#we had a copy already. we usually did lol)

[foxgloveinspace]

@excelsior9173 sorry I took so long to respond, the adhd adhded hard and when I went looking for the transformers DVDs I ended up uhhhhh reorganizing the entire dvd and VHS collection which is a task that’s been put off for like 6 years.

BUT!!! I found the transformers DVDs (wasn’t until the end tho!) and loooooooooooooook the pamphlet is still in it😭😭😭. It’s Bee and the car:

I have only watched a bit of one of the older cartoons (can’t remember which one) and the live action movies. I do want to watch more but it’s so hard to find either places to watch or to buy them on dvd.

Which one is your favorite???

[meganegatari]

before you read ▪︎ loose continuation to THIS

ultra loser!ellie x teasing(slightly sadistic tbh)!reader. reads fine as a standalone!! no fr sex, but still nsfw!!! loads of teasing, ellie's shy and flustered (also gave her glasses and piercings muahahah AND HAPPY TRAIL MENTION YAYYY), reader's a little insistent (but it's ok), mentions of masturbation, discussion of sex, REALLY horny making out at the end lol, heavy petting, they almost do it, tiny abby cameo, buildup AS PER USUAL YALL KNOW THE DRILL, kinda cliffhanger ending (its on purpose HAHA), different layout bc i cheated n looked at the poll oops...NGL TS HAD ME SWEATINGGG WRITING IT LMFAO don't think i have ever written something more horny....ok enjoy! + 2.2k wc

apparently both of you missed the professor's class cancellation email on this fateful day… other students showed up too, but they left quickly after seeing it was empty. ellie stayed to catch up on some work, enjoying the silence and typing away on her laptop, which looked like one of those beefy gaming computers.

covered in stickers and the keys changing color, you thought it was interesting she'd lug that thing around campus with her, instead of opting for something light and sleek. and now that leaves you. you had no other plans for the day, and had already mentally prepared yourself for this class, totally unaware it was canceled.

you realized it wasn't a bad idea to copy ellie, and catch up on some of your own work. however you were more intrigued by her, to be totally honest with yourself.

watching her from a distance, she captivated you. she never seemed to notice your stares, too absorbed in her thoughts. you watched her type, efficiently and quickly, pausing only to push her glasses further up her nose with her slim fingers.

the truth is, she's hot. but no one was hearing you out on that, unfortunately. they'd say to you, “what a loser! i don't think i've ever heard her talk.”

you felt overwhelmed by the urge to strike up a real conversation with her—more that simple greetings or coursework questions— and it was the perfect opportunity to do just that. so you got up, sat yourself down in the empty spot right next to her, and put on the most charming grin you could muster up. she abruptly snapped out of her focus, almost flinching at your presence.

“hey! you're ellie, right? whatcha working on?” you got close to her to see, being met with a bunch of hieroglyphic-looking strings of symbols on the screen. woah, smarty-pants. “um, it's just…some project, i dunno. how d’you know my name?”

she finally looked at you, her eyes round, wider than the ufo saucer stickers on the back of her computer. they were so green, the hazel ring reminded you of a polished agate stone. the scattered freckles on her face were so pretty too, you'd never been close enough to her to really take notice. she nervously scanned your features, blotches of pink blush decorating the apples of her plump cheeks.

she was so cute, and noticing her evident shyness flipped a switch inside you, what if you messed with her a little?

you shrugged at her, “just seen you around. you're so mysterious.” you lilt, manipulating your tone to make it smoother on the ears, even containing hints of seduction if you dared.

she blushed a deeper raspberry shade and looked down at her hands, fidgeting with her rings. she was somehow getting more attractive by the second, your heart felt like it was about to burst.

“am i? never thought of it that way, you're funny.” she mumbles, her antsiness obvious. but you didn't wish to let up so soon, you were having a lot more fun flustering her than you'd ever care to admit, even wanting to see just how far you could push her.

“ooh, i love your rings. where did you get em?” “just…places. why are you asking me so many questions?” you sighed and rolled your eyes, “well, ellie. we both don't have anything else to do, gotta pass the time somehow. i wanna talk with you, is that okay?” she took a deep breath and nodded, visibly relaxing. she stretched out her arm to get rid of the tabs on her computer, close it, and put it in her bag, which is when you got a look at her forearm tattoo.

“also i'm obsessed with your tattoo, you have no idea how cool you are, how are girls not all over you?” you question, taking her wrist in your hands and examining the tattoo's intricate line work, tracing your fingertips over the pigment in her skin.

you heard her breathing change in tempo, quickening ever so slightly. but she didn't move her arm away, and let you continue. she took a second to respond. “um. thanks, i guess. i don't really know what you mean.” her voice cracked when she said the last part, igniting a flame inside you, one that you didn't know existed.

your mind wandered, you began wondering what she sounds like when she whimpers. was she really so starved of human contact you could mold her like putty, just with your fingers and tongue? you wanted to find out so badly, wanted to hear how she'd cry your name out if you fucked her into oblivion. was she a squirter or a creamer? you hoped to the heavens above you'd get to find out someday. maybe it was too much to fantasize like this, considering you formally met just now, but you weren't hurting anyone if it all never left the confines of your mind.

you were lucky you hid your own arousal well, nothing out of the ordinary showed on your face whatsoever. ellie wasn't so lucky—to her dismay, but to your delight—everything played out on her delicate features so clearly, it was nothing short of delectable. 

your eyes bore into hers, the intensity of the eye contact making her shiver, and attempt to break it. “ellie, ellie, ellie, may i call you els?” you didn't wait for an answer, and continued, “do you have a girlfriend?” you pouted your lips at her, feigning sadness as if her response was something you didn't already infer.

she was stuttering now, stumbling over her words, making less and less sense as the conversation went on. she was anxiously bouncing her leg, you could see her chest rising and falling, and her face had turned a lovely crimson color, it was so strong, the flush had spread down her neck and reached her ears, making her piercings stand out. good lord. 

“ahem- no, i don't have a girlfriend. actually never have, shocking i know.” she chuckles at her self-deprecating joke, and while her smile was enough to light up a room, you wanted to slap the doubt out of her. or rather, fuck it out of her. 

you exhaled loudly, “hahh, well isn't that a shame. you're so pretty, i'll just have to snatch you up for myself then.” she swallowed audibly, greatly taken aback. “sorry, what?” “oh, don't you know how much people love losers like you? tsk tsk tsk, you're so much hotter than you realize, i mean it, els. look at you! you've got these piercings, this tattoo, you're smarter than this whole class combined, seriously.” 

she just gaped at you, unable to process what she was hearing. no one had ever talked to her like this, it was only something she read about. and coming from you? this ethereal person who starred in all of her most intimate fantasies? she rubbed her eyes roughly, convinced she was hallucinating. her mouth opened and closed dumbly, her voice box failing to produce any sound. but you were affecting her so much, especially because she lusted after you to an extent she could only take to the grave.

flashes of her midnight escapades flickered in her mind, of her shoving her hand down her pants like an animal in heat, orgasming so intensely she'd black out, abusing her hole with nothing but images of you playing in her mind, and your name on her tongue. her cheeks burned with the embarrassment of her wild actions, and she shook her head to clear the thoughts away. 

you groaned and leaned back in your own seat, exclaiming, “god i'm so bored. and pent up, fuck. it's been so long since i had sex…” that was true. in any other situation you'd never say something like that aloud, but because you were alone with the clueless idiot you wanted so carnally, you let it slip. 

“...maybe you should take care of that.” you heard her cough out, her voice coming out strangled. “i could. but that's boring.” you opened your eyes again and smirked devilishly her way, poor girl looked like she was about to go on a trip with the ferryman. 

you grabbed her hand, examining it some more, commenting, “you play guitar, don't you? guitarists are very good with their hands, i will say.” you played with her hand, pressing it into a fist, then extending her middle and ring finger. gosh, what's gotten into you? “i bet you're sooo good.” 

you've never seen a person look more flustered than she did right now in this moment. her voice was impossibly quiet, barely above a whisper, “cut it out.” “okay, fine.”

some beats of silence passed, but a thought crossed your mind. if she really hated this interaction that much, she could have got up and left eons ago, yet she stayed here and endured it all. hmm. you blurted out, “els, have you kissed anyone before?” 

and again she stayed silent, even after you waited patiently for an answer. she kept looking away, her jaw tense. 

you decided to quit the teasing just for a moment, and speak to her gently, genuinely. you shifted to sit a little closer to her and asked, “do you want to?” her gaze locked onto your mouth, she licked her lips, then muttered, “if you're really offering and not just fucking with me, sure-” 

your patience broke and you didn't wait for her to finish her sentence before swiftly leaning forward and connecting your lips with hers, relishing the tiny gasp she made as soon as you did it. she tasted like a dream.

after a split second she kissed you back, it was inexperienced and clumsy, fueled by adrenaline, but she got into a rhythm soon enough. you took the lead and deepened the kiss, absent-mindedly tugging on her bottom lip with your teeth, coaxing eager whimpers out of her, pure music to your ears.

you succumbed to the sensations and increased the pace, your tongue dancing against hers. you felt her hands fumble by your waist, and she pulled you closer to her. your hands clawed at her chest, the beautiful symphony of panting, the wet smacking of your lips colliding, and her uncontrolled moans filled the empty room.

she gripped your waist so tightly, fingertips surely leaving small marks in their wake, you couldn't wait to find them later, and you shamelessly felt up her chest, your thumbs finding her nipples—perky, hard, and poking out through her thin shirt. you caressed and rubbed and squeezed, feeling her jolt under your magical touch.

she was fully whining now. spilling needy, high-pitched sounds, this was better than you could've ever imagined. neither one of you breaking the kiss for even a second, your hand trailed lower and landed on her stomach, slipping under the bottom of her shirt. you felt her defined abs tensing, and the whisper of a happy trail—now it was your turn to moan.

she got even louder and her kisses got sloppier, and you were about to venture inside her waistband before a sudden sound startled you both. 

your phone vibrated aggressively, and with great effort you separated yourself from ellie, long strings of spit connecting you to her still.

she whimpered from the loss of contact, chasing your lips, then huffing and quietly groaning while you took out your phone, her hands not letting go of your waist. when you checked it, it was a message from your friend, abby, just saying: URGENT. COME HERE NOW. ASAP.

fuck her. fuck her and her timing, was all you could think. really, now? you wanted to kill her.

trying to slow your breathing and racing heart, you explained apologetically, “ugh, it's urgent. im so, so sorry ellie, i gotta go.” she stared at you, speechless, but nodded meekly, reluctantly retracting her arms. you didn't want to leave, and stayed gazing at her for a little longer, and brushed a loose strand of soft hair out of her face. what a cutie, she looked all disheveled and dazed. you were about to look for a paper to scribble down your number to keep in touch, until your phone buzzed again, and started ringing with abby's repeated attempts to get ahold of you. couldn't she wait a minute?

you gave ellie one last devastated look, getting up and rushing out of the classroom before abby called you another seventeen times. 

ellie was left in the classroom, reeling from the encounter and what it had turned into. she was utterly bewildered at the events that transpired, her blood rushing in her ears, mind spinning, lips still puffy, glasses fogged over, hands trembling, and of course a sticky, uncomfortable damp spot in her boxers. she leaned forward to rest her head on the desk in front of her on top of crossed arms, to take a moment to cool down before escaping back to her place. 

“holy shit.” 

im horny🧍‍♂️just like ellie after that. as soon as she got home, u best believe she came so hard she saw literal angels and deities LMFAOO (this is my favorite thing ive ever written gawdDAYUM)

yall who wanted more, hope this suffices as a continuation! @stonerzdaze420692 @womenlvrrr

[requiemforthepoets]

this is me trying 𖦹 OP81

PAIRINGS: oscar piastri x female!reader

SUMMARY: growing up, the only thing you know is that you need to be strong, provide, and take care of your sister. but being with oscar, it was different, he made you feel things—that it’s okay to not be fine, vulnerable, and to be taken care of.

AUTHOR’S NOTE: i have this fic finished the other day but i was debating on whether to post it or not, but here we are. it’s been a while too since i last wrote for oscar, and this is like a comfort (?) fic idk lol. also, can i just say that LANDO ON POLE FOR THE SG GP!!! 😭🧡 ok, i hope you guys will have fun reading this one. enjoy! :)

REMINDERS: this is purely fiction, the way how the character is portrayed in my story does not reflect the person that is portraying my character in real life. always separate fiction from reality, and do not repost or copy my work in any way.

WORD COUNT: 3.6k

WARNINGS: not proofread, typos, eldest daughter syndrome, no use of y/n, cursing, unnamed sister, named friend, and parents death

You were sitting in the living room, surrounded by case files and legal books, trying your best to prepare for the court trial that you’ll be doing soon, but your mind was elsewhere. You can't focus on the work that you’re working on in front of you, no matter how hard you try. Your phone buzzed, and you almost didn’t answer, thinking it’s just another work call, but when you saw Blaire, your friend’s name, flash on the screen you quickly picked up, expecting a casual chat.

“Hey, Blaire, how are you?” You greeted her, trying to mask your exhaustion.

Her voice on the other end was hesitant, not the usual warm tone that you’re used to. “Hey…I really hate to bring this up, but I was wondering when you would be able to repay the five thousand dollars?”

Your stomach dropped. “Repay?” You repeated, utterly confused. “What do you mean five thousand dollars?”

The conversation between you and Blaire unraveled quickly. She explained how she had lent the money to your sister out of need, thinking it was for you or with your approval. Rage bubbled in your chest, your pulse quickened, at this point all you can see is red. You thanked her hastily, barely able to end the call before fury overtook you. Without thinking, you dialed your sister’s number, the beeps echoing in your ear like a countdown to an explosion.

“Hello?” Her voice was casual, completely unaware of the storm coming her way.

“What the actual fuck did you do?!” You yelled, not caring if it was late at night. “You borrowed five fucking thousand dollars from Blaire without asking me!? How could you?!”

There was a pause, a brief moment where you could almost feel her shrug through the phone. “Oh my god, can you relax? It’s not like you can't afford it. It’s not that big of a deal, you can just easily pay for it with how big you’re making, it’s barely a scratch on your bank account!” You couldn’t believe what you were actually hearing.

“Not a big deal? Did you spend the money already? Do you have any fucking idea how humiliating it is for me that you did this without even consulting me? You think just because I make good money, I’ll fix every mess you create?” You were seething.

“Well, yeah,” she responded with a laugh, clearly not grasping the gravity of the situation. “You’re my older sister. Isn’t it your job to take care of me, right?”

Your grip on your phone tightened. “I’ve been taking care of you your whole life! I’m working myself to the bone just to make sure you have everything you need, sending you to that fancy school that you’ve always wanted so you can have a better future, and this is how you repay me? By lying and stealing?”

The silence on the other end of the line felt heavy, but your anger has not subsided. She mumbled something that sounded like a half assed apology, but it was already too late for that. You immediately hung up and slammed the phone down on the table, heart racing, pulse pounding in your ears. Anger still swirling inside you like a storm, the words of your sister still echoing in your mind. You can just easily pay for it with how big you’re making. Her carelessness, lack of respect—it hit harder than anything you had experienced before. It wasn’t about the money, you could handle the five thousand dollars easily, but the way she completely dismissed your hard work, as if it was nothing, as if your sacrifice and years of struggle meant nothing—that was what burned deep. It hurts like fucking hell.

You sat down there on the couch, trying to calm yourself down, tears started to prick at the corners of your eyes, but you blinked them back. You didn’t cry. You cannot cry. You have always been strong your whole life—the provider, carer, and protector. That’s who you were. No one had ever taken care of you, not since your parents passed away when you were fifteen and your sister is only ten. It has always been you, alone, against the world, and now, it felt like even your sister was against you.

You didn’t hear Oscar enter the living room until his voice, soft but firm, broke through the silence. “Hey, I heard you from our room. Are you okay?”

You swallowed hard, your body automatically stiffening instinctively and continued browsing through your documents like nothing happened.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry,” you lied, though the quiver in your voice betrayed you.

Oscar walked over and sat down beside you on the couch, his hand gently resting on your shoulder. “You don’t always have to be fine,” he said quietly. “Tell me, what happened?”

You exhaled sharply, your hands trembling as you ran them through your hair. “It’s my sister,” you muttered, trying to keep your voice steady. “She borrowed money from Blaire. Five thousand dollars. Without even telling me. Now, she’s acting like it’s my job to fix it.”

“Five thousand? That’s a lot.” Oscar frowned, his brows knitting in concern.

“I know,” you said, “she doesn’t even care. She just assumes I’ll take care of it, like I always do every time she gets into stupid situations. She thinks just because I earn good money, I’m supposed to fix everything.” Your voice cracked, and before you could stop it, the tears you had been holding back for so long finally broke free. “I don’t know how much longer I can do this, Oscar. I’m always the one fixing things, I’m always the one who has to be strong.”

