#they’re more like frenemies then anything

[candyheartedchy]

When you’re a housemaid for a panicky rabbit and have to constantly deal with some cat outside of work.

[caramelkoo]

be still my heart — jjk [one]

the one in which you get a sex dream about the grouchy hockey player you work for.

genre : childhood best friends to frenemies to lovers, physical therapist!reader x hockey player!jungkook, slow burn, smut, fluff, angst

word count : 5.2k

chapter warnings : strong language, mature, slight smut (because im a tease), reader’s name is Destiny, jungkook is a bit grumpy towards her (she makes him nervous leave my boy alone), fat shaming (not by any of the main characters), oc had daddy issues, mentions of allergy. that’s about it, please let me know if i missed something.

a/n : here it isssssss drumrolls please because im so excited for this. jungkook as a hockey player??? *deep breaths* enjoy my lovely people. you’re so so loved. asks, reblogs and likes are much appreciated. kisses <3

read part two here

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“Babe, you know you're not going to win right? Don't be wasting your breath.” Bella challenges.

You’re sitting on the chair in your office going through the personnel file of the players. Verifying their names with their contact numbers and photographs which, you’re not going to lie, look like mugshots. Jeez, does smiling a little bit cost them? Anyways, once you’re done you close the file and look up at your assistant bickering with her boyfriend. Phone pressed against her ear. 

You mime hanging up the call and she lifts her index finger, indicating for you to wait. She throws in words like hmmm, yeah, you don’t know what you’re saying, yeah i love you too. Once she’s done, she drops the phone on the glass table in front of you and leans back in her chair. 

“He thinks I will let him get away with anything just because I love him”  

You chuckle, “What’s going on?” 

“You know, I’ve been wanting a cat for so long I even made a pinterest board for that. Last Sunday he surprised me with one and when I told him that I lowkey manifested it, he was not having it. I even showed him the mood board and I NEVER show it to anyone. Evil eye is real.” she all but cries out. 

That’s Bella for you. Highly spiritual and a firm believer of the universe. She claims that everything happens for a reason. She’s like a little ball of sunshine. Ever since you joined the Ice Dominators’ hockey team as a physical therapist, she’s been assisting you and you couldn’t be more thankful seeing the lack of female workers here. Seriously, there's no other female worker here except yourself and Bella which is so diabolical to you.

And it’s not like the men on the hockey team are a bunch of misogynist jerks. On the contrary, they act like they’ve known you for years. It didn't take you long to feel like home here. They are obedient, friendly and pretty nice. Few of them are married with kids while the rest of them remain single. They’re not like a bunch of teenagers, they know what they’re doing.

Except one, what’s his name? Jeon Jungkook. You would describe that man as crude and closed off to a pathological degree. You still remember when you asked him to come to your office so you can look at any possible previous injuries, he lied to your fucking face. Claiming he doesn’t have any when you could clearly see him hobbling sometimes just a tiny bit when he walked away. Years and years of dedication towards your studies have made you capable enough to catch that it is an old injury.

Despite your better judgment, you blamed it on the fact that his team lost the game that day. Poor guy was having a bad day and took it out on you. Big deal. 

“Earth to Destiny” Bella waves a hand close to your face and you shake your head as you look at her.

“Leave the poor man alone” You plead and then ask, “Any details about the new player? I’ll have to add it in the file” 

“Not yet, as far as I know they’re still contemplating the guy named Park Jimin or something”

That gets you real quick. Park Jimin. The name feels like acid on your tongue .The last game being unsatisfactorily resulted in the federation trading one of the players. It was cruel but was done for the better. Bound to happen sooner or later. You had expected it but what you had not expected was you both sharing a same room, sharing the same air.

“Alright then. We’ll cross that bridge when it’s—”

Knock, knock

“Miss Kim, sorry to interrupt but the manager is asking for you” Taehyung’s head pokes through the door.

You stand, picking up the file and sliding it into the tableside drawer, running a free hand over your scrubs. Bella does the same as she plucks her phone from the table and puts it inside her back pocket.

You look at him. “Sure Tae, thank you for informing”

He flashes you a quick, pretty smile before leaving. Bella turns to you with a worried look on her face.

“What do you think it is for?”

You bite your lip. “I have no idea. I wanna say it's about the new player but who knows?”

You hope it is and as unfortunate as it is for you to discuss him, you will have to hold your own. You know better than to be invited into the manager’s office. Though, judging by the temperament of him you would not predict anything. Last time when he called you, it was about Jeon Jerk, asking you to be more serious about your job as if it was your fault the man spared you the necessary details.

The asshole asked YOU to do your job better by virtue of HIS player not being sweet enough to listen. Maybe, there is indeed a misogynistic asshole going around and it’s the manager. No wonder women don’t volunteer to work for him.

Since, You love your job —god knows you wanna keep doing it— you kept quiet and took every jab he threw at you.

“Wait, Do I have time to pray? Should I pray?” she’s clearly panicking and you pat her on the shoulder.

“Just hope my job is still intact” you say, warily reaching for your purse. You both head out.

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“Miss Kim, have a seat” James nods at the chair before him.

Once you’re settled, he continues, “I asked for you to join me here regarding the upcoming game. Care to fill in about the status of injury assessment?"

You clear your throat, “Absolutely, I was planning on getting on that today” 

“Well, I would love for you to do it soon as you know we have a new player in the team with us now”

You jerk, leaning forward. “We do?”

“Yes, and if you can please hurry with the assessment I would be grateful. You can do that right? Not too much of a work for you, eh?” 

Someone give him a medal from the way he's trying to hide the venom in his voice.

“Sure I can” you give him a firm nod. 

James Adams is an entitled, self centered asshole who thinks he’s above everyone else just because of his position. You reckon he does anything for the team besides talking bullshit. He kind of reminds you of your dad who also has the nasty habit of thinking the world of himself.

You’re all about self love but when that self love turns into chronically demeaning everybody in their close proximity, it boils your blood. This man in front of you is no better than your father. What's that saying? Out of the frying pan into the fire.

So you say nothing further and excuse yourself. You would have barfed in his face if you stayed there a second longer. Actually that's not a very bad idea. Bella is standing outside waiting for you as you close the door behind yourself.

“What did he say?” 

You bark, “Bunch of horseshit” 

“Typical” 

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Jungkook 

There is a buzzing noise somewhere around Jungkook. Fuck, his head hurts. He frantically searches for his phone, still not opening his eyes. When he finds it, he slides his thumb on the screen and picks up the call. 

“Dude, how big do you want your coffin to be?” He loves his best friend but right now he would rather be sleeping than listen to him bark in his own ear. 

He finally squints his eyes open, “What the fuck are you talking about?” 

“Have you looked at the time?” says Taehyung.

“What time- FUCK!!!” he shrieks as he looks at the clock.

Somebody kill him right now. No wait, he’s gonna die either way so why bother. If he didn’t scream loud enough before, he does now. He all but jumps off the bed when he sees the blondie on the other side sleeping like she fucking owns it, wearing nothing but a thong. She must have heard him malfunctioning because soon she stirs, groaning as she slowly wakes up like a Disney princess. Who the heck is she and how did she get in here? Then it comes to him.

“Please Jungkook just take me to your room and fuck me. Show me what those hockey hands are capable of.” 

He wants to swallow a fistful of iron nails. Speaking straight from his shoulders, he has made plenty of bad decisions throughout his career and this is not his first time bringing a puck bunny up to his room but it has never come to this. Missing his hockey practice because he was too exhausted to get his sweet ass up and run to the academy. 

Taehyung screams from the other side of the line, “Are you there? Hello?” 

Shit, he forgot he was on a call. 

“I’ll be there soon. Cover for me until then.” With that he presses the red circular button and ends the call with him muttering some curses.

He glances back at the blondie, “Why are you not gone yet?” 

She’s looking at him with those fuck me eyes she had last night but right now when he’s well aware of the fact that he’s in hot water, they don’t do shit to him. Coach will have his head on a platter today for sure. Honestly, they wouldn’t have done shit to him if it was not for the great deal of alcohol last night.

“I thought of you as a morning sex person” she twirls a strand of hair with her finger, sitting up now. Her tits hang free and he can see his hickeys decorating her chest.

He wants to laugh. She’s not even close to his type. His type is the woman in blue scrubs with her brunette hair slicked back in a ponytail. His type is the woman who looks like she could be watching grass grow rather than to look at him. His type is the woman who walks into a room and lights it up. His type is the woman who is too bright for him and his mundane personality, who has a face worth millions. His type is Kim Destiny. 

“No need to waste your precious time thinking about me. You can go” 

He places his phone back on the table and saunters over to the bathroom, not bothering looking back at her. He has boundaries and he intends to keep it that way.

He quickly goes through his routine of taking a shower, making a cup of coffee, sliding into a pair of sweatpants and the Ice Dominator’s jersey with his name on the back. Not in that order, of course.

The girl is thankfully gone by the time he finishes. Once he’s done with his coffee he picks up the car keys and a protein bar from the kitchen counter and heads to the academy hoping his limbs remain intact by the time he’s home.

The Academy is bustling as usual with players keeping themselves busy with hockey and their gym sessions. He heads straight for the rink not even bothering to change into the uniform. He needs to see for himself that everybody is still on the ice. Everything comes after that.

Surprisingly, he sees not a single guy when he reaches there. His heartbeat stops.

“Hey Pixie, where are the boys? Did they already leave?” he asks the brunette kid who looks like he just saw a ghost. Or it’s just Jungkook who he saw.

He shakes his head, “They’re all in the gym. The doc called them earlier, said she had something important to get done with them” 

Jungkook gives him a quick thanks and walks towards the gym. What could be so important that she had to call the boys mid practice? Is someone hurt? Is she hurt? His heart leaps in hid throat as he runs. Fuck, please let him be wrong.

The first thing that he sees as he enters the room full of equipment are his teammates. Taehyung and Yoongi are in the corner lifting weights, Namjoon is using the treadmill as he runs on it. The rest of the boys are all scattered around doing their own thing. He still can’t find Destiny anywhere but her assistant, Bella, is talking to Namjoon while holding a file so he lets out a sigh, relieved that nobody is in fact hurt and in need of help. 

“Do you wanna get a tattoo on the peni— oh look who’s here. Jeon Jungkook as I live and breathe.”

Taehyung drops the weight on the ground before walking up to him. He’s dressed in a black tee and sports shorts. The man looks good in everything. Bet he’d look in a sack too. 

“Whoa!! Why do you look like you wanna kill somebody or wanna get killed? Is everything okay?” 

Jungkook lets his face relax, focusing more on the eyebrows which had gone tensed due to his unnecessary anxiety. “Yeah, all’s good. The practice ended early?” 

“The practice ended just on time. It’s you who’s late” he pats my shoulder. 

He runs his fingers through his hair and walks towards the bench, dropping his bag on it. Taehyung follows him ignoring Yoongi who’s calling him back for the weightlifting. 

“Doc wanted to assess our injuries for the last time before our game if you’re curious which, I know you are. You’re always curious about her” 

He winks at Jungkook and he punches him on the chest. Taehyung laughs as he rubs the spot.

“Keep your voice down, will you?” 

Bella’s voice echoes across the room, “Jeon, you’re up next” 

He takes out his water bottle, takes a swig and stands. A wince leaves him as he gets a flashback of the last time he had to face her. It didn’t go very well and he’s sure she hates him now. He would too. After all, he not only talked to her rudely but also lied through his teeth about his injury. It’s pretty old so he had not felt the need to mention it. 

He sees a guy coming out of the office just before he’s about to enter. He has brown hair long enough to reach the nape of his neck. Even from where Jungkook’s standing, he can say the man doesn’t reach above his shoulders. Who the fuck is he? Oh wait, he must be the new player that got traded down here. The guy must have sensed him making a hole through his head by the way he’s staring because he’s begins walking towards him with a bright grin.

“Hey man, you must be Jeon Jungkook? Heard a lot about you. I’m Park Jimin” He holds out his hand, asking Jungkook to shake it and he gives it a firm handshake. Word to the wise : never give someone a weak handshake. His grandfather has been asking him to do that ever since he was 15, said it doesn’t leave a strong impression and he’s be lying if he says he was wrong.

He offers Jimin a nod, “Nice to meet you. Excited to get on the rink with you.” 

