#they just gotta leave the setlist to me

[jentlemahae]

nct could do something like the eras tour but with units instead of eras

[daddy-ul]

AND NOW YOU OPEN WITH FUCKIN KTHULU????

What's next, SUICIDE AND REDEPTION?

Are you gonna look me in the eye and open a damn Metallica concert with suicide and redemption without me present?

[strangersatellites]

the one with the shacker shirt | more frat king steve x his problem causing bf eddie

a mini collab with @amethyst-crowns !!

it’s a cool friday night and eddie’s two tequila shots, a handful of beers, and a cigarette into his setlist at this point. their dedicated few fans are up front and center scream singing along with them while the rest of the bar is bustling with life.

with drinks being spilled, food being ordered and then forgotten about, sorority girls having deep meaningful talks in the bathroom so long their boyfriends’ forgot they were there.

it’s a friday night at his favorite college bar and eddie is buzzing with energy.

he’s got his guitar slung over his back and he’s taking a beer break, eyes scanning over the room in search of his favorite boy. he’s probably somewhere charming his way into free drinks in a way that never fails to leave eddie laughing and a bit baffled. he gets it though, everybody else is just as wrapped around steve’s finger as he is so he can’t say anything.

he’s talking to the guys, kicking a couple empty cans offstage when he sees them out of the corner of his eye.

two guys, probably eddie’s age, maybe seniors. they’re flagging him over and looking around suspiciously and eddie thinks that if they’re interested in buying, this is an awful strange time to approach him about it.

he’s about to break the news, tell them he’s not selling tonight when one of them smiles and claps his shoulder when he squats down to their height.

“hey man, we don’t want you to get in trouble so we figured we’d tell you before someone else did.” he says with a nod. says it like eddie will catch on, like he’ll know what this is about.

he doesn’t.

he furrows his brows and looks at them, confused. “pardon?”

the second guy tugs at the hem of eddie’s shirt, darts his eyes around conspiratorially again. “you gotta turn this inside out of something, bro. pledges can’t wear letters out until initiation. vp rec will hand you your ass if he hears about it.”

the first guy is all but hissing in his ear in his effort to be quiet. “yeah AND the president’s here, man. we’re just looking out for you.”

eddie glances down at his own chest, realizing for the first time what shirt he grabbed off the back of steve’s desk chair this morning.

it’s not his that’s for sure. it’s definitely his boyfriend’s. big, bold greek letters across the chest. ink peeling off and threadbare around the waist. the arm holes more hole than shirt at this point.

he smiles back up at the guys, finally figuring out what this is about.

he huffs a quiet laugh and his knees crack when he stand back up. he hears gareth mindlessly drumming his sticks against his stool so he knows his break’s over. pulls his guitar back around to his chest and bows.

“well i appreciate your looking out for me, gentlemen. but… i think i’ll take my chances.”

he hears a scoff and a muffled “whatever, man” and a “not my fucking problem, i guess.”

but whatever he’s not paying any attention.

the mic squeals when he walks up to it and he’s got a thousand-watt smile and an apology on his lips immediately after.

“ah shit, sorry, sorry guys- my bad.” he backs up a step and squints against the harsh light, still searching for his boy. “before this next one, i’m looking for someone. baby? baby, where are you? can you come up here sweetheart?”

he looks toward the back of the crowd and sees steve’s bright smile and glassy eyes as he shoulders his way up front. sees how he stops to talk to a few people, say hi, dap up a couple of the guys. but he makes it up the front of the stage in record time given all that, regardless.

“there you are! missed you,” he says before he’s leaving his mic again and dropping down to his knees.

now he’s low enough that steve can tangle a hand in his unruly curls and tug him forward and down. can tug him close enough the he feels his breath against his lips when he whispers “will you play my favorite?”

he knows his own smile is bright as the sun.

“of course, baby.”

when steve kisses him, messy and like he’s putting on a show, eddie can’t help but overhear the “what?” and “oh that’s him?” coming from the side stage.

there are a lot of perks to being steve’s boyfriend. but that response is always one of his favorites.

[yeonmuse]

REPAY ME | DAY 10

PAIRING lead vocalist & bassist Changmin x groupie reader

WORD COUNT | 2.5K

GENRE Smut

WARNINGS 18+ MINORS DO NOT INTERACT ‼️ tongue kissing, dom Changmin, Fingering, nipple play, fondling etc

SUMMARY Leave it to Ji Changmin to have a drink spilled on him, and be the one to take care of the girl that spilled it on him.

MORE | Day 10 of the Groupie Love Series

Changmin honestly hated parties, in all honesty he’d prefer being back home with a book in his hands. Unfortunately for him, he never knew how to say no to his friends when they would ask him to make an appearance so there he sat in the corner of the room with a drink in his hand.

“You know it wouldn’t kill you to be social.’’ Eric approaches him after having found his friend sitting in a corner scrolling through his phone rather than talking and mingling.

“That would require me wanting to talk to other people.’’ at his quick retort Eric couldn’t help but laugh. He and the others were honestly used to this by now, Changmin was the least likely to stay out late partying and drinking like the rest of them. Of course all the tabloids and headlines told different stories, but truth be told they were never right about him.

“At least try to enjoy the music, Younghoons friend is Djing tonight and you gotta admit her setlist isn’t that bad.’’

“Can you explain to me why you’re only nagging me? Look, go bother her, she doesn’t seem to be having a good time here either.” Both Changmin and Eric's eyes land on a girl leaning against the kitchen counter, not seeming the slightest bit interested in what had been going on around her.

“You know what maybe I will, hopefully she’s a lot less snappy.” Eric scrunches his face at Changmin who simply went back to looking at his phone, before walking off to bother the mystery girl.

You on the other hand were an absolute party girl, shy to say the least but when you got any form of alcohol in your system you would turn into an entirely new person. That was exactly how you ended up dancing on top of the nice marble coffee table in Younghoons living room. You had tossed down drink after drink, courtesy of your best friends having been spending the entire night trying to loosen you up. Maybe this time they had loosened you up a little too much, because now you were falling straight off the coffee table after having kicked over a glass and spilling your drink on some handsome stranger that was standing in the corner.

“Oh my god oh shit i’m so sorry i didn’t mean to.’’ you were so panicked about having spilled your drink on him that you had forgotten entirely about the glass you kicked over.

“Wait be careful.’’ Changmin tried his best to warn you and stop you from stepping on the now broken glass, but he had been too late. You let out an immediate yelp as the glass punctured your foot. Your friends run over to you in a panic as they see you fall to the floor.

“Shit.’’ Changmin curses under his breath before setting his cup aside.

‘Hey, try not to move. I'm gonna see if there's anything still stuck in your foot.” Changmin kneels down beside you and looks at your friends.

“Can the two of you go find a broom and a mop to clean this up before anyone else steps on it.’’ Your friends just gave him a nod before running off to look for something to clean the mess.

“But what about your shirt.’’

“My shirt will be fine, just worry about getting this glass out of your foot.’’ He responded while he had been trying his best to examine your wound.

“Shit it’s too dark in this damn room. I can't see anything. Is it okay if we go somewhere brighter? So I can get a better look?’’

“You know you really don’t have to do this I-’’ Before you can refute any further he had already been lifting you up into his arms and carrying you upstairs to the bathroom. Truth be told he just wanted an excuse to get away from all the chaos, I mean of course he wanted to help you but he honestly was just looking for any reason to get away from all of those people. After carrying you inside he closes and locks the door to ensure there were no interruptions.

“Finally, some quiet.’’ he sighs and looks over at you before pointing to your foot.

“Can I?’’ you simply nod in response, suddenly not having the right words to say as you were now seeing the handsome strangers face more clearly. As he leans down to examine your foot, your eyes observe his movements, each time you’d blink it’d be as if you were capturing photos with your eyes, the man in front of you was absolutely breathtaking and you had spilled your drink all over him.

“Doesn’t look like you have any glass in your foot, just a deep cut, Younghoon has bandages somewhere in here so we can at least wrap it, but you’ll have to keep off it a while which means we may be stuck in this bathroom a while.’’

“We?’’

“I wouldn’t mind keeping you company for a while, that’s if you wouldn’t mind because i’d rather be anywhere than down there right now.’’ At Changmin's complaining you couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’m guessing you're not the party type? I’m Yn by the way” you give him an amused smile as you watch him rummage through the cabinets for some bandages.

“Changmin, and I only come to these for my friends, only this time i was dragged here and the bastard Younghoon couldn’t even bother to show up to his own party.’’

After finally finding a roll of bandages Changmin returns his attention to attending to your foot. He went dead silent as he cleaned your wound. You could pick up on something with this act alone, it told you he must be someone that blocks out distractions easily, especially when focused.

“You must enjoy a few parties or two, you don’t seem like the type that would silently observe in a corner. Considering i’m wearing your drink.’’ He spoke absentmindedly as he finally wrapped the bandage around your foot. He was trying his best to tether back and forth between tending to your foot and conversing. After all he was never really the best when it came to socializing with others. You were now feeling completely embarrassed all over again.

“Fuck, that was so embarrasing, this entire situation is so embarrassing. I’m so sorry, i don’t think i’ll touch another drink for a month after this.’’ you groan out of pure embarrassment as you cover your face. Changmin simply laughs before sitting in the bathtub across from you.

“Hey it’s fine, wouldn’t be the first time something like this has happened at younghoons parties.’’

“Guess that doesn’t make me any better than the others from those previous parties then huh?’’ you laugh, trying your best to joke yourself out of embarrassment.

‘Well, you were the first to kick down a glass and then step on it while panicking because you spilled on me.’’ Changmin responds playfully, laughing as he watches your face contort into a cringe at his teasing.

“Yeah and now you reek of alcohol.’’ You scrunch up your face and cover your nose in a teasing manner.

“Oh i wonder whos fault that is.’’ Changmin lifts his shirt to his nose only to immediately pull away at the strong smell. Without warning he pulls his shirt over his head and throws it to the side.

“You must have been drinking something pretty strong for the scent to be that overbearing.’’ by now you weren't listening to a work he had been saying. He was now naked from the waist up and that was all that you could seem to focus on. As Changmin notices your sudden silence his eyes lock with yours and an amused smile made its way on his face. He wouldn’t pass up this opportunity to tease you further.

