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cinnaminsvga · 2 months

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Harana Preview | Jungkook

harana (n.): the act of wooing someone by serenading them

→ summary:

Unwilling to settle down with you after five years of dating, Jeon Jungkook decides to break up to chase after his dreams. In the aftermath, you leave your hometown, desperate to forget your past and relearn what it means to be on your own. Two years later while on your way to work, you pass by a familiar voice singing songs about a girl he had left behind.

{or alternatively: Jungkook still sings the love songs that he wrote for you. He still means them, too.}

→ genre: busker!au, exes to lovers, fluff, angst → warnings: jimin is insane and kinda crude (he has some issues going on), jungkook is a pathetic wet bunny but he's trying his best, so much yearning, ambiguous ending??? but my god there is hope!! the humanity of it all!! → words: anticipated 10-15K → a/n: what da hell who is she... HEY SO its been a while since ive written anything longer than 2k words and i really wanted to get back into writing, if only for practice... plus this is part of my heart full of hugot series that i teased literally eons ago and i want to finish it before the year ends... pray for my sanity ( ; ω ; )

part of the “heart full of hugot” series

As you struggle to pull yourself together, a familiarly loud voice rings outside the edge of your consciousness. “Hey, Y/N! Fancy seeing you here…” Jimin greets you, his usual jovial demeanor halting midway when he sees your panicked expression. He clears his throat, perplexed. “Umm… Are you alright there, girl? You’re looking a little pale.”

You do not even have the mental capacity to wonder why Park Jimin was miraculously early to his shift, nor why he seems genuinely worried for you. Rather, all you can do is wave him off and use what little time you have before the restaurant opens to steel yourself for hours of melodious torture.

“I’m fine, Park. You should get to work,” you grit out, wiping your sweaty palms on your uniform. Normally, Jimin would have teased you about the obvious wrinkles on your skirt.

“You’re not the boss of me,” Jimin huffs, always the contrarian. He thinks better of it, however, and softens his tone. “Are you feeling sick or something? You look like you just saw a ghost.”

You freeze, perhaps giving yourself away a little. “I’m fine,” you repeat.

“You know, if you refuse to elaborate, I’m going to have to retract your shower privileges,” Jimin taunts with a smirk.

You feel a migraine growing by your temple, making you wince. God, why must men be the source of all your problems?

“I’m just… a little annoyed by the busker outside the restaurant,” you eventually admit, trying to be vague. Unfortunately for you, Jimin hates beating around the bush and would never take your crap if he knows something is up.

Unable to withstand the weight of his unimpressed stare, you continue, “He was someone I used to know, that’s all.” You aren’t going to be any more specific than that, though you imagine Jimin gets the picture. You zip your lips, hoping to whoever is causing you pain that Jimin would somehow let the matter drop and leave you to your misery.

You brace yourself for his onslaught of questioning to come, and… it doesn’t happen. Instead, when you glance at Jimin, he is mysteriously stone faced. You wait for him to speak for what feels like a few minutes, but he doesn’t show any signs of wanting to tease or ridicule you. He simply watches you with a pensive expression. You can barely stop yourself from staring back at him, slack-jawed at his silence.

Of course, you aren’t just going to question your luck, or what little you have at least. So, you stay silent back and purse your lips uncomfortably.

Finally, Jimin seems to snap out of his strange reverie. He fixes you with a bizarrely sympathetic grin, patting you affectionately on the back. “I see… Well, if you ever need a drink tonight, head over to the bar for a little sip. I got you covered,” is all he says in response before sashaying away.

That was so fucking weird. You want to chase after him, perhaps beat the truth out of him. Jimin is nothing but a scheming dick, and you aren’t about to let him roam free with such sensitive information about yourself. Just as you’re about to stomp his ass (perhaps to relieve some of the building tension from your weary soul), your manager pops his head from his office door.

“Y/N! Make sure you’re logged into the booking system. There’s going to be a party of 20 coming in about an hour,” he reminds you, shooting you an apologetic look. You nod back with a sigh, swiping the booking tablet from the hostess desk and scrolling through the logs. Sure enough, it is going to be a busy night despite being a Monday evening. Perhaps a little busier than usual, in fact.

Whatever. You will use whatever distraction you can get, and perhaps the approaching noise from the restaurant patrons will be enough to drown out the sound of his voice.

You aren’t religious by any means, but you pray to whatever higher power exists that Jeon Jungkook doesn’t somehow decide to enter the restaurant. Stay outside, you plead. Outside the restaurant and your life, if possible.

Throughout the evening, you do your best to push aside the memories that threaten to resurface. You greet customers with a smile, lead them to their tables, and ensure their dining experience is pleasant despite the anxiety poisoning your insides. It's a routine you've perfected over time, a shield against the chaos of your emotions.

As the night wears on, you can feel Jimin's eyes on you from across the restaurant. You sneak glances back at him, and you blanch at his pitying gaze. If the restaurant had been slightly less crowded, you would have flipped him off.

He’s probably enjoying my suffering, you think darkly. Unwilling to give him the satisfaction, you straighten up and do your best to appear more unaffected. Just as you do so, you can hear Jungkook perfectly hitting a soulful high note.

“I’m so sorry for thinking I was strong,” you whisper to the universe. “Forgive me for my insolence.” You clench your fist in anguish, ignoring the confused looks from the customers in front of you.

By the time your shift comes to a close, you are completely and utterly drained. You feel like a snail that has been continuously salted over the past eight hours, and you cannot help but cheer in relief when the clock finally strikes two in the morning. You have to wait for the last few diners to make their leave, but otherwise you are ready to let your bed swallow you whole.

You stand by your hostess desk, leaning your head against it with a defeated sigh. Jungkook’s voice had died down only a few minutes ago, and you hope that by this point he has mercifully left the premises. You want to take a peek to make sure, but just as you’re about to make your way to the door, you feel a hand on your shoulder stop you in your tracks.

“‘Sup, bitch.” Jimin still has that weird, pitying gaze pointed at you, though his words don’t match it. “Are you okay to go home alone tonight? I can bring your dumb ass home if you want.”

You shove his hand away, ready to bite his head off when you think better of it. If Jimin drives you home, then that lowers the chances of seeing Jungkook down to pretty much zero.

“You know what? Thanks,” you grouse. Jimin smiles at you winningly, and the image of it brings a shiver down your spine. You hit him, creeped out. “Hey. Stop that, will you? You’re being really weird?”

Jimin scoffs, crossing his arms. “Me? Weird? At least I don’t look like a damn firework ready to explode just because my cringelord ex-boyfriend is singing sappy love songs outside—”

“Shut the fuck up,” you seethe, stomping on his foot. He yelps in pain and slaps your shoulder in retaliation.

“Ouch! Watch your ogre feet! My shoes are worth twice your monthly rent I’ll have you know,” he bristles. He breathes deeply, likely finding his inner calm (which you doubt exists). “But because I’m so nice, I’ll ignore your earlier transgression and blame it on your underdeveloped amygdala.”

You don’t know what’s more surprising: the fact that Jimin knew what an amygdala was or that he was forgiving you in the first place. “Whatever. Let’s finish closing up and then head out. I’m exhausted.”

#my wips #bts scenarios #bts fanfiction #bts imagines #bts x reader #jungkook scenarios #jungkook fanfiction #jungkook imagines #jungkook x reader #i gotta stop making jimin a gremlin in these LMAOOO #at the very least he isnt insane in his installment of this series #idk who i should write for next... maybe hoseok? its been a while since ive written for him (or written anything at all lol)#i need to stop making hoseok evil... new year new me #OK ANYWAY i'll post the entire thing soon-ish... yippeeeee

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djsherriff-responses · 3 months

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Did we notice that the only times alex seems to initiate any kind of physical affection are

When he's trying to convince dolph to go along with the heist

And when he's trying to win him back?

And I know he's only there for a few episodes, but really. We also have instances during the heist when dolph is cuddled up on him and he kind of just stands there.

Anon you are so right, let me also direct everyone's attention to this scene

Ignore Rayman's reaction I made several posts going insane on this scene already but a picture really does say a thousand words. Even before the show came out, the trailer made it a point to show us this scene, this one moment that barely flashes by us in both the trailer and the show proper. It's so obvious in hindsight what this scene is telling us about these characters and their relationship, in that Alex didn't love Dolph the way Dolph loved him, that they weren't on equal footing and Alex put himself before Dolph. But when watching the show for the first time we don't know that, we get distracted by the flashy action and violence that much like Dolph himself, the betrayal comes out of nowhere (except it doesn't , both Dolph and us just didn't see Alex's true colours)

I do think Alex did some love bombing on Dolph, which would've been incredibly too easy if the manga previews are suggesting what I think it's suggesting regarding Dolph and Alex's relationship. Even only focusing on the show, the examples you brought up fit this. I don't think Alex fits all the criteria to be a love bomber, nor I think he normally would love bomb someone. But considering how Alex saw how much of an easy target Dolph was when they first met, it seemed like the best tactic

Interestingly though the "wanting to commit too soon" and "gets jealous easily" are traits that don't fit Alex at all, but rather they're traits that Dolph has, traits that Alex definitely took advantage off

Now , the whole "Dolph is possessive/clingy" and thus gets jealous easily isn't something that actually happens in the show.... Unless you count his reaction finding Alex sleeping with Pagan Min, which anyone would get angry about in Dolph's position. That is admittedly more so me knowing that it's a common trait regarding Dolph's character archetype but like, come on, knowing what we know about Dolph (before the manga is out as of writing this) , it's not out the realm of possibility that the combination of Dolph's desperate need for affection, his low view of himself and quick loyalty to anyone who shows him kindness would result in Dolph having issues being possessive of someone he loves (which Dolph hates about himself and Alex definitely did not help with)

BUT THE "COMMIT TOO SOON"!? DOLPH, 100% DOLPH LASERHAWK! We already knew that in the show Dolph's plan pre-betrayel was running away with Alex and basically settling down on a beach with the old man, but having the knowledge that Dolph is early to mid 20s, rather then the assumption he was entering his 30s, when he decided to do that? Insane, not normal about it, he should be clubbing why is he making retirement plans already?

Oh but let's not also forget that when he killed Alex, Dolph cried his heart out and tried to kill himself. Like, even after everything Alex did to him, Dolph was still committed to Alex even in a twisted and self destructive way

And then Dolph gets the will to live again because of Bullfrog, someone who showed Dolph genuine kindness

... I am really looking forward to seeing just how much damage Alex did to Dolph in the manga, and how much does Dolph even know about it

#captain laserhawk #captain laserhawk spoilers #dolph laserhawk #alex taylor #The crew #not safe for kids #Tw abuse #Tw suicide

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icharchivist · 2 years

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Ok but I need to know what series is that from!? (About your recent posts)

HELPPP

Okay so i think i'll just give it as it is.

Tbh i thought it'd be obvious due to my insistence on not saying what it's from coinciding with me repeating "i don't want to talk about it BUT...." but i'm talking about Hypnosis Mic. I'm crying in the club here i don't know how to deal it was never supposed to be like this.

Hypmic is a saga i would have a hard time recommending per se but also have a complete blast with, and it's principally told by songs and drama tracks. The manga is an adaptation of the tracks + more content that isn't on it but are considered canon by the tracks. (the mobile game and the anime meanwhile are alternative storyline completely)

But for info the intro song, which is subbed on youtube should give you an idea.

and anyway the ship itself will be described more under the cut if you'll indulge in my meltdown:

And there's this guy (who's voiced by Feather's VA) (half the vas are in gbf btw if you need a list, pink guy pictured underneath is Mordred’s for instance) who's gimmick is that he lies all time and is a writer, so he often says things that he then goes with "oh but it's just a lie" or "well it's just something i'm writing" but then he also often, to tease one of his bandsmate, also goes "or am i lying????"

which led to scene like this (3rd track after they first met)

or this song:

and this type of things happen fairly often, Gentaro flirting, Dice not getting it, Gentaro saying it's a lie OR IS IT? and Dice being too tired to look more into it. (and there's another dynamic coming from what Dice feels but this post is already long enough)

So those two kind of drive me completely insane and so, there's been a preview to a new chapter recently which is basically this:

which starts with Gentaro saying he's stuck writing something and needs Dice's opinion, and then he goes on to show what jobs he imagines for him. and then there's this second page.

Which includes Gentaro having a child looking like Dice on his back.

And the implications of this single panel is so WILD that my whole timeline fucking erupted with "mpreg????" and i had to dig to finally find the pages because no one retweeted it so it was me and the sea of comments just going "?????????????," at this one single panel.

Like holy shit trust me i've always loved their dynamic but i always know it's just bait because they can yaknow, it's not that deep in canon but I decide to make it that deep because i can, but i genuinely don't know how to deal with "so, in this dream scenario, i have your child,"

so i don't know how to be normal right now and it's really putting a damper on my will to try not to talk about hypmic on main because now i'm just???? what do i do with that??????

so yeah. yeah. My TL isn't living it down and neither am i, i feel high as fuck right now

so yeah. yeah. I'm having you learn about hypmic by force i'm sorry i'm just still baffled.

#ichareply #zeynatura #ichatalks about hpm #bites fist why is it happening to me

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jeongjaebae · 3 years

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Maybe we'll just keep fallin'

⇢ Juyeon x reader, 3.4k, exes to lovers ⇢ A reunion at an amusement park reminds you of what it feels like to fall.

You've never hated Eric more than at this moment.

He gives you a big smile right when he sees you walking towards where the group is gathered near the entrance of the amusement park, and then runs towards you with his arms stretched out to squeeze the breath out of you.

"Hey," you greet with an attempt at a smile, hoping he doesn't notice the way your mood suddenly falls. "Long time no see."

"Y/N, I've missed you so much!" Eric's hug is even tighter than the last time you've seen him—a clear indication that he's been working out in college because those arms are even stronger as they lift you in a spin that takes you by surprise.

This amusement park trip would've been a perfect excursion on this perfect sunny day; a reunion of friends after a few years and a number of kilometers apart. And you had indeed been looking forward to it up until this point, having excitedly packed your bag and planned your outfit the night before.

However, no one had told you that he would be here too.

You knew it wasn't Eric's fault for inviting the both of you though, for he probably doesn't know about what happened. And when you join the rest of the group, it becomes quite obvious that none of them knew about it. It's as if they were all frozen in time, in the same spot as they stood all those years ago, back when your memories of this very amusement park had been overflowing with feelings for him.

It's not Eric's fault because Juyeon's Instagram remains untouched. Still filled with old pictures of the two of you long after what happened.

"It's nice to see all of you again," you say as you reach the others, looking at each of them one at a time. You wanted nothing more than to avoid looking at Juyeon the entire day, but it's something you couldn't get out of if you wanted to keep pretending everything was fine.

Juyeon was the first one you'd spotted from afar, having immediately recognized his all too familiar figure. But up close, he seems to have changed quite a bit. Like Eric, he definitely bulked up and is no longer super skinny, and then there's the way his skin glows and how his hair falls into place perfectly even with the wind blowing against it. And who wears such nice clothes to an amusement park? He's so stupidly perfect and unaffected that it pisses you off. The only thing that gives you a bit of satisfaction is seeing how he immediately stiffens after seeing you.

Maybe it would be easy to remember that he's no longer the boy you once loved when he seems so different now.

"Alright, let's go!" Eric shouts.

You knew that it was going to be a very long day.

***

"What's wrong? You don't like rollercoasters anymore?" Jacob asks. He raises an eyebrow at the way you eyed the ride all too warily.

You'd joined the line with the rest of them but there's a sense of dread in your steps that hadn't been there before. And while it wouldn't be your first time on this ride, the huge drop no longer seemed as appealing as it once did. Maybe you've developed a bit of a fear.

"I just hate the feeling of falling now," you say, then shrug when Hyunjae shoots you a strange look. "People change, I guess."

When your eyes flicker over to Juyeon intentionally, he's already staring at you.

Sometime while in line, the others all pair up with their seatmates, leaving you and Juyeon at the back together. Maybe it would've reminded you of the time they intentionally left you together when trying to set you up, but things are different now. It annoys you now.

You sigh. "Let's just get this over with."

As you climb into your seat with Juyeon following right behind you, suddenly you get an idea.

"Here, let me get this for you." You shoot him a smile before grabbing the safety bar and pushing it down on him as far as it would go, locking him into the seat with a click. It's much tighter than it needs to be and probably digs into his stomach if his grimace is any indication. Perfect. "Enjoy the ride!"

Then you walk out the other way. Leaving him without a seatmate on the rollercoaster.

A look of utter disbelief spreads on his face and you simply laugh before heading to the exit, where you would wait for his ugly photos to come out. Not that he could ever be ugly, but one could still hope.

As the rollercoaster takes off and he's still glancing at you looking betrayed, there's no time for guilt. Because he was going to go on the ride anyways, you tell yourself. What difference did it make whether it was with or without you? And besides, strapping him in tighter could've been to ensure his safety; it's almost funny how the things we do for the people we love actually end up hurting them the most.

Several minutes later, Juyeon comes back with his hair dishevelled and a frown on his face. Bothered, but still silent. You count that as a win because unfortunately for you, his photos turn out looking just fine. In fact, they turn out all too similar to the set you once carried around in your phone case—the same ride and the same expression, only the seat beside him hadn't been empty in that one.

He doesn't say anything as you take out your phone to quickly snap a photo of the preview on the screen, calling him ugly the entire time anyways.

