#which is actually surprising considering who jimmy seems to be as a person and what his channel raises funds for?

[femmesandhoney]

apparently chris who is most known for being in mr beast videos is trans now but the situation around it feels so...odd. like a lot of people are saying truly dumb shit about it, but the way he apparently came out as bi a few years back after he had a kid, his wife left him, and he's now on HRT? i feel like there's more to that whole situation like if you wanted to dress more femme you didn't need to jump through these hoops so what is actually up my dude...

[wren-kitchens]

guess who forgot they can post writing on tumblr againnn anyway this was bribery so stiff would watch rtc HKFHD

(this is part of the sniflins au! idk if it’s canon or not but it takes place in that world! the sniflins is an au by myself, @angeart @loveroped and @stiffyck !)

jimmy can feel scar smiling against his neck, nuzzling closer every so often, and his stomach fills with butterflies. his chest is filled with a fuzzy glow—a wonderful mix of both his own and scar’s happiness. he can no longer tell what emotion belongs to who, and it’s wonderful. under the lazy warmth of the afternoon sun, it’s as if there’s no one else in the world aside from them, and jimmy couldn’t be happier.

that idea is very abruptly disputed, as joel snores loudly from across the picnic blanket. jimmy stifles a laugh, and he can hear scar giggling quietly in his ear (which, for the record, might just be the best sound ever). 

both grian and joel fell asleep a good ten minutes ago—grian almost fell face first into a cupcake, and joel dozed off midway through insisting that he was not going to fall asleep at all. scar and he have since concluded that it was the sniffer traits that made them so sleepy in comparison to them, and that they will never let either of them live this down.

“ruins the moment a bit, doesn’t it?” jimmy jokes quietly, if only to hear scar’s laugh again.

scar hums, the sound vibrating against jimmy’s skin. “well, I don’t know. doesn’t make you any less beautiful.” 

jimmy feels his face burn in a way that is entirely unrelated to the sun. “oh my gosh.” he buries his head in his hands.

scar is laughing again, sitting up with the sole intention of making jimmy even more flustered, it seems. “oh, but you are! look at you!”

“I will hit you.” jimmy says, muffled through his palms.

“I don’t believe you.” scar teases, sing-song. “you love me too much.”

“I absolutely don’t.” jimmy says. even to his own ears, it sounds laughably false. but right now, he’s proving a point, so.. shut up.

scar presses a kiss to jimmy’s neck, and jimmy feels his face grow impossibly warmer. “oh yeah? now, unless our soulbound broke in the last few seconds, i’m fairly certain you do, sweetheart.”

and- whilst jimmy may not usually be the most forward person in the world, desperate times call for desperate measures. the desperate times in question being his immense flusteredness, and the desperate measures- well..

jimmy takes his hands away from his face, shifts to face scar, grabs his collar and pulls him into a kiss. scar is surprised initially, but melts into it almost immediately—that wonderful glow growing in jimmy’s chest.

and- wow. jimmy somehow manages to forget just how happy scar makes him—not that he’s complaining; it’s something of a fantastic surprise every time he remembers again. like right now, for instance. because scar’s hands are at jimmy’s waist and cupping his cheek, and he’s leaning ever further into the kiss, and jimmy can feel the thin scar that runs through scar’s bottom lips and it’s bliss.

they pull away to catch their breath, giggling breathlessly all the while, and jimmy takes the opportunity for payback. he peppers scar’s face in kisses, delighting as he laughs, and occasionally giving scar’s lips a teasing peck.

“point- point proven!” scar is saying, despite the fact that jimmy has considered stopping at least twice and each time scar whined until he kissed him again.

“mm, no, I don’t think it has.” jimmy grins. “I think I might have to kiss you forever, actually.”

“I mean-“ scar says, and jimmy cackles at the abrupt shift in his tone. “I wouldn’t object, per say-“

“you’re an idiot.” jimmy says, fond as anything. god, he loves this man so much.

scar beams, as if he knows exactly what jimmy is thinking. “I know.”

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hey! The game just came out yesterday so can I request a glamrock Freddy x reader who is doing the repair game for him ? If u have time no rush !!!! I was nervous about asking I’ve never asked for a request before .

Yesss I love that repair game so much

...........

"Hello? Is someone there?"

"Freddy! Long time no see." You grinned from ear-to-ear upon hearing the voice of the Pizzaplex mascot.

As much as you wished this Freddy was the real deal, the company did a stellar job at bringing him to life via virtual reality. You had no clue what to expect when you jumped into the new Help Wanted game, but you were excited!

Freddy's mouth didn't move, but he was clearly speaking to you through his voicebox, eyes neither blinking nor moving. "My ocular fluids have crystalized. I am unable to process your appearance."

"Oh.." You pouted a little. "Guess we'll just have to fix that up, huh?"

"Although we have just met, I know I am in good hands." He chuckled softly. "After all, you are a Fazbear technician...are you not?"

Shrugging your shoulders, you just couldn't stop smiling as you checked the tools that laid before you. One of them seemed to be the heat gun which the tutorial informed you about. It had a hot and cold setting. There was also the diagnostic machine, too.

Apparently your objective was to extract the birthday cake from within his stomach hatch, but before you could do anything, he spoke again and sounded rather..ominous.

"However, I must warn you: due to extreme temperature fluctuations, I am not quite myself at the moment. Do be careful.."

'Even as a virtual character, he still worries for people's safety...that's sweet.' You nodded, checking out the diagnostic machine to see what you needed to do.

First, the ice covering his arms had to be melted. But as you turned up the heat and took care of that, you heard him speak again and froze on the spot, muscles tense.

"Is it just me..or is the room getting hotter?" He growled, which surprised you considering you never thought he'd get angry.

Then again, he did warn you about this exactly; plus you could see the lightning bolt on his chest starting to turn red--a clear warning sign that he was easy to overheat. So you swiftly repaired the inside of his arms before cooling them down, moving onto the next step.

Next, you had to cool off the rest of his inner mechanisms, including his endoskeleton head. You removed his eyes and booped his nose to fully open his mouth--

Only to jump back as he unexpectedly lunged at you with outstretched claws.

At first you feared you did something wrong...until he leaned back into his original position.

"Jeez..c'mon Freddy. No more jumpscares for me, alright?" You chuckled, shaking your head before continuing on.

Eventually you gained access to his stomach hatch, quickly cooling down the overheating coils inside of him. You were spraying the mist as though your life depended on it.

And, in a way, it did as you'd hate to get a game over.

At last you were able to extract the cake, with Freddy commenting on how he's been told it tastes delicious but couldn't actually verify that himself..and his self-awareness humored you greatly.

The developers truly went out of their way to replicate his personality.

For a moment, you wondered what the next step was...until alarms starting blaring and you became incredibly confused. 'Did I mess up again? What's going on??'

"Oh no! I am receiving a cake removal alert!" He cried out. "Please find something of suitable size to replace it with!"

Looking around, it only took you a second to find a similar cake labelled for Timmy instead of Jimmy. You were quick to place it inside his stomach hatch, praying it would register the weight in time.

Fortunately it did as you heard cheering and kazoos to indicate your success in this monumental task.

"Good job! You are my superstar!" The bear laughed, which warmed your heart as you smiled at him, the screen eventually fading to black.

"Thank you Freddy.."

This was a lot of fun.

[weridpersonhelp]

red phone [2.]

Wally x reader?

Previus - Next?

warning: slightly scary, first-time horror writer, stalking, confusion, gramma and spell mistakes, screaming, getting up a horrible hour of night, neurodivergent reader, slow burnish? more fanfic than x reader, children, puppets, curse langue, music, be ready for cringe!

“Augh Jimmy, come on buddy! Be good for sissy!” I plead for my brother who was crying nonstop, I pat his back gently but firm as I bounce up and down slightly trying to rock him to sleep.  

“Ooh the poor little thing is he still crying?” Grandma asks I sigh and nod looking up at her, grey hair up behind a shower cap so she almost looked bald. Her ears were hidden behind it, but I could still see her earrings through it.

“Why don’t you put a show on! I have Vhs tapes in a box with old tv shows! He might just need something to relax”

“Thanks grandma!”

“No problem I’ll be off taking my bubble bath!”  she calls out, I  wince as my little brother grabs my ear and screams in it louder as if I couldn’t hear him any clearer than before. I sit him down on Grandma’s old creamy love seat couch propping him up so he doesn’t fall and shove a pacifier in his mouth. Making his cries just a little less annoying, crawling over to grandma’s Vhs player I look in the cabinets to try and find something that still had colour or better yet something appropriate for him. I sigh finding absolutely nothing that would entertain my brother. I crouch down even more to see if any Vhs tapes had fallen out and one did! BINGO! It had a box and everything so I could read what it was about as well!

I reach in to grab it, but my arms were too short. Honestly how deep was this cabinet? Grabbing a broom, I sweep it out myself and their it was. A puppet with an Elvis Presley hair style, he sat on a colourfully painted rock and honestly, I liked his style and character design. There were flowers behind him brightly painted and a house with eyes. The front cover had the word ‘Welcome Home’ which was a little creepy but over all alright considering the times. It reminded me of the Muppets or sesame street. Turning it over and a description of the show and it’s cast as shown on the back.

“Welcome home. Welcome home is a show following the protagonist Wally as he and his friends, Frank Frankly, Julie Joyful, Poppy Partridge , Sally Starlet, Eddie Dear, Howdy Pillar, Barnaby B. Beagle and Wally darling sentient house?” I ask turning to my brother who was still crying as if he was actually listening to me reading the prologue out loud.

“As they go out on adventure’s learn new lessons and enjoy their time in the happy and welcoming neighbourhood. Seems good enough to me” I take the tape out, and place it in. I turn on the tv and to my surprise it had colour. I sat on the couch and put Jim on my lap and bounce him making his voice shake as he walked.

“Come on let’s watch welcome home! This show hopefully will turn that frown upside down and make you sleepy!” I say to him as if he could understand a single word I just said, the show starts with the Wally character with a newspaper reading it. Honestly, I didn’t mind it myself, and Jim almost completely stopped crying as soon as he saw Wally. I have to say though Frankly frank looked familiar for some reason, but otherwise if I was being honest, I would probably watch the show with out Jim here. I loved Wally��s calm but cheerful attitude, he would tease his friends a little but over all was supportive of them. Frank and Julie would have to be my favoured pair though. They seemed to be the best of friend’s even though they were basically complete opposites in personality, I couldn’t help but laugh at their banter. We also got to meet Sally who was pretty cool too, My brother how ever seemed to just be in love with Wally and home! And when the eposide was done he clapped his hands for more happily.

“Oh my! where did you find that old thing?!” Grandma asks in her night gown walking down the stairs, she sounded angry and shocked.

“At the back of the cabinet! It’s quite a fun show Jim adores it!” I explain though she seems nervous for some reason.

“ooh I though I thought that out along time ago, it best be time for Jim to go to bed now, and you should get ready for bed soon as well! Don’t want to stay up too late!” grandma says turning off the tv by the cord, which was odd because the remote was right next to her. Jim was giggly though and when grandma went to pick him up, he was still giggly.

“alright good night grandma!” I say as the old woman walks up stairs carefully, I sigh pulling out my phone and texting my friend.

I have known Safa ever since we were kids, she was short plumb and had the most beautiful black hair I had ever seen, not to mention the perfect tans she would get at the beach when ever her family went . she was tech savvy way better than I was and able to find someone in just a couple of hours, which was useful but also scary. I get up from the couch and walk into the kitchen grabbing some ice cream, I make sure to put a massive spoon full of milo, sit at the table and set up my phone and watch my favioute youtuber while eating. Hours go by, with me just scrolling through my phone and talking to Safa about the stupidest shit, that was until I heard the creek of the door.

Once I decided enough was enough, I put my bowl in the sink and go up stairs quickly taking a shower and brush my teeth, drying myself off with one of grandma’s old towels felt scratchy on my skin. I should of brought my own towel, oh well too late now plus I’ll be back home in a couple of days and can deal with it for another day or two. Maybe.

Once I got dress in my pure cotton Pj’s I walk over to my double bed and faceplant. I spread my limps like a star fish taking a deep breath I try to relax my body. Closing my eyes, I wrap myself in a cocoon the tightness of my blanket comforts me as I fell asleep

[frodolives]

Hi!! So sorry to bother you but I was wondering if you could please expand on the pedophile investigation? I’ve never seen anything that suggested he was a pedophile so this is pretty shattering. I was abused as a child so to find out one of the few men I trusted may have also been an abuser is very sad 😭. Anyways sorry if that’s too much info lmao (p.s i love your blog!!)

OK since I got a few asks about this specific iceberg entry I suppose I should make it its own post. It sounds worse than it (probably) is so I'll just say right off the bat that I don't think Paul was/is an actual pedophile or sexual abuser of any sort... But he's by no means a saint and still did questionable things that I feel a lot of his fans are too wilfully forgetful of. However, I also understand the reluctance to talk about it because it's definitely an uncomfortable and potentially triggering topic. TW for paedophilia and sexual abuse mentions under the cut.

Basically the specific incident I was referring to in the iceberg was this video:

This video is the only thing I can find on the incident and it's not long so I recommend watching it if you're curious of all the details... The gist is that when the Beatles were in Minneapolis in 1965, the police got reports there was an underage girl in one of the Beatles' motel rooms and when they showed up to investigate they found her in Paul's room.

To Paul's credit, he's kind-of addressed this? Not the specific Minneapolis incident, but he did admit to sleeping with young girls here, saying:

“More generally, then the whole sort of scene was not so PC. [In] that postwar boom, girls and guys, it was a much more open scene… free love and the Pill had just come in, so it was a completely different scene. The other aspect, of course, is that we, though not quite Jimmy [Savile], we were of the age of the girls, we were all young. So if you’re now talking about a 17-, 18-year-old boy with a 15-year-old girl, we all knew that was illegal. We knew it and it was like, ‘NO’. But the closer we were in age, of course, the less it seemed to matter. We knew with under-16s it was illegal, so we didn’t do it [...] We tried to make sure. We couldn't always be sure but there was a definite no-no involved in under-age kids. Hey, listen, we didn't have to worry. There were plenty of over-16-year-olds.”

So Paul admits he slept with young girls when he was young himself, but is also adamant they were never underage. On the surface this kind of contradicts the police investigation saying there was an underage girl in his room, but it's worth noting that the specific age of what is considered "underage" varies from place to place and time to time. (In addition, I think when the police heard a Beatle had a young girl in his room they assumed that meant a child which would explain the need for police intervention, but when they probably realized it was somebody older they seemed to drop the case because as far as my knowledge goes there were no charges made.) Paul specifically says he never slept with anybody under 16, thus essentially admitting to sleeping with 16-year-olds who still would be considered underage in a lot of places. In addition, he admits that "you couldn't always be sure" and I wouldn't be surprised if there were any mature-looking underage fans who lied about being older to sleep with Paul. So personally I think Paul is being honest and I doubt he ever purposefully sought out younger girls (I'm maybe giving him the benefit of the doubt here but I truly don't believe it fits with Paul's personality). But Paul was still on a very thin line...

While Paul wasn't a pedophile in the literal definition of the word (I'm quite positive he never ever slept with a prepubescent child), the age of these teenagers he was sleeping with is definitely still questionable... Paul defending himself saying he was young and that it was a different time kind of sounds like a cop-out, but I also think it's worth emphasizing with him. Paul was young and we know he stopped sleeping with groupies by the time he was in his mid-20s. And as for the different time thing... unfortunately in the 60s, rock stars sleeping with very young fans was incredibly common and normalized. I honestly can't think of a single rock star from that era that isn't guilty of sleeping with questionably young girls. It's also worth noting the young girls in question tended to be groupies who were extremely willing participants and wouldn't themselves have called it abuse (even though it can also be validly argued that Paul took advantage of his fans’ adoration of him and they were too young to properly consent).

Since "free love" was the rock and roll culture and Paul was young and in the depths of it, I can't really blame him for being influenced... at least I can understand his perspective somewhat... of course it sucks that he wasn't the "glowing exception," I really wish he was more careful about who he slept with, but he wasn't.

In short, it's a very complex situation and one of Paul's more questionable incidents... I don't think Paul is some irredeemable pedophile or sexual abuser or anything, I just think this is more a case of him being young, horny, stupid, and negatively influenced by his environment. Though I'm also aware I'm maybe not the best person to give a "take" on this since I know I speak from a place very far removed from groupie culture and I'm a McCartney fan and thus biased. So while personally I "forgive" him for this, I completely understand if somebody can't.

Overall, I believe there should be more wider discussions about the ways rock stars interacted with groupies because there's definitely truth to rock stars abusing their power and influence over fans (some worse than others...) and since it's only really us fans who know about it, we don't want to expose or think about the flaws of our icons, and thus rock stars have basically gotten away with it. I'm not saying we should "cancel" everybody or anything, but I think we should definitely do a better job at evaluating their legacy and the legacy of rock and roll in general. I love rock and roll, it's my favourite thing in the world, and I love Paul McCartney. But completely idealizing is also never healthy.

[bluebellthesponge]

Hey friend! I am Rae and I followed you because this stupid troll movie resurrected my ancient NSYNC obsession and you post about them some. But, I know a lot of younger people aren't comfortable palling around with much older people, and I am literally 20 years your senior, lol. So I just wanted to reach out and say hi, but also let you know if you'd rather I not follow/interact that's totally fine too, I won't be hurt or anything.

