#yes i'm an american who uses celsius don't come for me

[queer-reader-07]

the temperature gets above maybe 22 and i am immediately reminded that i am not built for hot weather

[ephemeralstarss]

introduction to me!!!

hi! my name's noah and here are a few things about me and what I like!

i'm mainly in the marauders fandom, but i also like star wars, percy jackson and marvel

my favorite book is the song of achilles by madeline miller

i'm a minor

my favorite color is either red or green

i play the oboe (mainly) and the alto saxophone (and i'm in marching band)

i'm a trans guy and bisexual/aromantic

i'm american and brazilian (although my portuguese isn't nearly native level lmao)

i also use celsius

ao3 masterlist under the cut:

organized by length (completed, then uncompleted) and with all major ships

completed:

golden pass - marvel, oneshot, tony & peter, wc: 17.5k

For three months after an incident in a battle that leaves Tony hospitalized, Peter's convinced himself that Tony blames and hates him for what happened. One day in AP Physics, a yellow field trip slip makes its way to his desk.

the song of silence - marauders, oneshot, dorlene, wc: 16.5k

Marlene is sent to a boarding school in Scotland, far away from her home in Miami, Florida. One thing leads to another, and now she's gotten herself signed up for a bake fair.

all is found - marauders, oneshot, sirius & regulus, wc: 8.9k

When Regulus was younger, Sirius used to sing him a song before he fell asleep.   Where the North Wind meets the sea...

doors - marauders, oneshot, jegulus, wc: 8.8k

based off of this tweet by @padfootsluvrboy: "jegulus au where regulus is a seer and knows he's going to die and rejects james every time so he doesn't hurt him. (but when he finally says yes, suddenly that vision never comes back and they die old together)

spring blooming - marauders, oneshot, pandalily, wc: 7.7k

Lily Evans never thought she'd be a good mother, or a good girlfriend, for that matter.

make it stop - marauders, 3/3 chapters, rosekiller, wc: 7k

Everyone knew that Barty Crouch Jr. was insane. A psychopath that helped torture two people into insanity. A Death Eater. But what happened before that? What happened after? And the real question: How?

words on walls - marauders, oneshot, jegulus/marylily, wc: 3.9k

Months after the second wizarding war ends, Harry visits 12 Grimmauld Place. He goes into Regulus Black's room.

come back to me - marauders, oneshot, jegulus, wc: 3.4k

Regulus is captured by the aurors on a raid. James finds out (and so do Sirius and Remus).

forever and always - marauders, oneshot, sirius & regulus, wc: 3.3k

Sirius promised Regulus that he would love him, forever and always, no matter what. It seems that he forgot.

dusted over dreams - marauders, oneshot, jegulus, wc: 3.5k

Harry finds a loose floorboard in Sirius' younger brother's room.

his name - marauders, oneshot, sirius & dorcas, wc: 2.9k

based off a post by @not-rab where the basic premise is what would happen if dorcas called sirius by his brother's name

the green of his eyes - marauders, oneshot, jegulus/wolfstar, wc: 2.8k

What would happen if Harry from canon met another Harry from an alternate universe?

professor black - marauders, oneshot, jegulus, wc: 2.3k

No one knows anything about Professor Black. Except for Olivia Bones, who intends to find out.

pens and parchment - marauders, oneshot, regulus & lily, wc: 2k

One day, Regulus walks into the library to find Lily Evans sitting at his table. His quill breaks. A friendship forms.

they don't deserve you - marauders, oneshot, regulus & pandora, wc: 2k

Pandora doesn't need to read a piece of paper to know that Regulus is dead. She felt it when her soul was ripped in two.

cookies and muffins - marauders, oneshot, jegulus, wc: 1.9k

based off of this post by @jeguluvr where the basic premise is that james makes tiktoks about food and regulus is the taste tester. who is also a world famous model. they're also married.

azkaban: the perfect place to make a friend - marauders, oneshot, sirius & barty, wc: 1.8k

Sirius makes a friend in Azkaban

pink dresses - marauders, oneshot, rosekiller, emeralds friend group, wc: 1.8k

Barty always thought he would be the first to die.

When (Lily) Falls In Love - marauders, oneshot, marylily, wc: 1.8k

Lily falls in love with a girl with the prettiest eyes she's ever seen.

we'll meet again - marauders, oneshot, regulus & pandora, harry & luna, wc: 1.7k

in history, some things are bound to repeat themselves. sometimes, those things are people.

breathe. - marauders, oneshot, jegulus, wc: 1.4k

Regulus Black is gone. James Potter can’t find it in himself to breathe.

i love you. - marauders, oneshot, jegulus, wc: 1k

Regulus Black has never said I love you.

the voices in my head - marauders, marylily, wc: 1k

Mary Macdonald is hearing voices.

letter to an old poet - marauders, wolfstar, wc: 975

Remus doesn't know where it all went wrong.

