#the fact that all but a select group of kids get fucked over fantastically and for years to come pisses me off so badly.

[raspberryjellybrains]

now how the fuck am I gonna get all of the gifted kid issues and none of the perks. I just get to second guess myself at every turn and feel either way over- or way under-qualified for every single thing ever. meanwhile all the adults in my life are telling me that I am going to singlehandedly live out all of their dreams and fix all of their problems and my peers tell me I'm not special and am, in fact, a freak and a loser. with none of the academic support! how does this even HAPPEN-

[fics-n-stuff]

Young Royals x Red, White and Royal Blue Crossover Headcannons (mild spoilers for both ahead!!):

To preface, in this universe Simon and Wilhelm get the same kind of happy ending as Alex and Henry because it's wHAT THEY DESERVE GODDAMMIT!!!

The first time Wilmon meets Firstprince is at a charity gala that Wilhelm brings Simon to. Henry and Wilhelm had met before, both being members of European royal families, but their new and very unique common ground lends itself to the beginnings of a friendship. Wilhelm likes Alex, Henry likes Simon, but something between Alex and Simon does not mesh at first

Nevertheless, a photograph of the four of them together goes completely viral, with millions of people gushing over how Alex and Henry are taking Simon and Wilhelm under their wing

Cash, Amy, Zahra, Shaan and Malin are a fuckin SQUAD. A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH!!

Name me a better girl group than June, Nora, Felice, Sara, Bea and Maddie. I'll fucking wait.

The RW&RB squad all offer to punch August in the face. Alex and Pez both legitimately try to do so on two separate occasions

Linda absolutely ADORES Alex and June when she meets them, and they adore her back. Every time they see each other it's all hugs and smiles and conversations in incredibly fast Spanish

Linda and Ellen are on some kind of wavelength. Nobody understands it, but somehow those two are always on the same page. Maybe it's some kind of "fantastic mother to a queer son embroiled in an (inter)national scandal" thing?

Similarly, Linda and Catherine become something rather similar to best friends (as much as they can be when one is the heir to the English throne). After the years that she spent emotionally absent from her children's lives, she's grateful for the support in the mothering department that Linda provides. They talk a lot about just how much they love their kids

Linda and Oscar get along like siblings, and treat each other's children like niece and nephews. They made a group chat with their kids that actually gets a surprising amount of use

Catherine gives Kristina more than a few pointers on how to be a mum while also being a monarch. Though she admits that she herself hasn't been perfect, at least she knows how to show her kids affection

(Throwing this in for myself because I want a Micke redemption arc but) Micke takes a lot of advice from the other parents on how to be a better dad, and a few important lectures from Bea about addiction and sobriety

During one visit, for a charity event that Henry put together with Pez and invited Wilhelm to, they stay in an adjoining suite at the hotel. Up until this point Alex and Simon had been rather icy, but late at night, when both Wilhelm and Henry had dosed off, they lie on the floor of one of the rooms speaking in hushed Spanish just telling each other everything they love about their respective princes

After a while they start being comfortable enough to crack jokes about each other's scandals. Simon or Wilhelm will quote a line from one of the leaked emails, and Alex or Henry will reply with a snide comment about the sex tape

In his free time, Simon dives into helping Henry and Bea with their charities, both causes being close to his heart. Wilhelm loves seeing how passionate he gets

Wilhelm himself likes to get involved too, as much as he can considering he's a Crown Prince. He makes a lot of appearances for Henry's foundation

Alex feels left out that he's the only one of the four of them that can't play piano, though he does get a kick out of the fact that Simon is still learning to read sheet music

Simon and Bea love playing music and singing together. He appears on stage with her at a couple of her charity concerts

When Simon or Wilhelm is struggling with homework, they have a number of people they can ask for help. June, Nora and Henry never fail to provide some assistance

Since monarchs can't exactly attend pride parades, one year for Stockholm pride the whole RW&RB squad fly over and they have a pride party instead. The pictures that get posted, while carefully selected and approved by the many PR teams involved, circulate the media at breakneck speeds

[shutupandshipit]

Sharpen your blades - Ch.2

Summary: “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

The thinning of Aizawa’s patience was evident in the twitching of his brow. “If you stop asking questions, maybe I could finish explaining.

”With a huff and roll of his eyes, Katsuki glanced away from their coach.

“City Hall and the SC want us to give them more variety. We are a team solely made up of single skaters. Every year, we dominate the rankings for single skate while Shinketsu dominates the pairs, so this year both cities are being required to split their skaters evenly between singles and pairs with at least one pair coming from out top five.” There was a collective intake of breath, but no one commented, choosing instead to remain silent. “Unfortunately, for us, it’s a lot easier to switch from pairs to singles. With our male to female ratio, alpha/beta/omega ratio, and those of you actually experienced with pair skating, we’re at a disadvantage. So, I’ve decided to choose your partners for you.”

…..

Or where Katsuki and Izuku are forced to be partners so they can continue to compete, but the blood in the water may be thicker than anyone realized.

Pairing: Bakudeku

Rating: T

Chapter: 2/20

Previously <- Chapter 1: Pairs

Chapter 3: Training -> Next

Chapter 2: Refusal

Katsuki laughed as he spun faster and faster, holding Izuku’s hands so that when his feet left the ice, he stayed in the air. The Death Spiral was their favorite trick to modify, and as they got older, they got bolder. They hadn’t been allowed to include this particular modification in competition, but Katsuki knew they’d get to one day.

That wouldn’t be for another couple of years, but that just meant they had time to improve together and individually.

Their coach, a tall spindly beta man, called from the rink entrance. “Alright, everyone! Come gather over here for a moment. I’ve got some announcements to make!”

Izuku’s blades bit back into the ice as they slowed, still laughing. “Are you excited, Kacchan? You put in for the single skate events this year, right?” he asked, grinning as they meanered away from center ice. They weren’t the only ones taking their time, but they were the furthest from the entrance.

Nodding, Katsuki’s eyes found the dusty yet still colorful ribbons and trophies that lined the ledge of the announcer’s booth. “Yeah, wanted to try it out. Can’t get better if I’m never alone, and I want my name to be up there! Right where all those first place trophies are. I’m going to be better than anyone else! You too, right?”

Izuku nodded enthusiastically, cheeks flushed pink. “We’ve never gotten to skate on our own before. I think it’ll be fun. But I want to skate as a pair in the December preliminaries before we go to seniors.”

“Don’t worry about that, dumbass, that’s years away! We’ll still skate pairs before then. Just not this year.”

Izuku nodded, but didn’t reply as they finally slid up to the forming group of skaters. They were all ages from the youngest being 3-years-old to the oldest being 17-years-old, but even at ten, Izuku still looked tiny compared to everyone else. Taking his hand, Katsuki pulled him around to an opening between bodies, and shoved him through so they could both see what was going on.

Their hands never left each other.

“Good, good, everyone is here,” Coach said, eyes scanning over them, “So, we all know that the April showcase in Yuuei is coming up. Is everyone excited?” The group cheered. “Fantastic! I have the skating assignments right here! Is everyone ready to hear them?” The group cheered again, deafening in the echoing space of the rink. “Great! I’ll start with our pairs. I’m happy to officially welcome Midoriya and Bakugou as our Alpha/Omega pair! They presented just two weeks ago, and I’m sure you can guess who presented as what.” He chuckled, but the sentiment wasn’t echoed by the group.

Katsuki’s ears burned.

The other skaters were dead silent, all eyes finding them as the scent of burning charcoal slowly filled the air. Even at ten, Katsuki’s temper was volatile, only made worse by Izuku’s sickly sweet embarrassed scent. Like rotting fruit.

Sure, everyone could smell that they’d had first rut and heat, but it just wasn’t something people commented on. Going through puberty was embarrassing enough without everyone also knowing when they presented. Everyone just knew, and that was that.

Someone cleared their throat. One of the older skaters, an alpha woman with long white hair and brown skin, spoke up, “Um, Coach, I might be mistaken, but both Deku and Kacchan put in for single skate this year. We all thought it would be a good idea for them to get experience on their own.”

“No, no, you’re right,” Coach said flippantly, “but I decided otherwise. Why fix something that isn’t broken. It looks better for us as a team to have an Alpha/Omega pair, and it’ll be easier for them to win since same-sex pairs are unconventional.”

The rest of the older skaters shifted uncomfortably, expressions morphing as the alpha spoke up again. “That’s really not the point here. The point is for them to have fun and experience new things. There’s others of us who pair skate.”

Katsuki was burning from the inside out, anger stealing the words from his throat. He didn’t think he’d ever been so angry before.

“The point,” Coach said with emphasis, “is to make our team look good. Looking good equals more attention which equals more money. Which is important to keeping this rink up and running. Skating isn’t about having fun, it’s about winning. They’re better together than either of them ever would be alone. So if Bakugou and Midoriya want to continue to skate with our team, then they’ll skate pairs. That’s that. End of discussion. Anyone who has an issue with that can take their chances finding a different team.” With a wave of his hand, he continued down the list of pairs as if there had never been an interruption.

Grinding his teeth, Katsuki ripped his hand from Izuku’s. He ignored the hurt whine that came from the other boy.

The alpha that had tried to defend them shouldered passed the coach with a hissed, “Fuck you,” just loud enough for the entire team to hear over his talking. She grabbed her guards and her gear, and they never saw her at practice again. When the coach got fired two years later though, they knew she was behind it. Too bad it was too little, too late.

…..

Rage roared through Katsuki, and suddenly, the burning charcoal scent of his anger crowded out Izuku’s acidic anxiety scent from his nose. Blood thrummed loudly in his ears as his temperature rose with each beat of his heart, much like the first time he’d been required to partner with Izuku. It had always been their choice until it hadn’t been, and that pissed him off more than anything.

He couldn’t even hear Aizawa’s next words.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!” he exploded, forcing himself not to look at Izuku when he heard the little unconscious whine the omega made. A sound that had his alpha screaming at him to ‘ calm, scent, protect, calm, help, protect .’ He hated it, hated the instinctual need, wished he could rip his alpha right from his chest. “This is a fucking joke, right? You expect me to fucking skate with him ?”

Aizawa slowly lifted his eyes from his clipboard, crossing his arms over his chest. “Yes, I do. You two are the best for this despite the fact you can barely speak civilly to each other for more than a moment.”

A manic laugh spilled from Katsuki’s mouth, and the teammates near him took careful steps back. “That’s a joke! That has to be a goddamn joke!”

Yaoyorozu’s hand shot into the air, worry etched into her features. Katsuki wanted to rip it from her arm. “I also don’t understand, Coach. Surely it’d be more beneficial to pair myself with Shouto or Midoriya, wouldn’t it?”

‘ Yes, agree. Switch Izuku’s goddamn partner. I can’t- ’ he thought desperately, but knew Aizawa wouldn’t.

“No. The program I’ve selected for the top rank is going to be difficult. Even if it weren’t, I can’t have someone who has never skated pairs trying to master it in just three months. We just don’t have the time to get you up to that skill level. On top of that, I’m not going to move two of my top three over to pairs when Bakugou and Midoriya have skated pairs previously. They are also the bottom of my top five. They’re the best option to make partners,” Aizawa explained, voice growing monotone the longer he spoke.

Katsuki couldn’t and wouldn’t skate with Izuku again! It just wasn’t going to fucking happen! This felt like the last time they were paired up for their dynamics, and he hated the sick black feeling that bloomed in his chest. Every rank dropped, every point lost, every mistake made flashed through his mind as if they’d happened yesterday.

He could still remember the sound of Izuku hitting the ground, the failed catch, the other skaters’ gasps even as no one moved. The smell of blood thick in his nose, his hands trembling, the anguish on Izuku’s face.

He hadn’t been the one to throw him, but he was still at fault in the end.

“I’m not skating with Deku!”

Aizawa’s eyes returned to Katsuki along with the rest of his teammates, stony and set. “Yes, you will. If you don’t, I’ll drop you from the team and you can find another to skate with. With your legendary attitude, I can’t imagine many would want you. Your choice.”

He was being forced into a corner again, given an ultimatum that wasn’t really a choice at all. If it was between skating and never skating again, there wasn’t a decision to be made. The blackness in his chest only expanded, spreading through his chest and up into his throat, choking him.

He ground his teeth together savagely, an ache sprouting in his jaw. “What the fuck ever, but I’m not practicing with him. Fuck that.” It was stupid, he knew it was. Eventually, he would have to practice with Izuku. Eventually, he’d have to eat his own words. There was no way around it, not if they wanted to have any chance of actually placing. That didn’t mean he couldn’t master his part of the skate to the most minor of hand placements before attempting the larger tricks with him.

He wasn’t going to be the one to let Izuku get hurt again.

Rolling his eyes, Aizawa seemed to be done with the argument. For now. “As long as you don’t make us look like a group of fools at the charity event, I don’t care how you figure it out. No deaths, no injuries and no stupid mistakes. Now, back to what I was saying. If anyone else wants to waste my time today, just leave.”

No one left the rink, but Katsuki shoved away from the wall with a snarl and found his way to Kirishima and Ashido’s sides. The pair were grinning at him, Kirishima placatingly and Ashido goadingly. He didn’t wait for them to say anything. “Pinky, I’m going to need to borrow you for practice.”

Her smile was sharp as she ruffled her pink spikes. “Not even going to ask first?”

“Are you going to say no?”

She shrugged her pink clad shoulders. “No, as long as you help me with my program. I’m competing too, and I’m going to need time to practice.”

“Sure, whatever. Just need you for the stuff I can’t do on my own. Lifts, death spiral, that shit.”

“I can help, but why not just practice with your partner? Hm? I’ve seen the videos, Bakubro, you two were really good. You used to tear up the ice,” she needled, and Kirishima shot her a reproachful glance.

He sighed and smiled at Katsuki. “Listen, man, I don’t want to like pry or anything, but I think you should just practice with him too. Maybe if you talk?”

“Shut it. None of that is either of your business. Just fucking leave it,” Katsuki snapped.

They shrugged, and let the topic drop even if it wasn’t for good.

…..

Izuku hadn’t been able to pay attention to Aizawa after that, his mind racing in circles to figure out what he could do. He didn’t want to disappoint anyone, and he was sure that no matter who Katsuki practiced with, he’d be able to perform with Izuku when the time came no matter what. It was Izuku himself that he was worried about.

There were a lot of things he could practice alone. Foot work and jumps synced to the milli-second with whatever track Aizawa chose for them. His costume and hair. Hand placement. Endurance. There were also a lot of things that he couldn’t do by himself that were, in retrospect, the most important aspects of their performance.