“Either you’re planning to spill another drink or me or you’ve got something else on your mind right now.’’

“Are you going to keep milking this whole drink thing the entire night?’’ you roll your eyes at him bringing up your mistake once again.

“Not if you tell me the real reason that your pretty eyes are glued to me right now.’’

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.’’ He had caught you, and the only option you had right now was to play coy, you certainly couldn’t tell him the truth. That you had literately been eye fucking an absolute stranger in the bathroom of another stranger. While you had been lost in thought Changmin pushes himself up out of the tub and steps in front of you, trapping you on the bathroom counter top, between his arms.

“You really won’t tell me? After spilling your drink on me and having me tend to your foot for free hm? What a selfish woman.’’ your breath caught in your throat as he stood right in front of you, eyes piercing into your own while your faces had been so close you could feel his breath tickle your nose.

“If you’re that upset about the shirt i can pay you back for it.’’ your response makes Changmin's brows arch upwards, an amused smile on his lips at your careless retort.

“Oh? You’ll give me 4 thousand dollars for ruining my shirt? If you’re sure you can pay i’ll gladly take the money.’’ Changming could care less about the shirt or the money, he was honestly just finding entertainment in teasing you. Your reactions were cute, a complete contrast to some party girl that loved to dance on tables.

“I’m sorry 4 what now?’’ Changmin chuckles and brushes a loose strand of hair behind your ear.

“Unless you want to repay me in some other way.’’ Your lips had been mere inches apart, and you weren't show if you had been doing it on free will or if the alcohol had forced you to make a move, but you kissed him. To changmin's surprise your lips crashed onto his, of course he had only been teasing not expecting much of it, but he wouldn’t oppose your kiss. His hands slid down your waist until they landed on your hips. Changmin's hands explored your body in a modest yet fiery manner.

Changmin's kiss starts out really slow. Before he gently pries open your mouth, making the both of you exchange intense, open-mouthed kisses without the tongue. Impatient you let out soft whines into his mouth, making him tap your thigh as a warning to be patient. Changmin's lips are pliant, soft, the perfect combination of soft and plum, they make for great things to suck on. He tugs at your bottom lip, soothing it over with his tongue, sucking on it tightly with his own lips. His hands start to wander over your back, coming down to cup your ass and shove you closer to him. Your hands slowly tangled within the hair on the back of his neck, and it sent a delicious sensation down Changmin's spine.

As your tongue broke past his lips and danced around Changmin's own tongue, he reached up to cup at your jaw to keep you in the place he wanted. A soft moan spews from your lips softly, soft pants being earned from him. He slips one hand under your shirt, pushing it up so that your stomach is exposed to the air. He runs his soft hands over your stomach, before reaching to chip your breasts pressing his finger against your nipple and lightly scratching over that spot. He was playing with you, on the contrary to how sweet and Changmin seemed to be he had sadistic teasing tendencies. Always playing with the other party before giving in to his own desires.

Between the aching between your thighs and his heated kisses, all while

His name spilled from your lips followed by a soft whine. As he felt your lips form a pout against his he let out a soft chuckle. Slowly but surely he began to tail the kisses down your neck at a painfully slow pace. You let out a silent yelp as he bites down on your skin, cooling the spot with his breath and tongue, making a hickey.

Changmin lets out a soft hum against your neck, making goosebumps form across your skin as he slips your jeans off and throws them off to the side somewhere. As he pushes your legs back so that your feet are now up on the counter, his fingers begin to circle your clit causing your hands in his hair to tighten. He lets out a groan upon feeling how wet you are combined with your tight grip on his hair.

Without warning Changmin's lips wrap around your nipple and he takes it between his teeth making you gasp.

“Quiet pretty girl, you wouldn’t want anyone to know you’re in the bathroom repaying a total stranger in such a slutty way.”

His words made you clench around his finger making him click his tongue.

“Tsktsk I bet you don’t even care if they hear.”

As he shoves two fingers deep into your cunt you let out a slutty moan making him bite his lips. You were looking at him with stars in your eyes right now, making it harder and harder for him to want to go easy on you. His fingers had been moving so diligently, pumping into you while his thumb rubbed at your clit. The way your hips desperately grind against his fingers to meet his pace.

"Oh, fuck…" you cry out a string of curses before pulling Changmins mouth back up to kiss you once more, the two of you biting and licking at one another lips equally hungry to taste one another.

"Changmin I-" between ragged breaths you mumble against Changmin's mouth, who's immediately licking at your top lip, sucking on it afterwards.

"Go ahead love" Changmin responds heatedly against your mouth, his fingers pumping into you faster than before. The pleasure makes tears form in your eyes, as it builds up more and more.

Changmin's fingers split apart, scissoring between your cunt serving as the last push you needed before you finally came. Your warm cum spills down your thigh and all over his fingers making him smile before bringing his fingers to his lips to taste you. Your body shivers in the afterglow, overstimulated when Changmin runs his fingers over your clit again. Feeling his thumb slip between your folds you moan weakly. Changmin kisses your shoulder, rubbing over the mark he left on your neck with his free hand.

"As sweet as you taste, I don’t think it’s enough to repay me for something so expensive" Changmin voices as he brings his thumb to your lips for you to suck on.

“How else should I repay you?” You tilt your head at him before taking your thumb between his lips and he watches in admiration at the way you suck on it.

“I have a few things in mind”

[jishyucks]

Gleam and Glitter — hhj

‣ pairing: hwang hyunjin x reader

‣ genre: fluff, implied friends-to-lovers, rich-kid!au

‣ wc: 3.4k

‣ summary: You’ve quickly established that no one at this damn charity gala cares about the event’s purpose. They were just there to party. And you wanted nothing else but to leave; alternatively, in which Hyunjin saves you from your misery to see the city’s Christmas lights.

‣ warnings: lots of being annoyed at the rich (even though reader and hyunjin are rich), 1st world problems, reader’s wearing a dress and heels but no specific pronouns are used (I’m pretty sure), the pair eat some desserts

‣ an: 2nd part for my True Love Gave to Me Series! It's a little slow at first but the parts near the end are cute! Just like the Mark one, I wish I could write more for these two, I srsly think I could've done more but still,,, ENJOY!

Series Masterlist

The venue was beautiful. 

The ballroom was transformed into the party’s theme, Winter Wonderland, adorned with white, silver, and royal blue decorations. From the ceiling hung giant snowflakes, lit up with twinkling lights that glowed softly within the dim room. 

The dance floor, placed in the middle of the room, was surrounded by tables draped in pearly white table cloths, giving it all a sleek, clean look. You can tell how much planning had gone into the centrepieces—delicate ice-looking glass sculptures of various animals. Within each of them were more lights, drawing out the details of the sculptures.

At the other corner of the room, the live band had already begun their setlist. They were dressed in blue or white, or both, as it was the theme of the party. You couldn’t quite tell what song they were playing, but it sounded nice and classy. 

And guests were trickling in, entering the room hand in hand with their plus ones. You can tell that they were all in awe from the scene. I mean you don’t blame them—the scene looked like something straight from a movie. Whoever had planned and decorated the venue knew what they were doing. 

The venue was beautiful… Too bad most of the people attending were snobby rich bitches who really don’t deserve anything good (respectfully).

The main purpose of the event was to raise money for charities involving children for god’s sake—sure it was okay to go all out and grab the attention of the wealthy, but it was so painfully obvious that two-thirds of the guests didn’t give a single fuck about the charities. They were just there for the publicity, hoping to look good in front of the press and it pained you. 

It pained you because, although you barely had the capacity to have passions for anything, you did know that you wanted to use your money for good. And heavy on the good for children.

The party was now in full swing, guests mingling in practically every corner of the room. The live band had just been replaced with a DJ, party songs blasting through the speakers. A small part of you does want to join in, but you wouldn’t say that you associated yourself with any of the people here. 

There was one person who you did love being around—your best friend, Hyunjin—but you simply weren’t sure where he had disappeared off to since you had greeted him at the start of the party. 

“Shit.”

You’re not sure how you hear Hyunjin groan as he slumps in the seat next to you. He stretches his back over the chair before falling limp. 

You can’t help but laugh, “What’s up with you?” You shift in your own chair to look at him, your blue evening gown getting twisted underneath your ass.

“My parents introduced me to like—I don’t know—six old business owners?” Hyunjin mutters, “I don’t even remember a single one of them.” 

“Well, you gotta start working on that future CEO,” you joke, slapping his back, “Don’t wanna be the boss who calls his employees by the wrong name, do you?” You know Hyunjin hates when you call him future CEO, because, well, he doesn’t actually want to take over his father’s company once he retires. But being the only child in his family, it’s a responsibility that he couldn’t really get out of.

“No,” he pouts, lips jutting out. 

You let out another laugh, this time rubbing his back to provide some kind of comfort. From a nearby group of people, you hear people laughing, though it didn’t seem genuine. You echo them. 

“Y/N, they’re gonna hear you!” Hyunjin nudges your arm. “No they won’t. They’re all just caught up in their own world,” You roll your eyes. Then you dramatically say, “Oh how I wish to leave this place.”

There’s a few beats of silence between the two of you. Just by watching Hyunjin, you can tell he’s thinking, eyes darting back and forth as if he were reading a page of a newspaper. 

“Would it be crazy if I asked you to run away with me?”

Your heart misses a beat, “What?”

“Run away with me,” Hyunjin repeats. He’s almost expressionless, staring back at you as he waits for a reply. 

You blink at your best friend, utterly confused by the nonsense coming out of his mouth, “Hyunjin, you really need to be more specific with your words.”

Hyunjin brings a corner of his mouth up towards one side of his face, trying to word what he was asking of you. It wasn’t that difficult to explain, yet Hyunjin’s short on words right now because of all the introductions he’s just had. 

“Do you know what an Irish goodbye is?” 

You shake your head, “No? Is that even a thing?” 

“It’s when you just leave without telling anyone,” Hyunjin explains, “So… let’s leave without telling anyone.” There’s a youthful glint in his eye and you just know that Hyunjin’s ready to take off. He’s excited, even, just thinking about leaving and getting away from this place. You like the idea, too. 

“And do what?” Hyunjin shrugs and your face contorts, laughing, “You’re the one who’s suggesting to leave and you don’t have a plan?” 

The smile Hyunjin flashes is one that shows off his bottom teeth, brows raised and eyes widened, “Sorry, I didn’t actually think you’d consider it.” 

