#there was a love triangle between these two & another guy …it was a lot

[lilianhuas]

Zhang Bu Xun & Zhang Gao Yuan [The Lost Tomb 2]

[xazse]

im begging anyone LITERALLY ANYONE to write any sort of wanderer x reader x xiao love triangle (either poly amorous or not), i love thinking about what their impressions of each other would be and how they would go about trying to one up the other guy (since i feel like there would be an intense feeling of rivalry between the two)!!

I know you JUST submitted this but I had to write abt this. Dont worry to my other requests I will get to you my loves!

FEM!READER WITH BOOBS

Xiao and Scaramouche don’t really get along when it comes to you, they’re always at each others throat about who gets to be balls deep in you or who gets your pretty lips wrapped around their cocks.

They make it a habit to get you alone, Xiao not very talkative will seduce you with his actions: bringing you whatever you want or making you whatever you want, anything to get you in the mood.

Scaramouche just outright declared what he wants, he wants you on your knees, back arched and ready to go? He’ll immediately let you know. He wants you to jerk him off right in the living room, not caring about how loud his moans are.

Scaramouche makes it a habit to lock the bedroom door anytime he’s managed to get you alone. Who cares if Xiao comes knocking at the door speaking about how much he needs you, ignore him!

Xiao doesn’t play like he does, he’s a bit sweeter and more mature, if he gets you alone he’ll let Scaramouche in but won’t allow him your cunt, thats fair at least in his eyes.

One day they’re both messily kissing all over you, saliva decorating your skin creating a thin layer. Kuni is inbetween your thighs, sucking on your nipples or has been for the past couple of minutes, Xiao is underneath you, holding you softly and attacking your neck, you can feel both their throbbing lengths pulsing against you, so needy and all for you.

Xiao maneuvers his hands to pull his underwear down just a little to free his thick cock, you can’t see with Scaramouche blocking your view but you know he’s dribbling lots of precum, you’ve been insistent that you needs lots of prep for what reason they don’t know.

He’s stroking himself slowly, not wanting to cum early, he’s been begging to cum inside all day, so has kuni, you know if you let one go before the other it’ll cause issues so you’ll take both of them just to not hear bickering all night.

You urge Scara to take his cock out as well, a little clouded and with lusty eyes he takes out his veiny long cock, also beginning to stroke himself. Impatient as he is, he hurriedly rips off your panties: you’ll definitely scold him for that later.

He says he can’t wait any longer and begs for your permission, you give him a nod and he’s already pushing the blunt tip in your wet hole, you can hear Xiao already needily whining in protest but you’re quick to grab his cock at an awkward position and push his cock in as well.

They’re both taken aback but don’t ask you to stop, the feeling of their cocks brushing up against one another definitely isn’t unwanted, this paired with your gummy walls feels so fucking good. They can both feel each other cocks twitching which in turn makes for some pretty noise leave their lips. You aren’t fairing any better, feeling full and also amazing, your head lulls to the side, Xiao takes it upon himself to decorate your face with kisses.

When they start moving it’s just a different story, they move in tandem, thick cocks creating friction and making you wetter by the second, your cunt clamps down on them every interval.

You can all really feel each other, every stroke provides you lot with more and more ecstasy, Xiao is the first to cum with a Loud yelp that settles into a low cry, Scaramouche is still pushing and dragging his cock along your walls and Xiao’s cock. He realizes that he can’t pull out until Kuni finishes, so he’s stuck whining and biting your ear until then. Scaramouche rubs your soaked clit in fast circles, admiring how you twitch and fumble around as your body accepts what’s about to happen.

He also pries your thighs all the way open, still fucking into you until that familiar spasm in his stomach signals to himself that he’s dumping his thick load right into you. Still rubbing your clit you cum but not without squirting just a tiny bit, it’s still something.

They both manage to pull out, Xiao is out like a light and Scara flops beside you on the bed, open mouthed panting and already opening his mouth to brag about how he made you squirt, they both did but you won’t ruin his high just yet.

[anxious-witch]

I think the reason why there are so many amazing ships in Dead Boy Detectives is because the show manages to show different versions of love/lust/devotion through different relationships all characters have.

Like, love triangles have been doing the whole "a girl has to choose between two guys who each being out a different side of her" for over a decade in popular media, some more, some less successfully. But the pitfall they often fall into is that those differences seem very shallow and often ignore the other aspect of the main person who have to choose between the love interests.

Dead Boy Detectives makes sure to not do that.

When we look at how Charles is with Crystal vs how he is with Edwin, we can clearly see the difference. In the beginning of his and Crystal's dynamic, he is flirtier and puts more if a bravado, but he pretty quickly opens up to her. Because he sees that she very quickly sees past his facade he puts up with his constant happy-go-lucky persona. Only when he starts opening up to her and showing his emotions does their relationship progress. Because after David, Crystal needs someone who can be emotionally vulnerable with her and in turn, Charles offers her the same, and offers her a safe space.

In contrast, we see that Charles is more at ease around Edwin. They know each other deeply, and are also woven into each other at this point. It's easy, like breathing. One thing it doesn't do is challenge either of them from the status quo they have built over the years. But there is a sense of ease there, and such devotion. There is no question about what they would do for each other because the answer is everything.

That said, while they both bring out different sides of Charles, those sides of him feel intricately linked to one another! Which is why Crystal coming into the pictures begins changing Charles' relationship with Edwin as well! It brings to light things they have ignored. And in turn, Charles' clear and unwavering devotion and loyalty to Edwin prompts Crystal to learn it herself. To quote Jenny in ep 8, "you were about to leave and never see these boys again, but now you are going to save them"? And yes, she does exactly that.

This even has influence on Edwin and Crystal's rs directly, which I can't recall ever seeing in a love triangle before, at least not in a positive sense. But it's so clear that Charles loves both of them that the other learns to love them too, and they realize their own similarities through it, too!

As for Edwin and his many love interests, well. I know there has been a lot of debate, especially around Cat King vs Charles dyankics with Edwin, but the thing is-you are comparing apples ajd oranges here.

The Cat King is enamored, fascinated by Edwin, and yeah above all, attracted to him. This dynamic serves to challenge both of their characters' beliefs and shake up the power dynamics between them. Whenever you like the Cat King or not Edwin clearly reciprocates the attraction part, at the very least.

Charles loves Edwin and is devoted to him and Edwin to him turn, as discussed above. What is difficult about their relationship is that it became stagnant due to lack of communication, which is why they needed other relationships to shake up that dynamic.

But to address the most prominent comparison I saw, which is the Cat King saying he'll wait for Edwin vs Charles going to Hell to save him.

Both are types of devotion, is the thing. A profession of love, if you will. To this day, we consider Penelope a faithful, loving and devoted wife for waiting for Odyssey for 20 years. Cat King saying he'd wait for Edwin isn't any small confession, given he is aware it could take decades, if not more.

Don't get me wrong, Charles going to literal Hell to save Edwin and succeeding where Orpheus and Eurydice failed is an enormous success and a way to show you love someone. I am not minimalizing that at all.

I am just saying that, for who these characters are and given their rs with Edwin, they did exactly what they were supposed to. They expressed in which ways Edwin had influenced them and what they can offer him if that dynamic becomes romantic.

Cat King represents experience, patience. As an immortal he has all the time in the world to wait for Edwin to return from hell, because he believes Edwin is strong enough to return on his own.

Charles represents love that breaks all obstacles in their way. He goes to save Edwin because he believes Edwin deserves to be helped in the way he helps others. He deserves to be saved.

My point is, there is no better of worse way of loving someone. The character in the love triangle choose the person that better alignes with who they are and who they wish to be as a person. So yes, you are absolutely allowed to say "I think this character would choose person a because it alignes better with their character development" but comparing the two as one being superior is kinda pointless imo? Exploring different dynamic of a character is the goal here, right? Either through canon or fanon.

...I was gonna talk about Crystal/Niko and Edwin/Monty too but this post got away from me to uhh. Might do another one if anyone is interested but in their way! I adore the way DBDA explores different sides of characters while still making them feel like a fully rounded person and doesn't shy away from letting one rs influence other rs character has.

[heeseungiez]

nothing i don’t have | pjs

part 3: toenze

pairings! park jongseong x reader, ft. huening kai x reader

summary! it was supposed to be simple, you and jay would fuck whenever either of you felt horny — no feelings. but it was hard not to catch feelings where park jongseong was involved. so you took the easy way out: you ended it.

genre! texts, written fic, college au, love triangle (corner)

word count! 1.5k

content warnings! swearing

author's note! i'm sick and not doing ok but jay and toenze always is on the brain </3

previous | masterlist | next

The last thing you expected to see today was Jay with an electric guitar. But here you were, standing in the Sanctuary Café in front of their live music stage, where Kai’s band was setting up. And he was a part of the band.

You had stumbled inside the coffee shop late, and the guys were already half-way through setting up. Not a single thing had been out of the ordinary when you came in. It was your boyfriend and his three other band members, each getting ready for practice. You greeted them with a smile and side-hug each, and it seemed like it would go the same way any other practice had gone before. 

But then someone new entered the shop. Dressed in a grey hoodie and flannel, your eyes widened at the sight of Jay. He held a guitar case in his right hand, and you thought, okay, maybe this is just a stupid coincidence, but then he noticed you, and he started walking toward you. So you thought maybe it was because of you.

And then Taerae spoke up, “Jay, hey! I’m so glad you could make it.”

You glanced at Kai, whose expression was just as puzzled as yours. He had no idea as well.

“Yeah. Thanks for inviting me.” Jay’s lopsided grin made your heart skip a beat, and you had to take a step back when he was close to the stage. “You guys were looking for a second guitarist?”

“We were?” Kai asked, giving Taerae a pointed look. The boy shrugged with a smile, unaware of the happenings between Kai, Jay and you.

“Yeah, I met Jay at a guitar shop, and heard him play. He’s actually really good, so I thought I’d ask him to come by. Honestly, I’d like to focus on vocals sometimes, so a second guitarist would be useful.” Taerae shrugged, giving his painfully sensible reasoning that nobody could refute without sounding like a petulant child. 

“I mean, I have nothing against it if he’s as good as Taerae says he is,” said Beomgyu, eyeing Jay. “But the girls are mine,” he joked, although his glare felt a bit too realistic.

“Yeah, I don’t mind either. We could use another visual, too,” Yujin reasoned. 

“Kai? It’s already three to four.” Taerae looked at the drummer, and he sighed in response. 

“Can we actually hear Jay play before we make any concrete decisions? Because right now, it’s all just opinions.”

Yes, that made sense to do. You nodded despite having nothing to do with the band and its decisions. But you knew that Jay truly was a genius when it came to playing the guitar. You’ve heard him play more times than you could count, and occasionally, those performances were specifically for you over video call or in person. You always loved listening to Jay’s playing and singing. 

When Kai glanced at you, he understood as much from your expression, and a small frown decorated his lips. He shouldn’t be jealous, he was the one dating you, yet the knowledge of everything that transpired between you and Jay, and your feelings for him made him scared for what could happen if Jay got his head out of the gutter and realised that maybe, he was also in love with you. 

“Okay. I can play a song I’ve been working on with Heeseung,” Jay said, getting his guitar out — it was Jane. With Taerae’s help, the two quickly set it up and connected it to the speakers.

When Jay started playing, you immediately recognised the song. It wasn’t finished as far as you were aware, but Jay and Heeseung had been working on it for quite a while. The song, Paranormal, meant a lot to Heeseung especially, so he wanted to make sure every single detail about it was perfect.

To you, it sounded amazing already, but considering Heeseung’s perfectionism, he probably always thought of something that wasn’t quite right yet. 

When Jay was done, everyone around him started clapping. Including you. There was no denying his talents, and Taerae was especially proud of being the person who brought him here.

“So, you write your own songs too?” he asked. 

“I’m still struggling with writing decent lyrics, but other than that, yeah.” Jay nodded, glancing at you. There were times you helped him write a few lines here and there, so you averted your gaze, biting the inside of your cheek. 

To be completely honest, what you and Jay had, to you, did not feel or seem casual in the slightest. Even Kai thought you two were actually dating at first. But that was the kind of person Jay was. Sweet, caring and affectionate without thinking much into it — he didn’t do it on purpose, it was just what he was used to. Small acts of kindness or even bigger ones, to him, were something he did because it was the normal thing to do. So what he perceived as casual was seen as so much more to anyone looking from the outside. Or to the one on the receiving end of it all. But you understood Jay better than anyone, unfortunately. So you couldn’t even delude yourself into thinking that confessing would lead to something. 

Letting go was the much better option. 

You were grateful for Kai. For being your anchor and for giving you the strength you needed to tear yourself away from Jay. 

“Then it’s decided, right?” Taerae looked at his band members, a proud smile gracing his lips. 

Beomgyu and Yujin agreed with eager nods, but Kai sighed. Glancing at you, he noticed you were already watching him, your smile supportive of whichever decision he made. 

And, to nudge him along, you said: “He is really good.”

“Ugh, fine,” Kai mumbled. “Would be a waste not to let him join if that’s what he wants.” Shaking his head, Kai’s attention was more on you than Jay.

“Welcome to the band!” Beomgyu exclaimed, instantly going in for a handshake with Jay. “I look forward to working with you.” The bassist faked a serious tone. “But seriously, though, the girls are mine.”

“Literally no girls want your loser ass,” said Yujin, rolling his eyes.

“You little—” Beomgyu put down his bass just to chase after Yujin who started giggling, running around the café in an attempt to escape.

Taerae and Kai laughed, shaking their heads. You, on the other hand, bit your lip and headed toward Jay while steeling yourself from whatever the conversation might lead to. 

“So, you want to join Kai’s band all of a sudden?” You raised your brow, and Jay looked almost puzzled that you spoke to him. Though he recovered quickly, nodding.

“Yeah, sure. Why not, you know? Taerae asked, and I didn’t feel like saying no.”

You hummed, a little in disbelief over the whole situation. You doubted Jay didn’t have any ulterior motives for joining the band, but you didn’t feel like bringing it up now since the likelihood of Jay actually telling you was little to none.

“It’ll definitely make it easier to find someone else then, since girls do love guitarists,” you commented with a light chuckle.

Jay smacked his lips together, shrugging. “I don’t think I’m really looking for any casual hookups anymore,” he said, which took you by surprise this time. “I’ve been wasting too much of my time not committing to anything. So it’s time for a bit of a change.”

“For joining a band?”

“For committing myself to something I love,” said Jay, a smile gracing his lips as he stared at you. There was a spark in his eye as if he could sense the way your heart skipped a beat, but then he chuckled. “I want to focus more on music, and Taerae’s offer was kinda perfectly timed.”

“Right, of course. That makes a lot of sense,” you agreed, nodding dumbly along.

“Why? Did you think I did this because of you?” Jay’s tone was teasing. He tilted his head and raised a brow at you, the corner of his mouth lifting into the signature lopsided grin of his that revealed his dimple. 

Your brain stuttered as you stared at him, blinking excessively. “No. No— obviously, not. Why would I think that?”

“I don’t know. Maybe because you know that I missed you? You said we’d be friends but then you’ve barely spoken to me,” Jay explained himself, pursing his lips. “So, you could be thinking that.”

“I was not thinking that.” You furrowed your brows. “But you should’ve told me. I thought that since you’ve barely texted me that you don’t want to hang out as much anymore.”

