#i love the way this artist draws junior
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i wanna hold the hand inside you | r.itoshi
You think of Itoshi Rin, your first love, often; the one who never was and the one who got away. Unexpectedly, you find yourself reuniting with the boy you once knew right in front of your apartment.
cw: fem!reader, reader has a habit of skin-picking, soft angst w/ happy ending, suggestive, slight hand obsession?
— ✦
You always feel uglier after you pick at your skin. Which defeats the purpose because you do it to rid yourself of an imperfection you've stumbled upon. And yet, after all is said and done and the skin has grown irritated, all you can think about is how you've only gotten uglier.
You used to pick at your face, scratching at any bumps or texture you spot in the mirror, but you've gotten better about it now. You've stopped doing it on your face altogether. It was one too many people who thought they were close enough with you to inadvertently call you ugly. You're pretty sure the first to do it had been Itoshi Sae, your neighbour two houses down. Back then, when you were only eight, you hadn't cared that he thought your habit was unbecoming. It didn't matter what Sae thought — you had Rin.
One day, you realised you didn't really have Rin either.
Since then, you've moved onto your hands.
Your face is the important part, no one ever really looks at hands. You might think about it if you were to give a handshake, but when you think of that person from memory later that day, you'll think of their face. As long as your face is left alone, it doesn't matter what happens to the skin around your nails.
But you like looking at hands. They reveal so much about someone. Whether or not they clean their nails, if they paint them, if their hands are soft or calloused — all of these things are like clues that fit together to form the bigger picture of their life. Your own hands must give away the parts of you that you would prefer to stay hidden — like the fact that you pick at your skin. Itoshi Rin has beautiful hands. His hands were pretty enough that you were glad he played a sport that relied on his legs and feet instead. You never told him that you thought so; he probably would have called you strange should he have found out.
He never seemed to value you in the same way you valued him.
You pull at your skin again, pushing it down with the edge of your nail just until you feel the sharp sting of it having gone too far. It's boring at your job, nothing much to do or see. You sit on an ergonomic moving chair behind a large wooden desk, adjusting calendars and making appointments. There isn't much mystique to your job, nothing to write home about, but it gets you through life just fine. Glancing over at the time, you decide to click through and answer a few more emails in time for lunch to roll around.
In junior high, you had wanted to be an artist. You joined the art club and begged your family to let you participate in painting and sketching classes. You kept sketchbook after sketchbook filled with doodles and things — mostly of hands. It's been a long running obsession of yours. You used to draw faces but ever since you stopped messing with your face, your drawings of them phased out too.
In senior high, a teacher told you that artists don't make money from drawing hands all day. It irked you enough that you let go of that dream. You wanted to become a nail technician, you decided. The day you changed your dream, you went to tell the only person you considered close enough to tell; you went to tell Rin. It was that day that you had to come to the startling realisation that your best friend didn't seem to consider you much of a friend anymore. You spent all of your lunch break looking for him, only to find him practising at the field behind your school. When you called out to him, he ignored you. He stopped answering your texts too. You discarded the sliver of hope you had kept safe within your chest — the very thing that made you believe you would get Rin back soon. Something had changed in him and you didn't know what because he never told you.
(Because he never seemed to value you in the same way you valued him.)
You found other friends. Rin always seemed to be alone. He pulled out of school for a football program a week later, and you decided to give up on becoming a nail technician.
There's a soft beep that rings out from your phone — just one singular chime at the lowest volume you set on your first day on the job — when it's time for your lunch break. You always take it at the same tonkatsu shop seven minutes away from your place of work.
Today, it takes you ten minutes to get there because the heels you've chosen to wear are new ones; you haven't broken them in yet. You bought them for a date that you never ended up going to. Guilt over standing them up had consumed you but you just couldn't muster up the courage to go. You were all too aware of the fact that some pathetic part of you was still clinging onto a boy you haven't seen for a long time.
You remember the brush of the wind through his fringe, the sharp determined glint in his emerald eyes. You still hold onto the way his name once had a home at the tip of your tongue. Even as the years pass, Itoshi Rin digs his teeth into your skin and remains with you; parasitic and tormenting.
You ease yourself into the table in the corner and make your order, scrolling through your phone while you wait. Your feed is full of recent news, some things you understand and others you're not quite sure you get. Rin is there too, mixed in between all the posts about celebrities and new dramas. You were always bad at watching football. You were bad with most sports, they could never keep your interest for long, but you tried for Rin's sake. When the both of you were younger, you'd sit on the grass at the park and watch Rin run through the drills he'd seen his brother do earlier.
As you stare at the pictures of him standing on the pitch, stadium lights spilling down on him, you can't help but feel proud. Sweat glistens along his hairline, his hair still cut in the same way he used to have it when you knew him. The captain's armband is stretched tight around his bicep as his arm curls to hold up a trophy.
The swell in your chest comes with an ache you've never learned to get rid of. This ache that's ever-present, always there like a guest you can't seem to send home. It had only been a small sting when your friendship with Rin fully fell apart, but it grew tenfold when you realised you were in love with him. You pick at your skin again, the same place from earlier. Pain blooms at your fingertip but you choose to ignore it as you scroll past the pictures; your heart squeezes and shudders against your will, even after all these years.
The day inches past, sweat gathers along the nape of your neck. You leave the building at five precisely, stagger into the subway station at half past five, and sink into a navy blue seat at a quarter to six. The backs of your brand new heels dig into your ankles and you're certain there will be blisters when you yank them off at home.
Even still, your day has been a good one. Despite the fact that your mother had called and urged you to visit home; despite today marking the anniversary you first met Itoshi Rin; despite the way your heart always sinks at the realisation that you still remember the significance of what should be another meaningless day. Despite it all, it had been good and you stare at the passerby walking along the platform, head pressed against the cool window.
(You wonder about Rin once more, like you always do. You wonder if he's walking amongst a crowd this evening, perhaps something fried in his hand, keeping his palm warm. Maybe he's holding a drink instead — lukewarm green tea. In another world, it might have been your hand.)
The train shakes to a start, rocking you from side to side and it becomes impossible to keep yourself awake. You drift off to the memory of a boy you once knew.
-
You're sure you're bleeding.
The skin around your index nail is irritated, throbbing with a dull pain. Similarly, there's a sting — a quick flash of something white hot up your left calf — whenever you take a step. Your blister must have turned into a cut.
Your soles scrape against the road, shoulders loose and hunched forward as you meander your way home. The sun has set, disappearing into the skyline in the distance as the sky grows darker and the wind picks up. Streetlights have flickered to life and you pass by a salon still packed with customers, women resting against soft cushions as they converse. You roll your neck from side to side, attempting to release some of the tension that has gathered along your muscles from staying seated almost all day, fingers loosely wrapped around the straps of your bag.
Eyes trained on the fading white marks beneath your feet, you turn the corner into the alleyway you apartment building sits in. There's a crunch of someone taking a step towards you, and then — the call of your name, familiar, wrapped up in the gravelly tone of a voice too rough to belong to the boy you once knew. But you know it's him, anyway.
"Rin?" you tilt your head to the side, scanning over his features as he stands against the sunlight, soft shadows marking his pale skin. He remains silent, almost stunned as he stands across from you, so you speak again, "It's been a while."
He doesn’t smile, but the corners of his mouth twitch in a way that suggests one. Rin is wearing a dark windbreaker, hands stuffed into its pockets. There's a loose thread hanging off the cuff around his wrist, a tiny rip of the outer fabric revealing the slight grey beneath. He clears his throat, "Yes, it has been." There's a pause then, neither of you willing to bridge the gap in conversation as the exhaust fans whir quietly.
"How have you been?" Rin asks, taking a step towards you. You can smell him now, flowery and sweet; its lavender, which is what you had remembered him as. In a way, it comforts you — some things will stay the same and stand the test of time, no matter how many years have inched by.
“I’ve been good,” you hum. Truthfully, you haven’t quite been good in a long time. You’ve been alright, you’ve made it from day to day, you pay your bills on time and you see your friends every other weekend; but it’s not good — it's just alright. You don’t think Rin needs to hear that, not after how long it has been since you last heard his voice following after your own.
It's strange to think about how his mother knows your name and your face, knows that you like lemonade with some raspberry in it; how Rin was there to witness the way you got every fading scar on your arms and legs. Standing before him now, you don't even know what his apartment might look like. Your lives, which were once so intricately intertwined, have unravelled and diverged to the point of obscurity.
You've given him the room to say something, continue the conversation or choose to end it, but Rin is quiet as he takes you in. His brows are furrowed, just a shaky line above his dark eyes as watches you fidget and begin to grow uncomfortable under the weight of stare.
This silence is far too heavy of a burden for you to shoulder, so you cut through with a question that seems a bit out of place now. "What are you doing here?"
Your voice seems to snap him out of whatever trance he was previously in, "I was out on a walk — wandering around, I guess." Rin shuffles even closer and the wind billows, rustling the fabric of his windbreaker. You watch his hair flutter and fall against his forehead.
"I would have thought that you'd be busy all the time, seeing as you're a celebrity now," you say with a soft laugh, twisting the ends of your coat between your fingers while your bag swings gently from side to side in your other hand.
He doesn't seem to like that, gaze sharpening just a bit as his mouth curves into a frown. You chew on your bottom lip, feeling a bottomless pit open up inside of your stomach at the realisation that it's become so much harder to talk to the boy who used to be your best friend. (To talk to the boy who you used to love — who you are willing to love once again.)
It's getting colder as the remaining tendrils of sun slowly disappear, hiding away to make room for the moon to shine. You nod at your apartment, "Would you...like to come inside?" You expect him to say no, after all, the two of you are no longer the people you remember each other to be.
Surprisingly, Rin perks up at your question, firmly nodding once. He follows after you as you walk over to your front door, fishing around the front pocket of your bag for your keys. Rin stands a hair's width away from you, his warm breath fanning over the back of your neck and goosebumps ripple down your arms.
You watch him study your home, scrutinising your choice of decor — the small pictures framed on the walls, magazines and books strewn about — as he takes off his shoes. He seems to be drawn to the picture resting on one of your shelves: it's of you and him, years ago, standing next to each other with smiles full of missing teeth that look more like grimaces. You were hoping he wouldn't notice that one, one of the only pictures you've kept of and from your childhood, but you can't blame him for it either. Had it been you, that picture would have been the first one you noticed too.
"You kept this?" he's nearly whispering as he gently takes the ageing framed photo in his hands.
You rest your bag on the floor, "Yeah. Mom gave it to me right before I moved out." He turns back to look at you and his next words are unspoken, but still so loud.
You hadn't just kept it — you framed it, placed it in your living room for everyone to see. His expression crumbles momentarily, a quiet admission of guilt that settles in the short distance between you. Rin must not have kept much of you with him. He never says it outright, but you know better. Maybe that should leave you feeling bitter but it's somehow exactly what you expected of him.
Has Itoshi Rin changed at all from the last time you saw him? Do you just know him too well?
Dusting off your clothes, you take a deep breath, "It's getting late. Want dinner?"
Rin agrees. Like you were expecting him to.
-
You've never liked beer.
But you find yourself peering into a glass full of it as Rin settles in across from you. You're still in your work attire, the waistband of your skirt digging into your stomach after your full meal. Rin's left his windbreaker in a crumpled heap of fabric beside his chair, the tip of his finger drawing lines in the condensation forming on his glass. His nails are well-groomed, cut short and clean. They might be better than yours, but that’s because Rin doesn’t pick at his skin like you do. You stare until you think you shouldn’t anymore.
He hasn't gotten up to leave. You haven't kicked him out.
Resting your cheek against your fist, you push yourself forward, closer to him. Your slight movement draws his attention away from the glass, Rin looks up at you as his frown eases up.
"It's strange seeing you," you admit, more open to honesty thanks to your slight state of inebriation. "Strange seeing you after so many years."
"You have that picture," he scoffs, jerking his head in the vague direction of the picture of the two of you as kids.
Scrunching up your nose, you lean back against the chair, "Yeah, but you don't look like that anymore. You're taller and you have too many teeth." You take a sip of your beer, feeling it fizz against your top lip, "And you're probably meaner now."
He startles, looks offended when he throws back whatever's left in his glass. "I'm not mean."
You raise a brow, "You were already pretty mean when you left me." You shock yourself at how easily the words slipped past your lips, how little hesitation there was. How you still sounded so hurt over it all despite having spent years convincing yourself that you didn't miss him. The treacherous muscle beating within your ribcage twists and shakes. It only takes a moment for understanding to soften the glare Rin is giving you. Reaching over, you grab the can of beer to refill his glass, cursing under your breath when you realise it's empty. "I'll get some more — just wait."
You dig around in your refrigerator and you can feel Rin watching. "You're bleeding," he says.