Oscar didn’t say anything for a moment, he just stared at you, his eyes filled with understanding. Then, without a word, he pulled you into his arms. You tensed at first, still not used to being vulnerable, but Oscar’s embrace was warm, grounding. Slowly, your body relaxed into his, and the weight of the world seemed to lift just a little as you rested your head against his chest.

“It’s not fair,” you whispered to him. “I’ve always had to be the strong one. I’m tired, Oscar. I’m so fucking tired. I don’t know how much more I can take.”

His hand gently stroked your back, his voice soft and reassuring. “I know. It’s okay to be tired. You don’t have to be strong all the time. Not with me.”

You pulled back slightly to look at him, your eyes searching his face, “I just don’t know how to let anyone help me,” you admitted, voice barely audible. “I’ve been doing this for so long, I don’t know how to not be the one in control.”

“I get that. But you don’t have to do it all alone anymore. I’m here. Let me be strong for you, too.” Oscar smiled gently, brushing a tear from your cheek with his thumb.

For a moment, you didn’t know what to say. The idea of letting someone else carry even a fraction of the weight feels completely foreign to you. But as you looked at Oscar, his eyes full of sincerity, something inside you shifted. Maybe, it’s time you let it all fall down, you didn’t have to carry everything on your shoulders all the time.

“What am I supposed to do about her?” You asked, your voice small but steady now.

Oscar sighed softly, thinking for a moment. “You have all the right to be angry and upset. Your feelings are valid,” he said. “She needs to learn that actions have consequences. But at the same time, she’s your sister. She’s young, and sometimes young people tend to make mistakes. You’ve been doing everything for so long that she probably hasn’t learned how to take responsibility for herself yet.”

You nodded, wiping your eyes. “Yeah, maybe. But I can’t just let her think she can keep doing this.”

“No,” he agreed. “But you also don’t have to do this alone. We can figure it out together.”

You looked at him, really looked at him, and for the first time in a long time, you felt like you weren’t alone. Maybe you didn’t always have to be the strong one, the provider, the protector. With Oscar by your side, you could learn how to let someone else carry the weight with you.

“Thank you,” you whispered, leaning into him once more. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Oscar smiled, pressing a soft tender kiss to your forehead. “You’ll never have to find out, I’m not going anywhere, my love.”

The next morning, you stared at the screen of your laptop, fingers moving quickly over the keys as you finished drafting the contract. The legal jargon was familiar, comforting even, but the fact that you had to use it against your own sister left a bitter taste in your mouth. The contract was firm, direct, and laid out the consequences clearly: five thousand dollars, to be repaid in installments, with interest and penalties if the deadline is missed. You hated doing it—your heart never felt so heavy—but you knew it was necessary. You had been too lenient for far too long, if she didn’t learn this now, she might never understand the true value of money and the responsibility that came with it. It was time for her to learn the hard truths you had known your entire life.

Oscar was sitting across the table, sipping his coffee, watching you in silence. “You’ve finished it?” He asked gently. You had told him last night that you need to straighten everything out, and told him your plan, in which he quickly supported you.

You nodded, eyes scanning the contract one last time before saving it. “Yeah. She’s not going to like it, but this has to be done.” You sighed, “I’ve been too lenient, too forgiving. I can’t keep cleaning up after her messes.”

“You’re doing the right thing.” He said as he reached over, placing his hand over yours. “It’s tough, but you’re teaching her a lesson she won’t forget.”

“I hope so,” you sighed, glancing out the window, the weight of responsibility pressing down on you once more. “I’ve never been one to ask for anything back, but she needs to learn that she can’t just treat me like this. I want her to be successful, but she can’t rely on me forever.”

Later that day, you booked a flight for her to Monaco, and notified her about the flight schedule. She was studying in Switzerland, and it would be a four hour flight from Switzerland to Monaco. It was time to have this conversation face-to-face. You couldn’t keep allowing her to avoid responsibility just because you were miles apart. This is a conversation that is long overdue.

A couple of days later, she arrived at your and Oscar’s shared apartment. She seemed different—more subdued, perhaps. You could tell the weight of your anger still lingered in her mind. She greeted you cautiously, her eyes flickering to Oscar, who stood nearby, his presence calm but protective.

“Sit down,” you said, pointing to the couch.

She looked at you, clearly trying to gauge your mood, but she did as she was told. You sat across from her, with Oscar by your side, and the freshly printed contract lying on the table between you. The tension in the living room was thick.

“I had already settled your debt with Blaire,” you began, your voice calm but firm. “But this conversation is not just about the money. It’s about respect, about responsibility.”

“I said I was sorry.” She crossed her arms, trying to play it cool.

“Sorry doesn’t fix this,” you snapped, your patience was already running thin, barely hanging on by a thread. “I have been providing for you because I want nothing but the best for you. But what you did was careless, and you disrespected everything I’ve done for you. You didn’t even ask me before borrowing that money, and then you just blatantly assumed I would handle it. You do this every time to me, you always get me into awkward and humiliating situations.”

She bit her lip, her attitude wavering. “I know, but you make so much—”

“That’s not the point!” You cut her off, about to lose your cool but Oscar had managed to calm you down by softly caressing your back. “Yes, I make good amount of money, but that money just doesn’t magically appear. I have worked hard, harder than you can imagine, to get to where I am. Do you want to know what’s worse? What’s worse is that you’re not even thinking about how hard it is to earn that money, how I burn myself off everyday. So I’m making you earn it back.” You slid the contract towards her.

“What’s this?” She looked down at it, then back at you, looking all confused.

“It’s an agreement,” you said. “I’ve decided to give you the five thousand dollars. Consider what you bought from that money as a gift, because I know you’ve been doing well in school, and it’s been a while since I’ve given you anything. But this will never happen again. You owe me that money, and you're going to pay it back. Every cent of it, with interest.” Her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to protest, but you cut her off before she could even speak.

“This is not negotiable. I’m still going to support you, I’m still going to pay for your tuition, but you need to learn how hard it is to earn this kind of money. You’re going to work for it, and I'll expect proof—payslips, records—everything. If you miss a payment, there will be penalties added, and if you refuse or try to make a fool out of me, I’m not afraid to take legal action.”

“You’d sue me? Your own sister?” She stared at you in disbelief.

“Yes, I would,” you said coldly. “I don’t want to, but you’ve left me with no choice. You are already eighteen and will turn nineteen in two months, you are already capable of knowing what’s right and wrong. You need to understand that I’m not going to bail you out every time you mess up, this is your responsibility now.”

For a long moment, she didn’t say anything. Her face was a mix of shock and anger, but you could tell the gravity of the situation was already starting to sink in.

“I’m not trying to be harsh,” you said softly, leaning forward. “But I’ve been in your shoes, and I know firsthand how hard life can be. I have shielded you from that, and maybe that was my mistake. But if you’re going to succeed in this world, you need to understand that nothing is free, nothing in life is free. Everything comes with a cost.”

Oscar then leaned forward, gently placing a hand on your shoulder. “Look, we’re not doing this to hurt you,” he added, tone gentle but firm. “But this is a wake-up call. You need to understand how your sister has worked so hard, and how important it is that you start contributing. No one’s saying you have to do it alone, but you have to start doing something.”

Your sister’s eyes shifted between the two of you, and for a moment, you saw a flicker of guilt in her expression. She glanced back down at the contract, and you handed her a pen.

“Okay,” she whispered. “I’ll do it. I’ll pay you back.” Her attitude and defiance slowly faded from her face.

“Good.” You nodded, “then sign it.”

She hesitated for only a moment before scribbling her signature across the bottom of the contract. You felt a strange mixture of relief and sadness, knowing you had to be this tough, but also hoping it would be the turning point she needed.

“You can stay with us while you’re in Monaco,” you told her, “but I expect you to find a job as soon as possible. If you fail to keep up with your end of the deal, there will be consequences. Understood?”

“Understood.” She nodded, though her expression was still a mix of resentment and defeat.

You exhaled, feeling a small sense of relief wash over you. This wasn’t easy, and you hated having to be this strict with her, but it had to be done. Oscar wrapped his arm around you, his touch grounding as soon as you watched your sister head towards the guest room.

“You did the right thing,” he said quietly.

“I hope so,” you whispered, leaning into him. “I just want her to grow up.”

“Don’t worry, she will.” Oscar assured you, pressing a soft kiss to the side of your head. “With you as her sister, she doesn’t have much of a choice,”

Later that evening, the apartment finally fell quiet, dinner was definitely awkward and quiet, but with your sister already tucked away in the guest room, the weight of everything you had said and done began to settle in. You were sitting at the edge of the bed, heart heavy and mind replaying what had happened earlier over and over. The way your sister had looked at you—hurt and angry—it cut deeper that you were willing to admit.

You had always been strong, but this strength had come with a cost. Now, sitting in the stillness of the night, the reality of your actions hit you like a tidal wave. It wasn’t just the contract or the money, it was the fear—the fear that in trying to teach her a lesson, you might have pushed her too far. That in being the disciplinarian, you had damaged something that might never fully recover or heal.

Oscar entered the room quietly, sensing the shift in your mood. He sat beside you, his presence had always been comforting, but it wasn’t enough to stop the flood of emotions you had been holding back.

“Was I too harsh, Osc?” You whispered, voice barely audible.

He frowned slightly, tilting his head to look at you. “No, you weren’t. She needed to hear all of it.”

“I know,” you replied, voice trembling. “But what if I lose her because of this? What if she hates me for it?”

You felt your tears welling up again, but this time you couldn’t stop them anymore. They spilled down your cheeks, unchecked, as you finally let go of the tension and frustration you had been carrying.

“I’m not being harsh to punish her, I just want her to understand how hard life is, how much I’ve sacrificed. But what if all she sees is me being cruel?”

Oscar pulled you close, wrapping his arms around you as you broke down. You rested your head on his chest, sobs coming in waves, guilt and fear crashing over you. You had always been strong for so long—too long—and now, it felt like everything was unraveling.

“She’s my baby sister,” you choked out between sobs. “I don’t want to lose her. But I don’t know what else to do. I don’t want her to think I’m just some heartless person who only cares about money.”

Oscad held you tighter, his voice calm and steady as he spoke. “She won’t hate you. Not forever. She’s upset now, sure. But she’s young, and right now, she probably doesn’t understand why you’re doing this. But she will, trust me. One day, she’ll look back at it and realize that you did this because you love her.”

You shook your head, your chest tightening with the weight of your emotions. “I feel like I’m always the one who has to be the bad guy. I never get to be the one who’s just there for her, to support her without judgment.”

Oscar stroked your hair gently, his voice soothing. “You’ve done more for her than anyone else ever could. You’ve given her everything. You’re not the bad guy, you’re her protector, even when it means being tough on her. Yeah, maybe this will cause a rift for now, but it won’t last. She’ll come around, she’ll see that you’re doing this because you care.”

You pulled away slightly, wiping at your tear-streaked face. “What if she doesn’t?”

“She will,” Oscar said firmly. “But even if it takes time, you can’t keep beating yourself up for doing what’s right. You’re teaching her a lesson that no one else will. You’re giving her the tools to grow up, to be responsible. Sometimes, that means being tough. That’s tough love.”

You nodded, but the guilt still gnawed at you. “I just wish I didn’t have to be this person all the time. The one who fixes things, who keeps everyone in line.”

“I know. But you’re not doing this alone anymore, okay? I’m here. Whenever it feels like it’s too much, rest on me. You can always rest on me.”

You leaned into him again, his warmth easing the ache that you’re feeling inside of you. “I just hope she understands someday,” you whispered.

“She will,” Oscar said softly, kissing the top of your head. “And until then, you’ve done what you needed to do. You’ve set her on the right path, and that’s what matters.”

As the tears slowly subsided, you felt a flicker of hope, knowing that even though this was hard, it was necessary. Even if your sister doesn't see it now, you could only hope that one day, she would understand that everything you did was out of love.

The weight on your shoulders became a little lighter, knowing that Oscar was right. Even if it took time, even if there were still battles to fight, you knew you weren’t facing them alone anymore, and for the first time in what felt like forever, you allowed yourself to breathe. You had done what needed to be done. Now it was up to your sister to follow through.

[mischiefmaker615]

No Nut November

Summary: Loki discovering “No Nut November” and thinks this Midgardian Tradition is a must. Better try to get as much of you as possible before he’s cut off.

Rating: PG14

Note: I'm publishing this on the 27th of November Lol better late than never.

The sound of a lap top slamming shut was enough to make you nearly jump out of your skin. Quickly looking up from your book, you see from across the room your boyfriend coyly making his way over to you with that ‘I’m up to something’ smile.

‘’may I help you, good sir?” you tease with an attempt to copy his smile, causing him to chuckle and join you on the couch with his hand taking its rightful place on your thigh.

‘’have I told you today how attractive I find you?” he asked gently, his other hand reaching up to slowly brush a lock of your hair behind your ear while you set your book aside on the table.

‘’yes, you have, twice actually.’’ You smile, your face leaning a bit into his hand that now moved to cup your cheek. ‘’what seems to have gotten you in such a mood?”

‘’mood? Can’t one significant other simply enjoy the beauty of their significant other?” he asked with obvious dramatic innocence while his eyes flicked down to your lips.

His whole attitude seems.. off. He had toned it down with all the pranks, especially towards you so perhaps this was just pent-up mischief he finally needed to let out. raising your guard a bit, you knew there was a slight risk of him finally springing on you the “gotcha part” so your body instantly tensed while your hands rested on his own upon your thigh with a painted-on smile.

‘’but of course, but you do seem to be acting a bit different all the same.. are you okay?” you asked, concern now flashing in consideration while you gave him a look over as if he had any obvious injuries but his finger merely placed itself under your chin to bring your gaze back onto his own.

‘’I’m quite alright darling, the idea of having the tower to ourselves for a couple of hours today has merely given me.. inspiration of how we could simply utilize our time.’’ He said simply, an unspoken conversation laying behind what he just said but he didn’t give you much of a chance to push before you felt him lean forward and press his lips gently against yours.

All thoughts were gone as usual and you quickly reciprocated by pressing back into him, your hum being swallowed by his moan before he began leaning more forward and got you to lay on your back. His body hovered over yours, palms and forearms pressed down beside your arms to hold up his weight from crushing you while his groin gave you’re the pressure you craved.

He was a teaser, and you often didn’t win if you tried to tease him back while moving your hips up to meet his own, earning a growl before he would snatch your bottom lip between his teeth. Your hands rose up to tangle In his hair, feeling his body lower onto yours more while he hummed and leaned into your fingers.

‘’what did you say about utilizing our time?” you hinted, already a hand traveling between your bodies until you found his zipper, seeing how he smirked down at you with his forehead pressing against yours.

‘’let’s make the most of it darling’’ he winked before his lips crashed onto yours again.

~ you panted, practically stumbling out of the closet on wobbly legs while one hand tried to get your hair into place while the other hand pulled up your shirt that had fallen down your shoulder. You looked utterly wiped out. content, but wiped out.

Loki strolled out not to soon after before he came up behind you, dressed already with the help of his magic and his hands back on your hips.

‘’aren’t you sated?” you hinted with an exhausted sigh, having finished yet another session with Loki while he pressed his already back-to-hard erection against your ass.

‘’with you darling? I will never tire..’’ he purred, his chin resting upon your shoulder where he turned his face a little to press kisses on your cheek while his hands glided down towards your zipper.

‘’Loki- give me a minute..!” you squeaked, swatting his hands away where you continued to straighten out your outfit and wiggle out of his grasp.

Already this was the third time you both had been intimate today- this time having to duck in the closet with some of the team arriving home early, and still he wasn’t exhausted. Granted.. he never was, but you both normally never went at it this much in this short amount of time- within two hours.

‘’I will be happy to get you some water love, if it is privacy you are concerned with, I could meet you in our bedroom?” he offered as if it were the most innocent thing in the world while you turned around to look at him.

‘’do Asgardians go through some.. mating.. ritual or something?” you asked, running your fingers through your hair while you leaned yourself against the wall for support with the mild soreness nagging between your legs.

Loki laughed while he waved a hand, a glass of water formulating in his palm before he skillfully moved it towards you. ‘’what are you referring to love?”

‘’well..’’ you started, drawing in a breath before you took the glass of water and swirled it around, your eyes captivated at the liquid while you try to search for proper words. ‘’you seem to be in the mood.. a lot more than usual..’’ said with your free hand indicating in the air ‘hypothetically’.

Loki raised a brow as if you had spoken in another language for the first time while he extended a hand out towards you. Your eyes watched, turning your head a little so he could caress your cheek but it merely passed to rest beside your head upon the wall. Looking back at him, he stood much closer than he had with a soft yet serious look on his face.

‘’you are delectable darling, I don’t wish to lose a single moment with you..’’ he said quietly, making you bring your hand up to rest against his cheek.

‘’you’ll never lose me Loki, I promise,-‘’ you reassured, seeing how his eyes closed by the feeling of your touch until your own dropped to where his other hand was going. ‘’Loki..’’ you warned where he cupped your sex over your pants.

