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agendabymooner · 1 year

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melody || lh44 x ofc (1)

Summary: With her sharp eyes focused on her audience, a burlesque performer who went under the name of Melody returned to Rythme Romantique, an entertainment lounge which exclusively caters to the wealthiest people of Monaco — or in this case, to the people with a status that are recognized by all. Her three exclusive performances were meant to be a closure for her connections in the principality. Still, a certain Formula One driver saw it as an opportunity to reconnect with his former flame after two years of her absence. Felicity Vos learned that this was a rich man’s world and that he could do whatever he wanted, but she also realized that the agreement they settled on years ago was corrupted the moment he expressed his love for her.

Content warning: Age gap, use of explicit language, possible mature content (not in this chapter), mentions of past sugar daddy/baby gone romantic relationship, possessive!asshole!Lewis mentioned, burlesque (2010) movie vibes, really shitty French-translated dialogue.

Note: I have not watched Burlesque for a good while but I listen to shitloads of songs that give performer/singer/showgirl vibes??? I hope this works out lol. Enjoy xx

masterlist

i. million dollar man

"you're screwed up and brilliant look like a million dollar man. so why is my heart broke?"

Felicity Vos couldn’t remember the last time she made her presence known in the principality. She lived in Monaco for years as a nobody — she was just some 24-year-old woman who hoped to get through the day before she put on her best costume and makeup for work. She only performed to put money in her pocket. Living in Monaco wasn’t cheap, after all. She did everything she could to maintain her private space, working at the lounge every night to get the biggest tips from the wealthiest people in Monaco.

Nothing more, nothing less.

She couldn’t remember the last time she was a nobody in Monaco. Had it been for her natural beauty and the typical streetwear of the principality, she would’ve stood out already, and everyone would know that Formula One’s mysterious “lady seducer” made her return to Monaco.

She hadn’t wanted to gather that much attention now. It was bad enough that her three nights coincided with the Monaco Grand Prix weekend. She couldn’t bear the thought of being hounded by journalists curious about her absence/being for the past two years.

I was just a nobody, she told herself. She wasn’t even anyone’s ex-girlfriend. She couldn’t remember the last time she had a stable relationship with a man.

But everyone in the F1 community knew that she was something. That was for sure. The man's popularity and their agreement pulled her away from the anonymity she craved after ending things with him.

2019

The first thing that the bartender, her friend René, had spewed out just as she finished her performance had something to do with the beehive hairstyle she sported and how it coincided with ‘Fuck Me Pumps’ by Amy Winehouse, whose iconic style included the mentioned hairstyle.

René told her Melody was the complete opposite of Amy Winehouse with her tattooless skin, bright blonde hair, and wide-set eyes. But Melody’s voice, René told her, was meant to sing about the men who’d fuck women over.

Then her attention turned away from him when a server approached the speaking young adults, leaning over to tell them both about a lone man sitting on an empty booth, asking for Melody’s company as they all peered at the dimly lit corner booth. They couldn’t see if he was looking in their direction, but Felicity (Melody) could tell he was attractive.

It wasn’t unusual for clients or audience members to request a sit-down time with the singer of the night, so Melody merely asked her coworker to serve them some drinks before walking in his direction.

His genuine smile and curiosity certainly pulled her closer if you were to ask her. She knew who he was. Lewis Hamilton. This place was Monaco, after all. What kind of a caveman would you have to be to not know who Lewis Hamilton was? Even the Neanderthals would ask for an autograph should they see him pass by.

She sat with him and asked how he was liking his stay in Monaco after the new year. In exchange, he provided answers and asked her certain questions.

Is your name really Melody? Mmm… such an in-depth question for a stranger, don’t you think?

Do you just sing Amy Winehouse? She was my inspiration, after all. This is how I pay tribute. Do you have a request? Perhaps I can sing it next time you visit— not that a man like you would be dead seen entering such a place.

How about you? How are you liking Monaco? Whoever said that this place was for easy living would be a liar. I get paid more than I used to, but university and rent still beg for more.

How long have you been doing this? Four years. Singing and dancing at the same time takes a lot of practice.

She was thankful to have been the performer to put on the middle show of the night. She hadn’t needed to worry about being the performer of the night, and her conversation with him seemed to have lasted until the end of the show.

She expected him to not return after that night, with him leaving her two hundred euros in cash and tipping the servers the same amount— she would’ve expected him to hand this as a form of a farewell gift.

But he offered those as a welcoming gift. Because by the next night, Melody’s eyes shifted to where he sat, only to find him leaning back against the booth seat. His head was slightly bobbing as musicians hit those 4/4 beats. He sat there while she sang beautifully, her hair teased into a beehive hairstyle, and her body wrapped around loose strings of pearls and rhinestones.

He returned the night after that… then after… he returned for days. Apparently, Monaco had been so boring for him that he chose to spend his time listening to the beautiful voice of Melody. He later confessed that he couldn’t seem to get away from her.

But instead of offering a date, he offered to fly her to Australia for the first round of the racing season. Fuck that. He offered to pay and give her everything— in exchange, she travels around with him during his races as a “partner.” He said it would benefit both of them if they entered this agreement. She would get the money, and he would have an increase of positivity in his image.

Her mouth quickly slipped out the word “yes,” the next thing she knew, she was saying goodbye to her coworkers of four years. She was always welcome to perform should she decide to, and would pay her good money for her rare performances.

Then her flat was fully paid for the next six months. Right after that, she was driven to a department store to find some clothes and bags to pack for her endless trips. She had gowns tailored and altered for her in case she needed to be in attendance for his formal and black tie events.

She was only meant to be there as an eye candy, one that would hold hands with Lewis as he made his way down the paddock to the Mercedes garage. She had no name besides Melody. She was only Melody, and she was alright with that— she wanted to keep the privacy that she had left, after all.

She was good at avoiding journalists and their questions about Lewis’ past relationships and his title as the Mercedes playboy. She often stayed put and kept her attention trained on him as he raced or Roscoe, who had grown dearly in her heart. She had never gone as far as sharing a conversation with his coworkers, only offering them a small smile before she walked off with a refresher in hand. The only one she seemed to have a good conversation with besides Toto Wolff was his teammate, Valtteri Bottas. But even then, she could feel his body radiate in possessiveness that she didn’t know he had. He’d always hold her close.

He hadn’t even realized that Melody shifted from a nobody to a somebody despite not having a surname. It was quite a shame she had to embrace someone’s fame and be under scrutiny for it.

PRESENT

“Am I seeing things, or is it really the woman who brought the glory in the Ryhtme Romantique?” Felicity shook herself out of her thoughts as she turned around and grinned, watching as René outstretched his arms. She squealed at the sight of him and jumped into his arms, earning a grunt from him as he said, “Mon dieu, ma fille, is this how Zurich and New York had treated you?”

“This is how I greet people I miss,” Felicity exclaimed. “Not that you feel the same towards me, arsehole.”

“Such language,” René scoffed mockingly. “I know I haven’t heard you speak like that before.” They both fell silent before laughing at the joke. She seduced like a siren, yet she swore like a sailor, René once told her.

The 28-year-old woman waved it off, “Tell me you haven’t picked me up in Nice just so you can bring up my lack of manners? Otherwise, I’m walking away.”

“Gah, and who’ll pick you up?” René grinned, now grabbing her suitcase and pulling it next to him. “Besides, you wouldn’t want to go to Monte Carlo knowing that they’ll hound you when alone. People aren't that subtle when it comes to you.”

“That right?” Felicity asked. She'd only performed once throughout those two years of her “relationship” with a Formula One driver. She freelanced because of how much she had missed it. She remembered having to convince him to allow her to do it for once, and she swore she never craved for something more than the lounge's music and atmosphere.

“Yes,” René answered her, “you made your character known by everyone. Everyone knew Melody, not Felicity. Melody became a household name after her one-night appearance when everyone learned about her from Formula One. Wealthy people saw talent… and yeah. Now they’re eager to spend much money just to see you.”

This helped her grow a backbone, somehow. She continued to press on the topic, “And by that…?”

“It will be a full house,” René had already placed her suitcase in the car trunk before he stood with his chest puffed out. “One hour of you and Amy Winehouse on the stage in three nights is worth my mortgage for my house in North America.”

Felicity chuckled and shook her head, making herself comfortable in his passenger seat with the seatbelt buckle snapping.

“So,” Felicity leaned back against her seat before turning to the man beside her, “what did I miss in Monaco?”

“I thought you didn’t miss Monaco?” René laughed, starting up his vehicle.

Felicity scoffed at the comment, “I missed Monaco.”

She just didn’t miss the man that she met in the principality. After all, she would have remained as nothing if he didn’t treat her like she was the only one. She preferred her life before she met him. She liked the way of living she had in Monaco before him.

2019

She probably should have settled for less, but what should she do? It was the only dress that he liked on her. She felt she would impose the mermaid white dress with the intricate baroque style and pearl details, but his praise and encouragement told her otherwise.

Besides, with her making a bet that lasted for an entire season, she really couldn’t chicken out of it now that Lewis got his 6th world championship. She really couldn’t disappoint him like that.

So she became the woman of the awarding night. Wrapped around her neck was a layered pearl choker, letter L carved into gold with three teardrop-shaped pearls dangling off it, much like Anne Boleyn’s.

Unlike the first time she appeared at the paddock, she walked into the event hall with her smile dazzling the crowd— even those photographers who seemed eager to capture the moments of the couple arriving hand in hand. She didn’t feel discomfort at all, not after all those months of feeling lost in the paddock while she tried finding her way around the Mercedes area. Angela Cullen had never worked this hard to guide someone, but she never saw Melody as an obligation or responsibility. She loved the girl, in fact.