"It's nothing," you wave him off, returning with another cold can.
He shakes his head, "Do you have bandages?"
And so you find yourself with your chest pressed against the cushions of your couch, ankles hanging off the edge. You spare Rin a glance over your shoulder, awkwardness leaving you silent and rigid. He's kneeling beside you, holding two bandages he insisted he get for you from the years old first aid kit stashed away in your medicine cabinet.
"You don't have to do this you know," you mumble, pinching at the inside of your cheek with your teeth. "I could have done it myself."
Rin gently grabs your ankle, his fingers are cold enough to make you jolt. "It's fine," he brushes off your words with nothing more than a grumble. "This could get infected," he adds on as he places the band-aid over the cut.
His hands are on you, fingers wrapped around your ankle almost completely. He skims them over your skin and you suppress a shiver. You think you should tell him that his hands are pretty — that they have always been pretty — but you bite your tongue.
Your cuts don't hurt as much as they had earlier, and the blood surrounding them has dried down. You're sure nothing would have come of it being left uncovered, but Rin seems adamant on doing this simple task for you. You wonder if part of it has anything to do with being labelled as "mean."
He shuffles over to your other ankle, jeans brushing against your rug, as does the same thing. It's been too long since you've been taken care of like this — the feeling has become wholly foreign and you struggle to sit still while Rin smooths out the band-aid over your skin. When he stands up, you twist around and slouch your back against the couch, facing him.
Rin looms over you. He brushes some hair out of his eyes and sits down next to you. "I'm on a break — I'll be around a lot more."
You glance at him from the corner of your eye, "Around to see me?"
And perhaps, you're imagining it, the way he moves closer so that his thigh is pushed up against it. Perhaps, you're imagining how he's leaned into you. Rin's temple makes contact with your shoulder and you exhale.
"Yes," he whispers, looking up at you through his lashes." To see you." You can recognise the guilt swimming in his gaze, leftover from earlier in the evening.
You wish he would just say it — say sorry — but your heart yearns for him regardless of what he's said and what he should have said. It's ridiculous; it was years ago and you should have moved on. (And you know that the only reason it hurt as badly as it did was the fact that you had loved him twice as much when things soured.) You're motivated by the ache you've grown accustomed to when you bring your hand to his hair, digging your fingers in, scratching at his scalp. Much like a cat, Rin goes limp against you and you trace the side of his face with the pad of your thumb.
You try to hide your other hand, feeling somewhat self-conscious about the way you’ve torn it up. Rin reaches for it without a second thought, lacing his fingers together with your own, oblivious to all the rough parts you’ve left behind with your habit.
"What if I don't want to see you?" you question. You don't really mean it — you hope he knows.
You can feel his breath, feel the rise and fall of his chest as he speaks, "I would wait until you said you wanted to."
"Even if that took years?" You pause your movements, hand still in his hair. Rin draws a gasp out from you when he presses a fluttering kiss against your wrist — a nervous kiss, one that tests the waters.
"Even then," he says.
You don't know who leans in first, you want to say it's Rin but you, with your years of yearning, are not to be trusted either. His cold palms cup your face, lips parting against your own, his tongue meeting yours. He kisses you hungrily, eagerly, desperate to make up for years of lost time and memories that were meant to be shared by two but left to be held by just one instead. It almost hurts — when his teeth sink into your lip and you whimper, Rin snaps his eyes open. He licks over where he bit, fingers digging into your cheeks.
You like the feeling of his hands on you. You want them everywhere, you decide. Rin tugs at your collar, unbuttons your shirt quickly, his hands splayed out over your sides and just grazing your bra. It's only then that you pull away, chest heaving as you stare up at him.
"Will you discard me again?" Your voice sounds almost meek in a way; you're afraid of what he might say and of what you might see. Too scared to see him hesitate, too scared to meet his eyes and not see yourself reflected in them.
But Rin's answer is instantaneous. His gaze has darkened some, lust-blown and riddled with the yearning that's been growing in your chest for years. His palm encircles your wrist, the other wraps around your waist chasing purchase. "Never," he says with a kind of conviction that leaves butterflies erupting at your fingertips.
While his hand travels up your back, he kisses you again and this time it feels different. He moves up your wrist, intertwining your fingers once more. You know you have him in all the ways that he has you.
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Interview with Mad Rupert, author of Sakana
September 2023
Sakana, the story of life and love in a fish market, is coming back from its hiatus soon! The strip comic style webcomic began in 2010 and follows Jiro, Taisei, Yuudai, and Chie as they navigate their relationships and learn to face their feelings. We asked creator Mad Rupert, author of Robber Robert and artist of Bunt!, for an interview to celebrate the series return.
Read Sakana | Shop books & merch | Read more Hiveworks comics
Sakana has been your baby for 13 years. What has the webcomic journey been like for you over the past decade?
It really has been over a decade, hasn’t it! There have certainly been ups and downs, periods where I was updating as much as I could, and also long hiatuses. I feel like webcomics have always been an amazing space to practice my craft and stretch my writing and drawing skills alike.
You can kind of do anything you like with webcomics, and oftentimes people come up with wackier, and imho more interesting concepts than if they were beholden to a large publisher. Not that I haven’t made my fair share of traditionally-published comics and graphic novels… but there’s just something so gratifying about coming up with your own wild story and working towards its end on your own time. Webcomics are incredibly tough and time consuming, but also the ultimate form of self expression.
What is the origin of Sakana? What made you want to tell this story?
Sakana actually started as a class project when I was a junior at the Savannah College of Art and Design. I had been accepted into the Sequential Art department’s yearly Japan trip to study comics and cartooning in Tokyo for a few weeks, and our final project was to create 11 comic strips based off of something that made a strong impact on us during the trip.
We had visited the old inner market (now demolished) of the Tsukiji Fish Market at 4am one morning, and it was the most incredible place I’d ever been, so I decided to craft a short story that took place in the market. Beyond the first 11 strips, I decided to continue the story for as long as I could as a way to practice the comic techniques I was learning in class.
That was over a decade and 600 strips ago! It really has become the most ambitious project I’ve ever undertaken.
Do you have the ending already written? Do you see a conclusion in sight?
Yes! I’ve always had something at least resembling an end in mind throughout most of the comic’s lifespan. For a long-format comic like SAKANA, I think it’s very important to have a rough ending planned out as early as possible, otherwise it becomes difficult to keep the narrative moving in a satisfying direction, drop little tidbits of plot that will pay off later, or even maintain your enthusiasm for the project.
To be clear, the details of Sakana's “end” have changed many times, which is only natural with a very long project like this. But I’ve always kept crucial details the same: basically certain characters in a certain place at a certain time doing certain things (to keep from getting too spoilery haha.) HOW they get there, WHY they’re there, and WHAT exactly they’re doing will ebb and flow as the years go by and I myself get older and older. But having a general sense of the end in mind has kept things moving all this time. The story’s got one more volume to go, and then I’ll be done!
Your hiatus is a result of working on a traditionally published graphic novel, coming in 2024. Is there anything you can tell us about your book?
My new graphic novel is called Bunt! and it’s a collaborative effort between myself and my dear pal, Ngozi Ukazu (author of popular webcomic Check, Please!) Ngozi wrote the book and I drew it, and we’re both really proud of what we’ve made! It’s already available for preorder all over the place and it will officially be out in stores in February 2024. We’re really looking forward to getting out there this fall and winter and spreading the word about it!
You recently successfully completed a Kickstarter for an 18+ comic, Robber Robert, as well. What is it like balancing these different narratives, genres, and mediums of publishing comics?
It’s definitely been a struggle at times to balance everything, and I definitely don’t recommend working on 3 giant projects at the same time! I finally had to admit that I couldn’t do it all at once, which led to me putting Sakana and RR on hiatus to finish Bunt!, and then keeping Sakana on hiatus while I finished up RR.
I really burned myself out on comics for a while, and it’s been a huge struggle to get myself back to a good place with my work. Finishing Bunt! and RR Chapter 1 has really helped reenergize me, but I can always feel myself trying to overload my work schedule again and again. It’s my greatest weakness as a professional artist.
What keeps you inspired?
Making something for myself, practicing my craft, and putting my own stories out there are all huge driving forces in my life. Learning to stop overwhelming myself with work has also helped a lot. Looking back on all the art I’ve made and all the different things I’ve tried makes me feel like I can do anything I put my mind to, so long as I give myself the time and space to enjoy the process.
Do you have any webcomic or graphic novel recommendations?
I’m a big fan of anything fantasy or sci-fi, especially if the narrative approaches the fantastical elements in a weird, unique, and kind of gay way haha. My favorite manga is currently Delicious in Dungeon, but I’m also a fan of historical series like Golden Kamuy and Bride’s Story. For webcomics, I love anything by Evan Dahm, like his long-format series Rice Boy and Vattu.
As for Hiveworks comics, there’s too many to list individually but my current favorites are Fairmeadow by KP, and Tiger, Tiger by Petra Nordlund.
Any advice for new readers of Sakana?
I would say…despite its high page count, it’s not that long of a read! The strip format keeps it moving at a pretty quick clip when read all at once (but it certainly didn’t feel like that over the last 13 years updating one page at a time!) I know that the format and the black and white rendering might feel a little dated in the current era of Webtoons and full-color stories, but I’m too stubborn to change now, and I really appreciate anybody giving it a shot!
Also, no matter who you are, or how much you dislike him in the beginning, Yuudai will probably be your favorite character.
You can read Sakana for free at sakana-comic.com and print books are available at hivemill.com
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You know what makes me pissed?
Don't get me wrong I love Cedric in any artstyle but let's be real
The first one tastes like Disney, looks like it was made by the same people that worked on vintage Disney movies
The fact that he DOES looks like the finished version, but more Disney-like. Please don't get me wrong, I don't want to belittle the artists who made the illustrations for the books in any way, I love them, but it would have been great if Disney had stabilized an artstyle for the 2D arts of Sofia The First, and Cedric was like that. It's not those artists' fault because they did an amazing job, I just think it would be even better If Disney cared more about this (they dgaf about Disney Junior shows let's be real they are just focused on the movies)
It almost phisically hurts me
Oh what a dream it would be to have all of Cedric's merchandise art in that art style, it would be so wonderful he's so ✨️ yk
He's not Cedric he's ✨️𝓒𝓮𝓭𝓻𝓲𝓬✨️
If at least I had better artistic skills to study his design and had the hability to draw him making other expressions 💥💥💥
Please people who worked on the show please please please share more images of Cedric beta version I beg on my knees if it's necessary
#and he kinda#but more#cedric the sensational#cedric the sorcerer#cedric the great#sofia the first#sofia the fandom
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SET FIFTEEN - ROUND ONE - MATCH THREE
Excerpt from illustrated edition of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1972 - Errol Le Cain) / "La Mort de Marat (The Death of Marat)" (1793 - Jacques-Louis David)
EXCERPT FROM ILLUSTRATED EDITION OF THE RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER: This image is representative of all of part 4 of the poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and is a part of a larger illustrated edition. However, I absolutely adore this piece on its own. Yes, it has the elements from the poem, but it adds so much mysticism to that section. I love the colors, the darkness and the blue with the splashes of color, and the albatross standing out, almost separate from the piece, in its blocky triangle with the red blood-like strings moving to the woman. I love how the ring of circles look like the phases of the moon, and gives me a sense of time passing, even with how immediate (i guess?) the albatross and the woman's interaction feels. Also, the ship becomes a ship of the dead, with the rotted sails and the hull of the dead crew. And then back at the center of it all is the Albatross. It also is just very 70s to me, and feels a little nostalgic, like an old fantasy novel cover or something. Its great on its own, and as an illustration of a poem, it picks up on the literal and the metaphors and themes of the epic. It just delights me. I would definitely recommend the poem, its a great epic about a stranded sailor and his doomed ship.
Something I just realized, writing this, is that there is no narrator visible, which I love. The poem is in first person, and I think that translates to this image. Obviously the reader is not the mariner, but there is a closeness that occurs with that tense. Same with this, the viewer is not on the ship, but outside of it, but we are viewing the scene from almost "over" the albatross, making that our focal point, and the albatross is what draws us into the rest of the scene. I love it.
(Sorry for the weird crop, I was trying to even out the curl from the page.)
Also, here are a few stanzas from part IV, (easily placed to be deleteable lol), for fun.
Alone, alone, all, all alone, / Alone on a wide wide sea! / And never a saint took pity on / My soul in agony.
The many men, so beautiful! / And they all dead did lie: / And a thousand thousand slimy things / Lived on; and so did I.
I looked upon the rotting sea, / And drew my eyes away; / I looked upon the rotting deck, / And there the dead men lay. ...
Beyond the shadow of the ship, / I watched the water-snakes: / They moved in tracks of shining white, / And when they reared, the elfish light / Fell off in hoary flakes.
