#they just want the best for their kid but they can barely provide for themselves

[batsythoughts]

hiii, can we have a second part for the yandere! bruce with baby trapping 🥹 maybe some pregnancy kink

Of course you all can! I'm always willing to do continuations of any works I do or requests if you all ask nicely and I feel comfortable with it! And sorry this took so long to write. A lot of family stuff came up and I needed to take a step back for a while.

Part 2 of Yandere! Bruce Wayne and baby trapping!

As stated in the request, there is smut under the cut. Minors please do not interact with the post.

It had barely been a week since Bruce and you found out you were pregnant

Alfred had been discreetly informed so he could go buy your prenatal vitamins without any of the kids finding out

You all had agreed to do a reveal to them fairly quickly so they didn't find out themselves by accident

After some consideration, the both of you decided on a cake with a simple message

Bruce even got you to agree to let the message say 'It wasn't Jason'

"It's a bet the kids have on who would have a baby next. It's a family joke we have that's been going on."

You simply smiled at the explanation while saying it was okay as long as it was in a certain color

The next night a dinner, before anyone could get up from the table, Bruce said that Alfred made a special dessert for everyone

They all looked at one another in confusion as they tried to think of what the occasion was for a 'special dessert' to be made

When Alfred came in and set the cake in the center of the table, the kids stared at the written frosting with blank expressions

Jason was the first to react while throwing his hands up with a cheer

Dick started out with a huge grin before his eyes widen as he stared at Jason with disbelief all over his face

Tim and Damian shared a look for a moment before giving their congratulations

Cass smiled while looking between you and Bruce while asking multiple questions regarding the baby

Bruce smiled at the sight of all the people he loved celebrating the surprise of a new addition to the family

He gently took your hand in his while watching you happily eating the slice of cake Alfred cut for you

The first trimester was definitely interesting for the whole family with the random nausea, food cravings, and mood swings

Everyone worked together to help you deal with it as best as they were able to

Got a craving for something in the middle of the night that's not in the manor? Alfred told everyone and now Red Hood is in the store grabbing two of everything.

Your back hurting a little after getting off work? Tim has the heating pad on the couch for you as Cass gets a scented bath bomb that you might like so you can relax after dinner.

Randomly started crying? Dick and Alfred both stand nearby to hear you let out cries of whatever caused it

Damian would even offer to make you drinks that he had been taught were beneficial to both you and the fetus

Bruce was pleased that they were being so accepting of the situation instead of thinking you had been the one to cause the situation

The best thing though was a weekly ritual that only Bruce got to be apart of

An hour before he would go on patrol every Friday, you both would sit on the bed as his hands lightly caressed your stomach to carefully feel your body change over time

Even in the beginning when there wasn't anything to feel, Bruce enjoyed reliving the fact that he had gotten you pregnant successfully to keep you around

But he was still felt like you could do a bit more to be committed to the family

He wanted you to quit your job so you could be focused on him, the kids, and the baby with all your energy

Besides, he had more than enough money that you wouldn't have to worry about providing for yourself ever again

At first Bruce suggested going part time so you weren't straining your body too much while the baby was developing

You were hesitant at first, but relented and said you would ask your boss if it would be possible

It wasn't entirely what he wanted, it was just the start until you gave birth

You were beginning to tell the difference in your body after the two month mark with a slight firmness in your stomach

Bruce felt ecstatic as the days got closer to your due date

He did become concerned about the fact that you were showing a bit more than what was normal with all that he read

He even brought it up with the doctor at one of your appointments to ask if everything was alright

As they got the machine ready for the ultrasound, the doctor and nurse assured Bruce that everything should be alright with your hormone levels

The doctor began asking questions on how you were feeling and any issues you were experiencing

As they moved the wand over your stomach, the nurse stopped to look at the screen with a concerned look before her expression shifted to surprise

You became worried while asking what was wrong as the doctor focused on the screen before she got a similar look

"There's, um... there's two."

The screen was turned to face you both better as she pointed out the very close, but individual little blobs

You and Bruce stare in shock before you squeeze his hand with a soft coo

The doctor made sure to give you plenty of copies of the pictures before you left and made the next appointment

Bruce felt proud that you were giving him not one, but two children that would bind you to him for the rest of your lives

You told everyone that evening the news and they were thrilled by the prospect as well

Bruce had even signed up for a 'Baby and Me' class that meet up weekly

Of course that meant that everyone went and sat around you to retain any and all information that was being said to the class

A few of the other participants were judgemental and would whisper about how it should only be the expecting mother and father in the class

All the kids were quick to speak up and shut that down real quick with the woman who started it

"Wow Debra, that's really great advice. I'm sure your husband is proud of how outspoken you are."

"Speaking of husbands, where's your husband Debra?"

"Oh, he's working late like he always does? He must be worried about providing for you and the baby."

"I'm sure it's a very happy and loving marriage you have with him."

"But how long will it last, Debra?"

You quickly told the kids to behave while Bruce held back his smirk as the class finally began

Everyone paid attention to everything that was told, even asking questions about how to assist you through the whole process

Bruce was very proud of all his kids for being so willing to learn along with you during this stage in your life

As the weeks passed, the twins were growing healthy and making themselves known to the world

Their kicks profound enough that Bruce could sit on the other side of the couch and see the bumps they would make

He loved it most went you put headphones on your stomach while playing a small list of songs you made for the twins

"They can feel the vibrations! It is proven to be beneficial for development."

He only smiled while kissing the side of your head

Bruce had even made sure to have the baby room ready for the birth long before they were due

It did take a bit more time to keep the room neutral with the fact it was agreed to be a surprise of what you were having

But he made it work terrifically for whatever combination of twins you were carrying

With the help of Dick and Jason, of course. They refused to let Bruce try to put together the cribs and changing table that would hold their little siblings

It was always so adorable how you would go in to see the progress and coo at how everything was coming along

You of course gave an opinion on where you wanted things to go and the boys would move them without question or complaint

There was already two dressers full of baby clothes that all of them had picked out when going out shopping for any reason

Bruce adored it most that you had gotten a few maternity dresses that were elegant enough to wear to any galas he would attend

The looks that you would get from most of the people there didn't bother him

Despite the different reasons for the stares, he felt proud of the fact that everyone knew that you would always be his no matter who would try to change it

It became even better when he got a message from Alfred one day saying you had returned to the manor not long after you had went to work one day

He was worried when he finally returned that night to find you sulking in your shared room eating a bowl of fruit while wrapped in multiple blankets

Bruce hated the sight of you upset, but he hated that you seemed to be purposely hiding away the bump he was loving more every day

He sat down beside you as he waited for you to tell him what had happened at your job that morning

It took a few minutes before you finally mumbled out that you had impulsively quit your job

While he felt overjoyed, Bruce played the part of being concerned while asking what had occurred to cause it

You took another bite of your fruit while leaning in to rest your head on his shoulder

"One of the guys put his hand on the upper part of my stomach despite me telling them all not to do that. Then he asked me if... if my milk had come in."

Bruce clenched his jaw before apologizing for what happened, but gentle assured you that everything would be okay with him still providing for all of you

It took a few minutes of Bruce reassuring you that your actions were valid to preserve your self respect from the unsavory coworker you had

You gave a weak nod after a couple minutes before leaning further against for comfort

He held you to his chest while softly kissing your head and whispering affirmations to lift your spirits

That evening everyone noticed that you were feeling upset, but didn't push for an explanation so you could tell them if you felt comfortable

You gave a tired smile to the whole table while saying it was just a bad day at work and they shouldn't worry themselves

They all let you have a quiet night without arguments over anything until they went down to the cave to get ready for patrol

Bruce watched you prepare for bed with worry as you absent-mindedly went through your routine without a word

Before you could get into the bed, Bruce gently lead you over to the full length mirror he got for you that stood in one corner

He stood behind you as he rested his hands at the swell of your stomach while swaying back and forth

He placed kisses along your neck as his fingers danced over the bump while whispering against your skin

"You're such a good momma." "Doing your best for them already." "Providing me with the greatest gift."

Bruce continued with his praise as he watched the reflection until you finally cracked a smile

He carefully turned you around before connecting his lips to yours before guiding you over to the bed

He made sure you were completely settled in for the night before giving you a kiss and promising to return safely

The night had went by with only a few attempted muggings and a failed robbery of a gas station before the whole family returned

Bruce took a shower in the locker room and changed like every night so you wouldn't wake up from the noise

Bruce had tried to remain as quiet to not disturb you as he entered the room, but he saw that you were turning around under the comforter with soft whines

He thought you were just having a weird dream until you pushed up from the bed with a groan before meeting his gaze

He almost asked what was wrong as he walked towards the bed, but the words didn't need to be said with the way you bite your lip to keep back a pout

Now, you and Bruce had sex a few times since the pregnancy had started, but after you began showing he didn't want to potentially cause you any discomfort

He wouldn't deny the fact that he thought you were beautiful during the day doing any little thing

However, staring at you in the his bed with the light of the moon streaming in through the window and accentuating your features while one of the straps of your nightgown sliding of as you give him that pleading look

Bruce couldn't get in the bed quick enough after taking a moment to admire how breathtaking you were in that moment

He gently pushed you back to lay down on the mattress before lifting up the lower part of your sleepwear

He couldn't bother to remove your underwear as he pulled it to the side and immediately latched onto your clit

The startled moan you let out was a melody Bruce never wanted to forget as he passionately worked his tongue over the small nub

Wasting no time, he moved one hand to rest on your hip while the other went to prepare you

You laced your fingers in his hair the moment he pushed a finger into you for the first time in months

He slowly moved his hand as he listened to the way your breath hitched with each whine you gave before pushing a second finger in

He had only been at it for a minute before you gave a small cry and came undone by his fingers and tongue

Bruce smiled to himself as he worked you through the spasms before trailing kisses up your stomach, leaving a few attentive one underneath your breasts, until finally reaching your mouth

He didn't even give you time to protest the kiss as his abdomen pressed against you while lining up at your entrance

He made sure to go slow as he felt you shake slightly under him with your nails softly digging into his back

He kept his thrusts shallow as he pulled away to watched your expression as you let out small whines of pleasure

He moved one hand to rest on the side of your stomach as the other held your chin to keep you looking at him

He groaned at the way you tightened around him as he felt a small kick come from your lower stomach

He sweetly kissed you again before pulling away enough to speak with a smirk spread across his face

"Oh, aren't you just a beautiful momma?" "Still able to take me so well after so long." "I should just keep you like this for the rest of our lives."

Bruce gave a small laugh at the last thought as he gave one final thrust before you tightened around his cock

He almost let a small taunt out about you enjoying the idea of him already keeping you there, but just smiled as he trailed a finger over your cheek

It didn't take much longer for Bruce to find his own release with a deep groan

He waited a moment before pulling out and going to the bathroom to get a warm washcloth

He affectionately shook his head when he saw you had already fallen back to sleep with a calm grin on your face

He gently wiped the mess between you thighs away before tracing his fingers over you stomach for a a few moments

He quickly got rid of the cloth before putting on a fresh pair of boxers and slipping under the covers

Bruce moved his arms around you while laying down to get a few hours sleep himself

The next couple weeks, Bruce made sure to shower you with as much affection as he thought you deserved

You and the others simply assumed it was because you were steadily getting closer to your due date

But he did it to help build the emotional vulnerability you would ultimately go through after giving birth

He knew you would go through a strong surge of hormones that would cause you to rely on him even more

It all going to be for the best in the end because Bruce just needs you to realize how much he truly loves you and will always be there for you

What better way is there to convince someone to agree to marry you?

Bruce already had a ring picked out and the speech he would give on what each of the kids would do to be included in the wedding

He would still have you pick out all the important things that you wanted like the flowers, dress, location and every other aspect you wanted

But he had to be patient until after the twins had been born for at least a few months before asking you

But to get you to be apart of the family more than you already were? Oh, Bruce was nothing but determined.

[docdudo]

Hi!! I want to start by saying I absolutely love your writing! It’s great writing and is pretty good for me to understand (English isn’t my first language).

I just wanted to ask, How do you think poly hybrid 141 would react to adopted reader getting sick?? And I mean really sick, like a good case of the flu that takes a whole week, like 7 days and antibiotics to go away??

I could see them being so worried and stressed, taking her to doctors and everything because they get better in 24-48 hours with their fancy strong immune systems! I also wonder if adopted reader would be confused by going to the doctors, because if anything happend while in previous foster homes, she was told to just figure it out and get better on her own.

You are right about one thing: hybrids have a better immune system than humans do!

Humans are considered weak and frail in every sense of the word. That includes their health. In fact, a human's health is so discussed that specialists from other races all study the human body constantly so they would be able to treat one, would they ever needed it.

(Because of the lack of total humans on this universe, it's rare to find a human doctor, for example. So, other races have to cover for them in a lot of different fields. There are programs and organizations in this world that entierelly foucused on making sure the few humans that exist would get the care they need. So, for example, if you are a doctor and also specialize on taking care of humans beside some other race, you would probably be paid more by the governement).

Now, little reader getting sick? Like, really sick? Yeah, that house is turning upside down. As hybrids, the whole 141 pride themselves on being good caretakers and providers. They also know how much more frail humans are compared to them.

But know is different from experiencing.

Little reader would start off with the typical signs of the flu. Stuffy nose, throat a bit sore, a sluggish body. All that. But, as we all know, it's very quick for sickness to develop. And in the spam of a night, little reader is waking up with a high fever and a weak, useless body.

The 141 would notice almost immediatly. They can smell how sick you are, even from your room. That weird, almost sour smell that we can usually smell when we blow our nose.

Before you know it, you would probably be in Price's or Soap's arms, surronded by their warmth, hearing their cooed words that make zero to almost no sense to your sick and hazy mind.

And at first, they are very much panicking. They are calling the rest of their pack while cooing and conforting you, Laswell being the one to tell them to immediatly take you to the doctor.

And they do, everyone going on the car together, because if one of them had anything to do that day, it's immediatly getting canceled. They would still hold you close, on their laps, and every single one of them are cooing quietly at you. Even Ghost. Tho his "cooing" sounds more like his normal voice, just extra quiet and gentler than usual.