She was known to be quiet by the drivers in the grid. She didn’t feel comfortable speaking to everyone during the entire season as she saw how most of them looked at her. Nobody even knew who the fuck she was, just her first name- her stage name. Sebastian Vettel was kind enough to walk up close and introduce himself to her as if she hadn’t known him already. He was the closest thing she had to a comfort zone that wasn’t just Bottas, talking to him here and there whenever they passed by one another in the paddock.

If she was being honest, she felt as if nobody knew what her job entailed as “Lewis’ partner.” Sebastian understood at the very beginning what she was to the Mercedes driver but had said nothing against nor about it. She already didn’t feel comfortable with the other drivers staring, so if he was to say anything about her relationship was just another level of friendship he’d have to reach.

The only thing that Sebastian had offered her was, “If you’d like to have a friend that isn’t just Roscoe, I’ll be at my motorhome. Feel free to stop by anytime!”

So by the time she arrived at the awarding with Lewis, her eyes brightened at the sight of the German driver. Sebastian waved at them, making the girl wave back eagerly.

Lewis chuckled quietly, “I didn’t know you and Seb were friends.”

Melody giggled in the same volume, “He considers me his best friend as of this moment. I suppose that happens when you’re not being looked at or linked to Sir Lewis Hamilton.”

“Cheeky girl,” Lewis grinned, his touch feeling familiar to her skin as he held her soft hand. Pulling her closer, Lewis greeted everyone they’d passed by. Melody merely nodded in their direction while her smile didn’t reach her ears, barely looking away from Lewis as if he was the only man she could focus on.

She probably should have settled for less, but Lewis wanted her to shine as much as he did that night. He was a 6-time world champion, after all. If he was shining, he made sure that she was, too.

PRESENT

With her embellished leotard and shoes sparkling under the spotlight and her face coated with confidence and seductiveness, her eyes zeroed in on the men who had just walked into the intimate environment of Rythme Romantique with a sultry smile. Some of them nearly recoiled at the expression she gave them.

“Formula One driver had reserved tables for tonight,” René told her earlier today, “some might come back tomorrow and Sunday after their race. Their managers told Lita about you and how they’ve wanted to see you perform since they learned about you from the Mercedes team.”

It wasn’t anything fearsome if you were to ask Melody. She only offered them a welcoming (yet seductive) smile, but perhaps they considered it quite daunting and intimidating. It wasn’t as if she was inviting them to her bed.

She supposed that it was because of the fact that they’d stepped into her turf. She was in their place once— being in the paddock and feeling out of business? Yeah, she understood what they felt. Somehow.

“Oh my,” she purred, eyes trained on each driver as some of them visibly gulped at the sight of her. This Dolce & Gabbana did wonders on every man she had encountered at the beginning of her performance. She was only halfway through the hour, and from what she had counted— there should be about eight men who were nervous at her presence.

Her eyes shifted from the Ken-esque man (with his blond hair, blue eyes and pretty face) to the pair of green eyes that stared right at her and her figure. She crouched down to get to their level seeing as she was a stage higher than them.

She did a headcount for a moment. She could see familiar faces— but most of them were older. A grin on the man behind Ken told her that it was Daniel Ricciardo. And the man next to Ricciardo was Max Verstappen. The 2021 World Champion.

“Isn’t this a sight to see,” she chuckled almost breathlessly, her breath softly nearing her bedazzled microphone. She stared at the green eyes ahead of her, “Première fois?” First time?

The man nodded and replied, “Oui.”

“Et tes amis? Ont-ils déjà été ici?” How about your friends? Have they been here before? She asked, looking at the men behind him.

“Certains d'entre eux vivent ici,” some of them live here. The man replied.

“Est-ce que c'est oui?” Is that a yes? Melody asked with a raised eyebrow, leaving the audience to laugh.

“Peut-être,” maybe. Charles Leclerc shrugged with a smile. She let out a giggle for a moment before nodding.

“Bienvenu,” Welcome. Melody winked. They all found their seats, but she couldn’t find the one she was looking for as she was doing a repeated headcount. Then she remembered that the corner booth had been changed to a reserved area when she left. She could only imagine who sat there. It was a seat reserved for the man who only came to the lounge to speak with her.

Her eyes flickered at the table before turning at the drivers, “Welcome to Rythme Romantique. I hope this show eases the tension of tomorrow’s qualifying race.”

“And I hope you’re not offended by the end of this show,” she giggled quietly, “because I’ve had men walk out of shows because of Amy Winehouse.”

“What kind of fuckery are we?” She sang, her hips swaying as she gestured at the drivers with her gemstone-covered gloves, “Nowadays, you don’t mean dick to me.”

Her blonde hair swung as she looked toward the corner booth, “I might let you make it up to me.”

“Who’s playing Saturday?” She winked at the drivers, hearing as the men cheered and pointed at themselves. “One of you better get a pole this time.”

“Mr. Destiny, nine and 14. Nobody stands in between me and my man. 'Cause it's me and Mr. Jones…”

“Me and Mr. Jones…”

The live band had put on an end to the song and her show, every man and woman standing to applaud her. She took a deep breath before letting out a sultry smile, taking in her audience's applause and whistles. Her painted lips puckered up, and she blew a kiss to the audience, her foot picking up the fur coat that she discarded at the beginning of her show to put it on. She offered the drivers one more ‘good luck’ before walking off and heading to the bar.

She hadn’t felt this good about performing at the Monaco Lounge since the last time she appeared in 2020. That extravagant entertainment hall at Hotel Ritz didn’t make her as happy as it should have. The richest of the richest gave her the attention and money she dreamt of when she became an adult, but something about this place made her… happier. Or rather, better about herself.

Sharing a conversation with René hadn’t lasted long enough when a new server walked up to them to let the two know about the guest in the corner booth.

René looked at Felicity with worry as he said, “You really don’t have to go, City.”

“No, no,” Felicity waved off his concern, “he paid to speak and see me. I can’t really disappoint Lita now, can’t I?”

“You’d really let your heart break like that again?” René asked her, “What if he’s actually got a girl this time?”

Felicity merely stared at him, indifference written all over her face. Quite a facade, her face covered. René sighed exasperatedly, “Alright. I’ll get you the rum and coke. Felicity, you can back out anytime.”

“I know,” Felicity nodded, adjusting her corset with a sigh. “I’ll walk out if I want to. He lost me once, and I’ll make sure he knows he can lose me again.”

No amount of alcohol could make her feel as relaxed as she wanted, so she settled for one glass of rum and coke only. There were a lot of things that could have happened within two years, and that didn’t exclude him.

But god, his face remained as young as it was four years ago. It didn’t age as the years went on.

She sat across him, the marble table the only thing separating them. He watched as she made herself as comfortable as she could be. She could tell that a smile threatened to show on his face, keeping his composure as much as an ex-lover could when they met their former flame for the first time in years.

“Lewis,” she nodded curtly, her eyes trained on him before it shifted to the server who dropped off her drink and his. Felicity offered the server a grateful smile before it disappeared just as the younger woman left the booth.

He grabbed his drink and spoke, “Mel.”

She nearly winced at the nickname. Nobody called her Mel but him.

“When did you fly back?” Lewis Hamilton was known for many things - and being civil to anyone was one of them. She remembered how he always had to keep a straight face in the same room as his former best friend. Nico Rosberg had a fairly long history with him that ended poorly, so for him to show indifference? It was a Lewis Hamilton signature. It didn’t surprise her that he’d ask this as if he hadn’t broken their agreement long before she did.

“Just earlier today,” Felicity answered, her voice was equally indifferent. “I flew to Nice and was picked up. I couldn’t miss the ride at the French Riviera.”

“You’ve always liked the scenery,” Lewis chuckled, sipping his drink before setting it on the table. “You did amazing.”

“Thank you,” Felicity nodded.

“Like you always did,” Lewis continued, not even caring about the small expression that eventually fell off as he spoke.

“Hm, really?” Felicity almost scoffed with a shake of her head. “Last time we were together, I wasn’t even allowed to be near a stage.”

“You were with me,” Lewis pointed out, “flying worldwide. As you wanted and had agreed on.”

“I had to get drunk enough to get up the bar counter and sing my arse off just so you’d have no control of it,” Felicity reminisced, grinning at herself when she recalled the moment.

Silverstone GP afterparty, the year 2020. She wasn’t as drunk as he was, but she grew enough backbone to ask for a microphone and Christina Aguilera’s Candyman on the bar’s speakers – max volume. She remembered her feet moving like they were all swing dancing and being hoisted off the bar counter by Daniel Ricciardo while they all drank and her voice hit the falsetto. The drivers were rather impressed regardless of the amount of alcohol they consumed. Lewis wasn’t as impressed as the others. He’d seen it before. He hadn’t appreciated how easily she made friends with the men around her – so seeing her shy away from them the next race was a win for him.

“I couldn’t stop you even if I did,” Lewis laughed as if it was a normal conversation. “Everyone’s way into it.”

Felicity almost laughed at his face. He stopped her when she agreed to become his company, practically handing her her year’s worth of rent and salary just as she nodded. He stopped her rhythm from flowing, but she allowed it as she wanted to live an easier life. One where she didn’t have to be taunted by her family’s constant words of discouragement. It turned out that being someone’s pretty young thing wasn’t as easy if you fell for the unattached man.

He leaned back, observing the sight before him before asking, “Did Switzerland and America treat you right?”

Her head shot up at the question before asking in return, “Do you want the truth?”

