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anemptypuddingcup · 9 months

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contains soft sex & scarring from metal cuffs.

“W-Wai- Wait~ I-I don’t think I can h-handle anymore!~”

“You’re taking it all inside of your pussy so good, you can have a little more can’t you?~”

The sound of the cuffs had pierced inside of your brain as Zoro had fucked your cunt with slight anger bubbling up inside of him. You could only moan out in pleasure and pain while the bed had creaked and the headboard hits the wall with slight ferocity. Your brows were furrowed and your throat was rather dry from your releasing your voice so much.

His cock was making your pussy feel so good, making your walls flutter wonderfully around his length while his tip continued to kiss your cervix. But what distracted you were the cuffs that you just couldn’t bear, the cuffs that dug deep into your delicate skin from Zoro pulling your further away from the headboard, resulting in the cuffs digging deep into the skin of your wrists.

“T-They hurt…p-please take them o-off…”

A soft whimper leaves your glossy lips as pleaded for him to take them off of your wrists.

But your plead fell unto deaf ears.

Honestly it was an option he didn’t want to resort to but he did. After all, you said you were his now, and you had to stay loyal to your word. In order to keep you in place, he bought some cuffs just for the occasion of you misbehaving and being dishonest. He was honestly a bit heartbroken that you tried to get away even though you told him otherwise.

The sweet and soft whines left your throat while he thrusted into you at a pleasurable place, making sure that you were genuinely feeling good and that he wasn’t hurting you. It was rather thoughtful of him considering how upset he was, but he wanted to make sure his baby felt as comfortable as possible even if this was a punishment she was forced to take.

“Z-Zorooo…” You whine out softly to him once again, begging him to take them off of your wrists. He was very conflicted by the whole situation…and at this point he was close to taking them off. His rough hand grips your chin softly and your soft eyes look deep into his piercing into your soul. “If I take them off, are you going to behave?” He asked you, his face softening up as he asked his question.

“Y-Yes, I promise I will…” His ears twitches to your words. You did promise and he was sure that you were aware of what would happen if you disobeyed him again. “You are aware of what’ll happen if you break it…right?” He asks you just for clearance. You nodded softly and he slowly shuts his eyes before sighing. Unlocking the cuffs, you whimper out as his touch burned the scars deep within your skin, your body flinching before you hiss out in pain.

Zoro grabs your wrists and presses loving kisses against the scars, whispering a little apology before sliding his tongue along the sore skin. You trembled as you felt the warmth of his tongue and saliva trail along your scarred skin, a little groan leaving him as he enjoyed the taste of your sore scars. “You promised and these will be a reminder of that promise. Next time I won’t be so nice and sympathetic to you…understand that?” He whispers into you ear, making your body shudder with arousal.

“Y-Yes, I understand…” You breathe out shakily, your face a bit flushed as you felt him press one more kiss to your scarred skin. He flips over onto his back, throwing you onto him with your back presses up against his chest. He keeps your legs spread open with his knees and aligns his cock with your entrance before slowly thrusting up into you.

You gasp out shakily as you felt his arms wrap around your tummy and underneath your breasts, holding you so heartwarmingly while he fucked up into you. You arch your back off of him slightly from the pleasure while he kept his face buried against your shoulder. His long and thick length hit a special spot inside of you that not even you could get to and feeling him kiss your cervix was pure heaven to both you and him.

“Z-Zoroooo…” You moan out his name quietly as you held on to his forearms softly, a few whiny moans leaving your lips. You could hear Zoro groaning underneath you, his breathing heavy while he continued to thrust his hips upwards. “You don’t have to stay quiet, make some noise. I want to hear your voice spilling out.” He whispers to you, pressing a smooch against your ear afterwards.

“M-Mmmmh~” You moan out softly as his grip on your thigh grew tighter, his other hand trailing in between your legs and to your clit. He rubs rough and fast circles against your cunt making you but your lip and moan out. Your brows furrowed as you exhaled heavily, the pleasure a bit overwhelming for your cunt.

“A-Ah!~” A sharp thrust caused you to spill out a moan and your legs only trembled as your cervix and g-spot took wonderful kisses from Zoro’s cock. “M-Mmgh!~” Another shaky moan leaves your lips as your walls tightens around Zoro’s cock, making him hiss and groan out in pleasure. “Such a tight pussy, and it’s all mine isn’t it?” Zoro asked, teasing you. “Y-Yess, i-it’s all y-yours~” You mewl out to him, a heavy gasp leaving you as you throw your head back from the pleasure.

Zoro chuckles before circling his thumb around your clit a little faster, his thrusts also picking up speed. “Is it really mine pretty girl?” He asked, just wanting confirmation in your words. Your voice grew shaky as you whine out but Zoro demanded an answer out of you.

“Well? Is it?”

“A-Ah!~ Yes~ Y-Yes it issss~ It’s yours for as long a-as you want it to beeee~” You gasp out, a bit of drool spilling down yours lips as you felt your orgasm finally reaching it’s peak. Zoro smirks at you and sighs lovingly. “Good good, it’ll be mine forever then.” He groans out deeply before biting his bottom lip.

His eyes began to flutter as your cunt squeezes his cock tight from his words, your whines growing a little louder as you felt yourself wanting to squirt so badly. He shickers. “Oh? Did my words cause you to tighten up? You’re practically suffocating my dick.” He hisses, licking his lips at how good you were squeezing his dick.

He bites down on your shoulder, the feeling of his sharp teeth against your skin only making you gasp out while your legs shuddered against him. “Ah! M-Mmgh!~ Z-Zoro!~ Z-Zorooo!~” You whimper out his name and bite your bottom lip while your eyes begins to roll far back from the pleasure. You hear him giggle behind you while his fingers continues playing at your clit, knowing that you were basically on edge.

“Aww, does my slutty girl want to cum? You have my permission.” He chuckles against your skin before an abrupt groan leaves him, his eyes shutting tight as he also felt himself ready to cum and fill your pussy up full with his seed. His cock twitching deep wishing your walls while you felt his heavy breaths against your skin. You feel his reach up and grip your chin, squeezing your face while he felt a bit of your drool spill onto his hand.

Your eyes begin flutter and you gasp out angelically before your body begins to shudder above his. “Ah!~ Mhmmm!~ Z-Zoro! Z-Zoro I-I’m cumming! I-I’M C-CUMMINGG!~” You moan out loudly and your toes curls as you felt yourself squirting out onto his cock and the sheets below yourself. You hear Zoro growl out and keep your body close to his before he sighs heavily, releasing his thick and warm seed deep inside of your cunt.

“Yeah, drink it all up. Take all of my cum deep in your pussy like my good slutty girl~” He whispers to you, removing his teeth from your shoulder which leaves a deep bite mark within your skin. You moan out shakily as he fills you up, his fingertips digging deep into your skin as he kept you close and held you tightly. His thick seed fills you up wonderfully and you practically feel full with how much he’d released deep inside of your needy pussy.

He presses a smooch to your ear before turning over and pulling you closer to him, laying you against the soft bedding. You shivered as he kept his arms around your soft and delicate skin, pressing sweet kisses against your neck to soothe you. You let out soft little mewls as his kisses helped you relax, his hands cupping your breasts and trailing along your soft sensitive buds.

He turns your head back to face him and presses his lips against yours with you moaning out softly before pulling him closer to you. “Zorooo, s-so warm…” You say out softly to him, his warm and thick length embedded deep inside of your cunt. Zoro’s eyes peers to you before his smirk slowly fades away. He looks you deep in the eyes before sighing out and giving you another kiss against your lips, his chapped lips providing contrast and a slight sensation to your soft and glossy ones.

“You won’t misbehave again, will you?” He asks you through the kiss, quirking a brow before pulling away from your glossy lips. A string of saliva spills from both of your lips as he pulled away. You shook your head but he wouldn’t take your head movement for an answer. “I need a direct answer, not a nod.” He says sternly. You shiver against him. “N-No Zoro…I-I promise…” You whisper out softly to him. He grips your chin and his gaze grows dark as he stared dee into your eyes.

“Say it louder.” He demanded.

“I-I promise…”

“I said louder.”

“I promise! I promise I won’t try it again!”

He smiles though his gaze was still dark as he peppers another kiss to your lips. “Good. Good girl.” He says to you quietly. You whimper softly as he lays against your shoulder, a yawn leaving his lips while he laid there and stared at your precious little face. You sigh heavily as he spoons you, refusing to removing his cock from your warm and velvety walls.

“I love you…”

“Mm…I-I love you too…”

#one piece #one piece smut #one piece fluff #op smut #op fluff #one piece x female reader #one piece zoro #op zoro #zoro smut #zoro fluff #zoro x reader #puddingcupimagines

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chicago-pd-is-weird · 2 months

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Antonio Dawson x Reader

TW: some implications of domestic abuse, and miscarriage (not a main theme)

Btw- reader is fem-coded but I kept it neutral with the story itself

The metal tip of the gun pressed against your temple was ice cold, making you squeeze your eyes shut. It was an uncomfortable feeling, the cold, but knowing that it was also a weapon capable of killing you within a millisecond was infinitely more uncomfortable. You simply squeezed your eyes shut, trying to think of happy things to calm you down. Tears streaked down your cheek as the man above you said his name.

“Antonio Dawson.”

You shifted your weight slightly in the chair, letting out shaky breaths in an attempt to calm yourself. All you wanted was to be in his arms, and yet, here you were, tied to a chair, waiting to die.

“Hey (Y/N),” Antonio said, humming as he traced patterns along your back. “What do you think about kids?”

You hummed quietly as you listened to his heart beat against his chest. “Kids? Do you mean… in general? Or the thought of us having kids someday?”

“Well, I guess both?” He shrugged. “I would want kids. Would you?”

You sat up to look at his face, a gentle smile pulling at your lips. “Yeah, I wouldn’t mind a few.”

His hands moved up to hold your waist, gently pulling you back down into a soft kiss, humming and holding you close.

You’d been in college at the time. Antonio had been going through some hardships with the police academy. He felt he had to prove himself every day just to stay there. With you, he had nothing to prove. But, the distance was difficult, seeing as you attended college elsewhere in Illinois. It was a couple hours drive and not one you made often. Inevitably, you had drifted apart, and he had found someone new.

“I-I don’t understand,” you murmured into the pay phone. “Toni, what is happening right now?”

“I’m sorry, (Y/N), I just… I don’t feel it anymore. Not having you around is so hard.”

“It’s only for a few years, and I come back every couple months, Toni.”

You could hear a long sigh on the other end of the phone, one of remorse. “Look, (Y/N), it’s just hard. It’s not working for me. I don’t have you with me to support me here and I can’t support you there. And, look, I met someone else and…”

Tears welled in your eyes. “And she…” You swallowed hard, nearly holding your breath as you thought of the man you loved with another. “She can give you everything you need… Everything you want… Right away.”

