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themaribatpit · 3 years ago

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Hanging by a Thread: Chapter 3

Rated M: DC canon-typical violence, suggestive threats

Author’s Note: Neither of us are actually American, and DC Fanboy has some gripes with certain American habits. Please feel free to tell us how uncultured we are in the comments, and try and explain yourselves to non-Americans.

Ships: Jason Todd/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Dick Grayson/Barbara Gordon (side ship).

Taglist:

@aespades, @neakco, @ladybug-182, @seraphichana, @zalladane, @luminous-carrot, @jayjayspixiepop, @cap-noodles, @livelifeauthorstyle, @thepaceperson, @moongoddesskiana, @vroomtaka, @laurcad123, @prettylittlebutterflie

Chapter 2 - Chapter 4

Chapter 3

Dick slumped down on a chair when they returned to the Belfry. He ripped off his domino mask and let out a sigh. “Damn he’s good, then again he was taught by the best.”

“Dick!” Barbara gave him a dirty look. They both looked towards their French guest to see her still lost in thought.

Ladybug transformed back to Marinette, and then slowly walked over to get herself another cup of hot chocolate to cheer herself up. As she operated the multi hot drinks machine in the Belfry, she thought about how incredibly convenient the device was. Barbara and Dick mentioned that unless it was winter, no one else used it for hot chocolate.

Hot chocolate dispensed from the machine, and as she picked up the paper cup, a shadow loomed over her. She was able to make out the silhouette of an imposing figure with demonic pointed ears. She squealed in shock, spilling her hot chocolate on the figure.

Dick rolled off the chair laughing, “Oh, better fly away home Ladybug.�� “How long have you been waiting to use that joke?” Barbara said without looking away from the screen.

“Since the moment I met her, Babs,” Dick retorted.

After the initial shock, Marinette was able to see the figure clearly and realised she just spilled hot chocolate on Batman. The Batman. Marinette paled at what she had done, she fumbled around looking for tissues. All the while apologising profusely as she tried to find anything to wipe the Caped Crusader clean from this chocolatey mess. Her mind ran at a mile a minute, thinking of what Batman would do to her for spilling hot chocolate on him. She thought of how Batman would squish her like a bug, or perhaps he would break all of her limbs, and send her on the first flight back to Paris while tied to the cargo hold. Her mind was catastrophizing and going into a full panic as she stumbled around the kitchenette.

Marinette found a damp cloth and began wiping Batman vigorously from head to toe and hoping it would somehow lessen her punishment. She looked up to see that Batman continued to stare at her with his infamous glare. Seeing that her attempts to clean up her mess had no effect, she ran back towards the main room and grabbed Dick, holding him in front of her as a shield.

Batman slowly followed, without saying a word he stomped into the main room and came to a halt right in front of Dick. “Uh, hi.” Dick awkwardly greeted Batman. Marinette shakingly peeked her head out from behind.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng, also known as Ladybug.” Batman’s low voice boomed with authority. “What are you doing here in Gotham?”

Marinette yelped and went back to hiding behind Dick. Barbara interjected, “She’s here to investigate a recent use of the Lazarus Pit, mainly the Red Hood. From what we gather the creatures that give her power were also the ones who created the pits.” She explained on Marinette’s behalf.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the room as Batman contemplated her answer. “Fine,” he relented. He turned and walked away.

Marinette released a sigh of relief as she saw Batman leave. Dick took out his phone and began tapping on it, he just had to notify the rest of the Bat Family of what had just transpired. After a few moments he put his phone back in his pocket and walked away, “I’ll get a mop” he yelled back at Marinette and Barbara.

Marinette then slumped on the dining table, hands in her head. Completely embarrassed at how she made a fool of herself in front of one of the world’s greatest heroes. Barbara calmly patted her back in consolation. After she calmed down and got herself another cup of hot chocolate, Marinette decided to head home.

On the way back to the apartment she shared with Zoe, she checked the messages that Zoe sent her during the past couple of days. “Hey, are you okay?” The first one read. “I haven’t seen you in the apartment for a while now,” she said, followed by a message that said “Please don’t be dead, I can’t afford rent by myself.” Marinette sent a quick reply saying, “I’m okay, I��ve just been busy taking care of some things. See you tonight.” she said. When Marinette got home, she logged onto her computer to see a few messages from Alya, asking her of how she found Gotham City. Expressing worry for her friend, especially with the notoriety of Gotham's crime rate.

Marinette typed up "Hi Alya! Gotham is all right, I can take care of myself, you know that."

Alya decided to video call Marinette and her face appeared on screen. "Hey!" Alya waved her hand to her friend.

"Hi" Marinette gave a tired wave back.

"Everything okay?" Asked Alya.

"Fine, just tired from moving into the new place." She explained.

"By the way, could you open up a portal with Kaalki to my room?" asked Alya.

Marinette complied with her friend, as she put on the horse Miraculous and opened a portal. Soon a paper bag dropped from the ceiling and landed on the floor. "I had a feeling you might want something to cheer you up, I went to your parents' patisserie earlier."

Marinette opened up the bag to see several treats from the bakery. She thanked her best friend profusely, and began eating them “How are things back in Paris?” Marinette asked, taking a macaron out of one of the boxes, she smiled as she took a bite out of it. It was almost like she was 13 again, and her dad had given her a box of macarons for the first day of school.

“Nothing we can’t handle,” Alya said, winking at her. “So, have you met any of Gotham’s vigilantes yet?” Marinette rubbed the back of her neck. “Well, yeah,” she might as well tell her some of the things that happened. “I accidentally spilled hot chocolate on Batman’s cape,” she confessed. “And you’re still alive?” Alya’s mouth hung open in shock. “Well, he does have a pretty strict ‘no killing’ policy,” Marinette told her. “Okay fair enough, how are you still in one piece?” Alya asked, still somewhat shocked.

“He just kinda glared at me, and I hid behind one of his sidekicks.” Marinette told her, “So, that’s how.” “Ah so you’ve met the sidekicks then,” Alya gave her another knowing smile. “Some of them, Nightwing being one of them.” Marinette told her. “Did you get a good look at his assets?” Alya gave her a wink, and Marinette rolled her eyes. “I’m pretty sure his assets were spoken for,” Marinette said, and before Alya could say anything more she quickly added “and no, I am not telling you who the lucky person is.” “You’re no fun.” Alya pouted mockingly, but she couldn’t stay angry at her friend. Alya noticed the faraway look in Marinette’s eyes at that moment, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Marinette wondered how best to phrase it, “do you know anything about the Red Hood?” she asked.

Alya’s eyes widened in shock, “You’ve met him? Are you and Zoe living in his territory?”

“No, at least not that I know of, I just…” Marinette assured her, “Do you know anything about him?” “Give me a moment,” Alya said, quickly turning away to search for something on her laptop screen, “must have heard something about the guy…” she muttered. Marinette never really told Alya about her soulmate bond, and she wasn’t about to start now. “Says here he’s a crime lord that operates in Gotham City, that he took over Black Mask’s crime syndicate not too long ago…” Alya told her, “Pretty brutal to those who cross him, by the sound of things.” “Good to know,” Marinette muttered. “Marinette, are you sure you and Zoe are okay?” Alya asked. “We’re fine, just that Ladybug ran into him while working with Batman’s sidekicks.” Marinette told her. “I should have been there, it would have been a fun interview for Ladyblog.” Alya chuckled, and Marinette raised an eyebrow. “I mean, after the fight of course, or maybe I should just stop talking.” “Try pitching the idea to Vicki Vale or Lois Lane, I’m sure they would jump at the chance.” Marinette joked.

"Just you wait until I get my Journalism degree, I'll bother you everyday for a scoop." Alya retorted. The two of them continued to laugh and joke with one another before Marinette went to bed.

The next morning, Marinette was woken by someone gently nudging her awake. “Get dressed dummy, we’re going out.” she heard a voice say. Marinette looked up and blinked a few times before Zoe’s face came into view. “What time is it?” Marinette groaned. “9am,” Zoe told her, “we are going to go out and get some breakfast together.” Marinette groaned in response, but slowly got out of bed. Zoe leaned against the doorway, crossing her arms and smiling. She chuckled slightly at the sight of Marinette’s tousled hair, Marinette smiled slightly in response. “All right, all right, give me some time to get dressed.” she said and Zoe left, closing the door behind her.

The two friends sat down to eat breakfast at a nearby diner, and Zoe began telling Marinette all the ways in which America was very different from France. “First of all, they call the 24 hour clock ‘military time’, I never understood that.” she explained before taking a bite of her pancakes. Americans made pancakes a lot thicker and fluffier compared to crepes, was another thing Marinette noticed. “Oh, no more 2 hour lunch breaks, and as a French person, you will get made fun of for having more time off work than the Americans.” she said.

As the two finished breakfast, Zoe paid the bill and left a tip. Marinette raised an eyebrow at Zoe for paying what was higher than the bill. “Marinette, remember, always tip whenever you go eat at a restaurant or a diner.” She explained.

“Why? Isn’t there a service charge added? Don’t the servers get paid?” Marinette asked.

“Not at all.” Zoe deadpanned.

“What?” Marinette exclaimed in shock, she quickly covered her mouth as eyes turned to face her for her outburst.

Zoe beckoned Marinette to follow her, “Come on, I’ll show you all the hotspots in Gotham City.”

The two walked out onto the street and across several blocks. Zoe stopped as the two reached their destination. She then pointed to an old gothic tower, “That there is the old Wayne Tower, creepy isn’t it? Built in 1888 by Cyrus Pinkey for the Waynes right at the heart of Gotham City. It’s been closed for a few years now, since Wayne Enterprise moved to the New Wayne Tower in the financial district.”

Marinette’s eyes widened in recognition, it was where the Belfry was located. She remembered the gothic tower, but she had no idea it was the old Wayne Tower. She decided it would be best to keep quiet about this revelation.

The two continued sightseeing as they ventured into Robinson Park. “This park is amazing, the biggest park in the heart of Gotham. Also it's very close to Gotham U, I’d love to come here everyday after class to unwind.” Zoe explained. The two calmly walked across the park, enjoying the scenery and stopping by to feed some ducks.

“Anyway I need to get some things on the way back,” the two then walked to a nearby grocery store and bought groceries. Being on a budget, Marinette eyed the price tags frugally, calculating how much it would cost her. Zoe smirked at Marinette, knowing what would come next when the two went to the cash register. Marinette was thrown into a loop as the total amount did not match the price tags. Marinette tried to ask for an explanation from the cashier, but they were not helpful. The cashier only said that it was tax, “Why isn’t tax included in the price tags?” she pleaded to the cashier.

The cashier gave Marinette a light shrug. “That's just the way things are.”

Marinette pulled her pigtails in frustration as to why the final price doesn’t match the price tag. “Ok fine, what's the tax in America?”

Zoe took the chance to intervene and explain it to her friend. “It depends, it varies between states, counties and even cities.”

Marinette banged her head against the counter in frustration. “Why? Why is it so crazy here?”

Zoe and the cashier laughed at Marinette's antics. The cashier asked “You new here?”

Marinette did not lift her head up, “How could you tell?”

The two made their purchase and walked home, Marinette had to do a double take on the loaf of bread she bought. She stopped Zoem and said that they needed to go back to the grocery store for another loaf of bread, because this one had expired. Zoe snatched the loaf from Marinette’s hands and took another look. “Nope it's fine, remember America uses Month/Day/Year here.” Zoe explained. Marinette’s eye twitched as the two walked back to their apartment.

The semester began the following Monday at Gotham University. As a Fashion & Design student, Marinette had long studio classes which usually kept her busy during the day. She would have to spend even longer hours in the studio if she had a project due. When Zoe wasn’t attending lectures, she had a part-time job that kept her busy as well. So Marinette didn’t see much of her by the time she managed to return to their apartment.

Over the course of the next few days, she would go to her classes by day and go out every night to search for her soulmate. However, the Red Hood had proved to be elusive, always alert to the movement of the red thread that tied them together. Marinette found that the thread changed wildly. Some nights she stopped by the Belfry, exhausted and dejected. Barbara had noticed this and decided that she had to know about Jason, it might change her mind or it might not. She deserved to know if she was going to go looking for him every night.

One night when she entered the Belfry, Barbara gestured to Marinette, “Come over and pull up a chair.” Marinette followed and brought a chair to the computer. The two sat side by side, “Mari, you deserve to know more about Jason...the Red Hood.”

Marinette’s eyes widened at the mention of her soulmate, “Please tell me more about him.” she begged.

“Marinette, I’m sorry, we knew more about him but we didn’t tell you.” Barbara apologised.

Marinette was hurt at how they were withholding information about her soulmate from her. “Why?” was all that she was able to say.

Barbara took a deep breath, “Because Jason was the second Robin.”

Marinette’s jaw dropped at this bombshell, her soulmate used to be Robin. It would explain the skills he displayed out in their last encounter. Marinette wondered how tough his life was, how he suffered at the hands of the criminals of Gotham at such a young age. Some of the things he said back at the dockyards were now sounding like they came from experience. “What was he like?” she asked, wanting to know what her soulmate was like before his death.

“Angry, rebellious, Jason always felt like it was him against the world. He was caught trying to steal the wheels off the Batmobile, that's how Batman found him and brought him in.” Barbara explained.

“How did he die?” Marinette asked.

Barbara grew silent at the mention of Jason’s death. “He tried to pursue the Joker, but it was a trap. The Joker caught him, tortured him for god knows how long. I saw his bruises, it-it was as if he was beaten over and over again with a crowbar.” Marinette covered her mouth and her eyes welled with tears as she heard the gruesome details of her soulmate's unfortunate end.

“To make matters worse, he locked Jason in the room with a bomb.” “What about the Red Hood?” she asked. “We...we buried a mannequin in a wig,” Barbara explained, “the real body was taken by the League of Assassins, trying to make up for what happened.”

Marinette stood up and rushed to the guest room, she had heard enough. She could not imagine the pain and suffering her soulmate had been through his entire life.

Jason had been constantly on the move, knowing that his soulmate was out looking for him. He tried to shut off the part of him that wanted to get close. He was honestly surprised the Bat clan hadn't told her every horrific story they had about him. Either they didn't know they were soulmates or she was knowingly walking head first into the lion's mouth. If she didn't find him, then she might stumble upon a group of his men at work, and they might be a lot less forgiving. If he was constantly checking over his shoulder, making sure the girl wasn't close by, things were bound to start slipping through the cracks.

He himself had various safehouses scattered around the city, but he couldn't keep running forever. It was getting ridiculous, he had faced crime lords, assassins and even gone toe-to-toe with Batman multiple times. Yet here he was, running and hiding from a girl who was about a foot shorter than he was. He knew why, of course, he wasn't afraid of her but she should be very afraid of him. He had hoped that she would give up the search, as she drew closer and closer to finding out the truth about what happened to him. But life had never been that easy for Jason, and sooner or later she was going to get too close to the untamed monster beneath. If she got hurt because of him, he wouldn't be able to forgive himself. Not even his old self could forgive that. He would have no trouble protecting her from other criminals, not that she really needed it. However, whatever came crawling out of the pits was something else.

After putting a swift end to some people who were causing trouble in his territory, his mind wandered back to Ladybug. Specifically, the sad look in her eyes when he explained how brutal and unforgiving Gotham could be. He tried not to think about it, because that look made him want to hold her close, and reassure her that everything would be okay. Thoughts of how the idea of her gave him hope all those years ago would come bubbling to the surface. It made him want to protect her, to ensure that this world wouldn’t hurt her the way it hurt him. When she looked at him with those eyes, it made him want to believe that she trusted him to do just that. He shook his head, and told himself that what he was also the very thing she needed protecting from.

Most nights Jason had nightmares about failing to save her. There were even nightmares where she died by his hands. Her blue eyes would become lifeless and vacant, her skin would feel ice cold, and he would end up cradling her limp form in his arms. Batman would just love it if those nightmares came true. It would only prove to him that Jason was nothing more than an unhinged monster he couldn’t cage. It wasn’t as though the Bat had much luck caging the real monsters in Gotham anyhow. Most days, Jason’s skin crawled as he remembered the feeling of the Lazarus pit’s waters. The creatures she was palling around with were the ones who made it. They probably didn’t give a damn about the evil they had inflicted on the world because of it. For all he knew, being around her little fairy friends would make the effects much worse. Still, when he snapped back to reality, he would see the string glowing red, just as it had always done. Occasionally moving and twitching as his soulmate searched high and low for him. Maybe the time had come to have a little talk, soulmate to soulmate...

#maribat #jasonette #ml x dc

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hazel-light · 3 years ago

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CATCH UP ON CHAPTER ONE HERE

Chapter Two Word Count: ~8,500

Genre: (Wedding) Fake Dating, Friends to Lovers, lots of bed sharing and every self indulgent fluffy trope possible.

Warnings: None? Lots of fluff? Occasional cussing? Some suggestive themes, moments, and jokes I guess. No smut or anything!

Disclaimer: I am not Daniel Sharman, and I do not pretend to know how he would act, speak, etc. This is fiction okay, there’s a lot of creative license, and potential to be OOC. Ricky isn't mentioned because I started writing this before we knew he existed, so apologies for that. Also, if you’re DShar himself, please do us both a favor and don’t read this, okay???? Same if you know him 🙈

Title taken from the song Yellow Lights by Harry Hudson which suits this story quite a bit!

A/N: Thank you to everyone who sent me feedback on the first part! I really appreciate it :) Things pick up quite a bit here.... I hope you all enjoy! The third part will be up tomorrow, as promised. <3

It was finally time to fly back to Massachusetts. I had changed my flight so that Daniel and I could be on the same one and seated together.

It’s ridiculously early when I arrive at his apartment to pick him up in our shared Uber, since we have to account for the time difference on the East Coast. He opens the door to his apartment, looking super cozy and ready for travel, one suitcase behind him and a backpack by the door.

“Today’s the day,” I grin at him.

“Oh shit, is it really?” He feigns, rolling his eyes. “Good thing I packed early, then.”

“You’re a professional traveler by this point, I bet you have it down pat.”

“You would think that, wouldn’t you? I actually put a bit more thought into this trip than I usually do.... I need to make a good impression, and I’m making a lot of first impressions.”

I can’t keep my face from forming an endeared expression. “That’s really cute.”

He puts his hands up bashfully. “I take my roles very seriously, Lauren.”

I shake my head. “Well, it means a lot to me; not only that you’re doing this, but that you’re taking it seriously.”

He shrugs, softening his playful demeanor. “Even if we weren’t together in their eyes, I would care what your family thinks. They’re important to you, so it’s important to me.”

“Dannnnielllll,” I whine, “Please don't make me cry this early in the day.”

He laughs, picking up his luggage. “At this rate you’re not going to survive the weekend. I haven’t even turned on my boyfriend charm yet.”

God help me then, I think, making my way back to the car.

Getting through LAX is fairly easy, and remarkably Daniel successfully flies under the radar. He offers to let me have the window seat, but I let him take it, figuring the farther out of sight from the aisle he is, the better.

Like all flights, I fall asleep as soon as we hit cruising altitude; Daniel has his headphones in and spends the time working on something in a notebook. In what seems like minutes, I’m being gently shaken awake by a smiling Daniel.

