#anyway this is off topic. best tutorial level songs
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wavetapper · 2 years ago
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best tutorial level songs
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chaoticpanenergy · 5 years ago
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Alright, Sanders Sides fandom (+ Six the Musical fandom). 
I watched this *ahem* neato slime tutorial about Six the Musical and then listened to the soundtrack on Spotify and then overanalyzed the lyrics on genius.com and I have a lot of emotions about this story. So what do I do? I make a Sanders Sides au/analysis for it, obviously, putting WAY too much thought into different interpretations of which side could be which queen. Let’s jump in.
Catherine of Aragon
Catherine in the golden-yellow and black costume. Catherine who knows when she is lied to. Catherine who puts herself first when it comes down to it. Catherine who deals with disrespect but knows her worth anyway. Catherine who “keeps her cool” and stays in control of herself. Catherine must be Janus, lord of the lies, self-preservation, whose calm facade has cracked so rarely.
But then again, Catherine is a leader. Catherine is concerned with loyalty, and what is right and wrong, and that is why she stands up against the divorce—it is wrong of Henry to divorce her, according to her morals. Catherine can swallow her pride, and Catherine seeks a solution to the last, giving Henry so many chances. Catherine handles her situation with grace. Catherine must be Patton, the Hufflepuff, Morality, loving and kind and endlessly forgiving, always trying to do what is right and guide others to do the same.
But then again, Catherine strives to “keep her cool.” To look at things with a level head. She speaks up and reasons with Henry, and in return asks for his own reasoning. She refuses to be made into a joke or looked down upon. Catherine is stubborn and verbose. Catherine must be Logan, the voice of reason, who does his best to keep a handle on his temper and appear as professional as possible, who explains and reasons and is logic above all, who is terrified of being seen as a joke, who is desperate to just be heard for once in his life.
Anne Boleyn
Anne in the green sleeves. Anne who has no filter whatsoever, Anne who says whatever comes into her head. Anne who makes jokes about her own beheading. Anne who says “don’t be bitter/cause I’m fitter/why hasn’t it hit her?/he doesn’t wanna bang you/somebody hang you.” Anne who is “sorry not sorry” about everything she says. Anne who is the most gleeful and up-front about “x-rated” content. Anne whose energy is boundless. Anne who is disliked and cast in a negative light by those around her. Anne must be Remus, the darkly creative, responsible for intrusive thoughts, who would never hide anything going through his head and sees no reason to regret this, the “evil twin.”
But then again, Anne who didn’t mean to hurt anyone.” Anne who desperately cries “what was I meant to do?” over and over again as every choice she makes has no good outcome for her. Anne whose comments are more harshly received than she sometimes means. Anne who does not take it well when she comes second to someone else. Anne must be Roman, the ego, stuck in a damned-if-I-do-damned-if-I-don’t situation towards Janus throughout the “Putting Others First” saga, who often lashes out instinctively only to immediately apologize, who strives to be Thomas’s hero.
But then again, Anne whose actions are surprisingly logical from her own point of view. Anne who uses phrases like “obviously” to describe what took place. Anne who gives back tit for tat and no more when she feels disrespected. Anne who is blunt, perhaps more so than is good for her. Anne must be Logan, who always does what makes the most sense to him, who considers what is fair and equal, who can come across as harsher than he means.
Jane Seymour
Jane who is patient. Jane who is steady. Jane who forgives over and over again and makes allowance for behavior she does not deserve to tolerate. Jane whose family is of the utmost importance to her. Jane is overlooked for her kindness and meekness but is so, so strong. Jane who makes puns about her own name. Jane must be Patton, who adores his family, the punster, who is established as the dad friend from day one, who gives and nurtures and forgives endlessly, who is resilient and strong and supportive.
But then again, Jane sticks with the positions she has chosen. Jane who is easily overlooked. Jane who acknowledges the often-sucky realities of life and does not let it bring her down. Jane who is strong as stone and unshakeable. Jane must be Logan, who will not back down, who can be relegated to the sidelines too easily, who is down to earth and who chooses to see the wonder in the ordinary despite all the bad.
But then again, Jane knows she could be rejected at a misstep. Jane who loves, and is loved, but believes that love could “disappear.” Jane who withstands hardships and heartbreak and fear. Jane who uses storm imagery constantly. Jane whose strength and love is akin to stone, something rarely used as a positive metaphor. Jane must be Virgil, who worries he will be rejected for his dark past, who withstood being shunned by those he “lo—cares for” in the past, who is prickly and can cause harm but has grown and matured, who will not be reduced to a single facet of himself even if that makes him more “complicated,” whose logo is a stormcloud.
Anna of Cleves
Anna who is bold. Anna who is unafraid to speak her mind and gets what she wants. Anna whose physical appearance led to her rejection. Anna who is the epitome of “me time” and “self care.” Anna who has no problem being sassy and gives as good as she gets. Anna must be Janus, who advocates for self care and putting oneself first, who is a drama queen, whose sarcasm is off the charts, who has been accused of trickery (sometimes justified, sometimes not), who thrives on attention, whose snake face led to instant distrust from everyone around him, who will go to any length to be heard.
