#until I remember the state I left B in at the end of book 1 and the confirmed angst incoming

[agentark]

live look at me bringing Beckett to the coroner's office, failing the stat check to get the doctor talking, BUT getting whisperings of ass kicking B:

[lokiandbuckysdoll]

Cockwarming Loki

Summary: You ask Loki if you could cock warm him.

Paring: Loki X ChamberMaid! Reader

Word count: 1.5k+

Warnings: 18+!! smut, unprotected sex, sir kink, cock warming, slight mention and an indication of dom/sub dynamic, riding Lokis cock, spanking,tiny fluff at the end, overuse of the words cock and pet (sorry not sorry), love confession ish. ^ I think that's all but as always please let me know if I forgot to tag something!

A/N 1: This is inspired by @sarahscribbles Loki takeover with this question, and this is also my submission to her 𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 I use fluff prompt: "It's you. It's always been you." and Smut prompt: "I told you that you would start begging eventually.".

I also dedicated this to @loopsisloops as well :)

A/N 2: This is my first time writing something like this so I hope you don't have high expectations because I feel like this could b better !! 💀

Loki's relationship with you was peculiar, not just friends, but more than just his maid. "Lovers" wasn't the right word to describe it either, but deep down you both knew there was something more going on between you two than just sex. 

When it came to sex, you were Loki's and he ensured you knew it; you were his pet and plaything. He has demonstrated and exposed you to a variety of things. You were his submissive and he was your dominant, and you both entrusted each other with the mental and physical parts of your body.  

Since Loki was the one who usually brought you new things to try and teach you, imagine his surprise when you approached him and asked if you may try to cockwarm him. He was nearly at a loss for words until he remembered you were his tiny pet, and where could you learn about such a thing? You weren't stupid when it came to sexual actions, but you'd never been one to make a recommendation.

" Do you want to cockwarm me, darling? I'm not against the idea, but where did you get that word, mhm?" He questioned, his voice amused, as he anticipated your response.

You cast a bashful glance up at him as you shift from your right to your left foot. "I read it in one of your books, and I was wondering if you wanted me to try to cockwarm you because it's something we haven't done." You stood there uneasily staring at him, waiting for him to respond. 

"I see, well pet, let's not wait to try it," Loki stated, quickly undressing both of you as he led you to his desk. He sat in his chair, patting his lap, and invited you to sit on him. You walked forward, hesitantly, and went to straddle him; once fully straddled, you grasped his throbbing cock in your hand, stroking him a few times before sinking directly on top of him.

 You let out a short sigh as he was now completely inside of you; it was so nice to feel him stretch you out even in this position. "Does it make you feel good?" His face held a smirk, and his tone of voice was sarcastic. You responded with a nod, but he didn't like it. "Words, pet," he exclaimed as he slapped your behind, forcing you to yelp. "Yes sir, "it feels good!." You responded quickly. 

" Good now, remain still because I need to get some papers signed," he said, summoning his work on his desk with his magic. You maintained comfortably for a while, loving the sensation of him filling you up, however as you always did, you grew needy.

To prevent yourself from squirming, you tried to expand your legs discreetly. You couldn't help but whimper when the slightest movement of your legs caused Loki's cock to move inside you. You tighten your hold on his shoulders gently, hoping loki wouldn't notice, however, he did notice because nothing gets past the god of mischief

" Oh my dear pet, how I adore the feeling of your warm little cunt stretching around my cock, and the little noises of pleasure that escape you," he kissed your shoulder before slowly sliding his hips up into you. That was a mistake because you became more dependent on his touch, and he could feel your fingernails sinking into his shoulders as the movement became too much for you. "Speak up if you want something," he said into your ear, and you could only murmur a little "faster." 

" Please move faster sir, I can't take it, I need you," you whine like a cat in heat as you start rocking your hips back and forth. Loki immediately abandons his task to place his large hands on your hips and stop your movements. "But you wanted this, didn't you?" You wanted to be my good little pet and cock warm me, didn't you? So that necessitates you not moving," he mocks your neediness, knowing that it would make you want more from him. "I did, but I need you." "I need my king to fuck me please," you whine again as you can't wiggle your hips to relieve your hurting thighs, and you rest your forehead on his shoulder. 

" I give you everything you desire, yet you still want more? I told you that you would start begging eventually. Now you'll beg me to stop fucking you right now, because dear, no sound is better than your begging," he tightens his grasp on your hips as he thrusts into you. He begins in a steady pattern, but when your mouth fully opens and pleasure sounds depart it, his rhythm quickens until he's virtually jackhammering into your eager hole. 

Before you can say anything, he stops moving for a split second before standing up with you, grabbing your thighs and wrapping them around his sinful waist. You don't realize he's shifted you to his bed until you feel the silk bedding on the back of your body. He waits a few seconds for you to adjust your position before proceeding. His dominant side takes over, and he starts fucking you. 

" The sounds I can coax from you will always make me weak; you are mine." "Do you understand?" Every word he says is met with a strong thrust, and you're starting to get lost in the raw side of the pleasure he's giving you. As you go into your subspace, you are unaware that he has asked you a question until you feel a stinging sensation on your cheek. 

" ANSWER, PET! "To whom do you belong?" He holds his hips steady for a split second to hear your response. " YOURS! "I'M ALL YOURS, SIR!" you exclaim. Loki moves in for a possessive yet bruising kiss, satisfied with your response. Your arms reach up and encircle his neck. You continue like that until he pulls back for oxygen and his throat vibrates as he recovers his breath. 

He has swapped positions in an instant, and you now lie on top of him while he rests below you. "Ride your king" he demands and without thinking, you started rocking your hips, and Loki's massive hands went to your breasts, palming them in his hands. This drives you to go over the edge as your tempo quickens, and you'd believe his cock would snap if you rode him hard enough. "I'm close... ug!" his hands return to your hips. "Norns! Exactly like that. "Like that," he muttered, madly insane. The contracted state of your muscles around his size has brought him closer to his release. 

" SIR! "Can I come?" you beg as you near your climax, Loki setting a terrible yet pleasurable rhythm. He only needed a few thrusts before he said. "Come on, y/n let go!" The pleasure of feeling him empty inside you and the sensation of your orgasm overwhelm your senses at the same time. Slump against him and move forward, gently regaining your breath. You both stayed like this until you both cooled down. However, you did not move, which made Loki nervous. Had he pushed you too far in your pursuit of pleasure? "Y/n?" he quietly asked as his hands rubbed up and down your back.  

"How are you feeling ?" he inquired pleasantly as you hummed in answer. He could tell you were still in your subspace. He was gentle with you. You finally spoke as you lifted your head to look at him. "I'm fine, just tired." "I believe a bath would be beneficial." He nodded, understanding, and gently slipped out of you, and you complained about the lost contact. "Let us get you cleaned up, my dear." He carefully took you off the bed bridal style before carrying you to the bathroom, where he gently placed you on the edge of the tub while filling it with Asgardian flowers and oils to assist relieve your muscles. 

He assisted you into the tub once it was ready, and he carefully cleaned your hair and body, taking special care of your painful and sensitive areas. It was times like this when you wondered if he loved you or if it was all a game for him to enjoy. "My darling, your thoughts are very loud." You were taken aback by how delicate and low his voice was. "If you must know, this is not a game for me to play. I'm falling in love with you, and if I'm being honest, it's you. It's always been you. Who has had my heart since my mother assigned you as my chambermaid. You're much more to me than that." You turn around, startled by his statement, and glance up at him. 

You study his face for anything that suggests he's joking, but there's nothing. You cupped his face with your hand, looking at his lips before looking at his eyes, before leaning in and kissing him. This kiss was different from the others you'd shared with him. This one was more meaningful. This one was filled with feelings of affection. When you pull back, his hand reaches for your cheek and he tenderly says, "I love you," and you grin at his admission. "I love you too," you respond, touching your foreheads whilst you savor this lovely moment.

TAGLIST🏷️

Add yourself to my tag list :)

@caothicshit @huntressandlioness1 @huntress-artemiss @eleniblue @just-another-blog34411 @shadeysprings @hannibals-favourite-meal @silverfire475 @vbecker10 @sarahrogersevans @Tomandcakes @hallecarey1 @ladyofthestayingpower @mochie85 @coldnique @joyful-enchantress @nana1000night @lokischambermaid @lokisgoodgirl

[socalwriterbee]

Better In Time Chapter 4: Stars in The City

Catch up on Chapters 1-3 Collide Memories of Us and Delicate here!

Choices Book: The Nanny Affair

Series Name: Better in Time

Chapter Title: Stars in the City

Pairing: Marie Castro (MC) x Wyatt Kent (OC)

Word Count: 9,280

Rating/Warning: Fluff, Some Adult Situations

Song Inspiration/Mention: Where Do I Sign by Brett Eldredge, Beautiful Crazy by Luke Combs

Series Summary: For two years Marie thought Sam would change, be the man she wanted and the father she knew he could be. But broken promise after broken promise, Marie leaves the city she has come to know and the man she fell in love with. Moving across the country back to her home state of California, needing to put the ghosts of her past behind her and move on with her life. Meeting someone new was out of the question until one day on the beaches of Malibu she meets a handsome stranger she befriends.

Chapter Summary: It's finally here!! Marie and Wyatt's first date! Will everything go smoothly as planned or will disaster strike and end things before they begin.

A/N: Friendly reminder that this series has 3 POV’s Marie’s, Wyatt’s and Sam’s. Chapter 4 will have Marie's and Wyatt's POV, Sam will be quiet (up to no good of course) for the next couple of chapters!

A/N 2: Prompt has been used from Pinterest. Will be in bold.

A/N 3: Apologies in advance My editor (me) is still out or has given up after many rereads.

Some Characters/Settings/Storylines used or mentioned belong to Pixelberry

Enjoy!

✨✨✨✨✨

Marie

The smooth voice of Bruno Mars sings in harmony with the 90’s style R&B beat that played throughout my bedroom, removing the last heated roller from my hair watching the perfect brown curl cascade down just past my shoulder.  

It had been a busy Saturday, I had practically been getting ready the entire day. Not because I take that long, mind you, but Wyatt called and we spent a good time talking on the phone while I gave myself a mani.

I could hear the guys in the background telling him to get off the phone and help them load the car, after what I’m assuming was another morning out in the water. When we weren’t talking we’d be shooting texts back and forth, which has me wondering if we’d have anything left to talk about.

We pretty much covered the basics of what there was in getting to know each other. All that remained was the deep stuff and I had barely touched the surface on my end.

Running my fingers through the curls, breaking the chunking curls into soft waves. Bruno’s voice stops and is replaced with the ring of my phone, indicating an incoming call.

Rolling my eyes as a smile spreads across my face, which has been happening often in recent times, Wyatt was never gonna let me finish getting ready. 

But the name that flashed across makes me squeal, jumping up and down with excitement. 

“Jenny!”

“How’s my BFF doing?” She asks, her voice echoing off the walls to my bathroom.

Taking a deep breath to calm the excitement that was coursing through me and exhaling before answering her. “Better, just getting ready.”

“Getting ready? Please tell me your seeing that blue eyed hunk.”

“Yes, I’m going on a date.” I say, pressing my lips together. If I kept smiling like a fool my cheeks were bound to hurt before the night even got started. I couldn’t remember the last time I had felt this much excitement slash nervousness.“Our first date.”

“Marie! How am I only hearing about this now? We spoke not that long ago!” Jenny began to ramble. “I knew he’d forgive you for being a total bitch about —.”

Taken a back at the comment my friend made. “Hey!” 

“What? I’m only repeating what you said. What was his name again?”

“Wyatt—.” The smile that I tried to fight back won and I grin like a fool as his name leaves my lips. 

“God…even his name makes one ache you know where.” Jenny interrupts.

I feel a warmth come to my cheeks. “Jenny! Is that all you think about?”

Her teasing laugh comes through the phone. “Looking at you sounding all prudish all of a sudden.” 

Rolling my eyes once more at her comment. It was a good thing we weren’t FaceTiming because I could at least hide the rosiness that settled on my face with Jenny’s words. 

I wasn’t blind, Wyatt was good looking, no good looking wasn’t doing him justice, those blue eyes made me go weak in the knees, literally, with just one look. 

His touch would send shivers to every inch of my body, I could imagine what those lips of his would feel like against mine and on me. And yes, the ache had been real but whatever what going to happen between Wyatt and me, this time around in a relationship I wanted to take our time and let things come naturally and not rushed. I’m even getting ahead of myself with the whole it’s gonna be relationship thing.

But it was more than the physical attraction there was something there that I couldn’t put my finger on just yet. Something more, I dared throw out in the universe to find out before we started anything more between us.

“Marie. You still there?”

Jenny’s voice brings me back to our conversation, having to hide the fact that I didn’t hear anything after she called me prudish.  “Sorry. I..uh I need to finish getting ready.”

“Oh no you don’t.” The phone begins to chime to change into a FaceTime call. 

Hitting accept my beautiful friend, who now has her brown hair colored blonde with the ends light pink comes on the screen.

“Your hair!” “You look stunning!” The two of us call out to each other at the same time.

“I just finished with my hair.” Needing to change from the tank top and shorts I had on and just a few touches of makeup was still needed. “I’m not done.” I tell her.

“Just open the door like that, you don’t need to worry about what you are wearing or where you are going for that matter. A night in could be what the doctor ordered to get he who shall not be named out of your system.”

“He’s not Voldemort, you can say his name.” Shaking my head at my friend, again was that she ever thought about? “Since I have you Jen, tell me what you think of my outfit.” I tell her changing the subject. 

“Where is he taking you?”

Biting my bottom lip and shrug at her. I honestly didn’t know what Wyatt and I had planned to do tonight. “I don’t know. He didn’t say, he did say to be comfortable. Can I show you what I picked out.” 

“You can. But you know me M, I’m gonna tell you to take me into that closet of yours to pick something else out.” 

Waving her comment off. “You lost just a smidge of credibility after that Wal-Mart outfit you picked out when I was going to Italy.” Calling out as I step out of my bathroom and grab the simple soft gray t-shirt and black jeans.

Lifting up the shirt and placing it over my chest. “You will never let me live that down will you. One mistake and that’s all you remember!” Jenny chuckles out. “Cute, it’s still sexy and it does tell him that you are up for anything.” 

“Not bad right? Now shoes, Jen. I’m debating on wedges or going with the classic black and white chucks.”

“If I say wedges you’ll go with the chucks so I’ll say chucks.”

I watch as she walks through her apartment, our apartment once, months ago. Seeing reminders of the life I lived there, has me missing my friend, a life from the city that gives so much optimism to all those that went there including my younger self…

“Hey now, no tearing up. Marie I know that look and I miss you too and in a few months we’ll see each other and it would be like old times.” Jenny reassured. “Our four day weekend it set!”

But it wouldn’t be like old times. 

I wasn’t the same person that left New York all those months ago, well at least I could tell myself that. Only time would tell and I still disliked that saying of time but why was it becoming so much harder to ignore?

In time would I still be worried that there will always be that little reminder tucked in the corner of my mind that the thought of him or worse a piece of my heart that still after everything yearned for him.

Waving those thoughts away, today was not the day to let that come into play. It wasn’t fair to Wyatt and it wasn’t fair to me.

“I can’t wait.” I manage to say without sounding like a Debbie Downer.

Jenny gasps as her face lights up. “You could bring Wyatt.”

“I don’t know if that is a can of worms I want to open. Remember this is our first date.”

“Your first date with the guy that you saw every week for months when you would go to the beach. The guy who pulled you out of the water, the same guy that introduced you to his family and friends. And Marie, the man that has you absolutely giddy when I first called.”

“Your point?”

“My point is that you’ll be together come September and if your not I’m gonna hit you upside the head when I see you.”  

Laughing at the words that come out of my best friend. “Regardless of all that, this night can still go horribly wrong. You know like me not being ready, Wy should be arriving any minute now.”

“Aww look at you calling him Wy.” She teases. “It makes my heart swell with happiness for you Marie.”

“Bye Jen.” I roll my eyes with a smirk.

“I expect a call with all the deets. ALL.THE.DEETS!!” She says before I end our video call.

Standing in front of my full length mirror once fully dressed, I tug at the hem on my tee, playing with the soft gray fabric. “Can’t get more comfortable than this.” I blow a strand of hair away from my face.

My heart pounding against my chest at the sound of the doorbell ringing through my apartment. The nervousness that I tried to tame, turns up a notch and my hands become palmy. My heart racing faster as I walk out of my bedroom, down the hallway and inch closer towards the front door. 

Taking a quick glance around my apartment making sure nothing was out of place, just like the last ten times I checked when I went to look out the window to see if Wyatt had gotten here early before finally getting serious about getting ready.

Swinging the door open, the soft woodsy scent of his cologne invades my senses as he stands on the other side of the door frame. Standing tall, Wyatt has his hands tucked in the pockets of a pair of faded dark blue jeans, a white tee and a matching dark blue jacket. His eyes meet mine after his blue eyes take me in and a smile coming to both of us as we stand there inches from other.

“Hi.” His deep voice greets me. “You look breathtaking.”

If my face was rosy before it is now a bright red with his compliment. “Thank you. You’re looking very handsome yourself. Come in, just need to make sure everything is off and we’d be good to go.”

Stepping aside to let him pass, watching as he enters my apartment, it wasn’t anything big. The living area connected with the kitchen and a hallway that led to my bedroom. There was also a small patio I had set up with a table and a couple chairs. One of my favorite spots to unwind after a long day at work.

Wyatt turns around to face me. “Nice place.”

There was a some nervousness in his voice I hadn’t heard since meeting him. Wyatt had always seemed confident around me and right now he was a little fidgety. Which makes me nervous in return. 

Maybe this is too soon.

“Thanks. Make yourself at home, umm— there is water, wine and ginger ale in the fridge if you like something to drink. I’ll be back in a bit.” Giving him a quick smile before turning and heading towards my room, hearing a soft ok as I leave. 

*****

“Really, it’s not a big deal. Your cold and I’m more than happy to give you my jacket.” Wyatt says from across the table. 

Fighting back the chatter of my teeth, when the breeze that sweeps off the oceans surface and makes its way inside the restaurant. “It’s ok. I—.” 

My sentence is cut short as I watch Wyatt get up from his chair and shrug off his jacket and make his way towards me. “Here, I should have done this when we first got out of the car and before we made our way through the pier.”

The warmth that his body left in his jacket smooths the goosebumps that spread through my own. The scent that lingered in his jacket that is uniquely his has me forget a simple thank you. All I could do is watch as he makes his way back to his seat, silently thanking the heavens above and the surf below with how a simple white shirt stretches over his muscular chest and biceps. 

The color white doesn’t seem so plain against his sun kissed skin, I was reaching for the glass of water to stop me from ogling at him or worse being caught doing it.

“Better?” His softly asked.

Nodding. “Yes. Thank you.” Grateful that my manners spilled out.

“Sorry, I should have told you to bring a jacket or something. It cooled down a bit more than I thought.”

“No need to apologize. I should have gotten more information on where we were going.” I tell him, pushing the long sleeves back. “You know other than wear something comfortable.”

Wyatt reaches over the table. “Let me help you with that.” 

I lean my arm over the table, Wyatt takes the cuff of his jacket in both hands and rolls it in, stopping when it meets my wrist. Without asking, I give him the other, he does the same thing with the other sleeve.

