#physics home tutor for class 10

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best physics tuition in gurgaon | Hometuition

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SDK ITS Home Tuition Unveiled

Where knowledge comes easy

Our home tuition services are designed to provide students with a learning experience that is not only practical but also comfortable. We understand that the right learning environment is essential for effective education, and what could be more comfortable than your own home? Our teachers bring the class to your doorstep.

Topics galore

At SDK ITS Home Tuition, we believe in catering to the diverse needs of our students. Whether you are grappling with the complexities of physics, conducting experiments in chemistry, or solving the mysteries of mathematics, our subject-specific tutors are here to guide you. We also provide support in various other subjects, ensuring a holistic learning experience.

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SDK ITS Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

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[vitaminkyeom]

smarter, and yours || l.jh

“BECAUSE I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO BE MORE THAN FRIENDS WITH YOU, SUNSHINE”

PAIRING || Jihoon x Female Reader

GENRES || Romance, Humour, Enemies To Lovers AU, Academic Rivals To Lovers AU, Rich Kids AU

SUMMARY || Jihoon, school's no. 1 (or no. 2), was nothing but a pain in the ass for you. Sure he was better than you in some subjects but so were you. The two of you were equally good enough for the first place so to increase the competition, he decided to suggest the most scandalous thing you had heard: the two of you tutor each other.

Or, in which, you were the rich kid with your family's dignity on the line and he was the poor kid with his family's sacrifices on the line.

WARNINGS || swearing

WORD COUNT || 10.6k

A/N || HI EVERYONE! Never thought I would be writing an enemies to lovers of this size but here we are. This is for the Lonely Hearts Cafe Collab by @camandemstudios !! Thank you so much for letting me particpate and do check out all the other authors here. Also moving my taglist to reblogs until tumblr fixes this horrible glitch cus its messing with the aesthetics tbh

Cram school had to be the worst phase in a teenager’s life.

You looked out of the window aimlessly, trying to drown out the teacher’s voice. It was pitch dark outside and you couldn’t really see anything, except for your own reflection staring back at you. Your hair wasn’t out of place at all, neatly brushed and clipped to keep it out of your eyes. Your school uniform was crisp and clean, as though you had decided to come to your cram school straight from home, and not after a long day of school. 

But then your eyes met your reflection’s and you felt the tiredness hit you like a truckload. Your eyes looked like you had been awake for a thousand years, your eyes carrying the weight of all your previous generations. Which… wasn’t wrong in a way.

You rapidly blinked at your reflection, trying to get rid of the sleep from your eyes. Sighing, you turned your head back to the board where the teacher was explaining Faraday’s principle of electromagnetic induction, and your eyes flicked up to the clock overhead.

7.55 pm.

Five more minutes until this physics class got over. 

You could survive five more minutes, right? Sure physics was the subject you dreadest the most but hey, you could bear a few minutes of it. You were doing this for four years already so five minutes shouldn’t hurt at all.

Then you made the mistake of looking at your best friend’s book, lying next to your blank one.

Kim Mingyu scribbled down furiously the concept the teacher was explaining, adding his own words to it as an indicator that he was understanding everything being taught. You watch him glance up at the board and nod his head in approval to what was being said, before looking back at his book to solve the problem.

Immediately, you felt the familiar feeling wrap around your throat, stopping any air from entering your lungs. Your fingers balled into a fist, nails digging into your palm as you tried to suck in a breath without making any noise. 

The last thing you needed was for the entire class to look at you and wonder why you were hyperventilating. Screwing your eyes shut, you began doing the exercise you had looked up on the internet for anxiety attacks. 

Count from 10 to 1. Count from 10 to 1. Count from 10 to-

“You okay?” Mingyu’s voice broke the chain of your thoughts, snapping you out of your mantra as you opened your eyes to look at him, trying to cover your distraught look. But no matter how well you had practiced the art of hiding your feelings, there was no secret you couldn’t keep from Mingyu.

He mirrored your expression, widening his eyes in worry as he gently touched your shoulder, edging a bit closer to you.

“Hey. Are you okay?”

You nodded, refusing to make eye contact with him. Embarrassment flooded your cheek at the thought of you getting an anxiety attack just because your best friend was able to understand the class and solve the problem.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just stifled because physics is just so hard.” You lied, hoping he won’t think too much about it.

Mingyu smiled at you softly. “Don’t worry. I know physics is eating you up but hey you aren’t that bad. Not to mention, you’re the maths topper. You can score great marks in the other subjects. One subject won’t pull you down that much.”

You knew Mingyu was lying through his teeth to make you feel better because one subject could pull down your rank because of the amount of competition, but nonetheless you felt at ease at his reassurance. Yeah, you weren’t that bad in maths, and you could try a bit more harder and improve your physics, right?

Right then the bell rang, and the teacher yelled out a few instructions to the class but you were too busy grabbing your pen and book and dumping them in your bag. You scrambled out of the class right behind the teacher, even leaving Mingyu behind as you ran straight to the washroom.

No sooner had you flung the toilet door open you puked, your stomach hurling out your lunch. After what felt like an hour you forced yourself to stop retching, gasping for breath as you clutched your hurting stomach. Your heart was still beating like crazy and a bead of sweat dropped from your forehead.

Slowly getting up, you took in a deep breath to stop your body from trembling too much. You could hear some girls chatting outside the door, and embarrassment creeped into your cheeks. 

Had they heard you? No one had seen you, right? 

If people found out that you were having a panic attack just because of a physics class…

You waited until the chatter outside died down before opening the door and peaking, making sure the coast was clear. It was empty, indicating that break time too was almost over.

Quitely, you slip out of the washroom and back to your classroom, walking back to your bench. Mingyu was nowhere to be seen, so you assumed he was probably in the canteen, buying some milk for the two of you.

You sat there silently for a while, your breath and heartbeat returning to normal as you took in your surroundings. Your classmates were either playing with crumpled balls of paper or chatting to each other. Your eyes then fell on one particular boy, who was completely absorbed in his book, scribbling away furiously.

Your eyes narrowed at him as you felt a pang of jealousy. Suddenly, he raised his head up and turned to look at you, both of your eyes locking and causing you to freeze in place.

Lee Jihoon smirked at you, twirling the pencil in his hand as though he knew about the little episode you just had.

Why, that asshole-

He got up and started walking in your direction, and you hastily pulled out a book from your bag and opened it to a random page to pretend like you were… well, occupied.

But of course Jihoon had to come and sit down on the bench in front of you, turning to you as he rested his elbow on your book, his palm cradling his face.

“Hey.” He said, that smirk never wavering off his face. God, he was so infuriating- 

“What do you want from me?” You asked, yanking the book from his weight. 

“Can I not come over and tell hi to my friend?” His cocky voice caused you to look up at him dryly. 

“The dictionary definition of friends would beg to differ from what we have.”

“Damn it. I was hoping you would be too high headed to look at a dictionary.”

You scoffed.

“Not as air headed as you though, because you’re clearly wasting break time chatting with me instead of studying. You’ll need every single second to beat me in the test series next week.”

Jihoon smiled at you, his eyes glinting in amusement. I ought to punch those pearly white teeth. “Next week’s? Why not this week’s? Didn’t do so well?”

“Shut up.” You fumed, seething with his rage as he brought up memories from this week’s exams. The anxiety you had felt a few minutes ago was starting to surface up and you were not going to lose in front of him. “I’m still going to beat you in maths.”

“But beating me in math alone won’t give you the first rank.” He beamed, as though already knowing tomorrow’s results. You knew too, to be honest. You were just blatantly lying right now to save your face.

This week had been a particularly hard week, your period cramps paired with the worst chapters in every subject for the exams. While writing the exam itself you knew you were doomed, and the pain had been eating you away ever since you finished writing the test a few hours ago.

Maybe that was the reason you had a panic attack?

“Falling once won’t mean my CAT scores have been thrown out of the window.” You argue back. It was okay to fail, right?

That’s how you always calmed yourself down. There was no learning without failing after all. You had to learn from your mistakes. Next time, you would be even more flawless-

But how many more times did you need to fail to become flawless? How many times did you need to beat Jihoon until your rank was permanently 1 and not fluctuating between first and second place?

“Yeah sure. We’ll see who gets the early admissions to SNU.” 

“Look, if you’re here to insult me-” You began but he looked at you hurt. This man should have become an actor instead.

“Insult you? You’re the one who has been keeping me up all night, making sure I’m giving my hundred percent no matter what! I love what we have. I’ll never insult you.” Jihoon mocked, causing you to roll your eyes at him.

“Now that felt like an insult.”

“Why were you in a rush today by the way?” He asked suddenly.

“Wh-what?” You felt your cheeks sink in as you looked at him in horror. No way- There was no way he knew, right?

If Jihoon of all people knew then- No. It couldn’t be.

“After class.” He continued, completely unfazed by your reaction. He tilted his head at you, looking at you even more lazily if anything. “You ran out. It was almost like you were dying-”

“Jihoon.” A familiar voice cut him off and never had you loved your best friend more than right now as you turned back to see a Mingyu looking at Jihoon questioningly, as though urging him to continue saying whatever it was. “What are you doing here?”

“Is it illegal to talk to you both now?” Jihoon asked sarcastically.

“No… but bullying is.” 

Jihoon’s face darkened at those words, and he glared at the two of you. “Bullying? I swear you high society kids are so stuck up that even having banter is considered bullying.”

“Well, Y/N doesn’t look like she’s enjoying your… ‘banter’ very much.”

He snorted, and stood up, causing you to breathe a sigh of relief. “Fine then. Suit yourselves. I won’t bully you much if that is what is causing you so much trouble Y/N.” Giving the two of you a weird look, he walked away, going back to his bench and slumping off on his desk.

Inhaling deeply, you looked up at Mingyu and smiled. “Thanks.”

He smiled back at you, before placing a banana milk carton on the desk. “Here, I thought you weren’t feeling well so I brought some banana milk for you from the canteen.”

“Thank you!” You said, feeling a bit cheerful as you peeled off the seal and sipped it, the cold milk cooling you down just like how Mingyu had anticipated.

The door of the classroom opened again as the teacher walked in, and everyone scrambled to get to their places and greet the teacher.

As you stood up, your eyes fell on Jihoon. He looked really glum, like what Mingyu had said really offended him.

You took that as a win.

“L/N Y/N.” You flinched as the teacher spoke out your name, causing you to look up and stop rubbing your thumb finally. Sucking in a deep breath, you plastered a small, confident smile on your face before walking up to her.

Ms. Yun gave you a dry smile before extending the result sheet, and you felt your heart shatter almost immediately. Still, you just smiled back at her and took the sheet, walking back to your desk, not daring to look at your result.

Once seated (and glancing through the class quickly so that no one’s eyes was on you), you let your eyes fall onto the printed piece of paper in your hands.

Your stomach jumped.

2/246

Second place? Again? That would mean that Jihoon was-

Your grip on the paper tightened a little as tears blurred your eyes. No, no, no! I cannot cry here!

You knew it. You knew this would be the result. But still… you had hoped that maybe fate would be kind to you just this once.

You had drowned out your surroundings, staring at the numbers again and again as though if you looked long enough that two would change into one. What were you going to tell your parents?

Oh my god. What am I going to tell them-

“Y/N!”

You jerked at the sound of someone calling your voice, blinking rapidly so that there was no obvious wetness in your eyes. Your vision finally concentrated on a rather familiar face in front of you, and hatred kicked in almost as a self defense.

“Daydreaming much?” Jihoon asked, smirking at you as he tilted his head slightly. 

“Not at all.” You said, smiling at him with the most fake smile you could muster. Through the corner of your eyes, you saw that most of your classmates had left, only a few going through their books one final time before leaving for break. “I don’t have that much time in my hand. Unlike you.”

“Oh well, then I must be really talented if I managed to get the first rank while daydreaming so much.” He laughed, the sound causing your heart to accelerate a little. His laughter was so annoying that you were sure you would end up with heart problems one of these days. 

“Well, I did say I would beat you next week.” You said, trying not to raise your voice at him.

“You’ve been saying that to me since the beginning of this year.”

“Yeah well if you haven’t forgotten that first place was mine for the last few years.”

“And before that it was mine.”

“One year. In middle school.”

“Anyways,” you glance back at the report card. You had got second place in physics again, but first in maths. Well maybe that would be your saving grace in front of your parents. “Looks like no matter how much you try you cannot beat me in maths though.” You gave him a little smirk, leaning in a bit as though you were about to share a big secret.

“How are you acing in physics after being so bad in maths, huh?”

Now it was Jihoon’s time to scoff. “It’s the second rank. I’m just behind you by a few marks.”

“Sure you are not by hearting physics numericals?”

Jihoon leaned, suddenly catching you off guard by how close both of your faces were. But you didn’t let your expression change. “That seems like something you would do, to be honest.”

You moved away from him, raising your hand in defeat. “Well, I admit I’m, ah, a bit weak in physics. But you don’t want to accept defeat no matter what.”

“Ahahaha, I just want to admit to you. Funny how our weaknesses are complimentary, aren’t they?” 

“Yeah, it’s almost like fate wants us to always be able to pit against each other.” You joked, folding away your report card and slipping it into your bag. 

“Hmmm.” Jihoon agreed, looking out of the window. You watched him for a few seconds, taking in his features. His hair moved slightly from the light breeze blowing in, and you realised with a jolt just how soft and dreamy he looked right now.

Wait, what-

You banged your elbow against the table to drop your pencil case, immediately diving down to retrieve its contents. You felt like your cheeks were on fire and the last thing you needed was Jihoon to see you like this.

Why were your cheeks heating up in the first place?

Once you collected your (two) pens, you sat under the desk for a few seconds, trying to get rid of the heat on your cheeks. Deep breath, deep breath, deep breath-

“What are you doing?” Suddenly Jihoon appeared, crouching next to you, looking at you in surprise because who took so much time to pick up their pens and pencils?

“Ah!” You yelped, jerking away from him a little before offering him a sheepish smile. “I, uh, I was… just picking up my pencils!”

“Oh?” He looked confused, all cockiness from his face gone as though there was nothing to make fun of in this situation.

“Uh…yeah!” You laughed awkwardly as you showed him the pens, and he too nodded after a few seconds. “Man, you sure are slow even in daily tasks like these.”

There. There was the Lee Jihoon you knew.

