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seungmoonandstars · 5 months

Text

𝒮𝑒𝒸𝑜𝓃𝒹 𝒟𝒶𝓉𝑒

Kim Seungmin/Female Reader

wc: 7.1k

rating: Mature, NON-explicit (part 2)

→ PART ONE

Part 2 of 4

The sun is coming through the trees and leaving freckles of light over Seungmin’s face and chest. His eyes are closed, hands propping him up as he leans back and stares up at the sky.

You’ve been meaning to ask the question bouncing around in your head for several minutes, but you can’t stop staring at him like this. You reach out and gently shake his foot until he looks at you.

“Hey, sorry…I didn’t mean to get quiet.”

- Seungmin is tired.

Car rides are his worst enemy if he’s trying to stay awake, especially if he ends up in the backseat. His head keeps swaying side to side. The ride is far too smooth, and he feels like a baby being lulled to sleep.

The car turns left, then right, then right again. He doesn’t need to feel it come to a stop to know he’s home.

As happy as he is to finally be done with traveling—for now, he doesn’t think he has the energy to get himself back on two feet.

He hits his neatly made bed immediately. No unpacking, no snack, no checking text messages. There is zero time between thinking about sleep and passing out; there is only a deep dreamless sleep.

____

It’s dark and warm in his room when he wakes up. His eyes stay closed tight, but he can feel how late it is. He knows he’s been sleeping far too long. Nobody bothered waking him for dinner or checking up on him, because that would have been useless. He doesn’t even mind that he missed the Giants game.

He feels much better now, until he looks down at his phone to check the time. The first problem is it’s already past midnight. The second problem is he has 43 notifications to open.

Seungmin scans over them to see if he missed anything important. Most of them look deletable, but a few he duly notes, and definitely needs to answer in the morning.

He opens the text from Choonhee, though.

Are you here for the long weekend?

He doesn’t mind texting her this late. He sends back a quick response without much thought: “I’m here until Wednesday!

Time to shower and eat.

Seungmin stands in the shower for a good fifteen minutes—clearing his mind, easing the tension he always holds in his shoulders— before finally, somewhere in the back of his memory, the part where he puts things and never ever remembers them…he remembers something.

“Oh…” he cups his face in his hands and scrubs at his cheeks, “shit.”

He takes his time getting out. An extra half an hour accidentally ignoring you isn’t going to make much of a difference now. Hair gets dried; fresh clothes thrown on. He clicks the fan in his bedroom so it pushes the warm air around. The cool night air is at least trying to find it’s way in.

Now he notices how hungry he is. Might as well find something in the kitchen before getting into a conversation. One that goes well, hopefully.

A bowl of oi-muchim, a beer, and his phone in hand, Seungmin makes himself comfortable on the couch. He pulls up Choonhee’s text messages again and hopes she still awake…

“Is it too late to text her? Do you think she’s up?”

He sends it off and tries not to watch his phone for her reply. He clicks the tv on and eats, but before his second bite, his phone goes off.

She won’t mind if it’s you

Seungmin hopes Choonhee’s right. And hopes you’ll still actually want to speak after two months of accidental silence.

Now he puts his food down, drinks some of his beer, and thinks…”what am I supposed to say at one in the morning?” He mumbles it to himself. But he starts typing anyway, letting his thumbs and his heart do the work. If he thinks too much, nothing will ever come out.

“Hey, I’m sorry I’m texting you so late. And also sorry for not getting back to you sooner. I hope you can forgive me. I’m in town for a few days if you’re interested in seeing each other.”

He reads it and rereads it. Then sends it away. It’s the best he can do.

The rest of the night is nothing but a long wait. The nap he took served perfectly as a good nights sleep, so the next few hours are spent catching up on baseball highlights, finishing a drama, and then silently obsessing over whether or not he’ll get a text back while a new show plays out in front of him .

At 7:30, Seungmin’s phone buzzes in his hand. He’s sound asleep, but still holding onto it. It wakes him right away, but it takes a moment before he can remember where he is, and what he’s doing there. Too much sleep makes his head fuzzy, and yesterday and this morning must have been a combined eleven hours.

He looks at the notification and remembers. Only the name on the screen registers in his mind before he unlocks his phone and sits up. He shakes the sleep from his head and rubs his eyes before reading…

I would love to see you

A sigh of relief. You’re not mad. Seungmin’s heartbeat picks up in his chest as he types.

“Tonight? Or today. Any time is good.”

This reply takes a little longer. He gets up to change just in case he has to run out the door to meet you. Your reply comes a few minutes later. Seungmin reads it as he’s jumping into his shorts.

I’m free all day. Do you want to come over for breakfast?

“Come over for breakfast? Are you going to make me breakfast?” he thinks out loud. He’s hoping that’s what you mean.

“I’ll be there in an hour”

____

Your internal alarm hates you. At precisely 7:25, you’re awake. Even on the weekends, you can’t sleep in. It takes a couple of minutes before you can even think about moving, but the warmth in the room and the sun peeking in eventually forces you up. You can only take so much.

Your phone, charging on the nightstand, buzzes softly. Probably an email. It buzzes again. You thought you put it on sleep mode last night, but maybe not. It’s a miracle nothing woke you up. You grab it and unplug it…

Email Spam email Work email you never opened or cleared Instagram

Text from Seungmin

“Seungmin,” you say his name out loud in case you’re still a little bit asleep. Seungmin, who you haven’t had a text from in months; who has probably been very busy and very tired when he isn’t busy, sent you a text at one in the morning.

You open it quickly, butterflies in your stomach, and read. You read it a few times. His texts are always a little longer, never one or two words. And you always read him in his voice. You’ve listened to him singing and speaking enough now that you hear it in your sleep. You don’t have to think much about your reply.

“I would love to see you”

____

There’s little time to pick up the apartment and figure out what you’re going to make for him. You do your best with what little time you have. Shower, hair, makeup…outfit. You probably should have given yourself a little more time. Too late now, he’ll be on his way soon.

It’s been nearly seven months since your blind date, but it doesn’t feel like it’s been that long. The time between his last text and today somehow felt longer. You feel like it’s going to be a first impression all over again, so you really want to give him your best. Maybe even better than last time, now that you know what you’re getting into.

In the kitchen, you start pulling things out to make, and you’re relieved to find you have something to cook for him.

You hope he likes American breakfast. You do know he likes coffee. Just a few days ago a care package came from your parents; coffee, snacks…things you miss from home. You pull out the bag of beans and start grinding.

Minutes later, or at least it feels like minutes, (the full hour, plus 20 extra minutes, has passed) you hear you phone buzz. Before you can get to it, the intercom buzzes. You grab your phone and run to the door.

“Hi I’m here”

You smile at his message and let him into the lobby before texting back, “543.” You’re surprised and a little flattered that he remembered where your building was and was confident enough to come without even confirming.

He sends a smiling emoji in reply.

Your back is against the door, eyes closed. Your picturing him walking to the elevator, pushing the button, waiting…

The elevator here is pretty slow…

He gets on and hits the 5th floor button. It comes straight up without stopping, considering the early hour. Everyone else in this building is definitely sleeping in. He turns right and walks, maybe a little hesitantly, toward your apartment, looks at the number on the door, then at your text.

He knocks gently. Three soft little knocks. You take in a deep breath; you’re more nervous than you thought you’d be. The deadbolt clicks.

When you crack the door he’s smiling down at you. You pull it open the rest of the way and stand there awkwardly for a moment. You feel like one of your eight-year-olds trying to find the right words in English. You stupidly breath out a wow and desperately hope he didn’t hear it

He stands there with one hand in the pocket of his shorts. The other hand is holding a paper bag. He swings it a little as he takes a careful step over your threshold.

“Morning.” You finally manage to say.

“Good morning,” he closes the door behind him, and his smile grows as he moves closer to you.

His face looks a little different. It’s been long enough that you’re thinking his braces have changed his smile, or maybe he’s just gotten older. The spring sun has turned his skin a few shades darker compared to October. His hair is dark and straight across his forehead; different then the last time you saw him. You’ve also gotten used to seeing him only in videos and photos. None of that does him justice. In front of you, he’s better—and you forgot how much better.

“Are you okay?” Seungmin reaches his hand toward you as if he’s going to touch your cheek, but he stops just short of you, and his hand falls slowly.

“Yeah, yeah…sorry,” you set your hand on your face where his hand should have been. “I uhhm,” you still can’t seem to find the right words. So much for a new first impression. Now what?

You put your other hand around his waist and pull yourself to him. You’re relieved when he reciprocates the embrace. He holds onto you for a while, not letting up on his grip.

“I’m sorry I didn’t keep in touch.”

Even though you had plenty of old texts to return to; to re-convince yourself that Seungmin liked you and wanted to see you again, you still needed this physical reassurance. The last two months were a lot more lonely than you care to admit, and part of you was starting to let go.

“It’s okay, I know you’re busy.”

“Still a bad excuse.” He loosens his hold on you, but doesn’t let go completely. The bag he’s holding shakes a little in his hand. “I brought this for you.”

“Another gift? You’re making me look bad.” You slide away from his grip (very reluctantly) and head toward the kitchen.

“Well, you did make me coffee. It smells good.”

Seungmin follows closely behind. The kitchen is a little bit of a mess, but cooking and cleaning at the same time is not one of your strong suits. You grab a few things and toss them in the trash, the sink, the dishwasher. You don’t even realize he’s right behind you until you turn again to grab two clean glasses.

“I can bring you your coffee. It’s a mess in here, you don’t need to see this.”

“Oh I don’t mind. You are definitely a messy cook, though. You should clean as you go!”

“Believe me, I try.” You pour the cooled coffee into a glass over ice. “I hope you like this…have you ever had Kona coffee?”

Seungmin shakes his head and smiles. You briefly wonder if he realizes how cute it is, then you pour some for yourself, “I’m sure you’ll like it.” He takes it from you and follows as you lead him out of the kitchen and into the living room.

You sit. He sits, and sips his coffee, then adjusts so he’s a little closer to you.

“How long have you been in town?” You bring your knees up to your chest and turn your body to him.

“I got in yesterday afternoon, but I fell asleep and woke up very late.”

“Oh, that explains the late text.”

“Yes, hopefully it didn’t wake you. Choonhee told me you wouldn’t mind if I texted you so late.”

“It didn’t wake me up. It was a nice surprise this morning.”

He’s bouncing his legs up and down; knees are moving together, then apart, then together again. A nervous tick, maybe. All you do know is that the movement of his thighs is distracting. You tear your eyes away, and when you do, he’s looking at you.

“How have you been?” He asks, and he’s not just making conversation. The way he speaks is sincere. “Anymore blind dates?” He whispers the last part.

“Oh, no…no,” you stare into your coffee and shake your head. “Nothing special, not since our date.”

He smiles, but says nothing.

“I did keep up with you. I caught a few of your lives, checked YouTube for new videos…”

Seungmin laughs and lays his head back against the couch, “next time we don’t see each other for a while, I will call, and we can have a real live.”

“Is that a promise?”

He thinks for a moment, “yes, promise. I’ll be a better texter…also.” He adjusts and moves himself a little closer to you.

“I’ll take either.”

“I think I just…don’t know what to say sometimes. I don’t want to say something stupid, so I don’t say anything at all. And then I forget.”

“I don’t mind if you say something stupid.” You reach out and move a piece of hair out of Seungmin’s eyes. “I’d prefer it, actually. Then I can say something stupid back.”

He tilts his head and his hair falls back over his eyes. “Good to know.”

“Are you hungry?” You move his hair again.

He looks at you without answering for a very long moment. His eyes are impossibly big and dark; bottom lip a little bit red from biting down on it. Your eyes jump from the beauty mark on his cheek (you’re also thinking about how nice it is to finally see him again without makeup), to his eyes, his nose, his lips. His hair swings back down in front of his eyes.

He brings his hand up and attempts to fix his hair, but he just shakes his head again and smiles, “yes, I am. Very hungry.”

“I guess you can help me finish up,” you reach for his hand, which he happily takes, and lead him back to the kitchen. You prepped everything, but wanted it to be fresh when you sat down to eat.

“What are we having?” He looks at the counter. Four thick slices of bread and a bowl of something milky, eggs. “Oh these I can do,” Seungmin picks up an egg and holds it next to his face. “I can fry a good egg.”

“Okay, that’s your job.” You freshen his coffee while he examines the half dozen eggs in front of him. “Make however many you want.”

“Can I make all of them?”

“Yeah,” you laugh, “I have more if that’s not enough.”

“French toast?” He examines the milky batter next to the slices of bread. “I’ve had it before, but not for a very long time.”

“Is that okay? I can always make something else.” You turn the burner on low and let the pan get warm.

“No, I want to try your french toast.”

You reach for the butter, taking great care to reach around him by placing your hand on the belt of his shorts. He watches you closely as you dip each slice of bread into the batter, and when the butter melts completely, place them neatly in the pan.

“Nice sizzle,” he whispers. And then he laughs when you laugh. “Oh, I’m doing the eggs…” He turns his burner on low, butters his pan, and cracks four of the six eggs.

Seungmin looks at you, “I don’t want to crowd them.” He nods his head at two intact eggs. “They can wait.”

“You’re the expert.”

“They will be good, I promise.”

“Even if they’re bad, I’m sure I’ll love them.”

You hear him laugh as you tend to the French toast, shaking on the cinnamon, flipping them when they’re just crispy and brown. Seungmin ooohs at them as he seasons his eggs.

“Do you prefer maple syrup or…honey?”

“Hm?” He flips the eggs carefully and takes them off the heat before turning to the selection of toppings you’re setting out.

“Can you turn my burner off?”

He clicks it off, and Seungmin finds his way to the cupboard to get a plate. He gently sets his finished eggs onto it and cracks the remaining ones into the warm pan.

“Do you like maple syrup, or do you want honey?”

“Oh…maple syrup! And strawberries.”

“And whipped cream?”

“Dessert for breakfast…” he takes one of the strawberries and bites into it.

____

You have one dining table in your tiny apartment. It has two chairs, and it’s right next to the large picture window that sits just between the kitchen and the living room. Outside is a limited view of the city. It’s nice, though. And you can afford it.

Seungmin is watching the city slowly start to move, chin resting in the palm of his hand. He has a smile on his face–it’s very subtle on his lips, but not in his eyes. You made him sit while you got the rest of the food ready, and eventually, he listened.

“Is this enough strawberries?”

He looks at you first and smiles, then at his plate. “Yes, thank you,” he waits for you to sit before whispering jal meokgetseumnida and when you pick up your fork, he follows. Seungmin opted for maple syrup, strawberries, whipped cream. He goes for the whipped cream first, eating a forkful by itself.

“Did you make this, too?” He takes another bite of it, this time with a big piece of strawberry.

You nod.

“It’s very good, it’s not too sweet.” He cuts into his French toast now, getting a bite of all three at once.

“If everything is too sweet, it ruins it.”

“Sometimes…” he says in a singsong voice, almost a whisper.

You sneak glances at him between your own bites. He’s a quiet eater this morning, but you’re comfortable sitting there with him in the silence.

“How has work been?”

“Kind of crazy.” He takes a drink of his coffee, “we will be in Japan in two weeks, and then to the US after that.” Seungmin nods to himself and divides the four eggs between you.

They do look perfect and exactly how you usually make them. Over-easy. “That’s exciting…but I’m sure it’s very exhausting.”

He picks one up and shoves the entire thing in his mouth. You can tell he wants to speak as soon as he does it, but he chews patiently. “I wouldn’t want to do anything else, but some days it is a lot. And very tiring.”

He rests his face in his hands again. He finished his food. Now he’s looking at you with the same tired eyes he’s given you before.

“Thank you for making time for me.” You say.

He sits back in his seat, smiles, shakes his head a little.

You look at him questioningly. His mannerism are cute, but you’re not quite sure how to interpret them sometimes. “What is it?”

“I’m happy to be here.”

“You are?” When you stand to clean off the table, he stands with you to help. You let him.

“Yes,” he bites into another strawberry when he gets to kitchen sink with his dishes. “I like you. You're...you're relaxing to be around. I don't feel any pressure here."

You look at him and smile, unsure of how to respond at first. "Thank you." It's not enough of a reply, you know that, but you're a little lost for words.

"Is that a weird thing to say?"

"No! Not at all. It might be the sweetest complement a date has ever given me."

Seungmin follows you wordlessly to the living room, and sits when you sit. You move a little closer to him and relax, hoping he continues to mimic you. And he does.

“Can I ask you something…um,” he purses his lips as he thinks, covers his cheeks with his hands. “Something personal I guess. Kind of. Maybe not really personal but-”

“Yes, of course you can.” You take one of his hands away from his face and hold it in yours. It’s starting to feel like the first date, except now he seems a little different than last time. Maybe he’s worn out from performing. Maybe it’s just an off day.

He’s looking down at his hand clasped in yours, “do you ever feel like, um…I guess it’s hard to put into English.”

“That’s okay, we can use whatever words feel best for you.”

Seungmin can’t help but smile at that, and a tiny laugh escapes. “I almost forgot, you teach kids. You do sound like a teacher.”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I mean…whichever language.” You pull his hand closer to you and put your other hand over it. “I’m sure between us we can figure it out.”

“You’re so sweet.”

“What’s bothering you?” You squeeze his hands even harder.

“I don’t know if you will, but if you ever meet my friends…the other members.” He stops for a moment to look at you.

You nod at him, but at the same time you’re completely unprepared for that statement. Meeting his friends? It's a big jump from where you're at right now.

“I guess I’m worried you might like them more than you like me.” His head falls back on the couch and he covers his eyes with his free hand. He sighs loudly.

“Why would you think that?” You pull him closer and shake him a little, “Seungmin…Seungmin, what do they call you when they don’t call you Seungmin?”

You get him to laugh, at least.

“Minnie,” he looks at you through his fingers. He says it again under his breath. “Min…puppy.”

“Puppy?” you scoot even closer to him, until you can almost set your chin on his shoulder. "Puppy."

He closes the gap a little.

Your forehead is almost touching his. You hold his eyes there. Then you kiss the bridge of his nose.

He leans forward and sets his head in the space between your neck and shoulder. His hair is tickling your ear, and his lips are brushing against your skin. You’re certain he can hear your blood pumping through your veins.

He lets out a long sigh. You don’t really want to say anything, you’d prefer it if the two of you could just stay like this for a little bit longer. And suddenly thinking of him leaving again (for another six months, maybe) gives you a horrible sinking feeling in your stomach.

But you need to talk to him.

“Why do you think that?”

He’s quiet for a few seconds as he searches for the right words. “There are eight of us…and sometimes I end up feeling, uhm…”

There's a long pause while you both think. He's searching for the words; you're searching his mind and his face.

”Do you feel like you're stuck behind everyone sometimes?” You think that’s what he’s getting at. You can see it in his eyes.

”Yes, I guess so. I mean, I know I am not as popular.”

It’s a hard comment for you to respond to, but the sad smile on his face makes you a little angry. Not at him, just at every single person outside of your apartment.

“Well, you’re my favorite.”

A hesitant smile appears.

Your hands close around either side of his face, and you graze your fingertips over his ears, “I’m sure the others are great, and I’m sure I could be friends with them someday...but they’re not you, and I already told you we wouldn’t make very good friends.”

You’re not sure why him being vulnerable and honest is suddenly, making you so bold, but you’re not going to question it. He’s quiet and calm as you speak, so you must be doing something right.

“I wouldn’t want anyone else here with me.” You hope he believes you, but you also aren’t a stranger to the hesitant feelings he’s obviously processing. “And I wish you could stay.”

“I can stay today!”

____

Seungmin falls asleep on your couch again. This time, though, he’s lying comfortably with his face shoved into one of your pillows and his curled up legs are almost on your lap. It’s a small couch.

You put a movie on, but he didn’t last more than a half an hour. It’s been two hours now, and you really don’t want to wake him. You’re certain he’ll get up on his own soon.