And I blessed them unaware. / The self-same moment I could pray; / And from my neck so free / The Albatross fell off, and sank / Like lead into the sea. (@travelingsmithy)
LA MORT DE MARAT (THE DEATH OF MARAT): The first time I saw it was in a history textbook in junior high and when the teacher wasn't looking I tore the page out and used it as a bookmark in my diary for years. It looks the way pipe organ music feels. I want to fold it up and put it in my chest. (@ambientcrows)
(This is an illustration from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner book by Samuel Taylor Coleridge published in 1972 by The Arcadia Press, London. The illustration was done by Errol Le Cain. Only 100 copies of the book were printed.
"La Mort de Marat (The Death of Marat)" is an oil on canvas painting by Jacques-Louis David. It measures 162 cm × 128 cm (64 in × 50 in) and is held by the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. A replica, done by the artist's studio, is also on display at the Louvre.)
#art that fucks you up tournament#polls#atfyu polls#id in alt text#cw blood#quite possibly the only set of images that are not cropped whatsoever
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A letter to Akira Toriyama
Dear Akira Toriyama,
I first interacted with dragonball when I was in 6th grade or so, when I started playing dragon ball fusions for the 3ds since the trailer looked cool. Kind of a weird start right? But I was getting really into anime at the time, and wanted to check out one of the most popular ones. I had NO idea who the characters were, and had NO clue what the story was about. But for some reason against all the odds, as soon as I saw the title screen boot up with that soaring music I was hooked. The game was super fun, no doubt about it. But what REALLY kept me going when playing it, was the world of dragon ball itself.
Again I had no clue who any of these people were. But seeing these characters interact with each other, seeing these different setpieces made, seeing all of these powers and personalities, it was unlike anything I’d ever experienced before. It channeled the raw kid desire in me to see two buff dudes duking it out, and god I adored every bit of it.
I didn't dig any deeper than that initially, and like all my other hyperfixations it died down. But again in 7th grade I started playing fighterz, and I was hooked again. But this time I dug deeper in preparation for the release of the new GT dlc, and so the first dragon ball media I actually watched? Was GT. Which is hilarious in hindsight, but I still adored every second of it.
In 8th grade things were not going so well for me, I was losing friends due to being an asshole, and I had to change myself to be worthy of the people around me. I was pretty depressed, and everything seemed sad and hopeless (I know it's pretty dramatic for a literal like 13 year old but bear with me lmao). It's around that time when I decided to watch Dragon Ball Super. And again, I was hooked. I binged it so fast, all 130 something episodes. I could talk big about the characters and everything, but honestly it was just so plain cool. It made me feel excited and happy, it made me feel like everything was ok. And those positive feelings made that much of a difference in me.
From that point on I always was interested in Dragon Ball. my first and only hyperfixation to never really go away. I read the OG dragonball, and started REALLY noticing your artistic talent. From the way you drew Goku moving across the battlefield and the poses he struck. To the illustrations of the action and the punches thrown. It was all so dynamic and energetic. When I was reading it I was always engaged, excited to see the next panel. I wanted to channel the same energy in my own art somehow, to encapsulate the same excitement you instilled in me with your drawings.
I FINALLY got around to watching and reading Z a little later. And of course I loved it. I knew all the basic plot beats, and had a 3 in one Goku vs Vegeta volume collection that I would reread constantly. But seeing them play it is so different. I also started to admire your character design more and more. Trying to draw them in my free time, and getting a bit sad when I couldn't capture the same magic you could.
All of this, of course, was older material though. This was all before my time, I was never there to experience it when it initially happened. Not for super, not for the OG DB, and not for Z. I adored it all, but I always knew what was going to happen.
I remember the reaction on my face when the news of DBS Superhero dropped. I was so so SO excited. More than you could ever imagine. Something new, something I could see with my own eyes, and something about Piccolo and Gohan??? It was amazing. And seeing it in theaters a few years later? God I was on the edge of my seat the entire film. I even started reading the DBS manga, I think it's amazing so far.
When I heard that you were gone yesterday night, I was crushed.
I’m a junior now. And after a long time of thinking about it, being anxious, afraid, and scared of the future. I think I want to be an artist or filmmaker. I want to bring the same energy you did to the world. I'm still trying to figure out my artstyle, and how I want to draw. I’m not great at it, but no matter what, I want to keep going. Because I want to bring a character to life, like you brought Son Goku to life and so many others as well. I want to inspire so many others like you inspired me. With your messages, you brought me happiness. You told me that simplicity was ok with Son Goku. You told me that we need to fight for what we love with Son Gohan. You told me that we should aim to be better than our predecessors with Piccolo Junior. You told me that we shouldn't let our pride consume us with Vegeta. You’ve shown me and the entire world so so much. And I hope you were proud of it. I’m
I said the world of Dragon Ball earlier, but really, it was your world Akira Toriyama. And your world changed mine forever in the best way. Thank you, for letting me dream again.
#dragon ball#dragon ball z#dragon ball daima#dbz#dbz goku#dragon ball super#akira toriyama#dbs#dragon ball gt
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Love, Lust & Litigation | Ch2 (JJK, KNJ)
Pairing: Jungkook x Fem Reader x Namjoon
Genre: lawyer!AU, coworkers to lovers, slow burn, eventual smut
Rating: M (18+) whole fic, this chapter PG-13 (I guess)
Warnings: some swearing in this chapter, nothing explicit
Word Count: 3.8k
Summary: Unfortunately, you have developed a massive crush on your new boss. Even more unfortunately, your equally attractive coworker is also harboring massive crush on your boss. AKA Jungkook and reader both pine for big, sexy brain Namjoon.
A/N: Aaand here she is! Chapter 2! It took me a while to finalize this draft, mostly because I was on a trip with my bff, but also because I was, well, procrastinating. I don't do well without a deadline, so I'm going to try to post a chapter every week on Saturday until the fic is done! Look out for Chapter 3 in a week :)
mlist | ch 1 | ch 2 | ch3 | ch 4 | ch 5 | interlude | ch 6
Your newest client sits across a large conference room table from you, Namjoon, and Jungkook, flanked by two impossibly large bodyguards holding equally tiny dogs. She’s one of the most popular singer-songwriters of the moment.
An indie artist filed a lawsuit claiming that your client copied lyrics verbatim and stole the melody from a song of his after attending an intimate showcase. To your ears, the songs sound vaguely similar, but you’re no music expert.
In the press though, the indie artist has spun it as a David and Goliath story. The court of public opinion is firmly on his side already.
“It’s a bullshit case,” says your client, rolling her eyes. “There’s only so many ways you can string the words ‘I,’ ‘love,’ ‘you,’ ‘so,’ and ‘much’ together in a song. And everyone knows that all modern pop songs have the same four chord progressions anyway.”
Namjoon nods, taking notes on his legal pad. “We’ll take the case, but there’s no guarantee the judge is going to rule in our favor. These plagiarism cases can be very unpredictable.”
“Right, but you guys are the best right?” She takes one of the fluffy dogs into her lap and starts petting it. The dog makes direct eye contact with you as it starts to pant.
Namjoon lets out a little laugh. “We are, but we’re not miracle workers. We can’t guarantee a win even in the simplest case. But we do guarantee our best with some of the best lawyers in the field.”
He caps this off with a little smile, one that makes his eyes look kind and his dimples pop.
The songwriter melts a little and she honest-to-god starts twirling her hair around her finger.
“Well, if it looks like we’re not going to win the case, I’m not above settling with this guy.”
You look over at Jungkook in confusion. She was adamant that she wouldn’t settle at the top of the meeting. He mouths back, The Namjoon Effect.
Ah. Yes. You can relate.
“Understood.” Namjoon gives her another smile as he closes his legal pad. “And unless there’s anything else you would like for us to take into consideration…?”
“I think that’s it.”
She gives him a coy smile as he gestures her out of the conference room. "Thank you so much for your time."
Namjoon turns to you and Jungkook once she's gone down the hallway.
“Right. What’s our angle?”
You and Jungkook look at each other in surprise. High profile cases usually go to Namjoon and you assumed this one would too.
You only ever play the “What’s our angle?” game when the case will go to one of the junior associates. The game is simple. Whoever has the best pitch gets the case. It's a brilliant move on Namjoon's part, really. It taps into you and Jungkook's natural competition and it makes you think out of the box to win cases. You’re keeping an informal tally in the back of your planner and so far, it’s an even split.
This time, Jungkook beats you to the draw. “We still have contacts in the music industry who can be expert witnesses. With these two songs, it’ll come down to the specific instrumentation, composition, and lyrical flow.”
You can feel the case slipping through your fingers — you haven’t been at Bang & Associates long enough to have a long list of contacts yet and Jungkook minored in music composition in college. He has all the advantage here and he knows it. He smiles, like he’s already gotten lead on the case.
You shake your head anyway and speak up.
“That’s an important component to the case, definitely, but it’s not the determining factor. There’s been an increase in these types of cases, with two high-profile cases in just the last six moths and countless others that flew under the radar, and the trend I’ve seen is that the outcome depends on precedent and how IP laws fit around the specific musical particularities.”
Jungkook clenches his jaw, his tongue playing with his lip ring. Both of you wait while Namjoon deliberates. It’s all part of the game, one that Namjoon takes seriously. He considers every facet and it takes him unbearable minutes to make a decision. You've learned to not second-guess your pitches and to be comfortable in the silence.
This time, though, you don’t have long to wait. He nods and points at you. “Good thinking. You’re taking lead on this case. Jungkook, I want you on support. Normally, I’d take this case, but I have the class-action suit on my plate, and I can’t spare Jimin or Hoseok. Bring me your complete plan by COB tomorrow. Send me a calendar invite for a time that works for both of you.”
You want to grin and do a little victory dance, but you nod instead, in a way that you hope looks level-headed.
“Will do. Thanks, boss.”
Namjoon's eyebrow twitches at the title and he gives you a look you can't fully parse. He leaves the conference room with a strange two finger salute.
Jungkook gives you a disgruntled look as soon as Namjoon is out of sight. You give him a smug grin in return. This is the second case in a row you've won, and you can officially tally yourself ahead by one.
“Congrats, I guess,” he says as he goes to leave.
You reach out a hand to stop him, your fingers brushing his sleeve. He looks down at your hand like it offends him and all his ancestors before him. He's sulking again.
“Do you have any meetings now?” It's impossible to deal with him when he's like this, but you have a quick turnaround on this case, so it leaves you no choice.
“Nothing on the schedule,” he says.
“Let’s meet now, then. Come to my office.”
He follows you and sits in one your guest chairs, slumping down, spreading his legs long and wide. One of his legs bounces up and down. He doesn’t meet your eyes.
You lean back against your desk instead of sitting behind it.
“Given you’re the music expert here, what’s your opinion on the songs? Do you think we have a good chance of winning? Just based on the songs themselves.”
He shrugs. “Right now, it’s a toss-up. I’ll have to take a closer listen to really be able to say. But I have a couple of friends in the music industry who we’ve used before as expert witnesses. They’ll break it down to the nitty gritty.”
“Great, get me those names and the specifics of how they can help with the case by the end of the day. Contact them if you can to see if they're willing to be our witnesses. I’ll take a closer look at the caselaw and the suit itself and get the memo for Namjoon together tomorrow morning. Unless you can think of something from the precedent perspective?”
“Seems like you’ve got that part covered.” His tongue pokes out into his cheek, still not looking at you.
“Okay, then. I think that’s it. Maybe we can chat tomorrow before lunch to make sure we have all the bases covered.”
He doesn’t respond, just gives you the barest of nods and gets up to head towards the door.
“Jeon.”
He turns in your doorway to look back at you. You’re still leaning against your desk, arms crossed. He takes you in, his eyes trailing from your heels all the way up to meet your eyes. Your breath hitches as his expression shifts to something darker. Hungrier.
“Should I let you win next time so I don’t have to deal with you acting like a whiny little baby?”
He huffs out a little laugh and rolls his eyes. The look from a second ago is gone.
“If you did, I’d call Area 51 to make sure there was no extraterrestrial activity in the area because you’d for sure be an alien in disguise.”
He leaves, the sound of his soft chuckle trailing behind him. It takes a second for your breath to return to normal.
You and Jungkook go to court after a couple weeks of trying to negotiate a settlement, armed with files, documents and expert opinions. Namjoon takes time from his class-action suit to supervise.
The case drags on for a week. Photographers swarm the court. They snap a picture of you, Namjoon, and Jungkook on the way to the courtroom the third day and the picture goes viral. It’s the first time any of your cases have been in the public eye like this. Even though you’re the defense, the internet goes crazy, with endless “Mommy? Sorry, Mommy? Sorry? Daddy?” memes.