But then again, Anna who demands attention. Anna who gives herself every luxury that occurs to her on a whim. Anna is the only character to openly curse, and gives it a double meaning. Anna who revels in the portrait that caused her rejection and takes pride in it. Anna is the first to make fun of Henry's genitals. Anna must be Remus, who revels in everything he is told not to, who is impulsive and whimsical and unfiltered, who calls Logan a dork and later reveals the inappropriate double meaning, who takes up space unashamedly.
But then again, Anna who constantly reminds us of her royal position. Anna who leans into the queenly activities and possessions. Anna who is flamboyant. Anna who dances when her jam comes on the lute. Anna who rejects criticism of herself. Anna who is “looking cute.” Anna must be Roman, the ego, who put “Flamboyant” by Dorian Electra on his playlist, who is creativity embodied and dances and sings and acts, who “has got to slay,” who reminds us constantly of his princely status.
Katherine Howard
Katherine who comes across at first as flirty and confident only to later reveal that she is insecure because she has only ever been valued for her appearance. Katherine who idealizes and daydreams about someone caring about her for herself and not her looks. Katherine who uses self-confident language to mask her insecurity. Katherine whose language is so flowery and filled with vivid descriptions. Katherine who desperately wants to be approved of and loved. Katherine must be Roman, whose confident facade hides insecurity, who is a hopeless romantic, who is a storyteller, whose language is filled with descriptors and metaphors, who desperately craves approval and validation, who is the romantic side.
But then again, Katherine gives others the benefit of the doubt. Katherine who looks for friends everywhere she goes. Katherine who constantly uses euphemisms and language that might be considered childish. Katherine who is sweet and sincere. Katherine must be Patton, who censors his language and can skirt around topics that are too unpleasant, who forgives and gives second chances, who is kind and soft, who makes friends almost as easily as breathing.
But then again, Katherine who has been let down over and over again. Katherine who tries again and again after every disappointment. Katherine who is anxious to be approved of. Katherine must be Virgil, who dealt with the “scorn” of those he admired for so long, who has persevered through everything, who deals with self-doubt, who always tries again.
But then again, Katherine who thinks she ought to know better, but never does. Katherine who is so, so tired of this same shit every time. Katherine who is too worldly and disillusioned. Katherine who hopes and tries again every time she gets let down. Katherine must be Janus, who put “You’re a Cad” on his playlist, who was rejected time and time again by Thomas and the others but kept trying, who went on a whole ramble about how society is out to get you and the only person you can really trust is yourself.
Catherine Parr
Catherine who brought all the queens together despite their differences and their fights. Catherine who was separated from the person she cared about before eventually reuniting with him. Catherine who uses her voice defiantly because she is tired of being silenced. Catherine who doesn’t need love to get by. Catherine who loves music. Catherine who sometimes loses hope, but keeps going anyway. Catherine must be Virgil, the bridge between “light” and “dark” sides, who cannot be silenced, always listening (to Thomas or to music), who cared about the “light” sides long before he was accepted as part of the group.
But then again, Catherine who prioritizes herself and her own story. Catherine who sings her song “for me.” Catherine who is a little bit cynical about love stories, which we’re normally taught to idealize. Catherine for whom the rules of society are a trap. catherine who demands control over herself. Catherine who rejects the rules of the queens’ competition when they restrict her. Catherine must be Janus, self-preservation and self-care, who feels restricted and endangered by the rules of society, who dismisses Patton’s urge to help those in need with a “yeah, sure, whatever, if that’s your thing,” who pushes Thomas to be true to himself.
But then again, Catherine who “built a future in her mind” with her love. Catherine who loves art in all its forms, and consumes and creates it with abandon. Catherine who wants to tell her story on her own terms after being silenced for so long. Catherine must be Roman, endlessly creative, romantic daydreamer, struggling with balancing his wants with Thomas's needs and feeling silenced because of it.
But then again, Catherine who writes, and is scholarly. Catherine who fights for equality and takes steps within her power to make specific differences. Catherine who champions education for women. Catherine who cannot stand being boxed in and made to be less than she truly is. Catherine who bottles up her rage at the unfairness of it all for as long as she can. Catherine whose feelings are pushed aside. Catherine must be Logan, the teacher, who pushes his emotions aside until he cannot hold them back anymore, who feels like he is not seen for who he is, who cares deeply about things being fair and equitable, who outlines action steps, who always asks more questions.
--
The queens are each multi-faceted characters full of depth—they’re human, gorgeously and heartwrenchingly so. It makes sense that there are multiple Sides that could easily fit into each of their roles, and I haven’t even covered every possible interpretation. There are dozens of possible lineups to come up with here, each that I love to think about. What’s your favorite? I’d love to hear.
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the-fauxpas · 8 years ago
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five / watermelon granita
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uni AU co-written with @ineffably-styles
a story of late nights, unorthodox household plants, and a trip to Vegas that changes everything
“How’s it going, guys?” a new voice sounded, Zayn appearing a few seconds later and taking a seat beside Alexa. “Has anyone tripped yet?”
“Niall landed on his bum about fifteen minutes ago. Kept whining about how he’s probably bruised his tailbone. Personally, I don’t think he’s really cut out to play this game,” Savannah commented, waving a hello at Zayn.
chapter four / story page
“Oh no,” Savannah slumped, spotting Louis and Reyna chatting together by Louis’ car, identical cups of coffee in their hands.