The kitchen is clean, the movie is over. You’re a little tired yourself, honestly, but you don’t think you could fall asleep while he’s here and almost in your lap. He’s a quiet sleeper, and he’s hardly moved, but you can hear his big sighs every few times he exhales.

He shifts a little when your hand touches his leg, but he settles back down immediately, and is out again. Even when your palm slides over his skin, he doesn’t move.

The soft buzz of his phone doesn’t wake him, either. But it’s going off again, and it’s the third time. You’re wondering if it’s important, but you don’t want to pry.

You run your hand over his leg again. Still nothing. It goes off again—this time it’s ringing. You can see the name on the screen without looking very hard.

“Seungmin…” You whisper. This time you gently drag your fingertips across his skin. “Seungmin?”

A little groan. His leg stretches out across your thigh. You squeeze his calf a bit and he seems to react, but not enough, so you gently move him and get up.

“Seungmin?” You kneel down until you’re face to face with him. He looks so peaceful and content, and while you hate to disturb him, you’re kind of looking forward to him slowly waking up. Saying his name isn’t getting through, though, so you place the tip of your finger at his temple and lightly trace a line down the side of his face.

A raspy mmm is all you get in return.

You bury your fingers in his hair and comb through it, kneading into his scalp a little. “Minnie?” You move down toward his neck, knead a little more, this time into a soft part of his shoulder.

His eyes open slowly, eyelashes fluttering a bit as they readjust to the sunlight in the room. He looks around before his gaze settles on you, and for the briefest moment he seems lost. But then he remembers where he is, and he smiles at you.

“Hi,” his voice is sleepy and raspy, like he hasn’t used it in a long time. He closes his eyes again.

“No no, eyes open.”

“I’m awake,” he mumbles.

“Look at me,” you lean toward his face until your noses are almost touching.

Eyes open again and he blinks a few times. “Are you gonna kiss me?” He asks, and the sleepiness in his voice is unbearable.

Yes, if he wants you to, you will kiss him. You lick your lips. But first, “your mom is calling you.”

“Oh, she’s probably wondering why she hasn’t seen me since I got home.”

“Do you want me to call and tell her you’re busy?”

Seungmin laughs and finally seems to be fully awake. He shakes his head and slowly sits himself up. “Do I have bedhead?” He rubs his eyes and runs his hands through his hair.

“A little bit.” You comb a hand through it and fix his part, “it’s cute, though.”

“Nooo it’s not,” he flattens it more and lays back against the couch. “I’m sorry I fell asleep.”

“You apologize too much.”

“Do I?”

You nod and sit down next to him, “I’m glad you were comfortable enough here to fall asleep.”

“Did I snore?” He looks a little embarrassed.

“No, you were pretty quiet. You kicked a few times, though.”

He almost apologizes, but stops himself and picks up his phone. He reads through his messages and eventually types a reply to one of them. Then he turns to you, “what should we do now that I’m well rested? Are you tired?” He throws his phone down and turns the rest of his body to you, “did you sleep at all?”

“I didn’t sleep, but I’m fine.”

“Maybe you should rest,” he smiles and tilts his head. “I can leave for a while and come back, if you’d like.”

“No, I don’t want you to leave.”

He nods, “We can try another movie,” Seungmin relaxes on the couch, pillow at his side, and extends an arm. “And if you fall asleep, we’ll be even.”

You stare at him for a long moment. It’s not until he beckons you with his hand that you realize it’s an invitation to cuddle up to him. And you take it without another moment of hesitation.

Your cheek settles against his chest, open hand spread out over his stomach. He wraps an arm around your shoulder and pulls you in a little tighter.

“Are you comfortable?” He grazes his fingertips over your forearm, very slowly, as if he’s still testing the limit of touch between you.

“I am.” You feel the goosebumps jump up on your skin, and Seungmin runs his fingers over you again, like he notices.

He does notice. You hear a breathy little laugh come from him. “Good.”

Now you think you could definitely fall asleep. He’s warm, but a good warm; not like the summer heat moving around the room. You push your face further into the space under his arm and inhale.

“What should we try to watch? Maybe something funny.”

He browses through Netflix. Meanwhile, you can feel yourself slowly slipping into sleep. But you don’t want to fall asleep. Sleeping now would just be wasted time with Seungmin, so you adjust yourself and sit up a little more.

He sits up, too. His eyes are big and a little worried.

“I don’t want to fall asleep.”

“Okay, how can we keep you awake then?”

You stare at him thoughtlessly for a few seconds. Then you feel like maybe you’re blushing because he probably (probably?) isn’t thinking the same thing your sexually frustrated mind is thinking. Now you can’t get the thought out of your head. You try not to breath out like you’ve just been holding your breath for too long.

He grins a little, so you think the thought may have crossed his mind after he said it. But he stays quiet.

“Maybe we can…go for a walk,” you say it as you exhale and then take a steady breath in. At the same time, your brain is slowly unbuckling his belt and lifting his shirt. “We should go for a walk.”

“Okay, that sounds nice.”

____

It’s warm out, but not enough to be uncomfortable.

You changed into something to show a little more skin, because you might as well try to get his mind where yours is. He may not even be interested in going there.

“So, are you allowed to date yet?” It comes out before you even decide if it’s a good thing to bring up.

Seungmin giggles. You look at him and see him covering his mouth with his hand, but the smile in his eyes is obvious.

“Sorry, that came out of nowhere…”

“It’s alright. You can ask me anything you want,” he shoves his hands in his pockets and slows his walk a bit.

“Okay, I’ll just throw questions at you as I think of them.”

“Good,” he stops and bounces on the balls of his feet, “ we should get some boba.”

You were already concerned about Seungmin being recognized on your walk, and going into a boba place seems like the most obvious way for him to be seen. But you’re not going to tell him no.

“Maybe I should go in and get us both something, it seems a little busy in there.”

“If that makes you feel better, yes.”

“It doesn’t. I just don’t want you to get any unwanted attention.”

“I think I’ll be okay,” He brushes his hand against your arm and leads you across the street. “I’m not as popular or recognizable as you might think.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“If nobody expects to see me, they’ll miss me,” he hops up on the curb like a kid. It feels like he becomes more and more relaxed as the day goes on. “But…” he pulls a black face mask from his back pocket and loops it around his ears. “I’ll be much happier if you’re more comfortable.”

____

The sun is coming through the trees and leaving freckles of light over Seungmin’s face and chest. His eyes are closed, hands propping him up as he leans back and stares up at the sky.

“Hey, sorry…I didn’t mean to get quiet.”

“I have a question.”

He sits up fully and smiles, “oh I never answered you before. No dating. Openly. Technically.” He says it like he’s not sure if he’s using his English words correctly. “Maybe that wasn’t the question.”

“It wasn’t, but I did want to know that, too.” You sip your drink and think about your question again. You had it ready to go, but Seungmin said the word openly and you lost it. “Do you know that I’m older than you?”

“No, I didn’t know. But I don’t mind.” He gets on his hands and knees and crawls closer to you. “If you don’t mind that I’m younger.”

A breeze picks up and his hair is swept across his forehead. He tousles it a little until his bangs fall back in front of his eyes.

You shake your head. “No, I don’t,” the question starts forming in your head again. “Would you ever consider dating, uhm, me? I mean, let’s say you weren’t who you are and we still somehow met. Is that something you’d…consider?

Seungmin looks at you, and his eyes have certainly never been this big before. His ears and cheeks are slowly turning red. And he’s quiet. His mouth opens a bit, but no words come out. You’re afraid you asked the stupidest question you could have possibly thought of.

You made it weird.

“You don’t have to answer. I’m sorry. Please pretend I never said that.” You lift your knees to your chest and bury your face in the space there. You whimper a little to yourself and hope he doesn’t hear it.

“That’s a tough one.”

You can’t see his face, but you can imagine it.

In reality, he’s thinking and playing with his straw. Still blushing, still smiling. If you’d just lift your head and look at him, you’d see that he’s unable to contain his smirk.

“Let’s go back to you looking up at the sky and me not talking.” You relax as much as possible and your back gently hits the grass. You spread yourself out, hoping to sink into the ground.

“No,” he sips his drink and leans back on one hand. “You asked, now it’s out there forever.”

You peek up at him briefly and see his face in the sun again; eyes closed but smirk still tugging at his lips. Quiet and thoughtful.

“Seungmin?”

No answer. You look back at the sky, but you can hear him moving and getting closer. His shadow blocks the sun from your eyes, so you open them.

“Yeah?”

“It’s okay if you wouldn’t.”

Still no answer. Your eyes close again, and then he lays down next to you. It’s a nice moment, or it would be. The birds are singing and there’s the sound of the wind through the trees. The only other people around are far enough away that you can barely hear them.

You feel like you could cry.

Maybe he just isn’t very good at letting people down. He can’t find the right words to tell you it would never work, and that’s understandable, really. He’s sweet and thoughtful and kind. He doesn’t want to hurt you. He just wants to be friends.

You cover you eyes with both hands and sigh as quietly as possible.

“I would, but…I don’t know…” he hmmms and uumms a few times. “Nobody has ever asked me out before.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“You don’t believe much.”

"If that's true, it's because you're intimidating."

"Me?" He's trying not to laugh. "I'm not intimidating! Am I? Is it my face? Do I look angry?"

"Okay, wrong word to use. You're too handsome to approach, I mean. I would have never, on my own, started a conversation with you had I seen you at that coffee shop by yourself."

Now you sit up and shade him from the sun. There’s a stray eyelash on his cheek, so you lean forward to gently blow it off.

His eyes flutter open. "I am not too handsome to approach." He whispers and lets himself laugh out loud.

“Okay fine…so I’m your first.”

“So you’re not taking it back?”

“You mentioned meeting your friends earlier. Did I interpret that wrong?”

He shakes his head.

“Then no, I guess I’m not taking it back.”

----

The trip back is not awkward. You expected him to keep his distance, physically and mentally, but he walks almost shoulder to shoulder with you the entire time. He hasn’t given you any type of answer yet, but you’re not worried about it. Part of you still wants to take it back and let things flow at a slower pace. This is, after all, only your second date. The other part of you is already on fire. It’s a tough line to walk.

Inside the apartment it’s gotten much warmer, and you regret not starting the AC before leaving. It’ll take forever to cool down now. You close the windows, lower the shades, and pull the curtains closed. Then you head to the couch and collapse onto it.

Seungmin makes himself at home by heading to the bathroom, then finding himself (and you) something cold to drink. You’re too distracted to even care that he’s digging around in your messy fridge.

“I forgot about this,” he grabs the bag from the side table and dangles it in front of his face. “Your gift.”

You sit up against the arm rest and smile at him, “thank you, Seungmin.” Inside is a small yellow dog plush. “Oh, it’s you!” You squeeze him and adjust the hoodie he’s wearing before bringing him up to your face. “Was he yours?”

“Yeah, he was mine.”

“He smells like you.”

“Is that a good thing?” He sits down by your folded legs and sets a hand just above your knee.

He’s touchy today...almost as much as you. And for never being properly asked out (now you wonder what else he hasn’t experienced), he knows just what to do to make you squirm.

You sit up a little more, bumping his hand off of you by mistake. He pulls it back a little, so you reach out and take it in yours. “Yeah, it is.”

He squeezes your hand and pulls you closer so he can place a kiss on your lips. You kiss back, but your brain takes a second to catch up with your mouth. When it finally does, you kiss hard enough to force him back against the couch.

Seungmin is better in action than he is with words today.

He doesn’t struggle against you or ease up, but pushes on with just as much enthusiasm.

You don’t know what to do with your hands, though. You have a lot of options. Through the hair? No. Neck? Maybe, but you don’t want to be too rough at this angle, and he might not be into that. Face? It’s a good option, and his cheeks are soft and nice to touch. And it's not too much.

Before you can decide, he takes your other hand and pulls until you have no choice but to swing a leg over his lap. And then his hands are on either side of your thighs.

You pull back and look at him.

He stares back, catching his breath. “I’m sorry I’m so bad at answering your questions.”

“You don’t have to.” You let your hands wander over his chest and down his sides. He squirms just a little; probably ticklish. When your hands settle on his belt, you lean in to kiss him again. On his lips, over his cheek. “I shouldn’t have put that on you.”

“I’m glad you did,” he looks down at your hands. “It was nice to be thought of like that. It felt good.”

“If I can see you again, that’s enough for me.”

“Is it?”

It really isn’t, but you decided on the walk back that anything with Seungmin would be okay. “If it’s what you can give me, yeah.”

Your needy, clingy heart feels like it’s crumbling, but you do your best to keep it from showing on your face.

“I can’t promise much, but I can try.”

You kiss him again, and without thinking it through properly; without thinking at all, really, you slide your fingers down and over the zipper of his shorts and feel the significant bulge that you somehow didn’t notice before.

Seungmin’s tiny oh and his hand wrapping around the offending wrist makes your stomach sink. His eyes are wide and fixed on you.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” you gently push yourself away from him and sit against the opposite side of the couch, hands covering your red face. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking…”

“It’s okay,” he giggles and adjusts himself, and you watch from behind one hand as he runs a palm between his thighs. “Please don’t be upset, you didn’t do anything wrong.” His voice softens as he speaks, and the last part is a barely audible whisper, “it was my fault.” But the grin on his face only sharpens. He’s looking down at his hands as they nervously fidget with the hem of his shorts.

“Was that uh, a first, too?” You regret asking it as soon as it leaves your mouth.

He doesn’t answer right away. You’re worried he feels embarrassed about it. And you feel weird for bringing it up. The urge to get closer to him is kept under control for now.

“It’s no big deal, Minnie…if it was.”

Using his nickname breaks him from his trance, and he looks at you, blinks, nods. “Yeah, it was.”

“Did you want that? I mean, when you pulled me on top of you.” Now you scoot a little closer. “You can give me boundaries.”

“I got caught up in the moment.” He starts, thinking and picking his words carefully. “But I did want to kiss you like that.”

“Got it,” closer still, until your knee is brushing against his thigh. “You can always stop me if I go overboard. Sometimes I can be too much.”

“Is that bad? Too much is sometimes nice.”

“I guess it depends…”

You lean forward until your forehead can lay on his shoulder. His cheek rests on your head. You stay that way until you feel yourself relaxing and drifting into a half-sleep.

“I think it’s time to rest.” You don’t move, but Seungmin lifts his head.

“That’s a good idea,” He grabs the pillow to his right and puts it on your side of the couch. “Do you want me to stay?”

You lay back on the couch and sigh. “Yeah, I do. If you want to.”

“I do…move over.”

#kim seungmin #skz fluff #skz seungmin #skz x you #kim seungmin x reader #kim seungmin x y/n #seungmin x you #seungmin x reader #seungmin x y/n #stray kids fluff #kim seungmin fluff #kim seungmin x you #skz x reader #skz smut

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what-gs-watching · 2 months

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"If that's a joke, I love it. If not, can't wait to unpack that with you later."

So, here’s a thing - winter makes me sad. I mean, it makes a lot of people sad, but also me. When I was younger I used to just cause a whole bunch of drama to get it out of my system but I’m an adult now and I’m still mostly fruitlessly job searching and I can’t really just go around starting fights anymore so I’m just sitting in my ennui, feeling unmoored.

Which made me realize: I need Ted Lasso. Desperately.

Wherein, a low level American football coach moves to England to coach actual football (aka soccer) and ends up creating something so beautiful it’ll make you laugh and cry until you just can’t anymore.

If you’ve never seen Ted Lasso, first of all - how dare you? And secondly, start it now. Like, literally right now. It’s everything you didn’t know you needed.

I will admit I didn’t get into it until my husband watched it and encouraged me into it because of my love for Jason Sudeikis. I tend to pick up unnatural obsessions for SNL alumni, I just want all of them to succeed, so I gave in and instantly lost my mind over it. I couldn’t get enough.

During the second season run, I literally had a standing weekly fifteen minute meeting with my engineers to talk about the latest episode and our theories on what would happen next, or what our favorite joke had been. There were MANY heated debates.

Before the third season came out, I made my family binge the first two seasons while we were on vacation. I remember my mom calling me after she and my dad had watched the series finale so we could talk about it - she’d never bought into a show like that before.

Ted Lasso just brings people together, and I find it absolutely ridiculous that this poignant, wonderful, life affirming show came out of a bit that Sudeikis wrote in 2013 for an NBC Sports commercial. It’s mind boggling.

You guys know, it’s all about the relationships for me, and that’s the entire show, really. Ted is unrelentingly positive and charming and understanding and the reason he likes coaching is because he wants to help his players be the best versions of themselves and wooooph throughout the show, you get that, for every single character, even Ted himself. It’s about loving each other and loving yourself and also somewhat about football and it’s just so fucking…delightful.

And I’m obsessed with all of the different dynamics. Ted and Beard, and Roy and Ted and Beard, and Roy and Jamie, and Roy and Keeley, and fucking Keeley and Rebecca! If you need to see a perfect incredible WONDERFUL female friendship, it’s Rebecca and Keeley fucking Jones. Someone needs to write a long-winded essay about these two, because dear lord, I want a best friend like that. Everyone wants a best friend like that. Like, I just can’t with all of the messy, hilarious, beautiful relationships. I want to be part of them all.

Also, it’s funny. Like, properly funny. Laugh-out-loud-no-matter-how-many-times-you’ve-seen-it funny. The bits are layered. And you’ll get something different out of them every single time. Nuance, gang. It’s all so nuanced.

The first season is absolutely perfect. You get to know all of the characters and you get a general sense of what’s up. Everyone is kind of charming and you’re immediately annoyed with Rebecca and charmed by Roy even though he tries his best to be threatening, and you think that Nathan is adorable and you’re pulled into Ted’s unwavering enthusiasm and Beard’s silliness indulgence and straight-man stoicism and Keeley’s adorableness. And it’s WONDERFUL! I’ve seen season one at least four or five times, likely more. It’s everything.

There are so many good moments. At one point, Ted says he’s having salads for lunch with Higgins who is communications director or something and as Ted goes to leave Higgins says “Cesar you later!” and Ted BURSTS back in through the door and just yells “YES!” and it’s hilarious every time.

When Ted and Beard realize that Roy is a bristling motherfucker who wants to hate everything, Ted says something like “wait til we win him over”, with Beard announcing “He’s. Going to be. Furious.” (And he was.)

It’s the little things in the first season that really endear you to Ted Lasso. It just wraps you up and makes you feel warm and appreciated, like there are people out there that are pure and good and they can make you feel pure and good too.

And then you get into season two and you start to see behind the curtain. Ted’s really not okay with his divorce (which, I still think is because his wife couldn’t deal with his optimism? Which is so insane to me and I can’t even, I never forgave her like, what the fuck is that) and in general and they tackle a lot of mental health issues and social issues and it’s a bit hard to get through.

But at the same time, season two has some of my favorite bits? Which is confusing??! The scene where Sam asks Isaac for a haircut - everyone gets a single cut from the captain once a season - and the entire team watches and whoops and freaks out and it’s like, an intricate performance and everyone is just so fucking thrilled to be witnessing it? It’s weirdly beautiful.

Ted and Beard teaching the entire team the choreography to NSYNC’s Bye Bye Bye so they can send off the team shrink in a ridiculous way? Incredible. When they finally get the dance right, they lose their fucking minds. It’s so JOYFUL.

The episode where Roy finally realizes he wants to join the coaching staff and he makes a dramatic trek to the stadium while “She’s a Rainbow” blares? The theme of that one was believing in rom-communism - to rouse the team Ted tells them “Fairy tales do not start nor do they end in the dark forest” and yo that’s so TRUE - and when Roy finally showed up on the pitch he said, “You had me at ‘coach’.” I cry every single time I see that one. I literally watched it twice in a week when getting the family into the show and I cried both times. Hard.

