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tillthelandslide · 11 months

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Insufferable Arsehole Part 9: The Best Thing That Ever Happened: Instagram AU- Matty Healy Series

A/n: I'm slowly falling back in love with the series and I'm getting more ideas which is epic for me :) and I'm happy. The next part of the series is what I'm referring to as the "interlude" otherwise known as "When In Rome". But this is the last Instagram AU before that so hope you enjoy. Thank you to everyone who is still sticking around and reading this series, it truly means the world to me... Truly! Iove you - L

P.s this post was scheduled bc I'm away camping ☺️❤️

Series Masterlist

Corresponding Part

thisislou:

thisislou second to last show for The 1975 at Their Very Best... Pleasure being on tour with these boys @the1975 I love you

Liked by trumanblack, charli_xcx, bedforddanes75, rass1975 and 328,749 others

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fan2 Lou x The 1975 is something I never knew I needed so bad and I know it's not over over but going without them for three weeks is going to be hard

trumanblack love you baby p.s where's the necklace

-> thisislou love you more ❤️ p.s I have it dw my love

-> trumanblack wear it pls so I know it's safe

-> thisislou you're a pest... Everyone knows I'm yours anyway

-> trumanblack that's right ❤️

-> fan1 I'm crying 😭 he did get the necklace for her!!!!

rass1975 get it rockstar 😍

-> thisislou why thank you Macdonald☺️❤️

bedforddanes75 that's my best friend!

-> thisislou yours 🫶

charli_xcx I'd leave George for you 😍🔥🔥

-> thisislou deal bby 😘

-> bedforddanes75 some best friend you are 🙄

-> thisislou shut up you know I'm the best

1975adam much love ❤️

-> thisislou Hann ❤️

carly.rh outfit goals

-> thisislou don't 😭 going to miss you so much

pollymoney pretty girl

-> thisislou that's you bubs

75fan I love how this is just a picture of her outfit... No face, yet the guys and Charli are going crazy 🤣 absolute slay

thisislou:

thisislou little sneak peek 👀 @trumanblack

📸@bedforddanes 🫶

Liked by trumanblack, bedforddanes75, mynamesmia, rosetintedglasses, rass1975 and 456,988 others

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trumanblack look at us giving the people what they want?

-> thisislou my pleasure baby 🖤

75fan WAIT WHAT... DOES THIS MEAN WHAT I THINK IT DOES

loufanpage robbers kiss incoming... I called it

bedforddanes75 thanks for taking one for the team 🙏

-> thisislou just because it's me this time doesn't mean you won't be next

-> bedforddanes75 don't say that

rass1975 im not ready for the deafening screams we're going to hear

-> thisislou thank God for in ears huh?

1975adam bagsy not me next

-> thisislou you know our boy more than anyone... He will come for you even if you say bagsy not me 🤷🏽‍♀️

-> 1975fan "our boy" 😭😭😭😭❤️

trumanblack:

trumanblack I've been in love with you for ages

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Liked by thisislou, bedforddanes75, 1975adam, jamieoborne, jwaughsaxophone and 371,839 others

thisislou I love you Healy 🖤

-> trumanblack I love you more

jwaughsaxophone mega babe

-> trumanblack don't I know it

bedforddanes75 she's so cool

-> trumanblack ever wonder why she hangs out with us?

-> bedforddanes75 everyday... Just got to accept it and don't question it

charli_xcx wanna swap partners for a day?

-> trumanblack no thanks, I've had g for all my life

rass1975 best thing that's ever happened to you mate

-> trumanblack best thing that's ever happened to any of us

-> rass1975 that she is

loufanpage:

loufanpage guys I actually can't 😭 they're so proud of our girl and they've looked after her so well and loved her exactly the way she's always deserved and I know it's not over but I'm going to miss them. And the robbers kiss... ARE YOU JOKING?

Liked by thisislou, trumanblack and 12,901 others

thisislou shared to her story

📍 loufanpage AHHH Lou shared and Lou and Matty liked the post... I can't deal

-> 75fan she commented! @loufanpage

thisislou thank you for being so supportive of us ❤️

-> loufanpage omg hi, I love you. You're more than welcome!!

the1975updates I feel so sad for some reason... I love them so much and I'm truly going to miss them ❤️

thisislou:

thisislou feeling awfully sentimental as we come to the end of the first leg of the tour.... This tour so far has truly changed my life. To the fans: thank you for accepting me and loving me, you've made this journey one of a kind... don't worry I'll be back soon.

Firstly to John, Jamie, Polly and Gabi: thank you for being the most legendary people ever, for letting me hang out with the cool kids and accepting for me, for all of me 💙 I am truly thankful to the boys for bringing me the best friends I could ever ask for...

To Hann: thank you for being a steady support and for being someone I know will give me their honest opinion, for just being you. Ads, you're going to be the best dad and you know you're like a brother to me and I'm just so proud, I love you!

To Ross: thank you for all the hugs, the support, the laughs, for knowing what's wrong before I even do and being such a good friend and person. You know just how much you mean to me but I'll never stop telling you. Don't miss me too much 😋

To my best friend, my G: thank you for continuing to be my absolute rock, my big brother, I can't say too much because I know I'll cry but I truly wouldn't even have been on this tour if it wasn't for you so thank you, I love you always, my life is as amazing as it is because of you and everything you've brought me, including our boys ❣️

Last but not least, my Matty: thank you for turning my world upside down, for challenging me and for loving me fiercely and unapologetically, god knows we had a rocky start but thank fuck you finally admitted you're feelings because you are single handedly the best thing that has ever happened to me. I love you and I'm thankful to finally have my person ❤️

Now... To Rome

Liked by trumanblack, bedforddanes75, rass1975, 1975adam and 773,189 others

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trumanblack there's no one like you my love and this tour has been as fucking amazing and it's because of you ❣️ to Rome my love....

-> thisislou my heart 😭❤️ I love you, thank you for changing my life

rass1975 going to miss you rockstar, enjoy Rome

-> thisislou wont be long macdonald ❤️ adore you

1975adam the best❤️ have a beautiful time

-> thisislou na that's you ❤️ thanks ads ❤️

bedforddanes75 my best friend, my sister, always ❤️ enjoy Rome with Matthew.

-> thisislou my g 😭😭❤️

johnwaugh legend... Bring back me something cool from Rome...

-> thisislou waughy 😭❤️ of course!

carly.rh have the best time my love ❤️

the1975updates:

the1975updates @the1975 have finished the first leg of their tour and are now having a well deserved break. This photo was taken at the last show. We love them... We got the robbers kiss we all wanted!!(I'll be posting my snippet of this separately) so glad I was at this show, it was truly beautiful and Matty & Lou were honestly so cute I can't deal.

75fan the robbers kiss?? Like are you kidding me! They wanted to break the internet with that one

loumattystan my parents 🥹 I love them so much

fan1 going to miss seeing them on my fyp

fan2 I was there!! It was the best show honestly, so sentimental, I cried multiple times

fan3 the way they're just having a little cuddle on stage 🥹😭🥹😭❤️

-> the1975updates honestly!! I actually cried, they're so in love ❤️

the1975updates:

the1975updates WE FINALLY GOT THE ROBBERS KISS WE WE'RE ALL BEGGING FOR!!! IM SO HAPPY. This was the best 75 show I've been to but this was just so cute and special and I've had to mute my video because it was so fucking loud.

75fan what did he say to her before he kissed her?

-> the1975updates I'm not sure, he stopped singing and the boys sang for him and the mic wasn't head him sorry , any lip readers who can tell her what he said???

-> fan3 "there's no one like you"

Liked by thisislou

-> the1975updates @fan3 THANK U !! I can die happy now... God he really loves her

loufanpage guys I can't 😭😭 their love is so pure

Note: love you guys and I seriously cannot thank those of you that continue to read this, enough. You're the best and I really hope you're still enjoying this series. If you are it would mean the world to me if you'd consider liking and reblogging this. Thank you - L

#matty healy #matty healy fan fic #matty the 1975 #matty healy x reader #matty Healy x oc #the 1975 fanfic #matty healy fanfiction #matty Healy instagram au #insufferable arsehole matty healy series #matty healy fanfic #matty healy fake instagram #matty healy fluff

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brandileigh2003 · 7 months

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Ok. But like?

I'm cool with remus not being traditionally beautiful. But Sirius still thinking he's the best thing ever. I think that he has certain attractive features, but he's def not some rockstar and most ppl don't take a second glance. But you need that to see the shade of his eyes, his crooked smile. Sirius loves him and finds beauty because of not despite of his scars. Bc they show strength and tell a story.

Mid level I think someone put it. Sure, I get why that can be a thing.

But. I think he can have sex appeal in other ways. His smile, his voice, a look in his eyes, muscles in certain places that defies him being otherwise skinny.

I'm fine with sirius being super intelligent and quick. Its canon after all. I love how him and James have this quality. But I don't think that means that remus liking to read or studying a lot takes that away from Sirius. I think that he likes academic validation, and he needs to read and study to stay caught up. He wants to prove he's worthy to be at school and has to work for it. I do think that he's smart though, and adds to group dynamics.

I don't think that he's just a downer and boring persay, otherwise why would they want to be with him. I think that he'll do the research maybe on the great idea that Sirius and James had and they will later carry it out flawlessly. Or sees some kind of gap in the plan and can think quick to help patch it up.

I do think he probably gets so hyperfixated on things which some people can't stand. but sirius loves to hear him talk about it. Just like remus is obsessed with everything sirius has to say. He's totally a nerd but I don't think he's just pathetic or a loser. Or maybe I just don't see those words the same as the recent posts have been using for him.

I think he's extraordinarily kind. he worships sirius, who in turn thinks remus is also the best. He's not rude to him even though I really do think they fight. But can't stay mad at each other long.

I do think that he can be angry, but I also think that a lot of times it's just at himself or crappy life circumstances. He's normally careful to keep any anger controlled bc he's worried about perception.

he's shy and and awkward and deals with a lot. He loves to help the younger students, and he uses above hard earned study methods to help them bc everything doesn't just come naturally or can share how he overcame it.

If everyone has a crush it's not bc he's completely hot or any of that. He's a soft boy with big comfy sweaters that gives good hugs. He's a good listener, a good teacher, shares anything he has, especially the chocolate that seems to be never ending in his bag. Bc he believes that it'll make you feel better. He has a kind word or compliment and can make you feel better.

I think he can be a momma's boy. And wants hope or poppy to hug him, and give him a space to cry and be weak. Otherwise I think that he likes to try to hide his pain bc he doesn't want to be a burden.

And ... That all said. I think that CR remus is different than a lot of this and hes absolutely perfect and I love him and I'd do insane things for this fictional man. It's one of my favorite ways to read about him. But something that carries over there from everything else I said is how enamored he is with Sirius Black. And how much he loves his inner circle. How he has this sacrificial love.

But anyways, I could go on about CR but that's totally not the point. Ive just seen a few things and wanted to say some things about how I see him a lot. And maybe the posts that have me feeling kind of sad talking about him are actually saying some of the same things I'm just negatively associating some words or ideas bc I know personally I can also interpret things completely the wrong way or not read into the subtext well enough

Let me know what you think. But if you think this is wrong; be kind.

And the people who like to come all up in my inbox about hating Sirius-- this isnt that. To be clear. I don't want remus to take over any traits of Sirius or whatever else you accuse me of. This has to do mostly with remus except me saying that sirius sees something in remus that a lot of people don't, that they're in love and adore each other.

I do in fact love Sirius Black and think he's wonderful. And you're missing the point if you think I hate that man. But I want to talk about remus rn and if you want something talking about Sirius, so many other wonderful people on here do that, so let's find that instead and let me hyperfixate and talk about remus.

Other random things I'll probably add to that really are prb just me.

-he is a horrible dancer. But he'll do it for sirius

-he'd do almost anything for Sirius.

-he's a music snob. But he'll read anything

-he is super annoying in class bc he shakes his leg or taps his quill. Sirius thinks it's adorable though.

-he needs a cane around the full. But he doesn't like to use it.

-the man loves weed. Him and hope smoke together.

-he has no idea how to take care of his hair

-to me he's associated with chronic illness, pain or disability in every universe. Or some mix or variation. (Ofc authors have free choice it's their story and I have no right for demands or anything) but I write him that way, hc him that way, get stupidly happy when I read it bc I feel so seen, search AO3 tags regularly for these portrayals.

-remus has no sense of style. But sirius doesn't care, he's so soft and cozy with his sweaters. The only thing about that is that I'm personally convinced hope bought remus a leather jacket, he shows up wearing it on the train, Sirius somehow gets his hands on it... Remus' eyes pop out of his head, maybe drools a bit- and it becomes Sirius' trademark

#remus lupin #remus loves sirius #sirius loves remus #wolfstar #marauders #remus lupin appreciation #my take on remus #please be nice to me #i am fine if you disagree #but don't be those rude anon messages #to be clear #i love sirius #but this is about remus #disabled remus #chronic illness #chronic pain

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thefreakymunson · 2 years

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okay i’ve been stalking ur page for the past 30 min and i’m literally OBSESSED and i was wondering if you could do an eddie fic where his gf is like the sweet and shy type and one day she’s over at his trailer and sees his guitar and she’s like “ooo can i play” and he’s like “sure” thinking she only knows a couple chords but then she busts out a black sabbath riff or smth and is like an absolute rockstar and eddie’s just like in AWE

Sure! Thanks for the compliment!!! I hope you enjoy! Also I'm sorry this is a lil bit short, but I know next to nothing about playing guitar other than how cool Eddie makes it look haha.

Today was the first day you were spending time with your boyfriend outside of school and classes. His uncle had to work all day at the plant meaning you two would have the trailer to yourselves. It was a little nerve wrecking and you had to remind yourself plenty of times on the drive over that it was just Eddie. You had spent plenty of time together. Just never alone in a trailer by yourselves. The possibilities excited you.

"There's my girl," Eddie smirked as he opened the door for you to walk in. He bent down and kissed your lips gently, sighing to himself when you kissed back.

"Hi, Eds." You smiled, stepping into the much cooler trailer. It was scorching outside today.

"Come in, make yourself comfy." Eddie said, "Kick your shoes off and relax...you're mine for a few hours today at least."

A grin spread across your face as you slid your boots off at the door. You looked around the trailer, familiarizing yourself with the layout. You could definitely tell that two men lived here.

"Uh, it's pretty simple lay out, but living room, kitchen, this is my uncles bedroom, our bathroom, and then my room." Eddie said as you followed him back to through the hallway.

"This is your bedroom?" You grinned as he stepped aside and let you in.

"Yep." He nodded, "This is where exactly none of the magic happens."

You snorted at that as you walked around, looking at the band posters that lined his walls. Iron Maiden, Metallica, Anthrax, Journey...there were so many of your faves.

"What's this?" You asked, walking closer to the stand in the corner of his room.

"That's my baby," he smirked, "It's a N.C Rich Warlock...my pride and joy."

"Can I play?" You asked, looking back at him with a soft grin.

"Yeah." He nodded, "It's all plugged up still. Just uh...here. Let me."

He walked over to his amp and flipped it on, making sure the connection was tight as he handed you his prized possession. You sat down on the edge of his bed and strummed along for a few minutes, getting the feel of the guitars neck and strings.

"That sounds good," Eddie nodded, a little shocked. But what you done next blew his mind.

The familiar notes of Iron Maiden's Run To The Hills filled the room as you stared down at your hands, to nervous to look up at Eddie. It had been while since you played it any Iron Maiden. You played the first few riffs and then dared yourself to look up at your boyfriend who had suddenly gone quiet.

"Holy shit...that was..."

"Bad?" You bit your bottom lip.

"Are you fuckin' crazy? That was insane! You've got it all down pat...holy shit, Y/N." Eddie locked eyes with you and and bit his bottom lip, "That was fuckin' hot...you just blew my mind."

#eddie munson #eddie musnon x reader #stranger things #stranger things fanfic

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tsintotwo · 2 years

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(Part 4/4)

(Earlier: Parts 1, 2, and 3)

Okay, finally getting to the 4th and last post talking about Tom Sturridge in his projects. There's not too much left to say as these are mostly cameos.

Vanity Fair (2004)- This was the first movie Tom was in as a grownup (edit: nope, this was the 2nd)- in period clothing (and looking like a million bucks, as you would suspect). Screentime: 2min. You can tell he's still finding his footing in all this. But he's got the it factor already.

Journey's End (2017)- Movie about Brit soldiers stuck in trenches waiting for death during WW2. Sam Claffin and Paul Bettany are in this and I recognized neither before seeing credits 🤦‍♀️ Anyway, Tom plays a bad soldier: drinks and girls are his forte, fighting- not so much. His character is in this movie to basically show the bone-chilling, hope-crushing, cruelly pointless side of wars. He uses his 3/4 scenes to drive that point home like a master. There's one super emotionally charged scene with Sam that sears into the mind- they both absolutely chew it up.

Song to Song (2017)- Tom being in this movie is just the most RANDOM thing in the world, guys. Song to Song is about the music industry and rockstar life, and Tom shows up for like 2mins to play Ryan Gosling's hometown farmland brother of all things??? Wut. 2 lines of dialogue. Cute hair, tho. Cute everything.

Hello Apartment (2018)- Slice-of-life short film about how we all leave our mark in the spaces we move through. Dakota Fanning made this and asked Tom to be in it- they've been friends since doing Effie Gray. Tom is MC's stormy bf- a bit of kissing, a bit of pouting, a bit of shouting. Worth it. (Aside: some STUNNING shots in this, kudos to Dakota). This is on youtube.

That's it, actually. Only movie of Tom's I haven't gotten to is Junkhearts (2011). It's on Amazon Prime for $4 which is worth it, but it seems like an intense movie and I'll take a break before trying to watch this one.