Those included, but were not limited to, lifts and throws. To put it simply, he couldn’t perform any of the tricks alone.

Pair skating required an astounding amount of trust and understanding between partners, just like anything else where two people were working together. The only person he truly and completely trusted on the ice anymore was himself. That was no one’s issue, but his own. Now, he didn’t have a choice. While he knew he could trust Katsuki and his caliber, was sure that Katsuki would never drop or fail to catch him, he didn’t know if he could let himself be that vulnerable again. He didn’t want to disappoint Katsuki when he couldn’t bring himself to do a trick, and he didn’t know if Katsuki could understand why he couldn’t.

They hadn’t been able to understand each other for a long time.

Aizawa had made a terrible mistake.

With each beat of Izuku’s heart, phantom pain flared from his hip to his ankle, from elbow to wrist. It had been eight years since he got hurt, but the fear that it might happen again followed him every time he stepped out onto the ice.

“Midoriya.” Todoroki snapped Izuku out of his own thoughts with a hand on his shoulder, and he glanced up to find the others dispersing. Most pushed back out onto the ice, some sat down to put their heads together, others stuck around to ask Aizawa questions. His friends were still standing close though; Iida, Uraraka, Asui, and Tokoyami. “Most of my pair work has been as lead, so I can help you practice until Bakugou pulls his head out of his ass.”

Izuku wanted to protest, to say that it wasn’t all Katsuki’s fault, but he couldn’t find the words. Couldn’t make his lips move to form the ones he did have.

“Is that really wise?” Iida asked seriously as he leaned down to remove his guards and step out onto the ice. He remained at the wall, face tense. “Pair skating is already difficult enough, but practicing without your intended partner…”

“I have to wonder the same thing,” Tokoyami sighed, glancing over his shoulder towards where Katsuki was briskly correcting Kirishima’s clumsy pick placement, “Wouldn’t that cause more problems than it solves?”

Asui placed a considering finger against her lips. “It seems odd that he’s so against it too. I know he’s smarter than he’s acting right now, so I’m surprised he’d take the risk.”

“Not only that, but you’ll have to practice too, Todoroki! Wouldn’t it just be better to practice with him from the beginning?” Uraraka asked earnestly, “Why is he so against it anyway? I know you two haven’t gotten along in a long time, but this seems excessive. Coach Aizawa isn’t asking you to be friends, he’s just asking you to skate. I thought Bakugou knew how to compartmentalize better than this.”

‘ Then you don’t know, Kacchan .’ Izuku didn’t say that out loud, even if he wanted to. He sighed, rubbing at the back of his neck. After a moment, he smiled. “Kacchan isn’t the only one with reservations. It’s just… there’s a lot that we haven’t worked through.” Read: that he hasn’t worked through. Nothing that happened when they were younger was Katsuki’s fault, at least Izuku didn’t see it that way.

His friends rolled their eyes. “You don’t have to make excuses for him,” Todoroki said, leaning forward to check his laces before standing.

Except that he wasn’t. His friends and teammates knew that Izuku and Katsuki had both skated pairs for most of their childhood and knew each other through their mothers. What no one knew was that Katsuki had been his partner most of that time. His friends didn’t know everything that they went through after they presented. They didn’t know why they had decided to go singles after skating pairs for so long. They didn’t know exactly how Izuku had gotten hurt. Maybe one day he’d be able to tell them, but every time he remembered that he spent an entire year thinking he’d never skate again, it just made his breath grow short and his heart beat fast.

They didn’t even know that Toshinori and Aizawa were the only reason he was still skating now.

Swallowing thickly, Izuku forced a smile as he allowed Todoroki to help him to his feet. “I’m not.”

[atths--twice]

Chapter Four 

Arcade and Ice Cream 

Fun in an arcade, ice cream, and a little something extra.  

The teenagers Mulder has called out to, have stopped and let them catch up. Scully smiles at them as they approach and she sees a couple of the boys nudge each other as they look at her.

Fantastic. Nothing better than hanging around hormonal boys. Well, another one anyway, she thinks as she glances at Mulder.

“We were down the beach aways earlier. You called out that my friend here was “hot.”” Mulder says by way of introduction.

The boys that have nudged each other, drop their eyes to the sand. Mulder looks at Scully and winks. “Hey, I’m just busting your balls guys. I believe there was mention of an arcade?” The mood is broken and they all start talking at once. Mulder only hears what Scully is telling him with her eyes.

Thank you. That was very sweet. You made me very aroused.

He raises his eyebrows but answers back as best he can.

You’re welcome. I know, surprising huh? I’m pretty sure we can be in that limo in ten minutes. You interested?

She lifts her eyebrows back at him and tries not to laugh. They stand there staring at each other, invisible sparks flying, until someone taps Mulder’s arm. Once the connection is broken, it is like cold water has been splashed on them both.

“Umm.. did you want to hear about the arcade?” One of the girls asks Mulder, while looking between him and Scully with an odd expression. Mulder turns toward her and Scully turns the opposite direction fighting the urge to laugh.

The kids start walking toward the stairs up to the pier, telling Mulder all about the arcade there. Scully trails behind listening to the excited chatter. She hears Mulder yell “Skee-ball!” and she knows she is in trouble.

About a year ago, they had been staying in a tiny town that had a population of about 2,000 people. There had been claims of mysterious lights hovering over a particular area and people forgetting where they had been for hours at a time. Turned out, the town was performing tests of some kind with a laser light. The people who had forgotten where they had been, had been stoners, who Scully was sure they had seen somewhere before.

The case had been rather anticlimactic, but they had a lot of free time on their hands, more so than usual. There had been an arcade in town and Mulder had been like a kid in a candy store. He got a cup full of quarters and went from game to game with a gleeful look on his face.

He challenged her to air hockey and promptly lost three out of five games. He was not exactly a gracious loser. Though perhaps, she was not exactly a good winner. She strutted around like she had just won the Stanley Cup. He reminded her it was air hockey, but she just laughed and called him a poor sport.

But then.. then he had found the room with Skee-ball. He looked at her like he had found the Holy Grail. Considering all the things they had seen and experienced, she would not have thought this would bring as much joy as it did. But for almost an hour, they stood in a room and rolled balls up an inclined ramp into the awaiting holes.

Mulder was convinced he was good at this game. As if he could be better than her at rolling balls up into a hole. She just smiled and shook her head. He came over and attempted to “show her how to do it,” and she had stood up to her full height and told him to back the fuck off.

Holding a ball in one hand, and pointing into his chest with the other, it must have been comical to see from a distance. He was almost a foot taller than her. He might have looked menacing, if he was not grinning from ear to ear.

He stepped back, putting his hands up. She had narrowed her eyes at him, then raised her eyebrow. She turned, then looked at him one more time- a pitcher ready to deliver a strike, but keeping an eye on the base stealer. He just smiled and tilted his head, his eyes saying, “Let’s see what you got.”

She threw the ball and it landed in the one hundred point hole. She grabbed another ball and repeated her roll. Five balls in and she had five hundred points. Prize tickets were spewing out and Mulder stood there with his mouth agape.

Before she rolled her next ball, she stepped close to him and closed his mouth with a touch of her finger to his chin. His eyes met hers, full of questions. “Yeah,” she had said. “I’m actually good at this game.” She stepped back and rolled her next ball. She did not land in the hundreds again, but the four balls left added to two hundred, bringing her total to seven hundred points.

Lights were flashing and the amount of tickets on the ground was increasing, and now it had become a challenge. Mulder dropped a quarter in and nine new balls rolled down and cracked together. He picked one up and rolled his neck, took a deep breath, and threw the ball. Ten points. Scully chortled. He gave her a side eyed glare. Then he grabbed another ball and tried again. It hit the fifty point spot, bounced off, hit the twenty, then landed in the gutter. No points.

Scully turned around, a huge grin on her face. She laughed silently as she heard him swear and then throw another ball. She peeked over her shoulder-twenty points. Six more balls were thrown up the ramp. Ten, thirty, ten, twenty, forty, and finally fifty. His grand total, after much swearing and cajoling, was one hundred and ninety points.

He did not look at Scully, who was pressing her lips together, to keep from hysterically laughing. He bent down and grabbed his tickets, eight in all. He slumped his shoulders, hung his head, and turned to her.

Her eyes were dancing and her hands were full of tickets. He looked back at his small amount he had, then walked over and handed them to her. She said nothing but accepted the tickets as she handed him another quarter. His sad puppy dog eyes were too much, as he finally raised his eyes to look at her, she began to laugh.

He took the quarter she offered and said “Oh, it’s fucking on, Scully.” He grabbed a handful of quarters out of the cup she held and put them in his pockets. She grabbed her own bunch of quarters; then put the tickets in the cup.

They competed for points and tickets. Final tally after much swearing and throwing up of hands, Scully-two hundred tickets and Mulder-seventy five. With no quarters left, and the place closing, they went to the counter to spend their tickets.

Mulder saw there was not much of a selection for his tickets so he gave them to Scully. She immediately asked for the smiling troll doll with rainbow hair. Mulder made a face and said they were creepy. She did not care. He asked her why she would pick something so ugly and odd. She looked at him sweetly and said to remind her that just because something is smaller, it does not mean it can’t kick some ass. He smiled and they left the arcade.

Thinking of it now, she shakes her head. She knows that if this place has Skee-ball, he will demand a rematch. Okay, she thinks, I am up for the challenge.

She takes a few quick steps to catch up to the group as she catches Mulder’s eye as he looks for her. She nods at him and keeps walking. It is never easy to hurriedly run through sand. It is sort of the equivalent of snow in that matter. Time consuming, but worth the trip.

They reach the stairs and Mulder goes up a few before he turns and sits down. The kids around him have continued up to the top, except for a couple who are standing by him, still chattering away. He is still holding both pairs of shoes as he sits and waits for Scully to join him.

She walks up and looks at him waiting for her. He smiles and gets up, reaching for her hand, and stepping aside so she can take his seat. She gives him a funny look but allows his chivalrousness. She sits down and he bends over, setting his shoes down beside her. He sets hers gently in her lap, as he reaches for her foot. She stares at him as he begins to brush the sand from her foot. He glances up at her and grins. She feels her heart burst at the sweetness he is showing her.

Of course, it might have been hard to wipe her feet off with a dress on, without flashing someone. The fact that he either figured that, or figured he would just be a gentleman, makes her body tingle. With happiness, thankfulness, horniness. He gets her motor running with the simplest of gestures.

When the first foot is as clean as it will get, she grabs her shoe and starts to put it on. He stops her as he reaches next to her and grabs the sock out from inside his shoe. He sits one stair below her, sideways, his back against the railing. He grabs her foot and places it in his lap. He uses his sock to clean in between her toes and all around her foot. Making sure to try and get every last grain of sand off of her.

She is staring at him with her heart in her eyes. He is not paying attention to the fact that her eyes are shouting out her love for him. How much she appreciates what he is doing right now. How much she wants to kiss him and show him how what he is doing is affecting her. She wants to wrap herself around him and melt into him. He is looking at and talking to one of the boys in the group and they both laugh about something. She hears none of the conversation. All she can hear is the love he is conveying with his touch.

When he has her foot as clean as possible without some water, he reaches for her shoe. He lifts his eyes to hers for a second and then back down. But then he looks at her again. Her eyes are saying something different than they ever have before. He feels it pulling him from everywhere in his body. A current that runs without any assistance. Like a geyser or a volcano. No way to stop or control it.

He does not have to hear her words to know what her eyes are saying. Love is shining so strongly, he is surprised people are not falling under its sheer force. He smiles at her and slides her shoe on, as if she is Cinderella. He bows his head, then looks at her again. A big goofy grin on his face as he reaches for her other foot.

The boys on the stairs are staring at them. Their eyes darting back and forth, from Mulder and Scully, then to each other as they try to understand what they are seeing. They have never seen anyone look at one another like they are doing. It is almost uncomfortable. As if they are having a telepathic conversation, the way their heads tilt and they raise their eyebrows. It’s really weird, but they cannot stop watching them.

“Derek! Mike! You guys coming? The place closes soon,” someone calls from above. Derek and Mike look up at their buddies as they tear their eyes from Mulder and Scully. “Yeah! Be up in a minute!” They shout back.

Mulder has put Scully’s other shoe on and is working on his own sandy feet. He is less thorough with his own feet. He does not pay as much attention to his own comfort. As long as she is taken care of, that is what matters. Soon he is slipping on his socks, then putting on and tying his shoes. He stands up and brushes his hands on his pants, then together. He grins at the boys, then turns to Scully and extends his hand.

“Come on Scully, let’s go put that credit card to good use,” he says with happiness in his voice. She laughs and reaches for his hand, letting him pull her up. He pats one of the boys on the shoulder, letting him know they are ready. He keeps a hold on Scully’s hand as they begin to walk up the stairs. Once they reach the top, they break off. Mulder walks with the boys and the girls surround Scully.

“Is that your husband?” “He’s so handsome.” “Were you guys at a party tonight?” “Have you been married long?” “Did he give you his coat to wear?” “God, I wish Kevin was sweet like that.”

Scully’s head is swimming. Unaccustomed to “girl talk,” she feels out of her element. She can’t remember the last time she talked to a bunch of teenage girls that did not involve some kind of an investigation. She feels hot all of a sudden, a flush covering her body. They are all looking at her, waiting for answers.

“Yes,” she begins. “We were at a party tonight. A movie premiere actually. But, it was a flop and so we decided to take a walk on the beach. What about you all?” She figures if she steers the conversation back to the girls, she will be free from answering their questions.

As she predicted, they start talking about their night, laughing, groaning about boys, and she breathes a sigh of relief. She feels weird talking  to these girls about her and Mulder. She has not even talked to her mom about it. She glances up at Mulder and sees the boys pushing at each other as they laugh at something Mulder is saying. He is using his hands a lot and grinning. He has such an ease with people.

They reach the arcade and Mulder holds the door for all of them as they walk in. He snags the back of his jacket as Scully starts to walk past. She looks at him, surprised. He watches the kids walk in and then he looks down at her with a gleam in his eyes.

“Skee-ball, Scully. You’re going down.” he says, as he wiggles his eyebrows.

She looks back at him with fire in her eyes. She grabs a handful of his shirt, brings his face close to hers, and licks his lips, before kissing him deeply. She pulls back and stares at him.