“Lovely girlfriend of mine, it’s time to rise and shine. Our relationship starts,” he pretends to check the time, “now.”

“Oh thank you, handsome boyfriend. I’m ready.”

Daniel laughs as we stand and wait to exit the plane. Once we step off and onto the ramp, Daniel offers me his hand. “Ready?”

I lace my fingers through his and try to ignore the flutter in my stomach. “Ready.”

Getting our luggage from baggage claim is fairly painless, which leads us to looking for Ryan and Katharine, his longtime girlfriend, in the airport. They’re picking us up on their way to the hotel on the Cape, where the wedding reception is going to be held, and also where we’re going to be staying.

We walk through the airport hand in hand, as I check my phone yet again to see if Ryan has texted. Nothing. We stop for a moment, and peripherally I hear a girl’s voice from behind us,

“Um excuse me, are you Daniel Sharman? Can I get a photo?”

I glance at Daniel, whose face has gone blank. I move to let go of his hand instinctively but he tightens his grip as we turn around. I laugh when I realize the voice belongs to Katharine, who’s standing in front of Ryan, who is trying his best not to laugh.

“Not funny, you guys,” I say, biting back a grin. “We haven’t been recognized so far.”

I turn back to Daniel, who’s looking at me slightly confused. “Daniel, please meet Ryan and his girlfriend Katharine.”

“Oh,” he laughs, reaching out to shake their hands. “That was good. It’s nice to meet you both.”

Katharine knocks into Ryan, who’s still grinning. “It was this loser’s idea. He said he couldn't do it because you’d recognize his voice too soon.”

“A fair point,” I add, teasing. “Besides, women tend to be Daniel’s main demographic, so.”

Daniel scoffs and rolls his eyes.

“What?” I laugh, “It’s true.”

“I wanted to see if you’d drop her hand in front of a fan,” Ryan challenges. “You passed the test.”

“That’s a stupid test, Ry. I wouldn’t have been offended if he did, since this is our first public outing as a couple.”

Daniel looks at me like I’ve somehow insulted him. “I would never do that to you, Laur. That’s crazy; I wouldn’t try to hide you.”

“Okay, well, I’m just saying.” I look at Ryan expectantly. “Still trying to figure out why you haven’t hugged me yet.”

“It takes two hands to hug, I think,” he taunts, nodding towards where Daniel and I are still holding hands.

I blush. “Can you not be this annoying? We literally just arrived.” I let go of Daniel’s hand and step toward Ryan. Katharine and Daniel watch amusedly as Ryan and I hug, trying to see who can crush the other the most. “I missed you, dummy.”

“I missed you, too. You can let go now. Really.”

I let go of Ryan and narrow my eyes at him. “You’re a brat.”

“Whatever, let’s go.”

I grab the handle of my suitcase, smiling at Daniel, who smiles softly back at me. I glance at his hand and then back at him, and he chuckles softly as he meets me halfway in my attempt to hold his hand again. I blush and look away, turning my attention back to Ryan and Katharine, who are leading us out of the airport to where they’d parked.

---

The car ride to the hotel on the Cape is filled with small talk, mainly questions for Daniel, who takes them in stride. I watch him and smile as he is able to keep up with Ryan’s antics and provide thoughtful answers. He is anything but flustered, and I feel a sense of pride trickle through me. At some point, Daniel catches me watching up with a smile on my face and he just smiles back, continuing his easy conversation with Ryan and Katharine. I jump in where I’m needed, or when I can provide something interesting, but for the most part I bask in how well things seem to be going.

Once we arrive and park at the hotel, the four of us get our luggage and head inside to check in. Ryan gives our name to the woman at the desk and she looks us up.

“Got it. I see the mother of the bride reserved two king rooms on the wedding family floor, which is 3.” I see Ryan glance at us, but I just don’t look at him, I just squeeze Daniel’s hand.

“That sounds right to me.”

Daniel nods next to me. The woman nods and hands us each two key cards. We thank her and head to the elevator for our floor.

Katharine checks her phone. “Do you guys want to get settled and meet back up for dinner? The hotel restaurant has seating out by the beach.”

I look at Daniel who looks at me before shrugging. “Yeah, that sounds great. You want to meet in like 45 minutes?”

The elevator dings and we exit to our floor. Our room is farther down the hall than Ryan and Katharine’s.

“Sure, we’ll head over to your room then.” Ryan smiles before ducking into his room with Katharine.

Once I hear their door click shut, I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

Daniel huffs a laugh at me, stopping to unlock our door.

“You alright?”

“Great. How’re you doing with all this?”

“Good; they’re nice— Ryan is literally exactly what I expected.”

I laugh at that and follow Daniel into the room. I look around and admire the quaint decor. The bed takes up most of the room but there’s a closet and a bureau on the opposite wall, and tall windows that don’t open but overlook the beach below and the sea beyond. Opposite the windows is a wall covered in different paintings and signs— very boho beachy.

I sit on the bed and look at Daniel, who’s already unzipping his luggage to hang up his suit.

“This is cute,” I comment.

“Yeah, it’s nice.”

I bite my nail and watch as he turns around to face the closet.

“I uh, forgot that we’d be sharing a bed. Just didn’t think of it— sorry.”

Daniel laughs and gives me an incredulous look over his shoulder.

“You thought your aunt would book us two beds even though as far as she knows we’re super in love?”

I blush. “Well, no. I just— I don’t know, I didn’t even think about it is all I meant.”

Daniel rolls his eyes. “It doesn’t bother me. I quite appreciate a good cuddle, if I’m honest. Haven’t had one in a while.”

I raise my eyebrows. “Oh?”

“Why— do you hate that? Are you one of those women who like their space?”

I snort. “No, no, we can cuddle. You just surprise me, is all.”

“Surprise you, huh?”

Daniel turns around with a mischievous sparkle in his eye. He takes two strides so he’s standing in front of me, and puts his hands on either side of my face. He leans down so we’re eye to eye and I can’t help but glance briefly at his lips, wondering if he’s going to kiss me again.

“You know,” he says softly, “You should really unpack your dress so it doesn’t wrinkle.” He winks and pulls back, kissing my forehead.

I shake my head even though he’s facing away from me now, hopping off the bed to follow his advice.

“You’re trouble, Sharman. Such a tease.”’

“Sorry?” He looks at me innocently, batting his eyelashes dramatically. “Oh, were you expecting a kiss?”

I feel myself blush as I pull my dress out and walk around him to hang it up.

“I wasn’t expecting anything. Like I said, you’re full of surprises.”

He lowers his voice. “So, you don’t want a kiss?”

I turn around to face him, eyes narrowed, thoughts rushing, but before I can retort there’s a knock on the door.

I turn away promptly to answer the door, grateful for the exit. I hear Daniel chuckle behind me as I open the door to reveal Ryan, who clears his throat.

“Hope I’m not interrupting.” He peers past me, presumably at Daniel. “Katharine called the restaurant to make a reservation and they only had a 6:45, so she said we’d take it. I tried to text you but you didn’t answer.”

“Sorry,” I apologize. “My phone's still in my bag. We were unpacking.”

“That’s fine. Are you guys good to head to dinner, or...?”

I feel an arm wrap around my waist. “Yeah, we’re good. I grabbed your purse, Laur, and I have my wallet and the room key.”

I can feel Ryan watching me so I lean back against Daniel’s chest and look up at him. “Thank you,” I say sweetly, taking my bag from him before turning back to Ryan. “Let’s go.”

—-

Dinner on the beach is lovely. There’s a subtle warm breeze and the food is delicious. The conversation is easy and I can’t help but feel an unusual sense of peace of bringing two of my favorite men together and having them get along so well.

I’m in a reverie when I feel Daniel’s hand lightly squeeze my thigh, bringing me back to reality. I blink, looking across the table at Ryan and Katharine, and try to ignore Daniel smirking next to me.

“Hmm? Sorry, I dazed out there for a minute.”

Katharine laughs. “Totally fine, I was asking how it’s been dating someone who's in the spotlight.”

“Oh, um.” I pause, taking a sip of water. “It’s been fine, you know, since we’ve been so low key about it. The public doesn’t know about us. I imagine it’d be different then.”

Daniel nods. “I think for the most part, the fans would be welcoming, but there are always going to be people who… aren’t.”

Ryan leans on his hand, looking between the two of us. “Isn’t it weird, though? The thought that there are so many girls thinking about getting with your boyfriend constantly?”

“I—” I look at Daniel, who looks mortified, but also curious at how I’ll respond. “I guess I’ve never really thought about it like that.”

Ryan makes a noise of indignation. “You watch his movies and shows and stuff, don’t you?”

I narrow my eyes at him. “Of course I do.”

“And it isn’t weird watching him make out with people on screen? Doesn’t it make you jealous?”

I open and close my mouth. I can tell behind his hand Daniel’s smirking, and even Katharine’s looking at me curiously.

“Well, of course I don’t love it— but I mean— it’s his job. There’s nothing I can do about it.”

I look at Daniel, who’s looking at me curiously.

“You never said it made you jealous.”

“I mean—” I shrug, at a loss for words.

He looks at me for a moment before looking away, clearing his throat as we’re interrupted by the waiter bringing our check.

Ryan goes to grab it, but Daniel beats him to it.

“I got it. I said I’d owe you a hundred bucks if you came with a real date, so,” Ryan teases.

I cross my arms. “Oh, and you believe me now?”

“After seeing how jealous you got in that conversation? Yeah.”

I scoff and Daniel and Katharine laugh while Ryan rolls his eyes.

“I’m just playing around, Laur.”

Daniel intervenes, sticking his card in the check holder and placing it at the edge of the table.

“I’ve got it, bro. First meeting and all that; but thank you.”

I look at Daniel. “You don’t have to do that, we all have our own jobs.”

Daniel shrugs. “I know, I just want to.” He places his hand on my thigh again, and leans in to kiss my temple. He whispers against my head. “Let me do this, please?”

“Okay,” I sigh. “Well, thank you.”

“Yes, thank you,” Katharine echoes, smiling.

“My pleasure.”

—-

We’re back in our room, just finished brushing our teeth, when I bring it up again.

“You really didn’t have to pay for dinner you know.”

“I know,” he says. “But I don’t want him giving you money like me coming here was something that had to be bribed, or bought. I came because I wanted to— the details of which Ryan doesn’t need to know.”

I hum in thought.

“Besides, apparently I’m causing you bouts of jealousy, so really it’s the least I can do,” he teases.

I scoff, “Comes with the territory I guess…. along with apparently fighting off swarms of girls who want to jump your bones.”

It’s his turn to roll his eyes, folding down the bed covers, “Do people even use that expression anymore?”

“Doesn’t matter, you know what I mean.”

“And yet, you’re the woman in my bed tonight.”

I laugh, folding down the other side of the bed, “How scandalous.”

“Very. Cuddling is serious business, you know.”

Daniel settles into bed, looking at me where I’m still sat on the edge.

“You coming in?”

“Yeah,” I flush, hesitating.

He extends an arm, and I take the invitation, cuddling up against his chest.

“See, this is nice.”

“I never said it wouldn’t be.”

“I know." He pauses, "Try to relax, I promise this weekend is going to go smoothly, if I have any say in it. Not to sound too cocky, but I’m good at my job.”

I laugh at that, before sighing, “I know you are.”

“Good. Sweet dreams, then.”

“Sweet dreams," I echo, snuggling a little bit closer to him.

—-

When I wake up in the morning, my chest is pressed against Daniel’s shirt, and I feel his fingertips lightly tracing up and down my back.

“Morning,” he hums.

“Good morning,” I answer, shifting slightly. “How long have you been awake?”

Daniel makes a noncommittal noise. “Not sure, didn’t want to risk waking you up to check my phone.”

I look up at him as best I can from my position. “You’ve just been staring at the ceiling this whole time?”

“It hasn’t been that long. Plus I’m resting, and enjoying our cuddle.”

I turn away blushing and snuggle back into him. “You are very warm; makes me not want to get up.”

“Our alarm hasn’t gone off yet—” He’s cut off by the alarm on his phone doing just that. “Nevermind.”

I make no effort to move from my cozy position.

“Come on,” He urges, pulling my hair lightly. “We have to get up and brush our teeth. I have a feeling there’s some kissing in our future, so.”

“Oh? Is there someone you have your eye on?” I tease.

“Just my fake girlfriend. I think I’ll probably need to demonstrate to her family how in love I am.”

“Demonstrate, huh? I’ll tell the children to shield their eyes.”

I feel Daniel’s laugh rumble through his chest, and I grin.

“Come on, we have to get ready and we have to make a good impression!”

I groan, rolling off and away from him. “I’m going to complain the whole time.”

“I’d expect nothing less.”

I don’t have to turn around to know he’s smirking.

Daniel showers first so I can use the bathroom to style my hair and do my makeup once I’m done with mine.

When I’m done, I find Daniel suited and sitting on the edge of the bed, scrolling on his phone. I walk up to him, standing in between his legs, and he looks up at me, taking in my appearance.

“You look beautiful.”

I reach my hand up to smooth his collar. “And you look very handsome; it might be a hard sell for anyone to believe you’re here with me,” I joke.

He shakes his head, smiling softly. He reaches up to take my hand, pulling my wrist up to his lips where he leaves a gentle kiss.

“I don’t think anyone will have any trouble believing that, actually.”

My heart stutters in my chest, and I swallow.

“Are you ready to meet everyone?”

“I am. Are you nervous?”

I look at him for a minute and really think about it.

“No,” I say, shaking my head. “With you, I’m not nervous.”

He smiles. “Good; let’s get going.”

—

As we exit the hotel, we take a right before descending down the stairs to the beach ceremony hand in hand. The sun feels warm on our skin, but the soft breeze keeps it from feeling overbearing. I can feel some family members’ eyes on me as I smile and wave with my free hand, sure I’ll have plenty of time to talk to them after. We pick our seats and I look up at Daniel, who is already smiling down at me. I smile back as he places our clasped hands in my lap, his thumb gently brushing back and forth over my skin.

“It’s a beautiful day to get married,” he states, looking around.

I hum in agreement, wrapping my free hand around his bicep.

“I always wondered about summer weddings— I’d worry that I’d sweat off all my makeup if I was the bride.”

Daniel huffs a laugh. “Yeah. I assume most grooms are sweating buckets before they even reach the reception.”

My eyes wander down to where he has the first few buttons of his shirt undone to accommodate the heat.

“My eyes are up here.”

My eyes flash back up to his, and he smirks. I shake my head and try not to blush at getting caught. He leans down to kiss my temple.

“You’re cute when you blush,” he murmurs against my hair, squeezing my hand.

I turn to him and raise my eyebrow. “Diving right in are we?”

He shrugs and diverts his attention back to the altar.

“Ryan looks so much older in his tux.”

I look to where Ryan stands next to Nick, Rachel’s soon-to-be husband, as one of the groomsmen.

“Sometimes I forget he’s only 18, but then he’s still a baby to me in some ways.”

Daniel shakes his head. “Just imagine, one day we’ll be sitting at his wedding.”

“I can’t even think about that— though, to be fair, he may beat me to getting married. He and Katharine have been dating since they were 13.”

He lets out a low whistle. “True high school sweethearts. Do you think they’ll stay together through college?”

I sigh, looking over at Katharine a few rows ahead with my Aunt Judith. “I hope so, I think they’re a good fit. She’s already part of the family.”

It’s quiet for a moment before something hits me.

“You said we’ll be sitting at Ryan’s wedding.” I tug on Daniel’s arm. “Plan on sticking around?”

“Well, I—” He opens and closes his mouth a few times, not sure of the right response.

I giggle and lean up to kiss his cheek before pulling back just enough to whisper, “You know, you’re really cute when you blush.”

He turns to me before I can pull away entirely, placing a quick kiss on my lips, leaving me blinking up at him.

He smirks. “Touché.”

———

There’s something to be said for attending a wedding with someone.

I’m not sure if I’m emotional because it’s Rachel, my cousin who I’ve grown up with, or the fact that when something particularly romantic happens, I look at Daniel, who will smile and squeeze my hand in solidarity.

We’re both a little teary eyed by the time the ceremony ends. I reach my free hand up to wipe a stray tear from his face. He laughs, embarrassed.

“It’s okay, I’m feeling it too. Easy to feel a little sappy on a day like today.”

“Mmm. Really sets the mood for the start of our relationship.”

I roll my eyes good-naturedly.

“Speaking of…” I trail off, eyeing a few family members approaching over his shoulder.

“Get ready, because introductions start now.”

—-

The members of my family that are introduced seem to welcome Daniel with no hesitations— and far fewer questions than I anticipated. He handles them all smoothly and I’m thankful we discussed some things beforehand. Eventually, we part ways, excusing ourselves with promises to catch up more later.

We don’t get too far before a little girl runs up to us. She can’t be older than 4 or 5.

“Hi,” she giggles. “I’m Marnie.”

Daniel and I share a smile, and I bend down a bit. “Hi Marnie, I’m Lauren, and this is Daniel.” He waves. “Are you here for the wedding too?”

She nods bashfully. “Nick kissed her! Now he’s a husband.”

Daniel laughs. “He is.”

“How do you know Nick?” I ask.

“He’s my cousin,” she says, kicking some sand with her sandals.

“Ahh, the girl he kissed is my cousin Rachel. Now she’s a wife!” I exclaim.

She looks at me curiously. “Is a wife like a mom?”

Before I can answer, we hear someone call her name, and we look up to see a couple around our age standing on the patio about 10 feet away.

“Is that your mom and dad?” Daniel asks.

“Yeah, I gotta go— see you later!”

She dashes off, and we wave at the couple who wave back, calling out an apology.

“It’s fine— she’s super cute!” I smile.

We watch as they head back toward the hotel, and presumably the reception.

We walk along the stone wall lining the patio, watching from a distance as bridal party photos are taken.

I look at him. “Should we take our own photo to celebrate the occasion, and how nice we look?”

Daniel laughs, pulling his phone out of his pocket. “Sure.”

He bends down so we can take a selfie, before shaking his head.

“Wait.” He sits on the wall, and pulls me so I’m sitting on his lap. I try to mask my blush as he looks at the phone screen. “Better. More natural angle.”

We take one selfie smiling and another with silly faces.

“Do you two want me to take a photo for you?” A woman passing by asks.

I hesitate, but Daniel’s already handing over his phone. “That would be great, thanks.”

We stay seated with his arm around my waist. And I turn to lean into him, putting my hand on his chest.

We grin and the woman takes a photo.

“Boooo, boring,” Ryan heckles, walking up behind the woman out of nowhere. “Give us something good.”

I roll my eyes, and feel Daniel chuckle.

“Aren’t you supposed to be taking formal photos?” I query.

“I finished.” He shrugs, taking the camera from the woman, who excuses herself. “Now give me something good.”

“Alright Ryan, since you asked so nicely,” Daniel drawls. I feel his hand on my neck tilting my head up. “Give the man what he wants.” He smirks, eyes sparkling, leaning in to kiss me.

I can’t help but grin into the kiss as I hear Ryan quickly change his tune. “Okay gross, this is excessive. I got it, you can stop.”

