#which she never gets info from him and then they just write him off screen in a random chapter

[the-blue-phantom]

the whole thing about This Girl's a Killer by Emma Wells is that it COULD have been a good book if it had taken its basic premise (female serial killer that only kills abusive or predatory men) and gone one of two directions with it: either making it a full satire of that genre of book or by making it a more serious analysis of it all. Instead it played it completely straight.

Which, sure, whatever that's fine and the story they wanted to tell and I could have probably enjoyed it just fine if it weren't for the fact that Cordelia Black is sooooo fucking bad at being a serial killer and if Wells hadn't set up the first half of the book for a perfect twist of "Cordelia is absolutely losing it and spiraling further and further". Or even if Wells hadn't been so desperate for Cordelia to be someone you like and root for.

I spent the first 40 pages of the book being beaten over the head with Cordelia telling us how meticulous and careful and good at killing she is, and then the rest of the book she's stumbling around barely able to cover up the murder she impulsively committed (as opposed to the ones she carefully planned out). I could have forgiven that as a side effect of her being off her game, but I did get the vibe that I was supposed to think that all the bad decisions she was making were a sign of her meticulous planning and it was just other people getting in the way of it, rather than a fundamental flaw with the whole plan.

But really the biggest crime is everything with Simon, her best friend's boyfriend. Cordelia meets him and is immediately under the impression that he's a bad guy. He's a bad man and shouldn't date her best friend. And he is a bit of a creep--he's possessive and controlling, but so is Cordelia. And one of the first things you find out about her is that she's a control freak with a temper and has driven off all of her best friend's boyfriends! So when she kills him on impulse and was desperately trying to convince herself that he was actually a monster who deserved it I was like yes! yes! She's going to have to deal with the fact that she killed someone who maybe didn't "deserve" it! And we'll dig more into her negative traits and how they damage or affect others around her! BUT THEN A PAGE LATER SHE FINDS PHOTOS IN HIS PHONE THAT CONFIRM HE WAS A PREDATOR????? Which killed the rest of the book for me tbh, but I shouldn't have been surprised because two things we find out about Cordelia (and this world as a whole) is that a) only men are predators and women are perpetual victims and b) Cordelia can simply tell when men are horrible evil bad people she should kill for the betterment of everyone else.

There was also an absolutely laughable line where she says she "unlearned internalized toxic misogyny" which essentially means that she's a girly girl now and hates her past self who was a huge loser and pathetic or whatever and now every single woman she doesn't like (or that is just poorer than her) is an ugly redneck loser who is vapid and only wants designer bags, as if Cordelia herself isn't so shallow that she name drops every brand name in existence.

This book set itself up to have something interesting to say and explore and then completely dropped the ball at the halfway point because the author had no interest in anything other than making Cordelia a hashtag girlboss girl's girl with a ride or die bestie who was also way too chill with helping her best friend hide her boyfriend's body after finding his head in Cordelia's fridge. Also why did Cordelia leave it unwrapped? Why did she let her best friend help dispose of the body when the entire rest of the book she was desperately trying to keep her from getting involved? Who knows! I certainly don't and I'm not sure Wells does either outside of "ride or die best friends".

[redheadspark]

For your August prompts:

14. Watching TV & movies together.....I wanna watch TV with Druig that'd be fun!!!! 😆

A/N - STELLA! Thanks for requesting this, I loved writing this! its short but cute!

Sunday Nights

Summary - It was tradition: Sunday Nights are for the trashy shows

Warnings - Just fluff

“Are you ready yet?”

“Patience is a virtue,”

“Not when it comes to our reality show nights!”

Druig grabbed the remote control from the coffee table, turning the TV on as you were finishing the last of the popcorn that was freshly popped.  The aroma of popcorn was filling the small and cramped kitchen while you poured out the bag into a massive bowl, knowing that you had other pop two bags instead of one.  It was something you learned early on in your relationship with Druig when you two got together: Druig was a snacker.

He especially loved snacking while watching reality TV.

That was a shocker to you when you two met some time ago, Druig always seemed to have his nose in a book or digesting what was going on in the newspaper.  He would rather curl up in a book than go out to parties that his roommate Kingo would throw, which was fair since most of those parties were pretty rowdy.  That’s how to met him in the first place: trying to find the bathroom and accidentally walking into his room where he was perched on his bed reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.

You ended up staying in his room and chatting about literature for three hours, and the rest of history.

Two years later, you both found a decent apartment that was close to his work at the University and it was perfect.  The views of the city, the walking distance to several restaurants and a few parks, even some of the neighbors that were on your floor were great.  The first night you two finally moved into your new shared home, you popped in a movie a brought out a new snacks for you two to share between.

Druig ended up eating most of the snacks without realizing it, which was quite amusing.

To his defense, Druig loved watching the Tracy reality TV shows that were everywhere, both on cable and streaming. It shocked you, a hobby that never really fitted his personality and lifestyles.  When you asked him about it once morning during breakfast, he simply shrugged.

“It’s a good way to turn my brain off for an hour or two,” he replied, you realizing that it was his own way other than decompressing.  He loved his job, though it would be very stressful at times.  He also was still iffy with his adoptive brother Ikaris, they would butt heads from time to time and it brought him down a bit.  You hated seeing him in those hard moments, it wasn’t like him at all.  

You made it a tradition then: Sunday nights were for there reality shows

“Here we are,” You said, walking into the living room and seeing your TV qeued up and Druig looking at you with a grin on his face.  You showed him the big bowl, popcorn was about to overflow as you made it to the couch and place it in his lap.

“Thanks, babe,” he replied, pecking your cheek as he the gestured to the TV screen, “This episode is supposed to be a cliffhanger,”

“Since when do you indulge the spoilers?” You asked in a teasing manner, seeing him grab some popcorn to pop in his mouth.

“I don’t, but one of my co workers told me on my lunch,” He explained as you ate some popcorn as well, “She knows I hate getting that kind of info, so I know she did that to pull my leg so to speak,”

“How nice of her,” You joked as he poked your side.  As he wrapped and arm around you to tuck you in his shoulder, you breathed in the cologne that he was wearing and the small hint of sweat that still lingered since he went to the gym earlier that day.  You both looked forward to this time together at the very end of the week before your work week would start up again.  Both of your schedules were full time, making it hard to enjoy some quality time together at the end of the day.  Hanging out with mutual friends or going out with co workers, attending family events, they were fun but also draining simultaneously.  

So having this small moment with Druig, it was more than enough. 

You phone lit up, showing a message on the screen,  You reached over to grab it from the coffee table, reading the message and then chuckling, “Makkari is going to rooftop party tonight and wants us to come,” 

“Sounds like fun,” Druig replied, then looking over at him and see him eye him with a smirk on his face, “This is better though,”

You laugh, typing the quick rejection to the invitation as he stared the show and you placed the phone to the side.  

The End

August Prompt Session

[6feathered6siren6]

Paradox

Author's note: Part 4!! I honestly struggled getting this next part out, but I did it. I have more ideas, drabbles of things I had planned for this one. But hope you enjoy! :)

Trigger warnings - Self-neglect - Torture

『01:00』

Triple digits. You stared at the computer screen. The document of the novel you wrote. You felt so mixed. All you wanted is to write something perfect. Something different, something gorey, and filled with something that other novels would not have. Yet, you were trapped into this time loop, writing the novel differently each time when you did. You wanted to be able to leave it, be with your lovers. 

Looking at the link on your computer. You know you can’t leave the loops until you kill whoever is Victim, but… You can get everyone a better future. You already know almost everything that would happen, hell, you rewrote a loop once without joining. But in the final loop, you want everyone to have a happy ending.

Angel’s manager needs to go, get V to understand he is a softy towards the server, Misaki to take a different job but higher paid(Would giving them a task with a lot of money work?), and Ronin.. He just wanted to play games with you, just do that again? 

Sighing and leaning back into your desk chair. Before an idea pops in your head… What if using the server to find them, like what if they are connected? But you also remember what they say is either very similar or the exact same thing. So it couldn’t be them. 

Victim only got in contact with you in a loop… come on remember… it was in the 70’s, somewhere there… And they have been watching but from where? They only send 3 letters. 

1. Telling you that you have to kill them in order to stop the loops.

2. That killing randomly won’t work. 

3. 

What was number 3…  It felt like a blur, but you paused. 

You need to remember the smaller details, if Victim wants you to kill them, then you really need to become a perfect killer. 

Ping!

Luckily, there is a server that can help you. 

-

Misaki is a professional hitman or assassin, they have killed many before, so surely they can spill some secrets. You had a paper notebook, not trusting putting your notes into your computer. You never know when someone hacks into your computer. Misaki has told you before in another loop, that they had you on call when they were assassinating someone. So they might have some info for you. 

–

Slight bust. But she did bring in good points. You don’t even know what they look like, nor much, all that they want is to die and die by your hands alone. Always gifting you a bat, plain wood, same shape with slight color changes. Red most of the time, while blue in a few. Could it be morse code? 

No, you’re overthinking it.

You click your pen against the notebook. Looking at your very little notes. Would V help? He does detective work… only for killers but would he help?

Shit… would it be a bit late to send a message to him now? This far into the loop? Fuck it, now or the next loop. 

You started typing the message to the server’s vigilante, he has to help just a bit or you will text him the next loop, annoy him to get some lick of info.

-

Surprisingly, he pulled you into a call. A video call, you don’t bother to see your camera, just looking at him. He answered the questions you asked, he was even giving you ideas to look at. Which helped you immensely. When he left the call, you left the server, also making sure the server notification sound was off. You don’t need any distraction. 

-

You were writing in the notebook, writing for questions and ideas. How to get them? Like traps would work. But which ones?

Knock, knock.

Who was there? Getting over to the door, opening to see no one was there. Looking down to see a box wrapped in white and light pink. You slowly look around to see if you can find who did that. But no one. Picking it up and going inside your place, opening it, and it’s self care spa items. It was from Angel. 

‘So a few people on the server are worried about you, and said that your next murder is taking a lot of your time, so take a spa day and relax. (Trust me, I’m taking my advice right now!🤍) Enjoy these items courtesy from Angel and - - - -’

The second name was crossed off, then another note, it had dry blood on it. Most likely from Ronin. 

‘Get your mind in gear, you are freaking out a few people, so rest fucker. - Ronin’

He drew a middle finger for you. How lovely. 

You look at the gift then to your notebook. You had something to do. But… You do know where they live so you can send a gift back, if not this loop maybe another. But for now.. You need a shower. Then back to work. 

–

“Damn, Darlin’. Every time I see you, your eyebags seem to grow, you can probably hold about half my baggage in those.” He smirked as he saw you through the screen. You haven't slept for… 2 weeks? Damn… 

“Oh, hush, I have a reason.” You said, leaning back into your chair. You already thanked both Ronin and Angel for the gift. Angel was glad it was delivered without blood(Ronin was gonna apparently deliver it with blood.)

“Well, staying up for a long time can hurt your pretty little face. And no one wants that, do they?” Ronin did sound worried for you, but… it was… fuck. It was January. Two more months. Then everything would be gone, all the planning, the ideas, the traps, everything…

Darlin’…

Darlin’...

“Darlin’!” Ronin shouted, you looked back at his camera on your screen. He seemed a bit panicked, he was definitely worried now. “There you are, shit. You really are out of your mind, huh? Go rest, you really gonna need it.” 

He ended the call, he was right, but if you can retain any information about Victim, you will. As you stood up, you fell to your knees, barely any strength. You really need to eat something. 

-

You were passed out in the room you were working at. The corkboard holding red rope and notes of things. The room was dark as the moon rose to gaze its light to you. Paper garbage was surrounding you, time was ticking and you only felt further now than before. But to begin with… Who was Victim and how did they do this? And why? Why did you have to be stuck falling in love only to lose them in the end? By your hands or not. They have your answers.

『01:05』

Walking to Ronin’s alleyway, seeing if there was anything in the path that could be significant. In past loops, you scared the people in the server to the point they needed to intervene. Hell, Ronin visited you before the usual point he does. But, you are taking their advice to relax more. Light research. Nothing more. When you got to the middle of both your place and Ronin’s alleyway, a note. With Victim’s handwriting. It had dry blood on the note. 