“Let’s bet on it. Loser of Skee-ball, whoever “goes down”.. goes down,” she raises her eyebrows and runs her hand to his waistband. He jerks, but holds her stare. He grabs her hand and moves it away from him.

“Well, then I concede to you now. I will gladly “go down” if it means I get to go down.” He puts his hand on her hip, under his jacket, and pulls her to him. She can feel him and she knows contact will only make it worse, so she pulls away.

“No, Mulder. As much as I love that…hmmm, no, an actual bet. You need to actually try to win. No pussing out. Mulder, no,” she says, pointing at him, when he opens his mouth to deliver a snarky comeback to what she said. “Deal?” She sticks her hand out and they shake on it. She is so going to kick his ass. She feels her body heat up at what that will entail.

She slips past him and joins the group again. After he shakes his head to clear the many memories he has of her in the position he hopes to win by losing, he steps inside too.

The place is practically empty and there is a bored looking young man behind the counter. “We close in an hour,” he says in a bored voice as Scully steps up to speak to him.

“Perfect,” she says with a super sweet smile. “That’s just enough time to do what we want to do. We’re going to need.. 11, 12, 13, 14.. twenty dollars’ worth of quarters. So $280 worth of quarters please.” She takes the credit card out of her pocket and hands it to him.

The kids are looking at each other dumbstruck. They, no doubt, had not anticipated that happening and they started to raise their opposition.

“No ma’am, we have money, you don’t need to do that.” “It’s really fine.” “Please don’t do that, we can pay for it.” Come their collective shouts.

Mulder steps up toward Scully and looks at the kids. “Yeah, we do need to do this. Someone owes us for some shit they did, so they will be paying for this evening's fun. So,” he says looking at the employee holding the card in his hand, “please run that card for $280 worth of quarters, and fuck Federman.” He turns his head toward Scully and they grin.

She nods and waits for the guy to run the card and hand it back to her. She turns to the kids as the employee begins to gather up the quarters. “I’m happy to pay for everyone. Mulder’s right. By the way, he’s Mulder, I’m Scully. Anyway, he’s right. We are owed this night out. And, FUCK Federman!” She says as she raises her arms up.

Mulder laughs and so do all the kids. Then they all begin to shout “Fuck Federman!” over and over. Scully puts her hands up again to quiet them. She is laughing as they calm down. “Yes, this will be fun. But I swear to god, if any of you call me “ma’am” again, you will not like the consequences.” They all stare at her, not sure what to think. They look at each other.

Scully smiles and then she laughs. She takes Mulder’s coat off and lays it over her arm. “Just messing with you guys. Grab your quarters and go have fun. Come on Mulder, you have a bet to lose.” She grabs his arm and their quarters, and pulls him toward the Skee-ball area.

When the employee calls out to tell them the place is closing, an hour later, everyone is laughing and yelling to each other. It has been an incredibly fun night. Challenges were issued at almost every game. The victor of said game would shout “Fuck Federman!” when he/she won. Every time it happened, it was like music to Mulder’s ears. Fuck that fucking guy.

They all made their way to the prize counter. Scully watches as one of the girls steps up and asks for a prize. She does not have enough tickets and she embarrassingly starts to step back. One of the boys stops her and discreetly hands her his tickets. She looks at him and he smiles at her. She blushes so deeply, but accepts the tickets. He steps aside while he watches her ask for the prize she wants. He smiles as he looks away and sees Scully watching him. She smiles at him and he grins.

Mulder watches Scully watch the kids. He sees the boy give his tickets to the girl and watches Scully smile. God, he loves her so much. She has the most beautiful smile. She turns her head as the eye contact breaks with the boy. She is still smiling as she catches Mulder’s eye. She grins at him as he grins back.

The kids have their prizes and they stand to the side as Mulder and Scully step up to the counter. Mulder takes out a decent amount of tickets, but Scully’s pockets are bulging. She empties them and Mulder’s eyes bug out. Damn. She beat him. He lost. Or did he?

She looks at him and smiles. A huge smile. As the employee begins to count them, she raises up on tiptoes to his ear and whispers. “You pick out the prize, I’ll be getting mine later.” She steps back and watches his eyes burn into hers. She walks over and joins the kids, exclaiming over their choices. They all head outside and wait for Mulder to finish his choosing.

Mulder joins them with his prize, which he promptly hands over to Scully. He picked a small stuffed panda. “Much better than that creepy rainbow headed troll doll you got.” He shivers thinking about that thing.

Not only was it creepy, but she had teased him with it. He would find it hidden in the most unusual places. His bathroom shower, his cupboard, or his desk drawer. But the worst, had been under his pillow, which he found late at night. In the dark.

She thought it was so funny to hear him yell out, or get a call from him, swearing that he hated that goddamn troll. Her laugh coming through the phone was obnoxious when he was still seething, but adorable when he was not. He always gave her the doll back though, knowing she would get him again. He would moan and complain, but he loved anticipating her next move.

Scully smiles as she looks at the panda. “Well, this won’t be fun to hide and scare you with, so I guess I’ll just have to keep this one at home.” She looks disappointed as she sighs. But then she looks up at him and smiles.

She knows he hates that troll. She also knows it is in his hotel shower right now. When she had come to his room earlier, asking for his help to zip up her dress, she hid it in there. She decided this is the last hurrah with it and she is excited to be able to see his last reaction. She smiles bigger, knowing it is going to scare the shit out of him.

Mulder looks at her and smiles back, but something is off about her smile. He does not get a chance to figure it out, because someone yells “ice cream!” and he turns around. The kids are walking to the stand when he glances back at Scully. She nods and reaches for his hand.

He takes the panda back and puts it in his jacket pocket, then takes her hand. They reach the ice cream stand as the kids are ordering their cones. The poor employee is overwhelmed by fourteen people clamoring at once for their orders. Mulder calls for some order and points to the tables nearby. He tells some of them to sit and that treats are on Federman. To which they all holler back “fuck Federman” and he grins.

He tells Scully to sit and all but three people follow suit. Mulder places an order for fourteen soft serve swirl cones-half chocolate, half vanilla. “Wait, do you have dark chocolate or just a rich chocolate?” He asks looking at the menu.

“We have a dark chocolate, yes sir. Do you want fourteen of them?”

“No, just one. Thank you. The rest will be the swirl,” he turns to the boy next to him. “Jeremy, right? Great,” he says as the boy nods and he takes the dark chocolate cone from the man. “Can you give this cone to Scully? And ask her for the credit card, too.”

Jeremy walks over to Scully who is laughing at something the boys are saying. He hands her the cone and asks for the card. She hands it to him then turns and smiles at Mulder. He knows she loves dark chocolate. When she turns back she sees the girl, Meredith, watching Jeremy walk back to Mulder. They were the same kids she watched in the arcade. Scully hears her sigh as she looks down.

“Have you two been dating long?” Scully asks her, taking a lick of her cone.

Meredith’s head pops up and she is bright red. “Me and Jeremy? No! No..no..no.. he, he likes girls that aren’t like me. Prettier and not so smart. No.. that.. no.” She looks down again, shaking her head.

Scully looks at her and is about to say something when Jeremy walks up again. He clears his throat and Meredith looks up to see him holding out a cone to her. Scully coyly looks around and sees no one else has an ice cream yet. She looks down and presses her lips together to stop from smiling.

Meredith takes the cone and he nods at them both. Scully watches as he walks back to Mulder and then she looks back at Meredith and grins. “Huh, I think you may be wrong about something,” Scully began as Meredith sat holding her cone, not moving. She looks at Scully, unsure of what she means. “You notice that nobody else has their cones yet? Besides us?” Scully says with a sly smile.

Meredith looks around, her hand still frozen in place, holding her cone. She looks back at Scully and shakes her head. Scully smiles at her. She is a cute girl, but not aware of it yet it seems. She has straight thick golden brown hair that Scully was always envious of as a young girl. Big blue eyes that see so much behind the black glasses Scully is sure she hates.

Scully leans forward and pushes Meredith’s cone toward her mouth. “I think you’re right that he doesn’t like girls like you. I think he likes you. Is he looking over here?” Scully does not want to be obvious and turn around and stare. Meredith quickly glances over to the stand and she turns so red, Scully knows her answer. She smiles and leans back, taking some licks of her cone.

“That’s crazy. I’ve known him almost my whole life. I..” Meredith says as she looks down and then at Scully again. “He has always dated or been around girls different than me. I mean, I’ve liked him for a long time. A really long time. But..” she licks her ice cream before it starts dripping everywhere, but she's still preoccupied.

“Has he always been nice to you? Kind, helpful, inclusive? Likes to talk to you? Gives you his game tickets so you can get the prize you want?” Scully smiles at her as she blushes again.

“You saw that?” Scully nods. “That was nice of him, I know. He is always nice to me. But that doesn’t mean he likes me, aside from a friend standpoint. We’re friends. That’s all. Just friends.” She looks sadly at her ice cream.

Scully gets up and comes to sit next to her. She looks up at Mulder standing with the boys who are helping dole out the cones. He must feel her stare because he looks at her and winks. She smiles and feels her stomach flutter.

She also notices that Jeremy is looking at Meredith with worry and care. She has seen the same expression on Mulder’s face many times. He has got it bad. She turns toward Meredith and smiles at her.

“Meredith, Mulder and I work together. We have for seven years now. He is my best friend, my partner. We’ve been so much to each other over the years, but friends before anything else. He is the one person I want to talk to every day. The one I can fight with but then simply touch his hand to know we are okay. I know that since I’ve been telling you this, he’s looked over here five times wondering what I could possibly be talking to you about so intently. Look, he’s watching now.” Scully smiles as she and Meredith look over and see that Mulder is staring right at them. He grins and looks back at the stand.

“See? I know him,” she laughs as she takes another lick of her cone. “I know you’re young and still haven’t figured everything out yet, but I think that Jeremy is trying to get your attention. Simple small gestures are the best way to start. He’s done two already tonight.” They smile at each other. Mulder appears and plops down across from them.

“Hey! That took a long time, Jesus.” He takes a huge bite of ice cream and Scully cringes. He is the only person she knows who does not seem to get brain freeze. Another huge bite and he realizes Meredith’s cone is dripping everywhere. He jumps up and heads to get some napkins, but the dispenser is empty.

“Excuse me? You back there? You’re all out of napkins. Do you have mor…” he trails off as he hears a familiar song. “HEY! You back there? Can you turn this up?” The employee walks out with a pack of napkins and looks at Mulder with a question written on his face. “Is this a CD? Or the radio?” Mulder asks, looking a little crazed.

“It’s a CD. Why are you wondering?”

“Could you make it so it can be heard out here? Are you able to do that? With speakers or something?” He starts to look around and sees that there are speakers. “Yes, you have speakers. Can you make it so it can be heard out here and then start that song over. Please and thank you.” He stands and watches him set up the audio for the speakers and then the play button is pressed. The piano music starts and Mulder grins.

He turns and leans back on his elbows, against the counter, staring at Scully, waiting for her to hear the music. She is talking to the girl again. When she hears the music begin to play, she turns her head and looks at him, beaming. She says something to the girl and gets up, smiling as she walks toward him, tossing her ice cream in the trash. He stands up and walks to meet her halfway, grinning like a fool, throwing away his ice cream as well.

He puts his hand out and his head down when she gets closer. She laughs and takes his hand. He pulls her in and begins to dance her around the little area of the pier. She is laughing as they spin around, thinking of the last time they danced to this song. He spins her out and then back to him. She throws her head back and laughs and then gasps. Jeremy is asking Meredith to dance.

Then, one by one the other kids pair up and start dancing. Some random pier goers join in and everyone is dancing and laughing. Mulder looks at them and then back at Scully and grins. Then he drops to his knees, belting out with the song, “Man I a-am TONIGHT!” as she laughs and the others holler and whistle.

He stands back up and pulls her close. His hand on her waist, his other hand holding hers, close to his heart. Then he pulls back and looks in her eyes as the song begins to end. Those last piano notes are his favorite part of the song. Unlike the last time they did this, he is able to do what he had wanted, and kiss her. So he does.

He has an arm around her waist and his other hand is in her hair, holding her neck. She has her arms locked around his neck. They are making up for the kiss they missed out on, when they were still beginning to realize, they were headed in this direction. He lifts her off the ground as he leans back and keeps kissing her. She laughs and pulls back as he sets her down, but does not release her.

From behind them comes first one, and then many voices, shouting “Fuck Federman!” “Fuck Federman!” They look and the kids have formed a huddle, screaming that out, as they do some kind of dance. Mulder laughs.

Scully nudges Mulder and motions with her chin toward the table where they had been sitting. Jeremy and Meredith are still holding onto one another and swaying even though the song is over.

Scully smiles as she watches them when Mulder turns his head back to her. “Yeah, that’s not too surprising,” he says as he pulls her close and rests his chin on her head.

She pulls back and looks at him, questions in her eyes. He looks back at her and falls into her eyes. “The boy has been in love with her for years. Looks like he finally had the balls to do something about it.” He holds her gaze, letting his eyes tell her what his mouth cannot. She smiles and he pulls her close, resting his forehead on hers swaying to music that is no longer playing.

The stars are out, the waves are crashing, the ocean air is pungent, laughter is ringing out, shouts and whistles are echoing in the night air, and they are happy.  

[whereisten]

The Wedding Singer 

Summary: You are an up-and-coming singer and songwriter who is thriving in the wedding singer business. When you find yourself singing for your former best friend Samantha Perez and not-so-former crush Yuta Nakamoto, shit really hits the fan. 

Multi-part series: Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4

Part 1

Word Count: 4,000 words 

Being a wedding singer in Miami, Florida was no simple feat, you thought to yourself. There was no one quite like a picky bride. But a picky bride and groom? That was another challenge in itself.

Especially on this specific day. April 29, 2019. You were meeting your clients in their lavish home in Brickell. Everything was very pristine but cold. You felt like you were in a homey clinic.

“Y/N, it’s so nice to meet you!” A young woman rejoiced when she welcome you inside. “Thank you so much for seeing us on such short notice. I’m Renee Torres.” Renee was the one who contacted the agency.

“It’s nice to meet you! My manager told me this was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up so here I am!” You felt a little more at ease with meeting a friendly bridesmaid. Thankfully, she wasn’t catty like other bridesmaids you’ve had to interact with. “Fantastic, if you’ll just follow me.” Renee led you into the living room.

“Sam. Yuta. This is Y/N!” Renee left you with the couple.

Your heart fell when you heard her name.

And his.

Holy mother of God. Samantha Perez.

And Yuta Nakamoto.