I think part of the reason this show is so resonating is because dark shit happens, but a lot of really sweet things happen too. There’s an episode wherein Rebecca’s dad dies and they’re all attending the funeral but it still is somehow achingly funny too, even though you learn some terrible things about Ted and Rebecca both in that one. They really ride the line of darkness and light and it’s messy and that’s life.

And then season three is hard. So much happens. And you know that you’re barreling toward the finale. There’s only 34 episodes in the entire series and it’s not nearly enough but they do try to make the most of their time.

Watching the finale season in real time was really interesting though, I’ll say, because the fandom was so nuts at the time. So many random theories and outrage over some of the story points. And at the time I did kind of agree, but seeing it all back to back now in my first true binge, it all makes sense. Everyone had their own journey and some of them were ridiculous and maybe we just wanted things to stay the same because that’s how we fell in love with the characters but that’s not the point, gang. Shit is forever changing.

I’ll never get over the moment when Roy finally relents to the diamond dogs. Or Jamie teaching him how to ride a fucking bike in Amsterdam. Or when the team comes together to help Sam put his restaurant back together after it’s completely vandalized. Or Beard explaining to Nate his background with Ted, and offering his forgiveness to Nate as a way to honor everything Ted has done. Or Rebecca calling Roy out on his shit, saying that instead of helping himself he’d rather “eat shit soup and then complain about the portions”.

There are so many little beautiful pieces. So many things that will pull at your heart strings and make you realize things that maybe have been niggling around in your brain but refusing to come forward because you were scared of them. Ted Lasso helps you be less scared of them. Ted Lasso helps you be less scared of everything, because it encourages you to accept yourself as you are.

In the final episode, Higgins says “Human beings are never gonna be perfect. The best we can do is to keep asking for help and accepting it when you can. And if you keep on doing that, you'll always be moving towards better.”

And that’s what all of us need to understand. This show will ingrain that thought into you, and it’ll buoy you, and you won’t even realize it.

So maybe now I’m feeling less ennui. Because I’m still laughing at the hijinx and basking in the wholesomeness and the amazingly perfect relationships and the belief. Ted Lasso makes you fucking believe.

#what g's watching #ted lasso #coach beard #rebecca welton #roy kent #keeley jones #comfort show #jamie tartt #be a goldfish

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alexanderlightweight · 11 months

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I really love that you open for prompts; it’s so exciting to see all the different things people prompt and to see what your mind comes up with.When Madzie feels ready to meet new people, Magnus and Cat take her to a small gathering with Downworld kids. But Madzie just stays with them and won't move around. So they ask her what she needs to feel safe enough to interact with the other kids. She needs her protector; she needs Alec. So next time, they bring Alec as well. (1/2)

okay so there is a second half of this prompt but i can't figure out how to add it to here. this is part of the an extension of you verse and Alec is dragged along because if he isn't, madzie might just create sharknado in rl.

lumine

Alec has already explained to Madzie why he’ll be sitting for most of the outing, especially the start, and she understands it. He’s on a large, colorful quilt that she insisted he and Magnus and Cat create together with her.

It took a lot of magic and the night market and a lot of Alec's bloody fingertips, but they finally have a galaxy quilt with sharks, rays, jellyfish, whales and octopi spread out across it. Alec is carefully unpacking the bag he packed for them, ignoring Magnus’ magic that is eager to help as he carefully sticks a straw into a mundane juicebox.

It does not break this time and he smirks as he sets it down.

Madzie is sticking close, Sharkie Sharptooth held diligently in her hand as she stares solemnly across the playground. Alec reminds himself to stay sitting, because he has to be safe for all of the kids, not just Madzie.

“What’s caught your thoughts?” Alec asks, because they’re exploring the idea that anxiety and trauma are like giant nets that other people leave in the ocean of life. Not Madzie’s fault, but that doesn’t mean she’s not affected by other people being mean and dropping their trash.

As a result, Madzie is very conscious of littering and she and Alec have watched the same ocean conservation movie three times, because she’s stubborn and determined to understand it even thought it’s mostly a documentary.

Madzie looks at him carefully and then points, quietly to the very tall top of the jungle gym that Alec knows she still isn’t comfortable going on by herself.

“We just need to let Magnus know.” Alec reminds her, because it’s not that he’s not allowed to move, it’s that they want the other parents and kids to feel safe and Magnus knows better than he does what works. Magnus smiles at him, softly when he asks and then he personally escorts them — pulling Alec up from the ground and handing him Madzie — and they make their way over to the play structure.

Catarina arrives as Alec is carefully letting Madzie step from his shoulders to grab the handle that will let her pull herself all the way up.

A minute later, Alec is both keeping Madzie from jumping off the top with one hand and a young, small warlock from falling with the other.

“Are you going to hurt me for running into you?”

Alec is asked bluntly and he bites back a tired sigh as he finishes handing Sharkie to Madzie. Then, with the knowledge that she’s safe and secure, he kneels down, making sure to keep his hands relaxed and in view on his knees.

“A shadowhunter’s true duty,” Alec tells the little warlock carefully, “is to protect. But sometimes—” here he hesitates because he’s not sure it’s place to say, but he tries anyway. “Sometimes people are very selfish and they only care about themselves. Shadowhunters forget they’re people too, and that we can also be like that. So they pretend they're still good. At some point, we got really cranky and forgot that we’re supposed to protect people and not just fight all the time.” Alec tries, because he’s not sure how old this kid is but he’s not willing to risk traumatizing anyone under the age of fifteen.

Tiny grey fingers reach out and Alec holds himself very still and lets trembling, rough fingers trace the rune on his throat. It tickles more than it hurts and Alec finds his lips twitching into a similar smile to the one he shared with Madzie as he softens. Kids are so very hard to be stern with and Alec knows that warlock children aren't as innocent as they could be. That they're raised to understand the trials of the world they’ll face, but it’s always so endearing to be around children not raised for war and hate.

“What happens if I see a shadowhunter that’s not you?” The kid asks, curious despite his wariness and the way he presses against Alec's side reminds him of his siblings when they were young and pretending they didn’t lean on Alec for strength.

“Then you should do whatever your parents and teachers have told you.” Alec tells him, “and then remember to protect yourself first. If and only if—” and here he takes a breath, because this is something he has only discussed in theory with the other downworld leaders but this is as good a time as any. “If any shadowhunter ever takes you away, then you tell them that you’re under the guardianship of the High Warlock of Brooklyn, and that his shadowhunter is a nephilim commander, okay?” Alec isn’t enough a of a threat yet, but Magnus always has and always will be and now, Magnus has Alec on his side. “Magnus will come to get you, okay?”

“But what if I’m somewhere warlocks aren’t supposed to be?”

“Then I’ll come find you and Magnus will come to me, because there isn’t a single place in this world that I can go, where Magnus isn’t able to follow.” Alec smiles at that and he touches fingers over his own heart, “there is no magic that can keep Magnus from me, okay?”

The kid frowns but he nods and he reaches out to carefully touch Alec’s neck rune again, “they’re not as scary as I thought they’d be.” He whispers and Alec smiles sadly and pats the sand next to him.

“Do you want to learn what they mean, so you can recognize the ones you see?” Alec offers, because understanding usually lessens fear and he knows from Madzie that marks of power can be very intimidating. Madzie met Alec before Valentine and it’s the only reason she’s not completely terrified of his runes and despite how horrible it was, Alec can’t regret how that encounter went.

When he gets a quiet nod, Alec carefully begins to trace out the most important runes to know. Things that may not seem worth noticing, but can change the course of a fight.

Speed, strength, iratze, the circle rune which should always be run from and Alec is about to trace a fifth rune when Madzie interrupts them.

“Alec—” Madzie calls out and she’s scowling at him, Sharkie Sharptooth in her little fists as she glares at the little boy talking to him. “Sunfish!”

Alec slowly gets to his feet, giving the kid enough time to scurry away but he stays cautiously close. Alec figures it’s fine, since his adult is probably watching, and goes to Madzie. Catarina is here now, a coffee in her hand and a grimace on her face as she glares at the sun viciously. Alec knows it’s only the presence of regular warlocks that keep her from turning the day to an eclipse.

“Do you want— ow, Madzie.” Alec gives her a blank look, eyebrow raised and she pouts, crossing her arms. “Is there a reason High Warlock Sharptooth bit me?” Alec asks dryly and he ignores Catarina’s snickers, knowing this is his own fault for playing along with Sharkie Sharptooth’s sudden promotion three nights ago.

“Sunfish.” Madzie reminds him and despite the fact that she’s being rude, Alec laughs and indulges her. Madzie being rude is something to celebrate, they can figure out boundaries later, once she’s more confident in setting her own and regularly asking for what she wants. Catarina’s eyes are wet, because Madzie rarely is so insistent and Alec smiles at the fact that he’s helped create enough safety for this moment.

“Sunfish it is.” Alec says and he lifts her, and despite how far she’s come, he finds himself wishing that she felt safe enough to squeal and laugh like the other children. Instead, there is a soft gasp of delight by his ear as Alec raises her up and twirls her. There is no magic or runes involved, just is strength and Alec finds himself fifteen minutes later with Madzie still held high as she whacks away other children with Sharkie as he tries to not step on any tails or wings.

“Magnus, if you do not help me, I will be sleeping at the Institute for the next week!” Alec finally bites out as he balances carefully, Madzie with both of her fists in his hair as she holds Sharkie in her mouth and hisses at the children trying to zombie-climb Alec’s legs. If it weren’t for Madzie, Alec wouldn’t care, but he’s reluctant to risk her progress and from the way Magnus nods, he understands as well.

“Well, that’s a threat enough for me.” Magnus drawls from where he’s been enjoying a mimosa next to Cat and he glides over, smirk on his face as he snaps his fingers and butterflies began to fly around the park. Only the toddlers follow the glittering insects and Alec hides a smile as tiny, strong fingers threaten to destabilize him.

“Now, all of you have adults of your own to torment.” Magnus says, giving all the children a raised eyebrow, “run along.If you’re all good, I’ll bring my shadowhunter next time as well. Right now, I want him back.”

Immediately, they dash off. The respect and adoration they hold for Magnus clear as the scamper towards their adults and Alec mock scowls, knowing that there is drool in his hair from where Madzie started gnashing her teeth.

“I am filing a complaint.” Alec says calmly and he winks up at Madzie to make sure she knows he's joking. "The next time we have a spare weekend, Madzie and I are going to the ocean. You and Cat can be on sand duty, if we allow you to come.”

Catarina snickers as she joins them and she hands Alec a coffee that he accepts gratefully and he graciously promotes Catarina from sand duty to merely being a sunbathing bystander.

#lumine writes #writing wednesday #writing wednesdays #an extension of you #malec #magnus bane #alec lightwood #shadowhunters

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whatstruthgottodowithit · 1 year

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The Girl He Left Behind [Part Fifteen]

Fandom: American Actor, RPF, Elvis Presley, Elvis Movie 2022

Pairing: Elvis Presley x Original Female Character

Characters: Elvis Presley, Addison Goodwin, Gladys Presley, Vernon Presley, Minnie May ‘Dodger’ Presley, Red West, Sonny West, Gene Smith, Billy Smith, Original Female Characters, Colonel Tom Parker, Billy Smith, Marci Cunningham, Steve Cunningham, Jerry Schilling, Mary Jenkins, Alan Fortas, Marty Lacker, Original Male Characters, Mona Goodwin, Joe Goodwin

Word Count: 8139 // Rating: Mature

Summary: When Elvis returns home to Graceland from the Army he’s followed by the headlines ‘The Girl He Left Behind’ but what the media don’t know is that Priscilla wasn’t the first. No, that title belongs to someone Elvis will never forget.

Tags/ Warnings: Angst, Fluff, Graceland, Poverty, Friends to Lovers, 1950s Elvis, Bad Parenting, Surprise Surprise the Colonel Is a Colossal Prick, Parental Loss, Grief, Fun Fairs, Kissing, Vaginal Sex, Oral Sex, Movie Nights, Arguing, Tension, Denial of Feelings, Age Gap Romance, Underage, Addison is 17 Elvis is 22, Guilt, Betrayal, Extortion, Blackmail, Jealous, Army Elvis, American Draft, US Army, Lying, Time Shift with Elvis moving to Memphis, Flashbacks, Caught

Notes: ITS OSCARS DAY!! But whatever way it goes we’ve at least got something. ELVIS AND ADDIE ARE FINALLY TOGETHER! 💙

LINK TO ALL PARTS // AO3 LINK // PINTEREST LINK

@girlblogger2002 @sania562 @caitlin1996 @literally-just-elvis-fics @notstefaniepresley @artlesson8892

Addison was standing in the kitchen waiting by the door and readying herself for the tell-tale sign that Elvis was awake. Four days. They had barely seen each other in four days, let alone spoken to one another. They were like passing ships. Whilst she was out at school he was at home, mostly catching up on sleep, and when she came home he was gone, only coming back in the wee hours when he was sure she was going to be in bed. The only thing was she didn’t know why. The night at the Memphian he had assured her nothing was wrong yet his behaviour didn’t support that. He was an enigma, and she was frustrated trying to crack it.

In the first couple of days, she had figured he’d come around in his own time but as the week ticked on she feared that might not be the case. So, when Saturday morning had rolled around she’d put a plan into action. She was going to get him to talk to her no matter what. But just as she was listening out for sounds of him moving around in the bedroom Mary came bustling in with groceries in hand distracting her.

‘Oh, there you are,’ she said as Addison rushed to take a heavy sack out of her arms and put it on the counter, ‘my backs about to give out.’ ‘You shouldn’t be carrying stuff like that I’ve told you,’ Addison chastised. Mary chuckled and took a seat at the kitchen table, holding her back with a wince. ‘Ain’t no option,’ Mary said, ‘there’s no one else around.’ ‘What am I chopped liver?’ Addison said with a smirk. It felt odd to smile since over the past few days she hadn’t had much reason to. ‘You’ve got your own stuff,’ Mary said. ‘I still work here,’ Addison reasoned, she stopped unpacking things and turned to lean on the counter only to find Mary watching her with a motherly gaze. Addison dropped hers and turned back to start unpacking things, suddenly realising why she hadn’t bothered her. People were still treating her with kid gloves.

‘How’re you doing sweetheart?’ Mary said from behind her, ‘you haven’t seemed yourself this week.’ ‘I’m fine,’ Addison said moving around the kitchen with various items so she didn’t have to meet the older woman’s eye. It was partly the truth. She had been doing just fine after her mother when she had Elvis by her side though without him was a different story. ‘No one would blame you if you weren’t doing so hot,’ Mary said. ‘I know. I guess we all pretend like we can manage more than we can huh?’ Addison said looking at her friend pointedly which made Mary smirk. ‘Hey now, I raised four young uns’. A baby on each hip and the others hanging off where they could. I can carry a couple of bags of groceries,’ Mary chuckled. ‘The way you’re gripping your back would beg to differ,’ Addison said pushing the older woman’s shoulder as she tried to get up, ‘you stay, I’ll grab the others from the car.’

Addison left the kitchen and headed out to the garage to get the other bags of groceries off the back seat but when she re-entered she heard movement moving faster than a speeding bullet down the stairs. ‘Jeez those boys fly about this house like the road runner,’ Mary said standing up and moving to unpack the bags Addison had laid on the counter. Addison didn’t stay put though, instead, she flew out of the kitchen and into the main hallway looking around for the culprit. By the time she got to the bottom of the stairs though there was no one there. ‘They’ve gone out,’ said a voice behind her making her turn around to find Dodger coming out of the dining room. ‘Elvis, I, I thought he was in bed,’ Addison said. ‘Well, he was until about ten minutes or so ago. Red came and picked him up and they just left. Did you need something, honey?’ Dodger said watching her kindly. Addison sighed and shook her head, ‘no, I’m okay.’ ‘Okay sweetheart,’ Dodger said, ‘you know I’m thinking about going to bingo today if you want to join me. I mean it’s church bingo so it’s vicious as hell but you never know. It might be quite fun.’ ‘Uh, I can’t…homework and stuff. Last weekend got me a little behind,’ Addison said feeling guilty as she clocked Dodger’s disappointed expression. ‘Not to worry,’ Dodger said patting her on the shoulder tenderly, ‘rain check.’

As Dodger toddled off into the living room Addison stood on the spot, glancing up the stairs and then to the door. She didn’t want to go back into the kitchen and talk to Mary. She didn’t want to go to bingo with Dodger and pretend like everything was okay. She wanted Elvis to talk to her. She wanted to be wherever he was, enjoying themselves as they had been last weekend, but that wasn’t going to happen any time soon she feared. So, without thinking she grabbed the keys to the Lincoln from the hook by the door and headed to the car.

She was out of the gates of Graceland, passing the expectant fans without engaging, before she realised she didn’t know where she was going. She had no plan. No clue of what she should be doing given her only plans for the day had been usurped. She drove around for a while, passing through the suburban and later on industrial views of Memphis before she decided on where to go then she looped back on herself and eventually pulled up outside Marci’s. She parked up quickly and headed to the door knocking gently. There was a lull before she heard movement inside and then finally the door opened revealing Marci.

‘Addie,’ she said with surprise, ‘I didn’t know you were coming over.’ ‘Me either,’ Addison said feeling a lump forming in her throat. She opened her mouth, trying to suppress the tears from forming and falling though it wasn’t much help. ‘Is everything okay?’ Marci said. Addison shook her head. ‘No,’ she said finally starting to cry. Marci sighed and opened her arms, pulling her now sobbing friend into the house and closing the door behind her. She steered the pair of them through the house until they were at her room and once Addison was transferred onto the bed she sat down beside her throwing an arm around her and allowing her to get out everything that had been building over the past week if not months. As Addison’s crying started to subside she pulled out of her friend’s arms. Her breathing was shaky and her eyes red and raw but in spite of that, she felt better. Marci watched her closely feeling heartbroken for her best friend.

‘Sorry,’ Addison said with a sniffle as Marci offered her a tissue. ‘Don’t be,’ Marci said with a soft smile. ‘I don’t know what happened,’ Addison said with a shaky breath. ‘It’s been a lot it’s okay to feel a little overwhelmed…is he still not talking to you?’ Marci said with a frown. Addison shook her head, ‘he won’t even be in the same room with me. Any time we have been he’s put at least four people between us so we can’t talk. I don’t know what it is. I don’t know what I’ve done. I thought maybe I’d read into things too much. Maybe he got spooked because he doesn’t feel like that for me.’ ‘Addie I’ve seen the way he looks at you. That can’t be it,’ Marci said. ‘But there’s nothing else I can think of!’ she said exasperatedly before looking at her friend apologetically, ‘I’m sorry, I’m just so confused.’ ‘That’s understandable,’ Marci said. ‘I just don’t know what to do,’ Addison grumbled throwing herself back so she was propped up against Marci’s bedroom wall from the shoulders only. Marci shifted back too but so that she was sitting up against the wall looking down at her friend. ‘Well talking’s out,’ she said, ‘maybe it’s time for action.’ ‘I tried that,’ she said thinking back to that first day back from the tour when she’d cornered him at the Memphian hoping he’d tell her what was wrong. ‘I don’t mean forcing him to talk to you,’ Marci said. ‘Then what?’ Addison said peering up at her friend with questioning eyes. ‘Maybe he’ll see sense if he sees you with someone else,’ Marci said with a cheeky glint in her eye. ‘Date someone else?’ Addison said pushing herself up. ‘Why not? He’ll see he’s being ridiculous I bet it!’ Marci said. ‘I don’t know Mar, I mean play with another guy like that? It’s not exactly fair is it,’ she said biting her lip. Marci’s smile faded and then she nodded, ‘yeah I suppose you’re right but I’m telling you Addie, that boy loves you whether he wants to admit it or not.’ ‘I wish I could believe that,’ Addison said morosely. Marci frowned and pulled her friend into a one-armed hug.

