#fuck school announcements my favourite comic is favourite comicing
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The archive has been updated! It's looks so cool go look at it! I don't know how everything Jojo does is so amazing, but the archive update is so cool.
And then I read this
And I gasped so loud my mom is concerned. I have also been squealing for a while. BIG PLANS YALL
#Big plans for this year. big. plans.#fuck school announcements my favourite comic is favourite comicing#I love Jojo so much#literally LOOK at the archive though like holy cow#linked universe#linkeduniverse#:DDDD
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What do you think about gojo begging reader for a duck lmao? Maybe he wants kids but reader thinks 20 is too young so now he really wants a duck?
a/n: anon u so fuckin real for this, enjoy !!!! had lots of fun writing this / tagging my gojo luvers @jabamin @hyomagiri @crysugu @satohruu
yeah. yeah he would.
would be so eager about it too, like arent you fathering megumi and tsumiki ??? dude
my hc is that yes he took them in around 18 and you were already together with him and getting used to taking care of the two kids
but he would randomly get baby fever while seeing you be so caring and loving to the two, and not to mention for the first two years megumi usually stuck by you LMAOOO
tsumiki warms up to gojo more or less but theres still some barrier between gojo and the kids
so one day while youre both waiting for megumi and tsumiki at their school two years later he randomly announces in his annoying voice that “we should make a baby!!!!”
god the faces of all the parents waiting together with them 😭😭😭 and it’s so funny too cause it’s implied in S1 the siblings walk home together without a guardian and they would do perfectly fine without the two of you.
and bc of megumi’s usual embarrassment of gojo (and sometimes you) he tells you two to stay home cause he knows where you guys live but gojo just HAD to bring you here today bc he finished a mission nearby (lies. his fav kikufuku store opened an outlet near the school) and whats wrong with wanting to see the kids ya know
but anyway you seized his arm and slapped it just as the kids were coming out and shoved him so hard he almost fell. he fake cried that night in your arms and megumi made sure to ban you both from visiting both their schools ever again (it was right next to each other)
it doesnt seem to affect gojo much however until megumi brings home a consent slip for a farm excursion and hes like sure! he goes on the website of the farm and gets a splendid idea
well, splendid by his standards, but terrible by yours
[9:50am, delivered]: satoru i almost couldn’t find ur contact why did u change it 😭😭😭
[9:56am, satoru the bestest and coolest 🩵]: DAMN? why ??? curse me for wanting a cute name on my baby’s phone.
you literally saved me as “gojo satoru”
[9:57am, delivered]: bc thats literally ur name u fucking loser ?????
[9:59am, satoru the bestest and coolest 🩵]: photo attached
[10:01am, delivered]: you went finding for that pic didnt you
you’re so engrossed in the conversation (or rather, you making fun of him), pausing so intently that the person behind you has to ask you to move so you can order some damn mochi for your sweets-obsessed boyfriend. but before you can open your mouth to tell the cashier what you wanted, there’s another text that comes in and you’re torn between confusion and incredulity.
[10:01am, satoru the bestest and coolest 🩵]: also can we get a duck
[10:02am, satoru the bestest and coolest 🩵]: and NO i dont mean a fuck you dirty girl muhahah i know you thought that
eh, well, maybe you did.
[10:02am, satoru the bestest and coolest 🩵]: please pleasp eeplelasepplea
and also, you think that maybe you didn’t really want to buy kikufuku for your boyfriend anymore.
gojo is elated later when you hand him the bag of mochi from his favourite store, him still following you around like a puppy, looking almost comical with his tall figure crouching so low.
“so?”
“we are not getting a duck, satoru,” you sigh with your hands on your hips because when gojo begs like that it’s just so adorable, but the other doesn’t let up, using his blue-eyed charm on you and you hate to admit that it’s working — except maybe you would give in if it was a cat or a dog or even a hamster.
“a duck?”
gojo shoots up immediately and you’re reminded of his impending height compared to yours, “yes!”
“no!”
your boyfriend pouts again and reverts to his submission-to-you pose as tsumiki likes to call it, “pleaseee?”
you make a big dramatic out of thinking, “hm, get on your knees.”
gojo’s surprised but he does it without a second thought and you’re taken aback just a little at his obedience. if this was the way to get him to properly wash the kids’ clothes or to clean up after eating in the messiest way known to man, you’d get him to do it all the time, but you’re snapped out of your little realisation when megumi opens the door, tsumiki next to him giggling non-stop — the excursion bus probably had dropped them off on the front porch.
“what’s going on?” you’d think it was the other way round: the two siblings being the responsible adults whilst you two were acting like kids, especially with the way megumi asks the question. gojo isn’t phased.
“trying to convince your surrogate mother here,” gojo nudges his head toward you with a slight scowl on his face, “to get us a duck.” your hand lands a smack against the back of his neck.
megumi pulls a face and tsumiki only laughs even more and starts to nudge megumi with choked laughter, seeing his hands start to form a sign: his rabbit, no, divine dogs shikigami—
four ducks start materialising from shadows, crowding around the two of you and bombarding you with both quacks and playful nips on your skin and your temporary anger with your boyfriend fades, focusing on the seemingly happy faces of the ducks and the way they waddle. you’re stuck in between laughter and the softness of their feathers until—
“oh, this is their natural state, but they turn into angry, sorta scary geese on command too, although i haven’t really gotten the hang on it—”
gojo’s eyes widen, “megs, no!”
needless to say, megumi sits a little sheepishly later as he watches gojo clean up your scratches and mild wounds, getting a well-deserved (light) lecture and a kiss on the forehead later from you for discovering a new shikigami during movie night, gaining a little smile from gojo as he cuddles a sleeping tsumiki closer.
#jujutsu kaisen#jujutsu kaisen fluff#jujutsu kaisen gojo#gojo fluff#gojo satoru x reader#gojo x you#gojo x reader#jjk x you#jjk drabbles#jjk gojo#jjk fluff#gojo satoru fluff#gojo satoru x you#satoru gojo#gojou satoru x reader#gojo smut
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I am so sorry for all of those anon, if it can make it better, could you talk about some of your favourite movies
Complicated, let's talk about my favourite italian movies
Indagine su un cittadino al di sopra di ogni sospetto (1970) by Elio Petri
My man Gian Maria Volonté and his fake sicilian accent are a cop who becomes the chief of the uhm... well, sort of the "anti terrorist" unit. He's enamored with power, he loves control, he thinks, and knows, he's above the law, or that he can do anything because, as a man of the law, he's always working within it. This is why he kills his lover and fills her apartment with evidence. With time, the knowledge of being untouchable will drive him mad to the point that he will sign his own confession and then, in a drealike scenario, imagines his colleagues forcing him to sign a "non guilt" letter.
Fucked up and unsettling Ennio Morricone score.
La classe operaia va in paradiso (1971) by Elio Petri
I don't like this one as much as Indagine su un cittadino, but this is absolutely my favourite Gian Maria Volonté interpretation. His monologue was also used by the trap group P38 for the song Stelle Rosse.
Basically the marxist concept of alienation put into movie format.
Nuovo Cinema Paradiso (1988) by Giuseppe Tornatore
I have a particular relationship with this movie. In middle school I attended a musical school (I played piano) and for the third year concert we were playing some of Ennio Morricone's music, one of which was the theme of Nuovo Cinema Paradiso. I was pretty good at the piano at the time and ended up playing a large chunk of the theme as a soloist. So, even if I didn't watch the movie at the time, I was always sort of fond of it. I ended up seeing it in full just a few years back. A love letter to cinema. The middle part with the love story was a little too dragged out, but the ending man... the ending.
Mine Vaganti (2010) by Ferzan Ozpetek
My comfort go to movie. Riccardo Scamarcio (hiii) plays a gay man who comes from Lecce (Puglia) but lives in Rome. He wants to be a writer but his father wants him to become the heir to his pasta factory. He decides to come out to the family because he knows they would disown him and, therefore, relieve him of his responsibilities to the factory, but at the dinner where he wanted to make the big announcement, his older brother comes out as gay before him, getting disown in his place and causing his father to get a heart attack.
Chiedimi se sono felice (2000) by Aldo, Giovanni & Giacomo
The comic trio absolute best movie and I don't care if you think Tre Uomini e Una Gamba is funnier. This is not supposed to be funnier. The scene where they fight because Giacomo kissed Giovanni's gf is a pearl of cinema and breaks my heart every time ("Il bacio è solo un'apostrofo rosa tra le parole Franco e Forte" "Che fai, prendi in giro?")
Mimì metallurgico ferito nell'onore (1972) by Lina Wertmuller
Fascists, communists, men are trash.
Carmelo Mimì Mardocheo is a sicilian worker who, because of his vote to the communist party, has to leave for Turin after loosing his job. He's married but he meets a woman there and the two start a relationship and end up having a child. Despite being a syndacalist and a communist, Mimì is a spineless coward, and when it comes to incriminate the owners who have ties with the mafia he always chickens out. Out of a serie of events (this movie is a comedy) he has to go back to Sicily with his mistress and hide her from his wife, who at the same time becomes pregnant because of a relationship she had with a cop.
Sulla mia pelle (2018) by Alessio Cremonini
Stefano Cucchi died on the 22 of October of 2009 after being brutally beaten by the carabinieri while in custody for drug related crime. The two men who beat him got convicted with manslaughter only in 2022.
The movie talks about the last week of Stefano Cucchi's life. It's heavy as hell and the only movie who made me feel this shit is Diaz - Don't Clean Up This Blood (2012).
Caro diario (1993) by Nanni Moretti
I think it's about some guy with a scooter? Idk.
Stranizza D'Amuri (2023) by Giuseppe Fiorello
I mean I don't know if I'd call it one of my faves but it was such a pleasant surprise in a ever so sterile cinematographic italian landscape that I still want to talk about it.
Honestly I have to be biased because this hit all my spots - italian homosexuals, italian province life, hot italian summer of the world/european championships in the 70s and 80s.
It's based on a real event in Sicily in the 80s, in which a gay couple got shot by the niece of one of them.
Can't describe it in any other way than delicate. The direction and photography are definitely my favourite part which is surprising since it's the first movie as a director for Fiorello.
--
ok i got tired other mentions
La decima vittima - Elio Petri
Suspiria - Dario Argento
Tre Uomini e Una Gamba & Odio l'estate - AGG
Uomini contro - Francesco Rosi
Deserto Rosso - Michelangelo Antonioni
La dea fortuna - Ferzan Ozpetek
Baaria - Giuseppe Tornatore
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toughts on the new horror anthology marvel announced? also toughts on elektra and horror themes in general?
i’m a horror gal thru n thru so remember that you asked for this
marvel have rly good fodder for horror comics but they just never fuckin use it. when dc was doing dceased i talked about all the different subgenres marvel could be doing in the halloween season!!!! and i will do it again!!
daredevil would be perfect for found footage kind of horror like. hell’s kitchen residents piecing together their own footage of matt vs whatever cloverfield type of shite is going on
identity horror w spiderman and his clones
historical horror w elektra in like. ancient japan w the hand. or just straight up demon shit in modern day.
tech horror in wakanda
cosmic horror w the guardians considering they spend half their time in the skull of a celestial. or they used to. idk what mcu lite guardians are doing nowadays.
high school drama turned horror w the xmen……. prom or whatever and then celebratory vacation to this fucked up island that’s kind of alive but jean also has to choose between her 15 suitors at the same time as dealing w mr sinister’s fucked up cabin in the woods experiment!!!!!
classic monster horror w elsa bloodstone
more daredevil because your girl plays favourites, zombie horror w all his dead friends and girlfriends.
revenge horror with elektra after her dad dies. or after matt dies. kill him for some extra flavour
psychological horror w moon knight if they PROMISE not to be weird about mental health. OR something a la the descent. where he goes somewhere to find something out about the bird god living in his brain and it gets a little fucked up
some more xmen w survival horror in the savage land. a sentinel type thing but more like mr predator from predator hunts them all down
slasher horror w the various wolverines. laura n akihiro have to deal w their father in one of his stab stab beserker episodes
genre savvy horror w the runaways and young avengers
purge type shit w the punisher. i’m sure he will bring up his dead family
cultist lovecraftian horror w wanda. dr strange, voodoo, dr doom etc can come too. NOT like budget horror Welcome 2 My Twizted Mind wendy in the mcu.
home invasion horror w the xmen or in avengers manor/tower wherever those bitches are living right now but when only the avengers i like are home
blade just. literally doing his normal shit
i could genuinely go on for days. the potential is right there but all marvel ever does is like. oooh everyone’s a zombie and the genre has no connection to the characters that are it it or waaaa x character kills the marvel universe waaaa. it’s BORING. this is a company run by boring bitches. elektra is RIGHT THERE and every year i say please may i have a halloween variant at the very least, company that i have never said anything mean about. and every year they say NO shut the fuck up to me PERSONALLY!!! they mail that shit to my house in a big fuck you red envelope. and at this point i would rather they didn’t bother if they’re not gonna at least TRY. horror one shots are just one of the things dc just does Better
as for elektra and horror, i’ve made my stance on the potential relationship there pretty clear. like. she could do it all. she could be the final girl, she could be the dies first and comes back slightly fucked up in the sequel, she could be the villain, she could be pre death, she could be post death etc etc. there are SO MANY THINGS abt her that fit such a wide scope of horror tropes. one of my favourite movies ever is all the boys love mandy lane and she could DO THAT!!!! the innocent in the beginning, victim of circumstance (college, pre death, young adult elektra) to actually no fuck all of you, refuses to be manipulated by the people, mostly men, around her, turns out to be the killer. the audition is another. let her torture the shit out of stick or bullseye when they think they can use her. she already has so many aspects of horror stories in her own, she’s been covered in blood so many times and for what!!!!!! we’re not doing anything with it!!! she’s a KILLERRRR and in a horror au, everyone can die!!! it’s prime territory!!
and women in horror is such a fuckin goldmine too. like especially women who have been through shit and to see what happens when they’re forced into certain situations. as well as women who HAVENT been through shit and just wanna go apeshit one time. there’s a reason why so much horror focuses on women and that’s because they’re usually made by men who want to see some women suffer but that’s changed so much since and like yeah. there are a still a good few that are like ok we get it you want to see a woman get tortured. but there’s so much more substance to it. or there could be???? it’s a women’s power fantasy like iron man is a men’s power fantasy and i will not be elaborating. brad from ohio wants to be rich and for girls to like him. i want to kill people with an axe in a life or death situation. we are not the same.
tl;dr. it’s the genre she deserves after being a character that’s revolved around the men in her life since the dawn of time, and after the man who created her is one of the slimiest motherfuckers ever to leave his primordial soup. she could ENCOMPASS the genre for marvel but no one listens to me
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praxeus salt commentary
aw look it’s everyone favourite capitalist booklicker pete mctighe
an episode written by pete mctighe AND ch*bnall, this is my own personal hell right here.
the point of that voiceover was…?
great more c*ps(!) 🤮🤮🤮🤮
location hopping! such fun(!)
a c*p, and now vloggers, could you think of any more annoying side characters?
why would you camp there in all that trash??
why would you want to touch a dead bird?
im pretty sure jake is trying to kick in a pull door.
where did yaz get the skeleton key from?
i do hate that we’re just dropped into the plot all the time.
i would definitely use something more than a tshirt to pick dead bird, have some gloves at least.
gabriela just left all of her stuff by the trash river. guess it wasn’t important and didn’t have her money, passport, phone charger or anything important in it.
hey the comms devices are back, yay! finally something practical and useful.
‘chat chat chat chat’ yeah don’t we know it(!)
‘hesitation, must be valuable’ yes, we know need to say it out loud though do we?
‘except i don’t go around announcing im police’ well that’s a fucking lie isn’t it yaz?!
the doctor just appearing out of nowhere is comical honestly.
we’re just letting anyone into the tardis these days aren’t we?
sorry not to like police grief or anything, but has any of ch*bnall’s characters ever cried when a loved one has died? swear this never happens. is crying not allowed or something?
allowing yaz to stay behind is like fine but letting random vlogger tag along is a bit irresponsible.
‘it clearly is, cos you’re in it’ i can’t remember the doctor ever being this snarky to someone’s reaction to the inside of the tardis?
would love to see the tardis medbay, or just other rooms in the tardis really.
so wait, ryan just picked up a dead bird unprompted, why would you do that?
why would you stay outside? surely you can watch the birds through the window.
‘what’s the matter with you people’ this character is suppose to be annoying right? honestly with ch*bnall’s side characters you can never tell.
so im the same age as ryan and we never dissected animals in science at school obviously i can’t speak for everyone but im pretty sure that’s not a thing anymore. im pretty sure rose mentions this in school reunion back in 2006 so god know what ch*bnall think kids do in school nowadays.
this might just be fanfiction and maybe there’s no actual canon evidence for it, but i refuse to believe the tardis wouldn’t have a medbay where they could treat adam.
the doctor using suki’s laptop to analyse adam’s blood, she couldn’t have done this on the tardis because…?
hey it’s that fun camera shot where the camera goes in and out focus on the characters in a completely non jarring way(!)
yaz thinks she’s being brave but she actually being dangerously reckless in an attempt to look good to the doctor, which would be fine if this was ever established in her character.
also very weird after being kidnapped thrice this series, that yaz is now willingly transporting herself to an unknown place.
‘didn’t teleport into an active volcano, result!’ oof that line delivery.
‘you’re poisoning yourselves as well as your planet’ again not an individual responsibility. the average person doesn’t actually have a say on how plastic is produced and disposed of.
i don’t get why suki suddenly becomes the villian. why couldn’t suki tell them the truth? the doctor is helping her, why turn on her? also this reveal of character actually being bad person all along has happen thrice now in 6 episodes. there’s such thing as overdoing it.
i can’t believe they’re just leaving adam to die on the floor like that.
‘thanks for coming to get us eventually’ yaz you volunteered to go off on your own what are talking about this? i guess this is suppose to be banter? but uh they really don’t have that kind of relationship.