The loud noises and flashy lights in every direction try to grab your attention as heading to the next ride has you walking through all the carnival games in the park. Prizes are dangling at every stall, the smell of colourful snacks and the cheerful voices of children filling the air. For a while, you don't mind it when Juyeon falls into step beside you at the back of the group.

Until his hand accidentally brushes yours. And his touch sends you reeling.

"You okay?" his eyes flash with concern. He hangs back to wait for you while the rest of the group continues on without notice.

"Yup," you slap on the most dazzling fake smile you could muster. "Never been better."

It was a close call; for a second you thought your resentment towards him faltered like your feet did.

They've stopped at a beanbag toss game where Hyunjae points out how much Sunwoo looks like the raccoon plushie hanging in the section of prizes, and Changmin is taking bets that Sangyeon's bad luck would make him lose every game he plays. Juyeon bets against it. You bet for it.

The man running the game gestures dramatically, beckoning your group over. "See something you like? Step right up! Only three tickets to win the biggest prizes in the entire park."

Normally you would've walked away. Everyone knows that carnival games are rigged so there was no point in wasting your tickets, but once again, an idea occurs. Three tickets to get a chance to hit your ex? Hell yeah, you were definitely in.

The man gives you a wink as you go to hand in your three measly tickets, with Juyeon following closely behind. You had a feeling he would participate too, though you don't know why.

As you settle into your spot at the counter, you realize that the booth is quite empty. None of your friends are there anymore, somehow having disappeared so suddenly without a trace—leaving you alone with Juyeon once again.

"Why are they always putting us together," you mutter under your breath.

"Because they don't know about—"

"Yeah, no shit." You roll your eyes at him. Why was he answering a rhetorical question anyways? "Whatever. Let's get on with the game already."

When the game starts, Juyeon is oblivious beside you as he concentrates on the distance to the target. Competitive as usual, you assume, though this time it wouldn't be for the purpose of winning you a giant plushie like he did before. And the old you might've tried to get a good score to impress him, but the new you isn't like that anymore.

You almost feel bad when you take a step away from the booth and gaze at the back of his head. There's a sense of hesitation because does he really deserve this? Getting your revenge when he's not even looking is a little too harsh isn't it? But you quickly wipe those thoughts away. One beanbag to the head isn't going to make up for all the times he promised not to break your heart yet ended up doing it anyways.

Juyeon whips around and gives you a hard stare after your beanbag successfully strikes the back of his head and then lands at his feet. Bullseye!

"Oh, did I hit you?" Your voice drips with a sarcastic sweetness. "Oops, sorry."

The rest of your beanbags are tossed messily without really caring where they land now that you've accomplished your goal, and his shots seem too distracted after getting hit.

He remains impassive as the two of you find your way back to the rest of your friends who appear just as suddenly as they disappeared.

"That was a nice shot." Hyunjae gives you a high-five. The way Juyeon glances at him sharply almost makes you burst out laughing. "Too bad you didn't win a prize."

You don't tell him that it might be even better than winning a prize. "You saw that? But where did you guys go?"

"Oh um, Eric kind of had an emergency. In the bathroom." Hyunjae gives you a wry smile then takes off before you could ask more.

You stick with Sunwoo for the rest of the day, clinging onto him so closely that he has no opportunity to leave you with your ex again. He occasionally gives you questioning glances and you feel slightly embarrassed; it wasn't your intention to make things awkward, but surely your friends should've all sensed something strange by now? Surely they couldn't still see you and Juyeon as a couple?

The last jab you took at him was on the spinning teacup ride, a final ride at the end of the day just as the sun was setting. The rest of your group had split themselves equally into two teacups, leaving no room for the two of you though you could see through the way they intentionally sprawled themselves across the seats to fill up the space.

So once again, you were left with Juyeon. But this time, you don't complain because you had another plan up your sleeve.

As soon as the ride starts along with the horrible carnival music, you're grabbing the wheel at the center and turning it as fast as you could. It makes the teacup spin and spin, round and round until the rest of the world is a blur of lights and colours around you. Somehow it makes the teacup feel all too small. It's as if you and Juyeon were the only ones existing as everything else blends together.

"Y/N, stop," he shouts at some point, but you pay no attention as your hands continue to move the steering wheel mechanically. "You're going to get dizzy!"

And he's right. Because eventually the teacup slows to a full stop, but the world continues to spin and prevents you from getting to your feet and walking out.

"Are you okay?" Juyeon reaches for you then pulls back at the last moment. "Why did you spin it so much?"

Just seeing the way he looks perfectly fine standing there makes you feel the contents of your stomach churn. His perfect face and his perfect hair and his perfectly indifferent expression. Had your plan backfired? At this point, could anything you do even affect him the way his presence affected you so much?

You attempt at getting to your feet again and it just barely works this time. "Ugh, why aren't—you dizzy—"

"You spun it that hard just to get me dizzy?" Juyeon's voice gives no hints to what he's thinking.

"Shut up."

His touch stings when he ends up wrapping an arm around you, holding you up as you walk out of the ride together. Usually you would've thrown him off and pushed him away, but in your state of trying not to die, you give in and let him guide you to a pavilion with some picnic benches.

"Sit here."

It's quieter here when you're out of the crowd. A little easier to breathe. You focus on the way the air tastes, cooler now that the sun has gone down but still lingering with the sweetness of cotton candy from a nearby vendor. The world slows down and finally stills under your feet, and the waves of nausea quickly recede.

"Why are you doing all this?" Juyeon blurts, and you can finally see something underneath those unreadable eyes of his. The whole day he's put up with your antics without ever saying anything, but now you could see the blaze the lies just beneath the surface.

It feels like a taste of victory.

"Doing what?"

"You know what."

"I don't know what you're talking about," you say carefully.

He gives an exasperated sigh, pacing around in front of the bench you sat at. "Do you hate me that much?"

"I—"

Yes, you wanted to say. Because hating him has never left your mind for the past few years. Because you did want to resent him. To hurt him the way that he hurt you when he decided to cut off all ties with you so your long-distance relationship wouldn't hold you back during college. Maybe he'd thought it was the right thing to do but it was such a stupid reason and he was so stupid and—it all hurt. So yes, maybe you'd imagined getting your revenge someday when you met him again.

But doing all those things today didn't make you feel any better and seeing him like this is different from what you'd imagined.

Juyeon's steps finally stop, and he sits down on the bench beside you. "If you do, it's okay. I get it. I would hate me too."

A silence settles in between you and the crickets in the background are almost too loud. The last of the sun's fading glow surrender to a blanket of darkness that contrasts with the warm glow of the fairy lights in the small pavilion. Being here in any other context might be romantic. It reminds you all too much of what happened the first time.

"Why?" you ultimately ask despite already knowing the answer. "Why would you hate yourself?"

"For hurting you. For even thinking that we'd be better off apart because the past four years have only made me miserable with regret," he admits. "So yes, hurt me. Let out your pain." He pounds on his chest a couple of times and then stretches his arms out, waiting. "I can take it. Just don't hurt yourself."

"Juyeon..."

The amount of times you'd wished to hear those words over the years. He did call that one time, though your roommates had taken your phone and blocked him before you could get a chance to find out what he might've said. It was something that you'd wondered about during the times you'd drank a little too much, when you'd cried over nothing, when the feeling of falling had become falling into the depths of darkness instead of falling in love like it once was.

Maybe now, you're finally getting your answer.

Your fists are weak where they collide with his chest repeatedly, one after another, as if doing so would make his heart hurt as much as yours did. And he just takes it.

But then he's wrapping his arms around you, pulling you close until you give in. Until you completely melt against him. Until there's the warmth of his body against you and the tears that slip down your cheeks land on his shirt.

"Y/N, you have no idea how much I missed you," he whispers, breath coming out against your hair where he runs his hand through like he did before. "I'm sorry. For everything."

His scent enveloping you as he holds you, the dim glow of lights above you—it all reminds you of what happened all those years ago at this very place. It had been the same park and the same friends as today, but the exhilaration was from the way he grabbed your hand to pull your closer, not from being up high in that swing ride. The dizziness you'd felt was after he kissed you for the first time, and not from some spinning teacup ride. And when had the heart fluttering feeling of falling been from falling in love, and not simply from a rollercoaster ride?

But soon you do find yourself falling again.

It's not like the first time he kissed you here, when sparks fly and the world spins and your heart pounds so hard you thought it would burst. This time when his lips are on yours and he fits against you so perfectly, it's like coming home after being too far for too long. Everything feels so familiar yet new, like rereading your favourite book and rediscovering all of your favourite passages as you relearn each line and curve of his body. He may be different from what you remembered from all those years ago, but the way his gentle hands cup your cheeks, the brushing of his knees against yours, the way you can taste the salt of tears and faint sweetness of cotton candy on his lips. Everything is still so distinctly him, something that even the space and time between you couldn't ever change.

"Lee Juyeon," comes out in a whisper against his lips as you pull back to catch your breath, "you're so stupid."

"Only when it comes to you." He breaks into a smile, the first genuine smile that you've seen all day and it seems to light up the world. "I'll make it up to you, I promise. Even if it takes me the rest of my life."

"You're making this sound like a proposal."

Juyeon gives a choked laugh. "Um, not that I would be against it, but let's take this one step at a time first, yeah?"

And when you look at him, truly look at him, this time you can see the same boy you loved for all these years. You let those eyes draw you in and finally let yourself sink into the memories that you kept pushing away and burying. There's a tinge of pink on his cheeks and they're hot under your fingertips as you reach to pull him in again and—

"It's about time," a booming voice suddenly interrupts, making the two of you spring apart. Eric claps as he walks into the pavilion joined by the rest of the group, a mischievous smile on his face.

"It only took them all day," Sunwoo rolls his eyes. "I was dying over here when Y/N started following me around. Totally deserve an Oscar for my acting today."

"Hey, that's not true! I definitely noticed you giving me weird looks."

It's not surprising that your friends had known about the breakup after all, though you just hadn't expected them to have known even before this trip. The deja vu takes you back to the last time you were here, how your first kiss as a new couple was nearly interrupted by Eric's cheers and Sunwoo's expressions of disgust.

"Before you start freaking out—no, nobody told us," Eric says. "Nobody needed to because it was so obvious. We only pretended to not know in the hopes that you'd finally put each other out of your misery."

"And while it's good that you guys did, the highlight of this trip has got to be watching Y/N bully Juyeon all day," Hyunjae bellows and nods towards Juyeon. "I don't know what you did to deserve that, but you probably deserved it."

Soon there are sounds of laughter filling the pavilion and it makes your heart feel full in a way that you hadn't felt in a long time. As if there had been a weight you didn't even know you had on you, and now it's been lifted off your shoulders and you finally feel light enough to join in with their laughter.

As fireworks fill the night sky and Juyeon intertwines his fingers with yours on the walk back, it quickly becomes clear that the falling back together was as easy as it had been the first time.

#juyeon fic #the boyz fic #juyeon fluff #juyeon x reader #the boyz scenarios #the boyz imagines #tbz x reader #tbz x you #juyeon x you #tbz fic #juyeon scenarios #just some more writing practice~#bc what is getting back together with ur ex #unrelatable idk her #my fic #title is from fallin' (adrenaline) by why don't we!!!#why tf is this so long it was supposed to be 2.4k #anyways i love this juyeon but like #don't let ur ex crawl back into ur life yall!!!

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sakkkurra · 3 years

Text

Don’t leave me Pt.2

Pairing: yan!BTS x female reader

A/N : Hi guys how was your week? I hope you are all doing well. I have finally finished second chapter of Don’t leave me so I hope you will enjoy it. And I am reminding that this is pure fiction and it does not display real BTS behaviour or characters. This kind of behaviour is bad and toxic in real life. I do not own the picture.

Preview : " Since birth, you could see creatures from other realms. It was your special gift and you were quite thankful for it. But one fateful meeting with seven fallen angels makes you wish you weren’t born special. After all if it wasn’t for your so called gift, you wouldn’t have been in the clutches of monsters with no way out."

Warnings: yandere themes, language, angsts and obsessive behaviour

-part 1- -part 2- -part3-

"There are several layers of meaning to your words."

As always, Taehyung was right. Words can be such a powerful weapon because you can easily twist them and make them into beautiful lie."I never lie Y/N, never" you remember Taehyung saying these words one cold autumn night. You were wrapped in his strong arms and both of you were looking at night sky that was sparkling with millions of stars. Honestly this night was night when you had fallen in love with him. But now you know that in fact Taehyung always tells truth. But the thing is that he always twists it to his liking. This is one of reasons why are you stuck with them in this stupidly big mansion far away from home. You were out of breath from running and you can’t hold on for too long either."Oh fuck this!" you say to yourself when your legs gave up. You need to rest for a few minutes but you know you can’t afford it. They can catch you any moment and you would rather burn in hell than go back to them." Oh what a bad tongue you have Y/N" you hear from behind you. You don’t need to look behind you to know who it is. You know too well who is the owner of that smooth deep voice."Taehyung..."you say with low voice. How could he find you so fast?You turn around to face him."The one and only, angel" he says with boxy smile on his face. You both stand here looking at each other. Your first instinct is to turn around and run even if you know it’s pointless. But before you can even turn around Taehyung grabs your wrist and pulls you into his chest. It’s funny how one hug that once felt like safest place in the world was now feeling like prison to you." And where was my cute little angel running hmm?" he hums in your ear."Tell me angel, you weren’t leaving us hmm? Because that would make me really, really angry. And you don’t want to make me angry, do you?"

-past-

"You can come to my house, my mom is not home till next evening so you can rest there" I say to them. Honestly I don’t know what I was thinking when I offered them to stay in my house. I mean who invites seven mystic men to their home. The one that can see them I tell myself. But I need to help them because nobody else can especially when one of them is injured. I think his name was Taehyung if I remember correctly. The walk to home was quiet. The only sound was Taehyung's grunts. Once we reached my home I let them in and navigated them inside living room. "You can wait here, I will be right back with some medicine and bandages" I say to them. They all nod and in few minutes I am back. "So do you guys know how to treat him, or?" I ask them. They look confusedly at each other and say no.I walk closer to Taehyung who is sitting on the sofa and say nervously " Well uhm your right sight is hurting, right? So the blouse must be taken off" I finish the sentence with obvious blush on my cheeks. Everybody stays quiet and Taehuyng raises his eyebrows at me. After while he mutters okay and takes off his blouse. My breath is caught in my throat as I see his toned upper part of body. Not gonna lie I would stare at him more if it wasn’t for one big wound on his right side of his body under his rib. I gasp and quickly start treating his injury. The room is filled with heavy silence. I am starting to feel uncomfortable so I try and start the conversation"So, who are you guys? Where are you from? You are not from this world right?" Namjoon stands up from his seat and answers my questions"No we are not from this world. We are from other realm that your people call heaven" my eyes widened in surprise and I stop working."You are from heaven? Like actual heaven? So are you angels? But you don’t have wings!"Then one of them answers" Yeah we are from heaven and yes hell exists too. As for our wings well" he stops and thinks about right words"you can’t see them yet but we do have them. Name's Yoongi by the way." I am speechless but now it finally makes sense why all of them look so ethereally beautiful."But wait, I've seen angel before and I could see her wings. Even if it was only just one time I can remember her wings clearly" I say and suddenly I feel hand on my shoulder. I look up and see Taehyung smile down at me." Well Y/N you see, we are different type of angles. We are special. And maybe one day you will be able to see our wings." I stay quiet and continue to work on his wound. There are so many questions. If they are angels, what are they doing down there on Earth. Why is Taehyung injured and what did he mean by calling themselves special angels. When I am done with Taehyung I am ready to ask them all of my questions but I am interrupted by Namjoon" Anyway, we never really introduced ourselves right? As you already know I am Namjoon and I always keep an eye on my brothers so there won’t be a problem. Thank you for healing Taehyung and for letting us stay here Y/N." I nod and say no problem when another one speaks up" I am Jin the oldest and the most beautiful being that you will ever meet" he says and kisses my hand. I hear his brothers sigh heavily and I giggle. Next comes up man with heart-shaped face"My name is Hoseok but you can call me Hobi. Nice to meet you Y/N!" he says and you could tell he was really cheerful person. "The name is Jimin sweetheart. I am really pleased that we could meet. It looks like it will be fun getting to know you Y/N" he says and winks at me . I blush and look down. Like damn how can someone look that good. Calm down Y/N and stop drooling over them, you look like a total freak I tell myself. Suddenly Jimin is shoved away by Yoongi and I can hear Jimin curse at him. He takes my hand and shakes it"I am Yoongi but you already know that. I am the smartest one so I don’t have time to be bothered by stupid questions. Nice to meet you Y/N I guess" he says and walks away. Well okay, rude? and I am ready to snap back at him when my attention is taken away from him by this massive muscular man that is standing

before me." I am Jungkook, the youngest one. Thanks for helping Tae" Jungkook says and I can’t help it but get lost in his big eyes. They are beautiful but they feel somehow cold."Well I am going to prepare place for sleep guys is there something that you need?" I ask them."Ah there actually would be one thing Y/N" says Jin" where is the nearest church?"