“Nothing will save you. You deserve the pain you will receive, reawakening that thing, will only make you burn harsher in hell. I will make sure you die each time, with harsher and harsher death, making you suffer with the creation you made and regret who you killed. – “

The name was covered in blood, making it harder to read. Victim is after someone in revenge. Killing them over and over in these loops. But why? 

You know a bit more, Victim and there is someone else in these loops that remembers. But that ponders the question, did these loops start because the Victim wanted someone dead and revenge for someone else? Was it Victim or their… There is no name addressed to this, so what to call them for now… Creator? They created something apparently to the note, so was it Victim or Creator that started these loops? And why did they?

You feel like there are so many questions. But for now, you need rest, before Ronin goes victim hunting. You don’t need to die now, Misaki is requesting to watch an anime that's coming out, even though you memorize it by heart, seeing them smile is important to you right now. At least to pay back a favor from another loop.

『01:09』

You were out with V, patrolling with him with his route. He allowed you to follow him, after asking him politely, of course. You gained his trust, and you were seeing how he did things, you knew some, but not the whole thing. You looked at your hands, you haven’t killed anyone in the past couple loops, which in your opinion, was good. But you still got that bat from Victim. Taunting you? You still don’t know now. 

“Reader. Thank you for keeping me company during my patrols, I didn’t expect you to join me.” He said, the frost chill air surrounded the both of you, basking in that winter about to come to a close. 

You smiled softly, you missed the sweet domestic moments. “No problem! Plus, I do too, and I needed to get some fresh air.” You have been out constantly in the past couple loops, nope, it’s a break loop, no thinking about the loops. Just… enjoy the moment with them. 

V smiled back as he looked away from you to scan around again. Joining in, you also help scan, luckily from the last few loops looking for more notes from either Victim and Creator, you were able to scan for small details. Nothing out of the ordinary so far. The moment might have been quiet but it was a nice silent moment with V. 

He offered you tea afterwards. The tea was bitter but sweet at the same time. 

It was a peaceful moment, but you felt like something was off through the whole time. A pain in your heart. Like you were hurting again. God, you miss the moments, where you smile with the others. Loving them with your heart. Without worry about these loops.

These loops fucked you up, killing so many people, fucking with your memory, you knew so much about Angel, V, Misaki, and Ronin, but you barely felt like you knew yourself, then also messing with your mental health. You could barely look at yourself in the mirror anymore. Your moral compass was so fucked. You want out, but it seems Victim was calling your name, ending these loops. So much time to do so, but so little as well, from October to March. You still have so much to do. So much detective work. Closer to the end of loops, the better. 

『--:--』

Combat shoes could be heard walking through an abandoned building, a bat was in their hand, the wood was being dragged through the concrete floor. Untouched by blood. A chuckle filled the room, it sounded deep, a male. 

“Go fuck yourself.” Another figure was heard. That one was tied up on a chair. No way out. “You can keep killing me over and over, there would be no difference, I will come back the next loop.” 

“Maybe, maybe not. But, at least I get the joy of hurting you over and over, hearing your screams for what you have done.” The male had a grin, one of sadistic tendencies. “So be loud for me, won’t cha?” 

A loud crunch and a scream was heard for a couple blocks. A scream you couldn’t hear as you walked with V, talking about cooking and animals. A domestic moment away from the gruesome scene that was playing a few miles away from you.

[mdhwrites]

Even When Aventurine is Good, He's Awkward

So I've gone on record for saying that in 2.0, Aventurine was... Bad. REALLY bad. Whoever was writing him missed the mark by a just astounding level. I like Aventurine now thanks to 2.1 but... 2.1 is also an interesting study for the fact that anyone who despises him afterwards is probably going to do it for one of two reasons:

1: He took up a fuckton of time while ending up with little to actually do with the overall story.

2: Yeah, I get it, you love your OC. Can you not try to hammer that into my skull until it's flat like a pancake?

Let's start in order. First we just have to recognize that 2.1 has nothing to do with the story of The Order rising to power. It is between patch content. Flatly. It has nothing to do with this story and mostly serves to prop up future stories, like Topaz's visit to Belobog. This at least applies to everything that happens with Aventurine because... Well, literally none of it comes back until 2.2's post credits scene and him dying is resolved OFF SCREEN. We never get info from him or take a step forward along our path to figuring everything out.

That, bluntly, from a storytelling perspective, SUCKS. It sucks harder when Penacony was a VERY slow planet. A lot of speechifying happens in it. It took me over ten hours I think to get through 2.1 because it's just SO. MUCH. TALKING. I literally had to take a break in the middle of it because it was all becoming a monotonous drone, not helped by a lot of the dialogue lacking much character. I damn near cried when Boothill spoke because I was like, "OH MY GOD! A PERSONALITY!" Because everyone else is being so serious and so to the point that it's just very flat and to spend a lot of that flatness on a story that doesn't serve a point here is REAL BAD.

It'd be like if the students we befriended in 2.6 had no pizzazz to them or we didn't interact with them but they still took up 70% of the patch instead of the 30% they do. It'd be hell. But... That honestly doesn't compare to the second problem.

If you felt manipulated by Aventurine's journey of the self... You should? It uses TWO different, very blunt tricks for showing the tragic side of a character. Neither is bad but either one could get you called out for not having nuance, let alone depending on the length of the sequence. Aventurine's chat with both himself and his younger self are not short and they're not really all that interesting. We do get to see into how little he values himself and how he is quite likely suicidal but not much else. It's just look at the sad boy as he trudges along to get to the place he could have in five minutes. It's the sort of thing that makes more sense for a companion quest or maybe a larger scale event. Like, I dunno...

The Wardance or Fyxestroll Garden, the two best events in Star Rail. Both are just telling a character story at the end of the day but the acceptance of that, and the fact that it's not taking away from a story already happening, puts you in a better mindset. Better yet, both only use the trick of diving into the mind. They don't feel insecure enough to also include a small, cute, child version of the character just to make it hit harder.

It IS well written enough and compelling enough with Aventurine that it works... But if these two problems did break it for you, you're not wrong. Penacony is LOADED with stuff that feels bad in the moment and then comes together in the end. Sparkle is the ultimate version of that with finding out how she knew all she did but Aventurine is still a version of it. Of things that from a strict writing perspective are NOT GOOD. They come together... But if you can't forgive what came before, I can't with Sparkle, it doesn't matter how good the climax it is.

It's a gamble, which I guess makes sense for Aventurine. It was not the complete win he's used to though.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[spaceorphan18]

Your segment of the podcast was wonderful! Honestly I got emotional. I’m so glad they talked to you.

SNARKY!!?! I'm so glad you listened and got emotional. Did you catch my shout out to you? ;)

If you don't mind, I'm going to just give some little tidbits about doing the zoom call with Kevin and Jenna

There was no intro with me. The only person I talked to before the call was the producer and that was through email. I had no idea what to expect, and I was really nervous going in. I made a few small notes of things I'd like have said, and I think most everything got covered.

I didn't think it was real until Kevin and Jenna popped on screen.

I was a little shocked when Kevin was so enthusiastic about me A) being an OG glee fan and B) about my real job.

I was taken aback, a little, by how very good looking Kevin was.

(I tried to look nice - but I looked ultimately like me and not like someone who has a lot of money, lol)

The conversation felt mostly like it was me and Kevin, who seemed to be driving it. I had to remind myself to look at Jenna as I talked, too.

(I'll talk more about Jenna later in another post)

I tried to be polite and professional. As the convo went on, it felt really easy to do the conversation. It felt both longer and shorter than I expected.

Funny thing about when I started writing fanfic -- I lied a little, but I didn't want to go into the biggest reason that I was held back so long from writing fanfic is due to my severe social anxiety and the scariness of the glee fandom. But I felt like that was too complex to get into.

Also did you notice Kevin's insulation that I started writing after the show started getting bad after season 3? After the convo was over -- I was really bummed I didn't defend the later seasons in that moment.

I felt really bad when I said fanfic isn't for you, and I hope my reasoning was clear. They seemed to be understanding, though?

Kevin just beamed when I brought up that I wrote Office fanfic. Btw, I COMPLETELY forgot that he was on an episode of Office while doing the interview.

There was one point that I thought, maybe, Jenna had snapped with me -- and it was when she mentioned that they were fans of things, too. Mom (who told me she noticed Jenna's oddness and apathy) said she didn't notice that moment, so it may have been just me.

(Mom did say that I should not have said Kurt was my favorite character - but I reminded her that she already knew since the producer had already asked me that as a vetting question)

I was a little surprised when they didn't ask me about my favorites like they did with a lot of the other fan guests they have. I did mention Kurt in the episode. But I was a little bummed I didn't get to do the usual. (Apparently, they didn't with the first woman either?)

The ending was super, super awkward, and I believe, the only point that was edited. At the very end - Kevin asked for my goodreads account. I was so stunned that all I could say was that it was my full name. I kind of wonder (now) if he was trying to get me to plug some kind of social media? Anyway, the producer jumped in and said she'd get him the info.

It kind of then ended abruptly, as they were saying goodbye. They shut down and the Kevin popped on again to say goodbye again. I could also hear Jenna going straight into asking about what they were doing next.

Fwiw - Kevin never did slide into my Goodreads DMs, which is fine. I didn't really expect him too.

The producer then sent me a message a half hour later saying that Kevin and Jenna 'genuinely' liked talking to me and that I was an awesome guest. (and that she'd be in touch).

I really liked how the conversation went (mostly) but afterwards, I was kind of bummed that that was it. I have so much more I wanted to say --- and there was a part of me that kind of wanted to speak up about a lot of things that we always talk about here. But I'm glad I didn't get off topic, and that I did have a professional, honest, and hopefully education conversation about fanfic.

Fwiw - the producer sent me one last message letting me know that the podcast had aired. I did send a thank you email back, but have not yet heard a response -- so I'm guessing that is that.

I am grateful for the experience. Everyone has been so lovely about it, and people even in my real life have had a lot of good things to say. I suppose it's my little fifteen minutes of fame.

I hope people listening got something out of it, too. I haven't listened to it myself - but I just feel awkward about it, and don't really want to.

It does make me want to podcast again, though, and really dig into all the things that Kevin and Jenna don't get into. Maybe someday I can talk Snarky into another podcast when we both have time.