A significant part of Tom's career has been theater work. From what I've gathered, seems like he's done some phenomenal work there- both in UK and US. Got cool awards and noms. Of course, if your play isn't Hamilton, it doesn't get to be on any screen, so there's no way to see any of those now. The one I'm most gutted about is 1984 (2017) on Broadway. I love the og classic by George Orwell, and by all accounts this adaptation/interpretation was banging (AND controversial!). Tom playing a role like Winston Smith... I'd have loved it so fuckin much * screaming-into-pillow break*

How does Tom choose his projects?

"The first thing I’m drawn to is a piece of writing, to an author, to a director. Weirdly, it’s rarely a character. I want to work with people or with texts that push me and make me learn things that I think I can’t do. Because if I think I can do it, then I can’t surprise myself. And if I can’t surprise myself, then I’m definitely not going to surprise an audience." -Tom for Interview magazine, 2022

Why does he often do troubles characters?

"... I think what I’m attracted to is being able to explore a spectrum of emotion. It’s easier to find comedy in something sad than it is to find darkness in something funny. I can be all kinds of people when the darkness is there. Also, the first character I ever played onstage was a boy who murders all of his schoolmates [in Punk Rock]. I do think there’s something to be said by, “You get stuck in a gorge that you start with.” People have always gone, “Oh, yeah. He’s the fucked-up guy.” - same

Here's something about me: I love falling in love with men on silver screen. It's the only space where it's okay to be in love with a version of someone you made in your head because you're not going to know any other version. The only space you get to channel your feelings six ways to Sunday: write posts, write stories, draw, make any art- people will actually celebrate those (whereas try talking to your friend about a new irl crush for five days straight, on the sixth they'll smack you upside your head). The feelings are intense because these men are deliberately performing for you, the emotions forever unsullied because they're not gonna come hurt you (unless they're being cancelled lol). And they're all the finest specimens! So, yeah, I love it, and it happens periodically. What's rarer, tho, is that I get attracted to an actor's whole personality. I mean, like, all of these hot men are hella charming, and you can yassify almost anyone based on interview moments. But, idk, it doesn't always click with me, and I love a character, ship a couple, then move on. Tom, tho, is going to be one of those 2/3 permanent ones. I just find him interesting which to me, is the thing. (And also, he turned out to be one of those rare people in life who lets you know things about yourself that you didn't know before. Huh. Who knew?) And yeah, okay, he's very hot and insanely talented which started this whole intense phase but while this won't last, a genuine fondness and love will. He has a place in my heart forever. It's been such a good time discovering him that I'm legit grateful to the universe.

I'll do a bonus post with links to Tom interviews/vids/ stuff that are worth checking out. Until then, guys.

#tom sturridge #dream of the endless #morpheus #sandman #the sandman #vanity fair #journey's end #hello apartment #song to song #1984

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lifeofa-fangirl · 1 year

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TW: FLASHING IN THE VIDEO!

Måneskin @ Vorst National, Brussels - 02.03.2023

"There's just one thing I hope you know, I loved you so."

Last week was... a struggle to say the least. Without going into too much detail, let me tell you that work has been slowly drowning me. I spend February telling myself 'You cannot get sick, you cannot get sick.' over and over again. Because the whole project would collapse if I got sick. And also I just had to make it through the month because I was seeing Panic at the Disco on February 28th and Måneskin on March 2nd. So as some sort of cruel joke, my body decided to betray me and of course chose exactly this week to get sick. I felt awful, exhausted and my brain was full of fog. I knew if I would go see Panic I would not make it to Måneskin and probably collapse during work. I should have probably just called in sick, but I didn't. Instead I made the painful decision to not go see Panic. It hurt, because I know Brendon is amazing live and this was his goodbye tour. But choices had to be made, so I chose. I dragged my body to Thursday, I slept as much as I could and I spend about an hour underneath a hot shower that afternoon to feel somewhat okay again. But I eventually made it to Brussels and let me tell you: so freaking worth it!

I was honestly nervous about this show, because usually when you look forward to something so much, it can only disappoint. But let me tell you: Måneskin did not disappoint. Not one bit. If anything they exceeded my expectations. They confirmed what I always thought: live is better than the albums (which is a rare treat). I have so much thoughts swirling through my head still, even though it's been almost a week. So excuse the word/thought vomit that is about to follow. Sorry not sorry.

The setlist is amazing. They played like... 95 percent of my favorites. My only disappointment was that they switched Lividi Sui Gomiti for Kool Kids. They had fun, the people on stage had fun (it was so adorable to see Damiano actually happily hug everyone), but that song just isn't for me. Also Gasoline fell flat on it's face, but that had everything to do with the venue (which at moments is a bottomless echo pit) and nothing with them cause it did look cool.

Other than that, such a good list. One of my absolute favorites? Feel. It doesn't necessarily stick out for me on the record, but live? Wowza! Also, Mark Chapman and La Fine slap so hard live.

Also, I honestly feel they should just take Beggin off the list by now. If you have to introduce a song with 'We've been playing this song a lot. Maybe a bit too much. But we know some of you like it, so we'll play it again.' then I think it's time to let go. I wouldn't mind one bit.

The whole setup with the low hanging lights was absolutely amazing, so stunning and cool. I was very curious what the setting would be, cause honestly, most of their shows I've seen are pretty basic when it comes to lights and staging. But this was so cool, I loved it.

Thomas freaking Raggi. The man, the myth, the legend. All the freaking love for this man. I thought I had gathered how amazing he was, but seeing him perform live, realizing once more how much he's grown, watching him be a total rockstar? Man oh man, what a glorious treat! He deserves all the praise.

A choice had to be made and I opted for standing spots. The downside of that in combination with being tiny? I lost track of them every time they went into the crowd. And I lost track of Vic a lot in general because she so tiny lmao. Though rest assured I did catch Damiano being a total slut a lot. Like, you don't realize until you see it how much of a slut he exactly is on stage I feel haha.

The upside of our spots? We were very close to the B-stage for the acoustic set. Damiano and Thomas doing Vent'anni and If Not For You accoustic, up close and personal? Oh be still, my dear heart. I have yet to recover from this. Highlight of the evening for me. I cannot even put it in words.

On a side note about this: I know we are all a bit worried about Damiano and the oxygen mask IG post. But they had to run halfway around the venue to come into the crowd at the back to reach the B-stage. And then back to the main stage again. Damiano joked that was harder than he expected, but he was absolutely fine, not even out of breath. So I'm assuming what ever he has now is just some bug that I hope will pass soon.

Major shoutout to Ethan's arms. Like, I've seen the pictures, I get it. But then at the end of the show he threw his drumsticks into the audience and the distance caused a collective ooooh from the crowd. We were pretty far to the back and he could have hit me in the head if the direction had been a bit different. Very impressive.

Also impressive? The audience. I've seen a lot of audiences, I've been in a lot of audiences. And this one was a particularly good one. They were wild, there was so so much energy. They participated loudly and proudly (even I got down down down twice during IWBYS despite practically hearing my knees crack over all the noise). And they were respectful. Damiano had three rules for the people on stage: No phones. No phones. And no phones. So that's what happened. I was so happy to be a part of this.

And lastly, I wanna point out the energy they brought. I know this is hard for them sometimes (not intentionally, but we all get tired. They do too and you can tell sometimes). But last Thursday? They were absolutely on fire. So much energy and they radiated so much genuine happiness, they were playful and they clearly had a good time. And I'm so happy I got to witness that.

So yes, so many thoughts, but all in all it was quite simple: What a band, what an amazing night! All the love for these four rockstars!

#I am in love #måneskin #forest national #loud kids europe #belgium #tw: flashing video

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tripthelightfandomtastic · 2 years

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TELL ME EVERYTHING!!!!

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVE PARTS OF YOUR SHOW!!??

Oh geez where to even begin.

I felt like I was about to get on a roller-coaster the entire time. Crown Lands was the first opener and was absolutely fucking amazing. The lead singer is also the drummer and they have the voice of a siren. Their guitarist was so incredibly talented and they're both so pretty to look at. They sounded like an 70s rock show, very reminiscent of Rush and Led Zeppelin. I have no clue how I've never heard of them before. GO CHECK THEM OUT BECAUSE THEYRE SO FUCKING GOOD!

Durand Jones and the Indications were the second opener. I felt they were kind of an odd pick for a Greta show only because it was very jazzy and slow but the vibe was fun. The lead singer has a voice that is so good and a stage presence that looked so at ease on stage. EVERYONE IN THE BAND CAN SING AND PLAY INSTRUMENTS AND IT WAS SO COOL. The vibe wasn't as hype as Crown Lands, I know Durand Jones and the Indications are the bigger band but I would've swapped their spots just from the way they were setting up the crowd.

When the curtain went up and the song started, it was this slow low bass tone and man, talk about edging. We waited for like 3 minutes for the curtain to come down but holy fuck the moment you hear Danny hit the drums behind the curtain for the first time, my heart slammed so hard in my chest and my jaw was on the floor the whole time. The lights like flash back stage and seeing Danny's shadow, then Jake, Josh and Sam, I felt like I was in a dream, it was so fucking crazy. When it dropped I saw Josh standing there and when I tell you I have never been so excited in my entire life. THEY ARE REAL AND THEY WERE LIKE 20 FEET FROM ME?!

They opened with Built By Nations like I hoped they would and oh my God that opening riff had me nearly in tears of joy I was so happy. They played Black Smoke Rising next and that was so cool to hear an older song on the list. The entire band is so fucking talented and I know we already know that, but they are just as amazing live as they are on the record, if not better.

Josh said he's getting bronchitis and I nearly cried when he smiled and said that being there with us that night he felt 100% because of the love we had for them. The crowd was amazing and they all looked like they were having the time of their lives up there. I had Twin Barricade with a perfect view to Danny, but I couldn't hardly see Sam but when I did, that motherfucker was so beautiful.

Josh did not falter once, not once. His energy is incredibly, he is so stunning and I am hard-pressed to say that he isn't a real angel on earth. His smile was so bright and he was so sweet and told us he loved us so many times.

Jake Kiszka is an actual Rockstar and there is no doubt in my mind that he won't be a legend. He was all over the stage, sometimes I'd look and couldn't find him because he moved to another part of the crowd to interact to. He was so sweaty, I wanted to lick him up. Watching him smile and run around stage and occasionally take center stage was incredible. Also seeing the squat he does was so cool to see live, he is a machine.

Speaking of machines, Daniel Robert Wagner. Holy. Fuck. I want him to hit me like the drums. He was so emotive, singing along to songs, taking shots on stage that Josh would bring him, and that drum solo, wow. The guy next to me in the pit was a drag along with his gf and he was like "this is a long ass drum solo" and I was like "because he's fuckin good!" And later on that guy was rocking out to weight of dreams and that was fun to see, Greta is so infectious. Also Danny went shirtless for the last song and through the encore and that man's body is God like and so are his arms, I was like, "am I Danny girl now?"

Sam Kiszka is a master on the melotron and being able to hear that and feel the bass and drums in my chest made me such a rhythm section girl. I didn't see him much bc of where I stood and that I'm so small, but I could hear him and anytime I glanced his way, I was just taken away by how just utterly stunning that man is. He's very friendly with the crowd too and he just looked like such a darling.

I cried during Light My Love, especially because Josh said, "if you're holding on to anything right now, let it all go." And fuck was I carrying stuff on my shoulders and having a cry in the pit (like cute girl crying not ugly crying) was so freeing.

Seeing Jelvis, Safari Song and Age of Man in one night as well was such a moment I didn't think I was going to get and I am so blessed that they did. Josh's lower register and the twin moment and the melotron wow it was all so incredible, what a set list.

I felt honestly like I was going through a major religious experience. My hands were in the air at all times and swaying and singing every song and the feeling was like nothing I've ever felt before and I think I'm addicted to it now. Weight Of Dreams should be experienced live at least one time in your life. This band is strongest when they're on stage and in front of a crowd. They are electric.

They made me feel so loved even when I know I was definitely not close enough for them to see me, I knew they meant it. Greta Van Fleet is a band with immense talent and are full of an honesty and genuine love for what they do, it's hard not to feel absolutely swept off of your feet by them.

This was my first ever time seeing them before and this will not be my last. 🧡

#did i mention i love greta van fleet?#gvf #greta van fleet #josh kiszka #jake kiszka #danny wagner #sam kiszka #jake gvf #josh gvf #danny gvf #sam gvf #dreams in gold tour

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dipperdesperado · 2 years

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What is The Iceberg Theory for Writers?

The Iceberg Theory is a style of writing that focuses on using omission to enhance the overall story. Sometimes, what is the most powerful is what isn’t seen. Think of how much more powerful Jaws is due to their restraint in showing the shark.

This combines well for show don’t tell to engineer the emotional response that you want.

To practice this, I did three exercises. Based on characters from Bronze Dawn, a TV show pilot script I created in the spring, I answered these three prompts:

Write a scene in which a character’s behavior or reaction to something is affected by a past experience — without saying what that experience was.

Write a monologue on a seemingly arbitrary subject that deeply reflects that character’s worldview.

Write a description of someone or something whose appearance, unbeknownst to the reader, used to be completely different.

Content warning: these examples contain profuse usage of profanity, along with conflict. Reader discretion is advised.

Write a scene in which a character’s behavior or reaction to something is affected by a past experience — without saying what that experience was.

“Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask you…” Remy says, tapping Jax’s shoulder to get her attention.

“Yeah?” she replies, her neck half-craning in his direction. “Are you like…a rockstar or something?” He asks, leaning in closer.

“Uh...no?” She replies. A tiny, uncomfortable chortle escapes her.

“Oh. Well, I ask because I’ve just never seen anyone with so many tattoos that isn’t a rockstar or kinda messed up. Like, you have one on your palm!”

This attracts eyes to the conversation, and Jax shifts her body around to face Remy, fists clenched. A blaze is in her eyes. “Remy,” she says.

“Yes?” he replies, an uneasy tone to his voice.

“Is your idiot brain getting fucked by stupidity?” He gives her a bewildered look. The rest of the room falls silent.

Jax continues. “What? Nothing funny to say now? No more smart remarks? Where the hell do you get off asking me a question like that, in that way? The hell is wrong with you?”

Remy starts to stumble through an apology. “Look Jax, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-”

“Didn’t mean what? To piss me off?” She says, looking around. “To cause a scene?” Her eyes become glassy. She leans into Remy.

“Fuck you.” She grabs her stuff and storms out of the room.

Write a monologue on a seemingly arbitrary subject that deeply reflects that character’s worldview.

Jax called a meeting for everyone in Bronze Dawn to discuss their plans for new recruits. Kelsey, Kassandra, and Desmond all have class, so Jax is waiting outside.

Eli comes up and takes a seat next to her. “Yo,” he says, staring straight ahead at the classroom door.

“Uh…hey, Eli,” she replies, watching him look at the door. “How are… classes…” Her voice trails off, making the end of her sentence almost inaudible.

“Classes? Oh, you know, they’re…cool.” He turns to Jax. “Actually, I had something kinda interesting happen in my American History class.”

Jax shudders at the menacing twinkle in his eye. “Did you grill Kels again? I was hoping you’d play nice since we’re all on the same team, you know?”

Eli stares at her for a beat, then laughs. “Don’t worry boss, I was on my best behavior. Sailor’s Promise.” He salutes in a way that has nothing to do with sailors.

“So, what happened in class?” Jax asks, her posture stiffening.

Eli gets that devious look again. “So there’s this kid, right? This absolute bastard named Jim Bob or some shit, who only ever debates when I bring up a point. I mean, he doesn’t have any problems with anyone else. And usually, I’m chill right?”

Jax nods her head.

“But today was NOT the day. This…this tool of a guy, gives me a look while I’m talking. And this look…man it was sinister! Homie looked like the Joker or some shit.”

Jax looks straight into his eyes. “Kinda like the face you were making?” She says with a smile on her face.

“Bruh. no! I-it’s different. You’re sidetracking me. Anyways this guy, he legit stands up when I’m finished making my point, and he goes,” Eli stops and contorts his face. “We’re in a history class, not an open mic!” he says, in a terrible southern drawl to mock Jim. “I looked at him, then I looked at Prof. Bolton, then Kelsey. I was literally flabbergasted. It was insane!” Eli sits down next to Jax. “I’ve never felt so disrespected. When no one said anything, I just stormed off. I was like, I know if I stay here, I’d end up killing him. And that’s no good for anyone,” he says, ending with a long sigh.

“Am I supposed to say something?” Jax asks, with earnest eyes that betray her sharp tone.

Eli looks at her with a smirk. “No, I just wanted to spill before we met up with everyone. I knew you’d understand the most out of anyone else in the crew.”

That earns an earnest smile from Jax. “You’re a trip, Eli.”

Right as their tender moment crescendos, Kassandra comes bursting out of the classroom, talking to someone behind her. “Holy shit, that was such a terrible lecture, I felt like I was drowning-”

She notices Eli and Jax on the bench. “What’re you all doin’ here?” She asks, much more confused than she should be.

Jax laughs as Desmond and Kelsey appear from behind Kassandra. “What, you didn’t remember that we have a meeting in a few?”

Write a description of someone or something whose appearance, unbeknownst to the reader, used to be completely different.

Jax had an appearance that could only be described as a rockstar at tech rehearsal. Her dark, shoulder-length hair, with streaks of white like lightning in the night, was up in a ‘do that couldn’t decide if it was a bun or ponytail. Gold and silver rings, the real stuff, adorned each of her fingers on her left hand, except for her thumb. But those don’t count, right? The rings were connected by chains; a chain going down from each ring, connecting to one that wrapped around her wrist. Her tattoos were also pretty metal, with a sigil on her left palm, and more on each finger on her right hand (like before, no thumbs). Completing the tech rehearsal look was her clothes. With her Master Chief hoodie, gray Ultraboosts, and flowy sweatpants, she looked like she was ready for action. Whether that was performing or running, she seemed like she was raring to go.

---

I realized that I got carried away on the second story, and so sorry for the length of that one, but these were really cool exercises. I think that even if I didn’t adhere to the prompt 100% it was fun to explore characters that I haven’t seen in a while and go beneath the surface in a way that I hadn’t before.

