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teddysudeikis · 9 months

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Teddy Bear 🧸

Summary: I had a long day working at Keeley Jones’ PR firm and felt so overworked, stressed, and the instant need to cry my eyes out. I come home to find Ted who’s there to comfort me after a long day. He is the perfect boyfriend who knows how to cheer me up with comfort and cuddles.

Relationship: Ted Lasso x me (I inserted myself)

Before you read: It’s my first fic that I’ve written in awhile. I appreciate any feedback and love on it. It’s mostly fluff 🧸 so there’s a lot of cuddly Ted and some light NSFW (I’m so bad at writing those) 😭 but I needed something cuddly to be comforted.

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My thoughts spiraled into an endless pit of despair, full of anxiety. When’s the last time I hung out with Keeley and Rebecca? Why have I become so introverted and distant from everyone? What happened to me? And most importantly, what about Ted? Have I been tiring him out?

I felt guilty letting work take over my life being such a perfectionist but I really wanted to help Keeley with all that she’s been through. She’s the closest friend I have and I felt even more pressured to perform to the best of my ability with her as my boss. The last friend she hired let her down and I didn’t want her to think less of me, especially with how important this job was to me.

Feeling a slight tug at my heart with Ted on my mind, I felt so selfish. It’s been awhile since we’ve last went on a date and been intimate really. I know it’s not fair to keep doing this to him.

By the time I reached the door handle of my flat, my hands were shaking with the fear of Ted being home when I just wanted to cry myself to sleep. I didn’t want him to see me like this. I was so stressed and overworked, I couldn’t stop the tears from streaming down my face.

I heard footsteps by the door, hearing the doorknob twist before I could turn it myself. An excited Ted Lasso flashes a big smile my way, making my heart flutter at the sight of him.

His hair was disheveled, his little tendril of hair over his forehead, and chest hair peeking out from his unbuttoned white polo collar. He was wearing the signature AFC Richmond navy sweater on top of it. His sleeves were pushed up, exposing his forearms. He looked so handsome and cozy.

“Welcome home sweet cheeks, been wonderin’ where you were,” Ted beamed, his cute dimples showing.

Just like the day I fell head over heels for him, I was in a daze, taking in the sight of him. I just wanted to cry in his big warm chest to forget today even happened.

“How was your…” Ted started but stopped in his tracks when he noticed my red cheeks from crying.

He stood there for awhile, examining me with his big, bright brown eyes. His smile turned into a frown, wiping the tear from my cheek.

”Darlin’?” he asked concerned, his eyebrows bunched together. “What happened?”

My lip trembles, angry at myself for being so sensitive. “Ted, I…I…just…” I stammered, struggling to get the words out. “I…had a really…bad day.”

I felt even more embarrassed he had to see me like this and started crying again, feeling like I was falling apart right then and there.

Ted was so kind and compassionate, he never judged me like anyone else did. He was always there for me.

I just didn’t want to push him away too. My worst fear was him getting sick of me and leaving me when I needed him the most. I’ve known the feeling of abandonment from people all too well.

“Sweetie,” Ted says, holding his arms out for me. “Come here.” He pulls me into his warm arms.

Feeling so pathetic right now, I just kept crying more into his chest. He runs his hand in my hair, hoping it would comfort me. He kissed me on the head, whispering sweetly in my ear, “It’s okay, let it all out. I’m here now.”

He helps me out of my coat, placing it on the coatrack nearby. He then takes my hand, guiding me to the couch. He puts his arms around me tightly, letting me get comfortable and snuggle into his neck.

“I…just…feel like…I’m not good enough,” I manage to choke out between sniffles and cries. Ted listened as he rubs my back and arms tenderly to soothe me.

“Good enough for who? Me?” Ted asks, furrowing an eyebrow, saddened at the thought of me not being good enough for him.

“Darlin’, you’re everything to me, I love you,” he assured me, making me tear up.

“That…and…Keeley. I feel like a failure,” I cried out.

“Darlin’, you’re not a failure. Heck, you’re the best at everything,” he assures me with full confidence. “You’re the smartest and most hardworking gal I know. And she knows that too. She’s lucky to have you.”

“And you’re the best thing that’s happened to me,” he continues, making me instantly blush with the endless praise and heartwarming compliments to cheer me up. “I couldn’t imagine life without you.”

My breathing starts to relax a little at the comfort of his touch and words.

I tilt my face up at him, making his mustached lips curl into a warm smile. “Am I too much?” I shyly ask, feeling overwhelmed with all the love that I felt like I didn’t deserve.

“Baby cakes, of course you’re not. Why would you say that?”

“I just…well, I…” I stammered, getting lost in his pretty brown eyes.

“Sweetie, if you think I’m ever gonna give you up and let you down, then I’d be pretty darn stupid,” he says with a twinkle in his eye. “I love you so much, I’m not goin’ anywhere.”

He tenderly tucked my hair behind my ear, making my face flush red even more. I didn’t even tell him what was on my mind and he managed to heal every painful feeling in me.

He shushes me, feeling my hands being shaky again, hoping to calm me down, knowing a lot was on my mind and bothering me. “Just take a deep breath, it’ll be alright,” he whispers.

He could feel my heartbeat race, hoping to calm it down.

“Please don’t worry, it’s okay,” he whispers.

“In…out…” he nods, guiding me to follow.

I follow along with him, making him smile coaching me through it. “In…and out. There ya go.”

I take another deep breath, closing my eyes for an instant, trying to calm down. I was feeling so many bottled up emotions coming at me all at once.

I felt more at ease being there in his arms. A big, warm hand tickles me as it makes its way under my sweater against my back. He rubbed it in gentle strokes, the warm feeling making me less tense and more relaxed.

“How are ya feeling, sweet pea?” Ted asked gently, rubbing my back even more. “Better?”

I nodded in response, opening my eyes to see the beautiful sight of him again. “That’s my girl,” he beams with delight in his voice. “You’ve had a long day, you deserve some rest. I’m here now.”

My eyes traveled down his big puppy dog eyes to his handsome smile. Then they made their way to the unbuttoned shirt, eyeing the chest hairs poking out from the neckline.

He takes me by the hands, lowering them to my sides, raising one brow at me. “How about you get cozy and settled in while I finish up the batch of biscuits I whipped up for ya.”

I nodded, feeling flush red in the face for letting my mixed emotions get the best of me. I just needed him right now more than anything.

I could smell the sweetness of his warm biscuits nearby. “T-Ted, that’s really thoughtful of you,” I smiled.

He cups my chin in his hand, giving me a gentle kiss. “Let’s get you all warmed up too with a nice hot bath, how does that sound?” he suggests.

I nodded, smiling from the warm kiss. “C-Could you…” I stammered, feeling shy and anxious again.

“Mhmm?” he asks, patiently waiting.

“C-Could y-you…help me out of these clothes? I’ve had a long day,” I shyly asked, wanting to feel his warm touch again. I couldn’t stop thinking about his hands on my body. It made me feel so…good.

“Why of course,” his mustached lips curling into a playful smile.

Without hesitating, he pulls my pink sweater over my head, tossing it aside. His big hands then pull me by the hips making me squeak from our faces inches apart as he teasingly unzips my jeans while pulling them off my legs slowly.

He tossed my jeans aside next to my sweater, hungrily looking at me in my bra and underwear. “How’s that?” Ted smiles, gently massaging both of my thighs slowly.

I gulped, feeling my heart in my throat. The room felt like it was heated just with how intense it felt right now, drowning in his pretty brown orbs.

I smile as I look up at his big brown eyes, his lips leaning into mine for another kiss. “Perfect, Teddy.”

He smiles instantly at the nickname, feeling all warm and fuzzy inside everytime I said it.

“Do you need any other assistance today, ma’am?” he asks, his hands diving down into the loops of my underwear, playfully toying with the bands on my hips. He loved my curves so much.

Goosebumps rise up, making me lose my breath for an instant. “I-I’m okay for now.”

He chuckled to himself, knowing how nervous I get around him especially when it comes to sex.

I was so inexperienced to it still and he knew that. He never pressured me into it, he wanted me to be comfortable when it came to that. He loved every opportunity to be intimate though, he’s been craving it for the longest and so did I.

“Well hop on to it then,” he gets up and winks at me, lightly smacking my upper thigh making me squeak and jump. He gestured me to follow him but I just sat there in amazement and stared at him from afar on the couch.

He happily strides his way over to the bathroom, drawing a nice hot bath for me. He stands in the doorway with his hands on his hips, raising an eyebrow at me. “Well don’t just sit there, c’mon in when it’s hot and ready, babygirl.”

I got up, blushing bad from head to toe when he’s in Coach Lasso mode.

He watches me undress, smiling from ear to ear when he catches a glimpse of my breasts and shaved mound. He picks up my undergarments watching me get in the tub slowly.

I stop for an instant holding the sides of the tub before sitting down fully, seeing him in the doorway enjoying the view.

“Teddy Bear,” I innocently say.

“Mhmm?”

“Could you get my phone?” I asked, biting my lip. “I think I left it in my bag.”

Ted crosses his arms, knowing me better than anyone else. “What for?”

“To check what time I need to…” I started but before I could finish my sentence, Ted shakes his head knowing it’s about work.

“Sabrina, if you don’t get in that bathtub I’ll throw you in there myself,” he says in his stern coach voice. “Don’t make me get the whistle now.”

My cheeks turned pink and I instantly slide my way into the tub till my butt hit the hot water.

I don’t know if it was me or the water but I felt like I became wet the minute he went into coach mode. I wonder if he would really bring the whistle if I…

“Don’t take too long darlin’, I’ll be in the kitchen if ya need me,” he smiled widely as he exits the room carrying my bra and panties.

I could hear him whistling from afar. He throws my stuff into the laundry hamper, making his way to the kitchen, tying back his apron on, getting back to biscuit business.

I giggled at the thought of him becoming full Coach Lasso especially in the bedroom. It helped my body unwind as the thought of anything Ted made me forget about what kind of day I had.

A few minutes passed by and I could feel his presence by the door, his disheveled hair over his brow again. “What’s all that gigglin’ I hear?”

Blushing bad I giggled a little too loud for him to hear, I covered my mouth in embarrassment.

“Having fun without me now?” he teases, hinting I might’ve been doing something sneaky in there.

Caught off-guard by the thought of it, I was blushing even more. “I-I wasn’t doing…” I started, trying to defend myself.

“Mhmm hmm, sure, miss gigglypuff,” he chuckled in his Southern drawl. “Don’t take too long, sugar, or I’ll make you run twenty laps.”

He slowly walks back to the kitchen, unable to keep his eyes off of me as he exits the room again, letting me know he was onto me.

Comfort was his number one priority and he always made sure I was pampered with kisses, cuddles, and biscuits.

A half hour goes by and I turn off the water, getting out to dry off. I throw on one of Ted’s grey sweaters with the signature AFC Richmond greyhound stitching. I slid under the navy bedsheets making myself comfortable.

Ted enters the room with the biggest smile on his face, carrying a plate of his biscuits baked to perfection.

