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[hyderabad-real-estate]

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Weekly Recap | June 3rd-23th 2024 ~ Fics

Sorry for skipping a two weeks! I had a work thing the weekend before before last and work is a bit busy at the moment so I couldn't get to it during the week. Hope you enjoy!

Complete

Take the Lead by Inell/ @inell (Getting Together, Post-S7 | 1,3K | Teen): Buck and Eddie finally have a conversation that they’ve needed to have for months, if not years.

take me out and take me home by bellabrady (Getting Together | 1,7K | Not Rated): Maddie has been texting him, asking him if he’s asked Buck yet and reassuring him that he’ll say yes, although after a few days, it seems her patience started to run out and the reassurance kind of turned into bullying. So he’s going to do it. He’s going to ask Buck out on a date, today. Partially because he wants to finally be with Buck and this will hopefully be the start of that and partially because he’s getting tired of Maddie texting him that he’s a coward — Or: Buck and Eddie finally go on a date.

thanks, babe! by bucksclipboard/ @excuseme-greentea (Getting Together | 1,8K | Teen): Eddie accidentally calls Buck babe and refuses to have a meltdown over it. It was just his subconscious betraying him because they were surrounded by couples, right? Right?!

hit the jackpot by coupe_de_foudre/ @panevanbuckley (Canon Divergent, 1x09: Trapped | 2K | General): “I’m your husband.” “You’re my husband? Holy shit!”

baby don't you know? (you're my golden hour) by ipretendtobesane/ @useramor (Post-S6 | Getting Together | 2K | General): Eddie will give him this: Chimney does wait months after Buck’s out of his coma and back by his side to bring it up. “How come you and Buck haven’t told anyone you’re together?”

I wish I could help by bucksclipboard/ @excuseme-greentea (Post-7x05: You Don't Know Me, PWP | 2K | Explicit): Eddie is so pent up he can barely focus on his job – and Buck is all too happy to help. That’s just what friends do.

the 'i' in ikea stands for 'i love you' by ipretendtobesane/ / @useramor (Getting Together, Didn't Know They Were Dating | 2,8K | Teen): buck has some life changing realizations in the curtain section of ikea. mainly, he's really, really in love with his best friend.

Chance Encounter by Inell / @inell (Canon Divergent, Shannon Lives, Divorced Eddie/Shannon, S4 | 3K | Teen): When Eddie and Buck go to the Hollywood Farmer’s Market, Eddie doesn’t expect to run into his ex-wife for the first time since moving to LA two years ago.

(for every question why) you were my because by thatbuddie (talktothesky) (Post-S7, Getting Together | 3K | Teen): “Being boyfriends and being friends is really different,” Buck says. “But if you’re so okay being friends with him,” Eddie explains, “It means there wasn’t anything he did wrong while being your boyfriend. So I don’t understand why you broke up with him.” “I didn’t break up with him because he did anything wrong.” Eddie opens his arms wide and then lets them drop down to hit the side of his thighs. “But then what happened? I just don’t understand. What happened?” “You! That’s what happened: You!” (or, Buck breaks up with Tommy but won’t talk about it, and Eddie just needs to know why.)

of bake sales and overdue realizations by brewrosemilk/ @gayhoediaz (Getting Together | 4,8K | Teen): Eddie doesn’t notice it until it becomes a thing that happens even when it’s just him and Buck, without Chris anywhere near them - but even then, he doesn’t find it strange, or give it much thought. Buck is the one who starts ending their phone calls with a quick ‘love you’ but it doesn't take long before Eddie does the same, often beating him to it.

one single static frame by signetsealed/ @gayeddieagenda (Post-S7, Pre-Buddie | 5K | General): Chris is gone and Buck and Eddie are called on for babysitting duty. Eddie has feelings about it.

some version of you that I might not have (but I did not lose) by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Coma Dream, Pre-Buddie | 5K | Teen): Either Eddie is dreaming and can't wake up, or he's losing his mind. He's not sure which one is more likely.

Baby Got Buck by bgonemydear, Chash/ @ponyregrets (Pre-canon to S7 | 5K | Mature): Five times Buck checked out a guy's ass before he figured out he was bi, and one time someone checked out his after.

sounding like the rest of my life by coupe_de_foudre/ @panevanbuckley (Canon Divergent, Getting Together | 6K | General): or, Eddie does a Ravi and swaps shifts for a bit, only everyone on B Shift is convinced that he and Buck are married. they might not be as wrong as Eddie initially thought.

buried deep, our love comes home by lookforanewangle (Post-3x15: Eddie Begins | 7K | Teen): “You care for him.” “Of course I do,” Buck says, gaze back on Eddie against his will. He squeezes Eddie’s hand again. “He’s my best friend.” “That’s not what I meant.” “I—I don’t—Bobby, it-it’s not like that—” or: After a traumatic few days, Buck and Eddie get their shit together.

i told my future by reading your lips by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (2x06: Dosed, Time Travel | 7K | Teen): In 2018, on their way to a call at a child beauty pageant, and feeling a little strange, Buck and Eddie are suddenly thrown into a fast-paced look at some key moments from their future. And, what they see? Well it can only lead to one logical conclusion.

oh, come when you're called by lesbianrobin/ @lesbianrobin (Post-S7 | 8K | Teen): Chris wants his dad. He wants his bed. But he can't have those yet, and he and Dad never really text because if Dad’s not working they’re usually together or one of them is too busy to text, so texting Dad feels weird, but Buck… He can text Buck.

🔥 Saints into the Sea by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Post-7x05: You Don't Know Me, Coming Out, Jealous Eddie | 8K | Teen): There's an itch between his shoulder blades when Buck talks about Tommy, when Buck asks Eddie if he wants to join the two of them for a drink after work, when Buck smiles at a text message and Eddie knows it's from Tommy. His stomach had been twisted in knots for half of Maddie and Chim's wedding, watching the two of them. There's only one awful, inevitable conclusion: Eddie isn't actually as comfortable with Buck's coming out as he thought he was. Which is, frankly, unacceptable.

If You Want It, You Can Have It by fruitsdoesnotknow/ @tayf-ghost (Post-S7, Halloween, Identity Porn | 9K | Mature): Buck just wants to enjoy a Halloween night out with the 118, drinking and dancing and making fun of Ravi's costume, all the while trying to handle his newfound feelings for Eddie. He thinks he's being smart, trying to get over his best friend, or at the very least, keep his secret under wraps. He ends up doing the exact opposite. It ends up yielding great results.

🔥 We're at an Impasse Here; Maybe We Should Compromise by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Post-S7 | 9K | Teen): "You cannot murder anyone," says Maddie. "Also, if you were going to murder your captain, it would be very stupid to write murder down as your top idea for how to deal with him." "It's on a dry erase board!" Chim protests. So far, all he's written on the board is Ways to Deal with Capt Gerrasshole, and then 1. Murder? below it. "And I put a question mark. So even if I didn't erase it, the jury would never convict. A question mark introduces reasonable doubt."

friends don't mean nothing to me (it's us) by Kwills91/ @kwills91 (Pre-S2, Canon Divergent | 15K | Teen): Buck and Eddie meet before he joins the 118, and it just might be the balm he needs to get over Abby. But when Eddie starts working at the station, Buck doesn't understand why Hen and Chim keep looking at them that way, or why Bobby seems to think they're dating.

🔥 when the longer days of sun appear, they'll be rising like an answered prayer by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Post-S7, Fake Relationship | 18K | Explicit): Eddie is generally worried when Tommy and Buck break up because Tommy's ex moved back to town, and even more worried when that leaves Buck without a date to a wedding. So, of course, Eddie's going to help him out with all of that.

🔥 like a bird stealing bread out from under your nose by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Post-S7, Fix-It | 21K | Mature): If you’d asked Eddie back in May what rock bottom looked like, it was his son leaving him. That felt like it; everything ruined so entirely that there was no way to ruin it further. There’s always more to lose.

🔥 some things fall when they're meant to fall by sibylsleaves/ @sibylsleaves (Post S7E5 | 25K | Teen): Eddie’s gaze drop to Buck’s lips—pink, like his birthmark. Eddie wants to taste those lips, and he wants it with a fierceness so sudden it shocks him. “I’m, uh,” Buck stammers. “Last night. When you saw me and Tommy…we—we were on a date.” Everything inside Eddie goes still. If his heart is a kite, then this is the moment it plummets back to earth. or, Buck tells Eddie some news. Eddie has a realization and breaks up with his girlfriend. Not necessarily in that order.

🔥 that magic feeling by woodchoc_magnum/ @woodchoc-magnum (S7 Fix-It | 42K | Explicit): An alternate ending to season 7, in which Eddie doesn't completely blow his life up, and he and Buck realise they're in love.

🔥 ripples all the way down by iriswests/ @fcntasmas (Getting Together, S4 | 52K | Mature): With some coercion, Buck allows Maddie to set him up on a date. Surprisingly, the date goes well — and it keeps his mind off the unnamable feelings he’s been studiously ignoring for his best friend. Until Christopher’s science report on gentoo penguins — no, seriously — sets off a series of events that has him somehow spending more time at the Diazes’ side, and he feels like he’s going just a little bit insane trying to juggle a burgeoning relationship, his jealousy over Eddie’s own new relationship with Ana, and his inability to move on from the place that’s been his for three years in the Diazes’ lives. Oh, and Eddie keeps looking at him like he has something to say — except he never says it. This is the tumultuous road to finding out what Buck truly wants, paved by pebbles. -- or; christopher partakes in some parent trapping

🔥 stuck now so long, we just got the start wrong by Daffi_990_ao3/ @daffi-990 (Canon Divergent, Different First Meeting | 85K | Not Rated): Probational Firefighters Evan “Buck” Buckley and Eddie Diaz meet on a call which ends with them at odds with each other. As the months roll by, they keep running into each other on the job, much to Eddie’s dismay and Buck’s delight. Can they put aside their first opinions and misunderstandings and allow the seeds of friendship, and possibly something more, to take root?

WIP

🔥 Steal My Sunshine by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Altered Memories | 7/9 | 24K | Mature): Memories hazy and unreliable, Eddie Diaz wakes up every morning in a house at the end of a cul de sac, goes to his office job at a petroleum engineering company, and comes home to his wife and son. But something is missing, and the more Eddie begins to put the pieces together, the stranger the predicament he finds himself in. 

🔥 If You Can Make the Music by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon Divergent, | 1/5 | 2K | Mature): Spin-off Sequel to Evan Buckley & the Coma-Verse of Madness - Chapter 5 (Seaside): A year after a whirlwind two week love affair with bartender Buck in Galveston, Texas, Eddie Diaz finds himself coincidentally relocating to the area. But when he attempts to reconnect with Buck, he's in for an unfortunate surprise. (Part 3 of Coma-Verse)

The Smutty Ones by Tizniz/ @tizniz (PWP | 55/? | 22K | Explicit): A collection of smutty Buddie drabbles.

🔥 Things We're All Too Young to Know by Daisies_and_Briar / @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon S1-S6, Divergent Post-S6 | 129/? | 405K | Mature): This is a love story. Even if it doesn’t always look like it. Even if it doesn’t always feel like it. A look back on Eddie and Buck's lives up to now, and what led them to each other, interpreted from the current 9-1-1 canon.

Kiss Me Once Cause You Know I Had A Long Night by I_still_dont_understand_13 / @sherlockcrossing (Prompt collection | 33/? | 21K | Teen): 100 kiss prompts.

Chapter 33. 19. "If we get caught kissing we're dead but let's risk it." 

🔥 Held Up a Lightning Rod (Wonder Why I'm Struck) by letmetellyouaboutmyfeels/ @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels (Not A Firefighter Eddie, Sugar Baby Buck | 4/22 | 18K | Explicit): When Eddie Diaz stumbles his way into money, he finds himself one of the most eligible bachelors in Los Angeles - to his dismay. He needs a way to get people off his back without confessing his messy marital situation, and Shannon's still not answering his calls, so he caves to a friend's suggestion: hire someone to pretend to be his partner. Enter Evan "Buck" Buckley: sugar baby, fire fighter, and the man about to turn Eddie's world upside down.

🔥 Any Other Way by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon Divergent, S2 | 13/19 | 67K | Mature): In a switcheroo alternate universe, Buck spends young adulthood in the military, while Eddie, who has no idea Christopher exists, spends his twenties messing around, finally enjoying freedom away from his family’s expectations. When they both end up in Los Angeles, at the 118, some things are different, and others will be the same in any universe.

