#FIRST KISS...EPISODE 5...MAY 1

[bl-bam-beyond]

WE ARE: THE SERIES (2024, THAILAND)

Episode 5

Phum (NARAVIT LERTRATKOSUM aka POND) has been showing a different side as his prank on Pheem (PHUWIN TANGSAKYUEN) solicited many a apology.

Phum now uses their "slave contract" to get Pheem to join him for alone time.

After a friend group head out together (bring the art majors and the engineering majors plus Fang together) Phum and Pheem like Tan and Fang before them separate off on their own little dates.

Tan and Fang become the first of the four couples to become official.

But Phum and Pheem reach their first milestone, not yet a couple the two share a first kiss (not including the accidental kiss Phum landed earlier) initiated by Pheem.

[wolfofansbach]

BEING A LIST OF THE THIRTEEN GREATEST RIVERDALE LINES, ON THE OCCASION OF THAT SHOW'S TERMINATION

As our much loved/hated show comes to an end, I feel compelled to record, for posterity, the greatest thirteen pieces of dialogue to spring from the pens of RAS and his henchmen. It was, of course, originally a top ten list, but I simply could not exclude a few of these treasures. Without further ado: 

13. 

“I dropped out in the 4th grade, to sell drugs, to support my nana.” 

“That means you haven't known the triumphs and defeats, the epic highs and lows of high school football.” 

Spoken by: an inmate of Leopold and Loeb Juvenile Detention Center, and Archie Andrews. 

In: 3 x 2 

Yeah, okay, this one had to be on the list. It’s funny, I’ll admit. It’s a great example of the overwrought semi-sincere melodrama that helped make this show so special. It’s low on the list largely because The Normies got their hands on it, so every time I hear someone make a reference I get all “do not cite the deep magic to me, witch.” 

12. 

“No! No! What are we supposed to do now? I’m horny as heck!”

Spoken by: Archie Andrews 

In: 7 x 16

Season 7 is undeniably dreadful, and yet there are diamonds in the rough. The occasion is the failure of a projector, just as Archie and Reggie prepare to watch a pornographic film. The utter desperation with which KJ Apa delivers this line is exquisite. One is made to feel they are witnessing a genuine tragedy. 

11. 

“Tonight, they’re making an exception and debuting a cover of the song my parents claim they were listening to the night Jason and I were conceived.” 

Spoken by: Cheryl Blossom. 

In: 1 x 1 

Really a fantastic line. A wonderful encapsulation of the casual absurdity of Cheryl’s character, and a foretaste of the lunacy we would plumb in later episodes and seasons. 

10. 

“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m weird. I’m a weirdo. I don’t fit in and I don’t want to fit in. Have you ever seen me without this stupid hat on? That’s weird.” 

Spoken by: Jughead Jones

In: 1 x 10

A genuine classic. “High school football” before ��high school football.” One is never entirely sure just how sincere the line is meant to be, both on a meta-level and in-universe. A perfect illumination of Jughead’s pretentiousness. It is made all the better by the occasional cuts to Lili Reinhard’s agonized face. 

9. 

“At the last dance, multiple students were murdered.” 

Spoken by: Principal Holden Honey. 

In: 4 x 2

Delivered as an explanation to Toni and Cheryl, as to why there would be no school dance this year. Principal Honey is in fact supremely rational in the cancellation of this dance. This being Riverdale, he is of course treated as an unreasonable tyrant. 

8. 

“Bro, I know all the secrets of this universe.” 

Spoken by: Archie Andrews (evil version)

In: 6 x 5 

Spoken as evil Archie reveals his evil plan to keep the parallel universes apart. KJ Apa’s delivery once again makes this line. He is comically sinister. Strangely, he sells it. 

7. 

“A Vughead kiss, right now, in the present might be precisely what it takes to save a future Bughead from imploding.” 

Spoken by: Jughead Jones. 

In: 2 x 14

One of those lines that both makes me laugh and makes me genuinely angry. This was a fairly early season, and this may have actually been the first line to get me asking, ‘did they genuinely write and deliver that?’ Extra points for use of the atrocious ‘Vughead’ portmanteau ship name rather than ‘Jeronica.’ 

6. 

“I’m the ultimate wild card. I am the daughter of The Black Hood. The nightmare from next door. I’m training with the FBI and I’m coming for you, you psycho bitch.” 

Spoken by: Betty Cooper

In: 4 x 14 

Just delicious. Another one of those lines that leaves you somewhat unsure whether or not the writers understood how genuinely hysterical it was. “The Nightmare from Next Door” sounds like an announcer hyping up a wrestler. Spoken with a raw sincerity by Lili Reinhart. Also points for the heavy homoeroticism between Betty and Donna. 

5. 

“For I am Cheryl Blossom, Queen of the Bees.” 

Spoken by: Cheryl Blossom.

In: 5 x 16. 

This one really doesn’t require any elaboration. 

4. 

“Elijah ascended…and I will, too.” 

Spoken by: Edgar Evernever.

In: 4 x 5. 

Admittedly, this one is only spectacular with context. But in context—the context being that Chad Michael Murray delivers this line while dressed like Evel Knievel and standing in a cartoon rocket right out of a Warner Bros cartoon—it becomes utterly magnificent. 

3. 

“It’s not queer baiting, it’s saving the world.” 

Spoken by: Veronica Lodge. 

In: 6 x 22. 

It’s actually hard for me to decide whether this one is funnier with or without context. Without context it’s wonderful, but it possibly becomes even funnier when you know that the context is that Veronica needs to kiss Cheryl to transfer superpowers into her body so she can turn into a Scarlet Witch knock-off and stop a magic comet summoned by Sephiroth an English wizard who is also the Devil. 

2. 

“If there’s no wedding reception, it means the Gargoyle King has won.” 

Spoken by: Kevin Keller. 

In: 3 x 12.

One of my personal favorites. This is a perfect line because like #3, it requires no real elaboration. There is absolutely no context in which it isn’t hysterical. 

1 .

“Word of my exploits serving Nick his comeuppance has seeped into the demimonde of mobsters and molls my father used to associate with, so the five families are sending their youngest and brightest, their ‘princes,’ as it were to, well, come court the rare Mafia Princess who can belly up to the bar with the big boys.

Spoken by: Veronica Lodge. 

In: 2 x 20. 

This is, in my opinion, the all-timer. Every word is perfect. The rapid-fire alliteration. The use of the word ‘demimonde.’ The entirely unnecessary addition of ‘as it were.’ This is borderline Dr. Seuss. The fact that Camila Mendes delivered it without cracking a smile should have won her an Emmy. No. An Oscar. This line is Riverdale. 

[miaoumeowmiaw]

MORE ST5 LEAKS AND INFORMATION (AFTER FEBRUARY)

Hey... I’m back. Recently my ST5 leaks from May blew up on Twitter, so I figured I could put all of my Asks here. There are unreleased photos of the characters and set available in the ENG Minou server, but they will posted on Tumblr and Twitter in a separate post to make it easier to access. In the meantime I hope this interests you, too.

I saw an account on Twitter posting a leaked photo with the synpsis of the first episode of ST5. It said “Chapter One: The Crawl. Hawkins is under quarantine after the Upside Down events. Our heroes hide from the government, still plotting a capture, when an unexpected event destabilizes the team. Steve and Robin take over the new radio station, buzzing with odd mysteries, as a new face shows up in town.”

Fake.

the bar “leak” about will talking to a young, caucasian guy with a mustache… is that legit? i’m cringing just thinking about it, but the milevens seem to be very happy and are taking this as a win, so.

I can confirm there is a character who talks to Will at the bar. There is no stable answer for the gender and appearance of the character, last time I checked. This leak is old and only based on residents and staff near the area of filming, who caught glimpses of the scene.

ok i'll bite wdym by the field kiss

There is a kissing scene between Mike and Eleven. It is NOT on the baseball/softball field, it is on a field near the radio station. People blew it out of proportion, but it was confirmed as being real around the same time that my original May leaks were gathered, and is still true as of January.

It looks like I’m an exception here because I care more about the plot and family dynamics than ships. Do you know anything about what’s going on with Henry/Linda’s character/ upside down flashbacks ?

Henry is using new methods of sensory and mental illusion to keep track of his victims. No more of what we saw in ST4, and music does not work as it usually would. Key words to keep in mind: flashbacks, « false flashbacks », visions, beliefs, and control. For some characters there is a larger tilt toward one of these 5. For most of the season he is pursuing Holly by pretending to be a new, troubled resident of Hawkins and requiring her assistance. He causes the death of Ted in front of her. Derek, Erica and Karen join the investigation into these interactions and Holly's disappearance. Will begins to be pursued when Mike, Dustin and Lucas start a separate investigation. It is as if he is a child again, and the only reason we know it is a false flashback is because it blends with reality. This is especially true for a tree Will falls from: visually, it switches. Henry becomes more attached to the real world the longer that the Upside Down remains exposed to Hawkins, and the longer that he pursues residents. There are multiple sicknesses and attacks from the Upside Down. After a certain point he fully reveals himself as Vecna and kills the majority of the military team who were maintaining the quarantine zone of Hawkins and stunting the main cast.

Tell us 👹 Also do you have info on the Hopper x Mike talk? Sorry if Im being annoying I just didn't have a good day lol

It's a sad conversation, but also positive. Maybe bittersweet is the word. It was based on a loss or something similar that impacted both characters, but more Mike, and he makes a sarcastic or joking comment to Hopper about having hope and confidence in something related to it.

Do you know if the whole Holly is the Cleric Mike was talking about thing is true, and if Mike+Will+Holly spend time together?

The figure theories are correct, Mike was referring to a Dungeons and Dragons character meant to represent and protect Holly. That name and quote were taken directly from the graphic database, meaning that, if they were approved by the Duffer brothers and additional crew, they would have been featured together in promotional material and goods for VOL 1 October and November releases.

Based on what you know so far, were the Duffers telling the truth that the new season would have a focus on Will’s character? Or were they overselling it? Thank you!

Yes.

Any hints at what Henry wanted/wants Will for? What does he “build”?

Fire.

Is there more to Karen wheeler? There's been so many theories on this lady she's interesting

Yes.

hii, do you have any info on that “Secret ‘Red Rock’ set” they built behind the radio station? A paparazzo mentioned they might have filmed some military scenes there but idk. It's ok if you can't answer

The military filming was in the general area, not that set specifically. Security was too tight for anybody to have seen what went on in the desert (« red rock »). It wasn't a secret, it was just located in the forest near WSQK and they did not want to test their luck. I agree with the paparazzi and locals in it being either a flashback or Upside Down-related shoot.

Do you have any leaks about the older teenagers/young adults (Nancy, Jonathan, Steve Robin)? I heard Robin and Steve are running the radio station or something like that but that's it.

Steve does not pursue Nancy. Nancy and Jonathan continue to date. Dustin is independent from Steve and Robin for the first half of ST5 as far as we guess, spending most of that time with Mike, Will and Lucas in their investigation. Robin is the main host of WSQK 94.5 FM: The Squawk. There are two 97P25J3 company vehicle models that they use and transport between sets, and in universe the older teens enter the Upside Down through them or are part of the plan in doing so. Specifically Jonathan and Steve with Dustin joining them. The Turnbow family of Realtors own multiple pieces of land in Hawkins, including the WSQK radio station and tower. There is a character who seeks temporary refuge in the WSQK radio station. The equipment in the WSQK radio station and vehicle is used to intercept Hawkins Laboratory and government communication, but they are unaware that it was detected and tracked to their location. This equipment is also considered for use in sharing pieces of information between the Upside Down and the real world. The WSQK radio station is raided.