And it's true, you're not that used to going to the doctor. You usually never get that sick, and as a foster kid, it just doesn't happen often.

But, you were feeling pretty hazy, mind clouded and feverish. You barely remember going that first time to the doctor with them.

You barely remember the kind doctor that was trying his best to easy your foster parents' worries, and all the examination he did on you, even if you couldnt cooperate much with how confused you were.

You certainly got treated at the hospital and monitored until your fever came down a bit. After that, they send you back home with your parents, who had gotten a lot of new instructions and medicines to properly take care of you at home.

You took almost a full week to finally start getting better.

They would't let you sleep in your room anymore, since you got sick, you had been sleeping on their shared nest, with them. They would constantly check on your breathing and heartbeats, and would even feed you themselves and make sure you were plenty hydrated.

And even after you got better, they would still be extra careful and overbearing for a little while longer.

You can be sure that they would be taking extra measures now so that you never get sick again.

[honey-minded-hivemind]

In a Lovesick AU, where yanderes are a known part of society, and darlings/bbys are as well, working like A/B/O with being a gender... Imagine Reader hides they're a bby.

They're this random teen or young adult who is tired constantly, does side jobs amd odd tasks to earn money, drinks coffee and sugar to stay awake and alert, and struggles to function amongst others. Reader is able to pass themself off as a yandere, just barely, due to having OCD and using that as a shield between anyone who suspects them. Reader is friends with the teens, and does their best to get along with the adults, as well as most of the school and it's students and faculty. This leads to Reader being well-liked by most, who have a respect for them, someone who seems to try and help others and has no hidden agenda, and someone who respects boundaries, and who leave everyone to their own devices...

What Reader doesn't know is this leads the yanderes and yanlings (baby/kid/teen/young adult yanderes) to really want their friendship and advice. Reader seems to know how to please others and is pretty chill, so why not try to befriend them or have them on their side? They think Reader is a pretty chill yandere, a surprise to almost everyone who meets them. Reader is funny, kind, smart, and obsesses over cute or odd topics! They'd be a lucky person to have! Except... they aren't a darling or bby. And no one can exactly touch them or make a move without getting into legal trouble unless Reader is okay with it (because they're registered as a yanling) or if they were a bby... If they were a bby, they'd have to have a yandere, or some support system, as yanderes protect darlings and bbys, they're meant to do that, they're supposed to he strong and caring and steadfast, not swerving or rejecting them, or letting anyone mess with their bby... And darlings are loving, caring beings, who give love and bring hope and provide care and comfort... Wars were started in ancient times over darlings... They're rare, usually being hidden away or dying early on, due to their diffent biology and pheromones and needs than yanderes...

Reader likes their odd friends and the school and their friends' strange mentors, but always always a distance between themself and everyone. They know they're different, they know others wouldn't let them be on their own if they knew the truth, and so many people could hurt them or abuse them or experiment on them if they found out... It keeps Reader up at night, it fuels their paranoia, it makes them add extra locks to their doors and windows and set up traps if they had a nightmare... They want connection, to have family, to be loved... darlings need that, so badly... it's why so many die, because they don't get enough, or they end up in horrible situations so young, and they simply wither away, dying... Reader couldn't stand that to happen to them. Couldn't stand to become a shell of themself. So they hide, they keep scent blockers so mutants, who have heightened senses, can't detect anything different about them. Reader even hones their mutation in secret, no matter how good or bad, controlled or destructive, they are, so they can defend themself if worst comes to worst...

It all goes to H*ll when an accident happens, perhaps a fight or getting wounded or just being caught unaware, and now the platonic yans, at least a handful, know what Reader is. And they're... shocked. Elated. Worried. Their friend or kids' friend is a bby... They've been on their own. With no yandere. No help. And they're still alive? It's a rough night for them, as they struggle struggle what to do. They can't leave Reader like that. It wouldn't be right, would it? Bbys need more love and care than yanderes, needing someone to keep giving it, constantly... Without it, they tend to get sickly, or go insane, or die... And if that happened to Reader, they wouldn't forgive themselves...

It's not much of a choice to them. They tell their team, they possibly alert the other group, and devise a way to get Reader to join them. If they can manage, they want Reader to join willingly. If not, they'd have to kidnap them or force them to stay, which could harm them or damage their trust and their instincts. They know Reader is now scared of them, even if they brush it off or try to hide it. Reader says they're fine, but they know they aren't. They see them being more alert, more wary. They see how they are more deceptive, more careful, with what they say and do. They even seem to be thinking of leaving, or hiding themself... And that behavior won't help them, or make anything easier.

They have a plan, they just need to hope Reader doesn't catch on untik they're finally somewhere safe, preferably where they can do a check-up and figure out what they need to feel better and accept them as their family...

[behindthesoul]

Your MK men as parents headcanons are very interesting. Would you write other MK men as parents? Especially I want to read Rain and Havik!

MK Men as Parents pt2

Masterlist || Part One

Characters: Rain, Havik, Quan Chi, Kenshi

Note: Combined a couple of requests into one. Also, sorry this one took forever to come out!

Rain

Probably one of the more normal parents.

He’s a lot more chill compared to himself in other timelines. I can see him being a proud parent to one or two children. Maybe twins?

Teaches his kids to be a better mage than he is. He tries to make his lessons as fun as he possibly can.

Though, he can become frustrated if they aren't taking their teachings seriously. If something were to happen, they need to learn how to defend themselves.

In some MK1 intros you can tell Mileena (understandably) has a lot of distaste for Rain. So much that she wants his mother banished.

I can imagine his children are involved in this banishment which irritates him. His family, especially his innocent children, do not deserve to be punished for his actions.

The main driving force behind Rain’s mission to atone for his actions is his children. He wants to show that if you make a mistake, you should try to make things right. He also wants to be a man his children can be proud of.

Havik

A pretty hands off parent.

I can’t imagine him ever having a complete grasp on this parenting thing.

Just has one kid and refuses to have more.

His kid just kind of does whatever and Havik doesn’t care. Just as long as they don’t make a mess he has to clean up.

Has the “world’s your oyster” mentality.

This behavior is boosted to 100% after his burns. He embraces the chaos, and what’s more chaotic than having a kid?

Havik and his kid are public menaces, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

He’s less of a parent and more of a cool older friend.

Don’t come to him for emotional support or other things like that. Having to actually parent his kid makes him feel tied down.

If his kid wants too much from him he’ll somewhat drift away.

You’ll have to hope their other parent is in the picture.

Quan Chi

Totally the parent who somehow knows their kid’s every move.

He knows when their kid has done something they shouldn’t so there’s never any use in lying to him. He just has this look on his face and his kid knows they’re in trouble.

Excuse my only child self for HCing every character as being a single parent but Quan Chi definitely only has enough energy for one kid.

He feels guilty for bringing a child into the world when he can barely take care of himself. Spending hours and hours in the mines, Quan Chi is exhausted by the time he sees his kid.

All his child knows is a dad who always looks tired and dejected.

That is, until he gets an opportunity to live a better life. A place to sleep, clothes that aren’t tattered, and fresh food - all necessities that his child now gets to experience.

Whenever his child asks how he was able to provide their new life, he just smiles and gives a cryptic answer.

Kenshi

His child was kept hidden. Kenshi thought it best to keep his child away from the whole Earthrealm-Outworld war.

None of his allies knew he was a father til the day they were all thrown in jail with Baraka. Thinking it was his last day on earth, he let the secret spill. Kenshi told everyone all about his child.

He mourned the fact he’d probably never see his child again. Of course, he did; after he helped defeat Titan Shang Tsung.

Kenshi was very nervous to meet his child again. What if they don’t react well to his blindness? Johnny pulls him out of his negative thinking. If your kid is as kind as they say you are, then why would they have a bad reaction?

It eases him a bit, but he’s still a little nervous. He feels like a fool for having those thoughts when his child runs to him, screaming his name. The last few weeks of fighting for Earthrealm was all worth it for them.

His child is a bit confused when they see the mask over his eyes.

“You can’t see me!” They say with a frown.

Sento glows, and Kenshi suddenly sees all the details of his child’s face. He smiles, assuring them.

“Yes I can.”

—

@mortal-kombat-shitposts

[iamfuckingsorry]

Thinking about that mural from DE

You know which one

TRUE LOVE IS POSSIBLE ONLY IN THE NEXT WORLD, FOR THE NEW PEOPLE. IT IS TOO LATE FOR US. WREAK HAVOC ON THE MIDDLE CLASS

The next world mural. In the game, you encounter this piece very early on if you interact with everything available, you probably see this mural before you've ever even heard of Dora or before you've started to get really serious about your commie tendencies, if that's how you choose to play. And the reaction is like, "wow, this is kinda profound actually". Or maybe it's like, "oh lol, this game really is commie af isn't it" (even though later on it turns out that the game is much more critical of communism than you'd think at first). And the story in the ledger provides some insight into Harry and Jean and how they work together too, so it feels like it makes sense, it fits in very well at that moment in the game and that's it.

But looking back at this mural after you've played through the entire game, knowing what you know of Harry's relationship with Dora...

It's Harry's own fucking love story in a way, isn't it?

Him and Dora came from very different backgrounds. He's genuinely poor, grew up checking the trash cans on the streets for tare and edible food, spent his teenage years running around with a bunch of kids who all OD'd or got themselves killed one way or another over the years. He had dreams of getting an education, getting a chance to use his creativity and curiosity and learn about all that that is worth exploring in this world (which is everything), but those dreams are long dead. She's solidly middle class, with access to all the education and art and music he's always dreamt of, with her family to always fall back on. She's everything Harry's ever dreamt of growing up. She might as well be living in another world.

They fall in love with each other and she moves to Jamrock to live with him. Jamrock, the biggest fucking ghetto in Revachol, full of tweakers and gangsters and just thousands upon thousands of poor people permanently down on their luck trying to get by, with no proper aid or government and a police station so understaffed and underfunded they never even stood a chance. And they can barely make ends meet even living in Jamrock, moving from shithole to shithole, never knowing when they'll have their electricity cut, when something will happen that gets them thrown out, desperately scrambling for a new place to stay. And Dora could never do that, not really - she never actually lived in Jamrock, she always had the possibility of leaving, of going to work across the river and visiting her parents whenever she felt like it or just escaping, packing her shit and getting on the tram and never going back. And as long as she knew she wasn't really, truly stuck in this miserable shithole forever, she wasn't ever really living in Jamrock. And it could never be enough for her.

And she wanted more - for herself, for Harry, for their family, who even knows. Maybe she saw Harry struggling trying and failing to make a difference as a gym teacher and thought he could do more good with the RCM. Maybe she was getting desperate, living in this fucking shithole, and thought they needed more money. Maybe it was something completely else - but what is certain is that Harry ended up joining the RCM, and the 41st, and everyone there is on speed, everyone is miserable and desperate and always running behind playing catch up with the case load, with the crimes, with the drug addicts and rapists and murderers, and Harry, who's always been like this close to a genuine mental breakdown, just fucking falls apart. He needs to help people, needs to make a difference, and working at the 41st, with the budget and case load and staffing situation and the pure fucking misery in the area. He goes out and meets a miserable person after a miserable person and he can't do anything else than be nice, make their day a little bit more manageable, do his best- but he knows that no matter what he does, his best won't be enough. He won't be able to make a dent in the pure fucking misery that is Jamrock. But he needs to, so he drinks, he smokes, he does drugs, he loses any semblance of control he ever had over the voices in his head, the dude telling him to hit shit and the dude telling him to forget everything and just get fucked up and Revachol herself screaming at him about her imminent death. And in the end Dora can't stand it anymore and she leaves (and, honestly, good for her. I'm happy for her. But this is about Harry, and Harry isn't, he isn't able to be happy for her at this point in time).

And like. I personally doubt that she'd have left just because of the money if everything else was good. I honestly even doubt that the money was that big of an issue for her to start with, it was all the other issues first and then the fact that they couldn't even rent a fucking VHS and play it at times became just one more thing on top of this already massive pile of shit that broke the proverbial camel's back. But in Harry's mind, he was never rich enough for her. She was always the middle class girl who settled for the poor fuck, and he was never gonna be good enough for her because he was just a broke dude from Jamrock. She was perfect and so so beautiful and at one point her love was the only thing keeping him going, and then she left because he couldn't even

And from what we can see in the game she was the only person he's ever really, truly loved.

But in his mind, they could never be together again. They could try as they might, but it was never gonna work out, because she was a rich girl and he was just a poor miserable fuck. He grew up looking for change on the streets, she took piano lessons in a fancy part of town. The difference was just too large to ever truly be bridged.

So for post-breakup Harry, prior to Martinaise and even during the events in Martinaise, true love was never actually possible. It is possible only for the new people, in the next world. It was too late for him - he had his chance, and it was an impossible thing, it could never have worked out and now he's wasted it. Because of the inherent differences between different social classes. It is too late for him. So yeah, fuck it, wreak havoc on the fucking middle class. Fuck those rich bastards who took Dora from him, and fuck Dora too.

On another note, this was also one of the most recent cases him and Jean worked on prior to Martinaise. I don't remember the date exactly, but it was in his last ledger, it must have been pretty recent. Do you think he saw the mural and thought about it the same way I did? Maybe this was the one that truly pushed him over the edge? The impossible love. It truly was too late for him. The only way to fix it is a new fucking start. And how do you get that?

After life - death. After death - life again.

[kindheart525]

I can’t make a Smiling Friends next gen without showing what our own Allan Red is up to! Other than paying for abortions of course /j

Allan never really thought about having kids or starting a family. Sure, he has the occasional one night stand, but that doesn’t mean he expects them to go anywhere. Plus he doesn’t like little critters running around and invading his space, even without counting the especially bad experience he’s had with that. Once his coworkers start having kids and he’s forced to be around the rowdy little ras-cales, it only affirms for Allan that this is not the life he wants. He does not like kids and isn’t eager to get married either. In my personal headcanon he’s on the aromantic spectrum, but Allan doesn’t care to label himself like that. All he would say is that he’s simply not interested and he has better things to do.

