#what is life and why does it make me write more slowly than i'd like

[samirant]

Chapters: 2/6 Fandom: Bridgerton (TV) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Colin Bridgerton/Penelope Featherington Characters: Colin Bridgerton, Penelope Featherington, Genevieve Delacroix, Will Mondrich, Rae (Bridgerton), Clara (Bridgerton) Additional Tags: colin the bond girl, Spies & Secret Agents, pen is a badass fight me Series: Part 2 of Featherington. Penelope Featherington. Summary:

Five times Penelope & Co regret Colin joining their ranks and the one time they’re very glad he did.

[r0-boat]

Lavender Hair

Whb!Solomon x Demon!Reader

I cannot do porn with plot on this one😭 to save my life so we are just fucking him. Which sucks because I really wanted to write him being charismatic aaa

I had no idea what to call this I just called it that because his hair is very nice and I'd like to run my hands through it and braid it.

Cw: Solomon yoinking your V card, hair pulling, some switchiness, oral, fingering.

When his tip catches against your opening, your heart stops as reality sinks in.

You can see why devils like Solomon.

With his hair spread into pools of lavender all over the sheets, his eyes half-lit and full of mystery staring up at you, his gentle yet firm touch as he holds you in place and rolls his hips up into yours. You feel his bulge grind against your opening. There is no penetration yet; just enjoying the friction.

He was going to be inside you. And you were scared.

Solomon must have noticed because he then sat up a little bit. His voice was gentle and husky. "Is something wrong, love?"

"no, I mean... I just haven't done this before." You admitted, your face turning red at the sheer irony that you, a devil, had never had sex before.

Solomon, across is your cheek. "Oh love, you should have told me." He takes you in his arms as he lays you onto the mattress before crawling on top of you.

"Here, let me take over; I promise I'll be gentle."

He purrs. You feel his lips delicately press against your neck, going down his hand, gentle yet possessive, to feel and trace every part of your body.

"You're so radiant. I feel so lucky to have you in my arms," He whispers in a tickly ear. He chuckles at your whimpering; He loves what his words do to you and what he does to you. He hums, pushing your thighs apart. Tail, out of habit, wraps around his arms. He smiles when he feels it against his skin, gently feels it against his fingers, touching his lips and kissing the arrow-shaped tip.

"Are you comfortable, my dear?" Solomon coos as he shifts his body, leaving a trail of kisses down your stomach till you feel his tongue prod you open. Your whole body shivers, your fingers going through his hair, wanting to grab onto something, your heart pounding in your chest. Solomon can sense your nervousness

"I'm going to worship you now. It's okay, I'll go slowly." You felt his tongue lazily lick your entrance before working. You opened each lick, getting deeper and deeper.

Your eyes screenshot as the grip on his hair grows tighter. That lavender main feels soft in your palm. You can feel the beads and his braids as you clench your fist.

As Solomon's movements become rougher and faster, You lose control of your body, giving him a harsh tug, You heard the soft clanks and jingling of the many trinkets in his hair. He let out a sharp inhale and a moan, making you realize what you did.

"Solomon, I'm sorry... I didn't mean-"You whimper and apologize. Solomon stops and looks up at you, those vacant eyes filled with lust and hunger. "Don't be sorry, please tug me as though you are my master."His husky voice, growling such much filth befitting of a demon, made you gasp as he dived back into you once more. His saliva coats your inner walls as it threatens to eat you alive.

You felt something bubble inside you, something foreign, increasing in intensity. Your thighs shake and squeeze around his head, but Solomon does not let that stop him. His fingernails dig into your hips as he forces his mouth, grinding his face against your body.

When he pulls away his tongue out, he switches, putting his mouth around you. You feel a finger slowly push inside you. This feeling is different than his tongue as he stretches you more.

"I'm going to add another finger. Be good to me and take it, please." Another husky whisper as you felt another finger stretch you.

That feeling bubbling in your core gets hotter and hotter, and Solomon strokes these flames, His fingers and his tongue moving faster and faster. He grows, seeing you arch your back.

Something about seeing someone orgasm for the first time made his heart race and his cock throb. And to be the one too give you that pleasure was a feeling greater than just mere sexual pleasure.

After you coat his fingers, he licks them clean before crawling back on top of you, wrapping His arms around you. "Was that good, my dear?" His cock throbs as pre cum drift down his shaft.

"It was." You purr feeling the aftershock of your first orgasm.

Solomon smiles. "Good I'm glad I could make you feel the same way you make me feel." Your heart throbbed at that comment He always had a way with words.

But, You felt his cock straining against you. "Solomon you haven't came."

You heard his muffled hum against your shoulder his hand idly stroking your side and your stomach. "It does not matter the pleasure I get from serving you is all I need."

He always knew just what to say but you really wanted him to feel good too. After he made you feel so good he felt a little more confident, and you're aching to know what it would feel like to have a cock inside you, his cock inside you.

"I want to be inside you; I want nothing more than to be inside you." More dirty filth from that melodic voice.

You turn over to him, his eyes grow wider as your hands strays Your fingers ghosting over his shaft' He could feel his cock twitch aching for more of you. "Please Solomon I want more I'm ready."

By the Kings, You always knew just what to say to drive him crazy. His breath shakes, with no emotion in those eyes and an unreadable face. You mistook it for hesitation until he pressed you onto your back once again, stroking his cock and playing with your opening, preparing himself to go inside.

Even now, he tries to comfort you, holding you as closely as possible, easing his way inside. You're tight virgin walls, even while prepped, still squeezed him generously. Solomon did not hide as pleasure, his face contorting, letting out noise that would make any demon blush and squirm.

A foreign feeling of being filled was painful yet strangely addicting. He stays inside you to the health, waiting for you to adjust to his size. That's stretching pain, fading into burning pleasure. You felt his breath shake against your ear as you clenched again. Your hands and fingers tangled in his lavender-colored hair. His words echo in your mind.

'tug me as though you are my master.'

You pulled at a part of his hair, telling him to move. Solomon lets out a loud whimper as he begins to buck his hips.

With an arm for your head to rest on and his other hand grasping into the sheets, He bucks hard, The slapping against his skin becoming louder and louder, but all you could hear was his and your moans.

That carefulness and softness to the two of you felt for each other was all long gone, that's the two of you fuck like animals.

Balls slapping against you, each thrust going all the way inside, each thrust rhythmic and almost calculated as he hits a foreign spot inside you that makes you suck in breath and arch. He starts to hit that spot over and over. "Right there? Is that the spot, my dear? Is that your spot, love?" if it weren't for the fact he was fucking you into the mattress, you would punish him.

Part of him wanted to flip you over and take complete control, to wrapping one of his muscular arms around your throat and drilling you from behind.

But you are already getting close, and the way you squeeze around his cock, I feel like he is going to come hard, empty his balls deep inside you, and flood your insides.

His rhythmic movements became more and more erratic, your hand abandoning his hair as your nails dug into his back, wrapping your legs around him.

"I'm cumming! Solomon!"You squeal, and Solomon coos, "I know, I know, beloved, you're milking me! I'm going to flood you full!"

He fucks through his orgasm drilling his cum deeper inside riding out both of your orgasms.

He collapses on top of you. He already has his arms around you, peppering your face with kisses.

"That was amazing, you are amazing, you're good, So good." You gave him a dreamy smile. You didn't have as much stamina as most demons, so you were already drained from two orgasms; you idly combed your fingers through his soft lavender mane, drifting to sleep in his arms.

[astraystayyh]

Stray kids song series masterlist

The series is finally done! this is my little thank you for hitting 2k followers!!!!! which is absolutely insane and i never thought i could reach that milestone. thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my works and for giving me a safe space to write, it truly means the world to me.

I'll be posting a fic a day starting from tomorrow, and I'm so excited for you all to read them :") thank you smm again, ilyyy all <33

• Myth- beach house. Bang Chan x reader. friends to lovers.

Skimming across the edge of being friends and something more with Chan is a dangerous game. Even more so when you're both sharing the same bed.

"The consequence of what you do to me, help me to name it."

• The only exception- paramore. barista Minho x reader. strangers to lovers. slow burn.

Minho was content with straying away as far as possible from love. That is until you stumbled into his café on a rainy night, and unwittingly, into his life.

"Cause none of it was ever worth the risk, but you are the only exception."

• The alternative- lyn lapid. brother's best friend Changbin x reader.

You've diligently chased the idea of being with Changbin out of your mind. That is until he picks you up from a bad date, making your steadfast resolve unravel all around you.

"Love is a risk. But what's the alternative?"

• Somebody else- the 1975. Hyunjin x reader. exes to lovers. miscommunication.

You and Hyunjin have broken up, guilt and blame simmering between you both. He doesn't care anymore, or so he thought. Then why does it hurt him to see you with someone else?

"Don't want your body but I hate to think about you with somebody else."

• Backburner- niki. Han x reader. exes who can't move on.

It's been seven weeks since Han broke up with you. And yet, he's calling you every saturday night, without fault. And even though you try not to, you'll still pick up each time.

"You'd think I'd be a fast learner. But guess I won't ever mind crisping up in your backburner."

• If the world was ending- JP saxe, julia michaels. Felix x reader. estranged childhood best friend to lovers.

Felix has always been there with you, from the moment you've met him when you were 8 years old. Until he suddenly no longer was, and you were left to grapple with the consequences of his absence- and those of his return.

"If the world was ending you'd come over, right?"

• In my dreams - tearliner. Seungmin x reader. enemies to lovers.

Seungmin has never liked you. You never understood why, but you were slowly coming to terms with it. However, you gradually come to learn that there is more to his feelings than what meets the eye.

"I'm sorry that I misjudged you, until you wiped my tears off away."

• You're sexy, I'm sexy- eric nam. Jeongin x reader. friends to lovers.

Jeongin is out with his friends, and you. You're tipsy and sitting on his lap, and he doesn't think he can keep his crush for you at bay anymore.

"it could be simple as loving each other with no strings."

[he-calls-me-kitten]

Playlist Drabbles #01

Writing random smut drabbles based on songs from my playlist (Solomon, Asmodeus, Mammon)

"We don't gotta be in love, no,

I don't gotta be the one, no,

I just want to be one of your girls tonight."

(One of your girls - Weekend ft. Jennie, Lily-Rose Depp)

Solomon is just happy you're here with him right now. Wrapped up only in his bedsheets and his arms. He can't sleep, no it would be a waste. He needs to cherish this - he won't have it for very long.