‘’merely healing you darling, I know you must be sore.’’ He answered without opening his eyes and a tingly yet warm feeling seemed to wash over where his hand was, making you squirm but he made sure he kept a hold. His other hand left the wall to use a single finger to tip the glass up and tilt so you could begin drinking- your words cut off to drink before he finally pulled away entirely and opened his eyes.

‘’..thank you..’’ you said with a gentle smile, soreness gone and cup empty where he nodded and flicked his wrist, the cup vanished from your fingers before his hands took both of yours.

‘’alright darling, I’ve been more than generous with the mere minute you’ve requested. Let us continue,’’ he smirked, the hungry familiar look flashed in his eyes that made your body tense and shiver at the same time.

‘’Loki please-! We just-‘’

A simple flash was all that was seen before you both found yourself upon your bed, bouncing a little while he wasted no time to climb on top.

~

You rolled over onto your stomach, blowing a strand of hair from your face while your body slumped and panted amongst the white sheets that tangled around your body. His body hovered above yours, his chest to your back while his hand reached around to gently grip your jaw and hold your head up to look towards the mirror in front of you both.

A sight to be seen and one that would definitely make you wet if you weren’t so sore again with the other three rounds that followed the previous three rounds.

‘’please Loki.. no more..’’ you mumbled, dick drunk while your fingers gripped the sheets below you.

‘’do you require healing again darling? Tell me where you’re sore..’’ he whispered, seeming to have energy for days while he buried his face in your hair with a deep inhale.

‘’we’ve never done it this much before..’’ you sighed while you raised yourself upon your forearms while your eyes watched him in the mirror.

‘’not that your complaining?” he gently teased while he brought your earlobe between his teeth, a quote you’d often say but today if hadn’t left you mouth.

‘’no it’s just.. what were you looking at on the computer this morning?” you asked, your eyes closing to try to concentrate while his other hand moved under you to fondle on of your breasts, his body resting comfortably half way on top of you with his hard on ‘still’ pressed against your ass.

‘’..why do you ask darling?” he asked after a moment, a topic he seemed to want to avoid while he felt you move about under him.

Raising himself a bit, he let you roll over onto your back so he could lay directly on top of you, your eyes searching his while his own seemed to hide something that had flashed.

‘’tell me.’’

Your gentle yet stern words made him sigh, knowing it was a simple method to demand truth that he couldn’t deny if he wished for your happiness later,. Or body. His body- the rest of him- got noticeably tenser while his eyes glanced up into the mirror, almost as if trying to convince himself to tell you before he looked back down to your waiting orbs.

‘’your.. Midgardian traditions startle me darling.. this is the last week we have with each other before I cannot have you for an entire month..’’

The sentence seemed to feel like it took three business days to register. You blinked up at him as if he hadn’t said the punch line yet, or to continue explaining but he seemed to give you the same look for you to understand it. ‘’..what are you talking ab- what Midgardian tradition?” you asked, shaking your head to rid of your confusion that seemed to share in his expression.

‘’..no nut November.’’

Your eyes widened at him, searching his dead serious eyes while you felt the beginning feeling of laughter boil inside you. Turning your head to the side, you began laughing, a hand pressed to your forehead while your middle arched and tensed from the humor fit.

Loki stared down at you, a brow raised while he slowly narrowed his eyes, taking hold of your wrists to pin you down while you caught your breath and smiled up at him.

‘’Loki, I don’t know the full origin of no nut November, but I guarantee you it is not a holiday or tradition.’’

‘’but it said-‘’

‘’what did I tell you about the internet?” you smiled, trying to hold back giggles while he exhaled in frustration.

‘’.. to not just read and go based off the first article that pops up.’’

‘’and did you?’’

‘’…’’

‘’Loki, you literally thought we weren’t going to have sex for an entire month after this week? Is that why you were trying to get us much sex while you still coul-‘’

‘’why is the first article not stating truth-? Better yet, why do you Midgardians have fake information.’’ He grumbled and slumped against you, his face buried in the crook of your neck while his body began relaxing.

It would seem he was just as tired as you.

You still couldn’t wipe the smile from your face, the humor of it all making you giggle now and again and would earn a nip on your collarbone from Loki every time he heard it. Wrapping your arms around him, your hands lazily stroked his skin, enjoying the toned muscles of his back while you closed your eyes and enveloped your senses with his scent.

‘’care for a nap?” you whispered, feeling him softly nod against you without moving much from his position while you smiled and nuzzled your face closer against him.

After a moment, your eyes fluttered open with a grumble.

‘’….. Loki-‘’

‘’I can’t help it darling, you’re so delectable...’’ 

Note: Have a Happy Thanksgiving my friends :D

Tag List: @foxherder13 @asgards-princess-of-mischief @fire-in-her-veinz @nervouseden @kathren1sky-blog @eleniblue @lokiswife-dark-fox-queen @queenofstarsign85 @slytherinqueen4life @soulpiercing @yelkmelk @gruftiela @buttercupcookies-blog

[squoxle]

Your bio says I can request a fantasy if my own so here goes one…

“CAN EYE SUQ YAUR BO00OB?”

Ummm…I think I know what u want 😏 (this is a little different from my usual, but why not lol)

"𝒯𝑜𝓊𝒸𝒽 𝑀𝑒 𝐿𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝒯𝒽𝒾𝓈" ~ 𝐻𝓎𝓊𝓃𝒿𝒾𝓃 𝒻𝒻 𝟣𝟪+

🎵pairing: SKZ Hyunjin!bf x Reader!gf | 🎵wc: 1.1k | 🎵summary: Your boyfriend Hyunjin is obsessed with playing with your tits. |🎵cw: 🔞MDNI!! Pure smut…but mostly just tit fondling and hardcore making out...♫⋆｡♪ ₊˚♬ ﾟ.

You joined Hyunjin at the dance studio to watch him practice. A lot of times Hyunjin just wanted to dance for fun, but he also really liked when you joined him. To be honest, you weren't as good of a dancer as he was, but you knew how to at least keep up with him.

"Damn..." Hyunjin swore under his breath as you entered the studio.

"What?" you asked as you watched Hyunjin run his fingers through his fluffy hair.

"I kinda wish we would've stopped for coffee," he said sucking his teeth.

"I can go get some for you if you want it that badly," his eyes shot up at your comment.

"Really?!"

"Sure," you giggled.

"Here's my card," he said before pulling out his wallet. "Just go to the coffee shop in the lobby. You can get yourself something too," he smiled.

"Alright, I'll be right back," you waved before leaving your boyfriend behind in the studio.

You ordered Hyunjin an iced americano and got yourself an iced peach tea. You heard music playing as you made your way back to the studio. You walked in and sat against the mirror, next to the Bluetooth speakers connected to Hyunjin's phone.

"Oooh," Hyunjin smiled bouncing over to grab his drink. "Thank you~" he said cutely before kissing you on the cheek, making you giggle.

“What’d you get,” he said plopping down next to you.

“I couldn’t decide between a matcha latte and a strawberry frappe so I just got peach tea,” you said before sipping your drink.

“How do you come from a frappe and a latte to peach tea,” Hyunjin chuckled.

“You already know I’m indecisive,” you smiled nudging his shoulder.

“Hmm yeah. Well, I think I’m ready to dance again,” Hyunjin said before jumping to his feet and extending a hand towards you.

“Umm…what do you think you’re doing,” you raised a brow.

“Indirectly asking my lovely girlfriend to dance with me,” he smiled harshly showing nearly every tooth in his mouth.

You sighed and grabbed his hand as he pulled you to your feet.

☆Now Playing: Company - Justin Bieber ☆

01:13 ━━━━●───── 03:28 ᴠᴏʟᴜᴍᴇ : ▮▮▮▮▮▮

link to the dance you did>>obviously the first duo

Hyunjin played Company from his phone, a choreography that you two had practiced a few times, but never done it completely right.

You watched yourself in the mirror as you copied Hyunjin’s moves. You danced closer to the mirror for the first few movements before stepping back to dance right next to him. There was a part where you stood in front of Hyunjin while he was down on one knee. The next move was for him to grab your hand and ease his way up your body, but he took a moment to pause at your boobs. He shook his face between your tits before rising to his feet.

You gave him a dirty look as you followed through to the next step of wrapping your leg around him for a spin. Instead of just grabbing the back of your leg, you could feel his hands caress your ass before sliding down to the normal position.

You could feel the sexual tension rising as you saw the smirk on his face. You smiled and shook your head as you continued the dance. The next few step were separate from each other, but when it was time for him to dance behind you, you weren’t surprised when he grabbed your boobs in his hands.

“Ahhh! Hyunjin! Focus,” you laughed.

You could hear his little snickers from behind as he followed you to the floor for the next step. Hyunjin decided to “improvise” by grinding himself against you before pushing himself off of you. You smirked as you did the next move, pushing yourself back on the floor as he walked closer to you, before rising to your feet.

He placed his fingers on your chin and pulled you in for a kiss. It was quick as he went into the next move, dancing with you in his arms.

At this point you could tell that Hyunjin had given up on the dance and was now just concerned with getting his lips on your body.

He held your face in his hands as he met your lips. “Touch me like this,” you said as you gently pulled away moving his hands from your face to your ass. You watched the lustful smirk appear on Hyunjin’s face as he grabbed your ass in one hand and wrapped your waist in the other. He fell into your neck, kissing everything from your lips to your jaw to your neck.

The song played continuously in the background as Hyunjin turned your body around, putting your ass against him. Now, you were facing the mirror. You watched as he wrapped one hand around your throat and the other traveled from between your legs to his favorite spot, your tits.

He massaged your boob in his hands as he fell into your lips, inserting his tongue as you grinded your ass against him. You felt as he started to slowly move his hips forward with your movements.

You were enjoying this so much you accidentally moaned in his mouth. He stopped to look at you before walking you over to the bench where you straddled him, feeling his hard-on against your folds. He pulled up your shirt, revealing your tits that he eagerly bit into while gripping your ass.

You knew it was about to get dirty quick so you pulled your shirt completely off, exposing your bra. Hyunjin smiled and reached his hands around your back to unhook your bra. The straps hung lazily around your shoulders as Hyunjin enjoyed your nude breasts.

*Click*

The sound of the door opening nearly made you turn around in shock, but Hyunjin stopped you, by pulling you tightly into his chest.

“Woah! What’s going on in here?” Felix said as he entered the room. “I thought you said you were practicing the dance today,” he continued.

“Hehe…I was…but umm…could you give us a second,” Hyunjin nervously stumbled over his words.

“Sure, mate. Just so you know the others are coming up here too,” Felix chuckled before opening the door. “Don’t worry I’ll let you know when the get close,” he whispered before stepping out.

Both of you let out a relieved sigh.

“That was really close,” you said as you fastened your bra.

“Yeah, and we were just getting started,” Hyunjin added as he reached down to pick up your shirt.

He helped by pulling it over your head as you wiggled your arms through. Hyunjin reached around to pull your hair out.

“Oh hey guys! What took you so long?” You heard Felix shout coupled with other chatter.

“We’ll finish this when we get back home,” Hyunjin said as he kissed your cheek before running to open the door.

❀ Thank you all so much for reading! Make sure to check out other works on my masterlist!

❀ 𝚃𝚊𝚐𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝: @chlorinecake @hoyeonheeseung @nikisdubblchococake @sussyjake @furious-eagle @cherrriesss @abbyizzy @weyukinluv @addictedtohobi @thatonenoona @wavykook @givemeyourtmihyun @jaeljn @hoonmywk @valennshit @19-yunalyn @hoonbby @frostedblankets @hoonsyo @no-mannerism @perfectxserendipity @chubbibish @ihrtlix @bunniesforsoobin @thereadersparadise @thatbooknerdfr @aiden2001 @belongstoheeseung @jakeybabe @donut-crazs @rizzhee @nikimeows @woonieees @uarmyxtae @rebecca-johnson-28 @they2luv1naia @isa-2007 @silcry @riverscafe @pearlwhitesoul @nikohiroshi @thatbooknerdfr @wonniewonwon @sughoonieeee @babyy-bambii @adrika04 @sehunsharpasseyebrows @nikisblkgf @wtfyangjungwon @fr-3-akn-4-stymf @rikiloversworld @shawyle @sunoosrightbuttcheek @uarmyxtae @lovesickxmina @urfavberry @urauntiefaye @breadlover01 @taehyunsfavmoa @skzenhalove

[icequeenbae]

Hi I saw that your requests are open! Can I get a scenario of Aphelios and his non celebrity s/o going on a secret date at night in seoul?

Pairing: Heartsteel!Aphelios x Reader

Established Relationship, slice of life, romance, fluff

Warnings: none? This is pretty mellow stuff lol

Word Count: ~1.3k

Author’s Note: Hiii! Thanks for the request, sweetheart! I couldn’t make it any shorter but please enjoy~ These HEARTSTEEL requests are fun haha Here's some bf!Phel for you!

© Please do not copy/ post on other platforms without permission.

‘What are you doing? Phel…’ You lowered your voice, tugging your boyfriend away from the ramyeon stand.

He was way too enthusiastic about you finally having a date, and now tried robbing the CU store of all its instant noodles. While wearing a mask, too. Like a proper thief.

‘We don’t need 10 packs of ramyeon, it’s just the two of us. The members aren’t going to turn up out of nowhere, I’m hoping?’

Aphelios gave you a meaningful look and shook his head. He sure wanted to add something, but his hands were busy holding all the packs.

‘Let me help you with that.’ You said, grabbing some of those to put them back. ‘You don’t even like this flavor.’

After you quickly sorted your selection, he floated past you to the refrigerated shelves. Pointing at the tiny soy sauce eggs, he looked at you for feedback. You nodded and checked what else was there.

‘How about regular boiled eggs too? We can put them in the ramyeon.’

Aphelios eagerly got some of those as well, clearly liking your idea.

‘Should I get a basket for all this?’ You asked, looking at your poor boyfriend, holding all of the food in his two hands.

He shook his head, but you didn’t listen and still got it to make it easier for him.

‘Put them here. And let’s get some banana milk.’

You didn’t have to specify that you liked the light one. He quickly picked out the package with a blue label, adding it to your basket.

‘Do you want some sausage?’ You asked him.

Your boyfriend shook his head, and then tapped onto a plastic container with triangle kimbap, asking you if you wanted one. When you turned it down, he tugged you by the sleeve of your hoodie to the drinks area.

‘You want iced coffee? Isn’t it a little too cold outside for this?’

He seemed unsure.

‘Let’s get more snacks instead?’

After he agreed, you dug through a separate snack section, picking out a few packs that you’d never tried before. Then Aphelios added your favorite grape jellies to your already outrageous variety.

‘If we continue like this, our next stop would be the pharmacy.’ You commented, evaluating the contents of your basket.

Aphelios huffed out a laugh and shrugged, silently saying ‘Who cares?’

You peeked from your spot, making sure there weren’t too many people at the checkout, and led him there quickly. After paying for everything and pouring hot water into your thermos bottle, you had to tear Aphelios away from the ice cream fridge on your way to the door before you were finally on your way.

When out in the streets, you were usually weary of someone recognizing him, so you tried to keep it casual, walking slightly ahead or behind him. Especially in the evenings, when the Seoul streets were quite crowded. However, you chose a workday for a reason – you’d noticed that there were fewer people hanging out early in the week, so this time you managed to make your way to a less packed area for your impromptu date.

Although Aphelios was usually pretty careful about it as well, this time he took your hand in his, making you fall into step with him instead of marching ahead. As you strolled along the Han River, he pointed to a nice empty spot for you to settle on.

‘No neighbors, nice catch,’ you chuckled, and he squeezed your palm playfully as if to say ‘I did well, didn’t I?’

You got a blanket from Phel’s backpack, lay it on the ground and dropped on it victoriously.

‘That’s a nice view,’ you said, watching Aphelios, who stood in front of you, checking out the Han River, which was beautifully lit by the city lights.

He turned to you, ready to agree, and caught you staring at him. He raised an eyebrow in a silent question, and you looked down at the blanket.

‘To each their own.’

Your boyfriend placed the bag of snacks in front of you and sat down, fishing out his phone. He typed something up and pressed the button, which played the sentence in his voice. Something he worked out with one of his buddies.

‘See something you like?’

The artificial voice lacked the degree of sass you knew was incorporated in that question.

‘One could assume so,’ you shrugged, playing it cool.

Both his eyebrows went up, and then he narrowed his eyes, returning to typing.

‘I hope I didn’t misunderstand when you suggested eating ramyeon so late at night…’

You gasped, and he was obviously amused by your reaction.

‘Don’t be naughty.’ You told him, busying yourself with unpacking your food.

He kept watching you intently until you couldn’t take it anymore.

‘What??’

He shook his head, refusing to reply. And as you pouted at him for this, he quickly leaned in, tugging his mask down, and gave you a clandestine kiss. It was a fleeting contact, yet it managed to heat up your cheeks nicely.