“Well aren’t you snug as a bug?” Ted jokes with a big grin, setting the batch of biscuits down on the bedside table.

I let out another giggle, blushing from head to toe everytime he made me laugh.

“I’m glad you’re feeling better. Seeing you gigglin’ and all. Been missin’ that gorgeous smile of yours,” Ted smiled widely, his gorgeous dimples showing.

“I don’t think I’ve ever felt this relaxed and happy in awhile,” I admitted, feeling much better. He really knew how to loosen me up.

“Ain’t that good to hear,” he smiles, lightly booping me on the nose with his finger.

I grab one of his biscuits, putting it in my mouth. That hit the spot. I softly moaned chewing it.

I blushed, feeling his soft watchful eyes on me.

“And I missed hearing that sound too,” he winks.

He walks out of the room, untying his apron and setting it on the chair.

I sit up on the bed, pouting seeing him walk off again. “I need my Teddy Bear to cuddle with,” I insisted, making him spin around to face me.

“Awe sweet pea, I’ll only be a minute. I gotta hop on out of these clothes unless you want to snuggle with the Pillsbury Doughboy,” he jokes, kissing me on the head.

He had sugar and dough on his pants and apron after baking biscuits.

He pulls out another biscuit, putting it in my mouth to taste. “Good, ain’t it?” he smiles.

“Mhmm,” I softly moan into the biscuit, biting into it.

“Help yourself, sugar,” he says to me. He walks over to the foot of the bed, taking off his clothes one by one.

I slowly stop chewing, taking in the sight of his strong forearms slowly pulling the sleeves off his sweater.

He’s doing this for me I know it. It was torture.

I bit my lower lip in anticipation, seeing his white polo shirt ride up enough to expose his soft tummy and happy trail as he takes his sweater off.

He has no idea what he’s doing to me. Unless he does know…

He sets it aside on the chair next to the apron, going for the polo next.

My eyes traveled up to the top of his polo, where most of the buttons were already undone and I caught another glimpse of the chest hair peeking out that made me feral. I always admired his dadbod but something about his chest hair was just so masculine and sexy. It was what made him such a cuddle bear too, it was soft and furry to the touch.

My brain is racing, making me giggle at the thought of taking him out of those clothes, pulling down those khakis to see…

“You’re having a blast over there, gigglypuff,” he joked, getting another irresistible smile from me.

“I think I caught you drifting off again like you did in that tub earlier,” Ted teased with a smile. I blushed hard.

“I…” I stammered, nervously sweating when his big hands reached for the zipper on his khakis.

“I’ve been putting on a little show for you, huh, sugar plum?” he chuckled, making my heart melt the more he lowered the pants off his legs.

I blushed so bad, I could feel my face burning red. I covered my face in the sheets, hiding my face for him to not see. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about, Ted.”

He wiggled out of his khakis, smiling at me hiding from him. “It’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” he smiles, pulling back the sheet to meet my eyes. “I don’t mind one bit.”

He’s in his boxer briefs and polo, crawling next to me in the bed. His strong arms pull me towards him from behind, resting his hands on my belly.

I felt his warm chest on my back, making me blush and smile again. I could smell his cologne on his shirt, making me feel more relaxed and at home than ever.

I nuzzle against his neck, feeling his arm around me, lowering down to rest at my hip.

“Thank you, Teddy. For doing this for me,” I gently whisper.

He looks down at me, giving me gentle kisses on my neck. “That’s what Teddy Bear is here for, I’m just glad to see you smilin’ again. I’ve missed that,” he replied.

I pouted, feeling like something else was missing. I still wanted the snuggle bear I’ve been craving. And by that I mean his warm snuggly chest hairs.

Ted was sometimes self-conscious about his body and even though I loved his dadbod, he still felt like he had to hide his belly and love handles when around me.

I wanted him to be comfortable too. I loved this man too much to hide the most beautiful parts about him.

I sat up in the bed, feeling his arms drop down next to me. He cocks his head to the side, wondering what I was up to now.

“Everything alright, darlin’?”

I turn to face him, rubbing my hands affectionally on his chest, making him grin a little.

I rub the chest hair poking out of his shirt, making his manhood harden in his boxers.

“Can I cuddle with my furry Teddy Bear?” I innocently requested, hoping he’d say yes. “Chest hair and all…I think it would help me sleep better. You’re so cozy.”

“Mhmm, you know I can’t say no to that, now can I, honey bunch?” he chuckled, equally blushing unable to resist my pouting. “I’ll let you do the honors.”

I excitedly bounce in the bed, giddily making my way to pull off his polo shirt. I grab the sides of his shirt, pulling it off his head to be face to face with his broad shoulders and chest.

Without thinking, I run my fingers from his belly to his chest hair, purring at the feel of it.

My nails dig at it, pulling a few of the chest hairs as I ran my fingers through it, somewhat clawing at them, pulling him closer to me.

Ted struggles to keep up with me and tries to catch his breath, surprised by how feral his body made me.

“Woah easy now,” he says.

I continued by planting small kisses from his chest to his happy trail. My hands caressed his strong, warm chest while praising him more, making him feel good about himself.

“I love you…you’re so perfect,” I whisper, kissing him on the lips.

He softly grunts into my mouth, craving the love and affection.

Unable to let go of him, I run small circles through his chest hair with the twirl of my fingers.

His tongue teases my lips and I tease him back by biting his bottom lip, making another giggle escape my mouth. After the kiss deepens for another moment, he pulls back, admiring me.

“Aren’t you the gigglin’ girl today?” he smiles.

“Mhmm. You’re hairy…so beary hairy,” I giggled.

He raises an eyebrow, liking the sound of this. “Am I now?” he grins. “I should take my shirt off more if I knew how much it would make you grin like a possum eating a sweet potato.”

Ted’s tongue traces my lips, then trails down my jaw, neck, and collar bone making me purr in response.

“How’s that?” he asks, hoping to satisfy me.

“Mhmm, so good,” I softly moaned, craving his warm touch.

My hands move up his chest, then to his broad shoulders.

His big, warm hands work around my waist, exploring my curves while pulling me closer to him. He caresses my cheek, pulling me into another kiss that had our mouths moving in perfect unison.

Feeling breathless, I reached up to his hair, running my fingers through them. He growls into my mouth, making me tug onto it in response.

When his lips move down my neck again, I couldn’t help but let out a moan I’ve been holding in, feeling a wave of ecstasy rush over me, coating my panties instantly.

His warm hands rub my protruding nipples sticking out of his grey sweater, making him smile enough for his dimples to graze my neck.

“Oh my god,” I murmured, feeling lost for words.

“How are you feeling?” he asks, his warm breath against my skin.

“M-Much b-better, T-Teddy,” I said, feeling my body tingle with his hands slowly massaging my breasts.

He pulls back, his brown eyes dark and full of lust. “Any other requests for Teddy Bear?” he grinned, hoping to pleasure me some more.

I blushed, feeling my heart race. “C-Cuddles,” I said, struggling to get the words out.

My eyes trailed over to his bedside table, spotting the pair of aviators, whistle, and white visor hat he left out, thinking it’s something he’s been saving for a special occasion: Coach Lasso. If I kept on teasing him, he would find a way to torture me with it somehow and he knew I would love it. He wanted me to feel good and he knew how to make me feel good.

“Anything for you, darlin’,” he whispers, kissing me on the cheek.

He tucked himself again in behind me, pulling the bedsheets over us, wrapping his arms tightly around me. He playfully nibbles on my ear, getting another playful giggle out of me.

“That’s my girl,” he smiles, running his hands up and down my arms. His hands explore my hips and upper thighs, making me blush even more.

He felt so warm and snuggly I couldn’t stop smiling around him. His legs are wrapped behind mine, tangling our bodies even closer together.

“I love you so much,” he whispers gently, giving me more tender kisses on my neck. His breath tickled against my ear.

“I would do anything for you, you know that?”

I giggled, feeling his impressive bulge rub against me. “I know you would,” I smiled.

“You’ve got a case of the giggles today, don’t you?” he chuckled, hoping to hear more of it.

“I can’t help myself when I’m around you,” I shyly admitted, feeling embarrassed he noticed the small details about me. But he loved it so much.

“I can’t either,” he whispered, making my heart feel full.

“I love you Tedbear,” I reply, feeling so comfortable in his arms.

He smiled, giving me more of a bear hug by squeezing me tighter. His hands felt so warm against mine, letting my body melt into his as he kept caressing my curves to help me drift off to sleep.

The more comforting and loving he was, the more my eyes fluttered into dreamland.

“I love you too,” he whispers in my ear, smiling and enjoying the beautiful silence around us. Worn out himself, Ted fell asleep holding me tightly against him smiling ear to ear knowing he made my horrible day better with him around.

#selfship fic #self insert #ted lasso x reader #ted lasso reader insert #ted lasso fanfiction #ted lasso fanfic #fluff #ted lasso fluff #ted lasso smut #my tedbear fic #proship dni

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all-for-geek · 2 months

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ANYWAY. sense u take rqs..have u done any bill x paul hcs? If not

Can I get my gay divorced man x soggy wet cat content 🙏🏻 /j/nf

ooooo okay this is not a ship I have ever thought about let's go

Alright so they to mostly started bonding because they ended up going to school things a lot (Paul for Richie and Bill for Alice)

this was back when the kids were pretty young, and since the two worked together as well, it became pretty common practice for the two to babysit for each other

As Bill's marriage starts crumbling, he starts going to Paul for advice/comfort

Paul has no idea what to do with this

Bill seems to not be crying as much after they talk, but Paul always wonders if he said the right thing

Anyway post divorce, Bill starts trying to hang out with Paul a LOT

partially because he is trying to get an idea of how he can preserve his and Alice's relationship and in part because being with Paul makes him less lonely now that he lives alone

Sometimes, Bill is overbearing but Paul usually lets the man since he's going through it, but whenever Paul does bring it (mostly around Bill inviting him to see musicals) he is good about respecting that

Ted starts making fun of them and calling them a couple

Bill starts spiraling into a full on identity crisis

Paul shrugs it off until Emma is like "no babe you two have been going on dates for like months at this point" and proceeds to spiral as well

Most of their dates are just hanging out at either Paul or Bill's apartment depending on if Alice is in town

Alice's reaction to finding out that her dad is dating a man goes from surprise to acceptance to (unknowingly) relief at having something she feels like she can talk about with her dad, and then dread as he starts making gay dad jokes every chance he gets

This was fun! Thanks for the request!