When you're both back home, you'll be surrounded by everyone again. He will never be your only one - not with those brothers in the competition. But he is one of the many that gets to feel your warmth and affection and for now, this is all he needs. It's more than he can hope for.

"MC? You're still awake aren't you?" He coos softly knowing you're not asleep yet either.

"Yes, just like you." You say, tracing the bags underneath his eyes with your pretty fingers. He can feel his heart melting. What a lovely apprentice he has.

"Can we go...one more time?" Slowly, his hand traces your curves, so you can refute him anytime. But you clench your thighs around his waist and kiss him on the mouth, smiling.

"I'd like that." You say coyly. His eyes darken in desire as he climbs on top of you, positioning himself between your legs. He's not the only one that does this to you - but it's just been you and him every night since you came here. He'll have to give that up soon - but atleast not yet. Atleast not tonight.

"Please tell me I'm your one and only,

Or lie and say atleast tonight,

I've got a brand new cure for lonely,

And if you give me what I want,

I'll give you what you like."

(Give you what you like - Avril Lavigne)

Asmo doesn't always like using his powers. Why did he always have to use them to make people like him? Wasn't he enough just as he was? Wasn't he beautiful?

Who else can answer him, if not the only person who doesn't get affected by his charm. "MC..." He barges into your room, desperate to be held. To be loved.

"Asmo...you're so perfect." You cradle his face as you ride him. Tears pool at the corner of his eyes, out of joy, out of reassurance along with the obvious pleasure of your walls clamping down on him.

"MC...You really mean that?" Like a wounded puppy he tilts his head to the side, intertwing his fingers with yours. He bucks up his hips upward, deeper inside you. You moan and struggle to balance yourself.

"Of course, Asmo..." He doesn't care even if you're lying at this point. It just feels good to even hear you say that. He feels so loved and ethereal as you gently press kisses on his neck and shoulders so you don't blemish his flawless skin. And he impatiently flips you around to return the favor.

"With all the lights off,

Everything is wrong, but it's alright,

Everything is wrong, but it's alright,

You're the only good thing in my life."

(You're the only good thing in my life - Cigarettes after Sex)

Mammon feels like shit some days. With his sin taking over, Lucifer's overbearing rage, his brothers' disappointment - it's all too much for him. Sick of being holed up in his room, he decides to get out of house to clear his head.

You are late that day, and he's already disgruntled about it. Maybe he'll go out and fetch you himself. Some attendant you are. They should increase your hours at HOL.

But lo and behold, there you are standing right at the door. "Hey Mammon, going somewhere?" He takes you by the hand and leaves the house. "Oi, you know Devildom like the back of your hand, don't ya? Take me somewhere new." He asks.

You take him to a hotel with a shimmering pool. He's never been here before, but he feels an odd sense of familiarity with it. Especially when he kisses you fervently, his hands practically ripping your clothes off you. He feels so much better once he's inside you.

"The Great Mammon likes this place. Bring me back here again soon." He says as he keeps driving with one hand on your thigh. His life might be a hot mess but atleast you're here. And that makes everything so much better.

[sunflowersbones]

The Hand That Feeds - V

Warnings: This fic will contain NON-CON, DUB-CON, abuse of power, violence, guns, gun violence, emotional manipulation, alluded to Mafia!Bucky. My warnings are not exhaustive, proceed at your own risk.

18+ only. This is a dark!fic and explicit. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary : Your best friend’s and yours entire lives have revolved around violence, death, greed and fear. You’ve always had each other and took comfort in the fact that none of this was your doing; you never had a choice. But what happens when time winds its roots around you, such that even when given the opportunity to leave, he neither leaves nor lets you leave. {mafia au}

NOTE: well well that was ride. I'd really appreciate it if you guys would talk to me though. Feed back on the writing or just chit-chatting about the characters is completely welcome. Hope you enjoy!

~

You pace around Bucky’s room, waiting for him. The warm orange of his walls had always comforted you; this room used to be your safe haven. You feel jittery all over; your anxieties are building up; you just want this over with.

The door slowly swings open as Bucky enters; unlike the last time, he does not carry anger in his voice; in fact, he’s deathly silent. His tacit nature alarms you, his stare makeing you increasingly uncomfortable; you decide to speak up, but he beats you to it.

“I can’t believe you fucking tried to leave like that, like a thief.” He marches towards you with his hands extended, his fingers pointing at you. His sudden change in behaviour surprises you. You move back, alarmed; you trip on your heel and clumsily land on the bed.

You’ve never seen him so angry before, at least not towards you. Your fear might have reflected on your face, for he stops in front of you and takes a deep breath, his anger melts into pain and then annoyance as he shakes his head, looking at you.

“How could you?”

“I don’t want to be here,” you grit back. “It’s not safe.”

“Not safe!?, not fucking safe!?” He shouts back as he hits the wall beside him with his fist.

“The only reason you’re safe and that your family is safe is because of me.” He snarls, pointing at himself.

“You think everybody else who once worked for my dad has the luxury of protection?. You know, if this was anyone else, they’d be greatful.”

You feel your anger overclouding your fear as you shout back. “Grateful!?, grateful for what?; grateful for you deciding how I should live my life?, grateful for you treating me like I’m your personal property now, grateful for you touching and prodding me?” You feel your voice crumble as tears well up in your eyes.

“I used to be scared of this world, Bucky; but now I’m more scared of you.”

He looks at you like you just stabbed his heart as he rears back. He immediately rushes over to the shelf nearby and draws out a gun.

He loads the gun and turns over to you as the blood drains from your face. Before your mind can even comprehend what is happening, he shoves the gun into your hand, his hands wrapped around yours.

“If I am what you’re most afraid of, then why don’t you just kill me?” he whispers to you, his voice almost unrecognisable as he forces you to press the barrel to his chest. You’re a sobbing mess now; your hands quivering in fear, your fingers terrifyingly close to the trigger. Unable to move, unable to do anything to stop this, your eyes pleadingly gaze at him.

“That is what you’re doing anyway, so why don’t you just actually do it?”

You try to pull your hands off, but he’s much stronger than you are.

“Please Bucky, please just stop.”

“I’d rather you do it, Y/N; I’d rather die. I’d rather die than live without you.”

“I love you,” you wail back. “Please, please don’t do this. Stop, just stop.”

“You love me?” he whispers back his eyebrows slightly furrowed. “I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you...”

As he continues chanting, you feel his hands loosen around. You use this opportunity to move your hand and throw the gun away. You hear it clatter on the floor, away from him, as you sob a sigh.

“I love you so much more; you don’t even know; you can’t even comprehend.” He cries out as his hands move forward to hold your face. He kisses you, as you feel his hands go down to toy with your dress. The irony of the situation mocks you.

He rears back to rid his shirt, while his desperate hands scrunch your dress. You gasp as you feel him hard as he presses himself against you. He leans in to kiss your cheek, his heated breath tickling you. He’s overwhelming you; all of this is overwhelming you. You can’t think straight; you need some time.

 “Bucky, can’t—can’t we wait for a while?”

“No. No, there’s no need for that.” He whispers his voice filled with pain, determination and lust. You hear him unzip his pants and pump his cock. His hold on your shoulder painfully strong as he pushes you into the bed.

“No more waiting.” he buries his face into your neck as his teeth slightly graze you. He slowly pushes himself inside you. One of his hands lands on your hip while the other latches on to your hair. You moan as he fucks you, his thrusts slow yet deliberate.

You move your arm around to hold onto the sheets to ground yourself as he rocks your body back and forth. But his hand snatches yours and places it on his cheek, his large palm covering yours. His pace slightly increases, his eyes gaze into yours as he kisses your palm. He moves his face slightly to the side as he sucks on to your thumb.

The feeling of his wet mouth makes you mewl. You hear his breath hitch a little as your aching core clenches him hard. He moves his hand to your jaw as he kisses you again.

“I loved you yesterday,” he says, thrusting into you. “I love you today, and I will love you tomorrow.”

“Till death do us part, doll.”

And those were the same words he said to you a week later, as you were surrounded by your family and friends as they celebrated your wedding.

Your mother and Bucky’s parents gleamed. You look over to Steve only to find a glad, warm smile. Nat’s eyes were nearly tearing up as Tony, Sam, and Clint fooled around. All of them are happy, elated even. But what not one of them is; is surprised. It's almost as if everyone expected it would happen; it was only a matter of when. It was almost as if your misfortune was preordained.

And as you say those words back to him, his face and smile the same as ever. You convince yourself that the blues in front of you are the ones you’ve always loved. You convince yourself that their shade still remains the same, that they haven’t twisted into something deep and darker. That love for you has always been true blue...

*

@scott-loki-barnes @cjand10

[kiiwiigii]

The Bribe

Felix x Fem!Reader

Summary: You need a shopping buddy and manage to drag Felix along... for a price.

Warnings:

Fluff

Word Count: 1.186

A/N: Requested by the wonderful @lack-lust-3r. I hope you enjoy love. Also, my first time writing for Felix. Pls be kind.

I was a human on the hunt. I wanted to go shopping and I was sure everyone was avoiding me like the plague. Well, all except Heidi, but that was only because she was out of town. She was my usual shopping buddy, but alas, I was on my own for now. I would approach Jane, as she was the only other girl, but to be honest she still terrified me a bit. Okay, a lot. 

But I knew of one person who couldn't say no, and all I had to do was find him. I had been searching for almost an hour and was about to give up when I found Demetri and cornered him. 

"Demetri. Darling. Love of my life." I drawled. 

Demetri tensed before turning around and shooting me a look. "What do you want, Y/N?" 

"Why do you always think I want something??" I glared. 

Demetri just looked at me with a deadpan stare, waiting. 

"Fine. Where is Felix. I want to go shopping." 

"Up on the third-floor library." 

"Awesome! Thanks Dem!" I took off in the direction of the library on the third floor, wondering why I hadn't thought to look there before. 

"That poor, poor man." Demetri sighed into an empty room. 

"Felix!!" 

I had found him right where Demetri had said he'd be, up on a ladder putting a book back. 

"Y/N. What brings you here?" 

"I was looking for you, of course." 

"What do you want?" He deadpanned. 

"Why does everyone think I want something??" I pouted. 

He just stared. Waiting. 