Ok so I'm probably way off here but I think they may use time travel not to change timelines but to discover things they need to know ie somehow going back and watching wills vanishing for example. Or vecna actually taking them back through memories? Yeah I'm so wrong right

The Upside Down is an alternative reality that captures a moment from time and preserves it, because there are little to no things present to disrupt how things were in that moment. Specifically humans and their fragments in the environment. Think how our own reality works. Everything is linear. Things happen because we as humans cause them to happen. This is exactly what the Upside Down is, the only difference being there wasn't any humans to cause things to happen, until Will Byers was sent. Therefore is not possible to change that alternate reality in a way that resets time. If you can't do it here, you can't do it there. Vecna is not the exception to this. He does not cause any sort of time travelling, he is only giving characters that feeling through flashbacks, visions, nightmares and whatnot. It's not something they are controlling or wanting to do to try and win, it's something that is forced onto them to try and weaken their personhood. This is his new method.

Do you know anything about where Joyce, Will and Jonathan are living in season 5? People think Will might be staying over at Mike’s in episode 1

Wheeler residence.

Haha, I think you'd be doing the shipping fandom a favor. Because i think it's gonna be anti climatic regarding what's actually canon in the show, compared to fan fic, some want to be canon. I'm actually interested in who may die ( if anyone ) because I did see on x that apparently there's a fake sacrifice👀

Close to or more than the amount in Season 3 if you count the Flayed. However most of these deaths we see are people part of the government and local community. Ted dies near the beginning and there is a fake but impactful death plot near the end of ST5. The potential of Max, Will, Holly and Karen dying is brought up frequently, as well as a character that experiences an attack on their midsection, but this is a minor issue in the plot and they heal.

Pls sir may I have some more Will info? Anything 🥺

Birds are notorious for not displaying symptoms of illness. They need to be kept away from the rest of the flock, typically in a room that has disconnected air circulation and frequently cleaned caregivers. Many contributors to this, including travel-related stress, can worsen their condition by the simple fact that, while kept away, they hear the flock but are unable to interact with it. Birds yearn for the connection and they yearn for the help, but their biology does not allow them to display it, and the individuals observing are not able to properly translate that. It is lost between two species without adaptation and a learned understanding of their different behaviours, and this can then be mistaken as aggression or fear. Rather it is the attempt to maintain their own integrity in moments of sensitivity.

Hi, thanks for answering our questions btw! I'm unaware if you know the stage play. I know it's not officially canon in the duffers story. But will anything be used in the series from the play? Because in the play Henry went to dimension x and his blood changed in the play due to particle exposure. And I feel they could use this to explain wills time there with the blood change in the series. It's meant to link to the use of powers from the particles changing their blood. Sorry you may not know about that. Just curious. Thanks anyway!

The VR game has a lot more similarities to ST5 than the play. However neither of them are compulsory to experience for understanding the plot.

the leak about will having a love interest (that’s not mike) came out waaay before they shot the bar scene with him. so, i’m just wondering where the love interest leak even came from since it’s not referring to the bar leak… or was it entirely made up? i’m still confused about it which is why i’m asking you.

So-so.

last thing! please tell me the chance x will (bychance) stuff is just people being silly and that there’s nothing happening there. will’s love interest being some npc jock… i can’t see it. it’s so wild to me 😭

Fake.

Who is Mr.Miller?

Mr. Miller is a high ranking officer part of the American military and stationed in Hawkins to oversee INDIGO and other subprograms under MKUltra.

Oh, I just had an insight that the military lab might be underground beneath the destroyed downtown Hawkins (I’m delusional)

While there is a new laboratory and the INDIGO subprogram of MKUltra is still continuing in ST5, it's not to the same scale as previous seasons and it is not in the same manner as the Rainbow Room. I highly suggest looking at the first PDF leak for graphics, because there is a full map of Hawkins: what I can tell you is that the laboratory may or may not be in the path of the UD cracks and tunnels.

hii, do u know if the leak about khali coming back is true?

So-so.

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - Lots of lovely kisses & an unwarranted upset in the standings

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

Oct 2024 Week 2

Ongoing Series - Thai

Fourever You (Thai Thurs YT) ep 2 of 16 - Yes yes J&J should be first but I am weak in the face of, well, frankly this man's face:

Pond = greatest piner in a dog’s age. The yearning in that boy’s eyes is obscene, it’s like the most explicit sex that only he can see and we’re just voyeurs.

Thus I continue to adore this stupid show and everything it stands for. No notes. May the fluff continue eternal.

Jack & Joker (Thai Mon IQIYI) ep 5 of 12 - Everyone is so skilled in this show, but War is truly glorious. Considering the pacing, I think we are probably in for some long periods of darkness, suffering, and pain soon. I’m not mad about that prospect, it’s earned and foreshadowed, I just thought I’d lay it out there.

Kidnap (Fri YT) ep 6 of 12 - More boys from GMMTV with good communication. Who knew? Min has SUCH a white knight complex. NO SINGING. Good demanding kiss, though. Well, Ohm can handle anything. 

Meanwhile, this really is a bodyguard romance under another name. And I kinda wanna rewatch Never Let Me Go as a result.

Love Sick 2024 (Thai Sun iQIYI) ep 4 of 15 - Earn remains best boy and my favorite character. Phun is v jelly, as he should be. AND I like Ohm & N'Mik better in this version. I still prefer the original leads, but I’m enjoying this enough. 

I had no idea how much I missed Gunsmile! It’s so nice to see him on my screen again.

Monster Next Door (Thai Thurs Gaga ) ep 12 fin - I hate Diew’s mom. Hate her. So much. She may be my least favorite mom ever in BL. That’s saying a lot. No I don’t think she was redeemed. 

Conclusion

Adapted from the novel Godzilla Next Door by Jiwinil about an introvert who lives mostly in his room, until a loud annoying extrovert moves in next door. This was one of my top picks for 2024 and I’m delighted to say it satisfied expectations. A charmingly serene story of opposites attract, that featured good communication, patience, and genuine affection used to build a solid relationship.(I’m particularly delighted that our musician is a drummer and I don’t have to listen to him sing.) Yes it’s a tad slow but it’s very earnest and leans into the kind of sweetness that Thai BL does best. Doesn’t hurt that this starred an actor (Big) that many of us have been hoping would get a lead for years. I was pleased and comforted. This is not a kind of BL that suits everybody, but it suited me admirably. 8/10 

Battle of the Writers (Sun YT) ep 10 of 12 - Ozone and the Ice Prince (name still unknown) did their little dance. What an earnest and romantic confession from our Icy man. I literally said “no no no just kiss, no foreheads.” And it was a great crying kiss, my favorite. Honestly, that amount of emotion hadn’t been earned by this pair, but I don’t mind. I could watch a whole show just about them. Also woah! Major nekid on YT?

Thailand......

Risking demonetization for arse…...

I guess we’ve all been there. 

Where was I?

I’m happy with this episode since it was mostly my side couple. But the distribution of main couple and side couple and the focus of each episode is wildly erratic with this show. It’s very odd. (And let's be clear we ordered errotic not erratic.)

Every You Every Me (Thai Mon Gaga) ep 1 of 10 - Jade and Chin have lived over a thousand lifetimes. In each one they somehow manage to fall in love with each other. (This pair, TopMick was piloted in a My Universe ep, that was one of the only ones I liked.) Soulmate premise is a mix of Color Rush and La Pluie. Frankly, this isn’t as good as either, but it’s enjoyable in a slow cheerful way. Especially if you like this particular set of tropes. It’s quietly lovely and I like the leads. Sunshine is very very sunshine and our tsundere is a grumpy mysterious nerd. Trigger for domestic abuse. It looks like each episode is gonna be a completely different meet cute with the same pairing. It’s more linked vignettes than any overarching story. So if you don’t like this pair, you won’t like this series.

Addicted Heroin (Thai Tues WeTV) ep 9 of 10 - More sports day. (Everybody’s doing sports days right now.) Random sides kissing. Where did the glasses person come from? Was he introduced and I forgot about it? Oh that’s the evil cousin! Okay… anygay. Sides randomly flip-flop who they like and I don’t know what the fuck is going on. This show. I swear. Ooo caught kissing. And… killed? What a mind fuck of a soap opera. Honestly, I’m fine if he’s dead, I don’t care at this point I just feel jerked around. 

For some reason no eng sub for me for the first half. So I watched with Spanish subs (which is about as good as my Thai, only for different words). What a wild experience.

Bad Guy My Boss (Thai Sun Gaga) ep 4 of 10 - Oh dear. I just can’t imagine ever rooting for this couple. Which means… Why am I watching this? 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

My Damn Business (Korea Sat YT) eps 1-2 of 7 - Oh I love it. Casual flirty westernized-style boss. Reserved reluctant cutie (yes we’ve seen the actor before). Is it disgusting workplace harassment? Oh most certainly. Do I enjoy it anyway? Yep, I’m warped. No defense, but at least it’s something from Korea. 

Teenager Judge (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 3 of ? - I like the lead being bullied and pushed to his limit thus turning into a psychopath. It’s gonna be a fun ride if it really goes Devil Judge just teens and actually gay. I wonder if it has the strength of its convictions? 

Our Golden Times (Hong Kong YT) 5 fin? - I guess that is the reunion? What an odd little piece. I’m not entirely sure what I feel about it except that this feels more BL than anything Hong Kong has given us so far (which isn't much). The subs are truly terrible. Since I speak absolutely zero Cantonese I can’t really fix them in my brain. I thought this was the final ep but then a teaser for ep 6 dropped so I we have at least one more. 

First Note Of Love (Taiwan Mon Gaga) ep 10 of 12 - It was a nice, if entirely unearned reunion. And the leads do kiss beautifully. Trust Taiwan. I am so glad that Orca is back! There was even a little language play flip-flopping just for me. Very cute. Also GREAT kissing. How long have we been waiting for Thailand and Taiwan to kiss? 

Eccentric Romance (Korea Weds Viki) eps 1-2 of 12 - Silkwood’s 2nd Thai/Korean colab. This has been in production since 2022 which is a LONG time in the BL world (worrying). But I like the concept: friends of 10 years who’ve been hiding feelings for each other enter the same university. Plus MURDER. Stars Yoon Jun Won (The Man BLK) and Thai actor Save Saisawat (Ai Long Nhai). I begin to think every The Man BLK member will eventually lead out a BL at this point.

It’s enjoyable in a weird way. Grumpy (hottie with a crush) + sunshine (captain oblivious). I gotta say, since this is the second relationship dual lingo style in our BL rn that it’s ALWAYS weird if the other half doesn't occasionally code switch languages, especially for specific words. In other words, the Korean dude is supposed to at least understand Thai, occasionally he’s should use a Thai world to get a point across. And the Thai dude is there to STUDY KOREAN, he should be slipping in and out of Korean regularly. Bah. 

It's airing but...

Love is Like a Poison AKA Doku Koi: Doku mo Sugireba Koi to Naru (Japan Tues Netflix?) 5 of 10 eps - I never managed to get hold of ep 5. Frankly, it’s going to Netflix (I don’t subscribe) so I might not finish this out of sheer laziness. 

The Hidden Moon (Sat WeTV) ep 1 of 10 - This is a supernatural romance (my ghost boyfriend trope) by Violet Rain (I Feel You Linger). A man is hired to write an article about an old mansion in Chiang Mai being converted into a café. He sees the ghosts of people who died at the mansion, falls in love with one of them. Was substantially recast. I loved IFYLITA except the ending so I think I'll let this one run it's course you can tell me if it's work tracking down... if they managed to land it. I have my doubts.