“Crap,” Alexa sighed, hitching her bag higher on her shoulder and biting her lip. Reyna and Louis’ heads snapped up as they approached, a broad smile stretching across Louis’ face.
“Need a lift?” Louis asked once they were close enough, dangling his car keys before them.
“Uh, sure?” Alexa replied, a little confused. Savannah just stood there, squinting over at Reyna as if she was trying to decipher a particularly difficult maths equation.
“Lou’s offered us a ride to uni,” Reyna shrugged, raising an eyebrow at Savannah’s blatant staring. “It’s a peace offering for ruining the movie yesterday,” she explained, narrowing her eyes a little at Louis, who was still grinning like a fool.
“Sure is. Now, chop-chop,” he clapped his hands together. “Don’t wanna be late now do we?”
“Ha!” Reyna scoffed, watching as Louis pulled open the passenger side door for her to climb in. “You’ve never been on time to anything education-related,” she said, moving past him.
“Not true!” he defended, racing over to the driver’s side. “I was usually on time for football games!”
“That’s not exactly education-related,” Savannah piped up, buckling her seatbelt and placing her bag between herself and Lex.
“Plus, you were late to those half the time,” Alexa joined in.
“I thought this was a peace offering,” Louis grumbled, pulling his car out onto the street. “Not a ‘let’s attack Louis’ freefest.”
“You brought this upon yourself,” Reyna shrugged, pulling out her phone. “What class do you guys have this morning?” she asked Savannah and Alexa, twisting a little to face them.
“I’ve got Brain and Behaviour,” Savannah grumbled. “Our lecturer talks at about the speed of light so taking notes is impossible. Plus, there’s someone who sits behind me who eats the noisiest food, I feel like he does it on purpose.”
“Yeah, well, I’ve got Menzies first thing,” Reyna sighed. “If you guys don’t hear from me after that class, it’s safe to say that he’s locked me in the morgue to join the other bodies there.”
“I don’t have class until noon,” Alexa grinned cheerfully.
“I hate you,” Savannah glared at her.
“Yeah but you have a seven hour Renaissance art class later on in the week, so really, who’s the real winner here?” Reyna shot back, high-fiving Savannah as Lex slumped down in her seat.  
“I have a marketing class first thing,” Louis chirped with false cheer. “Not that anyone asked me,” he said, rolling his eyes and chancing a glance at the three of them. “It’s like I’m only good for giving you guys lifts to places and being made fun of.”
“That’s not true, Lou. You’ve also got a pretty sick apartment.”
“You know, if we weren’t already here, I’d throw you out of my car and make you walk the rest of the way,” he shook his head even as a smile fought its way onto his face - he was very proud of his apartment.
“Liar,” Savannah sing-songed as she crawled through the car and out Alexa’s door. She had a thing where, if her passenger side door faced the road, she would crawl over and exit the car through the opposite side.
Neither Louis, Alexa nor Reyna even blinked at her, but a couple students who were passing by sent them some weird looks.
“I can’t believe I’ve come all this way for a class that finishes at eleven. I’ve only got a lecture today and it’s more of an intro to the topic than an actual class. Apparently all we’re doing today is partnering up for some assignment,” Savannah rolled her eyes.
“My condolences to the poor soul who ends up being your partner,” Alexa joked.
“Hey, I’m not that bad!”
“Yeah, ok. Not like you basically traumatised the last girl you were partnered with by literally turning up at her doorstep at 2am one night with an ‘idea you just couldn’t wait to share with her’,” Reyna laughed.
“It was a good idea,” Sav grumbled, hitching her bag higher up on her shoulder as they four of them made their way towards their respective classes. “Why do we have to park so far away?”
“Because, finding parking on campus is near impossible,” Louis explained.
“It's true,” Alexa nodded. “Side streets are your best bet. Usually I just drop Sav off and find a place to park so I can escape her whining about why we have to walk for ten minutes.”
“I don't whine.”
“No, just a healthy level of complaining,” Reyna laughed.
“I like to think so,” Sav grinned brightly. “Is that Harry?” she frowned, leaning forward to try and get a better look at the figure heading towards them.
“Looks it,” Louis shrugged. “Oi! Haz,” he yelled, cupping his hands around his mouth for maximal volume.
“Warn us next time you're gonna yell,” Reyna growled, thumping him on the back harshly.
“Ow, sorry,” Louis apologised sheepishly as Harry hurried his way towards them.
“Morning,” he yawned.
“Long night?” Reyna asked.
“Dad wanted to go over some old cases with me,” he nodded. “Wanted to prepare me for some of the classes I'll be taking.”
“Sucks,” Reyna made a face. “I'm so glad I didn't follow the family business. There’s not really much investment bankers can teach me about the cardiovascular system.”
“Yeah, but you’re studying medicine now, so obviously they’re not going to be disappointed in you,” Harry scoffed.
“True,” Reyna grinned. “Maybe you should’ve done medicine too,” she nudged Harry as they continued walking towards their classes.
“Dad probably would have disowned me.”
“But you literally just said parents wouldn’t be disappointed if you do medicine.”
“No, I said your parents wouldn’t be disappointed in you. I didn’t say anything about my parents,” he joked, although Savannah could tell there was a slight truth to his words.
“So, anyway,” Louis interrupted the two of them. “You’re coming to football practice today right, Harry?” he asked. “Reyna’s said she’ll come for moral support.”