"You and Demetri hang out too much." I grumbled before continuing. "I haven't seen Heidi in a week, and I'd like to go shopping." 

Felix raised a brow before leaning against the ladder, eyes appraising. I felt myself blush a little but maintained eye contact. 

"No." 

"What?? Feliiiix." I whined. 

"What makes you think I want to go shopping?" 

"Because you love me and I'm your favorite." 

"And you are delusional." 

Fine. If that's how he wants to play it, bribing it is. 

"I'll give you anything you want Felix. Please?" I batted my lashes prettily. 

"Anything?" 

"Yep!" 

He slid down the ladder and paused for a moment, bright red eyes slowly roaming over my form again before giving me a grin. A rather wicked grin and I realized my mistake. 

"Wait-" I started. 

"Ah, ah. No take backs. Come on, let's head out." 

I could feel my heart flutter and a harsher blush rush to my cheeks. 

Shopping with Felix was actually nice. He was mostly silent, but his presence kept most menfolk away. And with his hand on the small of my back, I felt I could relax. He even helped me pick out a few tops and some pieces of jewelry. Now that had been a bit of a battle, because of course he picked out expensive pieces and I almost had a heart attack at the price tag. 

He simply whipped out a black card and was purchasing it before I could blink. 

In retaliation I dragged him to the back of the store so I could pick out some nice pieces of lingerie. His eyes pretty much stayed glued to the ceiling while he fidgeted, looking clearly uncomfortable. I couldn't help but giggle. 

However, my little victory was pretty much quashed when he started taking my bags from me. 

"I didn't bring you as a bag holder, Felix." I said softly. "I really just wanted some company." 

"I know, my darling." He answered and I blushed at the new nickname. "But I am more than happy to hold them for you." 

"Thank you." I grinned at him. "Maybe I should make you tag along more often." 

"Perhaps I might come along. Depends on what you offer." 

I nearly choked. "About that, are- are you gonna tell me what you want?" 

"I will. Later." He winked at me and left me staring at his back as he continued forward. 

Why do I get the feeling that I fucked up? 

I groaned, falling backwards onto my bed, legs and feet aching from the hours spent shopping. 

Felix eyed me from the end of my bed as he set the many, many shopping bags down. I glared at said bags. The one thing you don't really think about when shopping is that you're going to have to put everything that you bought up. Felix snorted and shook his head. 

"It's your fault." I grumbled. 

"How is it my fault?" He smiled. 

"You carried my bags, therefore I got carried away." 

He laughed before clearing his throat, and taking his usual stance when he was on guard, perfectly serious. I lifted myself up onto my elbows and raised my eyebrows at him. 

"Everything okay?" I asked. 

"Oh yes." He smirked and then appeared before me in less than a second, and I found myself on my back with him hovering over me. "I just know what I want now." 

I cleared my own throat, trying to calm my suddenly racing heart and looking off to the side. "And what is it that you would like my dear Felix?" 

"A kiss." 

I whipped my head back around, wide eyed. 

"A kiss??" 

"Mhmm." 

"O-okay. I think I can do that."  

“You’re okay with this?” 

“I wouldn’t have yes if I wasn’t.” 

His eyes softened, one of his hands coming up to cup my face tenderly. My breath caught in my throat as he leaned down and brushed his lips against mine softly. My hands came up, smoothing themselves across his chest, leaning up to deepen the kiss, his lips cool against mine. I felt his tongue slide across my lower lip, begging for entrance and my lips parted obediently. He delved into the heat of my mouth, and I let out a low moan. He growled a little, letting one of his hands travel to my waist, giving me a small squeeze. 

Secretly, in the back of my mind, I had been hoping for this. I had been yearning to have his lips on mine since I first met him. I let one of my hands wander up to tangle in his hair, keening when he nipped lightly at my bottom lip. After a moment he pulled back, taking in my appearance: glazed eyes and swollen lips. He smiled before nuzzling against my ear. 

I giggled, pulling him close. 

"I have been wanting that for a long time." He breathed. 

"Oh really?" I grinned. 

"Mhmm." He burrowed further into my neck. 

"Perhaps I should bribe you more often." 

He lifted himself off me with a smirk. "Perhaps next time I'll have you show me some of the lingerie you bought. With you as the model of course." 

I turned bright red and smacked him lightly on the chest. 

"Sounds like I need to put stipulations on what I mean when I say anything." 

He kissed me softly again. "You don't need to bribe me. I will do anything you ask, my darling." 

I sighed happily. 

Yes, I had wanted this for a very long time. 

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[ayaisokay]

The Kids Aren't Alright

* ~ I'm sorry for making this ~ *

Doomers & Fatalism

Regardless of your age, you need a reason to move forward. You need hope. Yet, it's hard to find hope for teens and young adults.

Not a year goes by without an update on the planet's decline (at our hand), wealth is only feeling more unstable and unequally distributed, a pandemic destroyed any hope of sociability for some, and social media does more harm than good when it "connects" people.

There's no true community, nothing to take pride in, there's hardly motivation for ambition or wealth. Hell, we grow up being told we'll be a generation of renters, because it's a statistical improbability than any of us will EVER afford a home without working 3 jobs into our grave.

I can't speak for America, but I know my government haven't made any real effort to prevent renter's from taking that news and slowly inflating rent costs each month.

I'm a part of the generation that is thought to deal with the broadest range of mental health concerns; however, I'm also part of the generation that's most likely to be told to "deal with it," or "grow up," by the people perpetuating our suffering, or the peers that fell victim to toxic hustle culture— enabling the shitty circumstances.

When you start adulthood with so many problems that directly impact your life, most of which come at no fault of your own, you'd hope for help in addressing those matters, but it never comes.

We're told we're lazy, we don't try hard enough, and we've got it easy (which is a demonstrable lie). How is it any surprise we became hopeless doomers? At some point you just get the idea that we were destined to fail.

Threats of War

Now we're told to be ready for World War 3 and I'm struggling to understand why. What values am I defending? Why should I die for a country that doesn't care about me?

Sure, Ukraine and Palestine are in shitty situations, but saying that doesn't require me to do anything. Though they demonstrate something: the government will risk our lives for money, and turn a blind eye to genocide if it suits them.

All that matters is that we're made to feel like our interests align. They don't represent us. They represent themselves.

Don't get me wrong, I don't support either conflict, and I sympathise with the aforementioned nations; however, I am not willing to die for them— I don't think you are. So is it even fair for us to bother complaining? It's not like diplomacy has done a thing so far.

Whether we're roped into a war or not, it doesn't feel like we'd have a choice.

Hobbies and Corporations

Normally I'd propose finding an outlet for everything. I'm not sure that's ideal anymore. Commonplace hobbies like gaming, sports, martial arts, reading, and art, they require 3 things: time, motivation, and effort.

Thanks to hustle culture, holding 3 jobs, running a drop shipping business, and abandoning any meaningful social life is considered just enough and reasonable. That doesn't leave time for personal hobbies, entertainment, or time to actually live. A life like that is no life at all. You're an animal operating on the exclusive goal of survival. You're alive, but you're not living.

Among those of us too physically or mentally scarred to work like our peers, we compassionately took to pen and paper, or software and devices, writing stories, drawing and animating worlds, or making music.

I fear that pocket of joy is getting smaller. AI image generation has already impacted artists, AI voice recreations are already being used in place of some voice actors, and we've all seen the AI voice covers for songs— claiming "you don't need to learn to sing." It didn't take long for me to see "generative AI" being proposed as a source for track samples and stems in music production.

Considering such things, it's hard to motivate yourself to put your work out there. You struggle to justify spending time creating anything, and you're probably not ready to put the effort into producing enough algorithm optimised works per day. After all, no one will see it. No one cares.

That's how it feels.

Social Media

Maybe we still have digital spaces? Really. Are cespools like Twitter spaces you can enjoy? Even Tumblr is quite detached, with small accounts struggling to get so much as a couple likes— nevermind a reblog, and god forbid you get a comment or DM.

That's minor though, it's the relationships that bother me. The ability to lock someone out of your life, within 5 seconds, for the slightest of perceived infractions. You're sensitive and a snowflake if you need boundaries, and you're "rude" and "mean" when you're pushed too far for not establishing them.

You can join a fandom or community and run into those issues, but do you really need more trouble? Ive hung around with furries since I was 13 or 14. It wasn't a furry that SA'd me, and I've never been groomed. But as a child online, I was labelled as a dog fucking groomer (at 15), because I was in a furry community discord server. I don't like to think about how that made the young adult owner of the server feel.

Social media is good for "satirical trolls," who take pleasure in hurting as many people as they can, and then claiming it's OK because they're joking, and you should've known. Is it really worth the effort for anyone else? You know, us "normal people," not bogged down by million strong fanbases, actively managing parasocial relationships and morally questionable stalking.

Closing Statements

I'm not entirely sure why I wrote this post. I guess I'm just another girl crying on the internet when I should save it for the therapy I can't actually afford.

I want to be hopeful, to feel like there's something attainable to desire, or even just things to look forward to. It's been a long time since I woke up and felt there was a good reason to be awake or even alive.

Thanks,

- The Girl That Doesn't Exist

[greycaelum]

Alpha Gojo 🤧

Scribbles and Doodles: Alpha Gojo Headcannons

—Businessman Alpha Gojo Satoru X Secretary Beta Reader

𑁍 Synopsis:

"What? Mr. Gojo." You snap at him without looking up from your PC. Satoru sighed at the furious sound of your keyboard being beaten down by forceful fingers.

"Now, don't be like that pretty girl. Where's my 'Satoru'?" He leans down with his hands on the edges of the table, staring at his pretty secretary's evading eyes. "I didn't mean snapping earlier, you know my life would be a nightmare without you." He feels like his gut is filled with sand when you're upset with him.

𑁍 Genre: a/b/o dynamics, businessman x secretary

𑁍 CW/TW: (1.1k)— alpha-beta relationship, office romance, scenting, arguments if you squint, touchy/clingy alpha

𑁍 A/N: me imagining alpha Satoru in all black suit going to work, I'd never skip working, Sir, please *sigh* guilty distractions

• That being said, Satoru is the kind of alpha that makes heads turn when he's nearby. His presence gravitates attention to him and he's hard to read with those dark glasses covering his eyes most of the time. The fact he runs his family's conglomerate single-handedly as the uncontestable chairman of the board of directors speaks enough of the sheer authority he holds.