Whenever you’re in the office, you get playful comments from your coworkers. Jimin swears he didn’t mean to include the firm-wide distribution list in his email to the PR team about the photo. You don’t believe him, but you can’t really be too mad at him.
It’s one of the best pictures you’ve ever seen of yourself. The three of you look like a promo picture for a legal drama on cable TV, with you in the middle, holding your own between your stupid-hot coworkers.
Jungkook looks like a federal agent, his all-black suit fitted in the right places. He carries a shiny leather briefcase and the glimpse of the tattoos on the hand holding the briefcase is primarily what has the internet in shambles.
Namjoon, in a navy suit and tie, looks like the hottest politician you’ve ever seen. His brown hair sweeps away from his face, lethal in wire-frame glasses.
“Damn, girl, you look hot.” Your best friend, Nina, looks at the photo on her phone. You’re at brunch at your favorite cafe the weekend after the trial ends. “Aren’t you glad I convinced you to get that suit?”
The court ruled in your favor, and your client — graciously — didn’t counter-sue the independent artist. Instead, she offered to have him feature on her latest single, so the royalties can cover the legal fees that he’s now responsible for paying.
You’re sitting in the patio, an umbrella shading you from the unseasonably hot late fall sun. The rickety patio table groans under the weight of poached eggs, bacon, smoked salmon, fruit, and the best pancakes in the city. The mimosas go down easy. Life is good.
“I was running on so little sleep that day. The suit was really the saving grace.”
You bought it on a whim on a semi-drunk post-brunch shopping trip with Nina a few weeks before you joined Bang & Associates. You balked at the price, but Nina reminded you of the massive pay increase you were about to get, and you caved. The suit fits you perfectly, with the skirt hugging in all the right places and the cropped suit jacket adding the illusion of height to your frame. You feel invincible every time you wear it.
It’s thanks to Nina that you’re breaking out of the boring black and grey suits. She’s a local fashion influencer and runs a trendy boutique in the artsy part of town.
“Nah, girl. The suit is the added bonus. It’s you in that photo totally rocking it.”
“I wanna get that framed.”
Nina laughs and clinks her glass against yours. You’re both a little drunk on mimosas and sunshine. “I’ll do it for Christmas.”
You’re pleasantly buzzed when your post-meal lattes come out. Nina chokes as she goes to take a sip, her eyes wide.
“Is that…”
She doesn’t need to finish her sentence. You follow her gaze and thankfully, your cup is firmly on the table because you would have otherwise snorted coffee out of your nose.
A sweaty and glistening Namjoon and Jungkook cross the wooden patio to go inside the cafe. They must have been running in the park across the street because they're dressed in exercise clothes, both in sleeveless tops and shorts that leave little to the imagination.
Namjoon is practically glowing. His shirt clings to his chest, outlining muscle you didn’t know existed until this moment. He runs a hand through his sweaty hair as they walk across the patio, biceps flexing.
Your mouth hangs open. Muscle definition, on top of everything else?
Jungkook’s tattoos are on full display. You’ve seen part of them before, when he rolls his sleeves up at work, but you had no idea he had a full sleeve, bold and colorful. His sweaty hair sticks to his face, the waves even more pronounced.
The spell breaks as soon as they disappear into the cafe. You and Nina exhale at the same time.
“That’s indecent,” you breathe.
“Holy mother of God,” she mutters. “How do you get any work done around the office?”
“They’re usually not prancing around half-naked.”
“I want to put my hands on their chests and squeeze.” She puts her hands out and makes grabby hands.
You let out a squeak and swat her across the table. “Nina! Why would you put that image in my head? How am I going to get through meetings? I’m not gonna be able to look them in the eye.”
“I would ask why you haven’t slept with them yet, but I know you’re too proper to shit where you eat.” She shakes her head. “College you would have been all over that.”
“Namjoon is practically a monk,” you say morosely.
Nina chokes on her coffee again. “Oh my god, you actually like him.”
A tiny, pitiful wail escapes you. “I mean, you just saw him, Neen. He looks like that and he’s nice and smart. It’s like if a man like Namjoon exists, he ruins all other men, really.”
“What about e-boy?”
You snort. “He’s cute, but he’s in l—“
“Cute?” Your friend looks at you incredulously. “That’s the understatement of the year. I want that man to pin me against the wall and — shit. They’re coming this way. Quick. Pretend we’re talking about my shop.”
You swallow your coffee nervously. “Um. Tell me about the clothes you set aside for me?”
“Oh!” She perks up, eyes shining. “Remind me to send you pictures. I just got the most gorgeous dress that would be great for your holiday party!”
“Already? It’s not even November yet.”
Nina rolls her eyes. “Your firm’s holiday party is the event in the law world. I’m not even in law and I’ve known about it since grad school.”
You hear your name called, and your heart rate picks up. Your coworkers walk towards your table with iced coffees in their hands. From what you know about their usual coffee orders, Namjoon’s is an iced americano and Jungkook’s is some ungodly sweet concoction involving every syrup they have available. They look less flushed now coming out of the air conditioned cafe.
“Come here often?”
You roll your eyes. “Terrible line, Jeon. Working out?”
“Yeah, I live a couple blocks down and Namjoon wanted a running buddy today.”
“Sunshine is good for your health,” says Namjoon. “God knows we don’t get nearly enough when we’re in the office.”
You wouldn’t know it from the way his skin glows golden in the sun.
“Oh, we must be neighbors,” you say to Jungkook before you get stuck ogling Namjoon’s exposed skin. “I’m a few blocks that way too.”
You can feel Nina’s eyes boring hole in your skull. “By the way, this is my best friend Nina. Nina, this is Namjoon and Jungkook. Namjoon’s my boss, and Jungkook is the other junior litigation associate.”
“Oh yeah, I thought I recognized you,” says Nina.
“The picture?” asks Jungkook.
“The picture,” you confirm. “I kind of want to get it framed so I can show my grandchildren someday.” You put on an old lady voice. “‘Look kids, granny used to be a hotshot lawyer.’”
A thrum of satisfaction runs through you when they laugh at your joke. Namjoon’s eyes push up into half-moons and Jungkook’s nose scrunches in the most adorable way.
“Anyway, we won’t keep you.” Namjoon places a hand on Jungkook’s shoulder and steers him toward the exit. Jungkook inhales at the contact, and his cheeks redden a shade. You wouldn’t have noticed if you weren’t watching him. “Have a great rest of your weekend.”
“Enjoy the sunshine,” you say with a wave.
“See you at work!” Jungkook calls over his shoulder.
As soon as they’re out of view, you and Nina slump over.
“Enjoy the sunshine? Really?” You bury your face in your hands.
Nina pickup her coffee cup and puts it back down without taking a sip. “Why doesn’t my boyfriend have dimples. Why do I even have a stupid boyfriend?”
The following week, you find the photo framed on your desk, wrapped in a simple ribbon.
So you can show your future grandchildren, reads the note. There’s no signature.
It can only be one of two people and you decide not to say anything to either of them, you just simply put the picture up in one of the empty spots on your bookshelf. You don’t want to know how you would feel if you knew for certain who gifted it to you, and what it would mean for those hypothetical and very unprofessional feelings you definitely aren’t feeling already.
That doesn’t stop you from tucking the note in the back pocket of your planner anyway. Just in case.
A few weeks later, you’re wading your way through a series of ownership bylaws for the city’s pro basketball team. You lost the “What’s our angle?” game, and the case went to Jungkook. He actually fist-pumped in victory when he got lead. This means you’ve been sitting on at your desk for the past week, with fuzzy slippers and yellow-light glasses on as you scroll through endless PDF’s to find your client an out from ownership without having to pay a massive fine.
A knock on your office door breaks your concentration. It takes your eyes a second to focus on something further than your computer screen. Namjoon leans against the doorjamb, coat on.
“Had lunch yet?”
“No, I was going to wait until after our meeting.” Your computer pings helpfully with a calendar reminder and your stomach follows up with a growl. Breakfast consisted of a sad piece of toast and a latte too many hours ago, and you were too nervous for your performance review to even think about a snack.
Namjoon chuckles. “Let’s do this over lunch, then. I’m starving, too.”
You draw your coat around you when you step out of the office. The temperature has dropped decidedly in the past few days. No more sunny autumn days, just the impending chill of a snow-filled winter. You wrap your arms around your stomach in the pretext of warding off the chill.
In reality, you stomach is doing flips, and you don’t know if it’s because you’re hungry or because you’re nervous for your performance review. Objectively, you know you’re doing well. You’re efficient and ruthless in court, but when it comes to performance reviews, you’ve been blindsided before.
It’s almost inevitable that you end up at Cat’s Pajamas. It’s close to the office, they serve delicious food, and the owner, a slim, quiet man named Yoongi, is a longtime friend of Namjoon’s. You’re in there at least once a week, whether for a client meeting or just as an excuse to get out of the office for lunch. Whenever you’re there with your coworkers, you get a little treat sent from the kitchen, usually one of the cookies that Jin, Yoongi’s business partner, makes fresh every morning.
Yoongi stands at the host stand and greets Namjoon with a handshake.
"Just you two today?" he asks, eyes flitting between you and Namjoon.
Namjoon nods. “How’s business?”
“I think your firm is keeping us afloat,” says Yoongi with a serious face. You think he’s joking.
He leads you to the back of the restaurant. It’s unusually crowded today, with office workers sheltering from the first cold snap of the season.
Namjoon gestures for you to go first. You don’t know if it’s your imagination, but as you walk through the restaurant, you think you feel a whisper of a touch against your upper back, fingertips gently guiding you through the maze of tables. A shiver runs down your back, and you keep your eyes forward as you walk. You don't look back to confirm.
You're off balance already, and knowing that Namjoon is the type to guide you with a gentle touch would tip you over into the deep end.
Yoongi seats you in your usual booth. This probably means good things for your review, you tell yourself. The booth is secluded enough, but if there was anything serious to discuss, you would hope your boss would have the sense to have this meeting behind closed doors. You place your orders as you sit.
Namjoon takes out a paper form from his briefcase when Yoongi walks away. You must look worried because he gives you a reassuring smile.
“Just an HR form to document the performance review. It’s dreadfully overdue, but it’s my fault, and I apologize for that. This was supposed to be your three-month review, but we're now at what, five months?"
He makes a face and starts filling out the top of the form. Your heartbeat speeds up and you play with the hem of the tablecloth under the table. Does that face mean good things or bad things?
He looks up at you with a smile. Good things?
“Unless you have anything to bring up with me, this is going to be quick. So far, I’m pleased with the work that you’re doing for the firm. Even though you’ve only been with us for a few months, you’ve integrated excellently with the rest of the team. Everyone has nothing but great things to say about working with you, so we can mark all these boxes as exceptional…”
You let out a sigh of relief as he concentrates on ticking boxes and filling out comments. All the tension you had stored up in your shoulders releases as you get the verbal confirmation that your performance has been up to par.
“And I think that’s it. Anything you want to say to me on the record?”
An image of Nina making grabby hands rises unbidden, and you have to fight to keep a straight face.
“I don’t think so. I’ve been happy working here. The work is rewarding and I like your management style. I appreciate that you let us junior associates take ownership of our work and empower us to make our own decisions and mistakes.”
“Ah, that’s too kind,” he says with a bashful smile, waving away your comments. “I’m glad you’re enjoying your time here." He pauses. "Is that all? No HR complaints to be filed against Jimin?”
You laugh and shake your head.
“If anything does come up, you know my door is always open.” He looks at you with a serious look. “And I mean that. If you ever need to talk about anything, you can come to me.”
“I appreciate that, boss.”
His expression flickers at the title, but he gives you a wide smile as he lifts his water glass in a toast. “Then, here’s to a successful working relationship and more wins in court.”
You clink your glass against his, unable to stop the grin that spreads across your face.
Lunch arrives soon after and you spend the rest of the hour chatting about an exhibit you both attended at the modern art museum. You get the sense that’s where his passion lies by the way he lights up when he talks about the artist’s specific choice of material for her sculptures and what that conveys about her underlying message on global warming. He makes you promise that you’ll go to the artist’s pop-up exhibit during the Christmas markets.
You're amazed that he has time for anything outside of work. You barely do, and he’s at the office just as much as you are these days.
It strikes you that this is the first time you've sat down with Namjoon for a one-on-one meal. Every other time has been a client meeting or after-work drinks with the team. The conversation flows easily and you feel like you could keep talking to him forever.
By the end of the meal, your cheeks hurt from smiling so much, and your heart hurts a little because why did you have to meet Namjoon at this stage in your life? You excuse yourself to the restroom, but head to the host stand instead to pay the bill.
Yoongi waves you off before you can say anything, not even looking up from what he’s writing. “Namjoon’s already paid for it. You’re all good.”