“By the way, do you want to tutor each other?” He asked suddenly, sitting down on the floor as he looked at you eagerly.

Now it was your time to be confused. “Huh?”

“You know… I help you with physics and you help me with maths?”

“Huh?” You asked again, not sure you had heard correctly. Helping… each other?

Was it legal to fraternise with the enemy like this? And… tutoring each other in the weak subjects felt diminishing the competition you both had. 

But then again… you really needed help with physics. Cram school wasn’t enough for you clearly, and hiring a personal tutor would mean seeing your parents waste even more money on you. You were willing to do anything to save your face. Forget your reputation, the least you could do was swallow your pride and save your family’s reputation.

“Help each other. Let’s put aside our differences and work together… at least for a month?” Jihoon explained again.

“Oh. Sure… sounds good to me.” You said. “Uh, maybe we could start from this Sunday?”

“Sure. But your house.” 

“Huh? Why not the study cafe?” You asked, surprised. 

“Because I'd rather be dead than be caught studying with you.” He smirked again, as though that should have been self explanatory. You rolled your eyes at him.

“Okay, but you could have been nice and invited me over to your house instead.”

At this he laughed. But when he saw that you weren’t laughing with him and just looking at him confused, he stopped, his face darkening once again. “My parents will be at home and I don’t want them to get the wrong idea.”

Now you nodded, understanding the situation. “I get it. Lucky for us, my parents won’t be home this Sunday so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Cool then.” He said, before walking away from you, hands in his pocket as though you two hadn’t just decided to set aside your life long differences and help each other out instead.

“That’s it?” You called out, feeling a bit annoyed at how nonchalant he was while you had been overthinking if this deal was worth it.

Jihoon turned back. “What do you want?”

“No goodbyes?”

“Oh please.” He rolled his eyes, before smirking at you, causing your blood to boil once again. “We aren’t friends.”

You heard footsteps before the knock on the door, your stomach already dropping in fear. Your heart raced as you rubbed your thumb repeatedly, the page you were reading going completely blur no matter how much you tried to focus on the words in front of you.

“Y/N?” 

Forcing your cheeks up for a smile, you turned on your chair to look at your mother standing by your door. 

“You’re back?” You asked, trying for a small talk to calm down your nerves. 

Maybe she forgot. Maybe she had a long day at work-

“Where is your report card?”

“Uh, in my- in my bag-”

“Thought I told you to keep it on my table immediately after you return from school?” Your mother said, narrowing her eyes at you. You felt your heart give an anxious squeeze, but you just gave her a small smile in an effort to reduce the tension in the room.

You walked up to your bag and pulled out the report card, biting your lips as your stomach turned. What was she going to say? Would she understand if I told her what actually happened-

“What are you doing!” You heard your mother snap at you and before you could even react you felt her snatch it away from your hand. 

“I-” You began but your mother’s eyes widened, face suddenly livid with anger.

“Second? Again?” She screamed, causing you to flinch.

“I- I can explain! I wasn’t feeling well!” You said, even though you could feel your stomach sinking to the depths of hell quite literally.

“Oh, really?” Your mother laughed, the sound causing you to flinch and take a step back as fear wrapped itself around your heart. “And what was the excuse last week? Right, that you were weak in a chapter-”

“Well, I’m not lying!” You exclaimed, your voice rising out of panic. “I’m not lying, I swear!”

“Then when will you get strong, Y/N? Huh?” Suddenly your mother grabbed your shoulders, her fingers digging painfully into your flesh and you tried your best to stop the tears threatening to well your eyes.

When will you get strong? When will you?

“Answer me!” She screamed, shaking you by your shoulders. But now her face wasn’t angry anymore. It was just… hurt and disappointment.

You felt your will completely crumble and the tears rolled down.

“When will you get better?” Your mother’s voice dropped to whisper as she stared at you intensely. “When? Don’t your father and I try hard enough for you? Don’t we give you everything you want? Then why can’t you do this simple thing?”

“I- I’m trying.” You whispered, sniffling as you felt more tears glide down your cheeks.” I swear I’m trying.”

“Then try harder!” She screamed once again, causing you to flinch. “Try till you are out of breath, try till you can’t take it anymore, try till you feel like dying, you worthless piece of-”

“I came first in maths!” You interrupted her, hoping she would see some hope in you.

Suddenly you felt a sharp sting on your cheek as you stumbled to your right by the force of your mother’s slap. Blood rushed to your ears as you slowly lifted your fingers to touch your burning cheek, looking at your mother in horror.

“You disgust me so much.” She whispered, and you felt your world crack. She doesn’t mean it, she doesn’t mean it, she doesn’t mean it-

Sighing, your mother walked out of the room and shut the door behind her with a bang. 

Your knees gave away almost immediately as you crumbled on to the floor, the first loud sob escaping you. You slapped your hand over your mouth as you cried, the tears coming down fast.

It hurt so much. So much.

You tried so hard to make your parents proud. Not to be a disappointment. They always sacrificed so much for you. Then where were you going wrong? You always worked so hard. Then why couldn’t you be first?

Why couldn’t you be like Jihoon?

Sucking in a huge breath to control your crying, you clutched your heart at the painful thought of him.

Jihoon.

Always at ease, Lee Jihoon.

Studying must be so easy for him, with how smart he was. He didn’t even need to struggle like you. He didn’t need to throw up after every test, lose breath every time he was unable to solve any problem or cry his eyes out because he was a disappointment to his parents and they hated him.

Life must be so easy for him.

You hated him. You hated him so much.

You buried your face in your hands as another sob escaped you and you felt the entire world darken around you.

You were such a failure.

As soon as the doorbell rang, you found yourself sprinting to open the door. (You totally were not sitting in the living room waiting for him.

You opened the door with a rush, and found yourself staring back at a surprised Jihoon.

“Wow, that was quick-” He began but you cut him off to distract him. “Hey!”

Jihoon smiled at you, tilting his head a little like he always did. “Hi.”

“Come in!” You squeaked, not sure why you were feeling so nervous. Actually the fact that Jihoon would come over had you feeling  jittery but now that he was actually here, you felt slightly light headed for some reason.

Was the academic tension finally getting to you?

Jihoon stepped into the house, eyes glancing around as though taking in his surroundings. 

“Don’t worry.” You said, closing the door behind the two of you. “I don’t have any booby traps hidden here to get rid of you or something.”

“How do I know that?” Jihoon asked, turning to look at you with a smirk. There was his goddamned smirk again. “You might want to get rid of your competition for all I know.”

You rolled your eyes at him. “The study room is this way.” Walking in front of him, you led the way. “Besides, if I needed to get rid of competition, then I would need to blow the whole country.”

“Oh please, I’m your only competition. No one is as intelligent as you.”

The two of you were climbing up the stairs to your study room when you froze, slowly turning to look down at him.

“You- you think I’m intelligent?” You asked, your voice almost sounding hollow.

Jihoon blinked at you, as though that was a stupid question to ask. “You are literally the topper of the school, what are you even talking about?”

You huffed out a breath, not knowing you were holding in your breath. “Forget it.” You mumbled before quickening your pace on the stairs. You heard Jihoon run up the stairs until he was right beside you, and he leaned in slightly towards you.

“Come on, just because I am beating you in the past few tests you cannot think you are unworthy, can you?”

There was no way Lee Jihoon was praising you, right? “I said forget it.” You said, opening the door to your room. Then you turned to him. “And besides, if I was one of the smartest, how come I am so bad at physics? I’m not even a little bad…I’m terribly bad at it.”

Jihoon smiled, his eyes crinkling into half moons. “Which is why I am here! Don’t worry though, you still won’t be able to beat me.”

“How thoughtful of you. You don't need to worry about our competition streak too. You'll never be able to beat me in maths.”

“Good thing we've got that cleared up. Nice room by the way.” Jihoon stated, looking around as he stepped into your study room. “Where is your bed, though? Or do you sleep on your chair because I've always got the vibes that you study during your sleep time too.”

“Ha ha ha. Very funny.” You narrowed your eyes at him, pulling him a chair next to your desk. “This is my study room. Obviously I wouldn't have my bed here. That's in my bedroom.”

He looked at you in disbelief. “You have a study room and a bedroom?”

“Well…” You started, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. Something felt off with the way he had said it. Like he was actually surprised. “You are not supposed to study in the room you sleep in so… I thought- I thought you knew this.”

His face was unreadable but he shrugged. “Guess not all of us have the privilege of knowing such amazing facts.”

What did that mean?

But you chose to ignore it, signalling him to sit down as you sat on your chair. “Enough chit chat. We didn't come here to bond. I was thinking… two hours maths and then two hours physics?”

“Sounds good to me.” he said, sitting down. “You're going to give me homework, aren't you?”

You looked at him surprised. “How did you know that?”

Jihoon laughed lightly, and for some reason you felt your stomach jump a little. “Oh well remember we had reverse classes for a week in eighth grade? You gave us homework for that class and corrected it and even graded it for us.”

“Oh wow… you remember that?” You asked, feeling your cheeks heat up. “To be honest, that was a bit too much for a reverse class-”

“It was.”

You glared at him. “But now since we’re trying to improve our grades I think it would be for the best if we gave each other homework. Would let us know where we stand and how much we improved and just keep in touch with everything.”

“I agree.” he nodded.

“Wow Lee Jihoon agreeing with me? Maybe the sun will rise in the west tomorrow!”

“Very funny. For your information, I never hated your homework. If anything I thought it was cute.”

You looked at him with a horrendous look on your face. Cute? Lee jihoon called some habit of yours cute?

“Please refrain from ruining the actual meanings of words.”

“Fine, you grumpy, friendless woman-”

“Whom are you calling friendless?”

“Oh so you agree you are grumpy?”

“I-” You began, faltering a bit. You were a grumpy person. There was no denying that. But you couldn’t lose in an argument to Jihoon. Nonetheless, he smirked at you at the win, leaning in a bit as he tilted his head at you. “Cat got your tongue, sunshine?”

“No, I just realised there is no point in fighting with you if we want to help each other out.” You lied, quickly turning away to grab some mathematics books. Your face felt like it was on fire and there was no way you were going to let Jihoon see you like this.

“Anyways, I wanted to say that don’t feel stressed teaching me.” Jihoon said. “I might not be as good as you but you are a wonderful teacher.”

“Thanks for transferring the stress over from you to me.” You said dryly, opening the book to the first chapter.

“Yes and if you’re struggling with physics it’s your fault not mine because I’m an even better teacher.”

You gave him a look and he burst out laughing, causing you to shake your head in disbelief.

“No, I’m serious. You are a wonderful teacher.”

“Thank you. Now after two hours I shall let you know if the same can be said about you.”

“It’s a competition. Whoever gets more marks next week in their taught subjects is the winner.” Jihoon’s eyes glinted with mischief and the urge to wipe that smirk off his face grew stronger.

“Deal.” You gritted your teeth, not wanting to back down. “What’s at stake?”

At this Jihoon grinned at you, leaning in until your noses were just inchest apart. Did he always smell this good?

“The loser has to admit that no matter what the fluctuation in our ranks, the winner is the true first rank holder.”

You felt the corner of your lip go up in a smile, feeling the familiar rush of adrenaline every time he challenged you to something rush through your veins. “You’re on.”

“What were you thinking?” You asked (or rather demanded) as you roughly pulled apart the curtains to Mingyu’s bed, ready to strangle him for not telling you this.

In response Mingyu groaned and covered his eyes with his arms, the harsh lighting of the nurse’s cabin hitting him now that you had pulled away his curtains.

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry? You’re sorry? Do you even know what you are supposed to be sorry for?” You continued, dropping yourself on to the edge of his bed.

At this he removed his arm slightly so that he could just peer at you, before smiling sheepishly. “Uh, for fainting in class?”

You sighed, shaking your head in disbelief. “Don’t be sorry, Gyu. But why didn’t you tell me you weren’t feeling well? It could have been so much worse!”

“Relax, I was just tired. That’s all.” He said dismissively, as though that was supposed to reduce your worry.

You wondered if he too was hiding something like how you were hiding your anxiety.

No way, right? The Mingyu you knew always shared everything with you. But then, so did you… or supposedly.

“Is that all the nurse said?” You asked, still worried. Just how much was he working himself off? 

At this he smiled at you. “You can ask her yourself if you still doubt me.”

You huffed. “I don’t doubt you. I’m just… worried.”

“I’m okay. I’m serious.” Mingyu answered, turning towards his side to face you properly. “I am… a bit tired though, to be honest. The nurse said I could sleep here for the next two - three classes till I have the energy to sit through a class.”

“Okay. Rest up then.” You said, making a mental note to get him some banana milk bottles from the canteen.

“Could you close the curtain?”

“Sure.” You got up to pull the curtains close when your eyes fell on the bed next to his, the curtain slightly open towards the head of the bed. You nearly audbi;y gasped when you recognised the face, especially when you saw the bruises on his cheeks and his split lips. Even though he was asleep, you could see his jaw was clenched, the tension in his face very evident.

Shutting the curtain close, you turned back to Mingyu, sitting back down on the bed and leaning towards him so that you could whisper to him.

“What is Jihoon doing here?” You whispered harshly, eyebrows knotted as you tried to think of a reason how he might have ended up in this situation. He didn’t look like someone who took others' lunch money.

Mingyu blinked at him. “Uh, because he is all battered up?”

“I know that!” You hissed. “I meant. How did he end up like this? Did he get into a fight?”

At this, Mingyu looked surprised. “Wait, don’t you know?”

“Don’t I know what?”

“That Jihoon is a popular target of some of the bullies in 3-A? They keep harassing him almost everyday.”

“What?” You felt your head spin with this new information. Jihoon? Getting bullied? But he didn’t look like the type who would let someone bully him. “But why?”

Now Mingyu was the one looking at you confused. “Do you live under a rock or something? How do you not know this about your competitor?”

“Well, probably because I do not care about the wordy affairs of my competitors. I intend to beat them through studies alone.” You said, a bit annoyed by the way Mingyu was acting. What could be such a golden piece of information that you had to know about him?

“Jihoon is one of the scholarship students. There are only two per year. How do you not know them?”

You looked at him in surprisingly, finally understanding a lot of the things he had said and done over the years. No wonder he couldn’t relate to having a separate study room and a bedroom.