• Most annoying one you'll ever meet. Out of all the alphas you have met, he takes the icing for being the most irritating and condescending one. But in truth, he's a loving and affectionate alpha, that side reserved solely to his mate.

• That's why it is no surprise ladies fall on their knees for his attention. Omegas in particular chase him like a moth to fire.

• But little does everyone know, he could care less about the submissive omegas that'd do his back and call. Satoru prefers self-sufficient, honest, and a lil' naive beta who always makes his coffee bloody bitter when he's being a jerk. His eyes linger a little longer whenever you're too absorbed writing down his work for the day. Pretty lil' missus got a stray hair his fingers badly want to tuck behind your ear.

• His lil' missus is unlike the girls that beg for his attention. You're the best thing he's ever had since working. Hardworking and efficient, clumsy and outspoken sometimes, but nothing a good breather can't fix. He's chalking that off to you being a beta. It didn't take long for Satoru to trust you with almost anything. Everyone in the office is aware you're the boss's miracle drug. Every day is a peaceful day at work when the boss is busy annoying his secretary than biting his employees off.

• It's common knowledge for everyone to approach you first if they did a mistake than directly facing Satoru's wrath. That way, they could still ask you to help them face the big boss and not get fired.

"What? Mr. Gojo." You snap at him without looking up from your PC. Satoru sighed at the furious sound of your keyboard being beaten down by forceful fingers.

• Satoru treats you more thoughtfully.  Slowly knowing his smart secretary outside the office and more of a lady.

• He knows what you order at the cafe in the cafeteria every morning. He knows you like that chocolate croissant in the bakery across the building and makes a mental note to purchase it on Mondays when he knows you get the busiest from picking up what's left last week.

• He could be pretty straightforward and insensitive unintentionally but to you, it's not that hard to lower his ego and apologize than suffer your silent treatment. You know to stand your ground before the alpha.

"Now, don't be like that pretty girl. Where's my 'Satoru'?" He leans down with his hands on the edges of the table, staring at his pretty secretary's evading eyes. "I didn't mean snapping earlier, you know my life would be a nightmare without you." He feels like his gut is filled with sand when you're upset with him.

You rolled your eyes, and instead of seeing a sweet smile, your frown only grew deeper, but this time your glare met his eyes. He really didn't mean to be such an ass, but those conservative board members constantly sticking to the traditional means and blocking the new projects have reached the limit of his patience in the meeting. That leaves you dealing with damage control while torn from being summoned to your agitated boss's office only to get scolded for missing another meeting with the new investors.

"It's my fault pretty one. Y'know I never thanked you for always cleaning up the mess after me." Satoru looked at you with a genuine apology in his eyes. "How 'bout a dinner? Let's get off work early tonight."

You know your alpha boss is a stubborn one. And it still amazes you that he knows how to apologize and admit his fault. Part of you knows you're both accountable for that mistake earlier anyway.

"Then, I'll take up to your word, Sir." You closed your eyes and sighed, subtly smiling at the corners of your lips.

A pair of arms wrap around your shoulders from the back. You felt him inhale a very long breath with his face buried in your shoulders. The alpha in him feels very tempted to scent you right there and then. But the blush staining your cheeks is enough, for now...

"Mnnn, I'll see you at 5 then."

• When you finally decided to accept his courting, your alpha literally drowned you in his scent. Satoru is utterly whipped to your scent melting with his. You didn't realize how much he loves doing domestic things until you see your alpha dedicate time and effort to the simplest of your request. He's so down in providing you with anything.

• You know your alpha boss outside the conference hall is already nosy, but with your relationship getting closer and closer you find the alpha following you around, constantly teasing you just so your cheeks flare in embarrassment or irritation.

• Soon you'll realize this is just how Satoru expresses his love language. Vocal and showy, your alpha doesn't shy knowing he's the only one who can do this to his lil' pretty beta.

• Satoru prides himself on not being too possessive. it takes a major affair for him to use his caveman logic. But boy oh boy, he is quite playful in showing affection anytime and anywhere. Satoru fully trusts you, but he can't deprive himself of the joy of showing you off.

• Takes deliberately forever in scenting you. He's obsessed with it.

You tried to stop squirming and keep yourself steady on top of your alpha's lap. But his nose, trailing up and down the concave of your neck, nipping at your exposed skin makes it hard to suppress your moans and whimper, clutching your alpha's shirt in desperation.

"You like that pretty one?" Satoru looks at your dizzy eyes with delight while he kneads your hips. Your eyes are unfocused and hazy as you grip his shoulders for control. It's almost too cute but hot at the same time. Your eyes squeezed shut and nodded. "Right? Mnn, can't have you going crazy without me." Satoru chuckled and stood up, wrapping your legs around his waist to move in the bed.

—GreyCaelum,

PLAGIARISM IS A CRIME

Check out the Masterlist for more

All rights and credits of the Jujutsu Kaisen character(s) mentioned image(s) and song(s) used belongs to their respective owner(s)

General Series Taglist: @ice-icebaby@aeanya@gumidreams@tender-rosiey

[sebille]

Hi, I was reading some of your posts on Zenos (it’s very early in the morning here sorry if it doesn’t make sense) but how do you think Zenos would react if we show him compassion and care ? True compassion and care? Those things he never received as a child? (I made myself cry while writing this because he is the monster Varis created but what If he was loved to begin with ..)

Hi lovely, thank you for the ask! This is a really difficult question to answer, because other than what we see at the very very very end of Endwalker between him and the warrior of light, we don't really see him around anyone he's built a positive relationship with at all in the game. So i'm just going to ramble on about what we see IN the game and build my conclusions on that: The wol is able to show him an act of compassion in Stormblood, where they're able to tell him that they accept him. However, as we all know he will brush it off and move along - because he doesn't trust the wol to mean what they're saying.

"You and I are one and the same. Together, we could while away the quiet hours, as friend and confidant...if you will accept me?" "-  I accept you." "Heh heh...are we to embrace and let bygones be bygones? Do our deeds weigh so little that you would cast all aside? Come. 'Twas plain for the first how this would end." Slowly but surely throughout the expansions he creates this image of who the wol is in his own head - not really understanding what he himself ACTUALLY wants, while also believing that the wol is his "mirror", that they're one and the same. We see the confusion and desperation in his actions in early Endwalker, when the wol doesn't act the way he believes that they would. And how lost he is after the wol gets genuinely upset with him on the moon. In a sense I'd say that Alisaie yelling at him in Endwalker is an act of care and compassion - and we see how he reacts to that: He takes her words to heart and tries to do and be better. And at the end of Endwalker he trusts the wol completely ( we all know about the legendary line " I take it this is your prey. But why does it still live? Surely it is no match for you?" ) and we all know that he gets really vulnerable at the very end and opens up to the wol in a way he really hasn't before. SO with all that being said... I think it's really difficult to say who he would have been had he been shown compassion and care from the start of his life - because other than what we see from him at the very end of Endwalker, he's in a very negative headspace throughout the whole game. And if we go by what we see at the very end, once he trusts that a person is his friend he's loyal, willing to risk it all for his friend, vulnerable, and perceptive. Had Zenos been allowed to live at the end of EW and therefore would have been able to build an actual relationship with the wol (platonic or otherwise) I feel like he'd be very ride or die for them, lol. Also I don't believe that Zenos is a monster. I know that he's called that at least twice in the game, by Varis and Krile - but I don't trust Varis opinions on Zenos AT ALL. And Krile says that he's got "the eyes of a monster." I believe, and I feel like that's more...him looking dead inside? And we know that AT THAT POINT in stormblood he basically is. ( I think his voice actor said that he's basically at his limits at the start of Stormblood. ) tldr I think calling him a monster is unfair - my man is just depressed. He's done some awful and unforgivable things, however. I feel like I did not answer your question but rather just went on a long ramble-session about Zenos - but I'm sure that my Zenos mutuals/followers could answer this question better than me, or build on what I've already said.

[avatarrecom]

Bad jokes are how eye roll

Custody AU (Original story by @ao3gobi17)

Characters: Miles 'Spider' Socorro, Miles Quaritch, Lyle Wainfleet, Z-dog, Walker, Fike, Brown, Lopez, Ja, other recoms (not mentioned, but they're there too)

Warnings: description of losing and removing an eye (not extremely explicit). Recoms kinda being assholes.

Word count: 1369

A/N: My first story holy shit. Depending on how much I'm actually going to write I'll make a masterlist (If I figure how to do that lol). Since this is the first time writing a story, please let me know what you think! <3

_____________________________________________________________

Dinner, as always, was awkward. None of the Recoms really know how to make conversation with Spider, both because they’re not used to dealing with a strange teenage boy and because he is still (even though he has only been Spider's father for the first seven years of his life) the boss’s son.

Spider rubs his eye, as it starts to irritate more and more. When Spider was thirteen, he got an infection in his right eye. Because his foster parents were always at work and he didn't want to bother them, he didn't tell them. In the end, this turned out to be a big mistake after he collapsed at school and was rushed to hospital. When Spider thinks back to that day, he doesn't remember much. The only thing he does remember is waking up in the hospital bed. His foster mother sat on the chair next to Spider's bed, typing impatiently on her laptop. While his foster father sat at the table, also behind a laptop. "Great," Spider thought. "Even now they can't stop working." Then he registers a dull ache in his right eye. He slowly lifts his hand to his eye to rub away the pain. A hand suddenly closes around his wrist, guiding his hand away from his face.

"Don't touch your face," says a blurry voice. Spider looks at his foster mom confused. Both his foster parents look at him, Part annoyed, part worried. His foster father stands up, "I'm going to see if I can find a doctor." With that, he walks out of the room. Spider's foster mom speaks up with irritation in her voice, "why didn't you tell us something was wrong, now we're missing a major breakthrough at work-" She quickly falls silent when a doctor arrives. "Hello Miles," says the doctor. "How are you feeling?" "Drowsy," Spider replies honestly. "And confused, what happened?"