If you want to follow along, here’s the link to the course that’s going over all of these topics and providing the exercises: How to Master the 'Show, Don't Tell' Rule (Free Course)

#show don't tell #reedsy #writing #creative #creative writing #writers of tumblr #writers #storytelling #storytellers #story #short story #short fiction

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itsstraykids · 6 months

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hello hello! i had the absolute fuckall busy 2days, hope u didnt mind the accidental ghosting. i kept wanting to reply but i was feeling too tired to do it lmao. hello! hope ur doing well! i absolutely love the word coinkydink btw, im stealing it thank u. the fact!!!!!!!! that u do music production!!!!!!!! so cool!!!! consider me amazed yayy. ive always been unhealthily obsessed with chan's vocals, seeing him sing, esp with as much love and enjoyment/passion as he does is chills inducing to me. and yeah!!! his skills are so impressive, esp 3racha with rockstar album i very much agree!! i still cant pick a favorite song, and its funny bcs that's seldom the case no matter how much i love the whole album. cover me was played a lot tho (i was soo proud of hyunjin!!) and their vocalss yess!! seungmin han i.n leeknow and then ofc chan felix hyunjin changbin, they all did such good jobs, and their voice shined a notch brighter yes!! (mildly obsessed everytime changbin sings btw i am a sucker for it) their vocal heavy songs have always been some of my beloved!!!! never-ending story that i never get enough of, levanter and in christmas evel the way 24-25 was my immediate favorite! skz and ballads is smth mind-scratchingly wonderful, like always. what are some of your other favorite kpop groups?? what genres do u like as well, like i really love and find myself obsessed with k-indie, if we are talking korean language songs? what kind of songs do u like and listen to!! just wanted to know more abt u as well!! esp now that ik u produce too!! and just wanted to say ur art!!!! its so amazing and gorgeous!! so talented!!

^^apologies if i sound mildly incoherent (ik i do) its so damn cold outside both my face and brain have made it a mission to resemble chunks of ice cream so im!! thinking in circles p ls excuse. hope u have a good day an amazing week and great end of year and holidays!!

no worries at ALL dude the holidays are crazy, i really like this secret santa project but there’s so much else going on it’s also a lot 😅 yes! i’m stoked you liked rockstar. i thought it was so good, i was really in love with the songs/choreo/vibes and the members all seemed so happy! OMG YES Changbin’s voice is so good…why doesn’t he sing more it’s crazy…i have rewatched their conodoll episode a couple times because all their voices are just wonderful to listen to

i like 24-25 too! and that music video is just too sweet, it gave me cavities lmao. my fave kpop groups are skz, txt, and my OG (and forever) kpop band is shinee! i’ve been getting into xdinary heroes too. it seemed like everyone released amazing EPs this october-november, i was living for it. good music was raining down left and right.

i like so many genres in all languages! rock, punk, electronic, indie—i used to listen to a lot of k-indie (nell, the black skirts, the koxx, clazziquai) but now i don’t really know any more recent bands. i’d love to hear what your favorite songs/bands are!! i’m in a finding-new-music phase right now. i just found out about this new zealand band called the beths, their album “expert in a dying field” is a lyrical masterpiece.

thank you for your sweet compliments!! haha i’m trying to get better at portraits…oof, sorry it’s so cold where you are! bundle up and i hope you get some sun soon!! i’m in california so it’s actually really nice weather. exactly like the rest of the year. i do miss having seasons. but it’s also nice to go to the beach and not freeze lmao

best of luck in the final week before the holidays!! gonna be a crazy one i think, i have to bake stuff until my oven gives up and cries

#skz secret santa 2023

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fanficlibraryposts · 3 years

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Percy Jackson Fic Recs

who even cares about reputation? by rubiesanddiamonds

She decides she really likes his laugh. And his voice. And his general aura. A lot.

*punk!percy and girly!annabeth*

what’s a god to a nonbeliever? by Almas

It’s not that he’s “hung up on The Menace” as Dionysus so delicately put it. It’s just that it’s a bad idea. Awful, really. Percy Jackson’s got off-limits stamped across his pretty little forehead. If Zeus had sent Dionysus to that demigod camp over a nymph, then Poseidon would certainly toss him into Tartarus if he went near his son.

*on hiatus*

To Make a Legend by WardofWinters (QoLife)

Percy was having a normal day at the beach, until he decided to try to waterbend like Katara from his favorite show.Problem is, he succeeds. Now he has to figure out how to waterbend, and keep the normal people from finding out they have a waterbender in their midst.Finding out he's actually a child of Poseidon will probably explain a few things. (Used to be named Avatar: The Legend of Percy)

*Is a series, should have at least have basic Avatar: The Last Airbender knowledge*

Silver Screen by herecomesthepun

in which Annabeth is a YouTuber with a penchant for Harry Potter sweaters and Percy is a rockstar who falls in love with the clumsy web star presenting his award. Percabeth, AU.

Of Gods and Men by plottingalong

The order of things are changing. Old rules are shifting, old gods awakening. Percy Jackson must come to terms with his own mortality, or rather, the lack of it.

And I will swallow my pride (In hopes of a final goodbye) by IzzyMRDB

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep." ~Robert Frost

Rhea thought the fight was over when she handed Luke that blade. The war she fought for others was over. She was wrong. Now a thousand miles and a thousand years from home, all alone with just the ghost of a curse to accompany her in her travels, she will only fight for the wars she chooses.

"I promise." It tastes like a lie, but I know I’ll do my best to fulfill it. How am I to make the gods listen when they don’t even know who I am?

Hold Tight and Pretend It’s a Plan by Rynna_Aurelia

Olympus has fallen. The second Gigantomachy has ended far differently than the first, and in Gaea's triumph, the world has been torn apart. But the Fates have seen what ends their failed meddling brought Western Civilization, look on at the dead—and undo what should never have happened the only way they possibly can. Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, is returned to his twelve-year-old self, memories intact and determined to save everyone he can. But he is not alone. The Moirai underestimated the strength of the Lord of Time when stealing his power, and there is something about this particular demigod brat that intrigues him. . .

Perseus Jackson came roaring to life with a violent gasp, green eyes wild. After a moment of panicked flailing and struggling to breathe, his fear-filled gaze settled upon a girl with blonde hair and stormy grey eyes, her face stern and unimpressed.

"You drool in your sleep."

Trading Tomorrow by Darkmagyk, loosingletters

Percy Jackson arrives at Camp Half-Blood bruised and bleeding, with the knowledge that he's the son of a god and his mother is dead. His little display with the Minotaur has caught the attention of the camp. But he’s not sure it is good attention, yet. Only the Hermes Cabin's not-quite Co-counselor Theseus, ‘call me Theo,’ doesn't treat him like a fascinating zoo exhibit. Which would be a relief, except he looks exactly like Percy: same green eyes, same trouble making smile, same black hair. The only differences are the fact that Theo is six years older, covered in battle scars, and the black tattoo on his arm. A trident and the letters SPQR.

Theo is eighteen, powerful, and unclaimed. And his resemblance to Percy could set a dangerous precedent.

*pretty much everything by Darkmagyk is amazing*

i could be your hero by sundaysabotage

“I just don’t get it,” he huffs to Will as they put up holiday decorations in the unusually quiet infirmary, “they talk to me like I’m supposed to know stuff. Like I’m the new Percy or something.” Nico expects Will to laugh at this, shrug off his concerns as unfounded and tell him he’s being over-dramatic like usual. He is wrong.

“Okay, babe, don’t take this the wrong way. But, you kind of are the new Percy.”

___ Based on a tumblr post I made about Nico being the obvious choice as Camp Half-Blood's unofficial leader when Percy leaves for college. (only no one bothers to tell Nico that)

*some solangelo and Nico being Tired(TM) for you*

Were I That Burning Star by californianNostalgia

An old panic gripped me—the breathless fear of being forgotten, being lost. Would anyone remember me when I was gone? Would someone think to lay a flower down on my grave and say some fond nothings like, “Was a pretty cool guy, that Lester,” while wiping off a single dramatic tear rolling down their cheek? Oh, who was I kidding. So what if no one remembered? There wasn’t much I was proud to be remembered by anyway.

After defeating Python and bringing down Nero, Phoebus Apollo reclaims his godhood. He is glorious once more. But for some reason, he can't quite make himself go back to how things were before.

(A Character Study of Various Gods, including but not limited to: Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Aphrodite, Ares, Athena, Hephaestus, Dionysus, and maybe Zeus)

* absolutely beautiful, very philosophical, made me see the gods in a completely different way*

PJO Fic Rec Part 2

Disclaimer: The fanfiction above were not written by me for I am not nearly as creative. However, I am an avid reader and movie buff so these are some of my favorite fanfiction within the fandom. I politely ask that you read the tags attached the fanfiction beforehand so that you know what you are getting yourself into, there may be crossovers. If you don’t like it then don’t read it. In addition, I ask that there be no bashing, the fics are based on my preferences and what I like. Lastly, if there are any specific genre or fandom of fics you want me to get into let me know through my ask box.

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connordavidscamera · 3 years

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A Jealous Household | Connor Brashier

A/n: listen, I know it says y/n, but we all know it’s written about me, right? Okay, just wanna put that out there lol

Summary: Shawn and Brian want to have a party, but this party causes a few problems for Connor and y/n

Warnings: angst, underage drinking (for US standards, at least), pining

Word count: 7.5k, she’s a long one

***

“You want to have a party? When?” Y/n asks, closing her book and setting it in her lap.

“This weekend,” Shawn nods. “And it won’t be a big thing, I promise. Maybe fifteen, twenty people.”

“Thirty or forty, max,” Brian interjects.

I can’t help but laugh at that, neither can she as she says. “You know we can’t even fit thirty or forty people in the condo, right?”

“I know that, but that’s why we’ll have some of them in the backyard too.”

“So what’s the party even for?” She asks, leaning into my side. On instinct, I wrap my arm around her shoulders.

They both shrug, “A house warming party? Does that still count if we’ve lived here for almost two months?” Shawn questions.

She shrugs, “I don’t know. I mean, I don’t see why we couldn’t have one. We just have to be considerate of our neighbors. And nobody’s allowed in my room. If there’s alcohol, I’m not chancing anyone going into my room for a sloppy fuck.”

Shawn laughs, “So your sloppy fuck is gonna be in Connor’s room then?”

I roll my eyes at the comment. Shawn and Brian love to tease me about my crush on y/n. They have since the beginning. Shawn’s taunts are light hearted, but they’re plentiful now that we all live together. Brian’s at times feel almost malicious. But Brian also isn’t aware that I still have a crush on her, he thinks the feeling has passed. It definitely hasn’t. If anything, being in such tight quarters with her at all times has made me like her even more. Watching her move so effortlessly around our home - seeing her do her nightly routine, watching her polish her nails every Sunday like clockwork. I have undeniably fallen even deeper in love with her in just these few short weeks we’ve lived together and it’s killing me.

It’s killing me because we still haven’t talked about what she said to me a couple weeks ago when we were falling asleep together. I don’t even know if she remembers saying what she did. And I could have misinterpreted her words, I mean, she was falling asleep, her words were slurring. I could have misunderstood. At least, that’s what I’ve been telling myself every time the memory pops into my head. Which is about six times a day for the past three weeks.

Y/n gasps and tosses her book at him, "Asshole!"

He laughs, picking the book up off the floor from where it ricocheted off his chest. "I'm kidding. Kidding. But it's cool?"

She shrugs, "Yeah, whatever. Go nuts."

"Yes!" Shawn pumps his fist in the air before high fiving Brian.

"We gotta get alcohol."

"Ah, wait. Before you two go broke buying drinks for the party, remember that we have bills to pay. So save us all a headache and make it BYOB."

Brian snaps and points at her with a click of his tongue. "This is why we keep you around."

She laughs, "Oh is that why?"

"Indeed," he nods.

"Okay, well can I have my book back, please?"

"Yeah, here," Shawn leans over the coffee table to hand it to her before disappearing to his room, Brian heading to the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" I ask, not looking up from my phone. I can sense that the wheels are turning in her head and she sighs dramatically.

"I don't remember which page I was on."

I force myself not to laugh. "243."

“Hmm?” She flips to that page and looks up at my side profile. “How’d you know that?”

I shrug, “I always memorize the page you’re on before you close the book, just in case.”

She smiles sheepishly and presses a kiss to my shoulder. “You’re cute,” she whispers before turning her attention back to the page in front of her and resting her head in the crook of my neck.

I squeeze her shoulder hoping she doesn’t look up and notice the growing blush on my cheeks, “You’re cuter.”

---

“Do you have any idea who’s coming to this?” Y/n asks as we move a cooler out to the backyard.

I shake my head, “Not really. I think Matt and his girlfriend, honestly, I have no idea. It’s Shawn, so there’s bound to be more people than we’re anticipating.”

“Lots of girls then.”

“Why do you say that?” I ask, setting the cooler down, providing her with my undivided attention (which she has always had).

“He’s making a name for himself out here. Playing a few more gigs than at home. I noticed at the last one, he’s got a few groupies.”

I chuckle, “Oh really?”

She nods, “There were like five girls there just holding onto his every word. It was actually pretty cool to watch. But he got nervous. Started fidgeting with his necklace, so I had to get him out of there, which of course resulted in death glares from his adoring fans.”

“What? What do you mean? Death glares towards you?”

Y/n laughs, fixing the collar of her shirt that’s falling off her shoulder. “Yeah. I think they thought there was more there than there is,” she shrugs, “And if looks could kill, I would be dead five times over.”

I shake my head, I don’t like that thought, and I say as much. “I don’t like that thought.”

“What? Shawn having groupies?”

“No, girls staring daggers at you because you’re friends with him.”

“It’s not a big deal.”

I know it’s not, but the thought of someone not liking her is appalling to me. “I still don’t like it.”

“Is it because if something happened to me you’d be left to live alone with Shawn and Brian? Because that would make me sad too.”

I force a laugh, “That, and I’d be bored without you.”

She nods understandingly, “I get it. I am the light of your life,” she teases.

You are, I think to myself. “Yeah, yeah,” I say instead, stepping forward, wrapping my arm around her waist. “Let’s get inside, it’s hot as hell out here.”

Shawn and Brian are sitting on the floor in front of the TV, trying to get the wifi hooked up to it. We barely got wifi installed at the beginning of the week, but we’ve all been so busy, we haven’t had the chance to get everything hooked up to it.

“It’s not working!” Brian complains, throwing his hands up in frustration.

“Well try again! That’s what the router says.” Shawn counters back.

“Let me see that,” Brian snatches the router out of his hands. “Dumbass! You’re reading me the product number! Not the fucking password!”

Y/n and I hide our faces to keep from bursting into a fit of laughter, but we both break when Shawn pouts when Brian puts the router back in his hands after successfully connecting the TV.

“Oh, what’s with the pouty face, rockstar?” y/n asks.

“Brian’s a dick,” he mutters, which causes Brian to punch his shoulder.

“Ow!” Shawn exclaims, reaching to hold his arm. “That hurt!”

“It was supposed to. Want me to do it again?”

“Craigen,” y/n shakes her head and before I can protest, she’s out of my grasp and I suddenly feel lonely without her body next to mine. “No more fighting.”

“Just one time in the face,” he tries to reason. “Just once. Come on, it’s a long time coming. I’ve wanted to punch him in the face since we were kids.”

“No,” she squats down behind Shawn, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, leaning her head against his. I watch Shawn fall into her touch and I’m envious of him. Even though she holds onto me in the exact same way, almost daily, she isn’t right now and it makes me long for it. Especially when I watch her start to massage his scalp and he hums because her head scratches feel like you’re in heaven. “You can’t punch him in the face. That’s the money maker,” she squishes his cheeks with her free hand and speaks in a mock baby voice, “And if he’s got a black eye how will he charm girls with his pretty face tonight?”

Shawn laughs and pushes her hand away, but he reaches back and pats her calf. “Sit down,” he says and she obliges, her legs spreading and bracketing Shawn’s. He falls back into her and takes her hand that was just squeezing him and brings it to his lips to kiss her knuckles before bringing it to his hair as well. “More head scratches.”

She rolls her eyes, but continues anyway. “So fucking needy.”

He hums, “Could fall asleep like this.”

She hums too and looks up at me with a smile that melts my heart, “Connor does all the time.”

I nod, “I do. Feels good. Your hands are magic.”

“How magic? Like you could get me off in three seconds?”

“Brian!” I growl. Yep, we can always count on him to ruin the mood.

But y/n’s laughing, “I’m sure I could, I mean, if you ask your first girlfriend, you only last five so I don’t think it’ll be difficult,” she answers.

Shawn’s hysterical in y/n’s arms, as am I as I fall to the floor, clutching my stomach. But Brian? Brian is livid.

“I can’t believe she told you that! She said she wouldn’t tell anyone!”

This only makes Shawn and I laugh harder. “Wait, did that actually happen?” I ask between fits. “Craigen, come on,” I groan when he’s silent. “Five seconds?”

“It was our first time!”

“And last, apparently,” y/n comments.

“Shut up!” he groans. “Fuck, I can’t stand you.”

She nods, “I know.”

“No, but seriously, when did she tell you that?”

Y/n breaks out into a wide grin. “She didn’t. But you just did. Thanks for that.”

He’s speechless. Absolutely speechless. And his face is so red; I don’t know if it’s in anger or embarrassment, but either way, Shawn pipes up. “Hey, if it makes you feel any better, my first time I only lasted like twenty seconds.”

“I lasted fifteen,” I confirm, but I immediately regret it when y/n’s face morphs into one of confusion.

Oh, oh fuck. I never told her that I-

“Wait, you’ve had sex?”

“You didn’t know?” Shawn questions, looking back at her.

She shakes her head, “I guess not.”

I sigh and scratch the back of my head, “Yeah. It was… during that time where we weren’t really talking,” I mumble.

She nods slowly, scoffing, and I can’t quite pin her emotion, but it’s definitely a cross between anger and… is that jealousy? “Ah, good ol’ McKenzie,” she mutters under her breath. She exhales deeply out her nose and focuses her attention back to playing with Shawn’s hair.