“I’m sorry, (Y/N). I haven’t cheated on you. We haven’t done more than flirt. But if it goes any farther, it would make me a dishonest man. I won’t do that to you. I’d rather just… officially end it.”

A soft sob escaped your lips and for the first time in your life, you felt truly helpless and hopeless. You simply hung up the phone after a few moments of silence, stumbling back to your dorm, overwhelmed by emotions.

Laura, who he had gone on to marry and have children with instead of you, divorced him two years ago. At least, that’s what you had heard through mutual friends.

You let out a ragged breath at the thought of his ex-wife, and how he had two wonderful children, just like he’d always wanted. Despite the hardships of the divorce, he was still their father.

The gun was pressed deeper into the skin on your temple and you whimpered. “Please,” was the only word you could muster, voice barely a whisper.

“Shut up,” the man holding the gun huffed. “Dawson, do you really want her to die?”

“You’re surrounded,” Antonio’s familiar voice cut through the darkness. “Give yourself up and turn the hostage over.”

The hostage.

His words were like a slap in the face. As if he didn’t even know who you were. You knew it was probably some kind of protocol or mind game, to not show weakness, but it hurt your heart. You weren’t anything but a hostage in that moment. It reminded you of the last time you saw Antonio, when he worked the beat.

You were breathing deeply to calm yourself, waiting for the distant sirens to grow closer. You listened to the consistent noise they made, trying to level your breathing with the pitch of the tone. Biting your busted lip as your friend sat beside you, you realized what had just happened and put your head in your hands, beginning to sob again.

The officers arrived first on scene, but when you looked up, you saw him get out of the passenger seat. “Oh great,” you muttered softly, again letting your head sink back into your hands.

“What is it?” Your friend asked as Antonio approached the two of you.

“Hey,” he spoke softly, a tone that he used to use with you all the time as he knelt on the step below yours. “You alright?”

When you didn’t respond, your friend chimed in. “Just a busted lip and black eye, I think. It was self defense.”

“I’m not a judge or jury,” Antonio replied with a shake of his head as you looked up. “I’m just here to make sure everyone’s alright and to take a report.”

You swallowed hard as your eyes met his. He seemed genuinely concerned, as if wanting to reach out and touch you, but couldn’t.

“I-I didn’t mean it,” you said softly, shaking your head. “He… He was going to hurt my baby…”

Antonio looked you over, then nodded. He hid his surprise well, but hummed. “We’ve got an ambulance on the way to check you out. Make sure they know. Did he hit you in the abdomen?”

“Yes,” you squeaked out, swallowing hard once more as you relived the nightmare that had only been about thirty minutes prior. “I’m scared, Antonio…” All you wanted was for him to hold you and tell you that everything would be alright. You wanted to lunge forward into his arms and sob into his chest, and tell him how much you loved and missed him.

But you couldn’t.

Of course Antonio didn’t want to acknowledge you. You were nothing to him now. Despite his wife divorcing him, there was no reason he should still hold any feelings in his heart for you. He had kids with her, not you. You had lost the one child you did have, a child conceived out of lust, and illegitimate. You had loved her nevertheless, but she died before she even had the chance to live.

You started to sob softly as all of these thoughts, feelings, and images crashed through you like waves hitting the beach. The man above you growled, not expecting you to burst into sobs, bringing the pistol up to hit you. You didn’t care.

The next thing you heard was a gunshot, and you cried out in agony, not knowing what was happening in the darkness around you. Your ears rang from the echoing shot, but you soon found that you weren’t dead or even injured from the gun. Suddenly, you were free from the bonds and wrapped up in someone’s arms, still sobbing. You could barely breathe, but when his scent hit your nose, you knew exactly whose arms you were in.

You were paralyzed as he just held you, barely able to breathe. As your ears cleared from the ringing, you heard several voices around you, but you couldn’t make out anything specific in the commotion. Antonio held you tightly until you calmed down, which seemed like hours later. You finally were able to catch your breath and he pulled away, putting a gentle hand to your cheek. “Hey,” he said softly. “You alright?”

You heard his words, just like when you were on your front stoop beside your friend. You couldn’t speak, just shaking your head and pushing your forehead into his shoulder, taking in shallow breaths. He rubbed your back, holding you until the ambulance arrived.

#chicago pd #x reader #antonio dawson x reader #antonio dawson #chicagopd #detective antonio dawson #detective dawson

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pinkandpurple360 · 4 months

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Was watching Oops and it finally hit me when Blitz called Fizz out on being a “spoiled attention whore” who gets everything he wants without effort and … Blitz is kinda right? 🤔 Like not to say Fizz didn’t work hard and had to put up with Mammon, but Fizz is basically now living it up on top, with his sugar daddy there to give him everything he needs, only has to interact with Mammon once a year, and he really doesn’t do anything to address the “purse dog” accusations. And then the way Fizz responds it by looking at the leash Ozz gave him which I guess is supposed to be heartwarming, but to me plays more like the literal pet imagery …🤢 (I don’t think Fizz is literally Ozzie’s pet but I wonder how Fizz feels about it. It probably won’t be explored)

Pampered* is what he said and yes I see why he’d think that? Though he doesn’t have the full story on that front and I’m sure he doesn’t fully believe it because he does think he ruined fizz’s life. Then again even as a kid he always got the nicer clothes and the better attention.

But yeah…the other 364 days of the year fizz says “my life has been pretty great” so him being abused ?? Contradicts that. Unless he’s being dishonest and secretive. And his critic says “all you do is work at that (redacted) sleaze joint” “you aren’t even a clown anymore” and clown and jester are used interchangeably. This hurts him as if it’s true. He’s quick to believe what others say.

Viv said he was being fake at the show and that he prefers love to lust, but is also liking tweets saying he loves it at Ozzies..??? I cant follow. And how is fizz being overly sexual and preyed on by creepy fans Mammons fault when it’s at Ozzies where all of this happens? Asmodeus doesn’t like when Fizz is sexualised and when fans ogle at him so…why does he pay fizz to do it in “the house of Asmodeus” even when fizz is branded to all ages.

Up until now the fizzbot said “shipped from big Ozzies factory” fizz says “designed by the big man himself” and Asmodeus talks about the fact he doesn’t like designing these things “for him” so I just can’t follow on who’s responsible.

I’m so confused by this narrative. It would make so much more sense if Ozzie said he regrets having a part to play rather than saying it’s all mammons fault cause he’s shitty.

Oh the leash imagery and later the fact Striker says the term ‘purse dog’, when the quivies are representative of chihuahua, is 100% on purpose. What are they doing with it? I don’t know.

Even calling Fizz a pillow princess ties into it. There’s references to ropes and handcuffs multiple times and I guess im supposed to see that as a kink joke maybe? Or literally? I’m not sure. Kinda like when Blitz is cuffed and collared in truth seekers. Mam puts cuffs on him too but those aren’t the soft fluffy kind. Idk the imagery and what I’m supposed to conclude from it is iffy, but there’s definitely a clear pattern.

Fizz’s profile on Ozzies phone, the fluffy cuffs and the imp—offensive animal nickname, whether I’m supposed to see it as cute or as something a bit symbolically darker? I dont know. When it comes to sexuality in this hellaverse anything goes. Even the imagery of Blitz and Fizz in a cage talking about Asmodeus and Stolas is interesting imagery to say the least. Striker is at least somewhat right but then blitz calls him a reverse racist or something …

What is this shows commentary on class ???? aaaaaaa

Unless Viv doesn’t…know what a pillow princess actually is, and thinks it just sounds pretty cause it has princess in it. that’s a possibility. She basically called him a selfish lover? Like Blitz to Verosika?

Fizz also makes animal noises like “meow” and “ribbit” which is basically an imp slur “fire toad” that was not played for laughs. It’s played like it’s an in universe offensive term. Ozzie doesn’t respect imps, just fizz. He calls moxie “a limp dick imp” and blitz a “feisty imp” and threatens to harm his employees who did nothing but look surprised at them both.

And the fact Fizz hurts several imps succubi and other hellborn in his tirade shows how much he has lost touch with people of his own class. Then being caught up in that fight noise gave him agency back, he was an equal teaming up with Blitzø and fighting his own fight. He fucking knocked out Striker, that’s insane change from “i just wanna go home”

As for right now I’m doubtful they’ll address issues with Ozzie because the ship is marketable and popular. They seemed to have transferred strikers commentary on royals from Asmodeus to mammon. Insisting that Asmodeus and stolas are “the good nice monarchs who do nothing wrong ever” but, who knows.

I feel like Fizz only gets to take a break when he’s with Oz, “money can’t buy happiness but it can rent you paradise” feels like this is a hint towards fizz and Ozzies tender but tumultuous, secret relationship. Because he’s been so mistreated before, he’s fine with submitting to some pampering and infantilisation but can’t fully trust it, he doesn’t fully like it, he has to lie, minimise situations, overstate his capabilities, and even beg, for some agency back. Because he’s vulnerable as a disabled imp with fame. Oz would rather Fizz not be famous anymore so people leave him alone, so he can have fizz to himself, even though it’s important to fizz. So he’s conflicted. And very happy when he quits performing. He’s definitely not the one with the agency around mammon or around Asmodeus, and his status as an imp, feeling inferior, and them as kings of sin, whom he feels unworthy of, is exactly why. When he says he doesn’t care what mammon thinks anymore….he turns back to Asmodeus for a thumbs up of approval. And relaxes when he gets it.

#helluva boss critical #fizzarozzie crit

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hlficlibrary · 7 months

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umm hello, i need your help... i havent read a fanfic in a few months and it's starting to feel weird coz i'm literally always reading but now whenever i open a new fanfic i end up skim-reading it and it feels like a dishonest thing to do

so could you please recommend me some angsty fanfic under 20k which are very gripping....

THANKYOU

Hello, anon! You're very welcome! This was an interesting challenge because I wanted to get you closer to 20k than super short ones. And for some reason the angsty ones I could think of are either short or over 20k. That being said, I knew I'd be able to find you some. (ALSO, I promise you that just skim-reading something is a perfectly fine thing to do and there's nothing dishonest or bad about it. Sometimes, we just find ourselves in a place where it's harder than other times to get into a story. That's no one's fault! I do understand the feeling of wanting to really get into a story though, so I hope these fics will do that for you!) I'll put the word count with these so you know how long these are and also I fudged the first one because I think it's JUST what you're looking for and it's just a little over 20k.

what's left of my halo's black by LiveLaughLoveLarry / @loveislarryislove (E, 22k)

As Harry sucks lovebites into Louis’ neck, Louis hopes that one day those marks will cover the way he can still feel Alex’s handprints burned into his flesh.

