guy in class, but really shocked you with his strength when he effortlessly dipped you each salsa round. As you twirled around the smooth studio floor, you could see your own reflection passing the mirrored walls with a grin. There was no denying this was your most fun elective yet, even if you didn’t want to give Chan the satisfaction.

“I guess it is pretty fun,” you conceded mock-grudgingly, relenting into a grin at the pure joy radiating across Chan’s face.

He must have really wanted you to enjoy dancing. “What’s your favorite style so far?”

You swerved around a skateboarder, arcing around to return to Chan’s side. “I don’t know, there’s something cute about the swing,” you replied.

Your best friend nodded thoughtfully, squinting slightly at you as if in scrutiny. “I see.”

You just giggled. “What? Why, what’s your favorite?”

“I don’t know, the waltz is kind of romantic.”

“Oh yeah? Thinking of your partner, eh?” You couldn’t help but tease him. You didn’t know the girl he was paired with, but she seemed nice and no matter what his reaction would be funny.

“Ew,” Chan’s nose wrinkled, his face screwing up hilariously, “Minkyung is my friend’s sister! No way!”

You put your hands in the air, palms up. “All right, all right, just checking.”

“Yeah, she’s totally not my type.”

He always said that, but you’d yet to hear what was Chan’s type. If you didn’t know him so well, you’d just assume he wasn’t ready for a relationship, but he was a great guy, so probably just picky. Or looking for someone who could be as sassy as him, you reflected as the two of you continued teasing each other.

~

Chan’s club was hosting a little ‘fall bash’ outside of the student union. They were putting up one of those big shade tents with snack tables and setting up speakers, lights, and banners for some icebreakers and dancing. All students were welcome of course, so not majoring in dance didn’t exclude you in the slightest.

Free food and new company was all it took for you, a recent transfer to campus, to be sold, but the light show sounded like it was going to be bomb, too.

“Yeah, they’ll be dancing over us as we move! In fall colors of course almost like leaves! I tried to get them to actually make leaf-shaped formations, but they said-”

“Whoa, slow down there, Passion Boy.”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be there.”

“What are you going to wear?”

You cocked a brow. “Why, are you supposed to dress up? I didn’t think this was prom.”

“Nah, it’s wear whatever you want.”

“Then frankly I have no clue. Maybe that orange sweater I got? That's fall-y."

"Orange sweater. Got it."

~

You weren't sure what Chan had meant until you showed up to the party and saw him dressed in a burnt orange blazer, which was buttoned smartly over a black turtleneck and matching jeans and boots, just a hint of fall color that perfectly matched yours.

"What is this, Sadie Hawkins?" You teased, tugging at Chan's sleeves.

Your best friend just shrugged, pinching a peach ring out of a nearby candy bowl and bringing it to his lips. "Thought it might be fun."

"That is a cool blazer. Is it comfortable?"

"Here," he unbuttoned it immediately, shrugging it off his shoulders, "try it on."

Chuckling, you removed your jacket, then pulled the sleeves on over yours, buttoning yourself in and inhaling a big whiff of Chan's scent. A unique mix of cologne and that faint, perpetual bit of dance sweat. Whether it was a good or bad smell you couldn't even tell at that point because you were so used to it, it just smelled like home to you. Ever since you guys had your first class a year ago, you were inseparable, sharing car space and visiting each other's dorms all the time. In all honesty, you were a bit surprised you could still smell it after this long, but the blazer seemed to hold an extra concentrated Chan essence you found yourself wanting to inhale just for the comfort.

"So," your best friend raised his eyebrows, "like it?"

With a nod, you answered "I do. I might just steal it."

He teasingly unbuttoned it and pulled it back off you, onto his own chest once more. "Alright, then no more. Go get your hand stamped, (y/n)."

"Get my what now?"

"If you wanna dance, you have to sign the waiver and get a stamp. Campus liability and all that."

"Right, in case our swing dance rager gets us grievously wounded," you rolled your eyes, making your way to the table where two guys stood, one on either side.

One of them, a guy in white with black hair and a sweet smile, introduced himself as Soonyoung, gawking when you signed in as (y/n) because 'oh my gosh you're the friend Chan is always talking about'. He gave you an incredibly pleased grin as he pressed the stamp against the back of your hand, leaving a little orange cartoon of a fall leaf on it.

"Do you have any other stamps?" The other guy, a tall, trenchcoat-and-sweater-clad figure with sort of long hair, asked.