‘look at you, going off on your own and not getting killed’ the doctor really said well done you’re not dead i…💀
yaz having a strop because she didn’t get teleported to an alien planet is so funny. also when is this ever been her character?
love how ending implies the doctor could have saved adric at any time, but fuck them kids right?
also love how gabriela just completely forgets her friend/ partner died and acts like everything is okay.
concluding thoughts: id give it a zero just for being written by pete mctighe to be honest, but actual opinions um yeah mid i guess? the location hopping is so annoying and the plethora of side characters are also annoying, there’s ends up being like 10 characters and i don’t care about anyone. and in true pete mctighe fashion the problem of plastic pollution is blamed on the individual rather than on capitalism and those in power. and the ending is a bit of a cop out and devalues the stakes of any story if the doctor is able to materialise, at the last ‘millisecond’ around anyone who is in danger.
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I've been feeling a bit detatched from my writing lately, but I wanted to do something for Harry's birthday. So I managed to get out 2k of, I think maybe fluff? Many thanks to @booktopusmunro for the speedy beta and encouragement ❤️ Happy birthday Harry!
Sidenote: Sega Mega Drive was called Sega Genesis in the US. This fic is loosely based on a scene from the Friends episode “The One Where Rachel Finds Out”.
Start Level
“Everybody! Hey, everybody, settle down! It’s time for Harry to open his presents!”
Ron’s sonoroused voice made Harry wince as he sat cross-legged in his favourite squishy armchair. A belly full of birthday cake and the comfort of his friends surrounding him made Harry sleepy; but as he watched them all scramble to get seated as close to him as possible, a warmth rose in his chest. Ron had, of course, already sat down on the sofa closest to Harry before he made the announcement, but at Harry’s single raised eyebrow he shrugged with a crooked grin.
Harry snorted. He knew that with five older brothers, it was inevitable that Ron knew how to get to the front first. He looked around the room, trying not to tear up at the sight of all his friends gathered around, sitting on each other’s laps or perched on tables and armrests, all looking expectedly at him.
“Oh dear, what’s wrong with him?” Pansy stage-whispered to Hermione.
“Nothing,” said Harry, to let Hermione off the hook. “I’m just happy to get to spend my birthday with the people I love.”
Well, all except one, he thought. Draco hadn’t been able to get out of his work shift, and Harry refused to admit how disappointed he’d been when he’d found out about that, because it wasn’t reasonable for him to be. It wasn’t as if he expected Draco to be around all the time now just because they were sort of friends, or at least hung out in the same friend circles. But still, it wasn’t every day you turned 25 and wanted to celebrate with the people you cared most about.
Harry accepted the gift that Ron handed to him with a smile and a “Happy birthday, mate.” He tore the wrappings off to reveal a set of Wizards Chess. At Harry’s puzzled expression Ron explained. “Well, since you lost your old set I thought I’d give you a new one so we can play again!”
“Right,” Harry said with a tight smile, not mentioning that he knew damn well where his old set was (buried deep in a box in his attic because he was sick of losing to Ron all the time). “Thanks,” he managed to grind out, hoping it sounded sincere.
The rest under the cut or on ao3
“Maybe this one will be more useful,” said Blaise, as he handed Harry a thick, heavy parcel.
“Thanks Blaise!” Harry turned the package in his hands. “Hmmm, it feels like a book. Pretty sure it’s a book.” He unwrapped it. “And it’s a book! It’s— oh.”
“What, Harry?” Luna straightened up a bit to try and get a look.
“Um, nothing,” said Harry, trying to hide the Kama Sutra for Beginners behind his back. “Nothing, it’s, uh, I’ll have a closer look at this later.”
Blaise smirked and Harry whipped his head around to the stack of gifts next to him, wanting to occupy his mind with something other than the writhing bodies on the cover of the book currently taking up all the space in his head. “Who’s this from?” He picked up a big box wrapped in black paper with little golden snitches on it and a big golden bow on top.
“Oh that’s Draco’s,” said Pansy. “I promised I’d give it to you since he couldn’t make it today.”
“Right, right. Thanks Pansy,” Harry mumbled as he carefully peeled the tape from the paper, both so he wouldn’t tear it and so he could busy himself with the task instead of thinking about how Draco was holed up in St Mungo’s on Harry’s birthday.
He finally managed to get all the tape off and unwrapped the gift slowly. The sight of the box made him let out a gush of air, unable to believe that this was really real. Had Draco actually bought him—?
“What is it, Harry?” asked Hermione, trying to lean in closer to see what was in the box.
“I can’t—” Harry began, before swallowing and starting over. “I can’t believe he remembered.”
“What? What is it?” came a collective query from the group, everyone edging closer now.
Carefully, Harry opened the box to see if the content really matched the exterior, and when he’d made sure it really did, he had to pause again to blink repeatedly against the sting in his eyes. Then he picked up the black plastic box, twisting it in his hands. The room was silent, probably because few of them knew what this was.
“It’s a Muggle video game,” Harry tried to explain. “It’s… It must’ve been weeks ago, months maybe. We passed a Muggle second-hand store and I saw this and I… I made some throwaway comment about how Dudley used to have one of these but I was never allowed to play.” He stroked his thumb over the white letters forming the words “Mega Drive SEGA”, while memories of how he’d desperately wanted to play resurfaced in his mind. This console, like so many others before and after it, had not lasted long in the Dursley household. Before Harry had had any chance at trying it out, Dudley had stomped on it after the umpteenth attempt of getting past Dr. Eggman in the Oil Ocean Zone.
“Oh,” said Hermione softly in his ear, making him realise how close she was. “I remember these! Never had one myself but I sometimes played on my friend’s.”
Harry couldn’t stop staring. It wasn’t an extravagant gift, money-wise, but the thoughtfulness and the effort it must have taken Draco to find this for him was astounding. The game was almost mint condition. Draco must’ve gone back to the store to get a better look, and then found it in another store, because the one they’d seen had been old and battered. The gift made something stir in Harry, something he hadn’t allowed himself to think about before, and he wasn’t sure he was ready for even now.
“Oh, come on, remember when Draco went to Healer school and he fell in love with Keith Hendricks and bought him that ridiculously expensive non-spatter cauldron?” Ron chortled on Harry’s other side.
The room fell quiet and it took a few seconds for Ron’s words to process in Harry’s brain. He snapped his eyes up, looking sharply at Ron, whose ears had gone bright red.
“What did you just say?”
Ron’s eyes went wide and he gave Pansy, who was staring at him with a thunderous expression, a panicked look. “Uh…” said Ron, then cleared his throat several times while shrinking into the sofa. “Er… huh… ummm, non-spatter cauldron?”
“No. No, no,” said Harry, trying to wrap his head around Ron’s words. “The um, the ‘love’ part?”
Ron was now spluttering, frantically looking around the room for any sort of help from someone, and that was enough for the truth to register in Harry’s brain.
“Oh. My. God,” was all he managed to get out.
“Oh, noooo nononononono,” Ron chanted, rubbing his temples. “Noooo, I’m such a lousy friend!”
“I cannot believe this is the first time I hear about this!” Pansy snapped. “And to think that Draco confided in you, of all people!”
Ron straightened up and threw her a sharp look. “Hey! The ferret and I have a very trusting and mature friendship!”
“Yes, clearly he did the right thing trusting you with this information!” Pansy said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Well it’s not like I’ve told anyone else! I’ve even kept it from my own wife!”
“Oh, bravo, Weasel, ten points to Gryffindor.” Pansy inclined her head in Ron’s direction and clapped her hands in mock applause. “And then you chose this moment to spill the beans, very clever. I’ll have you know that I’ve kept it a secret that he had a crush on Potter back at Hogw—” she said, but interrupted herself. “Er, nevermind.”
Harry felt like he was watching a ping pong match, his mind reeling at all this information. Draco’d had a crush on him at Hogwarts? And now he was in love with him?
“Aha!” Ron shouted triumphantly. “Who’s the bad friend now?”
“Can the two of you shut the fuck up?!” Harry said, surprised at his own words and the force behind them. “I need to think.”
“Yes! Yes, give the poor man some space to think!” Ron hastily said, his expression amix of relieved and frantic.
But before Harry had time to properly panic, the door opened.
“Well, I had to bribe Healer Merriweather by taking all her night shifts for a month, but at least I managed to get here,” said Draco as he stepped inside, impeccably dressed as ever. “Please tell me I haven’t missed the cake.” He paused in front of the doorway, looking around the room, all eyes turned on him. “What? What happened? Is there something on my shirt?” He started patting himself all over, looking for a non-existing stain.
Harry could only stare at him, at the way his hair fell into his eyes and how he had to constantly flick his head to keep it away. The flush on his cheeks from apparently having rushed from the hospital, just to be able to celebrate Harry’s birthday because he knew how important it was to him. Or maybe because he’d seen how disappointed Harry’d been when Draco’d told him he wouldn’t be able to make it and now he‘d wanted to make it up to him. The care with which he had selected a present for Harry just to make him happy. There was a swooping sensation in Harry’s stomach, and suddenly his mouth started speaking before he could stop himself.
“You’re in love with me?”
Draco froze, his eyes widening comically before flitting around the room to finally land on Ron, who seemed to try to make himself a permanent part of Harry’s sofa. After a split second, Draco leaned back into the hallway, not meeting Harry’s eyes once. “Wait, what’s that? Oh, no! I see Head Healer Patel’s patronus, oh this can’t be good, I really must be off.”
He turned around and bolted for the door, but with the reflexes of a seeker, Harry apparated into the hallway, right in front of the stairs.
“You’re in love with me,” he repeated, more like a statement now, or maybe a confirmation to himself.
Draco folded his arms across his chest, lifting his chin. “I have no idea what gave you that impression, Potter, but—”
“Ron told me. Or, well, to be fair he accidentally let it slip.”
“Weasel,” Draco hissed. “I should’ve known it was unwise to get drunk with him. That red-headed buffoon act is a great cover to trick people into trusting him with—”
He didn’t get any further, because right then, Harry decided that he needed to do what he did best: use his gut. And his gut told him that he was pants with words, especially compared to Draco. And he wanted to make Draco stop talking, so he did the first thing that came to mind. He stepped closer and pressed his lips to Draco’s. It was probably the most chaste kiss he’d ever experienced, and yet it gave his stomach that funny swooping feeling again. Draco made a funny sound, like a mix of a squeak and a sharp inhale, and Harry realised that maybe this wasn’t what Draco wanted and started to pull back. But then he was thoroughly proven wrong when Draco grabbed him by the collar and pushed him backwards until they hit the opposite wall. Harry gasped when his head thumped against it, and then again when Draco opened his mouth and really kissed him, hands still fisted in Harry’s shirt.
It was the kind of kiss that, had they not been in Harry’s hallway, it would’ve led to other things. Harry’s body responded immediately, and he desperately wanted more. But their frantic snogging came to an abrupt halt when they suddenly realised they weren’t alone anymore.
“Oh,” someone said softly, and Harry didn’t need to look to know it was Luna.
Then someone (who sounded a lot like Pansy) shouted “What?” and there was the unmistakable sound of all their friends rushing to get to Harry’s front door first, then someone else (definitely Ron) yelled, “I don't need to see that!”
Harry kept his gaze firmly on Draco, cheeks gone pink and lips wonderfully kiss-swollen.
“Let’s go to your place, yeah?”
Draco nodded, eyes bright, his bottom lip disappearing between his teeth. Harry couldn’t wait to suck it into his mouth again.
“Right, hang on for one second,” Harry said, fishing out his wand from his pocket. “Accio Draco’s present!” With a spark of satisfaction he heard Blaise mutter “Ow!” when the box undoubtedly smacked into his head as it zoomed towards Harry’s outstretched hand.
But just as he was about to catch it, Draco cast a Depulso, making the game fly towards Luna, who caught it with an expression of curiosity as she twisted it in her hands.
“I’m very happy that you like your present so much, but trust me, Harry,” Draco murmured into his ear, “there won’t be time for any video games when I get you alone.”
#drarry#drarry squad#andithielwrites#getting together#fluff#I think?#references to video games from my childhood#i had my cousin's old sega master system though#I have the peticopter theme from Alex Kidd in miracle world as a ringtone#and the start level sound as a text signal#it’s not the same if you don’t have to blow in the game and the console as an error fix
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DMP SEASON 4 EPISODE 9 OUT OF CONTEXT SPOILERS
okay so like. i’m GENUINELY sorry that i haven’t been updating this blog a lot outside of ooc spoilers. genuinely my sense of time rn is so messed up that i think i’m updating it semi-frequently then realize i only did one round of quotes before a new episode drops lol. didn’t even do anything for last episode my sense of time is just utterly fucked. so sorry hahaha i can’t promise i’ll try to remember things but. i still love this blog i’m just drifting outside of space and time atm
spoilers ahead as normal but honestly this episode was so chill and vibin you could PROBABLY read this update without watching and wouldn’t be majorly spoiled for much. ngl this is one of my fav ooc spoilers because not much super intense happened so i was able to capture most of the shenanigans through memes
-charlie, probably (made by pip for space game. Saved it in advance knowing it was spoilers for this episode lol)
I’m pretty sure tasting the colour pink is just peptol bismol
Charlie has reached a new low 2 episodes after the pizza image, somehow
“Despite all my rage i am still just a rat in a cage” -thorin
Alex’s nickname on the fanserver sure is real awkward now
Charlie is a weeb. next up, the sky is blue
I mean. If YOU gained god powers don’t tell me you WOULDN’T watch every anime in existence
The biggest tonal dissonance between the art and the music i’ve ever seen
-art by cam
Cant believe zephi is cg’s friend from work
NO TEARS. ONLY YOGA
My therapist: calm voice CG isn’t real he can’t hurt you. Calm voice CG:
Even the void is not immune to capitalism
COMPETITIVE YOGA
GAY PANIC TIME, THE FRIEND FROM WORK HAS ARRIVED
Vinny is phoenix wright
Junior is denied playing with dogs by virtue of not being in the show. Shame.
Thorin being left alone with zephi, this could only end well. Just look how minerva ended up!
Vinny straight up admits he’s willing to kill a dog
“Ezra, yay or nay about val’s area”
Miss Charlie steal yo girl
“I fucked your girl shitlips” -charlie, probably
Maybe ONE day the space jam scenario will see the light of day
Welcome to FUCK IT
The local mall cryptid returns at last
Two legends make a triumphant return: junior no last name and the gazebo
Junior nolastname can legally swear
Chuck.
How dare you make me sad over one piece jokes
Just Starbucks
After months of CG and grace being the best goddamn dynamic in the show despite it being ENTIRELY noncanon they GET TO FUCKING INTERACT IN THE SHOW
Alex’s hyena laugh my beloved
Paul blart flesh mall
Do not investigate the meat
Yugo wasn’t dead, he was just put in gay baby jail for a nap
-cam
ALEX BE DROPPIN HOT BARS THO
Tommathan
Hailey gets struck by the apollo ball
Yknow. A proposal. As a friend. She put a ring on it. As a friend.
Tommy and angalena h*ld h*nds
Sometimes ur just so depressed you dont realize ur girlfriend proposed to you in a romantic way
Perhaps, just once, the girls will not be fighting
TACTICAL STEALTH EZRA
“It’s like i’m a WEBSERIES CHARACTER” -hailey looks directly at the camera
DAD TIME
Dads havin a good dad talk. I’m just vibin to this music
“The surrealism of it made me nearly scream”
Daily reminder that percy blackwood punched a kid at sunday school
Things gettin spicy in this mattress store ;)
Val averts thine eyes, at the disappointment of the fans
TOES TIME
Kingdom hearts called, it wants its belts back
Dmp would be instantly solved if junior hadnt been demoted to mall cryptid. Bitch been on screen for like 5 minutes and he’s goin full cinemasins on CG’s ass
Jesus canon to dmp
Junior decided to test god, he fucks around and finds out
CG throwing a temper tantrum and ripping apart his dolls like an angy 5 year old
(bitch), CG edition
THAT’S IT YOU’RE GOING TO SPENCERS
Eternal gazebo time
HOLY SHIT???? People go to malls to SHOP???
oh wow! [eldritch screeching] my favourite pokemon!!!
HAIR SWOOSH GANG
Oh noooooooo my two favs are talking whatever will i dooooooooooo
Yall are really just gonna shove doc’s corpse into a pretzel box huh
Charlie just progresses more and more into being comically small and sad
Rip the mall announcer, lost to the parking lot. We barely knew you
Charlie is a basic bitch, we been knew
Yeahhhh no cg sure as hell aint human. No human being would reasonably wear THAT
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dirtbags // 3: Charlotte
Summary: High school AU, 1985, Winter. The year’s off to a strange start as Charlotte and her friends find out that not only does Lola work at the new diner that opened up in town, but her dad owns it! Charlotte humbles Nikki in a very un-Charlotte manor, and Vince’s parents decide to host an English exchange student in an attempt to give him a good role model; instead, they get Razzle.
A/N: 8466 words. Do I care too much about this AU? Yes. as always, for my dears @misscharlottelee and @newyeareva ft. a softer world quotes
the city sometimes feels like a movie set. maybe this is the big scene. maybe i can be an extra at least.
Charlotte’s only a few practice hours away from being able to get her provisional license, and she berates her past self for not getting it sooner, especially not when her Winter Break has been kind of a shit-show and she’d rather tear off her own arms than ride in Tommy’s shitbox of a car with Vince Neil.
Since his blowout house party, Vince had essentially been grounded for the rest of the school year, had his car privileges revoked, and the only people his parents apparently trusted him to hang around with outside of school, were Tommy, Charlotte, Eileen, and Peach. Tommy was delighted. The girls, unsurprisingly, were not. Vince himself was downright somber, and had sulked for the remainder of the semester, and well into the break.
He had been in a particularly sour mood since last night, New Year’s Eve, when his parents had announced they were going to be hosting an exchange student from England for six months. Vince is convinced it’s an attempt to give him some sort of role model his own age, and spent most of his parents’ New Year’s Eve party ranting to Tommy and the girls while they played cards in his basement.
Her saving grace is Eileen, of course, who’s father had bought her mother a shiny, new car for Christmas, and had given Eileen the keys to her mother’s old station wagon.
“It’s kinda dumb that we’re taking two cars,” Peach, Eileen’s little sister, pipes up from the back seat, hands fiddling in her lap. It’s New Year’s Day, and while their various parents were sleeping off their hangovers, they’d suggested the kids check out the new diner that was opening today. Vince jumped at the suggestion of freedom, and everyone was in agreement, but Eileen and Charlotte took Peach in Eileen’s car the moment Vince slid into Tommy’s front seat, holding the flyer he’d gotten at the mall that told them all about the diner’s opening day, “just saying, we could all fit in one.” But she’s met with silence, “are you going to be mad at him forever?” She finally sighs.