“That’s not it, I just— I don’t know…”

“You can always talk to me about anything, Jay. That’s what friends are for,” you said, smiling thinly. “I’m glad you finally decided to pursue music, though.”

“Yeah, me too,” Jay said. 

“Okay, guys, stop messing around. Let’s begin practice!” Taerae exclaimed, clapping his hands. “Jay, can you follow my lead?”

tags: @moonpri @addictedtohobi @samsayssam @sillydallyz @semisemirin1i82

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

To add onto that Malleus popularity speculation, I think another major reason why that you never mentioned is the simple fact that characters of Malleus' archetype are just more popular in general in the west amongst working age women.

There are plenty of adult novel containing male supernatural love interests. Fae and vampire romance novels are still extremely popular amongst adult readers. A Court of Thorns and Roses is technically an ADULT novel, NOT YA. Even m|m supernatural stories even fall into this category with Stolas/Blitz from Helluva Boss being an extremely popular over here. That pairing is from an adult animated show. Stolas shares a lot of similarities with Malleus.

Hell, even if you step into western contemporary romance novels, the male love interest tends to be more brooding and angsty with flawed leads. Everything from classic literature like Jane Eyre to modern shit like anything Colleen Hoover writes. (Don't get it twisted. I'm NOT saying that Malleus is anything like those leads. Just using those very popular example of brooding bad boy love interests in adult contemporary fiction in the west.)

Meanwhile in East Asia, those sorts of leads tend to be geared towards teenagers. Working age women want a more stable, realistic love interest that would take care of them like Trey.

Westerners seem to prefer more complex, intense romantic relationships, where the stakes feel higher and the emotional payoff is more significant. They will naturally write Trey off as a "big brother" character instead of seeing him as a romantic lead material thanks to being more used to seeing characters like Malleus as the love interest in stories.

I could be way off base, since I'm not Asian and far from being an expert on Japanese culture, but that's my two cents based on my observations. This is also based on broad generalizations. Neither culture is a monolith.

[Referencing this post and (more specifically!) my speculation here!]

Oh, for sure 💀 I made a post a while ago talking about how Malleus (especially from the yumejoshi/self-shipping perspective) reminds me a lot of the new "Shadow Daddy" archetype that has emerged in the romantasy genre. I mean, just look at how many of the Shadow Daddy traits Malleus ticks off:

is a nonhuman being (usually fae)

500 yrs old (or at least several hundred years old or a significant age gap between the Shadow Daddy love interest and typically female main character)

looks young and hot/conventionally attractive despite the age

is OP (usually with shadow/night/darkness related magic)

is royalty or in some kind of position of power

dark hair and/or skin (sometimes both)

“morally grey” and/or has issues (you can fix him)

brooding

looks or is rumored to be intimidating but is actually lonely and misunderstood, with a heart of gold

animalistic in some manner (usually with bat/raven/dragon-like wings)

has a tattoo or some kind of bodily markings (Malleus has the scales under his hair; you could also count the OB facial markings I guess)

Outside of romantasy novels geared towards older teens (18-19) and adults, the west seems to really love brooding bad boys as love interests in a lot of its media. Something else I noticed is that the "good guys" or the "boy next door" types like Trey tend to be "the other man" in heterosexual love triangles, which miiight also explain why he gets looked over in the western fandom. (I discussed some of my own observations, which are similar to the points mentioned here, in the posts linked above.)

I wouldn’texactly phrase it like westerners preferring "more complex, intense romantic relationships [... with higher stakes and more significant emotional payoff]", as that unintentionally implies that there has to be brooding or angst in order for the story or character arc to be "good". I feel a lot of it actually depends on the execution rather than the tropes present. For example, I've seen many "Shadow Daddies" that exist purely for wish fulfillment rather than emotional or story/character complexity (which, to be clear, there's nothing wrong with if this is the kind of thing you enjoy!). Wholesome or "normal" romances also have the capacity to be complex, intense, high-stakes, and emotionally significant too! Again, it all depends on the quality of writing and what one's personal preferences are. You'll find outliers regardless of culture as well--as the asker has stated, no culture is a monolith!

[koiiiji]

First of all miss u and ur windbreaker fics 🖤 Don't know if u ever done, a truth or dare fic with windbreaker characters wooin or any other character u like☺️ were it can get a little steamy 👀 like the reader was dared to kiss joker and they kiss. Wooin gets jealous or something lol

author’s note ; finally in that state when i can equally pay attention to both lookism and wb fandoms!! thank you for request, and sorry for delay😵‍💫

summary ; happening before vinny entered the team, like 3-4 seasons

tw ; alcohol, suggestive

boring evenings dragged on one after another, a break in the "league of streets" freed up a lot of time for you and your friends. and that's why you were hanging out at your apartment right now, suffering absolute idleness with Hyuk, waiting for Wooin and Joker to come from another deal or underground fight or whatever shit they are doing right now.

Hyuk bored poked at the screen, cozily sitting in an armchair, occasionally making sarcastic comments and saying, "yo, open the tiktok, i just threw off some real jokes." while you've already exhausted yourself waiting, and just hung your head down and threw legs on the cushions of the sofa, mumbling in response to another tiktok with a monkey, "fuck off, learn what humor is."

throwing the phone aside, you sigh and looked at the clock. it's almost 12 am and friday, so you weren't surprised that Wooin and Joker were messing with their business for so long, but still they must have at least some kind of conscience!!! these two donkeys promised to come back at 10pm and take a drink with them, and right now without any alcohol in your system it was quite difficult to tolerate Hyuk's jokes about monkeys and about a non-existent love triangle between you and two idiots who were already 2 hours late. and in your opinion, he's been pushing Joker's candidacy too hard since Wooin intentionally woke up him early in the morning three days ago, just because he woke up early himself.

Hyuk, bored and still poking at his screen, looked up when you let out a frustrated sigh. "relax, they'll be here soon," he said with a dismissive wave, eyes flickering back to his phone. you were about to retort when the sound of the apartment door unlocking made you both perk up. Wooin and Joker stumbled in, looking tired but triumphant, with a couple of bags in their hands. "you two still in same room and didn't commit any crime? im impressed," Wooin said, kicking the door shut behind him. Joker, ever the stoic, gave a brief nod in acknowledgment, setting the bags down on the coffee table. "we got the drinks," he said simply.

Hyuk sprang up from his chair, abandoning his phone. "about time, i was starting to think you'd gotten yourselves into another fight." he rummaged through the bags, pulling out bottles of soju and beer.

"close enough," Wooin said with a smirk, dropping onto the couch next to you. "but that's a story for another time."

You rolled your eyes, reaching for a bottle and cracking it open. "you guys owe us big time," you said, taking a swig. "Hyuk's been driving me nuts." Hyuk threw a middle finger at you playfully. "love you too, buddy."

as the drinks flowed and the evening wore on, the atmosphere in the apartment grew more relaxed and jovial. jokes and laughter filled the room, the earlier boredom forgotten. someone suggested playing a game, and before long, you all found yourselves gathered in a circle on the floor, playing a rowdy game of truth or dare.

"alright," Wooin said, eyes glinting mischievously. "it's your turn," he pointed at you, a wicked grin spreading across his face. "truth or dare?" you hesitated, knowing Wooin's penchant for wild dares. but with the alcohol buzzing pleasantly in your system, you felt a surge of boldness. "dare." and that's where Hyuk intervened and interrupted Wooin. "i dare you to kiss Joker." Hyuk's grin widened.

room fell silent, all eyes turning to Joker, who was lounging against the couch with his usual calm, almost detached expression. you glanced at him, feeling a flicker of nervousness. Joker met your gaze, his face unreadable. and you were about to back out when Wooin, who had been unusually loud one, suddenly shutted his mouth, turning his face away and taking a big sip. Hyuk laughed. "come on, it's just a game!"

feeling the pressure from everyone's stares, you took a deep breath and leaned toward Joker. to your surprise, he didn't pull away. instead, he remained perfectly still, legs spread widely, one if his knees been up and hand with beer in it was resting there, and his eyes locked on yours. the kiss was brief, just a soft press of lips, but it felt like it lasted an eternity.

when you pulled back, Joker's calm demeanor was unchanged, but there was a flicker of something in his eyes. Wooin, on the other hand, looked distinctly unhappy. He avoided your gaze, taking a long drink from his bottle again.

the game continued, but Wooin's mood cast a shadow over the fun. his usually loud and mischievous attitude was replaced with a sullen silence, and he kept drinking more than talking. as the night wore on and the alcohol flowed, the atmosphere grew hazy. the room was filled with laughter and half-hearted jokes, but the underlying tension never dissipated. you found yourself glancing at Wooin, who was avoiding eye contact with everyone, especially you.

eventually, the need for another drink drove you to the kitchen. You rummaged through the fridge, feeling the cool air wash over your flushed face. as you grabbed a beer, the kitchen door swung open, and Wooin stepped in. the two of you stood in silence for a moment, the only sound the soft hum of the refrigerator. "hey," you said softly, breaking the silence. Wooin looked up, his eyes dark and slightly irritated. "hey."

"are you okay?" you asked, closing the fridge door and leaning against the counter. he scoffed, leaning against the doorway. "why wouldn't i be?"

"you seem upset," you replied, trying to gauge his mood. he took a step closer, his expression hardening. "why would i be upset? it's not like i care that two my friends just kissed."

you blinked, taken aback by his tone. "Wooin, it's just a game. you know that."

"yeah, sure," he said, rolling his eyes.

"what's your problem?" you snapped, feeling your frustration rise. "my problem?" he echoed, his voice rising. "maybe my problem is watching my friend make out with another friend and everyone pretending it's no big deal."

"and what's so special about it? you never saw people kissing?" you raise your voice as well, starting to feel irritated. he ran a hand through his hair, clearly agitated. "forget it," he muttered, turning around and leaving the kitchen. "it's nothing."

"it's obviously not nothing," you insisted, stepping closer and grabbing his wrist. "why can't you just tell m-" he didn't let you finish when he turned around abruptly and grabbing both of your hands, putting them behind your back, pressing you into the kitchen unit and leaning in kissing you, his lips pressing against yours with a fervor that took your breath away. this kiss was different from the one with Joker - hungrier, more desperate. you melted into it, letting your hands out of his grip, finding their way to his hair as he pressed you with his hips against the counter. the kiss deepened, and the world outside the kitchen ceased to exist. it was just you, Wooin and the heat between you, growing more intense by the second. his hands roamed your back, pulling you closer, and you responded in kind, your body aching for more of his touch.

you moaned into his lips as you felt his teeth lightly nip at your bottom lip, pulling it back a bit, before running his forked tongue over the swollen area. his hands moved lower, squeezing your ass tighter and lifting you higher to sit you on the kitchen counter.

now you were looking down at him, running your hands down his neck, burying it in his jet black hair, pulling him back, for another kiss. Wooin stood between your legs, pressing your body closer to his, so you could feel his warmth, his hunger and greed for your touch and hands. you whined something inarticulate into his lips again when you felt one of his hands slide lower, unzipping your jeans and nimble fingers slipped under the thick fabric. barely touching, teasing and playing with your clit through the fabric of your panties, he shut up each of your moans with another kiss, pressing his tongue deeper in your mouth.

finally breaking away from each other, you both didn't look away, afraid to disturb the silence of the kitchen, and only quiet attempts to catch your breath sounded in the darkness of the room. smiling mischievously on you, Wooin was about to kiss you again, and his fingers was about to pull your panties aside, when the light suddenly turned on, and with the most sour and disgusted expression on his face, Hyuk appeared in the corridor "eeew guys, right in front of my beer? seriously?"

[sound-of-scoups]

Moth To A Flame | JJK & KMG | Teaser

Pairing: Jeon Jungkook x Female!Reader x Kim Mingyu  Genre|tags: Idol!au, series, established relationship, infidelity, love triangle, lots of angst, lots of drama, smut, maybe fluff.  Word count: 597 words (this teaser) Rating: Explicit adult content (MINORS DNI). Warnings: Reader is lowkey a bad person but we love her anyway, afab!reader, cheating, high infidelity, graphic sexual content.  A/N: 1. I do not agree with, nor do I support infidelity. I also do not believe that Mingyu would be capable of doing anything like that. This story is purely fictional and meant for entertainment purposes only. If you don't like it, feel free not to read it. Consider this also as a warning. 2. This is highly inspired by two edits I saw on TikTok, one of them featuring 'Moth To a Flame' with Wonwoo and Mingyu, and the second with Jungkook and Mingyu using the audio 'She chose me.' 'Did she?' I no longer have the links to them, but they stayed in my head for days (long enough for me to create this story). Release date: October 29th.  (I'm just posting the teaser again because my clumsy ass deleted it 💀)

Summary: Four years ago, you crossed paths with a charming member of the K-pop group Seventeen during their tour stop in Osaka. The two of you shared three intense, unforgettable days before life took you in different directions. It was painful for both of you, but you knew you couldn’t take things any further and had to say goodbye. Now, back in Seoul for good, you’re in a new relationship with another idol: Jeon Jungkook—whose charm and stability make him everything you thought you wanted. You are very much in love with him, and as your connection deepens, it feels like your life is finally falling into place. That is, until you meet one of your boyfriend’s best friends and are stunned to discover it’s the same man you fell for in Osaka all those years ago. As buried emotions resurface and secrets begin to unravel, you find yourself torn between these two men, caught in a whirlwind of love and conflict, testing the boundaries of loyalty and the choices that could change everything. 

READ HERE!

As you weaved through the maze of tables, your nerves began creeping back in, your heart pounding in your chest as you approached the table. You forced yourself to focus on Jungkook, on the fact that he was here with you, and that tonight was more about him than anything else. But as your eyes scanned the faces at the table, you couldn't help but search for the one you were dreading most.

“They’re just over here,” Jungkook said, bringing you out of your thoughts as you approached the group. 

And then you saw him.

Heart skipping a beat and breath caught in your throat as your eyes landed on the man sitting at the far end of the table, his eyes downcast as he filled his glass with a cabernet liquid. 

The man you never expected to see again in your life.

Kim Mingyu. 

The sight of him was like a punch to the gut, the air in the room suddenly feeling too thick, too heavy. The world around you blurred, your vision narrowing to just him—the man who had occupied your thoughts for so long after Osaka four years ago, the one you had tried and failed to forget.

It felt like slow motion as all eyes turned to you, and Mingyu slowly looked up from his drink, following suit with the rest of the guys.

Your breath caught in your throat as your eyes locked with his. A flicker of recognition crossed his gaze, his eyes widening slightly before he quickly masked his surprise with a neutral expression. Even though you knew he would be there, nothing could have prepared you for the rush of emotions that surged the moment your eyes met.

It was as if the air had been sucked out of the room, leaving you breathless and frozen in place. The world seemed to tilt on its axis, the noise of the restaurant fading into the background, and all you could hear was the rapid beating of your heart.

Mingyu held your gaze, a slow, knowing smile curving his lips. In that moment, a jolt of electricity shot through your body—a mix of fear, guilt, and something else, something you didn’t want to name.

“Everyone,” Jungkook’s voice cut through the haze in your mind, pulling you back to the present. “This is Y/N, the amazing woman I’ve been telling you all about, and the love of my life.”

Jungkook’s tone was joyful and proud as he kissed your cheek. You tore your eyes away from Mingyu, forcing a smile and trying to steady your breathing. Meeting the gazes of the guys around the table, you spoke, your voice steadier than you felt. “Hi, it’s so nice to finally meet you all. 

