#this could be.... so much better

[lohstandfound]

Royal Pains brain rot got me writing a thing.

"you're better off without them"

Rich and Brooke observe another Jake and Chloe break up, once again trying to urge them that they're better off apart- despite knowing that it won't work. No matter how much it hurts.

“You’re better off without her.”

Rich sits across from Jake.

Jake’s tears have long since dried and they sit in silence, the only sound is Jake’s ragged breathing. It’s always bad when they break up, but Rich is always there to piece him together.

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

Jake sniffs and shakes his head. “No.”

That’s always the answer. But Rich always knows what’s running through Jake’s head, anyway.

It’s routine, by now.

They break up. Jake calls Rich. Rich is by his side almost immediately. Jake is crying (and he hates that he still cries over her but goddammit it still hurts every single time). Rich sits with him.

Rich sighs.

“You can’t keep doing this, dude.”

Jake doesn’t respond. He doesn’t look at Rich.

Jake knows that Rich is right, but he doesn’t want to let her go.

It’s intoxicating.

And he knows its not good for him but he can’t stop. Her claws are dug too deep into his shoulders, he can’t imagine them not.

He can’t remember what it’s like to not be in her grasp.

Rich didn’t expect Jake to respond.

“You’re better off without her,” he tries quietly.

“I’m not.”

Rich frowns.

“Jake…”

“I’m not. I need her. I need her, god, Rich. I need her.”

Rich is silent for a moment.

“I don’t- I don’t know what to do without her. I can’t just let her go.”

“She hurts you. You go back to her and she hurts you all over again. And it breaks you every time.”

“It doesn’t.”

Rich knows that Jake doesn’t want to hear this. He’s tried this conversation before.

“Jakob, you’re not good for her. She’s not good for you-”

“Who are you to decide what’s good for me and what isn’t?” Jake snaps.

Rich doesn’t flinch.

He doesn’t shy away from the glare that’s turned on him.

“Your friend.”

The word pains him.

“I care about you too much to watch you destroy yourself like this.”

Jake turns away from him.

Rich knows that this is the end of the conversation for now. But god, he wants to talk more.

He wants to plead with Jake to let her go.

He wants Jake to see how much he’s destroyed himself over her.

He wants Jake to see the damage they’ve done to each other.

He wants Jake to see that he’s right there in front of him.

He wants Jake to see what they could be.

But Rich knows he won’t. So, he’ll continue to piece Jake back together as carefully as he can.

“Do you want me to stay?”

There is no hesitation in Jake’s nod.

Rich hesitates, his hand moves forward to take Jake’s.

But he doesn’t.

If Jake noticed the small action, he doesn’t say anything.

“I’ll stay.”

======================

“You’re better off without him.”

Brooke sits cross-legged on Chloe’s bed, watching as she paces around the room.

She’s on edge. She can see the tears building up in Chloe’s eyes but she doesn’t know if she’s going to scream or yell or cry.

She’s been through this before.

And she knows Chloe.

She knows to treat this situation like she’s walking on eggshells.

“Chlo?” She speaks softly.

Brooke knows that it’ll snap Chloe out of her head. Brooke knows that Chloe’s attention will zone in on her. Brooke knows that she’s going to be the recipient of every horrible thing she has to say about him. And Brooke knows she will sit here and take it.

Chloe will take it out on her, and she will let it roll off her shoulders because it’s better than Chloe taking it out on anyone else.

And it’s better than Chloe running back to him.

As predicted, Chloe’s venomous glare turns to her.

“I hate him. I hate him, I hate him, I hate him so fucking much. He can fucking rot in hell for all I care. Why should I care? He’s nothing but a fucking prick.”

Brooke nods idly.

Starting with yelling.

Brooke listens as Chloe spouts off every insult she’s ever used for him.

And she agrees, because she doesn’t want to make it worse by saying she’s wrong about him.

Chloe screamed and she yelled and half the things she said weren’t true.

And she could never truly hate him.

She was wrapped around his finger and she liked it that way.

He was always there to make her feel good,

Feel wanted.

His rough lips on her neck and his careful touch,

She could never get enough of it.

When she was the centre of his attention, it was intoxicating.

She felt wanted, needed, complete.

It wasn’t healthy, god it wasn’t good.

But she just couldn’t help herself.

She couldn’t remember a time where Jake wasn’t all hers.

Brooke watches as the tears well up in Chloe’s eyes.

The crying step will come soon.

Chloe collapsed on the bed next to Brooke.

Brooke carefully wrapped Chloe up in her arms as she cried.

Brooke wouldn’t say anything as Chloe cried.