#starkid #bill woodward #paul matthews #the guy who didn't like musicals #tgwdlm #bill x paul

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applesfallingfromblondehair · 7 months

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stalking ur account rn, would definitely like to hear more about how beabadoobee’s our extended play ep is about matty and george 🫣

Well, it's fairly simple:

the two of them wrote those songs (presumably in lockdown, when, you know, it was just the two of them living together and they got a fucking dog together). I could stop here but there's more

Last Day On Earth is basically Me & You Together Song in a different key and with slightly different lyrics. M&YTS is NOTORIOUSLY one of the band's gayest songs

Cologne was written by Bea and Matty together and it's about thirsting over some very attractive guy and kinda hating themselves for doing it

He Gets Me So High is about always coming back to the same person because you can't get enough of them. Also: he pretends he is my closest friend / it's a lie ?????

and last but not least, Animal Noises is my Matty and George Together Anthem, mostly because I associate it with the Marriage Crisis scenario the two of them have described in their own words in my Roman Empire Sodajerker podcast, which you really should listen to if you haven't and are as obsessed as me with the not-so-secret BTS dynamic between these two. In particular, during this chat Matty points out that he and George thrive in different environments: George at home, in his studio, with his things and his desperate need to control everything; Matty on tour, with his chaos and his imagination/songwriting bug getting activated by the simple fact of being on the road. When they found themselves stuck at home, Matty was spiralling in a moment when George was at his best. Hence: maybe you like my mistakes / and maybe you get why I lied / maybe the things that make you wanna live / were the things that make me wanna die. Add to that the fact that the song itself is about growing up with someone and missing the moments spent making animal noises together, aka just being goofy and silly and enjoying the simple things without having to worry about the future. I just need someone to hold / but I guess that I'm getting to old / it's something I keep getting told / I guess that I'm getting to old for this. Call me delusional all you want but these aren't lines our lovely Bea, who is TWENTY-THREE YEARS OLD (and was 21 when the EP came out), might have meant as much as thirtysomething Matty and George.

Thank you very much for coming to my TED Talk. If you couldn't be arsed to read that whole thing, here's the abstract:

they are gay for each other and very fucking tragic about it

I think the world and this fandom would be much simpler places if they just stopped pretending.

#answered #matty and george #matty healy #george daniel #our extended play #beabadoobee

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noodl3s4dayz · 4 months

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Au stuff yippee!!

It had been nearly 14 years since she died. 14 years to move on, to start fresh somewhere new. And move on he did. That’s what Ted kept telling himself, at least. Some people thought he had murdered her, claiming he was only after her money and never even loved her in the first place. He wasn’t anywhere near Monte Carlo when it happened, but that didn’t stop some folks from… speculating.

Some claimed his life was easier with her “out of the way”. It was a lie. Ted had loved her, very dearly. Her death sent him into a spiral of depression, and when trying to forget she ever existed didn’t work, he tried to remember. Before he moved back to the States, Ted had rifled through her belongings, worn her dresses, looked through photos upon photos of him and her happy, beaming at whoever was taking the picture without a care in the world. That only made things worse. The more he reminisced, the more he wanted— needed to have her back.

Death doesn’t work that way, Ted reminded himself. He’d been grieving for more than a decade and it nearly drove him mad, and he decided that drowning his troubles in alcohol was the best course of action. It worked, for a while. He forgot, he became detached. Numb. He even tried his luck with women again, unfortunately for him it was a fruitless endeavor.

The last girl he tried to sleep with had shrieked in terror at what clothing luckily concealed. She had called him a freak. She screamed about how he had the wrong parts, that he was a stitched together monster, not a man. In his drunken, half conscious state he just cried, pleading for her to understand.

“S’ not my— hic — my f-fault! I was bor— born with it, please don’t leave me—“ he had blubbered, clinging to the woman’s arm for dear life. But she easily overpowered him, clawing his hand off her and dashing out of his spacious bedroom half naked before he could even finish the sentence. A few minutes had passed. Ted sat quietly on the edge of his bed, staring at the floor as he idly kicked his legs, tears streaming down his cheeks.

~~~

“I c-can’t do this anymore,” he muttered under his breath, not so much to himself as to his long dead lover. The next day he resolved to jump off that bridge he’d walked across with her a couple of times. They had marveled at how the trees on either side of the lake had perfectly framed a view of possibly the most beautiful oak forest he had ever laid his eyes on. Ted shook his head, pushing the now not-so-fond memory away. He pulled on a sweater that had been thrown into some dark corner of his room the night before, and after almost tripping down the marble staircase that led to the entryway, trudged out the front door, not bothering to close it behind him. He didn’t need to, after all. At some point he bent over and vomited during the leisurely walk to his death, mostly out of fear and anxiety for the events to come.

When he finally reached his destination, he noticed a rather tall man with a large pair of stupid looking orange tinted glasses on his face. He was leaning on the side of the bridge, staring into the distance with a small smile. Ted ignored him and clambered over the side of the wood and metal structure, shaking with fright but determined nonetheless. He squeezed his eyes shut and leaned forward. This was it. This is what he’d wanted to do since she died, and—

A solid thirty seconds went by and Ted didn’t… feel like he was falling. He cracked an eye open to confirm his suspicions. He wasn’t plummeting to his watery grave. Why? Ted pondered it for a moment, more alert and almost able to think straight now that most of the booze had left his system. He realized he wasn’t falling because there was a pair of meaty hands secured around his middle, effectively stopping Ted’s suicide attempt. Ted clawed at his savior’s hands but they wouldn’t budge, only moving to cross over his chest and drag him back over the side of the bridge. Ted flailed wildly in no particular direction to try and shake off whoever dared keep him from his lover, screaming at the top of his lungs.

“You— you bastard! Let me go right now you motherf—“ Ted was caught off guard by suddenly being hauled all the way over the railing, the hard landing on his back knocking the wind out of him. Ted hacked and coughed, tears forming in the corners of his eyes. He heard a groan of pain above him.

I hope I broke something.

“Why were you doing that?” A man’s voice asked, and as Ted craned his neck to look up at him he recognized him as the man he’d seen smiling at nothing.

“Doing what?” Ted wheezed.

“Trying to kill yourself,” the man answered, seemingly unbothered by the action but instead curious about Ted’s motives.

“That’s— that’s none of y-your damn business, pal,” Ted grumbled, sitting up and brushing dirt off his jeans.

The man looked irked but didn’t press any further, extending his hand for Ted to take. Reluctantly, Ted took it and stood up, cursing at the pop his knees made. The two stood in silence for a while, Ted just holding onto the man’s hand.

“I’m Abner, in case you were wondering,” the man— Abner— said, breaking the awkward stretch of quiet. Ted snorted.

“That’s a funny name,” he murmured.

“Theodore, right?” Abner asked.

Ted stopped responding for a minute and the taller man let his eyes drift down to where Ted’s hand was still firmly gripping his. Ted’s head twitched slightly, and he remembered he was in the middle of a conversation.

“Wait, how do you—“

“Don’t be stupid, sweetheart, I don’t live under a rock,” Abner said before he could catch himself. He cleared his throat and added politely, “I mean, I just like to keep up with how the rich and famous are doing. Not much of anything else to do.” Ted’s mouth curled into a scowl and he yanked his hand away, then looked down in surprise as if he hadn’t previously noticed the contact.

“Thanks for the help,” Ted deadpanned, crossing his arms and turning to walk back home. Maybe I’ll just hang myself or something. He considered the possibility; it would hurt but it would get the job done.

“Wait, wait!” Abner called, running up to Ted and placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Do you need something?” Ted growled.

“How do I know you won’t try it again?” Abner questioned, with just a hint of false sadness in his tone. No doubt pity.

“Why do you care?” Ted snapped. He pushed the other man away and walked a little faster.

“Because I know what you’re going through. You loved someone. She either left you or died.”

Ted froze.

“You don’t know that.”

“Enlighten me then. What happened?”

If he turned around, Ted was sure he’d see the man smirking.

“I— she died, yeah,” Ted mumbled. He paused for a moment before adding, “… and… and how would you know how it feels?”

“I’ve been divorced. Twice,” Abner explained nonchalantly.

This is stupid, Ted thought, He’s probably lying to me.

Ted turned around slowly, having to lift his chin to look the other man in the eye. Abner was not smirking, Ted noted. He looked… somber. Almost. Maybe Ted was just reading into his expression too much.

“I can tell you don’t believe me,” Abner whispered.

“I mean I never s-said that but— I— you’re a stranger! I don’t know you! You could just be trying to lure me back to your place to drug me and— and strangle me!” Ted made a dramatic choking gesture to get his point across.

“If I wanted you to die I would have let you go over that bridge,” Abner said, a little bit of bite to his voice. Ted swallowed hard.

“D-do you want a drink?” Ted offered.

~~~

Abner gasped in awe at the interior of Ted’s “humble abode.” Ted casually lied that he just happened to be born into wealth, not bothering with the monotonous details of the farm, or his six siblings, OR the fact that he was lucky to have had a woman– a very wealthy woman— become enamored with him. Telling Abner to make himself at home (hesitantly, as part of Ted was still convinced he was a murderer), Ted descended a well worn staircase to the basement. Ted grimaced at his near barren cellar, making a mental note to get more wine if he decided not to end his own life. He soon emerged from the dark recesses of the space with a bottle of champagne in hand, popping the cork off and taking a swig from the bottle before pouring Abner a glass.

By the time the sun set most all of the champagne was gone and Ted was crying again. Over her, over not being able to be there, over not even going to her funeral. Both Ted and his companion were seated on a large cushioned sofa. Abner was afraid of scooting closer to Ted’s shaking form but wanted to seem like someone to go to in times of need, all the while. He didn’t have much time to think about it. Ted thrust himself forward and grasped the front of Abner’s coat tightly, sobbing into his chest.

“I, um, I can relate to that. My first wife had a miscarriage,” Abner muttered, shifting in place, “we were going to name him Nicholas. It was hard on both of us but her especially. She couldn’t…she couldn’t really stand to be around me after that.” Ted smiled slightly at the other man being able to understand the tragedy of death but still kept weeping, staining the front of Abner’s shirt with snot and tears. The taller man just bent over a bit to set his glass on a small table in front of him. He didn’t care about that shirt anyways. He pretended not to, at least.

That’s when Ted leaned his head back to stare up at him, eyes glassy. Abner didn’t even have a second to react before Ted smashed their lips together. Ted slid his hands from Abner’s lapels to his face, cupping it tightly as if to make sure the man in front of him was real. After a few moments Ted pulled away from Abner’s mouth with a wet smack and an expression of pure dread spreading across his features.

“I shouldn’t have done that. I— I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that,” he slurred. His head thumped against Abner’s chest; Ted was clearly out cold. The other man blinked a couple of times. He licked his bottom lip, still wet with Ted’s bitter tasting saliva. He briefly considered bashing Ted’s head in and washing his mouth out with soap before opting to place his hands on Ted’s back, tracing his fingers along Ted’s spine.

“What a sap,” Abner giggled.

