#this took about 15 hours to make in total save me

[redfoxwritesstuff]

Sundew: Chapter 2 (Tom Hiddleston x Mia)

CW: my long standing grudge against a real man with a walnut sized bladder from a flight I took almost 15 years ago... Previous Chapter -- Masterlist -- AO3 -- Kofi Buy Kit a kofi and donate to the fund for publishing original works!

Mia checked the bags one last time just as her phone pinged with a text from Tom. He checked in at the end of every week, making sure she had enough money for the week ahead. Gas, groceries and whatever else she could need, as if he wasn’t scheduling deliveries of laundry soap, cleaning supplies and who knows what else. 

He didn’t need to check on finances. Mia never had to fear running out of money, perhaps for the first time in her life. Since Tom moved them into this apartment, she squirreled away her paychecks, letting the funds build up. It helped her feel safe to have it at hand, in case everything fell apart. 

Using it to book plane tickets and a hotel room for the weekend- that was all she could get off from the casino- though it was the cheapest room she could find that didn’t look certain to give her bedbugs, made her anxious. She was depleting her ‘if Tom bails’ safety net in order to surprise him. 

She hoped it would count for something. 

“Time to go, Sally!” 

Sally was excited about her first plane ride. Mia was far from looking forward to it herself, but the excitement was contagious. Throughout the process of getting through security and to their gate, she took pictures and short clips of Sally with her wide, eager smile with blue NYC teddy bear in her hands. 

Tom didn’t know they were coming and was missing all these new experiences. Hopefully, the surprise would be worth it to him, along with the pictures and videos. 

It washed over Mia as she sat, watching Sally color, that she was worried about Tom missing out on Sally’s firsts, but she hadn’t given a single thought to Ray, her actual father, missing out on her first plane trip. 

The realization made her feel guilty. She shouldn’t though, right? It was a part of moving on. How many birthdays and first days of school did Ray have to miss before Mia allowed herself to stop holding out for hope that he would step up? 

Sally deserved this. Sally deserved a father like Tom. 

Before Mia knew it, they were walking onto the plane and Sally was eagerly bouncing down the small aisle. She wore a pilot’s hat plopped on her head as they boarded and then they settled into their narrow seats. 

It wasn’t comfortable. It was as she tried to explain to Sally what to expect that she realized it was the blind leading the blind child. She hadn’t been on a plane in a very long time herself. 

By the time they were in the air, Mia was regretting not emptying her savings into better seats or abandoning the idea of the total surprise altogether and allowing Tom to help with the trip. Mia wasn’t tall, but the limited legroom left her legs feeling far too big for the space without even factoring in how much of Mia’s limited space Sally somehow found a way to occupy. 

Mia thought she planned the seats perfectly. She had herself sat in the middle with Sally on the aisle. She planned for a restless young child who likely would need multiple bathroom breaks. What she didn’t factor in was the man who claimed the window seat having a bladder the size of a walnut and an unwavering commitment to hydration. 

Within the first half hour in the air, the man had been up twice. It took just an hour for Mia to consider the possible legal repercussions of removing his irritable bladder for him. 

“Excuse me,” he leaned into her space again as he stood. How many times had he gone now? 

“We can switch seats with you,” Mia offered. “If that would be easier for you?”

Please, take it. Please. 

“Oh,” he laughed nervously, “I don’t want to put you two out.” 

“It wouldn’t be any trouble.” Please, take the offer. Take the fucking offer. 

“I prefer the window,” he finally said sheepishly. “It’s better for my anxiety.” 

Of course it is. At least with Sally napping curled up in her seat, it was really only Mia the man was annoying the ever loving shit out of. 

All in all, Sally took to air travel really well. Her ears didn’t pain her with takeoff, and the small seats were big enough to keep her happy. Mia thought she was going to get through the flight with the only annoyance being the man with a walnut bladder. 

Once the flight began its descent into New York City, Mia was in for a harsh reality check. The feeling of going up was exciting and thrilling for Sally. Going down? Absolutely terrifying. 

From the moment the plane made its slight dip in the air, Sally was not okay. It was a struggle for Mia to wrap her arms around her terrified child and hold her tightly. The fright in Sally’s voice broke Mia’s heart, but the exasperated grumbling of Mr. Walnut-Bladder filled that broken heart with rage. 

“It’s okay.” Mia rubbed Sally’s side as she held the small girl tightly through the descent. 

“She’s not helping my anxiety,” Mr. Walnut-Bladder complained. Though he wasn’t talking to Mia, he certainly didn’t keep his voice low enough to keep his thoughts to himself. 

Mia was about to snap at Mr. Walnut-Bladder when Sally whimpered, crying out for her mother as the plane tipped forward more, marking the sharp final descent through the air. Mr. Walnut wasn’t worth the time when Sally needed Mia more. 

“It’s okay,” Sally whispered, hugging her daughter tightly. “We’re safe.” 

“I’m scared.” 

“I know,” Mia hummed, wishing there was more she could do to comfort Sally. “We’ll be on the ground in just a few minutes.” 

The wheels couldn’t touch the ground soon enough. Mia did her best to keep Sally calm until the plane was steady on the ground again. Hopefully, the act of landing would not leave Sally too traumatized to fly home without too much of a fuss. 

If not… well, Mia didn’t have much other choice. It wasn’t like they could just not go home. 

There wasn’t time to dwell on that, though. Everyone was standing and fighting to grab their bags from the overhead bins. Mia may not have gotten to snap at Mr. Walnut-Bladder during the landing, but she got a sick satisfaction of watching him whine and complain about having to piss, yet again, while the aisle was backed up with people. 

It wasn’t that she wanted him to pee his pants like a child. She didn’t wish that on the people who’d have to clean it up, but she wasn’t so sure that if he did, there would be much of a mess with how often he’d been up. 

The moment they stepped off the plane and into the terminal, Mr. Walnut-Bladder was pushing past Mia and the rest of the people, rushing ahead. He was no doubt on a quest for an emergency trip to the bathroom to empty his walnut yet again. 

The taxi ride from the airport to the hotel left Mia mesmerized by the size of the city as Sally dozed next to her. She wasn’t from a small town and Vegas was a big city in its own right, but it was nothing compared to the glory that was New York City. 

There were so many people and worse, they were absolutely everywhere. It was overwhelming, as was the thought that this city was normal to Tom. How many times had be been there? How many more times would he be there? 

Mia was far from well versed in the lay of the city and while she knew where Tom was staying and where about he was filming, she very much knew she could not afford to stay in the same place without asking for help. The hotel she found, though only inching toward the ‘nice’ range of hotel rooms, was somewhat close to where Tom was. 

Hopefully. 

It better be, because the room kinda really sucked. 

Mia just got the bag on the bed when her phone went off, startling her. She looked from Tom’s face on the screen to Sally, bouncing on the bed. It took only a second to tell the child to settle down before she ducked into the bathroom and answered the video call from Tom.

“Hey!” Mia cringed at the sound of her voice. It was a bright, cheery tone and oh so very fake. “What’s up?” 

“‘Ello, darling.” Tom’s face was warm on the screen, contrasting with the dark hair draped and costume he wore. She could see his eyes darting around. “Why are you in a hotel bathroom?” 

“Oh! No reason.” Mia hated how things looked, how they sounded. “It was just one of those long days. I figured I’d take a room to rest in on my lunch.” 

“Right.” Tom cleared his throat. “I just had a few minutes and wanted to see your face. I didn’t think you’d answer since you said you were working doubles.” 

Mia laughed nervously as Sally knocked on the bathroom door, stealing her attention from Tom. “One minute,” Mia said as she directed her attention back to the phone. 

“Who’s there?” Tom asked. 

“Just- uh, just one of my coworkers. We’re splitting the room. We do that sometimes, when a lot of us are working doubles. We’ll get a room and split it between a bunch of us so we can unwind better on our breaks. I’ve gotta… I’ve gotta get back to it, though.” 

“Right, right.” Tom didn’t sound like he believed her. “I’ll let you get to it then.” 

“Right.” Mia realized she didn’t actually know exactly where Tom was. “Oh, Tom?” 

“Yes?” Mia couldn’t tell if he was answering her or someone off to the side who was also talking. “Sorry, they need me back soon.” 

“Where are you guys filming at?” 

Tom rattled off a general area in a rush as someone called for him again in the distance. “I’ve got to get going, darling.” 

“Of course,” Mia said. “I love you.” 

The call disconnected before Tom said the words back. It stung. Of course, Tom was busy. He snuck a moment away to call her and was rushed. It meant nothing at all.

Tag List: @winterisakiller, @alexakeyloveloki, @jennyggggrrr, @dangertoozmanykids101, @tilltheendwilliwrite @tinchentitri @wizardcherryblossom  @buttercupcookies-blog @violethaze @kats72 @soulpiercing @evedia  @princess-ofthe-pages, @tom-hlover Get on the tag list of follow #sundew for updates!

[b1ackpaws]

Teehee made this for an art project

[norrisainz33]

photograph pt2. || op81

summary: after losing touch with your childhood best friend, oscar piastri, you finally find your way back to each other.

pairing: oscar piastri x best friend!reader

warnings: slightly angsty to start but happy ending YAY!

word count: 2,165

masterlist | pt. 1

ﾟ. ✿ ୨❤︎୧⠀✿ . ﾟ

the envelope sat unopened on your kitchen counter for exactly 2 days and 14 hours and 15 minutes. not that you had been counting just how long that letter had been mocking you from its place on your marble counter.

the letter had arrived in the usual pile of bills and junk mail and at first thats what you had thought it was but with the sleek white envelope with the mclaren logo printed in the corner and your name handwritten on the back... you figured it was anything but junk mail. and you couldn't quite shake the feeling that you recognized the sharp messy handwriting on the envelope from all those birthday cards you had gotten from oscar as a kid.

you shouldn’t have been totally surprised. melbourne was hosting the grand prix again and oscar was racing in it again. of course they were doing some kind of nostalgia campaign, pulling at local connections and grassroots beginnings sorta deal. you just hadn’t expected you to be one of the local connections. though one of your friends had warned you that some pictures of you and oscar karting as kids had been going viral and you were sure the mclaren social media team had seen it.

even with that said, the envelope stayed sealed and you couldn't bring yourself to open it.

you weren’t totally sure why. maybe because part of you didn’t want to believe he remembered and wanted to believe that you were just another name on a list, another childhood tie to help pad a story for the cameras by the social media team. or maybe you were just scared... really scared of seeing him again and realizing too much had changed. scared of realizing that he hadn’t missed you at all.

it’s four days before the race when your phone buzzes with a number you didn't have saved.

you almost don’t answer but seeing the monaco country code in front of the cell number caused curiosity to win.

“hello?”

there was a pause that caused you to almost hang up the phone and then: “so… you’re ignoring mclaren and me now?”

your heart nearly stopped and you momentarily forget how to breath. you know that voice. you’d know it in your sleep.

“oscar?”

he chuckles awkwardly. “right, yeah, hi.”

you don’t say anything right away. too many memories come rushing back all at once - karting tracks and late-night talks, sunburned grins and tear-stained goodbyes.

“i didn’t think you’d call,” you finally manage to get out after entirely too long.

“yeah, well,” he says, his voice quieter now. “mclaren told me you hadn’t responded back to our invite and i just… well.. i just wanted to make sure you got it and that my mom had your address right.”

“I got it, yeah. nicole does have my address right.” you say. “i don't know - i wasn’t sure if I should go.”

another pause. this time from his end. “why wouldn’t you come?”

you laugh bitterly. “because we haven’t talked in years, oscar. and now, out of nowhere, you send me an invite like nothing ever changed and theres nothing a little weird about it?”

“I didn’t send it to pretend nothing changed,” he counters. “I sent it because everything did change and I never stopped wishing it hadn’t. and i'm sorry that it took the mclaren pr team shoving an old photo of us in my face, that has apparently gone viral, for me to grow a pair and reach back out but here i am.”

oscar had stunned you into silence.

“i’m not asking for anything,” he almost whispered. “but it just... it would mean a lot to see you there.”

you don’t promise anything but you don’t hang up either and that’s how you know you’ve already made your decision.

the australian grand prix weekend arrives faster than you’re ready for.

you don’t remember the last time you felt this anxious. the city is buzzing with that unique energy only a race weekend can bring - the sound of cars testing engines in the distance, the people walking in and out of pit garages, the rush of adrenaline that clings to the air. you’re surrounded by it all but none of it feels as real as the invitation sitting in your pocket the one you’d finally decided to accept. the one from oscar.

you’re not sure what you expected when you finally set foot in the mclaren hospitality suite after the whirlwind of mclaren team members ushering you through various levels of the paddock. you had thought you might feel out of place. maybe even invisible. but the second you step inside, a voice you haven’t heard in forever slices through the noise of the crowd.

“y/n/n!”

it’s him. there’s no mistaking that voice.

you turn and there he is, oscar piastri, standing in the flesh like he’s never left. he's a bit taller now and his hair a little more styled but those eyes — the same familiar brown ones that always seemed to see right through you — still hold that quiet intensity you remember so well.

he’s staring at you, mouth open like he can’t quite believe you’re standing there in front of him. you can’t help but smile. for a moment, you forget about the space and time that’s stretched between you, and you’re just here. here with him. here with oscar - your oscar.

oscar takes a reluctant step forward, and then another.

“you came, y/n.” his voice is a little breathless like he’s just caught up with his own surprise.

“yeah, I did,” you reply trying to hide the nervous excitement bubbling inside you. it’s so familiar to hear him say your name yet it feels different now like you’re both stepping into an unfamiliar place, even though everything around you is the same.

you take in his face again, the way his smile is both shy and relieved. it’s still that goofy grin you remember but now it’s edged with years of experiences you’ve only seen through a screen or in photos.

“guess you’re doing well, huh?” you say gesturing to the mclaren garage around you. the fact that he’s here, that he’s made it this far, makes something in your chest swell with pride even though you’ve been away from it all for so long, you’re reminded of why you always believed in him.

“yeah, I guess so,” oscar chuckled rubbing the back of his neck. “it’s... still weird though.. coming back here - you know? it feels like everything’s changed but also like nothing’s changed at all.” he shrugged clearly feeling a little awkward. “so what’s it been? four years?” he asked, looking at you sheepishly. “I mean, I think I’ve sent you like... what, two messages in all that time?”

“something like that,” you say with a laugh but it’s a hollow one. it’s easy to brush off but underneath it all, you both know. the distance between you is far more than the years on paper.

oscar shifts on his feet and adjusts his team shirt. he’s no longer that wide-eyed kid who left melbourne chasing a dream. he’s the man who made it.

“listen,” he starts, running a hand through his hair. “I owe you an apology. for... everything. for not keeping in touch. for letting things drift between us. I was an idiot and I’m really genuinely sorry.”

“I didn’t want to hurt you, y/n/n. I didn’t mean for things to end up like this. when i left i got so caught up in everything and I never stopped to think about you. about us.“

you take a slow breath. “It’s not all your fault,” you say quietly. “I should’ve said something too. the phone definitely goes both ways osc.”

oscar let out a heavy sigh. “maybe but I should’ve been the one to fix it. i was the one who left and the one who should've done something about it. and I didn’t... I didn’t realize what I had until I lost it.”

your heart beats a little faster at his words. your mind flashes back to all the unspoken moments between you two — the laughs, the stares, the quiet understanding that never needed words, the love that had always simmered under the surface.

“and you never stopped caring for me?” you ask before you can stop yourself, your face instantly turning red.

oscar’s gaze locks onto yours, and for the first time, there’s no hesitation. “never. and honestly not only did i never stopped caring, i've also never stopped loving you. I’ve loved you for so long, y/n. i was too afraid to admit it. afraid of losing you even more than I already had.”

a lump forms in your throat. it feels like the world has paused for just a moment like it’s finally giving you both the chance to say everything you couldn’t before.