“Stop putting words in my mouth,” Reyna cut in. “I said I might come if I’m not busy.”
“Are you busy?” Louis asked.
“Depends what Sav and Lex are up to.”
“Sav?” Louis looked at her pointedly.
“Probably nothing,” she shrugged.
“Good, then you guys can tag along too,” he nodded decidedly. “See you guys tonight,” he dragged Harry away before Reyna could argue.
“Great,” she muttered. “Come on, Sav.”
“Uh, actually, I’m heading in their direction,” she said apologetically, hurrying to catch up with the boys. “Wait up!” she yelled.
-
“You will be expected to attend all lectures and tutorials within this course. Failure to do so may result in your tutor refusing to acknowledge your final assignment. Now, the first part of this assignment is due back in week four of this semester, and so you will be expected to choose your partners this week to be able to get started on it as soon as possible. Please, choose wisely. No changes will be permitted once the names are written down and my free time is very limited. I’d rather not spend it listening to you bicker about who did what.”
Savannah sighed while her lecturer, a short, plump woman with wispy, grey hair droned on about the importance of the first assignment for the term. The lecture had been forty five minutes of absolute torture and if she had to listen to another minute of this speech, Savannah was sure she was going internally combust… somehow.
It was taking everything she had not to fall asleep and Savannah found herself regretting the decision to skip out on the coffee Alexa had offered to get her before class. Especially when the brown haired boy beside her was sipping leisurely at the cup of coffee sitting on his desk. Every time he picked it up and put it down, the smell would waft over towards her, making her even more grumpier than she already was.
“Remember, this assignment is worth an overall 50% of your final grade so failing is not an option.”
“Just like this class,” Savannah murmured, dropping her head onto her palm as she chewed on the pen she’d found buried in her bag. She had almost drifted off to sleep when a quiet chuckle made her jump.
“Tired?” an amused voice asked from her left. Savannah turned towards the Coffee Boy, narrowing her eyes a little at him.
“What could possibly give you that idea?” she asked sarcastically. “Was it the fact that I was half asleep?” So she wasn’t the most friendly person when she was hungry and tired, sue her. But Coffee Boy didn’t seem to mind, grinning at her as he downed the rest of his coffee while she eyed him enviously.
“I’m Dylan,” he whispered, glancing towards the front of the room where their lecturer was now going over the assignment’s marking criteria.
“Savannah.”
“Nice to meet you, Savannah,” Dylan smiled merrily before the two of them lapsed into silence as the lecturer - Savannah didn’t even know her name if she was being honest - finally stopped talking for more than a couple of seconds as a student asked a question.  
“Someone I know took this unit last year,” a girl sitting towards the front spoke. “He said we had to partner up boy-girl. Is that true?”
“Yes,” their lecturer nodded her affirmation. “I was just getting to that part. As part of this unit, it’s come to the faculty’s understanding that the there is a difference in the physiology of the way the brain works as well as a difference in behaviour between the two genders. And through this assignment we are hoping that this difference will be made prevalent.”
“Bloody fantastic,” Savannah grumbled, scribbling down a few notes as the lecturer made them.
“Not a fan of partnered work?” Dylan asked curiously.
“It’s not that,” she looked over at him thoughtfully. “Just don’t know any of the guys in this class is all.”
“You know me,” he grinned and Savannah saw that as her opening. “Is that your way of asking me if I wanna partner up?” she raised an eyebrow at him. Dylan shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck.
“I mean, yeah,” he muttered. “You don’t know anyone and I don’t know anyone. Makes sense we’d partner up, yeah?”
“You better do your share of the coursework,” she tried to glare at him fiercely, but from the small smile on Dylan’s face, it only amused him. After a quick glance at his notes - which were about two pages longer than hers - Savannah felt herself perk up at the prospect of spending the rest of the semester with someone who actually seemed like he cared about his work. She’d promised herself that she was going to try her best this semester, and partnering up with this Dylan guy seemed like a step in the right direction.
After the lecture, the two stood around exchanging details before they parted. As she walked away, Savannah spotted Harry sitting by himself on one of the couches, his head buried between the thickest book she had ever seen, brows furrowed in concentration. Knowing better than to distract him, Savannah walked on, feeling slightly sorry for Harry Styles.
-
“Louis, you owe me about three cheeseburgers for dragging me out here to this godforsaken place to watch you guys kick a football around while not actually scoring any goals,” Reyna grumbled, taking a seat on the bench as Louis swapped his trainers for some cleats.
“Come on Rey, just bask in the gloriousness that is English football. Doesn’t it feel incredible?” Louis said, lacing up his shoes and moving to stand up.
“No,” she grumbled in reply. “It feels like a wet patch on my bum and a field that smells like garbage.”
“You’re such a buzzkill,” he sighed, saluting the three girls before running off to join Harry and Niall on the field. They were a part of the university football team, and were spending the evening getting ready for the first game of the season coming up. If Savannah had known that she was going to be spending the next two hours on a damp seat, she probably wouldn’t have been so okay about going.
Savannah and Alexa sat there silently, trying to follow what was happening with their practice. They started off with laps around the field followed by a couple of drills. By the time they started with their actual practice, Savannah was ready to fall asleep on Alexa’s shoulder. Reyna hadn’t even bothered looking up from her phone since it started, and was now playing Solitaire to kill time.