Gangster and His Boyfriend (Korea ????) 8 eps? - was supposed to air 10/10 Kim Dong Bin (famous trainee & idol reality competitor, yeah that happens) stars as a fallen idol who unexpectedly becomes entangled in a gangster family. Discovers that his friend’s father is responsible for the murder of his entire family years ago. I don't know much about this one, neither does anyone else and I'm not sure where I got that release date so……

Next Week Looks Like This:

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

Still Coming Oct 2024:

10/17 Let Free the Curse of Taekwondo (Korea Thurs Gaga) 8 eps - High school student Do Hoe lives with his violent and brutal father who runs a Taekwondo gym in a rural area. One day, cheerful Ju Young arrives, he dreams of going to college for Taekwondo. Joy begins to fill Do Hoe's dark life. An unexpected incident forces them apart, they reunite ten years later.

10/21 Love in the Big City (Korea ????) 8 eps - Okay, this is both a movie (already out) and a series. Neither one is likely BL and I can't imagine it will end happily. I'm giving both a pass but here's your synopsis.

Cynical fun loving student Young pinballs from home, to class, to on night stands. He and Jaehee, his female besie and roommate, frequent nearby bars where they push away their worries about life, love, and money with soju and hookups.

10/23 See Your Love (Taiwan Weds Gaga & Viki) 10 eps? - Zi Xiong, a third-generation heir, attempting to flee from taking over their family business, meets and falls in love with Shao Peng, who works as a hearing-impaired nurse. From the same production house as Kiseki Dear To Me in partnership with Shinehouse Theatre, funded by Taiwan’s BIGART + Japan's Rakuten (Viki). Show includes Lin Chia Yo (Be Loved in House: I Do). Director Chiang Ping Chen’s childhood experiences with his deaf uncle have inspired the drama.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Addicted Heroin

Incidentally he didn’t ask to “be with Ter” he asked if he could flirt/court him. jeeb doesn’t really have a direct translation, but it isn’t “be with.” 

Fourever You

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

Sigh, Tumblr in its infinite wisdom doesn't like too many at-ings.

[visualtaehyun]

TNP EP.8 language annotations & novel extras ✨

So last week I only wrote about the NC scene since it was the only thing where something major in terms of language happened (plus, I compared it to the novel scene here). This week I'm back to writing about the full episode though!

As always, I'm lazy and making my previous annotations (EP.1, EP.2, EP.3, EP.4, EP.5, EP.6) required reading for explanations of pronouns and expressions so that I can just skip over them here 🙂‍↕️ Pronouns presented in a format such as เรา/เธอ /rao, ter/ are meant to be understood as "I/you". Also, I'll just be going through the episode chronologically! Let's goooo~

Disclaimer: not a native Thai speaker, still learning 🙏

��ี่รัณ ทำไม ยังไม่ชินหรอ /phi Ran. ...tham mai? yang mai chin raaw/ = P'Ran. ...What? Not used to it yet?

นินอยากให้ตามใจอะ พี่รัณจะไม่ตามใจนินจริงหรอ /Nin yaak hai dtaam-jai a. phi Ran ja mai dtaam jai Nin jing raaw/ = I want [you] to indulge [me]. You're really not going to indulge me?

Nin & Calvin: เรา/[title+name] /rao, #/ in both directions -> in front of the King, Calvin uses กระหม่อม /gra-maawm/ with Nin?? -> when they're "off-duty" in Meenanagarin later, they mostly omit pronouns but we hear Nin call him just Calvin, no title, and Calvin still using เรา /rao/

Nin and Calvin are so sweet btw, indirectly communicating about Nin's relationship with Ran :)

It's the moment from the trailer~

1) กระหม่อมคิดว่าคงไม่มีอะไร /gra-maawm khit waa khohng mai mee a-rai/ = I think it is probably nothing [to worry about]. 2+3) แต่หลังจากนี้กระหม่อมอยากให้เราสองคนระวังตัวในการใกล้ชิดกันมากขึ้นพ่ะย่ะค่ะ /dtaae lang jaak nee, gra-maawm yaak hai rao saawng khohn ra-wang dtuaa nai gaan glaai-chit gan maak kheun pha-ya-kha/ = But from now on, I want the two of us to be more careful about being close to each other. 4) ฝ่าบาท 😐 /faa-baat/ = Your Royal Highness.

หากนินไม่ใส่ใจ พี่ว่าการแข่งขันอาจจะเกิดความผิดพลาดขึ้นก็ได้ /haak Nin mai sai jai, phi waa gaan khaaeng khan aat ja geert khwaam-phit-plaat kheun gaaw dai/ = If you don't pay attention, I think that mistakes might very well happen during the competition.

1) ถ้านินตอบผิดอีก นินจุ๊บพี่รัณดีไหม /thaa Nin dtaawp phit eek, Nin joop phi Ran dee mai/ = If I give another wrong answer, how about I give you a kiss? 2) นินมีแต่เสียกับเสียนะ พี่รัณไม่ได้เป็นคนจุ๊บนินแต่นินเป็นคนจุ๊บพี่รัณ /Nin mee dtaae siia gap siia na. phi Ran mai dai bpen khohn joop Nin, dtaae Nin bpen khohn joop phi Ran/ = It's a lose-lose situation for me. You won't be the one kissing me but I'll be the one kissing you.

-> This reminds me of several instances over the last few months of ZNN being asked about clips of them (sniff) kissing which turned from New joking with the reporters about being the one at loss (เสียเปรียบ /siia bpriiap/ = losing the upper hand/advantage, disadvantaged, at a loss) if Hia steals kisses to now whining about being the only one to be captured (sniff) kissing even though it's actually mostly P'Zee who starts (people just aren't fast enough at getting their phones out lol) and how those clips totally make New look bad 🤣

นินแพ้พี่รัณอีกแล้วอะ /Nin phaae phi Ran eek laaeo a/ = I lost to you again.

Nin has one seduction strategy and it's I'm so bored, can you do me instead can we do something else instead?

Oh and I'm happy to report that they fixed that shot of a crew member's head being in frame around the time Nin gets on the horse. Hoooo boy did that bother me when I first watched it 🥴 Anyone else catch it before they resubmitted the episode?

I'm happy they kept this bit from the novels, where Ran gets Nin to introduce himself to the horse, all serious and sincere5555

Nin: แกล้งอ่อ พี่แกล้งนินอ่อ 😾 แกล้งอ่อ /glaaeng aaw? phi glaaeng Nin aaw? glaaeng aaw/ = Teasing? You're teasing me? *kitty-smacks him* Teasing?? Ran: ไม่แกล้งแล้วครับ /mai glaaeng laaeo khrap/ = No more teasing~

1) Ran: ถ้ากลัวบอกพี่ /thaa gluaa, baawk phi/ = If [you're] scared, tell me. Nin: พี่รัณอยู่ด้วย นินไม่กลัวหรอก /phi Ran yuu duay, Nin mai gluaa raawk/ = Having you with [me], I won't be scared. 2) พี่รัณ พอได้ยัง นินกลัวตก /phi Ran... phaaw dai yang? Nin gluaa dtohk/ = P'Ran... [Isn't this] enough [horse riding] already? I'm afraid of falling. 3) อยากให้กอดก็บอกตรง ๆ สิครับ /yaak hai gaawt gaaw baawk dtrohng dtrohng si khrap/ = [If you] want(ed) [me] to hold [you] then just say so openly. 4) รู้ก็กอดสิ /ruu gaaw gaawt si/ = [If you] know then hold [me].

-> This was three years ago but I can't help but remember this adorable moment on a live where P'Zee talked about a (then-)recent beach trip where they'd shared a bed and New apparently kept on moving closer to him to the point P'Zee kept giving him space and almost falling off the bed. Did New want to cuddle actually? (cue shy cat noises) Why not just tell Hia if he wanted to cuddle? Well, if he'd told Hia, would Hia have let him?? If he'd told Hia, then yes! (cue shy cat and dog noises)

1) อยู่กันแบบนี้ก็ดีนะ /yuu gan baaep nee gaaw dee na/ = Being together like this is nice. 2) งั้นอยู่แบบนี้ไปนาน ๆ เลยนะ /ngan yuu baaep nee bpai naan naan loei na/ = Then let's stay like this for a long time. 3) หนักแค่ไหนนินก็โอเค เพราะนินมีพี่รัณอยู่ด้วย /nak khaae nai, Nin gaaw okay. phraw Nin mee phi Ran yuu duay/ = No matter how tough [it gets], I'll be okay. Because I've got you with [me]. 4) ก็อยู่ด้วยกันตลอดอยู่แล้วนี่ /gaaw yuu duay gan dta-laawt yuu laaeo nee/ = Well, [we] have been together this entire time.

1) พี่รัณไม่ต้องกลัวนะ นินอยู่นี้ /phi Ran mai dtaawng gluaa na. Nin yuu nee/ = You don't have to be afraid. I'm here. 2) [...] เหมือนตอนที่นินไม่เหลืออะไร นินก็มีพี่เข้ามาเติมเต็ม /meuuan dtaawn thee Nin mai leuua a-rai, Nin gaaw mee phi khao maa dteerm dtem/ = [...] just like when I had nothing left, I [still] had you coming in[to my life] to complete [me]. 3) พี่รัณไม่ต้องกลัว ไม่กังวลอะไรแล้วนะ /phi Ran mai dtaawng gluaa, mai dtaawng gang-wohn a-rai laaeo na/ = You don't have to be scared or anxious about anything anymore. 4) เพราะว่านินจะอยู่ข้าง ๆ พี่ /phraw waa Nin ja yuu khaang khaang phi/ = Because I'll be right beside you.

เสด็จพ่อจะไม่รู้เรื่องนี้ /sa-deht por ja mai ruu reuuang nee/ = Father will not know about this.

I've now replayed Paytai's moan and subsequent unsubbed line an unholy amount of times so I'm gonna make an educated guess as to what he might be whispering:

เสียวครับ /siaao khrap/

เสียว /siaao/ = thrilling, tingly, giving chills or goosebumps, a sharp sensation or spasms -> used in context of thrill rides, fear/horror, pain, and sex/arousal

For some more context, if you read my post about EP.7's RanNin NC scene, I included a short excerpt from the novel there. Just before that Ran keeps trying to get an incoherent Nin to voice how he's feeling to which Nin--

"'เสียว อึก... อ๊า... เสียว' คณินทร์สมองเบลอ [...]" /'siaao. euk... ah... siaao' Khanin sa-maawng blur/ from the official English translation: "'Feels... ugh... ah... It feels good,' Khanin's mind blurred [...]"

And Paytai's second unsubbed utterance also kinda sounds like เสียวอะ /siaao a/, I guess??

Moving on to Meenanagarin~ Wasin starts out as formal as ever, as he's welcoming both Calvin and Nin, and then switches to his familiar ลุง/หลาน /loong, laan/ again as he's talking to Nin who himself is still as formal as before, though we finally hear Nin call him 'uncle' -> กระหม่อม/เสด็จลุง /gra-maawm, sa-deht loong/ + พ่ะย่ะค่ะ /pha-ya-kha/

I honestly teared up a little when Wasin compared Nin to the child he lost:

ถ้าลูกของลุงยังอยู่ คงจะมีอายุเท่า ๆ กับหลานนี่ /thaa luuk khaawng loong yang yuu, khohng ja mee aa-yoo thao thao gap laan nee/ = If my child were still alive, they would probably be the same age as you.

-> There's nothing to indicate gender here, the subber just knows more than us probably :D

1) ถ้าท่านชายต้องการอะไร เรียกกระหม่อมได้ตลอดเวลาพ่ะย่ะค่ะ /thaa than-chaai dtaawng gaan a-rai, riiak gra-maawm dai dta-laawt weh-laa pha-ya-kha/ = Should you need anything, please call for me at any time. 2) พี่รัณ นอนกับนินสิ /phi Ran, naawn gap Nin si/ = P'Ran, sleep with me. 3) พี่ก็อยากอยู่กับนิน [...] /phi gaaw yaak yuu gap Nin/ = I want to stay/be with you as well.