incomplete:

alignment - marauders, jegulus/wolfstar, WIP, current wc: 121k

On Sirius' ninth birthday, he leaves Tatooine with a boy named James, leaving his little brother Regulus behind to join the prestigious Jedi Order under the wing of Master Gideon. Ten years later, Regulus meets a group of smugglers, leaving Tatooine behind for good. They pick up a job of spice running. --or-- a jegulus and wolfstar star wars au

cracked shells - marauders, mainly regulus centered but eventual jegulus, WIP, current wc: 11k

At the age of five years old, Regulus Black is presumed to be a squib. He's thrown out by his parents, his and Sirius' minds being wiped in the process. The Wizarding World believes him to be dead. The only things he has left? A deep burn on his palm, a piece of paper with his name, and the little spark of fire that comes out of his fingertips when he snaps.

will you still be with me when the magic's all run out - marauders, jegulus/wolfstar/dorlene/pandalily, WIP (hiatus), current wc: 34k

Ever since Sirius left the Isle with James Potter, Regulus has been bitter. Alone. Forgotten. But one day, things chance. A certain opportunity comes forwards for Regulus and his friends, and they would simply be fools not to take it. or, a Descendants AU

black birds - marauders, ted/andromeda, lucius/narcissa, past alice/narcissa, WIP, current wc: 8k

Born to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, there were three sisters. The eldest, Bellatrix Black. The middle, Andromeda Black. And the youngest, Narcissa Black. And yet, despite all coming from the same name and from the same house, their lives twist in completely different ways.

[ethereousdelirious]

FINALLY managed to write something for my special little sensitive crybaby princess OC. I'm trying to get back into the swing of writing.

There are a few context things I'd like to explain, so bear with meeee

(He has the flu in this. There's mentions of nausea at the end, but nothing happens with it)

Some Context (this is optional so just scroll down to the bolded text if you want to skip):

I've written about these characters before, but I've changed the world and plot of the novel they're supposed to be in, so if you remember anything about that world, just flush it.

Since this is essentially fanfiction of a story that doesn't exist yet, here are some things you're supposed to know about the characters: All of them are in their mid-20s. Hewitt and Sterling are close friends and have recently met Gilles, who had to move out of his family home after they all moved back to France without him (long story). Or fantasy France. I haven't decided if this fic takes place in the "real" word, so to speak, or a fantasy/alternate world. I'll use real world terms for now to make it easier. Gilles is Black and originally from France. Hewitt is white and British. Sterling is extremely mixed race and American.

You'll see Hewitt making vampire jokes at Gilles and referring to Sterling as "Adonis," which are both references to inside jokes woth the characters that I'm not gonna bother to explain because it doesn't matter

Sterling uses Celsius measurements when he's trying to be courteous to his European friends and Fahrenheit when he's alone or distracted.

Okay das all I think

Story starts here

Gilles’ belongings sat in a disordered pile on the cobblestones, dwarfed by the narrow three-story house looming behind them. He swallowed, throat stinging. This was it.

Sterling bumped him a little on his way to the front door, murmuring his apology. Gilles scarcely heard. Even that light touch had made him flinch, sent goosebumps all up and down his arm. His heart pounded. This was really it.

God, he didn't know these people. What if they killed him in his sleep?

“Gilles?” Hewitt bumped him with his hip. That, too, hurt more than it should have, made him shudder. “Are you waiting for an invitation?”

Gilles shook himself and forced a smile. These were his friends. New friends, yes. But friends. “It's only polite, you know.”

“Fine, but just know I have garlic hanging on all the walls.” Hewitt grinned and beckoned Gilles to follow him over the threshold. “Come inside! Oh, but grab a box or Adonis will yell at us.”

“Have I ever yelled at you?” Sterling asked, appearing in the doorway. “Gilles, don't listen to him. I'll need you to help me with the furniture anyway, since Heaven knows Hewitt won't be able to.”

Gilles nodded, following Sterling to his dresser. The glossy wood gleamed in the late summer sun, and the beveled edges dug into Gilles’ palms.

“Well,” Hewitt said, “have fun carrying that up two flights of stairs.”

“There's still plenty of work for you to do,” Sterling said, nodding at the various boxes surrounding them. “But being a distraction is not among them. Ready, Gilles?”

“Ah—” Gilles swallowed and his throat stung again. Worse, this time. “Yes.”

His muscles protested the weight of the dresser at once. Every discomfort, which had felt so insignificant not 30 minutes ago, magnified itself as he shuffled across the living room.

That wasn't right.

He and Sterling had carried this out of his house— out of the house with no problems. It wasn't even that heavy. So why were his legs shaking? Why couldn't he breathe? They were still on flat ground.

“Coming up on the stairs,” Gilles said breathlessly, steering Sterling toward them.

Sterling gave him a quizzical look, his dark eyes narrowing. “Are you alright?” he asked. “Need a break?”

“I— N-no, I…” Gilles shook his head and had to stop talking to focus on ascending the stairs. His knees bumped the edges of the dresser and the sharp pain rippled outward along his skin. “I'm fine.” The words burned in his throat.