“Do you even know me?” you scoff, “Of course I wanna leave. Anything to get away from these people.” You scoot forward in anticipation to go, but you still really want to hear what Hyunjin’s plan is. 

Hyunjin searches the room as if it were going to hand him the answer. Then he hums and looks back at you, “Do you want to go downtown?” 

Without any hesitation you nod, “Yes.” 

Hyunijn watches as you scan the room, eyes trying to weed out your parents and his. You could guess they were speaking with people you’ve grown familiar with, so you try to pick them out, too. When you couldn’t spot any of your parents, your eyes darted in Hyunjin’s direction, eyes wide and round. “It’s clear.”

You don’t warn Hyunjin before you shoot up onto your feet, trying your best to keep discrete from any wandering eyes. The heels under your feet almost fail to support your pace, but you pay no mind, eyes dead set on the doorway furthest away from anyone’s attention. Hyunjin’s close at your tail, turning back every few steps to make sure that there was absolutely no one watching you both leave. 

The adrenaline’s causing your heart to pump above the average, and you can’t help but let out a laugh the moment you reach the door, soon finding yourself in an empty corridor of the venue (save for the doorman at the front and the woman attending coat check).

Hyunjin stumbles out after you, breathing heavily, “You didn’t even tell me you were going to take off like that!” 

Ignoring Hyunjin’s exclamations, you start making your way toward coat check, heels clicking against the marble floor. Hyunjin is unsure how you’re moving so quickly in heels, but he chooses not to question you.

“Y/N~” Hyunjin whines, “Slow down!”

“If we’re not quick we’re going to get caught,” you shoot a reply over your shoulder. You kindly ask for your coats, retrieving them within seconds before you toss Hyunjin his jacket. “Yeah, but we need to wait for Mr. Jang to come pick us up!” 

By the time Hyunjin finishes his sentence, you both find yourselves outside of the venue, cold air instantly nipping at your exposed skin. There were cars whizzing past, all probably on their way to your desired destination. Right at the bottom of the steps was a sleek black car, similar to what your family owned, and a man who you recognized as Mr. Jang, the Hwang’s driver. 

“So you did plan this!” you look over at Hyunjin. 

Hyunjin shakes his head, “No, but Mr. Jang will jump at any chance to actually do something.” The boy leads you down the steps and reaches the vehicle before you do. He greets Mr. Jang with a bow and then tugs on the door’s handle, opening it for you to hop in. You can’t help but giggle at the gesture, giving Hyunjin a look before sliding in. He shuffles in after you, smiling out of excitement.

“Where to, son?”

“Downtown, please.”

⋆⁺₊❅⋆ ⁺₊❆⋆

It’s when you both get to downtown that you realize that neither of you knew where to go. 

Sure, the plan was downtown but the city was a big place. Hyunjin should have been more specific, because right now, you were both standing in the middle of a busy street trying to decide which direction to go.

“Close your eyes, spin, and then stop when I tell you,” you suggest to Hyunjin, who’s trying to search his phone for any places you both could visit. 

“How about you do it!” Hyunjin’s brows furrow and he pouts, “It sounds like you’re going to ditch me.” 

“Now why the hell would I ditch you,” you sigh, “Just do it. I would do it, but I’m in heels.” 

You gesture for him to go on with the action, but not before he mutters a ‘the heels didn’t seem like a problem earlier’, earning him a thwack on his shoulder. 

Squeezing his eyes shut, Hyunjin sticks an arm out, using his index finger to point. Then, he begins to spin clockwise. From an outsider’s glance, this man probably looked ridiculous—he was dressed in formal attire and spinning like a top, almost taking out a few passerbyers in the process. 

You were finding this so amusing that you almost forgot that you had to tell him to stop. 

And when you tell Hyunjin to stop, he somehow ends up with his finger just inches away from your nose. You burst out laughing, your hands coming up to clutch your stomach because, for one, Hyunjin took the challenge seriously, and two, he looked absolutely ridiculous just standing there eyes closed and pointing. 

You don’t notice how Hyunjin’s eyes finally flutter open to see what was going on and how his taut expression relaxes the second they land on your bright figure just laughing, even if it is at his expense. His arm drops to his side, making a muted whap against his jacket. This catches your attention.

“I’m sorry,” you say, wiping a tear that has managed to slip out of the corner of your eye. And when Hyunjin doesn’t answer immediately, you take a step closer to him, “Hello?” 

“O-okay, so, that way!” Hyunjin’s brought back from space, head shaking. He side steps and walks around you, leading the way down the street while making sure you were following him. 

Hyunjin has no idea what just happened. It wasn’t like it was the first time he's seen you happy. In fact, you’ve always been happy around him. So, why did he suddenly freeze seeing you happy this time? 

Hyunjin shakes the thought out of his head, dismissing it as the remnants of wine from the party still in his system, and continues walking down the street, just a few paces in front of you.

You and Hyunjin weave through the people walking down the street against you, hands full with shopping bags or stuffed deep into their pockets. The pace Hyunjin had taken began to speed up, as if he had spotted something over the crowd that you couldn’t quite see even with heels. 

Glancing back, Hyunjin gently latches onto your wrist, afraid that you’d get lost in the sea of people, pulling you closer before he continues to step through the occasional gaps between bodies. 

“Where are we going?” you say out of curiosity. Hyunjin’s too occupied to answer you, still keeping his grasp firm around your wrist. He tugs you along for one more block, and by then you can tell that he did have an idea of where you were. Hyunjin knew where to go.

You feel like you’re able to breathe again when Hyunjin leads you into a plaza, and you let out a breath that you didn’t even know you were holding in. There was more space for people to walk around, buskers at each corner of the opening, and restaurants decked out in Christmas lights and decorations. Some places were blasting Christmas tunes out of outdoor speakers and, from afar, you can see Santa Claus taking pictures with children. You feel your heart fill with warmth in the atmosphere, excited to wander around and kill time with Hyunjin. 

“Do you want to eat something?” Hyunjin questions. The boy halts in front of a food truck, head falling back to scan the menu. The food truck was a dessert truck—candied fruit, ice cream, cake pops, and more. You can see that they also sold drinks. 

You nod, “What are you getting?” 

“I’m thinking a cake pop… you?” The line shifts forward and you both take a step forward to follow. 

You hum and try to decide on your own treat, “Can you get me candied strawberries, please?” 

It takes a little bit to reach the front of the line and finally receive your food. When the man on the truck hands Hyunjin the food, you go to grab it but Hyunjin refuses to let you take it, pulling the treats back to his own body. “Huh?” you frown, “Do you want me to pay you back or something?” Your mouth was practically watering at the sight of the tanghulu. It was almost unrealistically red, like strawberries you’d find in cartoons. 

“It’s cold,” Hyunjin shakes his head, “You can keep your hands in your pockets… I’ll hold it for you.” Then he holds the stick up to your lips, “Here.” 

Your brows furrow and you groan, “Hyunjin, I’m capable of holding it myself, you know.” You’re quick to grab the stick from Hyunjin and give him a look, “But thanks anyway.” 

Hyunjin grins, "Alright, suit yourself." He takes a bite of his cake pop as you enjoy the sweetness of the candied strawberries. The plaza is filled with a festive atmosphere, and you decide to stroll the rest of the area while munching on the treats. 

By the time you were halfway finished with your food, you had been able to properly take in the scene of the plaza. It was actually much larger than it was at first sight, the area stretching down another block or two of buildings. It extended into a wide pedestrian mall, with shops busy on either side of the broad walkway. 

Everyone there looked happy, like characters in the background of a movie. They minded their own business, stopping to watch the street performers entertain the passerbyers, or taking impromptu stops at the local shops lined up along the mall.

And though it did seem like such a first world problem for you to want to experience this without the stress that your parents constantly impose onto you to run a company, you like to think that your feelings still count. Even just a little.

“Look over there,” Hyunjin speaks up. He’s pointing further down the road and into a smaller plaza. There were people skating on a small, man-made, ice rink. 

A gasp leaves your mouth as you when you take notice of the gigantic Christmas tree sitting off to the side of the rink. It had been strung from top to bottom in lights that occasionally changed colours. Ornaments decorated the tree with large ornaments, accented with ribbons and garland. 

It was beautiful. 

It was beautiful and you wanted to go get a better look at it. 

Leaving Hyunjin’s side, you begin walking ahead of him, long forgetting the tanghulu in your hand. And just like earlier, Hyunjin calls for you to slow down, mainly because you were charging through the crowd with a pointy skewer, but also because he cannot catch up. You paid no mind to his attempts to slow you down. You were already dead set on catching a closer glimpse of that tree.

Hyunjin reaches you when you finally choose to stop. Your head falls back to look at the tree from its topper to its base, mouth falling open in awe, “Tell me why I’ve never seen this before.” Then you turn to look at Hyunjin, who’s looking at the tree himself, “How do you think they decorated it?”

Hyunjin lets out a laugh in the form of air shooting out his nose, “Cause all we know is work and school and business. I guess we never really have the time to enjoy these things, do we?” Then he thinks up a clever answer for your second question, but fails, “And honestly, I don’t know. Maybe one of those man lifts?” 

“You’re right,” you laugh, “We need to Irish Goodbye more often if it means we get to see more things like this.” You glance around the area and find a bench nearby. Wordlessly, you grab onto Hyunjin’s sleeve and tug him along to sit. 

You can feel how cool the metal bench is through your dress, but you lean back anyways, continuing to admire the Christmas tree. It was weird because you were feeling this sort of delight growing in your chest just at the sight of the decorated tree, though if you were asked what you were feeling you wouldn’t be able to put words to it. It was like the cherry on top of the sundae, perfectly fitting the ambience of everything that you and Hyunjin have seen tonight. 

And for Hyunjin, sure the tree and the lights strung up all over the plaza were beautiful, but he was having a hard time keeping his attention on them, and instead kept taking glances your way. It was probably the fact that this happiness was different than the ones he’s seen before. It was like your inner child had jumped out, eyes filled with all the galaxies the universe held. 

The corners of his lips had stretched at the slightest, eyes following in pursuit. 

Hyunjin realizes now that if you were happy, he was happy. And he’d do anything to make it happen. 

But he wouldn’t admit that to you just yet. 

Or anyone. 