#ihnmaims #ted ihnmaims #Au #yes i did warp the timeline #Sorry #abner maguire #I wanted to write kissing and accidentally added 1878 words of plot whoops #Tw suicide attempt #TedAM #This is kind of told from Ted’s perspective

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mirananananan · 9 months

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intro & fic masterlist

hi & welcome to my blog which consists mostly of me screaming about the last of us, more specifically joel & ellie. i also enjoy a fair amount of other fandom content (ted lasso, succession, harry potter, marvel, some musicians, etc), so expect occasional reblogs outside of tlou.

my name is miranda (she/her), and i am back on tumblr and ao3 after an approx. 10 year hiatus, so it has been really fun finding joy in this again after so long! my asks are always open, as are my dms! i love meeting and talking to people on here!

speaking of, i write tlou fic and post on ao3 when i have the time and inspiration! i absolutely love found family dynamics, angst/fluff, and giving these beautiful characters who i love so much some softness and happiness.

masterlist:

ONE-SHOTS:

you were wrong (my healing needed more than time) - ellie and joel adjust to life in jackson. joel is having a harder time than he thought he would...and he somehow forgot how hard it is to be a parent (3.9k words)

what would it feel like to put this baggage down? - the progression of joel & ellie's relationship through conversations they have while he does her hair (7.4k words)

routine - there is a break in ellie's routine, and the entire day spirals from there. set in modern au in which 7-year-old ellie was adopted by good parents joel & tess, the beautiful verse set up by this fic (4.6k words)

twenty year dark night (now i see daylight) - joel remembers a series of core parenting memories with sarah as he navigates being a parent to a very different child under very different circumstances (11k words)

a place in a brand new world - joel tells ellie the truth after a few months in jackson. she struggles with forgiveness, complicated further by having a hard time coming to terms with what her place is in joel's life. ft. good uncle tommy, feelings of inadequacy for ellie, and joel waiting patiently to pick up the pieces (5.4k words)

we don't get too long (that's why i'm holding on) - ellie's getting older, and so is joel. lots of things are different, but plenty is the same. ft. aged-up ellie and joel; everyone lives, no one dies jackson fluff (2.4k words)

i had the best day with you today - the pumpkin patch/fall vibes fic i dreamt up one day while listening to "the best day" (taylor's version) by taylor swift (5.1k words)

a home that leads me back to you - whumptober 2023 promt #3: "like crying out in an empty room, with no one there except the moon" | solitary confinement | "make it stop"

SERIES:

modern sisters au -

modern setting au in which joel is a single dad to his two teenage daughters, sarah and ellie.

daughters - in another universe, joel has both of his girls together, minus the apocalypse. aka, the modern au in which sarah & ellie are sisters (2.3k words)

on my side (even when i was wrong) - sarah and ellie attempt to pull off a scheme to keep joel from finding about ellie's school troubles. he finds out anyway (4.5k words)

the better version of our past - joel and tess agree to smuggle a six-year-old named ellie to the fireflies in exchange for gear they need to get west in joel’s search for tommy. when they discover she is immune and what the fireflies plan to do with her, there is a change of plans.

takes place about 8 years before canon. tess lives, family is found, ellie gets a post-apocalyptic childhood.

the past coming back (pt. 1) - main story. an alternate universe/timeline where joel & tess meet ellie eight years earlier under similar circumstances (30.7k words)

the future looks good (pt. 2) - a little extra of ellie’s pov at bill & frank’s (set in chapters 3-4 of part 1 of series). ft. ellie's process of starting to trust joel & tess even though she's never really known trustworthy adults (2.2k words)

just tryin' to find my way to you (pt. 3) - ellie gets sick while settling in jackson. joel worries too much. ft. the healing powers of candy land (7.1k words)

today is another day to find you (pt. 4) - joel makes a guitar once they're settled into jackson. ellie is absolutely smitten, but tess is even more smitten with her family and the moments they enjoy together (2.7k words)

time cutting me open (then healing me fine) (pt. 5) - tommy convinces joel & tess to take a "vacation" so that he can activate good uncle tommy mode. it goes about as well as could be expected. ft. ellie's separation anxiety, tommy doing his best, and lots of fluffy comfort for all (6k words)

i found you under an april sky (pt. 6) - during her early months in jackson, ellie learns what it means to be loved, have a family, and a place to call home (6.4k words)

a flower bud in concrete (pt. 7) - the miller family grows within the safe walls of jackson. tess & joel decide to have a baby now that they are in an environment that is normal enough, and ellie has mixed feelings about being a big sister (14.3k words)

just stand still (pt. 8) - ellie is 14 now and experiencing some major growing pains. ft. aged-up tpcb ellie, heavy angst, and canonical violence/traumatic events, but also the incredible miller family there to help make it all better (25.3k words)

#blog intro #most used tags:#tlou #fic writing #joel & ellie #tlou fanart #the last of us #joel miller #ellie williams #pedro pascal #bella ramsey #tlou fic

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trelkez · 1 year

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Me watching Ted Lasso 3.11:

I truly thought the last few episodes of the show had broken any remaining faith I had in its storytelling, but no. The second scene of this episode: that broke any remaining faith I had in Ted Lasso's storytelling. This season is NOT GOOD. And yet: are they going to make my OT3 canon? Are they?

I'm going to process Ted Lasso 3.11 (mostly) the way I did last week, by doing a rewatch and taking everything in order as it happens. The show's writing is so incoherent at this point that I'm not going to attempt to impose order on it; things just occur. This is the way.

1. Ted's Mom

I spent the entire opening credit sequence mentally reviewing every Ted/Trent fic I've ever read that had some kind of take on Ted's mom – and realizing that whatever we were about to get wasn't going to be as interesting as anything I'd read in fic, because this season is hell-bent on the idea that all conflict can be washed away in the space of a single conversation.

Remember when I would've just been excited to finally meet Ted's mom? Pepperidge Farm remembers.

2. Jade hates working with her boyfriend

And who can blame her? This woman has one thing, and that is working at Taste of Athens. Come on, Nate, get your own thing!

3. "We want you to come back to Richmond."

So, okay.

I've already written pretty extensively on how badly handled Nate's redemption arc has been. This has been a problem all season long; before I moved back to Tumblr, I was writing small, irate tweets about it.

Let's go back and look at some of the things I said during and after season 2:

2.07: Nate - his characterization has been really consistent: he's always been a jerk to Will, he uses his power over others to belittle them to make himself feel better, he conflates being assertive with being aggressive, this stuff was in s1 too

post-s2, 1/3: the show put a lot of work into showing Nate punching down, his growing narcissism, the ways feeling underappreciated makes him cruel to others and himself; I don't think we're meant to take away that being denied a Nespresso machine justifies a heel turn

post-s2, 2/3: Nate's history with women as shown is not great - when he thinks he's fired he immediately calls Rebecca a shrew; "perhaps you'd like to give me your number, too" to Jade the hostess as soon as he feels like he can order her around; kissing Keeley at all

post-s2, 3/3: when he kissed Keeley I was like, sure, this tracks; (for him) it becoming solely about him being mad that it wasn't enough to get Roy's attention also tracks. but the rest ... and some of the media takeaway ... is weird to me. is this relatable content?? should it be?

What gets me about all of this is that sometimes, this season has almost convinced me that Nate leaking the panic attack story to Trent was just a weak moment for which an otherwise lovable guy should be forgiven – but the evidence isn't there. They were so consistent in how they built up Nate's fall; they seeded that in as far back as season one. They signaled it through hair color! They unfolded it piece by piece, in a deliberate, escalating spiral from which there ultimately was no last-minute escape.

And then we get to season three, and two seasons of careful character building immediately becomes meaningless. Season three's Nate is a different person. This entire season is taking place in an alternate universe. And there's no reason they had to do that, because they had an entire twelve-episode season of increasingly long episodes in which to slowly but surely make Nate a better person! Time for him to learn a series of important lessons that tie into past behavior; time for him to slowly reconcile with his father; time for him to grow without erasing the person he had always been. Time to build him up into a better version of himself.

Instead, this is what we have. And even then, some of the most important parts of the story of Nate's redemption have happened off-screen. Nate quitting off-screen last week was truly shocking; the team discussing Nate's situation, deciding to forgive him, and voting on whether or not to invite him back – that happening off-screen is unforgivable. The West Ham storyline has, thus far, mattered so little to this season that maybe (.......maybe) we can say that severing ties with Rupert wasn't a key part of his journey, even though that's absurd, but Nate's return to Richmond is everything. That's the whole ballgame.

For Colin to be part of the welcoming committee is truly fucking egregious. Even this very season, Colin is still repeating his affirmation from therapy as he actively works on building up his self-confidence – something Nate deliberately tried to destroy. At no point did I imagine that a one-on-one with Colin wasn't going to be part of Nate's apology tour. But now – one sprig of lavender for Will, and that's all it takes? Nate's treatment of Colin isn't going to be addressed at all?

This is the same team that collected red cards like candy against West Ham after Roy and Beard showed them the video of Nate ripping up the "believe" sign. Remember the power walk of fury past Nate to open the second half of that game? Why do they now suddenly want him back? Because they heard he was working in a restaurant and felt sorry for him? Because they heard he apologized to Will and decided that was enough? At this point, I genuinely think the writers didn't know how that conversation would go, so they skipped over it. If you aren't sure how to get the team back on Nate's side, just have it happen off-screen; then it doesn't matter how it happened, only that it did. If you only tell and never show, you can make anything happen without having to get from A to B.

All of this mess, all of this time, and we don't get to be in the room as the team reaches some kind of closure on everything Nate did.

4. "Richmond have won fifteen matches in a row. With two games left, you're just four points off Manchester City for the Premier League title."

Thanks for expositing all of that, Reporter Guy. If it weren't for the occasional infodump, we'd never know what was going on in the team's season! Exposition Characters, you're the true heroes.

5. "That goal is a lie. It should be retracted from the record. I apologize to everyone, especially the kids."

If they had kept to this kind of funny-but-alarming tone without going too overboard on it, Jamie's pre-Manchester depressive episode would've been a lot more effective.

I know this show can handle depression, anxiety, and parent-induced stress in a thoughtful way and balance that with tonally appropriate comedy, but can it do that … anymore?

6. Ted's ever-increasing mom stress

To that end: the way they built up Ted being so put out his mother was in town, I thought for sure we were going to find out he had been dodging her calls about something (was Michelle getting married after all?) and this would reveal whatever it was to the audience.

I think – I think – that the actual intended effect here is to underscore that Ted ran an entire continent away from his problems and all of his unprocessed trauma, and having all of that catch up to him without warning triggered a stress cascade resulting in the meltdown we'll get at the end. But if that's the intention, what this episode really underscores is that they simply do not know how to handle this sort of storyline anymore. Dottie Lasso is lovely and entertaining and you definitely can look at her and see where Ted comes from, but the Ted parts of this story are about as nuanced as a sledgehammer on concrete.

7. "Trent, your hair is fabulous. It really is. It's just stylin'."

I never thought that Trent would actually meet Ted's mother in the show. I can't wait to see what fic writers do with this. (Please don't get discouraged by however the show ends and walk away, fic writers! We need you now, tonight. We need you more than ever.)

8. Van Damme's mask

This is officially more follow-up on a previous episode's subplot than we have had about almost any other subplot this entire season, and it's about one of the most disposable stories they've told.

9. OT3 Watch: "Shouting is Roy's love language."

Does Trent ship it? One of us, one of us.

10. OT3 Watch: Jamie crying on Roy

There's a lot about this scene I loved, so let's take a break for positivity! That sounds nice, doesn't it?