"You had an infection in your eye, which caused you to run a high fever and collapse," the doctor said. "You were brought here by ambulance, unfortunately we had to remove your eye, as the infection had already spread far." Spider's remaining eye widens in shock. "What?!" comes out in a higher pitch than he would have liked. The doctor gives him an apologetic look. "Sorry son, I won't beat around the bush," the doctor sits down on the edge of his bed. "Unfortunately we had no choice, your eye was already too damaged and there was a risk of the infection spreading to your brain," the doctor pats Spider on his knee, "As if that makes it better," Spider thinks bitterly. "Besides," the doctor continues, "it wasn't an option just to remove the infection, then your eye would look terrible, now we can get you fitted for a glass eye, wouldn't that be cool," smiles the doctor. "You’re an asshole," Spider decides. "Well not really, I'd rather have my real eye back," Spider replies.

"Awww, is baby Spider tired?" teases a voice from Spider's right, snapping Spider out of his thoughts. "What?" he asks, still rubbing his eye with the back of his hand. Wainfleet looks at him mockingly. "Looks like little Spider needs to go to bed," says Brown, eager for an angry response. Spider still looks at the two confused. "Only little babies rub their eyes like that, Buttercup," Zdinarsk helpfully adds, rolling her eyes.

"Oh!" Spider realizes, "I'm not tired, I just-" He is interrupted by Wainfleet. "Sure, that's what all little kids say when they're about to fall asleep, but don't want to go to bed yet because they want to be like grown ups." There is laughter around the table. "No, it's not like that," Spider protests. "Oh of course kid, that's really convincing," Lopez says sarcastically.

"No, I swear," defends Spider. "I had an infection in my eye when I-", he gets interrupted again. "Come up with excuses kid?" Jokes Walker "My niece used to do exactly that when she didn't want to go to bed yet." Again there is loud laughter around the table. Spider starts to get angry, the only ones not participating are Quaritch and Ja. The former looks amused, while the latter looks at him intensely. Spider shifts uncomfortably under Ja's gaze. "I’m pretty sure he was a medic in the army, that must be why he's looking at me like that," Spider thinks to himself.

Meanwhile, the laughter continues merrily. While Spider is happy to be rid of the awkward silence, he is less than happy that it comes at his own expense. Spider looks pleadingly to Quaritch for help. Quaritch meets his gaze and raises his eyebrow mockingly, as if saying "You're a big boy, aren't you? You're my son, you can talk yourself out of this, you won't get any help from me."

"Great, good father you are, thanks for your help. You're not even helping your so-called son who you supposedly love so much that you kidnapped him," Spider thinks bitterly. Suddenly someone squeezes his cheek hard. "Aww, baby Spider is so tired he can't even pay attention to his food anymore, then look at him, he almost falls face-first into the plate." Spider slaps the hand that belongs to Fike, away in annoyance. The young man across from him gives a cruel grin, clearly taking pleasure in Spider's misery. "Maybe someone should take him upstairs and tuck him into bed," Lopez pouts. "Oh sure, Spider would you rather we read you a story or sing a lullaby?" Adds Wainfleet.

Spider again tries to protest that he is not rubbing his eye because he is tired, but because his glass eye feels very irritated. But again, no one listens to him. "HEY!" Spider yells angrily as he pushes his chair back so hard it topples over. "Spider." Quaritch says in a warning tone. Spider irritably straightens his chair and plops down on it, childishly crossing his arms and glancing angrily at his plate. Out of the corner of his eye he sees Wainfleet, Brown, Lopez, Fike & Zdinarsk grinning at each other, clearly pleased with the response they've been able to elicit from Spider, before continuing to eat in silence, not wanting to draw Quaritch's attention to them. Quaritch, still looking at Spider with a look that promises punishment if Spider lashes out again. The others, who did not participate in Spider's bullying, but happily laughed along, wisely kept their mouths shut.

When Spider's gaze falls on Wainfleet, he suddenly gets an idea. "You know, when I was thirteen I collapsed at school and I was rushed to the hospital by ambulance." he begins, deliberately playing with his food like an angry little child. This one sentence immediately catches the attention of the others, especially Ja, who looks at him intensively again, and Quaritch, with an eyebrow raised.

"I don't really remember what happened, but when I woke up a doctor - he was a huge asshole by the way - told me I had an infection in my eye and they had to remove it." The others scoff, "you look like you have two eyes, kid." Wainfleet laughs.

Spider had hoped for this reaction and brings his hands to his eye. He pulls his eye open with his fingers, hides his eye with his other hand, and pushes his glass eye out of its socket, as he has done hundreds of times before. He feels the familiar pop as the eye slides out of the socket. When he lowers his hands again, he hears several people gasp. Spider rolls his glass eye into the palm of his hand for a few seconds. Then he brings his hand to Wainfleet's face. "See?" he asks mockingly, before taking his eye between his fingers, letting his hand hang over the table and then letting his eye fall into Lyle's full water glass. Everyone at the table stares blankly as the glass eye slowly sinks to the bottom of the glass. It's as if the glass eye had figured out what Spider was up to, because as the glass sphere sinks to the bottom, the eye rotates so that the lifeless brown iris looks directly at Wainfleet.

"Anyone want to see my glass eyes collection?"

[returnsandreturns]

this is all i needed to write after rewatching this episode

“I’m going to put this gun down,” Despereaux says, calmly, sitting it on the coffee table before making the kind of eye contact that Shawn associates with really fun, adventurous sex, “so you know that I only want to pursue my current urge with what I anticipate to be your extremely enthusiastic consent. Stand up, Shawn.”

“. . .why should I do what you say when you’re no longer pulling a little Bond villain moment on me?” Shawn asks, resisting the automatic urge to stand just because Despereaux’s voice—does things to him. Dark, gay things.

“Because I’ll make it more than worth your while,” Despereaux says, doing something frankly elegantly devastating with his eyebrows before taking one single, significant step closer.

“Stolen masterpieces?” Shawn asks. “Gold? Jewels? Pieces of Me, the debut album of Alaska’s sweetheart Jewel? That’s the real masterpiece and you should know, sir, I am sensitive and would like to stay that way.”

It gets him an uncalculated smile which makes Shawn want to do roughly the opposite of standing. More precisely, to be on his fucking knees. He’s never encountered a master thief but he might have a weakness for them—as well as a weakness for any kind of accent, handsome faces and people of any gender with a commanding presence.

“I think you know exactly what I’d like to give you,” Despereaux says, lower than before, so Shawn has to lean forward a little to really hear it—he’s purring, basically, “but I can say it plainly, unless like you’d like to continue stalling while you consider what you’re willing to do—and what you can’t stop yourself from doing.”

They’re not staring at each other so much as Despereaux is staring at him and Shawn is taking in the heated feeling of that while happening to get lost in his eyes a little. For what might be the first time in his life, he can’t say anything. He just shakes his head.

“Good boy,” Despereaux says, warmly.

“. . .oh, fuck you,” Shawn says, laughing, covering his face with his hands. “Just—say it plainly.”

“Well, you beat me to it,” Despereaux says, walking closer, fingers brushing Shawn’s hands so he drops them slowly before tipping Shawn’s chin up with one finger. He’s good. That's a damn move. “I’m going to fuck you. Would you like to do what I told you to now, Shawn?”

Shawn stands up slowly and with next to no dignity.

“I’m only doing this because it feels narratively satisfying and also I really want to,” he says, as casually as he can when he’s pretty sure Despereaux could say just the right word and he’d implode or melt or just die right there—in his arms tonight. “Should I get naked or do you want to seductively undress me? I’m fine with either. Just know that the sweat stains on my shirt are from vigorous manly exercise prior to this event and not fear from the whole gun thing.”

Despereaux pulls Shawn in by the collar of his shirt to kiss him and Shawn’s brain shuts off as soon as a strong hand is wrapped gently around his throat.

“Undress for me,” Despereaux says, squeezing just enough to count. “I'd enjoy that.”

“. . .okay,” Shawn breathes, immediately ripping his shirt off.

[woahhhfidget]

annoying

pairings : jenna ortega x reader

wc : 376 words

warnings : overthinking, feeling too clingly, being called annoying, not proofread

a/n : this is a vent post, i do have some requests and i will work on those soon it's just that something came up and i haven't been feeling the best and having the motivation to write much. :)

lowercase intended

--

it wasn't fun being an overthinker.

taking everything to heart.

believing obvious lies.

staying up late at night, thinking to much about certain things that i shouldn't even be thinking about in the first place.

honestly, if something was said about jenna cheating on me, i'd probably believe it.

it just made me a mess. it made my life a mess, made it worse in every way.

what made being an overthinker even worse was that i was never good at communicating my feelings, reaching out when i needed someone to talk to.

it made my life shit.

i have been distant towards jenna recently for this reason.

somethings that people have said about me just make me feel annoying in some way.

those things that people have said made me overthink far more than i should have.

it made me feel so isolated and hurt in so many different ways.

even without even saying anything to her about anythng, still feel like a burden towards her.

jenna seemed to catch on quick.

she asked, "why have you been so distant recently? you know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

"yeah, yeah. it's just that i feel too clingy sometimes. like i'm holding you down in someway." i say, starting to tear up. "i've never felt held down because of you, okay?" she assured me, pulling me in for a hug. "what made you think this?"

"people online and partially myself. every night i just lay in bed while your sleeping, silently crying because of my overthinking problems."

"baby," she said, dragging it out while holding me tighter. "why don't you wake me up at all?"

"you're just always so busy and i don't wanna keep you up." i expressed. she sighed quietly in disappointment.

"i don't care if you keep me up, your well being is far more important than my sleep schedule, trust me." she says while slowly stroking my hair to try and comfort me of my crying.

"how about this, we take a nap and forget about all of this for a bit, we can watch a movie and do whatever you want afterwards. does that sound good?"

"yeah," i say as i finally stop crying, "that sounds good."

"good."

[yoki-doki-then]

FFXIV Write 2024 - T W O H E A D S A R E B E T T E R T H A N O N E

“Hey, Aika?”

“Yes, Yoki?”

“Do you think they're actually... dead? My parents? My brother?”

Two Lalafells sit under the evening sky, decorum and their rift of status discarded under the watch of the stars and moon above. Ul'dah's night life quiets near their restaurant, both clad in more pedestrian garments than their norm. It's incognito, in way. The world breezes past them, ignorant to their deeper stories.

“In all technical and probable likelihood, Yoki, they are dead.”

“... But do you think they are?”

“No.” Aika speaks before her mind can catch her heart, and she swallows hard. Her fingers twitch near the collar of her dress, looking for something to claw at, but she stills her digits. “I do not,” she reinforces eventually. “It wouldn't make sense?”