-back to present-

"Let me go Taehyung!" you scream as you try to push him away."What more could you possibly want from me huh? You already took everything you possibly could! At least let me go" you say with tears in your eyes. You were honestly tired. You don’t know why you try to fight them back when it’s obviously hopeless. You must resist them Y/N you tell yourself you must keep fighting them you need do to it for mum, for Zira and for yourself. Easier said than done."Oh angel, look at you. Anger doesn’t suit you. Stop this nonsense and come back to your room. Come back to us"Taehyung says and starts caressing your cheek. You hate him no you hate all of them. But perhaps you hate him the most. Because of him you get yourself trapped inside web of his twisted words with no way back."I don’t want to Taehyng-"He interrupts you"Tae, you always called me Tae,angel"You look at him dumbfounded. Is he really expecting you to call him Tae after all he’s done? It’s like everything is normal to him. Like he didn’t deceive you and made you believe that all of you will be living in one big fairytale when it’s everything but it." I will say it one last time Taehyung, let.me.fucking.go!" you growl at him with angry look on your face. You know that you are pushing his limits but you don’t care anymore. They’ve already done the worst to you. Both of you are staring at each other for a while when suddenly his hands are on your throat and you are pushed against wall."Tsk tsk tsk angel, this is not a way you should have behave. Why are you so irked hm?" he says derisively." Y-you know why, you l-lair"you whisper because you are out of breath. His cold eyes narrow at you and he smirks cruelly."Oh Y/N you know I can’t lie especially to you. All I said was true. I promised you fairytale like life and here you are. You have breathtaking mansion to live in ,not like that shabby home. You wear the finest robes and have every thing that you could possibly ask for. And what’s more important you have all of us. So tell me angel, do you think that asking for your soul is too much? After all, it was you who said that we can have it with your heart" he says with smile on his face. And like always he was right. You have said it. But in totally different meaning. And Taehyung knows it too. But it doesn’t matter because you said that fateful words to them. And it was not easy for him to make you say it. You were really different no, you were special like them. But he made it at the end. After all he was Taehyung the deciver.

#yandere bts #yandere bts x reader #yandere hoseok #yandere yoongi #yandere jin #yandere namjoon #yandere jimin #yandere jungkook #yandere taehyung

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sometipsygnostalgic · 3 years

Text

adventure time wizard city liveblog

well here we go

my last adventure time liveblog, i havent actually done one of these in MANY years... probably not since 2014

this takes place at the same time as obsidian?

DID-- DID CHOOSE GOOSE JUST DIE

DID BUFO JUST KILL CHOOSE GOOSE

yeah i know that’s bufo, they only made it enormously obvious, tsk tsk

@spaceacepearl joked about us seeing choose goose get sent to hell but i diDNT EXPECT IT TO HAPPEN

This music is i assume by one of the many musical artists Adam Muto listed on twitter, it rocks. It’s not as hardcore as Obsidian’s intro, but it’s suitably chill for the scene.

“get offa my bus kid”

Those wizards in the left and far right groups appear to be new!

OH MY GOD--

HELP?????? NEW PROFILE PIC TIME

HAHAHAHAH

THE MUSICAL CON DID ME GOOD, I DID REALLY LOUD AUDIBLE LAUGHTER

i bet hanna and co had fun making these signs

my favourite is the cat with “FAMILIARS HAVE RIGHTS”

cadorka..... wow

We’re not even four minutes into the ep and peppermint butler has already killed someone in front of a large group of witnesses

“this smells of DARK MAGIC” “yall kids know thats illegal right” peps watches the other kids nod before later joining in, LOL

i cant believe pep started the great gum wars and got killed by golb

SOMEONE has been playing Overwatch...

i-- i still cant believe choose goose is fucking dead

how long was he stuck in hell for, or was that recent to together again after new death showed up

i have to admit im not a big fan of spader, too perfect, and not in that funny way either. i hope they give him some characteristics that make him stand out.

im getting flashbacks to OK KO and Owl House here...

Cadebra using music is a reference to Abracadaniel’s love of interpretetive dance in Play Date.

“they only laugh because youre different” “i know” “SO STOP BEING DIFFERENT” oh my god it’s like talking to my own parents cadebra is actually... a LOT like me, less in her hyperactivity but more in her nonchalant enthusiasm and almost acceptance of the inevitable bullying because it means more time in people’s consciousness

ahhh - it’s quietly revealed here that she is responsible and a skilled magician, she is just bored of magic! i like that she parents abracadaniel instead of being downtrodden by his ramblings.

PEP NO--- oh i see the problem, he hasn’t got his Bug Milk... sorry Martin Olsen fans, no Hunson today. At least we get one more Phil Face for the road!

candy people in their natural habitat

Ahhh that’s Doctor Calidoneus! The voice actor was at the recent Distant Lands panel alongside Pep and Blaine’s actors.

“pretty sure hes just trashcandy” - i like you, sassy antler lady

the mystery of how he gets clothes

and once again spader is proving to be the most irritating distant lands character of the lot, there is no subversion here. where is the subversion?

NANI

what is going on here? are pep and peppermint the same person or not? im sure they must be, but there is something going on here with peppermint butler’s soul being trapped in the body of his child self who hasn’t got the same memories.

OH, HYNDEN WALCH DID A NEW LINE yes this is what im here for, special over

peppermint butler cursed himself... of course he did - Shado was correct!!!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA WHAT THE FUCK

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA WHAT THE FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK

ROCK STUDENT, BLESSED ROCK STUDENT, WAS THAT POOR GUY WHO LOOKS LIKE A JAWBREAKER

love the reference to astral plane, of course pep cant astrally project because cursed pep is still inside of him

wow, blaine, wow

they have a crush

LITTLE DUDE! COLE SANCHEZ!

i love the dynamic between cadebra and abracadaniel, imo so far it’s the heart of the special. im not really gripped by peppermint butler’s school troubles. i imagine someone else probably will be but i want to run past that shit as far as possible.

TRDGFYGHJH

WE MADE A PREDICTION THAT WAS JUST LIKE THIS

PEPPERMINT BUTLER GETTING TURNED INTO THE FOUR COMPONENTS OF PEPPER MINT BUTT LURE WAS IN THE WIZARD CITY PREDICTIONS ART DRAW THAT HASNT BEEN POSTED YET

ILL SHOW YOU WHEN NICK POSTS THE VIDEO and then ill tell you who made the prediction because i... think it was nick himself, insanity

who plagiarized finn’s signature???

turns out pep really DID take over wizard city!!!!

i love this band

i understand your pain peps

you probably have a bit too much in common with your mother, and i imagine it isn’t easy being turned into a kid and not being able to do stuff that came so easy. you’re disappointing yourself! (he’s literally disappointing himself)

I’m less than halfway through the special, what the fuck. I wasn’t wrong when I said Wizard City had a lot on its plate. It’s noit that I’ve been particularly gripped up to this point, though to be fair I didn’t pause at all during the other specials barring Obsidian.

that... that poor kid is still a rock

and then the preview happened and bufo casually revealed to the audience that, yes, he killed choose goose

i dont know whats happening with pep but it seems he needs to be exorcised of... pep. which is a shame. i hope they learn to coexist.

i have to say the background work in this special is really good! like, really damn good.

WHAT

DID SPADER JUST DIE

IS THIS WHY PEOPLE THINK PEPBUT KILLED HIM

oh thats right - abracadaniel is cadebra’s uncle! this must be abracadniels sister. sorry, folks, he doesn’t fuck.

Where are they? Is this anywhere near Wizard City? It’s an unpopulated prewar wasteland.

THESE ARE JUST HUMANS

OF COURSE SHE WANTS TO PERFORM TO MILQUETOAST HUMANS

my child

is this an art style choice or did they get the people from that one studio to make this

HANNA FINALLY GETS TO FULFIL HER DREAM OF INSERTING KANEDA INTO ADVENTURE TIME

the red jacket he wears and his head pill shape is a big kaneda reference actually, which i suppose makes sense considering he’s a rival to our protagonist, but it’s a bit on the nose

bufo killed one of his own students? but why????

“MY UNCLE’S A COP”

“no one likes a rat”

i actually really like blaine, though im confused. did their VA change halfway through the special?

HOW NATURAL, NO WASTE, IT IS AN ENDLESS CHAIN

did doctor caledonius steal the trophy,,,?

EVIL SNAIL EVIL SNAIL

MONMSTER HUNJTER DISCOVERY NOISE, this time it’s a tetsucabra

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

I HAVE QUESTIONS

god i wish this is what this special was about, i miss adventure time

these remind me of the comics with their art style :) i wonder who designed them? the one on the right with pb and pep, in particular, very comics-y.

fdgfhgf because he’s like 500

“pep can be kind of a jerk but he wouldn’t kill anyone”

sorry, cadebra, i have news for you

is doctor calednoius the true villain? if bufo’s out of the picture, she MUST be,

ANTS

oh no, he might gbe stuck in wizard city :(

HELP

the writing on the wall...

SPADER LITERALLY FUCKING DIED OH YM JESUS CHRIST

PEPPERMINT BUTLER’S OWN CULT????

THIS IS JUST OK KO NOW

okay im not surprised all the teachers at wizard city are cultists in worship of peps, maybe they killed spader and bufo because they bullied peps T_T

wait no, they thought spader had the potential, but sadly not

HE FUCKING KILLED HIMSELF

sorry, i was distracted by the pretty dope fight sequence and now the special is over????

fucking jesse, hes probably at least partly responsible for the cult nonsense

This credits art is by Maya Petersen!!!! Holy shit it’s adorable!

LRETGFDRGTFGMHGFHFG

LEAF MAN

DO YOU THINK THEY PUT HIM IN RETROSPECTIVELY

DO YOU THINK MAYA PETERSEN DREW THIS AND ADAM PUT IT IN THE EP RETROSPECTIVELY

HE LIVES

MAYBE THIS IS WHY CHOOSE GOOSE WENT TO HELL

okay, it’s over :)

first thoughts out of the way: not a big fan of this special. it’s like watching a completely different show. it’s not got the PZSHAHH of the normal wizard city stuff and there weren’t a lot of funny jokes or even hearty moments in the thing.

it suffers from a lack of invested character interactions, much like BMO did. there was not a single main cast member in the whole thing! and like i said before, much of peppermint butler’s character in the show is based on his very sweet relationship to his mother, princess bubblegum, so when they showed a single (hilarious) photo of them together it made me sad we didn’t get any scenes with them together. it would have STOLEN this episode. and they teased the hunson golf photo, and death!!! and jake appeared in a photo T_T last jake appearance.

it also suffers because Peppermint Butler is clearly not himself, imo he was way more entertaining in the Together Again special, where we seem him back to his “normal” self.

i dont think peps being a dark wizard was something to “kill off” exactly. i wonder what was going on there? was that actually peps, or was that a spirit he cursed himself with based on himself? we at least know in the future he does become a dark wizard again, and even princess :) this special didn’t answer those questions but lol.

THE GOOD STUFF, because yes, there was a lot of good stuff!

God, I’m with Aracle and Maya on this - I LOVE Cadebra and her relationship to Pep. I wish she was even in more of this - I would love to watch the adventures of Cadebra and Pepbut in their first year of school, like in the end credits.

That, imo, is where the heart of the special lay - Peppermint Butler’s attempts to impress himself, versus Cadebra’s self acceptance and desire to follow her dreams of being a goofy goober, no matter what other people thought of her.

It turned out that Cadebra is a responsible student and family member. I really liked that. Her scenes with Abracadaniel were, somehow, my favourite in the entire special!

I like that theres a lot of cool magic towards the end of this special, and a lot of HORRIFYING DEATH. It wouldn’t be adventure time if you didn’t randomly kill off child characters. Poor Spader, I hated you but damn, what a grim fate.

I like that Bufo and Caledonius had this crush/hatred thing going on, but they were part of the same cult in the end.

I didn’t like the giant peps scene at the end, the monster was extremely milquetoast compared to the madness we usually get in AT. Obsidian, for example, had the awesome Larvo design. Nemesis had some INSANE dark magic!!!! I wish they drew more from that episode.

Considering how much Steve Little appears in this special, I do feel bad for Mace (little Peps). He said he would have really benefitted from coaching, but recieved none. He had to re-record his lines 3 times! Judging from his description of events, Wizard City was a hard time for him.

The wizard school did remind me, heavily, of both The Owl House and OK KO. Personally I was hoping AT would offer me something more insane, but I do love both of those shows, and I know Wizard City was on a really tight schedule.

I think they should have spent less time on the school bullying plot, and skipped straight to MURDER.

We did have a cold opening, not on par with Together Again’s at all, but damn!

I am wondering where I would put this in the watch list? I do think it should sit after Obsidian as the third special. The intro scene makes it clear this takes place at the same time as Obsidian!!!

Well, that was it, the last ep of AT for the next few years at least T_T

i think together again was the better finale, definitely. but wizard city feels pretty detached from AT for me, despite the familiar characters it tonally isn’t like the show other than the awesome brutal death scenes. I thought the last 11 minutes was easily the best in the special! Which, honestly, is how it should be, though I do wish it gripped me more. Maybe I’m just not the target audience for Wizard City? It feels like something I would find very compelling if I was a bit younger!

#adventure time #wizard city #atimers

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high-functioning-lokipath · 3 years

Text

SH - Sherlock & Mycroft Friendship/Brotherly Bonding - Prompt: Holmes brothers as kids, Myc being a good brother, playing the deduction game. - Words: 1,715

WARNING: MYCROFT IS A BIT NOT GOOD AT THE BEGINNING. THIS IS NOT MYCROFT HATE THO! ALSO, DEVIL CHILDREN WHO DON'T LIKE SHERLOCK MAKE AN APPEARANCE. IT DOES END WELL THOUGH.

That being said, I guess I should add a Trigger Warning for bullying.

I do hope you enjoy the story! Let us know!

"You simply are not trying hard enough, Sherlock! It's quite obvious!" Mycroft yelled. The Holmes brothers were standing in the living room in 221B. Mycroft had decided to pay his brother an in-person visit rather than just turning on the security camera he'd installed. Sherlock had decided to ask Mycroft to play the deduction game with him over a cup of tea. Sherlock was rarely so cordial with Mycroft thus Mycroft was, not that he'd admit it, concerned that something was wrong. He realized he'd miscalculated greatly (again, he'd never admit that) when, only an hour later, a shouting match had ensued.

"Really? Obvious? You're bloody insane, Mycroft! That solution is simply not possible!" Sherlock yelled, dressing gown swishing dramatically as he waved about.

"Look at the facts little brother. We've eliminated the rest. And what do we say about what remains?" Mycroft attempted to bring his voice back down to it's normal, placating, patronizing tones.

"Must be the truth," Sherlock replied, hanging his head low as he finally came to rest on the couch. Mycroft briefly, and rather guiltily, pictured Sherlock as a whipped puppy tucking its tail between its legs. He hadn't intended to hurt his brother so, but the damage was done.

'Nothing worse than past fights,' Mycroft thought. 'He'll recover in a few hours.' He decided not to reconcile at the moment as that could quite easily be taken as caring. 'Sherlock knows I care about him, I just don't want to appear too soft,' Mycroft justified mentally.

"Very good, Sherlock," He said aloud. "I understand you couldn't see it my way today. Perhaps one day you'll be able to think clearly about things." Mycroft turned to walk away. "Perhaps once your brain recovers from your last overdose. Maybe then it will return to acceptable functionality."

'Why did I tack that last jab on?' Mycroft wondered. 'Perhaps I really am becoming too calloused.' He shrugged off the thoughts for the moment as he got in his usual black limousine for the ride home.

Back in 221B, Sherlock sat crying on the sofa for some time. Soft whimpers of "Myc" fell from his lips occasionally. Eventually, he fell asleep, although not a restful one.

"William! Come outside! It's a perfect day to explore!" Sherlock's mind palace had conjured up the memory he was trying so hard to forget. He saw everything so clearly though. Mycroft, still as proper as ever, yet this Mycroft was more free, more innocent. About 14 years old and just under 5' 7", Mycroft had already adopted most of the personality that would stick with him for the rest of his life. Sherlock was seeing his memory as though it was a movie he could walk through. He didn't see it from his 7 year old point of view. Rather, he watched on the sidelines. He looked around and found himself in the backyard of their childhood home. Mycroft was examining a particularly bright patch of flowers by the corner of the house. Some of them had been crushed, others torn up.

'The old tabby cat,' Sherlock remembered fondly. 'Mrs. O'Malley did always let that cat wander too much.'

"I'm coming, Mycie!" Sherlock heard behind him. Turning about he saw himself, right at 4' tall, running out of the house to join his brother.

"Tell me, William," Mycroft said. "How do you think these flowers were destroyed?"

"The old tabby cat, Mycie! That's easy! Find me something harder!" His 7 year old self exclaimed. Mycroft smiled approvingly and patted little Sherlock's shoulder.

'I can't seem to recall why he ever stopped calling me William,' Sherlock thought. Shaking his head in his dream, he chuckled silently. He knew he would remember, but his mind was attempting to fool him.

"Timothy Lexington," Mycroft called out, tossing a frisbee to young Sherlock. He caught it absently, brows drawn together in thought.

"Blond and blue, 19, 5' 9", science class, held back a year," Sherlock replied, throwing the disk back with a smug grin.

'The original deduction game!' Sherlock thought with an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia. Sitting on the grass, he settled in to watch.

Mycroft had gotten into the habit of having Sherlock deduce his classmates to the nth degree.

"Why was he held back?" Mycroft quizzed, returning the frisbee.