“Aren’t you supposed to be paying attention to this?” Alexa asked her, effectively pausing her game. “I mean, you’re the reason why we’re here in the first place.”
“Oh please, Louis’ the reason you guys are here. I was forced against my will,” she grumbled, tapping the start button on her game.
“How’s it going, guys?” a new voice sounded, Zayn appearing a few seconds later and taking a seat beside Alexa. “Has anyone tripped yet?”
“Niall landed on his bum about fifteen minutes ago. Kept whining about how he’s probably bruised his tailbone. Personally, I don’t think he’s really cut out to play this game,” Savannah commented, waving a hello at Zayn.
“Sounds like him,” he agreed, nodding his head as he watched the match.
“Why aren’t you playing?” Reyna asked, locking her phone and joining in on the conversation.
“Ah, I did for about two seasons but then my workload at uni kept getting in the way so I had to quit,” he shrugged in reply, not seeming entirely bothered by it. “Good riddance, I’d say. I barely managed to score a goal.”
“Oi! Zayn! Give us a bottle of water!” Harry yelled from across the field. Savannah looked up to find the group slowly making their way back to the benches.
“Get it yourself you muppet, I’m not your bloody waterboy,” Zayn yelled back, but went to retrieve a bottle of water from the cooler anyway. He threw it towards Harry once they were within close range - which he caught deftly - and reached back in to grab another one for Louis and Niall.
“How’d you guys find it?” Niall asked, moving to take a seat between Savannah and Reyna before gulping down half the water bottle in one breath.
“Uh,” Savannah began, watching wide eyed as he downed the rest of the bottle within the next two seconds. They were set to get back out there within the next five minutes and she briefly wondered whether he was worried about getting a stitch or not.
“It was good,” Reyna cut in quickly, not wanting to drag this conversation out for any longer than necessary. She really wasn’t much of a sports fan.
“Come off it,” Louis interjected, opting to take a seat on the grass instead of finding room on the bench. “You were on your phone this entire time, I’m pretty sure you didn’t even glance up once.”
“I did too!” she argued.
“Oh yeah? Which side of the field did we have to shoot a goal in?” he challenged, smirking.
“Left,” she replied coolly, holding his gaze as a means to say that she was not backing down from his challenge.
“Ok, you got that one,” he said. “But I’ll be quizzing you when this is over so you better be paying attention.”
A whistle blew from the distance and all the guys hurriedly got up to return to the field, but not before Louis gave Reyna a look to show that he wasn’t going to forget about their conversation.
“Ok Sav, Lex, keep your eyes peeled,” she commanded them once they were out of earshot. “There’s no chance I’m losing to this.”
Savannah sighed, leaning her head against Alexa as she concentrated on the game in front of her. Five minutes later, she found herself being shaken awake by a glaring Reyna. The sky had darkened considerably and the boys were all gathering their things surrounding them.
“I can’t believe you fell asleep,” she scolded, arms crossed as Savannah blinked the sleep away from her eyes.
“Oh, I did?” she asked, still groggy.
“Yeah, and it cost me 10 quid too,” Reyna sighed, pulling Savannah and Alexa up from the benches. Savannah glared at the empty field, as if expecting an apology for it costing two hours of her life and her dignity.
Harry strode up to them, all sweaty and gross with his bag slung over his shoulder. “How was the nap?” he smirked, bringing a water bottle up to his lips and taking a long gulp.
“Terrible. The only way I’ll come to a practice again is if you kidnap my family and use it as blackmail. Even then I’m not sure I’ll willingly come,” she deadpanned, falling into step with Harry as they followed the others out to the car park.
“Oh lighten up, Simba. A couple of the guys have taken a fancy to you girls, by the way. Proper think we’re the coolest dudes on the team for even knowing you guys,” Harry smirked.
Savannah raised an eyebrow, “Oh really?”
“Yeah,” Harry grinned. “So you’re coming to the game next week, right?”
“Apparently, I have fans. So I’ll definitely be there to sign a few autographs if you want to give your team the heads up,” she grinned while Harry rolled his eyes.
“I’ll see you at uni, Sav,” he chuckled, squeezing her shoulder before sauntering off to his car.  
-
Savannah walked through the entrance to the library, juggling her laptop in one hand, while attempting to hide the greasy bag of hot chips she’d snuck in with her. Reyna - who was manning the front desk - rolled her eyes when she saw her creeping past, struggling to disguise the fast food by hiding it under her sweater. When she realised who was working, Savannah visibly relaxed, the stiff set of her shoulders softening as her whole demeanour changed from ‘innocent student’ to ‘tired student’.
“Thank god,” she breathed. “I feel like I’ve gone for a swim in grease,” she joked, pulling the food out from under her clothes.
Reyna only raised a brow. “You’re not allowed food in the library.”
“I thought you might say that,” she rolled her eyes. “Here.” Savannah pulled out a neatly wrapped burger and chips, placing them on the counter before taking out the bottle of Sprite she’d thrown in her bag. “Happy?”
“Very,” Reyna smiled cheerfully. “You’ve made my day.”
“I hope you realise how sad and boring that makes your life sound,” Savannah warned her.
“Piss off,” Reyna reached over the counter to punch her. “My life is plenty exciting,” she argued, retracting her arm to unwrap her burger.