Suddenly you felt like an asshole, shame and guilt creeping up your cheeks.

“What’s wrong? Did you do something to him?” Mingyu asked suspiciously.

You snorted. “I’m not that cruel. I would never stoop so low to insult him.” 

“Yeah, I know. Now get out of here. I really need to get some sleep. Any Jihoon related question answer can wait.”

Waving him a goodbye, you walked out of the nurse’s cabin, glancing one last time at Jihoon’s bed. 

Maybe his life wasn’t that easy as you had thought it was.

You tossed on your bed once again, sleep being the last thing on your mind. What you learnt today was pulling you down, causing your mind to run around restlessly.

Jihoon was so brave.

You knew how terrible rich kids could be and the fact that he had survived it all these years without letting it affect him so much was… admirable.

Was this why he wanted the tutoring to be done in your house only?

But I wouldn’t have made fun of him…

Then again, both of you were always fighting against each other so he probably couldn’t guarantee that you wouldn’t use it against him.

Once again you wondered what it was like to be him.

Since he wasn’t from an elite family that probably meant he never had the pressure of losing face. How nice it must be… to do well just for the sake of doing well and not because your entire family’s reputation was hanging by the thread. 

One mistake and suddenly no one wanted to do anything with you. Letting out a sigh, you finally sat up, feeling unbearably hot from all the tossing and turning you had been doing. Rubbing your eyes, you reached for your phone and opened the app, searching for Jihoon’s name.

But then you froze, fingers over the keyboard. 

What do I say?

How are you?

But that would mean you saw him in that state and something told you that Jihoon wouldn’t want you to know this information. At least not in this way.

How about… how is your maths prep?

Your face lit up, and you quickly typed in the message and hit send.

There. That was a good message. Just a casual text with nothing implied at all other than how his study was going.

Suddenly, another thought crossed your mind.

Maybe I should call him? That way… you could even sneak in a ‘how are you doing? you sound tired. did something happen’ in between the conversation.

But as soon as the call went through, your eyes fell on the clock beside your bed and you let out a welp.

2:00 AM.

What were you thinking?

Quickly you cut the call and threw your phone across the bed, your heart hammering loudly in your chest.

Calling your enemy at 2 in the night suddenly felt like the dumbest thing you had done in your life. You felt your cheeks heat up when you realised Jihoon would probably tease you the next day for calling him up at such an odd hour.

What excuse could you give? You couldn’t even have ‘accidentally’ called him at this time.

Suddenly your phone rang, causing you to nearly jump. Reaching for your phone, you checked the caller id and you felt your heart stutter a little.

Lee Jihoon

For a second, you stared at the caller id, surprised that he had called you back at this time before you remembered to pick the call. “He-hello?” 

“Hey.” Jihoon’s voice rumbled on the other side of the line, his voice an octave lower indicating that he was sleeping. “What’s wrong?”

“Uhm, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to wake you up-” You began rambling, beginning to regret everything now. Why did you think calling him was a good idea in the first place?

“No, no. It’s fine.” You heard him sigh a little before speaking again. “Is something wrong?”

“N-no? Why would you assume that though?”

There was a pause. “I mean, you called me up at 2 in the night. There must be something bothering you a lot, right?”

“I-” You began, not sure how to tell him exactly what was bothering you when it was him that was bothering you. “I, uh, yeah. I- I couldn’t sleep but I didn’t realise how late it was. I’m so sorry.”

You heard Jihoon chuckle. “It’s okay. I wouldn’t have picked it if it was someone else but I figured there must be something wrong if you called me at this time. So tell me sunshine, what's running in that pretty head of yours?”

Your stomach somersaulted at his sudden use of the nickname, but you managed to ignore it. “How- how are you?”

“Uh, you called me to ask how I am?”

A valid question to which you had no answer.

“Yeah, I was wondering- I was wondering if the maths homework I gave was too burdening for you!” You blurted out the first lie that came to your mind.

“How nice of you to be worried about the huge load of work you mounted on me.” He laughed and slight annoyance creeped into you. How was he this joyful after everything he was going through?

“How can you be this carefree with everything that you are going through?” You suddenly snapped, feeling angry at his non cholent behaviour.

He shouldn’t be this non cholent. He didn’t need to be.

Jihoon stopped laughing, his next few words coming out confused. “What do you mean?”

Shit.

“I- I mean,” you began, racking your head for more excuses. “I meant how can you take the homework I gave so lightly!”

“Oh, pardon me then ma’am.” He said, sounding back to his usual self. Yep, he was too good at covering this up. “I shall undertake my homework with the utmost precision and academic rigor.”

“What’s with the language?” You muttered.

“It’s fun pulling your leg.”

“Oh so you admit to torturing me?”

“Come on it’s not torture if you enjoy it too. Don’t you make fun at my expense?”

Immediately guilt racked you. Had you ever made him feel underprivileged compared to you? 

“Well,” you said quietly, “I don’t want to anymore.”

Another pause. “Is everything okay?” Jihoon asked softly.

His voice sounded so soothing, like your heart was the sand and his voice was the gentle waves lapping at it.

Wait, what?

No way you just found comfort in Jihoon’s voice.

“Yeah. Yeah, everything is fine. What about you? Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Everything is fine for me too. So no more thoughts ruining your sleep?”

“No.” You sighed, feeling a bit lighter despite not talking about what you actually wanted to. “I think I can get some sleep now.”

“Good. Can’t have you giving up on our rivalry so soon. If you feel like not fighting with me anymore, just talk to me. I’ll rile you up enough.”

You giggled. “Good to know you’re keeping our relationship alive.”

“Anything to see that grumpy side, sunshine.”

“Good night to you too, Jihoon.”

“Earth to Y/N?” Jihoon snapped his fingers in front of your face, causing you to let out a welp as you suddenly grounded yourself to reality.

“Huh?” You asked, smiling nervously as your eyes flicked to the physics book open in front of the two of you to try and figure out what question he might have asked.

But Jihoon caught your eye moment and that bastard just folded his arms over the book, leaning in until you had no choice but to make eye contact with him.

“Am I that handsome that you got lost staring at it?” He smirked.

“Wh- what? What an audacious thing to say!” You spluttered, cheeks heating up. But your eyes once again flicked to his right cheek, where a Mickey Mouse band aid was put on.

“It’s not audacious if it's true. Tell me,” he smirked at you. “Do I look that good?”

“I was looking at your Mickey Mouse band aid! I didn’t expect you to be those kinds of people.” You lied.

Jihoon shrugged. “My little brother gave it to me. So I thought it might look good with my outfit today.”

How did you get hurt? Who hurt you? Is it too much? How are you bearing it all alone?

There were so many questions you wanted to ask, but you were scared to privy into his matters. It was very clear he wasn’t comfortable with most people knowing it considering how you never knew this but you also didn’t want him to feel like you could weaponize this against him.

“That’s cute.”

“You know what’s cuter?” He asked, mischief glinting in his eyes. Oh no. Then leaning in, he said, “You agreeing to everything I was saying because you were distracted by my face.”

You felt your cheeks heat up furiously. “I was not distracted by your face!”

“You know, you have to be more believable than that.”

“Sorry for not being a trained liar.” You spat out, glaring at him. 

“You don’t need to be a liar, just convincing enough.” He stated with a smirk. 

Oh, like you? Maybe that would wipe that smirk off his face but you didn’t want to play dirty or hurt him.

“You know I know I’ve watched this series…” He suddenly began, looking out of your window. “Where two of the most brilliant students clash because they want the other person to confess first… I feel like we are like them except we are trying to get the other person to admit that they are smarter.”

You looked at him incredulously. “Are you comparing us to… Kaguya-sama?”

Jihoon looked at you surprised. “You watch anime?”

“I, uh,” Truth be told, it was your guilty pleasure. No one knew about this little secret you indulged in other than Mingyu because your parents never liked the idea of reading a bunch of comics instead of ‘real’ books and considered it a waste of time but you had loved reading them ever since you were a teenager. “I- I don’t- I mean, yes. I, uh, read manga and watch anime too.” You mumbled, not sure why you were telling him the truth.

You expected Jihoon to start laughing, call this hobby of your childish or something like that but instead, his face lit up in excitement. “Me too! I love anime so much! What’s your favourite?”

“What?” You looked at him confused. He seemed like the last person on planet earth that you would share a hobby with. “You like- you like anime too?”

“Yeah! Oh, have you watched Oshi No Ko?”

“Can you- can you keep your voice down a bit?” You asked, looking nervously at the door. You couldn’t risk letting the maids hear him. But nonetheless when you turned back to look at him you couldn’t help but smile, the enthusiasm in his eyes infectious. 

Jihoon looked so soft and happy right now, a soft halo around his body from the window opposite to him, his eyes almost half moons as he beamed at you. He looked so relaxed right now… like a boy just enjoying his youth.

Not the stressed out, beaten up teenager you had seen the other day. The one fighting to keep his scholarship all these years and pretend like nothing was wrong.

“Sorry, was I too loud?” He asked, still grinning.

It was an odd thing to ask Jihoon to lower his voice because Jihoon was always on the quieter end. Unless the two of you were bickering you had never seen him talk much. “No, but- but, uhm, no one knows I like anime and I would like to keep it a secret.” 

“Ah, don’t worry about that. Your secret is safe with me, sunshine.” He winked at you and you felt your heart skip a beat. 

What was that?

“Thanks.” You muttered, suddenly feeling hot. You turned away from him and took a sip of your water, hoping your cheeks weren’t as hot as they felt. “I, uh, I did watch Oshi No Ko. But I just say the opening music always stole the spotlight for me.”

“Yes, YOASOBI is unparalleled, I’m afraid. Who knew I would find an anime fan in my rival.” He chuckled.

“Yeah, that’s quite unexpected.” You said, smiling at him a little. “I can’t believe we found another topic to talk about other than who’s going to beat who’s ass next test.”

“Hey, I still love those conversations! They are my real motivation.”

“Whatever.” You roll your eyes, biting your lips to prevent a smile from forming. 

“Let’s go to the bookstore together, sometime.”

You turned so fast to face him that you nearly heard your neck snap but Jihoon was busy looking out of the window again.

Did he mean as a date?

Your cheeks heated up at the very thought of it, and you quickly dived down to pull out a notebook from your bag.

“Maybe if Mingyu wants, he could come too.”

Oh.

Feeling like an idiot, you sat up straight and gave him a strained smile, your cheeks on fire even more.

“Yeah sure. We could.”

“And the final answer is A.”

“Oh my god!” You whispered happily, practically stomping your feet in excitement as you drew a slash next to the last question. Glancing through your sheet once more to see if you had missed any circled question, you turned to look at Mingyu.

“I got everything right!” You giggled, just as he too looked at your paper in surprise. His smile grew when he saw all the questions were slashed, looking back at you in equal happiness.

“Congratulations! You scored perfectly in all subjects this time, didn’t you?”

“Yes! Oh my god, I can feel the week’s hard work being rewarded.” You said, feeling happiness surge through your veins. It had been so long since you felt this happy over a test in cram school that it almost felt foreign to you. You had been so stressed out all these days that you had almost forgotten how rewarding and relaxing it felt to score this good.

No wonder Jihoon was always in the mood to tease you.

Suddenly remembering him, you searched the classroom for him. Finally, you saw him sitting in the corner seat and you smirked, thinking of how you would tease him now.

But then you caught his expression and you froze. 

Jihoon looked… anxious. And distraught. You could see him biting his thumb as he looked at his paper, legs all jittery.

Lee Jihoon anxious?

Guilt hit you like a truck as you continued watching him, wanting to go over and comfort him.

How many things was he hiding behind that golden boy facade? How much was he bearing all alone?

You wondered if there was anyone he could freely talk to, someone to help him get the grief off his shoulders. 

Should I go over and talk to him? But he had also told you that he would rather be dead than caught being seen with you.

Then he turned back and his eyes caught yours, and you froze. But Jihoon smiled at you softly, like he wasn’t on the verge of having an anxiety attack a few seconds ago. You forced a smile for him before looking down at your paper, the win leaving a bitter taste in your mouth.

Was all this struggle really worth the pain?

Laughter and idle chatter filled the air around you, and you could feel your cheeks getting tired with every passing seconds due to the fake smile you had plastered on your face. Mingyu was on the other side of the table, stuck with some older women who were gushing to him about how amazing their daughters were.

Poor Gyu. You thought, feeling glad that your parents were too busy to try setting you up with future marriage prospects.

Of course, had it been someone else’s party they would have still done it. But since they were the hosts and stuck at the head table, they were too occupied to bother what you were doing.

Picking up the glass of juice you had been drinking since the beginning of the evening you let your eyes idly wander the crowd, taking in the guests. You had been spending the evening with some of your school friends and you hadn’t really had the chance to see who your parents had invited for this party.

You heard someone clink the glass at the table near the podium and you turned towards it, only to find your father standing up with a raised glass, clinking it again to get everyone’s attention.

“Good evening everyone.” Your father began, and you got yourself ready for another of his speeches where he subtly praised himself and put everyone else down. “I hope you all know why we are gathered here today. It’s a great pleasure being able to celebrate such an important milestone in my business with everyone present here.”

You forced another smile for your father as everyone politely clapped. You 

looked around him to see who had the ‘honour’ of sitting right next to him when your eyes fell on the mother and son sitting beside your mother.

You felt your blood drain off your cheeks as you watched Jihoon smile at your father, leaning in to say something to his mother.

What was he doing here? Who invited him? And why?

His mother laughed at whatever he had said and patted his back gently, and you felt a twinge of jealousy. Your mother would have never looked at you that way, let alone comfort you.

Jihoon’s anxious face flashed across your mind and you wondered how nice it must have been to have someone supportive at home.

He reminded you of how lonely you were at times.

“But taking this opportunity I would also like to mention another thing.” Your father continued, and you turned your attention back to him. You would talk to Jihoon as soon as this speech was over.

“I would like to talk about my amazing daughter, who scored a perfect score in every subject last week, something that was a first in the cram school.”

You felt your heart lurch for the second time that evening.

Oh no. Oh no. What was he doing?

You could feel everyone’s eyes suddenly on you, and you chuckled nervously as you looked around the crowd, grasping your clammy hands underneath the table. When your eyes landed on Jihoon, you made eye contact with him, expecting to see his anxious face once again.