He takes his hand back. “Oh the feeling is mutual but—”

“Jungkook, please join me inside” 

Destiny’s voice cuts him off as she looks over to both of them with an eerie expression on her face. Her eyes bounce between them, resting a second longer on Jimin. Does she know him? Do they have a history? Wait, are they a thing? Even if they are, why does it bother him? Jungkook couldn’t care less about the pretty physical therapist who wears her blue scrubs like armor and white crocs with strawberries on them.

He gives Jimin another nod and follows her into the office. Although, he’s not sure if a massage table and a stool resting beside it counts as an office. The room which she works in is much better. This one is just for examinations and massage therapy so he guesses it doesn’t need that much of an upgrade.

She gestures towards the table, “Please sit”

He says nothing and settles himself up, clearing his throat.

“Look I know we got off on the wrong foot last time and it could have gone so much better, but we can still start over right?”

Destiny takes a deep breath, filling her chest with air. She’s wearing her hair in a bun today. It sits at the top of her head and some strands are set loose cascading down her face. God, she’s pretty.

He looks down and back up at her. “Sure”

Her face shows her annoyance with the one word response. He doesn't blame her. He'd be pissed too.

She’s quiet for a moment, “Why don’t you tell me about your knee injury to start with?”

“What are you talking about?”

She sighs, “You know what I’m talking about Jungkook. Please don’t make me work for it. It’s my job to know about your past and present injuries, if any. The manager has already given me crap about it”

He freezes. His hackles rising and his relaxed face long gone.

“What did he say?”

“Nothing”

He levels her with a stern face, “What.did.he.say?”

She’s not obligated to answer him. Hell, she could just slap him in the face and leave but he needs to know what went down with that son of a bitch. When and if she decides to let him in the details and it turns out something wicked, he’s gonna hunt that man down and make his life miserable.

Much to his surprise, she takes a step back and starts talking. "He called me in his office today and," she halts,

"Well let's just say there were some words thrown around which clearly meant he thinks of me as a feather brained bitch"

He might look unbothered from outside but the indignation inside him could just about burn the whole city down. He tries to keep calm and pries some more.

His jaw clenches. "What else?"

Destiny shakes her head, shuffling on her feet. “Jungkook it’s really not that seriou—”

“It is serious. You work for us, you tolerate our asses and in return if we fail to give you the respect which, you deserve by the way cause it’s the bare minimum, we might as well save everyone’s time and money by giving all of this up.”

“Why do you care?” she shakes her head.

He takes a step forward, “Because you— Because you work for us, Destiny. You look out for our bodies, our injuries, our fuckups. Is that not enough?”

She barely reaches his shoulders. It’s cute how she has to crane her neck up in order to look him in the eye. She keeps looking at him for a long minute, searching his face.

“You think I don’t know that? Do you really think I don’t have what it takes to ask for my own dignity?”

He takes a long step back. This conversation was as unforeseen as they come. The room gets filled with heavy silence and he can hear Destiny’s heavy breath. He can tell she’s trying to calm herself as if his words have blindsided her.

Needless to say she’s a tad bit taken aback. Jungkook would be too if someone who never bothered to speak a word to him and when he did, there was nothing pleasant about his tone suddenly started to care.

But that’s where she’s wrong, nothing about his care or concern for her is sudden. He still remembers the day she accidentally drank the almond smoothie Bella brought not knowing the fact that she’s allergic to it. She’d started choking the second it went down her throat. He also remembers how Yoongi injected the epipen against her thigh as she came back to life.

Meanwhile, he stood behind shaking in his goddamn boots. Too scared to let her out of his sight and too pathetic to hold her close. Yeah, he’s not proud of that.

He sighs, “You know that’s not what I meant—”

Namjoon walks inside with a hand towel around his neck “Doc, you about done? The boys are being incorrigible over there. If you don’t hurry, one of them is gonna call a tattoo artist and get their dick tattooed. Right here”

The room falls silent.

“Jesus” she looks over to where the guys are bickering about something, propping her hands on her hips. “Yeah, give me a minute.”

“Sure” and with that he walks away.

She picks up a blue file from the stool, not looking at him. Why is she not looking at him?

“If you don’t want to tell me about your injury right now, that’s fine. Since, I know it’s pretty old and It’s unlikely that you’re gonna get affected by it in the upcoming games, there’s no need to worry. However, I would still suggest you be careful. Anything can happen out there and your knee is in a vulnerable position. Don’t pick unnecessary fights, don’t let the opponent know your weak link.”

She glances at him, dropping the file back to where it was.

“You can go”

Without a preamble, he heads outside, passing Taehyung. He hears him cracking a joke about penis tattoos and piercings with his girlfriend’s name on it. Destiny cracks up and Jungkook wonders if she would have done the same, had he been the one cracking the joke. Only, he doesn’t crack jokes. Not around her at least. It’s not like he's some grumpy bastard who wants nothing to do with anybody around him and thinks of him as omniscient.

There’s just something about Destiny which puts him at loss of words. Knotting his tongue it in such a way where he can’t get an expression out. Only look at her and god, does he look at her. He's not stupid. He knows it’s a crush but she’s like a mirage to him. She’s unreachable, forbidden and so fucking beautiful.

Does he want to make her his? Yes, Is he going to risk his career and hers over it? Absolutely not. So, he makes use of the only right nobody can take away from him. Not even her. Admire her from afar. Fantasize more about tasting her, licking her slender neck and worshipping the ground that she walks on and one day if she lets him, Jungkook will do anything to turn all of that into reality.

He finds Yoongi seated on of the benches, scrolling on his phone.

Facing him, Jungkook speaks in a low voice. "Do you have any idea where James is?"

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Destiny

Never have you ever wanted to run away as much as you did when you saw Jimin in front of yourself, standing all tall and proud. You had wished it to be a dream, wished you just had a nightmare about him joining the same team you happen to work with but reality is a goddamn bitch and it bites hard when it does. He had grown out his hair longer but he still has the same smile, same eyes and the same charm he used on you back then. Park Jimin is a man people don’t ever forget once they see him. He has an aura which traps everyone so hard they can never escape. How do you know? You have been a victim yourself.

You meticulously go through the consequences and eventualities of being in the same room as him again. You seeing him everyday and him reminding you of every single detail you have tried so hard forgetting about, the boys finding out about you both and putting you through the wringer or worse, him. The possibilities are endless and you feel the sudden urge to square everything with him.

Contrary to what you had thought, he reacted pretty normally when he saw you as if somebody had already told him about you. You had expected him to get shocked or at the very least pretend to be shocked.

Having said that, he just gave you a single nod as if you're someone he passes by every morning at the park. Are you this forgettable? Are you someone people just brush aside like that? Your father’s words echo in your ears like loud drums,

“You know, nobody will love you if you keep looking like this. Eat less”

“Girl, do you ever stop eating? Every time I see you, you're stuffing something in that mouth of yours!!”

“Don’t come running back at me when no guy gives a shit about you”

You were 10 and he was an asshole. He still is.

Thanks to him, you now have a tendency to cook when you're stressed over anything. It brings you comfort and diverts your mind from the excessive overthinking. You would go bald if it puts the voices into silent mode.

After already wasting half of your life speculating what to eat, counting calories and whatnot, you came to the terms that you can’t actually operate that way and began eating whatever the fuck you wanted. Yet still, you need to go a long way in order to fully love yourself and your body. It's a journey and you're moving ahead step by step. One day at a time.

One would even say you're hot. You have received compliments from several people over the course of time except you don’t have a thigh gap, your arms jiggle and you also happen to have a love handle. You would have adored them if it wasn’t for your dad making you feel shitty about having them.

A knock on your door stops you midway as you're kneading the dough. Biscuit runs over to you, jumping on the counter.

“Coming”

The knock comes back again, this time slightly louder.

“Oh my god wait I’m coming”

The door swings open and you gasp. “Mina?”

She passes by you, dragging her suitcase along with her.

“Hey bestie”

You close the door and follow her further into the hall. “What’s going on? What’s with the suitcase?”

Your best friend’s sudden arrival must have caught you by slight surprise but your cat is rather pleased to see her. Traitor. She starts clawing at her feet excitedly.

“What a good girl you are? Yes, you are” Mina coos at her and then glances up at you from where she has biscuit nestled in her lap,

“I need a place to live for a few days because my shitty boss kept rejecting all my articles and I really wanna bring her something worth the front page. Apparently, writing about the famous coffee shop around the corner and their secret ingredient being maple syrup wasn’t good enough.”

You round the counter and continue kneading the dough for your strawberry pie. It’s not unlikely for Mina to show up unannounced. In fact, she has done that plenty of times but the suitcase was never involved. This one is new.

“So you decided to barge in here without even asking?” You tease.

She flashes you a dramatic look. “Look at us, Destiny. Aren’t we the same girls who giggled about living together after college? With matching slippers and movie marathons?”

“Okay okay you dramatic bitch. How long are you here for?”

Biscuit runs to do her business and she gets up, setting her suitcase to the side.

She sighs, “Not sure. As long as it takes me to come up with a new topic to write about–HEY— why don’t I just write on the hockey team you work with? What are they called? Ice…ice”

“Ice Dominators” you fill in for her.

She slaps her thigh. “That’s the one”

You shrug, “I mean you can, but you’ll have to call in on the coach first. He operates everything inside and outside the team”

Coach Ian is too nice to turn her request down. He’s one of the most genuine people in the federation. Maybe this is why the team is so strong and united. He respects every single boy and receives it tenfold. It's a mutual thing.

“Shit, How come I didn’t think about that” she bites her lip, her enthusiasm replaced by nervousness.

“Don’t worry. He won’t make you work for it. Ian is as nice as they come” you assure.

She takes a deep breath and lets it out. As you watch, she opens your fridge, taking out the box of frozen blueberries and pops one into her mouth.

“Do you want me to give you a hand?” she mumbles while chewing.

You point towards the bathroom, “Go and take a shower, right now. You stinky”

You duck the blueberry she throws your way, laughing as you do. Giving your cheek one last kiss, she excuses herself.

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Warm hands roam over your thigh, squeezing them. You muffle your moan with your palm and take every thrust. 

“Yeah, you like that? You like how I’m pounding into this ass right now?” 

You gasp. 

“Such a good girl” he praises.

The man behind you presses a kiss to your naked shoulder as he rasps in your ears, “Were you walking around all day dripping for me?” 

He pulls his cock out and thrusts again. You meet him with equal passion and hunger. 

“Tell me” 

You nod. 

“I need your words, Destiny” 

You cry out, “Yes Oh god, Yes. I wanted you in me so bad” 

He cups your pussy and rubs your clit with his palm until you're rolling your eyes to the back of your head and squirming. Thrust after thrust he brings you to your sweet release while talking dirty things in your ear. You're about to melt into a puddle of goo. He’s got you totally at his mercy. 

“So beautiful like this. Taking my cock so well huh?” 

“Ahh it feels so good, right there. Just right there, don’t stop” 

He bites down your shoulder, “Come for me and let everyone outside hear the name you’re screaming, you dirty whore” 

Your heartbeat picks up as you squeeze him with the tight ring of muscle, orgasm crashing over. 

“FUCK. Oh my god Jungkook!!”

Your eyes fling open and you sit up so fast your head starts spinning. Everything around you is pitch black. Wait, where am you? 

Mina is at your side in an instant, “Destiny, are you okay babe?”

You look around and release a sigh of relief. You run your fingers through your hair, ruffling them. 

“Yeah um… I’m fine. It was just a bad dream. Go back to sleep.” 

Except it wasn’t. It was one hell of a dream where you were getting fucked into oblivion by your player. You're not even going to lie and say that you didn’t like it. C’mon you're a woman of needs, it’s just that, him fulfilling those needs was not on the cards for you even if it wasn't real.

You check the time on your phone and wince at the bright light flashing up at you. It’s 2:45 am and you just had a back breaking sex dream about a man who you want nothing to do with. Who, as beautiful as he is, annoys the hell out of you with those one word replies and grumpy face. An edgy feeling threatens to rise.

Oh god it’s going to be awkward now. It’s only normal to walk on eggshells around someone people have these sort of dreams about. You have read your fair share of books where the female character gets a sex dream about a man and then they don’t talk to each other for the rest of their lives. Okay, that's a bit of a stretch but it might as well not be.