It was enough for now that he had admitted it to himself.

Feeling eyes on you, you catch Hyunjin looking at you, expression soft. "What's up with that look?" you tease, your eyes narrowing. You lean over and nudge his arm with your shoulder. 

Hyunjin feels heat rush to the apples of his cheeks and the tips of ears. He hopes that you don’t notice, “It’s nothing… just thinking about how we should actually do this more often.” Hyunjin pries his eyes away from you and forces himself to look at the tree which, frankly, wasn’t as pretty as you. 

“We should…” you nod, “This is way better than the gala.” 

Hyunjin agrees silently. 

The two of you sit there in a comfortable silence, just taking in the environment. It wasn’t everyday that you both got freedom like this and it was nice. And you can tell that Hyunjin felt the same. 

Before you finally go to speak up after a while, your phone rings. Glancing at the caller ID, your heart rate shoots up when you see it's your parents at the other end of the line. You quickly answer it to not cause suspicion, already sensing the concern in their voices.

“Hello?”

"Y/N, sweetheart, where are you?" your mom asks. You could hear your father’s voice saying something in the background, followed by another man’s voice. 

"I’m still at the venue," you lie, "I just needed to get air. Why?"

“We found the owner of—” You roll your eyes. Of course. 

“I’ll be right there, mom,” you say flatly, “Bye.” And you hang up. 

“So?” Hyunjin questions. You notice that he had shifted in his seat to look at you, “What did she say?” He didn’t want to get you in trouble. 

“She was talking about the owner of some company,” you shrug, “But that means we have to go.” 

You stand up and take one last look at the tree before you have to drag yourself back into your own reality. It was good while it lasted. 

Hyunjin frowns at your expression and gently takes your hand in his, “I’ll take you back here soon.”

You smile, eyes lighting up at the thought of coming back here again (and in much more comfortable clothes, too). “Promise?”

Hyunjin’s glad to see the joy instantly return to your previously deflating figure and nods.

“Promise.”

an: Thank you soso much for reading! Pls stay tuned for the upcoming members!

[folkwhore1998]

I had a feeling so peculiar, that this pain would be for...evermore

Evermore!!!

Amazing! How lucky are we to live in a world where we get to experience evermore. Imagine being bored in quarantine and being able to just create an incredible work of art.

(in my opinion) We did not get an evermore long pond studio sessions because of the editing on folklore versus evermore. folklore had some vocal editing that didn't capture her voice the way evermore does. go listen to august on folklore and then august on LPSS. numerous songs on folklore have that editing style, but nothing on evermore does.

Evermore is so beautiful and one of my favorite aesthetics. Evermore is a late November-December vibe. I wonder how many songs Taylor actually made during quarantine. Do you think that evermore are the vault tracks from folklore? (As in the songs that just did not quite make it onto folklore)

I actually had a very hard time ranking these songs. I didn't really think I was going to have as hard of a time as I did. I have a pretty consistent ranking of the albums in general and evermore is pretty high up there, but maybe it should move up on the ladder because these songs are just so beautiful.

happiness is an incredibly emotional song that people seem to skip all of the time. In my personal experience, when I've been in long term relationships, I almost become disconnected with the version of who I was prior. When I've broken up these long term relationships, I've have to leave it all behind to rediscover the happiness we held before them. When I've felt so much pain from loss, I can get so blinded by the fact at one point in my life, a person or situation may have been good for me, in a black and white thinking sense. happiness has honestly helped me process hurt and loss, and has helped me to lean into the idea not everything has to be black and white. No one talks about it enough.

I really need to address the performance of evermore on the eras tour. Literal chills. It was one the best live performances she has ever done. I need a live version released on Spotify BIBLICALLY. I wish it would have made the cut for the eras tour movie.

evermore (the song) was one i kind of looked over for awhile. I honestly could not put my finger on what it was for me. After hearing Taylor Swift perform it live at the eras tour... my entire brain chemistry changed. I'm not even being dramatic. It was breathtaking and I cannot believe how quiet the crowd was in all of the videos i have come across. I love that there is a collective agreement that everyone was fucking stunned at how incredible it was.

Here are my rankings of evermore:

marjorie

coney island

happiness

right where you left me

evermore if it is taylor only

tis the damn season

champagne problems

tolerate it

long story short

it's time to go

willow

evermore if it is with bon iver and taylor

gold rush

ivy

dorethea

closure

no body no crime

cowboy like me

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

CHILLS.

I am so surprised that this marjorie made it onto the setlist, but I am so happy it did.

So eloquent- actually the first time I am seeing this.

Check out some of these awesome small businesses on Etsy!

Here is a cutting board with Taylor's chai cookie recipe: Chai cookies just have such an evermore vibe. I gotta get my hands on one of these!

Here is the link to a cowboy like me necklace: Forever is the sweetest con.

@taylornation @taylorswift

[whatitsdecending]

Chokehold: Alternate Ending

Noah Sebastian x Reader x Vessel

Word Count: 4.6k

A choice was made that altered everything you worked for, but in the end it was the best choice you could’ve made.

Content warning: cheating, smut, despair, angst, lots of crying

A/N: here is the alternate ending for those who wanted Y/N to choose Noah:) I do know it’s kinda a lot with the cheating, so if you’re not comfy with that please do not read!

—————————

You stood in the sound booth with Matt, the energy of the room filling you with excitement as the time drew closer to when the boys went on stage. It was their first headlining show for the European leg and with a new song to perform, you could not wait to see the crowd’s reaction.

Matt started signaling to you as you got to your spot next to him, readying to get the opening video to play before Artificial Suicide. Each movement you made had become part of your muscle memory, each button you hit and every step of the show flowed through you like water in a river. It had all become so easy, so normal that you felt at ease doing it.

The show was going amazing. The first performance of V.A.N took your breath away as you watched Poppy grace the stage alongside Noah. You and Matt bounced along in the booth each time Noah told the crowd to jump, laughing at each other as you did so.

“Now,” Noah said into the mic after they finished Limits. “Tonight is a special night, only because we’re debuting two songs. One you’ve heard already and the second one…. Well I hope y’all know the words, this is Somebody else.”

Confusion racked your body as you looked over at Matt, his focus clearly on the mix for the song. You glanced down at the setlist on your side and not seeing the song anywhere on it. What the fuck?

Noah started singing and the room seemed to shrink in size, leaving just the two of you.

“You said enough, you never loved the thought of us. You’re too good to be true, yeah. I gotta go, gotta run, you don’t want me the way I want you, no.”

A pit opened in your stomach and you felt your heart sink into it, especially when you could see Noah looking at where you were standing. He was singing about you. Out of anyone he’s ever been with, he chose to debut this song to you.

You nervously glanced around at everyone in the crowd near you, the faces of those excited to hear this song played live for the first time and recording every second that they could, singing along loudly to Noah. You felt like throwing up.

Noah stepped up onto the elevated platforms on the stage in front of where Ruffilo stood, his eyes focused on where you were and a finger pointing toward your direction as he sang; “I know we said that sex isn’t love, but it seems like enough for us. I know we said that we’re having fun, but I’m getting too numb to your touch.” Your heart shattered and you gripped the ledge in front of you, waiting for the song to end and the misery you felt with it.

As it ended and the cheers of the crowd rang out around you, you grabbed at Matt’s arm. “When did they say they were gonna fucking play that?”

Matt stared at you with a confused expression. “They told us yesterday? Noah specifically said it was a song he wanted to do live, you didn’t know?”

“No! When the fuck was it rehearsed? I wasn’t told shit about anything.” Your throat tightened as tears threatened to spill, whether it was from embarrassment or pain you didn’t know.

“Noah said-”

“I don’t give a fuck what Noah said!” You shouted, luckily the crowd was still loud enough that no one turned to stare at you. “I had no clue that was going to happen.” Matt looked you in the eye and you watched as it finally clicked in his mind.

“Shit…” he braced himself against the ledge and stared at the stage. “I’m sorry Y/N, I didn’t realize what he was doing.”

“It’s okay. I’m just,” you bit at your lip as the tears slowly slipped from your eyes and you prepared to get the next song going. “Really disappointed in him.”

Matt nodded and took a step back as you began to work. “You gonna talk to him?”

“Yep.”

“Gonna rip his head off?”

You purse your lips. “Yep.”

He patted your shoulder. “Atta girl.”

————

You sat outside the bus again. It had become too cramped in there, the atmosphere was stifling as the guys were happy and riled up about the success of debuting the two songs tonight and the show itself.

Noah was nowhere to be found, he’d told Ruffilo that he needed to take a walk and left… It’s been about an hour since then.

All you wanted was to talk to him, hopefully a civil conversation about the stunt he pulled tonight. Each passing moment made your anxiety spike higher and higher, not knowing when you’d be able to speak to him was driving you crazy.

You got up after the building anticipation of waiting for Noah to come around that corner finally died down, and you decided that you needed to take a walk as well. It was cold outside but nothing unbearable, your hoodie, jeans and confusion that ached in you was enough to keep you warm.

You walked to wherever your heart desired, passing by pubs full of people getting wasted and having a time with their companions. Restaurants where people dining inside eyed you as you walked past, keeping your eyes ahead of you so your teariness didn’t accidentally catch the attention of random strangers.

After ten minutes of walking, you found yourself at a bridge overlooking the creek below you. The water rushed a little more than it normally would due to some of the melting snow around you, but you liked the noise that came from the extra water in the creek.

You felt the person before you heard them, and turned around swiftly in case you needed to defend yourself. But when you did, your eyes landed on Noah as he stood a few feet from you, his focus also on the creek.

His face was soft as he stared ahead, his hands shaking slightly as he waited. He was waiting for you.

“Noah.” You said, a rasp coming from you as you hadn't spoken since the show. He turned his gaze to you and a clear, broken expression was now on his face. And that just about set you off. “How can you look at me like that after the stunt you pulled earlier?”

“What stunt?” His voice was raspy too, but in a different way… like he’d been screaming.

“Don’t play dumb with me, Noah. You know exactly what I’m talking about.” You stared into his eyes that were shadowed by the night. “Why the fuck did you play that song without letting me in on the fact you guys were gonna play it, leaving me confused and fucking hurt especially when I could tell it was directed towards me.”

He shifted on his feet, your words were working, but he didn’t respond.