“Al‐right.” Sterling furrowed his brow and hefted the dresser.

He seemed to be doing a lot better than Gilles was, despite the obvious effort. His breathing, though heavy, remained steady as they bypassed the landing and continued up the stairs, and he was remarkably steady on his feet. He seemed to have the layout of the house memorized, oftentimes turning before Gilles could even give him an instruction.

Not that Gilles was good for much at the moment. Pain pooled in his palms. The dresser might as well have sliced them open, though the only liquid on him was sweat. It ran down his temples, down his back.

“It's here on the left,” Sterling said, though there was no need. The doorway to the right clearly led outside, and the only other option was to go left.

Dutifully, Gilles shuffled into the vacant bedroom, and then the dresser slipped from his hands and thudded onto the carpet. His whole body shook, his thighs tensing and releasing in minute spasms. He clung to the side of the dresser, staring at the silver dots glittering across the beige carpeting.

“Gilles?” Sterling sounded like he was back at the bottom of the stairs. But that couldn't be right. Maybe it was just… his breathing…. He was breathing so hard his chest hurt, and it was loud. “Gilles?”

He went down slowly, eyes open, and the room tilted in a sickening whirl of white and beige, and the ceiling light seared his eyes.

Somebody had a hard grip on his ankles, shoving the leather of his low-cut boots hard into the tendons.

Gilles’ throat hurt.

He stared at the ceiling light and his breath came back to him.

“Gilles? Are you with me?” Sterling asked.

Gilles lifted his head. Sterling… Sterling was holding his feet up by the heels, staring at him with clinical concern.

Heat flooded Gilles’ face. “What are you doing?”

Sterling let go of him and sat back on his heels. “Facilitating blood flow to your brain.” He cocked his head as Gilles sat up, staring at him. “Do you faint often?”

“N-no.” Gilles squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. It hurt to talk. “I've never fainted before.” A wave of chills rolled over his skin and he shivered, wrapping his arms around himself. How embarrassing. He must have looked like such a fool, overexerting himself like that.

Not that it should have been so difficult. What was wrong with him?

“Er, Gilles. You're shaking.”

“I'm sorry,” Gilles croaked, the words burning like acid in his throat.

“What— No, It's 28 degrees and you're shaking.” Sterling leaned forward and hesitated. “May I?”

Gilles blinked at him, tears pricking his eyes. “28 degrees?”

“Oh—” Sterling huffed and planted his hand on Gilles’ forehead. “You're sweating. That's good. How's your head?”

Gilles' breath caught in his throat. He flinched away from Sterling and coughed into his shoulder, all his muscles complaining at the motion.

“Never mind.” Sterling sat back again.

Oh. Gilles shivered and tried to sit up, but couldn't tear his arms away from his chest. “I'm so sorry,” he croaked, clawing at his collar. “I didn't know— I can—” What? There was nothing he could do. He was sick, and all his worldly belongings were sitting in the street. “I, I can— I can still—” He moved to stand up, forcing his arms down despite the painful chills running through him. Another coughing fit nearly knocked him down again, and he clung to his dresser, legs wobbling.

“Gilles, relax.” Sterling stood and, not asking permission this time, caught him under the arm. “Can you manage the stairs?”

“Y-yes…” He would manage the stairs. He'd have to be half-dead before he'd let anyone carry him.

Hewitt's puzzled expression melted into one of alarm. “What happened?” he asked, rushing forward, then darting out of the way like he'd changed his mind.

Gilles couldn't help but wince in anticipation of his humiliating episode repeated.

But Sterling remained silent as he guided Gilles to the couch, only speaking once Gilles was seated. “Gilles’ come down with something,” he said, calm as ever. “The flu, I think.”

“Really?” Hewitt peered at him like a child, blue eyes gleaming like marbles. “But you helped us move all that furniture onto the wagon.”

Gilles shrugged. If he’d been sore then, he hadn't thought much of it. It was a lot of heavy lifting, and he’d already been for a run that morning. But the reminder sent a spike of nausea through him, and a chill that had nothing to do with his fever. “I'm terribly sorry,” he said, squeezing himself in a vain attempt to ward off the cold. “Really, I just need a moment, and then I can—”

“You're crazy,” Hewitt said bluntly.

Sterling nodded like that settled something and leaned over to open the blinds, revealing the street and all Gilles’ boxes. “Hewitt, make sure nobody gets any funny ideas, will you? I've got some phone calls to make.”

“This is a very safe area,” Hewitt said once Sterling had gone. “No one will get any ‘funny ideas.’”

“Oh,” Gilles said faintly. Words and meanings were rapidly becoming two distinct entities. His body ached with the cold and all he could really do was shiver and think about how badly this all hurt.

“I do wish he'd been a bit more bossy, though.” Hewitt sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. “I never get sick, and Sterling really never gets sick, so I'm not sure what to do. Do you want to lie down?”