"We don't and you know it," Soonyoung shook his head, nudging him teasingly, "you international students think you can come in and tell us what to do, huh?"

Tall Guy put his hand over his heart in mock offense, and Soonyoung reached over to quickly stamp it, sticking his tongue out as he did so.

"You're an international student? Where are you from?"

"China," he answered with a wide smile, looking directly at you but batting at Soonyoung blindly from behind with one hand, "Guangdong, to be a little more specific. My name is Junhui."

"See, I may be the (y/n) Soonyoung heard about, but I've heard a ton about your dancing skills from Chan! He says he wants to go to China, you and the other guy are so good! What's the other guy's name?"

Junhui waved off your compliment. "Minghao is a way better dancer than me. And if you want dirt on Chan, he's the one you want to go to," he added with a devilish little smile.

"I'll remember that," you reply, mirroring his expression before wandering back over to the snack tables to grab a few of your favorite candies, squinting a bit in the dim purplish ambience and nighttime air to find them.

Your classmate Mia was at the snack table too, gingerly grabbing some chips as you stuffed your own face, so you busied yourself with asking how her math test went until a lilting, old-fashioned tune poured forth from the speakers.

You gasped. "Time to dance!" Tossing your candy wrappers, you shuffled excitedly over to the wide open area of student zone concrete that was the dance floor.

Being members of the hosting dance club, Junhui and Soonyoung each grabbed you for a dance first, and wow, was that two different experiences. Junhui led you so smoothly, fluidly, and gently you felt like you were being glided on clouds, dancing just as well as your instructor did. You almost felt like you were back in class learning the best pace for each triple-step. He was so nice about it, you forgot to feel embarrassed at your own novice skills. Following that, Soonyoung was a whirlwind, twirling you exuberantly and performing crossovers and turns you'd never even seen before; your feet could barely keep up, but you were laughing the whole time. Mia asked you to teach her what everyone was doing, so you did your best to lead her despite usually performing in class as a follower, clumsily giving her a lesson before taking her for a turn around the spotlight-dotted dance floor, the sidewalk a glittering, wonderful mess of dancing duos and even singles doing their own thing.

You stopped to drape your jacket on a chair, grab a soda and recharge, and that was when you saw Chan. He was doing the same thing as you, catching your eyes with a smile and nod of his head. His blonde hair was thoroughly tousled by the wind now, all the fast steps of the last song clearly being taken as a challenge.

A new song started a few sips later. "Come on, it's my turn now!"

The moment you obliged, Chan took your hand. Close as you guys were, you'd never really held hands before. It surprised you how delicately your best friend intertwined your fingers, taking your hand slowly as if reaching for something behind a door that might close. He held your hand like that, gently connected, until you reached the floor, where he let go, sliding his right hand down to your waist as you rested your left on his shoulder. He joined your other hands, extending them out a bit before glancing off, clearly mentally counting the song's pace.

Chan swayed you so gently, leading you carefully into each step of the turn. Much more warning than Soonyoung, and a little more care somehow than even Junhui, who moved like it was second nature to him. Chan seemed to take his time, savoring every motion and smiling widely at the joy you got from each turn. When you went to each side and even as you stepped back, his eyes never left yours. Maybe it was the spotlights dancing over the makeshift floor, but they looked extra sparkly tonight. Or maybe it was what you called the dancing effect. Jihoon was always cuter to you when he was dipping you.

That had to be it, but you'd never looked into Chan's eyes so deeply, so intently before. You knew if you looked at your feet, gazed too long at another pair dancing, you'd lose time, falter in your footing, so your best friend's gaze was your anchor, the center of your every motion. There was no reason to look away, especially when the twinkling green and white lights reflected so well in them. You'd never felt the warmth of Chan's hand against your waist either, the way he softly pulled you closer to his chest after you strayed too far from a twirl. It was getting harder to convince yourself that your heart was just beating faster from the exertion of dancing to six songs in a row.

"Are you glad you came?" He asked in between songs, tilting his head and keeping you swaying even in the momentary silence, as if you'd run away from him otherwise.

What a time to ask that question. "Yeah," you breathed, giving a simple nod, "this is really fun."

"I was hoping you'd enjoy it," he replied. No teasing for once- you could tell by his tone how genuine he was being.

You felt his hand flex ever-so-slightly above your waist, the dancing effect sending your heart jumping. "Of course."