“Noah.” You snapped at him, your voice breaking as you waited for his answer.

He shoved your hand down. “What the fuck do you want me to say, Y/N?” He didn’t yell, but his voice was full of every emotion he felt.

“I just want you to tell me why you would do that to me.” Your voice became quiet as you wrapped your arms around your body and hugged yourself tight.

He stared at you for a long while, waiting for you to speak again. Once he realized you weren’t going to, he wiped at his face and spoke. “I miss everything we were, Y/N. And I’m angry that you’re with someone else.”

You stared at him for a long while after he said that, the tears flowing from your eyes as your heart sank. His eyes became watery as the silence stretched on longer, he sniffed and glanced over at the creek. “I knew this would be pointless.” He turned to leave but you were quick to grab his arm and stop him.

“Noah, wait.” You say watching the back of his hoodie as you silently pleaded for him to turn and face you. After a few seconds, he turned and you saw the raw emotions on his face.

“I fucking love you Y/N and I can’t stand seeing you with him, he doesn’t deserve you.” His voice was heavy with the despair that plagued him. “Vessel might have been your cushion for months, but I’ve always been here and I’ve never stopped loving you since the day we were stuck together on that stupid band and crew bonding thing.” You huffed a laugh at the memory of that day, how annoyed you both were with the game that was supposed to be a good idea for bonding with one another.

It turned into a competition of who could make a better paper mache of Noah.

He stepped closer to you. “I never thought you’d ever think of me the same. I know we put up that boundary of ‘no strings attached’ when we started having sex, but it wasn’t enough.” He took your hand from where it still rested on his forearm into his, staring at how much his hand covered yours. “I never wanted it to go the way that it did.”

Silence washed over the two of you again, the creek even seemed to grow quiet in the tension between you. A small drop of water landed on your hand, you looked up and realized his tears were falling.

“Noah…” Your voice croaked as you took your freehand and wiped the tears from his cheeks, leaving it on the side of his face. “Don’t cry.”

He shook his head. “I’ve been holding this back for so long, Y/N.”

“I know.” You whispered, catching another tear on your thumb as he stared into your eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too.” He whispered softly. “I shouldn’t have put that song on the setlist and not tell you, let alone make it known to you that I sang it about you.”

You shook your head. “It’s okay, I understand.”

“No, it’s not okay. I hurt you.”

“And I hurt you first, so I guess we can call it even now?” You quipped as you stared up at him, looking for some sort of glimpse of humor in his eyes at your words. But all you saw was the sorrow and longing that dwelled in them, so you looked away and back to the rushing water in the creek.

After a long stretch of silence, Noah said, “I hate this.” You broke your stare from the creek to face him, a brow raised in question. “I mean… I hate that we’ve caused this much pain to each other.”

You smiled sadly. “Unfortunately I think that only applies to me. I hurt you without knowing it.”

“Stop saying that.”

“No. I can’t, because the guilt is about to eat me alive each time I look into your eyes and see the pain I caused you.” Your voice wavered as tears threatened to come spilling again. “How could you still love me, after all that?”

You could see the gears shifting in his mind as he calculated a response to that. The flash of shock that lightened his eyes and then turned to disbelief as he really took in what you said.

Perhaps it was the cold finally sneaking through your layers or the look in his eyes that sent shivers across your body. Noah’s stare was unfaltering as he accessed the look in your own eyes, there was something on his tongue that he wanted to say but he couldn’t get it out.

“I love you too.” It spilled out before you could even think, the words rushing off your tongue like a waterfall. His eyes widened at the sudden confession, clearly not what he expected from you at all tonight. “I-I think I’ve loved you since we first met too. I’ve just always been scared of it and how it’d affect my career… that’s why I put those boundaries up so fast when we chose to have sex for the first time. I couldn’t risk losing my job because of a relationship-”

He put a finger to your lips, hushing your words. “I’ll stop you right there because you know damn well that I’d never let that happen.” Noah quickly pulled you to the side of the small bridge as a group of people walked by, almost going unnoticed by you until they were hollering at one another. You’d completely forgotten how public this space was. “You wouldn’t be opposed to taking this conversation to a more private place, would you?” He asked once the group was off the bridge, watching after them as they pushed each other around.

“It might be better, and a little warmer.” You say, realizing now the temperature was dropping to the point where your jeans and hoodie no longer kept you warm. Noah just nodded and turned, starting at a slow pace until he knew you were following him.

After just a few minutes, he turned to a doorway that led into a massive hotel. Your brow arched at the back of his head as he walked right to the elevator, pressed the button and waited for it to come down to the floor. You remained quiet, looking at the lobby of the hotel and its quaint design. Eventually the doors opened and you stepped inside, watching as Noah punched the button for a floor and the elevator moved up.

He’d been staying here, probably since he’d told Ruffilo that he was taking a walk. Smart of him to get a hotel room in case things went to shit between you and him, and eventually everyone else on the bus.

Noah used the keycard on a door you now stood outside of and opened it, holding the door as you walked in and observed the room. On the smaller side with just a king sized bed in the middle of the room, his bag was on the chair that sat to the side of the bed. Other than that, the room was tidy and looked as though he was in there for only a moment.

You sat down on the edge of the bed, savoring the warmth that now calmed your freezing body. Noah removed his hoodie from his torso and placed it over your hands that were shaking from the cold. His hoodie was warm and you wrapped it around your hands, sighing as that part of your body finally went back to a normal temperature.

“Didn’t realize we were out there for so long.” He finally said, glancing at the time on the clock next to the bed. You looked over your shoulder and noticed you’d been gone for three hours, hopefully there wasn’t a search party going on for the both of you. “It’s alright, Jolly knows where we are.”

“Oh, okay.” You say, a little shocked that he had kept in contact with Jolly the entirety of the night.

As if he read the thought in your mind, he sat down right beside you and said, “He’s the one who’s been helping me through this whole thing. He almost kicked my ass because I was being a stubborn asshole for a while.” He paused and looked at you. “Someone has to know where we are in an unfamiliar city.”

You smiled at him. “I know. You were just very sneaky with letting him know everything.”

Noah flashed his teeth in a toothy smile and laid back on the bed, sighing as he stretched. “What can I say? I’ve always been good at sneaking around.” You looked at him over your shoulder and he gave you a wink, causing you to immediately turn around as a blush crept into your cheeks. “Hey.” His fingers brushed against the back of your arm, toying with the fabric of your hoodie to grab your attention. You faced him again, and the lazy smile you’d always loved pulled at his face. “Come here.” You set his hoodie onto the end of the bed and turned, scooting yourself up a bit closer to where his head laid and lowered yourself into his arms that waited for you.

As you laid there, your eyes focused on him, an extreme feeling of guilt began creeping from your gut and into your heart. The smile on your face vanished and you closed your eyes. “I’m a horrible person.” You breathed, nothing more than a whisper.

Noah’s fingers brushed your cheek. “We’ve been through this, I don’t think y-”

“Not to you.” You cut him off and opened your eyes, noticing the understanding that flashed in his. “How am I going to tell him? I… I do love him, he’s a wonderful man and was always so good to me. This is going to break him.”

His fingers found your hand and gripped onto it tightly, bringing it to his lips and pressing a kiss on the skin. “It’ll be alright, Y/N. We’ll figure it out tomorrow.” He pulled you closer and despite how near you were before, this time his body pressed against yours and he draped your leg over his. “We won’t worry about it now, because now I just want to have this time with you. It’s what we deserved from the beginning.”

He was so close to you now that his breath touched your skin, sending a shiver across your body. This closeness was something the two of you never shared, each time you were alone it was quick enough for the both of you to enjoy. Never did he hold you like this, talk to you like this, and not once did your heart swell to the size it is now.

Noah brushed his lips against yours, almost as if he could see your heart and the size it was. The second time he began to brush them, you pushed forward to seal the kiss.

His lips were soft as you moved yours against them, saving that feeling of them that you didn’t know you missed. He pushed himself up and rolled you onto your back, not breaking the kiss once. The weight of his body on top of yours was everything you wanted as he nipped your bottom lip and your lips parted in answer, letting his tongue slip in and fight against yours.

You began to ache with need for him. The taste of his tongue was driving you up the wall, and you wanted nothing more than for him to rip your clothes off.

And he could tell. Your hips had bucked up a few times, pushing against his own and letting you feel the erection he was getting. He only pulled back from your lips and stared down at you with a wild look in his eyes.

“Are you sure this is what you want tonight?” He asked and you nodded in response. “Use your words, Y/N. You know better than that.” You damn near turned liquid when he said that.

“Yes, Noah. This is what I want tonight.” You breathed. He smirked in answer, immediately moving to pull off your hoodie and chuckling as it was pulled over your head.

“No wonder you were so cold.” His eyes marveled at your bare breasts in front of him, tracing their shape with his finger. “You never stopped being beautiful.” A blush crept across your cheeks as he took his shirt off, the tattoos you admired covering his entire torso had you taking a deep breath.

“And you’re still kinda beautiful.” You joked, earning a small glare from Noah as he tossed his shirt to the floor. His fingers undid your jeans and you lifted your hips so he could easily remove them, leaving you in only your underwear.

He laid against you again, chest warm against yours as he kissed you. Your hands roamed the muscles on his back and you weren't surprised to find that they’d become larger since the last time. Your fingers trailed to the edge of his sweatpants, going to push them down before he grabbed your wrists to stop you.

“Not yet, Y/N.” He kissed the corner of your mouth. “Allow me to show you,” he kissed the spot on your neck that turned you on in an instant, and continued to trail lower. “How much I love and miss you.” Between each word, he kissed at different points along your body. Each raising goosebumps on your skin as his lips grew closer to the place you wanted them most.

You looked down at him as he locked his fingers under the fabric of your underwear, watching his eyes glimmer with need as he pulled the fabric down. “Beautiful.” He whispered, his hands tracing the skin along your pubic bone and where your thighs connected to your hips. You writhed underneath his touch, wanting him to relieve the ache that had built.

And then he finally did, running two fingers through your lips as a shuddering breath escaped you. He lifted his fingers up and observed your arousal that now coated them, sticking them into his mouth and humming as he licked them clean.

“So good, every time.” He quietly said before settling in between your legs and pressed his face against your core. Your hips bucked up the moment his tongue met your clit and flattened out against it, putting pressure as he slowly moved his tongue around.