“Oh.” You’re elbow deep in your bag searching for your wallet.
“You know, he’ll never say anything because he’s your boss and all, so you’ll have to make the first move.”
“Excuse me?”
You freeze before you can extricate yourself from your bag. Is it your imagination, or did he really say what you think he said? You don't know, your heartbeat is so loud in your ears.
“Excuse me?”
He looks up from his notebook, eyebrow raised, looking at you like you’re an idiot. You can feel the tips of your ears turning red. “It’s obvious he likes you. I've seen the way he looks at you whenever you're all in here. And you like him, if I’m not reading you wrong. All of his coworkers are head over heels for him. So you have to make the first move unless you want to be in this—“ he gestures vaguely at you “— forever. He’s a brilliant lawyer, but an idiot when it comes to relationships.”
“I’m really not sure what you mean.” Your voice comes out in a squeak. You clear your throat and change the subject. “Where’s the restroom?”
“I think you’ve been here enough times to know where the restroom is.”
You can't even come up with a retort, you just walk away, cheeks flaming. If Yoongi can tell, everyone probably can.
And yes, you do know exactly where the restroom is.
A/N: Ok my friends! Remember when I said it was slow burn? Fun things should start to happen next chapter 👀 Again, I don't know anything about The Law, so if you do and you see something wrong in this fic, no you didn't, it's my fictional universe and yes this is how the The Law works in my fantasy land thank you. This is the energy I'm bringing to this fic and all my writing, so... yeah, I’d love feedback if you have any, but feel no obligation. Hope you like it ~
©sowoozoo-7 2023
Please do not copy or repost. I do not crosspost anywhere else.
#jungkook x you#namjoon x you#jungkook x reader#namjoon x reader#bts fic#junkook fanfic#namjoon fanfic#fic: love lust & litigation
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June Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe
I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.
A First Time For Everything by Dan Santat
A beautifully illustrated memoir of a shy, Asian American thirteen year old's first trip to Europe, in 1989. Dan is a painfully self-conscious kid, bullied at school despite his best efforts to slip invisibly through the school halls. But on a three week summer trips with a dozen other kids his age, some from his school and some from other states, he begins to find himself. This story is framed through a series of "firsts"- first time traveling without his parents, first time tasting Fanta, first cigarette, first alcoholic drink, first time navigating a city alone, first kiss, first time sharing his art with someone. The main narrative of the trip is woven through with flashbacks to particularly emotional past moments- asking a girl out, being romantically rejected, rejecting someone else, helping a girl out who had gotten her period unexpectedly. It captures the wretchedness of junior high, and the way traveling can teach people both about the world and themselves.
Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong
An impactful series of essays that circles around the meaning of "Asian American" sometimes in very broad strokes, sometimes narrowing to the author's specific experience as a bilingual Korean American writer who grew up in the Los Angeles area in the 80s and 90s. I really appreciated the mix of memoir and history, research and cultural critique. Topics range from therapy, the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, racism in academia, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, stand up comedy, the 1992 LA riots, the way childhood is not allowed equally to white and POC kids, the film Moonrise Kingdom and the 1965 Civil Rights movement, shame, deconstructing the English language in poetry, the 2012 documentary Wildness about a trans bar scene in LA, intense female friendships in art school, the poet Theresa Hak Kyung Cha's life and death, activist Yuri Kochiyama, and what debt, if any, an Asian American writer and thinker owes to America. This is a book I can see myself re-reading in a couple years, and getting more from it on a second read; it's rich with quotes and references to other writers, artists and thinkers who have informed Hong's thoughts. Definitely recommend.
In Limbo by Deb JJ Lee
I'm not going to give this book a star rating, because it deals with some extremely heavy topics I have no experience with (multiple suicide attempts, physical abuse of a child by a parent). This memoir covers four years of the main character's life, all of high school. Korean American Jung Jin, who goes by Deborah or Deb at school, made most of her friends in orchestra in junior high. But in high school she falls out of love with violin and quits music to focus more time and energy into drawing. She floats through school, feeling disconnected from peers and family, especially her mother, who swings from supportive to volatile. Another main theme is friendship- a solid, long-term friendship which Deb neglects, and a shorter, intense friendship that consumes Deb's emotional world until it falls apart. This is a story of quiet survival, of incremental steps towards healing, balance, and self actualization. Like life, it is somewhat loose in structure, but the illustrations are stunning.
The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings read by Angel Pean
Set in a world similar to but one step sideways from our current world, this story follows Jo, a creative, biracial, bisexual woman trapped by the restrictions of her society. In this US, women are under constant suspicion of witchcraft, a crime that can still be punish by public burnings. Women who aren't married by 30 are especially suspected, and have to check in with a counselor bi-weekly, and risk losing their jobs, freedom, and ability to have their own bank accounts or own property. Jo is 28, and while she is causally dating, she has no interest in marriage. She has a hard time believing that love can even exist under the pressures placed on women. It doesn't help that her mother disappeared when Jo was 14, and during the investigation, she was questioned by witch hunters. It's been 7 years and Jo's father decides it's finally time to declare Jo's mom officially dead. This ends up opening up a clause in her will that requests Jo travel to a island in the middle of one of the Great Lakes on a very specific day in autumn and collect a certain fruit that only grows there... This book is so skillfully written, for the first half I was left wondering if magic really did or did not exist; it could just be the excuse that men used to oppress women, queer people, and people of color. But then the book takes a really Kelly Link or Octavia Butler-like twist in the middle and gets weirder and wilder. Highly recommend, especially the audiobook.
How A Mountain Was Made: Stories by Greg Sarris
A collection of short stories by long time Chairman of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, Greg Sarris; a writer I've been hearing about for years and am finally sitting down to read! These stories are all set around the Sonoma Mountain and Cotati, very close to where I grew up, and I loved being able to picture the foggy mornings, the many oaks, the quail, poppies, lupine, hawks, coyotes, and creeks in these stories. The book has a frame narrative of two crow sisters, Question Woman and Answer Woman, who introduce each story and also appear as characters in one. The stories are interwoven, nearly all set in the village by Copeland Creek where Coyote lives as headman with his wife Frog, his cousin Chicken Hawk, and his many neighbors. The stories use a lot of the kind of repetitive language that lends itself to memorization; I honestly didn't feel like sitting down and reading the book cover to cover wasn't the best way to experience them. It might have been better to flip the book open to a random story and read whichever one caught my eye, especially to read it out loud, either to myself or to a young listener. Maybe I'll get an opportunity to read it that way sometime to a nibling.
The Two Doctors Gorski by Isaac Fellman read by Helen Laser
Annae is a PhD student, a brilliant researcher, and a survivor of academic abuse. She is forced to leave the US when her former mentor claims her research and ruins her name (after sleeping with her). They work in a small field, advanced magic so complex it feels almost more like science, so Annae transfers to a university in the UK to complete her degree. There she finds herself in a cohort of entirely male graduate students under a famous but cruel teacher. Her main defense mechanism and invasive habit is reading minds, a kind of compulsive act that lets her see how her peers view her, and themselves. Unsurprisingly, these insights bring her no peace; Annae tries to rebuild her research, but urge to fall into the same traps as her role models is strong. This is a novella, only about 4 hours as an audiobook, and fairly open ended but I'm still thinking about it.
The Wolf at the Door by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist
In this contemporary murder mystery/romance novel, werewolves exist and have always lived in small numbers around the world. A few years before this story starts werewolves outed themselves to the US government in order to better liaison with law enforcement to address werewolf-human crimes, but the general public still does not know werewolves exist. Cooper Dayton survived a werewolf attack, and is subsequently transferred from his former job at the FBI into the BSI, the Bureau of Special Investigation. When two bodies turn up in the woods in rural Maine, Agent Dayton is chosen for a trial program, and he is paired up with an agent from The Trust, the werewolf government. Dayton is attracted to his new partner, Agent Park, immediately- but when it turns out Park's family is active in the area of the murder, Dayton realizes he can't rule out the possibility that his co-worker might be actively covering for the criminal. This book starts an enjoyable paranormal romance series complete with plenty of spice but also very solid procedural mysteries. I was glad to be able to guess some parts of, but not all of, the mystery as it unfolded and I also thought the romance novel beats hit well!
The Wolf at Bay by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist
At the start of this second installment in my new favorite paranormal romance/murder mystery series, Agent Cooper Dayton and Agent Oliver Park of the Bureau of Special Investigations have been sleeping together for 4 months but still have not defined their relationship. Some of their miscommunications stem from cultural misunderstandings, but more of it comes from them both being too gun shy to be the first one to say "I love you." Meanwhile, Cooper takes Oliver to meet his family in the small town of coastal Maryland where he grew up- introducing Oliver only as his partner at work, because Cooper's family don't know he is gay and also don't know werewolves exist. Then a 25 year old skeleton is uncovered on the Dayton family property, and Cooper and Oliver have to set aside their other issues to solve the cold case, which might implicate one or both of Cooper's parents. A very enjoyable second book which manages to avoid a lot of the things that often bug me in romance novels and develops the relationship in satisfying ways.
The Mermaid, The Witch and The Sea by Megan Tokuda-Hall
Evelyn, the closeted lesbian teen daughter of nobles in an oppressive and strict empire, sets to sea aboard the Dove on a six month voyage to meet the husband her parents have chosen for her. On the Dove she meets Florian, a sailor her own age she who she befriends despite his lack of education and rough manners. But what Evelyn doesn't know is that Florian is also Flora, an orphan who joined the crew out of desperation and killed a man in cold blood to earn her place. And also- the ship is crewed by pirates, who plan to take all of the passengers as slaves. They have also committed a crime against the very sea itself: the capture of a mermaid with intent to sell it's blood, which men drink to forget. This is a dangerous and violent world, but the connection between Evelyn, Florian/Flora and the mermaid might be enough to save them all, with the help of some cleverness, bravery, magic, and love. This book had some tonal shifts that I struggled with, but I deeply appreciated the multifaceted queer rep.
Thrown to The Wolves by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist
The third book in the werewolf/detective romance series I've been wolfing down on audiobook. In this installment, Cooper Dayton, human BSI agent, is still heaving from the wounds of his previous case when Oliver Park, werewolf BSI agent, learns that his grandfather and head of the pack he abandoned several years ago died. Oliver asks Cooper to come with him to the funeral, and Cooper agrees, having no idea what he's getting into. The couple narrowly avoids a deadly car-crash on the way up to the family mansion in Canada, where Cooper learns that even though Oliver's family is fine with him being gay they are not really fine with him dating a human. Several of Oliver's relatives very explicitly try to scare Cooper off, then he's shot with a tranquilizer in what may or may not be an accident, then it turns out that Oliver's grandfather might not have died of natural causes. Amongst all this chaos, will Cooper decide the wolf world is just too much and that he needs to back away from it? Or will be just dive in even deeper? Even though I could easily guess the answer, I am still very hooked and will definitely read more!
Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
Seraphina is the assistant composer to the royal family of Goredd, which means she lives in the castle and spends her days auditioning new musicians, leading rehearsals, performing at state functions and giving the vivacious, whip smart, slightly spoiled princess her weekly harpsichord lessons. In two weeks, the most important dragon general will be visiting the capital city to celebrate the 40 year anniversary of the peace treaty between humans and dragons which he negotiated with the current human queen. But then one of the members of the royal family is killed, and some people start pointing the finger at dragons; tensions begin to rise in the city as anti-dragon mobs attack a young dragon traveling the city in his human form. Amidst this tension, Seraphina is even more desperate to keep her longest and darkest secret: that she is half dragon, and carries hidden scales, maternal dragon memories, and a mental link with other powerful beings. This was such an original take on a dragon fantasy, with a rich and complex world, characters that I immediately cared for and rooted for. I'm definitely going to keep reading this series!
Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing by Charlie Adhara read by Erik Bloomquist
Human boyfriend Cooper Dayton and his werewolf boyfriend Oliver Park are trying to buy a house together; but their aesthetic sense of what makes an inviting home is vastly different, and neither of them are communicating their needs well to the other. How convenient that their next case for The Trust, the werewolf government, involves them going undercover to a couple's retreat where they will investigate a missing person report while also doing bonding exercises and couple's therapy. Will Cooper finally acknowledge that he was PTSD? Will Park admit their massive family wealth disparity could be a source of tension between them? Will they manage to figure out the link between a threatening park ranger, a local lumber mill owner who wants to buy the land the wolf retreat is built on, not one but two missing employees, the mysterious research of a wolf scientist (who may have experimented on his own children), a wolf pack leader showing up at the retreat unexpectedly? This installment continues the development of the central relationship while also fleshing out the lore and intricacies of the wolf world.
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Seriously… All American is so disappointing.