They'd snuck some Latin songs in before the night was over, and you were beyond frustrated upon your brief partner switch that Jihoon was no longer all that cute to you, even when he dipped you.

~

"Well, I'm sure I'll see you tomorrow."

"Whoa, whoa," Chan jogged to keep up with you, "oh no you don't, I'm walking you back."

"I know my way back to the dorms, Chan," you replied with a light laugh. The glittering spotlights had been once again replaced with almost eerie mystic purple ambiance, casting shadows on the concerned frown crossing Chan's defined features.

"Yeah, but it's dark. I'm getting you home safe."

There was that flutter again- he'd done that before, though, countless times. You'd walked between your buildings more times than you'd needed to keep record of. This was nothing new.

You relented anyway. "Alright, yeah, thanks. You're right."

"I know I am. Campus can be dangerous. You need someone to keep you safe."

"Oh, my knight in shining armor," you teased, giving his shoulder a little push and drinking in the smile you received in response. Why wasn't the dancing effect wearing off?

"Come on, let's go."

"The guys are still tearing down."

"Eh," Chan waved a hand, "They can fold a few tables without me. Right, guys?" He called a little bit louder.

Soonyoung gave him a thumbs-up. Junhui whooped, and the graceful guy you'd come to know as Minghao just remarked that no matter what they said he'd go anyway before cracking a mischievous smile.

"See? On we go."

Leaves drifted through the night air, carried in a dance of their own as cold air blew. Instinctively you wrapped your arms around your middle as you reminisced on the night's success.

"Here, you need this more than I do. Besides," Chan smirked as he removed his blazer again, "you liked it so much the first time."

You'd thought nothing of wearing his blazer the first time. Why did it make you so happy now? Maybe it was the way he draped it onto you himself, making you feel like a 1950s starlet or something. Maybe it was the way that as you took nearly-stinging breaths of cold air, still inhaling harder from exertion, you picked up that homey smell again, this time mixed with a skosh more dance sweat, but you didn't mind, knowing you had the same and Chan wouldn't judge you for it.

When you reached the door of your building, slowly drawing your key card from your wallet, you gave him his blazer back, hands dropping to your sides. "Well, thanks for everything. You guys really should have more parties. This was a lot of fun."

"Are you kidding? Thanks for coming! This was a success, so I'm sure we'll have an even bigger one next time!"

Your eyes didn't leave his. "That's the spirit."

"Always. Hey, well, good night."

"Good night," you breathed back as Chan pulled you into your customary goodbye hug.

You weren't sure if it was you, him, or just straight-up your imagination that held on a bit longer this time. When you separated, he kept a hand on your shoulder for just a second, leaning in a tiny bit and looking at you with those furrowed, scrutinizing brows, then just as quickly he pulled back away, scurrying off. You couldn't help feeling a very hard lightning bolt of disappointment zap you through the clouds of confusion.

"Guess I'd better go help. I'll see you tomorrow, though!" He ran off, waving like nothing different had happened.

You waved slowly, resisting the urge to lightly slap some sense into your head.

~

You were early to dance class that afternoon, feeling a strange anticipation of the whole event. You could tell as soon as you walked in, though, that you were going to have a hard time keeping your eyes off of Minkyung and how she got danced with, though.

That was the root of your anticipation. Ever since that dang party, that cursed blazer and the way Chan held you, it was like every muscle in your body ached to see him again. Despite all the time you'd gotten with him in the past year. It was like that had vanished completely, leaving a void more massive than you'd have ever guessed behind. Like even though you'd loved every minute of hanging out, you'd somehow took it all for granted.

"I'm surprised Chan hasn't come barreling in with your jacket yet," a voice commented at your side.

Turning around, you were met with Minghao.

"My jacket?"

He nodded. "Yeah, you left it behind at the party and Chan kept saying how he was going to have to remember to bring it back to you after letting you forget it. Seemed like he felt a little bad." That smile again. For all his calm, Minghao had a little streak of fire in him, it seemed.

And, if you remembered Junhui correctly, dirt on Chan. "Junhui said you know Chan pretty well, huh?"

That earned you a full-on grin. "Well, he's not my best friend or anything, but he opens up to me. Something you wanted to know?"

"No, Junhui just told me about you having something I could tease him about is all," you chuckled.

"Please don't." The slender dance major still sounded faintly amused, but something in his tone softened.

You frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Don't tease him about it, ok?"

"Wait, what are you talking about?"