“Yes.” Both Charlotte and Eileen answer automatically. Peach sighs as dramatically as she’s able, and sinks as low into the seat as she can. Charlotte turns on the radio, and hums along to something familiar, but that she doesn’t quite recognize, staring out the front window at the back of Tommy’s car. Vince turns around in the front seat and flips them off.
“I’m gonna ram them,” Eileen says, with absolute sincerity and serenity, leveling an intense glare at where Vince was now waving.
“Don’t,” Charlotte advises, equally level.
“I don’t get why you’re still mad, I’m not even mad,” Peach huffed, pouting. Charlotte and Eileen share a look; at sixteen years old, Peach was top of almost all of her math and science classes, but she was still a teenage girl, and an absolute fool for a blonde boy who made her cry. Charlotte knew that feeling all too well, but thankfully she’d moved on from the ‘wondering why she wasn’t enough’ stage to the ‘realizing her ex is a cheating douchebag and it was never her fault’ stage. She really hopes Peach can move on to ‘realizing Vince made her cry and hasn’t even tried to change since then and deserved to get his car keyed’ stage quickly.
The diner was bustling when they arrived, a large decal on the inside of window, black, thick and flowing lettering, outlined in gold, reading Leo’s. Through the window, several booths were already filled, as were a host of the stools along the counter. It looked warm inside, inviting in golds, yellows, peaches and oranges, neon signs and rusted street signs, band and comic book memorabilia, and photos. Behind the counter -
Lola. Smiling.
“I’m freezing my butt off, can we go in?” Peach asks, hands shoved deep in the pockets of her parker, the only person who did not recognize the girl currently pouring coffee for an elderly gentleman at the counter.
Inside, the diner is warm, filled with the sounds pleasant chatter, and of the Beatles coming from a cherry wood jukebox in the corner.
“Lola!” Tommy can’t help himself, lighting up at the sight of her, and once Lola finishes pouring her customer coffee, she looks to their confused little group, and waves.
“Find yourselves a seat, I’ll be with you in a moment,” she calls back, smiling bright and wide, hair tied back with a bright, red bandana.
The teens do as they’re told, pulling off jackets and gloves and scarves, sliding into a booth by the window, looking around, wrapped up in the smell of warm food, and the confusion of Lola’s presence, and completely unfamiliar demeanor. There’s an uncertain kind of quiet among them, having just expected to spend lunch at a cool new diner, but this has shift everything, only Peach, blissfully unaware of who Lola even was, seemed at ease, rearranging the sugar packets in their little holder.
Lola comes by with menus, and cups, and a pitcher of water for the table, looking pristine and put together in a tight, black blouse, skirt, and scuffed black combat boots, little peach-coloured apron tied around her waist. She pulls a notebook and pen from the pocket of the apron, looking around at them all, as if finally taking a moment to assess the situation.
Charlotte picked up a menu.
“You work here?” Tommy asked, and Lola confirms brightly, but doesn’t give any further details. She does, however, thank them all for coming, and recommend a few of her favourites.
“I’m also partial to The Lola, for obvious reasons,” she gives an actual laugh at that, as if implying one of the burgers was named after her was giving away too much information, and Charlotte was quickly scouring the menu.
Beef patty, double bacon, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, and a home-made smokey maple-barbeque sauce, on a toasted bun.
“The menu’s kind of misleading,” Lola admits, moving to look down over Charlotte’s shoulder as she was reading, “all the patties are home made too, with Leo’s signature blend of herbs and spices.” That asked more questions than it answered. No-one’s quite sure what to say.
“Can I get a milkshake?” Peach pipes up, and Lola’s smile grew wide as she asked what flavour, “chocolate, please, and do you have curly fries or regular?”
“Hand cut,” Lola tells her proudly, but that means very little to Peach, who’s just glad to be having food, “still need time to think?” Lola asks the rest, and they all give her awkward, quiet smiles and nods.
Lola leaves, heading back to the counter, and the moment she’s gone, the whole table explodes with whispered confusion, leaning in, asking questions and not getting any answers.
“You guys are being super fucking weird,” Peach hisses loudly at them all, while Charlotte and Tommy argue about how the other should have known. Eileen, quietly delighted by the chaos, demands to know if anyone else thinks Lola might secretly have a twin, and Vince, who’s had the least contact with her aside from Peach, is babbling about how it’s weird to see Lola so chipper; their mutual confusion is enough to set aside Eileen and Charlotte’s hatred of him, at least for the moment.
When Peach demands they explain what they’re all whisper-shouting about, disturbing the booth behind her, they all quiet down, and Tommy and Eileen take it in turns explaining their full understanding of Lola. Charlotte takes the time to actually look around the diner now that she was inside.
There’s two other waitress, one behind the counter, the other always moving on about the various tables and booths on one side, making sure the customers are happy and food and drinks are delivered, both in the same outfit as Lola, though with varying footwear.
The view to the kitchen is unobstructed behind the counter, a half wall where meals ready to be delivered were sat, but a clear view to where three people in the kitchen, two by the grills and fryers, turned away; a broad-shouldered man towering over the grill with the longest hair Charlotte’s ever seen braided neatly down his back, and a comparatively shorter man, also with far shorter hair, though enough to be pulled up into a messy pony tail. The shorter man’s working the fryer, and putting together burgers as the taller man cooked up their various ingredients. There was also a strangely familiar kid with a mop of dark, curly hair washing dishes on the other side of the kitchen, barely visible.
Lola worked diligently, smiling and chatting away; she collected dishes, and ferried meals, and handed out slices of desert from the cute, multi-tiered desserts display on the counter. When she came back, milkshake in one hand, basket of fries in the other, Peach is fully caught up on each of her friend’s short but confusing histories with her, and blurts out -
“You’re Lola?” Injecting new meaning into the words, into the name, as if anyone else at their entire school had the same name. Lola’s smile goes a little tight as she places the fries and the milkshake before the redhead. Standing back up, she taps her nametag, which reads Lola, with little flowers drawn around it, and confirms, though it’s clear she’s more on edge than she was before.
“You guys ready to order?” She asks, still trying to keep up her chipper attitude, pulling out her notebook again. Everyone’s quieter this time, looking over the menu and finally deciding on food.
“My mom heard the owner was a chef, is that true?” Tommy asks, looking up from the menu to Lola again, and the tense set of her shoulders loosens considerably at the question.
“Leo is a chef,” Lola nodded, grinning broadly, “trained at the Culinary Institute of America back in the sixties, and worked his way up to being the head chef of Parker House in Boston, which I know probably doesn’t mean much to you guys, but it’s,” Lola laughs a little struggling to describe it, “it’s fine dining at it’s finest, but for the past twelve years, he’s been running Leo’s in Salem, and now he’s here, still using all that fine dining training for the anyone who wants a good meal at a good price.”
“Is that something they have you memorize in training?” Vince says, a little awed, and Lola gives a strange little smile.
“Leo’s my dad.”
Everything kind of fell into place after that, finally making sense, and the gang’s confusion quickly shifted to understanding, and the air around the table seemed to clear. It was easier after that, the teens in the booth ordering quickly, and the chatter picked up to a normal level as she moved away, shouting their order back to the kitchen once she was back at the counter.
She doesn’t spend much time at their table, still in charge of waitressing half of the tables and booths, but she always gives them a nod as she passes, and their meals are being delivered efficiently, so there’s no reason to complain.
The food itself, for diner food, is nothing short of spectacular, which kind of just raises more questions - why if Leo can cook food that tastes this good, and with all the experience he evidentially has, would he open a diner in suburban LA, and not a high-end restaurant? But it feels kind of intrusive to ask, so Charlotte simply enjoys her food, and her friends’ company.
Up until Vince starts complaining about the exchange student again.
“His name’s Nicholas, he shows up in a week, and mom’s making me clear out the basement so he can sleep there,” he’s despondently poking his milkshake with one of his fries, head propped up on one hand, “I’ve been asking for years if I could move into the basement, and this fucking Nicholas just gets it?” His whole expression scrunches up at the thought, and he angrily eats his fry.
“Wait, so the issue isn’t that you have to clean up the basement, it’s that he gets to use it as a bedroom and you don’t?” Charlotte frowned, lowering her own burger, “why would you even want to sleep in the basement?”
“Privacy!” Vince throws his hands in the air, eyes wide, “Tammi keeps complaining about getting cramps in the back of my car, but my bedroom walls are paper thin,” he huffs, “I need my own space.”
“Tammi?” Peach asks, her voice high and almost painfully chipper, “Tammi Frisk? She scored the winning goal in the softball final, right?” She’s not looking at Vince, when Charlotte looks over to her, she’s looking at her plate of fries, pushing the few left around without eating any, smiling in a way that’s clearly forced.
“You were at the softball final?” Tommy asked, frowning slightly. Peach did not look up.
“For the school paper,” she explained, voice still strange.
“You’re still with Tammi Frisk?” Eileen asks, making sure the disgust is clear in her voice as she draws the table’s attention away from the clearly uncomfortable Peach. Charlotte’s lip curled; she wanted to make sure her expression was as judgmental as possible when Vince turned back to her.
It’s not that she cared about who he was dating, she was mostly apathetic to Tammi, and knew little more about her than the fact that she was on the softball team, but Charlotte knew Vince had been dating Tammi when he’d decided to crush Peach’s heart publicly at the start of the last semester.
Neither Peach nor Eileen had told any of them exactly how, but apparently Eileen’s hatred was well warranted, both against Vince, and according to Eileen, Tammi too.
Vince, immediately sensing Eileen’s shift in tone, and seeing the look on her face, frowns.
“Kind of,” he responds flatly, and his gaze flicks to Peach, “not really,” he backtracks, and his indignation at the whole situation seems to fizzle out with a sigh, and he slouches, going back to paying attention to his burger, “she’s sort of hanging out with one of the second-string football guys, but they’re not... and we’re not really...” he trails off, despondent once more.
At least Vince seemed to be self-aware of the fact that he was an asshole to Peach, at least he had the decency to feel bad about it. Why he kept inviting Peach to hang out, despite the fact that he knew Eileen, who hated his guts, would come along too - invited or not - baffled Charlotte.
Tommy was his friend, and a guy, Charlotte was a cheerleader and technically popular, and so was usually begrudgingly invited too, but Peach, sweet Peach, recent Science Fair Winner, junior reporter for the school paper, treasurer for the AV Club, by all accounts ‘a nerd’ when judged by her interests, was still on the guest list of Vince Neil’s life, even if he wouldn’t admit that out loud.
It kind of made Charlotte want to punch him in the face.
But that’s not news.
“I hope the English exchange student is a decent influence on you,” Charlotte tells him. Vince scowls.
“You sound like my parents.”
you make me want to pretend to be a better man.
Now that school has started back up, Vince has thankfully had his car privileges returned, and Charlotte can return to not glowering in the back seat of Tommy’s car when he picks her up on the way to school, and drops her home on the days they both have practice.
But it’s Wednesday, first week back, and he’s uncharacteristically quiet. Usually he’s babbling about practice, or cheerleaders he thinks are pretty, or Lola, but today, he meets Charlotte in the carpark, leaning against the trunk of his car, hands in his pockets, quiet. It’s decidedly unnerving.
“What’s wrong, Tom?” Charlotte asks, yanking the passenger door open once he unlocks it, sliding into the seat and putting her bag by her feet.
“Nothing,” Tommy voice betrays the lie, the thoughts so clearly on his mind that he was trying to avoid talking about. Charlotte won’t push him, if he wanted to tell her, he would, and he usually does, “put on some music, will you?” And Charlotte obligingly opens the glove compartment in front of her to look through the collection of 8track tapes he keeps in there, several of which had been Christmas gifts from Charlotte herself.
Feet on the dashboard, Charlotte’s more than content listening to Bon Jovi, bopping her head to the beat, when Tommy finally finds the words for his thoughts.
“Lola and Nikki Sixx are friends.”
Up until now, Charlotte was under the impression that Tommy, like her, thought Nikki and Lola would be great as friends, Tommy’s current tone implies otherwise.
“Is that not good?” Charlotte’s careful about her words, still not sure where Tommy’s hesitation was coming from.
“No, they make sense,” he’s quick to try and backtrack, words spilling from him almost too fast, “they make sense as friends.” He deliberates, before asking, “Charlie, you’re not friends with Nikki Sixx are you?” And it sounds like he already knows the answer. Charlotte hesitates.
“He keeps bothering me during my free periods, I wouldn’t exactly call us friends -”
“He called you Charlie,” its deadpan and accusatory in equal measure, and Charlotte shrinks back into her seat as Tommy keeps talking, “he called me ‘Charlie’s cousin’. It was weird.”
“I thought you wanted to be his friend -” she tries, right as they pull up to a red light, and Tommy fixes her with an unamused look, the only expression that makes him seem older than his years.
“Did you tell him I was obsessed with him?”
“No!” Charlotte snaps, automatically defensive.
“Because I’m not -”
“I never said - I told him you were a fan! That’s all! Like Duff was!” Charlotte tries to clear up, and Tommy looks back at the road, though this time he thankfully looks more pensive than angry. Only Bon Jovi cuts through the tense air between them for the rest of the drive back to Charlotte’s house, and when Tommy pulls up outside, he doesn’t say anything to her when she gets out.
The next day, like clockwork, fifteen minutes into her free period, Nikki Sixx comes climbing over the school’s fence, into the garden Charlotte had been trying to force herself to study in. In all honesty, she’d been waiting for him, picking at her nail polish beneath the table and reading the same sentence in Moby Dick over and over again.
“Miss Lee,” Nikki nods to her, a little gruffer than usual, “you seem more tense than usual; I can help you with that if you want,” but he still manages to smirk his way through an unsubtle come-on, and Charlotte rolls her eyes, not in the mood for their usual banter.
“I’d rather sit on a cactus,” she tells him icily, without even a teasing edge. Nikki’s eyebrows shoot up at the hostility, and he puts the packet of cigarettes that he’d about to offer her on the table, knowing she’d turn them down anyway, “I thought people weren’t meant to know that we know each other.”
“What people do?” Nikki frowned, raising his lighter to the cigarette between his lips, “is this about yesterday? I talked to your cousin, big deal. Everyone knows you two are related, and everyone knows you,” he looks pointedly to the embroidered logo on her cheer uniform, “I wasn’t even looking for him -”
“Dude,” Charlotte felt as though she was about to tear her hair out, “you called me Charlie to him, people don’t just call me that!”
“Plenty of people call you that! That leggy redhead you’re always hanging around calls you Charlie -”
“My friends call me that -” Charlotte snaps, “and I know you know that’s Eileen Austen.” And Nikki’s wearing a dreamy look, like he’s thinking unholy thoughts about Eileen as Charlotte speaks, before snapping out of it as the first of her words register like a bucket of ice water to the face.
“I’ve called you Charlie before. To your face.”
“Yeah, I’ve noticed,” Charlotte tells him dryly, crossing her arms, “it’s less effort if I don’t correct you. We’re so not friends that I don’t even care about correcting you.” Back when this school year started, Charlotte wouldn’t have dreamed saying half the nasty shit she’s thrown at Nikki Sixx, and at some point she may have to confront the idea that being around him has made her meaner, “but did you tell my cousin that I told you he was obsessed with you? Because I never -”
“I said I was glad he was a fan!” Nikki scowled, sitting back and glowering at her across the table, “all I wanted was to ask Lola if she wanted to sit on the roof with the rest of the smokers, and your fuckin’ yappy, dumbass of a cousin -”
Punching someone in the face hurts a lot more than Charlotte had been anticipating, but it’s worth it to see Nikki toppling backwards off of the picnic bench and onto the cold grass. His cigarette lies some few feet away while he lays groaning, clutching his cheek, and Charlotte’s standing, leaning, thighs pressed against the picnic table for support as she’s staring down at him, breathing heavy through her nose while the adrenaline rushes through her system.
“What the fuck, Charlie?”
“Don’t talk shit about Tommy,” her heart’s thundering in her chest, she can feel the blood rushing in her ears, and when she looks at her hand, she sees the skin of one of her knuckles has split enough to draw blood, “he has done fucking nothing to you apart from support you, and think you’re really fucking cool, for whatever dumbass reason, so don’t you dare talk shit about him.”
“Jesus Christ,” Nikki groaned, eyes closed, trying to catch his breath after being winded so thoroughly, hand still cradling his cheek. That’s how Charlotte leaves him, slinging her bag onto her shoulder, and stalking towards the library to finish the rest of her free period in peace.
When Tommy drives Charlotte, Eileen, and Peach home after school that day, he’s quiet once again, but it somehow feels completely different to the oppressively accusatory air of the day before. The three girls were chattering away, trying to plan a trip to the mall for the upcoming weekend, and only when Peach and Eileen were waving goodbye in the rearview mirror did Tommy speak up.
“Did you punch Nikki Sixx in the face?” There’s a smile in her cousin’s voice, and Charlotte’s not quite sure how to react.
“I had good reason to,” she says, carefully guarded.
“He said you guys were friends, and then he thanked me for being coming to the gig a while back; told me he’d asked you to bring me specifically,” Tommy’s tone was oozing pride, and if Charlotte had been looking at him, and not frowning out the window, she would have seen how he was all but preening.
“He told you all that?” Charlotte’s anger at her memory’s of the morning’s altercation was fading fast.
“He hung out with me and Lola by the carpark for lunch,” Tommy paused, snorting a laugh, “didn’t want his buddies to find out a cheerleader gave him a black eye.”
“I - what? No I didn’t...” Charlotte’s eyes went wide, and finally she looked at her cousin’s beaming face.
“You definitely did; Lola laughed at him for a full ten minutes because of it.”
“Serves him right,” Charlotte said, with a begrudging little smile.
Nikki sits with Tommy and Lola on Friday too, which Tommy is delighted to inform Charlotte on Saturday while he’s driving them both to Vince’s, where his parents have invited them over to meet the exchange student. Nicholas.
He arrived on Wednesday, but Vince’s parents have given him the rest of the week to settle in, and had invited around the few friends Vince has that they deem to be a positive influence, if only so he knew a few faces around school.