‘Well how about we don’t believe it then. How about we don’t even think about it?’ Marci said. ‘And how do you suppose we do that?’ Addison challenged quirking her eyebrow. ‘Well we can hang out here, have dinner and then Jer said he wanted to take me roller skating,’ Marci said, ‘you can come too.’ ‘Oh yeah spend the evening as your third wheel. Every girl’s dream,’ she said sarcastically. ‘Not a third wheel!’ Marci protested, ‘we can invite Steve and I promise not to leave you high and dry.’ ‘You’re sure?’ Addison sniffled. ‘Of course. It’ll be a lot of fun,’ Marci said, ‘and besides, I need more than Jer to keep me upright on that rink.’ ‘Now I have to come,’ Addison said with the first smile she had felt was genuine all day.

✵✵✵

The rink wasn’t super busy when they got there much to Addison’s surprise. Given that it was a Saturday night she was sure it would be packed with high school kids but there were hardly any around. In fact, as she neared the reception desk with her group she noticed that they were probably the youngest in there and everyone else looked mightily familiar. That was when she spotted him. Elvis.

He was sitting on one of the tables at the side of the rink, lacing his boots up with friends around him all laughing and joking. Most of his entourage was dotted about, some of them getting refreshments whilst others had already taken to the rink. Whilst Jerry and Steve stepped up to request skates for them all Addison yanked on her friend’s sleeve making her whip around to look at her.

‘I thought you said it was just the four of us!’ she hissed angrily. ‘I thought it was,’ Marci said though she rolled her eyes as Addison continued to look furious and disbelievingly at her, ‘okay fine! But if I had told you he was going to be here would you have come?’ ‘No,’ Addison said. ‘See!’ Marci sighed. ‘Because he obviously doesn’t want me here,’ she reasoned, ‘he didn’t even tell me the guys were going to the rink tonight.’ ‘Well that doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to be here,’ Marci said, ‘why not just enjoy yourself? He is.’

And before Addison could reply she swanned off behind Steve and Jerry towards the tables were everyone was getting ready for the rink. Addison followed going to sit down beside Marci on the bench next to the table Elvis was at. He glanced at her as she took off her shoes feeling a familiar ache in his core. It had been one he had been plagued with all week. Since he had pushed her away he had figured the best course of action was to keep her at arm’s length. Turns out that arm’s length hurt. A lot.

He had tried to keep his mind off of her but that in itself was hard. He spent little time in the house, only opting to be there whilst she was at school and by the time she got home he would be out doing anything and everything that would keep him distracted before he could creep in, assured that she would be in bed and unable to question him. The boys seemed to have gotten the message that he needed distracting which had been why they had suggested the rink tonight. And though he hadn’t felt like going he had figured it was a good way of keeping him away from her for a few more hours though now it seemed as though he needn’t have bothered.

Though he hadn’t told the boys outright not to invite her they seemed to get the gist that she wasn’t included in this week’s activities. He didn’t know how she’d gotten invited though as he saw she was with Marci and Jerry he figured he could guess. It wasn’t Jerry’s fault he supposed. After all Elvis did usually have a ‘more the merrier’ outlook when it came to activities like this. Still, it had been a shock to see her waltz in looking stunning as always. He wondered how she was doing. He scooted off the bench until he was standing ending up closer to her than he had been all week. She wasn’t paying attention as she stood up almost going smack-bang into the middle of his chest. Her hazel eyes met his, looking surprised for a second before they came stormy and she looked away.

‘Sorry,’ she mumbled and with that, she turned back towards Marci. Elvis watched as they headed to the rink, following Jerry and Steve.

As she walked towards the rink Marci’s looped her arm through hers and offered her a kind smile. It was a nice gesture and yet Addison couldn’t help but be annoyed. At everything. At being tricked into coming. At being avoided. At the fact that even when she was right in front of him he still refused to speak to her. Irked at his lack of response she found herself leaving Marci with Jerry so she could at least attempt to get some of that tension out of her body. It turned out that anger was actually good at keeping her moving and the fact she had to focus on what she was doing was a good distraction and once she had warmed up she even found herself having fun. Whilst Marci struggled to get to grips with the skating, using Jerry as more of an anchor than a boyfriend, Addison decided to spend some time with Steve before she fell into the wider games being played on the rink. After a while, she had mostly put Elvis out of her mind which was good because he had spent most of the time out of her way.

He had been watching her though. He couldn’t help himself. She seemed to be having a good time, which he was grateful for, but as she skated with Steve or raced Sonny he couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit dejected she wasn’t with him. He was by the side of the rink, taking a break and a sip of soda when she skated past, giggling as Sonny wrapped his arms around her and pulled her off the ground.

‘Get off me!’ Addison giggled. ‘Not until you admit I won,’ Sonny chuckled. ‘Not a chance,’ she said though a squeal followed it as he dropped her, her legs rolling in between his as she had become unaccustomed to the floor. She didn’t fall though as he had full control over her and pulled her upright, still not letting go as she protested. ‘Son stop it!’ she said as he spun her round to face him. ‘Did I win?’ he asked, raising an eyebrow. ‘Nope,’ she said, though her face changed as he went to lift her up again, ‘okay fine! But not on skill. It’s cos ya got those big ol’ man feet propelling ya down the rink.’ ‘Whatever helps you sleep at night sweetheart,’ Sonny chuckled, letting her go but following her as she skated towards her friends who were close by watching their little debacle with mirth.

Elvis however was not enjoying the show quite as much. Without a second thought, he threw his soda in the trash and headed back onto the rink, his friends that had come for a rest with him following quickly behind. As he reached the middle of the rink a new game popped into his head and he gestured for everyone to come close which people did sensing that a change of play was in the air until finally he was almost encircled by the entire group.

‘Ya good EP?’ Red asked. ‘Yeah, just thinkin’ tonight’s a little boring,’ he said, ‘I was thinking of switching it up a touch.’ ‘Do you wanna play crack the whip?’ Marty asked. ‘Nah, I was thinking more all across,’ Elvis said earning a murmur of agreement from the guys. It was a good game though it could get a little brutal. Something like tag but rougher as the boys always took it too far, tackling and corralling their prospective targets to the ground. Clothes had been torn, bruises formed, scratches inflicted and play fights galore. Elvis needed it as he was full of anger and nerves that he needed to get out somehow.

‘What’s all across?’ Marci asked with a concerned look on her face. ‘Sorta like tag,’ Marty said. ‘One guy stands in the middle of the rink and we have to get across without getting caught. If you are, you join him for the next round until it’s everyone against the last standing,’ Red said. ‘Sounds dangerous,’ she said. ‘Yeah maybe you should sit this one out babe,’ Jerry said immediately going bright red at the term of endearment that earned a couple of sniggers from the guys. Marci however nodded and allowed Jerry to help her skate off to the side of the rink. A couple of the girlfriends also took the chance to disperse which made all eyes fall on Addison who stayed put, the only girl left in the circle. ‘What?’ she asked when she noticed everyone staring. ‘You’re playing?’ Sonny asked. ‘Am I not allowed?’ she challenged making his words catch in his throat as he tried to reply. ‘It’s a dangerous game Addie,’ Red said instinctively taking over on Sonny’s behalf. ‘I’m fine with that,’ she shrugged. ‘Addie,’ Elvis sighed. ‘What is it boys only?’ she asked heatedly, clenching her jaw. ‘I didn’t say that,’ he said irately. ‘Good. Let’s get started then huh?’ she said with a tight smile before she skated off to the bottom end of the rink. Elvis sighed and looked at Red but sensing there was no point in arguing he just said, ‘start us off man.’

Red nodded and took his spot in the middle of the rink whilst the others skated to join Addison. Though as they lined up beside her she got a little concerned. They were huge compared to her and they had glee in their eyes at the idea of a tussle. She would be crushed if she got on the wrong side of them but she had to save face. If Elvis wanted to push her out she wasn’t going to let him without a fight or an explanation as to why. She couldn’t back out now. Fortunately, the first few rounds went smoothly. She got across the rink at breakneck speed as being smaller than the boys gave her an edge of being fast. It also helped that the boys were determined to take each other out meaning she was slightly overlooked until finally, it was just Elvis and Addison left standing by the edge of the rink.

‘You know you can back out now if you want,’ Elvis said with a smirk that Addison assumed was meant to be banter but she couldn’t warm to it. In fact, it irked her that he had the audacity to ignore her and then joke around like nothing had happened. She didn’t say anything but turned to look up the rink where the boys were discussing tactics for the next round. Elvis’ smile faded as Red called for their attention. By now the boys were spread out across the rink, leaving little room for either of them to be able to get through but Addison was determined. As Red shouted go she took off, heading for the outside as the boys headed towards Elvis. He was tall and slim making him quite agile on his skates as he dodged out of the way of most of them but Red was too fast and determined and soon enough his arms had wrapped around Elvis’ waist, dragging him off balance to the floor. Addison heard the clatter before she saw it and turned her head to make sure he was okay but as she turned back Alan was in front of her barging into her shoulder first and knocking her off balance and onto the floor where her head collided with the waxed wood with a thud.

Pain flowed through her as her head bounced off the floor. She could practically feel her brain rattle around inside her head as she lay on the ground disorientated. The bright lights above her and the solid wooden floor underneath her were the only things she could feel for a moment but then there were shouts and sounds of people coming towards her making her come around. A wave of wooziness washed through her as she tried to push herself up into a sitting position though it was swiftly taken over by searing pain in her ankle. She didn’t have a chance to take it in though as Sonny came into view kneeling down beside her with concern in his brown eyes.

‘Are you okay?’ he said, and she nodded feeling dizzy as she moved her head. ‘I’m sorry,’ Alan said, looking down at her with worry in his eyes as everyone skated towards them, finally having noticed the tumble she’d taken. ‘It’s fine,’ she winced though the way her ankle was screaming at her suggested it might not be. Elvis appeared in a flash and shoved him hard almost making him tumble over due to his skates. ‘What the hell was that?’ Elvis spat as Alan cowered back. ‘I’m sorry EP-’ ‘Sorry?! You could’ve put her in the hospital!’ he snapped his fists still grabbing Alan’s lapels. He was trying to push the other man away but Elvis’ knuckles were white as they held him. ‘I really am sorry,’ Alan said. ‘It was an accident,’ Addison snapped, catching his attention and making his hands fall from Alan as he dropped to her side, his hands hovering over every inch of her. ‘Are you okay?’ he said. ‘I’m fine,’ she said, pulling out of his grip as she tried to push herself up. ‘You could’ve been really hurt,’ he said worriedly. ‘Oh so you care all of a sudden?’ she snapped, making his eyes widen as guilt coursed through him. Her mouth clamped shut afterwards trying to keep any other words inside as she felt hushed whispers run around the room at her words. ‘Ads,’ murmured quietly but she turned away and looked towards Sonny. ‘Help me up?’ she asked. Sonny looked nervously at Elvis before he stood up to do as he was told and wrapped his arm around her waist so he could pull her up. Once she was tucked into his side, one ankle hanging limply between them as she supported herself by clinging tightly to Sonny, Elvis stood too. Everyone was watching them and for a moment he wished he could feel awkward about their tiff being so public but he didn’t care.

‘You got her?’ Red said, making Sonny nod. Elvis said nothing as she clung to him and watched Sonny assist her to the side of the rink, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. Addison didn’t look at him. She couldn’t. She feared a week’s worth of anger would come spilling out of her if she did and that wasn’t what she wanted, not in front of so many people. Sonny manoeuvred her off the rink and onto a bench mumbling something about getting some ice as she adjusted herself. She could feel a large lump forming on her head which hurt as she ran her fingers over it though it wasn’t as bad as the pain in her ankle. She placed her leg up on the bench and worked her skate off, wincing as it dropped to the floor revealing her now swollen and red ankle to the air.

‘I mean us guys have had some war wounds in our time but that’s quite something,’ Sonny said as he reappeared at the back of the bench, handing her a bundle of ice before he moved around to sit down beside her, placing her ankle on his thigh. ‘What can I say I’m competitive,’ she sighed. ‘Yeah, I can see,’ he said, taking the ice off her and placing it on her ankle causing her to wince, ‘how’re you holding up?’ ‘I’m fine,’ she said though Sonny raised an eyebrow making her sigh, ‘hey, at least it got him to speak to me.’ ‘Ah,’ he said. ‘Sorry you probably don’t wanna hear about this stuff,’ she said, feeling her cheeks flame. She didn’t know what it was. After all, it had taken her a long time to admit her feelings to herself so talking about them so openly felt odd somehow but she felt more at ease with Sonny than with the others.

‘Nah it’s okay. I mean I figured something had gone down-’ ‘Why?’ she asked quickly, her brows knitting together. Sonny glanced around checking none of his friends were in earshot and then said, 'well last weekend…I was kinda thinking about asking you out.’ ‘What?’ she asked, a blush creeping onto her face. ‘Yeah and then I saw the pair of you and I figured I better not.’ ‘Am I that obvious?’ she groaned, flopping her head back against the bench as she felt embarrassment flood through her. ‘It wasn’t you I was talking about,’ Sonny said, glancing towards the rink. Addison scoffed, ‘what you don’t believe he does?’ ‘I want to,’ she said sadly, ‘but then he just abandons me for a week straight. I mean poor Marci’s probably had her head sent west with all my worrying.’ ‘He ain’t exactly been a bed of roses to deal with this week either,’ Sonny said, ‘I mean Red said he thought there was something up but he ain’t telling us. I thought you’d rejected him though that might have been wishful thinkin’.’ ‘Son,’ she said bashfully. ‘Hey can’t blame a guy for trying,’ he said placing his hand on her knee, ‘anyway it’s not as if I can complain. It’s not like I had a chance, is it?’ ‘No,’ she said sadly, ‘I guess not…not that there’s much point. He doesn’t even wanna be around me.’ ‘It isn’t because he doesn’t feel the same. I know it,’ Sonny said earnestly, ‘I think the pair of you just need to talk it out.’ ‘I can’t even get near him Son,’ she said, ‘he’s been dodging me for days. It took having my head almost knocked off for him to say two words to me.’ ‘Maybe I should take ya outside. We can run into traffic it might make him come around,’ Sonny chuckled making her smile. ‘You sound like Marci,’ she giggled. ‘Oh yeah lemme guess the new love birds are experts on all matters of the heart now?’ he said looking over to where Marci and Jerry stood on either side of the barrier making out passionately. ‘They know everything now don’t you know,’ she chuckled.

‘So come on what’s her hot take on it?’ Sonny asked looking back at Addison. 'That I need to show him what he’s missing,’ she chuckled, 'make him jealous.’ 'Maybe she’s right,’ Sonny said with a flirtatious smile as he added, 'hey, I ain’t doing anything.’ 'Son,’ she groaned. ‘Oh come on,’ he said, ‘I get a pretty date and you get to make him jealous. Win-win.’ ‘Except I’d be using you,’ she said, ‘not exactly fair, is it?’ ‘It is if I go into it eyes wide open,’ he countered but Addison rolled her eyes, ‘nah I’m kidding. I mean if ya wanna I will.’ ‘I just wouldn’t feel happy using you like that,’ she said placing her hand on his toned bicep. He glanced at it and then nodded, taking it off his arm and kissing her fingers gently. ‘Like I said I never stood a chance,’ he said with a sad smile. Addison said nothing, she didn’t know what to say in this situation but thankfully he didn’t seem to take it too badly. He made an excuse after that about getting some more sodas and pushed her leg gently off his thigh before heading towards the refreshment stand leaving her sitting alone on the bench which she placed her head against with a sigh, not knowing that there was another broken-hearted boy watching her just across the rink.

✵✵✵

The following morning when Addison awoke she was uncomfortable. Her head was throbbing and her ankle felt heavy and swollen but even without the physical pain, she wasn’t doing too well in any other aspect. She was a mess. She was a mixture of anger and sadness. She longed to know what was going on with Elvis and her but she also wanted to scream at him, to tell him she was over being messed around and that she would be okay on her own. Though she knew that wasn’t true. Everyone else in her life had left her and yet the thought of losing him nearly incapacitated her. She had spent too much time denying it that as she awoke on that Sunday morning it was blatantly obvious. She was in love with him.

With a sigh she pushed herself up and climbed out of bed, wincing as her foot hit the ground making her ankle throb. As she padded through to the kitchen she found Dodger sitting eating breakfast and chatting with Mary. She greeted them both and then headed to the cupboard to make herself some cereal. As she poured her Cheerios into the bowl she heard her name called.

‘Huh?’ she said turning around to find both women watching her evidently having included her in a conversation she had been paying no attention to. ‘I said it looks like you found something more violent than church bingo huh?’ Dodger said as she gestured to her ankle which had turned a nasty shade of purple. ‘Oh yeah,’ she said, coming to take a seat at the table. ‘Elvis said you took a tumble,’ Mary said, ‘wanted me to check on you this morning at stupid o’clock.’ ‘He did?’ Addison said, looking at Mary who nodded. 'Yeah, I told him if you’d hurt yourself you’d need all the rest you could get,’ Mary said. Addison nodded and dropped her gaze to her bowl, feeling a little soothed at his request. They had come back separately last night. Since she had become incapacitated Sonny had borrowed the Lincoln dropping her, Steve, Marci, and Jerry off on his way home. Elvis had stayed at the rink. ‘Were those boys being too rough again?’ Dodger said, shaking her head, ‘you should’ve left them to it, they don’t know how to take it easy.’ ‘I’m fine,’ Addison said. ‘Well, you should spend the day recovering anyhow. Make sure you’re okay to be up on that ankle,’ Dodger said, placing her hand on the back of Addison’s. ‘I don’t see how that’s an option,’ Mary said, making Addison look at her as she continued explaining, ‘Mrs Presley asked if you could pop into town and run some errands. I would but I heard they’re playing football in the park today which means I’m not gonna be able to leave this kitchen any time soon.’ ‘It’s fine,’ Addison said though she felt a little dejected that even after last night she was still being excluded. ‘Don’t be overdoing it now though,’ Dodger said. ‘I won’t,’ Addison said, cramming down a few scoops of her breakfast before she moved to wash up her bowl, not feeling very hungry all of a sudden as she excused herself back to her room.

As she showered and dressed she tried to think of anything other than the past couple of days. It was getting her nowhere. She had tried action and that had failed. She had tried being sad about it and it only made her feel worse. She had tried getting angry and that hadn’t proved successful either. The only other option was to go to the extreme Marci suggested but at the moment she wasn’t feeling that either. So instead, she got herself ready, grabbed the list of errands for her to run off the kitchen counter and headed out into Memphis to try and distract herself. Fortunately, Gladys was quite good at distracting her. Her day started off at the dry cleaners for a mass pick up of what seemed to be Elvis’ entire wardrobe. Following that she had to go to the store to collect the monthly order of sodas for the basement which she managed to talk the boss’s son into lugging to her car for her given the state of her ankle. Finally, her outing was rounded off by a quick visit to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription for Gladys. By the time she got back, the Cadillac she had borrowed was piled high with items which she didn’t have the energy to haul into the house. Luckily, Gladys was in a good mood once she was presented with her bag from the pharmacy and told not to worry about stocking the basement as she would get one of the boys to do it later and that all she needed to do was put Elvis’ dry cleaning in his closet. Which is how Addison came to be standing at the bottom of the stairs with it in hand. She had done so well not thinking about her feelings that now she was flooded with nothing but thoughts of him.

‘Just do it you coward,’ her mind whispered before it reminded her, ‘he’s not even home.’

Her brain was right. All she had to do was go upstairs and slot his clothes into his closet like she had done a hundred times before. And it wasn’t as though he was going to see her after all he was out at the park. So, she headed upstairs to his room and pushed the door open gently. It swung open revealing a darkened room to her. She didn’t bother turning on the light as the low winter sun outside was enough to light her path to his closet. She pulled the door open and ripped the protective plastic off of his neatly pressed suits before slotting them onto the rail, shutting the door and tossing the wrapper in his trash can. As she turned to leave however the bathroom door slid open and Elvis came walking out his face becoming surprised when he spotted her there.