Jamie bursting into tears and then, when asked what's wrong, saying, "I don't know, I don't know, I don't know": intensely relatable. He's already in tears as he walks into the boot room, just barely holding it in, and the second Roy pushes him to toughen up (in general), he loses it, because of course he does: he's dreading another trauma at the hands of his abusive dad, in the hometown that hates him. It makes perfect sense for Jamie to be having a serious depressive episode, and it is entirely in character for him to describe that as "I don't use any conditioner anymore, because what's the fucking point."

This is one thing this season has done well, with patience and consistency: it's believable for Jamie to break down crying on Roy because they put the time in to get these two to that point. Last season, it was a big fucking deal when Roy hugged Jamie. This season, if Jamie is going to cry on anyone, of course it's going to be Roy.

That said: I think it was a mistake to go quite so hard on playing this for laughs. Depression and trauma absolutely can be mined for comedy. "Do you think a depressed person could make this?" works because it's still Ben Wyatt, it's just Depressed Ben Wyatt. Jamie smushing Roy's face around as Phil Dunster gives it his absolute best comedy wailing sob doesn't … feel like Jamie? It just feels like comedy. If the moment isn't organic to the character, probably it needed a rewrite.

"It probably needed a rewrite," the Ted Lasso season three story. – Then again, I wonder all the time how much of this season's problems are due to the infamous production-halting Jason Sudeikis rewrites, so … maybe not? Maybe this season needed fewer rewrites and more Bill Lawrence? Who can say.

("Will, you missed a good one" is a great closing note for the series-long gag of overheard emotional scenes in the boot room. If they do another one in the finale, they'll have overshot it.)

11. "Hey, Roy, would it bother you if we brought Nate back?" / "No, I don't give a fuck."

At this point, I briefly stopped watching.

I went back to 2.12 to see if Roy knows that Nate was the source for the panic attack story: as of that episode, as far as I can tell, he doesn't.

I went to 3.04 to see if there was any indication during the West Ham episode that Roy had figured it out by then, but that episode focuses on the "believe" sign, which everyone but Ted seems to be finding out about for the first time.

Roy doesn't know that Nate actively tried to ruin Ted. (Does it make any sense for Roy to not have done the math when he was in the room when Ted opened up to the coaches about his panic attacks? Probably not, but that appears to be the canon.) He does know what Nate was like, particularly toward the end; he knows that Nate abandoned ship for West Ham; he knows that Nate ripped the sign, and he used that to turn the entire team against Nate for the West Ham game; and perhaps most importantly, Roy is not especially known as an easygoing, forgiving guy.

This is a man who carried a devastating news clipping around in his wallet for his entire career and beyond. A guy who couldn't hug Jamie in celebration until he headbutted him to make them even. This is Roy Kent, who is known even by people who don't watch this show as the one with the anger issues.

And he's just – fine? To bring Nate back? He holds no grudges? Roy Kent? We're really going to have Roy Kent as the voice of "yeah, whatever, I don't care" while Beard is left to fume alone?

12. "If you bring that Judas back, I will burn this place to the fucking ground."

Once again, Beard is the only one who's seen season two. And yet, this is being set up as a conflict that Beard has to set aside.

Has Nate apologized to Ted at this point? No. Was Nate an increasingly toxic presence in the locker room last season? Yes. Do they have any knowledge of his coaching style at West Ham that we're aware of that would suggest that he's had a major personality change? No. Are they currently on a fifteen-game winning streak without Nate? Yes. Are there only two games left in the season? Yes.

Is there any reason to bring Nate back at this point? No. And Beard, who has been the only one all season long who has retained any emotional awareness of past events, is only allowed to have that awareness so that it can be used as a justifying force for Nate's return.

I support you, Beard. This is all some bullshit. You should be allowed to be pissed about it.

13. Nora!

Is Rebecca's aside about Nora telling her to stop using her private jet the closest we're going to get to a Nora appearance this season? There's still time for her to pop up in the finale, but that seems unlikely.

14. OT3 Watch: Keeley checking in on Jamie

I was on the fence about whether or not they were going too hard on humor with Jamie's depression until "a suitcase is a drawer without a home … wahh." This is the best they could do for depression comedy? This is a comedy series that did an entire season about depression!! Phil Dunster really is doing his best in this episode, but not even he could elevate that line.

I do like the general concept of Roy going to Keeley for help with Jamie, only for Keeley to make it all worse. Roy being better at comforting Jamie is conceptually very funny. Writing dialogue that does justice to a story outline is tricky, isn't it? Mm.

15. Sam and Rebecca???

Are they doing this, or are they just going to tease it every single episode? Are Sam and Rebecca endgame? Surely not, right. If it were endgame, wouldn't we have gotten into the meat of it a lot sooner than … the finale?

If you know a Tedbecca shipper, maybe give them a warm cookie this week, because this episode did not move that anywhere promising.

(My money is still on Houseboat Guy popping up out of nowhere.)

16. OT3 Watch: Jamie and Keeley follow Jamie home

If this is the first time Keeley is meeting Jamie's mom, that means – he never took her home when they were dating?

Roy staring in absolute slack-jawed shock at Jamie and his mom cuddling on the couch is me. Roy is me. Setting aside for a moment just how much is going on there, I never would have guessed that Jamie had a relationship like this with a mom who was still in the picture.

In 1.06, Jamie talks about how his mom got him into football and supported him but probably wouldn't be proud of him lately; in 3.06, we hear about a trip they took to Amsterdam when he was a teenager. Is that … it? Have there been other references to his mom? In 2.08, when Richmond plays Manchester City, there is a lot about his dad but no reference to his mom that I remember. The show is so laser-focused on Jamie's dad that I assumed his mother, whether dead or estranged or somehow unwell, wasn't an active force in his life in the present day.

This is a show about dads. They've told us that in interviews all along. Ted's dad, Nate's dad, Jamie's dad, Sam's dad, Rebecca's dad, even a whiff of Trent's dad; Ted's relationship with his son, even Phoebe's relationship with her Uncle Roy. We see Nate's mom, but that is almost entirely about Nate's relationship with his dad. The only characters who get to have meaningful ongoing not-about-dads onscreen relationships with their mothers are Rebecca and Nora, which is … weirdly gendered?

But now, with the curtain about to drop on this show, they're doing a Mom Episode. We get two moms we've never met before dropped on us in one hour. We know almost nothing about these moms, because they've never been made central to the story in a way everyone's dads have been; and here, in an episode titled "Mom City," their stories are still mostly about each character's relationship with his dad.

Even so, those stories need to fit into what we know about Ted and Jamie. "I love meeting people's moms. It's like reading an instruction manual as to why they're nuts," right? Ted and Jamie's moms, introduced here at the eleventh hour, should shine a light on things we already know about these characters and make us think, "this explains so much."

Does Jamie's mom actually explain anything we already knew about Jamie? Does it actually make sense for Jamie to have had, all this time, a sweet, supportive mom available for hugs on demand, or does this just create a lot of new questions the show doesn't have time to answer? I don't think Jamie's mom as we meet her (or his future GBBO star baker stepdad) are fully outside the realm of possibility for his character, but we could've had more time to untangle all of this if they had spent as much time on Jamie's mom as they did on his dad. Instead, I'm left with: you're telling me Jamie Tartt isn't actually touch-starved? Jamie Tartt?

You're telling me Jamie's mom watches all of his matches … but has never been to one? Jamie's mom got him into football and drove him to all of his practices, but he's playing right down the street and she's watching from home? Jamie's mom is this important to him, but never met Keeley? Jamie's mom is this important to him, and we've only ever heard about her as the reverse side of a story about Jamie's dad? There are some drop-ins you just can't make in the eleventh hour.

Also: what is going on here? I'm with Roy. Wow. Wow.

17. Jade really hates working with her boyfriend

Is this really just a way to get Nate back to Richmond? Yes. Is it nonetheless completely valid for Jade to not want to have to hear about Nate's salty nuts scheme after work hours? Also yes. You might be a girlfriend ex machina, but you are nonetheless valid, Jade.

18. OT3 Watch: Jamie's posters

*chinhands* So are they, like … are they doing this on purpose, or … no, they have to be doing it on purpose, right? Right?? Maybe it won't ever go any further than this, because even now I have a hard time imagining an OT3 becoming canon, but they are surely at least tipping their hat to it.

19: OT3 Watch: walking off arm-in-arm

Surely they aren't going to make it canon.

20. Pep????

They actually brought on Pep Guardiola for a Ted Lasso cameo? In an episode about Manchester City leading the title race, airing in the same week City won the title irl? I'm legit impressed.

21. Jamie's injury drama

This is honestly the dumbest way to generate in-game drama. Jamie goes out on injury and Ted's coaching masterstroke is to act like they've just lost a player to a red card and now have to defend a one goal lead with ten men? Just in case the training staff can shoot Jamie up with enough painkillers to let him finish the game on an injury he couldn't walk on?

I know Jamie is their star striker and all, but did Sam, Dani, and Colin suddenly lose their scoring abilities when Jamie hurt his ankle? We just had a major subplot last week about what a heater Sam has been on – did that suddenly disappear? Does this team have no ability to adjust to the loss of a player? They've won fifteen straight games!! In real life, that would be one of the longest win streaks in Premier League history! No team becomes that successful without quality substitutes. Just get someone on the pitch, before Manchester fucking City takes advantage of being a man up and gets the equalizer we're told they've been on the verge of for the entire second half.

Why. This is Ted Lasso, why am I getting hung up on its football strategy? This isn't about strategy, it's about Ted and Jamie. Nothing matters except the conversation they're about to have on the sideline. Everything else happens exclusively to allow that conversation to happen. The football is just set dressing. None of this matters.

It's just so dumb, though. God.

22. Jade hates working with her boyfriend so much

Truly next level of her to blackmail her boss to get Nate fired so she can have some peace in the workplace. Does she only exist in this show to advance Nate's storyline? Yes. Is she doing this to be a Good Girlfriend? Yes. Can I ignore both of those things and pretend this is just a badass move by someone who does not care to mix her relationship and her job? Also yes.

23. Ted Lasso and forgiveness

This season's insistence on total forgiveness – that the past is the past, that holding a grudge is a moral failing or a poison of the soul – is one of its biggest flaws. Everything needs to be tied up just so. Characters can't truly grow unless they let go of whatever anger they're holding onto. In the end, everything must come around to wholesomeness and healing. As the show nears its end, it is doing everything it possibly can to wash all slates clean.

(Except, possibly, with Rupert. We'll see.)

In a void, Ted's mini-speech to Jamie about how he should forgive his dad so that he himself can heal might be – not something I would at all agree with, but fine, in that I don't have to always agree with characters on television shows and Ted is clearly doing some projecting here re: his situation with his mom. But in this broader context of what's going on with Nate, on the sideline of a game, it just feels … forced, and kind of gross. FORGIVE YOUR DAD SO YOU CAN KICK FOOTBALL. FORGIVENESS FIXES EVERYTHING. Okay, Ted Lasso. Okay.

Remember when Dr. Sharon said, "I think you [still hate your father] too, Ted, and that's okay," and they talked about the things Ted both hated and loved about his father, because it was okay for him to hold both of those things inside him at once? Where has that gone?