Thanks dear for supporting me and helping me. <3

[maddsmallow]

hi i badly drew smut of human au age swap hankcon with fem hank look at it on my bsky, please enjoy the background info under the cut, aka basically the closest thing to a fanfic i will ever have the patience to write

hank (i always have fem!hank still just go by hank lmao) is a young rookie detective, maybe like mid-late 20s, and is assigned to connor, a silver fox middle aged and very accomplished detective who's also a bit of a loner and has a massive superiority complex which definitely doesn't help with the whole "being a loner" thing. tensions between the two of them are immediately high because connor tries to brush her off and keep her out of his way, thinking she'd just be a hindrance to himself, but hank continuously asserts herself and demands to be part of their "team" and not just designated to the sidelines—she's worked too hard to get to where she is to be pushed to the side now.

the ironic thing is that, hank is actually a really good detective, connor just doesnt notice until she ends up possibly saving his life. he didnt mean to have them engage in an active chase so soon into her apprenticeship with him, but they came across a suspect at a scene and he, being the accomplished detective he is, immediately went into "must complete the mission" mode and pursued. and even when he was pulled up by hank from the side of the building he was dangling from, multiple stories above the ground, after being pushed by the suspect, and likely saving his life, he still grilled her on why she would let the suspect go to pull him up. and hank just looked at him like he was crazy and without missing a beat said, "because you're my partner."

connor had gotten hurt once early in his career and was left by his then partner to pursue their suspect, and he'd always had the stance of "i can only look out for and trust in myself, because the only thing that matters is the mission" ever since, which lead to him never (willingly) having partners, or his partners bring driven away quickly because of his ideology, and him becoming such an efficiently solo detective. so of course, when he found himself in another predicament all those years later after having been accident-less as a solitary man for so long, his immediate reaction was to think his trainee would continue the chase without him, much like his partner in his early days had left him. but then hank didnt even blink when it came to deciding on what to do when she saw her partner in a life threatening situation—she helped him immediately. possibly saved his life. and it shatters his worldview. for the first time in decades, he thinks... oh. i can trust somebody else.

and after that, he really starts to see all that hank is capable of, and even comes to appreciate hank's no-bullshit attitude, something he at first felt was brash and a disrespect to his senior authority, but comes to realize is the same efficiency he prides himself in having. and hank can feel the shift between them too. that trust that connor finally grants her, and no one else.

and things just escalate from there lmao

connor had always been a loner in his personal life as well as his professional, but any sort of "companionship" he sought out was mostly with other men. but as their professional relationship grows into a personal one, connor can't seem to stop... noticing hank. the way her blonde curls never stay in her messy bun and end up framing her face, how it makes her steely blue eyes stand out even more, the gentle curves of her strong form that she works hard to maintain with rigorous strength training. the way she squints and how her eyes crinkle when she's really focused on her computer screen. the strong shape of her nose and her downturned eyes. just little things that add up to everything until he realizes, it's just her that he likes. he likes her. in a very unprofessional way. and he has no idea what to do with that.

and hank isnt an idiot, she's a goddamn detective lmao. she sees the change in the way connor looks at her. after the incident, there was just. a new softness in his eyes when he looked at her that never went away, and it's only ever for her. she can't help but let herself get sucked into letting their personal relationship grow, not just to strengthen their work partnership but also maybe a bit out of curiosity just to see what this loner is really like, to be the one person he lets in to see who he really is. and she's not blind, connor is a goddamn handsome man. the silvering hairs around his temple and in his short well-groomed beard, and the crows feet on the outer corners of his eyes give him a mature, sophisticated charm that's hard not to be drawn into. not to mention how his brown eyes feel so deep, and now kind and soft, just for her, it feels like she could fall into them. and in a way, she does. she comes to like who this old stick-up-his-ass guy is. like, a lot. and when she catches him staring at her months into the start of their friendship, it makes her feel warm deep and low inside herself.

so yknow. things comes to a head while on a stakeout of course lmao. stuck in a car, a tight enclosed space for hours together. hank stretches her spine and catches connor looking at the way her breasts pop with the arch of her back, and she gets that low warm feeling for the umpteenth time, and calls him out on staring. and she tells him she likes it. and one thing leads to another and soon enough she's swinging her legs over the older man's smaller frame and they're kissing hard and deep. hank brings connor's hand up to her tits since he'd just been staring, and connor doesnt waste any time getting them free to get his mouth on them, and ohh the scratch of his beard and the warmth of that mouth of the man she'll soon learn has an oral fixation is heavenly.

they don't get much further than that because they actually spot their suspect and have to go back to being professionals real quick, and immediately the case escalates and they're too busy working day and night to continue what they started. but the memories of the feeling of connor's hardening cock underneath hank and hank's heavy tits in connor's hands and mouth of course linger in the forefront of their minds. that same night, as connor gets situated into bed and starts to stroke his half hard cock at the thought of hank, he gets a text from her which leads to an image, which leads to a phone call, both breathing heavy into their receivers as they fuck into their hands and tell the other how much they want the other and have for a while.

they probably decide to keep things professional at work and not allow themselves to do any fooling around there, but with the case escalated and the early mornings and late nights keeping them apart despite being right there next to each other, it's an agony they didn't anticipate. it doesnt take long before they're finding excuses to touch each other in otherwise innocent ways that end up just riling them up more, until one shift hank breaks and gets connor to meet her in one of the storage closets where she immediately pounces on him, and connor is so on board with it. all agreements about keeping things totally professional at work go right out the window because hank is right there and begging for him to touch her, and connor internally has been begging to touch her again for so long. he wouldn't in a million years say no.

(am i basically copying and pasting the rest from my rambling of this on the hankcon server? yeah)

then it's a flurry of hands to get her shirt open for connor to lick one of her perking nipples into his warm mouth, and to get her sat somewhere so connor can rub his rock hard cock against the already wet crotch of her pants from how desperate she's been for him. connor lets his oral fixation go wild on her tits, sucking and nibbling all over, squeezing and pinching to get those pretty gasps out of hank, all the while taking her shirt and bra off completely and out of the way. her tits are so nice and heavy in connor's hands, so sweet in his mouth, and her skin is so soft all over.

and once he's done with her there, he dives in to kiss her deep and filthy on the mouth and moves his hands down to her crotch to tease her a bit before getting permission to rip her pants off and make use of those long nimble fingers he has. at that point it's good he moved to kissing her mouth because he needs to to keep her voice muffled. he is an experienced man after all, and the sounds he so easily works out of her are beautiful, enough to come to just on their own, but they're still at work.

he circles her clit and gets her bucking into his hand, and then moves down to sink a finger right inside her—she's so wet and hot, it's so easy for him to slide right on in—and she gasps and throws her head back. the sound from her wetness alone is obscene, connor shivers just from the idea of that feeling around his straining cock just a few inches away. and hank's already shivering with pleasure and the need for more, begging in hushed whispers for more, more, please i need you, practically dripping slick down whatever she's sitting on.

connor finally pulls back to let his painfully hard cock free and hank pulls a condom out of her pocket and kind of smirks, like, i was really wanting this, i fucking came here prepared lmao

connor somehow still has the braincells to put the condom on quickly and gets his hands on the undersides of hank's knees to lift her legs way up, and then pushes in. and it's sooo hard to muffle the sounds they make as he rocks slowly all the way in, filling hank up and encompassing all of connor's cock in her perfect soft, wet warmth down to the hilt. and then he starts pounding into her like their lives depend on it. hank hold onto connor for dear life with her arms around his shoulders.

they're trying so hard to keep it quiet enough to not get caught, but connor can't help blabbering about how beautiful and smart and fucking amazing hank is and how badly he's wanted this for weeks, and hank is just so blissed out she can hardly think about what noises are coming out of her mouth, because yeah, she's been wanting it too. craving it. her hair's fallen out of her usual tiny messy bun by then and connor just finds her blissed out face curtained by her blonde curls so beautiful.

connor's slim waist and hips work overtime, his pants hardly staying up on his hips and his shirt mostly untucked as he pounds into hank's fat pussy like his life depends on it, and hank's leaking all over and making obscene wet noises with every thrust. it isnt long until she grips connor's shirt so tight he's surprised it doesnt rip and tightens up so hard she shakes as she orgasms with connor still inside her, and connor holds her head to the crook of his neck to try to muffle her cry as she comes. connor slows with the intention of pulling out but hank keeps her hold on him and tells him, "no, keep going. come inside me, you can keep going, it's okay." and it doesn't take long with her tight heat around him for connor to come inside her with nothing but the condom between her and his twitching, leaking cock.

anyways. amanda (who we'd decided was the captain of the dpd in this au) is waiting for them outside the door and she's gonna make sure they both go to positions within the dpd that work for both of them, so that they can date and also do their goddamn jobs without any conflict of interest. but not before yelling at them for being stupid first LMAO

that's it that's my human au, age swap, fem!hank background story for my shitty doodles, hope u enjoyed

also hank absolutely pegs the hell outta connor later, okay byeee<33

[devastatinglygreen]

The change in the Polin dynamic from book to show always made me think the betrayal of Whistledown would be different and lead to a different reaction from Colin. Show!Colin my baby boy, not needing to be told to go dance with Pen and also “seeking her out at every social assembly” 🥹 He didn’t need 12 years to realize she was great company. I’m not too upset at Pen/LW reading him for filth for story purposes bc I don’t want to imagine a scenario where they leaned more on the S1 of it all. It’s just unfortunate that they amplified his hate/anger to give something for Pen to be punished over. That’s where I think the “girl boss” writing fails bc the show clearly likes LW as a narrative concept but Pen has to suffer consequences for it.

I also don’t mind that they wanted to keep LW for the story but how are they gonna pull off her getting info now? Everyone knows her identity and girlie is married to a Bridgerton. Unless they’re going to argue no one sees her bc of how short she is, I can’t see her just blending into the wall anymore.

oh yeah for sure.

they have a much closer friendship in the show from the start which is good, tbh. so there was always going to be a different reaction to him finding out that she was LW. book!colin being aware that she has some feelings for him so him treating her extremely appropriately makes sense. he likes her and doesn't want to lead her on so there's no fun flirting like he does with the other girls he's also not interested in but i always found that a little sad for penelope since the man who is probably the friendliest with her still maintains some distance to spare her feelings until she finally "lets him off the hook" when she is pretty firmly on the shelf. which, of course, immediately annoys him, ha. protesting too much, my guy.

show!colin having no idea is great and i love it, ha. also he's got no concept of propriety with penelope most of the time and that just makes for fun scenarios.

yeah, leaning into his anger over it was wild but also the show trends towards internal conflict over external, which is a weakness in the writing when it comes to polin because their conflict was a mix of both. there's nothing to really punish colin for and all of pen's biggest fumbles have been both colin and eloise related so i get it but it was overdone in my opinion. bringing in the queen as a foil was a wild choice since the whole "LW has as much influence as the queen" is lip service at best.

i think it also throws people because there's no 3rd act breakup (which i appreciate actually, i think that's overdone because if you tell me these people are desperately in love and then at the first struggle they break up, uhhhh are they in love? you sure?) so there has to be some sort of issue/angst to cause emotional distance over physical distance and with colin having more reason to be distant vs penelope, you get a dude sleeping on his sofa.

you know, i think that's going to be the biggest thing for the LW storyline from now on. outside of the queen or whatever, she's got a husband who never lets her alone and people will be aware of who she is now. maybe she has a network, there's no way the servants aren't loyal to her and you know they knew what she was up to. rae was on screen for less than 2 minutes before you knew who she was loyal to. and penelope has been shown to care about the working class and be fair minded so if they're smart, they'll use that to their advantage.

[acewizardinspace]

So Sabine is training as a jedi. Lets just say I have mixed feelings.

On one hand, I actually love the idea of a jedi who is not very force sensitive. In contrast to characters like Anakin who were just naturally talented, a jedi character who has to train much harder has a lot of narrative potential. A jedi that is only a little force sensitive sounds really cool! (A little force sensitive, not not-force sensitive. Two different things, one is a cool idea, the other sucks.) This is a story I would absolutely be down for seeing and I think there is a lot of potential here.

I also think giving Ahsoka a student is a fantastic idea. Giving her a padawan would force her to face her past and make peace with the reality of what Anakin did and who he became. It could allow her to finally embrace her lost culture by following one of their most important customs: teaching. It would functionally let the audience know that even after tragedy their culture survived. This could be an amazing story.

So, in theory at least, I should love this idea, right? But I don't.

If this has been another character, I think a new one would work best, I would love this! But it just doesn't make sense for Sabine.

For one, it is a huge retcon and causes rebels to retroactively not make sense. There was no foreshadowing that I can recall about Sabine being force sensitive. This just comes out of no where. (Don't say using the darksaber is foreshadowing. Its not. Other, none force sensitive people have used a lightsaber before.)

I think the explanation they are going for is that Sabine has so little force sensitivity that no one ever noticed before, but that just doesn't make sense. If she had meet a jedi once or twice, sure maybe they didn't notice, but for how long she was with Kanan? This leaves three possibilities.

Kanan really never noticed, which retroactively kind of make him look bad? Like you were with her for how long?

Kanan noticed and didn't tell her, which makes him seem like a jerk tbh. You have no right to keep info like that from someone.

Kanan did notice, and he did tell her, but it was so unimportant that it happened off screen and was never shown to us. I don't think I need to explain why that one is bad writing.

The second reason it doesn't make sense for Sabine is that she already has an established backstory and culture. There is literally so much you can do with Sabine's character already! You don't need to add jedi stuff, or if you did, it could (and should) be showing what she learned from living with jedi. Things like handling your emotions, letting go and living to help others.

Frankly, a lot of people love the mandolarians. It seems odd to me that they wouldn't want to center the plot on that part of her heritage? She would be the perfect opportunity to show off non violent parts of their culture. (I think this is the consequence of forcing Ahsoka's show and the rebels sequel together.)