ไม่ดื้อนะครับ /mai deuu na khrap/ = Be good, please./No being stubborn, okay? พักผ่อนนะครับ /phak phaawn na khrap/ = Get some rest, please.

Nin: สวยเนาะ /suay naw/ = Pretty, no? Ran, clearly looking at Nin: สวยครับ /suay khrap/ = Pretty.

Nin: คนที่โคตรจะดุ โคตรจะเนี้ยบ /khohn thee khoht ja doo, khoht ja niiap/ = Someone who's this damn strict, this damn neat - แต่เวลาตามใจนิน น่ารักที่สุดเลย /dtaae weh-laa dtaam- jai Nin, naa-rak thee soot loei/ = - yet when [you're] indulging me, [you're] the absolute cutest! Ran: แต่พี่ก็ตามใจนินไม่ได้ทุกอย่างหรอก /dtaae phi gaaw dtaam-jai Nin mai dai thook yaang raawk/ = I can't indulge you in everything though.

ทำตามหน้าที่ ดุก็เพราะหน้าที่ /tham dtaam naa-thee, doo gaaw phraw naa-thee/ = Following [your] duty, being strict because of duty, too! แต่ที่ชอบกันอะ ไม่ใช่เพราะหน้าที่ใช่ป่ะ /dtaae thee chaawp gan a, mai chai phraw naa-thee, chai bpa/ = But [us] liking each other, that's not out of (a sense of) duty, right?

When Nin goes to speak with the guy who first brings up Assavadevathin's mines, there's a few things going on. For one, this isn't Prince Khanin speaking, it's just Nin, so he politely adds a ครับ /khrap/ when addressing this stranger. All of these people are justifiably angry though and they show it through their language use, too. No ราชาศัพท์ /raa-chaa-sap/, barely even a polite word. Guy 1 starts out rude enough already, referring to himself as กู /guu/, guy 3 (?) curses but uses polite pronouns:

คุณแม่ง โคตรเห็นแก่ตัว /khun maaeng! khoht hen gaae dtuaa/ = You fucking-! [You're] so damn selfish!

People are getting loud and rude now, guy 2 (??) uses กู/มึง /guu, meung/, then guy 1 goes in for the killing blow:

ถ้าไม่มีพวกมึงอะ พ่อแม่คงไม่ตายเว้ย /thaa mai mee phuak meung, por mae khohng mai dtaai woei/ = If it weren't for you guys, my parents wouldn't have died!

⇒ emblems, territories and royal houses of Emmaly ⇒ royal family of Emmaly + other character bios ⇒ relationship chart ⇒ characters and cast of TNP ⇒ all my TNP posts

[secretlycursedd]

I watched Supernatural for the first time in my life, and here are my possibly unpopular opinions (p.s. I ship Wincest and I didn't buy into the D*stiel propaganda that my friend tried to sell me. So I kindly request that if you are a fan of D*stiel or Castiel, you better not read this). Also English is not my native language, so sorry for any mistakes:

1. Kripke era >>> other seasons, but I absolutely don't like season 4;

2. Season 8 is my top 1 for Wincest (literally from the very beginning we get jealousy, a love triangle or more like love square, a scene in the church, everything was just perfect);

3. Benny = Amelia (Sam and Dean were jealous in a completely non-platonic way);

4. Roadkill is in the top 5 of my favorite episodes of the entire series;

5. Blonde Ruby>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Brunette Ruby. This has nothing to do with the actresses, but blonde Ruby was perfect, while brunette Ruby was one of the reasons I didn't like season 4 (and no, it's not because she's bad or more evil, she just felt a little emotionless and didn't have the charisma and fire that blonde Ruby had);

6. Season 10 was almost as bad as season 7 (according to my friend, many people said that season 10 was one of the best, and I was very surprised to learn this information);

7. Those who ship D*stiel or spread their propaganda are people who just need to see two men kiss on screen, because in the entire series, D*stiel didn't have anything that interested me in their relationship (to quote Mr. Ackles, D*stiel doesn't exist);

8. Sam and Castiel had more interesting moments than Dean and Castiel;

9. Overall Castiel was one of the most boring characters for me, and the highlight of the whole series was his death;

10. Jack is one of the best characters in the whole series, who got the most unfair ending of all (he deserved a family, not the work of God);

11. Balthazar and Gabriel were the most interesting archangels and deserved much more screen time and storylines (especially Balthazar, he was killed too early);

12. The storyline with the fall of angels and their problems was one of the most boring;

13. I don't think the ending of the series was bad. After reading all the reviews on the internet about how it was terrible, I expected to see something completely disgusting and illogical, but I was satisfied and gave it a 7/10. I can't imagine any other ending that would be better than the canon one;

14. I'm pretty sure that many people who ship D*stiel are actually latent Wincest fans, who are afraid to admit it to themselves (if Sam and Dean weren't brothers, but acted the same way, then everyone would ship them, not D*stiel);

15. You can dislike and not understand incest, but it's stupid to deny that Sam and Dean are written like more than brothers, this is not a fan fiction, it is literally canon;

16. The only thing I didn't like about the finale was the idea that Sam had a son whom he named Dean, personally I was not a fan of this storyline at all;

17. Eileen was the wost love interest for Sam, Jessica and Sarah were the best;

18. The final season would have been more interesting if Jessica came back to life, not Eileen;

19. Benny was more interesting to ship with Dean than Castiel;

20. Mary's return felt unnecessary and empty, and in some ways it ruined her character in my eyes (not because she was an independent woman who didn't want to coddle her adult sons, but because of many other factors in her character that only ruined her more each time).

These are the thoughts I can remember now (I finished watching the entire series on May 26 and am now actively reading fan fiction, but I plan to start rewatching the whole series soon), but nevertheless, if anyone wants to share their opinions, I will be interested in reading them)

[miriadalia]

Things you can comment on the fanfics you love when you have no idea what to say

From what takes less time to what takes more

~show those writers your love, please!! They do it for free T-T and they deserve better

1. Emojis

You know the vibe of the fic you're reading, chose the ones that suit it better.

❤❤❤

💔💔💔

🙈🔥🔥

You may think this is kind of stupid, but trust me, it is NOT for the writer. It shows you've read until the end of the chapter and that you liked it so much that you decided to say it publicly. Your presence means A LOT.

Also, leaving kudos or votes takes literally just 1 second, what are you doing NOT doing that?? 🤨🤨🤨

2. Simple phrases

I loved it so much!!

Can't wait for the next chapter!!

This was just so good 😍

Amazing as always, keep it up!! 🙌🏼

Writing is a lonely work if you think about it. When I'm in a writer's block, just one sentence can hype me up for the rest of the day and give me the spirit I need 💪🏽

3. The emotions you felt

Yes, you DO matter. That fanfic author cares more about your opinion than your stupid ex so you better write to them instead 🧐

The plotwist was so unexpected, I'm shocked 😱

You can't end with that cliffhanger, how am I supposed to wait another week??

Excuse me, I will now lock into my room and cry all night, thank you 💔

I've read some people saying they won't comment how they felt because they feel ashamed or shy. Take it as if you were about to post a tweet or comment on a friend IG's story 👍🏻

4. One piece of dialogue/prose that really amazed you

Oof 🔥 this happened to me a few weeks ago and that comment still lives in my mind rent free. There's no better way to compliment a writer's work than to highlight something they wrote that left a true impression on you.

And it literally takes no time:

[Insert piece of dialogue], oh she didn't just say that, imma throw hands 🤬🤬

[Insert piece of a description], I could really see it with my own eyes, loved how you described it!

5. Hopes and wishes for future chapters

C'mon, you're going to comment this anyway with some of your fandom mutuals or friends, why don't let the writer know that too?? COPY AND PASTE IT ✍✍

I just need Chatacter A and Chatacter B to kiss, how long is it gonna take?? 😩

Watching that scene in [Canon series name] would have been awesome!! Maybe in future seasons 👀👀

I hope [Ship Name] don't break up in the next chapter, they are so cute ����

6. Character discussion

Okay, we're entering deeper waters here.

But the truth is: if you love that fanfic that much is because the characters really resonated with you. So express your first thoughts without any fear:

[Chatacter Name] is so important to me, like you have no idea. All the things they went through... But they still manage to be a better person ❤

[Chatacter Name] was so forgotten in [Movie/Series Name], I'm glad they're getting the development they deserved here!

7. Scene discussion

Again, you might think the comment section is no place to start "fangirling" over the stuff you liked. But IT IS!! And the writer wants to know your thoughts on their work, especially if your opinion is all positive 💞

This will take more time, sure. But if you're going to write it anyways for other people, COPY AND PASTE AGAIN, hon!

8. How this story is impacting your fan life (or even personal life)

You don't need to overshare, but simple comments like:

Your fic has really changed the way I think about [Character Name]'s decisions, I feel like I can understand them better now.

This story has motivated me to rewatch all the episodes again 😢 the nostalgia!!!

What you did with [Character's situation] was incredible! I've been there myself and I could have not explain it better 😔

... They will be the ones the writer will remember the most, I can assure you that.

9. A simple THANK YOU

At the end of the day, fanfic and fanart creators only have your feedback to rely on when the block or discouragement hits... This is about showing appreciation to someone you may not know at all, but that has brighten your day with their creations and efforts ❤

[homeofthelonelywriter]

Of Cupcakes and Skulls | Part 8

(A/N) Shopping episode!

Pairing: single dad! Mafia! Simon x baker! Reader

Warning: kissies, fluff, Simon is fucking smitten, a lot of money spending, little spice

Synopsis: Based on this post by @lunamoonbby

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9

When you walked into the boutique, you were surprised that it was empty. While you had never shopped there, you had walked by multiple times with friends, and it was usually rather full. But no, there was not a soul, besides Simon, two staff members, and you.

“Oh Simon, it’s good to see you. How is Millie?”

An older woman walked out from the back and right to the man beside you, giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Imone, it’s good to see you too. Millie is fine, she will probably be mad that we didn’t take her with us when she finds out we went here. And thank you for clearing out the shop for us, I appreciate it.”

She waved her hands in the air, smiling at him.

“Oh, it’s nothing. Anything for you.”

Her warm, friendly eyes flickered to you, a grin taking over her mouth.

“And who is this, if I may ask?”

You quickly introduced yourself, your smile widening when Simon hastily added ‘My girlfriend.’.

“Oh, Simon! She is way too pretty for you.”

She grabbed your cheeks lightly squishing them as she grinned at you, before she turned to Simon, chuckling.

“Just kidding, just kidding. Now, what can we do for you?”

Simon rolled his eyes in a good-natured manner, leading you further into the establishment.

“We need a dinner dress for her. Something elegant, but simple.”

You nodded along, smiling as you watched the Imone rush through the store, picking out dresses and handing them to what you assumed were her assistants, who carried them to a dressing room. While you were completely enamored by her, Simon took the opportunity to look around, picking out a few things and handing them off as well. Once they were both satisfied, you were hurried to the dressing room.

You tried on dress after dress, parading it in front of both Imone and Simon, but after you were done with the first ten, none of you were too happy with any of them. As you walked out in the eleventh dress, you noticed that Simon was on his phone, typing away again, not even looking up and you felt your heart break a little. He probably hated dress shopping, after all, what man would actually enjoy that?

With a quiet sigh, you walked back into the changing room and pulled the curtain close behind you. But before you could call out to one of the assistants to help you out of the dress, the curtain was pushed to the side and Simon entered.