As he rolls the sleeve, I press my nose down and smell the collar of his jacket that is sticking up, forgetting to fix it the moment it was put on. My eyes close as I inhale, his scent was intoxicating and I wanted to get lost in it. I’m reminded of where we are and who is sitting across from me that is until I hear him give a low chuckle. 

“You saw that didn’t you?” I say.

That earns me a deep laugh. “It’s hard to miss when all I can see is you.”

My face flushed and almost instantly it was getting a bit warmer before I could say anything to further embarrass myself, Wyatt words beat me to it.

“That blush suits you. It gives me some insight, which tells me I must be doing something right.”

“Well you do have a way with words. How can you not make a girl feel special.” My voice sounding sultrier than I wanted.

Before either of us can say anything our server brings out our meals. After thanking him, Wyatt and I fall into a comfortable silence within the first bites of our meal. 

He brought us to the Santa Monica Pier for our date, a place I hadn’t been to since I was a teenager. The last time I had been here was with my mother and father before my mothers passing. 

My preteen self coming along to enjoy time away from the books I’d lose myself in. Not old enough to be annoyed at spending time with my parents and not young enough to be awed by the excitement of the games and rides. 

But that had all melted away when I’d glance and see my mom and dad acting like high school sweethearts, which they were. We played games, each one of us trying to out win the other and getting on the rides seeing which one gave up first. 

My vision blurs with tears at the memories from that night so many many years ago, threaten to ruin the beginning of our night.

“Marie.” My head snaps up to see Wyatt’s face covered with concern. “Everything ok?”

“Yes.” I place down my fork on the edge of the plate. “I was remembering something about being here.”

Wyatt curses under his breath. “I didn’t think being here would bring memories of…him.” He grits out, his voice covered with hurt.  “I’m sorry.”

I watch his shoulders deflate just a touch. Who wouldn’t be hurt or disappointed when your date is possibly thinking of their ex, I would understand but that wasn’t what was running through my mind.

Shaking my head. “No…no…No!” Taking a deep breath, also wishing that wasn’t the first thing he thought of whenever I got emotional, he wasn’t off either but that wasn’t what I was thinking. I reach over and give his hand a gentle squeeze. “It’s not that, the last time I was here was with my parents before my mother—.” I begin to clear things up. “Before she passed away.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.”

Giving him the best smile I could muster at that moment. “It’s ok, you wouldn’t have known about my mothers passing and it’s a happy memory that I have from here.”

“I’m glad it was. Mind if I ask you to tell me about her? I’d love to get to know who she was.” 

“Not at all. More than happy too. Just tell me if you get tried of me talking.”

“Not all all possible.” Wyatt flashes his pearly whites, a smile that makes butterflies flutter. 

Before I knew it I was telling Wyatt about my mother and my childhood with my parents.

✨✨✨✨✨

Wyatt

I saw the spark enter her eyes as she spoke of her mother and the same brown eyes glisten with tears when she spoke of what I can only assume were the last memories she had of her. 

Marie had been quiet as we got in line to get onto the ferris wheel. Her infectious laughter and excitement as we played games and walked hand in hand was gone. Maybe the memories of her family were too much.

Her fingers now played with the small plush dragon we, well she mostly won, by popping the balloons while I missed, getting the dart stuck on the cork board. I proudly stood next to her impressed by the arm she displayed with that throw.

“Penny for your thoughts?” I ask.

She looks up at me, the multi-colored lights of the pier dance across her face, giving me small smile. The look that sweeps over her face before being replaced with the look that was hard to read at times. It was a look that had me guessing if she was remembering something else and this time I do think it does have something do with Dalton.  

Before she could answer we take our final steps up to the front of the line, with the attendant letting us through the gate. Taking our seats, we seat across from each other, the door closing to our pod leaving just the two of us as we ascend and leave the noise behind. The pod sways as it comes to a stop to let other riders on before we still at the top.

Marie sits across from me in my jacket, her hands gripping the edge of the seat, I’d be a fool to say that I didn’t love the way she looks in it. I had to control myself when I sat across from her at dinner while I rolled up the long sleeves as my fingers faintly touched her skin and while we walked around the pier hand in hand. 

Deep down I knew it wasn’t the right time to kiss her, no matter how bad I wanted too. Right now that was all I wanted to, I wanted to lean in and kiss her, make her forget whatever casted that look across her face.

“It’s not fair.” Marie says as she looks past me, instead of at me. 

Waiting for her to say more, she says nothing else.

What wasn’t fair was something I want to ask but at the same time afraid to because of the answer I may be given.

“The last time I was on a ferris wheel I was with two very funny and handsome young men.” Marie answers my unasked question with a lightness to her voice. “And it’s not fair to you to be compared to them because it’s no contest. Sorry and if you ever get the chance to meet them—umm well no scratch that, that is highly inappropriate.”

Marie finally looks me and laughs, once she sees the shocked look on my face.

She went on a ferris wheel with two guys? No, not two guys, two young men.

I’m trying to wrap my head around what has prompted her to say this and no normal scenario that would make sense to me plays in my mind.

“I should explain.” Marie starts.

“That would be helpful because what I maybe thinking is not normal.”

“Oh please share. I want to know what is going through that head of yours, you’re hard to read at times.”

“Here I thought I was an open book. I’m horrible at hiding things. You on the other hand Marie are hard to read. I get flashes of it but then you uhh get this look.” I finish sheepishly as I run my fingers through my hair. 

Marie’s face goes from happy and a bit teasing to serious, no emotion displaying across her face but there is that little glint in her eyes that is telling me not to take it too seriously, for now.

“This…this look.” She motions to her face with the pointer finger. “Had to be taught and mastered. Give no emotion to the press unless it was an event or planned outing. The less they see the real you the better.”

I scratch at the beard along my jaw before moving to sit next her. Wrapping my arm over her shoulder. “I wouldn’t ever want you to hide what you feel or don’t feel when you are around me. Now I’m dying to know about these two young men you went on a ferries wheel with.”

Marie lets out a small chuckle before tucking her hair behind her ear. The sound of a rollercoaster mixed with screams and laughter become louder as we begin to move. “Tonight also reminded me of a day the twins and I played hooky, we went to Coney Island.”

I could see from the corner of my eye that those boys mean the world to her and that no matter what happens between us I wouldn’t come close to them.

“We played games, just like the one we played, went on the ferris wheel and ate so much junk food. Sofia wasn’t so happy about that when we got home.” She laughs at the memory.

Sofia Russo, Dalton’s ex-fiancée, I scanned through the articles on her when I had gone down that rabbit hole.

I’m brought back to Marie and our date at the sound of her soft voice telling me about that day. “I wasn’t sorry for taking them. They were kids and I had promised them we’d go and she was being unreasonable in my opinion.”

But I couldn’t focus on what she was sharing with me, something gnawed at me the way she talked about that day and how I practically did everything she did years ago with the twins. 

I had taken her down memory lane, first with her parents and second with the family she left. The only thing I selfishly hoped for was for her to stay here and not realize what she may want was back in New York.

*****

Marie and I walk side by side, my hands tucked in the front pockets of my jeans, gone was the hand holding, at least on my end. We walk through the Pier, surrounded by running kids and loved up couples holding hands and sneaking in kisses. 

That could be us but here I was kicking and distancing myself from her. What I thought was a perfect date turned into a disaster and something she already did with the boys she nannied for and no matter how much I tried to tell myself it was just them, they still had a father that she loved and more than not did the same thing.

“Wy.” Marie snakes her arm through mine. “Penny for your thoughts?”

I look down at her giving her a weak smile. “Why do I get the feeling that our night is coming to an end?” I ask her, turning away from her and looking straight ahead as I weave our way through the crowd.

“Is it?”

I can’t answer afraid my voice would crack with disappointment so I just give her a nod.

“I thought everything was going well. The night is still young and I have something in mind for the next part of our date.”

I raise my eyebrow in surprise at her. The self pity party that I’m having begins to melt away slowly. “Do you now?”

Marie nods.

She surprises me and I’m feeling hopeful once more. “Here I thought I was in charge of the date. Are you hijacking my date?”

“I would never.” She teases. “I was just thinking that the both of us could have a say into tonight. You know since I was the one who asked you out.”

We reach my car, opening the door for her waiting until she is settled before making my way to the other side.

“You didn’t give me the chance to ask you.” I say as I get in.

Marie leans over, her body pressing into mine. Her perfume invading my scenes, the sweet scent of magnolias and citrus, as she looks at the dash. “No need for a fill up.” She says as she looks at me, she is so close that the smallest movement would seal our lips together. She smiles and sits back in her seat buckling up.

“Marie?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you gonna tell me what you have in mind?”

Her laughter fills my car. “Right. That would help wouldn’t it.” I nod at her, waiting for her to continue. “I was thinking we should see the stars.

“The stars?”

“Yeah.” Marie unbuckles her seatbelt and opens and jumps out the door. “Mind if I drive?

Maybe there was hope for this night after all.

*****

“There.” I point to the next parking structure on our right. “This one isn’t hard to miss.” I joke, Marie had missed the last three parking areas that we passed. Not to say she was a bad driver but she was kind of distracted with the outside world.

“Why are we here?” I ask, wondering what we were doing on Hollywood Blvd.

“Well Mr. Kent. I’m gonna show you the stars.”

“Isn’t this a little touristy?” 

“Of course. That’s the fun of it. I’ve never done it before and we just did the Santa Monica Pier, which is super touristy as you put it, now we are doing the Hollywood Walk of Fame.”

“Alright.”

“Oh and the Chinese Theater, Pantages and Dolby. One could go on and on and all the stars we get see.” Marie tells me enthusiastically.

We walk the down Hollywood Blvd. stopping and looking down when one of us spots a name we recognize. Further down there are side shows and artists singing, we stop for a moment to enjoy them. The look on Marie’s face can only be described as if she was spending the day at Disneyland and not the streets that have caused many heartbreaks then successes. 

“Let’s get a picture with them.”

“You know you have to pay them to take a picture.” I point out, not thinking twice as I pull out my wallet to take out some singles to had over to the person that must be sweating bullets under that costume.

Taking Marie’s phone, she poses and smiles while I capture the moment of her standing next to a Nickelodeon character. 

“Thanks.” She tells the character. “How did it turn out?”

“Good.”

“Come on there are more up ahead. I’ll pay you back but you have to take pictures with me.”

I shake my head. “I’m not having you pay me back. And I’ll agree to the pictures as long as I get to take one with Marilyn over there.”

The night continues with us walking down the street as we hop over to the other side before an idea strikes.

“Let’s go.” I pull her along. “I’ve got an idea.”

“Where are we going?” Her voice filled with excitement as I begin to pull us away from The Walk of Fame and towards where we parked my car.

“Can’t say.”

Moments later I’m pulling out of the structure I glance quickly over at Marie, seeing the lights of the city and all the entertainment that Hollywood Blvd provided shine against her skin and light up her whiskey eyes as if she was seeing it all for the first time, even after spending an hour or so walking the same sidewalk we drive by. 

“I have to show you.” Was all I could say before my concentration settles on the roads of LA, we did need to get there in one piece and the city wasn’t known for having the best drivers.

The feel of her hand on my knee sends a warmth through me and my focus faltered just a bit that I stepped on the brake a bit harder then intended. “You could tell me.”

“Do you like surprises?”

It wasn’t a trick question but she took her time in giving me answer of she was contemplating on which direction her answer would take. No matter what she said my response was going to be the same.

“I do like surprises.” Marie whispers, an answer I was able to catch before a car behind us honks loudly.

“It wouldn’t be a surprise than if I told you.” I tell her as I merge on the 101. I smirk as I catch her cross her arms at not getting told the surprise. “That little pout is adorable.”

“I do not pout.” She uncrossed her arms and placed her hands on her lap, unsure what to do after being called out. “You think I’m adorable?”

“I think you’re beautiful.” I tell her. 

“Wyatt—.”

“The little pout and arm cross thing you did is like I said adorable.” That bit comes out with a chuckle, earning me a playful shove and a smile.

“You make me sound childish.” A bit of humor in her voice states. “Can you tell me now?”

After getting off the freeway the drive up was a bit quieter than I expected. Hoping the way up wouldn’t give to much away. The houses and the winding road would be a bit vague for someone who wasn’t from California and another reason I didn’t have the GPS on. Marie had been gone for years and even when she lived here there had been things she hadn’t done. So I was banking on that to help me keep it a surprise.

My heart pounded against my chest as we went up the mountain, surely it was something Marie heard with the inside of the car being as quiet as possible. She hadn’t said anything after asking me again where were going. I could only imagine what she was coming up with as to where I was taking her.

The soft sound of her voice cuts through the silence. “This is like serial killer location. Going up a mountain no other car has passed by, how many dates have you brought up here Wyatt?”

I hold back a laugh as to where her mind went. “You’re the first. Here I thought you liked a little bit of an adrenaline rush.”

“Running for my life was not what I would say counts as a rush one wants to experience.”

“You won’t be running… for long.” I continue. “I was thinking that if you wanted to see stars we could actually see stars.”

I drive close to the side of the mountain as a car coming down pass by us, making the last turn before it comes to view and I hear Marie gasp. “The Griffith Observatory.”

The lit up white dome building sits in front of us, shining bright against the night sky. The warm lights that surrounded the grassy area seeing people coming and going. “Well shit..” I curse under my breath. There was a bit more people than I hoped would still be out here but we could still make this work.

“What is it?” Marie asks while I pull into an empty parking spot, perhaps I wasn’t unlucky after all. Prime parking is unheard of, so I’ll count that as a win.

“I just thought maybe it would be just the two of us.”

Marie’s laughter fills the car at my words. Her laughter sinking deeper in my soul and finding it impossible not to fall harder for her than I already am. Some would call what I have as being whipped, that someone being my younger brother but I didn’t care. 

Once she finishes and catches her breath she says. “That is adorable.”

“You think I’m adorable?” I mimic the words Marie had said earlier. Hearing her seatbelt unbuckle and her door open without an answer to my question. “Come on.” She calls out from outside the car.

Killing the engine and getting out, I stride towards her. Taking her hand in mine, we blend in with most of the people that are still up here. Couples on a romantic night out, the rest and few families walking around and seeing The City of Angels at its brightest.

Marie tugs at my hand, a few steps in front of me, leading us through the grounds of the observatory. I nod and smile at the people who stare at us as we walk by them. Marie drops my hand as we get to the end and stops once she reaches the railing. The faint smell of her perfume once more hypnotizes me slightly until I see that I’m about to bump into her. I wrap my arm around her waist to soften the blow of my body bumping into hers.

“Sorry—.” My apology dies in my throat when Marie covers my arm with her hand. The softness of her hand almost has me missing her question.

“Have you ever seen anything so wonderful in your entire life?”

It was a rare night to see Downtown Los Angeles so clearly. The city lights shining bright a complete contrast to what was directly below us, the dark and rough terrain of the mountain. There was hardly any smog surrounding the city, again that was rare. It wasn’t as beautiful as seeing the Eiffel Tower illuminated on a Parisian night or seeing New York City from The Empire State Building but it was a part of home.

“Did you just quote The Little Mermaid?” My lips brushing the whispered question against her ear, my chin coming to rest on her shoulder.

“So that movie you know.”

“It’s a classic. It happens to be Olive’s favorite movie, she forced me to watch it with her. Even went as far as calling me a guppy.”

Marie turns to face me, the stars glowing in her eyes, the ones that I could get lost in just like the first time I saw her.

“Thank you for bringing me, it’s beautiful.”

Reaching up and cupping the side of her face, the both of us drawn to each like moths to a flame. 

Feeling Marie’s hands wrap around my waist. “Come, lets go see the stars.” I say before leading her to the other side of the grassy area a bit further away from the crowd.

Removing my jacket she had been wearing since the pier, she places it on the ground. Spreading it out and giving us something to lay on. Watching as she takes her spot and lays down on her back, patting the empty spot next to her, Marie wanting me to join her.

The feel and warmth of her body as I move next to her relaxes me. The dark sky twinkling above us. The laughters and murmurs of the crowd fading away as the stars brings us to focus on the things that are otherworldly and out of our control. 

Marie’s hand brushes against mine, that soft subtle movement makes the hair on my arms rise. Her breathing steady, turning my head just slightly watching the rise and fall of her chest. A faint smile on her face, the brown in her eyes now seem lighter with the light from the moon shining down on her. 

“What has you smiling that like?” I ask, wanting to know her every thought.

Marie turns to look at me, the smile never wavering. “I don’t know if I should share. Last time I did you wanted to end our night prematurely.”

I prop myself up on my side and rest on my elbow, looking down at Marie her brown hair spread out against my jacket. Her eyes searching for an okay to continue down possibly another memory that I’ve unknowingly unlocked tonight.

Leaning over, I run the back of my fingers down her cheek. “Tell me about it.” I say.

“I was remembering a time a few years ago, after taking Mason and Mickey to the museum, the three of us headed to Central Park to star gaze.” She whispers, the way she speaks those words and how her face lights up gave me another glimpse of the love she has for them.

“That must have been something. The stars in the city, I hope the company is well matched.” I tell her, looking back up at the night sky. “Tell me about that night.”

“The company present is well matched, diving into more of the deep stuff tonight I see.”

I smirk at the thought. “I think that is all that is left after everything we’ve talked about.”

“And who’s fault is that? That day happened to be my unofficial first day as the boys nanny, I had been moving in when a call came in and uhh—.” Marie hesitates a bit. “Saa.. he had to go handle a PR nightmare, so it was just me and the boys. That night I may have used that opportunity to learn more about who his fiancée was and what she meant to them.”

Marie turns and looks away from me, trying to hide the rosiness creep up on her as if she been caught doing something she shouldn’t have. A PR nightmare? I couldn’t recall any disaster before the wedding but then again it was most definitely handled. “Aaah, so you used the twins to find out more about…”

“Very hypocritical of me I know” Marie says cutting me off.

“I’ll plead the fifth to comment on that. You wanted to know more about someone you felt something more for, I’m in no place to say anything.”

“Yeah, I’d say this night—.”

“—has me going O for two.” I add before she could call it a disaster.

“O for two?” Marie looks at me curiously.

“Strike one with the Santa Monica Pier. My Pier to your Coney Island. Strike two with The Observatory. My Griffith Park to your Central Park.

“I guess your right. What are the odds of that happening.” She says leaning back down. “I wouldn’t say O for two that's a bit harsh, not out of the park but maybe a single or a stretched out double.”

I throw my head back with a laugh.

Noticing Marie wraps her arms around herself, the chill of the night might be settling back in. I swear my heart could have stopped for a second when she turns and looks at me with these come get me eyes. 

I lean down and whisper to her. “Dance with me.”

Marie gives me quizzical look. “There isn’t any music.”

In one swift movement I stand and straighten myself out, extending my hand to her. “Have you never danced without music? It’s one of the things one must do in life. ”

“I can’t say that I have. What are the other things one must do?” 

Marie places her hand in mine and I pull her up to her feet. 

“One, dance like no one is watching, even if it is with no music. Two, travel the world. And three, love like you’ve never been hurt.” 

Our bodies pressing into each other, my hands resting on the small of her back, running my finger tips up her arm and back down taking her hand in mine once more. I curl them in and rest our entwined hands on my chest. My other hand still remaining on her lower back, feeling the smooth soft skin under my fingers with the slightest movement her shirt rides up. 