Yeah, you admit you guys don’t talk to each other a lot as it is, or are longtime best friends tiptoeing around their feelings, but you're afraid you're gonna have to ignore him forever for the sake of your own sanity. 

I’m so fucked. You think.

tags - @httpjeonlicious @lovingkoalaface @rpwprpwprpwprw

[luveline]

do you have anything more from office frenemies with james? i just read it and i loved it so much

yes! love u ty

—you and James don’t get along until you kind of, sort of do. fem!reader, 1.5k

James listens to the most obnoxious playlist in the mornings. There’s about a fifteen minute window between when he arrives and when the workday officially starts, which coincides exactly with your window. He often gets the same elevator ride, walks a pace beside you, and decides whether he’s going to let the ‘lady’ go first through the door depending on the day. 

That morning, he’d opened the door widely, grinned at you with music blaring loud enough to make a normal person deaf from his earphones, and let you pass. Then he pretended to stick his foot out to trip you up, pulling it back at the last second. 

Jerk, you think, angry even now as he tucks himself into his desk, his earphones still ridiculously loud. He actually, genuinely, is going to get hearing damage. You’re not being bitter. Human ears aren’t meant for that. 

You click onto the workplace Outlook and open a tab on your desktop. How loudly can you listen to music? you google. A few articles appear straight away that fit your purpose —you drag them each into an empty email. Then, smiling to yourself, you find an article on the negative effects of workplace noise pollution and how this sort of selfishness can affect your coworkers’ mental health and add that at the very top. 

To: jamesp@outlook.wpa.uk 

Hi James, 

please find attached a few articles I felt might be important for you to read.

Worst, 

Your unhappy adjacent desk. 

You know he’s received it when he laughs loudly, turning down his music with a few quick clicks on his phone. 

An email comes through to your inbox shortly after.

Hi bestie, 

I’m so so sorry for the noise. Please find attached a few articles I, in turn, felt you might enjoy. 

Best, 

James Potter :) 

He’s attached an irksome variation of articles. Why music can help you get ready for the day. Ten ways workplace friendships are important. Can you really find your soulmate at work? 

You open your personal messaging system. You tend not to use it with James, but this morning he’s winding you up. 

I could report you to HR for that last one, you send. 

He replies quickly. You try very hard not to look up at him from over your desktop. I didn’t mean me. 

You’ll be deaf by thirty. 

Jealous you don’t have such great taste in music? 

Jealous of everyone in the annex. 

Want a cup of coffee?

You meet his gaze finally over the computer, find him already looking at you. You shake your head scornfully. In what world would you ever want him to make you a coffee? He’s never actually offered to make you one before, to be fair, but he’s awful to you so what are you supposed to think? He’ll probably poison it. 

He stands to leave. Remus, the other accountant to complete your trio, arrives while he’s gone with his boyfriend Sirius in tow. They’re also James’ best friends, unfortunately. It makes for some awkwardness. 

“Where is he?” Remus asks you, in the midst of a quick goodbye kiss before Sirius makes his way to his desk further down the office. 

You nibble your lip and give a dispassionate shrug. You hate talking about James. You hate his stupid mess of hair, his reading glasses, his lips when he smiles crookedly and worse when he’s glaring at you. You hate the way he sighs as he clicks his neck, the quick lap he does every other hour complaining of tired legs, the genuine tenderness he shows you whenever you’re sick. You hate James. You don't like to think about him too much lest you get caught, a fish in a net.

Or a fish with a painful hook in its lip. 

“Ah, you’re here,” James says, two cups of coffee in his hand. 

You’re only a little heartbroken when he puts one on his desk and one on Remus’. Didn’t want one anyways. 

Remus grins as James comes up behind him for a rough hug and hair ruffle. “How was last night?” 

“I wish you’d come. Sirius spent all night trying to out drink Marl, you know he can’t, so I spent all night holding his hair out of his face. I wasn’t gonna talk to him this morning, but he was being very pathetic.” 

James laughs. You pretend you aren’t listening to them, pretend you don’t feel left out even if they have no reason to be your friend, clicking at random things on your screen and scrolling through spreadsheets long finished and filed. “You know I couldn’t come, Moony,” —no point starting on their awful nicknames— “what if she needed me?” 

You still. She? 

“James, there’s not much you can do,” Remus says gently. He’s a quiet, soft sort of man, but they’re all so loud about loving one another. “You have to let her… you know.” 

You feel them both looking at you, your gaze steadfast on your screen. 

“Try not to think about it,” Remus says. 

“I’ve been distracting myself,” James agrees. 

Oh, you think. Oh. I’m such a dick. 

“You could go home?” Remus says, putting his face in his hand. “I could cover you.” 

“It’s too much work.” 

“I know, but, you know, I’ll do half, and you’ll only have half to catch up on when you come back.” 

You’re not sure who she is, and you very much still don’t like James Potter, but you're not heartless. He sounds awfully upset, fragility to his voice and a foreign balling of his fist by his hip. “Um,” you say, clearing your throat weakly, “well, with me and Remus, we could cover for you.” 

James’ face is unreadable, looking down at you. “You’d cover for me?” he asks. 

“Your work isn’t exactly hard, James.” 

“But you’d do it?” 

“How long will you be off for?” 

James frowns. “Like, two days?” he says quietly. 

“That’s fine. We can do that,” you say, checking with Remus from around James hip. “Yeah?” 

“Of course,” Remus says quickly. 

James looks at you long and hard. “You’re not kidding?” 

“No, James. Not kidding. You’d do the same for me, right?” 

James leans down to hug you before you can stop him. His arms wrap around your shoulders, a perfectly amicable touch made up of sleeper muscle and the attractive smell of almond oil, nearly sweet, slightly woody. He laughs against your cheek as he pulls away, turning back to Remus for a similar hug. “Thank you. I’ll go tell Danny right now.” He beams at you. His relief is thick as honey, palpable in his warm tone. “Thank you.” 

You can’t look at him very long. 

The memory of his fingers linger, the weight of his arm behind your head. He excuses himself to go talk to your boss, and you and Remus sit in a semi-awkward silence, of which you’re wholly responsible. 

“His cat is dying,” Remus says eventually.

You wince. “Oh, no, really?” you ask. 

“He’s had her since we were kids. It’s really nice of you to do this.”

“I really do think he’d do it for me,” you interrupt. “I’m not, you know, cruel, because we don’t get on.” 

“I know. James knows that too.” 

You want to get defensive. Why does it matter if James knows? But Remus is too nice to argue with, and secretly, strangely, you’d wanted James to know you aren’t mean. You wouldn’t have sent him that email this morning if you’d known, and maybe this is apology enough for that. 

Still, it doesn’t feel right when James returns, gathering his suit jacket from the back of his chair. “Thank you guys, so much. I will bring you the most amazing desserts of all time as a thank you. I won’t even put your mug on the top shelf the next time I wash it,” James promises you. 

You bat aside the rage of knowing he’s the culprit and instead get out of your seat before he can leave. “Uh, James?” you ask. 

He raises his eyebrows. “Yeah?” 

You look at the floor by his shoes. “About earlier…”

James stands subtly between you and the bulk of the office. “You okay?” 

“I just– I’m sorry for complaining about your earphones. I wasn’t trying to be insensitive.” 

“You weren’t insensitive,” he says, “I was being obnoxious. Don’t worry about it, okay?” 

“I–” You hate yourself for all your stammering. “Hope whatever is wrong, that you’re okay. I’ll cover for you for the week if you need me to.” 

“Please stop feeling sorry for me. It looks weird on you. I much prefer you when you’re frowning, you get these super deep wrinkles in your forehead that I just love.” 

You turn away without looking up. “I’m gonna input all your sales information wrong.” 

“And I’m gonna bring you the best donut you’ve ever tasted to say thanks, sweetheart.” 

[signanothername]

Could we have some soft/comfort headcannons about anyone of your choosing? It's election night and I really would like something soft for my brain to chew on instead of worry all night

Absolutely!

Imma give you a bunch of different little guys <333

———

Killer:

-his cats help him a lot with sleep problems, they make him calm enough to the point of actually closing his eyes whenever he’s with them (reminder that he usually sleeps with one eye open xhxbbx)

-after he’s saved, he gradually becomes better at eating, he still avoids food that reminds him of the past but becomes more accepting of other types of food, eventually getting his bone mass and weight back, going from lanky to chubby <3333

-he eventually accepts the state of his soul and instead of trying to fix it, he tries to understand it, understand himself, he becomes a lot more gentle with his own self

———

Color:

-he has albums upon albums full of pictures he took over the years, filled with places he visited, pictures of people he loves and moments he cherishes

-he’s very connected with so many people, and a lot of people find him to be a great confidant, he does a lot to help people where he can, he eventually gets the good he gave back with people taking care of him

-he’s in a queer platonic relationship with Delta and Epic

———

Nightmare:

-he has piles upon piles of gifts Dream gave him for their birthday over the years, he never got rid of any of them, these gifts are something he cherishes dearly

-he’s the one to introduce Killer to Ccino’s cafe, he actually did that with no ill intentions, and Nightmare himself is not really sure why he went out of his way to introduce Killer to the cafe

-he and Dream sometimes sit beside their mother in silence, just taking everything in, taking each other presence in, not talking or interacting, Nightmare feels peaceful during these moments, it’s the closest thing to the same feelings he had as a happy child

———

Dream:

-even though he has a fallout with Ink, he eventually remedies his relationship with them, they become best friends again

-whenever life gets too much, he goes to Swap’s house and stays with the swap bros, it helps immensely

-Dream never expects to receive anything on his birthday, that expectation is broken when he receives a gift from Nightmare, he never got another gift afterwards, it’s only that one gift, but it’s the entire world to him

———

Error:

-he thinks of Ink as his bestest friend in the world, he’d never admit that out loud tho dhdhhdhdh (they’re frenemies)

-he loves geno and Fresh dearly, they’re his proclaimed siblings, he’s more open about his love with them

-he actually takes commissions by making dolls for people who want them in exchange for chocolate as payment (his chocolate stock never runs out zgxggx)

———

Horror:

-He eventually finds a better relationship with food

-he succeeds at escaping from Nightmare and managing to keep his AU (and most importantly his brother) safe in the process

-he finds himself becoming best friends with Farm

———

Ink:

-his art is something others never see, but surprisingly, if you had the chance to see it, then you’d find it’s art the people they love most

-their fallout with Dream actually hurt him, so when he and Dream got back to being besties, they felt very happy about it

-he loves spending time with Color, Epic and Delta cause of their constant traveling habits, they’re very entertaining to be around

-while they spend most his time in the doodlesphere, the second place you’ll most likely see them in is with their parents in the omega timeline, he loves them with all his heart

———

These are the ones I can think of off the top of my head hdhdhdhdh hope they’re enough to rotate in your brain all day <333333

[physalian]

10 Character Dynamics the World Needs More of

Me handing out character dynamics like free samples at the Mall Food Court: “Take one! Or two! You’ll love it!”

I don’t care how many times these tropes have been done – write more of them. Write all of them. Fill out your author bingo card one by one.

1. “No one gets to kill you but me, Old Friend”

This. Right here. Primo rival content that I *live* for. All the juicy history between two old frenemies, the character drama, the backstory, the titillating unknown of what drove these two to rival status, bitter enemies that respect the heck out of each other, to the point that hell hath no fury should one get knocked down without the other’s consent.

And, of course, the moment where it seems all bets are off, when the rival comes to save their ass only to hand it back to them at a later date. The angst! The shipping fodder! Need I say more?

2. A bigger, badder villain, and their minion

You, reader, spend countless hours hating the guts of the big bad villain. They’re evil, they’re vile, they’re sadistic, heartless, irredeemable bastards. They killed your favorite character for shock value. The big bad moustache-twirling antagonist… is actually not the biggest fish in the story.

Either they’re coerced into doing evil as a puppet of the Bigger Bad, a tragic villain in their own right, or they have some reservation, some line even they won’t cross, someone else’s boots they have to kiss, someone who features in their nightmares, as they feature in the heroes. They end their stories dispatched without a thought by the Bigger Bad, or redeem themselves in death by taking out their masters. It never gets old.

3. A leader and their lancer: besties

You know what’s better than leaders and lancers who have zero faith in each other and are constantly bickering about who should be in charge? Leaders and their right-hands who adore each other (platonically). They have each other’s backs, they know each other’s greatest strengths and weaknesses and are each other’s perfect covers.