As Harry’s nails drag scratches along Louis’ back, Louis hopes that one day the scabs on his heart will heal and drop away just like the scabs on his skin.

As Harry fucks him down into the mattress, the bed shaking with every thrust, Louis hopes that one day his mouth will forget the shape of Alex’s name, won’t trace it over and over as the heat builds inside him, won’t want to scream it when he comes. Maybe one day he’ll open his eyes, as he slowly floats down from his post-orgasm haze, and won’t expect to see Alex’s face smiling back at him.

But today is not that day.

A year after a devastating breakup, Louis is still trying to put himself back together - but getting over a breakup is hard when you work as a wedding planner. Thankfully, his coworker Harry is the most supportive friend Louis could ask for. But Harry has some secrets of his own, and they send Louis' world spinning off its axis all over again.

bonded by @juliusschmidt (M, 20k)

Louis cannot remember his life before Harry. He had one- Harry is, after all, two years younger than he is- but he cannot pull up even one memory that is not somehow intertwined with Harry.

the one where they are bonded, but it's not like that and they have to pretend like it is

No Easy Love (Could Make Me Feel This Way) by @allwaswell16 (E, 17k)

There’s never been anyone for Harry but Louis. He had always thought their love would last forever, despite society’s pressures on an alpha/alpha relationship. When Louis breaks up with him and moves to Chicago, he’s suddenly left behind to pick up the pieces of the life they once shared. Instead of moving on, he finds reasons to keep Louis in his life and in the process begins to piece together what went wrong.

Or an Alpha Louis/Alpha Harry au where they get a second chance to make things right with the love of their life.

You're A Universe by Jiksa / @jiksax (E, 15k)

Harry doesn’t ever mean to hurt him; Louis doesn’t know how to tell him that it’s the only thing he ever does anymore.

Or, Louis’s a stay-at-home dad in London and Harry’s a business expat in Qatar. Louis doesn’t know how much longer their marriage can survive the distance.

give me things to stay awake by embodied (E, 10k)

It’s shitty and it’s counterproductive and it’s self-indulgent, but he lets it become a thing. On Saturday nights Harry goes out and gets so pissed he can’t stand, and when the bartender cuts him off he rings Louis and is in his car within an hour. It’s not a cycle he’s proud of, but it’s also something he can’t resist, and he keeps doing it as long as Louis keeps showing up. AU. It's been a year since Louis broke up with Harry.

#ask #anon #angst #ficrec #embodied #jiksa #allwaswell16 #juliusschmidt #livelaughlovelarry

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heyyyitsmegia · 9 months

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Why I Don't Like Belly in "We'll Always Have Summer" Please read. Very informative.

Okay. So. Why do I not like Belly in the third book?

Easy. Because of the way she treated Jeremiah. And. Because of the way she acted toward Conrad while she was with Jere.

Okay. So. We all know about Jeremiah "cheating" (this word is in quotations bc he didn't really cheat). But do we not remember all the dishonest and straight up just not okay things Belly did.

To understand why Belly is a jerk. We need to take it back to when Jere "cheated".

(I will be using quotes from the book).

Quote one: He got down on the floor next to me, his head hanging between his knees. “Belly, it was when we were on that break. When we were broken up.”

Her: Our so-called breakup had lasted all of a week. It wasn’t even a real breakup, not for me. I always assumed we would get back together.

Now let's fast forward to chapter five: (The first six words)... as follows: "When we broke up in April" and let's not forget about this: Before I could answer, before I could say, You’re not stupid or selfish or wasteful, before I could end the fight, Jeremiah said, “Fuck it. I won’t waste your time anymore. Let’s end it now.”

And I said, “Fine.” (hmm. sounds like your broken up to me).

And then there's this: I cried the whole way home. I couldn’t believe that we had broken up. And this: Steven said, “Chill out. The only reason he hasn’t called you is that it’s too expensive to make a call from Mexico. You guys will be back together by next week, guaranteed.” (this means that you would have to be broken up in order to get back together). Belly: Steven was right. We did get back together a week later. (like i said to get back together you would have to be broken up).

Okay. Now let's talk on Belly. And why she's dishonest and a jerk.

Example one. Comes straight from the book. This is Belly on Conrad: Because I really did believe he was coming. If I didn’t, would I have taken extra care with my hair that morning? In the shower, would I have shaved my legs not once but twice, just to be safe? Would I have put on that new dress and worn those heels that made my feet hurt if I truly didn’t believe he was coming? No. Deep down I more than believed it. I knew it.

I'M SORRY BUT WHY WOULD YOU SAY THIS ABOUT YOUR FIANCEE'S BROTHER?!? YOUR FREAKING ENGAGED FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!!

And then who can forget this?: There was this moment between us then, of us just looking at each other, holding each other’s gaze. My breath quickened. If I leaned forward just a little, we would be kissing. I knew I should move away, but I couldn’t.

Or this: Conrad reached out and wiped my chin with his shirt. It was maybe the most intimate thing anyone had ever done to me. I felt light-headed, unsteady on my feet. I was shaking as I piled peaches into a plastic bag. Just one look, one touch from him, and I was shaking. It was madness. I was marrying his brother.

BUT JEREMIAH IS THE BAD PERSON? I'M SHOOK. I'M IN DISBELIEF!!!

LET ME STOP BEFORE I GET WORKED UP!

#the summer i turned pretty #jeremiah fisher #justice for jeremiah fisher #belly is a jerk in the third book fr

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anamericangirl · 1 year

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Imagine using an opinion article that has only one point - women are shamed for having abortions and that means most women won’t even participate in studies - to claim that abortions are bad for women, actually. Literally the entire premise of the linked article is that we can’t know because they rarely come forward to recount their experiences. That’s a huge frustration, and for the same reason that I have tons of anecdotal stories but I can’t get specific! Because of people like you!!

No honey that wasn’t the premise of the article. It was going over the flaws in another study. I appreciate you trying so hard here but you’re just in over your head. You would be a lot more helpful to the pro-abortion movement if you wouldn’t talk about it or try to defend it anymore. But you’re doing a lot for the pro-life movement by exposing you guys as either illiterate or dishonest so thanks!

Peace 💜

#anon #answered

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pennyserenade · 2 years

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THE BELLS THAT NEVER RANG

pairing: javier peña x named oc, javier peña x female oc rating: t (no explicit sex but language and content is 18+ regardless) tags: language, mentions of puking, a little bit of angst word count: 2k+ summary: a look at the day javier never made it to that chapel. a/n notes: this is the beginning of my new long fic, fade into you. i’ve been toying with the idea of something like this for a long, long, long time and i’m really happy to be sharing it with all of you now. i hope you enjoy this prologue! also, i know that gif is really random but i’m working with what tumblr is giving me lol. re-edited: 11/15/2023

prologue, fade into you

There is a chapel in Laredo that has seen and heard more than any other building in town, save maybe for the bar which sets not even ten minutes from it. It stands erect in the middle of the town, crafted by holy, dedicated hands many, many, many years ago. It probably stood there long before Texas even belonged to America. Many say that the entirety of Laredo had been built around it. On sunny days, it gleams brightly, like Kingdom has come and shun down on the very building itself.

Today is not Sunday; it’s a Saturday. Lorraine has always wanted her wedding on a Saturday so she could have that chapel. Her and Javi have both gone there as long as they’d been alive, as have most of the people in Laredo. Because Javier understands women to be strangely sentimental sometimes, he hadn’t questioned the importance of her wanting to get that chapel. He figured she liked the place so much because she had spent so much time there, and because he had, too.

He doesn't attend church much anymore - hasn't since his mother had passed - but because Lorraine wanted to get married there, they’d been made to go the past few months to prove they were devout. Just last Sunday, they had sat side by side in one of the pews, listening to the too long mass amongst people they'd known forever, and he had realized then what this chapel meant. She had told him after that it had been nice getting acquainted with the town again. It was words said passingly, full of earnest, heartbreaking innocence. What Lorraine didn’t know when she said that was that she had caused the beginning of the end for them both.

It feels harsh to think, but Javier knows it to be the truth. There’s this thing about Lorraine, a thing he has been pointedly trying to ignore since he got with her, and it’s that she’s made for Laredo. The unfortunate thing about him is that he’s always been trying to flee Laredo, ever since the moment he could form enough words to spell out the desire. He hasn't been dishonest with her about it, and she wasn’t entirely dishonest with him about her intentions with it, either. She had said they could move when they got the right funds to do so, if he still wanted it by the time they got there. It was just that last Sunday, when he sat next to her, he had realized that Lorraine was so made for Laredo that when that one day came, they’d stay in Laredo, no matter how he felt. He knew it to be true as it was cruel. So true, in fact, that he woke at five this morning to escape it.

It is noon now and he has put enough distance between him and Laredo that no one can talk him into coming back. He’s learned that he’s in a little town called Rockwall, and he won’t make it on time, not even if he speeds. It was infinitely important to him that he’d do that, go as far as possible and wait as long as he could to pick up a phone, so that no one, least of all Lorraine, could convince him that there’s still time.

He picks up the payphone outside of the gas station and dials the only number he has ever bothered to remember: his father’s. It rings once, twice, and then he hears it; the labored, worried breathing of his father.

“Mijo,” Chucho says on the other line, not like a question, but a statement.

“Yeah,” Javier says quietly. He takes a nervous glance around the parking lot, trying to see if anyone is listening. “Pop, listen--”

“Where are you?”

“I’m going to tell you.”

“You should be here.”

“I know but--”

“Everyone is worried sick. You’re supposed to be at the chapel in an hour.”

“I’m not--”

“Did you get drunk last night? Do you need me to come pick you up somewhere? I never heard you come in.”

“I--”

“Lorraine has been calling, asking after you. I didn’t want to panic her and tell her that I couldn’t find you. I suggest--”

“I’m not going to marry her, Pop.” The words slur together, said so fast they’re hardly audible. Except Chucho must’ve heard them, because he’s no longer trying to talk over Javi anymore. “I know what I’m doing isn’t right. I know. I just can’t do it.” The silence on the other end makes Javier swallow harshly. His palms begin to sweat. He’d prepared this speech on the way over here, except none of it is coming out with as much confidence as he’d planned for it to. “I’m gonna be…I have this paper for the DEA. That’s where I’m going. That’s what I’m going to do.”

Still on the other line, his father says nothing.

“I’ll call you from the next town.”

Javier hangs the phone back on the hook, not bothering to wait for another answer. He takes another nervous glance around. The parking lot is nearly empty, except for the lone gas station attendant smoking at the edge of the property, and the lady working the counter inside. He feels so damn nervous he could puke.

He pulls his wallet out of his suit pants and walks inside the little store, the thrill of the bell above the door alerting the woman. She looks up at him, but seems unbothered by his presence.