“Dramatically speaking, it does. We are... 'were' a rather tumultuous family. It's kinda hard to find the good notes hidden in discord. I remember some. But a lot of it was drama. The silent kind of drama that slowly out from inside holes. 'You didn't notice me when you started this', it's gonna whisper as it eats a rib, 'and now you'll regret it'. That kinda drama.”

“You are wonderfully melancholic, Yoki,” says Aika with a loving sigh. “But, no. I don't think they are.”

“Why not?”

“I saw the family's drama too. I've lived through it. But I've also seen the kindnesses they've shared. The pain. The... well, pleasure. I think it's more complicated than just a sweeping 'they were bad'. Even if some parts were certainly ill.”

“All it takes is a weakness for the Final Days to steal your soul, to my understanding.”

“Maybe. But they are not weak people. They're less stubborn than you, but fight hard for second place.”

The younger woman giggles a touch. “I'd like to hope so.”

“Don't just hope. Keep surviving. Thrive. Eventually, I'm sure the chance will come for you to reconnect with them, wherever they might be.”

“You too, right?”

“... Pardon?”

“Aika. I know we have this sorta-weird relationship of money going between us, but I do like to think of you as... I don't really know the word. You're a part of my world.”

“... I appreciate that, Yoki. I do.”

“I've another adventure to go on. It's something... I don't really know what it's about yet. But I'm setting out for an airship tomorrow to meet with a bunch of others. I hope it goes well. When it's over and I come back, do you think you could help me look for my family? I want this to end. I want proof, or I want them in my arms.”

Aika looks down at her lap. Her palms tingle, and she rubs them together to try to fight back the nerves. “I would like to do that. I will. There's things I know I've kept to myself, I suppose. Out of care. You understand, I hope? I-”

“I understand. Well, I don't, but I demand myself to understand.” “Pfeh.” Aika's laugh, despite all her normal airs of decorum, was always her most undignified trait. It rumbled in her throat and bubbled to the back of her mouth, coming mostly through her nose. When she recovers, she continues. “I'll be open about anything you ask, and even things you wouldn't. I want my life to start its next chapter as well.”

“... Then here's to a good adventure for me, and a fine tomorrow for us.”

Yoki's sister smiles and picks up her glass on the table. It's empty, long-since drained, but she feels the bounty of grapes in it regardless. “Here's to.” She sips air.

It's delicious.

[rendy-a]

if requests are still open, and if it's okay for me to ask for a follow-up; Can I ask how thankful the boys would be for the time-breaker S/O's UM during their daily lives ? slice of life, fluff, goofy "moments before disaster" saved by S/Os UM, all those good things :D I've been thinking about a few highlights, like... Slowing time around the table area during an unbirthday party because Ace ALMOST crashed into the table; S/O uses their unique magic to get up and hold him by the back of his jacket in time to yank him back onto his feet; S/O is now a mandatory attendant to all unbirthday parties as result... (On the bright side, Riddle looks a whole lot more relaxed now) Cheka tries to ambush S/O and Leona when he takes them home to meet the family. S/O turns around in slow motion during Cheka's leap; now S/O is gently holding the young boy by the back of his shirt, nonchalantly smug, "To be fair, i think was a good attempt?" (Leona knows he must not laugh but what the fuckLMFAO- ) Jamil's list of daily "Almost-s" is no longer a threat to his heart with S/O around, but the way his S/O delivers news to him by throwing letters Kaiba-style only to freeze them in place almost does it; but its the good news that make his heart jump this time (the news itself is up to you but i'm imagining smth along the lines of "Kalim's older siblings came back from buying milk and made some new friends who decided to be guards lmfao you can just work halftime now, congrats" written in a royal way) ...these boys better give their S/O a hug and some kisses for all that effort, honestly

(you don't have to choose from the ones i wrote or do any of 'em!! i'm just very happy to read your writing at all and I wanted to share whats in my mind in case it gave you any ideas too ^^ thank you for writing twst, and I'm so sorry for the long asks!! I like to hope it makes writing easier rather than harder for you x( <3333 )

Goodness, I thought this would be fast to right since I'd just finished the last one but it took me the same amount of time. Anyway, here is a part 2 for this story.

Making a Moment Last Afterwards

Life as a magical prefect has its perks.  How do things change between you and your sweetheart after your confession?

Riddle had always saw his future as that of a magical doctor, fixing people who were injured or broken.  Maybe that is why the way you use your ability to prevent injury so catches his attention.  One morning, you came to meet him at Heartslabyul so you could walk to class together.  You give him a warm smile as way of a greeting.  “Right on time dear,” he says with a smile.  Just then, a student lets his mind wander too much on the iconic eye-bending staircases and stumbles.  “Ack!” he yelps as he starts a tumble down the stair, hand just missing the railing.  Riddle reaches for his pen but you are faster.  Before he hits the ground, you have him frozen in place.  You hold him there, suspended in time, until Trey and Cater are able to grab him by his jacket.  Then you release your magic and the upperclassmen yank their junior back onto his feet, thus preventing a horrible accident. 

“Why do these stairs need to be designed so crazy!” the shaken student complains.  You feel like that was not a well-timed complaint and, glancing at your boyfriend’s face slowly turning into an angry scowl, you know you were correct.  “Because that is tradition!” you say with forced humor, patting your bristling boyfriend on the arm.  Riddle calms down and gives a sharp nod, as if to say ‘Exactly! So there!’  Then he turns to you and offers his arm with a satisfied smile.  His dearest always knows just what to do.

The next incident was during preparations for the upcoming Unbirthday Party.  A freshman was up on a ladder to paint the highest roses red when a certain grey fire gremlin runs wildly past, knocking the ladder and sending the student flying.  You fling out your magic, catching the first year in time to save him a bad fall but not fast enough to prevent a wrenched wrist.  Luckily, you know enough first aid to help him wrap it tight before sending him to the school infirmary.  Riddle looks at you, wrapping the student’s wrist, and gets a thought; you are just like a nurse.  “What’s that?” Deuce asks him.  Riddle blushes, did he say that out loud?

When the day of the Unbirthday party arrives, you sit happily on the right side of Riddle.  He smiles with such satisfaction to have you seated in a place of honor by his side.  “Urgh!”  You hear a student cry out as he trips, flinging a pot of hot tea toward a group of students.  Thankfully, you manage to catch the hot tea before it hits anyone.  You still rush over to the group to check them over (better safe than sorry!) while also scolding the stumbling student to be more careful on the uneven ground. 

You finish looking over the last student and give him a pat, “I think you are good.”  He smiles sheepishly at you and replies, “Thank you, Nurse Rosehearts.”  Your eyes widen and your mouth makes a little O shape.  That is nothing compared to the levels of embarrassment your boyfriend is experiencing.  “What did you say?” he asks menacingly.  “Ah, well you see…um Deuce told us you call the Prefect your nurse and we all thought it was fitting so…”  Riddle is now a shade of red you hadn’t realized it was possible for a human to turn, “Deuce.  If you have nothing better to do with your head than spread rumors, I take it you have no objections to me claiming it.  OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!”  You mouth ‘sorry’ to your collared friend as Riddle continues to scold him.

Later that night, Riddle muses as he brushes his teeth.  Nurse Rosehearts.  That has a nice sound to it.

Your life with Leona could be summarized in one word, restful.  How could it not be, the lazy second prince insisted you nap with him whenever he could get a moment of your time.  Some of the students from Savanahclaw think it’s cute, the proud Leona wanting to cuddle his sweet little herbivore like his own personal teddy.  Those who spent the most time around him knew better.  It was for your special skills. 

Leona’s guide to napping Part 1, prepare the environment.  The botanical garden was a favorite date spot for you and your boyfriend.  The temperature was temperate, the plants were colorful background and, during classes, it was nice and quiet.  Usually. 

Leona’s ears flicker irritably.  Drip. Drip. Drip.  A huffing sound escapes from your boyfriend’s lips as he pulls you closer, attempting to drown his awareness of the sound with your comforting presence.  Drip, drip, drip.  He grips you and rolls over to his other side, bringing you along for the ride.  “Woah, come on; warn a person before you do something like that!” you scold.  He opens a single eye to glare out from, a “Tck” sound slipping out irritably when he sucks is teeth in annoyance.  “Fine, fine.  Want me to get up and see if I can tighten the faucet?” 

When he rumbles deep in his chest and grips you even tighter, you know that is a no.  ‘Fine,’ you think, ‘time for a last resort measure.’  Moments later the sound stops.  Leona’s eyes open at the cessation of the sound, instincts pulling him to alertness at the change in atmosphere.  After a moment, his gaze falls on your amused expression, of course you’d stopped it with your magic.  “Five minutes tops.  You better fall asleep fast.”  He smiles, drawing your head into his chest.  “Won’t even take two, Herbivore.”

 Leona’s guide to napping Part 2, avoid pests at all costs.  You could hear the screeching from down the hall.  Children just operated at their own frequency.  The look on Leona’s face said he found the joyful chirrups more like you’d take nails on a chalkboard.  His face visibly annoyed as the young Checka clutched at his hand exclaiming, “Unka Leona, look! Unka Leona, see that!” at every little point of interest.  You feared, if he didn’t get a break soon, Leona would snap.

“Hey Checka, want to see a cool field where you can catch butterflies?”  you suggest.  The bright face of the child turns to you, “Yeah!”  Leona smiles at you gratefully and attempts to shake Checka’s hand off.  “No, you come too, Unka Leona!” Checka insists.  Leona’s smile falls into a stern frown quickly.  You quickly move to catch his eye and give him a conspiratorial wink.  Leona looks at you for a long moment and then sighs. “Lead the way, Herbivore.”

When you get to the fields near Ramshackle, there were indeed an assortment of moths and butterflies that flitted between the grasses and blooms.  “Come on Checka, I’m a pro at this!  Let’s go!” you shout and grab the little cub’s hand to urge him to join you.  And he does, allowing Leona to slip into the tall grass for a short reprieve from his noisy charge. 

Only the peace doesn’t last.  What seems like a brief moment later, Checka pounces upon his hapless uncle.  “Ooph!” Leona huffs, giving the boy a disapproving look.  “Checka, where did you go?” you call out helplessly.  “Unka Leona, are you sleepy?” the little cub asks Leona curiously.  Leona rolls his eyes and looks at you with a look that reads, ‘rescue me.’  You rack your brain for another distraction.