In payment for this awkward af message, I offer you "Songbird" by Fleetwood Mac and invite you to imagine Chris singing it. :)

hey there!!! welcome to my blog, glad you followed me because of my nsync posting teheheh! and you're good! feel free to stay following my blog i am totally fine with really any people older than me following me :)) i am glad you find enjoyment with what i post! :D

happy to hear your nsync interest was reignited with the trolls movie, makes me wonder if the movie will bring back old fans and bring in new ones! which i mean i am sure it will, it does feature nsync songs (i think? i don't know how many actually, all i know is better place and i want you back for trailers lmao) so it's cool and exciting to probably see some new people around considering at least nsync tumblr is pretty much dead lol

but it's cool to probably have a movie introduce people to nsync considering i say after nsync broke up??? (question marks because the breakup date confuses me so much) i say jt's songs have been more of the standard/what people are use to rather than nsync songs which is natural lol, music moves on and nsync obvs hasn't made a new album since 2001

because personally for me, i was literally born after nsync technically died, i was more used to it just being justin and that nsync was more of a fun fact on his behalf lmao. i only knew bye bye bye, it's gonna be me and merry christmas, happy holidays and probably pop because of jimmy neutron but that was it

it wasn't until the beginning of this year that my sisters and i started watching boyband music videos on youtube because when my one older sister was younger, radio disney i guess played pop and she hated that song when she was younger, so when she saw the music video we watched it,,,and kept on watching it the next couple of weeks and then their other music videos and at first, like i am with a lot of things i realize i might start getting interested in, i was in denial being like "oh i am NOT catching myself getting into some dead 1990s/2000s boyband with fucking justin timberlake in it like nuh uh" but then oh no!!! i realize i started watching their performances by myself and by spring/summer i already am familiar with all their names and searching for "nsync as vines" videos that i know i am already too deep in

and also on the last day of school back in june, to celebrate i guess, my sisters ordered pizza for us since our mom was out of the house and we watched the lou boyband con documentary and soon we want to watch the lance and joey movie together lol

ok sorry for explaining my nsync interest origin story i just felt like it hahah. i just have a lot of thoughts on nsync in general that i can make a whole ass video essay series about them but that's a later idea to execute

personally with me on any fandoms i usually am more shy i guess lol. i am just scared to interact with others in general because i am a socially anxious guy idk dsfjlkdslkf, that's why i follow like 84 blogs dfsljdsfkdsf and from what i seen a lot of the nsync fandom are people in their 30s which is fine! that's cool considering they did grow up in that era to experience the boyband phenomena like glad they are still enjoying something they liked 20+ years ago unlike me who never grew up with that and yeah boybands like one direction and big time rush existed, but a boyband craze like nsync i never was there to experience hahaha

considering the one direction fandom still seems to be going strong in some sense, i am not surprised nsync has been as well (at least on other platforms but i don't fuck with instagram/tiktok fandoms). but anyways personally for me i feel awkward for the most part being in the nsync fandom, the fans i have met are generally very nice (like you!) but i still feel a bit odd for not being a millennial who grew up with them but instead a chronically online gen z teen who found them really because my older sister in the late '00s hated a song of theirs lol

but anyways once again i am saur sorry for that long ass answer i just have a lot of thoughts about this stupid ass band, but once again feel free to stay! you're welcomed here :D thank you so much!

and ooooh i will listen to the song soon and see hehehe! after school or so i'll do it ljdsflkdsf thanks :)

*edit: how i also knew of the other members at first was also probably silly. i probably heard of chris because he voiced chip skylark on the fairly odd parents, lance was several timez on gravity falls, and joey and jc i was not 100% of them at first/didn't have other media i could attach them to at first when i wasn't sure of their names lolll. i knew joey was on hannah montana but i never watched that show and he was on big fat greek wedding which my mom liked, but with jc literally that man fell off the face of the earth after nsync (i know that's not 100% true, but you get what i mean dsflkjdslk)

also another unnecessary thought but i kind of lowkey feel well not weird but interesting that nsync are technically around my parents' ages (at least more so around chris, jc, and joey's considering chris is only a couple months older than my mom) and it's like "huh these guys could technically be my parents...and i am just giggling and kicking my feet watching these fucking losers dance for my entertainment"

once again thank you and have a nice day!

[scribbling-dragon]

Double Life prompt: what if Cleo and Martyn got along, or at least didn't totally hate each other? I love these two sm

passive-aggressive apologies

Summary:

“You're an idiot.” It’s the first thing she can think of when she faces Martyn, and the way he blinks at her, completely surprised as thought this wasn't utterly deserved was definitely worth it.

“I- what?” He continues to stare at her, as though she’s grown another head. Which she hasn't. But he continues to look at her like that anyway.

“You're an idiot.” She reiterates.

(AO3 Link)

(787 words)

i dont really know what i think of this one, i like both of them but the characterisation feels a bit off, but i cant figure out why (also, sorry that it's a bit shorter than some of the others)

(friendly reminder that reblogs help more than likes!)

“You're an idiot.” It’s the first thing she can think of when she faces Martyn, and the way he blinks at her, completely surprised as thought this wasn't utterly deserved was definitely worth it.

“I- what?” He continues to stare at her, as though she’s grown another head. Which she hasn't. But he continues to look at her like that anyway.

“You're an idiot.” She reiterates.

“How?” His voice pitches a little and he laughs. “How am I an idiot?”

“We went around the whole server,” she spreads her arms out, gesturing to the whole server, and he follows the movement, “Looking for our soulmates, which, surprise! That’s you. And you just fucked off somewhere else?”

“We didn't think of that.” He looks over to the side, where Scott and Pearl are having a much similar conversation, albeit much quieter. She doesn't miss the plea in Martyn’s eyes as he stares at the side of Pearl’s head, as though sheer willpower will be enough to make her turn and look at him. “We were, uh, occupied with other things?”

Even he doesn't sound confident on that, and she simply regards him, watching as his eyes dart back to Pearl again. The fear of god look he keeps aiming at her is great and all, but an apology would be nice too.

“You were occupied with exploring the Deep Dark and the Nether?” She clarifies, “Both extremely dangerous places, without considering the person that’s linked to you through pain?”

“You make it sound bad when you put it like that.” He frowns at her.

“It sounds bad whatever way you put it.” She sighs, wishing she’d just gone with her first plan and killed him. It would be a lot easier than whatever conversation they're currently having. 

Martyn doesn't have a response to that and she looks over at Scott, hoping he’s suffering just as much as she is- nope. He’s hugging Pearl and she’s apologising. When she looks back to Martyn he’s watching them too.

“Getting some inspiration?” She asks, and he looks back at her, startled, as though he forgot she was there.

“Inspiration?” She takes back anything she said about Scar or Jimmy, she’s pretty certain Martyn’s the worst soulmate actually. The only reassurance she’s got right now is the frantic beating of his heart, like a trapped mouse. He’s terrified, sure, but that’s not really forthcoming with any apologies.

“For your apology.”

“You want me to apologise?” He sounds genuinely confused, and she can hear Scott laughing at her goddamnit. She shoots him a glare from the corner of her eye, watching as it only makes him laugh harder, stifling them behind his hand as though he’s having a coughing fit.

“Yes.” She grits out. “Pearl apologised to Scott, so you're going to apologise to me.”

“What for?”

“Christ, Martyn, do you have to have everything spelled out for you?” He just stares at her, which suggests that yes, he does have to have everything spelled out for him. She thought he was smart. “You went to places that hurt, I can feel your pain, and you didn't even seem to consider that, yes?”

He nods.

“And you caught on fire several times. Who do you reckon felt that pain as well?”

Finally, a light comes on his eyes, as though someone’s just come home and started occupying his brain again. “You want me to apologise for going to the Nether?” He manages. Pearl’s started laughing now too, louder and less apologetic than Scott.

“Yes.”

“Oh.” He grins. “I can do that,” he steps closer to her, grabbing one of her hands in his own. She allows it, staring down at him as he puts on his best smile. “I'm incredibly sorry for any of the hurt I may have caused you with my erroneous ways, can we please move on so those two can stop laughing at us?”

She suspects that’s going to be the best she gets out of him. “Apology accepted.” She turns to face Scott, who immediately looks away, trying to act like he hadn't been laughing even as a smile continues to tug at his lips.

“You better wipe that grin off your face,” she threatens, watching as Scott turns to her, mock wide eyes. Martyn releases her hand, and she takes a step in Scott’s direction, watching as he takes a step back, smirk widening.

“What are you going to do about it?” He goads.

“Come over there and wipe it off your face.” She takes another step closer and Scott takes another one back, looking more and more smug as she speaks.

“What about Pearl!” His voice pitches up into a shriek as she lunges after him.

[ptergwen]

no sleep

pairing: singer!reader x tom holland || w/c: 1.6k

warnings: swearing and many many many suggestive jokes

summary: you’re on jimmy kimmel to talk about your music, but he has other plans

a/n: y’all i’ve literally always wanted to write singer!reader and this idea just came to me and i had to get it out because it’s so cute :,) i really hope ya like it

-

jimmy kimmel invited you onto his show to promote a single from your upcoming album. you stepped out of the spotlight for a while, so this is your first official appearance of the year.

“my first guest tonight...” there’s a cheer from the audience. you grin to yourself, waiting for jimmy to finish announcing you.

“you wanna say it for me?” he chuckles and stands your picture up on his desk. “my first guest tonight surprised fans this morning with her new single ‘no sleep.’ it’s currently number one in over seventy countries.” jimmy holds for applause, which you get a ton of. you cover your hot face with your hands.

“she’s here to talk to us about the song and her short hiatus. please welcome y/n y/l/n!”

the music plays while you walk onstage, followed by more cheers and clapping. you’re beaming as you wave to everyone. you give jimmy a quick hug and exchange hello’s over the noise.

you’ve been in the industry for a few years, but you’ll never get used to responses like this. all the love really warms your heart.

“thank you!” you giggle out, taking your seat on the couch. the audience yells some more when the music dies out. “thank you so much! oh my god,” you make a face at jimmy, who laughs and gestures to everyone. “they clearly hated the song,” he jokes to you. “i was gonna say,” you agree, smoothing your dress down.

you look out at the crowd with a pout. “no, seriously. you guys are so cute.” jimmy copies your pout, earning a playful eye roll from you.

you’ve been on the show a couple of times before, so you two are friendly. tom has also brought you to chill backstage with him when he was a guest. you would’ve brought him this time if he wasn’t away for filming.

“so, you took most of the year off from making music,” jimmy starts the actual conversation. “mhm, i did,” you hum and cross one of your legs over the other. “how was that? was it weird not being in the studio?” you scrunch your face up, then he adds another question. “what did you actually do with yourself?”

“i mean, music is obviously a big part of who i am. making it, loving it, all that stuff.” a small smile crosses your face. “so, yeah. it sort of felt like something was missing at first.” jimmy nods along, you shrugging one of your shoulders.

“at the same time, i really needed to take a minute and just breathe. come back with my shit more together. i think i have,” you let out a reflective sigh. “it didn’t have anything to do with your boyfriend? a mr. tom holland?” jimmy teases, you waving a hand at him. “no, don’t give him all the credit.”

your break genuinely was for yourself. no one needs to know that tom was also off, or that he spent all his free time with you. that was just a plus.

“are you sure? because, it seemed like you two were getting really cozy.” a picture from your instagram pops up on the screen. it’s of tom under a blanket. he’s reaching out for you with a lazy smile. you lean over on the couch so you’re off camera, another giggle escaping you.

jimmy flips to another picture. “that was exhibit A. here’s exhibit B.” the whole audience coos, jimmy raising his eyebrows at you. this one is a mirror selfie from tom’s instagram. your arms are slung around his neck from behind, and half your face is hidden. tom is doing his signature eye crinkling smile into the camera.

“aren’t they just adorable?” jimmy asks the audience, making them erupt in more cheers. you sit up again and clear your throat. seeing those is bittersweet for you. “he’s very cuddly. anyway, back to the music!” you do a small clap. little do you know, there’s much more to come.

“yes, yes. back to the music. talk to me about ‘no sleep.’” the song is one hundred percent about tom. you’re not sure you should say that, considering the... explicit content in it. you and tom did get very cozy over your break, as jimmy would say. it was the only time you weren’t relaxing.

“well,” you plaster on an overly happy smile. that earns more laughter from jimmy. “it’s about what you do in bed when you’re, um, not sleeping,” you explain. “and who do you do those things in bed with?” jimmy glances up at the screen again. “you’re choosing violence today, jimmy,” you say under your breath.

there’s a chuckle from backstage that sounds eerily similar to tom’s. it must have been a PA. all this talk about him is seriously fucking with your head.

“well, everyone in my life inspires my work in some way. they’re such angels,” you dodge the question, thinking you’re clever about it. jimmy won’t let you get off that easy. “friends? family?” he asks you. “yeah, everyone,” you exhale in relief. jimmy widens his eyes at you. “so, that means ‘no sleep’ is about your mom?”

your mouth falls open. he’s really going to make you spill the details of your sex life.

“what the fuck, no!” you squeal, looking out into the audience for help. they join in your laughter. “it’s about tom,” you finally confirm so jimmy doesn’t suggest anything else. “it’s about tom, my god. next topic.” you’re smiling despite yourself.

“why? don’t you wanna tell us more about your lover?” jimmy glances off to the side. what is going on back there? you sit up straighter in your spot. “no, this is my interview!” you’re half joking, half serious.

although you and tom aren’t private at all, you’ve never talked about him this much. it’s overwhelming. besides that, this is making you miss him a lot.

“that’s too bad. we thought... we thought you might like to share it,” jimmy is already grinning about whatever he has planned. this isn’t supposed to be part of your segment. “huh? i’m literally so lost.” you furrow your eyebrows at him, lowering your voice. “we didn’t talk about this.”

he pats the arm of your couch. “they say there’s no time like the present. ladies and gentlemen, tom holland!”

on cue, tom runs out from backstage. the audience practically roars with how loud they are. people even jump out of their seats. you clasp a hand over your mouth in pure shock. this feels like a prank, like jimmy is about to say sike. then, tom comes up to the couch. you almost fall over, jimmy proudly watching on.

tom grins so wide it takes up his whole face. “happy release day,” he murmurs as you get to your feet. you’re not able to speak just yet, only staring up at him with glossy eyes. he brings you into a tight hug. his hands rub up and down your back, your arms snaking around his middle.

“tommy,” you try to whisper the nickname. you forgot your microphone is on. everyone “aw’s” at you both, including jimmy. “my love,” tom’s lips brush your cheek briefly. “hi, baby,” he speaks into your ear. you hide your face in his button up while he rocks you side to side.

he’s been away for a couple of months working on the third spider-man. this is the first time you’ve seen him since he left.

“shouldn’t you be in atlanta?” you ask louder this time for the audience to hear. you’re still doing an interview. “today’s a big day. i had to see you,” tom gives you one last squeeze. “in person,” he adds, before you can say you already facetimed.

the fact that him and jimmy put this whole thing together is making you emotional. you’d be fully crying if you two were alone right now.

“she doesn’t want you here, though. remember?” jimmy chimes in, tom breathing out a laugh. he sadly lets go of you. you flop back onto the couch, tom pointing behind him with his thumb. “i’ll just be on my way. five hour flight, no big deal.” “no, no, no, no. stay,” you whine and make grabby hands at him.

that’s all it takes for tom to slip into the spot next to you. he bites back a smile, putting an arm around you and the couch. you don’t want to annoy everyone with too much pda, so you subtly curl into his side. the people actually love you and tom together. jimmy claps his hands.

“we’ll be right back with y/n y/l/n and tom holland!” he says into the camera, the band playing more filler music. he steps out from behind the desk to greet tom. tom stands up, the two of them giving each other pats on the back. the camera stops rolling.

“hey, man. thanks for doing this,” tom puts a hand on jimmy’s arm. “anything for the happy couple. i’m gonna get some water, see you in five.” jimmy shoots you another smile on his way to his dressing room. you return it. that leaves you and tom to yourselves.

“baby,” you say in a sing song voice, dropping your head onto tom’s shoulder. “i’m so happy you’re here. i real life almost peed when you came out.” tom snakes his arm around your waist. “that would be upsetting,” he mumbles, his index finger drawing circles on you. “it would’ve ruined your very pretty dress.”

“you like it?” you knowingly tug at the form fitting material. tom shifts in his spot. “i’ll tell you what,” he leans in closer to you with a smirk, his breath tickling your ear. “we’re getting no sleep tonight,” he sings from the chorus of your song. you burst into a giggle and squeeze your eyes shut.

he ends up being right.

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

I know you haven't really done many prompts for Empire SMP, but having seen Jimmy's perspective today, I really want to see him just talk about everything that's against him and I think it would be really fun to see him just breakdown with Pixl.

Lore-wise, Jimmy really has gone through the ringer.

he really has T_T someone pls save him

...

Pixlriffs is working on setting up some more candles around the vigil when he hears a noise from behind him. Immediately alert, he spins round, already pulling out his sword, but he freezes when he spots a figure half-limping towards him.

As he rushes towards the figure, he realises with a jerk that it’s his closest ally. “J-Jimmy?!”

The ruler of the Cod Empire is dishevelled and clearly exhausted, and instead of his normal cod mask, he’s wearing the brown llama mask that Pixl remembers giving him a few weeks ago.

Pixl reaches out to steady his friend, holding him by the arms. “Jimmy, what on earth-?!”

“Gosh, your empire is… is really out there,” Jimmy murmurs, his words slightly slurred. “In the middle of a desert. I’m so hot…”

With that, he collapses against Pixl.

“Jimmy!” he gasps, propping his unconscious friend up.

He manages to lift Jimmy onto his back and hurriedly carries him over to his home. He lays Jimmy down on his bed and hesitantly removes his friend’s mask.

He’s shocked to see a fairly fresh cut on Jimmy’s face from his left temple to the corner of his left eye. It’s not still bleeding but it looks untreated. Maybe from the last day or so.

Forcing himself to ignore that for now, Pixl fetches some water and an ice pack, the latter of which he applies to Jimmy’s forehead. Immediately, Jimmy lets out a quiet sigh and stirs slightly, though he doesn’t wake.

After about ten minutes of gently tipping sips of water down Jimmy’s throat, Jimmy’s eyelids flutter.

“Hey,” says Pixl quietly, giving his friend a soft smile. “Can you hear me?”

Blinking groggily, Jimmy frowns. “What happened? Where am I?”

“In my empire,” says Pixl. “Do you not remember?”

Jimmy lifts a hand to his forehead. “My head’s a little fuzzy.”

“I’m not surprised; you were pretty dehydrated. Do you have any idea how long you were wandering around in the desert?”

“No, not really.”

“Well if you walked all the way here from your kingdom, it’s a wonder you didn’t parch to death,” Pixl responds. “Why didn’t you use your elytra?”

“I wanted to walk as long as possible and then when I eventually tried to take off, I realised I didn’t have any rockets,” says Jimmy sheepishly.

Pixl chuckles. That’s so Jimmy. “Right, I see. Why would you want to walk all the way here, anyway? We didn’t have a meeting or anything, did we?”

“No, I…” Jimmy hesitates. “I just needed a break. And I wanted to see you. And I needed to be several thousand blocks away from everyone else.”

“Really?” Pixl frowns. “Are you okay?”

Jimmy hesitates again, before deciding to tell the truth. “Um… no. I’m not okay. A lot of stuff happened yesterday and I’d really like to curl up and cry right now.”

Pixl gives his friend a sympathetic look. “Tell me about what happened.”

“W-Well…” Jimmy sits up in the bed, taking a deep breath. “fWhip covered my nether portal in cobblestone so I told him to come over and clear it up but he used tnt to blow it up and then when I told him to fix the hole in the ground, he blew a bigger hole under the first one and then Scott and Gem showed up and I was hoping they might be on my side but apparently Scott actually helped fWhip make the cobblestone thingy so then I got really mad and hit fWhip with my sword but then he killed me and stole my Codfather mask and I begged him to give it back but he just flew off with it a-and I don’t know how to get it back now cuz Scott said I keep starting things I can’t finish and that even with my allies, I couldn’t hope to beat fWhip but I need that mask back Pixl I can’t-.”

Sensing Jimmy’s rising panic, Pixl quickly grabs Jimmy’s shoulders to stop his friend. “Hey hey hey, shh. It’s okay, Jimmy. Shh.”

Jimmy lets his breathing settle, clearing his throat as his voice cracks. “Wh-What’s wrong with me, Pixl…?” he whispers. “Why am I such an easy target? Is this all because I stole stuff from Sausage so early on? Do I deserve all this?”

“No, Jimmy,” replies Pixl immediately. “fWhip is being a bully, and bullies always have their buddies backing them up so they feel stronger. First it was Sausage, now it’s Scott.”

“I just… I just don’t understand. I thought Gem and Katherine were my allies but Gem is now fully on fWhip’s side and Katherine pretends she’s on everyone’s side but she always seems to back up the person who isn’t me. Who do I have on my side?”