“i'm not that person anymore,” oscar adds his voice a little more vulnerable now. “i've changed and i’ve grown up and if you’re willing to give me a chance to prove that... I’d do anything to fix what I broke.”

you didn’t expect him to be this open or this honest and you sure as hell didn’t expect him to feel the same way you’d always felt.

for a moment, you’re speechless. all you can do is look at him. the boy who left, the man who came back, and somehow... it feels like maybe you’ve been waiting for him this whole time.

“oscar,” you finally say, your voice barely above a whisper. “we were both just scared and maybe we don’t need to be anymore.”

he smiles a little unsure but full of hope. “so you’ll give me a chance?”

you hesitate, your pulse quickening as you nod. “yeah. i think I will.”

oscar steps a little closer with his hand outstretched. you don’t hesitate this time. you take it and your fingers intertwine like they used to.

and for the first time in years, you allow yourself to believe that maybe, just maybe, there’s a future for both of you — together.

ﾟ. ✿ ୨❤︎୧⠀✿ . ﾟ

a/n: thank you soooo very much for reading!! i appreciate the feedback on the first part xx

tag list from pt1: @raweceekk @silverstcness @littlegrapejuice @il0vereadingstuff @ladywhistledownx

ﾟ. ✿ ୨❤︎୧⠀✿ . ﾟ

disclaimer: pictures are not mine and everything i write is fiction

© norrisainz33 || please do not rewrite, translate, or copy any of my works posted here on to any other platform

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - I'm using the word "ridiculous" a lot

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

Dec 2024 Week 3

Ongoing Series - Thai

Your Sky (Sun iQIYI) ep 5 of 12 - OMG they’re so fucking cute I can’t stand it. It’s too much. Everyone is adorable. Including the father. (That said, I wouldn’t recommend watching Naughty Babe with your dad. That’s a big leap there, cutie pie.) The 10 minutes of holding hand negotiation and then finally walking together across campus was truly fucking fantastic. This show is GLORIOUS. Now we also know when it finally does move from dreams to reality, that these two can kiss.

Actual name of this show?

How to Train Your Seme

Speaking of names, Fah's brother, whose name I forget, is now going to referred to by me as Sarcastic Cupid. Because that is his role in this narrative. I love him very much.

On a completely different note, and I know this is not that kind of show, but this is me so I have to say it, if these two ever do have sex it’s gonna take them hours. They just gonna spend half the night negotiating. Which is kind of tantric, but my goodness would they even make it into bed?

ThamePo (Fri YT) ep 2 of 12 - i just love this show!!!! so happy to have this one my screen. The dads have to save the little musical family! So cute! And illegally pretty.

Love Sick 2024 (Sun iQIYI) ep 14 of 15 - They substantially took steps to fix Phun‘s dad character in the new version and I really like that a lot. I'm chronicling my experience with 2024 as compared to 2014 here. 

Caged Again (Fri Gaga) ep 7 of 10 - Why is this absurd show so damn good? When Sun has to beg it’s just too much. It’s too sweet and aching and hurtful and wonderful. Catnip = the sex herb trope was not anything I’ve ever thought I would see in my lifetime. Okaaay now. Relax little show. Too far.

Fourever You (Thurs YT) ep 12 of 16 - The extended version is clearly better. But I’m not gonna bother to pay for it. Again, I’m liking the new couple more and more each week. I still prefer the first couple of course cause Pond but it’s enjoyable enough.

Note: I'm super grateful for those posting them as clips here on the hellsite. Because man can these boys kiss!

The Heart Killers (Weds Gaga) ep 4 of 12 - this show is so entirely and utterly ridiculous. I don’t even know what to do with it or myself. Or what to say. Carry on, I guess?

Also I don't know what GMMTV is smoking to tease this one, but I'll take a hit next time they pass the BL bong.

Perfect 10 Liners (Sun YT?) ep 7 of 24 - I am living for Pond & Sand. they are pretty much all I care about. Yes including the upcoming couples. I just want pond sand. sure the main couple was fine it was a perfectly serviceable ending to their arc such as it was. All in all I enjoyed this episode big smile on my face most of the time.

Secret Love (????) 1-60 of 81 eps - Someone dropped a cut together of episodes one through 60, and I actually quite enjoyed it. It’s a total soap opera and very much a pulp. But I kind of love that right now. Frankly, 1-60 is a completed story arc. If you want that. I will probably watch the whole thing if anybody ever uploads it or it turns up grey anywhere. But this was quite satisfying. Ridiculous but charming fluff about two stepbrothers, who aren’t really stepbrothers, who have loved each other forever and are reunited under trying family circumstances. 7/10 passes the sniff test

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Our Youth AKA Miseinen: Mijukuna Oretachi wa Bukiyo ni Shinkochu (Japan Tues Gaga) ep 7 of 11 - ARGH. The pain. what an absolutely stellar show. I can't believe we are only on ep 7!

See Your Love (Taiwan Weds Gaga) ep 9 of 13 - I love it. This show is fantastic. It’s classic BL, it’s hitting all of the tropes, and it reminds me of some of the best that Taiwan has done in the past. I’m charmed and enjoying it immensely. Taiwan isn’t great on endings so I’m reserving judgment, but what a current highlight to my week. I like these boys so much. Please be kind to me and them, Taiwan?

Eternal Butler (Taiwan Fri Gaga) eps 1-2 of 12 - Ever 4, a sophisticated AI combat robot, becomes the personal butler/bodyguard to Luo Bu Shi, a spoiled yet lonely young heir. And I like it a lot. Odd with a very old fashioned yaoi feel. Also actually kinky (not Thai kinky), I mean it's no JBL but I like it. Dommed into reading = hot. 

Teenager Judge (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 12 of ? - I love our new rescuer, he v cute! Nice addition to the cast. I hope we get more of him. Otherwise, this was more of the same. I’m getting pretty fatigued with this bully stuff at this juncture.

Love in the Air: Koi no Yokan (Japan Sat Gaga) ep 8 end - A lackluster adaptation of some already questionable content, that managed to lose all the limited charm and massive chemistry of the original. It was a mistake to do with less runtime not to mention put both climaxes in the final episode.  Too much all at once. By dividing up the two rescues and keeping them exclusive to their respective couples they highlighted the formulaic nature of the narrative and weakened the foundational friendships. The best thing about the original was the friendships both between the semes and the ukes. By having each boyfriend simply rescue his own boy without help, we didn’t get to see the depth of those friendships at all. For this reason, this installment was weaker than the original. My final feeling at the end was simply “OK whatever” not a ringing endorsement. 7/10 but barely that.

It's airing but......

Spare Me Your Mercy (Thurs iQIYI) ep 5 of 8 - on hold because it went out side genre conventions and I'm not sure what to expect. I'm waiting until it ends, then if safe I will binge.

Be Moon - Falling for my enemy's son (China YT) movie from HBD Studio airing in short bits but I couldn't find any this week.

Winter Is Not The Death of Summer (Thai ???) - has been picked up to air on WeTV, or something? Criminals who meet in prison fall in love. I did find it on YouTube, initially un-subbed, then subs happened by which time I got distracted. The first episode seems to be only six minutes long. It is very pulp. But it is intriguing. For now it's to the wayside until someone tells me it landed safely. Occasionally Thai pulps want to be edgy and it's not a good look on them.

0.5D (Japan ????) 4 eps - Supposedly a completed short. "Sales ace, Sada, has a secret that only his junior, Daiki, knows. He has pretended to have a gf for years, resulting in him being a virgin. But now Sada has fallen in love. Confused, Sada seeks advice from his junior." I sense another queer Cyrano De Bergerac. I can't find and it's good very poor review so Imma stop looking. Info here.

The Renovation (Thai mini One31) 2 eps - Writer turns his blossoming romance with holiday resort owner into a novel. Eh is it worth trying to find?

It Ended But?

Blue Canvas of Youthful Days (China Sun Viki) paused at eps 9-10 of 12 - I have been told the ending is OK if not great. I’m gonna hold off for a bit.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Final still to come:

12/29 Sangmin Dinneaw (Thai ????) ??eps - trailer Childhood friends (Thai & Korean) reunite after being apart for ten years. As the boys reconnect, their bond matures and feelings of romance begin to develop, in Thai.

Impression of Youth (Taiwan ????) ??eps - rumors are this is supposed to start this month.

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

10 years later and it's still one of BLs best cuddles (Love Sick)

Always like a seme who asks permission. (Perfect 10)

(last week)

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

[magic-shop-stories]

hiiii!! i love your writing and i think you’re absolutely amazing!! :)))

i wanted to ask what do you think yoongi would actually be like around his partner on a day to day basis like their normal routine? cuz a lot of people describe him as this cold and closed off person and a lot of people write him that way, but i feel like he’d be an actual big softie, esp around someone he’s comfortable with, i feel like he can be loud and clam as he wants to be i can never see yoongi as this cold man 😭 lol but what do you think?? in so curious about your response!!

(p.s. you’re genuinely my fav writer)

💌 Reply:

HI THERE💙 First, THANK YOU for this sweet-as-hell message... you made my tired little heart do a backflip 🥺 and I am so sorry this took ages; life’s been… a lot lately. BUT! I’m 1000% with you! Yoongi isn’t cold, he’s "selectively soft"... like, he’s the human equivalent of a grumpy cat who only cuddles ONE person but will scratch anyone else who tries to pet him. 😭 My take: he’s guarded, not icy. around his partner?... total marshmallow. He’ll grumble about “disgusting” PDA but hold your hand under the table at dinner. He’ll call you “annoying” for sending memes at 3 a.m.… then reply with a 10-minute voice note dissecting them. And YES, he’s loud... (sometimes) argues with the TV during basketball matches, sings your favourite songs in the shower, and laughs like a windshield wiper when you tickle him. 🖤 also… same. Lot of people, especially my bf's parents think i’m “calm and shy” but my friends know I’m a loud chaos gremlin who would do anything for them - ignoring social anxiety (like walking full confidence mode in a bakery, asking if they sell rubber boots - just for fun) - maybe that's why he's my bias... Yoongi’s that friend who’s silent at parties but sends you 47 texts about his new plant’s emotional needs. Privacy ≠ Coldness... it’s just love on HIS terms. ANYWAY, I got a little overexcited and wrote a *few headcanons of this... he’s a soft, salty, secretly clingy legend who will fight the microwave if it beeps too loud. THANK YOU so much for trusting me with this ask – c -

MIN YOONGI (SUGA) DAILY ROUTINE HEADCANONS  X PARTNER

MORNING

-“I’M A CAT, NOT A CEO”- or -“I’M NOT A MORNING PERSON, BUT YOU MAKE IT BEARABLE"-

Wake-Up Time (9:30 AM)

Yoongi stirs awake like a disgruntled cat

wakes at 9:30 a.m. after 7 hours of very specific sleep

= blackout curtains, white noise, 2 pillows minimum

burying his face in the pillow to avoid the sunlight creeping through the curtains

his first coherent thought is always: “Why does the sun hate me?”

first words: “Coffee. Now.”

if you’re still asleep, he’ll freeze mid-stretch

holding his breath to avoid waking you

he fails, because his elbow always knocks over the water glass on the nightstand

you crack one eye open to see him crouched on the floor?

he's swiping at the spilled water with a sock

“Go back to sleep."

cheeks pink

“This is… hydration therapy for the carpet."

REAL Coffee Ritual (9:45 AM)

shuffles/ tiptoes to the kitchen

hair sticking up in three directions

slams the coffee machine buttons with the intensity of a concert pianist

Loudly

because subtlety is for people who don’t have a Grammy

while it brews, he leans against the counter, squinting at his phone

you find him half-asleep standing up

his forehead pressed to the fridge

coffee pot beeps

he jolts awake

“I was meditating.”

later brings you a mug with a scribbled sticky note: “70% caffeine, 30% my soul.”

Breakfast (10:15 AM)

Yoongi’s ideal breakfast is whatever requires zero effort

maximum efficiency

he’ll eat cereal straight from the box or gnaw on a banana like a raccoon

if you mention craving kimchi jjigae, he’ll sigh dramatically

then spend 20 minutes digging through the fridge

burns the rice - Again

you poke the charred crust?

he crosses his arms

“It’s fusion cuisine. Carbon is a flavor.”

you both end up ordering delivery

he saves the burnt rice in a Tupperware labeled “Hyung’s Art™.” (just to annoy you a bit)

but if you’re sick?

suddenly he’s a Michelin chef

“I watched a YouTube video. Sit.”

presents you with seaweed soup that’s perfect

Pre-Studio Routine (10:45 AM)

disappears into the bathroom for his “productivity ritual”

= brushing his teeth while blasting Agust D’s “Daechwita” at full volume

mirror fogs from his aggressive air-conducting

you catch him mid-headbang

toothpaste dripping down his chin

he pauses, deadpan

“What? The dentist said to brush for two minutes. I’m being thorough.”

DAYTIME

-“I’M WORKING, BUT I’M ALSO JUDGING YOU”- or -“I’M BUSY, BUT I NOTICED YOU”-

Studio Hours (11:00 AM – 5:00 PM)

Yoongi’s studio is a sacred cave

empty coffe cups, MIDI controllers, and a single framed photo of your family dogs (because I'm 100% sure he'd have more than one if he had a partner)

texts you sporadically or every 90 minutes without context:

“Lunch?” (translation: I forgot to eat) “This kick drum sounds like a dying robot. Fix it.” (attaches a 3-second clip) “Why is the sky blue?” (he’s been staring at a synth preset named “Azure” for too long)

you drop off a lunchbox?

he’s so engrossed in a track that he doesn’t notice you until you wave a mandu under his nose

“Oh. You’re here.”

takes a bite mid-note

“...Not bad. Did you poison it?”

proceeds eats the whole thing

Studio Visit (3:00 PM)

if you stay, he lets you lurk, giving you his hoodie

plays you a demo he’s been obsessing over

stares at your face like a scientist awaiting a breakthrough

you hum a melody suggestion?

he rolls his eyes

“That’s… basic.”

two days later, you hear it in his new track

you call him out?

he mutters: “Coincidence.”

casually mentions he produced a track for PSY

when you freak out, he shrugs

“He’s cool. Liked my jeans.”

“Break Time” (4:30 PM)

drags you to the convenience store under the guise of “needing air"

translation: he wants strawberry milk and someone to rant to about the music industry

debates the cashier about the ethics of pineapple on pizza

slamming a bag of shrimp chips on the counter (but soft)

you find a pineapple juice in the grocery bag later

“For research."

drags you to the rooftop

translation: 10 minutes of him ranting about a synth plugin while stealing your fries

EVENINGS

-“LOUD, SOFT, AND UNFILTERED”-

Dinner (7:00 PM)

Yoongi’s cooking skills are much better than he'd ever admit

but also has a few things he just hates making

he’ll attempt kimchi fried rice if you’re sick

smoke alarm sings backup

serves you a charred lump with a side of cucumber slices cut into hearts

“Eat. Now.”

lets you feed him spicy tteokbokki

despite his “delicate palate”

sweats magnificently

“It’s fine. I’m fine.”

Post-Dinner Chaos (8:00 PM)

challenges you to Mario Kart or any other game you like playing

then loses spectacularly

“Rematch. Now.”

when he finally wins, he does a victory lap around the couch

“Bow to your king.”

you catch him practicing rainbow road alone at 1 a.m.

“Training."

ears red

next day, he beats you by 0.2 seconds and frames the score screen

Quiet Hours (10:00 PM)

reads webtoons/weverse posts; watches videos etc. with his head in your lap

snorting

“This guy’s a worse rapper than Jungkook.”

you stroke his hair?

he pretends not to purr

falls asleep mid-sentence

phone dropping on his face

you snap a photo

he wakes up, sees it, and deletes it

but not before setting it as your contact photo

NIGHTTIME

-“I’M A CAT, NOT A ROMANTIC”-

Skincare Saga (11:00 PM)

11-step routine (he gatekeeps) = a sacred ritual

applies serum with the precision of a heart surgeon

you mock him?

he retaliates by slapping a face mask on you

“Now who’s glowing?”

you catch him using your expensive eye cream

“It was… expiring”

LIES

next day, a new bottle appears in your bathroom

Bedtime (12:00 AM)

hogs the blanket

pulls you close so your icy feet press against his calves

“You’re like a yet” “A what?” “A yeti. But smaller.”

mumbles half-asleep

“Marry me? Oppa needs health insurance.”

you laugh

he pouts

“Joking. …Mostly.”