Finally, even you must admit you’ve reached your limit and give up.  “Hey kid, want to do something fun?  Come here and I’ll teach you to fly.”  The young lion bounds eagerly to his feet and runs to your side.  You grip him by each underarm and toss him into the air.  “Whooa!” you both yell.  When he lands, he shouts “Again!”  So you oblige him.  Only this time, when he lands in your arms, you freeze him in time.  “Herbivore, you are horrible.” Leona teases you.  “Shush, you.  Let’s get some rest in while we still can.” 

Leona holds out an arm, inviting you to join him where he lays.  You snuggle up and fall into an exhausted slumber.  It lasted fifteen minutes, until your magic wore off.  The best fifteen minutes of your day.

Jamil worked harder than anyone else you knew.  Although you hadn’t officially gotten together after that magical night, you still somehow seemed to always be at his side.  From that vantage, you’d been introduced to the grueling schedule that Jamil kept as both a student and servant to Kalim.  You were fortunate that Scarabia had so many spare rooms.  If not for the fact that you often slept over at the dorm, you might not see Jamil for days at a time. 

The sun was barely risen when a sharp knock came at the door of your guest room suite.  You mumbled to yourself before rolling over to look at the time.  It was so early… A few minutes later, another knock sounds on your door.  You know by this that Jamil has passed your room first to light the oven, getting it warm for breakfast, and again on his way to get Kalim out of bed.  You’d like to stay and sleep longer but, with Jamil working so hard already, how could you?

A short time later, you are joined in the kitchen by Jamil.  He gives you a warm smile in welcome and you both get to cooking.  When you had first started cooking with Jamil, he barely trusted you to boil water but now, well, it’s not much but you’ve graduated to chopping veggies.  When he has time, which is rare, he tries to help you improve your cooking skills.  Each time you manage to master a new skill to his satisfaction, you earn a pat on the back and a small, “Well done.”  The praise was more precious to you than jewels.

You finish off a carrot and slide the chopped offering down to Jamil, who adds it to a skillet of simmering spices and gravy.  “What would you like next?” you ask him.  “In a moment, Prefect.  This part is tricky, so I need to concentrate.” Jamil answers.  You don’t mind at all, enjoying the sight of Jamil skillfully flipping the contents of the skillet. 

“Eeek!” came a cry from the lounge.  You both recognized that voice, it was Kalim.  You make eye contact and both simultaneously look at the sizzling skillet.  “Go,” you say, “I’ve got this.”  Jamil is starting to freak out, “I haven’t approved you to make rice yet, let alone this!”  You roll your eyes at him and gesture, freezing the contents of the skillet mid-flip.  “Ahhh,” Jamil mumbles, the beginnings of embarrassment showing on his face.  You’d like to tease him more but there is still Kalim yelling in the lounge, so you suppose that can wait until this new disaster was dealt with. (It was a spider.)

Parties were so frequent an occasion in Scarabia that you’d rather become numb to them.  You were helping Jamil set up for the latest party for…you weren’t even sure anymore.  It may have been Riddle’s horse’s birthday or something.  Anyway, you were hanging banners from the many railings of the balconies in the Scarabia lounge to prepare for the event. 

Plus, you had a secret duty assigned by Jamil.  From the corner of your eye, you kept Kalim in your sight.  Since Jamil must be away at Basketball Club for the moment, he has entrusted you with keeping Kalim in order.  This mostly amounts to stopping Kalim before he lets his wild ideas run away with him.  Speaking of which, you notice Kalim is excitedly gesturing as he speaks to (honestly you don’t remember his name, you’ve been calling him Scarabia B in your head).  An over-excited Kalim; that’s not a good sign.

“And elephants too!” you were just in time to hear.  Oh no, this had gotten out of hand.  You walk faster towards the pair but Kalim excitedly jumps up and runs off towards his treasure room.  You quickly follow.  “Kalim! Kalim! Where are you going?” you shout.  “Ah, Prefect!” Kalim smiles at you widely, clutching a rolled-up carpet.  “I’m going to take the magic carpet out to herd up some elephants for the party. Aha ha ha!”  Before he can fly off, you grab onto the magic carpet with your magic, freezing it in place.  “Hold it!” you shout.  “We can’t bring elephants to the party or…it will scare the horses!”  Kalim looks at you, his mouth going into a wide O.  Then, just as fast, it shifts into a beaming grin.  “Of course, why didn’t I think of that!  I’m so glad we have you here to help with the party, Prefect!  Aha ha ha!”  Disaster averted.

Parties were fun but they were also exhausting, especially for Jamil.  You followed him around, helping as best you could.  Sweeping up, tearing down party decorations, putting leftover food away to repurpose for tomorrow’s lunch; anything to take a small portion of the burden off your hard-working beau.  Finally, you had had enough.

“Jamil, you need to stop and rest.  This can all wait until tomorrow,” you gently admonish him.  He sets down the empty platter he is carrying and sighs.  “Prefect, I wish your magic could freeze time for the whole world, so I’d finally be able to finish everything.”  You consider this and respond, “Maybe my unique magic can’t do that but that’s not the only magic I have.” Jamil chuckles softly and gives you a look that says, ‘go on.’  You smile at him mischievously, “I’m like the fabled genie of the lamp, ready to grant your every wish.  For your first wish, I’m sending you off to bed for some rest.”  Then you drop the humor, “Even you need a break sometimes Jamil.” 

With a final long-suffering sigh, Jamil relents and lets you walk with him toward his room and well-earned slumber.  “You know, Prefect,” Jamil quietly states, “I believe the genie granted three wishes.”  You pause under the gentle illumination of a lantern set in an alcove.  “Why so he did,” you reply pensively.  Then, stepping close to Jamil, you place a hand on his cheek before drawing him down into a kiss.  His lips are warm against yours in the rapidly cooling night.  When you part, you lay your other hand on his chest and lean into his comforting warmth.  “I guess now you’ll just have to head to your room and think about what you want as your third wish.”

With one last gentle look, Jamil turns and continues alone to his room and rest.  Truly though, he has no need to consider a third wish.  What more could he desire when he already has you?

[bookaddict24-7]

REVIEWS OF THE WEEK!

Every week I will post various reviews I've written so far in 2024. You can check out my Goodreads for more up-to-date reviews HERE. You can friend me on Goodreads here.

Have you read any of these? What were your thoughts?

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329. Straight by Chuck Tingle--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was SUCH a fun read!

STRAIGHT is my favourite Tingle book so far. I loved the characters, the horror, the wit, and the unique take on the zombie genre.

STRAIGHT had some great commentary on topics like allyship and how the LGBTQ+ community can come together when there is danger. But I also appreciated the exploration of the anger aimed at the community and felt IN the community. One of the things I love about horror sometimes is how certain situations are used as allegories for certain issues in our contemporary society and Tingle's book doesn't shy away from that. I loved how straight-forward the conversation was.

Overall, I laughed sometimes, cringed from the gore, and loved that I read this in October. I think that if you love horror and zombies and queer stories that are just pure fun with some great social commentary, then you might want to add this one to your TBR!

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330. 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I am slowly making my way through King's work and while some are...something else, others like SALEM'S LOT are truly a great example of why he's been writing for so long.

SALEM'S LOT does one of the things I love so much about King's writing: it creates that eerie atmosphere full of trepidation. It felt like I was reading IT if it had been slightly faster paced. The way the story is full of foreshadowing, almost immediately uncomfortably creepy scenes, and a heavy note of wrongness, made this incredibly compelling. I wanted to keep reading and find out what would happen next and who would fall next to the pandemic plaguing the small town of Jerusalem's Lot.

I listened to the audiobook for this and I enjoyed hearing King's introductory chapter, mainly because he acknowledged how dated the story would be in parts, which it was. King's writing is full of problematic words and statements because of the time and what would make the reader uncomfortable. I am familiar with his writing so it doesn't put me off his writing anymore, even if it is still jarring as all hell to read.

That being said, SALEM'S LOT was 100% a classic horror story with that King flourish. It's obvious in how he knows how to bring characters to life with the smallest of details, or how he can demonize a whole town by blanketing it with the perfect word choices and masterful atmospheric writing. It was surprisingly to the point and really well-paced.

The characters were intriguing and kept the story moving relatively well. There were some disturbing moments and characters, and some really sad ones. But their actions and/or ends made this story all the more captivating and haunting.

I'd recommend this one if you like vampires and want a story about a town that is completely helpless against its inevitable demise.

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331. King of Pride by Ana Huang--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

While I enjoyed the first book in this series more, KING OF PRIDE was a surprise. I was a big fan of the slow burn and the bursts of spice that freckled the story here and there (since I think that sometimes too much spice can be a bit overwhelming).

I loved the differences between the MCs and how they brought them together. I think one of the reasons why I'm such a fan of romances where the two MCs have a big wage difference between them is because they both help each other grow in ways they otherwise would not have experienced. One teaches the other to be more confident and the other teaches them to be more humble. I like the dynamic too because I love a MMC that treats the FMC like the queen that she is.

These two specific MCs had such a sweet love full of some spicy moments that jumped off the page. I could feel the attraction they felt because Huang let the relationship grow organically, rather than let it be one of those insta-romance novels. I loved how they teased each other and how she helped him get out of his shell more.

I also liked how much integrity the MMC had when it came to business, but also that he took action when he really needed to. I felt for the FMC and her fight against writer's block (because truly, same, bestie), mainly because it was a big part of her storyline and one of the things that kept her confidence low.

The climax pissed me off. Not because of the main couple, but the family meddling. I wanted to slap a few of the characters for their callousness and bullying.

But other than that frustrating moment in the book, I really enjoyed this one. It was sexy, romantic, and full of tension. Plus, that dedication was killer and so was the dirty talk. Phew.

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332. Want by Gillian Anderson--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

WANT was definitely something a bit outside of the norm for me. Mainly because I don't tend to read a lot of Well-being titles (which I'm classifying this as because it's a sexuality book). But I'm glad I gave it a shot because I found it very enjoyable and eye-opening.

Told through stories sent in anonymously, WANT was the kind of collection that a lot of people will benefit from reading because of how solitary sex and any sexual-related thoughts can be. I know there are places in the world where sex is still seen as something taboo and not meant to be discussed freely. I liked that this book gave women a chance to voice their sexual thoughts--even if some fell into the odd category.