‘Oh,’ he said dolefully, making an ache wrench in Addison’s gut, ‘I thought it was Red.’ ‘Nope just me,’ she said tersely as the ache turned to anger as it had done last night. She strutted towards the door with rage bubbling inside her. She needed to get out of there. Elvis watched her go with anguish. This should be what he wanted. It was better when she was angry at him because it made her want to keep her distance which was what he was aiming for, but it hurt like hell, and as her hand hit the door handle he couldn’t help himself from speaking, stopping her in her tracks.

‘How are you?’ he asked, making her whip around with a look of disbelief on her face. Fearing he was going to get both barrels he continued quickly, ‘I mean that was a pretty nasty fall you took last night.’ ‘I’m fine,’ she said curtly, though he could tell she had softened if only a little. ‘You could’ve been really hurt,’ he said. It was true. When he’d seen her limp on the floor he’d been flooded with terror and then anger at Alan for being so careless. He’d only calmed when she’d had the energy to snap at him. It wasn’t ideal but if she was well enough to bite his head off it meant she wasn’t on death’s door. ‘Yeah well like I said I’m fine,’ she said, ‘you don’t have to worry about me.’ ‘I always worry about you. I’m glad you’re okay,’ he said. Addison fought the urge to bite back like she wanted to. She wanted to scream at him that his actions didn’t support that idea…but she couldn’t. There was no point. Sadness had gotten her nowhere and anger hadn’t done anything either. Which is why her words tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop them.

‘Lucky I Sonny there to help huh?’ she said, making his gaze fall on her. It was a last-ditch attempt at getting some reaction from him and she watched as his jaw clenched for a split second before he turned his face neutral. ‘Yeah he’s a real sweetheart,’ he said sarcastically, turning away and walking towards his dresser, keeping his eyes off her. Addison couldn’t stop herself. ‘Yeah he is… in fact he asked me out,’ she said. That caught his attention but he didn’t turn around. ‘He did?’ he asked, trying to sound casual. ‘Yeah,’ she said. ‘What did you say?’ he asked though he didn’t know if he wanted to hear her response. ‘I said I’d think about it,’ she said. He turned back towards her and found her watching him closely, ‘I mean I didn’t exactly know what the rules were.’ ‘Rules?’ Elvis asked. ‘I mean the whole fraternizing thing,’ she said, ‘you don’t have a problem with that right?’ ‘Sonny’s a good guy. You could do worse,’ Elvis said. He knew it wasn’t a proper answer but it was the best he could give. ‘Yeah, he is,’ she said curtly, ‘s’pose I better put him out of his misery then huh?’ ‘S’pose,’ he murmured, turning back so he was looking at himself in the dresser mirror. He waited for a response but none came and when he looked back he found she was gone, the door left open in her wake. Elvis sighed and flopped down on his bed. He had to give himself credit. When he put his mind to something he was good at it. Not only had he managed to keep her at arm’s length he’d also managed to push her into the arms of another man.

✵✵✵

Addison didn’t know what she was doing. In fact, she hadn’t known what she was doing since this afternoon. The whole day seemed to be chalked full of stupid decisions leading her to be standing at the side of the road looking under the hood of the Cadillac as if it was going to fix itself the longer she stared at it. After Elvis and her had shared a terse word she had locked herself in her room more confused than ever. She had baited him with Sonny and it had backfired which worried her even more. Maybe she had been right all along. Maybe he didn’t like her and he was just too chicken to tell her to her face.

So, in order not to seem like a pathetic loser she had gone through the motions of prepping for a date. She hadn’t asked Sonny to go out with her, her feelings about leading him on not having changed, but she had put on her nicest dress and done her makeup as if that was the case. When she had emerged from her room Gladys had raised an eyebrow at her attire and asked her if she was staying in for dinner which Addison had responded to with a wishy-washy response of having plans. She didn’t specify what they were and instead grabbed the keys to the Caddy and headed out the door.

She’d driven around for a while, grabbing a bite to eat before heading back into the cold bitter wind of the night until she was forced to pull over by the side of the road as the hood of the car started smoking. It died down quickly, but she popped the hood anyway trying to see if there was any obvious fault she could fix by herself given that she was quite far from home and the prospect of walking there on her still very tender ankle was not very appealing. Unfortunately there hadn’t been anything she could do and so begrudgingly she walked to the nearest phone box and called the house. Thankfully it was Vernon who answered and when she asked if he could get one of the boys to come and pick her up he’d agreed. She was resting on the hood of the car when the dorado pulled up in front of her and she headed to the passenger side and opened the door to climb in but before she did she noticed who was sitting in the front seat. Elvis.

‘What are you doing here?’ she asked, feeling embarrassment flood through her. ‘Funny way to thank someone for a ride,’ he said quickly, making her embarrassment turn to irritation. ‘I asked your daddy to ask one of the boys,’ she said. ‘And he asked me,’ Elvis said, ‘now are you gonna stand there all night or are you gonna get in?’

Addison looked at him. His blue eyes were watching her closely and though he was dressed simply, in just a pair of slacks and a jumper, he looked gorgeous. Maddeningly so. Feeling she had no other choice she climbed inside and folded her arms across her chest looking out the window as Elvis started the car. They drove in silence for a couple of minutes with Elvis glancing at her often wondering what to say. Eventually, it was too much to bear and he pulled off down a side street and parked, cutting the engine which forced her to look at him. He sighed and tilted himself in his seat.

‘So are you gonna tell me what happened or not?’ he asked. ‘The car broke down,’ she shrugged. ‘I meant why were you out on your own at night? And don’t give me any cock and bull story about some date cause if you were out with Sonny he would never have you out on the streets of Memphis alone,’ he said. ‘I wasn’t with Sonny,’ she said. ‘Then where were you?’ he asked, making her snort, ‘what?’ ‘Nothing,’ she said bitterly, fiddling with a piece of lint on her sleeve. Elvis clenched his jaw feeling himself being baited into an argument but he couldn’t stop himself from responding. ‘No come on,’ he said cockily, ‘share with the class.’ ‘I just think it’s funny how you disappear on me for a week but I’m just expected to tell you every little thing I do? Bit rich don’t you think?’ ‘Addie,’ he said but she stopped him. She turned to face him, her face thunderous as she said, ‘no. You know what no. You don’t get to talk. You don’t get to ignore me for a whole damn week and then come back and expect me to fall into line. I’ve had enough of that for a goddamn lifetime.’

Elvis stayed silent throughout taking the hits as they came, unable to cope with how heartbroken he felt at the anguish on her face, ‘I thought you were someone who wouldn’t mess me around. The only person in my whole life who I could rely on and you’re still acting the same as everyone else.’ ‘I have my reasons,’ he said trying to defend himself but she rolled her eyes. ‘But they don’t mean anything if you won’t tell me what they are! Don’t you see that?’ she asked incredulously, ‘hell my mother had reasons.’ ‘I am not Mona,’ he scoffed. ‘Well you’re not acting any better,’ she challenged, ‘I mean if anything it’s worse. At least I didn’t feel-’

Addison fell silent, her mouth snapping shut as she looked away from him with a scowl. Elvis felt a curious smile appear on his face.

‘Feel what?’ he asked quietly. Her hazel eyes fell on him for a moment wide and anxious as she contemplated what she would say. ‘Are you really going to make me say it?’ she asked, Elvis said nothing but he continued to look at her expectantly making her sigh, ‘fine. I don’t care about my mom messing me around because I don’t love her. Not the way I love you and after last weekend I thought you actually felt the same but I guess I was wrong.’ ‘You’re not wrong,’ he said, ‘not at all.’ ‘Then why push me away?’ she asked. ‘Because it’s not as simple as that Addie,’ he sighed, ‘I’m trying to protect you.’ ‘I don’t need protecting,’ she protested, a little shriller than she intended to sound. ‘I know you don’t think that,’ he said, 'but I have to try. Dating me isn’t easy. Believe me, I know. You’re young. You’ve been through enough and I don’t want to add any more to it. Touring, fans, the press it’s a lot to handle.’ ‘Don’t I get a say in what I can handle?’ she said looking at him. Elvis wavered for a moment as she moved towards him, her hand resting gently on his cheek for just a second.

‘Addie,’ he said, his blue eyes full of sadness. ‘If you don’t want this then fine. I can deal with that and I’ll get over it, but if you’re holding back just because you think I can’t cope then I refuse to let you. I’m strong Elvis. Stronger than most.’ ‘Don’t you think I know that?’ he asked. ‘So why not give us a chance?’ she asked earnestly. ‘I want to. You don’t know how much I want to. Ever since I saw you at that goddamn fair all I could think about was you. I love you Addison, but I don’t want to be the reason you get hurt.’ ‘But you’re already hurting me! Don’t you see that? I’m not saying it’ll be perfect; I mean when has anything in my life ever been,’ she said with a wry smile that made him smirk softly, ‘but don’t you wanna find out? I mean what if it is? What if-’

And then she couldn’t speak because Elvis’ lips were on hers. She was stunned for a moment before she melted into it, allowing him to kiss her deeply and pull her onto his lap. When they finally broke apart they were breathless but smiley. Elvis placed his forehead against hers as her fingers fiddled with the neckline of his sweater. Neither of them spoke for a moment, too wrapped up in each other.

‘You were right,’ Elvis said eventually. ‘Huh?’ she replied still lost in the moment to catch her train of thought. ‘That was pretty damn perfect,’ he said with a smile as she pulled back. ‘Worth the wait?’ she asked with a giggle. It was hard for her to believe her day had been chalked full of heartache when at that moment she felt as though she could burst with happiness. ‘Wish we’d been doing it a whole lot longer,’ he said earnestly. Addison giggled but then her face fell a little as she felt worry creeping in, Elvis frowned, his eyebrows knitting together as he asked, ‘what?’ ‘You’re saying yes right?’ she said, ‘I mean this, us, you’re giving it a chance.’ ‘You couldn’t tell by that?’ he joked, ‘are my kissing skills that rusty?’ ‘Elvis,’ she chastised, smacking him gently on his chest though as her hand bounced back he grabbed it and placed it to his lips, kissing it gently. ‘Yes Addie I’m giving us a chance,’ he said, making her smile, ‘besides I don’t think I have a choice now.’ ‘Why?’ she asked, confused. ‘Because I know what I’d be missing,’ he smiled and then he leaned up once more to kiss her.

#my writing #elvis #the girl he left behind #elvis presley #Elvis Presley Fic #elvis presley x reader #elvis presley smut

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pretendfan · 2 months

Text

[ chance ]

Nick (Timothy O) x Female reader

*this was in my head, imagining this guy from pics in my daydream, I don’t know either just know I’m trying to write*

[ implied rudeness and swearing/ short scene to refresh my head ]

This was starting to become a problem, one that you wasn’t prepared to think about let alone unpack, whilst sitting here alone at the bar once again after being ghosted by your latest date.

The finance looking bro who had messaged you first , making you briefly wonder if it had been a scam but the guy had been real, or at least the pictures and his flirty DM’s were yet Rubin was neither here or online.

Leaving you all alone in this busy bar with nothing but your phone for company, which meant that you could either stay here and have another drink or cut all losses, perhaps go and stop by your best friend Kate’s crashing there for the night instead.

Whilst you could still do that because this weekend Kate was getting married to Seth, sure they had been together for ages but you’ve always enjoyed an impromptu visit, falling asleep on the couch usually drunk but recently this had kind of felt like a rather childish thing to do.

Armed with the inability to not always compare your life to Kate’s but yours was obviously a very different picture, tiny apartment and obviously no boyfriend, you was one date away from giving it all up to adopt a bunch of cats and possibly also become a nun.

But this line of thinking suddenly skids to an abrupt halt, when you are nudged in the ribs from your seated position on the metal stool, looking up to see a guy holding out his hands which were large and made you forget about everything before this very moment.

“Sorry I got shoved-“

“Buy a lady a goddamn drink first.” You shout at the guy complete with a wide smile, whilst you subtly checks out his vital statistics.

At least six foot tall with wide shoulders the kind that someone could swing from, large hands which needed to be noted twice, plus his smug grin and brown mischievous eyes alone were enough to colour you very interested.

“What are you staring at? Do I have something on my face-“

“Not yet.” You cut off the guy in front of you once again, only this time with a playful bite of your bottom lip.

“I totally heard that, so what are you drinking?” The guy asks with a deep chuckle, one that has you sitting up in your seat, shoulders pushed back to showcase your curves.

“Firstly you were supposed to hear that and secondly a vodka on the rocks.” You lean forward quickly noticing his eyes, which were traveling downwards scanning every inch of your body.

“Do you have a name then?” The guy questions his hazel coloured eyes, darting back up to meet yours, all the while that smug smile still remained on his handsome face.

“It’s y/n and let me guess yours-“

Before you could start to really flirt loudly over the dance music, you are interrupted by another guy equally as tall his obvious counterpart only with blonde spiky hair instead and a cocky look on his face.

“Nick, what the fuck-“

The guy stops talking when he spots you glaring at him, clearly he had just wandered in on something, much to his amusement he winks at you happily and then glances back at his oldest friend.

“Marcus, this is y/n I’ve just met her so go and get your own fucking drink!” The guy that you now know as Nick informs his friend who just rolls his eyes playfully in your direction.

“So this is it? Over fifteen years of friendship reduced to nothing-“

“Cut out the dramatics!” Nick interjects with a frustrated look on his face.

“Wait till y/n finds out about your problem-“

“Go away Marcus-“

“It’s so pathetic really!” Marcus cuts off Nick with a laugh, but then he gives his friend a beer from a passing tray, literally grabbing it and placing it on the counter in one swift movement.

“Please leave us alone-“

“Dude you really haven’t got a chance!” Marcus declares complete with an unattractive snort.

“He might do, so go away Marcus!” You yell over the thumping music, ready to see the back of this guy already but obviously not Nick as well

“See! Fuck off!” Nick laughs happily rewarding you with another wink.

“Whatever.” Marcus chuckles then heads off with a salute at both of you.

“So, what is your problem?” You asks Nick when he looks down to meet your gaze.

“That I love too much.” Nick states after a beat with a incredibly pained look on his face, complete with flat hand placed firmly against his chest.

This makes Chloe laugh loudly and Nick watch in awe from the response, it was like music to his ears and made him want to suddenly do it again and again, especially seeing how he had all night was very happy to do this…

#timothy olyphant #fan fic #female reader #i don’t know #flirty scene

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imsosocold · 11 months

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Different DL-6 victim anon here yet again - obsessed with the Yogi AU making Manfred question his morals as he repeatedly tries to prevent Miles from confessing. Like, objectively he knows Miles is innocent, that he has no business being punished for a crime he didn't commit, but he can't very well say that to him, can he. So he tells him "it was an accident, you're not to blame" instead, but it's implied in Turnabout Goodbyes that the law in Japanifornia would rule him as guilty anyway? So is Manfred truly saying "the law is unjust"? (I mean I know he's really saying "I know who the criminal is and it's not you" but again he can't SAY that so he has to pretend he's saying something else and stand by it.) Besides, if Miles is innocent and he confesses either way, does he deserve to be found guilty, as per Manfred's "every defendant is guilty, ever" philosophy? Is part of his desperation to keep Miles from confessing to avoid that cognitive dissonance? There's just so much to unpack there and it is SO fascinating

And the Miles AU breaks my heart. The betrayal once the truth would be revealed omg. Probably as severe as the one Miles must have felt in Turnabout Goodbyes, although in a totally different way. On one hand, Manfred didn't frame Gregory for murder, and although he's here to pick up the pieces as Gregory is grieving, he's not Gregory's caretaker, he wasn't as formative a part of Gregory's life as he was for Miles. On the other hand, this is a fellow father that took Gregory's son from him. There are no amends that can make that right, and I think Manfred is too proud to try anyway, even through his guilt. I wonder if Gregory thinks Manfred did it on purpose? And whether Manfred would correct him. I'm not sure what would hurt less, "no I won't deny I took your son's life purposely just to make you miserable, no I will not explain either" or "I actually meant to kill you and not him, it was your son who was supposed to survive." I'm sure Gregory wishes the latter had happened anyway, but hearing that that was what Manfred meant to happen... it would hit different.

It actually makes me wonder about the canon events again. I wonder if Miles went to talk to Manfred after the trial? I wonder if he got an explanation for Manfred's behavior, of if Manfred just refused to talk to him. (I actually also wonder how Manfred went from "I'm gonna take this kid in and teach him everything I know" to "I'll bury you with my bare hands" but tbh I could write an entire essay rambling about that. It's such a mystery to me!) Is Miles under the impression Manfred planned the whole thing fifteen years earlier? Does Manfred correct him? Does he not bother? Hhhhhh *shakes them*

Ooohhh, best of luck on your journey! I hope it brings you the healing you're seeking. I'm glad you're having fun but please take care of yourself and don't pass out while hiking! All the best!

One of the things I love about Manfred is that he’s filled with contradiction and cognitive dissonance. I’d love to read an essay about his potential reasons from going from “ loving yet stern father inwardly struggling with guilt and generally how to express himself ” to “ I will give my all and risk everything to frame this kid I raised”. In the Yogi AU, Manfred probably wouldn’t be thinking that deeply about morality ( I don’t think he’s that self aware) but if he did, he’d definitely try to twist it. ‘ I’m not wrong about anything, this is just a special circumstance.” There’s definitely a part of Manfred whose desperation to stop Miles comes from him not wanting to have to examine himself further. Of course, if Manfred attempts anything like Turnabout Goodbyes he could use all this . I’m imagining Phoenix trying to defend Miles when Miles himself is insisting he did it, certainly with his own father figure finally going against his own words, Manfred finally “relenting” to the truth. Very tasty. In the Miles AU, I think Manfred would probably admit his initial plan in the retrial, similar to his outburst in canon as well as the reason for wanting to murder Gregory. Whether he’d admit the extent of the guilt he feels for killing Miles is another story. Something I’ve always found interesting after Manfred’s outburst in the trial, he’s surprisingly calm. He doesn’t run or scream or cry or verbally assault people. He has an almost resigned air to him, like a prisoner being taken to their execution. I imagine things would be left pretty ambiguous, similar to canon. Gregory would probably never learn Manfred’s motivation for becoming practically a caretaker to him . There’d definitely be a lot of self blame from Gregory, if only I hadn’t been so picky about Manfred’s evidence, if only I hadn’t believed so blindly. Just expecting himself to have known better. Oh, and Phoenix as well! He got the truth, but at what cost? I really wish we had gotten more detail on the whole custody and imprisonment process , along with more information about the prison system in general. Things in Japanfornia are really complicated and its not made very clear what law wise goes, not what general character opinion is beyond laws ( like how its generally agreed killing abusers is self defense though the law may disagree). But honestly I don’t think the series could bear to cover such complex topics. A scene with Manfred and Miles talking about their past would probably be considered too dour for most players ( not for me I want to squish them like bugs). I do imagine, at least at the start, Miles goes to visit Manfred in prison. How could he not, despite everything Manfred was like another father to him. While Manfred is a tricky character, personally I think he’d have a “ what’s done is done” attitude, that even with pride aside he’d believe there’s no point in revealing his real feelings as it wouldn’t change anything. All Manfred has left is the secrets he holds onto like armor. Thanks for the well wishes, it’s been a long journey but I did my best and made it. Lots of love sob.

#different dl 6 victim au #ace attorney #gyakuten saiban #manfred von karma #gregory edgeworth #miles edgeworth #yanni yogi #noelle's rambles

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elizaellwrites · 10 months

Text

Legacy of the Fallen- Chapter 1

Link to Prologue

Table of Contents

Accepted

Dear Mother,

We’re moving again, such a surprise, I know. It’s so tiring, every single time, and now is no different. The past four years have been just above the line of disaster, every day either packing or unpacking, some of the boxes don’t even get touched before we leave again. I just want to go back to London, I miss Lydia so much, I haven't been able to make any friends since we don't stay long enough for that to happen. I know that Father says he needs to move for his job, but I don't know how he can even begin to take it.