24. Manchester Loves Jamie

I'm not going to ask what the point of putting Jamie back on for one minute and then substituting him straight off was – do they truly have no one else who could have put them up by two? – because honestly, the City fan ovation was so unbelievable that football strategy pales in comparison. They spent an entire game booing and shit-talking him in the stands, and then he scores a goal on a wobbly foot and they suddenly realize he's Good, Actually and cheer him off? In a game that could decide the league title?

Manchester City could have won the league title right here in this game if Jamie hadn't scored that goal and the City fans cheer him off? In what universe. In what version of reality. Were there no even vaguely believable feel-good moments they could engineer for this game???

25. OT3 Watch: Roy whispering sweet nothings

They aren't going to make it canon, right??

26. Jamie's dad in rehab

This is one of the only "thing we heard nothing about and then suddenly it happens" moments where it makes sense for no one to know what's going on. It's positive growth for a shit character that I can actually get behind and believe in.

Jamie's dad is here doing the work and trying to get better. Instead of having it as an extremely brief reveal in the penultimate episode of the series, imagine if they had done this earlier and shown his dad getting out of rehab, and spent some time on Jamie deciding whether or not to forgive his dad now that his dad is sober. Emphasize the hard parts. Show them building a new relationship as different people. That would be so much more in keeping with the actual themes of this show than the magical thinking this season has engaged in.

27. Pep??????

"Don't worry about wins and losses, just help these guys be the best versions of themselves" from Pep Guardiola is THE MOST TED LASSO version of Pep Guardiola I can imagine. I cackled out loud. I threw back my head and laughed like a woman eating a salad. A+ comedy, intentional or otherwise.

28. Nate hiding under the desk

Why? Why. I mean, I get why – this humanizes everything Nate did in 2.12 and makes him seem like a pathetic guy who can't even ruin a sign right, and retcons some of the most potent parts of Nate's season two arc to make us feel empathy for him where we might not previously have; I had this issue with the rolling chair pratfall video earlier in the season, too – but it just exhausts me. They couldn't spend the time redeeming him organically, so they're rewriting what's already happened to make it seem less bad.

Going back to Ted's funeral therapy session with Dr. Sharon: remember how Ted had this deep, terrible fear of losing someone he loved because he didn't do enough to make them feel their worth, and Nate unknowingly cracked that wide open when he accused Ted of "abandoning" him? Remember how Nate could only feel important if he was the most important person in the room, so being one part of a team felt like rejection – and Nate at the absolute bottom of his spiral, having already tried to ruin Ted's life in the press, tore at him with every emotional weapon he had on hand?

Now we're going to reframe all of that as, "ahhhh, this little guy, can't even do a harm to a desk chair, look at him hide from cleaners, so sad, someone rescue him from restaurant!!"

I'm so ready for this show to end. It'll be easier to pick and choose the parts I want to hang onto once canon is closed.

29. OT3 Watch: champagne

But they aren't going to make it canon, right?????????

Honestly, get someone who looks at you the way Roy looks at Jamie here. Just incredible.

If this is the most OT3 we ever get, it'll be enough.

30. Beard's backstory

Let's pause here a moment.

As a coping mechanism for whatever the show was going to throw at me in this episode, I made myself a bingo card. Every time I got a square, I won a tiny piece of chocolate. I made some of the squares obvious hits, some of them decent possibilities, and some were wild swings at things I knew would never happen.

Earlier in this episode, I hesitated over giving myself the "Beard Backstory" square for Beard and Dottie having nicknames for each other, wondering if that qualified as our Beard backstory for the episode. And then … Beard showed up at Nate's door.

In that moment, I truly felt I had cursed myself with this bingo card. Don't invite possibilities you aren't willing to see play out on-screen, I think is the lesson here?

"Just like in Les Mis." – Nate, and all of us

I really don't know how to feel about this Beard backstory. In theory, I have no issue with Beard having a backstory about being incarcerated for meth and Ted helping him out afterward, but in practice, I'm not sure it makes any sense whatsoever. Beard has a record that no one knows about? He's been an assistant coach in the Premier League for three seasons and it's never popped up in the Daily Mail that he was in prison on a drug conviction? I know in the real world Ted wouldn't be allowed to coach Richmond to begin with, but just how far into fantasyland are we?

(I also have some questions about the "and then I stole his car" twist. What exactly are the writers trying to say here about people freshly out of prison? He had a difficult re-entry, totally understood; he found a place to land, and immediately turned back to crime? Should they maybe have spent a little more time unpacking this story before they made it canon?)

All of that aside, I'm not sure I really wanted a Beard backstory. For the entire run of this show to date, Beard has been something of a Ted-adjacent cryptid with a very clear personality but relatively opaque motivations, whose history we've learned about through wildly random drop-ins that always raise more questions than they answer. He's a guy who roams the city at night and collects subcultures like stamps. He's in an eternally tortured relationship with a manic pixie nightmare girl who somehow suits him perfectly. His devotion to Ted has never, ever been in doubt.

I just don't think it actually rounds out the character of Beard to know exactly where he's coming from and why he's with Ted. The mystery is part of the character. Introducing an in-depth backstory in the penultimate episode of the entire show feels … kind of cheap? I would completely understand if other people felt it was long overdue and are happy to get it before the end, but to me, pulling back the curtain feels like a misunderstanding of what makes Beard a great character. We don't need to see the man behind the curtain. Being able to wildly speculate about what makes Beard Beard is a big part of his appeal.

And to drop this in as a plot mechanism for bringing Nate back into the fold – to make this significant change to a major character as a shortcut on Nate's mismanaged path to redemption – I'm just so tired.

This whole thing where Ted emotionally manipulated Beard into forgiving Nate by invoking Ted's own past assistance to Beard – I'm not sure that comes across the way they think it does. Ted wants everyone around him to forgive Nate and the only one who isn't willing to do it is Beard, so Ted forces the issue by hitting Beard where it hurts to get Beard to project his own past trauma onto Nate's situation. Does Ted really think that Beard stealing his car is equivalent to Nate putting his mental health history on the front page of every newspaper in London? Even if he does, why does he think it's fair to Beard to pull out Beard's trauma like a trump card?

31. Fuck you, Mom!!

What was Ted's relationship with his mother back home, that she comes to visit him in London and within 48 hours, everything he's been holding onto for years comes boiling out of him in a series of F-bombs borrowed from Jamie Tartt? What was their dynamic like in Kansas, that the minute she shows up his shoulders go up around his ears and he can't handle anyone he cares about liking her at all?

Is this happening now because Ted unlocked all of this in therapy? Is it happening now because he's been away from her for so long? Was he not visiting her on those trips to Kansas? Is it the change in setting – having her in London, in his space, meeting his people?

This whole "thank you / fuck you" speech feels overcooked at best, well-acted as it is, and it veers into some really incoherent areas. When Ted tapped his chest, I thought, "oh god, is he impotent in his soul?" Honestly, that would have made more sense than Ted saying he's afraid to get close to his son because "I know he's going to leave."

Yes, Ted is afraid of losing people, but we know because Ted has said so in therapy that his response to that fear is to pull people closer in. To try to make people feel wanted, feel valued, feel good about themselves.

In Ted and Henry's relationship, if Ted has projected his dad onto anyone, it's been himself. If there is a monster under the bed here, it is Ted's fear of turning into his dad, of having the potential for that inside him. That line would have made 110% more sense if it had been, "I'm afraid I'm going to leave," even if we would have had a lot more to unpack on-screen at that point. As it is, it's just – kind of nonsense?

Did they feel like they had to pull out some extra motivation for Ted having been in London all of this time? They didn't. The degree to which they are trying way too hard in some areas and not at all in others sure is something.

32. I've read this fic

Rebecca and Bex? Yeah, I've definitely read this fic. That "Bex divorces Rupert and takes West Ham" square on my bingo card is going to reappear next week.

33. "Do you know what time it is?"

"It's the time of the season when we do X" is a little too much meta self-awareness for me, and the "I'm going to invoke truth bombs as a concept but I don't actually have one" is clunky execution to set up Ted's cliffhanger line, but the staging: flawless. In seasons one and two, Rebecca comes into Ted's office and stands on the left of the frame, facing right. In season three, Ted is the one who comes into the office and stands on the left, reversing their positions both physically and narratively. That kind of attention to detail is A+.

(I wish they gave that much attention to the plot, but I'll take it where I can get it.)

What's next?

One more episode left to cram in everything they could possibly want to do with this show! We're on a real run here of episodes that cram in abrupt resolutions to ongoing stories while also dropping in a ton of new elements we don't have time to explore, and I wouldn't expect the finale to be all that different.

- Before 3.11, I thought the chances of Ted going back to Kansas were 85% for, 15% against. Now … I think it might actually be closer to 75% for, 25% against?

This episode pushed so hard on sending Ted back to Kansas, and we're being set up in that cliffhanger for him telling Rebecca he's quitting after the season ends, and – there's still an entire finale to go. Will the episode just be one long goodbye, or will there be some last-minute twist to keep him in London? I think the chances of him staying in London are actually slightly better now that the "I'm going back to Kansas" twist isn't being held for the end. Still pretty unlikely, though.

I say again: if he goes back to Kansas, fine, we can fix that in post. If he goes back to Michelle, I'm turning this car around.

- Every social media feed I have has been frantic with speculation as to whether or not they're going to make the OT3 canon in the finale. My money is on Not Canon – I think a wink and a nod at it is as much as they're going to do – but I'll be happy with anything that isn't a flash-forward in which Jamie has a girlfriend. Just let us walk off arm-in-arm-in-arm with room to speculate, show.

- So Nate goes back to Richmond, Ted leaves, and Nate becomes head coach, right? Just like we could pretty easily guess was going to happen before this season even started? There's still a chance of a surprise shake-up there, but I'd put it at, like … 5%. A 5% chance of this not going in the most predictable possible direction.

- If Ted leaves, does Beard stay or does he go? He stays, right? If they try to convince us that Jane is dying to move to Kansas, I'll have to Eternal Sunshine the entire finale from my memory banks.

- I am very much hoping for a thoughtful farewell with the pub trio. They've earned it.

- It's West Ham they're going to be playing in the last game, right? If Nate's West Ham storyline is going to have any meaning, he has to go up against his old team with his old old team in the last game of the season while Rupert's drama plays out in close-up.

There should also be some simultaneous game drama happening with Manchester City. They were four points down before this game, so on the final day of league play, they'll be one point down. If City wins, they win the title. If City draws or loses and Richmond wins, Richmond wins the title. If City loses and Richmond draws, then … actually, there could be interesting last-minute drama if they're trying to break through on goal differential, but I don't think the show would go that far into technicalities. Richmond has to win, right? They aren't going to send the show off on anything less.

Five days until we're free!

#ted lasso #ted lasso meta #episode reactions

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groven4 · 1 year

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Markiplier Egos with an Aromantic DA / Viewer

a/n: I randomly decided I really wanna get something out for aro week, so I've got a oneshot mayhaps involving a certain adventurer in the works, but knowing me that might take a while (if I even finish it all) and these tend to be easier for me. So, that's why this exists...not that you asked.