Charlotte had been picturing some over-gelled boarding-school boy, used to itchy uniforms and strict rules, and about to get a good deal of culture shock hanging around Vince and the rest of their motley little pack, but when Charlotte brings this speculation up in the car, Tommy’s quick to dismiss it. Vince, from the little Tommy had spoken to him in the past two days, was over the moon, claimed that Nicholas - Vince had called him Razzle - was amazing. If Charlotte felt an quiet sense of foreboding at that sentiment, she felt it was justified.
The first thing either of them hear after being directed down to the basement by Vince’s mother, is Alice Cooper playing almost obnoxiously loud; Charlotte’s not sure why, but it eases something in her chest.
Nicholas’s - Razzle’s? - room, first and foremost, is possibly the coolest bedroom Charlotte’s ever been in. He’s decked it out with movie and band posters, though most of the band’s she’s never heard of. There’s string-lights above a desk, a bed crammed into one corner with a bright duvet, and even a sofa, and a few beanbags all crowded around a low, wooden table that had mostly been taken up with a record player, which is where they found their friends.
The name Razzle suited him, Charlotte considered, as she took in the newcomer’s appearance, all spiked up dark hair and ostentatious clothing, animatedly telling a story while Peach and Vince hung onto his every word. He looked almost wild, like collection of half-thought ideas all vying to become a reality through the texture of his clothes, the height of his hair, the hint of amusement that tailed his words, the passion shining in the blue of his eyes when they flicked to look at her and her cousin, standing on the stairs and watching him.
His words grow quiet as he takes them in, as if waiting for something to happen, for someone to introduce them.
“You must be Charlie and Tommy!” His accent, thick and bright, made her nickname sound so familiar on his lips.
“Charlotte,” Vince corrects, giving a surprisingly respectful nod to Charlotte, who tries to shrug nonchalantly.
“Charlie’s fine. You’re,” and Charlotte hesitates for a moment, ignoring Vince’s eyeroll, “Razzle, right?” Razzle’s smile is blinding at her immediate use of the nickname, and he waves them in.
Peach throws Tommy a cushion from the sofa when he asks, and he settles himself on the floor next to Vince, while Peach and Eileen squeeze over to make room for Charlotte on the sofa clearly only made for two people.
“I was just telling these guys ‘bout my band’s very first gig, ‘nd how I had to sneak out just to get there,” Razzle settled back into his own beanbag, hands out and ready to return to his story, eyes still shining with anticipation at the memory, or possibly just glad to have an audience.
Oh, Charlotte thought, looking at this boy she barely knew, already fighting off a smile in the face of his infectious enthusiasm, maybe Vince was becoming a better judge of character.
“You’re in a band?” Tommy’s eyes light up, and Charlotte gives her cousin a fond smile; Razzle has already won his seal of approval.
we need more good crazy. it'd be nice to watch the news, and think, 'that's fucking insane', but feel a little jealous instead of just alone.
Heather hasn’t been glowering as much at lunch, and the rumour is that it’s because she’s getting laid. Well, it’s less of a rumour to Charlotte, since Heather confirmed as much to the rest of the cheer squad when one of the girls asked her, but she’s being coy and secretive about who she’s with, which is the really weird part; Heather won’t say, and no-one’s coming forward, and lord knows that most guys at their school would jump at the opportunity to claim they’re banging the Vice Captain of the Cheerleading Squad.
But Charlotte knows not to look a gift horse in the mouth, and instead just smiles back when Heather gives her a sunny smile in the cafeteria.
Tommy is less than thrilled with the news when Charlotte brings it up in the car after school. Nikki’s still sitting with him and Lola during lunch, despite his bruising going down considerably over the weekend, and Tommy is equal parts delighted and uncomfortable, for reasons he can’t seem to put into words.
“At least Pam’s single,” he says it with as much of a dreamy sigh as he can manage, though it comes out more forlorn than anything else. Charlotte pets his shoulder, and reminds him that so is over half the squad; he perks up a little at that.
They pull into Mick’s gas station, and Charlotte waves to Mick and Lola, who are sitting on the step by the door sharing a cigarette. Lola waves back.
“Meant to give this to you,” Lola says to Charlotte, still sitting while Mick begrudgingly heads inside. Tommy follows him in, not needing to fill up the tank, but rather just looking to drown his sorrows regarding Heather in a jumbo slurpee. Outside, Charlotte waits with her hands in her pockets, giving Lola an amused smile, watching as the dark haired girl pulls a pin off of the jacket she practically lives in, and hands it over.
It’s a piece of black card stock cut into the shape of a star, barely an inch in diameter, taped to a safety pin. It say Punched Nikki Sixx in silver pen, one of the points of the star already a little bit crumpled.
“You’re a little bit punk, so you get a pin,” Lola tells her, smiling around her cigarette, looking quietly pleased, and perhaps even a little bit proud; whether of herself or of Charlotte, Charlotte can’t tell, but it still makes her flush.
“I thought Nikki didn’t want anyone knowing that a cheerleader gave him a black eye,” Charlotte mused, looking at the little pin, and Lola’s face scrunched up, expression falling.
“So? Who gives a shit?” She shrugs, looking away tone having shifted to almost forcibly neutral in an instant, “wear the pin or don’t, I don’t care.” Lola stands with a groan, without giving Charlotte a chance to respond, and calls to Mick that she’s heading to the diner. Mick waves, Tommy calls out a farewell, and Charlotte frowns, wondering what just happened.
“I hate that,” Nikki says flatly, the moment he spots the pin where Charlotte’s fixed it to the strap of her backpack. There’s no hard feelings between them after last week’s altercation, thankfully, though they don’t talk about it. If Charlotte’s glad that he still showed up, if she’s realised she may, in fact, enjoy his company, she keeps that information to herself.
“Lola made it for me,” Charlotte tells him. Nikki leans in, squinting at the handmade pin.
“Of course she did,” he sighs, leaning back. Surprisingly, there’s quiet between them for a few, long moments; maybe, Charlotte considers, this will be one of those mornings where Nikki uses their time together to catch up on sleep, and Charlotte can actually use her free period for it’s intended, study-related purpose, but then Nikki sighs like he wants her to ask what’s wrong.
So she does.
“I need a new band.”
“I can’t help you.”
“I know,” Nikki nods with resignation, “I was gonna ask this guy I work with, Slash, he plays guitar, but he’s already in one -”
“Wait, you don’t mean Duff’s friend Saul Hudson, do you?” Charlotte frowned, intrigued despite the stab of anger she felt at the mere mention of her ex. Nikki seemed taken aback by her question.
“You know Duff McKagan?”
“I dated him for a year and a half,” Charlotte finds herself suddenly very interested in drawing connecting triangles in the back of her notebook, not looking at Nikki, who’s quietly processing this information.
“He’s in a band now,” and neither of them seem to be quite sure why he offered that information, but they both let is hang between them for a moment.
“Makes sense,” Charlotte nods, tone flat, “with Saul - Slash?”
“Yeah,” is all Nikki has to say.
“Slash is a good kid, I always liked him,” Charlotte offered, and finally she looks up, “Tommy plays drums.”
“Marching band isn’t exactly -” Nikki begins, but Charlotte’s shaking her head.
“No, like, legit drums,” she enthuses, “his parents fixed up their whole garage to make it sound proof for him,” but she doesn’t want Nikki to think she’s pushing her cousin on him too hard, not after last week, so she sits back, and crosses her arms, trying to play it cool, “I mean, you can ask him yourself, see if he’s any good.” She shrugs, but Nikki looks like he’s already considering it.
“How many musicians do you know, Charlie?” He finally asks, giving her a faint, amused smile.
“Probably too many,” Charlotte responds with a longsuffering smile, before her mind turns to the things Tommy himself had told her, “I heard you and Lola are getting along; what’d I tell you?” She teased, and much to her surprise, what she could see of Nikki’s face, for his hair, was turning pink.
“She’s a bitch; you know she’s a bitch, right?” He asks, but he’s grinning, all sharp and dangerously amused.
“I knew you guys would get along,” Charlotte gives a pleased little sigh, as if she’d manufactured their whole friendship herself. Nikki rolls his eyes at her, and the bell goes.
Tommy, as it turns out, thinks they’re sleeping together, at least that’s what he tells Charlotte when they’re on their way to Leo’s after school to meet up with Vince, Razzle, Peach, and Eileen. The news of Nikki and Lola’s potential affair surprises Charlotte at first, but after a moment of consideration, she thinks she should have seen it coming.
Tommy’s reasoning is that they’ve become friends far quicker than he’d realised, and Nikki’s always giving Lola lifts after work, like they’re going in the same direction, even though he’d pretty sure Nikki doesn’t live near Leo’s. It also turns out that that was what had been bothering him about Nikki and Lola being friends; he still tries to insist he doesn’t have a crush on Lola, but he and Charlotte both know that’s mostly a lie.
So Charlotte can see how conflicted he is when he tells her that Nikki’s looking to start a new band, and that he asked about Tommy possibly playing drums. A beat of silence follows, and then, without looking away from the road, Tommy mutters a quiet thanks, knowing without asking that Charlotte had been the one to recommend him. Charlotte leans over and bumps her forehead against his shoulder in unspoken acknowledgment.
“Duff’s in a band,” Charlotte’s voice is soft and a little unreadable.
“Sorry,” Tommy mutters, tone somber like it’s the worst news in the world, “we could throw rotten tomatoes at him?” He suggested, at the mental picture alone was enough to make Charlotte laugh, “or is that just in the movies?”
“I think that’s just in the movies,” Charlotte says, amid giggles, “besides, the rest of his band doesn’t deserve that.”
In the week that Razzle’s been in LA, Vince and his family have taken him to several, sophisticated restaurants in the vicinity, and Razzle had apparently loved them all; Leo’s was no different. He was sitting across from Charlotte in the booth, at the end of the table, reading the menu intently as the others chattered away about their day, making noises of intrigue every time he spotted something new he wanted to try. His knee knocked hers under the table, but it barely seemed to register, so engrossed in the menu that he muttered the faintest apology.
“Afternoon, guys, welcome,” Lola at work never failed to startle Charlotte, despite the fact that she’d been here once already since the first time. At least her chipper introduction seemed to bring Razzle back to reality.
“Hi, yes - oh! I know you!” Razzle lit up at the sight of Lola, and the rest of the gathered teens watched with interest, trying not to give away how intrigued they were to see Lola’s reaction, “Miss Honky Cat, you work here?”
What?
“Alright, Razzle, you found me, did you wanna order something?” Lola says, with a good-natured eyeroll, and an easy grin, hip cocked to one side. Razzle asks her what she recommends, and orders that, and then the rest of them, who had been sitting in stunned silence, are quick to order for themselves.
When she leaves, it’s mere moments before Tommy asks what that was all about, and Razzle’s eyes go wide.
“That’s Lola, innit? From school? She’s in my music class, was playing Honky Cat on the piano in the second music room, the Elton song, you know, when we had some free this morning,” he explained, confused, “she called me Rocketman when I picked what she’d been playing, but I told her my name’s Razzle.”
“You’re an enigma,” ironically, it’s Eileen who says this, wearing a fond little smile, while Razzle just looked bemused.
“I think it’s the accent, chicks fuckin’ love it,” Vince pipes up, smirking, and Razzle tries to hide his own pleased little grin since he can’t very well deny it, “Pam was all over him in Phys Ed yesterday -”
“We were just having a conversation -” Razzle was quickly turning red, while Vince clutched at his arm, putting on a high voice, twirling his blonde hair around one finger as he pretended to be Pam.
“Oh Nicholas, tell me more about The Clash, please, I want to know more!” He ended with a fake moan, which had Eileen and Peach laughing, while Razzle grabbed Charlotte’s hand and exaggeratedly mouthed ‘help me’.
“Pam’s into Razzle?” Tommy groaned, breaking the moment, falling dejectedly against Vince, who was already leaning pretty heavily on Razzle, who was then ejected from his seat and onto the floor, while Vince was draped over where he was just sitting, and Tommy was draped over Vince, “I’m gonna die alone.”
Despite Tommy’s despair, the rest of the table was greatly amused.
Thankfully for Razzle, it wasn’t a far fall, and he’d held tight to Charlotte’s hand, so at least he hadn’t ended up flat on his back, and Charlotte gave him an apologetic grin as she helped him to his feet. He lets go to dust himself off, and it’s here Charlotte notices his maroon, velvet pants, and black and white leather shoes with their little heel.
“Fancy threads,” Charlotte points out, notes of approval in her voice. Razzle makes a move to straightening a jacket he’s not wearing, and clicks his heels together, drawing the attention of the rest of the table to his shoes, of which they all make various noises of approval, or at least interest.
“I dress to impress,” and judging by his tone, if he were as crass as Vince or Nikki, he would have winked, but Charlotte’s kind of glad he refrained. He then shoves Vince, and by extension Tommy, back up to a sitting position, retaking his seat across from Charlotte, this time purposefully knocking his knee against hers.
Charlotte’s glad that Lola’s back with their drinks, so she can look at something that’s not Razzle’s sunny smile, because she doesn’t want to think about how pretty it makes him look. Stupid, British, band boy and his stupid, blue eyes.
But then she’s looking at Lola, and all she can remember is Tommy’s dejected expression when he told her that Lola and Nikki were possibly sleeping together, and Nikki’s half-hidden, bashful grin when he calls a bitch with a kind of fondness that Charlotte had never heard from him before. The urge to protect her cousin, from harm, from heartbreak, is carved into her bones, but part of her knows it would him hurt more to let him keep falling for Lola when she’d never really end up catching him. Suddenly staring into the depths of her soda became the safest option.
i have loved since you. but when the new paint gets scratched, there you are underneath.
Heather, of all people, is holding a party, and she tries to limit the amount of people she tells - the squad and her friends were the first to be invited - but of course, the guest list spirals out of control, and it’s exactly one and a half days before Tommy’s mooning over the fact that he’s been invited to a party at an actual cheerleader’s house.
“Dude, you’re killing me here,” Charlotte tells him at lunch; she’s finally sitting with him, Lola, and Nikki, though Nikki’s late. Heather had coyly asked her to ask Vince to bring Razzle - the cute English guy, specifically - and Charlotte had picked up her bag and left. Something about Heather in a good mood was worse than when she was being catty.
“You don’t count, you’re my cousin,” Tommy waived her off, and Lola snorted a laugh from where she was laying in the grass, using her backpack as a pillow. “You going?” Tommy pokes Lola in the ribs and she smacks his hand away, but makes an affirmative noise, and throws her arm over her eyes to shield them from the sun.
Something about how that makes Tommy smile, almost pleased, has worry sinking heavy in Charlotte’s gut.
“Heather asked me to ask Vince to invite Razzle,” Charlotte’s not quite sure why she says it, or why it makes Lola bark a laugh of her own, but at least it get’s Tommy’s mind off of last time he and Lola were at a party.
“Of course -” Tommy sighs, but then, in the very same breath, he lights up like a lightbulb, “wait! If Heather’s preoccupied with Razzle, and Pam’s going, then I -” he turned sharply to Charlotte, eyes wide, “is Pam seeing anyone?” Charlotte gives him an amused, but longsuffering look, shaking her head.
“You gonna put the moves on her?” Lola’s smirking, and Tommy’s steadily turning red, but refusing to be embarrassed.
“It’s now or never, you know? She’s graduating in a few months, will go to college and date some meathead, college footballer, this is my chance,” he enthused, and Charlotte pet his shoulder in solidarity.
Nikki joins them halfway through lunch, right as Lola and Charlotte find themselves playing angel and devil on Tommy’s shoulders regarding how he should dress for the party. Charlotte’s firmly of the opinion that he should be be wearing bright, eye-catching things - “Come on, you know Pam likes those new-wave guys!” - while Lola was adamantly recommending to go all-out punk.
“Don’t ask Nikki’s opinion, you know who he’s going to side with,” Charlotte implored, and as if to prove a point, Nikki throws his bag to the side, and lays down with his head pillowed on Lola’s stomach.
“Because Nikki has taste,” Lola throws her arm above her head, into the grass, neck at an awkward angle as she looks, wide-eyed to Tommy.
“Thank you,” Nikki grumbles, and immediately closes his eyes, “what are we arguing about?” A pause, then, “and why is Charlie here?”
“Heather asked Charlie to bring Razz to the party next weekend,” Tommy says, the words sounding rote off his tongue, before he gets into the meat of the argument, laying himself back in the grass. Somehow it makes Charlotte feel left out, being the only one left marginally upright, and she slouches a little lower against the fence.
Tommy explains his conundrum, and much to everyone’s surprise, Nikki refrains from giving his opinion, sighting that he has no clue what Pam would like, and that he’s not taking the fall if Tommy looks like a dickhead and crashes and burns while talking to, arguably, the most popular girl in school.
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, asshole,” Tommy groans, without really thinking, and as the realization and subsequent horror took over his expression, Lola barked a laugh, and even Nikki was grinning.
The moment was surprisingly light, Tommy’s face buried in his hands, though he’s now hiding a smile, and Charlotte is surprised at how easy it is to smile and laugh here, these people accepting her presence without another thought. The politics of the cafeteria make it all feel so foreign, but Tommy said ‘Charlie’s sitting here now’ and Nikki and Lola took it in stride.
And later, Eileen will ask her where she was at lunch, will go on to sigh and roll her eyes as she recounts barely sitting through five minutes of the cheerleaders buzzing like cheerful, little hornets, discussing who would be at the party, and how they would coordinate their outfits. She’d spent another five minutes with the swim team, who spent the entire time picking apart her backstroke technique since she ‘finally decided to join them’.
“This is why I don’t sit with them,” Eileen had frowned, sitting in the McDonalds carpark, absentmindedly violating her soda with it’s straw out of frustration, Charlotte, wide-eyed, quietly eats her terrible, oily fries, and lets Eileen vent, “if I have to listen to one more five-am-gym-going-wannabe-sports-scholarship tell me my form is off, I’m going to go full Carrie-At-The-Prom at our next meet,” Eileen warned, and reached over to snatch a fry. Very few people were ever privy to Eileen’s frustration, as the redhead seemed to do a rather good job of bottling it up, but Charlotte personally felt honored that her friend could be so honest around her.