I lead her to our own rhythm, swaying gently side to side, I look past her not trusting myself to not trip over my own feet and trying to control my rapidly beating heart, my heart that threatens to spill out what I feel for Marie.

“Wyatt, may I ask you something?” She asks before I could answer her first question she throws another one at me. “How is this whole friend thing going?”

Looking down at the woman in my arms, realizing she had never stopped looking at me, I wince at the question, my little mantra making a comeback and mocking me. “Too shit, if I’m being honest. You heard that?”

“I think they all did.” Marie says, pressing her lips together fighting back a laugh. “If I’m being honest, I didn’t hear you say it. Olive told me right before she had me change, you know giving them the chance to leave you and me alone.”

I nod, remembering the not so subtle move my sister and friends made that night.

“Friends don’t make each other feel like this.” My tone turning serious with the words that come from deep within my soul.

“Make one feel like what?”

“Like maybe one day you could be my everything.”

Marie’s body goes still, stiffening against mine. I drop my head and close my eyes shut, I curse myself for saying such a thing. We don’t even know what this thing between us is and I’m over here thinking of a lifetime with her.

Marie moves against my hold, I don’t want to see her put a well deserved distance between us, so I keep my eyes closed.

My eyes open at her soft touch against my cheek, a tenderness as settled across her features that is accompanied by a small smile. 

My breath hitches when she leans up and her lips replace the touch of her hand on my cheek.

“Maybe I could get you to sing a song because this whole dancing with no music is kinda driving me crazy.”

“You’ll definitely go running for the hills if I do and I'm still not ready to let you go.”

The small side to side picks up again as I lead her in our little corner of The Observatory, the sounds and sight of the City of Angels around becoming an afterthought once more, right now it’s just the two of us in our own little world.

Without thinking and with a clearing of the dry lump that has formed in my throat, the lyrics that almost perfectly describe Marie and what I am feeling flows past my lips.

‘When she gets that come…get me look in her eyes…it kinda scares me the..way she drives me wild—.’

I look down, getting lost in the why she looks at me, jotting down to memory every last detail of her features, the way the corner of her eyes squint, the many ways her lips form a smile, the way she stares back at me with a look that makes my heart stop and beat like crazy at the same time, the way her breathing picks up when I pull her closer to me.

I pray it’s enough to last me a lifetime. 

‘When she drives me wild…beautiful, crazy, she can’t…help but amaze me…the way that she dances…ain’t afraid to take chances…and wears her heart on her sleeve—.’

My eyes close when Marie’s fingers caress the nape of neck. The hair that peppers my arms raise with excitement.

‘Yeah, she’s crazy but..her crazy is beautiful to me’

I don’t know when we stopped dancing or when one of my hands moved to the back of her head bringing her closer. Leaning in, gently nudging my nose against hers, seeing if she is comfortable with this closeness. The last time I had been this close she had pulled away and that was before I told her she could be my everything. There was a whispering touch of her lips ever so close to mine, searching her eyes, seeking permission to go a step further. 

My eyes widen before they close when Marie’s lips crash hard against mine, If I wasn’t holding onto her we would have taken a step back at the force of her kiss. Her kiss softens letting me feel just how soft her lips are, almost exactly as I imagined they would be, if not softer. 

Feeling her begin to pull back I press firmly against her lips, rewarded with a slight parting that I take advantage of, her body molding into mine and arms wrapping around me as our tongues move against each other. Her taste invading every part of me.

A moan escapes from her encouraging me to keep going.

My lungs begin to burn as they beg for air. But at this moment everything I need is right here in my arms, reluctantly I pull back before kissing her softly once more.

“I had to get you to stop singing somehow.” She murmurs breathlessly smiling against my lips. “Did you call me crazy?”

“Beautiful.” I whisper.

*****

Shortly after Marie surprised me with a kiss, I drove us back to her apartment. Her hand in mine as we climb the stairs. She glances over her shoulder at me and gives me one of her heart stopping smiles.

The ride over had been quiet at least between us. Marie had turned on the radio and I welcomed the musical distraction, it was hard to focus on the road when all I wanted to do was look over and glance at her.

Marie had been getting the first in everything when it came to us. She had asked me out, she kissed me, not that I was complaining. If taking things at her pace was the way to continue to be with her then that was something I’d be happy to do.

She didn’t run when I said what I feeling. My so called confession of a premature love that was blossoming.

Our night winding down as we took the last step up to her apartment. Two options run through my mind for how this night could end and one of them was wishful thinking. One, I bid her goodnight, be a gentleman and make sure she is safely inside then head home and contemplate in calling her before falling asleep with the image of her running through my mind as sleep took over.

Or option two, which in my own opinion sounded a hell of a lot better, was getting lost with her seeing just how those cover cling to her. Who was I kidding, I was getting way ahead of myself with giving myself the thought of option two.

“What are you thinking?” Marie’s soft voice asks me.

It was at that moment that I notice that we are standing at her door, turning to me her free hand running along my bearded jawline, closing my eyes at the sensation that courses through me. I would never tire of this caress from her.

Leaning down, pressing my forehead against hers. “How I don’t want this night to end.” I sigh.

Marie drops my hand from hers and pushes her body into mine, taking a quick step back my hands on instinct go to her waist, steadying her and myself as I feel the cool railing press into my back.

“It doesn’t have to.” Marie’s words a feather touch against my lips.

The look on her face tells me she wants something more and hell I do to, why lie to myself. Her lips parting as if she was going to say something but I don’t give her a chance. My hands go from her waist to tangle into her hair as I crash my mouth against hers. 

This time taking control, the tenderness of our first kiss under the stars long gone, now replaced with a hunger that was hiding in the shadows now coming to the forefront. Marie’s tongue slipping into my mouth, getting a moan out of me as her arms wrap around my neck.

I give her hair a slight pull, earning me a grin I could feel. I untangle my hands from her, running them down her back until my hands cup the roundness of her ass. Giving it a squeeze as I lift her up, she wraps her legs around my waist like we’ve done this many times before. 

Marie grinds herself against me, the strain in my pants getting a bit tighter. My hands going under her shirt, running along the smooth skin of her back. My eyes open at the loss of Marie’s lips on mine, seeing the hunger in her eyes that surely match mine. The clasp of her bra at my fingertips, one quick snap of my fingers and it would open. One pull up and her shirt would be over her head.

A groan rumbles in my throat at the image that would be displayed in my arms.

“Spend the night with me Wyatt.”

I don’t have time to answer or fully notice the slight hesitation in her words when there’s a cough coming from behind us. Marie’s head snaps back and I look past her.

A man stands firmly inside the open door, almost as tall as me but just a few inches shorter. Dark hair that is peppered with white. Brown eyes that match the woman in my arms, looking at me with a glare of being caught of doing something inappropriate. He folds his arms over his chest, this mystery man looks as if he is waiting for Marie or myself to say something. 

Words fail me. My racing mind not so much, how much did he see? How long had he been standing there? Did he see me grab her ass? Lift her up and watch her legs wrap around me? Or did he just see when my hands, that are still under Marie’s shirt, crawl up and get ready to undress her out in the open.

Any of those possibilities couldn’t get more embarrassing, well no scratch that, I did have something straining against my pants, lucky for me Marie was covering that up.

“Dad! What are you doing here?” Her voice sounding very nonchalant for the situation we find ourselves in.

Shock takes over as the words that Marie as spoken begin to register in my mind. 

Dad?

I hear that right, right? 

Dad! Dad?

Fuck…Fuck…Fuck!

I literally groped Marie in front of her father. My hands instantly drop and I slowly peel Marie off of me. Marie smiles sweetly at me before turning around to face her father as if he didn’t see what we were doing and what that could have lead to. 

With her turned away from me, she looks composed all the while I was squirming on the inside while I stood frozen under the watchful eye of her dad but from where I stood it felt more like a death stare.

From the moment Marie asked him what he was doing here to when he finally answered felt like time stood still.

“I wanted to make sure you arrived home safely.” His stare softened when he looked at his daughter. 

I watch as Marie shakes her head at him. “I didn’t give you a spare key to spy on me. It was for emergencies.”

“And my daughter going on a date isn’t an emergency?” The corner of his mouth twitches up into a smirk.

“No it isn’t!” Marie says with a bit of humor behind it. “What I should do is take it away.”

I watch as her father plays the hurt card at her words and hearing Marie laugh, dropping and shaking her head. “You wouldn’t do that to your old man. Would you? Where are your manners Mija, I’m assuming this is Wyatt.”

Marie turns to me and mouths sorry and for the first time since being interrupted I feel the blood pump through my veins once more, I smile softly at her. Taking a side step away from Marie, I walk to her open door with my hand stretched out.

“Sir.” I nod to him. “Wyatt Kent.”

His hand shake firm as he introduces himself. “Alejandro Castro.”

Mr. Castro looks past me, towards his daughter. “Come inside Marie, it’s getting late. I’ll walk Wyatt here to his car.”

Marie closes the space between us, giving her dad a quick hug. “It’s not that late. Wyatt and I were going to have a night cap. I could walk you to the car if you want.”

Mr. Castro stands next to me, giving me a firm pat on the back of my shoulder. “What do you say Wyatt. Walk an old man to his car?”

I look at Marie and then her father, I must be caught between some joke. Mr. Castro wasn’t that old perhaps in his fifties.

“Now you want him to walk you to your car? What happened to you walking him to his car?”

“That wouldn’t be a problem right?”

“I umm.—yeah I mean no sir no problem at all…” I run my hand through my hair nervously. “I’ll call you.” I tell Marie. The look in her eyes fades the slightest at my words.

“Nonsense Wyatt. Marie couldn’t stop talking about you and it would be such a shame for her to wait on your call. ” Mr. Castro speaks up. “Join us for church tomorrow. You do go to church don’t you?”

“Yeah..yes.” I lie, my voice coming out as a prepubescent teenager. I just lied. Why? I kick myself mentally, I lied through my teeth to the one person that can shut down any possibility of dating the woman in front of me.  

“Dad! What are you…Wyatt you don’t have to.” Marie scrambles to say. “Dad you don’—.”

“Don’t miss church on Sundays and Marie, Wyatt already agreed.” 

I look back and forth between them, her dad having a cheshire cat like grin and Marie rolling her eyes at him.

“Come on Kent. It’s late and time to call it a night if we want to be up bright and early dressed in our Sunday best.”

I watch Mr. Castro kiss his daughter on the cheek before turning around back to me.

“I’m so sorry about this, goodnight Wyatt. I had a great time.” Marie says.

“Me too.” I lean in to give a peck on her cheek but Marie surprises me once more and lands a gentle kiss on my lips.

“I really am sorry. I hope to see you tomorrow.”

I nod as I turn and fall in line with Mr. Castro, looking over my shoulder to get one last glimpse of Marie before walking away for the night. Catching her smile at me before she closes the door, I wait until I hear the locks on her door turn before taking another step.

Hearing a grunt come from the man next to me, not knowing if that grunt is of disapproval at what he saw or a grunt that earned me some points waiting for his daughter to be safely behind closed doors.

There was only one way to find out and unfortunately there was a chance that I’d be finding out while I was on my knees asking for forgiveness.

tags: @cariantha @thenannyaffair-fanfics @txemrn @issabees @nikirennie87 @choicesficwriterscreations @chemist-ana

[unpreciosa]

Tumblr Porn: A Personal Writing

2014, during the peak of the social media platform named Tumblr. In the beginning of the year, my winter break was ending and along came the dreaded continuation of 7th grade. January always felt like the longest month, many long nights consuming any visual media I could access, which went from the television to the iPhone 5c my parent’s bought me in November for my 13th birthday. It was my very first iPhone, which felt like a total shift in my character because I was known for rocking an Android. But my parents knew how much it would mean to me. I reflect back on middle school, and all I could remember from 7th grade was that it was the first time that I was experiencing anxiety and depression. At the time, I had two friends who were self-harming… and it was the first times that my friends were experiencing similar feelings to mines. Some would message me about it, or I would find out through friends or fellow peers, or through the social media. At the time, my parents had a presence and stance on what social media I could be a part of. What apps got the approval? The ones that I could remember are Kik, Snapchat, Vine, Pinterest, and most importantly, Tumblr.

I cannot remember the exact moment that I decided to make a Tumblr account, but I was aware of it’s existence through my friends and peers. Around this time, I was exposed to the music of One Direction. I knew of their existence from their popular hit, “What Makes You Beautiful” but that came out when I was in elementary school. I was not into that type of pop music for a few reasons: 1. This was not the type of music my parents would ever entertain, as mixed Latinos living in Central Florida. The radio they would play consisted of R&B, Hip Hop/Rap, Dance, Salsa, Reggaeton, etc. 2. I was going through the “I’m not like other girls” phase. I was tired of girls constantly gawking over boys. I wanted to be different. 3. That song was just not good! It was not until I became friends with this one girl that I discovered albums like “Midnight Memories” and “Four”. From listening to their voices and watching to their music videos, I became intrigued with learning about the boys. The narrative and the marketing of who Harry and Zayn are really spoke to my tastes as a young girl.

My research led me to Tumblr, where I approached the One Direction fandom. This community was extensive and active with their following. The ‘fandom’ on Google is defined as, “the state or condition of being a fan of someone or something; the fans of a particular person, team, fictional series, etc. regarded collectively as a community or subculture.” The One Direction fandom on Tumblr lead me to start my sexual exploration as a young girl.

Was this an intentional choice? This meaning did I intentionally looked for sexually explicit literature, which lead me to sexually explicit content? No, I happen to stumble on it one night. One of my favorite forms of fan-made content became fan stories, fluffy blurbs of romantic scenarios happening with the member of your choice. Reading this was exploratory because of how detailed these stories were. It gave me the ability to experience romance without physically experiencing it. It was unconsciously appealing to my anxious feelings that were budding in me. Middle school was the beginning of the formation of my personality and interests as an individual. I was experiencing newfound independence, possessing a world of unrestricted knowledge at my fingertips.

This was the most accessible form of sex education for me. My parents gave me the best “talk” that they could, but it was left at one conversation. If you ask them today, they will tell you that their children could come to them for “those types of conversations” but who wants to talk to their parent about that? The internet became my guide book into figuring out what made me flushed or excited. During this time, there was a part of me that became delusional and emotional when reading these stories; like Harry was flirting with me or Zayn was cuddling with me. I would search for different authors (with good grammar and a clean format) and go through their master lists to read their titles… There was one story I was reading that was a series that started out as ‘fluff’ and then slowly shifted into the ‘smut’ category. For those who don’t know, smut is defined as, “obscene or lascivious talk, writing, or pictures.” The majority of the authors would place a disclaimer before the story, “rating: 18+… smut, NSFW… If you are younger than 18, scroll past. tags: __” Usually, I would skip them if I saw them but this author in particular did not preface the post with a warning. So as I am reading this smut, I notice that the language is getting more dirty, and I paused to think about this. I felt conscious of my actions, anxious that I would get caught. But I was already reading this, and this was around a time where the concept of sex was still unknown territory for me. I wanted to know the details, to be let in on the secrets before I would even consider enacting on them. So, I decided to read further. In that moment, my perspective of the world would completely shift and would go down a digital spiral.

The forbidden and taboo feeling made me gravitate towards engaging with smut pieces more. Some of these posts would contain GIFs of the celebrity looking at the camera in a sexy way or filmed in a comprising position. They were not directly sexual, but it was suggestive with the tension of the eye or if the angle and lighting were right. I would click on the hashtags, #smut, #NSFW smut, #NSFW with the addition of the celebrity’s name. Scrolling through these hashtags lead me to discovering pornography. I remember how anxious this made me feel, guilty because I knew this was not something I was allowed to look at but curious because I never saw the act happening. Whenever a sex scene would come on in the house, my parents would make us close our eyes, which left bits and pieces of information. During our talk, we were given a light lesson in anatomy and how natural pregnancy happens. There was no talk about the specifics of sex or genitalia, which I figured out on my own. I could not resist indulging in this content because I had the answers in front of me. I was able to educate myself on my own, which looking back on still leaves me wondering if it was a good thing or not.

[furbygoblinxiv]

Ok, it's gotta go to Gertrude on this one

I've listened to both taz and tma, so major spoilers for both.

In terms of Lup, yes I love her, yes she haunts the narrative. But she does so with her absence, which is only fully understood once you a) relisten to the podcast and b) dissect the characters mental states. We didn't even get her name until the Angus Macarons incident, and didn't even know that was a name until after the suffering game. Her absence is haunting people, yes, but she's not haunting the narrative too much more than any of the other redcoats and their relics are. Plus, I mean, she literally comes back there at the end (albeit as a lich (so still "haunting" lmao)).

Gertrude, on the other hand? Not only are her fingerprints touching everything, she affects things pretty consistently throughout the entire show, which we know of from the first listen alone.

She ruined multiple of the rituals that the other entities were attempting, which meant Elias would have less truly solid competition later on. She threw her assistant Michael Shelly to the distortion, literally causing the creation of Spiral Micheal and his presence throughout the plot. This woman intentionally caused the archaic messy archival system that Jon is trying to fix at the start of the show and is thus the entire reason that Jon starts recording the messages in the first place. She did so knowing that it would cause Elias issues, what a queen. She even bound dead Gerard Keay to that one haunted book so he could provide important info later on. She directly and indirectly interacted with basically every single major player on this chessboard, short of the body of Jonah Magnus himself, that was available to be worked with or screwed over when she was alive.

That's just the things she did while alive that influence the plot later on. That's not even scratching what happens once her death is discovered.

Uncovering the truth of her death is a major mystery, for, if I'm remembering correctly, the entirety of seasons two through four in the show. His investigations into her death caused Jon to go out of his way to do things find information he would have never found otherwise and get further tangled into this mess, such as investigating the spooky tunnels. These are things that directly influenced the plot. Not to mention, the paranoia about being killed and these new truths literally fundamentally changed his mental state, and not really in a good way.

Like. Sure his statements sound similar, but ain't no way season one episode 1 Jon would do this:

It's especially in a narrative haunting way since, in the horror mystery show, the main character has a dead predecessor who seemingly died mysteriously, and makes it a point to say that he wants to ensure that his death isn't a mystery like hers is.

What's the status on his wiki page?

Yeah. In a direct parallel to the predecessor that he didn't want to parallel. His fate is left a complete mystery.

Compared to Lup? Who's death is never investigated because the skeleton was just a skeleton and umbrella just a magic item, until we got the backstory necessary for it to become an impactful death? If someone stopped listening to taz balance 75% of the way through (so a little bit into suffering game), they might have a glimmer of a theory of who Lup is, and nothing more. If they stopped listening to tma at 75% (10 episodes before the season 4 finale)? They'd know Gertrude, because her actions and presence haunt everything.

Gertrude was a woman who influenced the 'political' landscape of the entities, the status and lives of multiple people, and her death influences the tone, direction, plot, and themes of the show, while also setting up a direct foil/parallel situation between her mysterious end and that of our protagonist.

Both these women are baddies with ripple effects throughout their entire shows, but only Gertrude affected everything in such a tangible way that we can see just how much, at a minimum, she's haunting this narrative at every step of it.