“You’ve got me, you’ve got Joel, you’ve got Lizzie.”

“I do trust Joel and Lizzie, and you of course, but… I-I’m just kinda expecting everyone to leave me if another alliance offers something better. And I wouldn’t even blame them.”

Pixl pauses, casting a brief look at the walls surrounding him. “...well, I’ll never leave you.”

“I-I don’t think you can realistically promise that,” Jimmy responds dejectedly.

This reinforces Pixl’s resolve. “I’m doing it anyway. You need an ally you can always count on, and I will be that ally. No matter what, Jimmy, I’ll stick by you. I know my empire is a long way from yours but if you ever need backup again, send me a message and I’ll drop whatever I’m doing and fly straight over.”

“Really…?” Jimmy stares at him with hopeful eyes. “Wh-Why would you do that for me? Aren’t there better, stronger empires out there you can ally with?”

“Frankly, yeah, there are. But I don’t care. It’s not all about power.”

Jimmy scoffs.

“It’s not,” Pixl repeats. “Power gets you through a war, sure, but wars aren’t the only things empires have to deal with. You’re a kind and fair ruler to your subjects, Jimmy. Villagers, animals, everything. You always go the extra mile to ensure their comfort and safety, and in this world, that’s a rarity. Power really isn’t the only thing that matters. It’s one of the biggest, but that doesn’t mean you should be counted out just on lack of power. That’s why you find yourself a powerful ally, right? And I like to flatter myself that I’ve built up a pretty powerful empire here. Maybe not fWhip-level powerful, but strong enough to defend us both if a certain tnt-crazed empire comes calling.”

Jimmy gazes at him. “Would you really put your empire on the line for my fights?”

“Of course.” Pixl gives him a kind smile. “That’s what allies do.”

“...Pixl, I…” Jimmy can hardly muster any words to express his emotions. “I-I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything. All we need to do is take care of each other and we’ll be okay.”

“Pix…” Jimmy is almost completely lost for words. He’s never had someone show this level of dedication towards him before, especially considering they haven’t known each other very long. “A-Anything you need, Pix, anything at all, just ask.”

Pixl’s smile falls as his eyes flicker up to the scar on Jimmy’s face. “Actually… I do have a question. How did you get that scar on your face?”

“Huh?” Jimmy’s hand automatically moves to touch the jagged line on his forehead. “Oh. This. A, um… a piece of debris from fWhip’s second tnt explosion got me. Nearly got my eye, actually.”

“It looks bad. Untreated.”

“Yeah, I… I’m not so good at first aid and I did ask Scott and Gem if one of them could help me clean it but they refused.”

Pixl’s eyes widen. “They what?!”

Jimmy nods sadly. “They made some excuses and left. Scott said it didn’t look that bad and I could deal with it myself. I looked at it in the river and I also didn’t think it looked that bad.”

“Gosh.” Pixl shakes his head disapprovingly, a deep frown on his face. “That’s… That’s so terrible.”

“I-I’m sorry,” whispers Jimmy.

“What? No, not you. I can’t believe Scott and Gem would leave you when you were clearly hurt. Do you have a first aid kit back in your base? And your food situation: do you have enough food? What’s your diet like?”

A little taken aback by the sudden questions, Jimmy hesitates. “I’ve, uh… been eating fish, mostly. Cod Empire, you know.”

“Any potatoes? Carrots?”

Jimmy shakes his head.

Pixl scrutinises him. “Right, okay. Jimmy, you’re gonna stay with me here for a while.”

“A-A while?”

“A few days. You’ve been through a lot lately; you need someone to take care of you. I’ll get that wound treated for you, show you around my empire, and make sure you get some nutrients in your diet. Do you have a potato farm?” Before Jimmy can reply, Pixl continues, “Nevermind, I’ll get you enough potatoes to either get started or improve it, whichever. You need to keep drinking water, though; you’ll get dehydrated really fast in the desert.”

He pauses as he registers the smile on Jimmy’s face. “What?” he chuckles.

“Nothing.” Jimmy averts his gaze, though his smile remains. “Just… thank you. I can’t tell you how much it means to me to have you on my side.”

Pixl smiles back and squeezes Jimmy’s shoulder.

“I’ll always be on your side, Jimmy. Always.”

[smaidjor]

and i pay for my place by the ring (Chapter 1)

Hey guys! Welcome to another angsty fic by yours truly, provider of flower husbands pain.

Some things you should know before you jump into this:

1. This is a companion fic to my fic "i know they're losing". You can understand it without having read the other one, since it's the same story from two different POVs but I think the overall experience is better with both!

2. The overall title of each fic is from the mitski song I bet on losing dogs. Chapter titles are from the Last Goodbye from the Hobbit films.

3. There is a lot of lord of the rings lore in both fics, and I mean a lot. You may be kinda confused if you've never read tolkien's works. It will all be explained eventually, though!

4. With the fact that it's a companion fic and a lot of people came here from Jimmy's POV in mind- this is a lot heavier of a fic. The content warnings are heavier and the angst is more intense. You have been warned.

(Obligatory disclaimer that this is about characters, not ccs, and do not ship real people, as always!)

Chapter Title: to these memories i will hold

Chapter Wordcount: 4000

Content warnings: suicidal thoughts, self-esteem issues, panic attacks, past death, very frank discussion of death. (In general, if suicide or death are triggering topics for you, this is probably not the fic for you. Stay safe and take care of yourself!)

AO3

Actual fic under the cut:

Scott didn’t expect to survive 3rd life. No one did, he thinks, but especially not him. Clever, clever Scott, who knew his fate too well for his own good. He could have chosen his allies carefully, he knows, could have played on their emotions to make them think he was loyal until the moment he turned on them to win. He knew who the strongest factions and warriors were, the most cunning and intelligent participants in this death game they were forced into. Instead, he chose Jimmy. Sweet, dopey Jimmy, who had the personality of a golden retriever and only a handful of braincells at any given time. Jimmy, who was worth more than all the stars in the sky to him. Who made him feel alive . No, Scott didn’t expect to win. Not when it was Jimmy by his side- when it was Jimmy by his side, winning didn’t matter. All that mattered was Jimmy’s blush when Scott pressed a kiss to his cheek, the way his hair looked like gold in the sunlight and his smile lit up Scott’s whole world.

After Jimmy died, Scott stopped wanting to survive 3rd life. What was the point? The stars can shine on without the sun, but all life on Earth would wither and die. The same happened to Scott’s broken, bitter heart, he found. Jimmy was the first person in years to love him truly, wholly, with no strings attached; it was terrifying how quickly Scott fell for the first person to look at him and not expect him to be anything but what he was. Scott’s world, which used to be mountain peaks and endless blue sky, narrowed to warm brown eyes and a grin like sunshine quicker than he could comprehend. Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy, it all came back to him. What was Scott without Jimmy? The unwanted twin, the unloved child, the un-elven elf. Because who cared if he was a good shot with a bow or good at organizing teams or building pretty little houses? He would always be second-born, second-best.

It was fitting, really, that when Scott died, he died alone. Some might find it ironic that the man who knew enough people to fill the roster of a championship held by a god every month died without a single person to witness it save his enemies, but in the end, it was always going to be like this, Scott knew. He hadn’t been there to see Jimmy die, he hadn’t been able to hold him in his final moments and soothe the agony of death. Maybe this was his punishment. He wouldn’t be surprised; the gods of this world did not smile on him and never would. Why should they, when he had failed the only person who had ever found him good enough?

When he woke up in Rivendell, he was almost disappointed. Almost. He considered ditching the rest of the elves, up and leaving to somewhere that didn’t make it feel like the noose of immortality was slowly tightening around his neck. If nothing else, Noxite would let him crash at the MCC server for a bit until he found somewhere to go. And yet, in the end, Scott’s stubborn sense of duty won out. The elves needed a ruler. Xornoth had disappeared to god knows where, and though they had been braver, wiser, better in every way, Scott was the one who had stayed. Who was willing to take up the crown that weighed so heavily on its bearers. So Scott, who no one ever expected to rule, took up the burden of leadership.

Now, he tries and fails to get out of bed and wonders what the point of that even was. He’s fading, and worse than that, he’s fading over a human. His ancestors are probably rolling in their graves. Rivendell will be leaderless within a decade, and this time there are no heirs to take control. Not even a ‘spare’ like Scott used to be. What a mess.

There are footsteps on the stairs. They’re unfamiliar, meaning they could be a threat, but he’s too tired to bother sitting up. If he dies, well- it’s inevitable, really, in the same way watching the mortals he loves dies is.

The person comes around the corner, and Scott realizes with no joy that he won’t be dying today after all. Katherine looks both curious and concerned, but her voice tilts towards the latter when she asks “Scott?” and then, more hesitantly  “Lord Smajor?”

He blinks at her, exhausted. “Hi, Katherine.”

“I came to talk to you about some empires stuff, but, I mean, if this is a bad time, I can come back later…?” She sounds so thrown off by his state that Scott almost feels bad.

Whatever it is, it must be important if she’s come all the way here, though, so he gestures her to a chair. “No, no, stay. I can muster the energy for a meeting, just don’t ask me to get up.”

Katherine takes the seat. “I came to talk about the corruption on the server, but- are you okay? Are you sick?”

Nothing about the question is funny in any way, but Scott laughs regardless. “In a way, yes.”

“What do you mean?”

“Take my hand.” He offers it out, knowing the unnatural cold is unsettling no matter if you’re elven or not. Katherine does as he asks, the concern on her face only growing as she grips his icy hand.

“Elves don’t get sick like mortals do,” Scott explains. “Nor do we die of old age. But we get...heartsickness, you might call it. We call it fading in our tongue- the cold hands are a symptom of that. Our souls are fragile, and the grief of the mortal plane can be overwhelming. If an elf is too struck by it, they fade away and die.” The words taste bitter on his tongue, a frank reminder of the slow and painful death that awaits him.

Katherine gasps, and Scott knows he’s alarmed her.

He goes on, though. “It usually happens to old elves, world-weary.” Ironic, it’s ironic that he’s saying that as a young elf explaining his own death. “Those who are tired of existence. But any elf who has experienced enough grief is at risk.”

Her face is nothing short of horrified. “You’re- fading? But doesn’t it usually happen to old elves? Wait, are you old?”

“I’m fifty-five.”

“Is that old?”

He has to laugh. “Fifty is the elven equivalent of eighteen for humans, the age of maturity.” Though he feels so much older than that, both in elven terms and in human.

“Oh.”

There’s a moment of silence, then, “How can you be so calm if you’re dying?”

“I’m tired, Katherine. The world tore me away from the people I loved, and..I’m tired of fighting it.” He’s so, so exhausted. So sick of having to claw and scrape and struggle for the barest scraps of happiness.

“Is there a way to reverse fading- to fix it?” Katherine sounds so hopeful that the question seems almost naive even though she’s far more capable of a ruler than he is. Naive in the affairs of elves, maybe, much as she’s intelligent in so many other ways.

Scott tries not to flinch at the innocent inquiry, thinking about the deaths from fading that he’s watched. “Technically, yes. If an elf recovers enough emotionally, it’s reversible. But whatever caused them to fade the first time can- and often does- cause it again.” And again, and again, until there’s nothing to be done but let them die , he finishes in his head.

Katherine nods, a look of determination overtaking the hope. “We’ll just have to reverse it, then.”

“That’s sweet, Katherine, but I’m dying.”

“No. You’re not going to die. Now come on, you can show me your empire while I fill you in on what’s happening on the rest of the continent.” She sounds so firm that he doesn’t dare disobey, though his exhaustion makes a fair effort at convincing him to. Will this really fix anything? Unlikely. But it’s worth it to try, if only to humor Katherine. At least this way she’ll have the comfort of having tried to save him when he inevitably fades away into nothing

Scott takes her hand, though it brings him little warmth, cold from her trek here. “Alright.” He swallows the bitter grief in his throat before it can seep into his words. “We can try.”

He leads Katherine around Rivendell, taking some pride in the way she oohs over the decor. If there’s one thing he can do right, it’s building. While some elven rulers might see it as below themselves to help build houses for their citizens, Scott finds building soothing. It’s one of the few skills he picked up during his time away that people really appreciate; no one wants to live in a shitty house.

As they walk, she also tells Scott about the demon, Xornoth. “The demon’s already visited a lot of people, I think. Gem and Shubble for sure, and Fwhip and Sausage. That’s not even mentioning the corruption that’s been spreading.”

If Scott said that the name Xornoth didn’t make him flinch, he would be lying to himself. It’s not your sibling , he tells himself. It’s just a coincidence .

It’s through the virtue of years of lying that his voice comes out steady. “There’s corruption in Rivendell too. Likely Xornoth’s work. And given that Jimmy still has Vilya-” his heart doesn’t ache when he says Jimmy’s name, it doesn’t- “well, I haven’t been able to do much.”

“Vilya?” Katherine asks.

“A ring of power. My inheritance from the Noldor.”

“Why does Jimmy have it?”

He doesn’t answer. He won’t- can’t talk about Jimmy, not without remembering how he looked with an arrow through his throat, bright smile gone and face frozen in fear. How does he explain how much Jimmy meant to him? How much he’s now giving up, knowing he’ll have to lose it one way or another?

Katherine drops the topic, seemingly sensing that she’s stumbled on something sensitive. When she has to go home, she leaves with a friendly goodbye and a promise to visit, and Scott believes neither. Who would put the effort into visiting him? He’s not a good friend, he’s not a good king, and god knows he’s not a good husband. In fact, he’s actively avoiding his husband. He may have kept the pufferfish Jimmy gave him, but that doesn’t mean anything. He can’t fall in love with Jimmy again. Loving Jimmy will kill him. (Scott ignores the small voice at the back of his head that whispers that he’s still in love with Jimmy and it’s already killing him just as he always knew it would.)

To his surprise, Katherine does come back next week, and the week after that. He’s ashamed to admit it, but there’s some part of him that’s pathetically grateful when she shows up at his doorstep. It’s a chance to not be alone . Much as he dreads the day when she finally gives up on him, it’s nice that someone cares enough to try and save him from himself.

The third week, Katherine doesn’t show up. Instead, the footsteps on the stairs are familiar in a way that makes Scott’s heart twist painfully.

He takes a deep breath. “Hello, Jimmy.”

“How’d you know it was me?” Jimmy asks. Scott can tell he’s startled by the way his voice goes up, almost frightened.

Scott steels himself, taking a deep breath before rolling over to face his ex-husband. “Do you think I could ever forget the sound of your footsteps?” He forces himself to not get distracted staring at Jimmy, instead going on before Jimmy can open his mouth. “What are you doing here?”

“Katherine asked me to visit, I’m not sure why, but...here I am. Say, why is she visiting every week?” Jimmy’s so curious. So naive, as always.

Scott laughs, bitter. “Katherine thinks she can save me.”

“Save you from what?”

Scott hears the concern in Jimmy’s words, and he can’t bring himself to break the news. It’s not as if it matters. It’s not as if Jimmy would care; he came here because of Katherine. Maybe he cared at the start of Empires, but Scott’s been nothing but rude to him since. There’s no reason for him to care. (He cares. Scott’s lying, like always. Jimmy cares and Scott knows it.)

“Save you from what?” Jimmy asks again, more insistently.

He refuses to say it. He needs Jimmy out, out of his room and out of his life before he does something he’ll regret. “You should go.” To prove his point, he tries to stand, finding himself too dizzy to quite pull it off. Jimmy rushes to catch him, and Scott hates himself just a little for how that still gives him a warm feeling.

“Scott, what is going on?”

He brushes Jimmy off, letting go of his arm and hurrying for the stairs. He can’t let Jimmy work his way into his heart again; Scott won’t be strong enough to let him go this time.

“Scott, seriously! Answer me, are you okay? What’s happening?” Jimmy sounds almost angry, but Scott can hear the distress under it and that’s what breaks him.

“I’m fading, alright?” His voice nearly breaks at the concern on Jimmy’s face when he whirls to face him. “I’m dying, now leave me alone!”

Jimmy sputters, seemingly caught off guard. “You- what- but elves don’t die, right?”

“We do. From poison, from swords-” Scott thinks back to third life- “from arrows through the throat, from grief.” The words come out more raw than he intends, leaving him scrambling to recover his composure. He takes a deep breath in and out, forcing his voice to steady again. “Come on. If you’re not going to leave, I might as well show you around.”

“You can’t just drop something like that on a man, you know!” Jimmy calls after him, although Scott can hear his footsteps following as well.

“You did ask, to be fair.” Scott replies. His voice is calm. He’s fine.

“I guess so, but- but still, dude.”

Scott pushes open the side door, holding it for Jimmy. “Here.”

Jimmy nods and slips through the door.  “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Scott starts towards the bridges, intending to show Jimmy the enchanting tower and then the door. He doesn’t care about how fast he’s walking, Jimmy can keep up. He’s taller than Scott and probably has better balance at the moment too. Scott’s struggling not to fall, honestly, but his pride won’t let him go slower.

Jimmy breaks the awkward silence with the question Scott least wants to hear. “So, uh..are we going to talk about 3rd life?”

“No,” Scott says firmly.

“Why not? We need to talk about it some time-”

“I said no .” He can’t talk about it.

“It’s literally killing you to not talk about it!”

The words strike right at the raw wound of Jimmy’s death, and Scott freezes. Inhales. Exhales. Tries to keep calm.

“Tell me I’m wrong, Scott!” Jimmy cries. He sounds so upset, Scott’s heart aches. “I dare you, tell me I’m wrong! Tell me you never cared about me, tell me you didn’t bother to bury me, tell me it didn’t hurt even a little when I died! Tell me I was just stupid little Jimmy, a toy for an elf who’d live far beyond my lifespan! Tell me whatever, just tell me the truth! ”

Scott takes a deep breath. “Fine. You want to know what happened after you died?” He can’t think straight through the rage clouding his head, the desperate need to prove that Jimmy’s wrong , that Scott loved him so much it’s killing him. “You want to hear about me screaming until my throat went raw? You want to know that I kissed your face and sobbed and begged you to wake up, over and over until I couldn’t speak at all? You want to live with the knowledge that Grian had to physically pull me away from your body? Is that what you want to hear, Jimmy? ” His voice damn near breaks on his husband’s name, and Scott thanks the gods he stopped believing in a long time ago that it doesn’t.

“No,” Jimmy says. His voice is soft, gentle, almost as if Scott is a wounded animal that needs a delicate touch. “That’s not what I want to hear, not at all. I’d rather you be happy than love me.”

The words punch the air from Scott’s lungs, raw and soft and real. Scott is an excellent liar. Jimmy isn’t. Scott knows that Jimmy is telling the truth. What he doesn’t know is how to handle that level of devotion. He wonders again how Jimmy- sweet, genuine Jimmy who wears his heart on his sleeve and is hopelessly devoted to an elf who can’t be fully his- chose Scott of all people. Scott, who’s as bitter as Jimmy is sweet, who’s sarcastic and snarky and hasn’t been good enough for just about anything in his life. He certainly wasn’t good enough to save Jimmy, Scott thinks bitterly.

He shakes off the thought. “I buried you on the hill above our houses. I planted a poppy over your grave.”