HIS LOVE LANGUAGE

-“DON’T MAKE ME SAY IT”-

ACTS OF SERVICE

-“DON’T THANK ME. JUST LIVE.”-

his love is a silent, relentless doing

he won’t write sonnets

he’ll rewrite your life to make it easier

Tech Savior

your laptop dies mid-deadline?

Yoongi confiscates it with a grunt

returns it 3 hours later with a new SSD

pirated Windows license (“Don’t ask”)

sticky note: “Backup your files, dumbass.”

you try to hug him?

he dodges

“It was boring. Needed a break from genius.”

then kisses your forehead

remembers your allergy meds better than you

“Take it. Now. I’m not nursing you through a sneezeocalypse.”

Protector Mode

at a party, a drunk acquaintance sneers:

“Your partner’s awfully quiet.” 

Yoongi steps between you

voice glacial

“And you’re awfully loud. Funny how that works.”

later, he drags you to a fair (not because he wants to be there but he knows you like it)

“Let’s drown out the idiots.”

wins you a mangled plushie and calls it “therapy”

Ultimate Gesture

you mention wanting to learn piano?

next day, a piano appears in the living room

“It was free."

LIES (you find the horredous receipt later)

when you play a shaky rendition of “Spring Day,” he records it secretly

uses it as ambient noise

PHYSICAL TOUCH

-“I’M NOT CUDDLY…FINE, I’M CUDDLY.”-

Yoongi’s touch is rare

it's mostly on his turns

tho deliberate, and electric

= a language he speaks only with you

Workaholic Affection

you find him slumped over his desk

forehead dented by MIDI keys

he doesn’t wake when you drape a blanket over him

but his hand snakes out to grip your wrist

“Five more minutes."

you sit cross-legged on the floor

his thumb brushing your pulse until his breathing evens

The Yoongi Glomp™

after a brutal week, you collapse on the couch

he wordlesssly flops on top of you

limbs splayed like a starfish

“Charging."

mutters into your neck

his weight is a lead blanket

but his fingers trace idle circles on your hip/back/side... everywhere

leans his full weight against you when tired

“You’re comfy. Don’t move.”

plays with your hair while brainstorming lyrics

“It helps… science.”

Public Exception

at a crowded event, you sway on your feet

Yoongi materializes beside you

palm pressed to the small of your back

“Eat something."

hisses, steering you toward the buffet

his hand stays anchored

pinky hooked in your belt loop

ARMYs later dissect the photo: “Why is Suga glaring at that samosa?!”

ROASTS AS LOVE LETTERS

-“YOU’RE LUCKY YOU’RE PRETTY.”-

Yoongi’s insults are love poems in disguise

= sharp, specific, and weirdly tender

Breakfast Roast

you burn toast

he sniffs

“Congrats. You’ve invented charcoal.”

he slathers it in butter and eats the whole thing

later, he buys a toaster oven “for humanitarian reasons”

Compliment War

you call him “cute”

he recoils

“I’m a wolf.”

next day, he texts: “Your face is… acceptable.” 

translates to: “You’re the moon, the stars, the...” 

nope.... he’d rather die than let you have evidence

Emergency Sarcasm

you cry during a movie

he freezes

“If you ruin my hoodie, I’m billing you.”

he pulls you into his lap and lets you stain his shirt

“Drama queen."

whispers, wiping your cheeks

QUALITY TIME

-“YOU’RE LESS ANNOYING THAN MY SYNTHS.”-

Yoongi’s version of romance: existing together, no performative fluff

Parallel Play

you read; he produces

hours pass in silence until he spins his chair around

“Listen to this.”

it’s a melody that mirrors the book’s climax

“Coincidence."

it’s not

Errand Partner

drags you to Home Depot for studio cables

you mock his obsession with “gold-plated connectors"

he retaliates by comparing your sneakers to “grandpa slippers”

you leave with cables, tulip bulbs (“For the vibe”), and matching keychains he “didn’t” buy

Midnight Musings

wakes you at 2 a.m.

eyes wild

“I figured out the bridge."

plays a track so raw it steals your breath

“Well?” he demands

you say nothing

just kiss him

he scowls

“Distracting me won’t work.”

it does

WORDS OF AFFIRMATION

-“…SHUT UP.”-

Yoongi’s verbal love is a rare gem

buried under layers of grump

Accidental Confession

you help him translate English lyrics

stares at your scribbles

“You’re… not useless.”

high praise

Drunk Honesty

at a staff dinner, soju loosens his tongue

slurs into your ear

“Your brain’s sexy. Stop laughing.”

next morning, he claims amnesia

you have a voice memo

Ultimate Sacrifice

you overhear him ranting to Jungkook

“Of course I love them. They’re my… favorite person.”

when you barge in, he chokes

“You... heard nothing.”

but at the break, when alone, kisses you senseless

SECRETLY SOFT MOMENTS

"ACCIDENTAL" NAP CUDDLES

I think he acts like he hates being called cute

but after pulling three all-nighters in the studio, he’ll stumble home

collapse facedown on the couch

unconsciously drags you into a koala grip

when he wakes up, he’ll deny it

“You latched onto me”

he’ll grumble

even though his hoodie is still bunched in your fist and his cheek bears a crease from your shirt buttons

his phone buzzes with a studio alert

he silences it

tucks your hair behind your ear

“Five more minutes.”

falls back asleep

you count his eyelashes - he knows

"I SAW THIS AND THOUGHT OF YOU" GIFTS

they’re never wrapped

never labeled

just appear where you’ll find them

a limited-edition vinyl of your favorite indie band in your tote bag

single persimmon on your desk during a stressful week

“They were out of apples.”

drove 30 minutes to the farmer’s market

USB drive labeled “DO NOT OPEN” left on your pillow

it’s a playlist of piano covers he recorded of your favorite songs

RARE VERBAL VULNERABILITY

slips out when he’s half-asleep, tipsy, or distracted

Post-Concert Murmur

sweaty and buzzing from adrenaline

presses his forehead to yours

“You’re my… home base. Don’t tell anyone.”

Mid-Soba Slurp

“… glad you exist.”

stabs a dumpling

“Eat.”

After a Nightmare

shakes you awake

breathing ragged

“Stay. Here.”

doesn’t let go until sunrise

EMBARRASSINGLY EARNEST DANCE

he’ll swear he’s “rhythmically challenged."

after his first Grammy win, he slow-dances with you in the hotel hallway

humming off-key

“Don’t laugh. We're celebrating.”

catches you dancing to “SEXY NUKIM” while washing dishes

joins you with exaggerated shoulder rolls

“What? It’s exercise.”

"I NOTICED" MOMENTS

you mention loving a long-dead poet once

he hunts down their first edition book

leaves it on your nightstand with a note: “Page 42. You’ll get it.” 

it’s a poem about quiet love

remembers your childhood fear of thunderstorms

during a storm, he “accidentally” schedules a power outage movie marathon

“Coincidence. Guess we have to cuddle.”

UNEXPECTED PUBLIC DISPLAY

Yoongi hates PDA

but sometimes, when the world feels too heavy he does ot

links pinkies with you under the dinner table while arguing with Jin about kimchi recipes

at a red carpet event, he tugs your earring straight and lingers

thumb brushing your jaw

paparazzi photos trend for days

he refuses to explain

"CHILDHOOD YOONGI" GLIMPSES

shows you a photo of his 10-year-old self holding a toy keyboard

“I was… cooler then”

he wasn't

teaches you his hometown dialect

“Say ‘I’m hungry’ like a real Daegu kid.”

laughs so hard he snorts

lets you wear his pre debut scarf

“It’s vintage. Don’t ruin it.”

he secretly loves it

DEFENSIVE AFFECTION

you get sick

he buys every medicine in the pharmacy

arranges them by symptom

glares at your fever

catches a staff member teasing you

interrupts their meeting

“Apologize. Or I’ll release your karaoke footage.”

"YOU’RE MY PERSON" RITUALS

lets you pick his hair color

“Gray? I’ll look like a grandpa.”

does it anyway.

shares his headphones during flights

playing his unfinished demos

“Don’t fall asleep. Feedback.”

you do

he doesn’t mind

whispered truths in the dark

“I’d burn it all down for you. Don’t ask me to.”

[storytowrite]

|The FINE Art ~ Hwang Hyunjin|

Theme: Art Student! Hyunjin x Y/N

Warnings: mention of nudity, smut, 18+, unprotected sex, the age gap Y/N is 15 years older than Hyunjin.

Word Count: 5257

Summary: Life wasn’t easy for you. You lost your job, lost your husband who remarried and took everything away leaving you only with an old, sick cat. You desperately needed money. Thankfully, your friend is an art teacher and your body is quite tempting. Especially for the young, talented student.

------------------

“I’m sorry ma’am, but the cat needs surgery if you want it to live longer. We cannot wait long.” The vet said his verdict. Your old cat, Lemon, was ill, and you knew that. The thing was that you didn’t have enough money and you were in a really bad situation. 

“How much is for the surgery?” You asked. 

“It will cost about $3000 in total with all the care.” The vet answered your question and you sighed heavily. Why on Earth does it cost so much?! And more importantly - how will you gather all the money needed? 

“All right… If that’ll help him, please do everything you can. I can’t lose him too.” You said tiredly. 

“We’ll do everything we can to save this little boy.” The vet smiled at you honestly. 

You nodded and left your cat at the vet’s clinic. It wasn’t a good timing for such expenses, but you had to do everything you could to just save your animal. You sighed heavily once again. The previous week was hard and now this. Your life was a mess. You lost the job, since your boss decided to hire “some younger girls” and you were simply too old in his eyes. 

The divorce process was finally over. But unfortunately your ex-husband took everything he could, including your apartment. Because of this, you had to move in with your friend, at least until you get back on your feet again. Fortunately, Lina was happy to help you. 

You returned home wasted and without your cat, which you left at the veterinary clinic. You wanted to cry. Earning $3,000 in a short time seemed unrealistic. Well, because how to do it? 

"Oh Y/N are you back already?" Asked Lina peering at you from above another artwork she was working on. "Everything ok baby?" 

"No, nothing is ok. Lemon needs surgery and I don't have that much money to pay for it. And I still can't find a job. Everything is falling apart for me." You sat down heavily on the couch. "And I also need to find an apartment and..." 

"Woah, slow down honey. I don't mind your company. You and Lemon can stay with me as long as you need, after all, you know that.... And as for work, I think I have an idea." She smiled slightly at you. You knew that kind of smile from Lina's genre of brilliant ideas. 

"Oh no, why do I feel like I'm going to regret this?" You asked, looking at your friend. 

"Don't exaggerate, it's nothing like that.... Besides, we'll both benefit from it." 

"Fine, what's the idea?" You asked, slightly curious. 

"Great... you'll love it!" She clapped her hands. 

After an hour of talking to your friend and her persuading you, you finally agreed to help her with her little project. Lina was a drawing teacher in the art department, and her students were just starting to learn how to sketch real people. They needed a model for this, since the topic was THE FEMALE BODY. 

At first you had a lot of concerns. Lina wanted you to pose nude in front of a group of some of her top students. You had huge objections to this. You didn't feel like showing your body to strangers in their twenties. But you had no choice. The deal was simple, 10 sessions at $300 each, for a maximum of five hours per class. That is, two weeks of work. You were able to do it, right? 

"I don't know Lina, I have to think about it..." You said, glancing at her. 

"Just don't make me wait too long for your answer.... Besides, you have a beautiful body for our age, so what's the problem?" She asked lightly. 

"What do you mean what's the problem? I'm supposed to show off to a group of 20-year-olds? After all, they are children!" 

"Honey, these are young adults. Besides, they are just a few people. I'd rather pay you than some strangers. Think of Lemon. He needs this operation.... And if you prove yourself, who knows? Maybe I'll hire you permanently?" She persuaded you further. 

" Oh, hell no... I'll find a job, eventually." You replied quickly. "But fine. I'll take part in it..." You agreed, sighing heavily. "Just so I don't regret it..." 

"Believe me, you won't and you'll even like it!" She replied excitedly. "We'll start first thing tomorrow morning! Prepare yourself properly, you know, shave and.... " 

"Okay, I'll prepare properly.... Anything else?" You asked in a tired voice, interrupting her sentence. 

"Hm... take some clothes to change into.... And well, put on some nice underwear. Tomorrow we start with the upper body. The students will sketch your torso and breasts above all. Well, and tie your hair in a ponytail, it will be easier to see your collarbones.... But that's at ease, I'll tell you everything exactly tomorrow." She grinned. "Go rest, I still have to finish here." 

You sighed heavily and went straight to the bathroom, following your friend's directions. You still weren't convinced about the idea, but the situation forced you to do so. You felt stress above all. You may have had a nice, fit body, but you certainly weren't used to showing it to strangers. 

After a long and warm shower, you headed to your bedroom, where you fell asleep rather quickly. The next day would be a very long one... 

The next day you got up early, got dressed and did light makeup. You left your hair loose, for now at least. Later you'll tie it up in a ponytail. Your friend had already been bustling around in the kitchen since morning. 

"Good morning! Ready for today's challenges?" Asked a delighted Lina. 

"Mhm, I won't be any more than I am." You muttered uneasily. 

"Oh grumpy... Come on, or we'll be late." Lina didn't seem to mind your dissatisfaction. 

"And breakfast?" You asked. 

"We don't have time... you'll get something on the spot." Your friend waved her hand and pulled you with her to the exit. You left her apartment and headed for the car. The trip to the university didn't take long, but you were getting more and more stressed with each passing moment. No wonder, after all, you will be posing naked.... 

You entered the university and headed straight to the room where the classes would be held. Lina showed you everything inside and once again reminded you what to do and how to do it. Your task was quite simple. All you had to do was show some breasts and sit still on a stool for a good couple of hours. 

The students began to fill the room, and you heard Lina greeting them cheerfully. You sighed quietly. It's going to be a long couple of hours. 

"Dear students, I have a little surprise for you today." You heard your friend's words. "A good friend of mine has agreed to get herself acquainted with us. As I said, you will learn sketching on a living organism.... Y/N come join us and show yourself to our students." 

You took a deeper breath and stepped out from behind the screen. You stressed all over. You stood in the middle, right next to your friend, trying not to catch eye contact with any of the students in the room. 

You quickly swept your eyes around the room. There were eight students in the classroom, three girls and five boys. They looked rather uninterested. You glanced out of the corner of your eye at Lina, who continued her argument. 

"Y/N will be our model today. Please be nice to her, she has never done this before. Today we'll take care of the upper body. Your task is to reproduce Y/N's torso and breasts. We sketch from the neck until we reach this point." Lina showed them exactly how much to sketch. "Y/N honey, take off your top and bra and sit on the stool. Do any of you have any questions?" 

The students did not answer Lina's question. You, on the other hand, with slightly trembling hands, undressed from the waist up and sat on the stool. Your friend even gave you a pillow to make you more comfortable. 

"Great, push your breasts out a little more and..." Lina began to correct your positioning. "Perfect! Okay darlings, you can begin." 

The group of students got down to sketching. You swept your eyes around the room. Everyone was focused to make the best possible representation of your body. Lina walked among the students and glanced at their progress. 

Time passed quickly. The students worked in silence. None of them had spoken a word since they entered the room. They were focused on the task at hand. 

One of the men present in the room caught your attention. You had never seen such a handsome man before. He had noble features, his hair was slightly longer and black. He had an earring under his eyebrow, and a black leather jacket perfectly framed his body. 