“Can I have five dollars in nickels?” he asks her. He holds the bill up in front of her.

She raises her eyebrows. “That’s a lot of nickels.”

“I’ve got a long way to go,” he tells her. “Do you sell maps?”

“In the back.” She points her finger to a little rack. “Just over there. Where are you headed?”

“I don’t know.” He shrugs his shoulders. “I think Virginia.” He lays the five dollar bill on the counter and she takes it. Opening the drawer of the cash register, she says, “And what’s there?”

“A job, I hope.”

He figures, by the slow way she moves, that her collecting that many nickels might take a bit, so he goes to where she pointed, and picks the first map on the rack. On his way back, he grabs a bag of chips and a Coke. “These too,” he tells her. “And a package of Marlboros.”

She glances up from where she’s counting individual nickels. “A bit young to be a smoker, aren’t you?’

“Twenty-three,” he offers.

She seems to think that is enough, for she says, “The reds?”

“Yeah," he nods.

She hands him a handful of nickels, which he places awkwardly into his slacks, before receiving another three full tubes of them. He puts these in his other pocket while she turns around and gets him the cigarettes from the display behind her.

“What’s the occasion?” She asks.

“Huh?”

“The suit.”

Javier looks down at himself. “Oh. I was supposed to get married today.”

The lady stops what she’s doing and turns around. “What happened there?”

“I’m not quite sure," he says. The woman’s gaze seems to pierce through him after he says that, trying to figure him out. “She told me she was with child and she wasn’t,” he lies, to make her stop.

Her eyes grow sympathetic. “Oh, hon.”

He licks his lips, growing uncomfortable. “How much?” She looks at him quizzically. He nods to the stuff on the counter. “For all of it.”

She shakes her head. “Honey, you just take it all. It’s in the house, okay?”

He shakes his head. “No, really, it’s okay. Let me pay.”

“No, it’s on us today. Consider it your parting gift from all of Texas.” She takes on a matronly appearance now--with wide, sympathetic eyes--despite the fact that he doesn't imagine she's much older than himself. “You just be safe out there on the road.”

Too tired to fight it, Javier smiles politely. “Thank you.”

The woman raises her hand, looking at him like he's the saddest thing she's ever seen. “Bye now.”

When he goes back to his truck, he disposes of the nickels in the cup holder before opening a package of the cigarettes. He throws the map in the glove box, shuffles around various pieces of papers until he finds a lighter. Popping one of the cigarettes in his mouth and lighting it, Javier rests his head against the headrest. His shaky fingers find reserve in the activity of merely holding the stick of nicotine his father had warned him against. His entire body finds comfort in the act of inhaling the nicotine in.

He knew he’d need one of these before he made the next call.

Javier flicks some ashes off the end of the cigarette into the ashtray before leaning down and to grab the phone book out of the floorboard on the passenger side. He flips it open on the seat and begins to search for Lorraine’s home-line and the chapel’s line. When he finds them both, he rips out the pages and stuffs them into his pockets. He finishes the cigarette before he finds the courage to go to the payphone again.

This time the lady inside is watching with her sympathetic eyes. He smiles at her, but it’s one of those half smiles that can’t ever reach his eyes.

The first number he calls is Lorraine’s home. It rings and rings and rings, just as Javier had expected it would. Lorraine’s mom has been a bit anal about the decorating for the wedding, so he’d figured she’d be at the chapel early to decorate. Lorraine’s father is working. He’s always working, being the Sheriff of the town and all. It’s a title Javier has always felt the man took with too much pride.

Javier grabs the other paper in his pocket, puts in the nickel, and dials the church’s line. It rings only once before Javier hears a high voice. The woman on the line delivers the little rehearsed message, telling him he’s called the chapel, and gives the usual spiel about hours.

When she pauses to ask what he wants, he says, “I was just wondering if Lorraine Perkins is there?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact, she is,” the woman responds. Is she mad? He thinks she is?

“Is it possible I might talk to her?”

“Let me check.”

The line is quiet for a moment. Then the lady picks the phone back up. “May I ask who’s calling?”

“Javier Peña.”

“The groom,” the woman says. Javier bites at his lip.

“The groom,” he says.

“She’ll be right with you, Mr. Peña.”

He stands still, waiting. He tries to rehearse what he prepared once more, a sad little “It’s not you, it’s me” speech. The lady in the store has stopped watching him, he notices, glancing up.

“Javi,” Lorraine says. Her voice is so full of warmth, it takes the words from him. “Jav? What are you doin’, callin’ here? Not nervous are you? I told you not to get cold feet last night!”

Suddenly, he feels violently sick.

“Javi?” Lorraine asks.

“Lorraine, I can’t do it.”

She grows silent just like his father had. Then she says, laughingly, “Jav, don’t play like that. It's not very funny.”

“I’m not. I wouldn’t--”

“That’s not very fair,” is what she responds with. He forgot how quick she is, how smart. How calculated, in the way all young women are taught to be with men. He forgot about all the reasons he never fought with her, all the reasons that made him believe being her husband was the right decision. Lorraine knows exactly where she’s going before anyone else. He can image the way she’s standing now, her small frame too rigid, with the arm not holding up the phone wrapped around her. She looks like a little girl, because that’s how she gets when she’s angry or sad. Like a defeated child no one wants to tell no. He thought it’d be easier if he couldn’t see her, but it’s not.

“I know,” is what he says in response. “Listen Lorraine, I’m really sorry. I understand this is really fucked up to do to you and you don’t deserve it. I know that but--”

Lorraine hangs up the phone before he can finish. He stands, halfway between words, unsure of what to make of it.

The man who was smoking at the edge of the property now stands by the doors of the gas station. He looks at Javier knowingly. Javi knows that he’d been listening. The lady at the counter is looking again, too. An audience.

Javier hangs the phone back on the hook, his stomach churning.

“You okay, kid?” the man asks.

Before Javier can answer, he finds himself hurrying to bend over the curb, away from the phone.

“Oh fuck,” the man says.

Javier is too distracted emptying the contents of his stomach to notice the way the woman in the store is telling the man - who is now standing with one front in the door, and one foot out - how the ‘poor boy is having a really bad day, Jerry. Don’t just stand there and watch him! Help!'

That chapel stands in the middle of Laredo, with warm April sun beating against its white paint. Tomorrow the town will hold mass there, and they’ll talk about all the things that didn’t happen the day before, and all the things that did. Javier will be out of Texas. Life will go on outside of that chapel, and inside of it, just as it has for many, many, many years. A new Laredo will form and he won't be there to see it.

But Javier Peña will think of that chapel many times in the years to come.

#javier peña x ofc #javier peña #narcos fic #javier pena #pedro pascal fanfic #javier pena x ofc #javier pena x y/n #javier pena x reader #javier peña x reader #javier peña x you #javier peña x oc #javier pena x oc #pedro pascal #narcos

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pochipop · 1 year

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＃IKEMEN PRINCE !! ♡ — THE WAY HE LIES (YVES X READER).

#. synopsis! — yves frequents your family owned bakery in the city, and he's such a pretty liar .

#. characters! — yves .

#. warnings! — very slight angst .

#. word count! — 1.6k .

#. others! — navigation & masterlist .

#. a/n! — is this really the content anyone wants from me? probably not! but hello ikeseries fandom, i've come to join the tumblr ranks !

There he sits again in one of the worn-out wooden chairs of your family’s bakery, —his hair glistening like little strings of golden sunlight in the dying evening rays. Many moons ago, you’d have been nervous to approach him, smoothing your apron down, dusting flour off yourself haphazardly before making your way over to take his order, minding your posture like a single slump in his presence would have set the world ablaze. These days, you know better. . . Yves may look much too sophisticated to let yourself be true around, but underneath that perfectly polished appearance, there’s a young man much like yourself.

A young man who is also painfully uncertain of it all, who yearns for a place to belong.

With two servings of strawberry mousse in either hand, you place one before him, letting the little ceramic dish clink against the table. His clear, powder blue eyes draw to your face, and he bites back a smile, forcing that same neutral arrogance to remain even as you take a seat across from him.

“Back again, I see,” you grin a bit, shoveling a spoonful of the creamy dessert into your mouth, letting it melt on your tongue.

He hums in acknowledgement, taking his own spoon between his fingers to gracefully scoop an appropriate sized bite from the top.

“I had some business to attend to in town,” he replies evenly, pausing to taste the mousse, and then to swallow it down. “I’m sure I missed dinner at the castle and was feeling pekish on the journey back.”

You know he’s lying, but you don’t ask why. You never ask why he’s often so dishonest; both with himself and others. . . It’s easier to assume that Yves has his reasons and to leave it at that.

“I trust everything went well enough then?” You inquire.

His eyebrow raises in confusion, and you’re quick to clarify: “With the business you mentioned having in town, that is.”

If you hadn’t been sure he was lying before, you certainly were after seeing his face drop for a moment as he realized he’d slipped up in his charade.

“Oh, —yes,” he answers, giving a quick, unconvincing nod. “All’s well, thank you. And I assume business today went smoothly as well?”

“As smoothly as it can go, I suppose,” you laugh, —and ah. . . There’s that funny feeling again, the one Yves has been having in his chest as of late.

The kind that mimics a dastardly mixture of palpitations and the fluttering of insect wings.

He’d really like to fix this. There’s gotta be a way to pass this over, let these feelings pass him by, —because this can’t, won’t, shouldn’t, couldn’t ever work, and he knows it. You live in a world so completely different to his own; one that isn’t tainted by royal politics and all the gossip of bordering kingdoms that always lingers around the corners, threatening to swallow him whole. There’s no place for love when it comes to people like him. Not when any compassion you could ever show him would only prove to marr your reputation. It’s why he never picks the seat by the largest window anymore, why he only comes here when the shop is about to close, and why he’s never allowed himself to sit with you without telling a lie.

So yeah. . . Maybe it is for the best that you never ask why he isn’t as honest as he could be when it comes to you. Or to anyone else.

“You seem a little down today,” you comment. “Is everything really okay?”

It’s just the way his frown seems deeper, and the way his brows seem so set in their furrow. He never looks outwardly happy as far as you’ve ever see of him, but usually there’s little flecks of joy that swim through his eyes, whether it’s over the sweets, or the peacefulness of the establishment, or over the way you smile at him so reassuringly, as if flashing one at him for just a second should be enough to soothe his deepest hurts.

His expression drops for a moment, like he’s surprised you were paying enough attention to notice the smaller details of his sour mood. Yves does his best to wear his heart beneath his sleeve, keep it hidden away, but you. . . He fears you see him for exactly who he is, and the thought of it terrifies him. Nobody should have to see that.