Gilles freed a hand and pressed it to his forehead. This was too much. He needed a blanket and he couldn't just borrow one, nor could he bear the idea of asking Hewitt to search through his boxes until he found one. So he'd have to get up. And find one of his pillowcases while he was at it, because he couldn't bring himself to subject his locs to the tweed throw pillows surrounding him on the couch.

Nothing for it.

Gilles got up.

It was the hardest thing he'd ever done.

His knees didn't want to work and his muscles ached.

But he was standing.

“Oh!” Hewitt stepped back to give him some space. “Look, you really don't have to worry—”

“I just need a few things,” Gilles muttered, and made for the door.

Hewitt followed him. “I could get them for you! Unless they're… secrets? I suppose? Do you have a lot of things you don't want me to see?”

The summer sun engulfed Gilles, soothing some of the pain from the chills. Cobblestones burned under his knees as he fumbled with a random box, his hands shaking.

“Why don't you just let me help you?” Hewitt asked. “I promise, I only judge people I don't like.” He stepped forward and opened the box for Gilles, revealing stacks of folded shirts.

“I just…” Gilles fell back on his heels, head hanging. This was a mess. He was embarrassing himself. “You and Sterling have done so m-much for me…” He stifled a few coughs into his elbow, tears burning in his eyes. He'd taken and taken, accepted their kindness with nothing but a few paltry words of gratitude, and now here he was, taking again. It was terribly rude.

“Well, look,” Hewitt said, “you can repay us by not worrying us sick, alright? Just sit back and tell me what you're looking for. And let me know if there's anything you don't want me to touch.”

This, at last, was too much. Gilles nodded, but the tears pooling in his eyes finally spilled over and he couldn't speak except to choke out an apology in French that Hewitt wouldn't have been able to understand anyway.

“Don't cry!” Hewitt's fingertips touched down on Gilles’ back. “I'm sorry! What did I say?”

“I'm sorry,” Gilles said breathlessly, coughing. “I'm not usually so—” He broke off, falling into another fit of coughing.

“Sick,” Hewitt finished for him, moving his hand to rest on the back of Gilles’ neck. “You're burning up.”

Gilles shook his head. “I'm c-cold.”

“Well, have you got anything in here?”

“Um…” Gilles blinked away tears. Did he? “Maybe?”

“Let’s have a look.” Hewitt wasted no time, pawing through Gilles’ shirt with total disregard for how carefully he'd folded them. “There's a lot of green in here.”

Gilles wiped his face. “It's my favorite color.”

“Yes, I can tell.” Hewitt continued digging through the box, until he finally produced the gray sweatshirt Gilles wore running on cold mornings. “How about this?”

Gilles nodded and took it, only remembering to thank Hewitt after it was halfway over his chest. The sunlight was nice on his skin but really couldn't help with the bone-deep chills running through him.

“Anything else?” Hewitt asked, his gaze darting down Gilles’ body in short, jagged lines.

Gilles pulled his locs free of the sweatshirt’s collar and nodded. He was still freezing, but… the cobblestones were warm and the street was quiet and…

Hewitt snapped his fingers. “Don't fall asleep!”

“Sorry…” Gilles ran his hands down his face and tried to rally. “Ah… Something. Silk or satin. A shirt, or one of my pillowcases.” He blinked slowly, his vision blurring a little. “Please.”

“Well, you've got a silk shirt in here, but—”

“S'fine.” Slowly, Gilles reached out for it. Even that small motion took twice as much effort as it should have. How was he going to get back inside? He curled his fingers around the fabric and stared at it.

“I think you need to lie down,” Hewitt said hesitantly. “You don't seem… Can you stand?”

Gilles shook his head.

The world softened to a dreamy blur as Hewitt manhandled Gilles inside. The effort of moving was almost enough to make him feel warm, but… Well, he wouldn't notice either way soon.

The couch was the only thing in the living room, the satin was the only thing on his skin. He lowered himself, aiming the shirt toward one of the throw pillows.

Sound came in little gentle washes of awareness and a bitter chill in his chest.

“Sterling!”

“Yes, good to see you, but please keep it down.”

Thudding and murmurs and footfalls.

“He's still out?”

“I don't think he's feeling well at all. Earlier, I mean—”

“He's shivering.”

Unfamiliar voices. The rush of the sink.

“Last one, I think.”

“Oh, good.”

Gilles awoke in sunset colors, curled on his side under a thick blanket. His dry throat burned and his chest spasmed with sharp, deep coughs.

Water.

He sat up, already breathing heavily, his vision narrow and vivid. The kitchen wasn't all that far, but… It might as well have been miles.

“Don't get up,” said a voice.

Gilles flinched and turned and found Sterling seated in an armchair with a book in his lap.

“Unless you need the bathroom,” Sterling continued.

“N…” Gilles started, but his voice cracked and he started to cough again, eyes streaming. His ribs already ached with the strain and now his head pounded with each forceful exhale.

Sterling got up without a word and sat beside him, holding a glass of water up for Gilles to take.