Because you were always in this position and you knew how it felt.

But instead… he looked happy. He smiled at you brightly and nodded, as though he didn’t mind the fact you had taken his first place.

No way. He has to be faking it. I’ll go talk to him after this and explain that I didn’t mean to gloat in front of him.

Suddenly it became clear to you why your parents had invited Jihoon and his mother over.

To show you off in front of him. To put him back in his place.

“... and I am so proud of her.” Your father finally finished, locking eye contact with you and you smiled back at him. You could feel the bile rising up your throat, the urge to throw up getting stronger.

You felt so sick. So, so sick.

Was this always the reason your parents wanted you to do well? Because you were just a trophy meant to be shown off.

“Please enjoy the rest of the night!” Your father concluded, and the hubbub filled the room again. Immediately you got up and bolted towards Jihoon’s table.

“We need to talk.” You whispered urgently even before Jihoon had turned to acknowledge you. He looked at you a bit surprised, but nodded nonetheless.

“Mom, this is Y/N.” He introduced her and you gave her a polite smile. “Hi, ma’am.”

“Hi darling, Jihoon has told me so much about you!” She exclaimed and you laughed nervously. “All good things, I hope?”

“Ah, you won’t believe what he said-”

“Okay mom! I’ll be right back!” Jihoon cut her off as he grabbed your arm and pulled you away from the table.

“Where to?” He asked, finally letting go of your arm but you grabbed his hand instead. It was warm in contrast to your cold, clammy ones.

“Let’s go to the garden.” You said urgently, pulling him behind you.

“Woah, what’s the hurry?” He asked, but you didn’t respond. “Is it because of what my mom said? She didn’t mean anything, I swear-.”

“I’m sorry.” You cut him off, finally facing him as the two of you had reached the gardens. Jihoon looked at you confused. You sucked in a deep breath. “I’m- I’m sorry for tonight. Look, I know about your financial situation. So I just wanted to tell you I’m sorry that you got dragged into this.”

Jihoon frowned. “What do you mean? Why are you sorry?”

“Because- because my parents did this on purpose!” You said, a bit exasperated now. How was he not understanding? “They just want to show off, that’s why they brought you here!”

“Are you… pitying me?” He narrowed his eyes at you. “Do you think just because I’m poor, I think my life is horrible and I cannot take some rich bratty girl’s parents’ insults? Do you think I’m such a hopelessly sad case?”

“I didn’t say that!” You snapped. “I just meant that they were trying to put you down!”

“Well, please don’t think I’m this pathetic.” He yelled, equally angry now. “I wouldn’t have come to this stupid party if I didn’t know what I would be expecting. I can handle you rich brats’ privileges very well now. And I certainly don’t need your sympathy.”

“Fine! Go ahead and do whatever the hell you want to!” You yelled, turning away and walking back to the party.

Hot tears pricked your eyes but you rapidly blinked, trying to not let them fall. As soon as you entered the party hall you made your way to the washroom, hoping no one was there.

Finding it empty, you locked yourself up in a stall, finally sinking on to the ground. You let out a sob as the first tear fell, feeling your heart break as you replayed the events that just happened in your head.

Why did you care so much about him? Why did you care if your parents were trying to put him down? Jihoon was your rival after all. You always wanted to defeat him, no matter what.

But right now you just wanted him to be happy. For him to be able to live freely.

You rubbed your eyes as more tears streamed down your face, wishing you had never fought with him in the first place.

Why did you both need to fight all the time? You really liked whatever you had with him. He always took you so seriously and acknowledged your efforts.

You sniffled, a sudden thought occurring in your head.

Oh my god. I like him.

You felt your head spin at the sudden realisation. You liked him. You liked Lee Jihoon. Your rival. The person you absolutely ‘hated’.

And as if that was a cue to your enlightenment, your phone rang. Wiping away your tears once again you looked at the caller id, and you felt your stomach lurch.

Lee Jihoon.

Clearing your throat so that you didn’t sound like you had been crying, you picked up the call.

“Hello?” Jihoon’s voice came from the other side.

“Hey.” You whispered, hoping your voice didn’t sound too hoarse.

“Can we- can we talk? I think there’s something we- I mean, I need to clear up.”

“Okay.” You mumbled. “Where are you?”

“I’m in the garden still. Where are you?”

“Uh, in the washroom.”

He paused. “Oh god, I’m so sorry I messed up big time. I’ll- I’ll explain when you come over.”

“Okay. Give me… some time.” You said, and cut the call. Letting out a breath, you pulled yourself up and exited the stall. You looked at the mirror, your eyes still watery so you splashed some water on your face before exiting the washroom.

Five minutes later, you managed to sneak out of the hall and made your way to the garden where Jihoon was still standing.

“Hey.” You said, once you were right behind him. He whipped around so fast that he almost stumbled back, but managed to catch himself on time.

“Hi.” He said, scratching his neck awkwardly. “I’m sorry.”

You sighed, closing your eyes. “What are you sorry about?”

“I acted like a complete ass. All you were trying to be was nice and explain that you weren’t a part of this hurtful plan of your parents but I just behaved like an idiot and hurt you instead.”

You opened your eyes to look at him for a while. “You did.”

“Yeah, and I’m sorry for that.” He said, refusing to make eye contact with you anymore. “I just- I just… you probably know about my bullying incident because you were there in the nurse’s room that day- yeah, you and Mingyu talk loudly- so I just got really defensive when you said you knew about my financial condition and that’s why you wanted to apologise.”

You sighed, folding your arm and looking away too. “I didn’t mean it that way. If I wanted to hurt you or look at you in disgust, I could have done it much before itself.”

“Yeah, and I realised that now. I messed up big time. I’m sorry.” He said, finally looking up at you.

“Jihoon, I admire you. You are one of the bravest people I know.” You said, looking back at him. “I would never, never ever hurt you, no matter how deep our rivalry goes. It must have been hard, having so much on the line while studying. Because I can relate to that. Maybe you don’t have your entire family’s dignity on the line but you do have something dragging you down. And I- and I care for you Jihoon.”

“Yeah. My mother sacrificed so much for me I can’t-” He choked on his words, screwing his eyes shut and balling his fists. “I can’t let her sacrifices go to waste like this.”

You didn’t know what came over you but the next thing you knew, you had thrown your arms around his neck, pulling him into an embrace. 

“It’s okay.” You whispered into his ear, gently patting his back. “Your mother loves you a lot. No matter what. I could see it in her eyes. She loves you so much Jihoon.”

You heard him sniffle as you felt his arms wrap around your waist.

“Thank you.” He whispered back. “I want you to know that no matter what you do, I’ll always be proud of you too. I’m honoured to have a friend like you and I’ll always be there for you.”

You chuckled at this and pulled back so that the two of you were looking at each other, faces just inches apart.

“Thought you said we weren’t friends?” You asked.

“Did I?” He asked, one corner of his lip turning up. “That’s probably because I’ve always wanted to be more than friends with you, sunshine.”

You froze in his arms, eyes widening at this sudden confession.

Jihoon just smiled at you, though his eyes looked pained. “I know you’ll hate me more now but I’ve always liked everything about you. Your determination, your hard work, your smartness, your dedication-”

And before he could complete the list of things he liked about you, you found yourself crashing your lips into his, the force nearly causing the two of you to stumble back. But Jihoon caught himself almost immediately, kissing you back fervently.

You felt your entire body explode as he soft lips seared against yours, the world around you slowly spinning out of control. You were acutely aware of his hand on your back rubbing circles, and you tighten your arms around his neck to pull him in deeper.

Finally, what felt like hours, the two of you broke apart to catch your breaths, gasping for air.

“I cannot believe you thought riling me up was the best way to talk to me.” You muttered, lips brushing against his. Jihoon laughed, quickly pressing another kiss to your lips.

“Let’s admit it, it was a smart move.”

“It was a dumb move. I could have hated you more. Thank god I’m the smarter one.”

“It wasn’t. And I’m the smarter one. Oh, and all yours, sunshine.”

A/N: Please do tell me what you think about this story!! I worked really hard on it and I would love to know everyone’s thoughts on it~ Comments and reblogs are appreciated!    

© 𝐆𝐘𝐔-𝐄𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

[h0neybane]

MAGIKEY (TWST AU) BY @quartztwst !!

im going to PASS AWAAAAYYYYY IM SOSO TIRED. BUT ITS DONE. but anyway, more on evelyn...

Evelyn [Magikey User "Luna Luceat"]

“Hurry up, I'm gonna pass out."

Evelyn is an 18 year old girl and has been a magical girl for 4 years, since she was 14. In her magical girl form, she comes off as mysterious and aloof... but she's really just thinking about going home. She has occasionally breached the top 10 of Magical popularity rankings, but she mostly tries to keep to herself, vanishing immediately after her work is done. Oftentimes, she finished things so quick that the public is unaware.

A quiet, sleepy girl who is jaded from her years as a magical girl.

Status:

Mental/Emotional Strength: ★★★★☆ (She's hard to crack since she's used to her job, but her constant exhaustion can become a vulnerability if left untreated for too long.)

Physical Strength: ★★★☆☆ (She's moderately strong as her staff is fairly hefty, and she does swing with it sometimes.)

Stamina: ★★☆☆☆ (This girl is tired as FUCK LMFAO. She uses her little floating platform to move because she doesn't want to actually run.)

Strategy: ★★★★★ (Evelyn is very calculated with her moves as her goal is to get the job done as fast as possible to go home and SLEEP.)

Strengths: Evelyn is very experienced and keeps a close eye on all of her teammates, making sure they can operate effectively. She is especially strong during the nighttime in a full moon.

Weaknesses: Evelyn is constantly exhausted because she only works during the nighttime as that is when her powers are most effective. A daytime attack would leave her extremely vulnerable.

Evelyn lives with her little brother in their childhood home. Their parents are usually overseas on business trips, so they don't see them in person very often. Evelyn's brother is aware that she works during the night time, but doesn't know that she's a magical girl.

Evelyn grew up very sheltered, being homeschooled by tutors hired by her parents. She was very lonely and she didn't really speak to her brother. She accumulated a massive amount of hobbies to pass time, one of those being gazing at the moon on her balcony, wishing for something to change.

Her wish was granted the night of her 14th birthday, with her magikey falling into her hands after gazing at the moon for the nth time. She eagerly and naively accepted, thinking that this was everything she hoped for.

Unfortunately, she soon came to realize that the nature of her abilities forced her to be sleep deprived if she wanted to do anything much outside of being a magical girl. After her second year of being a magical girl, her enthusiasm fully died, and now she just tries to get by until she can go home. (she still really likes her outfit though, LOL)

After a shift as a magical girl, Evelyn will usually rush inside a convience store, grab snacks, pay and bolt home. She hates staying for overtime even by 5 minutes... though, she's willing to grab some stuff for her brother if he asks for it.

Evelyn is technically enrolled in theMagikey Training School, but she rarely shows up to classes. If she does, she's usually sleeping in them, though she doesn't mind a chance to show off once in a while. The instructors tend to leave her alone whenever this happens, as they're aware of how hard she works.

She does try to be nice towards her juniors though. She fetches them treats once in a while.

uncharted lore territory!! i didnt watch madoka magica or anything so idk if this fits in at all so im warning in advance lol. this is adjacent to evelyn's ACTUAL lore within the original canon twst, which is why it's here. i will make a separate post explaining further later on

Evelyn has a secret. One that isn't her being a magical girl. She has not told crowley, nor any of her magical colleagues, and she does not intend to— at least not for now. However, this secret does leave her susceptible to... negative feelings.

tag list!

@taruruchi @honeyedpearcrushh @boopshoops @scint1llat3

@h2llish @viperbunnies @buttholesparkles @oya-oya-okay @cheerleaderman

@qsoap @angelwishess @jadelover69 @skriblee-ksk @lychee-face

[maddiesentmehere118]

A Stranger's Jacket: Part 10

Evan "Buck" Buckley x plus size! reader

Word Count: 3k

Warnings: fluff, light smut, plot inaccuracies, MDNI 18+

Author's notes: I am so very sorry that this has taken a few days to write. I just found the motivation today on my day off!

Masterlist | Taglist

You’d spent eight days in and out of the hospital. Buck was eager to get out of the ICU and had never been more happy to be in a med-surge room with less close monitoring on day three. His guests weren’t as restricted, and you had finally got to meet Christopher. He was as sweet as everyone said he was, and at seven years old, he was a bright little one. His banter with Buck was cute and he was actually funny. Christopher had given you a hug before leaving, telling you that you better be nice to his Buck. You looked back at the man, whose eyes were crinkled with joy. You laughed, bent down, and told him that you would take care of Buck. 

When Maddie was working, you were at the hospital. And when you weren’t doing homework, you and Buck were watching a new series together. When Maddie switched, you bid your farewell to Buck, promising to be back in a few hours. Just enough time to shower and get some rest.

At first, there were some conflicts on where Buck should go. You and Maddie thought it would be best if he didn’t stay at his loft, as it wasn’t accessible with stairs. You advocated for him to stay at Maddie’s place since she had been a nurse, afterall. But he was not having it. He didn’t want to invade his sister’s space, especially since she was with Chimney. And while Eddie’s house was accessible, he didn’t want to be there either.

Buck wanted to be with you. At your place.

He was also adamant that you were not going to sleep in separate beds, so the orthopedist recommended a wedge pillow that was designed to elevate and hold his leg in place. In addition, you ordered a wedge pillow to prop himself up in bed, because he would be spending a lot of time there for the first few weeks. Well, you did the ordering and Buck gave you his card. 

“I think you like that bed more than me.” You’d teased earlier in the week. He shook his head in response, flashing that flirtatious grin of his. 

“While it’s comfy, I like what’s in the bed more. She can be my hot nurse.”

The night that he came home, you didn’t sleep well. The following two nights, you were just as sleepless and relied on coffee during the day. You were afraid that a restless night might jolt him and worsen the pain he was already experiencing.It was similar to the first night he stayed over. By the third night, he had woken up to you sitting up in bed, scrolling on your phone. You broke down for the first time in a week, emotionally and physically exhausted. After calming you down, he convinced you to lay beside him, and he laid his arm across your torso. He couldn’t spoon you, but his arm soothed all of your worries.