“Everything’s fine,” he nods after a few moments of silence. “The mousse is quite good today. Did you make it yourself?”

You fear the compliment is little more than a distraction, a way to change the topic without having to dwell on the previous one. But that’s okay.

“Mhm,” you nod. “Just a few hours ago, actually. We’ve been tweaking the recipe a bit as of late, and I think this might be the best one so far.”

“I agree. The sweetness is balanced with the slightly tart flavor of the fresh strawberries on top, and the texture is so decadent and creamy,” he answers, words emphasized by the spoonful he ushers into his mouth much less elegantly than before.

Something about it makes you smile. Sure, he’s a liar, but his eyes are so honest, and you can always tell what he really wants to say when you read between the lines. You imagine it must be hard to be a prince in such a small kingdom. . . To have so many eyes on you at all times, to be judged both at your strongest and weakest points. The riches of it all must be nice, and that’s all well and good, —but there’s so obviously a price to pay for living under that kind of scrutiny. You can’t help but wonder if Yves ever stops to let it all wash over him, or if he goes about each day pretending to be alright for everyone else’s sake.

At the very least, you hope he feels comfortable being himself here, with you.

“I’m glad you think so.”

Silence falls between you for a bit. The sound of horse drawn carriages padding over the gravel outside and the soft clinks of your spoons against the little ceramic bowls echo in a playful chorus.

You’re happy he stopped by today.

“There’s some leftover honey cake, if you’d like to take it back with you,” you note. “I know you took a slice to go the first time you came in, and you mentioned your brother was a fan of the flavor.”

He blinks, lips parting slightly, as if he just can’t believe you cared enough to remember an interaction from so long ago. It makes him wonder what else you’d be able to recall about him, and he looks down at the strawberry mousse sitting on the table (though it’s mostly eaten by now.)

“If it’s not too much trouble,” he answers, voice softer than before.

Yves tacks on a quiet ‘thank you,’ to which you offer him another smile. He wishes he could see that everyday, feel the way it lights him up from the inside. . . But that’s a fool’s game to play, and Yves is no court jester. He’s a prince, —a cowardly one, and he’s not the kind of man you deserve. He’s not the kind of man anyone should truly care for.

“It’s no trouble at all,” you answer. “You’ve been very generous to myself and my family’s bakery. . . Really, it’s the least I can do. I’m afraid I’m not sure how else to repay the kindness.”

Perish the thought, honestly. He’d do anything just to see you every now and again, to reach out and remind himself that not everyone in this kingdom thinks him to be some kind of humanized betrayal. You look at him with such kindness in your eyes, and it’s a welcome change from the harsh, judgemental stares he often receives on his way anywhere at all. At least with you, he feels content; like there’s no shackles keeping him glued to a place of constant scrutiny.

You see him as he is, —and you ignore everything he isn’t. And he loves you for it.

You pack up two slices of the honey cake, thinking maybe if he really hadn’t eaten that much today, he’d be able to enjoy it at some point or another. As you hand the little box over, you don’t bother to insist he keep his coins in his pocket. He’s already fumbling around in his pockets for payment likely double that of the actual price.

“We’ll have macarons on sale this weekend, if you’d be interested in stopping by,” you smile, handing him the box of honey cake slices. “I can save you some.”

Even if he didn’t want them, (which he most certainly did), he would have accepted your offer anyway. If it means he has a valid excuse to come see you for a bit, then count Yves in without question.

“I’d like that,” he answers, his fingers brushing oh so gently against your own as he takes the box from your hands.

You swore you could see the faintest smile pull at his lips, but it was gone before you could be certain of it.

The time comes once again for him to leave, and you watch him go with a newfound longing. From the window of the bakery, you watch as his lean frame eventually turns the closest corner, and he disappears for the time being. . . He’ll be back soon enough, you’re sure, but a part of you always hates to see him go.

Maybe one day he won’t have to, but for now, you resign yourself to closing shop, the thought of him dancing around in your head.

#yves #yves kloss #yves x reader #yves kloss x reader #yves kloss reader insert #yves ikemen prince #yves kloss ikemen prince #ikemen prince #ikeseries #ikemen prince x reader #ikemen prince x you #yves kloss x you #ikepri #ikepri x reader #ikepri yves kloss #ikeseries x reader #ikeseries yves kloss

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archivalofsins · 10 months

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I slept and eaten something. I've also digested all my feelings on Cat after some talks with people. I think until people swallow some hard truths about being a man, the discussions around Kazui will always feel stilted to me. This includes me-

Admittedly due to my upbringing leaning more towards traditionally masculine I can't really relate to Mahiru's situation like that.

My upbringing wasn't really focused on honestly displaying my emotions but doing what was necessary in the moment despite them. The first thing I learned when young was regardless of my personal feelings on a matter I had and always should act in the best interest of those around me.

So, lines like

"My emotions are out of control, that’s inconvenient? I don’t care!"

Were always going to ring low to me in comparison to,

"Lie, until it gets better, follow the king of the masquerade. Since when have I ignored my feelings? It’s better to be a let down, than to be let down yourself."

Simply because the second is just truer to me. Because I understand what it feels like to think it's better to do something correctly in a dishonest way than put all your hopes into something and build up the courage to be candid just to still fail. When I was young and did that, regardless of the situation the repeated pattern would be,

"I'm going to ignore you said that and come back later. Hopefully when I do, you're in a better mood."

Or,

"Actually, I liked you better when you were lying for my benefit. I don't think I want to be around you now that you've said those things."

Q.08 Which do you prioritise between logic and feelings?

Kazui: I put my feelings first and it ended badly. So, I don’t want to act just based on feelings again.

Q.13 Who do you want to see right now?

Kazui: They won’t see me anymore.

A lot of friendships I've had have ended because I said something in favor of myself over the wants of that individual. Simply because when one keeps putting up an act, people love the performance more than the person.

The biggest kicker here is I'm afab, yet because of my upbringing, I have traits that would usually be viewed as toxically masculine. I should, on some level, be able to relate to Mahiru wanting to be able to openly express her feelings, have them viewed, and accepted regardless of how she comes off. However, I can't for the life of me wrap my mind around why someone would ever behave in that way outside of just going well that's how she is. Something that I can quite easily accept as a reasonable answer without needing further explanation because if being that way makes her happy and she's not hurting anyone, it doesn't need to make sense to me.

At the same time, I recognize not everyone has the luxury of behaving the way she does. Just going my feelings are inconvenient I don't care this is how I am whenever they feel like it. Some people are taught to bottle that shit up and start acting correctly. Some people are told that they can't control the actions of others, but they can control how they react, and if they can't control that, then the fool is them.

Some people are shown time after time that it doesn't matter what others do, it's their responsibility as the bigger person to be reasonable. That's what being an adult is, so you better learn it early.

Q.06 What would you say is the difference between adults and children?

Kazui: Responsibility. Adults can’t just do whatever they want.

I literally went to my Grandad's wake last month and when I went to the restroom with my grandma I honestly said yeah I just came in here to cry really, I don't gotta use it. She bluntly told me to do that at home like she did not in public near these people. My ass just laughed it off and went yeah, you're right and switched gears harder than someone who just passed their destination.

You're right I lost myself for a minute there. I mean even contemplating crying in a bathroom at a wake for my grandad, who just died of cancer on Father's Day, that I hadn't seen in years until today silly me displays such as that are better left for the privacy of one's own home. Whelp, back to being the emotional rock of this family. How are you handling things? How have you been?

This may sound abnormal to some, but it isn't in my family. Hell, my grandad was pretty much the same. I remember asking him on one I think it was Christmas at his house but know I was around six or seven something along the lines of hey you know my mother (his daughter) like whoops me and my older sister sometimes for no reason for hours on end what's up with that? The dude flat out told me stop doing shit to get beat or don't get caught doing stuff that would illicit that reaction.

He pulled the equivalent of skill issue and kid me has been lying ever since. Constantly everywhere in friendships, professional environments, with my family. Few people recognize that for some people lying can become so commonplace whether it be out of necessity or habit that being honest about anything turns into a struggle.

I even just lie to myself sometimes for fun just to see if I catch myself doing it- Which one would rightfully think you must know it's a lie and oh I do. Yet, I also know if I keep behaving in a certain way it will become the truth to someone. This lie could be someone else's reality if I commit hard enough. People don't really want to see the truth anyway, some will deny it regardless of how clearly it's stated. Because everyone has a lie, they would rather accept more than the truth of the matter.

No one is above wanting to see whatever they enjoy over and over again. Or to put it a different way,

"Make a favorite shape and love it."

I sincerely know if I'm jovial enough and don't cause trouble no one will ever ask what's going on. Because most people despite what they say don't really care about me as a person or my thoughts on matters concerning my life they just want to hear themselves talk about what I should be doing, about how my life is/was, if my experiences were good or bad from their perspective.

Hell, Yuno is an example of this-

Umblical

"Just the two of us. I finally found it. The lies are endless."

Trial 1 Voice Drama

"That’s right- You know those sorts of people who just want to convince themselves; so, they stick their nose into the affairs of others knowing it’s not their place? I despise those sorts of people the most. They’re only getting involved to make themselves feel better, right? In the end they never actually accomplish anything."

“Yuno…”

“No matter how many chilling memories I had to endure, those people never gave me any warmth. He-he I ended up going off topic there! Um, what did I wanna say again?”

-273.15°C Second Voice Drama

"Hurry up and extract the song or whatever. And then! Why don't you randomly decide what is and isn't true, to come to whatever arbitrary decision you'll make next!"

Later

"Kotoko is someone I would never be friends with. She's the type to pick her conclusion from the start without actually talking to anyone."

Q.12 What do you want from the guard?

Yuno: I’d like it if you stopped trying to force some kind of reason on everything.

Tear Drop

“I’m the one who chose, let you and you and you all in. Happy or sad? Why decide? Where’d you get your half-baked sense of justice? So, nauseating…so creepy…will you please disappear “Phew. Anyway!”.”

"If you want “me”, come marco, I’ll polo."

"Lie, until it gets better, follow the king of the masquerade."

We're really following the leader on this one.

At this point, I severely doubt most know what it's like for a person to have to constantly keep themselves in check at all times. Never having the satisfaction of being able to say what's true or having others see them for who they really are instead of who that other person would like to see. The ideal that they've created on top of them or the lie the other has presented.

This person recognizing the truth is an inconvenience, they know good and well what happens when they open up, and that they'll only have themselves to blame if things go poorly.

"Am I a bad girl? Please don’t answer. What do you want to do? Please tell me." - "Let’s just do it, please smile?"

"Please tell me what I should do, feelings shrouded in lies will float away and disappear." - "The beating of this heart... see... it’s no longer about good and bad... it isn’t I realize the futility, but I still can’t help but dream."