"Cheating," Sherlock replied, about to throw it back. "Wait," he paused. "Cheating and skipping class." With every throw, Mycroft would ask a question or name a person, and with every catch, Sherlock would answer.

"Samantha Hanshaw."

"Red and green, 17, 5' 5", fairly intelligent. Moved ahead 2 levels over the summer." Mycroft was just about to catch the returning disc when Sherlock added, "And she has a crush on you. She likes your intellect." Mycroft completely froze. The frisbee hit him squarely on the forehead, snapping him out of his trance. "Mycroft! Are you ok?" Sherlock yelled, all deductions forgotten.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Mycroft assured him. "Let's go up front." The two Holmes children ran around to the front yard and Sherlock hurried to catch up. As he was about the round the corner, he noticed a group of boys, about his younger self's age, bicycling down the road.

'Oh,' Sherlock remembered. 'This was it.'

"William! Want to come and play with us?" One boy yelled, coming to a stop in front of the house.

"Can I, Myc? Please?" The younger Holmes asked. Sherlock could see the love and care in Mycroft's eyes. But also the sadness.

"They're no good for you, Will," He whispered, kneeling down to his brother's level. The younger's face dropped, tears welling up in his eyes. Mycroft hesitated briefly, hoping with all his heart he was making the right decision and that his initial readings of those boys were false, and added, "But if you want so badly, I suppose an hour or so wouldn't hurt." Sherlock lit up and hugged his brother around the neck.

"Thanks, Mycie! I'll be good! I'll be back in 1 hour!" Sherlock then ran across their large front yard to the road to meet up with the other boys. Mycroft began to walk into the house when he heard yelling.

"Where's your bodyguard now, William? Think you can just use your brain to get out of this, William?" Mycroft's heart sank. Those scumbags were holding Sherlock down on the pavement, kicking him. "Freak! Weirdo!"

"Leave him alone!" Mycroft bellowed. Sherlock had been struggling, trying to get away from them, but there had simply been too many. The bullies quickly scattered, grabbing their bikes and running off. Mycroft pulled Sherlock onto the grass immediately.

"I'm sorry," Sherlock whimpered.

"No, no, William. You don't have to be-"

"Don't call me that!" He yelled. "Never again! If I'm to be a freak, I'll be named as such. Never call me by that name again. Call me Sherlock from now on." Sherlock's face had turned adamant, a preview of his future personality.

"But-"

"Please?" Sherlock begged, face softening once again. Mycroft silently nodded and pulled Sherlock in for a hug.

"Come on inside. Let's get you washed up and have some cake together, hm? Sounds good, Sherlock?" Mycroft asked, the name feeling strange on his tongue. He certainly did not think the name sounded freakish, nor was his brother a freak, but he would, at least for now, make his brother happy.

"Yes, please."

"And Sherlock?" Mycroft continued, pausing his steps. "I'll always love you and I'll always take care of you. I will never hurt you. Never forget that."

Sherlock woke up with a start, gasping and still sobbing a little. His face was sticky with half-dry tears.

"I will never hurt you." Those words echoed in Sherlock's mind. It seemed that these days all Mycroft had done was hurt Sherlock.

'Not that it was really his fault,' Sherlock thought. 'I'm really the cause of it all. Maybe if I could find a triple homicide I could finally make him proud.' Sherlock shook his head. He'd already solved those types of cases. He really didn't know what to do to make his brother happy. Turning over on the sofa, he looked to the abandoned mugs on the coffee table. No doubt, the contents were far past cold so Sherlock got up and took them to the sink. Hearing the door lock click, he readied himself for an intruder since no one else he knew should be coming in at this time of day.

"Sherlock?" He heard a voice call out.

'Mycroft?' Sherlock wondered. 'Why is he here?' Slowly, Sherlock walked out of the kitchen.

"What do you want?" He spat, unintentionally angry.

"I wanted to apologise. I'm sorry," Mycroft said, absolute sincerity showing on his face. Sherlock was surprised beyond words. Mycroft quickly took in his brother's appearance and realized he was responsible for it. Mycroft sighed lightly before continuing, "Lately all we've done is fight. That's not right for brothers. Even arch-nemesis brothers," He said with a smirk. Even Sherlock chuckled at that. Turning serious once again, Mycroft continued, "Please believe me when I say I'm sorry. I-" He paused for a moment, deciding he may not have another chance like this for a while. "I'll always love you, little brother, and I'll always take care of you. I will never intentionally hurt you. Never forget that. I may be harsh sometimes and say things I don't mean when I'm especially frustrated but I'll try to say 'I'm sorry' a bit more."

"I love you too, Mycie," Sherlock replied, hugging his brother tightly. Mycroft smiled fondly at the man who, at the moment, was burying his face in Mycroft's suit jacket. Mycroft hugged Sherlock back.

"I'll always care, William," His brother's name finally felt right again after all these years. "You're never a disadvantage."

"Neither are you, Myc," Sherlock replied with a smile. "But you know you're not allowed to call me that around anyone else. Not even Mummy and Daddy." Mycroft nodded. "Good. Now why don't we stop this emotional madness and finish what we started," Sherlock commanded. To the average person, it would seem Sherlock had gone back to normal. But Mycroft saw the glint in his eyes. "Chocolate cake with whipped icing?" Sherlock offered.

"Of course," Mycroft smiled, taking the plate and sitting again in the living room. "Cluedo?"

Sherlock BBC Taglist

@lucywrites02

@delightfulheartdream

@bartv21

@another-crazy-fangirl

@ladylulu143

#sherlock #sherlock bbc #sherlock holmes #sherlock imagine #sherlock fanfic #sherlock oneshot #mycroft holmes #mycroft & sherlock #young!mycroft #teen!mycroft #young!sherlock #kid!sherlock #tw: bullying

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mappinglasirena · 3 years

Text

Eaglemoss’ Sirena Booklet

I woke up this morning to an excited message from @regionalpancake, telling me her Eaglemoss model of La Sirena has arrived! I’m still waiting for mine (oh to live in a country where mail gets delivered on Sundays :D), but Regionalpancake was kind enough to send me pictures of the booklet that comes with the model, and there is some fascinating information in there!

Most of the booklet consists of an interview with Mark Yang about the process of designing Sirena, illustrated with many early sketches and models. It’s essentially an extended version of the article published on startrek.com, that I discussed earlier (here and here). However, there are a few new insights.

According to this, La Sirena is 85.57m long (US people: I’m afraid you’ll have to do your own conversions ;9). I’m assuming that’s at the longest point, meaning the full extent of the nacelles. I’ve done a few rough measurements and calculations and this would give us a size of ~32m for the length of the set, bridge to back wall, which roughly meshes with my estimates so far. I’ll have to sit down and do some more drawing and measuring once I have the booklet and model in front of me, though at the moment, I still suspect that the set is slightly bigger than what the 3D model actually allows for.

The launch date is also interesting. Production designer Todd Cherniawsky has mentioned in an interview that Sirena is maybe fifty years old, but that estimate was apparently rather low. ST: Picard begins in the second half of 2399 (around harvest time, i.e. autumn, in southern France). Even if the ship launched at the very end of the 23rd century, that still makes her at least 99 years old. Apparently, Captain Rios’s faible for antiques extends to his starship.

[Transcription: "La Sirena was a mid-sized vessel, designed to be operated by a crew of half-a-dozen or so.”] If Sirena’s intended crew complement was six people, that would explain the need for an extended holographic crew when it’s being piloted by one person alone. Or at least it explains the need for an additional mechanic and one or two people to help out at the helm, but as the EHH tells Picard, the basic installation comes with five holograms.

I’m still not entirely sure how accommodations for half a dozen people are supposed to fit on the ship, given the size of cabins we have seen so far. We know that Rios retrofitted the spacious quarters, so the previous living arrangements might have been more compact, but that still leaves us with the question of where the additional quarters will go once there are seven people staying more or less permanently on the ship after the end of season 1. I’m very curious to see whether we’ll get some hints about this in season 2.

One thing that really struck me looking at this front and back view is just how high the main body of the ship sits above the ground. When Sirena crashes on Coppelius, she ends up buried pretty deep, so it’s not as glaringly obvious, but by my (admittedly very rough) estimation, the cargo doors (centre back of the ship) are around 5m off the ground. That seems too big a distance to cover with a normal loading ramp

In an earlier design stage, the warp nacelles were more sloped and sitting higher to begin with (the wings connecting them to the main body of the ship are horizontal across the top, rather than sloping down as in the final version). Additionally, the concept art below makes me wonder, whether in this design, the nacelles might also have been attached more flexibly and able to fold up a little to bring the rest of the ship closer to the ground:

In the final version that made it to screen, it certainly looks like the transition from the body of the ship to the nacelles is rigid and seamless, so I think it’s unlikely that the nacelles can be folded outwards when landing. However, this is future technology, so nothing is impossible.

If the nacelles are indeed rigid, I would imagine that spaceports will have landing pads that accommodate a setup like Sirena’s, similar to loading docks in warehouses nowadays.

There is another bit of concept art from the same stage of design, showing the front of the ship:

[Transcription: “At one point the idea was that Picard would board Rios’s ship at a spaceport, so Yang produced this concept showing him approaching it. The idea was to show the scale of the ship and to communicate the idea that Picard was in a very different situation to the one we were used to.]

What stands out to me here (apart from the “AC” logo near the wing, probably for “Araña Cosmica”, Sirena’s name in early drafts) is that this early design has an access hatch under the bridge.

It’s not entirely clear whether this decision survived into the final model. We know there is some accessible space under the bridge, and presumably some of it is dedicated to phaser banks, since the few times we see Sirena use phasers, the emitters are located in the nose of the ship.

(NB: as mentioned before, Yang has said that there are additional, more powerful weapons in the impulse engine pods at the sides of the ship, but we have yet to see those in action.)

But it’s possible some version of the front access hatch still exists in the current design. The only glimpse we get of the structures under the bridge comes from a cross section of the computer model that is briefly shown on screen in the blu-ray/DVD bonus feature Set Me Up:

Clearly, that part of the ship isn’t fully modelled, since there is a steep drop right behind the door and something poking through the floor in the middle of the space that I’m not sure is entirely intentional. (If you have any ideas about what is happening there, please do let me know!) Then again, this model doesn’t quite correspond one to one to the final set design anyway (it has the entry to the holodeck where Raffi and Rios’ quarters should be), so it might be an earlier design stage as well.

In general, I like the idea of an additional hatch under the bridge, since otherwise the only access point (and presumably airlock) we know about are the cargo doors at the back of the ship. (On Coppelius, the crew exit through the panorama windows which were clearly not designed for this purpose and only become usable after the crash.) A ship the size of Sirena should probably have one or two redundancies if access to the main doors is blocked.

All in all, the booklet has a ton of beauty shots of La Sirena from all angles (and finally lit properly), so once my own model arrives and I can get some nice scans, I’ll probably spam those here. Thanks again to Regionalpancake for the preview!

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yourgalaxy · 3 years

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~Eight Senses~ ( Preview)

Pairing: Hoseok x Female O/C, mentions of platonic OT7 x Female O/C

Genre: Fluff, Angst, Action.

Mafia Au

Summary: When he met her, he felt a void being filled that he didn’t know excisted.

Warnings: None

Word count: 1542

Disclaimer: This is an original story but I don’t own any of the personages aside from the female lead. I don’t do swear words. English is not my first language so bear with me.

The rumors had it that the only child of one of the biggest mafias on that side of the globe had moved back from studying abroad, that she had moved back for good and that she was moving on her own. The majority of the gangs around knew better than to mess with him, the boss had made really clear what happened to anyone who dared to threaten what was his, and it seemed way too obvious that his family was part of that all.

But Hoseok and his brothers weren’t a gang, they were far more deadly, far more reckless and independent. They were the wild card of the industry, doing favors for everyone but never really tying themselves to any organization. They were good at what they did, always impeccable, they did the job fast and clean, covering their traces perfectly, so even if you knew of their existence you never knew when they would be working in your favor or against you.

They played the game on their own terms, doing the jobs they saw fit and directing their business according to their own moral code. Nobody had ever seen their faces but everybody knew their names.

Bangtan never took things personal, in their eyes it was all business but this time they were taking this case in their hands without expecting payment for it. This was the time some of them were waiting for and the others were ready to assist them till the end, because at the end of the day they were indeed one, and if one member was hurting, they were all hurting…

…

Ezra couldn’t be more excited about coming back, she had always loved her country and even though she tried to ignore some of the memories that stained her mind, she was fond of the way the air of the place reminded her of her happy childhood and the memories of what her family was.

Moving on her own, in a little town far away from the city, far enough, where no one would think twice about her last name, far enough, where she wouldn’t have to live up to anyone’s expectations or demands, was Ezra’s dream come true.

She was well aware that her father would know of her arrival by now. Even though she tried to move as quietly as a shadow, she knew he had eyes and ears on her all the time,she probably knew too much about him and his business after all. But she deemed it safe to assume that he wouldn’t dare get involved with her, not after disowning her long ago, not after treating her like a stranger and sending her as far as he could when she was barely out of highschool.

She hated her father.

She felt like puking every time she would see him in an advertisement or giving an interview for the business magazine. She hated everything he standed for and everything that he made her to be. She hated everything he had done to their family and the way he dismissed the collateral damage of his actions.

She was nonexistent to the public eye and that was probably the only thing she thanked her father for. Deciding that it was time to move on and live her life as a happy orphan, she was excited to redefine her notion of home and create a new future for herself, far from the world she was raised in.

Oh, how different was the plan that fate had prepared for her.

…

It didn’t take long for Jungkook to find the whereabouts of the infamous mafia child, it was actually way easier than what he expected, the kid was really careless, for a moment he wondered if they were trying to play the “lay low and hide in plain sight” game, because if so, they were doing a good job at it, he was just really good at doing his part of the job.

“No pictures, Kook?” - Hoseok was going through the information Jungkook had provided, it was a surprise for him to not have a visual image of the target, not even one of the younger boy’s impossibly detailed sketches. Jungkook hummed in response, a uncertain look taking over his eyes.- There is something weird, Hyung… For some reason, even after knowing where he is hiding, Jin hyung and I can’t really see him… - Hoseok didn’t miss the slight panic on Jungkook’s voice even when the youngest tried to downplay it as something minimal. This was the first time something like this happened, Jin and Jungkook’s vision had never failed, there was usually no living thing that could hide from them, especially if they knew where to look.

"It's ok, Kook! You and Hyung are probably worn out from this week. It has been really intense." - He dismissed it for the younger's sake, but they both knew better even if they decided to leave it at that for the time being. They had truly had an exhausting week, but that had never been a limitation for any of their abilities. - " I'll make sure to mention it to Namjoon once he comes back. You go to bed and rest a little bit." - Jungkook was tempted to deny the fact that he was too tired to even think properly but with a yawn escaping his lips he decided to just comply and go to bed for the night.-

Hoseok's finger tips clicked against the wood of his desk, he had a sickening presentiment in the pit of his stomach and for people as intuitive as them, that was never a good thing.

…

The room was dead silent as the two slim men stood next to each other in front of the seiling tall window. The reflection of the moon against them, making their sharp features look even sharper. Intimidating and lethal but beautiful and ethereal nonetheless. That was the charm of these 7 Men.

" So, what's the plan, Hoseok?" - Namjoon asked after the silence allowed both of them to ponder about their situation and the unusual situation with this new target and the inability of the eyes of the team to actually see him. Namjoon was the leader of the team ever since they got together, but they both knew that this mission needed to be led by Hoseok, it was originally his best interest that was at risk there, they were all doing this because of him and Taehyung after all.-

“We do what we do best, Joon. We snatch the bastard and squeeze the information out of him. If you are ok with it, I would like to start the recognition face as soon as possible’’ - Namjoon just hummed in response, he knew Hoseok and what this mission meant to him but he was worried about his brother and what this mission could take from him...No matter what, Namjoon was ready to support any of his members in any way, even if it meant to fix them back up after they were shattered to pieces, because he knew they would do the same for him… They had done the same for him.- “Take Jin hyung, Taehyung and Jimin with you… And Hoseok… Be careful.’’ - He squeezed his shoulder in a reassuring way before leaving hoseok to his thoughts and exiting the room.-

…

It came as a surprise to all of them when they realized that Lee Jaemin was actually a girl. It made all of them doubt for a second, they normally didn't mess with any job that involved women or children but Hoseok couldn't afford to back off now, he was too close to finally get to the monster that had destroyed his and Taehyung's lives, he just couldn't give up that chance. Even if it meant betraying everything he believed in, he was going to kill Lee Taejoon and destroy everything he stood for.

"Let's get going" - He said, missing the worried looks that his brothers shared behind him, Jimin opened his mouth a few times trying to come up with something to say but once he noticed the fire in Hoseok's eyes he knew there was no other way.- "Yes, Hyung!"

The recognition face was easier with this target than what they would have expected, but again up to this point nothing had gone as expected with this person.

They had been observing her for about two weeks and she was suspiciously underprotected for someone of her status. The girl seemed to be trying her best to lead a peaceful and quiet life. She had started to work at the only flower shop in the little town. She seemed to be like any other girl in their 20's, very friendly and happy. but they knew better than to underestimate an opponent.

Hoseok felt sick to his stomach. After all the stuff her father had done and continued to do, she gets to live happily ever after? Oh, hell no.