“I would have told-”

“We weren’t talking. I know,” she cuts me off. “And it’s none of my business. It wasn’t then, and it’s not now either.”

“Oh, right. Okay,” I nod once. “New subject.”

---

We’re tiptoeing around each other the rest of the day. Or more so, I’m tiptoeing around her. She somehow is coming off as completely unbothered, but at the same time completely bothered. I don’t know what to make of this situation. I don’t know if I should apologize for not telling her, or if she even wants me to apologize. I don’t know and it’s killing me not knowing what I can do to make this better for us tonight.

I’m helping Brian pour more ice into the cooler we have in the kitchen when she walks out of her room. “Where’s Shawn?” she asks.

I look up at her and my heart stops for a moment. She’s wearing red, my heart never knows what to do when she wears that color. Does it stop? Does it speed up? Yes.

“He went to his car to get the beer we got this afternoon,” Brian answers, closing the lid.

SHe nods, “I’ll go help him.”

I watch as she leaves, not taking a full breath until the door shuts behind her.

“She still mad at you?”

I shake my head, “I don’t know. I don’t even know if she is mad at me.”

“Well, it’s y/n. You kept something from her for almost three years. I’m willing to bet she’s a little upset.”

I sigh, “Yeah, I know. But I mean, how was I supposed to tell her. She would barely even look at me during that time, so -”

“Yeah, because McKenzie was a bitch to her. How was she supposed to look at you when she was practically threatened or called out or god know what when you weren’t listening. I’d hate to know what she actually said when none of us were there to listen.”

I exhale deeply. I know my ex was the worst to her - she’s the entire reason y/n and I weren’t talking. She told me not to hang out with her as much, so I didn’t (also because I was trying to prove to Brian that I didn’t have feelings for y/n anymore. That was a mistake.) “So, I should apologize.”

Brian shrugs, “We all know you’re gonna apologize. You can’t stand it when she’s mad at you. Honestly, we can’t either. We have no idea what to do when you two aren’t talking. And since we all live together now, it’ll be even more awkward for you two to not talk.”

I nod, “Yeah. I know. I’ll apologize later. You should go get ready. I can finish up out here.”

Brian claps my shoulder, “Thanks, man. I’ll be quick.” He disappears at the same time Shawn and y/n walk in the front door with the drinks. I make my way over to them.

“Here, let me get that for you,” I tell her, reaching to take the cases from her hands.

“Oh, it’s okay. I got it. You want these inside or out, rockstar?”

“In the fridge, in the back. Gotta keep the good stuff for us.” Shawn hands me a pottle of vodka, “Put this in the freezer? I got it for y/n, I’m gonna make her a new drink.”

“You’re gonna risk giving her alcohol poisoning?” I question, raising one eyebrow at him.

He rolls his eyes, “I’ve gotten better at making drinks, dickhead.”

I laugh and hold my hands up in surrender, “Alright, sure.”

“I’m gonna put these in my room for now, and then I’m gonna get ready.”

“Brian’s in the shower, you can use my bathroom,” I say as y/n moves past us to the kitchen.

“Good looking out, thanks.”

And now it’s just me and her. It’s like any normal day. So why is my heart beating so quickly?

I watch her move some things around in the fridge to make room for the drinks, and I can’t help but smile. “You look pretty tonight,” I tell her, leaning against the counter.

She looks over at me and smiles softly, “Thanks.”

I clear my throat, “Hey, y/n?”

“Hmm?” she turns her attention back to her task at hand.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?” she asks, closing the fridge.

“For not telling you that I slept with her.”

“Oh,” she nods. “It’s fine. It really is not any of my business who you have and haven’t slept with.”

“Well maybe not, but you are my best friend, and we tell each other everything. I know if we were on better terms when you were dating Noah, you would have told me that you-”

“I didn’t tell you because we didn’t sleep together.”

“What?” I stare at her with wide eyes.

“Noah and I didn’t sleep together.”

“But I thought-”

“You assumed. But no, it didn’t happen. I wasn’t ready. I mean, I barely let him kiss me, so how the hell was I gonna sleep with him?”

I nod because I don’t know what else to do or even say. She’s right, I just assumed that they had sex because he always had his hands all over her. I almost scoff at the thought. I hated watching him hold her in the hallway, his hands in her back pockets as he pulled her closer to him. Seeing them together everyday made my heart clench every time because it should have been me. I wonder if that’s how she felt when I had a girlfriend.

“Look, it doesn’t matter, okay? So, let’s just drop it. It’s not like I’m mad you had sex, I was just surprised to find out this way, that’s all.”

“Yeah, I get it. And I would have told you sooner, but there really was never a time, you know? And it was just with her a couple times, nothing since.”

“Connor, you really don’t need to explain it to me. Actually, if we could just stop talking about her all together, that’d be great.”

“No, yeah. Of course. It’s dropped.”

She nods, “Okay, good. So, you should go get dressed.”

“What do you mean? I’m wearing this,” I gesture to my torn t-shirt and my sweatpants with paint stains up and down the legs from when we painted the living room a few weeks ago. I’m totally joking, but I want to see her reaction anyway.

She looks me up and down and scoffs, “Yeah, no. Go change. You’re not wearing that.”

I pout dramatically, “Why not?”

“One, those pants are a mess. Two, you know you run hot when you drink, so why would you wear sweatpants? And three, that shirt is literally falling apart. You are not wearing that, go change.”

I can’t fight the smile that tugs at my lips because just like that we’re back to normal. “Okay, I’m going. Do you have something you’d like for me to wear?”

“Yes, your black pants with the white tank top and your peachy cream shirt. The one you wore for our graduation party.”

I nod, “Yes, ma’am. You wanna do my hair?”

“Come find me when you’re done, and I’ll see what I can do.”

---

I’m talking to my friend Will out in the backyard as the party becomes bigger than anticipated. Yeah, definitely called that situation.

“Bro, I wish I would have saved up more so I could have gotten a place like you guys did. I emailed my roommate last week to see what he wanted to get for the dorm and he straight up said, ‘I don’t plan to be roommates long, so nothing.’”

I can’t help but laugh, “Hey, we’d take you in over Brian, but he’d throw a bitch fit.”

He laughs too, twisting the cap off his beer. “So what’s it like living with y/n? Everything good?”

“Yeah, everything’s great. She knows how to run a household. She made a chore chart that goes on the fridge. Shawn had to beg her to take it down for the party because he was embarrassed.”

“Sounds like y/n. But that’s not what I meant.”

I take a swig of my beer and shrug, “There’s nothing else to say really. She’s nice to live with.”

“No progression between you two.”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Right, right. Because you’re not in love with her, right.”

“Will, come on. Not tonight.”

“Okay, okay. I get it. We’re not in a teasing mood tonight.”

Or ever. Will is a great friend of mine, and I would take a bullet for him, but he asks me for y/n updates every time we’re together, and I never have any for him. When I told him we were moving in together, he was stoked, but less so when I told him we were moving with Shawn and Brian too.

He - like Shawn - is an avid supporter of us getting together. Will found out about my so-called crush one night in high school, actually a couple weeks after my breakup with McKenzie. Y/n and I still weren’t talking. I was trying to mend things and she was trying to push me further away. I don’t remember much of the night he found out because I got shit faced drunk, but I somehow admitted to him that I had feelings for her and he’s convinced himself that he knows the biggest secret in the world. He treats it like he holds the key to the universe. If anyone wants us together more than I do, it’s him.

“Just don’t want to risk her hearing anything,” I tell him. “I already made things awkward earlier.”

“What? How?”

I shake my head, “Let it slip that Kenz and I slept together.”

He blanches. “She didn’t know?!”

I shake my head, “No. I never found the right time to tell her. But she keeps saying it isn’t her business, so I don’t know if that means she’s hurt by it or if I’m imagining it because right now it seems like she doesn’t really care. But - I don’t know, I want her to, I guess.”

He smirks, “She cares.”

“I don’t know,” I mutter, looking inside, lifting my bottle up to my lips, but halting when I see her standing near the sliding glass door with - “Oh, you have got to be fucking kidding me.”

“What?” Will asks, turning toward the door. “What hap - is that? Wait, is that Noah? What is he doing here?”

My jaw clenches, just like the grip around the bottle in my hand. “Better question, why the hell is he so close to her?”

Will sucks in a breath, “Are they still friends?”

I don’t answer him because I don’t know. I’m 99% sure they aren’t, but that 1% that says yes is simply because I’m watching them right now and she’s hugging him and letting him kiss her cheek before he pulls away. “I didn’t think they were. She hasn’t brought him up since the breakup.”

I don’t take my eyes off them as I start chugging the rest of my beer. It was still pretty full, but at this moment, I need to finish it because I need something stronger.

“I’m gonna go get a drink,” I mutter, tossing my bottle in the trashcan near the cooler. I walk inside, but neither of them notice me. I shake my head and walk to Shawn’s room where he hid most of the hard stuff. I find the bottle of tequila that he stashed because he knew if he put it out, it’d go fast. I twist the top off and take, maybe a little more than a shot. I cough into my elbow when I pull the bottle back because wow he got the strong stuff.

Shaking my head, I close the bottle back up and sneak out of Shawn’s room. When I enter the living room, they’re still standing there talking. Or, he’s talking, she’s nodding at something he’s saying. I click my tongue and walk into the kitchen to grab another beer. SHould I be mixing my alcohol? No, I should not. Is that going to stop me? No, it is not.

My girl’s ex-boyfriend is over there talking to her and touching her like they’re best buds and I can’t stand it. I can’t stand him.

I still remember the day she told us that she was going on a date with him.

All four of us are sitting in our usual booth at the diner, everything seems to be going like it always has. Just us four, laughing and making our weekend plans. The difference though is that y/n and I aren’t sitting shoulder to shoulder right now. She’s pushed against the window, and I’m toward about as far left as I can get without it being noticeable, or falling.

“So, we’re aiming for Saturday afternoon, right? Y/n, you’ll ride with me?” Shawn asks.

“Oh,” she sits up straight, “um, could we maybe do it on Sunday instead? I kind of already have plans on Saturday.”

“What?” Brian furrows his brows, “Without us?”

She nods, “Yeah,” she takes in a sharp breath beside me. “I um… I kinda, I have a date.”

At that exact moment, our heads whip in her direction - I’m pretty sure if I turned any faster I would have given myself whiplash.

“A date?” I ask as calmly as I can.

“With who?” Shawn questions.

She shrugs, “You know that guy Noah? I have him in like all of my AP classes? He asked me out after class this morning.”

I don’t think I can clench my jaw any harder. Noah. I hate him. I’ve never personally met him, but I hate him. “Cool,” I mutter, turning my head back to the table to reach for my drink.

“Well?” Shawn prompts. “What are you gonna do? Where is he taking you?”

She clasps her hands in her lap and shrugs again. “I don’t know. He hasn’t told me. Said he wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Ooh, romantic,” Brian teases.

“You hate surprises,” I mumble into my cup.

Y/n clears her throat and shifts uncomfortably in her seat. “It’s just one date. Not a big deal.”

“Okay, sure,” Brian says. “So Sunday then?”

“And you’ll tell us all about it?”

“Sure.”

There are very few times that I wish I was deaf, but that day was one of them. I didn’t sleep that whole night. I couldn’t. And the night of her date? Forget it. I was up all night wondering what was happening. Did he hold her hand? Did he hug her? Did that bastard take her first kiss? The first kiss that was supposed to belong to me?

And right now, as I watch him reach for her elbow again, I decide, fuck it. I don’t care if I look like a jealous asshole, I’m taking my girl away from him. I stride over to them and place my hand on her hip, “Hey, baby. Can you help me find the bottle opener? I can’t remember what drawer you put it in the other day, and I think my eyes are failing me.”

She shakes her head, “Um, yeah. It should be in the drawer closest to the fridge.”

“I checked there, please, come help me look.”

She rolls her eyes and turns back to Noah who is staring daggers at my hand on her hip. I smirk. “Noah, it was good catching up with you. I’ll find you later. I’m gonna help him out.”

He looks back up at her and forces a smile, “Sure. Sounds good. Save me dance?”

Over my dead body. “Come on, baby,” I say, guiding her toward the kitchen.

She steps in front of me, mumbling a couple excuse me’s to the people blocking the kitchen. Then she b-line’s to the drawer closer to the fridge, which I definitely did not check because I wasn’t really looking for the bottle opener. I just needed an excuse to get her away from Noah.

“Here,” she holds it out to me. “Wait, I thought Shawn got twist tops.” She takes the bottle from my hand and laughs, “Bub, it twists off.” She says, taking the cap off the bottle.

“Oh,” I chuckle. I knew it was a twist top, again, I just needed an excuse to get her away. “Whoopsies?”

She puts the bottle opener back in the drawer and leans against the counter. “You having fun?”

I shrug, “I’m alright. So um… Noah’s here.”

Y/n nods slowly, “Yeah, he is.”

“Kinda weird that he showed up after we just talked about him,” I mutter.

“Yeah, I guess. He just tagged along with one of his friends.”

I nod, “Mhm. You two looked pretty cozy.”

“Excuse me?”

“Nothing. Just, I mean, I haven’t heard you talk about him since the breakup,” I take a sip of the beer in my hand. “I didn’t realize you two were still so close.”

She tilts her head at me, “We’re not. We were just catching up. He didn’t know that I lived here too.”

“Uh-huh, so you haven’t talked to him recently?”

She scoffs, crossing her arms over her chest. “What’s with the third degree, huh?”

“You didn’t answer my question,” I mutter.

“No, Connor. I haven’t talked to him recently. In fact, I haven’t talked to him since the breakup. But what does that matter? Why does it matter who I do and do not talk to?”

“I just think it’s a little strange that he came here tonight.”

“Well, I didn’t invite him, if that’s what you’re insinuating. He came with a friend. He didn’t even know it was our party, or our house. He just showed up.”

“So he crashed it. Classy.”

“What is your deal?” She pushes herself off the counter and stands face to face with me, her forehead creasing as she glares at me. I want to smooth the crease and tell her not to do that because she’ll get a headache, but I refrain.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Please,” she scoffs, “you’re acting like a jealous boyfriend! Newsflash, Connor, you’re not my boyfriend.”

I recoil, because sure I know I’m not, but the words spew from her lips like venom. “I know that.”

“Do you? Because right now it doesn’t seem like you do. Now unless I completely missed the part where you asked me to be your girlfriend, you have no right to be upset over me talking to my ex-boyfriend.”

“He was an ass to you then.”

“How would you know?! We weren’t even talking then.”

“Because you didn’t want to! I was still trying to fix things with us but you were pushing me away.”

“No, I wasn’t pushing you away. I was protecting myself from getting hurt again.”

“But it wasn’t me, that was Kenzie, and -”

She groans in frustration, “Why are we talking about her again? Why? I can’t do this.”

“Do what?”

Y/n pinches the bridge of her nose. “Look, you’re my best friend, and I love you. But you have no right to be upset about Noah. You are not my boyfriend -”

“Why do you keep saying that?”

“Because you aren’t! You like to act like you are sometimes, but you’re not.”

“Do you want me to be?!” I exclaim, setting my bottle down.

She scoffs, shaking her head. “Not like this,” she says quietly, pushing past me.

“Y/n!” I call after her, but she ignores me. I, however, can’t ignore the eyes that are on me.

---

“He’s jealous?” Alessia asks, leaning back on her hands. We’re sitting on the grass in the backyard. It’s quieter out here, and far less crowded. “Does he even have a right to be?”

“That’s what I’m saying! He’s my best friend, but sometimes he acts like he’s my boyfriend and I just - I’m over it.”

She sighs, “You’re over him acting like your boyfriend.”

“Yes,” I say.

“Because you want him to actually be your boyfriend.”

“What? No! No,” I shake my head, “that’s not it.”

Les smiles, “Honey, it’s obvious the way you two look at each other. And you can deny it because you’re best friends, you live together. You don’t want to risk the integrity of the friendship that you have. And that is totally reasonable, but you two need to discuss what you are to each other. Because it’s clear that in his mind, you’re a little bit more than just ‘best friends.’ And well, you’ve always wanted to be more, so what’s so wrong with him being that?”

I sigh and pick at the grass beside me, “I don’t know if he feels this way genuinely or if it’s because I’m closer now. We live together, it seems almost easy or convenient for him to develop some tiny crush because of the proximity.”

At this she laughs, “Oh, honey. That is definitely not it.”

“How do you know?”

“Because that boy has been in love with you since before I even met you guys. It’s written all over his face and if you took a second to just stop and -”

“Hey, sorry to interrupt, guys,” Shawn says, breathlessly, pushing his curls out of his face. “Y/n, Connor’s drunk off his ass, and I need your help”

I sit up, “Okay, How much did he drink?”

“Like, the entire bottle of tequila I had in my room, plus however many beers he had.”

I stand up, swatting at the backs of my legs to get off any dirt, “Is he throwing up?”

“No, he’s just asking for you.”

I nod and look back to Alessia, “We’ll talk later, Les?”

“Mhm, go take care of your boy.”

“Why did he drink so much?” I ask Shawn, following him toward the sliding glass door.

He shrugs, “I asked him. He said you were mad at him.”

I roll my eyes, “Well yeah, he was being an ass. But it still doesn’t make sense.If he drinks every time I get upset with him, he’d be an alcoholic ”

“All I know is that he was asking for you,” Shawn says just as we find Connor sitting outside my bedroom door, nursing another beer bottle.

I shake my head, “God, he knows not to be switching between alcohol.”

“Connor, buddy?” Shawn says, squatting down next to him. “I got her. Why don’t you give me that beer, eh?” He goes to take it from his hands, but Connor’s quick to move it, spilling a bit of it on his shirt in the process.

“No, this is mine. Get your own,” he slurs

I sigh and squat down next to him, too. “I think you’ve had enough, bub. Come on, let me have it.”

He looks at me with heavy eyes and he pouts, dramatically. “Y/n… you’re so pretty.”

“Connor,” I shake my head.