“Oh.”

“Grian came over the next day. I didn’t want to see anyone who wasn’t you, but I let him in because I had to. He helped me do the straps on my armor and asked me if he could do anything else to make things easier. I told him to bury me next to you.”

“Did he?”

Scott almost laughs at the innocent question. “How would I know? Grian was honorable enough, though, loyal to his allies. I like to think he did.”

“He was a good guy,” Jimmy agrees. “A little bit bloodthirsty, I guess, but good. I don’t suppose he survived any better than the rest of us, though maybe being bloodthirsty helped.”

“Maybe.”

“Can I- can I ask you why you hate me so much now?” Jimmy’s tone is uncertain, hesitant and it hurts . “I mean, if you mourned me in third life and all.”

Scott looks away from his earnest gaze, but he can’t stop the truth slipping out. “I don’t hate you.”

“You don’t?” Jimmy asks, seemingly bewildered. “But you burned the pufferfish-”

“I didn’t. I kept it.” Scott doesn’t want to think about this, wants to say it even less. “I never hated you. I don’t think I’m capable of it.”

“Then why do you keep avoiding me?”

“I’ve been kind of busy dying,” Scott says wryly, unable to resist a bit of morbid humor at his own expense.

“Scott! That’s not funny!”

“It was a little funny.”

“No!”

Jimmy sounds genuinely distressed, and Scott drops the wry smile. “Jimmy, I’m an elf. I won’t live far beyond you, but only because I’ll fade without you.” It’s a simple statement. The truth, as much as he can give.

“So your solution is to isolate yourself and fade now?” Jimmy’s outrage is justifiable, but Scott just shrugs.

“It does sound stupid when you put it like that, doesn’t it?” It really does. “But I lost you once, and I don’t think I could bear it again.”

A hand lands on Scott’s arm, and he turns, startled. Jimmy doesn’t give him time to react, throwing his arms around Scott and pulling him close. Scott almost lets out a very undignified squeak at the sudden contact, though he slowly relaxes into Jimmy’s hold.

He should pull away. He shouldn’t give Jimmy false hope like this. But Jimmy is so warm , and Scott is so unbearably cold. Every fiber of his being is screaming that this is what’s right; screw Rivendell and obligations and too-heavy crowns, Jimmy is home to him. He’s warm for the first time in months, and the most heartbreaking part is that it can’t last. He can’t do this again.

He pulls away, ignoring the painful hope on Jimmy’s face. “I’m sorry, Jimmy.” For the first time all conversation, his voice well and truly wobbles. “I can’t. Not again.”

“But-”

Scott shakes his head. “Losing you will destroy me. We dared to love, and now all we can do now is lessen the pain when it all comes crashing down.” The words are like glass in his throat, but he forces them out anyways. They have to be said.

Jimmy’s silent, and it hurts more than if Jimmy had yelled at him.

“Goodbye, Jimmy,” Scott manages, turning away before Jimmy can see the way his face twists in pain. He makes his retreat as quickly as possible, stumbling and nearly taking a tumble just before he reaches the door. Unlike before, there’s no helpful ex-husband there to catch him, to make sure he’s alright and ask a million questions until Scott’s forced to admit that he’s not okay and hasn’t been in a long time.

He fumbles with the latch, hands shaking and vision blurring. Finally, it clicks, and Scott stumbles inside and slams the door shut before sliding to the ground. He won’t cry. He won’t . He doesn’t love Jimmy, he can’t love Jimmy anymore. Jimmy was never meant to be his. They might have carved out a few precious moments, stolen them from the universe and giggled like kids with their hands in the cookie jar as they kissed amongst the flowers, but those brief moments were all they were ever going to be allowed. It was always going to end this way, Scott tells himself. There’s no use crying over a mortal who will be dead in the blink of an eye to an elf. What would his parents say? That this was typical of him, probably. Typical Scott, always wanting what he would never be able to have. Typical, predictable Scott, loving a mortal who shouldn’t be worth anything to him.

He’s crying. There are tears spotting his cyan robes, splashing onto the wood floors he worked so hard on. Scott rubs at his eyes furiously, but that only makes it worse, sobs shuddering through him and leaving him hollow and aching. He’s so cold . The ache in his chest has returned tenfold, stealing away his breath, and he curls further into himself, struggling for air.

He’s going to die. He is going to die , alone on the floor of his house because he fell for someone he couldn’t have. For all that he’s spent every minute since Jimmy’s death in 3rd life wishing for some way out of this cruel world, he’s terrified now that it seems inevitable. He’s scared in a way he hasn’t been in forever, breath coming quick and shallow. He's scared, and he is so, so tired of this ache that haunts him, the chill that he can never get rid of.

“Jimmy,” Scott whispers. There’s no way for the human to hear him, but the name brings him some comfort. “ Jimmy .” He wants his husband. He wants someone to hug him. He doesn’t want to fade away freezing and alone, no one there to hold his hand or reassure him that the pain will be over soon. Internally, he begs for someone, anyone who cares to come looking. To find him, even if they’re too late to save him. Someone. Anyone. Please.

No one comes, and Scott lays on his floor until his breathing steadies out again. His head spins when he forces himself to his feet, and he has to lean against the wall for a few moments. There’s no time for dramatics, he tells himself sternly. He has a kingdom to rule. He cannot afford to break over a mortal he never should have fallen for in the first place. He doesn’t love Jimmy anymore, he can’t .

(He’s lying. But Scott has always been an excellent liar, even when it’s to himself.)

[drorey]

3rd/last life for the blorbo game

(Just a disclamer, english is not my first languish and I didnt have autocorrect for half this pretty long post. Im bad at spelling in particular, so there are going to be a lot of spelling errors, please be kind.)

(Answers to the blorbo ask game)

oh man thank you for this

now, I usually don't post mcyt stuff here on my main, I have a dedicated sideblog for that (@mcytnoodles), however since the ask was sent to the inbox of this blog I'm gonna answer it here and then rb it on my mcyt sideblog, I'm also probably gonna talk there a bit more about 3rd life and last life, so head over there if you wanna hear it!

(For my none mcyt mutuals. This is about characters in a roleplay series, not actual people!)

I am going to answer this ask once for third life and once for last life, both in this post! since I consider them both different stories, and while the last life characters are technically just the 3rd life characters thrown into yet another death game, they change a lot in those two seasons, since in 3rd life they all went in with no experience, and with rules that don't limit them much, the mindset they went in with is different than last life, where the rules were much more limiting in terms of player interaction and they knew what they were getting into a bit more, not to talk about the fact that they had actual experience that time, most of them, at least. so yeah! Im gonna answer separately for each season!

3RD LIFE:

(now, for reference, I didn't watch every 3rd life pov, I wish I could. I watched five povs overall, which were grian, martyn, scott, bdubs, and jimmy, with the logic of watching the person who survived longest from each duo and then also jimmy bcs I wanted to. I didn't manage to finish martyns pov, stopping around two or three episodes before the ending, But I still know a lot of stuff from povs I didn't watch, both from liveblogs when the show was still happening and from posts after it ended, so that's my reference point).

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most)

I think that this is the only one I cant actually decide on, since the character or duo I obsess over with this smp changes every couple of months. I ended up crying over all the major duos since the series ended. like no joke I have shed actual tears over multiple characters from this smp. I am in severe psychological distress please send help/j

My first answer to who it is currently was ren, but then I realised just how much of a comlicated, interesting character 3rd life scott is for me?? In the highet of my fixation on his character, I used to compere him to achilles quite a bit? I dont remember engouh about achilles now to tell you how much that actually made sense, but it worked well in my head at the time. I think one of the reasons I find scott facinating is that his character, along with jimmy, are one of the closest people on 3rd life to being "innocent". I dont believe anyone on 3rd life was actually, like, evil, and I think they all oparated from a mindset that made their actions feel necissery and justifide, but as far as Ive seen, scott is one of the only characters that people seem to agree didnt do anything really. Morally contrevertial. Theres not a lot of morallty discourse in trafficblr in general as far as Ive seen, but in the little I was aware of, scott and jimmy were seen as a largly innocent party, all they wanted was to live in peace together, even knowing that wouldnt really last, and that innocence makes the way things ended for them all the more tragic. I honestly still love every character and please talk to me about literally anyone there please please plea

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me "adorable" aggression, character that is So Shaped)

I think this is not going to come as a surprise to anyone. bdubs is so very shaped and his feral energy is unmatched. while first watching and then rewatching the show multiple times, both from his pov and from other povs, I at multiple points just ASSUMED the man was foaming at the mouth. I think he even said it at one point? anyways, 3rd life bdubs is a menace to society and his chaotic energy is all I want for myself.

I think this category might have been intended as more of a character you go "awww" upon seeing, in a more of a "cinnamon role" kind of way? But Im choosing to take it as a character that I would go "awww" to in the same way I would to a small, angry animal doing something funny. like "oh my god you store so much rage and hate inside your tiny body bless your heart".

Another thing I love about his character is that his chaotic energy ends up making the emotional bits that come later hit SO MUCH HARDER. when he called out for cleo after she died, not realizing shes gone??? pain and agony and tears.

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave)

tango. CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE HELMET THING??? NO ONE EVER TALKS ABOUT THE HELMET THING WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT. that was so fucked up. but yeah! I didn't watch his pov, but some of the things he does?? like, making a lava death game DURING a death game? king shit. good for him. also something something after being executed despite still teaming up with the crastle it was out of necessity more than their actual connection since them executing him severed a bond that couldn't be restored in the time they all had left something something.

I think cleo also fits in this category, since while. once again, I didn't watch her pov, I did watch bdubs, and these two were together for the majority of the series. but I don't see anyone ever really?? talk about her??? like. her kidnapping pizza and then scamming scar out of most of his stuff as revenge for being scammed by him herself is already. 10/10 excellent you go you funky zombie gal. but like. also. her final death lives in my mind rent free. she went down directly attacking a stronger oponent in front of his allies. she KNEW she was going to lose. there was no logic there. she just. did it. and she died for it.

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week)

JOEL SMALLISHBEANS AND HIS LIKE MILLION DOGS. I have no idea what joel was doing for most of the series. he just apeared once in a while, caused chaos, and disappered. only to show up in session 8 with like a million dogs I had no idea he had. I mean. him burning down the wall in the flower forest just because?? him saying he'll join dogwarts and than taking down their banner and proceeding to basiclly do the oppist??? iconic. good for him.

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave)

now, Im not sure how ""controversial"" this is currently, (or well, ""controversial"" as much as a character can be considering the fact that theres not really any morality discourse. but I do remember the actions of this character being discussed quiet a bit when the series was going) but I think I would have to go with impulse.

I just. I remember so many posts about impulse trying to play all sides, not really being loyal to anyone, using whoever he could for his own personal gain, I dont know if that was actually his intention, since I didnt watch his pov, but from an outsiders perspective he really seemed loyal to his day one alliance?? if I remember correctly, he originally started spying on dogwarts at (I think??) cleos request, to prove his loyalty to the crastle, and than joined back with the crastle when he was asked to, but by this point no one there really. trusted him anymore. despite him doing everything he did to prove his loyalty. you could argue that some actions he took (or rather, the actions he didnt take) could be signs that hes not loyal as he tires to be, but to me it just reads as him trying to maintain his cover for as much as he could. so when bdubs turns on him in session 8, he sounds so betrayed. so suprised. like he genuanly did not expect this to happen. I just. he makes me sad :(( he tried so hard :((

(Also, the fact that the clock scar gave bdubs to turn him against impulse, if Im not mistaken, was actually impulse's clock?? I am heartbroken.)

horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason)

jimmy. I love this man with all my heart dont get me wrong. but the urge to bully him is simply too strong. would it be friendly bullying and torment? sure. but this man is too fun to mess with. I just have to.

eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell)

for 3rd life? honestly? no one. the thing about 3rd life is that I really, truly feel like no one was just. no one wanted things to end in the bloody tragedy they did. no one intended for this to happen. every person simply did what they thought they needed to do to survive as things around them just got worse and worse. scar was influanced by the server induced bloodlust of being a red life. ren just wanted to protect his home. scott and jimmy just wanted to keep eachother safe. impulse just wanted to prove his loyalty. ect. things ending the way they did hurt everyone, and I dont think any character deserves to get blamed for it. I am so deeply sad.

LAST LIFE:

(I feel like I need to point out that Im not as invested in last life as I am in 3rd life. I still love it, don't get me wrong, but my opinions on last life might be more casual and vibe-based rather then have a bunch of logic behind them. also, pov-wise, since I went into last life already deeply caring for most of the characters, I didnt really stick to one pov? since I didnt really have a character I cared about more then the others, I just kinda watched whatever pov I heard there was drama on that week, and then watched another episode or two during the week. tho a lot of the time, the person I watched first was lizzie, since I had something that caused me to come home very late every Tuesday back then, and I was very tired, and her episodes are the shortest.)

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most)

martyn littlewoods. You guys know that one unfuckable post that goes "the watchers from the evo smp are unfuckable" that someone tagged with "this post was ghostwritten by martyn littlewoods"? Thats all the explantion Im gonna give you. I wish to give this guy a hug he seems like hes going through a lot.

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me "adorable" aggression, character that is So Shaped)

Rendog. Listen. LISTEN. I just. I remember watching lizzies second (I think??) session and being so excited for her and ren teaming up. Something that we see in both 3rd life and last life is that ren is one of the most loyal characters in these smps. He CARES about the people he allies with. He has no problem dedicating himself to a person otherly and completly. Now. Is this good and healthy? Probably not. But it makes me like his character so much. And I just. I feel his character arc in last life kind of builds on and even parelels his 3rd life character arc so, so well!! We see him go from being surronded by friends, defined by his care and loyalty and closness to the people important to him, to being so, so alone. We see him, just for a second, go from winter to fire. We see him go from a king to a knight, dedicating himself to the first person willing to accept him because its better being with someone. We see him go from being the person to go out in a blaze of glory to one of the only two people left in an empty world, with only the person hes fighting to wittness him going down. His character is just. I love him.

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave)

skizz. he makes me so sad :( he tried so hard :( the dude wanted to be a hero in this server, he wanted to do good, because OF COURSE he did!! Hes skizzle!! Hes like that!! And all it did was come back to bite him in the ass. He tried to be kind to the world and the world was only cruel in returen. :(

I also think cleo once again fits in this category. A big, consistent theme we see in cleos character in both 3rd life and last life is revenge. Scar scams her, she steals his pet and blackmails him in returne. Bigb kills her, she burns down the fairy fort, targeting him and not stopping until he is dead. She had every right to, but I feel like its an aspect of her that either gets completly ignored or blown to be the only part about her people look at. Also!! Her, scott and pearl!! Amazing!! I wanted to see cleo and scott working together since 3rd life, and pearl in the mix just made them such a better, more powerful alliance. Guys I feel like we need to talk about cleo more please.

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week)

Tango!! I just. I love this funky dude!! His tendency to immidatly just make. Death games upon being thrown into a death game is. Very funny to me. And him running "you bet your life" was something I found very cool and interesting. Also. My dude was betrayed by his teamates so much. Bdubs in particular. He was so angry after that and he couldnt even properly let it out and just. :(. I am sad.

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave)

bigb. DUDE LISTEN. OK LISTEN. I just have a thing for characters whos arc involves some kind of theme of betrayle. Like. DUDE. the way he didnt want to betray cleo but he went ahead and did it anyway, because he was feeling the time limit pushing him and didnt want to drop down to red. Because no one wanted to be red in last life. The way he killed her and then immidatly regetted it so much, but it wasnt something that could be made up for. The fact that he ruined a relationship with someone he deeply cared about and there wasnt a way to mend it or fix it. That friendship was just gone. And if I remember correctly, cleo also being the one killing him for the final time? Ouch.

horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason)

mumbo jumbo. I do not understand why people said he went feral in this series. I do not understand why people called him a killing machine. I could snap him in half like a twig if I tried. I am 5'0 if were being kind with arms like spagetti and even I could take him. This man has nothing on me. I would kick his knees and laugh as he falls to the ground weeping.

Either him or joel. I just feel like last life joel would be kinda fun to mess with. Not too much bcs I kinda feel bad for him, but I would probably bully him for. Being so bad at killing people. My dude. I am giving him a gold star that says "you tried :("

eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell)

Grian.

[falloutjay]

Okay Clyde Donovan x flirty reader

Clyde tries to flirt with reader but it doesn't work, not because she rejected him or anything, but because she out flirts him and asks him out instead.

Two months later, This seems to take a poll on Clyde's masculinity like sometimes they fight over movies and by times Clyde is onboard with the romance movie, Reader changes her mind and wants to watch the action movie...And Clyde makes it slip by accident he wanted to see the romance movie, he is caught by the guys.

Or sometimes, he'll catch us talking to others guys with reader's massive charm. He almost goes Burn (y'know from Hamilton) but someone stops him from burning their memories away and convinces him to talk her instead.

He does, reader and Clyde talk things out, and things get better.

Thank you very much for your patience and for your request, I hope you enjoy it. You inspired me to make a flustered Clyde gif. It's sadly still WIP 😊

Clyde x Flirty!Reader

"And yeah, you know, that's why they call me the backbone of the team." Clyde said, smiling slyly at you and flexing his small muscles a little bit.

You just chuckled while biting your lip, contemplating if you should really say what was on your mind. "Well...I sure don't mind you being my backbone."

Your laugh was ringing in Clyde's ears. He didn't fully grasp what you just said, which is why he was just starring with you with a friendly expression, while his brain tried processing your words.

From afar the guys watched him. Craig shook his head, while the other three guys, Token, Tweek and Jimmy laughed.

"Ehm.. yeah.. so... Eh... What were we talking about?" Clyde was perplexed.

He wasn't sure what to do.

He was no stranger to flirting and he would say he's pretty good at it, but every time he talked to YN, his brain went straight out of the window.

"I don't know. But I know what he could do instead." You smiled devilishly and there was this mischievous glint in your eyes.

"And that would be?" Clyde asked, leaning over the cafeteria table you were seated at. He tried playing it cool again.

"You know, how about you..." Your index finger started drawing little circles on the back of his hand.

"Come over to my house, my parents are out of town, we just order some food, watch a movie and get down and dirty." Just like perfect timing, the bell rang, and you got up.

"You got my number, just text me if that sounds good to you." You smiled and started walking to your next class.

Clyde just sat at the table, almost like he was a statue since he couldn’t move at all.

"Clyde, move your ass, we don't wanna be late." Token said and shook him slightly.

"I told you they are something different."

Craig said and the guys just laughed about his misery. Meanwhile the brunette just managed to stutter.

"B-b-bu...but that... That was supposed to be my line."

Nether the less, Clyde still went over that weekend. He had a great time but at the back of his mind, something kept occupying his thoughts.

And it was this conversation you two had in the cafeteria.

It was just bothering him.

He was supposed to leave you stuttering. He was supposed to make those jokes. He was the man, he was supposed to flirt with you and make you giggle.

But then you just turned it around and all that. It made him wonder... Was he maybe not man enough?

Well, his friends always told him you were just a very different kind of person. But he never expected this.