"He really likes you, ok? So don't give him a hard time. You should know better than anyone he's more sensitive than he gives off."

"He what?" You didn't mean to raise your voice as much as he did, especially with the reverb in the mostly-empty dance practice room, but you could barely hear anything over the roar of your chest's somersaults.

"Oh, wait, Junhui didn't spill the beans?"

So that was why no one was Chan's type? Your jaw dropped, but before you could say anything, the door swung open, revealing the figure of your bleach-blonde friend stepping into the fluorescent light, casually dropping his backpack against the wall and waving brightly at you.

You, for your part, waved back, well aware that you were probably smiling like an idiot. The void in your chest filled so fast, it was like it barely existed in the first place.

~

After class, you guys grabbed your stuff, presumably to take your usual walk to the student union, but Chan stopped you. "You left your-"

"Jacket, yeah, I realized this morning."

"Yeah, sorry."

"Don't be," you chuckled, "I have more than one, you know."

"Yeah, but I like this one, so I wanted to make sure you had it. It's your old one. I didn't wash it, so it still has that (y/n) smell," he commented with a sheepish smile.

So you had a smell too. Something about that filled you with nearly as big a wave of confidence as Minghao's words, which had your chest soaring all through class and even Jihoon asking you why you were so giddy. You just told him you'd gotten good news. Either way, your heart pounded as you threw caution to the wind. No more taking anything for granted.

"That one's your favorite, huh? Tell you what," you quipped, stepping close enough to take the jacket out of Chan's hands and drape it over his shoulders, "you keep it then and I will steal your blazer."

"Why would I do that?" He asked, gulping at the way your hands smoothed the jacket over his chest.

"Call it something in the dance floor air," you said, giving him one last look in the eyes before your hands found your jacket's collar, tugging it forward until Chan fell into you, his lips meeting yours.

The moment you connected, Chan kissed back, hands wrapping around your waist far tighter than they had last night as yours slid up his chest and around his neck. You moved faster, then he did, and you both kept at it, challenging each other until you both needed air. As you pulled away, though, Chan caught the back of your head in his hand, pulling you back into him so your foreheads rested together.

"Man, if all it took was dancing with you, I'd have made Jihoon switch partners with me on day one."

"Minghao also may or may not have snitched on you."

"I'm going to fight him."

"But it was mostly the dancing."

"Charmed you, didn't I?"

"Something like that."

"What can I say," Chan commented, flicking forward just long enough to ghost his lips over yours, "I know you so well."

You smiled and shook your head, which fell onto his shoulder, bringing that homey smell up into your head with the fall breeze once more. For once, you didn't feel like sassing Chan back, your chest-void now overflowing with more serotonin than you knew what to do with. "That you do."

[cootiekat]

Babysitter ♡

warnings: none :)

genre: fluff

pairing: dad! eddie x fem! babysitter! reader

summary: You start babysitting for your coworker,Eddie, but will it turn into more?

a/n: This is my first fanfic I have ever written AND my first time writing in tumblr so bare with me please 😭😭 REQUESTS OPEN!!!🫶🫶🫶

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October 20, 1989

It all started with a text from your coworker, Eddie, asking if you could babysit his daughter. Of course you said yes, you didn’t have any plans for tonight. You got dressed in a sweater and jeans and headed out. Before stopping at Eddie’s you went to the grocery store for some snacks so you could be remembered as the “cool” babysitter and made a stop at Family Video to pick up the new movie The Little Mermaid.

When you got to Eddie’s trailer you noticed his van was already started so he probably was going to be leaving very soon. The door was already open so you just walked in.

“Eddie!” you called out. You admired all of the mugs on the walls and the living room that looked messy and cozy at the same time. You saw the little dining table for two in the corner and the small kitchenette, just down the hall you saw a bedroom covered in band posters and reeked of weed. Assuming the room was Eddie’s you walked in.

“Hey Eddie” you repeated now that you were in close quarters with him.

“Y/N HI! i’m so glad you made it on time.”

Eddie was dressed up in his normal attire except he was wearing a T-shirt that said Corroded Coffin on it with a black leather jacket on top. You’d be lying if you said Eddie didn’t look extremely good right now.

“Let me introduce you to Maggie”

Eddie led you down the hallway to a bedroom that was covered in princesses, unicorns, and all things girly. Maggie was sitting on the floor with her Barbies brushing their hair and dressing them up. Maggie was no doubt Eddie’s daughter they both sported long curly brown hair and big brown puppy eyes.