“I love you in red. God, you look so good. Could never get,” he hiccups, “tired of looking at you.”

I blush, looking over at Shawn who’s still sitting with us. “Okay, come on. Let’s get up. We need to get you to bed.”

He nods slowly, “Whatever you want, baby.”

I take the drink out of his hand and set on the floor beside us. “Shawn, help me get him up.”

Shawn nods, “You got it.” He does most of the heavy lifting, but when Connor’s on his feet, he leans into me, hugging my waist, burying his head in my neck.

“I’m so sorry, y/n. So sorry.”

“I know, come on now. We’re going to your room.”

He groans into my skin, but helps me and Shawn take him to his room as best as he can, only stumbling once when we round the corner. We push his bedroom door open and walk further into the room, plopping him down on the bed.

“Thanks, Shawn. I got it from here.”

“You sure?”

I nod, moving to grab his trash can from next to his desk. “Yeah, we’re good. Thanks for coming to get me.”

He nods, “Of course. Come get me if you need anything else.”

Connor groans as Shawn slams the door shut behind him. I sigh and move around the room, turning on his bedside lamp and going to his desk chair where his outfit from earlier is laid out. “Okay, bub, I’m gonna need you to help me out, alright? I need you to get out of your clothes, I’m gonna put you in pajamas, okay?”

He shakes his head, his pout even heavier than usual, eyes struggling to stay open. “Too tired. You do it.”

I close my eyes, taking in a deep breath. Of course he’s gonna be difficult right now. I shake my head, throwing his clothes beside him, “Can you stand up?”

He mumbles something incoherent, but I’m pretty sure it’s somewhere along the lines of “The room is spinning.”

“Fuck, Connor, why did you drink so much?” I grumble, moving to the floor to take his shoes off.

“You’re mad at me,” he whines.

“Yes, I am. You know your limits. What were you gonna do if this didn’t happen at the house, hmm?”

“M’sorry.”

I roll my eyes, “Okay, sit up,” I reach for his hands to help pull him to a sitting position.

He makes an unnecessary amount of groaning sounds as he moves around to accommodate me.

I push his shirt off his shoulders, it’s almost damp, he’s sweating so much. I throw it to the side, I’ll put it in the laundry room when I go get him some pain meds in a little bit. I take hold of the hem of his tank top, “Arms up,” I pat his side and he obliges, looking up at me with a sad smile on his lips. “What’s wrong?” I ask him, tossing his tank top off to the side too.

“I’m sorry I got mad earlier. About Noah.”

I shake my head, “It’s fine. Lay back, lift your hips for me.”

He lays back, but his pout still remains on his face as I lean forward to unbutton his pants.

“What now?” I question softly, pulling down his zipper, “Hips up.”

He’s looking at me with such sad eyes and it’s killing me. “This isn’t how I wanted you to undress me for the first time.”

My breath hitches, “What?”

“Wanna make love to you,” he slurs.

I almost choke on his words, “Connor, you’re drunk,” I shake my head, pulling his pants off him and grabbing his sweats to pull up his legs instead. I decide to forgo the shirt because he’s already sweating a lot, I don't want to make him even hotter. “You don’t know what you’re saying. I’m gonna go get you some water and pain meds. Stay here.” I move the trash can closer to him, “The trash is right next to you if you feel like you’re gonna get sick.

I pick up his discarded clothes from the floor and walk to the door and out the room before he can say anything else he doesn’t mean. After tossing them in the hamper in the laundry room, I squeeze past the group of people still congregating in the hallway. I slip into my room and grab some of my pain meds from my book bag and quickly slip out again to head to the kitchen which is also crowded. I mumble out a general excuse me, and go to the fridge to grab Connor a bottle of water.

On my way back, I stop and go to his bathroom which is thankfully empty, and grab a hand towel and wet it under the faucet to hopefully cool him down a bit. When I’m back in his room, he’s laying face down on his bed and I stop for a minute, admiring his smooth skin, and the way the muscles in his shoulders tense up when he moves his arm above his head. It’s not fair. No one man should look this good.

I shake my head, focusing back on the task at hand. I close the door behind me gently. “Okay, Connor. I need you to sit up just one more time to take these pills and then you can go to bed, yeah?”

He groans, “I think I drank too much, baby,” he mumbles, pushing himself up and I'm once again in awe of how his muscles move with him.

I scratch at my scalp and nod, holding out the pills for him. “Yeah, I think you did, too.” He takes them in his hand and I sit next to him, uncapping the water bottle before handing it to him as well.

“Thank you,” he hiccups.

“You’re welcome.” I look down at my hands as he takes the pills. He goes to hand me the water bottle back but I shake my head, “You need to drink it all. We’re trying to avoid a hangover.”

He just holds the bottle in his lap, not moving to drink anymore of it, so I look back up at him only to find him already staring at me.

“You okay?” I ask.

He hums and reaches forward. He runs his thumb under my eye, “You got an eyelash. I got it,” he mumbles, but he keeps his hand cradling the side of my face.

My eyes search his tired ones, they’re glossed over, but they always get that way when he drinks, making his eyes seem just a little more blue than green.

“Have I told you tonight that you look pretty?” he asks quietly.

“Multiple times,” I confirm.

“Good, because you are… so, so pretty.”

I lick my lips and watch his eyes move from my eyes to my lips and back. I take in a shallow breath as he starts to lean closer. His eyes closed as his face inches toward mine. I push him back gently just before his lips have the chance to connect with mine, and I mean just before because I could feel his breath against my mouth. “What are you doing?” I question.

“I was… I was trying to kiss you. Did you, I thought you wanted to - when we were laying in bed a couple weeks ago, you said you wanted me to kiss you.”

“Well, I… Connor,” I shake my head. I didn’t think he heard me when I said that. “Not like this. Not tonight. Not when you’re drunk and not thinking clearly.” I stand up, pacing slowly in front of him. “If you’re gonna kiss me, I want you to be sober, and to actually want to do it. Not just because we got in a fight earlier. I don’t want this to be something you do now and then completely forget about or ignore, or fuck, even worse, regret in the morning. I don’t want that. I don’t deserve that. I don’t deserve to be led on by you again.”

“Again?” He asks, tilting his head at me.

“Nevermind. I should go back out there, start cleaning up so it’s not so much tomorrow.”

“Wait, y/n, please. Stay here, please. Stay with me tonight.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“I won’t try anything, I promise. Please, just stay?”

I sigh, “Just until you fall asleep.”

---

It’s nearing eleven in the morning when Shawn finally retreats from his room. He’s not nearly as hungover as I bet the other boys are going to be. If he’s even hungover at all, he doesn’t seem to be.

He leans against the counter, watching me pull my second batch of cookies from the oven. “You’re stress baking,” he observes.

I scoff, “I made muffins too,” I nod in the direction of the counter in front of him where a plate of blueberry muffins sits.

“Ooh,” he reaches forward and takes one, “Not that I like when you’re stressed, but this my favorite of your coping mechanisms.”

“For purely selfish, I presume.”

“Of course,” he says around a mouthful of muffin. “So,” he says after he swallows. “Does this sudden urge to bake have anything to do with what happened last night with Connor?”

I tense up at the memory of Connor leaning in to kiss me. Me pushing him away. “Maybe.”

“So what did happen after I left you two?”

“Nothing,” I shake my head.

“Well, the glorious smell of our kitchen and the spotless living room say otherwise.”

I close my eyes and rub my hands over my face. “He, god, he tried to kiss me.”

“What?” Shawn chokes.

“Shh! You’ll wake them.”

“Oh please, Brain will be asleep until five. Nothing will wake him. He kissed you?! Well, how was it?”

“I said he tried. As in, I didn’t let him. I pushed him away before he could.”

“Why? Don’t you want him to?”

“Of course! But not like that! Not when he’s drunk and not himself. WHen he’s saying stupid things like he wants to make love to me, and that he wishes I was undressing him for the first time under different circumstances.”

“What? He said all of that?! Oh my god! Go, Connor!”

“No, not go Connor. Because he’s not going to remember any of this when he wakes up and I’m going to remember everything and have to pretend that he didn’t say anything or try to kiss me. And I’m stuck being led on once again, except this time he lives just down the hall and I have to see him everyday.”

Shawn sighs, “Okay, you’re right. So, what are you going to do?”

“Same thing I always do.”

He nods, “I’ll get my guitar.”

***

Permanent tag: @soyalimoncada-blog @magcon7280 @fallinallincurls @goldenflickerx @myyohmyuohmyy @harry-hollands @enchantingbrowneyedgirl @baroness-alison @lostinmendess @linanilssonfurberg @luvluvxx @mariamuses @shawnieeboyy @divinginfearlessly @mendesficsxbombay @shawnsthighs @zaahidahhh @lordescomeback @shawnandconnor @shawnsblue @turtoix @honestlyimstilllivinginthe90s @gangofhoes @verlaneswiftie13

#connor brashier #connor brashier x y/n #connor brashier x reader #connor brashier fanfiction #connor brashier imagine #connor brashier imagines #connor brashier blurb #shawn mendes #shawn mendes fan fiction #Shawn Mendes Imagine

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selfdestructivecat · 3 years

Note

Idk if you’ve gotten this already, but for the headcanon ask game!! Klavier, perhaps?

OH MY GOSH WE GOT AN ACE ATTORNEY CHARACTER!!! AND IT’S BEST BOI GUITAR MAN!

Also this will contain lots of Klapollo because I can’t help myself, so if that’s not your cup of tea that’s totally cool!

Realistic Headcanon: Actual German Klav! I love the idea of him spending his childhood in Germany and him still being so in love with the culture and landmarks and just everything that he still sprinkles in German phrases into his speech. And yes, he does speak German fluently in my headcanon.

Unrealistic (but hilarious) Headcanon: Despite his name, he has no idea how to play the piano. In fact, he doesn’t know how to play any other instrument except the guitar. However, while Klavier can’t play the piano, Apollo absolutely can, and he can play it well. Apollo is thrilled when he learns this, excited to shove it in Klavier’s glimmerous rockstar face.

Except that Klavier is even more ecstatic than Apollo, begging him for piano lessons in exchange for guitar lessons for Apollo. (And hey, maybe Klavier isn’t as excited about learning piano as being able to hang out with Apollo, but that’s his little secret.)

…And yeah I can’t make any ace attorney headcanon without including Klapollo lol

(More Headcanons Below!)

Heart-Crushing and Awful Headcanon: In almost all of his past relationships (and all of them after he became famous), he would shower his partner in gifts and affection but get little in return. It’s gotten so bad that at this point he doesn’t expect anything, instead hoping that, if he keeps giving, it’ll make up for what his partner isn’t.

When Apollo comes to his office around lunch, only a few days into their blossoming relationship, with a bag of food from one of Klavier’s favorite places and a cup of coffee, Klavier literally bursts into tears. It takes time for him to learn to accept these gestures gracefully, but Apollo is patient. And Klavier is worth it.

Unrealistic Headcanon that will probably never happen: KLAVIER GOES TO KHURA’IN!!! HE PROSECUTES AGAINST APOLLO!!! HE MEETS THE ROYAL FAMILY!!! PLEASE CAPCOM LET KLAVIER OUT OF THE BASEMENT I MISS HIM.

Thank you so much for the ask! I love my Sanders Sides children but I also adore Ace Attorney (which is still very much a hyperfixation lol) and don’t get as many opportunities to ramble about them ^.^

Send Me Character Asks, and I’ll Give You Some Headcanons!

#myasks #ask game #my headcanons #ace attorney headcanon #klavier gavin #ace attorney klavier #apollo justice #ace attorney apollo #klapollo #headcanon ask game

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phykios · 3 years

Text

Ain’t No Sunshine, modern royalty, 1970s au [read on ao3] thank you as always to my darling @darkmagyk for taking a true story off the rails

May 3rd, 1979. The date seemed to jump off the page, the loud, bold text almost mocking her.

Not that she was keeping track, but it was just about four years to the day.

She’d woken up this morning, feeling kind of off, wandering around her apartment in a daze as she hustled her children out the door for daycare, losing time on her bus commute to work. It wasn’t until lunch, as she took the time to go through her day planner, that she realized: four years ago was when she had last seen Percy Jackson.

Though why Annabeth was thinking about him right this second was anyone’s guess.

Oh, sure, she’d thought about him a lot all throughout her pregnancy--thought about him, cursed his name, dreamed of strangling him for leaving her alone with these two absolute terrors--but as the years had gone by, and she had lost all hope of ever making contact with him again, he’d sort of fallen by the wayside of her thoughts. Something must have been going on with the navy mail system, because absolutely none of the letters or postcards she’d sent had ever been received, and she couldn’t reach out to Sally, since Annabeth had lost her address as well.

There was always the possibility that he… well, that he wasn’t around to receive letters anymore. But she tried not to think about it.

She tried her best not to think about him at all, these days.

Today, however, her childhood best friend turned US navy midshipman had popped up on her internal radar, and had just decided to take up residence in her brain. Her normally mind-numbing job couldn’t even properly distract her, and she spent all afternoon daydreaming about his messy, perpetually windswept hair, and his toothy, contagious smile, and his gorgeous green eyes like she was some kind of pathetic, lovestruck teenager, obsessing over her rockstar crush. Taking calls, scheduling appointments, and dodging the creepy advances of the assistant CFO were slightly more palatable if she had something pleasant to think about.

Old-fashioned romance was for suckers, anyway. Who needed it?

At least it was Friday. Fridays were KFC days, and she really did not need to accidentally burn dinner today. Again.

She hated it, but her kids loved it. God knows they could barely stomach whatever she usually attempted.

She sent them to bed early-ish, and settled down in front of the TV with a glass of wine. She didn’t usually indulge, but she had had such a weird day, she felt she deserved it.

Taking a long, long sip, she could no longer deny it: she really fucking missed Percy.

She missed him like she’d miss a missing limb, and it was all the more cruel because she’d lost him once, and miraculously found him again, on that fateful trip home from Athens. A military brat stuck at the American naval base in Spain to save money, waiting for a spare seat to open up on a plane so she could go home, by the sheer force of luck, she’d practically tripped and fallen into the lap of her childhood best friend.

And then she did trip into his lap. And then into his bed. And stupid, stupid, Annabeth, she’d always been so bad with her birth control.

Her little boy, he had blond hair, but sometimes he would look at her, or laugh at something, or drool in his sleep just like his daddy, and Annabeth thought she might just fucking die from it.

She loved her children, of course, how could she not? But she wasn’t about to deny it--sometimes, alone in parenthood, juggling dishes and laundry and schoolwork and life, she felt like she was drowning.

Sharp, piercing, the doorbell rang, knocking her out of her reverie. A little tipsy, still in her rumpled work clothes, she set the glass aside, and made her way to the door. “Mr. D,” she said, opening it, prepared speech all ready to go, “I told you, I’d have the rent for you by--”

She stopped, blinking, speechless. It was not Mr. D.

“Hey,” said the man outside her door. The ghost from another world that she had, apparently, conjured with her thoughts.

“...Hey.”

He smiled, a little strained, the light of the streetlamps casting harsh shadows on his face. “It’s good to see you.”

“How did you know where I lived?” It was, perhaps, not the most elegant thing to say, but she hadn’t exactly planned for what would happen when Percy Jackson, love of her life, father of her children, long-lost best friend wandered back into her life.

“Can I come in? Maybe for a Coke or something?” he asked, not answering her question.

She almost wanted to say no. For every letter never returned, for every month gone by without a word, for every day spent raising their children without him, not knowing if he was alive or dead--she almost said no.

But this was Percy. She could spare him a Coca Cola at least. “Sure,” she said, leaning away, “come on.”

“Great,” he said, and this time, his smile was all real.

So focused had she been on him, she hadn’t even clocked the older man who stood behind him. “Sir,” said the other man, with the air of a beleaguered secretary--and Annabeth would know, “I really must advise--”

“I’ll just be a minute,” said Percy, not even bothering to look back at him, pushing past Annabeth’s half-extended arm.

“But, sir, your father--”

Percy let the door shut in his face.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “Harsh.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, well… I’ll make it up to him later.”

“Who is he?”

But Percy didn’t answer. “Nice place you got here.”

He was being nice, of course. It was a craphole apartment in a craphole side of town--but the rent was cheap and the bus was convenient, and she only felt the slightest bit of shame as she led him to the craphole couch, handing him a coke from her craphole fridge. Christ, his suit looked like it cost more than her TV.

“Is your… husband home?” he asked, delicate.

“My what?”

“Your husband. I saw, um…” Embarrassed, he flicked his eyes to the ring on her left hand.

“Oh, this? It’s--it’s not--” Hastily, clumsily, she fumbles it off, pulling around the knuckle. “I’m not--I’m not.”

He blinked. “Oh.”

“Yeah, I just--it’s to ward off creepy guys, right? Like, they won’t take no for an answer unless they think they’ll have to deal with an angry husband, so I just…”

In her more pathetic moments, she pretended that it had been given to her by the man before her. She had picked something small and simple, something that she thought he might have gone with, and pretended he had slipped it into her pocket the day she left the naval base.

“That’s--cool. That’s great, I mean. I mean, that’s--”

“What do you want, Percy?”

Not at all bothered by the shortness of her tone, he sighed, closing his eyes. “I have a… personal question I need to ask you. And I’m sorry to bother you with this, I just--I have to ask.”

Ominous. “Okay?”

“Did we…” He sighed again, mouth twisting. “Did you, as a result of our repeated sexual encounters four years ago, happen to have any children by me?”

He just rattled it off, as if it was something he’d said over and over and over again, tired of receiving the same answer, but never expecting anything different.

“Excuse me?”

“I know, I know, it’s an extremely rude question, and I know I have no right to ask you, especially since it’s been so long, but I swear, there’s a reason I--”

“Did you never get any of the letters I sent you?”

At that, his head shot up. The look in his eyes could only be described as ‘terror.’ “What?”