"The fading warmth makes me anxious again." - "This feeling, it’s yearning to be satisfied."

Gender, sexuality, romantic orientation none of that matters anyone can get caught up in lies piling on and on. To the point of feeling crushed.

Q.18 Do you regret your “murder”?

Kazui: I regret it. I wish I could’ve just kept lying.

Q.10 If you could turn back time, would you commit the same “murder”?

Yuno: It’d be nice if I made it so I didn’t have to.

"Don’t weigh me, measure me against your morality. Just shut it, will you? You know it all." - "So, it’s wrong? Oh, shove that!"

#milgram #yuno kashiki #kazui mukuhara

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tracingpatternswrites · 2 years

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This has now taken over my life. Sorry not sorry. Also what do you mean 1k is not a microfic? It is. A @wolfstarmicrofic, to be precise, for the prompt digital. Read the first parts here: Swing and Mountains and Castles.

Remus slumps down on the sofa, glass of wine in one hand and his phone in the other. Teddy was asleep, worn out after a busy week, and he finally had some precious alone time. The TV was on, showing one of the many crime shows that seemed to be on constantly, but he isn’t watching. Instead he’s scrolling on his phone.

Remus had never been much for social media, he had never bothered with the latest technology and had it not been for Cas he’d probably still have his very first smartphone. When he and Teddy moved, however, she’d bought him a new iPhone as a moving away present.

“We need to be able to keep in touch somehow, and I don’t trust that old brick of yours,” she’d said, her face determined, and Remus had learnt not to argue with her when she looked like that.

Truth was, he was grateful. The phone was sleek and easy to use and, he’d discovered, the camera was amazing. He’d already taken hundreds of photos, mostly of Teddy. Teddy in front of their cottage, Teddy in his new room, Teddy and his Ma making lemonade in her kitchen, Teddy on his first day of school. Then, more frequent lately, Teddy and Harry: on the swings, on the beach, in their garden, building a fortress out of pillows, in the playground.

And, then, also, because it simply couldn’t be helped, Sirius. Shirtless on the beach with his trunks slung low on his hips and dark shades covering grey eyes, Sirius pushing Teddy and Harry on the swings, Sirius with his head thrown back laughing at something Teddy and Harry are doing. Strictly speaking, Remus knows, slightly too many photos of someone who was supposedly only the guardian of his son’s best friend.

He shuts the app for the photo library, a guilty sort of tug somewhere in the pit of his stomach. No, this won’t do. He cannot be lusting over Sirius fucking Black, no matter how ridiculously attractive the man is. He can’t do it to Teddy, it wasn’t fair to risk anything coming in between his friendship with Harry. He needed something else, a distraction.

He lets his finger hover for a moment over one of the dating apps that Cas had made him download (“You can’t hide forever, Rem, it’s about time you get out there again and this is perfect for you. Everyone’s using apps these days, no-one goes out to pull. It’s all digital, babe.”). He feels a twist in his stomach, these apps always made him uncomfortable. He hated the idea of faceless, nameless men looking at his photo and swiping past him. And even though Cas had helped him with the photos and his scars were barely visible in most of them, it only made him feel dishonest and he still felt just as uncomfortable all the same.

He heaves a sigh, a frustrated sort of noise, mostly at himself. He needs to get a grip, there is no point sitting and feeling sorry for himself. He opens the app with a bit too much force, as if wanting to prove to himself how determined he is. This particular app (he can’t really tell them apart even though Cas had tried to explained the difference between them to him) seems to be focused on people somewhat nearby.

He swipes, left and right, but his heart isn’t quite in it. The men smiling up at him from his phone all blend together after a while – muscled bodies (usually shirtless), wide smiles, suggestive poses. Climbing mountains, fishing, swimming, paddling. He’s just about to close the app again when someone familiar catches his gaze and he feels his mouth go dry. Black, sleek hair, piercing grey eyes, a crooked sort of smirk on pink lips. Fuck.

Remus’ stomach sinks. Of course Sirius Black would be on a dating app, and of course he’d look like a million pounds. Remus should swipe no, instantly, because he couldn’t swipe yes, but somehow his thumb isn’t listening to him anymore. Instead he finds himself flicking through the photos (Sirius shirtless in front of the mirror, Sirius in the woods, Sirius by the sea, Sirius on a boat, Sirius with his arm flung over someone’s shoulder, laughing at the camera).

Remus feels something flutter in his chest. He should swipe no. He should most definitely swipe no, not yes, but also, a voice in the back of his mind (who sounds suspiciously much like Cas) tells him, what if you swipe yes and he has too, and you’ll match? If he swipes yes and Sirius swipes yes then, well, then that’s alright, isn’t it? And if Sirius swipes no (he will most definitely swipe no, because, well, because) then he would never even have known that Remus ever swiped yes and he could just forget all about this.

Remus takes a deep breath, drains what’s left of the wine, and before he can change his mind he swipes. His heart stops and he forgets to breathe and the second it takes for his phone to buzz and chime with a cheerful “It’s a MATCH!” feels like it goes on forever. Remus stomach drops out as he stares at the phone, Sirius’ face grinning up at him before it makes way for a chat window and Remus is vaguely aware that he’s in full on panic mood now.

This is a mistake, he thinks, numbly, tossing the phone away from him. This is a terrible, terrible mistake because what is he supposed to do now? What if Sirius had only swiped yes as a laugh. Yes, that must be it. It must be a mistake. Or some sort of joke. Remus stands to make his way over to the kitchen, refilling his glass of wine. He can hear his phone ping from the other room and it almost makes the wine slosh over the edge of the glass. He closes his eyes briefly, taking a deep breath. This is ridiculous. He’s a fully grown man, a father, not some lovesick teenager.

He returns to the sofa, gripping his phone again. He takes another couple of gulps of wine to steady himself slightly, heart hammering in his chest even if he pretends it isn’t. His thumb hovers over the little thumbnail with Sirius’ face before he takes a deep breath and opens the message.

Sirius: well hello, fancy seeing you here

#wolfstar microfic #muggle au #wolfstar muggle au #sirius black #remus lupin #sirius/remus #sirius x remus #wolfstar #sirius raising harry #remus raising teddy

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ruminate88 · 6 months

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My Best Friends And Lovers Were My Enemies Too 😰

I can truly say you don’t ever know a person fully because they can hide thoughts and feelings in their heart and head. The Bible claims to me in Jeremiah 17; The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked, who can know it? (I don’t even know my own heart sometimes and it’s confused me a lot in the past)

I know I’m far from perfect myself and have made countless mistakes. I’m not judging folks, I only tried to trust and find loving relationships but in my past, I was so empathetic and emotional, I attracted so many haters and abusers. People whom could only use me and pretend to care deeply for me. I had an online friend named Bri, from Washington Seattle, that we were on again, off again, for many many years! Bri would some how break my trust, I would pull away but then she would always come back around and some how we were always friends again. She would play both sides too! Bri was also friends with a girl online named Christine and this Christine always hated me from day one. (I never really got to talk to Christine, I always just tried to ignore her and focus on my own problems.) Bri knew this and would act like she was only friends with Christine to get information about her but I knew better. I tried to always give Bri the benefit of the doubt and forgave her countless times until one day Bri went too far.

I had been dating this guy named Andrew, whom, I didn’t know he was a narcissist but Andrew’s behavior in our relationship was very bizarre and confusing. I had made the mistake to complain to Bri countless times about Andrew and Bri took it upon herself to investigate!! Bri went behind my back and started texting Andrew. They apparently talked and sexted for a month behind my back. If Bri was just looking out for me, why did she need to sext with him?? Whenever Bri confessed to me what she had done, I just didn’t see how I could ever trust her again or have a normal friendship with her. I also questioned Andrew and he played dumb, claimed he believed I made a new account and he SWORE he believed that he was only talking to me the whole time. (I wasn’t born yesterday, I knew Andrew was trying to cover up the truth.)

Andrew wasn’t the only man in my life who lied and cheated. Bri wasn't the only dishonest friend in my life either. I learned that people can make mistakes, people can be selfish and can disappoint you. I’ve had special people in my life but even some folks deceive you by making you believe they’re special but they’re trying to gain something from you.

You just have to navigate yourself, having a firm belief system and sticking to it! Always knowing that people can let you down but the Bible tells me in 1 John 4:18: “Perfect Love cast out all fear!” From my own personal experiences, I could easily be afraid to ever have relationships again but then that would be the most cold and lonelist space. I work hard to pray to God and pray for loving people in my life. You won’t always know a persons true colors right away but expecting people not to be perfect, helps me not to be so disappointed and I’m more apt to understand people now and move on. I don’t live so hard anymore as I use to. I use to consistently fall apart and play the victim; having countless pity parties with myself.

Without love and relationships, you put yourself alone in a box and shut yourself off from living. You don’t have to have 100 friends, you do need people though. I’ve felt alone and isolated many times in my past and it’s the worst feeling I’ve ever experienced. I don’t understand people that insist on living alone and away from civilization. I realize the world can be cruel and dark but maybe you can be a light for them! Don’t give up! I know it’s hard to stand out from the crowd and be different. You don’t feel like you even fit in. I was always the empath and the emotional one in all my past relationships till one day God sent me my husband who is even more sensitive than me♥️ My husband cries when I’m hurt. That’s beyond sweet to me and nothing I ever had before.

Make your hellos and goodbyes count!! 🥺 Life is so short, you never know when it’s your last moment. Don’t run from people who actually try to be there for you, cherish them. (I know it’s hard sometimes to know who is really your friend or your enemy) My friend Brianna passed away in 2018 and I never got to forgive her or say goodbye. Even if she was wrong or wanted to hurt me, she still was a human like me and I should’ve been the bigger person and accepted her apologies but I let my disappointment and feelings cloud my judgement towards her. Didn’t mean I had to trust her again but what if she needed my friendship? What if I was the only light in her life?? I’ve asked God for wisdom and for forgiveness myself. I know I’m not better than anyone else and just as I want people to forgive my mistakes, I want to forgive others too but it’s hard. You don’t learn everything about life and people in a day!

Don’t beat yourself up! Forgive yourself too and if someone repeatedly hurts you, walk away but you should forgive them and love them from a distance. Yes you need relationships in your life but you do not have to take abuse from anyone!! God can put the right people in your path but you have to step out of your comfort zone and let people in!! God does not want you to isolate yourself! God created you for relationships! ♥️♥️♥️♥️

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purplesurveys · 2 months

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1840

When was the last time you were sick? How incapacitated were you by the illness/ailment? End of November. A nasty flu had been going around, so even though I just had Covid the month before I still managed to catch the bug and had a 40-degree fever. It wasn't nearly as bad as Covid, but with that high of a fever I still felt very weak and very very cold. My skin felt like glass, and I was too lethargic to eat which didn't feel good.