This writing decision creates plot holes were there were none, and for what? What was gained with this decision. The only thing I can think of is that they wanted two popular characters to interact and this was the best they could come up with?

When it comes down to it, I just really dislike that they keep wanting to retcon stuff. We liked rebels the way it was, please don't retroactively change it!

But, even taking my initial dislike of the concept into consideration, I am still hype for the show tbh! I don't want to be negative, I want to like the show so so bad. I truly like the idea of Ahsoka getting a padawan and barely force sensitive jedi. So, I'm staying hopeful.

[iamunabletothinkofablogname]

Oo maybe 6? For the ask game :O :D

i treid sleeping i swear- anyways--

Uh this triggered something long, SHIT , you don't have to read it lol sorry QWQ MY DREAMS ARE MOVIES ATP AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA alr well it was a little weird but bassically: me and my fam [even my dad for some reason but not my lil'est sis] were in a barn, and there were a lot of people there also sick, my dad was really sick [to the point where he was laying down, unable to open his eyes], the most sick. He was on one of the hays in the corner, the only one without doctors around him for some reason I was at the entrance of the barn area so I walked forward a bit and I saw a pig/white dog [can't remember], and I walked up to it cause why not. There were 2 men also next to the animal, 1 of them was js there so i dont remember him well, but the other one looked like litterally straight out of the 1890's, he had a tophat and a walking stick for some reason lol. I looked at the animal and made some kind of remark [i forgor, sorry, my memory is shit and i'm writing this at night, probably will continue in the morning], the man laughed and [im going to translate it but it might not make sense, since it was in arabic, which is something i rarely dream in?] said "remember that people and animals are the same [/neg, as in, animalistic], don't view them any different". I just nodded and then walked away, exploring the rest of the place. [although i believed the info] It was mainly just me like looking at the sick peeps and i saw the pig/dog running/jumping around from area to area, also looking at the sick people, pretty quickly, but they still never went to my dads area. [idk why but that was an important detail in the dream lol]. So after i finish inspecting and stuff, my mum tells me we need to go somewhere and we needed to go get stuff [she wasn't specific, and again, it makes more sense in arabic]. So we go, leaving the middle sibling as she became sick and a little tired as well, and the dream then skips to when me and my mum come back, my mum is holding a plastic bag filled with stuff i didnt know and im js holding chocolate [granted, i ate chocolate before bed so that may have affected it lol], but when we came back the place was mostly empty, only my dad in the corner [it was very far away and barely noticable but he was there, it was a really big place, more than 100m fs], and my sister in the middle-ish front of the place, next to a doctor in the barn and yk the docters stand in hospitals that they wheel around? with a screen? yeah she was next to that. My mum was mad at the doctor cause she was like 'oh as soon as we left, she got sick, it's the doctors fault, blah blah blah', and she started being angry at the doctor. After hearing my mum yap for a bit i js went up to my sister and she was very tired and she looked very sick, i bassically chilled with her, and we were talking as i ate my choc bar. I thought she was going to die in the dream but at the end she didn't, so yippee! Then another time skip happened and we were now all sitting at the side area of the barn and sitting on hay [btw i've never actually lived in a barn? or been to one that looked like that lol], and the doctors came up to us and were like "Oh yeah your husband [they were talking to my mum], died". and my mum deadass turned away from him and then the vibe suddenly was off [anxiety, it got like a scarier feeling for some reason], and she said "But his soul is still alive". I looked at her, then at his place, where his body was still there, but the body was dead, and a bad vibe hit me [idk how else to explain feelings help] and i said "His body is dead but his soul is still alive, he's alive" And then the dream fucking ended MY DAD ISN'T DEAD AS FAR AS I KNOW???

[phantomoftheorpheum]

okay christian has finally started giving me weird vibes. and where the heck did jen come from?! bloody rose wanted jen and shawn to not be around. and why introduce the fiancé of imogen’s dad? it kind of feels like she burned that bridge…. and if it weren’t for her grandmother partaking in suspicious activity, would mouse even have much of a storyline this season? haha i’m not sure. general questions floating in my head.

i think the bloody rose movie theory makes so much sense. but then that only leaves wes and christian??? and who is playing the lead role of bloody rose? one person who cares about the filmmaking aspect and another person who only cares about terrorizing the girls? i agree with the other anon about the Scream connection. it’s giving scream 4!

Adding my answer below the cut, due to basically all the spoilers from the first half of the season.

ALSO, spoilers for the Scream franchise!

I was completely ready to write Christian off as an antagonist because I was just so sure that the girls would immediately get suspicious of him when they realized the BR was "real" and not just internet rumors, and that would be a big red herring. And then they just... weren't? I mean, you find out someone is running around town dressed up in an elaborate BR outfit and you're not even a little suspicious of the new guy in town who makes horror movie masks and props for fun? Even though you know he has an Archie and Rose one? I know Tabby might not have been super familiar with the Rose mask initially when she saw it (since she wasn't really on SpookySpaghetti), but even if she never connected what she saw in Christian's basement specifically to BR's mask, he's still a guy who literally specializes in practical horror effects. It's so weird to me that they've not questioned that at all. They've acknowledged that "Rose" is likely appropriating her image from rumors originating with Mouse's posts about Archie, so it's not like they think this person is actually Rose Waters. They became immediately suspicious of Sullivan for her recordings, but not Christian for his horror obsession and possession of the correct props for this scheme? That's the most suspicious thing about him (that he's not been a suspect for them when he should be), even though it looks like Noa is starting to question Christian and Johnny in the upcoming eps. I'm not 100% convinced he's an antagonist, but it feels weird.

It definitely feels like Jen has secrets that need to come out before the end of the season, I'm just not sure if those secrets are directly antagonistic or not.

The introduction of the fiancé is something I am questioning, too. It feels like a unnecessarily complicating factor, and I'm still not sure if that's all it is (a complicating and distracting factor), or not. It felt so out of the blue that I can't understand wasting screen time on it if they don't need it. And it does feel like Imogen's mom is possibly connected to the events of this season (like when Imogen dreams about telling Johnny that she sees Bloody Rose as her mom), but I don't know how. This season is just packed with so many subplots.

Yeah, ngl, I'm disappointed with what we've gotten for Mouse this season. In season 1, her storyline was probably my least favorite of any of the girls (not just because it was weird, but also because I think it lacked some depth that the others had), but she had my favorite romantic arc, so things balanced out for me. This season, she is basically just there to info dump and her grandmother feels more active in the story than she does and Ash isn't even around that much. I want to really enjoy Mouse's story, I just feel like she's gotten the least character work out of all of the girls.

I am getting the vibe that our antagonists (because I do think there's more than one) might not be unified in their goals. Which would also be very Scream of them, wouldn't it? And making a movie would be very Scream of them. Also, Jordan Gonzalez (Ash) keeps posting stuff about Scream & Billy Loomis, specifically, on instagram. The first time I saw something about that in his story, it had to do with someone thinking Ash would have a Billy Loomis style reveal, and I thought, "Well, he wouldn't share it if that were true, right?" but then, if that reveal isn't actually about Ash, but another character like Shawn (the "perfect" boyfriend plotting revenge on his girlfriend for perceived sins [in Sid's case her mother's, rather than her own] she has no idea he's aware of), then maybe he would. I do like the idea several of you have mentioned that we could be getting a kind of Scream 2 team up (Wes or Christian making a movie, some maternal figure seeking revenge), but IDK. I'm not sure how they're going to tie all these different threads together, but I think it's going to be fun to watch them try!

[megaawkwardhuman]

8 shows to get to know me

thanks for tagging me @someguywife

an excuse to talk about the shows I like? sign me the fuck up!

WARNING: A LOT OF INFO DUMBING I TRIED TO JUST SUM UP WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THESE SHOWS BUT I COULDN'T RESIST GOING ON LONG TANGENTS ABOUT THEM SO I GAVE UP ON THAT REAL QUICK

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

1) what we do in the shadows- I mean considering how much I post about it and the fact it got me to write my first ever fanfic no shit I love this show! I mean it's got gay people, causal murder, people who have no idea wtf they're doing, vampires, weird ass CGI baby for a season, emotional devastation, did I say gay people? I will admit when I first watched the show I honestly thought it was just ok (may have to do with the fact that halfway through watching it I got sick which is funny cause when I watched the OG film I was also sick and I'm sick now while working on my fic- AM I CURSED!?) but after showing my friends the 2014 film decided to rewatch the show before showing it to them and got fucking OBSESSED. Never been a huge fan of vampire shit but now whatever vampire media I consume next HAS to have gay people in it thanks to this show. It still feels weird to have a character I like and relate to that I can kinda actually see myself in like Guillermo and while we're not 100 the same I still kinda feel seen which is fucking weird ngl. HIS COMING OUT SCENE MADE ME CRY THE SECOND TIME I WATCHED IT. (probably cause that's roughly how coming out to my parents as trans and pan went just without the whole working for vampires thing) Low key scared for what the fuck season 5 has in store :D

2) our flag means death- I fucking LOVE this show! shout out to my friend for showing it to me cause I never would have thought that a show about gay pirates would be for me. Our flag means death has just this vibe to it that has me addicted to it and the love story that I'm STILL surprised a year later they actually went through with just AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! The fact that a show that does what our flag means death does AND GET RENEWED FOR A SECOND SEASON brings a big fat smile to my face! Stede going in head first with an obsession while having no idea what he's doing is a fucking mood. can't wait for season 2 hopefully it won't leave me screaming at my screen like last season! OH YEAH I ALMOST FORGOT I'm SO glad they portrayed Mary the way they did! like they could have easily made her into an unforgivable bitch or homophobic as fuck but no I mean sure she's upset for what Stede did (if you were in her shoes you would be too) but after attempted murder and a bunch of shenanigans beforehand they talk it out and find a compromise that they both like and the fact that she's happy for him for finding love even if it's a guy and she isn't secretly jealous or disgusted by it is just *chef's kiss* so good.

3) moral orel- well let's go from modern live-action shows with gay people to a stop-motion adult cartoon from the mid 2000s! I can still remember watching this show for the first time since I binged it all in one night (by the time I finished it it was like 5am WOOPS) and I don't fucking regret it this show is just fucking fantastic. I HATE THAT IT WAS PULLED FOR BEING "TOO DARK" THE MORE I READ ABOUT WHAT THEY HAD PLANNED THAT THEY HAD TO CANCEL DUE TO THE SHOW'S CANCELLATION THE MORE PISSED OFF I GET! Like it's the darker episodes that make the show SO DAMN GOOD and memorable. HELL the episode that got the show canceled (I think it's called alone) IS ONE OF THE BEST EPISODES. The way it portrayed people handling trauma is fucking fascinating and it's a shame the episode is what got the show pulled. The season two finale two-parter I also up there as one of the greatest episodes in the show. The way the tone shifts as Clay gets more and more drunk and what went from a thing mainly played for laughs turns into a painful moment for Orel as he realizes just how awful his dad is especially when he's drunk. This isn't to say the less serious episodes aren't good. The show can be really funny when it wants to but it's just the more serious episode that leaves an impact on you. When hopping into the show for the first time I heard it was a satire show that was a parody of christian shows I was expecting every other joke to be bible bad (not a christian so I wouldn't have gotten offended but still it would have gotten tiring) but god I was relieved when I found out it was more making fun of those who use faith for all the wrong reasons then pointing the blame to an old ass book. overall 10/10 show that might not be everyone's cup of tea but I personally LOVE it. It's been a while since I last watched it but talking about it makes me wanna watch the entire show again. TL;DR: I fucking love this show and the reason it got canceled is the reason why I love it.

4) invader zim- OK time to move on to something less serious. It's also been a bit since I've last seen this show but it still has a close place in my heart. Invader zim aka the reason I have a tumblr account in the first place (though it wasn't until later when I started to actually use it. when I first made this account it was to lurk) is a nice little show I can watch and not over analyze the shit out of. (I do that a lot with shows I like) I watched this show at a very interesting time in my life. I had recently realized I was trans and had no idea how I was going to tell anyone and funnily enough a couple of days after I realized I was trans quarantine hit so needless to say it was an interesting time for me. This show and the fan stuff on tumblr for the show kept me sane. Dib was one of the first characters I ever related to and as you can tell by me still using him as my profile pic I still do. another show that the more I learn about what they had to cancel due to the show being canceled the more pissed off I get. I forget this is a kid's show half the time.