“I must have sent you half a dozen,” she said, crossing to the kitchen, the wine making her a little bit short. She had, in fact, sent him eight letters, with pictures, and never received a single response, but since he seemed genuinely lost, she decided not to tell him. Plucking the most recent photo down from the fridge, she returned to the man in her living room, his knuckles white around the can.

Standing before him, she handed him the photograph. He took it, fingers shaking. “We… you…”

“Percy Jackson,” she said, like she was introducing him to someone at a party, “meet your children.”

Even after they had just been born, Annabeth had seen how obviously they were his. Only their daughter had the same messy black hair, both both had the same long, straight nose, the same intense, brooding brow as their father--and when her son smiled, or her daughter laughed, it was hard not to see the shades of Percy so strongly in them. It was hard to see them, too.

Percy’s mouth was trembling. His eyes were wide, glassy, fixed on the photo. “My--” he swallowed. “What--what are their names?”

“Alexander,” she said, softly, “and Anne--”

“Annemarie,” he breathed. “Alexander and Annemarie.” He looked up at her, his eyes shining. “You remembered?”

Of course she remembered. Two lonely kids, she and Percy had spent so much of their childhood together, playing house, building their perfect family, even if only in their imagination. Alexander for his mother’s cousin, and Annemarie because he had wanted to name their daughter Annabeth, and she wouldn’t let him. Twenty years later, alone and in pain, holding her newborn children and alternately cursing the man who made them and desperately wishing he were with her, Annabeth had known that they could only have one set of names, even if their father might never meet them.

His face crumpled. He dropped his head into his hand, and groaned, like someone had pressed on an open wound.

“Percy!” Annabeth sat down next to him, one hand on his shoulder, the other on his leg. Four years later and it still felt so natural to touch him like this. “Are you okay?”

Nodding, he grunted. “Yeah,” he croaked, voice hoarse, “I’m okay. I’m fine. I just--” And then he shuddered, a hand coming up to scrub at his eyes.

He was crying, she realized suddenly. Annabeth used to be the one that cried. She could count on one hand how many times she’d seen him cry. He hadn’t even cried when she had finally left the naval base.

Taking a shaking breath, he wiped his nose on the sleeve of his expensive suit. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered, shattered. “I didn’t--I never--if I had known, I swear, I would have left the navy. I would have come home.”

The silent, unspoken “to you” echoed in the dead air of her apartment. “Why didn’t you?” she asked, quietly.

They held each other’s eyes, an eternity passing in a heartbeat. Neither wanted to break the sacred silence, to bring words into the crystalline moment that hung in the balance between them.

“I never got your letters,” he said, tears in his eyes. “I… after you--left, I…” he sighed, aching. “I… got hurt. Bad.”

Annabeth couldn’t breathe.

“And,” he huffed a laugh, wet and messy, “and then I met my father. Can you believe it?”

Her eyes bugged out of her head. “You what?”

He nodded.

“He’s alive?”

Sally rarely spoke of him, and Percy had always refused to. Annabeth had just assumed he had died, years and years and years ago.

Percy laughed again, humorless. “He’s the king of Thera.”

Her jaw dropped. “He…”

“Yeah.”

“Are you shitting me?”

Shaking his head, he smiled, rueful. “I wish.”

Words from a half-remembered newscast floated through her mind. Alexander and Annemarie had been right terrors that night, and she had only been half-listening as the reporter informed the world that Triton, hereditary prince of Thera, had died, killed in military action. “He… found you?”

Percy nodded, miserable. “He told me--asked--told me to--to find anyone I might have…” And then he swallowed, tears in his eyes again, real, glistening tears. “And I am so, so sorry, I know--I know your job is here, and your whole life, and the children, but I--”

She took his hand in hers, squeezing gently so he didn’t fly away. “It’s okay,” she said. “Just say it.”

“I’m supposed to--I’m supposed to… if you would… come with me,” he trailed off, suddenly shy.

For the second time tonight, she felt like she’d been hit with a sledgehammer. “...What?”

“He… my father… the king wants--needs heirs. He… he asked for a list of women, and I… gave him your name.” Stomach hot, Annabeth wished she had the courage to know about the other women on that list. Or to ask why Percy, young and handsome as he’d been at both twelve and twenty, wasn’t out there making some new ones himself. Why was he chasing down old leads? Why was he chasing down Chase bastards? “You’d--you’d live in the castle,” he said, like he was trying to sell her on it, though she could tell his heart wasn’t really in it, “and we, well, we’d technically have to get married, but that doesn’t need to be a big deal. You’d get your own rooms. You can set them up however you want. And you’d have a personal staff, a stipend, and the kids would get private teachers, and--”

“Staff?”

He blinked, caught off guard. “Yes?”

Staff. Someone to do the laundry and clean the dishes. Someone to cook dinner and look after the house. Someone to help. Someone to do all the parental things that she just could not do, not by herself. Not without him.

“I know I have no right to ask this of you,” he said, squeezing her hand. His hand was just as big as she remembered, and just as warm. “And I would never, ever force you to do anything that you wouldn’t want to--”

“Yes,” she said, interrupting him.

He blinked, dumbly. “What?”

“Yes. I’ll come with you. We all will.”

“...Oh. Uh, great. That’s--that’s good. Are you sure?” He looked like a lost little dolphin, eyes huge and uncertain, and then, Annabeth did the one thing that she’d been desperately wanting to do for the last four years.

She pulled his face to hers, and she kissed him. Shocked, he stiffened, almost pulling away--before relaxing into her, cupping her face in his big, warm hand. Eyes closed, they leaned their heads against each other, sharing air once more for the first time in years. She had lost him twice already: once as a child, when her father had decided to move her across the country, and once as a lovestruck college girl, when she had to leave the naval base, four years ago. She wasn’t about to lose him for a third time.

And for the first time in forever, she no longer felt like she was drowning.

#my fic #pjo fic #pjo #percabeth #percabeth fic #au #the rivalry ends here #the au which we have affectionately named 'chop chop'#for... reasons...#darkmagyk #perseannabeth

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about-faces · 3 years

Text

BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN LIVEBLOG (3/?)

(Continued from Part 2)

We cut to Arkham Asylum, which is now on top of a mountain like something out of Castlevania. It sounds like a bad joke: “The mental health care at Arkham is so terrible!” “Yes, and such tough roads to get there!” Yes, they apparently have mountains in Gotham City. It’s like The Simpsons’ Springfield, where there are mountains, swamps, and deserts, and any other terrain the plots require.

It’s a scene in Arkham, so you know what that means: CAMEOS! Penguin is here, because we’ve already established that Gotham doesn’t care if you’re mentally ill or not, just so long as you’re funny-lookin’. Hm, that implication’s a rather troubling can of worms! Let’s move on! Weird choice to give Oswald the Batman Returns look rather than try adapting the Tim Sale version. Do these filmmakers want to adapt this comic or don’t they?

Then there’s Mad Hatter, looking like a little gremlin who goes to Vigo the Carpathian’s stylist, possibly alongside the Scarecrow there. Yes, that’s meant to be Crane, looking like a burned-out rockstar with male pattern baldness. It’s certainly a take, especially given they already changed Alberto to look like a perfect Crane from the comics. Did he have that hair back when he was a professor? Did he put it in a ponytail like an evil version of one of those cool-guy professors who wants to seem hip and approachable?

We learn that Harvey was the one who sent the rogues to Arkham, rather than Gotham Penitentiary (going with the classic name rather than Blackgate?), much to Batman’s cold-blooded approval. Okay, first of all, that wouldn’t be the District Attorney’s call. Only a judge could do that. I’m really starting to suspect that this screenwriter doesn’t know anything about how the law works.

Second, why Arkham? Why would the district attorney NOT want to send them to prison instead? Why send them to a mental health facility? Well, I guess the answer is that Arkham has rarely been depicted as anything other than a prison, but more hellish, which would mean that both Batman and Harvey are being sadistic and vindictive, wanting them to suffer. I hope I’m not interpreting that right, because I do not have time to unpack that right now.

Aaaand here we go with the Calendar Man, the original holiday-themed rogue. He looks slightly different from his comic counterpart, between his beefiness, his lack of eyebrows, and a general resemblance to Handsome Squidward.

I’ve always kinda suspected that Loeb had started TLH and went “Oh wait, shit, I forgot Calendar Man exists!” and decided to throw him in there, where he served absolutely no purpose but to be a Hannibal Lecter reference. I miss the days when Calendar Man was a flamboyant C-lister who would wear different themed costumed for each heist. No one has ever found anything interesting to do with Day since he was redefined and ruined as a poor man’s Lecter. All this despite the fact that we never learn what his crimes were, nor why we should find him so dangerous and creepy.

I’m not really comfortable with how... fey this take on Calendar Man is. Between his speech, his mannerisms, and those eyelashes, he reminds me of one of those homophobic stereotypes in anime. Also, it’s giving me flashbacks to an old audiobook of Red Dragon where Lecter was depicted as VERY swishy by narrator Chris Sarandon. In the comic, he was somewhat mercurial, but here he’s being played as “creepy gay.” Also, they removed his eyebrows, which he had in the comic. Hot tip: unless your character is live action and actually played by someone like Anthony Carrigan, don’t give your villain alopecia areata for creep factor. It’s icky.

Unlike with the comic, this scene at least serves a narrative purpose. Sure, the Calendar Man is absolutely useless, but he helps to ratchet up Jim and Batman’s suspicions of Harvey, and he also reveals that--oh right, you might find this interesting--the Joker has escaped.

The Joker shows up at the Dents’ new house, decorating the tree and singing twisted a twisted version of “Tis The Season” with his own lyrics. They’re not clever, but still, this is another improvement on Loeb, who just had the Joker singing standard carols in lieu of actually trying to write something for him.

Okay, as tired as I am of the Joker, he’s pretty fun here. If this stays true enough to the comics, then this will be one case where the Joker doesn’t end up hijacking the story. As such, I can just enjoy him popping up to stir shit and then vanish. God, we never see that anymore.

He’s especially fun because he’s voiced by Troy Baker, who proved in Arkham Origins that he’s an excellent backup when Mark Hamill isn’t available. I’m just sad Baker isn’t voicing Harvey as well, given his excellent and underused performance(s) in the Arkham games. Josh Duhamel is doing an okay job so far, but he’s not up to Baker’s level. That’s because Baker is a voice actor, and Duhamel is not. He just kinda sounds like a gym coach.

Yeah, I admit it, I smiled. It’s rare to see a Joker who elicits any kind of mirth from me these days, so points to Baker and the animators for that.

Using Harvey’s gifted revolver in one hand and a Holiday .22 (which the Joker got from... somewhere?), the Joker starts blasting Harvey, who hides behind a couch. It’s a lot more action-packed than the comic, where they just traded a couple punches, but we eventually get there too. Harvey gets a few in before the Joker kicks him in the crotch, and Harvey goes down for the count. We get the whole “If I find out that the rumors are true and you are Holiday, I’ll kill you and your wife because there’s only room for one homicidal maniac in this town” bit, and Harvey passes out. There’s no scene of Gilda coming in, finding him and worrying whether or not he’s okay. He’s just left there, and the incident is never spoken of again.

We cut to the back alley behind Maroni’s Italian restaurant, where Boss Maroni--making his animated debut after almost eighty years of being cut out of Two-Face origins!--is dealing with the grinning corpse of a goon. The Joker’s been making the rounds, and Batman shows up to express cold satisfaction at the sight of another dead mobster.

I like Maroni here. He’s the only one willing to call out Batman for being such an aggressive asshole. It provides a good segue for Maroni to deliver the comic/movie message that the old-school mobsters are being replaced by the costumed “freaks,” and he puts the blame directly on Batman.

Me:

Batman continues to badger Maroni, who remains unflappable. He sees this take on Batman for what he is, and he ain’t impressed.

Again, this movie is making it explicit that Batman’s a bad detective. He never even considered that maybe having basic deduction skills might be handy in a war on crime. Shit, even the young asshole Batman of Arkham Origins knew how to be a detective! Given that this is a murder mystery, I can only assume this is meant to be his “detective origin” arc, which they’re establishing by having Batman be the absolute worst at this. It’s similar to how Geoff Johns’ Batman: Earth One tried to show Bruce’s inexperience by having him fail to cross a rooftop, so he just fell on his ass and nearly died. That at least worked because it was kinda funny!

I get what these stories are going for: oh, it’s a subversion of expectations! This isn’t the Batman we know and love! He’s relatable and human and makes mistakes, and we get to watch him grow! All of this might hold true for this movie, which has gotten heaps of critical praise from fans. They probably also loved the fact that he’s still a badass hard case who’s more in keeping with The Shadow’s ruthlessness. But why should I give a shit? He’s just an asshole, one of several characters wrestling for control of the Idiot Ball.

The Joker makes his next stop at the Roman’s penthouse, where he criticizes the mobster’s drab wardrobe options of “navy, navy, charcoal, black.” It’s pretty rich, given how washed-out and drab this whole movie is. Every frame looks like it’s been left out in the sun after being fished out of the gutter.

Leaving the Roman unharmed, the Joker flees the penthouse while laugh-hooting like Daffy Duck. Yes, this is exactly what I want from the Joker. I’m not being sarcastic this time. More of this plz.

As with the comics, he’s followed outside by the Roman’s bodyguard, Milos, who is a lot beefier than he was in the comic. But he’s about to be just as murdered.

With the Christmas murder over, we know what’s coming up next: New Year’s Eve, on the Roman’s yacht, with the big “death” that changed everything in the original story. The movie makes some changes to the situation, first by revealing that it’s a charity benefit for a children’s hospital that was established by the Roman and Thomas Wayne. This movie has apparently decided to strengthen the link between the Falcones and the Waynes, which will undoubtedly set up Harvey’s ill-considered vendetta against Bruce later on. For the first time ever, Bruce heeds Alfred’s advice to attend, only because Selina will be there. Never mind the cancer stricken orphans or whatever, boobies!

Oh, never mind, forget what I said about them reducing the Godfather similarities. Not only is there a rose in his lapel, but the Roman looks more like Vito Corleone here than he even did in the comics. I mean, he looks like Vito after getting a dose of Bane’s venom, but still, that’s Brando. Chad Brando.

The Roman makes a big speech to pay tribute to a young man he loves, someone he’s disagreed with from time to time, but in the end, they’re family and that’s what matters. Naturally, he’s talking about Bruce Wayne, much to Alberto’s visible anger and anguish. Angruish! Poor Alberto, he really is the Milhouse Van Houten of this movie. But is he going to be a Milhouse of pity, or a Milhouse… of murder???

Cut to the New Year’s Eve party at Gotham’s equivalent of Times Square, where we see Harvey and Gilda fighting over her frustrations at him always working. You never call, you never write, you’re always at the office, slaving over a hot desk! This is the biggest difference we’ve yet seen from the Gilda of the TLH comics, although it does have shades of other, better Gildas where she’s had more fortitude. But in practice, it’s setting up a “wife nagging her husband, making a public spectacle” scenario right out of too many movies. Not to mention it’s a complete 180 of the woman who sat alone on a swing all night waiting for him, just to beg him to “Please stay.”

What the fuck is this character design? She looks like an indignant egg.

Their argument is interrupted by Jim and Barbara (the wife, not the daughter; blame Frank Miller for the confusion) Gordon, who are already feeling incredibly awkward about the situation. Jim tells Harvey that this event has “the biggest police presence” in the city that night, so they’re prepared in case Holiday strikes.

Okay, but why would Holiday attack here? The killer’s targets have never been civilians, only mobsters. In fact, that very night, there’s a concentrated gathering of all of Gotham’s top mobsters on the yacht! Between the two, where the hell would Holiday be more likely to strike?! Did he even think to put at least one police dinghy in the waters to keep an eye on the giant floating target of a mob-obsessed serial killer? I’m betting he didn’t, or we wouldn’t have our next murder victim!

In a backfiring attempt at pleasant small talk, Barbara says her kids are staying with her mother (who apparently moved to Gotham, I assume to keep a closer eye on Jim after the whole “Sarah Essen” thing) and suggests that maybe Gilda would be great with children. Harvey makes what I assume to be an incredibly awkward attempt at lightening the mood, or he’s just being horribly oblivious.

Gilda’s a lawyer! So they’re doing like they did with Grace Lamont in Batman: The Animated Series, where Harvey fell in love with another lawyer. It implies their relationship was based on professional common ground, which is a serviceable shorthand to explain how they got together if you’re not gonna flesh it out. While I wish someone would remember that Gilda was canonically a professional sculptor, this already gives her more backstory substance than she usually gets! It’s certainly more than Loeb thought to give her!

Oh for fuck’s sake.

We cut to the yacht, where Selina and Bruce have a “this thing between us isn’t working out, we’re from two different worlds” talk. After dumping him from their non-relationship, she walks off and Bruce notices his watch is gone. Aw, a sentimental keepsake! I actually like this moment, because instead of him being mad, Bruce tells her he was actually impressed and wants to know when she did it. Selina tells him not to ask questions like that, because…

AHHHHHHHH LIKE A CAT GET IT? GET IT? IT’S CLEVER. NOD WITH PLEASED COMPREHENSION. I should just be grateful that I didn’t notice her going “purrrfect” once, which at this point is a sign of admirable restraint in Catwoman writers.

All the same: Selina, honey, what have they done to your hair? What is with these design changes from the comics? Not a single one has been an improvement on Tim Sale’s designs! One of the best things about Sale’s Selina was her HUGE nest of pitch-black hair! It contrasted her full-head cowl look, and it looked great! Given the animation here looks cheap at times, such as with choppy walk cycles, I guess they didn’t have the budget to do her hair justice.

Not surprising, since apparently they can barely afford noses for the women. Gilda and Selina keep getting angles where they look like Voldemort. Speaking of Gilda, let’s check back in on her incredibly tense evening with Harvey, guest-starring the increasingly-awkward Gordons.

FOR GOD’S SAKE GET A DOG. A HOBBY. VOLUNTEER AT THE LOCAL ORPHANAGE. SOMETHING. “I told myself it was okay because it would get better,” she laments. “But it hasn’t.”