“Plenty violent more like,” Savannah scowled, rubbing the spot that was now starting to turn slightly red.
“Whatever. How’s the assignment going?” Reyna asked, taking a bite of her burger chewing expectantly.
“It’s not. But Dylan will be here soon, and maybe we can finally start it. Send him over to my secret corner when he gets here will you?” Savannah asked, hitching her bag higher on her shoulder. The weight of the textbooks were now starting to really bother her, and she couldn’t wait to get to her seat.
“I hope you realise how kinky it sounds when you say it like that,” Reyna mocked, brushing some crumbs off the counter. “I hope you have the handcuffs ready.”
Savannah chose not to reply and instead walked away to eat her lunch - and possibly dinner because neither she nor Alexa cooked very often. That was maybe one of the cons of having them both living in the same space - both managed to burn water when cooking and so took to ordering in each night or eating at uni before they headed home to crash. Which meant that there was a significant dent in Savannah’s bank balance, leading her to pick up more shifts at the cafe and therefore significantly reducing her free time.
It had been a week and a half since uni had started which meant that the first part of the assignment was due in less than two weeks. Upon realising that a substantial portion of their assignment was undone, Dylan and Savannah had finally agreed to knock some sense into each other and both swapped their shifts at work in order to schedule a night to meet up.
Dylan appeared as soon as Savannah turned around, a strange expression on his face as he studied the contents of the paper box situated in front of her laptop.
“You know… there are at least 20 calories and 0.8 grams of fat in one single chip,” he chastised, glancing down at the mass of chopped potato on the table.
“Oh no,” Savannah muttered, trying to shield the box of food from his scornful gaze but to no avail.
“Meaning that of the maybe 25 to 30 chips in that box right now, you’d be consuming about five to six hundred calories alone. And don’t start me on that burger…”
“Please don’t start on the burger,” Savannah whined at him, pushing her meal to the side to try and ward off his attack.
“You could go for something so much better like carrot sticks and maybe a tuna sandwich with wholegrain next time. Great for your health and helps you study better too,” he said, pulling off his bag and sitting down next to her. Savannah rolled her eyes. She’d rather eat a burger and risk her health than eat bunny food and study better.
“I’m hearing words coming out of your mouth,” Savannah began, pulling her food back towards her - she really wasn’t going to waste a perfectly good burger. “But none of it seems to be making any sense.”
“Probably because of all those calories that you’re consuming,” Dylan scolded, eyeing the take-out with distaste.
“There you go again,” Sav rolled her eyes. “Speaking words that don’t make any sense,” she glanced down at her food, her gaze resting on the textbook she was using as a makeshift plate. “Just like the words of this assignment,” she sighed.
“Which we really need to get started on,” he nodded, seeming much more determined than Savannah was at the moment. Maybe it was all the bunny food he was consuming.
“Yeah,” she nodded sadly, taking a few final bites of her burger while Dylan unpacked.
“Ok, so for the first question…” his voice was all business as he dived right into the details of the assignment, and unsurprisingly, Savannah felt her attention instantly wane as she continued to pick at her food.
-
“Well, at least that part’s all over,” Dylan tried to reassure the both of them as they made their way out of the library together. After a gruelling four hours of research, they had mutually agreed that it was best to leave the rest of the assignment for the coming week instead of risking eating each other alive. “Besides, we’ve done all the research that we need. We just have to type it all up and I’m pretty sure we can do that over Facetime or something,” he continued.
“That’s comforting, we only have about fifteen pages to type up,” she snorted, hitching her books closer to her chest. “Anyway, it’s getting dark. I better go,” she said forlornly, glancing at the illuminated sign signifying the entrance to the tube.
“You sure we can’t give you a lift? Jess won’t mind,” he offered, eyes darting around for his girlfriend’s car.
“No. No, it’s okay. I don’t live far from the station. I’ll be fine, I don’t want to be a bother,” Savannah argued, turning to leave before he could really change her mind.
“Ok, well get home safe, ok Sav?” Dylan said weakly, spotting a car with it’s headlights on and turning towards it. “Text me when you get there!”
“I will!” she yelled over her shoulder as she power-walked towards the station. The entrance was near - she was only a few metres away from the top of the stairs. Keeping her head down, she snuggled deeper into her jumper and tried to look inconspicuous as she made her way there. The streets at night in London always freaked her out, and for good reason. She was maybe five metres away from the station entrance when a car screeched to a stop right next to her.
Savannah was more than sure she resembled a deer in headlights at that moment. She stood frozen on the side of the curb as a car faced her, two silhouettes barely discernible against the bright light. She knew that she should probably run. Or hide. Or grab a weapon of some sort - though she doubted her jelly pencil case would do much as a weapon, but she just stood there freaking the fuck out because she was an idiot and she wanted to get killed.
Suddenly, the door opened and the driver got out. He was obviously male, his face still hidden in shadows against the bright lights of the headlights piercing her eyes. The figure made a move towards her.
“Stay the hell away from me,” she warned, though her voice was barely a whisper. She took a couple of steps back, hugging her books tighter to her chest. Books! Her textbooks weighed at least one stone apiece, for sure - that was a lie but they were still bloody heavy.
The figure took a couple of steps forward.
“You know what,” Savannah muttered under her breath, fingers tightening around the spine of her Psychopathology textbook. “Sod it.”