Re-Read

the secrets we keep (the ones that spill out) by sparegarbage/ @babybucks (Getting Together | 4K | General): Or: Buck and Eddie comfort each other with cuddles, hugs, and kisses (platonically—or so they think).

Tear me to pieces and make me feel whole by justhockey (Getting Together | 2K | Not Rated): And that’s when it clicks. In the pasta aisle of the grocery store, at 10am on a Saturday morning. Buck is frowning as he tries to decide what to get - and Eddie is in love with him.

[wolvesroampastelgalaxies]

Edit: All chapters up on Tumblr & ao3 :p

Okay, so I saaaaid 3 chapters. But like every good ending to a movie franchise, we going halfsies. ;P I will be dead honest, I have only seen the fist episode of FoP: ANW and have no desire to continue, because, as a 24 yo woman I should not feel this distraught about a cartoon. Also, I'm recalling things from the OG series by memory. So if things don't quite line up with canon or lore, just let me have the liberation that comes with fan fiction. Also, I know the show takes place ~20 years ahead, I like to think Timmy kept his fairies till he was 18 and so it has been 12 years since they have last been together.

Second Star To The Right And Straight On Home ⭐️ (Part 1)

Timmy had been working on this sales report for the first 3 hours of shift. His hands were cramping as his eyes strained at the screen. Maybe he needed glasses? Definitely needed to start taking magnesium supplements. Was he really getting that old? It wasn’t like he had done much in his life to feel old at 30. That was another thought, he hadn’t done much of anything. He’d been at this job for nearly three years, maybe a handful of failed dates, and spent his free time napping on the couch after eating room temperature pizza. 

  What am I doing?

  Introspection always vined its way like poison ivy through the ridges of his brain when left with his own thoughts.  

  I need fresh air, maybe take a walk, go grab a drink this weekend, anything to break up the monotony.

  Monotony: he never used that word. The world was starting to bleed into the black and white screen he worked with, smearing into something gray. This was torture, working under florescents when there was real sunlight. His cubicle was near the back of the office and closest to the windows. It magnified his gloominess by teasing the bright colors of the outside. He frequently cast glances to see streams of sun peeking through tree leaves. Most times, there was a finch sized bird sitting on the closer branches. Timmy noticed it the first time when, strangely, he was feeling watched. Or maybe he was desperate for attention. 

  Lately, when he’d go to check on the little bird, it was missing, leaving him discontent. It was a strange color, akin to lavender or periwinkle. No amount of Google searches revealed the species. It wasn’t uncommon for Cosmo and Wanda to take animal forms. Green and pink dogs were definitely harder to explain. There were no strange looks when they were pins on his backpack or- 

  Wait. 

  Timmy’s brows furrow and he moves his hands to grip the arms of his chair, sitting up straighter. Though he was looking outside, all focus was on whatever was unfurling in his head. 

  Cosmo and Wanda .... did I ever have dogs? No. Definitely not a green one. I had fish, it's a wonder they stayed alive for so long. 

  Why did he think of those names? Why could he picture personified versions of everyday objects? Always the same color. Green and pink. Pink and green. Because he knew them. He knew they weren't pins on a backpack or an .... umbrella? 

  They were my fish. Right? But they were also people. No, that’s not quite right either. 

  They were his fairies. And he remembers skydiving. He’s never been skydiving. But how does he know the sting of wind on his face?  And why was his parachute talking? Timmy nearly knocks over his chair as he gets to his feet, heart rate increasing like the one and only time he went to the gym. A co-worker catches the sudden movement, sensing a source of panic. 

    “Yo, Turner, you good man?”

  Timmy barely registers the words and makes a noise in the back of his throat as a reply.

    “I’vegottogo.” He tumbles out, snatching his car keys and phone from beneath the desk. 

  He has to find that fishbowl. 

💫💫💫

    The house had been shut up since his parents left on their yearlong Winnebago journey. Outside of Facebook posts and a few messages he rarely spoke to them. They were never really the attentive type. At least not to their son. Timmy has a hard time getting the door open. Images and dialogue clog up his concentration. It’s like their occurring in the moment and yet he’s recalling them from the past at the same time 

  Wishing for Christmas every day? Really immature Timmy.

  ‘We’re two halves of a whole idiot!’

  Wanting to be a girl for the day was a bad idea from the start. What was I thinking? Even if Trixie Tang was hot. Wanda did warn me though.

  'This bike stinks. I need one that’s cool as I am!’ 'This bike is as cool as you are!’

  'Did I really wish to be in the internet? Oh dear God I’m so happy it wasn’t the modern-day web.

  'And here's Wanda with the news: Vicky 's going to kill you when she finds out what you're up to!’

  His head pounds from the jumbled jargon he once knew as it takes meaning again. No wonder he felt so bored with his life now. He had fairies and dumb wishes with dumb, sometimes disastrous outcomes as a kid. Cosmo and Wanda were his fairies! There was a whole world of fairies, anti-fairies, and pixies and magic!  And there was a whole book of rules, all of them he sees himself breaking. As well as being the source of new ones.

  When the keys finally make it into the doorknob and he throws it open, not bothering to retrieve them or close the door. After he had moved out, his parents didn't do anything with his stuff. Just shoved boxes and the miscellaneous in as they needed. Everything was mostly in the same spot. Including the fishbowl.  

  It was right where it should be on his nightstand. Timmy went to reach for it but pulled back, staring intently. Dust had covered the glass surface, and he was afraid that disturbing any of it might cease the onslaught of memories. He wanted these memories, he wanted to know his life hadn’t been useless. That there were people who wanted the best for him and didn’t abandon him when there was a stupid decision to be made. Knowing that two tiny fairies said they cared for him. 

  His heart was pulsing hot bolts of pain at the thought of having lost them in the first place. At wondering why his god-parents left him and where they were now. 

  After a long moment, he tentatively reached out, bringing it closer, letting clips of childhood reflect off the glass. It was barely big enough for one guppy, much less three goldfish. Three. There had been three.   

  There was no cringe or embarrassment attached to this wish. In fact he remembered being the happiest he’d ever been in his life. It has been him and his god-parents for a long time, and he never thought it could get better. It was an overwhelming feeling of love that encompassed past and present. Cosmo and Wanda for once hadn’t warned him of the repercussions, despite them being epoch-making; they all knew it was so worth it. 

  Sadness has such a way of tainting things. It crept unnoticed as another memory took place. It was in this room. He felt a tight squeeze around his arm and saw Cosmo’s face pressed into his shoulder, muffling sobs, his dramatics matching the situation for once. A light kiss pressed itself into his temple as Wanda patted down his hair. Tiny hands pulled at his shirt and tears stained more than his clothes. Then there was nothing. Like it was all a dream that faded with the night and the sun was rising a now dull dawn.

  Timmy rubbed at the dust with his thumb, smearing a tear across it. He remembered the third one. His voice choked on something bitter as he saw through the eyes of his younger self, hugging the baby fairy when it all went away. 

    “Oh Poof, I - I’m so sorry.”

    “Don’t be. And it’s Peri now.”  

          💫 💫 💫

  Was that really the first thing to say after 12 years? The strain in his own voice prevented what Peri thought might be condescending. Call it intuition or an inference, but he knew Timmy would come back here. After Dev granted his wish, he sat there dumb struck until the kid asked him what happened next. Peri had pictured the reunion with so many different outcomes that, for a moment, he was scared of ‘next.’ Timmy was all the way back in Dimmesdale, across the country, though that was no problem with a little magic. Magic however, could be independent if left without clear boundaries. Peri had no idea how this wish would work out. Would it be instant? Would it come back in pieces? Would it work at all? He was sure he found a loop-hole. He could recall several times his magic went against Da Rules without the intention, and as dangerous as it was, this was his fail safe. 

  This was Peri’s first time shapeshifting into his human form that was not directly from his normal one. His little finch self has flown through the cracked window, its symbolism lost on him.  A human body felt clumsy, but it seemed like the right choice. What if he hadn’t remembered they were fairies yet? Granted, he was still trying to figure out the wings and crown, it was difficult to hide the markers of his true self.

  It would not have mattered if Poof appeared as a fairy or disguised as human, Timmy could see Cosmo and Wanda in him. He had just been a year or two out of his beach-ball stage when Timmy had turned 18, and the then young kid was already resembling his parents. Now, Timmy was struck with the resemblance to his god-parents. His little Poof had Cosmo’s smile and Wanda’s hair, but his eyes were uniquely his own and easily the most identifiable. Timmy had seen those lavender eyes glitter as they first took in the world. He hated anyone or anything that turned those eyes into blank spaces all this time.

  Peri might not have been going by his government name, but he made a noise akin to it when Timmy pounced on him. Petite as he was, something he got from his father (well, before retirement), he felt enveloped by the embrace. Even as a human, Peri was slight and though Timmy was no body-builder, he wasn’t a teenager anymore. The differences didn’t register as he felt the warmth of Timmy’s near crushing hold. His body recalled the last time they were like this, when it was goodbye. As his mind caught up to the haptic memory, the contrast between then and now made him break.

  My brother remembers!

 Relief was meant to be calming, coming out from a storm unharmed, but for them it was a tsunami. For all the bravado and charisma he showcased, over a decade of longing revealed itself. Timmy wasn’t much taller but it was enough so he could hide his face in his brother’s neck, for once not holding back the tears. He felt the human’s cheek press against the side of his head and it was the most contact either had in a time they had stopped counting. Timmy couldn’t believe this, he never wanted to let go, never wanted to forget a single second of this. How could any magic replace this?

  The moment could not bridge the years apart had they stayed this way for twice as long. Timmy had to force himself to push Peri back by his shoulders, one hand staying there and the other pressed against the back of his head to get a better look. If he still had them, he’d wish for the tears to stop so he could see properly.

    “Oh my God. Poof, look at you! You grew up! How-how could I have missed this?” He hiccuped.

   Peri didn’t bother to correct him, the name was childish but they had both been children when Timmy named him and if anyone had a pass to say it, it was his big brother.  The fairy took a shaky breath, attempting to blink away the kaleidoscopic effect of tears. 

    “Like -,” he has to step back, letting both of Timmy’s hands rest on his shoulders, or he might never stop crying, “Like I said, don’t be sorry.” He smiled pitifully. They could fix it now

    “We used to watch - oh what was that show? Sleazy and Cheezy! And you about got me killed!” He laughed, wanting to recall as much as possible

    “And - and remember the time mom was so mad because you were teaching me to shape shift!”

    “Tree and bee do sound the same!”

    “Okay but, you definitely stretched it with the bird and rocket mix up!”

    “Hey, I wasn’t gonna let you take the fall. You were already falling in on our roof.” 

  Reluctantly, Timmy let go of Peri’s narrow shoulders, the euphoria bottoming out. Peri saw the dimming of blue eyes, and an intense anxiety struck him. This time he was the one reaching out.

    “What’s wrong? 

  Timmy pulls away and moved to sit on the edge of his bed. A musty smell arose as the sheets crinkled under the weight. Peri watched as a perturbed look took form.

    “Why?” He finally says.

    “What do you mean ‘why’?”

    “I grew up, they wiped my brain. You could have lived eternity and forgotten about me.”

     Peri had a lightning-like shot of anger, “I could never forget about you. None of us could.”

     Timmy scoffed, “You’re telling me that immortal fairies, who have had countless god-kids throughout the centuries, would find me so important?”

     The fairy clenches his fist, stomping over to force the human to look at him. "You have no idea how hard they fought for you. Or how much of a hole you left for us. They haven't had a god-kid since you.” 

    “Really?” He concedes. It dissipates into something bitter and selfish when he sees Peri’s resolve falter.

    “Well -

    “I figured as much.”

    “No, you don’t understand.” He says the harshness leaving, replaced with empathy. He sits down next to Timmy. “It was very recent. And I was mad and couldn’t understand either, after all we went through.”

   “Thanks.” He says flatley. 

   “Will you just listen to me? When they met Hazel, they said it felt different from their time with you. Because they realized you meant more than being their god-kid. That it was the same feeling they have with me.”  

 They think of me like their son? 

  Timmy wills himself not to let go of another tear, but it has been an emotional day and having half your life re-written can be a little overwhelming.

    “Do they know, that, well, that I know ? ”

    Peri grins, a bit of debonair sneaking in, “Would you like to tell them?”

  He thinks of the first time he met his god-parents, at 10 it never crossed his mind to be skeptical because, hey, unlimited wishes. Now that he’s older, he realizes all the lessons he learned from them. And how he could get away with so much more with Cosmo and how Wanda would nag him like a mother. They were more his parents than his biological ones. 