So yeah, I know we all love Lup, but vote Gertrude

Haunting the Narrative Round 1

Haunting the narrative means that the character’s absence heavily impacts the plot. They’re not present when their influence is most strongly felt, whether they’re alive or dead!

[bills-bible-basics]

Gay and Lesbian Agenda Graphic 44 Graphic created by #BillKochman for #BillsBibleBasics. Visit "Bill's Bible Basics Graphics Library" at https://www.billkochman.com/Graphics-Library/index.html to see all of my graphics, along with related Bible study resources, all in one place, and arranged into over 300 different categories. Thanks! Whether some of you realize it or not, our nation has been slip sliding away for literally decades. However, the slide has been so slow, so gradual, and so subtle, that it wasn't until about halfway through the decade of the 2010s that a lot of people really began to wake up to what has been going on. However, sadly, by that time, it was already too late. Serious damage had already been done, and the victory had already been won. What has been going on since then basically amounts to mopping up exercises and tying up the loose ends. And boy are they doing a good job of it! So exactly what am I talking about? Well, do you remember a few decades ago -- back in the 1970s, actually -- when the LGBT crowd began claiming that they just wanted to be left alone to live their lives as they please? Fast-forward forty years. Then came gender reassignment surgery. Then came renegade, liberal circuit court judges who repeatedly overturned the will of the people. Then came renegade, liberal state legislatures who likewise overturned the will of the people. Then came civil unions. Then on June 26, 2015 came nationwide legalization of same-sex "marriage" by mandate of the Supreme Court of the United States, despite the majority of the American people being opposed to it. Then came openly gay or lesbian bishops, pastors, priests, politicians, actors, sports figures, and everyone in between. Then came same-sex union blessings in some of the churches. Then came adoption of normal, healthy children by same-sex couples. Then came law suits against Christians and Conservatives who follow their hearts and their faith, and who oppose the LGBT life style. Then came library books which openly promote the LGBT life style. Then came gender-neutral bathrooms. Then came drag queens in our public schools during children's story hour. Then came teaching LGBT history in the classroom. Then came liberal parents who encourage their children to act and dress like the opposite sex. Then came hormone injections, puberty-blocking drugs in young children and double mastectomies on adolescent girls in order to alter their natural-born physiology so that they could appear outwardly the way that they were being made to feel inwardly by misguided adults and parents. Then came a gender-neutral option on birth certificates. Now they promote their ungodly life style in every area of the entertainment and mass media industries where they possibly can, and constantly shove it in our faces. It is inescapable; unless one goes and lives in a cave. Yes, but of course, as they said, they just wanted to be left alone. Right? If you believe that nonsense, then you are seriously deceived! What about us? What about our right to live in a Bible-based, God-fearing society which honors and obeys God's natural order of things? How much longer will God endure this madness and rebellion against His holy Laws? When will His patience finally run out? When will His judgments begin to fall on the wicked who mock Him everyday, and who cast His Word to the ground? As the Apostle John wrote some two thousand years ago: "And‭ we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness." 1 John 5:19, KJV If John were alive today, oh how he would shudder! If you would like to further explore this issue, please consider reading all of the study resources which are listed below. God bless you, and thanks so much! Article: "The Gay and Lesbian Agenda: To the Point!": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/homosex1.html Article: "When Sin is No Longer a Sin!": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/whensin1.html

Article: "Queen James Bible: Blasphemous Abomination Exposed!": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/queen-james-bible-1.html Article: "Biblical Marriage Ceremonies": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/marriage1.html "Homosexuality Lesbianism Bestiality Transvestitism" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse138.html Magazine Article: "The Overhauling of Straight America": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles-Non-BBB/overhaul.html Article: "The Gay Gene?": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles-Non-BBB/gaygene1.html By the way, when we come to Jesus Christ and are reborn in the Spirit, the Scriptures make it very clear that we should undergo a spiritual and mental change in our lives, and that we should in fact become NEW CREATURES in Jesus Christ. We should NOT remain the same, living our same old life style, and living in our same old sins. That means that people who belong to the LGBTQ crowd should NOT continue practicing their sexual deviancy. Here is Scriptural proof: "God's Desire for Healing and Repentance" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse302.html "Old Man Versus New Man" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse165.html "Washed and Renewed Mind" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse071.html Article: "Don't Ever Underestimate Our Spiritual Enemy": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/DontUnderestimateOurEnemy1.html https://www.billkochman.com/Blog/index.php/gay-and-lesbian-agenda-graphic-44/?feed_id=53223&_unique_id=6444fd111771e&Gay%20and%20Lesbian%20Agenda%20Graphic%2044

[logos-of-experience-and-truth]

Podcast Transcript - S2EP14 - The Conscious Spiritual Journey

Podcast Transcript - S2EP14 - The Conscious Spiritual Journey

If you’re catching the rhythm of this season of the podcast, it’s very sequential. I spent a great deal of time plotting out my database of spiritual journal writing and note taking in a sequential manner with these eventual podcast episodes in mind. I personally find great value in seeing the various steps along the path, the experiences that stimulated or blocked growth, along with the decisions made that furthered me along my spiritual journey. I hope that you find value in this as well, especially as we move along, and you start to see more of the cyclical nature of time alongside the linear method of seeing time that I’m plotting out for you. Many of the things I’m speaking about right now return in the future and were already mentioned in summary in Season 1. Many of the things I began to learn and assimilate into my mind at this early juncture, mature and return in full knowledge in the future. Many of the things I read but did not understand at this point, are revealed in full in the future. So just as I stated in Season 1, that I had a mini-revival ten years ago where the mysteries returned and were attempting to penetrate my mind further, though I was not ready for it at the time, they all returned again cyclically, in almost the same exact patterns and symbols seven to eight years later. The same applies to many of the things I saw and experienced from this early time period that I’ve called the Awakening Experience and the Expansion of the Mind. I obviously can’t run through absolutely every single experience I would now come across, but I will do my best to at least speak about the primary ones. And what I mean by primary ones, are the ones that cyclically returned in the future with greater force of understanding and revelation regarding the depth of the mysteries as they existed in the ancient world when I’ve spoken regarding classical mythology, but also the Christian world after classical mythology. I’ve already given a snippet of it in describing my near-death death experience and that for some reason I slept for three days afterwards and how strange and what does it mean and how does it match the time frame found in the mysteries of Jesus the Christ, but I will work through more of these other mysteries to delve into these philosophical and theological concepts further. But I will still speak about these things in a linear fashion. I’ve already plotted it out in a general timeline since I can’t remember the exact dates for some of them, so the way my mind has typically worked throughout my life is based on my geography. Though I wasn’t a military kid, I was moved around like a military kid, and the way my mind has framed experience A or experience B is based around the years I was living in apartment or house X, or apartment or house Y. So, each of the next several experiences that we’ll dive into all occurred after the near-death death experience end of March, beginning of April 2001, until I left West LA in the summer of 2002. If the near-death experience was the snowball that hit me over the head, what transpired over the next year to year and a half was the avalanche that followed. I was never a competitive kid or person. Or rather, I lost interest in competitive type activities that kids get into because it didn’t seem like my parents cared at all, and so I stopped caring about such things as well. But in the third grade I won a contest for the most books read. I mentioned somewhere that in the third grade I read the Odyssey front to back even though I didn’t understand everything I was reading, but the words entered through my eyes and into my sub and unconscious where they were stored, nonetheless. Once Mary Jane entered into my life in the eighth grade, I would say I lost this part of myself, along with love of learning music, which is weird since most musicians that do drugs gain the music through the drug use, where I stopped caring about and playing the piano when smoking weed entered into my life. But I also said that I’ve never considered myself an addict since I would periodically stop everything I may have been doing at will, instantly, to finish a paper or study for a test so I’d still from time to time go through spurts of reading. Summertime was when this would happen to the greatest magnitude since not having access to buying the drugs or hanging out with friends throughout the day that wanted to steal liquor or smoke weed, my mind would return to itself and this always led to heavy bouts of reading over the summertime for me, when hordes of other kids wanted nothing to do with sticking their noses into a book. If you haven’t noticed yet, even after thirteen episodes, I was and am weird like that. It’s also why I hated school so much. I never felt like myself while in school. It was only during the summertime when I was out of school that I felt like myself once more. Freed now from the influence of hard drugs, freed now from the influence of marijuana, freed now from the influence of alcohol even, my mind needed to find an outlet. And find an outlet it did in reading like a madman, once more. While we’re on the subject still, before moving forward, I said in a previous podcast that playing video games was the lesser of two evils, but that I’ve wondered if maybe it wasn’t considering how long it took to break that habit compared to breaking the bud smoking habit. This is when it took place. If you don’t understand transmutation, or don’t understand in a scientific sense, chaos versus order, or the principle of entropy, at least as it pertains to your own self, to your own being, and not just in an external universal sense, let me touch briefly on that here as it pertains to obsessions or addictions. . . Read the full article

[get-shiggy-with-it]

Ch. 1

Shigaraki Birthday Week! MINORS DNI DO NOT PUT THIS ON TIKTOK

Pairing: Tomura Shigaraki x fem!reader

Word Count: 3k

Warnings: reader is marked fem cause Tomura is a little sexist and hates you cause you’re a woman, no pronouns, incel!shiggy, collage au/no quirks, tomura is an asshole, gratuitous swearing, like so much, shiggy has a dirty mouth, mentions of shigs being anxious, let me know if I’ve missed something

Ch. 1 | Ch. 2 | Ch. 3 | Ch. 4 | Ch. 5 | Ch. 6

Summary: Tomura gets stuck taking an English class to graduate and is partnered with you, a bitchy try hard (his words not mine) for his final project. But over the course of the semester he finds that while he hates everyone, he might hate you just a little...less. 

AO3 mirror

The door at the back of the room creaked open and jarred Tomura from his half-sleep state. He didn’t look at who’d bothered to slip into this fucking class late, and instead tried to let the prof’s inane droning on Timothy Whoever The Fuck’s 18th weirdo letter book lull him into day dreaming. 

He only made it about a quarter of the way back into his boredom induced coma until he was dragged unwillingly into wakefulness once more. 

“Sorry, could you plug this in for me?” 

Tomura jumped again when you leaned over to whisper to him, computer charger in one hand, gesturing to the outlet on the wall by his head. You’d left the typical courtesy seat empty between the two of you and he stared blankly at the way you leaned your weight on the vacant chair. 

He recognized you.

The classic, dumbass teacher's pet who was always front and center of the room, iced drink at the ready looking like you belonged on the set of some god awful college b movie. 

Well, almost always. You certainly had that loud ass drink, but you’d tucked yourself at the end of his row towards the back of the room and was clearly a bit embarrassed for bursting in almost 15 minutes late. 

Tomura swallowed hard as your shirt gaped in the front. It took an immense amount of control to not gaze outright into the swell of your chest. 

“You good?” you asked softly, head cocked like you were straight out of a fucking manga panel—tits on display with that stupid innocent, puzzled expression.  

“Uh yeah, sorry,” Tomura mumbled. 

You offered him this gross, clearly fake smile—because why the hell would you be grinning like that if it wasn’t just because you wanted something from him—as he threaded the cord behind his chair and plugged it in. 

“Thanks,” you replied and turned back towards the professor, typing away cause you actually take notes in this class. 

Of fucking course you did. 

Probably trying to impress everyone with how you typed practically every word the prof said. Tomura decidedly did not take notes, and didn’t really pay that much attention in general. Usually he just played some trashy phone game under the desk or dozed with his head against the cement wall. 

It had gotten to that portion of the semester when it was warmer outside but the buildings still had the heat cranked all the way up, especially here in the basement where the classroom was. That environment along with his usual hoodie/joggers combo created grade A napping conditions that Tomura took full advantage of. 

As a rule, he actually cared about school and he did relatively well. But this was just some dumbass liberal arts requirement course that had nothing to do with his actual major, so he was perfectly fine with coasting. Why his comp sci degree required him to take a fucking Restoration era English class, he had no clue. Apparently neither did his advisor other than that the ‘administration recommended it’ so their students would have a ‘well rounded learning experience.’ 

It was almost certainly just a cash grab to make him take more credits than was necessary to graduate, but whatever. He was here now. And so were you. Your presence was overwhelmingly clear, typing away and smelling like one of those insanely specific laundry detergent label scents—fucking rolling meadows and grandmother’s clean linen or something like that. 

He’d never sat this close to you before, but that didn’t stop you from annoying the shit out of him for the previous whole half semester and going since it was just now passing midterms. Long enough for him to have pegged you as a textbook try-hard, pick-me bitch. You contributed to discussion at every opportunity, turned in shit early, and debated other classmates regularly enough to disrupt his in-course sleep schedule. 

The way you dressed pissed him off too, with a particular style that was enough to stand out but not so over the top that it would cause disinterest from any potential mates.

And now you were filling his corner of the room with the overpowering smell of freshly washed hair and demanding he do things for you. 

Fucking disgusting. 

“Tomura Shigaraki.”

He jumped a third time, attention directed from his lap to the front of the room where the prof stood, listing out names from the board. He heard your name next followed by Kai Chisaki. The list was projected on the board as well, grouping everyone into twos or threes with “Final Project Partners” listed in bold Helvetica font at the top. 

Only fucking English profs used Helvetica. 

He vaguely remembered mentions of a final presentation—one of like three grades in this class cause the prof was almost certainly a sadist. 

No, not almost—definitely. Otherwise he wouldn’t have stuck him with you and that weirdo Kai pre-med student who insisted on acting so elitist you’d think he already had his fucking M.D. 

One time he asked Tomura to move seats at the start of the semester because he looked “dirty” and Kai liked to sit in the back—which, fair enough, it wasn’t like Tomura showered as frequently as he probably should but what the fuck??  

With you rushing in late, chest out and panting every now and again from your apparent sprint across campus, Tomura was certain he’d be subjected to a whole 6 weeks of watching you try to mount that fucking Kai dude instead of actually working. 

This was going to be a nightmare. 

From the end of the table, he saw you shifting and turned to find that stupid fucking smile flashed his way once again. 

If you had a tail, he’d bet it would be wagging. 

“Hey, well that’s convenient,” you chuckled and plopped down directly next to him, sliding your noisy ass drink across the table with you and brushing against his thigh when you shifted your bag to the side. 

“Yeah,” he nodded.

It most certainly was not. 

But Tomura would never say that because—as his roommate put it so kindly—he was kinda a pussy. 

People made him nervous, they always had. That’s why he liked computers so much. Code made sense, there were clear rules and when something didn’t work out, he could fix it eventually, but you couldn’t see people’s codes. You had to fucking guess at shit and it made his anxiety skyrocket which the sides of his neck and finger tips suffered for. 

So he cowered like the fucking dog you probably thought he was instead and kept his eyes on the floor, letting you set up in silence. 

“Who was our third?” you asked, glancing around the room. “Sorry, I was busy making a shared drive and I came in  late so I missed that last bit.”

Why the hell did you feel the need to apologize all the goddamn time? Seriously, who would believe you were actually sorry for being irritating as hell. 

And god if he thought you were irritating. 

“Kai,” he grumbled simply as the man in question sauntered over to the table and fucking Clorox wiped down the seat before sitting.  

Tomura watched your smile falter just a bit and grinned inwardly at the slip in your fake little persona. But you didn’t say anything more, just moved your chair back so the three of you were in a semi-circle and pulled up a few pdfs on your laptop. 

“Cool, so I was looking over the directions on the syllabus last week and I set up a little work delegation thing so we can distribute everything pretty evenly,” you jumped right in, tone matter of fact in the down-to-business manner he was used to hearing from you during class discussions. 

It was better than you so clearly forcing yourself to be overly polite, and he honestly couldn’t really care less if you wanted to take charge of this thing. You seemed kinda bossy, but he begrudgingly admitted that your suck up behavior did mean you sort of knew what you were talking about. He was just here to pass and you might actually make that a lot easier. 

It was okay as long as he was taking advantage of you, he told himself. And you would be too stupid to notice, so he could play your game and play pretend nice all the way to an A. 

That walking condescension on the other hand— 

“I’m not doing that,” Kai huffed through his ever-present mask. 

Tomura wasn’t actually sure he’d ever seen the bastards face without it. 

“What?” you laughed awkwardly. “Yes you are, you don’t really have much of a choice.” 

You stared at your classmate who simply stared right back with his own, equally confused expression. 

“Why do you look so surprised?” you asked after a moment of silence. 

You weren’t smiling anymore and your voice had dropped down about a fucking octave. At least you sounded more like a person and not some wannabe uwu gamer bitch.

“People don’t talk to me like that,” Kai looked at you down his nose, legs spread wide and elbow resting on his knees. 

Tomura could feel the pretentiousness wafting from him in waves, and waited with bated breath for you to get kicked off your pedestal. Just a bit though, he did need you around to do most of his work for this thing. 

But in a shocking turn of events, you just laughed dryly twice and turned back to your laptop screen, mumbling as you did. 

“Really? Well they should.” 

Tomura would have laughed too, but he didn’t feel like inflating your ego. Kai on the other hand looked a bit like you’d just spit on shoes and furrowed those stupid, plucked thin eyebrows at the back of your head. 

“So Tomura, you code right?” you asked, turning away from Kai completely to address him. “I just remember you saying you were in comp sci when we did introductions.” 

He was taken aback by the knowledge that he existed as a person in your head outside of this room for a moment and simply nodded—suddenly feeling far too hot in his black on black sweats and hoodie. 

God just talking to you made his skin burn. 

“Great, cause we’re allowed to chose the medium we present in and I was thinking of taking it in a more creative direction cause I’ve had this prof before and he eats that shit up,” you begin to ramble again, scrolling through a bulleted list, shifting the screen for him to see. 

“Right,” he murmured, still surprised you’d thought this far and not...actively hating what you’d brainstormed. 

Well, it was a bit juvenile and you clearly didn’t know what you were talking about but the concept wasn’t horrendous. He could work with that and it shouldn’t be too hard. It kinda seemed like you’d overestimated a bit with how challenging it would actually be and saddled yourself with most of the heavy lifting. That or you were just a control freak which was a little more believable.

He wished you would stop looking at him over the edge of the screen. He could feel himself starting to sweat. Rivulets falling down the nape of his neck and racing across his bare chest under the sweatshirt. Tomura sorta regretted not wearing a shirt underneath but he knew that he wouldn’t have taken off the insulating layer even if that had been an option. 

It would just mean you had more drying, pale as fuck skin to look at and judge him for because he knew that’s what you were doing. Fucking vapid and shallow like everyone else. 

“It’s really rough so far, but I have it the gist outlined,” you indicated to another tab and then turned back to Kai who had been sitting silently glaring daggers into your back. “So, Kai, since you’re in STEM I figured you’d be okay with doing more of the preliminary research—”

“I don’t think so,” Kai interrupted, shaking his head and pushing off his knees to lean back in the cheap, plastic seat. “Look, it’ll be easier for all of us if you two just make it look pretty and I can handle the oral presentation.” 

You gaped and looked to Tomura with this pathetic fucking incredulous stare, like you thought he’d back you up. 

Which actually, now that he thought about it was probably a good idea—he did need you to remain somewhat cordial with him—but he certainly didn’t care enough to defend you in any way. Kai was a dick, sure, but he wasn’t gonna let you rope him into being your white knight or whatever. 