“Yes, please,” Lewis answered genuinely. He hadn’t expected to last an hour in the bar, let alone thirty minutes in the same booth as her. He could remember how his lack of commitment and false confessions destroyed her, and he wasn’t sure he could see her in that place anymore. But he stayed in his seat, watching as she practically inhaled her spiked drink before she settled it on the table.

Crossing her legs, she wrapped her coat tightly around her body as the temperature at the booth decreased. She replied, “I was more than surprised that you found someone who could immediately fly me to another country just so I can sing far from the principality.”

Felicity could remember the email sent to her by some management in Zurich and New York. They were interested in meeting with her because of a recommendation from a musician who had seen her perform more than twice. It didn’t take her long to realize it was Lewis’ doing. She had ended whatever it was a week before the email was sent, so it was his doing. But rather than fuming at the thought that he was more than willing to send her away from Monaco, she immediately contacted them and took whatever they had to offer.

“I lived here for four years,” she scoffed, “before I even met you. This was my home. I can’t even consider my flat in New York as such.”

“What’s your plan then?” Lewis asked. “Are you planning to return to Monaco then?”

“And return to this lounge? Where most drivers would probably frequent in when they learn that Melody’s back in town?” Felicity snorted, “I’d rather not.”

“Why not?” He asked, “You love this place.”

“I do,” she stood up, noticing how his eyes became more cautious as she cleared her throat, “I am tired of the chasing I had to do, though. It’s not always me who has to work on it. Sometimes, they have to chase the woman, too. It’s not a one-way street for me anymore. Good luck tomorrow–”

“Wait,” her goosebumps rose when she felt his hand touching her skin, turning back when he pulled on her wrist as she watched him stand. He pulled out an envelope, leaving the package in her hand as she gripped it lightly. Lewis nearly stammered, “Invite whoever you want.”

“I’m not going, Hamilton,” she couldn’t even shove it back to him as he held her wrist, squeezing it lightly as a sign of plea. Just be there tomorrow. And Sunday.

“It’ll only be two days,” his voice might’ve shown nothing of desperation, but his eyes pleaded with her. “Two days of racing and your shows.”

She sighed exasperatedly. She was already exhausted from having to pretend that this was okay. She really hadn’t wanted to see him. But this was Monaco, and this weekend was the principality’s race weekend, so she could have at least prepared herself mentally.

“I’ll see what I can do,” was all she muttered before pulling away from him as she walked out of the booth with a murmur of, “Good night.”

She was certain that this jetlag of hers wouldn’t wear out. Not when this weekend was a case of clusterfuck that was going to leave her restless. She wasn’t excited to know what would come her way at the very end of this week.

PS. what did you think? Send me an ask!

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sarcastiaa · 5 months

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uh if you take requests, a young nanami gets a haircut from the reader please!

This is you sharing one of your favorite moments from quarantine with your boyfriend~

Me and Nanami moved together in Late 2019 and it’s been a year since we’re living together. It’s COVID means we’re staying home together at home, working from home. The second wave of COVID was not that scary, even though it’s not as serious as the last one still we couldn’t take a chance to go out and get sick or anything. Well on a random Thursday me and Kento were sitting in the living room and we were working. I saw him sitting on the couch in living room looking at his laptop without even looking anywhere else for almost an hour now. I was worried about his eyes and the back pain he’d get from being in that position. But that wasn’t the only thing I noticed, I also noticed the way he was trying to move the strands of his hair away from his eyes. His haircut wasn’t really bad but it wasn’t my favorite, it gave “EMO” and I felt like his facial structure and his hair cut didn’t match him at all. I kept watching him struggling and getting all annoyed. And that’s when decided to go to bedroom and bring one of my hairbands. Coming back to the living room I stood behind his couch and placed my metal hair band on his forehead and swiped his whole hair upwards. At first he was startled then he looked back at me with a smile. “You noticed?” He asked me and I replied with “of course I did. You were struggling for almost 30 minutes now” I chuckled at him. He held on my hand pulling it closer to his lips and kissed on it and went back to working. I stood there blushing and smiling as he went back to working in his laptop.

After a bit as it was already around 1 pm or something an idea hit me, I nervously asked him, “shouldn’t you go take a shower already?” He only nodded being busy at typing on his laptop. At this point the constant sound of clicking on keypads kind of annoyed me. I wanted a break and wanted for him to take a break too. “…Ken?” I called him. “Yes, darling?” He said while his eyes were still stuck on his laptop screen. “Honey, before you shower…. Can I do something for you?” I asked him. He replied “What do you wanna do, sweets?” I smiled and looked away and said “Would you mind if I cut your hair? Like a new hairstyle? It’d be comfortable for you….” He stopped typing and looked up at me “can you do it? Have you ever done this before?” He asked slightly concerned. “Well I have done this for my dad before so I can cut your hair as well. And if it doesn’t look good you can just go bald” I joked “and If you go bald the women would check you out less” I added. He chuckled at me and said “well don’t make me go bald, darling but a haircut sounds nice. I need it”.

We walked towards the washroom after a bit as I made him sit in front of the bathtub, his head leaning backwards in the tub as I started washing his long hair with lukewarm water. I couldn’t really find a good position as he was sitting on the floor, so I was leaning down with my legs spreading on the sides of his lap. My loose shirt touching his face as I kept washing his hair with water. Then I pulled his head closer and semi-dried his hair. I brought a pair of scissors and took a deep breath and said “I won’t cut it too short, just a little from the front so that it doesn’t cover your eyes and I’ll trim the sides a bit too okay?” He nodded. “And I think maybe I would keep the back long as well but I wanna give you an undercut!” He looked up and me with a smile and nodded.

I sat on top of his lap to get the good view of his front hair. Combing his damp long hair covering his eyes I took a strand of them between my fingers and started cutting them. I kept my hand steady and kept processing with it. Sitting on top of his lap it felt so perfect. As I kept cutting his hair, I could feel his hands holding on my waist tightly and roaming around from up and down. I couldn’t feel anything other than happiness and flustered. “Ken, baby, stop with that… I’m gonna mess up if you keep doing that” but he wasn’t the one to listen to me. He didn’t care about his hair more than me. I kept cutting my hair giggling from time to time as his fingers tickled on my waist. I finally got up and sat on the edge of the bathtub, for the back I used his trimmer and started pushing it upwards from the back of his neck. Keeping his hair smallest on the back but enough to make his head look full. The upper part of his hair covered his undercut making it look even more perfect. As my fingers touched on his neck while I trimmed his hair I couldn’t hold myself back and I ended up telling him “Your skin feels nice” I said to him leaving a kiss on his neck. “Does it, now?” He teased back looking at me with a smile and rosy cheeks. All I could do is turn his face back to the front and giggle at his teasing.

I was finally done with cutting his hair, putting down the scissors I cup his face with my hands and moved his head from side to side to see if it’s even from every sides. He just sat there looking at me and smiling. 𝐹𝓁𝓊𝓈𝓉𝑒𝓇𝑒𝒹. Giving a sweet kiss on his soft lips I got up and started washing his hair again, this time with shampoo and conditioner. The washroom filled up with the mix of his citrus and musky smell. I washed his hair and dried it. After it was done I pulled him up from the floor and asked him to check it on the mirror. He was standing in front of the mirror looking at himself for a bit and checking his hair and face over and over “I look….different but in a good way, Sweets” he said and that’s all I needed to hear from him. “You look amazing, Kento… and honestly this suits you a lot better” I said chuckling at his reaction. His hair wasn’t covering his eyes anymore, he looked perfect. He pulled me closer and looked at me he wanted to say something more but he couldn’t, all I felt is his warm lips against mine and a little mumble of “I love it so much, honey”. To me those longer locks made him cuter but this new hairstyle made him…. HOTTER. And since then I’ve been Ken’s personal hair stylist, I cut his hair every now and then and he doesn’t even believe in going to the salon to get haircut anymore. He says I have magic in my hands that makes him look perfect and feel better~

#jjk x you #jujutsu kaisen #jujutsu kaisen x reader #nanami kento #nanami x reader #jjk memes #jjk smut #jujutsu kaisen smut #jujutsu kaisen x you #nanami smut #nanamin #nanami x y/n #nanami x you #nanami fluff #jjk nanami #jujutsu nanami #jujutsu kaisen nanami

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aloevhello · 9 months

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Is LYLA’s Design Based On Xina?

If you read Miguel’s 90’s comics, the answer is an obvious yes. However, a lot is left unknown about what aspects of Miguel’s comics will be adapted, causing SV LYLA’s origins to be up to speculation. However, I think LYLA’s design in the SV films provides evidence that she is based on Xina, Miguel’s ex-girlfriend and childhood best friend.

Starting off are LYLA’s heart-shaped sunglasses, while a quirky detail, could also hint at Miguel’s lingering feelings for Xina, as hearts usually have a romantic connotation to them. Sunglasses also play a prominent role in Miguel’s comics, where he would frequently wear them to both protect his eyes from light and conceal his Spider identity, since their redness indicates his powers. In a way, Miguel’s sunglasses symbolize him shielding his true self (the combination of his Spider and personal identities) from the world, considering how the eyes are often referred as windows to the soul. However, when it comes to LYLA’s sunglasses, the opposite effect is created because with them being heart-shaped, they serve as a projection of Miguel’s inner desires to be with Xina again. There’s also how the ATSV art book states that Miguel is the one who programmed Lyla, which could indicate that on a subconscious level, Miguel knows he can’t escape his romantic feelings for Xina or the presence she had on his life.