He seized it and drained it as soon as his body would let him, and fell against the back of the couch with his chest heaving. “I'm sorry,” he panted, staring at the ceiling as his face burned. “Th-thank you, Sterling. Forgive me.”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Sterling said. “You're our friend and we're happy to help you. Now.” He stood up and set the empty glass on the coffee table, where it must have been resting before. “I'd like to take your temperature, and it would be good if you would eat something.”

Gilles occupied himself getting back under the blanket. It was one of his own, thank god, and he'd managed to work it into a tangle.

“You're still cold?” Sterling asked. He moved as though to press a hand to Gilles’ forehead and stopped abruptly. “Here.” He held out his hands. Gilles passed him the blanket and Sterling shook it out, then tucked Gilles in like a child.

“Thank you,” Gilles mumbled, looking down. His own weakness was terribly embarrassing, but the way Sterling looked after him was so matter-of-fact, so natural. How could he resent it? “Why are you doing this?”

“Just as I said.” Sterling looked at him, his brown eyes nearly black in the low light. “You're my friend.”

“Yes, but…” Gilles shut his mouth. This was all extremely rushed, this… this intimacy. This kindness. “You don't know me.”

“I will,” Sterling said. “Is it bothering you? I can go.”

“No.” Gilles pulled the blanket up, unable to meet Sterling's eyes.

“Good. Maybe I take your temperature now?”

Gilles kept his gaze fixed on Sterling's hands, their pale brown looking ghostly in the light that filtered in through the blinds. This connection, however sudden, was perfectly real. If Sterling meant him harm, he'd had a dozen opportunities to deal it.

“I supposed I haven't been entirely honest,” Sterling said, lifting a glass thermometer to Gilles’ lips. Gilles opened his mouth. “There is a reason I like you so much.” Sterling angled the thermometer in, slid it carefully over Gilles’ teeth. “It's because Hewitt likes you. I don't think you know how rare that is.”

With the thermometer in his mouth, Gilles could only look at Sterling curiously. Hewitt had only ever been friendly to him. Albeit his bit about vampires had been an unusual way to break the ice, but Gilles could take a joke.

Sterling settled back into his armchair, bracing his elbows on his knees. “He was making fun of you that day. He didn't expect you to get the joke, much less continue it.”

Silence stretched out between them for a long moment. Gilles muffled a few coughs behind his closed lips, tensing to keep the thermometer in place without shattering it.

For some reason, Sterling laughed and sat up. “No, of course that wouldn't offend you,” he said warmly. “Hewitt is a wonderful judge of character, but his criteria are a bit unorthodox. I'm glad you aren't offended.”

This was more words than Sterling had ever strung together before. It had to be some kind of record.

Gilles sighed through his nose and slumped against the couch cushions. His body heat had finally caught up to him again, but even the thought of letting the blanket slip was enough to make him tense up. His eyes wandered around the living room, though not much had changed since his arrival that morning. The same floral prints hung on the walls, the same furniture filled out the expanse of flooring that transitioned into the kitchen. Only the minutiae had changed, little things Sterling had brought. A glass of water and a pitcher stood on the coffee table beside a small stack of handkerchiefs. And on the couch, Gilles’ silk shirt had been replaced with a proper pillow in a black satin pillowcase. He smiled a little, tracing the lines of his initials on the corner. GB, in wobbly yellow embroidery floss. Adéle had been so uncharacteristically shy when she’d shown him.

“I hope you don't mind,” Sterling said. “Hewitt mentioned you'd been looking for your pillowcases.”

Gilles shook his head, checked himself, then nodded. That was no good; that didn't mean anything. He smiled instead, wearily.

Sterling got up. “Let's take a look at your temperature.”

“Mm.” Gilles took the thermometer out of his mouth and squinted at it. He'd never gotten the hang of translating numbers to English and his head was far too fuzzy to really apply himself to it. He passed the thermometer over to Sterling rather than speak.

“39.4,” Sterling said. He pressed his tongue beneath his lower lip, brow furrowing. “I suppose that's alright as long as you stay hydrated. And lucid.” He raised an eyebrow. “Are you lucid?”

“Yes,” Gilles said, and couldn't keep himself from adding, “unfortunately.” Speaking hurt his throat, but the pitcher on the table seemed… inert. Unsatisfactory.

For some reason, this made Sterling relax. “I was afraid you might be too stoic for your own good,” he said, and poured Gilles another glass of water. “What do you want to eat? Anything you want, I'll get it.”

Gilles looked at the water on the table. He'd have to get out of the blanket to pick it up, and it would be cold. And it would sit in his stomach, just sit there. Anything would. “I’m… not particularly hungry.” A few coughs forced their way up his throat.

“I know you're not,” Sterling said patiently, pushing the glass closer to Gilles. “You have a fever of 103. But I also know you haven't eaten since this morning. Just tell me what you think you can stomach.”

If Sterling knew what a particular torture this was, he didn't seem to care. Gilles only just resisted the urge to hide his face in his blanket. “I don't know… Coffee.”

“What else?”