5) hannibal- I feel bad for my friends cause when I finished this show I WOULDN'T SHUT UP ABOUT IT. This show is the reason I actually use my tumblr account. (cause I paused it and it looked like Will and Hannibal were about to kiss and I needed to share it with someone and none of my friends have seen the show so I threw it onto here and the rest was history) I don't remember why I watched this show but I'm glad I did cause it's fucking great the mystery the first time you watch it and the set up of the answer the second time you watch it is just *chef's kiss* 10/10. The way they portrayed Will and Hannibal's relationship is so fascinating like it's so complex AND GAY. I WANT ANOTHER SEASON DAMN IT THAT CLIFF HANGER (hehe cliff) HAD BEEN KILLING ME EVER SINCE THE FIRST WATCH!!!!!!

6) the last of us- Ok so confession: I haven't finished the show (I have one episode left but I'm watching it with friends so it's probably going to be a bit before I watch it) BUT FUCK DO I LIKE THIS SHOW. I haven't played the games but from what I heard this is a rare video game adaptation that ISN'T dogshit so I might watch a let's play of the game after we finish it since I like the show so much. This has to be one of the most realistic representations of a zombie apocalypse I've ever seen. (granted I haven't consumed much zombie media and it could be the fact that before this the same friend is showing us the walking dead which granted CAN be good at times the way characters act most of the time at least at the point we were at before taking a break where annoying and frustrating) EPISODE 3 WAS THE FIRST TIME I EVER SOBBED AT A SHOW. Fun(?) fact: that date on the letter at the end of that episode august 29 IS MY FUCKING BIRTHDAY 😭. I'm afraid of what episode 9 has in store.

7) south park- despite having a dad who quotes this show and would watch episodes in the living room growing up it wasn't until after watching the last of us one time with friends did I ever end up watching a full episode of the show. (I forgot what episode we watched before watching south park but we all decided we needed a pick me up after it) While I'm not obsessed with this show and I haven't seen all of it (if it was possible to watch that much south park without going insane) I still like this show. Another one of those shows I can watch casually without overanalyzing it. Whenever I need a break from writing my fic or whenever I just feel like it I just pick an episode I heard was good and just watch it. The history behind this show and behind certain episodes I've always found interesting. Though I'm going to be honest for now I'm going to avoid most modern episodes cause I've heard mixed things about newer seasons. Butter's own episode, Cartman sucks, and Butters's bottom bitch has to be some of my favorite episodes. if you can't tell by my fav episodes Butters is my favorite character.

8) the owl house - FUCK YOU DISNEY THIS SHOW DESERVED BETTER!!!! Another kid's show I forget is a kid's show. the way the boiling isles are drawn hell the overall art of the show is just so fucking fantastic. THERE'S GAY IN IT!!!! LIKE ACTUAL CANONICAL GAY IN A DISNEY SHOW!!!!! I never thought I would see the day BUT HERE I AM AND AAAAAAA LUZ AND AMITY ARE SOOOO CUTE TOGETHER! KING OMFG KINGGGGGGGGGGG HE'S MY LITTLE BABY AND THE SEASON TWO FINALE MADE ME STRESS EAT FOR THE FIRST TIME. So sad that season three was cut down to three episodes. The idea that something you put a bunch of hard work into can be cut short cause someone didn't like the vibe is fucking BULLSHIT!

I would tag other people here but in the wise words of Laszlo

[protege-not-protagonist]

And it's not just JJ, most of his love interests belittle him, use him and point out that he is weird. And he also seems to be a lot more invested and interested in them then they are with him. And it feels like the writers make his awkwardness and autistic traits seem like a flaw in that aspect of his life, and they never give him some who just love him for him. It's so sad.

The only time JJ is shown being extra 'loving" on screen to Spencer for more than a few sentences a season, is when he is in prison. But JJ shows nothing past like episode 4 of season 1 that's even close to romantic interest in Reid. That's why it's not believable that off screen JJ developed stronger feelings for Reid. Which is what make the episodes leading up to truth or dare in season 14's interactions feel so forced and robotic. If we were supposed to pick up on a romantic relationship between the two before that it was not well written and shouldn't have been there. But I think what it really comes down to was it was an easy way to create internal tension with the team, and it was a bad way to create drama.

That being said I disagree that JJ never does anything nice for Spencer. I like them as friends. Which I why I hate the ship so much. ... Sorry just had the sudden urge to write an essay below the cut,

So I don't think JJ is a bad friend or person. she is not my favourite character.

In Defence of JJs FRIENDSHIP with Reid: they imply Reid spends a lot of time with her family outside of work and off screen. There are things that imply that JJ does nice things for Spencer, we just don't see it on screen or it's small gestures that are unnoticeable like bringing him coffee, pulling out seats for him sometimes. The prison arc shows this, with the fact the boys draw him pictures and JJ check on his mum. Even though we see JJ shutting down his info dumps, it is back up by friendly, platonic behaviour else where, which make the friendship seem believable.

I think what a lot of people get upset over is they relate and empathise with Spencer because they have been there. So we are extra sensitive to situations in the show that involve him. I mean, a lot of characters have the writers do them dirty and bad love interest, but we are drawn to charecters we empathise so we notice it more with Reid.

In the real world, friendships aren't perfect. And as a Neurodivergent person, having neurotypical friends can be like that. There is like a language barrier with certain gestures and social cues that both parties use and both parties misinterpret. People will listen to your tangents sometimes but another time they will be busy or not be interested. They also think that by saying things like... 'Sorry I'm not interested' or 'okay, back to what I was saying' is helpful (it's not, it feels like rejection) but it is often well meant. In the show they are also at work and have a job to do, so maybe if we give JJ ( and the team btw) the benefit of the doubt, she may be a bit more curt and direct at work in shutting him down than normal. (I still don't like it, being shut down makes me sad) BUT compare this to where we see a definite instance of where it's not meant well, and that is from Seaver when she says 'Sorry I asked.' (way to make a character instantly disliked.)

Spencer's gestures are also different to JJ's and a bit more visible to the viewer of the show than they would be to JJ. JJ shows affection through touch, affirmations and spending time together. Some examples are the scene where she invites him to feel the Baby in her tummy, making him the godfather of henry, she also calls him a nickname, and often is one to ask if he is okay after something happens, she also plays poker with him, so much so that she is able to beat him at it because she knows, that he know her tells. These are all things that JJ does for Spence, but they aren't really gestures that need to be shown or explained so we don't notice them as much.

Reid on the other hand seems show his affection in acts of service, gifts, and is very thoughtful. An example of where this is more apparent to the viewer than JJ is him memorizing the labour manual for if she went into labour in the field. We only know this because he explains why he knew what do. Before that explanation I doubt he would have told the team about it and JJ would not have known that he had done that for her. Spencer's gifts are also well thought out, and meaningful but only for people who also think like that. The encyclopaedia set for Henry is an example. Excellent gift from Spencer's (and my) POV, but for someone like JJ, it's not really a good gift. BUT she showed that she understood the thought behind it and why he thought it was a good gift. She appreciated that thoughtfulness, but not the gift itself.

SO, I don't hate her as Reid's friend. Could their relationship as friends be better... of course. (She's not off the hook for the whole 'you're upset because I controlled my micro expressions' argument.) But I hate that they tried to twist that friendship into something else that no one wanted. I think that's an issue with inconsistent writing and also just writing something to create drama for shock value.

nice things spencer has done for JJ:

- invited her to events outside of work

- been a good godfather to her son (offering to babysit, bonding with him, etc)

- been concerned when she was hurt, counting her injuries and generally being worried

- helped her get closure on the man who tortured her in afghanistan and listened when she expressed her anger and hurt at the situation

- many more things

nice things JJ has done for spencer:

- ???

(your post got me thinking lol…)

lemme make a list rq

things spencer has went out of his way to do for jj:

swallowed his feelings so she didn't feel bad about leaving him at the barn.

let her confide in him about countless things over and over.

did nothing but be a good godfather to her kid, who loves him dearly, probably more so than his mother!

showed genuine real concern when she was hurt.

invited her to a sports game bcs SHE likes sports and he wanted to hang out with her even though he hates sports.

showed up for her even when he was still grieving the "death" of emily.

never second guessed her.

made sure she was included and invited to things even if she turned it down.

put on a smile just so she wouldn't worry about him.

gave her all the support she needed whenever she needed it no mather how much he was struggling.

bad things spencer has done to jj:

was a little sassy.

good things jj has done for spencer:

gave him a little hug like once.

celebrated his birthday.

bad things jj has done to spencer:

killed him.

lied to him.

broke his trust.

gaslit him.

was ableist to him.

belittled him.

invalidated his feelings.

watched him suffer and did nothing.

never apologised for being the reason he almost relapsed.

laughed at his interests.

didn't visit him in hospital.

took her anger out on him.

undermined his abilities to do even basic things.

basically told him to shut up multiple times.

ruined his life.

confessed her love to him after all of the above.

ladies and gentleman, the fucking audacity!

[noforkingclue]

Information (Batman x reader)

Summary: being an info broker was never an easy job but a certain mask vigilante was making it a hell of a lot harder.

Author’s Note: So I kind of had this idea bouncing around my head since watching the latest Batman film. I wanted to write something with a morally dubious reader, where you’re not entirely sure whose side she’s on. Hope everyone likes the fic!

DC tag list: @mxacegrey

Everything tag list: @greenrevolutionary, @byebyebreezywrites, @spngingerbread21, @layazul, @lov3vivian, @simonsbluee

“Don’t you ever fucking sleep?”

You rubbed your eyes and you glared at the man in front of your computer. Batman half turned his head over his shoulder before looking back at the monitor. You winced as the bright light assaulted your eyes as you grumbled as you tightened your dressing gown around you. You cringed as you bare feet hit the cold ground.

“What exactly are you looking for?” you asked

“CCTV footage.”

“Of what?”

Batman didn’t reply and you sighed. You perched yourself on the edge of your desk and folded your arms.

“It would be a lot easier if you told me. I could help, y’know. Isn’t that why you come here?”

“I come here because you have access to information that I cannot get.”

“Either through Gordon or through beating people up.”

You had become immune to Batman’s glares. You leant closer to the screen and squinted at the screen, trying to work out what Batman was trying to find.

“If someone wants information from me they usually go about it through different means. You breaking in won’t be any good for business.”

“No one saw me.”

“I don’t doubt it. And speaking of business, you are aware this is how I make a living. You going to pay me or…”

You trailed off under Batman’s stare and held up your hands.

“Or, me providing this for free in return for staying out of jail enough.”

Batman turned his focus back to the completely legally obtained footage and you knew that it was your time to shut up. You looked at the clock on your desk and grimaced. Despite it being early you knew that you wouldn’t get back to sleep. You pushed yourself off the desk and moved towards the kitchen.

“What are you doing?”

You pursed your lips as you looked at Batman out of the corner of your eye. It was the first time he asked you that type of question. Usually he just got what he wanted and left, no questions asked.

“Making a cuppa. This is still my place, in case you’ve forgot. You want one?”

You could feel the brief flicker of surprise from Batman and you didn’t know why you offered. You wanted him gone not stay and have a cup of tea. You took Batman’s silence as a rejection of your offer. You leant against the kitchen counter just as Batman stood up.

“Found what you were looking for?” you asked

“Yes.”

“Going to share?”

Batman didn’t reply as he walked towards the window. No, of course he wouldn’t. You stayed where you were as he opened the window. You shivered and hugged yourself as a cold breeze cut through the room.

“Hey B.”

Batman paused just before leaving.

“Next time some warning would be nice.”