“Is everything okay? You were gone so quickly, I didn’t have a chance to look.”

His eyes found yours in the mirror, concern evident.

“You were busy on your phone, I…I just thought you were tired of seeing me in the umpteenth dress.”

He chuckled darkly, his hands quickly finding your hips as he carefully pulled you back and against his chest.

“Darling, I will never tire of seeing you. I don’t care if you’re in a ballgown or in the same shirt you’ve worn for the last three days. You will always look ravishing and I will always want to see you. I promise.”

He peppered featherlight kisses against the skin of your neck as you relaxed against him, a content smile on your lips. One of his hands drifted to the back of your dress, where he skillfully popped the buttons until the sleeves started to slip down your arms. Out of reflex, you lifted them to keep the fabric from exposing yourself, but when Simon’s warm hands settled over your wrists and gently pulled them down, you didn’t fight it.

“Let me see them…”

He hissed as soon your breasts were fully exposed, nipples quickly hardening under his gaze. You watched in the mirror as his hands lifted, cupping them and humming appreciatively as his thumbs started to rub over your perks. A low moan escaped your lips, your head falling back against his chest, eyes lidded as you gazed up at him.

His eyes were dark as he drank you in, fingers softly pinching and pulling as you felt yourself clench around nothing. You needed to be filled so badly, but he paid you no mind as you quietly whimpered. Only when you whispered his name did he finally look down at you, a smug grin on his face as he took in the state you were in.

“Ssshh…not here, my love. Only I get to hear you when you finally scream my name.”

Another whine left your lips at his words, this one in frustration as he chuckled in amusement. His fingers tugged on your nipples one more time before he lowered his hands until they were wrapped around your waist. One quick kiss to your temple, and he took a step back, coldness filling the space where he once was, but his hands remained on you, keeping you up until he was sure you wouldn’t collapse.

Your breaths still came out in little pants as he let you go, looking around the dressing room before he picked a dress out from underneath the others and hung it on top.

“Why don’t you try this one next?”

With those words and a shit-eating grin, he left the dressing room. You took a few more moments to calm yourself down before you called in one of the assistants and changed into the dress Simon had picked out just minutes before. And you loved it.

It was a beautiful off-shoulder dress with a flowing skirt that reached just beneath your knees. The sleeves were layered and crossed in front to form the bodice. It was made of soft and light satin with a layer of gorgette over it, creating a slight shimmering effect. Once you looked in the mirror, you couldn’t help the soft gasp that escaped you. The color made your skin glow, and the cut hugged you in all the right places.

While you were still standing in the changing room, slowly spinning back and forth, the assistant came back with a pair of heels.

“Mister Riley said to bring these to you. Said they would go nicely with the dress.”

You nodded and held onto the wall as the woman carefully helped you step into them. A relieved sigh left your lips as you noted that the heel wasn’t too tall and appeared to be more of a block than a stiletto. They were surprisingly comfortable to wear as you stepped out and walked to where Simon and Imone were waiting.

The moment the woman caught sight of you, a loud gasp escaped her, and she turned to Simon, whose eyes were slowly moving down your body, a hungry look in them.

“You look fabulous, darling.”

You grinned at Imone and quietly thanked her before your eyes focused on the man before. His hands were curled into fists, which rested on the top of his thighs and he looked as if it took everything within him to not pounce on you that very moment.

“We’ll take that one, as well as the shoes.”

Instantly, you tried to reach behind you, your fingers searching for the price tag, but Simon just chuckled, knowing what you were trying to do.

“Don’t worry about it. They don’t have price tags here.”

He got to his feet and slowly stalked towards you, wrapping his hands around your waist the moment he was close enough. Involuntarily, you immediately relaxed against him, leaning closer out of instinct. He grinned down at you, gently pecking your lips before spinning you around and sending you back to the changing room with a light pat against your ass.

By the time you were back in your own clothes, Simon had already paid and was waiting for you on the couch. The moment he heard you approaching, he looked up from his phone, a soft smile on his face, you couldn’t help but smile back at him.

“The bags are already in the car. Ready to leave when you are.”

You nodded and looked around. If you were honest with yourself, you could spend hours in this store. The dresses weren’t all; they also had a huge shoe section and an entire room just for accessories. But for today, you were more than happy with what you had tried on what Simon had bought you.

“Let’s go.”

He nodded and got to his feet, his hand immediately finding yours and holding onto it. Both of you bid goodbye to Imone - who had you promise to stop by again soon and bring Millie next time - before you walked back out into the street and to the car. Once the both of you sat inside, and Simon was about to start the engine, his phone pinged and he pulled it out, a frown on his face.

“What’s wrong?”

“Millie’s classes are ending early today. Do you mind if we pick her up?”

You grin, already excited to see the little girl again.

“Of course not!”

Simon smiled, gently raising your hand to his lips before pressing a sweet kiss to your knuckles.

“Let’s go then.”

Please consider reblogging and following me! It helps a lot!

Call of Duty - Masterlist

Master-Masterlist

Tags: @lunamoonbby @distinguishedprincesstrash @xanvasy @reader-1290

Like what you're reading? Buy me a coffee!

[qlfilmingupdates]

QL Release Schedule (May 2025)

Full-Length Series:

🇹🇭 Pit Babe Season 2: May 2 🇹🇭 The Next Prince: May 3 🇹🇭 Jet Lag: May 7* 🇹🇭 Eye Contact: May 14 🇹🇭 My Sweetheart Jom: May 16 🇹🇭 Loy Kaew First Love: May 16 🇹🇭 Knock Out: May 16 🇹🇭 Be Mine.. Be Yours: May 17 🇹🇭 Season of Love in Shimane: May 18 🇹🇭 🇹🇼 I Promise I Will Come Back: May 19 🇹🇭 The Ex Morning: May 22 🇹🇭 Denied Love: May 29 🇹🇭 B-Friend: May 31

Shorter Series:

🇨🇳 The Agreement of Cherry Blossom Rainy Season: May 1 🇨🇳 Infidelity, It's a Disease: May 1 🇹🇭 Sassy Season: May 2 🇰🇷 Kiss the Hater: May 3 🇰🇷 Begin Love: May 5 🇹🇭 Yaoi Academy: May 5 🇹🇭 Mission to the Moon: May 6 🇰🇷 Sweetheart Service: May 8 🇹🇭 Splash Room: May 8 🇹🇭 Teach Me Softly: May 12 🇯🇵 If Love Falls in This Life Too: May 13 🇹🇭 My Little Miss: May 16 🇰🇷 Don't Confess Next to a Corpse: May 18 🇹🇭 As You Wish Love: Love Reset: May 18 🇹🇭 As You Wish Love: Begin Again: May 19 🇯🇵 Unubore BL: May 19 🇰🇷 My Boss My High School Enemy: May 21 🇹🇭 Taste of Her Season 2: May 21 🇹🇭 Stay with You: Only You in My Heart: May 22 🇨🇳 Moon and Dust: May 23 🌐 Loving You from the Football Sidelines: May 23 🇨🇳 🇸🇬 The Sparkle in Your Eye: May 25 🇰🇷 First Office: May 26 🌐 My Rookie Secret Agent Lover: May 26 🇰🇷 It's You!: May 27 🇻🇳 My Sweet Brother in Law: May 27 🇨🇳 Trapped in Osaka: May 29 🇻🇳 The Way of Love: May 31

Films:

🇫🇷 🇮🇹 🇧🇪 Enzo: May 14 (some of these may be limited releases) 🇫🇷 Tethered Wings: May 14 🇺🇸 Things Like This: May 16 🇬🇧 🇮🇪 Pillion: May 18 🇬🇧 🇺🇸 🇸🇪 The History of Sound: May 21 🇵🇭 Kiss/Kiss: May 27 (R) 🇵🇭 Pihit: May 30 (R)

Short Films:

🇹🇭 My Dangerous: May 6 🇵🇭 Waiting Until the Dawn: May 6 🇯🇵 BL Mangaka and Editor: May 17

Special Episodes:

🇰🇷 Business as Usual Special: May 15 🇹🇭 The Glowing of Love: May 25

*genre-wise, JL is more focused on comedy than romance, but I'm adding it here because the series has at least one queer main character

Index

[corawithfanfiction]

I Should've Kissed You Longer I Steve Rogers x Fem!Reader

MY MASTERLIST! - EVENTS!

This is an original story and may not be copied or translated into another language without permission!

Author Note: I know that a few chapters are short, but the first chapters are a bit short as I need to cut the story in logical places as the chapters will get longer and longer. According to the current plans, our story will be around 27-28 chapters, enjoy your reading.

Summary: Steve Rogers scarified himself again during the mission and was buried in the ice again. He leaves behind a team and Y/N, who are left with tears and regrets.

✭ Prologue

✭ Episode 1

✭ Episode 2

✭ Episode 3

✭ Episode 4

✭ Episode 5

✭ Episode 6

✭ Episode 7

✭ Episode 8

✭ Episode 9

✭ Episode 10

✭ Episode 11

✭ Episode 12

✭ Episode 13

✭ Episode 14

✭ Episode 15

✭ Episode 16

✭ Episode 17

TAG LIST:

[ladykailitha]

A Love Connection Part 8

Can you believe we have finally reached the end? It has been an absolute blast going through this with all of you. With any luck (fingers crossed) Next week will also have another special story come out next Tuesday, the sequel to Icarus (metal band) so that I can get it out before Halloween.

In this we had the end of Steddie's date, the end of the episode and cute little reunion epilogue. (which may or may not have a 9-1-1 joke)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7

~

Once they had walked off their breakfast and was getting hungry for lunch, Eddie was given a picnic basket and cooler by the crew and they drove out to the park for their picnic.

They sat on opposite sides of the park table as Eddie unpacked everything. There were turkey sandwiches with avocado slices and ranch dressing. There were sour cream and onion potato chips, brown sugar baked beans, and homemade potato salad.

He then pulled out black cherry soda from the cooler and his favorite beer. Steve was instantly endeared further.

“Your bestie is an absolute hoot, by the way,” Eddie said, opening the bag of potato chips.

Steve grinned around his first bite of sandwich. “She’s like that. I don’t know what I would do without her.”

“Not be on this game show for a start,” Eddie teased.

“I’m not surprised she told you about that,” Steve huffed in good humor. “Did she also tell you that technically the whole queer dating season is my fault?”

“You mean your absolutely brilliant and amazing idea?” Eddie said grinning back. “Too much wine and you get really cute, according to her.”

Steve buried his head in his hands and ran his fingers through his hair. “Yeah. I’m a silly drunk.”

“Well, rest in peace Garfield,” Eddie said, “your death has brought me the best boy I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. To Valhalla!” He raised his beer and Steve clanked his soda bottle against it.

“He was a good fish,” Steve said solemnly. “I have a cat named Odie now.” He pulled out his phone and flipped to his photos. He handed the phone to Eddie.

“He’s adorable,” Eddie cooed. “My uncle is a huge Garfield fan. He collects mugs and his most prized possession is a Garfield head one.”

Steve grinned. “I’ve people give me flack for naming the fish Garfield and the cat Odie, but fish don’t last long enough in Garfield to have names. And Odie isn’t an orange tabby, so that wouldn’t work for him.”

“Makes sense,” Eddie said nodding his head. He took a bite of his sandwich. “Much better than Subway. I had a lot of fun making everything.”

Steve paused mid bite. “Wait? Really?”

“Yup!” Eddie said. “The potato salad and beans are my uncle’s recipe.”

“They’re really good.”

Eddie blushed and hid behind a lock of hair.

They talked about Eddie’s uncle, Wayne and all of Steve’s kids. Then it was time to pack up. They played at the playground a bit just being silly.