In the 90’s comics, LYLA was programmed by Xina and her design is based on Marilyn Monroe (shown left), Xina’s favorite 20th century actress who she believes she resembles as they’re both “gorgeous and brainy.” While a lot of this original design is lost, likely due to how out of place a Marilyn Monroe look-alike would be without that context (the SV films aren’t Clone High), Marilyn’s influence remains. This is indicated by LYLA’s fur coat, since furs were used as a fashion staple for many Old Hollywood icons like Marilyn Monroe. Though with LYLA’s coat being oversized, making her toe the line between goofy and glamorous, it extenuates her playfulness and eccentricity, a staple of Xina’s personality. Plus, the brainy aspect remains intact as LYLA is described to have the intelligence of a super computer who’s advanced enough to create her own personality and Marilyn herself used her own intellect to curate her public image and become an enigma in pop culture. In that respect, if SV LYLA were to be based on Xina then her absence in these films and mainstream knowledge on Spider-Man 2099 makes Xina an enigma as well.

LYLA’s design change for the SV films will likely be the design used for her future iterations as seen in her design for sm2099’s 2019 comics (shown left), which were released a year after ITSV. Granted, there is speculation that SV LYLA’s design could based on Dana D’Angelo because of how Lyla has a similar hairstyle to her and how Dana is Miguel’s love interest for the 2019 comics. While Xina and Dana are important women in Miguel’s life, especially in the 90’s comics, Xina is more likely to be the main inspiration based on what SV LYLA is programmed for. The ATSV art book states that LYLA acts as Miguel’s “only friend in the world” and is meant to keep Miguel in check when he oversteps his boundaries. Even though Dana was Miguel’s fiancée, she never seemed to really connect or keep him in check the same way Xina did. After all, Xina was Miguel’s only friend growing up, along with consistently challenging Miguel to do the right thing even when he believed it wasn’t possible. There’s also how SV LYLA is designed after her VA, Greta Lee, who is of East Asian descent like Xina, whereas Dana is white. While Xina and Greta’s specific ethnicities differ, the former is Chinese and the latter is Korean, it’s mostly a moot point as Miguel is Mexican-Irish, but his VA is Óscar Issac who is Guatemalan-Cuban. Plus, with the character designs for ATSV emphasizing their racial and ethnic backgrounds, poignantly so for Miguel, there’s a chance that LYLA intentionally looks East Asian to allude to both Greta and Xina’s ancestry. While LYLA was programmed by Xina in the 90’s comics, the ATSV art book reveals that Miguel programmed her in this iteration. This change is particularly interesting because if LYLA is based on Xina then LYLA is shaped by Miguel’s perception of his past flame, essentially making Xina his muse. There’s also how this changes LYLA’s role as the connector between Xina and Miguel, even when they’re separated. While Xina creating LYLA serves as her way of looking after Miguel and shows how much she wants to be in his life, Miguel creating LYLA serves as his way of preserving his memory of Xina and demonstrates how much he wants her in his life. Admittedly, there isn’t much in text evidence from the films that confirms this theory and SV LYLA doesn’t even resemble Xina’s look from the comics, other than them both being East Asian. However, LYLA’s original Marilyn Monroe design does not resemble Xina either, but she still represents Xina’s presence. In the end, this theory relies on the premise that Miguel is projecting his lingering feelings towards Xina onto LYLA and it’s reflected in her design, along with how LYLA reminds Miguel of the various roles Xina played in his life. Whether it’d be an equal. A mystery. A regret. A lover. A friend. It all becomes more tragic if Miguel’s story in the SV films acts as a continuation of his 90’s comics. At the end of this run, Xina who is overwhelmed by guilt and grief over Dana’s death, leaves Nueva York and Miguel, potentially for good. Thusly, it leads to Miguel’s current position in the SV films where he believes that she will never come back and that LYLA is the only form of connection he has left with Xina.

#Xina is always here but well hidden #lyla #xina kwan #miguel o'hara #xinamiguel #holofang #atsv lyla #lyla spiderverse #marilyn monroe #norma jean baker #greta lee #spiderman 2099 #into the spiderverse #across the spiderverse #spiderverse

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the-girl-who-didnt-smile · 1 month

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RANTING ABOUT YAMATO D. ONE PIECE

This turned into my most obnoxious rant of all time.

…So I logged on because I was gonna go on this rant about how Yamato D. One Piece is not a fucking trans man. But tons of people smarter than me have already explained this.

I feel uniquely qualified to speak on this because I am transgender. I’m half White, but I know a thing or two about Japanese culture…

It is so fucking cringe that people think BOKUKKOS are trans men!!!

It’s all white people too!!! I’m not judging trans people in the Japanese diaspora (or, from an Asian country that Japan colonized). But the white people are really not helping… A lot of them aren’t even trans too!!

Do I really have to explain why Yamato D. Hottest Bokukko in Fiction would be a terrible example of a trans man?

How much more obvious do you have to make it that you think trans men are women?

If you want to see an actual good example of a trans man in manga, look no further than Sechs D. Battle Angel Alita:

This dude disappears for a bit and when he comes back later, he’s a guy now.

Nobody gives a shit because it’s the future.

Also, gender transition is really good in the future… He has a fully functioning dick, balls, and Y chromosome now… He was under 5’ before this, now he’s over 6’... He is arguably the real protagonist of Battle Angel Alita Last Order… This man really is living the dream!

…But as I say this, I also think it is totally fine to theorize that Yamato is transgender.

How I do explain this?

I think it is really toxic to insist that Yamato is trans in canon, but that it is equally toxic to put people down for theorizing that she is trans.

Literally… the most memed thing in the entire One Piece fandom is the insane fan theory that Sir D. Crocoboy is secretly female-to-male transgender, and he gave birth to Monkey D. Luffy. Boys, I’m not even agnostic on this one… I’m just fully atheist. I think this is the craziest, most noncanoniest theory ever, but because it’s One Piece anything is possible… There is a nonzero probability that the Crocomomists are actually right.

With this in mind, is it really that crazy to speculate that Yamato will later turn out to be transgender? Imagine this: At the very end of One Piece, we find out that Yamato met up with Emporio D. Ivankov off-screen, and she’s just a guy now. Would anyone really be that surprised by this? The same fandom that memes the shit out of Crocomom and thinks everyone is secretly Rocks D. Xebec’s son… Is this really that insane of a theory?

I just think people need to stop insisting that Yamato “is” trans (as in, “is trans in canon; you’re transphobic if you disagree”) but it’s totally fine to make theories, or non-canon headcanons.

* * *

It just dawned on me that I genuinely do have a potentially “interesting” perspective on this, given that I am transgender and also familiar with Japanese culture. I worked for a Japanese company for several years!

…Well, I’m going to reiterate points that smarter people have already made, but here goes:

Being a radically different culture from the West, Japan has different media tropes related to gender.

Yamato is the trope called “Bokukko” (ボクっ娘): https://dic.pixiv.net/a/%E3%83%9C%E3%82%AF%E3%81%A3%E5%A8%98

If you cannot read Japanese, here is an English language description of the trope: https://the-dere-types.fandom.com/wiki/Other:Bokukko

Yamato is also the trope of “girl raised as boy”. This is a very common trope in Asian media.

One of the most famous examples of this in Japanese media is Rose of Versailles.

The main character is named Lady Oscar. She is not transgender, but a woman who was raised as a boy.

Compare Lady Oscar

With Yamato

Don’t their hairstyles look a little similar?

When Yamato first appeared, I thought to myself, “Is it possible that Yamato is inspired by Lady Oscar?”

She actually is!

On June 6th, 2019, Oda actually confirmed that he took inspiration from Rose of Versailles.

“I finished reading Glass Mask, so now I’m reading Rose of Versailles. Oscar was a woman?!”

Yamato was revealed in 2020.

This is why I refer to Yamato as “she”. It is not to “misgender” her. She is not transgender, but Oda’s take on “Lady Oscar”!

I think people outside of Japan have this perception that the Japanese fandom is transphobic, but this is not true! Well, not entirely true… Of course, there is a side of the Japanese fandom that is transphobic, but this is also true in the West. Much like the Western fandom, there is also a side of the Japanese fandom that is LGBT friendly!

Yamato’s gender even caused confusion in the Japanese fandom. In the side that is LGBT friendly, there is some discourse surrounding whether she should be considered “transgender” (トランスジェンダー) or “genderless” (ジェンダーレス).

The general consensus is that Kikunojo can be considered “transgender” (トランスジェンダー), while it is better to describe Yamato as “genderless” (ジェンダーレス).

Why Kikunojo is “transgender” (トランスジェンダー):

This phrase “I am a woman at heart” confirms that her gender identity is female.

This is reflected in her Vivre Card:

The Vivre Card reads:

性別:男（心は女）

Literal translation:

Sex: Male (Heart is female)

心 literally means “heart”, but in this context it means gender identity.

This is how the Vivre Card confirms that Kikunojo is transgender.

Why Yamato is not “transgender” (トランスジェンダー):

Rather than saying “I am a man at heart” or “I am a man!”, Yamato says “Kozuki Oden was a man, right? So I became a man, too!!"

Yamato does not properly have a male gender identity; rather, she literally identifies as Kozuki Oden.

Oda also describes Yamato as Kaido’s daughter (娘), and her first person pronoun is “boku” (僕). This is noteworthy, as most of the male characters in One Piece use the pronoun “ore” - including Kozuki Oden! This makes Oda’s intent obvious: Yamato is not “transgender”, but a “bokukko”.

This too is reflected in Yamato’s Vivre Card:

The card simply reads:

性別:女

No difference from any other female character.

If Yamato was transgender, it would say this instead:

性別:女（心は男）

We can also tell that Yamato is not transgender from the way she is drawn.