Eventually we pull away, and I turn to Ryan innocently. “Sorry, were you saying something?”

“I’m starting to regret pushing the whole plus one agenda.” He frowns, handing Daniel back his phone.

“No you aren’t,” I tease.

“I’m going to go find my girlfriend,” he rebuts, stalking off.

Daniel shakes his head. “He’s funny.” Lowering his voice, he says into my ear, “One kiss down, many to go.”

I shove him playfully and slide off his lap, turning back towards the hotel to hide my blush. “If any of those pictures came out good, send them to me, please.”

“Okay, but wait.” He stands and pulls my elbow gently, and as I turn back to him his lips meet mine.

“What was that for?” I ask as we finally pull away.

“Just making sure we found our rhythm.” He shrugs. “Besides, as your boyfriend, I technically don’t need a reason.”

I bite my lip. “Is that so?”

He looks at me innocently. “It goes both ways, you know, these lips are yours for the day.”

I bark a laugh. “That sounds so weird, but, okay, noted.”

He grins, lacing our fingers together and pulling me back toward the hotel and the reception.

—-

Inside the reception, each table seats 6; we’re seated at one of the family tables with Ryan, Katharine, and my Aunt Judith. Aunt Judith is my late grandmother’s sister. She has a sharp tongue and rarely minces words when she speaks, a trait that suited her long career as a lawyer in the city. She’s one of the family members who I’ve been most nervous for Daniel to meet, as I know she’ll be critical and her eagle eye will be looking for weaknesses between us. I’ve seen her do it to Rachel’s boyfriends over the years, and even to Katharine when she and Ryan started dating.

“So, Daniel…” Aunt Judith begins. “Ryan here tells me you had… concerns, about Lauren telling us about you.”

Here comes the interrogation. I glare at Ryan, who shrugs, before looking at Daniel who appears unusually calm.

“Not concerns, really,” he starts, “We were friends for a long time, as you know, and I think we were both just nervous—“ he looks at me, “and trying to take our time in figuring out the transition into being together romantically.”

I nod, “And it was only like a month before I told Ryan. You guys know I tell you everything.”

Aunt Judith watches as the others laugh knowingly, and Daniel grins at me.

“Are you planning to keep your relationship private from the press?” She pushes.

“Well,” Ryan interjects, “At the airport they were holding hands, even when Katharine approached him pretending to be a fangirl.”

I roll my eyes, “That was so unnecessary, you guys. Daniel and I both like our privacy so I wouldn’t say we’re hiding it, but we aren’t flaunting it all over either.”

“I’m definitely not ashamed or trying to hide Lauren, if that’s what you mean.” Daniel jests lightly.

“I should hope not,” she says, looking at him over her glass, as she takes a sip.

Katherine turns to Daniel, “What is it about Lauren that drew you in?”

Ryan snorts, “Yeah, how’d she escape the friendzone?”

I put a hand over my face, embarrassed, which Aunt Judith seems to interpret to mean something else entirely.

“Please tell me you did nothing scandalous, so help me, Lauren….”

“What,” I look at her, “No, of course not, why would you assume that?”

She shrugs and Daniel intervenes, “It wasn’t something sudden… I always knew she was beautiful, and obviously as we became friends I saw how kind and thoughtful she was. Funny too,” he says smirking at me.

“Hmm,” she says taking a sip from her drink again, but I can tell she’s secretly pleased with his answer.

—-

Once dinner is finished I excuse Daniel and I from the table, so I can introduce him to Rachel, her new husband, Nick, and of course my Auntie Kim.

I feel Daniel’s hand squeeze mine and I turn back to look at him, smiling.

“Getting tired of all these introductions yet?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “No, I’m fine.”

“Such a good sport,” I tease, and he rolls his eyes.

We wait for the last people currently talking to Rachel and Nick to clear, and when Rachel sees me she squeals.

“Lauren!”

I laugh, “Hi Rach, congratulations!”

“Thank you,” she beams, looking over at Nick briefly.

“And welcome to the family, officially, Nick.”

He grins and motions behind me, “Who’s this guy you’re towing around?”

“Right,” I blush. “Rachel, Nick, this is my boyfriend Daniel.”

“It’s a pleasure,” Daniel greets, sticking out his hand to shake theirs. Neither Nick or Rachel do a great job of hiding their surprise.

“No offense, Laur, but when Ryan told me you were bringing a boyfriend I thought he was messing with us.” Nick interjects.

I force a grin on my face, feeling Daniel’s hand comfortingly move to my back.

“I’m all too real, I’m afraid.” Daniel interjects. “Sorry to disappoint.”

I lean back into him, and watch as Rachel smacks Nick on the arm.

“No, no, we’re very glad you’re real Daniel. Just surprised is all. Don’t mind Nick.”

Auntie Kim approaches saving us from the awkward encounter.

“This must be the infamous Daniel, who has won our Lauren’s heart.”

I blush, as she moves to hug him.

He smirks, “Well, she’s won mine as well.”

“You two are so cute. We are so thrilled you could come today, Daniel.”

“I was too, it is really great to meet you all after hearing this one talk about you all nonstop.”

The group laughs.

“We are very much looking forward to getting to know you better, hopefully this will be the first of many visits.”

He smiles, “Definitely.”

—

At some point much later in the evening, I lose Daniel. He steps away to use the restroom and I get pulled into conversation with a family friend. I keep my eyes peeled for him but somehow I don’t seem to see him anywhere.

I’m standing by the bar waiting for a drink when I feel a pair of arms wrap around my waist.

“Hi, darling.”

My stomach flutters at the pet name.

“Oh hello, I was wondering where you ran off to.”

His arms tighten around my waist. “I was having a riveting conversation with one of your aunts, actually.”

I turn my head to look at him curiously. “Which one?”

“Aunt Judith,” he smirks, waving the bartender over to order a drink of his own.

“Oh boy,” I laugh. “What did you guys talk about?”

Once he places his order he leans down to whisper in my ear, “She wanted to know if we were using protection, and after that, we went over the unexpected costs of raising children.”

I turn around in his arms, horrified. “No! —She didn’t.”

“Oh yes,” he laughs, grinning. “She did.”

“What did you even say?”

He pretended to think. “I told her, diaper prices are definitely outrageous, and I agree, college costs are inflated beyond belief—” I glare at him. “Oh, and that it was very important to me that we practice safe sex, but, if anything ever did happen, I would be there for you every step of the way.”

“Oh God.” I bury my face into his chest, and he laughs, affectionately stroking my hair. “I’m so sorry, that’s mortifying….”

“I’ve been asked weirder things, just being an actor in LA.”

“Still.” I look up at him. “Your answer was very sweet, though.”

“Well, it’s the truth. I’ll always be there for you— fake pregnancies and all.”

We’re staring at each other now, his fingers still running through my hair, his other hand on my lower back. Time seems to slow down and my eyes flicker to his mouth, his words from earlier echoing in my head. It goes both ways. Before I can talk myself out of it, I reach up to kiss him, because it feels right.

“You’re the best fake boyfriend, you know that?” I murmur against his mouth.

He pulls me closer to him, brushing his nose against mine. “I might need another kiss to convince me.”

The bartender behind us clears his throat. “Excuse me, sir, ma’am? Your drinks?”

We break apart, and as our moment ends I try to quell the butterflies in my tummy.

Daniel smiles politely at the bartender, passing me my drink before taking his glass in one hand and my hand in the other.

We make our way back to our now vacant table. He lets go of my hand to pull his chair closer to mine as we sit down, draping his arm over the back of my chair. I lean into him as we sip our drinks, people-watching the other tables and the crowd on the dance floor. I feel his fingers start drawing shapes on my shoulder, causing me to look up at him.

“Are you having a good time?” he asks.

“I am, largely thanks to you. Are you having a good time?”

“I am; everyone has been really welcoming. It’s nice to meet the people you’ve told me about, and hear the stories everyone has to tell me about you. There have been some good ones, I have to say…”

I roll my eyes, smiling. “I’m sure.”

“The only way it could be better would be if they had baby pictures.”

“Listen, I’ll be the first to say I peaked in preschool. I was much cuter then, I peaked—” Daniel laughs. “I’ll get some and show you. You’ll be so disappointed this is how I’ve turned out.”

“No, I don’t think so. I mean I bet you were cute but, I couldn’t be disappointed.”

I shake my head, blushing. “Don’t be so sure— you haven’t seen them yet.”

“I am sure…. I’m looking at you right now.”

I start to smile despite myself. “Oooooh, that was smooth, Sharman.”

“No, no, no," he protests, smirking, "it’s easy when you tell the truth.”

“Have you always been this cheesy, or is this a boyfriend exclusive privilege I’ve unlocked?”

“You know—” He’s interrupted as the little girl from earlier runs up to us.

“Hi,” she says bashfully.

I smile, “Hi Marnie,”

She turns to Daniel and taps twice on his knee. “Can I sit?”

Daniel looks at me, and then around the room. Marnie’s parents are nowhere in sight.

“Sure, angel. Where are your mom and dad?”

She shrugs before he lifts her into his lap. The three of us smile at each other as Marnie gets shy. She leans up to whisper in Daniel’s ear, cupping both of her tiny hands around his ear. I can’t hear what she’s saying but I watch as Daniel’s eyes twinkle in amusement.

“Not yet,” he answers to whatever she asked, and she giggles before whispering again, and he laughs. “Mhm, I do.”

Marnie pulls back and looks at him with amazement, whispering even more excitedly. This time he pauses before smiling at me, before turning back to her.

“What do you think?” She looks at me quickly before back at him, nodding shyly. He nods along with her, before leaning in and whispering in her head with his hands cupped secretly like hers had been. Marnie is absolutely beaming now. It’s easy to see how smitten she is with him.

Curiosity gets the best of me. “Do I get to know a secret, too?” I ask, teasingly.

She looks unsure before Daniel swoops in playfully. “Nope, these secrets are for me and Marnie only.”

“Darn it.” I sigh dramatically.

The music changes to something Marnie clearly recognizes as her face lights up, as she tugs on Daniel’s sleeve. “Can we dance? Me and you?”

Daniel looks at me. “Will you be okay here?”

“Absolutely, I’ll be watching.”

He puts his drink on the table as I pick mine up to take a sip, watching as her tiny hand fits in his and she drags him out to dance. The two of them are so cute and my heart feels like it’s going to burst.

Ryan slides into Daniel’s seat a minute later.

“You know, if you and Daniel had a daughter, she’d probably look just like Marnie.”

I glance at him, realizing he’s right. Dark brown curls and bright blue eyes, with a toothy smile and a loud laugh.

“Don’t let my ovaries hear you. I’m not having any children until I have two rings on this finger,” I say, waggling my left hand at him.

Ryan laughs and we watch as Daniel is so good with Marnie, letting her swing his arms around and move them to the beat.

“I like him,” Ryan says definitively.

I look at him, surprised. “Wow, I mean I obviously like him too, I just thought you’d be more skeptical.”

“I did too until I saw you guys together. I just…” He looks emotional all of a sudden. “Shit.”

I laugh softly. “It’s okay, Ry, it’s an emotional day.” I rub his shoulder as he pinches his eyes.

I see Daniel glance over, concerned, but I give him a thumbs up. He nods and goes back to spinning Marnie around.

“I just...” I turn back to Ryan as he speaks, giving him my full attention. “I can see that he loves you— really loves you. It’s all I ever wanted for you.”

I feel my heart squish uncomfortably in my chest. I feel guilty that my cousin is so happy for me, so proud and vulnerable over a relationship that’s just for show. I swallow.

“Me too, I— thank you, Ryan. I love you, so much.”

The song changes again into something slow and I watch Marnie shriek, horrified, before running off into the crowd. Daniel looks after her, humored, before looking at me, gesturing with his head that I come join him. Ryan must see it too because he kisses my temple.

“I love you, too. Go get your man; I should find Katharine.”

Like I’m in a trance, I don’t take my eyes off Daniel as I approach. He smiles and reaches his hands out for me, lacing our fingers together.

“May I have this dance?”

“You may, I was getting a little jealous over there.”

He drops one of my hands to wrap it around my waist, and I bring mine around his neck as we begin to sway, staying close together.

He chuckles. “Well, don’t be, I think everyone here knows who I’m going home with.”

“Yeah, you’re stuck with me.”

He smiles softly but doesn’t answer. I feel my eyes flutter shut as he moves closer pressing his lips to mine gently, tenderly. I kiss him back and for a second I swear I feel it— that all-encompassing love Ryan says he sees between us. When we pull apart, he keeps his head dipped down, pressing his cheek to mine for the remainder of the song. I close my eyes and nuzzle into him, letting myself pretend this is real, just for another moment.

Eventually I break our silence.

“Hey, what did Marnie ask you?”

“Hmm?” He murmurs, the sound vibrating against my cheek.

“During your super secret whisper time.”

“Oh,” he laughs breathily. “She wanted to know if we were married.”

“Ahhh,” I chuckle. “I see. What else did she want to know?”

He pauses as the song starts to fade out and our swaying slows down. “I don’t know if I can tell you that. Some secrets need to stay secret, after all.”

While it was clearly meant to be a joke, he says it a bit too seriously, so I drop it and smile tightly as we pull apart.

“Okay.”

He tugs my hand playfully. “Nothing bad, I promise.”

I make a face at him. “Well, I guess I’ll never know.”

He laughs. “You’ll just have to take my word for it.”

—-

A little while later, we’re watching Rachel and Nick leave for their honeymoon as the wedding party begins to disperse.

“I suppose we should say our goodbyes,” I say, tearing my eyes away as their car drives off.

I hug my Auntie Kim goodbye and tell her I’ll see her at Christmas. She fawns over Daniel, telling him to watch over me, and how happy she is to have gotten to meet him. It makes me smile to see how well he gets on with her. It’s hardest to say goodbye to Ryan. I hug him fiercely, and he returns the hug just as vigorously.

“I wish I could take you back with me.”

“I know.”

“We need to FaceTime more.”

“We will.”

When I step back, Ryan and Daniel go to shake hands, and I see Aunt Judith sitting at the bar by herself. I excuse myself as they chat and take the seat next to her.

“Aunt Judith, I’m afraid I leave again tomorrow.”

She turns toward me, swirling the scotch in her glass. She disregards what I’ve said and instead looks past me into the crowd.

“Where’s that man of yours?”

“He’s saying goodbye to Ryan at the moment.”

She hums.

“What?” I ask.

“He’s a looker.”

I chuckle. “So I’ve been told.”

“I think he could be husband material though. Not as dense as men usually are.”

I suppress a smile. “Huh, I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.” I give her a kiss on the cheek goodbye, walking over to rejoin Daniel who seems to be finishing a serious chat with Ryan as I approach. As I join his side, Ryan shakes his hand one last time before walking away. Daniel glances at me, placing a hand on my back, looking back towards Aunt Judith at the bar.

“Should I go say goodbye to her?”

“I think you’re alright.”

Aunt Judith waves at us, and Daniel waves back.

”Was everything okay with Ryan?”

“Oh, yeah, yeah; just talking.” He shifts, interlacing our hands. “Ready to go back to our room?”

I nod and we head towards the elevators, hands swinging between us. While we wait, I subconsciously start swaying to the soft music playing from the hallway speakers. Daniel glances at me smirking, and I look up at him giggling, “What?”

“Nothing. You want to spin, like Marnie?” He teases, lifting our joined hands. I spin twice before bumping into his chest, giggling more. “Ooops.”

He shakes his head at me as the elevator doors open. He wraps both his arms around me, walking me backward into the elevator and I laugh into his tie. I turn around so we’re both facing the doors as he reaches around me to press the button for our floor. The mirrored doors slide closed and I meet his eyes in the reflection. We’re both grinning.

“You’re absolutely ridiculous,” he taunts, and I stick my tongue out in the reflection. His arms tighten around me and I press backwards into his chest.

—-

Back at the room, we start to get ready for bed. We share the bathroom to brush our teeth and do our nighttime routines, playfully brushing and bumping into each other. I drag my feet, trying to make the evening last as long as possible, trying to stretch out this daydream I’m living in before we have to go home tomorrow.

I get into bed first, lying on my back and watching as Daniel pads across the room to his side of the bed. He shuts off the overhead light as he passes, leaving only the soft blue moonlight from the window covering us.

He climbs into bed next to me but stays propped up on his elbow. I look at him and he begins tracing my face with his other hand. I crinkle my nose at him, and laugh softly.

“What’re you doing?”

“Waiting.”

“For what?”

He gestures behind me to a decorative sign on the wall.

I turn my head to look at it. “I can’t read that without my contacts.”

His fingers trace over my lips, and I hold my breath at the intimate gesture.

His voice drops even softer. “It says always kiss me goodnight. So I’m waiting.”

I look back at him, expecting him to crack a joke, but he doesn’t; his eyes are sincere. I run the arm closest to him up behind his neck, catching my fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck. He takes the hint, letting my touch guide him as he leans down and kisses me.

The kiss is sleepy, soft, lips tenderly pressed together, moving slowly against each other. It ends with a few gentle kisses that drift from my mouth to my cheek, up to my forehead. His gaze is already fixed on me when my eyes flutter back open.

I start to think about how final that kiss felt, how this is the end of our weekend of pretend; how it doesn’t make any sense that we’re kissing when no one’s here to see us, but maybe we’re both lonely and already missing the comfort, the closeness of this façade. I run my hand up from the nape of his neck to scratch gently at his scalp and his eyes flutter shut, finally breaking our eye contact.

“That feels nice,” he whispers. Wordlessly, we shift so his head is on my chest, his arm around my waist, my nails still soothingly sifting through his hair, quietly lulling him to sleep.

---

tagged: @rogershoe @heyrowena @yunsh-17

#daniel sharman fluff #daniel sharman fic #daniel sharman fanfiction #daniel sharman fanfic #daniel sharman imagine #daniel sharman x oc #yellow lights

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barzzal · 4 years ago

Text

babysitting for dummies

summary: you and your boyfriend tyson figure out how to calm a crying baby.

↳ pairing: tyson jost x you

↳ warnings: extreme baby fever, does that count?

↳ genre: fluff, established relationship

↳ length: imagine; 1.1k

↳ masterlist: the barn

note: this is a bit short but i’ve just written it mainly to compensate with my insane baby fever given all the hockey men and kids content i’ve been seeing. also, i’m tagging a few babes i know that are a sucker for josty as well (i finally wrote for him!!) @hookingminor @justjosty @hockey-ice

You were almost sure that babysitting your nephew was a good idea not until your home was filled with non-stop crying coming from an all too fuzzy little babe named Lucas.

Though at this rate, the crying might even be coming from a now frustrated Tyson eagerly scrolling on his phone, googling endless ways on how to stop a baby from crying.

“Can’t we just feed him another bottle?” He frustratingly asks for the hundredth time yet again burying his face in his palms just to muffle a scream. It didn’t help much to stop the baby’s crying and neither did it do much to your and Tyson’s despair.

“Come on, we can’t just shove a bottle up in his mouth every time he gets crazy.” You continue rocking your body back and forth, making sure that the baby was as close to your chest as needed to somehow mimic the warmth his own mother gives off.

You reach your head down close to his body in order to get a quick whiff just to make sure that that area wasn’t the reason why he was being such a brat.