Batman’s blue eyes locked with yours. For a tense second he didn’t speak. The only sounds was from the city below. Even at this time Gotham was alive. Innocent civilians mixed with the villains that he was so desperate to stop. Then Batman nodded and disappeared into the night. You let out a sigh of relief and ran a hand over your face as you walked towards the window. You weren’t surprised when you couldn’t see him and you shut the window with a snap. You turned your attention back your computer.

It didn’t take you long to find what Batman was look for. He had been careful to wipe what he was looking for but you were better. You slumped in your seat and put a hand over your face in despair.

The person Batman was looking for was one of your clients.

You operated on client confidentiality which you took very seriously. However, you guessed that Batman wouldn’t be so understanding.

If Batman was looking for him then it wouldn’t be long before he found out your involvement with him.

Fuck.

[now-that-i-saw-you]

I'm sorry to hijack your post op, I just finished season 1 and I've been thinking about this!! I couldn't help comparing the show to Succession since both shows are so similiar, except Succession did a much better job.

This is going to contain spolilers for Succession's finale

One element of the two shows is that everyone's a shitty person, but I feel like narrowing Succession's characters to "just a shitty person" does a disservice to the show. Because Succession tricks you by making you dislike a characters and find them completely irredeemable, then making you feel really bad for them and showing they are capable of caring about someone else. There's not much info about the Roy siblings childhood, there aren't any flashbacks scene, but the writers make sure we know Logan was emotionally (and physically) abusive through the current actions of the characters (and that's fucking brilliant writing) and it's why the characters keep coming back to him (and because they're all power-hungry rich people)

The White Lotus doesn't do that. Everyone acts in ways and displays behaviours. Why do they do that? I have no idea, I literally don't know anything about any of these characters. I kept waiting for the plot to start and it just didn't. It gets frustrating watching the characters do things without understanding why. Why does Paula hide her relationship with Kai from Olivia? Why does she resent Olivia so much? She mentions a power imbalance in their friendship (Olivia always has to have the best cards) (I do think the theme of Power Imbalance in relationships was very interesting) but Olivia doesn't do anything that paints her as a bad friend. Even when she knows her mom got robbed and her dad got beaten because of Paula, she still protects Paula ((she's gay, you're honour)). The only bad thing Olivia does is treating her brother like shit which I thought was such a cliche. Oh wow, another cool older sister who's so mean to her dorky little brother. And that brings me back to Succession because the Roy Siblings are cruel to each other but they love each other so much. Shiv would stab Kendall in the back for a bag of chips but she would give him her left lung to save him. There's an aspect in the show wherein it's clear that things get so much better when the siblings cooperate, and then it all falls apart when Logan makes one of them betray the others. And really they all want his love so why wouldn't they do anything he asks?

No one in The White Lotus pays the consequences for their actions. Yeah you could say it's criticising the fact rich, privileged people never pay for their crimes but...why would I want to watch it? Succession's ending was fantastic because everyone lost but not in the way you expected. Logan never gets properly punished, but he dies off-screen in an episode not even named after him. Tom betrays his wife and ends up the CEO but he's just a puppet on strings. Shiv sucks for several reasons (I love her tho) and she is still the rich wife of a CEO but then, that's all she is - a wife. Kendall and Roman lose the prize they dedicated their entire lives to winning.

I think The White Lotus did a good job showing Shane is the epitome of Privileged, Whiney Manchild and a Mommy's Boy...but he's not really that interesting. He's just supposed to highlight Rachel and Armond. We know there is a power imbalance in Shane and Rachel's relationship which is probably why Rachel doesn't break up with him by the second episode. But then she has an epiphany and decides to break up with him and then comes back to him after he stabs a man?? Why?? Why does Shane not get arrested or detained for fucking killing a man?? Even if it was for self-defense???

it really didn’t hit me that there’s no show like succession in terms of the funniness and wit until it was over . like ive been trying to watch the white lotus over the course of like two weeks and im still stuck on episode four and there are six episodes in s1 . this shits boring

[biggest-stupidhead]

Never Ready (part 2) 

Summary: “It’s not like I’m ready to take her in.”

“And I was ready for you? Kid, nobody is ever ready for things like this. That doesn’t mean they don’t happen.” Levi is faced with the difficult decision of taking in his newly orphaned cousin. But he can't do it alone.You're a newly graduated college student looking to make some extra cash, but get more than you originally bargained for...

Word Count: 4.6K

AN: Sorry for the long wait, I've been very busy this summer but I'm trying to keep writing! Thanks for sticking around you guys :)

find part 1 here

--

Levi woke up early, as usual, however, he skipped his usual workout in favor of deep cleaning the house for the third time this week. Just as he was putting his broom back into the closet when the doorbell rang. He anxiously smoothed out his cotton dress shirt, tugging at the seam as he tried to tuck it into his pants.

“Hello-” His shoulders slumped when he found a young suburban housewife on the other side of the door instead of the gloomy social worker.

“Oh hi there! So sorry that it’s taken me so long but…” She held out a bottle of red wine with a neat ribbon tied around the neck.

“You didn’t have to,” Levi answered tensely as she beamed politely at him.

“I know but...it just felt like the right thing to do.” She shrugged, her strawberry blonde hair swaying, the strands just barely touched her shoulders.

“Well...thank you.” He thanked her, hoping that she would take the hint that this was a bad thing.

“No worries! By the way, my name is Petra, my husband and I live across the street.” She gabbed her thumb towards the house across from his.

“I’m Levi, nice to meet you.” He said, fighting to keep from grinding his teeth. It wasn’t that this woman was in the wrong, no it was simply the timing of her gesture. He was already on edge and he was never a fan of new people.

“Nice to meet you too! If you’re ever interested, we have a book club and-”

“Look, I appreciate the gesture but this isn’t the best time.” Levi cut her off and he felt a small pang of guilt at the way her expression dropped.

“Oh no of course! Anyway, you know where to find me.” She chuckled anxiously as she began her hasty retreat. It couldn’t have been soon enough, because a silver honda accord pulled into his driveway. Levi swallowed thickly as he watched Michelle climb out of her car and brave the icy sidewalk.

“Hope I’m not interrupting anything.” She said curtly as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and waited for Levi to step aside. When she crossed the threshold, he shut and locked the door behind her. She immediately began checking out the front room and the living room. The house had a nice open floorplan, so the first thing that anyone saw when entering was the living room and kitchen.

“Not at all,” Levi responded as she slowly wandered into the kitchen. He followed helplessly behind her as she began jotting notes down on a clipboard.

“Well, I must say that I am impressed with the hast you made these arrangements.” She complimented as she paced down the hallway, poking her head into the room that Levi had prepared for Mikasa.

“I don’t like to leave projects unfinished.” He responded as he waited in the doorway.

“Admirable.” She scribbled a quick note before finding her way back into the kitchen. Levi chewed the inside of his cheek as he waited with bated breath for her next words.

“Everything seems in great condition here. I don’t see any reason that she can’t move in by Monday.” She placed her clipboard on the counter and faced him with a tense smile.

“Monday?” Levi couldn’t hide the nerves in his tone and she smiled genuinely.

“Of course, we try to keep kids out of the homes as much as possible. Have you figured out what you wish to do for child care?” She moved seamlessly onto the next topic and Levi nodded, motioning for her to take a seat at the island.

“Uh, there’s a daycare that I was looking at. I’m also looking for a nanny.” Levi said as she settled into her seat and he sat a chair away from her.

“Excellent, my only concern with the daycare is that she has been attending the same one for some time now. It’s not far from here, I would highly encourage that you keep that the same.” She went back to her clipboard, jotting down some more notes as Levi contemplated what she had said.

“Makes sense.” He mumbled as she placed her pen down with a soft sigh.

“I got to say, I’m very grateful for your enthusiasm with this, makes my job a lot easier.” She smiled at him and Levi nodded curtly.

“Anyway, I’ll drop her off Monday morning, I believe that her current foster family uses the same daycare that she’s attending, Carla is the mom’s name. She’s made it clear that she is more than willing to lend a hand if ever needed.” Michelle jotted down a number on a scrap piece of paper and slid it across the counter to Levi who blinked stupidly down at her chicken scratch.

“That’s all I need from you.” Michelle stood and gathered her things, Levi trailed behind her to the front door and watched her leave. It was already Thursday, meaning he had less than five full days to finish preparing for Mikasa’s arrival. He felt like a tortured spirit in his own home, wandering the halls hallowly, he had never lived in such a large space. Not that his past homes had been small, but rather, he had always lived with someone.

Kenny and he had shared a small trailer all through his elementary years and well into his high school years. Then in college, he had roomed with Erwin and Mike, first in the dorms and then in shitty apartments. But now, he was alone. At least it was only for a few more days, but could you really count a four-year-old as company?

He found himself once again outside of the empty room, standing right on the threshold. The mere sight of the room made his stomach sink, from the subtle baby pink comforter to the dresser that was filled with tiny clothes. He turned and shut the door softly before marching back into the living room. The mid-afternoon sun was drifting in through the front windows and he pinched the bridge of his nose.

His phone rang obnoxiously and he scrambled to dig it out of his pocket. Hange’s contact lit up his screen and he inhaled sharply, preparing himself for whatever it was that Hange found important enough to share with him at one pm on a Thursday.

“Levi, is this a good time?” That was his first red flag, Hange was never considerate of his time when she called.

“It’s fine why?” He sighed as he began pacing the length of his living room.

“Well, I’ve got excellent news.” Hange couldn’t contain the excitement in her voice.

“What is it?” He encouraged her and she let out a muted squeal.

“I’ve found the perfect nanny for you! She just graduated last semester, I’ll send you her contact info.” Levi felt a small weight lift off of his chest, even though it wasn’t set in stone, at least he was making headway.

“She’s done this before, ever since she was a senior in high school actually. She told me over lunch that her usual employer doesn’t need her anymore so she’s on the hunt for a job!” Hange babbled on and Levi nodded along as he dropped onto the leather sofa.

“Got it thank you.” He confirmed as the ping of her sending the contact info came through his phone.

“Have her over for dinner, or maybe go out for tea. Ask her some questions and I’m sure you’ll find her more than qualified. She has no commitments so I bet if you can make her like you, then she’ll stick around for a while.” Hange chuckled deviously and Levi clicked his tongue.

“I have no idea what criteria I even have to look at to see if she’s qualified.” Levi scoffed and Hange snorted.

“Mikasa’s four years old, she has school and such, I mean as far as I’m concerned your nanny just needs to be able to drive and cook.” Hange shrugged as she flipped through her lesson planner.

“There’s got to be more than just that.” Levi bit the skin on his knuckle as he began wracking his brain for what makes a good nanny.

“Sure there is, I’m just brainstorming.” Hange chuckled and Levi rolled his eyes.

“I’ll make a list.” He concluded and Hange hummed her agreement.

“That’s a great idea, I mean in the end she’s going to be working for you so just put down qualities that you think make a good worker. Or something.” Hange seemed rather indifferent and Levi felt his jaw tick in annoyance.

“Right, well thanks.”

“No problem, catch ya later!” And with that, she hung up.

--

Levi stood outside of the coffee shop. He snuck one last glance at the shortlist that he had made. His brow creased when he read through it, the first point he had put down was: in-state driver’s license. Closely followed by good hygiene. Frustration bubbled into his chest as he wadded the paper up and shoved it deep into his pocket. He finally pushed through the door and approached the familiar counter. He ordered his usual and went to sit in one of the secluded booths in the back.

He had arrived a good ten minutes early, hoping to gather himself before meeting the nanny. As he watched the steam rise off of his cup of tea he savored the few moments of silence. That was until the bell on the door chimed. He knew it was you, Hange had described you in-depth when he had told her he reached out to you that evening she sent your contact.

Your hair was pulled back off of your face in a half up half down style. You wore a pair of fitted jeans and a knitted sweater. Levi watched you as you ordered your drink, you seemed so sure of yourself, the way your shoulders were pulled back and your jaw set in determination. Already off to a good start and he hadn’t even heard you speak. Levi watched you grab your drink before doing a half-turn, eyes scanning the small cafe. They landed on him and Levi knew he’d been caught staring. He did a small tilt of his head, inviting you to join him, you smiled warmly and took quick steps in his direction.