(edit: made one for Ace hcs.)

WILFORD WARFSTACHE

He wouldn't really care, but in like a supportive way.

He may not look like it, but the guy's got some common sense.

I can't see him as the type to ask a lot of questions especially if you're visibly uncomfortable around the topic. (tho ig he might if it's for an interview, not sure)

A big part of Wil's character is just accepting shit as it is and not questioning what you can't understand because falling down that spiral is ultimately unhealthy; so if you were to come out to him as any sexuality/gender identity, he'd most likely just accept you immediately and move one.

Expect to receive a lot of aro themed stickers on pride month though.

DARKIPLIER

Also doesn't care, but it's less him being supportive (tho he is) and more: it doesn't affect him, so why should he care?

Like you do you. Your love life is none of his business.

Quite frankly, he couldn't give a shit.

Though, he might find some relatability with you.

Despite how one might interpret ADWM, I cannot see Dark as an entity with the capability to feel much of anything. (other than rage, vengefulness, etc.)

There are some vague memories of past feelings from both Celine and Damien (and possibly the house entity, idk) mostly shown through his clear favoritism for Wil.

However, I don't think he really can feel romantic feelings, nor does he want to.

Being loved sounds nice, but ultimately it would just get in the way.

So having someone around that's kind of like him in that regard is almost nice...cathartic even.

You both like to watch 'marriage gameshows' (the bachelor, love is blind, etc.) over wine and laugh about how you'll never have to deal with relationship problems. (idc if that one's ooc)

GOOGLEPLIER

He can't really feel romantic attraction himself, yk being a robot and all.

If you tried explaining aromanticism to him he'd probably just be like: "Yeah, and??".

He's supportive in a sense, that sense being: you not having a partner would mean one less meat sack he has to deal with once he manages to get admin privileges.

BINGIPLIER

Kinda stumped on this one ngl.

I just can't find a reason why he'd care whatsoever.

He'd just be like: "Oh...siiiick, brah." with total Bill and Ted energy.

ACTOR

(edit: this is pre-wkm btw. idk why I did that, it doesn't really fit with the others that way. so I probably won't do it again in future hcs. sorry ig.)

I imagine it comes up at a party.

He starts asking you about your love life.

You tell him that you've never really been interested in that kind of stuff, and you probably never will.

What does he do?

...

He calls you boring.

...

AND THEN JUST FUCKIN' WALKS AWAY- like- ????

In all seriousness, he's mostly chill about it throughout your friendship, but it's hard for me not to picture him as the type to think you're just being naive and that 'everyone has to find someone someday'. (I believe WKM takes place in the 1920s, so like, what were you expecting?)

That is until Celine cheats on him.

It was just such a world shattering thing for him, he genuinely loved her more than anything.

It's not a complete 180°, he doesn't suddenly understand your lack of attraction from this, but one night you check in with him to find him wasted in his wine cellar and he's basically like: "You had it right all along, my friend. Love...Love is not for everyone. ...Certainly not the faint of heart."

Which like, you didn't choose this, but you were more focused on making sure he was okay at the time to care.

YANCY

A part of me wants to think he'd be a little confused at first just cause the idea of having to explain aromanticism and/or asexuality to him because he's just genuinely curious is really adorable to me.

However, the rest of me refuses to believe his friend group isn't entirely comprised of both people in the lgbtq+ community and hardcore allies who would happily beat the shit out of aphobes on a daily basis.

Not to say that they think of you as child-like because of your sexuality, but it's a prison family and you're 'fresh meat' so you're their little aro-bean now whether you like it or not.

Yancy especially is protective of you in an almost older brother type way.

So if after/during coming out to them (or just him) you mention how scared you were/are because you've had a lot of bad experiences or something, he's like constantly ready to sucker punch and/or ballerina kick anyone giving you flack over just being who you are.

He's always willing to tell you how valid you are when you need to hear it, and overall is just a really great friend.

...Even with the stabbing.

ILLINOIS

In an odd way, he almost feels...relieved?

Call it a humble brag, but literally all of his past work partners had fallen in love with him at some point, and while the attention certainly feeds his ego, that kinda thing just gets tired and even annoying after a while.

So knowing that'll never happen with you is actually a nice break from what he's grown so used to.

He's never had someone around who genuinely enjoys adventuring as much as he does.

And who isn't like constantly ogling him. (I mean probably anyway, idk what it's like to be aroallo)

Having you around may also cause him to start questioning some things about himself, particularly when you're explaining your orientation.

But that's a topic we'll be getting into at another time! (*wink* *wink* *nudge* *nudge* *stares at empty draft*)

He's still used to trying to fluster people cause he finds it funny and in general is just the kind of person to be a bit touchy with his friends (meaning: platonic hand holding, hugs, head/back pats, standing weirdly close a lot of the time just naturally, etc.), so if you're ever uncomfortable just tell him and he'll cut it out straight away.

You're both just kinda really good friends, and he's not at all weird about it like you thought he might be.

CAPTAIN MAGNUM

Supportive Pirate Dad! 10/10!

You definitely have to explain what it means to him, but he verbally accepted you before he even asked.

Kinda like: "That's great!...What is it?-"

Would have the crew sew you a flag if it would make you happy.

They are still pirates who have been sailing across the deep blue their whole lives with presumably no contact with the mainland however.

So unless you for some fuckin reason told them what it looks like, you can expect to receive a relatively small, plain black flag with the word 'Arrowmantik.' spelled incorrectly and somehow sewn on in perfect white Helvetica.

...

You hung the flag right above your hammock.

It is your most prized possession.

HEAD ENGINEER

Might be a little discouraged at first. His crush on you was a tad obvious.

But he figures it's for the best. You are the captain after all. Pursuing that relationship wouldn't have been professional in the slightest.

It does take a bit but he gets over it eventually.

He still genuinely loves you platonically/as a person, so things don't really change all that much.

You still have a strong friendship and work really well together.

He tends to go a bit overboard now about giving you personal space cause he doesn't want to make you uncomfortable. So you may have to reassure him multiple times if it wasn't an issue.

During when pride month would be on earth he might gift you little aro themed stuff, like a patch you can't actually add to your uniform for work reasons but love and appreciate anyway.

He may not fully understand how you feel, but he never stops trying to, and either way he's always gonna support you no matter what.

Your orientation could never change how much he loves and trusts you both as a captain and as his friend.

MURDOCK

He doesn't really care since it doesn't affect what you guys do, though he is openly accepting, especially if it seemed like you needed to hear that it wasn't something that bothered him.

In a similar vein to Illinois, he's strangely grateful.

He's not sure how he would've dealt with the situation had you developed a crush on him. Such emotions tend to get in the way more often than not in his line of work.

He didn't wanna have to kill you just to make his life easier. Taking a life out of necessity isn't as much fun, plus he'd grown a tad fond of you.

I like to think he cares quite a bit about your mental health, it would make sense given the whole murder thing.

So if you often go through periods of doubt or even internalized self hatred regarding being aromantic, he's gonna be there to help you through it.

He goes with you to pride parades and if anyone tries to tell you that you don't belong there, they're immediately getting put on a black list.

He got you a nifty little keychain once while you were there.

Overall, surprisingly wholesome.

a/n: I went back and forth on whether or not I was gonna use the pronouns I hc them all as using, but in the end I just said 'fuck it, appeal to general audiences, why not at this point'. I'm really fuckin' tired, dude. Just- HAPPY ARO WEEK! ig.

#markiplier egos & reader #wilford warfstache & reader #darkiplier & reader #googleplier & reader #bingiplier & reader #actor mark & reader #yancy & reader #ahwm yancy & reader #illinois & reader #ahwm illinois & reader #captain magnum & reader #ahwm captain magnum & reader #head engineer mark & reader #murderplier & reader #iswm murderplier & reader #iswm murdock & reader #aromantic reader #aro week

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you-remind-me-of-the-babe · 1 year

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I have not done a fic rec post in a while so here are some faves I have been reading lately. 🎉

Restoration Ecology - The REmix (Baz’s version) WIP, currently 29k, Rated E by @royalasstronaut

Y’all. Y’ALL. If you loved Restoration Ecology by @captain-aralias and are as obsessed with it as I am, then you are going to FLIP for this remix that holds pretty close to the original plot, but shows it all through Baz’s POV. The events of each chapter are roughly the same, with a few new off camera scenes, and the dialogue is the same, but the author adds SO MUCH just by fleshing out how Baz perceives everything and all he is going through (but keeping under wraps from Simon). We’re four chapters in and it’s updating almost daily so don’t miss out!

Good morning, good night, good morning WIP, currently 4k, Rated E by @chen-chen-chen-again-chen

Strangers to lovers story in which Baz and Simon have both been kidnapped, stripped naked (except for a collar around the neck chaining them to the wall) and put in a dark cell together. If that premise alone doesn’t get you, let me tell you that Baz hasn’t fed in a few days and Simon is more than happy to help this strange vampire. (Much to Baz’s horror.) The banter is excellent and Baz’s spiraling is top notch. I can’t wait to see where this story goes!

Believe Complete, 3k, Rated T by @prettygoododds

Ted Lasso AU! For anyone who thinks Baz would make a sexy Trent Crimm, this fic is for you! And even if you’ve never seen Ted Lasso, just read it. Cute football coach/sports writer get together that stands alone just as well if you haven’t seen the show. This was written for COC, but I just got around to reading it the other day and I adored it!

Mishaps on Zoom, Complete, 10k, Rated E by @eelwinks (LakeWitch)

Sexy Zoom misunderstandings lead to two coworkers meeting up and navigating a coffee friend date turned real date in this pandemic story. Super funny, sweet and sexy. Don’t we all love a good LakeWitch fic? If you missed this one, go check it out!

More Than Friends, WIP, Currently 9k, Rated E by @fatalfangirl

Friends with benefits, non-magical AU, and they were roommates. If you are not reading this what are you even doing with your life? Seriously, this fic is SO SEXY. Slutty Simon just wants to give his sexually frustrated friend a hand. What could possibly go wrong? We’ve got mutual pining, miscommunications, and sex galore. This fic is funny, tender, and so hot!

Scenes Before Sleeping, Series of 8 fics, 11k, mostly Rated M, by @tea-brigade

I know, I know, sometimes I miss the boat and don’t get around to reading something until a year later after it’s been recc’ed 20 times but I finally read these and they are so good! As everyone promised they would be! I kept this on the list for this exact reason, because I know there are other like me with a mile long tbr list and sometimes seeing a title come round again at the right time gives you a chance to get to it. This series is so sexy, tender and sweet. Watching these two take care of each other over and over again (and having lots of sex) is so delicious.

For a bonus, if you’ve read this far you can also check out my two WIPs, How to Avoid a Scandal and Depth of Reason, both of which updated this week!

#fic rec #snowbaz #carry on fanfiction

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foundmywei · 2 years

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Stranger Things Fanfic Recs

Here are my favorite stranger things fics, mostly byler and Will-centric fics bc I don’t hide who my favorite character is... I will probably add more as I read. Enjoy!