“Babe, this is Yugyeom, Bambam, Chan, Eunwoo, Jaehyun, Seokmin, Minghao… and Mingyu,” Jungkook introduced, oblivious to the tension simmering beneath the surface.

Mingyu stood up almost immediately, one of his long legs hitting the edge of the table, causing the silverware to rattle. He offered you a polite smile, but you noticed the tightness in his jaw, the way his eyes avoided yours as he reached out to shake your hand across the table.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Y/N,” he said, his voice calm and measured, as though nothing was out of the ordinary, giving nothing away.

Your hand trembled slightly as you shook his, the contact sending a jolt of electricity through your body that you desperately tried to ignore. Heart racing, you managed to reply, your voice barely above a whisper as you forced a smile, “You too, Mingyu.”

[2004hitalbumsevenswans]

I really enjoyed Batman: Caped Crusader. I was worried (like everyone else) that Bruce Timm would push his Bruce/Barbara obsession, but they barely interact when Bruce is out of costume, and he’s all business as Batman. Barbara is (presumably) about the same age as Bruce in this adaptation, she’s a young public defender, who still lives at home with her dad. Commissioner Gordon is mentioned to have 30 years on the Gotham police force at one point. And the series is loosely based on Batman: Year One by Frank Miller, and has Matt Reeves as a producer. It’s definitely an interpretation of the early years of Batman.

The setting is vaguely and aesthetically set in the 1940s, mirroring the original Batman and riffing on DC comic stories and character interpretations from that time. Clayface’s story and appearance is based on the original interpretation of the character, which I really enjoyed - especially as someone’s who’s read the first couple years of the original Detective Comics/Batman stories. (There’s also a lot of great references to the Adam West show, and a couple of its themes are reimagined for this more noir story.)

I could see the series setting up something between Bruce and Barbara potentially, but their interactions are really blink-and-you’ll-miss-it. There’s a moment where Bruce’s is climbing back onto the Iceberg Lounge yacht and he uses a pick up line on her, which she scoffs at, then he proceeds to use the line on two other young women. There’s another moment that you could say is pre-flirting, or is at least setting up a foundation to further a relationship between the two. Where Barbara makes a comment about Batman letting himself into her office unannounced whenever he feels like it, and she tells him she needs a way to contact him, and he gives her the Batphone number. At this point I think you could make more of an argument for a Harleen/Barbara pairing than her and Bruce.

I think the characters would both individually need a lot more development to be in a romantic relationship. I’ll say this even though I know it will be an unpopular opinion: in this interpretation I wouldn’t mind putting Bruce and Barbara together. I know that’s practically sacrilege coming from someone who’s favourite character is Oracle but hear me out.

My main issues with Bruce and Barbara together (especially when it comes to Timm’s work) is the age difference. It’s often debated but Barbara in most iterations (including current comic canon) is around the same age as Dick, usually a couple of years older, 2-3 at most. Bruce is depicted as having at least 15 years on her, if not more. And most stories that have Bruce and Barbara together also fixate on her being batgirl. Then there’s the tendency to make a Nightwing-Batgirl-Batman love triangle which I don’t want to get into but I hate completely.

None of that is happening here. Barbara has her own storylines that are just as prominent as Bruce and Harvey’s. She’s an adult with agency and flaws and is just as fleshed out as any of the other characters are. I wouldn’t be surprised if the show takes a season or two to develop a romantic relationship between the two of them. Bruce is completely focused on being Batman and sees Bruce Wayne as a persona. He’s callous with peoples feelings (Harvey, notably) and is shown to struggle with smaller acts of empathy, opening himself up to people, and honestly, social skills. The last of which doesnt doesn’t affect him too negatively because he’s a rich and well known man in Gotham.

Compared to the Bruce Wayne of BTAS it was a smart choice to show a Bruce/Batman who struggles with people and emotions. It reminded me a lot of Reeves’ the Batman. In wider Batman media you usually see two types of depictions: a compassionate Batman (which is where I would place BTAS) or a more emotionless, be-stoic-and-punch-the-bad-guys-and-look-badass version that is usually just a male power fantasy.

This version of Batman sets up the foundation for a storyline that is relatively unexplored, and I’m sure they’re going to explore it more in the next season (which has already been greenlit).

I was surprised at the lack of adult themes in the show, it was marketed for an adult audience but could easily fit into a PG13 rating, but that was probably on purpose. I was impressed they managed to have so many strong, fleshed out storylines in only 10, 30 minute episodes. But I wouldn’t expect anything less of Bruce Timm, or some of the other names I recognized attached to the project in various ways (Greg Rucka, JJ Abrams, Matt Reeves, and Ed Brubaker).

While there are a lot of critiques of Timm I agree with, I generally enjoy his work and the care he puts into it. I love Greg Rucka and was really excited to see that he wrote the episode that was more Renee Montoya centric. And while I have my issues with Ed Brubaker, I do enjoy his work.

While the series is visually and technologically based around the 1940s, the politics are more modern. Harleen asks Renee out on a date and she talks about it with Barbara openly. I saw one review call the show “race blind” which I would not agree with. Most of the racism is implied through euphemism (the scene with Lucius Fox and Gentleman ghost), but it’s still felt as a point of friction for multiple characters, it affects how they interact with the world around them. There’s also a line spoken by either detective Flass or Bullock that implies no one in the GCPD wants to follow Renee because she’s gay. It’s cut off before the last word, but again, the meaning is implied.

An issue I always had with the Timmverse is its depictions of female characters. They always feel less real than their male counterparts, less important and less visually stylized. All the important (read: desirable) women have the same body shape. They’re thin and extremely, unnaturally curvy. I’m aware that these characters are supposed to evoke that 50s comic pinup imagery but I always thought it was a bit much. Male characters - even before the animation downgrade in BTAS season 4 - were always way more unique from each other than the female characters. That wasn’t something I felt with Caped Crusader. The three most prominent female characters (Barbara, Renee and Harleen) were all different from each other, with different heights, body shapes, hair and clothing styles. They also all had 3 distinct personalities that were built up through the series. I would argue that the show was as much about the “supporting cast” (characters like Harvey, Commissioner Gordon, Renee and Barbara) as it was about Batman.

Overall I was really impressed by the show. I was disappointed with how short it was. I hope that Renee’s personal life gets a focus with the next season, and I hope they bring back Greg Rucka to write it. I love how he wrote her in Gotham Central. I was a little annoyed that they introduced the Joker at the end of the series (as a peak into the next season). I think he’s too over saturated as a character, and sometimes his introduction into a Batman story takes over everything else, and he’s depicted as Batman’s Moriarty. I do have hope that this won’t happen in Caped Crusader, because it seems that villains will be reoccurring, but there’ll be a large cast, just like in BTAS. That aspect did remind me of the way characters were introduced in those early Batman comics, it really has the same vibe. I also really really do not want Harley to be involved with the Joker in any way. Please keep her as a separate character, this new interpretation of her is great as is, he doesn’t need to be involved.

I would also be interested to see if the show develops Barbara’s character into Oracle. I could see that happening with the introduction of the Joker at the end of season one. Maybe they’re going to rework the Killing Joke? I couldn’t see them having her as batgirl, but I would be interested to see how they worked Oracle into a world with 1940s technology. I’m thinking back to her as Oracle in the Doom that Came to Gotham, and how clever that was. I’m sure they could do something just as interesting with her here. Something more supernatural feels like a long shot, because Timm usually sticks to the more “realistic”, street-level versions of Batman, but they did introduce Gentleman Ghost. So it’s a possibility.

One thing I did think could have been better was some of the voice work. Not the voice acting itself, but the design. It felt too polished alongside the score and the animation. I wish the voice acting had been more atmospheric, had more depth. It felt too clean. Hamish Linklater was great as Bruce/Batman. Following Kevin Conroy is no small feat, and Linklater’s performance felt reminiscent of Conroy without sounding like an impression. It was quiet and unassuming, yet strong.

I’m not usually someone who watches things more than once, but I’m definitely going to be rewatching Caped Crusader soon.

[welcometothejianghu]

Welcome to another round of W2 Tells You What You Should See, where W2 (me) tries to sell you (you) on something you should be watching. Today's choice: 重啟之極海聽雷/Reunion: The Sound of the Providence/The Lost Tomb Reboot/this thing has too many names

Reunion (I'm just going to call it that) is a 2020 action drama about the most specialest little babygirl in the tomb-raiding world, his two husbands, and the cadre of assorted weirdos they pick up as they try to follow a set of directions left by a dead (?) man in the thunder.

Imagine if someone showed you the Mandalorian, and you were like, gee, that was a neat little sci-fi one-shot! because you'd never heard of Star Wars. That was basically my experience watching this show, having no idea that the Lost Tomb franchise (DMBJ) was even a thing. Turns out that not only is there a whole big continuity out there with these characters, but that Reunion takes place a few years after the main story's resolution. Don't worry, though -- Reunion doesn't spoil you for that resolution. It doesn't spoil you for much, period. Look, DMBJ has a weird relationship to endings, okay?

I have written a more thorough where-to-start guide for DMBJ as a whole, so if you want to consider other entry points, well, that information is there for your consideration. Yet it is my opinion that this is the best entry into the overall franchise, and a fun thing to watch just in general, and I'm here to make my case for both of those.

The rest of this rec will assume that you have no familiarity with the DMBJ series. That's okay; you don't need any. All you need is to trust my five reasons you should watch this.

1. Old Man Yaoi

As you begin this show, you are introduced to the Iron Triangle. That's them in the picture up there. Left to right, you have: Xiao Ge, magically tattooed immortal hottie who just got back from ten years in [scene missing]; Wu Xie, our protagonist, who's just a little guy and it's his birthday; and Wang Pangzi, the literal best.

(And yes, Wu Xie is in his 30s and Pangzi is in his 40s, which is not technically old man anything, but ... look, if you watch, you'll see why I think I'm justified in calling it that.)

They are extremely married. They are a disaster trio of disasters so disastrous that no one else should ever be subjected to their chaos. They're going to make sure lots of people are, though, don't you worry about it. Sometimes those people even deserve it.

However, because the show (tragically!!) decides that Xiao Ge has somewhere else to be like 95% of the runtime, most of the relationship you get to see is between Wu Xie and Pangzi.

I'm saying this now as an old gay nerd who just this year celebrated her 15th wedding anniversary: I have never, never felt so represented in media as I have watching Wu Xie and Pangzi interact. There's a little wake-up song they sing together near the end of the show, and it just ... it packs so much character development into thirty seconds. These boys have been living adjacent lives for so long that they've made up their own little shared songs about the mundanities of daily living. That is just what happens when you marry your best friend and then decide to get old and weird together. Ask me how I know.

Look, if you want to know whether this show is for you or not, watch to the end of the first episode, to the part where Pangzi flips over the table. If your heart is filled with joy (as it should be), keep going.

Love makes a tomb-raiding syndicate family.

2. A fun-filled action-packed romp of nonsense!

If you're familiar with Hellblazer canon, this will make sense to you: Reunion is Dangerous Habits. If you're not familiar with Hellblazer canon, try it like this: Reunion is a terrible place to start because it plays on your extant affection for a character who gains a terrible status effect almost immediately. It's a also great place to start because it throws you right in the action with measurably high stakes and gives you a reason to build that affection very quickly.

I'm also going to warn you right off the bat: The plot of this show got cut to ribbons by censors.

See, the DMBJ books, being books, are allowed to get away with supernatural shit! So you've got zombies and ghosts and curses and monsters and immortality and all your other standard ooky spooky semi-urban fantasy trappings. But the DMBJ adaptations, being live-action, are heavily regulated in their content. This is why, in the early Reunion episodes, our heroes are menaced by human-looking creatures that are actually ancient mannequins made of leather that are piloted, mecha-style, by evil clams. Because evil clams are more scientific than zombies. I guess.

So yeah, the plot of this book already had to get mangled into a more "science"-compliant shape even before it made it to filming. The real problem is that a whole lot more of it got cut after it was all filmed and put together. I have read an explanation of what the actual storyline was supposed to be, and yeah, if you know what you’re looking at, you can see (and hear) the scars where major elements got hacked out with a weed whacker.

Therefore: You cannot expect this plot to make sense.

But that's okay! You're not here for the plot to make sense! You're here to watch some characters you love run around through ridiculous and sometimes beautiful labyrinths, trying to solve puzzles you're never given enough information to understand, all in search of the resolution to a mystery that had half its guts torn out before you got to see it -- and you are here to love it. If you have ever laughed and cheered your way through a Mission: Impossible film without pausing to care too much about the plot holes it’s dodging left and right, you are in the correct frame of mind to appreciate this. Just believe that whatever engaging nonsense the show tells you is correct for the time being and go with it.

You cannot watch DMBJ and care about the laws of physics. You simply cannot.

Do not, however, let me give you the impression that the shoddy plotting is accompanied by equally shoddy performances. A major part of this show’s incredible watchability comes from how the cast is shockingly good. There are some serious heavy hitters among the actors. A major part of why this Wu Xie and Pangzi are my favorite together is the incredible chops both Zhu Yilong and Chen Minghao have, to say nothing of their real-life affection for one another. (See that scar on Wu Xie's neck? That scar is there because Zhu Yilong commits to the bit.) Effortlessly charming Mao Xiaotong turns potentially irritating wunderkind Bai Haotian into a perfect precious weirdo baby. Wu Erbai's entire second-season character arc could have been unintentionally comedic, but veteran of queer cinema Hu Jun sells even the undignified moments as relentlessly tragic. And of course Baron Chen absolutely kills it with...

3. This giant fucking loser

This is Hei Xiazi. That's not his name, but it's close enough. Allow me to do a dramatic reenactment of my watching his first scene:

[camera pans over to him]

me: Ugh, I recognize this kind of wannabe badass character design. I hate his type. He's self-important, hyper-masculine, and just a big jerk, and the show thinks he's soooo cool. Barf.

[thirty seconds later]

me: Oh no. I was so wrong. I love him forever now.

This is because he is (as indicated above) a giant fucking loser. Yes, he's a good fighter who knows lots of things. He's also a wet potato chip of a man. Sure, he can get you into a headlock, but he can also annoy you into submission, and that's honestly more fun for him. My wife has used the phrase “Vash the Stampede-coded” to describe him. My wife is not wrong.

And the kind of ridiculous thing is, being such a loser is what wraps back around to making him cool again. He's a loser because he just doesn't fucking care. His masculinity is the opposite of fragile. You tell him to wear a dress and makeup, he'll do it -- and sure, he'll complain, but only because he enjoys complaining. He has no dignity. He’s tits-out. He's gender. He's the worst and also the best.

Hei Xiazi is a major character in the other installations, to the point where he and his boyfriend (more on him later) even have their own movie. But of course, I did not know this on my first watch, so I kept expecting the show to explain his whole deal. It does not, but you don't really need it to. He sees better in the dark. He doesn't age. He's a thug for hire. There, that's all the bio you need.

One of the things that makes him great is that he is the least sexually threatening person ever. Across all the properties he's in, he spends a fair amount of time with women -- sometimes in very close quarters -- and they are perfectly safe around him. I actually wrote a whole post about it once upon a time (warning for tiny spoilers for a series that isn't this one) wherein I claim that not only Xiazi but Reunion in general is the television equivalent of the shirt that says I RESPECT WOMEN SO MUCH I DON'T HAVE SEX WITH THEM.