They can communicate with looks and vague gestures alone, they compliment each other’s flaws and misgivings, build up the rest of the team when they’re down on their luck, and should misfortune strike either, they pull out all the stops and show off exactly why they’re not to be trifled with, so that even the villain is afraid.

4. “I don’t even know who you are”

Oh, but you will. This one twists the knife, robbing the avenging hero of the importance in this world they’re desperate to maintain. They are their own hero, the sun revolves around them… but not to this one asshat that ruined their life and doesn’t even remember doing it.

An entire identity built upon the finding, fighting, and overcoming of this wrongdoer, every other goal in life cast aside for this one impossibility. Either the villain toys with the hero to make them irate, or gets suckerpunched by some pissant fueled by vengeance and spite and divine purpose to dole justice where justice is due.

6. The jaded badass and their naive ward

If the last 8 years of media is anything to go by, we still love this trope, whether it’s in a galaxy far, far away or a fungi-zombie post-apocalypse, or in the twilight hours of an era of legendary mutants. The best part of this trope? You get two often contradictory character types in one body. The pessimist, PTSD-ridden master of old with no living friends left and at least one dead love interest *and* beneath all that, still lies an atrophied heart of gold just waiting to be nurtured and revived.

The naive ward gets a hard lesson in how crappy the world can be, but also in how there’s still some goodness left, if their guardian cares about them. The jaded badass in turn, learns how good the world can be, that there’s something still worth fighting for beyond the next bottom of a bottle.

6. The enemy of my enemy (is my friend)

Similar to the “old friends”, this trope is often a result of the minioned Big Bad realizing they don’t want to be evil anymore. Or, bitter old rivals, sides of a war that have been fighting for generations, ideological polar opposites, fundamental polar opposites all come together when: Some evil schmuck managed to scare them both.

Doesn’t matter on what shaky ground this temporary alliance is built, or how long it lasts, equally-competent badasses on both sides finally work together and compliment each other’s strengths, and compensate for their weaknesses, in a way their teammates never could.

7. The irredeemable villain’s only wholesome connection

Not so irredeemable anymore, now are they? This trope messes with your head, taking a character you know has done heinous acts of terror, but who cares unflinchingly, unabashedly, about one thing – either their lover, their pet, their relative, or their kid.

This exists independently of the heroes and is not the same as an “oops I guess I’m your father” reveal. I’m talking this character who everyone is convinced cares about nothing and no one but themselves and their ambition still has a place in their soul for something they want to protect, they want to be loved by, or that they must spare from their atrocities.

8. Platonic Heterosexual Friendships

These two have seen each other at their most vulnerable. They’ve shared fears, dreams, desires, know each other’s deepest, darkest secrets. They’ve seen each other exhausted, frazzled, dressed up, dressed down, bloodied and broken and like a raw, open nerve. These two would die for each other, they would live for each other, and yet.

They’re not in love with each other. They’re wholly comfortable in each other’s spaces without lust and desire mucking up the atmosphere. Neither is the one, neither wants to be the one. They remain together not for the bonds of romance, but for the bonds of friendship, and nothing could be stronger.

10. The Ace and their best friend, the Self-Proclaimed Slut

These two respect the f*ck out of each other. One never mocks the other for lacking desire and in return, they’re never mocked for their promiscuity. They’ll never walk in each other’s shoes, but they don’t need to, to understand that’s just how some people are. They’re each other’s safest spaces when the world doesn’t take either of them seriously.

They’re each other’s biggest defenders against the bullies, presumers, the holier-than-thous who think they have it all figured out. They’re the perfect compliment to give advice on everything from relationships to the best outfits for an outing because there’s *zero sexual tension* between them. Or, maybe, if the stars align, they’re something more.

10. The redeeming villain, and their staunchest skeptic

This villain has lost everything – their home, the respect of their people, their worth, their evil ambition, their identity, and has begun working their way up from rock bottom doing everything in their power to show the heroes that they’re serious. They make amends, they break their bones proving themselves, they’ve swayed everyone they’ve wronged in the hero camp.

Except one. The one character that was probably their first defender, and got burned for it. The character that was naive enough to think this villain could be saved, and was wrong. The character that won’t be duped again without some serious drama and soul-bearing between them.

Now tell me which ones I missed!

[jayholdenworld]

Okay so, I been sharing ideas about carcar, but I have a lot more, and I need an idea of what to post after I finish the Landoscar fic I have.

So, here you go. A Master List of all my Carcar ideas.

1. Super power AU where those with powers are hunted and killed because they “are dangerous”.

Carlos is a hunter, but he gets powers after a traumatic experience, so he’s scared someone will discover and kill him. And Oscar is a “guardian” (someone who protects those with powers because they have a bunch of abilities).

So, when Carlos discovers Oscar’s safe space while Oscar identifies Carlos has powers they need to learn how to help and trust the other one while they’re protecting their own friends and families in the process.

2. Beta Oscar (actually an Alpha) discovering that his omega mate and partner for life is Carlos and having to deal with the idea of being the only one between them who knows this is happening.

Usually Omegas are the ones with the ability to “find” their alphas, but Oscar was raised by and with Omegas. So, instinctually, he knows how to find his other half. But he pretends he’s a Beta because it’s easier for his career.

While Carlos was raised by Alphas, so he doesn’t understand a lot of his Omega instincts and abilities. This, of course, includes his understanding of his feelings for Oscar.

Featuring Lando having the time of his life after discovering Oscar’s secrets. Carlos having mixed feelings about the Australian due to the closeness he has with his (previous) teammates. And Charles, Logan, Max, and Mark trying to help Oscar.

Of course, this idea includes them sharing heats and ruts because I can.

————————————

3. One version of my Red string of fate AU (the other version can be read here but it’s a Carlandoscar version) with Oscar discovering really young his soulmate is Carlos Sainz Jr. but not saying anything once they actually met.

After Spa 2023 Oscar loses his ability to see their thread, which usually means their destiny together has crumbled into pieces and the universe has decided they should not be together. So he starts to pretend it never happened and he never knew about it.

But, instead of the world deciding they should no longer be together, Carlos gets Oscar’s ability and now he’s the one who is pushing everything to make Oscar look on his direction (His last attempt is Miami and we know what happened there)

For those expecting angst from this one, this idea is not so sad in my mind because it’s like an immediate change. Oscar decides to give Carlos some space so he can move on and Carlos goes obsessed with Oscar because “Oscar and him are soulmates! Lando! Your muppet friend finally found his other half!”

(After Miami both see the thread so they decide to talk about it when they have the time. That’s why after Monaco they are so soft around each other)

————————————

4. Oscar as Alonso’s adopted son who had a crush on Carlos since he was little. He was adopted by the Spaniard after some traumatic experiences for the Australian, so, when Nando finds the kid walking alone in Asturias (and after a lot of legal investigations) he adopts the boy and starts teaching him everything he knows about karts.

And Carlos, how grew up admiring Alonso, meeting the young boy he adopted and having the same crush but being too scared of Fernando to even think about making a move.

Carlos, of course, is Oscar’s first everything (friend, crush, loml, rival, sports enemy, frenemy, situationship, fwb, and so on), so Oscar is always scare they are not going to work. While Carlos is having constant meltdowns because he wants Oscar so much it scares him.

————————————

5. Hidden relationship, where they accidentally got married in Las Vegas after 2023 race and now they need to keep it in secret until they find the way to get an annulment.

When I say “secret relationship “ it’s their marriage. Before that they were in a… mess, because it was not even a situationship, but too much drinks and now they’re married.

I don’t do comedy, but this is basically, everything that could go wrong, goes horribly wrong.

————————————

6. Oscar being Mark and Fernando’s daughter (she transitioned from male to female) and was adopted by the Piastri family a year after she was born. +20 years later, she’s a motoGP driver instead of a F1 driver.

She, of course, is still Logan’s friend (and sister thanks to Jenson, but that is another can of worms, part of the fic drama), so she goes to a F1 race after having a bad incident with Marc Marquez and Carlos is like “Marc could have won and she is the one to blame.”

Then Carlos crashes with Logan and Oscar is mad because “this was Logan’s race, everything in this sport is so unfair.”

So, when they met both are mad with the other (yes, it’s Spa, but with different flavor). They don’t fight because they’re not in the same sport, but “fuck him/her. They are so bad they should retire.”

(Cut this to both being drunk in the same bar by accident and having a one night stand both “regret” and praying to never met the other again. Just for them to meet time and time again because Fernando is a little shit and enjoys the drama they do each time they are together.

Of course, he doesn’t know Carlos is “doing” a lot of things to his sweet baby daughter every time they are alone. But Logan swore he would never say anything).

————————————

7. 2021 Prema Oscar ends up playing “Marry, Kiss, Kill” with his teammates during and he picks Carlos, Charles and Seb as his options for the game. (They’re playing with Ferrari drivers only)

Carlos heard him and it’s been hanging over their heads the fact that Oscar jokingly (but also seriously) said he would pick Carlos, but Carlos never heard for what because he had a meeting so he needed to leave.

(This was based on the lyric of “so high school” from TS, where she says that she bets on all three for her and her lover. And Carcar definitely gives me those vibes)

————————————

8. Prema Oscar meeting Carlos in 2021 and getting to date him. They keep their relationship hidden during 2022, but it’s harder for them to ignore each other once they’re together in formula one. So they decide to “beef” with each other to keep the other close without anyone noticing it.

The only ones who know about them are Charles, Logan and Fernando. Charles because Carlos is his teammate and it’s his fault (and Arthur’s) that they met. Logan because he’s Oscar’s best friend and knows him more than anybody else. And Fernando because him and Mark are like Oscar’s grid parents, and he knows Carlos too well, so he knew something was up (it’s not because he found them making out after Oscar revealed his contract with McLaren. Not at all.)

————————————

9. Chatfic with Nico R. as Oscar’s adoptive brother (but more like a father figure) and Lewis as the “fun brother” (also Oscar’s father figure). And both of them panicking after Oscar starts to get the attention from different drivers.

Brocedes fixing their shit because they can hate each other, try to kill each other, but they will never allow their (son) sibling to be in a relationship with another driver. They know how messy that goes.

(Of course, Carcar is the endgame ship here)

————————————

10. Modern Royal Prince! Oscar and just some guy Carlos. Carlos is just some guy how knocked up Prince Oscar (they were already together) so now he needs to show everyone he’s worth of being Oscar’s future husband.

(Carlos knew Oscar was a Prince but he thought it was a joke. That’s why he’s not mad with Oscar but with himself)

————————————

11. Past lives AU. (Thanks to @carcarpodium)

Oscar and Carlos, always different lives, always different people. They are not lovers, never were. But they always cross paths somehow and Oscar is the only one how knows they do. He can feel Carlos’ presence when they are about to meet, so Oscar always know when he is back into his life.

People would call them soulmates. Oscar prefers to say they’re two dudes bumping into each other’s lives once per life. Of course, he doesn’t want to call what they don’t have like that.

Because Oscar always feeling when Carlos dies, he’s always at the scene, but never able to save him. Not even driving as fast as a plane can Oscar save Carlos. And he’s there, and he is always the first one to know, and how can he act like nothing if his heart is broken every time he sees Carlos die and someone dear to Oscar crying for him?

This life is no different, Oscar can feel him, all his emotions and thoughts are there for Oscar, but instead of letting him go, he decides to change things.

Oscar learns how to make Carlos feel better (using Lando or Charles at the start, because they’re not friends, but Oscar wants to make Carlos feel better all the time), and then Miami happens, and Oscar can feel Carlos wants to apologize but they’re not friends, so he doesn’t know how. So, Oscar is the one who does the first move.

This idea includes Senior mentoring Oscar so he understands this “power” and how to use it to protect Carlos.

————————————

12. Carcar fluffy wedding AU. (This idea came to me thanks to @drsbutmakeitspicy )

Oscar asking the whole Sainz family for their blessing so he can propose Carlos first, because he knows Carlos will do it in a big fancy restaurant and will get down on his knee in the middle of it, capturing everyone’s attention. And he wants something private, only for them.

Then, after Oscar has their blessings, they have a family reunion with both families in the Sainz family’s farm and Carlos is unaware of what is going to happen because Hattie keeps showing him photos of baby Oscar.

