#the diner—iykyk

[lnfours]

focal point ☆ chapter 5 | l.n

summary: oh damn, never seen that color blue…

warnings: art student!reader, best friend/college student!oscar, college student!lando, slight enemies to lovers!au, slight grumpy x sunshine, some more filler (IM SORRY ITS FOR THE PLOT!!!!!), fluff (EEKK!!!!), subtle foreshadowing, unedited as fuck, and hints at a strained family relationship (trauma!!)

message from jordan: hi everyone! long time no see, huh? 😅 i'm so sorry for being mia and for not updating this series in so long, i decided to take a small break from almost all socials. but don't worry, we're back and better than ever <3 as always, thank you for being so patient with me. i hope this chapter is worth the wait!! see you soon, for real this time :) - p.s i hope you enjoy that taylor swift reference in the summary, cause, iykyk 🙂‍↕️

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“hellloooo earth to oscar!”

it was no use. this was the third time he had unintentionally interrupted your conversation to respond to a text. all while doing so with a giddy smile, one you had never seen light up his face quite like this one did.

you had come over right after class, the two of you agreeing to hang out and catch up. it had been a while since it had just been the two of you hanging out, the inevitable busy schedules really hitting hard during your last semester. you missed your best friend.

missed meaning past tense. because although he was your best friend, right now, you wanted to snap his neck.

"oscar jack piastri!"

"oh- sorry," he mumbled the same apology for the third time this afternoon, "sorry, i was just texting someone. it's nothing, what were we talking about?"

you gave him a blank stare, "were you texting your secret girlfriend?"

you noticed the way his eyes widened a little upon mentioning the word ‘girlfriend’, "okay, one, she's not my girlfriend. and two, no. i was texting max."

and for the four years you've known oscar piastri, you could always tell when he was lying. and this time, he was lying right to your face.

you decided to play along with his game, letting him think he won this time. so you hummed, nodding your head, "okay, fine, if you say so."

"i'm sorry," he apologized again, locking his phone and placing it face down on the kitchen counter, "you have my full attention now, promise. what were you saying?"

"i was telling you about last week."

"right, with lando and the diner thing, right?" he asked and you hummed, taking a piece of popcorn from the bowl in between the two of you, "wait a minute, how'd you go from hating his guts and it being unbearable to be within 5 feet of him to 'oh my god he took me to breakfast'?"

"you know that party lily practically dragged me to?" when he nodded you spoke again, "apparently i really suck at beer pong and he helped me back to the apartment and helped lily take care of me. it was really sweet, actually."

he smiled softly before letting out a quiet snort, "sorry, just never thought i'd hear you say the words 'lando' and 'sweet' in the same sentence."

"i'm serious!" you sighed, pouting ever so slightly.

"no, i know!" he laughed softly, "it's just... you're just now finding out what i've been trying to tell you for the longest time? that he's actually a really good dude?"

you bit down on your lower lip softly, "i didn't really give him a chance, huh?"

"not really, no," he chuckled softly, "but it's okay. he didn't exactly help out his own case either, in all honesty."

you nodded in agreement, the front door to the apartment creaking open. you both turned to see lando kicking off his shoes, placing his keys on the hook by the door.

he smiled at you and oscar, "hey,"

"hey," oscar smiled, answering for you as well as you took in his appearance. messy curls, tight black t-shirt, grey sweatpants, duffel bag on his shoulder and a soft glow on his skin, you could tell he had just gotten back from the gym.

arms. biceps. veins. god, you should probably speak before you embarrass yourself...

it was too late though, he had already seen the way your eyes traveled over his body. he decided to put the mental note in the back of his mind for now, instead checking the watch on his wrist.

"oh shit, i didn't mean to keep you waiting, y/n."

you tapped your phone screen, looking at the time. it was 4:35, just five minutes passed when you said you'd meet up. it really wasn't a big deal. you didn't even know it had gotten that late already.

"no, no, it's fine. didn't even notice, if i'm honest," you smiled and he sent you a smile back. oscar watched the two of you like a tennis match, cheekily grinning at the counter.

"i have some of those papers you had me work on the other day, they're in my room if you wanna..."

"oh- yeah! yeah, sure," you smiled, grabbing your things as oscar silently laughed at the way you acted around his roommate. how you were unintentionally tripping and stumbling over your own feet and your words, how lovestruck you became.

you followed lando to his room, placing your things down and taking a seat on the edge of his bed as he looked through his closet for a change of clothes, "i'm just gonna shower real quick, make yourself at home, though."

you smiled, nodding his way as he closed the door behind him. after all this time, you had never thought you'd see the other side of this door. his room was slightly messy, due to his busy schedule and his active lifestyle. posters of cars and, seemingly, his favorite video games hanging on the walls. the bookshelf that sat in the corner of the room was littered with different textbooks at the bottom and little die cast models of his favorite cars, along with a few formula one cars that you had recognized. the top shelf stood out the most to you, though.

a picture frame of him and who you had assumed to be his family. a family photo taken during christmas, all of them dressed in matching pajamas. a big happy family.

the photo, for whatever reason, brought tears to your eyes. a smile on your face as you sniffled quietly, putting the photo frame back down on it's designated shelf.

the door opened, causing you to turn around as he closed the door behind him, "sorry, i figured you'd prefer if i didn't smell like a guy's locker-room."

you laughed softly, wiping away the small tear that came from your eye, "god, yeah,"

"hey," he said, sitting down on the bed beside you, immediately disregarding the notebook he was grabbing beforehand, "what's wrong? you okay?"

you nodded, waving a hand dismissively, "yeah, yeah, i'm fine. i just- for whatever reason, when i looked at that picture of you and your family it just uhm..."

he patiently waited for you to finish your sentence, "it just brought back some feelings that i wish it hadn't, that's all."

"fuck, i'm so sorry," he said.

"no, no," you shook your head, "you don't have to apologize, if anything i should be the one who's apologizing."

"you don't have to apologize for having emotions."

you smiled softly, feeling another tear fall from the corner of your eye. this time, he gently brought his hand up to your face, his thumb brushing over your cheek as he wiped it away.

the action made you breathless, as if the way he was looking into your eyes hadn't already. a mysterious color you couldn't quite put your finger on. it was a mix between blue, green and grey.

whatever it was, it was gorgeous and captivating at the same time.

you cleared your throat, the two of you moving away from the gap that had slowly been closing. your fingers untwisting themselves from his, you growing flushed at the fact that you had, at some point, interlocked your fingers with his unknowingly.

"sorry," you mumbled softly.

"'m sorry," he said at the same time. you both shared a soft and awkward chuckle before he grabbed his notebook from behind him.

"so, i had a few questions about chapter 15."