The first few weeks were full of weekly doctor appointments and gentle range of motion exercises. You started to teach when Buck got moved onto the med-surg unit.  You found time to record simple lectures when you weren’t at the hospital and used discussion boards to see students engaging with the material. But it was very different to lecture about material compared to hearing students ask questions during Zoom classes or answer questions that you had for them. You had fallen in love with teaching all over again, reminding you of your passion to tutor others pre-shooting. You felt like you were slowly getting back into your routine.

 It was very rewarding and left you warm on the inside, and the students seemed to look forward to class. And even Buck was learning from his place in the other room. He was super proud and ecstatic for you.

By week six, he was so excited to be put on crutches- but that meant even more reminders that he needed to take it easy. He was pushing himself to heal faster, and everyone around him told him that his job wasn’t going anywhere.  

You had slowly transitioned to leaving Buck at home for an hour and a half now that he was on crutches. You were still healing from the aftermath of the shooting, but it was cathartic to be back in the building. With each day, you became less jumpy, more trustworthy in the new security systems and protocols set in place. You slept better and the nightmares from the shooting and Buck’s accident became minimal with the help of therapy. 

By week ten, he had started using the cane for slow distance and was doing great in strength and balancing training. Your apartment got rearranged to fit equipment for rehab in your living room, and you wouldn’t have had it any other way. You were on board with anything that would get Buck back to where he wanted, within reason of course.

You enjoyed playing house with Buck. It was nice to share life with someone on a regular basis, as you had spent all of your undergrad sharing a dorm space with friends to transitioning to your own as a graduate student. Your friends had slowly trickled over to meet him and had just as great approval ratings as you had said. You were falling in love with him and vice versa.

Week twelve rolled around and it was time to slowly start weaning him off of pain meds. It was hard on both of you, but thankfully most of the pain had lessened and swelling was the main issue. But every hidden whimper of pain was like a strike to your gut and you couldn’t do anything besides give him NSAIDs and rotate between ice and heat. 

After some research, you tried a few things to reduce swelling and minimize the pain. You did breathing exercises together, pushed water and green tea, ate the best foods for inflammation, and experimented with a few numbing creams. You found what worked best for Buck and ran with it. 

Buck eventually got insecure about his body and inability to perform for the time being. You had tried having sex in the third month but a pain flare up had made you both stop. He wanted to try again and you told him that as much as you wanted to jump him, it was a sign that his body still needed time to heal. You were afraid to hurt him. And it was a huge blow to his ego. 

You had leaned onto your side, propping your head up as he stared at the ceiling. You had just made out like horny teenagers when he got a bout of pain. Now he was avoiding eye contact, a mix of frustration and embarrassment in his body language. You leaned over to kiss his cheek, working down his jaw and throat. Your free fingers ran up and down the side of his torso. His face slowly melted into relaxation.

“Hey, Evan, look at me.”

He turned his head, a soft glow on his face. You reached up to stroke his cheek softly. It was a tender touch, much different than the urgent way you clawed at each other a few seconds ago. He had nothing to be worried about, especially with the pool of arousal in your shorts and the pounding of your heart in your chest. Did you mention the room was unbearably hot?

“What’s going on in that beautiful head of yours?”

A long beat, his chin dipping down. You bent your neck down to catch his attention, giving him a bright smile, trying to keep this lighthearted. 

“I just, I feel like I can’t do anything. After everything you’ve done for me, I feel bad that I can’t show you how much I care.”

You cut him off with a kiss. He grabs the back of your neck, fingers tangling in your hair pulling you closer to him. You let your hands roam his body, pouring all of your feelings into the moment. You were damned if you were going to let Evan Buckley think you didn’t know how much he appreciated you.

A mix of labored breaths fill the room as you pull back, resting your foreheads against each other. You tilt your head back with laughter as he starts kissing and nuzzling your ticklish spot.

Then he breathed out three simple words.

“I love you. And I am so very in love with you that I can’t imagine my life without you in it. I was made to love you, like I’ve known you all my life. And you don’t have to say it back, but I just thought you should know that I truly love you.”

And it was the easiest thing to sigh it back to him, kissing him again, this time more tenderly, before placing your face on his chest as he held you. 

One evening, closer to the start of the fourth month, you decided that you were going to take control and test the waters again. He had been having a few good days in a row with no real complaints of pain. And his hands were struggling to stay off of you.

Eddie dropped off Buck’s turnout coat while he was out with Maddie earlier that day, and he didn’t ask questions. However, from the smug look on his face, he knew. A blush crept on your cheeks as he smiled, wishing you good luck before leaving. 

The Proposal was on while you were in the bathroom, Buck relaxing in bed. You fluffed your hair up, smudging some eyeliner to finish your smokey eye. Your lips were painted red, eyelashes coated black with mascara. With a finalized spray of perfume and a deep breath, you were ready to open the door.

You slowly cracked the door open, not wanting to gain Buck’s attention right away. You slowly peeked out, leaning your hip against the door frame, arm resting above your head. A sultry look graced your face, lip tucked between your teeth. Your eyes never left his body.

It was at least three minutes before he had glanced up at you. His eyes lit up upon seeing your face, but as they trailed down your body, his blue orbs turned dark, hooding over in lust. 

He sat up to walk towards you, but you tusked, waving your finger at him. He let out a low groan as you arched your chest forward, giving him a better view of your lace covered breasts. 

“Fuck-”

“Oh I’m going to fuck you, Buckley.”

“Oh yeah? How so?”

He tilted his head, a knowing grin on his face. You could see his imagination running wild.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” 

You paused, pushing off of the door frame to saunter over to him. You stood over him, finger barely grazing the skin of his bare torso.

“Well I need you to be good for me and lay back so I can suck your cock. Then-” 

You dragged a finger down the middle of his chest, down to his groin. His chest was heaving with shallow breaths of anticipation, arousal clear in his eyes as he watched you every move.

“I’m going to take my time ruining you.”

You leaned down, lips brushing his. He grabbed the back of your neck, pulling you in for a kiss. But you had pulled back as he tried to deepen it, conveying you were going to be in charge tonight. 

“You’re going to spoon me and look at your name on my back as you fuck me.”

His hands grab at your hips, and you don’t miss the slight tremble in them. Maybe he was nervous about a pain flare up or disappointing you again. But you would never be disappointed. Having Buck in your life was enough for you. If it meant keeping Buck safe and pain free, everything else could wait.

Regardless, he keeps hands on your love handles, turning you to get a better view. His Adam's Apple bobbed, breath hitching in his throat. You had him right where you wanted him.

The first time sex went well, it was equally a moment of relief and connection. You’d learned that Buck had a breeding kink, and used that to your full advantage when you begged him to cum in you, telling him you were on the IUD. And you would be lying if you said you weren’t into it, either.

After that, you had tried to take it lightly, but that only lasted a few days before he was taking you in any position he could. You had to refrain from any strenuous weight bearing positions on his leg, which meant doggy style and cowgirl off of the table- for now. But missionary and side sex was working wonders for the both of you.

By the middle of the fourth month, he was rabid. He was able to participate in more positions and was leading a very active sexual life, moving past mutual masturbation and touching- although you didn’t mind when he fingered you or when you had his cock in your hand, down your throat-

The last few months were a blur. Buck was walking normally with low amounts of pain and you had been out to more social gatherings. And you even were able to go out on what Buck called “proper dates”, which was nice since it was now spring out, but you secretly rolled your eyes at the fact that he thought you had to go out and spend money to have a good date.

You had fallen into a routine yet managed to keep each other on their tippy toes.

When you graduated in August, the whole team had come to watch you walk across the stage with that diploma. Buck had arranged for Hen and Karen to spearhead the planning for a secret graduation party, and there were signs that something was going to happen, but you didn’t think too hard on it. 

At first, you were worried that he was texting another woman. He was on his phone a little more leading up to your graduation and you thought this may be it. You knew that insecurity was stupid, considering how love stricken he was. And he kept asking small questions, playing them off subtly. He’d been super excited to get you out the door for dinner at your favorite restaurant- only after he had made you unravel on his face a few times.

The ride to the restaurant was long but you didn’t notice that you weren’t on the way to the restaurant. Buck had his hand firmly gripped on your thigh and kept giving you that glance that made you want to skip dinner.

So when Buck pulled into a driveway, you were confused. Cars lined the street and Buck played it off as Hen and Karen had a present for you that they forgot to bring to graduation. You followed his lead as he helped you out of the car, walking up the concrete pad to the door. The house was quiet and mostly dark as Buck rang the doorbell. Hen answered, inviting you in as Karen grabbed the gift from her bedroom. 

You’d started a conversation about Denny, laughing as Hen joked that they were not ready to watch him graduate fourth grade, let alone highschool or college. Buck’s hand remained firm on your waist as you conversed.

Then suddenly, the lights turned on, and you assumed Karen had returned with your gift. But instead, a collective shout of surprise filled the air. Your friends, the team, and Dr. Daniels and his family jumped out, and you were shocked. 

But what really surprised you was Buck’s rehab team being there, as they had become a monumental part of you and Buck’s everyday life. You’d let out a few tears as you went to them, hugging them and thanking them for showing up. Without them, you don’t know how strong you could have been. They weren’t only there for Buck’s healing, but they were also there for you. They understood how challenging it was being a loved one caring for their partner. You could actually talk to Trina, Melody, and Heather about your feelings on his journey without the clinical guidance of your counselor. 

Now you are getting ready for your supposed date night. You had informed Buck that you were going to go see a comedy show together. You had put on a long sleeve maxi dress and paired it with some flats. It was a bit more than what you normally wear out, but not too different. Now you had to convince Buck to let you drive, which is more of a feat on its own considering he loves toting you around now his leg is back to normal.

“Babe, we’re going to be late if you keep messing with your hair.”

“We are not.” 

He peeks his head out of the bathroom, looking charming as always.

“You have my keys, right? You’re ready to go?”

You flash him your purse hanging on your shoulder and keys in your hand. Your keys.

“Wait, you’re driving?”

“It’s my night to take you out, don’t you remember?”

His golden retriever energy shines through as he wraps an arm around you, pulling you to his chest. You smile as you hold the keys behind his back, knowing what he’s attempting to do. 

“You can’t have the keys, but you can give me a kiss.”

He leans down, his lips brushing the corner of your mouth teasingly. His hand slides down your back, resting on the swell of your ass. 

“Hmmm.” He gives you a sweet peck. “I suppose that’s a fair trade.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

🔥 taglist: @nickie-amore, @mimisweetz, @queen-o-castle, @dipdeedoda, @rintheemolion, @iluvvcaats

[maniacalgenius]

03.17.25

monday recap

🌺 quiet time - read Acts 10

🌺 ate breakfast

🌺 got ready

🧬 went to physics recitation

🧬 went to physics lab

🌺 got lunch, didn't really do any work in my usual MWF spot because lab took up all of my laptop's charge & unfortunately there is not an outlet near my favorite table (iykyk)

🌺 picked up little sandwich from school & drove him to math tutoring (again iykyk)

🍁 went to coffee shop

🧬 did physics tutorial from march 7th

🌺 settled my logging-in issues with my resident portal (it only took 4 times of the person i was emailing back and forth with saying they would "escalate the issue to a colleague to assist" before i received a temporary password to log in with!!!! 10/10 bureaucratic experience 🤩)

📋 responded to the feedback my SIM left on my session planners

🧬 watched video lecture for tomorrow's class in biochem - overview of lipid metabolism (lipids SUCK & i HATE them!!! i want electron transport & oxidative phosphorylation back!!! i mean what?)

🍁 went to bible study. was a very silly time as our unofficial leader was sick. went home halfway through because i was tired of sitting there with all the happy couples whilst feeling so keenly the wounds of spiritual warfare

🧚 drove around in circles for a little bit listening to the same song on repeat

🌺 went home, ate dinner, took a shower, went to bed

💤 9h 28m (got to sleep at 12:45 a.m. mild improvement)

💧 90 oz

👣 5.9k

🎶 ordinary - alex warren

🕰️ 1h 54m

love and prayers

[tzukin]

Rosario+vampire characters if they were british / of gen z / regular modern au

When you have such a fixation on something and no one else is making content for it, this is what you resort to doing.

Credits to @bellisbelief for all of the photo edits ❤️

Tsukune - Archie

Year 10

Works at poundland / greggs

Plays roblox high school 2 on roblox

Still gets paninis lobbed at him every day

He’s a radnor splash-er

Takes snaps exclusively with stupid filters and the same expression every time

Moka - Olivia

Works at pets at home

(I’m going by the assumption that she is inner moka and outer moka still so outer moka got the job and inner moka just has to deal with having to work at pets at home)

Year 10

Collects pink sheep in minecraft

The only person messaging on the class group chats

Cried when she got a negative point for the first time

Kurumu - Amelia

Year 10

Chav

Works at ann summers / claire’s

Makes cottagecore houses in minecraft creative and puts it on her instagram story

Exclusively uses snapchat for communication

Probably used whizz a lot during covid times

Bottom set everything

Gets sent out of pe for refusing to wear the bibs

Calls male teachers pedos for a living

Yukari - Jane

In year 8 and makes fun of the year 7s

Made ‘year 7 here I come!’ Tiktok videos when she was in year 6 and posted videos stressing about the 11+

Made the tiktok fairy comments 🧚🧁🎀

Makes complex redstone contraptions on minecraft

SPRINTS to the canteen

‘Erm actually!’