Content with the result, he joined you in making your table for tonight, a ghost of a smile still decorating his lips. Oh, he thought it was so cute! He didn’t even have to speak to make you flustered.

You sighed, watching him take over the preparations. He opened the two biggest cups, or bowls, rather, of ramyeon and poured some hot water into them, using chopsticks to hold the lids closed.

‘The eggs,’ you reminded him, and he hurriedly rummaged through a pile of your snacks to find them.

He made an undefinable noise when you tried to take one to help him peel them, so you simply sat back, watching him do it. A few minutes later, your noodles were nice and ready, and so were you. As you opened the lid, you finally grasped how cold you were getting. However pretty the night view of the Han River and the bridge over it was, the cool breeze could not go unnoticed.

You slurped your noodles simultaneously. It tasted really good for some reason – you weren’t sure if that was because of the cold, or the excitement of you being here, or just having Phel’s intimate company… Maybe it was all of those combined? In any case, the hot noodles worked well for you in these circumstances.

But still, Aphelios noticed that you were beginning to tremble and motioned for you to drink the broth too.

‘You too. It’s pretty chilly out here, huh?’ You replied before gulping the warm spicy broth.

He did the same and then put his bowl down, scooting closer to you. Taking the freed part of your blanket, he used it to cover your back and his.

‘Thanks, Phel,’ you mumbled, still chewing your noodles.

He typed up his reply.

‘It’s windier than I thought. Let’s finish our ramyeon and move.’

‘But I like it here…’ You protested. ‘I like our little picnic. You know I don’t get alone time with you that often…’

He chewed on his lip for a few moments and then cocked his head to the side again.

‘What?’ You asked, demanding interpretation.

‘I can hear the clanking of your teeth, babe. I must take you somewhere warm.’

He studied your disappointed face and typed something else.

‘We can still be alone there?’

That sounded a little more promising.

‘We won’t have to break any laws to be alone, I hope?’ You inquired, recalling that one time when he basically hijacked K’Sante’s truck to take you to the seaside.

The mischievous smile on his face told you all you needed to know.

Oh well. If it was worth risking it all with anyone, you’d do that with Phel.

Non-EXO masterlist

Masterlist

A/N: Ahhh, hope you enjoyed this Aphelios scenario~ Please don't forget to comment and reblog if you want to support me 💕 I will take a few more requests, so hurry up and drop an ask if you want me to write some more Heartsteel~

[byechristopher]

⠀

In Another Life.

– CHRIS STURNIOLO ANGST.

Author's note: omg hi, again. You'll soon find out how much I love angst, trauma and just "dark" fics. It's a way to express myself every once in a while. I hope you all like it, if you have any requests in mind, feel free to let me know. I will make it up to you all with some fluff, I promise, lol. Do not copy/steal my work. :)

Warnings: (not proof-read) this is pure angst, mentions of death, coping with death in general, trauma bonding. If any of this is triggering to you, do not read, please. Have a great day, instead.

Playlist:

It is only 6:00AM and I am up and running, ready to start my long day, although my sluggish gait says otherwise. I always loved waking up so early in the morning – it gave me time to start doing things when people were still sleeping. It is always a struggle to keep myself awake, though.

"I'm outside."

The screen lights up and I can see Chris' name from here – he must be outside already. I sigh and I quickly put my jacket and scarf on, not forgetting my boots, of course. With my bag in my hand, I quickly leave the house, trying to be as quiet as possible so that my mom doesn't wake up.

Chris is waiting in the car, I take a better look at my surroundings – the fog makes it hard for me to see, it's dark and it's cold, and the humidity makes it look like it rained.

"Hey, Chris. Thanks for picking me up." I mumble, he nods with an understanding look on his face. He's got that sickening purple colour under his eyes and his skin is even paler than usual. We match, he looks like a mess, too.

How couldn't he, anyway? It was a difficult day today. It's only been three years and how could we ever forget?

Me and Chris have known each other for a long time. Ever since we were babies – our families were very close. That was until my parents got divorced and we never saw my father ever again; made my mom isolate herself. My father came back one day, asking for forgiveness for leaving like this. Not from my mom, from me. I didn't want to trust him but I still talked to him every now and then. Now, Chris never really liked me and I never really liked him, it's not like we ever had an actual conversation. Before something terrible happened, to the both of us. On the same day. On the same plane. The plane crashed – my father happened to be there and Chris' best friend happened to be there.

We were both devastated so we found ourselves hanging out more than usual – is it called trauma bonding? I think so. That's what we did. Bonded over trauma. Because that's what we needed most; a person who knows and feels what we feel, who goes through the same experience. I don't think it was he healthiest thing to do, but who is really healthy inside on this earth?

"Give me, like.. fifteen minutes. I'll be back, okay?" he says and I give him a reassuring hug, pecking his cheek. I nod, watching him go visit his best friend's grave while I visit my father's.

"I can't believe it's already been three years since you've been gone." I chuckle, making sure everything is clean and the flowers are nicely put in the vase, "right when you were about to actually spend time with me, hm?" I can feel the tears in my eyes, and every time I speak, it's like I'm digging an invisible knife deeper into my heart.

I don't know how long it's been because I'm still cleaning and trying not to think about anything, but I see Chris walking over to me. It's so obvious that he's been crying, but he offers a smile anyway. His nose is red, it's kind of cute.

"You feeling okay?" he wraps an arm around my shoulders, giving me a reassuring squeeze. I nod.

"What did I always tell you? Everything happens for a reason." I chuckle, wiping the tears away from my eyes as we walk away, and towards the car.

"I used to hate hearing that. But I believe it now." he nods and clears his throat, "Connor believed it, too." it took him a while to say his best friend's name without crying. I told him that Connor wouldn't be happy to see him crying like this – that was the only way to make him stop.

"I gotta go to work, now. But we'll meet later, yes?" I say, wrapping my arms around his waist, looking up. The combination of the sky, his tears and his pale skin make his eyes go icy blue, I can't help but smile a little bit. He nods and cups my cheeks, bringing me closer to him to give me a soft kiss on the lips.

I'm not sure what me and Chris have going on. We definitely hang out a lot, we kiss, I basically have all of my stuff in his house, we have sex, but we've never said anything about relationship, or anything like that for that matter. We've been going through the most traumatic and difficult experience in our lives, so I feel like we desperately need the affection but we're the only ones who feel the same. So we just.. do stuff together. I try not to think about it too much.

I definitely not want to think about it when I'm in his arms. We're in front of the fireplace, sitting down on the carpet. I'm sitting in between his legs with my back pressed against his chest, and his arms wrap all the way around my shoulders and knees (that are pressed to my chest), keeping me warm.

"I'm so glad to have you here with me, being by my side on this horrible day, every year." he whispers in my ear and I close my eyes.

"So am I. You're making me feel like I'm not as alone as I thought I was." I whisper back and let my head fall on his shoulder, turning my head so that I'm able to look up at him. We sit in silence for a bit.

"I was thinking.. what you always say. Everything happens for a reason. What if.. what if all of this never happened? What if they were both still alive, what if our families kept being this close, what if we kept hating each other.. would we still find a way to be where we are now?" his voice is low and steady, I can see the fire moving in the reflection of his glistening eyes, "or was this tragedy meant to happen for us to find what we wanted in each other?"

I stay silent for a little bit. I've thought about this a million times and every time makes me go crazier than the previous one, "is love supposed to grow in souls and bodies that are filled with so much pain? Because if so, then it's nothing like what they taught us love would feel like."

"Do you think love is what we feel for each other?" he presses a kiss on my warm cheek.

"I don't know." I say truthfully, "I think that we both find shelter in each other's pain. We feel the need to be heard, to be understood, and then we want to hear the other, to understand their pain. To help each other, to be there whenever they might need, to care."

"Isn't that what love is?" he asks innocently, "in its most tragic form?" he looks me in the eyes and smiles softly.

"I suppose so.. yeah.." I say because, indeed, love could also bloom in shattered hearts, it doesn't always have to be flowers and rainbows, "and to answer your question.. I think I would definitely imagine myself loving you, without all of these." my voice is as soft as it can get.

"I would definitely fall in love with you, too." he says, looking into my eyes. And for a moment, I imagine us just like this. In a life where we would be happier. In a life where we would be able to love each other, without anything holding us back, in a life where we could keep the people that we wanted in our lives. In a life where we would have the space and time to express our feelings, understand our feelings.

"So, stay with me forever and even longer than that.." he says and I smile, leaving a trail of kisses on his neck, all the way up to his cheek and lips, "I might be able to become someone who loves you even in the good times."

"That's a promise, then. Because I'm definitely staying, till I'm ready to love you in the good times, too." I smile and slowly turn around to face him this time, wrapping both of my arms and legs around him, like a koala.

He laughs, he's hugging me and kissing me softly, "want me to make you some hot chocolate?"

"Yes, please."

⠀

[bananaactivity]

Ignoring my poll and doing Everything on it

except the mighty med thing 😓

Lmao just a quick color 💀

I dunno why I did this but I decided that the bionic island shouldn’t have the little Olympic Games ring shit. That’s just for the Davenports so the students get a BI ( also all the bionic solders get scars chaise I’ll make everyone BUT Crane a sweetheart.

here’s the draft for the comic script lemme know whatcha think:

Opening on Falafel Phil location on the strip

Marcus/ Bree/ Leo walk into the location

Zoom in on Arthur in the booth with MBL in the background Bree: “ Oh Joy… Arthur is here.”

Side view that shows all people in the booth ( Arthur/ Brody/ Kai) Arthur: “ Do they have Valet parking here? Someone get Phil on that I feel like he's missing an opportunity with this kind of cuisine.”

Marcus pops up next to Arthur’s side of the booth excitedly Marcus: “ Hey! Art-”

Marcus pauses and stares at something across the booth, Arthur looks as well

Zoom in on Kai's face with exaggerated anime in-love effects ( Hearts, sparkles, Rose petals) while he has a resting bitch face

Wide screen of Arther in the booth with Marcus staring next to him ( still sparkling around his face) Leo and Bree standing and Kai and Brody sitting on the other side of the booth

Same wide shot. Leo: “ Sup Art… Arts uhh… Friends?” Bree: “ Yeah Art since when have you had friends?”

Zoom in on Arther slightly agitated Arther: “ Ha. Ha. Davendorks.”

Arthur: “ Leo. Bree. These are my friends…”

Front view of Kai and Brody in their booth Arther: “ Kai Brewer and Brody Carlson.” Brody: “ Hey brochachoes.” Kai: “Whats up?”

Zoom in on Arthur again Arther: “ Where are Adam and Chase?” Bree (off-screen) : “ You mean Meat-Head and Boy Genuis?”

Zoom in on Bree Bree: “ I dunno, they wandered off like usual. Probably arguing about something stupid.”

Zoom in on Marcus whos sat in the booth across from Kai Marcus: “ Ya Know for a place called Falafel Phils I was expecting something more exciting~”

Wide Shot of them all looking at Marcus

Wide Shot Bree: “ Not even five minutes in and Marcus is already sizing up the local hotties.”

Diagonal shot of Kai and Marcus looking at each other

Shot of Kai leaning on his hand Kai: “ Exciting? It's Falafel Phil not Firework Phil.”

Shot of Marcus copying Kais pose Marcus: “ Yeah well I was hoping that the food would be as interesting as the patrons…”

Kai shot smirking Kai: “ Flattery wont get you extra sauce…”

Half shot of both from the side Marcus: “Maybe some sides then?” Kai: “I wager you're so full of yourself that you dont need any extra sides.”

Double portrait shot of Marcus one laughing one wiping tears away Marcus: “ HAHA. Are you always so hard to chat up or is it just me?”

Shot of Kai smirking Marcus ( off-screen): “ What you don't like my charm?” Kai: “ Charm Huh? Maybe I just like my conversations with more… flavor.”

Full shot of both from the side Marcus: “ Lucky you Im specially seasoned” Kai: “ I can see they added extra corn to your batch…”

Marcus shot Marcus: “ What Like you're a multi-course fine dining experience?”

Kai drinks a soda Kai: “ Yep. And that’d make you the fast food option~”

Marcus steals Kai drink (side shot) Marcus: “ So what? You don't have a taste for that kinda stuff?”

Side shot Kai: “ I didn't say that much, Im eating here arent I? But who knows if you have the pallet for a more complex experience like fine dining?” Marcus: “ Id definitely like to expand my horizons~”

Kai and Marcus side view staring shot

Full shot of everyone Kai and Marcus still staring at each other

Full shot Bree: “Can we fucking order and get outta here?!”

end

Hope you don't mind how this reads this is how I write comic scripts its different from fics which i write like a basic book lol. For comic scripts i have to write what the panels look like on a basic level. Usually i write an idea then write words then i draw some quick sketches of the whole thing and then write out that stuff on an actual doc

[mimi-is-so-horny]

okay, so... you know how sometimes a day starts lovely, and then it goes to shit? and sometimes, you feel like you've done this to yourself? actually, you have done it to yourself. anyway.

i made a point to wake up early today to make Sir and Anna breakfast and to write them a note thanking them for fucking me so well yesterday, and for being pretty much the best thing in my life right now. i felt very grateful and i know i'm very lucky. i think they appreciated that, too.

i blew the candles on my birthday cake naked on Sir's lap - i've been 25 for a couple of days, and i usually hate my birthdays, but Anna insisted we should do the whole birthday thing properly. Sir wrote me a birthday card that almost moved me to tears. He groped my tits as i blew my candles.

for context, i used to want to enter academia in combination to committing to a totally different career path. what i'm doing right now isn't even my Plan C, so of course, i feel a bit like a failure. i'd written a chapter in a book that discussed some recent developments in my field and placed them in a behavioural/institutional context - the book was published this year, and the complimentary copy they sent to authors arrived on my birthday. i should be happy, right? but i feel so defeated, and so dumb, and like this is the first and last good thing i got to do before giving up on my aspirations completely. sure, i'll still apply to enter a more commercial side of my field next year, but that's still just more "sustainable", financially, and more difficult than i thought it would be. all this effort for something i won't really value or enjoy, yuck. and what if i fail, again? anyway. Mimi's whiny ass.

so Sir asked me to read my chapter, and i said yes, sure. He wanted to "see how i think". why not, right?

He fucked me yesterday, and this morning, and at noon, and it felt so good. and now He came to my room, to tell me He read my chapter, and while i felt vulnerable i tried to look cool asking Him what He thought of it.

and He showered me in compliments, and asked me why am i here, and not at a Big Prestigious University™ doing research? i told Him that's why i tried, and the Big Prestigious University™ didn't do shit for Mimi in a post-covid job market where she had to care for her family and couldn't work Prestigious Unpaid Internships™. and still, with no network or real mentors that cared more about guiding me than fucking me, or plagiarising me (lol), my options narrowed. and He knew that, so why was He asking me? and then He asked more questions, and i got increasingly angry and i cried and told Him to leave my room, please. well, at least He did.

so now i have to go downstairs and apologise for lashing out at Him for essentially caring. that was just me projecting - how mad i am at myself for failing, and for giving up, and and for being too lazy to try again - on Him. but i also don't want to do that, because i can only taste how i'm not working in the city i want, and how the people i work for are surprised when i can introduce better corrections than them, and how i am a grown woman that is already bitter about not being where she wanted to be. how i pretend to have given up, when in reality i'm still kind of grieving the people i thought i could be, and realising it can always get worse. am i making myself into a victim: poor-me, poor-me? or am i entitled to my anger and sadness? i don't know, and Sir knows something sad happened to me without my consent, a long while ago - so what if He sees me as a victim, too? am i really that stupid and that passive? what if i'm wasting His time, too?

i don't think i use kink as a coping mechanism or as a distraction; i'm just happy it's an area of my life i'm currently getting exactly what i want, exactly in my own terms and limits - i've rarely gotten that much respect and reciprocity in "vanilla world" - be it work, or education, or friendships. but that fact also makes me sad. why can't i have some of the things i want, sometimes? why was it "Rejection Letter"+"Your Flatmate Lost Your Cat And Now Won't Help Or Speak To You"+"Your Supervisor Wants To Fuck You And He's Angry Now!"+"Your Family Is Asking For Money, Again!!!", and not, like, slightly better? it's hard to feel empowered now. that sad six-year-old is here again, and she wants good stuff i don't know how to give, because i'm out of fucking candy (or, y'know, drugs. because i don't do that shit anymore).

anyway, that will be a difficult conversation. and i feel sorry for Him, for having to deal with me.

well, that was a very self-centred ramble by a fairly self-centred person, so i'm sorry if you read this? but also it was your choice to do so, meh. drink water, wear sunscreen.

[takingchences]

𝐔𝐋𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐓 𝐩𝐭. 𝟐𝟎

Where the descendant of a legendary quirk longs to rewrite history by becoming a hero. But in order to fulfill her dream, she must first face off against ghosts from her past and a growing attraction for the insufferable Great Explosion Murder God Dynamight.