But that doesn’t mean Allan is a total loner. He cares about his friends and enjoys a little companionship even though it’s not the kind most critters prioritize in their lives. So as the rest of his friends took on the title of “father,” Allan became a proud cat owner! But don’t call him a “cat dad” or the cats his “fur babies” or anything like that; he finds the whole thing to be pretty ridiculous. 

To him they’re more like roommates and close friends who he happens to feed and clean up after. They’re quiet, well-behaved, and nothing like his friends’ children (who aren’t allowed to meet the cats for the most part). He finds it insulting for them to be compared to children and arguably the cats are insulted by that too. I don’t know, their faces just all look like that. 

Here are the cats themselves:

Noodle (pronounced “New-dell”) is the Foreign Shorthair that Allan adopted when his friends’ kids were little and who he owned throughout his 30s. He fits the classic “pet looks like their owner” stereotype with his squinty, judgmental eyes, his long gangly limbs, and his unusual “honking” meows that kind of sound like Allan’s monotone voice. He’s very selective with his affection yet seems to think of himself as some kind of god; he’ll scratch almost everyone who touches him but will loudly demand that Allan carry him around everywhere like a king on his throne. Allan will argue with Noodle over who’s really the boss of the house, but oblige anyway to keep him satisfied.

Coca Cola and Pepsi (pronounced “Cokey Coh-lah” and “Bepis”) are a bonded pair of Sphinx cats who serve as Allan’s companions during his midlife. Much like Noodle before them (and most cats to be honest), they have a god complex and expect to be treated like royalty, which is amplified by these littermates egging each other on in everything they do. They’re like a sassy villain duo that you would see on TV, causing mischief in their stylish coordinated sweaters that Allan paid a lot of money for (“it isn’t a fash-awn statement, they have a medical condition-uh”). One minute they’re screaming at their owner to feed them and the next they’re looking photoshoot ready, so you can never expect what kind of mood they’ll be in.

Quesadilla (pronounced “Queue-salahd-yuh”) is Allan’s final and longest-lived cat. An ugly, scraggly black hairball since kittenhood, she was the runt of her litter and the last to get adopted, but ended up outliving all of them. Allan takes excellent care of all of his cats, providing them the best food, enrichment, and exercise he can reasonably afford, but even he is surprised at Quesadilla’s longevity. She makes it to almost 30 years old! He didn’t even have to spend a fortune at the vet to keep her alive like some critters do for their pathetic little dogs—Quesadilla would kill the vet herself if he did subject her to that. Even as she slowed down, even when she was blind, deaf, and could barely walk straight, she stayed alive out of pure spite.

[fictionadventurer]

I usually don't think there should be any more books in the Hunger Games universe, because these stories are so tied up in the message that you can't just spin off stories about other Hunger Games without it feeling exploitative.

However, two concepts that I think could provide interesting new angles for exploring human nature are:

A book about the early years of District 13. Having to hide underground while your city is being fake-nuked into oblivion. Having to build some sort of society in this extremely restricted and resource-scarce environment. Trying to balance the need to make a society that allows some form of hope and happiness while also dealing with very grim realities. Might work best to have the POV be a fairly young child, maybe seven or eight years old, who is too young to quite understand what's going on or to protest what's happening, but is also just old enough to remember when life wasn't like this, and having to decide as they get older just how much they want to go along with the new regime or if they want to fight for something better.

A book about the Victors in the years when they're used as mentors for each year's games. Exploring the trauma of having to send children into the same hellhole you barely survived, knowing only one kid can survive, and there's a 92% chance it won't be one of yours. Exploring the bonds between the people trapped in this horrific system, how some are enthusiastic participants in a system that they see themselves as "superior" enough to win in, while others are horrified by it and trapped by threats toward themselves and their loved ones, and all these people have to work together every year. How they slowly start to build a revolution, even while knowing this will just expand the violence of the Hunger Games out into the wider world. If you want to keep it YA, I guess the POV could be someone who won their Games relatively young, so they're brought in as a teenager just finding their place in this system, and mature into someone who has to decide just where they stand in the growing unrest.

[nyxthejinx]

Yae Miko is woman of mystery who never tells you what she wants outright and keeps her true feelings hidden most of the time, however the moment her little one calls her Mama while tending to some duties with Ei , she cries. At first she doesn’t believe what she hears and asks Ei if she heard it too only for her little one to say it again, this time louder and Yae can’t help but to rush over and scoop them up and shower them in kisses. To make the moment even more sweeter they call Ei “Obasan” or aunty. Now the archon is crying as well

I'm so glad I had a chance to see my two of fave lesbians again while playing Inazuma quest, it gave me the brain juice I love them sm. Sorry for being atrociously late 🥲

The night your presumed parents left you at the Shrine's gate, it was thundering as though the Shogun was trying to tear apart the sky. And Yae Miko, ever so attentive, was able to bring you in before you drowned in your own drenched covers.

She finds herself more intrigued than anything, wondering why such a small thing would be abandoned, so defenceless in a world so, so cruel. And by her door no less.

But she also knows that certain questions would never be answered, that it is a waste of time to ponder over something so meager. Instead, she focuses on tending to your basic needs and provides a home. Her home, for you.

You'd make a great devotee to the shrine, it's all she thinks at first.

And without realising it, a year or so goes by.

The Guuji doesn't sugar coat her words, but she also doesn't outwardly express her feelings. She's a skilled orator when it comes to pushing the conversation around as she pleases, the few who dare ask about her precious little one left with nothing but subtle hints to drop it.

Aside from the Shrine Maidens, who've been there long enough to figure things out themselves, nobody knows what is Yae's deal with you.

Even the mighty Shogun, presenting herself as Ei the first times she leaves her Plane, takes a bit too long to truly realise how smitten Miko is for you, human child, wobbly on your legs, who apparently has yet to utter a word.

Needless to say not even Raiden is immune to your adorable charm.

Both of them are quick to come to terms with this weakness of theirs, and devote as much time as possible to you, not noticing the second year of your life passing by.

But their profound affection also brings them -especially Ei- to frighten easily over the smallest things. You're a fragile being, after all, and they're not new to loss. If a god can die so easily in such a cruel world, what would it be of you?

This also means Yae silently worries over the fact that you still haven't spoken a world, despite growing at an incredible speed in the past two years. Is it a sign of physical and/or mental discomfort? Did she do something wrong, despite her best efforts on understanding deeper the human nature?

Miko lets you play with one of her Gohei's to entertain yourself, while both Ei and she voice their concerns to the Maidens. Some of them insist that kids grow and develop at different speeds, others remark that maybe grabbing a doctor would be best, just in case.

And never in the past five centuries the god and her pet had felt so distressed over someone they'd known for such a short period of time.

What is a couple years to endless beings such as them? What is two years to you? Too much? Not enough?-

"Mama! Mama! 'Basan! Look!!"

The Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine stills, barely able to take a look from the corner of her eye, as she sees you emulating one of their traditional dances at the best of your abilities.

It's wonky, mostly wrong, completely inaccurate and chaotic.

But her vision fogs up at how content and eager you are doing your little thing.

Ei lays a hand on Miko's shoulder, the other covering her mouth. The two share a quick look, then gaze back to your figure, utterly mesmerised.

"It good?" You pant, tired from the amount of effort you'd put into the performance. And the second after you're off the ground, in Yae's arms, as she covers your cheeks with affectionate kisses, Ei stroking your head with incredible delicacy.

Both smiling, uncaring of those around them. As the only thing that matters is you.

DON'T copy/repost my work. REBLOG instead! ©nyxthejinx

[ashestoashesjc]

Every newlywed should be aware of two things. 

Firstly, anyone calling your wedding the most beautiful ceremony they’ve ever witnessed is as full of it as an aunt complimenting your newborn baby. We know he looks like a canned chicken, sister, you’re not fooling anyone.

And second, expect early on for each additional year of marriage to invite exciting new unsolicited lines of inquiry. 

Year One - Still in your honeymoon phase, eh? That’ll pass. 

Year Two - Where are you two living now? Renting or owning? Because I have a pal who knows the market and he says…

Year Three (to repeat until withered or assumed barren) - Still no kids? 

Now approaching the end of Year Four, Sophie and Ben (still very much into one another, still leasing their apartment in six month stints, and, critically, still childless) had, in many eyes, done marriage bad. 

And, of course, there was that one other thing. 

Currently, while Sophie and Ben were busy making themselves presentable to the outside world, her for a first day aboard the lead team at GD Consulting, him for his managerial turn at the Discount Furniture Coliseum, that one other thing lay sprawled across their bed with one leg dangling over the edge, a thick comforter only barely concealing his indecency. 

Mark rose and stretched with the leisure of a man who answered to no one.

Until around two in the afternoon, that is, when he answered to the temp agency. One of the best parts of the job in his eyes was the flexibility, and Mark was nothing if not flexible. Every now and again you got a gig with a 5 am call time or some laundry list of strict guidelines for an employee to mind, but that paled in comparison to a job like today’s. 

When he walked into the kitchen, Ben was sitting at the breakfast table, steaming mug in hand, hair still glistening raven-like from the shower. His back was to the door. Mark saw this and found himself suddenly overcome with an irresistible urge. 

“Hey!” exclaimed Ben in a start, as Mark’s fingers searched through and mussed his hair, sending droplets sprinkling over the vinyl tablecloth. 

“Hey,” replied Mark, taking up the seat beside him. 

“Not cool, man.” Ben went to work flattening his hair back down. “It takes forever to get this cowlick to sit right.”

Grabbing an apple from the bowl at the center of the table, Mark tossed it in the air. Caught it, tossed it, caught it. Without intending to, Ben’s eyes followed the motion. 

“I dunno,” said Mark. He bit into the apple. A sharp crunch. Juice ran down his lip, down his chin, dripped slowly onto his thigh. “I think it’s cute.”  

Ben gulped. He changed the subject. “You’re still doing the carnival?”

Mark grinned. He had, as a kid, yearned to become a carny. Picking up and moving from one city to the next, your sole responsibility one of providing joy, all the elephant ears a stomach could stomach.

It was a neglected child’s dream. And while the adult he grew into had fewer romantic notions of carny life, the bright, spinning lights, the screaming children, the strong notes of popcorn wafting through the air, still made him smile. 

“Hell yeah I am,” said Mark, glowing. “You and Phee should stop by. Do a date night.”

Ben perked up. “Hey, that’s a pretty good idea.”

“Don’t sound too surprised.”

“It’s just, uh…” said Ben, “wouldn’t that be a little awkward? With you working there?”

Mark hadn’t thought of that. But he couldn’t fathom why it would be. “I get to watch two people I’m crazy about have a good time? Nothing awkward about it.” 

“Nothing awkward about what?” Sophie entered then, hopping, tugging on a shoe, her briefcase tucked under her arm. Ben stood to peck her cheek and pull out a chair, which she gladly accepted. She sat to pull on the other shoe. 

Taking back his own seat, Ben said, “Mark wants us to come to his carnival.”

“Like on a date?” asked Sophie, laying down the gray leather briefcase beside her. 

“Like on a date,” confirmed Mark. 

She looked between the two of them. “Why’s that awkward?”

“That’s what I’m saying,” said Mark. 

“Seriously? You guys have never heard of FOMO?”

“Famous Otters Making Omelets?”

“Filthy Oven Mitt Orgy?”

“Fat Owl Muffin Organization?”

“From Our Miner’s Orifices?”

“Forget I asked,” said Ben. 

[skzhocomments]

In the Dark - Choi Minho SHINee Fanfic - Chapter 2 - Take my breath away

General masterlist

Story masterlist - please consult it for the summary of the story, trigger warnings etc.

Wattpad | AO3

Chapter 1 | Chapter 3

---

Chapter 2 - Take my breath away

chapter word count: ~6.6k words

~Jieun’s POV~

Mondays are always the worst day of the week, as the weekend barely provides enough time to actually recharge and get my energy back after dealing with screaming children for 5 days straight.

I love my job, but teaching elementary school kids their 2+2s and ABCs is not exactly the dream, is it?

It was mine, though. I’ve always loved kids and found a lot of fascination in the idea of bringing up someone, in being able to shape a small person’s thoughts and ideas, in being able to perhaps influence them so that they would remember you 20 years later when they’re all grown up and successful. I wanted them to look back at this time spent with me in our small classroom fondly, to create a safe space for them so that they can grow up into the best version of themselves.

It's still my dream, but the problem is the money, that is hardly enough for my current expenses. Ever since my grandmother got sick, I knew I had to uproot our lives, and I brought her here, in the biggest city of our country, after managing to secure a job as a teacher at a small school in a quiet neighbourhood, so that she can have access to the best healthcare. Her hospital bills and meds, though, combined with my rent and food, are a fatal combination for my paycheck.

But you know the saying: desperate times call for desperate measures.

I was no different, and I knew that if my grandmother were to ever find out what I was doing in order to keep her hospitalized with 24/7 care available, she would at best disown me, at worst kill me with her bare hands.

inthedark.com

A website where you would essentially apply to become a high-end prostitute. A site that’s supposed to keep your identity completely private, and your clients’, too.

I joined this website one week ago and had my first client last Saturday, and for just two hours with him, I got almost half of my school paycheck. He also tipped me 200$, which was crazy. Who tips a prostitute that much?

I shouldn’t be doing this, I know, but what was I supposed to do? Let the person who raised me pass away in pain, when I knew she could get treatment to help her live a decent life for a few more years?

~

I lazily got out of bed and headed to school. It was 7:30 AM, and the school was just a few minutes’ walk away.

I liked to get there earlier so that I could rearrange the kid’s seats and make sure my classroom is perfect. We had an art contest last week, and I wanted to put all the paintings on display on the wall for the kids to see. I wanted to set up my cookie jar as well, because the best way to start the day for anyone would be with a nice little treat.

“Miss Park, good morning!” The director of the school, a lady well in her late 50s was inside of my classroom and welcomed me with a big smile on her face. Next to her, a tall, slim good-looking man holding a little girl’s hand smiled as welcoming as the director.