After meeting up, they were pretty much seen as a couple by the whole school. Rumors spread fast, especially when Cartman gets his hand on any juicy gossip.

Walking down the hallway with a very flustered Clyde was amusing to you. The pink tint on his cheeks was always present and it only motivated you more to keep it always visible. Be it a dirty joke, some stupid pick-up line delivered in your most flirtatious voice or just touching him.

Two months passed by like this and the biggest problem for Clyde despite being out flirted every time by you was that he felt embarrassed in front of his friends.

He still pretended to be this cool and masculine boyfriend. His façade only crumbled when it came to the discussion of movies.

Whenever it came to what movies you two were going to watch he kept pretending to not like your suggestions.

“Too boring.” “Too cheesy” “Too girly”

When he felt like he played enough around or when it was a movie, he would actually like watching, he just agreed.

”Yeah, okay babe, we can watch ‘To all the boys I’ve loved before’. I don’t mind.” But then to his surprise, you would just laugh and smile evilly.

“Mhm.. I changed my mind. I’d like to watch Kill Bill.” You giggled and the guys would sometimes just encourage you, saying you had great taste.

“But I thought we were… We wanted to watch that movie?” By his expression, the guys could just easily tell that he was disappointed.

“O-Oh poor Cl-Clyde. G-G-G-ot the hots for P-P-Peter?” Jimmy joked and you all broke out in contagious laughter.

Except the brunette who would just try his best to not show how much this bothered him.

Another thing that bothered the brown-haired half-orphan was that your flirty and cocky behavior wasn’t exclusive for him.

While wanting to pick you up from one of your classes, he noticed you talking to Stan and Kyle.

“Nice muscles Stan. If Wendy wasn’t already with you, I’m sure every girl here would fight to get vomited on by you. Goes for both of you.” You giggled and so did the two best friends next to you.

“Not too sure about that, YN.” Stan laughed.

“Yeah, I wish girls would acknowledge me.” Kyle mumbled shyly.

“Ah Kyle, come on, you’re like a parking ticket, ‘cause you got FINE written all over you.” All of you laughed once more and Clyde’s blood was boiling.

Without any hesitation he turned around and caught up to his friends. He recounted everything and kept talking about how angry he was.

“They just keep flirting. I hate it. It’s like they don’t take us seriously. I just wanna end it all.” He fumed and Craig just let out a big sigh.

“Dude, it’s just how they are. If you have a problem with it, have you considered talking to them about it?” The black-haired questioned. The other guys also turning to look at Clyde.

“Eh..I guess not. Not really, I think..?” He said quietly.

“Then talk it out. Clyde, I know you are a bit dense but come on.” Token now insisted too.

“Fine, fine. You are right.” He said and turned around once more to sprint towards where he thought you would maybe still be.

And to his surprise you were there, still waiting in front of your classroom. When you spotted the brunette, you smiled warmly at him.

“There you are. I was waiting.” You said excited and he felt bad for being angry with you.

“Will you walk with me for a bit?” He questioned and extended his hand to you. You gladly took it and you two started walking through the school.

“How come you wanted to walk? Somethings up?” You asked and the grip on your hand got stronger.

“I…I don’t know how to say but... I kinda have a problem with you being so flirty and embarrassing me about movies and all that. It just…. Makes me feel less like a man.” The last part he mumbled very very quietly but you were luckily still able to catch it.

You giggled and Clyde almost thought you were making fun of him. “I’m sorry then. I sure didn’t mean to make you feel that way. I can tone it down a bit if you want.”

Clyde nodded. “That would be great.” You two laughed awkwardly. “So…Wanna watch ‘To all the boys I’ve loved before?’ tonight at your place?” You asked and smiled at the brunette. Clyde’s brown eyes starred right into yours while he smiled widely. “I’d love that, babe.”

You got on your tiptoes and pressed a sweet and tender kiss onto his lips. “Good, see you tonight, hun. I gotta go to class.”

With a pep in his step Clyde walked to his class. He felt fuzzy and warm inside, happy that the boys talked him into talking to you. Because he sure was in love with this incredibly flirty you.

[thoughts-on-bangtan]

a poem for small things

by Admin 1 & 2

The time has come, the first proper post for this segment we’ve settled on calling a poem for small things, a nod toward BWL and its Korean title. Like we said in our call for submission post, this is supposed to be something like a place full of positivity for vminnies (and perhaps the occasional namjinist) where you (and us) can share whatever we’d like in connection to vmin, both as vmin and as Jimin and Tae the individuals, and have something to raise our mood and also strengthen our vminnie confidence. We’ve gotten several wonderful submissions and quickly realized that for this first post the theme is mostly how I became a vminnie, even if three submissions talk more about vmin moments they enjoy instead.

I think it’s a really interesting theme, especially since everyone’s story is different, and everyone seems to find something else about vmin that captured their attention and hearts so sharing these memories and experiences is a great way to start off this segment. We’ve said it many times before, though I don’t think you can say it enough times, but this bond that Jimin and Tae share is truly special and so one of a kind, it’s wonderful to see how we all relate to and resonate with it in our own way and find something in it that makes us fall in love with their loves, regardless if we see it as platonic or romantic love. Love is love after all. 95z is love.

For the order of these submissions, we’ll simply go in the order in which we’ve received them. Most of them came from anons, which is more than okay. We’ve also opened the possibility of submitting posts for those who would like to submit wordier posts/asks, should we do another edition of this. It all depends on how much you’ll enjoy it and if you’ll come through with more submissions that could be gathered for future posts.

Anyway, enough talking from our side, let’s dive into these submissions below the cut, shall we? Like we said in the original post (and demonstrated in the preview post), we’ll add some of our commentary and observations along the way, too.

From anon: This is going to be long winded story but Vmin is like a Serendipity to me. I've heard of BTS mainly from my hubby when he complains that times sq is packed because of BTS (when they’re in town and doing their rounds of morning shows). I knew they were very popular but it was a great surprise that i discovered them after watching ILand during lockdown. Their songs were great and i started playing their classics like Fire, DNA Fake Love etc. Then they did an appearance in the show...

I love how you heard about BTS because of your husband and Time Square being packed, this is honestly the most original and unique version of how I’ve come across BTS I’ve read over the years. Amazing!

I was drawn to Taehyung's beauty during their appearance in Iland. And my first Vmin ? moment was when Tae commented about being handsome and attractive are 2 things and being attractive weighs more - along those lines... then JM made a comment that its unfair that he's both and Tae was like Im talking about you... I went like ok he thinks JM is attractive- theyre good friends.... then Jimin did the FakeLove choreo and the camera focused on Tae and he had this wide smile...The Iland Tae/Jimin clips made me do a double take but I dismissed it since it was just only a few seconds worth of screen time but still...

I-Land vmin was really something else in both episodes. 

Fun fact: I-Land was the first Korean survival show I’ve ever watched, mostly because it had something to do with BH and since it was streamed online with subs in real time. Unfortunately, my faves—Daniel and Taki—didn’t make it into ENHYPEN, though I’m happy that Taki will be in a future Japanese BH group.

But, going back to vmin, that moment with Jimin dancing FAKE LOVE and Tae looking at him with that boxy smile as though Jimin hung the stars in the sky? I melted, even if it was just one of those brief moments, yet still it’s so cute! And it was all over sns being shared by vminnies and non-vminnies alike. What a great time that was.

Then VMAs Dynamite perf happened- both Vmin looking good. I saw a lot of their promos especially the Jimmy Fallon interviews... and I noticed in hindsight how JF was so careful when referring to Jimin ... Since Tae was my first bias, I searched YT for Tae related content eventually saw in my YT feed Vmin moments. Theres a lot of Vmin content in YT or maybe the T*ek*ok ones didnt really register as extraordinary to me. But defo the Vmin moments were extraordinary to me,,,the BV4 sleeping together, kitchen role play & BV3 JM excited to see Tae and them holding hands and then Tae crying and then Tae's busking with Jimin cheering him on were all amazing to see. Up to this day this specific YT vid stood out to me first 

I actually went to check what video this is, and also looked at the comments where my favorite was this one: The staff member went straight to Jimin to tell him V was crying. That's all you need to know. They’re not wrong with that one, are they? That is pretty telling. BV3 vmin were a work of wonder, truly. Jimin watching Tae sing that Sam Smith song during the dinner in the sky looking all soft and endlessly fond?

Jimin encouraging Tae to busk and gently petting his hair was just such a pure moment and showed how much Jimin appreciates Tae and the talent he has, how in moments when Tae might brush aside wanting to do something, is a little hesitant and unsure, Jimin will stand up for him and give him strength/encouragement, which reminds me of Tae’s vlive in April 2020 and the fact that Jimin had told him that he wants to be his source of strength. Beautiful. And it shows that it wasn’t just pretty yet empty words, but something he truly meant. They both do.

Then i came across vid trans of Friends & cried first time hearing it especially when it got to the part "One day when the cheer dies down, stay hey.." It felt raw and honest to me. Then there's MOT:E concert and that part in Dynamite where they bumped their heads seemed bizaare to me - i was like were they fighting? because JM looked really fierce(or maybe emotional) then i saw the close up. i couldnt remember the exact moment I became a Vminie but it made quarantine easier...

This, I’ve noticed, seems to be a recurring theme among quarantine ARMY and vminnies, the fact that becoming ARMY and vminnies made it easier, and it fits with what we’ve been saying about BTS for years: they will find you when you’ll need them most. And in these trying and uncertain times, it’s certainly proven true once again.

Thank you of much for your submission and sharing your story with us, and I’m glad they could make quarantine a little easier for you.

From anon: I've been following BTS on and off since BST, but only really consider myself a true fan late 2019. I can't recall having a bias at first, but I was captivated by Jimin's everything when I binge-watched all their content. I must admit, my first OTP is T*e/k*ok, where I fell down the route of considering Jimin 'an interfering 3rd party' in their relationship, and it shamed me. Since then I've been cycling through Jimin ships, namely yo*n/m*n, j*n/m*n, m*ni/m*ni, and I even thought that j*/k*ok was real at some point. Strangely, Vmin never struck me as something extraordinary. I don't want to blame anyone, but Vmin caught my eye after I watched official BTS content without filter (presumed bias/judgement) all in their glory. I realized that while other ships may go up-and-down as in one day there's a frenzy and another day quiet af, Vmin has been and is still going constant. That's what makes me love Vmin, and for the first time in my fandom life, I have no qualms about whether they are real or not. Their bond, whatever it is, is already precious and something to be cherished forever. Thank you for providing us vminies a special corner to speak up about our experience 💜

You’re very welcome! I hope you’ll like how this turned out as well. Thank you for sharing your story with us and personally I find it fascinating how, despite Jimin being the one who captivated you most at first, you still fell into the “he’s an interference for my ship” trap that’s quite popular with that particular ship. I’m glad though that that never ruined your love for Jimin. It’s also really interesting for me how you went through different Jimin ships yet it took you the longest time to notice vmin. I feel like, because vmin and vminnies are more “low key” than the other bigger and louder ships, as well as Tae and Jimin simply being quieter in their interactions (not always but you get the point) as compared to, for example, Jimin’s interactions with Hobi, Jungkook, or even Namjoon, it takes people a while to really notice them.

This is my favorite part of what you wrote, and I think it’s a great way to describe vmin in general and what makes them different from other ships in the grand scheme of things: I realized that while other ships may go up-and-down as in one day there's a frenzy and another day quiet af, Vmin has been and is still going constant.

From vminot7: So i fell into BTS hole after watching blood sweat and tears mv casually on youtube. Jimin immediately stole my attention with his unique voice, graceful moves and handsome features even though i didn’t know their names at that time. I watched more MVs and jimin continued to hold my attention but i was also extremely drawn to taehyung's voice and facial expressions. So i started looking for more content such as RUN BTS and other compilations and realized my love for all 7 of them. I also noticed how jimin always had a soft spot for taehyung and was curious about their dynamics. I started looking at more of vmin content and i was really surprised to see how in the early days they were nowhere near as soft with each other as they are now. I think they have a unique bond and i have never come across anything quite similar. Now vmin are both my biases and my bias wrecker is hoseok.

I admire jimin for being a hardworking, passionate perfectionist but also a caring soul who is always ready to offer love and comfort to people in need. I love taehyung for how he looks at the world in his unique ways and how he has a childlike awe for things and how he is so passionate over the things he loves. The thing i love about vmin together is how they are so different yet work so hard on their relationship when it would be easier to just not try that hard.

Ah, another mention of the queen that is Blood, Sweat and Tears. The MV truly is such a masterpiece so I’m not surprised that it caught your attention, and especially Jimin since he was…something else in that MV, or like Tae said, his eyes were temptation (this boy, I swear). Since you mentioned how in the first years they were nowhere near as soft with each other as they are now, I think watching their dynamic and relationship change and evolve over time showcases the one thing I think a lot of people (as well as movies and TV shows) forget or gloss over, despite it being so incredibly important: in order to make a relationship of any kind work, especially in order for it to grow as deep and strong as the one between all members and especially vmin, you need to put in the emotional work to make that happen. You have to make an effort, have to learn to understand the other person and teach them to understand you as well, learn to appreciate and love their little quirks and how to accept others. And it’s so clear that that’s what vmin did, continue to do, and it more than paid off in the long run. I’m glad you highlighted that in general but also as something you love about them.

While the overall bond between the members is a class of its own, I think especially what vmin have achieved is a whole masterclass in relationships and fostering strong ones, in and of itself. There is a lot I think we can learn from them and I’m so happy that people recognize how special they are.

Thank you so much for your submission!

From anon: There’s this small moments in Dear Class of 2020 that i just adore! I’ve watched it at least 20 times this past month

It starts with “Spring Day”- tae and jimin laugh and look at each other and it’s just so sweet!

Also, maybe it’s my delusional mind but after tae’s and jin’s small and adorable moment- it seemed that jimin did the same with junkook right after maybe out of i duuno if jealousy but like “pay attention to me too” kinda way- dont know really and maybe it’s me being extra🤷🏻‍♀️

I agree partially, in that Jimin watched Tae’s and Seokjin’s adorable moment, obviously must’ve thought of it as cute just like we did, and thought he could do the same with JK. I don’t think it had anything to do with jealousy, especially if we work off of the idea that vmin are a thing, but also because it’s a performance and these things primarily serve the purpose of being cute and entertaining use, in other words, it’s fanservice (which isn’t the evil word some portray it as). Also, within that same performance, Tae and Jimin actually sang some of the lyrics toward each other, therefore they, too, had a cute moment they shared with big smiles and everything, just like you mentioned.

But we’ve gotten to see much more of Tae’s friendship with Seokjin in 2020, and especially the second half, so it was really sweet to see them interact during that song. Their friendship and dynamic is really a beautiful one, just like JKs bond with Seokjin, which I feel we’ve also gotten to see more of in recent months. Part of me (and that part can very well be wrong) feels that perhaps once the members caught on to Seokjin feeling the way he said he did/does, they decided to give him an extra dose of love and affection, off camera but also on where we can see it. That isn’t to say that they didn’t show him any of that before, but maybe they increased the intensity a little, a reminder that Seokjin truly is loved, that he deserves all of this, that it’s just his imposter syndrome (or at least what sounds like it) lying to him.

I’m still so touched and moved by the fact that he trusted us enough to share his feelings with us, to gift us Abyss and how it came to be, and that Bang PD was on his side and coaxed him into pouring his feelings into music, even if it would be “bad”, that the fear of it potentially being “bad” shouldn’t hold him back (and Namjoon helping in even if just a tiny bit with the lyrics). It was one of those times where I feel like we were all reminded that regardless of our opinions of BH and their doings, the members are surrounded by kind people who have their best interest in mind. After all what’s good for Bangtan is also good for the company, a win-win for everyone.

…wow, okay, I kind of went off on a tangent, I’m sorry…

Either way , then we have “Mikrokosmos” where we have a sweet moment at their part and towards the end where they switch mic and hear each other

I love this performance overall and especially “spring day”- jin’s and j-hope’s lovely voices and of course tae’s!! This song fits them so well and all the members of course

Well this is my rent , i love your blog and always wait for another post! Also i love the new idea and look forward to it!

Thank you so much for your submission and for bringing up their Dear Class 2020 performance. It was a truly magical one, and after reading this the first time, I did go and watch it again. To this day I’d still very much like to know how and when and why the mic switch between vmin happened, and I kind of hope that we might get a Bangtan B*mb or EPISODE about this eventually and it might shine some light on that question. Overall it was one of my favorite performances on 2020.

From Sky: While I enjoy cute, physical moments with VMIN, I really do value how emotionally attached they are to each other. For example (I don’t know if it fits as vmin moment but), I love how Jimin asked V to take the Promise cover photo, and how he ended up putting V’s name for credits on the cover. (Special Thanks to V, Best Photographer) This really shows a lot. Coz he can easily choose any Bighit photographer to take it. He could have chosen JK because we know how he takes good pics and vids too (and also apparently alot of people say that vmin had a falling out and that Jimin and JK were much more closer, lol). Or he could’ve asked Suga too bec he’s into cameras too. But he didn’t. He chose V, and chose to shout it out to the world how thankful he is for V’s help. RM co-wrote Promise, and maybe had offered more help in this project, but he didn’t put it in the cover. I’m not saying Jimin is ungrateful for not crediting RM in the cover. The difference is that he and RM had a vlive regarding the making of this song, a lot of people already know RM’s participation, he was officially credited as co-writer and Jimin really showed how thankful he is to RM. But no one knows of V’s participation (except for a snippet in that Run ep), so Jimin felt the need to tell it to everyone. I’m sure it’s not only the photos, I think he wanted to acknowledge how V helped him through the process, whether directly or indirectly. Also, remember this is Jimin’s first non-album solo single. By putting V’s name in it, he is sharing this very special song with his soulmate. How endearing it is! V also included Jimin in his first full English song. He used the two bears given by Jimin as Winter Bear’s cover photo and he included the photo Jimin took (sleeping V in the plane) in the MV. Like, seriously, they are trying to consciously imprint each other in their life’s milestones, openly or subtly. I’m crying. 😭

This was lovely, and yes, Jimin could’ve asked whoever to take those pictures, could’ve chosen any other ones, and yet he wanted Tae to be the one to take them, wanted those specific ones as covers. It’s very sweet and creates this subtle connection between Jimin, the song, and Tae. Sure, it isn’t the first time a picture Tae took is the cover for a SoundCloud song (the picture of JK on the 2U cover was also taken by Tae if I remember correctly), but it’s the fact that Promise is Jimin’s first non-BTS song, his first solo release, that makes it that much more special. Even more so when you think about how meaningful that song is to Jimin, and by having Tae as cover picture photographer, he’s in a way forever attached memory wise to that song as well, right?

The same also goes with Winter Bear and the two ceramic bears. Remember how excited Tae looked when I kinda spoiled that gift being a thing happening in an upcoming RUN episode during Jimin’s vlive during the summer 2019? Adorable. It’s also curious how though the title is singular—winter bear not winter bears—there’s two ceramic bears. One for Tae, one for Jimin? Maybe, or maybe I’m reading too much into it. Either way, it’s really cute, and it was a very thoughtful gift, even more when we think about just how much Jimin loves that song.