Pairing: Katsuki Bakugou x fem!oc

Warnings: mature language

series masterlist + my masterlist

** Reminder that in canon, the fight with Stain happens on their third day. I changed it because I feel like the characters needed more time to develop their quirks before we saw any real changes (and also because I wanted a fluffy chapter before the big fight lol) HAPPY NEW YEAR!

"Oi, kid! Time to get dressed."

Sana was toweling off from the hot shower she'd just taken when Rumi used her copy of her keycard to enter the hotel suite. It was a precautionary measure to ensure that the Pro could get into her room in case of an emergency or to check in and make sure nothing scandalous was going on behind closed doors. They had given private rooms to hormonal teenagers, after all.

Sana popped her head out of the bathroom, water still dripping from her hair and onto the tile. A fluffy, white hotel robe was hastily tied around her waist, the sleeve slipping down one shoulder. She'd been back in the room maybe ten minutes, having just returned from her routine morning jog.

The rabbit hero snorted at her trainee's startled appearance. "Is this a bad time?"

The solar girl rolled her eyes, walking back into the bathroom to fix her hair. She kept the door cracked so the two could still communicate clearly. "Oh, pardon my nakedness," her tone dripped with sarcasm. "I wasn't expecting guests while I was in the shower."

"Good," Rumi smirked, lounging on the corner of Sana's bed, glancing around the room curiously. "Keep it that way." Sana rolled her eyes, unable to bite back a smile.

"I'm assuming there's a reason you broke in." Sana squeezed the excess water from her hair using a towel, quickly adding in her usual products before combing out any knots. "Or is this another one of your 'inspections?"'

The rabbit hero had burst into her room unannounced twice already in the five days they've been staying here. The first time was a little after midnight on her second day and Sana had been startled awake by a flashlight blinding her as Mirko searched the room for anything suspicious before casually wishing her a goodnight and walking out. The second time was last night, mere seconds after Katsuki had gone back to his room for the night after a lazy makeout session outside her door. She and the hero had had an awkward stare off for a good minute before retreating back to their rooms.

"The Commission is calling in the big guns to go to Hosu."

"Hosu?" Sana reappeared, grabbing her costume case from the closet. "Why?" She took the case with her back into the bathroom to change, disregarding the workout clothes she'd laid out beforehand. She had a feeling she wouldn't be seeing the sparring room today.

"The Hero Killer is hiding there. He's been amping up his attacks recently. No one is safe now that he's started going after pros in broad daylight. The media is putting a lot of pressure on The Commission to handle the situation, who are looking at us to put a stop to him. Discreetly."

Sana stepped out of the bathroom in full costume with a ribbon hanging between her teeth, dragging her semi-dry hair back with her hands. She pulled the ribbon tight around her ponytail to secure it. Sana could read between the lines. She wasn't naive enough to think that heroes never got their hands dirty. They dealt with life and death situations for a living. Fights with villains went wrong all the time. Some simply refuse to surrender. Innocent people are injured or killed in the crossfire. Heroes were human too... but so were the people they apprehended. Did the Hero Commission really expect them to act as executioners?

"What happens if we find him before the others?" The two stepped off of the elevator and exited the hotel. A black town car was idling by the sidewalk for them. A man in a suit wordlessly held the car door open for them as they climbed inside the vehicle. "The guy has a sword. He'll have the advantage if a fight breaks out."

The dark-skinned woman smirked, a mischievous twinkle in her ruby eyes. "That's where you come in."

"Me?" Sana blinked. She'd been stuck on the sidelines during every fight that had broken out this week, which was a lot considering Mirko made it a personal mission to challenge the villains they apprehended to duke it out mano a mano. "You haven't let me join in the action all week."

Rumi rolled her eyes. "Of course I couldn't. You're a target for the League of Villains."

The strawberry blonde was shocked, seeing as that little detail was never made public knowledge. When the story broke the news, All Might was the only reported target. Principal Nezu had made sure to keep her name out of the school's statement.

Mirko arched a brow. "Don't look so surprised. I had a long talk with Eraserhead before the internships started. He wanted me to know in case they tried anything while you were here. They showed up at your school with dozens of petty criminals to back them up. Who knows who they've allied with now? We agreed it was better for you to stay out of the fighting just in case." The older woman flicked her fair hair out of her eyes. "I can't have you tarnishing my perfect record."

Sana deadpanned. "You told me I was the first person you'd accepted to mentor." A tipsy Rumi had revealed over dinner two nights ago that Sana's performance during the Sports Festival had reminded her a lot of herself when she was her age. She admired the teen's fighting spirit and drive and had reached put to her to help guide her on her path to heroism.

The snow-haired woman shrugged, checking her nails. "What's your point? My record before you remains unblemished."

Wow, Sana slumped in her seat. I was benched by Mr. Aizawa. She knew he'd done the right thing by informing her mentor of the possibility of an attack, but she couldn't help but feel a little frustrated with the situation. She'd come here for hands on experience. While her classmates had been learning new techniques and how to react in dire situations, she'd been stuck in the gym for most of her internship or doing crowd work. She hadn't once considered how her role in the USJ attack might affect her internship.

Sana can honestly say she hasn't given any thought towards the League of Villains since that day. They just didn't seem like a credible threat at the time. It wasn't surprising at all that Mr. Aizawa had taken the threat against her more seriously. He was a seasoned pro who valued the safety of his students. They were here, out in the field with active danger all around them. Anything could happen.

"So how do I fit into all of this?" Sana questioned. "I don't even know what Stain's quirk is."

"There's some speculation," Mirko twirled her long hair around her gloved finger. In their short time together, Sana quickly picked up on the fact that the woman either couldn't or refused to be still. She was constantly moving and fidgeting, like a kind of restless energy had taken hold of her. The only time the pro was truly calm was after duking it out in the streets with someone. "Rumors circulating that he's able to somehow immobilize his victims, but no one knows whether it's because of a quirk or some kind of toxin he soaks his blades in."

"And, what? I'm the guinea pig that gets to test the theory out?" The solar powered scoffed, crossing her arms as she slumped against the back seat. "Sounds to me like your perfect record will be a distant memory after tonight."

Mirko nudged Sana's leg with her foot. "Obviously, there's more to it than that. Your quirk is probably the most versatile I've seen, kid. You can use it in different ways depending on the situation."

Sana eyed her warily. "What would you have me do then?"

"You need to get close to him. As close as you possibly can, whether it's an illusion or stealth or boosting your speed. Whatever you do, you can't give him any time to act."

"And where will you be while I'm trying not to get sliced and diced?"

"Monitoring the situation."

Sana arched a brow, a judgmental frown on her face. "I hope you brought popcorn to snack on during the show."

Rumi knocked a knuckle against the girl's temple. "You're dramatic ass is the only one that can get close enough to learn his attacks. Does he have a pattern? A weakness? How exactly is he able to immobilize his victims and for how long? Once I have an idea of how to take him down quickly and efficiently, I'll jump in and finish the job."

Sana crossed her arms. "What about Jeanist? Will he be joining us?"

"I doubt it. He has his hands full with that demon spawn you brought with you."

"Funny. He calls you the same thing."

The rabbit hero flipped her off.

¸☾⋆*･ﾟ¸☾⋆*･ﾟ¸☾⋆*

"You're shitting me."

"Language," Best Jeanist nagged with a pointed glare.

"This is a joke," Bakugou scoffed. He looked up at his latest assignment with disbelieving eyes.

"No, I assure you I'm quite serious." The Pro placed his hands on his hips. "Now get up there. The people are waiting." A small crowd had indeed gathered a few feet behind them, softly murmuring to each other as they filmed the whole interaction. A young girl with auburn pigtails was sobbing next to the ash blonde.

"Please, mister" she blubbered through hiccups. "Save him."

Bakugou shot an annoyed side eye at his mentor, who pointed at the tree. "Go on."

The human grenade sighed from deep within his soul before climbing up the tree. He couldn't use his quirk since the noise might disturb the small orange kitten stuck in the tree. He grumbled under his breath about how stupid this internship was turning out. He easily pulled himself up to the branch, snatching the animal by the scruff of the neck with a gloved hand. Round green eyes stared up at him in fright. Bakugou shook his head. "So lame."

He released his hold on the kitten, which fell directly into the hands of his mentor a few feet down with a distressed meow. The Pro gave him a look that promised a lecture before turning to present the kitten to the young girl. "Here you go, miss." Bakugou jumped down, dusting himself off with a scowl.

The child cradled the animal to her chest with tears still running down her face, but this time they were from relief. "Thank you thank you thank you!" She rushed forward and hugged Bakugou's boot. Her head only came up to his knee. The blonde stilled, his vermilion eyes unblinking. The little girl pulled back, wiping her tears with the back of her hand. "You're my hero!"

Best Jeanist chuckled at the look of surprise on his mentee's face. "Yes, Bakugou here is shaping up to be quite the young hero." He placed a hand on his trainee's shoulder, addressing the crowd. "So remember the name, folks. I'm sure he'll be dominating the rankings in the future."

The crowd clapped and whistled, shouting their praises for the denim clad hero. Cameras flashed as Best Jeanist signed autographs and posed for selfies. Eventually, the crowd dispersed and the two men were back on patrol. Bakugou stared down at his boots, scuffing them against the pavement. "Did you mean it?"

"Hmm?"

"What you said back there," he shoved his hands into his pockets. He desperately missed his cargo pants. These jeans were incredibly constricting. "About me. Did you mean it?"

Best Jeanist stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. Katsuki halted a step later, turning to look back at the taller man. The hero appraised him thoughtfully for a moment. "I don't make it a habit to lie. I meant what I said. You possess many qualities to make it as a successful hero in this business. You're passionate, tenacious, driven. There's no doubt you'll cause a stir in the rankings once you've debuted."

"Then why the hell are we pulling frisbees and cats out of trees?" The ash blonde demanded. "We're wasting time helping old geezers cross the street when we could be crushing-" he stopped as a slim finger was pointed at him, nearly poking his nose.

"That. That's what is holding you back from your full potential."

Bakugou smacked the pro's hand away. "Huh?"

The number four hero sighed, crossing his arms. "You're enthusiasm," he said dryly. "While admirable, is misplaced. The small things that may seem like a waste of time to you are just as important as any other assignment. You want to be a hero? You have to show people that you are reliable and capable of showing up where you're needed. No one is going to follow a hero they don't believe in. If they can't trust you with the small things, how do you expect them to trust you when their life is on the line?"

Katsuki was speechless. Ever since he was a child, he'd desired to be a hero. He had the physical strength and a powerful quirk. Everyone praised him, telling him what an amazing hero he'd be. He'd truly believed that strength was what made a hero. He knew that if he just made himself strong enough to take on anyone, like All Might, no one could stand in his way. But standing here, listening to one of the top five ranked heroes in the country, suddenly he's realizing there's more to it than that. There had always been more to it. He'd just been too blind to see it.

Or maybe he hadn't wanted to see it.

"You will learn that there are different types of strength in this world, Bakugou, not just physical. You're close with Flare, yes?" The hero asked. Bakugou nodded wordlessly. "What kind of strength would you say she possesses?"

It was a loaded question. Sana was more than capable physically, but she was also strong mentally. She'd been dealt a bad hand by the universe and had had to learn to strengthen her mind and heart at a young age. Sana didn't break easily and he liked that about her.

"What kind of question is that? She's tough."

Jeanist nodded, tapping his temple with his index finger. "You see, emotional and mental strength are also factors in this business. The ability to empathize is crucial. As heroes, we are part of something much more. So sometimes, we must look past ourselves to see the bigger picture."

Katsuki knew that he was at a pinnacle moment in his life. This was a moment that would define his future, change him for the better or worse depending on how he responded to the advice he was being given by someone that he begrudgingly respected. Best Jeanist didn't see him as a lost cause like so many others, but rather a work in progress. An investment he was willing to put his time and energy into to unlock the teen's full potential.

Neither was who the other had originally thought him to be. Beat Jeanist wasn't the uptight pushover he'd expected and Bakugou wasn't the hopeless delinquent he'd portrayed during the Sports Festival broadcast. The number four hero showed a quiet strength that made even the most rambunctious kid quiet down and listen.

The pro's energy reminded him of his father's.

"I'm not trying to change or reinvent you because you're not to my taste. I've actually grown to like you in our time together. I push you because I believe in your abilities and think you'll go far in this field with a little rebranding. Everyone loves a bad boy. There's no denying that fact. However, people need to know that beneath the hard looks and the boisterous attitude, you care. That you are willing to use that fighting spirit for them, not against them. I want everyone who looks at you after this internship to see a respectable, decent young man." Best Jeanist tried to ruffle his hair. It didn't move an inch due to the amount of gel holding it in place. "I know he's in there somewhere, buried under mountains of snark and hubris."

Best Jeanist kept his face well-hidden, but the crinkling around his eye gave away his smile. Katsuki got the strangest feeling at the familiar gesture, like he was seeing a younger version of Masaru Bakugou. The same fatherly pride was visible in the number four hero's eye. "Thanks," the teen grumbled shyly, averting his eyes.

Best Jeanist chuckled at his protégé's sudden bout of shyness. "Now all that's left is to find you a proper hero name."

"You going senile on me, old man?! I already told you my hero name!"

"I refuse to call you by such an absurd name. It's overly violent and crass. Try again."

¸☾⋆*･ﾟ¸☾⋆*･ﾟ¸☾⋆*

Seeing how serene the city was, Sana wouldn't have guessed that a sword-swinging serial killer was in Hosu. The civilians acted normal, going about their daily lives without an ounce of fear or caution. Kids ran around unsupervised, laughing and playing.

"Are we sure he's still here?" She whispered out of the corner of her mouth as she and her mentor patrolled the area.

"He always claims three victims before leaving the city. It's a pattern. He won't leave until he's finished off one more."

"How does he choose them? His victims, I mean." Sana pressed. "Maybe that could tell us who the next target is or where he might strike."

Mirko sighed heavily, shaking her head. "If there is a pattern to the victims, we aren't aware of it. His attacks are mostly unpredictable and uncoordinated. It's probably more of a crime of opportunity than a targeted hit."

"It'll be dark soon," Sana observed the Sun slowly creeping behind a skyscraper. "He could be anywhere."

"Then we need to be ready." The pro's feral grin made Sana shiver. "I hope the bastard tries something," she smirked, popping her knuckles.

"You don't mean that."

"I do-"

"No, you don't. Because if you did, then you'd be saying you hope an innocent person gets attacked... possibly even murdered."

Mirko shrugged, causing Sana to sweatdrop.

There was a loud crash in the distance, the sound of metal grinding against metal. Shouts of alarm caught their attention, making them halt. Mirko held up a hand, her snow-colored ears twitching left and right as she concentrated. "This way!" She shouted, leaping into the air using her powerful legs. Sana was right behind her, forced to run at a normal pace due to quirky restrictions.

Three blocks later, they arrived on the scene of a train crash. Heroes were everywhere, carrying the injured to the designated safety area. Sana and Rumi split up, the teenager assigned to help locate victims from the wreckage while Mirko was tasked with clearing away the bulky metal scraps so the healers could get through. It was two hours of intense labor, though thankfully there were no casualties from the accident. One of the train cars had derailed off the track, causing the cars behind it to lurch off course and crash into each other.

Rumi eventually found her among the wounded, helping to bandage any minor scrapes that needed tending to while the healers focused on the more serious injuries. "Well, I think that's the last of it."

The injured woman Sana had helped grabbed her hand and squeezed. "Thank you, dear." The solar girl nodded with a reassuring smile.

"Of course, ma'am." She helped the woman to her feet before joining her mentor. The rabbit hero clapped her on the back, the force behind it making Sana flinch.

"You're a natural, kid." The dark-skinned woman chuckled. "Only a few days on the job and you're already acting like a pro." Sana's answering grin was adorably bashful, her cheeks taking on a rosy hue.

"Thank you."

Mirko nodded, looking around with her hands on her hips. "We should probably head out-"

"What is that?!" Someone shrieked in the distance. More voices exclaimed in shock and horror.

Mirko curled her lip in annoyance. "What the hell is it now?" The two women ran up the subway steps to the main road. They both were jostled by the fleeing civilians and even some low level pros turned tail and ran at the sight of the creature wrecking havoc on the city.

"Nomu?" Sana couldn't believe it. What the hell was the League doing in Hosu? Was All Might nearby or something?

"You know that thing?" Mirko yelled over the noise as the dark creature bellowed before tossing a car into a neighboring building. "Whatever the hell he is, he's strong." Mirko was practically vibrating in place, her teeth bared in a feral grin. Sana knew she must be itching to fight something so powerful.

"They're weapons for the League of Villains. They have multiple quirks."

Rumi cracked her neck and knuckles, twisting her waist to stretch out her back. "Eraser did say that you fought a monster at the USJ. You really took on one if these bastards by yourself?"

Sana shrugged. "So I'm told."

A second, higher-pitched screech echoed in the distance, drawing their attention. There were more Nomus on the loose.