You swallowed your saliva. The man looked like a prince, and there was plenty of finesse and elegance in his movements. You honestly couldn't take your eyes off him. There was something about him that attracted you to him, something magnetic that you could not describe in words. 

The man in question noticed your gaze. It was as if he sensed that you were looking at him. He raised his gaze slightly, looking deeply into your eyes, and gently raised his eyebrow. You felt a blush appear on your face and your throat suddenly became dry. A strange feeling welled up in your lower abdomen as he smiled slightly and winked at you. 

"All right my dears. Let's take a break for a while." Lina suddenly announced, breaking the silence that had prevailed. "Let's let Y/N stretch her legs.... Come back here in 15 minutes and we'll continue." 

The students put down their sketches and began to leave the room for the break, and Lina handed you a sweatshirt to cover yourself. She smiled warmly at you in the process. 

"Well? Not so bad, huh?" She asked. 

"It's fine... Although I was stressed." You replied and took a sip of water. "Your students aren't very talkative, are they?" 

"As artists are." 

"I thought there would be more students in the room." You said, sipping water again. 

"Nah, I have a small group. But they are the best of the best.... You could say it's such a VIP class." Lina laughed. "You know, it's an extra class for the more ambitious ones." 

"Oh, now I understand..." You nodded, and your thoughts fled to the mysterious boy with an earring under his eyebrow. 

"Would you like to take a peek at the sketches? The students really sketched your body very well..." Lina took one sketchbook in her hand, belonging to the boy you were looking at. "Oh look, Hyunjin did it the best. That boy can perfectly render every detail.... He's my top-of-the-class student." She smiled proudly. So the boy's name was Hyunjin. 

"Wow... This is amazing." You said, sincerely impressed by the way Hyunjin rendered all the details. He even sketched the delicate birthmark you had under your breast. 

"Right?" Lina asked. "If you ask Hyunjin nicely, he might give you his sketch..." She winked. "He has a real talent, and by the way he looks like Aphrodite herself conceived him. He could be a model, but there's a rule at the university that students can't pose, which is a shame..." She sighed quietly. "I myself sometimes wish I could see..." 

"Lina! This is your student..." reprimanded your friend. 

"I know, that's why I leave some things only in dreams." She laughed quietly. "Hungry? I'll get you something to eat." As she said, so she did, quickly leaving the room.

You sighed softly and your stomach growled. Not eating breakfast before leaving was a mistake. You glanced at your watch. The break was slowly coming to an end and your friend had not yet returned with the promised food. In turn, students slowly began to return to the room.

"Hungry?" You suddenly heard a voice behind you. You turned to look at the owner. In front of you stood Hyunjin, who was a head taller than you. He smiled slightly and handed you a banana. "Eat... you've got another 2.5 hours of sitting ahead of you."

“T-Thank you…” You said, taking the banana from him and peeling it right away.

"You welcome... I wanted to say that you have really beautiful breasts." He said, looking you straight in the eye. "I can't wait for the next few days to see the rest."

"Oh thank you?" You replied slightly confused and blushed slightly.

"Nothing." Hyunjin winked at you. 

"Okay, guys! We can get back to work!" Lina called as she entered the room. "Y/N, please sit down the same way you sat before. Perfect! Remember, there are 2.5 hours left until the end of time. At the end of the day, you should have at least five sketches."

Everyone went back to work. The banana Hyunjin gave you, calmed your stomach for a while. You sighed quietly, sitting half-naked on the stool. Honestly, you were counting down the minutes until the end. 

Every now and then you found yourself staring at Hyunjin, who was working intently on the sketches of your body. You couldn't take your eyes off him. He was too handsome to resist. You didn't even feel that time had passed quickly. 

Lina announced the end of class and let you get dressed. Students slowly began to file out of the room. You watched them leave, saying a quiet 'goodbye'. Your friend approached you after everyone else had left the room."You were great today." She grinned. 

"I'm taking you to dinner, come on! And mentally prepare for tomorrow. We'll show them a little more... Can you handle it?"

"Yes, I think I can... Although I don't know if I want to show them everything." You started.

"Well, tomorrow's plan is legs... you can have a thong, we'll move on to the private parts at the end of the week, and next week we'll have poses... Well, I think you should be able to handle everything easily." Lina continued.

“Mhm, if you say so…” You muttered. The prospect of showing your private parts to students didn't make you feel optimistic, but when you thought about Hyunjin, it didn't sound so bad either...

—-------------------

The week flew by very quickly. The students tried to accurately portray all the details of your body on paper. On Friday, the last day of the first week, there was a class on sketching 'private body parts', as Lina called it. And that meant you had to show your vagina. 

The thought of this did not fill you with any optimism at all. You didn't want to expose yourself so much in front of the students, but Lina forced it on you. To be fair, she did suggest that she would pay you more for the day, so with a slight hesitation you agreed. 

You sat in the room wrapped only in a silk dressing gown and waited for the class to start. Your friend went to talk to the dean, leaving you alone. You sighed quietly and stuck your gaze into your phone, trying to calm your thoughts. 

Hyunjin entered the room, but you were so busy with your social media that you didn't notice his presence. The boy walked over to his stand and unpacked all the necessary items before turning towards you. 

"Hi pretty." He said in a velvety voice, snapping you out of your activity. "What are you going to show us today?" He asked and winked slightly. 

"Ekhm... Private parts." You replied feeling a little intimidated, looking up at him. 

"And you're convinced about that?" He asked. "You look confused and scared." 

"Well, it's certainly quite a step out of my comfort zone.... But I can't back down now." You answered honestly. 

"I understand... If it's any comfort to you, I'll try to replicate everything very accurately." He smiled.

"Thanks I guess..." She grunted. "I've seen your work before. You have great talent," he said. 

"Thank you, beautiful." He smiled warmly at you. "But the credit goes to the model I sketch." He winked, and a blush appeared on your cheeks. "It suits you this colour, you know? I wish I could paint a picture of you. In a red see-through nightgown.... What do you think?" 

"A painting?" You blinked, not expecting such a proposal. "I don't know..." 

"I have to create a portfolio for the final exam.... I've already painted three paintings of my friends, but I still have one left. And you are beautiful. I'll pay." He replied, watching your reaction. 

"I have to think about it..." You replied, but didn't finish the sentence because he walked in on you in mid-word. 

"I understand." He replied and wrote something down on a piece of paper. " Here, this is my phone number, if you make a decision, just text me..." He handed you a small piece of paper with the number on it. "Just don't make me wait too long for an answer, lovely." 

"R-right." You replied and hid his number in a safe place. 

The rest of the students entered the room, along with your friend, who smiled broadly at you. She welcomed the students and gave them the guidelines for the assignment. 

"Well Y/N. Sit with your hands behind your back and push your chest forward a little too. And spread your legs..." She said to you and helped you adjust your position. "My dears, you may begin. "

Sitting apart in front of a group of people has not been one of the most comfortable activities in your life. However, you didn't pay much attention to it yourself. Your thoughts were consumed with Hyunjin's proposal. Should you accept it? He said he would pay, and so far there was no indication that you would find a job.... 

You decided to give it a chance and agree to his proposal. After all, it's just another day's work as a "model." You survived a whole week in front of students, you'll survive being alone with Hyunjin too. 

Before you knew it, the class was over and the students had left the room, and you were free to get dressed. Lina was still talking to individuals while you typed Hyunjin's number into your phone. You made up your mind and as soon as he left the room, you texted him. 

[Y/N]

Ok. I agree.... When do you want to do it? ~ Y/N

[Hyunjin] 

Wonderful news sweetheart! Let's meet tomorrow evening at my place. Remember, red nightgown 😘

 He wrote back almost immediately. You swallowed your saliva. What are you actually doing? 

—-------------------

The next day you went to the address Hyunjin sent you in a text message. You were stressed. You didn't know what it should look like or how long it would take. Your body trembled and your mind wandered into dangerous territory. You felt both apprehension and excitement about the whole situation. 

You stood in front of the door of his apartment. You took a few deep breaths and knocked gently. You waited, listening for the sound of footsteps. After a while, the young man opened the door for you and let you in with a smile. 

"I'm glad you agreed." He said, taking over your coat from you. "Make yourself comfortable... Would you like something to drink before we start? Coffee? Tea? Water? Maybe wine?" 

"Water is enough... Although I won't actually despise wine either." You replied and timidly entered his living room. 

The room was large, definitely bigger than your friend's entire apartment. Not surprising, after all, Hyunjin lived in one of the more expensive neighbourhoods in your city. The white leather furniture, laced with gold accessories, perfectly matched the aura that this man was producing. Everything seemed truly royal. 

"Wow." You gasped in awe. 

"Do you like it? My parents made sure I was comfortable in the city.... Would you like a tour of the apartment?" He asked, handing you a glass of red wine. 

"I'd love to... If I can, of course." You accepted the drink from him and took a sip. 

The boy showed you his entire apartment. He had three bedrooms, but he had transformed one into a studio, and the other was used as a dressing room. 

"Okay, ready for us to start?" He asked as you walked through the apartment.

"I think so." You replied hesitantly.

"Great!" He smiled broadly. "Come on, I'll paint you in the studio... I'll get everything ready and you can go and change in the bathroom. Leave when you're ready. It'll take me a while to paint though... It'll take all weekend, actually. But like I said, I'll pay. $1000 is enough?"

"H-how much?" You were stunned when you heard the amount he gave.

“If it's not enough, just tell me…” He replied, watching you.

"Not enough? I didn't expect it to be so much..." You started. "It's too much���"

"Hmm... I don't think so." He shrugged. "We'll talk about it later... You can go change in the bathroom now and I'll set everything ready here." He said, unimpressed.

“Sure…” You replied and headed to the bathroom.  $1000 to pose? You were shocked. How much money does this young man actually have? 

After a few minutes you were ready. You looked at your reflection in the mirror. You were wearing a slightly see-through red nightgown that hugged your body perfectly and highlighted all your curves. You decided to leave your hair down, but you put a small decoration in it. You fixed your delicate makeup and went out to Hyunjin.

"Wow, you look amazing." He said as soon as he noticed you. "Like I said, this colour suits you very well."

"Thank you." You replied, slightly embarrassed.

"Okay, you can lie down." He pointed to a small sofa in the center of the room. "I would like you to lie down comfortably, and if you want to sleep, just close your eyes. The only thing that matters is that you stay in the position I put you in."

“Sure, I can do it…” You replied and followed his directions. You settled into a comfortable position on the sofa and Hyunjin stood over you. He leaned down gently and positioned your body. His touch was pleasant. You felt the nice warmth radiating from his body.

"Perfect." He said and smiled contentedly. "Okay, let's get started. If you want a break then say so." 

Hyunjin began to paint. You lay there without moving, watching his every move. You began to wonder how it was that your life had brought you to the point where you were. 

Hyunjin painted in concentration, and there was silence between the two of you. You didn't seem to mind. You felt your eyelids become heavy and you didn't even know when you fell asleep. 

You woke up after some time and stretched slightly. It was already twilight outside. You looked around the room you were in. Hyunjin was nowhere to be found. You stood up and stretched your stagnant body again. You were curious to see how Hyunjin's progress was going, but before you could get closer to the painting, the door of the room opened. 

"Oh, you're awake already." Hyunjin smiled slightly. "Hungry? Come, I've prepared dinner." 

Only when the boy mentioned food did you feel that you were actually hungry. You followed him into the kitchen, where delicious smells were coming from. 

"You are handsome, you paint and you cook. Is there anything you can't do?" You asked, sitting down at the table. Hyunjin glanced at you laughing. 

"Thank you for the compliment, beautiful." He winked, at which you blushed. He served you dinner and you began to eat. 

"Enough with the painting for today, it's late." Hyunjin said. "If you want, you can stay the night.... We'll start again first thing tomorrow morning anyway." 

"I don't want to get..." You started. 

"But that's not up for discussion." He interrupted you in mid-sentence. "It's late, I don't want you to go home when it's dark outside.... I'll prepare a bed for you." 

"Hyunjin, but really..." You started again but his one look left you unsure what to say next. "Okay. I'll stay the night." 

"Great." He smiled at you. "Come on, I'll give you something to sleep on..." 

" You know, after all, I can sleep in what I'm wearing." You replied while watching him. 

"Believe me, if you stay in this red nightgown, I won't hold back."  He replied with full seriousness. 

"Oh..." You made a sound. " All right..." 

You followed him to his dressing room, which occupied the other room. Hyunjin walked over to a cabinet and pulled out an oversized hoodie and handed it to you. "It should fit." He smiled slightly. 

"Thank you." You replied with a slight smile. "I'll take a shower." 

Hyunjin nodded and you parted the rooms. You went to the bathroom to take a quick shower, and a pleasant feeling once again settled in your lower abdomen. Hyunjin, on the other hand, was in the bedroom preparing a place for you to sleep. 

After some time, you came out of the bathroom in his hoodie. You could smell his perfume lingering on his clothes. You smiled slightly, to yourself. His scent was so soothing. 

"Do you like the smell?" You suddenly heard his voice behind you, at which you jumped slightly. 

"Y-yes." You stuttered, at which the boy smiled. 

"I have to say, no matter what you're wearing, you're every bit as beautiful." He said, walking closer to you. "I like you Y/N." 

"Thank you, I guess..." You took a gentle step back unsure of where this conversation was leading. 

"When I say I like you, I really mean it." Hyunjin leaned slightly over you and brushed lightly against your waist. You swallowed your saliva as you looked straight into his eyes, your back resting against the wall. Hyunjin was leaning with his hand right next to your head and his body was leaning against yours. You bit your lip slightly and gently moved your legs, feeling yourself slowly getting wet. The situation you found yourself in was definitely not on your bingo card. 

"Hyunjin, we don't..." You began, trying to keep up any semblance of a smile yet. However, his closeness and magnetic scent were too tempting to resist. 

"Shhhsh." The boy moved his thumb over your swollen lips. "You don't even realise how sexy you look right now." He whispered in your ear while biting your earlobe, which was met with a quiet sigh that left your lips. You felt his gentle smile as he moved closer to your neck and gently moved his velvety lips across it. "You like it." He stated, observing your reaction to his touch. "I wonder if you'll like this too." He added and moved his hands a little lower, slipping them under the hoodie. 

"Hyunjin, it's not..." You started, but feeling his long fingers glide across your skin, leaving goosebumps on it, you were unable to control your senses. Hyunjin's lips attacked your neck more boldly, and you tilted your head further back so he could have better access. 

Hyunjin glided his lips along your neck looking for weak spots, and once he found them, he immediately started leaving red hickeys in those spots, which was met with your moans of approval. 

You rested your hands on his torso, and the young man delicately lifted you up, grabbing your buttocks. You put your legs around his waist as his lips found their way right to yours. 

"I want you." He whispered, brushing his lips lightly against yours. "And I know you want me too. Say it." 

"Please." You said quietly. 

"You're asking? For what?" He asked backing away slightly which was met with your disapproval. 

"Kiss me, please." You moaned pleadingly. Hyunjin smiled at you and pressed his lips into yours. His kiss was firm and forceful, but that's what you liked best. You moaned blissfully into his mouth as he grabbed your buttocks tighter. Hyunjin took this as a sign of approval and carried you to his bedroom. 

Hyunjin put you on the bed immediately, finding himself above you. His knee came between your legs pressing lightly on your spot. He leaned over a little more and cupped your hoodie with his hands. 

"You are phenomenal." He said, watching you. His hands moved over every bare patch of your body, exploring every inch of it. Following his hands, Hyunjin placed you on the bed immediately finding himself over you. His knee came between your legs pressing lightly on your spot. He leaned over a little more and cupped your hoodie with his hands. His hands moved over every bare patch of your body, exploring every inch of it. His hands were followed by his lips, which also explored your body. He left wet footprints in his path, interspersed with huge hickeys. 