Do you often reflect on your past in terms of "eras" or “milestone” time frames (eg, looking back and saying, “it’s been 10 years since X”, etc.)? Sure. It just makes things easier to remember that way, and in some ways a wholesome reminder of how far I've come.

Is there something you would like to do or be, but have pretty much accepted it won’t happen because it’s just “not the kind of person you are” or is otherwise incompatible with your personality, character, etc.? I doubt I will ever make it to the WWE just because it's such a huge, HUGE company with highly selective employment (only 800 employees, and that's including their satellite offices worldwide), plus the fact that I am not an American citizen already kills off any chance I'd have. It's a dream I'm not necessarily killing but have nonetheless accepted that it has little to no chance of ever happening.

Such is life.

When was the last time you experienced cognitive dissonance? Not sure when the last time was exactly, but the sample scenario I thought of is whenever I have a short temper at work. I need to remind myself that it, in the words of Gen Z, "it's not that serious." lol

If you use Letterboxd, what causes you to “heart”/“like” a film? I don't use Letterboxd and I don't really watch movies anymore.

Do you like people watching and is it something you do often? If so, where are your favorite locations to do so? Yeah, but I have to be in a certain disposition or location to do it. I like people-watching in foreign countries, or in my university which is open to the public.

Whether you want to have children or not, what do you think has had the greatest influence on your views of children/childrearing (eg, your parents, your own upbringing, your interactions with children as an adult, etc.)? It would be my experiences and realizations so far as I navigate being an adult. What I mean by that is in the time that I've been on this 'journey,' I've been learning that I like being alone. I'm also very focused on my career and, quite selfishly, I like keeping most of the money I earn for myself and for building my life and doing the things I'd love to experience for my own, like traveling. I don't see myself as the type of person who would go for juggling both career and family.

Is there anything that you enjoy that you simultaneously find intensely cringey? Is it so cringey that you wouldn’t normally admit to actually enjoying it? No. Life is too short to be overly conscious of things you like, and lbr people hardly give a fuck as we have our own lives to deal with.

I just spent four days straight spamming the shit out of my Instagram stories with extremely wordy reviews of the first 17 Wrestlemanias - 15-year-old Robyn would have talked herself out of doing that, worrying that people would think she is a loser lol. But I went ahead and did it anyway regardless if people would read it or not, because in the first place I did it for myself thinking it'd be lovely to have an archive of my experiences watching the shows.

When was the last time you felt someone was being dishonest with you — not necessarily downright lying to your face, but acting or responding to you in a way that seemed false or did not feel like their true self? It's been a while since I felt like this.

Similarly, when was the last time you saw a side of someone that made you question your preexisting perception of them? It's an ongoing process currently. Ange was recently transferred to my team, but I was warned that she didn't have the best reputation in her previous department as she was known for being condescending and bossy, especially towards her juniors.

I don't have a final verdict on her yet as we've only been working together for all of two weeks, but it's something I actively have my eyes on.

If you were a doll, what outfit(s) and accessories would you come with? Purple hair, a t-shirt tightly cropped just right above the belly button, denim jeans, white sneakers, and a cute lil handbag hanging on my shoulder. And an Army Bomb hehe.

What was the last bit of praise you received? People complimented my lipstick a few days ago, I guess that counts? Hahaha.

When you hear or see your name written out (as in /your/ name, not someone else who shares your name), do you immediately recognize it as your own, or is there a moment of disconnect before that recognition? Good question. There's definitely a bit of a disconnect, mainly because my name is relatively uncommon and there's that moment of "hey that's me" when I see my name spelled out hahaha

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chicagomxde · 1 year

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An alcoholic father, a shitty mother and a dishonest brother didn’t stop CM Punk from fulfilling his destiny and becoming number one. The guy with long hair and tattoos all over his body, someone no one would ever bet on, became the greatest star in wrestling today, so much that you hear the crowd chanting his name (for better or worse) even when he isn’t there. Please feel free to think he’s an ego maniac, a narcissist, he couldn’t care less about other people’s opinion, the only one that matters is his. Besides, you couldn’t be more wrong: he’s just aware to be the best.

From ROH, to WWE, and now AEW; he conquered them all and he’s not planning to stop until his body literally can’t take it anymore. If you want a sincere and honest opinion, go to him, he won’t refrain from telling you that you suck in something. Sometimes, he can also be a good friend. Don’t invite him to press conferences though, you may not like it.

If you wanna plot with this Drama Queen, his the❤️and I’ll come to your DMs (or you can message me directly and say ‘hey fuck face let’s plot’, I promise I won’t bite). Ships are based on chemistry.

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jenyifer · 7 months

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Breaking Boston pt10

Well this is the final scene. I have already gone into depth about how I think Nick saying “you are better off alone is fucked.” The post is here. I will never be able to justify the narrative here. It feels incredibly wrong. I wrote a charactization of Boston and Nick and I think it’s still how I see them “Boston is sex positive honest boy who learns to love. Nick is an obsessive self-conscious boy who learns to respect himself he doesn’t give in to Boston but he stays supportive.” I was fully aware bostonnick wasn’t end game… the show had been hinting something bad was going on with Nick for awhile. I wasn’t expecting a 180 on both of my boys. For this I’m going to give you two endings as fast as I can.

1 the realistic breakup end.

2 the we can make things work.

I haven’t read the novel so that’s not influencing me. I’ll put the fixes below the cut so they don’t clutter your feeds

Ending One the break up

Boston sits down next to Nick and immediately starts trying to apologize. But Nick hushes him and takes the present from Boston’s hands trying to calm him down. He can’t hear Bostons apologies when he has to break Bostons heart. Nick looks at the photograph of him on Bostons bead and starts to cry a little and says, “I’m not that person anymore Ton. He didn’t know what he was getting into when you walked into my life. He probably would have followed you to New York. Been happy with whatever you gave him. But you’ve changed me truly for the better. By breaking my heart you showed me I have worth. I learned I am desirable and capable of so much love. Boston.” Nick would hold Bostons face looking into his eyes because Boston won’t be doing great by this point. “Listen to me. I will always love you. I will be the first person to congratulate you on your success. But I can’t tie you down. We want two different things. I’m sorry I can’t make my feelings disappear but… I know you won’t want me to be dishonest with you… do you understand.”Boston tried to keep himself together but agrees. Boston thanks Nick for everything hugs him one more time then when he feels the tears he stands up and walks away not facing nick he says “you are the only person I’ll call boyfriend but if all I can do is call you friend… that’s better than nothing.. have a good night Nick you deserve happiness.” Boston sprints back to the car and leaves his heart breaking into a million pieces like glass but at least Nick will always be with him.

Ending 2 endgame

Nick is waiting for Boston looking at photos of them on his phone. He can’t go through with breaking up with Boston. He can’t stomach the thought of never seeing his smile again. When Boston sits down Nick puts a hand on his leg his voice already close to breaking. He tell Boston he’s made a decision but before Nick can expand on that Boston gives him the present trying to ease things. Boston believes nick is going to leave him. Nick looks at his photograph and feels a swell of affection for boston. Boston always saw the real Nick. Boston made him look good and feel fantastic. Boston made him into the savage sexy guy he is. Nick presses the photo into Bostons hands again and says “we can put it up in our new apartment. You take it there first I’ll join you once my internship is over. You can miss me everyday.” Boston takes a second to process this he can’t believe it he’s in shock. Nick leans forward to kiss him but Boston stops him and says “what if I hurt you again? I really didn’t mean to at the bar. You don’t want the same things as me. I can promise I won’t kiss anyone but you but I don’t know if I can keep it. I’ll try I never want to hurt you again please understand me” Nick strokes Bostons cheek looking into his eyes “we can compromise but right now I know I love you and I want you to want me in your bed every night until you leave. I want to be the one you love. We can negotiate terms but I really want to build a life on our dreams together.” Boston and Nick kiss and things fade to black or hot spicy scene but doesn’t seem necessary 🤷🏻‍♀️ your choice of fantasy ending.

#only friends the series #ofts #only friends #bostonnick #only friends boston #only friends nick #ofts Boston #ofts nick #only friends episode 12 #ofts ep12 #jenny’s rambling #ofts meta

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youllallriseintheink · 1 year

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The Infiltrator, chapter 4: A Legendary Rivalry

N woke up in the orb pool and sat up. It occurred to him that he wasn’t sure what to ask it for. If nothing else, now could be a good time to see if he could give it more complicated demands.

“I want to see what he thinks the plan is. And if you can show me anything about the other admins, that would be great, too.”

Several orbs lifted from the pool and arranged themselves in a line. The line of orbs slithered towards N’s forehead like a snake, and the first one made contact with his forehead, transporting him into the memories.

---

Maxie seethed anger. To be rescued from his dried-out husk of a universe, only to be wrapped up in an evil scheme he wasn’t even allowed to know about, planted in an room to slow down challengers like a mere grunt, and then whipped by random child had not put him in a good mood. He was just on his way down the Aether Foundation’s halls to fetch some revives and hyper potions when he saw someone emerged from one of the doors to make his day even worse.

“Archie?!”

The pirate caught notice of him. “Maxie?!”

“What are you doing here? How are you even here? Are you here to ruin my plans again, you imbecile!?”

“Yer plans? Giovanni made a deal with me! He said that I’m the most successful Archie in the multiverse! And that every version of me was more successful than you’ve ever been!

Maxie crossed his arms and smiled condescendingly in the way that he knew infuriated Archie so much. “Hmph! Well, he was lying to you. You see, he said the exact same thing to me, and I happen to be able to tell when people are being dishonest.”

Archie ground his teeth. “Arg, you pretentious little dolt! Come here and I’ll show ye who the better man is!”

Maxie wasn’t about to take that sitting down. He came towards Archie with fists raised. Predictably, Archie had him pinned down quick with his caveman strength, but Maxie managed to get his teeth around Archie’s wrist and bit until he drew blood. Bellowing in pain, Archie tore his arms away for long enough for Maxie to get to his feet. They exchanged blows for a few seconds before a group of Rainbow Rocket grunts took notice of the brawl and held the two back from each other.

“This isn’t over, Archie!” Maxie spat, struggling against the grips of three grunts.

“Aye. Seems it ain’t ever over, Maxie,” Archie replied.

The scene changed. Maxie was sitting in Giovanni’s office, Archie in a chair beside him and Giovanni pacing before them.

“Alright. So, you had a physical fight. In front of the invading children. While you were headed to revive your Pokémon. You do realize that the time and manpower those grunts wasted splitting you up could have been used to stop them, right?”

Archie and Maxie stayed silent.