Here is Yamato standing next to Kikunojo:

Oda draws male characters differently from how he draws female characters, not just in terms of body type but also face. Because he is respectful of transgender people, he makes this decision based on gender identity (心). You can discern a character’s gender identity through the visual language of the manga.

Kikunojo’s eyes and facial structure are drawn like a female character. It is a very respectful portrayal.

Yamato’s eyes and facial structure are also drawn like a female character. If Yamato was a trans man, this would be disrespectful. But because she is not transgender, this is how Oda visually communicates that Yamato is a woman.

A lot of people point to the Vivre Cards as definitive proof that Yamato is not transgender, but I also think the comment regarding Rose of Versailles is definitive. If you’re familiar with Japanese fictional tropes, it’s pretty obvious that Yamato is not transgender.

Rather than being transgender, Yamato can be described as “genderless” (ジェンダーレス). “Genderless” (ジェンダーレス) doesn’t exactly mean the English word “genderless”; rather, it describes a Japanese cultural trend where people defy rigid gender norms without being part of the LGBT community. It isn’t LGBT representation, but this “genderless” (ジェンダーレス) representation is also important in Japanese media.

Let’s compare Yamato with Sechs (Battle Angel Alita).

Unlike Yamato, Sechs can be described as “transgender”.

Previously I showed what Sechs looked like in his new body, but this is what he looked like at the beginning of the manga:

In terms of appearance, it is obvious that he is physically female. But his style, movements, facial structure, and even body structure all appear more masculine.

His speech is very aggressive and masculine, including his first pronoun “ore” (オレ) which is actually written in katakana to convey the roughness of his personality.

When he reappears a few volumes later, he looks like this:

He changed his body to match his gender identity. Nothing about his pattern of speech changes, because he always had a male gender identity (心は男). Yukito Kishiro was WAY ahead of his time with this one...!

As I’m writing this, I can totally see why this confuses people, especially if you can’t read Japanese. But if you’re going to engage with Japanese media, I highly recommend learning Japanese. Japanese is such a different language from English, a lot gets lost in translation.

At the same time, I don’t think it’s inconceivable that Yamato might change her gender later on. This is gonna blow your mind, but writers can change their mind about a character in the middle of writing a story. It is clear that Oda did not originally plan for Yamato to be transgender, but he could change his mind about this.

If fans were describing this as a fan theory, I would be supportive! That’s actually a fun and interesting theory.

Really, what I object to is this weird “fandom tyranny” that happens on both sides. It’s harmful to be like “You are transphobic if you don’t think Yamato is transgender” but equally harmful to be like “You’re so stupid and not allowed to think Yamato might be transgender.”

Both of these sides contribute to negative perceptions of transgender people in Japan!

Can we just respect each other’s opinions without trying to impose our own?

Thanks for coming to my TEDx Talk!

#the opinion truly NO ONE asked for #funny story… i’m the most obnoxious Yamato stan ever #i dropped One Piece in the middle of Dressrosa but picked it back up again when Yamato was introduced because I have it down bad for bokukk #i was literally like ‘WE POPPIN THE BIGGEST BOTTLES WHEN YAMATO JOINS THE CREW!!!’#in all seriousness it is fine to theorize about Yamato being trans #thats actually cool but people are not transphobic for disagreeing with a fan theory

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darlingian · 1 year

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✨Macy's Tag Game Tuesday✨

thanks macy for making these lil posts! Thanks to @deedala, @creepkinginc, @stocious, @gallawitchxx, and @energievie for the tag! I genuinely am touched that you think of me!

name: Chani!✨(pronounced shaw-knee.)

age: Thirty, flirty and thriving. 😌

pronouns: she/her 🤷

tell me about one of your hobbies: I think crochet🧶is probably the hobby I've stuck with the longest. Writing ✍ Reading 📖 (Last year I read 76 books! And then this year I fell head over heels for fanfiction and so I have only read 14 books so far.)

what languages do you speak? I speak english. I can stumble along in french. (Canada requires everyone to take french through school but they don't actually teach us how to speak it?)

one of your comfort movies: Little Women 2019. Jo March my beloved. <3

do you have any kids? do you want any? I have two. I will not be having any more. (I was also a surrogate for a gay couple and it was a complicated but lovely thing.)

cold weather or hot weather? Medium? Lmao I'm a fickle bitch.

you're at an amusement park. what ride are you going on first? I am a water park girlie. So if that's an option, that's where I'll be! 🛝

what's your go-to hairstyle/how do you wear your hair most days? So my "signature" hair is long long long hair and kinda swept over one shoulder. Buuuuuut I had a breakdown and cut my hair into bangs and bob which I'm trying to grow out to my usual. These days it's twisted and pinned back bangs and sometimes I'll curl it.

who was your top artist in your spotify wrapped/apple music replay in 2022? I share a spotify and they use it more than I do, so it's super skewed. But I think it was Bo Burnam and the Encanto soundtrack. Because I am sad, and I have kids. lmao.

you've just been handed $1000 but you have to spend it on clothes. where are you shopping? Ohhhh I'm definitely buying myself a couple custom corsets/bustiers.

wireless or corded headphones? I have big ol wireless sound reducing headphones. A sensory deprivation dream.

finally, tell me something that sparks joy: just went camping, and every single time I'm back swimming in a lake I remember how right it feels. I belong there.

alrighty, I'm so bad at tagging because I worry I'll annoy someone if i tag them or hurt someone's feelings by leaving them out. lol so I'm sorry in advance. @gardenerian @michellemisfit @thepupperino @mickeysgaymom @milkmaidovich @softmick

#tag tuesday #personal

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frumfrumfroo · 1 year

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DLF boardroom: Yes, let's have Rey watch two young people bask in what she could have had while menopause is another 15 years or less away! That will get those whiny women who are probably experiencing the exact same thing to stfu and make us that bajillion dollars we should have grossed back in 2019 while those "best selling authors" will read 'em and weep!

Mind you Lindelof originally had Rey be 80 years old and wanted Helen Mirren to play her. Might as well just add a nuns habit to her new costume design and call it a day already.

They basically already did. Her tros outfit, hairstyle, and white hood were the death-knell.

#I can't believe they managed to infantilise Leia too despite killing her off #truly impressive work #no one in the cast escapes being regressed no one gets to grow up or be an adult except Han #the irony of this #Han Solo the only grown up left in SW #this is an old rant but I can dig it up if anyone doesn't know what I'm talking about

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knittinganddrinkingtea · 2 years

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Ralph Lauren Resort 2019

#ralph lauren #fashion #mode #moda #model #models #women's fashion #womenswear #Lookbook #style #dress #dresses #evening wear #hairstyle #resort 2019 #my upload

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mariacallous · 9 months

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From Turkey to Italy, from Greece to Moldova, 2023 was eventful. But even in difficult times, there are always individuals and organisations that make a difference through their actions. BIRN presents some such positive examples.

Some gave a helping hand to those in need in a difficult time, such as this year was. Others challenged controversial decisions…and succeeded. Others literally saved lives through smart moves.

Countries in Central and Southeastern Europe are ending another eventful year in which some people and organisations made their mark through tireless, inspiring actions.

Czechia: Lawyer who gave society its #MeToo moment

“He who speaks the truth is simply persuasive,” Adela Horejsi said in an interview with local online magazine CzechCrunch. But when the “he” is a “she”, and the truth in question threatens to rattle the cage of a man in a position of power, truth-telling can be a Herculean and strenuous task.

It was a task that Horejsi, 42, took on with empathy and expertise as she fought to defend the rights, safeguard the dignity and give a voice to her clients – women who had accused former MP Dominik Feri of rape and sexual harassment.

Before his fall from grace, Feri was one of the rising stars of Czechia’s younger and more progressive generation of politicians. The country’s youngest-ever and first black MP (he is partly of Ethiopian origin), he was selected by “Politico 28 – Class of 2019” as one of the figures most likely “to shape the future” of his country.

Known for his characteristic afro hairstyle and gentlemanly fashion style, he rose to wider fame in the COVID-19 era, when his frequent Instagram posts explaining rules and regulations became a go-to platform that cut through the government’s chaotic and muddled communications. The third Czech to pass the million-followers mark on social media, he would change his country’s fate – but in a way few would have predicted.

After an extensive two-year investigation, the Prague district court in November found Feri guilty on all charges of the indictment: two cases of rape and one attempted rape.

Sentencing him to three years in prison, the judge highlighted that the victims had presented their cases “factually, chronologically and logically” – testament to the meticulous work of Adela Horejsi with her clients on a topic where the slightest incoherence can prove fatal to the credibility of the case.

Previously better known for her work in cases relating to obstretic violence, Horejsi – alongside other activists and organisations who have been advocating for victims of sexual violence – has proven instrumental in changing the tone of a debate that was highly toxic and victim-blaming in the early days after the publication of their testimonies, by shifting the focus back on the experience and trauma suffered by the women.

Further cementing 2023 as a landmark year in the protection of women from sexual harassment and violence, the Czech government earlier this month approved a new legal definition of rape based on the absence of consent rather than the use of force – a change long advocated by activists. The impact of the Feri case, and of the courageous work of Horejsi and her clients, on this newfound perspective, shouldn’t be underestimated.

Hungary: Brave campaigner for right to dignified death

Daniel Karsai had a good life – until about two years ago. The constitutional lawyer, who had climbed mountains in Nepal and Peru and had an active sporting career in football and jiu-jitsu, believed the best was yet to come. But then he was diagnosed with a wasting disease that gradually paralyses the muscles and leads to a terrible death, all while completely conscious, as it does not affect the sufferer’s mental abilities.