Hangs round with fangfang / max and people take the piss out of him for it - ‘is that yer bird bruv’

Ruby - Charlotte

Works at occult in afflecks

Despite being alternative, she never got bullied cause she was pretty and fit in with the popular girls despite and just drifted between friend groups

Always in pastoral and knows all of the pastoral managers so well she runs tasks for them

People just can’t get in touch with her cause she refuses to download snapchat and refuses to give people her number

Mizore - Grace

Year 10

Works at gamestop

Plays exclusively arsenal and murder mystery 2 on roblox

Has 13% attendance

Probably read yaoi in class and did NOT care

THE weird anime kid

‘I’m not like other girls, i play video games’

Probably still uses terms like ‘derp’

Avid 4chan and reddit user

Chavs (kurumu/amelia) ask her “are you my best friend”

Starts arguments in popular girls tiktok comments and pretends she doesnt care when people make fun of her in response but is actually very vulnerable and has moved schools so many times

Fangfang - maximillian (max)

Year 9

Will end up working at aldi

Plays sonic speed simulator pn roblox

Mates with tons of the girls, they see him as the gay best friend and he has no idea

‘The class clown’ - he thinks he’s funny because he has the piss taken out of him by everyone and thinks they’re laughing with him not at him

Probably close with all the english teachers hes had

Exclusively uses whatsapp

Gin - Jason

Year 11

Chav

Works at JD and then wetherspoons

Exclusively uses snapchat and sends streaks of a picture of his wall

His pants are sagging halfway down his legs

Vapes

Responds to tsukunes stories with ‘butters’

Hokuto - Edward / Charles

The student council president - he doesn’t do shit and makes up his speeches on the spot but gets away with it cause he sounds posh enough to be persuasive

Works at waterstones

Absolute neek

He just reminds me of seneca, freescienceandmaths and physics and maths tutor - he’s like old monotone british men talking about physics

PE tryhard

All 9s and bragged that he didnt even revise

Probably wont bother going to a prestigious college or uni cause he only does things cause he can and doesnt put in any extra effort for anything

Exclusively uses whatsapp

Probably leaves people on read a lot or responds simply with a thumbs up

People tried to bully him for being a neek but he just refused to care (the bullying pushed him and kiria / george into the same category of weird kid to other people but he thinks hes better than george)

Kiria - George

(I asked my friend what gayass british name i could use for him and this was so gay and perfect)

Would’ve had the F slur yelled at him so much

Probably also works at afflecks (is a different breed of alt than ruby but still obviously alt) / a barber (idk where this comes from but i think it works a lot)

THE weird kid

Probably was a big fan of danganronpa and joined a discord cult briefly in 2020

Had a fake identity / ragebait account to troll on discord servers

Carries around pretentious / controversial literature with him around school and on public transport like ‘lolita’

Sells vapes

Eats glue

Chases people with scissors in dt

Kokoa - Riley

Year 9

Will end up working at hmv

Is the one lobbing the panini

Ashamed that she uses pastel highlighters but simultaneously shows off that its one of those types that rub off

THE embarrassing younger sister who hangs around moka and gets her bullied for it

A netball girl warrior

Her tie is NEVER on right and her shirt is NEVER buttoned to the top

Kuyo - Felix

Year 11

Student council vice president - takes the job A LOT more seriously than hokuto / edward

I can see him working at lidl / dunelm but he takes it SO seriously

Did DofE because he was so seduced by the idea of having it on his CV

Will definitely go to oxbridge at uni - THE try hard

Says problematic, borderline racist stuff in the canteen very loudly and never expects anyone to speak up about it

Incredibly posh and privileged

Ends up at the same college as kiria  (george) and gets closer to him when he’s mellowed out a bit and gets genuinely shocked and uncomfortable when peaks of his weirdkidness comes out

[cadet-aviator]

'Mess and Household training' (3)

O, and then there were shoes. If ironing shirts was a science in itself, then taking care of leather shoes was closer to particle physics. I was pretty good at polishing my black cadet shoes, but I had noticed, when I met the Admiral, that there existed an entirely different level of excellence, to which I was now introduced. 

You will not believe what I had to learn, about animal skin, about stitching, about soles and laces, about different kinds of fatty substances and ointments and polishes, which had to be applied with different kinds of cloths of soft brushes, in different kinds of strokes, with different intensities, slow to let the leather absorb the material, faster to bring ‘coherence’ to the outer layer, even faster to bring out a crystal clear lacquer shine.

For the ironing and the cooking we had some friendly instructors, not so for shoe care: you’d get two, sometimes three ‘experts’ to observe your entire exercise, which could go on for three or four hours, easily – for one pair, mind you.

And where I had perhaps gotten a bit comfortable in the other training courses, I now had to work really hard to avoid any kind of mistake (not to mention avoiding getting black polish on my shirtsleeves, for starters).

Demerits came down hard and fast, and again I found myself ordered back in to the barracks on Sunday afternoons, to spend hours and hours on my knees doing the floors again (and again).

As I was getting along in this particular type of Mess & Household training, the Army Cadet staff actually changed my school curriculum – without consulting me, of course. Simple: I showed up at school, stood to attention as we sang the national anthem (we did that every morning), and then one of my teachers took me aside and told me that I was to take extra classes in Physics and Chemistry (not my strong subjects), and my grade average had to be 8/10, or better. I was going to get additional tutoring outside normal school hours. These would be added to my school cadet drill hours and to my Army service hours, so ‘You had better focus on covering the backlog quickly, boy. Off you go.’ ‘Yes Sir’. 

Just like that.

'O, kid, we've interfered with your life again.'

‘Yes Sir. Thank you Sir.'

It was what my life was like. Just when I thought I was managing this double cadet discipline and juggling it with my normal obligations at school and at home, there was always something added to it. Six more hours of school, per week, with extra tests. 

I never realised until I began writing down these memories, that in those days I must have had days of 14 to 16-hours of work, at least, and that was apart from my own chores, doing my own laundry, my own ironing, the weekly haircuts, the morning inspections. I never complained. I never said: 'But Sir, please, I have School Cadets and Army Cadets and my Dad is away, and then all this homework and ... '.

Never.

(All images are AI-generated).

[ze-slaughtermod]

Look at the tags right now.

Here they are again:

TW: Drugs; TW: alcohol abuse; TW suggestive; TW: Slightly Suggestive; TW Manipulation; TW: Toxic Relationship

Turn away now if you are not comfortable with these topics as they relate to something in my personal life that I need to write about. I need to get this off my chest. You do NOT have to read this if it makes you uncomfortable.

2008 - 2009 was so long ago but once in a really great while, memories will resurface and everything I ever felt in that span of a year will resurface.

I had gotten into a very toxic situation/relationship with a guy that year and I found out a lot about myself and went through absolute HELL. I write this here in the case someone IS reading this and can spot out the toxic behaviors in their own situations to avoid the absolute BULLSHIT I went through.

(sigh)

His name was Nelson. And for the first three months, we had gotten along very well. I was the type who would fall hard and fast, especially still being young and fresh out of high school and very impressionable. College wasn't for me and when he and I started dating, I made the big mistake of moving into his apartment to "make it on my own"! Because I was 18 and "ready" to take on life!

I had no fucking clue what I was doing. It wasn't even his apartment. It was his Mother's. In the worst part of Los Angeles (where I grew up), in a roach infested complex... And his two younger sisters who just wanted their big brother to give a shit about them. I thought that love could soften his heart to be a little better towards his siblings and God was I fucking wrong.

Diana was 13 and a bright child. Monica was 8 and they immediately clung onto me like an older sister. And I immediately took them under my wing and protection. And the more I saw how cruel he was to them, the less I loved him. The more I hated him and the more I hated myself for seeing that he could be the one for me at all.

I wanted to leave and go back home but I stayed for those two girls because their mother worked 3 jobs to keep food on the table and pay the rent. Nelson and I went to work for a non profit organization and got a stipend check of 250 bucks a week and did "volunteer work" for 9-10 hours a day at nearby schools where we tutored children who were falling behind in class and ran an after school care program. (We were in different teams thank GOD)

I did what I could to help... The mother was very sweet. She worked so hard. She loved her kids. But she didn't know WHY Nelson was so cruel when all she did was love him. His father was never in their lives but Nelson knew him in his youth enough to turn out into a twisted bastard.

Another reason why I didn't leave is because Nelson threatened me and those young girls a lot. He alienated me from my family and controlled my money. Whenever I was off the clock, he was immediately at my side to "walk us" home. He was making sure I didn't jump on a bus and leave. And I never told my teammates for a long time.

I think I gave up trying to run away because he would break me down. He'd call me names. I'd work hard to keep the peace at home. I did everything I could for him in various ways I'm not proud of to keep his fists away from his sisters.

One day, I had a day off and he didn't. And I stayed behind to babysit the little ones and we had a WONDERFUL time. We went to the market and got snacks. I treated them to ice cream and McDonalds. Went back home and turned on the Playstation to play a game. So long as we turned it off before Nelson got home, we'd be fine. But. We were having so much fun that I lost track of time.

I remember it like it happened yesterday. I'll never forget it and I wish I could...

But Nelson got home and I immediately began to apologize. Monica ran into her room and locked the door because I told her so. But he physically pushed me aside and (Diana was the one playing, sitting on a chair and didn't have time to even get up) went straight for Diana.

He grabbed her by her fucking hair and literally threw her across the across. I'll never forget her scream. I'll never forget the sound of Monica crying from her room in fear, wondering if she was next. And as Nelson was YELLING at Diana, I lost my mind. I lost my temper for the first time with him. I threw my entire existence into an open handed SLAP.

And all I remember is getting thrown around. Throwing him around. Telling Diana to go hide with Monica and threatened Nelson with the kitchen knife that if he ever hurt his sisters like that again, I will fucking stab him.

He never laid a hand on his sisters again.

And you know what?

I still stayed.... Because I felt like I still had no family to go to. I had no phone because he had thrown my phone out the window and far into the street during that fight. I threw his Superman game out the window in return.

But our relationship was pretty much strained. We tried to work things out but the only way I could feel anything at all, was if I got drunk. Or if I got high. It didn't matter what I got drunk or high on. I'll tell you I can never touch vodka again.

I'll tell you I've been clean of any drugs since 2009.

But that year? Especially after we moved out to live in another apartment? I was getting cross faded every weekend. Because I was down right depressed. Trapt. Alone. I had no friends. I only had this bastard to keep me company that entire year. And lemme tell you when you're stuck with someone you wish could love you and you wish you could find the strength to love them at all-- that year feels like ten years in 365 days.

At the end of 2008...I had an accident. I fell down a flight of stairs and cracked my lower lumber. My back has never been the same since. At this point, Nelson and I were trying to make things work again. But this is where it all fell apart.

I fell a week before Christmas. The doctor at the time couldn't do anything for the crack in my back because it was a hairline fracture that didn't need surgery. Said it'll heal. Here some crutches, Vicodin and merry Christmas!

I was stuck in that apartment. Unable to see family. Nelson LEFT ME ALONE, barely able to MOVE. Barely any food.

For a week.

And I couldn't do a damn thing...but eat a box of crackers and drink water and devour meds to keep the pain away. For the entire Christmas week and into the New Year of 2009.

I'll tell you that I could really only lay there and wish to die.

In the New Year, I found new strength. I found rage. I found the will to live and to kick out the crap and the alcohol and the drugs and I WANTED my family.

I just wanted to finish out the volunteer job then I was DONE.

My back got better and I was able to stand again. I spoke to Nelson less and less. I began to notice that he wouldn't pay the rent like he said he would. But he suddenly had money to take the train to go see a friend every weekend. Or have a new video game. We had an eviction notice to leave by the end of February. By that time, I'd be done with the volunteer work. The apartment was in Nelson's name alone. It was all too perfect....

My plan was set.

The day before Valentine's Day, Nelson had returned from his weekend excursion. I was going to drop the bomb on him about the late notice because I HID IT from him. So he had no idea.

But he did something that surprised me. He sat next to me. Told me I looked pretty. And I was genuinely surprised. For a moment, I thought that we were gonna work things out. Maybe he was going to apologize for everything.

He touched my lips with his finger and I felt something....I felt happy for a split second

Until he said: This is the finger I used to pleasure that friend I've been visiting every weekend since December.

THE "FRIEND" WAS A GIRL. HE WAS CHEATING ON ME WHILE WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE WORKING THINGS OUT. HE JUST TOUCHED HIS UNWASHED FINGER JERKING HAND ONTO MY FUCKING MOUTH.

I

BEAT

HIS

ASS!!!!

I kicked him out of his own apartment. The next day, Valentine's Day, I treated myself to Disneyland. And silently hated every single lovely dove couple I saw and rode Space Mountain until I grew bored of it. Treated myself to my favorite restaurant. I went shopping. I stayed until closing to see ALL the parades and fireworks.

I went back home. The next day....I cleaned...

As in, I got trash bags and started to throw away ...... EVERYTHING HE OWNED.

Clothes

Personal items

Collector things

Food

Bathroom stuff

Everything that could fit in a 40 gallon trash bag-- I threw it all down the apartment's garbage chute.

I sold his games

His game systems

The TV and entertainment system sold to the neighbors

The only thing I left behind was the coffee table with the eviction notice IN HIS NAME with a note: If he ever came near me again it was on site and nothing and no one would save him from me. I would BEAT his ass again.

.....So after writing this, I realize that it's not really HIM that's got me upset. It's the fact that I allowed myself to stay at all. That's what had me mad.

But. I also can't hold onto that. Or else ....

People like that win. They take power over you. And if you don't forgive them FOR YOURSELF....then they keep that power. So. Nelson.

Go fuck yourself and I forgive you for being a piece of shit. Yeah I think that's how it works. I hope you scrapped your balls on the pavement.

[coyoteprince]

what were Degare and Waite's childhoods like?

Tl;dr: bad

Degare technically was born a young adult (about 17, 18?). In his prior human life he was raised as a daughter on a medieval peasant farm so. Not great! He ran away in his early mid teens after hearing he was going to be married and presented as a young pageboy to gain employment at an apothecary a couple years before his rebirth. He was feral for a few years, very isolated and alone, got driven out by humans, then Sandman took him and gave him to his adoptive mothers. All three gave him dedicated education (a lot of it in medicine) and room to be a person, but he also had emotional/behavioral problems as a result of a not great past. He was very loving and awkward but would either respond with frightened aggression or remove himself entirely if presented with something that made him upset... which I guess hasn't changed too much in his middleage, except he keeps his loving side as hidden as he can manage haha

Waite was the first born son in a middle class family that started a tea import company. His parents were so concerned with just trying to make something of themselves via new wealth & improving their class that they became very absent and allowed nannies to raise Waite. Waite had multiple other siblings but all died in infancy except for his sister Luella. He still visits and cares for the graves of his siblings.

Waite had "problems with authority" (read: autistic) and was almost sent to a care home because of it. Terrified to look his father in the eyes, often wouldn't speak unless it was to the house workers or the wolfhounds kept as pets, did weird things with his hands, etc. He was seen by his parents as being overly sensitive and a not very smart troublemaker and they made sure to let him know what burden this put on them. Physical punishment was common as it was the only way they could seem to get him to "listen" to them, he was put on a strict diet to "curb his excitement" when he was about 14 which resulted in nutrition deficiency until his late 30s, wasn't allowed to behave like a child or be interested in childish things (fairytale books) starting from the time he was 10, etc etc. A lot of restriction in an attempt to turn him into something he's not.