She wouldn’t comment on the tears.

Instead, she just held Chloe as her heart ached, listening to Chloe curse him out again and again.

Brooke knew the words she said could switch Chloe right back to screaming at her.

But they were words that Chloe needed to hear.

“You’re better off without him, Chlo. You don’t need him. You don’t need his attention to make you feel better. You’re more than enough without him.”

“You just- You don’t understand, Brooke. I need him! I need him, but god I hate his fucking guts.”

“Chloe, you destroy him and yourself and everyone around you when you’re with him.”

And Brooke knew what it was like to destroy yourself for someone else.

“We’re supposed to be together, Brooke! He’s mine, I’m his. That’s how it’s supposed to go. That’s how the story always goes. We’re good for each other!”

But Brooke’s words were true, and Chloe knew it.

Chloe wasn’t ready to admit that.

Of course, Brooke knew that.

But she would keep waiting for the day Chloe realised that she didn’t need him.

She would keep waiting for the day that Chloe would open her eyes and see what was right in front of her.

Maybe Chloe rejecting her would hurt less than watching Chloe try to hold herself together after every single breakup.

Until then,

Brooke would hold Chloe as she cried, listen to Chloe as she screamed, and watched as they would get back together and destroy themselves all over again.

[stevenrogered]

You should call him. Really? Heck yeah!

[chronicpaingirlie]

hey if something about your environment or body is bothering you right now & if you’re able to, please take a moment to adjust that thing. turn off the lights if theyre hurting your eyes, grab a pair of socks if you’re cold, move into a better position if you’re in an uncomfortable one.

it’s easy to get stuck in a “this isn’t good but I’ll survive” mindset, especially with executive dysfunction, but you deserve to feel more okay in the spaces & body you’re in.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Soup solves everything.

[tangeringe]

kabru gave me so much trouble on this dawg I NEED HIM GONE

[strawlessandbraless]

Jensen Ackles saw this early script draft and made the choice that Dean would NOT make Cas feel bad for hugging him after the angel thought him dead

In fact, he let Dean be fully embraced by Cas, let him melt into the hug with a soft smile. Dean got to proudly Introduce his angel to Mary without shame or embarrassment, and that’s beautiful

[floweypilled]

beach episode

[infinityundone]

One of my favorite parts of Mouthwashing's writing was that it made me feel like a bad person. Because, in the first part of the game when Jimmy is interacting with Anya, I agreed with him. I agreed that Anya wasn't being a good nurse, and that she was a burden on the crew, and that while the situation she was in was terrible, and of course stressing her out, everyone else was in the same boat as her, so why couldn't she shape up and try to help? And then the reveal of her pregnancy happened, and how it happened, and I realized I'd been seeing her through Jimmy's eyes this whole time, and worse, believing him. She wasn't in the same situation as the other crew members, she was in a significantly worse one. Stranded in space, pregnant and facing the prospect of giving birth with no medical supplies, with the only person she trusted completely unable to help her, and she was under the command and at the mercy of her abuser.

Of course she was nauseous, of course she was meek, of course she was constantly distressed. But Jimmy told me she was weak, not pulling her weight, being a bad nurse, and I believed him. And when I realized the truth I felt like a real piece of shit.

That's some of the best writing I've ever seen in a video game.

[cozylittleartblog]

Columbo and the Knight (1984)

put me in the universe where Columbo ran through the 1980s and had a crossover episode with Knight Rider. I think they deserved it, and I am not just saying that because they're my two favorite Old Shows. @telebeast wrote a little fanfic blurb about it and I HAD to visualize it into a comic (which is also the longest comic I have finished thus far at five pages...), so writing credit goes to them.

Autism W!

[chalkrub]

saw some mangy dog on the outskirts of town

[gammija]

the real reason tmagp is on break 'til april 11th is so sam can observe ramadan without being chased by a murderous clown blob

[tubbytarchia]

got an urge to design ponies oops

[stevenrogered]

Wait, Tommy's gay?

[archivebottles]

Happy birthday to the most special girl in the universe!! Wanted to try something ambitious and ended up with the biggest comic I've done to date

[natjennie]

something about "your anger isn't scary to me" is making me so emotional. something about as above so below, cassandra as a mirror of kristen. something about "I've been dropping the ball a lot lately" and kristen's struggles with adhd. something about teenage girls and rage and fury and justice. something about adaine's vision of ruining fallinel and the sylvaire looking for revenge. something about sadness and doubt and anger and love. something about "I choose to understand" being the absolute core theme of d20 in general. something something.

[bluestation]

nami day!! 🧡💐🍊