That said, this loser does get a sort-of romance plot here -- and honestly, I find it very cute! It's not even the only instance in this series of a bisexual guy in a long-term same-sex relationship getting a girlfriend, and I like that other one too! Look, the handle of my DMBJ sideblog is @katamaricule because I joked that Wu Xie treats polyamory like a katamari, and if you don't move fast enough, you're going to be rolled right up into his gay little cuddle puddle.

This is not a show for exclusive ships; this is a show for inclusive ships. The Jiumen Association is a polycule. You don't even have to know what the Jiumen Association is to know it's true.

4. The power of friendship

This show has a lot of characters.

I'd say the supporting cast is divided into three categories: characters who have been in previous installments, characters who have not been in previous installments, and characters who probably should have been in previous installments (or at least mentioned) but who were only created for Reunion so we have to pretend like we've known about them all along.

There is no way to tell which is which -- which is part of my argument that this series makes a good entry point to the franchise.

Take Huo Daofu. Huo Daofu is a brilliant doctor masquerading as a donut stand operator who treats Wu Xie with all the cold disdain of a man confronting the person who left him at the altar years ago. On the one hand, yes! We do know Huo Daofu from a previous series, and we've known he's both a doctor and a bitch. On the other hand, oh, we have no idea why he's like this about Wu Xie, and we probably never will. The show just treats it like it's for an excellent reason, and you know what, from what you know about Wu Xie, it probably is.

Consider also Jiang Zisuan. One of the show's principal antagonists, Jiang Zisuan turns out to be the brother of ... well, let's just say it's someone whose having a brother really should have come up before this. It has not come up. (And that's even before we get into the issue of his surname.) His stated identity as that person's brother is so bizarre that my favorite interpretation is that he isn't actually that person's brother -- all the flashbacks we see are just his delusions about a relationship he's completely invented. But there's no way you'd know how fucking weird this is on your first run.

Then there's our friendly little support himbo, Kanjian, who shows up to all occasions with two tickets to the gun show and not a thought in that beautiful head. (His name just means "vest," which is par for the course when it comes to the author's naming conventions.) He was a lot more menacing in the last series (where they kept putting sleeves on him, geez), where most of what we learned about him is that you can loan him out to other tomb-raiding families. Now he's a golden retriever with great aim and a slingshot. It's an upgrade.

The trick is, you cannot be surprised when someone shows up and the show treats them like you should know who they are, even when there's no possible way you could know who they are. I mean, for heaven's sake, Liu Sang arrives in the middle of an obvious beef with Pangzi, the origins of which are never satisfactorily explained, while also having a giant do-I-want-to-fuck-him-or-do-I-want-to-be-him crush on Xiao Ge, which is also never satisfactorily explained. Whatever, you just roll with it. He's got good hearing, a bad attitude, and questionable taste in idols. Now you're good to go.

(I should throw in a special note here that Liu Sang is many, many people's little meow meow, and not undeservedly. For a fuller explanation of why that is, please consult this other post I made.)

Part of the fun of this big cast is the adorable interactions you get. All the characters have appropriately big personalities, and the show loves letting people you wouldn’t expect bounce off one another. It’s not your typical action-hero show where nothing happens without the protagonist in the room. There are lots of exciting combinations and tons of charming dynamics! Unlikely friendships form all over the place! Enemies become allies! Allies become friends! Friends become friends with other friends! Some friends become enemies again! You'll need a scoreboard to keep up!

This is not to say the show treats all its characters perfectly or equally -- one of the precious few main female characters doesn't even get a real name, for heaven's sake, and the less said about the brownface racism, the better. It is, at its heart, a dude show for dudes made in China, with all the troubling decision-making that implies. Where it does deserve credit, though, is in understanding that its supporting characters are actual people with personalities apart from their function in Wu Xie's narrative. Sometimes the show just asks "what if [random character A] and [random character B] had to interact?" and has fun considering the answer! Which is almost always a delight to watch, and sometimes even breaks your heart.

5. Amazing rewatch value!

And by this I mean the experience of watching this show is remarkably different once you have any understanding of the rest of the DMBJ universe.

For instance, there's a point where two characters are scuba-diving past some submerged coffins, and one character tells the other whose coffins they are. Working only on information Reunion has given you, you're like, oh, that's where they buried the guy who built this creepy place, that's a little weird. Once you recognize that name from other series, though, your reaction is far more, excuse me, they did WHAT to WHOSE corpses?

Or another point where a character you've already met is on a train, and there's a handsome gentleman who just happens to be riding with her. He hands her his business card! Aw, that's sweet, he seems like a nice guy! Well, no, Xie Yuchen is not nice, but he is one of our allies, and he's Hei Xiazi's boyfriend, and a lot of what he's doing hits real different when you have a fuller grasp on why he's doing it and for whom. (Honestly, a major reason to watch Reunion first is so you're not fully and appropriately upset by how your black/pink gays merely have one teeny tiny scene together.)

From the way the series treats the persistent absence of Wu Sanxing, Wu Xie's third uncle, I absolutely, 100% assumed that he was a completely new character to this installment of the series, an extremely long-lost relative that we've somehow conveniently managed to never talk about before now. So imagine my gobsmacked surprise when I went to watch a different series, set much earlier in the timeline, where the opening scene prominently features Wu Sanxing as an actual character in the present-day narrative! ...Well, sorta. Look, there's a lot of fuckery with his identity in earlier parts of the story, and fortunately you need to know none of it to understand Reunion. But when you do, it suddenly makes a lot more sense why Wu Xie talks about someone who was a major part of Wu Xie's adult life like he died when Wu Xie was nine.

AND THE FLASHBACK SCENE WHERE A-NING GETS KILLED BY THE SNAKE, AND YOU'RE LIKE, OKAY, AND THEN YOU WATCH ULTIMATE NOTE AND IT WASN'T LIKE THAT AT ALL look, I know there are kinda reasons for this, different production companies and all, but seriously, what the fuck

All of which to say is that the experience of watching Reunion the first time is, hey, this self-contained romp is a lot of fun! The experience of rewatching it after watching any of the other DMBJ installments is a transcendently wonderful head-clutching avalanche of one moment of recognition right after another.

And here's the thing: You will watch more. Reunion is a gateway drug. If you are interested enough to make it through all 62 episodes, you're going to be interested in watching more. Which is great. The English-speaking fandom needs more people. Come down into the tombs. It's great down here. We've got snakes and arguably unintentional homoeroticism. Join us. Join usssssssss

Are you ready for an aventure?

There are a couple different ways to watch the first half, but there's (weirdly) only one way to watch the second, so for both of them, I'm going to send you straight to iQiyi: Season 1 (32 episodes) and Season 2 (30 episodes).

And just so you’re ready when Reunion is done, here’s how you find the rest of the DMBJ series, in the absolutely non-chronological order in which I, personally, think you should watch them:

The Lost Tomb 2 (AsianCrush, YouTube)

Ultimate Note (iQiyi)

The Mystic Nine (iQiyi, Viki)

Sand Sea/Tomb of the Sea (Viki, WeTV, YouTube, also YouTube)

Also, there's a lot of movies and side series and other pieces that are worth seeing, and even a couple of full series I've left off the list, and you can just slot them in wherever. And maybe we'll get Tibetan Sea Flo-- IT'S HERE! IT'S HERE! And someday maybe I'll actually have time to watch it! What a concept.

They're so perfect. Perfect triangle. Perfect boys.

[silly-writes]

What if reader was an old childhood friend of some of the competitors (ie Courtney, gwen, bridgette, Heather, duncan, Izzy, cody, etc) with said character(s) having strong feelings for before reader moved away just to come back into their life during one season with reader initially unaware of these returning feelings in said camper.

Bonus: What if reader/camper did get together in that one season, only for next season to have a love triangle form involving another character. The camper is aware of said triangle forming though reader might be oblivious due to now having eyes only for first camper. What'd this be like for different people?

Compretitors with returning feelings for childhood best friend reader!

u guys r really feeding me with these prompts I can't even lie this one was a little tricky with all these moving parts! Sorry if some of these are a little angsty and don't really have happy (per say) conclusions, but I'm just doing what I think best fits the character! I only write pure fluff if that what im given. I hope you enjoy anyways anon!

Courtney

Courtney is beyond stricken when she sees you.

What are the odds you both would have signed up for the same shitty reality tv show?

Well, high as Courtney would tell you. You always were very similar even back when you were inseparable as children.

You knew Courtney was always very fond of you before you moved away, so the reunion is very sweet, and heartfelt.

The two of you attempt to spend a lot of time catching up on what you missed out on after you had moved, but on the show there isn't much time for it.

Courtney can't help but think about how absolutely heartbroken she was when you moved away.

I would think with Courtney's determined attitude (plus based on what she says to Gwen during their friendship) she has made too many friends.

So when you moved away, especially since she was little, it sort of felt like the end of the world to her.

I imagine you being around is wildly distracting for her. Despite her returning romantic feelings.

You were the only person who ever had that type of close vulnerable relationship with her, she would do anything to please you, receive attention from you, or keep you in the game.

All of it leads to some very undesirable slip ups from her, which with you is how I imagine she goes home on the island.

She watched you as she got pulled away, she's not going to leave it unsaid this time, she remembers what that feels like, she remembers how isolating and awful it feels.

"I'm going to miss you ______!" She called out to you from the end of the doc of shame.

You waved wildly "I'm going to win this for you Courtney!" You call back.

"No- I mean! I'm going to miss you because I'm in love with you!"

You stand there stunned as she boards the boat and calls out one final thing "You had bet your butt you'll win this for me! I just confessed my love to you on live television!"

You try to call back that you feel the same, but Chris does what Chris does best and gets in the way of a good time. Even if the boat hadn't driven her off before you got the chance to confess back, the motor is loud enough to where she probably couldn't hear you anyways.

By action, you two have fully discussed your feelings, and how everything should go now that you're into each other but still competitors.

You both agree that your first real official date should be after the show is over, so while things aren't technically official by next season, you two are undoubtedly interested in each other and therefore not getting involved with anyone else.

You stick true to that, but Courtney can see Duncan keeps looking at you, and she's not stupid, she would know that punks gazes in and out.

She doesn't bring it up to you, she knows you're generally very dense about those kinds of things.

But eventually, she can't take it anymore and her jealousy starts driving her mad.

She declares that you two are official, and that you very much are dating, which causes some tension between the two of you during action since you both agreed it just wasn't a good idea.

After some fighting, fighting, and more fighting eventually it's you this time taking the walk of shame to the lame-ousine.

Courtney fights her way to you.

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect it to play out this way!" She says sorrowfully.

But you did, you know just how Courtney is, you know how she gets, and while you didn't fully understand why she did what she did you could've guessed that some kind of fight was inevitable. Plus you know how she gets during competitions.

"Hey don't sweat it," you smile "now that I'm not technically on the show, I don't have as much of a problem doing this-" you say and bring her in for a short and sweet kiss.

After years of waiting for this moment, Coutney can't help but freeze up.

You pull away, and head towards the lame-ousine as she calls "I'll win this for you!"

"You had better win this for me! I just kissed you on live television!" You say smiling as you duck into the back seat.

Gwen

Gwen feels nothing but nervous when reuniting with you.

She was happy to see you sure, but her anxiety held her back in how she displayed that happiness.

She's mainly worried that too much time has passed since the two of you knew each other, and that the two of you won't have anything to talk about anymore.

Eventually the two of you slump back together and things go back to the way that they were before you had moved away.

Another reason she was desperately trying to avoid you at first is because of the huge massive crush she used to have on you.

And dang it of course you had to get cuter as you got older!

Just as she realizes that those feelings for you are slipping out of hiding, is also when she realizes that it's already too late.

Once again the two of you are glued at the hip, just like how it used to be.

You, being who you are and were, are wildly oblivious to these feelings because of course you are.

Gwen isn't one to wear her heart on her sleeve, and even though you two are close she is less so with you, she's been burned before, she's not letting that happen again.

The two of you are sitting next to each other at the talent show when it happens.

Heather goes up on stage and says "Originally I was going to dance for you, but instead I want to celebrate team spirit with a collaboration" She holds up a dark notebook with an evil look plastered on her face.

Gwen seems to recognize it and instantly freezes up "Gwen? Are you okay?" You asked, knowing immediately something was off.

"She wouldn't," she says, and then braces herself.

"So with words by Gwen, performance by me, enjoy."

She cleared her throat before beginning "Okay so I've been trying to ignore them. But they're just so cute! I know it's been forever since we've seen each other and in that time they have gotten so hot! Out of all my childhood friends, of course it had to be them."

Gwen dashes away from the bleachers, and Heather seems satisfied.

Of course you run after Gwen to comfort her.

She lamented on and on about how you must think she's such a creep now, and was acting like a total school girl, still writing in a diary.

But of course you didn't feel like that at all, this was Gwen you were talking about here. The cool, collected, funny quiet girl, and you were obsessed with her.

You two start getting a little more romantic after that, and Heather seeing her plan to drive a wedge between the two of you did not work realizes she has to get her hands messy and plays a little bit more of a direct role in getting you eliminated.

It's a sorrowful goodbye until you see her again in action.

Bridgette

Reuniting with Bridgette is nothing but vibes.

She's beyond stoked to see you again, and even more stoked to ride the wave with you again.

I imagine the two of you met at the beach, and it was love at first sight for her.

You two click all over again like no time has gone past, and she fills you in on every little thing you've missed.

Things are super cut and dry with Bridgette, no mess, nothing but chillness.

She makes her feelings pretty clear, with some hints and stuff.

She learned her lesson the first time, letting you leave without having ever told you how she really felt hurt in ways she wasn't ready to feel again.

But if you don't pick up on it she'll just flat out tell you.

"I'm not doing this cause you're my team mate, I'm doing it cause I like you. You dork."

"I like you too Bridge, you know that."

"Not like that-!" She exclaimed, splashing you playfully, rocking the canoe as she did "-like like like you."

You stare at her in disbelief for a moment.

"what?!" you exclaim.

"Do you not feel the same?" She frowned.

"No I do... I just wasn't expecting-" she cuts you off tackling you rocking the whole boat as she does.

The rest is history and you two are pretty much inseparable from that point onward.

Up until World Tour, where Alejandro starts becoming a plane wide problem.

He tries targeting you at first, but youre so in love with Bridgette he can't get any headway.

But Bridgette being stuck on an opposing team leaves her exposed to his manipulation, he lies about you and makes her question her loyalty.

After she gets stuck to a pole, you find her, but when she explains what happened you just feel so hurt and betrayed that you leave her in the dust (or well, snow).

After a world tour it takes a lot of apologizing and healing to get over what happened between the two of you but you're both determined to make it work so you both put your strongest foot forward and work at it.

Heather

Heather is absolutely stunned when she sees you.

You greet her excitedly when she hits you with a "hello? Earth to nerd, I don't know you!"

That's enough to keep you away from her for a while.

She 100% is only pretending not to know who you are, but what choice did she have? She couldn't risk her feelings for you returning and ruining her chances at winning.

Close tender friendships like you used to have were bad for her image now, she had an impression to keep in this competition and she'd be dead in the ground before she let you or anyone else come in the way of that.

Her tenderness for you starts to show through and through though, you know her like the back of your hand, still, even after all these years.

You'd recognize those glances anywhere, and you knew it meant more than just being a strong team mate when she would point out all the ways in which you did well in the challenges. She was trying to keep you in the game.

The two of you never have any heart to hearts, nothing like that anyways.