“Y/N!” Your former friend Samantha Perez stood up from her loveseat and hugged you. “How long has it been? Eight years?”

“Oh my God, Samantha,” You said as you lost whatever oxygen you had left in that second.

“Y/N,” Yuta said as he joined you and Samantha. “It’s so great to see you.”

And there he was. The boy of your dreams. Well, no longer a boy. But still possessed that boyish charm that wrapped everyone around his little finger. Yuta Nakamoto was a star basketball player even when he was in middle school. You always hid behind your group of friends when you all went to every one of his home games. You drew the line at traveling to his away games, unless it was a championship.

Yuta was always beautiful. A radiant smile from the very first day you met. He was always kind to you in every class you’ve ever shared. He’d lend you a pencil on the very rare occasion when you were the one asking for one. He danced with you at homecoming when no one had asked you and you were very near the point of crying all the way home, feeling sorry for yourself. He bought you a rose every year on Valentine’s Day.

Well, he did that for every one of his female friends back then. But still. He didn’t have to do that.

But that was Yuta. The nicest “could’ve been a dick because he’s hot and popular but was not” guy.

As for Samantha, she was always beautiful, too. With her flawless makeup and fantastic bone structure. Her excellent sense of fashion. Heels that could you me neatly in the heart if she kicked you to the ground . Samantha also went to every one of Yuta’s basketball games with you and your friends, you recalled. However, once sophomore year started, she dipped and started hanging out exclusively with the popular kids. She did a complete 180 with you and until this day, you never understood why.

So eventually you stopped wondering.

Until today.

Once Samantha released you from her vise-like grip, Yuta hugged you and your throat went completely dry. He smelled just as amazingly as you remembered. Woodsy mixed with his cologne that he’d used since high school.

When Yuta released you, you said, “Congratulations to you both.” Very convincing, Y/N. Hopefully, they let you leave after singing a song and decide to go in a different direction so you never have to see them again.

“Thank you, Y/N,” Samantha said as she sidehugged Yuta. She was really rubbing it in your face. Especially since she knew you were in love with him for the longest time. Even before she was. Samantha may have crushed on Yuta like the rest of your friend group had. But she had many boyfriends throughout high school. But never Yuta.

“I had no idea you sang, Y/N,” Yuta said, looking particularly interested in you.

“She was spectacular in the junior year talent show,” Samantha nearly purred in his ear. She was massaging his chest. You had to fight yourself from cringing outwardly.

That wasn’t a compliment. Samantha was toying with me. We were supposed to be having a business conversation but Samantha was talking to Yuta like she was ready to rip his clothes off. And it would increase her libido if she did it in front of me.

You shivered.

“Are you cold, Y/N?” Yuta asked. For someone who was clearly getting seduced in front of a third person, he was awfully attentive.

You shook your head. “No, I’m fine, thanks.”

He smiled. Fuck you, Nakamoto. I know you don’t know the effect you have on people, especially me. And that pisses me off.

Samantha began, “Well, Y/N. Renee sent you a list of songs that we’re interested in having performed at the ceremony as well as the reception. So I would like to hear a song from each selection.”

You gulped. You’ve always dreamed of serenading Yuta when you finally had the courage. You thought the chance passed you by. But now that you had a chance, it was too late.

Samantha and Yuta sat back down on the loveseat. Samantha motioned for you to start.

“Which song did you pick from the ceremony list?” She asked.

“Let’s Stay Together by Al Green,” you replied.

Yuta’s big smile reappeared. He really needed to quit it or else you were going to place your head under a faucet and let cold water run over your head.

Samantha said, “Begin at anytime.”

So you did. You took a deep breath. Released. Closed your eyes and gave it to them acapella.

You stopped after the first chorus. Yuta jumped out of his seat and clapped. Samantha clapped politely from her seat.

“Y/N, your voice is incredible. You’re hired!” Yuta said as he took your hands.

You tried to hold onto his praise and not the fact that he was holding your freakin’ hands.

Samantha got up from her seat. You removed yourself from Yuta’s grasp. Samantha said, “Sweetie, I would like her to sing a song from the reception playlist and then we can discuss it.”

Yuta shot her a look. If you didn’t know any better, you’d say he looked to be in disbelief.

Enjoy being married to that, Yuta. God help you.

“Okay,” you said, “I’ll sing Yours by Ella Henderson.” As much as you detested Samantha, she had the same taste in music as you and you had to give her high praise for her song selection.

As you sang again, you felt more confident. You felt secure and powerful. You had a gift to share with the world, you told yourself. And if Samantha didn’t see that, she could fuck off. You could sing at as many weddings as you wanted. And hopefully, someday, score a recording and songwriting contract.

When you finished once again with the chorus, Yuta turned right over to Samantha. “There’s no question. She’s the one.”

Not the right choice of words, Yuta. I winced.

Samantha sighed. “Of course, she is. Y/N, you’re hired.”

;;

Jungwoo was cackling across from you at the cafe table. He couldn’t stop. Johnny cringed but you knew he was fighting the laughter that would escape him at any second.

“Jungwoo...it’s not that funny,” you groaned.

Johnny caved. “Are you kidding me? It’s hilarious. Yuta is getting married to that she-demon?”

“Yes,” you replied.

“Yuta was always smart. He took AP Physics with us!” Johnny protested.

“Booksmart doesn’t always translate to lifesmart. If that’s even a word…” You should propose it to Webster’s Dictionary.

“Dude, you must’ve felt like your heart was being RIPPED out of your chest and stomped on the ground. For hours. To the rhythm of a Cascada song. That intensely.” Jungwoo was always so profound.

And merciless.

“Well, It’s been eight years so thankfully, I only cried once since the meeting,” you answered.

Mind you, the meeting was yesterday afternoon.

“So you’re going to do it?” Jungwoo asked.

“Why not? They’re paying me a fortune.”

“Samantha has it out for you to this day,” Johnny warned.

“Oh, I know. But...the more I thought about it...she’d want me to run and hide. I mean, she’ll also want to see me squirm at her wedding. A present no one else can give her but me. My pain and suffering.”

“Why go through with it? Why are you letting her torture you-oh God, you think Yuta will change his mind and run away with you? Oh honey bunches…” Jungwoo took my hands in his. Uh oh…he only threw “honey bunches” out when I was being truly pitiful.

You smacked him. “Don’t be silly. Yuta and I are never going to happen. We were and always will be platonic. He’s an undeniable flirt and too nice for his own good. That’s something Samantha will have to deal with. But me? I’m going to sing my ass off and make everyone cry like they’ve never cried before. I’m not going to let Samantha get to me.”

Much.

Johnny frowned. “I hope you’re right…”

“Sometimes I gotta be. And this is one of those cases in which I am!”

“Alright alright...Let’s change the subject.” Jungwoo scratched his blonde coconut head.

You smiled. “How’s it going with Vanessa these days?”

He blushed while Johnny chuckled. “She’s great, Y/N. She’s the first girl who has ever laughed at my jokes without a hidden agenda.”

“And how can you tell?” Johnny asked. He gave me a knowing smile as he directed that question to our friend.

“Because I walked her to her apartment and she cooked me dinner and then sent me off.” Jungwoo had a daydreaming look on his face. He was smitten.

“And you weren’t upset about that?” You asked.

“Not at all. I want to take it slow.”

You cooed. “Our little Jungwoo is finally becoming a man.” You, Johnny, and Jungwoo befriended each other during your stint of musical theater at the University of Miami. It was yours and Johnny’s senior year and Jungwoo’s freshman year back then. Three years later, Jungwoo was a senior now. Johnny was a producer, working at DC Records, a very affluent label in the States. You were very proud of your friends.

They were still idiots, though, and that made you feel even more fond of them.

“Okay okay next topic,” Jungwoo demanded.

You sighed. “Well, Samantha is so anal that she’s choreographed her entire wedding.”

Johnny and Jungwoo frowned at each other in confusion.

“Which means I’m going to every rehearsal, even if I’m not ‘performing’ the entire time,” you said.

“You sure it’s not Yuta who enjoys a good musical number?” Johnny chuckled.

“Yuta, as perfect as he may be, is no dancer,” you answered.

“I seem to remember you raving about how Yuta was an amazing dancer after Homecoming junior year,” Johnny delivered that sucker punch.

High school you had a big mouth. “But then we saw his Cupid Shuffle senior year.”

Jungwoo begged, “Send that video my way, please. I gotta see what is so special about this Yuta Watanabe.”

You and Johnny corrected him, “Nakamoto.”

Jungwoo shrugged. “Whatever.”

;;

A week had passed since you were hired by Yuta and Samantha. Today was the first day of rehearsal for the ceremony AND the reception. The rehearsal space was at the Brickell City Centre Ballroom. The ceilings ran high with diamond chandeliers. The dance floor stretched far and wide. Although the tables were covered, you already knew you would love to have your own wedding here. It probably cost a fortune.

The irony? This wasn’t the venue for the happy couple’s wedding.

There were over 50 people present. Most likely, some of them were dancers while the rest was the wedding party. You recognized some of your high school classmates. Although you weren’t particularly chummy with any of them, you still greeted each other.

Samantha got up on the stage and spoke into the microphone. “Alright folks, we’ll get started in ten minutes. In the meantime, feel free to grab some water bottles and snacks!”

Maybe Samantha could be redeemed. You walked over to the snack table. Your heart almost stopped when you nearly tripped on your wedge. Oh for God’s sake...Please don’t let me fall.

You almost did but someone grabbed you before you kissed the floor. You awkwardly clung onto a stranger as he dipped you. You two looked like you were in a freeze frame of a tango.

You looked up into the brown eyes of your savior and your body temperature reached astronomical levels. His eyes and even his eyebrows were sharp, making his face all the more striking. His black hair tickled your right shoulder.

“Oh my God I am so sorry! Thank you for catching me.” You rambled as you regained your balance and let him go.

He asked, “Are you okay? You seem panicked.”

So much for thinking you had it together.

“I’m okay, I promise,” you reassured him.

He lifted an eyebrow and it was the most attractive thing you’d ever seen. “If you say so. I’m Taeyong, by the way. The best man.” He offered his hand.

You shook his hand a little too enthusiastically. “Oh, hi. I’m Y/N. The wedding singer.”

“Oh, so you’re the infamous Y/N.”

“Oh dear God…what did Samantha say about me?” Yeah, you were panicked.

Taeyong chuckled. “Nothing. Yuta’s the one who wouldn’t stop talking about your voice.”

You blushed at yourself for jumping to conclusions and being in the presence of this man. “Oh.”

Taeyong said, “I can’t wait to hear you for myself.”

You gulped. It was the way he said it. You didn’t know if everything that he said came off so sensually or if it was all in your head.

;;

Rehearsals were in full swing. The wedding party was practicing their ceremonial entrance. The bridesmaids and groomsmen were paired up. Maid of honor Renee was paired up with Taeyong. He had an effect on everyone, it seemed, because Renee was almost to the point of melting.

Renee told you that you would be able to leave in the next hour after your rehearsal to the ceremonial entrance. The wedding party and the others would scrutinize you, then. Including the best man. And suddenly, all of the nerves hit you.

No, Y/N. These are clients. They don’t know anything about you and if they did, they would remember your Jesse McCartney phase and that you took very meticulous notes in every class you had together. That was that. None of them cared about how you liked Yuta. Everyone liked Yuta. There was even a waitlist to ask Yuta out in high school. So what made you stand out from the other girls? You were just a nice girl from high school, okay? Now show them who you grew up to be.

You got up on the stage and stood up at the mic, having pre arranged the songs with the sound guy. You were waiting to get approval from Samantha that Johnny perform piano and guitar with you, come wedding day.

It was just you and the microphone. And surprisingly, this was the first time you weren’t anticipating Yuta’s reaction.

Samantha and Yuta approved your cover of “Let’s Stay Together” that they decided that you would perform it during the ceremonial entrance.

The instrumental began. You sang the first verse. “I’m...I’m so in love with you. Whatever you want to do...is alright with me…”

You didn’t know what it was that happened to you when you sang. You just kind of transformed into the version of yourself you wished you could always be. Jungwoo told you that you turned into a seductress when you sang. Johnny said that you should own who you were and never look back.

You liked to close your eyes when you sang so you could really get into the song. But you chose to make eye contact with Taeyong since he was a stranger and in that moment you found it easiest to interact with him. Plus, you wanted him to know that you were interested and see if you really were a seductress.

Might as well shoot your shot.

When the song ended, you were overwhelmed by the roaring applause and you smiled. They could call you Miss Colgate Optic White with how big your smile was that moment. Taeyong was grinning right at you. You only noticed that he had moved closer to the stage. There was a little girl right beside him. She had wavy blonde hair and brown eyes.

She looked a lot like Samantha.

Samantha gave you a thumbs up and motioned for you to leave the stage. That was it for today. Thank the Lord.  You went to grab your purse and water bottle when the little girl surprised you and only stared at you.

“Hi…” You said carefully.

The little girl took this as a cue to let it all out. “Oh my God, you are amazing. You are better than Leona Lewis, Ariana Grande, Alicia Keys, and Adele combined. And you’re pretty like a princess.”

The little girl couldn’t have been more than seven years old. She was adorable and very enthusiastic. Her words warmed your heart. “Thank you. Nah, I wouldn’t say that. But I do want to be a singer like them. Someday.”

The little girl’s mouth opened. “Please. That would be awesome! I’m Sonya!”

“It’s nice to meet you, Sonya. I’m Y/N.”

“Y/N, will you marry my brother?” She asked.

Well, that was a shock. You laughed. “Who’s your brother?” It sounded like you were entertaining the possibility of marrying her brother.

“Taeyong!” Sonya yelled.

Wait.

Taeyong, you realized, hadn’t been that far away from you and Sonya during your little exchange. He approached you. Sonya wrapped herself around one of his legs. “This is my big brother, Taeyong.”

“We’ve met, Sonya,” Taeyong said as he smiled fondly down at his sister and met your gaze with that same expression.

“She is perfect for you,” Sonya said, “I know he’s a neat freak and very very bossy but he’s a great guy. I think his plushie collection is pretty cool, too. Do you like plushies, Y/N?”

Taeyong gaped at his sister. You giggled.

“A plushie collection, huh?” You teased.

“He has Piplup and Pikachu and Rilakkuma, too,” Sonya bragged. “He would buy you a lot of plushies, Y/N. So please marry him.”

“Sonya, why do you want me to get married so badly?” Taeyong asked.