He settled for a similarly disgruntled downward twitch of his lips. The movement pulled at the cracking skin which stung as it tore open even more. Tomura felt the familiar crawling feeling on his neck and shifted in his seat to resist the urge to scratch. 

He couldn’t pinpoint why exactly you staring at him was so uncomfortable. He didn’t like you, he didn’t care about you and by extension didn’t give two shits what you thought of him, but anything he might have said shriveled on his tongue when you spoke or looked in his eyes too long. 

Tomura had never made a habit of talking to females and they certainly had never wanted anything to do with him either. 

Maybe he was fucking allergic or something. 

Whatever the case, you seemed to take his half frown as a sign of solidarity and leaned back in your own seat. 

“Okay, look,” you retorted. “If you’re seriously not gonna at least try to cooperate, then there is actually an option to do the project by yourself and I suggest you take it.” 

The look on your face was distinctly impolite. There was a sharpness to the set of your jaw that Tomura had never seen before, but it looked practiced enough that he could bet it was simply the snake that resided in every woman just waiting to come out. 

“Look sweetheart—” that masked jerk began, also for some fucking reason looking to Tomura for support. 

For someone who was very much used to blending into the background scenery, this was the most eye contact Tomura had ever made in a day. 

Except on the rare occasions his roommate had friends over and he had to make the dreaded trek from his room to reach the fridge. 

“Oh yeah I’m not doing that,” you closed your laptop sharply and rolled your eyes. “I get it, but I’m really just trying to graduate. I don’t think this is going to work out and you,” Tomura froze as you shifted your gaze to him once again, “seem okay, so Tomura and I can just work this out by ourselves and you can find a different group.” 

Kai scoffed behind the black layer of fabric covering his mouth and slung his backpack over his shoulder. “Whatever.” 

Tomura watched him saunter straight out the door as the room was filled with the shuffling of notebooks and zipping of backpacks. 

“God,” you huffed and turned back to him. 

His raw skin burned under the new wave of heat and accompanying moisture that slicked his skin when you scooted closer to him. That clean laundry and shampoo smell was suffocating from this proximity. 

Did you fucking bathe in the stuff? 

He was becoming increasingly aware of his less than pleasant aroma and the fact that you not scrunching your nose up in disgust just out of some stupid, ingrained need to appease him. 

“Well, that was...weird,” you chuckled in a way that was probably meant to break the tension. 

Unfortunately Tomura felt more like he was about to break out in hives if you came any closer so it really just ended up making the atmosphere ten times more awkward. At least for him. You, somehow, remained resolutely unaware. 

“Mhm,” he hummed in response and picked silently at the skin of his fingers. 

“Anyway, I have a meeting in a few but we can trade numbers and pick a time to meet up sometime tomorrow maybe?” you suggested, quickly saving the steadily degrading vibes of the conversation and pulled out your phone. 

He really hated the full body pulsation that rushed through him at the thought of getting a girls number. It made him fucking sick at himself for falling into your stupid trap to get him interested. Was your plan to just use him to get a good grade or whatever and then block his texts?

It wasn’t like Tomura didn’t know about his status as the class ‘freak.’ That one guy everyone whispers about and makes sure not to sit next to. And he knows you know, so why the hell else would you act so nice?

He wanted to say something scathing in return. That he could do the whole thing by himself too—which he definitely couldn’t but that was irrelevant—and that he didn’t need you bossing him around either. 

“Sure thing,” he said instead and took your offered phone all too eagerly, typing in his number and watching as you shot off a text back so he’d have yours. 

His phone buzzed against his thigh and he jumped a fourth time, but you seemed not to notice as you packed your bag and grabbed your basic ass drink. The ice clattered against the tumbler, dropping cool condensation against the searing skin of his hand. 

Tomura shivered as you waved over your shoulder and slipped out the door with another rush of students. 

He sat silently in the empty room for a moment, trying to process the last hour. He pinched himself idly, wondering if it had all been just a weird dream, but the results were inconclusive. A minute or two passed before he pulled out his phone to scroll through the list of reddit and discord notifs to find your text. 

Unknown Number:

— pEopLe DoN’t TaLK tO mE liKE ThAt 

— not very plus ultra of him...smh

— anyway, library at 6 tomorrow ?

 Tomura caved, digging his nails into the side of his neck and hissed at the pain, confirming the day's horrible reality. 

[raymondebidochonlifechoices]

Are you confident Bughead will be endgame on this show? That’s literally the last strand I’ve been holding onto, but the thread is weakening. I really can’t believe that they would take this ship, their absolute most popular and loved one, and just end it like this forever. I am so angry with the writing!!

Hey there, anon! It is unbelievable, isn’t it?

What a tricky question you ask! confidence + prediction + the Riverdale writers ... As Jughead would say: yikes!

The thing with these writers is that they use a lot of words without knowing their meaning. “Endgame” is one of them. “New” is another. “Exciting”. “Darkness”™. “Adult stories”. “The message”…

Dangling the bughead “endgame” carrot at the end of one or two seasons of no bughead or -worse- of b*rchie and j*bitha f.e. is not an endgame. The general definition of endgame -outside of chess- is: the last stage of a process. If the process (i.e. the season’s content) isn’t about bughead, then bughead coming together at the very end is not an endgame, it's a peripeteia i.e. a sudden or unexpected reversal of circumstances.

In shipping, endgame is a couple that will inevitably end together (for ever and ever and ever). In order for something to be inevitable, you have to create that sentiment, you have to build the couple up.

There’s an article about the misappropriation of the word “endagame” that I find particularly funny, as it starts by mentioning Riverdale!

Anyway, this is a long-winded way to say that, yes, I do believe that the show will end with bughead and varchie as their main canon couples. It’s just that, like you, I’m so very tired with these story lines. There is satisfaction to be had at the notion of endgame but a seasonful of investigative bughead would be infinitely preferable. For me (and I can only speak of myself) the journey is more important than the destination -even if for the simple reason that -in TV show time- it lasts longer!

Why do I think bughead is still … that word? Everything’s under the cut, so as not to clutter your dash!

1. A lot of people have been theorising that what happened in 5x18 was not the original plot. I agree.

Let’s start with 5x18 varchie.

Their break up came completely out of left field. Its unexpectedness is reminiscent of 4x17. I make fun of how s5 is a reboot of s1+s2’s leftover ideas, so another copy-paste shouldn’t feel out of place, and yet … really? Another repetition? To what end? If the season’s goal was not varchie, b*rchie was already there waiting at the beginning of the time jump! Why abandon that plot? In terms of romantic varchie time, that was extremely limited, since after their kiss in 5x7, Veronica’s divorce kept them apart until 5x17 … Why have Archie being extremely jealous of Chad, Veronica getting involved in all of Archie’s schemes (firefighters, bulldogs), Archie getting involved in Ronnie’s (rescuing daddykins) or Veronica telling her father she chooses Archie over him in 5x17? Also, for those who remember, there was this by the-writer-who-shall-not-be-named.

The reason of the break up is as ludicrous as Veronica moving into Archie’s childhood bedroom (with its effing slanted roof!) on the premise that long term the Andrews’ residence has more room! (By the way, I don’t know what surprised me more: that Veronica thought that Archie and uncle Frank would know who Ina Garten is or that Jughead didn’t.) Why is Veronica astounded by Archie’s involvement in the same activities he has been involved in all through the season?! For f***’s sake, she’s the one that gifted him the fire truck!

Ok. Now let’s give 5x18 j*bitha a try.

For me, 5x18 could either have gone bugheadwards or j*bithawards. J*bitha had some heartfelt talks, a hand touch, a hallucination and a kiss. Bughead had one unfinished heartfelt talk (the only one in the whole season for Betty), two shoulder touches, two hallucinations and Jughead attempting to reconnect with Betty (without specifying what his intent was, it's true).

While I do think that j*bitha is a ship that has been adequately teased, the way they were explored in 5x18 was … not underwhelming exactly (after all, they’re not my ship, so I didn’t have any expectations about them) but … maybe lukewarm is the word? They had but minimal dialogue, only enough to establish that Tabitha’s parents were in town. Then a song where Tabitha initially rejects Jughead, although she had been supportive before. Then another song, where the lyrics were heavily altered and didn’t make much sense anyway (we hadn’t been properly introduced to the Tates) but where the original lyrics were very compatible with Bughead’s history and state of being as of 5x17. The kisses were ok, I have no problem with the actors’ chemistry. But -and this is strictly a personal opinion- Jughead’s flirting scenes (not the make-out ones, you perverts!) with Cora were better and so was the j*bitha kiss in 5x10. For the 5x18 j*bitha to flow, more dialogue and more flirting was necessary (always a persona opinion). So, no, I don’t think j*bitha were supposed to sing what they sang in 5x18.

Production for s5 wrapped up one week after the official announcement of the 5 special episodes for Riverdale and The Flash: “we expect it will take us until Fall 2022 to get back to a regular schedule” was the official quote. Re-organising the cw’s overall schedule didn’t happen overnight. Yes, more likely than not, the writers knew about the specifics of s6a before shooting 5x18-5x19 and had time to re-write them.

2. The couples spoilers for s6 do not make sense plot-wise.

If the end-goal for 5x19-6x1 had been b*rchie, j*bitha and v*ggie all along, these were pairs already happening (except from v*ggie) at the beginning of the time-jump. As for v*ggie, last time we saw them, Veronica pulled a face when she heard that he had had (still has?) an affair with Hermosa. And what about Nana Rose?! (ok, that was a joke! ... or was it? 👀)

The majority of both the fans and the general audience are bugvarchie shippers. Teasing b*rchie and j*bitha as a means of maintaining the viewers’ interest in a will they/won’t they way, only works if the audience finally gets what they want. In this season. Not the next one! There is so much trolling one can take after all. In the space of 1.5 year (4x17-5x19) b*rchie will have been teased ... THREE times (and still lacking build-up)!

I cannot myself see b*rchie, j*bitha and v*ggie as endgame couples. For the audience to invest in them after 4 years of bugvarchie, the writers have to a) give j*bitha an absolutely incredible development that will surpass bughead and the cinematography to go with it (good luck with that) and b) undo Archie’s character (highly unlikely) and/or give Betty a lobotomy (at which point a lot of people will quit en masse, because Archie as The One All The Girls Want just doesn't resonate with the majority).

I have no idea if s6a is an AU or not. But if it’s not, no one will be left to watch 6b.

Can I guarantee a bughead endgame? Of course not. I have no idea how the minds of the Riverdale writers work. But I do think that Jughead and Betty getting back together is more than wishful thinking.

Fervently shipping Jughead/Betty, Jughead/his book and Betty/therapy, sincerely yours, @raymondebidochonlifechoices

I hope you have fun with the Riverdale universe regardless, dear anon. Riverdale has given us one of the most beautiful getting-together stories in s1 and lots and lots of beautiful canon bughead afterwards. Here's to many more! Much love to you!

[soulmeshart]

Why Stolitz will be endgame

Since the latest episode of Helluva Boss dropped (episode 5) I’ve been seeing a lot of people simply pointing out that Stolitz is problematic and toxic and that it shouldn’t be shipped. However these people never really think about the fact that  a) this is only the fifth episode b) where the ship is heading So I’m here to talk about that. What we’ve seen in these first 5 episodes is simply a look at what the relationship between these two is and who they are individually. This episode in particular was great because it pointed out two important things to us: 1. Blitzo doesn’t hate Stolas’ and deep down probably craves some sort of romantic relationship between them 2. The core issues of their current relationship Let me elaborate both of these 1. So far we’ve had the impression that Stolas is simply a nuisance to Blitzo and that he is simply using him for the book. All of their interactions up until this episode we’re pretty negative and made it seem like their relationship is purely sexual and that it exists for business reasons only. Episode 2 let us know that Stolas wants to get Blitzo involved in his life outside of the whole “transactional fucking” thing and this episode let us know that, well, Blitzo really doesn’t mind that. Think back to the first scene in episode 5. If Blitzo only wanted a purely professional relationship with Stolas or even hated him(as some people believe for whatever reason), he wouldn’t have agreed to go to the Harvest Moon Festival. There was nothing for him to gain by going there and he agrees to the invite without any real hesitation. This let’s us know that Blitzo doesn’t hate Stolas and is fine with being involved with him outside of their deal. Now for the “craving for some sort of romantic relationship part”. There are 2 hints about this in the episode. The first one comes in the scene where Blitzo tries to explain his relationship with Stolas to Striker and gets really emberassed. Remember what Striker says: “So you even conned that ditzy blue blood into getting you to the surface.” If this was the case Blitzo probably would’ve been proud of himself and simply confirmed that what Striker just said was true. But that wasn’t what happened. He got flustered and started fumbling his words around. The second hint is in the scene when Blitzo finds out that Striker is planning to assassinate Stolas. Striker tries to get to Blitzo to get him to join his side. He keeps telling him things that clearly bother Blitzo. For example: how the system is rigged against him. In those things he also lists the fact that Blitzo is being treated by Stolas as a toy/plaything. Now, why would Blitzo be bothered by this if his and Stolas’ relationship really is purely transactional. If that were the case then they’re both just using eachother and that’s the end of that. Blitzo is using Stolas for the book and Stolas is using Blitzo for sexual favors. Now weather this is or isn’t the case isn’t important here, what’s important is the fact that Blitzo doesn’t want this to be the case. Aka he wants his relationship with Stolas to be something more.

2. Now let’s look at the core issues of their relationship which are all presented in this episode very nicely. Stolas does a lot of condescending things to Blitzo throughout the episode. He baby-talks to him twice, puts out a cigar on his horn (though we know fire doesn’t hurt imps, it’s still disrespectful), he shows him off in public like he’s some sort of thing, etc. Now let me clear this up first, Stolas’ intentions aren’t malicious. He loves and cares about Blitzo. When it comes to the show, we know this because a) If Stolas just wanted to fuck an imp, he could’ve gone to way less trouble to do so and wouldn’t have to lend out his book which is VERY important b) He wouldn’t try to get Blitzo involved with his personal life and the most important person in his life, his daughter. A parent introducing their SO to their child is a pretty big deal. Now Stolas should’ve considered both Blitzo’s and Octavia’s feelings before doing that however we know that he really isn’t experienced with healthy relationships with other people (romantic and platonic). If we’re talking outside of the show, there are official instagram accounts for all of the Helluva Boss characters. The two most active ones are actually Blitzo’s and Stolas’ (jeez i wonder why). Now these accounts we’re confirmed to not be a 100% canon in the sense that not everything that happens there happened in the actual universe of the show. However Viv has stated that these accounts are ran by people who know all of the characters PRETTY GOOD. And in case you haven’t seen these accounts, Blitzo and Stolas have a lot and i mean A LOT of very positive interactions there. Sure we will occasionally get a horny comment left by Stolas’ on one of Blitzo’s posts or even a horny post of his own regarding Blitzo. But what we see more is just genuine wholesome stuff between the two. For example: Stolas constantly leaving positive comments on Blitzo’s posts such as telling him to have fun when he goes to hang out with either Loona or M&M, him supporting Blitzo’s passion for art and horses, we also get to see him putting up missing posters and searching for Blitzo at one point when Blitzo get’s lost. We see him visiting Blitzo to take care of him when he’s sick,etc. The list goes on and on. Obviously most of this didn’t happen but what’s important is the fact that Stolas clearly cares about Blitzo, like, a lot actually. The show hasn’t gone to this point yet but this is clearly where it’s headed. Plus the official twitter account for Helluva Boss reposts a ton of Stolitz fanart and they don’t do this for other ships, except M&M.

Now back to the issues of the relationship. All of the things I’ve listed (the baby talk, the cigar thing,etc.) wouldn’t seem like much of an issue IF there clearly wasn’t a class difference between them. In this episode the show REALLY let’s us know how bad imps have it. It’s rare to see them start businesses, the system is rigged against them, Stolas is also kind of condescending to them in his speech (though it’s obvious he actually does like imps and he isn’t intentionally being like this. He even calls the Harvest Moon Festival “charming”). I don’t think he realizes how inappropriate his behavior is. I think future episodes will almost a 100% tackle the topic of Stolas’ realizing how different the lives of imps are from his. This will also let him have a better understanding of Blitzo. All of his actions towards Blitzo through the episode, even thought they’re made with good intent, to Blitzo it just seems like Stolas sees him as a toy (even thought this isn’t the case).

In short, on one side we have Blitzo who is craving a romantic relationship (specifically with Stolas) but believes that Stolas is simply using him for sexual reasons and deeply dislikes his unintentionally condescending attitude towards him, and on the other side we have Stolas, who had lead a loveless life for years and has finally fallen for someone but is too blinded by his infatuation for Blitzo and the thrill of love to consider how Blitzo is feeling and the difference between their positions.

Now, this ship is going to be an end game ship a 100%. What we’ve seen so far is only what the starting point of their relationship is. They’re both going to grow as the show goes on and so will their relationship. Stolas will learn to consider other peoples emotions (which isn’t only a problem specifically related to Blitzo but also his daughter), the struggles of imps and how to properly convey his emotions so that Blitzo doesn’t mistake them as purely sexual. And Blitzo will also need to learn how to open up his heart and to stop running away from others (which is something he does I’m assuming, it looks like he ran away from his relationship with Verosika and it seems like their relationship was p serious given the fact she has a tattoo with his name).

Also while I do think Striker and Blitzo have a fun dynamic, I don’t think this is even an option as an end game ship. The sexual tension was high but that’s about it. Plus Striker was trying to manipulate Blitzo which isn’t cool in my book. Not against the ship tho.

So yeah, gonna reblog this when these 2 idiots (stolas and blitzo) get together with a big “told ya so”.

[emillow]

Author's Note: This is my headcanon about the ending of Queen B Book 2. I wasn't satisfied with the ending with Poppy I wanted to know more what happened after they graduate from Belvoire. Remember this is only based from my imagination, and I apologize if there are any lapses in my grammar. I'm still new with writing. THIS IS AN AU WHERE BEA HUGHES (MC) IS TWO/THREE YEARS YOUNGER THAN ANY CAST OF QB.

"Adieu For Now"

It's been two weeks since I graduated from New York City's most prestigious institution, thanks to my late aunt's massive inheritance. My parents made the decision to relocate to New York City, take over my aunt's business, and leave Farmsville behind to begin a new life, you know how the story goes.

My reign as Belvoire's badass angel Queen B has come to an end. All of my friends and foes have left, probably living their best or worst lives in the real world.

Zoey began her path to become a well-known DJ with the help of her mother and mentor, a.k.a. THE LIL NOS F HIMSELF. To be honest, I'll miss the days when we spent our time together hanging out, going to wild parties, hooking up with some of Belvoire's hottest girls and guys, as well as devising a plan to stop Poppy, X, and other potential enemies from ruining my repuation, but with Zoey and my posse by my side, we were unstoppable and managed to graduate in the end.

Lexi's old job is taken by Professor Ian Kingsley. After being fired from Belvoire due to allegations of him sleeping with a certain student...me...well, it only occurred once...ok, maybe twice...but I ended things with Ian after the school board nearly discovered our illegal relationship. Dean Steinhelm offered Ian his former position back once we proved the school board 'wrong,' but he declined, stating that he wanted to start over.