“Maggie, can you say hi to Y/N? She will be watching you tonight while Daddy is out.”

Maggie gave you a little wave and immediately curled into her fathers arms. Eddie was in complete awe and wrapped is arms around his daughter and gave her a tight hug. “How old are you, Maggie?” you asked softly. She held up three fingers with her hand, you couldn’t help but smile at her cuteness.

“Daddy is leaving now, but Y/n is going to take really good care of you.”

“Yep, I brought snacks and a movie. Have you ever seen The Little Mermaid?” you questioned. Maggie shook her head and looked up at her Dad to respond for her.

“I’ve been meaning to take her to Family Movie to rent it, she’s been begging to see it since it came out”

Eddie and you walked out of Maggie’s room leaving her to play with her dolls until she was done. Eddie was fidgeting when he spoke up.

“I had her right out of high school and i’ve never left her with anyone alone other than my uncle, so i’m a little nervous.”

“You have no need to be nervous, I babysat since I was in middle school for pocket change and worked at a daycare for a little bit in high school. This is definitely not my first rodeo.” you reassured him. You saw the weight come off Eddie’s shoulders.

“Sorry for the late notice.”

You waved him off and called Maggie to the front door. Maggie walked in very timidly. You knew it was going to take a minute for her to warm up to you.

“bye-bye, Daddy”

Eddie waves goodbye to his daughter and you and heads to his van. Maggie looks at you then grabs your hand and leads you back into her bedroom.

“This is Chelsea, I’m going to play with her because i’m little. You can be barbie cause you’re pretty.”

You thank her for her kindness and play barbie’s with her for about and hour until you hear her stomach growl. “Are you hungry?”

“a little bit, but I want to keep playing”

“you should never ignore your body when it tells you you’re hungry. We can come back and play after we eat if you would like?” Maggie agrees with you and puts her toys back into the play box and makes her way to the kitchen. You look around the kitchen to see what you can make. Yep. There definitely is not a woman living in this house because all that is in here is milk, spaghettios, mac n cheese, and leftovers from Dennys.

You begin boiling water for Mac n cheese when you notice Maggie sitting on the couch watching a black screen. “Would you like me to put in a movie while dinner is cooking?” Maggie bounces up and down and nods her head. You smile at her innocence and turn on the TV. You put in The Little Mermaid and go back to the kitchen to finish dinner. You find a small pink bowl and spoon and hand Maggie her Mac n cheese.

“yummy”

You sit with Maggie when you realize she is starting to fall asleep. “let’s go get you ready for bed.” you tell her while picking her up and taking her to the bathroom. You brush and braid her hair, wash her face, brush her teeth, and get her changed into pajamas.

“I want to finish the movie.”

You carry her back into the living room and finish the movie. Before the movie was even done Maggie was knocked out, so you decided to clean up the house a little. You dusted the fans, wiped counters, cleaned dishes, folded laundry, cleaned Maggie’s room, and cleaned the bathroom. All of the cleaning wore you out so you went back into the living room and cuddled with Maggie and fell asleep to the sound of the rain outside.

The sound of Eddie’s van woke you up. You watch Eddie trying to be quiet thinking you are both asleep. You start to stand up to grab your things when Eddie stops you.

“What are you doing?”

“Getting ready to leave?”

“You should just stay here for the night.”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because it’s twelve in the morning and it’s pouring outside”

You hesitated for a moment, you were not prepared for spending the night, so you don’t have any extra clothes, a toothbrush, and you have a very strict skincare regimen you cannot skip. Eddie noticed you’re hesitation.

“I would never force you to stay if you would rather go home, but can you at least stay here until the rain calms down”

You decided to stay because you were terrified of driving in the rain and if Eddie was okay with you staying for the night then might as well.

“okay, i’ll stay. Do you have any extra clothes I can borrow?”

Eddie heads to his room to get you an oversized T-shirt and some loose pajama pants and hands them to you.

“You can get changed for bed in the bathroom, I’m going to put Maggie in her room.”

You headed to the bathroom to change looking at yourself in the mirror and washing all of your makeup off. You headed out to the living room and notice Eddie making up the couch. “Thank you, but I could’ve done that” you tell him not wanting to be too much of a burden.

“Y/n you already cleaned up the whole house the least I could do was make my own bed.”

“Your bed?”

“Yeah, i’m going to sleep out here you can take my room.”

“I can’t do that, you’re already letting me stay, I can’t take your room too.”