And with what resembled a loud gargled shriek, she launched herself at the stranger, textbook swinging wildly into what she thought to be the side of the guy’s head. She backed up, tightened her hold once again on the heavy textbook and launched the book at him from a distance, nailing him in the face. She quickly pulled open the top flap of her satchel to grab one of the lighter books - anything to attack him again - and she almost succeeded in getting her relatively heavy workbook out (anything but the laptop) when the figure held up his arms in defeat, speaking out for the first time since he got out of the car. Or rather, the first time Savannah actually heard him. The ringing in her ears from her panic had just managed to dissipate as the noises around her became clearer.
“Stop it you psycho! What the fuck!?” the voice yelled, sounding slightly familiar.
“Harry?” Savannah asked, doing a double take as she gripped the second book in her hands.
“Yes, I’m Harry you crazy bint! Who did you think I was?!” he exclaimed, one hand covering his cheek as he stepped into the light.
“I thought you were some sleazebag who wanted to kidnap me or something! Who the hell just pulls up next to some unsuspecting girl in the middle of the night like that?!”
“Fuck, remind me to never try to do something nice again,” he muttered, pulling his hand away to see if there had been any major damage.
Suddenly, the passenger door opened, and the second figure in the car all but fell out of his seat, clutching his stomach in laughter.
“Shut the hell up, Zayn!” Harry yelled in the direction of the car, still glaring daggers at Savannah who at least looked a little remorseful.
“That was hilarious, Sav. Please do it again so I can record it,” he managed to say between gasps of laughter. “You know, your war cry was definitely the cherry on top. How does someone so small make a noise so loud?”
Savannah blushed a deep red, head hung in shame as she tried to avoid Harry’s glare. “What the hell were you guys doing here anyway?” she asked Zayn who’d managed to compose himself and was now stood next to Harry.
“We were going to give you a lift home,” he smirked as Harry fumed from beside him. “Which, uh, didn’t really go well, did it?” he chuckled, scratching the back of his neck nervously, shooting quick glances at Harry to see if he was going to get attacked anytime soon.
“No kidding,” Harry spat out. Savannah couldn’t help but laugh at the red welt appearing rapidly on his face - there was no doubt he was going to be sporting a massively bruised cheek the next day.
“Look, Harry,” Savannah started towards him but he pulled back, taking a couple of steps away from her as if she was going to attack him again. “I’m sorry!” She tried to get closer to him once again and this time, he allowed her. Tentatively, she reached up a hand to inspect his cheek in the light. It was definitely swelling rapidly - a lot faster than she thought.
Curiously, she poked it.
“Oh my god, don’t poke it!” he exclaimed, hissing in pain.
“I’m sorry!” she cried again, as Zayn doubled over in laughter once more. “Are you still ok with taking me home?” she asked, suddenly shy.
“Guess I have to now, despite the fact that you’ve just disfigured my face,” Harry sighed, pulling his hand away from his cheek once more and turning back to his car. “Come on, We’re not letting you catch the train alone at this time of night,” he said, gesturing towards the back seat.
“Is he mad at me?” Savannah asked Zayn as she picked up her fallen textbook.
“I have a hunch... considering you just nailed him in the face with a bloody book,” he chuckled. “But he’ll get over it soon. Come on, let’s get you home.”
-
“This is your place?” Zayn asked as they made the way up the stairs towards Alexa’s flat. On the car ride home, Savannah had insisted (albeit annoyingly) that Harry and Zayn come up so that she could get him some ice and some painkillers for the rapidly swelling bruise on his face and he’d grudgingly agreed.
“Yeah, I’ve just moved in with Lex,” she said, unlocking the door and letting the two boys in.
He whistled. “It’s pretty nice,” he said, admiring the cabinets laden with every movie and TV show known to man.
“Savannah? Is that you?” a voice called from down the hallway, followed by a pyjama-clad Alexa in her fluffy slippers. She stopped short when she saw who was accompanying Sav, shooting her best friend a questioning look.
“Honey, I’m home!” Savannah announced with a grin. “And, you know, these two,” she waved towards the boys.
“Hey Zayn,” Alexa greeted, trying to shield her less-than-presentable outfit from their line of sight. “Hey Har- what happened to you?”
From behind Savannah, Harry sighed.
“I hit him in the face with this,” Savannah explained weakly, holding up her textbook for Alexa to see. It was slightly battered and beaten from the events of the night, but still usable nonetheless - which Savannah was endlessly thankful for because that alone had cost her about 100 quid.
“Hold up,” Alexa interrupted. “You’re telling me that you attacked Harry?” she questioned, eyes widening as three heads nodded back in response. Harry began to look slightly smug as Lex’s face dropped, appalled. “And no one filmed it?”
This time it was Harry looking appalled. “That’s it? That’s what you’re going to ask?” he demanded, while Zayn chuckled beside him. “Piss off,” he turned his face to glare at Zayn.
“You know,” Savannah spoke softly, moving towards Harry. “I really don’t think it’s going to be all that bad?” she offered, but it came out as more of a question than anything else. Her finger was, once again, a couple centimetres away from his cheek when he reached over and gripped tightly onto her wrist, making her squeal and jump in surprise. “Sorry!”
“Oh, my god, Simba,” Harry groaned, eyes wide with disbelief. “Were you going to poke it again?”