“Good morning, Mrs. Wang. What brings you here so early in the morning?” I returned their smiles and nodded briefly at the man, then turned my attention to the little girl hiding behind her dad’s leg. I waved at her, but she only hid her face more.

“Well, we have a new transfer student. Dear, won’t you introduce yourself?” Mrs. Wang tried to get the little girl to talk and looked at her expectedly. “Come on, we don’t have the whole morning!” She continued, making the little girl turn her head away, and a frown appear on her father’s face. Forcing a shy kid to say anything would prove pointless, so I tried to diffuse the situation.

“Actually,” I started, “we do have the whole morning. What a beautiful day to get to know each other, don’t you think?” I smiled brightly and took a few careful steps towards the dad-daughter pair, letting myself fall on my knees to be on the same height as the girl.

“Well, I’ll let you handle this. It was nice meeting you, Mr. Choi.” The director smiled and left the room.

After the director left, the girl seemed a bit less tense. Her father caressed the back of her beautiful, long, brown, curly hair, and spoke kind words.

“It’s okay, baby. You can tell the nice teacher your name.”

The girl still shook her head, and her dad started apologising. “I’m really sorry, she’s not normally like this. Her name is-”

“That’s fine.” I cut him off. “We can learn each other’s names later, isn’t that right, beautiful?” I smiled at her lovingly, and she finally looked at me for a few seconds. “I have something really tasty for you and your future classmates.”

I rummaged through my bag and pulled out the large bag of chocolate cookies that I baked yesterday. “But I have to put them in that big jar on the desk. I’m not sure I can do it alone. Would you like to help me put the cookies in the jar? You can have two cookies if you help me, but it has to be our secret.” I whispered and placed my index finger against my lips, then winked.

The girl seemed excited, as she nodded eagerly with a bright smile on her face and ran to the desk. I followed her, and gave her the bag of cookies, letting her put each cookie into the jar; a simple activity that helped calm her down and warm up to me.

“Wow, you’re so good at this!” I praised her, and she chuckled like the innocent kid she was, reminding me of why I loved children so much. If I would ever have a daughter, I wanted her to be just as cute as this little girl who’s happily putting cookies in the jar one by one with her little hands.

“Done.” She smiled, showing me and her dad her work proudly.

“Well done, baby!” Her dad praised her as well.

“Now it’s time to eat a cookie!” I clapped my hands once, and the girl took some cookies out and came to me and her dad, handing them to us. Of course, we accepted and started eating them, as the girl grabbed a cookie for her as well and munched on it joyfully.

“How is it?” I asked the girl, watching her devour the treat.

“Tasty!” She exclaimed, making me and her dad look at each other and chuckle. “I love chocolate!”

“I’m glad you like it. I made them myself!” I boasted, then chuckled again. “My name is Park Jieun. I’m really happy to have you join my class, and I hope we’ll be best friends.” I told the girl, who nodded and replied.

“My name is Choi Nari. It’s nice to meet you, Miss Park. Can I hug you?”

“Of course, come here!” I positioned myself back on my knees and opened my arms to her, squeezing her tight. She was the sweetest little girl.

“Where will I sit?”

“Hmm, how about this seat here?” I went next to the first desk next to the window and pointed to the seat on the left, which hasn’t been occupied. “Your deskmate is a sweet girl just like you, and I think you’ll get along great.”

The girl happily ran towards her seat and her dad followed her, placing her small backpack on the table.

“Okay, Nari, daddy has to go to work.” The man spoke kindly. “I will come pick you up at 4, okay?”

“Okay daddy! I love you!” She waved.

“I love you the most!” He smiled and waved back, and I saw him out of the classroom.

We walked for a bit, and I closed the door behind us, giving Nari privacy to take out her stuff in peace and arrange them on her desk.

“Thank you so much, Miss. Park. Nari already seems better.”

“Nothing to thank me for, Mr… Choi?” I tilted my head and smiled, unsure.

“Oh, yes! I apologise, I completely forgot to properly introduce myself earlier. My name’s Choi Minho.” He nervously scratched his nape and handed me his hand, which I shook.

“No worries.” I chuckled. “May I ask why you transferred Nari in 2nd grade?”

“She… has been bullied at her old school, and…”

“Oh no.” I frowned. “I’m so sorry.”

“I hope she’ll be better here. She really seems to like you. Please take care of her and let me know if anything happens.” He bowed slightly.

“Of course. Please don’t worry about anything. She’s in good hands.” I assured him, and he raised his head.

Opening up his coat, he took out a small business card and handed it to me. “This is my number, please call me anytime if Nari needs anything, or if something’s wrong. Sometimes I’m a few minutes late to pick her up, but I’m going to try to be here on time. Still, could I also have your number in case I’m running late?”

“Of course.” I smiled and typed in his number from the business card in my phone, shooting him a quick text with my name.

“Thank you so much, Miss Park. I see kids are already starting to come, so I’m gonna leave you to your job. Have a nice day!”

“You too, Mr. Choi.” I smiled and stepped back into my classroom, where Nari already finished arranging her notebooks and was now excitedly looking at all the paintings on the walls.

Damn, the paintings! I cursed in my head, remembering I wanted to stick the ones from last week’s art contest on the walls, but it was already too late to do so.

Children started buzzing into the classroom, their parents holding their hands tightly and kissing their chubby cheeks goodbye, as the next time they would come pick them up would be in some many hours from now: 6, 7 or even 8, to be more precise. Even if the classes ended at 12, the school I secured a job at gave the working parents the possibility of coming late for pick up.

When the parents were gone and the whole class was seated, I asked Nari to come in front and I helped her introduce herself, making sure that she felt as comfortable as one shy child could in a new environment.

~

2 AM found me drinking tea on the small sofa in my rented apartment. Normal people would sleep this late on a Thursday night, but here I was browsing through people’s forms in Requests on the In the Dark app.

Meeting Charisma last week got me a lot of money, and ever since then, I’ve received a few requests from others, but I’ve been pretty reluctant to meet up with anyone else. Charisma set the bar quite high. Not only was he fit as fuck, which I could tell just by roaming my hands on his chest and perfectly sculpted abs and muscles, but he was genuinely good in bed too, not selfish, made sure I felt good and even made me cum, which was a first for a random hook-up, and certainly not what I expected when I signed up on inthedark.com as a prostitute.

His special requirements were also normal, compared to the others I’ve seen which were at best degenerate. I kept rejecting other ‘applicants’, but I wasn’t sure if I should keep my expectations high or just go with whoever was willing to pay the price I gave myself.

It felt horrible, objectifying myself like that, having to decide what my body sells for and actively selling it away. I have become just a trash toy for someone to use as they please. I have become damaged goods, an object purely crafted for sexual function. I have become dirt, and I was now a dirty woman.

inthedark.com was, after all, a dirty place stinking putrid. Even if the font was a fancy Centeria Script, the name shining in golden letters on a black screen, even if it looked presentable, drawing you in with every click, promising all and any fantasy, wild, rough sex under the pretense of a poor woman’s factual desire, it was just a filthy site, gaudy and cheap, like any other brothels out there. The more it seems to shine, the more it’s actually teeming with decay.

The only good things this site offered were how private everything was and letting me at least make the choice myself of who to sell my body to. There were extensive documents everyone who wanted to become a member – be it customer or whore – had to provide, from medical records to personal information that was stored to be used against you in case you would violate the terms and conditions. They would sue you to oblivion if you so much as brought a source of light in the room.

At least that.

It was private and it was safe from a medical point of view.

The first (and only) customer I had was this Charisma dude, who, as I said, set the bar in the fucking sky. He was respectful and treated me more like a partner than like a mere prostitute, even if he didn’t want to kiss me.

I understood that, for I probably was, in his eyes, a dirty whore who fucked men for money.

Still, I was really grateful that my first customer was Charisma. He didn’t know how many demons I was battling while letting him touch me and while touching him. He didn’t know how much I hated myself for disposing of my principles in exchange for my grandmother’s hospital bills. He didn’t know any of it. Still, he treated me with care. He didn’t degrade me more than I was already degrading myself, and I was thankful for that, because otherwise I didn’t know how I would’ve been able to live with my regrets and with this guilty feeling pressing down on my chest every time I breathed.

7 requests to go through. I sighed, still unsure if what I was doing was the right thing. I didn’t want to fuck strangers for money, in fact, I was always against women flaunting their tits and asses and pussies to earn some, but then again, I think there aren’t too many people that geuinely want to do this kind of work anyway, and how else was I supposed to get more money without it affecting my day-to-day life and job? It’s not like I could go get hired somewhere else and work another 6 hours per day for the whole month, just to get the same pay check I made after a few hours of sex.

Still, I really didn’t want to accept other forms. Charisma’s money was going to pay for my grandma’s care this month, so I could technically not get any clients until next month without any issues.

Yes, maybe I should just reject them all and whatever comes next month, I will take.

Another sigh left my lips as I looked at my now cold cup of tea, just as a ping forcefully pulled me out of my thoughts.

1 new notification – inthedark

I pressed on it and a new request popped up.

It was Charisma.

---

CHARISMA – personal form

THINGS I ENJOY: Hello Flame, I was hoping I would see you again this Saturday. Just like I mentioned in my last form, I love everything intimacy-related.

THINGS I DON’T WANT TO DO: No kissing on the lips, please.

CONDOM / NO CONDOM (if you pick the NO CONDOM option, you have to attach a report of a recent medical check-up that ensures you don’t have an STD): no condom

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS: Feels weird to communicate this way, but not knowing who you are and you not knowing who I am is probably better for both. I’m really sorry for the dirty question, but… how’s your gag reflex? I would love to fuck your throat if you’d let me :) Of course, that doesn’t mean I will forget about you.

---

Charisma wanted to see me again on Saturday night. He booked 4 hours this time.

I really didn’t want to accept other forms. But if it’s him…

I think… I might just accept it.

Why not?

He was great in bed. He paid attention to every part of my body.

He held me afterwards.

Why not?

I started reading through his form and found it very funny how he used each column to have a ‘conversation’ of sorts. All the other clients would simply write what they wanted or didn’t want, forgetting there was a human being on the other side of the form.

He even wrote please, for fuck’s sake. Did he forget I’m just a whore?

Of course, that doesn’t mean I will forget about you. He wrote that. Why? Does he want me to enjoy the sex that badly? He could just use my throat to get off and not even touch me at all, and it wouldn’t have mattered, because he doesn’t pay me to enjoy having sex with him. He pays me so he can cum inside or on me. So… why did he feel the need to mention my pleasure like that?

Is he also having second thoughts about this whole prostitution-thing?

Maybe I’m also the first harlot he’s seeing. What a funny thought. Maybe we’re just the same. It wouldn’t be so implausible, since his touches were so unsure at first, I almost felt like laughing. Shy in a whore house. Pfft.

I liked Charisma. He was a good customer to have.

I could just think of him as my fuck buddy to ease my guilty conscience, and if I would only see him, and he would hire me at least once a month, I wouldn’t have to fuck any sleazy guys. I could keep my dignity – in some way, anyway. This felt like cognitive dissonance, but it helped me not beat myself up over having a different guy pay me every week to endure him fucking me.

At least I enjoyed it with Charisma.

Yes. Okay.

---

FLAME – personal form

THINGS I ENJOY: Charisma, I really appreciate you booking me again. :) I’m quite happy, actually, to know you’ve enjoyed our last time together. Of course, I’m going to take care of you and hold onto you for the whole night. ;)

THINGS I DON’T WANT TO DO: I don’t enjoy pain, but you can slap my ass (please?), and even my face – not too hard! – if you’re into that, if you make sure you won’t leave any marks.

CONDOM / NO CONDOM: no condom

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS: My gag reflex is not so bad, but it might take some time to get used to you. Please take it slowly at first. If I can’t take it or need a break, I will tap on you three times.

---

Saturday came by quickly, and I was pacing back and forth around the dark room while waiting for Charisma. It was funny, really, not ever seeing how this room looks like in the light, but they’ve informed me when I first came here that the lights in the ‘bedroom’ stay off all the time to prevent any accidents from happening. Only the hallway is illuminated, and that light turns off automatically as well as soon as you press on the bedroom’s handle.

When I arrive here, the bedroom door is already open, so I have to walk into the room and shut the door behind me, which is when the mechanism starts working. The client then comes in the hallway, opens the bedroom door, and all lights in the whole place turn off. When the time is up, we hear a small bell sound, and I have to exit the room back into the hallway and close the door behind me.

The door locks automatically and the light turns on, and there is a clean white bathrobe waiting for me on the small shelf in the hallway. I must dress myself in it, then leave to another room on another floor, so that my client has the same privacy as I do. In that other room I can shower and chill out while a staff member brings me my clothes, previously discarded on the floor.

Now back on what happens to the client after I leave. The bedroom door would get unlocked, and he would have to go into the bathroom and clean up as well. While he does that, the staff member quickly collects all our clothes, and they leave the client’s on the small shelf in the hallway, and they bring mine, as I said.

Neither of us meets the staff members face to face. We sometimes hear them rummaging around, but we’ve already been instructed on the app prior to the meeting that we have to pretend they’re not there, and not try to meet them at all. Their identities are private. They have the same right to privacy as we do.

My clothes are brought to me in the hallway of my new room while I sit on the bed and watch TV or eat and drink stuff from the mini bar, but only after my client has left the building for a long time. Last time it took about 1 hour for my clothes to be brought to me, and I spent that time glancing around the room at the ugly yellow wallpaper with gaudy flowers on it, and the boring brown furniture. I wondered if the room Charisma and I used looked as disappointing as this one.

At least everything was clean.

-

I don’t know how long I waited for Charisma. Probably 20-something minutes, as I got here way earlier than I should’ve. I sat on the bed for the first many minutes, but I got bored and sleepy, being surrounded by complete darkness, so I decided to get up and just walk around the room, see if my hands recognise any décor from the room I did see.

My heels were getting uncomfortable, and I don’t know why I decided to wear them. I could’ve worn sneakers. My stupid brain just thought in a leap of judgment that this slutty short skirt I was wearing, that left virtually nothing to the imagination, fit way better with a pair of high heels. Both were black, but of course, I was the only one who had that information. The staff member that would have to pick them and my soaked wet panties from the floor and bring them to me would have it as well, in about four hours from now.