————————————

13. Carcar reading Carcar fics (I made two posts about this idea, so you can read more here and here.)

————————————

14. Body swap Carcar (this was a collaborate idea with @drsbutmakeitspicy too)

Carlos and Oscar are rivals but are also in a situationship after Spa 2023. But the swap doesn’t happen until after Miami and they have 1 week before the next race (Imola).

While they are trying to change back both start exploring their new bodies and lives, trying to find something to use against the other. Because they can be a lot of things, but are rivals hungry for a win first and lovers/FwB/situationship second.

————————————

15. Fem Singer!Oscar and Driver Carlos.

Oscar was a karting driver and got into England following that dream, but has an accident during a kart race and due to the injuries she cannot drive again.

In the middle of her pain she starts to play music, someone records her and she becomes popular really quick. So she decides to follow this new passion.

She invites Logan to one of her concerts and he brings Alex, who brings Lando and George, and Lando brings Carlos. And when they meet it’s like there was so much magnetism in the air. But then they say something that makes the other mad and they fight.

But destiny keeps bringing them together.

————————————

16. Greek God! Oscar and Demigod Carlos forced marriage. (Have a longer post about this one, you can read it here.)

————————————

17. Sad Mpreg One-Night-Stand Carcar

They had a one night stand and Carlos left before Oscar woke up. And when Oscar tried to talk to him Carlos acted like nothing happened between them, so Oscar goes away.

Then, Oscar feels sick during one of Logan’s visits when there’s no Indy race and they go to the doctor. They discover Oscar is pregnant and Logan has to promise he will not say anything to Carlos until Oscar is ready (if he ever is)

Then, during the Spanish GP (yes, it’s intentionally there) Oscar loses control of his car and has a bad crash. They take him to the hospital but some hours later the Australian is dead.

After the funeral Logan has a meltdown because he hears Carlos saying something to Lando about Oscar. He’s so mad with the Spaniard. His anger is not related to his lost seat or anything related jealousy. It’s related to his friend, his brother, his everything but lover. This is about Oscar’s sadness and heartbreak. About the nephew or niece Logan will never meet.

(This one has a good ending, believe me)

————————————

18. Carlos as webbonso’s kid, being jealous of his father’s new favorite kid, Oscar.

Carlos was always closer to Nano, it was part of him and his favoritism for Spain. But, when Mark brought Oscar to the house, Carlos lost it. Why this kid was trying to take his father away from him!?

Meanwhile, Oscar is panicking, because “what do you mean the handsome guy I met years ago in Australia, who (by the way) was my bi awakening, is my boss’ son?!”

Featuring Logan as the worst best friend “So, instead of taking Mark’s offering of becoming his son, you can marry his son and become his son-in-law. Foolproof plan”

————————————

I have more, but for now this are the ones shared. When the right time comes, I’ll do a poll to see which fic you want to read first.

[cursedvida]

I mean, there's a reason why we're not shipping Mae with Raka or Proximus, or even Trevathan with Proximus. The chemistry Mae has with Noa is just too intense and doesn't feel sibling or merely friend like (like what Noa has with Soona) Frenemies vibes if you're going the platonic route. As more films come out, I think nomae has potential to become the main ship of the franchise.

Also nobody shipped Will and Caesar bc they were clearly stablished as a father and son. And nobody shipped Malcom and Caesar bc they were crearly allies an that’s it. Raka it’s clearly showed as a protector/adult figure everytime and he never saw Mae like anything but someone to take care for as a caregiver or paternal figure if you let me say. So yeah, the dynamic between Mae and Noa is very different. They have tension and not only bc they don’t trust each other, there is something more. They’re not like friends, nor like siblings, nor like enemies but something deeper an intense. Everybodi even people that don’t want to ship them or aren’t foccused into shipping says they saw it watching the film so… Yeah, for me denying that it’s pretty naive but ok everybody can have their own opinions.

[cuppajj]

Is there anything that could, hypothetically or potentially, cause distrust among the neo beasts towards one another? Something that may cause them to turn on each other is what I'm trying to say.

Also, would it be alright to ask a rough estimate of how many years the entire story spans across?

Oh definitely, the neobeasts are already trying to maintain their whole alliance themselves. Unlike when they were ancients, their relationships have been fraying. Not that it’d be necessary easy to turn them against one another, but there are factors already present:

Save Lily, everyone already doesn’t like Saint Vanilla. They are fully aware that when the threat of the original five beasts are dealt with, when he gets his soul jam half, or if he—makers forbid—actually succeeds in his fruitless ascendancy quest, he’ll kill them all. Cacao, Dragonberry and Cheese have found orchids in their kingdoms already (the former more than the latter), and Cacao is *staunchly* against him to the point he will grow hostile if Saint steps foot in his kingdom.

Versely, Saint still wants to purify all of them, seeing them in the same vein as the rest of life: suffering in sin, desperate for salvation. There’s no changing what he wants to do to them, only ways that will stall him from doing it.

Berry and Cheese are already at odds with each other, frenemies by definition. They constantly bicker over lands both of them are interested in taking, and they gave each other inferiority complexes to varying degrees (Berry more than Cheese). They can be friendly one second, but a powder keg will be enough to sever that connection.

It wouldn’t be hard for Lily to cut ties with all of the beasts (except for Saint) in general. She doesn’t need their help, and she doesn’t need to ask for their approval.

Cacao is really the easiest and hardest one because of his extreme isolation and natural avoidance of the others

As for the second question, right now I’m thinking BAAU takes place over 7 to 10 years? No idea what Crepe’s canon age is, but if they started at 6-7 years old then they’re 16-17 by BAAU’s conclusion, for reference.

However, I also need to figure out how long it’s been with the Neobeasts around, because I want the world to have already been in the process of accepting them as the new normal (enough time for Saint to have his cult, Cacao to have tamed the licorice sea, Berry and Cheese to have conquered and the latter to have rebuilt her kingdom, etc)… so that alone might be three years at least, making BAAU from Lily’s corruption to the finale upwards of 10-13 years. BUT don’t take this as gospel because this has to do with my very incomplete and very jumbled timeline, this is just a rough idea of what I have lol. You can still enjoy the au without making this info canon. Bottom line, it’s a long time

[zadralien]

He wanted Dib to beg for his life.

Dib has become his life.

Ficlet under the cut.

“Fuck, Zim!” Dib reaches up to gingerly press his fingers to his nose and feels the thick blood pooling down past his mouth. “I swear to god, you fucking bug, if you’ve gone and broken my nose again I’ll-“

“-Shut up!” Zim shrieks, pak legs unfurling and clanking onto the concrete. He rises above Dib and encroaches slowly, legs clacking with each step. “You.. you worm! Do you have any idea what you could have done?”

“Dude, it was just some papers. I didn’t even read them for christ’s sake. They’re in Irken, you of all people should know I’m slow at translating that chicken scratch of yours.” Dib looks forlornly at the stack of crumpled papers a few feet away, scattered and likely marked with a spray of Dib’s blood. He turns back to look up at Zim when he snarls, reaching out a gloved claw to shove Dib back hard.

“They’re not for you, they’re Zim’s private papers!” Zim leans further over Dib, tongue curling and spitting flecks of saliva onto Dib’s face. Dib scrubs at his face, remembering how disrespectful spitting is considered in Irken culture. It burns a little.

“I don’t give a shit what they are. I didn’t even mean to touch them! I just wanted to put my crap down.” He meets Zim’s eyes. They’re a deep red and set in a foul expression. “I’m not interested in your secrets. You can keep those. It’s not like I don’t know everything anyway.”

Zim stiffens and Dib’s expression softens despite himself. He runs a tired hand through his hair and steels his gaze.

“You don’t really think I’m that big of an idiot, do you? You’ve just been quietly shoving your fat green head into my life over the last year and suddenly you save my life. I don’t know man, a guy spends his entire life trying to kill you and then just stops you from bleeding out some random Tuesday? That was weird.“ Dib shrugs, looking away briefly.

“That does not mean anything, Dib-worm. You were bleeding all over my base, it was disgusting. Zim had to stop it somehow.”

Dib shakes his head.

“It’s okay, Zim. I know we’re friends. I don’t know why, and I don’t care to know - but I know you’re lost and don’t know where to go. I know, and it’s okay. I’m lost too. We can be lost together. Your leaders, the Tallest -“.

“Don’t.” Zim grits out, quiet in a way Dib has never heard, didn’t know was possible. Physically, he begins trying to reach one hand out to soothe, to touch, to reassure. Mentally, he begs his sister to come collect his corpse once she realises what most likely happened to him. Damn it, he hopes she realises.

He isn’t that surprised when Zim lunges at him, but he wishes he’d had more time to brace before an Irken claw punches into his chest to grab at the material of his shirt. He wheezes a little.

“You do not know what you speak of, you pathetic slime! Do not mistake your loneliness for Zim’s. Zim doesn’t need you, Zim doesn’t need this dust bowl of a planet. One more fucking word and I’ll finish what that disgusting cryptid creature started last year.”

The human swear word sounds weird coming out of the alien’s mouth, but it’s not the first time. He’d only ever heard Zim swear once before - specifically when he got shredded by a cryptid in the woods and, in a blood-loss haze, made his way to Zim’s base to start bleeding out on his frenemies floor. He knows how hard it is to admit how miserable you are on the inside, especially to the people that matter most.

Well, he had made it this far.

“I know you Zim, and it’s okay.”

Zim’s quiet for a moment before he speaks, clenching his jaw.

“Beg.”

“What?”

“Zim told you, one more word. Now you beg for your pathetic life, you insolent worm.”

“I’m not going to - Zim, stop it. You know I’m right. I care about you too! It’s fine!”

Zim snarls, fist clenched, pak legs raising him to his full height. Dib’s heart drops when he sees one leg glint as it lifts itself behind Zim, preparing to strike.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. He might actually die today. Shit.

“Beg!”

“No!”

“Beg!”

Shit. The leg is calibrating.

“I’m all you have! Kill me and you’ll have nothing. You know it too!”

Zim stops. The leg pauses. His eyes are wide, frightened, conflicted. He chokes out a pained sound, continuing to clench and unclench his fist. He yanks Dib closer by the shirt still tangled in his fist. Dib breathes heavily.

“Beg Zim not to kill you.” His voice is raw, tired. His eyes roam over Dib’s face, carefully categorising and assessing. The stilted pak leg drops back to the ground.

Dib’s whole body un-tenses despite the proximity. The alien’s face turns slowly into a somewhat unreadable resignation.

Dib swallows the lump.

“Please.” He whispers quietly. Swaying, pressing forward.

“You fool.”

[tootalltech]

the more i think about tua s4 the more it’s like. wow they really just lost steam after the first four episodes huh? like the first four weren’t amazing necessarily, but there was some interesting stuff being set up. i wanted to see what would go on with ben and jennifer, or where the hell five and lila were, or how they would fix some dynamics within the group like between klaus and allison. and i thought gene and jean were kind of good villains, like they were just on the classic tua spectrum of funny, unsettling, and weird. and then it’s like they just didn’t know how to wrap any of it up. like i would fully believe that the ending of the show was not how they meant to conclude it, but they couldn’t think how else to “fix” things in so little time. the five and lila thing i still just really don’t get the purpose of, but it did still feel very rushed and maybe the writers didn’t want to try and figure anything else out about the subway thing they created and five’s new powers being connected to it. and that problem is solved if they have five and lila give up looking (no matter how out of character it is for both of them) and create some lame sibling drama to fill the screen time they could’ve used to explain any of their own world building. not to mention that they then go “oh actually none of it matters anyway because they’re gonna destroy all those timelines and there will just be one real one”- which now that i think about it is another plot hole but that’s another post.

anyway. i guess what i’m trying to say is that some of season 4 was fine. like. the “you’re a good brother” moment from diego to five who looks a little guilty yet touched bc he knows he’s still kind of lying to diego, but he also knows if he were in lila’s position he wouldn’t want his partner to just be told that he’s getting himself into dangerous situations again like that? that’s good. that’s diego, lila, and five’s dynamic right there. lila thinking it’s absolutely hilarious that diego would ever think she’s cheating on him with five? that works, because it is ridiculous. and lila and five both sneaking into the keepers meetings at the start was very in-character for both of them as well. they’re the two former commission agents who get bored with normal life very easily (another reason it makes no sense to have them settle down with each other, lmao). it’s like they understood the three of them decently well before the fifth episode, and when it started they just kind of lost the plot. so i personally will just be ignoring the last two episodes. diego and five love each other even if they are both very grumpy sometimes. and diego and lila still have communication problems but they also are never going to leave each other (and hey, even david castañeda understood that). and then five and lila are commission frenemies who on some level still can’t stand each other but also know they need to work together a lot of the time. and i’m sure they and the rest of the umbrellas figure everything out and stop the fourth apocalypse and live happily ever after. the end.