“What’s wrong, sweetie?” You cooed, holding him close to your body whilst you continue soothing him with a lullaby that he’s gotten used to hearing whenever it’s nap time.

“Okay okay, it says here to try swaying him side to side in a swift motion.” He announces with hope in his voice. Tyson swears he has never experienced such a mind numbing scenario in his life. He’s not even sure if his hearing’s still right once all the bloody crying stops.

Oh the things he’d give just to make it stop.

You try to do what he said and sway your nephew side to side like a mad man.

“This doesn’t feel right, babe! I feel like his head’s gonna come off or something!” Your voice sounded unsure and alarmed which only made things worse at Tyson’s end because he knows how much you knew about babies so the fact that you couldn’t stop this child, who was your kin for the matter, just made the whole narrative a lot harder for him to bear.

Finally, Tyson decides he’s had enough and stands from the couch, leaving all the stuffed animals and picture books lying around.

“Give it to me, let me try.” The only thing he sees other than a wailing Lucas was the glare you’ve got going on when he was trying to get the baby.

“He’s a ‘he’ not an ‘it’, mister.” You walk over to the kitchen to get one of his bottles.

“Well, he doesn’t look like one right now!” He starts to laugh, making you roll your eyes at his innate goofiness.

“Stop it.” You say. When you see his arms still asking for the 3 month-old infant, you begin feeling the weight the baby had in your arms that the idea of Tyson having him even just for a little while sounded so appealing. You let out a sigh before finally deciding that trying would be your best resort at this point.

“Fine. Don’t you dare drop him!” You half-shouted, quite hesitant to let the clumsiest man you’ve ever known carry something so fragile, let alone a child that couldn’t be easily replace with just a quick run to the grocery.

Tyson takes Lucas from your arms and places him safely in his, “Careful! The head, baby. The head.” You remind him, your hands suspended into mid-air, readying yourself in the event that Tyson does drop him.

He looks at you once the little one is settled in his arms, albeit still with the wild squirming and crying going on. “See? I got him.” He says, now treading his way back to the living room and towards the giant mirror articulately placed across the love seat as per Tyson’s request back when you first moved in your shared apartment.

You didn’t mind him anymore and instead started to clean up some of Lucas’ stuff scattered around the kitchen island. You make your way to the powder room to get Lucas’ wash kit when the familiar quietude of your home starts ringing in your ears.

Have I gone deaf? You think. With a baby bag filled with wipes and Lucas’ soft towels wrapped in your left arm and a couple of his milk bottles on the other, you get out of the powder room and hurriedly stride your way towards where Tyson was, anxious as to what might’ve possibly caused him to stop crying; only to see Tyson bouncing him back and forth in front of the mirror.

“Who’s that? Do you know who that is?” Tyson coos in a voice you never thought he’d ever use. The baby that was once screaming bloody murder, was now giggling at the way Tyson showed him what wonders a mirror could do.

“Yes! That’s you buddy! That’s you right there!” He cheers when Lucas tries to grab himself through the mirror.

You couldn’t believe what Tyson was able to do and neither could he. All he knows now is how good it feels to be the reason behind a child’s small giggles.

He couldn’t possibly put into words how it felt when Lucas wrapped his teeny tiny little fist all over his finger that he’s almost too certain that he didn’t want his parents to come home and get him just so he can make him giggle a little bit more. Perhaps, it’s even safe to say that in that little moment he had with him has made him realize why having a child will always be a good idea considering the misery he was in a few minutes ago.

You put down all the things that had you occupied so you could join them. Tyson sees you through the mirror, a quiet smile breaking off his lips.

“He stopped crying.” He whispers, planting a soft kiss on top of the baby’s head. Giving himself a whiff of Lucas’ baby scent. The one that’s always made your uterus skip a beat each time you get to hold him.

You only nod along, answering Tyson by whispering a soft “Yes, you did it.” before wrapping your free arm around his strong physique.

You rest your head on his shoulder. Your eyes, meeting each other’s through the mirror as Lucas’ hand is now wrapped around your finger, all whilst Tyson continued to bounce him lightly in his hold.

“Lucas has got pretty eyes, don’t you think?” You quietly tell him, both of your gazes pinned towards yourselves in the mirror. Evidently in awe of the mental image it has printed for the both of you.

Sure, it was quite obvious, but neither of you wanted to say a word. You can’t help but wonder, of course. You just weren't sure if Tyson had the same mental image running in his head. You weren’t sure if he wanted the same thing you never knew you wanted not until you saw him holding Lucas oh so perfectly.

Well, not until he spoke and replied to what you’d just said.

“I hope ours has yours, y/n.” Tyson looks at you, eyes dreamy and glinting with hope. A sight you see before he finally reaches to meet your lips as if to seal that mental image you both happened to have all along.

#tyson jost #tyson jost imagine #hockey imagine #nhl imagine #tyson jost fic #hockey fic #nhl fic #letters to josty #barzzal imagines

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starlightshore · 4 years ago

Note

Is there any evidence that Chara is an abuse victim? It's a very popular headcanon and I want to understand why

hrm. ok let me preface this with a couple of things: one, i actually answered this same question a couple weeks ago (week ago? time means nothing to me) on AFR but i got triggered by continuous use of the topic and people wouldn’t stop talking after i asked multiple times for us to stop. (no bad blood to anyone involved) this is only relevant because its the same question, and I want to make it clear I am fine with talking about this topic, and I will say if or when it’s stressing me out. I am not against talking about dark themes, and at the moment I am calm and fine.

I want everyone to know that this is a triggering topic and i specifically am susceptible to this and it’s surrounding themes, so please try to read the room I’m creating on this topic and give me the proper space.

i say that all ahead of time because I do not want to get triggered or talk about child abuse/death/suicide at length. this ask is fine. maybe a couple more if it’s brief and not asking me to do further research.

secondly, I want to talk about UT canon real quick. UT, for the most part, relies on text to spell out it’s history and world. characters don’t walk on screen and say: I’m Chara Dreemurr. I was born on September 15th 2003. I’m nonbinary and use they/them.” like no, characters live in the moment and yes their past define them, but they got bigger things to worry about and talk about current things. maybe they’ll refer to past things, but never bluntly.

--putting under read more. discussion of child abuse, self harm, and other ingame dark topics. This is mainly a character analysis

So, either you infer from what’s available or you search the wiki/playthrough/text dumps. The very act of playing no mercy route has lore in itself, if you account for player theory and other factors I’m not getting into here. Anyway, Undertale is a very Deep and loaded game with lots of world building built into every nook and cranny. (just spend 5 minutes on semi-frequent undertale facts if you’re curious to this rabbit hole)

Anyway point being, Chara is the narrator. this is fact. “it’s me, Chara.” They outright say it. I hate when people call it theory when it’s more explicit than most things in game.

anyway, the main flavor text i want to point to is this:

* "Faded Ribbon" - Armor DF 3 * If you're cuter, monsters won't hit you as hard.

So here’s a couple things I want to talk about first. Yes, monsters fight and that is normal.

* But they will never know the joy of expressing themselves through magic.* They'll never get a bullet- pattern birthday card...

It’s 10000% likely that Chara dealt with monster fights when alive. And that most likely lead to culture shock and confusion, but with Toriel (lmao, she outright scares off a froggit from Frisk) by their side and being a royal, I highly doubt they were in any danger in that household.

point being, yes, monsters could of hurt them, I would think this mindset is more directed to humanity, rather than monsterkind. You can read it more bluntly that it’s about monsters after all, t does specify monsters here. My counter point is that is to foreshadow how monsters are weaker beings who are more in-tuned with their magic-based bodies and are susceptible to intent, and likewise their magic reflects their own intent.

So yeah, I think it reflects to Chara’s general history and mindset to wanting to appear more tolerable to avoid pain, be it physical abuse or fear of being human. Chara, who calls themself a demon and hated humanity passionately, would be fully aware they are human. When welcomed to a very loving monster family, they didn’t want to ruin the prophetic angelic image they placed on them. They knew with their own imperfect behavior, that they were doomed to fail them.

This can be inferred from how both Toriel and Asgore wear the deltarune (Toriel’s robes, Asgore’s armor makes the wings and their homes in both games have the symbol). Gerson talks about how either the Deltarune Angel (someone who has seen the surface and returned) would either free them or destroy them all. Chara, who the underground believed to be that Angel, was put on this huge pedestal that clearly both parent’s believed in.

We know Toriel represents Integrity,

* someone who sincerely likes bad jokes...* has an integrity you can't say "no" to.

(along with being refereed to in the blue color of text)

and by both (points in DR’s direction) and this line from her when allowing Frisk to go past the ruins:

My expectations... My loneliness... My fear...For you, my child... I will put them aside.

Toriel says expectations first. It’s clearly a huge part of her motivation. I absolutely see how this pressure not only was put on Chara, but Asriel as well. This isn’t a hate letter to Toriel btw, but rather an examination of her parenting that led to the main tragedy of the game. It’s a cautionary tale. Toriel was not prepared for adopting a suicidal preteen.

speaking of which! back to the whole point of this post.

* I know why (Chara) climbed the mountain.

*(Chara) hated humanity.* Why they did, they never talked about it.* But they felt very strongly about that.

Now I want to say that Chara hating humanity enough to run away to kill themself doesn’t strictly mean they were abused, but wow! Chara is seriously mentally ill (and frankly, yes, children can be are suicidal) and I don’t think that level of suffering happens for no reason.

* The ends of the tools have been filed down to make them safer.* Seems like gardening tools.

* Where are the knives.

The gardening tools in Toriel’s home are dulled and there are no knives in the kitchen. These are actions one takes when their child self harms, this isn’t precautions based in them being literal infants. Chara I imagine was closer to 10/12 age range than Baby. (what baby knows what a tsundere is?)

All these paint a picture of a child who self harms, who violently hates humanity and wanted to kill their (likely) abusers. I’ve also seen someone suggest the fact that FIGHT is your first option in the game in itself reflects how Chara’s first instinct is to Fight first. Both Frisk and Chara are heavily influenced by the player’s actions (both literal and in a parental/guardian like influence) and we see this thru Chara’s outlook changes depending on LV, as well how Frisk feels about violence. (dogfood bag being half full/empty, punching mad dummy in the dump)

Using the themes of the game and backstory/context, we can see how Chara has been taught violence as a viable option. I’d link that more to their pre-underground as Monsterkind as a society preaches mercy and uses bullets not as a murderous tool, but as self expression.

Again, I don’t want to say that just because a child is mentally ill and self harms, doesn’t mean they were abused but I don’t think it’s out of line as a reasoning for it. Yes, sometimes you’re just born with such mental illness, but I choose to interpret the faded ribbon dialogue + their own desire to fight/kill as something taught by example. It fits the themes. It’s more realistic to see Chara as someone who’s been hurt and has learned to hurt in return. (AND that does not mean abuse victims are therefore doomed to become abusers! chara is a child first and thru the pacifist route they’re just as merciful as Frisk! It’s a character arc)

and just to be absolutely clear because I KNOW how tumblr handles nuance sometimes, I am speaking as a former abused and suicidal child. Making that clear that when I say this is how I read the text, it’s not just me speculating on the game’s content but on a real life knowledge of how this shit works. Chara very, very much reads an abused and depressed child who just wanted to fulfill the prophecy for the sake of their family’s freedom.

With almost killing Asgore on accident, Chara realizes that they are an evil human and the only way to free their people is to die violently. (don’t look up buttercup poisoning side effects, it’s bad.) Chara didn’t need to die to escape. They could of killed any of the dreemurrs, but they chose to die horrifically. It’s common for those who are suicidal that they’ll want to die before people see them in a negative light.

also couldn’t really fit this earlier but hell, this is long anyway so I might as well say this here. I think we can also infer Chara’s hatred for humanity grew with learning the history of monsterkind. The books harshly say human souls are different and it’s possible they may not even naturally have compassion and love, or at least, are not required to have it. Humans sealed monsters underground and commited actual genocide against them. (and i don’t use that word lightly. the no mercy route isn’t a genocide, please don’t use that term for that. esp don’t lighten such a heavy and real-word term to a frickin video game route oh my god)

We have this repeating theme of society’s influence on children and how cycles of pain continue. What is “in this world, it’s kill-or-be-killed“ but a statement on society? I’ve discussed before that I think it’s very likely Chara said those words to Asriel as they were being murdered, and how the very system that put Chara into this path was human society that both failed Chara and monsterkind all those years ago. The game’s message is that you must not kill, and you must not be killed in return. That there is a third option, and that even in dire circumstances if you use 7 virtues and are determined enough, you can avoid war and make peace. This isn’t to say self defense is bad, Undyne the Undyning is framed as a hero, and cruel/corrupt rulers should be disposed of (king spade)

this got a little off topic but I thought it was fun to write about. The game’s main theme is built around that phrase, it’s Asriel’s character arc of him learning thru Frisk/Chara/Player that in this world, despite everything, you don’t have to kill or be killed.

TLDR; Chara is implied to hate humanity so strongly they were willing to die horrifically to free monsterkind and fulfill the angel’s prophecy. the game depicts them as a very mentally ill child and with the addition of the faded ribbon text + desire to FIGHT, Chara likely learned this mindset before falling underground. looking at the themes of the game and chara’s backstory, we can infer and take a guess at who they were and what the game is trying to say. Undertale is a good game and has a good moral. That’s my TedTalk

#personal stuff #sams replies #ask to tag #suicide mention #child abuse mention #self harm mention #Anonymous

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reluctant-mandalore · 5 years ago

Text

Break a Nail (Din Djarin x fem!Reader)

Word Count: 2,061

Warnings: Fluffy fluff. Cursing. There are some sexist undertones towards the reader from a bounty. But it’s mostly just Din and the reader being a cute bounty hunter couple. Grammar and spelling warning, because I’m a dummy who can’t English.

Pairing: Din Djarin x Fem!Reader

a/n: Thank you so much for the request!! Sorry it took so long. It was really fun to write and I really enjoyed it <3 Honestly it was such a fun idea! I enjoy the whole tough in public but soft in private kind of trope that’s going on here.

EDITS: Grammar and spelling. - also another edit to make the fic more inclusive.

The contrast between you on the job and you on the Razor Crest baffled the Mandalorian at times. He didn’t really understand how someone could go from absolutely demolishing men twice their own size, to fretting over their newly painted nails and trying to decide which dress went with what shoes. When out on jobs you dressed and acted like a man, the helmet you wore modulating your voice to sound deeper and more gruff. In public, you were serious and almost stoic. You would radiate confidence in everything you did, whether it be bartering for a better price, shooting a blaster with pinpoint accuracy, or being able to take down men like flies.

The first time he met you he was sure you were a man, there was no doubt in his mind about it. The way you acted, talked, and fought just screamed to him that you were a man. Nothing gave away the fact that you were a woman below those layers of clothes. So, when you first removed your helmet in front of him, he was amazed to see your true self, and was surprised to hear your sweet voice speak to him.

Without the helmet on you instantly changed into another person, your atmosphere turning bubbly and energetic. Gone was the most manly and badass man the Mandalorian had ever met. Instead, a beautiful and kind hearted woman stood in place, looking at him with the biggest smile he’d ever seen. In fairness, both in your get up and out of it, you were still a badass in your own quirky ways. It just so happened that you tended to be more open about your likes and dislikes without your gear on.

He was in love with you within seconds of discovering this about you. Honestly Din couldn’t have fallen in love with you any faster. He fell for you hard and almost instantly. He adored everything about you, both your public and private self. Every aspect of the person you were was spectacular to him, and nothing could change that in his mind.

He loved being around you and would spend most of his time with you. He was happy to see his clan expand with your addition to it. Him, you, and the kid made the perfect little family in his eyes, though he’d never tell you that. Going with you on jobs had turned out to be one of his favourite things. He didn’t know how he had survived doing jobs without you until this point in his life. Every day with you around was interesting and today was no different.

Currently, Din watched as you had dragged the bounty up the Razor Crest ramp, plopping him on the hulls floor before his feet. The asset struggled within his binds, spitting curses and insults in both of your directions. He was surprised at first, at seeing you with the bounty, as you had originally left earlier for the market. Last he checked you were just getting supplies, not dragging a whole man back to the ship.

On another note, the both of you were supposed to be going after him together later that day, after your little supply run. He was mainly surprised because he knew you enjoyed going on jobs with him. You would even refer to the two of you working together on jobs as your ‘couple bonding’ time. So, it was a bit of a shock to see you having ruined your little bounty hunting date by doing the job on your own.

“Fuck you dude.” The man on the ground spat at you in a growl, “You think you’re some sort of hero bringing me in? Huh?”

“No, but I definitely think I’m going to be a hell of a lot richer.” Your reply came, the smirk on your face evident in your voice.

At this point you had pressed your foot into the center of the asset's back, holding him in place, as he pitifully squirmed on the metal floor of the ship. The addition of your weight had stilled him for a moment though, as he glared daggers over his shoulder at you.

Din watched as you removed your helmet, shaking your head while chuckling in the process. It was one of his favourite sights, something he found attractive anytime you did it. He could not explain why seeing you remove your own helmet was so alluring to him, but he chalked it up to the fact that anything you did he saw through rose tinted lenses. There was nothing you could ever do to convince him that you weren’t perfect.

“What the fuck you’re a woman?!” The bounty snarled, his expression wrinkling with anger and confusion. “There’s no way a damn woman captured me.”

Looking down at the man you let out a giggle, “I always love when they realize a woman took them down.” Setting down your helmet, you crouched to level yourself with him, a toothy grin across your cheeks, as you ‘booped’ the man on the nose, beginning to taunt him. This being a normal occurrence that occurred when a bounty was being extra mouthy to you.

“Quit messing with the asset and put him in the carbon freeze.” Din said, putting a stop to your harassment of the man, as funny as it may have been.

At his words, you had turned to look at him with an eyebrow raised. “You want me to put him in the carbon freeze?”

“You brought him back, so yes.”

Letting out an exaggerated sigh, you shook your head and forced a pout in the Mandalorian’s direction, “It’s a shame, but I actually can’t lift him right now, guess you’ll have to do it.” You had said, now standing next to your companion.

The Mandalorian’s head turned to look at you next to him, his eyes narrowing underneath the helmet, “I’ve seen you lift a bounty twice the size of this one.”

“Oh I know. Strength wise I totally can, but I just did my nails earlier you know?” You continued, moving away from him and sitting on one of the crates located in the hull. At this point you had pulled your gloves off to examine your recently done nails, sighing in relief at seeing that they still remained unscathed and painted to perfection.

“You’re kidding.” Din replied, a little more on the irritated side. He was aware that a few hours, before you had left to go into the market, you had decided to redo your nails. So aware in fact, because you had made him help with picking out a colour.

“Kidding? Din what if I chip them? Or worse! What if I break a nail?” You exclaimed to him “It’s already bad enough I had to drag him back here!”

“Is that why it took you so long to get back?”

“Yes!”

He had crossed his arms over his chest at this point, staring down at you intensely. It was the look he’d give to someone when trying to shake them down for information, or for a merchant to lower their prices. To many people, it would strike fear through their bodies and make them quiver in their boots. However, you on the other hand, had grown quite immune to the deadly gaze that your Mandalorian partner possessed. At this point in your time together, not even his most fiercest of looks to throw you off balance.