You moaned. “Noah…” This was so different from the times before, he went slow and worked to build you to your release. He didn’t go quickly because it wasn’t necessary, you had enough time to enjoy each other. The slower pace was good, really good and your hands were tangled up in his hair as worked on you.

The sounds from your mouth turned filthy the closer you got to your orgasm and Noah had to pin your hips to the bed to stop you from grinding against his tongue. You glanced down between your legs and noticed his eyes were on you, dark with lust as watched the sinful look on your face.

You were so close now, the tightening in your lower abdomen growing more and more as he continued. You gripped his hair and he groaned, the sound rumbling through your clit and being enough to send you over the edge. Your body shook as your release rattled through you, the sensation of Noah’s tongue still applying pressure and a slowed pace of movement had you seeing God.

“Fuck, Noah!” You screamed. His fingers dug into your hips as he kept going, your now sensitive bundle of nerves twitched under his tongue and sent impulses of pleasure through your body. It was like the orgasm was continuous, not needing the time to build again and again, only wanting to be set free at once.

When you could feel it finally subsiding, your grip on Noah loosened and you relaxed back onto the mattress. He pulled away from your core and stared at your breathless state. “Do you need a break?” You opened your eyes and noticed how he hovered over you, making sure you were all good.

“No.” You say, taking a deep breath in and out. “Keep going.” He nodded and you watched as he got off the bed, taking his sweatpants and briefs off and tossing them with the pile of clothes. You stared at his considerable length and your need for him grew again, maybe even stronger than the last time. He climbed back up on the bed, hovering over you again and brushed a strand of hair from your forehead. He leaned down to kiss you, gentle and soft as he reached between your bodies to guide himself into you.

You gasped as he slid in, stretching your walls to accommodate his size. He groaned and muttered curses at how tight you were. Once he bottomed out, he stayed still for a while and placed his lips on yours once again, then slowly slid out and snapped his hips back against yours.

Noah fucked you slowly, just as he had done with his tongue earlier. He savored every bit of this, the feeling of you around him and each moan that spilled out of your lips. This was the intimacy you craved from him. The kind of sex you wished he’d give you when you two fooled around, the ability to be in bed for hours and make love with no time limit and fear of being caught.

He flipped you over in one smooth movement and you were in his lap, he sat up on the bed as you straddled him. From this angle you were able to stare down slightly at him, take in his features as the shadows hit his face differently. He truly was the epitome of male beauty, and you couldn’t help but smile when you realized he was yours.

You moved your hips around as you straddled him, gasping as he felt even deeper in you than before. Noah’s hands were locked around your hips, his fingers dug into the flesh of your ass as he guided you along. Small, supple movements, but enough to make him whine your name and gape in pleasure.

“Y-You’re so good to me, Y/N.” He breathed as you quickened the pace ever so slightly, noticing that his demeanor changed as he grew near his own release. “Stay with me for as long as we live. I want you more than anything.”

You smiled down at him, the plea in his eyes and the words that wrapped around your spine. “Yes, Noah. I will.” He nodded once and pulled your face to his and kissed you deeply, as your hips moved more and more. His moan was light and fluttered across your skin as he came, your hips continuing to move as he did.

His release passed and your movements stopped, staying still in his lap as you both breathed heavily. Noah pressed your forehead to his, the stickiness of his sweat wetting your hair.

“That. Was. Amazing.” He whispered, taking deep breaths between words. You chuckled and brushed the side of his face with your knuckles. “Can we do that again?”

You pulled away from his face and studied it. “You think I’d decline that offer?” His smile grew in a wide grin as he flipped you over onto your back, a squeal leaving your lips.

Into the early hours of the morning, the two of you made love. The intimacy you shared was enough to make you keep wanting more, despite the exhaustion you felt. And as you laid here in his arms, the quiet sounds of his calm breathing as he slept slowly luring you to sleep, you felt a sense of peace. Even if there was that guilt that’ll plague you until you finally called Vessel, you still felt as though you could breathe easier.

These last five months of your life have been a whirlwind of emotions. Ones you thought were right and thought were what you wanted, to these. The ones that were actually right and not just what you thought when you were faced with the doubt of Noah not loving you the same way you loved him.

And now? Now that doubt was gone, only replaced with the reassurance that he did indeed love you the same.

[handsinterlaced]

hi this is gonna be my niall experience as I just need to get it out and I’m sure irls are SICK of me talking abt it <3 pls enjoy or ignore up to u

proof being delusional works!

june 27: I fly my ass out to toronto!!! and at this point I’m just giggling w a friend joking around what if I meet Niall

june 28: today is niall’s 1st show in Toronto hehe

I was eating lunch at a random restaurant I stopped by on queen st and I was soooo excited / nervous I couldn’t eat! basically forcing myself to eat so I don’t die at the concert fjdjskks but yeah after like half an hour of picking my food I start to feel unsettled.. and a lil bit uneasy! idk it was suchhhhh a weird feeling but u always gotta listen to ur gut!!

U GOTTA LISTEN TO UR GUT!!

DONT IGNORE IT

it was sooo strange like at that moment I knew I had to leave the restaurant RIGHT NOW and so I did! I was like half an hour walk away from my air bnb so I’m like that’s fine I’ll just walk back & still have plenty of time before the show to get ready and stuff! there were so many different ways to walk back. I could’ve crossed the street earlier or turned the corner sooner but the path I chose led me right to Niall 😭😭 I wasn’t even looking for him!!! but I was waiting for the crosswalk… look up and who do I see? NIALL FUCKING HORAN RIGHT THERE

- ngl tho niall in a cap and sunglasses is such a great disguise FJKSKAKA I would not have recognized him if tour manager wasn’t with him! shoutout to jstir (I met him when I was like 13 when he was working for Cody simpson and taking everyone’s m&g photos fjdjskks that man’s face is engraved in my mind so I was able to recognize him pretty quick!) like who knew my 13 year old phase would come back 10 years later and help me out !!!

anyways so Niall is across the street and I’m just fighting w myself debating if I should go up to him or not 😭😭 the saying never meet ur heroes is kinda true JDKDKAKA it changes u & all the expectations u have! Ultimately I figured that this was my 1 chance to say something so I just went for it. If I didn’t I’d probably regret it for the rest of my life!

I just know my voice was shaky and I was super nervous but niall was so sweet and patient <3 like I felt so bad just going up to him 😭😭 hes just out and about… trying to be incognito & enjoy some free time FJSKKA like I am quite aware but when else could this happen u feel 🥲 anyways here is the convo from what I remember bc I blacked out (as u do when u meet ur fave)

me: hi Niall!! just wanted to say hi and let you know how excited I am to see you perform tonight and tomorrow <3

niall: hi how are you! oh you’re going to both shows? is that right? we’re actually headed to the venue now

me: oh! If that’s the case I don’t wanna keep you guys. Would it be alright if we took a photo?

niall: yes of course!

the photos (cropped myself out bc Toronto humidity is my enemy & I was a sweaty mess from walking back to the air bnb)

and then I just say thank u so much! see u at the show hahaha and SPRINT OFFFFJFKSKAK like I ran so fast bc I needed to get away and scream 😭😭

mind u I be carrying my leftovers the entire time JFKSKAK SO FUNNY

I DIDNT EVEN INTRODUCE MYSELF! WISH I TOLD HIM I FLEW MY ASS OUT! THAT HE NEEDS TO TOUR MORE CITIES IN CANADA! TO PUT NEW ANGEL ON THE SETLIST!! so much I wish I said but again thankful they were on the way to the venue so I was forced to keep it short so I didn’t continue to yap and embarrass myself further. it could’ve been so much worse! just gotta remind myself that.

sat in the air bnb for like 2 hours in silence trying to process what happened fjdjskks would’ve been longer but I had to get to the show! anyways I was like 15 rows back on the floor and had the best time <3

june 29: Toronto night 2!!!

I’m sat 2nd row floor… right next to the barricade and I’m so close I know that niall can see me 😭😭😭 idk if it’s the delusion but I keep making eye contact with niall and he keeps looking at me! probs thinking oh is it that weirdo from the street yesterday 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 LMFAO but U TELL ME!! IS IT DELUSION BC I THINK I GOT PROOF RIGHT HERE

felt too perceived by him tbh JDKKA needed to run and hide! like eye contact was crazy djdjjsjs

OKAY THAT IS ALL FOR NOW I THINK! if u made it this far I am so amazed ty for reading the rambles <3

[soshiharin]

better than this world tour: inglewood

SETLIST

STYLING

CELEBS IN ATTENDANCE

— salma hayek

— billie eilish

— finneas

— claudia sulewski

— ming lee simmons

— lizzy greene

— rosalie chiang

— xochitl gomez

— brie larson

— elizabeth olsen

HIGHLIGHTS

— gotta go’s intro ate again ofc

— the chills everyone had???

— and the outfit was not helping matters like woah miss ma’am😳😳😳😳

— the way the crowd was just mesmerised by here vocals during plastic off the sofa

— cue all the ‘does harin got a man’ tweets

— and dangerous woman???

— ⭐crazy how the very first sin was a woman who ate⭐

— and time for everyones bestie, better

— a song that is loved beyond measure

— during her ment, she checked to see if people were still awake and alert

— harin: jeongsin chalyeo

— sones: LION HEART💗💗💗

— which obvi spooked the locals but what can be done

— safety zone had all the hurt people shouting along

— and the slay that is bother me

— oooooohh she was eating

— now don’t get me started on the crowd’s reaction to sweet fantasy

— loudest audience during that song, they were enjoying themselves

— PPORAPPIPPAM I LIKE IT LIKE IT

— she is MOTHERRRRR

— and that secret love song highnote was helddddd

— she covered magnetic moon by tiffany young

— she’s in that #gg4eva shit for life

— harin: now i have one more song to sing

— and the crowd started groaning

— harin: yeah, you’ll get over it

— sone: IM NOT LEAVING

— harin: you’re not leaving?

— sone: yeah!

— harin: i am 💅 if you decide you don’t want to leave, that’s your own business, but i’m leaving

— and she did leave when that concert ended!