Levi stood and extended his hand to you, which you accepted with a firm handshake.

“You must be Mr. Ackerman.” Your voice was smooth and honeyed, immediately putting him at ease.

“Levi is fine.” He said as he sat back down in the booth. You slid down into the seat opposite of him, clutching your purse in your lap.

“I understand that you have some...experience.” Levi started a bit awkwardly. You nodded eagerly and pulled out a folded piece of paper.

“Of course, in the past, it’s mostly been under the table, but we can work around that of course.” Levi examined the typed-out document. A resume of your past jobs and a few recommendations from past employers.

“Under the table is fine…” He mumbled as he thumbed through the pages.

“So, Hange told me a bit about your...unique situation.” You pressed and Levi stilled in his motions.

“What’d she tell you?” He asked, grey eyes boring into you from over the tops of the papers.

“Just that you were a new parent and you needed a hand. Takes a village you know.” You chuckled a bit tensely and Levi felt some tension leave his shoulders. At least Hange had given him the liberty of explaining himself.

“She’s not wrong, I’ve taken custody of my distant cousin, I know nothing about child-rearing,” Levi admitted point blank and you weren’t sure if he was kidding or not. When his expression remained as cold as stone, you realized that he was in fact not.

“I see...I’ll admit that I don’t have much experience with...well stuff like this either.” You smiled at him in an attempt to diffuse the tension between the two of you. Levi’s eyes narrowed and he reclined back into the booth, eyes never leaving yours.

“We’ll just come up with it as we go.”

“So you’re set on me as your nanny?” You beamed and he scowled, although you were right. Levi knew from the moment he shook your hand that he would choose you.

“Yes, Mikasa arrives on Monday and I expect you to be there when she does.” Levi scoffed, lifting his teacup by the rim and taking a long sip.

“Be where exactly?” You were getting smart, something that simultaneously annoyed and intrigued him.

“My house, I’ll send you the address the day before,” Levi answered with a roll of his eyes.

“Sounds perfect.” You hummed, lifting your coffee cup to your own lips.

“What are my hours going to be?” You asked as you placed your cup back onto the tabletop.

“Mikasa goes to half days at preschool, so I’ll need you to drop her off and pick her up from that. She needs to be dropped off at eight am and picked up at noon.” Levi tapped his finger on the rim of his cup and you nodded.

“I can do that, so I’ll fix all three meals then?” You asked and Levi felt a tinge of guilt. He knew that he wasn’t completely prepared to be a parent, but he still felt ashamed for seeking help. Kenny had raised him to be independent. It had taken so much to reach out to Hange, and now he was relying on a strange young woman.

“Yes, that’s preferred. I don’t have any rules besides keeping the house spotless.” His finger was planted on the tabletop now to emphasize the importance of his only rule. You nodded in understanding.

“You can set the boundaries for Mikasa, I trust that you have enough experience in this area.” Levi continued and you tensed. Never had you ever had so much responsibility riding on a nanny position. Your employers set the rules and you enforced them, but now you were expected to be both parties. But when Levi slid a paper across the table your eyes widened. On the notepad was a range of wages that he was willing to pay. You struggled to contain your shock as you clutched the paper.

“T-This is way too much.” You squeaked as you pushed the paper back to Levi.

“Seems reasonable to me.” He shrugged and you felt your face flush.

“Well...it’s your money after all.” You reasoned as you grappled internally to regain your composure.

“But if at any time and for any reason you need to lower it that’s fine too.” You waved your hands in front of you and Levi’s brows pinched together.

“Don’t worry about it.” He assured you and set his empty cup aside.

“Was there anything else you wanted to cover?” You asked, sneaking a glance at your watch.

“That’s all from me, I’ll text you my address and get you set up to pick up and drop off with the school,” Levi said as he pulled his coat on over his shoulders. Your cup was still full so you remained seated as you watched him straighten the fabric of his jacket.

“Alright, see you Monday morning then.” You said as he marched towards the door, his posture rigid. As soon as he disappeared through the door, the doubt swirled in your chest. You had never worked this many hours and the added pressure of Mikasa coming from a traumatic past made you uneasier. But you weren’t one to shy away from a challenge, you pulled your phone out and began to dive headfirst into the internet. After about twenty minutes of scrolling through countless tabs and foster parent forums, you felt at least somewhat prepared.

You ended up ordering three more cups of coffee, by the time you were halfway through your third cup, your hands shook as you held your phone. The screen was beginning to put a strain on your eyes as you squinted at the black font. With a heavy sigh, you placed your phone screen down on the table and tossed your head back against the booth’s cushion. After a few deep breaths, you collected your things and made your way out into the chilly air, determined to continue gathering information and preparing yourself for the task at hand.

--

Levi did some research of his own that afternoon. Sitting in his desk chair, he clicked through tabs, a simple google search had shown him your Instagram. He had been relieved to find it public, your page seemed average, nothing too out of the ordinary. But he was disappointed to find it rather small, with not a lot of posts or followers. It seemed that you, like himself, were not too fond of posting every small movement that you made for the world to see. In fact, your most recent post was from almost a full year ago, right around spring break. The post was a compilation of photos you had taken on a biology trip that Hange had organized. He closed the tab and pulled up a new one, the official website for the daycare that Mikasa had been attending. He found the phone number and dialed it into his keypad on his phone. He needed to register you as one of Mikasa’s emergency contacts and as her primary source of transportation.

The process was easy and he was relieved to be able to check it off of his list so he could at least attempt and get some of his work done. He needed to savor these last few child-free days before Mikasa became a permanent and very prominent factor in his life.

__

As promised, Levi sent you a text with nothing but his address and the time he expected you there the next morning. Your sleep that night was fitful, tossing and turning well into the early hours. You only ended up sleeping a grand total of six hours before having to get up and get ready for your first day of work. You sifted through your closet in search of an appropriate outfit, as badly as you wanted to wear a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans, you knew Levi would likely frown upon it.

So you ended up choosing a plush sweater and a pair of jeans. Pleased with your appearance, you then left your small apartment and made the twenty-minute drive out to the suburbs where Levi was located. The roads were icy the sky was dark with promises of more snow, by the time you had arrived a few fat flakes were already dwindling from the sky. You parked on the side of the road, careful to not block his mailbox, and trudged up the slick driveway and up to the front door. It only took one soft knock for him to pull the door open. He was as handsome as you remembered, his hair was damp from a shower and his hands were busy as he finished tying his tie. He stepped aside and walked back into his house as you kicked the snow off of your shoes.

The space was remarkably clean considering a single man occupied the space. Levi gestured vaguely with his head for you to follow him into the kitchen and you obliged. He pulled out a neon green piece of paper and handed it to you, Mikasa’s name was written in stark penmanship.

“That’s your tag to pick her up, don’t forget it.” He said as he shoved a set of keys into his back pocket.

“Is she here?” Your voice was hushed and your eyes strayed to the hallway which was dark.

“Not yet, the service worker should be here any minute now,” Levi said as he folded his collar down over his tie and finally turned to face you.

“Oh, alright. So what time are you usually off of work?” You asked, setting your purse on the island in the kitchen. Levi sighed and licked his lips thoughtfully.

“Depends...I normally stay late but technically my workday ends at 5:30 but I probably will be at least an hour later than that.” Levi said and you nodded along in understanding.

“That’s not a problem, do you have any idea of what time Mikasa goes to sleep at?” You asked, and judging by the way his shoulders tensed up, he did not.

“Not a clue, but I’ll ask the social worker.” He assured you and you nodded, allowing your eyes to scan over the kitchen. The marble countertops were so white and obviously well kept, you knew that they would give you grief, the oven and microwave looked fancy, as did the fridge. As Levi reached up for a cup from one of the deep navy cupboards, you noted that they were the kind that shut quietly. Your staring was interrupted by the shrill ring of the doorbell. Levi sat his cup aside and walked briskly back towards the front door.

“Good morning Mr. Ackerman, may we come in?” An unfamiliar voice could be heard, followed closely by the sound of two new sets of footsteps on the hardwood floors.

“Of course.” Levi’s voice was even lower and harder to make out as the newcomers shuffled in. They rounded the corner and your heart felt like it was beating out of your chest when your eyes landed on the small girl. She wore a white dress paired with a pink cardigan and a scarlet scarf. The older woman helped Mikasa out of her plush pink coat and draped it over her forearm.

“Who is this?” The woman asked, eyes slightly widened as they landed on you.

“This is (Y/n), my nanny,” Levi said vaguely and the woman nodded slowly before gently pushing Mikasa out from behind her legs.

“Honey, why don’t we go take a look at your new room?” The woman asked and the girl’s brows knitted together, but she let the social worker guide her down the hall and out of sight. Levi tailed behind them, you almost followed as well, but you feared overwhelming her. Levi hauled the small suitcase down the hall and you heard the soft chatter of the two adults. A few moments passed before they returned, the social worker shook Levi’s hand and knelt down to give Mikasa a tender hug.

“We’ll be in touch.” She promised as she showed herself out. Levi’s shoulders drooped once the woman left and he looked down at the small girl who stood near his side.

“Mikasa,” He cleared his throat and the small girl looked up at him, eyes swimming with tears and lip quivering. A rush of panic flooded his chest but you were quicker than he was.

“Mikasa, my name is (Y/n), we’re going to be spending a lot of time together.” You had crossed the room to kneel before her with your hand outstretched invitingly. The girl gripped the edge of her dress and swayed it anxiously as she avoided your eyes.

“I know this is really scary and confusing, but we’re going to work through this together.” You assured her when she remained closed off. Levi watched with wide eyes as tears slid down her face and rolled off her chin. You leaned forward and swiped them away with your thumb and Mikasa whimpered unsurely.

“Tell you what, I was just about to make some breakfast. Have you eaten yet?” You asked, after a moment of contemplation, Mikasa shook her head no shyly.

“What would you like? I’ve been told that I make a mean waffle.” You smiled wryly and Mikasa’s lip quivered as it quirked up in an unsure smile.

“I wanna make cinnamon rolls.” She spoke softly and you nodded with wide eager eyes.

“Totally.” You agreed, still holding your hand out as you slowly stood. Mikasa accepted your outstretched, her small hand was easily enveloped in your own as you led her around the island.

“Hey Levi, how much time before you’ve got to leave?” You asked as you stopped to hoist Mikasa up onto the counter.

“About 30 minutes.” He said, trying to contain himself from scolding you for putting the child onto the counter.

“Want to help us?” You invited and Levi sighed, knowing it would be wrong to decline.

“I don’t have cinnamon rolls.” He said instead of answering the original question.

“Oh that’s not a problem. Do you have flour? Yeast, eggs?” You asked as you turned and began rummaging through the cabinets.

“Of course, I’m not an animal.” He scoffed and you chuckled as you pulled out a bag of flour.

“That’s all we need.” You sat the bag next to Mikasa who reached out and touched it experimentally. Next you pulled out the carton of eggs from the fridge, Mikasa opened the carton and gently held an egg. Levi could easily imagine her losing her grip and dropping the egg onto his freshly cleaned wood floors.

“Where’s your cinnamon?” You asked, back turned and arms outstretched as you held the cabinet open.

“Here.” Levi slid past you, opening the neighboring cabinet and held the spice out to you. With a smile you accepted it and added the container to the growing pile of ingredients.

“How long does this take?” Levi asked, glancing at his watch.

“Not 30 minutes.” You answered wryly as you handed Mikasa a wooden spoon, she accepted it happily. Her small hands wrapped around the handle and she placed the spoon against her cheek, basically hugging the utensil.

“What else do you need?” He asked as you perused his kitchen.

“Just yeast and sugar.” You answered as you crouched to look for a bowl.

“It’s over here.” He opened a cabinet near the one you were inspecting and pulled out a bag of sugar and a handful of yeast packets.

“Do you cook a lot?” You asked and he shrugged.

“Enough, I hate eating out.” He answered and you hummed in understanding.

Levi watched as you began making the dough and Mikasa leaned on your shoulder as you kneaded the dough. Her grey eyes widened when you motioned for her to join in. She poked the dough and you smiled as she splayed her small hands over the surface of the squishy dough.