"If the League is really behind this, then you could be in danger. I have half a mind to send you back to Jeanist, but your experience with these things is too useful. You need to be able to protect yourself, so I'm giving you full permission to use your quirk."

Sana quickly schooled her shocked expression into one of cool confidence. "Okay. Got it."

"Now, let's kick some ass!"

The two split up, both racing towards the Nomus in the distance seeing as more heroes had arrived to take on the one before them. Sana quickly lost sight of her mentor in the rush, pushing all other thoughts away as she approached the spot where a hundred feet a Nomu with multiple chainsaws for arms was tearing up the street.

"Lovely," she huffed. She felt her phone vibrate against her thigh and leaned her back against the brick of the building to check her messages and remain hidden from the genetically modified creature until she was ready to engage in combat. She worried that Mirko had sent her a message, but only found a cryptic text from Midoriya to the class group chat. All he'd sent was coordinates, which weren't too far from her location.

"What the...?" Was he in trouble? Had he also encountered a Nomu and been injured? Was this his way of requesting backup?

She pocketed her phone and revealed herself to the Nomu. The sickly green creature screeched at her, revving his arms. "Change of plans, bub." She called out with a smirk. "We're needed elsewhere."

¸☾⋆*･ﾟ¸☾⋆*･ﾟ¸☾⋆*

Their fight against Stain wasn't going as well as Midoriya had hoped. He'd anticipated for the Hero Killer to be strong, but he was so quick with his attacks, so precise in his execution of his quirk that it was hard to do anything but evade him. One wrong move and he'd kill them or immobilize them indefinitely.

They were failing. He knew it, and he sensed the desperation in Iida and Todoroki's voices and movements. They were flagging... meanwhile, Stain didn't even seem winded by their efforts. They needed someone quick and agile. Someone virtually untouchable. They needed...

"Howdy, boys." Her voice was like sweet music to their tired ears.

"Sakano!" Midoriya couldn't contain the smile on his face. Sana was a sight for sore eyes. Finally, they might have a fighting chance of defeating the Hero Killer.

"Sana, get away from here!" Shoto called.

"You know, you should really send out an SOS if it's an emergency, Midoriya." She coolly entered the alleyway with her arms crossed. "Otherwise people might get the wrong idea and think you sending your location is some kind of open booty call." Her tone remained amused despite the chaotic scene she'd witnessed upon her arrival. Her classmates were bruised and bloody while an unknown pro sat slumped against the wall of the alley. Meanwhile, the Hero Killer Stain stood calmly at the center of it all, brandishing a katana dripping with crimson liquid.

"This really isn't the time-!"

"You pesky kids are really getting on my nerves," the serial murderer hissed. "I've had enough of your antics." With a burst of speed none of them had anticipated, he appeared in front of Sana and the entire group stiffened at the sound of metal slicing through flesh. Her eyes went wide as the three boys screamed her name in horror.

[genericpuff]

This is stupid, but you know those new LO hoodies the Webtoon shop has? I know the font they're using. It's Eckmannpsych which is an Adobe font.

That's not the stupid part though. The dumb part is the capital H and G in the Eckmannpsych font do not match what is on the hoodies, which would obviously be on the hoodies that have Hera or Goddess on them. So, Rachel looks to have taken the time to hand draw her own H and G to match the font style for those hoodies but did not take any time to make new, better art for the merch, but instead reused ugly panels from the comic. Talk about a strange look into her priorities. She doesn't like how the G and H look on a font? She will remake those to fit what she wants. Rachel when the assignment gives her the chance to make specialized, better designs for those same merch? She can't be bothered to even try. WTF!

for the love of god-

I'm assuming and hoping they had the commercial rights to that font LMAOO But it did kind of make me go 🤨 because while I didn't know the font EXACTLY off the top of my head it still felt... weirdly out of place for something like LO? Why are these hoodies being stylized like they're from Austin Powers LOL

On another note tho, the LO merch is just like... disappointing in how bad it is for what's supposed to be WT's #1 series, which is, btw, a series with so much unique stylization that it shouldn't even be this hard to make merch for it! it just feels very "first attempt at redbubble merch", but unlike genuine first attempts at making merch (which is obviously a learning curve that I wouldn't judge anyone for being new to) this is a company that's sunk shitloads of money into LO so I don't know why they can't get better merch made?? so much of it is just the default drawings taken and slapped onto a tote bag or t-shirt, which like, yeah cool fine you're using art that's recognizable and considering the art is already made, it stands to reason that they should use it for more than just the comic. It's just disappointing to see how lazy it often is and how little effort is put into translating it onto a t-shirt/tote bag/etc. like we can't even have ONE exclusive t-shirt with a unique design that isn't just poorly copy pasted from the comic?

Case in point, those t-shirts that Rachel was advertising a while ago that were actually straight up falsely advertised. I can't find the post about it on my Tumblr (I'm pretty sure I talked about it here) so here's the IG story rundown I did on it ages ago:

Again I'd really like to have benefit of the doubt here that Rachel isn't the one making these designs, usually that's not how the merchandising process goes in these types of deals, so I'm not gonna point the finger at her. But it's just so odd to me that it happened in the first place. And this goes for a lot of LO's merch, so much of it feels cheaply made and rushed off a conveyor belt for the point of making money without much expense. Which yeah, that's a business model for sure, the goal is to profit, but like this?

You can't even argue that it's like people criticizing LO the comic because like, as much as I'll justify what I spend my time doing here in my free time, it's true that at the end of the day I don't have to pay for LO, so really the only thing I'm doing is inflicting psychic damage to myself, it's not like my actual money is on the line LMAO That's why I stopped paying for LO ages ago and only do it when I have a specific episode I need to review (such as the midseason hiatus review series I did). At the very least, if I really want to keep reading LO but don't want to pay for it, I can just avoid FastPassing it and read it for free so I can save the coins for other series I'd rather read. The Webtoons' FP system is very fair that way.

But this is merch explicitly made to generate revenue. It is a product, front to back. You can vote with your money by not buying the thing you don't like, absolutely, but the fact that it's this poorly to begin with is just so indicative of Webtoons' business practices and so shitty for the people who genuinely enjoy this comic and are being advertised and sold shoddy merchandise that doesn't even come looking the same way it's advertised. It's really not a good look for Webtoons, Rachel, or LO that this is what they're selling to people.

Especially for what they're charging, good lord-

Like, okay, they're hoodies and they're gonna be expensive to print and ship so the higher overhead cost makes sense, but jesus christ, with the kind of merch Webtoons has already given the stamp of approval on, would it even show up in decent condition? How bright are those colors gonna be? Are they gonna strip off as soon as I throw it in the wash? I'm half-tempted to buy a hoodie for myself just to do a review on it but I can't justify dropping $75 CAD on a hoodie that only has art on the back. Maybe it's just me living in the hellish lands of Canada where we play with toy money that's the problem, but it's just not a gamble I wanna take LOL If I bought one it would probably be the Hecate or Hermes ones because they're the only ones that are at least somewhat legible and have decent character art that isn't a character looking like they need to poop LMAO

(these are literally the two worst drawings they could have chosen of these two i stg lol the only thing that would have made this worse/funnier is if it was Handsome Hades and Persephone Kidnapping a Baby LMAO)

It has me worried about what the LO figures are gonna look like when they release. Are they gonna have some creative liberty with making them chibi-fied (like a Nendoroid?) or are they gonna try and replicate the art style exactly and wind up making literal blow-up sex doll Persephone? 😭

NGL, if the figures are done well enough and don't cost an arm and a leg, I might consider buying one just for the shelf collection, but again, it depends. If Webtoons released a tarot deck with really good panels from LO (like the Tower 4 scene or Persephone sitting on the rooftop with her comb or Eros flying down into the Mortal Realm) I would buy the shit out of that. I would even just take the Major Arcana if 78 cards was too much to ask :'0 I'm not against Webtoons/Rachel trying to profit off LO merch at all, I just wish it was BETTER- (╥﹏╥)

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 67 Hotel Posting

So it was predicted, so it came to pass. We have our hotel fight, dear void... and not much else this week.

Rough TL of Editor's Notes:

First Page: チヒロ死亡の報せを信じていた昼彦… [Chihiro shibo no hose wo shinjite ita Hiruhiko...] "Hiruhiko, who believed the news of Chihiro's death..." Last Page: 復習の道を征くチヒロ退路はなく、ただ突き進むのみ [fukushuu no michi wo yuku Chihiro tairo hanaku, tada tsuki susumu no mi.] "Chihiro walks the path of revenge with no way to retreat; he can only push forward."

I just want to pat myself on the back for being able to understand most of the chapter this week in Japanese compared to usual. Hokazono-sensei went easy on us and everyone spoke in a standard Tokyo dialect for the most part with no obscure kanji. Hooray for me.

Chihiro and Hiruhiko

Too bad he couldn't just die here and spare us the trouble.

Well, it happened. We got Hiruhiko learning to fight in a way that once again deliberately compliments and contrasts Chihiro at the same time. He has no master but "freedom" (lol) and is going to become a true menace from sheer talent apparently. He's already good enough to take down the master of a sword style so... hm. Hope Chihiro's stint practicing with the Masumi paid off. Hiruhiko being able to beat Sengoku here felt a little BS, but the elevator door opening to reveal the severed head was so cool that I forgive it.

Hiruhiko did take Kuguri's words to heart even though he seemed flippant from Kuguri's point of view. He's all about sensing the right flow and not copying from something he's seen and had explained to him like Chihiro is, though. Different kinds of instinct are on display and about to clash. Which one will come out on top this time? Gotta wait until next week to find out! Not surprised if it's Hiruhiko getting the one-up on Chihiro this time so they're tied in score. Chihiro's not feeling quite ready to fight using the Iai White Purity style yet while his personal menace is raring to go with whatever he's cooked up.

Plus he's got a hostage to protect and all.

Chihiro and Iori

[yume self-insert character status intensifies]

Just a little bit of conversation between these two to crush our hearts a smidge more before shit hits the fan. Iori and Chihiro could not be more different in life experience despite the similarities of their status as kids of famous (probable) war criminals. So of course Iori gets a bit down while she's musing that Chihiro's never had a chance to be normal. And...

Don't mind the shattering sound, that's just my heart breaking for Chihiro all over again.

THIS POOR GUY. He wants a normal life so bad, even if he wouldn't choose to change a thing he's done. He just wants to rest and worry about what to make for dinner instead of drenching himself in blood... but he'll see his path through to the end. He can't go back, as much as he yearns to. Because his father's gone and he's already well on the path to hell.

I think this is why Iori ultimately chose to have her memories sealed again. After seeing the carnage Chihiro causes and has to live with on a near-daily basis, she wants to cling to the normalcy she's known. Especially after the memories that returned last chapter were deeply unpleasant. Iori's not a coward or weak; she's truly an ordinary person thrust into an incredibly dangerous and depressing world. I think she will be forced to keep her memories for the story to go forward but how that happens is anyone's guess. Hopefully it doesn't involve harming the Masumi.

If Iori does keep her memories she will become much like Chihiro in that she lost her dad and was forced into a cruel world through traumatic events. Right now, a point is being made that Chihiro can't ever go back to Iori's world. He's too much of a sinner in his mind. Will Iori be forced to share the same fate as Chihiro, doomed to be chased while her father is alive? Will she also find herself on the path of revenge? Or will the Masumi finish the seal in time to help her out? Somehow I doubt it (Kuguri's still MIA but on the hunt, after all).

At any rate, I was definitely surprised by Iori's choice to return to a peaceful life because most stories will come up with a reason for the character to stay in the new world. The whole point of offering the choice is usually to show their resolve and establish their motivation. So for Iori to turn it down could mean a few things.

She's going to be forced to keep them anyway. Whether it's the seal not working, being left incomplete, or some other reason, she could be forced to carry the burden against her wishes. I think this is the most plausible outcome.

Iori will end up deciding to keep her memories after all. Chihiro and Hiruhiko's fight could change her mind somehow, or maybe Chihiro's words about it being better to live with the truth will come back. So basically just a delayed answer to The Call to show us her resolve has been fortified.

The memories are resealed but she's still under observation/being chased. I think it's unlikely for her to exit the story and go back to being a normal girl, but it could happen. She's had too much attention and build-up to simply be allowed to go back to school in my opinion. Unless it's to further explore the choice that Chihiro said he couldn't make.

No matter what happens, I love that Chihiro gave Iori the choice with no implications on what she should choose. He's still the same kindhearted guy thrust into a violent world he's not at all built for.

Also, just one more thing...

Sleep is for everyone else.

Yeah. Chihiro's got his foot on the gas pedal and will not ease up on himself one bit. He's going to break sooner or later. Who will be there to help put him back together? Hm...

Alright. Cut a rant and will just wait for next week to see what happens. I'm going a bit stir-crazy but that's just what happens when following a weekly manga sometimes. Hopefully next week is explosive enough to make the wait to see other characters again a bit more bearable. In the meantime, have a good week and give yourself a hug if you need one, kind void.

[helloalycia]

𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐏𝐈𝐃𝐋𝐘 𝐉𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐒 [𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄] — 𝐀𝐋𝐘𝐂𝐈𝐀 𝐃𝐄𝐁𝐍𝐀𝐌-𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐘

one / two / four / five / masterlist / wattpad

summary: it's four years into your relationship with Alycia but you're still not on the best terms with her parents, so you're forced to spend a week at their mansion and grow closer. Of course, it's not so easy when her dad hates you.

warning/s: none.

author's note: here’s part three, hope someone reading likes it haha. also i’m trying out a new layout for my imagines with hopes it’ll speed up putting it together on tumblr (as i copy it over from wattpad and have to format it which is annoying lol) - feel free to let me know what you think or if you prefer the old layout! :)

Four years later...

"I'm still not too sure about this, Alycia."

Alycia looked at me and raised an eyebrow playfully. Her blue-green eyes were practically bursting with amusement, and she obviously found my discomfort hilarious, as usual.

"For the millionth time," she said, and she wasn't exaggerating, "it will be okay! They know we've been together for a few years now, and they know that you mean a lot to me, so stop panicking!"

As always, I nodded and released a breath I was unaware I was holding. Despite having met Alycia's family a few times before, I was still nervous because this time was different. It wasn't a meal at night and then say goodbye, it was staying for a week and getting to know them better. Sounds easy, right?

Wrong.

Not only were her parents insanely intimidating, but they were also loaded with millions of dollars, and they didn't seem to like me very much.

"Miss Debnam-Carey, we have arrived," the driver from the front of the car informed Alycia.

Yeah, a driver. Her parents sent for someone in a car (that probably cost more than all of my belongings put together) to pick Alycia and I up. All through the journey, I had been freaking out internally and failing to hide it on the outside.

"You ready?"

It took me a moment to realise that Alycia was talking to me. I looked to her, and the humour that was painted on her face throughout the whole journey was gone and replaced with reassurance.

"As ready as one can be when they are about to epically embarrass themselves in front of their loved one's parents."

Her adorable giggle echoed in the backseat of the car as the vehicle came to a halt. "I got you, Y/N. Don't worry."

The door to my right was opened by the driver, who had stepped out of the car without me noticing. I took a deep breath before stepping out of the vehicle. Only for my jaw to drop. Their house was beautiful.

Or should I say mansion.

The whatever-it-was was huge, spreading across a large amount of land. Only in front of me I could see a white, stone-carved fountain that was spouting crystal blue water, which was obviously artificially enhanced but beautiful nonetheless. Around the fountain was a cobbled pathway that led to the front door and around the driveway. Surrounding the mansion was acre after acre of empty land, being used for various rich-people activities.

If this was what the front of the grand house looked like, how did the rest look?

I felt someone's hand push my jaw close and I looked to my left to see that humoured grin on Alycia's beautiful face again. "Don't want to catch flies now, do we?"

I rolled my eyes but smiled, already feeling better knowing that she was still the same old Alycia I had fallen in love with. Despite the millions her parents owned.

"Come on," she said with a smile, lacing her fingers through mine and tugging me to her side a little. "I'll show you around."

—

"And that's the golf course," she finished, releasing my hand and looking to me with a bright smile. "What do you think?"

Alycia had shown me around the whole of her home and it was pretty hard for me to stay sane when her mansion of a home was freakin' beautiful. The amount of facilities that she had was unbelievable and it only made me realise how much harder this visit would be.

"It's amazing, Alycia," I responded, smiling weakly. "This is going to be an awesome week."

She smiled at my response, but when she saw the worry in my eyes, her smile faded away and she grabbed my hand once again. "Y/N, what did I tell you about worrying?"

"To only do it when I'm worrying about whether there's a ghost living in our flat?"

She sighed and cracked a smile, knowing humour was my defence mechanism to hide my feelings. "I never said that."

I scoffed. "I mean, have you seen the way our doors keep swinging close without anyone touching them?"