“I was thinking of joining yearbook, maybe? Or the school paper with...” a strange moment of hesitation, “with Peach,” Eileen paused, taking a long moment to think, and take a sip of her drink, eyes glass as she stared out at the highway as cars passed before them, “auditions for the school play are on Friday,” she adds, like she’s seriously considering it, “it’s Singin’ In The Rain, Keanu actually suggested I should audition.” The idea that Keanu and Eileen have talked enough for him to suggest that she audition for a musical and for her to serious consider it is kind of baffling; Charlotte doesn’t process the meaning behind any of this now, however, just files it away in the back of her mind for later.
“Macy moved to Portland over the Summer,” Charlotte feigns seriousness with her suggestion instead, trying not to give away how amused she is, already anticipating Eileen’s response, “we’re holding cheer tryouts to replace her on Tuesday,” Eileen’s expression is already souring, almost comedically disgusted at Charlotte’s implied suggestion, though she lets the blonde finish, “you were the best bottom-right to the pyramid we’ve ever had,” she said, barely stifling giggles as Eileen turns to her.
“I’d rather die,” her lip curled, and Charlotte leaned over the center console of the minivan to press her forehead against Eileen’s shoulder, and Eileen reaches up with her free hand to scratch gently at Charlotte’s scalp, before bursting out with, “and my form’s not even bad! The coach loves me, Charlie, she loves me, they just think they’re better than me, bunch of clique-y, insular, webbed-toe bitches.”
The words hang in the air, a surprising outburst from the usually reserved and thoughtful girl.
“Do they really have webbed toes?” Charlotte asks, turning so her temple still pressed against the soft cashmere of Eileen’s sweater, but she was following the ginger’s gaze out to the highway ahead. Eileen gives a tired, little laugh, as if her outburst had left her exhausted.
“No.”
Charlotte wants more than anything to ask her what’s wrong, but knows better than anyone that Eileen only says exactly what she wants someone else to know. Instead, she offers her fries silently. Eileen takes one.
“Peach and I got into a fight today,” voice barely above a whisper, Eileen follows her words with a sigh, and suddenly her out of character frustration made complete, and utter sense. For all that she’s known both Peach and Eileen, Charlotte has never known their altercations to be quick or painless affairs, “Vince invited her to Heather’s party.”
“He invited her himself?” Charlotte’s not sure what the issue is beyond their general dislike of Vince, but if Vince himself is starting to possibly change, then it’s hard to see the issue.
“Yeah,” Eileen seems to know what Charlotte’s thinking, and pauses to find the right words, “I don’t trust him, and I don’t know how she can trust him either.” There’s a quality to her voice that Charlotte’s only heard rarely; uncertainty, “and I don’t want her going to Heather’s party, I barely want to go myself, and what if she drinks, and what if she does terrible things she regrets -?” Eileen cuts herself off, squeezing her eyes shut and leaning her head back against the headrest.
“I get it,” Charlotte says, so gentle, so understanding, but Eileen’s still quiet.
“She’s my little sister, Charlie,” Eileen sighed, “and it’s like our parents couldn’t care less, so I have to protect her, and I have to keep her from the guy she thinks is the love of her life, and I have to be the one to always remind her of all the shitty things he’s done and remind her that life isn’t a goddamn fairytale.” She sounds close to tears, soda cup between her knees and hands clutching, white knuckled, at the steering wheel, or else she may have been tearing her hair out.
There was a shake in her voice, tight and exhausted in equal measure, like the words had sat, unspoken, pressed against her teeth, for far longer than Charlotte had realized she’d been thinking them. Charlotte rests her hand on Eileen’s.
“She loves you more than anyone else in the world, you know that right? She’s just sixteen, you know all the drama and shit we went through last year -”
“I can’t watch her go through what you went through with Duff,” the words escaped Eileen in a rush, and she clamps her mouth shut, sitting forward in the driver’s seat, lips pressed into a thin line, as Charlotte’s heart sank in her chest, “I’m sorry.”
“No, I know what you mean,” Charlotte sat back in her own seat, nodding dejectedly, fiddling with her bracelet.
“You... Charlie, you know you’re my best friend, and I love you, and seeing you in pain with no way to help,” Eileen’s hands slid down the sides of the steering wheel as she forced herself to relax, though her words have Charlotte’s heart swelling with fondness, “it fucking killed me,” she admitted, leaning back, letting her shoulders sags with the weight of her words, like the weight of the world, and as she leaned back, she looked to Charlotte, so unguarded, so sincere, “I can’t let Vince break Peach’s heart like that.”
Eileen has always looked and seemed older than her seventeen years, but it’s strange to see her like this, to be reminded that she holds within her this unassuming duality. To protect is her first instinct, herself, her feelings, her friends, her family, but she’s still so young, just a kid; she still deserves to be protected too.
“I’m so tired,” Eileen murmurs, gaze dropping to her hands, now folded in her lap, and she huffs a humorless laugh, “I’m seventeen, Charlie, I’m fucking tired of feeling thirty.”
#nikki sixx#tommy lee#vince neil#nikki sixx imagine#tommy lee imagine#vince neil imagine#motley crue#the dirt#the dirt imagine#motley crue imagine#the angry lizard writes#charlotte & lola#lola&charlotte
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movies & shows
cracks knuckles* alright this is going to be more of a rant than an analysis because i’m basing this on both my research, but also how it felt to personally be baited by these shows. there are obviously more pieces of bad (almost every horror movie) and good ones but these are the ones i’ve watched.
please keep in mind that i am but one queer and everyone has different opinions.
Supernatural (CW) 2005
This show is 15 years old and just ended. From season 5 till 15, there has been tension between two of the lead characters. They were constantly shipped together and not only did the entire fandom know about this ship but so did almost all of Tumblr. On top of that, the actors and show runners knew about it as well. Which is why it makes it ridiculous that it was constantly pushed aside while the romantic coding kept happening, even after show runners dismissed it as being intentional. The Destiel (Dean x Cas) case has been going on for years, and as the show came to its end, many fans had hope. But N O P E. Instead, we got a love confession from Cas where Dean looked like he was near constipated and the Cas was killed and sent into a fiery place that was not hell but s u p e r h e l l.
… w hy.
Sherlock (BBC) 2010
Just like Supernatural, this show was renown on Tumblr for not only how good it was, but its hinting at a potential relationship between Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. But again, like Supernatural, the intentional tension between the two characters was denied by producers. This caused an uproar within the fandom, and even left some people believing that, after the last season aired, it had been a joke and the producers were hiding a “secret, unaired season” because they had felt so robbed by this show that had implied something and denied it.
The 100 (CW) 2014
We got lesbians. We got background gays. We were happy. Then, all of a sudden, one of them is killed for no reason. Did it advance the plot? No. Was she fighting and died in battle? lol no. She was doing literally nothing and got shot and died. And then the producers kept bringing her back once a season in the form of a ghost or illusion because why? Because she was a fan favourite queer character. ✨bury your gays and sparingly bring them back for profit anyone?✨
Voltron: Legendary Defender (Netflix) 2016
*deep breathe* This one is a special disaster. Not only was there romantic tension and romantically coded scenes for 7 seasons, but producers, voice actors and artists working on the show repeatedly said “don’t worry klance (Keith x Lance) shippers, you’ll be happy”
. … w h e r e??? You code one of their scenes with a sunset in the background while they talk about love and then one of them goes on a date with someone who has declined his advances for 7 seasons but now in season 8 decides to do a full 180. Not only that, but you announce at a Comic Con (a convention) that a character is gay and has a fiancé, only to kill off the fiancé and never make it explicit in the show except at the last second of the last episode where he marries a no name character.
Personally, i’d like to say a big fuck you to the show that strung me along for 2 years and never stopped saying we’d be happy to then pull the rug out from under us and call us crazy for thinking anything from the past 8 seasons was intentional.
Scooby-Doo (2002)
While not being outwardly queerbaiting, this movie’s filmmaker has just revealed some shocking news, which wasn’t at all shocking to the gays who had watched this movie over the years. In July of 2020, James Gunn, the filmmaker of Scooby-Doo, revealed in a podcast that, initially, Velma was explicitly gay in his script, but then the studio watered it down until it became nothing. This isn’t an example of baiting as much as it is changing a character’s initial design to “better fit an audience”. The worst part of all this is that with Velma’s character having been written with a l i t t l e queer subtext, people had been theorizing about if since the movie came out, but were always yelled at by the internet for “imagining something that isn’t there”. But now, even with it being said that the initial point was for her to be gay, people have no objections to still refusing to accept it. Why?? So we can’t get the subtext gays OR the confirmed gays?? Make it make sense.
Brooklyn 99 (NBC) 2013
To have the queer characters firstly introduced without mentioning their sexualities and have it brought up naturally was so goddamn nice to see, because no one does a big deal about it unless they ask for that. This show is amazing in general but the way they show their queer characters is *chefs kiss*.
She-ra and the Princesses of Power (Netflix) 2018
This. Show. My heart SOARS. It's just a remake of an old show so absolutely nothing was ever expected, but then it was sprinkled in and ENDED WITH A BANG. And it was so beautiful and real to see the struggle of two friends who care for each other and want to be together but have different visions of the world fall in love. And they also had characters with disabilities, a non-binary character and jUST SUCH A GOOD SHOW.
Kipo and The Age of Wonderbeasts (Netflix) 2020
This is a case where you go into it not expecting anything and are BLOWN AWAY by the bare minimum. And not because it’s bad!! It's mind blowing because this is the simple representation we need!! Not something over the top, but an every day relationship. It’s just two boys falling in love and going on dates and being nervous around each other, yet i was so stunned. Because it’s not shown enough. I should not be this excited over something that should be this normal. 10/10 though this show is so good for all kinds of representation.
Steven Universe (Cartoon Network) 2013
This show did so much for queer representation with its general message of loving everyone and loving who you want. Especially since it was aired on Cartoon Network, a channel for kids, it was able to help normalize something so looked down upon in some circles. It made it easy to watch for s o m e people because it's a cartoon but it's so beautiful to see these ladies so in love with each other, both platonically and romantically and we see them have a family dynamic that isn’t a “nuclear family”. Rebecca Sugar (creator) really said “lemme just break all stereotypes real quick”.
Adventure Time (Cartoon Network) 2010
It's the “knowing a fanbase shipped something so hard that the creators made it canon” for me. This relationship had been theorized by fans for years, but it had never been explicit in the show. When the finale episode came out and the two shared a kiss, it was a moment of celebration. The producer of the show said that it had not really been planned but when the episode was being made, the choice of what happened was given to one of the artists (bless your soul Hanna K. Nyströmthe). And as the show releases little bonus episodes, its latest was centered around Marceline and Bubblegum and their relationship. AND WE LOVE TO SEE OUR DOMESTIC LESBIANS BEING HAPPY AND IN LOVE.
Yuri on Ice!!! (anime) 2016
The fact that an A N I M E gave us a love story between two men is mind boggling and it makes me so happy!! Especially because it's a Japanese show and they’re very conservative about these things just makes it more emotional. The creators said they wanted to make the anime take place in a world where gay/straight isn’t a thing, it’s just love (ladies, you’re going to make me cry). So as the weekly episodes came out and fans start speculating, THEY GAVE US THE LAST FEW EPISODES FULL OF ROMANCE AND EMOTIONAL SCENES BETWEEN THE TWO AND THEN THEY GET R I N GS?!???!! You watch for the figure skating, you stay for the figure skaters that are in love.
Shadowhunters (Freeform) 2016
*insert me being frustrated that the actors are straight so we can move on from that disappointment*
This show really said “let’s name a whole episode after this couple because they deserve it”. But seriously, they gave us two characters whose entire plot does not center around their sexualities while still showing us the differences in a relationship between someone experienced and someone new at this. They were both powerful and amazing characters apart from each other, with their own story lines and goals but they loved each other so much omgs. SO MUCH.
It was so great to watch.
Love, Simon (2018)
There’s a lot of disagreement on whether this movie is good representation or not. However, we need to take into consideration that this was Hollywood’s first movie with a main character that was gay, where the story’s focus was on Simon’s love story. The biggest problem, for me at least, was that the actor playing Simon is a straight man and not queer. My problem is not with him, but the fact that there are other actors that are gay and that could have played Simon just as well. (the love interested was however played by a queer actor so ✨progress✨)
All in all, this movie does represent what a lot of queer kids have to go through: being outed at school, how they then come out, the bullying and doubt they go through.
The book is also really good.
Call Me By Your Name (2018)
This movie is so aesthetically pleasing and was able to capture the confusion and heartbreak felt by a boy who’s struggling with his own feelings towards a man. His inner conflict and joy and l o v e he feels but doesn’t know how to deal with is so well communicated through the screen and just breaks your heart because it feels so real.
But again, they could’ve gotten gay actors to play gay characters…
through having this list here, i want to show you that it’s not hard for creators to give good queer representation. the LGBTQ+ community isn’t asking for much, we just want to be well represented on screen as just a regular character, not some token queer kid there for the diversity points. having been exposed to so much queerbaiting and just not seeing any representation on screen, i always get over-excited when i see a queer character, and that’s not how it should be. it should be a normal thing, something you can find in most pieces of media, just like there’s a straight white cisgender person in everything.
and they seriously need to start casting queer actors for queer characters...
#queer#queerbait#queerbaiting#supernatural#they really said lets make it the worst ending ever#destiel#sherlock#johnlock#the 100#clexa#bury your gays#fuck you jason rothenberg#voltron#klance#...that was a shit show#scooby doo 2#what an icon she was tho#brooklyn 99#rosa diaz is a god you cant tell me otherwise#she ra and the princesses of power#shera#catradora#go lesbians go#kipo and the age of wonderbeasts#gave us precious gaybies#steven universe#ALL THE LESBIANS#adventure time#obsidian#bubbleine
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Graduated - Gerard Way x Reader
Summary: The reader finally gets to graduate university and gets a little surprise from her boyfriend
Reader: female
Warnings: I wrote this for my friend, so this might be very specific (and exaggerated)…, not properly proof read :/
Word count: 2 384
A/N: I know I exaggerated some of the parts in here, and the person who this is for knows it’s for her, but I wrote it the way I imagine it must have felt like sometimes.
I’m so fucking proud of you, sweetie.
Impatiently you shifted around on your chair. It was a nice chair, no reason to complain, but truth be told, you didn’t want to be here, not anymore. You were done here. All you really wanted was go home and video-call your boyfriend for as long as possible until he had to hang up.
But here you were, listening to the university’s dean’s speech in which you took no interest. Maybe you should have, after all this was your graduation ceremony, but you had already gotten your certificate, and now you wanted nothing but leave this part of your life behind.
Sure, time at uni had been fun. Sometimes. You had met a bunch of cool people who you enjoyed hanging out with, you had spent afternoons sitting in cafés with them, procrastinating the inevitable studying together, you had gone to parties and met more people, but in the end you had never really become as close with any of them as you would have wanted. Maybe because they wanted to be there, wanted to study architecture, and you just did it in order not to get into trouble with your parents.
How many times you had wanted to give everything up! How many times you thought about just throwing it all in the wind and run away, go on tour with your boyfriend who was playing in a band, just leave this godforsaken city behind!
It had not always been this bad, but the stress and anxiety had worn you out over the years, had caused burn out, or depression, or whatever you wanna call it. Not that anyone cared. Not until Gerard had come back into your life.
You had known him and Ray from school, had always been friends with them, even though they were a couple of years older than you. But as soon as Gerard’s brother Mikey had graduated high school the same year as you, they had piled into a van together with a guy called Frank (who now was just as much your friend as the rest of them), and had driven off into the sunset to make their dream of being a punk band into reality. Of course they had asked you to join them. And you had wanted to say yes so badly. But you knew that if you had done that, your parents would have never talked to you again, and so you had bowed to your parents wish and gone to university to study architecture, even though you never had really wanted that.
It had taken almost two years before your friends had finally been back in town, and those four weeks in the summer holidays had been the best four weeks of your life. You had hung out with them all the time, had made music, taken pictures of them, helped bring a huge art project to life… and you had gotten together with Gerard. He had always been the one you had felt drawn to the most, always been the one you had called first when you had good news to share. And between band practice, drawing comics and staring at you, he somehow had managed to tell you that for years he had felt the same way for you as you felt for him.
That had been almost two years ago now, although it hardly felt like that long. Soon after that summer the band had gone on tour again, and Gerard was only home a couple of weeks a year. Most of the time you hardly noticed, except for in the evenings, when the stress of the day finally stepped into the background, and you had a few hours to your own thoughts. Those were the moments you missed him. Often he called you after shows, talking for hours until he realised you had to get up in the morning, and sent you to bed with a chuckle and an “I love you”. In those two years, in which you had been together, you had only spent about three months in the same city. The last time you had seen him was over three months ago. And how you missed him!
You glanced over to where the girls sat, that usually had spent their lunchbreaks with you. They were surrounded by their families. One was arm in arm with her boyfriend. You quickly turned to look away. You would see Gerard soon. After this weekend, right on Monday morning, you had booked a flight out to L.A. where MCR would play a show that evening, and then you would accompany them on the rest of the tour. You had been hesitant about that at first, when Gerard had suggested it, but you had never been on tour with them, and you really missed Gerard, and judging by the sound of his voice over the phone, he missed you too.
‘Just two more days,’ you told yourself, and tried to focus back on the dean’s speech.
Luckily the dean did not talk for a long time after that, and when he was finished, your favourite professor jumped on stage to announce that there was a buffet for everyone to have some snacks before sending you off into life.
With a sigh you got up. You felt stiff after all the sitting, as if you had not sat for long enough during your time at university. You made way for some elderly couple who seemed to be the grandparents of one of your fellow classmates, and huffed at the memory of your parents telling you, they would not be in town for your graduation. It felt like you had done these four years of psycho terror for nothing, although Gerard had always told you that you needed to finish this degree or you would have thrown away four years of your life. Maybe he had been right, thinking about quitting two months before the final exam would have probably been something you would later regret. And this way you had at least something that proved you had learnt anything at all.