“If my uncle ever found out I let a beautiful woman sleep on this old couch while I slept comfortably in my bed he would flip.”

You silently thanked Eddie for the change of clothes and for letting you stay in his room for the night. You walked into Eddie’s room and layer in his bed and admired all of the art on his walls his guitar he used to play in high school. You wondered if he still played, you quickly fell asleep in his soft and warm bed.

A boom of thunder rang through the trailer and you shot up in the bed startled. You were so terrified of the storm you could not bring yourself to go back to bed. You got out of bed and slowly walked trying not to make the floor creek. You finally made your way to the kitchen and read the clock on the wall 3:30am. You slowly opened the fridge and took out the milk and grabbed a cup out of the cabinet and quietly poured the milk into the cup. Just as you were about to put the glass into the microwave you heard Eddie’s groggy voice.

“can’t sleep?”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you”

“Sweetheart, I’ve been up, don’t worry you didn’t wake me”

“so, you saw me creep into the kitchen?”

“yup.”

You began your walk of shame back into Eddie’s room when you heard him ask.

“Do you want to watch a movie?”

“sure”

“I don’t have many, but I have a couple I rented from Family Video and never returned.”

You chuckled at his statement and begin looking through his collection of VHS tapes. Most of the movies were Maggie’s and they’re were a couple of horror and slasher movies, but what caught your eye was a cute romcom you would’ve never imagined Eddie to have. “When Harry Met Sally?” you questioned as you held up the tape.

“Hey, it was on the new release shelf, i didn’t pick it on purpose!”

“yeah right”

“I SWEAR! i’ve never seen that movie before.”

“You sound mighty defensive right now, Edward” you say to him in a disbelieving tone as you slide the tape into the VCR. You went to press play when you notice the movie was already halfway through. You glanced at Eddie who looked defeated. “It’s okay to admit you like romcoms, Eddie. I still think you’re a hardcore badass.”

“You think i’m a hardcore badass?”

“of course I do”

You rewind and start the movie and sit down next to Eddie on the couch. If you were being honest this was the most comfortable you’ve ever felt in your entire life. Eddie wrapped his arm around you and pulled you close to his side. Your whole body stiffened at the sweet side of Eddie. Eddie must’ve noticed because he whispered in your ear.

“Calm down, Princess. I wont bite unless you ask me too.”

Your whole face was red and hot at this point. You and Eddie stayed like this until the end of the movie when Eddie said.

“Love like this doesn’t exist in real life.”

“You think so?”

“I know so, if it did I wouldn’t be 24 raising a 3 year old by myself.”

“Maybe you just haven’t met the right woman yet.”

Eddie looked down into your eyes and said.

“Tell me, Princess. Have you met the right man yet.”

You shrugged. “I mean no one has ever showed me love like this.” you said as you pointed to the screen. The end credits finally rolled and Eddie looked at you and said.

“Can I tell you something?”

“Yeah”

“You’re the most beautiful woman i’ve ever seen, since the day you walked into Tape World I couldn’t take my eyes off of you.”

“Edward Munson, you better not be playing with my emotions right now.”

“ I promise you y/n, I’ve never been more serious in my entire life. I want to get to know you on that deep ooey gooey personal level. I want to know all your strengths and weaknesses. I want to know what you’re favorite food, holiday, and movie is. I want to be the person you come to when nobody else can help. Y/n I want to be the right man for you.”

You could not believe what Eddie just said. You were out of words all you thought of was smashing your lips onto his, so that’s exactly what you did. You felt his plump lips connecting with yours in the perfect way. You cupped his face in your hands and felt the stubble that decorated his jaw. When you finally pulled away you said.

“ I want to be the right woman for you too, Eddie.”

[dantetel1028]

Q!fit design 

Ok so I haven’t been able to dray him yet so I’m just gonna describe the bitch

Physical appearance 

Ok so he has a lot of scars a good amount of them of them are old and gnarled due to most of them being from 2b2t and only a couple of them are fresh. one of my many Minecraft hc’s is that the players only keep the scars if they are the cause of death and since he hasn’t died on the QSMP much he doesn’t have a lot of new scars 

One of his bigger scars is from a explosion incident and the scar is on his left side(right if we drawing it) and it is on his head and ripped up some parts of his mechanical arm 

Fitmc is a crocodile hybrid. I was given this idea by someone on here can holy shit I can’t get it out of my head. He has a crocodile scales on his back and sholders closer to the spine and some scales on his head and on his arms