"Y/N–"

"Like, seriously. I'll literally be on the other side of the room and bang! The door shuts–"

"Y/N–"

"–and I'll spend the whole day wondering if somebody previously died in that place or if I'm just losing my mind–"

I got cut off when I felt a soft pair of lips press against mine. It was only short, but boy was it amazing. Alycia pulled away and laughed at my expression, which probably resembled a younger me getting my first kiss off Alycia a few years ago.

"You really need to quit babbling sometimes," she said, knowingly, patting my cheek with her hand.

"Sorry," I mumbled, taking her hand and kissing it gently. "I'm just being stupid. I promise I'll act normal now."

She shrugged and grabbed my hand, leading me back to the house. "If you say so, but you can't act like something you aren't."

It took me a few seconds to realise what she'd said since it was said so casually, but when I did, I gasped and looked at her, feigning offence.

"I'm kidding," she said in between laughter. "Sort of."

I waved my hand dismissively. "Oh, okay. That's fine. I guess I'll be sort of kidding when I tickle you!"

"Y/N, don't," she warned me, losing her amusement, and when I took a step forward, she backed up. Green eyes fixed on mine and she repeated, "Don't."

I quirked a brow, resisting the urge to smile. "Don't what, darling?"

It was silent between us, her not moving a muscle as she waited for me to dare make a move. All it took was for me to step forward and she yelped before running away.

"Alycia!" I shouted, chasing after her, but damn she was fast.

She kept looking back every so often to make sure I was far enough from her, so I ran that extra bit faster, closing in on her until we finally reached the house. Running inside, she was out of sight and I immediately slowed down upon entering the main atrium.

Too uncomfortable to be alone in someone else's house, let alone a rich person's house, I forgot what I was doing and tried to swallow down my nerves.

"Alycia!" I whisper-shouted, eyes scanning the space to try and find her. "Where are you?" The uneasiness settled in when there was no sign of her. "Alycia!"

Just when I was about to give up and ring her, I felt someone jump on my back and I automatically caught their legs, holding them upright instinctively.

"Hey, loser," Alycia's voice said into my ear, sending uncontrollable shivers down my neck. She leaned down further and kissed me on my cheek.

I craned my neck so that I could see her face, only to see that annoyingly attractive smirk on her lips all over again. "You're actually so annoying. Why am I even with you?"

She laughed it off. "'Cause you love me, duh!"

"Sure I do," I mumbled, before looking around.

She had shown me around earlier, so I remembered seeing a couch to the side which gave me an idea.

"Giddy up, horsie!" Alycia shouted, whilst patting me on the back simultaneously.

I smirked and walked forward, towards the couch. "I'll show you just how much I love you, Alycia."

She didn't respond, but I could sense her confusion. I headed towards the couch and turned around so that my back was facing it. She eventually realised what I was going to do and tried to jump off me, but I sat down before she could escape.

"Get off!" she ordered, trying to escape from my weight of a body that was currently crushing her and preventing her from standing up.

I purposely pressed myself down on her even more and laughed at her helpless struggling. "I just love you so much, Alycia. I can't help but be close to you!”

Her body was shuffling about beneath me and I could hear her whimpers as she tried to shove me off, but she wasn't strong enough. I thought she would give up, but instead, she began to use her hands, ruffling my hair and slapping my face with them.

"Not–" slap, "so–" slap, "funny–" slap, "now–" slap, "–is it?" she asked between laughter, making me squeeze my eyes close as she slapped me wherever she could.

Even without turning around, I could already imagine the obnoxious smirk adorning her lips.

I stood back up to get away from her, but she clung onto me from behind and began to slap my face again. I tried running away from her, but she wouldn't let go, her arms and legs clinging to me like a koala.

"Alycia! Let–" I tried prying her off me, but it wasn't working. "–go!"

"Then say–" she smacked my forehead, "–you love me!"

We were both as stubborn as each other, so the next minute consisted of Alycia smacking me and clinging to me, and myself trying to pry her off but failing miserably. We were so caught up in annoying each other that we didn't even realise we had an audience.

"Ahem," someone cleared their throat on purpose.

Alycia and I paused and turned to the left, only to see Mr and Mrs Debnam-Carey standing there with raised eyebrows. I looked back to Alycia and saw her mid-smacking my face, and I didn't look any better as I attempted to throw her off me. Oh, God.

"This looks a lot worse than it is." I laughed awkwardly, letting Alycia down off my back gently.

"Mum, dad!" Alycia yelled happily, immediately running to both of her parents and embracing them in a tight, loving hug.

They returned the hug, but their eyes were studying me up and down over her shoulder, and I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable under their gaze. Talk about bad timing.

"You guys know Y/N," Alycia introduced as she motioned to me.

I stepped forward and Alycia grabbed my hand, squeezing it gently for reassurance. She sent a hopeful smile my way and I felt the majority of my nerves die down. Her smile always made me feel ten times better; she had a certain power to make me feel good, and I loved her for it.

"Lovely to meet you both again," I greeted her parents, smiling nervously. I put my right hand out and they both shook it.

"You, too, Y/N," her mum responded, smiling a little. "We're glad you could join us for the week. It'll be good to be able to get to know each other properly."

I nodded in agreement. The reason I'd been with Alycia for so long and not gotten to know her parents as much is because it took her a long time to feel comfortable enough to introduce me, and when she did, I got the vibe that her parents didn't like me as much. It had been really difficult to 'befriend' them, if you will, which is why they invited me over for the week.

"Has Alycia shown you around the house?" her dad asked, seeming as if he were ready to snap his fingers and have someone give me a full-blown tour. Which to be honest, he probably could.

I nodded again. "Uh, yeah. You both have a lovely home by the way."

They smiled kindly and nodded their heads as a thank you. I internally relaxed, glad that I'd said the right thing. So far, so good.

"I'm sure Alycia can show you where you're both staying," her mum explained. "You can freshen up and then you'll be joining us for dinner tonight. We're having lamb. Sound good?"

"Yeah," I said with a nod, before smiling. "Thanks."

They smiled my way before leaving the main atrium. When they left, I let out a deep breath that I wasn't even aware I was holding.

"You looked like you were about to combust into thin air," Alycia noted aloud, an amused smile on her lips. "You okay?"

I flashed her a small smile. "Perfect."

—

Dinner rolled around quickly enough, too quick for my liking. The rest of the afternoon was spent with Alycia and I unpacking and messing about in our room, which was huge by the way. It was beautiful, though, especially with its balcony that overlooked one of the many grounds that the Debnam-Careys owned.

"So Y/N," Alycia's mother began after we had all dug into our meals and awkward small talk was made. "What have you been up to lately? You're doing a teaching degree at university, right?"

I was surprised to know that she actually remembered from our last chat which was a pretty long time ago, but nodded nonetheless.

"Uh, yeah. It's going well. It's kept me pretty busy, but I know I'll achieve something at the end of it, so I don't mind."

"Not too busy to keep Alycia happy, though, right?" her dad teased playfully, though I could tell that he genuinely wanted to know. I always got this vibe that he didn't like me as much, at least compared to her mum.

His comment caused Alycia to flush with embarrassment and sink lower into her seat to avoid being seen, though it made no difference.

I chuckled and glanced at Alycia, lacing our fingers together underneath the table. "Alycia's happiness will always be my top priority," I spoke with sincerity, smiling at the embarrassed Australian beside me.

Neither of her parents responded, but when I looked back at them, her mum was smiling as she looked between us. I wish I could say the same for her dad, but he was studying me like a battle plan, detecting whether I would make the right or wrong move in the future. And so returned my nerves...

"How is your company doing?" I asked them both, hoping to make good conversation and not say anything wrong. "I heard its picked up quite a bit recently. There was that new TV advertisement, right?"

The Debnam-Careys were rich because of their world-renowned summer camps, ironically where Alycia and I first met and she tried to pretend it was her aunt who owned it. It was their number one achievement, I had learnt, and sometimes I was sure that they were more proud of that than they were of Alycia, but I never said anything because it wasn't any of my business.

Alycia's mum finished chewing her food and nodded her head, saying, "It's definitely getting more popular. The advert helped, yes."

I nodded and tried to think of something else to ask or say, but I didn't know what. And all whilst I was trying to think, a good two minutes had passed, it being full of an awkward, uncomfortable silence. And this is exactly what I was dreading.

The whole meal was filled with random small conversations that soon ended with silences, and it was the most uncomfortable thing I had ever had to endure. So, you can imagine how happy I was when it was over.

"They hate me," I repeated for the millionth time, all whilst pacing up and down in Alycia and I's bedroom. "I probably looked like some boring person who has no interests."

Alycia sighed from where she was sat at the edge of the bed, and ran her hands through her hair. "You always overthink things, Y/N. It wasn't as bad as you're making it out to be."

I paused and looked to her with a raised eyebrow. "Are you kidding me? The highlight of the evening was you dropping your fork under the table, only to drop my fork under the table too."

She chuckled and stood up, moving closer to me and taking my hands in hers. "I only did that so I could talk to you under the table."

"I know." I cracked a smile. "And I appreciate the mini pep talk you gave me."

She did that cute smile she does, where her nose scrunched up and her eyebrows furrowed together, and I felt the need to lean in and give her a small but tender kiss on the lips. It certainly took her by surprise, and when I pulled away, she smiled at me with confusion.

"What was that for?"

I moved a piece of hair from her eyes and smiled down at her. "I don't really tell you enough, but I appreciate you a lot."

She chuckled gently. "I love you too, you idiot."

I rolled my eyes playfully, not bothering to explain what I meant. Instead, I leaned in again and kissed her, appreciating the way she relaxed and began to kiss me back. I was certain I'd never get tired of her lips against mine.

—

"You're kidding me, right?"

Alycia laughed and shook her head. "Honestly, I'm not."

I raised both of my eyebrows at her, still not believing a word she was saying. "You've got to be joking! You're seriously telling me that you and your parents did this 'afternoon tea' every single day for three years?"

Alycia nodded and took a sip of her tea. "Between the ages of 9 to 11. They believed it was the key to developing my social skills." She bit her lip as she thought to herself, before adding, "Evidently that didn't work since I'm super awkward with people I don't know, but yeah."

I couldn't help but laugh at her seriousness. We'd been here two days and Alycia had invited me to 'afternoon tea' with her and her parents. Of course, they'd said they were going to be a little late, so Alycia and I got started as they'd wished.

Honestly? It was a little weird, but the little cakes were delicious and Alycia's table etiquette was a sight to see, so this was all worth it.

I wasn't really sure how Alycia's parents felt about me at the moment to be honest. It had only been two days and yet they still made no effort to show me what they were thinking. Alycia assured me that was just their personality, but I wasn't so sure...

"Oh, look, my parents are here," Alycia pointed out, her eyes on the door.

I followed her line of sight, looking to the door on the side of their house (mansion) that led outside where we were sat, overlooking one of their many well-kept gardens. She was right – her parents were here, but they weren't alone.

"Erm, who's that?" I asked, quietly, so only Alycia would hear me. There was a random man stood trailing behind her parents as they approached the table we were sat at.

Alycia was smiling on the outside as the two of us stood up, but I could see the confusion in her eyes. "Not gonna lie, Y/N. I have no idea."

I wasn't really liking where this was going, especially since Alycia was as clueless as I was, but nonetheless, I plastered a smile on my lips and watched as the three figures stopped by the table.

"Ah, girls, sorry we're late," her father apologised, and honestly, I'd never seen him look so happy in the whole time I'd met him. Something wasn't right. "I was waiting for Clayton."

At this comment, he patted the guy's – I guess, Clayton's – back, causing them both to chuckle. The guy was pretty tall, young, handsome, well-dressed... well, shit, I definitely wasn't liking where this was going.

"Sweetie, sorry we're late," Alycia's mum apologised to her, and when she looked my way, I felt like she was apologising to me too, but rather more for what was about to go down. Shit, shit, shit.

"It's fine," Alycia got out, keeping up her smile. She spared Clayton a glance before meeting her father's eyes. "I thought it was just us for tea, dad?"

Her father merely shrugged before motioning to Clayton. "Yes, but I bumped into Clayton here yesterday and thought he'd make a great addition to this event! You remember Clayton, right, sweetie?"

Alycia's forced smile was slowly being replaced with a look of confusion. Meanwhile, I was awkwardly rocking back and forth on my heels and trying not to think about what was happening.

"Charlie and Maggie's boy," her dad explained. "Remember?"

Alycia still seemed lost, and as each second passed, I was slowly losing my mind.

"We were in primary school together," Clayton spoke, a smile on his lips. "We had Miss Penny together?"

Alycia narrowed her eyes as she studied him, attempting to put two and two together. "Clayton... Clayton... wait, I think I– Clay? The kid who had that massive nosebleed in the school play?"

Clayton chuckled awkwardly, looking down to his shoes. "That was– yeah, that was me.

Alycia stifled a laugh as she nodded. "Wow, it's been a long time. I guess, how have you been?"

"Good! Good...," he said cheerfully. I wanted to fall asleep right now, that's how dry this conversation was. "I'm actually in the estate agency business now."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah..."

"Pretty big step up from primary school, eh?" I joked as I tried to make myself present, only to cringe internally at my choice to speak because literally everyone looked my way. The only person who didn't have daggers in her eyes, excluding Alycia, was Alycia's mother. She looked like she was amused, if anything.

"Erm, this is my girlfriend, Y/N Y/L/N," Alycia introduced me. "Y/N, this is–"

"Clayton from primary school, I got that," I cut her off, smiling dryly. Thankfully, nobody got offended, but Alycia did send me a confused stare.

"Girlfriend...?" Clayton seemed surprised, but he overcame that pretty quickly as he smiled in my direction. "Nice to meet you, (your name pronounced wrong)–"

"It's Y/N," I corrected him through gritted teeth and a fake smile.

"Right," he did the same. "Sorry."

There was an awkward, tension-filled silence in the air as Clayton checked out Alycia pretty obviously. I didn't bother hiding the glare I was sending him.

"So, shall we get started?" Alycia's dad asked rhetorically, clapping his hands together.

I clenched my jaw as I looked between them both. I didn't think I could stand sitting through a bloody afternoon tea with this guy. God help me.

—

"...and so I knew I had to buy the car off him," Clayton was telling another one of his boring stories as I sipped from my tea. "It holds too many good memories to simply let go of!"

Alycia's dad chuckled like he'd said the funniest thing in the world whilst Alycia and her mum smiled politely. I wanted to leave. I hated it here and it was very obviously why Alycia's dad had invited Clayton here in the first place. Clayton was just as I expected him to be – rich, boring and ogling my girlfriend – and there was nothing I could do except sit and put up with it.

All tea time, Alycia's dad was asking Clayton questions about his life, whilst trying to involve Alycia and engage them both in conversation. Not once had I been spoken to, unless you counted the few times Alycia tried to involve me with an apologetic look in her eyes. So, I hated it here. And I wanted to leave.

"I've actually bought the car with me if you want to see it," Clayton said to Alycia's dad. "It's parked out front. A wonder, really."

"Oh, how exciting!" he exclaimed, before looking to Alycia. "Why don't we go and take a look?"

Alycia quirked a brow, trying to remain polite. "As much as I'd love that, I'm actually a little tired. I think Y/N and I might go upstairs to relax a little."

Yes, yes, yes. We can leave!

"I'm sure Y/N won't mind if you meet her up there, right, Y/N?" her dad asked, looking to me, before saying to Alycia, "It'll only be a moment, darling, c'mon. Clayton is a guest. We can see him off also."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, but said, "It's fine, Alycia, I'll see you after. Your father is right. You should see off your guest.”

Even saying it aggravated me, but the sooner she went, the sooner Clayton would be gone and the sooner I wouldn't have to see him again.

"Very well," Alycia agreed reluctantly, before standing up. "Shall we?"

We all stood up and I was relieved when I walked in a different direction to them, instead going upstairs to our room to collapse on the bed and mentally switch off.

I'd love to say that that was the last I ever saw of Clayton, but it wasn't.

The next morning, when I thought I was going to eat breakfast with my girlfriend in peace, we came downstairs to find Clayton in the kitchen chatting with Alycia's parents. There was an assortment of muffins and pastries in a basket next to them and I instantly where this was going.

"Alycia, my dear, good morning!" her father said with a smile, stretching out his arm to hug her.

She was as confused as I looked, but hugged her father. "Morning, dad. What's all this?" Glancing at Clayton, she nodded. "Clay, hi."

"Clayton here thought he'd stop by to surprise us with breakfast," her dad explained. "Isn't that thoughtful?"

"Sure is...," Alycia agreed awkwardly.

"Your dad said chocolate croissants are your favourites, so there's a few in there for you," Clayton added with a smile, and the way he was staring at her was enough to make me want to throw up, but I simply stared daggers into his head instead.

"I really appreciate it," Alycia said kindly, "but Y/N and I were actually going to head out for breakfast."

At this, everyone looked to me and I was so used to being ignored in that moment that I suddenly felt nervous.

"It was very nice of you to get the muffin basket though," I said uncomfortably. "Looks like some... great options."