When the door finally opened, Charisma’s scent invaded my nostrils, just like last time. The perfume he used must’ve been expensive, but I didn’t recognise it.

Instead of waiting patiently for him to figure out where I am, like I did last time, I decided to be bolder and headed towards him directly. My eyes were already adjusted to the darkness in the room enough to be able to see shapes. Of course, there was no visible source of light, but it wasn’t pitch black either, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to notice where Charisma was.

He was a tall man with a nice build, and he frankly turned me on, thankfully.

When I got in front of him, he stopped moving, aware of my presence, and I pressed my hands on his face. If he were my date, or at least my hook-up or one night stand, I would’ve kissed him, but I knew better.

I knew he didn’t want it. Why did I want it? It made no sense.

I would’ve done it, though.

I would’ve raised on my tiptoes, even on these uncomfortable high heels, and I would’ve smiled at him and told him a small ‘hi’, and then I would’ve pressed my lips against his, and I would’ve let him stick his tongue down my throat and kiss me over and over while our hands would erratically grab each other’s bodies, for both of us were full of desire and wanted to feel a little bit closer.

But my contract doesn’t allow me to talk, and he doesn’t allow me to kiss him, and I don’t know why these thoughts even went through my head, because what genuine desire could there possibly be between a customer and his whore, besides purely sexual tension for a release?

He held my hands with his, that were still on his face, and he grabbed my right palm, letting my fingers brush over his lips so lightly, a feather must’ve felt heavier. Then, he pressed a gentle kiss on my fingertips, and my heart started beating faster, irregularly, uncontrolled.

He pulled my body into a hug and caressed the back of my hair as if he would’ve said ‘I missed you’, as if I were his lover, and I embraced him back, as confused as I was, feeling my head get lighter as I felt deprived of oxygen. He took all of it out of my lungs with such simple gestures.

When we separated, I started roaming his body with my hands, taking off his coat and unbuttoning his shirt slowly. We let all those useless garments fall down and I started kissing his neck and chest, biting his skin slightly, his small moans every time my lips touched his body turning me on way too much for him to just be a client that pays me to have sex with him. Who knew this could be so enjoyable to me?

Since I was meeting him for the second time, I already knew my way around his body, his firm muscles, where I needed to touch to make him squirm under my fingers. He was burning hot and he smelled good, and all my senses were intoxicated and full of him, so it was too easy to fall on my knees and unbuckle his belt, to take his already hard dick in my mouth.

Did I excite him that much for him to already be hard after just a few love bites on his chest and stomach?

As soon as my mouth made contact with his member, he let out a small groan. I wondered if his head was rolled back, if his eyes were closed, if he wanted to watch me suck his dick. If we would’ve seen each other and he would’ve looked at me, would’ve I looked right in his eyes to watch him become fucked up with the pleasure I’m causing?

What colour were his eyes? Brown? Green? Black?

I worked his dick down my throat to the best of my abilities, painfully aware of his written request of fucking it tonight. I wasn’t necessarily good at deep throats, but with enough ‘training’ and patience, I think I would be able to take a good fucking, even if it would leave my throat sore the next day.

Charisma was thankfully patient, for now at least. He let me suck him off the way I wanted to, his small moans would compliment me and encourage me to keep going, and his large hand on the top of my head was there just to caress me, not to push me or hasten me in any way.

He showered beforehand; much to my delight, he tasted good, and he was well groomed. This, combined with the fact that his body was sculped by some Greek God, made me wonder why he came to see a prostitute in the first place. It shouldn’t have been difficult to get any dates.

Maybe he’s ugly.

The thought sounded wrong in my head. Somehow, I didn’t even want to imagine this a possibility, for it was simply impossible for Charisma, who treated me so gently, who smelled so good and was so tidy, who certainly spent years in the gym to train this perfect body under my fingertips, to not be good looking.

Maybe he looks like that dad of the new girl in my class. He is handsome enough, and they seem to be of similar heights anyway.

A dangerous thought came through my head, but I tried to get rid of it as soon as it came.

Use Choi Minho as a visual representation of Charisma. He’s hot and handsome, and they’re the same height.

Of course, doing this to my mental health wasn’t a good idea. Charisma was Charisma, a faceless man I enjoyed fucking whenever he wanted to meet me.

I should never navigate on that territory of imagining him to be someone I know in real life that I see every day while he drops off and picks up his daughter from school. He’s probably married anyway, and I’m not a homewrecker. Not intentionally, at least. Charisma might be married too, but I didn’t feel any rings on his fingers last time we met. Of course, men are men, and he could’ve just taken it off, but even if he didn’t, it wouldn’t have mattered, because he was paying me for the few hours spent together, and I couldn’t get out of the agreement anyway.

I continued sucking Charisma off, and I started getting used to the pressure down my throat. Even if I was choking a bit on my saliva that was now uncontrollably smearing my face and falling on my clothes and probably on the floor, the feeling in my neck wasn’t that unpleasant, and I was glad that I didn’t feel like throwing up.

Charisma must’ve felt it too, because he grabbed my face and pulled away, then helped me stand up. He used his hands to clean up my chin, then helped me towards the bed. I laid down, my head on the edge of the mattress, as he aligned his dick with my mouth.

I opened wide, but he hesitated for a bit.

Is this okay? Is what his hesitation made me think he wanted to ask, if he were allowed to talk. Of course, he signed the same forms as me, so we weren’t allowed to utter any more than desperate sobs, moans, grunts and whines, but that’s what it felt like he was asking, so I placed my hands on the back of his now naked thighs and pulled him towards me.

He pushed his dick in my mouth, and I took it in fully, and he stayed there, balls deep, for a few seconds, taking my breath away. Then, he pulled out and I caught my breath. He didn’t leave me too many seconds to do so, as he entered my mouth again and started keeping a steady pace of fucking my throat deep and quick while holding my neck with his right hand. He squeezed and I felt myself become a bit too deprived of oxygen, and while it made my head dizzy, it also gave me euphoria, so I found myself moving my own hand towards my pussy and starting to rub it slowly through my underwear, while Charisma was using my throat as his personal fleshlight.

I was becoming sensitive and felt myself wanting to cum, but my head got so dizzy, I was focusing hard to keep myself present in the moment and not faint from the lack of air in my lungs. I stopped rubbing myself and raised my hand to cover Charisma’s on my neck, as I was almost at my limit and didn’t think I could take it anymore.

I held onto his hand for a while, and he stopped squeezing my neck and held me back as his pace started becoming sloppy, and I knew he was close. He moved his other hand on my left breast, groping it and squeezing it through my blouse and bra.

I shut my eyes tight and fought the urge to tap his hand three times to make him stop, decided to only do so if I really couldn’t take it anymore.

However, there was no need for me to do so, because he came down my throat soon after I held his hand, with a loud grunt that sounded heavenly to my ears, and he removed his dick from my mouth, proceeding to probably kneel down and pressing a kiss on my forehead.

If I were his date, and not a mere whore, would’ve he kissed my lips instead?

I took the next few minutes to recover from the intense face-fucking I’ve experienced and let the air slowly make its way back in my lungs, while Charisma grabbed a bed sheet or some other fabric and wiped my face clean with one hand and touching my hair soothingly with his other.

You did a good job. That’s what his touches felt like, and I felt cared for.

After a couple minutes of breathing in and out, I grabbed Charisma’s arm and pulled him towards me, letting him know that I’m ready for whatever he wants us to do next.

He started by pulling me up to sit on my ass so he can take off my blouse and bra with ease, then he palmed my breasts and kissed spots on my neck and collarbones while pinching my nipples softly.

I let a soft whine escape, and he made his way down, riling my skirt up and only removing my panties. He pushed my legs open, and I became aware of how wet I was. He ate me out last time we met as well, and I tried to focus on how good his tongue felt on my clit, and not on the fact that he must’ve considered my lips to be dirtier than my pussy; otherwise, why wouldn’t he want to kiss me?

His tongue moved carefully between my folds. He was experimenting each spot that made me moan, he teased my entrance before moving back to my clit and sucking on it ever so gently, and he seemed to relish on all the sounds I was making, for he let out some small moans as well every time I would clench around nothing.

Two of his fingers brushed my lips and I opened up my mouth again for him to stick them down my throat, covering them in saliva, just so that he could move them against my entrance and explore my insides with them, as if they wouldn’t have slid easily enough with how wet he made me, anyway.

He continued licking up my clit while his fingers curved mercilessly inside of me, grazing the sweet spot inside, driving me over the edge and bringing me to what was probably the most powerful orgasm I’ve ever experienced in my life.

He continued licking me and fucking me with his fingers, and the pleasure started becoming overwhelming, even painful, so I put my hands in his hair and grabbed it as hard as I could, making him move away from me.

He kissed my thighs while I moaned and moaned, trying to get back from my high, then he kissed my lower stomach and made his way up on my body, as if he wanted to kiss me everywhere, to not leave any patch of skin untouched.

Once he was completely on top of me, his dick brushed against my pussy, and I felt how hard he became once again. He kissed the crook of my neck as he pressed his dick inside, and I let out a loud whine, as he didn’t leave me any chance to get used to him inside of me. He started thrusting strongly, earning a loud moan each time he would bottom out inside of me, and I let my head roll down, falling out of the mattress while he was buried in my neck, biting it and sucking on it while fucking me hard.

I felt my second orgasm creep in, and I came loudly, unable to control any sounds coming out of my mouth. Hearing me, Charisma grunted and soon enough I felt his warm release inside of me as well.

He collapsed on top of me, and we just breathed for a little while, together, synchronised, letting our chests rise and fall and touch, our faced hovering mere centimetres away, his lips so closed to mine, his breath against mine so warm. It would’ve been so easy to cross a line, but he specifically asked to not be kissed, and I really wanted to see him again, to have him fill me up and take care of my body’s needs.

Eventually, Charisma moved away from on top of me and guided me in a normal position on the bed, head on his shoulder similar to last time, and started caressing my hair slowly, kissing my forehead, slowly dragging his fingers on my arm, making my skin get goosebumps.

I enjoyed staying like this with him so much, even more than the sex. It felt like we were close, and I let my right hand feel his heartbeat against his chest, and I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

The bell sound painfully woke me up from my slumber, indicating that our four hours were over. Reluctantly, I got up from Charisma’s shoulder and sighed, but he grabbed my hand and pulled me back down, hugging me tightly, before releasing me.

I didn’t want to overthink it too much. He must’ve just been grateful I let him cum down my throat and in my pussy. That’s all.

I made my way out of the room and closed the door behind me, which obviously locked, and the light turned on.

I grabbed the white bathrobe hanging on the shelf in the hallway and went out, heading towards my new room I had to use until Charisma completely left the building.

Once inside the new room, I went straight to the bathroom and glanced in the mirror while taking off the robe. My whole skin was stained with purple marks going from my neck to my breasts and my abdomen, and I traced each of them with my fingers, until I reached the hem of my skirt.

I was still wearing it. Charisma didn’t take it off this time, for some reason.

Seeing myself like that, naked, in only that damn short slutty skirt, covered in love bites, my hair and make-up a mess, and knowing I’ve just been covered in saliva and snot hours prior by some strange man I was meeting for money for the second time already, I really felt like a dirty whore.

Looking in the bathroom mirror was a rude awakening to this fact, and no matter how much I wanted to trick myself into thinking that Charisma’s nice gestures were genuine attraction towards me, my dishevel hair and this short skirt brought me back to Earth.

I was nothing special. I was just a whore.

A nobody.

Dirt.

---

MEETING REVIEW FORM by Charisma

Rate Flame from 1 to 5 (lowest to highest): ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Were all your special requirements fulfilled? (Leave empty if not applicable): Thank you for everything, Flame. I felt amazing. Tonight has fulfilled so many of my fantasies. Let’s do it again sometime.

What did you enjoy? -

What should be improved? -

Would you like to tip Flame? (Any amount you write will automatically be deducted from your Card after submitting this form. Leave empty if you don’t wish to tip your host): 300$

Thank you for using our service!

---

MEETING REVIEW FORM by Flame

Rate the interaction with the customer from 1 to 5 (lowest to highest): ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Did the customer fulfil your special requirements? -

Tip received – 300$: Thank you once again for the tip, Charisma, and I’m glad to learn that you felt good tonight. I loved sucking you off, and you can fuck my throat anytime. We definitely have to do it again and let me know if there’s any other fantasies you want fulfilled. I’d be glad to be the one to fulfil them for you xx❤️

---

Chapter 1 | Chapter 3

[firefl1ezz]

coroika au idea

people might have done this before but. coroika au where the shadows won. i don't see enough shadows content and i want more so why not make an au for it ??