“I just wanted to see if it still hurt as bad,” she admitted sheepishly, blushing slightly, wrist still held tightly between Harry’s slender fingers. “And don’t call me Simba.”
“I can assure you,” Harry rolled his eyes, releasing her wrist. “It does.”
Savannah bit her lip, her eyes lingering on his cheek as she unconsciously rubbed the wrist Harry had just freed. “Ok,” she said decisively. “Come with me.”
“Wha-” Harry didn’t really have a chance to respond as Savannah dragged him through the flat - almost knocking over a lamp - as they left Alexa and Zayn to awkwardly fend for themselves. “What are you doing?” Harry finally managed, once they came to a halt in front of Savannah’s rather large bathroom.
“Go in and take a seat,” she ordered. “I’ll be right back,” and without giving Harry a chance to argue, she was disappearing back to where they had come from.
-
“Hold still,” Savannah grumbled, tilting Harry’s face so that she could rub the ointment she’d found in the cabinet over his cheek. She remembered when Alexa had tripped and twisted her ankle last Christmas. They’d been out trying to find last minute gifts, when everything had gone horribly wrong. They’d gone to the emergency room where Reyna had been volunteering as part of her coursework (and even though her commitment was over, she’d stayed on because she enjoyed the experience). Reyna had sighed at the sight of them, throwing the stolen medication at them with instructions to tightly wrap the ankle and ice it afterwards.
“I just don’t understand why you’re covering my face in that gunk,” Harry pouted, once again trying to move his face away from Savannah’s fingers.
“Because,” she jerked his face back. “It will help with the swelling.”
“But it’s cold,” Harry mumbled, his pout deepening. “And it smells!”
“Don’t be such a baby,” she laughed lightly. “You’ll be thanking me for this ‘smelly gunk’,” she quoted him, “tomorrow morning when your face doesn’t feel like it’s been hit by a truck.”
“I’d be thanking you more if you hadn’t been the one to put me in this position,” he retorted.
“Potato, potahto,” she shrugged, refusing to rise to the bait. “There,” she exclaimed brightly, finally moving her hands away from his face. “All done. Now put this on,” she handed him a bag of frozen peas.
“Really?” Harry raised a brow in amusement.
Savannah tried not to blush. “We didn’t have an ice pack?” she posed it as more of a question than she’d intended, as she turned back to the sink where she’d set up her supplies.
“Of course you didn’t,” Harry chuckled before tenderly placing the bag against his cheek. “This hurts like a bitch. I expect you to be nice to me for at least a month after this, by the way.”
“I’m always nice to you,” she retorted, gathering the stuff on the counter and placing them neatly back in the bag. “It’s you who shouldn’t test me.”
“That’s no way to speak to the wounded,” he scolded, pressing the pack more firmly on his bruise. “I’m going to be sporting this bruise for a good week, at least. Going to have people ask how I got socked in the face.”
“I suppose you’ll be making up some macho story. Injury-via-textbook doesn’t sound so cool,” she replied, laughing lightly.
“Yeah, maybe I’ll tell them something wild. Like I wrestled a lion or something,” he grinned cheekily.
Savannah snorted, gathering up all the rubbish and dumping it in the bin. “Yeah, because Louis’ definitely going to believe that when he finds out about this.”
“Oh shit, Louis,” Harry’s eyes widened as he thought of his best mate and his tenacity to find things out before they even happened. He quickly pulled out his phone, determined to be the first one to tell him the story.
Savannah left Harry in the bathroom with the peas while she went to pack away the first aid kit back in the cabinet and headed out to Zayn and Alexa who were sat in the kitchen, chatting. They looked up expectantly upon hearing her come into the room.
“How’s the princess?” Zayn asked, smirking.
“Whining like a little bitch,” Savannah grinned, walking over to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. She had to admit, she felt slightly bad for the inevitable bruise that was going to appear on his face the next day, but the situation was too funny for her not to joke about.
“What’s new, hey?” Zayn laughed, immediately cutting off as Harry entered the space. He eyed the two of them suspiciously, eyes narrowing.
“Ready to leave, Malik?” Harry asked, glancing over at Savannah who stared back questioningly.
“Oh… yeah,” Zayn mumbled, pushing off the counter and walking towards the hallway. Alexa followed him, leaving Savannah and Harry alone once again.
He took a careful step close to her. “Give me your phone,” he demanded, holding his hand out.
Eyebrows raised curiously, Savannah pulled her phone from her back pocket and placed it in Harry’s hands. After a minute, he handed it back to her as his own phone beeped from his pocket.
“You have my number now. Any time you find yourself needing a lift, give me a call, yeah? I don’t want you travelling home alone in the dark.”
To Savannah’s complete and utter surprise, Harry’s cheeks flushed a pale pink, and she couldn’t help but be flattered by the gesture.
“I’m a big girl… I can handle myself,” she retorted half-heartedly.
Harry chuckled, shaking his head slightly, “Trust me, I know,” he gestured to the mark on his face. “But just in case,” he winked.
And with that, he turned around and left the room.
AN: hi guys, sorry we’re a day late on this chapter but we had a long weekend here and if i’m being completely honest, we both forgot about it oops. hopefully the content makes up for it though bc this was definitely one of my favourite chapters to write. as always, we love to hear your thoughts so shoot us a message if you have a spare moment. otherwise, enjoy!! x
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