From anon: Love this idea it's super cute!! 1st thing that came to my mind is a rather simple moment, jimin bopping taehyung's nose and making a lil game out of it

Taehyung asking for more and that dazed smile 🥺 he had the same expression in that concert when jimin placed his face just above him, tae's smile afterward... it was so pure u could almost read "love" in his eyes lol

What a lovely note to end this post at, thank you for that. I don’t know what got into them during that photoshoot for Season’s Greetings 2020 but this was so disarmingly adorable. I remember when that moment appeared all over every sns and everyone just melted, myself included. Their smiles, the cute clothes, Tae’s head on Jimin’s chest, the softness and innocence of it, just all of it. It truly was so pure and like this sweet visualization of ‘love’.

And with that, we’ve reached the end. Did you like this? I had a great time reading your submissions and adding my little comments to them. If you’d like for us to continue this, same rules as last time, send in a submission marked with “VMC” and once we’ll have enough of them gathered, we’ll do this again, if you’re interested in more, that is. Send in whatever positive vmin you have, a thought, a moment, a memory, whatever you’d like.

Thank you once again to everyone who participated! :)

[dccomicrants]

The JSA and Masks

Comic Issues Involved: The Flash vol 2 161, Pat McGreal, Paul Pelletier

Content Warnings: Drug and Substance Addiction Mentions

Summary: An analysis of a conversation that happened at Jay Garrick's Honeymoon which is talked about here.

Transcript of Dialogue that is analyzed:

Alan Scott (Green Lantern): ... So Jay, I know there aren't supposed to be any secrets between a man and his wife, but... Al Pratt (Atom): Joan's known who the Flash really is for some time now, hasn't she? Jay Garrick (Flash): Well, yeah. sure. Ted Grant (Wildcat): I dunno, it seems like a... a violation of the who secret identity concept. Jay Garrick (Flash): Are you telling me that none of you have ever considered letting your girlfriends in on the game? Alan Scott (GL): Uh... no... Ted Grant (WC): [guilty facial expression] Al Pratt (Atom): I guess I thought about telling Mary once. Rex Tyler (Hourman): Of course not. Charles McNider (Dr. Mid-Nite): Not me. Jay Garrick (Flash): Sheesh. Sometimes I think guys in our line of work suffer from arrested development. Alan Scott (GL): Hmm. Jay Garrick (Flash): Oh Heck. You've probably got the right idea. Anyway, all I wear is a helmet and Joan's no dummy. She figured it out long before I ever told her

Let's break this down systematically now- Charles McNider never married his sweetheart (fans thought he was gay but no he just really wanted to protect her from his nightlife and she ended up murdered anyways so how'd that work for him?). Alan has had 2 divorces generally. With DC Pride, his lover Jimmy died in the same train crash that led to him making his lantern and that's a whole separate thing. Alan has 2 kids he didn't know about until they were adults since they were given up for adoption by his ex-wife who was also a supervillain (what is it with Gotham Heroes and marrying villains?). Ted Grant never canonically married, he had a son with a girlfriend, and after his identity was discovered his son was kidnapped and was killed in experimentation by his nemesis. He has another son that he didn't know about until Tom was an adult. Rex stayed married to Wendi but they had a very strained marriage due to the fact that miraclo was addictive and he was very much addicted to the drug. Rex's son eventually would go on to be the second Hourman. Al Pratt married his girlfriend but she was murdered when she was pregnant with their son because his identity was compromised.

At this point in time, none of that has happened. They're all in the prime of their crime-fighting careers. Nothing too major has rocked the boat.

Alan Scott was a closeted gay man who ended up having two failed marriages while being a crime fighter and before he started his career, he lost his lover to a tragedy. To Alan, ever talking about who he really is would be a giant risk because it was the 40s and he was a newsman. He had to stay respectable and he was under scrutiny.

Ted Grant was the Heavy Weight Boxing champion, a known fighter. But he also had a scandal due to other managers paying boxers to throw fights which lead to an innocent man's death causing him to put the costume on in the first place. His name was cleared but he kept suiting up because Alan inspired him. He would already be in the spotlight but he would also be safer to share his identity because he's a known fighter that people knew better than to mess with.

Rex Tyler ran a company and developed miraclo- a drug that gave him super strength for an hour that he could only take once every twenty-four hours. He had an okay reason to not say anything about his identity to try to protect Wendi because he was just some chemist.

Charles McNider was a respected doctor who was blinded in an accident- he could have told his long-time love interest his secret identity because who would ever make the connection between a blind man and a crime fighter? She would have been the safest.

Al Pratt was a college student at the time, he's the youngest person in the room and he admitted to thinking about telling his secret identity to his girlfriend. He also for the longest time didn't have any powers.

This is all very important so hang in there.

Jay unintentionally strikes a nerve because Joan knows who he is. These are all men that Jay trusts with his life and to an extent, Joan's life. They all know his identity, he knows their identities. More importantly, they're friends, and he's genuinely surprised that he's the only one who trusts the person he loves enough with his secret identity. Alan is clearly uncomfortable (on several levels), as are Ted and Charles. Rex and Al handle it the best and drop it, but in the panels, you can see that Ted, Alan, and Charles are the most uncomfortable with what they've just discussed, with Alan actually voicing it with an uncomfortable Hmm. Jay salvages the night by admitting that Alan (and thus everyone else) may be right about keeping their identities secrets but he also admits that Joan figured it out, which likely leaves the others wondering if their girlfriends may have figured out their identities already as well.

Jay Garrick because of his honesty with Joan has the healthiest marriage out of all of the JSA, even when his identity becomes public knowledge, there's never an attempt on Joan's life because she's his wife. And everyone else for one reason or another due to the lack of honesty has either a strained relationship or loses the ones they loved because they didn't share their secret identities.

In other comics, the point is brought up that they wear the masks to protect their loved ones yet their loved ones end up endangered because of the secrets of the masks.

Their reactions to Jay not keeping any secrets from Joan when contrasted with the fact that his honesty meant the longest lasting and healthiest marriage whereas their secrets while wise in the short term ultimately ended in tragedy for all of the other men present is something I think about a lot.

[panelshowsource]

please understand...i’m absolutely obsessed...

i’m a mockumentary nut, i have to admit. the thick of it is my favourite thing in the world, and i also love tangential styles of filmmaking like peep show. what makes meet the richardsons all the better is the fact it’s about britcom? LMAO i know that sounds so obvious, but it’s like the epitome genre of filmmaking about the epitome genre of tv? to me ≧◡≦ because we get a lot of the nuance of the insider jokes, in a way, and i also feel like we’re learning more about how jon and lucy function as comedians, as well. for example, jon’s personal philosophy re: not wanting to work with lucy to the degree they’re considered a double act as well as wanting to pursue what he considers artistically engaging modes of comedy and even drama, so turning down shit game shows and brand deals. like, he has a very specific definition of artistic and celebrity integrity that really isn’t wavering. i can’t say, based on what we already knew about him, that that’s surprising! it was very interesting and ofc entertaining how that was explored in the series through his relationship with his agent and other comedians, for example. and i love all of the personal references in the series — like, the fast and subtle reference to hannah hauxwell, for example, which reinforces both jon’s active interest and pride in northern english culture as well as his engagement with finer arts beyond dishwasher jokes and panel shows. i felt, interestingly, despite these characters surely being characters, i did form somewhat more of a rounded impression of the real jon! i think o_o hehe~

i'm also really impressed by the way it transitions between scripted and improv, and while they might not be stretches of characters just how good they both are at acting (especially jon, because he has the more emotionally laborious side-stories)! when they make each other break and crack up my heart skghkjdfgsjdf i loved the outtakes s02e09 episode more than anything in the world i was so giddy watching that. do i need to make a little compilation? because 💓

i just blasted my way through the series so i’m going back now for a rewatch and will make notes for gifs~ please expect some! i’ll also upload it all to drive soon!

ANON I CACKLED no — other than it’s just strikingly untrue! susie is so kind and gentle, she seems the last person who would be a cock-gobbling dogging enthusiast, so they joke about it. also, jimmy is just a naughty boy. the entire gloryhold episode is one of my favourites, honestly!

juhMAHleeeeeeeeeee

i refuse to google this is this fucking true.....................

anon... first of all, i appreciate how much time you have on your hands. i don’t mean this in a mocking way. i also sit around and dream up different television series i want to see my faves in. second of all YEP SIGN ME UP

i feel bad for some of my followers who think i only really care about victoria in the show and won’t gif the others — that’s not true! i looooove alan, have never not laughed at a moment of guz, and am absolutely here for the girlies!!! i am obsessed with the fact we have an “older” panel, because they’re none that competitive and are full confidence and wit. i am honestly lowkey devastated there’s no audience and they can’t be all seated together... i would give anything for this to have been the lineup for s13 (studio audience confirmed!). i’d actually pay the editing team to go a little more heavy handed with the laugh track tbh... ANYWAYS i’m try not to moan about what ifs...

anyways VICTORIAAAAAAAA i’m just cackling we so specifically predicted how she’d be on the show — mocking the format, but really trying, and giving up on many of the tasks while also being a liiiiiittle bit butthurt when she doesn’t score well. the epitome of caring but not caring but caring. and i love how she wavers between these incredibly convincing, confident explanations and giggle-laden heavy sighs lgrhdkfjs she is so cute

unpopular opinion but i actually believe the 10-episode series are a little too long? not that i’m complaining about taskmaster content, per say, but i sometimes think 6–8 episodes would be just right to not exhaust the format and only present the best tasks the writing team (i love you tim key) come up with? but for once i’m SO happy about 10 eps because that’s 10 weeks of victoria ┗(＾0＾) ┓

god i hope i get a million victoria messages every week

it’s already up, anon! go check the masterlist 👀

(i’ll make some gifs tonight...)

btw it’s not what you know was added to the masterlist and outsiders was added to the non-panel shows masterpost!

—

F.A.Q. // Tags // Ask

[tumbleweed-palmer]

Unexpected: Jimmy Palmer x Original Character

I am having to repost all my fics because tumblr terminated my old blog. So here we go spamming up the Jimmy Palmer tag.

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Jimmy Palmer could admit he’d never found himself too annoyed by Tony Dinozzo. In fact, Jimmy was usually capable of dealing with Tony’s less than mature behavior without becoming too frustrated or too flustered.

Jimmy had long ago learned to take Tony’s immature comments and his habit of being far too nosy about his coworker’s personal lives with good stride. He’d learned to brush off the comments and the jokes. To be honest, Jimmy had always been somewhat fond of Tony’s tendency to give him a hard time.

It felt more like the actions of an older brother pestering a younger sibling, than anyone with any ill intentions. Jimmy had no older siblings, only a younger sister. So, really it just felt like Tony was a big brother of sorts, giving Jimmy a hard time and harassing him because he cared. Jimmy knew the moniker of “Autopsy Gremlin” or the sarcastic comments and jokes weren’t meant to be cruel. He knew that deep down Tony didn’t mean any disrespect.

Lately though it was becoming harder and harder for Jimmy to brush off Tony’s comments and his bad habit of attempting to shove his nose where it didn’t belong.

Today had been particularly brutal, all thanks to an unfortunately noticeable dark bruise along Jimmy’s neck. Anyone with any social awareness would easily be able to deduce exactly just how Jimmy had gotten these marks along his neck. Most people would spot a bruise along someone’s neck and would know it meant one thing and one thing only.

Most people though wouldn’t have the audacity to mention it. Tony Dinozzo wasn’t most people.

Tony had been quite loud about pointing out the large hickey along Jimmy’s neck and he’d done it at a crime scene of all the places to possibly bring it up.

Jimmy’s cheeks had flushed a deep shade of scarlet as Tony had spotted the hickey unable to resist himself. “Jeez Palmer, what happened to you? Did you use a vacuum cleaner or did you manage to actually find a lady gremlin to do that for you? That thing is huge. I don’t know if I should be disgusted or impressed. I’m dying to know just where she learned to do that, because I’m assuming you didn’t teach her.”

Jimmy had resisted the urge to drown himself in the lake Dr. Mallard and he’d been retrieving a body from as he’d squeaked out an “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Though by the way Jimmy had pulled the collar of his jumpsuit up in a poor attempt to hide the lovebite along his neck, it had been quite obvious to everyone that Jimmy knew exactly what Tony was talking about.

Thankfully Tony had dropped the subject fast becoming distracted by Gibbs’ less than pleased expression, but the entire situation had still been so mortifying.

This wasn’t the first time anyone had spotted a little lovebite along Jimmy’s neck over the course of the past year, and it wasn’t the first time Tony had something to say about it. It was still none the less absolutely horrifying for Jimmy.

Each time Tony mentioned a lovebite along Jimmy’s neck, Jimmy died a little inside.

As the day had worn on so had Tony’s prodding and needless to say Jimmy was more than ready to get far far away from NCIS headquarters and he hoped and prayed he’d have the entire weekend to suppress the memory of any of this ever happening.

Jimmy had worked far too late for a Friday night and he was more than ready to get out of the building as Tony approached him at the elevator looking all too much like a shark that had spotted a pool of blood.

“In a rush to get home Palmer?”

Jimmy cleared his throat trying to pretend that he wasn’t frantically pushing the up button on the elevator as though that would make his only form of escape arrive any quicker. “It’s Friday.”

“Got big plans for the weekend? I’ve always been curious, just what does an Autopsy Gremlin do on the weekend? I’m almost afraid to ask.” Tony commented, working his way up to the main punchline.

Jimmy shrugged his shoulders trying to play it cool. “Just a quiet weekend, nothing exciting.”

“Nothing exciting huh? I hope whoever gave you that little lovebite on your neck isn’t disappointed to hear that you don’t think they were exciting. I’m a little worried about just what you consider exciting if you didn’t find the process of getting that thing to be thrilling.” Tony pointed out while watching Jimmy squirm.

Jimmy groaned at this trying his best to play dumb in hopes this conversation would die. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Uh huh.” Tony responded not shying away from giving Jimmy a pat on the back before he spoke again.

It’s nothing to be ashamed of Palmer, It’s only a little gross when I think about it. I’m actually kind of impressed. You did the impossible, you got a girl to do that for you and it’s not even the first time it’s happened. You can’t blame me for being curious. The Autopsy Gremlin is getting some sweet sweet loving and I have to know just what she looks like, it is a she right? If not, I don’t judge. I would just be surprised to find you swing that way, especially after the whole Agent Lee thing. Are you having an office romance again? I’m guessing not, since I haven’t noticed you getting any attention from any of the ladies at NCIS, which means that Lady Gremlin doesn’t work here.”

Jimmy let out a sigh of relief as the elevator doors finally swung open, Jimmy escaping into the safe confines of the elevator so relieved that Tony didn’t follow him.

He spoke frantically pushing the close door button. “I gotta go, have a good weekend Tony.”

Jimmy closed his eyes, a heavy sigh of relief leaving him as he was finally left alone safe from Tony until next week.

A little voice in the back of his head was all too quick to speak Oh, if Tony only knew.

Jimmy had never meant for it to be like this. He’d never been the best at lying. Or, at least people told him he was a bad liar.

Maybe he wasn’t such a bad liar though, after all he’d been living a lie at work for a year now. He’d been lying to his coworkers for so long that his lies felt like truths at this point.

Jimmy’s personal life had become a well kept secret from the vast majority of his coworkers and Jimmy knew if the truth came out then Tony Dinozzo would kill him.

Jimmy had to believe though that the risk of death was well worth it. Olivia Dinozzo was so worth the risk of imminent death.

He hadn’t known exactly who she was when they’d first met on this elevator only a year before.

Olivia, or Liv as she preferred to be called had kind of stuck out like a sore thumb at NCIS headquarters.

They had met in the most unassuming of ways. The elevator had stopped at the first floor and Liv had stepped on wearing a visitors badge.

Jimmy had been hers in an instant and she hadn’t even known it. He’d glanced over at her and he couldn’t look away.  

The thin straps of the deep purple dress she’d been wearing hadn’t done a thing to hide her figure, at least when it came to cleavage.  The dress’ paisley print and loose flowing fabric had made her look more like she should be hanging out at a farmers market or making flower crowns in a field somewhere and not standing in a tiny elevator with a flustered Jimmy Palmer.

He’d been able to spot heavy looking turquoise earrings even through the thick strands of her long dark hair. The silver bangles on her wrist and the heavy gem ring on her finger had only made her look more like a freespirit and less like someone that should be visiting NCIS headquarters.

Her nails were kept trimmed and neat and painted with a dark blue polish. Her makeup was kept minimal with only a dusty pink lipstick on her lips. Her skin looked soft and milky and she smelled like a mixture of lavender and patchouli. A year later Jimmy would begin to associate the smell with her and the warmth he felt anytime she was close to him.  From their very first meeting he'd been just as captivated by that scent though.

Jimmy didn’t think anyone could blame him for admiring her. She was a gorgeous woman and Jimmy was a young single man with a pulse. He was going to notice a pretty girl standing so close to him on an elevator.

She honestly did take his breath away. It was her eyes that had really done it, those big blue eyes that had made him melt and made her almost resemble a little doll. She was a petite thing really, the top of her head reaching his chest. He was pretty sure he’d easily be able to rest his chin on top of her head if she were to stand cradled against him. She seemed so delicate. There was something about her that had made Jimmy want to wrap himself around her and protect her.

She would later explain to him that she’d actually done ballet as a child and had been pretty gifted until she’d torn a tendon in her ankle that killed her ballet career. Her petite stature had caused people to push her towards ballet insisting her body was suited for it. To her credit she had managed to become a talented dancer although she didn't think being petite had aided into that. She did joke puberty and the development of curves had hindered her career long before she’d screwed up her ankle. He could remember her comment “I already had being on the short side working against me, then I got boobs and a butt and I decided I better start turning my attention to painting and photography instead of dance. I got the impression that my career was over long before I messed up my ankle. People were pretty fast to tell me that my body wasn't so suited for dance after I hit puberty hard. My ankle injury gave me an excuse to change my path.”

Jimmy had clung onto that story just as eagerly as he’d clung on to every other word she’d ever said to him over the past year.

Although back then standing in that elevator heading up to the fourth floor, Jimmy would have found it unimaginable to even believe for a second that he would ever have the opportunity to cling on to every word she said.

To say that he was attracted to her from the moment he’d laid eyes on her would be a vast understatement.

She of course had noticed he was staring and she hadn’t been shy to turn her head to face him raising a well manicured eyebrow questioning his obvious gawking.

Jimmy had managed to work the words from his throat, automatically thinking he felt like a moron at his choice in words. “Visiting?”

He’d almost wished he could toss himself down the elevator shaft at the realization of the words that had left him. A voice in the back of his head had been so quick to taunt him “Way to sound nosy and accusatory. You might as well have yelled: you don’t belong here. Nice going, she probably thinks you’re a classist asshole. She has a visitors badge clipped to her dress of course she’s visiting, not that it’s any of your business.’’

Much to his shock and disbelief she hadn’t taken his comment as him being rude. Instead she’d given him a sweet little smile that had made him all the more hers. “Yes, is it really that obvious? I’m actually making a surprise visit to my brother. He’s not expecting me until next week. I’m just hoping he’s not too busy. I know his schedule is a little odd. It’s just been a while since I last saw him. So I thought I’d surprise him at work.”