WARNING: gets dark. i like dark stuff. so it gets dark lmao. tw's in tags.

in short the idea so far is that the shadows win the final battle and take over the square. they're not entirely sure what to do with it at first - they sort of thought goggles and his team would win based on his track record with high ranked and high powered foes - but they manage to clear the area of all the "original" (or what i like to call outerworld) inkfish. They let most of the shopkeepers stay if they please (quite possibly forcing sheldon to stay, since they need weapons if they're going to fight their own turf wars (which, what else is there to do with their time?)) but they absolutely cleanse the area of any colourful ink kids.

this lasts for a while. a decent amount of time actually. the shadows come and go from the tv screens of deca tower as they please and/or need and they have their fun. eventually though, they start running out of radio waves to suck the energy from. they try various other sources such as the splatoon equivalent of phones as a sort of mobile battery, other tv displays and even lightning, but all of what they try is temporary at best. they find ways to channel lightning to deca tower as well as other places, but lighting obviously isn't permanent, and it often comes with rain, so having inkfish biology means they cant stand around in a storm and just hope to get zapped in case it starts raining.

in slight desperation, the shadows decide to take their chances with both the splatlands and the inkopolis plaza. the shadows from deca tower form two teams of the strongest players and battle it out for both locations. the battle at the splatlands proves to be a bit of a struggle against the best 8 and their increasing skill, however their own shadows are no match for them. both areas are successfully taken over by the shadows, and it provides them with enough radio waves to maintain their existence a little longer. they figure with so much energy they can discover new techniques as well, which leads to the discovery of more than just the leg tingling throw electric waves we see in the manga. this could be anything from giving someone a harmless little electric nip to their fingers to full on electric shock.

eventually, the same thing happened as what ended up happening in inkopolis square. the leftover radio waves start running out and becoming unreliable, and the shadows find they need something more.

by this time, the outerworld population that once inhabited these now shadow ridden areas are beginning to hide out in the square again. ink kids in the splatlands and the plaza will soon follow. once the shadows find out, they're immediately pissed off. they thought they'd cleansed the area of all non-shadows! but one smart shadow realizes that they can use these freshly found terrified souls for their own benefit. the plan is to threaten to kill the original inkfish if they don't comply, whilst complying simply requires them to begin an unconsensual and untrained voiceover job. they're forced to commentate on the shadow's turf matches in order to generate more amplified radio waves. word soon spreads to areas outside of the square and barely two weeks later sees the shadow community thriving again.

skip ahead a bit and the shadows find themselves hungry again. they're thriving in terms of radio waves, but they're absolutely starved in terms of entertainment. they aren't like goggles, blue team, even other teams who have been convinced to see eye to eye with the opinion that turf wars are for "fun". sure, they could be fun and entertaining, and they kept the shadow's energy up in terms of radio waves, but they were only fun for so long. some shadows already seem to have ideas for more entertainment.

having forced some of the outerworld population into commentary roles, the shadows figure they can do more. they begin to force them into other things too. talk shows, podcasts, turf war challenge which in some way forces the participator/s to face off with their shadow/s. you name it, they've thought of it.

but it still isn't enough. they're hungry in other ways. physical ways. they're starving. the food supplies are running low in all areas, and most shadows are running on rations, if that. so they turn to cannibalism. though, can it really be called "cannibalism" if the shadows are made of radiowaves and the inkfish are made of ink? that's how they justify it, anyway. the make sure to never eat someone entirely. after all, they might still need them as commentators later down the track. if they do, however, spawn points close to eating areas have been mandated and generalized as a part of shadow society, so no inkfish will ever die. in theory, infinite food.

now where are our main characters, you ask? goggles, rider, vintage, emperor, ocho. they're all hiding in different areas. most of the best 8 are hiding out in alterna. they're convinced none of the shadows will find them there since only mitsu knows about it (and now the rest of the best 8) but only time will tell. other splatlandians are hiding in the grizzco building. none of the shadows know how to participate in salmon run, nor do they want to. they see no point, and there's always a possibility of dying permanently there. wire is the only member missing of the best 8. he's managed to mostly safely move down to inkopolis square to support rider, his older brother. they both later move even further to inkopolis plaza with the s4. they keep themselves hidden in the shoal, seeing as the shadows don't need to rest there after matches. the x blood and team emperor (including laceless) find themselves hidden in octo valley, only thanks to vintage's time as "agent 4.3". it takes them a while to get along, but they eventually have to force themselves to so that they don't get found. lastly, hachi's team and blue team manage to make it back to the deep sea metro to hide there. this is likely the safest place, since the shadows won't know how to get there. at most, they would know if it's existence, but it's so deep underground no shadow would ever think nor want to go down there.

most other background, side or less strong characters can be seen hiding out around other places of these three locations. abandoned buildings, dark alleys and abandoned shops, and very rarely abandoned turf maps. there's always a chance the turf maps will be returned to, however, so only the strongest and/or dumbest outerworlders end up there. some smaller character can also be found stuck with other groups of survivors, or even flipping between groups depending on location and safety.

by some means, most likely forms of social media, groups will form alliances and attempt to make plans to take down the shadow nation as much as they can. anything will help at this stage, or so they think.

[alargehunkofdebris]

why the confessions are so vastly different

So I’ve seen a couple of things about how Beelzebub and Gabriel’s confession scene is a tiny bit cringe and embarrassing, with the singing and immediate use of endearments, and yes, I agree, of course it was. It’s that way by design, I think.

Because whilst these are entities who are 6000+ years old, they are only 6000+ years old in Heaven/Hell years. And if we know anything about Heaven/Hell, it’s that not a heck of a lot goes on in either. You either get a blank, white void of Heaven, with barely anyone walking around and thus zero interaction, or you get the cramped, horrific, repetitious white-noise of Hell. There’s nothing changed, no new ideas, nothing. They’re both menial places to be, and thus their occupants’ experience with existence and emotion is stagnated. In fact, I’d argue that the only times beings can “grow” emotionally is when they’re interacting with something new, something that challenges them, etc. And the only place that truly happens with any regularity is Earth. Earth is where angels and demons grow.

So when you think of it that way, Beelzebub and Gabriel are not two 6000 year old entities. They are two teens, falling in love for the first time. They are cringy because puppy love IS cringy – it’s horrible PDA and singing and gazing into each other’s eyes while everyone else stands around, unbelievably uncomfortable. They aren’t self aware, they aren’t ashamed, because they’re kids.

And then you have Crowley and Aziraphale, who for sure have their “young love” moments (like the dance scene) but only because they’ve been restrained for so many years. They’re certainly new to the technicalities of romantic relationships, but not to love. They’re two old, old souls who’ve been forced to deny how they feel their entire lives. Their love confession was never going to be like Gabriel and Beelzebub’s, because Gabriel and Beelzebub are the “kids who have it so easy.” They’re the youngsters who never have to worry about being caught together, never have to agonize about what would happen to the other if they were found out. They never have to lie, sneak around, or feel guilt. They take for granted this minimal consequence to their love, unaware how very, very lucky they are.

So yes. Crowley and Aziraphale very much represent this “older suffering,” this war fought for so long, and which benefits a younger generation that can never quite grasp the level of pain necessary to pave the path so smooth. And these younger ones benefit in blissful ignorance, which is wonderful and right, but by God is sure not very fair.

So why did Neil Gaiman have this scene? Well, it could be to show this parallel. It could also just serve as a push for the main couple to get on with it. We, of course, already have a push with Nina and Maggie, but maybe Gaiman simply wanted there to be zero reason for the confession not to happen. He wanted there to be no obstacles any more – the only ones that remained were ones they constructed themselves. Because, of course, the best way to break a person, the fastest route to pain, is to provide the largest amount of hope possible, then have it vanish before their eyes.  

[sodapunked]

GALVESTON REF SHEET

Name☆ Galveston Dawson Goth

Age☆ 52 (38 at the start of the comic)

Gender☆ Male

Species☆ Vrobot

Birthday☆ October 31 1968

Likes☆ Flan, wine, fancy watches, smoking, chaos, sunflowers, roses, black coffee

Dislikes☆ Guns/any firearms, small spaces, bees, coffee with creamer

BASIC INFO☆

He was once mayor of a town named "Little People Tiny Town", that was until the year 2007, which would be the last day of his life, as he was assassinated by three munchies sent from an unknown individual, he died in the hospital after succumbing to the gunshots he received along with deep stab wounds.Two days after, he resurrected and was taken to Star City, where he currently resides as being king.

Galveston is what some people call as the embodiment of chaos itself, whenever he walks by in Bubblpop City, people would run away or cower in fear, because they can all feel the chaos radiating from him. Some people call him the "ScaryMan" because they're frightened by his looks, while some people call him "the shadow monster man" because you can barely see him in the dark, except for his eyes and teeth. Despite being feared by most, he is somewhat charismatic, charming, overall calm, and happy-go-lucky, but does get serious when something happens.

What some people, and friends know is that he is Mr Bear's childhood friend and his best friend as both of them love to fish together, go out to restaurants, and bakeries together, pretty much anything that friends do.

He does in fact have a wife whose name is Kendall [AKA, the queen of Star City] and a twin brother who's taller than him despite being made after him.

BACKSTORY ☆

Galveston was born into a poor family that lived in a barn along with his twin brother. Both twins were premade, meaning that they were both built and then sent to their mother and father, they were premade because their parents couldn't afford the parts to assemble them themselves. Both he and his twin brother were raised with parents that loved them and tried their best to provide for the both of them so they could have whatever they wanted to be happy, and so they could have food on the table, and so they can get the best education at school. His mother and father had to sell cow milk and eggs for a living due to not having much money to get high paying jobs.One day at school, Galveston was just minding his own business, going about his day peacefully, but that wouldn't last long as some of the school kids made fun of him, why? Because he was apparently being teachers pet, when he was just being kind to the teacher, not expecting anything in return, they were also bullying him because of the fact he was poor.

Everytime they made fun of him, he would cry. That was until a young Mr Bear saw what was going on and decided to step in, this was the first time he saw this, because Mr Bear was a new student at class, he gave the kids a warning and threatened them that he was going to not only get his dad involved, but the principal too, this scared off the bullies in the process and vowed not to do it again.After that, he asked Galveston to show him around since he was new, and he did just that. Overtime they began hanging out with each other, it started with spending together at lunch, to sitting next to each other at class, to coming over to each other's houses to play, etc. It even went as far as their parents also befriending each other. Because of the help of Mr Bear's dad, Galveston's parents finally got a high paying job to further provide for Galveston and his brother more than they did before.When the two friends were adults, they had to go their separate ways to pursue their dreams.

Galveston had to board a train so he can be involved with politics, but realized that he needed a thousand dollars to participate into the LPTT elections, so he decided to participate into a popular game show called Think Or Swim. He won millions of dollars, and was able to go to the elections. He won and at that moment, he was elected as the new mayor of LPTT [Little People Tiny Town].

In 2004, emperor Kong-Rey has found out about the existence of this guy, he didn't like Galveston and thought of him as slightly annoying. Something about him bothered him. But he didn't hate him, he just found him obnoxious. One day the mayor came for a visit to the palace, to have a word with him, to tell him the truth that "Kongphobia" isn't real and that not everyone is going to like him.

When he told him, the emperor lost his mind and went ballistic, he decided that Galveston will officially be public enemy number 1, on the emperor's blacklist, and banned from visiting Thayas. It went as far as ordering all the guards to go door to door, finding every merchandise of Galveston and mass burn it. Kong-Rey of course told everyone that Galveston was not what people think he is, essentially turning most of the citizens against mayor Galveston.

5 days later, Galveston, his brother, and his wife started getting death threats. From writing on his house, to outright telling all three that they're going to kill them. Literally anything to threaten the lives of Galveston and his family.

After this, Galveston reported this horrific behavior to Kong-Rey and that if he doesn't take action against this, he'll take him to court. Of course Kong-Rey thought this wouldn't happen, so he was shocked. He then made a statement to every citizen, hopefully to stop the threats against Galveston. However most people listen while a very few didn't.

Overtime, Galveston began to receive less and less threats after that. To the point where he doesn't get them anymore, even after this, Kong-Rey still dislikes him for his supposed kongphobia and for being annoying.

After he was shot, stabbed during a speech he was doing and succumbed to his injuries, he resurrected two days later and was taken to Star City, he was sent to the throne room of the king at the time, Cassiopeia . But the king was in a hurry because everyone including Galveston found out about Cassiopeia mistreating his girlfriend, and decided it would be a good idea to fake his death, so before he ran off, he told Galveston that he is king now, not giving him any explanation at all. Galveston stood there for a few minutes after the now former king ran off, he then saw a glowing red crystal standing on a table next to the throne, a crystal that he couldn't get his eyes off of, as if it was tempting him to come see it, he couldn't resist it so he decided to walk over there and take a look at it, he decided to touch it, and it transformed his appearance [like the one you see here], he looked at himself in the mirror and couldn't believe what he had become.

He went to the balcony to see the view, until people catched a glimpse of him, despite his appearance change, the people recognized him as they heard of the good deeds he had done along with the legacy he made for himself when he was mayor. The people told him of the misdeeds that the former king did, and decided that they're going to call Galveston their new king, even the people who used worked for the king agreed to make him the new king of Star City. On that day, Galveston was crowned as the new king of Star City, he absolutely had no problem ruling a kingdom as it is the same as ruling a town according to him. Things have been peaceful and great just like it was when he was mayor of LPTT.

INSTAGRAM / WEBTOON

- SodaPunked

[justarandomsloth]

Why hello I hear you are requesting fake fic titles. Let me introduce myself, I am the Fake Fic thief, I will steal them if I find motivation.

Going Away (but not forever)

Love is bigger than the Mountains

Let's Show Them

Why yes I AM accepting fake fic titles!

(And if you like them by all means steal them cause I don’t have the motivation to write them-)

—

Going Away (But Not Forever)

—Tubbo and Ranboo had lived a happy life together. Sure it wasn’t the best and they were always on the run due to their hybrid features. At least it had been happy….up until they had gotten caught.

Tubbo assumed they had been around 14 since they were caught and they had stayed together for about a year and a half.

It didn’t matter now though, Tubbo had escaped and the experiments were finally over. He had found the directions to the second base were Ranboo was being held and he was determined to find him.

They had promised each other before they had been split apart that they would find each other, some way, some how. He didn’t intend to break that promise now.

—Tubbo felt dizzy.

It had been easy enough to find where Ranboo was being kept and he now stood in front of his best friend’s cell.

Even though his eyes were now a deep, glowing purple and he had sharper teeth, there was no mistaking the boy in the cage as Ranboo.

Ranboo, who now also happened to be over 50ft tall…

As the other’s purple eyes snapped over to him and the teen let out a vwoop that Tubbo could feel in his chest…

The brunette could only stare on in terror.

—

Love is Bigger Than the Mountains

—Techno is a well known giant hunter who was said to be cruel and heartless. Ranboo was surprised when he found out that that wasn’t necessarily the case.

Well… the sizeshifter had no doubts that if Techno knew what he was, he would be dead. The hunter was still good company, even if he was good company to a lie.

And he couldn’t exactly leave. The man was already suspicious and if he just left now…

Ranboo shuddered. For now all he could do was stick with Techno and hope his shifting didn’t betray him.