"go on," you said, studying his side profile as he explained the areas he was having trouble with. pretty tanned skin littered with freckles and moles, curls that perfectly kissed the skin on the back of his neck and his forehead.

the sentence lily had said to you last week repeating itself into your brain:

“...and it’s not like i don’t see the way he looks at you. he definitely is feeling something he doesn’t want to show just yet,”

oh, fuck.

[nevernonline]

✧.* he's all that; lsm mini series

✧.*synopsis: every year the kappa sorority hosted a 'hot or not' greek life pageant show. you've luckily escaped having to bring your own "nottie" to give a makeover to and train in hopes of winning a big prize for the rest of your crew. but, just when you thought your lucky streak was going strong your name get's chosen as a representative and your sisters had just the guy for you to make over.

part of my seventeen movie series. 

paring: seokmin x reader (y/n uses she/her pronouns.) 

genre/s: fluff, strangers2lvrs, neighbors2lvrs or whatever.  

warning/s: alcohol mentions, swearing, cigarette mentions, swearing, some pg-13 jokes. no funny business iykyk. lots of mean girls (rip)

word count: 4.2k

note: im notorious atp for not editing, pls. this edition of nmm is inspired by a true classic she's all that (w/ a bit of greek the tv show/sydney white energy if any of u have ever seen ALSO classics, this was supposed to be one part, BUT! I feel myself getting so carried away so … three parts.) i was going to post my gwag update today but im gonna wait till either tomorrow or Tuesday <3.

beginning ▸ middle ▸ end.

Y/n was dreading the meeting she walked through the front doors of the sorority for this afternoon, the pageant. Kappa and all the other sororities on Greek row participated in what they call ‘Hot or Not’ every year since supposedly the 1980’s something her now head sister Heather claims was started by the legacy that was her mother. Which maybe was true, but y/n could never figure out why it mattered? And while it was fun it was a little bit old school.

“Hey, girls. Everyone settled in? We have a very exciting tradition here at Kappa as you may know.”

The cheers rang through the sitting room, with its white walls, pale pink carpets, and sherpa couches, the cheers and claps of girls hoping Heather draws their name from the glass bowl with her perfectly manicured finger tips.

“Yes. It’s so exciting, we have a few new faces so since you haven’t been a part of this week in past years we left you out of the bowl, but we will have many things for you to participate in this week. Like dine and dash, our famous Good as Gold party, and of course judging the competition at the end of the week. Before we get to the drawing, I wanted to congratulate our last year's winner, Suni. Give it up for her.”

Smiling, y/n clapped along with the other girls, giving Suni her flowers. About to step out behind the two french doors to grab a water or something to drink, when you hear Heather call your name loudly. All of your other sisters and friends spinning around watching her looking like she was attempting to escape the reality of her name being the one chosen after three years of getting out of it.

“y/n! Finally, Come back here, girly.”

Walking through the clapping crown y/n took her place next to the blonde and pretended to smile with excitement as her gut was telling her it was absolutely the worst day of her life.

The only reason y/n was in this sorority was to get extra college credits, that and Heather and her mother met here and have been friends since that very day. Heather was obsessed with being a legacy and clawing her way to the top of the food chain at the university. Y/n was just there for the ride.

“Everyone, you all obviously know my very good friend and our smartest sister, y/n. I personally have been waiting for the day she got chosen out of this bowl. It’s something our moms, co-vp’s of their 1980’s class of Kappas have been talking about for years. So I’m just as excited as I’m sure y/n is to be our guiding light to another victory this year. Anything to say, y/n?”

“Uh, not really, you said it all.”

Another big fake smile appeared on her face. Laughing and giggling at all the congratulations coming her way.

“Girls, before we enjoy our lunch. Don’t forget tonight is dine and dash, please find your dates and bring them to Carol’s Diner at 8pm. See you there.”

Checking the time on your phone you had roughly 45 minutes before your lecture and enough time to take off the gaudy Kappa logo’d sweater you had to put on for what Heather calls “official business.”

“Y/n what are you checking the time for? We have a lot to do today.”

“I have a class in 40 minutes, I have to go back and change.”

“I don’t get why you won't just move back in here with us?”

“I told you, Heather. I can't. I have to focus on getting into Med School and no offense to you or the other girls, but this isn’t exactly the best place for me to focus when I have to study.”

“Med School can wait just one day right? We have to set up the table at Carol’s and set up for the party later. Would you mind going with the new girl Sam to grab the alcohol? And then you can meet me back here and we will go to the diner together. I’m going to have the girls go out and look for some Nottie’s for you today before that whale from Delta picks them all up. “

“No, but-”

“Thank you! Love you!”

“Also her name is not Sam, It’s Soyeon.”

“Okay got it, toodleoo.”

Searching the house for the person and so called new girl, Sam you stumbled upon her sitting out on the back patio writing in her journal.

“Soyeon?”

“Oh, hey y/n.

“Hey, sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“No, you didn’t. I’m just so used to everyone calling me Sam I forget people know that it’s actually not.”

“Yeah, it took Heather a whole year to not call Suni, Sunny and everyone just kind of follows her suit.”

“I thought you had class? I didn’t know you were still here.”

“I do. It’s just a lecture on the importance of mammograms and breast cancer research so, I guess it’s okay. I can just find it somewhere online.”

“Ready to head out?”

“Would you hate me if we stopped at my dorm? I cannot wear this fucking sweater for more than an hour or I may spontaneously combust.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to be seen with you in public while you’re wearing that.”

“I appreciate your honesty.”

“You should.”

Y/n and Soyeon escaped the general excitement of the rest of the girls by escaping out the outdoor gate and walked viciously together to change the heinous sweater on y/n’s back.

Turning the corner to finally reach the hall her single dorm room lived at the end of, she ran into a tall boy who’s books scattered all across the floor, a boy she had never once run into literally and physically.

“I'm so sorry.”

“No, no I’m sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

“You’re y/n right?”

“Yes? Why?”

“Oh, no. Nothing like that. I live across the hall from you. I see your name tag on your door all the time and all the photos of you from all your friends. Which now that I’m talking makes me sound like even more of a weirdo? I’m sorry. I’m Seokmin, my friends call me DK or Dokyeom , whatever. And now I’m rambling, please stop me.”

“No, you’re okay. Can we at least just get off the floor now?”

“Yes.”

Seokmin or Dokyeom whatever his real name actually is, crawled off the floor and stuck his hand out to you for assistance pulling your pink colored body off the floor.

“This is my friend, Soyeon.”

“Sorority sisters?”

“Wait. How’d you know? Oh, fuck the sweater. Don’t tell anyone you saw me wearing this, I know where you live.”