She’d paused raising an eyebrow at Jimmy’s usual work uniform of pale blue scrubs. She spoke up before Jimmy had a chance to ask about her brother. “Do you work here?”

Jimmy felt the words leave him ignoring the voice that told him he was babbling like an idiot and stumbling over his own words. “Yes, I uh...I w-work in Autopsy actually. I’m the assistant medical examiner….I’m still in school so I can’t really call myself a medical examiner until I pass my licensing exam. So, for now I-I’m just assisting our lead medical examiner Dr. Mallard. I’m usually down there in the basement. I just, I was coming upstairs to use the vending machines in the breakroom on the fourth floor. The vending machine in the basement always steals my dollars and I uh, I thought a soda sounded better than instant coffee.I had an early morning with a body pickup...so, uh, yeah...I-I work here.”

He bit the inside of his cheek to shut himself up knowing he was giving her far more information than she ever asked for. Why was he such an oversharer? He’d always been like this. He could get anxious and he’d find himself unable to stop talking. He never knew how to just sit quietly with his own thoughts.

He was stunned that she didn’t shut down the conversation at the mention of autopsy or a body pickup. Though her eyes did grow a little wide at the concept of just what he did for a living. Much to his shock she spoke the sweet smile not straying from her lips even though it had weakened just a bit as she took in his comments. “Oh, instant coffee is the worst.”

He parted his lips wanting to say something more, anything to keep her talking to him. He wanted to ask her about her brother or hell even ask her for her name.

All of his questions were answered as the elevator stopped at the fourth floor and both Jimmy and his companion stepped out into the passageway.

Jimmy watched stunned as the young woman he’d been so shamelessly admiring tackled the last person Jimmy had ever been expecting into a tight hug.

Ziva and McGee watched just as stunned as Jimmy as Tony lifted the girl from the ground, a foreign look of paternal adoration crossing Tony’s features. The girl giggled clearly accustomed to this type of treatment.

Tony spoke still holding her up ignoring his gawking coworkers. “I thought you weren’t coming until next week?”

She spoke as he finally placed her back on the ground, she straightening out her dress and her purse. “I found an earlier flight for much cheaper. I had demote down from first class but I didn’t mind. Pretzels and soda are just as good as pretzels and champagne even if the seats were a little smaller and I didn’t have as much leg room. My suitcases are downstairs in my rental car and the rest of my belongings are still due to arrive next week unless the movers really screw something up. I’ve already signed the lease on my apartment but I’ve got a hotel in the meantime.”

“You don’t have to stay in a hotel. I have a sofa.” Tony insisted a laugh leaving her as she rolled her eyes clearly resistant to this offer.

“The last time I slept on your futon I had sore hips for days. I think I prefer an actual bed and room service over a futon and cold pizza which I would have to pick all the meat off of in hopes I don’t get sick.” She remarked Tony letting out a scoff at the comment.

He cleared his throat finally noticing they had an audience. He spoke nodding down to her and to Ziva and McGee. “Probie, Ziva, this is my little sister Olivia Dinozzo.”

“Liv, please. Everyone calls me Liv.” She insisted giving a small wave.

“I did not realize you have a sister Tony.” Ziva admitted Mcgee fast to speak up, confirming. “Yeah, you’ve never mentioned it. I thought you were an only child.”

Liv spoke explaining everything. “I’m his half sister. Same dad, So, both progeny of Dinozzo Senior. My mother was his second wife, but not for more than two years. I was a bit of a surprise baby, Tony was already out of the house for most of my childhood. I’ve been living across the country for a few years now and before that I wasn’t even in the United States. I’m a freelance photographer and I’ve done a lot of photography for travel magazines and brochures so I’ve always been on the move. I’ve recently been hired for a teaching position at a community center though, so I’ve settled into the area.”

Tony finally took notice of Jimmy’s presence, taking notice that the young man was still gawking at events that had just taken place. “Autopsy Gremlin, who let you out of the basement? Shoo, get out of here. Don’t make me get a spray bottle after you again.”

Jimmy felt his cheeks flush, he hating that little nickname for the first time ever. Liv thankfully didn’t seem amused by the comment, rolling her eyes giving her brother a nudge as she spoke to Ziva, McGee, and Jimmy. “I am so sorry you all have to work with my brother.”

No one had a chance to respond as Tony spoke, shoving the files he’d been holding all too roughly into McGee’s arms. “Be nice, I'm buying your lunch. I’ll even find a place that serves tofu and lettuce.”

She let out a huff apparently well versed in this conversation. “Just because I’m a vegetarian doesn’t mean my entire diet only consists of tofu and lettuce.”

Jimmy watched hopelessly as Liv left following along behind Tony towards the elevators not giving Jimmy a second glance.

This was just his luck, he’d met a beautiful woman who hadn’t minded his awkward babbling, only to discover she was essentially untouchable.

He felt foolish for even having the thought. Who was to say she’d ever willingly allow him to touch her?

She was so far out of his league that it wasn’t even funny. Besides who was to say he’d ever see her again even if she had mentioned settling down into the area. The Virginia DC area wasn’t tiny, so chances are he’d never see her again.

Maybe Jimmy had just been single for too long now? Dating in combination with his odd career path and the time his schooling demanded wasn’t easy. He’d had more unsuccessful dates than he’d ever admit to, and his last relationship had been less of a relationship and more of a string of hooking up with one another in secret. It had been months since his last relationship had ended. He had been the one who’d ended that relationship admitting he’d wanted more from a romantic partner than the physical aspect of it. He’d had poor luck in actually finding a relationship though.

He’d begun to feel lonelier than he’d ever admit. He was starting to consider possibly giving online dating a try, but it seemed impossible with his erratic schedule and his less than conventional career path.

A small part of him was beginning to lose hope that he’d actually find anyone who would be willing to put up with him.

He told himself he was an idiot for feeling so disappointed that Liv was so unattainable. Pursuing her would never work. Jimmy had a distinct feeling that if he ever dared to even give Liv a flirty smile that Tony would bury him so deep into the ground that the devil himself would need a shovel to dig Jimmy back out again.

It was a lost hopeless cause.

It just wasn’t meant to be.

Much to Jimmy’s surprise though, fate had seemed to decide that it was in fact meant to be.

It had been two weeks since their meeting when fate had seemed to drag them back together.

Jimmy had been enjoying a rare leisurely day at the park enjoying a book and a sandwich he’d gotten from a nearby deli and taking in a nice spring day. He’d barely gotten more than a few bites of his lunch when a rather large dog had come out from nowhere snatching his BLT right from his hands and chomping it down.

He’d been stunned at this turn of events and that dumbstruck feeling had only intensified as a familiar voice sounded out. “Seriously? Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

Jimmy had stared dumbfounded as Liv Dinozzo approached him her face flushed and her breathing heavy a sheen of sweat cross her skin. It was clear she’d been running after the dog for a long while now.

She spoke her voice frantic, barely even having the courage to look him in the eyes. This entire situation was beyond awkward. “I am so so so sorry. I was trying to adjust his leash and he worked his way free. He’s not even my dog. I was just walking him as a favor for my neighbor and if I’d known he’d do this I wouldn’t have offered. I’m just new in the area and I thought I’d win some points with my neighbor, since her arm is broken, by offering to walk her dog.”

She paused, finally meeting his gaze, a look of recognition crossing her features. “Wait...I know you. You, uh, you work with my brother right? I didn’t catch your name? We met on the elevator. Please don’t tell me I’m completely wrong about that. I think we’ve met before, right? I really don’t want to make this entire situation all more mortifying.”

He spoke trying not to cringe as the dog licked his hand soaking it clearly searching for another snack. “I, uh, yeah we met. Liv right? Tony didn’t introduce us properly. I’m James Palmer, but uh...everyone calls me Jimmy.”

He cringed even more, counting his blessings that she hadn’t brought up the name Tony had called him Autopsy Gremlin.

She spoke, clearing her throat shifting in place still feeling so horribly embarrassed. “I wish I could say we were meeting again under better circumstances. I can’t begin to express how sorry I am. Please let me make it up to you. I can buy you lunch. Anything you want to eat. Have lunch with me as a way to make up for this all.”

Jimmy felt his heart pound in his chest. She wanted to have lunch with him. Was this real life? He spoke nodding his head frantically. “Okay. I-uh, do you need help with the leash. I may be able to help. I worked as a veterinary tech during a summer in college.”

She handed over the leather leash Jimmy not helping but to appreciate just how silken her skin truly was as her fingertips brushed his.

He’d somehow lived up to his offer to get the leash on thanking his upper body strength as he helped her corral the dog to her car.

He’d tried not to gawk when they’d returned to dog to the brownstone she lived in. It was clear as day that her property was far nicer than Jimmy’s own. It made sense though he guessed, didn’t the Dinozzo’s come from old money? Tony might have been cut off from the family fortune but Liv clearly was not.

If she’d noticed his gawking she’d not mentioned it. To be honest, she’d seemed relieved that he hadn’t brought it up, nor had he mentioned it when she’d insisted on taking him a more expensive bistro than he’d usually eat at.

Much to his surprise and relief talking to Liv Dinozzo had actually felt easy the longer their lunch had lasted, even with his occasional tendency to be a little awkward. She hadn’t seemed to mind that he talked far too much and got far too enthusiastic. If anything she’d found his enthusiasm kind of sweet.

It had been so easy to talk to her that he’d taken a chance and asked to have lunch with her again or maybe dinner with him paying this time.

Much to his shock she’d said yes.

It had become a routine, spending time together. They’d spent months spending quite a bit of time together, going to lunches and dinners and museums and walks through the park.

It was a friendship really and Liv seemed oblivious of Jimmy’s more amorous feelings towards her. Or at least it seemed to Jimmy that she was blind to the fact that he clearly saw her as more than just a new friend.

Jimmy had been incapable of hiding it forever though.

It had started out so innocent. It had been a nice spring day and they’d taken a risk leaving the park and walking a few blocks to an ice cream parlor to cool down.

As they’d been leaving the ice cream parlor a spring storm had hit and they’d gotten caught in the downpour. They’d run the rain soaking them both until they’d found sanctuary under the awning of a building for lease.

Jimmy couldn’t help it. They’d been standing so close to one another the sound of rain hitting the cloth awning above them the scent of rain in the air.  He’d looked down at her and she’d been staring up at him and before he’d known it his lips had been pressed to hers.

He’d barely had the mind to even comprehend as she eagerly returned the passion of his kiss, his insecurities far too loud to ignore.

He’d spoken frantically babbling so sure he’d ruined everything. “I am so sorry. I have really screwed this all up. I should have never done that. I did that without even asking you for your consent. I know you aren’t romantically interested in me at all. I understand that you don’t feel the same way about me as I feel about you, and I’m mature enough to accept rejection. I’m just begging you to please not let my lack of judgement ruin any chance of friendship. I swear that will never happ…”

He didn’t have a chance to keep rambling as Liv did the only thing she could think to do to stop him. She placed a hand over his mouth, the action gentle but firm. “Jimmy slow down for a moment and breathe.”

She pulled her hand back after he nodded his head signaling that he understood. The words that left her made his jaw drop. “Why do you think I’m not romantically interested in you?”

Was she being serious? Was this some kind of cruel joke? Was this an attempt to really make it clear she was rejecting him? Did she want him to give her the reason she wouldn’t be interested in him just to make sure he understood why and wouldn’t pull this ever again?

Surely she wasn’t that cruel. He didn’t think she was cruel at all. She didn’t seem cruel enough to force him to vocalize the cold harsh truth like this.

He spoke his shoulders sagging, his brows furrowed, the answer seeming so obvious. “You’re out of my league. How could you ever even have me on your radar? Why would you ever be interested in me?”

“Why wouldn’t I be interested?” She asked, causing his jaw to drop once again.

She spoke again, shaking her head at the sheer ridiculousness of this moment. How could such an intelligent man be so oblivious? “I have been flirting with you for over a month now. I must be really shitty at it if you didn’t figure it out.”

He spoke his brain going a mile a second trying to think over every second they’d spent together over the past month. “You were?”

She wanted to bury her head in her hands at the question. God, he really was clueless wasn’t he? “Yes, very bluntly.  Honestly, I was flirting with you long before that. You didn’t seem to be getting the hint though, so over this past month I’ve really amped it up. You really didn’t think I needed to ask your opinions on anatomy for that art piece I was working on did you?”

She spoke again, spotting the look of confusion on his face. “You’ve been to my place Jimmy. You’ve seen my bookcases. I have more than enough books that I could turn to for reference if I had a question about getting the anatomy accurate on a painting.”

He felt his cheeks flush at the realization. He’d honestly missed all the signs. If anything he’d just read her jokes and smiles and friendliness. He’d thought she was asking for his help because she’d wanted to get back into painting and he had a deep understanding of anatomy. She’d insisted that he was the only one she trusted to guide her. She’d insisted he had the advantage of both having an analytical mind thanks to his medical knowledge and a creative mind thanks to his own passion for art. He’d been flattered by her insistence and had missed that the praise she’d given him had a flirty undertone to it. Sure, he’d noticed lingering touches and deep gazes but he’d assumed it was all in his head.

She spoke shaking her head slightly. It would be pathetic if he wasn’t so sweet. “Jimmy you asked how you could ever be on my radar, but how could you not be? I mean...did you miss the part where I kissed you back?”

He’d spoken surprised by an uncharacteristic surge of confidence sounding far smoother than he was sure he’d ever sounded. “I may have missed it. Could you refresh my memory?”

She’d leaned up her lips pressing to his he easily melting into the kiss returning it eagerly his arms encircling her waist pleased to find she fit against him just as perfectly as he’d imagined she would.

The smoothness faded from his voice, he sounding uncertain as he pulled his lips from hers. “What does this mean for us?”

She’d not minded his lack of confidence, her hand stroking his jawline, he leaning into her touch as she reassured him. “I didn’t work so hard flirting with you for months now for us not to make things official.”

And they had made things official.

There had only been one problem; Anthony Dinozzo Jr.

Liv had looked so guilty and so afraid when she’d brought it up only a month into Jimmy’s and her romantic relationship. “We don’t have to keep it from him forever, Jimmy. Trust me, this isn’t me being ashamed to be with you. I promise you it isn’t. I adore you so much. You’ve been so perfect and so sweet and I love being with you. Please don’t think I could ever be ashamed to tell anyone. Tony is just..Our childhood was a disaster. Dinozzo Sr. isn’t the warm fuzzy take you to watch baseball kind of dad. Trust me. Most of the kids I grew up with were shoved off on nannies the second we popped out of the womb.”

She paused shaking her head. “You know my mom died when I was four and even though she’d already left Dinozzo Sr. custody of me still went to him. Tony was in boarding school by then and Dinozzo Sr. wasn’t into actually raising me. So nannies took over all the parenting. It was just the normal thing to do in that environment. It just creates a cycle where parents find it easier to throw money at their kids instead of giving them any attention and the kids act out to get attention. Dinozzo Sr. really only gave me attention when he needed to make himself look good. And Tony was out of the house for good when I was a preteen, so I was left alone with that.”

She paused again clearing her throat. “I rebelled. I was hungry for any kind of attention even if it was negative. I had a pretty intense party girl phase starting in my teens and lasting into my early twenties. I wasn’t the only one...you know the stereotype, rich kids having the world and squandering and not appreciating the opportunities they’re given. I wanted my dad’s attention and he didn’t even notice. I think he didn’t write me out of the will and cut me off because he’d already done that song and dance with Tony. I guess it was too shameful to have two disowned kids instead of just one. He kept feeding my trust fund and pretended not to notice when I acted out.. So I sought out attention from other sources and found myself in some pretty awful situations. I mean..it was chaos and I was right there in the middle of it. I managed to stay clean at least when it came to anything harder than pot. I still partied too much though. My friend group didn’t shy away from the harder stuff and I didn’t have the sense to stay away from them. When things got scary, I couldn’t call my dad because he wouldn’t come rescue me. Tony was the only one who was ever there for me.”

“He was the only one you could trust.” Jimmy remarked Liv letting out a soft sigh nodding her head.

She spoke again. “I called Tony to bail me out of whatever mess I’d gotten myself into more than once. When I hit rock bottom he helped me sort my shit out. Even though it’s been a few years and I’m in a far better place emotionally, Tony still sees me as a scared little girl who finds herself in messes and needs rescuing. He is overprotective and anytime a guy shows me any interest he scares them off. I know you’re going to try to reassure me that he won’t scare you off...but that’s not my biggest worry.”

She paused taking a deep breath and deciding to just be blunt about it. “My brother has a gun and he knows exactly how to use it Jimmy.”

Jimmy felt himself pale at what she was insinuating. She spoke once again spelling it out even more her eyes beginning to water. “I don’t know how he would react, especially considering you technically work together. I think he just needs time to see that I’m really okay and that I’ve grown up and am no longer the girl I used to be. He needs to understand I don’t need him to protect me anymore. I don’t want us to keep our relationship a secret from him, but I don’t know what else we can do for now. I know it’s so unfair for me to ask that of you and I know it makes the worst girlfriend on the planet. I wish there was a better way, I jus…”

She didn’t have a chance to keep speaking as Jimmy spoke interrupting her his heart aching at the tears in her eyes. He couldn’t take her crying. He couldn’t stand the thought of it. She was far too beautiful to be filled with any sorrow. “I don’t like keeping it a secret either. You aren’t the worst girlfriend on the planet though, I promise. I’m okay with following your lead on this. We can do what you think is right for as long as you need. I like you too much to risk anything. Whatever makes you comfortable, I’m going to support you.”

They hadn’t intended it to be a year later and for them to be no closer to telling Tony the truth, but the timing had just never seemed right.

So they had persisted on like this, keeping Tony in the dark about everything.

There had only been one time where he’d almost discovered it all and that had been when Liv had called her number flashing along Jimmy’s cell’s screen in front of Tony. Jimmy had felt his stomach drop at Tony spoke. “Why is my sister calling you?”

Jimmy had spoken silencing his phone the lie falling from him. “I’m helping her with an art piece.She wanted some insight on anatomy and I offered to help…I uh, we ran into each other at a coffee shop a little while back and she remembered that you and I work together and asked for my help. So, I’ve just been giving her a second opinion on her work from a more analytical standpoint.”

He felt his heart drop Tony making it obvious he didn’t like this information. “I’d rather her ask Ducky for an anatomy lesson. Watch yourself Palmer.”

That had been a clear sign to Jimmy that they probably were doing the right thing keeping it a secret. He’d spotted a dangerous edge to Tony’s voice that day and Jimmy had easily remembered Tony’s gun.

As time went on though Jimmy knew it couldn’t stay a secret forever. Especially if they wanted any kind of future together.

Their relationship had grown serious. It was serious enough that Jimmy had introduced Liv to his family. He’d been able to at least announce that she was his girlfriend in that environment even if it was a secret at work.

Jimmy couldn’t help but to fear that they were getting a little too sloppy lately though, considering the evidence of their relationship had appeared on his neck more than once these past few months.

He tried his best to shake his worries from his mind as he arrived at her place; he was almost able to go on autopilot at this point when it came to the trip to her apartment after work.