“Now,” Eddie said, after tackling Steve to the ground, “I understand this town doesn’t have minigolf, but it does have bowling and an arcade that has managed to survive the digital era, so what will it be?”

Steve thought about it for a moment. “The arcade. The flashing lights at the bowling can give me a migraine.”

“Score!” Eddie cackled gleefully. “I was hoping for the arcade.”

It was that moment that he realized how close their faces were. He leaned down and pressed a sweet kiss to Steve’s mouth.

“Oh,” Steve stuttered when Eddie pulled back. “Wow. That was amazing.”

Eddie smiled widely. “An amazing kiss for an amazing guy.”

Steve knocked out Eddie’s arms and rolled them over, pinning the other man’s arms above his head. He straddled Eddie’s waist and looked down at him fondly. “Gotcha!”

Eddie surged up and kissed him.

Then there was a cough and Steve sprang off of Eddie, looking kinda sheepish. “I kinda forgot about the cameras there,” he said helping Eddie to his feet.

Eddie smiled, smoothing out Steve’s hair. “It’s all right.”

They got back into the car drove to the arcade. They played all sorts of games, they raced each other, played skee ball, Steve even shot a few hoops to win them extra tickets. Tickets they turned in for two matching tiger plushies.

“Hobbes,” Steve said pointing to Eddie’s, “and Tigger.”

“I approve!”

~

Dinner at Benny’s blew Eddie’s mind as much as Big Ma’s blew Steve’s. He loved everything about it. Including Benny.

Steve couldn’t remember having a date that went this well before in his life. They never ran out of topics to talk about and he was going to have to admit that he was falling a little bit in love.

Finally the date was drawing to a close and it was time for Eddie to ask his questions. They had gone up to the Quarry and set it up for them to sit on the hood of Eddie’s car on a blanket.

“All righty!” Eddie said pulling out cue cards. “First question, who was your first kiss?”

Steve smiled. “A girl named Alice. It’s when I learned it was strictly boys for me. Up to that point I had held on to hope that I was bisexual so that my dad wouldn’t kick my ass. Still dated women in a futile attempt to force myself. But once I got to college, I dropped the pretense.”

“Oof,” Eddie said. “I felt that. My dad was a homophobic asshole too. He came out of the woodwork briefly when I got famous enough to be in the news. But I sent him packing.”

“I think that’s what upset my parents the most,” Steve huffed, “was that I didn’t chose a job that they could depend on after they retired to mooch off of.”

“I hear you,” Eddie said. “Second question, have you played D&D?”

Steve burst out laughing. “No, I had sex in high school,” he said quoting that TV show.

Eddie held his hands to his chest. “Are you suggesting that I didn’t? For shame! Dishonor on you, dishonor on your cow!” He moved to get up but Steve grabbed his wallet chain and dragged him back down.

“You’re ridiculous,” Steve said, his cheeks beginning to hurt from all the smiling. “I like that.”

Eddie beamed at him. “Yay!”

Steve kissed him on the cheek and he blushed.

“Third question,” Eddie said shyly, “What’s your favorite cartoon series?”

Steve hummed as he thought about it. “Avatar: The Last Airbender. There is just something so good about that show.”

“Yes!” Eddie crowed. “Secret Tunnel, Secret Tunnel!”

Steve laughed. “Or when Sokka got poisoned by the cactus juice?”

“I loved that,” Eddie said, bumping their shoulders together. “What is your favorite quote?”

“Shit, shit, shit, fuckity, shit, shit, fuck and willy. Willy, shit and fuck and...tits,” Steve said with a completely straight face.

Eddie giggled. He stopped to look at Steve in shock and awe and then he giggled again. It just bubbled out of him. “Where the hell is that from? Clearly I’m not watching the right movies, damn.”

“The King’s Speech,” Steve said with a huff of laughter. “It’s about the Duke of York, who had a stammer and was suddenly made king of England when his older brother abdicates.”

“You’ll definitely going to have to show me that one,” he said with a grin. “It sounds fun.”

“It’s not all swearing,” Steve said with a giggle. “It was a scene about his speech therapist trying to get him to swear so that he understands it’s all in his head.”

“Still,” Eddie replied fondly. “If you like it, I still want to see it.” He cleared his throat. “Last question.”

Steve took his hand and gave it a squeeze.

“Who had the better date, me or Billy?” Eddie asked shyly.

Steve kissed him. “I’ll tell you that in terms of kisses, he only got two. A kiss at the questions portion and again at the door to my hotel room. Now, how many kisses have you gotten?”

Eddie’s eyes twinkled. “I think I lost count.”

Steve kissed him again. “Me too.”

“I hope I’m not being presumptuous,” Eddie murmured, “but I got you a present.”

“Oh?”

Eddie hopped off the hood and opened the trunk. He got out a large white box and brought over to Steve. He handed it to him as he clambered back onto the hood.

Steve opened it up and there nestled the white tissue paper was a lingerie set. It was pink chiffon and white lace. It was a babydoll top and matching bottoms. It wasn’t a thong for which Steve was grateful.

“Eddie it’s beautiful,” he whispered. “I love it.”

Eddie smiled broadly. “I’m glad.” He paused for a moment. “I have a small confession. I’m not a sports fan. The college basketball team was literally pulled out of my ass. I didn’t lie, I used to watch it with Uncle Wayne...”

“But you’re a nerd?” Steve teased.

“Yuck it up, pretty boy,” Eddie said dryly. “But, yes.”

Steve bumped their shoulders together. “I have a small confession too. Or maybe not so small, depending you.”

“Wha’cha got?”

Steve bit his lower lip and lift the box a little. “I’ve never done anything like this before. I wanted to see how Billy would react.”

“Oh.”

“But seeing it here, with you,” he continued, not looking up. “I want it, with you. I want to be your princess.”

Eddie carefully removed the box from Steve’s hands and moved off to the side. Then he tackled Steve again showering him with kisses.

“Come on back to my hotel room, sweetheart.”

“I’d love to.”

~

“Welcome back to the ‘Love Connection’,” Bob said. He had changed suits into a nice dove grey one with a silver tie.

Steve was off to one side, while the three Suitors were on a large white sofa.

“Eddie was a runaway favorite leaving the question round,” Bob continued. “Did Billy’s date go well enough for a second date?”

Steve shook his head. “He was charming and sexy, but I don’t think we clicked.”

Billy nodded his head back and forth. “I’d agree, I was hoping for someone a little more adventurous and daring. Someone with hidden depths.”

“Ouch!” Bob winced. “Please tell Eddie fumbled somewhere. Like does he drool in his sleep or have a vodka aunt who is way too invested in his sex life? Something!”

Steve laughed. “I’m afraid not. Eddie was goofy and silly and as one of my students wisely said, the right person for the right now.”

“Wise kid,” Bob said softly. “So overwhelming in favor of Eddie Munson?”

“Very much so!”

Bob turned back to audience. “And there you have it. Join us next time for Tina Peterson, and her three lovely Suitors, Daren, Emily, and Carol.”

~

When he got home, he had Eddie’s number and promise that Eddie would come down from Chicago to be with him, he just had to do a few things first.

The first episode wouldn’t air until October, so they had to be discreet, but it was nice to have someone he knew was waiting for him.

They had to do a little reunion filming to see if they were still together and if Steve wanted to change his answer.

“Steve welcome back to ‘Love Connection,” the host, Bob said cheerfully. “Why don’t you tell us about what’s been going on in your life?”

“Hey, Bob,” Steve said with a smile. “I’m actually glad to be back. I went on a sabbatical from work after the school year ended.”

“What’s a sabbatical?” Bob asked, cocking his head to the side.

“It’s paid leave,” he explained, “usually in colleges and the like, but basically for a year, I can take time off to focus on other things, but my job will still be there when I get back.”

“Nice.”

“I took it because I appeared on here,” Steve said wryly. “Nothing against the show, but it is a little racier than most schools like for their teachers. This way, the show will air and by the time all the dust settles I can go back to my job.” He shrugged. “If I want to. I haven’t really decided yet.”

“Smart,” Bob agreed. “Tell us about that adorable kitten of yours.”

They flashed up a picture on screen of Odie still tucked under his chin, but much bigger.

“Yeah,” Steve said with a grin. “We found that he’s probably a Maine Coon. Which if you know anything about the breed, biiiiigggg cat.”

“Will he get bigger?” Bob asked his eyes wide.

“Most likely,” Steve replied. “They stop growing at eighteen months.”

“Damn!” He turned to the Suitors. “Gentlemen. Welcome back.”

All three of them murmured their hellos.

“Let’s start with Tommy,” Bob said. “Tell us about what you’ve been up to.”

“I moved to LA and am working full time at a firehouse,” Tommy said with a blush.

The audience oohed as they flashed up a picture of Tommy in his gear with some of his fellow fire fighters.

“Congrats!” Bob said.

“I have a boyfriend, too,” Tommy said. “His name is Evan Kincade and he’s the one on the left of me.”

“Well then!” Bob said brightly. “That’s a first for our show. A discarded Suitor finding love on their own. Well done.”

Tommy blushed. “Thanks.”

“All right, Billy,” Bob said, turning to the man in the middle of the sofa. “Tell us about your last six months.”

Billy brought up one leg and showed off an ankle monitor. “Got into a fight in a bar over a piece of ass that I didn’t know was taken. So I’m teaching youths how to surf as part of my community service. That means I lost sponsors and couldn’t compete outside of LA. But I’ll be back at it next season.”

Bob and Steve share a concerned glance.

Steve is so glad he dodged that bullet.

“And Eddie,” Bob finished. “What have you been up to?”

“Moved to Hawkins to be closer to my uncle, Wayne,” Eddie said with a grin. “When I was working up in Chicago, we’d visit each other on occasion, but now that he’s thinking of retiring, he would really like me closer to home. And I do my producing from anywhere really, so I figured what the hell.”

“That must be nice for your uncle,” Bob said sweetly. “Added bonus of being in Steve’s backyard didn’t hurt either?”

Eddie laughed. “Those two are inseparable now. You’d have to use a crowbar to pry them apart. I also ran a D&D game for Steve’s kids over the summer. Kept it short, but fun. They all had a blast.”

“So are you two still together?” Bob asked, already knowing the question.

Steve smiled over at Eddie who blushed and nodded.

“We moved in together back in June.”

Bob’s eyebrows shot up. “I’ve heard of Uhaul lesbians but damn you guys move fast.”

“My lease was up,” Steve explained. “My best friend was moving in with her girlfriend of two years, and I didn’t want to stay there. So when Eddie got settled into a house in town, I moved in with him.”

“We scandalize our neighbors,” Eddie cackled with glee, “by being gay, democrats, and I’m a metalhead. All the ladies thought Steve was single and brought over baked goods. And only when the last one tried to seduce him, he kissed me in front of all them. Boy did they go running.”

“It’s been great,” Steve insisted. “Fences really do make the best neighbors.”

“Well there you have it,” Bob said. “A great success story.”

~

When they got home and curled up with Odie, Eddie asked, “Are you still mad at Chrissy and Robin for signing you up without telling you?”

Steve shrugged. “Maybe a little. I would have liked to have made the choice for myself, but I am grateful because I got to meet you.”

“I love you, Stevie,” Eddie said softly.

“I love you, too, Eds.”