Once again, all Levi could think about how dirty her hands were as she began kneading the dough as you had previously.

“That’s great! Now we can let it sit for a while before we roll them up!” You explained as you gathered the dough back up into the bowl and laid a kitchen towel over it.

“Want an apple while we wait?” You asked and Mikasa nodded enthusiastically as you turned to grab the fruit. Levi looked at his watch once more, he still had about 10 minutes before he had to leave. But he felt the pressure and reality of his newfound responsibility weighing heavy on his chest. So he went to get his shoes and retreat like the coward he was.

“Leaving?” You asked as he pulled his shoes on, you had already cut the apple and Mikasa was watching with curious eyes as she crunched on a slice.

“Yeah, I’ll be back before 8.” He promised and you nodded.

“See you then.” You called after him as he slipped out of the garage door, throwing up a careless wave of acknowledgment as he went. You then turned back to Mikasa and sighed exasperatedly and she giggled as you returned to making her breakfast. This was going to be a long day.

[taegyuun]

biology class

genre: fluff, acquaintances to lovers, highschool au

word count: 2.5k

pairing: jungwon x reader

requested? yes

notes: i hope you like this i really love college/school concepts and i was super excited to write this, also i had to search up topics for biology in highschool so if this seems too easy/hard for a bunch of 16 year olds y’know why. also yes i know in korea they have uniforms but for the sake of this they can wear their own clothes. I've been writing this all day, literally since the second i woke up until now which is 19:05 pm. I'm extremely proud of this so i hope you enjoy! texting is in bold.

yang jungwon.

the campus’ ‘it boy’. everyone knew, loved, hated, or couldn’t decide whether they wanted to be him or with him. people definitely had mixed opinions on him but it was mainly the boys who gave him the glances of evil.

they were jealous.

the kid was known for being easy going, naturally sweet to everyone and academically smart. but one thing that did tick the boys off though, were his talents. sure, there were many boys and girls in school that were nice and pretty and smart but somehow, yang jungwon just had to have it all.

not only could he sing, he could dance too.

not only could he be sweet, he could turn and give the cold glare too.

he was the definition of a perfect boy... and that’s exactly how you got involved with him. let’s just say you were at the brink of being infatuated with him.

but how could you not be? even though you two barely spoke together, when you did - even if it was only about the topic of your class - you felt like he was genuinely interested in what you had to say and it never felt forced. you always felt like he cared; no matter how boring the subject you were talking about was. it had you hooked in a second.

unfortunately, jungwon was popular. infuriatingly popular. and with popularity, the swarm of love letters and beautiful fangirls and fanboys also showed up in the picture. the thoughts of dating him disappeared quicker than you could say, “hello!” to him. it disappointed you, yes. however, who were you to dwell on some highschool boy? sure, he's not exactly the type that you’d quickly forget about the second you graduate but he also never made a real impact on your life other than some minor crush.

well that was up until your biology class.

“y/n and... jungwon.” the sound of mrs. lim’s voice boomed through the filled classroom and knocked you back into reality at the sound of your name. you look up from your hands in confusion and then rendered what she said - you were paired with jungwon for your biology project... that was worth 65% of your grade.

you weren’t exactly worried about getting everything done on time - you knew he would definitely cooperate and do what he was meant to do, but what you were worried about was messing up in front of him. i mean, messing up in front of your crush is the worst second hand embarrassment, no matter how nice they are. you put your thoughts aside and looked around the classroom, trying to find the boy, only to find him already looking at you with a smile and a small wave. you wave back before looking down at your fingers, picking at the skin near your nails. oh boy, you were in for a ride.

as the bell rings, you start to pack your things away, only to be stopped by a finger tapping on your shoulder.

“hey!” you almost feel like you’re in one of the cheesy romcoms, feeling like you had to cover your eyes from how bright his smile was.

“hi jungwon, what’s up?”

“i was wondering how we’re gonna do the project?” you thought about all the possibilities and topics. you could do it at his house, your house, the library and you couldn’t wait to decide on the subject. a small smile appeared on your lips at the thought of working with him.

“uh, what about i’ll give you my number and then we can decide after school?” you words were slightly rushed, as you tried to escape his presence as quickly as possible and get to your next lesson - wanting to hide away from the chilling glares his fangirls were giving you - which you were soon to be late to. he then pulls out a piece of paper and hands it to you before pulling his bag over his shoulder and sending you a pretty smile,

“remember to text me.”

you look at the piece of paper, a few numbers written on it in black ink. you dwell over the thought of having to text him first, but you knew if you didn’t, the project wasn’t going to get done. you thought over it a bit more and realised that your grades were far more important than some stupid crush. you pull out your phone and text a simple,

you: hi it y/n!

you put your phone down, expecting to have to wait a while for a reply and got back to picking at your food with your fork. instead, you're surprised to hear your phone vibrating on the wooden table, a notification with his name already on screen. you place down your utensil and look at the text.

jungwon: hey! so what do u want to do for the project? i think we should decide the topic first before figuring out where we want to do it 

you were glad that he was pretty straightforward and didn't beat around the bush, also that he genuinely wanted to get the project done and that it wasn't you doing all the work like the previous times you were partnered up with someone. 

you: what do u think about the musculoskeletal system 

jungwon: omg i was gonna say lets do smth to do with the skeletal system

jungwon: ok well then the topic is settled where do u wanna do it

you smile brightly at the easy agreement instead of having to scratch at your head for hours to get the other person to agree upon a topic.

you: i mean we can do it at mine if youre ok with that but the library is also an option

jungwon: yours it is then ;)

you look down at your phone in surprise at the “;)”, not expecting him to be so bold.

you: great! tmr after school?

jungwon: cant wait :)

throughout the whole day at school, you kept glancing at the clock, anticipating the final bell to ring so you could meet your project partner at the school entrance and walk home with him. you shake your head at the thought, trying to remind yourself that it was just a project - nothing else. the loud sound of a bell ringing brings you out of your trance, as you excitedly hop out of your seat. “woah, y/n... what's got you in such a good mood? its only lunch, are you that hungry?” you turn around and see jungwon standing with a hand on his bag strap and a few other boys behind him. you lightly laugh and say, “oh I'm just excited to get started on the project... hi guys.” you wave slightly at the boys stood behind him and hear a chorus of “hi y/n!!” following and excited waves. 

“ill see you later, alright?” you slightly smile as you start to walk away. your eyes widen at the yelling and hooting behind you as you look over your shoulder and see the rest of the boys shouting and punching jungwon’s arms, one of them yelling out a, “you scored! she's a cute one!” 

you smile slightly to yourself and lift your head higher, walking towards the cafeteria.

finally.

the final bell rings and you pack your things into your bag, sighing in delight at the thought of finally being able to leave the building. you walk out the class and instead of being able to walk straight out like usual, you see jungwon standing off to the side and gently waving at you. you raise a brow at him, but continuing to walk over anyway. “what are you doing here? i thought we were meeting at the entrance?” 

“i- um, i don't know i thought it be better if i waited for you here, you don't mind right?” he smirks knowingly, already aware of your small crush on him. he didn't find out through you, of course not. you were good at acting neutral around him - not even showing an ounce of adoration. however, one thing you weren't good at hiding, were your thoughts during your sleep. you two shared a free class together, and most of the time you spent it studying or sleeping. you didn't exactly say your thoughts loudly, but jungwon sat close enough to hear some of the things you had to say - him being a common topic of your dreams. he wasn't dumb, he could figure out that you liked him. but he also was a tad stupid - still not acting upon his already existing feelings and asking you out.

thankfully, you being his partner in the project boosted his confidence and had allowed him to create the ‘perfect’ plan of asking him to be your boyfriend. 

“i-uh, yeah! i don't mind. shall we go?” you say, slightly flustered. he nods in responses and mulls over what he was going to do. screw it. he grabs your hand and interlaces your fingers together, “so which way to yours?” your eyes widen at his action, looking at him with your mouth dropped open, before getting out a chocked, “uh, t-to the left.”

“lets get going then?” he starts walking and softly smiles down at you. you subconsciously squeeze his hand and smile back, walking hand in hand with him, steps oddly in sync. you hear a “hell yeah jungwon! get it!” and a loud, “ow!” followed after. you turn around and see jay holding his head in pain and sunghoon stood behind him with a smug smile on his face, throwing a thumbs up to both of you. you turn back around and look up at jungwon, seeing his cheeks tinted a light pink and a shy smile residing on his lips. you feel a soft tug at your hand followed by a clearing of his throat.

“come on, lets go.” you follow his step, hands still interlaced as you two walk in a comfortable silence, once in a while telling him which direction to go. 

“so what do you think we should start with?” you look up from the ground and see him looking at you, awaiting your response. “oh uhm, i think we should just start with getting all the info into notes and from that start making the project. i think we should leave the creative aspects like making it look nice and what not till the end because that doesn't really impact our grades so it isn't that important.” you feel his thumb rubbing you hand in soft circles and feel yourself getting warmer, completely forgetting his hand holding yours - it just felt so natural. he hums in agreement before speaking up once again. 

“I'm honestly so glad i got partnered with you, especially with this being such an important project. every time i had to work with other people who weren't my friends it felt like i either had to do all the work or scratch to the depths of my brain to get them to agree on a topic and on how we should make it work.”

“i totally get that!” your voice slightly raises in happiness at his words, “i feel the exact same way. every time i get partnered with someone, i always have to do all the work and it got so infuriating always having to credit them for something they never did or the bare minimum.” you take out the key from your pocket and twist it into the keyhole, opening the door and hearing the pat of your cats paws coming closer to the door. you both take your shoes off and walk to the kitchen, your cat following behind and waking in between your legs. 

“i didn't know you had a cat?” jungwon's voice forces you to look behind and find him to be crouching down and petting howl. “well, mr. yang, there's a lot you don't know about me, he's called howl by the way,”

“like howl from ‘howls moving castle’?” you smile brightly, happy that he got the refence. “yeah! i love that movie, its my comfort film,” you bring two glasses of water with you as you start to walk upstairs, jungwon following your steps. you both get to your room, opening the door wider to let him inside too. 

“woah.” 

“huh? oh uh, ignore everything - its not the prettiest room,” you say, slightly embarrassed at all the posters and random clutters on your shelves, “no, no! i love it, it reminds me a lot of my own room. its very fitting to you, y/n.” he smiles at you and you simply smile back, handing him the glass of water and hearing a quiet, “thanks,” in response. 

“well, should we start?”

“god! finally!” you both groan, falling back onto your soft bed, sighing at the ceiling. you two had been working since the second you got inside your room until the sun had set; your parents even managed to get back from work by the time you were only one third through your note gathering. you spread your arms on the bed, stretching as you did so. your hand then hits something soft and silky. you look to your left and see jungwon smiling brightly as your hand rests on top of is head. 

the whole time you two were working on the project, you both subconsciously stayed close to one another, as if you were just drawn to the other with an invisible force. even when you took a food break for 20 minutes and were sat opposite one another, your feet kept kicking the other, smiling and laughing quietly with warm cheeks. 

now you laid on your bed, your hand resting on top of his head and staying there with no complaints from the boy.

“i like your outfit,” you observed the comfortable fit he was wearing, oversized black hoodie with some blue text in the corner and loose fitting black trousers. jungwon looks down at what he was wearing before looking back up and smiling, eyes slowly opening and closing, “youre tired, aren't you?” he then opens his mouth, trying to deny your statement but gets cut off by a yawn. he blushes before softly nodding his head and getting more comfortable on your bed, unknowingly bringing you closer to him, eyes already closed. 

“take a nap, ill wake you up when it gets late.” he nods once again, barely conscious as he already falls into dreamland, arms wrapped tightly around you. you feel yourself heating up, both from his body heat and at his actions. you try hard as you possibly can to not squeal too loudly as you brush his hair away from his forehead and press a soft kiss in place. 

a tiny smile forms on his lips as you get more comfortable and start to drift away yourself. right before being sent away to your dreams, you felt a gentle kiss being pressed to your forehead in return. 

he may have not followed his ‘perfect plan’ of becoming your boyfriend but you both got 100% on the project... and a new found love.