Sonya sighed. “Because Sam is getting married. And I want you to be happy, too.”

Wait a minute. What did Samantha have to do with this?

“Wait, how do you know Samantha, Sonya?” You couldn’t hide the frown on your face.

“She’s my sister, Y/N. She is my sister from Mommy and Taeyong is my brother from Daddy,” Sonya said. She definitely said this a lot.

You couldn’t conceal your shock.

“Y/N? Are you okay? You look like you saw a ghost,” Taeyong said, concerned.

“You and Samantha…” You began.

“Step-siblings. Sonya is our half-sister,” Taeyong explained.

How did you not know about this?

“Oh.” That was all you could muster.

“So what do you say, Y/N?” Sonya asked. “Will you give my brother a chance?” Sonya looked so hopeful and kind and radiant.

You started to see the resemblance to Samantha. The wide-eyed dreamy expression she used to have when you were in primary school. The giggly and teasing lilt in her voice. Her laugh most of all.

“Sonya, leave Y/N alone,” Taeyong said.

Sonya pouted. “Fine. But I’ll try again next time. And the time after that. And the time after that. You are coming to the next practice, right Y/N?”

You nodded.

“Good!” Sonya smiled. “There’s hope! Bye Y/N!” Sonya ran off to Yuta. Yuta scooped Sonya off the ground and spun her in circles.

“Y/N?” Taeyong asked cautiously.

You looked at him. “Samantha and I were friends. A long time ago.”

“Really?” He raised his eyebrows.

“It...didn’t end well.”

“But if that were true, why are you here?” He asked.

“Good point. There’s a lot of reasons I can think of.”

“Like?” Taeyong wasn’t hiding his intrigue.

“Please don’t laugh.”

“Now you know if you start off with that...There’s a guarantee that I will laugh,” he said.

“That is so true.” You sighed and continued. “She and Yuta hired me because...I clearly don’t suck at what I do.”

“Oh, definitely not.” Taeyong gave you a deep, meaningful look. Like he had more to say.

You gulped. “And Samantha probably wanted to throw it in my face that she was marrying Yuta.”

“You know Yuta?” He asked. A trace of disappointment was on his face. It was almost as if he knew where this was going.

“We all went to school together up until high school. Samantha and I were chapter members of the Yuta Nakamoto fan club.”

He asked, “Wait, that was an actual club? I thought Yuta’s high school friends were bluffing.”

“There wasn’t an actual club. There may as well have been. The waiting list to date Yuta was very real, though.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Were you on the waiting list?”

You laughed. “Hell, no. I didn’t think I had the right to be.” You regretted saying that last sentence. Your low self-esteem from high school was coming back in waves.

He glared, his jawline very prominent in that second. “Is that so?”

“I...have no idea why I’m telling you all of this but...don’t look too much into it. I’m just here to do my job.” And then go home and have some green apple sangria to numb the pain.

“You...don’t still like him, do you?” Taeyong asked. “Yuta?”

You winced. “Do you want me to lie?”

“Nope.”

“I kinda still do. But it’s been years since I’ve seen Samantha and Yuta. I don’t know who they are now. I never really knew Yuta in high school, either. We weren’t that close of friends.”

Taeyong still looked annoyed.

“What’s with that look?” You asked.

“I was going to ask you out...but now with the truth out…I’m not so sure.”

Your jaw dropped. Someone was going to have to help you pick it up off the ground. “Wait, what?”

“From the moment you grabbed a chocolate chip cookie, I’ve been trying to get up the nerve to ask you out. And then I caught you before you fell. And then you sang. And then it was really over for me.” Taeyong moved closer to you.

You didn’t want anyone to be suspicious of you and Taeyong. After the bomb dropped that Taeyong was Samantha’s brother, you were even more on your toes.

“Taeyong…” You didn’t know what to say. He felt a spark, just like you did. Who knew your clumsiness could work in your favor?

“If you’re still into Yuta…” Taeyong said.

You interjected. “Taeyong, I’m attracted to Yuta. But do I like him enough to really say I like him? Even love him? No.”

Taeyong put his hands in his pants pockets, waiting.

“Taeyong, we just met. I think we still need to get to know each other before we entertain the idea of a date.” You couldn’t believe you were saying this. Did the fact that Samantha was his sister now deter you at all?

His somberness faded completely. “Really?”

“Yes,” you said.

“Okay, well how about a movie tonight?” He didn’t waste anytime.

“What were you thinking of watching?” Please say horror. Please say horror. Please say horror.

“I’ve been wanting to see The Conjuring 3...Are you into scary movies?” He asked, hopeful.

It was as if the Lord smiled down upon you at that second.

Well, that day, the Lord smiled down upon you. Multiple times.

Part 2 (Coming Soon)

[master-sass-blast]

The Sleepover Fic

WELL, THIS ENDED DIFFERENTLY THAN I HAD PLANNED. GOOD LORD.

Summary: You enjoy a sleepover night with the X-Force at the X-Mansion --but partway through you get hit by a wall of depression. Fortunately, Piotr’s there to help you through it.

(Maybekindaprobablydefinitely inspired by the depressive episode I’ve had this week.)

Pairings: Piotr Rasputin x Reader and Nathan Summers x Wade Wilson (sorta).

Rating: T for language and depression.

@marvel-is-perfection

The idea, admittedly, is ridiculous. And that’s why you love it so much.

You’re camped out in the rec room with the rest of the X-Force, perched on the couch next to Piotr in your best set of pajamas --which, admittedly, were just a pair of pants that said ‘bacon makes everything better’ over and over and a random t-shirt. “Okay. So how does this sleepover thing work?”

The rec room’s been completely transformed, floor covered with various sleeping bags, cushions, air mattresses, blankets, and pillows. A pile of snacks covers every inch of the coffee table, along with a few soda bottles.

“Watch and learn, young padawan,” Wade says theatrically, waggling his nonexistent eyebrows for emphasis. As the self-appointed ‘party planner,’ he’d taken it upon himself to make sure that you and Russell checked off another box on the ‘well-rounded experiences’ list. “If you’re good, I might even let you try a little cocaine later.”

“No,” Piotr says automatically, acting as the self-appointed-but-also-kinda-volun-told adult of the night. “Absolutely not.”

“I was kidding, Russia’s Greatest Love Machine. Geez. I don’t share my coke with anyone.”

Yukio giggles while Neena --who’s only staying for a few hours, citing ‘having an actual life to get back to’ for why she’s leaving early--braids her hair. “So, what do you have planned, Wade?”

“Since when does Wade plan anything?” Ellie fires back, deadpan, while she continues beating Russell in Mario Kart.

“Well, I figured we’d hit all the sleepover staples,” Wade chirps. “A little Truth or Dare, some never have I ever, ooh, maybe some Seven Minutes in Heaven--”

“Several of us are minors, douchepool,” Ellie interjects, still deadpan.

“Okay, not that, then. And, when the night starts to wane, we’ll wrap everything up with a massive movie marathon. First person asleep gets pranked!”

“Nyet.”

“Oh, come on, you silver buzzkill! Pranking the first person to fall asleep is a fundamental part of any sleepover!”

“I would allow it if your pranks weren’t so destructive.”

“Okay, name one thing I’ve destroyed in the past twenty-four hours!”

“We’ll be here longer than a night if he does that, dipshit,” Nathan grumbles; he’s also only hanging around for a short period of time, but unlike Neena, his reason for leaving early amounts to ‘not sleeping in the same damn room as Wilson all night.’

Which, admittedly, given Wade’s tendencies to cuddle like an octopus, makes sense.

“Well, I think it sounds like a blast!” you say.

“Thank you!” Wade cheers. “Finally! You think I’d get more respect, considering this is my fucking franchise!”

You can’t help but laugh as Piotr cuts Wade off while Nathan presses his water bottle to his nose, looking endlessly annoyed. New experience or not, tonight was definitely promising to be a fantastic ride.

Truth or dare, as it turns out, is the best game ever to play with Wade Wilson.

First, he thinks of good parameters to keep things from getting boring; case in point, the first rule he establishes is that you can’t pick the same option three times in a row, thus keeping people from sticking to the --arguably safer--truth option for too long.

Second, he actually took the time to write down a bunch of suggestions from a website beforehand, thus preventing the inevitable ‘everyone’s run out of good ideas’ drudge.

Third, he mandates that all dare must be filmed for posterity’s sake. They can be deleted afterwards, but everything has to be caught on camera and reviewed by the group first.

Which is exactly how you find yourself watching a video of Piotr doing a traditional Cossack dance.

“This is amazing,” you giggle as you send the video to your email account.

Piotr simply shakes his head as he sits back down next to you. “If you say so.”

Things get better from there. You get to watch Ellie do a very flat rendition of ‘I’m a Little Teapot’ --which is funnier than it has any right to be--and watch Russell do a solidly decent lip sync to Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies.’

Funnier still is watching Wade try to bust Neena with truths and dares, only to somehow draw the most benign options from the bowls each time.

“How?” Wade screams when Neena does an effortless set of cartwheels. “I wrote these! There wasn’t even a cartwheel option in there! What sort of fourth wall, author interference bullshit is this?”

“Well, that’s another dare done for me,” Neena says, purposefully cheerful for the sake of pissing off Wade even more. “I guess it’s my turn. Cable --truth or dare?”

Nathan rolls his eyes, mutters something under his breath that is most definitely a string of profanities, and grumbles, “Dare.”

Neena fishes around in the dare bowl before selecting a piece of folded Hello Kitty stationary. “Ask a neighbor if they have a condom you can borrow.”

Ellie lets out a snort. “Do it to Scott. Ask Scott.”

Nathan’s face goes deadly blank --and then his techno-organic eye flares as the corner of his mouth turns up in a vicious grin. “Yeah. Wade, I need your help for this.”

“Hey, you have to ask--”

“I’m asking. I just need you to stand next to me while I do it.”

Ellie practically falls off her air mattress as she cackles. “Fuck yeah. Wait, I’m coming to watch.”

All of you wind up following Nathan to Scott’s room, standing in various positions in the hall while Nathan knocks on the door with his human hand.

(For the record, the look on Scott’s face when Nathan asks him for a condom while Wade waggles his fingers at the bespectacled man is absolutely priceless.)

After that, Truth or Dare is declared ‘done’ on account of the fact that nothing will ever top that moment.

Things detour to a Mario Kart tournament, in which Ellie proves that Neena’s lucky powers have limits.

“This is the best thing ever!” Wade cheers as Neena comes second to Ellie’s first --again. “I take back what I said about you, author! You’re amazing!”

You shoot a confused look at Piotr, and opt to settle back against his side when he shrugs, expression easily confused. “Hey, Wade, you’re good at Mario Kart, right?”

“Well, I don’t want to toot my horn, but my skills in Mario Kart come in second only to my skills at Skee-Ball.”

“Do you think you could beat Ellie?”

Wade’s eyes narrow when Ellie barks out a laugh. “Oh, you think you can win?” He swipes a controller off the coffee table and plops down next to her. “Bring it on, Negasonic Soon-To-Be Loser.”

The match is over sooner than you ever would’ve expected for two reasons.

First: Ellie and Wade decide to jump straight to the hardest option possible --Rainbow Road in Mirror Mode.

Second: No one has the stomach to watch anything on the TV afterwards.

(For the record, Ellie wins, and Wade isn’t happy about it).

Never Have I Ever doesn’t last long, either. Mostly because Wade’s done just about everything anyone can think of, or has had just about everything happen to him.

It does result in some awesome story-telling, though. After a certain point, the game completely tapers off in favor of telling stories entirely. Wade and Neena both have the best, hands down, but Piotr and Yukio come in at a close second thanks to their unique backgrounds and heritages.

You quickly realize, though, that you don’t really have anything worth contributing to the story-time session. There’s nothing from your childhood that’s really worth repeating, and your friends already know everything that’s happened to you here.

Suddenly, you feel completely detached from the room, from your friends, from everything. It’s like someone’s cut the cords keeping you tethered to the world and you’re drifting away from reality.

You get up abruptly, managing a smile and citing some sort of excuse about needing to use the bathroom, and get the fuck out of there.

The bathrooms at Xavier’s, unfortunately, aren’t designed for one person at a time. They’re built like locker room restrooms --albeit much cleaner--with multiple stalls and sinks.

You take the stall furthest from the entry, lock yourself in, tuck your legs up as you sit on the toilet lid, and hope that no one comes looking for you.

You aren’t sure if you want to cry. You can feel the sensation tugging at you --grief, rage, pain--but it seems just as distant as the rec room, numbed by your unwitting ejection from reality.

A larger part of you just wants to disappear for a bit. Slip upstairs, get in bed, hide in the darkness of your room.

They probably wouldn’t even notice I was gone, you think --even your internal voice seems dulled in the face of this sudden shut down. It’s not like I was really contributing anything anyway.

A different part of you doesn’t want to leave your friends, if only because you don’t want to have to explain what’s going on; fuck, you barely even understand it yourself.

That, and they’d probably come looking for you if you did head up to your room, and as much as you love them you just want to vanish right now and get away from the noise that’s always everywhere--

You let your forehead rest against your knees. Fuck. The fuck’s wrong with me?

By the time you manage to uncurl yourself and stand up --and it takes a while if the stiffness in your legs are anything to go by--you’ve made up your mind. I’ll just say I wasn’t feeling well and decided to go to bed if anyone asks tomorrow morning.

You don’t get too far with your plan, though, because Neena and Piotr are waiting for you just outside the bathroom door.

You flinch back, startled. “Everything alright?”

“Yeah,” Neena says with a sunny smile. “I’m heading out for the night. Wanted to make sure I said good-bye.”

The ‘need to disappear’ feeling only gets worse, more grating and jarring, when she wraps her arms around you. Fuck. This is hell. You manage to eek out a ‘good night’ and let out a shaky breath as she walks away.

Because you’re not out of the woods yet. Piotr’s still here, watching you with gentle concern.

He brushes his fingers against your upper arm. “Are you alright, myshka?”

Your brain completely cuts out, leaving you adrift and barely able to stay upright. Talk. Say something, for fuck’s sake!

Instead, you just let out a breath and sag against him.

He kisses the top of your head and wraps his arms around your body. “How about we step outside, just for moment? I think fresh air would do you good.”

You let him steer you towards the front door, moving without thought. You suck in a breath when the cool night air hits you, rattling your brain a little from whatever’s come over you.

Piotr, to his credit, doesn’t leave you. He keeps his arms around you, rubs his hands up and down your back, kisses the top of your head, lets you lean against him like he’s the only thing in the world keeping you upright.