Seeing that you weren’t letting up under his gaze, he let out a huff and looked back down the bounty. “Why’d you bother painting your nails in the first place?” He asked, titling his head to look down at your coloured nails. “Why do you bother at all honestly?”

You had given him a look of mock shock, a small gasp leaving your lips, “How could I not bother?”

“You can’t see it but I’m rolling my eyes.” He muttered with a sigh, as he went to work freezing the bounty, seeing as he knew you wouldn’t be doing it anytime soon. He may have been acting annoyed with the whole thing, but the truth he really didn’t mind. This man would find a way to move a whole galaxy for you if you had asked him to.

At his remark you had stuck your tongue out him, before watching as the bounty did his best to escape from your Mandalorian lover. The man had begged and pleaded with Din, even apologized for all the nasty things he had said to you on your way back to Razor Crest. A scoff left you at that, with your own roll of the eyes. Of course he apologizes to Din for how he treated you, rather than even bothering to say it to you, a typical asshole thing.

The mandalorian had heard the noise you made in regards to the man's pleas and had paused in thought over it. In truth, he hated how many people would disregard your skill and work as a bounty hunter after learning more about your true self. When he first met you, he didn’t understand why you would parade around as a male bounty hunter. However, the more time he spent working with you, he had begun to understand why you put up such a strong exterior in public. People didn’t take a feminine looking and acting hunter seriously. Instead, they would look down on you for it and would disregard your work almost entirely.

Admittedly, he did enjoy seeing the contrast between your badass self in public and bubbly self in private. It was entertaining in a sense and rather endearing. The thought of others treating you poorly for any part of yourself though had boiled his blood. In other words, he could not understand how anyone could ever mistreat you simply over the things you liked, and hated the idea that you may feel like you had to act the way you did to be taken seriously. Whether you actually felt that way, or just thought it was fun to be the way you wanted, was entirely only known to you.

“Listen I didn’t know she was ya gal! I’m sorry alright?” The man continued his plea, thinking the Mandalorian was starting to reconsider his impending doom, “Listen if I knew she was a woman, your woman, I wouldn’t have messed with her in the first place-”

“-She’s more than just my girl or my woman.” Din cut the man off in a low voice and picked the bounty up by the front of his shirt. “She’s one of the best hunters in the galaxy and she’s the one who took you down. Remember that.”

Those were his last words to the bounty before he had shoved him in the carbon freeze.

“Look at you, getting all angry over a rude bounty for me,” You teased him, watching as he finished up with his task. “I’m not even really mad about it, I’ve heard worse, you know?”

He let out a grunt in reply, “Doesn’t matter. People shouldn’t treat you or act like that around you. You’re one of the most skilled bounty hunters I know.”

“More skilled than you?” You playfully said to him, as he had moved closer to you, until the two of you were toe to toe.

“Hmm, I wouldn’t go that far.” He managed to tease back at you, lightly tapping his forehead against yours.

After his little forehead tap, he took one of your hands into his larger ones. He brought your hand close to his helmet and began to examine your nails up close, almost as if he was admiring your work. His gloved thumb had rubbed smoothly across the inside of your palm, sending shivers down your spine and causing for a wave of heat to flow through your form.

“Your nails do look nice.”

“I know!” A cheeky smile had spread across your cheeks once more, the mischief within its depth drawing him into your words, “You should let me paint yours~”

He let out a small chuckle at your teasing remark, a smile etching across his features that you couldn’t see, but knew was there from his posture alone. He let go of your hand so he could remove a glove from his own, holding his bare hand out before you, palm down.

“What colour do you think would suit me best?”

---

Tags:

@ah-callie @readsalot73 @starrywatermelon @karnita-mexicana

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travllingbunny · 4 years ago

Text

I didn’t think of writing a post about one of the 15 or so shows that I’m watching/catching up on at the moment, especially not about Fear the Walking Dead, which sure isn’t one of my favorites. But after finishing season 3 (which many people have told me was the show’s best season, but which I found a very mixed bag) I need to have a rant. I felt very ranty throughout season 3, all because of the treatment of one character, which feels like something that isn’t specific to this show. Yes, I know I’m gonna be ranting about storylines that most other people saw 3 years ago, but here it is anyway.

(Note: I’ve only just finished season 3 and I know only a couple of spoilers about the following seasons.)

Also, yes, I know I’m a dummy for even trying to watch another show in this franchise and expecting better results. I guess, even after dropping The Walking Dead halfway through season 8 (at least 2-3 seasons too late), I still haven’t been weaned fully. (A bunch of people have been telling me that TWD got much better with the new showrunner; however, since I’m aware that SPOILER Negan is still alive and got some sort of a “redemption arc”, no, thanks, I have absolutely no desire to go back to that.)

Season 1 of Fear the Walking Dead remains my favorite season of this show - and it was also, not coincidentally, the one that was the most different from The Walking Dead, focusing on the family dynamics and the early days of the outbreak in the city.

Season 2 was very messy, and 3 was somewhat better than season 2, but it also had even more of the worrying trends of doing a lot of the same crap that TWD does, particularly with

1) killing off so many of the original main characters that it destroys the entire premise - the entire Manawa family has been killed off now (Travis' death particularly angered me - though I've since heard it was done for the stupid Avatar sequels), Ofelia got killed off just as she had become more interesting, which makes Daniel the only survivor of his family, too (then they also killed his substitute daughter Lola) and the spoilers about those other 2 deaths make it all even worse.

2) all the TWD-style gratuitous mass killing off of every new group we meet. It especially doesn't look good how easily they killed off the entire colonia, mostly off-screen, in the premiere. At least the white people from the ranch (and an occasional Native American who happened to be in that group) got death scenes and names, but who cares about mass killing of a bunch of Mexicans, right?

Daniel still being alive was my favorite thing about this season and restored my interest in the show after I got upset by the killing off of Travis and the people from the colonia. Alicia got more interesting this season and had some strong episodes, and I'm glad that at least Walker and Crazy Dog are still alive.

But after a while, I got increasingly annoyed at the ranch storyline, and the reason can be summed up in one word: Troy.

Now, Troy himself is not a bad character - he is a really well acted villain, like a grown up Joffrey Baratheon. But the way people around him kept mollycoddling and covering up for him made other characters so much worse, and I mean mainly Nick and Madison.

The only thing that redeemed this arc was Madison finally killing Troy in 3x15, after he revealed he led the horde to the ranch and made it clear he didn't regret anything he had done and said he'd do it again. I thought she was going to just punch him, so I was even happier when she killed him with a hammer. At least that's one thing that I've been relieved about - no "redemption arc" for Troy, thank God! He won't be the new Negan!

The only problem - she should have done that so much earlier. She annoyed me earlier in the season when she covered up for him in front of the ranch people, for the murder of the family, blaming Walker, justifying it with "Walker's people killed Travis". Hello? Troy tried to murder Travis, threw him to fight against a bunch of zombies, and if Travis had survived, well, I don't think Jeremiah and most of the people at the ranch would've been happy to see him (were there not enough signs they were racist)? She also had zero reason to convince Walker not to kill him and not to kill him when she took him to 'exile' and he immediately killed a man and she still went "I don't want to kill you' - why? Just kill him! I roll my eyes whenever a villain is 'exiled' in a post-apocalyptic show, you always know they're going to come back and cause trouble. Just kill him or keep him imprisoned if you don't want to kill him.

But then Nick got even worse. The entire 'friendship' he had with Troy was such BS. We were apparently supposed to think that both Nick and Madison see some sort of a parallel between Troy and Nick, like "they're both black sheep of the family". Is the show saying that being a drug addict is the same as being a deranged unrepentant serial murderer? Disgusting.

This clearly can't be about morality etc. since they don't seem to care nearly as much about all of the people Troy murdered or got killed throughout the season. He really caused 90% of the deaths and it kept happening, and I wondered, just how many people need to be sacrificed at the altar of the deranged white boy that they keep protecting because he has a sad backstory or something? He almost murders Nick and his girlfriend, murders the people Nick lived with in the colonia and led there, promising them safety, and then Nick gets all buddy buddy with him? WTF.

*rant over*

Character rankings as of the end of season 3: 1. Daniel 2. Strand 3. Alicia 4. Liza (either you die early, or you live long enough for the show to make you annoying) 5. Travis (would've been higher if it wasn't for some questionable writing at the end of his arc) 6. Walker 7. Lola 8. Crazy Dog (not enough characterization yet, but he's been good so far in what I've seen. Also, he's hot :) 9. Madison (fell a lot in the rankings during season 3, only got better towards the end_) 10. Ofelia (just going by season 3, she'd be higher, but she was kind of bland in seasons 1-2) 11. Luciana (mostly gets to be here because of how annoying the show has made Nick, and because she was smart enough to leave) 12. Nick (Why does the show go from making me like Nick to making him annoying by making him cozy up to the most hateful villains (Celia in season 2 and Troy in season 3)? ) 13. Chris (I still don’t know WTF they were doing with him; if the end goal was to make him a villain, they shouldn’t have killed him off and should’ve kept him as an antagonist)

#fear the walking dead #ftwd #fear the walking dead season 3 #anti troy otto

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wlovat · 5 years ago

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you haven't changed at all

okay, so, i had this idea and i told my friend @pinokeee and she said i should write it here and let all of my fellow tnbc fans see it. <3 (also, it's mainly about lock, shock, and barrel) and it takes place after the events of the film.

also, @tnbc-thoughtsandheadcanons i thought you'd like this

_______

All of the residents of Halloween Town could see Lock, Shock, and Barrel's home on fire. It was burning quickly, and the flames were steadily climbing up the sides of the rickety building. Sally rushes up next to Jack, who was watching and not knowing exactly what to do. "Jack, we have to help them! If their little elevator burns, then they'll be trapped up there and they'll die." She cries.

Jack quickly gathers Zero and some others and rushes out. They try to get there as quickly as they can. Up in the house, the kids were scrambling to find their masks and anything else they could salvage from the fire. There was a lot of smoke in Lock's lungs, and he was coughing frequently.

He found Barrel's mask and tossed it to him. "Did one of you idiots leave a candle lit or something?" Shock says, accusing her cohorts of causing the fire.

"No!" Both of them cry, being offended but not too surprised that Shock would say that. In fact, Barrel thought, setting things on fire was a lot of fun.

The three of them run to where the elevator shaft was, only to realize the rope had broken from the fire and there was no elevator left for them. "Aw, great! Nice going." Lock says and smacks Barrel across the head with his mask. Barrel scowls at him and the two of them start hitting each other.

Shock quickly bursts between them, trying to break up the fight. She pats Lock on the back slightly as he doubles over in a horrible coughing fit. "We don't have time for this stupid fighting. We have to get out of here."

"How? That was our only way down!" Barrel responds. He finds a spot in the house where the wall was completely burned away and down below was the little bridge. He could see Jack and some others coming in the distance but before he could tell the other two, they all heard a voice coming down from Oogie's lair. No - that couldn't be him. He was dead, wasn't he? Jack should've killed him.

But somehow he was there. He told them that he was burning the house down to force them to come down there with him. "So I can trap and torture you forever!" He laughs maniacally.

Lock pulls his cohorts aside and whispers to them. "We could escape. We could jump down right now."

"That bridge is too rickety, you dummy. Someone would have to catch us." Shock whispers back, making Lock roll his eyes.

They hear a bark from down below. It was Zero! They rush to the area where the wall was burned out, and a hole was there which was big enough for them to jump out of. "Jack! Up here!" They all cry, waving their hands frantically.

Jack sees them, and carefully steps across the bridge. "It's okay. I'm here to rescue you! You're gonna have to jump!"

"Are you insane?"

"That's practically suicide!"

"That actually sounds quite fun."

The three of them burst into giggles but stop when Jack yells at them. "You must be serious, those flames are coming quickly, so you must act fast. Come on now, jump." He tells them urgently.

Shock steps forward, holding her mask in one hand and holding down her hat with the other. She jumps, hoping that Jack would be able to catch her. She cries out in delight, enjoyed the thrill of it. She feels herself land in Jack's arms and he places her on the grass.

Barrel jumps, laughing with glee. He too is sat safely next to Shock. They both relish in the fresh air. But Lock was still up there. And he was coughing a lot from the smoke and fire that was quickly catching up to him.

"Lock, you have to jump!" Jack yells to him.

"I can't!" Lock yells.

"Come on! It's fun. Stop being a coward." Shock retorts.

Lock sucks in a deep breath and jumps, right as the building explodes in flames and collapses. Jack catches Lock, and steps back onto the land as the bridge collapses and falls down into the crevice. Oogie's lair remained, with no path to get to it, and no path to escape.

Lock was breathing heavily, and coughing. Jack told him to try to breathe, and Lock did. His breaths were shaky and raspy. He eventually stopped and caught his breath.

After sitting Lock down, Jack knelt down in front of them. "How did this happen?"

"It was Lock!" Barrel snickers.

"Oh, really?" Lock scoffs.

"Boys!" Jack shouts.

The two stop and look at him. Shock giggles quietly.

"Look, I just wanna know what happened." Jack says firmly.

"Oogie burned it down." Shock says. "He wanted us to stay with him so he could torture us."

Jack sighs and glances back at the lair. That no good Oogie Boogie, he thought. He turned back to them. Lock had dark ashes on his face, so did the other two. He decided to take them into town. He found a spare home no one was using and took them there.

Multiple citizens gasped and started whispering when they walked in. They didn't like that they were gonna be staying inside now. But they figured there was no other choice, besides banishment. Besides, Jack was the leader. And they trusted him.

--------

Sally closed the door and stepped over to Jack. "They're asleep. I bathed them and cleaned their masks. I gave Lock something to clear out the smoke from his lungs."

Jack nods, thinking deeply. "Are you sure we should keep them here? Inside the town? No one was happy about this."

"Everyone was scared of Oogie. They're probably just scared that the kids are gonna cause mischief." Sally tells him as they walk outside through the town to get to Jack's home.

"Yeah... maybe being around all of us will make them decide to spread apart from their bad behavior." Jack says.

"You think so?"

"Yeah, I do."

"I love you, Jack."

------

10 years later

Lock is now 16, Shock is 17, and Barrel is 15. Shock had hit a huge growth spurt and was a lot taller than the boys were. She teased them relentlessly about it.

Lock had grown his hair out and he regularly wears it in a bun. And Barrel was surprisingly still kinda short, and he had grown closer to Lock. Over the years, they had progressed greatly. The three of them helped with Halloween. They had some great ideas that helped enhance how they scared humans.

Their reputation was really good. However, Shock's was still bad.

Lock had just gotten home from helping the Mayor with some heavy lifting. He pulled his hair up and walked inside the house that he still shared with his cohorts. "Are any of you guys home?" He looked into the kitchen and saw Shock trying to rip one of Barrel's favorite shirts. He rushed over and grabbed it, holding it tight in his hand. "Shock, seriously?"

"I was just gonna make a slight rip in it." Shock chuckles and reaches for it, gasping when Lock steps back. "Come on you dingus, give it back!"

"No! Barrel really likes this shirt and I'm not gonna let you ruin it." Lock scoffs. He takes the shirt into Barrel's room and puts it in his closet. He grabs his mask and heads out.

Shock sighs and sits in her room. It'd been a crazy change of events, she realized. She thought of all of the times that they'd proved themselves to the other citizens, and how she'd grown closer with Lock. But within the last couple of years, she'd starting thinking about Oogie. And what a great team she made with the boys. And how mischievous and horrible they could be.

Shock wanted that again. Desperately. So she'd tried to do small things to get back into that routine. But everytime, the boys caught her. She didn't know what to do. She knew they didn't wanna do that stuff anymore. She suddenly got an idea and grabbed a piece of paper, sketching away. She giggled mischievously.

----------

Lock met Barrel in the woods. He walked up and they did a handshake.

"How are you?" Lock asks him.

Barrel smiles excitedly and climbs up into a tree, hanging from a tree limb. "Amazing!" He then notices how angry and upset Lock appears and his smile fades. "What?"

"It's Shock again. She's... I don't know... going back to her old ways?" Lock sighs and sits down on a tree stump.

"Why do you care so much?" Barrel asks.

"She's practically family. I mean, we've been around her for years. Since we've been in Halloween Town. You know how I feel about her." Lock replies.

Barrel climbs down to sit with Lock and console him. "Yeah, I know. But... Jack is hosting this pretty formal party for Sally's birthday. Maybe you could ask her on a date or something."

"You think so?" Lock smiles.

Barrel nods. "Yeah."

-------

A couple weeks later, Sally's party was hosted down in the square. Lock wore a nice, red suit and Shock wore just a purple dress. They showed up and greeted people. Lock was holding Shock's hand and he felt genuinely happy.

Barrel showed up in jeans and a torn shirt and ran around like crazy.

Lock and Shock laughed and went to get drinks. "He's insane." Lock says.

"I'll be back." Shock says and slinks off through the crowd.

Lock sits down with a cup of punch, feeling like he was being ditched. I brought her here on a date, he thought. And she just walked off.

A bit later, Shock runs over to Lock, giggling.

"What?" Lock smiles.

Shock gestures to a bucket hanging above the town hall. "I hung that there to fall on Sally! It has water in it with some green stuff. Really dirty water."

Lock clenched his jaw, growing angry. "Shock, are you really that stupid? You can't be doing that kinda stuff."

"Aw, come on. A little prank wouldn't hurt." Shock smirks.

Lock slams down his drink. "Don't go anywhere." He climbs up onto the town hall roof and carefully takes the bucket down. He pours it back into a pond.

Lock has a pretty tense argument with Shock. Barrel shows up to break them up.

Lock was in tears. "Don't you realize what I've done to keep everything you've been doing hidden? You'd probably be exiled by now."

"Well, maybe you guys are just suckups. To Jack - Sally. Barrel, you're obviously a complete loser. I mean... just the way you dress and act... wow." Shock says.

Barrel looks hurt, and Lock puts an arm around him. He glares at Shock.

"You haven't changed at all."

#tnbc #the nightmare before christmas #lock #shock #and barrel #oogie's boys #oogie boogie #barrel #jack skellington #sally tnbc #zero tnbc #i hope people actually like this

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kairi-chan · 5 years ago

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After 30 chapters of IGY what (if any) would you change or rework?

Hello, dear Bono.

My mind went crazy thinking about the things I would have wanted to change or rework about IGY, as there are a lot. I even spoke to my beta reader @sandpancakecat about it, as she has been with me nearly since day 1 for this project. But since we’re only in chapter 32, I won’t spoil by telling you what she said. Perhaps she can reblog with a cheeky teaser instead. hahaha!

...

As for me, I would have changed 3 major things:

1. I would have written more about their relationships

I know this is a BoruSara story, but their friends played big roles with them getting together and caused a good amount of damage themselves. I would have wanted to write more about their thought process about more than just their two idiotic friends in denial, but also about their own relationships with their parents, lovers, and even families. Their backstories are all in my head and lost within me and Nastya’s chatboxes. I really regret not writing more about it.