You moaned blissfully when his lips found their way to your lower abdomen. You felt his smile against your skin. Hyunjin gently spread your legs and moved his hand over your core. Your reaction encouraged him to continue. 

He bit lightly on the inside of your thighs, which was met with your slight jump. His strong hands, however, held your body as his mouth took up your pussy, embracing it completely. 

You moaned loudly and slid your hand into his hair. You pulled his hair gently as his tongue penetrated your insides, melting with pleasure. 

Hyunjin drove you to pleasure, and your body arched in an accompaniment of moans. The young man licked and returned his lips to your mouth, kissing you. You immediately responded to his kiss, hungry for his velvety lips. 

Your hands moved over his body. You wanted to get rid of his clothes as quickly as possible. Hyunjin laughed quietly. 

"So eager, huh? Patience darling, be good and you'll get what you deserve." He said amused and helped you undress himself. Once he was standing naked, you moved your hands over his penis, which was already ready for use. "I don't have condoms..." The boy began. 

" Doesn't matter, I want to feel you, now, right now, please!" You moaned needily. 

"I like the way you are asking." He snarled quietly and slid his full length into you. 

"Oh yes!" You whined loudly and moved your hands down his back as he began to move. 

His movements became faster and less precise. He went deep, perfectly attacking your g-spot. Your and his moans filled the entire room.

"Hyunjin! I…" You started digging your nails into his soft skin.

"Come on baby, cum for me." He groaned loudly. "Fuck!"

"I'm cumming!" You moaned loudly, clenching around him. 

A few seconds later, you felt warmth spreading through your insides. Hyunjin collapsed on top of you after a moment, his head resting between your full breasts. You were both breathing heavily.

“You are my muse." He murmured after a while. "Be my muse forever?"

"With pure pleasure." You replied quietly, gently stroking his back, making him smile.

"You know what? You are the FINE art." He said. "My muse."

And After an eventful night, you both fell asleep cuddling together.

-> Masterlist

[abbysimsfun]

24 25 Favourite Screenshots of 2024 (Part One)

Only two parts, nothing major, but I got as far as New Year's Day in game, counted 50 total, and decided to do two posts. Part 2 will post on New Year's Eve, but thank you for the tags @hashimasims, @itmeansiris, @rosienthe, @finchfin, @lostinsixam, @matchalovertrait (your post was different but I'm counting it!), @changingplumbob, and @simscici!

All in chronological order, and all from Sims In Bloom since I have no other gameplay!

Above, (1) young Heather meets Sophie the Snail in her Henford hometown without her front tooth, and (2) Heather was the photographer for this adorable shot of her parents, expecting her sister Hazel and cuddling at the Finchwick Fair.

(3) The save's first tragic death was Eliza Pancakes, mother of three and wife of Bob, and I love this picture of them for the starry sky alone, honestly.

(4) Master botanist Daisy with one of many oversized crops she grew in her garden over the years.

(5) Loved this shot of Daisy taking off in a rocket at GeekCon so much I used it to represent her changing careers to full-time astrobotanist with the Sims Aeronautical Space Agency (SpaceY).

(6) Golden hour in Henford in springtime.

(7) Uptown San Myshuno and the San Myshuno Bridge.

(8) Winter in Henford-on-Bagley, with pink sunsets in the sky and wild fox Pawbin Hood in his Sherwood Forest getup in the foreground.

(9) Mortimer Goth married his soulmate, Karl Nesbitt, at their penthouse in San Myshuno. Their guests arrived and had to comply with a new ordinance declaring 'We Wear Bags!' much to my disdain.

But I look back now and consider it one of the more iconic screenshots of the series so far.

(10) Heather checks out the view from Malcolm Landgraab's penthouse in San Myshuno while balancing a plate of midnight French Toast.

(11) The ferry dock from Cavalier Cove to Deadgrass Isle on an overcast day in Brindleton Bay.

(12) A pink sunset backdrop added perfection to this shot of romantic Holly Nesbitt dropping her new hubby, Kris Bell, for a passionate first kiss (totally autonomously).

(13) A wild love interest and his perfect dog appear from the Gallery and enter the game, and everyone rejoices. Especially Heather!

(14) Malcolm Landgraab finally steps up and takes an interest in his son while tired working mom Heather naps in her living room.

It's hard to remember this house before I added the stairs and the second floor, but there it is!

(15) Even with the clipping and the shabby apartment decor, I love this pose. Just feels like they're truly hungering for each other and that was my goal!

(16) I think the lighting is great, but something about seeing Everett so content and proud inside a Gallery build made me love this one even more!

(17) This one's the banner on my tumblr page. It's Heather's house with the second story addition from across Sable Square and the fall colours really do it.

(18) Conrad takes Gord to work with the magic of MCCC and the brilliance of deardiaryts4 💖

(19) Conrad comforting a guilt-stricken Heather after Ash's near-death accident/mod vs update glitch. I just love them.

(20) Alexander Goth nonchalantly walks in on Heather channeling spirits on his mother Bella's seance table, while Conrad worries like mad about his soulmate.

(21) Toddler Ash cuddling one of Queen Cupcake's kittens (who were soon rehomed because five cats was so many. I couldn't keep it up!) Also, King Tut's ghost makes an appearance by the patio door.

(22) Teenage Conrad posing with his parents near the midway in Copperdale - the last trip the Gordons took before his mother's death.

(23) Gord smells the Grim Reaper before Heather and Conrad, who called him on a Grimophone borrowed from Bella Goth, realize he's there.

I've always loved watching him wander up to people unprompted because he's a friendly dog, but sensing the Reaper was a whole new level of amazing.

(24) This Spooky Day photo of Ash with his dad, Malcolm, and stepmom, Miko, was too cute not to include.

Bonus (25) Heather learned she was expecting again after a miscarriage and I love the ultrasound machine cc.

Tomorrow we find out whether Marcus' lead will pan out for Conrad (please, he is tired!), and the second half of my favourite screenshots go up Tuesday!

Part 2 ->

Hope you're having a great end to 2024, and I'm trying to think of whose Top 24/favourite screenies I haven't seen yet for the tag... @matchalovertrait I know you've been tagged a lot but if you want to do this one, too! @dreamyyesenia with your gorgeous screenies, and @purplesimmer455, too!

And anyone else who hasn't done it and wants to, tag you're it. I really enjoyed strolling down memory lane with this one!

[winchester-24]

Imagine You couldn’t save everyone on the last hunt, and Dean is there for you.

You and the boys had been tailing this Shtriga for two weeks. You would get close to it, then it would escape, and then it would hop somewhere different. It has already put a total of 14 kids in the hospital, and you were hoping it would be greedy and try to get one more kid before it disappeared again for who knows how long. It was now in a small town and had already taken the younger sibling of two girls, and you are betting it would be going after the oldest tonight.

At the motel room, you, Dean, and Sam were finishing up packing the gear you wanted to take and going over the plan one more time. You were acting as a detective earlier that day and were able to set a camera up in the girl’s room. You three would sneak in and wait for the Shtriga to come and then kill it before it could escape again. Everyone was on edge; this thing has been escaping you guys for the past two weeks, but everyone is determined not to let it get away this time.

“You okay?” Dean asks as you look out the motel window, lost in your thoughts as they load up the car. You turned to your boyfriend of just about six months and smiled at him.

“I’m good; I just really want to get this son of a bitch and go home.” Dean came over and wrapped his arms around you and then gave you a quick kiss on the lips, which you returned to him immediately. You wrapped your arms around his neck as he hugged you.

“We will get him, and then 15 kids will wake up, and we will get to celebrate a job well done.” You smiled at him before Sam coughed and muttered, “We are good to go.” You giggled and kissed Dean one more time before hurrying out to the Impala after Sam.

Hours after you guys arrived at the house, you finally noticed movement in the window. You hit Dean softly on the arm and pointed to where you were seeing the Shtriga. All three of you took the safety off of your guns and were waiting for it to start feeding. Your heart was beating, and nerves were beginning to kick in. There was an 11-year-old girl in the room, and her safety was a top priority. Your job was to get to her while Sam and Dean would shoot at the Shtriga. You would have to crawl quickly, but you would be able to make sure she stayed down and out of harm's way.

Dean squeezed your hand before letting go and slowly standing up, and you and Sam followed suit. You were the first to go in that way. You didn’t have these two men blocking you from getting to the girl. You three watched as the Shtriga began feeding.

“Now, now!” Dean whispered and yelled. You hustled to the door, slammed it open, and quickly dropped to the floor to get to the girl. The Shtriga looked up as Sam and Dean let off rounds. The girl screamed, and you pulled her down to the ground with you.

“It’s okay; I’m going to get you out of here.” You say to the shaking girl. “I need you to stay low to the ground and crawl with me, okay?” The girl crying nodded, and you two began to make your way across the room. Something grabbed your ankle and pulled you back; you let out a little scream and tried to turn to face what was pulling you.

“Y/N!” Dean yelled. You tried to kick at the Shtriga, but it wouldn’t let go of you. It grabbed your shirt and flew you against the wall. Your vision got hazy as you hit your head. You heard the little girl scream for her dad while you tried to stand up. Between trying to focus your vision back, you see Dean on the other side of the room groaning, holding his side, and Sam knocked out by the door. You see the Shtriga quickly move towards the little girl, pin her down, and start to retake her life force. You groan and try to get up quickly.

You hear a new voice. “Hey! Get off my daughter!” The dad comes in, trying to push the Shtriga off of his daughter, who takes hold of his shirt and flings him into the other room. You hear a bunch of clattering and hope the dad is okay.

On your feet, you yell for the Shtriga gun already raised. “Hey, bitch!” You yell. The Shtriga slightly turns towards you, still feeding on the girl. You shoot. The Shtriga’s head jerks back as you shoot straight in the forehead, and it stumbles away from the girl and falls on its back on the floor. You run to the girl and immediately put your fingers to her neck, trying to find a pulse. It’s faint. You let out a shaky breath; she is safe. You look up to Dean to celebrate this, but he isn’t in the room. You look around frantically, thinking something happened that you missed, but you catch a glimpse of him in the other room. He is kneeling by the girl's father. A pit forms in your stomach. He looks up and makes eye contact with you, then shakes his head. Fuck.

The ride back to the hotel room was quiet. The death of the father weighs on everyone. For you, you take it personally more than the boys. It was your job to get the girl to safety. If you did your job and got her out of the room like you were supposed to, then there was no reason for the dad to be there. He would be holding his little girl right now instead of a paramedic trying to tell her that her dad is never coming back. Were you being irrational with yourself? Of course. But this is what you do. You take it personally when you can’t save everyone- especially families. Dean’s jaw was clenched the entire time back to the motel; you knew he was upset. You couldn't guess whether he was upset at you or the hunt in general, but if you were him, you would be mad at you, too. You messed this up; you couldn’t do the one thing you were supposed to do, and a father paid the price. Sam kept glancing at Dean and you. He was upset, but he knows how you and Dean are when a hunt is not perfect. You either take it out on each other or yourselves. Sometimes both.  It was one of the many things you had in common, but this trait was the most toxic one you two shared. He was waiting for the bomb to blow because the fuse had already been set.

Dean got out of the Impala quickly and quietly. Sam waited a second to see if you would do the same, but when you didn’t, he turned around to face you.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked you. You looked up at him.

“No, Sammy, I’m good.” He knew arguing with you would get nowhere, so he just nodded his head and got out. You sat there for a few minutes alone in silence, letting the demons take over your thoughts about how you fucked this up. It was your fault that family is torn apart now and that their lives are changed for the worse because you couldn’t manage to kick an old hag’s hand off of your ankle. You tilted your head back, not daring to let one tear fall, and let out a shaky breath. You closed your eyes, trying to regulate yourself, when the back door on the other side of the impala opened. You smelt him before he was even in the car.

Dean slid in the back and looked at you. There was tension as you both waited to see if this would be a conversation or an argument. You made the first move.

“I fucked up, I know.” You said, finally looking over at him. His gaze on you was intense as if he were trying to read you to figure out what he needed to be and do at that moment. When you said that, his gaze softened, and his shoulders relaxed.

“Sweetheart, this isn’t on you.” He said.

“It was my job to get her out of there. If I had done my job right, the dad would have never come into that room,” you said.

“You don’t know that; he could have come back in there to try to take care of the three intruders in his house for all we know. He was protecting his child, something any good father would do.” You looked out the window and mumbled.

“It’s our job to protect them.” Dean grabbed your hand, and when you didn’t pull away, he laced your fingers together. You looked back over at him, tears threatening to spill, but you'll be damned if you are weak right now; you don’t deserve it.

“I know I’m a hypocrite saying this because I do the same thing,” Dean started, “but we can't save everyone; you did everything that you could do at that moment, and when you didn’t get up at first, I was scared for a moment that you hit your head a little too hard, and I lost concentration on what we were there for. My only thought was to get to you and ensure you were okay. I could have grabbed the girl and taken her out, but in my moment of weakness, it grabbed me and threw me. I am as much to blame for that father as you and Sam. We take this blame together, learn from it, and move on. You are a damn good hunter, but it's insanity to think that we can save everyone from everything.”

You let one tear slip, then another, then another, until you were full-on crying but not daring to make a sound.

“Oh, baby,” Dean said, pulling you to him. He twisted himself on the seat so you could lean your head in his chest as he held you close. He rubbed your back with his hand as he kissed the top of your head. You two sat there in this position until the tears stopped, and the only thing you could hear was each other’s breathing. You looked up at him.

“Thank you.” You said as you wiped your runny nose with your sleeve. He gave you a soft smile.

“I know I’m not perfect, but I promise I’m always going to be here for you, sweetheart. You mean everything to me.” You leaned up and gave him a soft kiss on his lips.

“Let's go inside and get some rest, okay?” You say as you scoot away from him. He nods his head, and you both get out. You meet at the front of the Impala, where he grabs and holds your hand as you walk to the motel room.

Not every hunt will be perfect, but at least you have the best comforter to help you through it.

[veryace-ficrecs]

Tim Joins the BatFam Early Fic Recs

This list will include all ratings and tags, so read at your own discretion! :)

the butler's neighbor by deargalileo - Rated G

it starts with a baseball, thrown onto the wayne's property. it's alfred's job to deal with such happenings, of course. but over tea and galas, it turns into so much more.

after all, why should bruce be the only one allowed to adopt any child that he finds?

the capillaries in my eyes are bursting by Scarlet_Ribbons - Rated T

Bruce grunts, standing up. “Jenkins said the same. What about what you weren’t told?” And without dissembling, Jason says, “I think they fucked that kid up, B.” [Jack and Janet die. As things get weirder and weirder, it feels like Tim might be at the center of the unfolding conspiracy.]

An (almost) Foolproof Lie by HiddenDreamer67 - Rated T

“No, they don’t leave me totally alone.” Tim hurriedly explained. “My neighbor Bruce Wayne looks after me.” Batman stared at him for a long while. “Bruce Wayne.” He parroted slowly. (A young Tim Drake gets kidnapped by Falcone. When Batman rescues him, Tim tells Batman that Bruce Wayne is his temporary guardian. Oddly enough, Batman isn’t fooled by this perfect cover story.)

Anton Syndrome by Anonymous - Rated M

Tim's parents have been away for six months and counting—the longest he's ever been left alone at one time—and it's starting to have some unpleasant side effects. Luckily, he has a solution. OR, the one where Tim attempts prostitution to cure his touch starvation. His plan goes wrong pretty much from step one, but it all works out for the better.

I'll Stand By You by TaraLaurel - Rated T

"I'm not going to ask you why you're out here, kid," Jason nods. "That's your business and you don't know me or Dick to trust us." Not true. Tim trusts Jason Todd and Dick Grayson with his life. Just not with, the other stuff. "But," Jason continues, "if you want to tell me what got you here, or you just want to talk about anything, you can, with me. Dick too. He's an annoying ray of sunshine that won't ever shut up most of the time, but he is actually a good listener. I'd know." OR When Tim's parents find out Tim's secret, they kick him out. Now, on Thanksgiving, Tim is living on the streets and is thankful for the two strangers currently saving him from getting his face pounded into the pavement. Wait...those aren't strangers...