    Timmy bumps his shoulder with Peri’s, “You realize we probably are going to be crying again?”

    “No doubt. Family reunions can be emotional.” He says with a curt nod, now wearing a full smile. 

  Family. His family. 

    “I gatta ask though, did you say your name was Peri?”   

[eliasorchard]

Maybe you run a flower shop which had William’s favorite flowers for sell! :3

: this was a really cute request, thank you :)

: fluff, slice of life, william j. moriarty x gn!reader, kinda ooc?

the bell above the door jingles as you, owner of a well known flower shop in your town enter, carrying a floral arrangement. it is early, you're getting ready to open up for today and you can hear the chirping of morning birds.

you hum to yourself as you put the finishing touches on the arrangement, carefully arranging baby's breath amongst blue tulips. satisfied with your works you step back with a smile and place the vase on the counter, just as the sun beams in through the large storefront window.

a few locals stop in for their weekly bouquet purchases. you chat with them while putting together their orders. mrs. murphy orders lilies for her kitchen table while the johnsons need assorted flowers for their son's wedding this weekend.

as you box up the johnson's order, the bell above the door jingles once more, and you look up to greet the new customer. "good morning and welcome! how can I help y..." your voice trails off when you notice who walked in.

it's william james moriarty, one of the noble brothers that had moved in town recently. you'd seen him walking to work recently, but were hesitant on whether to introduce yourself.

he smiles at you, "hello, i just moved in with my brothers and was hoping to find some flowers to brighten up the new place."

you feel your cheeks flush pink. you'd heard that he was handsome, but not to this extent. you wipe your hands on your apron and step around the counter. "well, william, let me show you our selections. i think I have just the thing."

you lead him over to the rose display. "our roses are always a good choice for a new home. the reds and pinks give a nice pop of color."

william gazes admiringly at the roses. "they're beautiful, my favourite flowers as well. but i was hoping for something a little lower maintenance. my green thumb is more brown."

you laugh at that. "no problem at all." you walk william to the back corner where miniature rose bushes sit in terracotta pots. "roses are your favourite, aren't they? well, these mini roses are perfect for beginning gardeners. they don't require much care but the blooms last for weeks. they come in a variety of colors as well — red, pink, yellow..."

he runs his fingers along the velvety petals of a soft yellow rose. "these are lovely. i'll take one of each color, please."

"excellent choice!" you beam. gently, you lift the pots and carry them to the counter. as you're ringing him up, william strikes up a conversation. "have you owned this place for a very long time?" he asks curiously.

"about five years now." you reply, smiling at him. "i've always had a passion for flowers so when I saw the shop was for sale, i took a chance."

"it seems to be working out well for you." he notes, glancing around at the thriving shop. "do you live near here too?"

"just around the corner, actually." you hand william his bag of roses. your fingers brush slightly as you doe and you feel a flutter in your heart. clearing your throat, you speak: "let me know if you need any gardening tips for the roses. and.. free to stop by anytime."

"i think i just might take you up on that offer." william smiles warmly, bidding goodbye and leaves the shop with roses.

you sigh happily, watching him leave.

having a good looking neighbour doesn't sound too bad...

a few weeks have passed. it's a busy saturday morning at the flower shop. you're putting together floral arrangements while also helping customers. as you finish boxing up a large wedding order, the bell above the door jingles.

you look up hopefully, wishing to see a certain neighbor... and sure enough, it's william.

"good morning william," you say, hoping you sound calm and not too giddy. "what can i do for you today?"

william holds up a potted rose bush, it's blooms now drooping. "i'm afraid i may have over-watered rosie here. i was hoping you could give me some tips on reviving her?"

you raise an eyebrow; "you named a flower?"

william smiles shyly, shrugging.

you grin. "of course, let me take a look." you examine the soil, which is soggy & heavy. "hmm.. too much water does seem to be the culprit. don't worry though, it's an easy fix."

you lead him to the backyard greenhouse, "we'll transplant little rosie to fresh soil and trim away any rotted stems." a pause. "a dose of fertilizer should do the trick, too."

you work in comfortable silence together. you feel your pulse quicken at williams's close proximity and wonder whether it's just you that's feeling this way. when they finish replanting, your eyes meet and both share a shy smile.

"there we go... that should do it." you stand up and brush the dirt from your hands. "be sure not to over-water again! one good soak per week is plenty."

william reaches for his wallet but you stop him. "ah, nono. please. it's fine. i didn't do much anyway."

he pauses, hand still in his pocket. "are you sure?"

"mhm." you nod. "completely."

"well, then. thank you very much for your help, (name)." william says sincerely, eyes creasing at the end as he smiles down at you. "i'm not sure what I'd do without my favorite florist. is there... any way i can repay you?"

you feel yourself fluster at the title. before you can second guess yourself, you speak: "you know, the grounds are looking a bit overgrown. i could use an extra pair of hands weeding. any interest in helping out for a bit?"

you watch as his face lights up. "i'd be happy to."

you spend the afternoon with him, laughing and chatting as you work side by side in the garden. william is a willing pupil, and he soaks up whatever you have to say. when the sun starts to set, you realize hours have passed.

"i think that about does it. thanks so much for your help today, william." you say with a smile, although a twinge of disappointment is apparent now that the time is over.

"my pleasure." he replies sincerely. there's a beat of awkward silence before he speaks again. "(name), i was wondering...would you like to get lunch with me sometime?"

you beam. wow, was this really happening? "i'd love to," a pause." if you bring me a bouquet of those roses you like."

[viviennevermillion]

ᴀᴅᴏᴘᴛɪɴɢ ᴀ ᴘᴇᴛ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ♡

disclaimer: want to be notified when i post something new about your favorite characters? join the taglist! also feel free to commission me! if you're interested in browsing through a big selection of twisted wonderland fanfiction? check out our collaborative network masterlist!

contains: character x gn! reader, pets are allowed in the dorms in this one

characters included: kalim, epel, idia, malleus

warnings: none

Kalim is ecstatic about this idea. The first time you suggest this to him, he's so happy; smiling brightly at you and spinning you around in a hug.

He instantly wants to tell Jamil all about it. The latter is a little concerned about Kalim's ability to take care of a small animal; remembering all the times Kalim struggled to take care of himself without Jamil needing to step in.

"Oh we could adopt a camel! Or an elephant!", Kalim is already looking up suitable pet names on the internet. You take his hand in yours and squeeze it. "Kalim, my dear, I was thinking more of....you know...something the average person can actually take care of", you explain carefully and sigh.

The two of you eventually decide on getting a puppy. Very fitting for Kalim, whom you have once referred to as "the human version of a golden retriever".

You know that scene in the beginning of "Bolt" where Penny picks up puppy Bolt for the first time? That's Kalim, walking into the pet shop and staring at the puppies with such a bright, happy gleam in his eyes. You can't help but want to capture this moment, so you take a photo of him; Kalim gladly indulging you. He smiles into the camera whilst holding one of the small dogs up, petting it gently.

"So...got your eyes on one yet?", you ask, pressing a kiss to Kalim's cheek.

Kalim is gonna take home the puppy that's most active out of the ones in the bunch, much to Jamil's disapproval. But Kalim can hardly say no to his newfound little friend, the way the puppy immediately brings him one of the toys running around and expects Kalim to play with it.

Kalim loves that dog so much the second he takes it home. He loves cuddling it and playing with it. Sadly, though to no one's surprise, Kalim has absolutely 0 grasp on the dog and it will not perceive him as an authority figure whatsoever. If you want it to be potty trained, to stop jumping up and down at people due to excitement and not steal the other dorm member's shoes and chew on them? Congrats, that's your job now!

Kalim and you often take walks with your puppy.

It sleeps in Kalim's room so when you're staying over, holding Kalim in your arms and trying to sleep in on the weekends; expect a small dog to join you in your attempts to cuddle or try to catch your attention.

Kalim picked the most stubborn, active dog they had and now you're going to have to try and get it to listen to you. Crowley already complained 5 times.

Epel would love the idea of adopting a pet with you. He has a soft spot for animals. He's just worried about his dorm leader and knows that Vil would hardly be keen on the idea of having a pet at Pomefiore dorm. So if possible, the pet will stay with you most of the time.

Epel holds your hand all the way to the pet shop. "Okay, so, I'll need something that won't make a lot of noise, won't carry Vil's belongings anywhere, won't 'mess up my makeup' apparently and something that preferably doesn't walk around the dorm", Epel sighs and looks around the store.

His choice is made when he looks at the bunnies they have for sale. Epel used to have bunnies as a kid and he still likes them and finds them cute.

You chuckle after looking around the store alone for a while, finding your boyfriend near the bunny cage, holding a small, white rabbit that seems to have fallen asleep on his arm. "This one", he says excitedly.

Epel would refuse to name his bunny something "cutesy". You'll have to deal with name suggestions such as "Skullcrusher" and "Thundering Fury".

He's so happy to share this experience with you.

When he brings the bunny back to the dorm for the first time, Rook makes an off-handed comment about 'hunting', causing Epel to clutch the small creature and shield it from Rook. "Leave skullcrusher alone, I'm warning you", Epel tells him and Vil raises an eyebrow. "You named it skullcrusher?", his disappointment is obvious with his tone and he turns to you, "and you didn't stop him?" You shrug and smile. "He seemed very happy."

Epel takes good care of the rabbit and he loves sitting on the couch, snuggled up to you, holding the little bunny in his arms.

He wants to make its enclosure as nice as possible for it, buying little toys and tunnels to keep it entertained.

Panics if it ever escapes and runs around the dorm. Partly because he's scared he won't find it again or that it might get hurt, partly because Vil is NOT going to like that.

"Calm down", you put a hand on his shoulder, "we try all possible options first before we panic." You grab your things and start looking with him.

He's very relieved when your shared pet is back in your care. Vil actually found it and handed it to Epel. "Next time, keep a better eye on it", the Pomefiore dorm leader sighs; not seeming nearly as mad as Epel had insisted he'd be.

Epel takes you home over the holidays and brings your bunny with him, showing it to his parents and his grandmother. They reminisce about the time Epel used to have bunnies as a kid and show you the pictures of Epel as a young boy. "Y/n, we're so happy Epel brought you over for the holidays- oh, look, and here's him trying to eat the sand cake he made in the sandbox!", his mother exclaimed, resulting in Epel gesturing frantically. "Don't show them that!"

Your bunny just observes you quietly.

For Idia it's instantly clear that you're getting a cat. He's so excited about the idea, given how much he loves cats.

Also one who starts thinking of names before you even go to the store to get a cat, but simultaneously he's worried that he's going to settle on a name but then it won't fit. "It needs to be clever and accurate", he insists, explaining to you the list of names of his favorite game characters, "for example, this character, in the game, has a forehead mark on his face. So if the cat has a spot with white fur on its forehead, this name would make sense." "You're putting way too much thought into this...", you mumble and run a hand through his hair.

One of the few instances where you don't have to convince him to show up only with his tablet instead of in person. "We're making a major decision here. I cannot make judgement half-heartedly", Idia holds your hand and stays close to you as you walk through the village on the island towards the pet store. "But for the dorm leader meetings where major decisions about the school are being made the tablet suffices?", you chuckle and raise an eyebrow. "The normies are capable of handling these. The task of naming our cat is one that demands precision, wits and top tier gamer spirit."

Idia is ecstatic about the cats. Not so much about the store clerk who keeps trying to give him advice. "I- I'm sure we can pick on our own", he tries to shake him off as he shows Idia and you the cats with a friendly smile, "y/n say something please." The last part he whispers and you let out a sigh. "We'll call out to you once we've picked one. My boyfriend is a bit shy", you explain and Idia looks at you with wide eyes. "Don't say that", he whispers as the store clerk tends to other customers.

Idia picks a calm and quiet cat, perhaps a little on the chubbier side; one that seems sleepy and starts to purr and close it's eyes when Idia holds it in his arms. He also instantly finds a name from one of his games that fit the kitten. "See, that wasn't too hard, was it?", you press a kiss to his cheek. "You're right", he hands you the kitten so that you can hold it too for a while, "as soon as I saw it, I knew instantly."

Idia lets the cat sleep in his bed and you two often end up cuddling with it at night. He picked a very affectionate one.

When Trein reprimands him for not coming to class in person and catches him playing games instead of paying attention in the lesson, Idia insists he'll show up in person only if he can bring the cat for comfort. Because Trein has a cat himself, he lets him.