"I'm taking her tonight, Namjoon. So get ready." - Namjoon wasn't able to respond before Hoseok hung up. He sighed, praying that things wouldn't get out of hand. He had a bad feeling lurking around his mind-

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kitaychan · 3 years

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We need to talk.

Summary: After a breakup, Ivan realizes his life was not as fullfilling as he had thought. Reaching out to old friends might prove to be a slow task with interesting outcomes.

Chapter preview: Ivan fidgeted with his fingers, not meeting his sister’s piercing blue eyes. “I’ve already told you everything is fine, why would I lie to you? -he looked at the screen, Natalia was frowning. "Now, tell me how are you dealing with university life?”

For a moment, Ivan thought that she wouldn’t answer, that the connection was lost but the tapping of her fingers on the table told him that she was thinking her reply, her eyes were fixed on him, scrutinizing him. “It’s different, like your apartment. I see that Tolys’ horrible vase is gone.”

Dumbfounded, Ivan looked back, the dining table was indeed empty. He frowned. “Yes, you know what else is missing, Natalia? Boris, Boris is gone and I can’t find him.”

She shook her head, knitting her eyebrows together. “Boris is not gone, you haven’t searched in the most obvious place.”

Chapter 5: Workaholic.

Brother, you have some explaining to do.”

Ivan wasn’t pleased to talk with her.

Not when he had been sleeping soundly after a night of overthinking and binge-watching the first series that his computer showed. The Russian admitted that wasn’t the best choice he could take, but at least he had refrained from touching the bottle of vodka in his fridge.

His sister’s disapproving glance told him that his disheveled appearance was obvious. Not everyone was on his pajamas at 3 pm. Ivan couldn’t care any less, except for the fact that it was his dear little sister seeing him like that.

For some reason talking with Natalya has always been hard. Katya was the one he’d come crying to, not Natalya. He had tried to keep up with the appearance of the strong and serious big brother. She had always praised him when they were children, he didn’t want to shatter that illusion showing his vulnerability to her. Ironically, she’s the first to know if something in Ivan’s life is going wrong. It’s as if she could read his thoughts and see right through his facade without actually seeing him in person.

Ivan fidgeted with his fingers, not meeting his sister’s piercing blue eyes. “I’ve already told you everything is fine, why would I lie to you? -he looked at the screen, Natalia was frowning- Now, tell me how are you dealing with university life?”

Dumbfounded, Ivan looked back, the dining table was indeed empty. He frowned. “Yes, you know what else is missing Natalia? Boris, Boris is gone and I can’t find him.”

She shook her head, knitting her eyebrows together. “Boris is not gone, you haven’t searched in the most obvious place.”

Ivan shifted uncomfortably in his seat, he’d never liked the sofa, it was too soft and he felt like a child in there. “Alfred was here.”

Natalya sighed, taking a hold of her phone and stating sternly. “I talked with Tolys.”

Ivan tried not to frown, he knew that Natalya had good intentions but she didn’t have to keep tabs on him like that, he whined. “what? why?”

“Because he posted a picture with this unknown guy and the cat, so I asked him why he wasn’t with you.”

How did she know what Tolys posted? Ivan wasn’t sure if he wanted to know. “Natalya-”

She interrupted, leaving his phone on the table, and nearing the screen as if to watch him closely. “And he told me that you broke up.”

Ivan shrugged, trying to lead the conversation. “Well, that’s true I-”

Frustration was all over her face, her voice carried indignation that Ivan could not understand. “He said that you were fine with it, that he had moved out and the day after, returned for something and found Boris outside, that he tried calling you but you didn’t answer him.”

The Russian blinked, processing the information, it was his own fault that Boris was missing. “Oh”

She nodded and huffed. “So, I told him he was cursed and stopped talking to him.”

Natalya always joked about witchcraft, scaring some of his friends in High School, Ivan snickered, finding the situation oddly familiar.“Cursed?”

The Russian felt guilty when Natalya’s voice grew weaker, and her lips quivered. “Yes because how dare he tell me that my dear brother was fine when he wouldn’t answer his calls, that’s obviously concerning.”

“But I’m fine.” He tried to reassure her, Natalya looked so similar to Katya at the moment.

“You’d talk about it if you were fine.”

He sighed, glancing at the fridge and the bright yellow note still glued to it. “But I already did, Alfred was here and he listened to me. You don’t have to worry.”

Natalya pouted, crossing her arms. “You look tired and you forgot the video call with Katya.”

Ivan paused, he did forget to call them. That explained why they were so concerned.

Natalya’s voice was soft. “Vanya, what is wrong?”

He looked up, finally meeting her gaze. “Natalya, I think I was a douche with Tolys.”

“Why?”

He glanced at the empty table behind him, muttering his answer. “I kind of ignored him so I could work.”

She huffed. “That’s stupid. You’ve always been diligent, he knew that since the beginning. He said he liked your hard-working attitude. You can’t pay the rent if you don’t work”

Ivan fidgeted with his hands. “I know, but-”

“Weren’t you paying for all?”

He nodded. “Yes, but it was a deal, he had to pay some debts and I got recently promoted, it was just for a couple of months. I'm not going to rub that on his face because I agreed to it. What we did not agree, was to constantly cancel everything because I had to stay more time at work. I don't blame him, sister, we spent about two hours together per day.”

“Ivan, that doesn't give him the right to cheat on you. Don't justify him.”

He pondered on her words, they held some truth but he still felt guilty.“I know, but he doesn't deserve to be cursed.”

Natalya’s voice was firm, her eyes fixed on the screen. "Brother, I think you wanted to end that relationship long ago but you couldn't."

Ivan couldn’t hold his gaze, he shook his head. "Natalya, I don't know, I was somehow relieved when he said we should break up but then he said he knew I didn't love him back and I felt bad, because he was hurt, and when he said he was with someone else I was angry. If I wanted that relationship to end, why would I care about those things?"

She tapped her fingers on the table, stating bluntly. "Easy, you are human, you do care about Tolys and well, you do feel jealousy. Completely normal. But you have to overcome it."

Ivan nodded, unsure of what to reply.

The tapping of her fingers stopped, her eyes were gentle and she smiled. “Brother, you can't be the almighty provider just as father was to us, that's a figure of the past. You have to share and split the economic duties equally and stop being a workaholic.

The Russian looked up, confused. “Workaholic?”

Natalya’s smile was brighter but her voice was stern. “Yes, I think Tolys relied too much on you, perhaps he didn't mean to but he didn't ask you not to support him, and that's his fault, I told you he was weak-willed.” -She sighed- “Nevertheless, you do have to pay more attention to others, especially your partners. Your relationships don’t last, If I’m not wrong, Alfred was with you the longest but you’d also complain a lot more about how he'd refused to let you pay the bills. Brother, you have to remember that you are working to live and not living to work.”

Ivan smiled, how weird it was for him to get advice from her. “Thank you, Natalya.”

Natalya nodded, waving her hand. “I love you brother but you have to take care of yourself when no one is around. Take a shower and call Tolys, ask him to bring Boris back. We’ll talk later. Don’t forget to talk with Katya.”

He nodded and the call was ended.

Talking with her did change his gloomy attitude. Deciding to follow her instructions he texted Tolys. Receiving the latter's request to retrieve the cat himself. Ivan chuckled, apparently, Boris was giving the brunette a hard time.

Ivan wondered is he should let Tolys be tormented by the fluffy cat another day but refrained from it. It was better not to delay this task anymore.

He headed to the bathroom. Perhaps Tolys could bear with Boris for a couple of hours more, the prospect of a long relaxing bath seemed more appealing to Ivan than to reach Tolys’ new home right away.

#hetalia fanfiction #hws russia #hws belarus #hws fanfiction #my writing

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ariesnicolo · 3 years

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teacher au preview!! @of-scythia

for context: nicky is coming to the school a few days early to set everything up in his classroom and get his orientation/paper work done, and joe stops by his room to say hello and then ends up walking him to the admin offices but they make a stop at joe’s art classroom first. not exactly fluffy pining like i said before but i wanted to show what kind of teacher joe is. pls enjoy <3 (also Alessa is the name of nicky’s younger sister)

As the two of them walk down the hallway together, Nicky remembers that they’re in the hallway for art classes. Nicky never found out which room was Joe’s during his tour with Copley, and he admits that he’s very curious to find out which room is his and what it looks like. “Which room is yours?”

“Oh, this one is mine.” Joe points to a slightly open door on the left side of the hallway, stops so he can open the door more and show Nicky inside. Nicky’s first impression of the room is that it’s a disaster. Joe’s classroom was the one Nicky saw earlier with the sketchbooks and pencils scattered around, but now that Nicky can actually take in the room, he realizes it’s much more than that.

Joe’s classroom is a lot bigger than Nicky’s, which Nicky quickly comes to understand is a necessity. Where Nicky’s classroom has about thirty individual desks, Joe’s room has six big, wooden tables scattered around the room surrounded by stools. Under all the sketch books, the tables are covered in a mess of color that Nicky can only assume is from paint and colored pencils. The walls are completely plastered in the student’s work, and Nicky spots paintings, detailed sketches, photos, and a few tasteful collages. Joe’s back counters are covered in complicated art supplies that Nicky can’t even begin to understand, and the windows in his room are covered in very thin, colorful paper, designed to look like stained-glass windows.

Nicky wants to ask if it’s actually Joe who needs help setting up his room, but he keeps that question to himself.

“It isn’t normally this messy.” Joe says, a little wince accompanying his words. “I’m just organizing the sketch books to return them to any students who aren’t taking any classes with me again.”

Nicky nods, figuring that every other part of Joe’s classroom is just as chaotic during the school year. The lack of organization for the rest of Joe’s stuff would bother Nicky, but it doesn’t seem to bother Joe, who is probably used to his room looking messy at the end of the day. Nicky can’t even imagine the horror scene an elementary school art room would be at the end of the day. “Were these all done by your students?” Nicky asks, looking around and pointing to the art on the walls.

“Yeah.” Joe sighs, and Nicky looks over at Joe to see a proud shine in his eyes. “If they’re comfortable with it, I keep all their work on the walls during the school year. I hate taking it all down at the start of the new school year, but I would never have space for anything new if I didn’t return them to the students.”

“They’re all really good. You have very talented students, Joe.” Nicky says, looking at a beautifully detailed picture of a field of wildflowers at sunset. Nicky’s eyes then catch a colored drawing of a man wearing a short, white wig and black frame glasses. Nicky does a double take on the painting, looking at it again just to be sure. “Is that… is that Danny DeVito?”

Joe laughs loudly at the surprise in Nicky’s voice, but quickly confirms that it is Danny DeVito. “I assign a portrait piece in three different mediums for all my juniors to help with their portfolios, and it can be a portrait of anybody, so Marissa- that was her name, she chose to do Danny DeVito.”

“That’s not his real hair, is it?” Nicky had only seen one movie with him in it at Alessa’s insistence, something about a little girl with special powers, and even though Alessa made him watch the movie repeatedly when they were little, Nicky doesn’t know much about him. “It looks very realistic in the drawing.”

“No, he’s practically bald. I think.” Joe says, furrowing his eyebrows as if he has to think about it to be sure. “This was just from a show he was in that she liked.” Joe smiles, but it’s small and private, like he’s thinking of the student who did this portrait. “She graduated last year and now she’s at RISD.” Nicky doesn’t know if that’s good or bad for Marissa, and it must show on his face. “Oh, uh, it’s a college in Rhode Island that’s one of the best for fine arts.”

“That’s nice. You must have been really proud.” Nicky says, because it doesn’t take a genius to see that Joe carries his pride for his students and their work in his heart. From the way he talks about his students to how he treats their art with such respect, Nicky has no doubt that Joe is a wonderful teacher and loved by every student he comes across.

“Yeah, I am.” Joe says, but the way he says it and how he looks around at all his previous student’s art, Nicky feels like he’s intruding on something personal. Nicky lets Joe have his moment to think and reminisce and looks at more of the art on the walls. All of the pieces are exceptional and detailed and well thought out, but it’s the variety in the art that gets Nicky.

It’s clear that Joe assigns themes for each project, like portraits or nature or still life, but Nicky gets the impression that each student is allowed to take that theme and do what they want with it. Nicky spots a beautiful painting from an outsider point of view of a group of people looking up at a cloud with the outline of another person in it, like Mufasa in The Lion King. Nicky also sees an equally skilled painting of The Scream, but instead of having a person’s face, it has the face of a mouse and the background looks like it’s been placed in a cage. Nicky gets the sense that Joe loves, and even encourages, all his student’s weird artistic choices.

Joe claps his hands together, breaking Nicky’s train of thought and directing his attention to Joe’s hands. Nicky’s brain short circuits when he sees that Joe is wearing thick, silver rings that are engraved with something Nicky can’t make out. Nicky thinks it’s really unfair that Joe is clearly a kind, thoughtful person and has an obvious love for all his students, but he also has shoulders that drive Nicky wild and he wears rings that Nicky is endlessly curious about.

#this is my side blog that i finally started sorry if there is any confusion about that #again sorry if it cuts off weird i just didn't know where to stop and that seemed like a good place #hope you like it and that this whole thing will be worth the wait <333

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daebakinc · 3 years

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A Rearrangement (Preview)

Pairing: Jae x Female Reader, ft. DAY6, Kard, and Mina Genre: Arranged Marriage AU, Angst, Romance Summary: Blackmailed by your parents, you’re forced to alter your life plan and enter an arranged marriage with the male heir of the Park family. The even bigger surprise comes when you find out that heir is your friend Jae. Thrust together, as the two of you become closer than before, will it strengthen your friendship or be the unexpected start of something else?

You always imagined the path to doom would be violent, dark, and storm-filled. Who knew it would actually be paved in gold-veined marble and lined in bouquets of hydrangeas and lily of the valley bound in silk ribbons in slender silver vases. But then, only the finest auction block would do.

The temptation to fidget grows as you wait with your parents in the quietly decadent lobby. Your feet beg to be free of the pointed heels, too accustomed to sensible flats. The chiffon dress is light and beautiful, you won’t deny that, but it feels like a lie. Dresses like this are for special occasions, not a dinner. Even getting dinner during a normal hour seems odd given you’re usually too busy dealing with a revolving door of patients. Patients who you could be helping with now but—

It is only years of training keeps you from crying out when your mother delivers a sharp pinch to your underarm.

“Smile. You look like you’re attending a funeral,” she hisses beneath her breath, a gracious curve pasted on her own mouth.

“Aren’t I?” you whisper back. Your impudence is rewarded with another pinch, but every bit of defiance is worth it. If nothing else comes of this, you remind yourself, soon she won’t be able to touch you or anyone and anything you hold dear.

“It appears the other party is already here,” the tuxedo-clad concierge tells your father. “Shall I lead you to the room?”

With all the dignity befitting an assemblyman, your father nods and lifts his arm, looking back at the two of you. Another part of your heart breaks away at that look. The warmth that lay in your father’s eyes when you were a child is no more than a memory. Cool calculations necessary of a career politician extinguished it long ago. Instead of his only child, all he sees is another bargaining chip. Until yesterday, you were able to lie to yourself that an ember of affection still survived. But no more. That delusion is dead, forever buried alongside the many other dreams slaughtered by your parents.

“Remember what is at stake for your father,” your mother whispers as she releases your arm to reach for your father’s. “Remember what is at stake for you.”

As if you could forget. Otherwise, you would be hundreds of thousands of miles away. You would be penniless but for the paltry savings you squirreled away, friendless but for the few who didn’t know your family, homeless but for your own skin. And it would be worth it to be completely out of reach of their conniving hands. Free, totally and completely, for the first time in your life. But she was right. What was at risk was far greater than you.

You fall in behind your parents, precisely three steps as you’d been drilled since your father first ran for public office. Shoulders back and spine straight, chin up and eyes forward. None of the growing trepidation or swirling sick feeling in your stomach betrayed in your countenance. A true lady just as they wanted. If they could have, they would have broken and reconstructed your soul in their image as well. But you had at least held out on that.

The concierge reaches a plain, eggshell-colored door flanked by two more bouquets. He knocks, then opens the door for your parents. You stick out your fingers to subtly touch the flowers as you pass through the door. The fragile silk softer than the real fabric proves they’re real. As real as the people within are fake, your parents included.

An older couple are the only obvious occupants, rising from their seats at a rectangular table set with exquisite crystal and silver that twinkles in the light streaming from the bay windows. Distinguished gray touches the man’s hair while the woman’s is jet black, doubtlessly dyed to hide the age that lies in the makeup-covered wrinkles around her eyes and mouth. Both are simply but finely dressed. Yet together, you know their wardrobe costs enough to send a student to a decent university for a year. At least.

The stink of old wealth, enhanced by the surroundings, is as heavy on them as your mother’s perfume. You hate it.

The man rises, smile broad and hand outstretched. “Assemblyman! Welcome!”

“Good to see you again, Mr. Park,” your father replies, shaking his hand and flashing that million-watt smile he practices in the mirror for the press and donors. “Especially on such a joyous occasion.”

“Yes, indeed. So this is your daughter.” Mr. Park’s gaze falls to you.

You steel your back against the shiver of disgust you feel as his eyes openly sweep you up and down. His wife follows suite from behind him. You can’t help the feeling that they would have pried your mouth open like a prize horse if you weren’t in a more civilized age. The irony of that thought amid your situation almost distracts you enough to give a real smile.

“Not as beautiful as her picture, but her career and your prestige will make up for that. She will be a welcome addition to our family,” Mr. Park says approvingly.