She never reveals that she does remember you, not even as you watch her fade into the horizon on the boat of losers.

World tour she's more determined than ever, you've never seen her so deranged to win.

I'd imagine the love triangle would have more to do with her and Alejandro then you and anyone else.

She becomes torn between the two of you, and the inherit struggle in trying to pick over someone who actually matched her wit, and her childhood best friend and longest crush.

She makes her decision when she inevitably votes you out.

"Heather... you voted for me?" You asked, heart breaking, eyes already feeling wet.

She scoffs, "Don't take it so personally."

You sniffle a little bit, and then shake your head "I should've known better than to fall for your two faced snake self twice." You spit.

And with that you're gone.

She's not stupid, she's not forgetful either, and you knew that she knew just what "twice" really meant.

But she'd dug her grave now, she would just have to hope it could hold a million bucks.

Duncan

The meeting with him is very awkward I'd imagine.

He'd likely pretend not to know you until he can get a moment alone with you.

I would imagine he's largely embarrassed of your relationship due to the fact that he met you before his Juvie days, and you were one of the only people who had known him before he became nothing more than a delinquent.

So yeah, he's hell bent on making sure people don't find out about you two knowing each other.

But we all know deep down Duncan is a totally sweetie, even if it is deep, deep, deep down. His affection for you is bound to show one way or another.

Ever the observant one I'm sure it was Courtney who noticed first, marveling at how strange it was that you two of all people had romantic feelings for each other.

She urged the two of you together, subtly, attempting to be your sort of wingman, unbeknownst to even you.

Eventually Duncan works towards getting her voted out because of this, he's so obsessed with keeping his bad boy persona he'd do just about anything in this competition to keep it up. Even risk losing a million big ones.

You knew something was fishy about Courtney getting voted, but you couldn't put your finger on what. At least not until you heard him in the confessionals.

"I had to get that Courtney chick voted out, she was getting too close. I hate people who get to close,"

"Duncan!" you exclaim.

You can hear him mutter curses from the outhouse.

"Forget it! You know I can't believe I was actually starting to like you again!"

After that it's a nonstop battle for Duncan to win back your affections.

I would imagine the love triangle would consist of you, Duncan, and of course, Courtney.

She would start falling for you based on the way you shamelessly defended her despite your feelings for Duncan.

Only problem for you was those feelings hadn't exactly gone away since last season, and you were still very much into him.

You three fight a lot, and are the reason all three of you end up going home.

Which leaves nothing but time to work out your messy feelings for Duncan, and his for you.

But maybe time is really all the two of you need.

Izzy

Izzy is a bit of a wild card (obviously).

I feel like reuniting with her is just super duper chaotic, and very overwhelming at first.

She wants to fill you in on every little detail in her life within the same second she sees you again.

But you remember how to rein her in, she really hasn't changed much from the chaotic messy kid she was. (save for being a criminal now (whoops!)).

You being in the challenge with her would keep her much more rallied and motivated towards an understandable goal.

She can feel those intimate feelings creeping back, but she isn't shy with it.

I imagine she probably would've confessed to you once before, when you first moved, only neither of you wanted to try out long distance and thought it might only ruin what a good friendship you had. So through your move you decided to just stay friends.

You don't get long to sit and wonder about if those feelings still linger for her as they do for you when she abruptly asks

"So hey, are you interested in dating during the competition?" she asked, sitting beside you, anything but shy.

"What?"

Izzy was nothing if not explorative, she collected new experiences like pokemon cards, and she wanted to live fully every part of life.

"It might be a little bit messy. But I think maybe it could work, if all that was keeping you was distance the first time... well... I'm here now."

She stares at you with an expectant kind of rare almost nervous look, and though the confession is anything but picturesque, with her, it's perfect.

I think the love triangle would come in with her next season with maybe Alejandro falling for you.

Hard to say whether his attempts at flirting are due to advancing in the game, or genuine attraction. Either way you have trouble picking up on it, especially when things are going so well with Izzy.

I wouldn't say Izzy isn't a jealous person, I just think she could fall either way, depending on the person, depending on the day, the humidity in the air, basically on nothing at all. She's nothing if not erratic.

With Alejandro, she might be inclined to threaten him with her license to kill depending on her mood, and depending on what he tries to pull with you.

Cody

The reunion with Cody is one that is very heartfelt, and he instantly lights up upon seeing you.

You can see that he's fairly committed to his "too cool for school" schtick, so having any genuine connection with him might be a little tricky.

He's one person I feel like would have definitely tried to keep in contact with, it wasn't anything like every day phone calls, but the two of you had definitely spent at least some time sending letters back and forth.

So when you too meet there isn't a lot of catching up to do, only some.

He's overall very excited to see you back, and you know him enough to know that, even if he's refusing to show it.

You can feel those creeping feelings sneak up on you until the hit you smack in the face during one of the challenges.

"Cody!" you exclaimed during one of the challenges as he hit the ground hard.

"I'm fine," he lied, his voice strangled, the wind having been knocked out of him wholly.

You helped him up, and picked up a piece of paper that had tumbled out of his pocket and went bouncing a few feet.

At first you mistake it for trash, but with the way that even injured and put out Cody grabs for it, you figure it must be something good.

You were due for a little bit of teasing when you decided to open it, only to realize that it was a letter from you.

It's an old one, a really old one, perhaps even the first one you'd ever sent.

"Uhhh... how'd that get in there!?" He exclaims, swiping it out of your hands which are too stunned to fight against it.

Realization dawns on you just as quickly, there is only one reason he'd would've kept that with him after all those years.

"Oh my god Cody, you like me!"

The rest is history, and you two start dating among the challenges.

The conflict would come with Sierra I would think, who's hell bent on breaking you two apart.

All of her attempts fall flat unfortunately for her, and you two stand as one of the more healthy and strong relationships within the show.

[italoniponic]

Bat-Hunter | Rook Hunt & Lilia Vanrouge

Synopsis: In which Rook and Lilia found themselves at the start of a legendary battle for the Prefect of Ramshackle's heart. The world of love triangles is awfully quiet after this exchange. Dedicated to @pandoa. You wish and you shall receive &lt;3

Lilia Vanrouge, Rook Hunt x gender neutral reader / small scenario / fluff but mostly crack / reference to a specific Phillipines dish / 1525 words / use of “you” pronouns / Masterlist

Bat-Hunter: The Magnificent Showdown!

Few people throughout history — between humans and faes — could say that they had the audacity to directly antagonize the Great General Vanrouge in any sort of battle. And getting out of this sort of risk alive was a bit of luck granted to very few people, almost to none.

“But a coward hunter is not worthy to receive the title, nor to wear a hat.”

That was the Hunt family motto that Rook was so proud to carry in his heart. Such was his respect for his family tradition that this phrase was embroidered on the inside of all his hats so as to never forget his origins.

Well, maybe I’m starting a little too fast and you’re still worrying — from the comfort of Ramshackle’s upstairs window — what the hell the two guys you liked were doing on the ground floor balcony, dressed like that.

Despite everything, you suddenly shrugged to yourself and headed to the kitchen where a more urgent task needed to be fulfilled. When everything was ready, hopefully you could invite the guys in. That is, if you found one or the other intact in the end.

Because that was the feeling that their exchange of glances passed.

Lilia was dressed in his Light Music club “uniform,” as punk rock as your father had been in the eighties when he was young and phones were wired. He held his guitar close to him, as if it were the weapon of his days in the Army of Thorns. He was “total rad” — as the youngsters would say.

His friendly smile only masked the irritation of finding Rook in that place, decked out from head to toe. Usually, his presence was easy to ignore and his curiosity could be quite amusing from time to time.

But he knew the real situation they were in: they were equals in rivalry for the heart of Ramshackle’s Prefect.

Knights in a duel for love!

Rook, in his own instance, wore a pair of belted trousers and a loose white blouse — located in the common vocabulary as a “pirate blouse” — with the strange addition of a large pink coat over his shoulders, sewn by hand and with some patterns of blue rhombuses. With his hat in hand, he looked like a book character.

His expression was equally gentle but it carried a certain pang of defiance, like a hunter who meets another while hunting.

“You look very beauté this afternoon, Monsieur Curiosité!,” Rook praised.

“How did you actually say that time? That my beauty is ‘mysterious’?,” Lilia chuckled, squinting his eyes.

“Oui, oui! But do not fret, Monsieur, today my attention is on someone else.”

“Another one? You can’t get enough of it, can you, Hunt?”

“Oh, for Heaven’s sake, yes. I’m tired. Tired because I’m wandering for days and nights thinking about the smile of that kind person and how I would like to cheer them up in these times of crisis!”

Crisis? Lilia didn’t quite understand. You seemed to be doing very well during all the times you met. Had he let any detail slip through the cracks?

“What kind of crisis? That is,” he bit his tongue, embarrassed that he had to ask for help from his literal rival. “If I may intrude.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. These are ear crisis! Dear Trickster has been hearing a lot of guitars being scratched lately,” the young huntsman replied, boldly.

Lilia barely broke his guitar cable — or the entire instrument at once in Rook’s head.

It was a mere provocation, no big deal. And Pomefiore’s vice, the way he was, probably appreciated each style of music in its own artistic way. But they were dealing with a battle of epic proportions and every blow counted.

Even if he were to call Lilia’s love-hard-heavy-metal demo “instrument-scratching”. But it was worth it and it showed in the way Rook’s eyes squinted in amusement.

Dealing with Diasomnia’s vice has always been an adventure in itself. That was the best part about being Lilia’s romantic rival.

Regardless of the ending, moments like this would always have a special place in Rook’s heart and he would remember it all with emotion when he went to tell your children — “the Hunt Jrs.” — the trajectory of your love.

“Why are you crying?,” suddenly Lilia inquired, confused.

“You will not be forgotten, Monsieur Curiosité! Forever and ever!,” Rook declared, wiping a tear with the sleeve of his coat. “Your memory will be carried forever in our family!”

At this the fae pulled the hunter by the collar of his shirt, staring directly into his green eyes. It was not necessary to float to come face to face with Rook, Lilia had enough dignity to impose himself the way he wanted.

And, let’s face it, making the boy — a “child” in his eyes — literally reach his level was more convenient too.

“Your particular persona has not yet turned gray to be Malleus’ breakfast because I dare, to the best of my mental faculties, find your audacity mildly amusing,” Lilia said with a grim smile cutting across his face.

“I thank you, monsieur. And I, if I may say so, find the bloody-pink in your eyes extremely beautiful,” Rook retorted, torn between fascination and a certain fear instinct that only made him feel more confident in his goals.

“Who do you think you are, hunter?”

“And who do you think I am, bat?”

That said, the two of them started laughing. Maniacally. They walked away but kept laughing, releasing all the anger and tension that could be felt in the form of simple fun between two colleagues.

Oh, they wanted to duel until death ripped them from each others hands.

Fortunately, you opened the door in time to prevent a bloodbath in your yard — after all, it would be difficult to clean it up.

“Hey, boys!,” you greeted, happy. “Wanna come in? I made pancit canton!”

Then you showed them a plate of fresh noodles, straight out of the pan, in a colorful combination of sliced pork, sausage and shrimp along with chopped carrots, cabbage, peas, onions and garlic. It smelled wonderfully good and matched your good mood. No wonder, it was your favorite food from the Philippines.

The sun was setting and it was close to dinner time. In fact, you were so excited about the process of cooking everything — from blanching vegetables to cutting meats — that the serving size tripled. Maybe being busy tidying the house didn’t help your distraction.

But with Lilia and Rook there — and Grim would be happy with extra food — you felt that little slip was worth doing it.

The smile that opened on your face descended on them like a ray of light in the midst of darkness, poetic as a fairy tale.

The animosity in the air was still palpable, however you were simply happy to have the company of your two crushes at the same time and there are times you need to take advantage of some situations.

“Prefect! I composed a song and I would like you to hear it,” Lilia stepped forward, putting the guitar in position and pulling a bombastic sound from the strings.

Your eyes widened and you couldn’t stop an admiring smile from appearing. Outside that your heart was racing just like the Light Music club speakers after a performance by Lilia. He was so cool!

“And I brought the best collection of poems on my bookshelf to recite, sweet Trickster!,” Rook didn’t lag behind and with one movement of his arm, the coat danced beautifully under his shoulders.

Another shot to the heart! As if that were not enough, the shades of the afternoon horizon harmonized perfectly with Rook’s clothes and made him an otherworldly vision, having escaped from a bedside book just to meet with you.

“You two are going to drive me crazy like this…,” you grumbled to yourself. But you did your best to stay intact.

“I just want you to bear with me 'cause I am only one,” you said. “Let’s have dinner first, okay?”

“All for you, sweet Trickster!,” Rook declared, taking your free hand and kissing it.

“A-ah! Okay?”

“What matters is your wish, Prefect,” Lilia skillfully took the plate of pancit from your other hand and also kissed it.

“B-but your guitar...!” He literally had put the instrument between his legs.

“There’s no time for questioning, magnefique apple of my eyes. Forward, my brave rival!”

“Said and done, hunter!”

You were still confused when they managed to find a way to literally drag you into the house, each holding your arms as if your weight was negligible and the situation completely normal.

It was obvious how Rook and Lilia, even if in different ways, could make you go “head over heels.” 

Well, you avoided reaching that angle when they deposited you on the couch and sat each by your sides. At least the animosity was gone and Lilia’s guitar was more securely propped up on the coffee table.

“Dinner, mes ami?,” Rook suggested. “Then a lyrical duel to the death?”

“A what...?”

“That’s fine for me,” Lilia accepted.

And so they lived happily ever after. At least until after dinner.

🦇🆚️🏹

Special Notes: It’s funny or maybe not how I can get drowned in my own work and never make any progress in months but the moment the inspiration for something strikes me as a lighting, suddenly I can pull off an entire 1525 thing in two nights straight. It’s quite simple and it goes more into comedy territory but it’s a homage for your underrated comedy skills, Pando! I still tried my best to make sure both Rook and Lilia could have their times to shine. I based most of the exchange in Lilia’s R Sports Card personal story with Rook (and just got off from that feeling). Have to say, I love a good unilateral passive-aggressive convo and they delivered <3

Now… any similarities of scenes from certain movies are completely my fault. I’m currently having a Die Hard and Kung Fu Panda brainrot, which is weird but it happened.

[g1rlken]

hi dolly! 💕i just discovered ur blog n i love ur writing sooo much! 🙈💞 can u pls do 2 or 16 for nate!! 💗💗

you’re so freaking nice woah I love u sm 😠🫶🏼

Prompt: 2. Sunshine x grumpy + 16. Help get out of a toxic relationship

Nate Jacobs x fem!reader

2.7k words

-

Just the ninth if not the tenth party of the month. Another house party, on a school night, way past her usual bedtime and really overwhelming that it just won’t near its end. Y/n couldn’t bare it sometimes but she had to attended because her boyfriend Ryan did. It was fun though, driving him home as he’d be piss drunk and the party itself had the most obnoxious teenage charm. In order to block out on the godawful bass and flickering lights y/n guided herself into the kitchen when Ryan most probably didn’t even notice.

“Oh what have we here!” Nate exclaimed as he followed in some time after, she jumped down from the kitchen counter where she previously sat with an awkward smile. She’d known of Nate and him partially. They were supposed friends ever since that one term last year where she had to tutor him. Though they didn’t really reconnect after that once she started seeing Ryan. It was somewhat majorly due to him that y/n didn’t see a lot of her friends who seemed potential threats to him.