I'm worried about him though, he's always so jumpy. He puts on this brave face and makes a joke and later I find him leaning against a wall, staring into space with this horribly sad look in his eyes. I know that he misses you and my sister, but this sadness runs deeper than that. I think he feels like he's failed. I don't exactly know why I think that, but I can't shake that feeling. We've moved to Rochester, Minnesota in the U.S. now, I honestly think this is a good step since Father told me of how his brother lives here. They lost their daughter not too long ago too, she was only few years older than me, so I think it's a good idea to have us here.

I'm still looking for the answer of why you left and where you went, it's really begun to frustrate me. When I was little, I could just accept that you were gone, but now it's like a pebble in my shoe that I can't get out. Life overall is just a mess and continues to be, I can only hope that one day things will be normal. Whatever the heck that is.

I'll write again soon, love your daughter,

Annamarie Rose Olson

____________________________

Annamarie Olson leaned her head carelessly against the school bus window, ignoring the slight pain that jolted through her head at every crack and dent on the road. She stared at her reflection in the slightly fogged window, leaning her head back as the bus brakes engaged to pick up another kid. She still found riding a school bus to be strange, they hadn’t existed where she’d grown up.

Her long golden blonde curls closely framed her face, ever threatening to fall over her eyes at the next large bump. Her lips were pulled tight, betraying the anxiety that was stirring in her gut. Her button nose was just ever so resting against the cool glass, just enough to make the skin tingle. She met her own gaze, pursing her lips as she did so. She knew that someone was going to mention them today, they always did, every time she switched schools. Her hooded eyes weren’t the problem, neither was the dramatic upturn that caught some attention. It was the fact that no one could figure out what colour her eyes were actually supposed to be. They were ever-changing, every single colour and shade making its appearance at some point, depending on the light or her mood or whatever it was. She didn’t hate it, but really, she wished people would just stop bringing it up.

She let out a soft sigh, letting her breath fog the window further. She refocused her eyes on the pavement, creating an imaginary trail with her gaze while they drove along. Anything she could do to distract her from the inevitable pattern of going to a new school would make her day better.

Truly, it was getting old. They didn’t have much to move with just the two of them, but place after place, lifting boxes and dragging around what little furniture they hadn’t sold. She was only fifteen, and she really didn’t think she was supposed to feel old already. The one hope she held about this place, above all the rest they had been, was her uncle.

Throughout the years, her father had hardly spoken of their family at all. When he did, he always spoke of them in the past tense, leading her to believe for many years that they had no other family. So when he had told her about Joseph, his brother who was only a year older than himself, she had been confused, to say the least. She had heard him talking on the phone with him many times over the last couple of months, their conversations only ever serious or sombre. What they were talking about, however, she didn’t pry.

They had been living in Minnesota for a week at that point, and her opinion of the place was no different from many other places. Whether they stayed here or left, she just wanted to settle back down, just as they had when she was younger. She knew that her father had been a restless spirit since her mother was gone, having trusted friends watch her while he was gone for weeks at a time, sometimes coming home more disheartened than when he left. She missed him during the times he was gone, but he had always overcompensated when he came home, the affection and care he had shown her as a single father leaving her unable to hold resentment of any sort. She supposed he had waited until he deemed her old enough to travel with him, as the borderline nomadic lifestyle was not one for a kid. She had been able to see some amazing sights, however, travelling much further distances than most her age.

She shifted her posture as they pulled to another stop, knowing that they had to be nearing the end of the pickup route. The bus had already been moderately full when she had boarded, though she still had the pleasure of not having to share her seat; something she hoped would not change.

She shuffled her feet in discomfort, her fingers gripping each other in her lap. Contrary to what people in towns or smaller cities she’d lived in, growing up in a big city did not make her comfortable in crowds. They were suffocating, the clamour of voices, especially children’s, made her ears ring, and their unspoken voices in the back of her head became so loud she couldn’t pretend they weren’t there anymore. Her father had taught her that talking about the things others said without speaking aloud was considered incredibly rude by most people, and indeed whenever she accidentally brought up something that an unspoken voice had said, others acted shocked and completely disturbed, as though she’d broken the biggest rule in human society. So, she tried to ignore the continuous noise and forced it down, like everyone else was presumably doing.

It did confuse her though when some other people said that hearing unspoken voices was a bad sign of schizophrenia. How could anyone possibly know the difference between that and regular chatter? She sank in her seat, her arm brushing along the textured material of her backpack. Outside, houses continued to fly by, their designs and colours all seemingly the same. She shivered as the girl seated a few seats in front of her reached up and pulled the small window open. The blend of sweet grass and the musty rain from earlier that morning sent a fuzzy feeling through her body: the smell of spring.

The bus took a right turn, revealing the view of the school from her seat on the left side of the vehicle. She sat up in her seat, her hand unconsciously sweeping her hair back from her face, wincing slightly as her index finger caught and released a small tangle.

They passed a small, unfenced baseball field, a large grassy field rising on the edges up to the road they were now driving on. Further to the back of the field, a fenced-in sports field of some sort, with audience stands surrounding it blocked out the view of the neighbourhood behind. She turned her attention to the school itself, the cold, concrete structure nothing more than a three-story cube. It was almost comedic, how much it looked like a prison, the only pieces missing being the guards and barbed wire fences. Well, the fence around the sports field looks similar enough, she decided. As they grew closer, she could see brown brick accents in small alcoves that lined the walk along the ground floor, the only colour being a rusted blue accent under each window, all of which added insult to injury and made the building look completely bizarre.

The bus made a final left turn into the oval-shaped unloading zone, stopping just short of being in front of the only indent in the structure. As soon as they halted, every student stood and began shoving their way into the narrow aisle. Anna shouldered her backpack, the bag feeling unnaturally empty against her. She stood slowly, eyes darting to each person who passed. She knew that she was average in height at five-foot-four inches, but so many of the other students walking through easily dwarfed her.

Finally, the flow had begun to slow, only a few other others scattered throughout the vehicle being patient enough to wait. She shifted out of her seat carefully, her feet hesitating more than her head as they momentarily paused on the last step down to the pavement. A scoff and a light push on her backpack from the boy behind her caused her to take the last step, having to try and prevent herself from stumbling further as he pushed past her, jogging over to join a group of other boys who looked her age.

She continued at a slow pace away from the bus, looking around at the groups gathered around the entrance, only a few students making the journey directly into the building. She lowered her gaze, somewhat self-conscious as her mind bustled with the whispers in her head, her face suddenly scrunching up at the state of the pavement. The path made of pebbles sealed in concrete was covered in inch-wide black circles, some were brown or grey as well, but the majority were black. Newer circles of green or pink gave her the answer that she didn’t want to know, every single spot was where a student squished a piece of gum into the ground.

She raised her gaze again, trying to shove that knowledge from her active steps toward the main entrance. The doors themselves were nothing special, just a row of glass with plain concrete steps leading up to them. Above the doors, several large windows overlooked the entrance; the silhouettes of students inside could just be seen behind the glare of the sun.

A shiver ran down her spine, her muscles tightening automatically, the feeling of being watched overwhelming her senses. She glanced around, her body growing warmer under the mysterious scrutiny. A voice suddenly rose, above the rest inside her head. A clear voice amid the fray, directly into her head. Who are you?

Her breath stuttered, her pace freezing in place as her search for the gaze intensified. It had been the voice of a boy, his voice already dropped to a baritone, with an accent she couldn’t quite identify, yet seemed so familiar at the same time. She swept her gaze along the faces in the crowd, her skin itching as it finally landed on a dark-haired boy wearing all black leaning against the wall, strangely vivid golden eyes narrowed carefully at her. He almost looked like he was supposed to be in high school, his muscular build telling her immediately he was some kind of athlete. His skin was a warm amber tan, and his wavy, dark brown hair looked like he had just rolled out of bed before being hit by a windstorm. His features were sharp, narrow almond-shaped eyes observant. He was quite a bit taller than she was, probably closer to five-foot, eight. His posture was casual and curious, yet there was something about him that resembled a predator on the hunt.

Even as a redheaded girl with thick glasses and a tall skinny boy joined him there, he didn’t break his gaze, watching her even while responding to something the redhead said. She couldn’t say how, or why, but she knew the question was his.

She stared back, eyes wide, unsure of what was happening or what she was supposed to do next. She watched as he laughed, his eyes going to the redhead for only a split second before returning to her. His head tilted slightly at her, an amused tick pulling at the corner of his mouth.

She forced her gaze away, suddenly aware of how bizarre she looked, one foot frozen forward in a step she hadn’t fully taken. She mentally shook herself, continuing faster than before, pulling the door open with more force than she intended.

She paused once she made it through the second set of doors, the hallways now much busier than when she had taken her blur of a tour the week prior. Tall, thin, blue lockers lined the walls of the hallways, and to her right, the three gyms the school sported lined the entire side of the building. She glanced to where she knew the office to be, off to her left, before pulling her written-out schedule from her coat pocket. To say what had occurred outside was strange would be an understatement. Despite the many places she had gone, nothing like that had happened before. Then again, she was growing up, and her father had warned her that boys might start noticing her in different ways and that those thoughts tended to be stronger. She wasn’t sure though, something felt off. It was very direct. For the moment at least, she wanted to forget it happened, to just go on with her planned, predictable first day of meeting her new teachers and classmates that she would only know for a short while before moving on again.

She turned around the short wall that hid the stairway that rested beside the entrance, heading straight down the long staircase, her footsteps echoing in the empty, tower-like space. Her locker was in the basement, not far from the stairs. She rolled her eyes as she passed the boys’ locker room, hearing the younger kids inside yelling nonsensical insults at each other before the first class of the day began.

She glanced at the paper in her hand, following the numbers down until she reached her own. She put in the combination that her father had ever so helpfully made a song for her to remember by; forty-two, thirty, forty-six. The tune was so annoyingly catchy, she wasn’t worried about suddenly forgetting it.

The locker opened with a slight creak, the inside a muddled mess of peeling tan paint, rust, and black spray paint attempting to block out the curse words someone had carved into the back. She slid her backpack down her arm, catching the strap before it hit the floor, and hanging it on the inside hook. She then slipped her anorak off, revealing the light green jumper she wore underneath, having to push the anorak carefully around her backpack. As usual, with thinner lockers, she wondered how difficult fitting everything would be after having more than just her binder and a book inside. It didn’t matter though; she never stayed long enough for things to build up anyway.

She jumped as a blaring beep rang out through the hallway, other students hardly moving at the noise. She quickly unzipped her backpack, her schedule wrinkling slightly as it was pressed into her lower palm by her last two fingers. She pulled her binder free of the bag, the question of why she hadn’t pulled it out before putting her backpack in the locker coming to mind.

With a quick slam of the locker, she spun on her heel, lifting the paper once again. Her first class was on the top floor; in fact, most of her classes were. She went to the stairs she had gone down earlier, stopping short as she just about slammed face-first into someone dressed in black. “Sorry,” she murmured, glancing up, ready to continue on her way before stopping short.

Sharp golden eyes looked down at her, an odd look on the boy’s face. “Hi,” a small smile played on his lips.

“Hi?” She tried for a smile back, it probably came off more like a grimace. She swerved away from him, reminding herself once again to return to her plan. Ignore the weird boy.

She practically ran up the two flights of stairs, stopping as she reached the top. The large windows she had seen earlier opened up beside her. She walked along the hall until she got to the room her geography class would be in on the left side of the hall.

She sucked in a breath before crossing the threshold, posters covered the walls; historical figures, geographical sights, and nearly decade-old memes alike were stationed around the room. Rows of desks were laid out in front of her, and only a few of the seats were filled. In the back corner of the room, beside the row of windows looking out the front of the school, was a large metal desk. An older man engrossed in a book sat, calmly sipping what she guessed was coffee from a travel mug.

She approached him carefully, extremely aware of how her fingers tightened around her binder. “Sir?” She forced her voice out, holding back a wince at her awkwardness. She’d been through this enough, why hadn’t that changed yet?

The man, Mr. Wilson, immediately set his coffee down, looking up at her with raised eyebrows, extenuating the wrinkles on his forehead. “Can I help you?” He reached for a bookmark that was resting on the desktop, quickly stuffing it into the page before closing the book with an audible snap.

“I’m Annamarie,” she began. “I’m new.” She stopped, waiting for him to take off from there.

“Oh yes,” he reached for a pile of paperwork, flipping through them quickly before finding what he was looking for. “We’re in the middle of learning about South Asia currently,” he glanced at her, holding out the small pile of papers in his hand. “Keep up the best you can, we’ll see about whether you’re able to take the test we have at the end of the week.”

She nodded, only half paying attention as a random pop song began playing over the loudspeaker. She blinked in confusion before turning her attention back to her teacher.

“Your seat will be third from the back over there,” he gestured to the last row beside a short row of cabinets that sat along the wall that connected to the hall. She gave a nod and a small ‘thank you’ before starting to turn. “Thank you, Ms. Olson,” he stood from his chair, grunting a little at the motion. She paused at the use of her last name, unusual in her experiences in schools as of late.

She went to her seat, sinking down into her chair and placing her binder centred before her. She folded her hands in her lap just as a flood of students began to come in, chair after chair being filled across the classroom. She fiddled with her fingers, wondering if this was the type of teacher to introduce her as a new student or not. Most were, but there was the occasional blessing of them letting her fade into the background without such a spectacle.

Her hope for any possibility of an easy class period was crushed as right when the loud beep that signified class had started, the boy with the golden eyes rushed through the door. “Mr. Samuels,” Mr. Wilson walked between the far two rows of seats, not even looking at the boy. “Pushing your luck again, I see.”

“It hasn’t failed me yet,” the boy let out a laugh, taking a step towards the row of seats she was seated in before stopping. Surprise filled his gaze when he looked at her, one eyebrow quirking up before the amused smile she had seen him with earlier returned. Anna couldn’t help the narrowing of her eyes, the boy’s accent catching her memory. It sounded so familiar, yet she couldn’t identify it.

Mr. Wilson turned, frowning at the boy who was just standing in place. “Did you forget where your seat is, Mr. Samuels?”

“Nope,” the boy had the decency to flush slightly as a couple of giggles came from somewhere in the room. He continued the path until he stopped at the seat directly in front of her own. Great.

Just my luck… she thought as he looked over his shoulder to give her another glance.

“I’m Jacob,” he whispered, giving her a small grin.

“Anna,” she mumbled.

“I have a feeling we’ll keep running into each other,” his grin grew slightly before he turned back to the front.

She stared at the back of his head for a second longer, wondering what she did to deserve this. This is going to be a long couple months.

____________________________

Anna’s day seemed to drag by, with each of her teachers doing exactly as she predicted them to do. What she hadn’t expected was for Jacob to be in three of the four hours before lunch. He had seemed to appoint himself to be her personal tour guide for the day, easily keeping pace with her.

She wasn’t sure if she was supposed to be creeped out, flattered or annoyed; maybe a bit of each. He kept asking questions that didn’t seem to make any sense, about where she had lived, her family, et. cetera. After him doing this for a while, she just stopped paying attention. She couldn’t figure out why he was so intrigued, she couldn’t be that interesting.

She now found herself with a tray of food, momentarily paused as she looked across the crowded cafeteria. Each table seemed to have its established group, some reflecting the classic clique tropes that were so often seen in so many shows and films, while others were harder to identify. As many times as she had done this, it never got any easier.

The cafeteria itself was decently sized, based in the basement of the school. Large windows looked out to a small blacktop, the large green field behind the school beyond it. Behind her, students were still filing into four separate lines for food, flowing in from the open connection to the hallway, some cutting between tables while others passed through evenly spaced openings. The walls were plain white, excluding a strange mural that covered the far wall: different foods spilling out of a lunchbox, faces painted onto each.

Friend groups were so often made within the first couple weeks of the school year, leaving her to fend for herself in situations like this. Most of the time she didn’t mind, being alone wasn’t as bad as the rest of the world thought it to be. Even so, it didn’t stop her from wishing she had friends to talk to. The closest thing she had to a friend anymore was her cat, as she had left the one friend she had back in London four years prior.

She spotted an emptier table in the far back corner of the space, the students seated there eating in silence. She quickly made her way to the table, picking the seat furthest from any of the others seated there.

Within seconds, just as she was picking up her apple to take a bite, a kid, probably twelve years old, plopped himself down in the seat directly to her left. His most notable trait was the wild mop of curly, light brown hair atop his head. He grinned at her, his rounded baby face making him look even younger than he probably was. His piercing light blue eyes slid over her, the action catching her off-guard.

“Hello, Angel,” He leaned towards her, his prepubescent voice dropping low, and the attempt at trying to sound older than he was almost funny. Almost. She glanced at the other students sitting at the table, none of them paying attention or caring enough to look to see what was happening. That, or this was a normal occurrence here. “What’s your name?” He wiggled his eyebrows at her, his lips curling into what could barely be called a smirk.

She tried to subtly turn away from him, hoping he’d take the hint and leave her alone.

“Oh,” his voice drawled out, “mysterious. I like that. Tell me though, did it hurt when you fell from heaven?”

She cringed at the classically overused line coming from a young kid, hiding the look on her face by taking a bite out of her apple. She was disappointed to find that it lacked the characteristic crisp crunch as she began to chew, at least momentarily relieved that she had an excuse not to respond.

“I hope you know CPR because you take my breath away,” his voice continued next to her. “Can you hold my hand, I want to be able to tell my friends about how I’ve been touched by an angel.”

She took another bite, confused about how anyone could be so socially inept to continue this cursed conversation if it could even be called that.

“I guess you can kiss heaven goodbye, it's a sin to look that good. You are so hot, it’s girls like you that are causing global warming.” She just about choked on her bite, her face scrunching in disgust. “Tell me your name, I’m sure it’s as beautiful as you. If not, you can just take mine.” She could see him wink at her in her peripheral vision.

“Evan,” the sharp voice of a girl made them both turn. A short girl her age stood a metre away with her hands on her hips, her annoyance clear. Her bright ginger hair was cut just below her shoulders, framing her face. She had an almost pixie-like look to her features, full cheeks, and wide, incredibly dark brown eyes, hints of red flashing in the light. She was very pretty, but that fact was overshadowed by her roughly ripped jeans and a baggy grey sweatshirt. Thick, black glasses rested on her freckled nose, only intensifying her glare. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Rachel,” Evan’s face broke into a grin. “You must be tired, after all, you ran through my thoughts all night long.”

“How many times do I have to tell you to leave people alone?” Rachel huffed, completely unfazed. “Haven’t you tormented us enough?”

“No need to be jealous, Spitfire,” Evan completely turned his attention to the other girl, much to Anna’s relief. “You know you’ll always be my number one.”

“Don’t call me that,” Rachel spat, crossing her arms and popping a hip as she shook her hair away from her face. “Just leave the poor girl alone.”

“Sorry, I got lost in your eyes there, do you happen to have a map to your heart?” Anna was becoming more convinced by the second that this boy learnt how to speak by reading awful pickup lines from the internet.

“Just shut up,” Rachel’s jaw set, chin tilted up in defiance. She turned her attention to Anna, expression softening slightly. “You can move if you’re uncomfortable, we have room at our table.”

Anna nodded, a warm feeling beginning to release her tense muscles. “Thank you,” she offered a smile.

“You’re British?!” Evan whirled back to her, suddenly slack-jawed, like the fact that she had an accent made all the difference.

She felt the urge to shake her head in exasperation, internally rolling her eyes. The way Americans responded to hearing the way she spoke was growing old. You could very well tell them magic existed and they would react the same way.

He made a loud humming noise, tilting his head as he looked her over once again.

She stood before he had a chance to begin speaking again, picking up her tray as she did so. She moved hesitantly to Rachel’s side, watching the other girl’s face carefully, looking for any sign that she hadn’t meant her offer.