Jimmy wasn’t surprised that she embraced him the second he walked through her door he barely having time to drop his bag and his spare key.

He buried his face against her taking in her familiar smell and the warmth of her body, the smell and touch feeling soothing after the day he’d had.

They stood there silently holding on to one another, soaking up the moment before she finally spoke, only pulling back from him far enough to speak clearly. “You smell like stinky hospital soap.”

He managed to chuckle at this pointing out the truth. “It’s preferable to what I smelled like before I used the hazmat shower at work.”

She spoke not shy about asking as she straightened out his tie the deep silver material having been a gift from her. It was a nice silk blend that he would never have gotten for himself. “That bad?”

“Awful.” He admitted his stomach turning at the memory.

She spoke nodding her head trying not to cringe at her own question or the information she risked receiving. “Worst than the body Dr. Mallard and you pulled from that sauna a few months ago?”

“So much worse. The sauna body may have been a pile of sludgy decomp, but this body today was pulled from a lake. So it was bloated and it smelled like severe decay and fish and algae all at once. The fish had gotten to some of the body so we’re working with a mess. I thought the smell would never leave my sinuses. Dr. Mallard took some sympathy on me and let me use the hazmat shower again.”

Liv nodded her head at this information trying not to visibly shudder at the imagery. She’d long ago figured out that when it came to her boyfriend’s odd career choice she had to have a tough stomach and strong will if she ever wanted him to feel comfortable venting about work to her or expressing excitement about something he’d found interesting at work.

She’d learned far more about decomposition and murder than she ever wanted to know, but she’d kept her disgust at bay telling herself being able to have Jimmy share the events of his day with her was well worth the disgusting details.

He’d been so hesitant to share the details with her at the beginning of their relationship, admitting to her that most people were uncomfortable with the details surrounding his job. She’d gently reassured him though that he should be allowed to share details about his day with her. If needed to vent about something he found frustrating or share something he found fascinating, she didn’t want him to have hesitations. She’d reassured him that if it ever became too much or too disturbing she’d stop him. She’d done her very best to resist stopping him from sharing with her though. She just wanted to be the best girlfriend possible. He needed someone to share his burdens with who wouldn’t judge him.

She pressed a kiss to his cheek her voice soft and reassuring. “Did it totally kill your appetite? Please tell me you didn’t skip dinner. You know your blood sugar plummets when you skip out on eating.”

He pressed a kiss to her temple not at all minding her scolding. “I ate. Dr. Mallard bought me dinner. Speaking of, he wants us to come to dinner Sunday. I told him I would need to check with you before I committed, just in case you had plans for us.”

“I don’t have any plans for us. I’d be happy to have dinner with him.” She reassured Jimmy trying her best to pretend she wasn’t still trying to shake the image of corpse eating fish from her brain.

Jimmy nodded his head relieved that she never seemed to be tempted to turn down Ducky’s dinner invites.

Dr. Mallard was the only person Jimmy worked with who knew about Liv and he. It had been an accident, telling Dr. Mallard.

Jimmy had been in the middle of assisting with an autopsy when Dr. Mallard had been rattling on about a case he’d worked where a man had been poisoned with cyanide being added to his palak paneer. The man had never seen it coming, his wife had poisoned him knowing he wouldn’t suspect her to poison his favorite meal.”

Jimmy had felt the words leave him before he could stop it. “I may need to tell Liv that Indian food night is cancelled for a little while.”

He’d felt his cheeks flush relieved that it had just been him and Dr. Mallard here to hear this information. He’d frantically explained it all, admitting the truth and confirming that Liv was Olivia Dinozzo and yes they were an item and please don’t tell Tony.

Much to Jimmy’s relief Dr. Mallard had agreed to keep his secret though he’d left him with a firm warning. Secrets couldn’t stay secrets forever and when the truth came out the fallout might not be so pleasant.

Jimmy had been relieved that Liv hadn’t been upset that he’d let their secret slip once he’d reassured her it was safe with Dr. Mallard.

Liv pressed her lips to his he easily melting into it as he always seemed to do. She giggled he so clearly chasing her lips for another kiss as she pulled away and spoke. “Can you hold off on calling him to confirm our invite until tomorrow. I have plans for you tonight.”

“Oh you do?” He asked as she pressed another kiss to his lips.

“So many plans.” She insisted her lips trailing down his neck a giggle leaving her as she spotted evidence of the last time they’d gotten a little caught up in one another.

She spoke an apologetic tone crossing her voice. “I’m sorry I made such a mess of your neck.”

He let out a soft sigh nodding his head. “Tony pointed it out, but I deflected it. He’ll probably drop it once something else attracts his attention. He’ll have the whole weekend to forget it.”

She nodded her head trying to pretend her stomach wasn’t turning at this knowledge that her brother might be catching on. He had no reason to suspect she was the one who’d left all those hickies on Jimmy’s neck. After all, Jimmy was careful enough to return them on her skin in places she could easily hide. Not to mention Tony had no idea that Jimmy and she spent any time together aside from the occasional “art project” Jimmy helped her with.

She knew it was getting more and more difficult to hide the truth. The more intertwined Jimmy’s and her life became the more they risked Tony finding out in the worst way possible.

There had been so many moments over the past year that Liv had wanted to tell Tony everything. She’d rehearsed it all in her head practicing the words again and again. She’d told herself that she just needed to have a heart-to-heart with her older brother and confess exactly how she felt about Jimmy and exactly how she felt in general. The timing was never right though. She never quite worked up the nerve to just bite the bullet and tell Tony everything.

She’d be lying if she tried to pretend that she didn’t feel like the worst girlfriend on the planet. After all, she’d met Jimmy’s entire family but she couldn’t find the balls to tell her own brother about Jimmy. Jimmy had been so proud to introduce her to his mother and his sister and grandmother. Why couldn’t she be proud to tell Tony that Jimmy was her boyfriend.

She knew the longer this went on the worst the outcome would be. The consequence of her choice would bite her in the ass eventually.

Deep down she knew the truth would need to come out sooner than later especially as Jimmy and she began to discuss their plans for the future and the fact that those plans very much involved one another.

She tried to push the worries from her mind as she spoke a soft sigh leaving her. “I’ll be more careful from now on. In my defense though, I just couldn’t help myself. You were being so cute and cuddly and we were having a lazy morning. I just got caught up in how sweet and handsome you are and how much I love you.”

“We were having a nice morning, I love you too.” Jimmy responded unable to stop the dreamy smile crossing his lips at the memory of exactly what they’d been doing when she’d left deep purple hickies along his neck.

To be fair he had left a share of his own lovebites along her body.

She ran her lips down his jaw running them lightly along his neck as she spoke. “So, I got a new camera.”

He felt his breath hitch finding it hard to concentrate when she was standing this close to him, her lips sliding along his skin. “Yeah?”

“Uh huh, It’s a pretty nice vintage Canon 35 mm camera from the late seventies I’ve had my eye on for a while. I finally found a refurbished one that is almost as good as new. I’m thinking I want to try doing a series of photos with it, maybe using some black and white film and doing it all old school. The only problem is I need to test it out first, make sure the film I got for it is good to go. I’m going to develop all the pictures myself and make sure it’s taking nice clear photos.” She explained pausing running her lips along the nape of his neck loosening his tie and unfastening hsi dress shirt just enough to reach his bare skin.

She spoke again already knowing she would have very little trouble convincing him. “So, do you want to help me test my camera out?”

He nodded his head eagerly unashamed of just how needy he sounded as the words left him. “I’m always happy to be your test model.”

She chuckled as she turned, taking his hands in hers leading him back towards her bedroom. “You were way too easy to convince. I didn’t even have to bribe you with an offer to take some nude photos for you.”

“Can we bring that offer back to the table?” he asked unashamedly, following her to her bedroom and whatever she had planned for him so eagerly.

“Sit still for a few photos and we’ll see.” She remarked already knowing he’d probably sit through however many photos she wanted even without a bribe.

He loved her far too much to say no, and she had no problem taking full advantage of it.

Needless to say, she had a feeling she might not be able to hold true to her promise to be a little more careful when it came to leaving lovebites along Jimmy’s neck.

……………………………………………………………….

A loud bang wasn’t the ideal way to wake up early on a Saturday morning. The banging persisted even as she attempted to bury her head underneath her pillow.

She let out a groan rolling her eyes as it hit her that Jimmy was still fast asleep apparently he was far too drained from the day before and the late night they’d had to allow something like some persistent knocks at her front door to wake him.

The only indication he gave that he was even aware of the situation was a drowsy half asleep comment muffled against his pillow “Tell the neighbor to be quiet, too early baby. Oli make em be quiet.”

She shook her head knowing it did no good to wake him and explain exactly what was happening. He worked so hard during the week. He deserved to have a restful sleep on the weekends. He needed his rest. She just had to go tell whoever was at her front door this early to get lost and then she could go back to sleep too.

She pulled herself from the bed finding one of Jimmy’s t-shirts and a pair of panties knowing the shirt was large enough to cover her lower half. To be safe she at least put a kimono on over the makeshift outfit knowing a little extra coverage would be wise.

She moved quickly, shutting the bedroom door behind her and making her way to the front door where the knocking continued.

She peered through the peephole, her stomach dropping. Well crap. She hoped Jimmy really was sleeping as deep as he’d seemed to be just a moment ago.

She just had to crack the door and get rid of Tony, and she could go back to bed with no one being the wiser about just who was sleeping nude in her bed.

She attempted to do just that, Tony not shy about speaking far too loudly for this time of the morning. “What the hell? I thought you’d never answer the door.”

“It’s Saturday morning.” She responded keeping the door cracked, hoping he’d get whatever he wanted out fast so she could get rid of him.

“I called but you didn’t answer. I need help. You remember Gina?” Tony insisted reaching forward pushing the door.

“Barely, what about her?” Liv asked, attempting to push back against the door trying to keep him out of her apartment and keep her cool pretending that his coworker wasn’t asleep in her bedroom.

Despite her attempts to keep the door shut Tony managed to work it open, letting himself in. “I thought I’d finally got rid of her but she found me when I went out last night and the only way I could escape was by telling her my sister had an emergency. We were at my place and she wasn’t leaving without a fight. I was desperate to get out of there. She might still be at my place. I just need somewhere to lie low until she gets bored and leaves.”

“That was last night, did you seriously sleep with her and now you’re trying to use me as an excuse to ditch her?” Liv asked deep down inside knowing that she already knew the answer to this question.

She might love Tony, but she couldn’t deny the fact that her older brother could be, well, a giant asshole at times. The man was the poster child for commitment issues.

“Well, when you put it that way it sounds bad., I can’t help it, Livy, she has this power over me. I cannot tell her no and then when I have a chance to regret it then it’s already too late.” Tony insisted not taking notice of Jimmy’s messenger bag on her floor.

He did notice something else of Jimmy’s though. “Wait a minute, you didn’t go to Georgetown.”

Liv felt her heart drop as she realized Tony was staring down at her t-shirt, the same t-shirt Jimmy had worn to bed last night and had ditched at some point when they’d decided to go for a round two where he’d left a very noticeable hickey long her left thigh as revenge for the new lovebite she’d given him along his collarbone.

She parted her lips trying to come up with a lie fast, but she didn’t have a chance as the actual owner of her t-shirt made his way into the room rubbing the sleep from his eyes not even noticing his girlfriend’s guest as he obstructed his own vision with his hand.

At least he’d managed to grab a pair of boxers from the floor instead of wandering into the room as nude as he’d been just a moment ago.

He spoke as he continued to rub the sleep from his eyes still oblivious to the situation at hand. “Baby it’s so early, why are you up? I thought I heard knocking but then…”

He felt the statement die on his lips as he lowered his hand, his stomach dropping as he realized the reality of their current predicament.

Tony moved quickly, starting to race towards Jimmy, his eyes narrowing. He spoke as Liv moved just as fast stepping between the men before things got too far. “What the hell Palmer? That’s my sister!”

Jimmy parted his lips, his voice sounding out though his throat was tightening panic bubbling in his gut. “Tony, I can explain everything.”

“Can you explain it? What the hell is there to explain? You’re sleeping with my sister? Oh god, she’s the one who’s been leaving all those hickies on your neck? You’re seriously hooking up with my little sister. You were in such a rush to leave work last night so you could come...have fun with my baby sister!.” Tony exclaimed disgust and rage crossing his features, he still attempting to reach forward more than likely debating throwing a punch Jimmy’s way.

“It’s not like that!” Jimmy exclaimed in response. It wasn’t just sex, he had to explain that this wasn’t just a case of him having some sort of friends with benefits situation with Liv.

“It sure as hell looks like that!” Tony remarked Liv pushing him forward trying her best to keep her enraged brother and her horrified boyfriend apart before someone got hurt.

She spoke trying to be the voice of reason. “We’re together Tony. We wanted to tell you…”

“Together? Are you serious?” Tony asked he moving forward again Liv pushing him away trying her best to keep the peace.

“Yes, together, we’ve been dating for a year now and we never meant for it to stay a secret this long. We just didn’t know how to tell you.” She explained, Jimmy fast to speak trying to support her and be another voice of reason. “I love her Tony. I promise you I’ve always had the best of intentions with Liv. She means the world to me.”

Tony spoke shaking his head disgust still written across his features he not hearing anything Jimmy had to say about any of this. “ My coworker Olivia? Him? Why didn’t you just twist the knife in more and sleep with Probie while you were at it.”

Liv let out a huff shaking her head trying not to sound offended by what he seemed to be insinuating. “I wasn’t just hooking up with Jimmy with no strings attached. This hasn’t just been sex. Believe it or not but I’m capable of having a loving stable relationship with someone who genuinely cares for me.”

Tony spoke so angry that he wasn’t going to shy away from going for a nerve he knew he could strike. “Well what else am I supposed to think Olivia? Considering your past, are you really surprised I don’t think the worst of your choice in men?”

“Don’t you dare. You have no right to hold any of that over my head!” Liv snapped her voice rising Jimmy shocked to hear a dangerous edge to her voice that was so unlike his girlfriend’s usual sweet gentle demeanor.

Tony scoffed at this comment. “Really? I don't have a right? You seem to forget that I’m always the one who has to clean up your messes.”

“That isn’t true! I’m not that person any more and you have no right to pretend I didn’t work hard to be a better person! I’ve worked so hard and you still treat me like I’m a disaster!” She cried out, her voice still so filled with rage.

Jimmy spoke, attempting to stop this before it got even uglier. “Tony, come on, this isn’t fair.”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about Palmer. Just how much has she told you about herself?” Tony snapped clearly ready to strike for blood and hurt his sister in exchange for her betrayal.

“Shut up Tony.” Liv snarled quickly, losing her cool the more Tony spoke.

Tony didn’t hold back letting his anger get the best of him. “Do you know how many times I’ve rescued her from whatever shitty situation she decided to get herself into? I have spent so many nights driving out to nightclubs or one of her shitty friend’s penthouses to save her because things got a little too real for her to handle. Did she tell you about the boyfriend who got coked out of his brain and she had to lock herself in a bathroom and call me to come save her because she was afraid he might hurt her? Or maybe she told you about the time she had to leave some guy’s apartment at two am and she wound up wandering the streets until she found a phonebooth to call me to come get her on a bad side of town. Or maybe she told you about the time she got herself arrested for being intoxicated and fighting with some guy in a parking lot at a seedy nightclub, so our father had to throw money at a judge to get the charges dropped? But Senior wasn’t ever there to actually rescue her. It’s always been me. Our father just throws more money at her and she keeps getting into trouble and never learning. I’m the one who always has to be the responsible one and stop her from getting hurt.”

Tony paused, regretting the words the moment they left his lips. “Trust me Palmer, I know my sister. She’s always been like this. Too much to put up with and too hard to love. She’s so starved for affection that she jumps into bed with anyone who’ll have her. So forgive me for not believing she’s actually got her shit together for once.”

The harsh tone that Liv’s lips shocked both men her voice cracking as she spoke. “Get out of my apartment!”

Tony took a deep breath calming his anger realizing he’d really messed up. He’d tried to go for a jugular to hurt her and he’d succeeded. “Liv please…”

“Get the fuck out!” She snapped her voice sounding shrill an explosive anger leaving her so unlike her.

Tony parted his lips trying to find the words but Jimmy spoke deciding to do what needed to be done. He had promised Liv he’d support her in whatever she needed to do, and he meant it. “You need to leave Tony. Just go.”

Tony looked as though he wanted to protest but he let out a deep breath taking one final apologetic glance his sister’s way before he finally left the apartment.

Jimmy and Olivia stood in silence Jimmy fearing her silence meant the worst. The insecure little voice in the back of his brain told him she’d want to be alone now. She’d blame him for wrecking her relationship with her brother. She’d want him to go.

He spoke praying the voice wasn’t true. “Oli.”

She turned taking him by shock her arms wrapping around his torso she squeezing him so tight it almost hurt. She spoke her voice sounding weepy as she tried and failed not to cry. “Jimmy.”

He rocked her against him as she spoke her voice still so tearful. “Please don’t leave me.”

Jimmy was fast to speak stunned she’d been just as afraid of his abandonment as he’d been afraid of hers. “Never, I’m never going to leave you.”

He continued to rock her against him as she cried, his heart breaking. He still couldn’t stand to see her cry. “I’ve got you, it’s okay. It'll all be okay. I love you.”

He repeated the words like a mantra rocking her against him as her body finally grew weak she unable to force herself to cry more even if she wanted to. “I love you. I’ve changed. I promise I’m not that girl anymore.”

“I know you aren’t. I know you weren’t her when we met at all. You’re you Oli. You’re the beautiful woman who took my breath away that day in that NCIS elevator. You’re the sweet gentle girl who bought me lunch because your neighbor's dog stole mine. You’re the girl who I kissed in the rain and all I could think was that you tasted like strawberry ice cream and all my dreams coming true. You’re the girl who kisses every inch of me and takes too many photos of me. You’re the beautiful girl who won’t let me tell you that I’m so unattractive that I’ll break your camera. You tell me all the things you like about me and make me feel more secure than anyone ever has and ever will. I know who you are.”

She closed her eyes praying to whoever might be listening that he meant it all. He spoke again trying to make his point clear. “You aren’t hard to love. You’re so easy for me to love.”

The statement caused more tears to fall she somehow clinging to him all the tighter. He managed to speak once again doing all he could to find some small way to soothe her. “Come on lets go get a bath okay. Just let me hold you in the bath for a little while. We can use that chamomile bubble bath soap you like to use when you’re having a bad day. Let me take care of you Oli.”

She nodded her head wordlessly, her body feeling so tired. She felt so exhausted as she tried to wrap her brain around Tony’s statement. He’d thrown all her worst fears right in her face. It hurt, it hurt so much. He was the only family she’d trusted and he’d said she was hard to love.

Jimmy pressed a kiss to her temple, making a silent promise to himself that he would do whatever it took to reassure her of his love. He didn’t care what it took.

He swallowed the lump in his throat trying to push back the anger bubbling in his gut. He wasn’t sure if he could ever forgive Tony Dinozzo for what he’d said and he definitely didn’t think he could forgive him for making her cry.

Jimmy would do whatever it took to make sure she never had a reason to cry by his side ever again.