I haven't pursued him like a love-sick school girl since then, and it was probably the best that we stopped. Ian told me that he still has feelings for me, but I wasn't willing to give him what he wanted. I'm not selfish to let him destroy his career over me again, besides he's not the only person I've ever slept with during my time in Belvoire. Ian and I decided to keep in touch and agreed to remain friends, and only friends. No more, no less.

Of course, I'll never forget about Poppy Min-Sinclair, the ex-bitchy ice queen/sworn enemy/rival/fling who tried to ruin my life when I first got into Belvoire. All I wanted was to experience a normal college life: go to classes, hang out with friends, join exciting parties, and obtain a degree at the end of my senior year, but that bitch gave me a hard time since I set foot in campus.

You see, Belvoire University, has a strange popularity-based caste system. Where Poppy Min-Sinclair was their Number One Queen in the student rankings. She was known for being a ruthless, manipulative, narcistic, yet witty, cunning, and ambitious leader. Not until I arrived on campus. I was the new small-town girl genius who skipped grades and came from new money, thanks to my dead rich aunt who left her massive fortune, to my parents and me. Everyone in campus was interested in knowing who I was.

Poppy didn't take that quite well, so every attempt she made to ruin my life always backfired at her. And again and again I always remind her that she messed with the wrong person. For the past two years we were always at each other's throats, competing, giving insults, and fighting for the position of Number 1 as Queen B in Belvoire, after that we always end up in bed doing hate-make outs, constant hookups, you get picture, but it was our 'normal' way of getting to know each other, believe or not behind that crazy alpha bitch attitude is a softie when it comes to animals. No one knew this side of Poppy, except for her family and me. Heck, she owns at least twelve animal shelters in New York, she even plans to make a zoo to rescue endangered animals. That's how she cares about animals.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't have feelings for that horrible skank, which I clearly did when I said I choose her, and it's always been her throughout my graduation speech. Poppy being Poppy, denied everything and spouted angry words about how she loathed me and everything, but I knew better.

I rolled my eyes, knowing all those angry comebacks and insults were nothing more than hollow words, so I did the logical thing, I kissed her in front of everyone to get her to quit talking. Everyone was shocked, including Poppy's parents. Nevertheless, everyone cheered, I heard some of the frat boys and zeta girls made a bet on my love life.

I took a step back and left her side to finish my graduation speech. After that, I led everyone to our post-graduation party, but my joy was short-lived when my parents called. Due to an emergency, they informed me that I needed to return home early. This threw me off guard. My parents have barely enough time for me since we became wealthy. I was hopeful that they'll come because their only daughter had graduated as summa cum laude, sadly they didn't appear. At least Poppy's parents cared enough to see her graduate, I envy her for that.

Back in Farmsville, I was raised and taught that family always come first. My relationship with my parents wasn't always like this, I had a wonderful and loving relationship with them, especially with my dad, but that changed when my father took over his late sister's company. He became distant, cold, and busy. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure why he called. I was surprised to say the least. This is the first time he approached me in nearly two years.

I notified my posse, which includes Zoey, Carter, Chloe, Veronica, Penelope, Thomas, Professor Roberta, and Taylor, that I need to go home immediately due to some family emergency via group chat. My entire posse agreed to assist me. Penelope and Zoey helped me in leaving the party, so I can get into my dorm room and packed all my things. Carter and Taylor then volunteered to carry my belongings and wait for my chaperone to pick me up from campus. While Chloe, Veronica, and Thomas stayed at the party to keep everyone entertained and announce my departure once I'd left.

I took one last glance at Belvoire before leaving. Here, I made both good and unpleasant memories. It shaped me into the person I am now. I turned to face my friends, especially Zoey.

"I'm going to miss you guys a lot." "Thank you so much for everything," I cried. Giving them all a big embrace.

"Me too, boo," Zoey muttered. "We'll all miss you."

"Hah! Bea, you'll always be our QB," Carter said.

Taylor dried her eyes and said, "No matter where you are, just call us whenever you need someone to talk to."

A vintage automobile honked at me. "It's time to go home, Miss Bea."

I smiled at everyone I knew as I wiped away my tears.

"Your ride is calling you." Penelope added, "We'll make sure to take care of the rest."

"Thanks guys, and it's not goodbye, more like see you later!" I salute and hug them one last time.

While I was inside the car, I've read Thomas post on The T about my departure.

Wassup Thoroughbreds!

This day has been an emotional ride for our graduating seniors here at Belvoire University. Some cried, some don't, and some our relieved to end this crazy school year. Too bad I won't be posting anymore juicy news here on The T, cause I'm about to graduate myself. But eh, enough about me.

In any case, if you're wondering why Queen Bea disappeared from her own party. Unfortunately, our benelovent QB had to leave early, because she had an important business to attend to. Of course, she didn't forget to thank people who loved and despised her throughout her reign. Let's not blame the poor girl. Her life has been living hell since the day she came to our school. All our new QB wanted was to live her college life peacefully. But not in Belvoire. Despite coming from new- money she proved again and again that no one dares to mess with her. Afterall, she's naturally a born genius. She did skip two years in middle school, became valedictorian and all-time prom queen back in Farmsville High, dethrones Poppy as the new QB, and now graduates college as SUMMA CUM LAUDE at only nineteen. I bet Mama and Papa Hughes must be ecstatic of their daughter's achievements.

Here's her farewell pic and message to everyone.

-Inserts picture of Bea waving goodbye at Belvoire-

"Congratulations Graduates of Belvoire! See you next time for our school reunion. But this time, take your life seriously. We'll be on our own once we graduate from college. There'll be many hurdles ahead of us when were in the outside world, but I'm certain that we'll all succeed in achieving our dreams. Goodbye, Bea Hughes

That was a very wholesome message coming to our Queen B. I almost cried she really did make a difference for the underdogs this past two years. With her heart of gold, sense of justice, great intelligence, and mercy. Our new queen B is truly a saint. Just look how she beats Poppy and outrank her for being number 1. Speaking of Poppy, I've heard she's angrily looking for Bea, our queen left her enemy turned to lover without saying goodbye to her. So, Dear Bea if you're reading this make sure to look at your phone, because Poppy looks very upset right now.

P.S I'm leaving the "T" to my trustee apprentice "S" who'll be in charge with "S" from now on, because you know their name starts with letter "S". Anyway, it was nice knowing you all. T is out.

-Kisses The T-

I smiled at Thomas' post. Wait did he say Poppy? I scrolled my phone and read his post for the fifth time

"Shit I forgot about Poppy!". I thought. When I went through my phone there were at least 50 unread messages, and 17 missed calls from Poppy.

HOW DARE YOU KISSED ME IN FRONT OF EVERYONE, ESPECIALLY IN FRONT OF MY PARENTS, YOU SOW WRESTLER! DID YOU SEE HOW THEY REACTED? HOW EMBARRASING!

WHY AREN'T YOU REPLYING MY TEXT?

WHY DID YOU LEAVE HANGING IN YOUR PARTY?

FARMSVILLE WHY AREN'T YOU ANSWERING MY CALLS?

I DEMAND A REPLY FROM YOU RIGHT NOW!

DIDN'T YOU SAY YOU CHOOSE ME!? WAS IT ALL A LIE TO JUST GET BACK AT ME, FARM GIRL? DID YOU ONLY TOY WITH MY FEELINGS? IS THAT IT?

SO JUST LIKE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO IGNORE ME? AFTER EVERYTHING YOU SAID IN FRONT OF WHOLE ENTIRE SCHOOL JUST TO HUMILAITE ME AND LEAVE ME BEHIND! I THOUGHT I MEAN SOMETHING TO YOU….

Bea please reply I need you to talk to you.

I gulped, feeling guilty for leaving her behind. I was too preoccupied with the party and then my parents suddenly called. Just when I was about to reply.

THUD! The car bumped into a big whole, accidentally throwing my phone out of the car window, and seeing my beloved phone for nearly two years get crushed by rush vehicles. All my contacts, memories, and pictures where there. Damn it!

"SHIT, NOOO! MY PHONE!" I yelled in panic.

"MISS BEATRICE I APOLOGIZE FOR THE DISTURBANCE, BUT PLEASE REFRAIN FROM GOING OFF THE WINDOW. YOU'LL HURT YOURSELF. YOU KNOW YOUR FATHER DEMANDS THAT YOU COME HOME IMMEDIATELY."Sebastian. My aunt's former butler/chaperone/assistant said.

"But my phone… Poppy…she, she…"

"Poppy Min-Sinclair? The girl who bullied and nearly ruined your life? Are you friends with her already? I'm sure your father would love to hear this."

"Sebastien, you know my parents doesn't care about me. There too focused on taking over my aunt's company" I sighed "Besides I need to call Poppy I kind of confessed to her that I like her in front of everyone, and I kind of made her parents angry when I kissed her."

Sebastien groaned. "Oh my goodness. What will your father say?"

"Uhh, Dissapointed…Maybe?...Hehe…"

"Young lady. I'm sure your father will be upset but not disappointed. If you must know he's basically proud of you."

"Really? How about Mom?" I gleamed like a little kid who wants nothing more than to spend with her parents. What? Just because I'm a 5'8 ½ ft, attractive young adult woman, doesn't mean I don't like being pampered by my parents.

Sebastien gave me a rare smile. "Your parents are very proud of you, Miss Bea." I know they don't show it as much as they used to, but know that they adore you and only want the best for you. Once you've returned home. Your folks have planned a major surprise for you." he said, grinning.

Really? I looked him with skepticism. When was the last time they surprised me with something? Right, when I found out that my late aunt had left her entire fortune to my family. At first, I was excited since my family can afford to transfer me to a prestigious university. Since, they have the money to give me anything I want. I adore my parents and am grateful for everything they've done for me, but all I want is to go back to how things were. We used to live a simple life. Farmsville was a place that I'll greatly missed. I missed living on our farm back home, caring for our animals, competing in town-events and winning them all, seeing my mom and dad's smile, and so many fond memories that I'll never forget.

Going back to the surprised. Poppy was going to wait for now. Now I know I may sound like a douche for ditching Poppy behind (You are a douche). Shut up mind! I'll get back to her after my so-called surprise with my parents, and it's not like she'll cry about it, right? She's a headstrong, yet crazy bitch who's probably in the verge of madness texting me and demanding an explanation for leaving her behind, and maybe about the stunt that I pulled earlier. Yeesh. I'm seriously dead.

Author's Note: I'm not good at writing stories so please bear with me. By the way I plan to finish this story until the very end and maybe I'll make more Poppy x MC stories in the future. See you in the next chapter.

[lacunafiction]

#me @ b after that scene: aren't you tired of being nice? don't you just want to go apeshit?

#rubbing my hands together like a scheming c-grade villain #until I remember the state I left B in at the end of book 1 and the confirmed angst incoming #you know what's scarier than whatever is going on in Fernweh? B being upset with MC

#me: haha ooh I can't wait to see angry B it's going to be so in- wait 🤐 (via @agentark​)

Many thoughts about angry! B and how there’s a chance to see this side of them in the next book. 💚🐝

live look at me bringing Beckett to the coroner's office, failing the stat check to get the doctor talking, BUT getting whisperings of ass kicking B:

[h2bakugou]

Hey, I saw requests were open and got realll excited I wondering if you could do a little angsty/fluffy scenario for Bakugou where it's his s/o's birthday and him and the class starts ignoring her but their actually trying to surprise her?

a/n: hiya!! awe this is super cute and soft, and i think it’s time to break out soft bakugou again, skfjdskf thank you for the request hun!!

summary: with your birthday coming up, you half expected bakugou to at least send you a text but when it seems like the entire class is constantly avoiding you, you can’t help but feel a little bummed out, that is until...

key: (y/n) - your name / (f/n) - first name / (l/n) - last name / (e/c) - eye color / (h/c) - hair color / (y/q) - your quirk

warnings: swearing, fluff, some angst

word count: 1.8k

;cut for length;

»»————-　★　————-««

»»————-　★　————-««

Waking up the day before your birthday was always a little nerve-wracking. You were a little anxious to see if anyone would notice. It wasn’t like you expected a big grand celebration, but you’d been stressing, even a little upset since you asked Bakugou if he would be free the day of, to which he declined.

You were almost certain he knew of your birthday, you know you've at least mentioned it a few times to him, and his mom, who has stated multiple times that she wants to have you over for cake or whatever you’d prefer the weekend of your birthday.

You were about ready to just go celebrate with Bakugou’s parents since they seemed to be the only ones who remembered, the text that had come through earlier in the morning furthering your proof of Mitsuki’s knowledge on your date of birth.

What stung a little more than the fact that Bakugou hadn’t even acknowledged the fact that your birthday was tomorrow, was the way he didn’t even think it was within the week, or even the month.

You wouldn’t have been nearly as upset if maybe he’d guessed the date wrong, but now things were just starting to make you feel upset.

It didn’t feel like something you should be so upset over. You felt a little selfish, wondering why something so small, such as acknowledgment of your birthday from your boyfriend, was bothering you so much.

Deep down, however, you were excited. For your birthday. And the warm feeling of birthday wishes, from anyone, especially your significant other, always felt ten times warm and fuzzier inside.

But you trudged on, went to class, and tried your best to keep a smile on your face. Even during lunch, Kaminari, who seemed to do nothing but run his mouth, was quiet.

Everyone was. It felt, strange.

And now, you were wondering if maybe it was something deeper. Had something changed during the week? Were you not caught up? Why did it feel like everyone at your lunch table despised you, Bakugou leading the group as he barely even looked at you when he was sitting right beside you.

But when the day was over, you didn’t even bother sitting in the commons until most everyone went to bed. You finished your homework early and sat in your dorm, trying to cheer yourself up. 

And as the clock passed midnight, you wished yourself a lousy happy birthday before tucking yourself into bed.

Nothing prepared you for what was to come when you woke up.

The ear-deafening alarm on your phone woke you up to nothing. A blank screen. One single notification about a software update on your phone. You hadn’t expected your parents to text you this early, they were probably still in bed.

Their messages came in around the time classes started.

But getting dressed and meeting up with Bakugou, you tried your best to hold your head up high.

“Hey ‘Suki.” You smiled, standing beside him as he slung his bag over his shoulder, getting ready to leave the dorms to head to school.

“Hey.” Was all he said. You nodded and sighed, staring at the ground.

“Today’s gonna be a fun day, don’t ‘cha think?” You tried to hint at the topic but nothing seemed to give.

“What, you think tests in algebra are fun?” It was like a slash to your heart.

“No, it’s my birthday.” You whispered, gathering your things and walking away, walking straight out the door to the school.

Bakugou’s heart stung. In truth, he’d arranged a whole party for you. Everyone was kind of shocked to hear the words ‘I need your help’ come from his tight lips.

He was flustered and trying not to kill Kaminari who was already making fun of him. But he’d arranged the whole thing, planning it out down to a t.

He’d asked for everyone, especially Kaminari not to say anything about it, and he didn’t think much of it. But now his heart hurt, watching you fight back tears as you felt like he’d forgotten, as if everyone had forgotten.

Bakugou wanted to chase you down, pull you into a kiss, and wish you happy birthday, but he didn’t. The surprise would be coming up soon enough.

Sato presented the cake he’d made the night before and everyone was shocked to see how beautiful it looked.

“Oh, she’s gonna love it!” Mina cheered, helping the class pull out some of the decorations.

They’d be tasked with putting up decorations during lunch and after classes let out when Bakugou would keep you in the library for at least another hour.

Bakugou would make it up to you in the end if you still felt upset. But he was counting on this being the best damn birthday surprise, especially since he thought of it.

You were the first one to class. Slumped in your seat, you noticed Present Mic walk in.

“Happy birthday! Would you like a super awesome birthday track played on my show tonight?” Mic was genuinely surprised to see you break down crying after saying something so happy.

“You’re the first person to tell me happy birthday today.” You wiped your eyes, embarrassed to be sappy in front of your teacher.

“Oh, well then an extra special happy birthday! If you’ve got a song you’d like to play, just stop on by the studio!” Mic smile before exiting. You couldn’t think of a song you’d want to broadcast to the entire school on Mic’s radio show but if something came to mind you might just have to stop by, he seemed like he could be pretty fun to party with, if maybe he weren’t your teacher.

The thought of spending your birthday moping alone with one of your teachers didn’t sound at all like the dream you’d had about today. 

No, you wanted to be hand-in-hand with your boyfriend talking a walk through a pretty park, or stargazing under the night sky, or spending time at some sort of amusement center with your class, having fun.

But as students piled into the classroom, not a single happy birthday left any of them.

Not even Bakugou who now knew.

Getting through class was about as fun as watching paint dry. But when it was done, everyone rushed out, leaving you confused.

“Where is everyone going?” You asked, stopped by Bakugou who’s hand landed over yours on the top of your desk.

“Hell if I know.” He stared down at you, books in hand.

“You don’t wanna go with them?” You looked away, pulling your hand out from under his.

“Don’t tell me you already forgot.” You mumbled. Bakugou tugged you along to the library, silent the entire way.

Sitting across from him, you didn’t even have a clue as to why you were here, but not even thirty minutes later you were being tugged right back to the dorms.

“What’s your problem?” You stop, about three minutes away from the dorm.

“Huh? The fuck are you talkin’ about?” Bakugou stopped, his hands slung in his pants pockets.

“It’s my birthday Katsuki. And I told you that earlier, and you couldn’t even remember for a couple of hours? Am I that forgettable to you?” You sniffled, staring at him as your eyes began to sting with tears.

“I was busy. Had to focus for all that work.”

“And you still avoid saying it! I just, I just wanted to hear it from you. Is it so selfish of me that I just want to hear my boyfriend tell me happy birthday?” You felt like digging a hole and crawling into it. 

With shut eyes, squeezed so tight so you couldn’t see anything, you felt a hand land in yours, fingers intertwining with yours.

A finger under your chin lifted your head up, tear-stained cheeks and all, and a warm pair of cinnamon-tasting lips landed on yours.

“I never forgot, dumbass. I just wanted today to be special.” Bakugou whispered against your lips. Suddenly his free hand landed over your eyes as he tugged you along, your hands now gripping at his arm.

“Hey! Wait, what’s going on?!” You shrieked, confused as you moved unconsciously.

“Just hush for five seconds.” Bakugou sighed, pulling you up to the dorms, shoving you inside.

Removing his hand, Bakugou landed his hand on your shoulder and your eyes opened.

Your once rapidly spinning world was now standing still.

“Happy birthday!!” Your peers cheered. Familiar faces of your classmates, friends from Class 1-B, the Big Three, Eri, even Mr. Aizawa, and All Might were standing there in cheesy party hats.

“Wait...” You sniffled harder, tears now pouring from your eyes.

"Ah, don’t cry, idiot!” Bakugou shook your shoulders from behind you.

“I thought you all forgot! How could I not cry?!” You wiped your eyes with both of your hands, trying not to laugh at yourself.

“You can thank your boyfriend for the party! We were all gonna get you gifts but Bakugou suggested a party!” Kaminari finally blurts out.

“You were all so quiet, because of this party? And it was all your idea?” You turned to Bakugou. He sighed and nodded, crossing his arms over his chest.

You gave him a big hug and pressed a cute kiss to his cheek, earning a few ‘awes’ from some of your peers.

“Thank you. Thank you all.” You tried to stop crying, but it felt impossible. Bakugou just nodded, ushering you to go and give some people hugs.