Just a Typical Monday Morning by Writer_loves_tropes - Rated T

There are three things in life that Timothy Drake knows for sure. One, Tim is the greatest retro Guitar Hero player in the world (even if the wonderful people at the Guinness Book of World Records won’t rightfully acknowledge this fact). Two, Tim is allergic to walnuts. He’s convinced his parents that he’s allergic to spinach too because he hates it. He’s pretty sure when his parents find out, they’re going to make him eat spinach casserole for dinner for a whole week as punishment. And the third thing Tim knows for sure? He’s sure that on this typical Monday morning, the entire Gotham High School thinks Timothy Jackson Drake is Robin, Batman’s vigilante sidekick. A random locker check and the real Robin stashing his suit in Tim’s locker is all it took to turn Tim’s typical Monday morning into one of the craziest Mondays of his life.

Brother Wanted by Vamillepudding - Rated G

Well-behaved boy (10) is looking for big brother (11-15). Must meet up with me three times a week, for at least two hours each. Overall duties include helping me with homework, playing videogames with me, and showing me how to play catch. 10$ per hour. Tim, lonely and in desperate need of company, decides that if his parents are not going to give him a sibling, he's going to hire one instead. Luckily, Jason Todd-Wayne shows up in the nick of time.

Holy security breach, Batman! by destiny919 - Rated G

Janet finally shoos him away towards the hors d'oeuvres or drinks table with the tacit understanding that she doesn't want to see him again until the end of the gala. And probably not even then, it wouldn't be the first time the Drakes forgot to take him home with them and Tim had to discreetly call an Uber before the host noticed and made Tim embarrass his parents. For this gala, however, he almost hopes they forget him again, because tonight Tim has a plan. They're at Wayne Manor, and Tim is going to find the Batcave.

wrong number by adelfie - Rated G

There’s a few rings, then the phone picks up. “Wayne Residence.” That’s funny, Tim thinks, Mrs. Mac doesn’t sound like herself. -- On a hot July evening while home alone, eight-year-old Tim gets a fever. He means to ask Mrs. Mac for help — but ends up accidentally calling Alfred Pennyworth. Somehow, even in sickness, he wins all the hearts of the Wayne family in one fell swoop.

assaulting existence with improbability by destiny919 - Rated T

"Where's Batman?" the kid demands. "We need to show him." Jason decides to go with the easy question. "Show him what?" The kid gives him an incredulous look. "Proof you didn't kill Garzonas, what else?"

5 Times Tim Spends the Night at Wayne Manor + 1 Time He Comes Home by motleyfam - Rated T

Tim is good at galas.

No, scratch that—Tim is great at galas. He’s been attending them ever since the age of three, when his parents first stuffed him into his little Gymboree tuxedo and gave him a stern lecture about ‘sitting quietly’ and ‘speaking when spoken to.’ He knows all the rules: what to wear, how to stand, when to smile, what to say, what not to say. He knows how to come across as polite and intelligent and charming, and on absolutely any other day, he would be rocking this.

[glitcheslikeslego]

Show Me Your Moves! (Chapter 9)

AO3 STORY

tw: reader uses a knife at the end

Chapter 9 : Sketch

Sketch is a non-damaging move that allows the user to copy the opponent's move permanently, replacing Sketch. 

You internally cursed Tang out in your head as you spotted an energetic MK painting along with Sandy. 

For a second, you were glad that MK appeared to be back to normal, but then you remembered the madness that was his Artist Clone. You remember that it only took 15 hours for Porty to go on his power trip, and you were pretty sure Artist was earlier than Porty, and that’s why you felt that off feeling as you watched MK take two paint brushes and begin painting even more.

“How long has he been at this?” You whisper-asked Sandy, who whispered back that he’s been painting for about Five hours now. You shuddered. Five hours already? Ten hours or less left to go…

Two hours.

The clone lasted for two hours.

“It needs to be better. It needs to be better.” The Artist Clone muttered to himself as he painted an intricate mural of MK dancing, surrounded by clones playing different instruments.

Despite its beauty, Artist didn’t seem pleased with it.

“I think it’s pretty good, MK.” Sandy said, and you felt fear strike into your very soul when Artist MK turned to the two of you with an insane look on his face.

“Pretty good? Pretty good!? That’s not good enough.” You and Sandy cowered and hugged each other as Artist MK yelled at you two. “You asked me to help paint your boat and that’s what I’m gonna do. I won’t stop until it’s perfect!” 

“I think it’s already perfect, MK.” You decided to stay, and he glared at you, making you even more nervous.

There was a small beat of silence, Artist MK’s eye twitched, then he attacked.

Sandy stood in front of you, hoping his natural strength could hold Artist MK back, but Artist MK’s funky mystic monkey powers easily kicked Sandy’s butt. Startled, you were powered up again, much like how you were back at the Weather Station, instead this time, the waves of the water became harsh, rocking the boat.

This didn’t intimidate the Artist Clone, and he ended up tying you and Sandy up before returning to his painting.

“Hey.” Sandy whispered to you, tied up suspended in the air. “Since when could you do that? The water thing?”

Ah, you forgot he was technically a water demon…

“The water thing? Just now, but apparently I’ve been unlocking these wacky abilities since Red Son took over the Weather Station. Remember when I punched that Bull Clone?” Your boss nodded. “Well, I also was covered in electricity, which totally short circuited the clone.”

Sandy nodded in understanding, and for the next few hours, you sat on the ground uncomfortable as Artist MK constantly painted over the murals he made over and over again, complaining about imperfections all the while.

“Yes, yes, the art is seeping into my pores!” Artist MK dragged a pink coated paintbrush across his face with an insane grin. “Just needs… One. More. Coat.” He turned to you and Sandy slowly, scaring the heck out of the two of you. 

“You missed a spot!”

“Where!?” Artist Clone then disappeared in a puff of dust and hair, and the real MK appeared. 

“Hey, MK. Mystic Monkey business?” Sandy asks knowingly, and MK nods. 

“How many of those clones did you make?” You ask curiously, maybe he’d give you an actual answer as to how many he actually made and not just the main three clones from this episode. 

Instead, he yelled out about Mei and rushed off, and you remembered that he’s better off saving her before she probably gets actually obliterated by that claw machine if he didn’t make it like last time. 

“So… now what?” Sandy wiggled a bit, making him swing side to side. 

“I think I can do something…” You replied. You wiggled around some too before one of your LEGO claw hands popped out of the ropes. You grabbed a knife from your pocket. 

“Since when did you have that!?” Sandy helps out in alarm, and you chuckle. 

“Since you hired me? You have quite a few of these just laying around in the store. I actually feel kind of comfortable walking around if I have an unreasonably sharp object to protect me.” You replied, easily cutting the ropes that Artist MK tied you in before freeing Sandy. 

“I don't think that’s a good thing.” Sandy said as you freed him, easily landing on his feet. 

You shrug. “Eh, what else do I have?”

He grabbed the knife from you with an unimpressed look on his face. “Those super strong powers you just admitted to having?”