[uriekukistan]

aita for abducting my nephew’s boyfriend and using his body as a vessel? 

i (1000+M) was minding my own business as a set of 20 cursed preserved fingers when some brat (15M) ate one of my fingers to save his friend (15M). i tried to make him my vessel, but he resisted, and ended up being more of a cage than anything. i also realized later that he was also my nephew, but i’ll get to that in a bit. 

i was getting pretty bored in there, since he wouldn’t let me out to massacre local populations, even after eating another one of my fingers, but then i got my opportunity. he asked me for help defeating a powerful curse, so i took advantage of his pathetic state to get out and wreak havoc in the world. i ripped his heart out (literally) for good measure so he couldn’t come back without dying, but that idiot came back anyway and died.

while i was wreaking havoc though, i found out that his little friend had a really cool jujutsu technique! i thought he would be an interesting opponent, but he wasn’t really using it as well as i thought he would :/ i thought it was kinda unfair that he got to have such a cool technique when i could use it better and especially since i’m stuck in this brat’s body who has no technique, so i cooked up a plan to get my hands on it and brought the brat back to life.

some time later, i got the opportunity to massacre civilians again. well, technically, i was exorcising a disaster grade curse i guess. massacring civilians was just an added bonus. well, the brat didn’t take that very well and was saying all this shit about wanting to die, which i thought was kinda ungrateful, since i saved both his life and the life of his boyfriend. granted, i had ulterior motives for both, but still! 

anyway, he somehow figured out that i had a plan for his boyfriend, and he started running away with his half brother (150M). i was especially worried that i lost my chance when this guy (17M) briefly killed my nephew, but he brought him back to life. 

one thing i’ve never understood is love, so i was a bit confused, but relieved, when my nephew’s boyfriend found him and managed to persuade him to help him out with some game my frenemy (1000+X) set up. some super nauseating bullshit about saving him and not being selfish blah blah blah.

i bet a lot of you are wondering how this 15 year old brat is my nephew when i’m 1000 years old, so since i brought up my frenemy, i should just tell you they’re a bit of a weirdo. basically, when i was in the womb, i consumed my twin to survive, but their soul still existed in the universe. somehow, my frenemy got their hands on his soul, and when he was reincarnated a thousand years later, he took over the body of his wife and had a son with him. that’s my nephew. i think they did it just to spite me, but they also helped me cheat death by becoming a curse, so i can’t complain too much.

back to the main point, i finally got my hands on my nephew’s boyfriend and made him my new vessel. i was right! his technique was sick! and the look on that brat’s face was priceless!

it took me a while to break my nephew’s boyfriend down enough to use his body and technique effectively, but it was kind of entertaining to watch, and now i can move freely! the only problem is now i have all these sorcerers swarming around me like flies trying to defeat me, and it’s getting a bit frustrating, if not tiring. every time i think i take one out, another one shows up, or they just stand back up. 

they all seem seem pretty mad at me. i’m not really sure why. first, it’s the right of the strong to prey on the weak. second, it’s not my fault that my nephew wouldn’t just be a good vessel and let me massacre civilians, and it’s also not my fault that his boyfriend had a cool technique. i think i did what anyone would do in this situation. aita?

[sophswritingthings]

PART 8 MATERIAL

(Back to the present where we're at the brothel and Mizu is about to go kill a girl I forgot abt)

So Mizu is about to leave to go Assassinate the girl and had Akemi tied up leaving behind Ringo and the Reader. Reader tells Ringo to keep an eye on Akemi while reader goes to go find herbs to refill on medicinal stuff and runs into an old friend. More like frenemy if you will.

The frenemy is from her childhood and the frenemy starts go taunt reader for her horrible childhood and reader being a mature doctor she is, she leaves the frenemy behind and goes to another shoo for herbs but the frenemy is really persistent like she's inlove with the reader. (Probs is ngl)

Then reader somehow slips that she has a husband and frenemy goes like "I could probably have him second's." in a very condescending tone and reader gives her a warning by throwing one of her signature poisoned Kunai near her and pinning her against the wall before saying something along the line like "You couldn't have jack shit." before purposely prying the Kunai out of the wall and slightly slicing her cheek. Knowing the Kunai was poisoned.

Reader goes back to the brothel and finds Mizu and Ringo talking to Akemi (more like listening to her threaten Mizu) and reader ofc gets pissed and throws a very sharp hair pin near her head and again warns her about threatening her husband (wife 🤨).

Mostly abt reader and her temper because it's all I can cook up for part 8 😊😊😊😊

pairing: mizu x fem!apothecary!reader

warning(s): swearing, blood, poison yknow the usual shit

a/n: reader said “bitch you couldn’t have my man if you tried” and honestly I love that for her!

summary: you run into an old “frenemy” and you two have a little chat while you’re out.

word count: 815 words / 4,354 characters 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“keep an eye on her,” mizu gestures toward the tied up akemi; hauling herself to her feet. she flips her hat onto her head, sliding open the door. “I’ll be back soon.”

“husband,” akemi scoffs. “why.. him?”

“simply because I love him,” you raise to your feet, standing over akemi with your eyes narrowed. “is that not reason enough?”

“where I come from—no,” akemi shifts her gaze downward. “it isn’t.”

“hm,” you hum, glancing at ringo. “ringo—keep an eye on her, yeah?”

ringo nods, “I’ll keep close watch.” he smiles.

you smile back at him, “and don’t listen to what mizu says. you don’t have to kill her if she moves,” you chuckle, partly because of how rash your wife could be at times. “just make sure she doesn’t do anything.. stupid.”

you grab your basket and head out the same sliding door mizu had left from, not long ago. you slide it shut behind you, walking past the women of the brothel and out the door.

you spot a shop, down the street. an herbalist is exactly what you needed to restock the medicines you took for travel.

with a smile, you head toward the shop, the bell ringing as you push open the door.

heads flip onto you for just a moment—and when they see it is no-one of interest—go back to what they’re doing.

“excuse me?” you approach the counter, “do you happen to have shisho? I am in need of it.”

they man working behind the counter, looking lazy as ever, nods and disappears into the back of the shop. he never looked at you once, never spoke.

it wasn’t how you ran your shop, but if he got you what you wanted, it didn’t matter.

“oh. how nice it is to see you here,” a voice, a weirdly—familiar—voice piped up from behind you. you turn to see who it is, and your eyes immediately narrow. “oh, what, you didn’t miss me?”

“I didn’t happen to,” you hiss, turning back to face the counter.

“well.. based on what you did, I haven’t missed you quite a lot, either.” their eyes narrow, “running my fiancé out of the house, killing your own siblings! and your poor mother had to take it all because you were a little pussy and couldn’t handle it yourself.”

you’re nails were digging into the counter, the anger bubbling up inside you. It was like an erupting volcano, at this point, one you thought was bound to burst any minute. 

you sigh, receiving your herbs and paying for what the shopkeeper was owed. without a word, you slip out of the herbalists shop and start down the street.

you weren’t picking a fight with someone you didn’t need to; mizu would probably be pissed if you got hurt, somehow.

“are you too afraid to talk to me?” they laugh, striking up behind you.

“I am not afraid of you. I just don’t want to pick a fight with some prick if I don’t have to,” you narrow your eyes. “and lay a hand on me, and my husband will have you dead in seconds.”

you smirk a little, feeling confident of mizu’s protection.

“husband?” they scoff. than a devilish smirk crosses their lips, “I’m sure I could have him in seconds if I tried.”

finally having enough, you grab one of your poisoned kunai’s and tossing it toward their waist. it nipped their clothes, pinning them to the wall of a shop.

“you couldn’t have jack-shit,” you grumble,  gazing at them with fire in your eyes. 

“hmph,” they scoff, smirking. “my, what a temper. you’re the same as your father; I doubt this mystery “husband” of yours won’t stay for long.”

the comment made your heart drop.

just.. like your father..

being compared to that abusive asshole made your blood boil.

“I am nothing like my father,” you remove the kunai from her clothes, stabbing it near her head. “and I never will be.”

gently, as if not to cut too deep, you drag the kunai against her cheek. she squirms and groans in pain, the poison dripping into the cut.

you knew it was poisoned; a strong poison. It wouldn’t take long for it to set in.

you slip the kunai back into your kimono, and stride off. you make your way back to the brothel, greeting the women at the doors with bows and soft smiles.

after doing so, you make your way to mizu and ringo, settling down beside your wife on the floor.

all you could hear was a princess threatening your husband.

you quickly slid the wave motif hairpin out of your hair, launching the pin at the princesses head. 

akemi gasps, her eyes wide and her breathing heavy.

“don’t,” you raise a finger at her. ringo hands you your pin back, “talk about my husband ever again, do you hear me?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

a/n: mizu gifs killin’ me again 😭😭

[sunnyxdani]

kenlee: a 4 part analysis

Analyzing one of my favorite ships that I have very suddenly grown very hyperfixated on. Lee and Kenny are partners in crime, frenemies, a variety of things to each other based on what the player decides. Season 1 is notorious for none of your choices impacting anything because there’s only 1 ending no matter what. Yet, genuinely one of the only examples of your choices actually mattering is through Lee's relationship with Kenny. Their dynamic is given more attention and effort and detail than anything else in the game, even more than Lee and Clementines (as far as how it can differ based on how you play). There are also countless tender moments, looks, and words shared between the two that I’ve grown to interpret as more than friendly the more I’ve replayed the game. However, this analysis will break down more tangible moments throughout the game.

Part 1: What Lee and Kenny’s Dynamic is

Lee and Kenny are the classic but tragic “never got to tell them how I felt” trope. Due to many factors, their feelings for each other were something that they only had themselves to rely on and carry the burden of. This even resulted in tension in resentment towards one another. From the overwhelming apocalyptic state of the world, to Kenny having a wife and kid, to the both of them most likely not being comfortable exploring their sexuality– so many odds were stacked against them. Ultimately, they were in a predicament where they could’ve confronted their feelings for each other if they were given more time. But, the two men only knew each other for a handful of months before their separation.

While most of the obstacles that got in the two’s way were external, Lee and Kenny, Kenny in particular, also got in their own way very often. One of the main ongoing plot points within season 1 is that Kenny and Lilly both have a different way of leading and Lee is stuck in the middle. Along with this, Lee is generally put in a lot of difficult situations with Kenny, as Kenny sees him as his right hand man and takes it very personally whenever Lee disagrees with him on something. Now, what I’m about to say next is my own opinion and anyone reading is allowed to disagree but, I personally think that the version of Lee and Kenny’s relationship that’s the least accurate is the one where Lee agrees with every single one of Kenny’s actions and has Kenny as an immovable pillar of support. This is because I’ve always interpreted the most canon version of Lee to be the one who tries his best to take the moral high ground, which Kenny arguably doesn’t always do. So, as off-balanced and unhealthy as their relationship turns out when Lee sticks to these morals, I do think it’s important to what Kenny and Lee’s true and honest dynamic is— after all, they’re foils to one another.

Something that’s important to address is how much Kenny cares what Lee thinks— more specifically, what Lee thinks of Kenny. This is something that Kenny has shown time and time again to agonize over. As far as the first season goes, generally anyone could disagree with Kenny and he would feel more inclined to brush it off and carry on because he knew that, to him, he was right— except for when it comes to Lee. Whenever Lee expresses disagreement or disapproval in something that Kenny is doing, Kenny is beside himself. He rages at Lee, tries to convince him to see things his way, holds a grudge towards him, and overall gives the other man a very emotionally heated response. My belief is that Lee is someone Kenny admires and looks up to to a degree. Because of this, whenever him and Lee differ on something, it forces Kenny to self-reflect and reevaluate his own actions and values, which Kenny isn’t comfortable with doing. Furthermore, he’s also convinced himself that Lee thinks less of him as a person everytime the two don’t see eye to eye on something, which Kenny could not bear. To cope with all of this, he tries to bring himself to hate Lee instead.