The festivities lasted pretty much all evening, from opening gifts to eating the delicious cake Sato baked for you.

You had a fun time with everyone, and after thanking everyone for the time, you sought after Bakugou on your way back to your dorm with all of your things.

“I’m sorry. For earlier.” You apologized, feeling a bit embarrassed for seemingly going off on him.

“Don’t be. I’m sorry for acting like a dick. I just wanted to surprise you with the best fuckin’ party.” Bakugou’s intentions weren’t vile, and you couldn’t be mad at him. You shook your head and pulled him into your dorm as you set your things down.

“Can we watch a movie together, and cuddle? I think I could take that as an apology.” You smirk.

“I know you’re not mad. But if that’s what you want.” Bakugou gets into his usual position, under your covers, waiting for you to join him. You stood speechless.

“Wh- I went off on you! Of course I was mad- But- I-” You huff and crawl into your bed beside him.

“You’re not still upset is what I’m trying to say, dumbass. I’m sorry for hurting your feelings.” Bakugou kissed the top of your head. You snuggled into his side and smiled.

“You really planned that whole party just for me?” You looked up at him as he selected a movie to watch.

“I wouldn’t be the best fucking boyfriend if I didn’t.” He said smugly.

“All for you. And I would do it again.” Bakugou glanced down at you.

“Because you deserve it. I love you.” Bakugou mumbled his ‘I love you’ a little softer, but you heard.

“I love you too.” You lean over and peck his lips, smiling as you snuggle into him, ready to unwind after having so much fun.

»»————-　★　————-««

masterlist

[readermishok]

Top 20: my favorite interactive stories

Hello, guys!

Once I saw that one of my popular and mostly likeable posts was about IF, I decided to share with you my personal top of the best IF authors I have known. 

I read a lot of WIPs (work in progress) and finished novels since three long years, so I might recommend truly incredible stories. I apologies for adding pics and some additional info about my MC, but I wanted to bring spark of life into this top.

MC – Julia (deShanre), she|her.

I'll start with telling about quartet of works greatly affected on me. It was almost like… living my second life. It felt so real, so vibrant. In the darkest times it gave me the strenght to meet the next day.

1. Samurai of Hyuga, Books 1-4 by Devon Connell (WIP, planned 7 books). Patreon. Buy Book 1.  Buy Book 2. Buy Book 3. Buy Book 4.

Samurai of Hyuga is a brutal, heart-pounding interactive tale. Prepare to enter the land of silk and steel, where fantasy clashes against grim reality, and where the good guys don't always win in the end. It's a harsh world with tough choices at every turn. Good thing you're the toughest ronin around.

My MC: Ronin, the master of the Jigoku Ittō-ryū, The Sword Who Cuts the Heavens

Jigoku:

________________________________________________________________

2. Fallen Hero by Malin Ryden (WIP, planned 4 books). Tumblr: @fallenhero-rebirth​. Patreon. Buy Book 1.

Become the greatest telepathic villain Los Diablos has ever known! Once you were famous; soon you will be infamous. That is, unless your old friends in the Rangers stop you first. Juggle different identities and preserve your secrets as you build new alliances and try to forget the friendships you've left behind.

My MC: Sidestep Puppetmaster:

Jane (puppet):

________________________________________________________________

3. I, the Forgotten one by Bacondoneright (WIP, planned dilogy). No tumblr or Patreon|Ko-fi. Demo.

It has been five long years since the end of The Border Wars. Five long years without a purpose. Endlessly drifting around from one job to the next, serving your apathetic father only to receive no credit. Nobody in Kanton truly knows what you did. How you won The War, leading the armies of Kanton as a youth.

Nobody knows what it took out of you. Spending your formative years in war is not good for one’s outlook on life. Your emotions now lie behind a mask of stoicism. After all, all emotions do is cloud one’s judgement and wind up costing lives.

Nobody knows how much it hurt to be cast down from the throne and succession. To be disinherited, cast away from the family, and left aside to die.

My MC: The Marshal, the bastard child:

________________________________________________________________

4. The Exile by Pheo (WIP). Tumblr: @exilethegame​. Patreon. Demo.

You’re the ex-commander of the Kingdom of Plaithus, and your name is known by all. It used to be whispered in fear by your enemies, and the very mention of it could send men fleeing. Your people had cried it out in battle, swords raised in your honor as they faced death fearlessly. You were a hero, and to some, a legend.

Until you weren’t.

You can’t remember what happened. All that’s left are blurry faces, screams, and the feeling of blood on your hands. The only reason you still have your head is because of the pity of an old friend.

And now? It’s only been a year since the incident, and already things are going wrong again when a rather peculiar sorcerer offers you absurd amounts of gold in exchange for protection from… well, that’s the problem, isn’t it? You don’t know.

My MC: the Commander:

Ex-commander.

________________________________________________________________

Shepherds of Haven by Lena Nguyen (WIP). Tumblr: @shepherds-of-haven​ Patreon. Demo.

Shepherds of Haven is a dark fantasy interactive fiction game. In it, you play as a Mage living in a world where magic is outlawed and your people—those possessing supernatural powers—are oppressed and reviled. The world is ruled by humans who believe in science, technology, and industry: at best, you and your kind are nothing more than a fairytale, and at worst you are the state’s greatest threat.

My MC: Human Mage, gunner

________________________________________________________________

God of the Red Mountain (WIP). Tumblr: @friendlybowlofsoup​​​ Demo.

You are a spirit born of the Red Mountain–though you’ve run away from it long ago. You’d be content to stay away, too, if not for the mountain god who suddenly comes looking for you. But what purpose do they have? And what exactly is your end goal?

Based on East Asian myths and folklore, you play as a powerful, nameless spirit in a shifting world. As a being caught between death and life, you are connected to a stream of limitless power, and the more you are known, the more powerful you become.

However, your journey will not be so smooth. You have been cursed by powerful, malignant beings known as Foxes, and it’s only a matter of time before you fall from sanity yourself.

My MC: Owl spirit, human appearance

________________________________________________________________

The Bastard of Camelot by Rebelgirl (WIP). Tumblr: @llamagirl28​ Demo. Ko-fi.

Your child will be the undoing of Camelot. Born under an ominous prophecy, you are the incestuous bastard of King Arthur and Morgana Le Fay. Will you fulfill the prophecy, or rebel?

Be the villain they expect you to be, or the hero they don’t- be remorseful or unapologetic, make your destiny or be Morgana’s tool of revenge.

Arthur can’t have any more children, making you the sole blood heir, and sole other Pendragon. As a Pendragon, you have the power of dragons.

The Bastard of Camelot is a trilogy following Mordred as they become a knight of the Round Table, and save or destroy Camelot.

_______________________________________________________________

The Seven Heirs of Ophaesia: Part One by (WIP). Tumblr: @fantasyfawkes​​​ Demo. Patreon.

The Seven Heirs of Ophaesia is a low-fantasy game set in a Renaissance-esque world where you play as one of seven heirs to a fictional kingdom rife with intrigue. As the King’s seventh child, you are a prince or princess of Ophaesia, a luxurious nation along the southern coast of Selanes. You are the first child of your father’s third wife, a woman hated throughout the realm due to the pervasive suspicion that she poisoned the previous queen, and her poor reputation taints your image in the eyes of the court and beyond. From your days in the palace nursery all the way to adulthood, you must navigate treacherous court politics and delicate foreign affairs while trying to find your place in the world — and your family.

_______________________________________________________________

 Attollo by A.E. Jendryke (WIP). Tumblr: @attollogame Demo. Patreon.

After several years of radio silence, you receive a message from your younger sibling that carries a strange sense of urgency to it. Either out of familial concern, or boredom, you embark on a journey from your residence to your siblings apartment in New Hampshire to see what’s wrong and then get on with your life. Too bad it’s never so simple.

Deal with cults, interdimensional entities, and far too many people with superpowers (where, for once, you’re the odd one out) in your journey to bring your sibling back from an underworld far out of your control.

My MC: lawyer

________________________________________________________________

 Land of the Dragon (WIP) by Hilsee Foo. Demo. Last update was long ago... (crying)

Welcome to the Land of the Dragon! Here you shall experience an adventure in an ancient land, navigate court politics, forge friendships, and maybe even pursue romance if you so choose!

The Dragon Emperor sits upon the throne, as he inherited it from his father before him. But all is not well in the realm. In the provinces, an Uprising is gaining both strength and popularity. At court, the Elder Prince plots in secret to usurp his brother's throne. And within the Emperor's harem, the Empress and Imperial Consort vie for power.

As the Emperor and Empress' only trueborn child, you are at the centre of this power struggle. When all hell breaks lose on your 21st nameday, what will you do to find your place in this world?

All this, and more... In the Land of the Dragon.

_______________________________________________________________

The Northern Passage by Kit H.J. (WIP). Tumblr: @northern-passage​ Demo. 

The Northern Passage is a horror fantasy CYOA, where you play as a hunter sent up north to investigate a series of missing people along the border and in the port cities of the Blackwater.

Working with your handler, Lea, you will travel north and discover that things are far worse than you ever could have imagined, and that there is something powerful lurking out in the deep, dark sea…

My MC: Hunter

_______________________________________________________________

 The Nameless by Parker Lyn (WIP). Tumblr: @parkerlyn​​ Demo. Ko-fi.

The Nameless is a low fantasy WIP that is character and romance driven, with your race (sheevra) loosely based on stories about the fey and other myths. Where deals are a weapon and a name is the most intimate secret someone can offer. You play as a sheevra investigating the city of Renescen after the complete disappearance of one of four sheevra Clans in the world, running across a ragtag group of both sheevra and mortalis along the way.

Will you find out what happened before it comes for you?

Mortalis appearance

_______________________________________________________________

Virtue’s End by Crimsis (WIP). Tumblr: @virtuesend-if​​​ Demo. Patreon.

In a dark world overrun by monsters from the shadow plane, you exist as a hybrid monster hunter called a helvling, a human whose very soul has been Bound to one such entity. Travelling from warded settlement to warded settlement with your surly Keeper, Shea, you have the thankless task of defending the common folk against these horrors from Hel.

Usually, a fate such as yours is only reserved for the lowest of criminals, as penance for their loathsome deeds… You wouldn’t know if your fate has been deserved, however, since upon completion of your Binding seven years ago, all former memories of your human life have been lost.

You’ve been moulded into a weapon by the Virtuous Order, trained to be an unfeeling and ruthlessly efficient hunter… But is that who you are? Who are you, truly?

_______________________________________________________________

A Tale of Crowns (WIP). Tumblr: @ataleofcrowns​​​​ Itch.

A Tale of Crowns is a high fantasy love story with Middle Eastern roots, both on pc as well as mobile! It’s entirely text-based, with choices throughout to shape both your main character’s personality and skills as well as influence their relationships with others. There are four love interests for you to choose from, both female as well as male, each with their own stories and secrets for you to uncover!

Crown of Arsur

_______________________________________________________________

 Wayfarer (WIP). Tumblr: @idrellegames​ Demo. Patreon.

When your mercenary work backs you into a corner, you take the only option available and accept a contract: to travel to the city of Velantis and steal an ancient artifact said to be blessed by the gods. Simple, right?

But Velantis holds more than you bargained for. Gathering a ragtag party of malcontents and renegades from across the city, you must navigate enemy factions, meddling guilds, and escalating political tensions. Your choices will ultimately determine the city’s fate – and the fate of every person who lives there. 

_______________________________________________________________

When Twilight Strikes by evertidings (WIP). Tumblr: @evertidings​ Demo. 

You are a bounty hunter. Responsible for taking in rogue supernaturals, you work for IAOS—the International Agency of Supernaturals—where, alongside your best friend and partner, you two have quickly become the best hunting duo of the branch. After a particular tricky hunt, you brief your boss, Caine Atheron, and come back to work the next day to find that he has mysteriously disappeared overnight, the company is now in the hands of his best friend, Sebastian Mai. And though no one else seems to question it, something tells you that there’s more to the story.

With bounty cases rising at an alarming rate and a second mystery unfolding, you and your ragtag team of allies set out to find the truth.

But as you go further and further, the secrets you uncover begin to make you question: who… or what exactly are you fighting for? 

_______________________________________________________________

Passanger by Pime (WIP). Tumblr: @the-passenger-if Demo. Ko-fi.

Do you like monsters? Do you think they are the best part of their respective movies, books, and shows? Then The Passenger might be the game for you.

The Passenger is a choice script work in progress in which you are an eldritch abomination that’s about to be devoured by another unthinkable creature. Good news is you are pretty crafty and know how to jump dimensions to escape your ghastly fate; bad news is, you’re now stuck on Earth, trapped inside a dumb human larva.

As years go by, you realize the amount of energy you need to leave this horrible dimension behind is a lot more than you anticipated. Not to mention the creature that almost ate you all those years ago never really stopped looking for you. But there’s no way it’ll pinpoint your actual location… right?

_______________________________________________________________

Scout: An Apocalypse Story by Anya (WIP). Tumblr: @anya-dev​ Itch.

It has been over a decade since a worldwide natural disaster obliterated the natural planet and decimated human civilization. There are small groups of humans still alive, fending for themselves, trying to create communities amongst the rubble.

You are a 24-year old scout living in a small community on the edge of the Orange Plains. You lost your mother and your sister before finding your way here. You are primarily an academic, and you put your skills to use on regular scouting missions. With your best friend and your scouting team leader in tow, your small group is a pillar of the Community.

On your first scouting mission of the hot season, you meet the leader of the People Across the Orange Plains. Will you break from the Community you have known your whole life? Ask a romantic partner to join you? Discover secrets that your own people have been hiding? Become a leader yourself?

_______________________________________________________________

Body Count by Nell Bolton (WIP). Tumblr: @bodycountgame​ Demo. Ko-fi.

Your life isn’t going how you’d hoped. Despite having big plans when you graduated, you’re stuck in a dead end job and a crappy flat with zero romantic life to speak of. All until a friend convinces you to join the cast of a new reality TV show.

The premise is simple: 12 singles are sent to a villa on a tropical island and they live there together for a month. After 28 days, the couple who is voted by the other islanders as being most likely to withstand the test of time will win £500,000. In addition, the couple with the highest body count will win £500,000. Total prize pool? £1,000,000.

In this context, “body count” refers to how many people you’ve slept with… right? Well, that’s what you think when you sign your contract. Turns out, though, that not all of your fellow cast members will be using that definition to get to the prize.

Fall in love, win big money, solve some murders and try to stay.

_______________________________________________________________

Project Hadea by nyehilism (WIP). Tumblr: @nyehilismwriting​​ Itch. Ko-fi.

You play as an OPERATIVE of Scytha Industries, a highly selective private security company. As their most elite Operative, you possess many skills and talents, not to mention top-of-the-line equipment - including your very own AI module, IVI.

This, of course, puts a price on your head. An AI module goes for billions on the black market; carrying one around in your skull is, perhaps, not the safest idea. Sure, you’re more than a match for anyone who might come after you - but no-one outside the high levels of Scytha knows about it, so you should be safe anyway, right?

Wrong.

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

I do want to thank all these tremendously talented authors for creating such complex and beautiful worlds. I love it with all my soul.

Thanks for reading, I hope you will find story for yourself. I’ll gradually extand this top! 

Stay tuned.

[fairyoftbz]

rêveur | b. jacob

☕ pairing: (shy) pastry chef! jacob x fem! reader (with barista!kevin) ☕ word count: 4.2k (。_。) (oops i got carried away) ☕ genre: fluff, sort of slow-burn (more like jacob and the reader rejecting their feelings) ☕ tw: maybe some occasional swear words and one (1) mention of the reader’s ex but nothing too crazy.  ☕ synopsis: you find yourself always coming back to the café down the street where you absolutely loved the pastries and befriended the barista, but you’ll soon discover the culprit of your sweet tooth. ☕ a/n: gosh it’s long but i couldn’t stop myself writing for him 🥺 i’m just too soft for him. ☕ requested: yes! i hope it’s not too bad!

╰☆☆☆☆╮

No matter how hard you tried, the efforts you put to prevent you from coming back, you always found yourself going at the local café every single week. You didn’t understand if it was the atmosphere or the warmth of the place, but you always found yourself there. The fact that it was located just down the road gave you the excuse of hanging around there more often than you should.

You could be busy, studying for finals or hang out with friends, the café was always hidden in the corner of your mind. As soon as the street works ended, your neighbourhood became the most tranquil place you’ve ever lived in. All your neighbours were friendly and polite, sticking a little note in the lift to warn the other neighbours of a potential party or loud reunion, helping each other at any occasion. Some residents, including you, owned a pet, and you were grateful that none of them was a pain in the butt for the rest of the building. When you told your friends how quiet and different it was from your former apartment, they never believed you.

While some of them would have killed to study or sleep at a place like your current one, you always found yourself going back to this local café. This little, Japanese-like coffee shop became your new obsession over the months, randomly finding it once while you wanted to go to a flower shop at the end of this street. The employees were welcoming and caring, completely catching you off guard as you were used to going to Starbucks, where some baristas and waiters could use a good lecture about politeness and respect. In the small coffee shop, their goal wasn’t to make the most money possible, it was more to please people and make them discover new coffee or pastries flavours. Everything was homemade, and that’s what encouraged you to become their number one fan. The workers, especially one, started recognising you by dint of your regular appearances at the shop, remembering one of your visits.

“Morning Y/N! Caramel macchiato, as usual? Nothing else?” Kevin, the barista, greeted you with a smile, which you returned alongside with a nod.

This barista was a social butterfly, always striking up a conversation with everyone. And he didn’t care, he just kept going, even if the customers were rude or remained quiet. You were admiring because you were among the people that stayed reserved yet polite when he started talking to you, but his ease made you comfortable enough to joke and laugh with him, striking a conversation with him whenever you had the chance, quickly becoming friends over your many visits.

“Yes, please! I need a lot of caffeine today,” you murmured, and he sadly chuckled, understanding your great need for energy. “Rough night?” he asked, and you agreed again, chuckling as you realised how lame it was. “I assisted my dog being in pain while giving birth,” you explained, and the barista’s eyes widened, his mouth falling agape in excitement. “But that’s amazing! How many did she have?” he seized your credit card without even telling you the price of your purchase - in his defence, you were so used to coming here that you knew the price of your order by heart by now - and typed on his screen, closing the cash register in a slam as it randomly opened.   “She gave birth to four healthy puppies, they’re so adorable,” you replied, and the man in front of you smiled as brightly as you were.

“Those are great news! Oh, by the way, would you like to have a taste of the discovery of our pastry chef? You should have seen how happy he looked when he finished the batch this morning,” he explained, and you followed him to the window display, indicating with his finger what resembled a mille-feuille. “That looks nice, I’ll have one, then,” you stated as you were to hand him your credit card again, which he hesitantly took before looking at the back office. You asked him if something was wrong, but he shook his head with a smile and gave you a tray with your drink and the pastry. “Have a great day Kevin!” you thanked him while he washed his hands, head turning to you before shooting you a friendly wink. “You too, Y/N! And you can always tell me if you need someone to take one of the puppies, I’ll gladly adopt one. I only have to talk with my girlfriend first,” your eyes turned into crescent moons filled with joy at his words, and you lifted your thumb excitedly. He quickly waved before serving the next customer, his signature undying smile plastered on his face.