When I first started watching, it was interesting seeing Spencer plucked from the hood into this new rich lifestyle during junior year. Seeing him try to stay true to self, yet also try to fit in knowing that it would help him in the grand scheme to achieve his dreams. He had flaws (anger and abandonment issues) due to his dad. Friends in the gang lifestyle that triggered his savior complex. Watching his personal growth and rebuilds along the road to his dream is the draw.
Then I was captivated by Olivia’s story. This rich girl who is out of rehab is home and her “friends” are not talking to her or hanging out with her. She’s got this trauma and just wants to find herself and be happy. Olivia and Spencer immediately bonding worked great. They both could be “annoying” in a teen angst way, and it was kinda cool seeing their characters intentionally relax with each other. I wanted to see Olivia genuinely win, fight for what she wanted and get to that place of peace.
Then Jordan should’ve been a good build up. He’s the star at school, on the field, and at home. Then here comes this new guy his dad is falling all over and treating better than him. Jordan started self sabotaging due to his father’s terrible parenting. Like that man really paid his son dust and replaced him with a stranger with no regard to his (or Olivia’s) feelings. Then he finally builds a brotherhood with Spencer, but problems with his dad just kept festering.
Spencer, Olivia, and Jordan were set up perfectly to carry the weight of the show IF DONE RIGHT. Then Billy is next, since he’s responsible for bringing everyone together. Instead, there are still unresolved, half baked plots with these characters. The side characters though have had increasing screen time with recycled dialogue, stories, and unbelievable scenarios. There isn’t any fun drama, silly episode tropes, holiday specials, lived in moments/events, steady timelines, or even any lasting positivity. What we do have is doom, gloom, dry, dragging, pointless plots:
Like why is Asher a coach freshman year? Why am I in Jayme’s family drama? Why is JJ now an alcoholic? Why does Layla have her own record label with a consistently failing artist lineup (still didn’t realize she loved the business that much)? Why is Coop…? Why are Patience’s characteristics completely different with no rhyme or reason? Why do I know Preach has a child?
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Hi there elitadream!
First of all, I just wanna say, that your Mario content is fantastic, and I love all of it. You characterize them all so well and I’m just- I’m in love, is the only way I can adequately express my adoration. The art is beautiful, the writing is magnificent, and everything is all around amazing.
Second, I wanna mention, that funnily enough, because I’m in the Transformers fandom as my main, there’s a character in TFs known as Elita-One, so when I first started following you, I read the first part of your name when it pops up in my notifications, and I was immediately brought an image of her, and then I read the rest and I’m reminded ‘oh right she’s the Mario artist!’ Anyway, I just thought that was kinda funny.
Regardless, your Mario stuff is fantastic, please keep up the great work, and I hope you have a great day! ^^
Also curious: do you think that if Bowser saw/heard that what Mario had done for Jr, like keeping him safe, and having inadvertently assured him to come home safe to him, Bowser would change his thoughts of Mario even the slightest, or spare him just that once, because of his actions? Kind of like Mulan, “a life for a life”. Or would he be like “no still bad >:( stay away from my son >:((( ”
Thank you so much, that honestly made my day! 🙏💗 Also I can see how it could be perceived that way, haha! 😄 Very interesting mention!
You bring up a great point regarding Bowser, and I honestly think that both avenues could potentially work depending on how the scene occurs. I've discussed a few times before how genuinely attentive and affectionate my Bowser is with Junior despite how absolutely vile and devious he is towards everyone else, and what I like about that special exception is that it creates its very own dilemma within a pre-existing conflict. As much as Bowser hates Mario and wants him to suffer, he also loves his son and cares about his feelings. Regardless of what the outcome would be, emotional duality is a fantastic narrative element that suits Bowser quite well imo, and there's a lot that can be done with it. All I can say is I hope I'll find the time and motivation to draw the concept I have in mind one day. 🙇♀️
#asks#mario#bowser#bowser jr#junior#concept#headcanon#story#fanart and fanwork#thoughts and ramblings
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Hello! My name is Moriah and I am a junior in high school. I was wondering if I might be able to get your insight on a few questions I have?
I am in my final years of high school and am starting to think about college but I have no idea what I want to pursue. I know I love art, so for a long time I have been thinking about getting an art major or going to an art school.
I’m reaching out because I ABSOLUTELY LOVE YOUR ART and I think you are a very talented artist! I have been in love with your art for so long and I am curious and wondering how you are able to fit drawing into your life?
1.) Do you think going to school for art or having an art major is worth it? What was it like?
2.) how can I fit art into my everyday life? I’m sure you have work and other things to do in your life so how do you balance it out? (I just want to know how you can draw as much as you do!)
3.) do you do art as a hobby or a career? If it is a hobby how to you balance work, art, and home life? If it is a career or part-time career is it an alright source of income?
Thank you so much! And sorry if these questions might seem personal. I just want to know how other artist manage to draw and create their work and still have an adult life. Thanks again, and thank you for being a huge inspiration in my life to create the art I love! Your art means so much to me!❤️❤️ ❤️
Hi Moriah!! How have you been? :D✨ I'm so sorry it took me sooooo long to respond. I've been busy like crazy 😩 but I'll try to be as honest as possible and make it understandable too, ‘cause, you know, my english sometimes fails me jaja
1. In my case it was 💜, being able to study the things I love made it much easier for me to finish my degree and know what I want to do now, and although I know that now we are in a time in which you can learn many things just by watching videos or tutorials (especially related to drawing), I still believe that if you want that, you like it and you know you can be good at it, do it ✨, it is better to be happy doing what you like than to be stuck in something you don't, although I would recommend having a idea WHAT you want to study, maybe animation, character design, graphic design, etc. That will create a clearer vision of where you want to go. You can ask yourself, of everything you do, what do you like the most?
2. Personally, I am a very organized person >w<, not to the point of writing down everything I do or have to do in the day, but having an idea of the things I should do helps me a lot, since there are things that I obviously cannot skip, such as work, that takes up a lot of my time, so every time I can I start drawing, even if it's just a small doodle, it's well known that if you want to improve you have to practice and you don't know how much just scribbling helps you 0m0, much of which I know I learned by trying and trying and trying just by drawing silly things in my notebooks, but of course drawing all day is not healthy either. For example, if I get tired I take breaks, maybe to eat a snack, go out with my friends or play with my pet, like that you balance your routine a little, doing your responsibilities but improving along the way and without getting tired.
3. Right now only as a hobby jaja, this year I would like to look for a job related to animation so I couldn't help you as much in that aspect, but I can tell you that nowadays you should have two or more sources of income, even if you have a permanent job in something related to art, have another one just in case or if you have a hobby you can also take advantage of it, like me for example, making commissions you could say that it is my hobby and I am taking advantage of it, but as I mentioned before, organizing yourself will help you. It helps a lot in what you want to do, where you want to go and even your life ✨
I feel very honored that you asked me 🥹✨, don't worry, I am also very new to being a functional adult on my own xD but I am happy to know that you can have that trust with me 💜, I hope that some of my answers have helped you ^w^ I send you a big hug 🫂✨
#And thank you very much for the nice comments you always post about my art 🥹#I always read them all ✨💛#good questions#danicloth#answers#personal#dani answers#art
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It's the Harry Osborn fashion post nobody asked for!
I'm no expert in menswear (all info + photo examples come from VintageDancer) so take this as speculation and feel free to correct any terminology. Still, I wanted to ramble about his interesting progression of clothes choices through the classic comics.
Ditko era (1965)
An outdated look even for the time: the bowtie, brown/grey color scheme, and wide high-waisted pants with a skinny belt are all kind of 1940s/50s things. Not to mention the hair.
It seems Ditko's only vision for Harry was Norman Junior. You know those eerie photos of politicians' families where the kids are dressed identically to their parents? Yeah.
Of course, once characterization catches up, there's a lot to be said about Harry's relationship with imagined "good old days" and his father's self-image.
Characterization catches up (1966)
John Romita is here and we get a flashback to baby Harry, who in contrast to his dad looks like an easter egg.
On a practical level, bright colors (1) draw attention to Harry as a new main character and (2) convey time passing. But it also fits with the reveal that he's a mostly sweet kid trying too hard to conform to an aggressively traditionalist role model.
I like that the bow tie sticks around. It has old-fashioned, dweeby connotations (as probably originally intended) but it also has appropriate oddball performer connotations.
Roomates era (1966-69)
Big checkered patterns, vests, and expanded colors; a showy take on the Ivy League 50s/60s style, unless I miss my guess. A bit more modern, but still in the realm of uptight dweeb. I love how Romita made him friendly without making him less weird.
It's a rather slow makeover from monochrome to bright and patterned. On a Watsonian level, it's fun to imagine that living away from his dad lets him gradually rediscover a colorful fashion sense.
The less formal at-home version of this look is a sweater or sweatervest with a collared shirt, a la baby Osborn.
The New Osborn Image (1969. nice)
Eventually both Harry and the editors get self conscious about keeping up with the times, and...
This is so charmingly "repressed young adult finally has their awkward rebellious self-discovery phase halfway through college" to me. Artists love to call back to this look because lol, retro facial hair, but I think its status as a bona fide short-lived Embarrassing Phase makes it sacred.
The New(er) Osborn Image (1970-72)
Exploratory phase over, his new look is something between Mod and Peacock Revolution: long coats, double-breasted tailored jackets, colorful turtlenecks, neckerchiefs instead of ties.
In my totally unbiased opinion this is the pinnacle of Harry costuming. He's found a public-facing sense of style that's fun. It's formal, but not just in a Norman-impressing way—he got here via personal experimentation and peer inspiration. It's the most joyful sartorial self-expression he ever seems to get.
Sure hope he's not about to experience personal-identity-shattering amounts of stress and tragedy!
spice up your mental breakdown by raiding your father's closet (1973)
At least, I think that's Ross Andru's angle. Harry moves back into his dad's townhouse and his clothes are uncharacteristically oversized and formless.
Drop the metaphor, fill your father's shoes for real. The fur-lined coat + leather gloves in particular strike me as unnaturally Normanesque. Earlier periods illustrated his Garbage Mental Health Hygiene with untucked shirts and unfastened collars, though his hairdo is still perfectly in place because everyone knows it just grows in like that.
I think the shirt he's committed in is the first short-sleeved shirt we ever see him wear. Probably too early in history for him to be given a pair of those grippy socks.
back to basics/dadclothes (1975-on)
Harry comes back in ASM 151 with two outfits: a grey suit and tie and a plaid short sleeved shirt with jeans. This split between utilitarian business clothes/simple comfort clothes sticks around into Buscema and JMD's 90s run.
This was probably meant to signal that he's more "grown up" and stable, but after everything else it just feels like a very lonely return to form and a widening fracture between public presentation and personal identity—this time self-enforced.
JMD uses the goblin costume to talk about Harry's struggles with self-image and emotional compartmentalization, but I think it works because that theme was already there in a less dramatic way. Particularly once the colors went back in the closet.
The thing about toxic performative masculinity is that it hates to admit that it's just a performance. Showy fashion can be attractive to people who've been told they flunk out of gender for physical or mental reasons because it's entirely performance (hence the art of drag) (and hence transmascs who joke they dress like silver age Harry). Also, I think it's just a fun personality trait for him to enjoy bright and meticulous dress, dangit.
#romita fashion plate#harry osborn#long post#this has been in my drafts for so long and I finally got around to compiling the image examples#clothes make the man one might say
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hihihihi! please more info about the side characters babies?
CERTAINLY
Basically the side characters are each products of the main three's routes in some way and I'm hoping to include them as part of those stories as more detailed elements of their overarching arcs.
readmore cause i'm long winded oops
Kazu first showed up in canon in a Yakuza themed AU short story I wrote for Patreon to be Mori's right hand man and bodyguard. He's 6'5" and built like a brick shithouse (charm point: huge tiddies and a tiny waist, very Dorito coded). Kazu's a fun combination of Stoic and Confident- he's an expert martial artist so he's kinda got that meathead/jock swagger- but also a delightful degree of socially inept and has a constant intense resting bitchface. He would beat someone into a paste for threatening you without blinking but if you cried in front of him he would have zero idea what to do. His personality is very Guard Dog? He always reminds me of a very mean doberman, alert and ready to react Severely and also absoLUTELY unswervingly loyal to people he's decided to trust. With Mori, the dynamic is especially funny as it took Kazu a while to respect him enough to take orders from but now that Mori's proven himself, Kazu would do basically anything he said, though they do share the Warrior's Bond and have to brawl a lot to work out the tension or solve disagreements.
Kazu used to be in a biker gang and spent time in prison (he also used to be super skinny and didn't bulk up until his mid twenties). He runs a mechanic shop during the day where he customizes cars and bikes and also built his custom bike, Kanōbo, from the ground up. He also loves J-Idols + has an anime figure cabinet and worked in an izakaya/pub for a number of years so he can actually cook. Vital funfacts: He enjoys beating people up, loves steak, is a junior high dropout, and nearly qualified for olympic level judo.