—Techno knew something was odd about the kid. He had found the boy in the middle of the woods as he was tracking his next giant. The pink-haired man was amazed that he had managed to survive so long and hadn’t been picked up by a giant yet. Techno just chalked it up to dumb luck.

Still….he warned the lanky teen to stay close to him, just in case. He didn't care, not at all, he just…didn’t want the teen to be kidnapped by a bloodthirsty giant. He wasn’t THAT heartless.

—As the days pass by the two find themselves enjoying each other’s company more and more.

Techno teaches Ranboo how to set snares to catch food. The teen in turn shows him which of the giant mushrooms are edible in the forest.

More than once the hunter has had to scare off some of the smaller predators that inhabit the giant forest but it hasn’t been an issue…until now.

—The duo had been walking along when a snarl that shook the ground rang out from behind them. Techno’s stomach filled with dread as turned around and saw the giant panther.

It’s velvety dark coat rippled as he jumped down silently from a tree. They were said to be extinct but this one obviously wasn’t.

The hunter was barely twice the size of a mouse compared to the large cat, and he knew this was a fight he couldn’t win.

Techno heard a gasp behind him. Well...he could at least provide a chance to escape.

“Ranboo, when I say go, run as fast as you can in the opposite direction and don’t look back.”

He kept his eyes firmly on the beast but he could barely see Ranboo nodding, a grim look of determination on his face.

He took a deep breath and carefully drew his sword, making sure that all of the feline’s attention was on him.

Techno raised his weapon, shouted “Go!”, and began charging towards the panther. As the cat ran forward to meet him he braced himself to feel sharp claws tear across his body.

But they never did.

Techno opened to eyes to see that the feline had been flung against a tree, and now stood growling at a giant Ranboo. The hunter heard as the sizeshifter growled back, an inhumane sound that tore itself from the boys throat.

The panther leaped and dragged its claws down Ranboo’s arm before he threw it again, this time harder.

The black cat shakily stood up band limped away, defeated.

Techno felt his heart stop as a set of massive eyes locked onto his movement. He wasn’t easily surprised but this was….something he hadn’t expected.

The hunter met the giants gaze and he feebly raised his sword.

—

Let’s Show Them

—Tommy had just wanted to prove that he COULD be helpful and do things in his own, that was all.

That’s why one morning he woke up early and made his way to the kitchen, determined to make break.

Was it easier to just have one of the humans make breakfast, sure. But was Tommy going to use common sense and logic?? Absolutely not!

He had actually managed to get all of the ingredients out! But then tragedy struck.

The tiny had slipped on some spilled water and had fallen right into the sink! Now all he could do was wait.

—When Wilbur had found him, asleep in then sink the first thing he did was gently carry him upstairs and put him to bed. (After snapping a picture of course.)

He was nice enough that when Tommy woke up late the didn’t mention his little mishap in the sink.

Besides, Tommy will see the picture in the photo album soon enough.

—

(I’m sorry I didn’t have a lot for the last one—)

[thatshadowhunterlife]

Pressure Makes Diamonds (THG AU)

Summary: Winning isn't everything. It's just the only thing that matters when you have people waiting for you at home. Chrysanthemum Everdeen is the oldest of the Everdeen siblings. Her whole life is based on the survival of her and her family. When it's time for the annual Hunger Games to take place, she can't even imagine her name getting picked even with the odds stacked against her. When she is called to enter the deadly games she feels her whole world shift. Winning would mean everything to her family but her odds aren't the best. If she is to win, she has to make difficult decisions about survival, family, and love.

OR an AU where Katniss has an older sister that participated in the 70th Annual Hunger Games.

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/56708572/chapters/144564574

─────── ─ ⋅˚₊‧ 𐙚 ‧₊˚─ ───────

Chapter Two

One time, Katniss and I were playing tag in the woods. While I was running away from her, I tripped over a tree root and broke my arm. It hurt so bad I almost blacked out from pain. Katniss cried the whole way home about it because she felt like it was her fault. I cried because I was in pain and I couldn't hunt until it was fixed. That in turn made Prim cry about it because she doesn’t like seeing us cry. My father scolded us all while my mother fixed me up a cast. Ashton and Gale were even really nice and brought over some strawberries to make me feel better. Katniss and my father went hunting to raise enough money for us to afford some of the fancier pain medicine for me. At the time, I thought that was the worst pain I had ever felt though. I never thought anything would ever come close. 

This is a million times worse than that pain. 

It’s like I could feel my heart collapse in my chest. All I felt was fear. The fear of leaving my family to fend for themselves. The fear of my sister being the sole provider for my family. The thought of Katniss having to take out tesserae because I’m not there makes me want to throw up even more.

My mother will completely fall apart. She’s barely together as it is. There is no way that she can take care of my sisters. My mind keeps racing in a million different directions. But they all lead to the same conclusion. My family is now in trouble because I am going to die.

I don’t remember falling, but the kid next to me grabbed me to keep me from hitting the ground. 

I look up and all I see is big brown eyes staring back into me. Effie’s voice rings through the speakers calling my name again. My legs move as if they have a mind of their own. They carry me towards the stage. 

“Chrissy!” 

I turn around and see Katniss running towards me. Ashton starts running right towards her and picked her up before she could get to me. She starts kicking and screaming for him to let her down. She’s sobbing harder than I’ve ever seen her cry before. “You can’t go! No!” She screams. Ashton covers her mouth to keep her quiet. 

“Go ahead Chrissy…” He says. You could hear in his voice how hard he was fighting back tears of his own. I nod silently and head up the stairs onto the stage. The crowd mumbles unhappily. 

From the stage I could see my mother crying and being comforted by some women she must’ve known from years ago. Primrose is holding her hand and just looking right at me. 

“Oh finally, she is here!” Effie says cheerfully, “now onto the boys!” She struts over to the boys bowl and grabs a name quickly. Way quicker than she did the girls that’s for sure. She opens her mouth to read the name but is interrupted by a loud thud. The whole crowd looks in the direction of the sound. Our district’s only living victor, Haymitch Abernathy, is face down on the ground. The Mayor looks incredibly embarrassed but tries to help him up. Once he is back on his feet, Haymitch throws up all over Mayor Undersee. The smell of vile quickly fills the area.

“Oh dear! How revolting !” Effie exclaims. She turns her nose and tries to get everyone back on track so that the janitors could clean up the mess quickly. Haymitch could barely stand at this point. Mayor Undersee is given some napkins to help clean up some of the vomit off of him. But man if looks could kill, Haymitch would be dead where he stood. “Let’s wrap this up, shall we? For our male tribute, the honor has been given to Sage Emrys!”

That name sounds vaguely familiar. Like he might’ve been in one of my classes at one point or maybe someone said his name in the hallways. The person who comes up the stairs, is the same one that kept me from falling on my rear. His long, shaggy blond hair is unkempt. His brown eyes were full of fear but his face showed none of that. He’s tall and lanky but didn’t look as underfed as those of us from the Seam. His parents are definitely more wealthy than mine. Maybe my mom knows them.

Sage Emrys stands on the other side of Effie as far away from the vomit as he could get. Effie puts on a big smile and announces us as District 12’s tributes. The entire crowd stays silent. They are not happy about this. I’m not sure which person getting reaped made them upset. Maybe it was both of us. While I doubt many people will miss me, at least I can feel like my presence was once acknowledged. Whether it be from the people at school or the people in the Hob, they will all remember that I was here.

The Mayor returns to the podium and begins to read the Treaty of Treason but no one is really listening. It’s the same speech every year so everyone could care less. I’m more focused on not losing my mind completely in front of all these cameras. I try to not look at my sisters, mother, or Ashton. I see Gale in the crowd for a split second and feel the tears well up. I know Ashton promised to take care of my family but his own family is hard enough to care for. My family has just lost my father and now I will die too. This will be traumatizing for Katniss and Prim. Maybe even Ashton.

After the reading of the Treaty of Treason, Sage and I face the crowd as the Panem anthem plays again. At this point, even the people that bet on the tributes had stopped. All eyes were on the two of us. I’ve never felt more self-conscious than I did at this moment. When the anthem finished, we were escorted off the stage by Peacekeepers. That in itself is pretty scary. Peacekeepers only escort criminals and dead bodies places so I wonder why they are escorting us. Maybe some tributes have tried to run away before. The Peacekeepers barge through the doors of the Justice Building while the cameras follow. 

The Peacekeepers take me into an empty room and leave me by myself. I’ve never been inside of a room so fancy looking. The carpet looked as if it had never been touched by shoes. The velvet couches look almost inviting. I only recognized the material because my mother had a dress with a collar made out of that stuff. I sit down on the couch and just stare at the wall. I’m trying to focus on anything other than the next hour. This will be the time that my family and friends are allowed to say goodbye to me. I don’t know if I will be able to keep myself together for this. I know I can’t leave here with puffy eyes and a running nose, but the thought of a final goodbye to my family is beginning to feel very overwhelming. 

It felt like I was sitting there forever before the door finally swings open. Both of my sisters rush towards me and tackle me with hugs. I hug them tighter than I ever had before. This could be my last moments with them and I need to make them count. When I could finally get a good look at their faces, I could see that Katniss’ eyes were puffy and red from crying. “Chrissy you better win!” she says into my chest. 

I run my fingers through her hair and give her a soft smile. “Of course I’ll try to win. I want to come home to you guys,” I say.

“No! You have to come home! You know how to fight Chrissy. I watched you beat up Liam that one time because he called me ugly! You can come home,” she says seriously. 

I can’t make her any promises. There will be a lot of competition. Certain districts train their whole lives for this. I’m just some kid from the Seam that happens to know how to hunt animals for food. Animals are not humans. Killing someone is something completely different than throwing a few punches. It isn’t for food or to protect my sister. It’s for someone else’s entertainment. I’m not cut out to win the Hunger Games.

However, instead of telling Katniss what I was actually thinking, I just smile and nod. “I will win. Just for you,” I say softly.

I turn to my mother, and my expression hardens. “You can’t leave them. You have to be there for them. It doesn’t matter how you feel right now, they need you more than anything. Do you understand me?” I say. 

“Yes,” She says. I could tell she was holding back tears. I wrap my arms around her and hold her tightly. This might really be the last time I get to hold my mother. By the way she is holding me,  she must be feeling the same way. 

“I love you,” I say. I haven’t said that to my mother since my father died. Tears well in her eyes and she hugs me tighter. 

“I love you more,” She whispers in my ear. Even now that’s the most sound she is able to muster. It’s still so comforting to hear though.  I feel her slip something into my pocket. When we break away from the hug, I reach into my pocket and look at the small object. It is a gold ring with a small diamond; this is my mother’s wedding ring. “The tributes are allowed a single token from your district. I just thought it would always remind you of home,” my mother says. I’m sure this was hard for her to part with. She kisses my head and pulls my sisters in for a hug. We all stay that way until the Peacekeepers make them leave. It felt like my heart left with them. It keeps getting harder and harder to fight back the tears. I try pacing around the room to see if that helps. Eventually I allow myself to let a few fall before my next guest comes, though I’m sure I know who it’s going to be.

Ashton bursts through the door and rushes towards me. He picks me up and hugs me. When he sets me down, he looks deep into my eyes. “You have to win Chrissy,” He says in a low tone.

“I don’t know if I-”

“No Chrysanthemum! You need to win! I know you can. You know how to hunt and you know how to survive. You’ve lived in this place your whole life so I know you won’t starve. You need to get your hands on some knives, Chris. You can win this. I know you can. I’ve never met someone else like you,” he says. 

All I could do was nod. I think I was more in shock that he called me by my name. He never calls me Chrysanthemum. He has so much faith in the fact that I’m going to come home. Maybe even for a second I can believe it too. 

“I’ll try my hardest to come home to you guys,” I say.

“Chrissy, I need you to come home,” He chokes out. The tears he had been trying so hard to keep in have finally started to surface. I’ve never seen Ashton cry before. Not even when his father died. He was always the strongest person in the room.

I do the only thing I could think to do in this situation. As stupid as it might be, I hold out my pinky. “I’ll come home. I pinky promise,” I say. He lets out a small laugh through the tears and embraces me in a tight hug. He smells like the woods still. Like home. 

We stay that way until he has to go. I look at a clock on the wall and I can see that my hour is up. Two Peacekeepers come inside to escort me to the train station. I’ve never been before because its only really used for the Games and exporting coal. It looks less decrepit than the rest of the district though.  I should have expected the hoard of cameras and reporters from the Capitol. Bright lights keep flashing in my face while people keep calling my name and asking me questions. The sound of clicking starts to give me a headache. I just try not to look at any of them to at least seem unfazed by everything that has happened today. Maybe acting tough will improve my chances at survival. I don’t look at a single camera or answer a single question. I act as if they are undeserving of my time. 

Sage Emrys on the other hand is smiling at all the cameras and waving. He hardly seems bothered at all. His hair looks a bit neater now, I’m sure his mother might’ve touched it up. People in the merchants area care about appearances like that. I bet the people in the Capitol will call him brave for not even crying. I just think he is being stupid. 

The inside of the train is fancier than I could have ever imagined. It’s like something we only read about in school. The floors are adorned with royal purple rugs and white flowers. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling tops. Burgundy velvet chairs sat at a deep reddish brown wooden table. I think it might’ve been mahogany. The walls are a deep, navy blue.

“Wow they really put down money on us,” I hear from behind me. 

I roll my eyes hard at Sage. “It’s all a waste since we’re gonna die anyways,” I say. A tall woman with pale skin and dark brown hair escorts us to our rooms. She never spoke to us which I thought was kind of rude, but what can you expect from Capitol people? 

My room is just as lavish as the rest of the train. I can’t stop myself from investigating every single door. The closet has a few dresses in there already. I guess for me to wear on my way to the Capitol so I look more presentable. Though I still think my mother’s dress was nicer. Or maybe I just miss them already. Another door leads to a gold and white bathroom. Maybe I’ll bathe in a few minutes. The bed is bigger than any other I’ve ever seen. The silky gold sheets looked alive with the sunlight from the window. Gold chairs matched the bedset. My goodness did they look comfy. Primrose would love them. The walls were the color of the trees in the Meadow. The Meadow . It hurts my heart to even think about. I can still hear Ashton laughing and Katniss and Gale bickering. I still smell the fresh scent of earth after it just rained. The wild berries. The flowers. All the herbs I would bring home. I can see Katniss and Prim’s beautiful eyes that lit up whenever I came home. 