Comfortably sitting down at an empty table, you took off your coat and gulped a sip of your drink, your mouth salivating at the sight of the food. Grabbing the fork, you slid it against the pastry and brought it to your mouth, the sugary taste melting against your tongue. You ate more and more until you finished, almost tempted to go back to Kevin and ask him for another one. But you ignored your love of good food and started getting to work, getting a book and your computer out of your bag, touching up your project that you had spent a lot of time working on. It was one of the last things you had to do for university, and you were delighted to get it done to finally move on.

“Is everything okay?” You recognised the voice of your favourite barista, smiling as you watched him clearing your tray. “Yeah, thanks! Actually, can you tell the chef that it was amazing? I loved how incredible it tasted,” you explained, and Kevin smiled brightly, nodding. “I promise I’ll do it. Jacob gets so happy when he receives recognition, I’m sure it’s going to brighten his day,” nodding at you, he took your empty tray back to the counter.

Quickly saving your paper on your computer, you turned your head to the side to stare at the barista, smiling as you noticed him disappearing in the back as he called his friend’s name.

“Jacob!” Kevin spoke as he wiped his wet hands on his apron, his friend slightly flinching as the voice filled the silence he was used to working in. “Are we out of something?” the baker worriedly asked, and Kevin shook his head, a chuckle escaping from his mouth. “No, no, I’m just doing my job, being a messenger,” Jacob slightly frowned and stopped spreading yolk on the biscuits. “One of my friends, Y/N, came and ate the mille-feuille you made this morning. She said that it was excellent, and she wanted me to tell you,” Kevin explained, and the baker blinked a few times, the tip of his ears getting progressively red as he processed his friend’s words. “Thank you, I appreciate it,” the baker replied with a smile, peeking out of the back office to try and get a look at the customers. “Is she still there?” he asked, and Kevin peered closer, shaking his head as your seat was now found empty.

Jacob nodded and went back to work, a bit disappointed to not have been able to see you, hence the pout forming onto his face, but he was touched that someone complimented him on his skills. Of course, it was his job after all, but it always felt nice to receive compliments and validation that what you do is fantastic. Jacob wasn’t the most confident person in the world, so your words only brought him the daily dose of happiness and the credits he deserved.

You came back the next week, the atmosphere of the café had changed into something quite hectic, almost stressing you out when you came here to relax and chill out from your day at uni. Now that your project was done and submitted, you had some hours to kill before meeting up with some friends. Without even noticing, you arrived in the middle of rush hour, people jostling one another to get some pastries or a quick coffee before going back to work. You had to put back into place a businessman that tried to overtake you to place his order, feeling your heart hammering in your chest while doing so. The excuse of being in a rush didn’t persuade you, riposting that you also had to go somewhere so he went back behind you, breathing out of frustration to make you feel guilty, but it didn’t work. You only rolled your eyes and waited, smirking to yourself as the man behind you gave up and left, cussing.

A hand settled the pastries in the window display in a rush, people massing together to decide on their order. Kevin was all over the place but still an angel, a tired yet bright smile adorning his face. Once it was your turn, a man walked behind your friend and recognised the thin hands that placed the pastries in front of you a few minutes earlier. “Jacob? We ran out of chocolate chip cookies, we need a new batch asap, bro. We’re selling them like hot cakes.Y/N, hi, the usual?” Kevin said, and you looked up at the name, the baker stopping in his tracks and nodded, a tired look on his face. Kevin seized the opportunity to grab a chocolate croissant from the tray his friend was holding, wrapping it in a napkin.

Your eyes connected with Jacob’s for a second, his light brown pupils holding something warm and gentle towards you. He wiped the flour off his apron before quickly looking back at you, pushing the strands of hair away from his eyes before replacing his baker cap. He looked in great need of sleep, the bags under his eyes enhancing the empathy you had for him. He was handsome and adorable at the same time, your heart not being able to choose what side to fall for. The baker tiredly nodded at his friend’s request and disappeared, hearing him hastily get back to work.

“Oh uhm, yes, please,” you stammered, and Kevin smirked, humming in agreement, and typed on his screen. You shyly cleared your throat as your friend probably understood your train of thoughts since you weren’t so discrete in observing the baker, but thankfully, he didn’t raise it.

Once the rush hour had calmed down, and the coffee shop quieted down again, just like it was when you came last time, Kevin took his break with Jacob. The manager took over, leaving the two employees time to take a much-needed break and breathe for a while, gathering enough energy to make it to the end of the afternoon.

“It was her that complimented your mille-feuille,” Kevin revealed as he motioned to your table with a nod, where you were happily calling a friend and munching on the pastry the barista had placed on your tray.

Jacob followed his friend’s finger, and an honest, tired smile emerged on his face when he noticed how bright and sunny you looked. You looked so soft and nice to have around, making the baker wonder how it was to have a conversation with you. Eyes turning into crescent moons as you laughed at one of your friend’s joke, you failed to notice the employee looking in your direction, his colleague observing him out of the corner of his eye while sipping his iced americano.  

“She’s pretty, right?” Kevin mumbled, but Jacob didn’t hear him. “What did you say?” The pastry chef mindlessly asked, gaze trailing on your figure. “Y/N. She’s pretty, don’t you think?” Jacob’s eyes widened and stared back at his friend, who was giggling. “It’s okay, I’ll keep it a secret,” the barista nudged his tired friend in the ribs, finishing his drink. “You better,” his colleague finished his coffee, throwing the paper cup in a bin before going back to work, leaving a chuckling Kevin behind. “Why do I feel like cupid out of a sudden?” the barista mumbled to himself, a smirk appearing on his face as he stood up and went back inside.

The next week, as you hung around, you felt the same way of tension as soon as you stepped into the café as last time. Jacob was surprisingly serving customers, juggling between the coffees and the pastries baking in the back office. “H-hi!” you greeted Jacob, and he slightly froze at your word, greeting you with a bright smile. You were surprised when he didn’t even ask for your order, getting straight to work and wishing him a nice day as you walked to your usual seat. However, as you took your first sip, you felt your stomach churn and a disgusting taste landing on your throat. Shivers travelled down your spine as you swallowed the bitter liquid you recognised that belonged to the iced americano. A wave of memories invaded your mind as you remembered how terrible it tasted once you took a sip from your ex’s drink, who was addicted to this type of beverage.

Jacob got your order wrong, and you swallowed thickly several times, pondering if it were a good idea to add more stress to the poor baker’s shoulders by pointing at his mistake, but you couldn’t bring yourself to drink this no matter how hard you tried. You stood up and walked to the side of the counter, waiting for the people to get served before you caught the baker’s attention. You started to calmly explain the uncomfortable situation you were in to the barista, his ears became bright red as another customer came and seemed to have your drink in your hand. The customer got extremely mad as he was apparently in a rush, yelling and cursing at the baker.

“You are paid for doing this, how could you make an order wrong? It’s not that difficult!” the man exclaimed, and you noticed Jacob’s eyes darkening. You knew that he wanted to talk back to the customer, but he didn’t plan on getting fired, so he just listened and nodded. “Jacob, don’t worry I can wait, serve him first,” you said before walking back to the table after offering him a smile, noticing him nodding again and take the two drinks that you and the other man laid on the counter.

The baker cleared his throat as he arrived a few minutes later with your correct order and a slice of chocolate cake.

“I’m sorry for giving you the wrong order. I am the only one here because Kevin is on holiday and my manager was supposed to come, but he left me in the lurch. So… I’m a bit stressed out,” Jacob explained quickly, earning a reassuring smile from him. He swallowed thickly but felt a wave of relief crash onto him as you didn’t look mad at all.  “It’s okay, Jacob, it’s human to make mistakes. If it were another drink, I wouldn’t have said anything but I really can’t drink strong coffee. Thank you for the pastry, and uhm… good luck for today?” you said as he stood up, his tired eyes shining with thankfulness as he got back behind the counter. You quickly enjoyed your food and left after trying to wave at him timidly, but sadly, he didn’t notice you.

When you visited the café on the other days, he disappeared again in the back office, Kevin taking back the lead. There, with your caramel macchiato in hand, you started daydreaming about the pastry chef, his dreamy hands and beauteous face. You imagined romantic dates and activities you could do together, such as baking you new pastries before offering them at the coffee shop or even spending a day at the park together, a lost yet gentle smile on your face.

Everything about him made you dream. He exuded comfort, fondness, and warmth, his eyes always pearly with delight. Even a blind man would not have missed how amazing and passionate he is when it came to baking. You once overheard a conversation between him and Kevin, talking about a new receipt he found on the internet and how excited he was to try it out. His soft voice never failed to make you smile, his fluffy hair making you wonder how soft it was and how good it’d feel if you carded your fingers through his locks as you hugged him.

It was undeniable and inevitable, you had tried to deny those feelings during the past few weeks, but you couldn’t reject the fact that you had a massive crush on Jacob. Kevin gently teased you about this when his friend appeared, making sure to say his name aloud to catch your attention when you sat at a table, only to watch him quickly find a hiding place. You also wished you would see him more often, feeling quite defeated to see him escape your gaze as soon as he saw you. With the number of times you came to the coffee shop and saw your friend, your crush’s brief appearances weren’t enough to fulfil your little heart’s happiness. You wanted more of him, but, much to your dismay – and secretly Jacob’s – you didn’t know what to do.

“Ah Y/N! I talked with my girlfriend today, and I was wondering if I could adopt one of the puppies? I showed her the pictures you sent me, and she is all over the moon for this one,” Kevin said as he placed your order on the tray, quickly getting his phone out after checking whether some customers were waiting or not. “Yeah, no problem!” you smiled as you recognised the crazy, adventurous one. “I asked the vet, and he told me that they are old enough to be adopted. Is it okay if you come with your girlfriend within the next few days? I can’t wait for you to have one, they are precious!” you exclaimed but calmed instantly, heart hammering in your chest as your lovely baker appeared from the back office, visibly in a bad mood. He didn’t even glance at you, his attitude sent a pang in your heart, but Kevin just shook his head, winking at you. “Can we come tonight to your place? I’m excited to meet my future baby boy!” Kevin made sure that his friend heard, noticing that he was listening carefully yet discreetly, hence his movements coming suddenly to a halt. The barista gave you a knowing smile and kept on chatting with you as if nothing happened.

That night, someone knocked at your door, and you excitedly walked to the main entrance, happily greeting the couple, and welcoming them in, eyes widening as Jacob had tagged along.

“What a great surprise!” you awkwardly mumbled, and he nodded, his smile outshining the sun as you let them all inside. Kevin and his girlfriend were quick to follow the yaps of your dogs to her newborns, leaving you with Jacob, who was quick to grab your wrist gently to make you stay with him. You mindlessly smiled, but deep down, you were sure that Kevin did this on purpose.

“I couldn’t help but hear your conversation with Kevin, and I’ve always loved dogs, and since yours gave birth, I wanted to see them,” he explained, and you smiled, heart hammering in your chest. “Yeah no worries, you are welcome here! Let’s go see them before they steal all the puppies.” 

With Jacob on your heels, you went to the spare room that became your dog’s nursery, the couple already cooing at the black puppy as you slowly opened the door.

“Look how proud she is,” his girlfriend said, looking at you with twinkling eyes. Your dog walked up to you, tail wagging as she got all the attention on her and the puppies. Since your dog only allowed you to reach inside the box, you were quick to lift the only black puppy out of the four and placed it in your friend’s arms. “I named him Squishy, I had no inspiration for the names,” you giggled as Kevin pet its belly, the puppy trying to lick his finger.

You brought everyone to the living room, where you offered your guests some drinks and started talking together. Your friend’s girlfriend was adorable, over the moon with the dog, just like Kevin had predicted it. Jacob was more on the reserved side, just like at the café, your dog climbing up the couch to rest her head on his thigh, asking for caresses. You felt a sense of betrayal rushing through your veins as she preferred a perfect stranger over you, retrieving her head every time you tried to pet her. Your dog looked at you almost with a mocking look, as if she wanted to show you that she dared to go up to him, unlike you.

It was getting late, but you were having fun, the couple confirming that they adopted the puppy. You helped packing everything necessary for the puppy and got ready to leave, thanking you for your kindness and hospitality. You were happy but felt a bit sad that someone already adopted one of the puppies. It was hard not to get attached to those cute little creatures, but you were reassured that he’d be treated like a king by living with your friends.

Jacob, on the other hand, was stuck on the couch as your dog prevented him from doing the slightest movement.

“She is quite stubborn,” Jacob shyly giggled as he tried to move his leg, only to have the dog whining and yapping. “Luna, stop! Let Jacob go, now!” you walked up to the couch, and she fled, strolling away from you each time you tried to get closer to her.

After many unsuccessful attempts, you managed to lure her into the nursery, shutting the door shut and she barked, but the apartment was quick to fall in silence.

“Finally,” you said as you went back to the living room, where Jacob was quietly admiring the photos on the wall. He gave you a quick smile and went back to his observations, you standing next to him with a slightly embarrassed smile. “It was nice to come here, but I’ll still reconsider my choices. I don’t want to decide on a whim, I wanna make sure that I’m settled and ready to welcome a puppy.” You nodded at his words, throwing him a reassuring gaze. “I completely understand, Jacob. You can take all the time you need. I’m planning on keeping one anyway, so if you change your mind, you can always come and visit,” you said, and an awkward silence installed around you two, Jacob scratching his neck as he avoided your gaze.

“Y-you know. I enjoy… what you bake, really, and I can’t wait for your next pastries,” you shyly mumbled to the man in front of you, who looked up with red adorning his cheeks. “I’m touched by what you’re telling me, thank you so much,” he said and quickly looked outside before inhaling and turning back to you.

“I’m going to go, but… I was wondering Y/N… y-you know, you’ve been friends with Kevin for a while and come around the café regularly, so I was wondering if we could also hang out, but you know… only the two of us? Maybe without Kevin?” Jacob was finding his words, thickly swallowing as he tried his best to tell you what he wanted. You giggled at the way he said things, imagining Kevin on his own while you were together. “Sure! Sure thing! You probably have a hectic schedule, but we can find something that works for the two of us?” you suggested, and he smiled, taking out his phone from his jeans pocket, holding the device with a nervous grip.

“Can I get your number, then? It’s gonna be easier to communicate rather than you coming around the café all the time. I- It’s not what I mean though, I really like having you around the shop, but you know, it’d be easier for the two of us,” you both shyly giggled as he messed up, the tip of his ears glowing bright red.

You were quick to enter your number in a new contact, confirming it before returning the phone to its owner, who gave you the warmest smile you had ever seen on his face.

“I’ll call you tomorrow then,” Jacob said as you walked him to the door, him thanking you just like your friends did. “Drive safe,” you whispered, and he nodded, giving you a soft smile before getting closer to you and softly pressing his lips on your cheek.

Your eyes widened at the sudden display of affection but smiled, feeling a wave of embarrassment invading your body. You waved at him until the elevator arrived, closing the front door with your heart pounding in your chest, doing a little dance of joy in the corridor as something concrete was starting to form between the two of you.

And the best was still yet to come. ♡

[bills-bible-basics]

Gay and Lesbian Agenda Graphic 24 Graphic created by #BillKochman for #BillsBibleBasics. Visit "Bill's Bible Basics Graphics Library" at https://www.billkochman.com/Graphics-Library/index.html to see all of my graphics, along with related Bible study resources, all in one place, and arranged into over 300 different categories. Thanks! Whether some of you realize it or not, our nation has been slip sliding away for literally decades. However, the slide has been so slow, so gradual, and so subtle, that it wasn't until about halfway through the decade of the 2010s that a lot of people really began to wake up to what has been going on. However, sadly, by that time, it was already too late. Serious damage had already been done, and the victory had already been won. What has been going on since then basically amounts to mopping up exercises and tying up the loose ends. And boy are they doing a good job of it! So exactly what am I talking about? Well, do you remember a few decades ago -- back in the 1970s, actually -- when the LGBT crowd began claiming that they just wanted to be left alone to live their lives as they please? Fast-forward forty years. Then came gender reassignment surgery. Then came renegade, liberal circuit court judges who repeatedly overturned the will of the people. Then came renegade, liberal state legislatures who likewise overturned the will of the people. Then came civil unions. Then on June 26, 2015 came nationwide legalization of same-sex "marriage" by mandate of the Supreme Court of the United States, despite the majority of the American people being opposed to it. Then came openly gay or lesbian bishops, pastors, priests, politicians, actors, sports figures, and everyone in between. Then came same-sex union blessings in some of the churches. Then came adoption of normal, healthy children by same-sex couples. Then came law suits against Christians and Conservatives who follow their hearts and their faith, and who oppose the LGBT life style. Then came library books which openly promote the LGBT life style. Then came gender-neutral bathrooms. Then came drag queens in our public schools during children's story hour. Then came teaching LGBT history in the classroom. Then came liberal parents who encourage their children to act and dress like the opposite sex. Then came hormone injections, puberty-blocking drugs in young children and double mastectomies on adolescent girls in order to alter their natural-born physiology so that they could appear outwardly the way that they were being made to feel inwardly by misguided adults and parents. Then came a gender-neutral option on birth certificates. Now they promote their ungodly life style in every area of the entertainment and mass media industries where they possibly can, and constantly shove it in our faces. It is inescapable; unless one goes and lives in a cave. Yes, but of course, as they said, they just wanted to be left alone. Right? If you believe that nonsense, then you are seriously deceived! What about us? What about our right to live in a Bible-based, God-fearing society which honors and obeys God's natural order of things? How much longer will God endure this madness and rebellion against His holy Laws? When will His patience finally run out? When will His judgments begin to fall on the wicked who mock Him everyday, and who cast His Word to the ground? As the Apostle John wrote some two thousand years ago: "And‭ we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness." 1 John 5:19, KJV If John were alive today, oh how he would shudder! If you would like to further explore this issue, please consider reading all of the study resources which are listed below. God bless you, and thanks so much! Article: "The Gay and Lesbian Agenda: To the Point!": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/homosex1.html Article: "When Sin is No Longer a Sin!": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/whensin1.html

Article: "Queen James Bible: Blasphemous Abomination Exposed!": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/queen-james-bible-1.html Article: "Biblical Marriage Ceremonies": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/marriage1.html "Homosexuality Lesbianism Bestiality Transvestitism" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse138.html Magazine Article: "The Overhauling of Straight America": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles-Non-BBB/overhaul.html Article: "The Gay Gene?": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles-Non-BBB/gaygene1.html By the way, when we come to Jesus Christ and are reborn in the Spirit, the Scriptures make it very clear that we should undergo a spiritual and mental change in our lives, and that we should in fact become NEW CREATURES in Jesus Christ. We should NOT remain the same, living our same old life style, and living in our same old sins. That means that people who belong to the LGBTQ crowd should NOT continue practicing their sexual deviancy. Here is Scriptural proof: "God's Desire for Healing and Repentance" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse302.html "Old Man Versus New Man" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse165.html "Washed and Renewed Mind" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse071.html Article: "Don't Ever Underestimate Our Spiritual Enemy": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/DontUnderestimateOurEnemy1.html https://www.billkochman.com/Blog/index.php/gay-and-lesbian-agenda-graphic-24/?feed_id=52959&_unique_id=64447004e7aa4&Gay%20and%20Lesbian%20Agenda%20Graphic%2024