As of now Kazu doesn't have a demon deal but no promises for the future :)
Selection of Various Kazu Arts care of @epoch-smog @coyoxxtl and @booket-png (thank yall so much for drawing my idiot meat man)
Raath is almost comically complex for his role as a side character and is actually a redux of an OC I had in another fandom many years ago. Canon took a direction i didn't like and for a long time Raath sort of simmered but I love his Assholish Behavior and found a great role for him in TCM as Amir's parent's go-to hitman.
Raath is, above all else, brutal and carnal to the core. He was raised in a really fucked up way that cut him off from any semblance of a normal human childhood as part of an dark-entity-worshipping, off the grid assassin cabal. He was raised essentially as a child soldier and pushed because of his prodigy and proclivity towards assassin skills. He's socially inept but in a weaponized way, unafraid to flagrantly disregard social norms to say or do whatever he wants.
Raath is about 6'3"ish and lean/lithe. He's muscular but built for dexterity over strength- though don't let that fool you, he's immensely strong. While he doesn't know his origins, he was born in Greece to Cypriot parents. When he was a young teen, his cabal master had the revelation that Raath was the link back to their supernatural patron and decided to ritually mutilate him (in accordance to the old ways) as a sacrifice. The ordeal was utterly brutal (think legends of the old norse Blood Eagle) and by all accounts, there's no way he should have been able to survive. But miraculously, somehow, he did and the cabal considered that a sign to continue his training.
Raath doesn't have a demon deal. However, in the world of TCM, there are different orders of "demons" (not all supernatural entities use that word to describe themselves, its more of a human POV type label). Mori, Amir, and Akello are all humans-turned-demons via contracts made with other demons. Tor, from Akello's chapter, is a full demon and had never been anything else. Raath is something different altogether. Essentially, Raath is a human vessel for the phonos of bloodlust, Aimvoros. In Greek mythology, phonoi are deities that are the literal personification of a human emotion/experience and they're the children of Eris, the goddess of discord. Aimvoros is a play on the Greek words for Blood Hunger. So ESSENTIALLY, Raath has a demon of a Particularly potent caliber in his head somewhere, who's slowly and quietly trying to take him over and regain a physical form. Raath, however, is wild and unpredictable AND a lot more cunning than he seems. So the baseline for Raath is that he's playing a mental game of cat and mouse with a minor god inside his own head and winning. Its a long and arduous process but it sets the stage for Raath becoming the new blood god while retaining his human consciousness.
For his day job, Raath is an assassin/hitman who specializes in out of range sniping and making a huge mess of his targets. He's the guy you send in when you want to send a message, not have a kill go under the radar. As such, he's been very useful to Amir's parents for their dirty business and political maneuvering, though he's only as loyal as the assignments are engaging. Amir and Raath dislike each other a lot but they both acknowledge that the other is Useful in their own right.
Some lesser-seen Raath arts (thank you @mineshaft-birdie you have such a way with this bastard)
Marcel is, by comparison, the freshest TCM character on the roster and so I'm still kind of feeling him out a little bit. He's gregarious and loud, generally friendly and well liked by classmates, coworkers, and teachers. He's very much that Star Football Player Who's Best Friend is in Band- he could absolutely be an asshole with the social position he's had as a high performing athlete going into college on a sports scholarship but his swagger and cockiness is more charming than offensive and he doesn't let the college sports environment get TOO much into his head.
He is, however, very confident and sure of himself. Growing up he got in trouble for backtalking to teachers almost constantly, and always had a comment for any given situation. He has an incredibly loud, unique laugh that you could pick out in a crowd and even now on the college campus him and his friends are usually the most animated group in the quad at any given time.
Marcel works hard and takes his studies pretty seriously or rather.... as seriously as he has to. He keeps his grades up to maintain financial aid but is always ready to party and now that he's on his own and establishing his adult life, he's ready to experiment and try new things.
Marcel found out about the demon infestation in the city on his own and was willing to make a deal with one for information on the accident that "killed" Akello but has so far managed to avoid actually taking out a contract. Akello and Marcel were very VERY close before the accident, however, and now they're sort of trying to figure out how to go back to that. Akello's big Parental Fear is that Marcel will have a Party Whore College Boy (like HE DID) phase and lose track of his academic pursuits.
For now, I'm lacking in Marcel concept art but Atlas' headshot is fucking dreamy so here it is again.
I THINK?? THATS EVERYTHING??? ALL THE BASIC DETAILS? I love my side characters very very much and I'm hoping the KS unlocks that sprite package so I can get them some official tcm sprites! (I blatantly made it the first stretch goal cause i want it SO BAD).
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Oh Tumblr, my beloved hellsite <3
One of you lovely nonnies asked us here at Rotten Raccoons if we would be willing to introduce ourselves and we drafted up a lovely little introduction post, queued it, and then the queue ate the post. So here's attempt #2 to introduce ourselves with who we are, what we do, and which Obscura boi is our fave ❤️
Hello hello, I'm Tobi, the one behind Cirrus and Francesco's routes! I do the writing and scripting for them with occasional assistance from Violet. Is hard to choose a favorite but [redacted] does make me swoon. And admittedly I have a soft spot for my own sadistic creation, heheh
Hi, I'm Yamiochi🦝 mostly handling business, accounting side of Rotten Raccoons. My favourite is Cirrus. I can't hide the Gap Moe（ギャップ萌え）between the perfect clergyman's appearance and that personality. Besides that, silver/white hair + long hair characters are my personal favourites.
Hello! I'm Ræ! (pronounced R-eye), I'm the project planner and junior BG artist at Rotten Raccoons. All of our boys are great, aren't they? I especially adore the spunky types, so Kier makes my heart pitter patter. Also his freckles… so cute!
Howdy! I'm Mugi, the lead artist 👩🎨✨ I think most people already know, but my fave boi is Cirrus. He's beautiful, he's charming, he's... Spicy 🔥 Of course I love all of our bois in their own unique ways 💖
I'm Cajsa and I'm the music/audio person 🪗 I'm a sucker for Cirrus. I'm not sure how I feel about the hanky spanky but when he gives me that vicious smile I might just agree to anything......
And I'm Violet! I write Keir and [redacted]'s routes and finagle with the code to make the game go brrrr. I'm also the social media raccoon, so I'm technically the one writing most of the stuff you see on Twitter and Tumblr. I try not to play favourites with the boys, but also the first time I saw Francesco's design I died and went to heaven, and I love me a polite young man, and he blushes so good... Yeah.
And a little bonus: one time I asked DALL-E to draw me a vintage movie poster with six raccoons in a trenchcoat. It didn't really understand what I was asking, but honestly
this kicks ass. This is how I imagine us all the time now.
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Hello! My name is Moriah and I am a junior in high school. I was wondering if I might be able to get your insight on a few questions I have?
I am in my final years of high school and am starting to think about college but I have no idea what I want to pursue. I know I love art, so for a long time I have been thinking about getting an art major or going to an art school.
I’m reaching out because I ABSOLUTELY LOVE YOUR ART and I think you are a very talented artist! I have been in love with your art for so long and I am curious and wondering how you are able to fit drawing into your life?
1.) If you are going to college for art, or went to college for art, what is it like? Do you think going to school for art or having an art major is worth it?
2.) how can I fit art into my everyday life? I’m sure you have work and other things to do in your life so how do you balance it out? (I just want to know how you can draw as much as you do!)
3.) do you do art as a hobby or a career? If it is a hobby how to you balance art, work/school, and home life? If it is a career or part-time career is it an alright source of income?
Thank you so much! And sorry if these questions might seem personal. I just want to know how other artist manage to draw and create their work and still have an adult life. Thanks again, and thank you for being a huge inspiration in my life to create the art I love! Your art means so much to me!❤️❤️ ❤️
i am going to CRY this is the sweetest message ever. i'm happy you found your niche and i'm even happier that i could help inspire that!!! i'm not sure if i'm gonna be able to answer all your questions, but i'll try to squeeze in some possibilities where i fall short:
1) growing up i definitely figured i was going to end up in art school because that's what everyone told me i should go into. but as i got older in high school i was kind of panicking cuz i really didn't want to turn my hobby into a job, and i figured out that i wanted to go into education!
but that's just me- my wife is actually going to college for graphic design sometime soon because she loves what she does. if it's something you really enjoy, and that you think you can monetize while still enjoying it, then it's definitely worth it! money is important but you need to put you and your happiness first.
2) to be honest, i haven't had the time or energy to do much art lately (if you look at my post dates you can see how spread out they've been the past year)- but this entirely depends on how you manage your time and your workload. i'm horrific at time management! so that's my problem. BUT, i think sneaking in drawing time in little ways helps a lot, as i tend to sketch small panels of a potential comic or animatic on notebooks and papers while i'm listening to lectures. i've even posted ms paint doodles i've drawn during class
i always have plans for what i'd like to draw once i have the time. it's kind of motivating, but also frustrating, and it's hard to efficiently empty my brain of ideas while still keeping up with everything else. this might be something you'll have to wiggle around once you get settled into a routine each semester!
3) i really wanted art to stay as a hobby for me. the idea of drawing and creating art every day for things i wasn't inspired to do made me really nervous, because what i really wanted was to make fanart and draw my little guys all day lol
if you take anything away from this, i think the most important thing is that if you want to keep art in your life, you will. if you desire having time to make art just for yourself, you'll find time to work that into your life, one way or another- but in order to do that you absolutely need to have a positive mindset about what you're going into, and if you can't find that positivity, maybe it isn't for you
thank you for asking!!! i'm not sure if this'll be any help, but i appreciate the questions <:')
#ask#moriah-doodles#me and my wife are just meesly 19 y/o's#so neither of us have experience working in the art field unfortunately#i wish you luck on your journey though!!!!#art can be so rewarding
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Okay, so, I feel like, to some degree, what is and isn't fat is cultural. The character in the image is Super Pochaco. I think a lot of people would call her fat, and by Japanese standards, she's almost definitely fat. I think how clear it is that she's meant to be fat also depends on the artist.
I feel like these make it more obvious she's intended to be fat. She has fuller arms and she also has a stomach that starts to curve into itself.
On an unrelated note, she has a junior, Super Taruco, who is definitely more obviously fat.
They're both friends of Super Sonico, who is a mascot to Nitroplus, a game company/developer/they're mascots for Nitroplus.
Yeah, I can understand by jp standards she's ~fat~, and can appreciate that she and taruco arent rail thin like every other anime girl mascot.
That particular post just rubbed me the wrong way bc the internet has this bad trend of saying "I love big girls!" And the example is a girl with big boobs and hips, not like, actually fat (no tummy/arm/face fat). Since all I could see was big boobs and thinner arms in that drawing, I figured that was the case.
The examples you sent do a better job of showing her actually being larger, so I guess it does just depend on how she's drawn. I just personally feel that was a bad example image to use for "fat girl fall" I guess? Any of the other images you sent might have been better (tummy visible, arms thicker, etc)
#n sfw#for the bikini pics lol#im not trying to start a fight over what counts as ~good~ fat rep or anything
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‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾PINK TINT☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙ (2)
Hyunjin×Fem reader
⚠genre⚠: fluff, college scenario, teacher student relationship, maybe forbidden love, red strings attached, very very veryyyy sugar sweet, yet smut says Hi😈
Synopsis: Final year of art school and you still don't know what to do in life. Everything takes a turn when he stepped in, for better or worst. Worst is interesting sometimes. Make my rules sounds nice but feelings never lie.
(a/n: it's all fiction people no hate!!!!)
Warm cup of tea for the day, wrapping her hands around it for heat radiate through her skin, she looked out her apartment window. Evening sun set painting the sky with an array of colors. Wind blew fluttering her art material set for her now due assignment. Since it was the last year attending class everyday wasn't necessary and y/n being the best student never needed so.
Taking a sip of her tea, y/n sat over at her table and took a sheet of paper out. To warm up her hands, she quickly did a rough sketch of anything she thought of. Her pencil like it were possessed drew her pulsing emotions... A boy... No a man.... No... Hwang Hyunjin.
Y/n drew the very view she admired, his gentle smile with the cute crescent curve of his eyes. Looking at it made her flush up again, putting away the drawing quickly, y/n went over to start yer assignment.
Half way through her assignment with the base sketch, her phone vibrated on the table with a low buzz. It was Chungha.
C:Heeyyyyyyyy🤩
Y/n: ola amigo~✋
C: The university is hosting an Art exhibition and Mr K asked if you want to donate any of your paintings!!!