Realistically, I know I shouldn’t even be thinking about home. I’ll have even less of a chance at winning if all I do is miss my family. I lay in the bed and let out a small, humorless laugh. What am I thinking? It doesn’t matter what I do now. I’ll still be delivered in a wooden box back to District 12. I suppose it’s nice that I get to enjoy this soft bed first. The bed smells like the fresh cut flowers you only find in the wealthier areas of my district. Ashton got me some for my birthday one year. They were roses I think.

Apparently I fell asleep because I woke up to Effie knocking at my door. “Ten minutes until dinner!” she says in her stupid accent. I sigh heavily and walk into the bathroom. I’ll be honest it took me a few minutes to figure out how to get the water working. When I got it though, hot water rained from above me. While it felt really good, I figure I shouldn’t be late to dinner. I lather myself in a sweet smelling soap, wash off, and head back into the room. I pick out a dark green dress that I thought matched the rest of the room in a way. I left my own clothes on the bed.

The dining table was filled with more food than I had ever seen in my life. Golden brown rolls, three different meats dripping in sauces, vegetables that I’ve only seen in books, and grains that were so much better looking than tesserae ones. My mouth instantly begins to water while my stomach betrays me with loud growls. Effie sat down at the head of the table. How fitting for Capitol trash. “Haymitch won’t be joining us tonight. He’ll more than likely be passed out until tomorrow,” she says. There is a hint of disgust in her voice that almost makes me laugh. I sit down at the table and the silent woman from earlier begins to serve my food. 

Sage comes in a few minutes later wearing a light blue t-shirt and black pants. His wet hair falls just under his shoulders. He sits across from me and stares at all the food. Another woman, who was also silent, serves his food. 

“Thank you,” he says politely. 

Effie looks appalled. “You shouldn’t talk to them,” she says. I couldn’t help but wonder why but I don’t think it’s a good time to ask. I begin to eat but it’s so hard to pace myself when all the food is so delicious. I remind myself to mind my manners. My mother raised me better. I look over at Sage who seems like he was also trying to not seem sloppy. “You two have better manners than the last two,” Effie says.

“And you’re as much of an airhead as I thought,” I say. Did I say that out loud? I didn’t mean to. Sage snickers across the table and Effie glares at me but doesn’t speak.

“No need to be so mean sweetheart,” Sage says, “Effie doesn’t know any better.”

I roll my eyes hard. “I’m not your sweetheart,” I snap. 

“Now now. Thats no way to talk to the person who kept you from falling on your ass on national television,” he says

Effie clears her throat. Her plate was only half eaten. I hear Capitol people like to eat less to stay skinny. Never made any sense to me as someone who had sleep for dinner on many nights. I pile more food onto my plate. I may not be able to beat the other tributes but at least I can last longer if I get more meat on my bones.

I think Sage was on his third plate. I guess he has the same idea as I do. He is definitely a healthier weight than me because he had more money, but we are both way smaller than we should be. The Careers would look at us and laugh. Career Tributes are tributes from Districts 1, 2 and 4. Sometimes they bring in people from other districts into their group if they like them enough to save them for later. What an honor right? They almost always win the Games because they train their whole lives for it. They are typically better fed and stronger, however, they are also very arrogant. Maybe I’ll be lucky and that’ll be someone’s downfall? Doubt it though. This isn’t a fairytale.

After we eat, we watch the recording of the Reaping on the television. Effie says it’s best to scope out the competition but I think she just wanted to watch it and needed an excuse. Sage and I sit on opposite sides of the couch. We watch as each name is pulled. In the Career districts, they make the Reaping so complicated. They actually fight over who gets to go into the arena. Arguing who gets to kill other kids their age. The female tribute from District 1 looks like she could easily snap me in half. Don’t even get me started on the male from District 2. He almost looked excited to kill someone. I can’t stop myself from shuddering at the thought of his face being the last one I see. Oh God why did I ever promise them I would come home? 

I barely register most of the names as they pass me by but I did catch a few. I know the male from District 1’s name is Valor. The female is Jewel I think. District 3’s tributes were Techna and Acer. Barley and Maize are the boy and girl from 9. The youngest in the arena are going to be from 11. Their faces remind me so much of Katniss and Prim. Just two little kids. They couldn’t be more than twelve or thirteen. Clementine is the name of the girl. Her brown curls bobbed up and down as she walked to the stage. You could tell the poor thing was terrified. Tears were streaming down her face. She called for her mother. It absolutely broke my heart. Cinnamon is the little boy. He didn’t cry but he wanted to. He refused to look at the crowd. The cameras abruptly switch to our Reaping. 

Katniss made her television appearance, trying to keep me from the stage. Ashton is there too. Trying to pull her off of me. This feels like the last time I’ll see their faces. My own face looks stoic. I don’t even recognize myself up there on that stage. They cut out the part of Haymitch making a fool of himself. I’m sure Effie is happy about that part. I look over at Sage. He looks lost in thought. I gently touch his arm. I think that snapped him out of it. He looks at me for a moment then shifts uncomfortably in his seat. 

Seeing the Reaping made everything feel more real than it had before. Those are the people who are going to kill me. Kids just like me being turned into murderers for the entertainment of the Capitol. Some of them are even excited about it. Silence hangs uncomfortably in the air for what feels like hours. Though I’m sure it was just a minute or so. Effie breaks awkwardness with a loud clap. “Well, I will be leaving you two now. I’m sure you two will need to be getting sleep soon,”  She says. She walks past me and heads out the room. 

“Where is Haymitch?” Sage asks. 

“Probably passed out in his room still. Effie says he won’t be up until tomorrow,” I reply. 

“We should check on him,” Sage says. 

“Trying to get on his good side, Emrys?”

“Well he is the one that’s gonna be keeping us alive,” he reminds me. 

That shut me up real quick. He’s one hundred percent right. I let out a frustrated groan and start walking towards where I assume Haymitch’s room is. Sage follows quickly behind me.  Honestly, the smell of vomit hit me before anything else so it wasn’t hard to tell which room it was. I feel terrible for the people that have to clean that up. Sage knocks on the door first. There was no answer so I called out his name. Again, no answer. 

“Has a mentor ever died before the Games?” Sage asks.

“I don’t think so. But ours better still be breathing because he’s the only one we have,” I say. Trust me, if the other victor was still alive, I think we would all be happier. I turn the knob and the smell hit me like a truck. Haymitch is sprawled across the floor in a puddle of his own vomit and a liquor bottle in his hand. I’m staring at my only hope at life. This is more depressing than going to bed hungry.  

“Look, I’m not really doing this to get on his good side. I don’t even think he has one. I just feel bad for the guy,” Sage says holding his nose, “I got it. Just go to bed. At least leave him the dignity of not letting a random girl see him naked.”

I think for a moment about what Sage’s intentions could really be. But eventually I relent. I really didn’t want to clean this grown man up. Even the thought, mixed with the overwhelming stench, made my stomach feel funny.

“Alright. Good night then. See you tomorrow morning,” I say as I leave. 

I make my way back to my room. It’s such a shame that this is the first time I’ve ever had a room this nice and I can’t fully enjoy it. I hate it. The room itself feels like a beautiful prison. A cruel joke.I sink into the bed the same way my heart has been sinking into my chest. I roll over and grab my mother’s ring from my dress pocket. I stare at it in silence. Katniss and Prim are probably asleep by now. Well maybe not Katniss. She is probably awake with my mother. They might be trying to figure out the next few weeks and how they will survive. I doubt Ashton is getting any sleep either. He probably walked to my house to comfort Katniss and my mother. Maybe they are all sitting by the fire, longing for me the way I do for them. 

The bed is so warm. The sweet smell of flowers fills my nose as I bury my head in the pillows. I begin to fall asleep to the quiet hum of the train. 

[leam1983]

Oblivion

So. Tomorrow, we're flying back home.

Seven days. A week spent with a small legion at my beck and call, bending to Walt's every whim, acceeding to Sarah's every request. One massive kitchen divided between four dining rooms, serving up everything from Americano-Mexican tentpoles to recomposed would-be Taino dishes, with a buffet where passable is the order of the day. Mornings were bland Continental breakfast affairs, but the evenings shone brightly, capstoned with the best cigars I've had in the last three years and the best damn Cappuccino in a decade.

Seven days realizing that an army is re-making my bed, giving me clean sheets every morning and fresh towels on the dot, showing extreme deference for my walker-using ass. A little cohort of maids paid Cheap Labor wages to smile, respond to everything with Es mi placer, señor, and pushed into treating USD tips in the single digits like they're Godly gifts.

You can bet that Walt was so appalled by this he starting leaving twenties. "These poor girls - cleaning up people's shit and vomit after the douchebags three doors down the hall spend the evening getting plastered on Mojitos - and not an ounce of gratitude!"

People started asking questions. Our passable Spanish led to us forming basic bonds with the staff, and turned our little bungalow in the Adults Only section into the talk of the resort. People with less manners started asking for drinks delivery and had to handle polite rebuffs, where we got the sense that the Room Service people were starting to network with the Pool Bar guys to figure out our schedule of preferred drinks.

Eventually, what had to happen happened. My feet were so swollen I couldn't put on my closed-toes shoes for the evening, as the dress code requests, but the staff didn't bat an eyelash when i wheeled in, looking like someone's favourite Math teacher, with socks and sandals. A Karen whose husband had completely overlooked the dress code was shocked.

"Why does he get to head inside dressed like this, and my husband can't?"

Yamilet, 23, born and raised in Santo Domingo and using the thankless job of the French Cuisine-oriented dining room's maître d' to pay her way through nursing school when she's not in church, gave her a Crest commercial-worthy smile.

Is un especial guest. Disculpe - see his legs. Mira?

For once in my life, I was happy to be singled out as disabled.

What really emerged from this is how gratitude really is crucial, when you're travelling. Everyone I heard who spouted variations on "having paid for the right to do whatever they wanted" received piss-poor service. Everyone who lowered their voice in a corridor, who showed basic deference and treated the staff like human beings received distinctly improved treatment. It wasn't just us - we noticed several other cultural groups in the resort, and I was actually thankful to draw a clear line between the nice Americans - and the douchebags.

In open spaces like the buffet, it's kind of impossible not to eavesdrop. If you're on vacation and you're still griping about your Democrat neighbours when you're halfway across the hemisphere from your point of origin, you're coloring your entire stay. The Trumptards who demanded service came in pissed off, stayed ornery and left irate. Anyone else, from anywhere else in the world, who politely asked, language barriers be damned, got what they asked for.

The Semester-Enders were hard to miss, too. Sixteen kids in total, barely in their twenties, who'd clearly pooled cash to rent swim-up suites together, and who turned the All-Ages section of the pool into a nightmare. There wasn't an inch of it that wasn't their private Football Toss area, and no resort-provided pool float that they just didn't claim for themselves.

It allowed for a sense of liminality to settle in. On one end of the more or less football-field-length of pool, you had pure chaos. On the other, placid waters, where the Adults Only club and our bungalow was located. I recovered the float I'd bought for myself, one of the Spring Breakers giving me a florid-faced and pleading look.

"Come on, bro!"

I gestured towards the back. "You've got seven other floats, over there, plus an inflatable mattress. I bought this one and brought it here. As it's my possession, I'd like to use it."

He chuckled meanly. "Nobody cares, man."

Christopher, 27, from Bàvàro, gave the guy a level look while climbing down from his lifeguard chair. "Everything okay, señores?"

"Me? Oh, everything's swell, Chris. It's the gentleman over there that's operating under weird delusions."

Chris nodded, his facial language obvious. Another one of those, huh? I nodded.

He smiled. No te preocupas, amigo.

The kid's response stuck with me. Nobody cares. Is this why some people work so much, hustle their way to a therapist and then book a week off to someplace where there's palapas, Afro-Cuban covers of Celine Dion classics and drinks that would make a medicated diabetes sufferer scream in abject terror? You put your ass to the grindstone and your only hope of recovery is to find a place, however theoretical, where nobody gives a shit?

Walt, Sarah and I brainstormed. We planned ahead. We rested aplenty, sure, and napped even more than we do back home - but this place energized us. We were free to create, and spent a week being the best versions of ourselves that we could possibly be.

For other people? It's apparently Adult Daycare. You get up at nine past the breakfast buffet's closure, complain that you can't get any service, throw yourself on yesterday evening's pizza, knock back cocktails starting at 11 AM and end up throwing up in the kiddie pool by 5 PM. You throw a fit because the pool boys had the gall to lift your limp ass out of the wading area before you could drown yourself while passed-out in a puddle-sized expanse of water. Because you're in your twenties, your brush with death is all but forgotten by 8 PM, and you head to the lobby's bar to knock back tequila shots with your fellow jabronis. The wee hours see you treating the public hallways like your personal hangout space, exchanging football huddle cries with equally-inebriated kids with no sense of their own mortality.

To all this should be added the resort's sense of liminality. If you forget your optimal route to your room, you'll end up in an entirely different resort. Pools look the same, everything's connected, and everyone feels transitory, obviously. It's the ersatz of a place. It's as impersonal as a hotel, except the staff are all stuck under a pall of fake-ass exoticism they can't shed. The equator line being so close means days are blisteringly hot and painfully short. By 7 PM, the sun's all but gone - and we're in May.

Nobody stays. Nobody leaves an impression. I've regaled Yamilet and Christopher with tales of La Banquise and of Schwartz' smoked meat or the bagel bakeries on St-Viateur - but I'll forget their faces just as they'll forget mine. We spent a week treating one another like culturally Latin brethren - Québécois deference having always meshed well with Cuban and Dominican confidence - but we won't remember one another in short order.

Single-serving friends, as Pahlaniuk once said.

I might as well head to the gift shop, swallow my pride and see if there's a tee-shirt on offer that reads I went to the Carribbean, and all I got for it was a lousy sunburn.