So, how do Lee and his feelings play into this? The way I see it, Lee is the only person who sees the hurt behind Kenny’s actions, the good intention behind Kenny’s actions, and can understand the man even when he doesn’t agree with him— the only one besides Katjaa, of course, which isn’t for nothing. As someone who was on his way to jail for murder a day before meeting Kenny, he understands expressing anger through aggression, feeling betrayed by someone you love, making mistakes that can’t be undone, etc. better than anyone. And while he’s not proud of those things, he came out of the situation feeling as though he has no right to judge anybody, so he doesn’t dare judge Kenny. That being said, he hopes and tries to assist Kenny in working past his demons the way that Lee was able to. He sees the great traits within Kenny— his ability to lead, his passion for what he believes in, his diehard efforts to protect his family— and believes that those things are capable of defining him instead of the bad. (long story short he thinks he can fix him y’all sorry)

Part 2: How Their Interactions Mirror one of Two People in a Relationship

This next section is going to be dedicated to a variety of examples that showcase my point that Kenny and Lee’s relationship was written a lot more intimately and a lot less “bro” like than there’s any excuse for. These are all instances that fail to add up completely unless you switch the perspective from platonic to romantic.

What I believe to be the strongest example of this is when Lee finally faces the stranger in the season 1 finale. The stranger asks Lee, “Have you ever hurt somebody that you care about?” and it prompts three options for the player to choose from. The first option is his wife, and the second option is Clementine who is essentially a daughter to Lee. These options make complete sense, especially since this question is followed by the stranger sharing how he hurt and lost his children and wife. The third option, however, is Kenny. This option sticks out like a sore thumb to me because it just doesn’t really fit quite right as the placeholder “friend” option. If Kenny was Lee’s childhood friend, or even college friend, or any context where they had a long standing history with each other that started before the apocalypse, I don’t think I would’ve bat an eye to it. It’s like how if (I don’t watch the show so if this ends up making no sense forgive me) Rick gave Shane as an answer, I wouldn’t have questioned it. Lee and Kenny only knew each other for around 5 months, though. Additionally, the only things Lee did to “hurt” Kenny was by personally hurting his feelings whenever he had a differing opinion as him. The way that Lee speaks about the entire situation in hindsight just feels a lot deeper and much more nuanced than a friendship.

Additionally, when the crew are all stuck in the attic together, Lee is having a conversation with Christa and Omid where he reveals who he’d like to take care of Clementine if he didn’t make it. The options are either Christa and Omid themselves, Kenny, or to find a different family to take care of Clementine. Kenny’s always been my favorite character, so the first couple of times I played this game I chose him based solely on bias. As I got older, though, the option of Kenny once again felt out of place for me. Lee is capable of choosing between a healthy stable young adult couple with good heads on their shoulders who want to raise a kid anyway… or Kenny. It’s not an even comparison at all– unless Kenny was Lee’s partner, then asking Kenny to look after Clementine in his absence would make perfect sense.

This one has been pointed out various times by shippers, but I’m going to mention it anyway because I think The Walking Dead Game’s writers are brilliant and that very little of their dialogue can be brushed off as an ‘accident’ or ‘coincidence.’ Throughout the game, only three people refer to Kenny with the nickname ‘Ken’: Katjaa, Sarita, and Lee. Do I think TWDG writers added this with the purpose of hinting at Lee and Kenny having a romantic relationship? No. However, I do think this was done intentionally to emphasize the level of closeness between the two, and I find it interesting that they went about it by giving Lee a habit that only Kenny’s wife and Kenny’s girlfriend could share with him. In other words, it feels like these two characters were coded without the game even realizing what they were doing– not like I’m complaining.

Part 3: How They’re More to Each Other Than They Are to Their Canon Love Interests

I’ve given examples of when the story has treated Lee as though he’s equal to Katjaa and Sarita in Kenny’s eyes. However, there is also evidence of Lee being held closer to Kenny than Katjaa or Sarita– same goes for Lee, as there’s an argument to be made that he held Kenny in a deeper regard than he did Carley. I want to preface this by saying, I am not here to pit Kenny and Katjaa against each other and don’t think it’s necessary to advocate for this ship. I myself love Katjaa as a character, and I also know and believe that Kenny loved Katjaa deeply. Sarita is a different story, and I could go on my whole tangent about how she was only put in the story as a plot device to drive a wedge between Kenny and Clementine, but I won’t. I’m also a fan of Lee and Carley as a ship, and a big multishipper in general, so please do not misunderstand this as me invalidating any other pairing.

When Carley (who canonically was Lee’s hinted at or potential love interest) was shot in the face right in front of Lee, he was considerably okay. All of his energy was put into disciplining Lily, but as far as Carley’s death itself, he didn’t really give much of a reaction. He had watched so much death at the point that it seemed like he was starting to get somewhat desensitized to it. When Kenny “died”, however– because remember, he never actually saw it, but just the mere thought of Kenny dying had Lee torn up in a way we hadn’t seen throughout the entire game. He took a beat to kneel over, exclaimed and cursed to himself, and was incredibly somber from that point on. There are even dialogue options for him to get snappy at Omid and Christa about the matter right after, making it abundantly clear how sore he’s left from it.

Kenny, on the other hand, mentioned, reminisced about, or blatantly said that he missed Lee on multiple occasions. He had only really mentioned Katjaa once in season 2 (from what I can recall), and one could argue that it was out of respect for Sarita, which is fair. This brings me back to what I touched on earlier about Sarita, which is that I feel she’s a placeholder– for both the story and for Kenny. He seemed excited to be with someone again, to have someone to hold at night, and to have the void of loneliness filled more than he seemed connected to Sarita as a person (hence him saying “I won’t be left alone again” as Sarita was dying–felt like the reminder of his past trauma was what was hurting him in the moment if anything). He, in my opinion, genuinely had the most connection or a dynamic that feels the most like a relationship on paper with Lee than any other character in the game.

Part 4: What Made Their Parting so Tragic/Their ‘Confession’

Seeing the scene for yourselves is a lot easier and much more effective than me trying to explain how it went, so refresh your memory with the video linked below:

If I had to pinpoint a part of the game that felt like an admission of feelings between the two, I’d say it was the moment during their separation, which is painful enough in itself. The few words that were exchanged by them in that moment, as well as the context of Kenny sacrificing himself and Lee fighting to convince him not to, felt like they were conveying everything they were feeling but couldn’t bring themselves to say directly. Along with this, Kenny let go of his complex towards Lee in that moment. He finally stopped feeling threatened and belittled by Lee’s unwavering goodness and, in Carley’s words, took a page from his book. That’s the silver lining of this moment– Kenny finally made a decision that he wouldn’t live in regret about.

Lee, on the other hand, died thinking that Kenny was dead. My best friend pointed out how, in Lee’s final moments, he probably thought about how he’d get to see Kenny again, not knowing that Kenny was perfectly fine. That just about broke my heart. What’s even more heartbreaking, though, is what would’ve been going through Kenny’s mind if Lee had cut his arm off. He disappears with the possibility of Lee still being alive hanging over him, agonizing over not being able to find him again– especially by the time he met up with Walter, Matthew and Sarita, as he probably encountered or heard stories about people who survived bites by cutting off their limbs by then. Once he reunited with Clementine and saw that Lee wasn’t with her, he was then forced to face his death.

In conclusion, I interpret Lee and Kenny to without a doubt have feelings for each other, but I believe they never got an opportunity to act on them. Their love story ends with Lee dead, and Kenny left agonizing over what could’ve been. It’s not a happy story at all, but that’s what makes it so good… and if there are any modern AU fics of them out there please send them my way because I am in misery. Again, this is all simply my opinion and I do not care enough to argue about it, though I’d love to hear everyone’s thoughts! Even differing ones given that you’re being respectful :)

[our-happygirl500-fan]

From what we know about the original plans for season 3 of Rise was that the general outline of the plot of season 3 was that the Turtles find out that they have two more siblings & the family then each split up into two teams to go look for them.

There has been a lot of speculation on which turtles would go with Draxum & which turtles would go with Splinter but there are two members of the Hamato Clan that we should also possibly consider

Karai: Thank you my young Hamato’s, we will always be with you

At the end of season two Karai thanked the current generation of Hamato’s for finally defeating the Shredder & from Karai’s perspective the latest generation of the Hamato clan was made up of Splinter & the Turtles, Draxum, April & Casey. Meaning if the Hamato clan fully split into two teams to look for the missing Turtle siblings, there is a possibility that April & Casey could have each been on a team as well.

Though we can only speculate which two Turtles would have gone with Splinter & which two Turtles would have gone with Draxum, we honestly could have gotten any combination but my theory is that the teams would have been Raph & Donnie going with Splinter and Leo & Mikey going with Draxum. 

And as for the humans of the Hamato Clan there is a possibility that April could have gone with Splinter & Casey could have gone with Draxum.

April: You aren’t important to me because of your teach! You’re important to me because of you. I don’t think mystic powers is better than science, if anything they’re stronger together! Just like us, right?

Donnie: Right!

I kind of think that April would have been placed on Donnie’s team due to their close bond throughout the series but it would also make sense for April to be placed on a team with Splinter & Raph as well.

Throughout Rise, Splinter & April have often been a duo with several episodes even focusing on their dynamic. Due to their close relationship it seems possible that Rise would continue Splinter & April’s dynamic within season 3 as well.

April: Relax big guy, what’s going on?

In Rise April & Raph have a dynamic as the two oldest siblings of the Hamato Clan however we have yet to really have an episode of them having a full adventure together the way we have for multiple episodes with April & Donnie or the way we have with April, Leo & Mikey in the episode The Gumbus.

If April was on a team with Raph in season 3, it would be a good opportunity for an April & Raph adventure that we are due for.

I think it would have been possible for Casey to be placed on Draxum’s team as not only are they both the redeemed villains of the Hamato clan but Casey & Draxum also need an opportunity to find resolution after Draxum betrayed Casey’s trust in the episode How to Make Enemies and Bend People to Your Will

Draxum: I have accomplished with one assistant what you couldn’t accomplish with an entire clan!

Casey: Assistant? But I thought we… were partners?

Throughout the episode Draxum works with Casey & quickly earns her trust & respect only to cast her aside once he had gotten what he wanted, it would be interesting if season 3 took the opportunity to give them some resolution from that incident while also having Draxum acknowledge the people he hurt in season 1 in his quest for power.

Mikey: Nice work Frenemy

It also seems possible that Casey could have been on a team with Mikey as not only does Casey have a connection with Mikey due to her first appearance in the episode Hot Soup the Game being about Mikey’s first solo mission but Mikey seems to have considered Casey a sort of friend even when she was still in the Foot Clan.

Raph: Dad!

Mikey: Draxum!

Donnie: April!

Leo: Foot Recruit?

It could also be interesting to see Leo & Casey on the same team as well not only as a slight link to how the future version of Leo trained Casey’s son but also the fact that it could be interesting to see Leo on a team with the two  redeemed villains of the Hamato Clan when Leo is one of the more skeptical members of the Hamato Clan

[thezombieprostitute]

Hummingbird - Epilogue

Summary: You didn't want to break into someone's party but you were desperate to see the art at the gallery before it was gone. You're so busy trying to make sure no one sees you that you miss the ever present gaze of Steve Rogers who is wondering why you crashed his party.

Word Count: ~1k

A/N: This takes place after Sparks Fly & Changing Minds. Reader is AFAB. No physical descriptors used.

Warnings: Implied violence, Pregnancy and related topics. Please let me know if I missed any.

Part 8

Series Masterlist

“It really feels like we’ve invited a lot more fights to our doorstep,” Sam sighs. “Between our people messing with Clark Kent and helping a witness against Wilford & Gilliam, then hiring said witness, we haven’t done ourselves any favors.”

“There aren’t any direct ties to us,” Steve retorts. 

“None that would hold up in court,” Bucky offers. “But people know.”

“Our Garbage Men have kinda gotten out of hand,” Sam huffs. “They’re supposed to clean up messes, not make them.”

“I don’t know about that,” Steve objects. “They’ve been doing what they need to. Well, maybe Nick. I’ll give you that he screwed up a few things. But even then, he’s done the impossible and made a dent in the Man of Steel. A dent we can take advantage of.”

“I’ve already got Union Reps and supporters at work at his factories,” Bucky nods. 