“Hi” she greeted him awkwardly looking out the door to see if Ryan was coming, she was scared he’d cause a scene if he saw her with Nate. Even if it was just a conversation, two of them at a reasonable distance with a probable small talk following. Ryan wouldn’t have it, he’d loose his shit over her even breathing in the direction of some other guy.

Nate could tell that she was a bit frantic over something and he was fast to connect it was a ‘someone’ rather. “What are you doing here all alone?” He asked pouring himself a glass of water.

“Nothing really just uh-“ she tried thinking of proper words to say. But the soft dread of Ryan walking in any minute made her mind preoccupied.

Nate interrupted her pause, “Beer pong’s too boring for you? Already calculated the probability of winning?” He joked, when she had helped him with math and there were similar questions as such counting probably of winning a coin toss. So it was a small jab from something between them.

A small laugh seemed to escape her genuinely as he correlated their previous connection through maths, “I didn’t think about that wow…” she trailed off, “one throw amongst ten glasses”

“One in ten probability of winning.” He answered his instant calculation.

“I don’t know the glasses are set up like a triangle and they’re not all equally probable to get in, maybe we take like one row at a time and then apply bayes theorem for each-“ she was going off about the self curated math problem between the two of them as he listened intently but looked absolutely clueless so she stopped herself “oh wait I’m rambling aren’t I? Sorry” she cringed to herself letting out a soft chuckle.

“It’s alright sweetheart” he added with a shrug, “I like hearing you talk.”

“Surely because math is so fun isn’t it?” She said sarcastically rolling her eyes at him.

“It’s not. But when you talk like that, it’s fun to watch.” Nate replied just mildly, contrary to his chance making intentions out of this conversation. Even apart from that he did mean that, he’d missed it, her.

“Like what?”

“That…” he pointed to her face vaguely, unable to describe how her eyes lit up and a cheery tone followed her voice whenever she talked about something she liked without being made felt like it was a chore to the listener “You get all smiley...happy. When you talk about something you love”

“Well I don’t necessarily love math.” She told him, it was true. Despite of being good at something, having a passion for it was unilateral to it.

“I guess you love being heard then.” It might just have been a note as Nate mentioned it so casually but as she thought about it, she couldn’t help but wander back to Ryan and how he never listened.

No. That couldn’t be, everyone’s a different lover perhaps “Yeah…” she trailed off with a small smile as her expression fell. Comprehending those moments where talking to Ryan about something in her life would just feel like talking to a wall.

“What’s wrong?” Nate asked catching on her fallen expression.

“What?” She asked confused, nonchalant because surely he wouldn’t fix anything “Nothing…”

“It doesn’t seem like nothing, what’s wrong?”

“What?” She frowned but couldn’t help laugh when she saw his ever so concerned face like her smile falling was that big of a deal. “Nothing’s wrong!” As a joke, she splashed some of the tap water on his flickering it on him through her fingers. She laughed as he took the attack of tiny droplets.

“You did not just-“ if it were some one else he would’ve most probably said the worst cusses in the book but with her he just let out a small huff.

“Did what?” She attempted to sprinkle his face once again but this time he got a hold of her wrists with one of his hands, she couldn’t contain her laughter. It was infectious to him as well, this light hearted moment was flooded all over like a forest fire with an irking voice.

“What the fuck’s going on here?” Ryan seethed, y/n immediately pulled her hands away from Nate’s as that boy strided in.

“W-we uh were just talking” y/n spoke frantically, it was disheartening to Nate to see her all panicky and frantic again, when she was just laughing and at peace a few moments ago.

“That’s what you’ve come up with?” Ryan questioned as he aggressively walked towards her “Why do you always have to slut your way about, everywhere I take you huh?”

“I wasn’t doing anything I swear-we were just talking, I used to tutor him math and we were just reconnecting over it I-“ y/n jumped rapidly to explain herself before Nate could intervene for her.

“Over math huh?” Ryan scoffed “Someone dumb like you? You were talking about math?”

“Hey calm the fuck down alright” Nate interjected before y/n could. “She said we were just talking so we were just talking.” He added authority to her words but it just made things worse.

“This is our matter so can you fuck off?” Ryan barked at Nate, the two weren’t friends but just distant acquaintances. Ryan naturally couldn’t stand anyone trying to talk to her because it was all ‘flirting’ and Nate couldn’t naturally stand y/n because that boy made his sun rays embodied girl feel awful.

“No.” Nate said adamantly “How about you grow a pair and stop being a little bitch about everyone who looks in her direction? Do you not think yourself man enough to keep her or do you have to berate her to have her around?” Nate was poking at him purposely because he himself wanted a go at this guy but he didn’t want y/n to think Nate was the guy who’d throw first punch, even though he wanted to.

But that was it, Nate received the punch he was asking for but he barely flinched very overpowered with his own urge of showing Ryan his place they two were at each other’s throats. This was the exact scene y/n was worried about Ryan creating, she tried to soothe the fight pleading them both but it didn’t work.

“Get off of him!” She kept on trying as she held Ryan from his arm, trying to tug him away but it was distracting him so much from throwing his hands at Nate. Her constant nagging and tugging.

“Get the fuck off me!” Ryan roared at y/n pushing her off of him very aggressively, intently pushing her so hard she fell to the ground and that was when Nate no longer held his punches. He beat the boy bloody red. By now the others had gathered too to help escalate the situation but it was of no help, Nate was like an animal unleashed.

-

A week since that, y/n couldn’t even meet Nate’s eye. She ignored him in hallways, changing her direction, she sat far across him in class always hurrying out before he could talk. She wouldn’t reply to his messages, not even see them. He hadn’t seen her around with Ryan either in their designated spots around the school so that was a good sign but he just wanted to talk this out with her because he couldn’t understand the relentless feeling of having lost her. Even as a friend. He never regretted having beaten Ryan, he deserved it. Nate was so certain of it. But y/n. He hated thinking she saw him differently after that, his obnoxious rage to protect that he wanted to cherish. Did it repel her? He felt entitled to at least find that out, he’d leave her be to just glance from the sidelines and wait till she’ll finally look his way if that made her happy but he’d like to know.

Another house party after that one with a facade, Nate as he lounged with his friends overheard a group of girls behind him gossiping about how y/n and Ryan are back together. Eavesdropping as his blood boiled he found out that she’ll probably be around here since Ryan’s here. When he heard that he immediately rose to his feet setting down his beer without a care to respond to his mates who asked about his sudden leave, they kept asking where he was going before he was lost in the crowd. He could barely register anything at this point.

As he walked through the crowd in disbelief and anger he finally did find y/n, out in the garden with some other girls he simple pulled her by her arm to himself without a word or explanation to others he received a few woahs he didn’t care for.

Nate would’ve pulled her aside to talk to her if she was standing with Ryan if that boy weren’t to busy getting piss drunk. “Hey!” Y/n resisted trying to walk herself but he continued to drag her with a tight grip on his arm getting to a quieter place by the small space between the backward and out shed. “Nate what are you-“

“What’s wrong with you?” He asked her, brows furrowed.

“What? What are you talking about…” y/n trailed off as some embarrassment and regret creeped within her but she full well knew what he was talking about.

“How are you even seeing Ryan again? Are you out of your mind?!” He exclaimed. He had so much to demand about, Nate swallowed his pride with timid hurt whenever she ignored him. He could bare her dismissiveness but not her sadness.

“Look…” She breathed unable to meet his gaze, “it’s different-“

“It’s different is it? What is tell me, has he come up with more ways to make you feel shitty?”

Remaining silent as she looked to the ground like it was the most interesting thing ever she felt horrible. Even more horrible of the life she could be otherwise leading but the life she was afraid of leaving. Afraid of the change leaving ryan would bring, afraid of its consequence the emotional weight.

“And you’ve been ignoring me this entire time. Do you think I can’t see that?” Nate spoke and this time she looked up increasingly confused at how he could see through her that much “You don’t look at me, always hurry away even right now you can’t even meet my eyes what are you so afraid of?!”

“It’s just…it’s difficult to explain” y/n tried to reply mildly as she sighed on the verge of tears.

“As long as you can explain it to yourself right?” He scoffed, really agitated how she couldn’t see what he could. Nate was an intense lover too, ferocious one that. But he’d never make her feel this miserable if she was his. She wouldn’t even have to be his he just wanted Ryan to leach away from her because she’d be happier exactly like she was before that boy. Constantly governing her and disrespectful. Nate had a bad temper and he was difficult but he’d never be difficult enough to the extent of hurting her.

Now tears brimmed her eyes and he instantly held back from his words realising just how distressing it must be for her “Hey…hey” he urged her raising her chin with his fingers to make him look at him “I shouldn’t have said that I’m sorry…” he apologised but it didn’t stop the tears streaming down her face. “Y/n…it’s alright” he brought her to himself enlacing her into his arms and he rubbed her back letting her cry it out.

“I just don’t know what to do-he—he apologised and he said he’d change and this is the second time this has happened and I-i felt embarrassed to see you because you did so much and yet I went back to him…I keep on doing this, I just, I’m very lost on that account” she wept “He’s my first-first everything and I do really like him but he just makes me miserable and awful. Every second I’m with him I just feel horrible I don’t even want to be here at this party but I am…because of him.”

“Look at me” he said pulling away from the hug to face her but she still kept looking down so Nate cupped her face in his hands “Look” he urged “It’s okay…it’s difficult. You’re learning to love and you’re too attached to him right now. You will get out of it only if you get out of it. You have gotten over much difficult things and you have been okay. You’ll be okay this time around too.”

“How do you know that?” She asked as her voice broke but her tears composed.

“Because I love you.” Nate blurted and didn’t even regret it, almost felt free of letting out a feeling so intense in him whether or not she reciprocated “I love you. I love all of you and I’m not embarrassed to admit it but I want you whole. I want you happy, I promise you i will maintain it and I don’t want you to think of it now” he said wiping her tears “we’re going to go home. I’ll drop you home. You’re not answerable to anyone if you don’t want to be at a place you don’t want to be. You think about Ryan, break up, sort your head out yeah? You deserve better than him because love shouldn’t make you feel awful and miserable. it doesn’t necessarily have to be me or anyone, your own self needs you the most right now. Act right by you.”

Nate drove her home after that, she was truly glad. The car ride was full of a comfortable silence and the genuine serene smile which adorned her face when she told him good night after dropping her off was all worth it to Nate.

Following two days were a bit long as Nate didn’t hear from y/n in any way. She wasn’t even at school. The game day was on the weekend so people rarely came from class these days. Regardless on the game day when he had to play himself he searched for her in the crowd full of people but couldn’t find her. That’s what he told himself weighing light on the fact that she might not have showed up.

He played his well that game, where they won. But he still felt like he had lost somewhat. Since he didn’t have y/n, or a sign of her that could bring his heart some peace. It’s as if his wish was turned alive, he saw y/n come rushing towards the team where everyone was congratulating each other.

He dropped his helmet to the floor when she came running and picked her up in his arms, feeling won, feeling at home. Nate hugged her as if she wouldn’t exist if he let go and likewise. Y/n finally felt liberated, happy, like herself again. Following his word of advise.

Y/n had broken up with Ryan, with a lot of comprehension and conversations with her feelings y/n had reciprocated Nate’s. “I love you too” she replied to what she couldn’t that night at the party and he smiled so hugely kissing her as she was still lifted up into his arms. She kissed him back wrapping her arms around him and like he’d promised, she felt alright again.

HEY!!!! Please let me know your thoughts I will think about it twice a week if you commented a smile face even. Anyways, THANK YOU for reading I love you and go drink water

+is my nate semi non toxic? Yes as a descendant of bob the builder family I fixed him

[mypearlsareclutched]

I Know You Don't Understand

High By The Beach | Chapter Eight

Modern!Aegon II x Original Female Character, Modern!Aemond x Original Female Character

The arrival of Aemond Targaryen at the Old Town beach house has Mila and Aegon wondering what will happen next. Aemond is intent on winning Mila back, but she no longer knows who owns her heart...

Sorry guys, the joy has ended, we are now in the era of heartache and love triangles and Mila not knowing what the fuck is going on...

Song inspiration | High By The Beach, Lana Del Rey

CW//TW: References to Sexual Content (MDNI, 18+), cigarettes, toxic relationships, angst, Aemond being Aemond, references to drug use, love triangles R us, Aegon's whore past, Al*s R*vers mention, Ot*o mention, Larys being Perez Hilton, the Targaryens arguing like their real housewives.

Word count | 3.1k

previous chapter // next chapter

The three of them stand in awkward silence, their eyes flicking to one another as they try to think of something to say. It's a Mexican standoff, none of them knowing what the other plans to do, all of their defences up.

With a sharp inhale, Aemond moves first, taking slow, long strides over to the porch. As he walks up the stairs, he nods to his brother.

"Aegon." He greets.

"Aemond." Aegon bites out, fists clenching slightly.

No brotherly love there. Mila awkwardly moves from foot to foot, staring at Aemond as she lingers on the line between wanting to slap his perfect face and collapse into his arms. Why is her heart beating hard enough to make her body shake with adrenaline? Why is she so unsure of what she wants to do?

"How did you find us?" She asks, clearing her throat as she wraps her arms protectively around body.

"If you guys were trying to lay low, don't go around parading on a public beach." Aemond pulls out his phone, showing the two an article showing Mila and Aegon sitting side by side on the sand outside of the beach house.

'The She Wolf gets cozy with Ex-Boyfriends Brother midst cheating scandal and rehab rumours!'

"Of fucking course. Larys Strong sticking his big nose in our lives once again." Aegon laughs mirthlessly, throwing his hands up, "That soulless, stalking ass, clubfoot ass, bitch."

"Calm yourself, Aegon." Aemond warns, "Anger has never looked good on you."

"Why are you here?" Aegon demands, putting his hands on his hips, raising his eyebrows, "Huh? You haven't come here since we were kids. Why come here, now?"

"Is that not clear?" The younger brother's eyes move over to Mila, who shivers under his attention.

Aegon freezes, face hidden from Mila but she can clearly see his discomfort and wariness. He moves slightly to shield Mila from his brother's eye, and Aemond moves his attention to Aegon with a sneer.

"I think we need to talk." Aemond states, to which one of them, Mila is unsure.

Without another word, he shoulders past his brother, walking up to the house and disappering inside. Mila watches his back as he heads towards the living room, before looking at Aegon.

He gives her a look, almost looking frightened.

As Mila and Aegon enter the living room, they spot Aemond standing near the coffee table, his grandmother's copy of Pride and Prejudice in his hand. He looks over it, dragging one of his long fingers over the spine.

Mila feels anger rise up in her, stalking over to grab the book from Aemond's hand, cradling it to her chest protectively.

"These were Alerie's right?" Aemond asks, looking over the piles of dusty books, "I didn't realise or uncle kept them."

"There are a lot of things that escape your notice." Aegon grits out, collapsing on the sofa with a huff.

Aemond raises his eyebrow, sneering at his brother, "Such as?"

"Neither of us wanting you here."

"Oh? Are you two symbiotically linked now? Has Mila told you telepathically that she doesn't want me here?" Aemond smirks.

"I don't know, Aemond." Aegon shrugs, "I'm just assuming from her sad little expression. You're the one who's been dating her for a whole ass year, why can I read her face better than you can?"

"Stay out of our relationship, Aegon-"

"What relationship? You cheated on her and sent her off to overdose, remember?"