What Idia hasn't calculated in was the fact that small, cute kittens tend to attract a crowd of students asking to pet it. So he ends up surrounded by his classmates, stuttering about how his cat needs its peace and quiet. You have mercy on him and take the cat from his arms, dealing with the students in his stead.

The cat also starts a fight with Lucius, which Trein insists "could never be Lucius' fault". Idia doesn't know how to handle the conflict.

Needless to say, Idia was even more set on not coming to class in person after that. While you are sitting in class, you often receive text messages from your boyfriend, consisting of dozens of cat pictures and videos.

"Look at it, y/n! Isn't it cute?", he texts and you glance to the board to make sure Trein doesn't catch you texting in class. "Yes it is. I see it every day, Idia." "The magic of cats never fades."

For Malleus and you, the decision to adopt a pet was a spontaneous one. You two snuck out without the knowledge of his guards, something you insisted in front of Lilia was an activity you "definitely did not do frequently", and now you wandered the small settlement on the Isle of Sages.

Malleus was going on and on about an abandoned building you saw on the way here and you mused how cute he looked eating his ice cream with a small plastic spoon, his fangs flashing everytime he opened his mouth.

You looked around and passed by the pet store. From the window, you could see inside; observing a small iguana staring at you from the window display.

"Malleus....", you start, the fae prince turning around to check what you were looking at, seeing you point at the creature, "impulsive question, but what do you think about getting one of those?"

Malleus puts his finger at his chin and thinks about it for a while. At first he doesn't get what the point is, as a pet like this lives maybe 25 years if you're lucky and this seems very short for him. You remind him that he has had GaoGao Dragon-kun for even less and it still brought him a lot of joy he's glad to have and Malleus has to agree that you have a point.

"We could take care of it together", you say.

Oh boi

You don't know what you kicked loose.

Malleus perceives this as like, a very big bonding experience with his beloved that will bring you so much closer and prepare you for one day taking care of an entire kingdom together; something he definitely thinks about frequently and is more than ready for.

"Very well then! I would love this very much", he smiles and presses a kiss to your temple. So it's decided.

You come back to the dorm with a terrarium and a small iguana in your arms and the brightest smile on your face as you see Lilia. "We impulsively decided to raise a pet together", Malleus exclaims proudly. Lilia is just looking back and forth between you and Malleus and sighs. He doesn't even know how to break it to the queen yet that her grandson has fallen in love and here he is adopting a pet and probably planning his wedding in his head.

Malleus is super careful with your pet because he knows he's sometimes having trouble estimating his own strength. He holds it super careful and he's very pleased that it's not afraid of him.

He names it GaoGao Dragon-kun. You mostly call it Drakon but Malleus always addresses it by the full name. You go to the vet for the first time and she's like,,, trying to set up a file for your pet and she's like "what's its name?" and there's Prince Malleus Draconia who has to duck under the doorframe to enter the vet's office and made the entire waiting room silent with just his presence and he very seriously answers "GaoGao Dragon-kun" and the assistant of the vet just sighs and makes herself another large cup of coffee.

notes: trying to get used to writing shorter headcanons again because i want to post more often and like, my old shorter headcanons were fine. also just got my wisdom teeth removed (ouch) so expect headcanons about twst characters comforting you after wisdom teeth surgery.

taglist — @mochinee @moldy-cheeto @xxheartspadexx @rose-the-witch1 @endlessorrow @curekibouka-writing @kaeyafrost

[randomingoftherandomness]

Quick breakdown of my dominATE_Singapore experience

slept about 6 hours grand total the whole weekend

first night i got home i slept with medicated plasters all over my body

we unofficially started queueing up for merch at 6 on the morning of the concert when the official queue only started at 9 ish and merch sales only started at 10

a bird almost crapped on me while we were waiting so that was fun

the bandana sold out in front of me. not so fun

spent more than i should have. undecided on the fun

got so much fan merch, met so so many cool and talented STAYS, saw so many creative ways they expressed themselves. needless to say, I'm in love with my STAY fam

that three-hour concert felt more like 1 hour it was AMAZING

because i am vertically challenged, i wore heeled wedges. was not enough. still had to tip toe and hold my camera above my head to get a clear shot of anything

BRUH THEY SOUND JUST AS GOOD LIVE (idk why this surprised me but it did)

BRUH THEY LOOK SO GOOD LIVE (I’m still reeling from how stunning they are)

I was the closest to being choked out by the BinCeps and I am so happy about it

JYPapi gave them the budget budget

But the layout of that stage is damn shitty

Personal opinion; I think the guys need a month long break

damn near died of the heat, so i commiserate with the guys when they look about ready to expire from the perspire

I can see why people like doing this so much lol

If anyone wants to see some highlights, I have them up on my instagram @thegabcarrie coz I’ll be probably making some reels and some such from the experience

[sanguineterrain]

may i pls request 12 + 63 for robin 🥺

i honestly do not remember what prompt list this was from YIKES but hi nika thank u for sending a robin req, ur a real one <3

12) “Take my jacket, it’s cold outside.” and 63) “Cross my heart and hope to die.”

robin buckley x fem!reader. love confessions and kisses :-) ft. wingman steve (king)

****

One thing about snow in Hawkins is it never falls halfway.

Your parents are away for the weekend and don't know about the two feet of snow that hit last night. You've been content ignoring said snow and staying curled up in the house. You study, watch movies, and make hot chocolate. A whole pot of it, in fact. Snow days are great when you don't have to dig out the car.

You hear a scraping sound outside, like plastic on pavement. You turn off the stove and open the curtain.

It's Robin. She climbs the hill your neighborhood sits upon. She drags a large, green shovel behind her.

She's also nowhere near appropriately dressed for a Hawkins winter. Clad in only a windbreaker and a hat, you know Robin has to be freezing.

You pull on your heavy duty winter coat and scarf and head outside.

"Robin!" you call and start to unravel your scarf.

She looks up. You wonder how she walked all the way here from her house.

"Oh!" She pushes a couple strands of hair out of her face as you approach, cheeks flushed with cold. "H-hey, Y/N."

You stop in front of her, arms crossed.

"What are you wearing?"

She looks down, then at you.

"A... sweater?"

"Exactly! A sweater. It's below freezing. Here, take my jacket. Or my coat. Which do you want? I'll give you my coat first. Should fit you—it's loose on me."

You shrug out of your coat and manhandle her arms through the sleeves. Then you take off your scarf. Robin catches your arm, eyes wide.

"Y/N, it's really okay. I've been shoveling all day, I barely feel the cold anymore."

"Well, that's not a good sign, Robs. Let me put the scarf, come on."

She obediently bows her head so you can wrap the scarf around her neck. Plumes of foggy breath mingle in the air between you. Robin's eyes are a little half-lidded when you're done.

"Thanks," she whispers.

You beam. "You're welcome. Come have some hot chocolate."

"Are you sure? I–I mean, I don't wanna interrupt anything. You're probably having dinner, right?"

You shake your head.

"It's still early. My parents are out for the weekend. You're not interrupting anything. And God, all that shoveling? You must be exhausted."

You take her bare hand in your gloved one and frown.

"Remind me to get you some gloves," you say, and lead her inside.

Robin lets you pull her in. You nudge her into a chair at the kitchen table.

"So," you say. "Marshmallows? Whipped cream?"

"Oh. Um, yes, please. Thank you."

You pour two cups and swirl whipped cream in both. Then you decorate with too many mini marshmallows. You serve the dessert drinks. Robin immediately goes for hers and cream smears on her nose and lips.

She sticks her tongue out and crosses her eyes.

"Do I have something on my face?"

You grin and get a paper towel. Robin stares at you, lips slightly parted as you carefully wipe her face. You fold and toss the paper towel. Robin swallows.

"Th-thanks," she says.

"Sure thing," you reply, feeling a little warm. "Are you cold?"

"No, I'm okay. Your coat is really warm."

"Isn't it? I got it on sale at Sears. I could get you one too if you'd like. I'm a fiend for bargains."

Robin snorts.

"What!" you say. "I am!"

"Nothing, nothing. You're just really nice."

"Robin Buckley, you smooth talker. I do believe Steve is rubbing off on you."

She rolls her eyes. "God, I hope not. We were supposed to shovel together and then three streets before your neighborhood, he said he had to go home. I didn't take the ride; I've been making good money."

"But your fingers are like Otter Pops," you fret, taking her hands in yours.

Robin's cheeks are red again. You stand to feel her forehead.

"You're all flushed, Robs. Do you feel sick? I can make some tea. I also have a box of Hothands."

"N-no," she squeaks, blinking up at you. "I'm okay, really."

"Well, we can call Steve, if you like. I'm sure he'd be willing to pick you up—"

"No!"

Your brows raise. Robin shifts in her seat.

"Um, what I mean is, he's probably busy, you know? Like super busy. He had to drop everything and go so, like, it's not a big deal."

"It's not a big deal that he ditched you?" you ask. "But you guys are best friends. Why would he do that? And right before you had to climb the hill to my house?"

Robin twists her ring around her pointer finger.

"Yeah, weird. But you know, Steve has his whims. He's a... whimsical guy."

You squint. "Did he say why he ditched?"

"Uh, no, no. But like I said, it doesn't really matter."

"Well, you can stay as long as you want. I'd drive you myself but my parents have the car."

"That's okay." Robin smiles. "I like drinking hot chocolate with you."

"I have cookies! Oh my gosh, let me get those out. You'll love these. I made them yesterday."

You flit about the kitchen, getting out plates and the tin of sugar cookies. Robin takes off your and her winterwear, draping them over the chair. Then she unzips her windbreaker, revealing a smart red sweater with snowflakes printed on it and a lace collar.

"That's pretty," you say and take the plates of cookies over.

"Oh, this?" She pushes a loose curl behind her ear. That's when you notice the sparkly red barrettes.

"Those are too!" you gush. "You got all dressed up for shoveling snow?"

"Um... kinda."

You hum. "It's so unlike what you normally wear, Robs. Do you have a date or something?"

"No," she says weakly. "No date."

"Well, any girl would be lucky to have you," you say.

She perks up. "Really?"

"Of course!"

You know Robin's been pining for that Vickie girl in school. And you're okay with that. Robin doesn't even know you're an option, after all. You can't blame her for pursuing other people.

Robin takes a bite of cookie.

"Shit," she says. "These are amazing."

You grin. "I'm glad you like them. I'll give you some to take."

She chews for a bit, then suddenly sets down the cookie.

"Hey," Robin says. "Can I... can I tell you something?"

"Always."

"Okay." She takes a deep breath. "Okay, just... please promise me that if you don't feel the same you won't... we won't stop being friends."

You tilt your head. "Feel the same? Robs, what are you—"

"Please?" she begs. "Please promise me."

"I promise, Robs. We literally fought a DnD monster last year. Nothing could make us stop being friends. Cross my heart and hope to die."

Robin chews her lip hard. She fidgets with her collar.

"Nancy helped me pick this sweater out," she says. "This morning."

"Nancy? Uh, okay... what does that have to—"

"Steve didn't ditch me," she blurts.

You shake your head. "I don't understand."

"I wore this sweater for you."

"For me?"

"I like you, Y/N," she says quietly. "I really, really like you. I didn't choose to shovel this neighborhood by accident. And I'm so nervous around you so Steve suggested I find an excuse to see you and then it snowed and I thought, maybe I can shovel your driveway and I'll finally have a real conversation and stop chickening out! But–but then you gave me your coat and brought me hot chocolate and oh my God, you're like the sweetest girl ever and I really, really like you and—"

"Robin."

She stops, eyes wide. You crouch so you're level with her chair.

"Sorry," she whispers.

You shake your head.

"Sorry for what?" you ask with a smile.

And you kiss her.

Robin makes a surprised noise but she doesn't pull away. Her fingers are cold on your cheek so you cover them with your hands to warm her up. She tastes like hot chocolate and icing. Her lips are chapped and you know her habit of picking at them, so you take care not to tug too hard with your teeth.

She hums, soft and low, and you understand. It feels like you fit.

"Do Steve and Nancy like sugar cookies?" you ask when you pull away.

Robin's brows furrow. "Steve definitely does. Why?"

"Well, I feel like they should get a treat for the parts they played."

Robin grins slyly. "Do I get a treat? I feel like I played a huge part in this, too."

You bite your lip through a smile and tug Robin forward by the collar of her sweater. She catches herself on your arms, blush high on her cheeks.

"Of course you do, Robs. You get all the treats you want."

[thesoftboiledegg]

Me walking into a store for a merchandise roundup:

Minus the "dumb."