“Don’t worry, I never will. But, sorry to uh, cut this meeting short I have to get to class. I’ll see you again, I’m sure. Bye, nice meeting you y/n. And you too, Soyeon.”

“Bye.”

In unison you and Soyeon watched the tall boy walk towards the elevators. Both of you have differing expressions of looks on your face, one of pure enjoyment watching the awkward interaction and one of pure dumbfoundedness.

“He’s cute.”

Soyeon brought you out of staring at the boy walking away and stepping into the elevator, throwing his fingers up waving goodbye while clutching his mounds of books in his hands.

“What?”

“I said he’s cute and he’s your neighbor. Lucky girl.”

“Oh. Yeah, I can’t believe I’ve never met him before.”

“Why don’t you ask him out?”

“We just met. Plus, I’m busy with school and now this stupid pageant. I don’t have time for cute boys.”

“I’m sure you can make it work.”

Unlocking your door and letting Soyeon in before you so you can sneak a peek at his front door in front of yours. Plain, just a few funny messages and cute stickers of tangerines and tigers pasted on his whiteboard. Maybe he already has a girlfriend? But a boy like that with that many books is probably much like you and had no time for dating.

“Wait. Y/N your room is so nice? Maybe I should move out of the house. It’s loud as fuck anyway.”

“Why are you in the sorority? I’m not judging because I was basically dragged into it too. I’m just curious?”

“My mom always wanted me to join. She said it’s a good way to find friends, I always had a hard time making them. So I figured why not?”

“Got it. Makes sense.”

“What about you? You also don’t serve sorority girl to me.”

“Because my mom also got me to join, that’s actually how I know Heather. Our moms were co-captains of the sorority at some point in the 80’s.”

“Oh, so you’ve known her your whole life?”

“Mhm.”

“No offense or anything, but she’s… kind of a bitch.”

“Kind of? It’s only gotten worse since she’s been in charge. She was okay when we were younger, but you know.”

Slipping out of your jeans and sweater, you threw on a black pair of pleated pants and a loose white button down.

“Also you have tattoos and a sick body, stop dressing like an old woman.”

“I could never pull off what you wear? You’re so cool and confident.”

“Promise me. One party this year you’ll let me pick out something to wear?”

“Okay.”

“You’re very trusting.”

“What? You’re going to make me wear a hot pink dress and try to dye my hair blonde too?”

“Hell no.”

“Exactly.”

Hours passed on as you were getting to know Soyeon more, a part of you realized what you had been missing meeting girls outside of your own circle at school.

People who share your interests and enjoy talking about things other than clothes, shoes, and boys.

It was actually the least stressed you’ve been around someone at the sorority in a long time. Almost like a breath of fresh air.

Getting out of the Uber you took filled to the brim with alcohol and snacks, you were back at the big White House at the end of the street. Not a flaw in sight. Almost like it wasn’t a real reality.

“Should we ditch the diner? We could always go see my friend play at the bar across campus instead?”

“I would love nothing more, but Heather will have my head shaved or something.”

“Okay, well when we ditch later we can head there.”

“It’s a date.”

“Ew, you’re so corny. Save it for your new lover boy across the hall.”

“Shut up.”

Soyeon and you laughed, dragging the last box up the stairs into the foyer of the house. Met with the blonde at the bottom of the stairs.

“There you guys are! I was going to send a search and rescue team to come for you if you didn’t show up soon.”

“We got a little distracted. Sorry.”

“No problem. You’re here now, Sam go up and get ready, I’ll help y/n from here.”

“Okay.”

Soyeon or Sam, picked her poison and shoved down Heather still calling her by the wrong name and walked up to her room to change and get ready for the rest of her night. While you were stuck unpacking the boxes.

“Y/n. Don’t forget to look out for the boys everyone brings tonight. We can pick one from the litter for your Nottie.”

“Look, Heather-“

“I know what you’re going to say and don’t even think about asking me if you can drop out of the pageant, okay?”

“I just don’t think it’s worth it or fair anymore, why don’t we just get the other frat guys to do it? Like Mingyu or Wonwoo, Johnny? I don’t know. I don’t want to make anyone feel uncomfortable.”

“You raise a good point. And it gives me an idea.”

“Which is?”

“We have the other frats competing too, we’ll get more payout and the three uglies will be more profitable than ever for us. You’re so smart.”

“That’s not wha-“

“Ah! I’m so lucky to have you. I’ll let everyone know.”

Heather bounced off into the other room, texting rapidly with her manicured hands on her cell phone, making the fire bigger.

With your head spinning around and around you don’t even remember walking your way to the diner waiting for the freshman girls to bring their guys along to the large table set for someone’s embarrassment.

Taking a seat near the end of the table next to Soyeon and Heather on your other side, you sat and sipped at the Diet Coke in front of you, feeling your mix of anxiety and angel swirling in your stomach and begging for something a little stronger.

“Are you feeling okay?”

Soyeon leaned over and whispered into your ear, seeing the look on your face and noticing your obvious quietness.

“I’ll tell you after.”

“Okay, if you want to go early, let me know.”

“I will”

Heather had her vulture eyes on, waiting to see which she would inevitably have embarrassed by the groups around you with no remorse.

She looked into your eyes and signaled to a cute shy boy across the table, sitting and picking at his nails, making it clear she had made her mark.

“Let me use the bathroom first okay?”

“Yeah, of course. You wouldn’t want to miss it.”

“Right.”

Walking briskly into the old blue stalls in the bathroom, which you didn't even really have to use, but just needed an excuse to go somewhere and release your anxiety.

“Y/n? Hey. Y/n?”

Seeing Soyeon’s platform heels under the bottom of the stall door you jumped up and swung your head out of the blue metal.

“What?”

“Remember that guy you met today?”

“Yes, of course why?”

“He’s here.”

“Someone brought him?”

“No. He’s here with his two friends and Heather invited them to the table. One of them is that dude that’s friends with Mingyu with the that acts like a tiger, the hot nerdy one, and the other one is just some hot short buff guy, never seen him before. Anyway, We either have to get out of here right now or stay and hide in here until they're gone.” L

“Why don’t we just go-“

“No. I don’t want him to think you’re a bitch? Are you crazy? You can’t go dunking on nerds in front of three hot dudes?”

“Okay let’s go.”

As the two of you tried to make your exit from the ladies room you heard commotion outside in the dining room, so you both slipped back quickly into the bathroom, locking the door for some reason as you head the chairs scooting and the bell ringing meaning people were slipping out on one of the boys at the table.

“You think they're gone?”

“Yeah. I hear the sink running in the men’s room, come on.”

As you walked out of the bathroom in front of you Seokmin was sitting at the table covered in a turkey club sandwich looking at the long tab Heather left for him.

“Hey, what are you doing here?”