Aemond takes a menacing step forward, causing Aegon to sit up with a mean grin, clearly looking for a fight.

Mila grabs the sleeve of Aemond's jacket, pulling him back from descending upon his brother. Both Targaryen's eyes follow the movement, their expressions unreadable.

"Stop." Mila demands simply, and Aemond obliges.

He looks down at her face, his eyes softening as he takes in her pained eyes and downturned lips.

"I'm sorry." He murmurs.

"For what, almost fighting your brother?" Mila laughs ironically, shaking her head as she holds the book to her chest.

"For everything." Aemond says ernestly, turning his body fully to her. He reaches down to gently take her fingers into his hand, "My love, I..."

Aegon scoffs, clearing his throat obnoxiously. Aemond's eyes harden, his head snapping to look at his brother.

"What?" He demands, voice coming out like an aggressive dog's bark.

"Oh nothing." Aegon says innocently, patting his chest, "Just a cough. Continue, please."

Aemond growls, fists clenching. Rolling her eyes, Mila gives Aegon a look, silently pleading with him to give them five minutes. He stares right back at her, face eerily calm while his eyes were on fire.

"Aeg, can you please give us a moment?" She begs, hoping he can tell she does not want to have this conversation, but she can tell Aemond's patience is wearing thin, and a fight is not what she needs right now.

He sits silently for a moment, his lips disappearing as he presses them together, working his jaw, "...Fine."

Standing, he rolls his shoulders, taking his time to walk through the living room into the kitchen. Mila mouths a 'thank you' to him as he passes, and he winks at her, making her stomach flutter. Aemond watches his brother leave with a scowl, chest heaving.

"Aemond." Mila starts, looking at him.

"Baby-"

"Anyone want coffee?" Aegon calls from the kitchen.

"Aegon, shush!" Mila yells back, sighing as she rubs her forehead.

The two stand in silence in the living room, looking at one another with wildly different, wildly unsure expressions. Aemond stares right into her soul, his one blue eye watching her every twitch and blink. As Mila stares back, she can hear a thousand different thoughts swimming around her mind. Why is he here? What could he want? Does he

"So you two are best friends now?" Aemond sneers, crossing his arms. With a roll of her eyes, Mila ignore his comment, taking the spot Aegon had vacated from the sofa.

"I don't want to do this, Aemond." She sighs, rubbing her hands over her legging-covered knees.

"Do what?"

"Argue." Mila shrugs, nails biting into her skin as her hands flex, nervous about the impending fight.

"I haven't come here to argue." Aemond says simply, "I came here to bring you home."

"Oh, really? Home? Where's home?"

"King's Landing, your flat, with your brother and your friends and my siblings, home."

"You're not going to take me to the clinic?" Mila asks with a raised eyebrow, questioning his intentions.

Aemond scoffs, shaking his head. He puts his hands on his hips, and Mila takes a moment to look over his appearance. he's dressed casually, black jeans and a black leather jacket over a white T-Shirt. His hair is loose, looking less impeccable than it was the last time she saw him. His lone eye had a dark bag below it, like he had been having trouble sleeping.

Is it bad she hoped it was because of her?

"Do you know how fucking worried I was about you?" Aemond yells.

"Oh, yeah, I'm sure you were absolutely weeping into Alys Rivers' pussy!" Mila yells back.

"That was a mistake." He grits out, "I fucked up, and I'm sorry about that. I'm so fucking sorry about everything that happened. But I had no idea where you were! I was so fucking scared you were dead!"

"Well I'm alive. You've seen it, you've verified, now fucking leave!"

"I'm not giving up on this!"

"There is nothing to give up on. We're done, we've been done."

"I don't want that." Aemond pleads, crouching down next to her to kneel between her legs, resting his large hands on her knees, "Mila, you're all I want. This last year with you has made me happier than I thought possible. I can't, I won't, give up on this, on you.

"No, you don't." Mila sobs, pushing his hands off of her, "If you did, you wouldn't have hurt me."

"It will never happen again. I've ended things with Alys, for good. I want to be with you completely, my heart, my mind, my body and my soul. You're everything to me, Mila."

Tears fall freely from Mila's eyes, cascading down her flushed skin. Aemond's hand reaches up, wiping away a few stray tears, and Mila lets him. She lets her cheek fall into his palm, the familiar feel of his skin making her heart wretch inside her. But the pain and the anger are still there, and she moves his hand away.

"We can fix this." Aemond states, nodding his head as if talking to himself.

"Maybe I don't want to." Mila sighs as she stands up and storms away, slamming the bedroom door behind her.

Aegon sits at the small table in the kitchen, a glass of water held tightly in his grasp as he leans his head back, eyes closed. As Aemond enters the kitchen, his brother hums.

"Trouble in paradise?" Aegon asks casually, not opening his eyes.

Grumbling Aemond ignores his brothers comment, rubbing a hand over his hair before he glares at him.

"What are you doing?" He questions, glaring at his zen appearance.

"Praying for you to inherit Viserys' male pattern baldness." Aegon mumbles, not looking at his brother.

Aemond scoffs, walking over to the fridge. He tuts as he looks in it, "No bottled water?"

"My humblest apologies, your majesty. The servants should have gotten us some, but they're too occupied with cleaning our silver and stealing our jewels."

With a roll of his eyes, Aemond grabs a glass and fills it with tap water, a sneer on his lips. Aegon mouths 'twat' behind his back, tapping his fingers on his glass.

As he takes a seat at the other side of the kitchen table,

"Finally figured out how to operate one of those? Or is Mila the one who has to take care of you like a nanny?"

"I'm quite the connoisseur with that thing now. Got Mila's coffee order down. Making her one may fix some of the damage you've done, or at least make her not want to run you over."

Aemond bristles slightly, almost unnoticeably.

Aegon smirks, "You don't know how she likes her coffee?"

"I know how she likes her eggs in the morning, and what she needs when she's sick, and how she likes her neck bit when i'm fucking her."

With a small, self righteous smile of his own, Aegon decides to not inform his brother that he also knows that juicy last little detail.

"Why did you bring her here?" Aemond asks, voice dangerous.

Aegon scoffs, finger tapping against the rim of his glass, "Because I could."

"You care about her." Aemond states. There is no anger in his tone, only interest. He seems fascinated by the notion.

Aegon is silent, staring at the glass of water in front of him as he clenches his jaw. Aemond chuckles, shaking his head.

"Of course you do." He states, "She's wonderful. She's beautiful, and intelligent, and funny, and fucking dangerous if she wants to be. The She Wolf, as they so affectionately call her in the tabloids."

The elder brother remains unspeaking, his eyes moving up to look at his younger brother, eyes uncharacteristically dangerous.

"Don't forget that I was there first. She fell in love with me, first. She fucked me, first. No matter what you think you have with her, you're my replacement, brother."

"I've never hurt her." Aegon snaps.

"But you will." Aemond sighs, with a small roll of his eye, "It's what you do. You get starry-eyed over the new, shiny toy you've found. You play with it, you dirty it, and then you discard it. Like the Lannister girl, and the Baratheon, those girls in Dorne, mother's old assistant-"

"That was different." Aegon shakes his head, "I was different. I was young and stupid and selfish, but now-"

"Now what?" Aemond laughs, eyeing his brother with a taunting smile. "What do you think will happen? Hm? You think she's going to choose you? That you both will ride off into the sunset and tattoo each other's initials and have little junkie babies?"

His taunting, humiliating tone makes Aegon's blood boil, his hand flexing around his glass as he stares at his brother with as much venom as he could manage. Aemond is unfazed, pursing his lips.

"And let's not forget, what you two had was always going to be temporary." He says with finalility, finishing his drink with one swig, "You both were only ever going to use each other as a crutch before you went back to your old ways. You will inevitably fall back into the drinking and the drugs and the fucking, and she will come back to me. Stop pretending your little fantasy would last."

Aegon clenches his jaw, staring at the water in his glass.

With a sardonic laugh, Aemond rises from his chair. Walking around the table, he leans down to speak in Aegon's ear.

"She's mine." He bites, "Don't forget that."

Mila bites the nail of her thumb, scratching it with her teeth as she listens to her brother's phone ring with her call. The living room was empty when she returned, and she could hear Aemond and Aegon bickering in the kitchen. Taking the moment of peace to get to grips with the situation, she pulls out the phone to talk to her big brother.

Aemond's appearance made her feel so... conflicted. It was like a month of taking care of herself, putting space between the man who broke her heart, finding solace in his brother... it was like it never even happened. She was back to the fragile, nervous wreck she was when she was searching for a high in Flea Bottom. Mila wanted a reset, a time out.

She just wants her big brother. He would know what to say. Holding onto the phone with a shaky grip, she sighs as she hears her brother's voice mail again.

Someone clears their throat behind her, and she turns around. Aemond stands across from her, his arms folded behind his back as he watches her.

Mila groans softly, pressing the heel of her hand to her head, "Aemond-"

"Come back with me."

"What?" His request startles her, and she looks up at him. He smiles sadly down at her, taking a few slow steps forwards to

"Come back with me." Aemond pleads, taking her hand in his to pull her to him. Mila shakes her head, pushing against his chest as he murmurs admissions of love and begs. She feels tears falling down her cheeks, her heart breaking all over again.

"I... I can't, Aemond." She sobs, shaking her head, "Everything has changed, I can't trust you anymore!"

"Let me gain your trust again, let me prove to you I can change. I will change, for you."

Mila stares up at him with glassy eyes, pressing her lips together. He holds her hands tightly, keeping her close as he slowly leans down to try to kiss her-

"Anyone want quesadillas?"

Aemond and Mila turn to look at Aegon, who leans against the doorway with a wide grin, shrugging.

"I'm starving, I'm thinking about making quesadillas."

"Piss off, Aegon." Aemond growls.

"My house, my rules." His brother laughs, sauntering over to the sofa to lie down on it, picking up one of the books to flick through it, "No, go ahead, keep talking."

The air is tense, the silence only breaking when Aemond's phone rings. He pulls it out, his eyebrows furrowing as he looks at the ID.

"What's wrong?" Mila asks, something gnawing at her nerves about the phone call. Maybe it's just her body's natural reaction to Otto Hightower...

"Nothing." States Aemond, looking up at her to give her a small smile, "I need to take this. Can we finish this later?"

"Yeah... yeah, of course." She says as she takes a deep breath. Aemond nods as he answers the call, walking away and out through the back door.

Aegon stops pretending to read, looking at Mila with raised eyebrows. She glares at him for his childish behaviour, and he sighs, having the sense to look guilty.

"Mila-"

"Stop, Aegon." Mila holds up her hand, taking a shaky breath, "Please, just... give me a moment. I need to talk to him."

Aegon watches her go with sad, wide eyes, feeling his heart sinking inside of him.

Mila finds Aemond sat outside, long limbs hunched over as he sits atop the sand.

He sits silently, his phone in one hand, a cigarette in the other. His forearms are resting on his knees, as he watches the stormy waves with a pensive expression.

"Aemond?" Mila calls out, voice carried by the chill in the breeze.

He does not look at her, lost in his own world as he looks out at the sea. Mila sighs softly, walking across the sand in her bare feet to join his side. They are silent for a moment, looking out at the dark night and the restless ocean.

Mila presses her lips together, taking a breath as she works up the courage to start the conversation.

"Aemond-"

"Viserys is dead."

Mila's head snaps over to look at him, gasping. His face is unreadable, the moonlight casting shadows across his angular features. His eyepatch shines slightly, his scar looking aggressively red in the low light. He works his jaw, lifting his cigarette to take a last puff before flicking it out onto the sand, eyes following the glowing light before it burns out.

Instinctively, Mila reaches over, taking his free hand in hers. He turns his head, his eyes stormy as he looks over her face. Leaning forwards, Mila rests her temple against his shoulder, allowing his all too familiar scent to fill her senses.

After a moment, Aemond rests his head against hers, breathing her in as the waves crash beside them.

AN// I love angst I want it pumped through an IV right into my fucking veins <3 shoutout CEO cockblock Aemond and Vice President of not-reading-the-room Aegon. Now Viserys has bit the dust, what is going to happen amongst the Targaryen family? Stay tuned to find out, pookies x

Lula x

[agaypanic]

HI! I saw your requests are open so I wanted to request Rory x reader x Benny love triangle? none of them are officially dating but both of the boys have a crush on reader and they constantly try to compete for her attention (it can be hc’s or a fic) :)

Benny Weir and Rory Keaner Crushing on You Headcanons

Masterlist

Request Something!

A/N: took a bit of inspo from my mbav simp headcanons lol

***

You were probably the new girl in town/school

Benny and Rory share first period together

And you came in

“Class, we have a new student joining us. Her name is Y/n.” The teacher announced, gesturing to you. You stood at the front of the room, smiling awkwardly at everyone. “Y/n, hun, how about you take a seat over there?” She pointed to the only available seat.

It was a table with three chairs, and two boys were sitting next to each other, leaving the chair on the edge empty. The brunette nudged the blonde, who moved to the vacant seat. They watched you move to sit in the chair in between them.

“I’m Rory.” The blonde introduced himself, giving you a toothy grin with puppy dog eyes.

“And I’m Benny.” The brunette said, resting his head in the palm of his hand as he looked at you.

As the day went on, the boys found out that they each shared another class with you

Being the only people you really knew so far, you chose to sit next to them in those classes

They totally brag about that

“Have you guys seen the new girl yet?” Rory asked his friends excitedly as he sat down at the lunch table. Everyone except Benny looked at him confused.

“There’s a new girl?”

“Yeah, and she’s hot,” Benny responded. “She’s in our first period; the teacher sat her between us.”

“She’s in my art class and wanted to sit next to me because I was the only person she knew!”

“Same with me in math!”

“Is that her?” Sarah asked, discreetly pointing to the unfamiliar girl who was looking around the cafeteria. There were no empty tables for you to sit at, so you stood awkwardly, wondering where to go.

Rory waved his hand to get your attention, beckoning you over. He grinned at the relieved and excited look on your face when you recognized him.

“You can sit with us if you want, Y/n,” Rory said, patting the empty seat next to him, which you took graciously. Benny frowned, hiding his reaction by scratching his face. Rory introduced you to his friends, and when he was about to point to Benny, your face lit up in recognition.

“Benny, right?” You asked with a smile. He grinned and nodded, giddy that you remembered him.

Sarah, Ethan, and Erica looked at the three of you, both dreading and curious as to how this would all play out.

You quickly became friends with the whole gang

But you’re closest with Benny and Rory

They’re always trying to impress you, constantly battling for your attention

You had wanted to check out a local bookstore in Whitechapel for some time now. And Rory, who wasn’t busy and would spend time with you whenever he got the chance, asked if he could go with you. He almost started floating when you enthusiastically responded with a yes.

“Rory, you don’t have to carry all of my books.” You said, feeling a bit bad as you watched him carry around the growing stack of items. “I know it’s a lot.”

“Y/n, don’t be silly.” He said, looking at you with a shrug. “I wanna carry them. Besides, this is light work.” That surprised you, considering Rory had very skinny arms. Of course, you didn’t know about his vampire strength.

Or him being a vampire in general.

After purchasing, Rory carried your bags to a cafe you insisted on going to, wanting to buy him something as a thank you for spending over an hour in the small store and offering to hold everything you looked at. He didn’t object, wanting to spend as much time as possible with you.