Karsai decided not to wallow in self-pity but to fight: not against the disease, which is incurable, but against the Hungarian legal system, which he says denies him a “dignified death”. Under current law, any form of active euthanasia is banned, and anyone who helps assisted suicide – even outside Hungary’s borders – can face up to five years in jail. In a high-profile case in November, Karsai challenged this at the European Court of Human Rights, ECHR.

In a moving plea, the already frail, wheelchair-bound lawyer asked the court to help him “open a door” when he can no longer do so, saying he was also fighting for others facing similar circumstances. Karsai’s case has deeply moved Hungarian society. Pictures of him sitting alone in the Hungarian parliament, completely ignored by the passing ruling Fidesz party MPs (except for one), went viral and have become a symbol of the insensitivity of a ruling elite that claims to follow Christian values but seems to have lost its sense of humanity. It has also sparked a debate across party lines, between left and right, believers and atheists, young and old. Tamas Fabiny, an Evangelical Lutheran bishop in Hungary, pledged his support to Karsai and thanked him for finally initiating a meaningful debate where reasonable arguments and human perspectives clash, in this “painfully divided, often hate-filled, society”.

“This case touches my life very personally, but it is also a wonderful professional challenge because it is about the limits of human life and human rights, freedom and human dignity,” Karsai said in an interview. “It’s the biggest case of my life, also from a professional point of view.”

Polls suggest that 70 per cent of Hungarian society believes some form of euthanasia should be legalised. Karsai’s case may speed up a long-overdue reform of the penal code. He may not live to see the moment, but that would be his legacy.

North Macedonia: IT man who donates computers to poor kids

Borce Stamenov is an IT engineer from the small town of Kavadarci. Some seven years ago, a woman came into his office asking if they had any spare old computers. Borce assembled one, and when he took it to the woman’s family, he was moved and inspired.

The joy he saw in the eyes of her three little children, who never had a computer, and the realisation that what they were so joyous about was someone’s discarded PC, which they’d considered “garbage”, sparked a great idea.

Why not do this for others in need as well? And why not use social networks, where he was already active, to call for more donations?

That’s how he launched Doniraj Kompjuter “Donate a computer”. The first 100 donated computers soon led to 200 and more. Borce says he could not stop because what he was doing filled him with joy as well.

“I always get very emotional responses. Plus, I have a feeling that I am also doing this to show to people that if you have a good idea you should act, and you can do a lot,” Borce told BIRN.

For the first two years, he did this all alone, calling people and firms to donate their old or new computers, refurbishing them and then sending them to poor families, of which there are plenty in North Macedonia, unfortunately.

He was then joined by another volunteer. This year there are four in total, doing all the volunteer work in their free time.

But their transparency on social media has brought them trouble as well. This summer, days after Borce announced that they would take a short break for a vacation, a robber broke into their workshop, stealing some of their most powerful computers that they have been preparing for gifted students.

It all ended well, however. Police soon found the thief and returned the computers.

Meanwhile, the initiative has grown. By the end of 2023 they hope to have donated 3,000 computers in total over all the years.

The end of this year was a time for recognition. The initiative won the “Meto Jovanovski” state award, given for excellence in promoting, protecting and improving human rights.

While Borce says his priority will always be to give computers directly to children in socially vulnerable families, the initiative has also equipped 40 schools with IT classrooms, many of them in remote rural areas where the information gap is felt the most.

“We are not trying to replace the state, but we are trying to help it,” Borce explains.

Greece: NGO finding new ways to save marine eco-systems

The Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation, a non-governmental environmental organization whose aim is to protect marine and island ecosystems, has introduced Artificial Intelligence records in a move to record the populations of marine mammals such as bottlenose dolphins, blow whales and others.

To this end, they are cooperating with an international scientific team.

“We do not feel like heroes; we feel it is important to recognize the effort and inspire others who really want to contribute to the protection of the environment because it is a common responsibility that we all share. If there is not substantial cooperation, with a result, then we will not be able to change things. We can make a difference wherever we are,” Anastasia Miliou, marine biologist and director of research at the Archipelagos, told BIRN.

Archipelagos is based on the Greek island of Samos and, since 1998 has been working on protecting marine biodiversity in the northeastern Mediterranean, especially the Greek seas and islands. Some 100 people from 43 countries with four boats and research bases in the Aegean work together through applied scientific research, education, conservation actions and community engagement. Their aim is to prevent further disasters and protect the important biodiversity of the Greek seas, explains to BIRN Anastasia Miliou, marine biologist and research director of the institute.

Archipelagos’s fields of action include the investigation and protection of Greek deep waters, the deep-sea corals, which are more than 7,000 years old, endemic seagrass meadows, the forests of the Mediterranean, over-fishing, rare species, cetaceans, the seven species of marine mammals that migrate and live permanently in Greek seas, sea turtles, and more.

Archipelagos, in collaboration with other organisations from different countries, has made a database of more than 80,000 photos of sea mammals to be able to use AI algorithms to improve their re-recognition. So far, Archipelagos has identified 172 dolphins by their characteristic markings. Now, with AI technology, they will be able to increase the ability to re-identify species.

“We have been recording sea mammals for 25 years under good or relatively mild weather conditions; most of the year, we don’t know we don’t how they act. So, we have a lot of knowledge gaps that make them difficult to manage and protect. New technologies help us to fill these knowledge gaps,” Miliou said.

Montenegro: Environmental champion who doesn’t fear politicians

This year, Montenegro’s Environmental Protection Agency chief, Milan Gazdic, won praise from citizens simply because he rose above the political interests of those who’d appointed him and acted independently in a country where corruption, political ties, and environmental devastation are routine.

During the last year, Gazdic included civic organisations in his Agency work and pointed to various cases of environmental devastation in the country. Even though the government appointed him in February 2022, Gazdic acted independently.

Former Environmental Agency managements tolerated authorities’ and investors’ projects that exploited the country’s rivers and coastline for decades, despite civic activist warnings.

“In Montenegro, everyone wants to bypass the law in one way or another, so problems arise when you insist on law implementation. We will work according to the rules, so everyone should be used to the new Agency practice,” Gazdic told BIRN.

On May 15, Gazdic officially involved civic activists in the prevention of Illegal fishing in the environmentally endangered Lake Skadar. The agency gave them official permission to use drones and cameras to monitor the lake and locate poachers in one of Europe’s last freshwater wildernesses.

In April, civic organisations called on the authorities to protect Gazdic from the pressure of investors and some government officials. Gazdic was criticized by the authorities in the town of Gusinje on April 5, after the Environmental Agency banned a music festival in the mountains of Prokletije National Park.

Gazdic stresses that there is often pressure on Agency management from some political officials and investors.

“There is always a lot of pressure. Investors and people who do not understand nature protection say the Agency is holding back the country’s development. The agency is dealing with the environmental protection that affects people’s health, which is the basis of the country’s development,” Gazdic told BIRN.

On August 19, the Agency rejected the Ministry of Capital Investments’ request to open three stone pits near the UNESCO-protected town of Kotor. On August 18, it filed criminal charges for illegal logging in the national park of Durimitor but also called on authorities to stop illegal construction in the protected area and popular tourist destination.

On June 10, 2023, Gazdic said that Montenegro, as a touristic destination, should not allow illegal construction and usurpation of land because it could endanger the landscape.

On September 20, 1991, Montenegro became the first country in the world to declare itself an “ecological state” and vowed to safeguard its natural resources.

In last year’s annual report on Montenegro’s progress towards membership of the European Union, the European Commission warned that the country needed to improve its waste management, water quality, nature protection, and climate change efforts.

Bosnia: Quick-thinking pensioner who halted killer’s rampage

August 11 was a regular Friday morning for most locals in the small town of Gradacac in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina. The streets were crowded with people visiting the street market, running errands and finishing tasks before the August heat forced everyone into hiding.

Hasan Jasarevic, 77, who usually works Thursdays and Fridays in his son’s hunting equipment shop in the centre of Gradacac, could hear the police and ambulance sirens while he was behind the counter.

“I thought there’d been a car accident,” Jasarevic told BIRN, from his home in Bosanski Samac, on the banks of Sava river on the northern border with Croatia.

“Soon after, I heard screeching tires in front of the shop, when a man wearing only shoes and shorts, covered in blood, walked into my shop,” he remembered.

Later, Jasarevic would find out that this was Nermin Sulejmanovic – a man who had just killed his ex-wife while livestreaming it on Instagram.

“He pointed a pistol to my head and said: ‘Give me all the 9mm ammunition you have,’” Jasarevic continued.

That morning, Sulejmanovic, a body builder with a thick criminal file, had been on a killing spree. Besides committing one of the most shocking femicides in Bosnia’s recent history, he killed two others – a father and a son – while wounding three others, including a police officer.

Without a second thought, Jasarevic grabbed seven boxes of starting ammunition – fake bullets used to start races – and gave them to Sulejmanovic, potentially saving more lives that day.

“I was not scared at that moment,” Jasarevic recalled, and continued: “I’s been a prisoner in the war and saw a lot of death during that war.”

While leaving the shop, Sulejmanovic dropped one of the boxes on the floor, but just left it there and left.

“At that moment, my older granddaughter who had already seen what he (Sulejmanovic) has done over social media, came into the shop and just said: ‘Grandpa, have you seen what he has done?’” Jasarevic remembered. The fear came at that point, he recalls.

“I locked the shop, took my hunting gun and locked my granddaughter and myself in the apartment above the shop,” he said, adding that he informed his son of what just happened and asked him to call the police.

“I have seen a lot of death, and could never shoot a person, but I still took my gun with me,” he admitted.