You stared blankly for a second before pointing finger guns at him. “Touché.” 

~~~

<PREV ~ NEXT>

[internerdionality]

In honor of Fuck or Die Fifteenth of September...

Here's an excerpt (below the cut) from my current Fuck or Die fic featuring Nathan Stark, Jack Carter, and Allison Blake of the Eureka fandom, which was supposed to be a short PWP and supposed to be all ready to post today...

But as usual, I just had to take that crackfic ultra seriously, which means it's now a 60K novel and climbing. I'll hopefully start posting in the next couple of months, follow me here or on AO3 if you're interested in reading more!

“I made up a list of all the people who are cleared to know about GD-175, and have volunteered to help,” Allison said. Her voice was irritatingly soft and empathetic. Coddling him. “I thought you’d want to know that every single person who was cleared for the information—with two exceptions, both of whom aren’t at all attracted to men—volunteered.” 

Jack snorted as he took the single sheet of paper with a—very—short list on it.  “Sure. ‘Volunteered’. Heard that one before.” 

Allison frowned (still empathetically. She was starting to remind him of his third-grade teacher. Unfortunately, that still wasn’t a turn-off. Although that might just be the sex virus talking. Damn this town). 

“I didn’t put any pressure on them, Carter,” she said. “Every person on that list knows that your life is on the line, and has willingly consented to do what’s necessary to save you. And you should know—”

“Dr. Allison Blake,” Jack read off the first name. A white wave of numbness crashed over him.  

She nodded, determination firming up her lips. “I’m happy to—” 

“No,” he said quickly. Almost without conscious thought, but a second of reflection just cemented the decision. “Absolutely not.” 

She couldn’t hide the flash of offended hurt that crossed through her eyes, and he cocked his head to the side, softening. 

“Hey. No, Allison, jeez. Not like that. Of course I would… It’s just… Look. We work together, and I’ve never wanted to make that awkward, and yeah, I’m still a little mad about you keeping things from me that could endanger the town, but… That doesn’t mean I’ve completely given up on us, okay? Let’s just say, I'm not ready to poison this well before it even, uh, starts to fill up with water? I might be letting this metaphor run away with me a bit…” 

He rubbed the back of his head, laughing self-deprecatingly. But it worked—those gorgeous, expressive brown eyes warmed, and she tilted her head down just slightly, looking up at him bashfully through long eyelashes. Hell yeah. He’d known there was something there, even if the moment had never been quite right between them. 

Which was why he wasn’t going to let their first time be some kind of pity fuck, of all idiotic things. No matter how much his dick was screaming at him not to let her walk away. 

“Look, you’re totally sure that you can’t just fix this with a needle or something?” he begged her, holding on to his last vestige of denial. 

“If you’re volunteering to get stabbed, I know it really is bad. I’m sorry, Carter,” she said, and the rueful smile with which she’d delivered the joke dropped away. “We already tried the only synthetic treatment we have, and it didn’t work for about 15% of the exposed patients, you included. Masters and Johnson aside, there hasn’t been nearly enough scientific research into human sexuality involving practical studies.” 

“—practical studies,” Jack murmured, visualizing it. 

“As a result, we really don’t have a good enough understanding of what happens to the body during sexual intercourse to be confident that we can replicate it with enough accur—” 

“You’re not confident,” Jack interrupted, “but you have some idea—” 

“No, Carter,” she said firmly. “Maybe if there wasn’t another option… Or if we didn’t have a time limit. Your viral load has already reached a near-critical level. You’ll start feeling symptoms within hours, maybe less, and after that—” 

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered. “Fever, seizures, death. I’ve seen it, remember?” 

She winced, and he sighed, shrugging in apology. Granted, Eureka’s death rate was something people knew when they moved here, but that didn’t make it any easier to have lost two people in one day. Especially to some kind of fuck or die escaped mutated virus.  Damn this town. 

“So, we’re not going to take a chance,” she said firmly. “You need to have sex with one of the people on that list, soon. ” 

Carter groaned, then held up the list again, only to jerk his eyes back up in shock and alarm. “Uhhh, I think you might have made a mistake here. This is mostly men.” 

She shrugged (empathetically, damn her). “You know that as the head of GD, I have access to your psych evaluation results, including Beverly’s expert opinion on your sexual orientation…” 

“Oh… come on!” Jack yelled, then cleared his throat as the complaint came out somewhat higher-pitched than he’d intended. “Is nothing private, anymore? And also, that is not what I meant by—Ooh! Plus! Beverly is probably evil, remember? She was clearly pushing some kind of agenda there—”  

“Look, Carter, I don’t care about your sexual identity or fantasies. As long as they don’t interfere with the security of GD, which is why I have access,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Anyway, if—”

“Wait a second, does that mean that Stark read this… evaluation or whatever, when he was head of GD?” Jack asked, horrified by the sudden thought. 

“Anyway,” Allison continued blithely (which meant that Stark absolutely had read it. Crap.), “if I excluded the men, the list would be pretty short. I wanted to give you all your options, but obviously you can choose one of the women. I have their headshots here, if you don’t remember what they lo—” 

“Yeah, no,” Jack said firmly, waving off the red folder in her hand. “You know what? I’ll take number seven.”

The skin between her brows wrinkled adorably.  Taking back the list, she scanned it quickly, then pursed her lips to the side. She couldn’t maintain the scowl, however, as the corners of her mouth kept twitching free. 

“Don’t say a word,” Jack said, seeing the disaster coming. 

“Of course not,” she said, lips spreading even farther, “No judgment here, Carter.” 

“Uh-huh,” he said skeptically. “Sure.” 

She shrugged, elaborately casual. “I just didn’t realize we had so much in common.”

“Yep, there it is.”  

“Methinks the sheriff doth—” 

“I will pay you ten thousand dollars to stop talking right now.” 

“—protest too much,” Allison finished, finally giving in to a wickedly wide grin. “And I pay your salary, Carter. I know you don’t have ten—“

“That’s it, I changed my mind, I want to die after all—”

[justagalwhowrites]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thank you for the tag, @sawymredfox!!!

1. how many works do you have on AO3?

21

2. what’s your total AO3 word count?

1,032,269. When you throw in the Tumblr only stuff I think I'm closer to 1.2 million overall.

3. what fandoms do you write for?

Pedro Pascal fandom, mostly TLOU! But I'd love to spend some time with Poe Dameron, my beloved, so I might dive into Star Wars beyond Mando at some point :)

4. top five fics by kudos 

I'm really not sure on Tumblr? Individual chapters don't get as much attention and I don't write many one shots, my highest single post on Tumblr is probably a one shot but I have NO CLUE which one!

On AO3:

Lavender

Beskar Doll

Yearling

New in Town

Lavender No Outbreak AU

5. do you respond to comments?

I used to be so much better about doing this and I've just not been keeping up with it lately. I want to get back to it! I LOVE getting comments, they make me so happy! Part of my issue is I read them immediately even if I don't have time to respond and I'm like "I'll respond when I post the next chapter" and then I post the next chapter super late at night and I'm so tired and I'm just like "I'll reply later" and then I never do.

ANYWAY! I want to get back to replying to comments because I love them. I used to reply to every one. Less now.

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Probably Proof of Life, an angsty as hell QZ!Joel era one shot. I traffic in angst but I like my happy endings, especially for long fics :)

7. what’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Lavender I think. After all that angst, they got the life they wanted and saved the world. Not too shabby.

8. do you get hate on fics?

I haven't really! I've had a few people disagree with directions I took characters or plot lines and a few people send asks that didn't feel so nice but I'm not sure they were intended to not be nice. I try to not take those things personally. But everyone as been exceedingly kind, probably kinder than I deserve!

9. do you write smut?

I do but I feel like it's my weakest area. If you're looking primarily for smut and reading my stuff, you're probably in the wrong place, I'm sorry! I wish I was better at it! I feel like I'm getting better at it. But alas!

10. craziest crossover?

I haven't written any and I haven't really read any, either. Closest thing I came to a crossover I think is tying the prequel trilogy and the original trilogy of Star Wars into Doll's history in Beskar Doll.

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

None so far!

12. have you ever had a fic translated?

Not shared anywhere but I do have commenters in other languages tell me they've put my fic into Google Translate to read it! I think that's immensely cool .

13. have you ever co-written a fic before?

I haven't but I'd be open to it! 

14. all time favorite ship?

Of characters that actually exist in canon? Probably Han Solo and Leia Organa. I LOVE them. Love love love love LOVE them. The "I love you" "I know" in Empire followed by the reversal in Jedi? TO DIE FOR.

15. what’s a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

As far as fics go? None. I have the stories so thoroughly planned there I'm compelled to finish them, I can't help it. I wasn't always this thorough of a planner, though, and I have so many books that I've started and written like 40k words of that I'll probably never finish. That breaks my heart a little. All these characters who won't get to live their whole lives because I can't get their stories across the finish line. But I'm not sure I have enough hours left in the rest of my life to tell every story I've got inside me so it'll have to be what it will be!

16. what are your writing strengths?

Dialogue.

17. what are your writing weaknesses?

Everything else lol especially smut. I feel like my descriptions are often lacking, too.

18. thoughts on dialogue in another language?

Yes please! As long as the author can do it right (either because they know the language enough or get help from someone who does - the translate tools just aren't great at grammar and it takes me out if it's a language I know.)

19. first fandom you wrote in?

The Pedro fandom! Specifically, the Mandalorian. Beskar Doll, my first baby <3

20. favorite fic you’ve written?

Probably Lavender? Maybe Yearling. It's so hard to say! I'm probably the most attached to Doc and Joel, though.

NP tags: @dancingtotuyo @beardedjoel @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin @netherfeildren and anyone else who wants to play!

[azreactstowormtheserial]

Overboard [8.1-11.8]

SORRY IN ADVANCE FOR THE SCROLL WHEN YOU HIT KEEP READING

--Yeah... Sorry for not keeping to that 'one arc at a time' promise. But whilst I'm in medical-recovery mode I have nothing better to do than Worm [The Serial] my afternoons away.

And look at that! I'm 1/3 through all of the main story. At least, by Arc-No. ? My friend said come the end of Arc 8, I'd graduated from 'Early Worm'. Should I be scared or happy to be gradually approaching 'Late Worm'?

Speaking of.

ARC 8 -- EXTERMINATION

Title Accurate.

ARC 9 -- SE

Okay, okay. I'll talk about Arc 8. It's a little weird to talk about as a whole. Way easier in the moment, reacting to things as they happen.

"1 in 4 of you (at least) will die."

Tattletale "down".

Aegis, Gallant, Iron Falcon, Mr. G,

Taylor -breaking her spine -- she could have died!

And I thought I couldn't handle the stress of the inter-group dynamic potentially crumbling at the end of Arc 7. Don't worry, we'll get to that.

The endbringers are a terrifying concept. Like, what do you do? Wear it down, hundreds dying to prevent hundreds of thousands from dying, only for it to recover for a few years, months, who knows-- before it attacks somewhere else, almost unprompted?

Almost. I have no idea what it was doing, edging slowly towards Coil's base like a fucking NGE Angel. That's almost as scary.

It just, picked people off. Indiscriminantly.

Kaiser. A powerful, influential-- horrible excuse for a human being, but still, a major player-- he's just dead! Just like that!

I'd started to like a few of The Wards towards the the end of Arc 6, I think. At first it was easy to group them into a 'haha these kids don't know any better, they're really snot-nosed about being heroes'-- which feels a lot nicer a label than what's actually happening.

They're just kids! 15, 16, Vista is 13. 13! Kids that've had a traumatic past, in one way or another. Up against, and dying to, an existential threat. Sentinel really helped put this into perspective.

I'd love to talk about individual moments that I thought were cool; Tattletale's analysis of Leviathan, The truce between heroes and villains, Clockblocker absolutely stepping the fuck up and pretty much clutching the entire fight. But I need to talk about Armsmaster.

(These few lines saved me.)

ARMSMASTER. You horrific excuse for a human being. Jeopardizing CHILDREN'S LIVES, YOUR COMRADES LIVES, PEOPLE'S LIVES-- AND FOR WHAT!?!?!?!?

WAIT NO STOP NO

I absolutely hate this fucking guy. How do you ruin everything in the middle of a natural(?) disaster killing thousands.

(Did I mention Shadow Stalker is Sophia. Huh. That's interesting! I'm sure it won't come up again.)

The arc ends really bittersweet.

I'm really sorry, Bitch. Showing up and saving Taylor was an amazing moment, but that's over half of your closest family, just gone.

But, I totally called it.

I know I wanted to take a break after all that, but I couldn't just leave it at "I told her my answer." -- I had to find out what it was!! So, after a few hours of psyching myself up, I got straight into the Interlude.

ARC 8 -- INTERLUDE [COIL]

How do you beat Coil? What -happened- to Coil to give him this power? Applied perfectly, his power makes him practically invulnerable. One of his only weak points being the immediacy after closing his second universe.

I still don't know how to feel about Coil. He's said in vague terms that his plan for Brockton Bay was to improve. Taylor, I think, took this to mean that people's livelihoods would be better. People would have food, shelter, water. But it's so difficult to tell, even with a direct view into his mind like this interlude gave. All I know is that this is a plan he's put a considerable amount of time and his life towards-- it has to mean a lot to him and he has to be strong in his ideals. I only hope that he isn't utterly insane.

Because if he is? If his motives are 'evil', unjust-- if you can even say they have the potential to be just, with how he operates-- I don't know if anyone can beat him.

...

Shit.

ARC 9 -- SENTINEL

This arc was nice. The breather I needed, and was worried I wouldn't get, after Arc 8's Interlude.

I mentioned that I'd started to like The Wards a little earlier in the story, so the emotional beats really worked here for me. And even if I didn't, this arc'd easily have been a turning point.

\=====

[Az.Interlude: Obligatory Wards (And Co.) Tier List]

Bold means #1 in each thing if there's more than 1.

S [Super :)] - Flechette, Glory Girl, ****Shadow Stalker****, Vista

A [A cool character] - *Clockblocker, Gallant, Kid Win, Panacea, ****Weld***

B [Baegis Tier] - Aegis

C [Cant Remember] - Browbeat

(Sorry Browbeat, who apparently died offscreen in Arc 8.)

\====

I say it's nice, but really we're just seeing a few kids grieve the deaths of their friends. Is that what 'nice' is, in Worm?

Sophia/Shadow Stalker is growing into a more and more interesting character. Though everyone got their fair share of attention, I found her scenes, like the one with Flechette in 9.2, quite interesting.

I* think something really awful happened to Shadow Stalker. *

A lot of my thoughts on Arc 9 I think are just snippets at characters I like. I really liked Weld, and felt 'kinda bad for him. He's trying his best! He's just walking into all this mess.

Vista's chapter made me cry. She's so strong for standing up to Shadow Stalker like that! And the story's tackling on trying to 'fill in' somebody's role after they've passed really hit me like a freight train.

\====

[Az.Interlude 2: Now Obligatory Protectorate (and Dragon) Tier List]

S [This is actually based off of the arc 10 interlude, wait for that.] - Dragon

A [Assault- Oh] - Miss Militia

B [Battery] - Battery

C [Cool? I think?] - Assault, Triumph, Velocity

D ['Dunno] - [Anyone who I haven't remembered. I don't know that many...]

F [Fucking Armsmaster] - Guess who

\====

9.3 was a nifty chapter, too. It's probably the only instance of a 'character are bored in an exposition-lecture' that I've actually thought was pretty well done?

Also, it's nice to get some Clockblocker characterisation. He gets a pass for his flaws because of his context. I do hope his dad ends up getting healed-- but the scenario as a whole really makes me feel for Amy/Panacea. There's so much suffering in the world, and it's -technically- preventable. Just through her. How much of a weight on her shoulders is that?

\====

[Az.Interlude 3: Favorite Arcs]

S - [Super Good Arc] [4. Shell] [8. Extermination] [9. Sentinel] [10. Parasite.]

A [A really good Arc] - [11. Infestation] [6. Tangle] [7. Buzz]

B [Breally good] - [1. Gestation] [2. Insinuation] [3. Agitation]

\====

(See what I'm doing there, by the way? Interlude Arc? Load of Interlude Tier lists? Whatever.) KID WIN ADHD TINKER REP!!!!

I think that's my cue to hop on over to

ARC 10 -- PARASITE

Okay, sure, sure-- Taylor's back, but on uneasy terms, swallowing her pride, sure--

ALEC. ALEC! I THOUGHT YOU JUST MADE PEOPLE TRIP! And I thought even how -that- power was utilized was a little horrifying. This is just... I mean. I'll talk about it some more in the interlude.

Hi Imp! It's nice to meet you! Where'd you come from? Or maybe she was here the whole time, and that's her power--

Imp's neat. I like her power, and I'm hoping we see more of her! She doesn't quite live up to the rest of the gang just yet, but, I mean-- they've been around 9 more arcs. I was wondering if The Undersiders were going to recruit some more members...

This Arc's short but sweet. An infiltration à la the bank robbery, some fights with some superheroes-- and, Dragon!!! Dragon is so cool!!! I love Dragon!!!! We'll get there!!!!

I expected Bitch and Taylor to have a proper confrontation about everything, but... She really just sabotaged her mid-mission? Taylor's beatdown of her was unfortunately deserved-- like, c'mon. You're hurt. More than any of the others, really. But you didn't even 'eye for an eye' her, you went ahead and 'eye for a head' or whatever the relevant saying'd be. I

*really

* hope she takes her up on that offer.

Everything was going alright, even if Dragon'd appeared and made the escape a little tricky. And, oh. A meeting with Coil. Maybe Taylor can hash things out, and come up with a deal that reflects her--

So. That's one way to make an impression of a new overarching villain group. What the actual fuck, Jack. The absolute balls of this reveal-- I have no idea what to make of it, and already Jack just in how he's been described in passing, and-- this-- already made me clock him as a huge threat. I can't wait to see how this goes. I'm sure it'll go great. I'm sure.

ARC 10 -- INTERLUDE [ALEC]

Alec, alecalecalec-- What the actual fuck. I really should have thought twice when Lisa clocked you as a sociopath on first sight. This chapter was scary. Even Sophia doesn't deserve that. The "breach of privacy" -- if you can even -call- it that, with how far it went, made me sick to my stomach.

It's 'kinda crazy that this is just something that continued word-for-word from an earlier chapter. What else has happened directly after Taylor's POV left a scene? What has she missed?

I'm sure this won't come back to bite Taylor in the ass.

Or that.

I think something really awful happened to Shadow Stalker. [2]

Even after all that. I still like Alec. I think. In his own, fucked up, twisted way, he's getting payback for Taylor. He just has no limit. And, I mean-- he is still a kid. That had a horrendous, abuse-ridden upbringing. I don't know. I'm allowed to have complicated feelings about the main cast!

ARC 10 -- INTERLUDE [DRAGON]

Dragon, on the other hand, is objectively fucking cool. She's not even human! What?! It's 2011! Or something like that. I'm a bit of a dork for the 'kinda stuff that the opening third of this chapter was. That it was layered with limitations, purposeful, intended ones that dig under Dragon's skin at all times-- that she's keeping this a secret from even her closest co-workers-- only made me root for her character even more. I'm hoping she's, uh. 'One of the good ones'? Is that how you'd put it? Weird considering she's a hero, but--

*Armsmaster. *Come on.

Oh, look. It came back to bite Taylor in the ass.

Taylor in Arc 11 ruminates on how she'd face losing her civillian identity. But I don't think she quite understands the ramification of it just yet. This is the beginning of the end, in that regard-- Dragon found her.

I'll try not to gush about an interlude too much just to get to Arc 11 and wrap up this post before the day's over, so I'll just leave it at:

*The conversation between Lung and Marquis was very interesting. ****I hope Amy is okay.***

Arc 11 -- INFESTATION (I haven't read the interludes yet! I thought the final base-11 was a good place to stop.)

The Merchants are pretty fucked up, huh? 'Might makes Right' as an actual group philosphy never works. And I don't think the leader's are -that- stupid. I wonder what their deal is?

And, yeah. I'll finally bring it up, Worm. You've got me. *I'm interested in whatever the fuck Case 53 is. *And so is Faultine, apparently. Let's hope they stay in touch with Lisa.

Skitter taking over her territory was rad. She'll make a great monarch! (Queen bee? Is there an insect joke you can make here?)

Whatever my views about how things should be handled, Taylor's helping people in the here and now, and keeping groups like The Merchants out. Helping families. I think what she's doing is right.

And, for once, it all works out! Not without a hitch. Or an underlying dread. Taylor being the arbiter of one of the more straight up 'bad' Merchant's fate is a little telling that her moral's have shifted, somewhat. She's more comfortable leaving someone to die than insisting they have the right to a fair trial, etc-- even if the situtation did totally call for it.

Faultline's crew showing up was neat. I don't think I've mentioned Labyrinth, actually. Her and Newter are my favorite of Faultline's crew. I might go back and re-read Gregor's interlude, just for another look at how Faultline runs things.