Once you had made your way out of the maze of chairs, you wondered whether you should join the others by the buffet. Scanning the crowd, you realized that they all seemed to be talking to someone already, and you would have felt like an intruder if you had walked over now. So instead you brushed your hair out of your eyes, and turned around, promptly bumping into someone carrying a huge bouquet of flowers. Quickly excusing yourself, you stepped to the side, but then you saw the face of the person who held the flowers, and almost would have gotten a heart attack. Tears shot into your eyes as you stared at this so familiar face while a smile spread over Gerard’s face at seeing your reaction.
Opening his arms, he allowed you to fall against him, wrapping him in a hug, and burying your face against his neck. Gently he closed his arms around you, not as hard as he would have wanted to, but he tried really hard not to ruin the flowers he was still holding.
“Congratulations, baby,” he whispered against your ear, and you quickly turned your head, and pecked his lips before pulling away, and whipping tears of your cheeks.
“What are you doing here? I thought you were in San Francisco,” you almost shouted, playfully shoving him, while you felt tears rise again.
“Couldn’t just miss my girl graduating,” he grinned, “not after all the shit you’ve been through just for this.”
“I fucking love you, you know that,” you sobbed, not caring about the tears anymore. Who cared about make-up anyway?
“I should hope so, otherwise the red roses here would be embarrassing,” he laughed, and handed you the bouquet of sunflowers, daisies and a couple of red roses.
“There you are!”
Before you could thank Gerard, Ray and Mikey pushed through the crowd.
“Gerard just stormed off,” Mikey complained.
Wide eyed you stared at them.
“You’re here too,” you exclaimed, and quickly went to hug Mikey and Ray tightly.
“We’re all here,” Mikey explained, “Frank’s just over there, at the buffet.”
“Where else,” you rolled your eyes, and felt another wave of tears burning in your eyes. “You have no idea how much I love all of you.”
Not knowing what to do with yourself you turned back to Gerard, and hugged him, hiding your face against his chest, making him giggle and wrap his arms around you protectively.
“Oh, we brought chocolates, lemonade and some cake too,” Ray remembered, “but the stuff’s still in the car outside.”
“We didn’t want to burst in here with all the food, in case someone has the idea to ask for some of it,” Mikey explained, making you laugh a little, but you did not move away from Gerard.
“Guys, these tomato bruschetta are excellent,” a familiar voice announced, “Here I brought some. Take them quickly; this old lady is already giving me death glares.”
Laughing you finally pulled away from Gerard, and turned to Frank, who had joined you, balancing several of the tiny breads on one of his hands, holding them out to everyone. Like the others you took one, and waited until Frank’s hand was finally free before hugging him too.
“Thank you for coming here,” you laughed as you let him go again.
“Sure, I mean it’s not like Gee gave us a choice,” Frank shrugged, but his eyes gave away how happy he was to be here, too.
“And by the way, the old lady is one of my former teachers,” you let him know, nodding into the direction of a white haired woman who was watching the five of you closely.
“Ah well, you’re not her student anymore,” Frank grinned.
“You’re right. And that means I also have absolutely no business still being here,” you decided, “Let’s get out of here.”
“But the buffet- ! They have tiramisu,” Frank whined.
“You can do whatever you want, Frankie,” you laughed, “but I’ve been stuck here for long enough. Four years of my life wasted on finishing a degree I never wanted. It’s time I get out.”
“Truer words were never spoken,” Gerard agreed and kissed your hair. “Like Ray said, we brought cake and lemonade. We could drive down to the lake and have a picnic there.”
“Aw, a picnic sounds absolutely perfect right now,” you nodded enthusiastically, and allowed Gerard to slip his hand into your free one.
“We’ll make quite a sight, down there between all these teenagers, while we’re all dressed up,” Mikey giggled following Gerard and you, who lead the way through the hall.
Looking over your shoulder you realised he was right. All of the men were wearing either dark jeans or dress pants, and dress shirts. Mikey was even wearing a tie. And you were dressed in an elegant skirt with a cute blouse and a cardigan. You really would stick out between the high schoolers who were doubtlessly hanging out at the lake around this time on a Friday afternoon.
“And after the picnic, I thought the five of us could commemorate the good old times by grabbing pizza over at Giovanni’s,” Gerard continued making plans, causing Frank to cheer quietly at the prospect of getting some tiramisu there.
You turned your head to look at him, and found he was already looking for your reaction.
“What are you trying to do,” you wondered, “Flowers, picknick, pizza,… you don’t need to convince me you’d be a great boyfriend, I already know that.”
“Hey! I just wanna spoil you,” Gerard defended, “We haven’t seen each other in forever, and you’ve just graduated, so I think I should be allowed to spoil you.”
You let go of his hand, and instead wrapped your arm around his back, which caused him to chuckle, and wrap his arm around your shoulder, pulling you into his side.
“What about L.A., is that still on,” you wondered, as you stepped from the crowded hall into the emptier hallway that lead to the main entrance of the building.
“Of course it is. We managed to schedule the shows so we got today and the weekend of, but the L.A. show on Monday is still on as planned,” Ray explained from behind you.
“And I still hope you’ll come with us,” Gerard added, looking down to you expectantly.
“Not like we’d give you much of a choice,” Mikey added, before you could even answer.
“He’s right, we can’t have Gerard mopping around because he misses you so much for another two months,” Frank agreed.
“I wasn’t mopping!”
“Yes, you were!”
“Oh, you were!”
“Nooo, not at all!”
All his bandmates spoke at once, making you laugh.
“It really seems like I have no choice, do I,” you giggled, linking your thumb into one of the belt loops on Gerard’s trousers.
“No, you don’t,” Gerard agreed, and nuzzled his nose into your hair.
Pushing open the heavy door to the old building, the five of you stepped out of the university into the warm light of the afternoon sun. Stopping in your tracks you leant your head back a little, and felt how the sunbeams warmed up your face. Taking a deep breath, and closing your fingers around the bouquet Gerard had given you, you opened your eyes again. Realisation washed over you; you were free. For four years you had fought your way through the system, just to please your parents, and now you were free. If these four years had taught you anything, then that you would never be happy if you always did what others expected you to do. You needed to do what you wanted to do. The long term plan? No idea. The intermediate plan? Go on tour with the boys. Actually you could maybe do that as a long term plan, too. But right now? Picnic and pizza with Gerard.
“Everything alright?”
You turned your head and looked into hazel green eyes that worriedly glanced down to you.
“Yeah, yes. Actually. I’m just- I’m happy.”
Gerard smiled and leant down to kiss you quickly before the others called for you.
“Let’s go,” he grinned, and arm in arm you followed your friends to the van.
Taglist (if you want to be added or taken off, please let me know):
General: @justawriterinprogress @robinruns @jayloverthe3rd @lookalivefrosty @butterfly-writes @angelevansfalls @rene-royale @starduststyx
MCR: @deadlovers
#gerard way x reader#gerard x reader fluff#gerard way x reader imagine#gerard way x reader fanfic#gerard way x reader imagines#gerard way x reader fanfiction#gerard way imagine#gerard way fanfic#gerard way imagines#gerard way fanfiction#mcr fanfiction#mcr fanfic#my chemical romance fanfiction#my chemical romance imagine#my chemical romance imagines#my chemical romance fanfic#fanfiction#fanfic#fluff#gerard way x reader fluff
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FREAKY slashes up a piece of that horror-comedy pie
Hey, let’s remake FREAKY FRIDAY, but this time it’s about a middle-aged serial killer who swaps places with a 17-year-old girl. That simple yet ridiculous premise is the main plot behind a surprisingly perfect, and fantastically gory, horror-comedy.
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FREAKY is one of those movies that could have failed hard. It’s a brilliant idea that could have fallen apart in the wrong hands. Many films have tried to balance genres and get lost along the way. FREAKY is NOT one of those fails. It’s one of those films that had me rooting for it from the first 5 minutes and still had me pleasantly surprised throughout. In addition to being a great body-swap flick, it’s also an engaging horror flick. It’s like someone shoved your favourite FRIDAY THE 13TH scenes in a blender with MEAN GIRLS. It shouldn’t work… but it does. It’s an ode to 80s slashers, but it’s also an ode to high school-centred comedies? And it does all this while keeping hardcore horror fans pleased by giving it a hard R rating?!? And it’s actually really funny?!?
When they first announced this film, I was expecting a fun PG-13 flick in the vein of HAPPY DEATH DAY, and I was okay with that. I really liked HAPPY DEATH DAY (as with FREAKY, also directed by Christopher Landon). HAPPY DEATH DAY, was a smart spin on GROUNDHOG’S DAY that it did a lot of cool things while also being able to do so with a PG-13. It wasn’t trying to be MANIAC, nor did I ever expect it to. I’m an annoying purist, but I’m ok with light pop-corn horror if done right, and that film did it right.
So with that in mind, I was utterly blown away by the very, very R-RATED kills in the opening 10 minutes. It was a brutal onslaught of gore. It was Landon’s way of saying, “Relax, horror bros, I got you.” It was like a Greatest Hits from decades ago but with a fresh spin on it. Slashers got a little lazy in the last few years, and this film just let it all hang out in that opening scene. It was ballsy as all hell, and I was totally on board. And luckily it didn’t just stop there.
This one has all the tropes of classic stabby fright flicks. Huge emotionless killer? Check. Ominous mask? Check. St upid teenagers getting in trouble? Check. Inventive kills that make you cackle “Holy Shit”? Check. Twists and turns? Check. A growing body count? Check. Final girl? Check. And let’s throw in an occult artifact in the mix that swaps that final girl with that emotionless killer and that’s where you get something new and different!
And if you’re coming into this one from a comedy perspective, this one has all the tropes of classic high school movie. Insecure lead going through an awkward time? Check. Supportive comic relief friends? Check. Parents that just don’t understand? Check. Villainous teachers? Check. Mean girls? Check. Huge awkward misunderstandings? Check. And let’s throw in an occult artifact in the mix that causes said misunderstandings and that’s where you get something new and different!
That new and different wouldn’t be what it is without the standout performance from the two leads, Vince Vaughn & Kaythryn Newton. Vaughn is the aforementioned creepy masked killer. He’s wonderfully cast here as a towering, silent brute. Vaughn of course might be known for his comedic work, but he’s actually got an impressive range that’s very rarely utilized (see BRAWL AT CELLBLOCK 99 for more details). Here he excels as the Butcher. Effective, brutal, and cold. He’s been on a killing spree lately, which we see a bit of at the beginning, and he’s definitely looking to kill some more. And it looks like he found a spooky looking occult dagger
Newton, known to genre fans from her recurring role in SUPERNATURAL, is very likeable as the main lead, Millie. Having recently suffered from the loss of her father, Millie is currently dealing with the ongoing depression that the loss put on her mother, as well as her own struggles to return to normality. Can she survive a day at school from the usual trials, tribulations, bullies, and high school crushes, let alone a serial killer lurking nearby?
And thus their two paths meet in the most unexpected (or very expected) of ways. We soon witness a thrilling chase, very reminiscent of the best Michael Myers and Jason hunts-- in fact this whole chase actually takes place on the eve before Friday the 13th, a very knowing wink to the genre that birthed this film. And soon the Butcher, with Millie in his grips, claims his latest victim… only he doesn’t… darn those occult daggers!
And that’s when the two leads really showcase their acting chops. Vaughn is now a frazzled high school student, and Newton is the silent and sinister stalker. Both take on their new roles excellently and they both embody (heh) them flawlessly. Vaughn is awkward and fragile and Newton is menacingly fierce as fuck. Newton utterly transforms into someone else and her performance is a total triumph. Vaughn is adorable.
Seeing them both re-interact/meet with their friends (and foes) in their new forms is endless fun. You see Vaughn run like a girl and Newton go on a homicidal spree. You see Vaughn give off his best flirty eye and Newton’s best glare of doom. They both seamlessly fill their new roles.
But it’s not quite the seamless exchange for Millie and the Butcher. Millie clumsily gets used to their bigger and stronger frame… and the Butcher realizes they are not as strong as they once were. A lot of what works about this ride is seeing how they both adapt to their new struggles and use it to their advantage. The Butcher has a new mask, and Millie soon finds confidence in herself in her new self.
The supporting cast is used with great effect, too. They all get us to where we need to be. Everyone serves a purpose. From the mom, to older sister/cop, to the comic relief, to the love interest, and classmates of varying degrees of douchebagginess. Everyone is either likeable or unlikeable as they should be. There’s even a nice nod to previous academic farces with a cameo from FERRIS BUELLER’S Alan Ruck as an asshole shop teacher.
Director Christopher Landon is really slicing out a nice niche of off-kilter spins in the horror genre, and it’s reassuring that he knows what he’s doing. It truly is a well-crafted film. Not just as a horror film, but also from a technical standpoint. The pacing is dead perfect, every joke hits, the story beats and setups are well orchestrated, and not a moment is wasted. It’s tense when it needs to be tense, gory when it needs to be gory, and legit laugh out loud moments when it needs to have those LOL moments.
It’s such a great spin to the body-swap comedy genre, a genre that feels like there’s an endless amount where they all sort of felt very “samey”; especially in the 80s, where at one point three different body-swaps came out within 2 years of each other! This one takes the better elements of those, relishes in them, carves new ground, and adds a bit of Tom Hanks’ BIG in for good measure.
But homage to a decade old cinematic fad aside, at no point does it ever stop delivering on the humour and slasher content. It’s tight, daring, and keeps you enthralled throughout. Whether you’re a horror junkie, or into well-written oddball comedies, or even into clever thrillers, the end result has you covered.
There’s a great message in there too, as the film tackles school killings, social media, pc culture, and the general malaise many of us experience after the loss of a loved one. It’s about grief and acceptance and moving on… yet it’s very light-hearted. And you still get ample buckets of blood and splatter.
Yes, fans, there’s so many gruesome and cool looking on screen deaths your morbid heart’s desire. Amazing uses of wine bottles, tennis rackets, chainsaws, and industrial equipment. A creepy serial killer flophouse complete with creepy mannequins and various implements of torture. Possibly a severed head in a bloody toilet? Yeah, this film has that too.
You can currently rent this one on various VOD services. Hopefully this one hits the majority of streaming services soon, since it had the misfortune of opening late last year during the pandemic. It definitely needs a wider audience because it’s another one of those instant classics. It’s easily my favourite current horror-comedy, and I’m looking forward to more from Christopher Landon. A film that’s both goofy and gory with just enough twists to keep your attention and please jaded genre fans? That’s freaky.
#horror#horror movies#blumhouse#freaky#kathryn newton#vince vaughn#Christopher Landon#Slashers#movie reviews#film reviews#body swap#moviesrotbrains#movies rot brains#universal
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Thanks for the tag @1taliart-stargayce
1. What do you prefer to be called name-wise?
Ale, just what everyone calls me in real life tbh
2. When is your birthday?
November 22nd, so like last week...ish kind of?
3. Where do you live?
I happen to live in the land of ‘damn I wish my heater worked properly now that it’s getting cold’, also known as Spain
4. Three things you are doing right now?
So I’m preparing to go out and by a new sketchbook cause I’m running out of pages on my practice one, I’m also doing this and also thinking about the stickers I’ll print to add to the cover.
5. Four fandoms that you have piqued your interest?
This is gonna be fun cause they have so little in common
-Transformers: From a young age I’ve loved them robots in disguise, I still love them but I’m not active in the fandom and it’s been a while since last time I drew my ocs or any fanart for that matter, but! I do read the comics and rewatch my fave shows from time to time.
-Wakfu: but in a very weird way as in I started playing the game after rewatching the show and then got too invested in the characters I created there and made a whole story on them, and like recently they’ve announced season four and suddenly I’m having the urge to draw my characters again.
-Phantom of the Opera: From a young age, just like Transformers, young me watched the 2004 film cried a lot and I’ve been a fan of PotO ever since, I was so excited when they streamed the 25th anniversary recording that I got really into it again...
-But then CATS happened! as in I liked Cats before but never got into the fandom or too into it, then the movie came, watched the 1998 version too and here we are now!
6. How has the pandemic been treating you?
Thanfully not too badly!
7. A song you can’t stop listening to right now?
So, cannot name any specific song cause my brain does this thing where it will only allow me to listen to one soundtrack on loop over and over again rahter than one single song. so currently? Hairspray and Cats, the Japanese cast recording of it
8. Recommend a movie
Oh boy, I haven’t watched one in a while actually, so I don’t have any recommendations for you
9. How old are you?
Turned 21 last week...ish
10. School, university, occupation, other?
University, and it’s a ✨struggle✨
11. Do you prefer heat or cold?
Cold, I cannot deal with the heat at all. Cannot sleep at all during the summers, cannot go out without the sun burning me to a crisp, and always am stuck babysitting younger relatives at the pool so not that fun either.
12. Name one fact that others may not know about you?
So I’m extremely shy when meeting others and so appear to be very quiet, but I actually was born with very loud speakers attached to me, but they only work properly when I know you (@/my irl friends and probably online ones i send voice messages to too I’m so sorry about being so loud )
13. Are you shy?
Extremely so, it’s yet another struggle
14. Preferred pronouns?
I go by she/her
15. Biggest pet peeves?
When people touch my things without permission, even more so when they’ve been explicitly told not to do so. It really does get on my nerves.
16. What’s your favourite “-dere” type?
I don’t have a favourite really. Or like I haven’t thought abour this question until this very moment so I don’t have an answer yet
17. Rate your life from 1 to 10?
A solid 6
18. What’s your main blog?
Had another one but rn would say this one!
19. List your side blogs and what they’re used for.
None! but I’m so tempted to do one for Cats either just to post my Cats stuff or maybe an rp blog for my ocs or maybe both? I’m not sure (but the Cats sideblog is a real possibility tbh)
20. Is there something people need to know about you before becoming friends?
I don’t think there is anything you’d need to know? other than maybe if you wanna chat or something just drop a message, I struggle with starting conversations cause I’m awkward as fuck a first, bu soon enough you’ll be having to deal with me sending you doodles at random moments of the day or showing you weird things I found while walking outside.
and Oh! If you message me and I don’t reply...message me again, chances are I was doing something or somehow I thought so hard about my own reply that I actually tricked myself into believing I’ve actually replied :’D
Now for the tags, not anyone in mind rn so if you see this and want to do it, here you go! I’m tagging you!
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His Second Chance Part 18
Bucky x Reader
His Second Chance Masterlist
Main Masterlist
Bucky comes back from Wakanda with Steve, ready to begin his recovery from his days as the Winter Soldier, but there’s one thing he doesn’t take into account - you.