In the meantime, a massive manhunt was underway. Hundreds of police officers were looking for Sulejmanovic who, thanks to Jasarevic’s quick reaction, had only three bullets left. He used one of them to commit suicide as the police closed the ring around him.

Later, Jasarevic was awarded the “Zlatni Zmaj” (Golden Dragon) award, the highest recognition of the town of Gradacac, while his act has been celebrated in the shock that followed the events.

Serbia: Advocates for women’s inheritance rights in patriarchal society

When it comes to women rights and their systematic discrimination, much of the talk refers to the representation of women in institutions or gender sensitized language.

An initiative for women’s inheritance rights, “How much is my share?” has gone deeper than that, showing how patriarchy works subtly and, linked with state law, discriminates against women and pushes them into poverty.

In Serbia it is widely considered that a female child should not take the family inheritance, as it is expected that women will leave the parents’ home on marriage and contribute to another family through domestic work and childbearing. That is why traditional customs suggest that all the family’s possession go to the male heir.

“How much is my share?”, started by the Women’s Association of Kolubara District, ZUKO, and 14 other organisations, wanted to tackle this.

Their research done throughout Serbia showed that almost half of women, 44 per cent, renounce their inheritance in favour of male relatives. If they find themselves in a situation of existential threat, because they gave up their inheritance, they may lose their right to social assistance.

Jelena Ruzic, President of the Women’s Association of Kolubara district, ZUKO, told BIRN that it all started with their work with women in villages that depend on agriculture.

“We realized, working with these women … that there is a big gap when it comes to property ownership in terms of gender. Then we started digging more into the causes,” she explains.

To raise awareness of the importance of claiming rights to inheritance among Serbian women, the 15 organisations formed a Coalition for Equal Inheritance and started a media campaign on a topic that is rarely ever talked about. The campaign also provides free legal assistance to women who are in the inheritance process.

Ruzic says she realized through her interviews with women that 95 per cent of them had not paid any attention to the issue, saying they first heard about it through the campaign “How much is my share?”

“That shows that gender patterns are so strong that is hard to change them. In our tradition, sisters are valued as people who are strong and who will do everything for others. It is hard to escape that feeling of value through sacrificing for others,” she said.

She is happy that their campaign has raised awareness in different parts of society.

“Civil society organisations, media and even decision makers are all now aware of the problem. That is not an adequate change, but it is a start,” she emphasizes.

Poland: Movie director who challenged negative stereotypes about migrants

Agnieszka Holland, an internationally-renowned Polish film director, in 2023 made the movie that, according to her, moved audiences most in her entire career – about refugees and migrants trying to cross the Belarus-Polish border. But she was demonised by the then Polish government and right-wing media in an almost rabid attack that forced her to hire private security.

In the movie Green Border, which premiered in early September, Holland used three inter-connected stories – of a Syrian refugee family, a Polish border guard and a group of activists helping the migrants – to bring to a wider audience events taking place on the Belarus-Poland border since the summer of 2021.

In an interview with BIRN in October, Holland explained that the early days of the Belarus-Poland border crisis reminded her of events in 1938 at Zbaszyn, on the former German-Polish border, where thousands of Jewish people of Polish origin were stuck for months, facing illness and death, after Nazi Germany deported them and Poland refused to let them back in, having previously removed their Polish citizenship.

“Symbolically speaking, we could say this was the beginning of the Holocaust,” Holland explained.

For many, the movie was very important because it brought to the general public – in a relatable manner – a crisis that had been happening for two years but which still remained unknown – or misunderstood – because of the massive propaganda around the subject promoted by the nationalistic Law and Justice PiS government.

Green Border quickly became the most watched Polish movie of the year and stirred strong responses among audiences: “The reactions I get from the audience at the screenings is something I have never experienced before in my life,” Holland said. “It feels like collective therapy. People get together and speak about things they never spoke about before in cinemas.”

And it’s precisely for that reason – that it caused a strong reaction in many – that the government sought to discredit it, with key members of the governing camp, including President Andrzej Duda, criticizing it without even seeing it.

Former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro went as far as to compare the movie to Nazi propaganda (linking to a common trope of PiS, that anyone criticizing the government is serving foreign, particularly German, interests). That was particularly offensive to Holland, whose father was Jewish and who has family members that were killed in the Holocaust.

Holland sued Ziobro and hired guards to protect her in the period of most intense attacks. But she remains hopeful that the backlash was worth it, for making a movie that hopefully not only informs but also changes the minds of some of those that used to get their knowledge of the topic before only from governmental sources. In the end, Holland said, what matters is “to give a voice to the voiceless”.

Moldova: ‘Good Samaritan’ who helps Ukrainian refugees, cancer victims

Doina Cernavca, 38, is one of the most famous activists in Moldova for the projects and charity projects she leads for people in need. Until last year, she was mainly active on behalf of people in need from Moldova. But the situation changed with the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Her NGO, “Help a Person”, was present from the first day of the waves of Ukrainian refugees who decided to leave Ukraine through Moldova, especially women and children. About one million Ukrainian refugees have transited or stayed in Moldova so far.

“We were the first in Moldova to open the doors and gates at Casa Bună and we organised the largest collection of humanitarian aid for refugees,” the former journalist told BIRN.

In 2022 alone, Cernavca collected more than 300 tons of aid for Ukrainian refugees through her humanitarian association and delivered 10,000 portions of food daily.

Cernavca says she witnessed the human dramas of women who received calls that their husbands had died at the front, or that Russia had bombed their home towns entirely and they would no longer be able to return.

“Last year, we had the biggest impact on helping refugees. In 2023, we were more on programs to support children and women,” she said.

“With our help and the volunteers from the Endava company, the Ukrainian children had IT lessons, and the women had conversation clubs with specialists who helped them move on with their lives,” she added.

Cernavna went through an emotional experience of her own about half-a-year ago that would mark her. Her father died of cancer. But she turned this pain into force and founded “Casa Valeriu” [Valeriu’s House] in her father’s memory. Cancer patients and those who come to Chisinau for cancer treatments are housed here free of charge and offered meals, as well as psychological counselling.

“The first question by those who call us and reserve a bed on the phone, two or three times, is if everything is really free. Yes! Because we are a community of people for people, we survive on donations from people and partners and sponsors,” she says.

Patients with oncological problems who come to Casa Valeriu, she says, are very warm people who understand that the success of their treatment depends a lot on them.

“We are trying to instil in them a dose of optimism and confidence as it must be good and there is no other way. As long as people want to go forward, we give them all the necessary support,” she concludes.

Romania: ‘Agent Green’ taking on trophy hunters and forest chainsaws

Gabriel Paun, 46, and the NGO he leads, Agent Green, are some of Romania’s most influential campaigners for saving the environment and wildlife. However, they have long gone beyond internal borders in their multiple activities.

In 2023, Agent Green was energetically involved in saving bears in the forests of Romania from trophy hunters and from high-ranking officials who lobbied for this activity with the official excuse that the bears had become dangerous, so they must be neutered and killed in order not to be a public danger.

“It’s clear that I ruined some plans for him that he wanted to do quietly, but he couldn’t, “ he said of former environment minister Tanczos Barna. “He just had to start this absolutely terrible campaign, in which during the two years of his ministry he managed to demonise this species [bears],” Paun told BIRN.

Romania is one of the last bastions of bears in Europe, maintaining and important balance in the ecosystems. Most unofficial estimates put the bear population at least 6,000, around 60 per cent of the total European population, excluding Russia.

Because of that, Paun says, there is a big lobby by wealthy hunters in Europe to hunt in the Romanian forests.

In May 2021, a scandal erupted after an Austrian prince, Emanuel von and Zu Liechtenstein, killed a bear called Arthur, who was one of the largest specimens in Europe. The prince admitted killing the bear but said he did it legally. He claimed the animal was dangerous.

Paun told BIRN that the threat arose after the trophy hunting industry and industrial farmers teamed up to hunt this species, which is crucial to the health of nature.

He is also in direct contact with the European Commission and MEPs to stop the illegal deforestation of forests in Romania, which occurs through the impotence, or collaboration, of the Romanian state and in the absence of adequate internal legislation and with few coercive instruments at the European level.

Forests represented 43 per cent of the surface of the European Union in 2022. According to Romania’s National Institute of Statistics, INS, Romania’s forest fund has grown steadily in the last 15 years. According to them, Romania has more than 6.6 million hectares of forests, which cover around 29 per cent of the country.

But, according to a Greenpeace report from 2022, about six hectares of forest disappear from Romania every hour.

“The idea is that we move the topic of deforestation and show it as one of national security. That’s where our new audience is. The south of the country must be massively reforested to prevent desertification,” he concludes.

Bulgaria: Couple who challenged anti-LGBT discrimination

2023 was a key year for Bulgaria’s embattled LGBT+ community, both for good and bad.

In the repeat general elections in April, the pro-Russian Bulgarian Socialist Party started a campaign focused on promoting a referendum “against gender ideology”. In June, right before the annual Sofia Pride, another pro-Russian party, Revival, organised a series of protests against the screenings of a Belgian gay drama Close, deeming the movie immoral. In July, te far-right figure Boyan Rasate was convicted for hooliganism for vandalising the Rainbow Hub LGBT community centre in 2021. Later in the year, a trans protester initiated a hunger strike in front of Sofia’s Justice Palace after the court rejected her request to change her ID documents to match her gender identity – a consequence of a controversial ruling by the Supreme Court which further limited the rights of transgender people in Bulgaria.