(last updated: 19/02/23)

Masterpost

Byler

THE DARK MIRROR by sevensided (stonedlennon)

(122,539 words | Teen And Up Audiences + Mature | Series - 2 works)

From Indiana to Anaidni, and across different times and dimensions, Mike and Will find each other.

yesterFriday by nbfutureboy

(19,284 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 6/6)

Will Byers wakes up as usual one Friday morning - he worries about his family, his History test, and telling the people he loves that he doesn’t Like Girls in that way.

Then he does it again.

[Groundhog Day AU where Will gets stuck in a time loop.]

Me & You by CicatriceEllipsis

(15,468 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 2/2)

"It has been two hours.

Two hours since Will had heard a clock ticking, since his head began throbbing. It had seemed so real. One moment he was standing in the bathroom of Hoppers cabin, the next he was in the Upside Down. Even then, It hadn’t seemed that strange until a voice whispered in his ear.

That sound, that voice. Will’s entire body reacted to it, shaking so violently that he stumbled.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” it had said and Will screamed

—————

Will is spirally out of control and Vecna takes advantage of that. Mike is there to bring him back.

Heaven Knows (it's got to be this time) by frankiewaters

(98,101 words | Not Rated | Chapters: 51/51)

As Vecna's reign of terror plunges Hawkins into darkness, our characters find themselves regrouping, recuperating, and planning their next moves carefully as they navigate the chaos together. Eleven guides Will through his journey towards integrating his psychic powers, believing him to be the key to restoring order as loyalties within the group are challenged. Mike vows to bring him home, no matter the cost. Even at the edge of the world, love continues to grow forever.

the boyfriend problem by RomeoWrites

(15,032 words | General Audiences | Chapters: 1/1)

The first time his dad calls Will his boyfriend, Mike thinks he’s hallucinating. But then it happens again. And again. And again, after that. And as heteronormativity continues to elude Ted Wheeler, Mike thinks that maybe he should just take the hint.

Ted Wheeler thinks Mike has been dating Will since they were twelve-years-old. And Mike doesn’t know quite what to do with that information. Until he does.

"or at least until the afternoon" by TheWrongKindOfPC

(28,790 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 3/3)

Will asks, "What if you were talking to a friend who was a girl?" but he doesn't mean Max, Mike’s actual friend who is a girl. No, Will’s asking what would you tell me if I were a girl? and the answer to that is something entirely different.

Because if Will were a girl, they wouldn’t be having this conversation at all. If Will were a girl, he wouldn’t be asking questions about how to ask a guy out, because he and Mike would already be dating.

In which Mike has kind of a rough time in college, and talks on the phone about it a lot.

What do you do now, Will the Wise? by RainbowNixie

(11,534 words | General Audiences | Chapters: 1/1)

The party is playing D&D together and Mike, as the dungeon master, won’t stop trying to make the Paladin and the Cleric flirt. He’s basically making moves on Will through the game. Will is caught off guard by this, and doesn’t know how to respond to the following question:

What do you do now, Will the Wise?

Everything comes down to a simple roll of dice.

More Than a Metaphor by Nikocat

(95,844 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 16/16)

Will Byers returns home from college for the first time for Christmas break and he's a bundle of nerves. He's reckoned with some deep truths while away at school, finally coming to accept that he's gay. While he can be open and honest in his new city of New York, Hawkins is an entirely different story.

Or Will Byers comes out to the people he loves and gets more than he bargained for.

you can hear it in the silence by astrobi

(36,965 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 1/1)

Will moves back to an upright position, wiping his hair out of his eyes, head and shoulders peeking above the water. “Mike,” he says, pulling Mike up with him, their fingers still intertwined.

“Yeah?” Mike says, tilting his head so the water trickles out of his ears, wincing slightly. “What is it?”

Will’s eyes dart back and forth between his, and then Mike feels his hand squeeze his own. “I don’t want you to, like, think I moved back for you,” he starts, which in and of itself would be enough to get Mike’s soul soaring straight out of his own body, if it weren’t for Will’s thumb pressed against his pulse point like some kind of mortal tether. “Because it’s not like that, I promise. But I think– I think I realized there’s a difference between things you want and things you need, you know?”

mike wheeler on losing people and having them again, the difference between wanting and needing, and finally letting go.

ft. robin buckley, will byers, and the mortifying ordeal of working in the food service industry

eyecatcher by smoosnoom (moonsooms)

(9,336 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 1/1)

“Nah, man,” Lucas shakes his head, leaning back as he snacks on an apple, “he got, like, buff. Do you see his arms?”

Mike does, in fact, see Will’s arms. He has not stopped seeing his arms.

“She definitely sees his arms,” Dustin very unhelpfully points out, waggling his eyebrows, and Mike gets the overwhelming urge to bash his own head in.

While volunteering at the Hawkins' help center, it seems like every girl around has a newfound interest in Will Byers, and Mike doesn't know why he feels the way he does.

i know, i know, i know by aude_sapere

(32,823 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 1/1)

“We are more similar than you realize, Will. Both of us were...sensitive children. We were different. Seen as freaks. But we are special. You are special.”

Will takes a shallow breath, tries to swallow his nerves. He speaks flatly. “And?”

Henry blinks, seemingly surprised by Will’s coldness. “I chose you that day, you know.”

And Will sees himself, small and alone, riding his bike through the dark. He sees the silhouette of something tall and dark. He sees himself crashing his bike. Running home. But the creature unlocks the door. It follows him into the shed. It gets him.

“It was you,” Will whispers, a hand coming up to the back of his neck. The monster that took him. The possession. The visions. “It’s always been you.”

(or the one where will’s connection to the upside down is a crucial part of season 4 instead of him getting sidelined, and how it changes everything)

who am i (to ask for more) by bookinit

(20,537 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 1/1)

Will’s eyes sting with tears, and his nose prickles with heat. He feels like he’s burning, like he’s on fire. But Mom’s right—he doesn’t have to be afraid. She knows, and she loves him, and she’s not leaving. All that’s left is the words. And he shouldn’t be scared of words. After all he’s been through, if what takes him down is the English alphabet, then the world has a really fucked up sense of humor.

He just needs to rip off the bandaid.

—

Alternatively: Five times Will Byers came out, and the one time someone came out to him.

cause i've built my life around you by andiwriteordie

(145,017 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Series - 2 works)

Well, I've been afraid of changin'

'Cause I've built my life around you

But time makes you bolder

Even children get older

And I'm getting older too

Oh, I'm getting older too.

- Landslide, Fleetwood Mac

Or:

Seasons 4 and 5, but make it Mike and Will's coming of age story.

Going Too Far Just to Have You Near by borealisaurora

(11,531 words | Not Rated | Chapters: 7/7)

Mike Wheeler always seems to gravitate toward Will Byers, like they’re connected by an invisible string; Will could be on the opposite end of any room and Mike would somehow find his way over to stand next to him. When Robin points this out to Will, Will thinks she’s crazy, and they strike a deal; if Will stays away from Mike for a week and notices how Mike will always find him, Will has to consider that maybe, just maybe, Mike has a crush on him too.

A deal which Will agrees to because, why not? There’s no way this can be true.

Can it?

I Didn't Know There Were Wizards in California by spotlightonmringenue

(104,163 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 18/18 | ST + IT crossover)

Will ignores a timid reply from his classmate, his focus fully on this strange interloper that could be his best friend’s twin.

Evil twin, as Dustin would say, his voice low and incriminating. Ultraman type shit. Will considers relaying the situation on their upcoming weekly call to make the current situation less unsettling.

The guy is cautiously smiling back now – a reflection of Will’s unconscious expression at the thought of Dustin’s clarification – and it doesn’t falter, even once Will loses his amusement. Instead, the grin widens, almost too big for his face and definitely too big for Mike’s usual range of expression. His eyebrows rise above the rim of his lenses.

PB&J, Heatstroke, Vomit, and David Bowie by krb

(55,923 words | Explicit | Chapters: 19/19 | ST + IT crossover, will/richie)

Will Byers thinks it would be better if he just vanishes from the face of the earth, so he does…kind of. He meets a lost soul on his journey to disappearance, an awkward but somehow extrovertedly obnoxious, free-spirited character with dark secrets to rival his own.

without a flashlight in the dark by jurassicqueer (kukurosaki)

(8,435 words | Mature | Chapters: 4/4)

The lights go out. Steve keeps his eyes fixed just left of the thing, can just barely make out a shoulder and sort-of head in the light of the moon, and tries to swallow back the sickening feeling of being hunted. He wants to run for his house but he can’t. He can’t, because if he takes his eyes off the thing for even a second, he won’t know where it is, and that’s scarier than seeing it.

But then- then Steve’s vision blurs for just a moment too long, and when he blinks away the tears and looks, it’s gone.

Steve lunges for the house doors. When the patio lights flicker back on, the poolside is empty, and Steve Harrington is missing. No one notices.

Or: Steve Harrington gets dragged into the Upside Down instead of Barb Holland. Someone else comes out.

The Dad Who Stepped Up by MagikMask

(7,829 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 1/1)

Hopper’s many attempts at bonding with his youngest unofficial stepson over the course of their first year in Hawkins.

Sometimes it goes well, other times he’s trying to see if he’s unlocked his daughter’s ability to glare someone (Michael Wheeler) to death.

november and july by fireflywitch

(11,071 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 2/2)

She took a mint, flicked it between her tongue and teeth, and leaned against the sink. Will had gone back into the living room—cleaning glass and replacing it—before coming back into the bathroom and sitting beside her, resting his own face against the toilet seat.

They were both crying. It wasn’t the harsh kind—more that the four eyes between them decided that this was the moment to expel everything that had been building up. And Will wasn’t watching her and Max wasn’t watching him, but she could feel it, nonetheless. That strange solidarity.

Max and Will: two sides of the same shitty coin.

i think there is someone (you love) by fireflywitch

(22,262 words | Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 4/4)

“Do people act crazy when they are in love?”

“Oh,” said Will. “I—I don’t know.” He shrugged his shoulders, and El realized she had no idea if Will had ever been in love. If he’d ever looked at the girls in Lenora—El knew they looked at him, but that was a different question—or if he felt crazy. “I think—I mean, people say that you act different.” His voice was halting, stilted.

The cassette tape stopped. “Different,” he said again. “Crazy. Weird.”

“Weird,” repeated El, and Will nodded, closing his eyes against Madonna’s syrupy sweetness. They sat there, the two of them, two weirdos, and something filed itself away in El’s brain, something she wouldn’t make sense of until later. Much later.

El thinks Will’s been acting weird. But he’s not the only one. Featuring excessive 80s pop synth, secret dance parties, the sick, ruinous embarrassment of existence, blue paint spills, motel room realizations, dictionary definitions, and that four letter word.

all the bad dreams that you hide (show me yours, i'll show you mine) by vissers

(31,826 | Teen And Up Audiences | Series - 5 works)

deep conversations and coming outs between will byers and his party

#stranger things #Byler #will byers #mike wheeler #byler fanfic #byler fic #stranger things fic

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