Warnings: Slight anxiety, language, fluff.
Word count: 2500
Bucky is forced to face the press, a sad discovery is made and the Reader helps Bucky to process a situation.
ALL TAG LISTS ARE ALWAYS OPEN 💖 feel free to come and chat, my blog is always open for you 💕
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A sigh passed your lips as you stood behind a large black screen, behind a stage, peeking out to see crowds of reporters and attendees. “Was this really necessary?” You sighed, glancing over at Steve while Bucky was having his microphone tested. “According to Pepper, yes.” Steve sounded just as annoyed as you felt. “According to me, no.” He concluded, giving Bucky a sidelong apologetic look. “Can’t I go out there with him? This could be more damaging than helpful.” You hissed, trying to keep your voice down while you stressed. “No, he’s gotta do it by himself.” Steve shook his head, planting his hands down on your shoulders. “We’ll be here for him when he’s finished, he knows we will, sweetheart.” Steve tried to reassure you. “It doesn’t feel like it’s enough.” You murmured to no one in particular, but Steve heard you and he didn’t say it, but he agreed.
Tony and Pepper had set up a press conference, in the hopes that Bucky speaking out publicly could help to clear the air, not that you thought it would do much good for Bucky though. The crowd, while not the largest you had seen, was still very overwhelming. You were feeling anxious for him, you could only imagine what the poor guy was feeling while he was waiting at the side of the stage.
Why do I have to wear a suit? Why do I have to do this at all? Oh god. There’s so many fuckin’ people. There’s gonna be some real pushy assholes too.
She looks worried, god she looks like she’s about to have a fucking panic attack. Bucky looked on at you while you stuck close to Steve’s side, practically smooshing yourself against him.
Bucky strode over to you both, leaning in to Steve’s side as he gave him a hug. “Can you take her out? She looks like she’s about to panic and I don’t wanna worry about my girl while I’m up there.” Bucky whispered in Steve’s ear. “You got it, pal.” Steve nodded, clapping Bucky on the back. “Good luck, bud.”
Bucky pulled you against him, squeezing you tightly and pressed a soft kiss to your forehead. “I’ll be alright doll; you stick with Stevie. I’ll be out in a while.” Bucky gave you a half smile, leaning down to kiss you on the lips. “You don’t want me here?” You sounded more than a bit offended. Shit, well done. “Pretty girl, I do, but you look like you’re about to keel over, I need you intact when I get off that stage.” He smirked, trying to play off his own nerves with light humour. You chuffed a little laugh and shook your head. “I suppose you’re right.” You reached up to peck his cheek before you backed out of his arms, uttering good luck to him before you stepped back and stood by Steve.
Steve had dragged you off to a little café around the corner, away from the press conference and tried to distract you with all sorts of random conversation, although, it didn’t work very well and you sat at the table, half listening while you chewed on your lip.
“I bet you didn’t think I didn’t noticed when I saw that Avengers comic book in that basement of your when I found you.” Steve smiled to himself, remembering the day he’d let himself in and examined your shitty living space. “You- what?” You almost choked on your tea. Your cheeks flushed red as you held your cup close to your lips to try and distract away from your flustered features. “Were you a fan?” He teased, leaning in a poking you gently on the arm. You let out a little strangled noise, embarrassment taking hold and making it very obvious what the answer was. “You were a fan!” He chuckled.
“C’mon, in all the years I can’t believe we’ve never talked about this, who’s your favourite?” He grinned, nudging you. “Steeeeve.” You groaned, putting your tea down and avoiding eye contact. “Is it me? I bet it’s Sam, no Wanda, probably Wanda.” He giggled like a school girl. “Stevie, Sam and Wanda weren’t part of the Avengers back then.” You reminded him, catching him out and he shook his head affectionately. “Don’t tell anyone, but you’re my favourite.” You smiled, looking up at him with a sweet look in your eyes. “Until I met Bucky and then he took your spot.” You grinned like the devil and Steve feigned offence, gasping and clasping his hand to his chest. “He’s not even an Avenger!” Steve cried out dramatically, the smile on his face telling you he wasn’t the least bit offended.
Bucky was peppered with questions on the panel, the host managing the crowd for him while he sat uncomfortably, gaze nervously flitting from person to person as he tried desperately to keep himself calm.
“Mr Barnes, is it still possible for you to become the Winter Soldier?”
“Was Hydra controlling you or did you have a form of choice?”
Breathe. Breathe through it, answer politely.
Bucky threw out a lot of simple no’s and yes’, but there were a few questions that boiled his blood or made him want to lecture the fuck out of the reporter. “Do you feel yourself a danger to your fellow teammates?” Not anymore. “Are you still a threat?” No. “Are you mentally able to live a regular life?” Urgh.
By the time it was over, Bucky was well and truly fed up of the array of questions that mostly felt recycled and rephrased over and over. Some felt like they were intentionally trying to piss him off and others were genuinely alright, although those were few and far between. But at least it was over and hopefully Stark would never make him do that ever again. Especially while wearing a damn suit.
“It was mostly awkward, lots of the same questions repeated with different wording, lots of uncomfortable questions about my personal shit.” Bucky groaned as he walked alongside you, top buttons of his shirt open, tie loosened and his blazer was replaced with a warm zip up hoodie instead. “You woulda’ hated it doll.” He chuckled to himself, imagining you wanting to mouth off every one of the rude reporters he’d encountered, knowing full well you would have gone into protective girlfriend mode had you been present. “I suppose it’s a good thing Steve made me go with him then.” You smirked. “Although that café wasn’t much better, I was just stuck in my head the whole time.” You sighed, leaning up against him as you followed Steve and Sam down to your usual coffee shop for some decent and well-priced hot drinks.
“C’mon sweetheart, the coffee ain’t gonna buy itself!” Steve called over his shoulder as you trailed behind him and Sam. You stopped at the window of your usual coffee shop, inspecting something while Steve yanked on the door to no avail. “They closed today? They’re never closed.” Bucky grumbled. You studied the note in the window, your heart dropping a little.
Out of business.
This was where you’d had your first casual date with Bucky, where you’d admitted feelings for each other. It was where Bucky had released all of his troubles from therapy, told you so many secrets. It was where you had experienced some of the best times of your life, albeit in a simple way. The baristas had been friendly, welcoming and you’d both become regulars. And now it was gone. It was closed and your bright, warm coffee shop was no longer there.
“Aw, of all the places to shut down!” Steve groaned. “They had the best fuckin’ coffee.” He complained, walking away towards Sam. “Language, Cap.” The pair of them immediately started bickering in the background as you and Bucky stood outside of the café. “M’sorry doll.” Bucky’s arm wound around your back, hand coming down to rest on the curve of your waist. “This place was our café.” You sighed, feeling a little silly that you were so upset about a café. “I know, darlin’.” Bucky kissed your temple. Bucky was just as attached to the memories in that coffee shop as you were, not that he was likely to say that out loud in ear shot of the boys.
“C’mon, we’ll try and find somewhere new to go.” Bucky pulled you away rather reluctantly. It’s always the good places that go. Bucky huffed to himself as he walked you over to Steve and Sam who were still playfully insulting one another as they walked down the street. “There’s another coffee place around the corner.” Sam announced over his shoulder to you both as he held his phone up with he map open, not that you could see the details at all. “Go left.” Sam prodded Steve. “Are you kidding? It’s this way.” Steve veered him in another direction, the two of them pushing each other about as Steve tried to get Sam to position the map on his phone correctly to show him that he absolutely knew the way there.
Idiots. “It’s this way.” Bucky grumbled as you caught up with them and overtook them both.
As expected, the coffee place you went to didn’t match the wonderful drinks you’d had from your usual place and you felt a little deflated from the overwhelming afternoon. All you’d wanted after Bucky’s press conference was some down time in your favourite café with your boys, but even that was out of the question.
Bucky walked into the kitchen from your trip out and stared down at a brown envelope on the kitchen island as if it had offended him. “You got mail?” Sam sounded surprised as he walked up beside him. All Bucky did was let out a gruff humph as he pulled his hoodie off. “Oh, it’s the results, isn’t it?” He sighed, leaning on his elbows on the island, trying to catch Bucky’s line of sight. “Open it, man.” Sam nudged him gently. Not sure I want to. Bucky just stared at the envelope, a part of him just wanted to put it away and open it when he’d gained the courage or impulse to actually do it. It wasn’t that he was worried he’d failed, he had a doubt in his mind, a doubt that passing would bring him any joy at all.
“C’mon, what’s the worst that could happen? If you failed then…” Bucky unintentionally blocked Sam out, his voice going muffled in his ears. He took a deep breath, eyes trained on his name on the envelope.
Imagine if ma was here. Would she be proud? Would she be proud of you dating a pretty girl with a soft heart? Would she be proud of the man you’re becoming? She certainly wouldn’t be proud of the man you were. That’s for sure.
You weren’t him though.
“Bucky? Hellooo?” Sam waved his hand in front of his face. “Where’d the Bucky of yesterday go? I miss the stupid cat photos and now you’re staring and being all silent like the day you arrived.” Sam grumbled. “Today did me in. Thought you hated ‘em.” Bucky spoke lowly before snatching the envelope from the island. “I kinda do, but they’re better than… Whatever this is.” Sam gestured at Bucky. “Thanks, Sam.” He huffed, turning to walk away. He only means well, keep cool.
“Doll.” Bucky sounded tired, bothered, frustrated even as he stood in your doorway. You hummed in response, looking up from your book as you sat nestled under a blanket. “Will you open this for me, please?” Bucky asked as he walked into your bedroom, holding out the brown envelope. You lowered your book and looked up at him from your position on your nest of cushions on the floor. “What is it?” You asked, closing your book. “Results.” Bucky replied simply, voice gruff and deep. He was in an almost reclusive mood, but you were just thankful that he had willingly come to you.
You took the envelope from him and got Bucky to sit down next to you. He awkwardly lowered himself onto your cushion pile and leant against you. “What’s got you too worried to open it, Sarge?” You asked, looking up at him. “I know it’s not the prospect of failing, Buck.” You quirked a brow before he could even think about lying to you.
Just tell her, she’ll know what to say, she always does. “M’not scared of failing.” Bucky grumbled. “M’scared of passing.” He sighed, lowering his voice to just above a whisper. You looked up at him, confusion scrunching your brows together for a moment before you processed what he’d said. “You’re not sure you want this, are you?” You asked, resting the envelope on your lap. “No.” Bucky spoke just above a whisper. But neither are you. “I understand.” You maintained a soft smile.
She never seems to judge, never seems to see you differently no matter what you tell her. Takes it all in her stride. Stronger than she gives herself credit for. Stronger than me.
“You don’t have to want it, Bucky.” You murmured. “Whatever is in the envelope doesn’t define you.” You looked down at it, fingers tracing over his name on the front. “It isn’t an order or an instruction to do something.” Gripping the envelope you picked it up. “At the end of the day, it’s just a piece of paper.”
“This paper doesn’t tell you to go into the Avengers full throttle. Doesn’t tell you to give up. Doesn’t tell you to live a different life. It tells you which doors are open and which are shut.” You handed him the envelope.
Bucky looked down at you, the corners of his lips curving slightly. A new light, a new perspective. It tells you which doors are open and which are shut. I knew she’d know what to say, she always does. Bucky took the envelope and slowly slipped his finger under the top flap, carefully peeling open the closure. With a deep breath and a slow, long exhale, Bucky pulled the papers out of the envelope.
Is this good? I suppose it is. Bucky lowered the papers, just enough for you to see the results and he shared a look with you. Bold letters, it was the only word you really saw on the paper, the rest of it could have been in another language and you wouldn’t have cared.
Passed.
“Think of it this way, all of the doors are open now, Bucky.” You smiled, his eyes softening as he met your gaze. “You can do anything.” You gripped his hand gently, Bucky squeezing your fingers slightly. “We can do anything.” You leaned up against him and Bucky let a smile crack across his lips.
As long as it’s with you, pretty girl.
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#bucky x reader#bucky x you#soft!bucky x reader#His Second Chance#bucky barnes#bucky fluff#bucky fanfic#steve rogers#steve rogers x reader#avengers x reader
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You like 2gether? Great! Check out these series now
I’m sorry the title sounds vaguely like an ad, it wasn’t my intention oof. Anyway, here are five (+2) series you should watch and fill the void (in no particular order)!
THEORY OF LOVE (2019)
You can find it here.
“Third is a filmology major and a member of the Savage Team along with his best friends Two, Bone, and Khai, but he has a secret. Third has been secretly in love with Khai for years.”
Theory of Love is one of these series you don’t expect to like that much, but they surpise you. First of all, I still remember falling so deeply in love with this friend squad; they were so fun and wholesome (and yes maybe dickheads sometimes but that’s life). They were all so nicely written characters and I was always looking forward to seeing them every week. The story is a bit sad at first, but it will also make you laugh a lot. It also have lots of movie references! Loved that. Honestly, I’m not very good at reviews, but I can definitely say TOL was a series I still think fondly of, even to this day, like half a year later.
DARK BLUE KISS (2019)
You can find it here.
“Kao and Pete being in a blissful romance, have grown closer. But with Kao being closeted from his mother, he fears the dreaded thought of her finding out. His mother then introduces Non, a son of a colleague, as he requires tutoring from Kao. With Non constantly giving off ‘iffy’ vibes towards Kao, it only fuels Pete’s jealousy.”
I recently watched DBK and I was really taken aback by it. The fact that it dealt with some specific topics surprised me. We see Kao being scared of coming out to his mother, him being forced into a difficult situation mostly because he was trying to economically support his sister, Kao and Pete having problems because of miscommunication etc. It was something different. Of course, there were some bits I didn’t like, like the possesivness of Pete, but you can’t have everything in life. Overall a very good series, I would definitely recommend.
Note; DBK is a sequel of Kiss Me Again the series. You don’t have to watch it. If you want to, I’d recommend watching only the PeteKao cuts on Youtube.
HISTORY3: TRAPPED (2019)
You can find it here.
“The cooperation between police and the people create a harmonious new society. Police who are filled with justice are turned into the personal protection for gangsters. But one police officer becomes trapped in the underworld, as he develops feelings for a gang leader.”
God, I just realized how much I miss Trapped. It was one of the first asian series I watched and really loved. Look at the summary! It’s literally a fanfic I loved it. Jokes aside though, really nice plot, well written characters, nice twists, lots of funny moments, happy enging, what else would someone ask for? I fell in love with the characters and their stories. Literally, can’t even think straight and write a coherent review of this, I just love it, trust me.
WHAT DID YOU EAT YESTERDAY? (2019)
You can find it here.
“Kakei Shiro is a 45 year old lawyer who works at a small law firm. He is a good cook and a meticulous and thrifty person who keeps the monthly food budget to 25,000 yen. His partner Yabuki Kenji is the affable hairdresser in his 40s. The two of them share a two-bedroom apartment and the finer points of two men living together comes up at the dining table every day. Although two of them have been in a relationship for three years and Kakei’s parents know he is gay, Kakei never shares the fact that he is gay or Kenji is his partner to anyone.”
Looking for something sweet and wholesome? Watch this one. I have to thank whoever recommended this to me (I’m terribly sorry I forgot). The story of two middle-aged gay men, living their life in peace (most of the time at least). Involves lots of cooking, to the point it always made me hungry. It’s a relaxing series, one that will warm up your heart and make you smile.
HISTORY2: CROSSING THE LINE (2018)
You can find it here.
“Qiu Zi Xuan was an excellent volleyball player in the past, but he had to give up on on his dreams due to his injuries, but he still participates in the volleyball-related training. During the training, he meets a guy, Xia Yu Hao, a guy with a really bad temper who gets easily infuriated with people that make him angry, but he strives to acquire what he persistently wants to achieve.”
A lovely story. I think I watched it in like one afternoon. I couldn’t really resist to the dumbassery of Yu Hao. A story about coming to terms with your feelings and going after what you want. That’s it and, honestly, that’s more than one needs.
HONORARY MENTIONS (not bl, I just fucking love these series)
WHEN WE WERE YOUNG (2018)
You can find it here.
“A nostalgic story that revolves around high school students during the year 1996.
While chasing down a bike thief during the summer, Yang Xi gets injured by a lab explosion that renders her unable to compete in a long-distance run. When school opens, she realizes that the culprit behind her misfortune has transferred to her class and has even taken her position as class president. He is Hua Biao, a hot-blooded, rash and gifted genius of the science department. Hua Biao’s arrival immediately puts his classmates on guard and he must prove himself to be accepted by the class. Later on, they go through lots of ups and downs in life.”
Probably one of my favourite series ever and trust me I’ve watched quite a few. First things first, the OST. God, catch me still signing it under my breath. The visuals? Absolutely amazing. The plot and the characters? Honestly superb. The quotes? Made me cry every single time. This series gave me such a strong feeling of nostalgia, it had this whole vibe of being young and reckless, but at the same time knowing that you will grow old, that the world will change, that you will change with it. Imagine this; you are laying on your bed on a hot summer afternoon, you are young, loads of books are waiting for you, sprawled all over your dest, the radio is on, playing some old melodies mixed with static, you are reading a book or comics and you are waiting for your friends to come. This is it. This is the feeling this series has left me with. I know I may not be making sense for most people, but our languages sometimes are uncapable of expressing our feelings. You just have to experience it yourself.
THE LONGEST DAY IN CHANG’AN (2019)
You can find it here and here.
“744 A.D., Chang’an, the cosmopolitan heart of the Tang Empire. The remnants of a vanquished Central Asian kingdom have infiltrated the world’s largest city for a planned attack during the Lantern Festival. Meanwhile, the court is fraught with infighting. The aging Emperor is expected to announce the regency of the Right Chancellor during the festival and retreat to the mountains with his young lover. If the Right Chancellor becomes the regent, the reformist Crown Prince risks being deposed—or worse. Intelligence chief Li Bi, a young Taoist priest, and ally of the Crown Prince has only 24 hours to prevent both the attack and the regency. After a botched attempt to capture the infiltrators, Li Bi and his team call in the services of death row prisoner Zhang Xiao Jing — a war veteran, beloved police chief, and murderer of his last direct superior.”