“Your ‘sisters’ dumped a sandwich on me and left the tab? Do you guys do this a lot?”

“It’s just some stupid shit Heather came up with when she became president. Me and y/n were hiding in the bathroom so we could come and pay the tab. But, you got to it first.”

“Right.”

Not saying anything and standing in your tracks cold, you watched as Soyeon took the check from his hands and waved you on to help him as she went up to pay.

“She dumped her food on you?”

“Yeah, my friends and I were just coming for takeout. I saw Soyeon so I went to say hi and she wanted to come get you. But the blonde girl,”

“Heather.”

“Yeah, Heather. She told me to sit down for a second and my friends went back to their dorm so they could keep studying and deliver food to some other guys. She was okay at first, but once Soyeon left she dumped her soda and sandwich on me and when I came back they were all gone.”

“I’m so sorry? Let me get you dry cleaning money or something.”

“No, don’t worry about it. I can handle it. I’m glad you two were here though, I don’t have my wallet on me. Are you okay though? Have you been crying?”

“I’m fine, just had a moment.”

The small black haired girl popped back over, tucking her card back into her wallet and smiling at the two of you sitting and talking with Seokmin covered in an orange beverage, a little bit of lettuce stuck in his hair.

“Want to come to a party?”

“If it’s at the sorority then sorry, no thanks.”

“No. It’s just some of my friends from the music department. They’re playing a show at O’Malley’s.”

“I don’t think orange soda is really a good look for a party.”

“That’s okay, y/n has to go change too. You guys just meet me there? I’m going to head out and get us a table.”

“Well I do owe you guys both a drink. So, sure.”

“Oh, and Seokmin?”

“Yeah?”

“Make sure y/n actually comes back out, she’s hard to get her hands on.”

“Of course.”

Walking back to your somewhat shared dorm, you and Seokmin walked in silence past greek row, watching all the girls running around to get ready for a greeting ceremony to the frat houses as escorts to their party.

The boy looked at you up and down, imagining you inside one of those grand houses gossiping and dishing on sister life just trying to figure out why you joined in the first place, your friend included.

Reaching your destination with only smiles and small giggles shared between the two of you on the walk over, you both slid into your dorm rooms and found clothes that were far more suitable for a night out.

You noticed the black tank top Soyeon had pointed out before and slid it on, matching it with a pair of dark ripped jeans and your go-to loafers, sliding back into the hallway, finding Seokmin on the other side of the door waiting for you.

He was somehow on your wavelength wearing an oversized black t-shirt and jeans.

“I figured I should try to match Soyeon's aesthetic somehow.”

“Me too. You look nice, I like your shoes.”

“Thank you.”

“Shall we?”

“Yes. I definitely need a drink.”

“So, y/n what is your drink of choice.”

“Anything strong and not sweet.”

“Oh, so not me then.”

“Shut up.”

Seokmin made you laugh, there was no way a boy like him was not taken or at least could be interested in you.

“Have you and Soyeon been friends for long? You guys seem close.”

“Actually, not really. We hung out for the first time today. I mean, I’ve seen her at parties and stuff, but she’s sort of been like a breath of fresh air for me.”

“Really? I’m surprised by that. Why are you in the sorority anyway? You don’t exactly have the same.. Vibe? Or whatever as the other girls. Especially the ones I met today.”

“My mom. The girl. Heather. Soda spiller, her mom and mine were friends when we were kids, they're legacy members. So I just thought it would be fun, but now.. I don’t feel that way.”

“Can’t you just quit?”

“I guess.”

“Why don’t you want to?”

“I guess I just want to be someone who sees things through. I also can’t offer Heather the satisfaction of knowing I left.”

“She really is that bad huh?”

“Worse. It’s a long story. Can we table it?”

“Of course.”

Reaching the door of the bar, you caught a glimpse of Soyeon’s shoulder tattoo near the stage, through the large crowd of people mingling.

“Go. I’ll order us drinks and meet you there?”

“You sure?”

“You said you needed it right?”

“What about your wallet?”

“Apple pay, y/n. Duh.”

“Your ID?”

“My friend is the bartender, just go.”

“So sassy.”

Walking your way through the crowd by pushing yourself through other bodies you finally reach the girl on the other side and wrap your arm around her waist as a hello.

“What the- Oh my god, you actually came? You look so hot. I’m proud.”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“It’s fine. Where’s the puppy?”

“At the bar grabbing drinks.”

“On the leash already? You’re good.”

“No. He’s just nice.”

“True. But, he also likes you.”

“I don’t think it’s like that, but maybe someday you’ll tell me I told you so.”

“I look forward to it. I saved you guys a table.”

“My girl.”

Soyeon gestured her long manicured fingers behind you, noticing the boy making his way with two glasses in his hands and another tall figure following behind him holding a tray with various things on top.

“Hi, Soyeon.”

“Hi, Keom. Thank you for joining us. Who’s the glasses?”

“My friend Wonwoo, he works here, well he just got off. Is it cool if he joins us?”

“Of course.”

“Nice to meet you, Wonwoo. I’m y/n.”

“Hey.”

“So. Since I didn’t get to ask Soyeon what she wanted and I wasn’t entirely sure what you liked. We brought over options. But, we have to finish them all because Wonwoo was nice enough to gift them to us and it’s unfair to not accept gifts.”

“Very charming.”

You made your second flirty comment of the night to Seokmin, even though your sober self normally isn’t entirely as bold as you find yourself being with him now. But, in all fairness you were just trying to catch his vibe. He didn’t respond verbally, but just scrunched his nose in your direction almost as if he was letting you know that he’s interested.

“First, a simple vodka soda, little lemon, then just a couple of beer options, this is a sour, this is just a simple light beer, and an ipa, which ew, but I think Wonwoo likes, some tequila shots and some lemon drop shots, also a whiskey soda and a jack and coke, and then a uh, gin and tonic i think? Right, Woo?”

“Yeah, maybe you should be the bartender, Seokmin.”

“I have other talents.”

All eight of your hands reach every which way around the table and end up with different drinks sat in front of them, you beelined for the vodka and the sour beer, Soyeon went for the whiskey soda and the tequila, Seokmin for the gin and tonic and light beer, and Wonwoo for the jack and coke and the ipa.

“Who wants what shot?”

Soyeon dipped her arm back to the middle of the table covering her eyes with her opposite hand, grabbing a hold of the small glasses very carefully and placing them around the small group.

“There. Decided for you, me and Wonwoo get tequila and you and Seokmin get lemon.”

Smiling widely at your friend next to you, you grabbed a hold of the shot glass and held it up signaling everyone to cheers. Which they all happily obliged.