The house workers who essentially raised him were very kind though and they are the reason why he relates much more to normal folk despite what his parents tried to teach about class division. He would seek positive attention from them and they would sneak him food and books he wasn't allowed despite it risking their position and in one case, resulting in a firing which Waite blamed himself for harshly.

Beyond this, he was being groomed to take on the business eventually so he had a lot of tutoring in finances and penmanship. He also gained a love for repairing book bindings in his teens as a result of his father regularly destroying the fairytale books he found hidden throughout the house, which Waite wasn't allowed to have.

[saint-starflicker]

My Top 10 dark academia stageplays:

#10 Cleansed by Sarah Kane

This playwright is known for deconstructions of stageplays themselves. Kane's later works replaced characters with voices, or did away with settings, and became so avant-garde that they weren't shows anymore but experiences. While Cleansed still had something like a plot or characters, it's a surrealist story set at a university—according to the script—that nobody treats as a university because they're only trapped there by a serial-killer torturer man. It is gory, depending on the stage effects budget many audience members are prone to walk out, but if you can withstand the shows of violence then you might find that there is meaningfulness at every instance of it.

#9 Rope's End by Patrick Hamilton

The morality of murder as discussed by elitist post-grads. I think The Secret History fans would like this for the similar themes. There was a movie adaptation in 1948 directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

#8 The Children's Hour by Lillian Hellman

There is a movie version from 1961 that I consider "malicious compliance" to the Hays Code policy of bury-your-lesbians. The doomed-to-death character was not a bad person, and an intolerant society is worse off for having lost her.

#7 The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds by Paul Zindel

Tilly Hunsdorfer has a science fair project to put together, but her home life continues a legacy of child abuse. I have not watched the 1972 film adaptation, but the internet has informed me of its existence.

#6 The Awakening of Spring by Frank Wedekind

Written in 1891, translated into English by Edward Bond in 1974, again by Ted Hughes in 1995, and translated/adapted by Anya Reiss in 2014. When young people aren't guided and educated about facts of life that are traditionally ignored or repressed, then their actions become destructive. There was a very popular Broadway musical adaptation and American Sign Language revival, but I'm trying to keep to listing stageplays that are not musicals.

#5 Proof by David Auburn

A father and daughter duo are mathematicians who figuratively walk a tightrope between genius and madness. There was a movie adaptation in 2005.

#4 Master Class by Terrence McNally

This might not technically be a musical, because the featured songs are selected from other operas that Callas starred in, so I'm including this on the list. A retired opera singer, the legendary Maria Callas, teaches a room full of opera singers. Each song they select to perform sets off a series of monologues from the impassioned Callas about her life, portraying wartime poverty through to the betrayal of torrid love affairs, and how her voice was a gift and a curse.

#3 Educating Rita by Willy Russell

This is much more on the academia side than the dark side, but I think people that liked Dead Poets Society 1989 for the themes will like this stageplay or it's 1983 movie adaptation.

#2 Arcadia by Tom Stoppard

In the year 1809, the honorable Septimus Hodge tutors a teenaged gentlewoman with a keen interest in mathematics and physics. In 1993, two historians and a mathematician stay at the estate and try to find out what happened there between 1809 and 1813: sword duels, extramarital affairs, secret letters, famous poets, and how the brilliant Thomasina died tragically young and unsung. They clash with regards to academic "office politics" and the importance of the humanities versus the sciences.

Honorable Mentions:

The History Boys by Alan Bennett

In terms of how this stageplay and the 2006 movie adaptation tackles social issues, it's technically better than Dead Poets Society on every count: directly confronting misogyny and racism in academia, and having canonically queer boys and men in a convoluted relationship triangle as they try to prepare for university entrance examinations. There is a death. The History Boys absolutely qualifies as the genre Dark Academia. At the same time, I cannot recommend it because the way one main thread of subplot was handled really bothered me.

Picasso at the Lapin Agile by Steve Martin

While this list got much less dark from Proof on downwards, this might also be less academic. Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso meet at a café, the eponymous "Lapin Agile", and banter with the entire cast of characters about their life and philosophies. I found the entire play both funny and fun, and I really think it gets the neurons firing in sparkly ways.

Doubt: A Parable by John Patrick Shanley

At a Catholic school, a nun tries to prevent a priest from further interfering sexually with one of their students. The stageplay keeps the audience in doubt(!) about whether or not he did what he was accused of, as the story spirals into explorations of faith, race, sexual orientation, pragmatism versus principle, and whether what we're shown in our limited ways to witness can really be what it is. There was a movie adaptation in 2008 starring Meryl Streep.

#1

I don't actually know what to put here. Recommend a stageplay that you think belongs in this spot.

[newlysteadytrophy]

Best Home Tuition Near Me – Expert Learning at Your Doorstep with Saraswati Tutorials

In today’s fast-paced educational environment, students often require more than just classroom learning to keep up with their studies. With limited time for individual attention in schools and growing academic pressure, many parents find themselves searching online for the best home tuition near me to give their children a competitive edge. That’s where Saraswati Tutorials comes in — delivering high-quality, personalized home tuition right at your doorstep in Dehradun.

If you’re looking for reliable, results-oriented, and flexible tutoring that adapts to your child’s unique learning style and academic goals, Saraswati Tutorials is the name you can trust. With years of experience and a team of expert educators, we’ve helped hundreds of students across all grades improve their understanding, confidence, and exam results — all from the comfort of their homes.

Why Home Tuition?

Home tuition is not just a trend—it’s a proven academic support system. Students who receive one-on-one instruction at home benefit from a level of attention and customization that classroom teaching simply cannot offer.

Here’s why home tuition is becoming the preferred choice for families:

Personalized Learning: Tutors adapt to your child’s pace, needs, and syllabus.

Fewer Distractions: The home environment creates a focused, stress-free setting.

Convenience: No need to travel—classes are scheduled according to your family’s availability.

Immediate Feedback: Tutors can address doubts on the spot and adjust their teaching methods.

Boosted Confidence: Regular mentoring improves both academic performance and self-esteem.

When you’re searching for the best home tuition near me, what you truly need is a dependable and effective solution—and that’s exactly what Saraswati Tutorials delivers.

Saraswati Tutorials – The Trusted Name for Home Tuition

Saraswati Tutorials has built a strong reputation in Dehradun for offering high-quality, one-on-one tuition across subjects and grade levels. Our aim is simple: to make learning easier, deeper, and more enjoyable for students by delivering tailored instruction that addresses their specific academic challenges.

Whether your child is in primary school or preparing for board exams, our tutors are trained to teach, guide, and motivate. We offer academic support that not only improves marks but builds the habits of long-term success.

What Makes Saraswati Tutorials the Best?

When parents search for the best home tuition near me, they’re looking for a combination of quality teaching, flexibility, and measurable outcomes. Saraswati Tutorials excels in all these areas.

1. Highly Qualified Tutors

Each tutor is carefully selected for their academic credentials, teaching experience, and communication skills. We assign subject-specialized tutors who are well-versed with various boards like CBSE, ICSE, and State Boards.

2. Customized Study Plans

Every student learns differently. We create individual study plans based on a student's current academic level, school curriculum, and personal learning pace to ensure efficient learning and improvement.

3. Full Subject Coverage

We offer home tuition for all major subjects:

Mathematics

Science (Physics, Chemistry, Biology)

English and Hindi

Social Studies

Commerce (Accounts, Business Studies, Economics)

Classes are available from Grade 1 to 12, with special focus programs for Class 10 and 12 board exams.

4. Flexible Scheduling

Parents and students can choose session times based on their daily schedules. Morning, afternoon, evening, or weekend slots are available to suit your routine.

5. Continuous Progress Monitoring

Weekly assessments and monthly reviews allow us to track student progress and fine-tune teaching methods. We maintain open communication with parents, keeping them updated on their child’s performance.

6. Affordable Pricing

We offer competitive rates for monthly packages, subject-wise tuition, and full-year academic support. Our pricing is transparent and designed to provide maximum value.

Who Can Benefit from Saraswati Tutorials?

The answer is simple—every student. Whether your child is struggling in school or aiming for top ranks, our personalized home tuition can help them reach their potential.

Our home tuition is ideal for:

Primary students building foundational knowledge

Middle school students needing concept clarity

High school students preparing for boards

Commerce and Science stream students in senior secondary

Students preparing for entrance exams or Olympiads

So the next time you search “best home tuition near me,” remember that Saraswati Tutorials serves students from all backgrounds, across all parts of Dehradun.

Student and Parent Feedback

Our success is reflected in the results and satisfaction of our students and their families. Here’s what some of them have shared:

"We were searching for the best home tuition near me for my son in Class 9, and Saraswati Tutorials was a perfect fit. His marks and confidence both improved significantly." – Parent, Vasant Vihar

"The personal attention I got in Science and Math really helped me understand topics that confused me at school. Thank you to Saraswati Tutorials for being so patient and helpful." – Class 10 Student

Final Thoughts

Every student has the potential to succeed—it just takes the right guidance. If you’ve been typing “best home tuition near me” into search engines, hoping to find a tutor who actually makes a difference, your search ends with Saraswati Tutorials.

We believe that with the right support, every student can thrive. Our tutors do more than just teach—they mentor, motivate, and instill a love for learning. With our personalized, flexible, and affordable approach, Saraswati Tutorials stands out as the best home tuition provider near you.

Get Started Today

Don’t let your child struggle in silence or settle for average results. Give them the focused attention and expert instruction they deserve.

Contact Saraswati Tutorials today to book a free consultation or trial class, and take the first step toward better grades and greater confidence—right at home.

[hrgauravsingh]

🚀 10 Low-Investment Online Business Ideas You Can Start Today 💡

The digital age has ushered in an era of unprecedented entrepreneurial opportunities, especially for those with a limited budget but boundless ambition. Gone are the days when starting a business demanded hefty capital, physical infrastructure, and a large team. Today, with a laptop and a reliable internet connection, you can launch a thriving online venture right from your home in India.

Having observed the dynamic shifts in the business landscape for over a decade, I can confidently state that low-investment online businesses are not just a passing trend; they are a powerful force democratising entrepreneurship. They offer individuals the chance to escape the 9-to-5 grind, pursue their passions, and build a sustainable income, often with minimal risk. The impact on personal lives is profound, offering flexibility, autonomy, and the potential for significant financial independence.

Let's dive into 10 practical and accessible online business ideas that you can kickstart with minimal investment.

1. ✍️ Freelance Writing & Content Creation

If you possess a strong command over language and a flair for articulating ideas, freelance writing is an excellent avenue. Businesses across industries constantly require engaging content – be it blog posts, website copy, articles, social media captions, or email newsletters.

How it works: You can begin by creating a strong portfolio of your best writing samples. Platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, or even LinkedIn can connect you with clients globally. The investment is essentially your time and a good internet connection. Many successful Indian freelancers have carved out lucrative careers by specialising in niches like technical writing, SEO content, or marketing copy. For instance, a skilled content writer in Bengaluru might charge upwards of ₹2 to ₹5 per word for high-quality, research-intensive articles.

2. 🎨 Graphic Designing Services

In a visually-driven world, compelling graphics are non-negotiable for businesses. If you have an eye for design and proficiency in tools like Canva (for beginners) or Adobe Creative Suite, you can offer services such as logo design, social media graphics, brochures, or website layouts.

How it works: Start by building a portfolio of your design work. Leverage social media platforms like Instagram and Behance to showcase your creativity. Many startups and small businesses in India are always on the lookout for affordable yet professional graphic designers. The initial investment might be in learning software or subscribing to design asset libraries, but many free resources are available to get started.

3. 📚 Online Tutoring & Coaching

The demand for online education has surged, especially post-pandemic. If you are an expert in a specific academic subject, a competitive exam, a skill (like a musical instrument, coding, or even cooking), or a personal development area (like public speaking or fitness), you can offer online tutoring or coaching classes.

How it works: Platforms like Vedantu, UrbanPro, or even simply using video conferencing tools like Zoom can facilitate your classes. Your primary investment is your knowledge and a reliable internet connection. Many teachers and subject matter experts in India are successfully transitioning to online tutoring, enjoying the flexibility and broader reach it offers.

4. 🛍️ Dropshipping Business

Dropshipping allows you to run an e-commerce store without holding any inventory. When a customer places an order, you simply purchase the product from a third-party supplier, who then ships it directly to the customer.

How it works: You'll need to set up an online store using platforms like Shopify (which has a monthly subscription but offers free trials) or leverage marketplaces like Amazon or Flipkart. Your focus will be on marketing the products. The low investment comes from not needing to buy products upfront; you only pay the supplier once a sale is made. This model significantly reduces financial risk associated with inventory management.

5. 🌐 Social Media Management

Businesses, big and small, understand the power of social media but often lack the time or expertise to manage their presence effectively. If you're social media savvy, understand algorithms, and can craft engaging content, you can offer social media management services.

How it works: Start by showcasing your own strong social media presence. Offer to manage accounts for local businesses or start-ups on a freelance basis. Your investment is minimal – primarily your time, analytical skills, and perhaps subscription to scheduling tools (many offer free tiers). This service is particularly impactful for small businesses looking to expand their digital footprint.

6. 📊 Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing involves promoting other companies' products or services and earning a commission on every sale made through your unique referral link.

How it works: You can start a blog, a YouTube channel, or a strong social media presence where you genuinely review and recommend products relevant to your audience. When someone buys through your link, you earn a commission. Joining affiliate programs (like Amazon Associates or specific company programs) is free. Your investment goes into creating valuable content that drives traffic and builds trust.

7. 📸 Stock Photography/Videography

If you have a keen eye for visuals and own a decent camera (even a high-quality smartphone camera can suffice for some niches), you can sell your photos and videos to stock media websites.

How it works: Platforms like Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, and Getty Images allow photographers and videographers to upload their work and earn royalties whenever someone licenses their content. This is a passive income stream that can grow over time as your portfolio expands. Think about the common needs: business concepts, diverse Indian faces, local landmarks, or specific product imagery.