But some good news came in September, when the European Court of Human Rights told Bulgaria to create a legal framework that allows same-sex couples to receive adequate recognition and protection. The case, led by human rights lawyer Denitsa Lyubenova, concerned a same-sex couple, Darina Koilova and Lili Babulkova, whose marriage in the UK in 2016 was repeatedly not recognised by Bulgarian institutions.

In 2017, on the basis of the constitution defining marriage as a contract between men and women, the Sofia municipality declined to make their union legal in Bulgaria. The couple, both translators in their thirties, has been vocal in their intentions and managed to gain considerable media attention, gaining valuable visibility for the LGBT+ cause as well. The ruling is expected to be a major factor in further cases and the developments around Koilova and Babulkova have now become symbolic for the uphill battle that the country’s LGBT community is facing.

The couple was also given the annual award for “Persistence and Bravery” by the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee.

In a different case from in June last year, the Strasbourg court ordered Bulgaria to pay compensation to the mother of a 26-year-old man killed in a homophobic murder in Sofia in 2008.

Kosovo: ‘Serb Traitor’ who sheltered journalists from violence

Mladen Perovic, from Zvecan, in Serb-majority northern Kosovo owns the café where Kosovo Albanian journalists found shelter during the violent clashes between local Serb protesters and KFOR soldiers on May 29.

Perovic told the media on May 31: “When I arrived at around 10 am journalists were already there; it was a good place to report and naturally when I opened, they all went in the café.” He opened up around 10 am, “when it was obvious the protest would last”, so people could refreshen themselves and use the bathroom.

After the protest escalated, he said he “ran away from the café” to be safe, “but after some time, when the situation stabilised, concerned about my private property, I went back to my bar where the journalists were”.

They had been trapped there for around three hours, from around 2 pm to 5 pm, as it had been the only safe place for them to be.

Perovic helped the journalists leave the safely. He told the media that he decided to close his café and had asked the protesters if they would allow the journalists safe passage; they had responded that “nobody will touch them”.

Perovic said he was later called a “traitor” for having assisted the journalists. “I do not know what I have done to be called a traitor and be targeted,” he said.

Croatia: Volunteer rescuers who don’t hesitate when life is in danger

Croatia’s Mountain Rescue Service consists of experienced and selfless people who save life without asking for anything in return

After the catastrophic earthquakes that hit Turkey in February, members of the Croatian Mountain Rescue Service, HGSS, were among the first to come to the rescue. It is a non-profit volunteer organization that deals with searching and rescuing people.

In the same hour, after learning about the earthquake, HGSS members reacted immediately and started preparations. They sent one medical team, consisting of one doctor and two medical technicians, three K-9 search teams consisting of dogs and their handlers, and nine drones and their pilots, a total of 15 HGSS members, with the necessary logistics. “In such disasters, when floods and earthquakes are a question, no country can do it alone because all systems are paralyzed. That’s why we sent help as soon as possible,” recalls Marko Rakovac, executive head of HGSS.

Interestingly, after the earthquake in 2022 in central Croatia, in Sisak-Moslavina County, Turkey was the first country to offer a helping hand and send housing containers and heaters for people who’d lost their homes.

In September 2023, 15 HGSS members went to Turkey again at the invitation of the Turkish authorities to rescue the American speleologist Mark Dickey from the Morca cave in southern Turkey, at a depth of 1,000 meters.

When Marc Dickney was trapped at the bottom of the cave on September 2 they rescued him alive on September 11, again proving that they are one of the best teams in Europe.

“We knew what was happening, so we reacted immediately. It was a specific situation because you need people who know how to move along vertical lines, some of which are up to 300 meters deep,” Rakovac told BIRN, saying that HGSS never hesitates when human life is at stake.

HGSS was founded in 1950 as a sub-commission of the Croatian Mountaineering Association, and since 2001 has been a separate legal entity.

Annually, they stage about 800 interventions, of which about 550 are rescues on mountains, 250 are searches for missing people, about 30 are interventions in or on water and about 20 are by helicopter.

HGSS is a rare organization that has never been associated with any negative connotation or anything else that could threaten their reputation in the public.

“Saving someone’s life is a special feeling. When we start an action, we never know how it will end and whether we made a good decision at a certain moment. Stress is always present. But when someone’s life is saved, the ‘universe’ rewards it all,” Rakovac says.

Italy: Woman demanding justice for her sister’s murder

Elena Cecchettin didn’t flinch in front of the journalists of the Italian national TV show “Dritto e Rovescio” on the night of November 19. It was the day before the body of her sister, Giulia, was found, where it had been hidden by her former boyfriend, Filippo Turetta.

The case sparked an outcry in Italy. Giulia Cecchettin was the 105th victim of femicide in 2023, according to the Italian statistics body, ISTAT.

She was reported missing on November 11 together with Turetta. The couple had been separated for several months, but she had agreed to see him that night. Social media users mobilised, sharing pictures of Giulia in the hope that she would be found, though many started to fear for the worse. Their fears were confirmed on November 18. The next day, Turetta was arrested in Germany, where he had fled after reportedly committing the crime.

Elena Cecchettin looked straight at the camera. “In these days, there has been talk about Turetta, and many people have spoken about him as if he were a monster, like someone sick. But he is not a monster … he is a healthy son of the patriarchal society.”

The dignity, lucidity and strength of the young woman is humbling. Alone in front of the media, she transformed her personal pain into a public and political statement. She brought to the forefront of public discussion years of reflections and demands of feminist movements. She asked all men and the Italian state to take responsibility for what had happened and for letting such crimes continue to happen again and again.

In the next days, however, she was attacked several times. A regional councillor of vice-premier Matteo Salvini’s League Party, Stefano Valdigambero, raised suspicions of her own involvement in the killing, and concerns over her affiliation with cults. Far-right and men’s right movements made her the centre of conspiracy theories regarding alleged movements that aim to emasculate men.

But she didn’t stop. Together with her father, Gino Cecchettin, she has continued to demand public accountability for her sister’s death. “Make sure that Giulia is the last one.”

Albania: students challenging law that aims to limit their rights

Not long ago, Albania’s government, through an unusual law, prohibited medical students from leaving from the country for five years after finishing their studies.

But for many students this was a “no go” since the start. Students protested, boycotted the academic year and took the matter to the Constitutional Court, which has suspended the law until a definitive decision.

“The protest started on June 20. Since then, there has been no stopping, because the protest is not just a gathering in the square; we have gathered, protested, boycotted school, we have met the President … We tried to be everywhere,” Dea Guri, one of the students that have protested against the law, told BIRN.

“It was very tiring for us to protest at the peak of the heat, in 40 degrees, it was also the exam period, the summer season. But we all found time to protest, react and gather. And then we came back with a four-week boycott. It has been a very intense and tiring period,” she added.

On July, Prime Minister Edi Rama delivered the five-year ban himself, wanting to send a “message”, while presenting it.

“Every medical student who enters the University of Medicine will have to first familiarize himself with the fact that medicine has as many studies’ years as there are, and then in order to be equipped with a diploma, they must spend five years in the service of this people,” Rama said.

But many education experts have opposed the idea, saying that it would not be productive deeming it a “populist–communist law”.

Another student who has also been protesting against the law, Rei Haluli, told BIRN: “It’s been one of the most beautiful experiences I’ve had, because we all came together and had a goal”.

“When the law was approved, we stayed until the early hours of the morning, we wanted to talk in the parliament, as a group of interest; it is the most normal thing, but this was not allowed by the speaker,” Haluli said.

Turkey: Volunteer Who Lost His Job Saving Quake Victims

Turkey’s worst-ever quake disaster in February 2023, registering 7.8 and 7.6 on the Richter scale, devastated 11 provinces in the country’s south and south-east, killing at least 55,000 people and leaving millions more homeless.

Search-and-rescue units, police, the military, fire fighters, miners, construction workers and volunteers from Turkey and abroad united to save lives of people trapped under the rubble.

In a collective effort, they were the heroes of Turkey in 2023 – but some of the rescuers suffered real-life consequences for their sacrifice.

Burak Kesici, a 26-year-old hotel worker at the time, was fired from his job after he promptly travelled to earthquake-hit Hatay to help.

When he learned of the scale of the calamity in the earthquake zone, he immediately started a journey there to try and save lives.

“After I got verbal permission from my supervisor to go for three days, I went to the provincial headquarters of the Workers’ Party of Turkey, TIP, and we gathered whatever supplies we could get. Later, we travelled to Hatay with a convoy of a truck and three cars,” Kesici said.

The TIP, a new generation left-wing party, was one of the first groups that reacted to the earthquake and mobilised its members and volunteers.

“When we decided to go, we did not think we would be involved in search-and-rescue missions because we were not professionals. However, when we arrived, we saw the calamity,” Kesici recalled.

Kesici said they could not sleep in the first days because of the trauma and horror they had experienced.

“We saved many lives, but I cannot forget one survivor: Nebil. On the third day of the quake disaster, we entered a building which was about to collapse. Nebil was screaming for help … However, his young daughter died next to him,” Kesici recalled.

When Kesici returned to Mersin, after an absence of a week, he slept for an entire day. When he asked about returning to his job, his supervisor told him he did not need to return at all.

“Then, they threatened me, and they said they would not even give me my salary and compensation. Later, this was covered by the media. The day the news article published, I saw that the money was in my bank account,” Kesici said.

Kesici was only one of many volunteers who lost their jobs. Many miners, construction site workers and other volunteers were also reportedly fired by their employers.

The week Kesici spent in Hatay changed his life.

“Previously, I had studied journalism but I did not finish the faculty. After everything we went through [in Hatay], I have decided to become a paramedic to save lives professionally in an event of another such disaster,” Kesici concludes.

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