©️ jang harin

[nicoscheer]

SCULPTURES OF ANYTHING GOES AS OPENER FOR THEIR THIRD GLASTO HEADLINER

1. Sculptures

2. Brianstorm

3. Snap

4. Chair

5. Crying lightning

6. Teddy picker (when I get bent over?!! Alex!!!) https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ct4DUGpgtMn/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== (it’s rather ‘ya’ but we can pretend)

7. Cornerstone (I knew she’d understand instead of thought/she didn’t say that whooo, I just added that for you you’re welcome)

Interlude something about water by Alex on the piano (get this man his water he’s thirsty)

8. Why’d you only call me when you’re high (having mad instead of bad ideas/ plus epic pose)

Shout out by Alex for Space pictures

9. Arabella

10. Four out of five (loving butt slap for Cookie by Alex/ why don’t you come and stay with ME/ effective very effective what a night what a night, yeah man)

Smiling Alex

Angelic Alex

11. Pretty visitors (now’s me chance x3= rushing off to bowl and it’s a strike= happy little Alex jumping back on stage and then his mic was shut off for a sec there 🤣)

12. Fluorescent Adolescent (some kisses and a thank you from Alex)

Oh god he looks so baby in that picture

13. Perfect sense (another thank you 🥹)

Pouty mouth (he does look tired)

14. Do I wanna know (afterwards “astonishing”/ how are you feeling everybody *cheers* well I’m delighted about that)

15. Mardy Bum (thank you/ alright let’s leave the past behind)

16. There’d better be a mirrorball (conductor Alex at the beginning/ hey HEY at the end)

17. 505 (without Miles 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭his first note sounded so unsure/ the in ears only now getting removed gotta be a new record/ thank you for having us everybody it’s the Arctic monkeys/ so predictable I know what you’re thinking whoo)

18. Body Paint

Encore

19. I wanna be yours (Matt and backup sang and played I wanna be yours (second verse)while Alex sang STAR TREATMENT (first verse)/ thank you thank you very much) (for a second we had “Miles” there)(the Glastonbury special surprise; also genius move to reclaim IWBY from TikTok by hijacking it with TBHC)

A video of that beautiful medley

“Who are you gonna call the Martini police the who?”

20. I bet you look good on the dance floor (Matt having mic problems and some vocal ones aswell(sounded like a scratchy throat))

“We are gonna leave you now we can’t stay with you anymore but fank you for having us something tells me…something tells me that you’re gonna be okay good night”

21. R U MINE?

I mean I know it’s basically literally their normal concert playlist apart from that I wanna be yours/ star treatment medley (which was out of this world 🌚;)) but I still loved it apart from that heartbreak with 505 cause honestly don’t care what they play I’m still loving it and having a blast, great tunes great vocals an amazing night spent in front of the laptop screaming along (what if they had planned a different set list (in 2013 Alex said “that’s what we’re gonna do tonight everyone. we are gonna play some new shit. We’re gonna play some old shit. We are gonna play some things that are just Glastonbury specials, do you know what I’m saying”) but due to Alex falling sick they didn’t have time to practice so they settled for their usual setlist?) (genuinely feel sorry for Elton John and his humongous set cause i doubt that anybody can scream along on Sunday still)

And I love how all the real fans can easily agree that it was a fantastic gig while the TikTok fans and dark fruit lovers are whining in their mum’s basement how they didn’t just play do I wanna know and snap out of it in 10 different versions and how dare Alex that his voice and taste in music evolved and that they didn’t try and emulate the phenomenal, seminal career changing Glasto 2013 🤣🤣

Opening

Do I wanna know

Mardy Bum via BBCradio1

I bet you look good on the dance floor

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The BBC intern having some fun ( he’s gonna get tacos on the well reviewed taqueria of course)

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WARNING !! do not look at the comments 🤢 you don’t wanna see that shitshow that some ‘fans’ pull but I guess some people just can’t be satisfied cause their own lives are so shit that they have to lash out at whoever is available

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Rock band Arctic Monkeys’ headline set on Friday night was watched by an average of 1.5million viewers on BBC One.

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https://www.instagram.com/p/Ct3ngjTLG7R/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

https://www.instagram.com/p/CuG4TRQLpjM/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ct_-x1NtosH/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

The full audio of Arctic Monkeys’ Glastonbury 2023 set

[danepopfrippery]

What happened? Finethingswell fucking cut me out of our drag means slay a show i did 90% of the work for and im sure will say im hysterical.

First they forget only one bag, out of 10, a massive dress sized garment bag. I wait 8 mins for them to show only to be all oopsy doodle. This bag was not only massive it was in the middle of the room. Now i gotta drive 40 mins back and forth to get my wig and stuff.

Ofc im crying by now. And in the meantime Eli messed up getting the show on and the livestream on cuz they had no idea what they were doing. And the show started juuust as i entered the bldg with them going first. I crafted that setlist and asked for their input. They gave none. After them was someone unrelated and then their bestie. I know they knew we were 5 mins away and i know they had no idea on the stream cuz they were asking me and didnt reply to me or keep me in the loop (but did their roomie who was w me).

I cant stop crying. Oh im so sorry so sorry. I say i just need to stop crying. They moved me only 4 songs from when i entered and i was still crying so id be end of act 2 minus the star. Btw never got to meet vico at all, that was nice.

I finally stop crying, they see this they know this. Intermission. 2nd song their a prop. K cool i know that. They never came back. After that was supposed to be our thank us. They never asked if i was up for it. They also didnt even mention my name.

I had it. I was leaving. Sorries began again. I said your clearly not so stop. I mean ffs maybe one thing was an accident but ALL OF THEM? CANT EVEN SAY MY NAME IN THE THANK US? I LITERALLY DID ALL OF THIS WHILE U JUST TOOK DIRECTION AND DID SMALL HELPFUL THINGS?!

I refunded the livestream money, ppl can donate if they want but im sorry it was a shit show. I dont want to interact w this or any other fandom anymore. Had to pay $40 to get back to my place. I cant even attend c2e2 im too poor so i drove 9hrs to be fucked in the back apparently. Didnt get tips didnt even get thanks.

Id recommend watching out for these people. Fuck i named it our drag means slay ffs

[euphorial-docx]

revamped counterculture snippet before i finally go to sleep <3

“You know,” he began as inconspicuous as he could, which wasn’t very inconspicuous at all, “the concert is coming up soon. I could still get us tickets.”

“And I still don’t want to go,” Regulus predictably replied from his corner of the garage. Barty and Evan were practicing, although ‘practicing’ was too organized of a word for what they were doing.

“What concert?” Evan questioned, looking up from the guitar lazily sat on his lap, fingers halting their mindless strumming.

“The one at the 934 Club,” said Barty.

“The Punk Festival thing?” Evan proceeded to ask, and Barty proceeded to nod. Evan furrowed his brows and threw his confusion at Regulus. “Why don’t you want to go?“

“I don’t like concerts,” he told them, and it was not the first time he told them that, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last either.

“But The Weird Sisters are on the setlist,” Evan reminded him of a fact that had not been a part of Regulus’s knowledge.

Regulus had not regretted his choice of music to enjoy, but in that moment he regrettably loved The Weird Sisters. He tried not to let that love sway him.

“Not interested,” Regulus persisted, casting his focus back onto his journal.

“Bullshit!” Barty accused. “You love The Weird Sisters, and there’s some band coming all the way from France just for this festival; second billing, right under fucking Evanesce. They’ve gotta be good to be next to Evanesce!”

“What French band?” Regulus asked before he could stop himself, before he could restrain himself and his quiet obsessions.

Barty grinned knowingly. Of course he knew, and always knew, and never failed to know. “I don’t know, but I heard they’re a bit weird, and I know you love all that underground weird alternative shit.”

“My mother would kill me before she let me go.”

“Then sneak out. I used to do it all the time before my father gave up on me.” Regulus merely looked at Barty, and Barty sensed his hesitancy. He stepped forward and rested a hand on the back of Regulus’s seat, leaning down closer, “I’m telling you, Reg, this concert is the place to be.”

Regulus met Barty’s gaze and the electric hope glaring in his eyes, and then he looked to Evan for some guidance, but Evan only raised his brows and nodded his head. Regulus threw his sight on the ceiling with a heavy sigh.

“Fine.”

“Fine?”

“Yes, fine. When is this festival?”

“Fuck yeah!” Barty clapped, leaving Regulus’s personal space in the process. “Okay, the when: it’s the 26th and the 27th. Doors at— Evan, when did I say the doors opened?”

“7:30.”

He faced Regulus again. “7:30! Music is at— what? Like, 8? Probably 8. Does that work for you?”

“That works as well as it could work for me,” Regulus muttered, distracting himself by finishing off the word he had lost track of writing.

Barty let out a smug laugh, and in Evan’s direction claimed, “I knew I could convince him with those little French bastards.”

[rivetgoth]

I went to my first show last night, went specifically to see my favorite band who was playing, Tears For The Dying, and MAN was it fun, I was too nervous to really dance with the first two acts bc it was darkwave so I just swayed with my arms awkwardly but the stage presence of the first act was incredible when TFTD started I felt so ALIVE like skanking and slam dancing with like the very few of us brave enough to really feel it and dance RULED

And after the show I looked at the merch booth for TFTD and got a print, and the person manning the booth was like "do you want a picture with Adria (the singer)?" and I was like internally screaming with joy and she was so nice I got her autograph and a few pictures and I got to tell her how much her music means to me and I even hugged her like GOD this ruled

and as my partner and I were leaving, the person who was manning the merch booth ran up and was like "Adria wanted to know if you'd like this" and gave me the setlist and I damn near cried

I want to go to more shows but I am afraid of going alone, I went to this one with my partner

sorry this is random i needed to share my joy

Ah that’s so cool! I’m glad you had such a good time at your show :) That’s cool you got a picture and hug with the singer too, I always love asking musicians for a hug 🥺🖤 They’re never obligated of course but it’s really cool when they do!!