“Nothing,” Gilles moaned, giving into his childish desire to not be seen. He tucked his head under the blanket and buried his face in his hands. Every instinct screamed at him to raise his head and apologize like an adult. Sterling was only trying to help, and he did need to eat.

“Can you be convinced?” Sterling asked after a beat.

“What?” Gilles raised his head. Sterling was looking at him with the same patient concern as always, no trace of annoyance in his face or posture.

“Can you be convinced?” Sterling asked. “Or would you like me to leave you alone?”

Gilles just stared at him. Thoughts came fast and shallow. Sterling… leaving? Not hungry. Shaking.

“You did tell me you were lucid,” Sterling reminded him, but with a small smile. Teasing.

“I know… I just— I can't really think.”

“That's the opposite of lucid.”

“I'm sorry.” Gilles closed his eyes. “I'm not trying to be difficult.”

“It's alright.” Sterling was quiet for a moment, shifting in his armchair. “What about hot chocolate?”

Well, it was better than anything Gilles could come up with. He opened his eyes, staring at Sterling's hands where they rested in his lap. “That would be fine.” God, he was like a prince sitting here, forcing Sterling to dote on him.

Of course, Sterling didn't see it that way. He only nodded and got up. “Good.”

—

Hewitt came in around the time that the taste of chocolate started to go sour on Gilles’ tongue. At least the warm liquid had warded off the worst of his chills, but, as he'd feared earlier, his stomach didn't appreciate the intrusion.

He kept hold of the mug, letting it warm his hands, and looked up at the sound of the door opening.

“Did you miss me?” Hewitt asked, flopping down in the armchair beside Sterling.

“Terribly,” Sterling said, but he kept his eyes on Gilles.

“Oh, yes, of course.” Gilles forced a wobbly smile to his lips and shifted, bending forward a little to try to control the nausea building in his belly. “Where were you?”

“Seeing Adonis’ friends home,” Hewitt said airily. “You slept right through their visit, you know.”

Gilles frowned. He had heard voices, hadn't he? The memories came murky and cold, disturbed by the pressure in his stomach.

“They helped move your things upstairs,” Hewitt continued.

Gilles ran his teeth over his bottom lip. “Please thank them for me…” He shifted again. The nausea was building, but slowly. He just couldn't… Couldn't get comfortable; it pushed on him. Hunching over had only helped for so long, but straightening up didn't really help either.

“We made your bed, if you'd like to go to sleep,” Sterling said after a pause.

They'd both been eyeing Gilles with varying degrees of concern and suspicion; their eyes burned on his skin.

Bed… That would be good. If only he could manage the trip up the stairs. His stomach wouldn't like it. Even just sitting up was nearly unbearable.

“Maybe… maybe in a moment.” Gilles shifted yet again and laced his hands over his stomach.

“You're terribly shy, you know,” Hewitt said. “If you tell us what's wrong, we can help. And you needn't be embarrassed. I told you, we never get sick. Looking after you is a bit of a novelty, to be honest.”

“Hewitt,” Sterling hissed.

They kept saying that, that there was no need to be embarrassed. Something in Gilles just couldn't believe it. All his ailments seemed so childlike, something he should have outgrown.

“Or you can keep your secrets,” Hewitt said. “But we didn't find anything particularly scandalous while we were looking for your bedding—”

“Hewitt.”

Gilles would have smiled if his stomach wasn't bothering him so much. The pressure seemed to have reached a peak, but he wasn't getting used to it at all, just stuck with the sensation of a hearthstone lodged firmly in his abdomen. Instinct took him and he doubled over, both arms wrapped around himself. “Sorry; I'm alright,” he said to ward off any words of concern. “I just… need a m-moment.”

“Now what's wrong with you?” Hewitt asked. “Are you dizzy?”

“It's really nothing. I get like this somet—” Gilles cut himself off with a hard swallow— “s-sometimes when I have a fever. My…” He bit his lip and released it. Why couldn't he just be normal? Why was this happening? “My stomach's a bit upset.”

“That can happen,” Sterling said. “Do you need to be sick?”

“I'd rather not.”

“But do you n—”

“No, Sterling.” Gilles grit his teeth and swallowed again, squeezing his eyes shut. “I'm sorry.”

“Sh, it's alright.”

“Do you ever get angry?”

“Oh, he does,” Hewitt chimed in. “Probably won't ever get angry at you, though.”

“Mm…” Who were these people? Gilles’ head spun, thoughts aimless and shallow. He might as well have been falling, picking up speed with every passing second. “I think I need to stay here,” he said. “I… I'll lie down properly in a moment, if— if you could just…” Words failed him then, and a terrible coughing fit jarred his ribs and his stomach, rattled his head.

“Yes,” Sterling said. His clothing raised against the fabric of the armchair as he stood. “We won't go far. Call us when you need us.”

Gilles didn't say a word.

[madseance]

How to convert temperature units in your head like a freak

As we all know, the source of most problems in the world is the fact that we have two different scales for measuring temperature (We Don't Need to Talk About Kelvin), and most people only know one of them (Celsius unless they're USAmerican).