Evidently, the post-holiday season isn't the best time for roundups. Most of the Rick and Morty merchandise at my local thrift stores is gone. It's a hot gift item!

I decided to branch out and visit stores outside my area. I was wandering around the kids' section at Ross, not expecting to find anything, until I spotted a Rick and Morty tag:

A beanie with the classic design. I probably would've found more items if I stopped by before Christmas. I don't know if they'll get much more apparel before spring--when I worked in retail, sales were dead in January and February.

Speaking of thrift stores: my local Marshall's had a Rick and Morty shirt with a Kohl's tag, so I decided to visit Kohl's directly. I wasn't having much luck there either until I stumbled on a shelf of licensed shirts near the entrance. I probably walked right past them!

I love the colors on the first shirt, but the second one is a little creepy. Reminds me of The Shining. That's...also not a face that I've ever seen Morty make before.

My local Marshall's sold every bit of Rick and Morty apparel, so I went to another location. They still had pajama pants in stock, including a new design with a holographic label. ✨

Homer Simpson joined in, too! Simpsons merchandise is pretty common in this area. Futurama apparel is a rarity, and I've never seen anything related to Disenchantment.

This weekend also brought the usual mall trip. New Rick and Morty sweatpants at Rue 21 right next to The Boondocks. They actually sell a lot of Boondocks apparel--I just don't post about it because I haven't watched the whole series yet.

Customers have snatched up most of the Rick and Morty Funko Pops that someone dropped off at the "nerdy" store before season seven. A few remain, like Wine Mom Beth.

Nothing new at Hot Topic or Spencer's, but Spencer's did have this poster in stock. They had it for a week earlier this year, and then it disappeared. I was glad to see it again because it's one of my favorite illustrations.

Happy shirtless Rick...did you Rick fuckers buy all their stock the first time? 🤔

Pickle Rick just can't catch a break. He was still stuck at the bottom! But not anymore because I moved him to the top of the pile.

Finally, I usually don't come home with anything, but I left the mall with the first Funko Pop that I've ever bought.

Hang on, let me peel off the sticker...

It's Artemis Fowl!

I'm not a huge Funko Pop fan, but Artemis Fowl merchandise is so rare that I might never see it again. I thought about how much I would've loved this figurine in elementary school. And I love it today!

I haven't seen the movie because by all accounts, it's terrible, but one good thing came out of it. I'm surprised that Artemis Fowl barely made it to store shelves because the series was huge when I was growing up. But the rarity makes this figurine even more special.

[omegaremix]

Pandemic Blues (Spring).

When Dad passed away, I knew it was a new era. No more of his presence meant things would change on the inside and out, for better or worse. He almost had hit the U.S. average of male life expectancy by a pinch (78.54 years to his 78.19) so he’s had about his money’s worth. God couldn’t have cashed him out at a better time.

To start 2020, I took two weeks off from work for the first time in the six-plus years I’ve been with the company. I’ve met friends I haven’t seen in ages. I’ve abandoned non-successful projects in the name of self-care. I’ve re-wrote my diet for the better now that Dad wasn’t pumping me with free food ‘round the clock. I’ve also become the store champion in revenue for the year once again, and learned how not to get stress get the best of me. I had only one sunny day out of the twelve off in February which was extremely disappointing. As all you devils know, heading to New York City never leaves my mind. I promised myself that I’d make a visit to both Modern Pinball and Sunshine Laundromat, visits I’ve been waiting three years for. I came close. I did visit the city in early March for a check-up and visited Central Park as I called up my Godmother Laura to make Easter plans, leaving only after a half-an-hour when it started to get dark. By then I’d started to receive inklings of pending changes. The coronavirus was only in the back of my mind, and you normally don’t think of these things unless it pertains to you. I dialed up my aunt Theresa and she told me that the city schools and offices were contemplating closing down. I brushed it off like it was nothing, until…

It was a weekend at work like any other. A regular Sunday. Then it started. A customer asked me for nine mid-range laptops for himself and his co-workers to work from home. I sold them all to him. That’s a $3,100+ ticket. Another older man came in looking for five printers and ten monitors for his business. I could’ve hit the jackpot if only we had enough but we didn’t, but we piece-mealed whatever we could from other stores and that was another $1,500+. More customers and business owners came in to buy buy buy whatever they could to work at home with no limit and we now had a weekend clearance sale we never planned for. Every man and woman for themselves rushed in to save their jobs and tried grabbing whatever they can. When the weekend was over, they wiped us out of all our essential stock. Webcams, budget laptops, and monitors went clean off the shelves. We were fucking bewildered.

One outstanding memory I had of last year’s outbreak was seeing someone eye-ing over all-in-ones. After twenty minutes of no one asking him for assistance, I finally got him. He already had as much time under his belt deciding which way to go: Windows or Mac? He had lots of questions for me, and took me on a world tour of my own department to see which of three units he wanted to take home with him. Fine by me, because being in the presence of his brown-eyed peanut-butter haired daughter was all that mattered. Imagine Jessica Chastain in her late twenties and neck-length hair wearing a green St. Patrick’s Day shirt with a beige clover on it and blue jeans. Somewhat conservative and reserved but she was nice 100% all throughout. That’s more I could say than most people on the island or in my life I’ve met. An hour later, her dad finally decided on a high-end unit. “Wrap it up” he said. “Thank you for your time and purchase” I say, and it’d be the only time I would ever see her. Eventually, I noticed more customers coming in wearing masks. A different father-and-daughter pairing didn’t get it right wearing theirs under their chins, a half-assed way to at least fend themselves from the poison going on. Later on, two young female best-friends asked me for a Nintendo Switch. When they saw I had the Animal Crossing version, they suddenly asked for two more. Done. Knock yourselves out.

Within one week our store changed operations on a near-daily basis. We shortened our hours, then limited our total number of occupants to appointments only. By mid-week our store was closed to the public and it was all phone-orders and curbside pick-ups. Salespeople became impromptu warehouse and back-end runners. We couldn’t believe what we were experiencing. We were literally witnessing the slow gradual death of our traditional operating model. Corona- finally arrived and everyone was on edge not knowing what was coming next. Then we got the call from corporate: “all New York stores to be shut down indefinitely until further notice. Pack it up and go home. Expect a call from us in a few weeks”.

This was unreal! Our positions were in limbo. It felt like we were let go yet still employed otherwise. Meaning: furlough. We’d be fortunate enough to hold our titles and be kept on the payroll while we were mandated to stay home. Later as I learned, the ‘essentials’ as deemed, still had to work on through as a necessity to others; pegged to deal with the public who had no foresight as to how serious it would be. Before heading home indefinitely, I walked next door to the market. Never had I seen meat and paper shortages. Bare shelves of canned goods, frozen vegetables, pasta, and rice like the world was ending. There was no timetable for lockdown or how it’d last. I was now in competition with everyone else to stay alive. Count my high cards that an long-term food shortage was not the case.

27, 47, 81.

If only Dad would’ve lived long enough to see this unfold. He’d be forceful enough for me to stay home with him like some early exits from my location did. I can imagine that even if my bro- didn’t yell at him to stay home, Dad would say “hey, fuck you!” and drive out to see his friends. He literally fell of heart failure, and if that didn’t get him, would the -virus? Could he survive it with his expiring health and the spectre of death on impatient delay? Since Dad fed me almost daily, he’d feel very sad and broken if he couldn’t bring food home for me. He’s not here on this Earth anymore to do that, so it was time to change it up. The haunt of immuno-compromization had me thinking to cut the crap and go healthy.

245, 332, 417.

My ex- Yenny, the most cautious person in the world, sent me directions on how to make my own mask which I did out of old worn-out tees. Welcome to the new real dystopia. The first aesthetic of the pandemic was in the form of this makeshift cloth mask dampened with my own carbon-monoxide emanating the smell of damp stale cotton. Back to the neighborhood Chop N’ Drop I go. I stockpiled on fruits, vegetables, broth, anti-oxidants, juices, dark chocolates, nuts, and seltzer water. The moment of spending money on real food was the moment I started making real meals; the mixture of Idaho and sweet potatoes, celery, carrots, and vegetable broth aerated a distinct spring of fumes forever tied to these months in isolation. A daily carousel of apricots, oranges, cauliflower, tomatoes, and green peppers were a wonderful much-needed addition I had to have from now on. Visits to Bullseye had plenty of food, albeit the shelves were disorganized and the essential workers were overwhelmed. Idolatry was only steps away and to stock up on whatever non-perishables I could find, then threw them on the belt where the young silent Spanish girl who didn’t feel like being there was waiting for me at the register.

I noticed all around me that things were a little…different. Most of us were given things we never imagined. You’d never think of being home for months to have the opportunity to catch up on a life they once had no time for. People finally caught up on cleaning, pursing through personal belongings, old photos and memorabilia, reading lists and vinyl records that piled up. Imagine all the things said about not having to travel to work, or staying home to work, or not working at all. They were right. No such thing as stress. No managers shoving daily quotas or finding faults down your throat. No awkward moments, lack of courtesy, rudeness, or interruptions. No immature adults turning into bus-ride children competing for your attention or older women stamping their feet when being reminded of how out of line they were. It was total bliss.

486, 548, 753, 819. 

Most of us had all the time in the world to shit ourselves in our front-row seats for what we were seeing. It’s all happening next door in New York City, fatally crowned the epicenter of the worst pandemic of our lifetimes. We were The Death Nation. The deaths came at such an expedient rate that literal dead bodies were lined up outside the city’s funeral parlors. By then, restaurants closed. Businesses closed. Stadiums, theaters, arcades, bars closed. Schools and universities were canceled. Even Easter, the next social holiday in line…closed. The nation’s unemployment rate spiked high as 15% as people pounded on the doors on a broken system to have their unemployment benefits or loans in hand as soon as possible. No meta-game suffered distinctly than the music and venue industry. Artists, operators, and promoters had their livelihoods taken away from them in an instant; forced to make a living improvising on live-streaming. They just lost their selves overnight. Now, they held on tight for their own stability and sanity; hoping to reach for that brass ring while riding on a lagging carousel engulfed in flames. 

Over at WUSB, the show still had to go on. Our general manager disallowed any further staff to enter the studios. As most planned to live-stream from their homes, I opted to send my shows in. For the entirety of spring (and summer) I’d hand my shows in our engineer’s at-home automation for broadcast. Saturday 10:00PM Eastern Standard Time on the dot, no error. I had all the time in the world to post on Ω+, my portfolio VMFX, and get Our Lady Omega finally up to speed without worry of deadlines, distraction, or needless interruption. It was when I rifled through many auditions burning on the hard drive. Cleaners From Venus’ “The Jangling Man” couldn’t have come at a better time, signifying a cancelled Easter intended to be spent with my Godmother now at home. I never heard it ever but it yet it sounded familiar before. The cassette fidelities and a certain ‘89-’90 recorded feeling that took me back to my Nintendo youth becomes a new forever memory. Shoegaze and post-punk cuts such as Ing’s “Closet”, Milly’s “Talking Secret”, Es’ “Hidden Track”, and Miserable’s “Loverboy”, to name a few, have indisputably defined the pandemic era’s soul.

But enough of that for today. Down comes Mario, my five year-old nephew who’s yearning to play. Dad / Pop is no longer here, so it’s me he’s looking forward to seeing every day to try and win me on Uno or Candy Land while ginger-superior Madelaine Petsch / Cherry Blossom or Hayley Orrantia were on the flat-screen. We had nights where he’d chose a deck from my collection and we’d make separate piles out of suits. He’d play some good ones, too: the “Junior” of Hearts, the “Mom” of Diamonds, and the “Dad” of Spades he calls them. Aces were “sooper!” and the jokers had their own narrative: a clown on the unicycle was riding to 7-11 to get some Slurpees for us. (Once in a while, a horse-head or the word “MAVERICK” in cowboy caps- for those wild ones.) What kind of an imagination is this? And he loved Monopoly, too. We played so much that it inspired another aesthetic forever tied to the pandemic. Solid oranges and sky blues against the CRT’s, and Monopoly symbols of trains and utilities helped create sets of icons for a series of graphics templates I’ve made.

800, 814, 1036.