Often times, I feel like their relationships with other people are like an afterthought or a cover-up for convenience. Like bringing Yodo in to tell Sarada how messed up her thinking was or dragging Shizuma and his gang to be Kagura’s friends when all I mentioned previously was his frat bros.

How Mitsuki fell in love with Sumire, and Inojin and Himawari’s relationship is something I really would have wanted to write into this story more, but never felt like it was too important for the BoruSara plot (especially the latter). Mitsuki’s growing crush on Sumire would have been precious to write into more chapters, but again, it wasn’t a priority so I let it go. And the same works for Shikadai and Yodo.

2. I would have written more about Boruto and Sarada’s childhood, for a better foundation

Perhaps because it’s such a “canon” trope for this fandom that omgtheywerechildhoodfriends I didn’t think it would be important for the plot, in the beginning, to establish just how deeply rooted their relationship and their families were due to this aspect. Now, I find myself grasping for little details to add just to prove a point of how close they were. Like the photo of their acceptance letters together, and how they swam naked in kiddie pools together.

Adding this would also mean diving deeper into the complications that their families faced. True, Sasuke and Naruto are best friends and run the same firm together, but the tension between them caused by their parents’ pressure (mainly Fugaku) is something that also affects their children and also influences the plot. Writing more about their family history would have given a lot more gravity to certain scenarios. Case in point would be why Sarada came crying to Itachi instead of Sakura, and why she commented on how she wished he would be there in their dinner in chapter 2. Another being why Shikadai and Inojin knew how complicated it would be if Boruto and Sarada got together since they’re “like rivals.”

3. Given Kagura justice

I thought I already wrote enough about him, but rereading it, I don’t feel like I’ve written him enough or given him justice at all. I am biased and would say he has done nothing wrong, but he was also quite the dummy for pursuing someone whom he knew was already in love with someone else from the get-go. And yet, his reasons for doing so remain foggy and vague. Certainly not what I wanted to portray. Kagura was a victim of circumstance, one that he willingly pushed himself into.

Poor dude. But still dumb.

The negative response his character got also made me question if people really didn’t like how I wrote him, or if they were simply throwing tomatoes at him because “he got in the way” of the main couple. If it was the latter, I feel like those readers missed the point of his presence in the story.

...

Those are my three main points, TL;DR, I wish I wrote more.

Perhaps I will. This story is a lot easier for me to write than my other chapter fics. It feels so natural and the words always just flow out so well for me. Even as it’s coming near its end (haha! just kidding, maybe like 20 more chapters lol) I feel I will still be writing little one-shots and snippets of other scenarios happening. College AUs are always so much fun, and I wouldn’t want to deviate from this plot that I have created for Boruto and his friends, fluff, angst, and all.

Thank you for the thought-provoking ask. I had a fun time thinking and writing my response to it. :)

#igy #i got you #borusara #borusara college au #fanfiction #blog #ask

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maaaaaatryoshka0325 · 6 years ago

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Not Afraid of the Dark - Seo Changbin gang AU series part 3

Requested: Seo Changbin modern gang series.

Description: you’re a college student, so is he. Big difference? He’s a gang member.

Warnings: violence, cursing, all that good shit.

(Part1) (Part2) (Part4) (Part5) (Part6) (Part7) (Part8) (Part9)

He almost seemed soft. But he was a gang member, right? Can he be soft?

“If you ever need anything, let me know or one of us know.” He said.

“What?” You asked, thrown off guard.

“You kinda saved my life, I owe it to you. The guys trust you too.” He said.

“You already helped me.” You said.

“How? That man? That was nothing. I would’ve done it whether you had saved me or I had happened to pass by.” He said.

“Would you have really?” You asked.

“Yes. I don’t like when men do that to women.” He said, looking serious.

You nodded and gave him a small smile.

“Alright.”

“I should head back. See ya.” He said.

“Wait. Give me your phone.” You said.

“You haven’t even taken me on a date first.” He joked.

“Well I was gonna say let me give you my number so you can tell me if you got home safe but never mind. I don’t care.” You rolled your eyes and was about to turn away but he put his phone in your hand. You put your name and number in it.

“Be careful.” You said.

He smiled at you and nodded before walking away. You walked into your dorm and threw your stuff on your bed before pulling your hair back and washing your face. You felt refreshed and laid in your bed. An unknown number appeared on your phone.

Unknown: hey I just got home, now that you have my number you can call me whenever you need something. Goodnight Sweetheart

You: Goodnight

You plugged your phone into your charger before falling asleep. You dreamed about being chased down an ally, a man screaming for you to stop. You ran into a dead end, panting and gasping for breath. Two strong hands grabbed you and spun you towards them. They had no face, just a shadow over a head. You went to scream but nothing came out, and then you felt yourself fall and land on something soft. You saw black feathers on the ground and when you looked up, you saw a man with long, black feathered wings standing protectively in front of you. For some reason, you felt safe. You felt secure. He slowly turned around.

You woke up instantly and sat up. You checked the time. 11 AM. You groaned and got up to brush your teeth and take a shower. After your shower, you sat down at your desk and started to work on your homework. It was about proper surgery care and you honestly couldn’t focus. The dream had you all kinds of messed up. You let out a dramatic sigh and decided to go to a cafe to get some caffeine in you in hopes of it distracting you and so it can get you a little pumped.

You texted Nina to meet you and she was seated at a booth with Chul.

“Hey guys.” You said, sitting down with them.

“Hey Y/N, how has your weekend been?” Nina asked.

“Pretty good. Have you been studying for your test?” You asked her.

“Yup! I brought some flash cards with me so Chul can quiz me.” You said.

“Did you bring your homework Y/N?” Chul asked.

You nodded and pulled out your pen and notebook as you sipped your coffee and took notes. You read the textbook and then filled in the sheet while also writing notes in your own book. You knew writing it down helped it settle into your brain, so you did it quite often. You heard Chul quiz Nina over her vocab and what you could hear, she really has been studying. Nina has an attention problem and tends to procrastinate a lot (ok but same LMAO), so you and Chul constantly push her to do better, and she’s been improving.

“I’m impressed Nina. You’re doing so well.” Chul praises her and she giggled excitedly.

You took a good look at them. Nina was one of the cutest people you know besides Nari. She had big eyes, gorgeous, shiny black hair, and she’s half Japanese. She speaks both Korean and Japanese fluently. Looking at Chul, he was very handsome and he has brains. He’s pretty tall, being 178 cm. He had a nice undercut and dark brown hair that he would sometimes part like an idols. The more you looked at them, you thought they’d be a cute couple. Nina needed someone to take care of her and Chul has a nurturing personality, mainly from being the oldest of two little sisters.

“Earth to Y/N, are you listening?” Nuna asked.

“Huh?” You asked.

“And I thought I never pay attention.” She said, face palming.

“Sorry.” You laughed.

“She asked if you did well on your test.” Chul said.

“Oh, yeah I have it with me.” You said, pulling out the test paper and showing them.

“Wow, you only got one wrong. Probably because of the wording.” Chul said, reading over the question.

“That’s what I was thinking. It was easy but I was so nervous about the test I didn’t even bother thinking it was a trick.” You sighed.

“You still scored a 95% Y/N, that’s incredible.” He said with a smile.

You like it when Chul went over your work. He noticed how good you were at what you wanted to do, and it you were ever confused with academics, especially anything to with numbers, he’d gladly help you. You treated them both to some yummy cafe food and then headed back to your dorm to finish your project. You bought two extra coffees, one to finish the rest of your homework and study and one for the next day. You sat back down at your desk after putting the second coffee in the fridge and went over your homework and notes. You didn’t have a test for another two weeks, but you planned on getting every word right. After studying you went to bed early for once, wanting a decent nights sleep.

As you sat in class taking notes the next day, your phone buzzed and a number popped up. You saw the messages from before and knew it was from Changbin.

Changbin: Can you come outside real quick?

You: For what? I’m in class

Changbin: C’mon it’s important!

You sighed and raised your hand, asking to be excused for a bit. Good thing you never skipped class, so your teacher allowed you to go. He was lucky it wasn’t a busy day and you finished your notes. You stepped out of class and walked down the hall and outside to the garden. You saw him sitting on part of the wall that came down and around the middle of the garden. He was wearing tight black jeans with zippers on the thighs and a chain attached to his right side, alone with a black hat and a long sleeve black shirt that complimented his chest with a chain around his neck.

“What’s so important you needed to call me here during class?” You asked.

“Can you take these out or can I do it myself?” He asked, pointing to the stitches.

“You can’t take them out yet! It’s only been three days, it’s not even healed yet!” You whisper yell.

“They’re making my skin itchy.” He groaned.

“Are they? Or is it because you know they’re there?” You asked.

“Yeah, that.” He said.

“I’ll take them out when it’s healed. Don’t scratch at them or anything.” You sighed.

He nodded then looked at the small pond. You couldn’t help but admire his side profile. He had a recently cut under cut and his hair was parted under the hat. His jaw line looked great off to the side too. He looked at you sideways and smiled at you when he saw your eyes on him.

“Like what you see Sweetheart?” He asked.

“Shut up. I was just wondering how a dummy like you could be the best fighter. And stop calling me that.” You huffed.

He turned towards you with a smile and shrugged.

“We dummies have to be good at something.” He said.

“Y/N.” You heard your name and turned your head to see Nina and Chul approaching you. Chul had a suspicious look on his face and Nina looked confused.

“You two know each other?” Chul asked, giving Changbin a dirty look.

Before you could respond, Changbin stood up with his hands in his pockets.

“Don’t worry, I’m going, see you later Sweetheart.” He said, giving you a small smirk before walking away.

“You two are friends?” Chul asked.

“It’s complicated.” You said, walking back to class.

Chul walked into his business class. He knew Changbin well after being in class with him. He was no good, even if he hardly talked. He still hung around with that group. They were a gang and he knew it. Why else would all of them be in business?

He walked into class and walked straight in front of Changbin’s desk. Changbin wasn’t paying attention until he saw Chul’s hands on either side of his desk before he looked up.

“Oh, I know you. You’re Y/N’s friend. I thought you looked familiar.” He said.

“What are your intentions with Y/N?” Chul asked.

Changbin looked confused at first then realized what Chul was saying.

“I don’t have bad intentions with her.” Changbin said.

“Bullshit. I know what you are. You’re no good.” He hissed.

“That’s enough.” Woojin said, approaching Chul.

“No, Woojin it’s fine. He’s protecting his friend.” Changbin said as he looked Chul straight in the eyes. “She helped me and I owe her a lot. I’m not going to hurt her in any way, shape, or form.” He said calmly.

Chul stared hard at him until he heard the teacher walk into the room before walking over to his seat. The other members glared at him and took their seats beside Changbin.

You walked back through the garden after classes ended and saw the boys standing there. Changbin was once again sitting on the wall as they talked. You saw Jeongin look up and he smiled at you.

“Hey Y/N.” He called and waved you over.

“Hey guys.” You said as you approached them and smiled.

They all greeted you but Changbin was pretty silent.

“You okay?” You asked him.

“Your friend was about to get himself in some big trouble.” Jisung said.

“What?” You asked.

“We have business class with him, and he confronted Changbin about being friends with you. He got real rude.” Jeongin said.

“I’m so sorry Changbin. He can be a little over protective. I’ll talk to him.” You said.

“Nah, it’s cool. I understand.” He said, look at you with a small smile.

You nodded and leaned against the wall as the members talked.

“I’m surprised you kept your cool. You used to love fighting.” Hyunjin said.

“Yeah, I also like not being kicked out of college.” Changbin said.

You felt slight anxiety fill you. Chul has run his mouth to a gang, who were potentially dangerous.

“Hey, we won’t hurt Chul.” Minho said.

You looked at him in shock. Did he just read your mind?

“You have it written all over your face. He’s no threat to us, he won’t be touched.” Minho said.

They all nodded in agreement. Chan rubbed your shoulder to calm you and Jeongin squished his cheek against yours.

“It’s ok Nuna, we promise.” He said.

You felt better at their words, and when you looked up, you saw Changbin’s genuine eyes on you. And for some reason, your heart fluttered.

#straykids #kpop #kpop imagines #stray kids #straykidznet #changbeanie #changbin #seo changbin

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nicolaspooran66-blog · 6 years ago

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liz1e79d · 2 years ago

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angry-goat · 4 years ago

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1-80 for whatever OC you want, go wild buddy i can't wait to read! 👀❤️

You saved me from boredom! Here’s my ver of Ornstein:

What is/are your OC’s nickname(s) and how did it come about? - Orn(y), The Lion/Lion Knight (1st one is what Ciaran & Artorias call him for short, 2nd one is made up by Artorias & last 2 are the most common strangers call him.)

What is the color of your OC’s eyes/hair/skin? - Yellow/gold, red (“Ariel red”), white.

How tall is your OC? - 9'

What is a noticeable physical attribute of your OC? - I’d say the length of his hair. In a ponytail it's halfway down his back. Loose it is down to his ankles.

What does your OC normally wear? What would your OC wear on a special night? - He's normally wearing his signature armor. For special nights (any day/night he’s not working) he wears a black shirt with rolled up sleeves and tight black pants.

What is one word you would use to describe your OC’s appearances? - Grumpy? Gruff?? Tired???

Does your OC have any markings, such as a birthmark or a scar? - Has a small flat mole under his right eye and small scar on the left of his forehead above his eyebrow (hard to see in my drawings but it’s there.)

How does your OC talk/what does your OC’s voice sound like? - I like to think of Bambi’s father from the 2nd movie but a tad less low (example at the end!)

What does your OC’s bedroom look like? His/her living area? - Ornstein (and Artorias’) living quarters have a bedroom which is a part of the “living room”. In separate rooms to the right there is a big bathroom, on the left a small kitchen. The main room is mainly dark golds and crimson while the bathroom and kitchen are white and gold.

What does your OC keep in a special drawer? - Lube...? Anything really special to him is either worn by him or hung up somewhere.

What is your OC’s relationship with his/her mother? - He left her around his teenage years to continue his training as a knight of Gwyn but his relationship with her was good. Every year on her birthday he silently prays that she is alive and well.

What is your OC’s relationship with his/her father? - His father died when he was around 2-3 so he doesn't remember him. He’s heard from his mother that he was a big and scary looking but a kind and gentle man. Had a pretty good sense of humor too.

How many siblings does your OC have and what is his/her relationship with them? - Had a sister 1 year younger than him. Around age 4 she went collecting herbs for their mother but got hungry along the way and mistook a poisonous plant for a safe one. Died later that night. Younger brother (around age 9) wished to hunt a manticore with Orn but Ornstein only got annoyed by the suggestion and kept training with his dummy. A hunter from the village returned from a hunting trip later to inform Orn’s mother that his brother was found dead near a manticore liar. He barley remembers his sister. Blames himself for his brother’s death.

Who is the mother and/or father figure in your OC’s life? - Lord Gwyn for a short time.

What was your OC’s childhood like? - Lived in a small village. Spent most of his younger years learning different herbs and medicine from his momma. When he got old enough (13) he spent the day learning to fight and hunt for food.

What is your OC’s strongest childhood memory? Why and how did that impact him/her? - Strongest childhood memories are his mother singing a lullaby to help him sleep, learning of his brother’s death, and silver knights visiting his village to look for possible future knights to train.

What is your OC’s imagination like? - Does Not have a huge imagination. His mind is filled with work, possible outcomes of problems and wishing to just relax with his husband. If not any of those than it's memories of wars with dragons and the occasional memory of NK and him hanging together. They had a friend/brotherly relationship.

How many times did your OC move as a child? Which area was his/her favorite? - Moved around a few times as a child when monsters proved too great a threat. Did not have a favorite location. They were all very similar.

What does your OC think of children either in general or about having them? - Does not really have an opinion on them at first. He gets easily annoyed so he is never around them (+ his work doesn't involve them.) In the kids AU he wished to create children with Artorias and they ended up making 2.

What kind of mother/father would your OC be? - Sadly not a good one. He thought he was ready but ultimately wasn't. He ends up treating his kids more like his soldiers as he is so used to being the captain and giving orders. He was also never home to connect with them.

Who are your OC’s closest relatives? - Mother.

Who is/are your OC’s closest friend(s)? - He considers Gough to be his closest friend. They both just enjoy being in each other's company. No talking necessary.

Who are the people your OC surrounds him/herself with? - The other 3 knights of Gwyn. Gough, Ciaran, and last but not least his partner Artorias.

Who are the people your OC dislikes/hates? - He doesn't really hate anyone specific but for a while he was not too fond of NK for betraying his father and siding with the dragons. As you'd expect. Sometimes he dislikes Lord Gwyn for sending Artorias on such dangerous missions by himself.

If your OC has a soulmate, who is it? - Artorias.

Why does your OC and his/her soulmate work so well together? - They balance each other out I guess. If “opposites attract” is true then they are living proof. Ornstein taught Artorias what real love was and how to trust. Artorias was the first person he ever had feelings for and he also learned how to just have fun and relax while being around him.

What are some things your OC admires about his/her soulmate? - The first thing that caught his attention besides Artorias’ looks were his unique fighting skills.

How did your OC and his/her soulmate meet? - Artorias appeared one day as a stranger to Anor Londo and sought out Lord Gwyn. He introduced himself and told of his strengths. Gwyn agreed to introduce him to The Captain, Ornstein, to see if he was capable of being a good, trustworthy knight.

What is your OC’s level of education? - Learned how to differentiate herbs and medicine at a young age. As a teen and onward he got most of his knowledge from personal experience and reading.

Did your OC participate in extracurricular activities, and if so, what were they? - None.

What is your OC’s opinion of school? What kind of student was s/he? - He believes knowledge is good but doesn't really trust schools. If you were his child you would be homeschooled and be reading large texts all day :)

What subjects did your OC excel at? - Fighting and commanding others!

What subjects interested your OC? - He enjoys reading and sometimes writing short stories.

What is your OC’s dream job and/or current profession? - Being a knight of Gwyn - Knight commander.

How is your OC working towards his/her dream job and/or achieving his/her current profession? - Gwyn saw lots of potential in young Ornstein and so he got training almost immediately.

What are your OC’s thoughts/opinions of his/her current profession? - Is honored of his position but sometimes wishes he could just quit and rest.

What is your OC’s biggest dream? - Already came true. He wished to impress Gwyn enough to be the knight captain (check!) and later wished to soulbond with Artorias (double check!)

How does your OC react to and handle stress? - Likes to be alone with his thoughts. Gets easily annoyed and grumpy (more so than usual). Is prone to yell more often at times but usually reminds himself a good commander does not let their emotions get the better of them.

How does your OC handle anger? - You’ll hear a lot of lighting and shouting in the training grounds aka he is breaking every single training dummy. If not all this then you’re being yelled at by him cause you did something wrong or are trying his patience.

How does your OC handle grief? - Same as above except he'll eventually tire himself out, curl up and cry on the ground. Would also probably destroy things of no importance to him in his quarters. The only time he’d feel this much grief was if his mate or child was to die. Normally if he is grieving he is very quiet. If he loses a comrade in battle he’ll spend a couple minutes praying for them at night and give them a moment of silence.

What is your OC’s greatest fear? - Losing Artorias and disappointing the city of Anor Londo.

What makes your OC happy? - Spending time with Artorias.