They began to walk, Rachel glancing at her a couple of times before gesturing to a table close to the dish return station. Anna stopped, confused at the sight of Rachel sliding into the seat opposite of Jacob, rolling her eyes at something he said. The redhead looked at her quickly, probably just realizing she hadn’t followed to sit.

Anna took a breath, making a split-second decision to continue on, finding herself in the empty spot next to Jacob. As weird as the dark-haired boy was, there were worse things. She already knew, even with the prolonged stares and questions, he was a better deal than Evan.

She hoped anyway.

Just as the thoughts ran through her head, he turned his attention to her, an amused grin dancing on his lips. “Evan, huh? Ow!” He jerked back, sending an indignant look at Rachel, who, Anna just realised, had kicked him under the table.

“You deserved that,” the girl snorted, plucking a grape from the small vine she had on her tray.

“I’m just saying,” he protested. “On her first day, what are the chances?”

“Quite high, actually,” Rachel grumbled.

Anna looked to the silent, third member of their party. A tall, lanky boy was hunched over his food. He was pretty thin, his cheekbones more defined than what she supposed they were supposed to look like. His skin was pale, like he spent all day inside, hidden from the sun. His eyes were a surprisingly rich blue; dark, but not quite navy, with prominent dark circles underneath them. He wore a rumpled blue flannel over a plain white tee shirt, and his short, mousy brown hair was decently neat, though rumpled in a couple of places near the back. Most worryingly though, she couldn’t help but notice the distant stare he wore, staring unseeingly at his food. She wasn’t sure if he had even noticed her presence yet.

Rachel cleared her throat, the boy turning slightly to look at her, blinking his eyes curiously. “This is Ben,” she introduced with a smile.

“Hi,” she greeted, her voice stunted. “I’m Anna.”

He gave a small, awkward wave with a fork held between his fingers. “Nice to meet you.” His voice was so quiet against the noise of the cafeteria she had to strain to hear him.

“Thank you,” Anna addressed Rachel, the other girl regarding her with unreadable eyes. “Really.”

The redhead shrugged, eyes glancing at Jacob for a moment. “Evan’s been at it for months, it started a little odd, but now it’s getting excessive.”

“Either way,” Anna shook her head lightly. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“Yeah, I did.” Rachel huffed.

Jacob let out a soft snort from beside Anna, she frowned at him, unsure of what he was laughing at. “You just want an excuse to yell at him again at this point,” he told her. “You complain about him all the time, but you love shutting him down more than you hate him.”

“Go eat a sock,” Rachel glared at him, the strange phrase passing through her lips easily; like it was normal.

“Tried that once,” Jacob’s voice was dead serious, his face deadpan. “Not all you chalk it up to be.”

Rachel let out a loud groan, laying her forehead down on the table to the side of her tray. Her hair draped out over the clear tabletop, pooling out in a fan-like shape around her head.

Jacob let out a snicker, turning her attention back to him. He silently moved his hand to his plastic utensils, he noticed Anna watching him, giving her a playful wink as he lifted the fork into his hand. Slowly, he reached out, angling the plasticware down towards Rachel’s hair, dragging it lightly through the bright locks.

Instantly, Rachel’s head shot up, Jacob pulling his hand back to avoid stabbing her head. Her eyes were wide, mouth parted. “You-” her indignant stutter caused a burst of laughter from him. “You TURKEY!”

He only laughed harder, his face turning red from the effort. Anna bit her lip to prevent her own giggles, Ben looking over at his friend with amused concern. Jacob’s laughter began to die down, his eyes sparkling when he opened them. “I’ve always wondered what it was like to be a turkey,” he managed. “Though, it might ruffle some feathers.”

“Stooop,” Rachel’s face twisted into a grimace.

“Aw, don’t get a fowl mood,” Jacob leaned an arm on the table, a smug grin growing across his lips.

Rachel pulled another grape from the vine, lightly tossing it at the dark-haired boy. It bounced off his chest, his hands instinctively flying up to catch it as it fell.

He raised it like one would toast a glass of champagne before popping it into his mouth. “Thanks,” he quipped.

Rachel rolled her eyes but didn’t say anything more. It was clear she wasn’t truly annoyed with a hint of a smile pulling at the edge of her mouth.

A pang of jealousy coursed through Anna as she watched them banter, and the fact that she didn’t have anyone to joke with as they did became more and more noticeable. At the same time, the clear care they felt for each other warmed her heart, and though Ben hadn’t said much at all, the looks he shot at the others were filled with the same sentiment. Yes, Jacob was weird, but for the first time in years, she felt accepted by anyone her age.

Hope began to rise in her chest, an undeniable desire to get to know these people making itself known. A part of her, a large part, wanted to see herself be friends with them. Now, the question was: how long until she was packing her bags once again?

Next Chapter

Taglist: @hxad-ovxr-hxart, @the-printed-words, @frostedlemonwriter, @on-noon, @my-cursed-prince, and @thesorcererspen. If you'd like to be added, please let me know!

#legacy of the fallen #legacy of the fallen text #my writing #writing wip #writer #fantasy writer #writeblr #aspiring writer #aspiring author #annamarie ophelie

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leiakenobi · 2 years

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Hello dear! CONGRATS on your follower celebration, you're amazing and you deserve all the 💜 and kudos!! How about #25 from the "things fictional couples do that makes me lose my mind + writing prompts" list with our boy Llewyn?

25. when they’re doing something outside, it’s dark outside, and one of them views something pretty in the sky, like a shooting star, or just the stars in general, and they pull their lover by the hand, all excited to watch the shooting star, and their lover looks at them in pure admiration

Hello lovely, I know it took me 2 months to write this prompt but it really is perfect for Llewyn and inspiration finally struck this morning. Thank you for sending it. 🥰

This one clocks in at 853 words and has a gender neutral reader.

——

You had been at the Gorfeins' vacation house for no more than fifteen minutes when you realized that Llewyn was miserable.

He tried not to let it show, of course, all polite smiles and quiet chuckles and his fingers interlaced with yours as the Gorfeins gave you a tour of the whole place. But his smiles were just a little too tight, his chuckles too weak and his grip on your hand tightening as he got a glimpse of room after room.

Luckily – if you could call it luck – your drive out to the Catskills had kicked off later than you planned, and the traffic had been worse getting out of the city than you anticipated, too, so the Gorfeins finished the tour on the guest bedroom and pointed out all the amenities before very courteously saying, "Now we'll leave you to it, we know how tired you must be after your trip."

No sooner had they eased the door shut than you'd turned to Llewyn and said, "You hate it here."

"What? No, of course I don't. Like they said, I'm just a little tired." Llewyn made a point of pulling you close and giving you a soft, sweet peck, and when you pulled away, he was smiling. "Now go on, you were talking about a shower for the last half hour of the drive. I can take care of unpacking."

"Such a gentleman," you'd teased, giggling over the way he scowled as he nudged you away.

Despite the fact that you both packed fairly light, you're surprised to emerge from the shower and discover that Llewyn is no longer in your room—you'd expected him to be lounging in bed with a book, perhaps, or calling his sister to let her know that you made it okay.

Instead, it's only the faint light of a cigarette at first that cues you in to the fact that he's sitting out on the small balcony connected to your room.

"All clean," you report as you nudge the door open.

He hums and looks up at you, offering a small smile that you can only just make out as your eyes adjust to the darkness. "And ready to take the Catskills by storm."

"Only if you are." You let out a soft groan and drop into the other chair, promptly leaning an elbow on the armrest and your chin in your hand. Llewyn is mid-drag on his cigarette, and when he sees you watching him inhale and hold it, he raises an eyebrow, so you continue. "I feel like I shouldn't have worked so hard to convince you to come out here."

Llewyn seems to be on the brink of arguing with you when you return his raised eyebrow, and then he falters, allowing a beat of silence. A beat of frankly wonderful silence, the kind of silence that had made you excited to take the Gorfeins up on their offer to join them for a few weeks: crickets chirping and a complete lack of honking horns or strangers bickering too loud outside your window.

"I don't hate it here," he reiterates, even though you have not actually suggested as much. "I just..."

You reach out and smooth your hand over his forearm, hoping that he'll receive the gesture as tender. From the way his lips quirk up, you think he does. "You just?"

"I've never been out of the city like this. Except for when I shipped out, I guess, but I don't know. It's different. All of that--" He waves the cigarette vaguely in the direction of the house. "--is different."

"Oh yeah, of course it is, sweetheart." You squeeze his arm tight, just once. "Of course it's a lot to take in. And if it's too much..."

Llewyn actually lets out a soft laugh, and you think this one feels sincere. "It's not too much. I'll get settled in. Some things might even be better out here than they are in Manhattan."

"What could possibly be better out here than in the city?"

From the sidelong glance he gives you as he takes another drag, he seems less than amused by your teasing, but he still answers upon the exhale, smoke wafting past his lips and above him. "Check out the lake."

You'd hardly even noticed it when the Gorfeins showed you the room, because night had fallen and you'd been trying to politely get them away as quickly as possible to give Llewyn more space. But looking out at the view now, your breath catches in your throat—over the scattered trees opening out onto the lake, and more trees on the far shore leading to the mountains, off on the horizon, and above it all, so many bright and shining stars.

"Oh, you think that's better than Manhattan?"

Again, you're trying to tease him, but then you look his way again and see just how focused he is on the view. He looks positively enchanted, even if he does only say, "Maybe a little."

You cast your gaze over Llewyn's face as he stares, and softly, happily, you smile.

#aellynera #llewyn davis x reader #llewyn davis x you #llewyn davis fanfiction #fanfic #my fic #created #prompt fill #look ma i finally finished off everything from my last round of requests

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khaleesiofalicante · 2 years

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“Magnus. That was fifteen years ago.”

I’m sorry what ? He had 15 years to tell Shinyun before it got to a boiling point, and he didn’t? Like I thought their trying to figure out Edom heirdom or whatever started happening way before this ?

Also I’m confused about the ‘adopt her’ situation? I don’t know if its just that I am not picking up on a social cue there or what? Like it seems like the most beneficial solution to both Magnus and Shinyun, and I didn’t think Alec was saying like unadopt her after passing it on, was he? like I thought “that’s it” meant Magnus is done with Edom, why would it mean with Shinyun? He already has stuck with her, why wouldn’t he continue? but he jumped straight to Alec is saying drop Shinyun.

All I can think about is Shinyun right now so continuing. How often did her and Magnus see each other/talk to each other prior to Asmodeus dying? Cause like, they’re best friends (ish) but they don’t really tell each other anything?? or I guess Shinyun doesn’t, I don’t know.

Oof. Okay. There is a bit to unpack here. I'll give it a shot.

Yes. He found out 15 years ago and he didn't tell her. I understand his hesitation (even Shinyun says it's good that he didn't tell her because she would have reacted badly at that age) but still, he could have told her SOMETHING to kind of soften the blow. It's Magnus' fault here. So, yeah. I agree.

2. Alec did mean to "drop her". I think that was clear. Because he didn't deny it when Magnus questioned it. Also, just before this talk, Alec also said he doesn't care about Shinyun at all. You can't adopt people you hate like that. It will be so messy. I think that's another thing Magnus was worried about.

I think it's different for Magnus. If he "adopts" Shinyun, it's something he has to live with forever. I don't think he will take such a decision lightly. So, even if he gives up on Edom, he will be responsible for Shinyun. I don't think he wants that - which is fair. Also, not to mention, how this would affect Magnus and Rafe. So, I don't think it's a "simple" solution as Alec claimed it to be. I feel like it would make things worse tbh.

3. This is where it's a bit complicated. Idk maybe not. I wanted Magnus and Shinyun's friendship to be a little unconventional, but relatable for adults in their last 20s or 30s. For starters, let's remember they both live apart in diff countries and have incredibly busy lives. But that's just one thing. There are a lot of close friends who care for each other very much but barely talk to each other. For eg, my best friend and I (who also live in diff countries) only talk to each other once every four months. But if she calls me in the mid of a night saying her bf broke up with her (and she did) I will legit pack my bags and run to her (which I also did). I feel like these kinds of relationships need to be normalized. Where you don't talk all the time and tell each other everything but you are still very good friends. I would like to see more of this in media tbh.

I also wanted their friendship to reflect the canon friendship between warlocks, which is unique as we know. They don't meet all the time. They only meet each other in a few decades or even centuries. For example, take Magnus and Catarina. That woman legit raised a baby and watched him grow up and Magnus was not part of any of that. He didn't even know Ephraim. But he was there for her when Catarina lost the child. Same with Raphael and Magnus too. They don't see each other often but they are when shit gets real.

That's how I wanted to portray Shinyun and Magnus in TLND. It's a very diff friendship from what Jace and Alec have. But no less important. Just wanted to capture that :)

#tlnd #for later

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talenlee · 2 years

Text

Mominaria

This was run on my blog a while back, but I never made a properly integrated version of it, and now people are talking about Tiana and some of these characters might bite it soon, so I figure it’s a good time to reshare it.

Moms are great. A lot of fuss is made about moms on their own special day, but Moms are good all the time, or should be. With that in mind, I wanted to celebrate some momness, and the different ways to appreciate and recognise them.

The release of Return To Dominaria (Again) brings with it a whole host of new moms. Let’s meet some of the moms of Dominaria, and their particular values and styles. Here are then, the Moms of Dominaria, Ranked by my entirely arbitary listing of what I think would be funny.

But before we can start we have some very important disqualifications – or should I say dismomifications?

Tiana is a sweet and pure cinnamon roll, a lover of machinery, an engineer and an artificer and could not say no to anyone. Her philosophy as espoused by her flavour text, nothing is too broken to mend is sweet and a good attitude for a mom to have but Tiana herself is the kind of person who apologises to ants for sweeping them off the countertops. Maybe one day, Tiana will graduate into momness, but for now, she is not ready.

Tiana absolutely could use a good mom, though. Good news on that front (and we’ll get to it).

From one who is Not Yet Mom Enough to Jaya Ballard, who has transcended to the higher plane of a Mom’s Mom. Jaya Ballard may not be a mom right now, but behold her fearsome power as a Mom Squared. Grandma Jaya is the kind of grandma who’d teach you how to make a knuckleduster out of a pencil case when you really needed it, and I think we all can respect a grandma like that.

Uhh, you know how Tiana wasn’t ready yet for momness? Chandra is definitely not ready yet for momness. Chandra is more your rollicking sister type, the kind who when she hears you’re being bullied probably sets someone’s house on fire.

Sometimes, though, you’re not in the running for momness because you have your own thing going on. Evra is a little too distant and mystic to make a good mom, and they’re a little bit bound up on the whole thing about commemorating the destruction of their city and safeguarding the Caves of Koilos. You need to be able to recognise as a mom that not everything is going to be about your thing, and I don’t think Evra’s there yet, what with still being all about Halcyon millenia after its fall.

The Mom Countdown

Alright, now with those particular exceptions set aside, let’s talk about the top fifteen moms in Return to Mominaria.

Okay, so we’re not starting out very strong. Garna is the leader of a warband that’s explicitly xenophobic and warlike. I guess it’s good to recognise when you’re dealing with someone who isn’t going to listen to you or be a good influence. In this list, Garna definitely gets an F-rank for momness.

Muldrotha is a complicated lady. First of all, she’s the spirit of a land that is corrupted in part by absorbing the corpse of one of the greatest evils that ever existed. Second, she’s a type of nature spirit possessed of vast power and terrible knowledge, which renders her almost constantly filled with rage. Described as wild, dark and relentless, Muldrotha is a fearsome lady, and maybe not the best mom, but, when she’s asked – asked! – to help, she was willing to help the Weatherlight by defeating Yargle.

Sometimes a mom who can’t quite connect or handle her own stuff can still remind you she’s there to protect you and fight those who would hurt you. Remember, we’re all still unpacking our stuff!

Adeliz is much more of a cool mom type. She’s an academic, but she’s one who knows her roots and her cultural history. When she went to Tolaria to study, she incorporated her Ghitu clothing – and made sure she was allowed to do it. Passion and prudence, indulgence and study, Adeliz is a really good ‘working mom’ style. On the other hand, she might be a little prone to getting wrapped up in late night readings and miss the time she needs to get you to soccer and let’s not kid ourselves, her backup plans for that probably involve time or fire, two things that have never gone wrong in Tolaria.

Alright, now, look, ‘merciless’ isn’t necessarily the best term you want to associate with a mom figure. But let’s not sell Aryel short.

First of all, Aryel is from Urborg, the aforementioned tomb of a great incarnated evil, a beast so powerful it tormented the very land around it. Coming from that landscape you’re going to have to deal with some rough stuff. Second, she has a panther – and I’m told there’s no way that cats can be bad.

Also, Aryel leads knights. And when the time comes for her to lead them in battle, they work together to destroy enemies much bigger than all of them. You can respect a mom who leads and holds to a noble ideal, despite coming from a very dark place.

Alright, when Radha was younger she was a bit of a hothead. Okay, a really bad hothead. She made fun of people and she started fights and she summoned lightning. But after the Mending, Radha settled down and showed her ability to care for and respect people.

What’s more, she wasn’t wrapped up in her own stuff so much to stop thinking about how she was going to influence other people. Radha cares about making sure the world she’s shaping is going to be good for her friends and her people – and that crucial empathy is a good, important thing for a mom.

Also she’s a big square mom! Who doesn’t love a big square mom?

Danitha is kind of on the cusp. She’s almost more a Cool Big Sister type than a mom but let’s for now leave that particular window a little wider. We know Danitha didn’t want to join the Weatherlight and go out adventuring, because she had to stay at home and defend what was her, the last legacies of Benalia.

Danitha is practical – her side-shaves are for a helmet’s sake, for example – and she’s family oriented. She wants what’s good for Raff, and wants to protect her family from the Cabal. She may be more of your ‘single mom struggling with too much’ mom, but she’s still excellent at momness.

Also, the philosophy she espouses –

“I will protect the less fortunate. I will love bravely. I will face despair and fight on. As a Capashen, I can do no less.”

– is an excellent lesson to pass on.

Naru Meha is definitely one of your more jocular, goodnatured moms who can, okay, yes, take to the skies and copy a game-winning displace to ruin someone’s day. An academic from Tolaria, she’s got a real appreciation of knowledge, but also an understanding of how we’re not all bound to the rules that exist when we started.

Naru Meha has a great momness to her. You can imagine her teleporting across the quad to make sure you have your lunch before teleporting back to her own home to get back to her studies, reading fervently as she sips tea and enjoys a late-afternoon beignet. She’s clearly older, and yes, inherited a great legacy, but she doesn’t let that get in the way of her work as a teacher and as a scholar.

Okay, hold on, hear me out.

If you don’t know who Gix is, Gix was the demon in the story of Urza’s Destiny who opposed Xantcha, who was the – who was the hero of that story arc? Look, okay, you don’t know who Xantcha is either, okay, okay. I see.

Look.

The thing is, Rona here is a disciple of Gix, but that doesn’t mean she’s met the dude. Odds are good Gix is dead and gone, since sixty years ago, Xantcha stuffed him into a portal and the Phyrexians were pretty badly messed up. The important thing here about Rona is that she’s a woman with an eye for history, and an eye made out of artifice.

Cyborg mom!

What’s more, Rona having this pre-existing bias towards some connection to the Phyrexians and yes, their empire of unutterable evil, is bad, but that’s even better here for a story about helping to save and redeem her! It’s important for a mom to have her own interests, and Rona’s interests… just… kind of include potential apocalypses.

She also looks really cool and is a woman who wants to let you build on your own history. Plus, if she’s transhuman with her artificial components, she has all the time in the world to slowly transform from her current Gixian disposition.

Okay, you’re right, this was a bad idea, let’s move on.

I already wrote about how much I love Tetsuko Umezawa, but I didn’t in that article talk about what makes Tetsuko such a great character.

First, she’s a mono-blue character. Blue characters tend to believe in the idea of the tabula rasa, the notion that a person is a sum of their choices, and not inherently built into a particular destiny. This may be frustrating in some arguments, but when you’re dealing with a parent, you really want someone who’s willing to accept that you can change from what they think of you.