I like to think he has funky eyes, like they are just cool looking (might change them into more crocodile-esk eyes but for now they cloudy and hazel)

(Ignore how the hands are switched and I also don’t have the energy to try and make it look like crocodile skin)

Clothes

Quesadilla island is supposed to be a tropical resort island so I am assuming it’s hot, and so fit is wearing a take top. But he had to make it himself out of an old t-shirt that he used to wear under his normal jacket (i hc that 2b2t is cold despite the lava everywhere) ma he ripped the sleeve off the shirt making it into a tank top 

He wears his signature bandanna (mainly to match Ramon) but it has several stains on it (dust, dirt, oil, blood)

His pants are just some raggedy ass baggy jeans BUT he ha sewn his own extra pockets into them to where they are these weird cargo jeans and like the bandanna they have many stains on them

so I drew him with an eyepatch and at first it was just an excuse for me to not draw the other eye but…what if the eyepatch is fake and it’s actually a tech thing and that’s how he can take screenshots and such 

He also has a brown satchel that has many patches on it, there are pins but the line the inside because they might get in the way and get caught on stuff and he can’t afford that

And that is all! (for now)

[ryttu3k]

Queen Rock Montreal at IMAX? Queen Rock Montreal at IMAX!! Some assorted thoughts:

Some parts were definitely 'yes, this was recorded in 1981', but most, damn, held up very well.

Their energy was I n s a n e. Freddie's sheer charisma and ability to hold an audience more than thirty years after his death is just... yeah, he's a legend. Also Roger was going all out, I'm legit surprised he didn't snap a drumstick.

Loved the staging! There were a couple of moments where they went nuts with solos (including Roger doing a surprisingly melodic solo on timpani) and lighting and just... goddamn cool as hell.

Love Deacy just looking at everyone else in black and white with a few pops of primary colours and going. Actually. I'm going head to toe blue.

Relatedly, Brian May I am coming for your wardrobe.

The Red Special is one of the most distinctive-sounding guitars on the planet, isn't it?

Very amused at how Freddie ended up wearing less and less as the concert went on. Starts with white jeans, Superman tank top, leather jacket, wristband, sneakers. Two songs later, jacket is gone. Two songs after that, tank top is gone. Eventually ends up in white booty shorts, white cap, red scarf, and red wristband. Then the cap goes. Then the scarf goes... Was starting to get concerned for the kids in the audience!

Listen I am asexual and primarily aesthetically attracted to feminine and androgynous people but turns out even I am Not Immune To Freddie Mercury. I can only assume anyone there actually attracted to masc people walked out pregnant. That is charisma.

One minor sour point, would have loved the audience to have got more into it. Sing along! Clap! This is the closest thing we have to seeing Queen at their height! Live a little!

In conclusion, Freddie's legs (see: booty shorts) have given me gender envy.

[cosmic-m-b]

Hey. It’s been a while.

I’m back because I wanted a low stakes place to talk about gender. Too many people I know IRL are on my other platforms, so I came here.

I have been using the label, “nonbinary” for about 2 years? Maybe a little longer? And this year I finally understood that gender =/= presentation (as it applies to myself—I have known this about others for a while). I present fairly femininely, and even prefer to look feminine over looking androgynous or masculine, so I tied that into how I felt about gender, even though on the inside I feel fairly genderless. This summer I had that epiphany and started using they/she pronouns. I will likely go full send into they/them at some point because it does appeal to me, but for now while I’m still learning to reconcile my appearance with my gender, they/she works perfectly for me.

It has recently come to my attention, however, that I am a little uncomfortable with my name. I wouldn’t say it’s dysphoria (if after I describe my feelings someone tells me that it is, I will believe them), but it is discomfort.

I never had a problem with my name growing up. I don’t know if I ever really liked it, but I was used to it and it was mine. However, since figuring out a little more about my gender (which has and will likely continue to evolve), I am uncomfortable with such a feminine name. And I think that’s mainly because once someone hears it, whether in full-length form or my nickname, they immediately assume she/her pronouns. Most of the time, unless I’m wearing clothes with rainbows, I am not visibly queer. My fashion sense most days resembles that of a teenage boy, but in the most basic way. (T-shirts, jeans, and vans or converse) I don’t bind my chest, so I have a very feminine shape regardless of what I wear. (I do have a denim jacket with a pronoun patch on the sleeve, but I don’t really feel like that is enough.)