Soon after the alcohol was going through your bloodstream the band started playing their music that hit you right in the chest, songs about living your life to the fullest and choosing your own path, much to your surprise Soyeon was the one who wrote the music that spoke to your soul.

After the set ended, Wonwoo and Soyeon wanted to stay back and have a few more drinks to congratulate their friends, and enjoy their night, but you were beat thinking about all the work you still had to do over the weekend and dreading the choice of man Heather would embarrass. So you decided to leave with Seokmin walking you back safely to your dorm.

“What are you studying again?”

“Me? Oh, I’m studying to be a veterinarian.”

“Wow really? That’s cool, I didn’t know. You must be busy as hell.”

“I’m sure you’re just as busy, being a doctor for actual humans is way more complicated considering a lot of them are assholes.”

“That’s unfortunately true. But, I love it to be honest. I can understand why people are afraid of the hospital and surgery I guess.”

“That’s good, maybe we should study together sometime? I know it’s not the same exact thing or whatever, but it’s nice to have company?”

“I would love that, tomorrow? I mean if you’re free. We can go to the coffee shop or library or anything really?”

“Yeah, just knock around 10?”

“Okay. Cool. I’ll see you tomorrow??”

“Yes, absolutely. Have a good night, y/n”

“You too, Seok.”

Trying to get comfortable in your bed, some pesky person kept lighting up your phone screen, reaching over to turn on do not disturb you and realized it was Heather. She was asking a bunch of interrogating questions about your new friend Seokmin, begging you to bring him over tomorrow.

Unfortunately for you, you knew her interest in him was about to make your new relationship a very complicated one.

[apaechi]

pinkie pie redesign!!

pinkie is finally done! here goes the yapping again…

so obviously she is a pegasus. i thought this fit her personality so well! i however believe that *my* pinkie (since she grew up on a rock farm with earth ponies) never really flew, or never learned to fly very efficiently so she still hops around!! i could never get rid of that because it’s such a big part of her personality and it just suits her so well. that’s one of the reasons i made those balloons on her, so when she bounces she falls slower (she forgets she is a pegasus SO much).

oh boy her manestyle i put sm thought into. i envisioned an 80’s diner type thing (iykyk) and i envision she has a cute little headband but its not visible from this angle. i also made her hair a little more visibly messy/frizzy, because she is always doing this and that, and it suits her hair texture.

her color scheme (darker pink body, lighter pink hair) is from her dear old g3 counterpart. i added an extra pink just for interest since after all, she is a main character, so she needs to be extra interesting. i was tempted to add the heart, but i wanted that to be unique to fluttershy.

her hooves! i wanted to do blue and yellow.. butttt i added a twist. two hooves look very stoney and matte, while the other two resembled gold, as an homage to her family. that’s also why i added the desaturated pink spots on her face. i wanted her to be vibrant to stand out from her family, but also to have a resemblance and aspects that show she is related to them.

i didnt want to change her cutie mark too much because i love it. it’s simple, but very pinkie. i just wanted to add some confetti because i thought it was very cute and suited her personality.

but yeah i think thats it :) let me know what you think!!

[aphverse-confessions]

Silly but haunting confession is that I'm actually horribly obsessed with the fact that Mystreet SHARES A UNIVERSE with the Roommates role play by Sk*doesminecraft, AND a FNAF role play Jess made before Mystreet. I'm cursed by knowing this, fully horribly cursed.

Ross as a whole entire SQUIRREL shows up in a mystreet side story after leaving the Roommates series because he turned into a squirrel, Aphmaus 'night job' is literally at Freddy Fazbears Pizza or the Fredbear Family Diner or something, Aphmau shows up in Roommates.

I want to include this in my rewrite and make the Roommates cast OCs like iykyk type thing but i don't want to be murdered by the fandom so yikes

But imagine the FNAF LORE in the Mystreet universe, BECAUSE IT MAKES SENSE. Remnant and Agony, the concept of souls fused with objects... THE FNAF ROBOTS ARE JUST REALLY BADLY MADE RELICS. And that one episode of Roommates where they dimension travel with some scientific creation is just a man-made realm breaker. Someone hear me out good lord...

I don't support sky/jesson/ross or the creator of fnaf etcetera etcetera but it's on my autistic brain constantly can anyone hear me I'm going mad

.

[1moreoffkeyanthem]

Alright, alright I got you:

1.) What is the most common thing the boys do to pass the time in the car?

2.) Is Kyle the type to treat his instrument with respect or does he have to replace something on it every three practices?

3.) What’s the stupidest thing Stan and Kenny have schemed together?

4.) What’s Clyde’s biggest boyfail moment?

5.) Who’s gotten their aux privileges revoked (*has violent ITTG flashbacks*)

6.) What are their siblings opinions on their band(s)?

7.) Has any of the m4 ever gotten bad stage fright during a performance? If so, how did they manage it?

8.) Tolkien seems like CaTG’s parent. Is he a gentle parent or is he about to backhand someone?

9.) What led to Henrietta getting her job?

9.) Has anyone, both CaTG and m4, ever had a genuinely serious medical emergency while on the road?

10.) Do CaTG and m4 write their own songs or are they just cover bands? If they write their own songs, what genre of music are they known for?

11.) If anyone is long distance, how do they cope with being away from their partner while traveling?

12.) Has there ever been a really bad fight between anyone in the m4 where someone legitimately took offense to something said by another member?

13.) Has anyone ever attempted to cook something weird in a hotel room while they’re off the road for the night?

14.) Has Stan ever attempted to sneak an animal into the car?

15.) What is Cartman’s opinions on the other three’s musical abilities?

I GOTTA SAVE MOST OF THESE BC I LOVE ALL OF THEM BUT!!!!

5) ofc I had to start with who got their aux privileges revoked bc ITTG mention and UNSURPRISINGLY it’s Kenny for the EXACT SAME REASON!!!! Kenny’s just a gremlin tbh we love him (iykyk)

8) both. Poor Tolkien is at his wits end but he does love his idiot overly petty friends. It’s all he can do to keep them reasonably in line.

9) HENRIETTA! My gorllllll! So it’ll come up later down the line in the fic, but she’s actually in med school, an aspiring radiologist! She needed something to pay the bills while she studies, and the local diner was hiring. She and the line cooks smoke out back and her regulars get a kick out of her attitude.

10) both groups do a mix of covers and original music! Moop has an early FOB vibe naturally, with Stan writing emo ass Pete Wentz poetry and Cartman busting out the undeniable showmanship and shockingly strong vocals. Those Guys have sort of an 80’s synth thing going on, vintage pop glam rock aura, think IDKHBTFM. Tolkien as their frontman has an undeniable allure and Tweek absolutely eats on the synthesizer. Clyde, surprisingly, obliterates the technical side and adds that specific vibe that contributes to the overall mood of their music.