He kinda is, if you think about it.

He stays quiet, though, just letting you suck in breath after breath of fresh night air, letting your press your face against his chest and just breathe.

“You gonna ask me what’s wrong?” You ask after a while, voice a little too sharp, a little too acidic in the face of your unwelcome melancholy.

Piotr just kisses the top of your head. “Do you want me to?”

He’s gentle, not passive aggressive in the least, genuinely giving you an out if you don’t want to talk about it.

I don’t deserve him. “I just wanna disappear. Everything feels... like it’s too much.”

“Did not having happy stories from your childhood upset you?”

Bam. Right on the money. Whoever’s said that Piotr Rasputin is an idiot is dead wrong --blindly optimistic at times, yes, but never stupid.

“The fuck am I even contributing to the group?” You let out a bitter laugh. “Shit, I’m such a downer. Can’t enjoy everyone else’s happiness, can’t contribute my own.”

“Nights like these aren’t about equal contribution,” Piotr murmurs as he kisses your forehead. “And it’s okay to be sad that you don’t have similar tales. Besides, not everyone contributed equally. Cable was mostly silent as well, as was Russell.”

You let out a frustrated huff. “Yeah, but --I just-- Piotr, what’s the point of having me around if I can’t keep up with everyone? What’s the point of me being a part of the X-Force if I can’t contribute outside of fights? We’re supposed to be a team --a family.”

Piotr clasps your upper arms gently as he crouches in front of you so you can see his face in the dim light of the moon and the lights from inside the mansion. “Myshka, family means we take ups with downs. You do not have to be happy all the time --especially if something upsets you. And aside from your many valuable skills --and there are many--we keep you around because we want you with us. You, as you are, is enough.”

Your throat constricts at the thought, and you bury your face in his shoulder in an effort to hide your tears. “I just wanna be good enough.”

“You are,” Piotr croons gently in your ear. His arms wrap around you, shielding you from the chill of the night and bathing you in warmth and love. “You are more than good enough, myshka.”

When you finally come down from your grief --pain, anger, sorrow, everything--who knows how much time later, you find that your brain’s turned back on.

Not all the way. But just a little. Just enough.

You slump against Piotr’s shoulder and chest. “I dunno if I wanna go back to the group. I kinda just wanna go back to bed.”

“Do you think that’s what would be best for you?”

“...I don’t know.”

“Khorosho. That’s fine. How about this: come watch one movie with us. If you still want to go to bed after, you can. If not, you stay with group.”

You let out a shaky sigh and nod. “Okay. That works.”

You almost chicken out as you walk towards the rec room. You can feel everything shutting off again, and you don’t want to suck a night of enjoyment away from the group.

But Piotr’s hand is a comforting, solid presence on yours, a tether to reality that you can’t bear to let go off.

The warm light of the rec room almost seems too bright as you step over the threshold, and you grip Piotr’s hand tighter.

Yukio greets you with a bright, sunny smile and pulls you in for a hug. She doesn’t mention your red eyes or puffy cheeks or the fact that you were gone for so long. “We need someone to break a tie on the first movie choice.”

“Listen, Negasonic-My-Name-Won’t-Age-Well, ‘Monty Python and the Holy Grail’ is a literal, actual classic. It deserves to go first.”

“And ‘Get Out’ is both cutting edge and critically acclaimed. I still don’t see you making any points that actually tilt the argument in your favor.”

“Will someone just make a damn decision?” Nathan growls as he pinches the bridge of his nose.

You manage to smile, buoyed by your friends’ enthusiasm, as everyone looks at you. “‘Get Out’ first. I have a feeling we’ll need Monty Python to cheer us all up after.”

“Go to sleep, lyublyu.”

You blink wearily, the images of ‘Robin Hood: Men in Tights’ blurring before your eyes. You’d made it through the first three movies just fine, but you were barely holding on now. “I don’t wanna fall asleep first. Wade’s gonna prank me.”

Piotr lets out a gentle, quiet laugh and points surreptitiously across the room. “I do not think that will be problem.”

You manage to lift your head and clear your vision long enough to see that Wade’s long since passed out, slumped against an equally dead to the world Nathan. “They so like each other.”

Piotr chuckles and tugs you back down against his chest. “Da. Now rest, moya lyubov’. Everything will be fine.”

You lay your head down and finally let your eyes close.

You wake up on the couch alone, carefully tucked under a quilt and head propped up on a pillow.

It doesn’t take too long to figure out where Piotr went thanks to the sounds and smells coming from the kitchen --and the tone deaf humming; Piotr’s many things, but a naturally gifted singer is not one of them.

You sit up and stretch, rolling your shoulders and neck to work out the stiffness that came from not sleeping a proper bed with a proper pillow.

Nathan and Wade are nowhere to be seen; presumably, they’ve gone back to their rooms --or room if Wade managed to invite himself into Nathan’s bed without getting punched.

Ellie, Yukio, and Russell are still asleep on the floor, cushioned by air mattresses and blankets. Russell’s sprawled out like a starfish, and Ellie and Yukio are holding hands even though they’re sleeping on separate mattresses.

There’s a notification on your phone --a text from Neena.

Neener Wiener: Hope you’re feeling better this morning.

And you...

You are feeling better. Not completely, but a little.

It’s something.

You smile to yourself, just a little, and get up to join your boyfriend in the kitchen.

[malereader-inserts]

Don’t Take It Away

Fandom: Avengers Pairing: Steve Rogers x Male Reader Summary: Steve wants to start again, you’re just hard to convince. Word Count: 1421 Request: “do you think sometimes you can make a steve rogers x mreader? I know you've made some before but you haven't written for him in a while. I don't really have an idea but, ya know “ Aspired by the new song of my fave Lewis Capaldi - Grace. 

“Things changes, old man.”

Steve looked at you disapprovingly, as you shrugged your shoulder with a knowing smug smirk planted on your face. Steve was getting restless and it had only been two minutes in the elevator before the lights flickered out and the lift suddenly at a stop.

Somehow, he had been fortunate to be stuck in the elevator with you. One of the intelligent and powerful Avenger, and unfortunately, an ex too. If you remember correctly, you had broken up upon mutual agreement, you just both fell out of love. That’s what you guys say for the media. 

Truth be told, you found yourself unworthy of Steve Rogers, being in that mindset was unhealthy for Steve and the relationship, you had dated many men in your life and Steve grew up in a different generation with different values and standards. You pushed him away, you needed to reevaluate yourself before thinking of committing again. 

But, on Steve’s side of the argument, he was afraid that he loved too soon. He was new to the dating scene and after the stint with Peggy’s great niece, Sharon Carter, he found himself falling with the group’s cynic. Tony says it’s because your generation has been through shit, you want to change but you know that this change everyone wants is not going to happen. It’s a fable wishing, and yet Steve liked that about you.

However, he’s not ready to be just another of your mistakes. Maybe, that’s why he was the one to start the breakup. He doesn’t want to look like the fool, yet he was still madly in love with you. Steve fell victim to the sound of your love, you were caring and showed his so much affection

You're like a song that he didn’t want to stop listening to, you weird humour and sweet nothings. He enjoyed listening to you rant about the team and how you would scoff as you switch the channel away from the news channel.

He was left with nothing but you on his mind.

“Yeah, things change.”

Steve’s weird trail of voice had made you flicker your eyes towards him before sighing and sit down on the floor. Steve stares at you, his eyebrow raising with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Sit down, I fear that we’ll be here for ages.” You commented, looking at your phone as you turn your brightness to halfway, looking at the recent text from Tony that the elevator fix will take a few hours.

Steve looked at you and then the surroundings. The door, the two metal walls and a glass window with a rail guard on it. Steve sat down, facing you as you both stretched your legs. His legs reaching your left arm as you did the same with him.

You looked at him as he stares back. The silence between you two was familiar, your eyes wandered out the window, leaning your head against the metal wall as Steve discreetly spared you glances.

“I’m not a fucking idiot, Steve,” You sighs, your eyes connecting once again as Steve tilted his head confused, “You’re still in love with me.”

“Perhaps, and you?”

“Kills me to see you every day,” You responded, you had softly licked your lips and sniffling, “What was your real reason for breaking up with me? I’m curious.”

“I-” Steve started before coughing and clearing his throat, “It doesn’t feel right, it wasn’t for me. Everything is new-”

“Steve, get a goddamn grip,” You sighed, “It’s been three years since you have woken up, things change every decade,  deal with it. It’s life. Life is there to cause you despondency, it will gift you with gut-wrenching emotions, deluding you into thinking it is the end of the world, that you cannot live any longer in this deleterious world. It will mislead you into wounding your luxurious dermis, inflicting yourself with humiliating phrases, convincing you that it’s your fault. But guess what? It. Is. Life. We can’t do anything about it, it will constantly come at us, smacking us in our life.”

“Ever so the realist,” Steve commented.

“I’m here to have a good time, not a long time,” You responded coolly, “Maybe you’re right, maybe we aren’t destined together - like our puzzles were pieces smashed together, hoping they fit but in reality being together makes us messy.”

Steve looked unphased with all your real talk, but he did not want the pieces of your so-called metaphorical analogy to fall apart. Steve felt like this was the ultimate downfall, there was no attachment between him and you, nothing can be amended between you two.

Steve took a deep breath, his mind ready to accept this unfortunate fact.

“Yet, we’re two idiots in love with each other, venting in here is getting fucking hot and-” You started you peel your jacket off and flinging it towards your feet as Steve watched with mild amusement, “I hate that I’m still in love with you.”

“Oh?”

“I don’t want to repeat myself, Steve, how the fuck are you not burning?” Your mind was suddenly on a different topic, “Can’t you feel this metal contraption heating up?”

Steve shrugs, “I’m not that hot.”

“Debatable,” You responded almost immediately.

There was a long silence, Steve sighs as he waited. You were looking out the glass wall, admiring New York city. Steve was able to admire you, despite your lack of grace he knew you had it in you. Maybe, he was wrong to break things up, he should have talked to you about it.

“What if things were different?”

You looked at him, your eyebrow raised, “I’m sorry?”

“Restore what we use to have, I want to keep this connection that we have, please don’t take it away.”

“Sounds awfully selfish of you.”

“(Y/n)-” Steve sighs as you looked at him, “I was wrong, I thought we were going too fast, you have a reputation and I didn’t want to be the butt of the joke. I thought of you so highly, I placed you on some sort pedestal.”

“How are we supposed to function if we weren’t on some sort of common ground?” You asked, “I’m a sceptic, a cynic even, but I’m not a brag or a snob, but are we too wounded now to ever come down?“

There was silence between you two.

“Can we start over?”

“Do you think that will help?”

“I’ve seen in movies and shows,” Steve replied coolly as you smiled at him, “Though they were Natasha’s selections and-”

“We can start again, Steve, but I can’t promise that us being a pair could happen again.”

“I just want a fresh start, we didn’t get off the right foot when we first met.” 

“You called me a stuck-up jerk and that I needed to man up because you don’t like bullies.” You replied, raising your eyebrows, “I’d say that’s a fantastic first impression.”

“Well, you were the most polite person I’ve met.”

“Sorry for my grace, I promise I won’t tarnish it for you.”

Steve and you shared a look before giggling like schoolboys. Somehow the old atmosphere that you both craved was coming back. It was comfortable, there was nothing hidden or undercover.

“You still alive there kids?” Tony’s voice commed through, “Luckily for you guys, I was able to fix it quicker than I thought.”

“Great! I’m burning in here, it’s too hot that I almost took my shirt off.”

“I’m sure spangles there wouldn’t mind.”

“Stark!” Steve flushed red as he barked at Tony, who chuckled.

“Alright alright, give me ten and you’ll be out.” The communicate had become radio silent as you and Steve looked at each other again.

There was a smile on his face as he leans his head back. You returned the smile before turning your attention away from him, perhaps it wasn’t perfect but it was something to Steve. He still had you and he was going to work hard to prove that maybe, just maybe, you were destined to be together.

The elevator rumbled, cueing you and Steve to suddenly stand up as the lift starts to slowly move again.

“So, fresh start?” Steve questions, you give him a side eye before nodding.

“Sure, what harm can it do?” 

Steve nodded and smile, his hand out to shake, “Hi, I’m Steve Rogers.”

You looked at him with an eyebrow raised, Steve wore a goofy grin before you shook his hand.

“And I’m (Y/n) (L/n), a pleasure to meet you.”

[creamybeemovie69]

Light AU HCs

Basically an AU about Shawn with weird powers. These aren’t really HCs, but they were too random to make a ‘story’ out of, plus I think it worked better like this

He had a dream when he was 5 about being caught in the middle of a riot and shouting for his mum and Travis, despite knowing full well he’s never going to see either of them again, and someone grabs him and picks him up but he just keeps going up until he gets to the sky but then gets struck by lightning, which is one of his biggest fears, even though it’s a clear sunny day with no rain clouds or traces of a storm

He wakes up and doesn’t really understand the dream but it scared him so he slept in Travis’ room but he doesn’t really think about it again until he’s 12 and living with Margret, his dad and Jaime

He basically gets a mark on his skin that looks like a birthmark but it’s white every time he looses his temper and it’s only visible when he’s in what I’m calling his “lightning form”

He doesn’t realise he has these powers until he starts talking in his sleep which happened at this time and he cracks his neck turning the wrong way in bed and it hurt so he wakes up and he’s somehow paler with white glowing blotches all over him, white hair and his eyes have gone from royal blue to icy blue

He screamed but he threw his head back and cracked his neck again doing it, turning him back into his normal self with brown hair, dark blue eyes and clear skin, save for a few freckles

Margret comes running in with Trevor, obviously concerned but Trevor looks pissed off and she asks him over and over again what happened and he never tells her

Trevor obviously couldn’t give less of a fuck, but he’s the only one in the house that understands what Shawn says in his sleep and he won’t tell anyone what he hears, but whatever it is obviously scares him, which is weird because Trevor was never really scared of much, so to be scared of his own son obviously pissed him off and his feelings towards Shawn just got more bitter and therefore their relationship became more abusive

Unlike in the main verse, as Jaime grows up Trevor continues to target Shawn to the point were he’s the perfect dad towards Jaime and he finds it hard to hate him

It’s also a lot harder to hate him when Shawn and JJ don’t really see eachother as brothers. They have nothing against eachother, but they’re practically strangers and nowhere near as close as they are in the main verse

Shawn’s also a lot younger, and he’s only 3 years older than Jaime but the age gap is enough to make them distant but not enough for Shawn to take on the fartherly role he did in the main verse until Jaime grew up

When Shawn turns 16 he saves up every penny he gets to move to America, whether or not the others want to come is entirely up to them, but his dads not fucking welcome

Naturally Margret and Trevor say no, Shawn corrects him and says you weren’t fucking invited, but neither of them try to stop him

Margret is obviously very sad to see him go because she practically raised him, but she supports his choices fully

Well, supports his choices until Jaime wants to go with Shawn

She told Jaime not a chance in heaven or earth was he moving to America at 13, but boy is Jaime stubborn

Margret refuses to leave Jaime or Trevor though, so she says “if you’re going, we’re both coming with you” and Jaime likes Trevor so he’s like “yeah that’s fi—“ but Shawn’s like “he gets on the same boat as me and I’m throwin’ him overboard.”