“Benny?” You said in surprise as you and Rory entered the cafe. The brunette was standing by the counter waiting for his drink when he perked up at the sound of your voice.

“Hey!” He said with a big smile, focusing on you. Rory glared at him from beside you, but you didn’t notice. “What are you doing here?”

“Just exploring Whitechapel a bit. And I wanted to get something for Rory for being such a gentleman today.” You gently nudged Rory as you spoke, who giggled at the compliment and physical touch.

“She called me a gentleman.” The blonde said in a dreamy haze.

“Right…” Benny said, grabbing the drink he was waiting for. He stared at Rory for a few seconds before looking back at you. “You know, I know a lot of cool spots in town. If you’re free, I could show you around.”

“Yeah, that’d be great!” The response made Benny internally celebrate and Rory pout. “How about Saturday?”

“That’s good with me,” Benny said, now ready to leave the coffee shop. “I’ll see you later then, Y/n. Rory…” 

“Benny…” You didn’t notice the staring contest between the two boys, too focused on the menu.

When you find out about the gang’s supernatural abilities, Benny and Rory’s secret competition amplifies

Wanna go somewhere?

Call Rory

You had woken up later than usual, which threw you into a panic. You scrambled around, trying to get dressed and grab all of your things. Looking at the time, you realized you’d be late for school, even if you ran. So you picked up your phone and called Rory, hoping he’d pick up.

“Hello?” Rory answered your call after the first ring, not caring about seeming desperate to talk to you.

“Hey, Rory.”

“Hey, Y/n. Where are you?” He asked, looking around the school courtyard. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just woke up late.” You grabbed your bag and ran out of your room. You were a bit flattered that he had noticed you weren’t at school yet and seemed concerned about it. “I was wondering if-”

“Need a ride?” Rory asked, cutting you off.

“If you don’t mind! I’d hate for you to go out of your way-”

“I’m here.” You walked out the front door, and sure enough, Rory was in your front yard. He hung up the phone and waved at you. “Ready?”

You nodded and ran up to him. Rory turned around, crouching enough for you to climb onto his back, wrapping your limbs tightly around him.

“Hang on.” He said, gripping your thighs before speeding off. The school that was a five-minute walk away appeared in front of you after a second. When you climbed off of him, Rory tucked some hair behind your ear that strayed away from the wind that blasted you on the way over.

“Thank you, Rory, you’re the best!” You kissed his cheek before grabbing his hand, missing his now bright red face. “Come on, let’s get to class.”

Benny loves using his magic to impress you

He gives you flowers “just because”

Need a spell or potion to fix some problem you’re having? Done

“How’s the cutest girl in Whitechapel doing?” Benny asked as he walked up to your locker, pulling out a small bouquet of your favorite flowers from behind his back.

“Aww!” You cooed, taking the flowers from Benny. “Thank you, Benny! I’m doing okay, just stressed about a test I have tomorrow.”

“You shouldn’t sweat it, Y/n. I bet you’ll ace it.”

“Yeah, hopefully.”

***

The next day, you sat next to Benny in math, clearly still stressed about the test you had at the end of the day.

“Guess you’re not feeling better about the test?” Benny said as he looked at you. You nodded, rubbing your tired eyes.

“I spent all night studying and feel like I can’t remember anything.”

“I might have something that can help,” Benny said, making you perk up. He fished around in his pocket, pulling out a necklace with a charm. When he handed it to you, you realized that it was a letter charm of your initial. “It’s enchanted. Supposed to make you lucky.”

You smiled, clipping the necklace on and fiddling with the chain. You held up the initial charm, letting it dangle in front of you.

“A literal good luck charm.” You said as you looked at it, before letting go of the necklace to hug Benny. “Benny, you’re amazing. Thank you!”

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Benny said shyly, hugging you back.

[strawberryblue-blog]

Love again. Part 1.—Pedri.

summary: You and Pedri were best friends since you were little but then you grew up and things changed between you two.

warnings: none. friends to strangers, strangers to lovers, a lot of jealousy, love triangle, angst.

word count: +4k.

song inspiration: The Last Time by Taylor Swift ft Gary Lightbody.

#SEXYNOTE: There will be more parts soon. Look forward to them. Thank u sm for the support, love youuuu 🩵

Summer nights were your favorite days since you had returned to Tenerife. There was nothing like home, like Bajamar. But you knew that coming back meant other things besides the happiness of being home again. Coming back to see your main problem.

The reason you had run away.

Yes, escaped. Because you had run away from home with the perfect excuse but you knew that at some point you were going to have to go back. And it would be a disaster.

"Look who we have here!" your friends squealed as you approached the group of people. You had been talking to them since your return to Spain and when you finished dinner with your parents, you had arranged to meet up.

You had missed them so much. When they told you they would meet at the beach, like old times, you didn't hesitate to come even knowing he would be here. Hoping that seeing him would change things between you. At least you hope so.

After a while of catching up with your friends, you walked to the bar to order something to drink. When you walk you could see his back from behind. There he was. Pedri with his friends. You recognized your best friend even from far away and not even seeing his face. Nostalgia came to your mind when you heard his laughter in the distance, you had really forgotten how it sounded and hearing it again made you feel butterflies in your belly.

Exactly one year and three months ago you had left Spain to go to the United States to study thanks to a scholarship. It had not been an easy decision but after certain circumstances, you had no other choice. You had spent your entire childhood here with your best friends, Pedro and Fernando, but as you grew up, you decided that the best thing for you was to go your own way.

"Things have changed since you left" said your best friend, Lucrecia. She knew what had happened between you and how hard it was to be here now. So she hugged your shoulders giving you encouragement. You were afraid to ask what had changed but you already knew the answer and that made you feel sad.

Not for Fernando, not for Lucrecia or your other friends.

But for you and Pedri.

Your story was a little complicated.

You had been in love with Pedro González all your life. Or better as you preferred to call him, Pepe.

The little brown boy of small stature who ran to catch you in the gardens when you were inseparable. The teenager who hid your backpack when you were at school or soiled your foul when you were sitting on the beach. The young man who had decided to pursue his life in another city and was completely ignorant.

The same young man who saw everyone but you.

Who had broken your heart and then abandoned you, forgetting your existence. Because that was the story, you were nothing. They never were and you were sure they never would be.

"Y/n?" you asked behind you.

"Fer!" you smiled at the sight of your childhood friend. Fernando opened his arms welcoming you into a hug. "I missed you so much" you whispered nostalgically.

"I thought you'd never come back!" he squealed as you broke away from his embrace.

"Well here I am" you said laughing.

Coming home had not been easy. Coming back was opening a wound you thought was sealed, coming back was remembering all your childhood and life spent with Pedri and Fer.

"Come on, the boys will be happy to see you" he took your hand to start pushing you. You couldn't refuse, it was obvious he didn't know what had happened between you and you couldn't let him suspect.

"Look who we have here" he shouted getting everyone's attention.

The guys were in a round with their bottles of beer as they talked, turning when you came to the group. You could recognize some of your old friends and some new ones. But you knew who they were, everyone in the Tenerife would recognize them. Pedri's new friends, players from Barcelona.

"H-hello I am…" you greeted shyly at the stares. Pedri blinked at you silently.

"You're Y/n?" one of them asked.

Oh my god. Pablo Gavi. You wanted to squeal with happiness at the sight of the player. He knew you? How was that possible?

"It's great to meet the girl who has put up with these two since forever" said another.

Your inner fan blushed at the laughing look of Ferran Torres, he was taller than you thought and super handsome.

Had Pedro told them about you? If he had told them about you, why had he never even thought of calling you? Did he think about you while he was in Barcelona? What had happened between you?

You gave them each two kisses as a greeting, disguising your fanaticism when you approach them like that. You smiled a little when you reached him, your best friend. You got close enough to hug him like old times, hoping to feel the warmth of his arms, but instead, Pedri stopped you and gave you two quick kisses on your cheeks.

As if he was pulling you away from him.

Your heart broke into a thousand pieces. Everything had definitely changed. Pedri. You. The relationship you had. Nothing was the same.

"I'll be back with the girls" you announced, approaching Fernando as the others continued their chatter. You were feeling out of place and what happened with Pedri had left you shocked.

You didn't expect him to behave as if you were best friends again but at least you hoped he wouldn't treat you like a stranger.

"It's okay" he said. "There's a beach party tomorrow, you're coming right?" he asked pointing to the girls. You grimaced not knowing what to answer.

"You have to come, Y/n" Fermin said and you smiled kindly at him.

"And bring your friends" Ferran commented winking his eye. You nodded shyly. "Here" he said reaching into his pants, pulling out his cell phone. "Write down your number and we'll agree"

Everyone was taken aback by his move. Even you.

"Sure" you took it when Fer elbowed you making you respond with an accomplice look. You quickly wrote down your number and handed him back his cell phone, smiling at him. Out of the corner of your eye you saw Pedri roll his eyes with a grimace.

"See you around" you said, waving at them. Everyone waved back. You turned to walk towards your friends starting to leave the group of boys.

"Y/n!" someone shouted. A shiver ran down your back.

You stopped as your feet dug into the sand. You sighed hearing footsteps behind you.

How were you supposed to respond to that? Ignore it and pretend not to hear it? Or turn and fall back on your feet?

With a feigned smile you turned to look at him. Him. Pedro Gonzalez.

"You didn't tell me you were coming back" he mumbled and looked somewhat annoyed. You tried to calm your nerves so you wouldn't say or do anything stupid.

"We didn't talk again since a while and I just wanted to come back and see how everything was" you said lifting your shoulders. He nodded sighing.

And it wasn't your fault they didn't talk. It was his fault, you wanted to tell him.

"So are you coming back to stay?" he asked.

"I don't know yet" you answered flatly.

A silence fell, you couldn't hold his gaze without feeling your legs shaking. Pedri looked different, his words sounded cheerless and he hadn't even asked you how you were.

"Did you know I was coming to Bajamar?" he asked again. You shook at his distant words.

You didn't know what exactly to say. Was he supposed to ask that doubting your return? Did he think it was all about him?

"There was a vacation and I was able to get a flight" you laughed a little to mask the bad mood.

He nodded again.

"I missed you, Pepe" you whispered wistfully, taking his hand. Electric currents shot up for your back with his touch. He just looked at you, though.

"Yeah me too, Y/n" he pleaded smiling a little in response. "But we'd better each go our separate ways as before" he finished saying, your smile immediately wiped away. "We are no longer the same as before, we have different lives now. You with your friends and me with my friends"

You froze at his words.

Why would I say something like that? You had always been friends since you all went to school together. Your friends knew their friends, they were from the same place and they all had contact.

Was he asking you to stay away from him? And his friends? What the fuck was going on with him?

You couldn't even say anything, he let go of your hand and you saw his back go towards his friends. An echo echoed in your chest.

You should never have said that. You shouldn't have come back. You should not have gotten your hopes up.

Your "relationship" with Pedri was over. You only had memories of you. It was clear that he would never love someone like you. You were just that.

Childhood friends. A memory that vanished in the wind. He felt nothing for you, but you felt everything for him.

Confessing your feelings to him before he left for Barcelona had ruined everything. You had ruined it, he only saw you as his friend.

And now he didn't even care about you.

[bucksboobs]

Hi, I'm the spoiler anon. Sorry, I didn't think about our different timezones and only been able to send an ask now.

Firstly, I loved the way that Nichols and Wolfe dealt with their (small) conflict this episode. They've been consistent in showing great open communication between the two, and I like how it still felt like they were meeting more in the middle rather than it having to be one opinion vs the other, it just felt very respectful.

The way the show dealt with Alison in this episode was also great. I had felt apprehensive about them possibly going down a more 'fatal attraction' type road, but I should have given the show more credit considering previous episodes. Though I did find it odd that Wolfe and his interns were the ones treating her initially. Would she not have gone to the ER, and would those who work in neuro typically be working in the ER?

What might be an unpopular opinion, and the main thing I'd love to hear your thoughts on, is that after this episode I think Ericka is best alone or with another doctor outside that hospital. I still like Jacob and Van as individual characters, but this episode showed me that neither of them are good for Ericka, at least right now, and they both have issues with jealousy and possessiveness, just in different ways. Van is more overt, whereas Jacob is more subtle. Then when Van was a dick, he responds in kind by revealing he has a kid.

Seen people try and make the argument that Jacob was just being a good guy and he didn't know that she didn't know Van had a kid, but he absolutely knew and decided to use it to cause issues between them. More importantly, Ericka knew that was why he did it, out of jealousy and possessiveness, which is why she called him out on his behaviour. Would love to know your take on it.

It does feel a bit of a shame that for a show that had so far built up great supportive relationships, to have them crumble due to a love triangle. Though the next couple episodes might build back the support.

So for the Van/Ericka/Jacob triangle I do think the fact Jacob told Ericka directly after Van gloated and that Ericka knew immediately that it was a play makes it pretty obvious that it wasn’t an accident.

I think up until Van did his gloating, he was kind of completely in the right just vibing, and following Ericka’s lead. Jacob’s sudden push into making it into a competition seems like it made him pretty mad and territorial which is something we hadn’t seen from him before (an new depth to his character that might explain why his son apparently lives with his baby mama) I think partially this is set up to explain how Van’s previous relationship fell apart.

On whether either should with Ericka I think that’s meant to be up to Ericka and I think it’s pretty obvious she wants nothing to do with either of them right now, but I could see her forgiving Van a lot quicker than she could forgive Jacob simply because Van being hesitant to mention his kid in a potentially romantic relationship when it’s clear not even Dana (who seems to be Van’s best friend among the interns) knew —when Ericka had made clear that she doesn’t want kids in the previous episode— kind of comes off as understandable whereas Jacob giving away a major secret to score points in some game where Ericka is the prize… not so much. If she ends up back with Van I won’t be surprised. I think for the time being, Jacob’s out of the running until he apologizes.

Allison’s thing was handled well, and to answer your question, she was being treated by neuro because of the nature of her overdose, I think they just initially had Dana and Ericka there because for whatever reason, Neuro seems to be close to the ER entrance at Bronx general. Watching this story though, I really focussed in on how well the story was treating Carol. She never makes excuses for herself but she also admits she had selfish reasons to continue treating Allison. Her being so gentle with Morris asking for the divorce was a perfect showing of who she is: a woman who will always prioritize the emotions of everyone around her but who won’t let that be at the cost of herself. She asked for the Divorce not because she hates Morris but because she doesn’t want to live angry anymore, and still she takes the time to tell Morris she still loves him. It was really beautiful even if it was sad. Morris doesn’t quite get that of course, he’s still under the impression that as long as he keeps apologizing everything is okay but that’s a very human flaw, to think that apologies are all that’s required to mend a relationship.

As for Josh and Oliver: they were so cute at the very end and I’m glad they addressed how Josh and Oliver butting heads isn’t going away nor is it antithetical to them continuing to be in a loving relationship. I hope they keep that squabbling dynamic for the rest of the series just to add light drama and humor as they continue to grow to understand the other’s perspective. They’ll never have an exact understanding of course because Oliver comes at everything from a palliative perspective— treating symptoms and improving quality of life— whereas Nichols, as a neurosurgeon, approaches everything from a curative perspective— eliminating the disease process entirely. From the first episode we see this play out: Josh thinks he’s done his part because he cured the epilepsy, but Oliver is focused on the side effects and quality of life for the patient. Ultimately one approach cannot exist without the other, so to vocalize it using the two of them having their little squabbles is a strongpoint of the series.