“So, truth be told, I was hoping to keep the two of you on separate sides of the Aether Paradise building long enough to raise the Ultra Beast army and move on into the next stage of the plan, at which point it wouldn’t matter if you two could be left in the same room or not. But the fact is, the takeover wasn’t a smash success or a complete failure. Everyone escaped to the back-up compound, and we at least stole the information to raise Ultra Beasts. But that means that I still have use for you two, and so you’re going to have to tolerate each other or I will be putting you both back into your respective universes. Capisce?”

“Yes, Giovanni,” the two said in unison. Maxie thought better of asking what would have been done with them had the plan been more successful.

“Good. Honestly, you two were such a good team back before you decided terrorism should be done to help your fellow beings. Just focus on the dollar bill and you won’t argue about your petty little differences in values anymore. Now scram. I’m late for my persian’s dance recital.”

Archie and Maxie got up and went back to the admins’ common area, which was surprisingly empty for it being around break time. The two gravitated to separate sides of the room, taking the occasional glance at each other.

Don’t do it, Maxie. Just play on your phone for a few minutes and then someone else will come in and it’ll be easier to resist the urge to strangle him.

“So, you won in your universe, too.” Damn it, Maxie. Self-control!

“Aye.”

“Was it worth it?”

“Without a single doubt. Pokémon can thrive now that people aren’t ruinin’ things for em’.”

“I’m sure all the children you drowned will be thrilled to hear that. How many people are left in your world? How are they living now that you ruined the planet?”

“A few hundred people escaped the flood on boats before the waters receded, and now they’re doin’ just fine. Adapting as humans do. And how goes the mass extinction over in your universe? How are you all doin’ without water?”

“I’m not an idiot, Archie. I know we need water. We still have lakes and rivers. The ecosystem is adapting, as ecosystems do. Humanity will never want for space or resources again now that the oceans are drained. And don’t lecture me on mass extinctions. You must have wiped out just about every land-dwelling species on the planet.”

Archie rolled his eyes and started going through a stack of magazines left on the coffee table. Maxie turned his attention to his phone for a few minutes before looking back to Archie.

“Look. This sucks for both of us, and we might as well not make it suck worse. I’m sorry for starting an argument. Let’s agree to not do that again, and to not engage the other if either of us does. We don’t have to be friends. We just have to stay out of each other’s way. Okay?”

Archie nodded. “Okay.” Was there something sad in his voice, or was Maxie just imagining it?

The scene changed. The Maxie was sitting in a line with the five other admins, Giovanni standing before a white board with a roughly-drawn map of Melemele island with three photos, one of each of the Alola starters on it. He and Archie kept giving each other sharp glances despite there being two people in between them.

“Alright, gentlemen,” Giovanni started, standing in front of the map, “one month from now, school will let off for the summer, meaning that a number of young people will be starting their Pokémon journeys. And we all know that the greatest threat to any criminal empire is that posed by children on Pokémon journeys. So, here’s what we’re going to do about it: We’ll intercept the shipments of starter Pokémon so that the children of Alola will have to wait until next year to have their journeys. Lysandre and I will be taking the shipment of rowlets being bred near Verdant Cavern. Archie, the littens are already en-route, so you’re going to have to steal their ship. Can you handle that?”

“Of course,” Archie answered, passing a smug side glance at Maxie.

He’ll have something for me. He’ll have something better for me, Maxie assured himself.

“Alright. And someone needs to go after the popplio being bred at the seashore, so... Archie, choose a partner, and whoever’s left, go get the popplio.”

Archie immediately grabbed Ghetsis’ hand. Of course he chose the one with military experience- he wanted to make himself look like some big hero with this stupid mission. Well, Maxie would show him!

Cyrus was the only one left for Maxie to pair with. He could work with that. Maxie took him into the hallway.

“So... Cyrus. You must have explosives in your lab, right?”

Cyrus looked at Maxie with dead eyes, as though Maxie were the stupidest and most annoying person alive. “How is that relevant?”

“I wanted to put some flair into this mission, and I was thinking...”

“We’re stealing Pokémon. What good is ‘flair’ when, in the best case scenario, we won’t even be seen?”

“Well, I- Archie gets to do something incredible, so-”

“I have no interest in the meaningless strife between you and Archie. But, if that’s what this about, it would be easier to give in than to risk you trying to come up with some heroics on the fly.”

Maxie smiled. “I knew you’d be on on board with this.” Maybe, Maxie thought, while Archie was stuck with Ghetsis, Maxie could get a second victory on Archie by befriending one of the most unpersonable admins.

A few hours later, the two men were watching as dozens of popplio and brionne clumsily rolled and flopped over each other as they exited their crates and made their way down the steep rock cliff and into the waters of a secluded, rocky beach. The adorable seals looked none too bothered. The distant crackling of a fire and wail of a fire siren pierced the air as the two got into their getaway vehicle.

“Well, that was a near-perfect success, now wasn’t it?” Maxie said.

“It was,” Cyrus replied, starting the car’s engine and pulling onto the road.

“Not only will the kids not be getting their popplio this year, we burnt down their breeding facility and released their breeding brionne. They’ll be lucky if there’s popplio next year, either.”

“Yes.”

“It’s so good to have another academic to talk to. So, how are you adjusting to Team Rainbow Rocket, Cyrus?”

“I’m not interested in your friendship. I don’t intend on spending more time in Rainbow Rocket than necessary. This is a waste of your time.”

“No, it isn’t. We’re in a vehicle. It’ll go just as fast whether I fill the awkward silence or not.”

Cyrus sighed. “I suppose. What do you want to talk about?”

“Well... where do you come from? Do you miss home?”

“Sinnoh. And no.”

“Oh. Because you like this place better?”

“I care nothing for the old world. That’s why I was willing to destroy it to create something better.”

Maxie nodded. “We both have reasons for regret.”

“My only regret is that I wasn’t able to finish my work.”

“Oh. Well, I’d ask for elaboration on why you don’t regret destroying the world and everyone in it, but I want to be able to sleep tonight, so, um.” Maxie cleared his throat. “You’re into space, right? Hoenn was a real nice place for meteor showers and I even got to do some geology work on some asteroids. Interesting stuff, right?”

Hey, this had to be better than Archie was doing with Ghetsis, so he was still winning, right?

The scene changed. Maxie was lying in his bed, wide awake. He turned over to look at his digital clock, which read 4:46. A few hours ago, he’d woken up from a dream about Hoenn. Nothing special had happened in it, just regular nonsensical dream things, but anything that made him think of the home he might never return to was bound to keep him up at night.

It was useless to lay in bed. Maxie got up, put on his daytime clothes, and left his room. He approached Archie’s door and raised a fist to knock on it, but he just couldn’t. Archie was adapting so well to this place, and to show weakness like this... Archie would never let him forget it. Maxie turned and took to his office instead.

Maxie focused himself on balancing Rainbow Rocket’s books. It was fairly easy work considering their generous budget, but also a reminder that the other admins were as intractable as cats. He scanned over a list of bills and invoices.

An invoice from Stage 3- a pure gold necklace, gifted to the princess of Paldea. Of course Lysandre had found another person he wanted to bribe into joining his little task force. It was more surprising that this was the first one this month.

The monthly energy bill- surely enough to power a small village thanks to Cyrus’ lab.

An invoice from Stage 2- a Judas Cradle. Inexpensive, and Maxie knew better than to question what that was. He’d made that mistake before by searching up “breaking wheels” on his pokétch and was forced to conclude that either Ghetsis’ invasion plans involved a lot of psychological warfare or... well, it was better not to wonder.

About an hour into his work, Maxie heard a knock at the door.

Maxie groaned. Who could it possibly be at this hour?

To Maxie’s surprise, it was Archie. “Maxie, could ya come with me a second?” he asked, a sheepish look on his face.

Maxie looked up at Archie. “Sure.”

Archie led Maxie down to a beach. The sunrise was turning both the water and the sand a brilliant orange, and the air was beginning to warm up. Archie looked out at the water, a solemn look on his face.

“If yer world is so great, then why do ya follow Giovanni? The threat he be usin’ on us is to put us back in our universes, after all.”

Maxie sighed. “I was hoping you’d ask that, actually. My universe didn’t turn out. Groudon was uncontrollable. He dried out all the surface water in the world. Pockets of humanity are surviving by using ground water for crops and personal use, but I’m not sure they’ll be able to last long enough for the water to return.” Maxie brushed tears from his eyes. “You tried to stop me. I know you’re not the version of him who did, but I’m sorry that I didn’t listen. I’m so, so sorry.”

Archie turned to look at him, bewildered. “There’s a universe where I was the rational one?”

“Yes!”

“In my universe, you tried to stop me.”

“I’m sorry-”

“No! I should’ve listened. Kyogre flooded the world. He capsized every one of our ships and I couldn’t stop it! I’m not sure humanity’s going to make it.”

There was a moment of silence between them.

“I’m glad there’s someone who knows how I feel. Do you miss Hoenn, Archie?”

“Aye. Every day. I miss Slateport City. And I miss knowin’ what the hell I was workin’ towards.”

Maxie nodded. “Remember back when we were just Team Rocket grunts and you took me to the hot springs in Lavaridge? Or did that happen in your universe?”

Archie smiled. “It did. Yer numel ran off with yer glasses-”

“-And I had to run after him with just a towel on. I remember. In that universe, were we... you know...”

“Datin’? No. I never had the courage to ask.”

“Well, actually, I asked you.”

Archie’s face scrunched up in offence. “You got the courage up before me?!”

“Yes,” Maxie said, his voice slipping back into that condescending tone, but he stopped himself. “If it makes you feel better, you could do the honours now.”

“Well, alright. Maxie, this position we’re in is shitty and the other admins are monsters, but let’s give this place a silver lining. Come here.” Archie spread his arms out, and Maxie came in to kiss him. It had been years since he’d felt the stubble on Archie’s face and tasted his sea salt-flavoured lips, and he loved it.

The two separated. “You know, I’ve been wondering: what did Giovanni tell you about the plan? Maybe we can figure out a little more of what he’s planning.”

“He told me that there would be more wild areas for Pokémon. I didn’t ask him to elaborate because I didn’t believe him to begin with.

“Hm. He promised me more space for people. Assuming he isn’t just lying entirely, maybe he’s going to create a new country for himself. It would make sense, as that would give him a good place to start the invasion he’s planning. But again, he could have just been lying to both of us.”

“Well, regardless, let’s keep our eyes peeled for a way out of here, or more information on what the bloody hell he’s doing.”

“Yes. Once there’s a chance, we’ll leave here together. Let’s make that a promise.”

Archie put a hand on Maxie’s shoulder as they looked out at the sunrise. “I promise.”

#pokemon #archie x maxie #pokemon n #magma boss maxie #aqua boss archie #rocket boss giovanni #galactic boss cyrus #my fanfiction

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