Bile rises unbidden from the bottom of your stomach with revulsion. Who the hell is he to judge you, let alone speak such an opinion out loud. You inwardly scoff. Just proof money cannot buy manners or decency.

“Where is your son?” your mother asks, looking around.

Mr. Park’s smile tightens a fraction. “He was temporarily detained at an appointment, but he’ll be here shortly. No need to worry. He’ll be here to sign the marriage contract.”

Marriage contract. Those words are enough to make the embarrassment at Mr. Park’s callous comments evaporate, replaced by the unforgiving chill of reality.

Today, you’re getting engaged to a stranger. To say the idea doesn’t terrify you would be the most vile lie. The idea of being “tied forever” to someone you’ve never met, never even seen, makes you sick. It makes you want to shrink, crawl away, and mourn. It makes you want to roar, storm, and seize your autonomy back. But all you can do is stand and wait, your face the vaguely interested mask you have perfected to a fault.

Mr. Park steps back and gestures to the table. “Shall we?”

Men in trim tuxedos silently appear to pull out your chairs. Mr. Park and your father take seats opposite each other, then Mrs. Park and your mother. You sit across from the empty chair. The chair where your soon-to-be fiance will soon sit.

Beside you, the older adults talk among themselves. Whether they speak of social niceties, specifics of the pre-nuptial contract, or plans for the wedding, you don’t know. Their words are noise in your ears and they make no effort to include you in the conversation. It doesn’t surprise you. You’re accustomed to it and you’re glad of it. They don’t deserve the civility you would be expected to produce. Not to mention your temper is shortened by the lack of sleep caused by an anxious patient’s hours-long call last night.

There’s a knock at the door and your heart stops. It’s him.

Demon or angel. Brat or saint. Executioner or savior. Bane or mate.

There’s no way to know and no way out. If someone in this day and age would agree to such a bond, he’s either an idiot, a pushover, or a victim like you.

You steel yourself for disappointment or pity, determined to keep any emotion to yourself. These parasites won’t get anything else from you.

The door opens and a slightly rumpled, lanky man ambles in. His long black overcoat covers a slate-gray suit jacket with matching pants and dark burgundy turtleneck. His blond hair is ruffled, streaked with bold swathes of highlights, and longer than you would expect of a wealthy scion. His messy bangs brushing the lenses of his round, gold-rimmed glasses.

Your mouth drops open. How…

“Sorry I’m late,” he says without a smile or sincerity. “I was—”

When his eyes fall to you, his mouth mirrors yours. You quickly snap your jaw back together and give the smallest shake of your head.

Don’t let them know.

His mother gives a polite cough to try to call him back. When he continues staring, his father speaks for him. “This is our son, Jaehyung.”

So that’s Jae’s real name.

Your father immediately gets up and holds out his hand. “Pleasure to meet you, son.”

“I remember your hair being black this morning,” Mr. Park says, addressing his son as he greets your father. “Was there a mistake at the salon?”

Recovering from his surprise, Jae’s mouth twitches like it wants to smirk at the clear disapproval in his father’s voice. He smooths his hair, takes his seat and answers simply. “No.”

His parents’ mouths thin, but the first course being served saves Jae from further reprimand. The conversation picks up where it left off, articulated by the clink of silverware.

Again, you’re not invited to participate, but neither is Jae. You push the salad around with your fork, flipping the leaves as your mind attempts comprehension. Admiration for Jae’s blatant rebellion only briefly interrupts the bewilderment swirling around your head.

Jae, your friend since he almost killed you with his skateboarding antics in university and who constantly crashes on your couch to whine about being broke. This same man who usually dresses in some version of a T-shirt, jeans, and or plaid shirt combo and seems to have a guitar permanently attached to his hands. Reconciling him with the put-together heir in front of you, your almost fiance, is proving difficult.

Though now, certain gaps in your knowledge of Jae make a bit more sense. Despite claiming to be perpetually broke, he never fails to pick up the latest shoes he’s been drooling over or new production equipment when his band, Day6, needs it. He never mentions his family. During university, he always found a friend to go home with on breaks.

Just like you.

Maybe that’s why you felt drawn to him, became and stayed friends. A silent and unconscious recognition of similar ghosts haunting your shadows.

Your phone quietly vibrates against your thigh. You ignore it.

Something nudges your foot. Lifting your eyes from your plate, you find Jae staring at you. He glances down towards your lap, frowning and jerking his chin when you don’t move.

With a peek at your mother to ensure she’s not paying attention, you slip your phone from the pocket hidden in your dress.

Meet me by the bathrooms.- Jae

You immediately stand, smiling as the Parks and your parents finally turn their attention to you. Lifting your phone, you say, “Please excuse me. The doctor on-call has a question about one of my patients. I have to call him back.” Disregarding your mother’s annoyed expression, you turn on your heel and walk out of the room.

After asking for directions, you find the bathrooms and wait in the alcove beside them. You don’t have long to wait before you hear Jae calling your name.

He jumps when you poke your head around the corner, but rushes over, grabbing your elbow to bring you back out of sight. “What the hell are you doing here?” he asks, his voice a hoarse whisper and his eyebrows nearly forced together with a frown.

“You asked me to meet you here.”

“Not here, smartass,” Jae says, rolling his eyes. “I mean here here.”

“I could be asking you the same question, Jaehyung.” You pointedly look down at where he’s still holding you.

“Sorry.” Jae releases you, his hand immediately going to run through his hair. His mussing leaves it standing at odd angles so he looks more like the Jae you’re familiar with. You recognize the same struggle to reconcile your newly discovered realities on his face as well. “It's just... you’re the assemblyman’s daughter? You?”

“Sorry to disappoint,” you reply, not sparing the sarcasm. You sit on the bench and fold your arms, scrutinizing the friend you thought you knew. “But I guess we’re even.”

“What do you mean? You never your said your dad was an assemblyman.”

“And not once in all the years we’ve known each other, not once in all the times we fell asleep talking did you mention you were a friggin' heir, Jae. Never mind an heir of the Park family. You were probably born with twenty silver spoons in your mouth.”

Jae sighs and joins you, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the wall. “I didn’t say anything because I never wanted it. Who wants to own up to a family that only wants you to become their version of you, you know?”

“Preaching to the choir here.”

He opens his eyes with a frown and turns his head to you. “I never pegged you as a “yes, daddy” kind of girl. A goody-two-shoes with an overdeveloped savior complex, yeah. Definitely. But this? You really going along with this?”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” you retort with a roll of your eyes. “I thought we were friends.”

“We are, which is why I’m really freaking confused right now. You’re a doctor, dude. A modern woman. You’re always going on about women’s rights. Totally support by the way, but—”

“You really think I agreed to this for shits and giggles?” you cry, anger bubbling over. Everything you’ve held back since this morning boils out. “You think I like your father making me feel like a piece of meat and telling me to my face I’m ‘not as beautiful’ as my picture? Oh, wait, that would require him to address me directly like I had my own mind. Yeah, Jae, I just woke up yesterday and said to myself ‘Hey, let’s toss my entire personality, morals, and career aside and agree to get married to some rich guy so my dad can profit from the family-man image and new connections boost this election!’ That’s exactly what happened. No reason other than that.”

Jae is uncharacteristically silent after your outburst, studying you. You can’t really blame him. In the entire length of your friendship, you’ve only seriously raised your voice at him maybe once. He’s mentioned more than once that that fact is one your more attractive attributes.

Letting out a sigh of your own, you lean against the wall as well. You shouldn’t have yelled at him. He doesn’t deserve to be the recipient of your pent up frustrations. Picking at the skirt of your dress, you say, “You know my friend, Mina?”

“Yeah,” Jae replies with a shrug. “The dancer who’s at that super fancy dance school for ballet or something, right?”

“She’s there on a scholarship. A scholarship my mother is on the board for. My parents didn’t even bother being subtle about it. As soon as I told them they were crazy for suggesting this, they threatened to take the scholarship from Mina or even get her kicked out of the school. She can’t afford the tuition on their own. Jae, she loves that place and dancing so much and with that kind of training, she has a shot at so many opportunities. I couldn’t let them do that to her. It would kill her.”

His face becomes somber. “Ow…”

You give a half smile and a shrug. “Figured I could suffer through a few years of this marriage ‘til she finished, then find a way to get divorced.”

Jae reaches over and squeezes your hand. “You’re a really good friend.”

“Thanks.” You return the pressure and keep your hand in his. The reminder of humanity soothes some of the anger and hurt that sits like a boulder in your chest.

“Though I guess I am too,” he says. When you just look at him, waiting for an explanation, he lets out a bark of laughter. “And you yelled at me for being a bad friend, ya hypocrite. You think that I, Jae, the Jae, would say yes to this kind of backwards shit?”

“No.” Adopting an awful Manhattan accent, you ask, “So what’re you in here for?”

Your attempt gets a small laugh out of Jae, just as you’d hoped. The smile that accompanied it disappears as he says, “My parents found out about Day6… Before, as long as I kept my head down and didn’t do anything ‘embarrassing,’ they didn’t care what I was doing since my sister is going to take over the business. But now, if I don’t do this marriage thing, they were going to cut me off. I’d miss my Jordans, but I could deal if it was just me. But you know I’m the one who books our studio sessions, pays for the travel and new equipment when we need it. The guys chip in when they can, but they don’t make that much at their day jobs. I don’t make enough for it all either.”

You put your other hand over Jae’s. His band is his life. You’ve seen the shelves at his apartment filled with notebooks of music and lyrics instead of books. Some he’s actually played for you or let you read. He has his guitars named and arranged in order of favoritism for crying out loud. Making him abandon his music would be less painful than cutting out his heart while it still beat.

“We’re this close to a break, Doc. I can feel it.” Jae meets your eyes, none of the normal charm or ease there. Instead, they beg for reassurance, belief in him and his dream.

“I know you are. I come to every show I can, don’t I?” You smile, feeling the callouses from his constant playing rubbing against your own skin. “You're going to make it big. You have more talent than half the people on the radio. We just have to get the right people to listen.”

“Then I could support myself and I wouldn’t be in this mess.” He suddenly chuckles.

“What?”

“You could be too. You could be like our bus driver or roadie or something.”

“I have a job, you know. I just don’t work at the right place to make the big bucks. The clinic can barely afford our necessities, let alone big staff salaries. Besides, I don’t think it would matter.” You sigh again, unable to stop yourself from leaning against Jae. Everything feels too heavy and there’s a headache brewing in your temples. “I wouldn’t be surprised if my parents just found someone else to foist on me if this didn’t work out.”

“Damn. Seriously? We really won the lottery on the crappy parents, didn’t we?”

“That’s an understatement.” Looking down at your joined hands, you try to imagine matching weddings bands on your fingers. The idea is laughable. But nothing comes out of your mouth except the words, “We’re really going to do this, aren’t we? Get married.”

Jae’s shoulders lift beneath your cheek in a hopeless shrug. “For now, I guess so. Unless one of us wins the actual lottery. Or Day6 gets signed with a big bonus.”

You start nodding, then stop as an idea hits you, and groan. “Dammit… Jae, what’re we going to tell our friends?”

“What’d you mean? I doubt our parents are going to invite them to the wedding. Mine are too snobby and yours seem just as bad. Not like our friends read the newspaper either if our parents do one of those corny engagement ads.”

“I know my mother. She’s going to insist on an engagement ring and not a subtle one. Our friends know us. They’re not going to believe we went from friends to engaged. And what about what’s-her-name? The girl you’re talking to?”

“Oh,… yeah, that didn’t work out,” Jae says with a chuckle. “She didn’t like how much time I spent practicing. She told me it was either her or the band.”

Lifting your head, you stare at him. “What the hell were you doing dating someone like that?”

“She was hot?”

And he’s back. You drop his hand to smack his shoulder. “Gross!”

Jae raises his hands in defense, but a smile is back on his face, at least temporarily. “I’m kidding, jeez. Well, not really. She was hot, but I thought she really liked music slash the band too.”

“Sure.” Restless, you get off the bench and begin pacing. You think better on your feet. “But seriously, what’re we going to tell our friends? Us dating wouldn’t be too big a stretch, but no one would believe we’d do something crazy like get married out of nowhere. You’re impulsive enough for that, but not me. They’re going to know something’s up.”

“Firstly, I resent that impulsive comment. I'm just absurdly curious is all. And why not just tell them we’re dating?” Jae pulls in his legs when you almost trip over them. “But only if our parents make us move in together or something. Otherwise, we don’t need to. You don’t have to wear the ring unless our parents check in or whatever. Plus, like I said, crappy as it is, our parents wouldn’t think to invite them to the wedding. The only people there will be people we don’t care about. Then after we’re married, we just wait it out, not telling anyone, and then, like you planned, get a quick, quiet divorce when everyone’s safe. No one knows, we live our lives as normally as we can, and then we’re home free.”

Pausing in your marching, you look at Jae again. He looks far calmer than he has any right to be. Seems like he’s already accepted your predicament. But maybe he is right. Maybe this abrupt drop in the road of your life can be smoothed into a less dramatic sharp turn, or even a slight detour. Maybe you can do it. Together. The demons of uncertainty’s voices quiet for now.

Out loud, you say, “Alright.”

“Cool. Now that that’s settled,” slapping the edge of the bench, Jae pushes himself up, “we should probably get back. By the way, why’d you not want them to know we know each other?”

Raising your eyebrows incredulously, you ask, “You really want to give them one more thing to use against us?”

“Yeah, you’re right.” Straightening his clothes, he says, “Let’s go back to the lions’ den.”

Seeing his smile, that smile you know so well and love, relief hits you so hard, it makes your knees almost buckle.

You rush to him, burying your face in his shirt and curling your fingers around his jacket lapels. Your eyes burn, but your tears are thankfully exhausted. “Jae, I’m so glad it’s you. I really am.”

Fate and your parents’ scheming could have put anyone opposite you. Yet somehow, it’s Jae. A solid ally and friend instead of a dreadful unknown. With Jae, you have a fellow victim, a fellow survivor. A partner. One with no expectations except a continued friendship and reliance.

Although Jae had been stiff from surprise, his arms close around you and his body sags. Despite his boniness, the warmth of his embrace more than makes up for it. “Yeah, me too, Doc. Me too.”

“Were you scared too?”

“Fucking terrified. I thought I was going to be stuck with some prude princess. You know I can’t handle high maintenance. Ain’t nobody got time for that.”

Laughing, you step back. As usual, Jae’s humor helps break through your cloud of ill mood. Beckoning, you say, “Come here. We have to fix your hair or they might think something happened.”

“Yeah, because they’re such examples of people who believe in love at first sight and get swept up in mind-blowing passion,” he retorts, but he leans down anyway so you can smooth his hair. “Thanks. You ready?”

“Yeah.” You nod. This time, you believe it.

#jae fic #day6 fic #kpopwritingnet #kwriterskollection #kwritersworldnet #kpop fics

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weekendwarriorblog · 3 years

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THE WEEKEND WARRIOR 6/25/21: F9, WEREWOLVES WITHIN, THE ICE ROAD, FALSE POSITIVE, I CARRY YOU WITH ME and More!

Well, June is quickly coming to an end, but that means it’s officially summer. No, for real this time. Summer started June 21, and that means we have the latest attempt to revive the box office, and really, if this doesn’t do it, then we’re sunk. Doomed. It’s over, and Jeff Bock, the Streamer Relations guy, has won. We’re in the endgame now. Go to the movies this weekend, and don’t let Jeff Bock win!

Before we get to the theatrical releases, the 20th Tribeca [formerly Film] Festival ended over the weekend, and it certainly “looked different” as we were reminded every time some local celebrity introduced a movie on the festival’s virtual platform. As far as the movies I saw, a few are mentioned below but generally, the documentaries once again outplayed any of the narrative features, which was pretty much the same with other festivals this year. Besides the Rita Moreno doc that I reviewed last week, I quite enjoyed A-Ha the Movie, a documentary that covers the famous ‘80s “one hit wonders” travails since their first hit album and the ubiquitous “Take on Me.” It’s a great doc that really shows what can happen when you try to keep the band together even when you stop travelling or even talking to each other. Also Bitchin’: The Sound and Fury of Rick James was another great musical doc about a funk/soul singer who I really never knew very much about, so it was quite educational. I also liked 7 Days quite a bit, and that was one of the better narrative films at the fest.

It felt like there were two very different Tribecas. There was one for the elitist journalists who were allowed to attend all the in-person screenings and parties, and there was the one for the rest of us -- where we were just sitting at home watching stuff on our TV sets, just like we did with Sundance and SXSW. And make no mistake, as someone who has been covering Tribeca since Year Two (where I *bought* all my tickets), it definitely felt like I was being pushed aside by the current Tribeca regime who just wants to be seen as something exclusive just for certain people, including as a woke festival catering to the underrepresented (but not really�� if that was the case, they would have given free tickets out to people who live in the areas of the city where they set-up their pop-up screenings). I only know a few locals who received the better in-person badge -- pretty much the entire staff at IndieWire, for instance -- but as someone who has covered the festival for years and received a Hudson Pass for the effort, it definitely felt like I don’t really need to cover Tribeca anymore. It’s just not the elite festival it thinks it is, and as far as I’m concerned, it will never be Cannes, it will never be Sundance, and it will never even be SXSW. It continues to be a festival with zero identity that caters to the rich, white New Yorkers that already get special treatment wherever they go. I’m not even sure how much of it even takes place in Tribeca anymore, since the premier location for movie premieres seemed to be at Hudson Yards, which is about four miles North of “Ground Zero,” the area affected by 9/11 that precipitated the need for something like the Tribeca Festival in the first place. I feel that this year’s festival was an even bigger disappointment than last year’s virtual only, but that’s because they’ve finally just given up on the press they don’t feel are worthy of covering them. So yeah, not for me.