Also, Tetsuko, despite being a lowly rogue with magical gifts for doors, rather than apocalyptic destruction or, you know, fire, spends her time opposing Nicol Bolas. Think about that conversation:

“What does your mom do?”

“She opposes the most dreadful and ancient of evils.”

Also, her flavour quote –

“My ancestor Toshiro used to say, ‘Life is a series of choices between bad and worse.’ I’m a master of making great bad choices.”

– follows up on this philosophy. Tetsuko is about choices.

Shalai, Voice of Plenty, is the ultimate backstop mom. Okay, she may spend her time hovering over you, but that’s to make sure you have hexproof, and maybe to give you +1/+1 counters if you need them. During the Phrexian Invasion, she saw the elves of Llanowar fight against the power of the Phyrexians, and found herself drawn to their willingness to fight and protect others.

Shalai also crucially is willing to accept that there is a cruelty to memory. Some people have lived through terrible, awful things, and she knows that it’s important to let those people handle that in their own ways. Forgetting pain isn’t weakness – it’s a way to soldier on.

Shalai may be a bit focused – she definitely doesn’t have that much of her own stuff going on – but she’s absolutely focused on being a good mom.

This is one of your aspirational kind of character mom slots.

The reason Shanna would make an excellent mom is she’s looking to step up. For a lot of people, the responsibility and care for another’s life is something people take on sometimes by accident and sometimes with a really limited perspective on what it means. Not Shanna.

Shanna is the descendant of Sisay. She’s immune to magic. And in the future, she’s going to run the Weatherlight and protect everyone.

Just ask her.

Every time I made this list, Jhoira kept creeping up, higher and higher until I really found the point she could go no more.

Jhoira, the new captain of the weatherlight is both old enough to be disconnected from You Kids’ Stuff, but also caring enough to be interested in trying to understand it. Jhoira can be vengeful and petty and also thoughtful and understanding. She’s got an old boyfriend kicking around (it didn’t work out) and a crew full of kids she needs to keep in line and help out. You know, the classics – earnest girl, scene vampire, doofy illusion boy, and the fungus ewok.

Jhoira also just has amazing style. I mean, c’mon, look at that coat and gloves. Tiana’s in good hands with a mom this cool.

Sometimes momness is in how you present yourself – such as Naru Meha’s perpetual air of Scones In A Moment, Dear – and sometimes it’s in what you do. Lyra Dawnbringer has the idealism and purity of a mom who wants to protect and care for her children, coupled with the oh so slight overreach in her flavour quote.

It’s not just that you should believe in Lyra. It’s that Lyra believes in you.

*waves*

And when the time comes to represent a mom in Magic, it’s kind of hard to look past Marwyn, the Nurturer, a mom so mommish she has a literal actual baby in her art. Marwyn isn’t necessarily that baby’s mom – she’s a midwife, who celebrates every new life brought into Llanowar – but she’s definitely got the momness to her.

You can easily imagine Marwyn doing archery in the backyard, because her backyard is Llanowar and it’s huge. She’s not your Shrug and Shawl kind of mom, no, she’s the Let’s Go Hiking mom, the one who buys a new dog for every kid, so they all can guarantee they have a friend. She’s the kind of mom who doesn’t care how well you did at soccer, but cares about how you feel about it.

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starsiere · 2 years

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LOG ENTRY #061822 - life notes, found in the memories of a little girl who lived to tell the tale.

SCANNING FOR POSSIBLE THREATS... warning. contains implied themes of suicide.

My pastime has always been to find stories where they are not, no matter where I am in life. Previously I had worked in a bustling city, but due to the ever-changing nature of life, I had a new start in a new-yet-not-new city, with a mountain of boxes that held thousands of stories yet to be unpacked. It was a messy ordeal, unpacking everything. I waded around in memorabilia from day till night, almost wishing to curse the owner for having accumulated so many things. But as I unpacked, I discovered a story that had almost faded completely from my memory. For hidden away in a drawer that I had long forgotten about, I found the final letters of a little girl.

Ten years old.

Twelve years old.

Fifteen years old.

There were more than one, all scattered here and there— who knows if I even found them all. One note scribbled in the back of a notebook, another one written on the last page of a Bible. A diary page dedicated to how worthless she felt and how badly she just wanted to end it all. They were all written at different points in time, different versions of the young girl who all wanted one thing: to disappear from this world.

I wondered how lonely she truly was, that little girl who grew up too fast. The spark of childhood left her eyes too soon and was replaced with a lingering wish for death, an empty void in her pupils that never left. That desire lay sleeping among all the other wishes she held in her heart, like a poisonous asp hidden in a tempting basket of fruit.

But it seemed that her saving grace was that she was a coward— if there was anything she feared more than living, it was the idea that others would have to deal with the consequences of her actions. Her mother would have shed tears of blood, blaming herself till her daughter's urn froze over. Her father would've exploded and imploded endlessly, while her brother would've been shattered completely. Ironically, her wish to keep them from harm outweighed her desire for release.

If that little girl had swallowed her poisonous thoughts and froze her time over, she would have missed a lot. There were many painful, torturous experiences that felt like a knife to the heart, but also many beautiful occasions, reasons to delight in living. If she had died that day, then she would've never met the people she knows now. She would have never experienced being able to breathe without strain. She would have never fully been able to discover her passions. Worst of all, she would never have fully understood what it means to be loved unconditionally, to love without being afraid— if she had given up, her life would've been forever lost in the sea of unfinished stories.

Today is a good day to be alive, I think, and wish that little girl well. I am thankful that she held on for this long. She may have gone through much heartache, but if anything, she is much stronger now. Her house is built upon stable foundations, and no longer does she cry alone for friends she never had. Though life doesn't hurt any less for her, that girl now seeks shelter from the storm and weathers it out with my Master— it was a hard lesson for me to learn, but I pray that I will keep it close to my heart.

Perhaps it might be a good time to write notes again, notes of a different sort— letters that speak of how happy I am to be alive. Instead of constantly speaking of farewells, I will write of the beauty in saying hello. In finding something new to love everyday. Whether big or small, my Master has now given me a reason for me to want to be alive— I will chase that reason and keep it with me to the end, forever and ever.

#diary of an astronaut #original writing #original work #original story #my writing #short story #no matter how hard life gets #today is a good day for me to live #:')#tw sui implied #cw sui mention

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ardathksheyna · 3 months

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Who Am I?

Realigning Goals for 2024

Yes, I'm on hiatus but my brain has stuff it wants to shit out so here it is. The fact is that I'm struggling with mental health issues primarily due to losing my cat, Goomba. It's been over two weeks now, and it still hurts. I guess grief isn't something that you can get over quickly. The current state of the country and the economy have also played a huge part but anywho...

Silent Shadow

I'm still working on it—everything else be damned. I'm not changing character names. I know back in 2015, I toyed with the idea of changing Rowan's name to Roan because it was a holdover from my Ronin Warriors/Yoroiden Samurai Troopers fandom days. I may still do that, but there's a part of me that's being a stubborn asshole about it. There are other literary characters with that same name besides the trash that I won't name, so I need to keep that in mind.

That being said, I'm still hesitant to release Silent Shadow just because of how personal the story and characters are to me. Chances are, if I do release it, it'll be to a limited audience—most definitely the fifteen or so people who are friends with me on Facebook.

Also, I still need to work out the magic system. It's a weird mix of science and mysticism, some it of driven by what I've learned about electrical work over the last few years.

On that note, perhaps I should have been an electrician instead of a programmer, but I digress...

Monetization/Content Creation

This is where the big realignment is going to be. I've been focusing on creating assets for the webcomic. That's still continuing and I realize that there's a market out there for 3D assets in Blender, Poser, and Daz Studio, just to name a few. So basically, any sets, vehicles, clothing, etc. that I create will either be for sale or released as free resources.

It does present another problem, and that's one of focus. The biggest reason I enjoy working in Blender is the same reason that got me into programming: the technical challenge. Like lately, my thing has been figuring out different ways of creating Toon Shaders for Eevee, and even going back to the exploration of combining non-photorealistic and photorealistic elements (think Appleseed from 2004). Because I'm so busy pushing Blender's shader system, I'm finding it hard to focus on creating geometry.

I also need to start pushing my sculpting skills :\

Social Media

I'm not chasing internet points or fellating algorithms to sate my ego anymore. Frankly, I realized that's where most of the negative impact on my mental health has come from. It's definitely true that Social Media does not help the creative process at all—instead, it hinders it.

I don't think it was a coincidence that there was a slight improvement in my mental health after I deleted the bird app.

So I'm saying fuck that shit. In fact, I foresee a huge backlash coming against algorithm-driven social media. People are getting tired of not being able to see the people they've followed—similarly, people who are pushing stuff out for their followers to see are sick to death of having to fight that same algorithm for their followers to see their content.

There's been a small push to return to self-hosted blogs and RSS feeds, which means newsreaders might see a surge in popularity again, or at least I hope so. In fact, blogs like The Oatmeal started pushing email lists and RSS feeds because people are tired of being shaken down by SM companies just have some reach.

Funny. This song reflects so much of what I've been feeling not just the last year, but the last few years. The realization that I wasted my 20s being controlled by my father and the rest of my family, when I should have moved out, cut all ties, and went no contact. So there's a lot of bitterness inside me because of that, and it's something else that I need to unpack, examine, and put away.

Till next time!

#music #thoughts #ramblings #ronin warriors #retro anime #writing #content creation #fuck social media #Spotify

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superbengineervoid · 2 years

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What's the Current Job Market for export service Professionals Like?

What's going to export services Be Like in one hundred Yrs?

LOGISTICS FREIGHT

Introduction about logistic freights :

The logistics field is a sizable and increasing discipline that bargains Together with the motion of products and elements. In buy for organizations to take care of a large degree of effectiveness, they have to use the best possible strategies for moving their solutions.

Among the most important aspects of logistics is freight transportation. Freight transportation may be used to move products from just one issue to a different, or it can be used to move Uncooked elements necessary by a business.

Logistics freight is definitely the movement of goods by truck, rail or air. It's really a critical A part of the worldwide source chain and can be very complex. The logistics marketplace is continually shifting as new systems are made, and new methods of moving merchandise are developed.

The Billion-Greenback Logistics Marketplace: How It's Switching the Way We Reside

The logistics field is probably the most crucial in the global financial system. It employs a lot more than fifteen million people today and generates $2 trillion in yearly profits. The logistics field is modifying the way we Dwell, operate, and consume. Here's a number of the approaches It truly is doing this:

one) The logistics field allows merchandise get from where they're designed to

exactly where we wish them. This consists of all the things from delivery products to finding them to our doorsteps.

two) The logistics market can help us get factors finished more rapidly. From ordering groceries on the internet to choosing up a package deal for the article office, the logistics industry can make it straightforward for us to acquire what we'd like when we want it.

three) The logistics sector guards our setting. By guaranteeing that merchandise Really don't end up in landfills or pollution Regulate techniques, the logistics industry can help secure our World.

Logistics Freight Can However Be Exciting

While it is probably not as enjoyable as after you were being a kid opening your Xmas current, logistics freight can still be enjoyable. Here are some suggestions to make the knowledge a lot more pleasurable:

1) System Forward. If possible, program a vacation with friends or spouse and children so that Absolutely everyone can have a superb time. On the other hand, do not forget to arrange for the unanticipated – at times issues will come up last minute and you will will need to regulate your designs.

A good way to organise your trip is by separating it into discrete stages: arranging, journey, and unpacking. Using this method you won't get overcome and every little thing will go effortlessly.

two) Take Photographs! No matter if you might be loading or unloading, having shots can help seize the moment and make the knowledge extra

memorable.

The Logistics Revolution:

Technology is Creating Freight Much more Economical

Engineering has revolutionized logistics in recent times, earning freight more reasonably priced and economical. By automating processes and applying innovations in transportation, technological innovation has assisted decrease the price of shipping merchandise. In some cases, this has triggered a drop in the cost of items on normal. Engineering has also produced it less difficult for organizations to discover and procure products from suppliers around the globe. Furthermore, automation has made it possible to monitor shipments throughout the overall source chain. Ultimately, these improvements have manufactured it easier for businesses to get their products and solutions to consumers more swiftly and cheaply than ever before before.

Logistics Freight: The Future of Transportation

Logistics freight is a crucial portion of the global economic system and its long term appears to be bright. While traditional

transportation approaches remain utilized in many cases, logistic freight is turning out to be A lot more common. This is because It truly is successful, dependable, and will be carried by a range of automobiles. Moreover, advancements in technologies are earning logistics freight much more efficient.

The increase of the logistics business

The logistics market has witnessed a resurgence lately, as providers ever more turn to the sector to receive their products and solutions to sector immediately and competently. The increase of e commerce and on line shipping has created logistics a lot more critical, because it will allow businesses to steer clear of the

superior shipping and delivery prices and delays connected to classic procedures. Additionally, The expansion of worldwide trade has designed chances for logistics companies to deliver help to Intercontinental shipments.

There are a selection of things contributing to The expansion on the logistics industry.

A single is definitely the raising need for speedy shipping of products, Specially on behalf of e commerce providers. One more would be the growing development towards outsourcing producing and distribution functions to third-bash companies. This saves organizations time and money, but In addition it needs trustworthy logistical companies that can help get solutions from position A to place B promptly and without having incident.

Make Way for your Logistical Superhighway

In recent times, the development of a logistical superhighway continues to be getting traction. The thought is very simple: make a community of roadways, railways and waterways to facilitate the move of goods and supplies across massive distances.

The logistics superhighway could revolutionise the way products are transported around the world. It would cut back trade barriers and ensure it is less difficult for providers to supply products and solutions from all over the world.

Presently, nations around the world like China and India are buying the logistics superhighway project. And since it can be a network spanning various continents, the logistics superhighway could Engage in a vital job in world-wide trade.

The Concealed Expense of Logistics Freight

Logistics freight is really a increasing market and one which is bound to carry on to grow. In reality, logistics freight is expected to be the world’s largest transportation sector by 2027.

Exactly what are some of the benefits of buying logistics freight?

First of all, logistics freight can offer substantial Price discounts.

By way of example, Should your product or service involves Specific packaging or shipping preparations, then logistics freight could be the best option for you. On top of that, logistics freight can assist you lower inventory ranges and help your customer care.

On the other hand, You can also find some hidden fees associated with logistics freight that you should be aware of. For illustration, infrastructure investments (which include port expansions) are export service often needed if you want to support increased demand for logistical freight. This can result in increased charges down the line.

summary

In conclusion, logistics freight is usually a posh and challenging field, but with the right equipment and education, pros in this industry can prosper. The main advantages of utilizing a logistics freight company are obvious – they might offer Expense-efficient and successful transportation solutions on your business enterprise. So if You are looking to get a responsible and seasoned companion to enable deal with your freight, take a look at the options currently available.

LOGISTICS FREIGHT:

Introduction:

The logistics business is an important part of any small business, and businesses of all sizes have to have effective and trusted freight transportation to keep their functions moving.

Logistics freight can encompass nearly anything from family merchandise to large equipment, and it is actually important that the correct transportation Option is picked for each unique cargo.

You'll find a quantity of aspects to think about when deciding on a freight carrier, including cost, support stage, supply time, and transport ability. In small business, logistics performs a significant position in guaranteeing merchandise and supplies are shipped punctually As well as in the ideal quantity. Logistics involves many various facets of the provision chain, from warehousing to transportation.

The logistics business is booming, the two in terms of the number of companies included and the full volume spent on logistics services.

The different Different types of Logistics Freight

Logistics freight refers back to the numerous transferring materials which might be employed to be able to maintain a company operating smoothly. Sorts of logistics freight can incorporate goods for example foods, apparel, and prescription drugs. To be able in order that these elements are shipped where They're essential most, effective transport practices must be in place.

There are a selection of logistics providers out there that will help businesses go their products and materials world wide. These firms use specialists that are familiar with the assorted transport networks and customs processes in numerous countries. They are going to work with customers to produce a tailored shipping approach that meets their distinct wants.

People who need to transport large things or volumes will want to think about using cargo carriers or trucking corporations. These businesses provide the means essential to transportation large merchandise about prolonged distances without any problems. They can also offer crisis transportation services if necessary.

Just How Significant is Logistics Freight?

Logistics freight is an essential A part of any small business. It might help an organization stay arranged and productive, making certain that items and resources are delivered on time and in the right portions. The transportation of these items might be challenging, but it really’s also essential towards the results of a business. Here are several variables to consider when assessing how important logistics freight is always to your organization:

one. Logistics freight might help preserve an organization’s performance. With almost everything from shipments of goods to receiving workers for their offices, logistics Enjoy an essential position in retaining enterprises managing easily.

two. Appropriately transporting products can continue to keep them Harmless and guard them from damage. If a little something goes Incorrect for the duration of transportation, it might necessarily mean misplaced gross sales or destroyed products.

three. Managing logistics requires arranging and notice to detail.

Logistics essential for economical airport operation

Airports across the world are consistently managing on the tight agenda as a result of growing quantity of travellers and flights. With the efficient logistics program in position, airports can run more easily and proficiently. Below are a few of The crucial element great things about applying a superb logistics technique:

- Lowered waiting around situations for passengers: When an airport has a fantastic logistics process in position, it may move additional cargo and travellers throughout the terminals more quickly than should they have been taken care of manually.

This means that travellers should have shorter wait occasions and be able to get on their flights quicker.

- Lessened charges: A superb logistics process can help reduce costs related to functioning an airport, which include gasoline charges and salaries for workers. This is since it causes it to be simpler to deal with stock and minimise squander.

- Increased performance and productiveness: A superb logistics procedure can also improve the effectiveness of an airport, as it might streamline processes for handling passengers and cargo. Because of this personnel can function far more successfully and swiftly, saving on time and cash.

How Vital Logistics Freight Is on the Economic system

Logistics freight is among The key things in the economy, and demanding to your achievement of companies of all dimensions. Based on the American Trucking Associations (ATA), logistics freight tends to make up 26% of full U.S. trade quantity, and supports in excess of 128 million Careers. Listed here are 8 reasons why logistics freight is so crucial:

one) Logistics freight will help businesses get merchandise to industry quickly and effectively. It makes it possible for them to lessen squandered time and means, which results in increased profits.

two) Logistics freight helps companies keep competitive by making sure they have got the supplies they need to function competently and satisfy client needs.

three) Logistics freight drives economic expansion by building new Work and supporting existing enterprises.

Improving transportation effectiveness by means of freight administration logistics

The freight field is a crucial A part of the overall economy, and It really is critical that freight be transported successfully to be able to minimise expenditures and maximise efficiency. In the present earth, you can find some ways to enhance transportation effectiveness by way of freight administration logistics. Here i will discuss a number of tips:

one. Coordinate shipper and receiver shipments: When shipping and delivery objects in between two parties, it might be beneficial to coordinate the cargo to ensure that either side obtain whatever they need once they have to have it. This can be carried out

by putting together a shipping routine or assigning a specific man or woman on both sides to manage the cargo.

2. Use containerised transport: By making use of containers, freight might be shipped in bulk and moved far more

promptly and cheaply than if it were being transported piecemeal. This is particularly advantageous for large goods that might consider up far too much Area in personal deals.

3. Ship in bulk and lower your expenses : Shipping and delivery in huge quantities is much more economical than transport in smaller amounts. Attempt combining several smaller shipments into a single shipment through the use of a provider that could manage big loads.

4. You'll have to carry out the delivery you.

five. You might have to rent a shipper.

conclusion:

In summary, logistics freight can be a incredibly important part of your organization. By doing all of your exploration, you can find the best companies that will help with the transportation requirements. Make sure to preserve your costs lower by utilizing popular carriers and freight brokers who might help negotiate reduced premiums. Finally, ensure you have a prepare for cargo managing and loading so that the shipments arrive by the due date and in the issue you anticipate.

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