Just kill me now.

"Right... well, Clayton is going to be hanging about here today. We're talking business. So, if you're up for a good old catch up, you know where to find him," Alycia's father said to her.

"I will, dad, thanks," Alycia said with a small smile, before approaching me.

I nodded at him before letting Alycia drag me out of there. Only when we were gone did she stop to look at me apologetically.

"I had no idea he was going to be here again," she said guiltily. "I don't know what my dad is up to, but it's certainly not fair on you."

I shrugged uncomfortably. "I knew he didn't like me, but this is a little weird."

"I'll talk to him," Alycia promised, cupping my face and finding my eyes with hers. "He shouldn't be doing this."

I nodded, not sure I could do much else other than agree, and she pulled me in for a tight hug before letting go.

"Breakfast's on me," she promised, kissing my hand. "Let's go."

—

So, whatever chat Alycia had with her father didn't seem to do the job.

Later that same day, I was lounging around and watching TV by myself whilst Alycia was supposed to be hanging around with her mum. But when I finally got up to find her, hoping to join them to cure my boredom, I couldn't seem to locate either of them. And it definitely didn't help that the Debnam-Careys residence was too large for me to search without an inkling to where they could be.

I tracked down one of the staff members, finding the nearest one and hoping they could help. She was a young-ish girl, older than me but still younger than the other staff here, and seemed friendly enough.

"Sorry to bother you, but have you seen Alycia anywhere?" I asked.

"Oh, yeah, she's out horse riding," the girl answered with a smile.

Barely remembering where she could be doing that since Alycia's tour had already flown from my mind, I asked the staff member, "Thank you. Sorry, what's your name?"

"Millie," she quipped, before suppressing a laugh when she saw my confusion. "Do you need directions to the field?"

I smiled sheepishly. "Am I that obvious?"

She chuckled before saying, "It's just outside. Walk past the shed over there–" She pointed her finger out of the doors from the dining room, "–and it's the one on your left. You won't miss her."

I sighed with relief. "Cheers, Millie. You're a lifesaver."

She nodded. "Anytime."

Following her instructions, I headed outside and tried not to get lost amongst the greenery. Just when I was on track, I turned to the left and indeed found the correct space where Alycia was horse riding. I began to smile as I approached, but then I stopped when I saw she was with Clayton. What the hell was he still doing here?

Her father was there too, watching from the sidelines, but my eyes were glued to Alycia who was sat on her horse as Clayton sat on his, the two of them side by side and chatting with smiles on their faces. I knew Alycia probably got dragged into entertaining him by her father – she had an inability to say no to her parents, I'd noticed. And I also knew that she didn't like Clayton like that, but it still stung a little to see them together.

Despite her wealth and class, she'd only ever been my Alycia. Nothing intimidating about her. And it was definitely more of a me problem, but seeing her like this... horse riding for God's sake, and with a handsome man who was dressed to impress and had heart eyes for her, only made me feel like I didn't really belong here. She was the daughter of a bloody millionaire and I was me. I'd never even saved ten grand, let alone millions.

And yes, this wasn't her problem. She still loved me for me. And I wasn't usually the insecure type. But right now, seeing her, maybe I was starting to become that.

Not wanting to interrupt and definitely not in the greatest of moods anymore, I returned to the house, sulking.

"Did you find her?" Millie asked, and I was surprised she cared enough to.

"Yeah, thank you. She's horse riding alright," I answered, before scowling to nobody in particular. "With Mr Sucky-Handsome Face."

Millie frowned a little, sensing my disappointment. "Is everything okay?"

I sighed deeply. "Oh, yeah, everything's great. Just having the time of my life watching some dude check out my girlfriend in front of me and try to steal her away. Nothing much."

Okay, so I was salty and it was very unprofessional of me to air my grievances to the staff, but I couldn't help it. Alycia wasn't here and I had nobody else to talk to.

"That's shit," Millie said, surprising me. "Sounds like you need to take your mind off it.

I smiled dryly. "If only it were that easy."

"Well, I was going to start baking some dessert for dinner tomorrow," she said, before suggesting, "Maybe you'd like to help? You could prepare something special for Alycia. I'm sure she'd love that."

I glanced at her. "Really? I can do that?"

Millie laughed. "Of course you can! C'mon. Kitchen's this way."

Surprised that she was offering to cheer me up and also that she was so chill to be around, I smiled a little. "Wow, thanks, Millie."

I spent the remainder of the afternoon helping Millie bake some cupcakes in the kitchen, whilst she also helped me put together a little cake for Alycia. We only got as far as baking the cake part since she had to do her other duties as a staff member, but she promised I could help with the icing tomorrow and to say I was a little excited was an understatement. It certainly did the job of helping me forget about stupid Clayton and his inability to leave my girlfriend alone.

By the time the evening rolled around, Alycia and I were eating dinner by ourselves in one of the many dining rooms of the household. It was nice to finally have her to myself, since she'd been MIA all day, though at no fault of her own.

"So, I should probably tell you if you didn't already know," she began, "but I was hanging out with Clayton earlier today."

And just when I thought I'd forgotten about that.

"It was solely because my dad invited him over and basically dragged me away from my mum," she continued to explain, a hint of regret in her voice. "I really didn't want to."

I shrugged, focusing on my dinner plate. "You can't help it if your dad makes you. It's fine, Alycia."

"I told my dad to back off," she assured me, finding my hand on the table. "He claims it's a business venture. An opportunity."

I almost snorted, but remained cool. An opportunity, sure. An opportunity to steal my girlfriend.

"I don't know what he's told Clayton, but I've made it very obvious I'm taken," she said with conviction, tugging my hand and finally earning my attention. Her eyes were searching mine. "He's nothing to worry about, okay?"

I awkwardly began to smile, really not enjoying this conversation. "I know, Alycia."

She didn't seem convinced, but clearly sensing my discomfort, she dropped the topic. With a nod, she let go of my hand and grabbed her fork to twirl her pasta. Meanwhile, I felt icky at the mere thought of Clayton hanging around her again. Why did Alycia's dad hate me that much that he'd try to set his daughter up with some guy whilst I'm right here? Talk about rude!

"So, what did you get up to today?" Alycia asked, thankfully changing the subject. "You weren't bored, I hope?"

As I remembered this afternoon's events, I began to smile, excited to share with Alycia. "Not at all. There's this girl that works here. Millie? Well, she let me help her bake some cupcakes in the kitchens. Which, by the way, your kitchen's huge."

Alycia tried not to laugh as she watched me. "That sounds lovely. So, where are these cupcakes? Do I get a taste?"

"They're not finished yet," I told her with amusement. "Tomorrow's dessert, love. Also, there may or may not be an extra surprise for you."

"Oh, now you have to tell me more," she insisted, and I laughed at her curious expression.

"It wouldn't be a surprise then, idiot," I reminded her. "Tomorrow. You'll find out tomorrow."

She sighed dramatically but nodded. "Very well. It better be dessert-related. All this talk of cupcakes is making me hungry."

"So what I'm hearing is you wanna go on a dessert run," I said with a nod, already convinced.

Her smile widened. "Hell yeah. Finish your pasta and let's go."

I rolled my eyes at her childishness, but did just that. Maybe today wasn't so bad after all and I was just overthinking it.

[melloianv2]

Genovese (Fake Peppino)

Go ahead look over to Dr Abe's Laboratory post if new or need refresher: link

and this

Guess am back with Dr Abe's laboratory

Wait a minute..., a new logo? why its pink? Well...this is afterlab. Am going to talk about it if I have to time too.

But in a short description: events that happened after the laboratory is destroyed. Its pink because it something to do with Abette. So this only content that only happens after the lab is gone, reduced to atoms.

Btw I named it Abe's Afterlab instead of Dr Abe's Afterlab, which I have done deliberately.

I'll still talk about the regular Dr Abe's Lab since am not finish obviously lol.

Back then...

(he can mimic others voices though, that is a way of talking...)

(i didn't mentioned he's 1 and play with toys because i wanted to look very cool back then /hj)

Back to afterlab:

There's two sections of Genovese, Sweet and Cruel.

We going talk about Sweet first since its the longest so..

Sweet

(It moves like hair though, weird. Due to error with his chromosome, he ended up have a limb hair instead of hair strings...)

(the hair string can move. But can he feel things like his arms? depends. He only use his hair string limb if he needed too.)

Origins

(it influence from other people and how he became himself.)

(btw am not going explain the actual event until the real post of afterlab comes sorry)

just sneaking this post here

Relations

(Genovese loves Peppino because he made in way to loves who ever he's loyal too.)

(Peppino had a hard to caring about Genovese, since he thought it weird to care about your own clone..)

(he is scared of him too btw, only when he's not in his dr abe persona...[we'll talk about that if i can])

Back to Sweet

(why did i make genovese 5 year old? because I can)

(jokes aside, because Dr Abe just got Peppino's DNA before he kidnapped him. So which is why he's quite young.)

(another flaw is he's native but he's not stupid. However he's not native to violence, swearing, drugs, alcohol, weapons like...at all (and cannib-) . He knows that stuff very well.)

Anyway now we at Cruel, its very short

Cruel

l

Extra

Genovese more likely insult someone if he's annoyed

Genovese's current clothing is actual clothing, and not something he shapeshifted in. Simply to blend in of course.

Genovese can fly when he shapeshifts something that is able to make him fly, however he gets tired very fast doing so.

Genovese used to not have an cruel side. back in 2021 during this au was developing.., he used to be fully pacifist and kindhearted. This was changed because due to nowadays. I decided to make him more half good now. Though, i think it fits better being half because I think it be better for him to struggle trying to be good (after being brainwashed for so long) instead of already being good.

Despite trying to be different from Peppino, He still have an habit of copying off what Peppino's wearing sometimes.

When Genovese doesn't want to play, he watch something on tv instead

Genovese is not allowed to use an stove or oven. Nor is he allowed to use a gun despite trying to use one.

Whenever Genovese is hanging out with someone without Peppino, it gets little embarrassing because he don't even know to use certain things nor when to know what's normal or not in the situation. He's still learning.

The reason why he has his eyes togther instead of being seperated because...

(he got surgery on his face to stop the melting. But the surgeon accidentally made his eyes together..)

Genovese would usually try to reason before attacking.

His tears are acid. touching him awhile crying is dangerous. Though his tears do not have the color of acid, but rather regular tears color

Genovese likes flowers, all flowers.

Genovese know a lot of ways to how to kill some one. Totally not taught to him, absolutely not. Nope.

Immature self is just as smart as mature self, he can catch things like mature self.

I don't know what I expect out of this so...

[liauditore]

LIAU MY BELOVED

ask game question

Jimmy x Martyn

:D

romeo asking for mirror birds in MY ask box?!!?!??!?!?! (i know u pref mirror birds but solidwood is too funny im so sorry)

ah yeah. these losers.

see, a lot of my thoughts surrounding these two would kind of spoil my own AU that i never make stuff for so im usually somewhat hesitant to talk about them but basically., (toxic!fh mention)

post-evo divorced property police is so real. ive always imagined it as a childhood friends situation, with martyn being a bit older than jimmy.

they probably caught feelings for eachother fairly late and already well into teenhood but neither of them were really sure what it was (this is maybe going a little bit into sexuality hc territory but ive always imagined jimmy as whatever the male equivalent of a useless lesbian is and martyns biphobic towards himself lmao).

i touched on this briefly in that one fic i wrote but i've always headcanoned martyn as being somewhat parentified and thus ties his worthiness to be loved into his ability to perform acts of service for someone rather than just.. existing and letting himself be loved.

so as jimmy became more independent, martyn becomes a bit more insecure about their friendship. this becomes a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy as he distances himself from jimmy, feeling like jimmy wouldn't love him if he didn't Need him, and jimmy in return feels confused and hurt as he helplessly watches someone he knew all his life drift away.

that + jimmy has this not-so-subtle crush on scott that martyn's always suspected. he's a jealous bitch.

The storm formed after a final sip, my fingertips frozen solid, I pretend that again I can see, you past the rails, ready to meet And I wonder is it too much to ask, to once more, hold you warm in my hands? To accept I can’t forget, and embrace what still fails to fade?

Milk Tea (Oktavia's translyrics) (because I wasn't kidding when I said these two were cheesy yuri to me lmao)

we had a clown to clown communication moment i think cus I also love the idea of them splitting up and meeting in Third Life years and years later (altho i like to imagine it as more of a voluntary separation).

some stuff copy+pasted from that cursed shipping doc i mentioned awhile back: ((scott + jimmy became a thing while martyn was gone pre-3L))

Now reuniting in 3L as fully grown adults after years apart, all those suppressed emotions come bubbling back up to the surface. An adult Martyn is much less unsure about what he's feeling and Jimmy still has those fantasies of what could have been playing on loop in his head. Of course, Jimmy is still attached to Scott and can't abandon his Bethrothed. He loves and knows what's best for him, he would sooner die than forsake his loyalty. But it does hurt when he hits him. Martyn still cares for Jimmy deeply, whether he wants to or not. He takes the time to keep an eye out for him, even though they had no real reason to interact anymore. He becomes one of the only people to realise what Scott was like with him, how devoid of love it all was. He throws out a line, offers to help him run away. Jimmy refuses. Betrayal. A second time. For the same man. Who cares about Jimmy anyway? (he always did take me for granted)

(a little note here before anyone sets me on fire - time works a bit differently in my writing and the players don't have exact ages but jimmy and martyn's age gap is probably not as dramatic as their cc counterparts)

(it's still there but neither of them even recognise their feelings as remotely romantic until they reunite as adults, as kids it's all just them being silly and having grade school drama with each other)

So uh yeah lots of mutual pining and suppressed feelings and puppy love turned angst👍 tis all i shall say cus i wanna make art of the rest lol

Just a second to lessen the ache, or minute to kiss it away I’d give all I have for the chance to go back to youth and you

[bkblaise]

I'm dumb as hell, so can you explain me why JPtwt is so pressed about Manga leaks?

I mean, I have heard that those who leak spoilers earn some money out of it, so does this money come out of the Mangaka's pocket? If yes, then I'm against it. If not, then what's the big deal? I think there are many bigger issues than this to focus on.

Further, spoilers come weekly, I guess? That too, in Japanese language, so it's the same amount of time as the official release of a chapter—you getting me?

Hi there! Sorry the response is so long. Basically, JPtwt considers leaks ("hayabare") as a crime (it is), engaging with them is something they find extremely distasteful. Not sure why the reaction is so strong, but it is. Maybe it's being protective over manga bcs it's a big industry nationally. However me being Korean, a LOT of people pirate manhwa... so... (though manhwa is generally not as big so the gripe is spoilers & not leaks.) It's upsetting in my opinion specifically because of the fact that the spoilers themselves only come out like 2 days earlier, but, this time it came out on a Friday when they were originally on Mondays (officials come out on Wednesday. But a long time ago, I heard these came out on Fridays and in Korean? Lol. I wasn't there.) Most of the people who were targeted including myself are artists. This is the source of my gripe with this callout/block list, because we never reposted the official copyrighted material in the first place, so bombarding us with blocks and possibly getting our accounts locked when there are people who rely on commissions and a platform to gain said commissions/communicate with commissioners, for instance, is a bit... odd? They could mute us instead... Yes, there are also plenty of people posting the official panels as well, and I get their frustration. But a Japanese twitter user put it well, saying something along the lines of "these users were all also forced to see leaks just like you, except they're not being [immature] about it". In my opinion if I could disengage with leaks regarding manga I would, since this was my policy up until me getting super excited about Kaiser's backstory specifically. I previously did not post about leaks on twitter. The issue is the people posting the original leaks, but they didn't even put them front and center, which I just found confusing. I think technically since English has (online?) simurelease with Japan, it can affect sales. By how much, I'm not sure, because Twitter isn't a real good gauge of just HOW many people see the leaks (a user called Rayuga is the main one as far as I know, and their main has like 90k+ followers, so I'd imagine their reach is still above that follow count... but it also can be less, because twitter is twitter.) I apologize if this is already common knowledge because before joining twitter, I mainly got my leaks from Reddit without considering the source. Scanlations (A group called PO2? is currently scanlating Blue Lock) also probably has the same effect, which when I was in Scans, in my group we had a hard rule that an English official copy being released would warrant us to drop a series so that the author would receive fair support. So not doing that when there is an english copy, is probably damaging. I never checked if PO2 takes donations or have a Patreon or anything like that, which from my time in scans is GENERALLY looked down upon internally within the community. If they do, this is something that I wouldn't really condone openly, specifically because it's still unauthorized redistribution. Attempting to profit off of that usually is because sometimes scan groups will pay their staff. Me, personally, I always worked for free. But if they don't, then I have nothing to say. I don't think people who would have not bought the chapter even if that was their only option would've ever contributed to sales in the first place, right? So it depends. In conclusion, I'm sure there are losses. But it's hard to gauge by how much, so I simply listed all the possible factors for you to judge by yourself.