So eventually it ends up as Jaime going with Shawn for a few months and if he enjoys it he can come back when he’s 16 permanently

Of course, this isn’t what happened because Jaime just didn’t go back

Things are a lot different in America. Think Columbia in BioShock, because Shawn then finds out that his weird little dreams when he was 3 and 12 weren’t dreams, they’re what’s called a ‘Lighter’, and a very select few people get them, but these people end up being crazy successful and rich by using they’re powers to bring new revolutionary inventions that have the potential to change the course of history its self, but every single one of these powers is unique and far beyond science and religion

America wanted to keep these things a secret and as the first few ‘Lights’ happened to be born in America they’re normally born in America now. But of course Shawn has to be the odd one out and ends up Irish.

There are currently 3 Lights in America and 1 in japan, but these things are barely heard of in other countries

The ones in America have powers that can create giant groups of holes wherever needed, bringing inanimate objects to life as king as they look human and raising chunks of ground at the persons will

The one in Japan has the ability to fly, which may be cliche, but it brought fantastic improvements to air travel

Obviously there are a few others across the globe, but you have to actually be able to gain the powers and then discover them, which is a lot easier said than done. Shawn only known about his powers because he happened to click his neck in the wrong way, which now means that he can activate and deactivate his powers at will by cracking his neck

A Light’s powers are based off extreme irrational fears; the one who can create groups of holes has trypophobia, the fear of tightly packed hole, the one who can bring humanoid inanimate objects to life has pediophobia, the fear of dolls and the one can raise the ground has taphophobia, the fear of being buried alive and the one in Japan is scared of hights

Shawn has astraphobia, the fear of being struck by lightning

These powers never fade and the Light using them doesn’t run out of energy from using them

When Shawn got to America he was fascinated by Lights and the way they shaped the country. 2 of the 3 were women, which made women’s lives a lot easier

The only problem was the fact that the one who could bring inanimate objects to life wasn’t one of the women

He happened to be Joey Drew

The AU still follows historical events and the Irish were still discriminated, and Shawn knew this, but he figured he’d get by with luck and a British brother

With the time alone and the small house they lived in, Shawn and Jaime eventually became as close as they are in the main verse

Shawn met joey when he was waking past the studio and Joey came out the back, and the 2 collided in the ally behind the studio

Joey landed with his right hand to brace himself, his pinky and his thumb coming into brief contact, which activated his powers, and Shawn landed on his shoulder, moved his other arm to hold it and try and suppress the pain and moved his head away from it, cracking his neck and lighting up the whole damn alleyway

Joey tried to get back to his feet without damaging his now porcelain skin, before clicking his fingers and turning back into his normal self, only now his eyes were wide with somehting between panic and shock and his jaw dropped

Shawn just kind of stared at him like “this was your fucking fault”

It was raining, so naturally Shawn was soaked, but Joey sort of figured out Shawn was a Light when thunder erupted in the distance and Shawn jumped far too hard

Joey was now stood, holding a gloved hand out towards this glowing kid in a back ally, offering him a place to stop in the studio until the storm calmed down

They talked, and of course Shawn already knew about Joey, but Joey was curious as to why Shawn didn’t use powers considering the disadvantage he was already at with being an Irishman in 30’s America, and Shawn’s only excuse was crippling social anxiety

Ha bitch you thought Joey was the bad guy but nope because Shawn works happily as the lead animator until Joey convinces Henry to come back and becomes assistant lead animator and gayness happens with Wally obviously and the fucking ink machine never happened

Still, things weren’t perfect and there was still a war that Jaime felt a dire need to be a part of

Fast forward and Jaime was now happily married to Angelica in a large house in Manhattan and Shawn lives with Wally barely 10 minutes away

Marvin decides to be Marvin and drag them out of their time, only for them to explain that they really wanted to go back and Marvin having the memory of a 2 hour encounter with two random strangers from the 30’s

And then Travis shows up

He’s jealous. He’s jealous of the fact that his scrawny little brother can make a name for himself in a world that hates him. He’s jealous of the fact that Shawn not only made lives for the irish 10 times easier but also managed to snatch up gay rights in the process. He’s jealous of the fact that Shawn can prove he has powers but they have no really function he knows of outside of making him light up like a fucking glow stick and yet here he was, abandoned by his parents at such a young age and barely making enough money to get by

And then, as he lights the gas cooker, he catches his hand on the flame

But it doesn’t hurt

And he can now manipulate that fire however he wants

Ironic for a guy with a deathly fear of fire, huh

[mackenzie-lukasiaks]

in your tags you said you could make a list of all the shitty things melissa has done and i think you should tbh

whew boy, okay, hopefully I won’t forget any, but here we go…

season 1

almost always ignoring mackenzie in favor of talking about how great “her daughter, maddie” is, as well as accusing the other moms of being jealous of maddie’s talent

going out to lunch with cathy and gossiping about the other moms and their husbands–like literally, she brought the husbands up, not cathy–and then refusing to talk about her own marital situation because that’s ‘not cathy’s business’

getting pissy at mackenzie for not wanting to sing in front of the broadway talent scout, to the point of telling her she should go sit in the car by herself because melissa didn’t even want to look at her crying

honestly any time she attempted to talk to/comfort her children when they were upset, including simultaneously being angry at maddie for acting like she was 16 but then also accusing her of being immature

blaming nia for hurting maddie during the watermelon game even though no one saw maddie get hurt

calling maddie her “best friend” and the gift she received from her grandmother while mackenzie was standing right there

dumping her kids off with abby to go gallivanting around florida with her boyfriend, then getting angry when her ex-husband and father of said kids thought perhaps he should be allowed to look after them or at least know who they were staying with

taking the music producer for the lux video out for drinks and then being all shocked that the other mothers would not appreciate that bit of underhandedness

using her position as the scheduler to give her kids more privates

season 2

making excuses for maddie losing to chloe in “brooke’s turning point” by insisting that chloe won by looking too amateurish in comparison to maddie….somehow??

threatening to sue the mothers just because they asked her about her engagement, then getting angry at them for being angry with her

befriending jill just in general lmao

refusing to acknowledge that she sucks up to abby (I’m thinking particularly of the argument the moms had during the party in the episode “brooke’s back”)

seeing nothing wrong with the “fantastic” group dance even though her 7 year old and 9 year old were being portrayed as NUDE

clearly being pissed that chloe won the ballet scholarship, and then being pissy with maddie for being upset, which obviously did not help maddie process the loss

forcing maddie to ask abby for a solo after she forget “in my heart” even though maddie was clearly uncomfortable with doing another solo so soon

getting angry at the mothers for accusing abby of scratching maddie’s cd even though melissa herself apparently told the mothers that abby had maddie practice with the scratched music

and then being totally fine with abby’s explanation and refusing to discuss it with the mothers any further

tattling on chloe for missing rehearsal to go to the movies even though chloe was told not to dance that day by her doctor and even though chloe was a child and melissa was a grown-ass woman

saying “oh, it was only a tenth of a point between chloe and maddie” at nationals because she couldn’t just be happy for chloe winning a title

season 3

participating in the strike but being annoying about it, and then immediately going right back to abby without a second glance at the moms

feeling so obviously threatened by sophia’s presence but refusing to admit it

lying to jill about being excited for “sugar and spice”, then getting all pissy at being caught in the lie

wailing to abby about how much she and maddie love the studio and love abby and how nasty the other mothers are and just….the general hysterics of that scene (even maddie was embarrassed!)

doing the secret broadway baby tribute….not the worst thing, but just another example of her going behind the other moms’ backs

the weirdness with kenzie’s foot, which melissa’s attempted explanations only made more suspicious

not caring at all when abby wanted to take kenzie out of “gold diggers” and refusing to advocate for her child

again, feeling so obviously threatened by asia but refusing to admit it

being a-okay with the whole “two girls, one solo” scenario

accusing the mothers of being so jealous and awful to maddie during “tap vs. hiphop” because they pointed out the differences between abby’s reaction to maddie’s costume malfunctioning and her reaction to any other kids’ costumes malfunctioning

being fine with abby using maddie to replace paige’s solo in the recital, even though she knew it would upset kelly and paige

saying she wished that kenzie would dance more like maddie and/or asia when kenzie could hear it

flashing her breasts in new orleans but not bringing that little tidbit up to abby when abby was lecturing the moms on acting appropriately and throwing christi/leslie out for fighting

season 4

going along with the secret duet and being shocked that the moms, particularly kelly and christi, would see that as betrayal

then being like “why wouldn’t you trust me??? how could you not trust me???” as if she hasn’t given ample evidence of her lying and manipulating

being a-okay with mackenzie being forced to dance like maddie in “sister showdown”, even though kenzie was clearly uncomfortable

being all “oh maddie would never bully chloe” when christi brought up maddie making nasty remarks about the chloe/kalani duet in “family comes first”, rather than take the accusation seriously and, idk, talk to maddie about it??

letting abby put “happiness” in against kenzie, tea, and ava even though it was supposed to be kenzie’s week to dance against her select team counterpart. but she had such little faith in kenzie’s abilities that she’d sooner take the win with maddie than let kenzie have the spotlight.

and also again being shocked that anyone would take issue with her actions

not standing by the moms when they tried to point out abby’s poor treatment of the girls with the whiteboard in “the understudies”

like the other mothers, refusing to stand by christi or look out for the lukasiaks during the final fight at s4 nationals

season 5

promoting the whole “CHRISTI AND KELLY ARE OUT TO DESTROY THE ALDC” conspiracy

listening to abby during the whole mattyb debacle, even though it was an opportunity for kenzie (not a great one, but still)

always blathering on about all the great stuff maddie got to do with sia, but getting pissy whenever, say, holly would talk about the cool stuff nia was doing with her music. because only maddie is allowed to be successful!!

including when maddie was allowed to interrupt rehearsal for an interview, but when nia did the same, melissa lost her shit

being all smug as if brynn could neeeeever beat maddie in a million years

lamenting the fact that she couldn’t be with “her daughter” at the hollywood bowl even though she was with one of her fucking daughters at the aldc

being such a horrid bitch about nia’s music and acting like it was directly harming kendall

also accusing holly of being exclusionary by only having jojo in nia’s performances/videos even though none of the other mothers were even a little bit supportive of nia’s music career

everything she did in “maddie vs. mackenzie”. just everything.

freaking out during “chaos at nationals” because as if ava could possibly beat maddie!! then leaving the competition in a huff with abby and jill like a bunch of tantrumming children

season 6

being awful to the minis throughout the season

being awful to brynn (and ashlee) throughout the season

refusing to tell mackenzie about the plans to leave the aldc, even though she discussed it thoroughly with maddie, but who cares, not like it would have a massive effect on kenzie!!

being majorly pissed that brynn’s trio with kenzie/kalani won over maddie’s trio with jojo/kendall even though one of her daughters was victorious, all because she didn’t want brynn to be an official member of the team

going so far as to say that brynn’s trio shouldn’t have won IN FRONT OF MACKENZIE and even accusing that trio of cheating or fudging the scores

being all “ashlee is crazy and mean” like bitch look at your damn self before you start trying that shit

being all “haha, brynn came in 4th, she sucks ass” only for maddie to place 4th against brynn…..:///

also just generally downplaying brynn’s skills and acting as if brynn had no talent whatsoever, even though 1) a few of those skills, like brynn’s needle, are skills kenzie also had and 2) brynn was clearly talented and melissa’s denials only made her seem delusional

everything she did in “one last dance”. special shout-out to calling the minis “nobodies” and accusing sari of trying to use her disabled child to take the attention away from maddie and mackenzie.

in conclusion, fuck melissa gisoni-ziegler.

[thefalse9]

Euro 2020 Team Previews: Group D

England:

In their first Euros outing in 1968, England finished third, of four teams. They’re still waiting to improve on that. Only Belgium and the old Yugoslavia could claim to have performed better at European Championships without winning one. England have been international football’s big underachievers since 1966, from home-soil heroes to the failed Golden Generation. The Three Lions have won one knockout game in the history of this competition. On penalties. As hosts. I'm not even kidding, look it up. Five years ago, they crashed out to Iceland; as the song goes, we’d seen it all before. What followed, though, was new: it led to a scorched earth rejuvenation of English football, led by some of the greatest minds in the game. Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and Marcelo Bielsa all arrived, followed by a cast of club legends making early forays into management. Together, they’ve helped to reshape the country’s tactical make-up into something more modern. An Icelandic volcano turned English football to ash, but from the rubble, something new and exciting has risen from it. There’s hope for the class of 2021. The Three Lions’ current pride isn’t an empty collection of big names – there are still titans of elite European sides, but vitally, there’s a balance that seems to have evaded the national team for 55 years. England finally have defensive midfielders and left-footers. A good grouping of the current XI are captains of their clubs. Importantly, the country’s youth-level champions of recent years are coming of age, giving Gareth Southgate genuine selection migraines. For many, England’s talent reserves are the envy of Europe as many sitting on the bench would have started for other nations competing in Euro 2020. Since 2018, the pragmatism of Southgate’s World Cup semi-finalists has come to the fore: they are prepared to win ugly, even if a squad packed with attacking prowess suggests otherwise. If we're being honest, the 12-month postponement of Euro 2020 may have even worked in England’s favor, too, as so many young Lions have received a year’s extra education before the big tournament. Mason Mount and Phil Foden have developed into legitimate superstars, Reece James looks like one of the best fullbacks in football and this new "Golden Generation" may actually be better than the last. Could the stars align? We haven’t seen a crop quite like this for some time, and while England doesn’t quite expect to win it all, there’s plenty of serious promise.