Okay. It’s clear that she’s going through some shit. I get it. I empathize deeply. I’ve also been in the situation of moving out to a place I don’t know and being horribly alone because my mental and physical health prohibits me from forging new connections. But my empathy can only go so far, because I know there are some distinct differences between my circumstances/choices and her own. And that makes this scene incredibly hard to parse, even if I were going full spoilers.

What’s more, it’s clear that Harvey doesn’t know what she’s going through. She’s never told him and/or he’s never asked. That could explain why, instead of actually trying to talk through her feelings, he does the thing partners too often do: trying to offer “solutions” to problems he doesn’t fully comprehend, while also showing he hasn’t really been listening to what she’s trying to say. This communication style can be incredibly invalidating and isolating.

While Gilda has clearly been mum about the reasons why she can’t conceive, it seems like Harvey doesn’t believe her when she says that she can’t, or that she hasn’t exhausted all options. Again, this is passive invalidation. He doesn’t come out and say “why don’t we just try harder?” but he might as well. Suggesting through subtext, “Have you considered I might know more about your uterus than you?” is....whew. Not the way to handle this emotionally delicate situation, Harvey.

All this is doing is highlighting a severe lack of communication skills between them, with Gilda not opening up to her husband and Harvey not trying to encourage her, while also being oblivious to the few details she’s told him. It’s agonizing to watch and I’m not sure if that’s in a “realistic spouse fight” way or a “bad writing because we need to lay the groundwork for the greater mystery plot line at the expense of character” way. Instead of taking this moment to finally learn something about his wife, Harvey presses the nebulous “options” thing harder, which just makes her more upset.

Again, Loeb’s take on Gilda was entirely centered around having a baby with Harvey. What this movie is doing here is a complete reversal, perhaps to add further mystery for comic readers who already know the story. This Gilda doesn’t want a baby because whatever happened to make her infertile was so traumatic that she can’t bear the thought of children at all. So I guess adoption is out, not that it was ever in.

Which again, WHY DO THEY HAVE A SWING IN THE BACKYARD WHERE SHE SPENDS ALL HER TIME? Wouldn’t that be a constant reminder of her pain? Well, maybe that’s the point. That could be what the screenwriter was going for. She could be immersing herself in her painful memories and trauma every second of every day that she’s not spending with Harvey. She’s entirely dependent on him for any fleeting traces of happiness. And he doesn’t seem to press her on any painful details, just wanting to offer snuggles and old movies.

Jesus. This is a deeply dysfunctional relationship. And that’s incredibly upsetting to me because you know I’m a huge Harvey/Gilda shipper from the comics. I already knew we wouldn’t get the ship we deserve because this is The Long Halloween, the story that destroyed their relationship in comics. But jesus, this is so much worse. And we’re just getting started.

Oh lordy loo. Yep, there’s another man in Gilda’s past. Someone else she’s loved, possibly even her one true love. Compared to him, at least in this moment, she finds Harvey wanting. Could it be that this other man was more intuitive and/or attentive to her needs? We don’t know. I’m gonna bet we’re not going to find out what exactly she means here, and in what way Harvey should be “more like” the other man.

Frowning, Harvey asks, “More like who?” She keeps mum. His frown softens and he says, gently, “I’m only one man.” BECAUSE HE WON’T BE FOR LONG HAHA I GET THAT ONE TOO. Gilda says “I can’t do this now,” and walks off into the crowd. Harvey excuses himself from the Gordons, who watched this whole thing, and walks off in the opposite direction. So that’s fine. That’s healthy. Get into a public argument about stuff you should have talked through before marriage, then ditch your crying wife without offering any emotional support. Great.

Barbara starts to ask Jim if he knew anything about the Dents’ marriage troubles, and before Jim can answer in a way that I’m sure would have been insightful and not at all something an old dismissive cop might say, the Joker shows up in a poison-rigged crop duster to wreak havoc.

I take back everything I said about this Joker actually being funny. And then it gets worse! Bruce ditches the yacht, suits up, and somehow manages to travel into the city in time to fight the Joker. In fact, Batman is convinced that the Joker is Holiday, given that Milos the bodyguard was murdered seconds after the Joker fled the Roman’s penthouse. Never mind that the Joker was probably still in Arkham during the time of the first two murders.

The Joker rightly points out that he couldn’t be Holiday because he likes the attention too much to keep his murders a secret. In fact, he wants to find and kill the real Holiday, because he “won’t be number two,” so he plans to gas “half the city” so he has a “50-50 chance” of getting the serial killer. Jesus, they’re now outsourcing Loeb’s groan-worthy two-pun lines to the Joker! Yes, yes, I get it movie, you’re laying down thematic references to Two-Face! Very subtle!

It’s a perfectly cromulent explanation of the Joker’s twisted motives, but this Batman is thick as a brick, so he still asks why the Joker is obsessed with finding Holiday. The Joker replies, “Because just like you, I love a good puzzle!” Batman’s eyes widen, because this is an awkward line that only serves to make Batman apparently think, “Puzzle? Puzzle?! Oh my god, there’s only one man in Gotham who likes puzzles: ALBERTO FALCONE.”

Batman takes down the Joker, who has already released clouds of Smilex gas, which is what I’m calling it because fuck you that’s what it is. We don’t see any effects this has on the city, but come on, that’s at least a few dozen people dead. But who cares, Batman stops the Joker and saves the day! Just ignore the grinning corpses littering the streets! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We cut back to the yacht, where we find Alberto alone at the bow. For comic readers, this is going to be a pivotal moment, and the movie isn’t about to rush it. Selina joins Alberto to strike up conversation, wanting to know what it was to grow up in the “Roman empire.”

I think I already mentioned this, but if not, I’ll spoil it anyway: she believes the Roman is her father. Her entire motivation in this and Loeb’s story is to stalk him to find out the truth. Man, I hate how Jeph Loeb retroactively changed Selina’s attack on the Roman in Year One to making it all about her having daddy issues. This subplot wasn’t even explicitly in Long Halloween! It was hinted at in Dark Victory and explored in When in Rome--notably flying in the face of the history established in years of Selina’s own solo comics. (Furious Henchgirl noises from behind me.)

Why is her entire character based around The Roman? Comics Catwoman had her issues, but they were family issues, poverty issues, street-kid-who-fell-through-the-cracks-in-the-broken-system issues. All of that added up to a character who enjoyed theft for the freedom and security it provided, and who played a Robin Hood role occasionally to help those who grew up the way she did. But now it’s all the same old “Daddy wasn’t there” thing we’ve seen a million times before.

Anyway, that’s why she’s making an effort to connect with her brother, who has no idea who or what she is. And Alberto is all too willing to share, because this is a rare case of someone actually being nice to him.

He went to Oxford, where he learned more about business than his stooge of a dad could ever know, and he fell in love with an unnamed woman. I think you can probably guess who she was, and why Alberto sent flowers to the hospital, but I’m gonna try to keep being cagey so I don’t get ahead of myself.

Alberto says that they were forced apart because of his disapproving father, who did “terrible things” to this woman as punishment. And because Alberto was desperate to please his father, he acquiesced and pushed his lover away, even after those aforementioned “terrible things.” In so doing, he ironically proved that he was just as “weak” as his father says. He lives in constant shame and loneliness, staying by his abusive father who disdains his very existence.

What is this emotion I’m feeling? Do I actually… care about Alberto Falcone? As a person? That doesn’t seem right.

Alberto wonders why he feels so comfortable talking to Selina and opening up like this, but of course Selina doesn’t tell the truth. Which makes it incredibly awkward when Alberto moves in to kiss her. Yikes!

Selina is saved from this awkward situation by Batman, who has crossed the whole city and harbor again to get back on the yacht. In her surprise, Selina immediately blabs “BRUCE!” in front of Alberto. Weird enough that this movie has chosen to make Selina already know Batman’s secret identity, but holy shit, that’s just so… so… GOD WHY IS EVERYONE IN THIS STORY SO BAD AT EVERYTHING

With absolutely ZERO EVIDENCE, Batman accuses Alberto of being Holiday, saying he wanted to stir up a crisis in the Falcone crime family, so he could be brought in from the benches and take over. And sure, the movie has made you want to think that, given that fits the Roman earlier telling Alberto that he will never succeed him as Godfather. This movie is trying to subvert expectations from the comics, that Alberto wants to surpass his father in infamy, one way or another.

It makes sense that we would suspect Alberto, but it’s something else entirely for Batman to just make wild accusations about a guy he knows nothing about! It’s a whole lot of supposition based purely around a half-baked idea of who Alberto is and the fact that he likes puzzles! That’s it! That’s all Batman’s working with here!

Alberto justly lashes out at Batman’s wild accusations, shouting about how he never wanted power or infamy or any of that, and all he’s ever wanted was a normal-ass life. Which, ironically, is what the Roman wanted of Alberto in the comics!

Alberto’s true desires are just to have a nice home and family, much like a certain someone else in Loeb’s original story. Except unlike Loeb’s Gilda, who wanted a family because “she’s a woman” is all the explanation he thought we’d need, Alberto is actually given a backstory and motivation. And the result is that he’s actually interesting! Even sympathetic and tragic! I can’t believe I actually give a shit about Alberto fucking Falcone! Which of course adds impact to what happens next:

In the comic, Alberto was “shot” and fell off the bow of the yacht, faking his death. It’s not clear whether or not he was actually shot by someone, or if he faked that too. He fell into the harbor, which ran red with blood, which he somehow also faked. It was stupid. It was a cheap and terrible fake-out to eliminate him from the list of suspects. But here, we see that he actually has been shot, and what’s more, we see Holiday looming above. This Alberto is not Holiday, or even one of the Holiday killers. Unless it’s another fake-out?

It’s (presumably purposely) unclear whether Alberto is speaking to Holiday or Batman. I’m going to go with Holiday, and further suppose that Alberto knows exactly who they are. Even with that in mind, it’s hard to tell what he means by “you couldn’t know.” Couldn’t know what? Is he absolving his killer for making a terrible mistake? I don’t think that will make sense. What does, however, is “you’re missing so many pieces.” We’re supposed to think he’s talking about puzzles, but he’s not. Oh god help us all, he’s not.

Just to make it more certain, Holiday shoots Alberto two more times, and he falls over the bow into the water. But it could still be a fake-out! Maybe Alberto is actually colluding with Holiday, which is something the comic should have done for that plot to make more sense. Perhaps this movie is doing that?

Oh, we’re actually seeing his body sinking. But okay, okay, it could still be a fake-out. This isn’t…

Welp. Never mind.

So long, Alberto. You were far more interesting here than you ever were in the comics. At least you got a hilariously gory death to make it clear that this story is going in a different direction than the comic.

So giving Alberto that whole gimmick about doing “logic puzzles” isn’t going anywhere. It was just a thin excuse to have Batman suspect Alberto of being Holiday. Jeez, they couldn’t even give him a connection to the Riddler or something.

I think this is the clearest look at Holiday’s face we’ve seen thus far, which seems intentional on the film’s part. Whoever Holiday is, this couldn’t possibly be either of the killers from the original comic. One is dead, and the other… well, just look at Holiday. That’s not the same person as the final killer. It can’t be, unless lots of makeup, prosthetics, and body padding is involved.

Will the final reveal address this discrepancy? Can the killer morph their face once the hat and scarf go on, like Alec Baldwin in The Shadow? Or could Harvey be the killer after all? Because they sure seem to want us to think it’s Harvey, especially given who was just killed, and why Alberto happened to be chosen as a victim this particular night. That’d be a hell of a choice, to subvert the comic so much that they made the red herring the killer after all!

(For clarity’s sake, I’ll spoil this much: no, it’s not Harvey. And yes, it’s probably who you think it is, no matter how much that doesn’t fit the way Holiday looks here.)

Batman and Selina, meanwhile, have just stood by and watched all this happen. Neither of them made a move to go after Holiday, who was just standing there in plain sight, easily within reach of a vigilante. It’s only after confirming that Alberto has been reduced to chum that Batman pursues Holiday, chasing the killer through the throngs of rich jerks.

Holiday leaps on a speedboat and escapes, while Batman watches helplessly despite the fact that he already showed he was able to make a round trip from the yacht to the city using only his grappling gun. I should just be grateful Batman didn’t go, “Damn, if only I’d been prepared” and we get the secret origin of the Bat-Boat.

The yacht’s guests depart at the dock, where the police are waiting to investigate Alberto’s murder. Harvey shows up wearing a coat and scarf that could easily be the same that Holiday wore. They’re really leaning into him being the red herring, aren’t they?

Do you think Jim Gordon is kicking himself? I sure hope he is, but that would highlight the fact that he’s also a terrible detective, which is not what this narrative wants us to believe. He has to be the mentor to Batman, the actual terrible detective. Gordon at least has to have the pretense of knowing what he’s doing. Right?

WAIT WHY IS GORDON SURPRISED?! WHEN DID HE EVER SUSPECT ALBERTO WAS HOLIDAY? HE DIDN’T! ONLY BATMAN DID, JUST BEFORE HE STOPPED THE JOKER, AND HE JUST RAN STRAIGHT BACK TO THE YACHT! DID BATMAN JUMP DOWN FROM THE ROOFTOPS, TALK TO GORDON, AND THEN RUSH OFF TO THE YACHT? NO HE DIDN’T BECAUSE BATMAN NEVER TALKS TO ANYONE! THIS IS BAD.

“... But I was supposed to save him.” Oh good, just what Batman needs to make him interesting: MORE GUILT.

Post-credits scene! Bruce attends Alberto’s funeral, where I assume they buried his damp scraps of the crossword in his coffin. The Roman decides to approach the man he respects more than his own son about going into business, which Bruce refuses to do “so long as I’m in control.” Rather than go “You dare to disrespect me? On this, the day of my son’s funeral?” the Roman introduces Bruce to his associate to help with his little “control” issue.

Vines grow out of her hand to ensnare Bruce, whose becomes entranced by Poison Ivy, who shares Gilda and Selina’s near nonexistent nose. Before her eyes flashed green, I could have totally accepted that this was Gilda, and she’d somehow gotten plant powers.

End of Part 1! Which is to say, end of Part 3 of this liveblog! Sorry if it’s confusing, because god knows this movie ain’t gonna be any clearer on that count! TO BE CONTINUED GOD HELP ME

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nationalharryleague · 4 years

Text

The Best Things Happen While You’re Dancing

Pairing: Harry Styles x Reader

Genre: TOOTH ROTTING FLUFF

Word count: 2.5K

A/N: Hi everyone! This is 2.5k of absolute tooth rotting fluff that was inspired by the Golden music video and the ultra talented @theharriediaries!! Thank you to Soph and Lu (@meetmymouth) for beta reading and giving me some direction when I needed it!! You can find more of my writing in my masterlist and I would LOVE if you could give me some feedback!! My requests are also open in my ask!!

***

“The Italians drink a lot over dinner,” Harry told you in an informative tone, an attempt to order yet another very expensive bottle of red. “Wine is very important in Italian culture,” he tipsily explained across the table, dimples prominent from his cheeky smile. “I learned that in my Italian classes.”

“Oh, did you?” you teased back at him, feeling a bit floaty as you finished your third glass, only for Harry to fill it right back up, emptying the bottle on the table. You laughed and shook your head as you watched him make eye contact with the waiter, motioning for him to bring another bottle over.

“Vino, vino, vino,” he hummed under his breath, playing with the empty glass in front of him that was soon filled up again with the deep red liquid that had stained his pouty lips a deep red and his tongue purple. The two of you sat in the front patio of a small restaurant down the block from your hotel, under a giant and bright moon that made his eyes sparkle even more than usual.

He had a boyish flush to his cheeks, which could have been from the wine or the remnants of a scaldingly hot day in Italy; maybe both. You could still feel the summer heat radiating back up from the pavement below you after it had baked in the sun all day. The oppressive heat still hung in the air, just enough for a light sheen of sweat to be covering you both that seemed to make Harry glow on the dimly lit patio.

You two had found yourself in Italy while Harry had some time off because he insisted he needed to go and practice his Italian. “Devo andare per la mia istruzione,” he told you one day after he got home from his class. “I have to go for my education,” he translated a moment later after being met with a blank look from you. He practiced all day every day. He struck up conversations with locals, spoke with every fan who came to say hi, and attempted to translate menus and order every meal. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t, but he was trying nonetheless.

Harry in Italy was a special version of himself. He was smiley and carefree and always trying to fatten you up or get you drunk. When he was here, he seemed to wholeheartedly become the H you always knew, abandoning the rockstar and becoming the mushy and emotional man that told you he loved you in every sentence and needed to be touching you at all times. His hair had lightened a tiny bit from your days outdoors, his skin had grown tan and taken on a golden tone, a side effect of him constantly ignoring when you told him to put on sunscreen.

You drank and ate and talked until the restaurant was closing down around you, a common occurrence when you two had the opportunity to slow down and just be together for a while, trying to forget that there was anything else going on in the world outside this tiny town. If he hadn’t captivated the wait staff with his broken Italian and charming smile earlier in the night, you were sure you would have been met with eyerolls from those cleaning up around you. Eventually, you two walked hand in hand out of the restaurant and onto the sidewalk along the windy road, both of you full and drunk, and beginning the short walk back to your hotel.

He was smiling so wide his dimpled cheeks must have been hurting, a bright smile encouraged by the alcohol running through his system. His hair flopped over his forehead, curlier than usual because of the sea air and his lips were an even deeper purple than before. His beautiful mouth babbled, every thought in his head flowing past his lips in a slightly slurred mix of italian and english; a verbal expression of excitement and clumsiness.

You couldn’t help but giggle at the sight beside you, your fingers lazily interlocked with his, tugging him back when he moved too close to the street, hoping his wobbly legs wouldn’t trip on the uneven cobblestone sidewalk. You primarily didn’t want him to tear or stain his favorite light blue blazer if he took a tumble. He once told you it was his favorite because he thought the color looked like the sky on the day you had met. You remember blushing and pushing him away from you, telling him he was cheesy with a playful eye roll. “It’s my job to be cheesy!” he had defended himself. “Also, I’m not being cheesy, I’m a man in love.”