8. 💻 Virtual Assistant Services

Many entrepreneurs and small business owners are overwhelmed with administrative tasks. As a virtual assistant (VA), you can offer remote support for tasks like email management, scheduling appointments, data entry, research, or even basic bookkeeping.

How it works: You can market your services through your LinkedIn profile, freelance platforms, or by networking. The primary investment is your organisational skills, communication tools, and a reliable internet connection. This provides immense flexibility and allows you to work with multiple clients across different industries.

9. 👕 Print-on-Demand (POD)

Similar to dropshipping, Print-on-Demand allows you to sell custom-designed products (like T-shirts, mugs, phone cases, hoodies) without managing inventory. When an order comes in, a POD service prints your design onto the product and ships it directly to the customer.

How it works: You design the graphics, set up an online store (e.g., on Shopify with a POD app, or Etsy), and promote your products. POD platforms handle printing and shipping. Your investment is primarily in creating unique designs and marketing. This is a fantastic avenue for creative individuals who want to monetise their artistic flair.

10. 💡 Niche Online Courses / Digital Products

Do you have a unique skill, knowledge, or expertise that others would benefit from? You can create and sell online courses (e.g., teaching a language, advanced Excel skills, digital marketing tactics) or digital products (e.g., e-books, templates, checklists, planners).

How it works: Platforms like Teachable, Udemy, or even your own website with an e-commerce plugin can host your courses or products. Your investment is your time in creating high-quality, valuable content. The beauty of digital products is their scalability – you create it once and can sell it infinitely.

🎯 Conclusion: Your Digital Entrepreneurial Journey Awaits!

The landscape of entrepreneurship has been profoundly reshaped by the internet. These ten low-investment online business ideas are not just theoretical concepts; they are proven pathways to financial independence and personal fulfilment, demonstrated by countless individuals across India. They empower you to leverage your skills, creativity, and passion without the daunting financial hurdles of traditional businesses.

The key to success in any of these ventures lies in a combination of dedication, continuous learning, and a relentless focus on providing value to your audience or clients. Don't underestimate the power of starting small, learning along the way, and adapting to market demands. The initial investment might be low, but the potential returns – both financial and personal – are immensely high.

Are you ready to transform your aspirations into a tangible online business? The time to start is now!

[faridabadhometutor]

Science tutors at Home Faridabad | Private Science tutors near me | Faridabad Home tutor

Finding the Best Science Tutors at Home in Faridabad

In today’s competitive academic environment, having a strong foundation in Science (Physics, Chemistry, and Biology) is crucial for students, whether they are preparing for school exams, CBSE/ICSE boards, or competitive tests like NEET and JEE. For parents in Faridabad, hiring a qualified science home tutor can make a significant difference in their child’s understanding and performance. Home tutoring offers personalized attention, flexible schedules, and a comfortable learning environment, helping students grasp complex concepts at their own pace.

Faridabad has many experienced science tutors who specialize in interactive and practical teaching methods, making subjects like Physics numericals, Chemical equations, and Biological diagrams easier to understand. Whether your child is in Class 6-10 needing CBSE/ICSE support or a Class 11-12 student preparing for medical/engineering entrance exams, a dedicated home tutor can provide customized lessons, doubt-solving sessions, and regular assessments.

If you're searching for "Science tutors at home Faridabad", look for tutors with strong subject knowledge, teaching experience, and positive student feedback. Many tutors also offer hybrid (online + offline) classes, making learning more accessible. Investing in a home science tutor in Faridabad ensures better grades, deeper understanding, and increased confidence in this essential subject.

Need help finding the best science home tutor in Faridabad? Connect with trusted tutoring services today for personalized, one-on-one learning that fits your child’s needs!

[umichenginabroad]

Week 4: Putting Study into Study Abroad

Hello everyone! This week has been so busy and I'm so excited to share it with you.

Belfast

On Saturday we had a day trip to Belfast, but me and some friends decided to stay the night to go to Giants causeway the next morning. The field trio portion consisted of a political bus tour where we explored the protestant and catholic portions of Belfast, and a museum.

It was really cool to see everything as it really applied to what we were learning in class. The UCD team really does an amazing job making sure our field trips align with what we're learning in class.

After that, everyone else went home and it was time to explore Belfast. On the field trip itself we didn't have much time to see the city (we had about an hour and a half but we were also supposed to get lunch in that time), so staying the night was well worth it. I got to see the cathedral, the clock tower, and the government building. Dinner was really rough as every place we went to either didn't have their kitchen open or were reservation only, so note to everyone, book your restaurants ahead. Now all I need to worry about is whether or not this counts as a trip outside of the country? It was more than one day, but it is still Ireland, so I don’t think it really counts? Not that this will be a problem for much longer (foreshadowing).

The Giant's Causeway

We took a half day tour from Belfast to the Giants causeway to ensure we'd be getting back to Dublin on time. It was nice to not do public transport as I was able to sleep the majority of the time. The Causeway Itself was absolutely amazing, it was so cool to see the natural formations of the cooling lava. I would say it's definitely a must see if you're ever in Northern Ireland.

(of course I have to mention listening to the hit 2017 pop song Galway Girl by Ed Sheeran again!)

Field Trip to Prison

On Monday we went to prison! It was surprisingly pretty, I actually enjoyed it. The prison held rebels from the 1916 rising, the rebellion, and general prisoners. The youngest prisoner ever held there was a 3 year old for stealing bread. Insane.

School

The rest of this week hasn't included too much exploring, mostly just school work. So, I feel it's finally time to share with you how academics work here (putting the study into study abroad).We have two classes, Physics and History. Both classes consist of every person in the program and are in pretty big lecture halls. Lectures for both classes are 2 hours long with a 10 minute break in the middle. UCD also does Michigan time with classes ending 10 minutes early.

History is lectures with one tutorial a week, and all the field trips count towards our attendance and coincide with what we are learning. We typically have 2 lectures and a field trip every week. Then, every Friday from 2-4pm we have tutorial. We're split into 3 groups, by alphabet, for tutorials. There's pre-class readings we need to complete for discussion. Also during tutorial is when we do our presentations. Everyone has to do a 5 to 8 minute presentation while we're here, worth 30% of our history grade. I had mine last week and it really wasn't bad. In the very first tutorial, we picked a question to answer. All the questions already had set presentation dates. All the research, putting it into a powerpoint, and making a 2 page summary of my presentation took about 3 hours. The final exam, we’re told, is going to be two essay questions that will be based on readings we're given before. History comes out to be 20% participation/attendance, 30% for the presentation, and 50% for the final exam.

Physics is lectures, tutorial, and lab. In tutorial, we break into groups of 4 or 5 and complete a worksheet together. It's really not bad, and there are tutors around to answer any and all questions. Tutorials are two hours long, but usually they take my group between an hour and an hour and a half. Labs are 3 hours long, although usually only take 2. There have been very few times where the lap lasted the entire 3 hours. Labs here are very different to UofM. There’s no coding whatsoever, and everything we do is measured by hand or using tools.

Physics is graded with 15% tutorials, 25% lab, 10% midterm, and 50% for the final. The midterm Quiz was open book and 10 multiple choice questions. As easy as that may sound, it really wasn't. The class average was a 5.7/10. You do have to pay attention to lectures! The final is going to be closed note, and we will only be provided with an equation sheet. It will be open response and partial credit will be awarded (thankfully).

In order for credit to transfer to UofM, we need a 40%, or a D-, to pass. Honestly, I think as long as you attend class, you'll pass. Lectures and tutorials really setyou up for success. History is the same, pay attention and do the readings and you'll learn. The days are long, usually lasting from 9 am to 5 pm (and dinner is from 5 to 6:30, so sometimes you're not getting home until 6 pm) there are days where classes finish at 1 pm, and those are really nice. And on field trip days, the second half of the day is out exploring.

Sweet Treats

I just want to share that I got ice cream twice this week, and both times were absolutely amazing. The first, in Belfast, I got a biscoff ice cream, absolutely delicious, I definitely reccomend going to Mackies. It was pretty inexpensive, too! I also got an ice cream in dublin after the prison museum on Tuesday, it was a ferrero roche sundae. Im not saying american ice cream is bad, but I am definitely saying that Ireland knows what its doing. I think, since coming here, I’ve had some of the best ice cream of my life.

This week, although stressful with rhe midterm, was a pretty good one. Im really looking forward to next week as I have lots of things planned! This weekend I'll be in Edinburgh, Scotland, and next week I'm planning on seeing The Book of Kells, Howth, and trying some restaraunts in dublin. Surprising enough, I actually haven't eaten anywhere downtown besides mcdonalds as I've either not been here, or bought microwave meals on weekends. During the week we get lunch and dinner, so I definitely wouldn't give up a free meal to pay for one.

Anyways! I'm rambling!

Updated Goals:

Thrift a leather jacket

Make new friends

See a highland cow

Try a Guinness

Go on a trip outside of the country

Go somewhere alone again!

Go to Galway and listen to the hit 2017 song Galway Girl by Ed Sheeran

Go to a National Park

I’ll see you guys soon!

Katelyn Brodsky

Environmental Engineering

Big 10 STEM Physics and Irish History Program at UCD Dublin

[callofdutymobileindia]

Top Online Education Franchise Opportunities in India for 2025

The digital learning revolution is not a passing trend—it’s the new foundation of modern education. With online education becoming an essential part of both school and professional learning ecosystems, there’s never been a better time to invest in an Online Education Franchise in India.

Whether you're an educator, entrepreneur, or a passionate individual seeking a purpose-driven business, owning an online education franchise in 2025 gives you access to a future-proof business model. This blog explores the top online education franchise opportunities in India, key trends shaping the sector, benefits of investing, and what you should look for before taking the leap.

The Rise of Online Education Franchising in India

India’s EdTech market has exploded in the last few years, driven by increasing smartphone penetration, affordable internet, a digitally aware population, and the push from pandemic-era learning habits. According to industry reports, the Indian online education market is set to surpass USD 10 billion by 2025, making it one of the most lucrative sectors for investment.

Online education franchises are tapping into this digital-first mindset by offering franchisees ready-made infrastructure, curriculum, learning platforms, and marketing support—everything you need to succeed without starting from scratch.

From online tutoring to coding, soft skills to language training, franchise models are available across diverse educational niches, each with high growth potential.

Why Choose an Online Education Franchise in 2025?

Here are compelling reasons why now is the perfect time to invest in an online education franchise:

1. Booming Market Demand

The demand for personalized, accessible, and affordable online learning is at an all-time high. Parents, working professionals, and students are actively seeking quality platforms that offer flexibility, performance tracking, and outcome-based results.

2. Low Startup Cost & High Scalability

Unlike physical centers, an online education franchise minimizes infrastructure costs. You don’t need to rent space, hire full-time instructors, or invest in large-scale logistics. This lowers your capital requirement and boosts profit margins.

3. Work-from-Anywhere Business Model

An online franchise offers unmatched flexibility. Whether you’re operating from home or a co-working space, your business runs efficiently on cloud-based platforms, LMS tools, and digital classrooms.

4. Recurring Revenue Streams

Most online education models work on a subscription or course-based structure, ensuring a consistent cash flow. Additional revenue comes from certifications, advanced modules, and premium services.

5. Ready-to-Launch Packages

Franchisors provide a turnkey setup, including branding, tech platforms, learning content, assessments, and customer support. All you need to do is focus on local promotion and student enrollment.

Top Online Education Franchise Categories to Explore in 2025

India’s education needs are broad, and the online model has penetrated nearly every learning niche. Here are the top-performing Online Education Franchise categories you should consider:

1. K–12 Online Tutoring

With academic competition rising and personalized learning gaining traction, online tutoring platforms for school students are in massive demand. Franchises in this space provide structured modules based on CBSE, ICSE, and state boards for students from grades 1 to 12.

Opportunity: High enrollment potential, especially in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities with limited access to top-quality tuition.

Key Features:

AI-powered assessments

Live classes & recorded sessions

Parent dashboards for tracking

2. Online Coding & STEM Education

STEM-based learning, especially coding for kids, has become a vital skill set in the digital age. Franchises offering online coding, robotics, game development, and AI basics to students aged 6–18 are thriving.

Opportunity: High engagement, futuristic curriculum, and scope for certifications.

Key Features:

Interactive coding platforms

Logical thinking & real-world project building

Certification-driven modules

3. Language Learning & Communication Skills

The demand for English-speaking, IELTS prep, and personality development programs is evergreen. Online language education franchises provide structured programs that cater to both students and working professionals.

Opportunity: Low cost of delivery, large adult learner base, potential for international expansion.

Key Features:

Video-led modules with pronunciation guides

Live practice sessions

Interview & job-readiness programs

4. Competitive Exam Preparation

From NEET and JEE to UPSC and banking exams, online coaching is gaining more trust than ever. Franchises that specialize in virtual test prep with subject-wise experts and AI-based mock test evaluations are flourishing.

Opportunity: High student volume, multiple exam cycles per year, long-term enrollment.

Key Features:

Expert-led coaching

Test series and analysis tools

Mentorship support and study planners

5. Skill Development and Career-Focused Learning

Professional learners are looking to upskill through online certifications in areas like digital marketing, data science, finance, project management, and more. Career-focused education franchises cater to this segment by offering micro-credentialed programs.

Opportunity: Fast-growing adult learner market and corporate training add-ons.

Key Features:

Industry-validated content

Resume building and placement support

Live projects and peer networking

Advantages of Owning an Online Education Franchise in India

No Geographic Barriers: Reach students across India (or globally) with zero relocation or physical expansion.

Flexible Work-Life Balance: Manage operations from home at your convenience.

Continuous Innovation: Stay ahead of trends with regular content upgrades and platform enhancements from the franchisor.

Scalable Business: Expand into new categories or launch sub-franchises once you’re established.

Social Impact: Play a vital role in transforming lives through education and upskilling.

Final Thoughts

The digital education sector is no longer a backup plan—it’s the mainstay of 21st-century learning. If you’re looking for a business opportunity that offers profitability, scalability, and purpose, anOnline Education Franchise is one of the most future-ready investments in India today.

With low barriers to entry, minimal infrastructure needs, and a massive demand across all age groups, launching an online education franchise in 2025 gives you a competitive edge in a booming market.

Whether your goal is financial freedom, flexible work hours, or making a difference in learners' lives, this is your opportunity to build something meaningful. Start your journey today—because the future of education is already online.