Red bottles with blue and red labels of now-discontinued blue liquid soap. Blocks of green and white cleanser cubes cased in plastic. Bulbs of blue and purple diffusing liquid. Cucumber sanitizer. They’re all symbols of cleanliness. All the time in the world posting, sound-editing, and layouts prove exhaustive at times. It’s 1AM Eastern Standard Time in New York City / Long Island and an open window allows the smoky cold chill of a 50°April breeze to vacate downstairs. It’s an invitation to step outside and admire the clear moonless skies. No clouds, only the stars above. I sit in my backyard to hear near-total silence emanating from the expressway. The asphalt rushes were a bare minimum because no one had a reason to travel. The utmost quiet was enough for the nostalgia to vacate right in. The cold, clear, quiet spring Saturday and Sunday nights spent with my Plainview circle of friends. We’d talk shit about everyone we knew, what our favorite Green Day, The Offspring, Collective Soul, or Nine Inch Nails songs were, and matching up with the alternative girls I never met before. The post-dinner April starlights spent shivering with Cath- off the busy Sunrise Highway admitting how much I missed her and how it felt when she succumbed to the heroin demon, the drives down random gas stations to save her ass, or the rare night rides from campus to take her home after my Wednesday radio stint. The temperatures also matched the experience of visiting Central Park for the very first time while an essential contact was in the back of my mind, her text asking how my day in New York City waited for me when I arrived home. It kills me that these are rare moments I’ll never have back. To this day that I’m still paying emotional interest on them.

142, 103, 101.

Rinse, repeat. For two months there was no place to go. No work shifts, classes, ballgames, weekend traffic, or Sunday dinners demarcating the days of the week. Saturdays were Tuesdays. Sundays were Mondays. No one ever humanly experienced a blur of time where every day was literally the same. Then a phone call. “Operations are re-opening. Be here Sunday and ready to start packing.” What my manager should’ve said to me: “be ready to be crucified”. I told myself it’s the last week of May. Three days to get back into it. The spoils of staying home from work once again with financial security and benefits intact will end. Slowly but surely things will pick up again. The floodgates will soon open and here come the entitled Karens, ugly kniving fishwives, dumbshit Tony’s From Brooklyn, and whatever unkempt messes who somehow still manage to breathe will tug my shirt for attention or see me as a whipping boy for their insignificant grievances I never asked for. 

If the quarantine made many lives a nerve-wracking unbearable hell for some people, then what happened next would be the breaking point: footage posted of Minneapolis police murdering George Floyd sent people into the streets in an outrage, and rightfully so. Short-Term Memory America didn’t learn and repeated their mistakes once again. No surprise there. The unnecessary needless precursory murders of Breonna Taylor and Armaud Arbury led up to the state’s latest nationwide collapse of unrest.

It took the latest event of racism and murder for everyone to finally come outside since the start of the pandemic and show what they were hiding for the longest time. Frustrated adult-male mouth-breathers acting out like total jerkoffs throwing their childish ignorance and building blocks in more reasonable mature people’s faces, and unattractive vanilla pig females turned into cartoon versions of themselves as they yapped multitudes of n-bombs and were damn proud of it. Cutting noses and spiting their own faces; doing whatever it takes at all costs to preserve their personal right and false constructs in treating people-of-color like garbage. Bulletin-board bruisers and ultimate keyboard warriors finally brought it out for all of the world to see. Others, however, had enough of their friends, family, co-workers, and fellow human beings being shot, beaten, or killed based on the color of their skin. They came to protest, picket, fight in the streets, and set it all in flames because enough was enough…enough of a corrupt racist celebrity president who’s done absolutely nothing except write off white supremacists and dismissed the coronavirus as a hoax. It all came down to this after living in an irrational anything-goes backwards presidency, all because the Fascist-in-chief cared for no one but himself, his family, and those who pledged their allegiance to him.

If the last four years provided us some out-of-this-world ridiculousness, what else would’ve been possible? We’ve experienced a hell like no other. We genuinely lived in fear that we could reach the point of no return. No one had any idea what was in store for us or how bad it could’ve been; during an election year, nonetheless. 

Where I’m heading is another story. I drive home down Rt. 25 and there are clusters picketing on the side of the road. One supporting Black Lives Matter, one for Tr*mp 2020. Summer’s on her way and the new heat was here; the allegory of pent-up frustration and emotion which everyone was feeling exacerbated by the pandemic. The possibilities were spring-loaded in the back of my mind and made me on edge, not knowing what could happen. 

All I, and us, could think about was when this would all end, and when we could go back to life as we knew it. We were holding out on all hope that something had to give. When will we be open for business again? When would be all go back to what it used to be, or what would ‘the new normal’ be? Will we change course and advert a national crisis, or will be dig ourselves a totalitarian grave so deep we won’t crawl out of? Will we have reason, rationality, science, humanity, and common sense back again, or will we have hatred, nastiness, cruelty, and contempt kept in place for tradition’s sake and have it rammed down our throats until we die sick of it?

It was the three most surreal months of my life. True uncharted territory; no map, no compass. And Spring wasn’t even over. Not just yet. As everything was unfolding and unraveling, something else was headed my way. A season that was anything but normal was going to end on an even more bizarre and curious note. Not in the form of more shutdowns, sickness, emptiness, or despair; but of someone who reached out to me.

(To be continued.)

Cleaners From Venus “The Jangling Man”

Damp “Death, Sex & Arby’s”

Ing “Dust”

Crumb “Ghostride”

Future Islands “Day Glow Fire”

Lisel “Digital Light Field”

Milly “Talking Secret”

Stardeath & White Dwarfs “What Keeps You At Night”

Miserable “Loverboy”

Districts “Cheap Regrets”

Snarls “Walk In The Woods”

Es “Hidden Track”

Strobobean “Keep It Together”

Katie Tempest “People’s Faces”

Penelope Isles “Round”

Shopping “All Or Nothing”

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

Projections have THE GARFIELD MOVIE opening somewhere in the $20-30m range for the three-day, and somewhere over $30m for the 4-day.

In other words, it's opening like a typical post-COVID breakout animated movie. Unless you were the Mario movie, MINIONS 2, or few other films, you stayed below $30-35m for the three-day opening. For context:

$146m - THE SUPER MARIO BROS. MOVIE

$120m - SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE

$107m - MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU

$57m - KUNG FU PANDA 4

$50m - LIGHTYEAR

The five half-hundred openers. And then... Other big studio Western animated movie (and in some cases, hybrid)... Squarely below $35m:

$33m - IF

$31m - SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY

$30m - TROLLS BAND TOGETHER

$29m - ELEMENTAL

$28m - MUTANT MAYHEM

$27m - ENCANTO

$23m - THE BAD GUYS

$23m - DC LEAGUE OF SUPER-PETS

$22m - PAW PATROL: THE MIGHTY MOVIE

$22m - SING 2

$19m - WISH

$17m - THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2

$16m - THE BOSS BABY: FAMILY BUSINESS

$14m - TOM & JERRY

$13m - PAW PATROL: THE MOVIE

$12m - MIGRATION

$12m - PUSS IN BOOTS: THE LAST WISH

$12m - STRANGE WORLD

So, yeah, THE GARFIELD MOVIE is performing as usual. It curiously has a B+ CinemaScore, when usually, an animated picture - no matter the reviews - gets an A- minimum. I still expect it to leg up until INSIDE OUT 2 is released, and make back its fair $60m budget.

Director Mark Dindal deserves a big hit after three movies that didn't quite cut it at the box office. CATS DON'T DANCE was dumped by Warner Bros. and made soooo little in 1997, THE EMPEROR'S NEW GROOVE was similarly dumped by Disney but had the fortune of garnering excellent legs that might not have covered its budget, but it showed that Disney had a sleeper hit on their hands... and then there were the subsequent great video sales that probably un-flopped it a year later. CHICKEN LITTLE barely made the grade. Dindal hadn't directed since, the closest he got was with DreamWorks' unmade ME AND MY SHADOW. Dindal would be replaced by Alessandro Carloni on that film, and then DreamWorks nerfed it altogether. (Though they did briefly revive it as SHADOWS, courting Edgar Wright to direct at one point!)

So, yeah, I'm rooting for Garfield! For Dindal! I'll be seeing the movie in about a week or so.

As for the other side of this weekend's box office coin... FURIOSA:

I want to point out... A lot of people are seemingly confused as to why FURIOSA isn't breaking out... Thus making for a pretty small Memorial Day box office long-weekend...

When were the MAD MAX movies ever these massive blockbusters here in America?

The first film was barely released theatrically in North America, lost in the midst of its domestic distributor - American International Pictures - being acquired. The film's breakout success in its home country, Australia, was really what lead to sequels. MAD MAX 2, released as THE ROAD WARRIOR stateside, did fairly well but wasn't among 1982's biggest movies. MAD MAX: BEYOND THUNDERDOME, thought to be the most Hollywoodized of the movies, also did okay enough. Again, nowhere near the edge of the Top 10. I reckon for most people my age, FURY ROAD was their first MAD MAX movie. It certainly was mine, and then I went and blind-bought the other three movies thereafter.

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD opened with a fair $45m back in 2015, and went on to gross $380m worldwide against a $150-180m budget. Barely 2 1/2x that price tag if it was $150m, so I guess it just made it. Enough for more movies to be made at least, as Tom Hardy was signed on to reprise his role as Max Rockatansky for at least a few more films. A fifth movie proper is in development, apparently... But, yeah... $380m. Good gross, but not... Let's see, STAR WARS or MCU-sized. Not DUNE: PART TWO nor RISE/DAWN/WAR OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, for fellow sci-fi comparisons...

And nor did it need to be... There's more a gnarly, punk-like edge to these movies anyways.

Which is why I did not expect FURIOSA to make that much more than FURY ROAD, especially since it's about a younger Furiosa and it's a prequel. Having not seen the movie due to circumstances (I'm gonna aim for it this coming Friday), I've also heard that it's way different from FURY ROAD, which was more or less a two-hour car chase that barely lets up. This apparently, at 2 1/2 hours long, is more in line with the classic MAD MAX movies. There's some vehicular action that really delivers, but the bulk of it is a lot of atmosphere and long stretches that really souses us into the wasteland world of the series.

One of my pals actually compared it to director George Miller's previous film, THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING... And... Uh, if it's really anything like that film, it's going to be interesting to see how it holds up in the coming weeks. THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING is a curious film that I didn't particularly enjoy much, but it's very cool that a $60m movie that appears to be Miller - in his 70s - pondering and reflecting on the art of storytelling and the big mosaic of it all even exists. Now to see that applied to a massive budget action movie in an iconic sci-fi franchise? Even cooler. That's what you call taking a BIG SWING. If MAD MAX 5 happening hinges on this movie's success, I really hope it defies the odds.

So THE GARFIELD MOVIE doesn't have a massive bar to clear, and it's already over $50m worldwide thanks to opening in a few territories beforehand. Should make back the budget easily. Only needs to clear $150m to do that. Legs would really have to be bad in order for it to not do so. FURIOSA is the one I'm concerned about, as that cost $168m to make. If that closes the door on future Wasteland movies, then that will suck big time. Fingers crossed for both.

[glassheadcanon]

Café/Bookstore AU (personal)

That latest, cute poetry comic at first had me all like: "there's an Independent Bookstore Day?! Yay!" and reminded me how few indie bookshops now exist in our city. There's a very big, locally owned one with heavily marked-up pricing that does quite well enough to compete with the major retailer to have two locations; a couple of niche/genre-specific ones that are all new/retail shops; one mega used bookshop in a heritage building that's in a constant state of uncleanliness and near-hazardous disarray that's somehow survived for decades in spite of it; and a handful of much smaller used bookstores scattered around the city.

For many years, DL and I would visit this little, one-room indie bookshop/café in a quiet neighbourhood, where the walls were lined with used books for sale. They served a modest selection of hot beverages, homebaked goods and even Japanese onigiri (to our delight); they also sold and encouraged boardgame play, hosted local creative clubs/meetups and occasionally local musicians, and opened a tiny little patio when the weather permitted it. DL would bring his sketchbook, and I would bring my writing, and we'd order ourselves a couple of London Fog tea lattés, a cookie or two for DL's sweet tooth, and an onigiri for my savoury/salty one. There, we'd enjoy a relaxing weekend afternoon or weeknight evening and then sometimes go home with a new boardgame or used books to add to the collection. Sadly, it was one of quite a few neighbourhood small businesses we'd frequented, which didn't survive the lockdowns and since then, we've yet to find it's equal.

Sitting in that little café/bookstore, DL and I would occasionally wax sentimental about what it might be like if we owned our own little place like that ("...but much tidier," my ever-meticulous husband would insist): it would also be chock-full of used books and boardgames for sale, and have a small library of the latter for anyone to play. DL would brew the coffees, and I'd provide baked pastries/treats (oh, that ever-present fantasy of just chucking it all and becoming a pastry chef). We'd play recordings of quiet, non-intrusive Ghibli Jazz, of course. But we'd definitely need to get a bookshop cat. Sigh...perhaps one day!