Sam adds, “I’ve also got some reporters on tap, eager to add to the case against Kent, should any hint of union busting come up.”

“Wilford & Gilliam were already at odds with us,” Steve comments. “But they’re clearly on the way out. We just need to be extra careful until they finally topple.”

“Franco the Elder needs to be stopped,” Sam curses. “He’s been on a rampage and the other families are looking to us to deal with him since one of ours set him off.”

“Can we get Nat to take him out,” Steve ponders.

“I’ve already got G on the scent,” Bucky assures. “He’s a lot more affordable and he’s associated with us. Shows the other families we’re working on it.”

“We should probably also prepare for a power vacuum once they finally fall,” Sam adds. 

“The Garbage Men are keeping tabs,” Steve assures. “All ripple effects are being tracked to the best of their ability.” The other men nod in acceptance. “In lighter news, I’ve got promises of support from the Odinson, Wayne and Spector families. Apparently our handling of Lloyd and Rumlow reaffirmed their trust in our abilities.”

Sam snorts, “not surprised Wayne supports us. He and Kent have been frenemies for quite some time. But Spector?”

Bucky interjects, “him and Wilson might be crazy but you can trust them to keep their word. If Spector says they support us, we don’t have to worry about them. If we accidentally piss them off, they’ll warn us before attacking.”

An alarm on Steve’s phone interrupts the meeting. Steve turns it off and stands up, “are we good for today? Anything else pressing?”

“Nothing we can’t handle,” Sam assures, Bucky nodding in support. “You go take care of your lady.”

“Wishing you both the best at the appointment,” Bucky agrees.

You try to keep from wringing your hands but you’re all nerves. You were more than eager to start your family with Steve but encouraged him to hold off until after the wedding and after you were both screened for potential genetic disorders. He had the money to cover the costs and you didn’t want to go into this blindly. Something he appreciated and respected.

Thankfully the testing hadn’t been too invasive. Now you just had to wait and you were doing your best to not be a nervous wreck. Unfortunately your best wasn’t great. You kept checking your phone, making sure you hadn’t missed any phone calls or messages. You tried to put your nervous energy to work but that only led to you cooking up a storm in the kitchen, making more meals than you and Steve could eat in a week.

When he walks into the kitchen and sees the chaos, Steve knows he has to do something. He walks up to you, his voice soothing as he calls your name. You’re scrubbing dishes but stop when he places his hand on the back of your neck. 

“Sweetheart,” he intones, “you need to calm down.”

“I’m trying.”

“We’ll be sending people home with food for the next few days to keep it from going bad.”

“I know, I know. I just—”

You’re cut off as he pulls you in for a hug. He knows you feel safest with his arms wrapped around you and you find yourself breathing a little easier. 

“I just want to make sure any kids we have get the best chances.”

“I know, Hummingbird,” Steve hums. “And I love that you’re already considering having more than one.”

You chuckle, “well I can count on you to be supportive and caring the whole pregnancy and while the kid is growing up so. I don’t know, that just makes it easier to contemplate having a couple of kids instead of just one.” 

Before Steve can comment your phone rings and you escape his arms to answer it. The doctor’s words are clear, though your brain has a little trouble processing them. You thank the doctor and hang up the phone. Steve looks at you expectantly.

“We’re in the clear,” you smile as you hug him hard enough he almost loses his balance. “Looks like we’ll be starting up a new adventure together.”

You’re finally back at your apartment, done with work for the day, and you’re still in daze after the phone call from the doctor. Everything feels surreal, like you're moving through thick fog, as you unlock the door. The unreal feeling isn’t helped by seeing your man on one knee in the living room, holding a ring box. 

You freeze at the sight and his cheeks turn a little pink, “I know it’s kinda soon but I also know you’re the one. If you’ll have me.” He looks back at you with those puppy dog eyes you can never say no to.

All you can say is, “I’m pregnant.”

Part 8

Series Masterlist

Tags:

@alicedopey; @aryhyuuga; @cynic-spirit; @icefrozendeadlyqueen @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory; @ktficworld; @leryg0; @rayofdawnworld; @rebekahdawkins; @texmexdarling

[random-thot-generator]

Love Thy Frenemy (Frenemies/Tenderness AU)

ONE: It’s a Start

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley x Frenemy!Reader

Summary: There’s a new customer that’s been coming into the White Dog Pub, where you tend bar. He’s stoic, gruff and difficult to engage, but you’re a bartender. You know how to get the most deadpan of customers to talk, and this aloof mountain of a man is no exception. You’ll win him over, one way or another.

Tags/Warnings: Alcohol consumption, Eventual smut- but not in this chapter. That’s really the only warning I got. I don’t even think I used profanity. Weird, right???

(Notes: Sooo... I decided to attempt my first series. *(nervous twitching)* Not gonna lie, I’m freakin’ out a little bit, y’all. Is it gonna suck?! I don’t know! I hope it doesn’t, for everyone’s sake.

Anyway...

This is set in the Frenemies/Tenderness AU, same as ‘Try a Little Tenderness’, with Simon and his frienemy ‘Doll’ (or ‘Dee’ for short), which can be found here. 

We’re just establishing the relationship between Simon and Reader at this point, along with a little world building. Sorry, horn-dogs. No smut this round, but we’ll get there... eventually. Hope you enjoy.)

Word Count: 1576

‘Fate leads the willing; the unwilling it drags’   —— Seneca 

🖤💀🖤

He was a quiet one. A silent giant. 

He came into the pub every night, mumbled out his order in a low gravel and took the same seat at the end of the bar. He’d been doing this for more than a month, some nights staying until last orders, other nights only long enough for one drink. He never speaks, at least not to you.

He’s close with your boss, the owner of the White Dog, Ollie Turnbull. Ollie’s always pleased to see him, giving him a familiar pat on the back as he growls out, “How ya doin’, Riley?”

The two men will sit for hours, sometimes, leaning their heads together as they talk in low murmurs. You suspect Riley’s a soldier in the military, like Ollie once was. He just has that look about him. He holds himself the same way your father used to, like a coiled spring wound too tight, even when seemingly relaxed. You’re certain if anything ever went down inside the pub, he would be the first to react, Ollie a close second.

You’re curious about him. He’s an ‘odd duck’, as your nan was fond of saying. He has his little quirks, odd little idiosyncrasies that set him apart. For one thing, you’ve never seen the man without a hoodie. He wears different styles and colors, but they’re all dark in hue with a deep hood he keeps pulled up over his head at all times. He never pushes it back, always keeping his face half-hidden in shadow.

And then there’s the mask.

Sometimes it’s a fitted hood with only his eyes exposed, other times it’s a neck gaiter or a black surgical mask. When he takes a drink, he always lifts his mask from the bottom, never revealing his entire face. You’ve seen the hint of various scars around the edges of his masks, jagged lines turned silver with age, but they don’t seem severe enough to be horribly disfiguring. He’s hiding, you realize, but from what you’re not sure.

Riley’s sitting in his usual spot again tonight, every now and then his eyes shifting left or right, always on alert. He casts his gaze over you every now and then, too, lingering for a moment before looking away. You can’t help but wonder what he thinks of you.

It’s been a slow evening, just a handful of regulars showing up for a pint, but not staying long. There’s only one other customer at the bar, dear old Ned, and you’re pretty sure he fell asleep half an hour ago. You’ve already restocked and finished all your prep work for the night, so you’ve pulled out an old paperback of short stories to read, but you’d much rather be getting a head start on your cleaning. The sooner you’re done, the sooner you can leave.

Heaving a sigh, you walk down to the end of the bar, waiting for Riley to acknowledge you before you speak. When his dark eyes peer up at you, you give him a little smile. “Sorry to bother you, but do you mind if I start cleaning? I can top up your drink first.”

His gaze darts over your face before he glances down at his glass and shrugs. “’S fine wif me. ‘M good.” His voice is gruff, but not unkind.

You nod, offering him a grateful smile and lay your book face down on the bar. “Thanks,” you call over your shoulder, already heading for the supply closet.

You gather your cleaning supplies and get to work, wiping down tables and turning up chairs. Every now and then you glance up to check on your two customers. Ned, bless him, is still snoring. Riley, however, is leaning slightly forward, torso stretched so that he can look at the book you’ve left in front of him. You watch as he turns the book around to get a better look at it. It makes you smile.

Finished with the tables, you head back towards the bar, noticing how Riley stiffens and quickly turns the book back to its previous position. Pretending not to see, you grab your bottle of water, taking a sip as you lean your hips against the back counter, facing him. When he inevitably lifts his eyes, you meet them and motion to the book.

“You like to read?”

He shrugs. “Some.”

You nod and take another sip. “What genres?”

His brows knit together. “Depends.”

“On what?”

He heaves a sigh and leans back to cross his arms. “On what ’m in the mood t’read.”

“Oh. Yeah, I get that. I’m the same.” You take another sip then recap the bottle, pushing yourself off the counter. You fiddle with the ties of your serving apron as you scramble for something to say. “You, uh, need a top-up before I get back to work?”

He stares down at his glass and then slides it forward. “Yeah.” Again, he sounds gruff, but his tone has softened the tiniest bit.

He watches you pour the drink, eyeing you with an almost cautious expression. When you slide the glass back to him, his eyes flicker down to the book. “I’ve read tha’ one before. Which story’s yer fav’rite?”

You tilt your head and give him a considering look. “’Sticks’ by Robert Wagner.”

He nods, a gleam of approval in his sharp gaze. “Good choice.”

You give a slight nod at the compliment. “And yours?”

His eyes blink down at the book then back to you. “Same.”

“Good choice,” you say with a crooked smile, returning the compliment. You replace the bottle of Dewar’s on the shelf, then turn back and nod at the book. “You can borrow it, if you like. I just brought it in case I got bored. I’ve got plenty more at home.”

“’M good. No thanks.” he mutters. He leans forward again, shoulders hunched, and drops his gaze.

You deflate inside. Damn, I lost him. 

Not wanting the situation to get any more awkward, you try to soothe him with a casual, friendly tone and an easy smile. “That’s okay. Offer still stands. If you change your mind, feel free to take it with you.”

His eyes slant towards you and he gives a curt nod. Good enough.

You go back to work, sweeping around the tables in silence until you see him stand and lean over the bar to slip his glass into the dish water. He snags a towel and wipes down his area, before pushing his seat back into place. It’s a thoughtful gesture, something you wouldn’t have expected from him. Picking up his overcoat, he shrugs it on, then adjusts his mask as he walks towards the entrance. When he opens the door, he pauses, and his head turns in your direction. “Left some tenners on the bar for m’tab.” Another short pause. “’Night.”

You smile and give him a little wave. “Good night, Riley. Drive safe.”

His head snaps up and his posture goes rigid at the use of his name, caught off guard by the familiarity, but he quickly recovers. Relaxing his stance, he nods and takes a step out the door, uttering just loud enough for you to hear, “You, too, doll.”

He then slips out the door into the night, leaving just you and snoring Ned in the building. You stare at the entrance a moment longer, then go back to your sweeping. Your brain slowly sifts through the conversation as you work, picking over the words he spoke, digging for any hidden nuances you might have missed. He’s a hard one to read, but you think you did okay. At least he spoke to you without being prompted. It’s a start.

Right?

When you finish cleaning, you go wake Ned and call his wife to come pick up her husband. He smiles at you, bleary-eyed, and pats your hand. “I was awake, luv. Jus’ restin’ m’eyes.” You smile and nod, but don’t really believe him until he grins and adds, “Never heard tha’ big fella speak a’fore. He must’ve taken a fancy to ya.”

A slow smile spreads across your face. “Think so, Ned?”

“Oh, aye. Never seen ‘im go out o’ his way to talk to anyone else. Well, ‘cept for Ollie, o’ course. Don’t think the lad keeps many friends. Bit of a loner, tha’ one.”

A horn beeps twice outside, so you help Ned to his feet and walk him out to his wife’s car. Waving goodbye, you head back inside the pub to turn out the lights and lock up for the night. Grabbing your coat and bag, you make a beeline for the entrance, thrilled to be leaving early, but then realize you forgot your book on the bar. Huffing out a sigh, you turn around and go back to get it, only to discover that... 

It’s gone.

He took the book.

A pleased little smile lights up your face and you bite your lip.

He even told you good night... sort of.

You shrug. It’s a start.

That pleased little smile is still on your face when you lock the door and head for home.

-

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