Y/n: I don't have anything exhibition-able
C: Then make one... You have time till next month. He asked you to come tomorrow.
Y/n: okay 😪
C: Seeeeya😎 Good luck 🤗
Y/n had to know the details about the exhibition, rushing up to the office, she couldn't help but feel excited. This was an amazing opportunity for her chance to Paris. Maybe she could even earn money if anyone bought her piece.
"Mr K?" Y/n knocked softly at his cabin door.
"Come in" Inside were decorated with old and new paintings, several paintings stacked in boxes at the side, well yes the place was rubbish but... Colorful.
"Ahhh Y/n, I was expecting you... Come with me" Y/n followed Mr K out to another cabin, to find a junior staff going through few sketches.
"Ms U this is y/n one of my best students" Brief greetings. "She wants to participate in the art exhibition donating some of her artworks"
"Do have anything that you would like to present?" The young woman maybe in her 20s spoke softly with a smile.
"Um... I was thinking since I have one month time, could paint a new one?" Fiddling with the hem of her blouse, y/n felt a sudden break of cold sweat.
"Well the thing is that we have to put up the artworks on the brochure and that has to be sent everywhere"
"O-oh... But I don't have any-"
"Let it be a mystery piece" Y/n jolted at the voice from behind, it was Mr Hwang right behind her that she could feel his presence towering over her.
"A mystery piece is only done with recognized artists to attract visitors" Mr K said while Y/n couldn't think straight. Too close was all she could think holding her breathe.
"It's fine I'll try next-"
"Use my name, I'll be her mentor and I'll produce a piece too with her" All three eyes went wide. Y/n finally turned to look at him, he looked straight at her with a smile. His hair was tied this time, and his usual casual hoodie was replaced with a white cardigan button that hung loose over his body, exposing ample of his collarbone. Paired with formal pants... Classic. Y/n quickly turned away to hide her naughty gaze.
"Great then, you both can use the art room as much as you want. I need to see the progress every week. Two paintings soon"
"Yes Mr K. Thank you Ms U" Y/n still blank slowly processing. Hyunjin walked away with a low chuckle to himself... Is he enjoying this?!
"Y/n a word" Mr K called for her to his cabin. To his dusty cabin again, how does he even survive here without a wheeze. "Sit down, I really need you to take this opportunity seriously, because your paired with one of the best renowned artist. I'm genuinely thankful because he denied my offer in presenting a piece, but now because of you he reconsidered. So, just go with the flow, any problems you can approach me. Okay?"
"He's famous?"
"That's a secret but yeah it's a golden opportunity, not to worry. Also don't ask him personal questions because he doesn't like being...talked about. Good luck then" Something felt off, because y/n felt like she was getting ready to babysit a grumpy kid.
"Thank you Mr K" Y/n walked out of the dust and opened the staff room door to find Mr Hwang leaning against the wall waiting for her.
"Mr H-Hwang" Y/n softly greeted and he came over to her.
"Ms y/n, Let's talk" Instantly he turned away and walked to the nearest empty classroom. Screeching two chairs to the middle face to face for them. Y/n sat down awkwardly adjusting herself as the man sat down casually legs crossed. "What is your art style?" He asked taking out his phone.
"Um...Minimalism? both impressionism and post-impressionism, aesthetics pastel colors and emotions" He peeked from his phone at her, inhaling sharply.
"You know what is my style?" He leaned forward, exposing his chest a bit. Y/n shook her head flushed every moment with the man "Realism, Baroque, expressionism, and emotions. What do you think we have in common?" She looked up at him and wondered, how their thoughts were completely different, he was more of beige guy while hers a more pink. But one thing sure did coincide.
"Emotions" His face lit up.
"Exactly. We are going portray our emotions...Romanticism" The last word was soft as a whisper. Hyunjin stood up to walk towards the board. Playing with the marker lid he leaned back against the board with his gaze fixed at the student up front. "What do you think is romanticism y/n?"
"Expression of emotions of an individual towards anything, like nature, music, art forms and-"
"People yes, very good. But I think it's felony. It isn't real romanticism" Hyunjin tried pushing y/n to the edge to get it out of her.
"Why do you think so Mr Hwang?" Y/n feigned innocence to bring him to the edge too.
"Because if you could love it then why should we learn to let it go" Hyunjin came over and bent to align his gaze with hers.
"W-well they say when person losses someone or something, they are given the most powerful strength of endurance. Love and loss are proportional to one another. Cannot be balanced because everyone will come across feelings of grief once in a while" Y/n bit make a tear as Hyunjin sharp gaze wavered as he was of loss of words.
"Well said" He clapped. "That will be our theme then" Brushing back his hair, Hyunjin went over to write that one the board. 'Love and Loss'. "We are supposed to produce two works, so one is Love and other Loss. Which do you choose?"
"Um, I don't know... Loss?"
"You do Love" Y/n nibbled on her lip because she wasn't familiar with it... Much... Maybe but maybe not. "Have you not witnessed love y/n?"
"No, just a crush but got over it" Hyunjin narrowed his gaze, inhaling deeply as he sat across from her again and whispered.
"Don't worry. I'll help you with that" He smirked to himself toying with her like he was with the marker in Hand.
"Y-yes?" Her questioning gaze was cut off by the bell. Y/n jumped up at the sudden siren, adjusting herself. "I have to get home. Thank you for the insight"
"Right, Thank you too. Tomorrow bring a normal scribble pad, pencil and eraser" Hyunjin stood up and followed her out.
---------
On her way home Y/n thought of... Love. Foreign as it sounds but she did get a taste of the feeling. Kai, a dance major, senior from school and friend who once helped through embarrassing times. Both first met when Y/n clumsy almost pushed all the bicycles, But Kai caught her in time. Since then she would always find him. Slowly they both started with Hi's, small sentences, exchange of numbers. But after a while, she found that her classmate Jenny made her move on him. Chungha guessed maybe he got close to y/n to just get to see Jenny. Trash, Chungha once exclaimed for them to hear and hid while Y/n was caught. Kai called her over and asked how she was doing and boasted about her girlfriend. Y/n herself said trash bluntly and left. Chungha felt super proud of her friend.
Dark and crushing it is... Love.. Scoff*
~~~~~~~~~~~
A scribble pad, stationary, water, purse, snacks... All set. Rummaging through her bag one last time before walking to class... No one. Hyunjin isn't here yet, y/n sat down continuing her playlist for a while. Slowly she turned to the nearby window and leaned on the sil. One hand pillowed for her face, while the other dangled outside trying to catch the falling leaves and petals off the nearby tree. In a distance people were playing and cheering for a basketball match. The crowd mingling with the breeze made y/n sleepy. Slowly her eyes fluttered shut as she drifted off to dreamland.
Soft weather continues, but it was night, the moon shone bright illuminating her path. Y/n was walking through her hometown streets, an unfamiliar tree stood in the distance, swaying to the wind and shining under the moonlight. A single petal from a flower on the tree brushed past her cheek warm. The warmth made her smile in peace.
Slowly she got up rubbing her cheek as though the dream were real she realised. Hyunjin! Looking around she found the man right next to her leaning against the wall. His hair all messy but cute, a simple smile looking down at her. Y/n stood up to greet the man, stumbling a little clumsy from the sleep.
"G-good morning"
"Good afternoon" He emphasised for her to check the time and yes it was 1:07pm. "Have you eaten?"
"No I haven't" Correcting herself averting her gaze to her back for her makeup. One side of her cheek had a soft pink touch to it, was it because of the rubbing?
"Me too, so let's go out for lunch, we can start our discussions their" Y/n eyes widened did he just ask her out for lunch. But who would deny the man.
"O-okay" Grabbing her stuff real quick both left out to have lunch at a local restaurant, quickly finding seats, Hyunjin the gentleman he his helped her to be seated. Y/n flushed distracting every brain cell to the menu card. Quickly ordering anything she thought was interesting and took out her scribble pad. Looking up to see the man was staring directly into her soul, running his finger on his lips softly. Gulp*
This is going to take a while...
~~~~~~~~
A rough sketch on what to be done was complete and so was lunch, both just about to leave.
"I'll pay" Y/n offered but Hyunjin chuckled walking to the counter.
"Another time. Let me be a gentleman today" Fishing out his wallet.
"And tomorrow?" Y/n blurted without thought. He thought for a while and smirked.
"You tell me" Y/n couldn't think straight and went out to find kids playing, giggles and care free vibe. Quickly capturing the moment when one kid came over to her.
"Unnie (elder sister) your pretty like a flower" She said tugging her dress, y/n in awe quickly picked her up and started laughing and asked her name. The little girl answered with her pinching Y/n cheek with a tiny fingers, to see if she were real. Just how contagious kids were with their happiness, quickly turning around to see Hyunjin smiling at his phone.
"I have to go now bye" Putting her down softly and adjusting her dress the little kid ran away waving shy. " Isn't she cute?" Y/n asked to the man who now stood closer. His hair brushing over his face effortlessly.
"Yeah. You like kids?"
"Yeah, How can one not?" Completely in love with the little one.
"Okay" Hyunjin said and walked away, eh...
"Um... Why don't you like kids? " Y/n catching on.
"Yeah I very much do" He said looking at her sideways to observe her reaction.
"Er... Thank you for the lunch" Y/n stammered
"Anything for my student"
Rest of the way they discussed on the later specifics like size, type of paint etc, to place the order.
------------
The discussion went on for thre days, Mr K confirming and placing order for the materials, Y/n spent the rest of her time with her own assignments. Music, painting, Tea, cake... Regular routine.
Following week the materials arrived. Checking and setting things up, sometimes Hyunjin and Y/n would have that tension moment but eased out as the first priority was the exhibition. The site was set and going around to a get gist was mandatory. Y/n suggested painting a little on the wall to show a connection between the paintings. Hyunjin was pleased and so was Mr K seeing how they got along just fine.
Weeks went by as both sometimes both continued at home and got back to show progress. Yet both didn't dare to make a mistake. Finally as 80% of the art now finished Y/n stretched out, pulling out her headphones to look outside. It was raining and that dimmed out the room. Looking over her board to see Hyunjin full focused painting, studying his features to see his forehead scrunched cutely showing he's concentrating hard. His long slender fingers holding the brush and strokes all elegant. Wow he was an Art himself. Y/n stood up to get a closer look and my God it was amazing. How defined each stroke was representing loss. What made him portray it perfectly?
"It's amazing?" She mumbled, Hyunjin turned and oops he wasn't wearing headphones in one ear. "It looks amazing, love the blend and definition" She said bending over to get a closer look. "How do you bring to color blend without disturbing the base?" Y/n shot a few questions as a student.
"Here sit" She sat next to him as Hyunjin explained his tricks in a very detailed way and yes her intention to learn were genuine.
"How can you portray loss so well?" She whispered but the man again heard her. Leaning back, he loosened his hair tie and looked at the painting.
"What do you mean by that?"
"I-I mean it's perfect like you have really gone through that emotion-"
"Yes I have, I did lose someone dear to me" Y/n wanted to ask more but Mr K words echoed.
"I'm sorry to have asked"
"No it's alright, you were right though, one who experiences loss are given the most powerful strength of endurance" He looked at her, both were close leaned in. Just an effort and the space between could just disappear. He looked down at her lips then back at her but turned away. Silence as Y/n very well understood his emotion. Suddenly a romantic OST played out loud complementing the rain and the atmosphere. Y/n quickly got to her feet to see that her headphones went off and phone started playing out loud. Shoot
"Y/n" A low call as her name seemed to echo through her. Hyunjin was now on his feet too, one hand extended out. The room now super dark because it was after university hours, not many people in the building, is that why everything seemed to be heard like an echo? The pattering loud and clear. She went over and stood in front like she were possessed by the man, he softly pulled her close. Shiver ran down her spine like the room had got 5 times cooler. But the warmth from him eased. One hand on her hip lightly and other held her hand warm and firm. Both hands covered in paint looked beautiful to them. (Artists you see) Slowly both swayed to the music, starting with simple steps and slowly they twirled causing them to giggle. The sad atmosphere now better, Hyunjin looked beautiful smiling like a kid. His crescent eyes curved to complement his beauty mark. Like a moon and star. The tempo increased and steps became fast too, twirling about when both finally laughed out their hearts looking at each other and...
Peck~
Hyunjin softly brushed his soft lips over Y/n's making both flushed with a mild pink tint.
a/n: Just finished my exams, super sorry for delays people😘Love you guys for the support. ❤it 🔁it... ~
#bang chan#danceracha#han jisung#hwang hyujin imagines#hwang hyunjin#hyunjin#hyunho#hyunlix#kpop smut#skz fluff#stray kids fluff#lovestay#kim seungmim#hyunbin#seungmin#skz jeongin#lee know#lee felix#stray kids#stray kids stay#stay#changbin
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