[spnhunter4life]

End Up Here Chapter 6

Chapter Summary: A few weeks into dating, Emily's friends finally get to meet Dean.

Word Count: 4k

A/N: Last chapter is here! This does feel like a quick ending to me because as you might be able to tell by how much effort I put into including details about Emily's friends and place of work, I had initially planned on making this longer. I even have a separate Google Doc made for a character list (people and horses) and details about them. But I kind of lost interest in writing anymore and was happy with this as an ending point. I hope everyone else agrees!

Masterlist Series Masterlist

Six weeks went by during which Dean and I saw each other every weekend. We’d gone out to eat, seen a movie and attended a concert which we agreed was one of the worst concerts we’d been to, but it was still fun just being with him. Last week the fair had been in town so we spent our time together enjoying the food and rides and watching the rodeo. It was a lot of fun, but we both wanted to do something a little more lowkey the next weekend. 

We planned to spend the day together. He came over to my house at 10 am. He spent a little bit of time trying to get to know Ziggy – she was a bit nervous around him the way she was with every new person she met, but she didn’t outright hate him the way she sometimes did, so I was counting it as a win – and I appreciated his effort. He seemed to genuinely want to gain her trust. Whether for my benefit or his own, I wasn’t sure, but I was happy about it nonetheless. We took her for a walk right away, trying to get out before it was too hot outside. It gave us a chance to catch each other up on the events of the week and gave Dean a chance to see a little bit more of the town he was currently calling home.

We spent the rest of the morning playing card games and ordered Chinese food for lunch. After we ate, we sat together on the couch for a mini movie marathon. We’d both come up with a list of five favorites. We would choose from the list at random and get through however many movies we felt like watching. Leaning into Dean’s side, his arm around me and Ziggy curled up in my lap, I was happier than I could remember being in a long time. When supper time rolled around I threw a couple of frozen pizzas in the oven. 

Our last movie of the night finished just after midnight. We said goodbye and Dean kissed me in a way that left me a little weak in the knees. He kissed me for the first time after our second date and at least once every time we were together since then, but I was still nowhere near being used to the way it made me feel. It wasn’t because he was such a great kisser – which he was – it was just him. Being with him just felt right. I couldn’t be anything but happy when he was around. Sometimes just looking at him made me a little breathless so I really didn’t stand a chance when we were touching. I wondered if and when that would stop being the case.

Now it was Monday morning and I was in the office. It was Labor Day so we weren’t having any classes. We all came in for a meeting which ended ten minutes ago and were now just hanging out. Those of us who had plans for the day didn’t have anything going on until the afternoon, so we were just enjoying the company. Currently Lauren was trying to find a horse she’d seen for sale the other night and insisted was “absolutely perfect. We have to get him.”

“We already have all the horses we need. We’re not looking for new ones,” I reminded her.

“I know,” she said, waving me off distractedly. “But you’ll change your mind when you see him. Everybody has room for one more horse when it’s a horse like this.”

I knew that wasn’t the case. No matter how good of a horse it was, we simply didn’t have a need for it and as a nonprofit organization, we couldn’t afford to just throw money down on every good horse we came across. But I would humor her. This wasn’t an uncommon occurrence and she knew as well as I did that we wouldn’t be buying him. She just got excited about showing off nice horses when she found them, something none of us could fault her for.

“Ah hah!” She said triumphantly. “Here it is.”

We all crowded around her to see this amazing horse. I quickly scanned the pictures and information and rolled my eyes a little. I could see why she liked him. He was a very nice looking horse. Good conformation, good size, and the short video posted showed him to also be a good mover who listened to light cues. But the biggest reason she liked him, I knew, was because of his color. Lauren was a sucker for a dapple gray. 

“Isn’t he perfect?” Lauren swooned. There were a few murmurs of agreement and admiration.

“Depends on what you mean by perfect,” I answered. “He’s certainly not a good fit for here.”

“What? What could possibly be wrong with him?” Lauren countered.

“What is wrong with him?” Morgan asked. Though we all knew this was just for fun and not a serious interest in the horse, Morgan was quite serious. She was very proud to be part of this program and very good at her job, but her job was an office job. She didn’t get involved in the horse side of things, but she was always interested in learning more.

“Not counting the price?” I asked pointedly. Everyone looked back to the screen and saw the $17,000 asking price. It wasn’t unreasonable for that kind of horse – he was bred to be a show horse and had pretty decent bloodlines after all – but it was out of our price range.

“But just look at him move.” Rose insisted, always enjoying being difficult. In a teasing way of course. “Plus, he’s gorgeous.”

“He’s way too young,” I countered. He was only three years old, and we didn’t take horses younger than six. It was safer to have horses with at least a few years of experience on them.

“But he’s gorgeous,” Rose and Lauren said at the same time. 

“He’s a stud,” I argued. This very important fact didn’t shut the conversation down the way it would have if this were a horse we were really considering. 

“What’s wrong with trying something new?” Lauren asked.

“Alright then Lauren, if you want him so bad then how about you buy him and donate him. And then figure out a way to rearrange all the horses so he’s not with any mares while you’re at it.”

“Done,” she said immediately. I just laughed. 

“Speaking of studs,” Natalie said with a teasing smile. “How’s yours Emily?” 

“Yes, how is Dean?” Jackie quickly jumped in, always eager to know about people’s personal lives. 

“How’s Jake?” I countered, naming Natalie’s boyfriend of almost a year.

“He’s great,” she grinned, humoring my attempt at deflection. “He treats me like a queen. Very polite and gentlemanly during the day and practically falls at my feet to worship me at night.” Or teasing me for not immediately sharing, apparently.

“Great. Thanks for that mental picture,” I scowled. I didn’t mean it though, and she knew that. We shared pretty much everything with each other and Natalie especially was not shy with the details. This was not new information.

“Anytime,” she winked. “See how easy it is to share? Your turn.”

“I feel like all we talk about anymore is me and Dean. What about Hannah? How’s it going with Riley?” I asked.

“We talk about everybody pretty equally actually,” Jackie countered. I guess she would know. “You just don’t like to be the center of attention so it feels that way to you.”

She wasn’t wrong. And in the spirit of not wanting to be the center of attention, I brought it back to Hannah again.

“So? Riley?” Despite our predictions that night in the bar, the two of them were still going strong. Apparently Hannah really liked the guy and we had very badly misread things.

“Please. We’re old news,” Hannah said dismissively. 

“Old news? You’ve only been going out for like a month longer than me and Dean,” I said.

“Oh, that’s right!” Hannah said excitedly. “You’re coming up on two months aren’t you?”

“And you’ve managed not to scare him away!” Rose enthused, calling back to the joke she made the day after we met. “Congratulations! You must really have him hooked.”

“That joke just doesn’t get old,” I told her, trying to sound annoyed. The small curl I could feel in the corner of my mouth probably gave me away though. “You know, I think it might actually be even funnier the second time.”

“Well it’s certainly funnier than the ridiculous memes Jackie thinks are hilarious,” Rose replied. 

“Hey!” Jackie squeaked out in mock outrage. “They are hilarious. It’s just that none of you have a sense of humor.”

“Well I can see you ladies are hard at work,” said a deep male voice behind us. I recognized it immediately. 

“Dean!” I gasped out in delight as I spun around to see him. He was standing in the doorway looking happy to have surprised me, if not a little awkward.

“Hi,” he smiled my favorite smile, the one that made his eyes light up, as he opened his arms for a hug as I made my way to him. As his arms closed around me a strange mix of a steady, mellow contentment and a wild, overwhelming excitement filled my chest.

“What are you doing here?” I asked. 

“I just wanted to surprise you,” he shrugged. “And I hear so much about this place, I wanted to see it too. Sorry to interrupt,” he apologized to everyone else in the room. I pulled away from the hug but leaned into his side when he left one arm curled around my waist. “I was trying to wait for a break in conversation, but there wasn’t one and it was starting to feel like eavesdropping more than anything, so I figured I should just say something.”

I knew without looking that everybody would be ecstatic at this turn of events. They had all been dying to meet Dean and while I’d promised to figure out the best way to introduce them all, I admittedly hadn’t been trying very hard. I was happy just to keep him to myself for a little while longer.

“Wait,” I said, feeling a small frown form on my face. “How long were you standing there?”

“I came in just in time to hear you talking about the gorgeous boy who was too young. I’ll admit, it was a relief to realize you were talking about a horse.”

I saw the teasing gleam in his eye and whacked him on the shoulder. The laugh he’d been holding back broke free and I huffed and rolled my eyes, but couldn’t stop a smile from tugging up the corners of my mouth.

A throat cleared, letting me know that someone was done with waiting for introductions. I looked back at my friends and saw Jackie with a raised eyebrow. She must have been the impatient one then. 

“Oh. Um, guys, this is Dean,” I said unnecessarily. They all knew very well who he was. “Dean, this is Lauren, Jackie, Natalie, Rose, Hannah, and Morgan,” I told him, gesturing to each girl as I named her. 

“It’s so nice to finally meet you!” Jackie said, perfectly fitting the part of an overexcited mother meeting her daughter’s boyfriend for the first time. “We’ve heard so much about you!” She continued, oblivious to the betrayed look I shot her way at this comment.

“Only the good stuff I hope,” Dean answered good naturedly. 

“Why?” Rose asked. “Is there bad stuff?” She said it in a joking tone, but I knew she was partially serious. 

“Rose.” I said in warning. It had only been 20 seconds and I was already itching to get Dean out of here, away from the group of women I loved like family but who, much like a real family, had the power to be truly embarrassing and frustrating. Dean brushed it off easily, though.

“Nothing bad enough to complain about I hope.”

“But we can’t forget the two most important questions,” Morgan chimed in. “How does Ziggy like you and how do you feel about horses?”

I smiled, grateful to her for lightening the mood before the others could start throwing out tactless, prying questions. They didn’t mean to be so intense and were actually usually better in smaller groups, but when we were all together like this, they just got too excited and carried away.

“Mm, yes. Very important questions. Answer carefully,” Nat agreed playfully.

“Well I only just met Ziggy so she’s not too sure of me yet. I’ll win her over though,” he said confidently. “And I’ve spent very little time around horses, but I’m willing to learn.”

“Great answer,” Jackie said approvingly. 

“Ok,” I said before Rose could voice whatever question she was clearly about to ask. On the one hand, I didn’t want to leave immediately when they just wanted to get to know Dean better, but on the other, I didn’t want to subject him to an unending line of questioning. Although he really should have known better than to drop in unannounced if he didn’t want to be interrogated. “I’m going to go show Dean around. We’ll see you guys later.”

I could see that they wanted to protest, but they all said goodbye. I didn’t miss Rose’s mouthed wow! when Dean’s back was turned or Jackie’s encouraging thumbs up. I ignored them both.

“It was nice to meet you,” Dean said with a wave as I ushered him out the office door, through the kitchen, and then outside.

“Hold on a second,” Dean said, sounding amused at the way I was dragging him along with me. He planted his feet and gently pulled on the hand I had tangled with his. “What’s the hurry?”

Just trying to escape before they decide to ambush us out here, I thought. 

I let him pull me closer as I tried to come up with an answer that wouldn’t make my friends sound bad. Before I could come up with anything though, he put one hand on my waist and one in my hair as he leaned down for another one of his butterfly-inducing, knee-buckling kisses. It wasn’t a long kiss, but I was still a little breathless when he pulled away.

“What was that for?” I breathed out. He smiled, looking a little proud of himself. Probably because of my inability to control my reactions around him.

“Just saying hi,” he told me. “I didn’t get a chance before. I didn’t figure you would appreciate it if I kissed you inside in front of all your friends.”

I laughed.

“That was very sweet of you,” I told him. “But I’m afraid waiting until we were outside was pointless. I can almost guarantee they’re all watching out the window right now.”

We both turned to look at the big picture window facing the deck we were currently standing on. Sure enough, there was a flurry of motion as they all scurried away.

“It’s the thought that counts?” Dean said a little apologetically.

“It’s fine, Dean,” I assured him. “It’s not like they weren’t already well aware that we’re dating.”

I took him on a tour of the facility. I explained to him how we did things and he had lots of questions. He asked about the different kinds of tack, some of the things we had set up in the arena, and, as I took him around to show him the horses, he wanted to know everything I could tell him about each one. I was really happy to see his genuine interest.