14) god yes of course Stan has tried to bring an animal on tour. One of their first multi show weekends playing various bars in their college town, he found a parking lot cat. He then proceeded to attempt to take it ONSTAGE and Wendy immediately took the cat home because “Stanley I know you’re attached but he’ll be home at our apartment safe and happy”. They named him Pick.

[tigers1o1]

Cherry ice cream w brownie bits in a 60s themed diner, iykyk (chapter 5 of our mistakes)

[sailor-moonseok]

thinking about buddy daddies ending and thinking about how it could’ve been way better. like watching it when it dropped i was like “this is the best ending ever” and now im just like “hmmm…ok”

like dont get me wrong im glad we got daughter daddies and grown up miri but no mention/appearance of kyu (besides a pic of him in their diner) or even like a cute little montage of them getting older and how they afforded their place…i feel like there’s a lot of missed opportunity for it to feel satisfactory. and also that last line from kazuki kinda felt like a kick in the face to kazurei’s entire dynamic going from a roommate-like tolerance to actual depth and development of learning about each other and growing as platonic partners and possibly even more. (please relax i like queerplatonic kazurei too put down the pitchforks and torches)

idk…the character degradation in the v last episode felt like the got finale iykyk

[ao3feed-destiel-02]

Nine Inch Hero

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/35BMinE by destiel_brainrot Castiel Novak finds the perfect location to put his sandwich shop with his brother Gabriel and best friend Meg, the only problem is he doesn't know there's already another popular diner across the street ran by another set of brothers and their best friend Charlie. Words: 19664, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Supernatural (TV 2005) Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: M/M Characters: Castiel (Supernatural), Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester, Charlie Bradbury, Meg Masters, Gabriel (Supernatural), Jessica Moore (Supernatural) Relationships: Castiel & Meg Masters, Charlie Bradbury & Dean Winchester, Dean Winchester & Sam Winchester, Meg Masters & Charlie Bradbury, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Castiel & Gabriel (Supernatural), Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Baker!Castiel, pseduo-enemies to lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Smut, Multiple POV's, Top Castiel (Supernatural), Bottom Dean Winchester, Top Castiel/Bottom Dean Winchester, Destiel - Freeform, Charlie Bradbury and Meg Masters Team Up, Gabriel Ships It, Openly Gay Castiel (Supernatural), Openly Bisexual Dean Winchester, Blow Jobs, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Castiel's Glistening Sausage, iykyk, The Whole Nine Inches, Castiel/Dean Winchester First Kiss, I REGRET NOTHING, it seemed like a good idea at the time read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/35BMinE

[pragmatic-optimist]

Sonia!!! It’s nice ask day and I’m here to ask what your favourite meal is please (you can give me a top 3 if you can’t choose) 💖💖

Hi Rae! Thank you for this nice ask and also for perceiving me because you know I can't pick one of anything. 😂

Top 3 meals (with pictures because I also perceive you lol 💖):

Omelets and breakfast potatoes/hash browns: Omelets are fun because they can be so versatile and are (thankfully) easy to whip up. I love breakfast potatoes (I mean, really any potato-- shout out to french fries!). Especially diner breakfast potatoes. IYKYK.

Mangú con Salami, Huevo y Queso Frito: Another breakfast item, but honestly, I've had this for lunch and dinner too lol. This is a Dominican dish, and it's mashed up green plantain puree (mangú) with slices of salami, eggs, and fried cheese. We have lots of incredible dishes, but this one is a classic and my favorite.

Fruits de mer: This dish is sadly no longer on the menu at my favorite restaurant. 😭 They updated the menu, blah blah blah. Lol. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! [I'm fine 🤣] But it consisted of housemade squid ink cavatelli, preserved lemon & chili pomodoro sauce, mixed seafood, and bread for dipping. It. Was. So. Good. I was devastated when I stopped by the restaurant late last month for a belated birthday dinner and found it was gone from the menu, but I will always remember it with adoration. Technically, I could learn to make it myself but it just won't be the same! Here’s a picture from my birthday last year, I totally don’t look at with yearning or anything. 😆

[billysjoel]

context for each song is below the cut and here is the only gifset i have for any of the moments

Turk's new ringtone -- Bye Bye Bye -- has the entire hospital dancing each time JD calls.

Here It Goes Again plays during the montage of JD's accidental trip to Vegas after the deck he built on his half-acre is taken over by old gay men. ("Old? Gay? Like decks?")

The sixth episode of season 6 is the musical episode, containing the following songs: All Right, Welcome to Sacred Heart, Everything Comes Down to Poo, Gonna Miss You Carla, The Rant Song, Options, When the Truth Comes Out, Guy Love, For the Last Time I'm Dominican, and Finale (Friends Forever/What's Going to Happen).

Both Sometimes A Fantasy and Diner are featured in the clip show episode "My Night to Remember."

A Bad Dream plays during Carla's goodbye to Laverne, who was in a fatal car accident.

Stolen by Dashboard Confessional plays during Elliot's surprise engagement to Keith. Nothing else happens at the end of that episode, not a thing. IYKYK.

While Human plays, JD leaves Kim at the medical conference after finding out she didn't miscarry their child. Elliot hopes her doubts about Keith will fade away. The Janitor presents Kelso with Dr. Toilet to make up for pretending to be Chief of Medicine.

On the way to Elliot's bachelorette party, Pure Love plays. Carla lets Elliot make all the decisions about the party and they celebrate while standing through the limo's moonroof. JD decides to give his relationship with Kim a chance.

Alive with the Glory of Love is the final song of season 6 and leaves us with JD and Elliot at major turning points in their lives and lying beside each other in the on-call room with their respective significant others at home alone.