Going to shows alone can def be stressful, I feel a little bit of those nerves whenever I go to concerts alone even now and I’ve been going to ‘em for years and years and have seen over 100 bands lol, some alone and some not. I just recently went to a show alone for the first time since December or so and I was definitely kinda nervous beforehand! It’s just kinda stressful to be out on your own and I come from the background of having a LOT of social anxiety that I’ve had to work through as an adult. It’s a muscle you sorta build over time in my experience, you gotta start somewhere and just kinda throw yourself into these sorta stressful/uncomfortable (but ultimately safe!) social situations and in time you get more and more comfortable with it, and also kinda get to know yourself better and build more confidence in the process tbh. It’s a practice thing like anything else really, and the cool thing with concerts is that there is an obvious incentive to work through the anxiety since it’s to see a show, plus there is something to focus on so you don’t have to be a master Socializer, you can just chill and watch the show and not worry too too hard on anything else. And next level is if you’re going to the same/similar genres in the same city long enough you’ll start meeting people so even if you go to a show alone you’ll probably be able to start finding people at the show you recognize. 😈

BUT yeah lol, I’m glad you had fun dude!! 🤘

[lgcamelia]

☁ LGC Cafe #2 ☁

Setlist:

我怎能留下你  (How Can I Leave You Behind) - Ezu (vocal)

你，好不好? (How Have You Been?) - Eric Chou (vocal)

Uh Oh - (G)Idle (dance)

You & I - IU (vocal and dance)

Gotta Go - Chungha (vocal and dance)

This was Amelia’s second LGC cafe performance and she was incredibly excited. Since joining the modeling path, Amelia kind of missed singing and dancing. So she was glad for the opportunity to perform again. This time, however, Amelia had chosen to do something a little different. She had chosen to showcase her history by using some songs in Mandarin. This songs would test her vocally but she was ready.

Her last cafe performance, Amelia had sung mostly English songs as they were her comfort zone. She knew she could sing in English having grown up in an English speaking country. However, because of how she is (and sometimes her name), some may forget (including herself at times) that she was actually born in China. Amelia is fluent in both English and Mandarin. This performance, Amelia wanted to step out of her comfort zone and test herself. Which is why she chose Korean and Mandarin songs.

When it came for her turn to perform, Amelia stepped onto the stage and smiled as she greeted everyone.

❛ Hello! My name is Amelia Zheng and I am super excited to be here! This is my second time performing here but I’m still just as excited and nervous as I was the first time, ❜ she chuckled. ❛ For my performance today, I decided to try something different. I have decided to step away from English songs and instead focus on Mandarin and Korean songs. ❜ Amelia smile softly at the audience.

She took a deep breath before she spoke again. ❛ The first two songs I’m going to sing are songs that are special to me. They hold special places in my heart and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. For the first song, I had to practice Taiwanese Mandarin as it’s a little different to Chinese Mandarin so please forgive me for some of my pronunciation, ❜ Amelia confessed. The first song she chose was one that her close friend and her listened to often together before she moved to Korea. Her friend was from Taiwan and she had helped Amelia with her pronunciation.

Amelia continued. ❛ After my first two songs I’ll be doing some dance and vocal covers so please look forward to those! ❜ She grinned brightly. ❛ Now without further ado, let’s get to why we’re all here. ❜

[2dkapsddr]

March 30th, 2024 - Arcaea, EZ2AC, WACCA Reverse, CHUNITHM, beatmania, DanEvo, ProSeka

ANOTHER HUGE CON DAY INDICATED BY THE TITLE!! LET'S GET IT STARTED IN HERE!!! ...right after this Arcaea world mode intermission. yeah yeah, the grind never stops. i wish it did, but i'm so close to getting all the world extend 3 songs so far... nevertheless, here!!

once that was settled, i went to my friend's sister's car after a really quick shower and got ready for day 2 of the con: cosplay conundrum! these are gonna stay private and off the account for now, but i took a TON of pictures with cosplayers i found out in the wild of sakuracon's artist valley. and there were even more that i missed in the summit building!!! but once that was over, it was back to da grind!!! (i was much more careful with my money this time, besides a poster i got for a friend, don't worry www)

first up, a 5K-only score (that means no turntable or foot pedal muahahaha) on Cross Time !! that's all there's nothing else for EZ2AC go home

but next, i know i said i wouldn't show any cosplayers but i found this INSANELY COOL luin cosplay in the WACCA queue. why was i in this WACCA queue? for a tournament of course! there was a wacca tournament? YES!!! and i was DETERMINED to train as much as i could for it!!! (lie, i barely played anything lol)

instead, i was too busy with my babygirl chunithm new... the stubborn fool that i am, it was almost all i ever played at the arcade before the tournament time. can you believe that!!! all while i was finalizing some responses for my scholarship!!! (tho you gotta admit, these are some REALLY good scores)

more DJing with 5key beatmania... not enough ez2ac... but also HELL SCAPER My Beloved (finally getting to play it in its pure original form and game...)

okay, casual playtime's over. i was running out of time* before the wacca tourney and needed to get as much practice in as i could, since i didn't have much access to this game besides round 1 and thus needed a major refresher on the charts. looking through the setlist and some personal favorite songs, i tried to practice and play as much as i could, so here's some of the highlights from Da Grind!! (feat. some cool S ranks and the fastest improvement on Mazy Metroplex ever LMFAO)

finally, after all of that grinding, it SHOULD have been time to gather everyone and start the tournament. the organizers, however, were having a LOT of technical difficulties. this is what the asterisk next to "running out of time" was for, because i was actually given a lot more time by mercy of the tourney being delayed by almost a FULL THREE HOURS. what should've started at 3 PM didn't start until 6 PM, when my friends were about to leave the con. i was a little pissed, but i guess that gave me some time to walk back to the artist valley and find more stalls/people to admire and photograph respectively, including a faust cosplay and this random miku shrine on the way to the room LMFAO

by the time i finished my cooling-off walk from the tourney troubles and headed back to the arcade for any updates, they were STILL setting up for the tournament and i probably wouldn't even be able to attend it in the end. my friends still showed up though, so i treated them to a showcase of my Awesome Epic DanEvo skills and played one last set of the con for them, which was just Tsumi to Batsu and Daisuke again (but flipped around!) (and also with a longer video of the first song!)

but against all thoughts and odds, they actually DID finish setting up and started hosting the tournament!! right after finishing my set, i was notified that it was almost my turn to go up and play in the tournament. i was ecstatic, i was actually gonna be able to participate!!! woo!!! i got onto my designated cab, we sorted through a minor guest play issue, and i was playing 4-player wacca for the first time with all my lovely tourney-goers... who proceeded to beat me into a pulp (metaphorically) as i had not practiced anything but the last song of our qualifier set into top 8. ah well, at least i got second place on the last and hardest song!

i was still a little distraught with my performance, but i cheered up a bit as i went out with my friends to get some boba before we left to our respective houses. over and on the way there, i played a bit of proseka to catch up on some quests and got some neat APs in that meantime, including an AP on Shun-ran Master 30!!! Finally!!! (got a picture taken with it in my toya cosplay because i was so proud of it LMFAO). didn't haul much (and even if i did, i'm already hitting the image limit with these scores), but here's the image in cosplay with proof www

BONUS: Elegant Toya Aoyagi Dancing (tsumi to batsu 33 seconds)

[chorusfm]

AJR – The Maybe Man

There’s something to be said for a band who knows how to make a well-crafted, thought out, and carefully mapped out  album. AJR may have just made their early-career masterpiece on The Maybe Man, a record that is brimming with purpose, an ultra-personal touch, and better structurally organized than any of their previous four LPs. The Maybe Man finds the three brothers (Adam, Jack & Ryan Met) at a crossroads: they’ve just made their most commercially and critically successful record in 2021’s Ok Orchestra, the band recently announced their first arena tour, and yet the material found on this record is dripping with self-doubt. For a band that got famous with songs like “Bang!” “Weak” and the ultra-viral “World’s Smallest Violin,” the opening song/title track finds lead singer, Jack pondering vulnerably, “Wish I was a stone so I couldn’t feel / You’d yell in my face, it’d be no big deal / But I’d miss the way we make up and smile / Don’t wanna be stone, I changed my mind,” while getting into heavier material (lyrically) with “God Is Really Real” that comes to terms with their father, Gary’s, untimely passing. As close as I am to my dad, I can’t imagine going through life without my own mentor, and I commend AJR for tackling this concept head on with grace on The Maybe Man. After the crisp production of the vulnerable opening statement, “Touchy Feely Fool” follows with a more upbeat song about Jack’s own social awkwardness. Lyrics like, “Life is pretty cruel / For a touchy feely fool / I would give anything to not give a shit, but I do / I would give anything to not give a shit (about you),” paint a person focusing on the cards life has dealt him, and coming to terms with his next step forward. “Yes I’m A Mess” opens with a whistling melody before Jack’s trademark croon sets the listener at ease. The bouncy rhythm supplied by bassist, Adam, paired with the great keyboard-laced production of Ryan make for a memorable song on the front half of the LP.  “The Dumb Song” comes up next in the track sequencing and features a stellar trumpet solo in-between the verses to give a vibrant texture to the song. It slowly builds to the self-deprecating chorus of, “When we go down / When kingdom come / Don’t look at me, don’t look at me / I’m just too dumb.” Fan favorite, “Inertia,” nearly didn’t make the final cut of the record, and it’s hard to see why not. It’s one of the more creative songs on The Maybe Man and lives up to its name by providing just the right push to the finish line.  “Turning Out Pt. III” continues the self-exploration found on AJR’s last three records, and offers some additional context on the three brothers’ headspace and their reflection on how life is “turning out” for them. One of my favorite songs in the set comes in the form of The Beatles/Beach Boys-inspired “Hole in the Bottom of My Brain” that bounces along with a pop sheen to it that makes it one of the most memorable tracks the band has crafted to date. “The DJ Is Crying For Help” was one of the first songs to be released from The Maybe Man, and features an electric-charged fiddle solo in the early stages of the song, that continues to be looped throughout the interspersing of lyrics as the single unfolds. The crowd-pleasing anthem of “I Won’t” is sure to be a live favorite when AJR maps out their setlist for The Maybe Man arena tour, which has already sold out one date at NYC’s Madison Square Garden. While the experimental “Steve’s Going to London” may play off as filler for some casual fans, it offers a brief reprieve from the heavy lyrical material found on their dad’s tribute, “God Is Really Real.” On this song that will likely be tough for the band to play live due its ultra-personal tone, Jack mentions, “My dad can’t get out of bed / There’s something in his lungs / I think that’s what the doctor said / I gotta leave for Paris now / My band goes on at 10 / And my dad can’t get out of bed.” It’s so fucking heartbreaking to listen to, as it nearly unfolds in real time, until the closing lines… https://chorus.fm/reviews/ajr-the-maybe-man/