You were brought back into reality when he stopped in his tracks and pulled you into his chest, his arms wrapped tightly around your torso. “We should dance,” he beamed, eyes wide like it was the greatest idea he had ever thought of.

“There’s no music, H,” you regrettably informed him while pushing his curls away from his forehead. You couldn’t help but lean in and press a light kiss to his cheek. His skin was warm and slightly sweaty on your lips, a salty taste invading your mouth.

“We don’t need music. All the music is up here,” he winked while tapping his temple. “We're listening to classical.”

“Oh I see, music man,” you joked, unable to contain your giggles.

“Shh,” he attempted to quell your laughter, bringing his pointer finger to your lips. “Can’t hear the music.” A sarcastic seriousness played across his face, prompting another grin to sneak onto your lips. You pressed a kiss to his finger, before giving into his demand and falling quiet.

You could never fight the spell he put you under. You lived in a cloud of Harry, an intoxicating daze that made you unable to focus on the bad of the world when he was around. He had seemed to melt down the walls you had built before you had met, a fact that made him endearingly call you his ‘Ice Queen’ every once in a while. The charm and wit he carried with him wiped away your practicality, always knowing how to convince you to play along with his antics and throw your precious caution to the wind. He was your rose colored glasses. He made your heart jump all day long and unexpected bursts of joy were felt in your chest whenever he smiled, laughed, or said your name. You were enamored by him, an all consuming love you couldn’t escape from.

“What are you thinking about, pet?” he asked softly, breaking through your loving haze. “You have your thinking face on.” A light smile continued to play on his lips but it was softer now, taking on a gentle questioning quality.

“Just thinking about how much I love you,” you confessed.

His eyebrows perked up and so did the corners of his mouth into a delightful smirk. “I mean, who doesn’t?” His smart ass comment earned himself a playful slap to his chest, but your attempt to wiggle out of his arms was thwarted when he pulled you even tighter to him. “That’s no way to treat your dance partner, my love.”

“I want a different dance partner,” you taunted, sticking the tip of your tongue out at him.

One of his hands fell from your shoulders to the small of your waist, the other found one of yours and he began to sway with care side to side. “Too bad, we’re already dancing,” he spoke softly into your ear. You two moved in an easy rhythm to a song only Harry could hear, a more caring and tender tone taking over for your previously playful one.

His cheek pressed to your temple and your bodies pressed loosely to each other. If you tried hard enough, you could hear the man’s soft hum of a melody you couldn’t quite put your finger on. Your feet fell carefully, wary of the uneven pavement in your heels, but you reminded yourself even if you were to fall, the arm looped around your waist would be sure to catch you. Small kisses peppered your forehead and you were released from his grasp for only a second for him to twirl you around, the skirt of your dress splaying out around you before being enveloped in him once again.

“I love you, angel,” he murmured softly when you found yourself resting back against his chest. He had abandoned his joking tone, shifting to a gentler and more serious cadence, pouring his soul into every word that left his lips as they brushed against your forehead. “I am so happy that I get to spend my life with you.”

“I love you so much. This is a happier life than I could have ever imagined for myself,” you spoke after a thoughtful pause. You were still swaying calmly, seeming to move in time with the cool breeze settling over the two of you, but Harry’s humming had been abandoned for a reflective silence.

“What kind of house do you want us to live in one day?” he asked abruptly, choosing to move in a seemingly unrelated direction.

“It has to be big; with enough rooms to fill with lots of cats and dogs, and when the time comes, maybe a baby. And I want a big porch to sit on together and watch the world go by on.” You felt him nod thoughtfully and with a hum of agreement.

“Do you want it to be the only house we ever live in? Or do you want to try out different places to find your favorite?”

“I think I want it to be our one house. I want us to be the crazy old people who have lived in the old rickety house at the end of the block forever; the ones who always have stories to tell and grandchildren constantly coming and going.”

“Can we be the ones who brag about never having a fight?”

“Do you mean the ones who lie?” you asked with a chuckle, looking up to face him. He broke out into a high pitched giggle, your favorite laugh of his. It warmed you to your core knowing that you were the only one who could make him laugh like that.

“Exactly,” he nodded in confirmation, still chuckling to himself.

“We can lie and say we’ve never had a fight as long as we never stop getting wine drunk and slow dancing to no music on random streets while on vacation,” you quipped.

“Sounds like a plan, my love.”

“I know we’ve talked about doing it, but when do you want to get married? I don’t want to inconvenience either of our careers with wedding planning or anything like that. I don’t really care as long as we get to spend our lives together.” The words fell freely from your mouth, the wine still running through your veins blocking the inhibition that probably should have kept the words inside your head.

“Getting married to you wouldn’t be an inconvenience, darling.”

“I know. Wrong words,” you chuckled. “Well, I guess I should have asked when you want to get engaged,” you corrected yourself. “I suppose we have to do that first.”

“Why not now?” he asked, with a mischievous twang in his voice. You felt one of his arms slip from around you and start rummaging in his jacket pocket.

“What?”

“I said,” he began again, “why not now?” His hand emerged from his pocket, presenting you with a tiny red velvet ring box.

Your mind went blank. Your usually rapid and incessant thoughts seemed to stop altogether in a mix of shock and awe. You knew this day, or night, would come eventually. You two had discussed a future together extensively and had agreed you didn’t want to spend your lives with anyone else, but you had never imagined the moment he asked you to be his forever. You had never imagined this moment.

His eyebrows slicked up, lips curled in a devilish smile, and he sank down onto one knee before you. Your hands flew up to your face and the wetness on your fingertips alerted you to the tears that had begun to fall down your cheeks, your heartbeat pounding loud in your ears.

“My dear,” Harry began as he settled onto the sidewalk, balancing carefully on the cobblestone ground. “I have been in love with you since the very first day I met you and that adorable little snort slipped out when you laughed at one of my bad jokes. You have been the first thought I have in the morning and the last thought I have before I fall asleep for longer than you know. You are kind and smart and funny and you light up every room you walk into. I do not want to spend another second of my life without knowing you’ll be by my side for the rest of it. Will you marry me?”

He looked up at you with hopeful eyes and you looked down at him through tearful ones. You began a furious nod, before choking out the only word he wanted to hear. “Yes,” you sobbed, holding out a shaky hand for him to slide the ring onto.

The ring was beautiful; dazzling under the light of the full moon and the dim street lights above you. It slid onto your ring finger with ease, sitting snugly like the ring was made just for you. It was simple, which Harry knew was your style and it held one (large) diamond in a simple silver setting, no bells or whistles needed.

Harry grabbed you by the waist as soon as the ring was secure and picked you up in his arms and spun, twirling you around like the two of you had just slipped out of a rom-com. Delighted giggles fell from both of your lips before he finally stopped, your laughter pausing when your lips found his.

It was a salty kiss, due to the sheen of sweat still sitting on Harry’s skin and the tears that were still streaming down your own, but it just felt so right. He was warm and smiling, lips still tasting of the pinot noir you had shared. Your lips moved together in a perfect harmony like they were meant for each other.

“Thank god you said yes,” Harry breathed when you finally separated. “I’ve been carrying that ring with me everywhere we go for two months now.”

With a playful eye roll, you pulled the curly man to you and connected your lips once again, unable to get enough of him. His intoxicating cologne filled your nostrils and you had never felt more safe or happy. The love you shared felt like when the sun warms your skin under a golden hour sunset; bright yet soft, spectacular yet easy. And you were ready for it to never end.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING! FEEDBACK AND REBLOGS ARE SUPER APPRECIATED!!

#harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fan fic #harry styles x reader #harry styles reader insert #harry styles x y/n #harry styles fluff #harry styles one shot #harry styles imagine #harry styles blurb #harry styles drabble #harry styles fanfic #harry styles #harry fluff #harry fanfic #one direction #one direction fanfic #harry styles fic #my writing

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caramelcal · 3 years

Text

Slow Down

Request(s): Ooooooo could you do a Luke x reader fic based on the song Slow Down by Why Don’t We?

+ Anonymous said:Luke x reader? He’s on tour halfway across the world but all he can think about is spending time with his girlfriend?

Word Count: 2.1k!

a/n: hey! i know that this doesn’t fully cover the second request so if you want something completely based off of that, just request again! Thanks for requesting anyway and I hope you enjoy! Also did you guys see Madi’s lives today??? The cake decorating??? THE COVER?? MY EARS ARE B L E S S E D update: not me forgetting to add tags

Masterlist

Oh, I've been lying to myself and I might know why I miss the way you looked at me before you left New York (hey) I've been tryin' to find help, 'cause I can't deny The way that I feel when I'm with you Oh, I'd do anything to save ya

He could hear the fans screaming in excitement, the overall chatter of them but he couldn’t enjoy it at the moment. How excited they were to see the band. He was filled with nerves, and even though he was born to perform as many would say, he still couldn’t help feeling nervous.

It was no surprise that Julie and the Phantoms had gotten big, their music was amazing. After they played at the Orpheum, they got a lot of recognition and only ten months later they were whisked up on a tour, a new album out only a month ago gone viral. Everyone loved them, and they were finally living their dream.

Luke loved performing, it was second nature to him, but being on tour was very different from playing in the garage with the band like he was used to. So whilst he basked in the glory of the fans, there were still nerves and that’s what he felt right now.

Checking his phone, his foot tapped against the floor at a rapid pace, his guitar sitting to his right. Normally, playing his guitar would comfort him, but it wouldn’t right now, that’s why he needed you.

And thankfully, his worries that you weren’t going to answer as he heard your calming voice through his phone, “Hello?”

“Babe,” Luke replied, breathing out a sigh of relief when he let the nerves out of his body.

“Luke? Aren’t you supposed to be on stage right now?” You started, and he could hear the worry in your voice, “Is everything alright.”

“Yeah, everything’s fine. Just nervous, that’s all. We’re just about to go on,” Luke informed you, eyes staying on the ground as he simply focused on you and not any of the fuss around him. Backstage concerts were always crazy like this, especially just before they started. No doubt someone would be through in a second to pester him about getting ready to go on stage.

“Luke, babe,” You said, your voice calming as you spoke to your boyfriend. You knew he was going to absolutely kiss it out there, he did every single time he performed, “You’re going to be amazing, okay? I’ve never met anyone as talented as you and the rest of the band. I’ll be cheering you on all the way from California.”

That brought a smile onto Luke’s face, making him bend down his face so he was facing the ground. He didn’t like everyone to know just how in love he was with you, and the beaming smile on his face would be a clear indication. It wasn’t like he was very good at hiding it anyway, he constantly talked about you, somehow managing to praise you like you were a god even if you did a simple task. He was completely and utterly in love with you, no one could deny that.

“Thanks, babe, I miss you so much. I will find time to see you at some point,”

“You better, I miss you too. Plus, who else am I supposed to jam with in the car when you aren't here?” You joked, laughing lightly with Luke.

Luke casts his hazel eyes up to the figure in front of him after catching on to the very professional shoes that stood just in front of him, catching eyes onto his manager, “Listen I gotta go, but I’ll call you tonight, okay? I love you.”

“Love you too, my rockstar,” You said teasingly, knowing that it always made Luke flustered when you called him that. It wasn’t long before you guys had finished saying goodbye and his phone was turned off and put away, guitar in hand as he was ushered on stage.

Yet, just before he got on stage, he stopped, whispering, “This is for you, y/n/n. I love you.”

And with that, he ran out, and the fans erupted into screams and cheers.

I think we need a little California 'cation We took a shot at this, but maybe we're too wasted It's hard to swallow, but I know we gotta chase it, oh

Slow down, I think that we just need to slow down, slow down Turn around, things were so simple way before now, 'fore now

Turns out, that even if Luke did want to meet up, that the tour was far too demanding for that. It was two months since the time you called, and you guys still haven’t had the chance to meet up. Hell, you guys barely had time to facetime. Luke was on constant vocal rest, and the times he normally was available, you were in class.

It was safe to say, the distance, and the different time zones were definitely getting to you. Some people were too, saying how people go off on tours and lose feelings if their girl stays back home, they often find flings and extra stuff like that. You knew Luke wasn’t like that, and both Carrie and Flynn have cussed the girls out for putting that in your head when it was obviously not true, but you couldn’t help but think about it sometimes.

Luke barely picked up your calls anymore, and you knew that what he was doing was very time demanding, but you thought that at least he would make a bit of time for you. You guys did text of course, but you often wouldn’t get around to replying to each other until hours after so it wasn’t a stable conversation. You thought about flying out for a weekend, or taking a few days out of school and flying somewhere to meet him, but your college student finances were not stable enough for that and you didn’t want anyone’s help, not even Carrie’s when she offered.

After being deprived of your boyfriend for so long, you often found yourself wallowing alone in your college dorm, but that wasn’t where you were right now. Flynn and Carrie had somehow managed to drag you outside to a party, a red solo cup in your hand and a fancy top on with some nice jeans. You contemplated drinking but found yourself denying any alcohol that went your way, getting drunk probably wasn’t the most responsible way to go.

Yet, as you saw the couples, some sweet ones holding hands or hugging, and some a little more...heated, you couldn’t help but drown in the thoughts of him. This was supposed to be a distraction from your wallowing, but you felt even more miserable here than you did back in your dorm room. You wouldn’t be for long though, not when you found out who was here.

See ya, I wanna see ya, ah I wish you weren't so far so I could see ya, ah 'Cita, mamacita We were comfortable, we didn't understand but now we know

Two weeks before the party, Flynn found herself on her bed, mindlessly scrolling through Instagram before her phone went. She quickly answered, seeing Julie’s face pop up on the small screen with a smile. They talked for a while, just catching up and Julie shared some concert and fan stories before she asked, So how is everyone? Carrie? y/n?”

“Carrie’s doing good, Dirty Candy is slowly getting some recognition for themselves, I see a tour in their future,” Flynn said with a smile, trying to distract Julie from the subject of y/n. She knew that most likely, the boys would be close by, and she did not want to tell them how miserable she was without them. That would only damper their moods.

“That’s so cool! I’m really glad, they deserve it. How’s y/n?” Julie asked, a smile on her face but as she looked at the hesitation on her best friend’s face, she knew something was wrong, “Flynn, is y/n okay?”

However, Flynn quickly found out that her silence was not helping her in any way, and when Julie asked about y/n again, Luke who playing about with his guitar in the corner of the room caught onto her concern. He stood up, alarm flooding his features as he walked over, taking the phone from Julie.

When his face showed up on the video call, Flynn could see his concern and worry and it made her eyes go wide. She knew there was no getting out of this, “What’s up with y/n?”

“Nothing, she’s fine,” Flynn tried her best to dismiss, laughing awkwardly but when she looked back to the camera she could tell that Luke was not buying it.

“Flynn.”

“Really! She’s-”

“Flynn! You do realize this is my girlfriend?” Luke said, raising his voice slightly to get the girl to stop rambling, which she did. Luke was only growing more concerned for his girlfriend and annoyed at the girl for trying to keep something about his girlfriend away from him, “I wanna know what’s going on with her.”

“She’s just,” Flynn hesitates, trying to think of a way to make this easier on Luke without lying to him but she realizes that she needs to be straightforward with the guy. Sighing, she starts, “y/n misses you to the point that she holes herself up in her dorm, and only comes out for food and classes. Hell, she hardly gets out of her pajamas anymore, Luke. She’s taking this a lot harder than she’s telling you.”

Luke went quiet, a frown forming on his face when he realized what his girlfriend was doing. He knew that she couldn’t keep going on like that; he still had another two months left of the tour and she would have wasted months of her life locked in her dorm. He casts a glance towards Julie, before looking back at Flynn, “I’ll sort this out. I’ll send you the details once I work them out but clearly, something needs to change.”

And with that, Flynn hung up and Julie and Luke started to plot a plan...

I think we need a little California 'cation We took a shot at this, but maybe we're too wasted It's hard to swallow, but I know we gotta chase it, oh

Slow down, I think that we just need to slow down, slow down Turn around, things were so simple way before now, 'fore now Slow down, I think that we just need to slow down, slow down (need to slow down, slow down, whoa) Turn around, things were so simple way before now, 'fore now (things were so simple way before now)

“Y/n!” Carrie calls out, grabbing your attention from the red solo cup in your hand. You look up at her, giving her a small weak smile.

“Hey, Carrie,”

“You enjoying the party?” She asks, hands on her hips as she looks around the room with a smile on her face. She had a fitting golden dress on, much fancier than what you were wearing but you didn’t care.

You tried to wrack your brain for what to say, and how not to offend Carrie about her party. Her party wasn’t bad, you just...didn’t want to be there, “Uhh, it’s alright, yeah.”

“Well it’s about to get a lot better,” Carrie says, a wide smile coming on her face as she looked behind you, making you furrow your eyebrows in confusion.

Then, you felt a tap on your shoulder. You whirled around and saw him take a few steps away, a wide smile on his face. You stood there, shocked, this couldn’t be real, he was on tour. He wasn’t here, he couldn’t be.

But then, you sprinted, jumping into his arms, head leaning against his shoulder with your legs around his waist. He held you close to him, savoring the moments of you just being in his arms; something he had not got to experience in months.

Everyone at the party watched on but didn’t say anything, fond smiles on their faces for the reunited young couple. For you and Luke, however, it seemed as if you two were the only ones in the room, because no one else mattered at that moment.

You pulled your head up from his shoulder, eyes meeting his as the wide smiles that were on your faces only growing wider, never fainter. When you next spoke your voice was quiet, almost as if you believed if you spoke too loudly he would go away, you would realize this was just a dream, “Luke, you- you’re here.”

“I am y/n/n,” He whispered back, nodding his head as he leaned in and softly kissed your hips, your hands going to each side of his face, playing with the soft messy hair that he had. With eyes shut, you stayed in each other’s embrace, simply enjoying the moment, “I’ve missed you so much.”

“Don’t leave me for so long ever again, I can’t live my life without you.”

Let's just say, you two were never parted for too long after that.

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