And, my god. Brian finally picked up some slack, after some nudging via Lisa. Good on her. The dynamic needs some work from the both of them to build up the trust they once had. But they'll be friends in no time. I hope. Everything's working out.

...

*Oh my god, No, Taylor you can't ****say it!***

Everything is going to go to shit, isn't it?

I don't want to read on anymore. Can't it stop right here? Taylor won, got her friends back? Please?

See you all on the other side. Promise it won't take as long.

[fuckkbrunch]

Busy weekend this time. Trying to make up for the week I lost, but I'm still ahead of the game. Just passed recipe 90 this week, out of 117. So 27 recipes remain, with 17 weeks left to do them. Totally feasible. I get a few stat days around Thanksgiving and Christmas, so that'll help me squeeze in a few...

Woke up and started this before I even had breakfast.

I really enjoy this photo. Like, I don't like seafood that much, but the composition is great.

Anyway, tossed all this in tomato paste and roasted for ten minutes. Tony says 15, but they were starting to scorch and I didn't wanna risk it.

Your typical stock set up. I really love buying a whole bunch of parsley to use only 4 stems. Is that really necessary? Also I had to peel the celery, which I've never done for stock. Yes, by the way - that sheet pan is resting on my toaster to slightly increase my counter space.

Still love this cheap ass stock pot for its reflective qualities. At least the photos from this recipe are nice, because making it was so fucking boring.

Roasted the shells with the veg, peppercorns and bay leaves. Cover with two inches of water and simmer until you have 2-4 quarts (litres) of stock. Took me about 5 and a half hours, which includes the hour or so it took to come up to a simmer.

I strained this puppy so well. I passed this through fresh, doubled up cheesecloth 4 or 5 times. I was tempted to pass it through a paper towel, but I already only had around 2 quarts (litres), so I didn't wanna sacrifice more liquid to paper towels. I need some of this stock for the ravioli recipe as well, and there's no way I'm doing this again this year.

| Shellfish Stock |

Taste actually, technically, isn't rated. I didn't try it on its own, I just trusted that it would work for the shrimp bisque the following day...

Difficulty is a 3.5 out of 5. A lot of babysitting. Skimming scum, and clarifying.

Time was nearly 7 hours. I expected it to be longer.

Now obviously, this will stink up your whole place. Close your bedroom doors, open every window, plan accordingly. Tony says you can make this with shrimp, crab or lobster shells. I had saved these shells from the lobster roll recipe, so it was a pretty nice full circle there.

I'm probably going to have a little leftover stock after the other recipes are said and done, so I'm thinking of making a seafood risotto with it. Expanding my seafood horizons.

[audrak79]

Oh 2024!

I can’t say that I want a total “do over” of this past year.  Doing it over could save some hurt, I suppose, but it would mean not learning and growing and staying in unhealthy places for the sake of convenience. It would also mean continuing to lose and neglect myself, which I have vowed to never do again. I am excited for 2025. There are lots of things I am NOT going to do again, many things I’d like to do again and do better, and I pray for a plethora of opportunities to do new things.  

I took time to look back through 2024 at my social media posts where God showed me something and I was obedient in sharing it and not just keeping it to myself.  I also read back through my few blogs and it’s amazing to me that the more difficult life became, the more struggles I went through, He was right there in the midst. I can see the timeline of struggles, pain, trauma, devastation and the darker my life felt, the more frequent my shares were. It’s funny how He works. Here’s what I see; I had just 4 posts from January through May, yet from June through October (both just 5 month periods) I had 13, and I have shared 7 of these “God winks” just in the month of November.  I’m not saying I have made the best choices as I have grown, it’s a journey and there will be steps forward and steps back, but what I see is maturity; recognizing my mistakes and making changes to do better the next time around. 

I’m trying to adjust to being alone.  It’s not been easy because, well.... I simply do not want to be alone. HA!  Many of you probably think I am overreacting since it’s only been about 4 months of me being physically alone and most have told me to “Just enjoy focusing on yourself and enjoying time alone”.  What many don’t realize is how long I have felt alone. While my divorce seems fresh, we were going separate directions doing separate things for many years.  Frankly, I’m tired of being alone.  I long for someone to talk to, to share with, to have dinner with, to take walks with, to hold my hand and to make plans with. I struggle to just go out unless I have a very specific plan to walk in with someone. This is odd for me, I’m an extrovert and I love being around people, but I simply can’t just go to a restaurant or a bar by myself with hopes to have fun or run into someone I know.  I take that back, I’ll sit a Panera for 6 hours and read and enjoy my coffee or I’ll go have lunch by myself, but “going out” is a different story.  I start my day so early with my workouts and then I enjoy “me time” alone at Panera, hell, I spend 10-15 hours a week alone reading at Panera, I work alone or secluded most of the time, and so in the evenings and on weekends, I often struggle being at home knowing I’m going to be alone once again. My circle is small, which is not a bad thing, but nobody seems to be in the same season of life as me right now and so finding time to spend with the few friends I have hasn’t been easy either.  

I have taken a lot of time to journal more in these past several months, an assignment from my therapist.  I’ve written out my story, something I have kept secret my whole life and only shared a few bits and pieces with a very select few in recent months.  I have shared it in its entirety with my prayer partner, we all need that one person in our life.  I hope to have opportunities to share more in 2025.  It’s not so easy to share certain details when so many others are affected by it and maybe they haven’t decided to face their trauma head on yet. But I am learning that our testimonies can be shared so many ways. Sometimes every detail isn’t relevant to the person you are sharing with.  Sometimes you may need to share more so that the person knows where you are coming from. What I do know is my story has shaped me to be who I am today and while I would never wish pain or grief upon my younger self, I am learning to love the girl I see in the mirror and am grateful for what God has brought her through. 

I kept coming home in September of this year and just looking at my living room feeling sad because it was just so empty and quiet and all I could think was, “there are supposed to be women sitting here.” Several women came to mind and I invited them to come and fellowship one night in November.  I was so blessed by those women who showed up.  I had no plans for that night, just snacks and beverages and an open couch.  None of the ladies knew each other, the only common denominator was they all knew me.  It was so nice to sit and listen to each one tell a little bit about themselves.  One thing led to another and the next thing I know we are laying hands on one and  praying for healing, another shared a testimony on her way out the door, 2 of them hugged and cried in my kitchen and another stayed a little longer to talk through some tough things.  I invited them all back and decided it should be a monthly gathering.  I guess I started a small group.  😊 It’s funny how God puts things and people together.  He’s never wrong and His timing is never off.  

As I close out 2024, here are a few things I have learned and will apply: I will be honest in all circumstances, even with myself. I will be vulnerable, open, transparent even if it’s uncomfortable. I now know that I am enough and I don’t have to pretend to be someone else for someone to love me. My story has shaped me and I know that we are victorious by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. I also know that by being open, conflict doesn’t have to be scary. Real conflict resolution can happen when both are open and willing to talk rather that make assumptions and hide their feelings. I know I don’t want to be alone and I was not designed to be alone, God’s word tells me so. I want someone who wants me, mess and all.  I need someone who puts God first because he knows that when you do that everything else falls in line. I need someone who will lead me and when I am not strong enough to keep going, will hold me up.  I know this will arrive in God’s timing, not my own. I refuse to pretend that I did not experience trauma, I have exposed it so I can heal from it.  I refuse to allow my past trauma to dictate my future.  I will BE the church.  I will not neglect to meet with other believers for the purpose of fellowship, breaking of bread and teachings from the Apostles.  I know I am to bear fruit and that fruit is meant for others. I will continue to pray and ask God to reveal to me who, how and where to serve. I know that during the darkest time of my life, I pressed into Jesus because I didn’t know what else to do.  Many could say I went a little crazy or “charismatic”, but at the end of it all, I can’t help but think that Jesus is looking, maybe even laughing at me saying, “Thank you, Audra, that when you had nowhere else to go and didn’t know what else to do, you were willing to go crazy for Me.”  Don’t be afraid to go all in, go hard for Jesus. This life is short, and eternity is forever. Don’t waste an opportunity He sets before you. Bring it on 2025! 

12/12/24

[resi4skz]

CHAPTER 4

Pairing: idol!Chan x Rebecca Greywood (OC)

Warnings: none for this chapter

This is purely fiction!

Cover by: @3rachasdomesticbanana

For the next few weeks, I got Luna acquainted with the few necessities to get around outside. I got her a new phone number, got her registered in korean classes and some days I would let her follow the map on her phone whenever we were out. We even visited Just Java and had their coffee. It was the yummiest coffee I've ever had. We enjoyed every bit of the time we had with each other. Luckily, we started our work next month also so it was great to know that she won't be home alone.

"Hey, Luna, do you want to try tteokbokki?" I ask as I scroll through the menu on my phone. "I'll tell them to make it very mild."

"Sure!"

I find a restaurant with good reviews and order on the food app. "Okay, our order will be here soon. I even ordered fried chicken."

As we wait for the food to arrive, I turn on the tv to pass time. "Hey, what if you get to work for Stray Kids?"

"Doubtful," I say flipping through channels.

"Hey now. Don't underestimate your skills."

"I'm not. I just don't want my first day to work THE group. What if I say something really embarrassing?"

"Then you'll have something to tell your grandkids." I hit her arm as she laughs. "Relax. You'll do fine, trust me."

Our food finally arrives and we eat as we watch tv. I even teach her some words in Korean when she asks me. We finish eating our dinner and soon we start getting ready for bed. After doing my skin care, I settle myself in my bed and turn off the light. Let's hope Luna is right about me doing well at my job next month. I promise myself that whoever I will end up with, I will give it my best.

------------------------------------------------------------

Next month rolls around pretty fast and I get more and more nervous which I shouldn't be feeling. A few days ago, I went out and registered for a Korean name: Kim Na Eun. Only Luna and I know about this though.

Luna finally started working at the coffee shop today and I'm standing in front of my mirror as I examine my outfit. I'm wearing a beige button shirt with a long black jean skirt and white sneakers. Giving myself pep talk before I head out. "You got this, Becca."

It takes me half hour to reach JYPE and soon I'm in the HR department filling out some forms. I get introduced to my team members and soon I'm following one of the staff members, Yujin, down towards the makeup rooms. She told me I'll also be meeting the group that I will be assigned to. She introduced me to other makeup artists and I was surprised that everyone was so friendly which made me feel at ease somewhat.

She leads me to another room full of makeup vanities. There were a total of 12 chairs and even had a couch at one end. "They should be arriving shortly." I smile at her as I wait with her. I admire all the vanities that had makeup products laid out along with hair tools. The door opens and I hear the commotion of a couple of guys laughing and talking but I don't turn around as I'm still looking at all the makeup stations. "Becca-ssi!"

"Ne," I turn around and I suddenly wished I was still home.

"These are the guys I was talking about. You're assigned to them."

Back home, whatever I did, whether it was school work or job wise, it wasn't ever good enough for my father. I wanted to learn dancing when I was 15 but took my money pot away that I had been saving since I was 10. I wanted to learn ballet, dad called the ballet dance school and had them deny my admission. Whatever it was, it wasn't worth my while because he wanted me to become a surgeon like him. So he had me studying 24/7 till I collapsed and was on bed rest for 3 months. Even then, he gave me stuff to do related to medicine. Since then, I always did what he wanted me to do. Till last year, I did whatever made him happy. But when I finally stood up, he crushed my dreams.

I was very glad because I got all certifications, even international ones, for this moment all thanks to Luna. Of course, she was on my side the entire time. If it wasn't for her, I don't know how I could've dealt with all the stress. She pushed me and told me give it all my best. And thats's exactly what I did. Living in a new country was surreal. Everything was new to me. The food, the environment, the smell in the air.

But now as I stand in front of 8 handsome men staring back at me, I don't think my life could get any better. All of them introduced themselves to me and I was in awe of their beauty. Each member had their own aura. I glance around and noticed that only 4 out of 9 had different hair colors. I made a mental note to tell Luna later when one of them walked towards me. He had blonde with blue streaks styled hair, eyes that shined like stars and a jawline that was swoon worthy. I couldn't help but stare at him as he stood in front of me. Bang Chan stood in front of me. I know somewhere Luna is kicking her feet in the air.

"You're not from here, are you?" Bang Chan asked.

My god. I had seen him a few months ago. I don't know if I can handle this. I mean out of all the boys, he was the one I was most fascinated with. I watched them from their pre-debut days till now. And he's right here. Standing. Looking all glorious. In front of me. And who knew I would be seeing him again.

"No, I'm from Australia," I replied, containing my posture.

"Oh, really?" The way his eyes lit up, I wanted take a picture of it. "Which part?"

"Melbourne." I replied. I don't think he remembers me?

"Ah, the city of night life and architecture," he said, smiling. I think my mental state is not okay at the moment. Seeing his smile was one of my favourite part of him. It always made my day. But to see it in person....

"Yes, but I never got to enjoy it. I like Seoul more," I said.

"So you'll be our new makeup artist?" He asked. When I'm about say something, the voices come.

"What's your name?"

"Does she like ice cream?"

"Ask her age!"

All these questions came like a firing round in a game. I burst out laughing but immediately stop when they look at me. "Sorry."

I looked at all of them and replied in korean, "My name is Rebecca Greywood. I'm 20, korean age 21. And I like chocolate flavor."

It got quiet and I blinked at them looking back at me. "Uh, did I say something wrong?" Even the staff was looking at me. "Uhhh, hello?"

Felix the one with blonde hair, Jeongin with red/pink hair  and Seungmin the one with dark brown hair, skipped towards Bang Chan and smiled. "Noona!"

Noona? Oh my god. I need to call Luna like asap.

"Yah," Bang Chan said to his kids who immediately went quiet. "Don't scare her. Sorry about them, teenagers and all."

"It's fine," I say, waving them off. Internally, my brain is doing math of Bang Chan's and my age. Oh my god. If I'm 20, and if I'm doing the math right, he's older than me by 2 years. "Nice to meet you all."

All the other members bow and smile at me. And Bang Chan extends his hand towards me. "Welcome to the team."

I look at him and his hand. I raise my hand and shake his hand. "Thank you."

As he's walking back to the members, Yujin comes to me. "Oh I forgot to tell you. You'll be one of the main makeup artist for Bang Chan, Felix, and Han."

Wait, did she say Bang Chan? "Gamsahamnida," I say and look around the room. The eight of them were chatting and fooling around whereas I have only seen them like that on my laptop. I try to compose myeelf but the fangirl inside me wants to scream. I fish out my phone and take a quick selfie with the room behind me and quickly send it Luna. I put my phone on silent. I will have to talk to her when I'm off work.

One of the staff members claps her hand. "Alright, we have a new member joining is officially today!" She gestures towards me as everyone in the room, including the boys clap welcoming me. I bow and smile.

"Thank you for having me." I clench my hands trying to get the nerves out.

"Alright, we have a show in a few hours. Felix and Han will be covered today, Rebecca-ssi. So you can get started on Chan."

I don't think I heard her right. Did she just I have to work on him? The man that made the fandom go crazy over his abs? I look at where he's sitting playing games on his phone. Jeez, even sitting down like that he's attractive. Damn, I don't think I'm going to be able to survive this job.

Putting my feelings aside, I walk over to where he's sitting. "Please make yourself comfortable. I'll start by prepping your skin." I turn towards the makeup items laid put for me to use. Wow. They really went out. I quickly study the table and spot the skincare stuff. Picking up on of the moisturizer, I study and frown at the ingredients. "Why are they using this stuff? This will just make your skin dry and break out after," I mutter under my breath. But not my place to say anything so I sanitize my hands before I turn around and start prepping his skin. I use gentle hands and when my fingers touch his cheeks, I nearly swoon over how smooth it is. Holy, I would kill to have this smooth and silky skin. I start the makeup with foundation application followed by concealer to hide any blemishes and blend everything together.

Once I know the foundation looks great, I put face powder followed by eyebrow shaping and eye makeup. I strictly kept it professional but couldn't help to admire his beauty. When his eyes were closed, I noticed his eyelashes. They weren't long but weren't short either. The last thing that was left were his lips. I gulped when he tilted his head up so I could apply the lip products easily. Gently, I swipe the product over his plump lips. I don't outline his lips that much. "Where do I know you from?"

I freeze and look at him to him looking at me. "Sorry?"

"Have we met before?" He asks.

Yes. It's what I want to say. But I shake my head. "No."

"Oh." He says, still looking at me.

"Okay, you're all done." I say as I put the brush in my hand down beside all the brushes.

"That was fast," he says as he gets up to inspect my work. I watch as he checks his face thoroughly and his eyes go wide at particular spot. It was where he had a blemish or a simply an aftermath of a popped pimple. "You covered it? I can't even tell that it was there. Wow."

I beam at him. "I'm glad you like it."

"Thank you." He simply smiles warmly at me and I drop a brush, not because I wanted to but because I was transfixed on his smile. I only wish I could've taken a picture. He bends down, picks up the brush and hands it to me.

"Thank you."

"Anytime." Then he leaves to go to the other members.

I think I need a break.

------------------------------------------------------------

I'm currently sitting in the break room having my lunch. A few people were sitting and eating their lunch too. I have my phone in my hand watching a dance practice of one of Stray Kids songs and I almost want to dance to it.....if there weren't people around. I receive a text from Luna.

L: uh, what is that picture of?

R: me with people I'm working for and with.

L: and WHY exactly why do I see the faces of Bang Chan, Han and Seungmin? Felix?

I stifle a laugh and try not to choke on my food.

R: that's because I'm their MUA.

L: ....

R: girl, I'll see you when I get home because my lunch just ended.

L: get back here!

I grin as I pack up the leftovers and head out of the break room. But before heading back to work, I hopped in the bathroom to quickly brush my teeth and touch up on my makeup. Once I was done, I head back up to the makeup rooms and see that it's empty. Or what I thought was empty. As I walk inside towards my makeup station, I see 3RACHA snacking on chips and snacks as they joke around with each other. I bow to them as I clean up anything that needed to be cleaned.

"Becca-ssi." I turn around and see Han walking to me.

"Ne?"

"Hokshi noona namjachingu isseyeo?" (Do you have a girlfriend?)

I blink at him before bursting out in laughter. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to laugh," I say, chuckling.

He laughs. "Sorry, I didn't wanna ask but," he turns around and looks at at Changbin, who suddenly has an interest at imaginary dust on his clothes. "Someone dared me."

"It's okay. And no, I don't have a boyfriend," I say with a smile.

Then I see their leader walk up to Han and pat him on his back. "Han-ah, stop messing with the newbie."

"Sorry." Han apologizes but I wave him off.

"Sorry about him, he's usually not like that." Bang Chan says as Han goes back to Changbin.

"Ah, no. It's okay. I don't mind," I say smiling. He stares at me for a few seconds and I suddenly question my life choices. "Uhm."

"It's you!" He exclaims, pointing his finger at me.

"Sorry?" I blink at him.

"You're the girl from the other day," he says. Oh, he finally knows. "I knew I've seen you somewhere before."

"I'm sorry," I say as I bow.

"Are you kidding? If it wasn't for you returning my bag, I would've lost big chunk of our hardwork forever," he says smiling. "I should be thanking you."

I beam at him. "It's fine really. I'm just glad it didn't get into the wrong hands."

"Thank you, Becca-ssi."

"Ah, just Becca is fine."

He nods his head. "Becca." The way he said my name sounds so sweet like strawberry dipped in chocolate.

"Ne, Bang Chan-ssi."

"Just call me Chan." He smiles at me before going back to Han and Changbin.

"Chan," I whisper. I smile and go back to my previous task. I think I'm going to like working here.

A/N: the boys are finally here