This has probably come up for you if you've tried to bitch about the weather to a friend who uses a different system than you and failed to get the desired reaction because they have no goddamn clue what you're talking about.

Lucky for you, there are two handy dandy formulae for converting between Celsius and Fahrenheit, and I'm going to teach you to do them IN YOUR BRAIN.

F – 32 × 5/9 = C

C × 9/5 + 32 = F

Now I can already hear some of you saying "that's haaaaaaard" shssshhhhhhSHHHHH. NO. I'm going to make it easy.

First things first! Fahrenheit is usually a much bigger number, and that's how you're going to remember that the + or – 32 stays next to Fahrenheit. If we're going from Fahrenheit to Celsius, we want a smaller number, so we subtract 32 immediately. If we're going from Celsius to Fahrenheit, we want a bigger number, so we add 32 AT THE END because you always keep the 32 next to Fahrenheit! Okay. You understand.

Now all we have to deal with is the multiplying by 5/9 or 9/5. You might be saying, "But I can't multiply by fractions in my head" YES YOU CAN.

You may notice that 5/9 looks a lot like 5 divided by 9. That's because it is 5 divided by 9. When you multiply by 5/9, you are doing two simple maths: ×5 and /9. And because multiplication and division are equivalent in order of operations, you can do them in whichever order you want. This means you can start with whichever one is easiest to do depending on the number you are converting!

LET'S TRY IT OUT!

Say your friend tells you, "OMG, it's 98 degrees today, I'm sweating my tits off." Now, you know they don't mean 98 °C, because they would be dead. Also they are USAmerican, so obviously they are using Fahrenheit. Despite this, you care about them and want to empathize with their plight, so you need to know how hot 98 °F is in normal people units.

We are starting from Fahrenheit, so you know what that means! Yes? Subtract 32. 98 – 32 is 66. Now we need to multiply 66 by 5/9. Remember, that means we need to multiply by 5 and divide by 9. EXCITING NEWS! You can always easily divide by 9 if you don't care about accuracy! (We don't because it is temperature and nobody can tell a difference of a few degrees! NO NOT EVEN YOU). 66 divided by 9 is a lot like 66/10, but because you're cutting it into fewer pieces, they'll be a bit bigger! 66/10 = 6.6, so let's just add a bit and make it 7. That was easy! Now we can just multiply by 5, and therefore 98 °F is about 35 °C! But let's check the math because you don't believe me:

98 - 32 × 5/9 = 36.6 recurring

CLOSE ENOUGH! You can now say, "Holy tits, that's hot" with some authority!

ALTERNATE SCENARIO: You are experiencing a heatwave of your own in jolly olde England, and it is a whopping 12 °C outside! (Practically shorts weather) But if you tell your USAmerican friend "It's 12 degrees, I'm thinking of having a picnic," you know they will think, "OMG, that's so cold!" because Americans still have not heard about Celsius (EXCEPT SCIENTISTS). So you think, "How can I express this in terms my USAmerican friend will understand?" BY MATHS!

12 °C × 9/5 + 32 = __ °F

Luckily, you get to start with a small number because you use Celsius, and you know your times tables so 12 × 9 is easy peasy (it is 108). But what about 108 / 5? WELL you know 5 goes into 100 exactly 20 times, and you can add another 5 (21) to get 105 and another (22) to get 110. So it's between 21 and 22! Let's say 21.5. Hard part over! Time for addition! 21.5 + 32 = 53.5, so you can say, "USAmerican friend, it is 12 C today (54 F), I am going to play outside!" They will still probably think you are crazy, but that's just the heat stroke from experiencing 35 °C weather. Again, to prove I'm right:

12 × 9/5 + 32 = 53.6

Congratulations! You have overcome yet another cultural barrier with the power of mathematics.

[heloisedaphnebrightmore]

first of all sorry for taking so long to reply (is it possible i’m getting our anon and regular messages jumbled up?? idk)!!! second of all i’m so happy your baby is back home safe and sound 💚

wow i wouldn’t have imagined that, i would’ve expected prejudice from locals but from fellow foreigners…… well, that’s counterintuitive to say the least

look i get it, there are stereotypes like where i live we joke about europeans not showering all the time (is it true though? in the uk most people are everyday-shower kind of people or 3-times-a-week-shower people?) and sometimes they can be true, such as the american educational system being lacking when compared to other places. i looove watching those videos where youtubers go to the streets to ask americans to point countries on a map, one time this guy was asked to point out Iran and he literally stuck his finger out to touch TEXAS!!

yeah, i don’t think he’s thaaaat bad either, he’s a regular villain who does villain stuff such as genocide 🤷🏼‍♀️ and i hope they give him more screen time next season aaaand expose more of his backstory. about dark romances though…… don’t you think the fcms sometimes are just too….. i don’t know, plain, dull and flat?? from the one i read i got the feeling as though all the author’s effort goes into smut and there’s nothing left for the fmc ~goodreads anon

First of all we need to stop saying sorry when we've already established that both of us has issues with replying in a timely fashion xD Secondly, thank you, he is a strong boy <3

The UK is on a whole other level when it comes to foreigners. Obviously many countries have immigrants, it's normal at this age, but as an immigrant myself, I find it an incredibly ignorant behaviour when immigrants find pleasure in bullying immigrants. I don't even know where people got their manners from but some of them need a good ass-whooping.