Euro 2020 may be a bridge too far for Southgate’s squad, but their journey over the last five years shows they’re on the right track. If they can shake off the nation’s tag as perennial underachievers in football, then maybe, just maybe, this fucking thing is "coming home".

Croatia:

In the past three years, Croatia seen a generational shift occur within their national team – never an easy task for a country with so small a talent pool. The situation was hardly helped by Ivan Rakitic’s sudden international retirement last September; the midfielder following forward Mario Mandzukic and goalkeeper Danijel Subasic in saying goodbye to the national team in the aftermath of the sepia-tinged summer of 2018. Yet, still led by Luka Modric’s effortless brilliance, the perennial dark horses remain a strong outfit, albeit a little green around the edges. Some squad members have already shown great maturity in stepping up, particularly 26-year old Dinamo Zagreb keeper Dominik Livakovic, whom has between fantastic between the sticks, and 23-year-old former Everton midfielder Nikola Vlasic. Dinamo’s Mislav Orsic is still floating on air after his stunning hat-trick knocked Tottenham out of the Europa League. Most encouragingly? Manager Zlatko Dalic can also rely upon one player the wider European public has yet to meet: striker Bruno Petkovic. Similar to Olivier Giroud in many ways, the hulking Dinamo centre-forward offers Croatia an important tactical variant as a hulking in-the-box presence amidst a sea of pint-sized technicians. Yet more vital is that Modric, the quintessential captain, who is still playing at the highest level after yet another fine Real Madrid season, isn’t tired of wearing the famed checkered shirt. They'll go as far as his mastery, wizardy, incredible ability and undying passion for his national team will take them. This team is green, but by no means does that mean they're incapable of making a semi-finals appearance. Croatia’s group is extremely demanding because it contains two hosts (England and Scotland) and the reawakened Czech Republic, whose players increasingly recall previous generations. That being said, reaching the knockout stages should not be an issue. The fact that reaching the knockout stage is now the minimum expectation from the Croatian public is proof of just how far this team has come. The big names may lack their forebears’ name recognition, but the talent remains for them to go far.

Scotland:

Don’t let anyone tell you that international football is irrelevant and that representing your country doesn't matter anymore in the age of mega-contracts, "Super Leagues", "Champions Leagues" and endorsement deals. If they persist, point them in the direction of Ryan Christie’s post-match interview with Sky Sports on the night that Scotland finally ended their agonizing 23-year wait to appear at a major international tournament. For about two minutes, the Celtic star did his best to juggle obvious exhaustion, joy and sheer relief while the tears flowed down in his face in an abject display of patriotism that would make even the biggest skeptic struggle to watch without wondering who was cutting onions or who opened the window and let all this pollen into the room. This had been a long time coming. The night of their play-off in Serbia was about as ‘Scotland’ as it gets. Even though Steve Clarke’s side put in a confident, and composed performance against visibly shaken opposition; given the lead through a Christie goal that looked to be enough for victory, Serbian star and all-together disappointment Luka Jovic delivered a sucker-punch equalizer in stoppage time. Long-suffering Scotland supporters at home feared the worst. And, as it were, the Serbians pushed Scotland to the brink in extra time. But Scotland stood firm, then David Marshall secured legendary status among the Tartan Army with a superb save from Aleksandar Mitrovic's effort to settle the penalty shootout at 5-4. Back in Scotland, there was utter pandemonium. Football can’t do much to make up for a year of loss and sacrifice, but it has at least reaffirmed its status as the most important of the least important things. For one night, Christie & company gave their country the gift of a priceless distraction in a year when we needed it most. Scotland’s hard-fought win in Belgrade lengthened their unbeaten stretch under Clarke to nine games – their best run in 44 years. It hasn't been easy, however. Clarke and his management team have had to tweak their system along the way and injuries have forced some previously unheralded players to earn caps. Others have been forced out for resting on their old laurels (sorry Leigh Griffiths), while others have been handed opportunities based on merit and ability (hello, Lyndon Sykes). For all that qualification represented to Clarke, though, he’s too proud for his side to just make up the numbers this summer. They probably won't make it to the next round. They were handed a rough draw this time around and the Czech Republic is a tough out. That said, Scotland is going to fight until they can't anymore. It's what they know.

Czech Republic:

Back in England for another major tournament a quarter of a century after their incredible run to the Euro 96 Final, the Czechs travel to the UK with a buoyant mood and a settled squad. They’re unencumbered by expectation, and bring a team of promising young players and hungry internationals from Europe’s top five leagues, so another underdog showing is the hope for the nation's fans and for manager Jaroslav Silhavy.

Tomas Soucek – he of the granite forehead, man-mountain shoulders and elbows that can be thrown like boulders – and full-back Vladimir Coufal already delivered solid performances for Slavia Prague, but not even the most ardent Czech fan would have expected the level both have reached in West Ham’s excellent 2020-21 Premier League campaign, thus leading both players to capture the imagination and incite the excitement of a country who is beginning to believe this team may have what it takes Meanwhile, the Czechs’ best forward, Patrik Schick – on loan at RB Leipzig last year – has finally sorted out his future by leaving Roma for Bayer Leverkusen. The 25-year-old looks settled at his new club, and by mid-April he had scored 13 goals in 29 appearances for the German outfit. He'll be expected to lead the line, and from all appearances, looks prepared to do so, finally living up to the potential and expectations bestowed upon him at a young age. That being said, no Czech side has ever been about individuals, not even in Pavel Nedved’s era: even in a loaded team, with Karel Poborsky and Vladimir Smicer, the Czechs were more than a one-man show and played united, hard-nosed football, stoked more in pragmatism and a cohesive identity than individual moments of brilliance. Team spirit, tactical preparation, defensive organization and a well-balanced squad tend to trump all when it comes to the Czech squad. Boosted psychologically by their promotion to Nations League A, Silhavy’s troops also know what to expect in this group: they’d already beaten England in qualifying when they pipped Scotland to top spot in their Nations League division. Their football is unlikely to be beautiful, but they will be tough to beat, and with their would-be stars in top-form coming into the tournament, do not be surprised to see the Czech Republic make the knockouts as one of the best Third-Place teams.

[airadam]

Episode 130 : In The House

"We'll get the drums goin' so you can dance again, don't worry..."

- "Old Man" Ebro

I think it's fair to say that this has been a month like no other, certainly in the UK, where the restrictions on movement that other places in the world were ahead of us on finally came down. These are strange times where we're all trying to get used to new ways of living, but I hope this month's show has some tunes that can lift your mood a little!

As mentioned in the show, Hip-Hop Chip Shop are selling gift vouchers which you can cash in when the restaurant opens back up - and crucially, for every one bought, they'll donate a meal to someone in need!

Twitter : @airadam13

Playlist/Notes

Heltah Skeltah : Operation Lock Down

The sampler 12" for the "Nocturnal" LP made its way onto my turntables this month, and this old 90s favourite wormed its way into my head as a possible inclusion for this episode. I umm-ed and ahh-ed but a chat with someone whose opinion I respect convinced me to go with it. Actually referring to Heltah Skeltah and Boot Camp Clik's goal to lock down the industry, it was a big statement of intent for the Ruck (Sean Price) and Rock, two MCs making their entry to the game. The skills are on display without question though, and this track is notable for being a reach outside their camp for production - E-Swift of Tha Alkaholiks is on the boards for the woozy, dreamlike thump. Big tune then, and unexpectedly fitting now.

Abstract Orchestra : Eyes Up

Great version of a solid Slum Village beat. Abstract Orchestra have been touring and recording for a while with their takes on J Dilla material, and along with the current lineup of Slum Village, they've finally released "Fantastic 2020", a version of the classic "Fantastic, Volume 2" with instrumental and vocal tracks. By the way - make sure to buy the two-disc CD version for all the content!

Voodoo Black ft. LayFullStop : In The Mood

Voodoo Black have been getting ratings here since the start - and it was an honour to have Dubbul O, one of the MCs, here as a guest last year - and so it's with great pleasure that we can talk about their debut LP! "Sitting At The Table" will have just been released as you read this, and it's a lean ten-track collection that does Manchester proud. Ellis Meade, Sparkz, and Dubbul O are joined on this particular number by adopted Manchester daughter LayFullStop, who really does set the mood on top of the DJ Cutterz beat. It's always great to see sustained effort come out on top!

Kombo ft. Vinia Mojica : Sands Of Time

I played the wicked B-side to this back on episode 2 (!), then filed the vinyl back on the shelf from where it occasionally made outings - but only as part of the recent effort to digitise my collection has the A-side really got the deep listening it deserved. Ge-ology on the chilled beat perfectly scores Kombo's love rhymes, and Vinia Mojica keeps it subtle with her vocal contribution. 

Little Brother : Altitudes (Flyin' High)

Another great B-side that may have escaped your notice! Back in 2002, Little Brother were making noise on the underground as a promising crew on the rise - one of the first to blow up primarily on the internet - and their single "Whatever You Say" was a mixshow/mixtape staple of the time. Tucked away at the very end of the B-side was this little gem that didn't make the album (but was later heard on "The Chittlin Circuit 1.5"), themed around aviation and featuring classic 9th Wonder production underneath confident rhymes from Phonte and Big Pooh.

Consequence ft. Phife Dawg : No Place Like Home

One of the last tracks Phife ever recorded, this was a great release from last year. These two real-life cousins who both made their different contributions to A Tribe Called Quest over the years come together in an ode to their home of Queens over a smooth beat by Cons and Mike Cash, with Alex Isley on the hook. Yes, that "Isley" does in fact link directly to the famous Isley Brothers - the songwriting and multi-instrumentalist legend Ernie is her father!

Superior Thought : Sky

I was amazed I hadn't played this already - quality sample-heavy beat by a producer and engineer out of London, a 2011 release that feels like it was only out a few weeks ago! Pick this one up on the "S'strumentals" LP along with twenty-three other beats, and all for free!

Clear Soul Forces : Kraken

Always here for some CSF. Ilajide brings the bump as always, and on the mic, all the MCs are representing lovely. This was available on the Fat Beats 25th Anniversary Compilation from last year, but CSF have a brand new LP out which is well worth checking! 

Freddie Gibbs & Madlib ft. Anderson .Paak : Giannis

Anderson does his thing here for sure, but Gibbs is unquestionably the star turn on the mic here. Waka Flocka Flame recently admitted being a "wack rapper" but said "my realness overcame my wackness". Freddie Gibbs has the realness and the skills. This is one of the big tunes from his second LP with Madlib, "Bandana", which is definitely worth your time for a listen. The quick line that gives the track its title ("real Gs move in silence like Giannis") might not be the first time someone has referenced a silent "G" in that way, but then Gibbs builds off it immediately afterwards like the elite MC that he is.

The Cool Kids ft. Louis The Child : Super Smash Bros

Tim Dog's "Fuck Compton" was an angry diss. Pusha T dripped with disgust at Drake's conduct on "The Story of Adidon". This? This is... disdainful. Dismissive. The Cool Kids sound like they're just annoyed they had to take time out of their day to address people who aren't coming up to standard. It's also kind of amusing to me that here's a group I remember as the new young artists - now, several years down the line, they are older heads disappointed about how the new generation of youngsters are doing it! Wicked single, with fellow Illinois natives Louis The Child providing the booming beat. Full marks for the inspired sampling of Ebro's rant for the break after the first verse; if you didn't know (and I didn't at first), you'd think this was recorded specifically for this track!

Stic : Motivated

It is so time for a second album of motivational music by Stic of dead prez! The original "The Workout" was an original and welcome release for those in the know, and hopefully the sequel can gather even more of a following. Here, his dramatic production comes through with "Eye of the Tiger" vibes filtered through a Hip-Hop mentality, with a positive lyrical message of pushing forward to victory! 

DJ Bombjack : From The Depths Of The Soul

Another one that popped up in my vinyl conversion mission, this is a nice instrumental from a UK DJ and producer from the 1999 "The Brothers Grim" EP.

De La Soul : The Future

Supa Dave West made this one thump! This is the opener on "The Grind Date", and the sampled hook points to an mix of optimism about the future and a determination to shape it. The solid two verses speak on the unquestionably strong legacy De La have carved out over the years - and they're not done yet.

Lisa Shaw : I'm Okay

This was a track from the 2009 "Free" album that I overlooked for a long time in favour of some of the others, but have grown to appreciate. Lisa's voice has the kind of cool clarity that points to the influence of Sade, and Dave Warrin keeps the production low-key to give her space to breathe.

Jazzanova : No Use

A personal headphone favourite which somehow hadn't been played on the show yet! Jazzy (as you'd expect), continental, breezy production from the German production collective, with the kind of delicate balancing of elements that so many fail to master. Clara Hill's lead vocals fit in perfectly, making this a really satisfying listen. The "In Between" album is almost twenty years old, but hasn't really aged at all.

Pete Rock ft. Carl McIntosh & Jane Eugene : Take Your Time

If you've never heard Pete Rock's "Soul Survivor" LP, it's a must-own - he takes an imaginative selection of excellent guests and knocks it out of the park with his stellar production. This is a prime example, where he shows his appreciation for talent that wasn't necessarily "current" at the time, bringing in McIntosh and Eugene of the seminal UK group Loose Ends to lend their soulful vibes. The beat is a relaxed head-nodder supreme, and Pete gets it done on the mic too - not breaking your head open with crazy bars, just staying in the pocket, which is what the track needs.

MindsOne & Kev Brown : Manipulated (Instrumental)

Kev Brown really is one of the best when it comes to those basslines. My god. Serious beat from the 2014 "Pillars" EP.

The Notorious B.I.G. : Hypnotize

A huge tune to finish, one which can't fail to put a smile on your face! I first heard this one in a club, likely just before its official release, and the reaction it got was something special. The first single from "Life After Death", and the last Biggie record to be released before his death, this was a perfect combination of elements. Biggie's rhymes had skills for the streets but still appealed to the club and radio, The Hitmen took the Herb Alpert "Rise" sample and gave it new energy, and Total's Pamela Long nailed the infectious, sing-along hook. Fittingly for our current times, that hook is almost exactly twenty seconds long, making it a perfect timer for thorough hand-washing. So fresh, so clean.

Please remember to support the artists you like! The purpose of putting the podcast out and providing the full tracklist is to try and give some light, so do use the songs on each episode as a starting point to search out more material. If you have Spotify in your country it's a great way to explore, but otherwise there's always Youtube and the like. Seeing your favourite artists live is the best way to put money in their pockets, and buy the vinyl/CDs/downloads of the stuff you like the most!

Check out this episode!

[itcanbepossible-blog]

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