[friedricenietzsche]

Where are the life/PhD updates!

apologies! life has been crazy full as of late but here are some ~vignettes~

♠ finally decided to act upon a longtime desire to learn russian and enrolled in a class this past autumn. here is my lecturer, who is from the east coast and inexplicably proud of that fact, taking umbrage with my blatantly correct assertion that chicago is superior to boston:

♠ i accompanied some friends to a renaissance faire in hollister, where i witnessed some lively debauchery, purchased lovely handcrafted wares, and passed by a man with a winsome smile who asked me, 'has anybody told you that you are as lovely as the moon?' 🌙

♠ recently (re-)took up knitting, and have been starting off with some simple projects whilst bingeing old episodes of star trek: deep space nine. a friend recently told me about scrap, a magical little thrift market for craft supplies in san francisco, and i managed to get my hands on new knitting needles as well as an absolute glut of high-quality yarn for a sum total of roughly ten dollars. among the skeins was a bright red that was too striking not to use immediately, and so it became a cozy little garter stitch scarf ✨

♠ spent the end of november at shasta lake, featuring a roadside diner with the best thanksgiving turkey i've ever tasted and many a breathtaking snow hike ❄️

♠ had the pleasure of spending the winter holidays with one of my best friends in france — first in paris, then down south in the pyrenees — where i had the opportunity to revel in the splendor of the restored notre dame, experience some outstanding wining and dining, listen to many a hauntingly beautiful church choir, and steal some amazing views of the countryside:

♠ rang in the new year by piecing together a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle with the family 🥳

♠ after a somewhat bumpy and directionless spell, the past several months have seen my phd research progressing phenomenally well, to the point where i find myself having to dispel a recurring sense that the other shoe might drop at any moment. a side project that i'd originally kept a secret from my advisor has yielded extremely promising results, and when i finally shared those results with him it was so very heartening to see how quickly his skepticism melted into genuine enthusiasm and supportiveness :] i also came up with a fresh, exciting (!) batch of ideas for how to progress with my main project and i am absolutely itching to get back to the lab this monday to start pursuing them; if they pan out, it could illuminate a whole new paradigm for treating previously intractable cancers 💓

♠ i just got an offer for a second job, working remotely with stanford's technology transfer team to help translate discoveries and inventions from the university's research teams for real-world use and benefit. ninety-nine percent of the time, the work i do on a laboratory bench feels so profoundly siloed from any sort of tangible human or societal impact so i'm looking forward to playing a small part in bridging that gap 🧡

♠ earlier tonight, a lovely (and dangerously clever) friend hosted a game night with questions she'd come up with in the style of only connect, one of my favorite quiz shows. not only was it unbelievably fun and edifying in places, but it made for some memorable screenshots as well 😅 iykyk

[tellywoodtrash]

TT HOW U DOIN SIS?life has been hectic but I'm living so that's always a plus haha♥️ I thought to message you just to ask you, HAVE YOU SEEN HOW RHE CURSED EKTA SHOW ON ZEE 'KUNDALI BHAGYA' ENDED???lmfao 😂😂 it's as if they literally ran out of every single penny! I understand to end a show cause the lead lady is pregnant and all but I thought we could have had a cat and mouse Shaadi track between the bad boy Shaurya with the heroine Palki...but nope..the ending crashed and burned and I'm so happy cause atleast the curse is over and the other actors can pursue new dramas😩 how's your kittyo doing?? Any new fictional crush?

Hey lovely!!!!!!

Everyday we live to see another day is a roaring success at this point. Keep on keeping on, friend!

LMAO I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW KUNDALI BHAGYA WAS STILL RUNNING?!!?!?!?!?!?!? AFTER ALL THESE DAMN YEARS??????????? WHAT EVEN.................. TRULY CURSED KNOWLEDGE SKLJSDFLKDJDHFDGJGJ

kitty baby is good and being a menace as usual. all is well in house of tt 😌😌😌

fictional crush as such toh nahi, but here are the blorbos i currently have in my pocket that i like to take out and squishhhhh out of love:

✨ this idiot trio (with NARY A SINGLE WORKING BRAINCELL BETWEEN THEM) from Perfect 10 Liners.

just in general, this show has EXCELLENT supporting characters who are just wholesome and hilarious.

✨ sab ka chaheeta, pining simp king, Baek Saeon (When The Phone Rings)

✨ yet another colossal loser adult man who has the advantage of being marginally emotionally intelligent than the idiot above, Seok Ji Won (Love Your Enemy)

bonus mention to the teenage version who's just so so so so heartbreakingly sweet 😭😭😭

✨ this quartet of messy messy gays from The Heart Killers

but in particular my man Fadel; whom i want to study under a microscope like a bug. he's just a boy (who's also an assassin.) his special skills include murder and body disposal, impromptu nipple piercings if you annoy him (iykyk), running a retro americana style diner that he prefers visited by the bare minimum number of customers to stay operational, aaaaaaaaaaand stripper dancing (self-taught from watching magic mike.) he's closed off and grumpy. he's heartbroken and grieving a past love. he's apprehensive af about his murder partner/little brother's rebellious ways and trying to protect him from their "mother". he's exasperated that little brother is too lovedrunk to realise his new love interest is a spy sent to take them down (his suspicion is 100% right.) he's unfailingly polite to the aunties and uncles at the market (murder is one thing, being rude to service workers?!?!?! fuck no.) he's being stalked/hunted for sport by an unhinged mechanic who does not know the concepts of shame or embarrassment. he can just kill said stalker (who's starting to look realllllllll hot??????) easily but doesn't want to contaminate his precious restaurant, so he goes home and apna haath jagannaaths it and then hates himself in the post nut clarity. he's just so so tired of dealing with allllllllll the idiots around him. someone pls give my poor boy a break. 😭😭😭

but also!!!!!!! assassin brothers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! who have such a palpable affection for each other despite bickering 24/7!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

✨ demure yet cheeky virgin widow by day, BADASS NINJA DO-GOODER BY NIGHT, Cho Yeo Hwa

soooooooo yeah!!!!! these are my current coping mechanisms in the horrid hellscape we're forced to subsist in!!!!!!!!!! hope you've got your comfort shows and people around you, and will end the year on a peaceful and hopeful note!!!!! 🥰🥰🥰

[andiabroad]

Day one of the road trip complete! We stopped at an adorable r66 diner for lunch, called..... the Route 66 Diner. It was Family Day & graduation week at the nearby military base, the place had gotten slammed for lunch just an hour before we got there. We're in Tulsa for the night—okay, technically we're in Broken Arrow, which is important solely because of the Midnighters series bt Scott Westerfeld. Iykyk. I'm gonna try to get photos of Bixby signage tomorrow, keep your fingers crossed for me. Had dinner at BJ's, which is hilarious bc they have a brewery in West Covina, aka (roughly) our primary destination.

Tomorrow we make our way to Amarillo, and we are aiming to hit Cadillac Ranch in the evening, so look forward do those photos!

[velvetdeer]

Hazbin Hotel Headcanons

● Alastor's little devil dolls he summons when he fights Adam are the souls of the Overlords he's killed

● Cain (Son of Adam) was killed by Adam in the 1st extermination

● If Sinner Overlords had to get their powers through a deal with a VERY powerful demon, here's who I imagine them being from:

- Alastor: Lillith (Heavily hinted at in the series)

- Vox: Lucifer (Prideful attitude, notice how Vox comments how "Lucifer's daughter" is staying with Alastor, he says it as if he knows Lucifer)

- Valentino: Asmodeus (I feel this is very self explanatory)

- Velvette: Leviathan (We see throughout the song "Respectless" that Velvette feels as if she doesn't get enough credit, a sign of envy. Plus, she's a social media influencer and fashion designer, fashion + social media = envy of the false beauty of the models)

- Rosey: Not quite sure but if I had to guess, probably Beelzebub because of gluttony.