It’s hard to believe that F9 (Universal Pictures), the ninth movie in the “Fast Saga.” is finally being released in North America, since I felt like I reviewed it five years ago. Actually, it was only a month ago, but it just seems like forever since I’ve been so busy this month.

In case you have no idea what to expect and wanna know: Vin Diesel is back as Dominic Torreto, and this time we meet another member of his real family, brother Jakob (John Cena), who is now working with the criminal spy organization Cypher. Most of the gang are back, except for Dwayne Johnson’s Agent Hobbs and Jason Statham’s Deckard Shaw, who you may remember went off to make Hobbs and Shaw a few years back. In fact, that last movie was the last movie in the franchise, which was supposed to act as a tie-over between 2017’s Fate of the Furious and F9, which was originally supposed to come out in 2020. Got all that?

Hobbs and Shaw opened with around $60 million in early August, which is generally one of the few weekends in the late summer where a movie could still open big. That was the lowest opening for the franchise in over ten years, because ever since 2009’s Fast & Furious, every single movie has opened over $70 million and closer to $100 million or more. 2013’s Fast and Furious 6 and 2017’s The Fate of the Furious didn’t quite hit a $100 million opening, but still, it’s a pretty good barometer of how big the franchise was in the before-times. James Wan’s Furious 7 still sports the biggest opening with $147 million in early April 2015, hampered by the year-long delay after one of the film’s stars, Paul Walker, died in a car crash a year earlier. Walker’s death may have helped drive audiences to the movie with the same morbid curiosity way as Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight back in 2008. (Furious 7 grossed $353 million domestically, which is also a high watermark for the franchise domestically.)

The Fate of the Furious grossed slightly less than the previous two installments and then Hobbs and Shaw ended up with $173 million, which is nothing to sneeze at… unless your movie ended up costing $200 million, which that one did. We’re talking about very expensive movies here, and one presumes F9 is up there in that $200 million range, but it bodes a couple questions. Was the success of the franchise since Fast 5 mainly due to “franchise Viagra” Dwayne Johnson and was that helped by the addition of Statham? With the two of them gone, does that take away from the movie’s potential or do people like Diesel, Tyrese Gibson’s Roman, Ludacris and the other long-timers like Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster enough to make this an opening weekend must-see?

There might some questions whether theaters in bigger cities like New York and L.A., where F9 would generally do big business, will be as full as normal -- even with full capacity finally being allowed. The other question is whether Universal may have released this movie overseas too far in advance of the States. Think about it. When you start to think about movie piracy and where a lot of that comes from, it goes right to China, and a movie like this at a time like this when people are cautious about running to theaters, well if you walk down the street and someone is selling a copy for 5 bucks, why wouldn’t you buy it? That’s the reason why studios release movies day and date across the globe, or at least they try to. Piracy used to be a big thing hurting the movie business, but that seems to have been forgotten.

Reviews for the movie have been mixed -- I already reviewed the movie over at Below the Line -- but about the same as the last two installments, so those won’t necessarily stop people from going to the movies, since this is a classic summer popcorn movie where it feels like everyone should go see it opening week. Like in the past, F9 will open Thursday night for previews, but it seems to getting more Thursday night previews than normal -- I’ve seen five to six screenings in many locations -- and that might because Universal realizes how important this release is and how many people will be looking to see if it can revive theatrical.

I think I’m going to say that F9 will make around $72 to 74 million this weekend, which takes it back to Fast & Furious days, but I do think audiences will like the movie more than critics, and because of that, the decision to make two more movies will probably be warranted.

I was very excited to see Josh Ruben directing another movie so soon after last year’s Scare Me -- a terrific horror-comedy you can watch on Shudder -- and his latest film, WEREWOLVES WITHIN (IFC Films), based on the Ubisoft game, is just as funny AND scary. It stars Sam Richardson as Finn Wheeler, the new park ranger arriving in the small and remote town of Beaversfield, which seems to have just as much politics and backbiting as the biggest of the cities. He quickly becomes friends with the bubbly postwoman, Cecily (Milana Vayntrub), as she introduces him to the quirky townsfolk… oh, yeah, and there is something brutally mauling them to death.

The premise for Werewolves Within seems fairly simple, and maybe that’s because it is based on a VR game where I assume you have to figure out who is the vampire, so that’s pretty much what’s going on as Finn, Cecily and seemingly the entire town wind up locking themselves up in the Beaversfield Inn trying to figure out who is killing the others. Thankfully, there are more layers built into the ongoing relationships between the townsfolk.

Ruben’s got a lot of things going for his second feature film, the first thing being a super-funny script by Mishna Wolff, but also the amazing cast he put together that not includes Richardson and Vayntrub with some brilliant chemistry but also the likes of Michaela Watkins and Michael Chernus, who can never do wrong in my book. Those two elements alone would make Werewolves Within worthwhile, but Ruben ably takes on the challenges of a much bigger cast than his previous movie and finds a way to keep the viewer constantly on edge and interested in what will happen next, especially to some of the characters who are not as jovial or friendly as Richardson’s Finn.

But what works best about the movie is that there are plenty of unexpected twists, maybe some more obvious than others, and the fact you never really know who might die next or house keeps the movie quite entertaining. It also shows off Ruben’s great skills at combining horror and humor, something that’s very difficult for even the best directors, but when you’ve got it -- as Ruben proved so perfectly with Scare Me -- then you might as well use it to its fullest.

It’s hard to describe how well the humor works without using jokes ala something like Shaun of the Dead, but it’s more of a light-hearted charm that one wouldn’t expect to go so well with the dire situation in which the characters find themselves. It doesn’t hurt that many of the characters are so unlikable that getting their comeuppance adds to that humor. If you’re expecting a lot of werewolf transformations or even werewolves plural, you might be slightly disappointed, but it’s nice that a movie can be its own thing without trying to copy other films in the horror subgenre.

Either way, Ruben is 2 for 2 with his second attempt at comedy-horror, which ventures just far enough away from Scare Me to make me think that he’ll continue to be a great voice in the much-maligned and hard-to-muster horror subgenre.

Werewolves Within just debuted at the Tribeca Festival, and it will be released in theaters this Friday and then be On Demand and Digital starting July 2. I’ll also have an interview with Josh Ruben over at Below the Line a little later today, too, so check that out!

Not getting a theatrical release in the United States unfortunately is Jonathan Hensleigh’s THE ICE ROAD (Netflix), starring Liam Neeson as a truck driver in Winnipeg, whose special skill is driving that truck across the frozen lake up north. When a diamond mine collapses in the very north side of Canada, it’s up to him and a crew of other ice truckers to drive their big rigs across the frozen lake to save the men trapped in the mine.

I quite liked this movie that definitely marks a return of Hensleigh to some of those great action movies he wrote in the ‘90s, like Die Hard with a Vengeance, but this is also a significantly better action movie than some of the ones he’s directed, like the 2004 The Punisher. The sad fact is that I’ve been pretty disappointed with Neeson’s recent film choices, particularly in the last year when disappointments like The Honest Thief and The Marksman managed to get theatrical releases even during the pandemic. The Ice Road is a much better movie, maybe because Hensleigh wrote and directed it himself, but also he had much better source material in the docuseries, Ice Road Truckers, and he clearly did his research into these 18-wheelers on these dangerous trips across iced-over lake that could crack at any time. Hensleigh uses this idea well to tell a story where much of the movie takes place on that dangerous ice.

There are elements to the story that might not work quite as well, such as the decision to have Neeson’s brother Gurty (Marcus Thomas) be suffering from such horrible PTSD that it makes him almost a bigger hindrance than a help on the trip. On the other hand, the movie does have the always great Laurence Fishburne in a smaller role and the real breakout has to be Amber Midthunder, the bad-ass Indigenous Tantoo who proves that she can drive as well as the guys. I also found that Hensleigh’s use of the corporation as the ultimate antagonist in sending these truckers to their potential deaths more for the money than to actually save lives works well to add to what would have been a simple rescue mission.

The Ice Road is a pretty solid (ugh, bad pun) action-thriller that has some elements of other similar movies but then really throws the viewer for a loop with the amazing on-ice truck driving stunt work, that keeps one invested while really putting it ahead of some of Neeson’s other recent action fare.

You can read my interview with Hensleigh over at Below the Line.

Next up are two very different movies that played at the 20th Tribeca Festival over the past week

Heidi Ewing’s I CARRY YOU WITH ME (Sony Pictures Classics) finally gets a theatrical release after getting its Oscar qualifying run way back in December and premiering at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2020! Based on the true story of Mexican immigrant lovers Ivan and Gerardo, who travel from Mexico to New York City and are reunited after decades apart and many struggles to rekindle their romance.

This is an interesting movie for Ewing, best known for her award-winning docs like Jesus Camp, because it’s not an easy story to tell or movie to make, covering a span of decades, and using flashbacks to tell the individual stories of how these two men discovered their homosexuality while surrounded by a toxic culture who hates them for loving each other. We meet Iván as he’s cooking in a Mexican restaurant in New York before we flashback to Pablo, Mexico in 1994 when he’s younger (and played by Armando Espitia), married with a young son, but when he meets Gerardo (Christian Vázquez) at a gay club and the two click, he’s put in a place where he has to keep his sexuality hidden if he doesn’t want to lose his son. As the romance blossoms, Ivan realizes that he needs to go to America if he really wants his culinary skills (he even went to school) to be used, because in Pablo, he’s relegated to being a dishwasher.

Ivan decides to make the dangerous trek across the border with his best friend Sandra (Michelle Rodríguez -- not the one in F9) with the promise to return to Gerardo. Things don’t necessarily go as planned but decades later they’re reunited, and struggle to make it in New York City as restaraunteurs. As you watch their story unfold, you can fully understand why Ewing might want to tell this story, co-writing the script with Alan Page Arriaga, but there are still elements of documentary in this narrative beautifully shot by Cinematographer Juan Pablo Ramírez AMC.

Unfortunately, those elements of documentary are what really confused me, because there are moments in the present day when the real Ivan and Gerardo are playing themselves, but then there are times when the two main actors are made up to look older, and I couldn’t really figure out what was happening at times, maybe due to some of the more dream-like nature of the storytelling.

Even so, Ewing has created a terrific character piece and quite a warm and wondrous love story, even if it’s plagued by violence and discrimination due to their roots and their homosexuality. I couldn’t help but think that I might have liked Moonlight more if it wasn’t told in such a linear fashion, separated into three chapters. By using the flashbacks to keep the viewer fully focused on what’s happening, Ewing creates something more on par with Cuaron’s Y Tu Mama Tambien that feels just as authentic as if Ewing were a gay Mexican herself.

Probably the weakest part is the second act where we watch Ivan trying to get to America, because that’s been done in so many other movies, including Cary Joji Fukunaga’s earlier film, Sin Nombre, and that feels a little less unique or special compared to the rest of the duo’s story.

It’s a shame that I Carry You With Me wasn’t able to build any awards traction, partially due to Covid and the long gap between festival appearances. Either way, it proves that Ewing is a lot more than a “mere” documentary filmmaker, able to mix those skills with that of a sharp narrative filmmaker with a keen eye for storytelling. This is a particularly strong character piece and a beautiful love story based on two real men, unlike anything I’ve seen in recent memory.

Honestly, I’ve given up on figuring what Sony Classics is doing in terms of their theatrical releases. I guess this could be opening in New York and Los Angeles or in more cities. I have no idea, because no one tells me anything. But I also wanted to share the review by my friend J. Don Birnam that he wrote out of the New York Film Festival last year. He has reasons to be able to connect with this material much more than I can, which is probably why his review is so damn good: http://splashreport.com/nyff-film-review-i-carry-you-with-me-an-inspiring-story-of-triumph-by-rarely-depicted-peoples/

Not quite as good is John Lee’s horror-thriller FALSE POSITIVE (Hulu/A24), starring Ilana Glazer from Broad City, who also cowrote the screenplay with Lee. It’s a very different non-comedic role for Glazer in which she plays Lucy, a pregnant woman, who finds her pregnancy turned into a nightmare, as she puts herself in the hands of the nefarious ob/gyn Dr. John Hindle, played by the great Pierce Brosnan, who happened to be her husband’s (Justin Theroux) medical teacher.

Man, did I want to like this psychological thriller, because I think Glazer is just the best in Broad Street, and the fact that she co-wrote this and is trying to do something unexpected out of the ordinary just thrills me to the end. That being said, her character Lucy seems to be a rather standard powerful NYC woman with a good job where she’s better than the rest, who ends up going through a torturous experience as an expectant mother who isn’t able to trust her own doctor. Part of the conflict comes when Julie is told that she is having more than one baby, but she has to choose between twin boys or a single girl, because she’s told that she won’t be able to take all three of them to term.

It’s an okay premise dealing with the many worries that women must have while pregnant, and things get crazier and crazier as Julia begins seeing everything, and while Glazer isn’t bad while playing a straight-up no-humor dramatic role, it’s hard not to see her more as a Debra Messing type when she has her hair straightened out to look different.

The horror elements are decent whether it’s the body horror idea of having a number of dead baby fetuses inside you, which is pretty creepy, and Lee doesn’t do a bad job with the trippier parts of the movie, though I feel like it overuses and leans on the use of blood to step up the horror, and it doesn’t work that well. There are also aspects to the story that feel somewhat predictable only because there are only a few way things can go the way things are set-up.

It’s obvious that Glazer and Lee wanted to make social commentary on the male-dominated field of childbirth with some of the weirder aspects of the movie, like the Stepford Nurses that constantly surround Brosnan’s Dr. Hindle. Having them there smiling eerily always boosts Lucy’s suspicion that her husband might be cheating with one or both of them. Still, there are too many aspects of False Positive (including the fact it was produced by A24) that makes one think that this is another attempt at the kind of “elevated humor” that’s been done so much better by the likes of Ari Aster and Robert Eggers.

Ultimately, False Positive is okay, it certainly tries hard, it’s maybe not quite as good as I hoped or expected of what might have been a perfectly fine vehicle for Glazer. I certainly had high hopes for what she might do with a pregnancy thriller, that this movie just never quite delivers.

False Positive debuts on Hulu this Friday.

From Sweden comes the horror film THE EVIL NEXT DOOR (Magnet) from filmmakers Oskar Mellender and Tord Danielsson, which follows a new stepmom Shirin (Dilan Gwyn), who has moved into a duplex with her partner Fredrik and his young son, Lucas (Eddie Eriksson Dominguez), but they soon learn that strange things start happening that seem to be coming from the abandoned house next door.

I’m always open to see what’s coming from the Scandinavian countries, because there’s been a lot of particularly good genre over the years -- Let the Right One In, for instance -- but I got the impression right away that originality was not going to be in the cards for this one, which immediately has the small boy having an imaginary friend, who you know is either an evil spirit or one of the spirit’s previous victims. Sadly, that’s the case here, and without the originality of some of the original horror films it's emulating, The Evil Next Door just seems like an international copycat.

If you’re even a modicum fan of modern horror, you’re likely to have seen many better versions of this movie, which is just kind of bland overall, but constantly resorts to scenes of a woman walking through the house acting scared and the cheap scares that inevitably come. This one even uses the eerie “next day” chapters that have been used in so many other horror movies, including the Paranormal Activity movies.

Mellender and Danielsson certainly come off as capable filmmakers, and they could do far worse than the incredibly dramatic and emotional performance by Gwyn -- the movie does get slightly better as it goes along -- but the feeling that you’ve seen it all before and know what to expect completely detracts from appreciating any of the finer aspects. For instance, there’s some decent creature design work but even that sometimes goes for the expected in terms of the spirit’s look. The filmmaker’s skills are also evident from the use of music and sound design, which is crucial to a movie like this working in any fashion, but it’s hard to fully appreciate it when you feel you know where things are going.

The Evil Next Door just feels like a movie made by fans of the far superior “Conjuring” movies who managed to cop some of the tricks to scare the viewer, but without fully understanding why those movies work due to original characters and storytelling ideas. These are decent filmmakers, but I’d really like to see them do something more unique or original.

If you live in NYC and feel like going up to Harlem, Questlove’s documentary, Summer of Soul, is opening a week early, this Friday at the AMC Magic Johnson in Harlem, New York, and it’s also opening at El Capitan in Los Angeles. It will open in theaters elsewhere and on Hulu NEXT Friday, July 2, so I’ll write more about it in next week’s column.

Debuting on Apple TV+ Friday is Drew Zanthopoulos’ documentary FATHOM (Apple TV+), which follows scientists Dr. Ellen Garland and Dr. Michelle Fournet as they study the whale songs of the humpback whale and try to figure out ways to communicate with them and understand whale culture. Oddly, this is one of quite a few whale documentaries coming out over the next few weeks.

Another movie that I just don’t have time to review just now is Eytan Rockaway’s gangster thriller, LANSKY (Vertical), which stars Harvey Keitel, Sam Worthington, John Magaro, AnnaSophia Robb and Minka Kelly. Worthington is down-and-out writer David Stone, who gets a call from the legendary gangster Meyer Lansky (played by Keitel), who has been of the grid for decades but worth a fortune. Stone meets with Lansky as the FBI closes in on the Godfather of organized crime, and he’s told about Lansky’s time with Murder Inc. and the National Crime Syndicate.