I know I connected to some of the stories and they left me wide-eyed and seen. Other stories I didn't connect to, but it was still fascinating to see how other peoples' minds worked. To be honest, some stories were so over the top that I couldn't help but laugh a few times. Not to yuck anyone's yum, but some of these essays were...a choice.

That being said, I did appreciate how diverse the essays were and how they were categorized. I was a little wary at first that I would grow tired of the essay after essay approach, but the occasional re-introduction of Anderson in between chapters helped break up the monotony.

I'd recommend this to anyone looking for essay collections of the sexual variety with some great diversity. There were many queer women and it was great getting to hear their voices!

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333. The Second Chance of Darius Logan by David F. Walker--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If there is one thing I will say before I write the review--do yourself a favour and don't listen to the audiobook LOL.

^^I stick by this because the voice actor was a man and he sounded absolutely hilarious when he was voicing the female characters. To the point where it sometimes took me completely out of the story.

Anyway, I loved the concept of THE SECOND CHANCE OF DARIUS LOGAN. It was fun and the writing reminded me a lot of the MICHAEL VEY series, which I loved. I love origin stories set in a world completely new to me. I also just liked seeing the MC (who was usually a good teen) get what he had earned during the story.

Walker's social justice commentary was also eye-opening because when we usually read superhero stories, the worlds are completely fictional and often lack the very real issues plaguing our too-real world. Seeing these police officers treating the Black MC in such a racist way made me so angry, both because of the injustice of it all and because not even in fiction do Black teen boys get a break from the racism they face daily. In this way, this aspect of Walker's book made this book all the more powerful--especially because it bursts that idealistic bubble of "it doesn't happen here" when it comes to superheroes in fiction.

Another great part about this book was the exploration of grief and its effect on younger teens who grow without much support after their losses. That simmering anger CAN be a coping mechanism, even if it gets to the point where it can be detrimental. But I liked how he processed his loss and emotions in his own way as the book progressed, especially when he was given a second chance at life.

I'm excited for the sequel because of that somewhat cliffhanger-ish ending. While I wasn't a super huge fan of the narrative style of including too many moments of foreshadowing (I prefer this in horror), I still thought the story had some great pacing going for it and it was highly addictive because I wanted to know what would come next!

I'd recommend this to those who love superhero stories that have a bit more nuance to them than just stereotypical crime fighting.

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334. Our Favorite Songs by Anita Kelly--⭐️⭐️⭐️

One of the best things about these books is that they're bite-sized. Some would definitely benefit from being longer, but I'm glad this one was the length that it was.

I liked the idea that this novella was about two characters who come together after so many years, and have that history of one of the characters hating the other. One of the tropes I actually love is the "I hated you as a teen because I had a big crush on you that felt pointless," and this book had that and it was glorious. I DO think that the one character was a bit over-the-top with his meanness, especially with his biphobic comments.

The spice was good, if a little on the quick side (which I'm not surprised because this is a novella). But it was still some fun sprinkling of spice in a story that had started with such animosity between these two guys.

Overall, OUR FAVORITE SONGS was fun, but it followed a similar pattern as the first novella in the series (with problematic moments that took away from the overall cuteness of the story). It's definitely a good holiday read to enjoy with some tea, while sitting by a window when it's snowing. But keep in mind that there will be some moments in this book that will make you want to side-eye the characters.

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335. The Great Cookie War by Caroline Stellings---⭐️

I received a copy from the publisher a LONG time ago.

First of all, I know this book wasn't for me. This is 100% a middle grade novel that isn't exactly accessible to adults (in my opinion) because of how much I had to suspend my disbelief with certain situations.

That being said, this story was a bit choppy. I admit that I went into this without having read the synopsis, but I typically do this with all of the books I read. But I expected...something else? What I got was a preachy book full of choppy writing and questionable characters--like that grandmother. God, she was awful. There's a scene where she is incredibly horrible to the MC and the "apology" is brushed over by telling us it happened rather than showing us. Which honestly sat wrong with me. We get the entire "I'm disappointed, you're horrible" speech, but not the apology that would make the grandmother take ownership of her abuse on the page for a young reader to see (and acknowledge that adults also need to apologize when they're wrong).

The story just didn't feel like something I wanted to invest my time with and to be honest, I don't know if I'd recommend it to the younger readers who come into the store. Simply because of how the MC is treated, or how choppy that writing was.

I can appreciate what this book is supposed to do and represent, but it was truly not something I enjoyed. I've read various MGLit titles before and this is one of the first times where I finished a middle grade book and felt so much ick.

I'm sure this will be great and relatable for a reader out there--definitely younger readers, and I hope they're able to appreciate it in a much better way than me!

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336. Weird Rules to Follow by Kim Spencer--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I wasn't sure what to expect from this one, but I was pleasantly surprised to see that it followed the MC over the span of a few years as her life changed and revealed some of the cruel truths of her life in a society that looks down on and excludes Indigenous people. It was an incredibly powerful portrayal of a young girl that was paralleled by the experiences of her non-Indigenous friend(s).

I will say, before I continue, that it was jarring to hear an older woman narrating the audiobook for this one--especially when a child gives the description of the cover of the book. I get that this is probably to emphasize that some of these experiences mirror that of the author, but it took me out of the book a few times.

WEIRD RULES TO FOLLOW was definitely a difficult read, especially as an adult seeing a child being excluded and discriminated against, but also seeing the home life she has and how it was affecting her during some of the more important development years of her life. I am not Indigenous, so I don't have any right to say whether this was done correctly or not, but I do want to say that I appreciated this story and the voice that the author gave to this young character.

I think young readers should read books like this one because even though it is set in the 80s, I'm sure there are still things they can relate to--especially in how their own families or friends or people around them interact with/talk about the Indigenous community. And there is, of course, mention of "those schools" (as said in the book), which shows the dark and complicated relationship there with residential schools and the trauma and hell they brought with them.

I highly recommend this book. It's short and powerful and poignant. And even though it's technically historical fiction, it is incredibly timely.

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Happy reading!

[allthatmay]

Two shanksace AUs, hot off the press:

Reincarnation AU??

gosh Shanks struggling under the weight of having a Second Chance to "do things right" in a new life

Maybe there's tension between him feeling obligated to pursue relationships that failed before, while maybe not recognizing that those things could have followed their natural course and still ended up where they did

OOOOO the AU could also change drastically depending on whether shace was established in their previous life, or if things strictly followed canon!!

Pirate Radio AU!!

Yes!!!!

I know you suggested it but I'd love to hear more thoughts there

the creativity/artistry really suits them both so much... Plus, the renegade swagger!! Shanks in some kind of loudly-patterned blazer, stubble, & colored glasses, as he sizes up the newest addition to their operation........ yes!!

This is longer than intended. Forgive me?? (Or not.)

Reincarnation AU

Okay, omg. Like you say, there's so many ways a Shanks reincarnation AU could go, so the whole idea is pretty exciting. A Shanks/Ace reincarnation AU in particular? Oh-ho!!!! So many possibilities, and yet I've never really considered it before.

I think you could write it two ways? One where Shanks dies after meeting Ace (he would find the reversal in their age gap hilarious!!!), and one where Shanks dies before they meet. Maybe he dies from blood loss after saving Luffy? Traumatising, lol. But that's potentially where I'd start, and go from there.

As for the kind of people he'd be born to, I think it'd be fucking hilarious if he was a Celestial Dragon (especially considering people speculate this about his birth anyway). Just some vague ideas:

During childhood, he'd take advantage of his position to find out incriminating military secrets he'd previously been unable to discover, including personal secrets. Just for funsies!!! (And, you know, blackmail.)

He doesn't stick around with his parents, setting sail as soon as he can fend for himself. I think he would, at first, go to Rayleigh. He can't go to Buggy—he wouldn't be quite helpful enough—and he can't go to Garp or Whitebeard (what if he makes him his son????) So, he spends a few years with Rayleigh (working with Dragon during this time) until he's 18ish, maybe?

He sets sail alone, seeking out Luffy, who of course ate the Gum Gum Fruit. That's how he meets Ace, who is reminded of another runaway high-born he knows, and invites Shanks to join his crew. Which, well, why not? He's Luffy's brother and son of the Pirate King. What better way to be in the centre of the action.

What's going on in the background? Why is Ace still alive? Well, Shanks' death was so traumatising for Luffy, and then Sabo's, that he became so terrified of Ace dying, he got incredibly protective. No way was he letting Ace hunt down Blackbeard, especially not when he finds out Whitebeard didn't strictly permit it. This is also assuming the timeline moves more slowly, which it does, because I say so, so there.

Having said all of that, I also totally think Shanks would try to make amends in his old relationships just by being a better person for them (and totally burns himself out doing so). However it goes, you're so right in that Shanks would totally struggle with the idea of getting another chance (because he's a fucking martyr who wants to fix everything). I do think a timeline where Shanks/Ace were previously a thing could be interesting, but I'm not as certain how I'd do that. (Probably I'd have Ace born earlier, while Roger's alive.)

(Also, Shanks would call himself, like, Stabby, as homage to Shanks. Or he gets Rayleigh to name him.)

Pirate Radio AU

This idea is underdeveloped but I love it. It just works for them/their relationship, and fits snugly with the OP universe. I imagine secret radio stations transmitted through specifically bred Den Dens. I'd prefer to write it that way than to write an modern AU simply because Den Dens are fun! (As you well know, Chromo... 👀)

So, the backstory would be like OP, just: Roger is considered the king of pirate radio. After his death, Shanks follows his lead and creates his own station, broadcasting from a ship, so he's harder to catch, of course. And, yes, Luffy and Ace join him when they're old enough!

"Shanks in some kind of loudly-patterned blazer, stubble, & colored glasses..." YES, exactly. I think Ace would be so, like, dazed by him, and angry about it. Then Shanks starts letting him choose songs, and dedicates songs to him, and they get more and more ridiculous in their outrageous, musical flirting, until one of the others (Benn, probably) plays a very passive aggressive song about it. Or something.

Also, love the idea of them running a timeslot together, only to get caught flirting live on air. (Or, having sex in the booth and accidentally broadcasting it. Oh, god.)

When they're not aggressively flirting, they're pissing off the government, of course, who are meticulously censoring all music. Maybe while sailing, they seek the legendary scores of Joy Boy, the first true pirate radio host, lol.

This was fun!! Thanks Chromo!! ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