So anyway, I’m trying to come up with a new name for myself. I don’t know if I will ever go through the process of changing it legally, but I want something new to call myself that will better reflect how I want to be perceived.

I want to keep my initials as they are, in part because I’m a huge nerd and they fit my niche interests, but also because they feel like a big part of me, so I’m thinking about taking the name, “Corvus Mars,” and going by “Crow.”

In theory this is a fairly gender-neutral name. (Mars is arguably masculine but it just sounds so cool that I can’t let it go just yet.) My brain keeps worrying that the name might be too masculine or that people won’t take it seriously. I know my mom won’t, at least at first. I literally can’t imagine her calling me anything other than my given name, but that’s mostly because I have had it for 29 years. I also worry about my siblings thinking it’s stupid. I know that they would use it, but I can’t help but worry about them rolling their eyes when I tell them.

I also worry that I’m not cool enough to pull off a gender neutral name. It is yet another thing that I’m not “allowed” to do. (My brain has weird specific rules based on literally nothing. For example, I also wasn’t, “allowed” to identify as nonbinary or convert to Judaism. I obviously got over both of those.)

Anyway, if anyone wants to send some words of encouragement, it would be appreciated. I think most of my followers on here are bots now, but if any human soul is still around, feel free to comment.

[mysticbeaver]

2, 6, 7, 8, 14, 15, 18, 19 for Eddy (I know I'm too late, but I would like to know, please).

Thanks for the ask!!! No worries about it being late:) Good to chat (even if I talk a load of bologna 😁)

Under the cut

2.Favorite canon thing about this character?

Because I can't think of anything better right now, I'll say his seemingly vintage taste in music. Although maybe it ties in with everything he owns being vintage hand-me-downs. And on second thought, it's hard to say if Barry White and Tom Jones are supposed to be old-school in-universe, considering the kids' idea of party music is 60s surf rock haha.

6.What's something you have in common with this character?

You know, I always think I'm mostly an Ed and an Edd, but then I think "maybe we all have the three Eds deep down inside of us 😁" guess I sometimes like to imagine situations in which I could be a show off/be funny in front of an audience... A very Eddy desire.

7.What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

I always love older fanart of him just having that slightly disheveled look and maybe smoking a cigarette, looking cool 😁 makes me imagine him with that slightly chiller demeanor (assuming he grows out some of his temper and controls his euphoria whenever he's got some big idea hehe)

8.What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

Boring answer, but like everyone else I have not much interest in negative adult Eddy portrayals where the creator blatantly doesn't take the BPS developments into account. Give this kid a chance for chrissakes! Thankfully this is limited to some more, ahem, 'casual' fans 👀

14. Fashion aesthetic for this character.

In my lack of fashion sense, I'm just gonna mention a picture in my mind...leather jacket? (Maybe because of @torra-and-the-toons 's design?) Coupled with worn baggy jeans...

And is it weird I can see Eddy looking good in that sweater/collar-shirt combo if he were to dress more elegant? I swear I've seen it somewhere in fanart. Or him just wearing a hoodie... Is there look Eddy can't pull off??? Talk about a stubby no-neck chump 😎

15. Favorite ship?

It's... EddEddy, isn't it. Interestingly, it was never my OTP, and I wasn't interested in it when I first got in the fandom, but I slowly made myself learn to appreciate it. Nowadays it's certainly a ship I "default" to with those two characters. On the other hand I once went through a KevEddy phase... I still have a soft spot for it (no doubt thanks to lovely fanart by @mar-saturn and @chocowhomps ). It's also very interesting to me that there's at least 3 people I know of currently in the fandom (or who were actively in the fandom in the last year or so) who managed to ship both EddEddy and KevEddy, mmm 🧐...

18. Relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

First thing that comes to mind is his brief mentoring of Jimmy, even if it's a negative influence. "They grow up so fast... *dries tear*" And his one-on-one friendship with Ed is interesting to think about, especially how it might have started considering Edd supposedly came a little later in the picture (not by much though as they were still very young)

Also his crush on Nazz is kinda cute... I headcanon they'll be easy friends once they're a little older :)

19. Relationship they have in canon with another character that you don't like?

Honestly I'm stumped! Can't think of anyone right now haha. Maybe his disrespect of Rolf's culture/hospitality, if that's a thing? But I can't say if that's necessarily despicable or just part of the character's writing in certain episodes, or what.

Thanks for the ask again!