Other movies out this week, include:

SILENT NIGHT (Samuel Goldwyn)

SISTERS ON TRACK (Netflix)

TOO LATE (Gravitas Ventures)

Next week is the 4th of July (on Sunday), and we’re getting FOREVER PURGE (Universal) and THE BOSS BABY 2: FAMILY BUSINESS (also Universal!!?!?)... I guess someone really wants to dominate the box office again, huh?

#The Weekend Warrior #F9 #Werewolves Within #False Positive #I Carry You With Me #The Ice Road #Movies #Reviews #Streaming

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geniusgub · 4 years

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“north” preview// spencer reid

I’ve finally reached 200 followers and as a thank you to my lovely, amazing, and supportive followers, I’m posting a preview to my Spencer fic called “north.”

I also wanted to thank some of my amazing friends for helping me out with deciding what part to post. All my thanks and love go to @thundergunexpresss @spencer-reid-in-a-pool @baubaby @timey-wimey-lovi

I hope that everyone enjoys. My inbox is always open and I’d love to hear what you have to say about my writing. Thank you for sticking around the madness and chaos and shit posts of my blog🖤🖤

genre: fluff

warnings: none

word count: 1.6k

"Hi, Spencer," Amelia pops up beside me with her stunning smile.

I take a refreshing breath as soon as I see her, smiling back. "Hi, Amelia," I push myself out of the booth in an attempt to greet her properly.

"Okay," Amelia holds her hands out in front of me, as if stopping me from coming any closer, "so I was thinking about you when you were off at work-"

That's nowhere near the end of her sentence, but it catches my attention the most. I couldn't stop thinking about her, but she was actually thinking about me. It's not one sided. I've never been successful with girls but I did something to this one to make her think about me.

"Or more specifically," she corrects herself, "about how you don't like shaking hands and I totally agree with you. I looked up statistics on handshaking and it's so disgusting. So," she enunciates the word with a huge smile, "I came up with alternatives,"

I raise my eyebrows. "Alternatives?"

"Yeah! For handshaking," Amelia tells me. "So we could high five, but that wasn't my favorite option. We could fist bump, or we could elbow bump, or we could do like," she holds up her hand with her pinky out, "almost like a pinky promise but then I thought that it's still technically touching hands, but we're not covering as much surface area as a whole handshake would. And, of course, I'd assume that hugs are off the table, which is fine." Amelia let's out a little breath and then a giggle. "That was a lot all at once. Sorry about that,"

"No, it's okay," I nervously tuck my hands in my pocket and make a mental reminder to keep my feet still. "It's actually really, um, it's really sweet that you put so much thought into how to greet me,"

Amelia presses her lips together in a shy smile. "I should go order my tea. I'll-"

"Actually, I-"

"Spencer!"

I let out a small laugh at the perfect timing. "I noticed your order the other day and I ordered for you already, if that's okay. I hope it is,"

Despite it being five incredibly long days after our first meeting, Amelia is just as stunning to me now as she was before. Her skin is glowing and her eyes are still harnessing the beauty of the ocean. Her hair is up in a bun today with some pieces still falling out to frame her face. She's wearing a black turtleneck with a plaid skirt, black stockings, and the same black heeled boots as before. There's no camera around her neck today, but I see the straps of her leather backpack around her shoulders and I assume it's tucked away in there. She looks different, sure, but I still have to keep myself from swooning.

"That's really sweet of you, Spencer, thank you," I can swear Amelia's cheeks are red.

"Sit, I'll go grab them," I gesture back to the table before rushing off to grab both of our piping hot drinks, rushing back before they can cool off too much. I sit back down and slide the cup over to Amelia, which she grabs with a grateful nod. "So how are you?"

Amelia takes the first sip of her tea as I pull off the top of mine and blow gently. "I'm pretty great, actually. The weather isn't so nice out today, but it makes for some beautiful pictures. What about you?"

"I'm," I weigh my options of what I could say for a moment, "happy to be here,"

…

"Tomorrow, same time? As long as you don't get a case today,"

"That sounds like a plan to me," I stand at the same time Amelia does, putting my messenger bag over my shoulder and leading her out. I make sure to hold the door open for her and let her out first to be a gentleman. "So I'll text you or call you later and let you know if I get a case,"

"I'll be waiting," she says as she buttons up her coat and then puts her back on, smiling at me.

We're facing each other in front of the door to the cafe, just waiting for the proper goodbye. I hold up my hand with my pinky sticking out, and I'd do anything to immortalize the smile that comes to Amelia's face in that exact moment.

"I knew you'd like this one," she murmurs, wrapping her warm pinky around mine. "I'll talk to you soon, Dr Reid,"

"You know, you can call me Spencer," I say, almost refusing to let go of her hand.

"I'll think about it," she smirks, pulling away and going walking the opposite way. I watch her go, too entranced by her to even move. She has a certain youthful bounce to the way she walks that makes me want to run right up to her and sweep her off her feet.

But I shake my head at my own intrusive thoughts and force myself to turn around and get to the metro. I can't afford to be late again. I can't afford anyone asking questions.

///

The world has a funny way of working, and I've noticed that many times throughout the years. Nothing ever works out the way I think it will. After all I've seen, I expect to work myself to death and die alone. I'm a loose canon and it's obvious. I keep myself reined in, but that won't last for long. I don't deserve to be loved.

But then Amelia waltz's into my life. She comes bouncing in with her black heels, vintage cameras, tea bags, nose piercing, beautiful smile, and equally stunning laugh. She makes me feel like a normal person. She doesn't treat me like an FBI agent, or like someone who has endured trauma, and maybe that's because I haven't told her about any of trauma, but I intend to keep it that way for as long as I can. Amelia comes laughing into my life with her denim skirts that aren't appropriate for the cold weather, curly blonde hair wrapped in patterned scarves or tied back in scrunchies, love for red wine, entrancing blue eyes, and her affinity for strawberries.

It's impossible to not fall in love with her and I hate myself for that. She makes it easy, so maybe it's not my fault that I can't get her out of my head. Maybe it's not my fault that I look at the empty spot on my desk and wonder what it would be like to have a picture of her there. Maybe it's not my fault that I hold her pinky in mine for far too long when we say our goodbyes. I wish I could blame my feelings all on her. I wish I could blame Amelia for how fast I'm falling for her.

I fall in love with the energy she radiates. I fall in love with the way she speaks of her creative process while painting a new piece or drawing a new picture. I fall in love with the way she claims she has a foolproof formula for finding hidden treasures in any given thrift store. I fall in love with the way she talks about her artistic and creatives processes. She speaks of everything with such passion and fire in her eyes that it draws me in. Amelia has taken to setting an alarm on her phone so that I make sure I leave on time for work and every few days, she makes sure to show up before I do so that she can order both of our drinks so that it's not always me ordering for her and "wasting my money on her hot, flavored water."

Amelia and I keep up our morning coffee meetings for two months. We meet as much as we can, only taking the time off when I'm not away on a case. It's actually normalizing my sleep schedule too and I'm getting more sleep than I have in two years- or since Maeve died. When these meetings started, I used to not be able to sleep out of pure excitement of knowing I'd be able to see Amelia again. But then she started to text me the night before, sometimes to remind me to set an alarm so I'm not late or to remind me to bring a magic trick to show her (magic tricks are now common occurrences in the mornings) or to just say how she's looking forward to seeing me tomorrow. Most people usually aren't excited to see me specifically.

The word date never surfaced in any of our conversations. I'm not sure if any of these would be considered a date. Typically, dates happen at night, but these coffee meetings happening bright and early in the morning. And maybe I'm too scared to even bring up the word date because then that will solidify what we're doing, if we even are doing anything. I'm too scared to admit that I'm falling way too hard for Amelia.

I wish I could man up and ask her out for real. I want to be able to see her outside of the confines of this tiny cafe just a block away from my apartment. I want to be able to see her out on the town, laughing and bouncing on her toes in the adorable way that she does. I want to maybe be somewhere with her where we're not just sitting and drinking tea or coffee. I want to know even more about her. I want to know everything. I know I feel something strong towards her and as much as I don't want to admit it, I need to figure out what it is before I go insane.

#nikos writing #spencer reid #dr spencer reid #spencer reid fic #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid x oc #matthew gray gubler #matthew gubler #criminal minds #criminal minds fanfiction

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xsecretblastsx · 4 years

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1x07 - Victor, Victrola

Finally! This is one of the most iconic episodes of this show and one I’ve been dying to get to since I’ve started with these recaps, Here we go!

This one got so long I’ve decided to post it with a keep reading brake.

Thoughts I had while watching the episode:

I love that it opens with a vintage filter, which I don’t think I’ve noticed much the first time. I do remember thinking of this little preview “Guess Chuck’s meeting someone who’ll give him a run for his money”

Also how good is that shot of the those hills climbing up the steps, or maybe is just that I love the shoes

These is one of my all time fave Blair’s school outfits, she looks so pretty, and I love the obnoxiously big red bow.

Things I should have wondered, wasn’t this something Chuck would have show Nate before her? But this scene is a quick way to show that they’re in fact really good friends

“What happens at Victrola stays at Victrola” Not really Chuck, not really

God I hate Nate’s Dad

I don’t know why but I found a bit funny how the Captain’s office has so many little nautical details, kind of oversell

“I think I saw it next to that ambiguous vague shape” hi mom!

Dan lamenting that new Yorkers don’t have cars and therefore teens can’t make out in them, yeah Dan about that…

Nate’s attempt at bribing Jenny it’s so lame it’s almost funny

Chuck casually pointing out to Lilly that she missed a button, oh Lily!

It’s almost endearing to see Chuck put so much effort with his dad and how eager and accommodating he gets when his father says yes.

I love the scenes were Serena and Blair have typical best friends conversations.

OMG I had totally forgot that Dan was reading the Kamasutra in search of inspiration, also getting this anxious and picturing all these scenarios in his head. I feel you dude.

Does that cherry stem trick is actually possible? Ugh why am I even thinking about that. Though didn’t the show used that bit on a poster?

That dress does looks ugly in a hanger

That was a good analogy of Vanessa’s role in this show.

Lily was so nice to Chuck from the start, as early as this episode, theirs is one of my favorite parental relationship in the show

How does Vanessa knows all about Serena’s hook up history though? Didn’t she went on Gossip Girl or Dan has a big mouth? Well I guess is the same thing.

“Game recognizes Game little J” Oh Blair you have no idea, also no, the Vanderbilt is ring is not the most amazing ring you’ll ever see.

Gotta admire the show’s attention to detail, Serena and Nate may be making out on Dan’s kitchen, but they still use the same background music they used the first time we saw that scene, but relly I had forgot how much fun I laugh with all his imagined scenarios.

For once I actually feel bad for Dan, having your own father tell you to get rid of those sheets. Akward.

Aside from Nate’s dad, and maybe Eleanor everyone else at that dinner really looks like they want to be anywhere else but there.

“I tried Blair” oh please Nate, you call her once, it went to voice mall and you couldn’t bother again, but I guess it was just easier to go to the palace to talk to Serena.

I remember the first time I watched this I was like “Yes Blarir finally! You tell him!

It should have been obvious since earlier in the episode, but when she steps out of that car it was the first moment it hit me that OMG the girl at the start of the episode was Blair! It is funny how while I already knew that now, the same thought kind of hit me again.

YOU GO BABY VAMP!

‘You still would do anything to get a girl on her back though’ it would not be S1 episode without a bit of Lily and Rufus banter

“Nobody’s ever looked at me the way you just did” what a telling line. Though did Dan and Serena did it or not?

Iconic scene is iconic. Vintage filter and all.

Gossip Girl was never the same again

What a good episode in every way. Normally I always get bored with one of the little subplots, but not on this one. Hell I actually liked Dan and Serena this week, which hadn’t happened like since 1x01, and even then it was with a grain of salt. This episode is also hilarious, I didn’t watch this when it aired so I don’t know if they hinted at Blair and Chuck in one of their promos, but I hoped they didn’t because I like the way the episode flows a lot, we spend the whole episode seeing Dan getting anxious about losing his virginity, and then out of nowhere it’s Blair the one that ends up the night no longer a virgin.

Also I did enjoy this episode so much more this time around not only because well I’m a chair fan but because there are a lot of little details, almost like Easter eggs that point out to the last scene, like Dan pointing out the tragedy of New York’s teens without car where they can make out, or when Serena tells Blair that maybe planning and thinking too much about it may ruin the moments, and then you have Blair at the end of the episode losing her virginity on Limo without planning it at all.

In the Dan and Serena front though this episode is one that gives a bit more insight on the why’s Serena can’t never really forget a about Dan. She had being treated awfully by most guys she ever came across, and Dan’s the first that actually treats her like she’s worth it and worries about her feelings, we know it’s not as perfect as she sees it, he had been pretty judgmental of her in half of the episodes so far, but she doesn’t realize it because she’s used to man objectifying her for a long time now, she doesn’t see her own value, and that’s the tragedy of Serena’s character and why she deserved so much better.

This episode is also the one in which Nate’s family issues get to a boiling point, we finally see the amount of problems Nate’s dad has and why he’s absolute trash, and things are only about to get even worse. Really this episode almost everyone in the parental front is keeping a secret or being in denial, trying to keep the status quo in their lives, in contrast most of the teens are at the verge of really taking a step into action, Nate finally does something to put a stop to his dad lies by getting him arrested, Serena is experiencing a loving relationship for the first time, Dan gets ready to leave his virgin status behind, Chuck is taking his first steps in the business goals and Blair is finally ready to accept that his relationship with Nate must end. In the end though, of course Chuck and Blair went through something else this week.

Honestly, what can I say about Chuck and Blair in this episode that hasn’t been said before. This is the start of one the most iconic couples in T.V. I mean if they were real people this was the night that changed the course of their lives forever, it’s a monumental moment for so many reasons. There’s Blair who up until now, has never contemplated a future that doesn’t includes Nate, but as each previous episode showed holding up to that future gets harder and harder, no matter what she does, he seems farther and farther away from her reach, she tries being sexy, ruining Serena, elaborate games and none of it goes, by the time the family dinner comes to be, she’s exhausted, she’s all prim and proper, Vanderbilt ring in her hand and she’s never looked more miserable. And so she lets go of Nate, and goes to the one place she can escape from it ill, it’s a very obvious visual image but still I love the moment the dress came off is the moment one can tell she’s finally free from it all, basking in that relief she said she felt.

So she dances, and she does it for Chuck Bass. It may have happened because of a dare but really it’s almost logical that she let’s all her uptightness on the floor in his company because if one goes back and looks to the previous six episodes she’s at her realest with him, since the first episode he doesn’t sugar coats her thoughts with him, doesn’t pretend to be nicer, makes him a part of her plots and he knows about all her issues with Nate, their friendship is a lowkey constant in the background, and this episode starts with a reminder of that fact, he takes her to Victrola because he trust her judgment above all others, his second toughest critic, only behind his dad. Their friendship is one factor about them that I feel got lost as the season go by, but it’s one of my favorite aspects about them, because that was the very first layer of their relationship.

They probably never thought about their friendship being something especial, about the fact that they shared bits of each other in a way they didn’t do with Nate and Serena, they always had chemistry and in some deep part of their brain they probably knew it all along, but it was much better to ignore it because what was the point, but is funny how as soon as Nate is out of the picture and it’s just them without inhibitions, this happens.

It’s not hard to imagine that Chuck had always thought she was “10 times hotter than pretty much anyone” This is Chuck Bass after all, and he also admired her personality, it wouldn’t surprise me if he thought that Nate was probably the worst match for a girl like Blair, and yet the way he looks at her while she’s dancing, he’s in complete awe of her, he already had her in high regards, but he had no idea that when she lets herself be free she’s the most mesmerazing thing he has seen, and oh how he wants her, it’s written all over his face when he says how amazing she was up there, and Blair who’s used to be unwanted by Nate can’t help but be drawn to it and so she kisses him, and he knows he could go for it and she most likely won’t reject him, still he asks her if she’s sure because he knows that while sex is not a big deal for him, the first time was important to her and how she only tried to rush into it until she felt she was losing, he had first row seats to all the drama that was her relationship with Nate, and so with that little question he lets her know that there’s no pressure, and also a first clear nod to how she’s different for him, he may be all for encouraging a girl to sleep with him, but not this time, and she knows it and she takes the leap, she’s doing this for her, because she wants to, not forcing it as she always had to.

Iconic scene is iconic.

Random bits:

I can’t remember if it was mentioned before but Chuck’s line “he was born poor; I was born loaded” is the first mention of the fact that the Basses are new money.

Without you ends up being a really accurate song for their whole relationship.:

I don't want this moment to ever end Where everything's nothing without you I'll wait here forever just to, to see you smile 'Cause it's true: I am nothing without youThrough it all, I made my mistakes I stumble and fall, but I mean these wordsI want you to know: with everything, I won't let this go These words are my heart and soul I'll hold on to this moment, you know 'Cause I'd bleed my heart out to show that I won't let go

#as you can tell by now if you follow me i rant and rant and i can't help myself #gossip girl #gossip girl recap #gossip girl rewatch #chuck x blair #victor victrola #1x07

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