Keep in mind that this is one of the most expensive (if not the most expensive) productions on China. The whole series covers the events of one day, one single day. What they did is actually amazing. The plot is so well structured, the costumes and set perfectly made, the actors plainly great. It might take a couple of episodes to understand the plot because especially on the first one there are a lot of things happened and lots of information getting thrown around, but it quickly becomes way more clear. The music, the twists, the morally ambiguous characters; one of the best things I’ve seen. I cried, I laughed, I feel in love and I now realize that no matter how much I praise this series, it won’t be enough.
Lowkey hope I haven’t done any mistakes because I don’t proof read anything and that’s the hill I’ll die on.
#2gether the series#2gether#dbk#tol#dark blue kiss#theory of love#history 3: trapped#history 3#history 2: crossing the line#history 2#history 2: ctl#what did you eat yesterday#when we were young#the longest day in chang'an#rec#my recs#angelic.txt
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80s! Haechan (AU)
so i love the 80s era and I love lee donghyuck so why not put them together? note: sorry if some of this is not fully accurate. I’m just using basic 80s pop culture knowledge (and a bunch of movie stereotypes)
genre: fluff/enemies to lovers/badboy! au.
warnings: the tiniest mention of drugs and some swearing. light badboy! au themes.
donghyuck is pretty much the bad boy of the school
he’s popular because of his attitude and attractiveness but he distances himself from everyone
he usually spends his time alone, sat at the back of the class, using his walkman to block out the world and listen to the rock mixtape he worked hard to put together.
well that’s if he even turns up to class
this little rebel has probably never attended a science class in his entire life because he always skips them
rumour has it that when he skips class, he’s hidden in one of the old store cupboards getting high or making out with one of the cheerleaders
not only was donghyuck the school’s mysterious badboy, he was also your lab partner. but, you were yet to see him actually turn up to one of the lessons.
you didn’t mind all too much. you were happy with working alone. it meant you could get the grade you needed without any distractions.
but you weren’t too happy when your teacher announced to the class that the upcoming project had to be completed with equal input from each lab partner
how the hell were you gonna pass this when your lab partner never turned up to class?!?!
as soon as the dismissal bell rang you stormed your way out of the school building and into the car park where you saw the boy lying down on the hood of his car, arms casually resting behind his head. he wore sunglasses to block out the summer sun and headphones to block out the rest of the universe.
well, that was until you forcefully pulled his headphones out of the cassette player strapped to his waist.
he immediately sat up. you couldn’t see his eyes through the shades but it was obvious donghyuck was giving you a death stare
“what the fuck is your problem?” he spat out whilst he grabbed the headphones back off you and placed them around his neck.
“you’re my problem. You’re also my lab partner. Now we have a project coming up and you will help me with it because I’m not letting someone like you fuck it up for me”
donghyuck took off his glasses and laughed at the sound you, one of the top students, using such a harsh tone
“I don’t know what you find so funny donghyuck because I swear if you don’t turn up to class tomorrow I wi-“
you were cut off by the sound of Bon Jovi starting to echo from the boy’s headphones, he was known for his heavy rock persona, not a day would go by where he wasn’t wearing his classic leather jacket
“Yeah whatever, sunshine. I’ll be there if I feel like it” and with that, he placed the headphones back over his ears to stop you from arguing any more and hopped off his car to go elsewhere, leaving you stood all alone.
an entire week had passed and donghyuck had still not turned up to a science class to do his part of the project. you were about to give up all hope and just beg your teacher to give you a different partner
well that was until you felt someone tap your shoulder and you were met with the badboy himself.
“Donghyuck what the fuck-“. Donghyuck cut you off before you could say anything else by placing his index finger against your lips.
“Listen, Sunshine, I’m only doing this because I’ll get into serious shit if I fail another class not because I like you or anything”
“I’m glad because I don’t like you either Donghyuck. I just want to pass not be your friend. ” you rolled your eyes at the thought of him ever being your friend, or more.
you watched him as he let out a loud sigh of, what you thought was, annoyance. He then handed you a slip of paper and casually told you to write down your address.
“I’ll come over tonight so we can get this shit over and done with as soon as possible” Donghyuck ordered as he took the note away from you and placed it in the back pocket of his jeans.
you immediately start to shake your head and wave your hands infront of you
“Are you kidding me Donghyuck? You can’t come to mine! My dad would freak out if I had a boy come over! We’ll just have to work together in the library like anyone else would”
this time the boy really did let out a sigh of annoyance and crossed his arms over his chest.
“God. Fine. You’ll have to come over to my place instead. We can’t work on the project in the library because I don’t want people seeing me with you”
when you heard those words leave his mouth you felt so much more upset than you would’ve expected
why do you suddenly care so much about what lee donghyuck thinks about you or says about you? you didn’t know. all you knew was that he hurt you somehow.
you were too busy looking down at the ground to notice how donghyuck instantly regretted his words when he saw your hurt self
he gently lifted your head up by placing his soft hand underneath your chin
“Quit pouting Sunshine, I was only joking. I’m just not allowed in the library because I’ve been banned, apparently I make to much noise...”. his hand quickly went from your chin to the back of his neck and he rubbed it out of embarrassment.
seeing the school’s mysterious badboy stand in front of you, with his cheeks tinted pink as his eyes searched to look anywhere other than you, made your heart rate go just a little faster than usual. maybe donghyuck wasn’t so bad after all?
-
it was just coming up to 5pm on a Friday night when you were stood at Lee Donghyuck’s front door waiting for him to answer. and to say you were nervous was a total understatement.
after what felt like lifetimes of waiting, donghyuck finally swung the door open. he stood in front of you wearing loose and baggy casual clothes, his hair messy. he was a bad boy turned soft.
he stood awkwardly under your gaze for a brief moment before returning back to his usual self and smirked at you as he stepped to the side and motioned for you to follow him inside and upstairs to his room.
donghyuck’s room was far from what you imagined it to be like. from his ‘bad’ image you expected a cluster of rock band posters to cover the walls, countless piles of clothes to be scattered across the floor, packs of cigarettes lazily hidden around the room and any illegal substances you could imagine to be placed amongst the shelves.
however you and your imagination were proved wrong when you stepped into a colourful and well kept room. framed pictures of donghyuck smiling happily with a group of boys you didn’t recognise were on display throughout the place. his shelves were filled with old action figures that must’ve been from his childhood days. countless copies of cheap comic books were stacked by the side of his bed. but what caught your attention the most was the boombox that stood next to a stand that was filled up with cassette tape after cassette tape.
“do you wanna listen to something y/n?” donghyuck said from behind you, a wide and proud smile on his face as he thought about how impressed you must be at his huge collection.
you walked over and started to pull out a few tapes at random to see what tapes he had. You started to laugh loudly as you inspected the name of the artists and songs written on the tapes.
“Donghyuck these are all pop singers,,,” you kept giggling as you turned to look at him and held up a handful of cassettes.
his eyes went wide as he remembered that he was supposed to hide away all of his ‘embarrassing’ things before you came over.
“DONT TOUCH THOSE! I-I umm, I mean those are my sisiter’s so you should put those away...” his cheeks were undoubtedly turning red and you could see that clearly he was lying.
so you decided to tease him further :)
“Wow Donghyuck I’m really surprised. I thought you were a bad boy? All anyone can ever hear in class is the sound of heavy rock coming from your headphones but now I’m finding out that you secretly listen to” -you scanned over the tapes infront of you and pulled out another one- “Cyndi Lauper?”
He snatched the tape from out of your hand and half heartedly mumbled another “that’s my sister’s tape” under his breath and looked down at the floor.
All you could do was smile at how cute the whole concept was. Donghyuck plays it off as if he is some dark and edgy rocker boy yet here he was, stood embarrassed infront of you, with a collection of cheesy pop albums bundled up in his arms. why would he be so shy about his true self?
you suddenly started to feel bad about teasing him and purposely making him feel shy in such a vulnerable situation
so, mirroring what donghyuck did to you that time in the school hallway, you lifted his head up from underneath is chin to make him look right into your eyes
“I’m only teasing Hyuck. I think these are cool and you’ve got an amazing music taste. Do you wanna listen to some Michael Jackson while we work?”
His face lit up and he gave you a beautiful bright smile. his heart felt warmer than ever. not only were you offering to play his favourite artist but you had also given him a nickname-hyuck. maybe you were starting to like him after all?
you two both sat comfortably on hyuck’s bed with the science project sprawled out in front of you but with every new playing song, a new conversation topic popped up, causing you both to forget all about the real reason why you went over that night.
the only thing that could be heard throughout the house that night was fits of laughter and giggles as you and donghyuck shared old memories, secret hobbies (as it was clear donghyuck had a lot of those), and anything else that came to mind.
“Oh my god! You’re kidding me y/n. Thriller is the best Michael Jackson song. Period.”
“Hyuck are you serious? His best song is P.Y.T and everyone knows that”
“Hey you wanna see something cool? I can do a pretty neat impression of him...”
after what felt like lifetimes more of endless laughter donghyuck came to a stop and found himself looking deep into your eyes, loving the way they glinted in the light as you smiled
and he didn’t know what gave him the sudden course of bravery. maybe it was the way you spoke to him as if you both had been best friends for years, maybe it was the way you shyly placed your hand over your mouth to hide your smile when he teased you, maybe it was just donghyuck’s heart taking more control over him than his mind
but he found the courage. he hardly even waited for you to notice how he was staring at you before he blurted it out.
“come out with me tonight to meet my friends y/n.”
you completely froze and with wide eyes you turned to give him a look as if to say ‘are you crazy?’
“C’mon Sunshine it’ll be fun, they don’t go to our school but they’re really cool and you’ll love them”
Without really having the chance to say anything you found yourself being dragged out to hyuck’s car with his hand in yours.
He turned to you and grinned as he started the engine causing the radio to start playing
You instantly pulled your hands up to your ears as the radio started to blare out heavy rock music as loud as possible
Donghyuck panicked and desperately pushed every button on the small machine to find the right one that would change the song.
After finally finding it he glanced over at you bashfully. you couldn’t help but smile back as you heard ‘every breath you take’ by the police starting to play
the whole scene was so relaxing. you both sat in a comfortable silence as the song played. the moonlight shone onto donghyuck’s features and it made you see him in a way you had never expected. you had come to the realisation that Lee Donghyuck, a boy you had hated since the beginning, was actually the most beautiful thing you had ever seen.
you turned you head away from him to look out of the window before he could notice that you were staring with heart eyes
the thought of donghyuck’s sudden beauty left your mind and you started to realise what you were actually doing. you were on your way to meet his friends.
you started to panic as all you could imagine was some sort of gang of boys that acted just the way donghyuck acted in school
what if he was taking you to the bad side of town and you would have to sit uncomfortably as a gang of mischievous teenagers stared at you wondering why the hell you were there with them?
The car came to a stop and you took in where you were.
“Are we lost?” You looked over at hyuck confused when you noticed that he had pulled up at the town’s arcade.
He rolled his eyes at you and got out of the car and waited for you to follow before heading into the brightly-lit building
Donghyuck grabbed you by the wrist and pulled you around the entire arcade but came to a sudden stop when you reached a group of five boys, all huddled around another boy whose eyes were fixated on the game of Pac-Man playing in front of him.
Donghyuck leaned in closer to you so that his voice could be heard over the sound of other games and shouting kids “if it’s Mark playing then I’ll give it a few more seconds before he completely blows it and dies”
A few moments later you heard the group of boys let out shouts of disappointment as ‘game over’ appeard on the screen infront of them. Donghyuck just stood there next to you with a smug grin playing on his lips until one of the boys turned around and noticed he had arrived.
“Hey look, Hyuck finally arrived and he’s brought someone” he said as he tapped a few of the others on the shoulder to gain their attention
The rest of the boys turned around and, like most things in donghyuck’s life, they were far from what you imagined them to be like. they all looked as if they couldn’t hurt a fly. after they had all introduced themselves to you, all of you made your way throughout the arcade playing game after game.
a while later it had finally started to get close to your curfew hour. you waved goodbye to your new group of friends and hyuck took your hand in his as he walked you to the car so he could take you home
“You’ve really surprised me today Lee Donghyuck” you said truthfully and took a glance at his cute concentration face as he drove through the darkness
“What were you expecting? me and my friends to be in some sorta hardcore gang? Sorry to let you down y/n but all we do is spend the week saving up quarters so we can spend Friday night beating the arcade’s high scores”
this time he wasn’t embarrassed or shy when talking about the real side to him. he felt so relaxed around you that he knew he could show his true self. after all that had happened that night, donghyuck knew that you weren’t an enemy. he knew that you weren’t just a person from high school that he’d forget all about in the years to come. he now knew that you were a friend, maybe even more.
Donghyuck switched the engine off once he had pulled up to your house and turned over to make his whole body face you as one of his arms rest on the wheel.
“Y/N, I’ve... I’ve had a real good time with you tonight and I was wondering if you want to like go out sometime again? but...just us two? like maybe we could catch a movie? I heard that’s what couples like to do... there’s that new movie out soon, the breakfast club or something like that-“
“Donghyuck are you asking me out on a date?” you cut him off from his messy rambling
“Yeah I think I am. So, are you up for it Sunshine?”
You couldn’t help but give him the biggest smile ever as you felt your cheeks heat up from happiness
“Of course I’ll go on a date with you Hyuck”
And with that, he leaned over and gave you a small kiss out of joy and excitement. You really had turned the badboy soft.
#nct 127#kpop#kpop scenarios#nct dream#nct scenarios#nct u#nct au#kpop au#winwin#nct#haechan angst#haechan au#haechan fluff#haechan imagines#haechan scenarios#lee donghyuck#donghyuck fluff#soft nct hours#nct dream fluff#nct dream au#nct 127 fluff#nct reactions#mark lee smut#nct smut#haechan smut#mark lee fluff#renjun au#jaemin fluff#jeno au#80s donghyuck
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I was tagged by @yaboyspodcastpalace
Author Name:
Mad Maudlin (or Mad_Maudlin, or some variation thereof).
Fandoms You Write For:
At the moment? It’s all-MAG, all the time (with a tiny side brain devoted to the Daredevil/Chronicles of Darkness crossover of doom).
Where You Post:
AO3, with side announcements here and on twitter.
Most Popular Oneshot:
A Study in Natural Philosophy, a BBC Merlin daemon AU written during the very brief time I was in that fandom.
Most Popular Multi-Chapter Story:
Tongues of Men and Angels, a Stargate: Atlantis McShep AU I wrote for NaNoWriMo one year.
Favourite Story You Wrote:
Listen. Listen. I have 223 works on AO3. I have been writing fic since 2002. Let’s just stick to one-ish per fandom.
Once and Future, a Merlin/Torchwood crossover with additional references to Sanctuary and the rest of the Whoniverse. At some point this was going to be a whole Thing, with more elaborate crossovers and the Wandering Jew, but I fell out of love with most of the fandoms involved and at this point I can’t even decrypt my old notes. Something about “murder rehab” and Dropkick Murpheys lyrics.
Care and Feeding -- Harry Potter, my contribution to the grand traditions of super fucked up porn in that fandom.
Ghost Story, a Torchwood fix-it fic that nobody reads because it’s weird and long and in the first person a lot. But I loved writing it, and I think @marginaliana loved reading it, so who’s the real winner here?
The Story Needed Mending, Sanctuary, because I love Kate Freelander and I love Ashley Magnus and I just think they should be in lesbians, okay?
Apotheosis, BBC Sherlock, which, look. This fandom was massively important to men during my first couple years of grad school. I know how it ended, and I know it’s a punchline on Tumblr these days, but I found a lot to like in the first season, and this is probably still my favorite Sherlock fic of my own.
Dear John (WIP Remix), which I’m linking to the plain text form, because Photobucket took the images hostage. ::sigh:: I always enjoyed the Remix Redux, and this is probably my favorite remix fic I’ve done, going way beyond the original text but staying in the same spirit. Also I got to pour ketchup on it and devised cursive forms of the Pegasus gate symbols.
Frequently Asked Question, a comics!Hawkeye fic based off that one post about the lady with meningitis who lost all short-term memory. One of the few Marvel fics I ever wrote, based of the Fraction/Aja/Wu Hawkeye and the Kot/Walsh Secret Avengers.
The Stars My Destination, SGA in a Star Trek AU. This fic took two years to write and I was super burned out by the end of it, but it’s also got some passages I’m really proud of.
All You Holy Men and Women, Daredevil, because I think I really nailed the characters here.
The Minotaur and Other Poems, TMA. Which is funny because I was really, really unsatisfied with it when I posted it, but once I had a couple of months of distance I realized that it really achieved everything I was trying for?
Story You Were Nervous to Post:
Pretty much any “first in the fandom” story. Particularly “november in this house of leaves” and “Heave Cannot Hold Him, Nor Earth Sustain” since those were both preceded by multi-year writing breaks/mental health disasters.
How Do You Pick Your Titles:
Statistically speaking, most of them come from “Lullabye” by W. H. Auden.
Do You Outline:
Not formally -- it tends to kill my enjoyment of the story. If I outline at all, it’s very general. The good news is that I can hold a pretty complex storyline in my head without much trouble; the bad news is that, if i don’t finish the story quickly enough, it goes “poof” along with all my other memories. There are a loooot of abandoned wips in my writing folder, is what I’m saying...
How Many of Your Stories are complete:
...which is why I almost never post anything until I’m done with it. Even “Take Care of You (And I’ll Take Care of Me)” was almost done, I was just impatient for kudos and struggling to write out that last conversation.
There are a few unfinished tidbits float around various kink memes, but on the whole, I only post complete stuff. That was only I know how much I’ve abandoned.
In-Progress/Coming Soon:
There’s a Basira-centric fic I’m stalled on which might be perma-WIP territory, and because MAG canon is hurtling into a pit of despair, I’ve been working on a ridiculous AU in which Jon is a literal cat and nobody dies or gets mutilated. (Well, “working” -- grading is hard, y’all.) And there’s a Little Mermaid AU still in the very early stages, but that one’s got an outline so I can come and go without losing the thread.
Do You Accept Prompts:
No, sorry.
Upcoming Story You’re the Most Excited For:
Jon Is A Cat And Nothing Hurts.
Tag Five Fanfic Authors to Answer These Questions
Tag anarchy! Do the quiz if you want to!
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