I didn’t expect his response when I expressed my surprise at the detailed questions he was asking.

“You’re just so in your element here,” he explained. “Normally you’re pretty quiet and sometimes unsure. You seem happy to let anyone else take the lead. But here? You’re like a whole different person. It’s really cool to see.”

I flushed a little at the assessment and the bit of pride I could swear I saw in his eyes, but I also couldn’t disagree. I’d noticed that myself. I’d actually come out of my shell quite a bit thanks to this job, but outside of work I was still pretty reserved a lot of the time.

Once I’d shown him everything and finally exhausted his seemingly endless questions, we decided to head back to my place. Dean wanted some more time to work on winning Ziggy’s affections so we planned to scratch a few more movies off of our list. 

I told Dean to wait outside while I ran inside quickly to grab my things. Rose’s car was the only one still in the parking lot. I braced myself for the probability of her questioning but was ready to brush her off at least for the day. Dean waiting outside was a reasonable excuse for not hanging around.

She was sitting at one of the desks, absently scrolling through her phone, clearly waiting for me. 

“Look, Rose, I know you want to talk, and I promise we will, but I don’t have time right now. Dean’s waiting for me,” I told her, making a preemptive strike.

“That’s ok. I assumed you would be spending the day together.”

“Oh. Then… Why were you waiting for me?” I wondered.

“I just wanted to be the one to let you know that we all love him.”

“Really?” I asked. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, that’s great! But I got him out of here pretty quickly. You barely talked to him.”

“Yeah, about that. You’re going to have to let us actually talk to him one day, you know.”

“I know. And I really do want you guys to get to know him. It’s just-”

“It’s just that all of us all at once can be a little intense and you didn’t want to freak him out. I get it,” she said. “And we’d love the chance to talk to him, but we don’t need to get to know him to like him.”

“Because he’s so good looking?” I asked a little wryly. She smiled, but didn’t take the bait like I thought she would. 

“Because we were watching you two together out there – don’t give me that look. It’s spying, it’s rude, it’s wrong, I know. But we were curious, so sue us.”

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t contain my smile and gestured for her to continue.

“Anyway, we were watching you together and honestly, I’ve never seen you so happy. It’s obvious that you’re completely gone for the guy. You look at him like he’s the only one in the world who matters. And he was looking at you the same way. What more could we ask for, for you?”

“Thanks, Rose,” I said, feeling overwhelmingly happy. I gave her a hug.

“So on a scale from 1-10, how good of a kisser is he?” She asked. Of course she had to go and ruin the moment. I grabbed my purse and water bottle. 

She wasn’t a gossip like Jackie, but she still loved gathering up all of the nitty gritty details. Now that I thought about it, I was actually kind of surprised she’d waited this long to ask me this question.

“You’ll never know,” I told her, not wanting to get into it. Partly because Dean was right outside and it felt weird to touch that subject with him right there, and partly because Dean was right outside and I didn’t want him to have to wait too long.

“Obviously not. That’s why I’m asking you,” she insisted.

“Bye, Rose! Don’t forget to lock up!” I said over my shoulder. I heard her grumbling as the door closed, but knew she wasn’t mad. Just as she knew I would give in and give her the details eventually. 

“Ready?” Dean asked from where he was leaning against his car.

“Let’s go,” I agreed.

~~~~~

A little over an hour later, after stopping for lunch, we were just getting settled on the couch. I grabbed our list of movies, ready to choose a new one. 

“I have a question,” Dean said.

“Another one?” I asked, feigning exasperation. Dean’s answering smirk was knowing.

“Don’t pretend like you didn’t love answering all those questions.”

He was right. I couldn’t deny it. I loved telling people about my work and I loved Dean’s interest.

“What’s your question?” I asked.

“It’s just something that’s been bothering me. A comment one of your friends made before you knew I was there.”

Uh oh. I wracked my brain, trying to remember exactly what we’d said. Did something offend him?

“She made a comment about how you haven’t scared me away yet.” He continued. “And then you said it wasn’t the first time she’s said that.”

“Oh,” I said, not really sure where he was going with this. “What about it?”

“Don’t you see a problem with that? I mean, why are your friends assuming you’d scare me? I know you said that before me it had been a while since you dated, but that doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.”

“It was just a joke,” I assured him. I loved that he was trying to look out for me, but I wondered why this upset him so much.

“But why?” He asked again.

“It was just… a way to lighten the mood I guess.”

He didn’t say anything, just raised an eyebrow and waited for me to explain. I sighed.

“Dean. Do you realize how attractive you are?” I asked him. “I mean, like… being realistic here, you’re kind of out of my league.”

His eyebrows wrinkled and his mouth pulled into a small frown.

“You think-”

“No, I don’t think. I know,” I cut him off. “And this isn’t me fishing for compliments or anything like that. It’s true. I know you’ve said before that you think I’m attractive, and I believe you and I’m glad, but the reality is, no matter what you think, you are out of my league. I mean, you could be a model.”

“What does this have to do with anything?” He asked, clearly not agreeing, but willing to let it go for now to hear my point.

“Well… remember how I told you I got ambushed at work the day after we met?”

“And they thought we went home together,” he said, confirming that he did remember.

“Exactly. When I told them that’s not what happened… Well they just didn’t want me to get my feelings hurt. They told me that you were probably the kind of guy that was just trying to use me. And when I let them know that definitely wasn’t the case, Rose just made a joke about how if you were so great, I needed to make sure I didn’t scare you away. She was just trying to lighten the mood. It really wasn’t an insult.”

He thought about it for a moment. 

“Ok, you’re right. I guess that’s not so bad. But just for the record…”

He kissed me again. It was much more intense than any other kiss he’d given me before. This was not a spontaneous, ‘just because I feel like it’ kiss. It wasn’t a hello or goodbye kiss. It wasn’t even an end of the night, leave ‘em wanting more kiss. This was a possessive kiss. A point proving kiss. I tried my best to keep up with the level of passion and enthusiasm he was throwing into it. When he finally broke away, I was very glad to be sitting down. I was sure I would have fallen over if I’d been on my feet.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he concluded. 

“Um. That’s… yeah. I’ll be sure to give Rose the good news,” I said a little stupidly. My brain was working in overdrive and apparently none of it was helping with speech.

He laughed. It was a sound of pure happiness. Giddy, almost. I realized that I was ridiculously, hopelessly in love with this man. And I remembered what Rose said. About how Dean looked at me the same way I looked at him. Could he possibly feel the same?

“I mean it. I’m here to stay. I hope that’s ok with you.”

My cheeks hurt from the grin that split my face.

“I think I might be ok with that.”

Tags:

@123passwort @buckybarnes-1917 @chicken-nuggs-and-cozy-hugs @globetrotter28 @suckitands33

[theoriginalmarke]

SWEET SATURDAY SALUTATIONS

She’s home! Kitten got home late last night. Yay!

The cats immediately greeted her luggage. It took a little more time to welcome her. Except our neighbor cat Raja who sleeps with us. She was rubbing on Kitten right away. 

It was after midnight when we neared the house. We noticed that our neighbor’s horses were in the barn, and they’re not supposed to be. In fact, there’s an antique buggy that they could easily damage. 

We stopped, and five of them had crowded themselves around the buggy. I shooed three of them out and the other two I had to use a rope around the neck to lead out because they were being brats.

The ropes are in the same side room as their sackful of treats. They saw me open the door and all of them assumed they were getting a midnight snack and started crowding the doorway. Brats.

Today the cat shelter is having another big yard sale and adoption event. Kitten is looking forward to the distraction. 

Now if you’ll excuse me, we have some catching up to do.

I love you, baby. I’m glad you’re home. MWAH!

Y’all have a great weekend.

[divkazkdovikde]

(autumn in the city, random photos from the last few weeks)

saturday, 21. october 2023

i’m home, came back for the weekend to my hometown after a few weeks, to recharge batteries a bit, (to wash my laundry, since we still don’t have a washer at the flat), to breathe the clean air of the countryside for a change, to have a quiet night and a dreamless sleep

because i had a rough week or so, and it got bad in my head, i need to write down a few of the good things,

events:

catch-ups with my friends over the weeks: the boys, anna, jakub, terezie, karolina

5sos concert (12.10) (the best concert ever) (they were absolutely amazing and i’m so glad i impulsively bought the ticket)

signal festival prague (14.10) (so cool, met new people)

louis tomlinson concert (19.10) (he played chicago? oh my god?!) (still not over it) (the best concert ever, emotionally)

things i’ve treated myself with:

ring and earings at vietnamese sapa market (so pretty!)

five new books (i’m supposed to be on a book buying ban, but eh, ehmmm), the picture of dorian gray and selected plays by oscar wilde, diaries and the complete stories by franz kafka, and lastly, on the road by jack kerouac

salmon slices on sale (yummy)

steak tartare (tataráček) and beer at the pub near our flat with my flatmate after a long monday (the czech aesthetic, you wouldn’t get it)

bought me a louis tomlinson merch tshirt at the concert (so cool, my little bro approved)

fluffy scarf

honorable mentions:

my mate nomi, love her for always being down to skipping useless classes with me (it’s always like “u wanna skip?” “do u even have to ask?”) (or texting “not going to the first class, hold me a seat for the next one?” “not going either” “lmao nice”)

the phonecall with my little brother, when i helped him fry an onion for meat dumplings and he still buggered it at first, and before he finally managed it, i catched a bus from public laundry, had a 10’ ride, then walked to the flat, and even managed to hang the wet laundry (made my day, truly)

my flatmate kaja, for being my partner in crime, our texts when we’re only in the next room, our late night coffees at the kitchen, and for our understanding for each other because we’re the same mentally ill bitches

the one spliff with my best friend, dunno what we put in it other than normal, but it was goodah

fics i need to recommend because holy fuck:

written on the heart by who_la_hoop

pathological people pleaser by rweoutofthewoods

(and basically whatever fic those two wrote)

current songs on the loop:

ghost of you and take my hand by 5sos

quick reminder: to take care of yourself, to talk about your feelings, to try to enjoy the moments even when you’re not feeling great, to always try to get up from the bet in the morning, because it’s worth it, you’re worth it. and it’s hard, but it’s okay to struggle, you’re not alone.

also feel free to slide into my asks!

[sturdy-nerdy-stitchery]

Tw: gun violence / shooting

https://www.koaa.com/breaking-news-alerts/multiple-people-shot-overnight-near-colorado-springs-nightclub

My heart is hurting for the LGBTQIA community my community. For the tragic events that happened last night. At a place 8 minutes from my home no less.

This was an LGBTQIA friendly club. For those of our community could go to have a good time. They had drag shows on the weekend. Brunch on Sundays. At this point in the investigation, we lost five of our LGBTQIA siblings.

And to have this senseless act of violence befall my town. So close to my home. My heart is aching. I'm crying. I am hurting.

I have decided to save every penny from across stitch pattern sales from now until the end of the month. Especially my Sailor Moon LGBTQIA "I fight for love and justice" series, because that seems so fitting for right now. We need to fight for love and we need to fight for justice.

I plan to donate a proceeds. They've already started to go fund me, so that's where I plan on donating the proceeds. You can find the GoFundMe here at the following link, feel free to reblog the surround and donate if you can. I'll donate my proceeds at the end of the month.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/victims-of-club-q-colorado-springs-mass-shooting?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_content=undefined&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_source=customer&utm_term=undefined&mibextid=Zxz2cZ

The community is hurting. Colorado springs is hurting. I'm hurting. My friends are hurting. I'm just a small presence in this social media community, but feel free to share this around. I have a much larger presence on Tumblr, so definitely reblog oh hell out of this. Or give it a like, or share a comment. Every little bit helps. And the more people we possibly reach, the more that I can possibly donate

I might make an official post later about my proceeds being donated at the end of the month.

❤️����💛💚💙💜

I told my daughter today that something sad happened to the rainbow community. I didn't go into too much detail but I cut out some hearts and asked if she would like to draw a rainbow on one and put heart stickers on the other.

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#crossStitch #crossstitching #lgbtq #lgbtqia #lgbtqia+ #queercommunity

#loveandjustice #xstitch #xstitching #colorado #coloradosprings #crossstitxlchlove #crossstitchingofinstagram #crossstitchersofig

#rainbow #rainbowflag #rainbowcrossstitch

#sturdynerdystitchery #bisexual #hearts #crossstitchbitch #crossstitchitsfun #lgbtqcommunity #lgbtqiacommunity #ClubQ #standtogether #lgbtqialove #lgbtqlove