- Husker (Pre-Alastor): Mammon (Gambling = Greed)

- Carmilla Carmine: I don't think she made any deals, she probably just rose up the ranks Mafia style

● That deer skull Overlord with the turquoise flame, I'd imagine he'd be an Overlord of restaurants and diners (because he looks like a waiter), providing supplies for/from Cannibal Town and other sections of Hell.

● Charlie's favourite movie is The Wizard of Oz, Vaggie's is Full Metal Jacket, Angel Dust is Fifty Shades of Grey, Husker's is Ocean's Eleven, Nifty's is Sound of Music, Alastor doesn't watch TV but I'd imagine would enjoy horror movies like Silence of The Lambs, Vox's is The Truman Show, Velvette is The Devil Wears Prada, Valentino's is Scarface, Adam's is School of Rock (iykyk), Lute's would be Terminator

[blue-eyed-bloodstains]

1. Have you ever had a pillow explode feathers everywhere? no thank god lol

2. Have you seen the new Seeing Red movie on Disney+? we don’t have Disney+ so no 3. Are you able to taste the difference between Pepsi & Coke? yeah, Pepsi is a sweeter taste and Coke has the best flavors, and I love both 4. What was your last reason for projectile vomiting? I’m almost always projectile vomiting more often than not because of my CVS (no not the pharmacy, it’s an illness) 5. What are some of your hobbies that you enjoy? crosswords, watching tv, listening to music, playing video games

6. Where do you buy the majority of your clothing? depends and I haven’t gone clothes shopping in years I’m definitely overdue! some of my fave stores are Wet Seal (I miss it!!!), Kohls, Hot Topic 7. Where was your best hide & go seek spot as a child? there were a lot of good ones in our development/cul de sac lol  8. Do you have a favorite Disney princess? Nala (yes she counts!) and Cinderella 9. When’s the last time you had to attend a staff meeting? ummm the only one I can think of is back in 2018 at a surf n’ turf restaurant I worked at when we’d have occasional morning staff meetings around the bar...I was a host so normally I’d be setting up the tables while the servers, bartender and manager on duty would have them but they’d call me in too a few times 10. Are you still required to wear a mask where you live? only in doc offices and the hospital really, most other places unless specified on their doors have dropped it 11. What’s your favorite type of sandwich? ooooh god...BLT, especially at a diner cause they make it the best! toast and thick juicy fatty bacon omggg  12. What’s the last piece of furniture you purchased? jesus it’s been so long lol we haven’t gotten furniture since we moved in so...I guess the coffee table 13. What are the colors of the walls you are currently in? beige, although the smoke has really darkened it a bit...eek  14. What is your phone’s battery percentage at right now? definitely needs a charge since I have this plugged in (battery is shot so I can’t be online without having it plugged in) and the AC is in the outlet closest to me lol it’s less than a third so I’d say looks about 30%

15. In your opinion, what is one of the most unpleasant smells? ammonia (think cat litter), rotting food especially dairy, puke..there’s lots  16. Is there a popular food out there that you do not enjoy at all? Hawaiian pizza! I love pineapple, I love pizza but together? no it’s just wrong and don’t hate on me I know everyone loses their shit over this debate :P 17. How do you like your steak? medium rare

18. How many pages was the last book you read? it’s been way too long since I read and finished a book lol I can’t even remember, it was probably Fault In Our Stars or If I Stay...Fault has 313 pages (313, FUCK FREE WORLD! iykyk ;) ) and Stay has 210 pages 19. Are you easily distracted? ohhhh yeah...SHINY! SQUIRREL! not ADD, just easily distracted and caught off guard 20. Do you have any desire to travel to Guam? no? don’t know anything about it 

[phoebe-delia]

Life, the Universe, and Everything

Happy 42nd Birthday, Draco! Here's some self-reflective fluff as a present :)

I don't understand people who are insecure about their age. I don't buy into this apparent need people have to prove how young they are with "anti-aging serums" and acting as if their age diminishes their value when really, I think people—like wine and cheese and fine leather—tend to get better over time.

I've only ever wanted to grow up. When I was younger, I would stomp my foot and scowl and cross my arms and insist that I was not to be treated "like a little kid" and therefore deserved whatever trinket or privilege I was being denied.

When I came of age to practice magic, a full adult in the eyes of the law, my enthusiasm was somewhat quelled by the fact that it was of little use to me at the time, living in the Muggle world as I was. The irony was not lost on me, as I spent my 18th birthday in a grimy Muggle diner, sitting in a booth with a torn cushion and choking down a chicken salad sandwich.

It got better, later on, when Harry came back into my life and turned it upside down in the best way with his easy generosity and forgiveness, and eventually his love. But he doesn't get all the credit; I think, now, that I earned it—that I still do, every day. And more than that, I worked for the happiness I've achieved over the last two decades.

I only got happier as I got older. The better part of my youth was filled with bitter resentment and anger, plus two years of near-constant terror.

When you come from a life of privilege, you think that everything will work out for you. You're taught that your parents can solve any problem with connections or money or both. I had the rug pulled out from under me before, during and after the war in that regard, and while my family and I deserved every consequence we paid, if not more, I think it's okay to still have compassion for my younger self; to look back at that time and remember that the struggle, no matter how merited, was still a struggle—grueling and brutal and constant.

So I don't understand why some people seem to dread aging. Maybe most people had an easier go of it than I did, at least I hope so, but it seems that this fear and pressure to feel like you're not wasting your time, your vitality and youth, is universal among the young. I am glad to be passed that.

I turn 42 today. When I informed Lily of this fact the other day, she began to snicker. Trying to rein in my offense at her rudeness, I frowned and tried to explain that it was impolite to shame others for their age, but she stopped me, her expression turning serious, eyebrows drawn in a way that reminded me starkly of Harry.

"Sorry, Papa, I wasn't making fun of you. You see, 42 is the meaning of life."

Nonplussed, I sputtered. "Pardon me?"

"42," she explained. "It's the meaning of life. Ask Dad, I think it's a Muggle thing."

I did end up asking Harry, who chuckled and explained that it was a Muggle film that he'd be glad to show me at my request. I will likely take him up on it, if for no other reason than my dislike for not being able to parse my children's pop culture references. But I digress.

My point is that, while I certainly don't claim to be a Seer, this year is already off to a perfect start, as I'm surrounded by loved ones and simply bursting with a stomach full of Harry's decadent red velvet cake. It well may be that 42 is the answer to the meaning of life, the universe—and everything.