What kind of sense of humor does your OC have? - Dry.

What are some things that greatly upset your OC? - Disrespect. Peasants, knights, etc should stay in their place.

What are some things that annoy your OC? - Artorias. Sif.

If your OC has them, what are some regrets s/he has? - Not choosing to go after his brother.

How easily does your OC forgive? - Not easily. Is very forgiving when it comes to Artorias tho.

What are some of your OC’s vices? - None. In more modern times it would be smoking.

If your OC experienced trauma, what was it? - War and betrayal.

What secrets does your OC have? - None.

What are some of your OC’s morals? - Respect your elders.

What are some of your OC’s motivations? - Keeping Anor Londo safe and not disappointing his Lord. Seeing Artorias safe and sound.

What is the health of your OC? - He’s in good health. If he were a regular human some of his hair would have probably fallen out from stress tho.

Does your OC think with his/her head or heart? - Both. Tries as hard as he can not to think with his emotions.

What are your OC’s thoughts on death? - Doesn't really have a thought on it. He’s use to death.

What are some of your OC’s strengths? - Patience and tolerance for bullshit (sometimes.)

What are some of your OC’s weaknesses? - Putting his job before himself or family.

How does your OC take criticism? - Well, unless he feels that person is unworthy and/or doesn't know what they’re talking about.

What does your OC think of him/herself? - Thinks he must be at least a little good looking judging by the way Artorias looks at him. Is guessing by others reactions that he must come off a bit scary. Good.

If your OC could change one thing about him/herself, what would it be? - He doesn't know. In kids AU he wishes he were a better father.

What is the general impression your OC gives other people? - Grumpy old man.

How emotionally/mentally vulnerable is your OC with other people? - Ornstein is like a brick wall.

How does your OC display love? - Touch. Hugs, kisses, cuddles, sex positions that will squish Artorias.

What are some habits your OC has picked up? - Tends to forget to eat.

What is your OC’s favorite drink? - Herbal tea. Reminds him of his mother plus it helps him relax.

What is your OC’s favorite food? - Medium rare steak.

What is your OC’s favorite sweet? - Dark chocolate cake.

What is your OC’s favorite season? - Summer.

What is your OC’s favorite kind of weather? - Sunny. He becomes Scrooge, in the cold.

What is your OC’s favorite book? - History and fiction books.

What is your OC’s favorite movie and/or TV show? - None. No movies where he is! In modern times he’d just sleep through movies anyway.

What is your OC’s favorite kind of music (and song if there is one)? - Folk music? Arabic sounding music?? He mostly enjoys silence. More modern times he’d like some classical.

What is your OC’s favorite form of entertainment? - Sparring.

What is your OC’s favorite color? - Doesn't really have one but I guess it could be the blue that's associated with Artorias.

What is your OC’s favorite scent? - Artorias & the beginning of Summer.

What is your OC’s favorite animal? - He’ll just say “lions”. Not a huge fan of animals.

What is your OC’s favorite sound? - The sounds of Artorias cumming Nature.

What is your OC’s favorite time of day? - Night. As a child, nighttime always meant story time around the village. As a teen that meant he had some time to sleep. As an adult he can sometimes rest with his partner.

What is your OC’s favorite kind of ice cream? - None. It would probably be dark chocolate or vanilla.

What is your OC’s favorite dinosaur? - None. They’d remind him of dragons!

Video of Bambi’s dad so you can hear his voice! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLF9u-Y_dlM

#Q&A #artoriasss

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thesewomenrulemyworld · 4 years ago

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exotic options trading Arkansas The strangle can expire worthless, unlike a straddle, but the lower initial outlay on premiums means that a strangle may actually cost loss in the event of a loss than a straddle will with only a small change in price.

I used to have to make manual trade confirmations at work. Now I do it to record my profits!I feel like a kid counting pennies added to his piggy bank. Except this one pays to feed my family!That said, the more you learn, the more you realize how little you know. And that�s how I feel right now. Rather than patting myself on the back for profiting this past year, I feel hesitant to be proud. I realize how little I know and that I�m merely scratching the surface of the knowledge I need to feel fully confident in trading options for a living. And also how much more I need to hit the books. In terms of specific actions I need to take, they mainly involve expanding my arsenal of trading strategies. Before the market crash, I was exploring a couple that I would love to have in my rotation. One is the very cool sounding reverse iron condor, which is used to profit from significant moves around earnings announcements. When you think there�ll be a move either up or down, but are unsure of which way, this is the strategy to use. Another is deep in the money covered calls around ex-dividend days. The reason for my interest in these two strategies is that they are generally closed within just a couple of days, thereby minimizing market exposure. It�s, therefore, possible to increase returns while also reducing my exposure to the market movements. Sure, it�ll involve countless hours more of studying, but despite my mathematically challenged brain, it�s pretty fun. Imagine your back at school, and your Algebra 101 teacher tells you he�ll hand over a wad of cash if you work out the problem.

options trading course bay area Arkansas Option traders use covered calls when they like the long term prospects of a security they own, but feel that the price is unlikely to increase in the short term or may even fall.

There�s a lot you can do to �repair� and make it profitable once again. One of the main concepts in trading options is �rolling,� and it�s something I had to learn when the market dropped significantly enough to put most of my trades underwater, just a month into trading. All rolling means is pushing forward the period of the options expiration date further out in time. You achieve this by buying back the options contract you sold and then selling another contract in the same name, further out in time. The beauty is you even earn extra income while doing it. I can best illustrate this with a real trade I recently closed (obviously cherry-picked):On Feb 12th this year, a week before the market started it�s COVID-19 free fall, the SMH Vaneck Semiconductor ETF was trading at $150. I sold a put option for March 6 expiry at $140 and received $100 of premium/income. Of course, the market tanked, and the trade was underwater. I, therefore, kept rolling the trade further out in time until the price recovered. On June 5th, I was able to close it finally for a profit of $500, much more then my initial premium received. The reason for the increased profit was because as the share price dropped, volatility had a massive spike. And when volatility is higher, the premium received for selling options increases, thereby allowing me to collect extra premium on each roll. The above is a chart of the name during the period I had the trade on. The green line is the $140 strike price I sold the put option/insurance contract at and so the trade was underwater the entire time it was below that line. What�s worth mentioning is, I�m trading options in the same names over and over again. I have a list of stocks and ETFs I�d be happy to own outright and hold for years. And I only trade options in these stocks. The reason is simple. I can sleep at night even when the trade is underwater, as I�m confident the share price will eventually recover. In the example above with the Semiconductor ETF, I decided to start a position in the name because I believe in the increasing demand for semiconductor chips in computers and smartphones globally. As the pandemic spread, the stock price took a nosedive along with the rest of the market.

explain options trading with examples Arkansas And I fantasized about making money from home instead.

And a year after trying it out, I�ve made $29,753. Here�s how it all went down. Discovering Stock OptionsI love reflecting on significant life changes you can pinpoint to a single event � that so-called fork in the road. In this story, it was a chance meeting with my first boss in the financial industry. The guy that mentored and taught me how to trade stocks in the first place. For the purpose of this post, I�m going to refer to him as Suzy. While at work one day, Suzy reached out, saying he was in Hong Kong with his family (where I was working at the time) and wanted to catch up for a beer. I had completely lost touch with him ever since he left the industry a few years prior to this meeting. I was both excited and curious to see what he was up to. After the usual formalities and a beer in, I asked him. He responded by saying, �I trade options for a living. �I was confused. My face resembled a deer in headlights doing a Derek Zoolander impression. He tried to explain the gist of it, but it was way over my head. All I could think of were the words �I trade options for a living� as I furrowed my eyebrows for the rest of the night. And then I went back to my button-pushing existence the next day. But this thing about options trading kept tugging at me in the back of my mind. I spent a few months reading up on it to understand some basic concepts. Once I felt I knew just enough to ask some not completely retarded questions, I emailed Suzy. For the next two years, I read through some pretty heavy and dry material while taking extensive notes. Colleagues at work would ask about the �Options Trading For Dummies� book I had on my desk. Although I started to understand some of the theories, I had trouble picturing them in action. Suzy admitted in our email exchanges how it�s one of those things that only makes sense once you start doing it. Unfortunately, when you work at a bank, the compliance department attempts to prevent you from doing anything meaningful with your life, including trading options. Yes, I may sound cynical, but I�m calling it how it is. Although I was dying to put some trades on, I had to wait until I quit my job.

best learn options trading course Arkansas Selling Covered Calls Is The Best Way To Get StartedFor a while, I resisted buying options because I saw it as gambling.

But I couldn�t figure out what my side hustle superpower could be until I stumbled upon options trading. Trading options was something I considered for people with insane levels of intelligence. And unfortunately, that isn�t me. When I took the GMAT exams to apply for grad school, I scored in the top ten percentile for verbal (Yaaaay English Lit Class!) but the bottom ten for math. People were shocked when they found I worked in finance. Not surprisingly, I didn�t end up applying for grad school�But I said f*ck it. I�m gonna see if I can learn this options trading thing. And a year after trying it out, I�ve made $29,753. Here�s how it all went down. Discovering Stock OptionsI love reflecting on significant life changes you can pinpoint to a single event � that so-called fork in the road. In this story, it was a chance meeting with my first boss in the financial industry.

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options trading course torrent download Arkansas The icing on the cake is that it�s not the end of the story for that one trade that didn�t work out.

This strategy is great for a few key reasons:#1: You don�t panic sell or end up selling a stock you wish you held onto. This has happened to me a few times before buying options. #2: If the stock goes down, you can hold onto the shares and eventually sell the put. The put will shield you from most of your losses. #3: If the stock goes up, your put will lose value and eventually expire worthless, but it took off a lot of stress from your shoulders. You could focus on other things instead of worrying about the stock price or panic selling your shares. If the stock price isn�t likely to hit the strike price of your put, you can sell the put early to protect yourself from some of those losses. The protective put that attributed to most of my gains thus far was a protective Fastly put. I bought this put right before Fastly lowered their revenue guidance and the stock tumbled in after hours. I talked more about Fastly�s after hours tumble and explained how I�ve been playing the stock moving forward. The stock went down $33. 48 by the end of the day. My $500 put turned into $3,083. 24 by the time I sold it which shielded my losses by $25. 82/share. So rather than losing $33. 48/share, I only lost $7. 66/share because of the protective put. In past scenarios I�d likely panic and sell a bunch of my shares, but the protective put allows me to reduce risk without selling shares. The risk with selling shares is that the stock price can surge and you�ll miss out on the ride. Options Income Is Not ConsistentYou can maintain a consistent range selling covered calls and cash secured puts, but you�ll never make consistent income through buying options. Sometimes you can strike it big with one of your options while at other times most of them can expire worthless. If you continue to do your research, you will spot additional opportunities. That�s the skill part. Luck eventually follows hard work, but make sure you only nibble on options so your losses don�t have a disastrous affect on your portfolio. 7 Option Trading Strategies Every Trader Should KnowTrading options has exploded in popularity over the last couple of decades, and option trading in particular has become a major force in contemporary finance.

puts and calls options trading Arkansas The purchased options act as a form of insurance against major price changes, putting a ceiling on the potential losses from the trade.

I was in awe as I read the book: The Option Traders Hedge Fund. The central premise from the author is how an options trader is a one-person insurance company, operating a solo business. The insurance business is summed up in a few bullet points:Calculating the risk for insurance policies soldReceiving adequate premiums for those insurance policiesPurchasing �re-insurance� to protect against tail-end risks like natural disasters, e. g. , flooding. Investing the cash pile accumulated from selling the insuranceAnd this is precisely what an options trader does.

silver options trading Arkansas I talked more about selling covered calls versus dividend investing in this article:Dividend Stocks VS Covered Calls For IncomeWhich one comes out on top?

Unfortunately, when you work at a bank, the compliance department attempts to prevent you from doing anything meaningful with your life, including trading options. Yes, I may sound cynical, but I�m calling it how it is. Although I was dying to put some trades on, I had to wait until I quit my job. Which leads me to�The Joy of Pushing Buttons For MyselfTwo years after my catch-up with Suzy, I was officially unemployed. YESSSSSSSSSSSS!For the first time since I started in finance, I was free to log in to my brokerage account and trade whatever the hell I wanted. �Damn it feels good to be a gangsta�Geto BoysIt was now time to grow a pair and start trading options. I had signed up for a newsletter that Suzy suggested, which provides regular trade ideas. That was perfect as it provided a framework to follow. Man, was it was exciting. Despite my career in trading stocks, options trading was completely new. Everything about it looked different. If stocks are two dimensional with just a simple bid and offer, trading options was like entering the fourth dimension. There were bids and offers for each specific price point, each at varying expiration dates. Like most things in life, it�s daunting at first, but then you get the hang of it. And it even becomes fun. What surprised me was how much I loved hitting the freakin buttons again! And making money from home was surreal after being shackled to an office for the last decade. Grasping Options TradingOptions trading makes me think of the magnetic toy blocks my kids play with. You can arrange them in any which way, depending on what you�re trying to achieve. What I mean is, there are endless combinations of strategies you can set up depending on your view of the market. If you think the market is trending higher, you�ll use one set of strategies. If you�re unsure of which way the stock will move, but think there�ll be a decent move in either direction, there are strategies for that. And if you think the market is in a downtrend, just use those strategies! And these strategies have some pretty cool names: iron condor, bull call spread, calendar straddle, and iron butterfly. Okay, so that all sounds fancy pancy, but what is an actual stock option?�Simply put, a stock option contract gives the holder the right to buy or sell a set number of shares for a pre-determined price over a defined time frame. �Investopedia. comIt�s pretty straight forward. You can think of it as an insurance policy.

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weekendwarriorblog · 4 years ago

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The Weekend Warrior Home and Quibi Edition July 17, 2020: WE ARE FREESTYLE LOVE SUPREME, DIRT MUSIC, THE PAINTED BIRD and More!

Apologies for being a day late with this week’s column... things came up.

Since this is a relatively quieter week, at least compared to last week, I want to talk about something that’s been getting a lot of ridicule and unwarranted hatred in recent months, and that is something called Quibi, and so…

IN PRAISE OF QUIBI

You know, I’ve heard a lot of shit-talking about Quibi for one reason or another. I think it’s mostly the “too cool for school” #FilmTwitter kids, who haven’t even bothered to watch half the programming and content on the streaming platform – which has absolutely nothing to do with movies, mind you -- so they honestly have no fucking idea what they’re talking about. Sure, I understand the trepidation… short programs that you watch on your phone? Why would anyone get behind that? I mean, everything needs to be a 3 ½ hour Martin Scorsese movie that needs to be seen on the biggest screen possible, right?

Well, no. You see, CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg saw how successful YouTube was with their model – maybe not necessarily their original programming – and he figured he could do them one better. Instead of following the normal TV model of 22 to 60 minutes episodes, he decided to make every episode under 10 minutes. Maybe this seems weird to many people but if you watch any commercial network television, that’s actually the norm. All programs are broken up into smaller increments to allow for the commercials, and the smart shows time those breaks with mini-cliffhangers that makes the viewer want to return after the commercial break rather than switching the station. For the comedies and dramas, it just means you can watch as many episodes as you want without investing the hours involved with binging most shows. You can watch a lot of a series in an hour or more, and you’ll know right away if it’s for you. (There are some I really didn’t like at all such as Dummy and a few others.)

The big problem is that we really shouldn’t be looking at Quibi as an attempted competitor to Netflix, Hulu or any of the other streaming services. Quibi isn’t meant to be for watching movies or to be watched on the biggest screen possible. It’s quick, short bytes of entertainment similar to what you might normally watch on YouTube, but with actual programming. It’s a service geared towards people who don’t have 8 hours a day to binge-watch shows and maybe just want something to watch on a 5 or 10-minute break from sitting at their computers working. (That’s another good reason why having to be viewed on a phone/tablet makes it a good way to take a break from the computer.)

I totally understand some of the trepidation based on the early programming, because I haven’t found much in the narrative realm that has jumped out at me. I like Will Forge and Caitlyn Olsen’s Flipped, since it stars two of the funniest people on television, and the second story on Sam Raimi’s United States of Horror was far better than the first one. I also found a great guilty pleasure in shows like Chrissy’s Court and Dishmantled, each which put a spin on favorite TV genres, the court and cooking shows, both which are hilarious. I binged both of those series, which are about 10 to 12 episodes in a little over an hour, and Reno 911 and Jason Reitman’s The Princess Bride adaptation have been some great recent additions to the service.

The reason why you should be watching Quibi is for the daily programming, which is every bit on par with anything currently on television, mainly because Quibi has joined forces with some of the best news sources and content creators. For instance, the BBC show, Around the World with host Ben Bland, takes all of the great news from the BBC and puts together a daily six-minute “montage” of the most important news from outside the United States. There’s also NBC’s The Report, which offers two episodes on weekdays – the Morning and Evening Report – and two Weekend Reports, and it’s solid news reporting but also nothing that outlasts its welcome like the normal 24-hour news.

Then there’s so much other great programming, including Answered by Vox with host Cleo Abram, where you can learn about so many relevant and timely topics, and it’s become a particularly beneficial during the COVID pandemic. I have to admit that when I first started watching this, I was kind of amused by Abram’s twitchy interviews where she seemed unsure of herself, but over the course of the last couple months, her bubbly personality has really come out, as she’s tackled topics of special interest to herself. Quibi has rightfully been promoting the heck out of the show by advertising it on other shows. I also am impressed by the topics Shan Boodram covers on Sexology, an extremely candid and honest discussion of what some might consider taboo topics.

Similarly wonderful to watch every day is EW’s Last Night Late Night with Heather Gardner, which sums up the previous night’s late night shows – the best jokes, the best bits from the interviews, performances etc. – and there’s also Rotten Tomatoes’ Fresh Daily with Maude Garrett, which gives you a look at the best things to watch on streaming and digital on a day-to-day basis. (For full transparency, a person I greatly respect and one of the few I genuinely like in the industry, Mr. Simon Thompson, writes and produces the show.) Video game fans may enjoy Polygon’s Speed Run, although it recently changed format and is now three days a week, rather than five, and each episode is now on one subject rather than the segment format previously used. I hope this isn’t a sign of Quibi or these companies trying to save costs because there’s some nervous about the platform lasting.

Personally, I love Quibi, and I didn’t even hesitate for a second to shell out the $5.30 a month (including tax), mainly for the daily programming. Honestly, I really hope that we’ll get more of Chrissy’s Court and Dishmantled, and I hope to eventually get to some of the shows I haven’t watched, as well. (I’ve had a few issues with streaming and buffering in the last week, which I hope Quibi will resolve, because it’s very frustrating to sit down for my daily watches and just get the spinning ball repeatedly.)

Anyway, let’s get to the movies… and is it possible that Hulu may be receiving the coveted “Featured Flick” two weeks in a row? Certainly looks like it. If you’re trying to figure out what to watch after watching Hamilton on Disney+ for the 20th time, how about going back to the very beginning?