~

Tag List: CLOSED

1-@mira-jadeamethyst @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @zerokrox-blog

2- @gregre369 ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @messrs-weasley @cryptid-system

3- @maya-custodios-dionach @goodolefashionedloverboi @val-from-lawrence @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog

4- @justforthedead89 @irregular-child @bookbinderbitch @bookworm0690 @forgottenkanji

5- @anne-bennett-cosplayer @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @littlewildflowerkitten @genderless-spoon

6- @dragonmama76 @ellietheasexylibrarian @thedragonsaunt @useless-nb-bisexual @disrespectedgoatman

7- @counting-dollars-counting-stars @tinyplanet95 @ravenfrog @swimmingbirdrunningrock @lingeringmirth

8- @gutterflower77 @a-lovely-craziness @just-a-tiny-void @w1ll0wtr33 @beelze-the-bubkiss

9- @dreamercec @wheneverfeasible @themoonagainstmers @garden-of-gay @little-birch-boy

10- @ollieolive @dissociatingdemon @stripey82 @kultiras @micheledawn1975

[bl-bam-beyond]

WE ARE: THE SERIES (2024, THAILAND)

Episode 5

The kiss..initiated by Pheem (PHUWIN TANGSAKYUEN) but enjoyed by Phum (NARAVIT LERTRATKOSUM aka POND)

[milla-jordan]

OKAY THEORY FOR SEASON 5

it’s more than likely that season 5 will be released in two volumes, there is a rumour it will be three due to a most likely fake post, but we’ll have to wait until may 31st to see ig.

due to the recurring pattern of significant byler moments happening on the episode number which correlates to the season (s1 ep1- will goes missing, s2 ep2- crazy together, s3 ep3- rain fight, s4 ep4- two heart to hearts) i believe something will definitely happen between them in s5 ep5.

however, as they will likely split the season into a longer first half and a short second half like they did with season 4 it is a good bet that vol 1 will end on episode 5. MEANING that the episode will probably with an ALMOST kiss or something to keep us on our toes for vol 2. (it also fits with the duffers style of writing i think)

this would actually be so cruel of them but i can honestly see it happening just to keep viewers engaged. downside to this is it may stop passionate milevens (and homophobic/conservative viewers) from watching vol 2 which would decrease the shows popularity and profits.

but i think this is a likely bet for if (when) byler happens/is confirmed!

[cowboywritersworld]

Can I prompt (Face) Fem!Reader & (Heel) Damian are paired together for the mixed match challenge & have worked well together. They are being interviewed backstage & the interviewer points out the chemistry they share & wonders if there is anything going on between them. Reader & Damian laugh it off & reader tries to prove there's nothing between them by kissing him. Both try to play it cool afterwards but clearly the kiss sparked something.

Maybe we are lying to ourselves

General Masterlist | WWE Masterlist | Damian Priest Masterlist

Characters: Damian Priest, Reader

Prompt: (Face) Fem!Reader & (Heel) Damian are paired together for the mixed match challenge & have worked well together. They are being interviewed backstage & the interviewer points out the chemistry they share & wonders if there is anything going on between them. Reader & Damian laugh it off & reader tries to prove there's nothing between them by kissing him. Both try to play it cool afterwards but clearly the kiss sparked something.

AN: thanks for requesting, here you are! Hope you'll enjoy it! For this fic as well, I can come up with a second part, if anyone is interested. Maybe where after they win the final, they kiss better and admit they are attracted to each other.

The time the fan had determined they wanted to see you and Damian pair in the Mixed Match Challenge, you had been surprised. You are a face, while Damian is a heel, but you work so perfectly together.

You look as he pins your opponent, while you hold Charlotte back, to avoid her breaking the pin.

1... 2... 3! It's done. You are the first mixed team to advance to the final of that season of the challenge. You slid into the ring and the referee holds your hands in the air, while you take in both the cheers and boos of the fans attending that episode of Raw.

"Well done on keeping Charlotte out of the ring." Damian whispers to you as you both head backstage.

"That's my job and I'm pretty good at it." You reply as you high-five some fans on the way.

"So full of yourself." He huffs, shushing you to the back.

"Never as much as you are."

You tease him, following him until the interviewer stops both of you. She places herself between you both, a little behind, keeping the mic in front of you.

"I am here with Damian Priest and Yrn. Guys, you just advanced to the finals of this challenge. How do you feel about it?" She doesn't ask anyone in particular, but it's Damian who speaks first.

"We were put in a team together just by joke by the fans. Well... Here we are! Heading to the final match as the first team qualified! How many of you thought we could come so far into this challenge? Never underestimate us!" Damian looks always straight into the camera, moving around, his hands as well, while he speaks.

"We may have some bickering from time to time, but we work strangely good together. We won't stop here, so whoever is going to win the last semifinal, beware: we'll be the winners! You have no chance against us." You grin as you speak, looking from time to time to Damian, but you keep your focus on your part of the segment.

"Speaking of working well together..." The interviewer catches your attention once again and you both turn slightly to her. "Everyone sees the chemistry there is between you two each time you have a match together. It seems like you are perfect partners. Many are wondering if there is anything between you two."

"..." You are left astonished for a moment, not expecting such a question, but you are quick to answer. "Our relation is only workwise. There is nothing between us backstage or outside work." You laugh, playing it cool, while Damian follows you.

"Then how is it..." She can't finish her question, since you cut her off.

"Well, let us show you that there is actually nothing between us."

You feel slightly pissed off while you reach over to Damian, getting on your tiptoes - Damian being at 2 feet 5 inches be damned - to kiss him on the lips.

The kiss lasts not even one minute, the interviewer looks surprised, as much as Damian, but he smirks letting you lead that chaste kiss. Once you take some steps back, you avoid looking at Damian, looking at the camera instead.

"Our chemistry doesn't involve anything personal. Now, if you'll excuse us..."

You dismiss yourselves and go to your locker room, lightly touching your lips deep in your thoughts, raising an eyebrow as you feel Damian following you. You are questioning what you have just done, because instead of proving it meant nothing, deep inside your heart you feel it's not like that.

"You don't need to follow me, you know? The cameras aren't with us anymore." You try to act still cool, but you can't stop thinking about the kiss, wanting to feel those lips once more.

"You know we didn't need to prove that, especially not in that way, right?" He asks, grinning. "Kissing me like that, will make the fans talk about it, instead of have them thinking there is really nothing between us."

You blush a little, scratching your nape. "I... I acted on instinct. Thought we could persuade them somehow." You definitely hate yourself now, you definitely shouldn't have.

[wlwcatalogue]

Chinese GL Webseries & Shorts for the Wuxia-Uninclined

Have you ever wanted to venture into the world of Chinese GL webseries and short films, only to find yourself at a loss about where to begin, or intimidated by the unfamiliar tropes and terms of the wuxia genre?

Well, worry no more! Here's a selection of non-wuxia webseries and short films curated by yours truly. Now you too can enjoy the lavish costumes and location shoots of these Chinese productions, so rarely seen in F/F works outside of feature films and the occasional TV series~

By the way, these are all translated and subbed by the inimitable Douqi (@douqi7s), whose immense contribution to the English-language baihe fandom is surely in breach of anti-monopoly laws. Offer up your thanks at her Tumblr and Twitter!

At-a-glance list

Webseries:

Ye-Mu Season 2 (1 hr 20m total, 2023) - standalone

The Vampires (41m total, 2022)

Ye-Mu Season 1 (27m total, 2022) - standalone

The Lost World (1hr 5m total, 2023)

Short films - order corresponding to the pictures above:

A Tale of Yearning (5 mins, 2022)

"She Brought Colour Into My World" (2.5 mins, 2023)

"I'm Her Weapon" (3 mins, 2022)

Miss Shen and the Woman Warlord (6 mins, 2023)

Women's Script (5 mins, 2023)

The Caged Canary (5 mins, 2023)

The Beauty of the Law (6 mins, 2023)

Flowers Bloom; Flowers Wither (9 mins, 2022)

Commentary under the cut!

FYI, I've opted to link directly to the subtitled versions since they're probably more difficult to find than regular anime, TV series, movies etc. If a link is broken, please refer to Douqi's blog directly.

Important note for the uninitiated:

It’s a bit difficult to talk about canonicity in relation to live-action works made in the PRC, as things which would normally be used as evidence of canonicity all fall under the censorship regulations— explicit references to romantic relationships or queerness, declarations of love, kissing etc. are all off the table. So while these may not look canon in the most traditional sense, they are intended to be read as such and should certainly not be dismissed as queerbaiting or yuribait. Also, the creators can get very imaginative, so this is less of a problem than you may think – see the entries on Ye-Mu Season 2 and The Lost World in particular!

1. Ye-Mu Season 2 / 叶穆 2 (32 episodes / 1hr 20m total, 2023, dir. Zhang Zhiwei) - MyDramaList

(Note: Despite the name, Ye-Mu Season 2 is completely unrelated to the first season; the only thing the two share is the cast, crew, and focus on Penthouse-style melodrama.)

Determined to take revenge for her mother's death, Xu Baiqing (Sheng Wei) marries a wealthy and much older businessman in the hope of finding evidence to put him behind bars. But first she must assuage the suspicions of his cheerily hostile second daughter, moody youngest son, and estranged eldest daughter (Ye-Mu Zhixia, played by Wang Laoji), the latter of whom Xu Baiqing dated in university and who is currently seething at the sight of her former girlfriend marrying her father...

If you want to get a sense of the potential breadth of Chinese GL webseries, this is a pretty good place to start. It does a decent job of matching the tone and presentation of a melodrama you might catch on TV (and in fact looks higher-budget than some I can think of), while committing to something that can’t be done on TV yet— namely, featuring an F/F exes-to-stepmother storyline and delivering on the drama inherent in such a premise. Of particular note is how the framing and behaviour of Ye-Mu Zhixia is very much consistent with that of a male romantic lead; thanks to some clever writing, it’s basically impossible to deny the nature of her relationship with the main character. They don’t even lean on the plausible deniability afforded by the label of “friendship”— in fact, in an early scene she is incensed when the protagonist refers to her as “[her] only friend”. There are a few caveats – the main character ends up in a lot of scrapes that her ex-girlfriend has to save her from, the reveals are often rather unsurprising, and the story shifts more to a mystery focus around halfway – but it’s still worth checking out if a Korean-style melodrama with an F/F take on a romantic storyline sounds appealing.

 (CW: violence, murder, attempted sexual assault)

Note: See The Lost World (below), from the same creative team, for an even more impressive example of Chinese GL pushing the limits of censorship.

Links: MEGA / Internet Archive (compilation)

2. The Vampires / 吸血鬼鬼盲盒 (7 episodes / 41m total, 2022, dir. Zhang Zhiwei) - MyDramaList

(Note: Spoilers for the first 15 minutes or so, because otherwise the summary would be “They end up locked inside with the monsters on board”, which wouldn’t tell you much more than the title already does)

Every night, Tianyue (Ye Miao/夜喵) has been having dreams about the mysterious cruise ship docked at the pier. Convinced that there is treasure hidden inside, she and her exorcist-cultivator girlfriend Xiao Ling (Wei Miao/微渺) sneak on board only to find that they are trapped there until the sun comes up. Things don’t seem too bad at first: although they run into two vampires – the cute, cheeky Xingming (Yang Fuyu) and her elegant mistress Su Tanya (Sheng Wei) – they are able to call a truce, on the condition that the humans help search the ship for the latter’s beloved (Fu Cha, played by Wang Laoji). But when Fu Cha wakes up without her memories, it is clear that something is terribly wrong, and that the ship and its inhabitants harbour more secrets than expected.

For a webseries, The Vampires takes a while to get started— it’s a bit difficult to tell what kind of story or indeed what kind of tone it’s going for just based on the somewhat campy and comedic first section. But after that wobbly beginning, it manages to pull itself together to tell a compelling – and sometimes genuinely tense – tale about a motley band of humans and vampires, and the truths they have to face together. While the ending is no happily-ever-after, I found it satisfying and hopeful, and surprisingly affecting. Also, a bunch of the characters have real polyam energy, and this is reflected in the narrative beyond mere flirting!