What the hell? xD I'd like you to forget about that rumour because it is in no way the truth xD Some of us even shower 2-3 times a day! Nah! We just had Thames water here a few days ago and they applied some extra meter for calculating time or whatnot because apparently we use too much water. Excuse me for trying to keep myself clean and cool in a 33 degree celsius heat-wave xD So, no it's not true. Not in the UK, not in Eastern Europe :)

You see you'd assume that Americans in general would know where their own country is at least, but when I see these videos that you mentioned I'm flabbergasted. Like, okay, maybe you don't know where Hungary is, it's a small Easter European country, but not knowing Russia, China, Brazil, USA, UK, France, Australia etc., you know the big ones, is just plain ignorant. Like the American Education system and health system are lacking in so many ways, so obviously, regardless of how disrespectful it is, other countries make fun of them. It doesn't mean that they are stupid, obviously other countries just generalise, but when they publicly showcase their ignorance of any other countries other than the USA... it's disappointing to say the least. I don't mean to be one of those who generalise, but the USA is literally like 250 years old... so it's still a baby and behaves like a naughty toddler so the rest of the world just sakes their head and face-palm themselves. I love my American friends and the USA has beautiful nature, there are so many amazing places, but as a collective... it's not my kind of place especially with how heavy bullying is over there.

"he’s a regular villain who does villain stuff such as genocide 🤷🏼‍♀️"

No, that sounds so bad out of context xD But yes, people need more of his background. I don't need people to empathise with him, I really don't care what people think, but like give us the backstory.

You are not wrong in regards to Dark romance FMCs. That's why I said in our DMs that I'm fed up of the FMCs having no action scenes, rather just telling and describing. I need to see what they do, not read what they are. I don't want to read about how badass and strong she is for this and that, I want to read the actual action scene. Show me, don't tell me. And the problem is that mostly dark romance is built on telling but not just for the FMCs but the MCs as well and it gets old fast especially when they try to fill the rest of the book with smut. Like I need it to have a plot, otherwise I'd watch p*rn for god's sake. Also, the plain, dull and flat FMCs are more and more common. I can't even think of one FMC who I liked and not only in Dark romance, nah-ah, I'm talking any book. I think the only one who comes to mind is Nazeera from Shatter me, I did like her and Gwyn from Acotar, but like they are side characters only.

[smoll-tangerine]

i haven’t finished HAHA that was just a program i applied to. i didn’t get in which is fine i’m over it now but IM WORKING MY WAY THROUGH IT i have a month left… GOD I HAD A REALIZATION MID TYPING I ONLY HAVE A MONTH BRRRHRHRH

omg canadian… meanwhile i’m here in socal and this week i experienced like 3 seasons..? on monday (10/25) it rained and the next day it was chilly but then i experienced summer for the past 2 days bc it got to high 80s (idk if u use fahrenheit HAHA SORRY)

that sounds rlly cool but also god awful oh my god… hope u r happier than whatever that was going on 😟

i recommend their new song coming out nov 1st called maverick… HAHA it sounds rlly good and i would recommend melting heart, the stealer, thrill ride, salty & christmassy! honestly i really love all their music so i cant rlly direct u but i hoped those songs help

i do love jae he’s so lovely but HAHA that’s the same for me. i like a lot of nct dream too i think i keep up with them a lot but i listen to them and 127 the most

🦈 anon is back (sorry for mysteriously leaving i experienced some burnout and MAJOR senioritis, i’m doing better)

DON'T BE SORRY. I'M CURRENTLY EXPERIENCING BURNOUT AS WELL and it's been tough trying to get back to writing and socializing on tumblr.

AHHH!! I HOPE THAT YOU WORKED THROUGH IT WELL and i'm sure you did well!!!! and yes, i am canadian haha! is socal southern california?? i'm not too familiar with american slangs KFJSKFJS and noo, i don't use fahrenheit, but celsius but i have a friend who is from cali as well and i always make fun of her because what is cold to her is not cold to me hahaha

yeah, everything kind of worked out? more like swept under the rug and we're all pretending as if that conflict never happened. but we're having a meeting soon so i guess we'll have to see what's gonna happen #tea

thank you for the recommendation! i do like maverick, so i will now procrastinate on my work and go through their songs HAHAHAHA. and yes, jae is so lovely🥺🥺i wanna squish his cheekies so bad. are you up-to-date with nct in general? nct 2021 is making a comeback skfkfjs my wallet is not ready

it's so nice to hear from you shark anon!! i hope you are doing well and that your week is going to be amazing<333