Andrew Fried’s doc WE ARE FREESTYLE LOVE SUPREME (Hulu) looks back at how Wesleyan alum Thomas Kail and Anthony Veneziale put together the group of improvisational performers that would include one Lin-Manuel Miranda. I was lucky enough to know about Freestyle Love Supreme way back when they were starting out, since a good friend of mine managed the East Village club, Mo Pitkins, where the group frequently performed. I knew pretty early on how much talent Miranda had from seeing him perform. Make no mistake that this is not a movie only about Miranda, as it’s as much or more about Kail and Venziale’s efforts to keep the group’s shows happening while Miranda is pulled away to do In the Heights on Broadway, and then ultimately doing his magnum opus, Hamilton.

For some reason, I thought this doc would mainly be about the idea of bringing Freestyle Love Supreme back for its limited stint on Broadway, but it goes all the way back to the beginning and how they met and came together, plus how they found new members to fill in for Miranda and Christopher Jackson when they went to Broadway. Freestyle Love Supreme is a pretty amazing group because as the name implies, they’re a bunch of freestyle rappers who improvise every show based on things they get from the audience, but it also allows them to explore their own personal lives and histories and incorporate them into each show. I’m actually a little bummed I never got a chance to see it even though I’ve known about them since the early ‘00s. This doc might feel a little long even at under 90 minutes, but it’s worth sticking with since they’re such an interesting group and the combination of performances and interviews makes it a fine doc about these amazingly talented individuals and how the sum is bigger than the whole of the parts.

Another long-gestating project that has finally seen the light of day is the romantic drama DIRT MUSIC (Samuel Goldwyn), based on Tim Winton’s popular Australian novel that people have been trying to adapt since back when Heath Ledger was still alive. I believe Russell Crowe had been trying to adapt it, too. It stars Kelly Macdonald, who I’ve loved since her first appearance in Trainspotting and who I’m always hoping will find some of those great roles we see other actors her age getting. (Sorry, but Puzzle just wasn’t one of them.) In Dirt Music, she plays Georgie, a woman living with fisherman Jim Buckridge (David Wenham), a widowed father with two sons, although they’re not married. When Georgie begins a relationship with troubled local musician Lu Fox (Garrett Hedlund), it causes problems within the tight-knit community, but instead of getting into a confrontation with Jim, Lu runs off.

I actually quite enjoyed this drama, partially because it marks the return of Gregor Jordan, an Australian filmmaker who has quite a few decent movies under his belt, including an earlier Ned Kelly movie. It is a little hard to figure out what is happening, partially from the accents but also from the decision to tell the story in a non-linear fashion that isn’t always apparent where each of the characters are in the story. Obviously, a major thing to pay attention to is how great Macdonald and Hedlund are in their roles in this possibly unlikely romance. You can totally see Ledger in the role of Lu, and the fact that Hedlund is so good should help you appreciate him more as an actor. Macdonald also still has this youthful energy despite being in her ‘40s, and that gives their relationship something akin to her relationship with McGregor in Trainspotting.

What really captured my attention was the gorgeous music by the Fox family, and I was even more impressed to learn that the actors – Julia Stone, George Mason, Neill Maccoll, and yes, Garrett Hedlund – all performed their own vocals in the songs, which includes a gorgeous version of Tim Buckley’s “Song of the Siren” (famously covered by This Mortal Coil). Frankly, I’m most surprised by the fact that Hedlund had musical talent I never knew about, and you can combine that with the emotion he brings to Lu with very few words, and you have another example of why Hedlund just isn’t getting the credit as an actor he deserves. I really liked the way this story was unfolded and where it ended, and I hope we’ll see more great work like this from Jordan.

I was a little more tentative about Wetlands director David Wnendt’s THE SUNLIT NIGHT (Quiver Distribution), which was adapted by Rebecca Dinerstein from her own novel, but not only because it premiered at Sundance way back in early 2019. If you’ve been reading the past few months of columns, you’ll know that there are a lot of recurring themes of movies that play at Sundance, and this one stars Jenny Slate, who had such an impact at Sundance with the movie Obvious Child, which I really didn’t like. Yeah, I’m not really a fan, even though I like her in smaller roles like her role in Gifted a few years back. In this one, Slate plays Frances, a New York artist, whose parents are about to break up and looking for a change, she accepts an internship with an artist in Northern Norway where the day lasts for months. It’s a pretty obvious “fish-out-of-water” comedy premise like one we may normally see at Sundance, but it never really delivers on

Probably my favorite part of the movie was seeing David Paymer as France’s father, mainly because we just don’t see Paymer in many movies these days, but Zack Galifianakis’ character, one of the Norwegians who has an affinity for Vikings, just doesn’t add very much to the story. While I liked the set-up for the movie and Slate is generally likeable in the lead role, the movie just isn’t funny enough to be deemed a comedy nor enough drama to have much of an emotional impact, and the romance between Slate and a local didn’t do much for me either. By the end of the movie, Sunlit Night had veered too far into the most obvious indie territory, so it ultimately fell short for me. I just wish Dinerstein had more (or anything) to say with this story, and I feel like Wnendt and his cast probably did the best they could with what they had to work with.

A movie that’s finally being released after playing a number of festivals last year is the Czech Republic’s 2019 Oscar selection, Václav Marhoul’s THE PAINTED BIRD (IFC Films), based on Jerzy Kosinski’s novel about a young Jewish boy navigating the landscape of WWII-era Eastern Europe all on his own, ending up in one horrifying situation after another.

While this is a beautifully-told story featuring equally beautiful and quite stark black and white cinematography, I can’t wholly recommend it to everyone, because that beautiful camerawork is used to depict some of the most horrible depravity and violence, all experienced by this young boy who just can’t seem to catch a break.

There is very little dialogue in a film that takes an episodic approach to following this young boy’s journey as he either watches horrifying things or is put through grueling torture and even rape as he’s handed and bartered from one adult to another. The “painted bird” of the title is a literal bird that’s painted to attract other birds that attack it, and it’s clearly meant as an analogy for the boy.

If you’ve watched any Czech films over the years, you’ll know that they’re generally pretty grim (they’re a grim people), and you’ll probably know fairly soon whether you want to sit through the entire 2 ¾ running time to see how this boy fares with everything he faces. (Note: A big deal has been made about some of the more horrifying violence in the movie, but honestly? Being in black and white, it isn’t that gory, and I’ve seen far, far worse. A lot of the worst of it is off-screen and your mind tends to fill in the blanks much like last year’s The Nightingale.)

Barely saying a single word, Petr Kotlár is able to carry the film, and it’s interesting when more familiar actors like Udo Kier, Harvey Keitel, Stellan Skarsgaard, and Barry Pepper are brought into this world Marhoul has created from Kosinski’s book. Like so many other movies right now, it’s a shame this won’t be seen on the big screen where you’re forced to really focus on what you’re watching without distractions.

The Butterfly Effect writer/director Eric Bress’s latest horror film is GHOSTS OF WAR (Vertical) about a group of American soldiers -- including Brenton Thwaites, Sklar Astin and Theo Rossi -- who travelling across France during WWII when they come upon a French Chateau where they decide to hole up. That is, until they learn there’s a supernatural enemy that may be worse than the Nazis they’re hiding from.

The premise for Bress’ latest venture into the supernatural is a fairly simple one, and it’s hard not to watch this movie and not think of the far superior Overlord from a few years back. As soon as the soldiers get to the estate, it’s pretty obvious (mainly from the title) where things are going to go from there, and unfortunately, the bland casting doesn’t do very much to elevate that simple premise, the weak writing, and none of it feels particularly scary. If that general premise doesn’t seem very interesting to you, then Ghosts of War introduces a pretty out-there last act twist that’s either gonna be praised for changing things up or it will be condemned for being so out there. The problem is that the movie just hasn’t built enough good will to earn its twist, and viewers will probably just be even more annoyed by it.

Ghosts of War will be available On Demand, via Virtual Cinema Screenings and digitally after being on DirecTV for the past few weeks.

Down at New York’s Film Forum, you can rent Elizabeth Coffman and Mark doc Flannery (Film Forum), winner of the Library of Congress Lavine/Ken Burns Prize with its look at author Flannery O’Connor. The repertoryVirtual Cinema adds Jean-Luc Godard’s Made in the U.S.A. (1966) and Carl Theodor Dreyer’s Michael (1924), the latter part of the Forum’s “Pioneers of Queer Cinema” program.

Starting on Film at Lincoln Center’s Virtual Cinema this Friday is Koji Fukada’s Mayak (Andreevsky Flah Film Company/Anniko Films), while FilmLinc is also starting its annual Dance on Camera Festival, the 48th edition, although this time virtually.

Available via Film Movement’s Virtual Cinema is Emily Harris’ adaption of Joseph Sheridan le Fanu’s Gothic vampire novella, Carmilla, starring Hannah Rae as 15-year-old Lara who lives in isolation on her family’s country estate with her strict governess Miss Fontaine (Jessica Raine) until a carriage crash brings a mysterious girl into their lives.

Now we’re getting to more movies that I just didn’t find the time to see even though I had screeners for a couple of them, like the latest in Hulu’s popular monthly horror series, INTO THE DARK: THE CURRENT OCCUPANT, which will hit the streamer this Friday. It’s directed by Julius Ramsay and written by D.C. speech writer Alston Ramsay, taking place in a psychiatric ward where a man trapped with no memory, played by Barry Watson, believes that he’s the President of the United States and the subject of a political conspiracy. No, it’s not a documentary.

Over on Netflix, there’s Catrin Einhorn and Leslye Davis’ doc Father Soldier Son, which follows a former platoon sergeant and his two sons over a decade after his return home from a serious injury in Afghanistan, showing the long-term effects of military service on a family.

Dan Wingate’s doc Kaye Ballard - The Show Goes On (Abramorama) will get a Virtual Cinema release this Friday. I actually am not familiar with the actress, singer and comedian but apparently, she’s had a career that has spanned eight decades, starting in the 40s, and her friends include Ann-Margret, Carol Burtnett, Carol Channing, my good pal Red Reed and more, all of whom are interviewed, along with Ballard.

Also out on Digital this week is Steve Ohi’s sci-fi horror comedy Useless Humans (Quiver Distribution) about a ruthless alien who crashes a 30th birthday party causing four friends to team up to save the world. Will Addison’s Easy Does It (Gravitas Ventures), stars Linda Hamilton, as well as Ben Matheny and Martin Martinez, the latter two as friends who want to escape their Mississippi hometown when they learn there’s a cache of hidden loot in California. Hamilton plays their hometown criminal matriarch “King George” who learns of the money and has her bounty hunter daughter (Susan Gordon) chase the friends down.

On Friday, New York’s Japan Society will kick off its annual “Japan Cuts” program of new and repertory Japanese cinema, and like most other festivals and series this year, it’s going on line, beginning with Shinichiro Ueda’s Special Actors (the Opening Night film), Fukushima 50 (the Centerpiece) and Labyrinth of Cinema, for $7.00 each, which is a pretty good deal. (There’s also a new competitive section called “Next Generation” which focuses on new Japanese talent.) And then for $99, you can get an all access pass to watch all 42 films in the festival, which includes a lot of movies you may never have a chance to see in the States otherwise. You can watch a playlist of trailers from the movies here. All 42 films will be available starting this Friday, so make sure to include this in your weekend plans.

In related news, the New York Asian Film Festival (which cancelled this year altogether) and the Korean Culture Center of New York are teaming once again for Korean Movie Night, this year doing them virtually with a new program called “A League Of Its Own,” which focuse on Hit Korean Baseball Movies, plus there’s a bunch of other Korean films you can watch (FOR FREE!) here until July 25.

Also, if you’re anywhere near some of the drive-ins taking part in Amazon’s summer movie program, you can catch “Movies To Make You Proud” Black Panther and Creed on Wednesday night.

Next week, more movies mostly not in theaters!

By the way, if you read this week’s column and have bothered to read this far down, feel free to drop me some thoughts at Edward dot Douglas at Gmail dot Com or drop me a note or tweet on Twitter. I love hearing from readers … honest!

#TheWeekendWarrior #Movies #Reviews #WeAreFreestyleLoveSupreme #DirtMusic #ThePaintedBird #GhostsOfWar #VOD #Streaming #Netflix #Hulu

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kaisoo-anti-blacklist-blog · 7 years ago

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F.A.Q

Welcome to the Kaisoo Anti Blacklist F.A.Q! In this post I will answer the most popular questions about this blog and how it will function. Please read the information below before sending me any asks. If you have read the following in its entirety and have any additional questions feel free to send me a dm or an ask and I will be happy to answer them! ^.^

Q:What is the main goal/purpose of this blog? The purpose of this blog is to protect both new and old Kaisoo shippers and supporters on tumblr from bullying and harassment as well as weed out all the fake kaisoo supporters. A lot of times those who ship kaisoo endure various forms of harrassment which makes it difficult to enjoy and support kaisoo peacefully. By compiling toxic antis into one database, it makes it easier to decide who to avoid/block.

Q: What is a 'Kaisoo Anti'? A Kaisoo anti is a person who: -Is against the idea of shipping/supporting Kaisoo -Mocks, bullies and harasses those that do -Uses kaisoo for their own popularity but does not actually support/like them and/or the shippers, i.e a “Fake shipper” A lot of times they are seen telling supporters to "stop fetishing gay couples" and assume that most shippers and supporters are "fetishizing two men" "delusional" or straight white b*tches". They target only kaisoo supporters and shippers, regardless of all the other pairings that exist in Kpop. Q: What is a fake shipper? A fake shipper is someone who appears to like/support kaisoo but says rude things to/about shippers and/or about Jongin and/or Kyungsoo themselves. Many times these people gif kaisoo, write fanfics with kaisoo as the main pairing and create kaisoo fanart, but when asked if they ship kaisoo they say "Yeah, but Im not delulu like other shippers". In other situations the person is an anti of either Jongin, Kyungsoo, or both, yet still appears to "ship" kaisoo.

Q: What do you consider to be bullying/harrassment? If you are receiving unwarranted abuse from an Anti because you ship/support Kaisoo, that is bullying and harassment. It includes (but is not limited to): -Using threatening language (i.e. "Go choke", "Die" "kill yourself" "I want to kill all shippers" etc.) -Using ableist language (i.e. "Youre dumb" "You all are idiots" "Retards") -Using racist language (i.e. "white b*tch" "Black kaisoo shippers r in the sunken place") -Insults (i.e "youre so gross" "disgusting" "trash" "b*tch") -Mockery and the use of copypasta with kaisoo related posts -False accusations of fetishization And so on. These are the most common forms of bullying among antis. Bullying comes in many different forms but this is just a general idea of what I consider to fit the definition. Q: I have some receipts Id like to submit, but I want to remain anonymous. Is that possible? Yes! All kaisoo supporters who send receipts, whether the bullying was directed toward they themselves or another kaisoo supporter, will remain anonymous. The only names that will be shown are those doing the bullying/harassing. Keep in mind that, with the intuitiveness of those on the internet, it still may be possible for your identity to be revealed if, for example, someone were to figure out it was a certain user partaking in discourse. If this is to happen, just know that my blog would not be behind this. All identities are guaranteed to remain anonymous, minus those of the antis. ^.^ Q: I have some receipts Id like to submit, but I DONT want to be anonymous. While the bravery is noble, unfortunately I will refuse your request to not be anonymous. This is a space created to protect shippers and supporters and help them to feel like they can enjoy kaisoo happily. If you would rather have your identity revealed I encourage you to take matters into your own hands and message your bully directly. :) Q: The person I want to submit is not a tumblr user, but are well known among kaisoo shippers for being an anti/fake shipper. Can I still submit their name? Weeding out antis mainly on tumblr is what I'd like to focus on, but feel free to submit names of other well known antis and they could still be posted depending on the circumstances. Q: When will my submission be posted? Will I be personally notified? Because I am running this blog alone and need time to look through receipts and confirm information, submissions will be posted every Tuesday and Thursday. Due to the large amounts that may be received, personal notification will not be possible. Please continue to check the blog to see if your submission has been posted! Q: I submitted receipts about someone a while ago, and they were never posted. Why? Before submitting, always be sure to check that your receipts fall within the "Submission Guidelines". It is important that there is clear and true evidence of bullying, harrassment or means of fake shipping. Read the submission guidlines here. Q: I dont have receipts about this particular person but know from past experience that they are an anti. Can I still submit their name? Feel free to still submit their name! I can always do research and if I find clear evidence of them being an anti they will be posted to the blog. Q: I am being bullied/harassed by a fellow kaisoo supporter. What should I do? As long as you are also a kaisoo supporter and your submission falls within the guidelines, send away! Q: How do I know I can trust you enough to keep me anonymous? I am also a Kaisoo supporter that has endured lots of bullying and harassment as well as seeing it from others, so I would never want a fellow supporter to have to go through this. I am all about protecting everyone and weeding out these abusive people who have nothing better to do. But if this is not means enough to trust me, feel free to use the Anonymous asks instead and they will be published this way. Keep in mind that evidence is needed before posting someone as an anti on the blog, and usually that evidence can be sent a lot easier through messaging rather than asks, but because I want all supporters to feel comfortable with me, I will allow asks as well. :) Q: Isnt it a bit hypocritical to call out all these people on a dummy blog? Why not reveal your identity? The reason that I am staying anonymous is because I need to be able to go back and look at the evidence of bullying and harassment myself to confirm it and share it on this blog. Most antis response to this blog will be to block me from seeing what they post, and if I reveal my personal blog (and my third invisible blog) then I will have no way of confirming what is truly going on. This is also why being sure that your receipts fall in line with the guidelines is also crucial. In the event that antis have blocked me from all 3 blogs, I will have only your receipts to go off of. Of course I trust my fellow supporters, but as someone trying to do the right thing I must always make sure Ive got a the facts/proof. Q:This is a website where anyone can post what they want. Why make a page like this when supporters can just block antis? Supporters can indeed block the antis as they come to them. But by compiling a list of all of the most common antis into one place like this, it helps older and newer kaisoo supporters know who to block before the bullying begins. Think of it as staying one step ahead. Q: Arent you worried about this creating more drama and starting a war? This seems so unnecessary...its just shipping! It may create drama with me and the antis themselves but Im sure that most shippers/supporters just want to be able to go in the tag and talk about Kaisoo in peace. I feel that this is long over-due, however I will reconsider keeping the blog if the majority of supporters oppose to it. Q: Some of the people featured here are well known artists/fanfic writers. Their reputation is ruined! Keep in mind that if they are featured on this blog it means that they were harassing or bullying someone solely for shipping/supporting kaisoo, or that they are a fake shipper/supporter. I did not ruin their reputation, they did. Q: I feel that my name should not be on the blog and that there was a misunderstanding. I want it removed! Sometimes intentions are lost or misinterpreted. If you feel that you are on this blog in error, feel free to send me a DM and we can discuss it. If you can supply solid and clear proof that you werent bullying/harassing a supporter or that you arent a fake supporter, your name will be removed immediately. Q: I support/ship a different couple and am being bullied/harassed for it. Am I able to submit receipts? While I have nothing against other ships and understand that other pairings come with antis as well, I mainly want to focus on Kaisoo related antis as I myself support Kaisoo and considering how kaisoo supporters receive the largest amount of hate and bullying. -----> I hope that I have answered most of the questions you all have about this blog! If you have additional questions or concerns, feel free to drop a private message to me anytime. :) -Admin X

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