(CW: abusive parents)

Links - MEGA / Internet Archive (compilation) / YouTube (compilation)

3. Ye-Mu Season 1 / 叶穆 (12 episodes / 27m total, 2022, dir. Zhang Zhiwei) - MyDramaList

(Note: Ye-Mu Seasons 1 and 2 are standalone stories; each season is entirely self-contained and the second season is not a continuation of the first.)

The head of the Ye-Mu family has died, leaving the next generation to squabble over the inheritance. It's a web of secrets, lies, and hidden resentments, as the characters dig out old grievances and fresh accusations in a desperate attempt to one-up each other. They're tangled up together to an almost incestuous degree, and indeed, the F/F subtext here is the ambiguous relationship between eldest daughter Ye-Mu Nanzhu (Sheng Wei) and second daughter Ye-Mu Nanmo (Wang Laoji) (rest assured that they are at least not biologically related).

Those who prefer darker stories and don't mind the pseudo-incest or other content warnings will find a melodrama which makes good use of its short runtime to deliver on twists, turns, and an explosive - if tragic - conclusion. That being said, the story is about the family drama in general, so do note that while the relationship between Nanzhu and Nanmo is narratively important, it is not fleshed out in great detail and certainly not the focus of the series.

(CW: suicide, ableist trope (spoiler – disabled character turns out to have been faking it), ableist language)

Links - MEGA / Internet Archive (compilation)

4. The Lost World / 夏夜知道风的甜 (1hr 5m total, 2023, dir. Zhang Zhiwei) - MyDramaList

(Note: Spoilers for the purpose of flagging triggering content, as it’s particularly easy to trip into for this show. Also, some vague spoilers for later episodes in order to highlight in order to highlight the themes etc.)

This webseries feels like two shows smushed into one: apart from the very beginning, the first half is a gritty, bullying-focused take on university life, while the second is a true-blue romantic comedy (aside from one blip – see the note below for details). But even if you’re wary of the bullying, I would still recommend watching the back half – which is basically standalone – as it’s a very funny and heartfelt story about two childhood friends finally getting their act together. Without further ado, here’s two blurbs!

From episode 1 onwards: After saving a classmate from the class bully, popular college student Xia Huaichu (Yang Fuyu) is subjected to a lengthy harassment campaign by the latter. She is suddenly faced with having to protect her reputation in the face of false allegations and fake nudes– despite the fact that all she wants to do is focus on reconciling with another classmate, a high school best friend whom she had previously lost touch with (Mu Qingfeng, played by Wang Laoji). From episode 14 onwards: Childhood friends Xia Huaichu (Yang Fuyu) and Mu Qingfeng (Wang Laoji) are caught in a weird gay purgatory where each has feelings for the other, and suspects that the other has feelings for them too. But both are exceedingly stubborn and want the other one to take the initiative in confessing, leading to ridiculous displays of I-don’t-care-isms and lots and lots of UST. (Does anybody use that term anymore??)

As you may have guessed, I’m not too keen on the first part of this show, nor the decidedly unnecessary attempted rape segment, though that’s partly on me for not checking the content warnings beforehand. And yet I’m very glad to have stuck with it, because the second half is not only hilarious, but also a masterclass in censorship-dodging that needs to be seen to be believed. Not just in terms of the suggestive scenes, of which there are many, either— the story is literally about two women starting a relationship and having to reckon with parental disapproval, homophobia, and other obstacles which platonic friends wouldn’t have to deal with. I honestly don’t know how this ever got approved, and can only applaud. Bravo.

Note: For those who want to avoid the triggering content, I’d recommend starting at episode 14, but make sure to skip episodes 19 and 20 as there is a foiled rape attempt.

(CW for entire series: bullying (incl. violence, fake nudes), sexual harassment, attempted sexual assault, fatphobic language, homophobia

CW for episodes 14-24: attempted sexual assault in episodes 19-20, homophobia)

Links - MEGA / Dropbox

SHORT FILMS

Quick note: Click on the English titles for the subtitled versions, and the Chinese titles (which are really just the video titles) for the originals. And yes, although the majority of these are shampoo commercials, they really do hold up as short films in their own right. Give them a try, you might be surprised!

A Tale of Yearning / 一见误终生，不见终生误 (5 mins, 2022, dir. Liu Yun Rui/流云蕊) – A bittersweet story about a literature-minded young woman (Sheng Wei) and a Chinese opera performer (Ai Ye) who bond over their love of fiction, only to be torn apart by harsh reality. Tragic ending, but I liked the more literary turn of the dialogue. Shampoo ad. (CW: homophobia)

“She Brought Colour Into My World” / “她走后，我的世界又失去了颜色” (2.5 mins, 2023, dir. Zou Hui Qu Le/走回去了) – A very restrained short film (actually, more like a music video) set during the late Qing era, wherein a sheltered young woman (Xiao Yu Za/小宇咂) falls for her female neighbour, recently returned from studying abroad (Sheng Wei). Lovely use of music and visuals to create a dreamlike atmosphere. Tragic ending. Not a shampoo ad.

“I’m Her Weapon” / 我是你手里的一把刀 (3 mins, 2022, dir. Liu Yun Rui/流云蕊) – A moody, interior piece about an assassin (Ai Ye) who yearns for some sign of affection from her handler (Sheng Wei), only to be left devastated by her new assignment. Surprisingly not a shampoo ad.

Miss Shen and the Woman Warlord / 我们是孤独行走的钟，但也要做敲响希望的钟 (6 mins, 2023, dir. Liu Yun Rui/流云蕊) – I’d like to describe this as being inspired by the story of Mai Jia’s novel The Message and the aesthetics of Kawashima Yoshiko (1990), but most Tumblr users would probably find those references deeply unhelpful. Basically, a female spy (Sheng Wei) disguises herself as a male soldier and infiltrates the mansion of a Republican warlord. There, she meets the warlord’s daughter (Ai Ye), who quickly realises that there is more to the promising young officer than meets the eye. Shampoo ad.

Women’s Script / 纵使“科考”无女子，无碍红袖书香，星辰有光 (5 mins, 2023, dir. Liu Yun Rui/流云蕊) – While sailing down a river, a girl (Zhi Chun He/至春禾) catches sight of a woman writing poetry on the riverbank (Sheng Wei), and is fascinated by both her beauty and her flaunting of the rules against women’s literacy. Shampoo ad. (CW: domestic violence)

The Caged Canary / 如果这是一场骗局，那我也只愿意输给你 (5 mins, 2023, dir. Liu Yun Rui/流云蕊) – The protagonist (Ai Ye) is sent by her parents to beguile a wealthy young man into marriage, but ends up developing feelings for his modern-woman sister (Sheng Wei) instead. Shampoo ad. (CW: attempted sexual assault)

Flowers Bloom; Flowers Wither / 她们一个被铁链禁锢，一个被男装束缚，直到救赎彼此 (9 mins, 2022, dir. Qian Li Min/千里明) – Takes the romance between a cross-dressing noblewoman (Du Ruo/杜若) and her supposedly-mad stepmother (Rou Lian Cheng/肉脸橙) to tell a story about the restrictions placed on women in historical times, and how resistance, even when futile, can still have meaning. Tragic ending, obviously. Not a shampoo ad. (CW: domestic violence, misogyny, accidental misgendering, gender dysphoria)

[cydrafinity-tadc]

Masterlist of my fanfiction

Will of course keep this updated. Presented in reverse chronological order so you get the newest work first.

Both characters and ships will be listed from most to least prevalence in the story.

If chapters are not listed, then it is a oneshot.

Currently, the only fandom is The Amazing Digital Circus.

The Forlorn Bunny & The Frog Who Hopped Away

Rating: Not Rated

Characters: Jax, Ribbit

Ships: Jax/Ribbit

Jax visits an old friend. Takes place immediately after episode 5. Let's call this ship Bunnyribbit, okay? It's a nice pun.

Heartfelt Happenings at Honeymoon Harbor

Rating: General

Characters: Ragatha, Pomni, Caine, Zooble, Gangle, Jax, Kinger

Ships: Pomni/Ragatha, Gangle/Zooble

Chapters: 1, 2, 3

Caine has a special Valentine's Day adventure cooked up for the Circus crew, where they will each be paired up and sent on a scavenger hunt. Pomni and Ragatha have been getting close, but they may have to get even closer for this escapade. Ragapom focus with background Abstragedy. Was intended to be a oneshot, but it's 3 chapters - and now complete!

Gangle's Silly Softball Sidequest

Rating: Mature

Characters: Gangle, Jax, The copy of Jax from the episode 5 trailer, Pomni, Kinger, Dr. Football

Ships: Gangle/Jax, Gangle/The copy of Jax from the episode 5 trailer

Based on a handful of frames from the Episode 5 trailer, written within hours of said trailer dropping, running on pure adrenaline and sexy vibes. Probably much less refined than my usual standard but this isn't about refinement, it's about Gangle getting caught with Jax's opposite-personality NPC copy, by the real Jax. Sexy times ensue. No actual explicit sex nor nudity but a LOT of kissing. No substantial story but I hope you like the quick and dirty horny nonsense.

By The Blood Moon's Light

Rating: Mature

Characters: Pomni, Ragatha

Ships: Pomni/Ragatha

The blood moon hangs high over Syrcus Castle, as Pomni Van Helsing prepares to confront its most dreaded master. But between the stories, the strangers in town, and the castle's servants, something about the whole situation feels... off. Self-contained Vampire Hunter Pomni x Vampire Ragatha AU, no knowledge of other AU material needed (nor does any exist outside this fic).

New Couple's First Fight

Rating: General

Characters: Pomni, Ragatha

Ships: Pomni/Ragatha

Pomni and Ragatha just concluded their first fight as a couple, and sit down in the devastating aftermath to talk it out.

We Can Take Things Slow

Rating: Explicit

Characters: Pomni, Ragatha

Ships: Pomni/Ragatha

Pomni and Ragatha have only been dating for a week, and Pomni still isn't used to physical intimacy. When she and Ragatha share a bed for the first time, however, she gets a bit more excited than she thought she'd be. Cuddly fluffy sex, with canon-accurate restrictions. So no genitals, no taking off clothes.

It Always Plays Out This Way

Rating: Explicit

Characters: Gangle, Jax

Ships: Jax/Gangle

They hate each other, they love each other, repeat. Angsty, sexy Ribbun from Gangle's POV.

Whatever the Future Holds

Rating: Mature

Characters: Pomni, Ragatha

Ships: Pomni/Ragatha

Pomni and Ragatha stay up talking in bed, and Pomni brings up a heavy subject when she poses the question: What do they want to do when they escape?

An Endless Conga Line of HR Violations

Rating: Explicit

Characters: Gangle, Jax, Ragatha, Zooble, Pomni, Gummigoo

Ships: Jax/Gangle, Pomni/Ragatha

Gangle has been having a rough day as shift manager of Spudsy's. First, Ragatha, who has been completely out of it for some reason, can't stop talking about Pomni. And then Jax comes in from his "re-evaluation" with a surprise... Comedy smut, mainly Ribbun but with some Buttonblossom thrown in, along with other ships that you'll have to read to find out about.

Why Does This Car Smell Like Japanese Cherry Blossoms

Rating: Explicit

Characters: Jax, Gangle

Ships: Jax/Gangle

Jax won't put up with further punishment from Caine after Gangle's "extra training," and demands a promotion. Gangle has an idea on how he can earn it. (She pegs him in the back of his car.) Takes place within the events of episode 4, though doesn't quite fit into canon. Loosely based on an animatic by vvickydisc on Tumblr.